Gateway P-7811FX Laptop

The Gateway P-7811FX is a rather moderately priced gaming laptop at only $1,249.99, just about $100 more than its cheaper comparative laptops by Gateway. Unlike its predecessors from the manufacturer, though, Gateway has upped the ante this time around by providing gamers with more performance power than ever.

The Gateway P-7811FX is a perfect and rather rare combination of high end components and affordable price that should definitely attract the attention of hardcore gamers out there. Its large 17-inch monitor provides great resolution. Combine that with its technology and high end graphics card, and Gateway has cooked up a seemingly perfect recipe to handle the strenuous demands sometimes put on computers by new age video games.

The fantastic performance the Gateway P-7811FX packs into a laptop should put it at the top of every gamers list when looking for a new laptop. It is the perfect accessory to have while traveling or if you are big into gaming parties and do not want to lug around a hefty desktop every time. When you are not gaming, the Gateway P-7811FX also handles every other computing task you throw at it with ease as well, serving as the perfect multi-purpose work and pleasure station.

Dell Latitude E6400

Introduction

It could be argued that laptop computers have yet to become what our society deems a “necessity,” but it seems as if their time is quickly approaching. Even if laptops are still considered a luxury by many, their usefulness cannot be matched -- or disputed. Those who work in business or other office environments know more than anyone else how useful a laptop can be; you can do work away from the office and make the most of business trips.

It released a new line of laptops in their series which were specifically tailored to meet the needs of businesses and increase productivity while decreasing total cost of ownership.

Dell is just one in a line of highly efficient laptops in the series. This particular model has a sleeker, more compact design than its counterpart, the very rugged Dell Latitude E6400 ATG which meets very strict MIL-STD 810F requirements for extreme temperatures, vibration, dust intrusion and altitude. Dell has totally revamped its ubiquitous business laptop line and the Latitude E6400 is at the forefront of the renovation. It features Intel’s latest mobile platform and introduces a brushed-metal design that works at home or in the office. The E6400’s most impressive feature though, is its extraordinarily long battery life, which we’ll discuss in greater detail shortly. Let’s take a look at some specifics concerning Dell’s newLatitude E6400and find out if it’s really worth its $1,239 price tag:

HP Pavilion dv3-2155mx and the HP TouchSmart tx2-1275dx Laptop

The HP Pavilion dv3-2155mx is a laptop from Hewlett-Packard that adds a bit of external flair with internal substance. A younger demographic will enjoy its design complete with tattoo-like shapes that cover much of its exterior. The HP Pavilion dv3-2155mx is ideal for movie buffs and is HD-friendly, as its display's 16:9 aspect ratio comes in handy when you want to pop in a DVD and get the optimal viewing experience. Add in an excellent battery life that won't leave you out in the cold while in class or on the road, and the HP Pavilion dv3-2155mx is a device that deserves a hard look when shopping for your next laptop.

Unfortunately, the HP Pavilion dv3-2155mx is a fixed configuration laptop, unlike many Dell models, so what you see is what you get. The HP Pavilion dv3-2155mx is currently available at a retail price of $729. It comes with a standard one year parts and labor warranty that includes 24/7 support via telephone or online chat.

You can run some games on the laptop, as it uses an integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD card. The integrated Altec Lansing speakers produce good sound as well for enjoying music or movies without the need for headphones, although the sound will obviously be better with them on. There is also built-in 802.11b/g Wi-Fi or 10/100Base-T Ethernet LAN if you prefer a wired Internet connection.

It is disappointing that the faster 802.11n Wi-Fi and that Gigabit Ethernet are not available, as these are options that are usually present in most laptops nowadays. Bluetooth is also absent.

Intel Atom

Intel has a broad range of products. Anything from the top of the line Extreme Edition quad core down to a single Celeron. They have desktop chips, server chips, and mobile chips. You might think that there isn't any other market for Intel to get into. Well you are wrong.

Technology is constantly changing, and new devices are always coming around. In the past year a completely new type of computer has come around, the Ultra Mobile PC. Intel has recognized this new market; it's come out with a CPU designed specifically for UMPCs, the Intel Atom CPU.

If you ever owned a PocketPC, PDA, MP3 player, Personal Video Player, or iPod, I'm sure you have heard of the XScale CPU. The Xscale CPU was made by Intel until 2006 when they sold that lineup. If Intel had a CPU made for mobile devices why would they sell it, and then start over again? Intel said they were giving up on the XScale so they could focus on x86 chips such as desktop, mobile and server CPUs.

The biggest difference between the Xscale and Atom is that the Xscale is meant for handheld devices, and the Atom is a full-fledged x86 CPU, meaning it has the ability to run software just like a normal PC; it can even run Windows. The XScale processors do not have the x86 instructions; they use the ARM architecture.

It's not a big deal for mobile devices, since most are home grown by the manufacturer. But if you throw an XScale into a typical PC, it won't even boot up. The Xscale is a great CPU for handheld devices such as MP3 players; the OS of the device is typically home-programmed, so they are fine with using ARM architecture.

UMPCs, on the other hand, run native x86 instructions, such as those needed to run Windows. In this case, the ARM architecture isn't going to fly. I don't think you're going to get Microsoft to rebuild Windows for Xscale CPUs, plus the fastest are running around 600 MHz, so XP would be a push to run.

Wave Music System Review

Introduction: Bose Wave Music System

Popular science called the original Bose Wave Radio "a sonic marvel" because of the amazing sound quality coming from such a small compact unit. You simply had to hear this system to believe it. With the success of the original Wave Radio, Bose has produced three Wave Systems using the proprietary waveguide technology: Wave Radio, Wave Acoustic System, and the newest the Wave Music System. Nearly identical in appearance to the Wave Radio, there are a few major changes and improvements to the system.

Changes to the Wave Music System

Upon opening of the box first thing I noticed is that Bose managed to keep the size and weight of the wave music system the same. And that's where the similarities end for the most part.

With the new Wave Music System you receive an easy to read, full size 28 page Owners Guide with very clear instructions and large pictures to show what each function can do. Bose also includes a credit card style remote control with batteries already installed, one power cord and a demonstration CD that shows off the performance of the Music System.

Belkin FM TuneCast II

MOS continues his quest for the ideal in-car electronic companion for his iPaq, so that he and his passengers can listen to digital music wherever they travel. The Belkin FM TuneCast II transmits the music from digital music player through a car's FM radio. Does it measure up?

I'm sure many of you are familiar with the tape adapters from back in the day which allowed those with the first portable compact disc players to make use of the new format in an older vehicle. It was much cheaper to get the "car kit" with your Sony Walkman, and plug that into the existing tape deck. These days however, it's rare to find a late model vehicle which has a tape player, and as of yet there isn't a way to adapt new audio formats to a CD input.

Right now the CD isn't going to be replaced as the main medium for retail sales, but flash or hard drive based players are constantly becoming ever more popular. Another format for portable audio is the MP3 CD player. All of the above offer something the venerable compact disc does not, and that's longer play without user input.

Sure you can have CD changers that hold a dozen discs, and some higher end autos integrate these in-dash. Unfortunately they come with size, complexity and cost tradeoffs which are trumped by the newer options. The question is how to integrate these new devices into an older vehicle without excessive cost, now that a tape adapter isn't an option for many folk? Well, what's the other audio input format that every vehicle since the 70s has had? Yep, the trusty FM radio. While not the audiophile format of choice, it is easy to access, and even better, requires no wires going into the car, easing placement within the vehicle's interior.

Crucial Ballistix DDR2 Memory

Today we get the opportunity to play with the Crucial Ballistix DDR2 memory. So what could possibly make these any better than the rest? Well for starters, this RAM runs at tighter timings and is SLI certified. Like other memory manufacturers, they offer a limited lifetime warranty.

I have an SLI motherboard, a pair of 8600 GT in SLI, and an SLI certified case and power supply. I'm not sitting here saying you need SLI versions of everything. I'm actually creeped out about how SLI I have become. Maybe I should just get some SLI RAM and paint an nVidia logo on my head. Well okay, maybe I shouldn't go THAT far, but SLI memory has piqued my interest. Unlike the SLI certified case, which didn't seem to have any advantage over your normal case, SLI memory is supposed to offer some kind of advantage in performance. My first action was to investigate what SLI memory is. Here is what I grabbed from nVidia's site.

"NVIDIA SLI-Ready system memory certification ensures compatibility and system stability with the rest of the SLI ecosystem components, including NVIDIA nForce SLI motherboards, NVIDIA GeForce GPUs, and SLI-Ready power supplies. SLI-Ready memory also supports Enhanced Performance Profiles (EPP). When paired with NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI, 680i LT SLI or 590 SLI AMD edition-based motherboards, SLI-Ready memory exposes advanced performance memory settings.

"Only memory that pass NVIDIA SLI certification can be called 'NVIDIA SLI-Ready certified.' Be sure to look for the NVIDIA SLI-Ready badge when you buy your system memory."

After reading this I'm still a little fuzzy on what it does. I take away from this that it adds compatibility and stability while giving the memory advanced settings. Doing a little more research, I found out that it is mostly done via the Enhanced Performance Profiles (EPP). This is more information about the timings than what are normally in the SPD profiles. It should make the memory "self-tweaking," in a sense. All those settings in the memory configuration that require countless hours of tweaking can now be done by the memory itself.