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IFA 2008
Harman Kardon's diamond-like GLA-55 speakers
By Kyle Sherer
20:45 September 16, 2008 PDT
Sound quality is always the key consideration when it comes to speaker systems, but if you are looking to combine this with some serious visual impact, Harman Kardon's GLA-55 two-piece speaker set for computers, laptops and portable media players could well be an option. Read More
Toshiba's 100-gram LED projector
By Kyle Sherer
23:46 September 9, 2008 PDT
Expected on shelves sometime next year, Toshiba's mobile phone-sized LED projector lays claim to the current title of the world's lightest, weighing in at just 100 grams including battery. Toshiba hopes that the 45mm x 17mm x 100mm device will give it share of the emerging market for devices that can shift mobile phone media to new levels. Read More
New coffee machine joins expanded Kenwood kMix range
By Emily Clark
19:17 September 9, 2008 PDT
Kenwood has unveiled a new addition to its kMix range; the CM 020 Coffee Maker. As well as aiming to be a colorful complement to your kitchen decor, the new caffeine machine features an Opti-Temp function which uses a separately heatable hotplate to constantly maintain coffee at an optimal temperature. Read More
IRiver's SPINN MP4 Player
By Kyle Sherer
17:22 September 8, 2008 PDT
Headlining iRiver’s 2008 lineup of personal electronics are the SPINN MP4 Player and the P20 portable multimedia player, stylish gadgets characterized by their high-quality Active-matrix OLED screens and analog toggle wheels. The SPINN MP4 Player can play and record digital music, images, video (in MPEG-4 and WMV9 format), and supports Flash Games 2.0, USB 2.0, Bluetooth 2.0 and Text Viewer. Read More
USB stick bottle opener
By Emily Clark
19:36 September 7, 2008 PDT
The list of things you can do with your USB memory stick just keeps getting longer. The latest 2-in-one effort from TrekStor will ensure you don't get caught short at your next BBQ - the USB stick CO is a high-speed data storage device which doubles as a bottle opener. Read More
The PC monitor designed to cure the wintertime blues
By Loz Blain
00:17 September 4, 2008 PDT
Have you noticed a decline in your energy levels over winter? Find yourself needing more sleep, feeling depressed or overeating? You may be experiencing Seasonal Affective Disorder (appropriately abbreviated to SAD), a phenomenon which is becoming better understood through research. The most common form of therapy for SAD is light therapy, in which the patient is exposed to specific wavelength lights to trigger the biological processes that keep us more upbeat in summertime - and this is the theory behind the LightFrame from Philips, a computer monitor with a switchable bright blue-lit frame that gives workers the ability to self-administer a mild form of light therapy as they work. Read More
Grundig's latest top model LCD - the Vision 9
00:15 September 4, 2008 PDT
Due to hit stores in September, the key feature of Grundig's new Vision 9 range is its integrated sound projector - an array of 16 cone speakers located in a sound bar beneath the screen combined with two rear facing sub-woofers in the back of the housing. The system replicates the surround sound of 5.1 systems by activating the individual speakers with a small delay to produce directional packets of sound that are reflected off walls at different points around the room. Read More
Philips unveil CinemaOne home theater system
By Darren Quick
02:15 September 3, 2008 PDT
Philips' new all-in-one DVD Home Theater System packs a range of home entertainment features into a distinctive, compact design. The CinemaOne includes an integrated universal iPod dock, built-in subwoofer and DVD player with HDMI 1080p upscaling in a unit that resembles a compacted, upturned trash can – only a lot more stylish. Read More
New Toshiba LCDs can process standard definition content into HD
By Loz Blain
06:24 September 2, 2008 PDT
September 2, 2008 HDTV equipment is selling furiously across the world; it seems every second lounge room now boasts a massive high-def LCD or plasma screen - that, as often as not, is displaying standard-definition video, because there's still a lot of standard-def DVDs floating about the place and a lot of broadcast content is still standard-def too. Toshiba has decided to work within the limitations of the media by introducing instant image upscaling technology on its new ZF575D monitors, which take standard-definition feeds and convert them to near-HD resolution while sharpening edges and details to produce a much clearer picture. Read More
One-step VHS to digital conversion for your old movies
By Loz Blain
04:40 September 2, 2008 PDT
Many of us remember the years when men were men, movies came on thick black VHS cassettes, and a well-dressed gent would wear an onion on his belt, as was the style of the time. Of course, these days we expect our media to be much more flexible, and with this in mind ION have released the VHS 2 PC - a VHS player with a simple USB output cable that lets you digitize all your old VHS content in one step and watch it online, on a DVD or a portable video player. Read More
Sony updates Walkman range with thinnest Walkman ever
By Darren Quick
03:54 September 2, 2008 PDT
Thin is definitely in for the new S series Walkman Video MP3 players from Sony. At just 7.5mm thick the S series are the slimmest Walkmans, (or should that be Walkmen), ever. Read More
Grundig announces return of Audiorama spherical speakers
By Kyle Sherer
23:41 September 1, 2008 PDT
September 2, 2008 Grundig's disco-ball-esque speakers blasted funk in the 70s, and now the company is releasing a model for a new generation to enjoy. The Audiorama 9000 is set for an October release, for an RRP of €1100. The speaker set consists of two deep mid-range chassis, and incorporates a hyperbolically diverted treble system that provides clear 360 degrees surround sound without the “lattice fence effect”. Read More
Samsung's lightweight X360 laptop
By Darren Quick
23:15 August 31, 2008 PDT
With Apple’s Macbook Air firmly in its sights, Samsung was showing off the new X360 laptop at IFA in Berlin and touting the new model as, “fully featured and lighter than air”. Both claims turn out to be true with the X360 claiming the title of the world’s lightest 13.3-inch laptop coming in at just 2.8lb, (1.27kg), which is just under the Macbook Air’s 3lbs, (1.36kg), while featuring 3 USB ports, HDMI and VGA out, ExpressCard/34 slot, a 7-in-1 memory card reader, Ethernet socket and a 128GB SSD. Read More
ELAC 3D-13 single stereo speaker
By Tim LeFevre
10:06 August 31, 2008 PDT
The ELAC 3D-13 is a fully active loudspeaker that is a modern solution for stereo listening from a single compact enclosure, replacing the more conventional pair of hi-fi stereo loudspeakers and amplifier. Designed for people than have no room for a conventional stereo setup, or those that never sit at the apex of the stereo triangle (the sweet spot), it uses a 3D speaker to transmit sound in all directions to flood the room with music. Read More
The Gorenje SmarTable - beautiful, functional and a killer wow factor
By Jack Martin
03:54 August 31, 2008 PDT
August 31, 2008 Emanating from a small Slovenian village of the same name in 1950, Gorenje is quickly forging a name for itself in the manufacture and design of quality and innovative household goods. Its SmarTable will not harm that cause. The SmarTable is a unique prestigious table with a remotely controlled refrigerator and lift, integrated in the table's central cylinder foot.The SmarTable's fundamental value is in freeing the table from its direct environment of the kitchen, in the common sense of the word, and in paving the way for its placement into any room of choice. If your guests were not aware of its capabilities, the SmarTable is capable of a spectacular entrance when its platform raises up with the next course. Showtime indeed, and very clever, and an innovation certain to find its way into some of the world’s most exclusive dinner parties. Read More
The Olympus LS-10 Linear PCM Recorder gets some compelling accessories
By Jack Martin
03:32 August 31, 2008 PDT
August 31, 2008 The Olympus LS-10 is a pocket-size Linear PCM compact recording device that captures audio in the highest quality. It perfect for use on the go, and enjoys a fine reputation with musicians, journalists and podcasters (gotta be a joke in there somewhere). Olympus trotted out an infrared remote control and an exceptionally effective windshield for the LS-10 at IFA this week that make it even more attractive to these oft maligned professionals. The mandatory introductory stunt at IFA was to have a guitarist record a song in a sound proof phone box (pictured) and then play it backed - it worked ... impressive sound reproduction meeting promised CD quality. Read More
The Prinics 8 inch photo frame that prints pics too
By Jack Martin
03:09 August 31, 2008 PDT
August 31, 2008 Gizmag editor Noel McKeegan was quite bullish about the prospects for the Korean Prinics photoframe he saw at IFA in Berlin this week. “How many times does someone say, “can I get a copy of that?”, said Noel. “Photoframes are where digital imaging meets the real world – it’s where you put you most special pics on display, and quite rightfully, you don’t want to necessarily give away the original digital file. So this is the ideal solution!” The top-of-the-line model boasts an eight inch LCD screen and produces borderless 6” x 4” pictures, and can even produce ID photos at the touch of a button. Read More
IFA eye-candy: Samsung all-in-one slimline TV
02:57 August 30, 2008 PDT
August 30, 2008 Among the forest of flat screen TVs on display at IFA 2008, Samsung's 52" UltraSlim LCD TV grabbed our attention in terms of sheer head-turning good looks. While not achieving quite the wafer thin profile of the Sony ZX1, which is under half an inch (9.9mm) at its thinnest point, Samsung's offering makes up or this with a silkily attractive design which looks almost as good from the back as it does from the front. Read More
Wake up to the (artificial) sun
By Emily Clark
12:12 August 29, 2008 PDT
Philips has shown the second generation of its Wake-up Light at IFA 2008, while Lenco, is displaying a multi-colored approach on the same theme. Both lights are designed to mimic the natural process of waking up with the sun and, hopefully, make it just that little bit easier to get out of bed in the morning. Read More
Logitech Squeezebox All-in-One Network Music Player
By Jack Martin
23:55 August 28, 2008 PDT
The concept of the Boombox is no doubt reminiscent to many of our readers of people walking the streets with large objects the size of a sheep on their shoulder, doing irreparable damage to their hearing and conveying their lack of taste to everyone within shooting distance. Those readers, like yours truly, should get set for a brain reconfiguration with this story. The US$300 Logitech Squeezebox Boom all-in-one network music player looks like a boombox but it ain’t – it has an integrated amplifier, high-performance speakers and an 802.11g wireless network connection. With it you can listen to your digital music in any room of your home. There are no wires to connect. Just plug it into a power outlet. Then, using your existing home network, you can listen to the music on your computer, podcasts, Internet radio stations, and subscription services, even when the computer is off. Read More
The Sountina sound fountain – 1.85 metre tall glass and leather column delivering 360 degree sound
By Jack Martin
23:38 August 28, 2008 PDT
August 29, 2008 It’s taken us a few decades to fully wrap our brain cells around the fact that a loudspeaker doesn’t need to be box-shaped with an array of woofers and tweeters and equally, that remarkable sound quality can be produced from a single speaker. Taking it one step further is the new Sony Sountina: this single, elegant column, combining glass, leather and room-enhancing illumination, delivers music over 360 degrees, providing a sonic and visual focal-point for any room. The name comes from a fusion of the words ‘sound’ and ‘fountain’; just as people gather around a fountain, so the 1.85m tall Sountina will deliver amazing music to those all around it. Sony calls it a Circle Sound Stage, and it’s all made possible by brand-new Vertical Drive Technology. Check out the image library - beeeeautiful! Read More
LG unveils N4B1 Total Network Attached Storage Solution
By Jack Martin
23:07 August 28, 2008 PDT
August 29, 2008 Gizmag’s Noel McKeegan reports that one of the more interesting products to see first light of day at IFA this week was LG’s new N4B1 Network Attached Storage (NAS) for home and small business users. The system goes beyond just data sharing and provides advanced integrated data management including a built-in Blu-ray drive and version management. Available in two- and four-bay configurations, LG’s N4B1 accepts hard drives as large as one terabyte and makes it possible to share a single Blu-ray, DVD or CD among many users by creating a virtual disc library. After inserting a disc, the NAS can create and store an image of the disc which is then accessible by all of the users on the network. This not only saves time, but also reduces wear and tear on discs. Very cool! Read More
Sony Cyber-shot T500 now with HD video
By Mike Hanlon
22:20 August 28, 2008 PDT
August 29, 2008 In the ongoing quest for manufacturers to differentiate their product in the compact digital camera market, the feature sets keep growing and growing and the killer app at IFA this week was undoubtedly high def video in digital cameras. With mobile phones fast catching the compact camera market in basic functionality, the integration of HD video was a no brainer and Sony’s new Cyber-shot T500 is the first to deliver in this marketplace. In addition to producing MPEG4 HD (1280x720 ) movies at 30fps with stereo sound, the T500 produces a 10.1 megapixel still image and switches instantly between still and movie modes at the touch of a comfortably placed button on top of the camera. You can even grab crisp still images (1280x720 pixels) without interrupting video shooting and a new ring-type adjustment allows easy zooming of the Carl Zeiss lens throughout the 5x range while you’re shooting movies. Read More
ELAC shows of world’s smallest subwoofer – ‘probably’
By Darren Quick
11:05 August 28, 2008 PDT
August 28, 2008 German speaker manufacturer ELAC was showing off what they dubbed ‘probably the world's smallest hi-fi subwoofer’ IFA 2008 this week. Their 2.1 desktop speaker system is made up of two satellite speakers and the 2010 BT MicroSUB, which contains four amplifiers, (two for the two bass drivers and two for the two connected satellites), in a unit that measures just 21.8 cm tall, 15.0 cm wide and 17.8 cm deep, and weighs just 4.8kg. Read More
Hidden sounds from Revox speakers
By Emily Clark
11:04 August 28, 2008 PDT
Revox of Switzerland manufactures a wide range of audio equipment that implements functional technology into everyday items. Two of its more notable products are speakers designed to replace traditional ceiling lights and bass speakers that double as stylish leather seats. Read More
Spirit of 76
- November 27, 2009 @ 05:10 UTC
