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Nokia, the world largest handset maker, has begun testing technology in a Finnish city that lets users to make calls on both cellular and Wi-Fi networks and switch between networks without interruption.
Nokia's new 6136 phone automatically transfers voice or data connections from GSM networks to Wi-Fi when the device recognizes a compatible wireless network, Doug Dawson, a spokesman with Nokia, says. And, vice versa, when users make a call or data transfer via Wi-Fi and step out of the Wi-Fi network's coverage area, the connection is transferred to a GSM link without interruption.
Around 50 people in Oulu, Finland, are testing the new service as part of a two-month pilot initiated by Nokia in cooperation with Finnet and the City of Oulu. The city has been offering free access to Wi-Fi hot spots since last year as part of a project to spur wireless Internet service. UMA Technology
The Finnish vendor is one of several vendors, including Motorola, to offer handsets with UMA (Unlicensed Mobile Access) technology, which enables a "seamless" handover of voice and data connections between GSM mobile and Wi-Fi or other local wireless networks.
BT Group, which launched one of the world's first UMA commercial services last year using Bluetooth technology, plans in the third quarter of this year to extend its service to Wi-Fi networks with Motorola's A910 UMA-enabled phone.
TeliaSonera in Sweden and Finland and T-Mobile USA plan UMA service in the coming months.
UMA allows consumers to enjoy better indoor coverage and lower calling charges when within range of a compatible Wi-Fi terminal, by having it carry their calls over the fixed broadband network using VoIP (voice over Internet Protocol) technology. UMA handsets such as Nokia's 6136 create a secure tunnel to the network operator's UMA Network Controller, which uses the handset's SIM (subscriber identity module) to authenticate the caller with the operator's billing system just as it would over a cellular network.
The new Nokia 6136 phone, which Nokia announced in February, will be available in the third quarter, according to Dawson. The phone, to cost $350, will be equipped with a 1.3 megapixel camera and removable micro SD format memory card.
Very few mid-priced notebook computers come with all the bells and whistles of a pricey desktop computer. But then, most portable computers cannot measure up to the HP Pavilion dv8230us. This model has more than enough power to handle advanced gaming, multimedia, and professional-strength computing tasks.
Look and Feel
HP Pavilion notebooks generally look sturdy, and this big widescreen model is no exception. It measures 11.1 x 15.6 x 1.5 inches.
The Pavilion's hefty 8.1 pounds, a bit heavier than similarly sized notebooks, is attributed to a second hard drive and a battery that's good for just over three hours of DVD movie watching.
Features
Few notebook computers are configured with more than an 80-GB hard drive. Some come with 100 GB. This model is configured with a pair of 80-GB hard drives.
The nearly double-sized storage capacity is a great bonus if you work with music files and digital photography. Having a total of 160 GB available makes it easy to store data purely separate from the drive that holds the operating system and executable files.
The Windows XP Media Center operating system will be put to good use on this portable, especially if you attach a TV signal directly to the built-in TV tuner or to a TV set using the S-video, VGA monitor, or component video connectors. For those so inclined, the second hard drive can conveniently store recorded TV shows and movies for playback while on the road.
A 6-in-1 integrated Digital Media Reader handles Secure Digital cards, MultiMediaCard, Memory Stick, Memory Stick Pro, SmartMedia, and xD-Picture Cards. Additional access comes through four USB 2.0 ports, one Expansion Port 2, and one Firewire port.
The only minor drawback we found was the somewhat mediocre sound emanating from the two stereo Altec Lansing speakers. This speaker system is a staple in HP portables and usually produces pleasing audio. But in this model, we were disappointed with its lackluster sounds.
Performance
Two things make the dv8230us an outstanding performer. It comes with an excessive amount of RAM and a top-of-the-line video card.
The 1.66-GHz Intel Centrino Core Duo processor is a speed demon. We usually prefer the performance tweak that comes with a 64-bit AMD processor. But this high-end Intel chip works well here with the extra RAM built into this model.
Many laptops and desktops are configured with half the memory that is the base level in this portable Pavilion. The installed 1 GB of DDR2 SDRAM at 667 MHz can be doubled for maximum speed performance. But that should not be necessary for all but extreme tasks.
The Nvidia GeForce Go 7400 video card is a top performer. This configuration packs double the usual video memory capacity. The card itself has 128 MB of video RAM. It can share up to 128 MB of additional memory from system RAM.
We were greatly impressed with the images displayed on the huge 17-inch high-density widescreen LCD. The Brightview technology produced a native resolution of 1,440 x 900 pixels. One of our favorite games, "EverQuest II," was stunning in widescreen mode, even in sunlight.
Perhaps the ultimate test of a killer media laptop is its battery life. With a fully charged battery, we played a 90-minute movie and then kept the hard drives spinning through a series of software installations.
The battery indicator showed 50 percent power remaining at the movie credits. After installing and configuring our array of test software over the next hour, we still had 15 percent running time left.
The Verdict
The HP Pavilion dv8230us is an ideal notebook computer with all the power and extras to compete with a mid-priced desktop computer. The large infusion of memory, 17-inch widescreen LCD, and better-than-average video card make this model a great all-purpose multimedia portable. You could spend several hundred dollars more and have a lot less computer.
HP Pavilion dv8230us Notebook PC
Specs: Intel Centrino Core Duo T2300 processor; 1 GB RAM; Nvidia GeForce Go 7400 graphics card; two 80-GB hard drives; LightScribe DVD�RW and CD-RW combo drive; 17-inch, high-density widescreen LCD
Pros: Lavish storage and memory, large LCD, advanced graphics, TV tuner.
Cons: Mediocre audio.
Verdict: Plenty of media extras and lots of storage and memory make this model an ideal desktop replacement for professional use.
* Connects with virtually any audio source * Transmits 900MHz stereo signal through walls and floors * Unique compact base serves as both a charger and a stand * Lightweight design with adjustable headband, soft earpads for comfortable listening
These RCA WHP140 900 MHz Wireless Headphones will help you enjoy your favorite tunes without the hassles of wires. Featuring a comfortable over-the-head design, a 900 MHz radio frequency and an operating distance up to 100 feet, you'll quickly wonder why you have spent so much time dealing with wires while listening to music.
What's in the Box RCA WHP140 wireless headphones, DC power adapter, 2 AA batteries, and Y-shape cable adapter.
Product Description These RCA Wireless Stereo Headphones will help you enjoy your favorite tunes without hassling with the wires on the headphones! Featuring 900 MHz Radio Frequency and an Operating Distance up to 100 feet, you'll wonder what you did without these headphones!
* Classic 1970s sneaker style * Rugged sole for running on any surface * Flexible and durable leather upper * Retro, three-tone coloring * Low-cut design for maximum mobility
Product Description Product Description This shoe is where classic and cool meet. Bursting onto the running scene in the early '70s, the Dragon quickly became one of the most popular trainers of the era. The sleek silhouette is timeless and the fresh colors give it a modern edge. The nylon upper allows for improved ventilation while the EVA wedge midsole provides ultimate comfort.
4 GB internal memory, Good build quality, USB 2.0 Mass storage, Stereo connector with controller, Standalone music player, Symbian OS 9.1, 2 MP camera, WLAN, Loud Speaker, Good Battery Life,
Heavy, Stingy keypad, Slow UI, Poor camera quality, Very expensive, Slight weight imbalance issue.
Nokia is planning to treat the masses with the release of its N-Series. The N-Series was branded as a revolution in the mobile phone segment; a level above what all the competitors could offer. Now that is a statement only Nokia could live up to, keeping in mind the high market share they controlled for quite sometime, and while doing so also faced the risk of failing to deliver.
The N-Series is marketed as a bunch of premium phones with high quality features like music capabilities, Carl Zeiss camera optics, and superior connectivity opened further to an array of options with the latest in Symbian OS version 9.1. These features are more or less modified and stick around throughout the N-Series.
Today, we have the N91, a premium music player from the N-Series. Let's see if the N91 can live up to the expectations that Nokia claims to deliver. It boasts of 4 GB of internal memory and excellent music quality when accompanied with BOSE or Sennheiser headphones sold optionally.
A look at the Package
Nokia N91 Nokia Stereo handsfree with remote control 900 mAh Li-Ion battery Travel Charger USB Cable Stereo Audio Cable Desk stand PC Suite CD Manual, Quick start guide, and Application guide
Feature Rich
The Nokia N91, as said earlier, has an internal memory capacity of 4 GB. With that much of memory at hand you won't feel the need for more, though it's human to want more. But Nokia believes that 4 GB is enough and has skipped the card slot. The N91, being a music phone, provides a standalone controller for music playback. The phone comes with a 2 MP camera, which is not really up to the mark. The phone features a list of connectivity options like Quad band for network selection while also supporting WLAN, 3G, and EDGE along with GPRS, Bluetooth 1.2 and USB 2.0. The phone features a large TFT 256K color display of 176 x 208 pixels. Finally, icing on the cake; it's installed with Series 60 UI Symbian OS 9.1.
Physical Run Through
The N91 is built with utmost sturdiness, with stainless steel all over it. Its dimensions contribute to taking the weight of the phone to a whopping 164 grams. I feel like I'm talking about some heavy-weight champ here; but even with such a bulky being, it has the potential to throw its weight around (read strong contender). The phone, though built sturdy, is an off-balanced one i.e. the top end of the phone is very heavy and the lower part of the phone is light. Thus you feel like the phone would slip out of your palm when trying to open the slider.
The whole of the N-Series seem like a bunch of mobile phones not realizing the fact that they are meant to be mobile; the entire design screams that it is missing the basic idea of being mobile. While all other manufacturers like Motorola and Samsung are battling to get slimmer, Nokia have gone in the opposite direction.
Now it's time for a detailed run through the phone. Below the large 256K color display is placed the standalone music controller which is designed in a rectangular shape with curved edges. The audio controller consists of five buttons four of which are the usual play/pause, stop, previous and next, one on each side of the rectangle. The fifth button is placed at a tilt in the top right corner, its function is to get the "Now Playing" display on the screen no matter what work you are doing on the phone except for when you're receiving or making calls. Slide the controller downwards to reveal the keypad which is well lit by cool blue LEDs. The keypad of the phone is not exactly user friendly. The keys are pretty thin and will be a nuisance typing out an SMS or e-mail, though you will manage to type out phone numbers with a little bit of pain. The phone has a joystick and four buttons on the outside other than the audio controller, two of which are selection and options buttons and the other two are to make and receive calls. The phone has a button at the top right side for revealing the main menu and a volume control on the top left under which is placed a decent loud speaker. The upper side of the phone has a "hold slider" like those seen on MP3 players basically to lock the keypad. There is also a power button which doubles as a profile selection and a stereo handsfree jack or headset connector. Flip the phone over and you'll find a 2 MP camera fitted on the top. There is a miniUSB port at the bottom along with a charger point. The charger point design is new though it's similar to the standard charger except that it's very very thin.
Music Playback The N91 has excellent music quality; so good that even companies like BOSE and Sennheiser are willing to shell of a bit of the price tag on their headphones optionally sold with the N91. The phone has a standard audio jack so you can plug-in any of your personal headphones. That said, the phone has a similar arrangement of music like in a standard music library. The phone's music player reads ID3 tags and uses these tags to arrange the music. The player is fit with standard equalizer presets and a preset named "Bass Booster" which is a try at replicating the "MegaBass" of the Walkman's. There is also a custom equalizer option. Now that's that, but when you compare all of this to the Sony Ericsson Walkman series the N91 doesn't match up to that level. The Walkmans produce more crisp music than the N91. In the Bass Booster Vs MegaBass, the "MegaBass" is a clear winner, while the Bass Booster causes the supplied earphones to crack. Maybe the BOSE or Sennheiser headphones would have done the trick (we didn't get those for testing), but for that, you would have to shell out another 6-7K.
The Remote on the N91 headset is a bonus, something perfect for a music player phone. This remote will prevent the event of actually removing you're bulky phone out of your pocket (if it fits in there) and changing the track or increase/decrease the volume. This remote is something I miss on my W800i though it's available through Sony Ericsson online stores.
The phone has an FM player as well so you can tune into a radio station after your bored or done listening to 4 GB of music that's literally 1000 songs. The FM requires the headset to be connected which acts as an antenna. The reception was quite good and really nothing much to be said here, just that you can store 20 channels.
Camera The N91 has a 2 MP camera which is not a Carl Zeiss. This camera does perform well over the phones in the market which are either a 1 MP or a 1.3 MP. The performance of the camera is no where close to that of the Sony Ericsson K750i. The color reproduction and the noise levels put the camera quality behind the K750i. In spite of the phone being so bulky, it doesn't have a flash light which would have really enhanced pictures taken in the dark. The camera has a 12x digital zoom (I'm totally confused). Why should a 2 MP camera have 12x zoom in the first place, that too digital zoom. Digital zoom only tends to degrade the quality of the picture taken when zoomed. A reasonable 4x zoom like the one seen on the K750i would be more than enough. So all said and done the camera quality is bad; no not entirely. The N91 can record videos as well and the 2 MP camera does well here and better than the other 2 MP camera phones available. The reason being the video is recorded in CIF (Common Intermediate Format) i.e. 352 x 240 pixels while the Sony Ericsson's record in QCIF (Quarter CIF) i.e. 176 x 120 pixels. The better resolution makes the N91 videos look way better than videos taken by a Sony Ericsson K750i or W800i.
Finally the Phone Okay now leaving the music and camera behind its time to have a look at the phone after all that's the basic thing that we are supposed to be looking at. The phone is quad band though it really doesn't make sense to us as yet. It is meant for someone who is going to buy the phone and travel abroad or use it for maybe say three to five years. Anyway, those extra bands are for the rest of the world. The phone has an additional 30 MB memory for your contacts, SMS, MMS, etc. The phone has WLAN and 3G capabilities though we didn't get to use them since none of the service providers offer these facilities.
The N91 is a 3rd Edition Series 60 UI phone which runs on Symbian OS 9.1. The interface of the phone is pretty slow compared to the other Series 60 phones; no doubt Symbian OS does demand but that shouldn't matter much when you have enough of space to hold a mini processor within the phone. The worst was when the phone runs through the entire 4 GB while you search for a song you have to literally wait 2 sec for an alphabet to show on the screen (this was with just 1.5 GB of music and no other data). That's the major problem of having 4 GB and being Symbian as well. The other is a compatibility issue; the OS version 9.1 is a new release and will take time for coders to release software for this version. The older software won't work and I recommend you don't even experiment (it might make your phone even more sluggish).
Phone and PC There is a Nokia PC suite provided in the box but that is only meant for those who want to synchronize your contacts, calendar etc. For transferring files, you can just attach your phone to the PC via USB cable provided and drag-n-drop files. Transfers are pretty fast because it's USB 2.0 supported. The phone opens a menu when you connect it to the PC asking you to choose between Media Player, PC Suite and Mass Storage. The Media Player function enables you to connect to the Media Player of your PC but that requires you to install additional drivers whereas the Mass Storage option doesn't. The Bluetooth of this phone is a bit of a drawback because it's v1.2 which calls for a slightly slow Bluetooth transfer.
Battery Life The phone has a real good battery life. It will provide you with more than 3.5 hours of talktime. This talktime is expected to change according to the variations in use of the phones music features. The phone has a 900 mAh Li-Ion battery which is charged through a rather new charger from Nokia (I did mention about it earlier) or through the desk stand provided in the bundle.
Conclusion
Keeping in mind all that has been said, I don't think it's worth paying Rs. 26,500 if the music capabilities of the phone are what have got you interested. Instead I'd go ahead and buy a W700i/W800i/W810i and add a memory card to it since I love music and I'm not business minded to want a Symbian OS or WiFi. But if you are looking at all of the above and 4 GB of space and you are a Nokia fan boy, I don't think you have too many options other than to flaunt this heavy-weight performer.
The Mobile Life Report, the biggest ever social study to examine how mobile phones have changed the way we live, is published today, by The Carphone Warehouse in association with The London School of Economics and Lord Philip Gould. Over 16,500 people were surveyed by polling organisation YouGov, revealing some new insights into how we live our lives today.
The report is the first of a series of initiatives being launched by Mobile Life, a forum set up by The Carphone Warehouse to study how mobile phones change the way we live.
Headline Findings
* Young adults say their mobile phone is more important to them than television * Texting has overtaken talking as the most popular way to use mobile phones * The majority of young women use their mobile phone to deter the unwanted advances of men * Approximately 1 in 10 people have had a mobile phone stolen. The figure rises to nearly 1 in 5 for young women * Half of people would use their mobile to record a crime, and more than a third would use the camera or video on their mobile phone to snap a celebrity or newsworthy event * Almost half of mobile phone-users think they are too much at the beck and call of their employer as a result of using their mobile phone for work * One in five people stop and turn their mobile phone off before sex * Six tribes of mobile phone users identified – Generation Mobile, Phonatics, Practical Parents, Fingers & Thumbs, Smart Connecteds and Silver Cynics
“We wanted to find out what impact the mobile phone has had on all aspects of our lives,” said Charles Dunstone, chief executive officer, The Carphone Warehouse Group plc. “After all, who else is in the unique position of having such an independent and wide ranging view of the market in the UK and Europe.”
“One of our four founding principles, which we believe is central to our continued success, is the ability to offer customers a better mobile life by anticipating and catering for their needs at every turn. We need to make sure we understand our customers and the way they live their lives, which is changing and evolving faster than ever. Establishing Mobile Life just seemed to make sense to us,” continued Dunstone. Key Trends The Mobile Life Report looks at the impact of the mobile phone on society at large, family & relationships and work.
The Mobile Phone Overtakes TV as a Technology Icon For young adults 18-24 years old, their mobile phone (26%) matters more to them than television (11%). Interestingly, among 18-24 year-old women, the proportion jumps to 32%, well ahead of television (11%). Men in this age group are not quite as attached to their phones as women, but 19% still name it as their most important technology product, well ahead of television.
Texting Revolution Our ‘talk ratio’ is falling. On average people send 3.6 mobile text messages a day vs. making 2.8 voice calls a day. Among 18-24 year olds the texting revolution has had the biggest impact: for example, 51% of 18-24 year-olds send/receive at least six text messages a day – but only 15% have six or more mobile phone conversations a day. This trend also applies, though less dramatically, to the 25-29 year old mobile phone users.
Mobile Phones Used to Deter the Unwanted Advances of Men In our parents’ day, a book or newspaper prevented unwanted approaches in public. Today, 21% of respondents agreed that “I sometimes use my mobile phone in public situations to deter people from approaching me”. This applies especially to women under 25, where the total reaches 55%.
Women More Susceptible to Mobile Crime Approximately 1 in 10 people (9%) have had a mobile phone stolen. Young adults aged between 18 and 24 are most at risk, with 17% of women in this age group having had their phone stolen compared with 10% of men.
Citizen Journalism on the Increase People were asked if they have ever used or considered using the camera or video on their mobile phone to record evidence of a crime, or to actually record a crime. Exactly half, 50%, said they would record evidence, and almost as many, 47%, would record a crime in progress. Additionally, more than a third, 36%, of people said they would use their mobiles to snap a celebrity or newsworthy event if the situation presented itself.
Switching off From Work Mobile Life found that 41% of mobile phone-users think they are too much at the beck and call of their employer as a result of using their mobile phone for work. In addition, almost half of workers (47%) never, or hardly ever, turn their phone off. There is also widespread opposition to using a mobile phone on holiday for work-related calls. 57% consider it unreasonable to take a mobile phone on holiday to speak frequently to work colleagues.
Mobiles, Sex and Relationships The research has shown that more than 1 in 4 people (21%) stop to nullify their mobile phones before sex. 1 in 7 (14%) switch their phones off, and 11% switch them to silent –25% in total. As the subject of sex and relationships is looked at in more depth, we can see an evolution of the way in which young adults interact. Over half of the 18-24 year old age group have sent or received a sexually explicit text (54%) and a quarter of this group has sent or received a sexually explicit picture or video (25%).
Mobile Life also investigated the dating game and found over half of all mobile phone-users aged 18-24 have either sent or received an invitation to a date by text (57%). In addition, over a fifth of the 18-24 year old category have sent or received a text to end a relationship. Exactly one quarter of all mobile phone-users think that sending a flirty text to someone is not a form of cheating.
In Mobile Life The Carphone Warehouse has identified six tribes or groups of mobile phone users. These are Generation Mobile, Phonatics, Practical Parents, Fingers & Thumbs, Smart Connecteds and Silver Cynics. Unique trends by these tribes are revealed in the report.
Generation Mobile are single, students or first jobbers, aged 18-24 and are one of the most style-conscious of the tribes. Phonatics are single, employed, aged 18-34 and regard their mobile phone as their most important electronic possession. Practical Parents are young, cost-conscious families aged 18-34 who choose their mobile on the basis of price, rather than style or function. # Smart Connecteds are affluent families and professionals aged 25-44 who use their mobile to organise their busy work and social lives. # Fingers & Thumbs are married, middle-aged or retired with children or grandchildren. # Silver Cynics are affluent, married with children and coming up to retirement.
The Mobile Life Report is the first of a number of Mobile Life initiatives. The Carphone Warehouse will publish two additional studies later this year, including a teen report and real-life experience study.
Triband Pocket PC phone with GPS Camera: 1.3-megapixels
Operating System: Windows Mobile 5.0 for Pocket PC Phone Edition Display (internal): 2.8in 65,536 colours, 240 x 320pixels TFT LCD Messaging: MMS, SMS, e-mail Connectivity: infrared, Bluetooth and GPRS Phone memory: 128MB ROM, 64MB RAM Expansion slot: Secure Digital (SD) Battery type: Lithium-ion 1,320mAh Standby/talk time: 200/4 hours Other features: Windows Media Player, Internet Explorer Mobile, Java applications, integrated SiRFstarIII GPS chipset Weight: 150g Dimensions (w x d x h): 21.8 x 59 x 117mm
Price: RM2,688
Website: www.mio-tech.com
Communicate and navigate – that is what the A700 promises.
LOOKING at the Mitac Mio DigiWalker A700, I was suddenly struck by the thought that if E.T. (from E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial) had one of these devices, he wouldn’t get lost and even if he did, he wouldn’t have had to rely on Elliot to help him “phone home.”
Yes, if you haven’t already guessed, the A700 is one of a new breed of multifunction devices that combine a Pocket PC with a phone and GPS navigation in one compact device.
What you get for the money, then, is possibly the most useful device that a road warrior can get – something to keep you connected to others and, when lost, to show the way.
In the box I don’t normally dwell on what’s in the box, but in this case, there’s quite a number of things supplied with the A700 that I thought was worth listing here.
Other than the unit itself, the A700 comes with an AC adapter, a car charger, a suction cup holder that sticks to your car’s windscreen and a stereo handsfree kit.
Other than an SD (Secure Digital) storage card that is pretty much all the accessories that you will need.
Now before we get on with the review, it’s worth mentioning that unlike most GPS units on sale out there, this Mitac does not come with any GPS software and maps bundled, which means that the GPS will not work out of the box.
However, there are a number of GPS applications and maps available that will work with the A700 – most notably, MapKing or the Garmin Que software coupled with the very detailed local maps from http://malsingmaps.com.
Also do note that whatever software you get, you need to find compatible GPS maps that will work with the software – GPS maps made for a particular application are not compatible with another.
Design THE Mio DigiWalker A700 is a pretty small device for what it offers – in fact, it’s only slightly longer than an O2 XDA II Mini and has the same 2.8in LCD screen.
The design of the A700 – finished in black and silver and with the GPS antenna on the top of the device – is not outstanding, although certainly not ugly.
Strangely enough, Mitac makes a version of this device called the A701, which has identical specifications except that the A701 has a nicer external design – why the A701 isn’t sold here instead of the A700 is beyond me but to be fair, the difference is purely cosmetic.
On the front of the A700 is a directional pad in the centre, flanked by a green Call button, a red hang up button, and two tiny customisable buttons below, which are by default mapped to Windows Media Player and the GPS function.
The SD slot is situated on the right side, along with the camera button and a stereo headset port.
Unfortunately, the stereo port only accepts the smaller 2.5mm stereo jack, which rules out the more common 3.5mm earphone jack, so you’re pretty much stuck with the integrated stereo earphone/microphone combo that comes with the A700.
On the positive side, the audio quality on the stereo earphones is quite acceptable, though not outstanding.
The left side of the device only has the audio volume control buttons. Phone The A700 works quite well as a phone, once you have all the proper settings set up on it.
Unlike the O2 Pocket PC phones, this device does not come with an application to set up your GPRS, SMS and MMS settings, which means you’d really have to be a geek to be able to do it yourself.
Even I had some problems setting up the MMS on this device, because of the strange quirk of Microsoft’s operating system where, for some reason, you can only find the MMS settings by first tapping on New MMS and then getting into the options screen from there (instead of in the main Inbox screen). Weird.
Once set up, however, the phone worked without any problems and there are some nice touches like a speakerphone function for when you don’t have the handsfree kit handy.
One strange thing about this device is that it doesn’t have a button to put the device into sleep mode and instead, the only way to disable the screen and buttons is to hit the Device Lock virtual button onscreen.
It would have been nice if there was a button to put the device into sleep mode, with the screen off and the buttons disabled instead of always making sure I hit the device lock option before slipping it into my pocket.
GPS Much like the phone part of the device, the A700 requires a bit of know-how and research to set up properly, since it doesn’t come bundled with any software for GPS at all.
I tested it with a variety of applications and all of them worked well, although setting each up is of course a little different depending on the application.
This Mio has a GPS settings manager which can create a virtual COM port for any GPS application to access – to put it simply, the GPS settings manager will tell any application where and how to find the GPS hardware in the Mio.
I set it up for COM4 and directed all applications wanting to access the GPS to that port – I told you it might be a little confusing for the non-techie.
Once the software was properly set up, the A700 performed admirably, thanks to the SiRFstarIII GPS chip inside.
The GPS locked onto satellites very fast and the speaker on the device was just loud enough for the spoken directions in my GPS application once I pushed up the volume of the A700 to maximum.
Other
The operating system that comes with the A700 is the latest Windows Mobile 5.0 for Pocket PC Phone Edition, which means it has all the applications that come with the operating system which will allow you to e-mail, surf the Internet and work on Excel and Word files, amongst other things.
Performance is actually quite good and no wonder – unusual for a Pocket PC Phone Edition device, this baby runs on a speedy 520MHz Intel XScale processor, which means it’s actually powerful enough for almost all your needs.
Another feature worth mentioning is that the A700 uses a standard mini USB port for synchronisation and charging and it will charge when connected to the USB port without having to plug in the charger at the same time.
Battery life was actually pretty good – I’d say that the batteries would last you an entire day of typical use.
Even rather heavy use (other than playing videos or games for extended periods of time) should get you through an entire day.
like most Intel XScale-based Pocket PCs, there is an option in the power settings to have the machine automatically adjust speeds for optimum performance and battery life.
Unfortunately, the A700 doesn’t come with WiFi and only has support for plain-Jane GPRS (not even EDGE is supported) so your surfing is pretty much limited to much slower speeds, unless you plug in an optional WiFi card into the SD slot. Conclusion The Mitac Mio DigiWalker A700 is a pretty powerful and feature-packed device but the amount of setting up required before you can take advantage of all its features means that it will only be truly usable if you know what you’re doing.
Of course, if you’re an alien from a more advanced civilisation (like I sometimes believe myself to be! LOL) then using this device should be no problem at all for you.
Pros: Lots of features; small size.
Cons: GPS software not bundled; some quirks of the operating system.
Introduction By the time I got halfway, I was tired of doing this review. I stopped using the phone as in the end, no matter how much of a punch this phone packed, it just couldn't replace my w810i.....the phone that has single-handedly become my MP3 player for the GO Train trips, my camera w/macro mode for those snap and send moments or the fun factor with interesting themes and games.
I will put a lot of comparisons because that helps put things in a relative perspective. The unit I have is made in Hungary.
Firmware: Nokia 6131 v 03.50 31-03-06 RM-115
Reception No problems noticed so far. One thing I can comment on is that this phone doesn't drop calls on the GO train ride from Union to Mississauga as my w810i has. In fact, for a 30 second period around Mimico GO Station, while the Rogers branded w810i was not getting ANY reception, my 6131 and Blackberry 8700r were both able to make and receive calls (to each other albeit). All 3 phones were within a 1 meter radius.
Speakers (Sound Quality) The Ear Speaker is louder and clearer than a Nokia 6682 (which is loud and clear). It is comparable to an unbranded Sony Ericsson w810i. Calls are clear and crisp. One weird thing is that the phone made a hiss noise in an 850mhz only zone for 2 out of 4 outbound calls. (Hartom can attest to this as Carsmovies, Hartom and I were trying the phone out in Carsmovies basement.....1900mhz-only phones don't work down there)
I haven't noticed the hiss since, during regular usage. It's a subtle hiss though, not as audible as the 3120b or 3220b.
The Loudspeaker is extremely loud and clear. The Mic is very receptive and clear. When the loudspeaker is activated, callers can hear you fine even though you may be several feet away.
Keypad At first, after touching the phone for like 30 seconds, I had maintained to Hartom and Carsmovies that the 6170 had a better keypad. After using the phone for a few days, I have to concede that the 6131 has the best keypad I've ever used. Text messaging without looking is so easy it's not even funny.
The buttons recede about half a millimeter or so and while make a nice click you feel, make virtually no audible sound. The w810i makes a slightly louder click.
The side buttons are well recessed and very accessible. Motorola can take a tip from Nokia on this one. The buttons wont be pushed accidentally while you're holding the unit as they are flush with the phone's frame. However, unlike a w810i, which has braille-like dots to identify it's side keys, you wont be able to find these buttons while the phone is in your pocket.
Battery Life Unfortunately, battery life will not survive a day of use. The phone must be charged every day (if you use the phone daily). I recommend getting a car charger and/or an extra battery for this unit. The BL-5C will not fit into this and I can't be bothered to chip and chisel off pieces of a battery just to force a fit. I don't even think the back cover will slide over a modified BL-5C anyways. The battery will fully charge from empty to full in less than 2 hours.
Ergonomics (The Feel) This phone is fun to hold. It's comfortable, ergonomic, lightweight, and compact in the hand and against the ear. The back can get a little hot though during a long conversation. The flip hinge can extend back a little if you press the phone to your head.
I wish I had a razr to compare it with but I don't so too bad....The RAZR is a little thinner though. This phone is about as thick as a w810i when closed.
Display Screens Both display on the Nokia 6131 is phenomenal. They're definitely one of the best in terms of phones with 850mhz. The quality of the internal display is laptop-like with 16 million colours packed in the internal display. Images are sharp and well defined on it as it make photographs look like photographs. I've never been so impressed. The external display boasts 262K colours but isn't as bright as it could be. I wish you could adjust the brightness here as it's a nice display as well. The display is as bright as the w810i but much sharper. The difference is crystal clear in this comparison.
Camera Quality I'm not impressed with the camera here. There is no flash, pictures are grainy indoors and pictures always darker than reality. The camera is set to the finest quality and all appropriate settings are on. Night mode should be renamed "Indoor mode" as you almost always need it to capture a clear image when indoors. Coming from a 2 megapixel w810i or even a 1 megapixel 6682, this camera just doesn't make the cut.
Here is a pic of an overcast day outdoors.
Here are some comparison shots of the same object. All cameras were set to the finest/highest quality, set to automatic lighting mode (if applicable) and taken from the same distance indoors under an incandescant office lamp:
Nokia 6131 (1.3 Megapixel) Nokia 6682 (1.23mp) Motorola v635 (1.23mp) Sony Ericsson w810i (2.0mp)
(I don't even know why there's a black bar on the side in the 6131 shot) You can draw your own conclusions.
Ringtones, MP3s & Music Player Applications The Loudspeaker is extremely loud on this phone and plays back ringtones, voice and music very well. It's about as loud as the w600i believe it or not.
Music through the headphones sounds clear. I have no complaints here. Unfortunately there's no "MEGA BASS" option on this phone so I can't go crazy with DJ headphones or anything.
While it has expandable memory the ability to playback MP3's, I would not consider this to be a MP3 phone. The music player application is not very efficient when it comes to sorting music and playlists.
There is no option to sort by ID3 tag (ie. Genre, Artist, Album, etc). In fact, the only time ID3 tags are used is to show the name and artist. I'll have to do a Series 40, version 3 review for a more thorough description of the Music Player
Sony Ericsson, and even Motorola has a far better MP3 Player application with more options, an easier interface and dedicated music keys (featured in phones from the "Walkman" portfolio)
The 6131 however, plays through your Bluetooth headset, unlike Motorola and Sony Ericsson...
Connectivity This phone is loaded with fast Bluetooth, IrDA (Infrared), EDGE and USB cable connectivity. It also uses Micro SD cards (aka. TransFlash) that, coupled with an adaptor, is cross-compatible with tons of electronic products from most popular brand names. Huge plus here.
The Micro SD is hot-swappable which means you can insert it or remove it while the phone is on. If you save your wallpapers on your memory card, you'll lose it if you remove the memory card and have to manually reset it once you put the card back in.
I find the 512mb card slows down the phone's performance. The unit has already reset twice while I was playing music and using the phone's menus. Looking through your picture gallery can also be a frustrating experience with a 512mb card in...
Bluetooth transfer is fast and works well. It automatically connects to Nokia's PC Suite when in range but this is ok as it'll stay connected to your headset as well if it's on or you turn it on. I believe that's one advantage of Bluetooth 2.0.
Other features like Organizer, PhoneBook, Active Standby, Menu & Interface customization can be found in my Series 40, version III review here:
Stability For the v03.50 firmware that I have, here are some issues that I've noticed during my use with the phone: # phone has reset a couple times while listening to music and operating the phone's menus. It happened twice to me while listening to MP3s, once I tried to open a pic and the 2nd time I tried to open an SMS from my inbox. The phone starts up very quick so it isn't as bad as restarting on a 6682 or other Symbian models. # just discovered that black bar on my picture above of the Gummies. No idea how that got there and it didn't happen with any of my other phones # everytime you type 'it's' or 'what's', the T9 defaults to capitalizing the first letter so that it's like 'It's'. this is annoying and shouldn't override the previous capitalization precursor on the phone. I don't think you can save this into the T9 dictionary either since you can't save punctuation, numbers or spaces in a word... # the picture caller ID feature, while improved over previous Nokias, is still lacking. the picture will appear as a thumbnail when you're dialing out but as an almost full-sized image when receiving a call. The full-sized image seems to be magnified version of the thumbnail so the picture is so blurry, it's not even worth looking at. # unlike other phones, if your wallpaper(s) is saved on the memory card, you will lose your wallpaper when you take the card out. you'll have to reset your wallpapers when you re-insert your memory card
Conclusion If you're looking for an excellent quality phone with high-end features, don't care about the camera, and are well-equipped with extra chargers & batteries for the home, office and/or car then this is for you. This phone, it's opening mechanism and screen quality is a refreshing change for Nokia. It's too bad it's lacking in the music playback and imaging departments.....
If you care about MP3's, look at Sony Ericsson's new lineup.
If you're interested in camera quality, look at Nokia's Carl Zeiss Optical cameras (N90, N93, etc) or Sony Ericsson's w810i or k790i/K800i.
At A Glance: Price: RM 2699 Local Distributor: Nokia Malaysia (M) Sdn Bhd. Contact: 1-300-88-1600 Build quality: 9/10 Applications: 10/10 Interface: 9/10 Value-for-money: 8/10 Overall rating: 9/10 + Built in WiFi + Mini-SD slot + 3MP camera + Great music player - WiFi hangs occasionally - Shoot delay in camera
The slider form of the mobile has always been a viable alternative to candybars and clamshells. If you make the slider smooth and sturdy, then the phone really does feel good to hold.
Anyway, we had the chance to take a look at the new Nokia N80 for a couple of months, and here is what we found.
In the box # Handset Transceiver # Battery (standard battery) # Charger # Headset # Carry Case # User manual
Exterior The Nokia N80 is a slider phone, and although it was a little thicker than I had expected, nevertheless, its size is only a fair price to pay for having a 3MP camera in the phone.
The unit that was sent to us for review was in Black, and we took it for a long trip to take pictures in Europe. For the most part, the N80 did very well, up to the point where it became rarely necessary to use a proper digital camera.
The memory card slots into the left side of the device, behind a flip-open cover. The back of the device is just simple black, and the flash is curiously below the lens of the camera. The secondary camera is at its usual place on the top right of the screen, and this one is mainly used for receiving 3G video calls.
Buttons/Screen The keys on the N80 are black with white text, and the backlight for the keypad is also white. The central navigation button is a square of silver, and the softkeys and menu buttons are on the upper part of the phone just beneath the lower portion of the screen.
The keys are a little small, and I wished that the slider could go up higher and thus provide more surface for building larger keys. However, this might have caused the phone to be a little less stable physically, so I guess that I can’t complain much here.
The rest of the buttons are silver, and I found that the landscape toggle knob on the rear of the phone got caught on the clothes a lot. Other than that, this was a very impressive package even before we turned the device on.
The 262K screen was able to display the pictures taken in quite good detail. Of course, at 416 x 352 pixels this is one of the better screens that you can have in a mobile device at this point of time.
Software/Messaging This version of the Symbian OS is version 9.1, and the Nokia interface is known as the Series-60. It is frequently confused, so I must also point out that the Series-80 devices, which are mainly the Nokia Communicator also run on the Symbian OS, as does the Series-90 device called the Nokia 7710.
The messaging is fast as one can expect to find in a Symbian device, but I frequently hit the wrong key due to the close spacing of the keys to the bottom edge and to the protruding top half of the phone.
PIM The PIM here can be described as the contacts list, the notes application, the calculator application and the calendar. There is also a QuickOffice suite of programs which is sufficient for doing simple things when you are on the go.
Camera/Video The camera is something else though. At three megapixels, this is currently the best one on the market as the 5MP ones have yet to be widely available. Anyway, I would prefer to have a good 3MP device from one of the top three brands than to have a 10MP device from an unknown brand that may not last beyond the end of the month.
The 20x digital zoom is also quite impressive, but you have to hold still for a bit after you press the shoot button as there is a slight delay before the N80 records the picture of whatever you were aiming the device at.
The video is also quite good, and can shoot up to 30 fps which is really very impressive considering the size of the device that is doing the recording. I’m sure that we will soon have more of those ‘fight’ videos of school bullies if mobile video gets this small and affordable.
Multimedia/Voice This is one of the Nokia ExpressMusic range of devices, which means that there is a hotkey that activates an entertainment section that allows that use to play stored music or radio. You can also view images or go surfing the web from this section. The music from the loudspeakers was simply superb for a device this small, and plugging in the provided earphones turns this device into a mini-radio so good that it makes you wonder what all the fuss is with the iPod.
Connectivity The Nokia N80 has infrared in addition to built-in Bluetooth connectivity. A Pop-Port connector is located at the bottom of the phone. The usual applications are there – WAP 2.0, Java MIDP 2.0 and an xHTML browser.
However, what everyone is raving about is the built-in WiFi ability that allows users to hook into a local network. The detection was quite good as it managed to find WiFi networks in many places that I went to, such as at airports and in the city.
However, it was quite difficult to configure the N80 to work with the network, and it did crash a couple of times in the process. I would say that WiFi phones are great, but it would take another couple of years of tweaking just like Bluetooth until it gets easy enough for just about anyone to use it.
Games There is a card deck application with six mini-games that run from within this program. Solitaire is missing, but a few other games should make up for this.
However, 3D snake is one amazing and addictive game. If you remember, Snake was a groundbreaking game for mobiles and it was first introduced by Nokia, after which it was repeatedly placed in succeeding generations of Nokia devices. The latest version takes some getting used to, but the graphics is quite something you need to see for yourself.
Editor's Opinion
The N80 is simply the current pick of the crop. Everyone is talking about it, and with good reason too. Except for a full keyboard, everything else you could possibly want from a handset is found right here inside the casing.
Of course, the price is a little hefty but not when you consider that the Nokia Communicator models debut at a higher price. Anyway, there is little to complain about except perhaps the battery life. If only t was possible to swap batteries without having to reboot the phone. Oh, the reboot takes quite a while to achieve, so it would appear that it is either time for a more efficient program or a faster processor.
I still think hat this one is a good buy. There is plenty of bang for your buck and the camera is so good that you will immediately graduate to this 3MP specification and wonder how you ever got by with something less.
Dual-band phone Display: Monochrome, 128 x 160pixels Messaging: Short message service (SMS) Battery type: 920mAh lithium-ion Standby/talk time: 450/10 hours Other features: Alarm clock, calculator, currency converter, stopwatch Weight: 80g Dimensions (w x d x h): 101 x 48 x 22mm Price: RM199 Website: www.motorola.com Review unit courtesy of Motorola Malaysia (03) 7880-0580
ZAM KARIM gives up his smartphone for a day to go back to basics with the Motorola C113.
WHEN was the last time you saw In.Tech review a basic phone? Maybe years ago, at a time when only the rich could afford a mobile phone – basic or not basic.
Obviously, there is simply nothing new to highlight when it comes to a basic model mobile phone like the Motorola C113.
A phone like this usually only allows you to make calls and send short text messages.
There might also be a few simple features such as alarm clock, calculator and stopwatch.
Since there’s nothing much in terms of features to talk about – this review will basically be an account of my experience when I used the phone over the last weekend.
8:00am: The experiment began. I switched off my Sony Ericsson P910i, removed the SIM card and slotted it into the C113. Frankly, this sent a shiver down my spine ? a day without my smartphone. Shudder.
9:00am: Went out to get breakfast. Carried the C113 around in my pocket. Measuring 101 x 48 x 22mm, the phone was quite comfy to hold and at 80g, it was quite light too.
10:00am: Next stop was the nearby hypermarket for some grocery shopping. There, I’ve received my first call for the day. The monophonic ringtone rang loud enough to get my attention despite the noisy shoppers, and surprisingly the voice quality was good.
Unfortunately, I had to cut short my shopping as I just realised that I didn’t bring the grocery list. You see, I always keep the list in my P910’s Jotter (notepad) application.
11:00am : A quiet period. No calls and SMS.
12:00pm : Went out for lunch at a nice cosy restaurant where I set the C113 to vibrate mode – in case somebody calls, I didn’t want its ear-piercing ringtone to cause other customers to choke on their spaghetti.
The food presentation was really nice and the taste was equally good. I wished I could snap a picture and send it via MMS to my friend, though. He loves good Italian food. Unfortunately both functions are not available on this phone. Sigh.
1:00pm: Received a few short messages. Suffice to say the vibrate mode worked like a charm. The keypad, although responsive, is a bit stiff for my liking. I don’t think I would want to type long replies because I will definitely get a sore thumb afterward.
3:00pm: My brother’s family paid us a visit. My 15-year-old nephew wasn’t really thrilled when I showed him the C113 since it has no colour screen and couldn’t play MP3 songs.
This was quite understandable. After all, he already owns a more advanced, full-featured mobile phone, which was a birthday gift from his father. Kids these days!
Perhaps, this phone is more for his father’s generation. My brother is one of those people who owns a feature-packed phone but he only uses it to make calls.
Heck, he even has a black address book to keep all his contact numbers as he doesn’t know how to store the numbers on his phone. As expected, he sort of liked the C113 but the dull and small screen put him off.
7:00pm: After my brother’s family left, I called a friend and talked for about half an hour. The earpiece volume was adjustable but I wish it came with a handsfree kit because it was quite tiring holding the phone up for too long.
9:00pm: Went out to a nearby foodcourt for dinner. After finishing my meal, I whipped out the phone and planned to kill time by playing some built-in games before heading home. Unfortunately, the C113 only comes with a few really boring games so I decided play around with the phone’s calculator to plan my budget for next month before getting my salary. At least this function works nicely.
12:00am: Time to go to sleep with the phone alarm set to 6:30am.
6:30am: Woke up immediately when the alarm rang. It was really loud as I forgot to reduce the volume earlier – I’m pretty sure the racket woke up the neighbours as well.
7:59am: The review period ended. Thank goodness.
The phone works exactly as advertised but as a smartphone user, I found it to be inadequate for my daily use.
However it would be ideal for those who don’t demand much out of his or her phone. One advantage of having no power-consuming features is that the phone can last a lot longer.
Yup, the C113 is rated to last almost 20 days on standby mode and up to 10 hours of continuous usage on a single charge.
Pros: Very affordable; easy to use; long battery life.
Cons: None if making calls and sending text messages is all you use a phone for.
Jakarta, Indonesia and Waterloo, ON - Indosat, Sony Ericsson and Research In Motion (RIM) today announced the availability of BlackBerry® Connect™ on Sony Ericsson’s latest M600i mobile phone in Indonesia.
The 3G-enabled Sony Ericsson M600i with BlackBerry Connect will allow customers to choose and enjoy the feature-rich capabilities of the mobile phone together with RIM’s popular BlackBerry services. Supported BlackBerry features include “push”-based wireless email access, wireless email reconciliation and attachment viewing through BlackBerry Enterprise Server™ and BlackBerry Internet Service™. Additional features supported through BlackBerry Enterprise Server include:
* wireless calendar synchronization; * remote look-up of corporate email address directory; * Triple DES encryption; and * IT policy enforcement and commands (such as remotely disabling or wiping data from a device in the event it is lost or stolen).
“Mobile professionals around the world are increasingly recognizing the personal productivity and organizational benefits derived from the push-based BlackBerry platform," said Norm Lo, Vice President, Asia Pacific at Research In Motion. “RIM is pleased to work with Sony Ericsson and Indosat to bring the BlackBerry services to the M600i for customers in Indonesia. With BlackBerry Connect, M600i users will enjoy optimized wireless connectivity based on the unique and proven BlackBerry architecture.”
“Last year we successfully launched BlackBerry Connect on the P910 in joint effort with RIM and Indosat in Indonesia,” said Alino Sugianto, Country Manager, Sony Ericsson Mobile Communication International AB, Indonesia Representative Office. “We are now looking forward to offering BlackBerry Connect on the M600i. Sony Ericsson is committed to working with partners such as RIM and Indosat to provide empowering mobile solutions for business customers.”
“We are working with Sony Ericsson and RIM to provide customers with a broader choice of handsets that can leverage the unique strengths and reliability of the proven BlackBerry platform,” said Wahyu Wijayadi, Marketing Director of Indosat. “With the successful launch of BlackBerry Connect on the P910 last year, we are confident that the new Sony Ericsson M600i with BlackBerry Connect will be well-received in the market.”
For corporate customers, BlackBerry Enterprise Server software tightly integrates with Microsoft® Exchange, IBM Lotus® Domino® and works with existing enterprise systems to enable secure, push-based wireless access to email and other data.
For individuals and smaller businesses, BlackBerry Internet Service allows users to access multiple corporate and personal email accounts (including Microsoft Exchange, IBM Lotus Domino and most popular ISP email accounts) from a single device.
The M600i provides email capability and a mobile phone together in an extremely stylish, slim device featuring a touch-screen display and handwriting recognition software. The M600i is the first Sony Ericsson mobile phone on Symbian OS 9.1 and UIQ 3.0, offering users great customization opportunities and the ability to purchase personal productivity and other applications online. At just 15mm thick, it is one of the slimmest business 3G devices.
In today’s world of professional digital photography, workflow is the name of the game. That’s why we created ACDSee Pro Photo Manager: To give you unparalleled speed in every facet of your digital photography management—from photo capture to final print.
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ACDSee Pro is quick and easy to learn. There’s no steep learning curve, so you’ll be whizzing through its features in no time. You’ll also appreciate its intuitive and customizable user interface that doesn’t slow you down with cluttered menus or poorly positioned toolbars.
View your photographs at full size with uncompromised speed and resolution, browse thumbnails quickly and easily, and process large files with unrivaled speed. If you’re looking to streamline your workflow and increase productivity, this is the software for you.
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Visual tagging feature allows you to quickly sort and select preferred photographs.
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The Shadow/Highlight tool allows you to brighten only the dark areas of a photo, or darken only overexposed areas, or do both simultaneously.
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ACDSee Pro photo software displays RAW photos faster than ever before, so you’re never stuck waiting for your photographs to appear on screen. ACDSee Pro also allows you to view your RAW files as quickly as your JPEGs.
Get industry-leading RAW format support.
ACDSee Pro supports the DNG (Digital Negative Specification) format—a widely available archival RAW format, guaranteeing you’ll always be able to access and view your RAW images quickly and trouble free. It also ensures you’ll be able to view your RAW files in the future, despite changes made to industry software and camera technology.
ACDSee Pro supports a wide range of RAW formats from Nikon, Canon, Konica Minolta, Olympus, Fuji, and Pentax cameras, including popular new DSLR models like the Nikon D2X, Nikon D70s, Nikon D200, Nikon D2Hs, Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II, EOS-1D Mark II N, EOS 5D, EOS Digital Rebel XT, EOS 30D, Olympus E-300 and E-330.
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Save valuable time by comparing multiple photographs at once.
The Compare Images tool is a fast and highly productive way to highlight both similarities and differences in the properties, metadata, and pixel-intensity levels in a group of photographs you select, helping you pick the best shot from a number of similar photos.
Save your preferred photographs to a new location on your hard drive, tag the photos, or assign a rating or category for future reference. Then you can easily delete, move, rename, or alter the photographs.
The Compare Images tool displays the file properties below each photo. Differences in properties are bolded, while similarities are displayed in regular font.
The Compare Images tool includes:
Tools to zoom in and out on a photo group of selected of photos.
Pan Lock an area of a photograph, so that when you zoom and pan a photo to a specific area, the Compare Images viewer displays the same area for all photographs you view.
Underexposure warning that indicates pixels that may be underexposed. Click the arrow to open a dialog box where you can adjust the threshold values.
Overexposure warning that indicates pixels that may be overexposed. Click the arrow to open a dialog box where you can adjust the threshold values.
Properties display for each photograph. Just click the Metadata Setup button to specify which file properties are displayed.
A Histogram display for each photograph.
The ability to compare up to four photos at once in the Compare Images viewer.
A Comparison List that displays thumbnails of the photographs you select in the ACDSee Browser. In the Comparison List, you can right-click a photo to display a shortcut menu of commands, and hide or show the list.
Get fully integrated color-management support.
View and print accurately with full color management support for ICC and ICM color profiles. For increased productivity, remove or convert the color profiles of multiple files simultaneously.
How do you improve on the mouse that has everything? Remove its tail. Mighty Mouse — the mouse that changed the way you scroll — has gone wireless. Now you can take that seamless, touch-sensitive, 360-degree scrolling design with you wherever you go. Bluetooth
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With its secure, reliable Bluetooth technology, the wireless Mighty Mouse goes wherever you do. Pair it with any Bluetooth-enabled Mac and wireless keyboard to work untethered and uncluttered at your desk, or take your show on the road. Mighty Mouse lightens your load on the go by operating with either one or two AA batteries. That’ll save you lugging a bulky dock around.
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The wireless Mighty Mouse’s tracking engine is based on powerful laser technology that delivers 20 times the performance of standard optical tracking, giving you more accuracy and responsiveness on more surfaces. It works just as well on your office desk as it does on a table at your favorite coffee spot. So leave the mouse pad at home. Mighty Mouse is one smooth operator.
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In the beginning, there was one button. Then there were two. Then there were clickable scroll wheels and programmable toggles and solid-state slides. But nobody made a mouse as easy to use as your Mac. Until now. Mighty Mouse combines the capability of a multibutton mouse with Apple’s signature top-shell design for the best of both form and function. Use it any way you work: Stick with single-button simplicity or click with multibutton efficiency.
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Time is round. Space is curved. Why should your mouse be linear? Plenty of applications require you to do more than scroll up and down. Mighty Mouse offers 360-degree scrolling capability, thanks to its Scroll Ball, perfectly positioned to roll smoothly under just one finger. Explore the farthest reaches of your files — pan images in iPhoto, view timelines in iMovie HD and Final Cut Pro, traverse bars in GarageBand and Logic Pro — with one hand tied behind your back (or holding a cup of coffee or typing). Mighty Mouse gives you room to roam.
Dashboard
You’ll Really Click
Touch-sensitive technology under Mighty Mouse’s seamless top shell detect where you’re clicking, transforming your sleek, one-button mouse into a two-button wonder. But the innovation doesn’t end there. Apple engineers added force-sensing buttons on either side of Mighty Mouse that let you squeeze the mouse, activating Mac OS X Dashboard, Exposé or a whole host of other, customizable features — instantly.
At times like this, when you see a headline like that on a blog, you usually assume there will be a picture or video of some person’s significant other in either a very compromising position or engaging in some kind of photoshopped act with an animal along with a piece of text about how he/she is a dirty piece of something. Sorry to break it to you all, but there will be no pictures of Jason doing such things with said post. He and I are forever, bitchez.
I will, however, show you a pretty interesting video off YouTube about what Counterstrike players who cheat do and how their cockery appears on their screen. And, FYI, this is the reason I don’t play CS, so know I don’t condone this, only want to you show you how n00bs do their thang.
Hi. We want to let all WCG friends know about another opportunity to participate in WCG. This year's WCG Grand Final will be held in Italy's Monza from Oct. 18th to 22nd. In order for WCG to succeed, the tournaments must be run smoothly and reliably.
The referees are the most important people that can make that happen. One can say that referees played a huge role in the success of past WCG events. Join WCG as a referee that represents the games rather than as a representative of a country and make new memories.
Games 1. Half-Life: Counter-Strike 2. FIFA Soccer 06 3. Need For Speed: Most Wanted 4. StarCraft: Broodwar 5. WarCraftIII: The Froze Throne 6. Dawn of War: Winter Assault 7. Dead or Alive 4 8. Project Gotham Racing 3 -
Benefits 1. Accommodation (Check-in: Oct. 16th. Check-out: Oct. 23rd) (* NOTE: Each referee is responsible for making Travel arrangements to Monza, Italy. WCG will not cover your travel fees) 2. Food 3. Daily expenses during the grand final period (5 days) 4. Receive referee certification for WCG official games
To apply for WCG referee position go to WCG website for more details and start your registration process. If you have any questions, please send e-mail to shiva@icm2k.com. * WCG will review the applications, and notify the referees by e-mail. Please enter a valid e-mail address when registering.
No more drilling, tucking cables under carpet, and fiddling with endless tangles of cable. Wireless technology from RCA brand can give you freedom from wires. Fill and surround your house with sound from our 900 MHz Wireless Speaker systems. And unchain yourself from the stereo with our RCA Wireless Headphones.
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900 MHz Wireless Speakers
Invisibly connects with virtually any audio source
Transmits up to 125 ft. for use anywhere in the home or outdoors
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One 8" "Y" cable adapter (3.5 mm jack to RCA plugs)
Controls to adjust bass, volume and tone
Compact size for bookshelf, kitchen, home office
Two 6 volt DC power adapters (for speakers)
One 19 volt DC power adapter (for transmiter)
Uses 4 "D" cell batteries per speaker for complete portability (not included)
Specifications
Output Power
:4 watts RMS power
Signal To Noise Ratio
:50 dB minimum
Audio Distortion
:Less than 2%
Audio Frequency Response
:50 Hz-12 kHz
Carrier Frequency
:911.5-913.5 MHz
Separation
:30dB
Operating Range
:Up To 150 ft.
Dimensions
Speaker
:9 1/4" H x 5 3/8" W x 4 5/8" D
Transmitter
:8 7/8" H x 5 1/2" W x 3 3/16" D
Package Contents
Items
Transmitter 2-Stereo Speaker Receivers 2-6 Volt DC Power Adapter (for Transmitter) 1-19 Volt DC Power Adapter (for Transmitter) 1-8 inch "Y" cable adapter (3.5mm jack to two RCA-type plugs)
Nothing provides peace of mind in an emergency like Eton's new self-powered Emergency AM/FM/Shortwave Radio and Cell Phone Charger. This versatile, all-in-one compact radio needs no electricity to bring in local AM/FM radio and shortwave broadcasts from around the world, and has a cell phone charger, flashlight, and emergency siren built right in. It contains a rechargeable battery pack that powers up in minutes through the radio’s side hand crank (just 90 seconds of cranking gives you up to an hour of use). Also operates on three AA batteries (not included), and has input for AC adaptor (adaptor not included). Has a rugged ABS plastic water-resistant exterior, fine control four-band tuning, rotating antenna, 2” speaker with excellent sound quality, and carrying handle. Includes an earphone jack (earphones not included), shortwave listening guide, and nylon travel case. (6¾ x 6½ x 2½”; 26 oz) (From the makers of Grundig)
Swiss Army™ Knife
“Luckily, I had my Swiss Army™ Knife...” Every travel book lists a Swiss Army Knife as a “must” to pack. Ours is genuine Victorinox, with Swiss precision engineering and all the tools most needed by travelers. Includes a large and small blade, can opener, corkscrew, tweezers, three screwdrivers (including one for eyeglasses), wire stripper, reamer, key ring, tweezers, toothpick and even an LED flashlight! (Be sure to pack it in your checked luggage.)
adidas Originals Women's adi Speed Suede Running Shoe
A new addition to the range of track-inspired models. Outsole inspired by the suction cups of the Titan from 1972. Upper is inspired by adidas sprint shoes from the past.
Upper features plush suede leather. The suction cup outsole is directly inspired by the Titan track spike. Visible EVA heel in forefoot and heel area raises the shoe higher off the ground.
This shoe is a hybrid of the 1972 Titan and a classic Adidas sprint shoe
Visible EVA midsole adds cushioning and gives the shoe a slightly higher profile
adidas. A name that stands for competence in all sectors of sport around the globe. The vision of company founder Adolf Dassler has long become reality, and his corporate philosophy the guiding principle for successor generations. The idea was as simple as it was brilliant. Adi Dassler's aim was to provide every athlete with the best possible equipment. It all began in 1920, when Adi Dassler made his first shoes using the few materials available after the First World War. Today, the adidas product range extends from shoes, apparel and accessories for basketball, soccer, fitness and training to adventure, trail and golf.
FUIJO MASUOKA was awarded ¥87 million ($749,225) by a Tokyo court with Toshiba picking up the tab.
The Nihon Keizai Shimbun said that while Masuoka had wanted ¥1.1 billion for inventing flash memory, the award is nevertheless the third biggest ever awarded in employee patent cases.
Masuoka, who is now a professor at Tohoku University, had clocked up an astonishing 500 patents when he worked at Toshiba. Toshiba paid six million yen to him while he was working there to transfer the patents.
The flash patents represent a mere 41 out of the 500 he transferred.
At a July 25 analyst powwow, CEO Ed Zander unveiled follow-ups to the hit RAZR and promising deals involving video on demand, India, and China
Ed Zander stood on the stage of the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont, Ill., late in the day on July 25. Weary but still smiling, the chief executive officer of Motorola (MOT ) asked one last time whether the Wall Street analysts and investors gathered for the company's annual analyst meeting had any questions. One woman spoke up and wanted to know what Zander's plans for the company were "once you reach Nokia in market share?"
Zander couldn't hide a quick grin. Motorola is the second-largest maker of mobile phones, but it's gaining ground fast on Finland's Nokia (NOK )(see BusinessWeek.com, 7/20/06, "Does Motorola Have Nokia's Number?"). "I think I'm in the first inning of a nine-inning game," he said. "That's the way I feel about where we're going."
It's been a pretty good first inning. Since former Silicon Valley hotshot Zander arrived at Motorola in January, 2004, it has gone from a declining power in the wireless industry to one that's contending with Nokia for preeminence. On July 19, Motorola reported another quarter of stellar financial performance. Net income for the second quarter was up 45%, to $1.4 billion, while revenues rose 29%, to $10.9 billion. Even more impressive: Motorola gained market share for the seventh consecutive quarter. It estimates its share at 22% now, up from 17% a year earlier. According to researcher Strategy Analytics, Nokia holds 33.3% of the market.
SHARPER THAN THE RAZR? At the analyst meeting on July 25, Zander and his executive team laid out their plans for gaining even more ground. The company introduced a series of new phones that build on the success of the company's ultra-thin RAZR, which has sold 50 million units so far. They are the KRZR, the RIZR, and the Motofone.
The company's KRZR is the closest relative to popular RAZR. The new phone is a clamshell, like the RAZR. But it's a tad narrower, at 42 millimeters wide, compared with the RAZR's 54 millimeters. The KRZR is, however, slightly thicker. The new RIZR is 46 millimeters wide, again slightly narrower than the RAZR. However, it's a slider phone, so the display slides up from the body of the phone to reveal the keypad. The third phone unveiled at the analyst meeting, the Motofone, is designed specifically as a low-cost option for emerging markets. A mere nine millimeters thick, the phone is expected to be available in the fourth quarter of this year.
The immediate reaction to the new phones was positive. "The buzz is that it's a hot product," says Bob Laikin, chief executive of Brightpoint (CELL ), which distributes phones for Motorola, Nokia, and other manufacturers.
TAPPING EMERGING MARKETS. Yet the new phones could be the least significant of Motorola's announcements at the confab. The company also announced that it would spend an undisclosed sum for Broadbus Technologies, which makes technology for video on demand.
Motorola has also struck a deal with India's Wipro Technologies, the tech services arm of Wipro (WIT), to create a joint venture for building, managing, and supporting telecom networks. And it signed a pact with Huawei Technologies of China to develop and market high-speed wireless equipment. "I think the Huawei relationship is the most significant announcement," says Christin Armacost, an analyst with Lazard Capital Markets.
Why? In contrast to its status in the mobile-phone business, Motorola is a relatively small player in providing base stations and other network equipment to telecom companies, such as Verizon Communications' (VZ ) wireless business. Huawei is one of the fast-rising players in that market, in part because of its low costs.
NETWORK TINKERING. The two companies will cooperate on developing equipment for the next-generation technology based on GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), the dominant standard in Europe. "We look at what is the road map for the future—where do we want to invest and how do we fill gaps so we can get there. The Huawei partnership accomplishes that," says Padmasree Warrior, chief technology officer at Motorola.
By cooperating, Motorola may get access to more customers, particularly in emerging markets like China, and Huawei will get more credibility with customers leery of working with a newcomer. Huawei has had several disputes with Cisco Systems (CSCO ) over intellectual property. Motorola had also struck a tentative deal with Nortel Networks (NT ) to cooperate on equipment but that deal fell apart earlier this month. "The possibilities [with Huawei] are very interesting," says Armacost.
Analysts are hardly betting that Motorola's network equipment business will become a star performer like its mobile-phone business. In fact, there continues to be speculation that Zander will sell off the network business because its prospects are not as bright as those for some other operations. But Zander is getting plenty of latitude to try new things in the equipment business and elsewhere. After the past two and a half years, investors figure that he's earned it.
Interested email adfunk at gmail.com title buy link or msn reckno6 at hotmail.com or ym abg_hensem1 at yahoo.com
The One Laptop per Child (OLPC) initiative for the developing world is gaining ground in Africa, with Nigeria announcing the acquisition of one million laptops, reports InfoWorld. But the Microsoft/Intel EduWise consortium is also making headway in the same market.
The OLPC is the product of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab co-founder Nicholas Negroponte which in May this year announced it had finalised the hardware and software for the low-cost machines.
InfoWorld yesterday reported that while the OLPC laptops were "initially touted as being priced at $100 ... OLPC participants now say the price may fluctuate. In any case, they will be the cheapest ever sold in Africa, and several African countries are going for the idea."
One of the countries keen on the idea is Nigeria where the Nigeria Communication Commission has already committed to ordering one million of the OLPC machines. "Egypt has said it is almost ready to commit itself to buying the laptops but has not said how many it is prepared to order. Zambian officials say negotiations to buy the machines are progressing well and that the country may soon announce the number of machines the country intends to order," reports InfoWorld.
The OLPC machines demonstrated in May this year have a 800x480 screen that can be run at a respectable 1200x900 resolution. The new models, in orange, blue, yellow and the now-familiar lime-green, featured concepts like wifi aerials that cover the USB and audio ports when folded away and a nifty carrying handle.
The rival EduWise project -- a collaboration between Microsoft, Intel, HP, Oracle and Cisco -- is also making headway with a partnership with the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) and having already supplied computers to schools in Uganda.
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SAN FRANCISCO - Google Inc. (Nasdaq:GOOG - news) said on Tuesday that the company has begun offering mobile phone users in more than 30 major U.S. cities the capacity to view highway maps with "live" traffic data.
The Mountain View, California-based company said that Google Maps for Mobile would allow mobile phone users to chose a destination within Google Maps and select "show traffic," said Gummi Hafsteinsson, product manager of Google Maps for Mobile. Google Maps calculates the route to the location.
Highway traffic information is sent to the phone, with road conditions highlighted in three colors: -- red for congested, yellow or orange for slowdowns, and green for smooth sailing.
Rival Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news) offers live traffic conditions on its computer-based map service, but it does not yet provide a mobile phone version for Yahoo maps.
Google said it is offering comprehensive data on traffic conditions in more than 30 major U.S. metropolitan areas and partial information in an unspecified number of other areas. Traffic data is available only in the U.S. market.
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Pulsar balances technological innovation with streamlined design in its PM7001 Tech Gear Flight Computer watch, which features a large bold black face which features an EL backlight function and both analog and digital displays. The watch displays the time for 77 cities and 4 U.S. time zones--perfect for the man on the go. The black anodized bezel includes a bidirectional E6B pilot's slide rule. This watch contains a chronograph with two alarms and the 1/100 stopwatch feature records elapsed time up to 24 hours. The tapered bracelet band is composed of interlinked stainless steel pieces. Other features include day, date, and month display, screwdown caseback, luminous hands, water resistance to 100 meters (330 feet), a scratch-resistant mineral crystal, and precise Japanese quartz movement. It measures 1.6 inches in diameter and 0.5 inches thick.
Warranty Pulsar's three-year warranty (from date of purchase) covers all of the watch--inside and out. All moving parts, the case, crystal, bracelet, and battery are covered.
Product Description Quartz movement, Dress watch, Flight computer, Luminous hands, Yellow enamel markers, Chronograph with two alarms, Month/day/date calendar, World time: 77 cities and 4 US time zones, Bi-directional slide rule in gunmetal, 1/100th second stopwatch records elapsed time up to 24 hours, EL backlight, Polished stainless steel case and screw-in caseback, Gunmetal stainless steel selector buttons, Curved mineral crystal, 100 meters/330 feet water resistant
You raced to catch your flight, but the weather's taken a turn for the worse, leaving you stuck at the gate for hours--and all the power outlets are taken by PSP- and iPod-toting kids. Will your laptop battery hold out? If you have one of these marathon machines, it just might. These notebooks provide roughly between six and eight hours of battery life, meaning you get more time running on battery than it takes to fly from New York to Los Angeles or to (literally) run a marathon.
CNET Labs does extensive testing on every laptop we review. For battery life, we measure how long a laptop with a fully charged battery is able to run typical productivity apps, such as Microsoft Office, McAfee VirusScan, and Adobe Photoshop. The tests conclude when the battery is drained.
The longest-lasting notebook we've seen in the Labs is the Lenovo ThinkPad X60s. When configured with the high-capacity battery, its 8 hours, 16 minutes of life can get you through an entire workday. The Dell Inspiron E1405 ran for 7 hours, 21 minutes; the Panasonic ToughBook 74 lasted 7 hours, 18 minutes; and the Lenovo ThinkPad R60 went for 6 hours, 25 minutes on a charge. The inexpensive HP Compaq nc2400 also performed well, clocking out after a lengthy 6 hours, 6 minutes.
Check out the laptops below to find out which can give you the most time to work away from a wall outlet--whether work is crunching numbers in Excel on a cross-country flight or watching the original Star Wars trilogy at the park.
Product Description From the Manufacturer Packaged in a compact, two-color exterior with subtly located speakers, the Grand WEGA 3LCD rear projection TVs are now available in a larger range of sizes, including 46", 50" and 55" screens. The televisions feature high-detail picture quality, and deliver natural color reproduction and exceptional brightness levels thanks to 3LCD technology. And deep black levels along with outstanding contrast are hallmarks of the Cinema Black Pro function. Featuring enhanced connectivity via dual HDMI input and PC input through HDMI, Sony’s Grand WEGA LCD projection televisions provide quality playback of nearly every connected device.
3LCD Panels The 3LCD technology at the heart of Sony’s Grand WEGA™ televisions provide a bright picture, with high detail and natural color. These three key benefits are immediately apparent when viewing a Grand WEGA™ TV. You can expect to see an incredibly detailed picture with eye-popping colors. Sony uses three tiny LCD chips (0.73") with a combined resolution of over 2.76 million pixels. The light from a high output UHP lamp shines into a filtering system that splits the beam into red, green, and blue light streams. Each color goes through its own LCD chip, which passes or blocks the light. The three beams are then instantaneously recombined and sent to the projection lens.
Digital Reality Creation (DRC) Multifunction Technology Unlike conventional line doublers, the DRC Multifunction feature replaces the signal's NTSC waveform with the HD equivalent, while doubling the number of vertical and horizontal lines. This results in four times the density for quality sources, such as DVD, satellite and digital camcorders. The Video Menu allows you to select interlaced, progressive or CineMotion® output. WEGA Engine System The WEGA Engine system is the core video processing system that was designed based on Sony’s expertise and long heritage in bringing cutting-edge picture quality to TVs for consumers. Its fully digital signal-processing path includes video processing functions that have been designed and optimized using Sony’s video experience to improve overall picture quality. The WEGA Engine System includes:
High-speed A/D (analog-to-digital) converters for wide-range gradation capture of analog signals
3-D Y/C Comb Filter for minimizing cross color and dot structure artifacts
Digital MPEG Noise Reduction Circuit, which reduces MPEG artifacts such as "block noise" and "mosquito noise" caused by the compression used to maximize bandwidth in digital broadcasts
Digital Temporal 3-D Noise Reduction (pixel-by-pixel basis)
Digital Motion Adaptive I/P (interlace-to-progressive ), as well as Edge Adaptive I/P deinterlacing conversion, which improves resolution in video with motion
Cinema Black Pro Cinema Black Pro is an exclusive Sony function designed to improve contrast expression especially in darker scenes. The Cinema Black Pro function is enabled by using either one or both of two features - Iris Control and Advanced Iris. The Iris Control function sets the maximum size of the iris opening and sets the overall level of brightness. There are several settings that allow the user to adjust the iris opening to best match the room lighting conditions. The Advanced Iris function is a dynamic adjustment that automatically opens and closes the iris
The OLPC is the product of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab co-founder Nicholas Negroponte which in May this year 
The OLPC machines demonstrated in May this year have a 800x480 screen that can be run at a respectable 1200x900 resolution. The new models, in orange, blue, yellow and the now-familiar lime-green, featured concepts like wifi aerials that cover the USB and audio ports when folded away and a nifty carrying handle.
