Author: Andy Merrett
Freesat announces new "plus" service coming mid-November; Humax offers first HD DVR
Freesat, keen to join the likes of Freeview+ and Sky+ in offering DVR capability on its platform, has announced that Freesat+ will be available from mid-November.
When a suitably-equipped digibox is connected to the satellite feed, full DVR functionality is offered, including pausing and recording live TV, detailed channel guides, series recording, and so on…
LaCie intros LaCinema Rugged: portable multimedia-friendly hard drive
LaCie, well-known for its rugged portable hard drives, has just launched a new range: the LaCinema Rugged.
As the name would suggest, these portable hard drives are designed for carrying around your multimedia files — movies, photos, and music — and can connect directly to a high definition television via HDMI or composite video port…
trueCall can zap nuisance phone calls before they bug you
Telemarketers, silent calls generated by overzealous diallers, over-exuberant automated American-accented robots, the slightly weird relative that you really don’t like talking to on the phone… they’re all reasons to get hold of trueCall, which is supposed to do a pretty good job of screening or zapping unwanted callers.
The trueCall screens phone numbers, letting through ones it recognises on its “star list”, zapping those on the blacklist, and asking unrecognised callers to leave a message…
Gallery: Toshiba's new range of notebook and tablet PCs
Toshiba has launched four new notebook PCs, two aimed at business users, and a tablet PC. Click on the first image below to see the gallery, and get a rundown on their specifications….
Microsoft pushing Live Search through bribery: win prizes at John Lewis
Live Search must really be suffering at the moment, as Microsoft is teaming up with John Lewis to give away thousands of pounds worth of prizes over Christmas just for using the search engine.
BigSnapSearch.com launched today, and Microsoft will be hoping that this marketing push will be as successful as the first one it ran, that allegedly saw search queries increase by a third during the eight-week promotion. No stats on how many people defected back to Google afterwards, though.
Each time someone searches for something, two virtual cards are turned over. If they match, it’s “Snap!”, and a prize is won. Bearing in mind that there are only 24 prizes each day, don’t expect to win a flurry of prizes…
Buffalo announces super-thin NanoStation 60GB portable hard drive
Buffalo has announced its first 1.8-inch portable hard drive. The NanoStation HD-PT60U2 is the same size as three stacked credit cards (6mm thin),weighs 56 grams, and has a 60GB capacity.
It features easy-to-use backup and synchronisation software, as well as mobile applications including Firefox and Thunderbird. Buffalo’s SecureLockMobile software should prevent unauthorised data access if the drive goes walkabout…
Automate your home firework display with Launch Kontrol
Fancy automating your upcoming fireworks display, and reduce the risk of blowing your face off because you just had to go back to see why that last rocket didn’t go off? If so, the Launch Kontrol unit could be for you.
Instead of faffing about with matches to light a firework’s fuse, you just attach an E-clip that can be activated by remote control from up to 25 metres away. This E-clip is heated for a fraction of a second, lighting the fuse safely…
Sony launches VAIO TT Blu-ray notebook and new customisation service in UK
Sony has announced that its VAIO TT Blu-ray notebook, which it claims is the lightest portable PC containing a high-def optical drive, is now available in the UK.
It sports a modest 11.1-inch widescreen LED-backlit display offering 1,366 x 768 resolution, Intel Core 2 Duo SU9300 processor, Mobile Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD, 4GB of RAM, 160GB hard drive, plus WWAN technology offering 7.2Mbps HSDPA and 2Mbps HSUPA where service is available.
A DVD superdrive comes as standard with the laptop, with the option to add Blu-ray. A 128GB solid state drive can also be fitted instead of the hard drive. Sony is being suitably stingy with pricing information, but we’ll get it to you as soon as we find out…
Sharp's 108-inch LCD TV finally launched
At CES last year (2007), Sharp unveiled its 108-inch LCD TV. As far as I’m aware, despite it being nearly two years since the show, it’s still the largest LCD TV in production (yes, there are larger plasmas) — and now it’s been launched.
This monster comes with eco-friendly features, according to reports, though I bet it burns a helluva lot more fossil fuels up per hour than your piddly little flat-panel TV…
Runco to launch 95-inch CineWall HD projection display
Runco, probably not a name that’s hugely familiar to the mainstream consumer in the UK, has announced that it has produced the world’s first 95-inch widescreen in-wall front-projection display.
Given that it’s based on projection technology, we’re not talking super-thin “mount on your wall” LCD or plasma here. This is beefy “mount in your wall” technology, and while Runco thinks that a 33 inch depth requirement is but a “tight space”, I’m a little concerned that I’d be halfway into my neighbour’s front room if I tried to install this in my house.
So, not for the modest-sized terraced home, I feel…
