Publication History For : Paul Smart

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Epson L-500V Digital Camera

Published in Cameras on 31 Jan 2005
The quality of a digital camera is not the mega pixels it can produce although they obviously help, it is done to the quality of the lens (CCD) and the compression methods used.

HP 2550l Colour Laser

Published in Laptops/PCs/Apple on 30 Jan 2005
Colour lasers used to be very expensive, now they can cost less than some not that complex mono lasers. The HP 2550 is certainly an entry level product.

Kensington Notebook Station USB 60109

Published in Misc on 28 Jan 2005
This seems like a good idea, it’s a simple design, with a few ‘bells’ added, the only problem as with all good ideas, why did someone not think of it sooner, or maybe it’s not such a good idea?

Argosy ‘Photo Drive’

Published in Laptops/PCs/Apple on 26 Jan 2005
120GB of external storage in a slim vertical case that also has two USB2 ports and even a couple of card drives built in.

Samsung SM 730MW

Published in Entertainment on 24 Jan 2005
Reviewing this so soon after the excellent Philips offering published 17/1/05 gave me more than a few problems. Firstly is it a monitor/TV or a TV/monitor, Samsung list it as a Business unit.
Firstly the dimensions and from these figures some will immediately see my problem 52x34x15cm the latter figure is the depth of the base the actual panel is no more than 5cm deep. A standard 17inch monitor has a screen of 32x27cm this unit from Samsung 37x22cm. Both would give the notional measurement of 17inches when measured diagonally, but the screen makeup and shape is very different.   So this leads me to the conclusion that this is a TV/monitor.

Sitecom USB2 Card Reader

Published in Laptops/PCs/Apple on 22 Jan 2005
This unit will read and write 17 different card types, yes I said 17 and I must admit I did not even know there were 17 different card types.

HP Laserjet 1160

Published in Laptops/PCs/Apple on 21 Jan 2005
Laserjets first arrived over twenty years ago, my first was a ‘2P’ with the P standing for personal. It’s strange how you remember your first laser printer.
A flat panels display is always the measurement stated, a monitor is normally at least an inch less than stated, also a flat panel will alway take up far less space.

Improve your Memory?

Published in Entertainment on 16 Jan 2005
For most of us once school or university are finished then exams seem to matter less. However there is a theory that ‘use it or lose it’ could well apply.
The title only covers part of what this unit can do, it can also record and play .wav files as well as having an FM radio, the reviewed version is less than £30 post free.
I have long used a multi CD player, my unit started playing up and the warranty was long past. I looked in shops and online multi CD units are no longer that common.

HP Laserjet 1320nw

Published in Laptops/PCs/Apple on 7 Jan 2005
The HP Laser first appeared over 20 years ago, how those who purchased an early offering would have loved what is inside this small box.

LP Recorder and LP Ripper

Published in Entertainment on 5 Jan 2005
Both the programs work not only with LP’s but also with Cassette Tapes and should you have them also with reel to reel tapes.
We all like a bargain especially at this time of year and this one sounded so good I checked the price twice and they even offer free delivery.

Philips HDD070 MP3 Player

Published in Entertainment on 1 Jan 2005
There are lots of alternatives to the iPod and some are even white! The Philips GoGear offering is 2GB and also has an FM radio.

Two Cordless Headsets

Published in Wireless on 30 Dec 2004
Headsets normally have one main problem you are linked to the computer or phone by them and therefore you are somewhat stuck. There are solutions, here are just two.

Tungsten T5 a different PDA

Published in Mobile Tech on 28 Dec 2004
I have looked at numerous PDA’s especially those from Palm, here is something that is more than a little different.
With the variety of card types on the market the easiest way is to have a card reader that will read all the range of card types.
This is the first – that I know of anyway – truly portable DAB radio. Small in size runs on 3xAA batteries and also comes with mains adapter.
I have only had this a few days but thinking about the time of year it would make the ideal present for anyone keen on DAB radio so here are my thoughts after just a fews days use. Dimensions are 11x6x2cm and although the case is anodised aluminium it weights less than 200grams with batteries inserted.

Lexmark 6250 All-In-One

Published in Laptops/PCs/Apple on 14 Dec 2004
An All-In-One has the big advantage of having a printer, scanner and copy machine taking up little more space than a printer alone.
It is 44x34x18cm, the last measurement the height is increased by another 13cm when there is paper in the vertical input tray at the rear of the unit. The scanner opens landscape so any object can be slid in easily without opening the lid to 90 degrees. The weight of the unit is 4.8kilos.   Paper is placed face up in the tray and delivered face up from the front base of the unit. In printing this is a four and a six ink offering.

VCOM Final Bid

Published in Entertainment on 11 Dec 2004
The aim in any auction is to secure the item for the lowest price, with online auctions you have a distinct disadvantage you never know who is bidding against you.

HP PSC 2355

Published in Laptops/PCs/Apple on 3 Dec 2004
It’s a printer, a scanner and a copier, more commonly called an All In One or a Multi Function unit. This is an inkjet offering that performs all the tasks above and best of all takes up little space.

Scrabble from Focus

Published in Entertainment on 30 Nov 2004
This is not by any means new, in fact I first played it as a child and I don’t think it was that new then. It first came out on a PC some years ago, this version was recently released by Focus in their £9.99 range.
It makes sense to have a range of Security products for the PC from one company. Perhaps even better to have them in a single integrated package.

Targus Rodents

Published in Laptops/PCs/Apple on 25 Nov 2004
Targus are a company more famous for there bags for notebooks but they also do some other items among these are rodents, here I am looking at two small offerings.

Two Adobe Essentials

Published in Laptops/PCs/Apple on 23 Nov 2004
What is £69.95 + £69.95 the answer in this case is £99.95, not bad maths but the price for the two products purchased separately against being acquired in the same box.
The two products are Adobe Photoshop Elements v3 and Adobe Premiere Elements. Adobe are one of the few companies that still manage to maintain a reasonable price for there software with the likely street price for a full copy of either being around £500. Of course the 'Essential' units do only a proportion of what can be achieved with the full product.

PDA Games from Landware

Published in Mobile Tech on 22 Nov 2004
PDA games are big business and I see that Landware also have offerings for Smartphones. Here I am putting two games for Palm systems through their paces.

Listening Pleasure

Published in Entertainment on 20 Nov 2004
Naim are a name best known for high quality audio equipment. They do however also have a CD label and a unique way of producing called True Stereo.

Navigate with a Palm

Published in Mobile Tech on 19 Nov 2004
There are many dedicated in car navigation systems. Now there are solutions for Pocket PC and Palm. Here is one involving three companies – in a single box – and a further one that has exclusive rights to sell it.

Elan DAB Radio

Published in Wireless on 17 Nov 2004
Not that long ago a DAB radio was a luxury, and probably also on a PCI card. Pure Digital are probably the biggest name in DAB today and they have a range that includes the Elan.