posted by admin on Oct 19
STUFF LIVE - The UK’s Leading Technology Show
Here is your chance to see the newest technology and computer games around today.
See exclusive gadgets
Play the latest video games
Quiz the experts
Chill out in the STUFF lounge
Hear the worlds best Hi-Fi
Touch tomorrows technology
Play Guitar Hero on stage
And win loads of great prizes
All at:
ExCel, LONDON - 31 October - 2nd November 2008
Book now to avoid the queues……
posted by admin on Sep 27
We are on the verge of SmartGarments being the norm!
Apple and Nike have been cooperating on some technology that will combine their sales power with the latest technology. They are hoping to make iPods that will only work if you are wearing certain Nike clothes. After Digital Right Management went free-for-all with 7Digital, the leading companies need the ball back in their court.
This might seem like a weird venture with the intention of just selling more clothes to people, but thinking about the possibilities it offers, it’s not that bad an idea.
What are the Benefits:
Well, the basic theory for this technology at the moment is for a companion component of Apple’s iPod to be inserted into a piece of Nike footwear and possibly clothes.
The software in this component would enable the ‘wearer’ to monitor their athletic performance, such as tracking their heart rate or counting the distance travelled in a set time. Great for athletes who are serious about their performance and to improve their achievements.
There is also talk for the software to be able to act almost like a GPS cross SatNav, allowing the runner/walker/rower to be alerted as to the best route to an endpoint or specific location such as a restaurant or scenic route.
There is even talk of this component being able to warn the wearer of damage to the sports shoes or other equipment which could affect performance or safety.
Great idea in my book - especially if you are serious about your outdoor pursuits.
What are the arguments against:
Well, the main concern is the exclusivity of the whole deal - basically you can’t get the software to work unless you have purchased certain items of clothing. You are almost being forced to buy certain products that you may not otherwise have purchased.
In theory wouldn’t need to buy these exact clothes and an iPod if you were going to use a standard mp3 player of your choice with separate pedometer and heart rate monitor and when you also carried around a GPS phone or SatNav gadget and did it all yourself.
I’m afraid that this attitude is a bit narrow minded in my eyes, as we are always made to buy the exact equipment that inventors invent otherwise they wouldn’t make any money from their efforts and wouldn’t bother inventing a whole host of other great stuff.
Can you imagine a world where Ford made parts that fitted a Volkwagen, Nokia made phone components that fitted onto a Siemens handset or Boeing traded mechanical parts with Airbus? It just wouldn’t happen - so why can’t Apple and Nike make clothes that only work with their personal parts?
Why should we be able to buy cheap superstore running shoes to use with the special iPod when they haven’t contributed at all to the technological advances that made it possible?
Anyway, the chirping alarm would keep going off from the moment you put them on, to tell you that they were no good for running and the soles were too thin!
Why use cutting edge technology in cheap equipment? Would you fly for 10 hours in a ‘plane if the spare parts were all made by your local dollar store?
posted by admin on Sep 21
If you’re anything like me you spend a surprising amount of money each month on magazines. Each one doesn’t seem that bad but when you add them up it can be significant. Then there are the ones that you’d like to browse but don’t care quite enough about to want to actually buy. And what about the one you’d like to buy, but can never find for sale?
What to do?
Well thanks to the power of the Internet there is a new solution. Mygazines allows anyone to sign up for a free account and after doing so view any of the 1,184 different magazine titles they currently make available. That’s a lot of free reading material waiting for you!
The selection is a good one and includes everything from the very well-known titles like GQ through to somewhat random additions like the Ikea catalog!
The actual reading experience is quite nice and clear as you can flip through the pages of magazines in quite a natural way and they are surprisingly easy to read online. I really like what this site has to offer and think it would be well worth taking a look at.
posted by admin on Aug 31
Fantastic news about Blackberry’s newest addition……
It’s been a while (technologically speaking) since the last Blackberry - the Blackberry Curve (8300) and there have been such advances in mobile technology since, that there is now a new addition to the ever popular Blackberry family.
As expected, you will not be disappointed with their offering, so make sure you get a closer look at one before buying anything else.
What’s New Then?
Blackberry have managed to combine all the greatest features of Windows Mobile with the quality and reliability we have got used to with the Blackberry brand. The result is the new Blackberry Bold.
This was you know that you can now edit your Microsoft Word and Powerpoint documents on the move. Once you arrive at your office or home, these completed updates can be moved over onto your main PC or Mac without any fuss. This also means that speeches and presentations can be updated and improved during practice runs or when still on the road.
What Else?
Blackberry have worked hard on making this the most media-friendly release yet with the inclusion of Wifi - allowing you to access the Internet from virtually millions of locations worldwide (the GPS and mapping functions can help you locate a site!) . Even outside of hot-spot areas, the Bold utilizes HSDPA technology to access nearly 3G download speeds.
Streaming video is also available now, complementing the mp3 player. And the Media Sync application means that you can easily transfer media files from itunes to your handset with a minimum of fuss.
See more on Blackberry Bold.
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posted by admin on Aug 9
The Advent 4211 is certainly different.
With most laptops and notepad computers aiming for smaller and lighter, this aptly names ‘netbook’ could be very popular indeed.
Basically it’s the size of a hardback book and has a very long battery life. This is ideal if you are on vacation - to keep up with the news and to book trips and accommodation as necessary.
What’s the catch?
This little ‘netbook’ has been specifically designed for Internet users, so it lacks many of the features of larger notepads - it’s a nice little compromise though.
If you mainly want to access the Internet when travelling for work or pleasure, the Advent 4211 has what you need - and not the added weight and processing power you don’t.
It won’t run games and other demanding software that effectively and it doesn’t even have an optical drive for DVD’s - it really has been specifically developed and created for net users.
What’s it Got?
Built around Intel’s new ‘Atom’ chip, it handles Windows XP quickly and reliably, and it’s low power consumption can stretch out the battery time to 3 hours. It is WiFi, Bluetooth and web-cam enabled, and there is 1GB of operating memory to keep things running smoothly.
There is no need to worry about the keyboard on this tiny technology, as it is well spaced and easy to use. Although it comes with little software included, you can easily use free online software like Google Docs if you need to create an immediate document or some business ideas.
Saving them online will also save storage space on the Advent itself for more important information - although it does come with 80GB of hard drive space if needed.
The Advent 4211 is currently for sale for around $560/£280
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