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Trendnet shrinks Draft N wireless router

Wireless routers that fit in your pocket have been around for a long time (I especially like the Windy31, though it's a little peculiar). However, while convenient and cool, they share the same shortcoming: the lack of support for high-speed Draft N wireless.

Trendnet on Thursday ended that trait by introducing a 300Mbps Wireless N Travel Router, model TEW-654TR.

Measuring merely 2.5 inches by 3.25 inches by 0.75 inches, the TEW-654TR is arguably the world's smallest router that supports the Draft N specification, offering wireless speed up to 300Mbps (as opposed to 54Mbps of existing … Read more

Sony takes on Flip Video, in Technicolor

Now that Flip has created a market for cheap minicamcorders such as the MinoHD, Sony's decided to jump in with its own offerings, somewhat annoyingly nicknamed the Webbie HD models.

The vertical-style MHS-PM1 seems a better category fit than the MHS-CM1; though like many of its competitors it lacks an optical zoom, it has a nifty swivel lens mount. It records 1080p MPEG-4 video to Memory Stick Duo media at 1,440x1,080-pixel resolution, and shoots stills at a comparatively high resolution (5-megapixels). Also like many competitors, the software it ships with--Picture Motion Browser Portable--doesn't support the Mac.… Read more

Sony offers up Web camcorder with 5X zoom

One of a duo of direct-to-Web HD mini camcorders marking Sony's debut in the market, the MHS-CM1, is modeled more after the traditional cheap designs from Panasonic and Samsung than the new tech toy-type Flip MinoHDs of the world.

The horizontal design does allow for a 5X zoom lens and largish 2.5-inch LCD. However, I found the CM1 oddly uncomfortable to hold. It records 1080p MPEG-4 video to Memory Stick Duos at 1440x1080 resolution, and shoots stills at a comparatively high resolution. Also like many competitors, the software it ships with, Picture Motion Browser Portable, doesn't support … Read more

RCA unveils new budget HD minicamcorder, the EZ209HD

In the minicamcorder market, last year RCA pretty much played second or third fiddle to Flip Video and Kodak, with Creative recently making a late charge. Well, RCA hopes to change all that with its new Small Wonder EZ209HD, which carries the bargain price of $120 and is due out sometime this spring.

This model is smaller and sleeker than previous Small Wonders, integrates a microSD card slot rather than an SD card slot (it accepts microSD cards up to 16GB), and retains a not-too-puny 2-inch LCD. Like the Creative Vado HD, the EZ209HD also incorporates an HDMI output so … Read more

Canon's midpriced MiniDVD camcorder

The higher-end model in Canon's duo of standard-definition MiniDVD camcorders for 2009, the DC420, boasts slightly better specs than the DC410: in addition to the features of that model, it integrates a 1.07-megapixel CCD and 48x Advanced Zoom lens. Oh wait, that's what its predecessor, the DC320, had. As far as I can tell, there's no real difference between the two models except some minor cosmetics. Hmmm. Maybe it's just me.

No pricing yet for the DC420, which is slated to ship this month.

Canon's cheapest DVD camcorder

If you're wedded to the idea of a miniDVD-based standard-definition camcorder, Canon still plans to offer a couple of options in 2009, the budget DC420 and ultra-cheap DC410. The DC410 is essentially the DVD equivalent of the ZR960, with the same 680,000-pixel CCD, 41x Advanced Zoom, and mic and headphone jacks, plus the DC410 includes a card slot for shooting and saving photos. Given the low resolution you could probably get better pictures from your camera phone, though.

Slated to ship this month; no price as yet.

Canon's MiniDV for 2009: And then there was one

MiniDV isn't dead, but it's getting close: Canon, at least, has reduced its 2009 MiniDV product line down to a single model geared to the education market. The survivor, the ZR960, is almost identical to 2008's ZR900: it has the same 680,000-pixel sensor, 41x Advanced Zoom lens, and no changes to the chipset. What's new? An LCD-based Quick Start option and support for 30.5mm filters.

No pricing or availability info as yet.

2009: Netbook or notebook?

2009 may be the year of the Netbook. But there's a big if.

Here's the choice: Will consumers buy a thin, light, relatively fast $1,800 MacBook Air or a thin, light, ultrasmall, not-as-fast $450 Hewlett-Packard Mini 1000 Netbook? (Correction: the HP Mini 1000 configuration cited here was originally stated incorrectly as $700.)

If many people, fully aware of this choice, opt for a Netbook then we have the foundation of, at the very least, a rethinking of the pricey ultraportable.

At most, we have many more consumers buying into the Netbook concept--particularly if 3G broadband wireless comes … Read more

Dan's favorite laptops of 2008

After looking at countless laptops during 2008, a small handful have jumped out as personal favorites. I'm not saying these are the very best laptops of the year, nor the highest-rated--they're just the ones that struck me as particularly interesting, useful, or well-designed.

Chances are high that you'll disagree with some or all of this list--which is what makes the comment section below so handy. Share your personal favorites, and see how they stack up against mine.

Gateway P-7811FX For a brief time in 2008, PC gamers had a single bright spot in their otherwise drab world (… Read more