Hardware – Page 7

There’s a TV for that – Samsung’s Connected TV message

July 12, 2010July 14, 2010 Doug Groves Connected TV, LinkStick, Samsung, Samsung Apps1 Comment

First shown off at CES back in January, it appears that Samsung is ready to make a huge push in the TV market with their web applications on newer model TV sets and Blu Ray players, under the name ‘Samsung Apps‘, not to be confused with the mobile phone Samsung Apps. To sell the point to consumers, they’re making a play on Apple’s “There’s an app for that” iPhone advertising, which, while not the most original approach, will probably resonate with consumers used to the ubiquitous phrase. This is…

HandEye Society’s Arcadian Renaissance

July 6, 2010 Doug Groves arcade cabinet, classic arcade, Hand Eye Society, Nuit Blanche, Spooky Squid, TCAF 2010, TORONTRON4 Comments

The HandEye Society, the coalition of Toronto indie game designers and enthusiasts, has announced that their TORONTRON game cabinet will be appearing as part of Nuit Blanche this October 2nd, as well as offering up a full arcade of gaming goodness, under the name The Arcadian Renaissance. The TORONTRON is a classic arcade cabinet retro fitted to play video games from local developers, and has been touring around at various events, including the Toronto Comic Arts Festival. All of this will be presented as part of Nuit Blanche on Oct…

Toshiba mini museum of portable computing

June 23, 2010June 23, 2010 Doug Groves Dynapad, gallery, museum, NXNEi, Primer, Primer Party, tablet PC, Toshiba, Windows 3.11 Comment

At the Primer Party for NXNEi, we got more than a hands on with Toshiba’s Satellite A660-042 3D laptop. There was a mini Toshiba portable computing museum lined up against the wall, though it’s amazing how 20 years or so has really redefined the meaning of ‘portable’. Unfortunately, none of the pieces were powered up, we did have an opportunity to lift some of these beasts, including the Toshiba T5200C, the first 16 colour portable computer which back in it’s day was $17,000 and 18.7 lbs. Also on hand was…

Toshiba 3D laptop hands on

June 22, 2010June 22, 2010 Doug Groves 3D laptop, A66-042, Arkham Asylum, Blur 3D, Nvidia, Nvidia 3D Vision, satellite, Toshiba3 Comments

If there’s one thing that’s almost inescapable in consumer electronics these days, it’s 3D in just about everything. We had a chance to give Toshiba’s new Satellite A660-042 3D laptop a run for it’s money at the Toshiba-sponsored Primer Party, as part of NXNEi, ahead of it’s public release. It’s the first major release of a 3D laptop in Canada, though others using the Nvidia 3D Vision technology are available at many independent and smaller chains. The Toshiba Satellite A660-042 is definitely the kind of rig that a gamer can…

Boxee Box delayed until November

June 15, 2010 Doug Groves Avner Ronen, Boxee, Boxee Box, D-Link7 Comments

When the Boxee Box (hardware by D-Link), was announced late last year, they originally planned a launch by Q2 of this year. Although rumours of a delay have been swirling around for a month or more, it wasn’t until this past Friday that it became official. The Boxee Box will be launching in November, in both the US and Canada. It’s not surprising, as there have been a number of advances in the past few months in capable hardware and it would make sense for Boxee and D-Link to take…

PS3 3D gaming experience

June 10, 2010September 17, 2010 Doug Groves Bravia, Bravia 3D, Futureshop, MotorStorm Pacific Rift, PAIN, PS3, Sony, Super Stardust HD, WipEout HD2 Comments

Sony has officially launched it’s new line of Bravia HDTVs with 3D, either built in, or 3D ready by adding a transmitter. To go along with the TVs, they’re also leveraging 3D games for the PS3. Here in Canada the TVs will come with PSN codes to download MotorStorm Pacific Rift and PAIN, both of which are demos, or partial games, and WipEout HD and Super Stardust HD, both full games. Yesterday at a launch event, we had a chance to go hands on with both MotorStorm Pacific Rift and…

iPhone 4 Retina Display – pixel density does matter

June 9, 2010June 9, 2010 drsquid Android, Apple, density, display technology, iPhone, iPhone 4, Pixel, resolution, Retina, screen2 Comments

At the WWDC keynote on Monday one of new iPhone 4 features that Apple focused on was the 960×640 Retina display, claimed to be the “highest-resolution phone screen ever”. While I initially dismissed its worth as typical Apple hyperbole, an interesting article on tested.com has made me think otherwise Computer screens aren’t getting any bigger — in fact, they’ve only continued to shrink. While larger displays continue to dominate the upper end of the spectrum, an increasing number of manufacturers are producing netbooks and tablets more suitable for Middle Earth…

Apple’s Magic Trackpad leaked before WWDC?

June 7, 2010 Doug Groves Apple, Magic Trackpad, Wacom, WWDC3 Comments

A series of images has popped up on Engadget showing an as of yet unannounced Apple trackpad accessory aimed at desktop computers. It may also include handwriting recognition. Though there’s nothing official, it’s seems very likely to be real, as there have been trademark registrations for the name Magic Trackpad. On that note, what is it with Apple’s need to brand everything as magical? It strikes me as an abuse of Clarke’s Third Law, which states “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” With WWDC just a few hours…

Computex 2010 – tablet fever

June 6, 2010 Doug Groves 2010, Android, Computex, Computex Taipei, google, Intel, netbooks, Pixel Qi, tablet, Windows 71 Comment

The Computex Taipei trade show is the largest computer and electronics trade show in Asia, and one of the largest in the world, with over 1000 exhibitors this year. Like CES held in the US every January, it’s a place where you really get a good pulse on where manufacturers are focusing their energies, and what to expect to hit shelves over the next 6-12 months. At the 2010 Computex, which just wrapped, one thing is clear. Expect a lot of tablets coming down the pike. There are a number…

Apple iPad Canadian launch, Rogers on-device data plans available, Bell plans available, and Telus is MIA

May 28, 2010May 29, 2010 Doug Groves 3G, Apple, Bell, data plan, iPad, Redboard, Rogers, Telus, WiFi5 Comments

Though you’re all probably aware, we wouldn’t be doing our jobs here if we didn’t mention something about the roll out of the iPad beyond US borders, including here in Canada. From the breathless coverage in the mainstream press, it appears that there were close to 200 people ready to get their hands on the iPad on opening day at the Apple store in the Eaton Centre. If there’s a certain lack of excitement to this article, it’s not born so much from cynicism of the whole circus, though there…

Like Those Shiny iDevices? You May Not Like How They’re Made…

May 20, 2010 Doug Groves Apple, Foxconn, Gizmodo, iPad, iPhone, IT Nerd4 Comments

Apple’s least favorite bloggers Gizmodo.com have re-posted a story from the Southern Weekly newspaper who sent undercover reporter Liu Zhi Yi into Foxconn Inc who makes Apple iPods, iPhones, and the like for Apple. The factory has had a rash of suicides in the last little while and the company has hired everything from counselors to Buddhist monks to try and deal this this. Here’s what the reporter found: During his 28 days of investigation, Liu Zhi Yi was shocked to discover how the factory workers live in a sort…

HP TouchSmart tm2 review

May 17, 2010 Johnathan Leger Apple, Courier, Hewlett Packard, HP, HP Slate, iPad, Microsoft, review, tablet, tm2, TouchSmart15 Comments

So after waiting for the reveal of Apple’s once “mythical” tablet to be revealed, only to end up being as disappointed as Japanese Anne of Green Gables fans after traveling half way around the world to see the real deal, I decided I was going to buy a Windows based tablet. The Microsoft Courier looked interesting but a bit out there and the HP Slate looked rocking although a bit underspec’d. I decided to hold out for the Slate.