Samsung SE-S204S TruDirect 20X, this USB 2.0 external drive from Samsung is a full-featured DVD burner. It’s compatible with Windows 2000/XP/Vista and all types of DVDs and CDs.
The key part of the package is TruDirect, which is included software that can turn incoming video directly into DVDs in real time. That is, when it works. TruDirect generated frequent and varied errors for me in both WinXP and Vista. Some of the errors only showed up after transferring an hour’s worth of video, wasting that much of my time here on earth.
Forget the version 1.0 on the included CD—download the latest version of TruDirect from the Software Download page of www.samsungodd.com/eng. After you connect the drive to your computer, install TruDirect. After a reboot or two, connect your camcorder to your PC.
TruDirect has a simple but decent DVD menu maker. It also can make movie discs using existing video clips on your hard drive, as well as slideshow DVDs using photo files. The latter are extremely basic, as TruDirect won’t let you choose your photo order, let alone add background music or transitions.
With a bit more debugging from Samsung, SE-S204S TruDirect could make this drive a compelling buy. The drive does also come with Nero Express 7 and other applications, which make up for the things TruDirect lacks. Then again, so does almost any $35 internal DVD burner.
The trouble with most headphones is that they really don’t have enough oomph in the bass department. Love the trend or hate it, today’s popular music really makes use of bass to help you get your groove on (and, unfortunately, rattle your windows as a “boom car” drives by so slowly, it’s almost loitering). Likewise,
movies punctuate the falling down and blowing up of large objects with chestbuzzing bass, thanks to your home theater system’s subwoofer.
It’s true that it’s physically difficult to reproduce very low frequencies with speakers small enough to fit in earcup-style headphones (let alone earbuds), but Genius pulls it off with its GHP-05 Live. These inexpensive headphones are nice and comfortable, thanks to their thick, velvetcovered pads. The headset has a lengthy cord, plus an extension cable.Genius thoughtfully included detents and marks in the headstrap band, so it’s easy to return it to your favorite settings if the adjustment gets off-kilter.
The GHP-05 Live ’phones sound really good when their batteries are fresh. Their DRD True3D Sound processing and respectable speakers do an admirable job of pumping out deep bass, right-next-to-you midrange sound, and clean treble. The remarkable thing is that the GHP-05 Live’s emphasized bass doesn’t seem out of place. It doesn’t walk all over the mids and highs; in fact, no part of the songs and movies I listened to seemed too loud, too soft, or muddled.
On the downside, it only took about eight to 10 hours for fresh batteries to wear down enough to give the audio a buzzy edge (this happened to me several times). Also, if you carry these phones in a bag or a backpack, their pushbutton power switch can accidentally turn on. And if the two AAA batteries wear down, you won’t be able to hear a thing through the headphones. If you plan to use the GHP-05 Live every day, better invest in some batteries you can recharge overnight.
Garmin’s nüvi 250 isn’t the cheapest GPS (global positioning system) unit on the block, but it is portable (and pocketable), thanks to its small, slim design.
The nüvi 250’s bright screen displays your route, lists nearby POIs (points of interest), and indicates the time you’ll arrive at your destination. Unlike some older GPS units I’ve used, the nüvi 250 has a strident (and adjustable) speaker that I can easily hear over the car’s radio.
This model’s voice doesn’t say street names, but it tells you when to turn. It’s a very handy navigation tool.
Specifications
| Unit dimensions, WxHxD: |
3.8″W x 2.8″H x .8″D (9.7 x 7.1 x 2 cm) |
| Display size, WxH: |
2.8″W x 2.1″H (7.2 x 5.4 cm); 3.5″ diag (8.9 cm) |
| Display resolution, WxH: |
320 x 240 pixels |
| Display type: |
QVGA color antiglare TFT with white backlight |
| Weight: |
5.2 ounces (147.42 g) |
| Battery: |
rechargeable lithium-ion |
| Battery life: |
up to 5 hours |
| Waterproof: |
no |
| High-sensitivity receiver: |
yes |
| RoHS version available: |
yes |
Maps & Memory:
|
| Basemap: |
yes |
| Preloaded maps: |
yes |
| Ability to add maps: |
yes |
| Built-in memory: |
internal solid state |
| Accepts data cards: |
SD™ card (not included) |
| Waypoints/favorites/locations: |
500 |
| Routes: |
0 |
Printing high-quality pictures and other content at home is a given, but doing it on the road is a mixed bag because most mobile printers make substantial sacrifices to accommodate a smaller product size. Canon has addressed this challenge for years, and its latest mobile printer goes a long way toward bridging the gap.
The Pixma iP100 Mobile Printer boasts a color resolution of up to 9,600 x 2,400dpi (dots per inch) and a minimum one-picoliter droplet size. The printer includes two black inks—a pigment- based black for printing sharp text and a black for printing photos. Canon also has increased the size of the pigment-based black ink tank by 50%.
Auto Image Fix technology, which the company claims is a Canon first in the mobile printer realm, automatically analyzes and categorizes the scenes in photographs and then optimizes printing for each scene in relation to the scene type, such as Portrait, Scenery, Snapshot, or others.
The iP100 has print speeds of up to 20 pages per minute for black and 14 pages per minute for color. It also can print borderless photo prints in 4- x 6-, 4- x 8-, 5- x 7-, and 8- x 10-inch sizes, along with letter size.
Also included are a PictBridge port and an IrDA (Infrared Data Association) port. Optional components
include the $49.99 BU-30 Bluetooth Unit and the $99.99 LK-62 lithium-ion battery.
Specifications
| Printer Type |
Photo Printer |
| Print Speed (up to) |
Black: Up to 20 ppm (as fast as 3.0 seconds per page)2
Color: Up to 14 ppm (as fast as 4.3 seconds per page)
Postcard Size: 4″ x 6″ borderless photo: approx. 50 seconds |
| Number of Nozzles |
Nozzles: Black:320
Color:1,536
Total:1,856 |
| Print Resolution (Up to) |
Black: 600 x 600 dpi1
Color: 9600 x 2400 dpi1 |
| OS Compatibility |
Windows Vista™, Windows XP/2000 and Mac OS® X v.10.3.9 to 10.5.x7 |
| Standard Interface |
PictBridge (Cable not included)5, USB 2.0 Hi-Speed, IrDA, Bluetooth® v2.0 + EDR4(optional) |
| Paper Sizes |
Credit Card (2.13″ x 3.39″), 4″ x 6,” 4″ x 8,” 5″ x 7,” 8″ x 10,” Letter, Legal, U.S. #10 Envelopes, Photo Stickers |
| Noise Level (Approx.) |
38.5 dB(A) in the best quality mode |
| Physical Dimensions |
12.7″(W) x 2.4″(H) x 7.2″(D) |
| Weight |
4.4 lbs. |
| Power Consumption |
9W (1.5W Standby) |
| Warranty |
Toll-free technical phone support plus 1 year limited warranty with InstantExchange program.8 |
| Software Included |
CD-ROM including Printer Driver, Setup Software and User’s Guide, Easy-PhotoPrint EX |
Price: $249.99;
Website : www.usa.canon.com)
Once upon a time, 22- and 24-inch LCD monitors were rare in home computing environments, but now they’re becoming commonplace as prices perpetually drop. But that doesn’t mean you can no longer own a 24-inch model that makes your neighbor’s jaw drop.
BenQ’s new V2400W ($499; www.benq.com) is the “world’s slimmest” 24-inch widescreen LCD, according to the company, and it’s intended to target the “sophisticated, stylish consumer.” To be certain, this is no ordinary-looking monitor, as BenQ used the asymmetry and aerodynamic curves of the B-2 stealth bomber as the design inspiration, which is an overall effort the company calls Kinergy Design.
The V2400W is 2.44 inches at it thickest point, which BenQ claims is 21% slimmer than the next-thinnest LCD monitor. On the technical side, the monitor features a resolution of 1,920 x 1,200 pixels, 4,000:1 contrast ratio, 2ms (millisecond) response time, 160-degree viewing angle, and full 1080p HD (high-definition) support. Also included are five preset modes that help to optimize viewing with onebutton touch; these include Dynamic, Photo, Standard, Movie, and sRGB.
Specifications
- Screen Size : 24.0″ Wide
- Product Color : Glossy
- Resolution : 1920×1200 (WUXGA)
- Pixel Pitch : 0.27 mm
- Brightness : 250 cd
- Contrast Ratio :1000:1 (Typ.), 4000:1 (DCR)
- Response Time : 5ms / 2ms(GTG)
- Display Area : 518.5×324 (mm)
- Display Color : 16.7 million
- Viewing Angle : 160 / 160
- Input Signals : D-sub / DVI-D/ HDMI/ Earphone
- Horizontal Frequency : 31~83 (KHz)
- Vertical Frequency : 55~76 (Hz)
- Video Bandwidth : 25~135 (MHz)
- Color Temperature : Reddish / sRGB / Bluish / User mode
- Power Consumption : 55W (max)
- Power Supply : Built-in
- Adjustments : Tilt (down/ up) -5 / 20
- Dimensions : 563.8×369.4×191.7 (HxWxD mm)
- Weight : 6.7 KG
- Accessories (Standard) : VGA signal cable
- Vista Certification : Premium