For behind the scenes pictures, stories and special contests, follow us on Facebook!
Subscribe:

Tag Archives: Hardware

Vodafone’s Webbox Keyboard Brings Easy Internet To Emerging Markets

By Andrew Liszewski on 07/19/11 • 2 Comments

Vodafone Webbox Keyboard (Image courtesy Vodafone)
By Andrew Liszewski

In an attempt to make getting online as easy and affordable as possible for people living in emerging markets, Vodafone has created the Webbox, which is an all-in-one, plug-and-play keyboard computer. As you can see it’s completely lacking a display of any kind, and that’s because it’s designed to plug into any television using its built-in A/V cable, kind of like a modern version of the Commodore 64. And by taking the display costs out of the equation, the Webbox, which is now available in India (it was originally launched in South Africa) only costs around 5800 Rupees, or about $130.

Internet access is provided by a Vodafone SIM card supporting 2.5G and EDGE data networks, and according to TheNextWeb, the cost of the device includes 12GB of data usage. (We’re assuming that’s not monthly.) In addition to browsing the web using the Opera mini browser which minimizes the data load, the Webbox also includes apps for checking email, text messaging, an FM radio, a photo album, a music player, calculator, calendar, games and even a basic text editor. A built-in microSD card slot presumably serves as the devices main storage, which is handy because whatever’s not stored in ‘the cloud’ can be easily shared, in theory, by swapping microSD cards with other Webboxes.

[ Vodafone Webbox ] VIA [ TheNextWeb ]

Seagate GoFlex 1.5TB Portable Drive Reviewed. Verdict: Perfect Match of Size and Speed

By Ian Chiu on 05/11/11 • 2 Comments

By Paul McCollum

Portable hard drives have been an indispensable tool for data backup on the go. Seagate has stayed in the forefront of this market for a number of years and the company has recently outfitted their drives with the GoFlex interchangeable interface adapter to make their drives future-proof. The latest 2.5″ GoFlex model has 1.5TB storage, and the choose-your-own connector drive now comes with the USB 3.0 adapter and includes a standard mini-USB 3.0 cable. Other connection kits including eSATA and Firewire 800 which can be purchased separately for maximum performance based on your available connections.

The 1.5TB FreeAgent GoFlex is vast and fast but gives up some of its svelte form to pack on the extra gigabytes. The extra bulk is only noticeable in comparison to other drives of the same ilk but under most circumstances, you will never notice the 0.25″ or so of extra thickness. Performance metrics put this drive well above USB 2.0 drives and significantly above previous USB 3.0 drives. Performance data and other details are all covered in an in depth review at Everything USB.

[ Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex 1.5TB Portable Drive Review @ Everything USB ]

iDVM Multimeter Wirelessly Connects To Your iOS Device

By Andrew Liszewski on 05/03/11 • 3 Comments

iDVM Wireless Multimeter (Images courtesy Redfish Instruments)
By Andrew Liszewski

If you’re keeping a tally, you can now add Voltmeter and Multimeter to the list of things that Apple’s iOS devices can do thanks to Redfish Instruments’ new iDVM digital multimeter. As you can see it’s completely lacking the traditional B&W LCD of your standard multimeter because it instead connects to an iOS device via an ad-hoc wireless network, using its large color screen to display measurements and readings. There’s also the added bonus of being able to keep a log of readings over time, and geo-tag where the measurements were taken making it handy for repairpersons who make service calls.

The accompanying iDVM app is available for free on the iTunes App Store right now if you’d like to take it for a spin, while the hardware is expected to shop on June 1 for $220.

[ iDVM Wireless Multimeter ]

Dr. Cool Router Cooler

By Andrew Liszewski on 04/26/11 • 1 Comment

Dr. Cool Router Cooler (Images courtesy Evercool)
By Andrew Liszewski

In the same way I’m mostly certain the beverage ‘Dr. Pepper’ has never spent a single day in medical school, I have my doubts this ‘Dr. Cool’ contraption from Evercool even has a single diploma hanging on its wall. But since the website does claim it “has extensive knowledge in the cooling field” I’m inclined to trust it when it comes to cooling my… laptop? Nope. Tower? I’m afraid not. This device is actually designed to cool your router. As far as benefits go the only real tactile advantage they give for using it is prolonging its life, but then you don’t have an excuse to constantly upgrade to a model with the latest and greatest wireless standards. So no thank you!

[ Dr. Cool ] VIA [ SlashGear ]

IDEAL 0101 Hard Drive Puncher

By Andrew Liszewski on 04/21/11 • 2 Comments

IDEAL 0101 Hard Drive Puncher (Image courtesy PC Pro)
By Andrew Liszewski

You probably already have a paper shredder at the office for disposing of confidential documents, but since those often choke on something as small as a forgotten paperclip, you need something with a little more oomph if you hope to do the same with discarded hard drives. Like the IDEAL 0101 HDP from Duplo, which promises to pierce an unneeded old drive with up to 3 tons of force. PC Pro recently had one dropped off for testing, and they were kind enough to shoot a short video of the slow, agonizing carnage.

I wouldn’t go as far as to say the drive is left completely unreadable, I’m sure there are some data recovery facilities who could probably still pull a file or two off of it. But for the average office the damage it does is adequately fatal. I particularly like the ominous green light that comes on, the terrible cracking sounds and the fact that the now deceased drive is unceremoniously dropped into a bin below, like Sweeney Todd’s victims. At almost $3,300 (£1,995) it’s not the cheapest way to destroy a drive, but at the least there’s some perverse satisfaction to watching it do its thing.

[ IDEAL 0101 HDP ] VIA [ PC Pro ]

Oscium iMSO-104 Turns Your iDevice Into An Oscilloscope

By Andrew Liszewski on 04/13/11 • Leave a comment!

Oscium iMSO-104 (Image courtesy Oscium)
By Andrew Liszewski

Instead of dropping $1,000+ on a dedicated oscilloscope, a new app/hardware combo from a company called Oscium promises to provide the same functionality via your iPod Touch/iPhone/iPad for just $297.99. Not exactly dirt cheap, but the solution appears to be far more affordable and flexible than a standalone unit.

In addition to the company’s free iMSO app, which you can download and try out for free before buying, the iMSO-104 basically consists of a breakout cable that attaches to your idevice’s dock connector and allows you to attach various leads and probes for doing whatever one uses an oscilloscope for. The first batch of iMSO-104s has already sold out apparently, so if you want one you’d better order soon to get in on the second batch which will ship on May 20 now.

[ Oscium iMSO-104 ] VIA [ SlashGear ]

Century’s CMRK-S2OD Crams More Storage Into A Single Drive Bay

By Andrew Liszewski on 04/08/11 • Leave a comment!

Century CMRK-S2OD (Image courtesy Century)
By Andrew Liszewski

The more functionality you can cram into a piece of technology, the more appealing it seems to be to the masses. And if you’re still using a tower PC, or even a small barebones box, here’s a pretty easy way to squeeze some more storage into it. Japan-based Century has created this optical disc drive, presumably DVD, that sits in your standard 5.25-inch bay. But by using slimmer hardware they’re able to save enough room to accomodate a couple of 2.5 inch SATA hard drives underneath it as well. The drive looks like it also provides easy pull-out access to the hard drives for swapping them as needed, and will set you back ~$54 (¥4,580) minus the cost of the HDDs.

[ Century CMRK-S2OD ] VIA [ Akihabara News ]

Logitec’s New LAN-WH450N/GR Is A Wireless Router, Not A Wind Turbine

By Andrew Liszewski on 03/31/11 • Leave a comment!

Logitec LAN-WH450N/GR (Image courtesy Logitec)
By Andrew Liszewski

If you’re worried you might have to stick Logitec’s new LAN-WH450N/GR wireless router outside or near a window to catch a breeze and keep it powered, don’t be. What looks like blades on a wind turbine is actually its tri-tenna design which supposedly lets this IEEE802.11 n/a/g/b router achieve speeds of up to 450Mbps (theoretical value) when using compatible devices. It’s also got gigabit ethernet on board if you prefer to go the more reliable wired route, all the standard wireless security methods you’d expect to find on a wifi router these days and will be available mid-April for ~$230 (¥19,000).

[ Logitech LAN-WH450N/GR ] VIA [ Akihabara News ]

evoMouse Lets Your Fingers Do The Mousing

By Andrew Liszewski on 03/14/11 • 4 Comments

Celluon evoMouse (Images courtesy Celluon)
By Andrew Liszewski

When I stop and think about it, between laptop touchpads, touchscreen phones and tablets and my Wacom tablet, I very rarely use a mouse these days. And if a company called Celluon has anything to say about it, the mouse as we know it may soon be extinct. Using similar technology to those projected laser keyboards, the evoMouse sits on your desk just above where you’d normally be pushing a mouse around, and instead tracks the movements of your fingers. Those movements are then translated into cursor movements on screen, allowing you to use just your fingers for everything from scrolling to dragging files to even accessing context menus.

The evoMouse itself is barely larger than an actual mouse, seemingly making it ideal for traveling, and you can connect it to your computer via USB or via Bluetooth if you’d prefer to keep things wireless. It’s even compatible with styluses if you’d like to use it as a portable drawing tablet, or want to take advantage of the evoMouse’s handwriting recognition technology. Pricing and availability are still TBA.

[ Celluon evoMouse ] VIA [ Pocket-lint ]

Copyright © 2013 OhGizmo!