tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-202184512024-03-08T06:42:53.603+08:00FanBoy TechWeb<b>Warning!!!</b> A FanBoy's Technical (and non Technical) WebSite. Geared for enthusiasts and noobies, experts excluded but can be included too!death_metalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02099277473601603921noreply@blogger.comBlogger904125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-6196425405136313492012-04-01T21:59:00.001+08:002012-04-01T22:00:14.672+08:00Tech Link: "Why I'm returning my new iPad and buying a Kindle Fire"<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.theipadguide.com/images/content/iPad_mini.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; margin: 0 0px 10px 10px; width: 150px;" /></a>I just read an article over at Yahoo about an author returning his/her "new iPad" (niPad). I have similar sentiments, but a different comparison entirely.
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<a name='more'></a><blockquote>
My new iPad is going back to the store.
I paid $600 for the 32GB Wi-Fi model, and although I like it well enough, I don't think it's worth the money.
Before the Apple faithful take my head off, allow me to explain -- and to note that I'm keeping my original iPad. Also, I have such mad love for my iPhone 4S, I want to cook it breakfast every morning. You get my meaning; this isn't just wayward iPad-bashing.
</blockquote>
<strong>Source:<a href="http://news.yahoo.com/why-i-m-returning-my-new-ipad-and-buying-a-kindle-fire.html">Yahoo</a></strong>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-36524444430129478582012-03-18T10:28:00.000+08:002012-03-29T08:03:25.660+08:00Quick Review: The new iPad<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://tekgoblinmedia.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/no-ipad-for-you.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 150px;" /></a>As a techie FanBoy, my mind keeps rolling and rolling if I have been missing into the "the new Ipad" craze. Apple, it seems, has been slowly grasping on my system: slowly, but surely, playing games with my mind. However still, I manage to push back the rabid attack, that ghastly whisper keeps me awake at night, but I knew that sooner or later, I have to stand up and fight. So, I did the unthinkable, and "got" one for a test run. I tested one for a couple of days, and the verdict is that: I <b><span style="color: red;">am not sold out</span></b> on "the new iPad" (ok, that's really quick isn't it?). This is based on my usage model with my old iPad (first gen). Here on, I will call "the new Ipad" as niPad and my iPad 1 as oiPad. And if you haven't been turned off because I already posted my conclusion, then go read more.
<br />
<a name='more'></a><h4>
Pros of niPad vs oiPad: </h4>
<br />
<ul>
<li>Fast</li>
<li>Same/similar price tag</li>
<li>Better specs</li>
</ul>
<h4>
Con of niPad vs oiPad: </h4>
<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li>Hotter room temp of 20c, niPad reach 38c idle, waiting on the table with screen on for 30minutes) </li>
</ul>
<br />
<h3>
Cameras:</h3>
I know niPad have cameras, but the cameras does not fit my usage model. I tested iPad 2's camera before, and it's not so much about the quality, but the awkwardness of taking pictures/movies with that gadget's size. It's the same with niPad, though I haven't really tested it much outside checking the quality. Quality is good, really good, but still, when taking pictures, say outside in a sunny beach, it just doesn't feel right. In my opinion, mobile phone makes better "cameras". So niPad's camera, even with better specs and quality just didn't fit my usage model. I know that front cameras have its "novelty" use (aka Facetime), unfortunately, this doesn't work for me as well as I rather call using my mobile, or use my computer for face-to-face conversation and do other stuff while "face-calling" (like sending money, or sending the correct URL, ugh).<br />
<h3>
CPU:</h3>
The niPad being faster doesn't really change my experience towards my oiPad. Aside from the almost negligible difference in app load times, I don't really notice the speed. For example, no matter how faster the niPad against oiPad, watching Netflix experience is the same. The same experience is achieved watching movies using AirVideo. You can skip/rewind seamlessly in both oiPad and niPad devices. Of course, if you're crunching numbers, doing lots of reports and what nots, maybe this "speed and power" is enticing, but for my usage model, number crunching is relegated on laptop/desktop.<br />
<br />
<h3>
GPU/Display:</h3>
I know that niPad have better screen, but that didn't sway my decision to "want" it. My oiPad still looks good, till you put the two devices side by side and "nitpick". For example, when playing Infinity Blade (don't know about IB II), after the initial loading, everything is the same. Of course, graphics is better but only if you stay long enough to appreciate the scene. But once battle ensues, the better graphics doesn't add much, it won't make you a better fighter. IB looks good already on oiPad, it looks better on niPad. Playing other casual games like Trade Nations, Smurfs, Battle Nations, Doodle Jump = similar/same experience. However, I'd say that playing 1080p/720p movies directly off niPad is a lot better, but I know better not to store gigabyte of HD movies to niPad (it quickly eats up storage) and just store HD movies to my server and portable media devices.<br />
<br />
<h3>
Quick Conclusion (yes, I know I already said it):</h3>
So based on my usage model, I have no reason to replace my oiPad.<br />
<h3>
Recommendation:</h3>
<br />
<ul>
<li>For those that have older version who's not sure whether the new one has a lot of benefit, but have similar usage model to me, stick with your older one.</li>
<li>If you don't have one yet, and need/want one, get the latest niPad. I believe the better resolution, better camera, better connectivity (4G) not to mention the "cool factor of owning the latest and greatest" will overshadow the $100 difference. Don't get iPad 2, let Apple got an overstock of such device, that'll teach 'em (evil grin)</li>
<li>Of course, if you have the money, or a collector, or just itching, then no reason in the world will stop you from getting niPad</li>
</ul>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-14140739327866353762012-03-17T01:08:00.000+08:002012-03-29T08:03:00.053+08:00Rant: Why I am holding out on "The new" iPad<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://sleektech.nl/~dm/article/ipad/barred.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; margin: 0 0 10px 10px; width: 150px;" /></a>I remember months, and I mean like sometime October last year, wifey has been inquiring me whether I plan to get an "iPad 3". Not that she used it often, she actually use it only to play Doodle Jump and that's like about once or twice a month at most. However, she noticed I have been carrying it every time we'll go on lunch outside or getting a long drive. It's because iPad is easy for the kids to use (no mouse, power cord, small enough) while I normally use my Samsung Galaxy Mini Android Phone for music. Anyway, the way I have been reading into the rumors is that, iPad 3 is going to be a killer device. But I already burned myself once when I got iPad 1 and was severely underwhelmed.
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<a name='more'></a><br />
That experience also pushed me back getting an iPad 2. I just can't justify getting a companion device just because it looks pretty (white color), has nice features (FaceTime, Cameras) and better specs (Dual Core CPU, 512MB ram). Sure, the iDevice has long improved and those I loathe the most seems fixed by recent iOS developments such as clunky syncing/updating of Apps (now it can be done wirelessly like Android devices), stupid notifications (again, like Android, notification messages can be accessed and "queues" up), and non-easy access to stored files (now, Apple allows accessing "Photo" folder, still not the full access but acceptable). Through the years, iPad has actually improved a lot, and wifey hears me complain less and less about the device. And as such, when she pressed if I would like to get one, I thought about what I wanted for an iPad to have to make me "want" it. I gave two answers:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>Better Display, 1080p capable and can play HD videos</li>
<li>Better Battery Life, 10hrs - 12hrs heavy usage (think travel without time to charge, without extra batteries)</li>
</ol>
<div>
So imagine when I read the launch news. Seems like my "wants" are fulfilled, very simple. However, there's just something that holds me back. At first, I can't really recall why I am reluctant. After all, the kinks I hated have been fixed. But as I re-analyze my usage model, and what I need, turns out "The new iPad" is just not what I really need, not even wanted. Let me share a quick table for comparison:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://sleektech.nl/~dm/article/ipad/ipadv123.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="324" src="http://sleektech.nl/~dm/article/ipad/ipadv123.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
What I really want is for "The new" iPad to be able to play 1080p movies - checked. Battery life to be improved - partially checked. But I also like "The new" iPad to have HotSpot, checked. I know the limitation of HotSpot to Verizon only, but still, "The new" iPad has it so it's checked. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Then I also wanted for "The new" iPad to have better stereo speakers (not checked), better PC support, that is, I can transfer files easily without iTunes (not checked), and App multi-tasking.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
That last part is a deal breaker for me. While I can live with limited PC access and mono speakers, the lack of multitasking is what I can't accept. If "The new" iPad is the same as the iPad 1 because they ran the same OS, even if "The new" iPad has better hardware, it just didn't cut it for me. I don't use the iPad as my primary device, and that's because of this lacking capability. If I wanted to check something with a browser, I have to "minimize" the currently running application and open the browser. Or say, if I wanted to use "The new" iPad as media player beaming movies to my bigger display thru the HDMI connector, I still can't use the device because as soon as I try a different application, it will cancel out what's being displayed on the screen. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Sure, iOS 4.2 (or probably later iteration) did indeed introduced some sort of multi-tasking, but from the way I used it, it's just suspending the application and not really multitasking. I know the "music" continues to play even when doing other things on iPad, and that's what I wanted it to do. Background application running still. Why would I want that? For example, I opened up YouTube either thru Safari or with the built-in App and watching/listening to something. Then I need to check something because I find something interesting on the YouTube. Now instead of the music/video continuously playing, as soon as I go on another browser tab, the YouTube becomes suspended *ugh*...</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
I know the RAM is pretty limited, but heck, I can multi-task much better with my Intel Pentium 4 way back when so RAM is really not an excuse. If anything, the CPU and the OS accounts for such limitation. Apple has provided a stable OS, but one that is not flexible enough for my usage.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
"The new" iPad offers great improvements over the previous versions, and that's a great feat. However, as great as they come, my old iPad will still serve me well. I know that the display alone is enough to overshadow the older iPad, but if I think like a developer, I won't target "The new" iPad when making a new apps. This will leave a lot of potential buyers out if developers only target "The new" iPad market, and that's not good missing out on millions of iPad 1 owners. Considering iPad 2 shares the same screen resolution as iPad 1, developers should think about supporting this resolution.<br />
<br />
In time, iPad 1 will cease to be supported, but as long as Apple continue to provide iOS updates to it, developers should still consider providing support to iPad 1. If anything, "The new" iPad provided developers a greater challenge much like when iPad 1 launch for the first time, and much like when iPhone 4/Retina were introduced: backwards compatibility.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
If I have to predict, iPad 1 will continually be supported until the next generation of iPad 4 is released next year. By then, the hardware gap might be too stretched out (i.e. quad core CPU, quad core GPU, 2GB RAM) and newer applications that wants to harness those capability will only run on at least iPad 2 (and heaven forbid, iPad 3)....</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
So there, I'll skip getting "The new" iPad, unless I have spare money, my iPad 1 got lost/stolen/broken, or I got really bored and have nothing else to do. But till then, I am on the lookout for a Windows 8 x86 tablet and PC. This might be post PC era, but that doesn't mean PC's dead, there's just more tablet running around everywhere than it used to be....</div>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-11617103226085215502012-03-16T03:25:00.001+08:002012-03-16T03:28:00.267+08:00Tech Link: Diablo III May 15 [yeah, 2012]<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg21rVqv4ebKDuq1uP3Epuptp_zrmgBmfOZq9BSu4FoYRneCMkiXawSZ7Nk-FOzHEirmo-h8pJQqH-2b7Q1QCehtAg4bEU6hBC5w7I4TVlfjRmwLgpeB-7mGhk7OiNaiaX8EKBbbw/s1600/d3-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg21rVqv4ebKDuq1uP3Epuptp_zrmgBmfOZq9BSu4FoYRneCMkiXawSZ7Nk-FOzHEirmo-h8pJQqH-2b7Q1QCehtAg4bEU6hBC5w7I4TVlfjRmwLgpeB-7mGhk7OiNaiaX8EKBbbw/s320/d3-2.png" width="273" /></a></div>
So finally, this long awaited game will be released. I have my pre-order since last year placed on Amazon. Here's hoping I can get it by May 15. Been a heck of a loooooong wait since D2, and I can hardly wait for this next installment!<br />
<a name='more'></a><blockquote>
DIABLO® III MAY 15
Battle.net® presales for the hottest game of 2012 NOW LIVE
World of Warcraft® Annual Pass Promotion Ends May 1
IRVINE, Calif. -- March 15, 2012 -- The end is nigh! Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. today announced that Diablo® III, the next chapter in its critically acclaimed action role-playing game series, will be unleashed from the Burning Hells on May 15.
Starting that day, gamers with a thirst for fast-paced action and adventure will be able to purchase Diablo III at retailers throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, South Korea, Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and the regions of Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau. In addition, gamers in the regions above as well as in Mexico, Argentina, Chile, and Brazil will be able to buy Diablo III digitally via Blizzard’s Battle.net® website.
Players in the listed Latin American countries and in Russia will be able to purchase Diablo III at local retail locations starting June 7. Digital availability for the Russian version of the game will also begin June 7. In addition to the English version, Diablo III will be fully localized into Latin American Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French, German, European Spanish, Italian, Polish, Russian, Korean, and Traditional Chinese.
Blizzard also kicked off global digital presales for Diablo III today. Would-be wizards, witch doctors, demon hunters, barbarians, and monks throughout the world should head to http://www.blizzard.com/games/d3/ now to reserve their digital copies.
“After many years of hard work by our development team and months of beta testing by hundreds of thousands of dedicated players around the world, we’re now in the homestretch,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “We look forward to putting the final polish on Diablo III over the next two months and delivering the ultimate action-RPG experience to gamers worldwide starting on May 15.”
Diablo III will be available for Windows® XP/Windows Vista®/Windows® 7 and Macintosh® at a suggested price of $59.99 USD for both the retail DVD-ROM version and the digital version sold directly from Blizzard. A special alabaster-white Collector’s Edition, sold exclusively in retail stores at a suggested retail price of $99.99 USD, will include the full game on DVD-ROM, a behind-the-scenes Blu-ray/DVD two-disc set, the Diablo III soundtrack CD, a 208-page Art of Diablo III book, and a 4 GB USB soulstone (including full versions of Diablo II and Diablo II: Lord of Destruction®) and corresponding Diablo skull base, as well as exclusive in-game content for Diablo III, World of Warcraft®, and StarCraft® II: Wings of Liberty®. Diablo III has received a Mature rating from the ESRB.
World of Warcraft players interested in getting Diablo III free are encouraged to join the more than 1 million players who have already signed up for the World of Warcraft Annual Pass.* Through this promotion, with a 1-year commitment to World of Warcraft, players will receive a free digital copy of Diablo III -- which they’ll be able to start playing immediately on May 15 -- as well as an exclusive World of Warcraft in-game mount and access to the World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria™ beta test. This offer will no longer be available as of 12:01 a.m. PDT on May 1. Learn more at http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/annualpass.
In Diablo III, players take on the role of one of five heroic characters -- barbarian, witch doctor, wizard, monk, or demon hunter -- and engage in pulse-pounding combat with endless legions of evil. As they undertake an epic quest to rid Sanctuary from the corrupting forces of the Burning Hells, players will explore diverse and perilous settings, grow in experience and ability, acquire artifacts of incredible power, and meet key characters who’ll join them in battle or aid them in other ways.
Diablo III was built from the ground up to leverage the full functionality of the Battle.net platform, which delivers powerful matchmaking and communication tools, allowing adventurers to seamlessly join forces for exciting cooperative play. Battle.net also provides a secure infrastructure for the Diablo III auction house, a feature-rich marketplace that Sanctuary’s heroes can use to trade their hard-earned treasures. Players will be able to buy and sell weapons, armor, and other valuable items in the auction house in exchange for in-game gold. Players will also have the option to receive real-world currency for auction house sales, which they can apply to their Battle.net Balance for the purchase of a variety of digital products through Battle.net, including Diablo III auction house items, or cash out through a third-party payment service such as PayPal™ in most regions. Further details related to the auction house will be announced in the coming weeks.
For more information on Diablo III, please visit the official website at http://www.diablo3.com. To set up a Battle.net account and to opt-in to Blizzard Entertainment beta tests, please visit the official Battle.net website at http://www.battle.net. With multiple games in development, Blizzard Entertainment has numerous positions currently available -- visit http://jobs.blizzard.com for more information and to learn how to apply.
*Based on internal company records.
About Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.</blockquote>
<strong>Source:</strong>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-79332348287116893202012-03-08T03:54:00.002+08:002012-03-20T20:56:36.635+08:00Tech Link: It is official, iPad 3 is out!<a href="http://images.apple.com/ipad/features/images/camera_hardware.png"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://images.apple.com/ipad/features/images/camera_hardware.png" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; margin: 0 0 10px 10px; width: 150px;" /></a>Well, it's not it's unofficial, but just saying it's officially unveiled by Apple today. Before the unveiling, wifey has been asking if I am interested since I already have iPad 1. iPad 2 has nothing really new to offer to me so it's a "so so" for me. Besides having iPad 1 (2010), iPod Nano (2007), I only added one iOS device lately to the family, which is iPhone 4S.
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<a name='more'></a><br />
And the iPhone 4S was bought not because it's Apple, but mainly because the competition is much much more expensive, and downright ridiculous i.e. you can't get RAZR other than Verizon, or unlimited internet other than Sprint, but this is another story worth of another blog.
Anyway, I told wifey that if there's anything I really look forward to iPad 3 is:
a) Better Display
b) Better Battery
Everything else worked fine for me using the iPad 1. It's a companion device, I don't expect it do anything serious. I could care less for Siri (or Silly), nor the detailed tech specs. As long as applications runs smooth, it doesnt matter what hardware it has. Unlike PC where you absolutely need to know the specs because of the myriad of applications, with a (stupidly) closed system, Apple has done a great job making sure that apps on iTunes worked great.<br />
<br />
Of course, there's exemptions (for example the recently pulled out Simpsons Tapped Out game), but nothing that my kids won't miss.
Anyway, several things I liked about this iPad is that:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>It does have better display, 2048 x 1536 is just pure awesomeness.</li>
<li>It has "relatively" better battery. It does have the same battery time as iPad 1, except this iPad 3 has quadcore graphics processor and dual core.</li>
</ol>
However, like I said, I could care less whether it's single, dual, or quad processor for CPU and GPU. As long as the device performs, it's all good. So while delivering the same battery life for better specs seemed (and it is) nice, it's a little below my expectations.
Other than the those two, what I love are:<br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>Great camera</li>
<li>Hotspot support (finally)</li>
</ol>
So yeah, where iPad 2 is lame, this iPad 3 is great.<br />
<strong><br /></strong><br />
<strong>Source:</strong><a href="http://www.apple.com/ipad/">Apple</a>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-86047582661633592582012-03-03T00:17:00.000+08:002012-03-26T18:54:44.792+08:00Tech Link: CPU-Z v1.60 is out<a href="http://www.cpuid.com/medias/uploads/cpu-z-icon.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.cpuid.com/medias/uploads/cpu-z-icon.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; margin: 0 10px 10px 0;" /></a>The new version is out. The version supports the obvious: Ivy Bridge (and yeah, that AMD too). But you know the drill, so if you're aching to get the latest and greatest, head on to the website to download the tool.
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<a name='more'></a><blockquote>
CPU-Z 1.60 has been released. That new version adds the support for the next Intel and AMD platforms : Ivy Bridge, and Trinity. Other changes are :
- Intel Core i5 2550K, 2450P and 2380P with no GPU.
- Intel Xeon E3 (SandyBridge-WS).
- AMD FX-8140, FX-4150.
- Windows 32/64-bit report in About tab.</blockquote>
<strong>Source:</strong><a href="http://www.cpuid.com/">CPU-Z</a>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-40692747430358004082012-02-16T03:45:00.000+08:002012-02-16T03:50:56.210+08:00Tech Link (Industry): Google, MD?!?<a href="https://www.google.com/intl/en_com/images/srpr/logo3w.png"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width:150px" src="https://www.google.com/intl/en_com/images/srpr/logo3w.png" border="0" alt="" /></a>It seems like Google is on the quest to full web domination. My last post was about <a href="http://fanboyreview.blogspot.com/2012/01/tech-link-industry-googles-public.html">Google's Public Alert</a>, and now, Google is improving the way health-related searches are being provided. It is promising, but as is always the case with little knowledge, sometimes, it's dangerous. What I meant is, if "some" people believed anything and everything Google provided regarding the health-related searches, then "these" people might actually do more harm than good. I, myself, do checked on Google for many things health-related. But to be sure, and if I feel things are serious, I just pay a doctor a visit.
<a name='more'></a>
<blockquote>Every day, people search on Google for health information. Many of these searches relate to symptoms they or their loved ones may be experiencing. You might be trying to understand why you’ve had a headache every morning for a week or why your child has a tummy ache all of a sudden. Our data shows that a search for symptoms is often followed by a search for a related condition.</blockquote>
<strong>Source: <a href="http://insidesearch.blogspot.com/2012/02/improving-health-searches-because-your.html">Google</a></strong>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-71204935660207312102012-01-26T04:17:00.000+08:002012-02-16T03:49:49.994+08:00Tech Link (Industry): Google's Public Alerts<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://sleektech.nl/~dm/temp/websitelogo/googlepa.png" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 150px;" /></a>Google announced today the launching of their new baby: Google Public Alerts (GPA, ugh). It is like Google Maps (and similar), only that it focuses on emergency alerts, like storms, earthquake and the like. It currently gets the data from three major sources: <a href="http://www.noaa.gov/">US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)</a>, the <a href="http://weather.gov/">National Weather Service</a>, and the <a href="http://www.usgs.gov/">US Geological Survey (USGS)</a>. So if you have a knack for disaster (or just want to research or know more about it as it happens), head on to <a href="http://www.google.org/publicalerts">GPA (click me, yep, me)</a>.
<br />
<a name='more'></a><blockquote>Public Alerts now on Google Maps
Wednesday 1/25/2012 06:00:00 AM
Today marks the launch of a new Google Crisis Response project: Google Public Alerts, a platform designed to bring you relevant emergency alerts when and where you’re searching for them.
If a major weather event is headed for your area, you might go online to search for the information you need: What’s happening? Where and when will it strike? How severe will it be? What resources are available to help?
The Google Crisis Response team works on providing critical emergency information during crises. Our goal is to surface emergency information through the online tools you use everyday, when that information is relevant and useful.
</blockquote>
<b>Source:</b><a href="http://blog.google.org/2012/01/public-alerts-now-on-google-maps.html">Google Blog</a>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-20579037839778809882012-01-20T00:06:00.002+08:002012-02-16T03:49:29.307+08:00Tech Link (Industry): Performance Tuning Protection Plan by Intel®<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://sleektech.nl/%7Edm/temp/intel-logo/intel.gif" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; margin: 0 0 10px 10px;" /></a>
Intel released a very nice plan for CPU enthusiasts that is sure to be a hit for extreme overclockers. With plan selling for as low as $20, and $35 as the highest, enthusiasts that can buy $900 will be happy to have that extra protection.<br />
<br />
The plan covers processors with "K" and "X" suffix and falls on Intel® 2nd Generation Core™ processors based on LGA2011 platform. Note that while Intel offers this plan, Intel is still playing it safe and not "endorsing" overclocking.<br />
<br />
For the typical overclockers, this option is, just that, an option. What this plan really applies to is when enthusiasts starts pushing volts way beyond specification using exotic coolers. Of course, even casual overclockers using stock aircooler can avail of this, if only to get that secure feeling and guilt-free conscience if and when you break your CPU.<br />
<br />
Here's the breakdown: <br />
<ul>
<li> Intel® Core™ i5 2500K= $20</li>
<li> Intel® Core™ i7 2600K= $25</li>
<li> Intel® Core™ i7 2700K= $25</li>
<li> Intel® Core™ i7 3930K= $35</li>
<li> Intel® Core™ i7 3960X= $35</li>
</ul>
<a name='more'></a><blockquote>
The Performance Tuning Protection Plan being offered by Intel is a chance for you to experiment with the overclocking features of your processor without the worries of what will happen if you push the procesor too far. The Plan allows you a single processor replacement, hassle-free, from our customer support. This is in addtion to your standard 3 year warranty. In other words, if it fails under normal usage, we will replace it under the standard warranty; if it fails while running outside of Intel's specifications, we will replace it under the Performance Tuning Protection Plan.
So what we are saying is this: Go ahead and push it, we've got your back.
</blockquote>
<b>Source:</b><a href="http://click.intel.com/tuningplan/">Intel</a>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-29801093840146234722012-01-11T05:21:00.000+08:002012-02-16T03:48:35.026+08:00Tech Link: CES 2012 Coverage<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://content.ce.org/2012CES/framework/cesweb_headerlogo.png" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 150px;" /></a>If you are like me that always wanted to go to CES but never got the chance (*hint* work, budget, and family restrictions), then you're probably prowling the web for bits of information and whatever pieces you can sink your drooling mouth on about the latest and greatest upcoming gadgets in the future.
But fear not, because of the popularity of the event, lots of tech websites have decent coverage, where they post pictures and even videos of products. Of course, I'm pretty sure some site will also post umm, the hot BOOTH BABES, but I digress.
Here's some of my favorite sites, listed based on my preference (the first being my favorite):<br />
<br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://ces.cnet.com/">CNet</a></li>
<li>
<a href="http://www.pcworld.com/rc/ces/index.html">PCWorld</a></li>
<li>
<a href="http://www.engadget.com/ces">Engadget</a></li>
</ul>
<div>
Then there's the old-school gawking at some tech-sites like <a href="http://www.tomshardware.com/">Tom's Hardware</a> and <a href="http://arstechnica.com/">Ars</a>. I normally don't trust <a href="http://www.theinquirer.net/">TehInq</a> (yes, wrong spelling I know), but if you need more CES fix, you can also check it out.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
As for the gadget I am excited about, I really would like to have a:</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<ul>
<li>Glass-cased Ultrabook ala <a href="http://ces.cnet.com/8301-33372_1-57353299/hp-and-the-great-glass-ultrabook-envy-14-spectre-hands-on/">HP's Envy</a>. If only it has a dedicated graphics like Radeon or nVidia, then I'm pretty sure I'll snag one as soon as it is released. I guess I might have to wait a little longer though.</li>
<li>Then I'm also rooting for a better DVR, <a href="http://ces.cnet.com/8301-33376_1-57354079/dish-aims-high-with-new-hopper-dvr-high-speed-satellite-broadband-service/?tag=mncol;txt">DISH has some cool things brewing</a>, but I am more a PC guy so I'm looking for a better solution than what Ceton currently has to offer. (And no, SiliconDust sucks, unless they improve their product, won't buy any SD product anymore).</li>
<li>And lastly, I'm contemplating whether I'll get a <a href="http://news.softpedia.com/news/CES-2012-Verizon-Intros-Samsung-Galaxy-Tab-7-7-with-LTE-Support-245411.shtml">Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 LTE</a>. Or whether I should just skip it and get a <a href="http://news.softpedia.com/news/CES-2012-Windows-Phone-Based-Titan-II-Lands-on-AT-T-s-LTE-Network-245413.shtml">Windows Phone</a> since I never had one.</li>
</ul>
<div>
And so the noodle-every-night meal begins today. I'll save up and see what I can scrounge up to buy the cool gadgets.</div>
</div>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-3269058205891424032011-12-24T15:20:00.000+08:002012-02-16T03:47:56.398+08:00Merry Christmas<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.computerandyou.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/christmas-wallpapers.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; margin: 0 0 10px 10px; width: 150px;" /></a>Woot, Merry Christmas everyone. Hope you all got your wishes, and then more.
<br />DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-583944729533619112011-11-24T09:34:00.001+08:002012-02-16T03:47:27.156+08:00Tech Link (Gaming): Blizzard DOTA (!?#@)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB5-HbOD4mbIC81-LgW0Gvxcj_-Olkw0_-Nn9DZDEsuhL6KY716of5CVEpnKhwe74KncoB-zD2Z6AL2otj7W5jKooAD_F4UkNN8JFZ5ggN4q-N63wCbDgalQPjhqzj3R_KEypF/s1600/blizdota.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear:left; float:left;margin-right:1em; margin-bottom:1em"><img border="0" height="69" width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB5-HbOD4mbIC81-LgW0Gvxcj_-Olkw0_-Nn9DZDEsuhL6KY716of5CVEpnKhwe74KncoB-zD2Z6AL2otj7W5jKooAD_F4UkNN8JFZ5ggN4q-N63wCbDgalQPjhqzj3R_KEypF/s200/blizdota.png" /></a></div>This has got to be one of the coolest thing Blizzard will be making as one of their official maps. I have always been a fan of DOTA, and with Blizzard releasing their very own version, with heroes and such, I can't be any happier. I am pretty sure that Blizzard will ensure that heroes will be fairly balanced, easy to play and learn, and like their other games, hard to master. I am not surprised, when there's actually full games released based on DOTA, Blizzard should have done this as well a looooong time ago.
<a name='more'></a>
<blockquote>Blizzard DOTA
Blizzard DOTA is a new official custom game for StarCraft II, inspired by the Defense of the Ancients (DOTA) custom map for Warcraft III. Much like other DOTA-style games, Blizzard DOTA is a team-based competitive game in which each player controls a powerful hero with unique abilities, and works with his or her team to invade and destroy the enemy team’s base.</blockquote>
<strong>Source:</strong><a href="http://us.battle.net/sc2/en/game/maps-and-mods/mods/dota">Blizzard</a>death_metalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02099277473601603921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-77097735994203643062011-11-09T11:16:00.001+08:002012-02-16T03:46:40.810+08:00Tech Link (Industry): Samsung Galaxy Tab™ 7.0 Plus 4G<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.cellphonesignal.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/galaxy-tab-7-plus-1.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; margin: 0 0 10px 10px; width: 150px;" /></a>This is going to be interesting: T-Mobile + Samsung = 4G goodness. Samsung has always been pretty aggressive this past years to nibble at Apple's heels when it comes to tablets and smart phones. I have come to love Samsung, due mainly to my experience with my Samsung Galaxy Mini, the most affordable and smallest Android-based smart phone at the time of release. As tablets and consumers became more mature and aware of the different offerings, Samsung is positioned to take on Apple, at least, on hardware-level.
The only thing stopping me from getting one is the price. If it hits $199, I'll be grabbing it. Don't get me wrong, at $299 (which becomes $249 after mail-in rebate) is pretty good price, but still, after I got my HP TouchPad at a such bargain price, I am hoping that manufacturers would follow suit. Sure, hardware cost is still high at this time, but heck, demand has picked up and surely, there should be many parts manufacturers which should drive price down.
<br />
<a name='more'></a><blockquote>
Perfectly portable and incredibly entertaining, the Samsung Galaxy Tab™ 7.0 Plus 4G 7 inch tablet is a great way to take games, music, movies, social networking sites, and more with you—just about everywhere.
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<ul>
<li>High-speed web browsing almost anywhere </li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<ul>
<li>Gaming, music, and video apps ready to go, right out of the box </li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<ul>
<li> 16 GB built-in storage, expandable up to 32 GB
</li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
<b>Source: <a href="http://mobile-broadband.t-mobile.com/tablets/galaxy-tab/plus">T-Mobile</a></b>death_metalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02099277473601603921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-67691974344844319412011-10-27T23:33:00.000+08:002011-10-27T23:35:32.072+08:00Tech Link (Industry): Hands-on: Nokia's Lumia 800 is exactly what Microsoft, Windows Phone 7 need<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://static.arstechnica.com/10-26-2011/nokiaworld/rainbow-710.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 150px;" /></a>Woot, nice to see Nokia getting its act together. My first ever mobile phone was a Nokia, and before I moved to my Android-based Samsung Galaxy Mini, I have used N9x (N95 and N98) and was pretty happy with N95. However, N98's "touch phone" isn't responsive so that pushed me to change brand and OS. I really miss Nokia's Maps though, and its FREE turn by turn navigation. Anyway, Nokia announced their newest line of product and these babies looks sleek. If they'll have smooth experience, and can perform basic functions of a phone (it's a <i>smart</i><b>phone</b>), that is "send and receive call, and text messages, then I'm all set. And if these phones can interface to my XBox and PC with a much smoother experience than what my iOS and Android devices, then it's even more exciting. The only downside is that, US folks won't be getting their hands till next year. I can't blame them, this country is full of iPhone users.
<br />
<a name='more'></a><blockquote>
In London today, Nokia revealed the first fruits of its partnership with Microsoft: a pair of Windows Phone handsets, the Lumia 800, codenamed Sea Ray; and the Lumia 710, codenamed Sabre. The 710 has a 3.7" LCD screen, 8GB flash memory, and a 5MP camera with an f/2.8 aperture. The 800 has a 3.7" AMOLED screen, 16GB flash memory, and an 8MP camera with an f/2.2 aperture. Both are powered by 1.4GHz processors with 512MB RAM, and both run Windows Phone "Mango". Both handsets also use tiny micro-SIMs instead of the normal mini-SIM.
</blockquote>
<b>Source:</b><a href="http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2011/10/hands-on-nokias-lumia-800-is-exactly-what-microsoft-windows-phone-7-need.ars">ARS</a>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-32062549316222800492011-09-30T08:44:00.001+08:002011-09-30T08:47:06.877+08:00Tech Link (Industry): Amazon "Fire" Sale<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/kindle/otter/dp/KO-slate-main-lg._V166806822_.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; margin: 0 0 10px 10px; width: 150px;" /></a>Don't mistake this for the "HP TouchPad FireSale" that happened a month or so ago. But just the same as HP's "fire sale", Amazon launched a new product called Kindle Fire which seems like an interesting device. Boasting full color, Android OS, it also has its very own browser names "Silk". Then there's also more features, it comes with a free Cloud storage, and fully support Amazon's wealth of services, from movies to music, to apps. Come to think of it, Amazon might very well be the Apple killer since they carry an eco-system similar to Apple (integrated store, and device). Head on to Amazon to check out their announcement...
<br />
<a name='more'></a><blockquote>
Dear Customers,
There are two types of companies: those that work hard to charge customers more, and those that work hard to charge customers less. Both approaches can work. We are firmly in the second camp.</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote>
We are excited to announce four new products: the all-new <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Wi-Fi-Ink-Display-Screensavers/dp/B0051QVESA/ref=amb_link_357575562_1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=gateway-center-column&pf_rd_r=08MVNRHAP1QQG15G1WB6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1321411382&pf_rd_i=507846">Kindle</a> for only $79, two new touch Kindles – <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Touch-Wi-Fi-Ink-Display/dp/B005890G8Y/ref=amb_link_357575562_2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=gateway-center-column&pf_rd_r=08MVNRHAP1QQG15G1WB6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1321411382&pf_rd_i=507846">Kindle Touch</a> and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Touch-Free-Wi-Fi-Display/dp/B005890G8O/ref=amb_link_357575562_3?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=gateway-center-column&pf_rd_r=08MVNRHAP1QQG15G1WB6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1321411382&pf_rd_i=507846">Kindle Touch 3G</a> – for $99 and $149, and a new class of Kindle – <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Kindle-Color-Multi-touch-Display-Wi-Fi/dp/B0051VVOB2/ref=amb_link_357575562_4?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=gateway-center-column&pf_rd_r=08MVNRHAP1QQG15G1WB6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1321411382&pf_rd_i=507846">Kindle Fire</a> – a beautiful full color Kindle for movies, TV shows, music, books, magazines, apps, games, web browsing and more, for only $199.</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote>
These are high-end products – the best Kindles we’ve ever made. Kindle and Kindle Touch have the most-advanced E Ink display technology available, and the 3G Kindle Touch adds free 3G wireless – no monthly fees and no annual contracts. Kindle Fire brings everything we’ve been working on at Amazon for 15 years together into a single, fully-integrated experience for customers – instant access to Amazon’s massive selection of digital content, a vibrant color IPS touchscreen with extra-wide viewing angle, a 14.6 ounce design that’s easy to hold with one hand, a state-of-the-art dual core processor, free storage in the Amazon Cloud, and an ultra-fast mobile browser – Amazon Silk – available exclusively on Kindle Fire.</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote>
We are building premium products and offering them at non-premium prices.
Thank you for being a customer,
</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote>
Jeff Bezos
<br />
Founder & CEO
</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote>
p.s. – Kindle Fire has a radical new web browser called Amazon Silk. When you use Silk – without thinking about it or doing anything explicit – you’re calling on the raw computational horsepower of Amazon EC2 to accelerate your web browsing. If you're curious, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html/ref=amb_link_357575562_8?location=http://amazonsilk.wordpress.com/2011/09/28/introducing-amazon-silk/&token=3A2E7EA55419C8CB2BEE5465424704FFE835344E&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=gateway-center-column&pf_rd_r=08MVNRHAP1QQG15G1WB6&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=1321411382&pf_rd_i=507846">watch this short video</a> to learn more about how it works.
</blockquote>
<b>Source:</b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/">Amazon</a>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-70408490750045183562011-09-24T11:57:00.014+08:002011-09-27T00:41:49.521+08:00Article: SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime Review<a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.silicondust.com/images/hdhomerun/hd_prime_pic_rev3.png" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; margin: 0 10px 10px 0; width: 150px;" /></a><span style="font-size: 180%;">I. Introduction</span><br />
Just a couple of months ago, I am completely oblivious of the modern Digital Cable TV world. While I have subscribed, on and off, cable and satellite or dish TV, those experiences are years gone by and with comparably old and dated technology. I have mostly getting my fix of “TV” using a traditional “rooftop antenna” and for the most part, I am using streaming content over the web for just about anything video related. My “News” are either from radio, or from Facebook, or the intermittent pop up alert from CNN on my tablet. Boy, have I missed a lot. But now that I finally decided to upgrade my internet from AT&T DSL to Comcast Cable, it comes with a big bonus: digital cable TV.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
Transition was never easy, (you can read my experience on my previous blog post), but luckily, it turned out to be lots of fun to peek and poke around this technology. Digital Cable TV / PC TV has matured greatly and has become more stable and interesting over the years, specially with software integration to Windows Media Center and the certification of Cable-card technology. Manufacturers like <a href="http://cetoncorp.com/index.php">Ceton</a> and <a href="http://www.silicondust.com/">SiliconDust </a>became familiar to me as I try to immerse myself into the technology. Old school like me only remembers old brands like <a href="http://www.hauppauge.com/">Hauppage</a> and <a href="http://us.kworld-global.com/main/index.aspx?flag=1">kworld</a>. Hauppage has, interestingly, similar offering like SiliconDust and Ceton. However, kworld is missing in Cable-card development.<br />
<br />
Ceton has InfiniTV 4, Hauppage carries WinTV-DCR-2650, and SiliconDust goes with HDHomeRun Prime 3-tuner and 6-tuner flavors. Out of the offerings out there, I opted to give SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime's 3-tuner (HDHR3CC) a go mainly because it is a “Network-Attached Digital Cable TV” tuner. I made a quick table of comparison of the four:<br />
<br />
<table bgcolor="" border="1" bordercolor="" width=""><tbody>
<tr><td>Manufacturer</td><td>Brand</td><td>Tuners</td><td>Interface</td><td>Price</td></tr>
<tr><td>Ceton</td><td>InfiniTV 4</td><td style="text-align: center;">4</td><td>1x PCIe </td><td><a href="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815706001">$299</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>SiliconDust </td><td>HDHomeRun Prime HDHR3CC</td><td style="text-align: center;">3 </td><td>1x Ethernet</td><td><a href="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815345006">$249</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>SiliconDust </td><td>HDHomeRun Prime HDHR6CC</td><td style="text-align: center;">6 </td><td>2x Ethernet</td><td><a href="http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16815345009">$499</a></td></tr>
<tr><td>Hauppage</td><td>WinTV-DCR-2650</td><td style="text-align: center;">2</td><td>1x USB 2.0</td><td><a href="http://store.hauppauge.com/hardware2.asp?product=wintv-dcr-2650">$149</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 180%;">II. Out of the Box</span><br />
The box securely protected the <b><i>HDHomeRun Premium</i> <i>HDHR3CC</i></b> unit, with plastic protection and enough space to ensure the device reach the destination in perfect condition. It comes bundled with RG6 Coaxial cable, power supply, an installation CD and quick start manual.<br />
<br />
The HDHR3CC comes only in one color: black. It is very light and designed to be installed laying flat. I would have liked it if it can be installed vertically, but due to the very light weight of the box, combined with heavy coax cable, it can only be safely placed in a horizontal manner.<br />
<br />
The front of HDHR3CC has five LED lights, two on the left, and three on the right. The leftmost LED is for Ethernet status, green means connected and red means disconnected. The second LED to the LED is for Cable-card status. On the right, each LED correspond to each tuner, namely Tuner0, Tuner1, and Tuner2. If a tuner is being used, it turns on and turns off if not being used.<br />
<br />
The rear is where the power input cord is located, along with the M-Card (Cable-card) slot, USB port, Ethernet port and Cable-in port. The Ethernet supports both 100Mbps and 1000Mbps speed and locks in the Ethernet cable I use comfortably. The USB port is only for an optional SDV Tuner device. The Cable-in is the physical link between your home to your Cable TV provider. The M-Card slot is a little stiff and does not come with an eject button. The Cable-card is actually a PCMCIA card, so the M-Card slot of the device is the same except, it is missing that “clicking” feeling when inserting the Cable-card into the M-Card. In the past, before USB reigned supreme, PCMCIA card is used for many devices, from being an Ethernet Card, Modem Card, Flash storage and more. This day, it seems that it only survives as a Cable-card<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 180%;">III. Set up and Installation</span><br />
The HDHR3CC is light and can easily be placed anywhere on your A/V cabinet. Since it doesn't require a remote, it can stashed away from sight or just leave it sitting on top of a flat surface. It doesn't need to by physically connected to the PC but it can be done, if anyone opted to. However, it has no screw holes and can not be wall-mounted. Note however that the device has no physical on/off button, so in case you need to reboot it, the old way of plug-in/out is needed.<br />
Software installation is also straightforward. Just download the latest software from SiliconDust's website to make sure it is the latest version. After this SiliconDust's software is installed and configured, everything happens on Windows Media Center.<br />
<br />
I have broken down the installation of this device in more detail below (Windows only step):<br />
<ol>
<li><b>Physical Installation</b> – insert the Cable-card, with the name/label facing up. Connect the Ethernet cable to the network port, and plug it to your switch, hub, or router. Connect the coax cable from your wall outlet directly to the HDHR3CC, without any intermediate device in between. Ensure you have as little cable splitter as possible when connecting the coax cable. If needed, and you expect weak signal, get a signal booster. At this point, power up the device.</li>
<li><b>Software Installation</b> – after the physical connectivity is done, download and install the latest software from SiliconDust. The file is lightweight and should be easy to download quickly. Install the software accordingly.<br /><ol>
<li>On the “Location” tab, select United States and then enter your Zip Code</li>
<li>On the “Application” tab, make sure Windows Media Center and HDHomeRun QuckTV are selected</li>
<li>On the “Tuners” tab, make all three tuners as Cable-card</li>
<li>On the “Cable card” tab, hit “scan” for each tuner. You may uncheck channels that you don't subscribed.</li>
<li>Finally, hit “Apply” and wait for the software to complete.</li>
</ol>
</li>
<li><b>Cable card Activation</b> – a call to provider is needed to activate the Cable-card Some cable providers may offer a self-activation process thru web so just check with your provider. To be able to activate the card, follow these steps.<br /><ol>
<li>If you haven't done so, open HDHomeRun Config. On the “Device” tab, click on the “Device Web page” link. This should resemble the IP address of the device. This will open up the web based interface of HDHR3CC.</li>
<li>Once on the web page, click on “Status Menu”. Make sure all of these items shows “success”: Card Authentication, Card OOB Lock, Card Activation. If “Card Activation” is the only one not showing success, then you're ready to call your provider to have the card activated. In my experience, “Card Authentication” does not show “success” if the Cable-card itself it not working properly, i.e. not properly inserted or faulty, but of course, it can also signify faulty HDHR i.e. faulty connector or corrupted firmware. But most of the time, this is only about the Cable-card itself. The Card OOB Lock can signify a faulty cable, loose cable connectivity, weak signal from provider, and/or faulty Cable-in port. For this, make sure the coax cable is properly connected to the wall and use a high-quality cable. If needed, use a signal amplifier.</li>
<li>After verifying the physical connectivity is good i.e. both Card Authentication and Card OOB Lock shows success then go to the main screen (i.e. hit back on the web page browser) and then click on “Cable-card Menu” then click on “Cable-card/Host ID Screen”. It is important to note these three: Cable card ID, Host ID, and Cable-card Serial Number. Most of the time, you will only need the first two, just to be more comprehensive, take note of the serial number as well. Give your cable provider a call, tell them you are going to pair your cable card. If agent ask if it's a TiVo, just say yes, so as not to waste too much time explaining what the device is.</li>
<li>The agent may require some time to activate the card. Prepare to spend enough time for this part. Mine never activated till 1hr after my call. And it took me 7days, 8+ calls, two tech visits before I ended up with a knowledgeable agent and knows what I am talking about. Keep checking the summary page on the web page to see if the card becomes active. You'll know it's active once you see “success”. </li>
</ol>
</li>
<li><b>Optional: QuickTV Verification</b> –Even without the Cable-card being activated, using QuickTV software already enable watching digital cable TV. But without Cable-card activation, only the ClearQAM signals can be seen. Premium Channels such as HBO, Showtime, Cinemax and the likes requires Cable-card activation and many other HD channels. Just browse thru the non-Premium channels and check out the shows. If everything is working, you'll be watching these channels quickly and easily.</li>
<li><b>Windows Media Center Preparation and Activation</b> – if you are not sure if your Windows Media Center is ready, then just run this on the command prompt:<br />“<b><i>c:\windows\ehome\mcupdate.exe -u</i></b>” (without the quotes)<br />Make sure you enable admin/elevated privilege. Also make sure that you have the latest stable build of video card driver. After this, follow the following steps:<br /><ol>
<li>Open up Windows Media Center and on the main screen, go the Extras Gallery</li>
<li>Select Digital Cable Advisor, download it and then install</li>
<li>Follow the prompts, for your Digital CableTV installation</li>
<li>After all is said and done, and you have selected your area, you may now go back to the main WMC screen and select “TV”, then “Live TV”</li>
</ol>
</li>
</ol>
<span style="font-size: 180%;">IV. Test Set Up, and Methodology</span><br />
For the purpose of testing, two laptops and one HTPC will be used. All of these are running Windows 7 Ultimate Edition. All three will be connected via wired network 100Mbps, on Cisco Valet M10 Wireless router. The HDHR3CC will be run using the latest stable firmware 20110830 and latest beta build 20110920beta1.<br />
<br />
To be considered successful, all three machines will be used and the device should be accurate, functional and stable.<br />
<ul>
<li><b>Accurate</b> means TV guide must be up to date and correct, recording starts and end at the assigned time, and recording should record the correct show (s). The device should also be able to display the right show on the right channel compared to STB.</li>
<li><b>Functional</b> means that the device should be able to play TV and allow premium channel shows, channel change will be snappy, and can be detected by both WMC and QuickTV</li>
<li><b>Stable</b> means the device should work within the full burn-in test and supporting and supported software works without glitch. The burn-in test will be conducted to run 12hrs of continuous “Watch” for all three tuners with 3 machines, while 24hr recording will be done on a single machine with all three tuners. All recording and watch should show low number of minor issues (slight pixelation, missing caption, etc.) or should have no major errors (stopped recording and/or skipped recording, missed recording).<br /><ul>
<li><span style="font-size: 78%;">While the 24hr “recording” can already be considered “watching”, the additional 12hr is to ensure that the device can run a full 36hrs of continuous use. It would have been good to run a full 36hrs of recording instead, but the lack of storage prohibited me from executing such.</span></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
The test machines have the following configuration:<br />
<ul>
<li>Laptop A: Intel Core 2 Duo T7250 (2.0Ghz), 2.0GB RAM, 111GB SATA HD, Intel i965 (GMA X3100), Win7 Ultimate 32bit SP1</li>
<li>Laptop B: Intel Core Duo T2300 (1.66Ghz), 1.5GB RAM, 50GB IDE HD, Intel i945 (GMA 950), Win7 Ultimate 64bit SP1</li>
<li>HTPC: Intel Core 2 Duo T5550 (1.83Ghz), 2.0GB RAM, 1000GB SATA HD, Intel GMA 4500, Win7 Ultimate 64bit SP1</li>
</ul>
None of them is “latest” by today's standard, specially Laptop B which is showing its age already. All of them have McAfee Anti-virus v15 (Build 15.0.291) running in the background since they are the day-to-day machines at home. This reflects the typical usage scenario of many users, i.e. not building a clean system just to run HDHomeRun. While this provides many challenges, it also brings the set up closer and mimic the integration of HDHomeRun to existing tech ecosystem at home.<br />
<br />
The router has the following configuration:<br />
Cisco M10 Valet Router 2.4Ghz-only, with 4-port FastEthernet. Configured as broadband router. No QoS configured.<br />
<br />
Connectivity is configured as follows:<br />
<ul>
<li>WAN Port: Connected to Cable Modem Ethernet Port</li>
<li>LAN Port1: Connected to Laptop A, Auto-Negotiation, Full Duplex, 100Mbps</li>
<li>LAN Port2: Connected to Laptop B, Auto-Negotiation, Full Duplex, 100Mbps</li>
<li>LAN Port3: Connected to HTPC, Auto-Negotiation, Full Duplex, 100Mbps</li>
<li>LAN Port4: Connected to HDHR3CC, 100Mbps</li>
</ul>
<span style="font-size: 180%;">V. Performance</span><br />
Below is the performance score for the device.<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%;">Accuracy</span><br />
<table bgcolor="" border="1" bordercolor="" width=""><tbody>
<tr><td>Firmware</td><td>TV Guide</td><td>Record: Start</td><td>Record: Stop</td><td>Correct Show Recording</td><td>Coorect Show vs STB </td></tr>
<tr><td>20110830 </td><td>Pass</td><td>Fail</td><td>Fail</td><td>Fail</td><td>Pass</td></tr>
<tr><td>20110920beta1</td><td>Pass</td><td>Pass</td><td>Pass</td><td>Pass</td><td>Pass</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
For Accuracy, recording of shows using the latest stable firmware has resulted to missed recording and hence, all related recording metric shows failed. Amazingly, the latest beta firmware seems to have fixed it.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%;">Functional</span><br />
<table bgcolor="" border="1" bordercolor="" width=""><tbody>
<tr><td>Firmware</td><td>ClearQAM</td><td>Premium</td><td>Channel Change</td><td>Detection</td></tr>
<tr><td>20110830 </td><td>Pass</td><td>Pass</td><td>Pass</td><td>Fail</td></tr>
<tr><td>20110920beta1</td><td>Pass</td><td>Fail</td><td>Pass</td><td>Fail</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
This time around, it's a mixed bag. While the beta has improved detection of the device, it failed to play Premium Channels using QuickTV. However, Premium Channels play just fine using WMC. This is a bummer since Windows does not allow multiple instance of WMC hence the only way to have some sort of “PiP” is to run multiple shows on the same PC. For the production firmware, QuickTV plays all channels that I subscribe with but with beta, I can't play Premium Channels.<br />
<br />
Detection of TV tuner on the network has been improved significantly on the beta firmware, but WMC still sometimes failed to locate the device. For example, running WMC and then quitting it and then shutting down the machine. Boot up the same device and launch WMC, and it cant find the device unless a “rescan” is done using the HDHomeRun Config utility.<br />
<br />
I also notice one thing that is really good with beta firmware. With production firmware, the tuner seems to be always locked up and being used even after the PC has closed the WMC or QuickTV application. However, with beta firmware, releasing the tuner as soon as the video player exits is quick and snappy.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%;">Stability</span><br />
<table bgcolor="" border="1" bordercolor="" width=""><tbody>
<tr><td>Firmware</td><td>Minor Issues</td><td>Major Issues</td><td>12Hr Watch [3tuners]</td><td>24Hr Record [3tuners]</td></tr>
<tr><td>20110830</td><td>Pass</td><td>Fail</td><td>Pass</td><td>Fail</td></tr>
<tr><td>20110920beta1</td><td>Pass</td><td>Fail</td><td>Pass</td><td>Pass</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
With stability, the “Major Issue” referred is the missed recording due to a tuner failing on the production firmware, the LED on one of the tuner suddenly turned off. I tried to keep trying for about a few times and gave up. This also resulted to a failing score on the 24Hr simultaneous recording. As for the beta firmware, I can't run multiple instances of Premium Channels anymore.<br />
<br />
For both firmware, HD quality and audio quality are both great, capturing shows in full 1080i, with complete close captioning. With the beta firmware, recording has really been a breeze and concluded the recording with flying colors.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 180%;">VI. Other Observations, Experiences and Concerns</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 130%; font-weight: bold;">Watching on wireless environment</span><br />
On my own personal testing, the device performs really well on wired network. With wireless connectivity however, I am only able to sustain two HD channels successfully. On wired network, sustained peak bandwidth for 2seconds is 45Mbps for all three tuners, with each tuner hogging anywhere from 7Mbps to 18Mbps. Assuming 15Mbps is the continuous average bandwidth, a good wireless N network of at least 105Mbps should be good enough. My 54Mbps wireless on my laptop can barely keep up.<br />
<br />
I haven't been able to isolate the issue to the router or to the client, but there will always be one disconnection and it's any of my two wireless laptop and never on my wired desktop. With lack of time, I haven't run any network analysis protocol, but I have seen my 54Mbps wireless usage is going as high as 30% which correspond to the 15Mbps average sustained bandwidth and I'm guessing that the HDHR3CC is too sensitive with latency and losing “keep alive” functionality leading to lost communication between device and PC.<br />
<br />
Watching SD show however, yield positive experience. The wireless connectivity allows SD viewing on both laptop, and been tested for 4hrs. Average sustained bandwidth for all 3 tuners running 3 SD is only 15Mbps or 5Mbps for each tuner. At 5Mbps, the “G” wireless is able to handle it quite nicely.<br />
<br />
Again, the issue could be bandwidth related, client related, driver related, or even router related.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%; font-weight: bold;">Gigabit Wired Network</span><br />
Lacking enough time to test further, and due to lack of equipment, Fast Ethernet is the only way that has been tested to enable sustained and simultaneous watching and recording of HD channels. If Fast Ethernet has enabled me to complete all tests flawlessly, then the Gigabit connectivity shouldn't be posing any severe performance issue.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%; font-weight: bold;">Cablecard Activation</span><br />
This is the toughest issue I have surmounted so far. Calling the 800 customer service from Comcast has been terrible, but the 877 number has been awesome. Comcast even send out two knowledgeable techs at home. The techs has been amazed at the device, and took pictures. The techs helped sending enabling Premium Channels unknowingly, yep, unknowingly.<br />
<br />
During the initial Cablecard activation, on the date I noticed that my card has been activated already, two on-site techs arrived. Prior to their visit just a couple of hours earlier, I have been in contact with Comcast's Lv2 Tech from New Jersey (I am from Florida) who has been helping me activate my card. It turned out that there was something wrong on the database, and when that was fixed, the Lv2 Tech has activated my Cablecard. However, my Premium Channels aren't working and not showing on QuickTV. But I was willing to let it go.<br />
<br />
Then, these two onsite techs walked by, saying they have been sent by Lv2 tech (thank you Comcast) just to verify if everything is fine on my side. They double checked the cable, signals, and everything. They even have extra Cablecard that is known and tested to be working just to be sure. They have seen my issues, and called back in the local office to send me “cold hits”. QuickTV still isn't showing Premium Channels but they can see “EMMs” being sent and acknowledge by my Cablecard. They advised me that they are not aware of the issue, which is fully understandable, considering it's a new device for which they haven't seen any yet. The techs advised me that they will be letting their manager know about this device, and will provide their agents the script and steps to have the device activated. This is to ensure that future calls will be dealt with properly and to arm their team with knowledge on the device.<br />
<br />
And then when I tried to watch Premium Channel, I saw on the screen that Digital Cablecard needs to be activated. I have already done this before, but I just decided to do it again. And wolah, there it is, all my Premium Channels are up and running.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%; font-weight: bold;">Multiple TV Shows on one PC</span><br />
HD channels can really pull out a lot of CPU resources. While 3 SD channels running on one PC all at the same time is doable, it is still putting some strain on the laptop. With HD channels, my laptops often froze and choke. However, newer CPUs such as Core i3 (and higher) should be able to handle them quite easily. Considering I am only using onboard old Intel graphics, newer Intel graphics should be able to play all 3 HD streams easily.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%; font-weight: bold;">Windows Media Player</span><br />
For some reason, when I turn off my TV, WMC also stops working. For example, during my early “watch” test, I just want the PC running, but since I am not watching the show, I wanted to turn off the TV. However, I noticed that whenever I turned on the TV, WMC will say that it is restarting. So it would seem that WMC is closing whenever my TV shuts off. I haven't research on why this happens, but it might be related to DRM (i.e. all devices must be secured to be able to play contents).<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%; font-weight: bold;">Configuring three tuners on all PCs on WMC</span><br />
It seems that the best way to configure and set up WMC on multiple PC is to ensure that no tuner is in use during installation. I noticed that if a tuner or two is in use, at the time of WMC configuration, WMC can only detect the “unused” TV tuner (i.e. if tuner 0 and 2 are being used, only tuner 1 is configured). So only one tuner is tied up to WMC at the time of set up. So when the time comes that even if there are 2 available tuners (i.e. tuner 1 and tuner 2 are available), but that particular tuner is being used (tuner 1 is being used by a different machine), then WMC can't find that tuner. So, if all three tuners are in use and you are setting up a another WMC for the tuner, then you won't be able to detect any of the tuners.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%; font-weight: bold;">IP Address Change of HDHR</span><br />
This is a big concern for HDHR. Note that this device works on DHCP, and there is no way to assign an IP address to this device statically. While that may not be an issue, in and of itself, note that WMC seems to tie up “Digital Cablecard Activation” with the IP address of the device. In the event that the device changes IP, you'll have to redo the whole reconfiguration and reactivate of Digital Cable services (this means Premium Channels) on WMC. There is no need to call Cable Co., but it's a pain to set up it again. The quick fix of course, is to make sure HDHR is getting the same IP every time it requests for one and once it gets the same IP, then there is no need to redo any configuration. A solution for this can be any of the following:<br />
<ol>
<li>Enable HDHR to have static IP addressing feature , requires a firmware update</li>
<li>Ensure your router has DHCP reservation capability, requires a router or DHCP server feature</li>
<li>Change IP lease time of your DHCP to “forever”, i.e. the host devices always gets the same IP address every time</li>
</ol>
<b>Update 09/24/2011</b>:<br />
nickk of SiliconDust advised that HDHR shouldn't pose any issue if it indeed changed IP. HDHR is using uPnP to announce IP address change, and WMC tracks HDHR through UUID. However, as my own test shows, WMC failed to detect any tuners as soon as IP address has been changed.<br />
<ol>
</ol>
<span style="font-size: 130%;">Time stamp logging </span><br />
I may really be getting annoyed with all the issues I am getting so maybe I just don't how how to get HDHR's timestamp be the same as my home machines. For some reason, it is delayed by about 8hrs. If it is getting timestamp on my router, then it should be correct but right now, the logging is completely off the mark.<br />
<br />
<b>Update 09/24/2011</b>:<br />
nickk of
SiliconDust advised that HDHR is pulling timestamp from CableCo. and there is no feature to set this manually.<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%; font-weight: bold;">Control of show</span><br />
There is no way to stop the show using a web interface or even using the HDHomeRun Config utility. While there is a “Stop” button, it is always grayed out. The only way the “Stop” button works is when “View” is clicked, followed by “Override”. Other than this, that stop button is fairly useless. Would have been good to make it work, and also have some security so that kids can not mess with that control. Preferably, this should also be doable on web console.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%; font-weight: bold;">Web Console Security</span><br />
Come on, while I understand that most info on the web console are mainly status and logs, I still prefer if a password can be added. It gives me a sense of security. While there might be no security hole right now, but who knows, maybe someone or something can find a way to use it as some sort of spamming zombie bot. While the idea of having it compromised seems absurd (i.e. the only way to compromise it is if the home network has already been compromised), an additional layer of security wouldn't hurt.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 130%; font-weight: bold;">Parental Controls</span><br />
It seems that the only way to do it is by unchecking those channels on the HDHomeRun Setup utility. It would been better if this can be done, again, on the web console. A simple time-of-day security and limitation will be nice as well, in addition to the typical channel block.<br />
<span style="font-size: 180%;"><br />VII. Missed Opportunities</span><br />
I honestly believed that SiliconDust is missing a lot of opportunities to improve their product. Despite the fact that they have a long time to polish the product since they have started announcement of Pre-Order (was that 4months ago?), they probably have this in development far longer than that. I think these features would have really made a good impression:<br />
<ul>
<li>Decent App for Android and iOS Devices. While there is an El Gato iPad 2 App, the feedback on the App is so bad, it probably never took off. If SiliconDust made their own software, which should be logical since they developed the hardware, then they could have raked in more $$$ for their app.</li>
<li>Improved Web Console. As it is now, the web console is just for just a bunch of status and a log. Wouldn't it be nice if recording can be scheduled thru the web, reboot the device if it is stuck, and start/stop channels?</li>
<li>Centrally managed recording. Thru web console, once recording is set, the device can trigger recording to start when the time comes. It can even send wake-on-lan signal to PC when the time comes. Or, the device can send scripts to WMC (or a PC agent can pull in from device) to enable recording of shows properly.</li>
<li>Quad Tuner. For some reason, SiliconDust can only enable 3 tuners. It is evident on their HDHR3CC (3-tuner, 1-CableCard) and HDHR6CC (6-tuner, 2-CableCard). Ceton, however, can utilize four tuners per CableCard as is apparent with their InfiniTV 4 (I assume 4 means 4 tuners). SiliconDust is better than Hauppage though when it comes to utilizing CableCard since Hauppage can only do two tuners. With four tuners, SiliconDust will come much cheaper per tuner than Ceton ($62.25/tuner vs $74.75/tuner). With 3 tuners, SiliconDust is more expensive per tuner than Ceton ($83 vs $74.75). With such comparison, I'd say this is a very good price comparison.</li>
</ul>
<span style="font-size: 180%;">VIII. Conclusion</span><br />
The device has been fun to use, when it works. However, it lacks many features and still got many quirks. I like the idea that SiliconDust has been spewing out beta firmware, however, the issues I encountered prevented me from recommending this device.<br />
<br />
I am very excited with this device when I got this from Amazon, but all that seems to be fading away. I have to wait 5 days to get the device to work, and activated, and firmware is still in beta. The QuickTV software is nice, but lacks captioning and recording, and instead, HDHR relies on WMC for recording. The config utility is flaky, while I uncheck channels, these channels still appear on WMC and QuickTV.<br />
<br />
The biggest letdown for me however, is the stability. If I have to always start/close WMC and rescan just to have the tuners re detected, then it is going to be a pain for the kids. Lack of parental controls, IP addressing issue, all added up to my frustration.<br />
<br />
However, if you are looking for device that lets you watch, rewind, and record and willing to live with the quirks, then this device fits the role. But if you are like me who just sometimes wants their device to work whenever it's needed, then maybe wait for a bit till SiliconDust comes out with stable firmware or look elsewhere for an alternative solution.<br />
<br />
The good thing though, whether you stick with this device or with others, you'll be removing that stupid ugly looking set top box, and saving you rental fee on the long run.DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-69647431701703424452011-09-20T21:36:00.017+08:002011-09-22T23:21:21.467+08:00Article: Fanboy's quest for Digital Cable TV enlightenment<a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=20218451"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width:150px" src="http://www.iwu.edu/IT/help/faq/images/cable.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>As a “newbie” at Cable TV, I have been learning a lot stuff rather painfully. As a guy who mostly watch movies, TV shows and series at Netflix, Hulu, and the old traditional TV antenna, I haven't really been catching up with the latest trends in Cable TV and HDTV in general. So jumping in this haven't been easy, what with all the cost associated with the service and the “complexity” of having a decent digital Cable HDTV system.<br /><br />As an upstart in this field, I decided to go with Comcast/XFinity and skipped AT&T mostly because I've just had enough of AT&T's internet service. Besides, other than AT&T, I can't really find any provider in my area so either AT&T or Comcast.<a name='more'></a><br /><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Note: I do not own of the images used here, if you own any of them and are offended by my use, let me know and I'll remove them.</span><br /><br />Plunging in to the world of Cable TV has gotten me thru a roller coaster ride of new things to learn. Aside from getting a subscription, it never really ends there. If you are like me who have HDTV, you'll soon find out that the standard STB (set top box) that the provider installs is called an “SD” (Standard Definition) box . This means, no matter if you got the latest and greatest TV, you won't get 1080i from the Cable broadcast. And yes, 1080i and not 1080p, the “i” isn't a typo. As I said, I learn quite a few things, and that 1080i vs 1080p TV broadcast is one such thing, and it's all about bandwidth. I won't go into details on that so I'll skip to the issue at hand, and to the matter that leads me into reviewing this device. Is it a “failed” device, is it cool, is it what it's advertised, and what is this device really?<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">I. The impending issue lingers.....</span><br />The first iss<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://broadband.motorola.com/dvr/images/dct6412_bigview_1.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 130px; height: 98px;" src="http://broadband.motorola.com/dvr/images/dct6412_bigview_1.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>ue that plague me, a thing that I can't set aside in my mind no matter how hard I try, is that I am only viewing SD channels. While there are HD channels, for the life of me, I can't get it displayed, and the main reason is that my STB is an SD-only box. Now I can bypass the STB and connect the cable directly to my Digital TV since my TV is digital-cable-ready, however my whole channel line up just becomes messy (i.e. I have Channel 13.1, 15.9, wth?!?) and I also lose the “TV Guide” (on-screen TV program menu that shows time, title and channel of shows). The only good thing with bypass is that I got local HD broadcast, but not even all of it since Comcast has encrypted many of the channels. As it turned out, I can only get what is called ClearQAM and unencrypted HD channels. Again, this never came as “common knowledge”, and a continuous research ensues.<br /><br />A workaround seems obvious, get an HD STB. While it indeed sound obvious, being a newcomer in this has delayed me for a day before I figure out I can get one from the provider. So off to the local office provider I go and told them my issue and I got myself and HD-DVR. This will allow me to watch both ClearQAM, unencrypted AND encrypted channels which include Premium PPV (i.e. Showtime, HBO).<br /><br />I am not really sure what I signed up for when I got the HD STB. All I want is HD channels, and this time, I got an STB that is called HD-DVR, and I was happy thinking I finally got what I wanted. While I know DVR means I can also record stuff, what I didn't know is that it carries a rental price, and to add insult, it is much more expensive than HD box (almost twice the price), despite the fact that I returned the SD box which was originally installed.<br /><br />In my mind, there was an error with the installation, so I just need to return the SD STB, go to the store, and get a replacement HD STB without additional cost. But it wasn't the case. The SD STB is “free”, but returning it and replacing it with HD isn't free. While I did settle for an HD STB instead of the HD-DVR STB, I still get the SD STB since it has no rental fee anyway. The HD STB costs about $8.5/mo, the HD-DVR is about $17.00/mo. The cool thing about HD-DVR is that you can “pause and rewind” live TV and also “record” any show. That feature sticks to me like a glue, I just got to have that feature but at $17/mo for a single TV, that allows me to watch recorded shows on that same TV seems too much. Hence, I got two additional issues that needs resolving: get DVR feature but eliminate monthly cost.<br /><br />In summary, the three issues are:<br /><ol><li>Enable HD</li><li>Enable DVR features</li><li>Eliminate rental cost<br /></li></ol><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">II. The hunt begins!</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS3N-NZFxAhiB1PWc52wV1ShAtfCSHIJUDVwNiHLIQGvta-fgAb"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 170px; height: 136px;" src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS3N-NZFxAhiB1PWc52wV1ShAtfCSHIJUDVwNiHLIQGvta-fgAb" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />Spending time after time after time for “DVR” Holy Grail costed me weeks of research. I stumbled across sites like <a href="http://www.avlinksforum.com/">AVSforu</a><a href="http://www.avlinksforum.com/">m</a>, Cnet <a href="http://reviews.cnet.com/best-dvrs/">Top DVRs</a>, and various other sites. One thing that keeps popping up as best DVR is the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004PYDE1E/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B003DPKOKK&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0W5CJAA8K2FPPP1352A0">Magnavox MDR-513H/F7 320GB</a>, but the price tag of $299 is not for the faint of heart. There have been various times where I almost hit that “buy” button, but for the life of me, I just can't seem to make the move.<br /><br />For one, the price is just too high. Staying with my current rental of $17/mo, break even comes after about 17months which makes it a little more enticing. Another is the fact that the device is just an SD DVR, and receive encrypted and other Premium channels. Without this means that an STB (HD or SD) is still needed since using the Magnavox will be just similar to bypassing the STB. So in reality, I will get a Magnavox, and if I need HD (which I really need), then I'd still be shelling out $8.50/mo for the STB. Definitely too costly to sustain.<br /><br />However, the fact that reviews of this Magnavox DVR is very high, because parts can be replaced (i.e. upgrade hard drive, replace optical drive) plus decent TV tuner capability is making me really push that “buy” button. But my self-control prevails and I decided to look for a PC-based solution to my issues. I mean, from the looks and definition of the Magnavox, it is more like a PC appliance, rather than your typical electric appliance.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">III. Dive</span><span style="font-size:130%;">rsion</span><span style="font-size:130%;">ary Focus</span><br />From DVR-c<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTYRwtSz3Zqqs9YdW6IxRFeYJVlwNhT2wEd075GG1vMT1lIAsLD"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 159px; height: 125px;" src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTYRwtSz3Zqqs9YdW6IxRFeYJVlwNhT2wEd075GG1vMT1lIAsLD" alt="" border="0" /></a>entric approach, my mindset chenges into more PC-enablement of capability. The hunt resulted to a few interesting results, pushing me forward to find that silver bullet. I stumbled into solutions such as Roku, Apple TV, Sony Google TV, and Western Digital Live TV. However, these things are “streamers” rather than devices with TV tuners, and hence, has no “Cable in” ports. And after a few more poking around, I ended up with <a href="https://www3.tivo.com/promo/premiere-adapt/premiere_step1_adapt.html?WT.ac=tivohome_mantle_ptst">TiVo</a> and <a href="http://moxi.com/us/home.html">Moxi</a>. However, TiVo has subscription fee and Moxie's price hovers above $400. They sure are alternatives to rental HD-DVRs, but they cost more than the normal STB offerings from Comcast.<br /><br />Then I remember about <a href="http://www.hauppauge.com/">Hauppage</a>, I have always known about this device for a long time, but never really thought of as my primary choice. Back then, my experience with Hauppage device is for my laptop, plugging it in as a USB TV and then adding a rabbit antenna. Not the prettiest site, but it works till I get tired of grainy and snowy signals and swore never to use such contraption again. While the set up is clunky, it wasn't the deal breaker. What I really hated was the software that are bundled with it and it's probably because Windows XP (or was it Win95) wasn't really cut out for such. Because of such experience, Hauppage was lost in my memory as device for watching TV on the PC (back then, the idea was really really really cool).<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">IV. Right path!</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR_lNvutOWf1NLZSBoQ6Q9YOkr8f5CwuRiQ2w7omw5Gp4xhWpMWUQ"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 160px; height: 109px;" src="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR_lNvutOWf1NLZSBoQ6Q9YOkr8f5CwuRiQ2w7omw5Gp4xhWpMWUQ" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />And just then when I found out about Hauppage, I am once again catapulted into to another path. From researching on appliances that can record TVs (Personal DVRs), stumbling to streaming boxes (media streamer/players), learning about proprietary alternative to Cable STBs (Moxie/TiVo) and then doing a complete turnabout to PC TV.<br /><br />But this isn’t smooth sailing from here, it’s far from anything like that. Hauppage reminded me to go back to my roots, what I love about, which is the PC and the technologies around it. Researching more about how to ensure I can get HD channels, record TVs, and remove rental fees has brought me to yet another learning path: CableCard. Reading and hearing about this for the first time brings me back to another new beginning. But CableCard is not bed of roses, as I slowly try to absorb most of what this technology has to offer. I even ended up at <a href="http://www.fcc.gov/guides/digital-cable-compatibility-cablecard-ready-devices">FCC website</a> just to make sure I know my rights and how I can take advantage of this technology.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">V. A door of options opens.</span><br />Armed with Cablecard crash co<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRa-yhPiyBVVuLzaHjYHOB72J2rjiL7gHRkiPbunbIulgafTf-XaA"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 164px; height: 110px;" src="http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRa-yhPiyBVVuLzaHjYHOB72J2rjiL7gHRkiPbunbIulgafTf-XaA" alt="" border="0" /></a>urse, I learn about new alternative that opens up for me. Hauppage’s <a href="http://www.hauppauge.com/site/products/data_dcr2650.html">WinTV-DCR-2650 ($149.99)</a> device is indeed enticing, with dual tuners, enabling dual recording or recording while watching on the other tuner. And yes, TiVo and Moxi are both Cablecard capable, but they are cost-prohibitive for what I would like to achieve. And then there’s also Ceton, whose product I mistook for Comcast’s own XFinity service, the <a href="http://cetoncorp.com/products.php">InfiniTV 4 Quad Tuner PCIe card ($299)</a>.<br /><br />I would have jumped at Hauppage’s solution, for $149.99 but its USB connection has got me thinking that I can only use one PC at a time. While it’s not big deal at the time I was contemplating about it, I would really have loved if I can share it on my home network. The FAQ did mention that WinTV can be shared, but still, having to open the “host PC” just to share the device doesn’t meet my “wants and needs”.<br /><br />As such, I researched more about Ceton’s offering that boasts quad tuners. With such capability, surely there’s a way to harness those 4 tuners and put them to good use. And sure enough, reading to various feedback and personal experiences from owners has gotten me interested. While Ceton’s solution does carry the same limitation as the Hauppage (i.e. needing a host PC to operate ) I am sold about this option due to the fact that I get 4 tuners! I am now left with one big concern: my HTPC has no more PCIe slots to hold the device.<br /><br />This has gotten me into thinking I’ll need to build a PC to house the Ceton, but I completely discarded the idea. While I love to build a new PC, I just don’t want to set up the PC besides my TV (unless my TV is my monitor). I also wanted to use my current HTPC, with on-board Intel Graphics that’s more than enough for my HD needs. The other issue would be the cost of the device, but comparing it with other solutions to my issues and the amount of time I have already invested, I am willing to take the plunge into Ceton. That is, till I found about <a href="http://www.silicondust.com/">SiliconDust’s</a> offering: HDHomeRun products.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">VI. Light at the end of the tunnel?!</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQd-yfIuggCjNVZPsrHt5IhEZ-XQ8HXob-J7TNapRSm07xK--YD"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 174px; height: 109px;" src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQd-yfIuggCjNVZPsrHt5IhEZ-XQ8HXob-J7TNapRSm07xK--YD" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />SiliconDust’s offering on HDHomeRun DUAL and HDHomeRun Prime struck me as my Philosopher’s stone(s)! A network-attached device that can stream Cable TV signals to any computer at my home network, and it comes with two tuners. The “DUAL” offering is priced at $129.99, however, it has one shortcoming: inability to play Premium Channels. I understand that CableCard’s limitation about on-demand videos, but I have long accepted that fact, and I can always use my SD STB for such anyway. The other offering the “Prime”, but the price at $499.99 is a little too much for me, but with 6 tuners, this looks to be the best offering.<br /><br />Luckily, SiliconDust is preparing to launch their trimmed version of “Prime”, which only comes with 3 tuners but at similar capability and similar features. At the time, it hasn’t gone on sale, and Pre-order on NewEgg has long been depleted (darn those who ordered bulk of them). I don’t know, NewEgg seems to have policy regarding this, but “businessmen” may have found a way to circumvent it/work-around it and enabled them to just hog all the supply. Fortunately, after frequent trying to get myself the product, I was able to place a Pre-Order at Amazon. And Amazon even shipped out the product ahead of schedule, and by the 15th of September, the product has arrived at my doorsteps. And after this, the next step commences to completing the 3 issues I have been meaning to resolve. I have begun installation, but, that is reserved for another Blog Post…<br /><br /><span style="font-size:130%;">VII. In Summary and “Pre” Recommendation:</span><br />A quick of recap o<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS3PtorAxbqCpyldwgHHOCVoe5jzqZ3R0Ml3RiuN6o-Oz4Q-V7Q"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 145px; height: 110px;" src="http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcS3PtorAxbqCpyldwgHHOCVoe5jzqZ3R0Ml3RiuN6o-Oz4Q-V7Q" alt="" border="0" /></a>f issues I am working on resolving:<br /><ol><li>Enable HD</li><li>Enable DVR features</li><li>Eliminate rental cost<br /></li></ol><br />Pre-recommendation (disclaimer: I haven’t tested all the recommendations, except for one device with which is on-going burn-in test. This recommendation is based on my personal research and reading into what are available options for me)<br /><ol><li>If you don’t like messing with PC but would like to get DVR functionality, the Magnavox MDR-513H/F7 320GB would fit the bill. Out of many similar devices I have seen and reviewed, this one is the most highly rated. You can get one at Wal Mart online, and priced around $299. From what I read, using this device is so simple, and easily upgradeable. The only issue I have about this is price. It is limited to a single TV, but for common usage of DVR, single-TV connectivity isn’t a deal breaker.</li><li>If you would like to use PC as your Home Entertainment center but looking for an inexpensive solution, Hauppage WinTV-DCR-2650 looks nice, priced around $149. It comes with two digital tuners, allows watching of Premium channels, and you can install it via the most common USB cable. With DVRs costing around $15+/mo, you’d see ROI after just 10months. And yes, you can rewind, pause, and record Live TV! As with anything that requires use of “CableCard”, be prepared to spend some time with your Cable provider tech support. You can grab one at Hauppage's website.<br /></li><li>Then there’s SiliconDust HDHomeRun DUAL. This still meets the 3 issues I have, so for those who don’t have Premium Channel Subscription, this is a good deal. At $129.99, it is even cheaper than Hauppage, less technical issue to set up (lack of CableCard), and network-attached. If you are not bothered by the limitation and just want to watch basic Cable Signal (and yes, that includes local HD broadcasted channels), then this might be your choice. Note, this requires use of PC as well and decent home network. NewEgg, Amazon and other online retailers have them available and even at SiliconDust' own website.<br /></li><li>For the more adventurous, SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime, both 3 tuners and 6 tuners are good solutions. I prefer the 3-tuner version and mainly because: a) I am a newbie at this area, and b) the 6 tuner version is priced like two 3 tuners anyway so if I ever wanted to additional 6 tuners, then it's just a matter of getting two boxes. While others might argue about two power outlets being used, well, that’s really not an issue for me. As for power consumption, in case I do have two 3-tuner version, how hard could it be to turn off one box?</li><li>Ceton's PCIe-based Infinity 4 solution is looking to be solid as well. At $299, the cost per tuner is cheaper than SiliconDust's offering. However, tinkering with PC hardware is needed since it needs to be installed. If you have a free PCIe slot, and is not hardware-challenge, then this is the best solution out there when thinking of price/tuner ratio.<br /></li></ol>And as of this writing, I learned that Ceton is coming out with a Quad-tuner USB-connected STB open for pre-order at $299. This would have resolve my concerns with their PCIe-based solution, but while I "heart" quad tuners, I hate having to boot up host PC. A quick price comparison (without looking into other variables), is that Ceton's quad tuner is cheaper (i.e. $299 / 4 = $74.75 per tuner) vs Silicon's triple tuner (i.e. $249 / 3 = $83). Another way to look into it is compare to DVR monthly cost to Cable provider at @ $15+/mo so Ceton's break even is around 20months, while SiliconDust is around 17months. And then there's full usage comparison with Ceton's 4 tuners (i.e. 4 DVRs @ $15ea = $60/mo) compared to Silicon's 3 tuners (i.e. 3 DVRs @ $15ea = $45/mo) and ROI is quickly reduced to 4.9mos in favor of Ceton vs 5.5mos for SiliconDust.<br /><br />So whichever way you look at, whether saving $50 initial cash out-the-door, or should I (or you) save in the long term monthly usage, these two solutions are much better than what your Cable company provider is offering. Of course, argument can be done that for cable operators, if the equipment breaks, that Cable Co. replace at their own cost, less technical hassle, but really, I wouldn't be blogging if I am concerned about that :)...<br /><br />That’s it for today, FanBoy out!DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-82580991810010767372011-09-09T22:09:00.004+08:002011-09-09T22:55:43.271+08:00Quick Look: Wireless USB PC Remote Control Mouse for PC<a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=20218451"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width:150px" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41Q5lNWSbQL._SL500_AA300_.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Well, I bought a new gadget for home and I figure I might as well add my review here at my own Blog to bring it "up to date" a bit and also help a few people out there.<br /><br />Anyway, I transferred to my new home, well far far away from my previous one (one country to another), so I needed to sell a few things and acquire new things. Unfortunately, some of the things I brought with me are basic, but working just fine. While I will bring the "core components", I left the common ones. An example is my HTPC. While I brought the whole CPU (Core 2 Duo, 2GB DDR2 RAM, 500GB HD), I did leave my wireless mouse and keyboard behind to save up some baggage space and of course, shed off some weight (you know how airlines tend to penalize for overweight baggages).<br /><br /><a name='more'></a>So like I said, while I did save off a few $$$ here and there, the trade off is that I can't bring the "whole system" up. And when the time has come to bring up all the sytems, I am faced with using the old keyboard and mouse set up, but this time, I decided I needed something more elegant (my old set up is still more PC than HTPC).<br /><br />Going thru the web, I got several options. There are some pretty cool offers for a full-sized wireless keyboard and mouse for about $30 but I don't want to go that route anymore. Then there's mini, really portable mouse and keyboard too, but it goes a little higher than usual, about $40. I just want an inexpensive solution for a very simple problem: "remote" (whether it's in actual remote form-factor or wireless keyboard and mouse for cheap). And after a wee bit more of searching, I stumbled upon this little gadget: <b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Wireless-USB-Remote-Control-Mouse/dp/tech-data/B001M56DI0/ref=de_a_smtd">Wireless USB PC Remote Control Mouse for PC</a></b>.<div><br /></div><div>Well, it's a mouthful for name for such product. The weird as well is that, this product is manufactured by a rather doubtful name: <b>unknown</b>. Well, either this product is bad, or it's just a generic one. I was rather skeptical, but I went along and bet my $6.75 won't go to waste. I went ahead and purchased it.</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" ><b>Technical Details (taken from Amazon):</b></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-size: small; "><div style="padding-left: 25px; "><ul style="list-style-type: disc; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; padding-top: 0px; padding-right: 0px; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 10px; list-style-position: initial; list-style-image: initial; "><li style="margin-top: 0.5em; margin-right: 0em; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0em; ">Plug & Play - no driver or software required</li><li style="margin-top: 0.5em; margin-right: 0em; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0em; ">Remote has a maximum range of 18 meters</li><li style="margin-top: 0.5em; margin-right: 0em; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0em; ">Infrared receiver with 4ft cable plugs into your USB port</li><li style="margin-top: 0.5em; margin-right: 0em; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0em; ">Compatible with Windows 2000 / XP / Vista</li><li style="margin-top: 0.5em; margin-right: 0em; margin-bottom: 0.5em; margin-left: 0em; ">Powered by 2 'AAA' batteries</li></ul></div></span><div><br /></div><span class="Apple-style-span" ><b>Product Build Impression:</b></span></div><div>I haven't used this product for more than a day, hence the "quick look" mention on the title.</div><div><ul><li><b>Packaging</b>: The product packaging looks really cheap, very flimsy box. There's no other things inside the packaging except for the product itself, the USB receiver and documentation. This product could have used some styro or plastic to retain the shape of the box. I understand that this product is dirt-cheap, so buyers do get why is paid for.</li><li><b>Documentation</b>: The instruction is in English, but it is so badly written, it makes my own English reads and sounds like a genius. I can barely get past the 2nd paragraph, and I gave up trying to understand the documentation after the first few seconds. If you have patience and have a knack for deciphering codes, then understanding what's printed in the documentation may provide some bit of excitement and fun, but as for me, I'm done with it.</li><li><b>Product</b>: There are two pieces here, the actual remote and the IR USB receiver. The "remote" doesn't come with batteries, and it's clear from the get-go that it's not included. Adding the battery is easy and straight-forward, the battery compartment is easy to open and close, and very secure. However, the whole remote feels and screams "cheap". Not that I am complaining, but if this product was indeed sold for $34.99, then I would be very disappointed. As it is priced a lot cheaper, I can't complain much for the build quality. But the product is responsive, I have tested it a couple of feet away and work like a charm. I can't vouch for 18m advertised distance though. The buttons worked as advertised, and the shortcut A, B, C, and D worked nicely too. Entering text and Scrolling is also easy, but takes a bit of getting used to, but it's acceptable considering the price I got this for. As for the USB IR Receiver, I guess it's good since the remote works just as fine. Remember it is an "IR" so line of sight is very much needed. And oh, the "switch Window" only works for two Windows. So if you have multiple applications open and would like to "scroll across open applications", this won't work. And one last things, while the tech detail never mentions Win7, this product works with Win7 as well.</li><li><b>Other things</b>: I just want to comment on shipping and shipping package. I believe that for this device, and its price, the shipping package it comes with is acceptable. The product is not damaged, looks new, and sealed securely. The delivery time is also fast, "two-days free via Amazon Prime"</li></ul><div><b><span class="Apple-style-span" >Verdict:</span></b></div></div><div>This isn't the best "PC remote" out there, but it certainly gets the job done. Again, the buyers gets is paid for in this device. It's not fancy, it's probably not durable as well, but it works fine. I tend to say that it looks ugly actually, but aesthetic aside, the only gripe I have for this device is the window-switching and bad documentation.<br /></div>DMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02560159790395150602noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-49601077225009268722011-08-26T01:23:00.001+08:002011-08-26T01:24:27.530+08:00Press Release: ViewSonic Brings Dual OS Intel Atom Processor-Based Tablet to Market<a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.viewsonic.com/assets/117/22537_350w279h.jpg" style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0 10px 10pt; width: 150px;" /></a><br />
Wow, best of "two worlds" has come. This has gotta be nice, at least in paper. Running Android, for the rich app, simplicity of use, and just being one of the "them" will surely entice fans of the genre. Of course, with Win7 OS as well, flexibility and support for so many devices and software will surely make this a very appealing replacement for netbook/ultra portable and also make this a viable hardware for use in corporate environment...<br />
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Now, if only HP's WebOS can only be installed in these babies, then it would be awesome. This will mean that there will be more market for consumers. However, I can only imagine the support might not be as smooth. With one OS, it would be acceptable, dual OS is going to be tough, and triple OS might be impossible...<br />
<a name='more'></a><blockquote>ViewSonic Brings Dual OS Intel Atom Processor-Based Tablet to Market<br />
ViewPad 10pro delivers the best of both worlds in a 10.1 tablet, offering a true dual Windows and Android OS experience<br />
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WALNUT, Calif. – August 15, 2011 – ViewSonic Corp., a leading global provider of computing, consumer electronics and communications solutions, today announced its latest 10.1” Windows® and Google Android™ dual OS tablet – the ViewPad 10pro.<br />
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The ViewPad 10pro is one of the first tablet solutions to be powered by the new 1.5GHz Intel® Atom™ processor Z670. Designed specifically for tablets, this new CPU minimizes power consumption, while enabling smaller and thinner product designs. Partnered with a 1024x600 capacitive multi-touch panel, ViewPad 10pro users can enjoy impressive Full HD 1080p video playback, fast Internet browsing and longer battery life, without sacrificing on performance. Paired with 2GB of integrated memory, the ViewPad 10pro is the optimal mobile computing powerhouse.<br />
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“We listened to our customers. We made the ViewPad 10pro dual OS interface as quick and intuitive as possible, while partnering with industry CPU leader Intel to deliver the latest in design and innovation across all fronts,” said Michael Holstein, vice president of business development, ViewSonic.<br />
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Tailored for business users, the ViewPad 10pro makes it even easier to enjoy a dual OS experience within a single tablet. Android 2.3 runs as an application on top of the Windows 7 operating system so users need to simply tap on the Android icon to make a seamless switch between business productivity and ultimate entertainment. Throw in the built-in Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, an HDMI out for content sharing, a 1.3 megapixel built-in front camera and a high capacity battery for up to 8 hours of battery life, and you get the ViewPad 10pro – a fully optimized, true dual OS tablet to keep users connected.<br />
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“The new Intel Atom processor-based tablet from ViewSonic is a cool, and distinguished product that brings a personalized and flexible experience,” said Bill Kircos, general manager of marketing for Intel’s Netbook and Tablet Group. “Our Intel platform supports multiple operating systems, and this tablet shows how consumers can move between Windows and Android experiences in a way that offers rich graphics, high-definition audio, easy Internet browsing and longer battery life in a slick form factor.”<br />
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To ensure the ViewPad 10pro grows with each person’s individual needs, the device offers expandable storage options via a micro SD card slot for up to 32GB of additional space. The dual OS ViewPad 10pro is available in two configurations – with Windows 7 Professional (with a 32GB SSD hard drive) and Android 2.3 for an ESP of $699, or with Windows 7 Home Premium (with a 16GB SSD hard drive) and Android 2.3 for an ESP of $599. A custom docking station accessory is also available for an ESP of $59. Both tablet configurations will be widely available in late August, with limited numbers currently available.</blockquote><b>Source:</b><a href="http://www.viewsonic.com/company/news/vs_press_release_523735.htm">Viewsonic</a>death_metalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02099277473601603921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-53803435033400312372011-06-02T11:48:00.001+08:002011-06-02T11:49:23.807+08:00Tech Link (Industry): Previewing ‘Windows 8’<a href="http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=20218451"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/_resources/images/img_msFooterLogo2011.png" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: left; margin: 0 10px 10px 0;" /></a>This is a very interesting demo from Microsoft. I have always been a Windows user, and while I don't loath or hate other OS, I just got too used to this operating system. I don't even have to "hard learn" new stuff whenever MS came out with new OS, well, except during my transition from MS DOS to Windows 3.1/WFW (Windows for Workgroups). So anyway, the big news is super cool: touch interface for the upcoming Windows 8.<br />
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It's such a long time coming for the interface to show up. While "touch" has been implemented on desktop PC before this version of OS, it requires 3rd party hardware/software and it doesn't really operate differently than having a mouse (yeah, that was too long ago). Anyway, so now MS comes up with cool-looking interface and if this proved to be stable, it is a definite winner. I mean, it can run your usual Windows program, and then you can have both touch and "traditional" desktop interface, a marriage of both world = awesome. Check out the video and then read on more to see the official MS statement.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/p92QfWOw88I" width="560"></iframe><br />
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<a name='more'></a><blockquote>REDMOND, Wash. – June 1, 2011 – Today, at the D9 Conference, we demonstrated the next generation of Windows, internally code-named “Windows 8,” for the first time. Windows 8 is a reimagining of Windows, from the chip to the interface. A Windows 8-based PC is really a new kind of device, one that scales from touch-only small screens through to large screens, with or without a keyboard and mouse.<br />
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The demo showed some of the ways we’ve reimagined the interface for a new generation of touch-centric hardware. Fast, fluid and dynamic, the experience has been transformed while keeping the power, flexibility and connectivity of Windows intact.<br />
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Here are a few aspects of the new interface we showed today:<br />
•Fast launching of apps from a tile-based Start screen, which replaces the Windows Start menu with a customizable, scalable full-screen view of apps.<br />
•Live tiles with notifications, showing always up-to-date information from your apps.<br />
•Fluid, natural switching between running apps.<br />
•Convenient ability to snap and resize an app to the side of the screen, so you can really multitask using the capabilities of Windows.<br />
•Web-connected and Web-powered apps built using HTML5 and JavaScript that have access to the full power of the PC.<br />
•Fully touch-optimized browsing, with all the power of hardware-accelerated Internet Explorer 10.</blockquote><b>Source:</b><a href="http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/features/2011/jun11/06-01corporatenews.aspx">Microsoft</a>death_metalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02099277473601603921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-82032290445802709952011-05-31T11:28:00.001+08:002011-06-02T11:36:20.115+08:00Tech Link (Industry): Intel's Maloney Talks Mobile Growth, Industry Opportunities at Computex<a href="http://blogs.intel.com/technology/assets_c/2011/05/Computex2011_6-thumb-500x333.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://blogs.intel.com/technology/assets_c/2011/05/Computex2011_6-thumb-500x333.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; margin: 0 0 10px 10px; width: 150px;" /></a>Nothing new, err, I mean, it's not unusual to see Intel to take a stab at Computex and show off their new line of products in the near future and at times, readily available.A new category for mobile devices has been announced, and this time, Intel smarten up and trademarked it (Ultrabook™). Unlike in the past, they let one of their "coined term" be used up by anyone (i.e. netbook and nettop).<br />
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Another interesting tidbit is that, despite what detractors are saying, Atom™ is very well alive and kicking and yes, Netbook isn't dead. Atom™ will power the next-gen fanless, yep fanless, netbook platform. Read to get the full run thru of the announcement...<br />
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<a name='more'></a><blockquote>New Roadmaps Across Intel® Core™ and Atom™ Processor Families to Usher in Next Wave of Laptops and Connected Mobile Devices<br />
NEWS HIGHLIGHTS<br />
<ul><li>Intel defines new category of mainstream thin and light mobile computers, called Ultrabook™.</li>
<li>Intel aims to shift 40 percent of consumer laptops to the Ultrabook™ by end of 2012.</li>
<li>Separately, Intel is accelerating the Atom™ processor roadmap to a one-process-generation per year cadence to enable a wider range of optimized solutions for multiple market segments.</li>
<li>Intel highlighted its next-generation, fanless netbook platform, codenamed “Cedar Trail,” a range of new Atom processor-based tablets available today, and a “Medfield” tablet reference design for sub-9mm designs, weighing less than 1.5 pounds and supporting a choice of operating systems.</li>
</ul></blockquote><b>Source:</b><a href="http://newsroom.intel.com/community/intel_newsroom/blog/2011/05/30/intels-maloney-talks-mobile-growth-industry-opportunities-at-computex?cid=rss-258152-c1-267564">Intel</a>death_metalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02099277473601603921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-59582873075790740412011-04-06T23:00:00.003+08:002011-09-10T05:00:38.437+08:00Tech Link (Industry): Intel Releases Their First Ever 10-core Server<a href="http://www.intel.com/newsroom/kits/xeon/e7e3/gallery/images/p_Westmere_EX_7.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width:150px" src="http://www.intel.com/newsroom/kits/xeon/e7e3/gallery/images/p_Westmere_EX_7.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>Super cool server just came out from Chipzilla. Gotta love the future that this server will bring to our world: from health, to astronomy, and of course even entertainment. And the great thing about this chip, it never consumes power any more power than last year's processor releases!!!!!!! Check out the YouTube:<br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/-CJTmSAoRHs" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><br />Here's the full press release linky: <a href="http://newsroom.intel.com/community/intel_newsroom/blog/2011/04/05/performance-reliability-security-intel-xeon-processor-formula-for-mission-critical-computing">Performance + Reliability + Security = Intel Xeon Processor Formula for Mission-Critical Computing</a>death_metalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02099277473601603921noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-69641195255022351162011-03-30T12:27:00.007+08:002011-04-04T07:48:13.107+08:00Article: Making “Apple iPad” FanBoy Approved Part 2<a href="http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/06/500x_ipad-scale-app-iweight-concept.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://cache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/4/2010/06/500x_ipad-scale-app-iweight-concept.jpg" style="cursor: hand; cursor: pointer; float: right; margin: 0 0 10px 10px; width: 150px;" /></a>If you haven't seen the first part of this article, you can head over <a href="http://fanboyreview.blogspot.com/2011/02/making-apple-ipad-fanboy-approved-part.html">here</a> and <a href="http://fanboyreview.blogspot.com/2011/01/article-intel-fanboys-journey-to-beyond.html">my rant is of course, still up</a>. Anyway, on Part I of this article, I mentioned two usage models that I targetted for my iPad. While iPad 2 may have changed the ball and I don't personally own one to give a better opinion, seeing the reviews and looking at those changes made me feel lucky that I am not an Apple FanBoy jumping in every iteration of what SJ (Steve Jobs) has to offer. With a crappy camera, same iOS, the only thing major I see from reviews: dual core, better graphics. Which, while I may have digress a bit, still falls way below of what SJ mentioned why iPad is better than NetBook (yes, I am still picking on this topic).<br />
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<b>Movie Watching:</b><br />
So to continue, another major gripe I have with iPad is the inability to play HD movies. And when I say HD, the 1080p BlueRay ripped ones encoded either as .MKV or simply .AVI. Putting those movies at your iPad spells doom (even for iPad 2) for it will quickly eat up your storage. So the next best thing, re-encode your HD movie collection for iPad so not only does the movie plays, the file size will be more manageable.<br />
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However, since I was getting really pissed before of how iPad performs when playing movies, and moving files between computer and iPad is such a clunky procedure (you have to use iTunes? WTF! you have to use another app? WTF!!!!), I ended up getting two apps that can stream videos: <a href="http://hobbyistsoftware.com/VLCStreamer-more">VLC Streamer</a> and <a href="http://www.inmethod.com/air-video/index.html;jsessionid=1A529656E4B48021F8D46FA24525AF27">AirVideo</a>. If you're wondering why I get two, that's because I thought VLC Streamer is as good as VLC (fudge me) because of the similar logo and similar names. Because I hated VLC streamer performance, I dumped it and found a much much much better one. Of course, it's another paid application (curses!!!!!).<br />
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<img alt="" border="0" src="http://hobbyistsoftware.com/images/VLCStreamerImages/icon50.png" style="cursor: hand; float: left; width: 60px; ; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px;" /><b>First things first: avoid VLC streamer at all cost<i></i></b>. Don't be fooled like me (fudge me) by the similarity in name and logo. This software perform very poorly. However, the developer is responsive, but even after escalating the issue and doing all the steps I was asked for, this software just keeps stuttering whenever streaming. And to think I got a pretty good streamer PC (Core i7).<br />
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<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.ipadclub.nl/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/air-video-icon.jpg" style="cursor: hand; width: 60px; ; float: left; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px;" /><b>Now, let's go for the better news than VLC Streamer, which is the AirVideo.</b> Now this thing is pretty nice. It will set you back $2.99, but it's easy to use. True to its name, AirVideo does and can play movies almost instantly over the air, including HD movies. Yes, those BlueRay ripped movies gets "LiveConverted" and played really well. What's even better, you can even convert those movies so that if you ever wanted to convert movies for iPad, this app can do it for you without much hocus pocus.<br />
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So there you have it for Part 2. Not much huh, but while I would like to discuss another usage I found for iPad, my laziness kicks in. But to give you a clue of what I will be adding: PC Management. This will be the last part that I would like to cover, so if I get the inspiration, then I'll do more. Until then, ciao!death_metalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02099277473601603921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-85188729449066386872011-03-20T18:09:00.000+08:002011-03-20T18:09:06.788+08:00Tech Link (Industry): The Apple iPad 2 Review<a href="http://images.apple.com/ipad/features/images/overview_facetime_20110303.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width:150px" src="http://images.apple.com/ipad/features/images/overview_facetime_20110303.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>iPad 2 has been out for quite some time and many other early reviews have praised it without much negative impression: i.e. iPad 2 is a perfect device for everything. Well, I never bought their story and that wasn't just because I am not an Apple FanBoy but I <a href="http://fanboyreview.blogspot.com/2011/01/article-intel-fanboys-journey-to-beyond.html">went out and tried it with my own hard earned money and the verdict wasn't anywhere near good (check out my own review).</a> It looks like it's not just me who ended up having an issue finding where and what kind of usage iPad falls into, even the boyz at AMDTech encountered the same. I quoted some of their personal usage, taken from their article, read on to go to the source...<br />
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<blockquote><b>Brian Klug's iPad 2 Experience</b><br />
I have to be completely honest here, the original iPad didn’t really ever fit in with my workflow. I carried it around for about a month after our initial WiFi iPad launch review, realized I was never using it, and then left it on my desk where it sat unused for months. Only after my significant other expressed interest in using it did that iPad 1 ever see any real use.<br />
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<b>Vivek's iPad 2 Experience</b><br />
I ended up buying the original iPad when it launched, mostly out of sheer curiosity as to what Jobs and Co. had cooked up for the tablet market. It lasted just about 12 days before I took it back. I was impressed by the hardware, particularly the IPS display and the aluminum unibody, but like Anand and Brian, I had basically no use for it. There weren’t many iPad-specific apps, and the ones that were available tended to be buggy and slow. Document creation was a pain, there was no multitasking, and it didn't really end up being a whole lot more useful than my iPhone. <br />
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<b>Anand's iPad 2 Experience</b><br />
Brian and I tend to see eye to eye on a lot of matters and the iPad is no exception. We both liked the original device, but we both found ourselves casting it aside completely as the months went by. Just like Brian, I couldn't integrate the iPad into my workflow.<br />
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I do most of my work on a desktop (these days a laptop pretending to be a desktop). When I travel I need a notebook of some sort. I've got a MacBook Air that I carry with me if I just need something lightweight to do work, and a MacBook Pro if I need to do a lot of work on the road. While you can technically write articles, prepare HTML, edit images and post all of it via the iPad, it's still no where near as quick to do so as it is on a notebook for me. As revolutionary as touch is as an input form, the mouse is a very tough act to follow. Then there's the issue of multitasking and the fact that switching between apps is still far too much of a pain compared to a desktop. Data sharing between apps is much better on a desktop/notebook.<br />
</blockquote><strong>Source:</strong><a href="http://www.anandtech.com/show/4225/the-ipad-2-review">Anandtech</a>death_metalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02099277473601603921noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20218451.post-24665769176968725822011-03-03T16:39:00.002+08:002011-03-20T18:02:52.177+08:00Tech Link (Industry): iPad 2 Unveiled<a href="http://images.apple.com/ipad/features/images/overview_smartcover_gallery1_20110302.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width:150px" src="http://images.apple.com/ipad/features/images/overview_smartcover_gallery1_20110302.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>Well, it's no secret and if you're wanting to check out the latest and greatest from apple regarding iPad 2, you can check out their site for the official information. Check it out at <a href="http://www.apple.com/ipad/">Apple</a>...death_metalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02099277473601603921noreply@blogger.com0