Reviews

Another $100 PC... or is it?

It was inevitable that someone would try to capitalize on the interest in the $100 XO laptop from the One Laptop per Child project. I'm sure we all remember the brief craze for free PCs in 1999, where a cheap PC was given away with a relatively expensive or ad-sponsored Internet service agreement. When I started hearing about the $100 laptop, I expected it would spur a resurgence in such deals.

So when I checked out Zonbu, a Silicon Valley company offering a $99 Linux-based PC, I wasn't surprised to discover there's a service agreement involved there … Read more

No spoilers here-- just a few book reviews

I read a lot. Well, as much as I can, anyway, usually six to ten books a month. It's a welcome distraction from work and a useful source of inspiration for my own writing-- and work. One never knows when a PowerPoint slide might benefit from a clever turn of phrase...

I got hooked on… Read more

Gizmo technology report-- edible inkjetting

I'm on a lot of press-release mailing lists, and I get some pretty unusual press releases. Here's an excerpt from one that came in last week (the full text is here):

Press Release: FUJIFILM Dimatix Unit Announces Breakthrough in Decorating Chocolate Digitally; Plans Debut at IFT 2007 Food Expo in July

Lebanon, N.H., July 18, 2007 - Building on its growing success in commercial food decoration, the Dimatix Technology Integration unit (DTI) of FUJIFILM Dimatix, Inc. today announced it has developed a breakthrough technique that employs the latest digital jetting technology in decorating dark or light nonporous … Read more

Hands-on Friday: The Logitech Transporter

Although it was originally developed a few years ago by SlimDevices, the Logitech Transporter has seen its way through a number of enhancements. Realizing its worth to the consumer, Logitech acquired SlimDevices just to sell the Transporter along with the company's SqueezeNetwork. In doing so, Logitech has added some of its own flair, but has basically kept the Transporter securely fastened in its original design. That said, the unit I used is not the silver you see pictured here, but the new fully-black design.

Regardless of its history or color differences, the Logitech Transporter is a well-built device with … Read more

A low-priced alternative to the OQO and Flipstart

A New York Times article on Thursday tipped me off to a new handheld PC called the Everun from Raon Digital of Korea.

Although this machine has apparently been around for over a month, this was the first I'd heard of it. The occasion for the Times' mention was that the Everun is now available from Dynamism, a company that has become a hero to the early-adopter crowd by importing all kinds of gizmos that aren't officially for sale in the US market. If you haven't been to Dynamism, go check it out, it's great.

The … Read more

What could you make from an iPhone?

Since the iPhone's June 29 launch, we've seen several teardown reports--some from professionals, some demonstrating more enthusiasm than skill, and some that are just awful (but funny).

What's inside? Well, you can read the details in reports from various analyst firms, but it breaks down like this:

A microprocessor A 3D graphics controller DRAM Flash memory An LCD A touch sensor A cell phone module Wi-Fi and Bluetooth controllers An audio chip A microphone and a speaker An accelerometer A camera module A SIM card Assorted other interfaces, connectors and buttons A lithium-ion battery Power-supply circuitry

All … Read more

Hands-on Friday: The Philips AJ300D Docking Entertainment System

Starting a new tradition here on The Digital Home, each Friday I will be telling you about my experience with some of the best home products on the market. This week you can read my impressions of the Philips AJ300D and next Friday I will be telling you about the Logitech Transporter. But until then, here is my hands-on evaluation of the Phillips AJ300D.

Ever since the iPod hit shelves, the iPod accessory market has been booming. One such section of that booming marketplace is iPod docking stations. And while the iHome has historically been my favorite in terms of … Read more

Upgrading to Parallels Desktop 3.0

When I got this MacBook Pro (MBP), with its 2.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, back in November, one of the reasons for upgrading was the availability of Parallels Desktop 2.5. The Parallels software runs Microsoft's Windows XP or Vista in a virtual-machine environment. You get the Windows desktop in a window on your Mac desktop, so both environments are available at the same time. The Windows hard disk can be created as a file in your Mac filesystem, so you don't waste much disk space.

There's also Apple's own Boot Camp, which lets … Read more

A new hard disk for my MacBook Pro

I upgraded my MacBook Pro (MBP) today with a 250GB 5400RPM hard disk from MCE Tech (product info here). The drive came with an external enclosure with USB and eSATA interfaces for the drive I was removing, which is a nice touch, and even so MCE's price was competitive.

I've bought drives from MCE before. They make some good products, and their customer service is excellent. MCE promised the drive would ship in 7 to 10 business days because they were waiting on the enclosures. It shipped on the 10th day, and MCE volunteered to upgrade the order … Read more

My Newton story

Today the iPhone is the alpha gizmo, the one item of consumer electronics that dominates all the others.

But in 1993, the hot new gizmo was Apple's Newton, and it was a whole different thing.

Not very many people had Newtons. Apple sold fewer Newtons over the whole life of the product than it sold iPhones the evening of June 29.

Also unlike the iPhone, the first Newtons weren't even very useful. Although called "personal digital assistants" (PDAs), using a Newton was significantly more difficult than using a Day-Timer. The original MessagePad had very poor handwriting … Read more