TechLore - Lurker at the Threshold

TechLore - Lurker at the Threshold http://www.techlore.com?src=blog_rss Musings of a Lovecraft Deity Mon, 06 Jun 2011 12:36:13 GMT admin@techlore.com TechLore 60 TechLore http://www.techlore.com/brand/techlore/community.gif http://www.techlore.com?src=blog_rss New Multifunction Printer: Dell 2335dn http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/25911/New-Multifunction-Printer-Dell-2335dn/?src=blog_rss <img align="right" hspace="10" src="http://www.techlore.com/imagelib/contentitem/25911/f0f219158e118e83-66e5c0b-12113deaf23-16af-1655022876.jpg">A few days ago, my Canon PIXMA MP830 stopped working—it just wouldn't turn on. A little over a year ago, I had it repaired for other problems; it was actually three months out of warranty at the time, but Canon fixed it for free anyway. Now with it being a year and a half out of warranty, there's no way Canon would be that generous. After deciding that paying to get it repaired would be pointless, I went looking for a new one. I started the way I usually do—I looked at various printers on the Best Buy web site and looked up reviews of them. Since the Canon went through ink quickly (it even used colored inks to print black), I decided to look for a laser printer. And since I rarely have a need to print anything in color (for photos, I just use Walgreen's), I decided a monochrome laser would be fine. I almost went out and bought the Canon MF4370DN (Canon again for its excellent customer service, as confirmed by others), but after reading some reviews, I found out that scanning was a bit of a PITA (you have to actually hit a button on the...<div><a href="http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/25911/New-Multifunction-Printer-Dell-2335dn/">[Read more]</div> Portable Accessories and Software Wed, 06 May 2009 03:28:29 GMT Yog-Sothoth http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/25911/New-Multifunction-Printer-Dell-2335dn/#discussion?src=blog_rss http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/25911/New-Multifunction-Printer-Dell-2335dn/?src=blog_rss HDMI Woes http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/25278/HDMI-Woes/?src=blog_rss <img align="right" hspace="10" src="http://www.techlore.com/imagelib/contentitem/25278/f0f219158e118e83-4a449466-11f67d70caf-3ef21907263812.jpg">As a Christmas present to myself, I purchased an Onkyo TX-SR705 A/V receiver . I've been very happy with it, especially since I can utilize the three HD audio options on Blu-ray Discs: uncompressed PCM, Dolby True HD, and DTS-HD Master. Fast forward to now.... A couple of weeks ago, I ordered an HDX-401E 4x1 HDMI switch from Monoprice , as I intended to get an HDMI Xbox 360 to replace the non-HDMI one in my entertainment center (four HDMI devices and only three ports on the receiver). I connected the [first] switch to my receiver, and connected my DVD player to the switch (with the intention of plugging in the Xbox 360 later). The DVD player only worked with ports 2–4, so I assumed the switch was bad and requested an RMA. Monoprice immediately shipped me a replacement and also e-mailed me a UPS label to send the "defective" one back (free of charge). I received the replacement switch on Friday, and noted similar problems; this time the DVD player only worked with ports 2 and 3. I immediately assumed this one was defective as well, so I got another RMA. After a few minutes, however, I decided to...<div><a href="http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/25278/HDMI-Woes/">[Read more]</div> Home Theater Home Console Gaming Receivers and Audio Components Thu, 12 Feb 2009 01:08:58 GMT Yog-Sothoth http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/25278/HDMI-Woes/#discussion?src=blog_rss http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/25278/HDMI-Woes/?src=blog_rss Product Review: LG DP889 Portable DVD Player http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/22807/Product-Review-LG-DP889-Portable-DVD-Player/?src=blog_rss <img align="right" hspace="10" src="http://www.techlore.com/imagelib/contentitem/22807/f0f219158e118e83--4109b0e4-11a7eec6a63--53a3603810688.jpg">While on a family vacation to Disney World recently, I realized how bad the battery in my laptop had gotten—it would only work for about an hour of DVD watching, so I explored some portable power options. I found a few, but none that added more than a half hour to a laptop's battery time. Discouraged, I said "WTH" and looked at portable DVD players. I found a unique one listed on Circuit City's web site, so I had to get it - the LG DP889 "Portable DVD Player & Digital Photo Frame" (8" widescreen; $229, but I saved some with a 10% coupon). Instead of a lengthy discussion, a list of positives and negatives would be better: POSITIVES Can view photos. Has a USB port; you can connect flash drives to view photos and listen to music. The manual is not accurate, as it states that a direct camera connection is not supported—it worked well with the two digital cameras I tried. Has a media card slot. Plays MP3s. I copied a bunch to an SD card for my future trips. 256MB onboard memory (used to copy music and pictures from USB or media card). A/V inputs—yes, that's right—...<div><a href="http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/22807/Product-Review-LG-DP889-Portable-DVD-Player/">[Read more]</div> Digital and SLR Cameras Portable Audio / Video Players Portable Gaming Thu, 12 Jun 2008 23:03:17 GMT Yog-Sothoth http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/22807/Product-Review-LG-DP889-Portable-DVD-Player/#discussion?src=blog_rss http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/22807/Product-Review-LG-DP889-Portable-DVD-Player/?src=blog_rss HD Format War Over: Blu-ray Wins http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/21294/HD-Format-War-Over--Blu-ray-Wins/?src=blog_rss <img align="right" hspace="10" src="http://www.techlore.com/imagelib/contentitem/21294/21294.jpg">It's done. For those of you who have been hesitant in buying one format or the other, now you don't have to decide. From High Def Digest: Following several days of rumors, Toshiba has confirmed that it will no longer develop, manufacture and market HD DVD players and recorders, effectively ending the high-def format war. In a just-issued press release , the company said that it reached the decision following "recent major changes in the market." Toshiba emphasized that it will continue to provide full product support and after-sales service for all owners of Toshiba HD DVD products. var federated_media_section = ''; “We carefully assessed the long-term impact of continuing the so-called 'next-generation format war' and concluded that a swift decision will best help the market develop,” said Atsutoshi Nishida, President and CEO of Toshiba Corporation. "While we are disappointed for the company and more importantly, for the consumer, the real mass market opportunity for high definition content remains untapped and Toshiba is both able and determined to use our talent, technology and intellectual property to make digital convergence a reality.” Toshiba said it will begin reducing shipments of HD DVD players and recorders immediately, with the aim of pulling...<div><a href="http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/21294/HD-Format-War-Over--Blu-ray-Wins/">[Read more]</div> Video Playback / Recording Devices Fri, 22 Feb 2008 00:10:37 GMT Yog-Sothoth http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/21294/HD-Format-War-Over--Blu-ray-Wins/#discussion?src=blog_rss http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/21294/HD-Format-War-Over--Blu-ray-Wins/?src=blog_rss Playstation 3: The Only Future-Proof Blu-ray Player http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/20590/Playstation-3--The-Only-Future-Proof-Blu-ray-Player/?src=blog_rss <img align="right" hspace="10" src="http://www.techlore.com/imagelib/contentitem/20590/20590.jpg">If you've been following my high-def disc news ( here , here , and here ), you'll notice that I've been busy. After more research, I found out that there are now three "profiles" for BD players; more info here . Since the standalone player I had was a 1.0 unit and had no way to update to the new profile, I returned the Sony BD player and got the safest one—the PS3. Of course, not only is it a great BD player, it is also a good media center and can be loaded with Linux and used as a computer. Software updates for the PS3 are a click away. Oh, and it plays games, of course.<div><a href="http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/20590/Playstation-3--The-Only-Future-Proof-Blu-ray-Player/">[Read more]</div> Home Console Gaming Video Playback / Recording Devices Tue, 15 Jan 2008 03:05:02 GMT Yog-Sothoth http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/20590/Playstation-3--The-Only-Future-Proof-Blu-ray-Player/#discussion?src=blog_rss http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/20590/Playstation-3--The-Only-Future-Proof-Blu-ray-Player/?src=blog_rss An E-mail from Toshiba http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/20517/An-E-mail-from-Toshiba/?src=blog_rss <img align="right" hspace="10" src="http://www.techlore.com/imagelib/contentitem/20517/20517.jpg">If you read two of my previous entries concerning HD DVD and Blu-ray, you'll note that—due to Warner Brothers dropping support for HD DVD—I returned a Toshiba HD DVD player and got a Sony Blu-ray one. My inital e-mail to Toshiba was for my HDMI–DVI issue (didn't work). Toshiba added my TV model to the list of ones where this didn't work, but had no further advice at the time. My second e-mail to them was for them to close my case; I told them that I returned the unit due to Warner's recent announcement. Here is their response to that e-mail: Thanks for writing! I am sorry to hear that Sir. I will note that while Warner's announcement was somewhat of a surprise, it does not change Toshiba’s commitment to support our consumers and HD DVD. The HD DVD format still enjoys the support of major and independent film studios in addition to Microsoft. Toshiba intends to continue to market HD DVD players for the US market at prices reasonable to consumers. HD DVD continues to be the only next generation format that has delivered superior video performance, audio performance combined with unrivaled interactive features at a reasonable cost....<div><a href="http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/20517/An-E-mail-from-Toshiba/">[Read more]</div> Video Playback / Recording Devices Wed, 09 Jan 2008 00:58:54 GMT Yog-Sothoth http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/20517/An-E-mail-from-Toshiba/#discussion?src=blog_rss http://www.techlore.com/blog/entry/20517/An-E-mail-from-Toshiba/?src=blog_rss