The folks at eHomeUpgrade have posted an article about an upcoming all-in-one system from Pelham Sloane which will feature Windows Media Center. The system is entirely housed inside the flat panel model. The screen size is 17 inches and the chassis measures a mere 2-3/4 inch thick. It’s even a touchscreen which makes this system an excellent addition to the kitchen if you ask me. It’s got loads of features so check out the eHomeUpgrade posting for more info.
Â
Toshiba launches world’s first HD DVD player
Toshiba began rolling out the world’s first HD DVD player today in Japan. The new Toshiba players beat out Sony’s introduction of Blu-ray DVD players by a few months although it remains to be seen if there is enough content out there yet. I actually saw references to the new HD DVD players in a catalog that I received in the mail from OneCall.com. Toshiba plans on rolling out two new HD DVD players – the HD-XA1 and the HD-A1. The players are coming out in Japan first and will be available in the US starting next month. You can already see the players on the OneCall website here (we have no affiliation with this company – I just like them because they’ve always been reliable to me)
Â
Toshiba launches new Satellite A105 notebooks
Toshiba has launched several new Satellite A105 based notebooks which can be configured with a wide array of features. The A105 come in prices ranging from sub 900 dollars to high end systems running Windows Media Center. The A105’s come with a 15.4 inch widescreen display and typically include:
You can configure the notebook to use either the Intel Core Solo or Core Duo processor or a Celeron M processor for the low end. The lowest priced system comes in at $899.99 and uses the Intel Celeron M processor with 100GB HDD. On the high end, you can get an Intel Core Duo processor with 120GB HDD, a finger print reader, harman kardon speakers, and Windows Media Center for $1399.99.
Microsoft begins licensing some hardware technologies
With Microsoft Vista delayed till next year, Microsoft’s gotta start making additional money somehow right? Well guess what – they’ve begun licensing some of their hardware technologies to other hardware vendors. Yup – many of you may not realize this but Microsoft actually has a decent collection of hardware devices including keyboards, mice, and joysticks. So what’s being licensed? Their “U2″ interface which autosenses either a PS2 or a USB connector; their “tilt wheel” technology found in their latest keyboards; and their “magnifier” feature which zooms to a specific area on the screen. The suckers.. ahem.. I mean the hardware manufactures that have signed on include: Accrox, Fellowes, KYE, and Targus.
HP Compaq Presario V5000Z Review
LaptopMag posted a review of the HP Compaq Presario V5000Z here on their website. The V5000Z is a middle of the road notebook which uses the AMD Turion64 processor clocked at 2GHz. We have a couple of HP Compaq Presario laptops at my work place and I must say that they’re fairly impressive. Other specs on the V5000Z include:
The verdict:
For users who are torn between a powerful desktop replacement and an efficient thin-and-light, the V5000Z is a decent compromise. As long as you can live with less than three hours of battery life, you’ll be pleased with this value-priced portable.
Media Center PC’s using the Intel Viiv platform
Are you curious about the new Intel Viiv platform designed for home theater environments? Well PC Magazine rounded up several Viiv enabled PC’s designed for the Microsoft Media Center OS here on their website. Systems looked at include:
HP Pavilion Media Center TV m7360n PC
Sony Vaio VGC-RC210G
Polywell Poly 975MCE-Extreme
Â
So which system won the editor’s choice? Well it was the HP system – here’s the verdict:
The HP Pavilion Media Center TV m7360n PC snags an Editor’s Choice by virtue of its great feature set, relatively low price, and virtually unlimited storage options.
Motorola HT820 Bluetooth Stereo Headset Review
LegitReviews has posted a review of the Motorola HT820 Bluetooth Stereo Headset here on their website. The HT820 is designed to pair with both a Bluetooth enabled mobile phone and an audio device. An audio device could be a PC, laptop, or an AV system. In order for you to work with an AV system, you’ll ideally want to get the DC800 from Motorola which provides Bluetooth capabilities to a A/V system. Just pair the headset and the DC800 and you’ll be able to stream stereo sound wirelessly to your head. The great thing? When you get an incoming call on your phone, you’ll be able to kick out of the audio and pick up the call without missing a beat. Here’s the verdict from LegitReviews.com:
The Motorola HT820 is a great stereo headset with a street price of $100. It is built for the future supporting AVRCP and A2DP Bluetooth protocols so that a user can listen to stereo sound from either their cellular phone or personal computer. Unfortunately, these protocols are “coming attractions†and to get anywhere close to full wireless stereo functionality, one must look at getting at least $60 worth of accessories in either the DC800 or PC850. Users of the Treo 650 need not apply.
Â
so yes.. I’m still trying to recover
As you can tell, Krunker.com is suffering from lack of news and that of course means our traffic is down. What that also means is that, I’ve been soooo busy with stuff. So what exactly have I been up to recently? Well first off, it’s exactly ONE month until my wedding. WOOO HOOO! That’s right folks – one more month and I will no longer be a bachelor. Of course, given that I am currently engaged and about to be married, my friends had to hold me a bachelor party in … LAS VEGAS no less.
Yes… what happens in Vegas… stays in Vegas. Ha! Seriously though, there wasn’t much to talk about anyhow. A lot of clubbing, drinking and well.. more clubbing. Lots of fun overall though. Around the bachelor party was a ton of work for my company (I work for a machine translation company called Language Weaver). Things have been utterly hectic there as well so all of my projects for Krunker.com have come to a standstill. Bare with me though because after the wedding and honeymoon is over, we’re gonna get into full swing with reporting, and all sorts of goodies. Let’s see if I can end March on a good note here shall we?
Real World Testing of $900 LCDs
I’ll preface this by saying yes.. it’s been over a week since I last posted here at Krunker – and yes I’ve been SUPPPPERRRR BUSY – but more on that later on. On to some tech news shall we (and man, I have a LOT to catch up on).
So have you been noticing the drop in LCD prices recently? You can get a decent sized LCD television set these days for under a grand but how decent performing are these sets anyhow? Well Robert Heron over at PC Magazine decided to check out some sub 1000 dollar units available from brick and mortar stores – you can find the writeup here on the PC Magazine website. Not only does Robert look at several units, he takes a look at the stores that he purchased the units from ( now I want THAT job! ). So what was the verdict? Well it looks like they liked the Proview RX-326 the most.
Never lose track of your items with the MicroTRAK SlimTRAK
Are you sick of trying to figure out where your luggage is once you land at some destination? Do you wonder where your kids are when they’re out at night? Do you just feel like tracking something?? ANYTHING? Well MicroTRAK has a product for you – it’s called the SlimTRAK GPS Location Tracking Device and it’s the smallest and most portable device from MicroTRAK yet.
The device fits in the palm of your hand and can be used to locate a wide variety of items. Inside the SlimTRAK is a proprietary GPRS technology which allows you to track the location of its whereabouts via an online service. The SlimTRAK also features support from a backend infrastructure enhanced by Perot Systems as well as a global digital wireless network with real time tracking on the net.
So, if you’re just sick of worrying about where your checked luggage is, why don’t you check out one of these bad boys?
 [Check it out]
Krunker.com logo designed by Lydia Chung. Based on the original design downloaded from WPThemes.Info. Krunker.com is a division of Krunker Media.
