Tech and You

The Bends Justify the Means: The Sanyo Xacti VPC-E1 Waterproof MPEG-4 Camcorder

Peter Suciu — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 04:02:19 GMT

What is it?

Sanyo Xacti VPC-E1.

How much will it cost me?

$499.99.

Who makes it?

Sanyo.

Why should I care?

When trying to capture those special underwater moments on video, Sanyo’s Xacti VPC-E1 camcorder lets you focus on the action, not on keeping the camera dry.

How would you describe it?

Whether your summer vacation calls for you to trek through the wilds of the Amazon rainforest, ride the whitewater rapids of Colorado, or just head to the nearest Six Flags Water Park, you’re going to need a camcorder that can get as wet as the action around you. The Sanyo Xacti VPC-E1 will let you get up close on the action, and you can take it where you’d otherwise fear to tread with more expensive camcorders. This first waterproof camcorder on the market isn’t exactly meant for deep sea diving or marine exploration documentaries, but it can handle depths of up to five feet without any worry at the lake house or in a pool. Available in three colors--hey, style does matter at the beach--this is easy to operate, and it is small enough that you can tout it around without feeling burdened by all that "camera gear." Nor is it short on features. It can run for about an hour on a single battery charge, and with an 8 gigabyte memory card (sold separately) it can record up to 10 hours of 640 x 480 video. It features a 5x optical zoom as well as 12x digital zoom, and even doubles as a 6 megapixel still camera, with the ability to take pictures while shooting video.

When can I get my hands on it?

Now.

Where can I find it?

Amazon.com.

What's your verdict?

Buy.

...(read more)

Music to Ride By: The iH85 Bicycle Speaker

Peter Suciu — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 04:01:20 GMT

What is it?

The iH85 Bicycle Speaker.

How much will it cost me?

$99.99

Who makes it?

iHome.

Why should I care?

Cycling with headphones is dangerous. Mounting a huge boombox on the back of your bike is tacky. The iH85 portable speaker shoots music directly to your ears to create your own personal soundtrack.

How would you describe it?

There is much talk about the loneliness of the long distance runner, but try doing 50-plus miles on a bike. It can be very peaceful, yes, but it can also be very dull. The sounds of nature--or worse traffic--don’t exactly make for the best soundtrack to get you pumped, or more accurately pumping on those long rides. Headphones aren’t recommended if you value your personal safety, and in some states it's even illegal to wear them while cycling. So instead of mounting on a huge stereo and letting everyone “enjoy” your musical selections, iHome2Go has introduced the iH85 portable iPod speaker system. This sleek device fits snugly in the water bottle cage and projects the music straight towards your ears, plus it can be controlled from a wireless unit that can be mounted on your handlebars. It works with all docking iPod Models, and features a rugged impact-resistant case to protect the player inside even if you venture off-road. It is powered by four AA batteries, and will double as an iPod charger when plugged into an AC socket. About the only complaint is that you’ll have to find somewhere else to put your water bottle, but there’s always the Camelbak hydration system for when you get thirsty.

When can I get my hands on it?

This month.

Where can I find it?

iHomeaudio.com.

What's your verdict?

Try.

...(read more)

At Last, the iPhone

Steven Levy — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 11:41:03 GMT

A couple of weeks ago I went to Pittsburgh for what I thought would be a day trip. Since I was headed back that evening, I didn’t take my laptop, but because of thunderstorms across the Eastern Seaboard, my sojourn turned into an overnight stay. So I had an opportunity to give a good workout to something I had received the previous day: a review unit of Apple’s eagerly awaited (boy, that’s an understatement) iPhone.

During my travels and airport delays, I was able to keep up with my e-mail, negotiate my way around the downtown, get tips on the city from an old friend whose number I don’t normally have handy, check the weather conditions in New York and D.C., monitor baseball scores and blogs, listen to an early Neil Young concert and amuse myself with silly YouTube videos and an episode of “Weeds,” all on a single charge before the battery ran down. Now, just about all those things could have been done by devices that are already out on the market. But considering I’d had the iPhone for just a day, and never taken a glance at a manual, it was an impressive introduction. In contrast, I’ve had a Motorola handset for two years and am still baffled at its weird approach to Web browsing and messaging. What’s more, with the exception of learning to type on the iPhone, which requires some concentration, doing all those things on that five-ounce device was fun, in the same way that switching from an old command-line interface to the Macintosh graphical user interface in the mid-1980s was a kick. And when I showed the iPhone to people during that trip and in the days afterward—especially people under 25—the most common reaction was, “I have to have this,” sometimes followed by a quick, if alarmingly reckless, consideration of what might need to be pawned in order to make the purchase.

And there it is: one of the most hyped consumer products ever comes pretty close to justifying the bombast. Apple has a history of using cutting-edge technology, slick design and friendly software to break the common logjam in which our machines have the capability to perform certain tasks, but developers haven’t figured out how to make the experience easy, even pleasurable, for users. That’s one reason why people, especially the tens of millions who love iPods, have been so eagerly awaiting the iPhone. “Everyone we talk to hates their phones—it’s universal,” Steve Jobs told me on a call to my iPhone a couple of days ago. (The control-freaky Apple CEO was just checking up to see how I was doing.) If you’re looking for quibbles, flaws and omissions, you’ll certainly find them in this first version of the iPhone. (I’ll get to these below.) But the bottom line is that the iPhone is a significant leap. It’s a superbly engineered, cleverly designed and imaginatively implemented approach to a problem that no one has cracked to date: merging a phone handset, an Internet navigator and a media player in a package where every component shines, and the features are welcoming rather than foreboding. The iPhone is the rare convergence device that actually converges.

Read the rest of the review

...(read more)

Have Screen, Will Travel--And Watch: The Toshiba "Palm Sized" Projector

Peter Suciu — Thu, 21 Jun 2007 15:41:25 GMT

What is it?

Toshiba TDP-FF1AU "Palm Sized" Projector.

How much will it cost me?

$699.

Who makes it?

Toshiba.

Why should I care?

At just one pound, and about the size of a large paperback book, it's a truly portable projector that will turn any wall into a 68-inch video screen.

How would you describe it?

With its built-in battery pack--which offers about two hours of play time, just enough for the typical Hollywood flick--this Toshiba projector is worth taking a look at. It even comes with a 23-inch diagonal folding screen and carrying case, so you'll have a true traveling movie theater. It has a host of inputs--RGB, composite, USB and stereo mini-jack-making it compatible with a number of video sources ranging from laptops and portable DVD players to digital cameras. Even though it won't replace a large flat screen TV, and the SVGA 800x600 resolution is far from high definition, this mobile DLP projector is still significantly better than many larger "portable" projector systems in its class. It requires almost no warm-up or cool-down time, and while it's not the brightest projector we've seen, it does a pretty good job even when there's a little ambient light in the room. And since it's sleek enough to fit in your carry on bag, you'll never have to waste your summer vacation time actually reading ever again!

When can I get my hands on it?

Now.

Where can I find it?

Amazon.com.

What's your verdict?

Try.

...(read more)

You Spin Me Right Round: The T.90 USB Turntable

Peter Suciu — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 18:21:05 GMT

What is it?

Stanton T.90 USB Turntable.

How much will it cost me?

$399.

Who makes it?

Stanton.

Why should I care?

This turntable features a USB output, so you can transfer your favorite vinyl records directly to a CD recorder or computer.

How would you describe it?

A whole generation may have grown up that might not understand why some of us still hang onto those thin black disks known as vinyl records. However, the fact remains, and serious audiophiles agree, that vinyl has a fuller and richer sound than CD. So you don't have to be a club DJ spinning records until the wee hours of the morning to appreciate a quality turntable like Stanton's new T.90 USB. It features three playback speeds--including 78rpm, should you actually have those really old records lying around--along with a pitch slider in case you are working on your own megamixes. This turntable might be meant for older technology, but it has plenty of 21st century features for our digital age. You can adjust the tempo of a record without affecting its pitch, and more importantly use the digital and USB outputs to copy your vinyl albums directly to a CD recorder or even rip them to a computer, where the included software can convert the songs to MP3 or WAV audio files.

When can I get my hands on it?

Now.

Where can I find it?

GuitarCenter.com.

What's your verdict?

Buy.

...(read more)

BlogWatch: June 18, 2007

N'Gai Croal — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 18:34:04 GMT

Still reeling from HBO's knockout series finale of "The Sopranos"? nj.com/sopranos and mattzollerseitz.blogspot.com will help you cope with the trauma.
These days, everyone's a media critic. Jossip.com gets meta with a snarky critique of O. J. Simpson's own critique of the nonstop coverage of Paris Hilton and other trivia in the news.
Are you a blogger who's looking to expand the reach of your nascent media empire but have no idea how? If you fit the description, doshdosh.com has some pithy, practical solutions that are worth a look.

...(read more)

A Quick Look At the DirecTV Sat-Go

Peter Suciu — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 15:59:11 GMT

What is it?

DirecTV Sat-Go.

How much will it cost me?

$1,499.

Who makes it?

DirecTV.

Why should I care?

Do you like to tailgate? Now you can party in the parking lot and still stay on top of gridiron action from around the country.

How would you describe it?

Anyone who takes their TV watching very, very seriously knows that going on vacation isn’t relaxing--it means that you have to worry about whether your DVR will record your shows. Portable TVs are good in a pinch, but they only pick up broadcast TV. I can’t be tethered to cable, but with DirecTV Satellite-to-Go I can tune in from almost anywhere. You get an actual satellite dish and a 17-inch LCD monitor to watch anything DirecTV provides, in a high-tech looking suitcase that's smaller in size than an overnight bag, A rechargeable battery powers the unit if you’re not near an AC or DC power supply, but you'll only get about an hour’s worth of viewing time, so plan accordingly. Final note: if you consider standard def roughing, please note that this is SD only, not high-def.

When can I get my hands on it?

Now.

Where can I find it?

DirecTV.com.

What's your verdict?

Try.

...(read more)

Name That Tune: A Look At Verizon's V Cast Song ID

Newsweek Interns — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 04:02:06 GMT

In today's User Notes, Sarina Rosenberg recounts her experience with Verizon's V Cast Song ID.

I was skeptical when I first saw the ads for Verizon's V Cast Song ID. In the TV spots, a guy slickly uses his cell phone to identify the title and artist of a song he hears blasting from a convertible full of--you guessed it--flirtatious twenty-somethings. But this service is for real. Hear a song, open the application on your phone, identify it for free (some carriers charge a texting fee) and then pay ($1.99 per song on Verizon) to download it as a ring tone or MP3 file. Verizon offers the application, V Cast Song ID, on a slew of new phones, including the Chocolate, the enV by LG, the LG VX8700 and the VX9400 ($99.99-$199.99). Sony Ericsson announced their first phone with their music ID application, TrackID, in 2006, and some of the phones in the new Walkman series ($199-$499) come equipped with the application. Cingular and T-Mobile carry the Sony Ericsson line. Each service sets its own fees for the application.

Music recognition is finally going mainstream in the world of mobile. But the feature is simply a new twist on a relatively retro technology. These phones link to the same databases that supply the song information for applications like iTunes and Windows Media Player so that they can provide you with the artist, album and track information of a CD you slip into your laptop. Verizon's service uses the U.K.-based Shazam database; Sony Ericsson links to Gracenote.

In cell phones and laptops alike, the key to unlocking a song's identity lies in a six-second, incredibly specific music sample. "It's a finger-printing technology," says Ty Roberts, Gracenote's chief technology officer.

...(read more)

The D List

Steven Levy — Fri, 01 Jun 2007 19:49:55 GMT

The fifth annual “D” Conference, run by the Wall Street Journal with hosts Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher, was so full of digiluminaries that nearly every time the name of some tech macher was invoked, the person in question was spotted in the audience. The highlight of the event was a joint appearance by Bill Gates and Steve Jobs -- closer to a lovefest than a smackdown, but not without some barbed interchanges or two. (Like when Jobs mentioned how much he liked Bill’s Zune team because “they’re our customers” for iPod.)

There were also a host of new products, news of which was embargoed until their release at the conference. I’ve already covered one in depth: Microsoft Surface. Here’s a rundown of a few more. Please note that these are not official product reviews--none of them have undergone careful evaluation in the field:

...(read more)

Microsoft Runs the Table

Steven Levy — Wed, 30 May 2007 04:01:59 GMT

The New Table Top System: Microsoft's Surface computer

Sometimes the most interesting things lie beneath the surface. But Microsoft's new computing initiative—and one of the coolest things out of Redmond in a while—is all about what’s on the outside. Today the company announces the first in what will be a series of new products that transform tabletops, desktops and wall panels into interactive displays that will, says Microsoft's Project General Manager Pete Thompson, "blur the lines of the physical world and the digital world."

The first example of Microsoft Surface is a table, just short of two feet high, with a 21-by-42-inch top. Under a sheet of acrylic is a 30-inch hi-res horizontal display. That's all you see—the five camera-sensors, the DLP light engine, and the Vista computer that makes it all run are hidden, encased in the body of what looks like a more-fashionable version of the original Pong game. (Presumably, the device runs a version of Vista that doesn't ask you all the time if you're sure you want to proceed.) But the impact of all that hardware is evident as soon as you touch the "massively multi-touch" surface. The machine can process dozens of inputs at once, from one person or a group. Whether you're doing virtual finger painting, moving digital images around like physical pieces of paper, or pointing to something on a map and getting information on that spot, it's clear that the standard sci-fi movie vision of having people interact with virtual surfaces as if they're real (see "Tron," “Minority Report” and many other flicks) has now arrived.

...(read more)

Why You Should Care About VelvetPuffin

N'Gai Croal — Tue, 22 May 2007 16:36:35 GMT

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In an era where just about every possible cool name for a company or product is taken, startups and entrepreneurs find themselves dipping into the strange, the wacky and the just plain weird. I have no idea what the heck a VelvetPuffin is supposed to be--other than perhaps an extremely tacky piece of wall art--but the service itself is as cool as the name it might have had, had it debuted before the nomenclature land rush began in earnest. Still, I digress.

The VelvetPuffin service is one of an increasing number of concepts that I've seen over the past 12 months that makes me say, "Wow. I don't know whether this company is going to succeed, but it just works the way things should." So, what is it? It's an instant messaging-based social network for mobile phones, coupled with a socially active desktop, according to R. Chandrasekar, co founder of Singapore-based Radixs, the company behind the service. In plain English--and this is the brilliant simplicity that impressed us--the interface on both the phone (Java 2.0 phones with GPRS or 3G connections only) and the desktop (just Windows for now; the Mac client is forthcoming,) look just like a typical IM client: a vertical rectangle. This makes it an optimal interface for instant messaging. But it also ends up working well on the phone for managing your photos, blogs, video and polls (an easy way for you and your VelvetPuffin-equipped peers to vote on which restaurant to eat at or which movie to go see.)

...(read more)

In Praise of (Shure) Earphones

N'Gai Croal — Fri, 18 May 2007 21:14:07 GMT

Once I first got my hands on Sony's PlayStation Portable back in 2004, I tossed the flash music player that I'd been using in favor of the new gadget on the block. But I quickly discovered that the PSP wasn't exactly a booming system when it came to audio output. For music and videogames, turning the sound all the way up mostly did the trick when armed with regular or noise-canceling headphones. But for video, typical New York subway noises would overwhelm its dinky maximum volume, to say nothing of the engine sounds on a cross-country flight. What to do?

...(read more)

Meet the Next Billionaires

Steven Levy — Sun, 13 May 2007 23:15:59 GMT

From the May 21, 2007 issue of NEWSWEEK - Sitting at the long trestle tables in Y Combinator's Mountain View, Calif., headquarters last January, the Weeblies felt wobbly. Back home at Penn State, the three undergraduates were alpha geeks, go-getters who'd capitalized on the university's requirement that students have a Web portfolio by creating software that makes it really easy for students to build a personal site. The trio—David Rusenko, Dan Veltri and Chris Fanini, all 22 years old—decided to start a company, calling it Weebly because it sounded good and the domain name was open. Then last November they heard about a company called Y Combinator that gives seed money to fledgling start-ups and imports a bunch to Silicon Valley for three months of intensive entrepreneuring. They sent off their application the day before the deadline, and made the cut.

Now they were here, just down the road from Google and Yahoo, one of 12 companies that would be part of Y Combinator's winter program of total immersion in the Silicon Valley start-up life. For a techie, it was as if you were making home movies one day, and the next day found yourself on the Paramount lot with a contract and empty film cans to fill. No matter where the start-ups came from—Sweden, Chicago, Oxford or even the South Pole (yes, one person arrived straight from graduate research there)—their lives would never be the same. Also attending the dinner that night were veterans of the previous three Y Combinator programs—some of them millionaires before 25. You don't see too much of that in State College, Pa.

That's the charm of Y Combinator. It's "American Idol" meets Wired magazine. The inspiration came from Paul Graham, a high-energy 42-year-old who himself had a monumental start-up experience, selling his company Via-web, an e-commerce application, to Yahoo at the height of the boom, enriching himself and his buddies. In the spring of 2005 he made a speech at Harvard that was a broadband update of Horace Greeley ("Start up, young man!"), then realized that he could help make it happen for others. He gathered his former partners—Trevor Blackwell, now making robots, and Robert Morris, who achieved brief notoriety in the 1980s as the author of a virus that almost shut down the Internet—and recruited another friend, an investment banker named Jessica Livingston. They drew up the plans for an operation: from hundreds of applications, the YC partners would cull the 30 most promising, conducting "Idol"-style auditions to choose a dozen or so companies for the program. Each start-up is given $5,000 plus $5,000 per founder (a start-up with two founders would get $15,000). This money covers lodging, food and equipment during the program. In exchange, Y Combinator (named after a mathematical function) gets a piece of the start-up, usually 5 or 6 percent.

Some critics scoff that Y Combinator's investment is peanuts for that amount of equity. But the opportunity is unparalleled—total immersion into Silicon Valley start-up culture, advice from Graham and a fast track to the top angel investors and venture-capital funds. When Graham calls the winners, the founders have only five minutes to accept. "If people turn us down," he says, "as far as we're concerned they've failed an IQ test."

Every Tuesday during the program, Y Combinator hosts a dinner of chili or stew for the start-ups. At this first one, Graham and Livingston distribute gray T shirts emblazoned with one of Graham's pithiest admonitions, MAKE SOMETHING PEOPLE WANT. A second, black shirt is bestowed only to start-ups that achieve a "liquidity event"—a purchase by a larger company or an IPO. It reads, I MADE SOMETHING PEOPLE WANT.

Read the rest of the story.

Trashing the Tube

Steven Levy — Mon, 07 May 2007 15:36:53 GMT

Is Internet TV finally here? Flip open your laptop and find out. The Lassie Channel is only the beginning....(read more)

Guest User: Requiem For an iPod

N'Gai Croal — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 21:16:36 GMT

With consumer technology, everyone's a critic, and our colleagues here at NEWSWEEK are no different. From mobile phones to home theater systems, from laptops to GPS systems, they've got opinions on much of the gear that's on the market. We plan to bring you some of their musings in this occasional feature, "Guest User." First up: Senior writer and television critic Devin Gordon recounts his tortured relationship with the iPod.

It was love at first sight. I got my first iPod about four years ago, as I was heading into my late 20s and approaching that age where the process of discovering new music becomes a "who has the time?" proposition. I was covering film, television and sports for Newsweek, and music, my first love, was slowly drifting toward the sidelines.

Then I got an iPod and it was like I was 16 all over again. I rediscovered my inner music junkie, jump-started my habit of making best friends with a new band every week or two. I even managed to delude myself into believing that the music scene had suddenly rebounded, that--eureka!--great albums were being made once again, when in fact, the only thing that had changed was my consumption habits.

Then my iPod suffered its first heart attack. I got it fixed, and six months later, it had another, this one fatal. I got a newer, spiffier iPod--the 20 gigabyte model--and all was right with the world for a while. Until that one had a heart attack, then another, then another. Four months ago, my second iPod finally played its last note. By that point, I was wise to all the grumbling about iPod's Achilles heels--its lame battery life, its propensity to break down after just a year or two. I felt angry and betrayed. I cursed iPod, Apple and Steve Jobs for getting me in too deep, for loving not wisely but too well.

Slowly, however, as the weeks of commuting to work without my iPod began to pile up--30 minutes on the subway, in both directions--I noticed something: once again, my music consumption stopped in its tracks. I wasn't hearing anything new. I'd flip through music mags and not recognize a single name. It was like I'd aged 20 years in a month. As my Newsweek colleague Tom Watson dubbed aging music buffs like me, I'd swiftly become the "guy no longer on the scene." I slowly realized that, truly, 'tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

And now, after four iPod-less months, I'm ready to patch things up. I know I can change. I know it can change. We can make this work. I feel like a sucker with no self-esteem trying to rationalize getting back into an abusive relationship. But I'm gonna do it anyway. I'm getting another iPod, dammit, and I'm not even gonna consider the other digital music devices out there. I've made up my mind. I wish I knew how to quit you, iPod. And when you hurt me again, I'll know it's just your way of saying "I love you."