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Top 5 23-inch+ eco-friendly monitors

Yes, Earth Day is this week, and I know a lot of you tree-huggers out there--those of you who own computers--are probably collectively rolling your eyes at all the eco/green/energy-conscious coverage on the Internets this week.

Speaking for myself, your poser-sensing skills would be right on the money. While I'm no Dr. Blight or anything, I'm not as earth-conscious as I could be in my everyday life.

As a nominal method of atonement, I'll attempt to steer you toward some monitors that should make a positive difference in your overall carbon footprint and definitely save … Read more

Cisco Valet Plus: A wireless router that anyone can set up

Setting up a wireless network at home is not exactly a walk in the park for most home users. For those who aren't tech-savvy, even the networking terms themselves, such as SSID, encryption key, LAN, and WAN, are already very intimidating. For this reason, last week Cisco announced a new line of wireless routers, called Cisco Valet, that takes the "Flip approach" when it comes to ease of use (Cisco acquired the maker of the Flip, Pure Digital, a year ago).

I just had a chance to review the Cisco Valet Plus, the high-end router of the … Read more

Get a sweet Wii bundle for $199.99

Wii, anyone? Today only, GameStop is offering the Nintendo Wii console for $199.99 shipped. Oh, right, that's what everybody charges. But the GameStop deal includes the rather excellent Wii Sports Resort with Wii MotionPlus, which would normally run you another $50.

And that's the deal in a nutshell! I don't think anyone needs me to sing the praises of the Wii; I'll just say that as bundles go, this is one of the best I've seen.

I do, however, want to take this opportunity to address the folks who receive Cheapskate posts via e-mail. … Read more

Apple's Game Center isn't worrying game networks

Gamers who use Apple's iPhone, iPod Touch, and now the iPad are likely to be looking forward to Apple's "Game Center" network, which was announced among the other updates as part of iPhone OS 4.0. But what about the companies that are running existing social networks for the platform?

It's not the end of the world, apparently.

Ngmoco, maker of popular game titles such as Rolando, We Rule, and Touch Pets, also created the Plus+ social network. It's built in to all of its own titles, as well as a select group of games from other developers. Ngmoco's chief publishing officer, Simon Jeffrey, told CNET that the company "has anticipated this move from Apple for some time," and that it should bring a "cleaner developer and consumer experience."

But what does that mean for the Plus+ implementation that has been built into more than 75 titles? "Plus+ took a strategic shift in direction a few months ago toward being a service, and less about being a set of social-gaming features," Jeffery said in a statement. "Plus+ is all about empowering monetization and discoverability mechanisms for the development community, and we have clearly demonstrated with games like We Rule that these mechanisms work."

Discoverability was, in fact, one of the biggest benefits of using services like Plus+, but it's also something Apple plans to offer within its Game Center. Plus+'s implementation was to show you what your friends were playing, as well as show off games that had just been launched. According to the very few details mentioned by Scott Forstall, Apple's senior vice president of iPhone software, during Thursday's press event, both of these things will be a part of the Game Center framework.

So does that mean that Plus+ is going to be more focused on advertising and the metrics of what users are doing within apps? If so, that's another area where Apple has delved into with its iAds platform.… Read more

Solar Pebble could light the way for rural Africans

A solar-charged light might seem like just another green gadget to the average American, but for families in rural Africa, it could prove revolutionary.

Product design consultancy Plus Minus Design is vying to replace unsustainable and potentially dangerous lanterns in the homes of off-grid Africans with the Solar Pebble. Engineered with the economic constraints of developing-world citizens in mind, the Solar Pebble will provide one hour of LED light for every two hours of charge, and will cost only $2.70 to manufacture.

Plus Minus Design, based in Leeds, U.K., was founded by three undergraduate students at the University of Leeds. While studying product design and engineering, Adam Robinson, Henry James, and Tom Eales were given the opportunity to work with SolarAid, a charity in the U.K.

SolarAid, which works to fight poverty and climate change, worked with the students to develop a solar-powered alternative to kerosene lanterns. Those lanterns, commonly used in rural Africa, draw 20 percent of an average Malawian family's income, SolarAid said, and pose respiratory health problems, as well as create fire hazards. … Read more

Verizon drops Palm Pre Plus, Pixi Plus price; Mobile Hotspot now free

Just to be clear, this is not an April Fools' joke, though we wouldn't blame you for thinking so because this deal is a bit ridonkulous.

Verizon Wireless announced on Thursday that customers who buy or upgrade to the Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus will get the carrier's Mobile Hotspot feature for free, while current owners of the smartphone will find a big fat $0.00 for the service on their next bill.

Mobile Hotspot lets you turn the devices into a mobile Wi-Fi router that can provide a mobile broadband connection using Verizon's EV-DO … Read more

Cisco takes the Flip approach to home routers

One of the most essential tech products at home is also probably the one you hate the most: your wireless router.

Setting up a home network can be for some an excruciating experience, one that can leave even tech-savvy folks wringing their hands while switching off between calling the router's customer service line and their Internet service provider.

Cisco Systems says it's designed a new line of routers specifically to avoid this. The Valet and Valet Plus, will be available at retailers like Best Buy, Staples, and Target and online at Amazon.com starting Wednesday for $99 and $… Read more

Exclusive offer: Get Ad-Aware Plus for $9.95

Hi, I'm Catherine Hwang, a Partner Manager at CNET Downloads. I manage software publisher relationships for Upload.com, and I'm here to tell visitors of Download.com about a software deal that's too good to pass up.

CNET Downloads teamed up with Lavasoft to bring you an exclusive special offer: Today only, you can upgrade your free version of Ad-Aware to Ad-Aware Plus for $9.95 (usually $26.95). That's 63 percent off the regular price, so take advantage of this special offer now, only at CNET Downloads. Click here to grab your copy.

Lavasoft Ad-aware … Read more

T-Mobile claims to soon have fastest 3G in U.S.

LAS VEGAS--T-Mobile USA said it will soon have bragging rights as the nation's fastest 3G network. But will the claim to fame help the company attract new customers?

Executives at the CTIA trade show here on Tuesday outlined the company's network upgrade plans to a technology called HSPA+ that will effectively triple its network download speeds on its 3G wireless network by the end of the year.

T-Mobile admits that it got to the 3G wireless party late, but executives at the company said current upgrades to their network will offer faster speeds to more consumers than even … Read more