In The Zone

In The Zone

Razer Naga MMO Laser Gaming Mouse: Adding Imba To Your Gaming Lingo

littlelion | 05 November, 2009 15:59

Unusual gaming peripherals are no longer new to us. A few months back, we wrote about a peculiar gameboard that was loaned to us for quite some time. This month, Razer, through their local distributor, American Technologies Inc., brought us the ergonomic Razer Naga MMO laser gaming mouse.

Upon seeing the product, some of us were quite intrigued about the message that is labeled on the side of its packaging. It says “Get Imba”. The most avid gamer among us said that “imba” is a gamer lingo for imbalanced. Particularly for those who are into “World of Warcraft”, the word is normally used to describe someone who or something which is too strong. It could also mean too weak, although the latter meaning is seldom used. In the case of the Naga, we are certain that Razer is capitalizing on the positive aspect of the term.

JVC PICSIO GC-FM1 HD Pocket Camcorder: High Definition Comes In A Small Package

littlelion | 03 November, 2009 13:51

It is not hard to fall in love with pocket camcorders these days. Although they are not as powerful and feature-packed as their larger counterparts, these mini wonders are indeed discreet, pocketable, and easy to use. Shooting photos and videos with pocket camcorders is practically just the same as you would with a mobile phone, allowing you to capture moments as they happen.

One of the pocket camcorders that we spotted lately came from JVC’s camp – the PICSIO GC-FM1. The PICSIO designation means that the GC-FM1 belongs to a new family of imaging devices which is separate from the popular Everio series. Consumers can choose among the three colors available, namely Black Ice, Blue Steel, and Purple Passion. In our case, our friends from JVC Philippines gave us the purple model. Because of its size and glitzy shell, this JVC could be easily mistaken for a teen’s handset or a portable media player (PMP) at a glimpse.

Antec TruePower New TP-750 750W Power Supply Unit: Renewing The Legacy

littlelion | 29 October, 2009 18:08

Think of an article of trade that you could instantly correlate with Antec. Without a shred of doubt, what most of you would think of is a power supply unit (PSU), if not fancy casings such as the Antec Skeleton. The California-based company has been known for PSUs for years, and if you are mindful about a certain brand from their stable, that could be the TruePower product line.

Providing evidence of its popularity, the Antec TruePower branched off into two series, namely the Quattro and the Trio. This year, sometime in February, Antec threw in another range of PSUs into the TruePower lineup dubbed as the TruePower New, primarily comprised of models available in 550W, 650W, and 750W power ratings. But what’s actually new with the TruePower New? Join us as we find out.

Palit GeForce GT 210 And GT 220 Sonic Edition Graphics Cards: 40nm On Budget

littlelion | 27 October, 2009 13:51

Our friends from PC Trends, Inc., flooded us with a lot of graphics cards from Palit lately. The cards that we had were based on NVIDIA’s entry level GPUs for the GeForce 200 series, namely the GT 220 and the GT 210. The most interesting fact about these GPUs is that they are NVIDIA’s first chips which were manufactured using the 40nm process. Most members of the GeForce 200 series were produced using the 55nm technology.

As a rule of thumb in the field of nanotechnology, a lower number would mean smaller die size, lesser power consumption, and cooler temperature for GPUs. But do these benefits really occur in actuality at all times? We leave that question hanging, but we do assure you that it is going to be answered in the coming issues of HWM Philippines. For the meantime, let’s take a peek at the Palit graphics cards piece by piece.

Apple MacBook Pro Notebook: Come Bite This Apple!

littlelion | 20 October, 2009 10:59

In a world dominated by Windows-based notebooks, the smaller base of MacBook users is invincible. They may be fanatics, but we cannot blame them. There is certainly something in Apple’s MacBook that even those who have been wedded with Windows for years would file for divorce and say “I do” with a MacBook. Like the fruit that had caused the first couple to sin, this Apple is also tempting, only that this time, no mischievous imp is involved.

The new MacBook Pro is actually part of the updated line of MacBooks, with a unibody aluminum build that was unveiled at Apple's WWDC 2009 last June. As most of us already know, the unibody aluminum construction is consistent through other members of the MacBook family. With that said, discoloration as well as palm rest chipping, which were reported among polycarbonate models, are already things of the past.

Neo Launches Edge Ultraportable Notebook Series: Sharpening The Cutting-edge

littlelion | 15 October, 2009 13:50

For more than a week, we have been occupied by a series of product launches and events. Although this state of affairs is already a customary thing for us who are working in the field of IT journalism, the level of engagement is quite overwhelming at the moment. We are not making a protest, but rather thankful as the situation is an indication of a good business and harmonious relationships with the industry’s players.

One of the events that we attended just a couple of days ago was staged by Neo. The said Filipino company has been ardent and aggressive in reaching consciousness of consumers from various levels through new products and concept stores. Last year, we spotted Neo as one of the participants at COMDDAP. This time, Neo has launched the Edge as the latest addition to its other lines of notebook computers, namely Basic, Vivid, and Elan.

HP Photosmart And Deskjet Printer Launch: Touch, Print And Go!

littlelion | 13 October, 2009 10:26

Fresh from their regional conference last month, the Imaging and Printing Group (IPG) of HP Philippines focused its energy once again on rolling out an array of printing solutions that is more consumer-centric. Going parallel with the popularity of touch-sensitive desktop and mobile devices in today’s market, HP unraveled the industry’s first complete consumer lineup of touch-enabled HP Photosmart printers.

Posing for the camera are HP Philippines’ IPG executives, Country General Manager Ms. Jenny Sotto-Siquioco and Market Development Manager Ms. Gizelle Villacorta, together with new models of HP Photosmart printers.

ASUS P7P55D Premium Intel P55-based Motherboard: Jumping Into The Fray

littlelion | 08 October, 2009 14:07

The Intel Lynnfield processors, along with the P55 chipset, have been enjoying a celebrity-like status since their debut last month. In that big picture, if there was a character which tech observers and consumers alike could hardly ignore, that would be ASUS. In response to the ongoing hype, the Taiwan-based company had launched the P7P55D Series, one of which, the Premium variant, hit our spot for a closer look.

The P7P55D Premium was not actually the first P55-based motherboard from ASUS that we ever met. Previously, we were able to lay our hands on the Deluxe and Evo. Sporting a black and blue color scheme, the Premium looks very similar to the boards mentioned.

ASUS UL80V UnLimited Series Notebook: Scaling Beyond The Limits

littlelion | 06 October, 2009 12:17

A couple of months ago, ASUS rolled out another bout of notebook computers that are powered by the Intel Core 2 Duo SU7300 processor, dubbed as the UnLimited (UL) Series. This lineup is comprised of four key models (the UL20, UL30, UL50 and UL80) all characterized by their more or less 1-inch profile and brushed aluminum cover.

The name of the series itself connotes that these laptops have something more to offer up their sleeves, but do they really live up to the name? Our answer arrived in the form of the UL80V notebook.

Logitech Z103 2.1-channel Speaker Set: Standing On The Set Of Scales

littlelion | 01 October, 2009 14:08

In the light of the overflow of multimedia content nowadays, it is hard to imagine how consumers, like us, can enjoy them without good quality audio. Hitting the streets, stores brandish their monstrous 5.1- and 7.1-channel surround sound systems at an upmarket price. So in the midst of the towering speakers, there are the unassuming 2.1-channel speaker systems that offer decent performance without breaking the bank. One of them, the Logitech Z103, went to our scrutiny.

The Z103 is dressed in black with silver highlights, and sports a modern design that can suit to any style of its surrounding environment. Its subwoofer, a wooden enclosure geared with a 4-inch down-firing driver, is compact and stable enough that it can be placed on the top of a regular desktop tower. The whole speaker system weighs about 5 kilograms. In our observation, what makes it a bit heavy is the subwoofer’s enclosure. Snaking from it is the control pod in which the power button and volume knob are placed. The bass control is placed on the back of the subwoofer, along with the 3.5mm jack where the supplied satellites should be connected. The jack is also compatible with headphones. The satellite units come with 2-inch concave drivers and are relatively light. For specifications, check them out after the cut.

WD My Book, My Passport And SmartWare Launch: External HDD Array Extended

littlelion | 29 September, 2009 13:45

In 2000, the first commercial USB flash drive had a scant storage capacity of 8 megabytes. Today, you can buy a 256 gigabyte USB flash drive in simple terms. The big leap took less than a decade. Mechanical hard disk drives (HDDs) took more than 50 years to reach 256 gigabytes. Certainly, USB flash drives and other flash-based external storage devices are fast becoming more advanced than ever before.

WD My Book Essential

But in spite of this rapid development, external HDDs remain popular among consumers, mainly because they are less expensive than their non-mechanical counterparts. Nevertheless, manufacturers such as Western Digital (WD) are working zealously to make external HDDs not only price-attractive, but appealing in terms of physique, storage size and features. WD realized that way of thinking by unveiling their latest line of My Book and My Passport HDDs, along with the new SmartWare software.

Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290 Digital Compact Camera: Singing In The Rain

littlelion | 24 September, 2009 14:52

No one, not even the drizzling rain can stop us from testing handheld devices in the outdoors, especially digital compact cameras. Like kids fed up with staying indoors during a showery afternoon, we went outside and enjoyed playing around with the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-W290, not without our good old umbrella of course. We just saw an ideal occasion to see if the camera can get nice photos, in spite of the wet and partially gray atmosphere.

But before we proceed to the actual outputs, let’s start off with the product itself. The W290 belongs to the W series of Cyber-shot cameras, a lineup known for their wide angle lenses and textured coating. Hence, the W290’s Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens has a focal length of 5 - 25mm (28 - 140mm), along with 5x optical zoom and 10x digital zoom. The body is chiseled with fine concentric lines that add to the camera’s looks and improve grip for users, but the other side of the coin is that the lines could easily trap dirt in between as well. In any case, the lines are too fine that one would hardly notice the blemish.

ECS P55H-A Black Series Motherboard: Mainstream Precisely Defined

littlelion | 17 September, 2009 16:49

The Intel Core i5 launch which was held at The Establishment last week was not only witnessed by the local media, but also by delegates from major motherboard manufacturers, namely ASUS, MSI and Gigabyte. Nonetheless, another interesting spectacle that we spotted was the showcase of motherboards that are based on the Intel P55 chipset. The said chipset has been making noise at the same intensity as the Intel Core i5 processor for the past few months.

The introduction of the Intel P55 chipset is in line with Intel’s campaign of making the Nehalem architecture more reachable for the mainstream market. Among the P55-basedmotherboards that we caught sight of during the Intel Core i5 launch, the ECS P55H-A Black Edition, is anticipated to be one of the less expensive alternatives available.

Canon Future Nation Launch: Seven New Digital Cameras In One Big Blowout!

littlelion | 11 September, 2009 14:29

We are still far away from COMDDAP, but one of the fair’s major showstoppers, Canon Marketing Philippines, already gave us a glimpse of what to anticipate at their booth this year. After creating some noise in the South during the Davao leg of COMDDAP 2009, Canon focused again its forces in Manila, staging the event dubbed “Canon Future Nation” at Whitespace a couple of days ago in Makati City, in which a total of seven new digital cameras were officially unveiled.

Canon Marketing Philippines President and CEO Mr. Ramon Arteficio made his cordial welcoming remarks amid the members of the press. And who are those guys on stage? Dressed in flashy costumes, they embody the futuristic theme of the affair.

Audio-Technica ATH-SJ3 Monitor Headphones: Bass Is Not Everything

littlelion | 08 September, 2009 15:51

The Audio-Technica ATH-SJ3 is a pair of monitor headphones that bears a resemblance of the AKG K 416 P. The latter made appearance at the Reviewed section of HWM Philippines last April. Likewise, the ATH-SJ3 looks like a crossbreed between a circumaural and a supra-aural type of headphones. The hinges that link the earpieces to the headband allow users to neatly fold the set in similar fashion to AKG’s 3D-Axis mechanism.

But unlike the K 416 P, the ATH-SJ3 has an economical build which makes it very portable but delicate. It is entirety almost made up of plastic, whereas the 1.2 meter-long cable snaking from the earpieces feels a bit frail. The cable ends up with a gold-plated 3.5-mm stereo connector. Each earpiece is covered with a soft, replaceable padding that gently rests against the ear.

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