By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
It’s all Macworld, all day long today, right? At Macworld, in his keynote today, Steve Jobs announced the MacBook Air, the thinnest (he says, and it sure looks like it!) laptop in production.
It’s priced at $1,799 to start and will be available in two weeks.
Specs:
3.0 pounds, 0.16 -0.76″ thickness, […]
Apple Introduces the MacBook Air
Adventures in High Definition - 46” Sony Bravia XBR LCD Reviewed
By Martin Regtien
Contributing Writer, RealTechNews
Like many Australians, my home is currently stuck in the land of Standard Definition, says Paul Moons of DigitalReviews Network.
When the opportunity to review a 46″ Sony Bravia XBR came along, I knew my current television wouldn’t approve, but as I got off the phone, through the corner of my eye, […]
Asus Outlines Eee PC Windows XP Roll-Out Plan
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
Is it sufficient to say “woo-hoo”?! Many have been jonesing for an Asus Eee PC with Windows XP for some time, not just in terms of the upcoming new models, but also because the first-gen Eee PC could supposedly support it as well. Wednesday, in an emailed press release, Asus outlined […]
Check Screws to Prevent Future Laptop Problems [Hardware]
No laptop lasts forever, but many live long lives through upgrades or replacements. Those life-extenders can easily fall apart, however, if there’s a stuck or jammed screw that will make hardware replacement a tricky, or even damaging, proposition. CNET blogger Michael Horowitz recommends pulling out a tiny screwdriver and testing out the screws on any new laptop, especially on the oft-upgraded memory trays, hard drive holders and other devices. While obviously not a tip for those uncomfortable with DIY hardware replacement, experienced laptop owners might be within their rights to request a replacement or repair on a new unit if they find jammed screws, as the useful life of their new system would be effectively shortened. Got any new laptop maintenance routines you’ve discovered (or discovered too late)? Share your tips in the comments. Photo by Daquella manera.
Silence Your Xbox 360 with a New Fan [Hardware]
Whether you’re using it for video games or as part of a media center powerhouse, all of our Xbox 360s have one thing in common: They’re loud. Hardware site ExtremeTech walks through how to replace the stock fan unit (which screams like a 747) with a whisper quiet, $25 alternative. This is one of those warranty-voiders, so you’ll have to decide whether or not a little peace and quiet is worth it.
Too Wired in a Wireless World?
When traveling, I always notice I need to pack extra cables and wires, transformers and adapters.
The luggage I pack is sometimes filled with so many wires, cables, power supplies and other do-das that I am quick to wonder if something about all this is a bit fishy.
Do you have more cables now as a result of all our “wireless” devices or less than when we were “wired”?
Universal, Paramount, Preparing to Defect to Blu-ray?
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
The rumors of Paramount dropping HD-DVD in favor of Blu-ray were dispelled - at least temporarily - earlier in the week when Paramount flatly denied it was leaving the HD-DVD camp. But a report in Daily Variety confirms that Universal’s commitment to HD DVD has expired. And with Paramount […]
Test If Your System’s Got What It Takes to Run a Game [Video Games]
Web site Can You Run It determines whether or not your PC can run any of a number of popular video games by checking your computer’s specs against the minimum and recommended requirements of said games. Just browse to the homepage, pick the game you want to check, and click the Can You Run It button. The site will require you to install a Java applet to run the test (presumably so it can determine your hardware configuration) and then quickly returns the results. If you fail a test, Can You Run It offers hardware recommendations for upgrading your system so it can handle those games.
How to Say Goodbye to Old Hard Drives?
An anonymous reader writes “I’m wondering if anyone else out there has a stack of old hard drives sitting around and doesn’t know what to do with them. I always remove the hard drives of my parents’ and friends’ computers before they recycle them or get a new computer, so now I’ve got a whole bunch sitting around. One, I’d like to dispose of them and know that whatever data was there is gone, but before that, I’d like to hook them up, one by one, and scan them to make sure there’s nothing vital there worth saving. Some are years old and may be totally dead for all I know, but is there a good system for hooking up a hard drive as an additional device, perhaps via USB? And what’s a pretty good way to ensure that someone else won’t pull them out later on and find usable data?” Well to start with you could always use your hard drives to make electricity or create a decorative wind chime. There are also many different options to ensure that your data doesn’t fall into the hands of the enemy. What other suggestions can folks come up with?
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Kotaku CES: Getting restless? Check out our … [Ces]
Kotaku CES: Getting restless? Check out our gadget-obsessed brother site Gizmodo’s coverage of the CES 2008 show. Or if you want to skip the tech and just follow the gaming announcements make sure to check out Mike McWhertor’s Kotaku coverage starting Sunday evening. It will be fun, promises. [Gizmodo]
Celio is Like the Foleo, Only Worse
By Alice Hill
RealTechNews
Anyone remember the Foleo? We do - it was Palm’s ill-fated attempt to marry an underpowered UMPC with a cell phone, and it died a very, very swift death. See our coverage “5 Reasons Why Palm’s New Foleo Device Will Fail”
Today we fond out that the Foleo concept is rising from the […]
Is this the Zune Phone? (Dream On)
By Alice Hill
RealTechNews
OK - so it isn’t, but after all the ugly iPhone imitations, this is the first concept design that actually looks appealing. We hereby take quick a break from reality to bring you the following idea. A forum member on ZuneScene named Teccom747 dreamed up this concept phone. His specs:
The Zune 3 is […]
Intel Pulls Out of the OLPC Program
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
Less than six months after Intel and the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) Foundation buried the hatchet, with Intel joining the OLPC board as its 11th member, the partnership is over. The reason was apparently continued friction over the Classmate PC, which was a source of friction between the two groups […]
The Best Hard Drive Enclosure
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I have a large collection of hard drives lying around. I’ve been looking for a great enclosure for at least one of these, to use as an external drive. I’d rather it be a FireWire 800, as the transfer rates are just outstanding. However, those are hard to come by. Finally… I found exactly what I need.
the Mini Stack version 3 from Newertech.com is just amazing. You can order just the shell to put your own hard drive in. Or, you can order it with a hard drive installed up to 1 Terrabyte. With its eSATA, two FireWire 800, one FireWire 400, and three USB 2.0 ports PLUS FW800/FW400/USB2.0 connection cables included, miniStack v3 connects to Mac and PC systems with Plug-n-Play simplicity.
There are so many high performance speed components in miniStack v3 that you’d be tempted to drag race it. The latest generation Oxford 924 chipset, the fastest drive mechanisms on the market, and an eSATA port all combine to deliver the fastest single drive data transfer rates possible…up to 150 Megabytes per second! Having a “quad interface” in one portable housing makes miniStack v3 ideal for data intensive uses like audio/video editing, digital photography, MP3 libraries and high-speed back up. Plus, now you can connect multiple desktop digital accessories like scanners, printers, memory card readers, digital cameras, and iPods – all at once – with miniStack v3’s unique, ergonomically enhanced rear and side port configuration.
The price is just right for one of these. It’s an absolutely amazing device!
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Merry Christmas, Apple: MacBook Current #1 on Amazon.com Computer Sales List
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
This Forbes story is interesting, but what it doesn’t mention is as interesting as what it does mention. This MacBook is indeed #1 on the Amazon.com Computer Sales List (at the time of this writing), despite the fact that the #2 seller is (after rebates) priced nearly 50% lower, but […]
Glowing LED Things For My Home Office
I like things that glow, but not everything that glows. Genezix from chat has a few products in mind for me:
Okay, you’re obviously into video production at least somewhat, so how about some neat lighting for your home office that although it’s rather expensive to buy, the possibilities are nearly endless?
There are L.E.D. lighting par-cans and can be used for a number of lighting purposes including shining directly on you or for background lighting in your office. Best of all they are both controllable via a DMX lighting controller to do whatever you want. They can fade between colors, strobe, switch colors rapidly, or just stay on one solid color. You can also vary the brightness and the red, blue, and green LEDs individually creating any color you want. You can create a program and store it in the DMX controller that will execute commands in sequence to create flash or color change patterns on each individual light so you could have maybe one flashing blue and another fading between red and yellow…just depends on what you feel like at the time. Best of all they use very little power and generate little heat since they are LED. If you’re interested in this I could tell you more about setting these up
Eh, sounds more complex than I want it to be. Controller? If it’s not controlled via the Internet, it’s not interesting. 
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PhysX Cards For $50? (Yes, In Japan) [Hardware]
Ageia’s PhysX cards, specialized components that support in-game physics just as a video card supports graphics, haven’t really taken the world by storm. Why? My guess is that, among other reasons, it’s tough enough for consumers to pony up $200 when they need a new graphics card, let alone an extra $130-$180 on top of that. But in Japan, PhysX will have a chance to address the price barrier. Because Japanese graphics card manufacturer ELSA is going to begin selling PhysX cards for just 6000 yen (or about $50).
And when ordering a new computer, checking a $50 box rings of “impulse buy” a lot more than a card running three times that price. Seriously, $50 in computers is the grocery store checkout equivalent of a Mars bar and an issue of Cosmo. (Which, by the way, makes for a great Friday night if you are short on plans).
PhysX Cards At $50 In Japan [digitalbattle]
CompUSA Clarifies “Going-Out-of-Business” Details
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
As we know, earlier this month CompUSA announced it had sold its assets to restructuring firm Gordon Brothers Group, which will sell or close the remaining 103 stores after the holidays. While it was clear the stores would sell as much merchandise as possible in close-out sales, there were still […]
Can’t Find a Wii? Put a Raincheck Under the Tree
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
Still can’t get a Nintendo Wii? Join the club. However, there might be a possible solution, if you don’t mind putting a piece of paper under the tree, as well as a somewhat fuzzy delivery date.
Nintendo has said they will issue rainchecks to those shoppers who pay for an an out-of-stock […]
Check Your Laptop’s Linux Friendliness at TuxMobil [Linux]
So you’ve just un-boxed your new laptop, and you’ve been intrigued by all this talk of Gutsy and Werewolf and the like—but how do you know if a Linux installation will be a revelation or headache? Free Linux guide TuxMobil has more than 7,000 installation stories and guides, covering the tricks and tweaks necessary to get nearly any laptop, PDA or even cell phone up and running with an open source operating system. Between this site and Linux on Laptops, you should be able to find an open source operating system that works on any portable hardware, and save yourself some serious headaches digging through user forums and tech support sites.
Breathe New Life into Your Old Gadgets [Feature]
With all the buying that goes on this time of year, our aging gadgets seem older, more out-of-date, and just plain obsolete in the face of all the shiny new toys glimmering on the display rack—which, of course, is part of what motivates us to pry open our wallets for newer and better stuff. But this year, instead of forking over more cash to the likes of Jobs and Gates for their newest toys, we’re taking a look at several ways to make your old gadgets new again. From the iPod and Xbox to a run-of-the-mill PC, chances are you’ve got something lying around the house that could use a free or cheap upgrade.
Transform Your Old Xbox into a Media Center
Still haven’t made the jump to the next-gen gaming consoles but not sure what to do with your aging, classic Xbox? Hack that little black box by installing the open source Xbox Media Center (XBMC). You’ll be able to play music, videos, and photo slideshows; watch Apple movie trailers, YouTube videos, and read RSS feeds; and transfer files between your XBMC and computer and rip DVDs. Oh, and that’s in addition to all the normal, you know, Xbox gaming.
Then again, if you have upgraded to a 360, you can use it in conjunction with your PC to build a Media Center Powerhouse (more on this below).
Revive an Aging iPod
Your iPod was once a proud ruler of the digital music market, but now that it’s been replaced by iPod classics, touches, and fancy new nanos, it looks strangely obsolete. Sure it still plays music, but what else has it done for you lately? Well, if you’re looking for a few ways to revive that older iPod, check out the 20 Best iPod Utilities around. With these handy little apps, you can squeeze just enough functionality out of that older iPod that you’ll completely forget about that fancy phone Apple keeps pushing in your face.
Turn Your $60 Router into a $600 Router
Provided you’ve got one of the supported routers, you can install a special Linux firmware called DD-WRT on your cheapo router to turn it into a powerhouse of networking bliss. Boost your Wi-Fi signal, set up Quality of Service preferences so the applications that need bandwidth get it when they need it, and take advantage of several other features you’re only likely to find on much more expensive routers. Of course, DD-WRT has been accused of being not all that user-friendly, so as an alternative you might want to check out the Tomato firmware.
Build a Hackintosh On the Cheap
Okay, so this one’s not exactly all that cheap overall and it doesn’t necessarily use your old gear (though in theory it could), but if you just can’t bring yourself to slap down a couple grand for a new Mac Pro, you might just be interested in building your own Hackintosh for under $800. It’s cheap, it benchmarks remarkably well, and it even updates to Leopard 10.5.1.
Give a Second Wind to Your Aging Computer
Let’s turn an eye to the box that brought you here in the first place: your computer. Depending on just how old your computer is, there are tons of different possibilities for how you can breathe new life into an old (or even not so old) computer. First, a few free options:
Turn Your Old PC into a Webapp Monster with gOS: Got an aging computer that’s too slow for Vista and, really, not that great with XP either? Turn it into a webapp-integrated internet computer with the free, open source Linux operating system gOS—the same operating running on Wal-Mart’s $200 PC.
Take Puppy Linux for a Walk: Okay, so you’re computer is really old and you don’t expect to get any use out of it without ripping out the guts and upgrading every component? Install a low-resource operating system like Puppy Linux or Damn Small Linux built specifically with these considerations in mind. If you want to try them out before installing one of them on your PC, you can use either the Live CD or install and run either from a thumb drive.
On the other hand, if you’re willing to spend just a few bucks and roll up your sleeves, you can upgrade your computer’s components and see significant improvements.
Upgrade Your RAM: Installing new RAM in your computer can provide huge speed improvements that most people don’t really believe until they see, and—even better—it’s one of the easiest installations on the list. And this isn’t limited to desktop PCs, either. For example, here’s how to upgrade your RAM in a MacBook Pro.
Install a New Motherboard and/or CPU: If your CPU’s been dragging ass for the last couple of years, you can pick up and install a newer, faster CPU on the cheap with a little know-how. And if you’re upgrading to a newer generation of CPU, you may also want or need to upgrade your motherboard, too. Whatever you choose, both options are often much cheaper than that new PC you’ve been eying.
Install a New Hard Drive: You may or may not be surprised to realize that a lot of people use hard drive space to determine when they need a new computer. Fact is, if you’re computer is doing everything you want but you’re running out of space, you can buy a new hard drive for well under $100, and installation is a breeze.
Turn Your PC into a Media Center Powerhouse: If you’re already running Windows Media Center (or even if you aren’t), you can repurpose your old computer to record and playback television TiVo-style by simply installing a TV tuner card.
Got a few tricks of your own for giving a second wind to your aging gadgets? Let’s hear how you save cash without skimping on the fun of new features in the comments.
Adam Pash is a senior editor for Lifehacker who never buys when he can repurpose or build. His special feature Hack Attack appears every Tuesday on Lifehacker. Subscribe to the Hack Attack RSS feed to get new installments in your newsreader.
Asus’ Bamboo Eco Book: Don’t Let a Panda Near It
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
Manufacturers are exploring new ways to make laptops and PCs eco-friendly, and Asus has unveiled a prototype that a panda might salivate over: the bamboo-encased Asus Eco Book laptop.
Honestly, the bamboo is laminated so a panda isn’t going to eat it, but it is an unusual material for a case, which […]
Toshiba’s New SCiB Batteries: “Have Charge, Will Not Explode”
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
I’m sure many have not forgotten the Sony laptop battery debacle. Well, Li-ion batteries have that problematic potential of overheating and exploding or catching fire. Toshiba has developed a new design, called SCiB, or Super-Charge ion Battery which should eliminate many of the drawbacks of Li-ion batteries — and […]
For Upgraders, Asus Upgrades the Eee Warranty
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
Typically, manufacturers overcharge for memory, and many do-it-yourselfers will upgrade the memory on their PCs or laptops themselves, to save cash. However, Asus has placed a yellow sticker over the access panel which says “WARRANTY VOID IF REMOVED.” Oops.
Now the Magnuson-Moss Act does not allow what it calls “Tie-In […]
Is the Aibo Back?
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
For many it was a sad day in 2006 when Sony put the Aibo down. Stuff magazine has a rumor piece in its latest issue (don’t you just hate it when they use that old paper stuff instead of the web?) that gives a better than 50 / 50 chance […]
Linutop Mini Linux PC Reviewed - Damn Small Linux Hardware
By Martin Regtien
Contributing Writer, RealTechNews
The Linutop is a small Linux PC. Of course, if you think the Mac Mini is small, then perhaps the words, incredibly miniscule are closer to the mark.
Running a customised version of xubuntu Linux, this little box could replace your desktop for most common tasks, including what you’re doing right […]
November Hardware Sales Dominated By The DS [Npd]
The NPD group has today revealed their hardware sales data for the month of November. If you’re the type who’s looking for thrills, spills and surprises, please, take this opportunity to avoid disappointment and look elsewhere. Oh, unless you get your kicks from obscene DS hardware sales. In that case, stick around. Nintendo’s handheld destroyed the competition, recording higher sales than all three Sony platforms combined, while the 360 also saw healthy sales on the back of a strong Black Friday week performance.
Nintendo DS - 1.53 million
Nintendo Wii - 981,000
Xbox 360 - 770,000
PlayStation Portable - 567,000
PlayStation 2 - 496,000
PlayStation 3 - 466,000
Total industry sales were a noggin-scratching $2.63 billion, which is up over 50% from this time last year. To break that number down a little, hardware sales alone accounted for $1.1 billion (up 41%), software sales raked in $1.3 billion (up 62%), while accessories and peripherals accounted for $243 million, which was 52% higher than this time last year.
Standards Needs and Wants
What do you need and want from Web Standards?
- I want generated content
- I want CSS3 features, especially design-oriented techniques such as better flow and layout, multiple background graphics, etc.
- I want to rebuild the Web
Rebuilding the Web would be a very sexy pipe dream from which we all woke up with cream in our respective jeans.
I’m hoping CSS3 is more sexy. I kinda think it offers us a lot.
Part of my role is to ask and to translate the collective concerns to organizations that need to hear (and most importantly, understand) your needs. I personally don’t know what is “correct” or “right” really. So, I’m asking. And I’ll keep asking, and hopefully our voices will have some impact. I believe they can, and ultimately will.
Would readers be so kind as to tell me what your role is (designer/developer/implementor/other) in your answer as that will help me understand the context of your responses?
Apple Unveils its new ‘Aluminum and Glass’ iMacs
By Michael Santo
Executive Editor, RealTechNews
As expected, Apple today unveiled its new iMac line. As usual CEO Steve Jobs was there, and upbeat about the new products. He also, interestingly, reported a 36 percent jump in Mac sales, which he said were “more than three times the industry growth rate.”
Apple is replacing its old […]