Here’s the conclusion of the Yamaha YSP-1 speaker system review, following on from yesterday’s first instalment. 
The geek bit
The technology behind the YSP-1 is similar to how modern radar systems work using phased arrays. These work by using lots of little speakers (or radars) and combining their outputs to steer the beams (by phase shifting the output of each speaker). So although the sound originates from a single unit, the ear puts all the sounds back together again in such a way that it “hears” different beams coming from different parts of the room. It’s all very complicated maths, but it works.
YSP-800 and YSP-1000
The biggest criticism of the YSP-1 must be the set-up, it’s complicated and takes considerable time to get right. Yamaha have taken this into consideration and the next generation of sound projectors come with a microphone and an auto-set-up feature.
The YSP-800 is designed for 32″ inch systems and will retail for £600 (~$1,126,~e878), while the YSP-1000 is a replacement for the YSP-1 offering the same basic unit with the added microphone for easy set-up/tuning.
Tech specs
120W of multi-channel sound produced from a unit about 42″ across with 42 speakers inside (2 bass speakers and 40 small speakers that steer the beams). 3 digital inputs (2 optical and 1 co-ax), stereo input and sub-woofer output. Decodes Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS.
Recommendations
Sound Quality 8/10 it really does give you multi-channel sound from a single unit.
Ease of Set-up 5/10 the main gripe of the YSP-1, though vastly improved with the newer models.
Overall 7/10 you can get better quality by installing multiple speakers and a decent amplifier, but wiring it all is a complete pain. The YSP-1 really does make it easy though it still doesn’t completely remove the need for connecting wires, at least there’s only one set.
Yamaha’s YSP-1 is a marvel of technology, it’s about 42 inches long by 4 inches high and about 4 inches deep but can produce 5.1 audio that really does sounds like a conventional set-up with speakers in-front and behind you. 
A box is a box without careful set-up
For globe trotters, city slickers, urban commuters and spoddy transport types, the freeware Metro looks to be a very useful application. 
Using Metro
Using the program’s simple interface, you can also get Metro to display station details, stops between the stations on your journey and even associate contacts with stations. 
Conclusion
Unfortunately this book tries to be all things to all users – and Linux distros – which makes it extremely hard to follow. However, if there’s a specific thing being looked for, the information is probably there. It’s just a matter of finding it. 
Another in the “hacks” range of O’Reilly books, where hacking is doing interesting things with something, rather than the unfortunate media convention of breaking into computers (which has some relevence as you’re getting into the guts of the BlackBerry in ways RIM, the manufacturer, may not have expected and/or indeed intended). 
The book also gives a good insight into programming the Blackberry and describes the tools that RIM provide and how to go about using them (and what other things you need to do). RIM originally made the BlackBerry for corporates and the last thing they wanted was nasty virii and programs infecting them, so when a program tries to access some of the BlackBerry’s inner workings the BlackBerry actually checks that the program is valid and should be doing that. RIM force programmers to “sign” programs and there’s info on how to go through that process. 
Butler is a hugely popular selection of nifty utilities for the Palm Treo smartphone that manages to fix many of the minor shortcomings of the phone in one fell swoop. 
Launching apps
Lights out
Butler also offers a straight alarm feature that lets you set up to 6 repeating alarms, complete with customised messages and the option to assign a program to open after you’ve cleared the alarm. 
Wrapping up the feature set is a “Hide SMS popup” option which stops you being bothered by SMS screens, an option to beam your business card by holding the phone button down and a useful “Keep Exchange Manager Clean” utility which addresses the annoying ‘preference loss’ bug seen on the Palm OS. 
It’s worth persevering though because it won’t take long before you begin to wonder how you ever coped without Butler on your Treo – and at just $14.95 (£8.20,€11.90) it’s something of a bargain! 
Now rocking up to version 10, Agendus is a stable, featured-packed integrated PIM application for the Palm OS. 
In fact, just about every element of the program seems intuitively thought out, with lots of nice touches reflecting the developer’s attention to detail. 
When adding a new appointment, for example, you can add invitees, assign categories, sketch a note, add a custom icon, add a voice message and photo – with all these options being accessible through a clear and concise interface. 
Multiple relationships can be assigned to the same contact and the list is customisable, so you could add new categories like, “Fellow Borg” or “Desperate Drinker.” 
If you’re the type who quickly forgets who you met, contacts can be linked to events to build a contact history, exportable as a CSV file. 
There’s also a basic project management interface onboard letting you organise complex tasks with hierarchical To Do items and set task ‘roll over’ status. 
Conclusion
So you’ve shelled out for your new smartphone/PDA and you’re ready to watch your productivity soar as you strut around with an office in your pocket. 
Like most annoyingly compelling games, Bejeweled is dead simple to play and takes seconds to learn. 
In the original Bejeweled (available on Palm, Pocket PC and Windows Mobile) there’s an additional timed mode to add a frantic air to the gameplay, while its sequel, Bejeweled2 (available on Palm and Pocket PC), ramps up the bells and whistles offering four play modes, bonus play modes, explosive Power Gems, Hyper Cubes and Time Bombs and arcade-style noisy effects (which can be turned off). 
You can download trial versions of both games from 
The Zicplay MiniKey is a tiny audio player. It comes in versions from 256MB to 1GB. There’s also a version with a built in FM tuner. The version we tested was the 512Mb model. 
After being bowled over by Ricoh’s GR Digital camera (so good we went out and bought the thing), we were keen to review their new consumer-based point’n’shooter, the Caplio R4. 
A large and bright 2.5″ LCD 253k pixels screen dominates the rear of the camera, with a familiar four way controller/OK button supplemented by a zoom rocker switch. 
That mighty lens
Exposure options
Twisting trapezoids
Quick to start up (just over a second), the Ricoh proved to be a speedy performer with fast focusing and a near instantaneous shutter response guaranteeing that we got the shot. 
Considering the price range and feature set, we were also pleased with the picture quality – exposures were generally spot on and focusing was consistently good throughout. 
By 800 ISO we were entering arctic snowstorm territory, but the results were still easily usable for 6″ x 4″ prints (after a bit of cleaning up with noise-reduction programs like Noise Ninja).