Archives for March 2006
HP phases out iPaq hx4700 from AP
Reuben Lee | Mar 21, 2006
After nearly 1.5 years, HP's flagship PDA, the iPaq hx4700, is calling it a day. Much like its digicam counterpart’s departure from the Asia-Pacific markets, the company has announced that it will be phasing out the handheld in the region before the end of Q1, 2006.
Reprieve has been given for owners in Singapore, however. HP Singapore has assured that it will continue to support the hx4700, including the release of Windows Mobile 5.0 upgrade kits in Asian languages (Korean, Japanese, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese) within the next few months. It also confirmed that while the company is constantly monitoring market trends and consumer demands for PDA-phones, HP will continue to introduce dedicated handhelds (those without cellular functions) such as the rx1950.
UltraCell UC25
Juniper Foo | Mar 21, 2006
Fuel cells have been on the edge of commercialization ever so long. Now, finally, close to the finishing line is fuel cell developer UltracCell. Its UC25 deploys readily available, low-cost methanol fuel in a compact package, and features twice the energy density of Lithium batteries at 25 watts of continuous power. In short, that means you can get nearly two days of juice for your laptop. What's excellent is that spent fuel canisters can be instantly hotswapped as needed, while the UC25 doubles as a portable recharging power hub anytime, anywhere. Happily, commercial rollout is happening end of this year.
Get close up
Price: N.A.
Availability: End 2006
Device: Methanol rechargeable battery
Basic specs: Up to 25 watts of continuous power, 40oz, about size of paperback novel
Sony debuts HDMI in 2006-2007 A/V receiver lineup
Philip Wong | Mar 20, 2006
Getting ear fatigue from the puny sounds offered by your home-theater-in-a-box and eyeing a component-level equipment upgrade? Check out the upcoming 2006-2007 range of Sony A/V receivers (AVR). There are five models available, starting from the high-end STR-DG800 to the entry-level STR-DE400.
Common features include proprietary Digital Cinema Auto Calibration, 32-bit digital signal processor for surround sound decoding, Digital Cinema Sound, adjustable lip synchronization (A/V Sync), High-Definition-compatible component-video switching and multifunctional remote controller.
The STR-DG800 and DG700 also come with HDMI switching and component-video upscaling capabilities for a complete one-cable HD connectivity. Here's a snapshot of the availability and pricing of the five models heading for Asia.
|
Model |
Pricing |
Launch date |
Availability |
TBA
|
May
|
Thailand, Hong Kong and Taiwan
|
|
S$599 (US$394.08)
|
TBA
|
Singapore |
|
TBA
|
March
|
Thailand and Hong Kong
|
|
S$499 (US$328.29)
|
March
|
Singapore, Korea, Taiwan and Malaysia
|
|
S$399 (US$262.50)
|
TBA
|
Singapore, Korea, Taiwan and Malaysia
|
Above pricing is applicable for only the Singapore market.Lithium Sulfur rechargeable battery
Juniper Foo | Mar 20, 2006
Your next power source might well come with the acronym Li-S. Sion Power reckons its new Lithium-Sulfur batteries will deliver better batteries for tomorrow's tech devices. It's shown that a single charge of Li-S can keep an HP TC1000 tablet PC going an entire day. No mean feat there considering even the most hardy notebook battery konks out after a marathon 6 hours. The good news: Intel is apparently working with Sion Power to incorporate Li-S as a key ingredient in notebook PC batteries. The not-so-good news: It's much heavier than Lithium-ion and lasts up to only 60 recharge cycles. Hopefully, by the time commerical production revs up in early 2008, these shortfalls will be addressed.
See big image | size relative to coin
Price: N.A.
Availability: H1 2008
Device: Rechargeable battery
Basic specs: 11 x 35 x 55mm, 2.2Ah cell, specific energy of 350 watt hours per kg
PSP powers up 
Edvarcl Heng | Mar 17, 2006
On March 22, the Japanese giant will finally be lowering the price (formerly US$249) on the mini gaming beast down to 199 euros and US$199 in Europe and US, respectively for the console alone. This will effectively lower the entry barrier for potential PSP fans and increase the gaming console's competitiveness against Nintendo's new DS Lite.
According to Sony, the same price reduction will apply to Asia-Pacific markets though the PSP will only be available as part of a bundled package rather than a standalone purchase. At press time, Sony could confirm the pricing only for Hong Kong: HK$1,780 for the PSP Value Pack (32MB Memory Stick PRO DUO; pouch; ear phones with remote control; USB cable; cleaning cloth; display stand; AC Adaptor; Battery Pack) and HK$2,180 for the Giga Pack with the difference being a 1GB Memory Stick PRO DUO instead of the 32MB version.
For homebrew fans, Sony will be offering an alternative download service for old PlayStation games specially emulated for the PSP. Sony has also announced that the device will be able to play games made with version 6 of Macromedia Flash though oddly the built-in Internet browser does not play Flash content. The PSP will support RSS channel functions.
If you were wishing for a touchscreen-like navigation similar to the Nintendo DS on the PSP, Sony goes one up better with a camera attachment (to be named the EyeToy) that can add motion tracking to future games and support video VoIP. A GPS receiver is also on the cards.
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