Monthly Archives: November 1999
Fujitsu Siemens – Lifebook C-6310
There have been plenty of sexy sub-notebooks on the market recently, but this is not one of them. Fujitsu Siemens has made its mark in the notebook computer market by providing good-quality, reliable desktop replacement systems such as this. The new Lifebook looks a little odd to begin with, since the lid doesn’t completely cover…
Dragon – NaturallyClear USB System H100 microphone headset
Dragon Systems, one of the four main PC voice-recognition software vendors, has stolen a march on its rivals by being the first to introduce a USB headset microphone. It’s a significant development because audio quality is key to consistent and reliable voice recognition. If your PC has a high quality sound card which is unaffected…
Canon – BJC-6100
Canon has revamped its BJC-6000 bubble-jet printer to produce the BJC-6100. Improvements are significant: the price has been cut, a USB interface is now standard, maximum print speed is marginally up from 8ppm to 9ppm and you now have the option of a snap-in £50 720dpi colour scanner module. The BJC-6000′s original strengths are also…
Empire – Sega Rally 2
Ignoring the company’s various games consoles, Sega will be known to serious gamers for what has been one of the most enduring arcade games of all time – Sega Rally. Pitting Lancia’s Delta Integrale against Toyota’s Celica GT4, this was, nay is, a fantastic way to spend pound after pound in multi-player mud-churning action. Then…
The Learning Company – Centuries of Europe
As the intro screen for Centuries of Europe fades gracefully into focus, backed by the stirring strains of some classical anthem, it almost makes one feel like hoisting the European flag in one’s front garden. If only one could afford a flagpole. Who knows what the next step of European history will unfurl. The dreaded…
Sony – Vaio PCG-N505X/LT
Sony’s Vaio launch gave more than a few notebook manufacturers sleepless nights when the first product in the range was launched last year. A new round of product announcements in October included this slim, but highly usable, Vaio PCG-N505X/LT. Just as before, the accent is on cuteness. Straight out of the box the Vaio draws…
PowerQuest – PartitionMagic 5.0
Before reading this review, have a look at our review of a previous version of PartitionMagic, here, if you don’t already understand the concept of hard drive partitions and why manipulating them can be very useful. Happy? Right, now read on. This latest incarnation of the PartitionMagic product incorporates additional user-friendliness and features. It works…
The Learning Company – BodyWorks 6.0 DVD
BodyWorks 6.0 sets out to be ‘complete and completely educational’. In its DVD version it naturally comes on just one disc, and the main screen is broken up into a display screen, a browser and a small text panel – you can change the sizes of each element to suit your preference. The program is…
ADI – MicroScan 6L
ADI is a respected brand in the CRT and LCD monitor markets, so you’d expect this LCD display to be pretty good, and first impressions don’t disappoint. It’s a 15-inch display, with a screen area that’s approximately equivalent to that of a 17-inch CRT monitor. The fixed resolution is 1024 x 768, which is a…
Microsoft – Age of Empires II
Where Sid Meyer’s Civilization led, many other God games have followed. Some have been impressive, others have died a deservedly quiet death in the backwaters of the PC strategy game market. Some have been based in a science-fiction future, others in a semi-factual past. Of the latter group, Microsoft did a pretty good job with…