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Digital Qur'an

Preface

Assalamu'alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh
.

Today, I want to inform you about Al-Qur'an "The biggest signs (mukjizat) from Allah SWT to the prophet Muhammad SAW". On the development in the current digital period, Al-Qur'an was digitalize by human.


From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
About Digital Qur'an

The Digital Qur'an is the electronic version of the Qur'an revered by millions of Muslims across the world. There is a strict code of conduct for handling this text which limits its accessibility, especially in situations such as traveling or everyday reading on the move. The invention of the Electronic Digital Qu'ran addressed these limitations, in particular the ability to read the Qur'an due to the on-screen text feature.

Since its introduction in 1993 by the Korean company; Penman Corporation the Digital Qur'an has progressed through various stages of development and taken on a whole raft of additional features on the way. The Original, Penman, Qur'an book was a basic black a
nd white unit, similar in size to the majority of today’s units, the only function of this device was the playback of the recitation of the Quran with synchronized on-screen Arabic text; it allowed basic navigation of The Book with the ability for the user to select a specific Surah and specific verses. This particular function changed little if at all in the succeeding years.

The Digital Qur'an was in instant success throughout the Muslim world, the portability of the device due to its ‘solid-state’ technology, meant that people could read and listen to the Qur'an in places and situations where it had previously been impossible to do so.

The second offering from Penman included the much requested inclusion of the English Text Translation. This again was synchronized with the Arabic recitation and proved an invaluable resource for consumers.

After this point the Reigns were taken up by a company based in Hong Kong; Enmac Engineering Corporation. Their product range made the Digital Quran more financially accessible and attractive by introducing the next major development in the industry; The Colour Screen. This feature mimicked the current trend of the mobile phone market at’ the time and ensured the continuing popularity of the genre.

Enmac’s products were mass produced in China at an affordable price; however this was achieved at the sacrifice of expenditure on research and development. As such the subsequent models were more variation than innovation. This oversight opened the door to a UK based company: Playnetics. This company realized that both hardware and software development of the Digital Qur'an had stagnated and brought to market, innovative; quality based products that addressed the needs of the Muslim technology consumer.

Playnetics initial offering received praise for its usability and design, but the uptake of the product was severely hampered by the high retail price and low dealer margins.


Taken from digital-quran-v3.blogspot.com
Digital Qur'an V3 by Sony Sugema

Description:
Excellent software, good sounds, nice tarjamah.

This is a Windows application [98, ME, 2000, XP, Vista]. Once installed, you can see ayat written in arabic, the translation [English or Bahasa Indonesia], and at the same time you can hear the sounds reading ayat.

It has features such as browsing and searching certain ayat, copying ayat as picture and exporting ayat to html.

Installation instructions:
  1. After download finished, extract it (with WinRAR or else)
  2. Scan it with antivirus to make sure it's clean (and make you feel comfortable)
  3. Run it and follow step by step instruction. Yup, it's in Bahasa Indonesia, simply click "Lanjutkan"; it means "Next" or "Continue".
  4. There will be a shortcut at Startmenu -> WAREZ distro (Pro) -> Digital Qur'an
To download:
The total size is about 450Mb, splitted into 6 parts. You can download from this site (4shared), or here:If you're familiar with torrent, you may want to download Digital Qur'an v3 torrent from this mininova or h33t.

Acknowledgement:
Mr. Sony Sugema is not the maker of this good software, just an anonymous announcer.


The Noble Quran

The Noble Quran software was developed to allow users to easily recite and understand the Quran. The arabic in this program is unique in that it is clear, large, and easy to read. It includes a transliteration to help you read, surah introductions by Syed Abu-Ala’ Maududi, and includes an excellent english translation by Dr. Muhammad Taqi-ud-Din Al-Hilali, Ph.D. and Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan. Free download here.


Some examples of digital Qur'an product















Qur'an iPod 4th Generation Nano

































Digital Pocket Quran

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How to choose Flash MP3 Player Product

This article from mp3-players.toptenreviews.com

Why Buy a Flash Drive MP3 Player?


Flash MP3 players are built to groove. These tiny players do not contain moving parts, so they are 100% skip-proof, unlike other players that are merely skip-resistant. They come in a variety of sizes ranging from 2GB to 16GB and are reasonably priced.


Don't be fooled by the dimensions of these players, despite their size they can:

  • Play Music – Flash MP3 players can play music files, like MP3, wav, ogg and wma as well as FM radio.
  • Play Audio Files – Go on the road; with a flash player you can take your audio files with you, so you can listen to your favorite audio books or podcasts without being strapped to your computer.
  • Display Images – View full-color jpeg images, some even support other file types like bmp or gif. You can even build slide shows to share.
  • Display Video – Watch video clips and music videos; many music download services also offer video downloads like music videos, TV shows or humorous clips.
  • Record – Record music from a CD, streaming audio, FM radio or record other sounds like voice through an integrated microphone.
  • Play Games – Never get bored; many players come with free games or you can download games from download service sites.
  • Time Management – Watch the clock, these little portables have clocks and alarms; some can even sync up with Outlook or have calendars and stopwatches.
  • Accessorize – Play music anywhere. Many of these players can be connected to compatible speakers or an FM transmitter for playing in the car. For maximum portability, you can accessorize with armbands, finger straps or other devices that can offer hands free playing.


What to Look for in a Flash MP3 Player


The best Flash MP3 players are compatible with a variety of audio files and have long lasting batteries. Additionally, it is helpful if they have easy-to-use menus and playlist options for browsing files. Advanced players also display video and images.

Look for a product that is compatible with the type of download service you are interested in, for example most sites offer wma files, but the iTunes Music Store uses aac files. You also want to consider screen sizes. If you plan on watching a lot of videos and viewing photos, a larger screen will be much easier on the eyes.

Below are the criteria TopTenREVIEWS used to evaluate Flash MP3 Players:

  • Features – This criterion refers to the players essential features, including what they can play and display, what they can record from and their organization tools. The best products in this review can play music, radio and video, can display images and text, can record from any source and have a clock and alarm.
  • Music Formats – The most practical MP3 flash players can play a variety of music formats including mp3, wma and wav and aac.
  • Photo and Video Formats – In order to offer the best photo and video viewing options, a flash MPin a 3 player needs to display the most common formats. This means jpegs for photos and mp4, mov, wmv and avi formats for video, just to name a few.
  • Physical Features – Physical features include dimensions, appearance and the type of controls. We also looked at the screen size, resolution, weight, menu navigation and battery life. A good battery will give around 25 hours of audio playback and 5 hours of video playback on a single charge.
  • Music Browse – It is helpful if the player offers a variety of search and sort options to find songs. Many display album art and can sort and search by genre, artist, track or album.
  • Help/Support – Customer service is vital to customer satisfaction; considerate manufactures provide numerous ways to contact the company, including by email, telephone or chat. It is also helpful if they post comprehensive online product information and useful downloads.

This is Sunglasses MP3 Player, very cool for you.


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Windows 7 Beta 1 (Build 7000) Leaked On BitTorrent [Windows 7]

The Windows 7 Beta 1 that was public-bound in mid-January has been leaked now, and you can get a copy on BitTorrent.


The beta expires July 1, 2009, and from what we read, it's a bit more stable than the versions people have been playing with for a few months. Hit the links below to get a copy, if you're OK with the fact that you're technically not supposed to have this just yet. [My Digital Life via BlogsDNA via Technovedad via Download Squad]

News above from imeshedup.com

These are other Windows 7 screenshots


redmondpie.com


windows7center.com

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Eset NOD32 v3 Antivirus

This review from anti-virus-software-review.toptenreviews.com


Overview

ESET's NOD32 is rapidly becoming one of the best pieces of antivirus software on the market today. ESET's NOD32 once again has delivered an excellent product that is highly effective, and now, easy to use. The strength and beauty of this software is its light footprint, relatively fast scanning and superior ThreatSense® Technology that detects malicious software before it has been reported. Its interface is intuitive and easy to use for the average home user, but can be configured and tweaked by the advanced user. The one-user, one-year package is priced at $39.99, which is the middle range of the antivirus software products reviewed.


Standout Features

  • Effective antivirus protection (98%)
  • Light footprint on your computer (34M)
  • Excellent scanning speed
  • Excellent proactive protection
  • Is one of the few companies still offering products for legacy O/S's such as DOS and Windows 95, Windows 98, etc.


Ease of Use: Very Good

ESET's NOD32 is simple to use right out of the box (figuratively speaking … it’s a download) and requires little or no configuring for the average user. Yes, it’s an “install and forget program! The interface is clean and simple with enable/disable toggles and a configure option for those who are into tweaking their antivirus software. Unlike Kaspersky, which allows you to tailor their software based upon the perceived threat and the level of protection desired, advanced configuring NOD32 requires a bit more knowledge of your system. Fortunately, NOD32 works as it should in its default configuration and most users will never have to do anything but simply install this excellent software.


Effectiveness: Excellent

ESET's NOD 32 is among the most effective antivirus software products on the market today. Independent tests show that NOD32 removed about 98% of the virus threats it faced, putting it on par with BitDefender, “TopTenREVIEWS Gold Award” winner, and Kaspersky, “TopTenREVIEWS Silver Award” winner. In addition, NOD32 is certified by all the major independent testing laboratories the world over. Of the major antivirus software packages tested, NOD32 interfered less with our other computer operations than any of the other products reviewed. Its spyware protection is a little weaker than one might like, putting it on the same level as Kaspersky's 92%. Where NOD32 stands head and shoulders above its competitors is in its proactive detection and protection.

Most of the reputable antivirus software developers now include a heuristic engine that attempts to detect malware before it has been reported. Some refer to this as “Day Zero” detection because it is able to detect threats before their signatures is has been identified. The idea here is that when the software finds some code that looks malicious, it executes the software in the background to determine if it’s a threat to your machine. ESET has refined this technique like no other antivirus software developer with their ThreatSense® Technology.

This ThreatSense® Technology delivers an excellent detection rate while offering a very fast scan rate. Other antivirus packages offer similar detection rates, such as BitDefender and Kaspersky, but in both of those cases, the penalty you pay are slow scan rates. NOD32 is the only software package reviewed and tested that offered both high detection rates AND fast scan rates, indicating these folks know how to write efficient and effective code (according to the company, NOD32 is written in assembly language, a very efficient, low-level language). ESET could be the sleeper antivirus company ready to take this market by storm in coming years.


Updates: Excellent

Unlike Kaspersky and BitDefender, ESET's NOD32 only updates its virus signatures once a day. That's probably a short enough interval considering that ESET has the power to “push” updates to your computer in the instance of attack. Also, with ESET's highly effective heuristic, proactive engine, it is very likely that NOD32 will recognize malicious code before the signature is available. These two features make us more comfortable with the slightly longer update intervals than some of its competitors have.


Feature Set: Excellent

ESET's NOD32 is all about effectiveness AND speed. This software uses fewer resources than any of the packages tested and this is a thing of beauty. NOD32 is a breath of fresh air in a world of bloated software in that its code is efficiently written. From the perspective of the average user, this means this software has a light footprint and fast scans, both very good things. Its ThreatSense® Technology’s proactive defense is among the best heuristic programs on the market.

NOD32 offers several layers of protection including real time email scanning, antivirus protection, antispyware protection and rootkit scanner. The email scanner integrates easily and directly into MS Outlook or any other standard POP3 email client. Disappointingly, NOD32 did not have a Parental Control option where parents can block and control what sites their children are able to access online.

NOD32 is among the few antivirus products that still supports such legacy operating systems as DOS, Windows 95, Windows 98, etc. as well as Windows XP and Vista.


Ease of Installation: Excellent

Installation was prompt and easy. The package is just 34M making it among the lightest antivirus packages we have ever seen. We were disappointed, though, that ESET did not automatically remove the existing antivirus software on our system. Instead, NOD32 prompts you to remove any existing antivirus on your computer before installation.

ESET has made some excellent and necessary improvements in their interface with version 3, making the software far easier and more intuitive to use. Anticipating that the vast majority of people don't want to spend time messing with their antivirus software, but instead just want it to work, ESET crafted NOD32’s interface to be clean and simple. Most people can simply “install and forget” this software. The left-hand column features Protection Status, Computer Scan, Update, Setup, Tools and Help. The right windowpane is reserved for the active feature in use.

Although the features have an enable/disable toggle, the advanced user can simply click on “configure” in any of the features and find all of the advanced tweaks that anyone could ask for. Should you need to remove NOD32 from your computer, there is an uninstall option. After a reboot we found almost no evidence of the product on the machine.


Help/Support: Excellent

ESET's NOD32 provides extensive, context-sensitive help files similar to Kaspersky and this feature by both firms should be applauded. It’s about time the other software developers include similar help files. It’s simple and quick for the user and doesn't require much development cost for the software publisher. Online, ESET provides a fairly thorough 32-page PDF file manual for download, plus online FAQs for NOD32, links to an active user forum dedicated to the software, and a web form for contacting ESET customer support. While there is live telephone support offered, the call is not toll free and is available only during business hours, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. PT, Monday through Friday.


Summary:

ESET's NOD32 offers the antivirus software buyer one more excellent choice. Its sets itself apart from the competition with its scanning speed and light footprint on your computer resources. Its proactive approach to virus and other malware detection is among the best in the world, its virus detection is excellent, and now with an easy to use interface, this software ranks among the best available. There is no hesitation in recommending ESET's NOD32 and awarding it the “TopTenREVIEWS Bronze Award” for antivirus software.



Free Download

You can download for a free 30-day trial Eset NOD32 Antivirus for Win XP/2000/Vista at Eset Website and the manual user guide

NOTE: To ensure a smooth transition, ESET recommends uninstalling your current antivirus programs before installing ESET software.

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Sony Vaio Z550

This review from mobiletechreview.com by Lisa Gade, Editor in Chief


A year ago we reviewed the Sony Vaio SZ650, a powerhouse ultra-portable 13.3" notebook that combined excellent performance with carbon fiber styling and a compact design. It looks like we're at the end of the SZ series life-- but that's not a bad thing. For those who thought the SZ could have been even sexier looking and lighter-- thoughts that might not have arisen were it not for the MacBook Air-- there's the new Vaio Z series, announced this summer and shipping now. The Z makes the 4 pound, smaller than everything else on Best Buy shelves SZ look a tad large. It's got the performance and dual-graphics of the SZ series at a size and weight that put it between the Vaio TZ and SZ series. Pricing is similar to the SZ series, and Sony has the SR line for those who liked the SZ line's size and performance minus the high-end appointments like dual graphics cards, higher-end XBRITE-DuraView display and carbon fiber casing. The SR line isn't cheap compared to the average basic back-to-school HP or Dell, but at its $1,699 starting price, it's cheaper than the Z that starts around $2,099 in retail configuration.

The Vaio Z550 left, and the SZ650 right.

The 13.1" Sony Z550, available at retail locations and online, is one of the first notebooks running on the Intel Montevina platform (Centrino 2). It has an updated 25 watt (that's really low power for a non-ULV Core 2 Duo) 2.4GHz Intel P8600 CPU that uses the 45 nanometer process. This Core 2 Duo CPU plus Montevina's improvements make for a very powerful, yet power-frugal system that's future-proof enough to keep most owners satisfied with performance and features for 3 years. What does Montevina, the successor to Santa Rosa, offer? A significantly smaller motherboard that allows manufacturers to shrink designs (hence the smaller Z compared to the SZ), more powerful Intel GMA X4500 integrated graphics with an HD option that decodes HD video, support for lower power consumption CPUs (translates into longer battery life and cooler temps), a faster implementation of WiFi 802.11n, a 1066MHz FSB (up from Santa Rosa's 800MHz) and support for DDR3 RAM.

The Sony Vaio Z series notebooks come in several configurations, including build-to-order when purchased from Sony's web site. The Z550 ships with a 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo, 3 gigs of DDR3 RAM, a dual layer DVD burner, hybrid graphics (Intel 4500HD and NVidia 9300M GS), a 250 gig 5400rpm SATA hard drive and a 1366 x 768 XBRITE display. When building to order, you can go with a Blu-ray drive ($500 up-charge), or a 1600 x 900 resolution XBRITE display (better have good eyes or be ready to twiddle with Vista's font dpi settings). Other options include 7200rpm SATA hard drives, higher capacity hard drives and single or dual SSD drives.

The Vaio Z, is one of the few notebooks that combine extreme performance and extreme portability. At 3.31 lbs. it's just 5.4 ounces heavier than the MacBook Air and similar in weight to the IBM ThinkPad X300 equipped with a 6 cell battery and DVD drive. The Sony isn't wafer-thin like the Air, nor even as thin as the X300, but it has a smaller footprint than either. This Vaio is wickedly faster than the Air and X300: it packs the performance of a high end notebook with discrete graphics into a package even granny could carry. For the excellent performance, classy carbon fiber packaging and small size, the Z550 is reasonably priced.

Z vs. SZ

Is it worth upgrading if you have a current SZ model? Can't decide which to buy? That depends on your needs in terms of portability and battery life. The Z offers somewhat upgraded performance (mostly in the graphics department) and a nearly identical feature set-- the size, weight and longer battery life are more significant.

* While the SZ series features Sony's XBRITE display, the Z has their XBRITE-DuraView display that's supposedly more impervious to scratches and more importantly has an anti-glare coating. Some folks love the richness of a high gloss display while others are driven mad by the glare. The Z's display is noticeably more color saturated than the SZ (on par with the MacBook Air, minus the gloss), but it's a bit less bright (the SZ could burn your retinas on high brightness settings).

* The Z has a true widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio of 1366 x 768 pixels while the SZ has a more standard WXGA 1280 x 800 display. You won't see black bars on widescreen movies on the Z but older games that support only the more standard 1280 x 800 resolution will run at 1024 x 768 on the Z (if you use an external monitor for gaming, this doesn't matter and most games released in the last two years support 1366 x 768).

* The Z can switch between Stamina and Speed modes (integrated vs. dedicated graphics) on the fly without a reboot, unlike the SZ. The battery and compartment have been redesigned and the battery doesn't have that little bit of jiggle like the SZ.

* The Z's keyboard is radically redesigned and is similar to the Vaio TZ series with raised keys that are much easier to type on than the SZ's.

* The Z runs cooler than the SZ, with both being louder than average when the CPU is doing serious work in Speed mode, but the Z being a few decibels louder at lower stress settings.

* The Z adds an HDMI port that works in conjunction with the NVidia dedicated card.

Sony Vaio Z550 and MacBook Air.

Looks aren't everything but they sure help

These days consumer electronics are personal style statements. The Z is certainly one of the sexiest laptops on the market with its carbon fiber casing, new barrel hinge design that hides the battery along with the illuminated power button and power jack (one on each hinge cap). The chrome accents on the carbon fiber give it a more daring look than the SZ and the display bezel is impossibly thin. Sony can make the display panel thin thanks to the rigidity relative to thickness of carbon fiber. You can can flex the display panel, but not more so than a MacBook Pro. Pressing a finger on the lid doesn't cause light distortion or pooling which is surprising given how thin this thing is. You can pick up the notebook by the display panel (a scary thing to do) and it flexes a decent amount but not enough to harm the display (nor does it crack and break). Note-- this doesn't mean we advocate doing this kind of thing under the guise of normal use.

Open the Vaio and you get another dose of high tech eye-candy. The dark silver (with just the slightest hint of Sony's old signature Vaio purple) wrist rest is brushed aluminum. The trackpad has a dot pattern that looks cool and the biometric fingerprint scanner nestled between the 2 mouse buttons is smaller than ever (yet it works well). The raised keyboard keys not only look like sculpted entries for a modern art museum competition but they make for an extremely good typing experience. There's plenty of space between the keys and the backboard is also brushed aluminum (the entire top interior panel is one piece of curved aluminum) which means there's none of the usual notebook keyboard flex. Since this is a small notebook, the page up/down keys are integrated into the arrow key pad-- pretty much the only concession to size. You need not poke at the very small tray open button on the side of the DVD drive-- there's an eject button just above the top row of keys, along with Sony's usual 2 programmable application launcher buttons.

The machine feels extremely light (no kidding) and is small enough to fit inside a briefcase or large tote. Build quality is excellent, and every port, vent and label on the Vaio looks perfectly made.

Ports

The Z550 has two USB 2.0 ports (one on each side), a VGA port, HDMI port (both on the right, and you can only use one at a time), DVD burner (right), 4 pin unpowered FireWire port, 3.5mm headphone and mic jacks, modem and Ethernet (both under covers). There are SD and Memory Stick Duo card slots on the front edge and a wireless on/off slider switch. The Z series has one ExpressCard/34 slot and no PCMCIA slot.

Performance and Graphics

Here's the fun part-- usually 3.3 lb. notebooks are weak performers and we have to explain how cramming chips into small spaces requires performance concessions. Put that thought on hold; the Vaio Z550 will compete with any notebook currently on the market and outperform many of them. The Intel Centrino 2's smaller motherboard requirements, lower power consumption and lower heat generation mean that a small notebook can be powerful (plus Sony has had years of practice at making high end subnotebooks). The Z550 ships with the Intel Penryn 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor with 3 megs of level 2 cache and a 1066MHz front side bus. A 2.53GHz CPU with 6 megs of level 2 cache is available on other Z models, and all but the base model ship with 3 gigs of DDR3 -1066 (PC3-8500) RAM. The machine can hold a max of 4 gigs, and there are 2 SODIMM slots under a door on the notebook's bottom. One slot has a 2 gig SODIMM and the other has a 1 gig SODIMM, so if you wish to upgrade to 4 gigs, you need only replace the 1 gig SODIMM. This is more useful with 64 bit Vista (not a shipping option on the Z) which can make use of all 4 gigs or if your graphics card is using a lot of shared memory.

The notebook is up to all manner of high demand tasks from DirectX 9 gaming full-throttle (NVidia turned on), DirectX 10 gaming with modest in-game settings, video editing (including HD video editing), HD video playback, Photoshop, Visual Studio, ripping MP3s from disc quickly and more. Despite Vista's famously high overhead, our Vista Business SP1 32 bit edition machine feels extremely fast. Unless you want a desktop-class DirectX 10 gaming experience to play the latest extremely demanding 3D games at high settings, the Z550 should be more computer than most folks need. The standard 5400rpm 250 gig hard drive performed well experientially and in benchmarks, and was fairly quiet and cool (ours was an Hitachi disk). For those who want more performance (and possibly more heat and fan noise), there's a 7200rpm option on built-to-order, and there are SSD (solid state drive) options for an even faster, cooler and quieter machine. Currently Sony offers pricey single and dual 64 gig SSD options ($720 for 64 gig and $1,320 for 128 gigs total). The SSD drives use the slower Ultra ATA interface (most common on SSD drives) and the 2x64 gig is configured as a RAID.

All Vaio Z series notebooks come with a dual layer DVD burner. A Blu-ray drive is optional, and currently only available with the 1600 x 900 display option which also doubles dedicated NVidia graphics memory to 256 megs. Intel's new graphics chipset, the GMA 4500HD is a very good performer that's perfect for DVD playback and light gaming with older titles. The NVIDIA 9300M GS has 128 megs of dedicated DDR3 RAM (256 megs on the 1600 x 900 display version) and can also use shared memory as needed.

Benchmarks

PCMark05, NVidia graphics, Vaio Optimized power setting (Speed switch setting)

PC Marks: 5272
CPU: 6082
Memory: 5155
Graphics: 3506
HDD: 4761

PCMark05, Intel integrated graphics, Vaio Optimized power setting (Stamina switch setting)

PC Marks: 4904
CPU: 6048
Memory: 5074
Graphics: 2271
HDD: 4656

Windows Experience Score (Nvidia, Optimized power setting)

Processor: 5.3
RAM: 5.9
Graphics: 4.4
Gaming graphics: 5.1
Hard disk: 5.2

Battery Life

The Vaio ships with a 5400 mAh Lithium Ion battery and Sony offers their (as usual overpriced) extended 8100 mAh extended battery for $249. Centrino 2 lives up to the hype, and we managed 5 hours and 15 minutes on the Optimized power plan and Stamina setting with WiFi on and screen brightness set to 65%. For a notebook this powerful, that's very impressive, and it's significantly better than the current Vaio SZ notebooks. With the Optimized power plan and the speed setting using NVidia discrete graphics we managed 3:30. For our tests we did a mix of heavy surfing, checking email every 15 minutes using Outlook, working with Office documents and watching a few streaming short videos.

Networking

It's all here: WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n courtesy of the Intel WiFi Link 5100AGN, Bluetooth 2.0 +EDR with A2DP support, wired gigabit Ethernet, a modem and Sprint EVDO Rev. A wireless module with an internal antenna and GPS capabilities. You'll need to start a Sprint data plan contract to use the Sprint fast WAN service, and those speeds are impressive. Sprint has very good EVDO metro regional coverage that's handy for the business traveler but not so well suited to vacations in the boonies where cellular service is sometimes lacking. Note that you do not have to use the Sprint module or start a contract if you don't care to use the service, and there are Z models that come without the Sprint modem (there is no 3G GSM option for the US, unfortunately). You can also use a Bluetooth enabled GSM 3G or EVDO phone as a wireless modem for the Z. We tested it with the Nokia E71, a lovely 3G HSDPA smartphone with an AT&T SIM inside. Speeds were very good and we loaded heavy pages at rates equivalent to a slower WiFi 802.11b connection. WiFi with our 802.11n router rocked thanks to the Intel 5100AGN module which gave excellent range and very fast data transfers.

Conclusion

The Vaio Z550 is a stunningly light, compact and beautiful notebook. And it's got more than just good looks, with top notebook performance. Clearly it's not priced to compete with the average bargain notebook, but the specs, combined with the small size, light weight and very good build quality make this notebook a bargain compared to ultralights on the market that either cost significantly more and/or are underpowered in comparison.

Pro: Extremely light and small, especially for powerful notebook. Hybrid graphics offer flexibility and performance as needed. Beautiful looks and great design. Excellent build quality. Has the latest Centrino 2 technology inside, and likely won't leave you wishing for an upgrade for a few years. One of the most color-saturated displays we've ever seen-- it looks lovely and is accurate enough for serious graphics work. Runs cooler than most notebooks in this performance class, including the SZ series. Fan noise is definitely acceptable for a performance notebook. Good sound quality and volume from the built-in stereo speakers and great sound through headphones. Sony has cut back on the bloatware, and what's there is easier to cleanly uninstall.

Con: As usual, spare Sony standard and extended batteries are keenly overpriced ($199 for a standard battery, $249 for the extended).

Price: $2,099 (Z550), other Z models are available at different price points. 1 year warranty

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Sony BDP-S5000ES Blu-ray Disc Player

This review from gadgets.softpedia.com by John

Despite of the fact that Blu-ray's
rate of adoption still lags behind Sony's expectations, the company keeps rolling out advanced Blu-ray players, targeting pretty much every particular segment of the consumer electronics' market, whether we're talking about entry-level of high-end products. And that's also the case with the BDP-S5000ES model, released by the Japanese company back in September 2008, a player that's both compatible with the latest Blu-ray specifications and provides advanced image processing features on the side.


The BDP-S5000ES supports two of the latest Blu-ray specifications, namely BD-Live (profile 2.0) and Bonus View (Profile1.1), which allow users to enjoy additional content, found either on the disc itself or online (1GB Flash Memory Included). Plus, in order to make this thing even more user-friendly, the GUI is none other than Sony's famous XMB (Xross Media Bar).

Moreover, the player features a 14-bit HD video processor that improves standard definition and high-definition picture quality with the help of HD Reality Enhancer and Super Bit Mapping technologies. In this way, standard DVDs can also be pushed upwards, reaching a level of video quality close to that of Blu-ray discs.

Also on the subject of video, it's important to note that the BDP-S5000ES features a built-in video Digital-to-Analog Converter, supporting 1080i, 720p: 14 bit/296 MHz (HD); 480i, 480p; 14 bit/216 MHz (SD) resolutions. However, the device's audio-related features are also quite impressive, since the BDP-S5000ES provides Dolby TrueHD Decoding, as well as dts Decoding.

As far as the connectivity options are concerned, the BDP-S5000ES is quite well-endowed, since it comes packed with HDMI, S-Video, Component and Composite interfaces, analog and coaxial audio outputs, plus an Ethernet connection, IR input and RS232 Control port.

As mentioned right from the start, Sony's BDP-S5000ES is one of the most expensive Blu-ray players currently available in the company's line-up, retailing for an estimate 2,000 US dollars.

Spesification of Sony BDP-S5000ES Blu-ray Disc Player.

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Machines 'to match man by 2029'

This news from news.bbc.co.uk by Helen Briggs


Machines will achieve human-level artificial intelligence by 2029, a leading US inventor has predicted.

Humanity is on the brink of advances that will see tiny robots implanted in people's brains to make them more intelligent, said Ray Kurzweil.

The engineer believes machines and humans will eventually merge through devices implanted in the body to boost intelligence and health.

"It's really part of our civilisation," Mr Kurzweil explained.

"But that's not going to be an alien invasion of intelligent machines to displace us."

Machines were already doing hundreds of things humans used to do, at human levels of intelligence or better, in many different areas, he said.

Man versus machine

Ray Kurzweil said "We'll have intelligent nanobots go into our brains... to make us smarter".

"I've made the case that we will have both the hardware and the software to achieve human level artificial intelligence with the broad suppleness of human intelligence including our emotional intelligence by 2029," he said.

"We're already a human machine civilisation; we use our technology to expand our physical and mental horizons and this will be a further extension of that."

Humans and machines would eventually merge, by means of devices embedded in people's bodies to keep them healthy and improve their intelligence, predicted Mr Kurzweil.

"We'll have intelligent nanobots go into our brains through the capillaries and interact directly with our biological neurons," he told BBC News.

CHALLENGES FACING HUMANITY
-Make solar energy affordable
-Provide energy from fusion
-Develop carbon sequestration
-Manage the nitrogen cycle
-Provide access to clean water
-Reverse engineer the brain
-Prevent nuclear terror
-Secure cyberspace
-Enhance virtual reality
-Improve urban infrastructure
-Advance health informatics
-Engineer better medicines
-Advance personalised learning
-Explore natural frontiers


The nanobots, he said, would "make us smarter, remember things better and automatically go into full emergent virtual reality environments through the nervous system".

Mr Kurzweil is one of 18 influential thinkers chosen to identify the great technological challenges facing humanity in the 21st century by the US National Academy of Engineering.

The experts include Google founder Larry Page and genome pioneer Dr Craig Venter.

The 14 challenges were announced at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Boston, which concludes on Monday.

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Death Match: BlackBerry Storm VS Sony Ericsson Xperia X1

This review from t3.com by Hannah Bouckley

Stormy smarties

Another test with the words ‘iPhone rivals’ in the first paragraph, but for now Apple’s groundbreaking handset is still the bar against which touchscreens like the Blackberry Storm and Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 will be compared too.

Arguably one of the best looking phones we’ve seen, the Storm’s is RIMs first touchscreen, boasting unique SurePress technology that replicates the feel of a solid keypad. Instead of building the features around the touchscreen capabilities, it’s still unmistakably Blackberry, with dedicated back and menu keys.

Using Windows Mobile 6, Sony Ericsson’s X1 is a more traditional smartphone, in the design vein of HTC, masquerading as a modern touchee, with a high-res screen you can jab and poke as hard as you please.

Stuffed with features and fired up with connectivity, is either phone worth your cash?



Death Match One: Ease of use


Blackberry Storm

Free on contracts over £35, 24 months

Great for Google Maps and You Tube, the highlight is the bright, colourful and detailed screen, which rotates automatically - most of the time. Feedback makes the touchscreen feel like a ‘proper keyboard.’ You have to use double-clicks so there’s no danger of hitting the wrong button, unless you’re using the tiny dual-key QWERTY keyboard that is.

Sony Ericsson Xperia X1

£670 sim free, or free on contract

Hit the X Panel button to access shortcut panels for key applications, such as web, music, photos and main menu. The touchscreen feels small and you’re messily swapping between the stylus and finger, a feat not helped by the sluggish Windows Mobile interface. The slide-out keyboard might not be sexy, but is for more accurate than the Storm.

Winner: BlackBerry Storm


Death Match Two: Features

Blackberry Storm

Ridiculously there’s no WiFi, which for a phone geared up for browsing, is ludicrous, what about using it abroad? You can install Facebook, Google Maps and You Tube apps and RIM’s app store launches in March 2009. As well as GPS, you get six months of Vodaphone’s Fine&Go navigation service.

Sony Ericsson Xperia X1

Unlike the Storm you get WiFi, as well as HSPDA and 3G, although logging on proved temperamental at times. There’s a good 3.2MP camera and trial of Wayfinder Navigator service.

Winner: Sony Ericsson Xperia X1


Death Match Three: Performance

Blackberry Storm

Browsing is speedy, although you’re at the mercy of Vodaphone’s signal. Push email is terrific, and you get a useful cut and paste facility. Battery life is comparable with the N96, iPhone and G1, so you’ll be charging every night.

Sony Ericsson Xperia X1

Battery life impresses, lasting longer than the Storm. 3G browsing is fairly speedy, although we struggled to get onto the WiFi network, but this was due to Windows Mobile. The 3.5mm jack lets you hook up your own headphones, although you’re stuck with Windows Media rather than SE’s superior Walkman interface.

Winner: BlackBerry Storm


Death Match Four: Conclusion

Even though the Xperia X1 has an outstanding build, next to the Storm and iPhone, it’s creaky and dated. The Storm’s emailing is top notch, but the fiddly text input and criminal lack of WiFi let down. When it comes down to it, Sony Ericsson makes far better camera and music phones, whilst the RIM’s BlackBerry Storm is a fantastic smartphone even with the niggles.

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Toshiba Camileo H10 SDHC Camcorder

Source: trustedreviews.com by James Morris


Toshiba is not a name you would immediately associate with camcorders - more notebooks, TVs and disc players. But the company is quietly chiselling itself a niche as a purveyor of cheap high definition video cameras as well, such as the Camileo Pro HD. Latest to join the range is the Camileo H10. Available for under £150, yet able to shoot 720p video, the H10 sounds like an absolute bargain.

Of course, at this price, corners have been cut. For a start, the device comes with just 64MB of memory built in, which is enough to test things are working and very little else. So you will need to factor in an SD card from the outset, although that's hardly a major expense these days. The H10 has four different recording options. The headline act is HD, although this is 1,280 x 720, not Full HD. There is also a D1 option that operates at 720 x 480, plus VGA at 640 x 480, and QVGA at 320 x 240 to choose from. All run at 30 frames per second, however, rather than the European-friendly 25 frames per second.

At its top setting, the H10 uses a 4Mbits/sec data rate, which isn't particularly high, even for 720p resolution instead of Full HD. So a 2GB SD card will be enough for a little over an hour of video. Considering 2GB cards can be had for little more than a quid these days, we wonder why Toshiba didn't just bung one in the box for good measure.

The fact that the H10 only offers 720p video is also somewhat strange when you look at its specifications (probably a limitation of the electronics more than anything else). For instance, the sensor has a 10.48-megapixel resolution, more than enough for Full HD, although Toshiba hasn't made it clear how big this CCD is. The main beneficiary of all these pixels is, as always, digital photography. If you want to stick within the native resolution, Standard still image mode offers a resolution of 3,648 x 2,736. But you can also add interpolation to bump this up to High, which captures at 4,608 x 3,456.

There is a fairly modest 5x optical zoom available, with 4x digital zoom on top - but we found this made images very fuzzy indeed. Normally, we would suggest turning off digital zoom, but there is no option to do this on the H10. At least zooming stops when it reaches the extent of optical power, so you can choose not to use digital zooming in each instance.

The majority of settings are accessed via the central button on the back. But ranged around this are specific controls for changing the shooting resolution, toggling through the flash modes, turning the self-timer off and on, and enabling the Intelligent Lighting setting.

Returning to the central button, this calls up the Options menu, which converts the four buttons into navigational controls. Within this menu, you can enable macro mode, which allows focusing up to 1cm away. There are seven exposure settings, ranging between + and -1EV, but no manual shutter configuration. You can also vary between nine levels of sharpness. White balance options include presets for daylight, fluorescent and tungsten, alongside fully automatic, but there is no manual setting. A night mode is also available.

A few more options are included in the photo menu. Strangely, backlight compensation is only available for still images, not video. You can also choose a 5-picture continuous shooting mode, and ‘Two in One', which combines two shots into one single image, although we're not entirely sure why you would want to do that in camera.

In either mode, there are three digital effects available, including black and white, classic, and negative. There is also a Motion Detect setting. Turn this on, and the camera will record video when it detects motion, although the external power supply will be required to use this for any length of time.

In general, we found the H10 reasonably comfortable to shoot with. However, the placement of the record button to one side initially means you are likely to press the Options button instead, as that is where your thumb more naturally sits.

Considering the bargain price, we weren't expecting particularly amazing video performance from the H10. Despite the HD resolution, video quality can't hold a candle to the top Full HD models from the likes of Canon, Panasonic, Sony, JVC and Samsung. In adequate lighting, colour fidelity could only be described as acceptable. Some reds had a tendency to wash out and veer towards orange. The aggressive compression also smoothed out detail too much and light areas blew out, losing detail entirely.

We found the H10 had problems focusing in lower light, too. This was a shame because colour performance was generally quite good and the level of grain not excessive. Overall, the H10 performs above the level of a compact digital camera pressed into service to shoot video and definitely ahead of a mobile phone. But it's not even close to the same league as premium HD camcorders.

Unfortunately, despite the H10's comparatively high sensor resolution, it didn't particularly prove itself as a digital camera either. Colour fidelity was good, but the overall picture looked very fuzzy. This wasn't helped by the necessity of pushing down quite hard on the photo button to take a photo, making it difficult to keep the camera steady.

Video is recorded as AVIs using H.264 MPEG-4 compression. We found this a little problematic for editing software. Corel VideoStudio Pro X2 was able to import the files but was extremely sluggish editing them. Premiere Elements 7 also imported the footage and after some hesitation was quite fluid editing it but with occasional stalls. CyberLink PowerDirector 7 imported the files but then crashed when we tried to play them on the timeline. So overall we can't give many plaudits for the H10's compatibility with mainstream video editing apps.

Despite its low price, the Camileo H10 still has HDMI built in, although this is a mini socket so requires an adapter to connect to a TV. Amazingly, Toshiba actually includes an adapter cable in the box. It's only 1.2m long, but that should be enough for HDTV hook-up. You even get a remote control, for leisurely lounge control. For analogue TVs, a minijack is incorporated with a breakout cable for composite video and mono audio.

Verdict

When a camcorder offers HD shooting at this kind of price, it's hard to be too critical. After all, 2008's top selling camcorder, the JVC Everio GZ-MG330, is more expensive for just standard definition, and the Panasonic SDR-S7 costs about the same, and that's standard definition too. The Toshiba also gets extra brownie points for including an HDMI cable. But the video performance is not significantly better than the standard def alternatives, and editing the results is much more of a pain. So, whilst the Toshiba Camileo H10 is still good value, videomakers on a tight budget would still be better off forgoing the HD nametag for something a little more practical.

...Continue reading...

The Active Trax Audio Player with Solar Panel

This article from coolest-gadgets.com by Ally

Although it’s a little late in the year to be planning anything outdoorsy, when you do, this audio player is worth checking out. It’s not quite as compact as other speakers I’ve seen. However, it has a few extra perks that make it perfect for anyone who likes being outdoors a great deal or anyone trying to go green. It uses a couple different methods to make sure that you don’t have to actually be inside to charge it. Sadly, you’ll still have to find a way to charge up your iPod, but at least the speaker will keep running.

Once your iPod does die off though, you always have the backup of using the AM/FM radio that’s built into the speaker. To charge the speaker up you can leave it out in the sun to charge from the solar panel or you can use the hand crank. If you’re at home and don’t want to deal with the eco-friendly methods, you can also plug it into the wall, once it does have a full charge it will run for 7 hours. It comes in either the white shown here or black. With the black, the crank is white instead of the orange shown on the white version. It looks a bit more sleek than the white.

...Continue reading...

Sony PSP-4000 coming late 2009

This article from gadgetreview.com by Albert S.

The Sony PSP-4000 is reportedly coming in late 2009. The current update, the PSP-3000, has an improved LCD screen, built-in microphone and a PS button so I’d expect only an incremental update on the 4000. Perhaps a slightly larger screen, reduced form factor, and improved battery life? We’ll see.

But this is where it gets interesting: what happens after the PSP-4000. It’s rumored that developers are already coding for the next-gen “PSP2″. One can only guess as to the specs but here’s hoping that Sony, if they have any iota of sense, will completely nuke the UMD drive in favor of flash or solid state memory. Not only will this improve battery life but it’ll pave the way for digital content distribution.

Sony, if you’re listening, ramp up the built in memory, reduce the footprint, spruce it up with a nice touchscreen, and above all KISS (Keep It Simple Sony).



This article from slashgear.com by Chris Davies

Sony are already planning the next update of their PSP handheld console, the PSP-4000, for release in late 2009, while game developers are already coding titles in preparation for the device’s replacement, the PSP2. That’s the word from Eurogamer, who have heard from unspecified publishing sources about the next-gen versions of the current Sony PSP-3000.

Details beyond that tentative late-2009 release for the PSP-4000 and what’s described as a “later” launch of the PSP2 (though that name has not been confired) are scarce. Sony UK have said they “would not comment on rumour and speculation”.

Sony last updated the PSP back in August, with the arrival of the 3000-series model. This had minor changes over its predecessor, the most notable of which was an improved LCD display. A built-in microphone and a new ‘PS’ button were the only other real additions.

...Continue reading...

Nokia N95 (8GB, Unlocked)

Product summary review from reviews.cnet.com


The good: The Nokia N95 (8GB) features 8GB of internal memory and has a spacious 2.8-inch display and 3G support. The smartphone also includes Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS, a 5-megapixel camera, and robust multimedia capabilities.

The bad: The 8GB N95 can be sluggish at times, and call quality could have been better. There's no expansion slot, and it's also very expensive.

The bottom lineThe bottom line: Offering ample memory, a larger screen, and 3G support, the 8GB Nokia N95 is sure to please those looking for the ultimate in multimedia/cell phone convergence, but you'll pay for the features, and there are some performance issues.

Specifications: Band / mode: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900 ; Talk time: Up to 300 min ; Combined with: With digital camera / digital player ; See full specs.

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Pentax announces limited edition white K2000 Double Zoom Digital SLR System

This review from dpreview.com


Pentax has announced a limited edition of the K2000 (K-m in Europe) in white, bundled as a double zoom kit with the camera body and two kit lenses. Both Pentax DA L 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL and Pentax DA L 50-200mm F4-5.6 AL lenses and the K2000 body sport a white finish with black trim. The kit will be made available on a limited basis in February 2009. UK MSRP is £50 above the recommended selling price of the standard K-m.

In addition, Pentax has also released an online game for prospective K2000/K-m users to learn more about the camera and have a little fun.

UK MSRP: £449 with 18-55mm kit lens, £549 with both 18-55mm and 50-200mm lenses.

Golden, CO, December 16, 2008 - Pentax Imaging Company has announced a limited edition, white PENTAX K2000 DSLR system with a double zoom kit. This new model replicates the original K2000 design that launched in September 2008 for consumers who are ready to make the transition from a point-and-shoot digital camera to digital SLR photography. The new camera body and both lenses* feature a brilliant white color with black trim.

The white Pentax K2000 is an entry-level system consisting of the new Pentax K2000 body, a white smc Pentax DA L 18-55mm F3.5-5.6 AL lens, and a white smc Pentax DA L 50-200mm F4-5.6 AL lens.

Bundled as a complete kit for the convenience of the customer, the Pentax K2000 system offers uncomplicated operation for new digital SLR users and family photographers seeking high-quality digital SLR photography for the first time.

Combining Pentax-developed, easy-to-use Auto Picture modes as well as powerful learning functions all housed in one of the smallest, lightest camera bodies in its class, the Pentax K2000 system is ideal for digital SLR beginners.

Additional features on the newest digital K2000 SLR body include a 10.2 megapixel CCD, a 2.7 inch, 230,000 dot high resolution, wide-view LCD panel, and an ultra compact design that facilitates one handed operation. The body also features the same Pentax-developed Shake Reduction technology found on more advanced K series digital SLRs. Pentax Shake Reduction is compatible with more than 25 million Pentax lenses to deliver sharp images even when handheld at slower shutter speeds.

The K2000 also features the powerful Pentax-developed Auto Picture Mode, which selects from Portrait, Landscape, Macro, Action, and Night Portrait modes to tailor the camera settings for any photographic situation.

The camera also has a comprehensive Dust Removal system to help keep images spotless. A dedicated programmable help button clearly explains current camera settings to guide and teach the user about digital SLR photography.

The lenses included with this Pentax K2000 system are the white versions of a newer series introduced with the DA L designation. This DA L series offers the same optical performance and compatibility as the current smc Pentax DA 18-55mm II and smc Pentax DA 50-200mm lenses.

This stylish, limited edition white Pentax K2000 kit will be available on a very limited basis in February 2009 at a price to be announced.

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eStarling Impact7 WiFi Digital Frame Launches

This article from i4u.com by Shane McGlaun


eStarling has announced its latest digital photo frame called the Impact7. The screen is 7-inches, has a resolution of 480 x 234 pixels, and has a built-in Jpeg decoder engine. Wi-Fi connectivity is built in with 802.11b/g and support for WEP64, WEP128, WPA1, and WPA2 encryption.

Support for memory cards includes SD, MMC, and MS along with a USB 2.0 port. Internal memory is 256MB. A remote control is included and the frame has automatic shutdown to save power. The integrated Wi-Fi connectivity allows the frame to get images directly from the social networking pages of friends and family. You can use this feature to send photos to friends or family around the world via the Internet.

The frame can also subscribe to RSS photo feeds like the National Geographic feed. Photobucket users can display all of their public or private images wirelessly on the frame as well. An iPhone application is available that lets photos be taken on the iPhone camera and sent directly to the frame. The frame has a retail price of $99.99 and is available now.

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Play station 3 vs. XBox 360

This review from hardcoreware.net by Carl Nelson













Being a video game developer (I develop for both, Playstation 3 and XBOX 360) people ask me almost daily which platform I think is better. These are my personal feelings, in no way does this reflect my employer.

Short answer: XBOX 360.

Long answer: Price, performance, visual quality, game selection and online support. I think the XBOX 360 wins in every category.

Price: This is obvious; the XBOX 360 core is only $299. The PS3 is around $499 for the 20GB version. It comes with a hard drive, but you don’t need a hard drive to enjoy a lot of great games on the 360 so I think it’s fair to compare both core systems.

Performance: On paper, the PS3 is more powerful. In reality, it’s quite inferior to the 360. Without getting into too many details, the three general-purpose CPU’s the xbox360 has are currently FAR easier to take advantage of than the SPU’s on the PS3. I suspect a few years down the road some high budget, first party PS3 exclusive titles will come out that really take advantage of the SPU’s and do things the XBOX 360 can’t, but I don’t think the console is worth buying based on this speculation (for some it will be though, we'll have to wait and see how these games turn out).

Graphics: The XBOX 360 is a clear winner. The GPU is more powerful. It has more powerful fillrate, and far more pixel and vertex processing horsepower. Part of the reason is their choice of memory, and architecture of pixel and vertex procesing. I can’t get into details but the same vertex shader will run much slower on the PS3 than the XBOX 360. The 360 also has a clever new way rendering high definition anti aliased back buffers. To accomplish the same effect on PS3 is prohibitively expensive. For this reason I think many games will have no choice but to run in non-HD resolutions on the PS3 version, use a lower quality anti aliasing technique, or do back buffer upscaling. The end result in all cases is going to be noticeably worse image quality.

Game Selection: The XBOX 360 has a huge head start here. 1 year is an eternity in gaming. Almost all multi-platform developers have made the XBOX 360 their primary platform due to timing of release-to-market, this means the games will look and perform better on the 360. The PS3 versions will be ports of the 360 versions. (The opposite was true for XBOX 1 vs. PS2). The XBOX 360 is also far faster to develop for due to better development tools (massively popular Visual Studio .NET vs. proprietary, buggy PS3 compiler and debugger), better documentation, and easier architecture (3 general purpose CPU’s vs. 8 specialized processors that require DMA). Timing has also caused all next-gen middleware developers to make XBOX 360 their primary platform, and they will ‘add ps3 support’ as needed. This support will probably be inferior to the XBOX 360’s due to manpower and more importantly, demand. It’s this catch-22 now that will continue to drive the 360 forward and hold PS3 back.

The other obvious point here is that right now the Xbox360 already has a very impressive line-up of titles on store shelves; the ps3 just launched, and has virtually nothing of interest. Also, many 360 games are already discounted. PS3 games are all full price since it just launched.

Live: Microsoft’s online support with XBOX1 was phenomenal. They built in-house experience, user base, facilities, $$ commitment from executive level (since it proved successful), and most importantly, feedback from 100,000s of XBOX Live subscribers. Playstation 2’s online support sucked. They are now playing catch-up, trying to emulate Xbox’s model. But they had their hands tied just trying to make the PS3 work, it was incredibly ambitious (blu-ray etc.). I haven’t seen it yet, but I seriously doubt the quality will be anywhere to the level of XBOX 360.

HD Content: The PS3 comes with one built in (blu-ray). The XBOX 360 offers HD-DVD as an add-on for $200. You probably don’t care about HD-DVD right now. But you will soon (The quality between DVD and HD is comparable to VHS vs DVD, if you have the right TV) so I suggest paying attention to the war that’s begun. There are two formats: HD-DVD and BLU-RAY. Basically if you rent a BLU-RAY DVD from Bockbuster, it won’t play in your XBOX 360 HD-DVD, and vice versa with the PS3. The implications of this format war would require another article on its own. But as far as the consoles are concerned, the XBOX 360 wins because the DVD player is a separate unit. Playing movies is very taxing on the DVD reader, and let’s face it. In 3 years when your PS3 DVD drive goes out due to playing lots of movies (PS2 was notoriously bad about this) you will have to go buy another PS3. With the 360, you’ll just chuck your HD-DVD player, and go buy another one at the store. In 3 years standalone units wlil probably only cost about $99-150. Another point for the XBOX 360, is that I don’t know who will win the format-war, so I would rather wait with purchase of a HD player. The PS3 doesn’t give you this option.

PS3 controversy: Shootings, Wallmart fights, $15,000 Ebay sales etc. My advice is ignore it. It will pass soon.

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