Handy Gadgets

A review of the feature-rich Voodoo Envy HW:201 notebook PC has been posted over at Laptop Magazine. ‘The Voodoo Envy HW:201 is not just a notebook; it's an experience. From unboxing this 16-pound beast (complete with its own hardcover owner's portfolio) to opening the massive lid and turning on the huge 20.1-inch screen for the first time, you'll have no doubt where your six grand went. But while our configuration's performance was very, very good, you'll need to spend even more to upgrade the components to match the Alienware Area-51 m9750's numbers. The HW:201 certainly looks the part of a luxury machine. The Bavaria Blue Candy automotive-quality paint job (one of 22 colors available) is flawless, as is the 1680 x 1050-pixel screen. It delivered a sharp, clear picture with rich, saturated colors and excellent motion-video reproduction. The panel's viewing-angle performance was the best we've seen from all angles, meaning you can place it on a coffee table and everyone will have a good view.’

Read: Voodoo Envy HW:201 Gaming Laptop – Laptop Mag

Posted by Admin at 9:16 AM | Permalink

The folks over at Toolmonger have put together a comprehensive review of the Bosch 10.8V Litheon Impactor. 'As fans of the other two tools in Bosch’s still-relatively-new 10.8V line, we’ve been eagerly anticipating the release of the PS40 10.8V Litheon Impactor. So as you might imagine, we were pretty excited when we received one of the first marketing samples of from Bosch. After playing around with it a bit, though, we found ourselves in a quandary. How could we show you the crazy-mad power this little sucker puts out? '

Read: Hands-On: Bosch’s 10.8V Litheon Impactor

Posted by Admin at 3:39 PM | Permalink

IT Reviews have published a review of the Panasonic - KX-TG915OES phone which can be used to make Skype calls. 'Panasonic has come up with a simple gadget that is sure to help speed up the progress of Skype. The KX-TG915OES phone is effectively the Panasonic KX-TG9120 phone, which typically costs £75, with the addition of a Skype adapter that is part number TGA915ES. Although we can't find the adapter on sale separately, a quick bit of maths tells us that it's about £20-worth. Installation is simple. Unpack the Panasonic phone, charge the battery and plug in the phone line, just as you do with any new phone. Now install Skype on your Windows 2000 or XP computer and create a user name. Run the driver CD and plug in the USB 1.1 Skype adapter and bingo, the handset doubles up as both a regular phone and also as a wireless Skype handset'

Read: Panasonic - KX-TG915OES review

Posted by Admin at 3:41 AM | Permalink

CNET have published their review of the Apple TV digital multimedia receiver. 'The Apple TV itself is a tiny silver square with rounded corners measuring 7.7 inches per side and just 1.1 inches high. That's far smaller than most standard DVD players and stereo equipment; like the similarly sized Mac Mini or Nintendo Wii, the Apple TV will fit just about anywhere. It also sports a minimalist aesthetic that's classic Apple--the front panel has only a power light and the remote sensor. There are absolutely no buttons, nor is there a front-panel display. Once you plug it in, it's always on. There's no cooling fan, which makes for essentially silent operation, an important feature in a home theater device. The box does get at least as hot as your average laptop, however, so be sure to give it plenty of ventilation.'

Read: Apple TV- CNET

Posted by Admin at 1:14 PM | Permalink

The new Carnivore Headlamp from Gerber is a blood tracking product that can be worn using the included headband or it can be clipped directly to the bill of your favorite baseball cap. 'The Carnivore Blood Tracking Light™ with TRAX™ technology has proven itself to be wildly successful. But hunters wanted something even better...hands free blood tracking. Gerber's lighting engineers responded with the Carnivore Headlamp™ TRAX technology utilizes an array of twelve red and blue L.E.D. lights to create a proprietary light spectrum, which highlights blood drops. The Carnivore Headlamp is designed to illuminate blood droplets out to six feet.'

Read: Gerber Introduces Carnivore™ Headlamp

Posted by Admin at 1:52 AM | Permalink

The HP Officejet Pro K5400tn inkjet printer has been reviewed over at CNET. 'The HP Officejet Pro K5400 is a low-cost, high-quality color inkjet printer targeted at small- and medium-size businesses. The no-frills base model starts at a reasonable $150, and print costs are low, too. Many of the inkjets we've examined in at this price are multifunctional and print a bit slower than the K5400, but they do more overall, which makes if difficult to compare this printer to others in its class. For just a bit more money, you can get a monochrome laser printer--the type of printer most commonly found in offices--that prints faster and produces better text prints than the K5400, but you'd be hard pressed to get color for that price, and a low-cost laser printer certainly won't produce photographs. Despite its odd-duck status, we found a lot to like about this office inkjet printer. It's reasonably fast, its text and graphics prints are impressive, and the ability to print photographs (though not stellar ones) is certainly a bonus.'

Read: HP Officejet Pro K5400tn - CNET

Posted by Admin at 4:48 PM | Permalink

PC Magazine have reviewed the the feature-rich Archos 704 WiFi portable multimedia player. 'Measuring 7.1 by 5 by 7.8 inches when it's propped up on its kickstand, the 704 boasts a lovely 7-inch TFT touch screen and weighs a substantial 1 pound 6 ounces. Aside from its size it resembles past Archos models, such as the 604, with sturdy, metallic rectangular housing and minimal buttons. Sadly, the included headphones are pretty crappy—but if you can afford this thing, I bet you can spring for replacements. You also get a power cable, a couple of styluses, USB connection cables, and an adapter stand that enables the player to fit into the Archos DVR Station ($80) or the DVR Travel Adapter. (Neither is included; you'll need one or the other to record video and audio). The kickstand on the back is essential for viewing, as the player quickly becomes too heavy to hold. There are two small speakers, but they are mainly just for reference and sound pretty weak.'

Read: Archos 704 WiFi Multimedia Player - PC Mag

Posted by Admin at 3:17 PM | Permalink

Cars.com posts some highlights of the 2008 BMW M5 Touring. ‘"Touring" is BMW's global descriptor for its wagons. The same formula BMW used to create the M5 sedan is duplicated on the Touring, only a 5 Series wagon is used in place of the sedan. Unfortunately, U.S. buyers won't get a chance to experience the M5 Touring because BMW will not likely import its superwagon to U.S. dealers.’

Read: 2008 BMW M5 Touring

Posted by Admin at 11:52 PM | Permalink

A review of the pricey but fantastic Shure SE310 Sound Isolating Earphones (white) has been posted on ZDNet. 'When a company creates a product that's sufficiently remarkable to garner a spot among CNET's testing equipment, chances are that's a good direction to look for further quality products. Such is the case with Shure, whose E4c earbuds quickly become our headphone of choice for MP3 player audio testing. In fact, the entire E series is impressive, which is why the company didn't stray far from that blueprint when it created its new Sound Isolating line, the SE series. Shure's latest earphone collection, which offers new sound signatures and an improved design, includes the SE210, SE310, SE420, and SE530 (just a renamed E500). The $249.99 SE310 is the subject of this review.'

Read: Shure SE310 Sound Isolating Earphones (white) - ZDNet

Posted by Admin at 2:35 PM | Permalink

Personal Computer World have published a review of the Mobilewear Bluetooth Watch which combines vintage analog/digital watch design with Bluetooth Wireless technology. ‘Mobilewear is the latest company to offer an alternative take on the everyday wristwatch. As you'd expect, given the name, the Bluetooth Watch incorporates Bluetooth connectivity to talk to your phone. It will then notify you of incoming calls or text messages via a vibrate alert - the caller's name or number will also be displayed on the LED screen.'

Features:
• Stainless steel case
• Water resistant to 3 ATM
• Mineral glass watch crystal
• Bluetooth 2.0 compatible
• 96x16 pixel OLED display
• 5-7 days active battery life
• Power save function
•120-240V AC adapter with 5V DC Output

Read: Review: Mobilewear Bluetooth Watch

Posted by Admin at 2:21 PM | Permalink

PC Magazine reviews the Sony TMR-BT10 Portable Stereo Transmitter which “will turn an Apple iPod or any music player with a headphone jack into a wireless device that can transmit to Bluetooth-enabled headphones and speakers” ‘The TMR-BT10 is lightweight and fits in your pocket easily. It uses the headphone jack on your MP3 player or computer and sends sound to any Bluetooth-receiving device it's paired with. Pairing takes less than 10 seconds—just hold down the power button while the product you wish to pair the transmitter with (say, a Bluetooth headset) is nearby. Within moments, music from your MP3 player or computer can be heard wirelessly through your Bluetooth speakers or headphones. The problem with stereo Bluetooth transmission for music in the past has been a simple one: It worked abysmally. Combining terrible sound quality with drop-out issues, Bluetooth gave consumers little reason to rock out wirelessly. Sony rep Andrew Bubala told me at CES, however, that the company aims to change the perception of Bluetooth as a useless medium for musical audio.’

Read: Sony TMR-BT10 Portable Stereo Transmitter – PC Mag

Posted by Admin at 8:28 AM | Permalink

The Vector Tough Brite Storm Tracker is one hell of an emergency gadget with all the components capable of operation from a few hand cranks. 'TV/Radio/Lantern with weather alert radio is rechargeable with the hand crank. Comes with a 5 In. solid state UHF/VHF black and white television. The AM/FM weather band radio has an AUTOMATIC STORM ALERT warning alarm. The 7 channel NOAA weather frequencies warn of dangerous weather conditions and emergency information. Powerful halogen spotlight and a fluorescent tube lantern. The built in hand crank provides backup power for all radio functions and LED area light. Approximately 2 crank minutes provides up to 15 minutes of runtime for the radio or LED light.' Price: $50

Source: Home Depot

Posted by Admin at 4:03 PM | Permalink

Pocket Lint have posted a useful review of a pair of Zoggs Predator Wiro-Frame goggles. 'From the moment you strap the goggles on, you know you are dealing with a quality piece of equipment, and you should expect nothing less from a company like Zoggs, who have a history of exemplary swim products. One of the main features of the Predators are the curved lenses. This increases your field of vision, reducing the binocular effect that is common on other models. The view was also crystal clear – surprisingly so – and having swum in the same pool with at least three different pairs of goggles, this is probably the best so far.'

Read: Zoggs Predator Wiro-Frame goggles Review

Posted by Admin at 11:29 AM | Permalink

If you can afford the the five or more thousand for a high quality notebook computer, you shold take a read of Trusted Reviews take on the Asus Lamborghini VX2 which packs some high-quality components in an extremely sylish package. 'The Lamborghini emblem sits proudly on the lid, with the bull logo raised, while the Asus logo is placed discreetly lower down on the left. A black honeycomb grille is located on the front, which has the look of a car radiator grille. Underneath are four lights that shine through with icons next to them that indicate when the laptop is plugged in, charging or has Wi-Fi or the integrated Bluetooth 2.0 EDR turned on. The hinge is painted black while at the top, as is the rear of the integrated webcam. Basically it's a good looking lid. Opening up the lid reveals a impressive widescreen 15.4in display featuring Asus' Clear Shine technology - basically a high contrast and brightness coating, that certainly makes Windows Vista Ultimate look the part. Blues look particularly good and video was smooth. Viewing angle was pretty good too - there's some colour shift and its better when from the sides, than it is horizontally, but it's not nearly as extreme as some displays.'

Read: Asus Lamborghini VX2 - Trusted Reviews

Posted by Admin at 3:27 PM | Permalink

Computeractive have published a review of Samsung's K3 portable media player. 'Its gloss black exterior seems blank until you touch it - the touch-sensitive blue buttons at the bottom appear from nowhere and the small 1.8in screen lights up. In fact, the K3 is very similar to the T9b, which we've recently reviewed.For cycling through menus and checking what track is playing, the screen is fine, but the photo viewer is less useful; the screen is too small and not detailed enough to see digital photos clearly. Still, what you'll mostly want from a device this size is decent music playback, and that's what the Samsung K3 delivers.'

Read: Review: Samsung K3 portable media player

Posted by Admin at 11:49 AM | Permalink