It's fair to say that so far Synology is the NAS maker with the fewest misses. Ever since the company joined the network storage arena in early 2008, it has earned three CNET Editors' Choice awards, with the newest one being the DS409Slim.

The new DS410j NAS server from Synology supports Time Machine.

(Credit: Synology)

Synology NAS servers offer a vast number of features; signature among those are the advanced surveillance system, sophisticated photo sharing/managing capability, and a robust user interface. And now Synolgoy has overcome one of its only former missteps: by adding support for Apple's Time Machine.

The company announced Wednesday the launch of its new four-bay NAS server, the DS410j. This new NAS server carries all the features of other Synolgoy NAS servers and, on top of that, support for Apple's popular backup solution. For the first time ever, Mac users can use Time Machine (available in Mac OS 10.5 and later) with a Synology NAS server. Currently, very few NAS servers on the market support this feature.

Beyond that update, according to Synology, the DS410j is designed for busy home networks and entry-level businesses. It can house four 3.5-inch SATA hard drives of up to 2TB each, making the total storage up to 8TB. Like other models, the DS410j supports multiple RAID configurations when used with two or more hard drives. It also comes with automated backup, remote file sharing, and multimedia streaming features and is fully DNLA-compliant.

The DS410j is available now both with and without hard drives. Its price varies depending on the configuration; however, like other Synogloy NAS servers, it will not be cheap. It seems that affordability is something that Synolgoy will continue to miss for a while.

Acer Aspire One

(Credit: AT&T)

AT&T is hoping for happy holidays with the launch of two new Netbooks offering Windows 7 and mobile broadband.

The company announced Monday its new Netbook lineup--the Samsung Go and Acer Aspire One--both with built-in access to its 3G network. Available later this month in stores and online, both portables will cost gift buyers $199 after a mail-in rebate and two-year data plan contract.

The required DataConnect plan will offer 200MB of data for a new lower price of $35 per month, or 5GB for $60 per month, said AT&T. The plan will let consumers hop online via AT&T's 3G mobile network or any of the company's 20,000 Wi-Fi hot spots across the U.S.

"Demand for Netbooks remains strong among consumers, small business customers, and those who desire constant access to the Internet while on the go," said David Haight, vice president of product development for AT&T emerging devices, in a statement. "Paired with the nation's fastest 3G network, AT&T Wi-Fi service, and now the value and ease of use of Windows 7, these devices will make very attractive and affordable gifts this holiday season."

Samsung Go

(Credit: CNET)

Weighing less than three pounds, the Samsung Go is equipped with a 10-inch screen, 160GB hard drive, 1 GB of RAM, and a 1.3 megapixel Webcam. A bit skinnier at 2.2 pounds, the Acer Aspire One also includes a 10-inch screen, 160GB hard drive, 1GB of RAM, and built-in Webcam.

Both Netbooks also come with AT&T's Communication Manager software, which tries to help Internet users better manage their connections by automatically tapping into AT&T hot spots.

The Samsung and Acer machines have one potential limitation, however. Like most Netbooks, they come with Windows 7 Starter Edition, a stripped down version of Windows 7 that lacks certain key features of its beefier brethren.

(Credit: Flickr/IanPhilipMiller)

It's hard to believe that anyone would want to unsubscribe from The 404 Podcast, but we're here to say that the unspeakable act comes with a $250 termination fee, which actually ain't that bad considering Verizon recently doubled its early termination fees from $175 to $350. Verizon attempts to justify it by reducing the fee by $10 as each month of your contract passes, but we're not entirely convinced you're saving money. Case in point: if you buy a Droid with a two-year contract on Verizon but want to jump ship after a year, the penalty is still a rip-off at $230, which is already $80 more than what I paid to terminate my fee when I switched to AT&T for the iPhone three years ago. With a Verizon iPhone around the corner, we're hoping to finally have a way to escape AT&T's frustratingly spotty 3G service. Sing it with me..."We want prenup, we want prenup, YEAHHH."

If you just couldn't wait for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 to come out and modded your Xbox 360 to play a pirated version of the game, you might want to check the status of your Gamertag because you might be one of the 1 million players that Microsoft banned earlier this week. This week's release of the popular Call of Duty sequel caused a spike in players altering their consoles to play a bootleg version of the game, but many are unaware that Xbox 360s all contain "digital right management technologies designed to detect pirated software," says a report in InformationWeek. Unfortunately, once a Gamertag is banned, the person responsible is banished for life and must purchase a brand new console in order to reregister and play again. There's no doubt that Modern Warfare 2 is an amazing game, but it's worth it to keep your Xbox 360 clean and shell out the dough for the legit game. Piracy doesn't pay!

Comment with "Exit Strategy NYC" to win a free download!

(Credit: Exit Strategy NYC)

Finally, all our New York listeners should pay special attention to our next segment, because this new iPhone app could literally shave minutes off your commute time. I joke you not, any time saved on the subway is a blessing, so we're all very excited about Exit Strategy NYC, a mapping application that downloads an entire map of the city to your iPhone, so it works underground. It displays zoomable, scrollable, and interactive maps of the subway system as well, and even shows you which specific car to board so you'll exit exactly at the street level stairs.

The app is available on the iPhone App Store for $4.99, and it's well worth the purchase if you live in New York or plan to travel in the area. You can also download it for the BlackBerry, Android, and Amazon Kindle. The good folks at Exit Strategy were generous enough to give our listeners a handful of codes to download the app for free! All you have to do is comment on this blog with the words "EXIT STRATEGY" and you'll be automatically entered into the random lottery. We'll choose five winners over the weekend and send out the codes on Tuesday, so leave a comment now!

Also, don't forget that Tony Hawk will be on the show Monday to chat with us and do an in-studio demo of his latest video game, Tony Hawk Ride, so be sure to send in any questions to the404[at]cnet{dot}com and pick a few to ask. Have a great weekend, everyone!

Modern Warfare 2

(Credit: GameSpot)

With so many new blogs and Web sites that review video games and offer buying guides, it's hard to know who to trust; if you've ever vehemently disagreed with an online review and felt a boiling need to hunt down the writer, listen to today's episode of The 404--it's all about fanboys, online reviews, and our credibility as unbiased journalists.

(Credit: Destructoid)

We start off the show with a quick verbal fanboy bashing, and Jeff is probably the most engaging participant as a result of an article that instructs video game fans on how to respond to a bad review. After grilling Jeff for a while on what exactly makes him qualified to review video games, we run down the list of excuses as to what outside sources might influence a writer to give a game an unfairly low rating. For example, it could be that the reviewer might just suck at the game, or maybe the writer is just trolling for hits to further their career. In any case, The 404 fully endorses MetaCritic as the definitive source for unbiased, aggregated user reviews. (Disclosure: MetaCritic is a part of CBS Interactive, which also publishes CNET.)

Jeff is jokingly ticked off after we challenge his legitimacy as a professional video game reviewer, so we help him let off some steam with a study out of Keele University in North Staffordshire that claims swearing relieves pain. Although we don't normally use foul language on the air, everyone agrees that a well-placed cuss word can certainly alleviate frustration and even mild physical pain. Without getting ourselves into trouble, we run down a list of curse word dos and don'ts and even offer a few choice expressions in our native tongues.

We also want to give a big thanks to everyone that e-mailed and called about the derogatory comments sometimes heard on Microsoft Xbox Live. We received a lot of excellent comments about censorship and age limits in video games as well, so thanks to everyone for their input. If you have something to say about today's episode, give us a call at 1-866-404-CNET or email us at the404[at]cnet[dot]com and tell us what's on your mind.

Have a great day everyone!

Lexmark's X4650 multifunction printer works over Wi-Fi--or with the bundled USB cable.

(Credit: Wal-Mart)

In the market for a new printer? Might as well get one that doubles as a scanner and copier. And one that works without wires.

Wal-Mart has the Lexmark X4650 wireless all-in-one printer for $59. Shipping will run you 97 cents, though you can skip that by opting for store pickup. Either way, plan on paying sales tax.

As most of you know, I hold Wi-Fi printers in the same high regard as chocolate-covered caramels and Jessica Alba. The X4650 connects to your Wi-Fi router for blissfully wireless printing and scanning.

Ironically, Wal-Mart bundles a 10-foot Tripp Lite gold-plated USB cable, just in case you're not planning to go the Wi-Fi route.

The X4650 offers dual-cartridge printing. If you want the best possible photo results, you can swap in a photo-ink cartridge for the black one and enjoy six-color output.

The downside is that, as with most inkjets, cartridges cost a pretty penny. Plan on dropping at least $25 for each replacement--a little less if you go the remanufactured route.

The printer supports all the latest versions of Windows and Mac OS X. Though it lacks fax capabilities, it can scan to your PC's fax modem (if it has one) and also offers a handy scan-to-e-mail option.

In short, it's a fairly basic multifunction printer, one that sold for $130 when it debuted about a year ago. CNET hasn't reviewed it, but the reviews I've seen elsewhere have been mostly positive. (The only real ding is relatively slow printing.)

In any case, $59 for a Wi-Fi-equipped all-in-one is a rare find. Definitely worth considering.

TwitterPeek sells for $99 or $199.

(Credit: Peek)

A new gadget designed specifically for people who want to tweet on the go was launched Tuesday by gadget maker Peek.

The device, dubbed TwitterPeek, does one thing and one thing only: it lets people tweet. It doesn't access e-mail. It doesn't make phone calls. It tweets. That's it.

TwitterPeek, which looks like a smartphone, features a QWERTY keyboard and comes in black or aqua blue.

The idea behind TwitterPeek is simple. After buying the device, users need only to input their Twitter credentials to get going. The gadget lets them tweet, reply, retweet, send direct messages, and download followers. It supports one account at a time. Users can also view TwitPics by clicking the "view content" option from the TwitterPeek menu. The company claims its battery lasts three to four days with average usage.

Included in the price of TwitterPeek is a service plan. According to the company, users can access Twitter nationwide through Peek's own "mobile network," which accesses mobile-phone networks. If users choose to pay $99 at the time of purchase, they will get the TwitterPeek device and six months of Peek service. After that, they need to pay $7.95 per month for network access. If customers plunk down $199, they'll get the device and service for the life of the product. In either case, TwitterPeek allows for unlimited tweeting.

It makes sense that a device designed exclusively for Twitter would come from Peek. The company already offers the Peek and Peek Pronto, which are designed exclusively for mobile e-mail and text messaging.

But TwitterPeek, while an interesting idea, will need to convince consumers that it's really necessary in the marketplace. There are a slew of mobile apps that allow people to tweet while they're on the iPhone, some BlackBerry models, and Android-based devices.

It's also debatable whether even the most ardent Twitter users will want to pay $199 just to have access to a tweeting gadget. Evidently, the gadget was built for people who don't have access to mobile Twitter apps. It may also be useful for people who access Twitter from their mobile browser; that experience tends to yield more headaches than value when people want to post a quick tweet.

If you're interested in picking up a TwitterPeek, you can buy it exclusively on Amazon.com for $99 or $199, depending on your desired service plan.

But will you? Let's hear it in the comments below.

Want to tweet with Ford's Sync? There's an app for that.

(Credit: CNET)

Editors' note: Ford has clarified that its open platform is still in the prealpha testing stages. The article has been updated to reflect this information.

When Ford and Microsoft opened up their joint Sync platform for its own applications and updates, we wondered when the day would come that third-party developers would be given a crack at the in-vehicle infomatics interface. Well, that day may be on the horizon. Ford announced that it is testing an open-source platform to could be used in the future to develop applications that make use of Sync to connect to social networks in the cloud.

Ford's representatives said the system is built on a Robotics Studio platform by Microsoft that has been layered with an open-source cloud-computing platform developed by Ford that will allow rich--and hopefully seamless--interactions with social networks such as Facebook and Twitter.

So what's the point? How can social network interactions be useful and safe in 2,000-plus pounds of steel moving at 70mph? Ford's Venkatesh Prasad, group and technical leader of vehicle design and infotainment, posed the following scenarios:

The Ford Fiesta will be the test vehicle used in the University of Michigan's Ford open platform competition.

(Credit: Ford)

Imagine you're on a cross-country road trip and you decide to stop in a new city for something to eat. Now, you don't know this new city very well, so you ask Sync to grab some dining and sightseeing suggestions. The application could then fire out a tweet, update your Facebook status, or query Yelp on your behalf and when the responses roll in, it could format them in an easy to understand way, for example as a custom points-of-interest menu.

Another possible application is a Green Car Challenge, where you compete with your friends to see who can average the highest fuel economy while suggesting the greenest driving routes to one another.

This all sounds pretty cool on paper; we'll have to wait a bit longer to know exactly how effective these apps will actually be. We expect that it will really depend on the size, make up, and responsiveness of your social network. I shudder to think of all of the Twitter-bots that currently follow me supplying any sort of advice.

The first test of Ford's open-application SDK will be in conjunction with a competition at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor. Students will compete to develop the best Sync application that makes use of the cloud. The winning team will have their app installed in Ford's first test mule, a Ford Fiesta, and will take a road trip from Ann Arbor to San Francisco to participate in the 2010 San Mateo Maker's Faire.

Ford currently has no road map for when we can expect to see the Sync open platform in production vehicles, as it is still in the prealpha testing phases.

Today's Beck's Beer Audio Draft Pick is the Works Progress Administration (WPA)

(Credit: WPA)

Back in April of 2008 BJ (before Justin), motivational speaker James Arthur Ray guest-hosted The 404 Podcast and Jeff, Wilson, and Randall spoke to him about how to grow your own meat--no lie. Anyway, the show left a sour taste in The 404's collective mouth, and more than a year later it turns out that Mr. Ray is a big phony, not unlike Balloon Boy Sr.

Turns out that three people died in Arizona at a spiritual retreat "sweat lodge" organized by the self-appointed guru. It's a very sad story, and our hearts go out to the families of the victims. And James? Shame on you.

Oh, and surprise! The personal information you put up on the Internet is no longer private. According to this Wired Danger Room blog, a branch of the CIA has begun heavily investing in Visible Technologies, a software firm that monitors social media, including blog posts, Internet forums, online videos, radio reports, and so on. Luckily, Facebook is currently immune to such companies due to its closed architecture, but Twitter, Amazon, and YouTube are all fair game.

This report is definitely worth reading, but we're not surprised. Actually, we thought there was already a system set up to spy on our Web activities: it's called GOOGLE, and it's not doing such a great job at keeping our information private. The company is under suspicion of accidentally posting transcribed voice mails from its Google Voice service. Although this issue might actually concern me if my entire voice mail box weren't filled with concerned messages from my mother...

Today's Beck's Beer Draft Pick is Works Progress Administration (WPA).

(Credit: WPA)

We're doing three Beck's Beer Audio Drafts this week to make up for the one we skipped last Friday due to Wilson's absence, and Wilson's pick for today is Works Progress Administration, a country outfit comprised of some of the most recognizable names in country music, including Glen Phillips from Toad the Wet Sprocket, Sean Watkins from Nickel Creek, and Benmont Tench from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.

The songs of the day are called "Good as Ever" and "Always Have My Love," and although Jeff and I aren't huge fans of the country music genre, we can definitely appreciate the musical talent of this supergroup, and Wilson chimes in to explain the difference between country-pop, country-rock, and a million other sub-genres. The band is currently on a West Coast Tour, so be sure to check out the WPA Web site for more details.