GadgetSpeak Articles
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In the heart of Londons Soho region, ARCHOS revealed details of some new products aimed at attracting your disposal income. Of course we were there.
"Mobility is the way to go", this could well be the slogan adopted by companies such as ARCHOS, a global consumer electronics manufacturer concentrating in the field of portable digital entertainment. The company has recently announced its new line of Generation 5 Portable Media Players (PMPs) under the tag line of "Entertainment your way".
This is a camera by Samsung from their entry level S series of cameras. However it has a number of features that are certainly not entry level but it still can be a point and shoot offering.
The is a maximum of 10x5x6cm (with lens extended) it is only just over 3cm thick with the lens closed. The weight is something under 200grams with the two 'AA' batteries and SD inserted and the wrist strap attached. The SD card is not supplied. The camera itself is silver/grey in colour with a leather type strip for the finger grip. Samsung S800 This is an 8Mege pixel offering with 3x optical zoom.
Creative has added to the functionality of its Zen device with the release of a speaker unit.
Although MP3 players, of whatever variety, are generally designed as personal mobile devices that has not stopped the development of products to enhance and widen the functionality of such units. One area that has benefited especially is that of external speaker units that allow multiple users to enhance output without the need of sharing headsets.
If you're hoping to take advantage of summer and want
something to carry provisions, a few clothes and help provide beach BBQ
entertainment then the JanSport Recourse range might be for you.
JanSport, a producer of backpacks and other luggage items, has taken the opportunity to add support for music 'on the go' to their new 'Recourse' range. Taking advantage of the wide-spread availability of MP3 players, JanSport have not tried to re-invent the wheel by building a music player into a backpack. Instead they have provided support for your current music machine - leaving the choice of iPod, Zen, MP3 or standard CD to you.
This is a multi function inkjet printer, so it prints, scans (flatbed and page fed), copies and just for those who still need one, it has a fax.
The is 44x38x25cm and rather boxy by today's standards, it is silver/grey and black. It weights a little less than eight kilos. It is a two cartridge four ink solution. Lexmark X7350 While a lot of recent devices have card slots this only has a Pict Bridge socket. One reason maybe is that it only has a fixed two line LCD display and this is black on blue and not that easy to read at certain angles.
According to the nursery rhyme, there were three mice and this is the third one from Kensington.
As regular visitors to this site will appreciate, Kensington, a leader in various computer related solutions, has been active recently in the development of a range of mice for the desktop user. Along with the Ci20 and Ci60 models, with Optical and Wireless Optical technology respectively, featured earlier on Gadgetspeak.com, Kensington has also launched the Laser Mouse.
This is an ideal bedroom TV and with the DVD player built in so even when there is nothing to watch live you can always resort to the DVDs.
I was somewhat surprised that no aerial is supplied with the / . If like me the bedroom is just too far away from the roof aerial then a portable one has to be used. While the image they give is normally far from ghost free the quality in most cases will be watchable. Bush LCD DVD combination I first tuned the unit in my lounge using the loft aerial. Next I moved it to the bedroom and found a couple of portable aerials.
I do not get to see that many games but now and again it is nice to regress and see just what originally tempted me to a life in computers. I think my first foray was with a Commodore Pet, however a Tandy model 1 was my own first PC.
This is a rallying game over a range of surfaces using a range of cars. It was originally produced by Invictus and while the 210 seconds from initial load to being ready to start has a lot of good graphics you will be pleased to know that most of it can be cut out.
Sorry horror fans but this Blade has nothing to do with vampires and blood letting but concerns mobile entertainment.
Unlike the Wesley Snipes series of "cut & slash" movies nor the follow up television series based on the same character, this Blade has no pretension to feed on your blood. In this case The Blade is a MP3 player that has been developed by MPMan. This is a company well experienced in the sphere of MP3 player technology; in fact it created the first MP3 player back in 1997.
This is not a SELPHY but a Pixma but it only prints 15x10cm images. It looks rather like a projector or a fan heater of a few years ago rather than a printer, however the images it produces are good.
The is 22.5x22x7.5cm and weights 2.2kilos. It is white with gun metal blue sides. A carry handle pulls out from the back allowing it to be easily moved but this is a mains only unit so the power brick and lead need to come with you.
We have all seen enhanced photographic images of celebrities; maybe FaceFilter was involved in the process.
Most digital image editing packages tend to opt for an overall approach to their feature lists by having a comprehensive tool set. However if your main interest lies with portrait manipulation then the majority of these tools and features are redundant. Even the tools that do apply to facial aspects are more general than specific especially when you are trying to create results that have a professional sheen.
A name that has been in consumer electronics such an keyboards, watches and even handheld computers for many years but they are also a name in digital cameras.
While 7.2mega pixel may be considered by some manufacturers to be 'entry level' the extras within the unit make this far from the case here. Casio EX-Z75 It is 10x6x1.7cm when closed add another 2cm for the lens extension when ready to shoot. It is silver grey and weights less than 150grams.
It shook up the early desktop publishing market and still has the capability to impress as we discovered when looking at the latest version of PagePlus from Serif.
The work area has vertical and horizontal rulers to help with the positioning of items plus palettes handling aspects of colour, formatting and content. Tabs allow you to switch between the different areas covered by each palette. There is also a storage area for images that might be used during the current project. PagePlus provides a range of tools for handling your publishing needs.
This is a widescreen HD ready TV but it does not have Freeview built in (they do another model that does £50 more) so this is ideal for anyone with Sky, Cable or a PVR with Freeview.
Although the screen size of this is 26inches the surrounds make it seem somewhat bigger the external dimensions are 81x46x11cm with a rectangular stand raising it around 2.5cm from whatever you stand it on. Should you prefer wall mounting a kit is supplied. The base is 48x20cm. Evesham Alqemi TV The stated screen size is 26inches made up by 57x32cm however a lot of the programs broadcast have a 1.75cm area top and bottom blank making it often 57x28.
With children learning to type at school I fear the market for typing tutors have reduced greatly and perhaps only those 30 plus today still have need of this tool.
A name that sticks in the mind from around twenty of so years ago was Mavis Beacon and her typing teaching was certainly what improved my two finger skills to just about being able to touch type. is designed to be used by several people as you need to enrol and enter certain basic information, age under 13, 13-20, 21-30 or over 30. You need to state your level, beginner, one or two finger typist, or a touch typist.
While fish exist in a chip environment, they are for an entertainment and not sustenance role.
The original concept behind screen-savers, as their name implies, was to protect your display screen from burn-in that could happen if the same static image remained on view for any length of time. Now with the combination of animated desktop and improved screen technology, this problem no longer exists. Yet still screen-savers remain a popular item.
This is a small 15x10cm printer that prints from almost all cards, direct from cameras via Pict Bridge or from a PC using a USB lead and yes for regular readers I did review it the autumn of last year, however the huge price reduction is the reason for a second look.
This however it a totally new review of the and I only cribbed after I had researched the bulk of the article, so while it is partly the same the actual review was totally new. HP PhotoSmart A516 my original article This is really small at 21x10x10cm when shut, in use the back tilts backward by 3cm at the top to allow storage of a few sheets of 15x10cm paper waiting to be printed.
Adding DAB radio features to your computer sound great but some problems still exist.
In the past I have attached a wide range of devices to the USB ports on various computer systems. These have included printers, web cams, mice, keyboards, modems, scanners, MP3 players and a number of different storage devices. To this list I can now add a standalone radio as distinct from the built-in feature sometimes found in MP3 and mobile phone devices.
How many leads do you expect to get with a monitor or panel? A power lead and a signal lead, maybe two signal leads if like this it is both Analogue and Digital, here however you get those and more, much more.
This unit also has a dock for an iPod and speakers so you get all the leads I suggested above, plus two audio leads a power brick and lead a USB lead and just for good measure a box containing six different shields to fit into the iPod dock to accommodate the various sizes and styles of iPod. Viewsonic The actual screen surround is 44x33cm, with the stand bringing it 10cm above the desk. The stand is oval and a maximum of 20cm in depth.
Kensington continues to add to its portfolio of mouse products with an optical wireless model.
Checking through my records of articles published on Gadgetspeak.com over the last couple of years, I was surprised to discover that there were twelve reviews of standalone mice from various manufacturers. This number did not include any mice that were part of a desktop set (a mouse and keyboard sold as a single package).
This is one of the range of new cameras launched by Samsung at the start of February. It is one from their basic S range. However only a year or so ago this would have been close to top of the range.
There are five new offerings in the 'S' series ranging from around £89 to £229, this is next to the highest specifications. All units in the 'S' series are supplied with two 'AA' batteries although they can be run from rechargables. No Samsung cameras have cards supplied - not even the - all the basic models have 24MB of internal memory but as a 1GB SD card costs well under £10? SLR offering reviewed 13 April th The is 10x6x3.
I reviewed another product in the same series from Focus five weeks ago Secrets of the Mind. That I seem to remember came of two CDs this comes on one, does this mean we know more about the mind than the universe?
The bold statement on the front of the DVD box reads 'everything you need to know about The Big Bang, Astrophysics and Space'. The CD needs to be in the Rom whenever the product is used so only 34MB of hard disc space is taken by the installation and I suspect that a doctored copy of Quick Time is what takes most of that.
When working at its optimum capacity, a Windows computer is fine but it does need regular maintenance such as that provided from iolo technologies.
Keeping your computer running smoothly, let alone performing at its optimum capacity, can be a time consuming task. Dealing with the threat of viruses and spyware plus the general defragmentation of files and memory are just some of the elements you need to consider. Fortunately tools are available to help with these tasks.
Rarely do I look at a standalone scanner, but should you need to scan other than documents then a specialised standalone scanner comes to the fore especially for negatives and slides.
The comes with some excellent software that makes the scanning from whatever format just a matter of a few clicks, also included is PhotoSmart Premium that gives you control over the images once scanned, while the two work together they can be used apart should you already have a favourite package. HP G4010 The install took around 12 minutes and used just on 500MB of hard disc space.
It is small, feature-rich with plenty of storage capacity and has taken over the task of providing my mobile entertainment.
While the iPod family continues to be the market leading brand when it comes to mobile entertainment, it is not the only choice for the discerning user. With its long experience in the field of MP3 mobile players, Creative has a number of possible products including the Creative Zen V Plus.
It is only very occasionally I get to see an A3+ printer. This prints quickly even at that large size. However the overall size of the unit is not as big as some other A3+ models.
Certainly you will need a good amount of desk space for the A3+ printer from Epson, the dimensions are 60x30x20cm when closed, you will probably need to add another 30cm to the middle depth figure to have paper inserted in the 'stand up' rear and the paper output tray at the front extended. Maybe another 18cm to the 20cm height for the paper waiting to be printed.
My first SD card had a capacity of 32MB but todays storage needs call for more space such as that found on the smallest (with regards to physical size) memory card.
Kingston Technology has recently added a new SD product to its portfolio of portable storage devices. However before revealing more about this Kingston product, lets take a brief look at some background details regarding the SD format. Mobile phones, digital cameras, early MP3 players and PIMs (Personal Information Managers) all have roles to play in this modern technological world while making use of memory cards as their preferred storage medium.
This is a tiny sat nav system but not only is it for cars etc but also for pedestrians and bicycles. When I say small it fits into the palm of my hand and I do not have enormous hands.
It is 9x6x1.5cm and weights less than 100grams. The screen is 4.5x6cm and is fine apart from when the sun is right on it when mounted in a car. As regular readers will know I always take sat nav systems for at least a couple of journeys on a train.
Fancy having your own web site? Then this is one of many products that say they will make it easy to do. Is it just as easy as they say?
The install was easy enough but before that you have to fill in the registration form and worst still it will not let you do the install until you have gone online. Why have a yes/no choice if 'no' leaves the screen up and 'yes' will not proceed until you have gone online. I am not a fan of forced registration and worst still one that purports to offer a choice but does not. The install took 130MB of hard disc and took just over 3 minutes.
The Bayswater, Queensway and Lancaster Gate area of London used to be my old stamping ground and was also the location for a product launch from Acer.
Acer has been rather quiet of late. But, as I was to discover, this lack of news did not mean that the company had been resting on its laurels. Instead it had been busy designing and developing new models to enhance its range of notebook products. Details of these new offerings were revealed in what the company described as a "Design Launch".
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