GadgetSpeak Articles
GadgetSpeak has close to 5,000 product reviews and other articles. You can use this page to find others opinions on anything from mobile phones to computers to the latest kitchen appliance
Being responsible for your data storage, a hard disk deserves the type of special consideration that Acronis can offer.
This Bluetooth keyboard and mouse set is stylish and offers that bit more for those who want the best on their desks.
The keyboard is 38x20x1cm the latter measurement applies to all but the back 4cm of depth where is expands to 2cm. I suggest you measure your keyboard to see the difference. It is described as an ultra flat keyboard, however if like me you were brought up on typewriters (manual) then you like a bit of tilt and with the lifts extended this is still possible.
Insuring your computer against data loss is just a matter of making sure you have backup software and USE it on a regular basis.
Last years series of articles after the Dream Toys event in the autumn was well received. So in January I went to the slightly different Toy Fair, here are two items.
The Toy Fair is rather different to Dream Toys in that the items on show are aimed at next Winters sales and Dream Toys are immediate so while I requested a number of items to review these are the only two to have arrived so far. Kidz Labs - Super Magnets Stated as suitable for 5 years and upwards this is one of a range of fun educational products.
Before identity cards are made compulsory, you might like to be first on the block with your own USB ID card.
While these devices are no longer the huge sellers they once were they still do a job vital to many and the ability to work with Word and Excel files is an important feature.
The is 11x7x1cm, the thickness is probably nearer to 1.3cm in the centre but only 1cm at the edge. The weight is less than 150grams. It is predominately black with silvered edges and to me - a style dummy - looks smart. The screen is 7.5x5.5cm and works either in portrait or landscape at 640x480. Acer N310 pocketPC The operating system is Windows Mobile 5.01 software for Pocket PC Premium Edition.
Bored with the lighting in your house? Lighting doesn't generally get more dynamic than on and off. The Lava Lamp of course introduced the concept of 'moving light', well the 'laserpod' takes that idea and pushes it into the 21st century.
The is a lamp, with a bit of a difference. Accoding to the booklet that comes with the product the Laserpod 'brings science and nature together to create ever-changing organic lifeforms of profound beauty'. That's quite some claim so let's investigate what it actually is and does. Laserpod The Laserpod comes in a nice clean 'modern' package.
How secure is your portable data? Perhaps you should consider a padlock.
This is a basic three ink printer in the supplied form, however it does not mean it is not capable of good image quality.
It's strange what manufacturers do to shave the costs of a printer. This basic printer is 42x22x12cm and is by no means heavy. It comes with a tri ink cartridge but you can buy a black cartridge as an extra should you print a lot of text pages. This cartridge does not replace the tri colour it sits alongside. A lot of manufacturers provide ½ toner cartridges with lasers and nowadays some provide ½ size inkjet cartridges for printers.
While browsing TheGadgetStore I came across a pocket-sized device that combined two methods of connectivity.
This is a 15x10cm photo printer and also comes with a digital camera. The camera has rechargeable batteries and takes power from the docked position on the printer.
Acer continues to enhance its range of notebooks. We take a look at its latest innovation.
Acer has recently added the C200 series to its range of TravelMate family. Unlike
the other models in this range, which adopts the traditional style of notebook, the
C200 series is a Tablet PC. While the general shape and size (315 x 238 x 35.3mm (W
x D x H)) is notebook-like in appearance, this particular series is easily disguisable
by its top mounted touch screen.
I have seen such devices advertised but never tried one. Often people that have were not that pleased with the results
The system consists of a sender module and a receiver module. Both plug into SCART sockets. Each unit needs a power supply (supplied) and if you add a small 20 page manual that's about it. The sender module is marked 'sender' and in a simple scenario plug it into a SCART socket on the back of your TV. Whatever you are watching should be transmitted to the 'receiver' unit.
Add to your MP3's audio output with a Tripod.
MP3 players continue to arrive in all shapes and forms, whether of the popular white variety or one of the many competitive offerings, as the means of providing our mobile music. Generally these devices arrive with a set of headphones which emphasises the personal aspect of these portable music players. However there are occasions when you might wish to share the music stored on the MP3 with family and/or friends.
This really is small, imagine the desk space taken by an average notebook and now divide that in four and that is the desk space taken by this PC.
The unit is notionally 16x16x5cm. However it has a digital output and while a digital to VGA (analogue) converter is provided once you have plugged your VGA lead in that adds 8cm to the depth. However should you own a digital TV there is another way. The lead for this fits into a PS/2 type connector on the unit and this is around half the length of the Digital to VGA converter. The weight of the unit is around 1.2kilos.
Home video editing is now within everybodys grasp with Pinnacles latest offering.
DAB radios are becoming more advanced, features that only appeared on very high level offerings now are available on mid range systems, here the new offering from Pure-Digital the Evoke-3
The is 29x18x10cm the four sides being in a mid tone wood and the front and back beige plastic with a grill mesh covering the two speakers that dominate the front of the unit. The centre portion of the front has the control panel dominated by a 7x4.5cm LCD display, this can carry up to ten lines of text and provided you are looking at it from in front - give or take around 20 degrees - it is very clear.
While any port in a storm might offer protection in some circumstances, when it comes to your notebook you really need to consider a certain type of port.
This is a small camera but not as light as you may think, it definitely has a solid feel and when you look at the specifications you know why.
This is an 8mega pixel camera with 3.6 to 1 optical zoom, both figures are above the norm and the feel of the whole unit shouts quality. It is 10.5x4x5.5cm and weights close to 300grams. Lens fully extended adds 3cm to the 4cm width. The top of the camera has only the shutter control, the left side nothing, the base has solid battery and 32MB SD card behind a slide door and tripod anchor point.
Belkin has added to its range of notebook bags with offerings that include a removable sleeve.
Nobody who has been involved in buying a notebook will, no doubt, has been encouraged by the sales person to add a protective bag to their purchase if one is not already included as part of a sales promotion. The rise in the popularity of notebooks, over desktop systems, has seen an increase in the range of bags designed to both protect and facilitate the transport of the portable computer.
I have seen several excellent small screen notebooks recently and this certainly does not buck the trend. 10.6inch screen but apart from that everything a bigger cousin might have.
What do you do in the kitchen? Whatever it is, you will probably appreciate a kitchen device designed to entertain.
Modern technology is such that there are few areas within the average home that are not considered suitable for an influx of electronic devices. Even that bastion of food preparation, the kitchen, has opened its culinary doors to numerous devices and not just those involved in the actual food creation process. For example, Dualit, a company steeped in the manufacture of catering equipment, has produced a DAB radio for the kitchen.
This is an MP3/WMA USB player and voice recorder that is aimed at kids. Not only does it have 256MB of built in memory but can also play content on SD/MMC cards.
What is round and uses flash drive technology? A FlashDisc of course.
Dimension wise this All in One is tiny, weight wise it is very light, however despite some interesting translation software as a printer it can be very slow.
As SCART becomes the defacto standard for home electronic devices, you could find a product such as Smart-SCART-PLUS useful.
We all have blood pressure, thankfully most of us are in a normal range. However should you be one of those who have abnormal blood pressure than this may be of use.
The business end of the product consists of a cuff suitable for a 9 to 13 inch upper arm and a device that provides the air to inflate the cuff and measure the pressures as well as your pulse. These are stored in the unit. Of course after a while seeing three sets of figures on an LCD screen become only a mess of figures.
Not all hubs are created equal. The latest hub device from Belkin is a prime example.
This is three products in one. On the face of it an upmarket Integrated Headset with MP3 player, also an MP3 player with earbuds, finally a rather good set of Headphones.
Firstly in it's smallest configuration it is 7.5x3x3cm and weights less than 50grams. It is basically an oversized pen drive in an 'L' shape as it is powered by a single 'AAA' battery (supplied) that fits in a pod that clips into the side so the measurements given are the maximum.
Burning content to disc is just one of the functions covered by the latest version of Nero.
Think of disc burning software and one of the first names to pop into your mind will probably be Nero. After all this software product has been around for a good many years and it is a popular choice for manufacturers to bundle with their rewritable drives. Following its brief flirtation with the Matrix theme with Nero 6 Reloaded, the latest version of the software is entitled and arrives in a distinctive flip-top box.
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