Archive for CES 2009

Pharos Traveler 137, Now Available

If you want a single phone that can use both AT&T and T-Mobile 3G, your dreams have finally come true – the Pharos Traveler 137 is finally available. Pharos announced the immediate availability of its latest GPS-enabled smartphone – the Pharos Traveler 137, which is a Windows Mobile 6.1-based handset with integrated GPS and navigation software.

pharosFirst introduced at CES 2009, the Traveler 137 is a bit unlike other GPS-enabled smartphones in that it doesn’t require a cellular connection to operate as a navigation device. It comes preloaded with Pharos’ Smart Navigator software with the vector map and routing calculations, so you’ll be able to view maps, create routes, and get turn-by-turn directions even without a network signal. Smart Navigator also features real-time traffic, points-of-interest search, and a feature called Follow Me, which lets friends and family view your GPS locations through the Internet or a Windows Mobile device.

Weighing just 4.9 ounces and encased in a sleek, stylish black case, the Pharos Traveler 137 also offers a 3.5-inch, VGA touch screen, Bluetooth, WiFi, and as mentioned above, support for T-Mobile’s 3G network (1700/1900/2100MHz). The large screen display dominates the device, rendering web pages and images in 65 thousand colors and 480 x 800 pixels. It has also a 3-megapixel camera that records picture and video while a second camera on the front of the handset allows users to participate in video conferences.

The suggested retail price of this cool gadget is $599.95. It will be sold unlocked hence users will be able to use it with any GSM carrier. Find similar products here.

Industry Leading Toshiba REGZA ZV650 and SV670 HDTVs

regzaToshiba announced its first line of LED TVs way back in January during CES 2009. True enough, the REGZA SV670 LED TV is already available in the market along with the REGZA ZV650 LCD TV.

Both HDTVs possess  pioneering technologies that Toshiba has developed that made it the leading LCD TV manufacturer in America with its 11.4% market share in April 2009. The developments that these premium REGZA TV have are FocaLight LED Backlight with Local Dimming for best picture contrast, ClearScan 240 motion enhancement with Backlight Scanning for highest picture clarity even for fast moving objects, enhanced REGZA Engine with PixelPure 5G 14-bit video processing, Resolution+ super resolution technology, and AutoView histogram controlled automatic picture adjustment.

Connectivity is also an advantage with these HDTVs since they have a USB port, SD card Slot, 4 HDMI inputs with InstaPort and REGZA-LINK, IR Pass-Through Port, and high-resolution PC input. These variety of inputs allow the REGZA HDTVs to be versatile and suited for any use either for watching cinema-like quality movies or for computer use.

As what the PR manager of Toshiba said why they are the pioneering brand for LED TV, “We didn’t just make LED TV; we innovated by utilizing superior Local Dimming. We didn’t just utilize higher frame rates; we innovated by adding new Backlight Scanning Technology. We didn’t just wrap everything in high-gloss black; we innovated by creating the stunning new Deep Lagoon Design with Infinity Flush Front. The new REGZA is more than our dealers and consumers expected, and the response has been nothing short of amazing.”

Both the REGZA ZV650 and SV670 are already available at Amazon. Expect the REGZA VX648 Cinema Series LCD TV to be available in August of this year.

Panasonic Drops Price on 103-Inch Plasma

Good news for those who have been eyeing the $69,999.95 price tag of this 103-inch Plasma and wishing it would drop down to the price of a mid-range car – just low enough to get one in your house. Yes, because the gigantic 1080 display from Panasonic will now be priced at $50,000 – where it was priced at $69,999.95 when it debuted in December 2006.

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This world’s largest Plasma TV delivers smooth, crisp motion images ideal for the fast pace of sports, action movies, and video games, truly making it and its 7-1/2ft. By 4 ft. of viewing space the ultimate home theater experience. It can support up to a 5 x 5 video wall and also provide new video processing capabilities to further sharpen images when displaying low resolution content, or when zooming the image in video wall applications. Its portrait zoom function lets you display one horizontal image across three vertically-mounted 103-inch plasmas for an incredibly impactful visuals of over 90 square feet.

So what made Panasonic decide to reduce the price of this world’s largest Plasma commercially available when its features [I think] are just right for its original price? The President of Panasonic Professional Display Company, Andrew Nelkin, said that the combination of advancements in Plasma production technology and the tremendous worldwide success of the 103-inch Plasma HD display over the last two plus years have made the company decide to increase production and offer it to a wider range of customers at a lower price point.

How about you, do you think it’s worth the price? If you do, then get it here. Or you may just stumble upon plasma bargains over at Hotsilo.

Lenovo IdeaCentre A600 Comes with the Latest in Desktop Design

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Lenovo’s desktops and laptops are normally very business-minded, with apparently little thought given to style. But not the IdeaCentre A600. It has looks to compete with HP TouchSmart and Apple iMac. Lenovo actually claims that it’s the thinnest AIO computer in the market today, and from its looks, it’s most likely true. It’s not a touchscreen AIO like HP’s TouchSmart series though, but the A600 introduces a different form of interaction altogether in the form of its 4-in-1 remote control.

What’s so great about a remote control? Well, aside from serving as a Windows Media Center remote control, this accelerometer-equipped device also triples up as a game controller, mouse pointer, and VoIP phone. When it comes to appearance and design, the A600 is based around a 21.5-inch screen with Full HD 1920 x 1080px resolution. It’s thin at the top while the bottom is much thicker because that’s where the bulk of the hardware components are located. For connectivity options, it sports WiFi, a 6-in-1 media card reader, side-mounted USB and FireWire ports with additional USB ports on the rear of the panel.

The price starts at $999 with choices of Intel Core 2 Duo processors, optional ATI Radeon graphics and technology with DirectX10 support, up to 4GB of RAM, and up to 1TB (1000GB) of hard drive space for storing hundreds of videos, music, and other documents.

Other features include:

• 1.3 or 2-megapixel camera
• Touch sensitive controls
• VeriFace 3.5 face recognition
• Dolby home theatre
• Intel G45 Chipset

I’m aware that Lenovo’s sleek and shiny All-in-One IdeaCentre A600 desktop has been drawing eyes and envy since it was unveiled at CES 2009. But I guess the long wait is over because it’s now on sale and you can start ordering yours today!

Another Portable Media Player with Wi-Fi Capability: iriver P35

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Portable electronics manufacturer iRiver, is giving consumers more ways to stay connected hence at CES 2009, they unveiled a host of new Wi-Fi based networking devices. iRiver’s new line-up of interesting devices includes the iRiver Wave multimedia internet phone, the D50N Multimedia Networking Device with Keyboard, and the Wi-Fi capable iriver P35 Portable Media Player.

iRiver P35 is a portable media player that goes where others don’t with its integrated Wi-Fi capability. Yes, this portable media player is designed to connect to the Internet by means of wireless hotspot or through a wireless home network.

In addition, the iRiver P35 comes with a G-sensor which allows you to pivot the interface by simply turning the device. This special sensor also lets you change the song you are listening to by shaking the player, instead of using buttons. The P35 uses iRiver’s award-winning SPINN technology that matches digital performance with the retro feel of analog user controls.

Other features include:

• 4.3-inch TFT-LCD touchscreen display at 480 x 272 resolution
• Built-in microphone and speaker
• TV-out
• Integrated Radio
• Full movie codec support
• microSDHC memory card slot (up to 16GB)
• USB 2.0 connectivity
• Photo viewer
• Voice recording capability, audio and video playback
• Office viewer and DMB support (in regions where available)

The price and availability of the iriver P35 have not been revealed by the manufacturer. In the meantime, you can check out some readily available iRiver goodies here.