Archives for December 2007
Some shoppers will pay more for greener tech
Elsa Wenzel | Dec 04, 2007
Twelve percent of Americans are willing to pay more for greener electronics, according to a Forrester Research survey of 5,000 people. The study forecast that electronics companies will learn to target this segment of the population, equivalent to 25 million consumers.
The report broke down shoppers into three categories: "Bright" green, green, and un-green. Another 41 percent may care about environmental woes, but not enough to pay more for greener gadgets, while green issues were of little or no concern to another 47 percent of people surveyed.
"Bright" green consumers are otherwise known by the marketing acronym LOHAS, which stands for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability. Generally well-off, well-read and particular about what they buy, their predecessors include those who may have bought tofu from a "health food store" before Whole Foods ushered in an era of eco-supermarkets and Wal-Mart stocked organic broccoli.
However, in electronics there is no equivalent green brand to Whole Foods. Green labels on gadgets are not prominent, and products made by companies with ecologically aware practices generally don't cost more than others. People interested in buying more efficient products will see the EnergyStar seal on products. EPEAT ratings of energy-efficient electronics, on the other hand, do not mark goods in stores.
The latest Greenpeace guide to greener electronics, released quarterly since December 2006, gave low marks last week to Nintendo, Philips and Microsoft. Apple, long the target of a Greenpeace campaign, improved its ranking. LG Electronics, HP and Sony also made significant gains in the environmental watchdog's rankings.
Via CNET News Green Tech Blog
Wireless camera powered by fluorescent light
Juniper Foo | Dec 03, 2007
Creative's 32GB flash player to arrive in December
John Chan | Dec 03, 2007
There have been rumblings about a high-capacity 32GB Zen for the past week because of a leak on the Creative site. Well, the rumors have come to fruition as the Singapore-based company confirms its availability in the Republic.
Originally in 4GB, 8GB and 16GB versions, the card-sized Zen PMP (portable media player) doubles its highest capacity version to max out at 32GB. According to Creative, this makes it the first-ever flash-based player to hit that amount of storage. A cursory online search seems to affirm that, but if you do know of a media player from another brand with that much space, let us know in the comments.
The Zen plays various video and music formats. It also has an SD card slot so you can expand its memory--though with 32GB now, that may be unnecessary. It can be purchased in Singapore from mid-December at S$549. We are still waiting for a response from Creative about its wider Asian availability.
Update: Aside from the 32GB version, Crave UK reported that the company also has a 2GB option available on the UK site. This costs £69 and is not available on the Creative Singapore site. When we last checked, this option doesn't seem to be available on the Creative UK site anymore.
China-branded phones that almost do it all
Reuben Lee | Dec 03, 2007
Talk about mobile phones packed to the brim with features. If you think the Nokia N95 is impressive, wait till you check out the features you can find on some of today's China-branded handsets.
We came across several such phones at the recent SITEX fair held in Singapore and they were packed with everything from analog TV (with built-in antennas) and dual SIM card slots to DivX playback and touchscreen displays. Some of them even sported high-capacity batteries and built-in accelerometers for motion control. The best part about these phones is their price. At about S$300 a pop (without contract), they are certainly a lot more affordable than most mid- to high-end models in the current market.
But before you ditch your handset, caveat emptor (buyer beware) when getting these Chinese phones. They are mostly represented by small sales offices, which make the warranty and product support rather dubious. In Singapore, it seems these units are sold as only export sets as they do not have the approval of local authorities for use in the island state.
Remote with Microsoft SlideShow technology!
Philip Wong | Dec 03, 2007
If you own a landed property with a huge backyard, perhaps the Ricavision Wave100 remote control may interest you. This USS$299 magic wand has an extended 17m range and is capable of controlling up to 20 A/V boxes and Windows Vista PCs. Unlike the Logitech Harmony, setup can be performed offline via an inbuilt IR code library compiled from over 1,500 brands. Other standard remote capabilities include learning function and macro programming.
Standard flair aside, the Wave100 is Bluetooth audio streaming (A2DP)-enabled out-of-the-box with the companion wireless transceiver integrated right into the docking station. Another cool feature is its Windows SideShow capability. This allows users to receive news and email on-the-fly, plus playback photos and music stored on PCs using a large 2.4-inch color screen. It's expected to ship from February 29, 2008, with international shipping available via the company’s online store.
Via Engadget | Photo credit: Ricavision
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