Monthly Archives: September 2002
ATI – Radeon 9700 Pro
ATI has taken the graphics card battle to Nvidia with the launch of its new Radeon 9700 Pro chip, previously codenamed R300. We’re looking at a reference ATI graphics card here, but ATI no longer sells graphics cards in Europe under its own name. Rest assured that the Radeon 9700 Pro cards on sale, from…
Scalado – ImageZoom 1.2
It’s not immediately clear from this product’s strapline – “Create and publish interactive content on your website” – what it does. In fact, it’s a means of making Web images and photographs of a particular object more interactive, so that the viewer can rotate and zoom in on a particular product that they find interesting….
Olympus – Camedia C-4000 Zoom
It’s easy for digital camera manufacturers to quote the size of their CCD at you – 4 megapixels in this case – and leave it at that, but the resolution of the camera rarely tells the full story. For example, a camera might produce output that is over-compressed, leading to a loss of detail. Or…
IBM – ViaVoice 10 Pro USB
Talking to your computer is one of the first signs of madness, probably. More realistically, given the average PC, it’s generally a choice of yelling at it to relieve your frustrations or forking out for a new keyboard if you let it all build into a pent up explosion of your A, S, D and…
USB flatbed scanners group test
The new Astra 4500 from Umax is a low cost but surprisingly fast 1,200 dpi scanner. Using a USB 1.1 interface to good effect at lower resolutions, it does, however, struggle at higher resolutions. Unfortunately this scanner has a tendency to ‘redden up’ all the images it scans and at low resolution they are also…
Watford Electronics – Aries Spacecube 1200
If you’re still of the opinion that PCs are too big, Watford’s Aries SpaceCube 1200 could change your mind. Not that much bigger than a games console, the SpaceCube is small, but perfectly formed. Its all-aluminium case looks less office-like than the typical beige box and also provides extra cooling. With so much packed into…
Jadetec – USB to Bluetooth converter
Bluetooth has been a long time coming. The wireless connection protocol has been mooted for five years or more, but only now are we seeing viable Bluetooth-equipped peripherals, such as HP’s DeskJet 995c. To make use of this type of device, you need to equip your PC with a Bluetooth transceiver and that’s where Jadetec’s…
Dell – 3100MP
Many projectors lay claim to being portable or even ultra-portable, but the Dell 3100MP really deserves this accolade, weighing in at a mere 1.6kg. This is the same as an ultra-portable notebook, and with a similar footprint; 5.6 x 17.6 x 22.5cm. The 3100MP uses a 130W lamp, which provides a rated maximum brightness of…
Infogrames – Neverwinter Nights
What is it with unnatural plagues and role playing games? It would be nice if, just for once, a hardy bunch of battle-scarred dwarven fighters and aloof elven mages would stumble into a town where there was a terrible epidemic… much wailing and moaning… all caused by, let’s say, dirty water. Yes, simple, straightforward, vastly…
HP – DeskJet 995c
HP’s DeskJet 995c is a high-end inkjet printer with a difference. As well as its USB connection, it can receive data through the ether, via a built-in Bluetooth link. This local area wireless technology will work with Bluetooth-equipped PCs, notebooks and PDAs. Simply moving within range of the printer couples the two together. The sleek,…