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Newstips Electronic Editorial Bulletin Issue # 2010-12c
News for those just now starting to shop
In this issue:
Antec at CES: intros galore... Now Borders too offers Franklin
AnyBook... Icy weather heightens need for Iconosys texting
blockers... Kent at Showstoppers: maybe more than Boogie Board...
Tiffen at CES: Steadicam Smoothee, new tripod & eye candy... New
Zoom 9010 cures that iPad compromise... Special Report: Dial-up
as broadband backup... Reviews: Casio Prizm graphing calculator,
PupLight, The Bee Man candles, Zippo mini multipurpose lighter,
ECS TIGT-I2 motherboard... plus our commentary on What's next for
computers
Antec at CES: intros galore
CES is the first big show for Antec Rockus, first in their
SoundScience product line; you may be able to get a VIP sneak at
their new living room systems (separates & sound bar) if you set
it up now - plus an AV cooler & bias lighting. They'll also have
5 new enclosures, 3 new cooling solutions (including one you
don't have to be a geek to love) & more in South Hall, ground
level 21802. Ask Veronica to set you up for some personal time.
Contact: Veronica Feldmeier, Antec Inc. (Fremont, CA)
510-770-2150 vfeldmeier@antec.com http://antec.com
Now Borders too offers Franklin AnyBook
The new Franklin AnyBook ($60 DRP4000 holds 60 hours) is now
available from Borders as well as Barnes & Noble. Anybody with
kids or grandkids has to love this cool way to read them a story
(any story) page by page when you can't be there. Ask Aline.
Contact: Aline Boutin, Franklin Electronic Publishers
(Burlington, NJ) 609-386-2500x4434 aline_boutin@franklin.com
http://franklin.com
Icy weather heightens need for Iconosys texting blockers
Texting as a source of distracted driving is bad enough when the
roads are normal, but in this often hostile winter weather,
dodging distractions is more important than ever. Ask Wayne about
the growing family of Iconosys products that help accomplish that
on your own favorite handsets. Contact: Wayne Irving II, Iconosys
Inc. (Laguna Hills, CA) 949-335-5350 wi@iconosys.com
http://iconosys.com
Kent at Showstoppers: maybe more than Boogie Board
Kent Displays will showcase their Boogie Board & its accessories
at Showstoppers (if you want one to review, ask now & skip
lugging it home), but that may not be all. Several products are
under discussion for later-2011 intros & there just may be a
sneak peek or two. Ask Kevin. Contact: Kevin Oswald, Kent
Displays (Kent, OH) 330-673-8784x161 koswald@kentdisplays.com
http://KentDisplays.com
Tiffen at CES: Steadicam Smoothee, new gear & eye candy
There will be one lady in the Tiffen booth you may go gaga over &
another who comes from a long line of models & bunnies, both
available to help you practice your photographic skills. The
business reason for coming: the debut of the new little Steadicam
Smoothee for making iPhone video look like the big guys plus the
new Domke Ruggedwear series & the new Davis & Sanford Traverse
tripod. Contact: Hilary Araujo, Tiffen Company (Hauppauge, NY)
631-609-3216 haraujo@tiffen.com http:/.tiffen.com
New Zoom 9010 cures that iPad compromise
A lot of people love the iPad for its big working area, but big
turns smaller every time you need its keyboard. Zoom to the
rescue with the rechargeable Zoom 9010 Bluetooth Keyboard for
iPad O/S 4x (street $37). See Zoom at LVCC South upper hall or
drop Terry a line & he'll get you a 9010 to review before you go.
Contact: Terry Manning, Zoom Telephonics Inc. (Boston, MA)
617-753-0087 terrym@zoom.com http://zoom.com
Special Report: Dial-up as broadband backup
For folks who connect to the net over cable or fiber modems,
invulnerability is not part of the package; the blizzard belt,
for example, sees service drops that can run 1-3 days. Personal &
professional interests can both be thwarted for those suddenly
unplugged, but it's rare for such outages to also effect POTS
(analog) phone service. We asked several of the people in dial-up
what options they offer to people who can't get online to
download anything. NetZero (Juno is a sister op) has discs at
Kmart, Best Buy & Rent-A-Center that let a new user connect for
up to 10 hours for free, or unlimited connection time/usage at
just under $10/month. Some cable & DSL providers bundle up to 20
hours/month of EarthLink dial-up. Time Warner Cable recently
discontinued its own dial-up offering.
Special Report Bonus Review: Casio Prizm graphing calculator
Casio asked us to review their Prizm graphing calculator. One of
its more interesting functions, Picture Plot, involves a library
of photos (its display involves a lot of colors on a 216x384
display, though curve plots tend to look like Atari-era dot
plots) against which you can plot curves from which you can
derive formulas. The functionality overall seems interesting & up
to snuff for learning about the relationships between math &
geometries; it's certainly more convenient than the slide rules,
quadrille paper, rulers & drawing tools we had to use. There are
also a few curriculum & text publications available to support
its classroom use; that said, it would be unrealistic to expect
teachers or families to abandon the now-familiar & deeply
embedded category-leading TI 99-4. Bottom line: the Casio Prizm
graphing calculator is an able asset for learning secondary-level
math & science with unique features in its arsenal.
Special Report Bonus Review 2: PupLight
When dealing with safety issues on dark & cold winter nights, we
didn't want to leave pets out. (From a productivity perspective,
how much time would you lose trying to chase down your vagabond
hound in the dark?) We were tickled by the idea of the PupLight
collar-mounted "work light" for dogs. The well-crafted housing
holds 3 AAA cells & 3 really bright LEDs plus a switch; it's on a
swivel mount with a big ear for slotted for easy attachment to
the dog's collar (or the collar that comes with). The light won't
shine into the dog's eyes but will do surprisingly well at
lighting up what's in front of the dog for both of you. At our
house it got strong spousal approval & no canine complaints.
Bottom line: PupLight is a very clever little product.
Special Report Bonus Review 3: The Bee Man candles
When thinking about alternatives during utility failures, we
sometimes think about candles but never thought much about the
tech within the candle. Epiphany hit during dinner at the
in-laws'; we saw candles that didn't smoke & didn't drip, but
burned steadily with all the melting happening down the center,
along the wick path. We looked up the maker & learned that the
biggest difference is that those candles are made of bees' wax
instead of more commonplace paraffin. (We also learned that when
stranded in freezing weather in a dead car, burning a single
beeswax candle provides just enough heat to avoid hypothermia).
They sent us several samples for review. The burn rate seemed
slower than paraffin comparison candles, the illumination both
brighter & steadier. They produced a nice, steady heat; the
temperature of the flame was well over 200F but the air near the
candle was in the 70s. Bottom line: The Bee Man Candle Co.
candles provide a superior alternative to paraffin candles for
providing heat & illumination during power failures & are also
nicer companions at holiday dinner tables.
Special Report Bonus Review 4: Zippo mini multipurpose lighter
We were looking at ways to cope with winter utility failures so
we were intrigued by the Zippo Refillable Butane Mini
Multi-Purpose lighter. It's roughly the size & shape of a long
cigar with a small spring mechanism to turn on & ignite the flame
at the business end while providing a flame adjustment knob at
the close end. That spring mechanism won't move until you press a
button opposite it, which can help keep kids from working it. The
various finishes for it look nice enough to bring to the dinner
table as a candle lighter while the functionality also makes it
useful for relighting pilots, getting things started in the
fireplace & other household chores. Bottom line: the Zippo
Refillable Butane Mini Multi-Purpose lighter offers an elegant
way to reach a flame to where it's needed without your fingers
needing to be quite so close.
Special Report Bonus Review 5: ECS TIGT-I2 motherboard
The only significant difference between the ECS TIGT-I2
motherboard we got for review & the TIGT-I model we covered last
issue is that this one comes with a single-core (2-thread) D410
64-bit Atom processor. This is for our third Mini-ITX project, a
utility or "grandma" computer for running applications like
Office or browsing the Web. Bottom line: the ECS Elite Group
TIGT-I2 motherboard offers all the baseline functionality needed
for a small-footprint utility PC.
What's next for computers
It's interesting to watch public perceptions of PCs shifting.
Horsepower (cyber-testosterone) as a purchasing factor is
important to a rapidly declining small segment of the market.
Premium pricing for SSDs limits their appeal to a narrow niche.
Today's low-end processors & graphics handle most user needs
(browsing, Office documents, photo editing & music/video
playing). That keeps the segment growth momentum with notebooks;
netbooks got some attention but disappointed; suitcase-size
systems are seen as yesteryear gear; tablet & pad products are
what many people will try on their attempts to escape
disappointment (their compromises notwithstanding). This is an
adapt-or-die moment for the category; for people like us, that
makes it fun to watch. Contact: Martin Winston, Newstips
(Novelty, OH) 440-338-8400; marty@Newstips.com
http://Newstips.com
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Newstips Bulletin [Novelty, OH] +1.440.338.8400 http://Newstips.com
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