tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-113358422024-09-01T22:51:36.745-05:00Bringing you the best from the world of technology.digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.comBlogger564125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-30468254701891526422014-09-22T08:00:00.000-05:002014-09-22T08:00:13.134-05:00

In a crowded networking market, where many of the latest routers are north of $200 (or more), the Netis WF2710 comes in under $50. Is this white box a peewee wonder? Read on to find out! The latest standard for networking gear is known as 802.11ac. Devices that conform to this standard offer Wifi that conforms to both the 2.4 Ghz, as well as the 5 Ghz standard. Most of the new

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-60485540553017496012014-07-29T22:36:00.000-05:002014-07-29T22:36:01.098-05:00

I have had several printers through the years.  For the last decade I have been in the monochrome laser camp, due to the high quality of laser printing, and the affordability compared to inkjets.  My previous printer was a Brother 2140, which I still have, but as it was very low on ink, I decided it was time for an upgrade. The new printer is a Brother 2270DW.  The significant

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-69872840173602252842014-07-24T22:13:00.001-05:002014-07-24T22:13:41.867-05:00

I have had my issues with my Dlink 820L router, but at the last tech call, they did get it up and running.  I recently noticed that there was a firmware upgrade available for the router.  The release notes for firmware 1.03b were: Firmware 1.03  Date: 06/12/2014  Release Notes:  Fix the bug in web filter rule  Update wireless driver  Update copyright&

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-75908431734091203082014-07-06T21:23:00.001-05:002014-07-06T21:23:51.378-05:00

Apricorn is a market leader in secure data storage.  They make a variety of external drives, in a full selection of capacities, all with built in security features.  The Apricorn Aegis Padlock DT is at the larger end of the scale, and represents a full size desktop hard drive in an external enclosure. What's in the box? Aegis Padlock DT (available 2,3,4 or 6 TB) USB 3.0 cable Power

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-45481913312433457492014-06-30T23:04:00.000-05:002014-07-24T12:54:09.807-05:00

A wireless router is an important centerpiece to a home network, and forms the backbone of distributing the internet broadband connection.  The latest standard is the 802.11ac, which incorporates the older 802.11b/g/n standard that works off the 2.4 GHz frequency.  It also add additional frequency in the 5 GHz range, which is capable of even faster speeds.  The other advantage of

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-59282309517563887162014-06-28T23:02:00.000-05:002014-06-28T23:02:27.112-05:00

The latest WiFi standard is the 802.11ac one, and more products are being introduced that utilize it.  This provides support across two bands, the first, the crowded 2.4 GHz, and the second, the newer 5.8 GHz portion of the spectrum.  As it becomes more pervasive, 802.11ac gear is becoming quite affordable. While many devices come with built in WiFi networking capability, such as any

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-47844979959821453042014-06-24T22:49:00.003-05:002014-06-25T22:47:59.742-05:00

Netis Systems has been making networking products since 2000, but only recently did I hear about this company.  Netis was willing to provide their new N300 Gaming Router for testing. The N300 Gaming Router is model WF2631.  It is a standard WiFi router with the usual 4 LAN 100 ports, and internet connection.  There is no USB port, but it does have 3 external antennas.  It

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-81697510812917416022014-06-11T14:00:00.000-05:002014-06-12T21:52:01.201-05:00

My Dlink DIR-820L after a few weeks turned my network into a total mess.  I was running 3 networks simultaneously, including an 802.11n on 2.4 GHz, a guest network on the same frequency, and an 802.11ac on the 5 GHz frequency.  For whatever reason, it worked for a time, and then I was in the situation where all my devices were having issues: Sony Bluray player that connected but was

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-30234885174099167462014-05-27T22:30:00.003-05:002014-05-27T22:30:45.104-05:00

 I have had several routers through the years, from a variety of manufacturers, including Belkin and Linksys.  Recently, my Linksys was acting up, and I was eager to upgrade to 802.11ac, the latest standard.  I found the Dlink DIR-820L on Amazon for the fair price of $69, and pulled the trigger. The initial setup was simple, with the usual connection of ethernet wires.  The

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-84650467898250945802014-05-15T22:20:00.002-05:002014-05-15T22:21:43.986-05:00

The Intel Atom processor series has been the weakling of the block; in other words, the chip that the other ones would push around the school yard. The Atom was born with the intention of an x86 processor that could work within a small power envelope, and keep the low power ARM chips from taking over the lower segment of the market. Intel originally envisioned their Atom chips in the gamut of

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-3599474954577098392014-04-22T22:24:00.001-05:002014-04-22T22:24:22.010-05:00

Released last summer, the latest processor from Intel is known by the codename Haswell.  Following on the heels of Sandy Bridge, and then Ivy Bridge, the Haswell family of chips gets used across the product line in both desktop and mobile parts. Spec wise, it is an 84 watt part.  It is a quad core part, but no hyperthreaded (the hyperthreaded quad core chips are the i7's).  It

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-12243527637092075582014-04-10T22:33:00.002-05:002014-04-10T22:33:58.699-05:00

Last March, I had jumped onto the tablet bandwagon and had purchased a Coby 7065 tablet.  I did not spend much on the purchase thinking that I would not use the tablet much, and it was more of an experiment with LinuxAndroid. It turned out that I used the tablet more than I would have predicted.  It became my "Living room PC," and became my second screen of choice in front of the TV.

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-11429110764520959472014-03-21T22:45:00.000-05:002014-03-21T22:47:35.577-05:00

Introduction Years ago I came to the realization that I had become a "mobile professional."  Not because I crisscrossed the nation racking up frequent flier miles faster than I could count them, but rather because I was rarely in one spot for too long, and only infrequently made it to my desk to use my desktop computer.  Across the week, my computer work gets spread across 6

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-25105968569079035312012-07-24T22:00:00.003-05:002012-07-24T22:01:24.632-05:00

I got a new desktop, and it happened to have the Intel Core i5-2500k as the processor.  While it is the previous generation "Sandy Bridge" architecture, as opposed to the latest "Ivy Bridge," it still impressed.  This particular chip is certainly a favorite among budget conscious enthusiasts, and I quickly saw why.  This chip has been tested ad nauseum in the past, but I want to

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-4350870312310862092012-06-26T22:01:00.000-05:002012-06-26T22:01:28.591-05:00

Apparently tomorrow Linksys will be announcing some new routers.  The upcoming flagship model will support the latest WiFi standard, ac, and be named the EA6500.  Reportedly it will retail for $220, which will buy a max speed of 1300 mbps, with four internal antennas.  It will also feature 2 USB ports for those that want both network attached storage, and a network printer

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-54748521070256955552012-06-14T21:16:00.000-05:002012-06-14T21:16:20.682-05:00

There is presently no shortage of manufacturers that are in the router market.  Sure, just about everyone has a router these days, but it is not clear to me that they get updated all too often unless they are a real networking guru.  Western Digital has been a long term player in the hard drive market, and at first I was not sure what they could bring to the crowded router table. The

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-81455258536129183062012-05-30T22:16:00.000-05:002012-05-30T22:16:13.638-05:00

The current top router from Linksys is the EA4500. While there are many routers on the market, for a power user that wants a full featured networking solution, the EA4500 is worth considering. What's in the box? EA4500 router Cat 5e networking cable power adapter Setup CD It is worth pointing out that everything in the box is arranged nicely, and the out of box experience is on

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-1723705005257349412012-05-13T21:54:00.000-05:002012-05-13T21:58:16.982-05:00

For portable storage needs, a USB flash drive on a keyring is a constant companion these days. However, there are two weaknesses to this ubiquitous device. The first is that the capacity is limited, and the second is that very few are secure in any way. In other words, when it is time to do some serious data moving, in a safe fashion, then the Aegis Padlock 3.0 becomes the right tool for

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-64794384008369956222012-05-07T21:25:00.001-05:002012-05-13T21:58:57.179-05:00

 With the recent addition of some SDHC cards, it was time to purchase a reader.  While many notebooks have a reader built in already, I store my images in my desktop, which has the much larger hard drive (1.5 TB's).  For $3 on Amazon, the EASYi USB SD Card Reader for SD/SDHC Cards looked like it would get the job done.  After all, it had positive reviews on Amazon. The item

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-15289540065080916382012-03-04T22:40:00.000-05:002012-03-04T22:56:46.649-05:00

It was anticipation that I eagerly awaited Windows 8 Consumer Preview (CP).  After all, this is the latest and greatest from the folks out at Redmond, and might be a glimpse into the future. Well, the bottom line is I got it up and running, but it was anything but easy.  Those folks that are saying 30 minutes to install are not accurately portraying the average user's experience.

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-59824480762337782552012-02-16T22:20:00.001-05:002012-02-16T22:22:49.338-05:00

Intel's next upcoming processor, code named Ivy Bridge, was not exactly a well guarded secret.  Last year when the current generation of chips was released, the so called Sandy Bridge parts, they also announced that Ivy bridge would be out around a year later.  As I had no pressing processor needs, I decided to sit tight and wait for the Ivy, that promised higher performance with less

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-56606099586305082812012-02-09T22:22:00.004-05:002012-02-09T22:23:02.485-05:00

Kodak has announced that they will be getting out of the camera business. This once American icon, recently filed for bankruptcy, and is giving up on one of their core businesses. I can't say I am disappointed. Kodak never really made a successful transition from film to digital. Their competitor in the film market, Fuji I thought did this much better. Before we lament them, let us look at

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-81613873862031177072012-01-29T23:03:00.000-05:002012-01-29T23:03:07.091-05:00

There are basically 3 ways to connect a computer to your internet modem: 1- Wired with CAT 5e cable 2- Wirelessly via a WiFi router 3- Wired via a Powerline adaptor As you build out your home network there are multiple considerations, including the ease of which dedicated Ethernet cabling can be run, the wireless coverage, the location of the modem, and the bandwidth requirements. A

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-47868346313344149562012-01-08T23:14:00.000-05:002012-01-08T23:14:04.063-05:00

 After my frustration with Canon, I moved on to a new Panasonic, at least partly because it wasn't a Canon, it had manual controls even though it is a point and shoot, and the lens is made by Leica.  Well, going from an 8 MP 4x zoom, to a 14 MP 16x zoom was a big move up.  While not technically a superzoom, and still able to fit into a large pocket, the lens is equivalent to a 24

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11335842.post-56254577906517544622012-01-08T23:01:00.000-05:002012-01-08T23:01:56.382-05:00

WiFi has been stuck for a while, as the standard went from "b" to "g" (with a detour to "a"), then seemingly endless "pre-n," and most recently "n."  Because it took so long to go from "pre-n" to "n," I think it made the true "n" somewhat anticlimactic.  The current "n" gear is certainly solid and stable (I use a Linksys E4200 these days), but it hardly feels next generation a year

digitaldochttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13568754021777120336noreply@blogger.com0