A stylish and smart multimedia laptop, the Advent 5431 is ideal for home as well as office use. Equipped with an Intel Pentium Dual-Core T3200 processor, it has a clock speed of 2,000 Mhz. Its RAM is 1,024 MB and its hard disk memory is a modest 120 GB. The Advent laptop’s powerful processor ensures that the user is satisfied with the efficient running of the programmes.

The Advent 5431’s 15.4 inch display widescreen displays photos, videos and presentations in the high quality displays with crystal clear clarity and sharp focus. The screen is a special feature of the Advent 5431 as it has a UMA graphics card and its impressive Realtek ALC662 sound type allows the user a complete audio-visual experience. A built-in web camera is another useful feature of the Advent 5431. For an optical disc drive, it has an integrated DVD Writer. Its operating system is Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium. It is also equipped with 3 USB ports that enable connection with external devices like a printer, digital camera etc. This machine has an integrated webcam and weighs only 2.9 kg. Lightweight and compact, it is a high performance laptop that promises to keep up with the users’ demands.

This laptop is great for an all rounder notebook with powerful processing and mid-range multimedia capabilities. Ideal for basic computer usage, the Advent 5431 comes in high gloss finish with imprint design that adds to its stylish and smart looks.

Remember the LaCinema multimedia hard disk launched by LaCie last year with audio and video outputs? That was a spectacular product as it offered the users the ability to connect the hard disk directly to their TV sets and enjoy all the multimedia stuff stored within. It was the only one of its kind and was adored by many users. Now the same company has launched an upgraded version of the LaCinema multimedia hard disk, called the LaCinema Rugged, that is targeted to fulfill the needs of modern day consumer.

The LaCinema Rugged interfaces have been improved a lot and some additional goodies are also incorporated to make the hard drive compatible with the latest technology. The device has now got audio, composite video and HDMI outputs. It can handle most of the popular audio/video codecs (excluding H.264 and MPEG4). Like its predecessor, you can connect this one also directly to any normal TV set or a High Definition flat panel to access the videos. The user interface is very simple and easy to operate. The LaCie LaCinema Rugged 500GB hard disk comes with a fully functional remote that can be used to control all the operations whilst relaxing. This cinematic device is blessed with the HD up-scaling capabilities. It can improve the video playback by taking up the resolution up to 720p. That’s not the full HD but far better than the normal vision.

The LaCinema Rugged is far better in terms of portability and endurance as compared to the previous version.

Get ready to welcome a stunning new jewel into your lives. No, I am seriously not talking about gold, silver, or for that matter diamond jewellery; I’m talking about a laptop with an appearance to die for. The product in question, the Sony VAIO FW-270j, is also an awesomely powerful multimedia device with an adorable 16.4” display, and is equipped with an aspect ratio of 16:9. The device is delightfully competent when it comes to handling a number of popular formats, with its standard Blu-ray player and HDMI port, which are a part of the entire package.

One of the major strategies adopted by the company is to keep the price of the product considerably so that it manages to create a niche for itself in the competitive multimedia market. And if recent indications are anything to go by, then the policy has done wonders for the product’s reception. The notebook is essentially an improvement over the Sony Vaio VGN-FW21E. Given the FW-270j’s inexpensive nature, the specifications, which include an Intel Core 2 Duo P8400 2.26GHz processor, as well as a solid 4GB RAM and 320GB HDD, become all the more impressive.

Despite being 1600×900, the Sony laptop is HD-friendly, although the display quality of the unit is a bit of a letdown as the resolution stands at a toned down 720p. Nevertheless, you will love the intensity of the back lighting when set on maximum levels, as it effectively eliminates glare from the glossy screen. Moreover, you can benefit from the flexibility provided by the large display screen as it can be manipulated to suit various viewing angles, whether vertical or horizontal.

The connectivity of the unit is not something to drool for, but it does have sufficient features to fulfill your primary requirements. Prominent connections include- an HDMI port, but 802.11a/b/g/n and Bluetooth, making for a convenient operation.

Tags for this article: mobile, laptop, sony vaio

HDX16-1000 is a new stylish computing machine that has been optimised for enjoying multimedia on the go. It guarantees you high definition digital entertainment whenever you want, wherever you want. Laptop users are becoming accustomed to rich multimedia rendering machines nowadays. They prefer those portable computers that are versatile enough to deal with a variety of HD media and other digital files and the HDX16-1000 is one such machine.

It carries a large 16in screen that has an amazing resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, which renders crystal clear images and vivid colours. Its keyboard is large and spacious as well. Inside the machine there’s an Intel 2.26GHz Core 2 Duo P8400 processor, 4GB RAM and a 320GB 5400rpm Fujitsu SATA hard drive. These specifications are quite similar to the laptop’s slightly higher-end sibling, the Hewlett-Packard HP Pavilion HDX18. To provide uncompromised gaming and an HD video experience, a Nvidia GeForce 9600M GT graphics chip is also installed into the HP HDX16-1000 system. This GPU has 512MB of dedicated VRAM and can extract an extra 1.5GB of memory from the system’s main memory module. Overall this makes a massive 2GB of dedicated VRAM, enough to handle the most complex graphics with aplomb.

Besides these there’s also a five-in-one memory card slot, 4xUSB 2.0, 1 four-pin Firewire, eSATA, HDMI and VGA interface, integrated TV tuner, ExpressCard 54 slot, Gigabit Ethernet, integrated Bluetooth and a Blu-ray reader. The sound output of HDX16-1000 is exceptional. It has got an integrated sub-woofer that produces better low frequencies. Undoubtedly, the HP HDX16-1000 is a highly energised entertainment powerhouse.

Tags for this article: laptop, computing, intel

In justifying all the hype surrounding it before its market launch, the D980 not only brought acclaim to Samsung, but also made many wonder at how talented and creative its engineers are. The touch screen phone is not only packaged with class and style, but also houses an impressive 5 megapixel camera.

The phone is empowered with dual SIM capacity; a rare ability in mobile phones which allows the user to use two different SIM cards simultaneously. Samsung are one of the few mobile manufacturers to include this unique feature in their phones, and other Samsung smartphones, such as the high-end Samsung G800, also include it. The mobile also features a tri band GSM which is connected to GPRS and EDGE, thus making it very versatile. The other fantastic features housed in the mobile include a 2.6 inch TFT screen, which is also a touch screen, a 5 megapixel camera with flash facility, hours of video recording, a music player, Bluetooth 2.0, FM radio and a slot for expandable memory. A person using the phone can also send instant messages or emails.

The phone scores very highly with those people who have their own business on account of its dual SIM facility. Those who are interested more in multimedia will also be impressed with all the mobile’s entertainment capabilities. All in all, the mobile represents another reliable, stylish and bargain offer by Samsung.

LG, the South Korean mobile phone giant has released the Invision CB630 onto the market. The phone is the result of collaboration between LG and the service provider AT&T, thus making the cellphone a baby produced from a very lethal alliance. The phone has been touted as one of leading mid-range multimedia mobiles available today, as it comes pre-loaded with the famed MEdiaFLO Live TV service and a notable 3 inch screen. The screen offers a 240 x 400 pixel resolution with assistance from a staggering 262,000 colours.

The mobile phone comes pre-loaded with the Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional Edition Operating System and the processor used is the latest Qualcomm MSM7200. Java is used as the platform for loading applications. The mobile supports MP3 and MIDI files as ring tones.

The mobile phone weighs just around 3.2 pounds and comes in a black colour. The speaker phones in the device are really effective and the phone gives the user the option of storing multiple phone numbers with a single name. The price of the phone has been kept very affordable and it is expected to be a certain hit amongst those who crave multiple multimedia options at an affordable price. While the LG KE850 or other mobiles might offer more performance and options, they cannot beat the price of the CB630. If you count yourself among people who seek a combination of high quality, multimedia options and affordability in their mobiles, then this phone could be for you.

Samsung has introduced the Innov8 smartphone at the IFA electronics exhibition in Berlin, and has primarily marketed it as a multimedia marvel. The HSDPA mobile phone is equipped with WiFi, 8 GB of memory, a GPS receiver, and an 8 megapixel camera. The integrated video player supports the DivX format, and Bluetooth A2DP is also on hand.

Samsung wants to excite all photo fans with the SGH-i8510’s photo functions. This device’s photo capabilities far outshine Samsung’s other smartphones, such as the Samsung I780 which only possesses a 2 megapixel camera. The integrated 8 megapixel camera of the SGH-i8510 is blessed with autofocus, a photo light, and a nine-fold digital zoom, in addition to an image stabiliser. That way all shots should be shake-free. The camera also recognises faces and can produce panorama photos.

Aside from snapshots, the camera is also capable of recording video in VGA resolution, which can be edited using simple software on the phone itself and further complimented with any music or photos. There is a second low resolution camera on the device’s front side intended for video conferencing. Samsung relies on a 2.8 inch display with a 320 x 240 pixel resolution and up to 16 million colours for displaying information.

The included video player supports the DivX, WMV, RealVideo, MPEG4, H. 263 and H. 264 video formats, while the music player also covers a wide variety of formats; including, MP3, WMA, RealAudio, AAC, AAC+, eAAC+ and AMR. If you ever get sick of your own media collection, then the mobile phone’s included radio with RDS support should provide for even more variation. Headphones are not even necessary, as the device comes with two talented speakers, which can even emit 3D surround sound audio.

Personal media collections can be housed in the 8GB of internal memory, which is expandable by an addition 8 GB through the use of Micro SD cards. Getting lost or disoriented is not an issue either, as the mobile includes a GPS receiver with A-GPS support. This not only makes it possible to use online navigation software, but also lets you geotag any snapshots.

The UMTS mobile phone transmits with the 850, 900, 1,800 and 1,800 MHz GSM networks, and, next to EDGE and GPRS, also supports HSDPA with a downloading speed of up to 7.2 MBit/s. WLAN 802.11b/g and Bluetooth 2.0 are available in order to wirelessly transfer music. The mobile also includes a 3.5 mm audio output jack for connecting any headphones, or other audio end devices.

Symbian S60 in its 9.3 test version is used as the operating system, and all the typical functions, such as calendar and address managers are included, as well as an HTML web browser and email client. Even the two 3D games Asphalt and Fifa 08 come preinstalled for some quick action during downtimes. Samsung has yet to specify what other applications will be included, or how much the product will weigh, yet we can likely deduce it will be somewhat heavy based on the large integrated camera.