Gadgets 2008

Brother isn’t exactly the number one name that you would normally associate with printers, but then again they do have some pretty decent offerings in the past and currently. This time round, Brother has rolled out a couple of models under the Professional Series banner, featuring all-in-one color inkjets. Those seem to be the most popular type of printers these days, since everybody wants convenience in a single device. Of course, the downside would be, having the printer break down equals to disaster since you would be devoid of the other functions and features as well. The two printers we’ll look at today are the new MFC-5890CN and MFC-5490CN models.

The MFC-5890CN expands the line-up initially introduced by the MFC-6490CW, which was the first and flagship model launched in the Brother “Professional Series.” The MFC-5890CN’s ability to produce up to 11-by-17-inch ledger size documents can significantly increase the visual impact of everyday documents. The larger size allows for more content on the page and helps increase readability. Impressively, this unit offers the ledger printing feature and still boasts a small footprint when compared to similar, more expensive products. It also comes standard with Ethernet networking, fast print speeds and a flip-up, 3.3-inch, color LCD display.

Another addition to the Brother “Professional Series” color inkjet all-in-one line is the MFC-5490CN, which offers many of the same features as the MFC-5890CN such as fast print speeds, direct photo printing from a camera’s media card and an easy-to-read, two-line LCD display. The MFC-5490CN prints up to legal (8.5-by-14-inch) paper size but not ledger (11-by-17-inch) like the MFC-5890CN.

If you want to lay your hands on either of these puppies, the MFC-5890CN and MFC-5490CN will retail for $199.99 and $129.99, respectively.

Press Release

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FROM GAMERTELL - Gamertell staff writer Mark Rollins is heading to the fifth annual Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle, WA, this weekend (August 29 - 31, 2008) and will be providing regular updates…
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Sometimes technology can be put to really great use. Sometimes it can just be used to spy on us.

Researchers Nitesh Dhanjani and Akshay Aggarwal are developing a tool which allows them to create a real time picture of how an Internet user is feeling, based on their profile on a series of social networking sites.

“It will tell you what’s going on in your brain,” says Dhanjani.

I know super-geeks can be a bit clueless about emotional stuff, so I’m going to spell this one out: I already know how I’m feeling. (I know a lot more about myself than Facebook does).

So if you want to know how I’m feeling, ask me. And if I want you to know the answer, I’ll tell you. Otherwise, stop the stalking. Sorry, I mean ‘profiling’…

Via CNET news.

Samsung has announced its feature rich Blu-ray player, the BD-P2500. Boasting interactive features such BD Live and Bonus View, this Blu-ray player gives out a full HD audio-visual experience through its Hollywood Quality Video (HQV) processing and 7.1-Channel analog audio outputs. Even better is the fact that the BD-P2500 does not only play Blu-ray discs but also does upscaling of standard DVD’s in full HD 1080p quality.

A quick rundown of the BD-P2500’s features would give us a built-in wired Ethernet connection, 1GB internal flash memory, USB port, HDMI 1.3 output with xvTCC Deep Color support, and 24fps film mode. The player also tops in the sound department since it can decode high-resolution digital multichannel audio soundtracks as well as outputs Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD and DTS either as an uncompressed PCM signal or through 7.1 analog outputs. In addition, users can receive feature updates and upgrades through its embedded Ethernet connection, USB port as well as a CD, DVD or Blu-ray disc.

The Samsung BD-P2500 will be available sometime in October and carries and retail price of $499.99.

Read [Samsung] Via [Akihabara News]

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If you have a thing for retro design you’re going to love this USB microphone.  It features of course a retro inspired microphone.  Which yes is a little more bulky than it needs to be, but it’s worth it to get the overall retro look.  It uses radio-frequency identification, so you can move about the room with it as long as you’re within three meters.  As you’re wandering you won’t have to worry about tripping over any wires, you can make a fool of yourself anyway though by singing into it.

It will support Windows XP, Vista and Mac OSX.  It also does not require drivers for either XP or Vista.  The microphone measures 80 x 80 x 160mm and has a On/Off button directly on it.  Likely this microphone will probably make you want to listen to music along the lines of Fred Astaire as opposed to the more recent artists.  To pick one up it will cost you $29 over on Brando.

Source: GeekAlerts

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I’ve got to hand it to the company who made the G4 Slim mouse. It can’t have been easy to make the world’s thinnest laptop mouse, or at least the world’s slimmest so far.

The G4 is a 5mm piece of plastic and metal that can fold up into a very flat slot. In fact, it is so flat that it can fit inside the PCMCIA slot of the laptop, which is one that I don’t use while the laptop is being transported.

This makes the G4 one of the most compact computer mice, and it comes with a retractable USB cable as well. This has a touch scroll pad in the middle of two left and right mouse buttons.

The G4 slim mouse is a plug and play feature that is compatible with both PC and Mac laptops. Not only that, this G4 Mouse is an optical mouse that is state of the art.

Oddly enough, this is not the first Slim Mouse that we have reported on. The first we did was about the size of a finger, and had a scroll wheel on the side.

The G4 Slim mouse comes with a leather pouch and mouse pad, and is available for about $69.99 on the Slim mouse site.

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The Iqua Visor SUN is a bluetooth handsfree speaker for the car that clips on to the visor and uses solar power to recharge, meaning you’re always connected. How refreshingly sensible.

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by Richard Lawler, posted Aug 29th 2008 at 6:23AM
We’ve seen GM’s carefully managed Volt PR campaign, but that hasn’t stopped our friends at AutoBlogGreen from combing the net for a better look, resulting in these apparent snaps of the center console and the production exterior rolling along the set of Transformers 2. The shiny, rounded all white center console with touch sensitive interface? You’re probably thinking what we’re thinking. At least the exterior shot — which shows off a “Volt” badge on the A-pillar — is a bit more clear. Of course, this might just be a movie-only iteration and any number of things could change before those batteries get out of Malibus and into proper rolling stock… but we’ll just sit back and keep our fingers crossed, at least until 2010.

Read - Chevy Volt Interior
Read - Chevy volt Exterior

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Filed under: Transportation

The latest potential launch date for the AT&T BlackBerry Bold is now expected to come in just about a month, on October 2. I wish we were able to say this has been confirmed, but sadly it is just based on a tip that is being considered “pretty solid.” Of course we have seen these situations go either way when it come to reliable sources, so keep your credit card safely in your wallet for now. In the meantime it looks like October 2 is the date for AT&T to announce the Bold, with full availability coming on Monday October 6. All in all, the release seems to make sense timing wise now that Rogers has finally gotten theirs ready and out.

Via [BGR]

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by Richard Lawler, posted Aug 29th 2008 at 7:16AMAnother tradeshow, another chance for DivX to add juice to its symphony of new consumer hardware. Listen closely so your attention’s undivided as the first DivX HD-compatible DVD player from a major manufacturer, the LG DVS450H, stands ready to play back full length HD flicks from disc or USB flash drive. Turkish manufacturer Vestel is back to straighten the facts, introducing the first DivX-capable STB for Europe in the t5000. It’s still undergoing DivX certification, but promises a firmware update should be the only thing needed to ensure complete compatibility. JVC steps up to make the people unite with its first Blu-ray player, the NX-BD3, carrying DLNA and DivX certs to acquire content via wired or wireless networks, and play back DivX files from DVD or CD after it goes on sale in September.

Read - LG
Read - Vestel
Read - JVC

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Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment