Gadgets Base

by Thomas Ricker, posted Sep 5th 2008 at 7:31AM
It’s Friday the 5th, that means that the $200 Xbox 360 just became the lowest-priced console in the US (as it is in Japan) compared to the perpetually “sold out” $250 Wii and 80GB PS3 selling for double the price of a diskless Arcade. With no new price cuts expected from either Sony or Nintendo, the holiday console wars are officially on. Picture proof of the $199.99 Xbox 360 Arcade in the wild after the break.

[Thanks, JerkyChew]

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Filed under: Gaming

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has dropped an announcement - a voluntary recall is required for folks who own certain models from Sony’s Vaio TZ-series of notebooks. Approximately 73,000 units are affected, no thanks to “irregularly positioned wires near the computer’s hinge and/or a dislodged screw inside the hinge can cause a short circuit and overheating. This poses a burn hazard to consumers.” To date, Sony has received 15 reports of overheating, with one of the 15 being unfortunate enough to suffer from a minor burn. The affected models are the VAIO VGN-TZ100 series, VGN-TZ200 series, VGN-TZ300 series and VGN-TZ2000 series. If you happen to pick up your notebooks from SonyStyle stores and web site, authorized electronics retailers, and authorized business-to-business dealers nationwide from July 2007 till August 2008, I’d suggest you stop those recalled notebooks immediately and contact Sony for further action.

Press Release

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Vodafone and Dell have announced a partnership that will make a special broadband ready version of the newly released Dell Inspiron Mini 9 available. The 3G-equipped Mini 9 will be sold in Vodafone retail stores, online and directly from Dell, and allow users to connect anywhere they may be.

Availability is expected to come in late September, however an exact release date has not yet been announced, but that along with pricing is expected to be announced in the coming weeks. Sounds like Vodafone has a winner on its hands.

Its still early to tell, but so far it seems Dell is really pushing their Mini 9 in the right direction, they needed something to set them apart from the rest of the netbook crowd. I can only hope that a US carrier, possibly AT&T will pick up the netbook with a similar offering for those of us in the US.

Read [CNN Money]

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Image courtesy of Phones4U.

Sony Ericsson isn’t exactly sitting pretty on top of the cell phone world at this point in time, but they aren’t down in the doldrums to accompany Motorola either. They’re tucked away safely in the middle, but I am pretty sure that Sony Ericsson executives can’t wait to hit the jackpot with one of their handsets - better sooner than later, of course. The Sony Ericsson X1 Xperia could be a potential winner here, creating plenty of buzz when it was announced back in February this year. The long wait (well, anything more than half a year in the world of technology is just too long, especially when the device is extremely desirable) will soon be over as it will be available in retail stores across the UK within one month from now. No idea on pricing though, but it looks set to be on the high end of the spectrum. More on the specifications and features of the X1 Xperia right after the jump.

Check out the features as shown below and get a Kleenex, since you’ll probably be wiping a fair bit of drool once you’re done.

• 256MB RAM
• 400MB internal memory
• 512MB storage memory
• 3″ TFT touch screen display
• Arc Sliding QWERTY keyboard
• 3.15 megapixel camera
• A-GPS
• Handwriting recognition
• Windows Mobile 6.1 operating system
• Office Mobile and Outlook mobile
• 3G and Video calling capability
• Wi-Fi connectivity

This feature packed smartphone not only looks good, it ought to keep just about anyone happy. The Arc sliding QWERTY keyboard might seem familiar to some, that’s because it is similar to that of the HTC Tytn. Good to know that you have a decent keyboard to compose your text messages, emails as well as long Office documents while you’re out of the office without suffering from any serious thumb cramps. When not in use, just slide the QWERTY keyboard back in and you’re good to go with a sleek-looking smartphone, ready to wow all and sundry who lay their eyes on it.

This might sound like a business handset from the specifications, but it also functions as a recreational device equally well. The 3.15 megapixel camera isn’t anything to shout about, since it doesn’t carry a well-known lens as found on other Sony Ericsson Cybershot models or Nokia’s N Series, but it ought to do a decent enough job when capturing impromptu moments - just make sure the subject is not moving about too quickly and there is ample light in the immediate vicinity. In addition, the X1 comes with a dedicated video chip that enables it to record video at 30 fps, capturing near DVD quality memories for posterity.

Do you happen to need to remain connected at all times, whether you’re at home, at the office or out from both places? The X1 Xperia is more than able to satisfy your lust for Internet connectivity, thanks to the Wi-fi capability which lets you leech off free wireless hotspots in a jiffy, while the HSUPA capability makes sure you get the best connection possible no matter where you are (dependant on the signal strength and coverage area, of course). It would be ideal to get an unlimited data account with the X1 Xperia if you plan to take advantage of its HSUPA connectivity, since we all know mobile data charges do add up to an insane amount if left unchecked on a pay-per-use basis.

As for the user interface, the highly customizable 9 panel interface makes it a snap to navigate through a plethora of applications, and good thing the X1 Xperia is no slouch when it comes to processing power, allowing you to run multiple applications simultaneously without suffering from any lag or slowdown. If you are looking to upgrade your smartphone experience, would you choose this over the iPhone 3G? After all, the user interface here might not live up to Apple’s iphone experience, but it is definitely much more dummy-proof compared to a plain Jane Windows Mobile 6.1 system.

Source: Dial a Phone.

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by Darren Murph, posted Sep 5th 2008 at 5:36AM
Well, what can we say? Here we have a TiVo HD with a subtle “XL” logo there on the bottom left, a more capacious hard drive and a Series 3 remote. That being the case, at least the one parked at CEDIA was outstandingly shiny — seriously, check it out over at Engadget HD.

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Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

by Darren Murph, posted Sep 4th 2008 at 9:01PM
Sony’s latest high-end Blu-ray player was sitting pretty at the outfit’s CEDIA booth, so we did exactly what you figured we would — stop by and snap some pictures. Though the unit wasn’t exactly compact, the build quality seemed sufficient and the design was suitably simple. As you very well know by now, the gallery is over at Engadget HD.

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Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

It seems like even the most simple digital devices such as a digital photo frame are becoming more sophisticated and highly advanced in terms of features and functionality. Take the case of Sony’s Vaio CP1 digital photo frame. This 7-inch frame not only supports wireless connectivity but is packed with radio tuner and displays real-time RSS feeds as well.

The Vaio CP1 digital photo frame also lets users display photos without transferring them onto the digital photo frames storage but instead streaming them from their PC’s. In addition, the digital frame can connect with Picasa, Google’s photo uploading site, to allow viewing of up to four Picasa web albums. Inversely pictures stored in the digital photo frame can be uploaded directly to the user’s Picasa account even without the need to download the photos to a PC.

In addition, this frame also features three photo viewing modes such as slideshow, flow and dissolve. Other features of the Vaio CP1 include 16 million color support, a light sensor which automatically dim when lights are turned off, support for various media cards including Memory Stick, SD, Compact Flash and a digital clock which is displayed when the frame is not being used.

Of course, a simple photo frame with extra features such as this comes with a hefty price. Be prepared to spend around $300 for this one when it’s released in October.

Product [Sony] Via [electronista]

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Remember two years ago when all these laptop batteries kept overheating, and there were laptop-based fires around the nation?  Apparently, Sony does not want this fad to begin again as they have recalled 73,000 Vaio TZ laptops. 

According to the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, the reason for the recall is a possible manufacturing defect that may cause them to overheat.  This defect relates to the wiring at the TZ laptop’s hinge. 

Apparently, certain circumstances cause this to short-circuit and overheat, which may result in the burning of the user.  One person has already reported a minor burn, and I can only imagine what he or she is wanting for compensation. 

Sony has also received 15 other reports of overheating computers. I guess Sony wanted to start the recall now before several thousand Vaio TZ laptops set themselves off like the grand finale at a fireworks show. 

Via [Slashdot]

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by Darren Murph, posted Sep 4th 2008 at 11:57PM
A $1,500 SACD player? In 2008? Long after the never-very-popular format peaked? Thanks, Sony — we can only imagine how lopsided the gallery visit-to-purchase ratio will be on this one.

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Filed under: Home Entertainment

by Donald Melanson, posted Sep 4th 2008 at 1:54PMIntel is keeping a rightly low-key approach with this announcement, but if you’re somehow not satisfied with any of its current processor offerings, you may find something more to your liking among the three it slipped out over the Labor Day weekend. Those include the 45nm Core 2 Quad 8200, which clocks in at 2.33GHz with 4MB of L2 cache and a 1333MHz FSB, and gets a somewhat more budget-friendly $230 price tag at the expense of support for things like Intel’s Virtualization Technology and Trusted Execution Technology. If that’s a bit much, you can also now snag the dual-core, 2.5GHz E5200, which packs 2MB of L2 cache and 800MHz FSB for $84, or the single-core 65nm Celeron 450, which rolls in at a respectable 2.2GHz and includes 512K of L2 and an 800MHz FSB for a mere $53. Hit up the read link below for the complete breakdown.

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Filed under: Desktops