windows 7
Sony Vaio L Series Review
February 9, 2010
Pretty much since the mouse and keyboard were put into mainstream use people have been looking for alternative ways for input that would be more flexible, efficient or fun. As of yet they’ve all pretty much failed (head tracker anyone?) but perhaps the latest idea will slowly start to slip into general use, the touchscreen interface – and here it is implemented in the Sony Vaio L Series.
Now they have been around for quite a while, but as we look at the Sony Vaio L series we’ll not only look at the machine by itself but also at the use of the touchscreen and how practical it actually is.
But firstly: the Vaio L Series. It works on the same principle as the Apple iMac in the way that it’s an ‘all in one’ PC, with a 24” screen surrounded by a glossy black frame which has an integrated ‘U’ shaped bottom and stand on the back both of which come in the standard silver colour that you can expect to see along with anything black!
Continue reading »Sony Vaio E Series Laptop Launched
February 4, 2010
In a world that is already full to the brim of laptops it is often quite difficult to make an impact if you are simply making an ‘all rounder’, which is somewhat ironic as that is the type of laptop that most people buy – the markets for the thinnest, biggest and most powerful of anything is normally relatively small!
But that is not to say that they can’t be good, and this week has brought the latest of Sony’s multimedia laptops the Vaio E series which promise to have “power, looks and multimedia performance”. So nothing really important then!
The fact that the Sony Vaio E Series is not focused on any particular thing makes it difficult to pick out any real big points to start with, so it makes logical sense to start on the outside with the ‘looks’ and as per usual with Vaio laptops it looks sleek, stylish and comes ready emblazoned with ‘VAIO’ and ‘Sony’ in big silver letters on the lid, just in case you forgot! Admittedly it does look pretty much like every other Vaio laptop such as the Vaio NW Series, Vaio F, S & Y Series and even the Sony Netbook (W Series). Although that said, given what the others do look like that’s not necessarily a bad thing!
Continue reading »Microsoft Office 2010 RC Download Released
February 3, 2010
Every few years or so we are all presented with a new version of Microsoft’s hugely popular office suite of applications. The last time this happened was in 2007 and please correct me if I’m wrong, not all that many people/companies took kindly to it with the majority choosing to stick with the perfectly capable 2003 version.
Microsoft Office 2010 has now hit the Release Candidate (RC) stage after a period of beta testing which started in November and now the beta testers will be getting to play around with this Office 2010 RC download. As of last month, there were a total 2 million downloads of the beta release. This is no doubt a major milestone on the way to releasing the final version which will be offered in both 32 and 64 bit editions for the first time ever.
Continue reading »Microsoft’s CES Press Event – HP Slate & Xbox 360 News (CES 2010)
January 7, 2010
After much hype running up to Microsoft’s press event at CES yesterday evening, (it took place at 6PM Pacific, 2AM GMT) there wasn’t much to shout about, although there was one interesting product revealing in the form of the HP Slate.
Referring to the HP Slate, Steve Ballmer said that the device is “more powerful than a phone and almost as powerful as a PC. Perfect for reading, surfing the web and taking entertainment on the go”. It runs Windows 7 and is fully touch screen operated, sporting various modes that allow the user to watch movies, use the device as an e-book or a regular PC. It certainly looks impressive, but however they market the Slate it’s still not the Courier that everyone was hoping for!
Continue reading »LG’s CES Press Event Roundup (CES 2010)
January 6, 2010
LG held their CES press event earlier today, and after moving past sales figures for the past year (yes, LG are still booming in the recession), we got to some pretty interesting technology…
LG TVs
A particular point of interest was wireless technology in TV’s. All LG TV’s will be wireless ready in 2010. If you’re not familiar with wireless TV, it does what it says on the tin, allowing you to stream 1080p video to your HDTV remotely without the need for a host of wires ruining the view. It’s certainly a promising technology, and definitely beats the good ol’ cable organiser!
To go along with this, LG also announced improvements to their ‘Broadband Services’, bringing 35 different internet services directly to LG TV’s and hard drive equipped Blu-Ray players. They call this ‘DivX TV’, and I love the idea, as it helps cut out the set top box or PC you’d normally use and allow you to bring these directly to your TV.
Continue reading »HP Pavilion Elite Desktop PCs Announced (CES 2010)
January 6, 2010
As per usual, we’re spoilt for choice at this year’s CES for computing and technology goodness, and HP’s getting in on the fun with the release of desktops, laptops, netbooks and a new TouchSmart to follow! The newly released desktops are Pavilion Elite desktops, imaginatively named the 110f, 120f, 130f and 170f…
HP Pavilion Elite 110f
Starting from the bottom, the 110f comes packed full of goodness with an AMD Phenom 925 Quad-Core Processor clocked at 2.80GHz and 8GB DDR3 RAM. Couple this with a 1TB hard drive, a DVD burner with LightScribe capability and ATI Radeon HD 4350 graphics giving you 512MB graphics memory and you’ve got one hell of a machine!
Considering that the 110f is the base model in these four new desktops, it looks like we’ve got a lot to look forward to. Pricing hasn’t yet been announced, but here’s to hoping it’s reasonable… The machine will also come with Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit) out of the box.
Continue reading »ASUS Eee PC 1008P Netbook is Officially Announced (CES 2010)
January 6, 2010
ASUS officially announced their latest netbook offerings yesterday, with a refreshed line up of Eee PC’s to choose from. The model was leaked at the beginning of December, but we’ve now got official specs from the company themselves.
Powered by the new Atom N450 with 1GB of DDR2 RAM and a 250GB hard drive to match, you’ll also get 802.11n Wi-Fi with Bluetooth 2.1 in tow. There’s also a 1.3MP camera for various video conferencing activities and a 3-cell battery for power, which offers up to six hours of use on the go.
Continue reading »Unlocker Review (How To Remove Windows Restrictions When Deleting Files)
January 5, 2010
One of the most irritating things I find with Windows, even now with Windows 7, is that sometimes, for no apparent reason, Windows will reject any attempt to delete a file after a program that may or may not still be in use has taken control of it and refused to let go. Apparently my files really are that precious. But seriously it must be one of the most annoying things in the world, especially with no simple method of force deleting something.
You can imagine how happy I was when I stumbled upon a little application called Unlocker. Put simply, unlocker, as the name suggests, unlocks files from any connected programs that interfere when trying to move or alter a file.
Continue reading »Cinch Review (How To Use Aero Snap On Mac OS X)
January 4, 2010
You’ll often hear from many Apple fanboys how ‘Windows copied OS X’, but you probably haven’t heard anyone say ‘OS X copied Windows’. Whichever side of the fence you may fall, both Windows and OS X have unique features that increase the productivity of many users.
Since using Windows 7, I’ve found myself using Aero Snap every day to organise a web browser next to a document I’m working on, and I often miss this feature when using Mac OS X.
When I found Cinch for Mac OS X, an application that allows you to ‘snap’ your windows to either side of the screen, I had to try it out. The developer was kind enough to send us over a license to check it out, and I found it to be an interesting application.
Continue reading »Apple Tablet Update: To Be Named The iSlate?
January 3, 2010
A week’s a long time in technology, and it’s one hell of a long time when it comes to Apple rumours… Naturally, since 28th December 2009 when we posed the question of the Apple Tablet appearing in 2010?, more rumours have been making their way across the net and a January 26th release looks very likely, even if we still have no idea what the damn thing will be called! There’s quite a few suggestions going around…iTablet, iSlate, iGuide?
