Toshiba has just unleashed the new Dynabook Satellite PXW series laptop in Japan. Two models are available immediately, the PXW/55GW and PXW/57GW. The former comes with a 15.4-inch (1280×800, WXGA) resolution, a 2GHz Intel Celeron 575 processor, an Intel GL40 Express chipset, a 2GB of main memory (upgradeable up to 4GB), a 160GB of hard drive, and a DVD SuperMulti burner. It is also equipped with a media card reader, three USB ports, and WIFI connectivity. The notebook is retailed for around €800 (about $1,064).
As for Satellite PXW/57GW laptop, it has almost similar configuration, with better CPU, a 2.26GHz Intel Core 2 Duo P8400. This one can be purchased for €930 or around $1,237.
JCHyun has just announced the release of its newest mini laptop, Udia Mini Note T100 Office, which seems to target student and mobile professional markets. Powered by an Intel Atom N270 processor (1.6GHz), the netbook sports a 1GB of DDR2 SDRAM, an 80GB of SATA hard drive, an integrated 0.3MP webcam module, three USB ports, a multi media card reader, and VGA-out port. Moreover, it is also equipped with a pre-installed Windows XP Home Edition SP3 operating system and MS Office Home & Student 2007 software.
JCHyun Udia Mini Note T100 Office mini notebook is retailed for 649,000 Won or about $460.
The first model on this series, Tecra R10-S4401 laptop, contains 2.26Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo SP9300 CPU, a 3GB of DDR2 main memory, a 160GB of hard drive, and a DVD burner. It runs on Windows Vista Business OS and retailed for $1,549.
Microsoft Corp. has revealed their new lineup of Xbox 360 games at the Tokyo Game Show 2008. As you might expect at one of the world’s prestige gaming events, the hype surrounding new game showings is always intense, and good old Microsoft didn’t disappoint.
The new lineup includes games from many of the world’s finest developers, and covered the coming holiday season right through into 2009 and beyond. Headlining the offering was of course the expected “Halo 3: Recon” by world-class developer Bungie, the latest new chapter in the classic “Halo” franchise. Microsoft also announced “TEKKEN 6″ is coming to Xbox 360, which ensures that Namco Bandai Games’s fans of the Tekken series will be happy on their Xbox 360s for the first time ever.
“Halo 3: Recon” is the latest chapter in the “Halo” saga, and with it, gamers now have a new hero to play. This is a stand-alone expansion, due for fall 2009 release, and has the usual extra hours of new campaign excursions and multiplayer gameplay. Visitors to the Tokyo Show also saw an all-new titbit in the form of strategy game “Halo Wars” from Ensemble Studios, which will be exclusive to Xbox 360. Shown in campaign mode, watchers got a taste of the gameplay and new perspective, but will have to wait until early 2009 for “Halo Wars” to retail.
John Schappert, Microsoft’s corporate vice president of LIVE, Software and Studios delivered the keynote address, and he paid homage to the best that Japan has to offer. There’s a reason why Microsoft likes Japan: by partnering Japan’s best developers and publishers, Microsoft not only gets huge Xbox 360 penetration into Japan, but to Japan, but also helps Japanese games reach new global audiences. During Schappert’s keynote address, he revealed that Xbox 360 has more top-selling, third-party Japanese titles than any current games platform. Japanese publishers have made sales of over $800 million in games to date for Xbox 360 and this is likely to hit lifetime figures of over $1 billion by the end of the coming holiday season.
Other new titles from Japan revealed by Schappert include “NINETY-NINE NIGHTS II” (producers Q Entertainment, developer Feelplus). This will join “Ninja Gaiden” and newly-announced “Ninja Blade” Japanese action games. Keeping RPG players happy he announced “Star Ocean: THE LAST HOPE” and “THE LAST REMNANT” and others including “Infinite Undiscovery,” “Fable II” and “Fallout 3.”
What’s with all the touching?
These days the touch screen phone is more like the norm rather than the “ooh, wow is that a touch screen” phenomenon.
I remember the good old days when just having a huge brick of a mobile was the wow factor. And all you could do then were basically call and text someone and perhaps a mono-game or two. Kind of like years ago on the PC. And how has that changed hey.
But I digress. The touch screen phone phenomenon is exactly that… a phenomenon. Everyone that can is clamouring to bring forward the ultimate touch screen phone.
There’s the Samsung Glyde and OMNIA, the HTC range, the iPhone from Apple and even Blackberry’s released a touch screen phone.
So of course I had to get on the whole touch screen bandwagon and got myself a Samsung F700. And all I can say is what an awesome phone. Maybe I’m biased because it’s my first TSP (Touch Screen Phone)
I love the browsing (full HTML browser). It has a nice 5 megapixel camera (because these days a phone isn’t a phone without a camera right?)
It has a large screen (2.78 inches - 440 x 240 pixels) not as large as the 3.5 inch iPhone but hey it’s good enough I say. It has the usual MP3 and MPEG compatibility, along with Java games, onboard memory as well as expanded microSD capability, Bluetooth, 3G HSDPA and the expected mobile features these days.
The VibeTonz feature is the coolest thing. Little vibrations based on touch screen selections or scrolling etc. It’s hard to describe so I’ll just say two words that have stuck with me… “touch sensation”.
The battery life isn’t as bad as I expected from a TSP and it’s quite comfy in my pocket so an all round winner in my book.
The sad thing about it though is that not too long ago I had an unfortunate accident and dropped my awesome TSP. I was devastated. Heartbroken even. But then I picked it up and it worked perfectly. And although now it has many cracks spreading across the screen it still works like a charm. It’s sort of like driving your car with a whole bunch of cracks spread across your windscreen. The screen may be a mess, but the engine still runs.
I guess I’ll just hold out until I can get my hands on the new Samsung OMNIA or perhaps even the iPhone 3G… but then again I’m note sure if I will be able to handle a mobile like the iPhone… I mean it’s only got a 2 megapixel camera!
Now, the last thing you want to do is head into the local electronics store and snatch up whatever costs the least. If you do that, nine times out of ten, you’re actually going to wind up paying more than your new machine is actually worth. It’s entirely possible to get a good, up to date laptop for the same price you’d expect to pay for a lesser quality machine.
Here are a few of the best buy laptops available, combining great performance with low cost…
Acer Aspire AS5920-6959
At about $750 new, this may be at the higher end of the budget spectrum. However, the unit gives the kind of performance you might expect from something that costs twice as much. The system is built around an Intel Core 2 Duo T5750 core processor, which is just about the best processor you’re going to find within this price range. The 320GB hard drive is about twice as big as the HD you’ll find in most $750 laptops.
Acer Aspire One Mini A150-1006 Netbook
Simple and high quality. With only about half as much HD and an Intel Atom N270, rather than the Core 2 Duo, this one isn’t quite as powerful as the laptop listed above, but it’s slimmer, ultra-lightweight, and can be found at anywhere from $400 to $500 new. The above listed unit would make a fine primary workstation, whereas this unit is geared towards people who just need something for basic use when out and about. It’s designed more for cost-effectiveness and portability than power, but it’s still a relatively capable little machine when you consider the price tag.
Super-Cheapies
A rising trend these days, certain companies are releasing super-cheap laptops at anywhere from $150 to $200 in an effort to provide opportunities to students from working class families and in poorer parts of the world. The problem is that these machines usually have, well, laughable hardware. The cheapest would be the Medison Celebrity, at just $150. It boasts a whopping 256MB of memory! To put that in perspective, that’s less than 1/100 the storage space of the Acer Aspire we first listed. If you’re a graphic designer, don’t even think about these super-budget laptops. However, what do you need your laptop for? Just writing e-mails? Visiting a few websites or just writing? If your needs are simple, you might actually want to think about getting one of these ultra-budget units… just bear in mind that your cell phone probably packs more power!
Like the other SL notebooks, the SL500 is based on Intel Centrino 2 “Montevina” mobile platform and balances between business computing and multimedia functions. It comes with the new 45-nanometer Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 1066MHz front side bus, up to 6MB of cache, and clock speeds ranging from 2.26GHz to 2.53GHz, depending on CPU model. According to a specification sheet, the laptop will be also offered with lower-end Core 2 Duo CPUs with 800MHz FSB.
The ThinkPad SL500 comes with the Intel GMA X4500 integrated graphics or the NVIDIA GeForce 9300M 256MB dedicated video card, up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM, up to 320GB of hard drive space, and the optional Intel Turbo Memory 2GB module for better responsiveness. Optical drive options include a CD-Rw/DVD Combo, DVD burner or Blu-Ray burner. The 15.4-inch display in the SL500 has a resolution of 1280×800 or 1680×1050 pixels, and a glossy or mate coating.
Networking features include the latest Intel Wireless WiFi Link 5100ABGN supporting 802.11n standard or an 802.11a/b/g module, a Gigabit Ethernet LAN, Bluetooth receiver, and an optional mobile broadband connection.
The Lenovo ThinkPad SL500 has integrated web camera and fingerprint reader options, four USB ports, a PC Card slot supporting 34mm ExpressCard via adapter, Secure Digital card slot, Firewire port, and VGA and HDMI outputs.
The offered Asus M50Vm-X1 and M50Vm-A1 are powered by the Intel Core 2 Duo P8400 processors at 2.26GHz, while the M50Vm-B1 comes with the T9400 at 2.53GHz. The notebooks feature 4GB of DDR2 RAM and the NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GS dedicated graphics cards with 1GB of video memory.
The M50Vm-X1 ships with a 250GB hard drive and a 1280×800 15.4″ display, while the M50Vm-A1 and M50Vm-B1 have 320GB HDDs and a resolution of 1440×900.
The latest M50 series laptops include a wireless module supporting 802.11n standard, Bluetooth, built-in 1.3MP web camera, and fingerprint reader.
According to the product specifications on Asustek’s website, the M50Vm also includes a Gigabit Ethernet port, modem, HDMI and VGA outputs, four speakers, 3 USB ports plus an e-SATA/USB combo port, ExpressCard slot, Firewire port, and 8-in-1 media card reader.
These multimedia oriented laptops weigh 6.66 pounds and run Windows Vista Home Premium OS.
The Asus M50Vm-X1, M50Vm-A1, and M50Vm-B1 are priced at $1,199.99, $1,299.99, and $1,449.99 respectively.
The HP Pavilion dv5t includes the Intel Core 2 Duo 45nm processor at 2 - 2.8GHz, depending on model. There are also the new GMA X4500 integrated graphics, or one of the Nvidia’s dedicated GPUs - GeForce 9200M GS 256MB or GeForce 9600M GT 512MB. The laptop supports up to 4GB of DDR2 memory, up to 320GB of hard drive storage, and a DVD burner or Blu-Ray ROM. The 15.4″ display in this notebook has a resolution of 1280×800 or 1680×1050 pixels, depending on customer’s choice.
Regarding connectivity, the dv5 sports 802.11b/g wireless LAN support or the new Intel Wireless WiFi Link 5100AGN module supporting 802.11n draft standard. There are also an optional Bluetooth module, and an Ethernet LAN port. According to a specifications sheet, the dv5 does not have a built-in modem.
The HP dv5t features Altec Lansing stereo speakers, optional web camera and fingerprint reader, HDMI and VGA outputs, four USB ports (4th shared with eSATA port), an ExpressCard slot, 5-in-1 media card reader, and Infrared receiver.
HP says the dv5t weighs 5.83lbs with a 6 cell battery.
The dv5t includes the newly designed high-glossy HP Imprint 2 Mesh finish with a grid-like pattern in onyx and chrome.
Apple has confirmed that 15-inch and 17-inch MacBook Pro models with the NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT video cards are affected by the recently reported GPU problem.
“If the NVIDIA graphics processor in your MacBook Pro has failed, or fails within two years of the original date of purchase, a repair will be done free of charge, even if your MacBook Pro is out of warranty,” Apple says.
The company added it is issuing refunds to customers who may have paid for repairs related to this issue.
Symptoms of the graphics card problem are distorted or scrambled video on the computer screen, as well as absence of video on the computer screen (or external display) even though the computer is on.
