Naruto HD Wallpaper

 

Naruto HD Wallpaper

Naruto Sign HD Wallpaper

Windows 7 HD Wallpaper

Naruto HD Wallpaper

Fantasy HD Wallpaper

God Of War 3 HD Wallpaper

Nokia N900 MID

 

Nokia’s N900 is, like I said before, more of a mobile computing device or an MID (Mobile Internet Device). It could be misconstrued as a miniature tablet PC as even the ones on their way will comply with most ‘mobile phone’ standards like taking and making calls and messages, but it’s really not. We ran a poll recently asking our readers to share their experiences and views on the N900 and received plenty of feedback (thank you dear readers). This is however my experience with the device and after having sat with some of Nokia’s tech advisors, a few of my issues were cleared up and I’d like to share those with you, should you be interested in buying the device. Take a closer look.
Form Factor
It’s bulky, I’ll say that, but not very much unlike the N96 or N95 for that matter so it’s still easy to carry around even if it does weigh in at 181 grams. The 3.5-inch display is bright and clear enough to view in all conditions and sports an 800 x 480 pixel resolution. I just couldn’t believe they went with a resistive touchscreen. But I was pleasantly surprised to find response was a non-issue. Like the N96, the N900 also has a prop up stand that’s placed around the 5MP camera that’s hidden away by a sliding lens cover (it also activates the cam when slid open).

Volume/zoom keys, a screen lock/power button and the camera’s shutter release are situated at the top. A slider lock for the display and 3.5mm handsfree socket are located on the side, since this is a device that’s meat to be used in landscape mode, this would be considered the side and not the top. This would have been very badly placed if it were to be used in portrait consider the speaker (for calls) is located at the other end beside the display. A micro USB port is placed on the opposite side and doubles up for a charging. Speakers are strategically placed on either side. A stylus can be pulled out from one side at the bottom, but I hardly ever required its use.
The slide out QWERTY keypad, took me a little while to get used. I think it’s just a little small but the placement of the keys are, nevertheless, well laid out. In addition to the 32GB of built-in memory, the N900 also supports external memory via MicroSD cards(hot swap under the rear panel) up to 16GB.

While the N900 may be a large (ish) device it’s quite well balanced, the only problem is, this is not easy using with one hand.
Features and Performance
Interface
I am officially a Maemo 5 Fan but I do believe there is still room for improvement. Keeping with today’s multiple-desktop trends, the N900 also offers widget, shortcut and bookmark support for these desktops enabling quick and easy access to all your favorite features and functions. While the multitasking menu set up makes it very easy to switch between running tasks, I noticed that quite a few simple applications and functions somehow took quite a long time to load even if nothing was running in the background. Running more than 4 apps at a time made things even worse. It seemed like the devices ARM Cortex A8 600 MHz processor had quite a bit of trouble multitasking. The weird part is there was no lag at all while actually using any of these apps, even if multiple were running, it just took the processor an effort to get it’s foot in the door, so to speak.

For existing Nokia users, switching over to the new OS will be a cinch as they’ve tried to retain as much of the Symbian UI as possible with familiar icons so the transition isn’t going to be an issue. Good thinking. The best part is you can use any and every part of the UI, irrespective of how tiny some options are, without the use of the pesky stylus. After you’ve calibrated the screen you’re good to go. The layout of the menus and over all set up of the new OS is well planned but the icons and fonts could have been just a little larger. There didn’t seem to be any option to enlarge them either.
The onscreen QWERTY keypad is very large and makes for easy typing. Too bad it doesn’t switch to portrait view because using this handset in landscape is not a good idea while commuting. Another rather serious problem I faced with this piece is when calls came in. The device didn’t really let me answer a call in landscape and the switch to portrait was anything but smooth. Most of the time it would hang and display a blank screen with the ringtone still ringing out loud. Since there are no physical keys I was unable to answer those calls.
Media
As media a device I have mixed feelings about the N900. The music player, although capable of clear tones, dishes them out a very low decibel level. Even with Nokia’s new canal type in-ear earphones, the volume (at peak) was too low to really enjoy my music in this noisy city. The speaker phone was however loud enough to place on your desk and have a handsfree conversation without an issue. The lack of any EQ settings is sincerely missed. The N900 doesn’t have a preloaded FM radio although it has built in antenna. What you’ll have to do is head on over to the App Manager and you can download an FM radio app as well as tons of other useful stuff from there. Unfortunately the radio didn’t really work out too well in my case. All I got was a lot of static most of the time even in locations where I usually get good reception on other devices. Internet Radio worked great though.

I tried using my iPhone earphones with the N900 and all I seemed to hear was static. So I tried it with another pair of standard earphones and had the same issue. It seemed like the N900 was poised to accept only the bundled handsfree as that seemed to work without a hitch.
At last, Nokia has decided that at least one of their devices will support drag and drop video playback. I was ecstatic. The native player supports codecs for almost all kinds of video files including AVI and FLV. Now if only Nokia could incorporate support for DivX and XviD codecs in other handsets they would reign supreme with no peers. It also has TV out support for which cables are provided.

For More Detail Click Here

All You Need To Know About Kinect

At E3 2010 Microsoft concentrated all its efforts (and a truckload of money) to promote their motion controller technology, Kinect. We've snooped around to bring you all the relevant information you would need to make a purchase (or not).
What is it: Microsoft’s motion controlled technology previously called Project Natal where the player becomes the controller.

How does it work: Complicated jargon aside, the Kinect sensory device comes mounted with a hi-tech camera that’s capable of scanning the entire human body and rendering it in 3D into a game or the Xbox360 console.
How much will it cost: Nothing’s officially been announced but rumor suggests it will cost $150 that roughly translates to Rs. 7,000.

When will it be available: Kinect will launch officially on the 4th of November 2010 in the US. Expect it to hit India then or early next year.
What kind of games can I play on it:  As of now Kinect only supports casual games but all that may change if some of the more hardcore game developers get behind this technology.
The launch titles expected are:

• Kinectimals - Like Nintendogs but with cats like lions, cheetahs, tigers etc.
• Joyride - A racing game where you control the vehicle with an imaginary steering wheel

• Kinect Sports - Like Wii Sports but with more activities.
• Kinect Adventures - Like Wii sports resort but with more river rafting

• Ubisoft’s Your Shape: Gym too tough for you? Work out in the comfort of your own house - while playing video games.
• Dance Central - Hone your dance skills with this dancing game from the makers of the Guitar Hero series.

Does Kinect only work with the new Xbox360 slim: No. Kinect will work just fine with your older console. You will however need to invest in another power brick to power it.

What else can I do with Kinect: Besides gaming, Kinect will allow you to interact with your console without a remote. Watching movies, surfing Xbox Live, listening to music or even video chatting all will be possible with a wave (or two) of the hands.
Will I have to stand and play it at all times: No. According to IGN.com Microsoft said that you would be able to play Kinect games while seated on your couch.
Should I buy Kinect at launch: Well right now we suggest you don’t. Sure the technology powering Kinect is impressive but as of now it’s strictly geared toward the casual gamer. Plus word around the internet is that it isn’t terribly responsive. Also unless you have a big enough living room, jumping around the place may prove harmful to you - or your living room.

Loop Mobile Launches Reply All SMS Service With SMS GupShup

Loop Mobile, Mumbai’s leading mobile service operator, and SMS GupShup, India’s largest SMS network today announced the launch of the “Reply All SMS” service. This will enable Loop Mobile subscribers to simultaneously communicate with multiple people using SMS. This takes social networking via mobile to a new level.
Any Loop Mobile subscriber can create a Group of up-to 7 friends including him self. This Group is assigned a dedicated shortcode by SMS GupShup. Members on the group can send messages to this shortcode to communicate with each other. The messages reach all members of the group at the same time and if anyone replies, the reply too reaches all members of the group. Loop Mobile subscribers can invite friends from other operators to the group too. Every message to the shortcode is charged at a nominal price of only 50p per message
Reply All SMS service extends the capabilities of SMS from basic person-to-person (P2P) messaging to many-to-many (M-to-M) messaging. As we have options of CC and Reply-All available on e-mail and commonly used over decades, Loop Mobile’s Reply All service makes it available for the 1st time on mobile. The service works on every handset, across operators, is easy to use, requires no training, no software downloads, no data connectivity nor change in handset.  
How does it work?

• Reply All SMS is simple and easy to use, similar to the CC and reply-all features on email.
• A Loop Mobile subscriber can start a conversation by sending the following message to 555999: CHAT 98210xxxxx 98200xxxxx 92235xxxxx (where 98210xxxxx etc. are the numbers of the friends, who may be on any operator network).
• The system will create a group and prompt the user to send a message, which goes to all participants in the group. Participants can reply to the message – which will also be sent to all participants in the group.
• The group can have at most 7 participants, including the initiator. This service is currently being offered free of cost to all Loop Mobile users till the 30th June 2010, after which users will be charged 50 paise for every message sent to the group.

Cloud Computing: Online applications

In addition to online video-sharing sites like YouTube, the web also offers free online image-editing and video-encoding tools, but it seems that standalone web applications haven’t yet gained enough traction, as much as applications common to social networks like Facebook have. Or maybe it’s the social networking buzz that’s driving online application to a great extent, who knows?

In our cloud computing week , we’ve spoken about various aspects as to how far will people adapt to the technology and whether it will see as much success as far as the end consumers are concerned. In this article we’d like to have a quick discussion on which applications or application areas, for that matter, are used on the cloud.

Now, some people might be using online applications for various tasks and not even realizing that they’re actually working in the cloud. Let’s take for example Google Docs, where we share documents that are stored in some server somewhere across the globe, and they can be accessed and edited by a group of people, from anywhere. We think, that’s an awesome tool for bloggers, online publishers and freelancers alike.

But it doesn’t obviously end here. There are other application areas that are taking to the cloud, like photo-sharing, photo-editing, logo-making and such. But not all are received very well. Let’s quickly look at some of the websites that many of us might be using on a regular basis. Also, feel free to add your favorites to this list, be it for data storage, sharing of digital media or any other application that’s in the cloud.

• Google Docs
• Microsoft Office Live
• Fotoflexer.com
• www.freeonlinephotoeditor.com
• www.zenfolio.com
• www.Smugmug.com
• Flickr.com
• Picasa.com
• Photobucket.com
• Armorgames.com
• Miniclip.com
• Lulu.com
• Writing.com

In the past week, we discussed Cloud Computing with different perspectives. Steve Ballmer, CEO Microsoft, spoke on the subject with a holistic view as to how the technology will play a major part in the future of computing. Then, industry veteran, Vijay Mukhi clarified a few aspects as to how cloud computing could be the mainstay as far as using office documents like spreadsheets, documents and such, are concerned. We even touched upon the topic of the cloud on smart phones . Today, we’ve short-listed a handful of online applications that can be used (or are already popular) for trivial tasks and to avert the use of heavy applications when not needed.

Although by now, we have a certain amount of clarity on the concept, what’s most important is, to know what we, the consumer wants, and is likely to use. For instance, personally, I don’t see myself using an online photo-editor, and I’d rather stick to Photoshop or a similar application that is feature-rich. Instead of using an online video-transcoder, I’d rather use Avi Demux or a similar application which is not only free to use, but offers a plethora of options. Similarly, each one of us has a set of applications we use for different purposes. So, can these applications actually be replaced by what the web offers today? Are you comfortable uploading personal pictures or data for editing or storing them online? If you don’t want to invest a heavy amount for certain software, wouldn’t you rather opt for a cheaper or even free alternative? Is social networking the prime reason that online applications and games are becoming popular? Speaking of which, there are people who ridicule Farmville, which perhaps is one of the most famous applications on Facebook. So why would a majority of people rave about it?

In any case, these are some of the questions which a consumer can answer best, so tell us what your opinion about cloud computing and online applications really is and maybe we’d know where the technology is really going.

Prototype HD Wallpaper

Uncharted HD Wallpaper

Microsoft Launch New Xbox 360 Slim

At Microsoft’s E3 press conference that got over minutes ago, Microsoft announced a brand new version of the Xbox360 that’s slimmer and sexier than the previous one.

It comes with built-in WiFi, a 250 GB hard drive and will apparently be softer than the older console. It's priced at $299 and it’ll be available in stores today. Yeah apparently Microsoft don’t like farting around.
And in what can be described as the MEGATON of the century, Microsoft gave away their new Xbox 360 slims to every member of the audience FREE of cost. Makes you wonder what you’re not doing at E3 right?

Lonely Path HD Wallpaper

HD Alliance Car Wallpaper

Dell Alienware Aurora Gaming PC

Alienware is known for being the one-stop solution for gaming PCs and laptops, and their Aurora and new Area-1 series of gaming desktop PCs affirm that fact. When discussing performance and gaming PCs, terms like powerful processor, whopping amount of RAM, dual-GPUs and such are most common, but, high-end variants of the Alienware gaming PCs have given these terms new meaning altogether.

As you read this, we have with us a high-end variant of the Alienware Aurora gaming machines. It’s common to see mainstream and high-end PCs using dual-core and quad-core Intel Core i7 CPU variants respectively. It’s also common to see 6 GB and 8GB RAM on high-end machines. What’s rare and exciting to see in a PC is the combination of double the amount of RAM, good graphics cards running in SLI and most importantly, an ultra-high-end CPU in the package.

Before we start on the looks part, we can’t wait to tell you about its real beauty, the hardware. So here it is! This particular machine is powered by an Intel Core i7 975 Extreme Edition processor. It has 12 GB triple channel DDR3 RAM (that’s right 12 GB), two Nvidia Geforce GTX 260 (1.8 GB each) cards in SLI and two 500 GB hard drives in RAID 0. And, it only gets more interesting. Let’s marinate on that while we take you through the unpacking bit.

The complete package is so heavy and large, that it’s impossible for a single person to carry. Nonetheless, once we had it in our labs, the unpacking took merely a few minutes. There were two boxes, one carrying the machine and the other had the keyboard, mouse and goodies that gaming machines usually bundle.

Speaking of which, the package includes an Alienware lazer gaming mouse, a stiff gaming mouse pad with the Alien face on it, a couple of un-intimidating Alienware-stickers, a power cord, and discs for OS recovery, drivers, utilities and such. Setting up the PC was seamless, ten minutes, and it was up and running.

 

Click Here For Full Review

New Nokia C Series Mobile Phones

At a media conference held today in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, Nokia unveiled its latest Cseries mobile phones with three new products under the Nokia C1 name, as well as the new dual-SIM Nokia C2 which will follow at the end of the fourth quarter of 2010.  At the same event, Nokia also took the wraps off the Nokia Bicycle Charger Kit, an alternative charging solution built especially for people with limited access to electricity.
The most affordable of the Nokia C1 trio (C1-00) is the first Nokia mobile phone to feature a 2-in-1 double SIM solution. "By simply holding down a key, people are able to switch between SIM cards. This enables them to take advantage of reduced call rates, flexibility when traveling from one country to another, or helps with sharing a phone within a family and still use their own SIM," said Alex Lambeek, Vice President at Nokia.

Nokia C1 owners will also benefit from a standby battery time of up to six weeks, the longest ever for a Nokia mobile phone, especially useful in those parts of the world where access to electricity is sometimes limited. The standard flashlight - often someone's only means of bright light - is paired with a vivid color screen and FM radio with standard headphone jack, meaning the Nokia C1 is as much about entertainment as it is about convenience.
The Nokia C2 features a dual SIM with dual standby capability. Along with the many capabilities of the Nokia C1, the Nokia C2 can also keep both SIM cards active; meaning calls and text messages can come to either number while the phone is on. The first SIM card on the Nokia C2 sits underneath the battery and the second is 'hot-swappable', a feature unique to Nokia which means it can be removed and inserted when the phone is on.

The Nokia C2 features a dual SIM with dual standby capability. Along with the many capabilities of the Nokia C1, the Nokia C2 can also keep both SIM cards active; meaning calls and text messages can come to either number while the phone is on. The first SIM card on the Nokia C2 sits underneath the battery and the second is 'hot-swappable', a feature unique to Nokia which means it can be removed and inserted when the phone is on.
Where available, the Nokia C2 also offers a wide range of information covering healthcare, agriculture, education and entertainment via Nokia's Ovi Life Tools, as well as the email account for the developing world, Ovi Mail. In addition to Ovi Mail, people's favorite consumer email and chat accounts can be pushed direct to the phone via Nokia Messaging. Listening to music is simple with the FM radio and music player, with a massive amount of music storage with the phone supporting micro-SD cards of up to 32GB.
The second and third devices in the Nokia C1 family (C1-01 and C1-02) are both single SIM products, and Nokia's most affordable devices offering microSD compatibility, enabling people to store up to 32 GB of music, photography, or whatever other media suits them. Both new devices bring very individual designs and exciting colors, bright color screens, web browsing over GPRS and access to Nokia web services such as Nokia Messaging. In addition, owners of the Nokia C1 (C1-01) will also be able to take video and photographs using the built-in VGA camera. 

New alternative charging solution debuts

Providing free and environmentally friendly electricity for mobile phones, the Nokia Bicycle Charger Kit consists of a charger and dynamo, as well as a holder to secure the phone to the bike. When the kit is installed, the dynamo - a small electrical generator - uses the movement of the wheels to charge the handset through the standard 2mm charging jack used in most Nokia mobile phones. Lambeek continued, "You must look at a number of things when it comes to power management - such as ensuring the phone's operating system is as power-efficient as possible. Now, with our innovative bike charger, people get even more freedom to use their Nokia without worrying about battery life. Bicycles are the most widespread means of transport in many markets around the world, so this is just one more benefit to be gained from an activity people are already doing. This is a great solution to a real challenge, whether people will use it due to limited access to electricity, or to be more environmentally responsible." The kit will be available before the end of the year in selected retailers and Nokia online and branded retail. 

PRICES AND AVAILABILITY

Nokia C1 (C1-00)    EUR 30
Nokia C1 (C1-02)    EUR 35
Nokia C1 (C1-01)    EUR 39
Nokia C2 (C2-00)    EUR 45
The Nokia C1 (C1-00) is expected to ship in the third quarter of 2010, with the Nokia C1 (C1-01) in the early fourth quarter, and the Nokia C1 (C1-02) and Nokia C2 towards the end of the fourth quarter 2010.

Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands

What you can do is upgrade your sword’s power along with your health bar and other abilities thanks to the game’s new upgrade system. Killing enemies in TFS will grant you with golden orbs than can be used to upgrade the Prince’s abilities and learn new elemental powers. This will endow the Prince with a protective Rock Armor, the ability to burn his foes or blow them away to oblivion (not in that way you perv) with a blast of air.
Elemental abilities tie into platforming as well since the Prince can now freeze water and use it like a solid object, courtesy of your friendly neighborhood Dijn. While this sounds pretty simple on paper I have to bestow some serious props to Ubisoft who’ve included this particular feature into platforming in a most devious and enjoyable sort of way. Trust me when I say this - the platforming in this game will push your reflexes to the test. But don’t let that scare you off as you can still rewind time to save yourself from an untimely death.

While I enjoyed the crap out of platforming I have to say that the camera angles in this game leave much to be desired. There are times when you need to survey the surrounding before you make that life threatening jump but the game doesn’t allow you to do so. This becomes even more annoying when you have not more than a few seconds to decide your next move. I wouldn’t have died half the times I did, had Ubisoft had implemented a more flexible and player friendly camera.

Still it doesn’t make this game any less enjoyable and all those looking for an authentic Prince of Persia experience will be more than happy with TFS. It doesn’t score tops marks for innovation nor does it look as good as some of the more recent games this generation but it really nails down the familiar SoT formula we love and is thankfully not a shameless tie in to the crapfest that was the Sands of Time movie.

Click Here For Full Review

LG Fathom Announced in U.S.

One of the last Windows Mobile 6.5 powered phones?

 

LG has announced the launch of its latest Windows Mobile 6.5 powered handset, the LG Fathom, in U.S. The phone, which boasts of a 1Ghz processor, might just be one of the last phones to be released with Windows Mobile 6.5. Of course, this is only if the plan to relegate the older version of the OS to a "budget" OS on the arrival of Windows Phone 7 does not materialise.
As for the Fathom, the phone has a decent spec sheet that ensures you don't stay transfixed at it. The phone features a 3.2MP autofocus camera minus flash, a slide out QWERTY keyboard, support for Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1, and a 3.2 - inch screen. The specs, while not exceptional, make the phone an attractive handset for the budget minded user. In U.S., it has been priced at $99.99 with a two year Verizon contract. If you choose not to go with the contract, all you need to pay $499.99 and get the thing home.

The phone officially lands on June 3. Watch this space for more!

Hitachi GST Launches Z-Series Family

Hitachi Global Storage Technologies (Hitachi GST) today announced the industry's broadest family of ultra slim and light 7mm z-height drives. Whether customers need a slim 7mm drive that is the highest capacity, fastest or tuned precisely for A/V streaming, the new Hitachi Z-series family of Travelstar and CinemaStar drives delivers on the company's proven strengths of reliability, low-power consumption, exceptional shock resistance and quiet acoustics. With the entire family offered in capacities up to 320GB – the industry's highest 7mm drive capacity in a one-disk design – Hitachi is at the forefront, leading the shift from 9.5mm 2.5-inch drives to 7mm 2.5-inch drives across a broad range of market segments.
From laptops and handhelds to PVRs and blade servers, Hitachi's new 7mm Z-series family of Travelstar and CinemaStar drives are designed as a direct replacement for today's standard 2.5-inch, 9.5mm hard drives. All Hitachi Z-series drives feature common connectors and common mounting points for simple integration into existing systems, and enable greater design flexibility to differentiate and meet market demands for new, thinner, lighter and more robust devices. 

Hitachi 7mm Z-Series Family Highlights:

• Hitachi builds foundation for future generations of one-disk 2.5-inch drives with its new Z-series family of Travelstar and CinemaStar drives, enabling the most cost effective, space efficient storage solutions for next generation portable devices
• Entire Hitachi Z-series family of drives offered in capacities up to 320GB – the industry's highest capacity 7mm 2.5-inch drive in a one-disk design
• The Travelstar Z7K320 drive is the world's first 7200 RPM, 7mm 2.5-inch drive for high-performance compact systems and devices
• The CinemaStar Z5K320 drive leads the CE space as the first 7mm drive optimized for audio/video (A/V) devices such as personal video recorders (PVR) and set-top-boxes (STB)
• An optional self encrypting drive (SED) model for protecting data, and an enhanced-availability (EA) model for applications needing around-the-clock data access in lower-transaction environments (Travelstar Z-series only) round out the family

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

We normally don’t review movies but this is a movie based on a genre defining franchise so what the hell right?
Maybe I’m getting too old for conventional, cheesy and clichéd Hollywood blockbusters because for some reason I really found it tough to stay awake in Disney’s adaptation of the Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (which thankfully was not in 3D).
Extremely loosely based on Ubisoft’s resurrection of the Prince of Persia series, the Sands of Time sees Prince Dastan - played by Jake Gyllenhaal - on a noble quest to prevent armageddon at the hands of the dastardly Nizam (Ben Kingsley). In this noble endeavor he’s aided by Princess Tamina played annoyingly by Gemma Arterton. Tagging along for the ride are a bunch of one dimensional, clichéd characters found in most Disney family movies, most of which are too generic to even mention. One character however stands out from the pact and that’s Sheik Amar, played by Alfred Molina who brings some much needed humor to this movie.

To be honest Gylllenhaal nearly pulled off the charming, brash and suave prince we’ve come to know from the Sands of Time (the game). He also brought in this devil may care attitude to the mix that was appreciated. Princess Tamina on the other hand came across as an extremely whiny little damsel in distress who I personally hoped met a grisly end. But alas that didn’t happen, this being a stupid PG rated movie and all. In fact a huge part of me died with the whole PG rating as most action sequences were too tame for my tastes. No I wasn’t expecting a blood fest like 300 but you can still pull off a battle scene without catering to just five year olds you know.

Also for some reason I think the director got his games mixed up. You’re making Prince of Persia man, not Assassin’s Creed (AC). What was up with the excessive amount of free running, some of which was pretty much lifted straight from AC? I was expecting more wall running and definitely more usage of the Sands of Time themselves. I’m talking slowing time down, freezing enemies or any other cool visual tricks the movie could have implemented. Instead I got a few measly time rewinds and Jake Gylanhall running around semi topless doing CG somersaults – and free running for two hours (now I know why women liked this movie). Oh and the CG in this movie was not bad per say but it really paled in comparison to some of the stuff we’ve seen in recent times.

Contrary to what this review may make you believe I am not the Citizen Kane loving kind and I really don’t expect movies like Prince of Persia to rock my world. What pisses me of is the fact that everything in this movie is so painfully clichéd it made me sick to my stomach. I went in there expecting a mindless yet entertaining game to movie adaptation. What I got was mindless yes, but a barely entertaining Disney flick that probably gave me diabetes with its saccharine sweet treatment to the whole franchise.

ULV Laptops-How Are They Different?

ULV laptops have been around for a while, and recently, they've gained immense popularity. These machines came about as a new category of ultra-portables that are very light in weight, hence easy to carry, and they offer the same size and usability that standard laptops do. What makes all this possible is the use of ultra-low voltage processors such as those belonging to Intel’s CULV (Consumer Ultra-low Voltage) platform and AMD’s Turion series of processors. These processors need very little power, which helps to conserve battery resources. Also, since they emit less heat, they require less-intensive cooling solutions. Now, some buyers confuse ULV laptops with netbooks, perhaps because both are light in weight, easy to carry and offer excellent battery life.

Netbook or ULV laptop?
Well here are the major differences, netbooks use Intel Atom processors, which are different from ULV processors. Now, it’s nice to see this new category; as it has gotten rid of the fine line (and perhaps also the confusion) between a netbook and an ultra-portable laptop. Here’s what we’d say: if a machine measures less than 11.6-inch and has an Intel Atom processor, it’s a netbook, period! Though some manufactures tout their slick, light, stylish and Atom-powered machines as ‘Notebooks’. If an Atom-powered portable measures 13-inch (that’s pushing the netbook category actually) and weighs merely a kilogram or so, it’s a netbook. This is where the netbook category ends and ULV laptop category starts, except that there are smaller ULV laptops too.

Coming back to our main subject, ULV laptops are mainly intended for students and professionals, who want a computer that is super-convenient to carry, offers excellent battery backup and performs almost as well as a standard entry-level laptop. This might seem too much to expect, but ULV laptops are capable of offering just that, which is why they are slightly more expensive than standard laptops. So if you want a feather-weight machine that lets you run office applications seamlessly, playback stutter-free videos, work with spreadsheets, surf the Internet, and such, choose one of the ULVs. When it comes to their overall size, they are not vastly different from the standard 2 kg laptops. Even in terms of other hardware, they feature roomy hard drives, 14-inch screens, three USB ports (some have four), common options for display and connectivity, and so on. The only differences are in weight, thickness, and overall aesthetics. Some ULV laptops weigh as little as 1.4 kg, and some even measure less than an inch in thickness.

Although they are well-equipped for daily computing tasks, one major point you want to consider is the absence of an optical drive. So the slickness and light weight aren’t the only obvious traits of a ULV laptop. There are good reasons as to why optical drives are uncommon in these portables. They involve moving parts that need significant power, and this causes them to drain battery resources, which defeats the major purpose of laptops in this category. Secondly, optical drives require the unit to be of certain thickness, which usually spoils the slimness. Lastly, manufacturers try their best to keep the weight of these machines to the minimum, and adding an optical drive would do the opposite. One might argue that even hard drives have moving parts, so they should be replaced with SSDs (Solid State Drives). True. That’s a good way to conserve power and get superb read/write speed, but there’s one major hitch. SSDs are expensive and so are ULV processors, so the former would add to the cost, making these laptops almost unaffordable. However, similar to the case of processors, the price of SSDs will eventually drop, which will make their use in these laptops more common, hence making these laptops even more power efficient and affordable.
In terms of performance, these laptops can’t be compared to the portable workhorses that are capable of intensive number crunching. They aren’t meant for running high-end applications or performing intensive computing tasks such as video-editing, high-end graphics or gaming. However, the use of discrete graphics, which lets you enjoy light entertainment such as watching high-quality movies, is becoming increasingly common in these machines.

What’s your take?
What’s most obvious to me is that, these machines are meant for people who prefer slickness, light-weightiness and sexy looks of a laptop over powerful number-crunching capability. Also, people wouldn’t mind spending a few thousand rupees extra  to own a laptop that looks really classy, has a standard 13 or 14-inch screen, is super-convenient to carry, and offers very good battery backup. A premium on the price front for all of this is not bad, don’t you think? What’s your take, would you prefer a 15-inch Intel Core i3 laptop weighing about 2.8 kgs for less than 40K, or a ULV laptop costing almost 50K?