Upgraded Apple’s MacBook Pro Announced

Apple has upgraded their premier laptop range the MacBook Pro with the latest Intel Core2 Duo processors, improved graphics card and an increased memory.

All the updated Apple MacBook Pro models come with a built-in iSight video camera, Apple’s MagSafe Power Adaptor and built-in 802.11n wireless networking for up to 5 times the performance and twice the range of 802.11g. The iSight video camera can be used for video conference. The Apple’s MagSafe Power Adaptor magnetically connects the power cord to the MacBook Pro and safely disconnects when under strain.

The feature of new models also consists of 4MB of shared L2 cache, 800MHz frontside bus and 2GB 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM memory enabling to run professional applications like Final Cut Pro 6 and Logic Pro 7- running 50 percent faster than the original one, nVidia GeForce 8600M GT graphic chip for animators, graphic designers and gamer.

Built-in 10/100/1000 BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet for high-speed networking, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR (Enhanced Data Rate), a FireWire 800 and a FireWire 400 port, a backlit illuminated keyboard, an ExpressCard/34 expansion card slot for expansion solutions such as 3G wireless networking, and a DVI video output to connect up to a 30-inch Apple Cinema HD Display also adds to the features of the new MacBook Pro range.

The MacBook Pro’s lightweight, aluminum enclosure is just 1-inch thin and is available in three models: 2.2GHz and 2.4GHz 15in MacBook Pro models, and a 2.4GHz 17in MacBook Pro model. The new 15in MacBook Pro models delivers a brand-new, power-efficient LED-backlit display, making Apple’s notebook the first one to transit LED backlighting to eliminate the use of mercury in its products. The 17-inch model offers a new optional 1,920×1, 200 high-resolution display.

The 2.2GHz, 15-inch MacBook Pro costs $1,999 (Rs. 81,143), while the 2.4GHz model costs $2499 (Rs. 101,439) and the 2.4GHz 17-inch MacBook Pro is priced at $2799 (Rs. 113,617) including tax.

ViewSonic VX2255wmb/wmh 22-inch LCDs Launched In India

ViewSonic, a leading company in manufacturing displays, has introduced 22-inch LCDs called the VX2255wmb/wmh in the country. The widescreen displays are built on the Windows Vista platform providing users display options of today’s digital lifestyle. Thus they are capable of meeting the needs of the growing number of virtual office workers.

Taking into consideration the growing use of VOIP, like Skype, and instant messengers, like MSN messenger, Yahoo! messengers, a integrated Webcam and built-in Microphone are included. Clear and crisp images can be obtained through 1680×1050 high-definition resolution. Also, the ultra-fast 5ms response time prevents ghosting and blurring to enhance, video conversations, movie watching and gaming.

Besides, 3.2-inches of height adjustment and a full 360-degree of swivel allow adjusting LCD monitor as per the needs of the users.

The VX2255wmb/wmh is available at a price of Rs. 29,900 with a three year warranty.

Think Geek’s LED Art Fan Introduced

Think Geek has announced a great fan that displays images of your choice with colour LEDs mounted on the rotating blades.

The device can store 126 frames as it offers 5MB storage. You can even import animated GIF files with the help of integrated Windows software. The product doesn’t support USB port and it connects to the PC via a serial port.

The Think Geek’s LED Art Fan features:
# 5MB of Storage holds 128 individual pictures
# 85 diameter pixel resolution
# Chrome Art-Deco style
# Supports Windows 98, 2000 and Windows XP
# Requires an available serial port
# Programmable with IR transmitter (included)

With 42 LEDs mounted on the blades, the LED Art Fan spins and flickers and the RPM helps to create beautiful persistence of vision images.

The Geek LED Art Fan will cost $349.99.

Samsung unveils CLX-2169 - the world’s Smallest all-in-one Desktop Laser Printer

Samsung Electronics, the world’s second largest laser printer manufacturer, has introduced Samsung CLX-2160 series, the world’s most compact and lightest multi-function colour laser printer.

The all-in-one CLX-2160 has multi-functions such as printing, scanning and photo copying.

The features of the Samsung’s CLX-2160 multi-functional desktop laser printer are:
# 2400 dpi resolution for sharp colour printing
# 16 black and white ppm (print per min) speeds
# 4 ppm speed in colour
# Toner is capable of printing 2,000 b/w copies and 1,000 colour copies
# Simple front-loading process
# Networking function
# Supports Samsung’s SyncThru network program
# Dimension - 41.3cm x 36.3cm x 38.3cm

The CLX-2160 model also provides ‘USB direct function’. This feature helps to scan and print copies without PC. It can even store scanned images in USB memory and TIFF, BMP, JPEG and PDF formats can be read and printed with the USB.

For business use where IDs often need to be copied, the ‘ID-copy button’ allows one-touch automatic copying of both sides of an ID.

Samsung’s patent low-noise design technology - NO-NOISTM (Non-Orbiting Noiseless Optic Imaging System) - has been utilized to assure quiet operation in any office environment.

The Samsung’s CLX-2160 multi-functional laser printer will be available in retail stores across the Gulf region at a price of $499.

MediaStreet Bluetooth-Enabled Digital Frame Launched

MediaStreet Inc., photographic, arts and consumer electronics ink manufacturer has introduced a 7-inch widescreen digital frame with built-in Bluetooth connectivity.

With the help of Bluetooth connection, the eMotion Bluetooth Digital Picture Frame can receive photos from camera phone or any other device wirelessly. The frame also includes a remote control and interchangeable frame.

The features of MediaStreet Bluetooth Digital Frame include:
# 7″ display (234×480 resolution screen)
# Bluetooth
# Memory card slot
# USB port
# 256MB of internal memory for CF, SD/SDHC, MS/MSPRO, MMC

Moreover, the frame supports JPEG and BMP for slideshows and MP3, WMA audio, AVI and MPEG-1/-2/-4 video for playback.

“We have all turned to our cell phones for taking fun and impromptu photos of friends and family and we will continue to see this trend as the image quality continues to improve and new ways of sharing photos off of the phone are developed. The ability to share these photos instantly on a large, bright viewing screen that resembles a traditional picture frame adds a whole new dimension to the digital picture taking phenomenon. The eMotion Bluetooth Digital Picture Frame brings to life all of the photos residing on the small-screened camera phone as well as all of the digital photos that we are snapping with our regular cameras that are getting crammed, hidden and lost on our hard drives,” comments Norm Levy, president of MediaStreet, Inc.

According to the company, a Wi-Fi enabled frame will be introduced later in summer. The MediaStreet Bluetooth-Enabled Digital Frame will cost $149.

Incipio’s IncipioHitch - the USB Adapter for 2nd Generation Apple iPod Nano Launched

Incipio Technologies, Inc., a leading manufacturer of a wide range of products designed to enhance and protect the mobile devices, has launched the IncipiHitch, the newest lifestyle product for its widespread selection of products for the Apple iPod line of MP3 players.

“The Apple nano is the best selling flash player on the market and the IncipioHitch will give owners more time in their active lifestyle by bypassing the messy cable that comes with the iPod nano altogether. The highly mobile lifestyle of today’s consumers also demands an innovative solution to sync music and other digital files with notebooks. The IncipioHitch’s small size and ease of use perfectly complements this trend toward mobility,” stated Andy Fathollahi, Managing Director of Incipio Technologies.

With the new IncipioHitch, the Apple nano is easy to use with a great speed. The computer-adapter, IncipioHitch is compatible with both Mac and PC and will include a 90 degree USB adapter which makes it ease in use. Earlier widespread success of its IncipioBud, a product that vastly simplifies the synchronization of the 2nd Generation shuffle, has made this device so accessible.

The cost of the IncipioHitch is $14.99 and is available in both pitch black and pure white soft touch finish through selected retailers. A limited edition dual color Zebra IncipioHitch is also available exclusively from Incipio.

Raon Everun Ultra-Mobile PC Introduced

The Raon Everun has placed the entire QWERTY keyboard on one side that forces the user to hold the Everun UMPC vertically rather than horizontally and not splitting the QWERTY keypad in half.

The UMPC Raon Everun features:
# 4.8 inch touch screen with 800×480px resolution
# 600MHz AMD Geode LX 900 CPU
# 512MB RAM
# Mini-PCI slot for HSDPA cards
# 7-12 hour battery life
# Measuring 170×83x25mm (6.7″x3.3″x0.9″)
# Weight is under 500g depending on the configuration
# Window XP Home
# Built-in stereo speakers
# Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.0
# Integrated HSDPA and WiBro (a form of WiMax)
# Either AMD’s LX900 or LX800 Geode processors

There will be several Raon Everun models (Everun STD SH6, H6, Everun Lite H3, and S6) and accordingly the user will be offered HDD selection. You can also get one with a 6GB SSD (Solid State Disc). Other options are 60GB and 30GB drives. Raon Everun SH6 will come with a 60GB HDD + 6GB SSD Hybrid hard-drive combination.

The stylish UMPC Raon Everun will be available in late June in Korea and Japan and even plans to export to North America through specialty shops. The price of Everun is likely to be between $600 and $900.

Corsair Flash Survivor Series of USB Drives Introduced

Corsair has introduced Flash Survivor a series of USB drives. There are two variations available – the Flash Survivor GT 8GB and Flash Survivor 4GB.

The newly launched drives are considered to be the toughest drives. A triple point protection against shock and impact is provided to the USB drive. Moreover a rubber molded collar shielding provides extra protection to the drives. The rubber absorbs the impact if the USB is dropped. Thus durability is maintained. Besides Flash Survivor a series is water resistant.

Jack Peterson, VP of Marketing at Corsair said, “Corsair has built the Flash Survivor family specifically for customers with a ‘Bring It On!’ attitude for someone who doesn’t want to worry if his/her equipment can stand up to the active lifestyle they lead,” He further added, “Storing your valuable information on a USB flash drive capable of weathering the storm of everyday life while ensuring your data is safe - that is what Flash Survivor is all about,” continued Peterson.

Flash Survivor GT 8GB and Flash Survivor 4GB both are pre loaded with security applications to create a hidden, password-protected partition on the drive. The password is encrypted with 256bit AES encryption.

The Flash Survivor GT 8GB gives writing performance of up to 34MB/sec and Survivor 4GB- 28MB/sec. that means transfer rate is 5 times faster than normal USB drives.

Flash Survivor GT 8GB priced at $129.99 Flash Survivor 4GB at $59.99.And both the products come along with the warranty of 10 years.

Pioneer DVR-X122 and DVR-R200 DVD Writers Launched

Pioneer Electronics has introduced two new high performances, multi-format DVD cum CD writers namely DVR-R200, an internal DVD drive and DVR-X122, an external drive.

Both the DVD burners are capable of rapid and reliable preservation of digital movies, music, photos and data files.

The Pioneer DVR-X122, an external DVD cum CD writer uses a high speed USB 2.0 port for quick connectivity. As it is an external device, it is portable
The Pioneer DVR-X122 external drive offers:
# Industry-leading drive technology for high-speed recording of up to 18x write speed
# High-speed DVD-R/+R discs
# 10x with high-speed DVD-R/+R dual/double layer disc
# 6x with high-speed DVD-RW discs
# 8x with +RW and 12x using DVD-RAM media
# Write speed of 40x with CD-R and 32x on CD-RW media

Besides, the DVR-X122 writer also features Nero 7.5 Essentials, which allows users to create movies, digital photo slideshows and produce music CD compilations. With Pioneer’s Liquid Crystal Tilt Compensator, the DVR-X122 delivers precise reading and writing of marginal quality discs to assure optimum drive performance.

The Pioneer DVR-R200 is an internal drive, which can be fitted permanently. DVR-R200 features the LightScribe direct-to-disc labeling technology.
The features of DVR-R200 are:
# Enables up to 16x write speed with high-speed DVD-R/+R discs
# 8x with high-speed DVD-R/+R dual/double layer disc
# 6x with high-speed DVD-RW discs
# 8x with +RW and 5x using DVD-RAM media
# Speed of 40x with CD-R and 32x on CD-RW media

Andy Parsons, senior vice president at Pioneer Electronics (USA) Inc said, “Anyone currently storing valuable digital media only on their PC hard drive should know that they are taking a risk. Backing up content such as digital photos and camera videos on a secure format like DVD is very important in helping to ensure these precious files remain safe and intact for many years,” He further added, “Knowing that many computers purchased just three years ago lack a DVD writer solidifies the need for an external model like our DVR-X122 that delivers a simple ‘plug and preserve’ process to easily organize and archive a sizeable amount of digital content.”

DVR-X122 and DVR-R200 both the DVD cum CD burners are provided with the sophisticated software, which can help users to create personalized videos.

Firmware Upgrade 3.50 for Sony PSP

Sony Computer Entertainment America today released the newest firmware update for the PSP (PlayStation Portable) system, version 3.50, adding Remote Play connectivity with the PLAYSTATION 3 (PS3) system via wireless Internet and an RSS Channel Guide. In other news, new content will be available on the PLAYSTATION Store today, including the arcade classic, Championship Sprint, which is downloadable in its entirety, as well as videos and trailers for MLB 07 The Show and Ridge Racer 7.




PSP Firmware 3.50 PSP Firmware 3.50 is now available for download and includes the following updates:

* Remote Play – As announced last week, the Remote Play feature for using a PSP system to access photos, videos, and music on a PS3 system’s hard drive has been enhanced, enabling consumers to connect their PSP system from outside of their own home via any accessible Wi-Fi Internet connection. With today’s PSP firmware update, that functionality is now live. Users must also update their PS3 firmware to the current version, 1.80.
* Really Simple Syndication (RSS) Channel Guide – An index of RSS audio and video feeds, or podcasts, is now accessible from the XrossMediaBar (XMB), under the RSS Channel icon, providing PSP owners with another destination to find and play back RSS content.