SvenOnTech reported on how Apple already has the drivers for the just the fastest broadband ExpressCard out there and how you to get VZAccess Manager on your Mac, and now we’re happy to announce that you can actually get the ExpressCard for your MacBook Pro or ExpressCard equipped PC!
The V740 takes advantage of Verizon’s Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO) Revision A (Rev. A) technology that will give the mobile user broadband speeds (1.4 mbps download / 500 - 800 kbps) and lower latency while on the go. This means in real life terms, that one can download a, “1 Megabyte e-mail attachment – the equivalent of a small PowerPoint® presentation or a large PDF file – in about eight seconds and upload the same-sized file in less than 13 seconds,” according to Verizon.
The V740 ExpressCard’s small and light form factor is designed for use in mobile computing notebooks that support the ExpressCard 34 and/or 54 interface, as well as USB 2.0, and easily functions with Windows (2000, XP, Vista) and Mac (10.4.8 or higher).
The V740 ExpressCard is available today for $179.99 with a new two-year customer agreement or $229.99 with a new one-year customer agreement online and in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores.
We’ve got to, er, hand it to Innovative on its EVO Tablet Arm. It’s freakin’ awesome and we loved it! There aren’t many things we fall in love with right of the box, but I’m telling you, this was one of those things! If you’re scratchin’ your head and trying to even figure out what the heck this is, then dude, read the review!
Newer Technology, Inc. (NewerTech) , today announced new lower prices on its award-winning line of miniStack V2 FireWire/USB 2 external hard drive solutions. Available in capacities up to 750GB, prices start at just $114.99 for 80GB - $449 for 750GB. The best value is the 400GB drive, which is priced at only $199.99 from $239.99, a $40 price reduction (see full price list below).
Winner of “Top Product” Macworld Magazine, “Editor’s Choice” MacAddict, and “Accessory of the Year” 123Macmini.com, the NewerTech miniStack drives now include the award-winning Prosoft DataBackup™ II for OS X (a $59.95 value) and award-winning NovaStor NovaBACKUP® for Windows (a $49.95 value). Both software products include the same full technical and update support that comes with the stand-alone retail versions. “Add Your Own Hard Drive” utility/performance and backup software bundles are also available from $69 (a $200 value).
Perfect for audio/video, computer backup, music and photography storage, and more, the NewerTech miniStack drives are ultra-compact with dimensions of 6.5” x 6.5” x 1.5” and feature 3 USB2 and 2 FireWire ports that function as hubs to connect other devices to the computer. The drives also have a unique cooling system, including a Smart Fan.
(Pricing info after the jump.) Read the rest of this entry »
Tritton recently debuted it’s brand new 5.1 gaming headphones, designed for video game consoles, PC gamers, and USB to SVGA adapters. The Audio Xtreme 360 Dolby 5.1 headsets are designed specifically for the Xbox, Xbox 360, Playstation 2 and Playstation 3. These headsets boast true six station surround sound with removable microphones.
The Audio Xtreme High Performance Headsets are designed for the hard-core PC gamers and are second to none in the current market. It also features the true Dolby 5.1 surround sound with 8 speakers. These are provided through USB and provide an awesome gaming experience, complete with front, back, and center immersion, removable microphone, and of course, built in rumble effects.
And now, the USB 2.0 to SVGA adapter. This adapter lets PC users to extend their desktops to one or more displays without having to mess with their graphics or add a special graphics card. the SEE2 Xtreme SVGA supports not only video playback, but also mirroring.
But that isn’t all Tritton has to show off, oh no. Also recently released was Sound Bite, Warp Drive 2.5, and Xtreme Media NAS. Sound Bite is a portable USB speaker system with a compact, folding design for easy transportation. It integrates a sub woofer and 2 satellite tweeters for superior 2.1 sound and has the ability to connect to any PC or Mac notebook.
Warp Drive 2.5 is a portable instant backup solution. Warp Drive connects to any PC using a USB port and offers 80GBs of either complete or select backups. It’s housed in a sleek aluminum case which is very stylish. And finally the Xtreme Media NAS boasts bittorrent and iTunes server, along with UPNPAV capability to allow users to stream videos, photos, and music to any Digital Media Adapter.
Parallels Desktop may have just met its match…and maybe doom. Early this month, VMWare revealed the beta of its Fusion at Macworld. Not new to the virtualization game, VMWare has been giving PC users the ability to run various Linux and Windows flavors in a window for years and now it brings the game to the Mac. Fusion is much like Parallels Desktop; however, some minor differences may make it more appealing to Mac users. Demonstrated for me at Macworld, I watched as VMWare engineers demonstrated how one Mac could run a window of DOS, another one running Ubuntu (Linux), a third one with Windows XP, and a final one on another monitor running Windows Vista. Not much more than Parallels could pull off but when the engineer showed me how easy it was to just drag the window larger and the screen resolution automatically adjusted, hey, he got my attention! The next trick Parallels can’t do: drag-n-drop files between windows sessions and the Mac desktop. Yes all very trick and very cool.
I asked VMWare about pricing and I was told it would be exactly that of Parallels Desktop. When I asked if VMWare had feared missing the boat on the virtualization ride for the Mac platform, I was told, “No. Our features will win over customers.” Hey, that’s being pretty darn sure of ones product!
I’ve been running Vista on Fusion since Macworld and I must say, it runs better on my Mac than it does on Parallels Desktop. I love the drag-and-drop file sharing (one of the main things I didn’t like that Parallels lacked,) and the dynamic screen resolution is absolute fantastic. There are features not yet fully enabled, but for a beta, this is pretty rock solid and I think Parallels has got some hot competition on its heals!
Axiotron released the first real Mac-based tablet computer this week at Macworld. As the name suggests, it’s a modified MacBook, with a fixed tablet screen and advanced tablet capabilities. The new portable is being sold solely through Other World Computing. No word yet on shipping dates.
From my first impressions, it looks like they’ve done a very nice job. When I first heard of the product, I must admit I was skeptical, thinking they just slapped a tablet device onto a MacBook. But the finished product looks more like a ground-up design than a “mod.” From what I can tell, the 13.3 inch screen is a custom-built unit, not just something pulled off a line. It utilized Wacom’s Penabled hardware, which has become the tablet PC industry standard for interactive pen input. The screen has a wider viewing angle and higher contrast ratio than the MacBook’s screen, and is topped by a replaceable “chemically strengthened” glass cover. Axiotron claims this glass method to be far superior to the “non-glass” solutions found in most tablet PCs, offering better optical clarity and improved scratch resistance. The final writing surface is also etched (calibrated to the screen’s resolution) to achieve a “crisp, paper-like writing sensation.” It’s nice to see them put so much effort into creating a quality screen surface for the first Mac tablet.
The ModBook uses Apple’s Inkwell to provide handwriting recognition to any application. I didn’t get to try it myself, but I did watch others try it, and it was rather impressive. Most people that tested it said “wow, it really works!” It wasn’t flawless, a few unintended characters ended up in the mix, but overall it was fairly accurate and responsive. The pen itself has a home near the bottom of the device and features a replaceable tip.
Other features include buit-in iSight camera (retained from the MacBook), CD/DVD combo drive with optional Super drive, locking points that also attach to VESA mounts, and even an optional built-in GPS module.
I think the best part is that the price point (starting at $2,279) is very reasonable for what you get. I remember when the first “interactive pen displays” came out, they were very cool, but very expensive. The price points of those stand-alone units (only input devices) are still relatively high. Wacom’s Cintiq 21UX retails for an average $2500. Granted, its 21″ screen is much bigger than the ModBook’s 13.3″, but it’s JUST an input device for about the same price as the portable, all-inclusive ModBook. There are tablet PCs available for quite a bit less than the ModBook, but very few with a comparable set of features, and none that run OS X. One thing many other tablets do that the ModBook doesn’t yet do is include a keyboard and a swivel screen, which adds a lot of usability.
It will be interesting to see how well this sells and what more Axiotron can do with the platform. I’m working on getting answers to the following questions:
• can I use it as an independent input device with another computer? (like with my MacPro)
• will it someday include a swivel screen and keyboard?
T’was the month before Christmas
When all through our land,
Not a Christian was praying
Nor taking a stand.
Why the Politically Correct Police had taken away,
The reason for Christmas - no one could say.
The children were told by their schools not to sing,
About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.
It might hurt people’s feelings, the teachers would say
December 25th is just a “Holiday”.
Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit
Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!
CDs from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-pod
Something was changing, something quite odd!
Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa
In hopes to sell books by Franken & Fonda.
As Targets were hanging their trees upside down
At Lowe’s the word Christmas - was no where to be found.
At K-Mart and Staples and Penny’s and Sears
You won’t hear the word Christmas; it won’t touch your ears.
Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-si-ty
Are words that were used to intimidate me.
Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton, Wolf Blitzen
On Boxer, on Rather, on Kerry, on Klinton!
At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter
To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.
And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith
Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace.
The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded
The reason for the season, stopped before it started.
So as you celebrate “Winter Break” under your “Dream Tree”
Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me.
Choose your words carefully, choose what you say
Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS, not Happy Holiday!
.mac offers a backup solution for Mac users that is pretty darned easy to use but has its limits. PC users aren’t as blessed with such a setup, but we’re sure Microsoft will copy, er, innovate something for Vista. But if you do not feel like waiting that long or if your a Mac user, you may have another choice for file backup.
Project Hummingbird comes from the very same people that have brought Sharpcast, a picture synchronization software brew that keeps photos on your hard drive up-to-date with an online web respiratory automatically, to the PC and now Mac users. Using the same idea and methods of Sharpcast, Hummingbird will keep track of files, photos, videos, and photos. Since the software works on both Macs and PCs, multi-platform homes and business get an added bonus: “Now your PC can make peace with your Mac, and all of your files can be synced effortlessly between them, and with the web, and with your mobile phone.” Oops, did we forget to mention the phone is in on this game, too?
If you’re interested in giving this a try, sign yourself up for the beta program and start syncing now. Like all good things, a price will certainly be attached to this great product sooner than later.
Earthcomber offers location-aware Where to Wear shopping guides for Palm OS and Windows Mobile. You tell it the kind of merchandise you’re after, and as you move about the city (there are versions for New York City, Florida, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and San Francisco), it will ping you with the locations of stores that match your wish list. You can pull up details on any of the stores that are listed and determine whether or not it’s worth the trip, and if you decide to go for it Earthcomber will give you directions on how to get there. The businesses that are listed in the Where to Wear guides have been reviewed by the professional shoppers of Fairchild & Gallager, publishers of the print editions of Where to Wear.
The learn more about Earthcomber, be sure to check out their site.
Amazing, i can remember the year when this marvel of a computer, the IBM Personal Computer (PC) 5150, was released as if it were just a few years ago. Dang, 25 years. I’m getting old! Hey, but at least I wasn’t even a teenager, yet at a mere 11 years-old, I understand even back then how much more powerful this was than the Atari 800 my friends down the street had. This thing looked like a real computer, not a toy. Oddly enough, IBM considered Atari’s 8-bit chip for its own PC but wisely decided to go with something different. That different was an Intel chip on an IBM motherboard.
The only thing that saddens me about the 5150 was IBMs decision to go with Microsoft for the operating system known as Disk Operating System, or DOS. 25 years later, IBM no longer makes PCs and Microsoft rules the OS space. 5150. Ironic, huh?