Toshiba Satellite L500D is one of the most beautiful laptops I have ever seen in this price range. On the lid, there is an understated fingerprint pattern which is continued on the inside too. The touchpad is quite flush with the wrist rest and this is seldom seen in laptops. Toshiba has also taken care of potential problems of the user in locating the edges. They have put a silky texture on the wrist rest and a stippled, coarser texture on the touchpad. There are a couple of quick launch buttons along with simple media controls, volume mute button and power button located below the display. The screen is 15.6 inches big and has a resolution of 1,366x768 pixels. The left side of the laptop has a hot air vent and this might annoy left handed users. There are ports on this side like VGA port, combined USB/eSATA port, 100 MB Ethernet, microphone and headphones jacks. The right side houses 56 KBPS modem, a DVD burner and 2 USB ports. On the front, there is a rotary wheel for volume adjustment  [...]

Samsung Galaxy Tab is here and it is the biggest competitor to the Apple’s iPad. When Tab first came out, Steve Jobs said that seven inches is too small for a tablet device. However, travelers welcome the small size as it is easy to carry in the pocket. Also, the small size lets you type comfortably with thumbs and the accuracy is much better. You can easily hold the device in one hand and use it without any wrist strain. There is a dedicated client for managing files for PC users but Mac users will have to drag and drop content. There is a microSD card slot next to the SIM card slot. Other features on the device worth mentioning here are three megapixel camera, good quality speakers, and a VGA camera on the front. There is also a volume controls. As compared to this, Apple iPad doesn’t have a single camera. The Samsung Galaxy Tab is based on Android  [...]

Gateway NV7915u is a low-end desktop replacement laptop which gives a good set of features for the price that it is offered. I reviewed a predecessor to this system an year ago, it was Gateway NV7820u and it was good example of value for money system from this company. The price has been lowered here and there is a new processor inside. This sweetens the deal further. The price of this system is $599 and it is one of the least expensive laptops you will find in the market having Core i3 chip. The performance is clearly much superior as compared to other systems in this price range which use older AMD and Intel processors especially for multitasking. The 17.3 inch screen lets you juggle between various screens and you can also use it to sit back and watch movies comfortably. My only complaint here is the low battery life but then all desktop replacement laptops have low battery life. Other than that, the Gateway NV7915u is a stellar product. This laptop has a silver and black chassis  [...]

Verizon iPhone 4 is going to come out in less than a week and the service provider has started with teaser campaigns for all its existing customers. It asks them to come back at 3 a.m. Eastern of 3rd February. Verizon has sent e-mails to its business customers this week telling them about it. Existing Verizon customers will need to check if they are eligible for the Verizon iPhone 4 upgrade. The frequently asked questions page on Verizon’s site says that the preorders will start from the 3rd February and the handset will be sold on first come, first serve basis. 3 a.m. Eastern time might seem like an odd time for the service provider to start taking the iPhone 4 preorder but it is also the earliest time when all the contiguous states reach Feb. 3. The Verizon iPhone 4 16GB model is priced at $199, the 32GB model is priced at $299 and for each, you have to sign a two year contract. Apple Website accidentally leaked some information about Verizon  [...]

The newer laptops from Dell have all been really good and they are really fast too thanks to the Core i5 processor inside. Dell Inspiron 15 review model that the company sent in my labs has a lush widescreen which is not really big but still good for this class of notebooks. I also liked the glossy shell, it adds to the aesthetic appeal of the system. The price of this system is $934 and I would recommend it considering the features it offers for this price point. However, you need to be wary about a few things – the keyboard is uncomfortable and the hardware options could have been wider too. My Dell Inspiron 15 review model had ‘Ice Blue’ finish which is seen a lot in other notebooks by this manufacturer. There are glossy areas which easily attract a lot of fingerprints but it doesn’t ruin the look of the laptop.  [...]

Sony VAIO SR Series laptops are all about balancing play and work. I got the Sony VAIO VGN-SR390NAB laptop in my labs which has a 13.3 inch screen and offers enough power and style for everyone from students to road warriors to home users. The price tag too is quite decent at $1,359 (this is the price of my review model, the laptop starts at $1,049) and has a good combination of battery life and graphics power. I would recommend this as an alternative to the much expensive 13 inch Vaio Z series which starts at $1,739. I also liked the switch mode feature on the Sony VAIO SR series laptop which lets you customize the shortcut buttons according to your tastes. I wish there was less preloaded software and I would have liked a Web cam too but other than that, this is a good system. Sony VAIO SR Series laptops have a good design for this price. The chassis is made up of magnesium allow and it weight 4.2 pounds which is not really heavy. The dimensions are  [...]

HP Compaq 6730b is a very solid machine with professional finish. The screen too is solid and overall, the laptop feels solid in the hand. The only exception to this is the optical drive tray which has cheap plastic feel to it. The screen of the HP Compaq 6730b has a resolution of 1,680x1,050 and in my review model, there weren’t any deal pixels. The screen is very clear having a matte finish. I spent some 15 hours on this screen in one go and still didn’t feel any eye string. DVD playback too feels great on this screen but if you are really into multimedia, I will recommend you to get one of the HP DV line of notebooks. Speakers of the HP Compaq 6730b are its biggest strength. I have never heard such good sounding speakers before in my labs for a laptop. They have wide frequency range and the bass too is deep and excellent. The sound quality of this  [...]

Naruto Uzumaki is a cool ninja who is great while battling but it is a bit annoying. Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm is a great fighting game but it can also be lengthy and might get monotonous for you. This game is poor at story telling, item collection and exploration. In Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm, the first thing that you need to do is pick your favorite character and then dive straight in to combat. You will have to install the game before the gameplay begins. The files are of 4 GB and it will take at least ten minutes to get all the matter in the right place. Once this is done, there is the Free Battle mode which lets you choose your opponent and also the location of the fight. This is a minimum fuss and is recommended if you don’t want to play the full mode. Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm doesn’t have any tutorial option but you won’t miss it because the controls are pretty simple and you will get  [...]

Dell is back with the new Inspiron Zino HD, it costs $750 and has beefier specs than its predecessor. Apart from that, there is a Blu-ray optical drive and the graphics too have been upgraded. This makes the computer a more credible living room solution. However, the slow performance makes the Dell Inspiron Zino HD more expensive than a standard Windows living room desktops or Apple’s Mac Mini. I’ll recommend you this system if you are looking for a tiny Windows based PC having a Blu-ray drive for providing entertainment in your living with minimum hassle of setup. But if performance matters more to you, there are other systems giving better value for money. Dell Inspiron Zino HD is offered in different configurations, the base model costs $300 and it can go up to $750 with all the high end options. Dell says the highest end $750 model is ‘Ultimate Entertainment’ system on the Website and it is the only option if you are looking for Zino along with a Blu-ray  [...]

3D became quickly popular in the televisions but this technology is taking its own time in laptops and desktops. This is a bit surprising especially because the functional and tested 3D infrastructure has been around for a long time through Nvidia's 3D Vision technology. I have seen only a couple of laptops with glasses and 3D hardware. Maybe its because gamers prefer consoles to laptops when it comes to gaming. Lenovo IdeaPad Y560d that I got in my labs for testing is based on TriDef 3D technology which is the same as that on the  Acer Aspire 5738DG-6165 that I tested last year. Both these notebooks offer poolarized glasses instead of battery power active shutter glasses used on Nvidia 3D Vision notebooks and lots of other consumer 3D devices. The cost of the Lenovo IdeaPad Y560d is $1,399 and it is priced quite reasonably for its components as the ATI Radeon 5730 graphics and  Intel Core i7 processor are quite high end. However,  [...]