I Love Technology!! This is a reviewer blog for people who love everything tech, from reviews on computers to cordless telephones!! this blog is to help people, by putting reviews on products that don't have much information out there on them. This is a blog where people can give there opinions, any suggestions, or recommendations, tech support, help advice, etc. on tech products and technology in general.
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
The Tech News: Dell New 30-inch LCD!!!!!!!!!
They're not saying much about it, but apparently Dell's forthcoming 30-inch 3007WFP display is a) real, and b) actually going to be announced during CES according to their site (hence their "check back on Jan 5, 2006" message), and c) has better specs as Apple's 30-inch Cinema display (those being same 2560 x 1600 resolution, but 700:1 contrast ratio over 400:1, 11ms over 16ms, and 400cd/m2 brightness over 270). Frankly we're a little bummed they're gonna miss the holiday rush with this one, but somehow we have a feeling a 30-inch display, Dell or not, is still one of those things we'd have to pony up for ourselves."
The Tech News: The World's Largest TV!!!!!!!!

Company says it has developed a 102-inch high-definition flat screen.
Samsung SDI has developed what it claims is the world's largest PDP (plasma display panel), measuring 102 inches diagonally.
The company plans to start producing the panels during the first half of 2005 at its Chonan factory in Chungchon, South Korea. Samsung SDI expects Samsung Electronics to buy the 102-inch panels and make them into TVs at a later time, says Samsung SDI spokesperson Bryan Sohn. The company would not reveal the prices for the panels at this time.
The panels are capable of a high-definition resolution of 1920 pixels x 1080 pixels, a brightness of 1000 candelas per square meter and a contrast ratio of 2000:1, Sohn says.

Lower Prices?
The production technology used to build the panels could potentially help to reduce prices for smaller PDPs. Rather than using a separate piece of glass for each panel it makes, the company can fabricate four 50-inch panels from a single, larger piece of glass, resulting in a lower cost per panel, Sohn says.
As well as being good for consumers, the lower prices would be a boost for electronics companies like Samsung Electronics, which has seen growing demand for big-screen TVs, he says.
Samsung SDI will produce the 102-inch panels on a newly-built manufacturing line. Production volume has yet to be announced but is not expected to be large, Sohn says.

The giant panel will give Samsung SDI bragging rights over South Korean rival LG Electronics, which has been in a tit-for-tat battle with Samsung over who can produce the biggest panel.
In October 2003, LG Electronics announced the development of a prototype 76-inch screen. Three months later, Samsung SDI said it had developed an 80-inch panel, but TVs have not yet been made commercially at that size, Sohn says.
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
The Tech News: BD-R / BD-RE (BD-RW) Discs!!!

Just imagine back up your with just one disc, or putting 12 DVD movies on one disc possibilities are just about in less.
Monday, December 12, 2005
The V.O.T.M: Is Mariah Carey's "Someday"!!!
Sunday, December 11, 2005
My New LCD: AOC LM929 Silver-Black 19" 25ms LCD Monitor!!

"As we unpacked the display we were very impressed with the good quality. The silver and black case is clean and edges are smooth. Attaching the display to the stand was not difficult as it is with some manufacturers. Once the display was on the stand all we had to do was hook up the power and decide if we were going to run an analog or digital signal. Many mid level monitor do not include both options, especially in a 19" monitor at this price. Since we were hooking it up to a KVM switch, analog was the choice. Most displays these days have a power cord that plugs into a power adapter which then has a mini plug to the display. It was kind of nice to be able to just plug the power cord directly into the display as you do with a CRT monitor. Keeps the desk a little less cluttered.
Now with the monitor plugged in and ready to go I sat down and positioned the display. I really like the height adjustment options. You can adjust the display to be about 6 inches from the desktop. For me that took the center of the display above eye level. So for normal viewing I use it about 3 inches from the desktop. The tall adjustments are great if you like your monitor high but it's also there to allow you to pivot the display and view it long ways. Turning the display was simple and I did not feel at any time that it was off balance and would tip over. With a large display that can adjust as high as this does, having a sturdy base can help you rest easy without fear of damage.

Now that the display was positioned comfortably we fired up the PC. Upon powering up, a quick AOC splash screen displays before it loads the image from the video card. Once the OS was up and running I inspected the display for any dead pixels or distortions. There were not any dead pixels. The picture was clear with no anomalies or distortions visible. The tagline with the AOC logo says "Eyes Value". As we first powered up this LCD, in the testing process, and with continued use for several weeks, this tag line means many things. AOC has packaged a quality display in all aspects of workmanship and functionality. This display is very easy on your eyes even after many hours of continued use.
After the easy set up, we spent some time putting the display through the paces. First off was checking out the display controls. The controls are placed on the right side of the display case. This novel placement makes the controls very easy to use. Often with most monitors and displays these controls are hid underneath the bottom front edge. Depending on how high the monitor sits, these buttons can be very difficult to use to make adjustments as I am sure you are aware of.
Next we checked out some basic software applications. Email, word processing documents, spreadsheets, web browsing, etc. The picture quality was excellent for these uses. The whites were definitely not too bright, but the images are crisp and clear. However, because I noticed that the white backgrounds of documents and web pages was not glaring, I wondered how the display would fare with darker images and even dark scenes from games and movies. This did made dark scenes from our test DVD movies a little difficult to see. The specs say it is capable of 16.7 million colors. Compared to a more high end LCD the color shades were a little less definite but still good quality for a mid-level LCD. We knew that with only a 25ms response time that we would probably see some ghosting or blurring of images in both DVD movies and Gaming. What we saw in testing wasn't unbelievably bad, but was noticeable. And the darker images and scenes are darker than they might appear on higher end displays.

The AOC LM929 is not for hardcore gamers or graphics users. For day to day use, this is a great display. If you spend most of your time in office or business related software and web browsing with occasional gaming and movie watching, this display is golden. I'm using it now for my office display several hours everyday on development and email and web browsing...my day to day work. For a large 19" display, with a good array of features, with good solid quality at an affordable price, the AOC LM929 display is for you!!
Because of the excellent functionality and usability at an affordable price."
Pros:
Love the Pivot, Swivel, Tilt, and Height adjustment options, Monitor feels sturdy and still looks nice.
Cons:
25ms response time, it's a little on the dark side, speakers aren't that good....
Saturday, December 10, 2005
The Tech News: JVC GR-DF550US Digital Camcorder!!

We found the video quality of the GR-DF550US to be somewhat disappointing. The video was sharp and had plenty of detail, but colors looked washed out, both under natural light and indoors. However, the GR-DF550US outperformed all the other cameras in the August review group at shooting video in low light, doing an excellent job of reproducing colors in a very challenging lighting situation. You can set the two white LEDs to turn on automatically when a scene becomes too dark. But the lights are so bright that some subjects might find it uncomfortable to look into the lens.

We also found this JVC camcorder's still images to be relatively poor in our tests, producing muddy colors and showing a lack of clarity in fine details.
With its 15X optical zoom, the JVC leads the group in that category (though you really need to use a tripod at the longer zoom settings, as such settings exaggerate camera shakes). It weighs just 14.4 ounces, which makes it the lightest of these cameras. And it's also the least-expensive camcorder here, with a street price of $450.
The battery life of the DF550US, however, was disappointing at just 1 hour, 5 minutes--the worst in our group, and less than half that of the Sony DCR-DVD403 or the Hitachi DZGX20A. There are ways to stretch operating life, such as by turning down the LCD screen's brightness or using the viewfinder, but on this camera, the viewfinder screen is rather small and uncomfortable to use, so that resort isn't ideal. One nice touch: If you close both the LCD screen and the viewfinder, the camera turns itself off, lessening the chances of accidentally running down the battery.
Another welcome detail is the quick-review button, which rewinds the tape, shows the last few seconds of video, and then switches back to recording mode. This is useful if you can't remember the last thing you recorded--and a lot easier than switching to playback, rewinding the tape, watching the video, and then switching back to recording mode.
The camera also has a selection of scene modes (such as sports or snow) and special effects (such as sepia, monotone, and strobe), and a number of modes have a preset shutter speed to approximate some degree of manual control."
Pros:
Lots of ports, Low Light Plus for low light video.
Cons:
the lackluster image quality, short battery life, and awkward handling.
Monday, November 28, 2005
The Tech News: Fight Breaks out at Wal Mart!
Monday, November 21, 2005
The Tech News: Christmas Is On!!!!!!!!
Saturday, November 19, 2005
The Tech News: Apple iBook Tele Prompter Laptop for $100!

Apple iBook Tele Prompter Laptop
Price: $100/day
Other views:
Power Connector
remove add to request in used equipment The perfect laptop for prompting? Quite possibly. This iBook has a composite video output (which needs a special adapter - stereo Mini/RCA) and switchable (through Control Panel) resolutions and video formats (NTSC/PAL). All these features make it the ideal Prompting Machine.
Takes Mac or PC files AS LONG AS THEY HAVE BEEN SAVED AS TEXT-ONLY DOCUMENTS!

Software: QuickPrompt 1.7
Scrolling device: TrackPad or USB optical mouse.
Accessories for the Apple iBook Tele Prompter Laptop, AV 12 Flat Panel Tele Prompter System
QTV MVP 9 Ultra Light Tele Prompter System, Tele Prompter System, NO LONGER RENTED QTV FDP 11 Flat Panel Prompter System.
The Tech News: The $100 Laptop! Cool....But Wait.

"CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--A low-cost computer for the masses moved one step closer to reality on Wednesday.
Nicholas Negroponte, the co-founder of the Media Lab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, detailed specifications for a $100 windup-powered laptop targeted at children in developing nations. Nicholas Negroponte, who laid out his original proposal at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January, said MIT and his nonprofit group, called One Laptop Per Child, is in discussions with five countries--Brazil, China, Thailand, Egypt and South Africa--to distribute up to 15 million test systems to children.
"This is the most important thing I have ever done in my life," Negroponte said on Wednesday during a presentation at Technology Review's Emerging Technologies Conference at MIT. "Reception has been incredible. The idea is simple. It's an education project, not a laptop project. If we can make education better--particularly primary and secondary schools--it will be a better world."
He said a goal of the project is to make the low-cost PC idea a grassroots movement that will spread in popularity, like the Linux operating system or the Wikipedia free online encyclopedia. "This is open-source education. It's a big issue."
Negroponte said the idea is that governments will pay roughly $100 for the laptops and will distribute them for free to students.
The proposed design of the machines calls for a 500MHz processor, 1GB of memory and an innovative dual-mode display that can be used in full-color mode, or in a black-and-white sunlight-readable mode. The display makes the laptop "both an electronic book and a laptop," he said.
One display design being considered is a flat, flexible printed display developed at MIT's Media Lab. Negroponte said the technology can be used to produce displays that cost roughly 10 cents per square inch. "The target is $12 for a 12-inch display with near-zero power consumption," he said.
Power for the new systems will be provided through either conventional electric current, batteries or by a windup crank attached to the side of the notebooks, since many countries targeted by the plan do not have power in remote areas, Negroponte said.
"In emerging nations, the issue is not connectivity," Negroponte said. "That was the issue, but there are many people working on it, (thanks to) global competitiveness. But for education, the roadblock is the laptop."
Five companies are working with MIT to develop an initial 5 million to 15 million test units within the year: Google, Advanced Micro Devices, News Corp., Red Hat and BrightStar, Negroponte said. He said the current plan is to produce 100 million to 150 million units by 2007.
Negroponte admits that his goals are ambitious. Currently, the world production of laptops is just under 50 million, he said.
While the initial goal of the project is to work with governments, Negroponte said MIT is considering licensing the design or giving it to a third-party company to build commercial versions of the PC. "Those might be available for $200, and $20 or $30 will come back to us to make the kids' laptops. We're still working on that," he said.
Others have launched low-cost PC ideas in the past, though MIT's project may be the most ambitious.
Last year, Advanced Micro Devices announced plans for its Personal Internet Connector--a prototype with a price tag of at least $185, with no display. And an Indian company called Novatium said it plans to offer a stripped-down home computer for about $70 or $75.
In addition, Microsoft's antipiracy-minded Steve Ballmer last year called for a move toward the $100 PC for developing nations."
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
The Tech News: The Samsung Digimax Pro 815 With The Largest LCD, 3.5 In!
The Pro815 is targeted at the advanced market segment of camera users and this camera has three really stand out features that can be called world's firsts for the digital camera segment:
The first thing you notice on this camera is definitely the screen. This is larger than a lot of handheld gaming console screens, it's monstrous in comparison to what you typically see in today's cameras. The model's on the showroom floor were not powered, but the one working model they had during the presentation was stunning in the brightness and ease of viewing it offered. Another great feature of the 815 is The 3.5" LCD could be a TV it's so big!! The LCD that resides on top of the lens, this allows you to hold the camera at waist or chest level and look down on the camera and focus the shot. The 1900 mAh battery should offer users up to 500 shots on one charge, even with the huge LCD sucking the life out of it. The 1900 mAh size battery is the largest of any camera to date. The battery and LCD do add weight to the camera (Samsung would not quote a weight number as it is still in development), but the fact this is an SLR substitute means you won't be carrying a bunch of lenses so that will keep overall travel weight down. The included standard lens shoots both 28mm wide-angle shots and has 420mm tele-zoom capabilities, with an SLR this would usually involve having two seperate lenses. Samsung promises it will have a huge number of offerings going into 2006 and this is just the start of it's agressive push to offer cameras that are highly competitive with pricing and offer new and advanced features and still meet the competition's price point for "equivalent" but, as Samsung would argue, inferior cameras.
Pros:
Huge 3.5" LCD screen15x optical zoom, and 4x digital zoom offers 60x zoom via standard lens1900 mAh battery is the largest in any camera, this one of which is 3.5" the battery is needed, it will provide enough juice for up to 500 shots which is very good. Another color LCD 1.44 in. on the top of the camera.
Cons:
The price at 899.99, it's not very afforable, and it's kinda on the big side too.
Saturday, November 12, 2005
The Tech News: Intel based Apple PowerBooks?
Apple announced in June 2005 that it would migrate to Intel-based processors from PowerPC technology by June 2006. According to Channel Register, Intel is expected to ship its Yonah processors, which are designed for laptops, during the end of 2005. Channel Register added that Appleinsider's reports suggesting the time frame for the launch of Apple's Intel-based laptops and Intel's launch of the Yonah processors would coincide. The Mac Observer said on Monday that UBS Investment Research expects Apple to witness robust sales for its iPod nano, digital video downloads and the new iMac G5.
Analyst Charles R Wolf of Needham & Co downgraded Apple Computer Inc from "buy" to "hold." In a research note published this morning, the analyst mentioned that the downgrade in the rating was based on valuation. Apple Computer's share price has appreciated significantly over the past one year on account of the launch of new iPods and Macs, and the company's robust financial results. The sales of the company's Mac computers have been significantly higher than the estimates so far this year, the analyst added. According to Needham & Co, Apple is dominating the online music market through its iTunes Music Store, which was launched during 2003."
You know, I would like to see one of these PC's. Who'da thunk it? I though I'll never see Apple and Intel come together for anything.
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
The V.O.T.M: Is "Meeting In My Bedroom" By Silk.
Thursday, October 27, 2005
What I Want: My Dream Camcorder....With All The Bells And Whistles!!!!!!!!!!

I Can't wait to buy this camcorder! Here's the review:
"Samsung SC-D6550 Mini DV Compact DuoCam merges a high-quality digital still camera, with a high-quality Mini DV camcorder to form one palm-sized, go-anywhere device. At the heart of the SC-D6550 are two seperate optics systems: A 680,000-pixel CCD for digital video, and a 5-mega pixel CCD for capturing digital still shots in 2592 x 1944 resolution. And worry not; the SC-D6550 is much more than the sum of its parts. Additional features include a built-in flash, 900x Digital Zoom lens, USB 2.0 and IEEE-1394

Monday, October 24, 2005
Tech News: The Furture Is Now...The 4.0GHz PC!!

Very soon Intel will be shipping off New PC's with CPU of 4.0GHz. Alienware already has PC's with the 4.0GHz Processors.
more coming soon!
Tech News: The New LG VX9800 AIO Cellphone!

The dual-band (CDMA 800/1900) phone mimics the innovative design of T-Mobile's Motorola A630 by offering a folding candy bar-style form factor that hides a full QWERTY keyboard. The loaded VX9800 also promises dual color displays, Bluetooth, support for POP3 and IMAP4 e-mail, a 1.3-megapixel camera with flash and video-recording capability, an MP3 player, text and multimedia messaging, a wireless Web browser, syncing for e-mail and contacts, text to speech, a full-duplex speakerphone, voice commands and dialing, basic PIM functions, and a USB port. Check back soon for a full review."
Tech News: Sony Cybershot DSC-N1 With A 3 inch Touch Screen!!!!!!!!

"The Cyber-shot DSC-N1 is about the same size as a deck of playing cards and incorporates a high-performance, 8-megapixel digital camera, with a large, 3-inch, touch-screen LCD. The N1's album function automatically stores up to 500 of your favorite images in VGA resolution, and uses them to create dynamic slide shows with music and transition effects – in the camera.
Take pictures with the confidence that you’ll get excellent picture quality. With the N1’s 8-megapixel imager, its resolution is extraordinary for a compact camera. The all-glass Carl Zeiss 3x zoom lens lets you capture images with the utmost sharpness and clarity. Sony’s Real Imaging Processor LSI provides excellent color accuracy and incredibly fast response times. Its advanced power management system delivers long battery life; up to 270 shots per charge. With shutter lag minimized to just 9 milliseconds, you won’t miss those important moments. Moreover, the N1 offers excellent ISO sensitivity, which is of particular importance when shooting in low-light conditions. You can capture faster action at night with less blur or, in certain conditions, avoid using a flash altogether.
With an optional Memory Stick PRO Duo™ media card, shooting high-quality video is a breeze. MPEG-VX fine mode allows you to record MPEG video with VGA (640x480 pixel) resolution at 30 frames per second, up to the capacity of the media card.
Showing pictures to your friends and family is more enjoyable as the 3.0-inch LCD screen is almost the size of an actual photograph. The menu functions are accessible with your finger or thumb thanks to its innovative touch-screen interface that eliminates the need for most control buttons. With Sony’s Clear Photo LCD technology, your images will be bright, with high-contrast, and easy to view in virtually any environment.
The N1’s album function automatically stores up to 500 of your favorite images for a “pocket full of memories.” By recording each image separately, once in full-resolution and again in 640x480-resolution, your favorite images accumulate for easy recall and sharing wherever you go.
Because you will take hundreds or perhaps thousands of pictures with your N1, the album function lets you protect the images you want to keep, so that over time you will have a collection of your favorite photos with you wherever you go. And with the camera’s file management system, you can quickly locate your images; simply search for pictures by the month and date that you originally created them. To expand your playback options, you can view your photos on your television, through the optional Cyber-shot Station™ cradle, or on your PC. You decide how to share your photos, Sony lets you do it.
The N1 creates slide shows directly on the camera without using a PC. Images can be played back with such advanced features as transitions, pans, wipes, fades and zooms, choreographed to pre-loaded soundtracks. You can also use your own music, using the camera’s supplied software. With the camera’s built-in speaker, your slide shows are sure to have that cinematic effect with sound to complete the experience.
The Cyber-shot N1 digital camera will be available in mid-November for about $500 online at SonyStyle.com, at Sony Style retail stores (www.sonystyle.com/retail), and at authorized dealers nationwide. Pre-orders taken online at www.sony.com/n1.
The camera comes supplied with a Lithium Ion battery, battery charger, multi-connector cable, wrist strap, stylus, and software CD-ROM. Optional accessories include the Cyber-shot Station cradle, a marine pack, and leather carrying case."
Friday, October 21, 2005
Tech News: The New Olympus SP-700 With A 3-Inch LCD Screen.


Pros:
Sensor:1/2.5" Type CCD, 6.2 million pixels total, 6.0 million effective pixels.
Image sizes: 2816 x 2112, 2288 x 1712, 1600 x 1200, 1024 x 768, 640 x 480, Movie clips: 640 x 480, 320 x 240, 160 x 120, With soundFile formats. Still: JPEG. Movie: QuickTime Motion JPEG, Sound: WAV, Lens: 38 -114 mm (35 mm equiv), 3x optical zoom. F 3.3 - 4.0. Image stabilization: Digital image stabilizer for movies. Digital zoom: Up to 4x, TTL system iESP auto focus with contrast, detection. focus: iESP auto focus, Spot auto focus. Focus distance: Normal: o.3m (wide)/o.6m (tele), Macro: 0.1m (wide)/0.6m (tele), Super macro: From 1cm, Metering: iESP, Spot, Program. ISO sensitivity: Auto, ISO: 64, 100, 200, 400. Exposure compensation +/-2EV, 1/3 EV steps. Shutter speed: 4 - 1/2000 sec. Scene modes: Portrait, Landscap, Landscap and Portrait, Night Scene, Night & Portrait, Sport, Indoor, Candle, Self Portrait, Available Light Portrait, Sunset, Fireworks, Museum, Cuisine, Behind Glass, Documents, Auction, Shot & Select 1 and 2, Beach, Snow, Underwater Wide 1 and 2, Underwater Macro. White balance: Full-auto TTL ESP, overcast, sunlight, tungste, fluorescentent 1. Has a Self timer. Continuous shooting: 0.7fps for up to 3 frames in Super high, Image parameters: Sepia, Black and white, brightnessess and saturation correction, Color temperature, Balance. Flash is Built-in, Auto, red-eye reduction, fill-in , off, red-eye reduction & fill-in Range: 0.3m 2.6m (wide) / 1.2m 2.1m (tele) Guide number: 6.5 Viewfinderinder, LCD monitor is 3" TFT LCD with 230,000 pixels. Connectivity: is USB, AV out, and DC in. Print compliance is PictBridge, Exif 2.21, DPOF, PIM II. Storage is a xD-Picture Card with 11MB internal memory, Power souce is a Rechargeable lithium ion battery. Charger not included, Weight with no batteries is 140 g (4.9 oz), Dimensions: is 98 x 57 x 25mm (3.8 x 2.2 x 1 in).
Cons:
Not out yet, not much is known about this camera.
Monday, October 10, 2005
The Tech News: The World's 22 Megapixel!!


"Michael Reichmann over at The Luminous Landscape has today posted is first look at the 22 megapixel, $29,990 almost full-frame medium format 645 digital back. This back delivers images which have 5440 horizontal pixels and 4080 vertical pixels from a 48.9 x 36.7 mm (1.9 x 1.4 in) 22 megapixel CCD sensor. "The Phase One H25 has become something of a benchmark for studio-based professional photographers during the nine months or so since introduction. There is something about Phase One's ability to extract shadow detail and produce extremely clean raw files that seems to me to be just a step ahead of what is seen from other backs."
Friday, October 07, 2005
LG GSA-4165B SuperMulti Drive.


Pros:
Cheap, works with lots DVD formats.
Cons:
None yet...