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i-Fly Vamp Peers in the Dark

Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: CES, CES 2008, Misc. Tech, Toys,

Somehow we managed to overlook this rather unique ornithopter from our CES reports. Interactive Toy’s i-Fly Vamp is less than 10-inches, will soar both indoors and out, and is recommended for those over the chronological age of 8. It features a built-in lithium polymer battery that can last up to 30 minutes. The controller itself need 6 AA batteries. We have to admit the kewlest feature, however, is that glowing red eye. The Vamp is available at Radio Shack for $35.99, recently marked down $5.00. Here’s looking at you, kid.

 

Read More | Interactive Toy

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CES 2008 Video: All about Blu-ray

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gizmatic, Short Bytes, Broadband, CES, CES 2008, Features, HDTV, Home Entertainment, Movies, Podcasts, Videocasts,

Sony showed up in force for CES 2008 with a bevy of Blu-ray players in tow. Check the video above for a good run down of the Blu-ray technology. Some of the new interactive features are sure to impress, although many of the features have been available within HD DVD for some time.

Take note of the awkward cut that occurs when we ask them about the whole format war thing and the fact that studios are jumping over to Blu-ray left and right. That is when they stopped and told us they didn’t want to talk about that subject. We pushed the issue a bit, but they wouldn’t budge, so we just cut that portion out. Not sure what the big deal was though, I mean, it seems victory may be at hand for the Blu-ray side of things.


CES 2008 Video: Sandisk’s Sansa View and Sansa Clip

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gizmatic, Short Bytes, CES, CES 2008, Features, Movies, Music, Podcasts, Videocasts,

never fails to impress with their MP3 players. At they were showing off the Sansa View and the Clip. These new players show up Apple’s current lineup not only in features, but as well as in price. The view’s new hotness: available in capacities up to 32GB (flash based, not hard drive). The clip trounces the iPod shuffle by offering not only 4GB for the price of 1, but also throwing in a screen, FM tuner/recorder, voice recorder, and an equalizer. Both players are available now for half the price (and twice the features) that their Apple made counterparts command - perfect for the thrifty music lover in your life.


CES 2008 Video: A Look at Toshiba’s CES SNB HDTV Regza line

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gizmatic, Short Bytes, CES, CES 2008, Features, HDTV, Home Entertainment, Movies, Podcasts, Videocasts,

Toshiba launched a bunch of new Regza LCD HDTV‘s, including the Regza Super Narrow Bezel (SNB) line. We give you a peek at their booth, as well as some of their HD DVD offerings as well.


CES 2008 Video: Sandisk SSD Drive Technology

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gizmatic, Short Bytes, CES, CES 2008, Features, PC / Laptop, Podcasts, Storage, Videocasts,

Many companies showed of Solid State Disks () at , but none so cost effectively as Sandisk. As usual is bringing a product to market that beats the price of it’s competitors while still not skimping on features. SSD drives are an effective way to increase performance and battery life on notebooks without requiring re-engineering. Available now in a variety of capacities and price points - look for them in stores or devices soon.


CES 2008 Video: Sandisk Cruzer Titanium Plus, Digital Jewelry

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Full Episodes, Gizmatic, CES, CES 2008, Features, Handhelds, Home Entertainment, Household, PC / Laptop, Podcasts, Portable Audio / Video, Video Games, Videocasts,

is experimenting with doing away with boring old thumb drives in favor of something a little more personal. Their new prototype jewelry is designed as an accessory first, and technology second. Amazingly well hidden within the stylish exterior is a miniscule USB plug for access to it’s treasure trove of digital memories. These are not yet on the market but should be soon - keep your eyes (and pocket book) peeled.


CES 2008 Video: Tour the AMD Smart House

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Full Episodes, Gizmatic, CES, CES 2008, Features, Handhelds, Home Entertainment, Household, PC / Laptop, Podcasts, Portable Audio / Video, Video Games, Videocasts,

While at , we got the opportunity to check out the Smart House. The Smart House is a demonstration by AMD of all the different ways that their processors can help enhance day-to-day life of every day consumers. The Mother/Father/Daughter/Sun schtick is a bit thick at times, but the potential of the smart home of the future shines through nonetheless.


CES 2008 Video: Samsung’s Q1 Ultra UMPC Line

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Full Episodes, Gizmatic, CES, CES 2008, Features, Handhelds, PC / Laptop, Podcasts, Portable Audio / Video, Videocasts,

We visited and learned about their new Ultra Mobile Personal Computers (). They’re basically palm-sized computers with the power of a laptop. Their line starts with the Q1 Ultra, which runs Windows XP or Vista has a standard 80GB hard drive, a battery life of 4 ½ hours with WiFi enabled, includes a webcam, 2 USB ports and an SD Card slot, weighing only 1.5 pounds at a price of $1300 USD. There’s also the Q1 Ultra SSD, with a 32 GB solid-state drive for increased boot time and access to data. Finally, there’s the just-launched, award-winning Q1 Ultra Premium, with a powerful Intel Pentium Mobile Processor, 80GB hard drive, and a battery life up to 7.5 hours with WiFi enabled. Available at the end of the month for $1500.


CES 2008 Video: Alienware Area 51 M15x Laptop

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Gizmatic, Short Bytes, CES, CES 2008, Features, HDTV, Home Entertainment, PC / Laptop, Podcasts, Video Games, Videocasts,

New this week from Alienware is their desktop replacement laptop, the Area 51 M15x.  Weighing in at only 7 pounds, with a battery life of 4 hours (and the added bonus of a second battery), and a rear cooling system, the M15x is the only 15” laptop to feature Intel’s Core 2 Extreme 2.8 gHz processor.

With a screen resolution of 1920x1080, the M15x sports true 1080p to fully exploit the binary graphics - it can switch between its NVIDIA 8800 512 mhz graphics card and its integrated Intel card, which is perfect for getting the most out of DVDs viewed on the integrated player.  It also has an output to enjoy those Blu-Ray movies on a big screen. Alienware’s Area 51 M15x is available at a price point of around $2200 to $2300.


CES 2008 Video: A Hands-On look at the AMD Puma Notebook platform

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Full Episodes, Gizmatic, CES, CES 2008, Corporate News, Features, PC / Laptop, Podcasts, Videocasts,

We take a close look at ‘s recently announced “Puma” notebook platform. Puma is a tightly-knit system for notebook suppliers comprising of the chipset, CPU, GPU and wireless chipset. Similar in some ways to their Spider desktop platform, Puma takes it to the next level by allowing for a hybrid integrated and discreet graphics solution. While Intel has something similar, AMD is apparently the first to offer a dynamically switchable system, allowing your notebook to automatically switch to integrated graphics when it detects you’ve gone on battery, or to allow you to switch manually. I asked if they plan on making it automatic, based on load, which they seemed to think was a pretty great idea and relatively easy to achieve as well. What’s more, despite the fact that the integrated and discreet GPUs are chips of differing abilities and specs, they’re still able to operate in Crossfire/hybrid mode, providing an extra boost in power and achieving some very impressive framerates.

AMD shows us their reference bench system and two other identically-configured systems, the only difference between them an Intel versus AMD integrated graphics chipset. (And CPU, naturally.) With a price difference of around $25 to AMD’s favor, the AMD integrated chip actually performs considerably better in their demo, grain of salt included. The reference system shows off their hybrid processing and lets us see what framerates we might be able to hit on an entry- to mid-level hybrid Puma system.

Puma also brings about something that’s been announced with Intel as well—the ability to deactivate CPU cores and speeds, instead of just stepping down speed. This, coupled with an intelligent HD decoder will bring about several hours of additional battery life.


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