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Media Center Communicator

January 7, 2005

Captain Kirk - "Retrieve all my email. And oh yeah, beam me up Scotty!"

Most of us have seen at least one Star Trek episode. Then as you already know, Captain Kirk was able to talk into a communicator to have Scotty beam him up to the Enterprise. Star Trek the Next Generation had an advanced speech recognition system that let the Captain Picard simply press his communicator badge to ask the computer to do something.

Posted in Gadgets, Reviews

SBC IPTV Offering

January 7, 2005

SBC Communications announced at CES their plan to go after the cable television industry by offering consumers hundreds of television channels using internet protocol (IP) TV technology over a new broadband fibre-optic network.

In a keynote address at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Edward Whitacre, SBC chief executive, said SBC will begin selling the next generation IPTV service with super high-speed internet access and VoIP services.

Last year, SBC announced plans to spend $4 billion on "Project Lightspeed" which will enable the Baby Bell group to offer "triple play" voice, video and data services to 18 million homes across 13 states by the end of 2007.

Finally, the carriers strike back at the cable companies after sitting on their hands as cable companies stole carriers' customers by offering voice.

Posted in Gadgets

Windows Mobile 2005

January 5, 2005

Posted in Gadgets

Mapquest Directions on Cell Phone

January 5, 2005

Personally, I can't live without my Destinator1 GPS running on my PocketPC, but for those with that can't afford GPS in their car, this may be a useful service to get directions...

MAPQUEST LAUNCHES NEW SERVICE THAT LETS TRAVELERS SEND MAPS AND DIRECTIONS DIRECTLY TO THEIR MOBILE PHONES

'Send to Phone' Service Provides Mapquest® Mobile Service Subscribers Another Convenient Way to Access MapQuest Information

Helps On-The-Go People Find Places and Get There

Dulles, VA, -- January 5, 2005 – MapQuest, the leading location based services company, today announced the launch of Send to Phone, a new feature that lets MapQuest Mobile subscribers send color maps and driving directions from the MapQuest.com website directly to their cell phones. Created in partnership with leading mobile publisher, Vindigo, Send to Phone expands the convenience of the MapQuest Mobile service, which enables users to request and access maps and directions directly from their cell phones.

"With Send to Phone, users can request maps and directions from home or work and have the comfort of knowing that when they turn to their cell phones for information, the specific maps and directions that they have created will be ready and waiting for them," said Tommy McGloin, Senior Vice President and General Manager of MapQuest "Send to Phone gives people, especially business travelers who we view as early adopters of this technology, the power and convenience to choose exactly how, where and what kind of information they receive from MapQuest."

McGloin continued, "The MapQuest.com website is already the No. 1online source for maps and directions – with more than 33 million monthly users.[1] With the addition of the Send to Phone technology, we continue to open new market opportunities and expand the reach of our brand and our superior maps and directions."

The MapQuest Mobile service was created in partnership with Vindigo, one of the best-known publishers of consumer applications for mobile phones.

Posted in Gadgets

Apple Blocks RealNetworks

December 15, 2004

As an iPod user myself, I found this bit of news a bit disconcerting. Basically, Apple Computer has updated its iPod software so that songs purchased from RealNetworks' online music store will no longer play on some iPods. Apple basically updated the iPod firmware to block the playing of songs downloaded from RealNetworks. The move could render tunes purchased by many iPod owners via RealNetworks unplayable on their music players.

RealNetworks has marketed its music store as the only Apple rival compatible with the iPod, following RealNetworks discovery of a method to let its customers play their downloaded tunes on Apple's iPod.

Apple criticized RealNetworks' workaround, called Harmony, calling it "hacking" and warned that songs purchased on RealNetworks would likely "cease to work with current and future iPods."

Interestingly, many rabid iPod fans have come to Apple's defense, essentially supporting the notion that you should only be able to download music from Apple's online music store using iTunes software.

Posted in Gadgets

Logitech LX-501

December 9, 2004

Logitech LX-501 Cordless Desktop Keyboard and Mouse
Web site: http://www.logitech.com

Price: $79.95 (retail), but I've seen it here for ~$50: Logitech LX-501

Logitech LX-501 Cordless Desktop

Ratings Score Installation Documentation Features Usability/Ergonomics Performance Overall According to Logitech, the first "Cordless Desktop" (wireless keyboard & mouse) was invented by Logitech in 1998 and comprised simply a cordless (RF) version of a traditional keyboard and mouse. Keyboards and mice has come a long way since then -- volume controls on keyboards, special function keys to control DVDs/CDs, launch applications with a single key, horizontal and vertical scroll wheels on mice and more.

In fact, wireless keyboards and mice have gone from being simple point, click and type devices to being complete PC control centers, as well as a media center for controlling CD music and DVD movie playback, playing My Videos, or displaying My Pictures. Even the look of the keyboard and mouse has changed from boring and beige to the sleek and stylish.

Posted in Gadgets

Ringback the New Ringtone?

November 30, 2004

According to MSNBC, the next multibillion-dollar surprise in the cellular business will be "ringback" tones.

Instead of the usual ringing tone that people hear when calling someone, callers to Verizon Wireless subscribers may find themselves listening to a song until the phone has been answered.

Say it ain't so! I have enough of a beef with obnoxious ringtones.

Posted in Gadgets

Gigabit Ethernet Video Routers

November 29, 2004

In keeping with my Media Center Extender review (in conjunction with Microsoft's Media Center Edition 2005) that I blogged today, I just got this press release today, which discusses the growth that Gigabit Ethernet video routers will bring. (Some people prefer to call them "Media Gateways") It's interesting that in this digital age how important organizing and gaining easy access to your digital media has become. This research report/press release below is indicitive of that. The report mentions the convergence of voice (VoIP), video (including HDTV), and other media.

Posted in Gadgets

Linksys Media Center Extender (MCX) Review

November 29, 2004

Sony VAIO RA920G on top of right speaker

Ratings Score Installation Documentation Features Usability Performance Overall Last week I received a Sony VAIO RA920G Desktop PC running Microsoft Media Center 2005 (MCE) as well as the new Linksys Media Center Extender (MCX). The Sony VAIO RA920G has some cool features including an advanced liquid cooling system and enhanced acoustic technologies that make it virtually silent. This is perfect for my family room home theater setup -- after all you don't want the sound of the PC's fan spoiling the DVD movie watching experience!

Of course, I also have a Linksys Media Center Extender (MCX) which "wirelessly" extends the PC to allow me to have the PC and the TV located in different rooms in my home, thus negating the concern about noise from the PC.

Posted in Gadgets, Home Entertainment, Polycom, Wireless

U-Blox SuperSense GPS Weak Signal Tracking

November 19, 2004

I've become quite dependent on my GPS solution (Destinator 3.0 running on an iPaq), which has allowed me to throw out all the maps in my glove box. Unfortunately, I had one very bad experience trying to rely on my GPS when I was driving through the streets of Manhattan during a downpour. As it is, the tall buildings in NYC weaken the GPS signal strength, but during a rainstorm you can forget about it - I couldn't get a GPS lock. I was completely and totally lost in the streets of Manhattan on a Friday evening trying to get back home to Connecticut during rush hour traffic (the worst possible traffic day & time).

Posted in GPS, Gadgets

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