Brand conscious - Review of the New Sony Vaio NW 13G

The Sony Vaio is for many an aspirational brand, something they dream of buying someday. But for some time, some people also associated some risk with the brand as they were not sure about the kind of service they would get for the money they were paying. All that is passé, as Sony has not only made their laptops more affordable, but also revamped their service side, making Vaio the brand to buy if you are looking for a machine that carries a luxury tag and gives value for money. And nothing epitomises this effort better than the new Sony Vaio NW 13G.

The new texture, two-tone colour and clear touchpad make the NW 13G a stylish machine. It features a Pentium Mobile Processor, T4200 2GHz with 1 MB Cache, a 15.5” widescreen Clear Bright LCD and 2GB RAM that can be upgraded to 8GB. But the 15.5” felt under-powered on 2GB; I would have made it at least 3GB, anything more would be a waste as the Windows Vista 32Bit Home Edition in the machine won’t be able to use it. The best option would be to fit two 4GB RAMs and run the machine in dual channel mode.
The 15.5” screen only supports a maximum of 1366x768 pixels. It also has a webcam, sadly only .5 megapixel, good for online chats and video conferencing, but not if you want to click a self portrait. The battery time on the machine is touted at 3.5 hours and I was able to squeeze about three hours, a bit low for a machine weighing 2.7 kg. The battery time also depends on how much you use the optical drive and wireless and at what brightness you run the machine.

To cut the price, Sony has put in only a 160GB hard disk, which I think works well for home users. It also features a DVD-RW drive as standard, though the card reader reads just Sony memory. There is a shortcut key on the top of the keyboard to launch the web browser, so that you don’t have to move around to log on to Internet—but I couldn’t see the utility value of the key. There are, however, mute and display off buttons, both of which are very handy. It also has an HDMI output so that you can hook it to a large LCD or Plasma screen without searching for S-Video and audio cables.
However, at Rs 37,990, I will recommend this machine only if you wanted a Vaio real bad, if you fell in love with the looks of the machine or if you wanted something to power your large screen TV.

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The above review appeared in the Indian Express, on Sunday 27th September 2009

Megapixel War - Review Samsung Pixon 12

When the first 5mp camera phones came out, we said that was the ultimate. The story repeated with the 8mp. Now, Samsung introduces its 12 megapixel Pixon 12
Quad band | video calling | Geotagging | 16 GB max
For Samsung purists, Pixon 12 is not a new phone, it’s the Pixon M8800 redone. Which means no Optical Zoom (I wonder why they haven’t got this fixed till now), but the good part is that the camera will now allow you to take videos at full 30 fps at a resolution of 720 x 480 pixels. The lens is a 28 mm wide-angle lens.

The screen is a large 3.2” Amoled screen with a 10,000:1 contrast ratio, so it’s good fun using this outdoors in the sun. The 480 x 800 pixel resolution on the screen allows sharp images. The overall feel of the Pixon is a bit chunky, but the 120 gm phone actually feels good to hold in your hand. There is a dedicated camera button. In addition, the Wide and Tele (zoom buttons) now have a ‘W’ and a ‘T’ printed on it, to make it feel more like a camera. The shutter switch allows a half press to do focus adjustment and then you can click a picture just like your digital camera.

The phone has a micro SD card slot on the outside. On the front, there are only two keys for end call and accept call, with a D pad in the centre. Sadly, Samsung has still not put a 3.5 mm jack on the phone and it needs a special adapter before you can plug in your standard jack earphones. The media card can be a maximum of 16 GB that will allow you to shoot a lot of pictures. I was unable to take a print of the image so can’t comment on the picture quality. The Pixon 12 also supports video calling (you will need 3G services for this).

The camera supports Geotagging, using the inbuilt GPS and has a 16x digital zoom, a dual power LED flash and an advanced shake reduction. The phone is a Quad Band phone and has a good speakerphone, with a 5.1 virtual channel surround sound technology. The camera can work without a Sim card (in offline mode). The Talk time rating is 4.5 hours.

I will not want to use this for a business phone—the browser, email client, RSS feed reader are rather unimpressive.

However, if you click a lot of pictures and don’t want to carry two devices, this is a good phone to buy.

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The above review was printed in the Open Magazine Issue dated 26th September to 2nd October 09

In tune with the times - Review of the iTunes 09

Back in 1970, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak put together a company that was simply called Apple. The two dedicated their efforts in developing products and software which ensured the best technology experience for their customers. Last week, Jobs unveiled iTunes version 9, putting the competition many steps behind and showing them how music is meant to be enjoyed, stored and shared.

I remember the time Winamp was the only decent MP3 player around. But those were the early days. Soon, Widows Media Player started playing MP3 and other music formats; and Apple jumped in with iTunes. However, with the release of the iPod, iTunes not only expanded its reach, but also came to be accepted as the ultimate in music management. The version 9 is set to change this, again.
The new iTunes has a brilliant new feature called iTunes LP, but I will skip this as it is not available in India. Along with the better speed, improved software and syncing capabilities, it has two great new features-Home Sharing and Genius Mixes.

HOME SHARING

With our wired/networked homes housing more than one PC, gone are the days when we had to share files using pen drives or shared folders. There is nothing wrong in sticking to this option, but when you have to entire music libraries from one PC to another, Home Sharing breaks all barriers. iTunes 8 allowed you to play music from a remote PC which has shared its library with you. But with Home Sharing you can setup up to five iTunes libraries on your home network can see only the portion of these libraries that you don't have-common files are not displayed. You can also import content to your library and automatically add content into their library-however, the automatic feature is available only for iTunes store purchases, which, sadly, is not possible in India. The good part is that it also shares videos, audiobooks and even iPhone Apps.

GENIUS
With iTunes 8, Apple introduced Genius. But a lot of people did not understand the feature while the others simply could not use it. Genius creates playlists of your favourite music like a DJ after you select a single file that you like. It does this by using over 27 million music libraries that contain over 54 billion songs analysed by it. The new Genius Mix automatically generates up to 12 endless mixes of songs that go great together. A click on a popular song like Hotel California, and the Genius Mix made a library of 25 songs ranging from Mercedes Benz by Janis Joplin to You Are My Best Friend by Queen, thus saving you the irritation of having skip tracks to reach a song you want to hear.

Those of you who have an iPhone or an iPod Touch and have upgraded to OS3.1 can now organise Apps from iTunes to appear in the layout that you like. Photos are now synced by events and faces, and music is synced by artist and genre thus making it more flexible. But I have a feeling iTunes 9 syncs slower than iTunes 8, maybe because it is doing a lot more now.

Overall, I feel good using the new iTunes9. It will take time before you get used to it, but press the Genius button and you will see the power. Apple has not yet confirmed if they will launch music sales in India, till then we will just have to enjoy the brilliant music manager and music sharing software.

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The above review was printed in the Indian Express on Sunday 20th September 2009

Xtreamer @ Rs. 9990

The Xtreamer launched recently in India at a cool price of Rs 9,990 is a versatile media streamer. Its features include a 500 GB hard disk, external hard disk port, 2 USB ports and both wired and wireless LAN. It supports HDMI, Optical and Composite outputs to hook it up to your television easily. It supports DTS audio, MPEG 1/2/4, FLV, and DivX. On the picture front, it supports JPEG, BMP, PNG, GIF and HD JPEG, OGG, WMA, MP1/2/3, WMA Pro, and FLAC formats.The only downside of this media player and streamer is that it uses an external power adapter and not a direct 220 volt supply.
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The above review was printed in the Open Magazine Issue Dated 19th to 25th September 2009

HTC Hero @ Rs. 39,990

Sporting a new customised user interface called HTC Sense, Airtel has launched the HTC Hero in India. With its 3.2-inch HVGA display, the HTC Hero is optimised for Web, multimedia and other content. Its broad features include a GPS, gravity-sensor, a 5 mega-pixel autofocus camera, expandable MicroSD memory, and dedicated search button. There are standard widgets for weather, a standard clock (very pretty), a Twitter client and others. The camera lets you geo-tag images, so you know where you took them.

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The above review was printed in the Open Magazine Issue Dated 19th to 25th September 2009

Open X the Multipurpose Knife @ Rs. 900

I think the OpenX knife is one of the best utility knives I have in my office drawer. Whether it is opening a shrink-wrapped hard plastic box, or simply removing the seal of a medical pill container, to opening detergent packets or snack pouches and shrink wrapped drink packs, this single tool does it easily. And the neat way it opens packaging means you can save the packaging to keep things stored the way they were shipped. The retractable blade, and the blade hidden in the mouth make it safe around people, though I would still want to keep it away from children.
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The above review was printed in the Open Magazine Issue Dated 19th to 25th September 2009

iPod Rerun - The Nano 09 Now Shoots Video

The iPod Nano can do things that no other portable media player (unless you think your cellphone is one) can. It’s time to bite the Apple.

The new iPod Nano brings video to your music with its built-in video camera. Moreover, for that extra kick it comes with a larger screen and polished aluminium finish in nine brilliant colours. If you were looking for a slim video camera that could shoot good quality video, and you thought your slimmest digital camera was still a tad big, then this Nano is a perfect fit. Small enough to fit into your shirt pocket, this Nano shoots video at an instant (though there is no short cut key, and you have to go through the menu). It can record video both in portrait mode and in landscape mode. The video shots are optimised for Facebook, YouTube and Mobile Me (Apple’s platform).

Fifteen fun effects allow you to record your video as if you were a Hollywood director. From Motion Blur, Sepia Tone, Mirror Image, Cyborg to Thermal, they are all there. The polished anodised aluminium finish in nine electrifying colours and a large 2.2” display score high in the envy quotient.

This iPod also supports FM playback, so you can tune into your favourite station. If you need a quick break, you can live pause the FM radio and resume from where you were after the break. The live pause is not the only great thing, this Nano allows you to rewind 15 minutes of listening time, so that you can listen to that song again. You can also tag songs that you are listening on the radio, and back home when you hook it up to your computer, it will bring up all the tagged songs so that you can buy them from the iTunes store (the feature works only in the US for now). The new iPod Nano has a voice recorder too.

To cap it, this iPod is also your personal trainer. Connect it to any Nike + iPod compatible cardio equipment, and it records your workout and charges your iPod while your music and video keep you pumping.

Apple iPod Nano is expected in the Indian market soon.
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The above review was printed in the Open Magazine Issue Dated 19th to 25th September 2009

Three clicks - Digital Cameras Under 6990

Planning to buy a digital camera this diwali? here are three affordable options you can explore

The war of the megapixels is not going to end soon and there is every chance that you don’t want to be left behind. But at the end of the day, we all buy digital cameras to capture our moments of joy and share them with our friends. With more people gradually increasing their digital footprint and fewer opting to actually print their pictures, the 10 megapixel barrier is proving to be more than sufficient for home users—you can print a 30x40 inch picture with a file from a 10 mp camera. And, trust, me, just because your camera has a whole lot of pixels does not mean your pictures will be good. That will still depend on the person behind the viewfinder.
I have selected three cameras under Rs 7,000 for review this time. All three cameras have some features in common—all support AA pencil cell batteries, so that you don't have to carry a charger everywhere, and are approximately 10 megapixels, with 3X optical zoom. While the Samung has a 2.5” LCD screen, the Olympus and the Kodak both sport a 2.4” screen. All cameras also support face detection and have some kind of blur reduction.

Samsung ES15 (10.1 MP) @ Rs 6,530


Though Samsung is one of the least known brands when it comes to digital cameras, they have a great line-up supported by a large network of service centres. A 10.1 mp camera with a 2.5” LCD, the ES15 is ideal for beginners. The camera can also be used to record just voice (up to 10 hours), a useless feature if you ask me. However, you can add 10 second voice memos to still images, which will be handy if you are taking random pictures. It comes with 11 MB of Internal memory and can support up to 8 GB SDHC cards. The good part is that the camera can accept both SD as well as MMC Plus cards.

WHY I LIKE IT: Great service, good picture quality, very nice finishing.

Kodak C180 (10.2 mp) @ Rs 6,299



The best thing about this one is that it is YouTube compatible-- you just have to connect it to the Kodak Software to upload video directly to YouTube. The 2.4" screen is bright and nice, and the dedicated share button lets you automatically fire up the software on your PC the moment you have connected to trigger automatic upload of images. The camera has simple face detection and can record video of up to 80 minutes, if you have the memory capacity. There are no complex menus and hence the camera is very easy to use. The camera supports high-speed SDHC memory cards.

WHY I LIKE IT: Great brand, YouTube compatibility, simple menus

Olympus FE 25 (10 mp) @ Rs 5,995


This, like the Kodak, can take up to 115 frames on a pair of AA pencil cells. It also features a 19 MB internal memory, which acts like a reserve in case you run out of space on the memory card. The camera has 16 shooting modes and also allows users to create panoramas by stitching frames using the Olympus Master Software. On the flipside, the camera uses an x-D picture card which is not so easily available and is expensive. It, however, comes with a micro-SD Adapter. The camera goes a step further from standard face recognition by detecting up to 16 faces. Exposure Compensation Preview is a great option for those learning how to use the exposure to take better shots.

WHY I LIKE IT: EV preview, 16 face detection and 19MB internal memory.

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The Above review was printed in the Indian Express, on Sunday 13th September 09

Sony Bookshelf Stereo - CMT-EH25

Expensive homes have made us fit quite a bit into smaller rooms, and the only stereos that I think make sense any more are the bookshelf variety. I came across the Sony CMT-EH25, and was amazed. It comes with a 5+5 watt (total 10 watt RMS) output, a direct playback function for USB thumbdrives (supporting MP3/WMA/AAC tracks), a top-loading CD player, a tape player and radio. The display is a one-line LCD. The remote control is small but tidy and easy to use. It supports CD/CDR/CDRW (no DVD) playback, and lacks Dolby Pro Logic.

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The above review appeared in The Open Magazine, Issue Dated 12th to 18th September 2009

Samsung Marine B2100

Released globally in April 2009, the Marine is now available in India. Built to MIL-STD-810F US Military standards, it’s been tested shockproof for a 2 metre drop. It is also dust-proof. It features a talk time of 9.5 hours, an embedded flashlight, rugged body, 1.3 megapixel camera and a USB interface. It has a smallish screen (1.77 inch), which may seem bad, but then keeping all the benefits in mind, this is a passable option. Now only if it came with a solar charger, I would have bought this for myself.

Picture Credit: www.gsmarena.com
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The above review appeared in The Open Magazine, Issue Dated 12th to 18th September 2009

Zicom Personal Safety Alarm

Zicom Personal Safety Alarm @ Rs. 545
You may not have enough time to react if someone tries to snatch your bag. The Personal Safety Alarm is a small gadget that you can tie to your bag and your wrist. If someone tries to pull the bag, the alarm lets out a loud noise. Its string is made of nylon and can easily be cut, hence it may not offer much security from someone pulling your bag. Alternatively, the ailing elderly can wear it around their neck and pull the string in case of an emergency.

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The Above review was printed in the Open Magazine, Issue Dated 12th to 18th September 09

IN CASE YOU DID NOT READ THE HINDUSTAN TIMES TODAY

Though This statement of mine is not going to be favored well with all the Telecom Providers, but I thought I must share it with my blog readers and other twitter followers etc, who don't have access to either the Hindustan Times or don't read it. Here are the snapshots of the full cover page of the Hindustan Times (National Daily) and the blow up of the article mentioning my comments on the state of the Telecom Providers.

"I’ve shifted to fixed telephones now for all important business calls,” says Gagandeep Sapra. As CEO of System 3 Group, a data centre provider, he cannot risk depending on an unreliable connection.

“Though they don’t offer mobility or have restricted mobility, getting someone to call on your office desk is the best practice and safer for business,” Sapra says."

Timex Expedition WS4

This watch is also a gadget that can help me record all my achievements on a hiking trip: altitude, temperature range during the hike and the atmospheric pressure
Water resistant | shockproof | dustproof | Rs 9,995

When I saw the Timex Expedition for the first time in the showroom, I fell in love with the packaging and what all the watch had to offer. Though its size was kind of large, because of its wide-screen display and multi-function dashboard, my love for gadgets ensured that I just wanted to get hold of it. Though it is kind of over-sporty for a guy like me, the very thought of having an altimeter, a barometer, a compass and a thermometer all built into one watch, ah! What a pleasure!

I would, on any given day, love to go hiking, or bike riding, or just on a trail with this watch, while keeping track of all such data as what kind of weather is around me (though I get weather reports on my BlackBerry, they are not specific to where I am at that moment). And I also get a compass to show me my bearings—where is north, south, east or west?

It is also a gadget that can help me record all my achievements on a hiking trip. Little things such as how high we climbed, and in what specific climatic conditions. In the activity review mode, you can relive your adventure through the activity statistics gathered on the nature trail: how high you reached, how much time you spent above the target altitude and even the temperature variations during the hike.

Another good feature of the Expedition is that it can give you 4 to 6 hour weather forecasts, indicating climatic phenomenon like approaching rain or storms.

The advanced sensors calculate altitude based on barometric pressure and the current temperature in Celsius or Fahrenheit. The wide-screen display, they say, has been inspired by the rear-view mirror of a Land Rover. It is designed to keep all the relevant information accessible to the wearer, so you can read it in one glance. The watch also features a 100-hour chronograph, a 100-hour timer with alarm, and an Indiglo night light with night mode features. The best part, it is water resistant up to 50 metres.

In case you are into feng shui, vastu, or just can’t tell east from south, the built in compass headings and the digital needle will always let you mark and follow your trail. The only thing that’s missing in this watch seems to be a walkie talkie. Beam me up, Scotty.

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The above review appeared in The Open Magazine, Issue Dated 12th to 18th September 2009
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Raising an alarm - Zicom's Personal Protection Devices

There is no excuse for being careless, but then humans are designed to make mistakes. Just think of the times you have fallen asleep while driving, or forgotten your credit card at a shop or lost your child in a crowd. At times precaution is the only way, as being careless could turn out to be costly. This new set of gadgets from Zicom can save you in these situations.


ANTI-SLEEP ALERT Rs 149
A black device very similar to a Bluetooth handsfree, this gadget gives out a beeping noise every time your head bends down, even if you haven’t dozed off, making sure that you attention stays on the road. At Rs 149 it is the most aggressively priced product from Zicom, but is not all hunky dory. The biggest problem is the design, as the device does not fit properly on the ear. Plus be prepared for a lot of false alarms every time you bend down. And then you have to remember and wear it everytime you drive, especially tough if you are already a bit sleepy.


CREDIT CARD ANTI-LOSS ALARM Rs 495
This is something I really want to buy. This is how the device works: You can put up to five credit cards in the holder. The device will start vibrating if you put it back in your pocket without any of the cards. But, in case the ATM machine swallows your card, you will have to come home with a vibrator in your pocket. For the price, it is a great product, but you can’t put in more that five cards and it is quite bulky to put in the wallet. But it is ideal if you carry and an additional wallet for your credit cards and have a habit of forgetting cards. But it would have been better off with an audible alarm.


KIDS ANTI-LOSS ALARM Rs 795
Get this wonderful device if you have a hyperactive toddler. The device has two units—one to put in the child’s pocket and the other for the parent. The unit with the parent starts beeping the moment the child strays more than 25 metres away. The distance can be adjusted according to your comfort level and is a good thing to have if you take you kids to malls and other crowded places.

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The above reviews appeared in the Indian Express, on Sunday 6th September 2009

New MacBook Pro

You can now finally buy a MacBook with an SD card or PC Express slot. For the first time, Apple notebooks can have a maximum of 8GB RAM
Core 2 Duo | 2.54 GHz | 4 GB RAM, 500 GB | HDD | Rs 68,110+
Most of us want a lighter machine. At least the sub-notebooks available in 10-, 15- and 17-inch models at times don’t make a lot of sense to me. I really like the 13-inch size and being an Apple fan, my biggest complaint with Apple was that their Professional series products were not available in 13-inch. Well, that was until June 2009, when they announced it globally and now it’s also available in India. The new series of MacBook Pro now come in 13-, 15- and 17-inch sizes. The new editions feature Unibody line, with a new battery that gives 40 per cent more running time. Also, the display is now LED backlit. The backlit keyboard let’s you work easily in the dark and is a standard feature. Also, you can finally buy a MacBook with an SD card or PC Express slot.
I loved the 13-inch MacBook Pro, which I evaluated and loved, and want to now get rid of my new aluminium MacBook to get Pro, but sadly, the missus will kill me if I do this. Coming back to the product, the 13-inch model comes with either a 2.26 or 2.54 GHz Core 2 Duo, the 15-inch features a 2.66 and a 2.8 GHz, and the 17-inch—which includes an 8-hour battery, 4GB RAM, Express Card slot and a 500 GB hard disk—with a 2.8 GHz Core 2 Duo.

For the first time, Apple notebooks can now have a maximum of 8GB RAM, and will soon be coming out with the 3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor. Also as on 28 August, Apple Snow Leopard has become available, which will come to you free of cost. You may have to pay shipping and handling.

For More information, click here

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The above review appeared in the Open Magazine, Issue dated 11th September 2009
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Other Gadgets Covered in the Same Issue, Vu 8" Digital Picture Frame with Printer, and the Nokia 5530 Xpress Phone