Gadget Access

by Nilay Patel, posted Apr 25th 2008 at 9:21PM NVIDIA’s been on a hyper-competitive tear lately, and while the latest rumor isn’t quite on par with Roy Taylor saying that the Intel CPU is “dead,” it reinforces the company’s new win-at-all-costs attitude. Seems ATI’s upcoming RV770-based Radeon HD 4800 might threaten NVIDIA’s dominance of the high-end graphics market, and that’s just not acceptable — so the company is planning on pushing up the release of the GeForce 9900 to July. That’s one billion transistors and GDDR3 memory, if you haven’t been memorizing rumored graphic card specs — we’re guessing that blue screen of death will render mighty fast on that rig.

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Filed under: Misc. gadgets

Geek-art obsoletes another standard everyday item… the clothes hanger. Instead of an old boring hanger, you can use this cursor-slash-pointer geek-art item that doubles as a coat hanger.

Your friends will either be amazed at what a stylish and interesting person you are for having such a cool conversation-starter mounted to your wall, or they’ll put you in a rubber room for talking to a pointer with a jacket on it.

Gimmie!

Suggested Price: $9.99

Posted in Gizmo of the Day, Miscellaneous

We first learned about Crucial prepping SSD’s in both a 32GB and 64GB size back in early January, but at the time we were yet to learn about any pricing or a time frame for an actual release. Well it turns out the drives are now shipping and although they would make a nice upgrade for alot of notebooks on the market, their price is going to be a barrier for many folks.

The 32GB model is retailing for $800, while the 64GB is a whopping $1,500. Its a shame because the drives are the notebook-sized 2.5-inch, which means, assuming you were comfortable enough to open up your notebook, would make a perfect replacement or upgrade drive.

While the whole SSD craze is relatively new, its fair to say that with time, just like any other new technology the price will quickly fall to a more reasonable level. One thing is for sure though, given the price of the drives from Crucial, the $1,000 macbook air upgrade option seems cheap, or at least fairly priced.

Via [Wired]

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Since cell phones were first made available, and legal, Cuban citizens have been furiously purchasing new cell phones. Its been just about ten days now and Cuba’s telephone company is reporting that they have sold 7,400 new cell phones, about 740 per day.

While I can expect a lot of people to be wanting to run out and make the purchase, its does surprise me that it was such a high number considering the phone contract costs around $120, which adds up to about a six-months salary for the average Cuban citizen.

Via [Cellular-News]

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The mother of all 3G iPhone rumors has been smashed, ladies and gentlemen, by none other than an Apple fanboy who happened to pass by a mobile phone accessories store in Hong Kong.

While the rest of us here have been speculating (some even giggling) about the possibilities of a glossy black 3G iPhone coming in June, those in Hong Kong may already be aware that the photo of the alleged 3G iPhone on the Internet right now is absolutely and positively not a photo of the real thing. Because what the thing in the photo really was, according to the source of the image above, is none other than a glossy black custom iphone back case, which you can purchase for yourself right now if you were in Hong Kong.

Oh well, the rumors were fun while it lasted. This means that an image of the 3G iPhone has not been leaked after all, although nothing would stop Apple from churning out something that closely resembles this thing anyway. I say good job to the makers of this plastic case, though.

Read [Winandmac] Via [Gizmodo]

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A Seattle native, Steve Shellhorn, recently purchased a few coins off eBay and little did he know that those few coins would turn into a $10,000 lawsuit. Yes, $10,000 all because of a few measly coins. He was sued because he left “neutral” feedback, and the seller didn’t like that, and promptly sued him for 10,000 big ones.

Basically, Shellhorn wanted to get some old, probably rare coins off eBay. The price was fair, but they came loose in an envelope and the overall packaging did not meet his expectations, he expected better considering what they were. Doing what most people would do when upset at the situation, he left a neutral feedback, saying that the price was fine, just that he wasn’t happy with the packaging. He even said, “The coins were hanging out of the envelope, loose, with no packing whatsoever around them.” Then the seller decided to sue, and Shellhorn was forced to hire an attorney, good news is that he eventually won the case and didn’t have to pay the money, however, he did have to pay $500 for the attorney.

All in all, people these days seem they can sue for anything and they will. Personally, I think this was really stupid for the seller to sue over something like this. In the end, Shellhorn said. “I’m very leery. I won’t leave feedback for anyone anymore.” This just goes to show that people need to be careful with online transactions and know who you are dealing with.

Read [King 5] Via [CrunchGear]

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Despite the several deadlines Microsoft has set for Windows XP, Dell will continue to support and ship computers loaded with XP until 2010 (when Windows 7 is expected to make its debut). Earlier this month, Microsoft announced that it was extending the life of Windows XP on ultra-low-cost computers, like the Eee PC. However, Microsoft has issued June 30th as the date for PC manufacturers to discontinue shipping machines with Windows XP.

So the question is, how is Dell able to continue supporting the aging, yet still popular operating system? Simple…by taking advantage of a “loop hole” in Microsoft’s system builder license. The “Windows Vista Downgrade” clause essentially states that PC manufacturers are able to ship and preinstall PCs with XP Professional to consumers who select Vista Ultimate or Vista Business as their operating system of choice. The fine print grants PC manufacturers the freedom to determine how to implement the “downgrade.” In Dell’s case, after June 18, the company will factory-install XP Professional for customers who choose “Vista Ultimate Bonus” or “Vista Business Bonus” as their OS configuration option. Those that choose the latest Windows operating system will be given installation DVDs of both Windows XP and Vista; thus, allowing users to “upgrade” whenever they are ready. Technical support for both operating systems will continue to be offered by Dell.

In fact, Dell’s website states:

Is there any way to get Windows XP after June 30th?

Customers may continue to get Windows XP Professional by exercising Downgrade Rights that come with Windows Vista Business or Windows Vista Ultimate licenses. Dell has the ability to exercise “Windows Vista downgrade rights” on your behalf in the factory if your business is still reliant upon Windows XP and you’d prefer to have Windows XP Professional preinstalled on your PCs.

What does it mean for Dell to exercise “Downgrade Rights” for me? Where can I find this option?

When you are configuring your system online or through the help of one of our sales experts, you will have the opportunity to select which operating system you would like on your PC. When selecting your operating system, you will see an option called “Genuine Windows® Vista Business BONUS” and “Genuine Windows® Vista Ultimate BONUS.” With these options, you may purchase the licensed rights to Windows Vista but have Dell factory install Windows XP Professional. You will also receive a backup media disc for Windows XP Professional as well as the media for Windows Vista so you can upgrade when you’re ready. Furthermore, with these options Dell will provide technical support for the factory-installed Windows XP Professional image and your licensed version of Windows Vista.

Currently, the Downgrade program is only available in Dell’s Latitude, OptiPlex, and Dell Precision systems free of charge. It is also available on select Vostro and Dell XPS systems for a nominal fee. Fortunately, Dell isn’t the only PC maker taking advantage of the Downgrade Rights. HP and Lenovo have both said to offer Windows XP after June 30 to customers that purchase the Business or Ultimate version of Vista. On January 31, 2009, Microsoft will prohibit small computer manufacturers from adding Windows XP to machines they build; however, OEMs can continue to offer XP as long as they have it in stock.

Read [Dell] Via [Computerworld]

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It’s not exactly clear here, but either the ipod Observer and/or Engadget has a source that says the 2nd generation of the iphone will be a 3G phone and will have GPS, real GPS that is, and not the triangulation stuff they do with now with cell towers. It will be a bit thicker and could ship as early as July.

via The iPod Observer and Engadget.

Posted in Phones

It took a while, but now DSL is starting to compete with cable modem service on speed, as Qwest announces that they’ll be offering 12 and 20 Mbps DSL service in 23 markets. When you call up, just ask for Qwest Titanium, or Qwest Quantum, as the services will be dubbed.

Sorry, but will I know you’re drooling over this, you’ll have to wait closer to the end of the year if not early 2009, and you’ll need to be prepared to shell out $65/mo for the 12Mbps and $100/mo for 20. Hmm… perhaps cable may still win this speed war.

Posted in Networking & Internet