Digital Tech News - Digital Technology & Consumer Electronics

PC World Digital Duo Video

With broadband Internet connections fast becoming the norm, watching video on the net is no longer a hassle for most people. The ability to watch video-on-demand on subjects that interest me saves time by allowing me to choose when and where I want to view video content. 

One online video show that I never miss is PC World's Digital Duo.  Stephen Manes, columnist for PC World and Forbes, and  tech writer Angela Gunn of USAToday.com are the hosts of Digital Duo, and in short 2 - 4 minute video segments they share a lot of information that a tech newbie, or advanced geek will enjoy. The Digital Duo (D2) keep things fresh by covering a wide selection of digital technology news, services, and consumer electronics.

The Duo offer real-world advice along with expert perspectives, and mercilessly mock whatever deserves it most--with fairness and flair, and keeping in mind that in the real world, no one's got time or money to spare for gear that doesn't measure up.

Do you want to know more about digital cameras, computers, High Tech, online services and more?

start watching | D2

All About Skype Voip Service

The excellent site Daily Wireless takes a comprehensive look at the Voip service industry players, and noted the highly anticipated video calling service from Skype that was seen at the recent Always-On conference in San Francisco.

If you have not started using Voice over ip - Voip phone services, this will be a good chance to catch up on some of the Skype and voip services, providers, and hardware available now. Skype may be getting all the hype, but there are other choices for Internet calling. For now though, Skype's competition have a lot of catching-up to do.

“I knew it was over when I downloaded Skype,” Michael Powell, former chairman, Federal Communications Commission, explained. “When the inventors of KaZaA are distributing for free a little program that you can use to talk to anybody else, and the quality is fantastic, and it’s free – it’s over. The world will change now inevitably.”

more | Daily Wireless

Download Skype

Skype lets you make free calls over the Internet. It’s free to download and you can add on voicemail for a weenie fee.

ThinkPad X41 Tablet PC Review

Since the news of the release of Lenovo's ThinkPad X41 Tablet last month, there has been lots of reviews and praise for this thin tablet PC.  Ted Anthony got his hands on the ThinkPad X41 Tablet PC, and writes:

When the Chinese company Lenovo Ltd. acquired IBM's fabled personal-computer unit earlier this year, one question towered above all others for tech consumers: Would IBM PCs - and, in particular, the ThinkPad - maintain their tradition of quality and usability?

After spending several days acquainting myself with the ThinkPad X41 Tablet, an ultraportable that turns the ThinkPad notebook into a convertible tablet PC, I can offer a resounding, if preliminary, answer: Yes - with a few caveats.

more | AP News

CNet News gave the ThinkPad X41 Tablet a "very good" Editor's Rating.

With the performance of a laptop in a lightweight case, the ThinkPadX41 Tablet is one of the best convertible tablets we've seen.

read ThinkPad X41 Tablet PC review

CNET also has a video presentation of the Tablet.

Oakley RAZRWIRE Sunglasses Review

MobileBurn put the new Oakley RAZRWIRE Sunglasses to the test, and point out the ups and downs of these unique sunglasses that allow you to carry on phone conversations while up to 30 feet away from your compatible Bluetooth-enabled mobile phone. I was ready to pick up a pair of these , but MobileBurn says that while cycling or doing other fast moving activities, the RAZRWIRE doesn't have the resistance to wind noise that they need for real active use. Bummer!  Maybe Lance Armstrong had a special wind-resistant pair. read | MobileBurn RAZRWIRE Review

 

Gizmag reports:

RAZRWIRE Bluetooth enabled sunglasses redefines hands-free mobility

Motorola and Oakley have announced that the much-awaited RAZRWIRE Bluetooth eyewear will be available in the US for US$300

ARCHOS Gmini 402 Pocket Multimedia Center

As we wait to see if Apple will actually come out with a video iPod device, I can't help but wonder if they'll be able to stand up to Archos' line of portable video multimedia devices.  The recently released  ARCHOS AV 700 mobile Digital Video Recorder offers direct TV recording and cinema on the go, with 40 or 100GB that can store up to 400 hours of video or 250 movies, but, it is kind of large and too big for your pocket (7-inch screen).  Well, now ARCHOS has introduced the Gmini 402 Pocket Multimedia Center for Video, Photos and Music on the go... and it's nice and compact.

The ARCHOS Gmini 402 is designed for media enthusiasts who want to take their video, photos and music with them on a stylish pocket-sized device. With its sleek metallic design, the Gmini 402 measures only 4.17" x 2.37" x 0.69" and is 5.64 ounces, yet offers the largest hard drive capacity and color LCD screen for a product of its size. The latest in the ARCHOS Gmini line of music players offers an extensive list of features, including:    

* Storage for up to 80 hours of video, 200,000 photos or 10,000 songs.    
* Autosync with Windows Media® Player 10 allows for easy transfer of media from the PC.    
* Transfer photos directly from digital cameras(2) using the USB host port.    
* Allow DVD-quality movie playback and photo viewing on the screen or on the TV.    
* Play DivX®(3), MPEG-4(3) and Windows Media Video(4) files.    
* Play MP3, WMA and protected WMA audio files.    
* Supports Microsoft PlaysForSure download and subscription services to allow easy transfer and playback of music or videos acquired from PlaysForSure-compatible online stores.    
* Synchronize or download files from either the PC or Macintosh.

The ARCHOS Gmini 402 is available now at select retailers and online, and is priced at $329.95 in the United States. We'll see if the Apple video iPod will do better in terms of options...if it is ever released!

details | Archos

Archos Gmini 402 Pocket Multimedia Center Press Release

Microsoft XBOX 360 and Digital Home Entertainment

The quote of the day comes from Robbie Bach Senior VP, Chief Xbox Officer, Home and Entertainment Division, speaking on the future of Xbox:

"Over the next 10 years, there is a revolution that's going to take place in TV moving to 16-by-9 screens and moving to high-definition format. And Xbox 360 is going to be a driving application for people to get high-definition television. Every Xbox 360 game will play on a regular TV, but they will all also support high-definition TV, and once you see a game in high definition, you never want to go back...every Xbox 360 will be what's called a Media Center Extender, and that means if you have content on your Media Center in the home and you have a network, you'll be able to play that content on your Xbox on the TV that the Xbox is connected to, which gives you the ability to distribute your music, your photos, your video, throughout the home. You'll also be able to take a camera, a digital camera, a digital music player, plug it into an Xbox 360, see your photos, play your music."

via | PaidContent.org

Fujifilm FinePix S9500 / S9000 and E900 9-megapixel digital cameras

The megapixel battle rages on with two new 9 megapixel Fujifilm FinePix digital cameras being released. The Fujifilm FinePix S9500 (also known as the Fujifilm Finepix S9000 in Northern America) is a 9 megapixel digital camera with a 10.7x Optical Zoom lens. The Fujifilm S9500 Zoom is a new model that marks the point where compact digital cameras and digital SLRs meet.details

iPod Friendly - Broadcast Music Throughout the Home

Russound today revealed their iPod friendly solutions for listening to music outside the pod. Russound products extend the capabilities from a single-user iPod to broadcasting the music throughout the entire home.

Here's the iPod Friendly pitch:

It’s easy to enjoy all the music loaded into your iPod® from anywhere in a multiroom system. Break free from the confines of portable music players and surround yourself with music, in your home without the isolation of headphones.

"We've become used to having choices for how we listen to music, and iPods are the latest popular trend," said Russound Vice President of Strategic Development Jeff Kussard. "Because of our commitment to our customers, we've made sure our systems have always been iPod friendly, and we will continue to support the growth of portable digital music. Russound multiroom audio-video systems are iPod Friendly and have been since inception."

More | Russound

Tag | iPod    Apple

Sony PSP Gets Web Browser, Podcasts

Over at i4u  they've been testing out the Sony PSP web browser feature that is now possible with the recently released PSP firmware 2.0 upgrade. The16MB update file for the japanese Sony PSP apparently works the US Sony PSP as well.  They've got some PSP web browser photos and examples up, and it looks pretty good.  As I mentioned in PSP news a few days ago, a bluetooth keyboard would be a nice addition to the PlayStation Portable set-up as well.

Dave's iPaq has been able to download podcasts with the PSP wi-fi connection. There's a how-to video at Dave's iPaq website.  Downloading podcasts and surfing the Internet with your Sony PSP is now a go!

PlayStation Portable - PSP System Software Version 2.0 Update here

Tags | PSP    podcasting   podcasts

Samsung SCH-B200 and SPH-B2000 Satellite DMB Mobile Phones

How cool are these?  Samsung has launched its SCH-B200 and SPH-B2000 satellite DMB mobile phones which have a unique “slide and rotate” feature. DMB (Digital Multimedia Broadcast) makes mobile TV viewing possible.