Toshiba is rolling out its first Satellite models with Intel Core Duo and Core Solo processors.
The new M100 series includes a 14.1-inch display, CD, DVD or DVD SuperMulti Double Layer drive, hard drives running from 40GB to 120GB, maximum memory of 2GB, WiFi and a 5-in-1 memory card reader.
A handy Express Media Player lets users access DVDs or CDs without the palaver of booting up Windows.
The notebooks include Intel’s 945 Express chipset employing Intel Centrino Mobile Technology to reduce power consumption while and give a kick up the backside of the laptop’s graphics to wireless performance.
Running on a choice of XP Home or Pro and fitted with 256MB to 2048MB of RAM , the new Satellite M100 comes in three colours, all with silly names: Peacock, Mist Gray and Sunlight Copper.
Satellite M100 Example Configuration:
Processor: Intel Centrino Duo Mobile Technology featuring the Intel Core(TM) Duo Processor(a) T2300 (Dual 1.83 GHz, 667 MHz FSB, 2MB L2 cache)
Display: 14-inch diagonal widescreen TruBrite(TM) TFT active-matrix LCD display WXGA with 1280×768 native resolution
System Chipset: Mobile Intel 945PM Express Chipset
Graphics Controller: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950
Memory: 512MB (2x256MB) DDR2 SDRAM memory
Hard Drive: 60GB (5400 rpm) Serial-ATA (SATA) hard disk drive
Optical Drive: DVD SuperMulti Double Layer drive supporting +R and -R double layer formats
Wireless: Integrated Intel Pro/Wireless Network Connection 3945ABG (802.11a/b/g)
Ports: 4 USB 2.0, TV-Out (S-Video), RGB, RJ-11 modem (v.92), RJ-45 LAN, headphone and microphone ports
Slots: 5-in-1 Bridge Media Adapter (Secure Digital(R), Memory Stick(TM), Memory Stick PRO(TM), Multi Media Card, xD Picture Card); PCMCIA PC Card slot
Audio: harman/kardon(R) stereo speakers
Battery: 6-cell (4700mAh) Lithium Ion
Operating System: Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition 2005
Dimensions: 13.5- x 9.53- x 1.5-inch
Weight: Starting at 5.20 lbs
Qosmio G30 HD-DVD laptop
Toshiba have also announced their first laptop computer with an HD-DVD drive, due to be launched in April.
The Qosmio G30 is part is of Toshiba’s multimedia PC line and will come with a TV tuner and Dolby Home Theatre support.
Costing from $2,410 upwards, users will be able to watch HD-DVD content on the laptop’s screen or hook it up to a compatible high-definition monitor or television via a HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface).
HD-DVD is currently doing battle with Blu-Ray to become the de facto standard for high-definition content such as movies.
Backed by Toshiba and NEC, it faces heavy competition from the Blu-Ray corner, whose hard-hitting supporters include Sony, Matsushita, Panasonic and Samsung.
Although HD-DVD will initially only be offered in Toshiba’s expensive Qosmio notebook range, the company some models in the cheaper Satellite line may offer HD-DVD by the end of 2006.
Background to HD-DVD/Blu-Ray battle:
Paramount To Offer HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc Movies (Oct 2005)
Unified DVD Format On Rocks (Aug 2005)
Sony, Toshiba May Create Universal Blu-Ray/HD DVD Standard (Apr 2005)
There was a time when the word ‘dock’ only conjured up visions of dirty great harbours full of ships, cranes, an angry Marlon Brando and beefy tattooed blokes lugging great sacks around the place.
So long as your phone has a FM tuner, it can be activated as soon as you plonk the handset into the cradle, letting the MP001 double up as a home radio system – neat.
Seiko Instruments has announced their first Bluetooth watch, known as either the BT Watch or the rather less snappy, CPC TR-006 ver.1.0.
If you get an SMS or email on your phone the watch can alert you, and if your phone’s ringing, you won’t have to rummage about in your bag or pockets to see who is calling – the number will appear on the watch.
Now, much as we like the idea of cool high tech toys buzzing away on our wrists, we have to say that this watch looks more than a bit silly – it’s so big you may as well strap your mobile onto your wrist and be done with it!
We reckon it would be cool to have text messages, news headlines, RSS feeds, football scores and other short bursts of info appear on your watch – particularly when you’re stuck in a dull meeting. 
Those clever Koreans at LG are at it again, releasing the ONE PHONE II, a smart new Bluetooth home/mobile phone and the XNOTE TX, a tiny laptop with a built in DMB module.
It appears that this phone, however, uses the technology to automatically switch to a landline and not a Wi-Fi home network like the Fusion.
Packed inside its ultra-thin body is 12.1-inch, 1366×768 pixel LCD, a 1.3GHz Intel Pentium-M processor, Geforce Go 7300 graphics, a healthy 60GB disk with support for up to 2GB RAM. 
Battery life is quoted around a disappointing 2 hours (up to 8 hours with additional battery), although this plummets down to just 1hr 12 mins if you’re using the attached optical drive.
We have to say we’re mightily impressed with the desirability factor of the so-small-you-want-to-pat-them-on-the-head XNOTEs and it’s great to see LG coming up with design to rival Apple/Sony’s finest.
Samsung has announced the world’s first 8GB Hard Disk embedded smartphone, the SGH-i310, which is expected to start shipping in Europe during the second half of this year.
The smartphone seems pretty pocketable too, measuring 111.9 x 48.5 x 19.8 mm and weighing 120g.
Before you start reading this review, let’s get a few things straight.
And if you like your cameras to look mean’n’lean with big shiny lenses, all-swivellin’, flip-out LCD screens with hi-tech add-ons like optical image stabilisation and bleeping bells’n’whistles, walk on by.
Although this approach may not appeal to the point’n’shoot brigade, for enthusiasts fed up with the endless button pushing and dial spinning that comes with most compact digicams, this camera is a revelation.
Sadly, there’s no built in optical viewfinder, although the big 2.5″ LCD 210k pixel screen performed well in bright light and can also display a live histogram display.
The camera is one of the smallest digital cameras with ultra-wide angle lens, and fits easily in a pocket, measuring 107 x 25 x 58 mm (WxDxH).
Shooting in RAW and spending a little time in post-processing produced some stunning results, but shooting at low ISO/high quality JPEG should prove fine for most users.
Because of its niche appeal, the Ricoh’s a tough camera to unreservedly recommend, but for keen street/landscape photographers looking for a rugged, flexible, high quality camera capable of the very highest results, we’d put the GR Digital right at the very top of the list.
You’re thinking of doing your own podcast, I can tell. You were getting all excited about the new generation of digital microphones.
Digital array microphones, however, are as good as the data stream they’re poured into. Imagine my delight to find that the default setting for OneNote audio recording is eight kilobits per second, mono. I found this out AFTER recording an Important Person at a press conference. I have no idea what he said; all I have is a recording of people coughing and creaking their chairs. I’m sure fellow-recorders have found the same.
Vodafone’s new high end 904SH (Sharp 904) 3G handset may look like any other twisty clamshell phone, but it has a cunning twist or two lurking inside its attractive, squared off lines.
If it likes what it sees, it will ask for the answer to secret question (already inputted), and if that’s correct the phone will be ready for use. Vodafone say the whole validation process should take less than a second.
Back to the phone itself, the design uses a smart flip and swivel screen with the large screen packing in a massive VGA display – that’s 480×640 pixels, the same resolution as old 14″ monitors! 
With all that gadgetry inside it’s not surprising to find that the 904 is a bit of a pocket bulging beast, measuring 104 x 50 x 28mm and weighing 151 grams.
The Big Six handset suppliers increased their rottweiler-like grip on the global mobile phone market, accounting for 84 per cent of all sales in Q4 2005.
There was a veritable tango of phone flogging going down Latin America way, with sales reaching nearly 102 million units in 2005, a maraca-shaking 40 percent increase from 2004.
Fifth Media have announced the forthcoming unveiling of their AXIA A308 PDA Phone, proudly proclaimed as the (deep breath), “world’s smallest PDA Phone on Microsoft Windows Mobile 5 featuring Wi-Fi connectivity.”
The all-important battery life is claimed at 4 hours talktime with the removable/rechargeable 1500mAh Li-Polymer offering 120 hours of standby time.
Quad-band GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)