Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Aiptek - Mobile Cinema Projector D10


Most significant forms of IT-related technology had their main price drop some years ago, but digital projectors came to the party late in the day and it's only in the last year or two we've seen a plunge in prices.

One of the reasons for this is a new technology for the main functioning parts of the projector. Rather than having a bright projector lamp, an LCD panel and a spinning light wheel, which is expensive, relatively delicate, short-lived and runs hot, we're beginning to see LED projectors, where a matrix of active colour LEDs replaces the traditional three-part system.

The disadvantage of LED projectors so far has been their relatively low brightness, restricting them to pocket and fun devices. Aiptek's Mobile Cinema D10 is portable, but it's a step up in the brightness league. This 180 x 195 x 150mm, cuboid plastic box is only rated at 13 ANSI lumens, around a hundredth of the output of typical business projectors, but is bright enough for some domestic uses.

The D10 is designed as a replacement for a TV in a child's, or possibly a student's, bedroom. It has a DVD player built in and is intended purely for playing movies or Karaoke. Controls are very simple, with a set of four big buttons on the back for DVD playback and a large lever on the left-hand side for focusing.

There's a socket on the right-hand side for power, which comes from an L-shaped black-block power supply. To fulfil its Karaoke role it has an external jack for a microphone, but alas no Karaoke DVD, so you'll have to get this elsewhere if you want to sing along.

Even though the LED projector runs much cooler than a conventional halogen lamp, there's still an internal fan, which runs all the time and makes a noticeable noise. The picture, which is claimed to be usable up to a screen diagonal of 50 inches, is much happier at around 30 inches and even then you'll want to dim the lights.

Given all that, the output from the projector is acceptable for casual viewing. With a resolution of 480 x 240, HD is out and even VGA is some way off, but for untaxing content it's a far cheaper and safer solution than an LCD TV. It's a shame there's no way of getting a signal into it from a Freeview or Sky box, as this absence does make it a single-function gadget.

Starting price at £160
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Acer Aspire 3811TZ/TZG


Acer launches the new Timeline series notebook, Aspire 3811TZ/TZG, made with materials free of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and brominated flame retardants (BFRs).Acer has long sought for opportunities to produce greener products, and categorized greenness into material, energy and recycling; and the Timeline series notebooks are designed to fulfill the green criteria. In addition, the Aspire 3811TZ/TZG has been awarded with Energy Star 5.0.

The Aspire 3811TZ/TZG is produced with materials free from PVC and BFRs (excluding AC power cable). The chemical characteristics of PVC and BFRs may generate toxic substances like dioxins and furans at products’ end-of-life, therefore, the reduction of PVC and BFRs in Acer products will help protect our environment from being poisoned by electronics goods.

Energy shortage and climate change are among the world’s most critical and urgent issues. During the life cycle of IT products, the “use” period is typically deemed as when products consume the most energy and emit the most carbon. Therefore, Acer has designed the Timeline series to reduce energy consumption in the use phase. The system-wide energy consumption of a Timeline series notebook can save up to 40% compared with traditional products. With this new feature, the Timeline notebook holds more than 8 hours of battery life – giving users more time for work and leisure. This achievement is way over the most advanced Energy Star 5.0 criteria, and realized through the careful combination of software and hardware design by Acer.

The Aspire Timeline series notebooks were first announced in April 2009. Characteristics of the Timeline series are its slim and light form, which measure only 1 inch at the thinnest point. The energy-conscious Timeline notebooks feature lower power consumption for long-lasting and energy-efficient portability, and are available at an affordable price tag.
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