Filed under: Digital Cameras

We knew this bad boy was coming, we even got our grubby hands on the thing before it went public, and we’ve watched the D50s replacement finally get official all within the past few months. Now, however, the discerning folks over at ePhotoZine have subjected Nikon’s latest entry-level DSLR to a bevy of tests and deemed it quite the worthwhile successor. Reviewers immediately praised the build quality and smaller size, noting that this was the first DSLR they could “actually get it in a coat pocket comfortably.” Also, they were impressed with Nikon’s decision to stick with the 6.1-megapixel sensor, insinuating that newcomers to the DSLR world would appreciate “the savings in both hard disc storage and processing speed,” regardless of whether they even realized it. The crew found the D40 “easier to use” than its predecessor and admired the “useful additions” to in-camera abilities and menus, many derived from the more expensive D80 model. Noteworthy digs included the lack of a top LCD screen, a new battery that wouldn’t play nice with others in the range, and the fact that it only supports SWM motor lenses. Overall, the D40 sports improvements “all in the right areas,” and still provides a solid entrance into the endless world of DSLR shooting, and offers a great way to start wallowing out your savings account once you get addicted.

[Via Digital Photography Blog]

 

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Portable Audio

Since you can’t take your iJoy ZipConnect chair everywhere you go, OSIM has a portable solution to your “musical therapy” needs. Boasting a stylish enclosure and a pair of massage modules, the iGoGo DAP performed its therapeutic magic surprisingly well — once the kinks were worked out, that is. Reviewers at CNET were quick to praise the uniqueness of the device, but didn’t hesitate to knock the “disappointing monochromatic interface, meager 128MB of internal storage,” and the complete inability to play back any format besides MP3. While you can add a few more playlists via the MMC slot, they would’ve preferred a more expansion SD / CF option; furthermore, the player only mustered about 7 hours of battery life with massage mode in full effect. The crew noted that the “massagers suffered from frequent connection drops,” but when things went smoothly, they provided a “truly blissful and relaxing massage experience.” Still, for over $400 the iGoGo sports too many archaic features to be considered a true contender, and if relieving stress is your primary concern, you may be better off spending that coin in a day spa.

[Thanks, Ficky Rick]

 

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Filed under: Portable Audio

Now that the SkyFi3 is finally on the market and presumably safe from the RIAA / FCC, Delphi’s jack-of-all-trades has been deemed a success — at least mostly, anyway. The folks over at CNET were able to give the portable XM recorder / DAP hybrid a thorough once over, and they were fairly impressed with its functionality, but less than thrilled with its build quality and lack of an integrated receiver. Reviewers admired the “expansive and bright 2.8-inch display,” 30 minutes of XM recording capacity, and the ability to playback your own MP3 / WMA files via the built-in microSD slot. It was noted, however, that the “budget build quality” left a lot to be desired, and the inability to listen to XM on the go without purchasing the “optional goofy headphones” was certainly not a strong point. The player, while not perfect, did perform as advertised, and was deemed a “flexible solution for home, car, and on the go for those who don’t want to spend big bucks.” But if you’re looking to spend more time tuning in to XM Live on your daily run than in your daily commute, you may want to consider the lackluster “90 minute” battery life (when utilizing that oh-so-draining headphone receiver) before throwing down.

 

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

The Panasonic DMP-BD10 is the second standalone Blu-ray player to become available, not quite making its expected September launch but sneaking onto store shelves near you this month. Was it worth the wait and/or the $1,300 price tag? Compared to the Samsung BD-P1000 player, reviewers note a slightly better picture quality and load times, plus excellent audio output. It doesn’t support next-gen lossless audio codecs like Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD out of the box but, those are promised for a future firmware update. Negatives include a clunky remote and lack of BD-Live connectivity that will be present in the PlayStation 3. This player appears to do the same 1080p to 1080i to 1080p conversion present in the Samsung, so if 1080p/24 output is a must, it’s a pass. Still, with EZ-SYNC HDMI control to matching SA-XR700 receiver and flat panel HDTV, if you must have the best Blu-ray hardware available — at least until Sony and Pioneer’s offerings hit the street — the DMP-BD10 is ready to give it to you.

Read - Panasonic DMP-BD10 Blu-ray Disc Player - Canada Hifi
Read - Panasonic DMP-BD10 Blu-Ray Player - Home Theater Forum

 

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BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time

Filed under: Cellphones

We figure peeps who’ve placed their orders through Verizon’s site for Motorola’s new gotta-have-it clamshell need a little reading material to pass the time while they wait for the good folks in the shipping industry to make their phones materialize — so without further ado, we present PC Magazine’s take on the Motorola K1m MOTOKRZR (pictured right). While the K1m is undoubtedly a fabulous-looking flip, PC Mag seems to share the same brooding, mildly pessimistic view we do: it’s essentially a V3m in a narrower, shinier package. On the plus side, the new dimensions apparently make the phone both easier and more comfortable to hold against the ear, battery life is top-notch with just over five hours of tested talk time, and the microSD slot means many owners will be able to carry over their investments in memory expansion from prior phones. Sadly, signal strength doesn’t quite match that of its older sibling, and the UI is typical Verizon fare — no Flash here, a la the VX8500 Chocolate — though it does share the Chocolate’s tricky-to-use touch sensitive controls. In the end, it seems the K1m ends up setting the standard once again for mobile industrial design, while simultaneously managing to fall further behind in the spec sheet race.

 

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SPONSORED BY: BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time.

Filed under: Desktops, Media PCs

While rumors were a swirlin’ in the days leading up to Apple’s “It’s Showtime” event, one thing we didn’t exactly forecast was a refresh in the Mac mini lineup. Nevertheless, Apple bumped its most minuscule Macs by tossing in Intel Core Duo processors, while leaving just about everything else (including price points) the same. In case you’ve been dreaming up a homegrown media center or recording studio, and need to know if the revamped mini would fit the bill, Macworld’s review crew has the scoop. Reviewers admired the inclusion of Core Duo chips in both high and low-end models, the built-in WiFi / Bluetooth, and the “admirable” Front Row performance. Aside from praising the small footprint (and the “impressive versatility” it allowed), they found the “10 to 15 percent” performance boost quite helpful in the typical media center related tasks, but (as expected) didn’t hesitate to slam the weak integrated Intel GMA 950 graphics set. Overall, the speedier new Mac earned a 4 out of 5 ranking, and was deemed an “excellent, fully-featured system” — so be sure and hit the read link for the complete critique on the this maxed-out mini.

 

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SPONSORED BY: BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time.

Filed under: Desktops

If you’re still fence sitting on whether or not the 24-inch iMac would appropriately fill the gaping expanse on your desk, and the unboxing photos, impressive Core 2 Duo benchmarks, and promise of “upgradable graphics” haven’t convinced you just yet, maybe a full-fledged review will relieve the hemming and the hawing. PCMag has given Apple’s biggest all-in-one about as much praise as any glossy white device can handle, while finding little to harp negatively upon; reviewers were quick to espouse the machine’s prowess in nearly every aspect imaginable, calling it “a system that photo, video, music and even graphics enthusiasts could love.” More specifically, they admired the brightly lit LCD, “zippy” performance in OS X, better than expected gaming performance (in Windows XP, of course), and tight Front Row integration. The only notable digs were it’s sluggish 3D results in OS X (surprise, surprise) and the disappointing lack of a built-in flash card reader or TV tuner. Regardless, PCMag handed out a 4.5 out of 5 rating (along with an Editor’s Choice award), and proudly stated that returning their test unit would be tough — so if you still aren’t swayed, hit the read link for the full rundown.

 

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SPONSORED BY: BOLD MOVES: THE FUTURE OF FORD A new documentary series. Be part of the transformation as it happens in real-time.

Filed under: Peripherals, Storage

If you need to store 25GB of data on a single disc, and you need it done (relatively) fast, LG’s GBW-H10N offers up single-layer Blu-ray burning at a currently unprecedented 4x speed. Sure, there’s a few other options out there, but this 3-in-1 offering sports a write speed that’s twice as quick as the BenQ BW1000. As tough as these things have been to actually locate, the fine folks over at HardwareZone were able to get their hands on a unit and give it a good once over. The burner performed essentially as advertised, but the speediness came with a tradeoff — while you can burn a myriad of formats ranging from CD-R / RW, DVD±R / RW, DVD±R DL, DVD-RAM, and BD-R, you won’t be able to make use of those super spacious 50GB dual-layer BD-R discs. While the 4x label may be the primary selling point, the biggest boon was said to be its compatibility with a smorgasbord of media; many first-run Blu-ray burners have been annoyingly picky, but playing nice with basically every brand of media is quite a nice perk for the LG. By garnering a “very good” rating, the GBW-H10N proved to be a satisfactory solution for those who can live without BD-R DL capability, but your time should probably be worth a good bit of money (upwards of $700) before you pull the trigger on this one.

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Filed under: Desktops, Gaming

It’s not often that you read a review of a computer with a line like “You could kill someone with this thing,” but the folks at bit-tech.net got to write that gem in their look at Dell’s new gaming-oriented XPS 700, referring to the deadly-looking 3-millimeter thick piece of aluminum that forms the case’s side panel. Unfortunately, they weren’t as impressed with the system’s performance as they were with its decapitating potential, finding it decidedly lacking when put up against their comparable custom-built rig — although much of the blame seems to be pegged on the slow memory that Dell ships with the XPS. Still, they did find the system got most of the core elements right and delivered decent gaming performance at a reasonable price; given the cost of upgrades from Dell, though, they recommend going light on the memory and video card options when you order and swapping them out yourself when you get this sucker home.

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Filed under: Digital Cameras

After months of teasing, sifting through tons of officially unofficial deets, finally getting some good pics of the camera itself, and being envious of all those previewers who got their grubby hands on this beauty before anyone else, the dust has begun to settle and the verdicts are out. It probably doesn’t come as a surprise that the Nikon D80 DSLR is essentially everything we hoped for, and the bottom line seems to be that this digicam borrows a myriad of features from the wallet-abusing D200, but won’t force you to refinance your home (well, hopefully not) in order to own one. For the Nikon faithful, this one’s a no-brainer, but for those without any particular allegiance, it probably wouldn’t hurt to give Sony’s Alpha A100 a once over, considering its noteworthy bonuses — such as the Super SteadyShot and anti-dust features that you won’t find on the D80 — before pulling the trigger. Nevertheless, reviewers are (practically) unanimous in giving their recommendations to this camera, especially at the sub-$1,000 (sans lens kit) price, but comb these reviews with your own discerning eyes before jumping on (or off) the D80 bandwagon yourself.

Read - HardwareZone
Read - Imaging Resource
Read - CNET
Read - ePhotoZine
Read - Nikonians

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Filed under: Handhelds

If those unboxing pics weren't enough for ya, we've now got a review of TabletKiosk's eo V7110 UMPC with plenty more pics for your perusal, courtesy of TabletPC2.com. For the most part, they liked what they found, especially the unit's great screen, light weight, and well-designed button layout. But they also found that the main criticism of most UMPCs also applies here, namely, the lackluster battery life. In always-on mode, the V7110 conked out after just an hour and thirty-nine minutes -- improving slightly to just over two hours in normal use -- making the optional extended battery pack pretty much essential. Or you could, you know, wait 'till the UMPC manufacturers get their acts together -- Vistagami, anyone?

[Via UMPC Buzz]

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Filed under: Gaming, Laptops

While Alienware is a name commonly spoken in any high-end notebook discussion, its managed to mingle in less elite crowds by offering more financially manageable options. The Area 51 m5500 is a mid-range laptop with all the “prestigious styling cues” associated with the company, but lacks some of the bleeding-edge hardware found in the upper-echelon offerings. Reghardware’s review model was actually a scaled-down version of the current machine (albeit with the same price), but it still performed fairly admirably. The finalized units will receive an Intel Core Duo processor, 1GB of RAM, either a Mobility Radeon X1400 or a GeForce Go 7600 with 256MB of RAM, 100GB SATA HD, a DVD-playing CD burner, a 15.4-inch display sporting a 1,920 x 1,200 resolution, a trio of USB 2.0 ports, a FireWire connector, and the standard wireless suite (WiFi and Bluetooth). The subtle beast faired well considering the tame innards required to hit the £899 (and up) price point; the biggest gripes came from the weak battery life (1:30-2:00) and the rubber grips atop the lid that “added unnecessary weight,” but it’s possible the bragging rights you’ll gain would far outweigh any extra pounds they add. If you’re scouting a gaming laptop, there’s definitely a world of options, but if you need that element of extraterrestrial distinction to set you apart from the rest, the m5500 will be landing in August.

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Filed under: Laptops, Wireless

If you’re all worked up wondering if someone got their hands on the “$5,000 limited edition” version, you can calm down a bit. Nevertheless, we’re thrilled to finally see a review on the self-proclaimed “world’s most desirable laptop” even if it focuses on the slightly less expensive versions. The 2.2-pound Q2010 fared well, according to Laptop Mag, who praised the notebook’s styling cues and fresh looks, but frowned upon the cramped keyboard and atrocious battery life (1:39). This isn’t the first Fujitsu to draw complaints about a lack of juice, and it seems to be its all-too-common achilles heel on otherwise solid products. Amongst the specs on the low-end model is the 12.1-inch 1280 x 800 screen, which has a gorgeous glossy finish, and under the (”world’s thinnest”) hood is a meager 1.2GHz Intel Core Solo, 512MB of RAM, 30GB hard drive, WiFi, Bluetooth, and a space-hampered offering of ports with just two USB 2.0, one FireWire, and an SD reader. Higher-end versions keep the costs heading upwards by including 1GB of RAM and up to an 80GB HD. It’s worth noting that you can nearly triple your battery life by throwing in a $179 extended battery that pokes from the rear and adds 9 ounces of bulk, and you won’t have an optical drive without an external add-on or attaching the $299 docking solution (notice a trend?). The Q2010 is impressively thin at only 3/4-inches, but $1,999+ seems to be a bit much based on specs alone, but as we’ve seen before, style can come with a premium pricetag.

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Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

Being an early-adopter is risky business -- especially when the product in question costs $1,000 and is embroiled in a so-called format war -- so the opinions of experienced reviewers are key in helping folks to decide whether or not to take the Blu-ray plunge, and whether Samsung's BD-P1000 is the machine to do it with. Luckily PCMag has a thorough write-up which not only discusses the merits and detriments of the player itself, but looks at the format as a whole to determine what type of consumer would actually benefit from next-gen optical devices in the first place. The review basically boils down to this: if you have a high definition TV larger than 42-inches, then you'll definitely notice a difference between Blu-ray and standard or upscaled DVDs, and the Samsung does a good job delivering the picture quality that Blu-ray is capable of. However, this particular reviewer also feels that Toshiba's HD-A1 HD DVD player -- at half the price -- has a slight edge in the picture department, although the P1000's uncompressed audio and ease-of-setup are judged to be superior. Ultimately the decision comes down to personal preferences, so you'll probably want to give both devices a thorough going-over at the store (even if you're buying online); as for us, we're just hoping that Ricoh gets that dual format laser out the door poste haste, so we never have to make a choice at all.

[Via Digital Media Thoughts]

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Filed under: Handsets, Reviews, Samsung, Windows Mobile, GSM, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS

Slim, wide, full keyboard-packin' WM5 Smartphones might be out and about this side of the pond, but our European friends have yet to get in on the Motorola Q -- making Samsung's release of the i320 even more interesting for them, not to suggest there aren't a few Americans that'll be reading PPCReviews' first impression with bated breath. Unfortunately, the outcome isn't exactly a love fest, with the reviewers knocking the i320's sluggish response, odd speakerphone positioning, under-battery microSD slot and lackluster camera. On the positive side, well, it's a WM5 Smartphone with a full keyboard if you're into that sort of thing, and the QVGA display gets high marks. They were also a bit confused about the inclusion of two batteries, suggesting that the i320 might eat some serious power. We'll wait for a couple more reviews before issuing a final judgment, but the HSDPA Q is looking better every day.

[Via Smartphone Thoughts]

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Filed under: Handsets, Reviews, HTC, Windows Mobile, GSM, UMTS