Crave

The PowerFuze keeps your USB devices juiced in the car and at home.

(Credit: Scosche)

You should see the mess of cables, chargers, and charging cables that clutter my backpack every day. Moving from car to car and home to work while testing a variety of devices means that iPod sync cables, USB cables, Mini- and Micro-USB cables for mobile phones and GPS devices, 12-volt car chargers, and 110-volt wall chargers eat up a good deal of my bag space. For me, this is why Scosche's PowerFuze charger system looks interesting. This charging solution should let you replace a number of cables and chargers for an all-in-one approach. It's a car charger and a wall charger. Ideally, it's the best of both worlds.

The PowerFuze system crams a few different charging configurations into one package. When you're at home, it is a two-port "Made for iPod" and "Works with iPhone" certified USB AC charger that plugs into a 110-volt wall outlet. When you're on the road, a 12-volt USB charger pulls out to take advantage of your vehicle's DC power port. If you have 12-volt DC car accessories that you want to use indoors, the vacant 12-volt port will work as a power inverter to accommodate them. With 1 amp of current split between the two channels, you shouldn't expect to power a 12-volt air compressor on the PowerFuze, but there's more than enough overhead for most portable devices.

Then again, most users only have one car, so they won't really see the point of carrying around the 12-volt charger. That little bugger will probably find itself perma-lodged into your car's DC power port after the first week--when you get sick of bringing it into the house every day. That being said, I still think it's nice to be able to pick up both chargers for one reasonable price and have the flexibility to use them together if you should decide to do so.

The PowerFuze and the PowerFuze Pro (with an included iPod sync cable) sell for $34.99 and $44.99 respectively. If you only need a car charger, look for the PowerPlug and PowerPlug Pro with sync cable for $19.99 and $29.99, respectively. Check out Scosche.com for more details on this cool little stocking stuffer.

(Credit: Logitech)

Years ago, we reviewed the Logitech Gaming Keyboard G11 and found that it was pretty great, except for being unfortunately large and lacking USB 2.0. The company's newest update, the Gaming Keyboard G110, certainly looks to have addressed those issues with a much slimmer base and a more efficiently compact key layout.

Backlit LED keys can be set to red, blue, or "any shade between," meaning a veritable spectrum of purples are yours to savor. Twelve programmable G keys can store macros up to 36 characters long, and an MR button allows adding macros spontaneously, in case any new ones come to you midgame.

On the back is a USB 2.0 hub port, along with dedicated headphone and mic jacks so gamers can also plug in their headset of choice and any other mouse, control pad, or other peripheral that comes to mind when fragging.

The G110 comes out in November for $79.99.

Logitech Gaming Keyboard G110

(Credit: HP)

We said we noticed a recent trend of better-resolution HD screens showing up in Netbooks, and we like the direction. HP apparently does too, as its newly announced HP Mini 311 includes an 11.6-inch 1,366x768 pixel screen, a resolution that's standard in most laptops but not in most Netbooks. The extra pixel real estate is backed by an Nvidia Ion GPU--the same elusive processor we've been eagerly waiting to try but has been delayed in products such as the Lenovo IdeaPad S12.

The combination of the Nvidia Ion and an Intel Atom N270 processor should help push the Mini 311 to display 720p HD movies, and according to HP, it'll also output 1080p via its HDMI-out port. Other than the Ion and the higher-def screen, other details are mostly Netbook standard--although, in addition to the screen, the Ion, and the HDMI, the Mini 311's 1GB RAM is a speedier DDR3 instead of DDR2.

At a price of $399, it's also a really good deal for a Netbook. We already liked HP's Netbook line before this, but the Mini 311 could be something special (although it does lack 802.11n and Bluetooth). It comes in black and white.

Mini 311 specs:
• 1.6 GHz Intel Atom N270
• Nvidia Ion LE graphics
• 160GB 5400rpm HDD
• 1GB DDR3 RAM
• 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi
• Altec Lansing speakers
• 3 USB 2.0 ports
• HDMI

The HP Mini 110's subtle patterns.

(Credit: HP)

And, in other Netbook news, HP is releasing a more stylish Mini 110 with a design by Studio Tord Boontje, featuring white-on-white layers of flower and plant patterns. It's nice too, but we're a little more excited about the Mini 311.

(Credit: LG)

It turns out LG is working on a sequel to the X110 it released last year. Not excited? We don't blame you, but what if we tell you the new X130 is set to have arguably the longest battery life in the Netbook industry? Yes, we thought that might get your attention. For a second or two.

The X130 will come with a nine-cell battery, which according to LG will last up to 12 hours during light use, or up to 7 hours 30 minutes while watching movies. That sounds amazing--and a tad optimistic to us--but if it gets anywhere near this figure we'll be absolutely delighted.

There's not much else to write home about. Rather than building on the fairly solid foundations of its predecessor, LG's follow-up simply seems to regurgitate old ideas. The hinge now has a chrome strip, and the lid now says X-Note on it, but the X130 still packs a 10.1-inch, 1024x768-pixel display, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB... yawn... hard drive and a copy of Windows XP Home Edition.

LG has yet to confirm when the X130 will hit stores and how much it'll cost. We'll have more as we get it.

(Source: Crave UK)

(Credit: Hewlett-Packard)

For this week's installment of the weekly Crave giveaway, we've got a hot one: the HP Mini 110 Netbook. That's right, you're looking at your very own Netbook. Not that it's all that expensive to go out and buy one, but hey, it's a mini laptop and it never hurts to have one of those lying around.

While this may not be quite as nice as HP's higher-end Mini 5101, the Mini 110 does have a lot in common with that model, including a relatively roomy keyboard. (Read editor Dan Ackerman's full review of the Mini 110 here).

Normally, this HP Netbook costs $300, but you have the chance to get one gratis.

So, how do you try to win a free HP Mini 110 Netbook? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.

• Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, no need to register again.
• Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated.
• Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified.
• The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive one (1) HP Mini 110 Netbook. Approximate retail value is $300.
• If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
• Entries can be submitted until Monday, August 10, at noon EDT.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENT OF ONE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR D.C., 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Sweepstakes ends at 12 PM EDT on August 10, 2009. See official rules for details.

Good luck.

(Credit: Seagate)

This week's winner is Adul S. of Chicago, IL

Here we go again with another installment of the weekly Crave giveaway. This week's gadget: the Seagate 500GB Blackarmor PS 110, a pretty sweet external hard drive from Seagate.

In case you're wondering what CNET really thinks about it, CNET editor Justin Yu has given the recently released PS 110 high marks. He says, "A sexy slim design and backup software set make a compelling argument for the Seagate BlackArmor PS 110 external hard drive" (read the full review here).

Normally, the Seagate 500GB Blackarmor costs about $150, but you have a chance to get one gratis.

So, how do you try to win a free Seagate Blackarmor PS 110? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.

• Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, no need to register again.
• Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated.
• Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified.
• The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive one (1) Seagate 500GB Blackarmor PS 110. Approximate retail value is $150.
• If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
• Entries can be submitted until Monday, July 6, at 12 p.m. EDT.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENT OF ONE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR D.C., 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Sweepstakes ends at 12 PM EDT on July 6, 2009. See official rules for details.

Good luck.

As the slim, snazzy HP Mini 1000 is one of our favorite Netbooks, we were excited to hear of an impending sequel. We just got our hands on one of the new systems, and while the Mini 110 doesn't stray far from the Mini 1000 mold, there are some subtle changes, not always for the best.

At first glance, the two systems seem identical, but when we pulled out a Mini 1000 for a comparison, we saw the Mini 110 was slightly thicker and heavier. Not by much--but in a tiny Netbook form factor, a small change can make a big difference, especially when compared to something like the new Asus Eee PC 1008HA, which is slimmer than its predecessor, not the other way around.

The thinner Mini 1000 versus the thicker Mini 110.

The display was also different, with the edge-to-edge glass replaced by a standard inset panel. It's not as slick a look, but the display itself was matte, instead of glossy, which is a very hard-to-find feature in a Netbook, and especially good if you're bothered by screen glare.

On the left, the glossy Mini 1000, on the right, the matte Mini 110.

Other than that, we found a standard set of Netbook components, including an Intel Atom N270 CPU, 1GB of RAM, Windows XP and a 160GB 5,400rpm HDD (which beats the 80GB 4,200rpm drive found in most Mini 1000 models). HP has mentioned an optional "hardware video decoder" for better HD video playback, but we haven't seen that in action yet.

One new feature that did catch our eye was the inclusion of a third-party software app called Syncables, which promises to connect different machines on your local network, allowing you to easily share documents, photos, video, and music, and even sync Outlook and Thunderbird e-mail accounts. The program even claims to work on Windows, Mac, and Linux systems.

In theory, it seems like a good idea (we often use Gmail and Google docs for this kind of thing). In practice, we found the Syncables software difficult to use. The screens are clearly not designed with the Mini's 1,024x576 resolution in mind, and the layout and navigation were confusing, even when installed on our desktop computer.

After creating an account, we could sometimes log into it, and sometimes hitting the login button would simply do nothing. We were eventually were able to see our desktop from the Mini 110, and vice versa, but in our brief hands-on time, but could not actually access any files from the other machine. We're sure with a few hours of troubleshooting, we'd be able to figure it out, but the entire process seemed fairly nonintuitive.

The HP Mini 110 is available starting June 10 with both Windows XP and HP's custom Linux-based Mi software for $329 (for XP) and $279 (for Mi). That's a decent break from the $450 price of a comparable Mini 1000, but you also lose a little of the brand's unique character in the process. Pink and white versions will be available around July 8, and a business version, the HP Mini 1101 is expected next week, starting at $329.

HP's Mini 110 and Mini 1101 Netbooks

(Credit: Samsung)

Correction: This report misnamed the two Samsung Netbooks. They are the N110 and N120.

Samsung has pumped out details of a new pair of 10.1-inch Netbooks--the N110 and N120. Both are powered by Intel Atom CPUs, and claim 9.3-hour and 10.5-hour battery life, respectively. Though such figures mean nothing--all until we've tested them under our own conditions, it's a promising little promise if nowt else.

So with what are these Samsung sandwiches filled? Like Monday's N310, the N110's keyboard is 93 percent the size of a full-size board of keys, whereas the more appealing N120's is full size. Both use LED-backlit displays, weigh about 2.8 pounds, and incorporate 1.3-megapixel cameras, memory card readers, three USB sockets, and run Windows XP Home.

The more delectable N120, pictured below, should in addition to that full-size keyboard and better battery life deliver decent sound quality. Or at least be louder, as it's got a dedicated subwoofer built in somewhere.

Samsung's laptops average just over 7 out of 10, based on all models we've reviewed, so we're expecting neither miracles nor horse waste wrapped in a plastic chassis. Both models will be on sale in Europe, Asia, and the U.S. in April, for prices somewhere between $1 and $750,000 (we don't know, and Samsung didn't tell us--but these figures are a safe bet).

(Credit: Samsung)

(Via Crave UK)

(Credit: LG Electronics)

This week, at the GSMA Mobile World Congress show in Barcelona, LG Electronics announced the launch of its new Netbook, following on the heels of the LG-X110 Netbook released last year.

Offering an integrated 3G HSPA connection and a 160GB hard drive, the LG-X120 appears to be a worthy contender in the Netbook market.

LG includes what the company refers to as a "Smart-On" interface, which basically allows the user to access the most frequently used programs just a few seconds after hitting the power button, without waiting for the operating system to completely load on the desktop.

The LG-X120 also incorporates the company's "Smart-Link" technology--which can connect to other computers to share files or install new applications via a USB cable--and an advanced security function allowing users to safely share files while connected to other devices.

The Netbook comes in white, with either a lime or pink outer detail. The cover has a matte surface, so it doesn't attract fingerprints, smudges, or scratches. It's available with either a three- or six-cell battery, and it measures 1.3 inches tall by 10.4 inches wide by 7 inches deep.

The rest of its specs include:

• Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition
• Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz processor
• 1.3-megapixel Webcam
• 1GB DDR2 RAM
• Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
• 3 USB ports
• 10.1-inch WSVGA screen at a 1,024x576 resolution
• SRS WOW HD and TruSurround XT for sound

The LG-X120 Netbook will purportedly see a March release in Europe, but no announcements were made about a U.S. release, or how much it would cost.