STUDIO WORKS-DIGITAL

Asus My Cinema ES2-750 PT/FM/AV/RC Hybrid TV Card

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 04:24:00 +0000

With the limitations of many media players and ever-falling prices of ever more powerful PC components, building a Home Theatre PC (HTPC) as the centre of your entertainment setup is a mighty tempting proposition. A core part of this setup will be a TV Tuner card, and we're looking at a likely candidate today: Asus' lengthily-named My Cinema ES2-750 PT/FM/AV/RC Hybrid TV Card.

Asus is by no means a stranger to the TV tuner game and its My Cinema range has been around for a long while, so we're hoping for good things. This card isn't high-end though. Unlike the dual-DVB-T Compro VideoMate E900F we reviewed a while back, the ES2-750 only has a single TV aerial input, through which you can choose to accept digital (ATSC, DVB-T, and Clear QAM) or analogue terrestrial (PAL, SECAM, and NTSC) television, though obviously the former is the preferred option.

At the card's heart beats an AMD/ATI Theater HD750 chip, which while not featuring unusually advanced video processing does bring with it a few advantages - especially if you have an AMD/ATI Radeon HD graphics card, which it can use for transcoding. The HD750 offers all the usual enhancements such as an intelligent 2D/3D comb filter, de-interlacing and noise reduction. A highlight here is 12-bit ADC rather than the usual 8-bit one, but this is only relevant if you do still watch analogue TV.

In addition to its TV tuner functionality the ES2-750 offers FM radio, and also allows you to connect external AV sources through it to your PC. The only downside is that there's no component input, just S-Video and composite, so HD is out of the question. To be fair this is a problem with many of these devices, but some tuners like the aforementioned Compro E900F do offer component.

Asus' included bundle is certainly adequate though. Aside from the card itself, which sports a full-height bracket by default, there's a half-height bracket, AV input cable (composite or S-Video to 8-pin DIN), IR extension cable, TV and Radio aerials and finally a remote control.

To be honest the remote isn't anything special. Ergonomically, the relatively heavy remote is just a bit too large for comfort, though it does make a very solid impression and is finished in durable textured matte black. Some of the edges when inserting the AA batteries are sharp enough to cut. Meanwhile the buttons are on the small side and though logical, their layout isn't particularly clever either. However, you'll likely get used to any quirks and at least the remote is very responsive with excellent range (we tested up to 20 metres).

source: www.trustedreviews.com

Sony Walkman NWZ-S544 8GB

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 04:18:00 +0000

Anyone hoping the Walkman NWZ-S544 would score as well as the NWZ-E443 will be disappointed. While in isolation it's still a decent media player, it's something of a step if not necessarily backwards, then definitely sideways from its S Series predecessor. And different doesn't automatically mean better.

The changes are immediately evident. The S544 is noticeably bigger than the NWZ-S639F. The reason for this increase in size is that, keeping with the current inclination towards adding slightly gimmicky features (hello, iPod nano), Sony's refreshed S Series Walkman comes complete with built-in speakers which add a fair amount of size (though not weight it should be said) to the player.

Admittedly there are benefits to having built-in speakers. Laying in bed with Charlie Brooker's Gameswipe transferred to the S544, for example, it's possible to keep the volume low enough that there isn't any distortion. Although with the volume down it might be hard to hear the programme over the raucous laughter it's likely to induce. More practically, you can use the S544 as an alarm without needing to sleep wearing 'phones (which is just a little impractical) or leave a set of speakers plugged in and turned on.

In the outside world, however, using the player's speakers is nigh unforgivable. I can't say I've ever been inclined to sit in a bus or train and blare out my music for everyone else to 'enjoy', which is probably very uncharitable of me because I have impeccable taste. Annoyingly, however, not everyone is as restrained as I and the quality of the 544's speakers at volumes loud enough to hear anything in anything but a totally quiet environment mean that what you do get to hear is an incoherent mess of noise.

In fairness to Sony, no speakers this small are going to sound amazing and it's hardly any engineer's fault if today's youths decide to misuse their products. Besides, the E Series is there if you prefer a smaller player.

source: www.trustedreviews.com

Orange UK Lands iPhone, O2 Loses Exclusivity

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 05:30:00 +0000

It's here...

The long running rumours that O2 was set to lose its iPhone exclusivity in the UK have turned out to be true after Orange finally announced today it will also soon sell the highest of all high profile handsets.

In a company statement it declared:

"Orange UK and Apple have reached an agreement to bring iPhone 3G and 3GS to Orange UK customers later this year. Orange globally now offers iPhone in 28 countries and territories. Orange, which has the largest 3G network covering more people in the UK than any other operator, will sell iPhone in all Orange direct channels including Orange shops, the Orange webshop and Orange telesales channels, as well as selected high street partners. A pre-registration site for customers to log their interest has already been launched at www.orange.co.uk/iPhone. More information on pricing, tariffs and availability dates will be released in due course."

By contrast, O2 has responded saying:

"We're proud that we've been able to offer an exclusive iPhone deal to our 20 million customers for the last two years. We always knew that iPhone exclusivity was for a limited period of time, but our relationship with Apple continues and will be an ongoing success. We have over 1million iPhone customers and they remain very important to us. We aim to offer our customers the best devices on the market, including becoming the home of Smartphones and we are really pleased to now add another device in the Palm Pre. We also offer award-winning customer service and benefits, which is why more people choose O2 than any other network in the UK."

I'd agree with the customer service part, but judging by the Twitter world's reaction to the news it seems there isn't much love out there for O2 currently. It may be the UK's largest network, but it seems to have achieved this via endless handset exclusives rather than through the quality and spread of its network service which has already been slammed by Ofcom. The O2 Data network has also been particularly unreliable in recent months and who could forget reader reaction to the extortionate O2 iPhone 3GS tariffs.

So let's hope competition and consequently choice brings a better service to iPhone users nationwide. With the Orange and T-Mobile merger announced earlier this month, it looks like a new heavyweight is in town...

source: www.trustedreviews.com

Ultimate Ears 700 Noise-Isolating Earphones

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 05:27:00 +0000

It's almost scary thinking back two years. Two years ago, I was trying to convince anyone who would listen that I hadn't wasted my money buying a PlayStation 3 - despite quite a lot of evidence to the contrary at that point - and I had coughed up close to £250 for a set of Shure SE420 dual-driver earphones. Luckily things have changed in the last 24-odd months. Sony's console is now pretty awesome and has seen a significant revision and pricing of earphones has dropped so much that a dual driver set, such as the Ultimate Ears 700 earphones I'm currently using can be had for around £130 - if that's not progress I don't know what is!

The price isn't the only good thing about the 700s, though. Not long ago we were praising the Klipsch Image X10s and Image X5s for sounding great, despite being incredibly small and light. But, amazingly, Ultimate Ears has managed to craft an even smaller set of earphones and cram not one, but two drivers into them. It's a remarkable feat of engineering and makes that price all the more impressive.

Their diminutive size makes the Ultimate Ears 700s a pleasure to wear, even for extended periods or - perish the thought - while active. The 90 degree angle at which the cable meets each earphone means they can be worn either 'normally' with the cable dropping straight down, or 'over the ear' Shure-style, giving a more secure fit and helping eliminate cable noise. It would be nice of there was an in-line remote as I find having to reach into my pocket and remove my iPod touch to skip tracks extremely annoying, but I guess that's my fault for having a player with no physical controls.

The earphones are finished in shiny silver plastic, but luckily it's not the cheap-looking kind. Instead the finish has a slightly smoky, blue quality to it. It's a step down in quality from the metal Image X5 and X10s, but if it's the choice between (presumably) better audio quality or a metal casing then I'm going to pick the better sounding option every time.

One annoyance comes from the red and blue inner colouring of the right and left earphones respectively. It's galling because it shows that someone clearly thought about making the difference identifiable without squinting for the L and R labels but neglected to consider what happens when it's dark. Just about every rival set of 'phones has some kind of physical identification, which is a great help when wearing them in bed - as I am.

source: www.trustedreviews.com

LG 32LH7000 32in LCD TV

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 05:25:00 +0000

Despite being remarkably cheap for what will turn out to be an unusually well-specified 32in TV, LG's 32LH7000 doesn't actually make the best first impression.

For starters, a big sticky sign plastered down one side of the TV when you first take it out of its box proudly proclaims, in large lettering, that the TV is 'Perfect Slim 39.7mm'. Ooh, that's pretty cool, I thought.

Only then in little letters underneath did I notice an apologetic explanation that the Perfect Slim design only applies to the 42in LH7000 set. The 32LH7000 is actually nearly twice as deep as 39.7mm. Er, oh.

Putting this disappointment behind me, I swiftly clocked another one. For while the 32LH7000's design is a typically (for LG) high-concept and stylish affair, it's also pretty huge by today's 32in standards. The bezel extends further around all of its sides than most TVs, a design choice that's taken to an extreme with the bottom edge, which lifts the screen a good five to six inches up from the glossy desktop stand.

It's important to stress that this chunky approach isn't some kind of clumsy accident on LG's part. The sheer, minimalist finish to the 32LH7000's bezel, the dramatically large and illuminated power light 'circle' under the screen, plus a bottom edge which is curved, transparent and infused with a sort of orangey hue all show that the TV's aesthetic is totally deliberate.

But while similar chassis-heavy designs on larger-screened LG TVs have worked quite well, it all looks too cumbersome for my tastes when wrapped around a mere 32in screen.

The final bad first impression comes, alarmingly, from the 32LH7000's pictures. For using the out-of-the-box Vivid picture preset LG has chosen as its preferred shipping option, images look depressingly bad. Here's hoping I'll be able to rescue them later when I get round to calibrating the TV properly.

Thankfully, from here on in things start to look up. For starters, the 32LH7000's connectivity is really quite excellent for such an affordable model. Four HDMIs catch the eye first, as does a USB port tucked directly above them. This USB is unusually talented, too, in that as well as MP3 and JPEG files it can play DivX video - including DivX HD. In other words, it's an Internet geek's dream come true.

More geek love is likely to be inspired by another connection you can't actually see: Bluetooth. This lets you a) wirelessly deliver pictures and music files from a Bluetooth phone to the TV, or b) listen to the TV's audio via Bluetooth headphones.

One final noteworthy jack is an RS-232C port, which allows the TV to be controlled by a remote AV network.

SOUREC: www.trustedreviews.com

Ricoh CX2

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 05:20:00 +0000

It's only been a few months since I reviewed the Ricoh CX1. Ricoh has never been the most prolific of camera manufacturers, only launching a couple of new models a year and keeping its older designs in production long after faster-moving brands would have discontinued them. It's rather surprising then that less than six months after the launch of the CX1, Ricoh has followed it up with today's camera, the new CX2.

Ricoh pretty much invented the concept of the pocket-sized compact camera with a long-zoom wide-angle lens, launching the five-megapixel, 7.1x zoom (28-200mm equiv.) Caplio R3 in 2005. At the time it was a unique idea, but other manufacturers eventually saw the potential of the design and introduced their own zoom compacts, most notably Panasonic with its highly successful TZ-series, the latest of which features a 12x zoom and HD video recording. Rather than try to play catch-up though, Ricoh introduced a new technical innovation with the CX1, in-camera High Dynamic Range (HDR) imaging, taking two pictures simultaneously at different exposures and combining them to produce a single image with improved shadow and highlight detail. I have no doubt that other manufacturers will soon copy this idea, in fact Pentax has included in-camera HDR in its latest DSLR, the K-7.

The CX2 is really only an incremental upgrade of the CX1, and shares nearly all of that camera's features, including the 9.29MP CMOS sensor, the incredibly sharp three-inch 920k monitor, the strong all-metal body and of course the in-camera HDR feature. The only obvious external difference is the small handgrip, which is now slightly more rounded and has a non-slip texture. I say obvious, because the main upgrade is easy to miss at first glance. The CX2 has a new f/3.5-5.6 10.7x zoom lens, equivalent to 28-300mm, but which retracts flush with the camera body and is exactly the same size as the f/3.3-5.2 7.1x zoom that Ricoh had been using since 2005.

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O2 Xda Zest Smartphone

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 12:09:00 +0000

It's been around seven years since O2 launched its Xda range of own branded smartphones, but the freshly squeezed Zest is the first one aimed specifically at Pay and Go users, although it is available on pay monthly too. The Zest also breaks with tradition in that it is actually built by Asus, whereas most other Xda devices are rebadged HTC models. Priced at £249.99 on O2's Pay and Go tariff, the handset is relatively cheap as smartphones go, especially as it packs in a decent range of features including HSDPA support and an onboard GPS chip.

Design-wise, the phone isn't what you'd call a looker. It's more functional than flash, with its wide and thick dimensions making it look rather squat. And while the glossy black finish on the front and back initially looks quite appealing to the eye, it collects more finger prints than the cast of CSI making it quickly look pretty grubby and in need of a wipe down. It's not all bad though, as the handset's small size makes it quite comfortable to hold and O2 has added a simple, but very useful, sliding button on the side that instantly takes the phone in and out of standby mode.

As with most of the current batch of Xdas, the Zest is built around Windows Mobile 6.1. There's plenty of debate about the benefits and draw backs of Windows Mobile: some like its broad range of features, while others hate its unwieldy user interface.

We're certainly not keen on the standard look and feel of Window Mobile, so it was a relief to see that O2 has kitted the Zest out with its own user interface (which is actually a tweaked version of SpB's Mobile Shell). This is essentially an overlay that sits on top of Windows Mobile and presents you with a simplified home screen and a 3D-style menu system with chunky buttons that are easy to poke with your finger. These menus are surprisingly responsive (more so than those found in HTC's similar TouchFlo interface) and actually do a decent job of making Widows Mobile a bit more user friendly.

In fact, the handset is one of the most responsive Windows Mobile handsets we've used recently thanks, no doubt, to it's speedy Marvell TavorP 624MHz processor. Screen updates are pretty much instantaneous and there's very little slow down evident even when you're running programs in the background.

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Opera Mini Comes To Android

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 12:07:00 +0000

I've already previewed Opera Mini 4.2 for you earlier this month, but there's still one major surprise in store...

As the title (always inconveniently) gives away, Opera Mini 4.2 will be the flexible company's first browser edition to make its way over to the Google Android operating system.

Becoming the first alternative to the OS's default webkit browser, 4.2 will come with full page rendering, tabs, RSS feeds, skins, support for mobile video services (including YouTube) and Opera Link which - given Android's lack of desktop syncing functionality - could prove rather useful. Oh and there's the small matter of native support for more than 90 languages including about 50 I haven't heard of (Tajik? Khmer? Marathi? Lingala? Kirghiz? Assamese? Gujarati? Help please dear readers...).

Anyhow with no issues of duplicating functionality Opera Mini 4.2 will turn up in Android Market and give the unnamed (no, it isn't Chrome mobile - yet) native browser a real run for its money - especially with that capacitive touchscreen.

Interestingly, Opera actually made a version of Mini for the iPhone but it was banned, naturally. Hey Apple, it's called competition and it's healthy... (something I say as a happy iPhone owner).

http://www.trustedreviews.com

Acer Planning 10in Netbook

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 12:05:00 +0000

Like it or loath it, and throughout the TR staff there are those of us that do both, there's no denying that the Acer Aspire One is the best-selling netbook around. Come February or March next year, the 8.9in system is set to get a 10in big brother, according to President of Acer Taiwan, Scott Lin.

No information about the system, other than its planned existence, is mentioned by Lin, as reported by DigiTimes. It seems safe to assume we'll see a 1,024 x 600 resolution screen, 1.6GHz Atom CPU and probably a standard hard drive, rather than solid state storage. Going by the evidence of the Aspire One, it seems reasonable to assume Acer will rival the Samsung NC10, our current favourite 10.2in netbook, on price not features,

A little speculation, though, suggests features such as an HDSPA option and a relatively small standard battery with an upgrade option, as sported by the 8.9in version, are likely to be boasted by the larger netbook, too.

The question on all of our lips, though, must surely be "what will Acer call it?"

http://www.trustedreviews.com

Lenovo ThinkPads Getting SMS Kill Switch

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 12:04:00 +0000

There's no denying that Lenovo's Constant Secure Remote Disable is a pretty neat idea. All HSDPA/3G-fitted notebooks have a SIM card in them, so why not use it to allow a system to be remotely disabled if stolen?

Lenovo has teamed up with Phoenix Technologies to introduce the system, which relies on a text-message sent from a paired device (not just any phone) to trigger the remote 'kill switch'. This command can be any text message command, such as a "disable laptop", "turn off PC" or possibly even "take the blue pill."

If the system is on when the SMS is received then it will shut down and become inoperable immediately, if not the same will happen at the next boot up. Once disabled a user-set password must be entered before the system is unlocked again.

Only Montevina (Centrino 2) based systems are compatible (so presumably this functionality is embedded in the chipset somewhere) meaning older systems aren't supported. However, all of Lenovo's forthcoming laptops with WWAN modules will be.

Mind, cool as this tech sounds, I'm quite annoyed that my plans to swipe a Centrino 2 version of the TR award-winning ThinkPad X300 may have been thwarted before ever being put into action. Damn!

http://www.trustedreviews.com

Palm Unveils 'Pixi' Budget webOS Smartphone

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 06:45:00 +0000

While the world and its dog will be talking about the new iPods Apple will undoubtedly announce tonight, the real interest of the day could well be this news from rejuventated smartphone maker Palm...

The company has unveiled the (previously leaked) 'Pixi', Palm's follow-up to the Palm Pre and its second webOS based handset. Specs are perfectly adequate for what is expected to be an eminently affordable device: 2.63in 320 x 400 resolution capacitive, multi-touch display, GPS, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, 8GB of onboard memory, a 3.5mm headphone jack, accelerometer and 2MP camera with flash. As for portability, 111 x 55 x 10.85mm and just 99.5g isn't going to stretch any pocket.

Other notables include EVDO connectivity (surely 3G for the UK) and sadly the (perhaps understandable) lack of WiFi and (completely mystifying) absence of a microSD expansion slot. More importantly however will be putting the beautiful, intuitive and multi-tasking webOS platform into the reach of the masses. After all Android may be picking up many fans, but for me webOS remains the best challenger to iPhone OS at the moment.

We don't know any pricing as yet, but the Palm Pixi will hit the US on Sprint "in time for the holidays". What this means for the UK as yet is unclear. Currently O2 has an exclusive deal with Palm, so it would seem the Pixi is hot favourite to turn up there, but given we have yet to see the Pre in Europe at all (and today already sees it discounted $50 to $150 on contract in the US) we may have to wait until 2010.

Yep, to me this is far more interesting than MP3 players...

source: www.trustedreviews.com

Apple Unveils Underwhelming New iPods

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 06:43:00 +0000

iPods. Love or hate them Apple claims market share in the US is currently a whopping 73 per cent with 20m units shipped of the iPod touch (iPhone sales are at 30m) - scary. Will it stay the same after a distinctly underwhelming series of announcements?

Despite all the marketing spiel what we got was a larger, faster iPod touch, larger iPod Classic, a basic video camera strapped to the iPod nano and some new iPod shuffle colours with a smaller capacity option! Consider us bored.

So let's break this lot down. The iPod touch isn't getting a camera, unless that is to avoid cannibalising iPhone sales this is an utterly ridiculous decision for a platform with such rich social networking applications. What is welcome are price cuts with the 8GB entry level model now priced at a wallet friendly $199, then a nice jump to 32GB and new 64GB models at $299 and $399 respectively. Inside we also get the newer A8-Cortex chipset with OpenGL ES support (but no GPS or digital compass) so general operation is inline with the iPhone 3GS.

The iPod Classic has a stay of execution with the capacity bumped to 160GB for the same $249 RRP (we're still waiting on all UK pricing). With such an incremental change don't expect to see the Classic survive next time around. It looks the same too, so Apple didn't even bring one out for us to play with.

Surprisingly then the iPod nano gets the day's most significant changes with a marginally larger 2.2in screen and the addition of a 30fps VGA video camera. There is no still capture, but it does keep the nano relatively interesting when $149 (8GB) and $179 (16GB) prices place it dangerously close to the $199 8GB iPod touch. On top of the video camera we finally get an integrated FM tuner plus mic and a pedometer which can sync with Nike+.

Lastly we have the iPod shuffle and this really was dull. We get a new size, but not the long awaited 8GB edition. Instead the ($79) 4GB shuffle will be augmented by a $59 2GB model and a ‘special edition' with stainless steel finish (it's a finger print magnet) for $99. If this doesn't make the iPod shuffle the most ridiculous and overpriced MP3 player on the market, I don't know what does. We'll take a $70 8GB SanDisk Sansa Clip+ any day.

All in all a great disappointment and as I theorised this morning, the Palm Pixi has indeed turned out to be the most interesting announcement of the day...

source: www.trustedreviews.com

Asus P7P55D Deluxe

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 06:41:00 +0000

This week saw the launch of Intel's brand new Core i7 800 and Core i5 700 (Lynnfield) CPUs along with the P55 motherboard chip that will be supporting them. In a nutshell, the platform as a whole looks very impressive with it offering great performance, low power usage, and reasonable pricing. Today, then, we're going to start our analysis of just which one of the new motherboards you should go for and we're kicking off with the Asus P7P55D Deluxe.

Back in July Ed gave a first look to the Asus P7P55D EVO, and was suitable impressed so we had high hopes for this board, it being the Deluxe version and all.

Overall, the Deluxe is quite similar to the regular P7P55D EVO but one change lies at the foot of the board where the SATA connections have been reorganised. This has created slightly more space around the P55 chipset and has allowed Asus to employ a large low profile aluminium heatsink. The heatsink is covered in turn by a plastic plate that carries an Asus logo that is illuminated by blue LEDs. Thankfully you can disable the LEDs in the BIOS and we did so, rapidly, although this had a strange consequence. It seems that the LEDs are configured to be on by default. When you turn your PC on the LEDs also come on then after POST they go off, provided you have disabled the setting in the BIOS, but oddly when you turn off your PC the LEDs will briefly flash into life again.

Another change in the layout of the Deluxe lies up by the CPU socket where the power regulation hardware has been upgraded from the 12+2 set-up on the basic model that we previewed and has become 16+3 on the Deluxe. Asus has used tiny chokes and capacitors and has managed to fit the hardware in very neatly without any need to locate components on the back of the board.

As Ed mentioned the P55 chipset is a single chip rather than the old Northbridge/Southbridge combo so the layout of the P7P55D has the capacity to be neater than you would find on a Core 2 or Core i7 900 (X58) motherboard. X58 motherboards also tend to look cluttered due to their triple channel memory controller - as opposed to the dual channel controller employed on P55 boards.

Despite having these inherent advantages we have to say that Asus has done a superb job with the styling of the P7P55D in particular - there are neat touches everywhere you look. The passive coolers on the power regulation hardware are extremely funky and gain a touch of class as they are secured by screws rather than those dreadful plastic pop pins. We're also big fans of the single sided RAM retention mechanism, called QDIMM in Asus' bumph. Down at the foot of the board the Power and Reset micro buttons nestle next to three USB headers and a Firewire header. There are eight USB ports and a Firewire port on the I/O panel as well as a bracket that carries two USB ports and an eSATA port.

source: www.trustedreviews.com

aXbo Sleep Phase Alarm Clock

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 06:40:00 +0000

No one is especially keen on getting up in the morning, so anything that can make this unfortunately necessary task easier is probably a good thing. That's exactly what the aXbo Sleep Phase Clock proposes, but with a cost (including delivery) of 217 Euros, approximately £190. Yes, almost £200 for an alarm clock, so it's got to be seriously special to justify the cost.

While design alone won't convince, it's easy to see why the aXbo SPAC (an unfortunate acronym) has won a number of awards in this category. Its gloss white and silver finish, sculpted curves and symmetrical appearance is attractive to the eye and should sit well with modern decor.

This streamlined thinking is extended to the controls, which comprise a handy and easy to use scroll wheel and just two separate buttons for activating alarms and navigating menus. In the middle, meanwhile, is the LCD display. It's very easy to view in the light or shade and information is displayed in a tidy, logical manner.

All of which bodes well for the high-tech side of aXbo. You see, to help you feel fresh and ready to go in the morning, it measures your movements during the night and then wakes you at the best time up to 30 minutes before the 'latest' alarm time as decided by you. This, says aXbo, is so that you're only ever woken up at the ideal time for you, not when you're still in a deep sleep period that will cause you to feel groggy and tired.

How does it do this? In the box, along with the alarm clock, mains adapter and USB cable are two small plastic sensors and wristbands to match. When you go to bed you set your alarm and then activate the sensor, slipping it inside the wristband, which you'll have to be prepared to wear while you sleep. This measures your movements during the night, which the alarm clock then interprets to work out the sleep phase you are in. You only need wear one of the sensors, though, with the other provided so two people can use it at the same time.

In addition, using the USB cable provided, you can upload your sleep data to your PC and view it using aXbo's software tool. This can be downloaded from aXbo's website, which curiously demands that you register and enter your device's serial number. This particular feature could be really neat, but the software provides absolutely no insight into the data, rendering it somewhat pointless beyond finding out exactly how long you slept - hardly difficult to work out anyway.

source: www.trustedreviews.com

Acer Tempo M900 Smartphone

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 06:36:00 +0000

The M900 is the last in the line-up of three new smartphones that Acer showed off at the Mobile World Congress 09, but it differs significantly from both the F900 and the X960 that have gone before it.

The M900 has two main features that help it stand out from the smartphone crowd. The first and perhaps most striking is its extremely large screen. Measuring 3.8in across the diagonal it's one of the largest we seen on a smartphone (matching that found on HTC's Touch HD). The display's resolution of 800 x 480 is also impressive and means you've got a lot of screen real estate to play with which translates into less eye strain when you're using it for long periods to view and edit Word documents or Excel files on the go.

The other key defining feature is the slide out keyboard. Similar to handsets like the Sony X1, HTC Touch Pro2 and Nokia E75, the front face of the M900 slides away from the main body of the phone to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard.

The keys are relatively large and each line is angle away from you so as to provide a raised edge for you fingers to fall on. But although the keys are reasonably responsive, it's not all that easy to get up a decent typing speed mainly because the keys are lined up tightly next to each other. As a result it's difficult to distinguish between individual letters when you're tapping away at speed with your fingers and thumbs. Compared to the keyboard on the Touch Pro2, the one on the M900 certainly comes off second best. Also, unlike the Touch Pro2, you can't angle the screen upwards once the keyboard is open, which is a bit of shame.

The large screen and keyboard have a significant knock-on effect on the overall size and design of the handset. To call it big-boned would be putting it mildly. Even by the standards of keyboard-equipped phones, this one is big and heavy. You'll definitely be putting this in a jacket pocket rather than a shirt pocket. The ungainly styling doesn't help matters either with the buttons and camera poking out from the case rather than being mounted flush like on most modern handsets. In fact, the whole design approach gives the handset a somewhat dated look and feel.

source: www.trustedreviews.com

Sony Battery Recalls Re-Surface

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 07:09:00 +0000

A couple of years ago (an veritable age in Computer Industry Time) there was a spate of battery recalls as a result of a bad batch made by Sony so imagine our surprise to hear reports of another bunch of batteries going bad. Apparently "Sony 2.15Ah lithium ion cells are a different type of cell from those covered by the much larger recalls and replacement programs that certain PC manufacturers announced in 2006[/i]" so that's okay.

Some 100,000 battery packs worldwide are subject to this voluntarily recall, all of which are 2.15Ah cells. So far Sony says there have been 40 (reported) overheating incidents worldwide, 14 of which were in Europe. Of these "[i]Sony was informed that four incidents involved small burns and 21 included minor property damage[i]."

As to the cause, Sony reckons "that most of these incidents were related to manufacturing line adjustments made from October 2004 to June 2005, which may have affected some battery cells produced during that period. In addition, there were some incidents that may have involved a raw material flaw."

This is in addition to Sony recalling Vaio TZs recently because those systems were also overheating. Although the issues shouldn't be related as "Sony VAIO notebook computers also use different battery cell types, so they are not part of these recalls." Not that we wish to imply Sony is deliberately sabotaging its competitors' notebooks.

source: www.trustedreviews.com

Pioneer KURO KRL-37V 37in LCD TV

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 07:07:00 +0000

If I'm honest, when I first heard Pioneer mention that it was going to start making LCD TVs to go alongside its world-beating plasma TVs, it sounded like a mistake.

After all, Pioneer can hardly expect me or anyone else with even a passing interesting in AV technology to forget overnight all the pro-plasma, anti-LCD rhetoric the brand has been presenting to the world for years now. So immediately there's the question of whether Pioneer's debut LCD TVs can suddenly be so good that they justify the brand flying in the face of its own philosophy.

Pioneer's decision to ‘go LCD' also initially struck me as an admission of failure; a tacit admission that however persuasive its plasma arguments - not to mention its KURO plasma TVs - the sheer weight of market support for LCD had finally made it impossible for Pioneer to avoid its ‘hated' rival format.

As one further and most pressing concern, I couldn't help but fear that Pioneer's switch to LCD might end up devaluing the ‘expensive but worth it' status the brand has been so carefully building over the past couple of years. After all, Pioneer doesn't make its own LCD screens (they're sourced from part owner, Sharp), and hasn't had anywhere near as long to develop a clear performance advantage with LCD as it has with plasma.

With all this in mind, it's fair to say that the first Pioneer LCD TV to cross the threshold of our test facilities has a hell of a lot of pressure on its shoulders. Just as well, then, that the KRL-37V starts alleviating that pressure - and some of the near hysteria surrounding the whole Pioneer LCD decision - almost immediately, simply by virtue of its size.

For at 37in across, it's currently the largest of Pioneer's LCD models (ahead of an upcoming 46in model). And as such it suddenly becomes prosaically clear that the 37V doesn't actually represent Pioneer caving in to the LCD crowd, but rather it's simply Pioneer catering for people who want a Pioneer screen but can't fit/don't want a 50in or bigger screen in their homes (Pioneer's 42in plasmas have pretty much disappeared now).

So with Pioneer's LCD decision so extensively depoliticised before we've even really got the TV out of its box, the only things really left for me to worry about are whether the TV justifies its relatively premium price point, and whether it does the Pioneer name proud. Both of which essentially boil down to me simply deciding if the TV is actually any good!

souce: www.trustedreviews.com

Samsung LE46A756 46in LCD TV

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 07:04:00 +0000

Having recently checked out new plasma and LED TVs from the premium end of Samsung's current, expansive TV range, we thought it was time we turned our attention to its premium LCD offering - as modelled for us today in supremely attractive fashion by the 46in LE46A756.

Although we accept there are those among you who just can't stomach the ‘touch of red' design effect sported by Samsung's A656 and A756 TVs, the LE46A756 is actually the fifth TV I've seen with the tinge of red in the bezel, and I personally still lap it up as much as I did the first time I clapped eyes on it. Especially when you add in the ultra polished, glossy feel given to the whole TV by the glass layer sitting on top of the screen frame.

I'm also inclined to lap up the 46A756's connections, particularly their inclusion of four HDMIs, a USB port, and an Ethernet socket. Regular readers will know that these latter two jacks are especially significant on the 46A756 because they provide the means for the TV to access the Internet. Or at least, a Yahoo-sourced corner of the Internet that's been designed to provide ‘live' content to Samsung's Internet TVs.

The Ethernet jack is pretty self-explanatory in this regard, simply enabling you to hardwire the TV into your router or broadband ‘pipe'. The USB, meanwhile, can allow you to jack the TV into your network wirelessly, courtesy of an optional (£20) ‘Linkstick' dongle.

My painful experiences with getting other Samsung online TVs working properly meant that this time I actually didn't have to spend too long getting the LE46A756 talking to the remote Yahoo server - though I still had to turn my router's PING protection off temporarily. However, I'd recommend that anyone trying to get this TV online wirelessly for the first time should set at least a frustrating hour aside - unless you happen to be particularly IT-literate.

The rewards for your online efforts are arguably a bit more limited than you might expect, in that you certainly don't get full Internet access. Essentially you're just given access to news tickers, fuller news stories, stocks and shares updates and weather reports. But you can at least choose your weather report by region, and set favourite lists for stocks and shares. Plus this is probably just the start for this feature, with other features likely - hopefully! - set to appear in the future.

It's worth adding before we move onto other matters that the LE46A756's USB and Ethernet jacks are also notable for being able to play JPEG, MP3, and various film multimedia files from USB storage devices or even a connected PC. In fact, the Ethernet is DLNA-certified, for full access to your PC multimedia files via the TV's remote.

Source: www.trustedreviews.com

Lexmark X4650 All-In-One Inkjet Printer

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 07:01:00 +0000

You've only got to look on Lexmark's site to see there are numerous ways to dress up an all-in-one printer to appeal to a variety of different customers. The X4650 is aimed at the home and student populations, but has a more serious appearance and a lower asking price than many.

Perhaps the fashion for piano-black and ice-white cases has run its course, as this machine has reverted to a silk black with a silver wraparound and looks more purposeful for it. It has a conventional paper path, leading from a steeply inclined feed tray at the rear to a pull-out, output tray at the front. Lift the top cover and you can see the Contact Image Sensor scan head. Using a CIS scanner keeps the mechanism thin and any warm-up time short.

To the right of the scanner is a simple control panel, using a high-contrast, white-on-black, two-line LED display that works much better than typical LCD panels, no matter what the ambient lighting. The seven adjustment buttons sit behind a silvered bank of four, which switch modes and start a copy job. Right at the front is a power button, with an inset light, which pulses when the device is in sleep mode.

Below the controls is a standard pair of memory card slots, which cater for the common types, though not for a Microdrive. There's a PictBridge socket there, too. At the back, as well as the ubiquitous USB socket, there's a stubby Wi-Fi aerial, as this machine, like so many recent Lexmark all-in-ones, is wireless networkable straight from the box.

Hardware installation is as simple as lifting up the scanner section and plugging in a couple of cartridges. The X4650 uses a black and a tri-colour cartridge, with the option of fitting a photo cartridge instead of the black, if you're after six-ink photos.

The software bundle includes Abbyy Sprint OCR software and the usual applets for printing photos and scanning. Without a colour LCD to preview thumbnails of images from memory cards, the easiest way to work is to upload the thumbnails to the supplied PC application and print them from there.

Lexmark's print driver has had a makeover and is cleaner and easier to understand. There's more automation to the setup, too so, for example, when we printed our test photo on Automatic, the printer chose best quality print and recognised Lexmark's Premium Photo Paper.

Source: www.trustedreviews.com

Motorola Jumping On Android Bandwagon

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:50:00 +0000

Has the dam broken?

Today has already seen the T-Mobile G1 launch and widespread talk of an impending Asus Android handset and now Motorola is getting involved as well. According to the Wall Street Journal Moto co-CEO Sanjay Jha has decided the troubled company will wholeheartedly embrace Android with numerous new phones being based on the Google OS.

No details of the handsets themselves or any indication of releases schedules (darn it) were hinted at in the report but if it isn't to be late to the party mid 2009 would seem to be the deadline in getting the first models out the door.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the news filtered through behind wider talk of more job cuts at the company and the possible streamlining of its manufacturing process which could apparently see production of some of its Windows Mobile based handsets outsourced (no prizes for guessing the obvious companies who would do that role... Asus / HTC).

Of course from a financial standpoint it also makes sense for Motorola to opt for Android because its open source model would offer significant savings compared to licensed alternatives.

Could Motorola finally be seeing the light or is it too late? Well, as long as the first Android handset doesn't have 'RAZR' in its name it stands a chance...

Source: www.trustedreviews.com

Samsung U800

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:49:00 +0000

Samsung seems to be a bit of an unstoppable force at the moment, with new handsets popping up with great frequency. Only a couple of weeks ago we had the 8-megapixel flagship model the i8510, which reached the rare status of a TrustedReviews Recommended award.

Now I have the mid-range U800. This handset doesn't have any headline-busting features, but it does really appeal to me in terms of design and usability. There is no flashy Omnia and Tocco style touchscreen and the chameleon-like touchpad on the slider Soul U900 has been forsaken for more standard controls.

But in the place of these ‘look at me' features we have a solid build, a light-weight, portable design, and a mobile that is very usable and manages tri-band GSM connections along with HSDPA to 3.6MBps.

The U800 has a mostly slate grey brushed stainless steel body which, in combination with the pearly white backlight to the keys and buttons, and black plastic sides and bottom ridge, give it a very appealing, if hardly innovative look.

In the hand the U800 feels fantastic. It is just 9.9mm thick and quite narrow at 46mm. It weighs just 92g. If I have a grumble it is that the phone is a little tall at 111mm.

The height appears to have been used to allocate more than the typical amount of space to the D-pad and its associated buttons. The extra millimetres have certainly not been allocated to the screen which is relatively small at just 2in. At least its 320 x 240 pixels are nice and sharp. And it is bright too.

Nor has the extra space gone to the numberpad. This is a flat pad with horizontal ridges separating the button rows. Each button has quite a tactile feel to it, and Samsung's usual plinks and plonks provide further confirmation that you've pressed a key. They are quite loud at top volume, though, and could embarrass you in some quieter environments. The side-mounted volume rocker might get used quite a lot to regulate this.

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Mitsubishi LaserVue Launches

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 13:47:00 +0000

It's been a few months since Mitsubishi showed off its LaserTV concept at CES but laser televisions are now being shipped to shops. Although so far only the US is privy to the delights of LaserVue, as the sets are dubbed, and the advantages it brings over LCD and Plasma equivalents.

The biggest of those benefits is probably the 135W power draw of the 65in set. That size is currently the only one available, although a 73in model is also mooted for release later on. Spec wise a 1,920 x 1,080 resolution panel with 120Hz (or 100Hz in the UK) processing is sported. Mitsubishi also says its LaserVue TVs are 3D capable, with the small caveat that there's no source media or hardware available yet.

Rumour from across the pond has it that the set compares pretty favourably, even against the best LCD and Plasma has to offer. Even holding its own against the awesome Pioneer Kuro - not that a $6,999 (~£4,500) TV can have any less expected of it.

The biggest downside? Word is that Mitsubishi has no plans to release LaserVue in the UK in the near future.

source: www.trustedreviews.com

Panasonic Viera TX-32LZD81 32in Freesat HD LCD TV

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 03:37:00 +0000

Panasonic has been on something of a roll lately. Not only has it been consistently producing great plasma TVs at astonishingly affordable price points, but it has also managed to offer something that other manufacturers don't - an integrated HD tuner. Back in May I got a sneak preview of Panasonic's PZ81 series, with its integrated Freesat HD tuner, and I was pretty impressed. My initial thoughts were borne out when John reviewed the Panasonic Viera TH-46PZ81 and bestowed it with a Recommended award.

Now I have one of Panasonic's brand new Freesat HD equipped LCD TVs, so it's time to see how it measures up to the plasmas. Panasonic has always had a very black and white view of LCD vs. plasma - it used to be that LCD was offered up to 32in, then plasma took over from 37in upwards. That changed recently, due to the fact that the smallest Full HD plasma that Panasonic offers is 42in (shrinking plasma chambers is no easy task), so the company started producing Full HD 37in LCD screens to fill the gap. But what I'm looking at here is the TX-32LZD81, which is a 32in screen, albeit one that also sports a Full HD 1,920 x 1,080 resolution.

It's fairly safe to say that this is one of the most feature rich 32in LCD TVs you're likely to find, from any manufacturer, and if you really are pushed for space, the TX-32LZD81 provides a feature set that far larger screens would be envious of. Despite its relatively small dimensions, Panasonic hasn't skimped on connection options. You get no less than three HDMI 1.3 ports, a set of component video jacks, two RGB SCART sockets, S-Video, composite and D-Sub for hooking up a PC - the maximum PC resolution is 1,366 x 768, rather than 1,920 x 1,080 though. There's also an SD Card slot, for viewing your digital photos directly on the TV. Another welcome addition is an Ethernet port, which is mandatory for any Freesat HD device, and should allow viewing of the BBC iPlayer on the TX-32LZD81 in the not too distant future.

Design wise, the TX-32LZD81 looks tastefully sleek and simple. The bezel and stand are both finished in glossy black, as is the norm these days. There's little to break up the simple lines of the TX-32LZD81 either, with a single power button mounted in the bottom left corner of the bezel, and all the "on TV" controls set down the right edge, behind the screen. The only downside is that the bezel is quite wide and makes the screen look far smaller than it actually is.

SOURCE: http://www.trustedreviews.com

LG 42PG6900 42in Plasma TV

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 03:35:00 +0000

Sometimes I come across features in the AV world that I love to bits, but which for some reason or other don't seem to catch on with you, the Great British public. One such feature is the idea of digital hard disc recorders built into TVs.

When I saw the LG 42LT75 last December, the first TV with built-in Freeview Playback (the name given to Freeview-certified HDD recording systems), I really thought it was going to just be the first in a long line of hit TVs carrying the same functionality. But apparently the LT75 models didn't sell as well as expected, and since last December only Humax and, very recently, JVC have dared to dip their toes into the same TV PVR waters.

I for one, though, am pleased to say that LG hasn't given up on its Freeview Playback - now known as Freeview+ - TVs just yet. For in our test room today sits the 42PG6900: a new LG 42in TV with Freeview+ recording. What's more, just to add a little extra spice to proceedings, the 42PG6900 uses plasma technology rather than the LCD technology used by the other Freeview recording TVs we've seen so far. So it could open up Freeview+ TV functionality to a whole new audience of AV fan who prefer plasma to LCD.

The 42PG6900 could also open up TV/PVR combi functionality to a new style-centric audience. For it's a typically stylish effort from LG, combining a lovely ‘one-level' front panel and a neatly minimalistic, angular, high-gloss immediate bezel with an elegant understrip that boasts a subtle shade of blue. Yes, blue.

Dragging my attention from its attractive fascia to the 42PG6900's rear with a little help from its rotating stand, I find a solid rather than impressive set of connections. Highlights include three v1.3 HDMI jacks, a component video input, a D-Sub PC port, and a digital audio output. It's a slight shame there's no multimedia input such as a USB port or SD card slot, but then given how cheap the 42PG6900 is considering its size and functionality level, I'm happy to let its lack of multimedia interest slide.

For similar reasons I guess I can see my way to not missing a fourth HDMI too much, especially as the built-in PVR capabilities remove the need for one of the most common HDMI-based external sources.

The 42PG6900's inner specification, though, has one or two potential weaknesses that might prove harder to forgive. For instance, its claimed contrast ratio is ‘only' 30,000:1 - miles short of the million to one-type figures now being quoted for plasma TVs by Samsung, Pioneer and Panasonic.

Let's not forget, though, that manufacturers' claimed contrast ratios always need to be taken with a pinch of salt, so it would be inappropriate to place too much weight on such figures until we've got some eye-witness evidence to back them up.

Source: http://www.trustedreviews.com

Pioneer Kuro PDP-LX6090 60in Plasma TV

rinagu@gmail.com (Duniamaya) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 03:32:00 +0000

For a couple of year's now, Pioneer's KURO plasma TVs have towered over the rest of the TV world like some modern day Colossus, delivering picture quality that's simply been in a different league to anything else around.

But as we take receipt of the brand's 60in PDP-LX6090, it's fair to say that the pressure on Pioneer is starting to mount. In recent times, after all, we've seen outstanding plasmas from Panasonic as well as a striking LED LCD TV from Samsung (the LE55A956) that definitely raises at least the possibility of LED technology one day snatching away Pioneer's crown.

However, the LX6090 immediately sets about keeping the Pioneer end up with its build quality. There really is something special about the stunningly robust and opulent feel of the LX6090's bezel. As, I guess, there ruddy well ought to be considering that the LX6090 will set you back the best part of £4,100.

It's worth adding here, too, that although the Comet price we're quoting includes a desktop stand, you'll usually have to cough up a fair bit extra if you want to secure the detachable speakers Pioneer makes for the LX6090.

The LX6090's connectivity is arguably a touch disappointing for such a premium-priced set, in that it ‘only' includes three v1.3 HDMIs when a few sets from the likes of LG, Samsung and Philips are starting to carry four.

But there's some good connection news too, in the presence of a subwoofer line-out, a digital audio output, and a USB port for digital photo viewing. This USB input is made particularly useful by the fact that it's driven by Pioneer's truly excellent Home Gallery software, which represents easily the most serious attempt yet at providing a genuinely useful and high quality interface for viewing photos on a TV.

In looking at other features of the LX6090, we have no choice but to concentrate first on the technological advances Pioneer has made during the time that's elapsed between last year's 8th plasma generation and the latest models. For it's only in doing that that we can really convey a sense of the sort of technological stuff that goes into making Pioneer KURO TVs so different.

Particularly notable is the development for the 9th-gen screens of a new, improved Direct Colour Filter, Pioneer's proprietary - and jealously guarded - technology for slashing the amount of accidental light bleed within each plasma cell. As you would expect, this enhanced colour filter has a massive impact on how black dark scenes can get.

Pioneer has also stepped up the quality of its image processing for its generation nine screens, taking control of colour toning, brightness and black levels right down to the individual pixel level. Plus it's thrown 100Hz on there to enhance image stability.

Source: http://www.trustedreviews.com