ConnectReviews

2013 CES Video: Stern Pinball at Digital Experience

John Pastor — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 00:51:07 +0000

2013 CES Video: Fitbit Flex Wireless Activity Wristband

John Pastor — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 16:17:57 +0000

Check out our first look on the Fitbit Flex and be sure to check out the rest of our CES coverage throughout the week.

Video coverage is brought to you by:

Fitbit takes on the Nike+ Fuelband with Flex Wristband

John Pastor — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 15:12:54 +0000

The Flex first of the wristbands on the market to sync using Bluetooth 4.0 and contains most of the features already in the Fitbit One including steps, distance, calories burned, and active minutes, but in an all-new wristband design. The Flex will come in a variety of colors including Slate, Teal, Tangerine, Navy, and black. If you want, Flex’s tracker can also be taken out and swapped into a different color. Fitbit has also announced Bluetooth syncing with Android devices will be coming later this month or in early February.

The Fitbit Flex is available for pre-orders for $99.95 starting today and will ship this Spring.

Full press release below.

Fitbit Announces New Wristband Activity Tracker – the Fitbit Flex

Combines Fitbit wireless and Bluetooth 4.0 expertise with a flexible wristband, comfortable to wear all day and night

LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Today at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Fitbit, the leading innovator and market leader in the growing Connected Health & Fitness category, debuted the Fitbit Flex™ Wireless Activity + Sleep Wristband. Flex is the first and only wristband on the market to sync with Bluetooth 4.0 – which means more flexibility when you’re on the go and want to check your stats. By combining its expertise in building high performance wireless connected devices with a flexible, comfortable wristband format, Fitbit plans to accelerate the category growth by becoming the first and only brand to offer a clip and wristband tracker option.

Fitbit Flex is a slim, stylish activity and sleep tracking wristband that’s with you all the time and helps make fitness part of your everyday lifestyle. The new Fitbit Flex tracks steps taken, distance travelled, and calories burned, encouraging you to walk more and do more through bright LED indicator lights on the wristband that give you immediate feedback on your progress to a goal throughout the day. It also tracks how long and how well you sleep, allowing you to learn how to sleep better.

Flex uses Bluetooth 4.0 to sync your data automatically to your Fitbit dashboard using select iPhone, iPad and Android devices, or your computer – no buttons to push, nothing to plug in. With Flex, your smartphone or tablet become your dashboard, giving you access to Fitbit’s rich graphs and tools (leaderboard, badges, etc.) on the go to keep you motivated throughout the day. By adding a wristband tracker to its activity tracker portfolio, Fitbit offers everyone more ways to wear their trackers, and more ways to fit them more seamlessly into their everyday lifestyle.

“People are becoming more aware of the significant health benefits that come from moving more throughout the day. Fitbit has proven expertise in providing a great experience that will actually get people to move more each day – this is done with our easy-to-understand graphs and charts, ability to set daily goals and compete with friends and family,” says James Park, CEO and co-founder of Fitbit. “We’re aware that there is no ‘one size fits all’ option in fitness, so Fitbit wants to offer the widest variety on the market. When we saw that we could bring our knowledge to a wristband format done right, we had to create the new Flex.”

Fitbit Flex ($99.95) is available for pre-orders starting today on Fitbit.com and will ship in Spring 2013.

Unforgettable Wristband Design

The slim and stylish Flex is comfortable to wear all day, motivating you to achieve your daily fitness goals. Flex’s indicator lights will illuminate as you hit 20% increments of reaching a goal (such as walking 10K steps). Flex comes in five great colors and you can even switch bands to match your mood or help make fitness part of your lifestyle.

Fitbit Flex features and benefits include:

Know your stats: Tracks steps, distance, calories burned, and active minutes
Getting good ZZZs: Tracks quality of sleep (# of hours, how many times you wake up, sleep efficiency index) and uses a silent alarm that vibrates to wake you up gently
First and only wristband to: Sync to select mobile devices via Bluetooth 4.0 (first all-day wristband tracker to offer this capability). It also syncs wirelessly and automatically to your computer.
Multi-platform: Syncs to select iPhone and, now, select Android devices
With you all the time: Comfortable enough to wear all day. Water-resistant. Wear it in the shower.
Match your mood or personality: Flexible, interchangeable tracker with a variety of colorful wristbands (Black, Slate, Teal, Tangerine, Navy)
Rich mobile and online offerings: iPhone and Android App and Online tools – shows activity charts, leaderboards and more. Set goals, view progress and earn badges.
Social motivation: Connect with friends and family for support or friendly competition
Even more health and fitness tools: Log food, weight and more on Fitbit’s website or apps
Flex to Sync Through Bluetooth 4.0 for select iPhone and Android Devices

Flex is the first all-day wristband tracker with Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity, so it can wirelessly and automatically sync your stats to select Apple and Android devices. Using the Fitbit mobile app, you can to set a goal, see stats updated, and track your progress when you are on the go. And because you can sync wirelessly throughout the day, you can also receive notifications on your phone when you are close to your goals to keep you motivated and, when you meet your goals, to celebrate your achievements.

Rich Social and Mobile Platform for Motivation and On-the-Go Stats

Like all Fitbit trackers, you can also sync your data to your online account through your computer with an included Bluetooth 4.0 USB dongle. Whether online or on a mobile device, you can see graphs, earn activity badges, set up a friendly competition with friends and family, and log food or other work-outs. These tools encourage you to stay active and keep you motivated. You can even compete on the Fitbit leaderboard that refreshes throughout the day for moment-to-moment inspiration. If you’re more self-motivated, you can earn badges for daily or lifetime achievements.

Fitbit also integrates with many popular health and fitness apps, including Endomondo, LoseIt, MapMyFitness, MyFitnessPal and Sparkpeople, to allow users to share data from their favorite apps.

Android Syncing

More news! Not only is Fitbit is the only player in the personal connected health and fitness device space to offer an Android app, it also will be the first to offer Bluetooth 4.0 syncing capabilities to select Android devices, coming late in January/early February. Owners of the Fitbit One, Zip and now Flex will be able to track their progress on select Android phones. The updated Android app will be compatible with the Samsung Galaxy SIII and Samsung Note II. More devices will be available soon.

This new development emphasizes Fitbit’s investment in multiplatform mobility. Earlier this month, Fitbit released an app built specifically for the Microsoft Surface Tablet.

Rapidly Growing Product Line and Company Growth

Fitbit Flex follows on the successful launches of three Fitbit products within the last year: the Fitbit Aria Wi-Fi Smart Scale, Fitbit Zip and Fitbit One Wireless Activity + Sleep Trackers. Fitbit products are carried in over 10,000 U.S. retailer stores, and sold internationally, in countries like Canada, Spain, UK, France, Germany, Australia and New Zealand.

Fitbit at CES 2013

Please come by the Fitbit CES booth where you can see the new Flex wristband and the entire Fitbit product line showcased – LVCC, South Hall 2 – #26303.

Also, Fitbit’s CEO is taking part in the following two panels at the show:

“Does Sharing Keep you More Fit: Crowdsourcing” – Jan. 8, 1:15p PT, LVCC, North Hall – N250
“CNET – The Next Interface: You” – Jan. 9, 3:00p PT, LVCC, South Hall – CNET stage
About Fitbit

Founded in 2007 in San Francisco, Calif., Fitbit is dedicated to designing tools and experiences that fit seamlessly into people’s lives. Fitbit offers the insights and encouragement to make smart choices and to see how small, everyday changes add up to big results. The Fitbit Zip and Fitbit One are the leading wireless fitness trackers in the market, while its Aria Wi-Fi Smart Scale is a top-selling connected weight scale. Fitbit has distribution at leading U.S. retailers such as Apple, Amazon, AT&T, Best Buy, Brookstone, Radio Shack, REI, Verizon and Target. Fitbit products are sold in the U.S., Canada, the EU, New Zealand and Australia. Fitbit is funded by the Foundry Group, True Ventures and SoftTech VC. For more information please visit www.Fitbit.com or connect with us on Facebook or Twitter.

Seagate announces Central networked storage device

John Pastor — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 00:24:52 +0000

The Central also features automatic backup for every computer in your home, Mac or Windows, and remote access to files when you’re away from home. The device includes new apps which support Samsung Smart TVs and Blu-ray players, Amazon Kindle HD, Apple iOS, and Android devices. Seagate has also baked in support for Apple AirPlay and the Central is DLNA certified.

Look for Seagate Central shared storage in stores this March for $189.99, $219.99, and $259.99 for 2TB, 3TB, and 4TB capacities respectively.

Full press release below.

Organize Your Home with Seagate Central Shared Storage

New Award-winning, Simplified Network Backup Solution Easily Brings Access and Sharing to All Your Files

2013 International CES
LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)– CONSUMER ELECTRONICS SHOW — Seagate Technology plc (NASDAQ: STX) today announced, its next-generation, networked home storage solution, Seagate® Central shared storage, the first storage device to feature a Smart TV app for access to files on the big screen. A CES 2013 Innovations Honoree, Seagate Central delivers automatic backup for the entire home, access to digital movies and music from networked devices, as well as remote access from outside a home network. Seagate has also taken a new step in making Central storage a low-profile horizontal design, which takes cues from home entertainment and looks great in any living room.

Simple, Central – Multi-Computer Backup

Seagate built this product for simplicity. By focusing on the number one need for homes with more than one computer, Seagate designed an easy, centralized backup for each computer in the home, regardless of operating system. Seagate retooled the software and user experience for the Seagate Central shared storage so that it seamlessly provides a backup for each system on a home network, even in a mixed platform environment of Windows OS and Mac OS X computers. In addition to automatic and continuous backup of all the computers in a home, Seagate Central can also backup photos and videos directly from Facebook, a feature first introduced in the award-winning Backup Plus line of external drives.

“This is the ideal backup solution for the family of today, who increasingly have multiple computers, tablets and smart phones,” said Scott Horn, vice president of marketing at Seagate. “We focused on what would make Central easy to use in a home setting. Consumers will find Central storage is easy-to-use as a backup solution with great-looking apps that deliver access to people’s content from the world’s most popular mobile devices, as well as Samsung Smart televisions and Blu-ray players.”

A recent study from Parks Associates found consumers keep content in a wide variety of places including sites like Facebook. The average broadband household has 8% of their music, video, and photo content on social networking sites.

“Consumers are looking for storage solutions that help them consolidate and safeguard the content they’ve got scattered across a growing number of places,” said John Barrett, director of Consumer Analytics at Parks Associates. “Young consumers in particular do not have central repositories of content but rather many places where content naturally ends-up as a result of their media habits.”

Enjoy Your Movies and Music

In addition to its primary role as a total home backup device to organize content in one location, Central storage is also designed for easy media streaming. Once all your files and rich media are safely on the drive, Central storage organizes the content for you according to media type, such as videos, pictures, music and documents. Seagate then makes it easier than ever before to access entertainment and documents by providing free apps for Samsung Smart TVs and Blu-ray players, as well as Apple® iOS devices, Amazon Kindle HD and Android mobile devices. Central is DLNA certified and also works with Apple® AirPlay®, which means nearly any network-connected device can connect to it.

New App, New Look,

The newly designed Seagate Media app, available for Android, Kindle Fire HD and Apple iOS, delivers a seamless, user-friendly experience for accessing, downloading or sharing files from Seagate Central shared storage. The experience is the same within the network or connecting to Central storage remotely. Files are easy to enjoy through the visually appealing app interface. Everything is organized by category as well as folder view. The Seagate media app and Seagate Central storage will ensure that you always have access to the files you need when you need them.

Pricing and Availability:

Seagate Central Shared storage will be available in March of this year for the following MSRP(s) of 2TB, $189.99; 3TB, $219.99; 4TB, $259.99.

About CES Innovations Awards:

The prestigious Innovations Design and Engineering Awards are sponsored by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA)®, the producer of the International CES, the world’s largest consumer technology tradeshow, and have been recognizing achievements in product design and engineering since 1976.

About Seagate

Seagate is a worldwide leader in hard disk drives and storage solutions. Learn more at http://www.seagate.com/

©2013 Seagate Technology LLC. All rights reserved. Seagate, Seagate Technology and the Wave logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Seagate Technology LLC or its affiliates in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. When referring to drive capacity, one terabyte, or TB, equals one thousand billion bytes. Your computer’s operating system may use a different standard of measurement and report a lower capacity. In addition, some of the listed capacity is used for formatting and other functions and will not be available for data storage.

ConnectReviews at the 2013 CES!

John Pastor — Sat, 05 Jan 2013 03:38:38 +0000

The quickest way to access our coverage, we encourage you to follow us on Twitter at @connectreviews. In addition to having links to all the news, videos and photos we post here, our Twitter feed will be home to breaking news coverage and show floor updates throughout the day. If you like our Facebook page, every news article will be delivered to your Facebook news feed as coverage is posted.

Like last year, we’ll have extensive video coverage on our YouTube channel, which we encourage you to subscribe to so you can watch the latest content as soon as it’s posted.

Coverage officially kicks off on Monday, January 7, 2012 with our visit to Pepcom’s annual Digital Experience press event held at the MGM Grand. Be sure to bookmark our CES coverage page and check back regularly!

Incipio DualPro for iPhone 5 Case Review

John Pastor — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 19:57:24 +0000

Simply put, the Incipio DualPro is a hybrid case consisting of a soft, silicone case and a hard “Rigid Plutonium” soft-touch shell (read: polycarbonate) that clips onto the specially designed silicone piece. The DualPro comes in a six different color schemes from all-black to grey and yellow like the review sample we received last week. The DualPro case also comes with a clear screen protector, microfiber cleaning cloth, an applicator card if you wish to apply the protector, and a folding stand.

If you’re looking for a slim case that doesn’t add too much bulk, we’re not too sure you’ll like the DualPro as it measures 0.11 inches thick, adding a bit of heft to your device. This is noticeable on the inner ring of the silicone case which frames the display. It isn’t necessarily a bad thing if you’re looking to protect your iPhone, but slimmer options are available. Regardless, the case does feel quite nice in the hand, with access to the volume controls, silent/ring switch, and sleep/wake button, as well as cutouts on the bottom for the headphone jack, microphone, Lightning port, and speaker.

Overall, the Incipio DualPro case is a good option for iPhone 5 owners who want to protect their device without going to bulkier cases such as an OtterBox but without compromising protection on thinner cases. The variety of color schemes are perfect for any personality and complement the device nicely. The DualPro case is available today from Incipio for $29.99 but can be found at Amazon.com for around $22 at press time.

Das Keyboard Professional S for Mac Review

John Pastor — Tue, 31 Jul 2012 15:13:04 +0000

Product At-a-Glance

Pros

Great tactile feedback
Built-in USB hub
Excellent build quality

Cons

USB hub occupies an additional USB port
Expensive
Not very Mac-like design

Summary

The Das Keyboard Professional S for Mac is a great mechanical keyboard for Mac users, but depending on your needs and budget, other options may be available.

The Das Keyboard Professional S for Mac is the newest model from Das Keyboard, which started releasing mechanical keyboards in 2005. The company has grown a following throughout the technology community, and it’s easy to see why. It’s quite a switch for me, a Mac user who’s been using Apple’s thin, chiclet-style keyboards since their introduction in 2007 alongside the aluminum iMacs. They’re great keyboards and I haven’t seen a reason to use anything else, so I thought this would be a good trial.

The Model S Professional for Mac features a standard 104-key layout that is found on most traditional keyboards, plus the media keys and function keys you’d expect to see on any Mac keyboard. You’ll also find a dedicated Sleep function key to quickly put your Mac into sleep mode without going to any extra menus. Like the wired Apple keyboard, the Das also features a 2-port USB hub for connecting a mouse or charging your devices (albeit not an iPad). But, this comes with a catch, as the keyboard takes up two USB ports for the hub to function.

The real fun while testing this keyboard happens when you set your fingers on it. The Cherry MX Blue switches come to life and the clickity-clack rhythm of the keys begins. It sounds odd if you’ve never experienced it before, but the sound of the keys is somewhat satisfying and to me, increases my focus on the task at hand. I feel like I’m typing something that’s important or critical. The Cherry switches provide a quick response both in audible and on-screen response. Many people credit these switches as the best available, since it feels similar to your standard keyboard, but with that audible click I mentioned. The one caveat of owning a keyboard like this is the noise level. This is not a keyboard designed for quiet environments. If you work in a cubicle, your cube neighbor will not be pleased. The folks at Das have a guide on their website with all the details on mechanical keyboards.

This particular keyboard doesn’t come cheap, however, with a steep price point of $133. Some of Das’ other models are a bit cheaper at around $100 with free ground shipping, so take a look at their website to find the right model for you.

Wacom Intuos5 Graphics Tablet Review

John Pastor — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 05:51:47 +0000

The new Intuos5 line of tablets seems to be a minor upgrade from the Intuos4, similar to the upgrade from the iPhone 4 to 4S. They kept the same 2,048 levels of pen sensitivity and practically the same ergonomic pen design, but also changed a few things that make sense when you actually get to use one.

One thing that is missing from this new line of models is the included mouse, which some users preferred for higher accuracy and precision, and is now sold separately for $69.

On the Intuos4, the hot keys (called ExpressKeys by Wacom), had tiny LED displays denoting what each key did and would change based on your preferences. On the Intuos5, Wacom got rid of any sort of display entirely in favor of a on-screen overlay on your Mac or PC, eliminating the need to really look down at your tablet, keeping your eyes focused on the task at hand. If you just want to know what a certain ExpressKey does, just rest your finger lightly on the button and a heads-up display pops up showing each function. Definitely something that’s handy when you first start using the tablet to get the hang of things.

One of the key features Wacom has implemented in the latest Intuos line are multi-touch gestures and touch input. So instead of using the pen, you can use your finger to say, erase something in Photoshop. Similar to Apple’s Magic Trackpad, you can also swipe up with four fingers to open Mission Control in OS X, for example. Gestures are controlled through the Wacom Tablet system preference pane on the Mac and through the Control Panel utility on Windows. Features will, of course, vary depending on your operating system.

The multi-touch gestures worked but were sluggish compared to Apple’s built-in gestures and the touch input felt odd on a matte finish as opposed to the glass on an iPad for example.

While the Intuos4 had both wired and wireless models available to purchase, the Intuos5 comes standard in a wired version with a Wireless Accessory Kit sold separately for $39.95 that includes a battery, wireless dongle, and wireless transmitter. The only difference here is that the Intuos4 connected via Bluetooth and the Intuos5 requires the included USB dongle.

When using the pen, the Intuos5 has the same great performance creatives have come to love from the Intuos4 and offers a worthy upgrade for Intuos3 users who held out the last time around.

The Intuos5 is available in three sizes: Small (6.2 x 3.9 inches), Medium (8.8 x 5.5 inches) and Large (12.8 x 8.0 inches, 11.8 x 7.5 inches for Multi-touch) for $229, $349, and $469 respectively.

AKG Perception 120 USB Condenser Microphone Review

John Pastor — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 02:32:39 +0000

Product At-a-Glance

Pros

Crisp, clear sound quality
Long USB cable included
No drivers or extra software

Cons

No headphone output for monitoring
Flimsy mini tripod stand

Summary

The AKG Perception 120 USB is a USB condenser microphone that offers excellent sound quality at a reasonable price.

Unlike traditional pro audio microphones, the AKG Perception 120 USB integrates a built-in 24-bit analog to digital converter that allows you to use it with your computer without the extra use of an external audio interface. Getting the microphone setup is a relatively straight forward process. In the box, you’ll get the microphone, a stand adapter, a mini tripod stand, and USB cable (and a long one at that). The mic doesn’t need any drivers on either a Mac or PC, so it’s truly a plug-and-play process. The included stand isn’t exactly the sturdiest stand on the planet, but it does the job.

Since it is a plug-and-play mic, you’ll be able to control the gain using your operating system’s built-in sound control panel. No need to install extra software or preference panes. Once the setup process is complete, you’re ready to record in practically any sound recording application from Adobe Audition to the free Audacity.

If you’ve used your laptop’s built-in microphone for Skype conference calls or recording a podcast in a crunch, you’ll be easily amazed by the sound quality of the Perception 120 USB. Sound quality was clear and crisp with minimal background noise. The microphone also has a switchable bass cut filter and 20dB attenuation switch for close miked voiceovers and instrument recording. One notable feature that is missing from the Perception 120 USB is a headphone jack for monitoring output with zero latency. Other microphones such as the Blue Microphones Yeti include a feature to always keep an eye on audio level without having to do test recordings and adjustments.

The AKG Perception 120 USB is an excellent USB microphone for podcasters and even budding musicians given the low price and great audio quality. The mic sells for $149 typically, but you can find it at Amazon.com (at the time of writing) for $139 with free shipping.

Audioengine D1 24-bit DAC Review

Kevin Hart — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 02:17:30 +0000

I had just purchased a set of Audioengine A5+ powered speakers and it really was obvious that the analog out of the iMac was far from perfect. Any classical music sounded muddy, pop and rock was flat, and the electronica had no kick. The perfect match for the A5+’s would be the D1 from the same company, or that was my assumption. This was definitely the case.

Installation couldn’t be easier. A simple USB powered connection from the iMac into the D1, then a RCA cable pair into the A5+’s, and you’re off to the races. No drivers needed. I tested this on my Windows 7 laptop and the experience was the same, but this device was bound for my home setup. And a tip for the Mac users out there, you should dive into the built-in MIDI setup and set the D1 as your output, and set it to 24-bit mode.

If you really want to notice the change the most, try to do a back to back test. Listen to your favorite track at least once, maybe twice then switch to the D1. You’ll notice that the highs are brighter, than the lows are cleaner, and through the range everything will just seem cleaner. Pulling the audio processing outside the noisy interior of a computer, electrically speaking, does wonders for the sound. Beyond that, the components that Audioengine uses inside are much better than what any onboard soundcard will be using.

Another perk from this little device is that it is a great interface for your headphones. Did you know you are likely not getting the most out of your headphones if you are running them straight off the sound card? The D1 will give your headphones the same experience it gives your speakers, cleaner and brighter sound. My AKG 240 studio headphones always sounded very quiet and restrained on the Logitech audio out, or even an iPhone. On the D1 they come alive and let you hear things that you never noticed before. The first night with this combo, I turned on some Deadmau5 and was blown away at the things I didn’t hear going on in the background of the songs just because these headphones were never adequately driven.

For $169, the Audioengine D1 will put you on the road toward becoming a little more appreciative of your music or any sound coming from your computer. It does not change your music but gives it a cleaner path from the bits on your computer to the nerves in your ears. The one downside, you will start noticing that those MP3′s you ripped from your first CD, Sir Mix-A-Lot – Mack Daddy, just doesn’t cut it anymore. At least those MP3′s from Amazon are in super high quality…or you will be learning what the term FLAC means.

AblePlanet Clear Harmony NC1050 Headphone Review

David Plews — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 03:18:48 +0000

Product At-a-Glance

Pros

Stunning audio quality when active cancellation is enabled
Ability to listen to music even without batteries
Good noise cancellation
Solid construction and design
Nice carrying case included

Cons

Lacking the same level of shielding as competitors
Poor headphone cable
AAA batteries are used instead of a rechargeable option

Summary

It’s hard to knock the leader of noise canceling headphones, Bose. With a solid design, stunning audio quality, and good noise cancellation, the AblePlanet Clear Harmony NC1050 headphones certainly prove a capable competitor.

Sure, Bose is the de facto leader when it comes to noise canceling headphones. Look into first class on any flight and you’re bound to see someone sporting a pair of QuietComforts. Why? They work. Now the question really is, can AblePlanet’s offering hold their own in comparison? Yes and no.

Design and Construction

In the box, you get a nice neoprene semi-hard case that is sure to protect your new investment, as well as a small mesh bag to hold your accessories, including the detachable headphone cable, a 3.5mm to 1/4-inch adapter, and an airplane audio adapter. The later is certainly a nice addition, as any frequent flyer is sure to point out.

The headphones are similarly in construction to their Bose rivals, with most pieces being cast from plastics. Two AAA batteries reside under a plastic cover on the left earphone, powering the noise canceling features. An on/off switch under the cover toggles the noise cancellation. You even get a bit of cheesy fake carbon fiber detailing, but to the untrained eye, it’s the real thing.

Compared to the QuietComfort competitors, the headband on the NC1050s isn’t as wide, meaning you feel it sitting on top of your head a bit more firmly. However, the padding on the ear cups is a bit thicker, meaning your ears get a bit more of a pampered treatment in comparison to the Bose option.

As the NC1050s are noise canceling, the ear cups are circumaural, meaning your ears are completely encompassed by the headphones. This intrinsically leads to a bit of discomfort over a long enough listening duration, but it’s certainly no worse than any other circumaural headphones we’ve tested.

It might be nitpicking on our part, but the headphone cable seems a bit out of place. It’s incredibly thin, rubber coated cable, with a volume control about 3/4 the way up. It easily tangles because it’s so thin, and the volume control just seems to be in an odd location (it doesn’t even have a built-in microphone). It’s a bit frustrating, considering the overall quality of the rest of the construction. If you despise it as much as we do, you can easily replace it with your own 3.5mm audio cable. Maybe something with a nice corded exterior to reduce tangling? Just about any cable is better than the one included.

Performance

When using the NC1050s, you have two options. You can enable active noise cancellation which uses the AAA batteries to power the much-heralded Linx Audio technology, or you can listen passively which doesn’t require any battery power at all. With Bose’s QuietComfort series, you don’t have the option of passive listening, meaning the NC1050s have an immediate leg up. Batteries die? No problem. You can keep listening without worrying where the nearest convenience store is.

But this passive mode comes at a big price. Compared to the active mode, the passive quality is muted and dreary. Bass isn’t very responsive, and the crispness of higher ranged audio is severely muddled. We’ve tested much less expensive headphones that sound better in passive audio.

That being said, enable the active cancellation, and you enter a world of difference. Bass is incredibly well-balanced and crisp, and higher ranged audio is crystal clear. The overall sound is full and easily rivals, if not surpasses its Bose competitor. It’s also nice to hear that the NC1050s don’t employ any digital processing to remove low bass notes that threaten to distort the sound. Instead the drivers are able to produce rich, deep bass without any digital interference.

To describe the sound in a single word, â€œrichâ€ would be a solid choice. Sure, this is to be expected from $350 headphones, but in our testing, we were very impressed with the overall sound quality from the NC1050s.

The noise cancellation is nothing to be scoffed at either. As I’m writing, I’m in a room with the constant buffeting noise of a box fan, and a gentle spring rainstorm outside. Turn on the active noise canceling, and the rain disappears, and all that’s left of the box fan is the higher ranges of the hum. The cancellation works wonders on sound in lower ranges, but higher pitched notes are a bit harder to disguise.

When compared to the rival QuietComfort headphones, the NC1050s aren’t quite as good when it comes to noise cancellation, but they certainly give them a run for their money. One drawback we noticed in testing is that while the Bose are well shielded from electronic interference, the NC1050s are sometimes susceptible to interference. We didn’t notice any cell phone interference like other reviews have mentioned, but you’ll occasionally get clicks in your sound from various electric appliances.

The Verdict

So, should you buy the AblePlanet Clear Harmony NC1050 headphones? It’s really a tough call. The audio quality proves to be seriously good, and perhaps better than the Bose competitors. Plus you can even listen to music far past when your batteries inevitably die. However, some minor construction issues and a slightly inferior noise cancellation lend greater merit to the Bose option.

If you’re looking for the best in noise cancellation, we suggest the Bose QuietComfort series. If you’re looking for superior sound quality and above-average noise cancellation, try out the NC1050s. They certainly won’t disappoint.

HP ZR2440w 24-inch LED Backlit IPS Monitor Review

John Pastor — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 06:13:51 +0000

The HP ZR2440w is a 24-inch 1920 x 1200 display with a 1000:1 contrast ratio and 178-degree ultra-wide viewing angles thanks to the IPS (in-plane switching) technology panel. The ZR2440w has DisplayPort, HDMI, and DVI-D ports as well as a 2-port USB hub on the back along with an additional 2-port USB hub on the left side of the monitor. One port you’ll find missing is an analog VGA connector, so those with older laptops, computers, and even netbooks may be left behind.

The stand has height, tilt, swivel, and rotation adjustments, but in our testing, we found the stand to be a little stiff. At the bottom of the stand is a small hole for cable management. One caveat of this design is actually seeing your cables at the bottom, which defeats the purpose of even having such a feature in the first place.

Out of the box, the monitor displayed very good image quality with saturated colors and good black levels. Compared to some of the traditional CCFL (flourescent) backlit monitors we’ve reviewed in the past, the ZR2440w is bright and very energy efficient, earning the EPEAT Gold rating.

The HP ZR2440w retails for around $425 (though it can be found for $410 on Amazon), making it almost $100 more expensive than its closest competitor, the Dell UltraSharp U2412M, which lacks an HDMI port.

Macworld 2012 Video: New Products from Polk Audio

John Pastor — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 06:58:04 +0000

Find more information about these new products at the Ultrafocus page on Polk Audio’s website and be sure to check out the rest of our Macworld 2012 videos at our YouTube channel.

Macworld 2012 Video: iPro Lens System for iPhone 4/4S

John Pastor — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 09:06:30 +0000

Find more information at the iPro Lens System website. Be sure to check out our other videos at Macworld 2012 by subscribing to our YouTube channel.

Macworld 2012 Video: Henge Docks MacBook Air Dock

John Pastor — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 07:58:40 +0000

Find more information at the Henge Docks website.

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