Archive for the ‘Technology’ Category
Monday, December 31st, 2007 |
Not that it’s been that long since we heard from Becker or anything, but it’s never too early for yet another numerically named navigation unit, right? Available now in the UK, the Becker Traffic Assist 7827 sports a 4.3-inch 480 x 272 resolution touchscreen, 400MHz processor, 128MB of RAM, a SiRFstarIII GPS chipset, integrated TMC receiver for traffic avoidance, an SD expansion slot and USB connectivity. Additionally, you’ll find a rechargeable battery good for around five hours, a 2GB SD card with maps for 37 European countries, a headphone jack and a multimedia player that handles photos and MP3s. All things considered, we suppose it’s not priced too outrageously at £249.95 ($497), but if you’re still unsure if it’s worth the coin, may we point out the elusive “mood light†feature to push you over the edge.
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Wednesday, December 26th, 2007 |
This is a great little device for ‘that friend of yours’ who’s always copying DVDs or CDs. The DVD Coach from EZ-Dupe looks to be about as large as the first personal CD players to hit the market, but includes 2 drive trays allowing you to copy DVDs or CDs without the need for a computer.
However it will work just like any other external burner when connected to a PC, and will even allow you to use the drive as a Lightscribe labeler with the proper media. Those who still use audio CDs can even use the DVD Coach’s track editing feature to create a custom audio disc from their own playlist. Unfortunately I have no idea where the name ‘DVD Coach’ comes from, unless it was inspired by the Craig T. Nelson sitcom.
You can find the DVD Coach online and it looks to range in price from about $340 to $460.
[ DVD Coach ] VIA [ Chip Chick ]
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Wednesday, December 12th, 2007 |
Although coy with any detail, Panasonic just put the industry on notice with its Blu-ray plans for the US. In a move to double its Stateside market share, Panny will begin bundling Blu-ray players with their plasma TVs next week. The move specifically targets Circuit City and Best Buy among other big-box retailers and “may†result in a discount. This according to Masayuki Kozuka, a general manager in charge of the company’s storage device strategy. We’ll take that as a confirmed discount. After all, without a price drop, why bother — it’s not like profile 1.1 support will be the cause for that huge upsurge in sales. A Panasonic spokesman also said that they would release two new “higher-end†(read: more expensive) Blu-ray players in January. We’ll likely hear more on that little nugget
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Wednesday, December 12th, 2007 |
Believe it or not, that thing you see above actually is a subwoofer, albeit a wee one. Tymphany’s LAT250 (Linear Array Transducer) deviates from the traditional cone approach and instead “displaces air using a linear array of multiple smaller diaphragms.†A pair of internal motors drive both sets of diaphragms, and the unit itself can be mounted either horizontally or vertically depending on your install needs. Most notably, this thing reportedly checks in at just 10.24- x 3.5-inches in size and weighs only 1.86-pounds, but it can somehow still handle 100-watts RMS. As you’d expect, Tymphany is aiming this unit at users with tight space requirements, and while a variety of impedance configurations are available, the standard 4-ohm dual-coil version is available now for $58.
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Wednesday, December 12th, 2007 |
Toshiba joined the rugged, touch-capable laptop party this morning with the launch of the Portege M700, an LED-backlit 12.1 convertible tablet that intelligently switches between pen and finger input. Apart from that, the 4.4-pound machine also features a modular drive bay with dual-layer burner, spill-resistant keyboard, latchless lid, and a shock-absorbing magnesium frame. Nothing too exciting going on internally: the M700 is a pretty standard Santa Rosa-based machine, with processor choices ranging from a 1.8GHz T7100 Core 2 Duo to a 2.4GHz T7700, integrated X3100 graphics, memory expandable to 4GB, Bluetooth and WiFi. Available now in configurations priced from $1699 and going up from there.
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