Monthly Archives: August 2009
Corel – Home Office Suite
Corel’s newest office suite takes matters back to basics. It consists of three applications which have been tightly designed to provide core functions, the idea being that they’re user friendly and easy on system resources. This makes it ideal for working on netbooks, particularly because the suite automatically reconfigures itself to be usable on a…
Dell – Inspiron 1545
Wherever possible, it’s interesting to test the whole process of ordering a laptop from a company, and looking at the before- and after-sales support as well as the machine itself. So that’s just what we did with this Dell 1545, a smart, relatively economical machine that opts for trademark Dell efficiency over outright excellence. We…
Avanquest – Transfer My Video
With the range of pocketable devices claiming to be able to show video getting ever wider, there’s one piece of software that’s becoming increasingly essential; the video converter. Not only do you have to have the video in the correct format to show on your device, but it has to be the right display size…
New Star Games – Super Laser Racer
As names go, Super Laser Racer sounds pretty hammy, but it actually suits the retro feel this arcade racer attempts to capture. In fact, this project gives numerous nods to computer gaming nostalgia. Its overhead view is reminiscent of a Super Sprint style game, the small nimble ships that nip round the tracks resemble wire-framed…
Samsung – Tocco Ultra
The Tocco Ultra is Samsung’s follow-up to its original Tocco handset. That mobile introduced the concept of Widgets, and they make a repeat appearance here. Widgets are small links you can drag from a sidebar onto the phone’s main screen. They let you personalise things to your taste, putting shortcuts on the main screen for…
Epson – Stylus Photo P50
Small, compact and attractive, the Stylus Photo P50 from Epson stands out from the majority of inkjet printers and MFDs in that it’s surprisingly light on features. The front of the printer is relatively clutter-free, with just three buttons and no LCD screen. Given that the Stylus Photo P50 is primarily a photo printer, we…
Interead – Cool-er eBook Reader
There’s an increasing amount of talk about eBook Readers, kick-started by Amazon’s Kindle series (currently only available in the US), and recent news that Plastic Logic, a UK leader in plastic electronics, is making one which the bookselling giant Barnes and Noble will start selling next year. Available now, and for less than the Kindle,…
Sony – Vaio P
Sony doesn’t do netbooks, but if it did the Vaio P would be one. It is small and neat. It weighs just 0.6kg and it measures 245 x 120 x 19.8mm. Picture those measurements in your mind and you’ll visualise a wide, thin notebook, which is precisely what the Vaio P is. Its wide format…
Canon – PIXMA MP540
Canon’s range of all-in-one printers is roughly divided into two markets. The PIXMA MX range is intended for the small and home office markets, while the PIXMA MP range is aimed more at the photo enthusiast. The PIXMA MP540 sports the silver and black lacquer look of many recent Canon printers and is so clean-cut…
Propellerhead – Record
The much-loved Reason from Propellerhead, a superb collection of software synthesizers, samplers, effects, sequencer and other digital music goodness, has long had a missing component – the ability to record audio. This has driven fans into the arms of other music programs like Cubase, where Reason can sit – courtesy of Re-Wire – and do…