Unboxing my gaming pc, Gaming mouse and crysis 2 LTD edition
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Plantronics BackBeat 903+ Unboxing & Review| Booredatwork
twitter.com The Plantronics BackBeat 903+ are wireless Bluetooth stereo headset that are not only comfortable to wear but also function well as a speaker and music headset. The Build quality of the BackBeat 903+ is solid overall is solid with the only setback is the location and size of the music control button, (volume toggle & song skip). The play and pause buttons are located on the right ear piece, while the call answer button is located on the left. Sound quality is top notch specially for a Bluetooth headset which usually survives from interference. The Plantronics BackBeat 903+ is a solid by and a delight to use.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Cheap New Laptops - Three Of The Best
I realize that "cheap" is in the eye of the beholder. Not only that -- the laptops in this article might not even be as cheap as something you could get off eBay or even as inexpensive as a refurbished laptop.
But, face it: new laptops are almost always going to be more expensive than the equivalently configured desktop PC because of the need for miniaturization of the components. And laptops have to use different (more expensive) technologies to maximize battery life.
Bottom line: you're going to pay more for a laptop; or you're going to get less laptop for your dollar compared to a desktop PC.
That said, these three laptops -- Sony VAIO, HP Pavilion, and Dell Latitude -- are all solid buys in a range of prices that is very competitive for brand new equipment. And they come from decent companies and offer you a range of features as well.
Let's get started...
Sony VAIO N170GT
The nice thing about this Sony model is that it doesn't have a lot of junky frills on it. It is a clean looking design that is stylish, too. The screen is very bright, yet you don't get a lot of glare. The speed and performance is okay -- nothing to brag about, but for the price it's not bad. The battery is good for probably around four hours. That's enough to watch a movie if you're on a plane flight, but again -- nothing to write home about.
On the downside, this laptop uses an older Intel Core Duo processor. This processor comes with integrated graphics, which means that the performance is not to be that great. But again, you're not paying a lot of money, relatively speaking, or this laptop. If you're going to install Windows Vista on this machine you're going to want to upgrade the memory.
Overall, this model of Sony's VAIO gives you a good price, but doesn't give you a really powerful processor. But the laptop looks great and it's very stylish and attractive. If looks count and you want to save some bucks, this is a great machine. Brand-new, out-of-the-box this model will set you back about 00 plus tax and shipping.
HP Pavilion dv6205us
This laptop is part of the HP Pavilion DV6000 series, and it is designed to appeal to the mass market. It is a very stylish laptop with a shiny finish -- designed to appeal to the same customers who might consider a Sony or an Apple laptop. It's got a series of high-end components and multimedia features at a price that's lower than the comparable Dell laptop.
For example, this laptop has some pretty nice stereo speakers from Altec Lansing. They're located above the controls. But be aware that if you close the top the sound gets can get muffled. This laptop also has a 1.3 megapixel WebCam built right in, as well as two microphones. There is a row of buttons above the keyboard that launches different features like the media player, volume-control and playback. The keys look nice, but they make a really annoying beeping sound when you press them (and you can't really turn that off either).
This laptop weighs a little over 6 pounds, which makes it lighter than the comparable Dell laptop. When you add the AC adapter it brings the whole thing up to a little over 7 pounds.
The screen is 15.4 inches wide, with a kind of a shiny finish that makes colors very bright and vibrant, although it gives the appearance a bit of a glare in bright sunlight or next to a window.
The keyboard is very comfortable. The touchpad has an on-off button. This is very cool because it keeps your cursor from flying off in the wrong direction if your hand passes over the touchpad while using an external mouse. This laptop has a decent number of ports including a FireWire port, a VGA port, S-video and 3 USB 2.0 ports. You also get a microphone jack and two headphone jacks.
As far as processors go, you have a couple of choices. You can do a 1.86 GHz Celeron or a 2.0 GHz Core Duo. This laptop can be configured for up to 2 GB of RAM, and it'll work with hard drives of up to 200 GB in capacity.
Bottom line: it's got lots of entertainment features, you can configure it lots of different ways and it is very affordable. Brand-new out-of-the-box, you can get one for as little as 0-0 plus tax and shipping.
Dell Latitude D600
The D series laptops from Dell use the Pentium M which comes in 1.3GHz, 1.4GHz, and 1.6GHz speeds--all paired with Intel's new 855PM chipset. You can this laptop with between 128MB - 2GB of fast 266MHz DDR SDRAM. It also comes with a faster 40GB hard drive, or a choice of 20GB, 30GB, and 60GB drives running at slower speed.
It's got a 32MB ATI Mobility Radeon 9000 graphics chip. There are a number of swappable modules for the single internal bay, including CD, DVD, CD-RW, DVD/CD-RW, floppy, a second hard drive, or a second battery.
The average-sized, 14.1-inch screen isn't super. But it comes with a pretty good 1,400x1,050 native resolution. (You can also save a few bucks by opting for the 1,024x768 display instead.)
It's very fast, and it includes an integrated wireless antenna that is of the dual-band type. This means that if you are within range of a Wi-Fi hotspot that runs either "b" or "g" wireless protocols, this laptop will be compatible with either protocol. It also has built-in Bluetooth.
On the downside, this laptop is part of the D-series notebooks for Dell which means it will not be compatible with C-series Dell laptops. This means that if you have a C-series docking station, you're out of luck. And if you have media modules that are for another C-series notebook you'll have the same limitation.
Overall, this is a very thin and light notebook computer at a fantastic price -- 0, plus tax and shipping.
Conclusion
No matter how you define "cheap," these three laptops give you a great value.
Purchasing Steel Chop Saws Last Minute Ti 83 Graphing Calculators
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Laptop Review - HP Pavilion Dv7t With Intel Core I5
What did Hewlett-Packard do to improve the HP Pavilion dv7t? Instead of the Centrino 2 processor, HP added the revolutionary i5 processor that promises superior performance in your average computing or not-so-average entertainment applications.
The Intel Core i5 processor is a sturdy and impressive chip, next to the almighty Intel Core i7 processors. This is one of the reasons why one should not have reservations on running heavy applications on the HP Pavilion dv7t. One may ask if the HP-Pavilion dv7t would do the things that the user expects? That answer is one definite "YES."
So let's find out why the HP Pavilion dv7t can be a top contender for the ultimate multimedia laptop. Not only did Hewlett-Packard update the HP-Pavilion dv7t's brain, it also modified the laptop's supporting units.
Let's talk about graphics support. The first edition of the HP Pavilion dv7t is loaded with an Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT dedicated graphics card. Now the HP-Pavilion dv7T comes with either a gigabyte of Nvidia GeForce GT 320M or 512 MB of GeForceG 105M dedicated graphics card.
Let's talk about memory support. Then, the HP-Pavilion dv7t was supported by up to 3 GB of RAM. The HP Pavilion dv7t is now supported by up to 8 GB of memory backup. One can expect a smooth and seamless performance with the size of RAM supporting the powerful i5 processor.
Let's talk about storage capability. The earlier HP Pavilion dv7t allowed storage of up to 400 GB. Now, HP added 240 GB of disk space, making the HP-Pavilion dv7t a 640 GB entertainment laptop. Moreover, the laptop could be integrated with a dual hard-drive option, giving the user up to 1.28 TB to utilize.
Multimedia files, especially HD movies, consume a lot of disk space, pushing some laptop owners to buy an external hard disk. Now that's real worry-free entertainment. With the updated HP Pavilion dv7t, it could take a long time before one can complain of lacking storage space.
On the outside, the HP Pavilion dv7t sports a chic and elegant finish. It comes in finishes like liquid metal black with silver lining and a Moonlight White finish. This laptop comes with a Blu-ray/DVD combo optical drive that ensures smooth playing of one's favorite HD movies in Blu-ray media.
The HP Pavilion dv7t's 17.3-inch liquid crystal display (LCD) screen has a16:9 aspect ratio, which is highly ideal for playing 3D games or watching HD movies. As it is a multimedia laptop, the HP-Pavilion dv7t comes with an integrated TV tuner, webcam, Altec Lansing stereo speakers, and connectivity features like a multi-card reader and USB ports.
SPECS
CPU
Intel Core i5-430M processor (2.26GHz, 3MB L2 Cache)
with Turbo Boost up to 2.53 GHz
Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-520M processor (2.40GHz, 3MB L2 Cache)
with Turbo Boost up to 2.93 GHzRAM
Up to 8 GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)Hard drive
Up to 1.28 TBGraphics
512MB NVIDIA GeForce G 105M
1GB Nvidia GeForce GT 320M - For i3, i5 and i7-620QMDisplay
17.3" diagonal (1600 x 900)Dimensions
16.2" x 10.9" x 1.37"~1.70"Weight
7.74 lbs
PROS
The HP Pavilion dv7t is one mean multimedia machine. It offers a spectacular multimedia experience especially when one is playing games, music or movies. This is attributed to the powerful i5 processor, large amount of memory, 1 TB of disk space, hardcore graphics card, and high-quality audio and video.
CONS
When it comes to laptops, power is associated with heat. The HP Pavilion dv7t's powerful specifications cause it to get too warm, especially when the laptop is used for long periods.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Best Computer Speakers - An In-Depth Buying Guide
Computer speakers get far less attention than their more expensive counterparts - home theater system speakers. While the latter are much fussed over, adequately researched, tried and tested before buying, most consumers just pick up whatever they can get their hands on (and can afford) at the local electronics store when it comes to computer speakers. The truth is that most of us spend far more time before a laptop or desktop than watching movies on the TV; doesn't it make more sense to invest more time and money into buying the best computer speakers you can afford?
A decade or so back, when multimedia computers were still an anomaly and things like 'Dolby Digital Surround Sound' were just technical gibberish terms, computer speakers used to be puny little devices capable of reproducing only the poorest quality sound. Of course, things have changed dramatically since then. Today, you can buy the best computer speakers that will reproduce lifelike sound at an affordable price.
There are some big brand names that always come to the mind when talking about the best computer speakers. Creative, Logitech, Altec Lansing, JBL are a few of them. These companies have a long history of excellence. Some, like Logitech and Creative, are often far more visible in the computer speakers market than in the home entertainment system segment. The quality of their products for laptops and desktops, thus, is typically of a higher quality than similarly priced competitors.
Sound Card
There is a caveat, however. Before you set your eyes on buying the best computer speakers you can afford, you must understand that a lot depends on your laptop or desktop's sound card too. The purpose of this card is to render and process audio information. Almost all computers have an in-built sound card typically capable of doing an adequate job of audio reproduction for day to day use. Every sound card comes with its own software, which, in most cases, is bundled up along with the motherboard drivers.
However, to get the most out of your audio experience, you should consider getting an additional sound card installed. This additional card would fit into your motherboard's PCI or PCI Express slot. The audio quality offered by this card would be much better than the standard card that is built-in in most motherboards. This card is capable of high quality, multi-channel audio reproduction (Dolby Digital Surround Sound, etc.). It may also have multiple ports for recording audio. If you are an audiophile, or enjoy recording music on your computer, then you should definitely consider getting an additional sound card for your system.
Nowadays, you can also purchase an external sound card that fits into the USB port. This type of card is meant more for audio professionals who need to carry their equipment around and is not recommended for home users.
Computer Speakers Buying Guide
Once you have a quality sound card - whether in-built or purchased additionally - you can get down to buying the best computer speakers for your needs. For this, you have to understand your requirements and budget first. A set of high quality speakers can set you back by over 0, while you can get an 'adequately' functional speaker system for less than .
For audiophiles, nothing less than a 5.1 speaker system would do, though a set of quality 2.1 computer speakers would be quite adequate as well. Hardcore gamers would do well to invest in a surround sound system as it would provide the highest level of immersion into the gaming experience. Musicians and hobby recording artists should invest in a set of studio monitors. These are a typically a set of 2.0 speakers with strong bass output. They do not have any in-built equalizer, so you get the most faithful reproduction of your reproductions and can adjust the mix levels accordingly.
For regular users, a simple 2.0 speaker set up, or a mid-range 2.1 system would be more than adequate. Your choice would, of course, be influenced by your budget. A surround sound system would be decidedly more expensive than a 2.0 set-up.
As far as technical specifications are concerned, there are a few things you need to keep in mind:
1. Frequency Range
The human ear can hear sounds up to 20,000 Hz. The greater the frequency range of the computer speakers, the better the audio reproduction. Typically, a good system will have ratings from 10 Hz to 20,000 Hz, ensuring that you get the best rendition of low (bass) as well as high frequencies.
2. Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR)
Signal to Noise Ratio or SNR is a measurement of how much a signal has been corrupted by noise. To understand it in layman terms, think of it as the ratio of the amount of useful information (signal) passing through as compared to the useless bits (noise). The greater this ratio, the less the signal corruption.
All you need to understand is that higher SNR numbers translate into better audio reproduction. SNR is measured in decibels (dB). Speakers are typically rated at 65 dB, 75 dB, 90 dB, etc. You should try to get a speaker system with as high a SNR number as possible.
3. Audio Input
The best computer speakers should have a single pin audio input. They should be compatible with your laptop, iPod, desktop, etc.
4. Output Control
The best computer speakers would have buttons, knobs, etc. for controlling the audio built directly on the speakers themselves. These can range from knobs for controlling the bass, volume, treble, etc. along with power on/off buttons, etc.
5. Construction Material
Although your computer speakers aren't expected to take too much damage, you should nevertheless invest in something that can last you a few years. Higher quality speakers have woofers made out of denser materials like glass fiber, Kevlar, etc. This provides deeper, richer sound reproduction.
If your system has a woofer, it should ideally be housed in dense, thick wood for optimum performance.
6. Appearance
Appearance is something that varies from individual to individual. Remember that you'll spend a lot of time before your computer, staring at the speakers. Getting something that is visually pleasing should be a consideration, albeit a not too important one.
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