Tag: techdigest
At last: a LARGE remote control that you can FIND!
Why oh why does everything have to get smaller? I’m getting older, as are my eyes. Remote controls, for which it’s a known fact get lost (and exponentially more so when Big Brother comes on the TV at volume 11), seem to be designed to cram ever more functions in ever smaller units.
Stop the madness!
Enter the Extra Large Big Button Remote Control (no, that’s its title – catchy isn’t it?).
Virgin Media close to inking deal for sports news channel
The whole mess that is Virgin Media versus Sky is still rumbling on, but at least there could be some good news for Virgin Media’s sports fans.
It’s being reported that Virgin Media are likely to sign a deal in the next few weeks that will create a new sports news channel. The most likely partner is Setanta Sports, though this hasn’t been confirmed.
Onkyo to launch seven home cinema receivers including models with HD audio support
Onkyo has announced that, over the coming two months, it will launch seven new home cinema receivers to the UK market, with prices ranging from £200 to £1400, which it claims will give it the one of the most comprehensive receiver ranges of any manufacturer.
In addition, all of its models priced over £400 will feature integrated on-board decoding for the high definition audio formats Dolby Digital Plus, True HD, DTS-HD, and DTS-HD Master Audio.
All models will feature 1080p compatible HDMI 1.3a inputs and outputs, plus Audyssey microphone-based auto setup.
Denon's PMA-500AE and DCD-500AE Advanced Evolution hi-fi separates released in UK
Denon, known for their quality, but expensive, components, are returning to their “affordable hi-fi roots” in the UK with the launch of hi-fi separates ranging in price from £160 to, err, £5,000.
Well, OK, sort of affordable. Some of it…
Fortunately, the PMA-500AE stereo hi-fi amplifier and DCD-500AE stereo CD player fall in well under £200.
Review: Ask3D – Ask's revamped search engine
I’m choosing to forget Ask’s rather bizarre ‘propaganda’ advertising of their new search “Ask 3D” search engine as I take a look at how effective it is as a tool, and whether it’s going to pose a threat to Google.
There’s more to Ask3D than the slightly shiny, icon-based eye candy that greets you when you arrive at their front page.
Both Google and Ask are keen to offer a more holistic approach to search results. A search for “Steve Jobs” in Google brings up the usual listing of results, but interspersed with news and video. It’s easy to find these items by scrolling through the results, but they’re not particularly distinct at first glance.
Ask, on the other hand, clearly separates regular web pages, listed in the middle column, from multimedia content and the latest news, displayed in sections in the right-hand column. It’s an elegant layout, marred only slightly by the “Sponsored Results” boxes which don’t integrate as well as their Google counterparts, and can sometimes take up to half of the screen before search results are displayed.
nuTsie: do you really want ads on your own shuffled iTunes library?
Andy Merrett writes…
Melodeo has introduced a new beta service that lets users play a random selection from their iTunes music library on their mobile phone or Internet-connected PC.
Called nuTsie (and yes, that is an anagram of iTunes), users upload their iTunes library to Melodeo’s servers, and then have the ability to play back a randomised selection of their tunes in hi-fi quality.
The nuTsie service doesn’t download any of the music from its servers to the mobile device – it streams it. It also features a ‘radio rules’ shuffle algorithm to ensure artists, record labels and music publishers are paid for every use of a song. It can even play iTunes’ “Fair Play” tracks.
Ofcom pushes wireless broadband and rural coverage
Ofcom has introduced new regulations that will see wireless broadband extended across the country – even those hard to reach rural areas. The regulations would allow for operators already using the 5.8GHz frequency band to increase power levels, and thus…
Vodafone launch "Mobile Internet" service
Vodafone UK has announced its new “Vodafone Mobile Internet” service, whereby the Vodafone live! portal will now provide access to mobile-optimised versions of popular web services including Google, MySpace, YouTube, eBay, and Instant Messaging from Microsoft and Yahoo!
It comes together with new tariffs that include a ‘data pack’ allowing users to download up to 120MB of data for £7.50 per month, or a daily charge of £1 for 500K, with no further charge unless the day’s usage exceeds 15MB.
Steganos launches Internet Anonym VPN to Mac: secure web surfing for OS X
Steganos, the European security and privacy software maker, has announced the release of its Internet Anonym VPN software for the Mac.
The service provides two functions. Firstly, it encrypts and secures the data passed between the Mac and the Internet when using publicly accessible, potentially insecure Wi-Fi hotspots.
It also claims to offer Internet anonymity, by routing all Internet traffic via Steganos’s dedicated web servers.
Wayfinder launches SpeedAlert: safety camera warning system for mobile phone
Wayfinder has announced the launch of its SpeedAlert speed detection tool, that will turn any mobile phone into a speed and safety camera detector.
The SpeedAlert software can be downloaded over-the-air to a mobile phone, with no need for a PC, and once running needs no further input from the driver.
It uses GPS to note the car’s position in relation to its database of over 17,000 safety camera locations, and can give visual and audible warnings of approaching traffic observation areas, including speed and red-light cameras.
