Nokia N95 8GB Mobile Phone Review
Thursday, October 30, 2008
In a world that is filling with touch screen mobile phones very quickly, I take a look at a well established fully featured handset in the shape of Nokia's N95. It might not have a touch screen, but it is packed full of goodies. Check out the video review below.
Product: Nokia N95 8GB
Price: Varies depending on contract (£339.99 sim free)
Supplied by: Nokia UK
Contact: 0800 331 6021
Labels: Mobile Phones, Reviews
HP also announce the Compaq Mini 700 Netbook
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
In a double whammy of announcements, HP also released details of the Compaq Mini 700. Featuring a sleek casing adorned with the new ‘Unity’ checked design, the Compaq Mini 700 is an eye-catching digital companion at an affordable price. The Compaq Mini PC offers an entertaining mobile Internet experience with a built-in webcam(2) and microphone, WLAN(3) , Bluetooth and optional WWAN(4), extending your social networking(2) opportunities and taking video chat(2) and video conferencing(6) from the home to places like the park, pool or airport.With a 10.2-inch diagonal BrightView display and a large keyboard, you can comfortably access the web for information(2), communication and entertainment from anywhere. The ease of use and light weight of the Compaq Mini 700 make it an excellent choice for students or professionals looking for a second PC. This little wonder is available as of mid-December at an estimated starting price of £299 inc. VAT.
(1) Weight will vary by configuration. (2) Internet access required and sold separately. (3) Wireless access point and internet access required and sold separately. Availability of public wireless access points limited. (4) Broadband use requires separately purchased service contract. Check with service provider for coverage and availability in your area. (5) HP Mini Mobile Drive available with SSD configuration only. (6) Requires a separately purchased Internet service and VOIP service contracts. (7) Actual price may vary by country.
Labels: General News
HP Announce Mini 1000 Netbook
HP today announced the HP Mini 1000 which has an exquisite onyx casing featuring a compact swirl design and a 10.2-inch widescreen display. At 25.2mm thin and weighing just 1.1kg(1), the sleek HP Mini 1000 melds striking form and function. With the Intel® Atom™ N270 processor, a choice of 8/16GB Solid State Drive (SSD), as well as a wealth of connectivity options including a built-in webcam(2), microphone, WLAN(3) and Bluetooth, the HP Mini 1000 is feature-rich as well as stylish. It will be available as of mid-February at an estimated starting price of £399 inc. VAT.HP is debuting a new Mobile Internet Experience software and HP MediaStyle on the HP Mini 1000, which enable one-stop entertainment through a single interface that lets you easily watch video, view photos, listen to music and more. The all-you-need dashboard interface allows you to split your desktop into your favourite categories such as Internet applications, websites, video, music, email and other content at your fingertips. The web section can be customised with your four favourite websites. All dashboard applications are always on, minimising start-up time with immediate access to Internet browsing, email, online video and video chat. Local storage conveniently lets you take your content with you offline.
An optional USB-based HP Mini Mobile Drive(5) enables up to 8GB of additional storage capacity and allows you to transport and retrieve personal documents, pictures and audio/video files.
(1) Weight will vary by configuration. (2) Internet access required and sold separately. (3) Wireless access point and internet access required and sold separately. Availability of public wireless access points limited. (4) Broadband use requires separately purchased service contract. Check with service provider for coverage and availability in your area. (5) HP Mini Mobile Drive available with SSD configuration only. (6) Requires a separately purchased Internet service and VOIP service contracts. (7) Actual price may vary by country.
Labels: General News
SendStation smartCharge Review for iPod & iPhone
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
If you need to keep your iPod, iPhone or other USB device charged whilst on the move, then this could well be the gadget for you. Check out the review of the SendStation smartCharge below.
Product: SendStation smartCharge
Price: $24.95 or €24.95
Supplied by: SendStation Systems
Contact: +49-69-94413841
Labels: Apple iPhone, Apple iPod, Reviews
MacLiveExpo 2008 London - Academy Class
Friday, October 24, 2008
If you need to brush up on your skills in one of the many print & design, web, CAD or perhaps video pro application, then you need to get yourself down to the MacLiveExpo. The guys and gals from Academy Class are their in force, giving a massive 50% discount on courses booked at the show. With training facilities at London, Manchester, Devon, Glasgow and Leeds they have pretty much all of the UK covered. You can check out their website or give them a call on 0800 043 8889.Labels: General News
MacLiveExpo 2008 London - Planet Video
Planet Video Systems had a massive stand at the MacLiveExpo and it certainly got my attention. They handle the distribution of a large range of products, amongst which was the very cost effective editBOX 4, which is a four disk SATA2 hard disk box. It looked very well built and offers an innovative port-multiplier and multi-lane technology. I was also amazed at the tiny dvBOX Portable, a minute multi-interface external hard drive. This little wonder offers USB2, FireWire 400 & 800 and eSATA connectivity. It is BUS powered, or externally powered and comes in sizes up to 320GB with 7200RPM drives. Last, but by no means least, CineBags... these are the bags to have if you carry around a lot of gear. Multiple compartments for hard drives, laptops, cameras, lenses and they felt really well made. Expect to see reviews of some of these products real soon.Labels: General News, Mac Peripherals
MacLiveExpo 2008 London - onOne Software
Of particular interest at the MacLiveExpo was the onOne Software stand, where they were giving video demonstrations of their superb software collection. They produce a range of plug-ins for Photoshop, Photoshop Elements and iPhoto, as well as products for Adobe Lightroom and Quark Xpress. Their Plug-in Suite 4 is a culimnation of all of the Photoshop plug-ins they produce, that enable you to manipulate your photo images with ease. FocalPoint, which is part of this bundle is of great interest to me. It gives the user the ability to create realistic depth of field in a photo, simply designating a sweet spot and tweaking the kind and intensity of blur. I am hoping to be able to bring you a series of reviews of onOne Software's products in due course.Labels: General News, Mac Software
MacLiveExpo 2008 London - MyGlove
There was certainly not a lot of iPod goodies at the MacLiveExpo 2008. Compared to last year, where the iPod and iPhone ruled, the only gem that stood out from the crowd was MyGlove. They were selling a range of iPod cases that are made from really supple leather. Each case looked really unique, with printed designs that were a nice refreshing change from the mainstream cases. Hopefully I will be able to bring you a video review of a couple of their cases soon.Labels: General News
MacLiveExpo 2008 - Gallery Photos
Thursday, October 23, 2008
As promised here is the gallery photos from the MacLiveExpo 2008 in London. All of the photos were taken with the Ricoh GX200 digital camera. The majority of which were taken with the GX200's square format mode. This is ideally suited for the Geekanoids website, as the square format not only looks superb, but also means that the images do not need to be cropped before uploading them. A full review will appear of the Ricoh GX200 in a couple of weeks, but early impressions of this compact unit are very good. It handles very well and performed admirably with the awkward lighting in the exhibition hall. (click the link at the end of this article to see the full gallery). This gallery is sponsored by Clifton Cameras.
Labels: General News
MacLiveExpo 2008 London - Event Roundup
The MacLiveExpo 2008 started today in London and this time around you will find a different event. It is being held in association with CreativePro and LinuxLive, so on the show floor there is a much wider variety of exhibitors. Whether or not you think this is a good thing really depends on your main area of interest. Apple fans may well come away disappointed, with Mac exhibitors and resellers somewhat lacking. There are a few gems to be found, but that Mac feel has been lost. However, the diverse range of stands means that you may well discover something new, perhaps a flavour of Linux may take your fancy.Of interest to myself were the likes of Academy Class, who have some very special show offers. Adobe had a great presence, with the new Creative Suite 4 being shown. Konica Minolta also had their 4650 laser printer on display, that could be picked up for a fantastic £260 from Cancom with a free 160GB Formac hard drive thrown in for free. Iomega also had their full range of storage devices lined up. These included their ultra smooth and stylish eGo Helium 320GB hard drive, that looks so curvy and matches the MacBook Air perfectly. Other stands of interest included Planet Video, MyGlove and onOne Software all of which I will cover in separate articles.
Labels: General News
MacLiveExpo 2008 Starts Tomorrow
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
My annual trip down to the Olympia National Hall in Kensington, London starts tomorrow for this years MacLiveExpo. This year it is running in conjunction with CreativeProExpo and LinuxLiveExpo for a combination of the latest technological treats. With the likes of Adobe, Canon, Iomega and Samsung there, we are sure to be in for a treat.Geekanoids sponsor Academy Class will also be at the exhibition, so I will be sure to bring you some news of their latest offerings. Plenty of photo opportunities no doubt, and this year we have a new sponsor... Clifton Cameras and Ricoh and supplying a Ricoh GX200 digital camera, which will be used to take all of the exhibition photos. I will be testing this camera's abilities throughout the show and reporting back to you all with 'gallery photos' and a full review of the GX200 over the coming weeks.
Labels: General News
Naked Case for iPhone Review
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Here is something a little different. If you have an iPhone, many cases leave the screen exposed. This smart case from Case-mate solves that problem. Check out the video review below.
Product: Naked Case for iPhone (& iPhone 3G)
Price: $29.99 - $34.99
Supplied by: Case-mate
Contact: +1 (866) 689-3432
Labels: Apple iPhone, Reviews
Creative Zen X-Fi Leather Case Review
Monday, October 20, 2008
Having used the Creative Zen X-Fi (16GB) for almost a month now, I wanted to let you know about the leather case that is available for the unit. The video review of the Zen X-Fi MP3 player is in production right now, so should be on the website in the next couple of weeks.I want to kick this review off on a very positive note, that this case is a lot better than the silicone case that is also for sale. It is slightly more expensive at £14.99 but is made from a nice quality black leather. It just feels so much more worthy of the price tag.
Open the case up and simply slot your en X-Fi in via the opening on the left side. There are cut-outs in the case so that the main controls remain accessible. Of note, the SD card slot has no cut-out, so to access this you have to remove the X-Fi from the case. This is not much of a problem, as in my opinion the SD card does not get changed all that often. The screen and all of the main control buttons are not covered when the case is open. Yet again, as with Creative's silicone case, no film type screen protector is provided.
The front flap is nice, no padding, but it is hardened with card inside. The inside of this flap has a nice soft finish, with a logo embedded into it it. The outside of the front has nine little circles on it, just a styling touch, they have no actual function. This flap snaps shut with a magnetic closure and provides nice protection to the X-Fi when it is not in use. This is a very nice case and will serve you very well to protect your little gem.
Product: Creative Zen X-Fi Leather Case
Price: £15.99 MSRP (£14.99 average)
Supplied by: Creative Europe
Contact: 0800 376 7954
Labels: MP3 accessories
Asus Eee PC 901 Video Review
Thursday, October 16, 2008
If you want a laptop (or should I say mini sized netbook) that is even smaller than the recently announced MacBook, then check this Asus Eee PC 901 out. Although it is not anywhere near as powerful as Apple's offering, it does give you access to a very very small and useful machine. Ideal as a 'take anywhere' and 'chuck in your bag' affair. Check out the video review below.
Product: Asus Eee PC 901 (16GB SSD, Linux)
Price: £282 (Amazon)
Supplied by: Asus UK
Contact: 0870 120 8340
Video sponsored by Adagio Teas Europe
Labels: PC Hardware, Reviews
Engadget posts video of MacBook Pro Multi-touch Trackpad
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
The title says it all really, with this early dieo posted by Engadget showing the MacBook Pro's new trackpad. Wow, that baby is large.
Labels: Apple News, MacBook Pro
Geekanoids News #010 - 15th October 2008
Here is the second of my news update videos for you today (2 of 2). Covering the MacBook Air and Apple Cinema Display in the October 14th announcements by Steve Jobs.
Labels: General News
Geekanoids News #009 - 15th October 2008
Apple announced all those lovely new products yesterday... here is my video update (1 of 2) on the details and my further thoughts on the new MacBook and MacBook Pro. The second video covering the MacBook Air and new Cinema Display should be online shortly.
Labels: General News
My thoughts - New Apple Products 14th October 2008
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
No doubt you have learnt about the slew of new notebook products launched by Apple tonight. We have a revised MacBook Air for starters. Then there is a complete redesign of the MacBook and MacBook Pro. Thrown in for good measure, a new Cinema Display that matches the current iMac, almost a mirror image.Exactly what I think of these announcements echoes itself in the last two words from my introductory paragraph above "mirror image". I have a 24-inch iMac, a lovely machine. Superb design, wonderful feel to it, brilliant power. The display is fantastic too, but it does annoy me when I can see my face in it. Maybe because I am not an adonis, but more likely I want to only see what I happen to be working on at the time.
When the MacBook was originally introduced, I got one. No sooner had I got the MacBook, I had the opportunity to get a matte screen MacBook Pro. Happy days again, with a professional display. Never have I looked back and yearned for a glossy MacBook display, nor trading my Pro in for the mirrored screen version.
What worries me about these new product announcements is centred solely around the screen. It is acceptable for the MacBook, but for the MacBook Pro it is insane. Users need to quickly snap up remaining stock or purchase the 17-inch version, which is the only one to remain matte.
The new Cinema Display looks superb too. Being an iMac owner, I may well get one, as it would match perfectly. Thousands of design studios though, will not be at all happy. The new display is a consumer or prosumer product, it does not serve the professional market at all.
That said, all of the new products are stunning. Greatly enhanced, superb graphic abilities, nice trackpad, more rigid, lots of positives. I just feel the pro market is being left behind for mass market appeal.
Labels: Opinion
The Authors
Dave
Dave has been in the graphic design industry for 14 years. Long time reviewer of technology related products, he is Owner/Editor of Geekanoids.
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This site covers all the latest Macintosh, technology & gadget related news. We also bring our readers thorough, unbiased reviews of computer software, hardware & peripherals, with some alternative products thrown into the mix.
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