Sony CyberShot DSC-J10 Digital Camera Price, Features and Specs

The current trend in the camera market is that most people nowadays prefer to splurge on a DSLR shooter. Gone are the days when the compact point-and-shoots were selling like hotcakes while the DSLRs were gathering dust in the shelves.

Nowadays, the exact opposite is what’s happening. People rarely give compact point-and-shoots a second look but instead linger on the display cases containing the bulky DSLRs, and for good reason. With the sudden interest aimed at DSLRs, camera manufacturers took advantage of this and flooded the market with affordable entry-level models thereby giving the masses to snag one of these shooters at a much lower price point.

Not only that, with a DSLR, the possibilities in terms of capturing images are just endless so to speak whereas there seems to be a limiting factor when using a compact point-and-shoot. In fact, the only advantage that I guess a compact point-and-shoot has over a DSLR is its smallish form factor that makes it easier to lug around.

Sony, which recently joined the DSLR wars by coming up with its Alpha line of DSLR shooters, is not entirely giving up on its CyberShot line of compact pint-and-shoots. In fact, with the release of the Sony DSC-J10, the company is again hedging its bets given the fact that their DSLR line did not get the reception it was getting.

To get a better feel of what the Sony DSC-J10 has to offer, read our incisive review of this new baby from Sony.

Design and construction

Typical of a compact point-and-shoot, the Sony DSC-J10 measures 93.6 x 59.4 x 17.3 mm and weighs in at approximately 126 grams. Breaking from the design convention of packing a conservative design, Sony decided that a more futuristic look in the DSC-J10 will give it some sort of an edge.

A quick look at the DSC-J10 reminds you of the bar of soap you used in bathing earlier this morning. This shooter is ideal for you if you want your shooter within easy reach, say for example, in your pocket. The buttons and controls of the DSC-J10 are well laid out so it is easy to reach for the controls.

Key specifications

The DSC-J10 was endowed with a 16.1-megapixel CCD sensor while its lens makes the shooter capable of 4x optical zoom. The zoom lens of the DSC-J10 has a 35 – 140 mm equivalent in 35 mm terms.

In addition to that, the DSC-J10 packs a generous 4GB of onboard storage but sad to say, Sony neglected to put a media card slot into the shooter for purposes of memory expansion. This means that you should always be vigilant in transferring photos to your desktop computer or laptop lest the internal memory of the shooter get all used up and you have no space left to take more pictures.

Since we are already talking about file transfer here, it would be appropriate to mention that the DSC-J10 has a built-in USB arm which enables you to plug the shooter to a USB port in your computer without the need for messy data cables. In addition to that, hooking up the shooter via the USB arm also charges it at the same time.

Display-wise, the DSC-J10 packs a 2.7-inch Clear Photo LCD screen which also acts as the shooter’s viewfinder. As always the case with the CyberShot line, the display on this shooter performs very well indoors as well as outdoors given the screen’s exceptional sunlight legibility.

Performance, image quality and other features

Performance-wise, the DSC-J10 is snappy for a compact point-and-shoot. Its boot-and-shoot time is just a couple of seconds, 2 at most, and you are good to go. The lens and sensor are also quick to focus and in addition the camera being able to handle 1.4 frames per second when switched to Burst mode.

Image quality turned out by the DSC-J10 is rather excellent if you ask me. There is above average color reproduction and pictures taken either in close-up or wide angle have a high level of detail in them. Not only that, great macro shots are made possible with the DSC-J10 with its 1cm minimum focus distance.

The features that this shooter has are common in the CyberShot line of compact point-and-shoots and these include Sweep Panorama, Intelligent Auto Mode, Smile Shutter, Face Detection, In-camera retouching and Easy Shooting Mode among others.

The bottom line

The Sony CyberShot DSC-J10 compact point-and-shoot is one unusual looking shooter and for this alone, it already gets the attention it needs. It turns out images with excellent quality not to mention with high level of detail. It even has that useful USB arm that does away the need for data cables thereby making life easier for you.

Sony CyberShot DSC-J10 Digital Camera Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 7,500.00

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Motorola Photon 4G Android Smartphone Price, Features and Other Details

Motorola Photon 4G Android Smartphone Price, Features and Other Details: Motorola, if you come to think of it, is one lucky company. It almost went under twice but has managed to stay afloat by releasing innovative mobile devices that lets it turn the tables back into its favor.

The company may not be as stable as Apple but it certainly can hold its own. And with the heating up of the smartphone competition with every other manufacturer trying to come up with a handset that can take the iPhone juggernaut heads on and bring it down with a rather satisfying thud.

In the case of Motorola, it is perfecting the craft of coming up with smartphones, superphones if you, like that have very impressive specs that can match the iPhone component by component. You only have to take a look at the Droid series and you’ll know that not only is Motorola seriously intent in keeping afloat but also staying in the game for good.

With the Motorola Photon 4G, the company is yet again giving the consumers another choice aside from the baby of Apple and the regular fare offered by HTC, Samsung and the like. A quick look at its specs sheet reveals that this baby can take on the HTC Sensation or theSamsung Galaxy S II. But will it be good enough to tackle the iPhone 4? What else is it capable of? How future-proof is this handset? Read on as we take the Motorola Photon 4G apart.

Design and construction

The ugly black slab of plastic form factor commonly adapted by smartphones is rather becoming annoying already. And Motorola seems to be one proponent of this design school as the Photon 4G is no exception to this.

It measures 126.9 x 66.9 x 12.2 mm and tips the scales at 158 grams. Those measurements and weigh put the Photon 4G somewhere in the somewhat bulky and somewhat hefty category. It has cut-off corners that make it look more aggressive and masculine while its gray edges at least break of the monotony of black spread all over the handset.

The battery cover of the handset, which takes up almost its entire back panel is done in a soft touch finish and somehow gives the device an elegant feel to it. Despite its bulk, it feels comfortable to hold even for extended periods and the heft of the device gives off the impression of being solidly built.

Under the hood

This is where things really get interesting. The Photon 4G was endowed with a very able processor in the form of a dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 CPU that sits atop a Tegra 2 AP20H chipset. The processor, which has a clock speed of 1GHz is working with 1GB of RAM for some buttery-smooth performance in the handset.

Its dedicated ULP GeForce GPU helps out in tending to graphical chores while its humongous 16GB of internal storage space will be able to take care of your storage needs. Should that fall short of your expectations, microSD cards of up to 32GB are easily handled by the handset’s dedicated media card slot so memory expansion is not an issue here.

The display

The front panel of the Photon 4G is in turn taken up by its big-ass 4.3-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen display. The display has a resolution of 960 x 540 pixels and 16M colors. In addition to that, due to the qHD nature of the display, colors are vibrantly rendered while texts look more sharp and detailed.

The handset also features touch-sensitive controls that sit just below the display while sensors such as proximity and accelerometer sensors are integrated into the display. Of course, support for multi-touch input is also standard.

The shooters

The Photon 4G has a pair of shooters to boast of. The handset’s primary camera is rear-facing and has a resolution of 8 megapixels. The shooter comes with autofocus and dual LED flash and has other features like face detection, geotagging and image stabilization. It can also record 720p clips at 30 frames per second when switched to video mode while its front-facing shooter is a non-descript VGA camera for the usual video calls.

The bottom line

If capability is the central part of the discussion, then the Motorola Photon 4G is more than capable to hold off the competition. It has specs that are just to die for that is combined with a very excellent display. And its 8-megapixel shooter means that you need not bother bringing your compact point and shoot if you are on the road. In short, the Motorola Photon 4G will be worth the dinero that you will be forking over to be the proud owner of this device.

Motorola Photon 4G Android Smartphone Price in the Philippines: To Be Announced (TBA)

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Canon imageCLASS MF4370dn All-in-One Printer Price, Features and Other Details

Canon imageCLASS MF4370dn All-in-One Printer Price, Features and Other Details: The printer is indeed a very useful equipment not only in the office but in the home as well. In today’s world that almost all homes already have a computer in them, it follows that a printer is also just around the corner. The truth is, nothing is more annoying than having to go out of the house just to get an important document printed out.

That reason may perhaps be the first and foremost reason why more people are opting to get a printer as well. However, the printer that we have come to know has actually evolved already. Aside from letting you print stuff out (it is a printer after all), most printers being released to the market nowadays are actually multi-function printers already.

Not only do these multi-function printers give you the capability to print stuff out, they also have features such as copier, scanner and fax, making them the ultimate office equipment after your desktop of course.

In this category, the Canon imageCLASS MF4370dn really excels. It has all the features mentioned above and packs some additional stuff that would definitely make your life easier, regardless whether you are at home or at the office.

What then is so nice about this multi-function printer? What kind of specs does it have? What are its other features? How does it stand up against the competition? Read on as we dissect and analyze every nook and cranny of the Canon imageCLASS MF4370dn multi-function printer.

Design and construction

The imageCLASS MF4370dn is one of those compact multi-functions available in the market and with its dimensions of 15.4 x 21.0 x 17.9 inches, it has a smallish form factor and is compact enough to fit a desk with actually eating up a lot of space, leaving you with sufficient room to get some work done. In addition to that, the imageCLASS MF4370dn is not that heavy when you consider its weight of approximately 27.6 pounds. In fact, one person can already take care of carrying and moving this printer around.

Setup

Setting up the imageCLASS MF4370dn out of the box doesn’t really take a genius to accomplish. Look for a suitable spot where you will plant the imageCLASS MF4370dn, load the paper and the toner cartridge, hook up the power cord and other necessary cables, run the installation disc and before you know it, the imageCLASS MF4370dn is already good to go.

Features

The imageCLASS MF4370dn is just packed with features given the fact that this is a multi-funtion printer. By the way, running the installation disc in the installation process mentioned above also includes hooking up the printer to your home or office network so the imageCLASS MF4370dn can also serve as your network shared printer. With this feature, the printer basically enables you to print, copy, fax and scan over your network. This is its most important feature, if you ask me.

Aside from that, it has features that just make your life a whole lot easier. For example, the imageCLASS MF4370dn has an automatic document feeder with a 35-sheet capacity that makes the scanning, copying and faxing of multipage documents a lot easier, not to mention a lot faster.

In addition to its multi-function features, the speed performance of the imageCLASS MF4370dn measured in terms of pages per minute is also exceptional. It is in fact so fast that it can turn out 23 pages per minute, which is as fast as the critically acclaimed Brother MFC-7840W all-in-one printer.

Not only that, the imageCLASS MF4370dn also excels in terms of text quality. Documents printed out with the printer have texts that are very clear with a lot of detail in addition to being highly readable. The only snag is when the imageCLASS MF4370dn is used to print out small fonts but other than that, it handles printing documents pretty well.

The only major snag with the imageCLASS MF4370dn is its scan feature. Scanning a document using the printer is somewhat complicated wherein you have to toggle scan mode on the printer then give out the command to scan from your desktop or laptop. In addition to that, scan times on the imageCLASS MF4370dn are just too high. For example, scanning an 8 x 10 inch photo took 4 minutes and 56 seconds, which is actually unacceptable.

The bottom line

Had Canon been able to improve the scan times of the Canon imageCLASS MF4370dn, this printer would have easily edged out the Brother MFC-7840W for the top spot. However, other than that particular snag, the imageCLASS MF4370dn turns out an impressive performance and at its price of $198.99, this printer from Canon is worth the money you are shelling out.

Canon imageCLASS MF4370dn All-in-One Printer Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 9,000.00

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Samsung PL120 DualView Digital Camera Price, Features and Other Details

Samsung PL120 DualView Digital Camera Price, Features and Other Details: The focus right now when we talk about the camera industry and by extension the camera market is on the DSLR category of shooters. It came to a point that shooters from this category became so ubiquitous that it is not uncommon to see people toting these shooters almost everywhere.

Despite being bulky and hefty, DSLRs became the weapon of choice not only by professionals but by enthusiasts as well because of the assured exceptional image quality that these shooters turn out in addition to getting more creative control over the subjects you take pictures of.

The ubiquity of these shooters was further enhanced by the move of the manufacturers to flood the market with entry-level models that put the DSLR within easy reach of the masses because of its seeming affordability.

All of this happened at the behest of the compact point-and-shoots. For a time, the compacts were the toast of the town but those days are long gone. To regain the waning interest of buyers to this category, manufacturers had to resort to cramming more features into the smallish form factor of the compact point and shoots.

This is where the Samsung PL120 DualView compact point-and-shoot comes in so read to get an idea of what this shooter packs and why it might interest even the DSLR-toting portion of the population.

Design and construction

In keeping with the smallish form factor associated with this category, the PL120 DualView measures 3.70 x 2.15 x 0.74 inches and tips the scales at 0.24 pounds. With its size and weight, this shooter can obviously slide into the front pocket of your jeans with apparent ease.

The shooter when held in your hand actually feels good. The controls and buttons are arranged in such a way that most of them are within easy reach in addition to being easy to press on. Since there is no protruding part on the right front panel of the shooter to act as a grip, making use of the included wrist strap in its retail package is advisable lest the shooter slip from your hands.

Key specs

The PL120 DualView packs a 14-megapixel sensor that is capable of 5x optical zoom that has an equivalent of 26mm – 130mm in wide-angle lens. The lens and sensor combination that the PL120 DualView packs enable a user to capture not only panoramic wide-angle shots but up close and personal close ups as well.

The displays

To attract consumers, the PL120 DualView packs a dual display configuration. The rear panel of the shooter houses its main 2.7-inch LCD screen while another 1.5-inch display can be found on its front panel (right where the grip should have been). The secondary display on the front panel actually makes the taking of self-portraits a lot easier by eliminating the guess work if you were able to frame yourself correctly.

In addition to that, the front display can also display videos. This feature is especially helpful when taking pictures of kids because the video will capture their attention. On the other hand, using the rear screen either indoors or outdoors poses no problems at all but the front display is hardly visible in brightly-lit conditions such as under direct sunlight.

Performance, image quality and other features

Since this is just a compact shooter, its boot-and-shoot time is not as impressive as we want it to be. It takes the shooter a couple of seconds after switching it on to be ready for your first snap. In addition to that, the PL120 DualView takes about 3 seconds without the flash from shot to shot. Using the flash takes longer because the shooter still has to charge the flash and the whole process takes around 5 seconds before you can snap another picture.

In terms of image quality, the PL120 DualView is able to produce images with very good reproduction of colors in addition to being well-exposed. Nice macro shots can also be taken with the PL120 DualView despite being limited to being able to maintain focus at 5cm.

It also has other features commonly found in compact point-and-shoots such as Smart Filter with Creative Special Effects, Smart Face Recognition, Magic Frames, Digital Image Stabilization, Perfect Portrait System and Beauty Shot mode among others.

The bottom line

If you are not too keen with image quality, then the Samsung PL120 DualView Camera which has a price tag of $149.99 will easily fit the bill. In fact, it is the most affordable among shooters that pack dual screens. In addition to that, it has an ultra compact form factor while bringing value for your money to the table. The frames, filters and shooting modes that make photography fun and easy even add to the appeal of the Samsung PL120 DualView Camera. In short, this will be a good backup camera to your trusty old DSLR.

Samsung PL120 DualView Digital Camera Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 6,500.00

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Panasonic VIERA TC-P50GT30 3D Plasma HDTV Preview

Panasonic VIERA TC-P50GT30 3D Plasma HDTV Preview: With all the technological advances that we see happening at eye-blinding speeds that affects everything in its way, it is no wonder that even the accent piece of our living rooms, the television, has been affected one way or the other as well.

Our grandparents would have been awed at how the televisions of this generation look nowadays. Gone are the days of having cabinet-style TV sets that necessitate you to slide the covers to the side just to get your daily fix of soap operas.

In its place are slim and sexy sets that can be mounted on your wall in addition to packing the latest technological advances that have been quite unthinkable say, 20 years ago. In addition to that, TVs of today pack all the bells and whistles that make them more than just a boob tube.

With confusing acronyms such as LCD, LED, and HDTV among others, the television as we have come to know it has given us so much more aside from the sitcoms and the series. Internet TVs nowadays give you the luxury of surfing the net while watching your favorite TV show. Not only that, image quality has also improved a lot.

Having said that, the Panasonic VIERA TC-P50GT30 50-Inch 1080p 3D Plasma HDTV could serve as your weapon of choice to liven up your living room. It is just not some big-ass telly but has features that are dreamt-of of every couch potato.

So what can we expect from the Panasonic VIERA TC-P50GT30? What are the bells and whistles that come along in its retail package? Would it break the bank should you decide to bring this baby home? Read on as we get more acquainted with the Panasonic VIERA TC-P50GT30.

Design and construction

In keeping with the tradition of being slim and sexy as is found among the sets of today, the VIERA TC-P50GT30 measures 28.3 x 46.4 x 1.5 inches and weighs in at a whopping 56.3 pounds. The whole panel has a depth of a mere 1.5 inches but that does not include the speaker bulge though. Since the speakers cannot be taken off, the true depth of the VIERA TC-P50GT30 comes up to 2.2 inches, which in my opinion is still very slim.

In addition to that, the VIERA TC-P50GT30 is the first line of boob tubes that benefited from Panasonic’s decision to give the series a redesign which is a bit overdue already. Not only that, this telly also now sports the slim profile first adopted by Samsung as early as 2009.

Owing to the redesign, the bezel surrounding the screen of the VIERA TC-P50GT30 has been shrunk down to a mere 1.4 inches but still retained it piano black finish. The bezel finish however, since it is very glossy, is a perennial fingerprint, dust, smudge and dirt magnet.

The features and performance

The VIERA TC-P50GT30 doesn’t lack in ports for connectivity options. Not only does it have 4 HDMI inputs but it also has composite, component, PC, audio and analog audio inputs. It even throws 3 USB ports and a LAN port to the mix.

In addition to that, the VIERA TC-P50GT30 is already THX-certified which can be used via a preset mode in either 2D or 3D mode. It also packs a dejudder processing feature along with a Wi-Fi dongle that lets you add the TV to your home’s wireless network.

Unfortunately, no 3D glasses are included in the retail package of the VIERA TC-P50GT30 which is a bummer especially that a pair of these glasses will set you back $179. The good thing is that most manufacturers are already throwing in free 3D glasses so it won’t be long before Panasonic jumps this bandwagon.

As for its internet capabilities, the VIERA TC-P50GT30 takes advantage of the redesigned Internet Suite of Panasonic that gives you access to sports content such as MLB, NBA, NHL and NFL, video-streaming sites such as Hulu Plus, YouTube, Amazon Video, NetFlix and Cinema Now, along with social networking sites such as FaceBook and Twitter among others.

In terms of performance, the VIERA TC-P50GT30 was able to deliver exceptionally well. The image quality on its screen was excellent and the black levels are just incredible. Colors are rendered accurately and its plasma was perfectly uniform. The fact that it was able to handle 1080p at 24 frames per second with no issues at all was a bonus.

The bottom line

At its display’s diagonal size of 50 inches, you can expect to pay a lot just to bring the Panasonic VIERA TC-P50GT30 home. It has a hefty price tag of $1899 and I can’t really say that the amount is money well spent.

It actually is given the image quality that the VIERA TC-P50GT30 is capable of but the only snag in this TV is its tendency to use up a lot of power in its operation. But if you have the dinero to pay for this boob tube, then I guess a little bump in your electricity bill wouldn’t hurt that much, would it?

Panasonic VIERA TC-P50GT30 3D Plasma HDTV Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 90,000.00

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Toshiba Qosmio X775-3DV78 Laptop Computer Price, Features and Specs

Toshiba Qosmio X775-3DV78 Laptop Computer Price, Features and Specs: The only constant thing is change. Very cliché but all so true, especially when you talk about technological changes. And this is not a bad thing when you come to think of it. Gadgets have become smaller and yet a lot more powerful because of these changes that technology brought about.

In the case of laptops, several categories have come up to cater to every person’s way of using the laptop. Netbooks for students, ultraportables for business people who are always on the go, desktop replacements, well, for those who do not want their space to be eaten up by bulky desktops, and gaming rigs for the gamer.

In the case of gaming rigs, the adage smaller and yet more powerful does not really apply since they became bigger and a lot more powerful. Some gaming rigs actually have 18-inch screens so you can just imagine just how big-ass that laptop is.

In the case of the Toshiba Qosmio X775, the same holds true. It is big, it is hefty, but it screams raw power when you check out its specs sheet. This belongs to the Qosmio line after all – bulky but has all the power under its hood that can make any geek drool.

What then can the Toshiba Qosmio X775 offer? How impressive is its specs sheet? What other features does it boast of? What about its price tag? Is it justifiable? All this and more will be answered as you read through our review of the Toshiba Qosmio X775.

Design and construction

The Qosmio X775 is massive with its measurements of 16.3 x 2.4 x 10.8 inches. It obviously doesn’t know the meaning of slim and sexy but that’s perfectly acceptable when we get to the specs sheet. It weighs in at a hefty 8 pounds making it one of the heavier gaming rigs available in the market so there is a tendency for the Qosmio X775 to be desk-bound.

Aesthetics-wise, critics are split down the middle when discussing the looks of the Qosmio X775. Others find it sloppy while some find it aggressive. I say that the Fusion finish of the Qosmio X775 is a thing of beauty.

It has horizontal stripes lining its lid and deck, which makes the Qosmio X775 fingerprint-resistant. Its chassis is done in gunmetal-gray that slowly turns to red toward the back portion. Others find this a bit sloppy but I say that it adds to the overall attitude effect that the Qosmio X775 has.

Under the hood

This is where all the important components reside, the components that will more than make up for the bulk and heft associated with the Qosmio X775. It draws power from the Sandy Bridge line of 2nd gen Intel Core i7 processors and this beast has the i7-2630QM quad-core processor to power its operation. The processor has a clock speed of 2.0 GHz but with the use of Turbo Boost, its clock speed can be overclocked to 2.9 GHz with no problems at all.

The processor works in conjunction with a humongous 8GB of DDR3 RAM and this combination actually finds it hard to find something that will use up all that computing power. In terms of graphics, the Qosmio X775 has a dedicated nVIDIA GeForce GTX 560M (3D vision) GPU that packs 1.5GB of GDDR graphics memory to take care of your resource-hungry game titles.

In terms of storage, the Qosmio X775 packs two separate hard drives – a 7200RPM 500GB hard disk drive and a 5400RPM 750GB hard disk drive. This comes up to a total of 1.25TB that I guess is more than enough for your storage needs even if you are a multimedia fiend.

The display and other features

Display-wise, the Qosmio X775 boasts of an LED-backlit 17.3-inch FHD TruBrite TFT 3D-ready display that has a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, aspect ration of 16:9 and is able to support 1080p content.

The 3D-ready display of the Qosmio X775 is just plain gorgeous. Colors were very vivid and life-like that images seem to jump right at you. The display also has wide viewing angles that makes sharing of multimedia content a breeze.

In terms of input devices, the Qosmio X775 packs the now ubiquitous chiclet-style keys for its keyboard. The keys have nice spacing between them so typing is made easy with it. The touchpad though is more of a contradiction. It is rather smallish but is very smooth. I’m not sure though if its size looks smaller because the Qosmio X775 is just massive.

There is no shortage of ports in the Qosmio X775. It has 3 USB 2.0 ports and a USB 3.0 port for faster data transfer. An HDMI port and VGA out also comes standard along with its Ethernet jack for a wired connection. In addition to that, the Qosmio X775 packs a webcam with stereo 3D features that enables it to capture high quality images regardless of lighting conditions.

The bottom line

The Toshiba Qosmio X775 has everything. Well, almost. It has over-the-top specs and is significantly budget-friendlier at its price tag of $1699 in the US of A compared to other gaming rigs. In addition to that, it is also 3D capable which makes it more attractive. If you got the dinero and you can take the somewhat eccentric aesthetics of the Qosmio X775, this rig will definitely not let you down.

Toshiba Qosmio X775-3DV78 Laptop Computer Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 80,000.00

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Epson WorkForce 840 All-in-One Printer Preview: Price, Features and Specs

Epson WorkForce 840 All-in-One Printer Preview: Price, Features and Specs - Printers nowadays have been essential equipment not only in businesses but in the home as well. In fact, the printer as we know it have gone through a lot of improvements over time and the computer peripheral have turned into something that does more than just print out documents.

These improvements gave way to the birth of the all-in-one printer, an equipment that basically has scan, copy and fax functions aside from being able to print out documents. In the same vein, the printers nowadays can now also be connected to your home or office network either by wired Ethernet or Wi-Fi network thereby enhancing its functionalities.

The Epson WorkForce 840 All-in-One printer is basically considered the king of the hill by being able to have all the features mention above. Read on for the full details of this highly-useful device as we take it apart for our incisive review.

Design and construction

The WorkForce 840, with its measurements of 14.5 x 17.6 x 11.8 inches and weight of 22 pounds, is rather impressive for its compact size given all the features that are cramped into its smallish frame. It even has indented handles that make it portable and easy to move around from one place to the next.

It has two trays which are size-adjustable wherein you can easily store two varying paper types and its paper capacity of 500 pages makes it ideal for high-volume printing. Its control panel is right smack in the middle of the printer with its output tray sitting below the control panel along with the input trays at its bottom. It also has dual media card slots along with a USB port should you want to print directly from a digital camera or from a media card.

Setup

Setting up the WorkForce 840 is a breeze with the bundled CD that includes applications such as CreativeZone for designing letterheads, page templates and invitations and Easy Photo Print for the convenient printing of photos.

The setup process is pretty straightforward and even a non-geek could setup the printer in 10 minutes or less and that already includes installing the included applications. The addition of the printer to your Wi-Fi network is also a snap wherein the installation of drivers and the printing out of a test page is done virtually within minutes.

The features

Once the printer is up and running, it is a joy to go through all the features that it has. Aside from the functions mentioned above, you can make use of apps that lets you print directly from a mobile phone wirelessly. The WorkForce 840 also lets you print photos directly from your mobile phone where you just select an image to print and the printer to print it with and the WorkForce 840 will do all the dirty job. It even gives you the option to select from borderless or bordered prints.

The scan and copy features of the WorkForce 840 are also very impressive. The scanner of the device has a resolution of 2400 x 1200 dots per inches wherein the scans can e sent directly to your computer or saved in a media card on the printer’s media card slot.

The retail package of the WorkForce 840 comes with the ink cartridges that give the user the best cost-efficiency in terms of price per page. Estimate come up to 3 cents per page for black and white printing and 7.2 cents per page for color printing which are below the average costs for printers of its size.

The performance

All in all, the WorkForce 840 was able to turn out an exceptionally strong performance in terms of printing speeds. In black and white printing, the printer was able to print out 12.48 pages per minute. It worked impressively as well in full color printing wherein 10 full-colored PowerPoint slides where spewed out at a rate of 6.79 pages per minute.

Though it may have faltered a bit in printing put photos at a rate of 0.86 photos per minute for a 4x6-inch image on photo paper, this was compensated by the fact that the WorkForce 840 turn out crisp texts and vivid and brighter colors. It also boasts of its below average operating noise levels wherein the printer was hardly noticeable while doing its thing.

The bottom line

The Epson WorkForce 840 All-in-One Printer may not be the speediest in terms of photo printing but it definitely excels on its other functions and smokes the competition. It may be more expensive than the all-in-one printers of other brands at $299 but this is amount well spent when you consider all the features crammed into its body, which at its compact size makes the device even more attractive. In short, you definitely got a winner with WorkForce 840.

Epson WorkForce 840 All-in-One Printer Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 14,000.00

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Fujifilm FinePix F600 EXR Digital Camera Price, Features and Other Details

Fujifilm FinePix F600 EXR Digital Camera Price, Features and Other Details: In today’s world where not only professional photographers are toting DSLRs but even almost everybody else, the camera manufacturers have shifted their attention to the DSLR market by coming up with entry-level shooters that can easily be afforded by the masses. The result? The DSLR became as ubiquitous as ever making its appearance almost virtually everywhere.

This left the market segment for compact point and shoots fledgling at best. What once were the bread and butter of camera manufacturers became relegated to the backseat and had to be content with becoming mere backup shooters to the bulky DSLRs.

To regain the lost attention of the camera-buying public to this category, camera manufacturers had to resort to cramming every feature imaginable to the compact frames of these shooters. To give you an analogy, think of the camera as a smartphone where it does almost everything else in addition to making and receiving calls. That is what is currently happening to the compact point and shoots.

The Fujifilm FinePix F600 EXR is no exception to this. The company, knowing that it cannot in any way compete with Canon and Nikon in the DSLR category, instead made sure that the compact point and shoots that they come up with are feature-packed, thereby making them more attractive to the consumers.

What then can we expect from the Fujifilm FinePix F600 EXR? What kind of specs does it bring to the table? What other features does it have? Read on as we take a quick look at the Fujifilm FinePix F600 EXR?

Design and Construction

The FinePix F600 EXR is the successor to the F550 EXR and it measures 103.5 x 62.5 x 32.6 mm and tips the scales at 220 grams with the included battery and media card. It is your typical compact point and shoot and given its size, it can easily be slipped into the front pocket of your jeans. Its size also makes it ideal to bring along on the road.

The design of the FinePix F600 EXR gives off the impression of a sexy and streamlined shape. It has all the right curves at the right places thereby making it easier to hold the shooter. Towards the front right side of the camera is a textured portion right next to a seeming curve that acts as the camera’s grip. This design feature makes it ideal for one-handed image capture.

The features

Specs-wise, the FinePix F600 EXR takes after its predecessor but throws in extra features to the mix for added functionality. It retains the 16-megapixel sensor of the F550 EXR that has been upgraded to a CMOS sensor with backside illumination. The sensor of the FinePix F600 EXR is paired with the company’s proprietary EXR technology to ensure exceptional image quality in whatever lighting condition you are shooting. In addition to that, the FinePix F600 EXR has 15x zoom capability for better image results.

In terms of display, the FinePix F600 EXR has a 3-inch LCD screen taking up most of its back panel. It has an approximate resolution of 153,000 pixels and provides sharp images and above average sunlight legibility. The display of the FinePix F600 EXR also doubles as the shooter’s viewfinder since it does not have an electronic or optical viewfinder.

The crowning glory however of the FinePix F600 EXR is its Augmented Reality feature. With the shooter’s GPS module that also allows geo-tagging, the GPS Landmark Navigator feature became possible on the FinePix F600 EXR. This feature is essentially like a database of points of interests in more than a million locations stored right there on your camera.

Say for example you are on vacation, with this feature, the FinePix F600 EXR makes use of its GPS module and displays the points of interests in your area along with its relative location and distance from your position. This feature also includes Photo Navigation that lets users go back to a location that they have photographed in the past. These features obviously make the FinePix F600 EXR ideal for travel photography.

In addition to that, the FinePix F600 EXR also has a host of features that are often associated with compact point and shoots. Aside from its Panorama 360 mode, the FinePix F600 EXR offers different modes for picture taking to ensure the quality of captured images in any photographic occasion.

Aside from that, it has an ISO sensitivity that can be cranked up to ISO 12800. For creative image capture, it has several exposure modes that include manual, shutter-priority and aperture-priority along with a burst-shooting mode of 8 frames per second. It also has a built-in pop-up flash that takes out the red-eye effect so common in pictures.

The bottom line

The Fujifilm FinePix F600 EXR may not be a DSLR but the image quality it turns out is exceptionally good for a compact point and shoot. And if you happen to find yourself always on the road, leave the trusty old DSLR at home and bring the FinePix F600 EXR instead. With all the features that it pack, you surely will not regret that decision.

Fujifilm FinePix F600 EXR Digital Camera Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 18,000.00

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Motorola Defy+ Android Smartphone Price, Features and Expectations

Motorola Defy+ Android Smartphone Price, Features and Expectations: It looks as though Motorola fans have a lot to be thankful for these past couple of days. Google’s acquisition of the company would surely mean that Motorola would now have first dibs with whatever Android version is in the works. Not only that, an infusion of cash is in the offing, which will make the company as prolific as other manufacturers in coming up with smartphones.

In the same vein, after the acquisition, the company still had the time to announce its upcoming device, the Motorola Defy+. It has certainly been a long way from the time that the company almost went under and was only saved by being able to release a device that captured the fancy of the buyers.

For starters, the Defy+ is sort of a successor to the Motorola Defy that got released last year. And in the case of predecessor-successor relationship, it’s pretty obvious that the Defy+ went the upgrade way big time instead of going the incremental way. And these upgrades ought to make the Defy+ future-proof for 2011 at least.

In addition to being future-proof and in deference to its name, the Defy+ is said to be world-proof as well. In short, it is even tougher than the Motorola Defy. In fact, it has a certification for IP67 standards in terms of drop, dust, water and scratch resistance. In not so many words, the Defy+ will be able to handle the use and abuse that it will be subjected to.

What then can we expect from the Motorola Defy+ aside from its toughness? What kind of specs does it bring to the table? What kind of pricing scheme are we to expect? How good is it when compared to its predecessor? Read on as we take the Motorola Defy+ apart.

Design and construction

The Defy+ is a bit thicker compared to the slim and sexy smartphones of the competition at 107 x 59 x 13.4 mm but is a lightweight in terms of bulk at a scant 118 grams. The seeming thickness can be attributed I guess to the fact that the device is resistant to almost anything you throw at it.

It is the usual ugly black slab of plastic so common among Droids today but we may want to add tough to the string of adjectives describing it. Since it is resistant to almost anything, we expect a solid build quality in the Defy+.

Under the hood

The toughness of the Defy+ is not limited to its externals. In fact, we can say that it is also a brute inside. Under its hood, the components are impressive as well. The Defy+ packs a Texas Instruments OMAP 3620 processor with a clock speed of 1GHz. This is in turn paired with 512 MB of RAM for a snappy performance.

Sad to say, a dedicated GPU is nowhere to be found on the Defy+ but a full gigabyte of internal memory takes care of your storage needs. If you are a multimedia fiend, the onboard storage obviously wouldn’t suffice but a dedicated media card slot that can support up to 32GB microSD cards is there for memory expansion purposes.

The display

Display-wise, the Defy+ has been endowed with a 3.7-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen panel with 16M colors and a resolution of 854 x 480 pixels. To add to the seeming toughness of the device, the entire display is covered with Corning’s famed Gorilla Glass for added protection.

Right below the display are the touch sensitive controls of the Defy+ while sensors such as accelerometer and proximity sensors are integrated onto the device for added functionality. With the toughness of the device, it is obviously ideal for people with active lifestyles sop the display of the device is expected to have above-average sunlight legibility should you plan to take this baby on the road.

The shooter

Sadly, Motorola forgone the dual-camera configuration and decided to give a single shooter to the Defy+. It is a rear-facing 5-megapixel camera with LED flash and autofocus features along with image stabilization and geotagging. On still camera mode, the shooter is capable of shooting images of up to 2592 x 1944 pixels. It also has a video mode but no news yet as to what resolution the video clips it will capture would turn out.

The battery life

In paper, battery life on the Defy+ is exceptionally good. The device packs a 1700 mAh Lithium-Polymer power pack that gives the device a battery life of up to 7 hours and 10 minutes of talk time and up to 384 hours of standby time. We still need to wait for real world tests though to ascertain if the battery life is as good in practice and not just in theory.

The bottom line

No pricing scheme has been rolled out yet but rumors have it that the Motorola Defy+ will be somewhat more affordable. Should that be the case, then this handset becomes more attractive. Given its good looks and impressive specs crammed into a body that can withstand almost anything at a slightly cheaper price, then the Motorola Defy+ is clearly a winner.

Motorola Defy+ Android Smartphone Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 24,000.00

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Honda Accord Price List (as of August 2011)

Honda Accord Price List: The Honda Accord is a popular Japanese medium-sized vehicle that's manufactured by Honda Motor Company since 1976 and debuted as a compact hatchback. The name Accord reflects Honda's desire for accord or harmony between people, society and the automobile.

In the United States, the Honda Accord was the best-selling Japanese car for fifteen consecutive years (from 1982-97). It is widely regarded as one of the world's most reliable cars, which is considered by many as an amazing accomplishment.

The Accord received numerous awards including Motor Trend's "Import Car of the Year", Car and Driver's recipient of 10 Best recognition for 23 of the last 27 years, Wheels Magazine's "Car of the Year", and a whole lot more. Although more expensive than the equally popular Honda Civic, its price is justified by its elegance, performance, and style.


Honda Accord Price List (in Philippine Peso) as of August 2011:

Honda Accord 2.4S AT: Php 1,680,000.00

Honda Accord 3.5V V6 AT: Php 2,030,000.00

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Vizio E3D320VX 3D HDTV Price, Features and Other Info

Vizio E3D320VX 3D HDTV Price, Features and Other Info: The television as we have come to know it has gone a long way from what it was say, a decade ago. Gone are the CRT sets with bulky picture tubes that take up a lot of space and eventually burn out due to use and abuse.

In its place, sexy, slim and streamlined LCD TVs have cropped up and began gracing our living rooms acting as our entertainment den’s central piece. With all the technological advances that have been going on, it is not surprising anymore to learn that the boob tube is now more than that.

Aside from getting sexier and slimmer, the TVs of this generation got so much technology crammed into their slim profiles that features we can only dream about in the past are now a reality. One such example is the proliferation of Internet-capable TVs wherein you can do your web surfing activities right there on the telly provided you got it hooked up to your home network.

This and other features are becoming basic essentials on the new generation TVs lining up the shelves and in this regard, the Vizio E3D320VX is not an exception. Though not as popular as it would want to be, the E3D320VX packs a whole lot of features that could satiate the desires of the uber-couch potato.

What then can we expect from the Vizio E3D320VX? What kind of specs does it have? What kind of features does it bring to the table? Is it well worth the amount of money you will be shelling out? Read on for our full review of the Vizio E3D320VX.

Design and construction

The E3D320VX is your typical 32-inch 3D-capable HDTV with measurements of 31.2 x 20.8 x 3.2 inches and tips the scales at just 19 pounds. This telly has a minimalistic design and features a glossy black bezel surrounding its display that is contrasted nicely by the speaker bar below the display done in a matte black finish.

Connection options on the E3D320VX include 3 HDMI inputs that are all 3D-compliant. Other inputs include Ethernet, RF, RGB (for your computer), composite and component. It even has 2 USB 2.0 ports along its side that is compatible with JPEG and MP3 files.

The features and performance

The E3D320VX boasts of a 32-inch screen capable of 1080p display that has a 200,000:1 contrast ratio. The display’s refresh rate is at 60Hz and its pair of 10-watt speakers blast out SRS sound. This HDTV also packs the company’s proprietary Ambient Light Sensor technology, which adjusts the brightness of the display automatically to take into consideration the lighting conditions that are always changing in a room.

After taking the E3D320VX out of its box, a user still needs to do some basic calibration which is rather pretty easy. Making use of a calibration disc and the onscreen menus of the TV does the process. Once everything is all set, performance of the E3D320VX cannot be faulted. It is above average.

The image displayed on its screen is very accurate in terms of reproduction of color. Overall clarity, along with sharpness and contrast are all decidedly above average as well. The matte screen surface of the display of E3D320VX also gives the TV a rather cinematic look with superb black levels and detail and texture that are exceptionally good. Some would even say that the level of detail found in the images on the E3D320VX is even better than more expensive sets and I would tend to agree to that.

When you come to think of it, the performance of the E3D320VX is perhaps one of the best when compared to other 3D HDTVs in its class. Its passive 3D design gives way to images that flicker-free with amazing clarity that is just not possible in sets that boast of an active 3D design.

In terms of 3D glasses, the included pair in the retail package of the E3D320VX is very comfortable to wear. Making them more attractive is the fact that these glasses are no that expensive to have replaced should they become damaged or worse, lost. The company also claims that 3D glasses from your theater would also work with the E3D320VX.

As for its Internet capabilities, the E3D320VX comes preloaded with VIA (Vizio Internet Apps) along with integrated Wi-Fi 802.11n. With VIA coming into play, you literally have Facebook, Twitter, Vudu, Yahoo, Flickr, Hulu Plus, Blockbuster, and NetFlix among others literally at your fingertips.

The bottom line

If you have been itching to upgrade to a 3D-capable HDTV, the Vizio E3D320VX’s price of $449 is definitely attractive. It lets you find out for yourself if this technology is for you without leaving a considerable dent on your budget.

Should it turn out that the 3D effect on the E3D320VX gives you headaches like other 3D devices do, you can always crank the E3D320VX down to 2D and be assured of the fact that it still can deliver an amazing HD picture too.

Taking all these into consideration along with the fact that this set is very affordable compared to the competition, the Vizio E3D320VX is definitely recommended and worth every dinero that you will shell out to take this baby home.

Vizio E3D320VX 3D HDTV Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 22,000.00

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Sennheiser HD 800 Audio Headphones Preview: Price, Features and Specs

Sennheiser HD 800 Audio Headphones Preview: Price, Features and Specs - Since time immemorial, headphones have been part of an audiophile’s arsenal of audio weapons in addition to high-end amplifiers, receivers and players. And if you are true-blue audiophile at heart, you only have several choices when it comes to headphone brands for your weapon of choice.

Some of the more recognizable ones are Bose, Grado, Koss, and Sennheiser among others. A word of caution though – when you go for the flagship models of these marquees, be prepared to experience a significant dent on your budget.

Today, we will talk about the Sennheiser HD 800, which is the highest of the high-end in the German manufacturer’s line of quality headphones. An interesting side not that I feel should be discussed though is that model changes in the flagship range of Sennheiser comes once in a blue moon, figuratively and literally.

The HD 650, the predecessor of the HD 800, which is still available up to now, came out in 2003 and the HD 600, the predecessor of the Sennheiser HD 650 came out 10 years ago. This means that so much quality is crammed into these flagship headphones that they only need to be changed every 5 years or so, even more.

Going back to the HD 800, these headphones are the crème de la crème in the lineup of Sennheiser. What then can we expect from these headphones? How good is the quality of sound being driven out by its speakers? What about the build quality? Most importantly, what price range are we looking at to take one of these babies home?

Read on to find out more details about the Sennheiser HD 800 and get the answers to the questions above.

Design and construction

Upon seeing the HD 800 for the first time, the first thing you will notice is its striking design. This design is what distinguishes and sets it apart from the competition. Even I was dumbfounded when I first laid my eyes on the headphones. If there is a love at first sight for headphones, then I clearly am in love.

Before we get too carried away with how good the HD 800 looks, let me just inform you that the design of this pair is actually used to mask the technological innovations at work behind the scenes. For example, the big ear cups of the HD 800 were designed in that way so that the drivers can be placed a bit in front of the listener’s ears.

In addition to that, the use of a combination of metal, plastic and microfiber on the ear cups of the HD 800 all contribute to a luxurious feel when they are worn. The weight is perfectly distributed on the head of the user the pressure from the snug fit of the ear pads are just about right, not too loose, not too tight either.

The HD 800 makes use of a Y-cable that is 10 feet and length and is cloth-covered. The copper wiring of the cable is oxygen-free and silver-plated and is reinforced with Kevlar material for added durability.

The sound and the fury

The common misconception about headphones it that the great ones have to have more – more detail, more bass, and things like that. Clearly, that would not cut it for the discerning audiophile. What we are looking for in a truly high-end headphone like the HD 800 is a seeming balance among all the elements at play.

This is where the HD 800 is very good at. Using these headphones give you the sensation of being engulfed in the musical experience. In fact, when you come to think of it, the HD 800 sounds more like high-end speakers than the headphones that they are. Due to the placement of the drivers, the sound tends get blasted from the front and not from the sides.

Bass notes are clearly there and pack the punch that just makes you want to groove. No distortion becomes apparent either even when you crank the volume to the highest. It is very defined had has the impact that will make a basshead close his eyes and fell the thumping.

The midrange on the other hand is exceptional and is presented cleanly. The treble on the other hand is full of detail without being very bright. However, the HD 800 takes all these components and meshes them one another in an almost ethereal kind of way that just gives you that connection to the music you listen to. That’s how good the sound quality is.

The bottom line

Having said all that, it is pretty obvious that the Sennheiser HD 800 is without a doubt a force to reckon with when getting your self a high-end headphone. It has great looks couple with even greater sound coming from its speakers.

The price tag however at $1499 is also great and would tend to make you think twice before pulling out your wallet. Should money be not an object then obviously, the Sennheiser HD 800 is the best out there.

Sennheiser HD 800 Audio Headphones Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 70,000.00

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Kia Mohave Price (as of August 2011)

Kia Mohave Price: The Mohave (known as Borrego in the US) is a luxury sport utility vehicle (SUV) officially manufactured by Kia Motors since 2008. Its US name Borrego (means bighorned sheep) was taken from the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in California.

The Kia Mohave was first unleashed at the North American International Auto Show in 2005 as a concept car. Then, it was later released for consumers due to popular demand. The Kia Mohave utilizes body-on-frame construction, with available adjustable air-suspension, hill-descent control and a high- and low-range gearbox. It is equipped with either the 3.0 L VGT diesel V6, second-generation Lambda II 3.8 L V6 producing 276 horsepower or the recently developed 4.6 L V8 Hyundai Tau engine. The Mohave is slightly bigger than the popular Kia Sorento.


Kia Mohave (3.0L 4x4 EX AT) Price in the Philippines (as of August 2011): Php 3,200,000.00

For its overall excellent value, along with impressive power and towing capacity, interior space, visibility, fuel economy and extensive list of standard features, the Kia Mohave has already won several awards including the Edmunds.com Consumers Top Rated Vehicle awards for the SUV $25,000-$35,000 category.

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Dell Latitude XT3 Convertible Laptop Computer Price, Features and Expectations

Dell Latitude XT3 Convertible Laptop Computer Price, Features and Expectations: It has been said that the tablet computer market got revolutionized when the first iteration of the iPad from Apple got released in the early parts of 2010. And indeed, broke open it did because the initial release of the iPad was followed by almost every manufacturer jumping the bandwagon and coming up with their own versions of the tablet device.

Now, scarcely almost a year and a half later, the tablet device is becoming more popular than ever and the tablet itself has become as ubiquitous as the iPhone. This seeming development however was a detriment to the well being of the original tablet device, the convertible tablet laptop.

For those not familiar with the concept, a convertible tablet laptop is almost similar to a conventional laptop except its screen folds flat over the laptop’s keyboard after swiveling 180 degrees. Sad to say, the convertible laptop lost its appeal since the new wave of tablets and slates flooded the market.

In addition to that, older convertible laptops still in circulation haven’t been updated yet and there is only a handful of players left to keep this category breathing. Dell, with its moderate success in the tablet field and the rather lukewarm reception of the public to its Streak 7 tablet, instead came out with the Dell Latitude XT3 to compete with the remaining players in the convertible tablet laptop market.

What then can we expect from this new baby from Dell? How will it hold up against the barrage of tablets and slates flooding the market? What kind of components does it pack under its hood? What kind of price tag are we supposed to expect? Read on to get a little more acquainted with the Dell Latitude XT3.

Design and construction

Though the Latitude XT3 packs a somewhat industrial appeal, it looks very nice in a sort of masculine way. It measures 323 x 30.9 x 221.7 mm and is said to tip the scales at 4.46 pounds with its 6-cell power pack.

Dell has foregone the all-black finish associated with the XT2, the predecessor of the Latitude XT3, and instead gave the laptop a metallic design done in three tones with an orange trim to serve as an accent piece.

In keeping with its industrial design, the Latitude XT3 lacks the rounded edges found in conventional laptops and is rather boxy. It sort of reminds you of the box-type cars of the mid-80s when you look at its shape.

In addition to that, the industrial design also gives off the impression that the Latitude XT3 has a solid build quality. And indeed it does. Press on any part of the laptop and no creaks or groans of complaint emanate from it. In short, it is as solid as it can get.

Under the hood

The components under the hood of the Latitude XT3 mean business. Or raw power. Or both. It packs a Sandy Bridge Intel Core i7-2620M processor working in conjunction with 8GB of DDR3 RAM. The processor-RAM combination just reeks of pure power and the only challenge that it will ever face is looking for activities that would challenge it.

The processor, which boasts of a 2.7-GHz clock speed, sits on an Intel QM67 chipset and though it has no dedicated GPU, the integrated Intel HD Graphics 3000 is more than capable to handle the graphics chores. As for storage, prospective buyers have the option to choose between 256 GB of Solid State Drive or 320 GB of 7200RPM hard drive.

The display and other features

Same as for storage space, prospective buyers also have options when it comes to the display of the Latitude XT3. They can either select the 13.3-inch daylight viewable wide viewing angle LED display with a resolution of 1366 x 768 or the 13.3-inch reduced glare LED display with the same wide viewing angles and resolution. Both types of displays offer support for pen and touch for added functionality.

As for its input devices, Dell passed up on the chiclet-style keys for the keyboard of the Latitude XT3 and instead gave it the regular-type keys that still offer decent tactile feedback. The saving grace here is the wrist rest of the Latitude XT3 that is made from soft-touch materials.

Its trackpad on the other had is somewhat cramped albeit very smooth and supports multi-touch gestures. The buttons of the trackpad are also fashioned out of the same soft touch material are very easy to press but still manages to provide a firm click. Should you get tired of scrolling on the trackpad, a rubber pointing stick found in between the keys can be used as a substitute.

As with other older convertible tablet laptops, the display of the Latitude XT3 is a touchscreen panel with support for pen and touch. The retail package of the Latitude XT3 comes with a stylus that comes in handy if you need precision pointing but uses N-trig digitizer technology so the digitizer pen is a bit bulkier and heavier because it needs a battery for its operation.

The bottom line

If you got an extra $1789 in the bank, then you can go for the base model of the Dell Latitude XT3. But the seeming lack of information about its battery life ought to give you pause before pulling out your wallet and handing over the dinero.

Yes, the Latitude XT3 looks good in a brusque way and has impressive specs to boot but without more tests done in the real world to ascertain the capabilities of this tablet. After all, it does look good but only in paper.

Dell Latitude XT3 Convertible Laptop Computer Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 85,000.00

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Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3 Digital Camera Price, Features and Other Details

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3 Digital Camera Price, Features and Other Details: DSLRs may be the point of interest not only by the professionals and the hobbyists and enthusiasts but by almost everybody so it is no surprise that almost virtually everywhere, a DSLR-toting person will one way or the other cross your path.

This is in turn due to the fact that camera manufacturers took advantage of the seeming interest of the people to these bulky shooters and came up with entry-level models that are very affordable. This led to the masses taking advantage of the low prices of these entry levels so the result is pretty much what we have now.

With Canon and Nikon as the established bad boys of the DSLR market, it was rather difficult for other established camera manufacturers to break into this segment of the market. In the hopes of taking down the domination of the DSLR, Panasonic and Olympus collaborated with each other and came up with the Micro Four Thirds line of shooters.

The MFT, as it is commonly referred to, can almost rival the image quality turned out by DSLRs. These MFTs, like their DSLR counterparts, also give the user creative control over the images he wants to snap. All of these and more can be done by the MFTs with one exception: they do so by packing everything in a body that almost approximates a compact point and shoot’s smallish size.

One such example is the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3. Said to be the smallest Micro Four Thirds shooter since its release, the company is thereby making its intentions known that it would sit idly by as the DSLRs get all the attention from prospective buyers.

What then does the Lumix DMC-GF3 bring to the table? Will it be able to be at par with the DSLRs? Or would it just fade into oblivion? Read on as we get more intimate with the Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3.

Design and construction

The Lumix DMC-GF3 is the successor to the Lumix DMC-GF2 and it measures 107.7 x 67.1 x 32.5 mm, thereby making it smaller than the predecessor. The body of the Lumix DMC-GF3 tips the scales at 222 grams without the battery and lens attached to it and is available in white, black or red.

The Lumix DMC-GF3 should not be confused with the G3 which also happens to be a Micro Four Thirds shooter albeit packing a DSLR-styled body. Along these lines, the Lumix DMC-GF3 may look like an old compact point and shoot but it performs rather well and can give some cheapo DSLRs a serious run for their dinero.

Most of its design changes however are cosmetic. The controls found on the top edge of the Lumix DMC-GF3 are now closely packed together for easier access and the shooter now packs a pop-up flash instead of the flash hot-shoe found in its predecessor.

The right front panel of the Lumix DMC-GF3 has a slightly raised area and is somewhat curved and this protrusion acts as the grip of the shooter. With this pseudo-grip, the camera can be held with three fingers while your forefinger is always poised and ready to press on the camera shutter button.

The features

The Lumix DMC-GF3 boasts of a MOS sensor with an effective resolution of 12.1 megapixels and has the interchangeable lens feature thereby making it more like a DSLR in concept. With this capability, a user can easily switch from lens to lens depending on what is needed and advised for a particular shooting situation. This is what I call flexibility at its finest.

In addition to being able to capture stills of exceptional image quality, the Lumix DMC-GF3 also has a video mode that turns the shooter to a digital camcorder. This is something of a bragging right for the Lumix DMC-GF3 because it can record video clips at Full 1080i HD at 60 / 50 frames per second. Tone it down to 720p and you still get 1280 x 720 clips at 60 frames per second. All clips are turned out in AVCHD (MPEG-4/H.264) format.

Aside from the bells and whistles that will make any pro drool, the Lumix DMC-GF3 also has features that are commonly found in compact point and shoots. This includes a My Color mode that gives a user control over the rendition of colors in an image.

Aside from that, the shooter also has Intelligent Auto Plus feature that automatically compensates and adjusts for exposure to ensure the quality of captured images. It also features autofocus tracking and digital red eye removal among others.

The performance

The boot to shoot time of the Lumix DMC-GF3 is very impressive at an approximate of 0.5 seconds. In addition to that, saving a JPEG image only takes a second so you can continue snapping stills while the shooter saves all the images. Since RAW files are a bit heavier, the Lumix DMC-GF3 takes about 4 seconds to save them. This however does not incapacitate the camera in any way and you still can capture additional images or access the menu while the shooter is doing its thing.

The bottom line

The Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3 is indeed a very capable shooter. It packs everything that a fastidious enthusiast can ask for in a relatively smallish form factor that makes it easier for this shooter to be taken everywhere you go. Add to the fact that its image quality and performance is almost DSLR-like and you get one attractive shooter in the Lumix DMC-GF3.

The price tag of $699.99 in the US of A however will make a prospective buyer think twice before taking this baby home. At that price point, you add a couple of hundreds and you go home with a full DSLR shooter which obviously is the weapon of choice in today’s world.

Panasonic Lumix DMC-GF3 Digital Camera Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 33,000.00

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JBL On Air Wireless AirPlay Audio Speaker Price, Features and Other Info

JBL On Air Wireless AirPlay Audio Speaker Price, Features and Other Info: With the seeming popularity and ubiquity of the iPod and by extension the iPhone, it came as a no surprise that manufacturers eventually came up with speaker systems and docks designed specifically for these iOS devices.

In fact, since the release of the first dock a couple of years back, the market got flooded with these products that choosing one for yourself has become a rather cumbersome task. Not only are there many manufacturers offering these docks but they also come in different sizes and shapes, not to mention the varying sound quality they drive out.

You also have to contend with the price tags because the amount of money you have to shell out is as varied as the docks themselves. If there is however one similarity among these docks is that most of them almost look the same especially when they are already sitting side by side on the shelves.

Because of this, manufacturers resorted to coming up with out of this world designs for their respective products to stand out. One such example is JBL’s On Air Wireless AirPlay speaker dock. Should you get to see one of these babies, I’m telling you they really stand out from the pack.

What then is so different with the On Air Wireless AirPlay? What kind of design aesthetics does it bring to the table? What about the sound quality? How hefty is the price tag attached to it? Read on, as we get more intimate with the JBL On Air Wireless AirPlay.

Design and construction

At first glance, the On Air Wireless AirPlay dock almost looks like a spaceship from Star Trek. Some might say though that it almost resembles Darth Vader’s scary helmet. However you see it though, it surely is different from the rest of the docks currently available in the market.

The On Air Wireless AirPlay measures 9.4 x 11 x 7.8 inches and features a sort of circular band wherein the speakers are housed inside a surface of metallic grille. With the way the On Air Wireless AirPlay is designed and by consequence, the placement of its speakers, the sound or noise or music from your iPod or iPhone is blasted outward and upward.

The dock area on the other hand can be found inside the circular band sitting on a horizontal ledge. Right below the ledge is an LCD screen that displays album artwork and the menu settings. Behind the dock sits an Aux input that features a 3.5 mm jack while the FM antenna, USB port and the connector for the AC adapter are all found on its back panel.

Right smack in the middle of the circular band sits a largish Snooze button and the whole package contains a small remote that controls all the functions of the dock. You can also make use of the remote to press snooze or turn off the alarm. Very nifty, eh?

The features

Aside from its very unorthodox design, the On Air Wireless AirPlay is also packed with features. For example, aside from being a dock for your iPod or iPhone, the dock also features an FM radio that can be configured to store up to 10 preset stations. In addition to that, configuring and setting up of the FM radio is very easy though no AM band is included here.

Aside from that, the On Air Wireless AirPlay also has an integrated clock with two alarms. Same with the FM radio, the clock and its alarms are very easy to configure and as mentioned earlier, the remote can be used to press snooze or deactivate the alarm.

But the biggest draw for the On Air Wireless AirPlay would be its wireless music streaming capabilities by making use of Apple’s AirPlay technology. This means that the On Air Wireless AirPlay can connect to your home’s Wi-Fi network and stream music from any iOS device connected to the same network. Basically, you just need to tap AirPlay on your device and the music then gets blasted out of the speakers of the On Air Wireless AirPlay. Very nice indeed.

The sound and the fury

JBL has been known to turn out speaker systems that boast of exceptional sound quality and the On Air Wireless AirPlay is not an exception to this. Whether your music is coming from your docked device or is being streamed wirelessly, the sound quality is almost indistinguishable. There are a couple of snags though when streaming wirelessly.

For example, there is a tendency for the music to occasionally stall or drop. There is also the issue of less than ideal sound quality being blasted from the speakers of the On Air Wireless AirPlay especially for those with discerning ears such as audiophiles. It seems that the speakers of this dock have a hard time handling bass notes especially at high volumes where these notes tend to get somewhat distorted. The treble and the mids on the other hand are well presented and very clean. It is just the bass that causes some mishaps.

The bottom line

At the end of the day, it is really nice to have the capability to stream music wirelessly on to your speaker dock as your beloved iOS device needs not leave your hands to be docked onto the system. However, at its list price of $349.95, the JBL On Air Wireless AirPlay rather falls short of the expectations from a dock with this kind of price tag and prospective buyers are well advised to consider other alternatives.

JBL On Air Wireless AirPlay Audio Speaker Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 16,000.00

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Lenovo ThinkCentre M71z Desktop Computer Preview: Price, Features and Specs

Lenovo ThinkCentre M71z Desktop Computer Preview: Price, Features and Specs - In today’s world of mobile computing where people opt for the notebook computer that they can lug around town for purposes of getting a lot of work done even when on the road, a big chunk of the computer-manufacturing business still comes from the trusty desktop computer.

That being said, government institutions, schools and businesses require desktops that cost less than your typical notebook computer and are still able to turn out exceptional computing performance. And despite the fact that Lenovo is one of the leading manufacturers of notebook computers, it is also the weapon of choice of the institutions mentioned above when it comes to reliable computers.

And with the recent trend wherein desktops, pretty much like laptops, are getting smaller overtime, the All-In-One computers are becoming the rage nowadays. For those not in the know, an all-in-one computer basically gets rid of the bulky tower CPU and integrates everything in its monitor thereby consuming less space.

This category is where Lenovo hopes to make a killing by announcing the Lenovo ThinkCentre M71z all-in-one computer. What can we expect from this new offering from the manufacturing giant? What kind of components can we expect hiding behind its display? What kind of pricing scheme comes with the ThinkCentre M71z AIO? Would it be able to take care of the demands of the institutions mentioned above? Read on to get an idea of what stuff the Lenovo ThinkCentre M71z AIO is made of.

Design and construction

Being an all-in-one computer, the measurements that matter are those of the display and unfortunately, no official dimensions have been released yet. The display of the ThinkCentre M71z AIO though is a 20-inch screen with all the important components hiding behind it.

However, judging from the leaked images of the ThinkCentre M71z AIO, the whole display unit of the device is not that bulky thereby making its designers earn a big pat on the back by being able to squeeze all components behind the display.

If I were to hazard a guess, I’d say the depth measurement of the display unit of the ThinkCentre M71z AIO is not more than 2 inches thereby giving it a slim profile. It has a no-frills kind of attitude when it comes to the design aesthetics with a matte-black finish covering the entire unit thereby giving it a nondescript look. This also is an advantage because it keeps the display unit free from unsightly smudges and fingerprints.

Behind the display

All the components that power up the operation of the ThinkCentre M71z AIO are right behind its display and they are impressive to say the least. This AIO packs a second generation Sandy Bridge Intel Core i5 processor that works in conjunction with 8GB of DDR3 RAM. I’d say that the processor and RAM combination of the ThinkCentre M71z AIO is more than capable enough, don’t you think?

No news yet if the ThinkCentre M71z AIO will have a dedicated GPU to assist in graphical duties but users has a choice between a 1TB hard disk drive and a 160GB Solid State Drive. Should a user opt for the Solid State Drive, he would then be treated to an ultrafast start up of less than 15 seconds with the ThinkCentre M71z AIO making use of RapidBoot technology.

The display and its feature set

As mentioned earlier, the ThinkCentre M71z AIO will pack a 20-inch display that gives a user a rather large screen real estate to work on. With the technological advances in display panels, it is expected that the display of the ThinkCentre M71z AIO will be capable of bright, sharp and vivid colors with exceptional viewing angles.

In terms of input devices, the ThinkCentre M71z AIO comes with a wireless keyboard and mouse. The keyboard is sure to have a very good tactile feedback to it because that is one area where Lenovo cannot be beaten. In short, it would be a joy to touch type on its keyboard. The mouse on the other hand is your typical computer mouse but knowing Lenovo, precision and accuracy is a given here. In addition to that, both the keyboard and the mouse are spill-proof.

In terms of I/O ports, there is no shortage with the ThinkCentre M71z AIO. It boasts of 6 USB 2.0 ports, your typical RJ-45 port for a wired connection, and a display port to attach another monitor should the screen real estate prove insufficient. Tucked away behind the display is its DVD burner and there are options to add a 2.0-megapixel webcam for video calls and upgrade the display to a touchscreen panel.

The bottom line

Expected to hit the shelves this October, the Lenovo ThinkCentre M71z AIO is expected to fetch a price of $549 for the base model once it hits the shelves. With the features crammed into the ThinkCentre M71z AIO, it is rather ingenious the way Lenovo was able to offer it at such a very low price which in turn makes this AIO all the more attractive.

Thrown in the reliability and performance that Lenovo has come to be known the world over and you got a winner with the Lenovo ThinkCentre M71z AIO.

Lenovo ThinkCentre M71z Desktop Computer Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 26,000.00 (Starting Price)

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Nokia C2-03 Price in the Philippines, Features and Other Details

Nokia C2-03 Price in the Philippines, Features and Other Details: With the smartphone competition heating all the more with each passing day and smartphone manufacturers such as Apple, Samsung, HTC, Motorola, LG and the like dividing the pie amongst themselves while coming up with handset after handset that seems better than the last one, it is a foregone conclusion that the smartphone revolution is here to stay.

The smartphone as it is now have become an indispensable weapon of choice for the mobile warrior to the detriment of feature phones which have been the rage just a couple of years back. The smartphone revolution also may have become the bread and butter of the above-mentioned manufacturers but this came at the behest of Nokia which was once upon a time the biggest mobile phone manufacturer in the whole world.

Though Nokia was able to come up with its own line of smartphones which by themselves are pretty impressive, they still pale in comparison when compared to the smartphones from Apple, Samsung and HTC. Thus, the Finnish company was relegated to second-rate status and had to take the backseat for now.

To add insult to injury, the company had no choice but to come up with mere feature phones while their R&D department is hard at work in coming up with a Nokia smartphone that can be at par with the current superphones lining up the shelves.

This is not a bad thing though since Nokia has been the acclaimed experts when it comes to feature phones. And with the release of the Nokia C2-03, the Finnish company is once again at its finest element. Read on to get more acquainted with the Nokia C2-03, Nokia’s latest offering while it is trying to reclaim its lost glory.

Design and construction

The C2-03 is your typical Nokia candy bar feature phone albeit with a twist. It is slider phone with a touchscreen display and your typical number pad. In addition to that, being the feature phone that it is, the C2-03 also has dual-SIM capabilities for people who can’t live with just one SIM card.

The C2-03 measures 103 x 51.4 x 17 mm and tips the scales at 118 grams. It might be a bit chunky if you take a closer look at its dimensions but that owes to the fact that this is a slider phone after all. Its size though makes it very pocketable without being obtrusive because it isn’t very hefty at its weight.

Though Nokia may not be as hot as say for example Samsung in the creation of smartphones, we can’t take away the fact that the company came to be known in the past for the solid build quality of the handsets that roll off its assembly line and the C2-03 is no exception to this. We expect that this handset will have Nokia’s pedigree in constructing nice handsets and the slider mechanism of the C2-03 is expected to have that tightness to it.

The display and other features

Since the C2-03 is just a “mere mortal”, it is unfair if we are to look for a speedy processor, a dedicated GPU or very generous storage space. The fact is, it doesn’t have any of those. What it lacks in impressive specs under its hood, it makes up for by packing features that make you life a whole lot easier.

Take the display of the C2-03 for example. It may only be a 2.6-inch TFT resistive touchscreen with a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels and a laughable 56K colors but it supports handwriting recognition. It may not have a front-facing camera but its rear-facing camera is capable enough with its 2-megapixel sensor capable of snapping stills of up to 1600 x 1200 pixels. It can even be used as a camcorder in recording QCIF video clips at 15 frames per second.

The storage space of the C2-03 may only be a miserly 10 MB of internal memory but it has a microSD card slot that supports up to 32GB cards for instant memory expansion. In addition to that, the retail package of the C2-03 already comes with an included 2GB microSD media card.

The crowning glory of the C2-03 though is its Dual-SIM capability. What’s nice about this feature of the C2-03 is that you need not turn your phone off and take its battery out just to switch SIM cards. The C2-03 has an Easy Swap feature that lets you simply open the second SIM slot found on the side of the handset and insert your SIM of choice. The best part? It doesn’t require rebooting of the handset. It is as easy as open, insert and use.

If you are the type of person that switches between several (hint: more than two) SIM cards, the C2-03 can also remember the configurations of as much as five varying SIM cards. Once you have configured and personalized the SIM cards that you make use of, there’s no need of configuring them again if you happen to use them.

Not only that, the C2-03 may just be a feature phone but it already supports Nokia Maps and even lets you search for locations and plan route navigations even when offline thereby costing you zilch when using this feature.

The bottom line

The Nokia C2-03 may not be a smartphone but it has features that make it very attractive indeed. The pricing scheme is definitely lower and if you are looking for a very capable back-up phone, make it the C2-03. It is as simple as that.

Nokia C2-03 Price in the Philippines: Approximately Php 4,500.00

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