Available from Dell HERE From £529

Model Tested

Intel Core i5 2310 @ 2.30Ghz

2GB DDR3 Ram

500GB 7200rpm HDD

TV Tuner

BluRay Drive

Integrated Intel HD 3000 Graphics + Discrete Nvidia Geforece 525m 1GB Graphics

JBL 2.1 Speakers + Subwoofer

Build Quality

The brushed metal lid looks great, only slightly let down when you realise the base is plastic but theres no creaking, this feels like a very well made laptop.  Opening it up the screen is glossy and the gentle curves everywhere look pleasing, the keyboard and trackpad are both full size, and look very smart with their graphite colours.

First Impressions

The model I tried had the upgrade to a FullHD 1920×1080 screen.  Trust me, if you do nothing else get this screen!  IT. IS. AMAZING.

The screen is quite advanced, more what you’d find in a high end monitor, and produces ~78% of the full RGB gamut – (In english it can show more colours than the average monitor) which at first makes everything look very saturated but your eyes quickly adjust and just wait till you watch a movie!
The image jumps off the screen, everything is pin sharp and is a great first impression.  The next thing that hits you is the sound!  You have never heard a laptop sound like this – the JBL speakers produce an amazing sound that fills the room, and the subwoofer gives extra kick on the low end.

The keyboard is comfortable to use given the full size, and the multitouch trackpad is responsive and smooth.

Performance

This laptop couples Intels latest SandyBridge chipset with Nvidia Optimus Graphics.  What does that mean? It means you get excellent battery life when using the integrated Intel HD 3000 graphics – this has more than enough grunt for most business tasks, creative apps and some less taxing games, as well as handling web video and dvd/bluray.  It also gives fantastic battery life, i was getting around 6 hours+ easily.

When you need a bit of extra muscle, the Intel TurboBoost tech kicks the processor up to 2.70Ghz on demand, and you have the option to switch to the discrete Nvidia Geforce 525M graphics card.  This has some serious power – I could run new games like Crysis 2 (which I believe is quite heavy on it’s requirements) easily – and the graphics defaulted to the best setting!  It can’t quite mange this at FullHD resolution – however the models with the faster processor (Intel Core i7 @ 2.70 ghz) with the Nvidia Geforce 540M should be OK.  On the downside you lose battery life, so it’s more for when you can plug in.  Even given this power the system runs cool – certainly cool enough to use on a lap!

Numbers below are with the Nvidia Graphics on AC power NOTE – When this was done I had installed a 60GB SSD from http://www.futurestorage.co.uk/ so the Drive score is somewhat high (Give the choice I’d spec a SSD in this laptop anyway!)

So it’s certainly a great performer.

Multimedia

As mentioned this is an excellent entertainment machine.  The JBL speakers sound excellent and people won’t believe they’re coming from a laptop!
Of course the screen will have quite an impact too…  The FullHD 1080P screen looks razor sharp – and BluRay playback is AMAZING!  The image is so detailed, but on top of that the screen can produce deep blacks and a very good contrasting picture.

Also available as a built in option is the TV tuner giving access to Freeview in the UK.  This makes this a great All-In-One machine – perfect for students who need a machine for work, entertainment and games – Just watch out though – you’ll suddenly have a load of people who want to come over to watch TV and films on it!

Overall

I can make this short.  This is the best laptop I have ever used.  Even at the lower spec it is hugely capable, and for £529 you couldn’t go wrong!  It would even make me reconsider a Macbook… That should say it all!

★★★★★★ <- Without a doubt I’d recommend this

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Below are a couple of recommendations from me

Buffalo Ministation 320GB	The Buffalo Ministation is an external USB 2.0 hard drive available in various capacities. An external drive offers a great backup option for your whole system, including your pictures, music and documents, plus you can store it away from your main computer or even off site for extra security. The Ministation’s extra is that it offers secure Password protection for the contents of the drive – anything you save on it is invisible until the correct password is entered (Windows only I think) This at least prevents prying eyes from getting to your data – especially if you store data, like bank details or your work documents that you’d rather keep private. It’s speedy, and easy to use – the USB cable is integrated so there’s no hunting for a power supply or the right size USB lead and is small enough to carry with you. The only extra needed is some backup software – but of course Windows 7 has this built in anyway. Downsides, well, it could support USB 3.0 for faster transfers
Sandisk Ultra Backup 16GB	If you just need a decent size USB stick to carry your documents between computers you can’t do much better than the Sandisk Ultra Backup. This small compact USB 2.0 memory stick is perfect for transporting files around, and this has the extra feature of a one press automatic backup facility.  Just plug in, press the button and the software automatically syncs/backs up your choice of documents or folders. It’s speedy, small and convenient and in my experience I’ve never had a Sandisk memory product fail on me!

Model Tested:

Core i5-2410 @ 2.30Ghz

4GB Ram

320Gb HDD

You may remember I loved the previous Dell Vostro 130 I tried (Remember) and now I’ve got the updated model to try.

Now Dell have updated the already excellent Vostro line with the latest Intel Core Processors and Chipsets, including updated graphics, and as an added bonus this can also be supplied with an internal DVD drive – handy even if you might not use it a lot.

Externally little has changed, the metal lid looks great (I tried the Bronze one)  although overall thickness has increased slightly.  Opening the system up reveals a chicklet style full size keyboard which is comfortable to type on – you may nned a little time to adapt but this style of keyboard is pretty standard these days.  The touchpad, which supports multitouch is smooth with 2 physical buttons that give a quiet click when pressed.

Connectivity wise you’re covered by 3 USB 3.0 ports, Ethernet, VGA, HDMI and eSATA as well as headphones/mic.  There is also a SD card reader built in, so you should be fixed to connect to any equipment you need.

There are 3 quick launch keys that can be configured to your liking at the top of the keyboard.

Performance as you can see from the scores above is VERY good – don’t worry about the seemingly low Aero score – you dont notice it and I always notice this seems to be the lowest score in this ‘test’.  From the other scores (7.9 is the best remember not 10) it is clear that this will cope with everything you throw at it day-to-day.
If i was a big gamer I’d look elsewhere, or be prepared to drop some detail settings as the integrated Intel HD3000 graphics, while great for business/productivity can lag a bit on newer games – But this is a business focussed system – for gaming look to the XPS or Alienware lines from Dell.

The 1366×768 screen is clear and bright, with a matte finish that I know some people love…but it’s glossy screens all the way for me personally

Battery life clocks in at a respectable 6-7 hours under typical usage – this could probably be extended by switching wifi/bluetooth/brightness etc.

Overall this is another great machine, ideal for business or even a home PC for a family, and a good option if you are looking for a new laptop to send off with the kids to Uni or college this September.

Apparently netbooks are dead, after flooding the market a few years back people have almost stopped buying these small, low powered machines in favour of Tablet PCs and more productive laptops. But is there death a bit too soon – is there still life in them yet? I think there just might be…

Netbooks range in price from about £150 to over £400 (seriously if you’re spending £400 on one save your money and buy something bigger that can do more) but the truth is internally most are pretty much identical. The main differences will be in the amount of storage, or hard drive space available, and the external design/keyboard. Check before you buy if the keyboard is comfortable for you, as that and the screen are one thing you wont be able to change.

Most netbooks now come with Windows 7 Starter Edition – this is a heavily cut-down version of Windows 7 (can’t change wallpaper, limited options, max 3 open programmes) that is suited to a lower power computer, but they will have the option to upgrade online to another edition of Windows 7 – I recommend the £70 for Home Premium if you can just for the extra compatibility and versatility if you need to connect to different networks or hardware. You could always try to run Linux though – a free open source OS that is hugely popular – mainly because it’s so secure – for a machine destined to live on the net Linux is a great choice – no chance of being infected by Malware or Viruses – and you wont have to have Norton/McAfee/AVG running slowing your system down either! Linux takes a bit more setting up – I’ll cover that process soon, or there are plenty of guides online.

Sticking with Windows then there are a couple of things we can change on the Netbook to speed it up and make the experience more enjoyable. These extras shouldn’t cost much, and you’ll end up with a system thats capable of far more than you might expect.

We recently purchased a £159 E-Machines (Acer) e350 from Tesco as our Macbook Pro died after 6 years use. Another Mac will be eventually bought, but to get us by we thought we’d get the cheapest option available and see if between a Netbook and iPad we could cover our needs (but thats another blog entry…). So with cheap Netbook in hand I did the following:-

First up RAM:
Simply put the more RAM you have the more you can do, and the quicker the computer can do it. Most netbooks can take a maximum of 2GB RAM, so your first job is to head over to Crucial and order yourself a 2GB SODIMM. This should cost about £20. This is then installed into the computer replacing the 1GB stick thats there. This usually involves removing a couple of screws on the bottom, and pushing the clips either side of the RAM to pop it out. The new one goes in the same way. There are guides on the Crucial website if you’re not sure.

Reboot, and enjoy your much faster system. You can leave it there if you want. The RAM increase alone will make a huge difference to everyday usage – you can have multiple browser tabs open, and multiple apps, eg browser, Word and Picasa etc.

If you want to continue then the next step is…

The Hard Drive.

The Hard drive is where your store all your documents, music and pictures and netbooks typically come with drives around 160GB. Once formatted and with your apps installed you’re probably left with about 135GB usable space. Depending on how much you need to store you might want to change the drive for something bigger…or faster.

The faster your hard drive the quicker apps will load, the quicker documents will open and the faster your computer will boot.

For my system I was given a Seagate Momentus XT 500GB. This beast of a drive combines a huge 500GB hard drive with a 4GB Flash Memory buffer that automatically stores your most accessed files – whether its the document your working on, the web browser, or OS startup files. This gives the benefits of lightning fast memory based storage for your commonly used stuff with plenty of space on the much more economical mechanical drive for the rest of your stuff.

The procedure to replace the drive is no worse than the memory – its just unplugging one drive and putting the other one in… however you might want to clone the current drive over to save having to start again and reinstall the OS and your applications. This can be done with an external drive enclosure, and software like Carbon Copy, or again, Linux (free way to do it!)

The Seagate Momentus XT might not seem a great deal faster the first time you use it – thats because it learns your usage patterns so it learns what files to put into the Flash Memory buffer. Typically boot time is optimised after 2 or 3 restarts, but just stressing boot time is only an issue if you spend your whole day restarting your PC! far better is to use it normally and over time you’ll see your applications start faster and commonly used documents open in a flash!

With those two tweaks your system will be running far better and should easily cope with your everyday needs. Our houses our 40GB iTunes library, and pictures (over 10000 in Picasa) without any hiccups and is happy hooked up to a 21″ monitor running at 1920×1080 so there’s an easy way round the 10″ screen!

If you want to pimp your netbook (or these apply to any machine) and want some advice contact me at hGizmoDad

http://www.vtechuk.com/MobiGo/

RRP Approx £35

The MobiGo from VTech is a handheld learning/entertainment device aimed at 3-7 year olds. It was tested by my 2 1/2 year old, along with several family members who all wanted a go!

We were sent it with the Shrek game which has several different activities and games.

As usual from VTech the build quality is excellent. The bright colours are very appealing and the whole thing feels very solid. The screen slides up to reveal a full keyboard – used in spelling games and for entering your name. The screen is quite hard to move – little ones might need some help with this but most games can be played with it closed, and using the buttons on the front and the touchscreen. The touchscreen is plastic, and should withstand normal usage from children – it seems quite tough. There are buttons to lower the volume and also a headphone port for quiet play (as in car journeys!)

Right from seeing the box my Daughter was excited, and once we’d shown her how to play a few games she was quite happy to use it by herself, usually snuggled on the sofa with her blanket (some might say just like Daddy and his XBox)

I liked that the games have an educational aspect to them, although quite how a 2 year old who cant read yet gets all the letters right in spelling is beyond me!

Games themselves come on cartridges or can be downloaded from the VTech website. The games are Adobe Flash based, and seem well made, with plenty of sound effects and animation to keep your kids amused.

Everything they do is also tracked, and if you then connect the MobiGo to your PC the data gets sent to the VTech website where you can log on and see what games they’ve been playing, and how long! You also have the option to print certificates for their high scores, and can download rewards right to the MobiGo – like games and badges to view onscreen.

Overall this is a really nice toy – and has been used all the time since we got it. Another hit from VTech thats sure to be a big seller this year.

To get around this the PowerMat provides a rechargeable base on which you place your gadgets such as phones, mp3 players and handheld games consoles and they get charged, wirelessly, wherever you are.

This magic happens because you fit your gadgets with cases/batteries that contain the wizardry to allow them to charge wirelessly via the harmless EM field the base creates.

You charge the base from the mains and the built in li-ion battery should give a couple of charges at least of your gadgets – but it will depend what you are charging.

I tried the adapter for the Nintendo DS Lite and found it fitted snugly without adding weight or bulk. In use you just sit the DS on top of the base and magnets attach it and keep it in the right place. Once there it just charges like normal – and a light on the base tells you how much juice is left.

Phones work in a similar way, but if yours isn’t supported by a case there is a small puck that gives a normal USB connection so you just use your normal lead with that – also enabling a much wider range of devices to be charged.

Overall I’d say the PowerMat is vital for anyone who spends A good amount of time on the road – for families it could prove useful on long journeys to keep the kids gadgets running, and even your phones etc if your camping or at a festival.

If I had to change anything I’d give it a bigger battery for even greater independence from the mains, and maybe the ability to charge high current devices like Tablet PCs.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Positives

• Loading time is reasonable
• Quick but depending on location can take a while to search for a suitable GPS signal.
• Interface is clear and can be adjusted to suit your individual preferences through the easy scrolling menus
• Easy to plan your journey from your contacts menu.

Negatives

• Depending on your driving style/speed can be annoying with the warning alerts going off all the time but could be turned off if its too much to cope with

Most people would – and the team over at http://www.alertme.com/ are about to launch their new products and service that allows you to monitor your energy use and even has an iPhone app so you can track usage while you’re out!

By being aware of what appliances use you are better able to manage them, and so hopefully reduce your bills.

To coincide with this they are forming a user panel of 100 families around the country who will be supplied with the kit free and who agree to participate in several challenges throughout a year, and to blog about their experiences.

Details are at http://www.alertme.com/the-panel and a summary is below:

AlertMe is holding a nationwide experiment in order to create a picture of today’s Britain. We aim to capture people’s concerns and lifestyles and help them to save money by using AlertMe technology to monitor and control their energy usage.

AlertMe is searching for just 100 households from across the country to participate in our experiment so you will need to sign up quickly if you would like to participate.

If you are selected to be part of our panel, we will issue you with an AlertMe kit (a year’s free subscription to AlertMe and a SmartPlug), which will allow you to monitor the energy usage of your individual appliances via the internet or by using your Smart Phone. 

We will ask all members of the AlertMe panel to take part in three to four challenges during the year and we would love it if you would blog about your findings. We will also send you a quick survey after each challenge so that we can observe some of the common themes. 

Challenges will last about a week and be fun and easy to carry out around your daily lives. For example, our first challenge will ask you to live on an energy budget – you’ll be amazed how much you can save!

Out of our panel we would also like some volunteers to act as our ‘Case Studies’ for the media. For this, you will have to be willing to be featured in your local press, agree to be photographed and we will also ask you to blog both during and after your challenges.

AlertMe Energy Monitoring Kit

It seems the latest is that beyond the Millie Dowler claims the parents of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman have now been contacted.

I cannot begin to imagine how traumatic this is for parents who have surely suffered enough.

Tonight, a rapidly deleted tweet from ITN has indicated Rebekah Brooks will resign first thing in the morning over these claims – and I’m sure she won’t be the last to go from News International. Advertisers such as Ford have already withdrawn their ads from the paper, and so who knows where this leaves the publication…one less piece of trash on the newsstand I say.

What do you think? Leave a comment below!

Wacom, who are more commonly known for making graphics tablets for professional designers and artists have launched a new stylus designed for use with capacitive touchscreens (like most smartphones and tablets like the iPad).

Why is this needed – well sometimes a finger is just a bit too big…no sniggering at the back there!… Especially for tasks like note taking or drawing.

The Bamboo Stylus offers a soft tip that is 50% smaller than most competitors offering precision control.

Although the packaging is a bit rubbish once you hold the stylus it does feel very good quality, and the metal barrel lends it a nice weight. There is a clip for attaching to a pocket, or as I found the inside of the Apple iPad case (sorry iPad 2 owners your smartcover won’t quite take this) keeping it always conveniently to hand.

In use the screen responds well to the stylus, and made apps like Sketchbook Pro and ArtRage even better, I felt like I had much finer control over what I was drawing.

Note taking is the best use though, with Wacom also launching their first iOS app with Bamboo Paper – a free note taking app that mimics a paper notebook. You can vary the pen size and colour and the best recommendation I can give is that @thescrummymummy immediately started to doodle away on the page as if it was paper!

Although originally intended to be a paid app they have decided to keep it free for the basic version, with a pending update to add the option of multiple notebooks for a small charge.

Overall I really like this stylus, and I would find it hard to go back to using these apps without it!

Pros
Size
Weight
Comfortable to use
Fine control

Cons
Price

Available online from around £24.99

Below is the most recent update regarding Bamboo Paper

Just 11 days after the launch of Wacom’s first iPad app, Bamboo Paper reached 1 million downloads. Even for a popular product such as the iPad, that is incredibly fast, and faster in comparison to many other popular apps. Peter Kurstjens, Director Applications and Platforms at Wacom, explains what the impact of this success is having.

How do you judge the success of the Bamboo Paper app?

We are overwhelmed. We were confident that Bamboo Paper is a useful app and fits perfectly well with the Bamboo Stylus, but in all honesty, we didn’t expect that much success. We have managed to get one million downloads in only 11 days.

Is this success limited to certain countries only?

No, definitely not. We have managed to be the most downloaded app within days in the largest countries all over the world.

What feedback have you had from users?

Overall, we are receiving very positive feedback. Users appreciate the outstanding writing performance that Bamboo Paper offers. We also get the feeling that the offering is in line with the expectations people have of Wacom. This refers to offering a digital, paper-like experience as well as to the quality of Bamboo Paper.

In addition, users are asking for extended functionality, such as the ability to add multiple notebooks or to have landscape mode. We are using this feedback to evaluate which new functionalities we should add in future releases of the app.

How do you integrate those comments into the next steps for Bamboo Paper?

First of all, we have decided – based on the huge success of Bamboo Paper – to keep it as a free-to-download app. We want to continue giving people the opportunity to get the experience of Bamboo Paper. Secondly, we will extend the functionality of the app with the option to add multiple notebooks. From 14th July, users will be able to purchase a Notebook Pack for 1.19 GBP which enables users to add up to 20 new Notebooks in the library.

What are the future plans for Bamboo Paper?

This success has strengthened our commitment to continuing our development activities. Based on the user feedback, we will add new functionality in the coming months. In addition, we are considering extending this application beyond the iPad and making it available for other desktop or mobile operating systems.

As a parent, sending a teen off to university can be quite a daunting time. The prospect of your ‘baby’ fleeing the nest is quite a scary thought. How can you best prepare them for going it alone in the big wide world?

Here’s some helpful advice / ideas you can share with them to help send them on their way:

1. Research the local town – get clued up on the areas to avoid (all local police forces keep a record online of crime hot spots).
2. Locate the nearest hospital, police station, STD clinic, dentist, etc to their residence and university.
3. If they have to travel to and from campus, locate the nearest bus stop and get hold of the relevant bus timetable.
4. Ask them to use a regular taxi company if going out at night and give them the numbers of a reliable local taxi firm.
5. Finally, set up a service on their mobile that enables you to locate them in an emergency, plus if they lose their phone it’ll help locate it too – god knows this may happen often on drunken nights out! A service such as itrack Protect allows you to locate them through their mobile device instantly and has an added alert function that they can use to discreetly contact you in case of emergencies.
And here’s what you should sort out and pack for them – a little something to help them through their first term:

1. Condoms – yes Mum and Dad it’s going to happen!
2. First Aid Kit – they’ll never think of plasters, headache tablets and other bits to keep them going.
3. Cleaning equipment – they may never have tidied their room at home, but they’ll need to do it in halls or a shared house.
4. Bed linen, towels, washing cloths – nothing exciting but very much everyday essential items.
5. A cheap microwave – baked beans, super noodles and ready meals are the staple diet of a uni student – but also throw in a student recipe book of five minute, cheap and healthy meals.

Model:

K6.610 T300 pressure washer 1.167-250.0 “The Beast” (RRP: £499.99)

• · 150 Max. Bar Pressure
• · 550 litres per hour water flow rate
• · 2500 Watt Water-Cooled Induction Motor
• · Plug & Clean Detergent System
• · Quick Connect hose connection system with 9m high pressure hose and trigger gun

Accessories include:

• · T300 patio cleaner
• · Wash brush
• · Vario lance
• · Dirtblaster lance
• · 1 litre of Plug & Clean Universal Detergent

While my wife is at CyberMummy I’ve had the chance to try out the top end Karcher K6.610 Pressure washer. Luckily the weather has held out so I’ve been able to use it to clean the patio and path in the back garden.

The K6.610 is Karchers most advanced consumer washer to date, and offers a water cooled motor, along with 50% savings in water, electricity and time!

Karcher K6.610 and T300 Patio Cleaner

The box for the washer is big, and heavy. This is a serious bit of kit, and should make any cleaning task child’s play (but I wouldn’t advise letting a kid use it!).
In the box is everything you need to get started, including a bottle of cleaning fluid which although optional does improve the machines cleaning power.

Assembly is fairly straightforward and takes about 20min, but is a one off task. Once assembled the washer has room to store the accessories and stands upright with wheels for easy transportation.

The hose connector is a normal hose-lock style one, and so should pose little or no problems connecting to your normal garden hose. It would be fair to note though you need an existing hose to use this – one isn’t included.

The high-pressure hose does reach a fair way though, I’d say about 15 feet or so.

In use it couldn’t be easier. Turn the tap on, turn the washer on and it’s ready to go. You can choose how much detergent to use while cleaning, and the adjustable wand let’s you set the “power” – set it to max though for most cleaning reduce if you notice the object being cleaned vanishing!

When it comes on there’s quite a kick – this is a powerful washer. It made short work of stripping built up lichens from our path, and cleaned the stone and concrete up perfectly.

For the patio I tried the included T300 Patio Cleaner. This round device sort of works like a hybrid hover-mower/dishwasher to clean large flat areas quickly – like patios/decking etc.

Path Before...

This attached to the high-pressure hose and works just like you might expect, simply start up and move slowly over the area to be cleaned.
On the patio this worked brilliantly, however on the path it cleaned the stone/concrete but didn’t lift the stubborn marks like the handle alone did. I’d say though for a quick once over of a driveway or patio this is really effective.

Also included is a car brush and dirt blaster lance. The dirt blaster really powers through mud and dirt, and the car brush allows you to clean your car without worrying you might start stripping the paint

What gets cleaned off has to end up somewhere...

I suppose if I were looking for downsides I’d say the hose connector came out a few times, but this might be my crappy garden hose!
Also be aware that you should have pretty good drainage before using one of these – they get through a lot of water and your garden may end up a bog…

Gonna need to wash this...

Lastly make sure to move or cover anything nearby or you’ll be back cleaning soon

All in all this is excellent – you might not use it everyday but you can be sure that when you do it will get the job done, and rest assured Karcher offer a 3 year warranty to ensure you keep going as long as needed!

Path After...

Patio Before...

Patio After...

Kärcher launches “The Beast”

The most powerful water-cooled consumer pressure washer ever!

2011 sees the launch of Kärcher’s K6.610 aka “The Beast” of pressure washers. Brought to you by the world’s number one pressure washer manufacturer, these new machines incorporate innovative long life water-cooled motor technology which delivers enhanced performance and are part of the most advanced consumer pressure washer series ever.

The K6 features Kärcher’s famed “Plug ‘n’ Clean” system with in-built regulation for the quickest and most practical way to apply detergents. Simply select the right detergent for the job, slot it in and clean!  Cleaning your car, patio, driveway, fence, garage door and house exterior just got even faster.

In addition to the innovative and powerful water-cooled motor, the K6 features a high pressure hose reel which increases mobility and improves storage. “The Beast” can deliver a huge 150 Bar maximum pressure, which is approximately 40 times as powerful as a garden hose*, ensuring an incredibly deep clean and by using the vario lance you can adjust this cleaning power to optimise efficiency.

Kärcher and especially the new K6 are the perfect partners for taking the hard work out of domestic chores. Pressure washers use up to 80% less water than a garden hose because they clean your car or patio faster and more efficiently than traditional methods. Having cleaned some of the world’s most famous monuments including Mount Rushmore and the Statue of Christ in Rio de Janeiro, Kärcher brings its world class performance to your home this summer.

The K6 has yet more versatility due to the widest and most extensive range of accessories of any high pressure washer manufacturer. For more information visit www.karcher.co.uk

Model:

K6.610 T300 pressure washer 1.167-250.0 “The Beast” (RRP: £499.99)

• ·      150 Max. Bar Pressure
• ·      550 litres per hour water flow rate
• ·      2500 Watt Water-Cooled Induction Motor
• ·      Plug & Clean Detergent System
• ·      Quick Connect hose connection system with 9m high pressure hose and trigger gun

Accessories include:

• ·      T300 patio cleaner
• ·      Wash brush
• ·      Vario lance
• ·      Dirtblaster lance
• ·      1 litre of Plug & Clean Universal Detergent

A pocket-size, go-anywhere digital interchangeable lens system camera: featuring the world’s lightest and smallest body* made possible by a brand-new PENTAX original imaging system

PEXTAX have today announced the Q, the smallest interchangeable lens camera in the world (today). Available in black and white the 12 megapixel camera offers awesome image quality while remaining pocketable – perfect for travelling to get some great shots.

Press release below:

PENTAX Imaging Systems is pleased to announce the launch of the PENTAX Q digital interchangeable lens system camera. Thanks to its innovative, PENTAX developed imaging system, this new model has an astonishingly compact and lightweight body. The user can more easily and actively enjoy the high-quality images and wide range of visual effects that are only available with digital interchangeable lens cameras.

The PENTAX Q was designed and developed in response to user requests for a more compact, manoeuverable digital interchangeable-lens camera than those available in the existing PENTAX line-up — a camera that could go anywhere and be used in all kinds of occasion more easily and freely. Starting with a high-resolution back illuminated 1/2.3-inch CMOS image sensor, the PENTAX Q offers a full range of advanced features, including the newly developed, super-compact Q-mount lenses perfectly proportioned to the compact CMOS image sensor, and an innovative optical construction free of an optical finder and a mirror. These features are the key to the creation of the world’s smallest and lightest digital interchangeable-lens camera system.*

The camera also delivers solid, dependable performance, thanks to such features as: approximately 12.4 effective megapixels to deliver high-quality, high-resolution still images and Full HD movies; high speed continuous shooting at a maximum speed of five images per second; high sensitivity of ISO 6400; and a magnesium-alloy body. It even offers such functional, user-friendly features as a multi-mode exposure system including the Aperture-Priority AE mode and a custom image function to give the most appropriate finishing touch to each image. Just as for conventional digital SLR models, the PENTAX Q is equipped with a set of dependable devices — an in-body SR (Shake Reduction) mechanism and a DRII (Dust Removal II) anti-dust mechanism — so that even beginners can effortlessly capture beautiful, brilliant images free of blurring or spots. The PENTAX Q also offers the latest image-processing tools, including a bokeh control function to adjust the intensity of the out-of-focus effect around the subject to a desired level, and a creative Smart Effect function to produce highly artistic images with distinctive touches, like those produced by cross processing film.

By adding the new Q mount to existing K and 645 medium-format mounts, PENTAX now offers three different lens mounts to further enhance the creativity and versatility of its digital interchangeable-lens camera systems.

* The world’s smallest and lightest digital interchangeable lens system camera, as of June 15, 2011 (based on PENTAX’s research).

Major features

1. The world’s smallest, lightest camera body, featuring newly developed Q mount system

The PENTAX Q features the newly developed Q lens mount, with an outer diameter approximately six millimetres shorter than that of the conventional K mount. This was made possible by reducing the flange back (the distance from the lens mount surface to the image sensor surface) to nearly one-fifth of that of the K mount, as well as by optimizing the size of image circle of its lenses to be proportioned to the size of the compact image sensor. The Q mount system also eliminates an optical finder, mirror box, focusing plate and AF sensor, making the PENTAX Q’s body the smallest and lightest in its class. The body has been made of magnesium-alloy, which gives an elegant, high-quality texture to the compact, lightweight camera body while improving its durability. The PENTAX Q is available in white or black.

2. Exceptional image quality delivered by digital interchangeable lens system camera

The PENTAX Q comes equipped with back illuminated 1/2.3-inch CMOS image sensor, which delivers beautiful, high-resolution images with approximately 12.4 effective megapixels. This is made possible by its high efficient light gathering optical construction that assures excellent high sensitivity and low noise characteristics and high speed readout of image data signals. The PENTAX Q also features a new generation imaging engine integrating the best of PENTAX’s state-of-the-art digital imaging technologies, developed and accumulated over many years of digital SLR camera development. By coupling this imaging engine with exclusively designed high performance Q mount lenses, the PENTAX Q delivers clear, high contrast images rich in gradation and texture, even at edges. With high sensitivity noise minimized, the photographer can use the entire sensitivity range — from ISO 125 to the highest ISO 6400 — without worrying about annoying digital noise. By taking advantage of the HDR (High Dynamic Range) function that produces one composite photo from multiple images, it’s easy to create beautiful images with an extra wide dynamic range and free of white-washed and blacked-out areas.

3. Innovative creative tool to add personal touches to images with ease

The PENTAX Q offers a totally new style of photo shooting. By coupling the new Smart Effect function offering nine distinctive visual effects via the easy access Quick-Dial positioned on the camera’s front panel, the photographer can effortlessly add a desired finishing touch to an image, while previewing the effect on the LCD monitor. The Quick-Dial has four positions, to which four favourite Smart Effect modes can be assigned in advance. The ever-popular Custom Image and Digital Filter functions have been further enhanced to provide an even greater range of image processing tools. In order to customize the PENTAX Q to accommodate specific shooting styles and user preferences, the user can also assign other options such as a custom image setting, a digital filter or an aspect ratio setting to the Quick-Dial.

• Brilliant Colour: Creates a lively effect by raising the saturation level almost to the point of colour saturation.

• Funicular Bold: Creates an extremely high contrast image that retains one particular colour in the image.

• Vintage Colour: Produces a toy-camera-like effect, with a choice of several different finishing touches.

• Cross Processing: Produces a unique image with unusual colors, as if treated with the cross processing** used in film photography.

• Warm Fade: Creates a low contrast image with the white balance slightly shifted to pink shades.

• Tone Expansion: Produces a dramatic image with an artistic finishing touch, close to an intensified HDR (High Dynamic Range) effect.

• Bold Monochrome: Produces a low-key, high contrast image with enhanced sharpness.

• Water Colour: Creates a watercolour-like finishing touch.

• Vibrant Colour Enhance: Creates a flowery atmosphere with slightly enhanced contrast.

• USER: Used to enter a user-selected combination of custom image mode and a digital filter.

** A film development technique that uses an unconventional film developer to create a distinctive finishing touch with dramatic colours.

4. High quality, Full HD movie recording

The PENTAX Q comes equipped with a Full HD movie recording function employing the H.264 recording format, allowing the user to capture high quality, extended movie clips (1920 x 1080 pixels) at a frame rate of 30 frames per second. The user can also take advantage of interchangeable Q-mount lenses to produce distinctive perspectives, or make effective use of the Smart Effect modes*** and other in-body movie editing tools to produce creative, dramatic visual effects with great ease, even during movie recording. The PENTAX Q also provides a micro-HDMI terminal (type D), which allows the user to simultaneously output both Full HD movie clips and sound to external devices via a single terminal.

*** The frame rate may vary when a selected Smart Effect mode requires non-standard image processing.

5. Effortless Bokeh control

The PENTAX Q comes equipped with newly developed bokeh control function, which allows user to capture the image with obtrusive objects in the field of view optimally defocused. With this function, the camera will automatically judge the focused subject as well as the relative distance of each object from the camera in the field of view to apply optimal defocus effect to each object to ensure stand-out of the main subject(s). This function will allow even a first-time digital photographer to easily capture the images with such effects as background defocus or foreground defocus that would otherwise require a certain degree of photographic experience.

6. SR mechanism for sharp, blur-free images

The PENTAX Q incorporates the PENTAX-developed SR (Shake Reduction) mechanism, which automatically shifts the CMOS image sensor to offset camera shake detected by the camera’s motion sensor. As a result, the PENTAX Q produces sharp, blur-free images even under demanding conditions that are prone to camera shake, such as when using a telephoto lens, shooting in the dark without flash illumination, or capturing landscapes in the twilight.

7. Dependable features available only with digital interchangeable lens cameras

The PENTAX Q offers a host of user-friendly, functional features available only with digital interchangeable-lens cameras. Its top shutter speed of 1/2000 second freezes the decisive moment of the subject’s action. To accommodate user preferences and varying photographic applications, it also offers a choice of four different exposure modes: the user-friendly Programmed AE (P) mode that automatically selects an optimum combination of aperture and shutter speed; the Aperture-Priority AE (AV) and Shutter-Priority AE (TV) modes that allow the photographer to faithfully reproduce specific creative intentions on resulting images; and the Metered Manual (M) mode.

It even allows the photographer to instantly switch from the P mode to the AV or TV mode with a simple turn of an electronic dial.

8. Large, wide view LCD monitor

The PENTAX Q features a large, easy-to-view, high resolution 3.0-inch colour LCD monitor with approximately 460,000 dots. Its wide view design assures a clear view of the monitor from approximately 170 degrees horizontally and vertically, making it particularly useful in low and high angle shooting.

9. Dependable DRII mechanism for effective dust removal

The PENTAX Q’s DRII (Dust Removal II) mechanism effectively prevents annoying dust spots from spoiling captured images, even after the user changes lenses out in the open. Like PENTAX’s K-5 and 645D digital SLR cameras, it incorporates highly effective supersonic vibration mechanism, which vibrates the image sensor at high speed to shake the dust off its surface.

10. High speed continuous shooting at approximately five images per second

The PENTAX Q’s high speed burst shooting mode allows the photographer to record up to five images (in JPEG recording format) in a single sequence, at a maximum speed of approximately five images per second. This mode comes in handy when trying to preserve the action of fast-moving subjects in a series of images.

11. Built-in auto flash with pop-up mechanism

The PENTAX Q comes with a built-in auto flash (guide number 7 at ISO 200/m). The photographer can either use it at the default position, or raise it to the pop-up position with simple operation to widen its discharge angle to cover a 28mm angle of view (in the 35mm format).

12. Other features

1) TTL image-sensor metering, with a choice of multi-segment, centre-weighted and spot modes
2) Contrast-detection autofocus system, with a face recognition function and 25 selectable focus points
3) CTE white-balance control mode to emphasize the predominant colour of a particular scene, such as the sunset
4) Auto Picture mode for effortless shooting
5) 21 scene modes, including new Forest and Stage Lighting options
6) A choice of image size (4:3, 3:2, 16:9 or 1:1) to accommodate different subjects and applications

7) Multi-exposure mode (up to nine exposures on a single image), with an auto exposure compensation function Interval shooting mode, convenient for recording transition of landscapes and flowers/plants from the exact same location and angle
9) HDR mode to produce photo with an extra wide dynamic range composite photo from three images of varying exposures
10) A choice of data storage medium: SD, SDHC and the new-standard SDXC**** memory cards
11) SILKY Developer Studio 3 for PENTAX RAW-data development software (developed by Ichikawa Soft Laboratory) included; in-camera RAW-data development also available

**** Not compatible with UHS Speed Class transfer rate.

Optional accessories

External Viewfinder O-VF1

Launched together with the PENTAX Q, this optical viewfinder is designed for exclusive use with the new “PENTAX-01 STANDARD PRIME” unifocal standard lens. It offers a clear view of the subject even in bright sunshine. It also assures image viewing of the subject with no time lag — an important feature in snapshot and portrait photography where the timing of the shutter release is crucial.

Camera Case O-CC115

Exclusively designed for the PENTAX Q, this camera case has two strap lugs on the sides to keep the camera suspended in a level position, so that the photographer can quickly respond to unexpected shutter opportunities. With the camera inside, this high-grade case looks even more elegant, in a choice of colours: white, black and red.

♦ PENTAX is a trademark of HOYA CORPORATION.
♦ HDMI, the HDMI Logo and High-Definition Multimedia Interface are trademarks or registered trademarks of HDMI Licensing LLC.
♦ All other brands or product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.
♦ Designs and specifications are subjects to change without notice

I tried these headphones from Sennheiser for a couple of weeks recently on my journey on the London Underground to work.  I’d normally use just the Apple headphones, or a set of in-ears that came with my phone, nothing special, but the downside is having to ramp up the volume to cope with the stupidly noisy trains – clearly not the best for my hearing!

So these lightweight, bluetooth travel headphones with Active Noise Cancelling could be a great solution – wireless with good battery life (I easily got 10hrs+ per charge) they paired easily via bluetooth to my phone, or iPad/iPod and from then on worked like any other headphones.

At least any other headphones with brilliant sound quality, and a really useful button to turn on the noise cancellation.  This doesn’t offer the absolute silence some other brands do, but it did reduce the noise from the train to a level where I could easily hear the music without increasing the volume.  On the downside it does remove a bit of bass, so if thats your thing these aren’t for you!

Controls are easy to locate on the right headphone, and allow you to change volume, skip tracks and answer calls…Did I mention these are also a great phone handfree too!  During calls the sound is very clear, and the other person can hear you well – but it is a bit weird hearing the other person in stereo after years of phone calls being mono!

At home you can use them via a supplied lead to plug straight in – so they’ll work with your home stereo/computer and this gives the best audio quality – but thats more a comment on bluetooth tech rather than these.

They are quite expensive, but the quality is fantastic.  The ear pads are really soft and comfortable, sound quality is great for music, calls and movies, they fold up small when not in use and come with a handy carry case.  Consider them an investment – and once you use the noise cancelling it’s hard to live without.

So what do I like about it?

The performance – OK I’m a few years out of date with PC’s but the core i5 processor in here spanks the Core2Duo in my work machine, and as far as the graphics go, I haven’t played any games more taxing than Minecraft, and Battlestar Galatica online, but it coped.  For business/photoshop/online it has performed flawlessly.
I’ve used it to run Visual Studio to develop a few little apps, and have run it along with an external 1080p monitor for the odd occasion I needed a little more screen space all without any slowdown.

I’ve also run a quite complex powerpoint that brings my work laptop to it’s knees…this doesn’t bat an eyelid!

The speakers – Seriously these are great, really loud when needed and sound good at all volumes

The camera – Weekly Skype chats with my parents have worked well, microphone is clear and camera has a nice clear image.

The weight – It’s really lightweight, and easy to chuck in your bag and take with you – and the battery life away from the AC adapter is pretty good (been getting 5hrs+)

It doesn’t get hot in use – unlike our Macbook Pro that will melt your legs after 5 minutes…

What didn’t I like?

Sometimes the screen looks odd, dunno what is it, but doesn’t seem quite as sharp as I’d hope sometimes might be a calibration thing.

er…

Perhaps the graphics could be a bit faster…then it would be perfect…

There really isn’t much to not like – if you a re a power user who wants to run the latest games at full settings look elsewhere – However for most day to day use this performs excellently.  Honestly, someone is gonna have to pry thing thing away from me!

In normal operation it will work around the room in a spiral, and it avoids furniture and walls via a combination of sensors that also stop it falling down stairs if used on a landing.

We found it really useful to just tap the start button before we went to bed, meaning when we got up the floor was nice and clean!
It was also handy to have at mealtimes – with a 2 year old it was good that it tidied up around her – actually our dog did most of it, but he was scared of the Roomba (which we called Jeff).

The Roomba, ahem, er Jeff as he was called soon became our best gadget in the house – You can leave it in one room which you get on with other thing, like sorting out the kids, and it’s there if there is a spill that needs cleaning thanks to it’s spot cleaning mode that cleans in a 1metre radius.

At a little over £300 it’s not especially cheap, but, as a special treat it is literally life changing!

They come in loads of different animals and come with the pump for easy inflation!

Seriously fun for kids and adults alike!

It’s the 23” version of their Inspiron One Touchscreen Media Centre PC.  You can check them out at Dell’s Site by clicking HERE.

You might be able to guess that the big selling point is the built in Touchscreen, enabling some really cool features in Windows 7.  Let’s take the system bit by bit and see what I thought of it.

In the Box…

In the box the system came with everything needed to get up and running:
-The computer – which is all built into the screen
-Power supply
-Wireless Keyboard and Mouse (Optional – Wired versions also available)
-Remote Control (Optional – if the TV tuner option is selected)
-Product Manuals / Warrenty

First Impressions and Setup

The system looks fantastic.  The glossy screen looks good even when off, and the styling of the product will look at home both on your desk or in your lounge.  The wireless keyboard fits under the front legs, keeping everything neat when not in use.
Setup couldn’t be simpler – especially with the wireless keyboard/mouse option – It’s just one cable from the power supply to the back of the computer.

Everything is built in, the DVD drive (Bluray is optional) speakers and screen are all one unit, and with various screen sizes available, the one I tested was the 23” screen which has 1080p resolution.  On the first boot, which is quite fast, you notice just how gorgeous the screen is.  It’s incredibly sharp, and colours are rich and vibrant, it really does make you want to reach out and touch the images – just as well really for a touchscreen!  The screen is glossy, so that helps to increase the contrast, and also to make it easy to use as a touchscreen.

The screen can be angled, so it will either sit upright or at a slight recline, I found that for use as a TV/Media PC the upright orientation worked better from a distance, and for general use it was better at an angle.

Performance

The numbers speak for themselves.  Using the built in Windows 7 performance index, for which the highest possible score is 7.9 you can see this system is a very impressive performer.  Don’t be fooled by the lower Graphics score – you don’t notice it.  The system is very fast, the hard drive is quick and will keep up with multiple applications and TV recording, and the processor copes with all the day to day tasks you’ll throw at it.

Touchscreen

So if you buy this system you will want to use the touchscreen.  I wasn’t convinced about the need for a touchscreen on a desktop PC, and to be honest I’m still not.  Admittedly it is a great novelty, and Windows 7 adds some great little apps to show it off, like the Globe which is like Google Earth, and the Photo Collage which lets you throw your pictures around to make a collage you can use as your desktop.

Dell include some further touchscreen applications, the best of which I thought was the drawing one.  Our 2 year old loved this, and spent ages drawing and colouring in on it.

There is also an onscreen keyboard but you wouldn’t want to use it for typing anything longer than a Facebook update!

Ultimately I got fed up of cleaning off fingerprints from the screen and just used it as a normal PC!

Media

The model I tried came with a built in Freeview TV Tuner which worked via Windows Media Center.  This is a built in Windows feature that gives a nice interface, designed to be used via a remote control, for accessing you pictures, music and videos as well as Live and recorded TV (Yes recorded – you have a full EPG and can set your favourite programmes to record for later).

The picture is good (well as good as Freeview gets) but I was a little disappointed that Freeview HD wasn’t supported, especially considering the 1080p screen.

Sound and music is great – the speakers in this are really, really good.  Plenty of bass and they don’t distort at volume, so good for listening to music or watching films.

I also liked the fact that there are 2 wireless cards in the system, and you can create a separate network just for sharing your media – so your main internet connection isn’t shared down by streaming your films around the house

Conclusion

If you are looking for a new home PC that will cope admirably with your work, games, and entertainment then this is a great match.  The touchscreen is useful for little ones to use, for games or drawing, but perhaps don’t make it your sole reason for purchase!

Trend Micro Online Guardian, an easy to use solution for parents that provides insight into
their children’s online activities to address concerns before it’s too late.

Win a copy for yourself here!

Trend Micro unveiled Trend Micro™ Online Guardian for Families
today, the company’s first product designed for parents concerned about their kids’ social
networking activities. With comprehensive parental controls, social network monitoring, and
Internet filtering, Trend Micro Online Guardian gives parents the tools they need to keep up with
their children’s Internet and social networking activities and take action to keep them safe while
they are using their cell phones, tablets, laptops, and desktops.

“Keeping our kids safe online is critical and parents often have to consider just how intrusive their
monitoring of their kids’ activities online should be”, said Rik Ferguson, Director of Security Research
and Communications (EMEA) at Trend Micro. “The key is to strike a balance between helping kids
stay safe online yet allowing them to maintain a sense of independence. The idea behind Trend
Micro Online Guardian is to provide the tools and information for parents to become aware of their
kids’ online activities, to create an opportunity to talk on a one to one level about internet safety
and identify and prevent possible problems before they happen.”

Social Networking: New Generation Communication for Cyber Teen- and Tweenagers
Research shows that just over one fifth (22%) of adult internet users and almost half (49%) of
children aged 8-17 who use the internet have set up their own profile on a social networking site[1]
. To fully attain the social networking sites’ benefits, these sites require users to provide personal
information. While social networks are heavily used by millions to keep relatives up-to-date, find
lost friends, or make new ones, they can also be popular places for people who have bad intentions.
Risks such as unwanted contact, scams or identity theft, computer security issues, cyberbullying, and
harming one’s reputation are things parents need to watch out for.

Privacy and Safety Are A Concern…But Action Is Needed
While young adults and teenagers are concerned about the risks that come with social networking
sites, they don’t always act on that concern.
• A quarter of children aged 8-12 who use the internet at home say they have a profile on
Facebook, Bebo or MySpace. Even though all these sites have a minimum user age of 13.
• 83 per cent of these children say they have their profile set so that it can only be seen by
friends, and 4 per cent have a profile that can’t be seen.
• Nine in ten parents of these children who are aware that their child visits social networking
sites (93 per cent) also say that they check what their child is doing on these types of sites.
However one in six (17 per cent) parents of this group are not aware that their child visits
social networking sites.
• Forty per cent of 8-11s and 12-15s also believe that all or most of the information on social
networking sites is true.
• And just over a quarter of 12-15s (27 per cent) who use search engines think that search
engines only return information from truthful websites[2].
“There are times in childrens’ development when a little up-front Internet monitoring can be helpful
to children as well as the parents. One of those times is when children are heading into secondary
school and engaging in social networking, another is when a child seems extra vulnerable,” said
Anne Collier, co-director of ConnectSafely.org. “Then it’s great when parents use tech tools for
talking points in the kind of calm, ongoing family discussion that really protects children online and
offline.”

Trend Micro Online Guardian Benefits
Using the Internet is an important life skill for kids; using it for school work, socialising, and
entertainment are a permanent part of their lives. It is important then to teach kids to use it wisely
and safely. Trend Micro Online Guardian provides parents with extra resources and tools to stay
informed. It gives them the ability to approach concerns proactively and to help encourage children
to make smart online choices. Trend Micro Online Guardian helps parents protect their kids against
Internet dangers, including cyberbullying and online predators. In one easy-to-read report, users get
a clear view of what their kids are doing on the web.

Trend Micro Online Guardian Features
With Trend Micro Online Guardian, parents have the tools they need to spot a problem before their
child gets into trouble. Trend Micro Online Guardian allows parents to:
• Monitor Internet activities 24/7 on web sites like Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, YouTube, and
Flickr.
• View browsing history, wall postings, messages, photos and videos (shared and viewed), and
chat logs to help prevent damage to their reputation.
• Stop access to adult and other inappropriate content.
• Limit Internet time and set daily access schedules.
• Block sharing of personal information to shield kids from online predators, identity thieves
and cybercriminals.
• Install on as many computers as needed and monitor up to five children.

How is Trend Micro Online Guardian Different?
• Trend Micro Online Guardian requires kids’ permission to allow their parents to monitor
them; thus allowing parents to get reporting on non-public information while other products
only report public information.
• Once activated, privacy settings within Facebook and MySpace won’t stop Trend Micro
Online Guardian from monitoring activities.
• Once Trend Micro Online Guardian begins monitoring the child’s account, it reports on
activities happening from any location, even those outside of the home (friend’s house,
school, cell phone, etc).
• The online management console allows parents to access the latest information from
anywhere in the world.

Availability, Prices and Requirements
Trend Micro Online Guardian will be available for purchase at a RRP of £29.95 from 21 March 2011
in the UK through retailers and the Trend Micro online store. It will also be available through retail
channel partners in select countries worldwide, and at various retail locations online.
Trend Micro Online Guardian supports Microsoft Windows® 7 Family; Windows Vista® Family,
Service Pack 1 or higher; and Windows® XP Family (32 bit or higher), Service Pack 3 or higher. For

Windows 7 and Vista 1GB memory is recommended; for Windows XP 512MB is recommended.

It is said that necessity is the mother of all invention… The Yoomi certainly aims to live up to this as it was created to solve the problem of how to warm your babies feed when out and about.  For parents everywhere it’s a common problem, often solved by carrying Thermos’s of hot water or pleading with Baristas or cafe owners to warm the bottle for you.  The Yoomi aims to give back your independance – go anywhere and still be able to provide a warm feed at the ideal temperature in just 60 seconds…

What is it?

The Yoomi Self Warming Bottle from Yoomi.com is a bottle and warmer in one, yoomi warms baby’s feed to the natural temperature of breast milk at the touch of a button – in just 60 seconds.

What did I like?

The bottle is really nice and Ellie (6 months) glugged down the warm milk!  The size and shape of the bottle make it easy to hold and clean, and it fitted well into our steam steriliser (Phillips Avent).

The concept is great – working on a similar principle to the Cick handwarmers the gel inside the warmer is activated by the button being pressed which triggers an exothermic reaction giving off just the right amount of heat to warm the milk to the ideal temperature.  This means once ‘charged’ it works anywhere – so if you’re out and about it is ideal – OK when you’re out shopping there may be a coffee shop nearby but this would work half way up Ben Nevis if needed!

What would I change?

The bit I found frustrating it the preparation time for the warmer.  I’m not a chemist so don’t know if this can be changed, but the warmer has to be boiled or steamed for 25 minutes between uses!  After which it has to cool down for 75 minutes (or 15 under running water).  Personally this became quite a chore – and I can’t expect that does wonders for the Gas/Electricity bill!

If you were going to be out all day you’d need a couple of these, it would be nice if the warmers could be used more than once between recharges as they’re not exactly cheap.

The warmer can only be recharged 100 times… So in the first year how many times would you need to replace it?

Would I recommend it?

If you’re particular about your baby having warm milk, and want to break free from relying on there being a friendly restaurant around when you need to prepare a feed then go ahead and get one.  Actually make it 2 or 3.  That way you’re covered for a long day out.  If you don’t go out for long, especially not “off the grid” (If anyone remember where that phrase is from let me know in the comments) then one will do.
Make sure you’re able to fit the prep and re-charging in, and get into a routine and you and you baby will be very happy with this.
Personally we’ve been lucky – both our girls aren’t fussed about warm milk and will drink it as it comes, so this would not quite be for us, but for the millions out there for whom this is a problem this is a good solution.

http://twitpic.com/4cjhuu is this too many gadgets too keep on me?

March 23, 2011 8:30 pm via Birdsong for Windows PhoneReplyRetweetFavorite

@Therealgizmodad

Therealgizmodad

I’m in Portsmouth tonight for work and thought I’d get around to sorting out my work suitcase and day satchel to see what junk I’m carrying around right now. As a proper geek I haven’t let the side down…

Currently in my bags were (From top left)

• Dell Vostro V130 Laptop (on loan for test)
• Lenovo T61 laptop (Work laptop)
• Amazon Kindle
• Blackberry (work phone)
• Three MiFi – Absolute godsend for travelling
• PSP Go – Not charged, charger is at home!
• iPad 16GB Wifi – Why bother with the 3G when you can use the Mifi?!?
• Plus the phone I was taking the picture on ( HTC HD7)
• and a couple of sets of earphones and a bluetooth headset!

Can anyone beat that lot for what you carry with you? I think I need to empty my bag more often! (Oh er that sounds a bit wrong)

One thing I’ve noticed is how good the speakers sound – and they’re really loud if needed – certainly loud enough at half volume to be heard from the bathroom in my hotel (have been in sunny Portsmouth for work) with the laptop on the desk playing some music.

As previously noticed the system is fast in normal use, so I thought I’d see what the Windows Performance Index came out at. This built in benchmark rates the system components from 1 to 7.9 and gives an overall idea of system performance.

As you can see the processor and memory scored pretty well (even against desktop PCs) as does the storage.  The Graphics are the lowest score, and a little disappointing – because in use they seem to be adequate and I haven’t noticed any problems running either Windows or applications.

One thing I did try was running VM Ware – a virtualisation system that basically allows you to run a virtual PC inside another – ie run two operating systems, or separate your work and home documents and settings…. or just run Mac OSX inside Windows 7 on a laptop…because you can!

Are there any downsides I’ve found? 

If I’m being picky it might be inconvenient for some to not have the built in DVD/CD drive – but it’s the future – most software is available as a download and it seems to be assumed that you music and films are bought online too – and for business users it aids system security – but if it bothers you that much get down to the store and get a cheap £20 external USB DVD drive which will work just fine.

Only other thing bothering me is the corner of the case at the front is kinda pointy – I keep leaning my wrists on them when typing and they really dig in – picky I know but when everything else is so good it’s a shame an extra 5 minutes weren’t spent on the design.

I’m really enjoying using this laptop – It’s a definite thumbs up from me so far and I’ll be back in a few days with an update

I’ve got a Dell Vostro V130 Laptop to test for the next month.

The model I have is the 13” screen, with a 1.33ghz Intel Core i5 processor, 4GB ram and a roomy 420GB HDD.

They’re available from Dell starting from just £399 – first impressions are that it is an excellent laptop!  It is really lightweight at just 1.6kg so portability isn’t an issue.  The case is metal, and very thin at about 2cm, keyboard is full size and comfortable to type on.  There’s also a built in SIM slot/3G Modem for easy connection to the internet wherever you are!

Performance wise it seems to handle whatever I’ve thrown at it – so far internet, programming, and Adobe CS5 (trial!).  It won’t set the world alight when it come to games – but that’s what PS3s and Xbox 360s are for!

I’ll update this post over the next few weeks with what I think!

So far ★★★★

Help! When I started this site I stupidly chose to host it on 000webhost.com a ‘free’ web host that is quite handy when you need a site quickly – however for a live system it has drawbacks.  There are some odd things when it comes to access and enabling all the features of WordPress etc, and it seems they are now getting strict on mails sent – to the extreme that earlier today I approved 7 comments and the site instantly got suspended!  They’ve done the same to my wifes site thescrummymummy and so we’ve switched her to 123reg – where we got our domains from.  This seems much better, but being poor bloggers the thought of paying multiple lots of £60 per year per site is kinda galling!

I need a new host, preferably low cost with php/mysql support – the sites not high traffic etc yet and hardly takes any space (last look was under 100mb) so can anyone recommend a suitable solution?

Let me know in the comments – assuming that doesn’t get me suspended again!

• Yoomi Self Warming Bottles
• Betsy the Cow Hopper
• Motorola Baby Monitors
• The Dell Inspiron computer
• And Dells Vostro Laptop – see how I get on with it for the next month!

There’s that and plenty more to come, and while your here take a look at TheScrummyMummy which is run by my wife!

This is more of a warning than a review! I was sent one of these to try out, and can only guess as to how it works as I couldn’t get the damn thing to load any music! The design is cute, but has a pointless case/clip accessory and the worst bit is the lack of physical controls – everything is motion activated so you shake the player to change tracks or volume – but you’re more likely to just throw it at the wall!

You have to use the proprietary software that’s far from intuitive, and there seems no way to just drag files to it.

I don’t think it was a hardware fault as the sample tracks did play, and yes they sound good -and there is a nifty voice that announces what’s playing, but without being able to add music can’t really tell.

Overall, there are far better low cost mp3 players available avoid this one!

I’ve been trying the Slendertone System Abs belt for a few weeks now. This is one of their new products which use a common controller/battery pack with extra ‘garments’ for different body areas.

I was testing the male ab belt (not sure how it differs to the women’s one).
In the box you get the belt, charger,controller and instructions. Once charged the battery lasts about 10 days of normal use. Charging is quick at around 2 hours.

The belt uses 3 pads to conduct the electricity to your muscles, and these are adjustable for different waist sizes.

There are a variety of programmes so it will start you off gently and build up to the full power workout. Each 20min session is meant to be like doing 1000 crunches and the first few times you’ll probably feel it! This quickly subsides though as you get used to it.

The actual use is really easy the hardest part is positioning the belt right- if it’s in the wrong place it feels really strange but not experienced anything too bad!

The sensation will take some getting used to, it starts at low levels as a tingling, but once to get up to level 60 or so you will really feel your muscles contracting.

There are 100 levels, and you’ll probably find like I did that you rapidly build up to the 80s at least. I haven’t yet tried it on 100!

So I guess what you really want to know is does it work? Well that depends what you are expecting it to do! The box states that best results are seen with a lower body fat to start with – it’s more a toning product than a weight loss tool. After a few weeks on and off use my stomach seems a bit more defined, but the bigger benefit is that it strengthens you core muscle groups improving posture, balance and overall fitness.

I’ll keep using it for a while, let me know if you’ve tried one yourselves in the comments

There are a few products out there to do this.  The option available to most people is to connect the computer and TV with a cable (HDMI or VGA most common options here) but then you may also need a sound cable, plus have to move the computer around – far from ideal!

Sometimes you can play your files via a games console, but often these won’t play all the formats, and nothing that’s copy protected.. so what can you do?

Enter the Q-Waves Quicklink HD.  This is a wireless video/audio streaming device that allows you to use your computer via your TV.  At around £129 (£79 for the standard def version) it’s more expensive than the cable option (Please say you didn’t pay more that £10 for a HDMI cable…) so it had better be good.

I was able to try one out for a few days and this is what I found.

Developed alongside Nintendo, the uDraw GameTablet is a handheld electronic easel that works with the Wii and lets players draw, splash, paint, and stamp to their heart’s content and then share or print their creation with family and friends.

Coming from THQ, one of the world’s leading games publishers/developers this is  their first hardware and launched in the UK this past Friday.  The uDraw is for all ages but was developed with 7-11 year-olds in mind.

The wireless tablet holds the Wiimote and allows to to ‘draw’ on your TV screen – It’s as natural to use as a pen and paper.  This is just like what the pro’s use to create their digital artwork and retouch photos.

uDraw Studio comes with the tablet and is designed to unleash your inner artist! Also available at launch are two other games – Pictionary(TM) which is great for family game night and Dood’s Big Adventure, which allows players to use the tablet as a steering device.

The uDraw was released pre-Christmas in America and sold out of 1 million units there, so is posed to be very successful here as well – Great for family get-togethers and an excellent way for the kiddies to draw without creating a huge mess in the front room!

Check it out on YouTube below

And you can order from Amazon and help support this site here:

At first it was too overwhelming for them to choose which one they wanted but in the end with the help of Caitlin, Caitlyn chose a rabbit and George a dog.

They then got the chance to press all the buttons to hear all the different noises you can put in the bears.

Then we went onto stuffing the bears and choosing their hearts, I think Caitlyn wanted her rabbit to be Doctor Who as she picked up 2 hearts but decided on a red and white check one. George went for a red heart and gave it a kiss before putting it in his dog.

Both Caitlyn and George helped press the pedal to stuff their bears and then their bears were sewn up.

They then washed and brushed their bears before choosing the bears outfits. Caitlyn chose a Rapunzel dress and George chose a Woody outfit.

They then sat down at the computers to make a birth certificate and decide what their bears were going to be called. Caitlyn’s rabbit is called Rab-punzel. Georges dog is called Woofy.

The bears were then put in their boxes with their birth certificates ready to go to their new homes.

Caitlyn and George really enjoyed their afternoon bringing a bear to life. Thank you Build-A-Bear.

This week in the Scrummy household we have been plagued with colds again so haven’t really been too cheerful however a few things have made me cheerful this week

I finally have a separate tumble dryer. I know this is a bit sad that this makes me cheerful but it is going to make my life so much easier as I still can’t get over how many clothes 2 little girls get through on a daily basis.

I had a lovely day out with Caitlyn, my nephew and my husband. It was to make bears at the Build-A-Bear workshop and it was so nice to take out 2 toddlers.

Ellie is rolling all over the place and is now never still. It really melts my heart when she rolls to Caitlyn so they can play together.

I cut out petals and Caitlyn painted them yellow (and green)

We then painted some cardboard leaves green

Attached the petals and leaves together with pipe cleaners and Sellotape and added a pompom in the middle.

Lovely daffodils for Nana Cez

Caitlyn is Peppa Pig mad and because of this has wanted to go and play in muddy puddles. We had the opportunity this week and she was so excited. It was funny how many people stopped and commented to me how lovely it was to see a little one jumping in puddles without a care in the world.

Since watching Tangled, Caitlyn has been obsessed with Princess’s and wants to watch every princess film time and time again. Last week we watched Enchanted 4 times.
We have had to find princess posters which she kisses before bed every night and she wants me to do her hair like a princess everyday.

Since Caitlyn was a baby she has sat with her dad and watched Doctor Who, when she was brought a Sonic Screwdriver by her dad I thought it was a silly present which he brought for himself but she loves it. Maybe it is because it flashes and makes a noise or whether she relates it to the TV programme.
She sorts out the Sonic Screwdriver on a regular basis and even scared me one night where she had gone to sleep cuddling it and then coming into my room with it flashing and making its noise.

What are your little ones favourite things?

Michelle from Mummy From the Heart has been running this now for 2 months.

My first reason for being cheerful this week is I spent a lovely day out with my sisters and their boys. I left my girls with Gizmodad and we went to the baby show. I met a lot of companies who I talk to on twitter so its was nice to put a name to a face.

My second reason for being cheerful is Ellie is changing daily and look forward to seeing what she is going to do on a daily basis.

My third reason for being cheerful this week is seeing Caitlyn’s face light up after going puddle jumping for the first time. Admittedly she wasn’t wearing the right footwear but she loved pretending to be Peppa Pig and trying to make the puddle disappear.

Antonia J Richardson

Celia West

Jennie Jackson

Heather Davis

You will all be contacted shortly

Every time the postman gives us parcels Caitlyn opens them for me and I think it took her a while to work out what the My Carry Potty was a first as she was holding it walking around telling me it was her bag.

I found it difficult to open at first, the instructions did say it was hard to open as it is the seal which makes it difficult. Once I got the hang of it opening it it is really easy.

Caitlyn was really funny with the Potty as she says it is her “Posh Potty” she christened it with a Wee and hasn’t looked back.

The real test was when we have been out and about. We first took it with us when we went swimming as it is a short distance from our house and previously I have had to hold her legs up off the ground to go but this time she sat on the My Carry Potty which was much more comfortable for her and we had no screaming like we normally do.

The funniest time she used it was when she asked me to open it and took it with her and brought it back to me closed, I asked her whether she had done a few and she said no so I thought I had better check and she had done a Number 2 which she normally would do in her knickers.

I would recommend getting this potty straight away instead of waiting until you are taking the plunge to venture outside with out a nappy.

The Kinect for Windows SDK from Microsoft Research is being developed and released by Microsoft Research (MSR) in collaboration with the Interactive Entertainment Business (IEB) to support a growing community of academic researchers and enthusiasts who are exploring potential applications built using Kinect.

The starter kit will give academic researchers and enthusiasts access to deep Kinect system capabilities such as audio, system APIs, and direct control of the sensor. Microsoft will deliver a commercial version of the SDK later. There are no further details to share at this time.

Microsoft has deep investments in R&D in natural user interfaces (NUI). NUI is part of the company’s long term vision of creating computers that are intuitive to use and able to do far more for us. The fruits of those investments manifesting across many of Microsoft’s products, including Kinect for Xbox 360, Windows Phone 7, Microsoft Surface 2.0, Bing for Mobile and Office 2010 Mini Translator.

This announcement of the Microsoft Kinect for Windows SDK reflects Microsoft’s desire to unleash the magic of the NUI technology to a broader set of academic researchers and the enthusiasts by empowering them with the tools to create exciting applications with the use of Kinect technology.

Microsoft Research issued a statement today at www.research.microsoft.com.

Each year on 22nd February it is thinking day, it is the birthday of Lord Baden-Powell and Lady Baden-Powell.

Each Thinking day Rainbows, Brownies and Guides all around the world hold parties to celebrate their birthdays. Normally each Rainbow, Brownie and Guide bring £1 to put in the thinking day fund.

When I was a Guide each patrol choose a country and would research it and do information posters and also cook some dishes from that country. All the other guides would try the food out and one year I choose france and the day before had gone on a day trip to France so I brought back Snails and the smelliest cheese I could find and it was a big hit. To finish of the evening we would sing songs from across the world.

The best thinking celebration I have ever been involved in was a big one held in London, there was a church service at Westminster Abbey and then we went to Pax Lodge which is one of the guide centres. We did lots of different activities from around the world my favourite activity was doing aboriginal art! We then had campfire songs with each country present singing songs in their language.

I think on thinking day this year I will have theme activities for a certain country but need your help deciding which country. Please comment below with your suggestions.

GAMING

Unusually this console generation seems to be lasting far longer than those before it. The Xbox 360 is 5 years old, and the PS3 4 years old, and neither have a replacement due anytime soon. Both have been ‘upgraded’ with the release of the Playstation Move and Xbox Kinect which have extended the lives by up to 5 years according to Sony and MS!

Playstation Move – This should start to see it’s first major titles, starting with Killzone 3 in the next week – finally a proper ‘hardcore’ shooter with motion controls that by first reports work brilliantly.

Xbox Kinect – We’re still waiting for the ‘killer app’ for the Kinect, but recent reports peg a Gears of War game and Halo game for the proper games players, and there’s the usual raft of family motion controlled games on the way. One to lookout for is Children of Eden from the creators of REZ (PS2 classic).

The big gaming news is that both Sony and Nintendo have new handhelds on the way.

Nintendo 3DS – With it’s glasses free 3D screen this should be a huge leap for handheld gaming. Priced at about £200 though it’s quite an investment and although impressive there are worries about long term use of the 3D effect (but you can turn it off – but then why buy the 3DS?)

Sony NGP – the Next Generation Portable may as yet get a new name, but is the more impressive handheld technically, with a high resolution screen, twin analogue pads and a touchpad/touchscreen which should allow for some unique control schemes. There is expected compatibility with digital PSP titles, but the big thing is the software support with major brands like Uncharted and Wipeout due for release with the console. Pricing hasn’t been announced, but insiders say the console may hit PS3 levels!!! Hang on, no ones paying £600 for a handheld I hope!

Check back soon for more upcoming tech!

It’s been a bit quiet recently – I haven’t given up but been busy between a 2 year old who’s decided not to sleep properly, and a 5 month old who doesn’t like to go to sleep until late!

On top of that works been busy, and I’m studying for a qualification so half my free evenings are gone between those.

I’m going to try to get at least one update a week out, plus am looking for anyone who wants to contribute anything to get in touch!

Soon I have reviews coming on the following:

-The V-Tech MobiGO

-Slendertone System Abs

-LEGO Mindstorms

-Q-Waves Quicklink HD

Thanks for visiting, if you have time why not click one of the banners to visit one of our sponsors!

Babies breathe mainly through their nose and cannot blow it, a blocked nose can be disruptive and lead to problems breathing, eating or sleeping. To help relieve discomfort, Stérimar Baby gently clears and unblocks little noses and rebalances nasal functions.

Stérimar Baby is made out of the cleanest, best quality sea water from the French coast of Britanny. Sea water mineral salts have been know for centuries for their therapeutic properties.

I have found the best thing about Stérimar Baby is that it can be used at any angle to apply so for those like Ellie who hate you going anywhere near her nose you can approach from behind her and it still works upside down.

I have found that it helps Caitlyn get rid of her mucus a lot more easily when she is blowing her nose and even tried it myself. Because it is for younger children ( birth to 3 years) the spray isn’t as powerful than an adults version.

Stérimar Baby is available in Boots and most pharmacies across the UK. It costs around £6.50.

I have four Stérimar Baby to giveaway so for your chance to win one, answer this easy question – For what age range is Sterimar Baby for?

Please put your answers in the comments below.

Four winners will be picked at random on 23rd Feb. This giveaway is open to UK residents only.

I haven’t had Shloer for a long time so when I got a chance to try it again I was looking forward to trying it again, I was sent the Red Grape and Rose.

I took it round my mums for Sunday Lunch as both my sister and I are breast feeding so we weren’t drinking wine and it was nice having something else to drink than squash or pop.

Our favorite flavour was the Rose as it tasted more like a wine flavour as the Red Grape reminded us of cherryade.

As today is valentines day and it falling on a school night, it is a great alternative to wine so that your head isn’t all fuzzy for work tomorrow. Whether you are cooking a romantic meal or having a takeaway at home don’t forget your Shloer.

Shloer uses only the best ingredients to create its delicious non alcoholic sparkling drinks. Available in White Grape, Red Grape, Rosé, Apple and White Grape, White Grape, Raspberry and Cranberry and White Grape and Elderflower; there’s a flavour for everyone.

Shloer contains no preservatives, artificial colours, sweeteners or flavourings and is available from all major supermarkets. RRP £1.97

Do you think you have the ability to beat an Olympic 100 metre gold medallist on the running track? No? Well how about the running track on “Kinect Sports”? More hopeful? Kinect for Xbox 360 is providing an exclusive prize which will offer one family the ultimate “Kinect Sports” challenge. The winning family will win the chance to test their athleticism, by competing face-to-face against gold medal winners, Linford Christie and Mark Lewis-Francis, as part of “Kinect Sports” ‘Game with Fame’, whilst a runner-up family will win an exclusive video chat with the Olympic stars from their own living room via Video Kinect.

With the New Year comes new challenges, and if one is to get your family up off the sofa and get moving then “Kinect Sports” is the way to do it. You will have the opportunity to try a variety of track and field events against Linford Christie and Mark Lewis-Francis, and perhaps get a few running tips from the masters themselves.

With “Kinect Sports” you’re not only the star player, you are the controller — through the magic of Kinect for Xbox 360. The first full-body, controller-free sports game that lets you physically compete with friends over Xbox LIVE, “Kinect Sports” lets you turn your living room into a world-class stadium, bowling alley, football pitch or track and field arena. See a ball? Kick it. Spike it. Bump it. Even give it a little topspin.

To be in with a chance to take on Linford and Mark, or take part in the live video chat, plus win a 4GB Kinect console bundle, simply enter via Twitter! All users need to do is follow @tweetbox360 and upload a picture of yourself playing “Kinect Sports”, or what you think you would look like playing the game, with the tag #KinectSportsGWF, whilst describing in less than 140 characters why you think you should win – bonus points will be given for the most dynamic running poses. Competition closes Monday 24 January. Terms and conditions apply – see http://www.facebook.com/KinectSports?v=app_7146470109 for more detail.*

-ENDS-

*Competition opens on Thursday 13 January and will close 12noon Monday 24 January. The winner and runner-up will be contacted by end of day 25th January via Direct Message on Twitter and will need to be available on Sunday 30th January to ‘Game with Fame’, with a Kinect and Xbox 360 provided. T&Cs can be found on http://www.facebook.com/KinectSports?v=app_7146470109.

If you already have a Xbox 360 the Kinect sensor will work with it. All Xbox models are supported although older models need a separate power adaptor which is included. For the new slim Xbox the Kinect plugs in via a single wire and should be positioned above or below your TV.

The hardware itself is glossy black, matching the new Xbox 360 Slim, and feels really well made – and probably bigger than you expect!  The sensor includes a video camera, an infrared camera for the 3D image and an array of microphones that adjust to provide clear speech for video chat, voice recognition or live chat in games.  The base adjusts itself for tilt – don’t force it yourself let it do it’s thing or you’ll damage the gearing!

Now much has been made of the space required to use Kinect…from experience I can say this – it’s no where near as bad as it’s made out – I’d imagine most living rooms will be OK, but smaller bedrooms are not gonna work. You really do need a good 5feet in front of the TV, ideally more. You can gain extra space by putting kinect further back from your TV if your setup allows, and watch out for ceiling lights as you’ll end up hitting one sooner or later!

Once setup the Xbox guides you through the new dashboard, which now can be controlled by voice-without having to “train” each user, and is navigated through hand gestures.
Another great feature is Kinect ID which signs you in to your gamer tag on xbox live by face recognition even if you are joining in mid way through a game! This is great for party modes in games if you want to make sure those all important achievements get tracked against your gamer tag!

In my experience these features worked as intended, and really feel “futuristic” – and with Microsoft planning updates to further increase the accuracy of Kinect they’ll only get better in time!

I’ll review the games separately, but in summary if you have a 360 and want to truly see the future of not only the Xbox, but probably your next home entertainment centre then you should waste no time in picking one up! At present the game selection is aimed at families, and between Kinect Adventures, Sports and Dance Central we’ve had more fun playing this than anything the Wii or PS3 currently offer.

Competition closes on the 7th so hurry there now!

I’ve been testing the LaCie LaCinema Classic HD which is a network ready hard drive that connects to your TV to allow you to view all your pictures, movies and music on the big screen.

The model tested included a huge 1TB (That’s 1000 GB) hard drive that was pretty quick when transferring files via USB2 – so you shouldn’t have to spend too long transferring your media library.

The drive can also connect over your network.  There is an Ethernet connector on the back for plugging into your router (WiFi on some models) and from there the drive will show up as a network drive which is automatically setup on Windows 7 and MacOSX.  Of course performance over a network depends largely on the setup you have – with WiFi transfers sometimes painfully slow.  Wired networking setups won’t have this issue though.

Of course you won’t just use this as a huge drive – the point is to load up all your media and view it on your TV.  Connection to your TV is kept simple, with HDMI the preferred method and composite also available.  There is an optical audio out for connection to your surround system as well.

So, what media does this play?  Well, pretty much everything apart from DRM protected content (eg iTunes movies/tvshows – music should be OK as most iTunes downloads are now DRM free).  This includes DIVX support and even .mkv files, the preferred format for many HD movie buffs.

With resolution support up to 1080p you should be fine whatever you chuck at it – and lower resolution content is scaled up by the hardware and the results looked awesome! Some downloaded TV shows in divx looked a bit grainy and blocky when played on appletv or PS3, but the laCinema made them look like the original broadcast – very impressive.
Music wise all the common formats are usable, such as aac, mp3, flac, ogg including lossless versions to make the most of that huge drive!
Pictures are also viewable, and again all formats are supported and look great on the TV screen with some slideshow options to make your holiday snaps more bearable.

The interface for navigating your media could only be described as functional – that’s no bad thing – it does what it needs to do, and does it without unnecessary bells and whistles, but sometimes we found button presses took a while to register, and sometimes it wasn’t clear how to perform the function you want.

The remote included is noting special in terms of looks, or function – if anything it feels a bit cheap – come on LaCie can’t we have a smartphone app to navigate and operate this over the network?

Overall the LaCinema is a great bit of kit – compared to the alternatives it does everything you need without being locked to a particular suppliers store, and it supports enough formats out the box to make it easy to play your media wherever it is obtained from.  Which brings me to perhaps the one downside of all these media streamers…where to get content!

To get your music digitally stored is pretty easy – pop in your CD and rip it to MP3/aac via windows media player or iTunes and the process is fairly quick and painless.  Photo’s come straight from your camera…but video…now we hit the problem.  Go on, pop in a DVD to your computer.  Do you get any options to import that into iTunes?  Of course not, as most companies would rather sell you content they have encoded rather than allow you to get your DVD collection easily into your computer.

Of course there are ways (DVD copy protection was broken pretty quickly years ago) and there are free or low cost programs that will happily sit and church through your DVDs pumping out digital files that can be played on a variety of devices, but the drawback is speed.  CDs might take seconds to import, DVDs can take hours meaning for a large movie collection you need to be prepared to put in some serious hours converting and cataloguing everything.

Never the less, if you can get your media ready to go the LaCinema Range of Media Players are an excellent addition to your setup because once the content is there the convenience is excellent – and just think the kids can’t damage your collections as you can now lock all your disks away!

I’ve been testing the Kodak Playsport camera for the last few weeks.  The playsport is a compact video camera, aimed at those who enjoy outdoor pursuits that records to SD Card at up to 1080p quality, it’s also waterproof and, as proven by it’s recent appearances on Fives The Gadget Show is incredibly tough – it withstood falling out of a helicopter, but does it live up to being used as a handy family video camera?

The camera itself is tiny and very well built.  Everything feels really solid in your hand and the covers over the connections are all rubber-sealed and lock closed providing the watertight seal.  It takes normal SD cards up to 32GB for recording.  Exact recording time depends on the quality chosen, as an example a 4GB card holds about 2 hours of video.

On the camera there are connections for USB, analogue video and also a mini HDMI connector to go direct to your TV – as a bonus the HDMI lead, video lead and USB lead are all included in the package – which is really helpful to have.
Controls wise there is a D-Pad for Zoom and choosing options, and 4 buttons for contrast, playback, delete and setup.

The camera starts up really quick, in about 3 seconds and is ready to record right away so capturing spur of the moment events is possible – great for life with young children, and a built in image stabiliser keeps everything steady.

There are 3 quality setting to choose from.  Top is full 1080p – and the camera is clever enough that if you connect via HDMI it will scale the output to the best your TV can handle.  For most recording this is probably the setting to go for to maximise potential quality.
Next you can choose 720p video, which extends the recording time at a slight loss in quality – but still HD and still looks really good.  In addition, for sports fans, the camera also has an awesome 720p/60fps mode for capturing high speed action in perfect clarity.  Also if you record in 60fps you can slow the footage down to normal speed and recreate Baywatch style slow-mo runs!
Below this you can record direct in wvga mode – maximising recording time but doesn’t compare to the HD modes.  Really, don’t bother with this one.

So the important thing is going to be how the camera performs.  Don’t worry, you won’t be disappointed with the quality of the footage from it.  You have to remember this is not a HD film camera – all compact cameras suffer the same faults, namely low light performance and the quality of the optics, however the Kodak does give very good results.  Of course in daylight the camera excels and footage is sharp with well saturated colours and spot on exposure.  There is very little noise and few compression artefacts.
When the light fades there are a few noise blocks that creep in, and quality does suffer slightly, but I’ve seen far far worse.  In low light the camera does well, and keeps the video well exposed and not overly saturated and the frame rate stays constant.

Also on offer are 5mp stills, but to take these means a trip into the menu change a setting then back – you can’t sadly take a quick snapshot while recording.  Quality of the stills isn’t fantastic, but certainly passable in good light – and this is a camera targeted at outdoor types, and saves carrying a separate camera.

Sound quality is sadly mono, stereo would have been nice as would an external mic port, but this isn’t aimed at that scenario.  The recorded audio is clear and well balanced but the addition of an extra mic would have filled out the sound to match the excellent video quality.

For editing the footage the camera holds Arcsoft Media Impression software which runs on all Windows operating systems and provides basic editing and effects which is handy if you have nothing else.  On Mac the camera works with iMovie so you have similar facilities.  The software makes it easy to upload your footage to YouTube/Vimeo/Facebook.

All in all this is a very strong alternative to the popular Flip video camera, the added ruggedness and waterproof housing make it likely to survive a long time in a family environment (should I admit our 2 year old may have chucked it across the room…sorry Kodak!)

Check the video below for an idea of quality – taken at the Duxford airshow and the London Skyride.

They got us and a bunch of other bloggers to London Zoo for the day where we met for a light lunch, and then the kids were gathered round, albeit full of sugar; for a reading from the original Pooh book.
After this the children received a goody bag containing a soft toy, magnet book (Which is our daughters favourite thing at the moment) writing set and of course the stamps!

I used to get the first day covers when I was young (Thanks Dad!) and they are a great way to start a collection and these new ones featuring your favourite Winnie the Pooh characters are really nice.

After this we were released into the zoo – of course we had to head straight for the Giraffes (Which are the current favourite animal – no idea why though) and then on to the lions and tigers via the rest of the zoo.  Despite the chilly weather the animals were mostly out and a good day was had.  By the time we got home we were thoroughly knackered!

Thanks Royal Mail for a lovely day…now about our postman…