The Zone

An interesting video just popped up today showing how USB flash drives are made. Thanks to some lucky journalists who managed to gain permission to record the plant's workings, we get to see how these drives can be affordable, and its all thanks to volume! Even if its eight minutes long, one should check it out to see the huge production scale, its truly awe-inspiring.

As accidents and deaths from texting while driving arises, someone somewhere has gotten bored of cleaning up after the victims and produced the video above as a deterrent. Its rather real and graphic, and as such, the shock value will definitely hit drivers for the first few months when the ad is shown, although its long-term effects are still debatable. Somehow, our own road safety ads are much more artistic than this gore-fest, don't you think?

From left to right; Li Chang , Deputy Secretary General of the Taipei Computer Association and Walter Yeh, Executive Vice President of TAITRA answering questions from the media during a press conference about the upcoming COMPUTEX TAIPEI 2009

Computex Taipei 2009 is going strong despite the current global economic downturn. Taking place from 2^nd to 6^th June at the Taipei World Trade Center (TWTC) Nangang Exhibition Halls and Taipei International Convention Center (TICC), the show will host 1700 exhibitors using 4600 booths to showcase their best products and solutions and is expected to attract 35,000 international buyers. Products from wide-ranging categories will be found in such dedicated areas as Components & Parts, Data Storage Devices, Software, Computer Systems, Peripherals and Displays & Digital Entertainment Products. This year’s show will also feature a 700-booth WiMAX & Communication Products area to paint a clearer picture of a more wireless future.

The Computex 2009 show is expected to be an important technology and product launch platform for numerous IT giants such as Intel, AMD, ASUS and Acer. Two “New Product Launch Sites” both located in TWTC Nangang Exhibition Hall and Hall 1 will be set up to accommodate the growing needs of exhibitors from home and abroad to stage their new products. Altogether 40 companies are to demonstrate their new products in these dedicated areas. This new service can also help buyers and the media to easily discover the hottest products and latest trends.

Another highlight of this year's event is the dedicated pavilion for China, a driving force in the computing market, thanks to the country's vast resources as well as manufacturing abilities. Computex 2009 will feature a dedicated area where wares and services from 100 Chinese companies will be showcased, in a total area that spans 200 booth spaces. It is definitely a show not to be missed!

Transcend has proudly announced that its StoreJet 25M and StoreJet 25C portable hard drives have been awarded the prestigious "Red Dot" award for excellent design quality by the International Jury of 2009 Red Dot design competition. The judges commented favorably on the StoreJet 25M's superior shockproof design concept that incorporates an attractive anti-slip silicone outer shell and advanced military grade anti-shock technology - a combination that not only offers excellent protection against impact damage, but also prevents the drive from slipping or falling in the first place. The eye-catching StoreJet 25C was praised for its luxurious polished stainless steel case with piano-gloss finish connection panel that makes it a truly fashionable piece of technology. The judges also noted that the distinctive textured backing of the StoreJet 25C not only provides a stable non-slip base for resting the drive on a table, but also added character and enhanced tactile feel.

Unlike other LED manufacturers, Samsung made an outstanding effort to make its LEDs stand out, as evidenced in this video. Whether the video is digitally enhanced or not still stands open for discussion, although its funny effects will definitely lighten up your day

We finally managed to get our hands on one of those miniscule projectors that you can fit into your pocket. As you can see above, it really is small enough to fit into your pocket. From the few test spins that we've taken we've managed to ascertain that the RCG Virtual Vision 5100 Pocket Projector has a built-in fan (so it should stay cooler than its fan-less compatriots), its based on a 10 Lumens LED lamp (so it should save oodles on electricity) and on top of having a built-in speaker also has touch-sensitive controls. For a full review check it out in the latest issue of HWM.

It's that time of the year again, and with the advent of Christmas, PIKOM's PC Fair proved to be another hunting ground for computer users looking forward to great bargains on tech products as well as computer components. The highlight of this edition of the Fair would definitely be the digital camera bargains as well as really affordable memory and storage products on offers. Antivirus companies were duking it out too in an effort to boost sales with licences going as low as RM40 per year! Check out more happenings and also our booth babe coverage after the jump!

HWM was recently in Singapore to check out LG's Perfectly Tuned with Mark Levinson. Showcasing sound systems tuned by audiophile and sound guru Mark Levinson, LG opened up their event in high fashion. Although dubbed as the Golden Ear, Mr. Mark Levinson scoffed at his own title and proceeded to give members of the press a taste of truly awesome sound using a mixture of Burwen Bobcat and LG's tuned sound systems. For a more in depth report check it out later in HWM. If you think you've got better 'Golden Ears' then go to the jump below for a chance to win some LG merchandise.

http://lggoldenears.com/

Not to be contended with televisions, singer/songwriter/model/extraordinare Bjork has made up her mind about televisions; the little streets in them look beautiful! Look at how she takes apart her own CRT (and manages to not get shocked by the bunchful of capacitors in there) and explains on how they work! A must-watch.

Last week, Pioneer had a regional launch in Singapore for their upcoming second generation Kuro plasma TVs, which also marks the introduction of their 9th generation Plasmas to the market. We didn't manage to publish this on time for the November issue of HWM, so why not tease you with some of the images from the launch itself? The new Kuro TVs sport even deeper blacks than the previous-gen televisions, and one should certainly see them in action - seeing is believing, its what they say with the Kuro! Although Pioneer did not refresh the smaller 42" market, we saw a new 60" Kuro that boasts some really juicy specs, as below;

Full HD 1920x1080 resolution with 24p capability, Enhanced Optimum Mode - a seperate white balance probe can be purchased for on-the-fly claibration of both room darkness and hue, Five times the darkness as compared to previous Kuro models, a 100000:1 contrast ratio and the capability to blow your mind.

More images after the jump!

For the uninitiated, Logitech does not only make computer peripherals, trick audio systems and de facto standard racing wheels, they also manufactuer cool remotes which literally becomes the One Remote you'll ever need. More after the jump!

Why is this post all about cars? At HWM, we do have our own car nuts who love cars, and being technology lovers ourselves, the invitation to Detroit Electric's electric car introduction today was one of the greater pleasures in life when work meshes with our hobby. More details and videos to come in a later post!Pictures after the jump!

Cool, isn't it? No matter what, you MUST buy it as its made by Norris Labs. Chuck Norris, geddit?

Phew! What a tiring weekend it was at the second PIKOM PC Fair of the year! With more bargains ranging from USB flashdrives to monitors, printers, and even notebooks now, it really is a place to go to if you're needing new tech toys. Here's a photo compilation of what we saw over the weekend! Hit the jump for more images. 

Times are hard on me

There is nothing but a mess

Of TVs and DVDs

LOL

Look out for the review of the Pioneer DVR DVD recorder in next month's HWM!