Latest Ultraportable Reviews Roundup
April 29, 2005
Cnet.com has a review and video of the Dell
Latitude X1. PC Magazine has a review of the Toshiba
Portege R200. And NotebookReview.com has a first thoughts review on the IBM
ThinkPad x41, a new 2.7 lb laptop, with 12.1" screen
and a 1.50ghz Pentium M processor. In case you’re wondering why I keep emphasizing these laptops, the reason is obvious - after all, who doesn’t love really lightweight laptops with decent power and good specs?
Shiny Red Mini WebCam M2 by Alphatech
April 29, 2005
This webcam is unusual because it has some style with it’s shiny-red-sports-car-like
finish. Its also convenient because it can clip onto your LCD monitor or
notebook display. And its got decent specs which include the ability to capture video in VGA resolution (640×480) at
30fps as well as taking 1.3MP still pictures. (Source: Akihabara News)
Keyhole - Get a 3d Perspective on Almost Anywhere
April 28, 2005
Keyhole is software that allows you to see a 3D digital model of the entire earth via the Internet. Once you download and install the software, you type in the address you want to look up and it zooms in on it. It’s scary stuff - I tried my home address and there it was, I was looking at a 3d layout of the whole neighborhood with information about it, including some things I didn’t even know. You can customize the view so that you can see the address from different angles or to see what other places are located around it - such as stores, hospitals, parks, streets, etc. Google has purchased Keyhole so it’ll be interesting to see what further direction its taken too. Currently the lite edition has an annual subscription rate of $29.99. There is a free trial available on their site so even if you have no use for this software it’s worth trying out just for kicks.
Dell Latitude X1 Ultraportable Laptop Mini Review
April 28, 2005
NoteBookReview.com has a review and some good pictures of the new Dell Latitude X1. There is a comparison shot of the X1 next to the Fujitsu p7000 series so you can get an idea of just how small the X1 is. The review also talks about its good features and performance.
ASUS W2V Powerhouse Laptop
April 27, 2005
April continues to be an awesome month for awesome new laptop releases.Asus, a company which isn’t too popular in the U.S., has just announced a new
powerhouse desktop replacement laptop, the W2V series, which can be
customized with a 17 inch highgloss widescreen display, a subwoofer, up to 2 GB
of ram, a 100 gig hard drive, and a Multi-format card reader. The W2Vc model will include an analogue/digital TV tuner for both analog
NTSC/PAL signals and DVB-T. A great thing about this series is that it weighs
about 7.5 lbs which is pretty light for a laptop with a 17 inch
screen.
certainly has a very professional and slick design. (Source: InfosyncWorld)
Toshiba Portege R200 Ultraportable Laptop
April 26, 2005
Toshiba has released the Portege R200 which replaces the Toshiba Portege R100,
which was one of the first truly ultra thin and ultraportable laptops weighing just 2.4lbs. The new
R200 has a 60 gig hard drive and a 1.2ghz Pentium M processor, and an integrated
fingerprint reader. It’s got the same basic design as the R100 but it has more silver on it as oppose to the mostly solid black R100. I had the R100 a while back and I loved its battery life and
size but the screen wasn’t bright enough for my yes. Overall this new R200 is
really enticing to me. It’s got one thing over the Dell latitude X1 that is
significant to me - a pc card slot to put my GPRS card in. (Source:
Infosyncworld).
Zipit Wireless Messenger
April 26, 2005
Here’s a neat little device for the younger crowd. We all love instant messaging, but supposedly teens and pre-teens are amongst the heaviest instant massagers. The Zipit Wireless messaging device is geared towards teens and kids. For $99 you get a portable instant messaging device that works via wifi and connects to AIM, YAHOO & MSN messenger. It’s got a qwerty keyboard and it comes in different colors including pink and red which make it girl friendly as well. Laptop magazine has a contest to enter, if you want to try winning one of these.
More headphones with Mp3 Players built-in
April 22, 2005
Recently I posted about the GPX SportX HW6805DT Mp3 Player Headphones with
expandable memory. I thought they were pretty unique but it turns out I was
wrong. Geeks.com has the iZon
Bluetooth MP3/FM Radio/Mobile Headset with 128 MB SD Card and SD expandability.
Yes that’s right - it can be used as a headset for your phone via bluetooth. It
also has FM programmable presets, and on the side of the headset it seems to
have an lcd display. Not sure how useful that display is since you are wearing
it on your ear. These headphones are available for $219.99.
If you’re looking for cheaper mp3
player headphones then there is the Aiwa
UZ-PS128 128MB USB Digital MP3 Player with 10 hour play back for a great
price of $59.00.
Panasonic D-Snap Mp3 Player
April 22, 2005
The new Panasonic D-Snap Mp3 Player is definately sharp looking with its shiny oled display and tiny size. It supports AAC, Mp3 and WMA, has an FM radio, voice recorder, and a decent battery life of 14.5 hours. Music files are stored inside it via secure digital cards, which can be pretty convenient but at a price of $199.99 it just doesn’t seem like much value - I can’t even tell if it comes with the 1 gigabyte secure digital card shown in the picture? Does anyone know if the card is included? Dynamism is currently selling it.
(Source: i4u.net)
Knomo Contemporary Computer Luggage
April 22, 2005
Knomo Contemporary Computer Luggage has a great selection of leather laptop bags for women, as well as funky laptop bags for the metrosexual guy. Forladies, they have the Quetta which comes in red or black and fits most 14 and 15
inch screen laptops, the retro Tobermory which fits most 15 inch
notebooks and has inner pockets for an ipod, pda and other gadgets, and the
Cholet which has plenty of pockets as well.
Ikub Ipod Holder
April 21, 2005
Just recently I posted about the Japanese Idog Accessory for the Ipod. Here’s
another Japanese accessory that looks related to it - or maybe its the idog’s
master? The ikub is an "ipod holder." Is it just me, or
does it look like they modeled the ikub after a lego toy? The ikub is available to purchase at JapaneseKitchen.co.uk but is currently sold out.
Averatec 1000 Ultra Portable 10.6-inch Wide Screen Notebook
April 19, 2005
Averatec, a company notorious for cheap prices, has announced a new ultraportable laptop. The series 1000 will weigh 3.6 lbs, include a 10.6 widescreen glossy display, an Intel Centrino processor, a DVDRW drive, a 4 in one memory card reader, Three High Speed USB 2.0, 802.11b/g wireless, an ethernet card, 56K data/fax modem, Type II PCMCIA/CardBus Slot, Microphone Input Jack, Headphone Output Jack, and a 15-pin Standard VGA Output Port. Also, the design looks pretty nice, kinda like a Fujitsu p7000 painted in white. (Source: NotebookReview)
x2 Stylebook Laptop for Women
April 19, 2005
A computer company has finally noticed that females like technology too. X2, (a company that I’m not familiar with) has announced it’s upcoming line of X2 StyleBook laptops that have been designed with both fashion and the female audience in mind. The laptops are light weight at just 3.9 lbs with a dvd/cdrw drive and a 12.1 inch screen. Pricing will begin at $1300 and the laptop will come in a nice assortment of female friendly colors - pink, white, silver, black, lavender, blue, and green. They will also include matching laptop bags in your choice of Microfiber, Faux Croc, Leather and Suade.
I think its awesome that companies are beginning to add more flavor and style to their laptops to attract women’s interest, I hope other big manufacturers follow suit.
(Source: Gizmodo)
GPX SportX HW6805DT Mp3 Player Headphones
April 18, 2005
Infosyncworld has some info on a new pair of unique headphones from GPX.These headphones are worth mentioning because of its mp3 & FM Playback
capabilities that are built directly into the headphones. It also comes with
128mb built in plus optional expandability via MiniSD cards which are pretty
affordable. The GPX SportX HW6805DT is scheduled to be available in May for $99
U.S.D., which isn’t a bad price for such an unusual item.
Neosol Cn-2210 PVP with TV recording Review
April 18, 2005
A while back I posted about the Neosol Cn-2210, a portable video and mp3 player with a 5gig hard drive, and a tv tuner with recording capabilities. I promised I’d keep you updated once T3 Mag would publish a review of it. Unfortunately the Cn-2210 failed to impress T3 and it only recieved 2 out of 5 stars. T3 justified this poor rating by explaining that the Cn-2210 had jerky video play back and a poor user interface. However they did say that the Tv Tuner worked reasonably well and that it had a bright oled screen. Well, I the Cn-2210 didn’t turn out to be as promising as I’d hoped it would be, but someone will get it right eventually.
Sony NW-E507 Mp3 Flash Memory Player
April 18, 2005
Sony hasn’t been successful yet in beating the ipod, but perhaps it can diminish the popularity of the ishuffle with it’s upcoming NW-E507. The NW-E507 is a 1 gig Flash mp3 & wma player with an FM tuner, a 3 line display, and a 50 Hour battery life. And it happens to look really good too. T3 mag claims it’s due out in April. J&R has it available for preorder for $199. Ok so it’s not not as cheap as the ishuffle, but I think there’s alot more value here compared to the suffle considering its awesome battery life and that it has a display! And if it proves true to its listed specifications then it will have even better battery life and better looks then the samsung YP-MT6Z which claims a battery life of upto 42 hours.
Nokia 3230 Smartphone Review
April 14, 2005
OCWorkbench.com has a review on one of Nokia’s latest smartphones with the series 60 OS - the Nokia 3230. the reviewer gives it a solid 8.25 out of 10. What’s unique about this smartphone is that it’s pretty tiny. And for us ladies it comes in different colors which include a pink/purple metallic finish.
Scan your Wifi for Poachers
April 14, 2005
Ever wonder if someone you don’t know about is using your wifi network? Even if
you have never wondered about this problem it can often be a big significant dilemma. Poachers can pose a big security risk, for example that poacher might
have access to the files on your computers and you’d never know. eEye Digital
Security is offering free software to download that scans your wifi network and
tells you who what computers are logged onto it. They currently have this
software available for Windows and Pocket PC. (Source: MobileMag)
Segatoys Idog Ipod Speaker
April 13, 2005
Aibo and an ipod sitting in a tree. First comes love, then comes the Segatoys idog iPod Speaker. This electronic puppy responds to ipod music with flashing led light patterns, rotating ears and a moving head. The Japanese never cease to amaze me with toys like this one. It can be purchased for $89 at Audiocubes.
iTech Bluetooth Media Player Headset
April 12, 2005
If you were in awe of the Nokia Wireless headset that I posted about recently and you wished you could get a wireless headset for your mp3 player or pda, then here’s a good solution - check out the iTech Bluetooth Media Player Headset. It works with most pdas, cell phones and mp3 players. Unfortunately though, the Itech headset is currently sold out.