Compact DSLR camera

Sigma has made a compact DSLR camera, the DP1. In Spring Sigma will be shipping the first batch of them. It has a 14 megapixels FOVEON X3 sensor in it. That is 7 to 12 times larger than normal compact cameras (approximately).

So come spring time, try to get your hands on this small, but great, compact DSLR camera.

iPhone Update Messing up Texts

With the 1.1.3. iPhone update, some people have had their texts getting out of order. But, no worries, you can fix it. All you do is switch your phone to auto sync.

How to Make a Camera Lens

How to Make a Camera Lens

The video below explains how SLR camera lenses are made. It was shown on Discovery, and was put on Youtube.com. The video shows step by step how to make a camera lens. Lets watch:

Apple iPhone

8G Apple iPhone

The Apple iPhone was the phone to buy last summer (2007). It was what everyone was talking about in the phone industry. The iPhone is sleek and agile, but can still hold 8G of music. There are two sizes, the 8G or the 4G.



The iPhone was a break threw in telephone technology. It combines all the daily things you need (or want), phone, iPod, map, internet, weather, stocks, camera, iTunes, and more. It is truly a phenomenal phone that, right now, can not be competed with. Other carriers have tried to make their own iPhone, like Verizon Wireless’s Voyager. But the Voyager is too late. The iPhone came out and swept America off its feet.

There are a couple complaints I have. For instance, you can not send picture texts, which is an inconvenience. Also, it does not support Adobe Flash Player, so I can not watch some of the videos on the internet, and even if it did, it wouldn’t be fast enough because it only has 2G internet. My final complaint is that you can not take videos with it, but that is not a big deal really for me.

The Apple iPhone supports 2G internet. They should have made it with 3G, but it still is fast. Also, you can connect to wireless internet when you can and that makes it go faster. The iPhone comes with a Google search engine bar, which is handy when you need to Google something.

The email on the phone is great. If you have Gmail, Yahoo mail, AOL, or Mac mail it is easy to set up. You type in the email address and password and it sets it up for you. If you have a different email, you have to know the SMTP and the host (example: mail.gmail.com).

For $20.00 a month plus phone bill, you can get 200 texts, unlimited email and unlimited internet.

The battery life on the iPhone is great. I only charge mine every 2 or 3 days unless I had been on an airplane and was listening to music for 2 hours+. If you are using the internet browser the battery life is shorter, but still long.

I would definitely recommend the iPhone to anyone. It is an amazing phone, great for business people, teenagers, and just about anyone. The retail price is $400.00 for the 8G plus tax.

Canon Digital Rebel XSi

Canon Rebel XSi
EOS Digital SLR Camera

Canon has released the new Rebel, the XSi. The XSi is available to buy in April, 2008. It is like the other Rebels, it comes in both black and silver, but it is much better than the other models. For instance, they fixed a problem that I found very annoying, which was how small the screen was, but they made the screen 3.0 inches. The camera comes in a kit, with an 18-55 mm lens. It now takes SD memory cards as a new feature.

Specs:

Shutter:

· Electronically-controlled, focal-plane shutter
· 1/4000 sec. to 1/60 sec., X-sync at 1/200 sec.1/4000 sec. to 30 sec., bulb (Total shutter speed range. Available range varies by shooting mode.)
· Remote Controller
· 10 second or 2 second delay time
· Soft touch electromagnetic release

Built-in-flash:

· Auto pop-up/retractable
· Takes 3 seconds to recycle
· Flash ready icon lights in the view finder
· 17mm lens angle of view

Autofocus:

· TTL secondary image-registration is the type
· 9 AF points


Viewfinder:

· The type is eye-level pentamirror
· Vertical and horizontal coverage 95% (approximately)
· .87 magnification
· Eye point is 19mm

Megapixels:

· 12.20 approximately

Monitor:

· TFT color liquid monitor is the type
· 230,000 pixels
· Approximately 100% coverage
· 3.0 inches is the monitor size
· 7 levels of brightness

Manila Case For MacBook Air

Apple has released the manila case for the MacBook Air which is the thinnest notebook computer case in the world. The case is starting at $300 and looks just like a manila envelope.

Motorola HD01 Portable TV

The HD01 was released at the 2008 C.E.S. The 3.4 in. screen can play live television as well as DVR playback. It has a 5 minute pausing for buffering. But, although this portable TV is sleek and small, people will soon be able to get the same thing on a cellphone. So, good luck Motorola.

Movie Rentals on Apple TV

Apple just released Movie Rentals through the Apple TV. This allows you to rent movies without going to the movie store. All you do is click a button on your remote, and there it is. To rent a normal movie, it is only $3.99, and HD movies are only $4.99.

If you already own the Apple TV, don't worry, you can upgrade the software.

Watch the guided tour below:

Apple MacBook Air

Apple has finally released the MacBook Air, the world's thinnest notebook computer. At its thickest point, it is 3/4 of an inch. The Air will be selling for $1,799 at retail. It is supposed to be more environmentally safe because it uses less packaging than before.

The screen is 13.3" diagonally. They made the computer so thin by making the hard drive thinner, there is no CD or DVD drives and other clever ways.
Specs:

• 2G of ram
• 80G hard drive
• 1.6 or 1.8 GHz Intel Core Duo Processor
• 5 Hours of battery life

Other cool things about the Air is the pop-down hatch with the ports (USB, headphones and more). Also, you can put a disc in another Macintosh Computer, and it will show you what the disc has, via wireless.

The MacBook Air is still not available in stores, but you can pre-order it online.

Sony 11" OLED TV

11” Sony OLED TV

Sony just released the 11” OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) at the 2008 C.E.S. The small TV is only 3mm (3 credit cards) thick. It costs $2,499.99 at retail price from Sonystyle.com. It is an energy efficient television which means that it uses organic lighting to make some of its own energy, instead of relying on the backlight.



Specs:

• Aspect Ratio: 16:9
• Screen Size: 11” diagonally
• TV type: OLED Flat Panel
• Color: Black
• Auto SAP: Yes
• Closed Caption: Yes
• ID1 Detection: Yes
• Tuner: NTSC, CATV, ATSC, Clear QAM
• Display Tech: OLED
• Video Signals: 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i/60, 1080p/60
• CineMotion Reverse 3:2 Pull Down Tech: Yes (default off)
• Comb Filter: Yes
• Picture modes: Vivid, Standard, Custom
• Wide Mode: Wide Zoom, Normal, Full, Zoom
• Light Sensor: Yes
• Noise Reduction: Yes
• Contrast Ratio: > 1,000,000:1
• Native Resolution: 960(H) x 540(V):
• Picture Adjustments: Mode, Reset, Picture, Brightness, Color, Hue/Color, Temperature, Sharpness, Noise Reduction, MPEG Noise Reduction, Advanced Settings: Black Corrector, Gamma, Clear White, Color Space, Live Color
• Digital Amp: Yes
• Steady Sound: Yes
• Sound Booster: Yes
• A/V Synch: Yes
• Speaker On/Off: No
• S-Video Inputs: No
• Favorite Channel: Yes

Bill Gates' Last Day

Bill Gates' Last Day at Microsoft

Bill Gates announced at the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show that he was retiring. He gave his last speech to the crowd. Also, he came up with a video that shows what he plans to do after he retires, which includes, Jay-Z, Bono and Stephen Spielberg. Mr. Gates rips up Guitar Hero, throws down some beats with Jay-Z and stars in a movie with Stephen Spielberg.

Sky Commuter Flying Car

Sky Commuter’s New Flying Car



Sky Commuter has come out with a prototype flying car. The car was listed on eBay recently and will sell to anyone. The car right now is located in Dawsonville, Georgia, USA. The car has been in research since the 1980’s. The investors are thinking that the project was a huge waste of money because it cost about $88,000,000 since the project has first begun and the car is still a prototype. The Sky Computer flying car can get off the ground, but only 10 feet up, and isn’t very stable and still needs more research.

Unfortunately, even though it would be great to have a flying car, it is quite expensive. Currently on eBay it is $48,200.00 (January 12, 2008).

Microsoft Xbox 360

Microsoft Xbox 360

The Microsoft Xbox 360 is an all around great gaming console. It works in High Definition (HD) as well as on an analog television. It has probably the most games out of the Xbox 360, Play Station 3 (PS3), and the Wii.

The Xbox 360 has more of the violent shooter games, as well as the sports games. One of the most popular Xbox 360 games is Halo 3, the online and offline shooter game. Halo is the reason some people bought the old Xbox. Forza Motorsport is another great game for the Xbox 360. But the Xbox 360 has a variety of other games. This includes, sports, shooter, games like Guitar Hero, and adventure games like Kameo.

The Graphics on the 360 are great. The ones on the PS3 some say are better. But the Play Station 3 is a lot more expensive than the Xbox 360. The 360 is my favorite game console out of the Wii, PS3 and 360. I have played them all and I like the Xbox the best.

The 360 also plays movies on it. Unfortunately, it does not support Blue Ray DVDs, which the PS3 does. The does disappoint me because I have a couple movies on Blue Ray and I can’t watch them on the 360.

I do have some complaints though. For instance, the red lights. If the green ring around the power button turns red, it means that the hardware has failed. Ours did that, but it started working a month later. Also, the 360 overheats quickly. A lot of the first 360s overheated. Xbox live is expensive, while the PS3 online is free.

Specs:

Audio:

320 independent decompression channels

32-bit audio processing

Over 256 audio channels

HD:

All of the games for the 360 are 16:9, 720p, and 1080i

Standard HD ports

Memory:

512 MB Ram

700 MHz DDR

Storage:

20G detachable Hard Drive

Memory Units

Polygon Performance:

500 million triangles per second

IBM PowerPC- Based CPU:

3 cores that are symmetrical running at 3.2 GHz each

2 hardware threads for every core and there is 3 total

1 VMX-128 vector unit per core and there is 3 total

128 VMX-128 registers per hardware thread

1 MB L2 cache

I/0:

Can support up to 4 wireless game controllers

3 USB ports that are 2.0

2 Memory Unit slots

I would recommend this game console to kids, because it is cheaper than the PS3, or to adults who enjoy gaming, but aren’t too into all the graphics. But the graphics on the Xbox 360 are still really good. If you are into graphics and Blue Ray, I would recommend the PS3.

Pentax Optio W10

Pentax Optio W10

The Pentax Optio W10 is a digital point and shoot, which you can buy from Amazon for $299.00. It works underwater and just for everyday use.

The W10 is a great point and shoot camera. It is good camera for a kid because it is durable and water/dust proof. It is Class 8 water proof and Class 5 dust proof. It takes SD memory cards. I took it swimming once with out closing the hatch, and water got in it. It took about 2-3 days to get the moisture out, and then it worked just great. I was amazed. But there are some bad things about it. For instance, it doesn’t take as good as pictures as other point and shoot cameras, and not even close to SLRs. Also, can’t take pictures that are that far away clearly. They get blurry the farther away you go like other cameras, but it gets blurrier than other cameras. I would recommend this camera for someone that isn’t too into photography, but likes/needs to take pictures.

Specs:

• 6.0 Mega pixels
• It has a 3x optical zoom lens
• It is JIS Class 8 water proof
• Class 5 dust proof
• 2.5 LCD monitor
• Takes SD memory cards

Fender Miniature Squire

Fender Miniature Squire

The Fender Squire is a great guitar for starting out playing guitar, or has been playing for about 1 year. It comes in a kit usually with an amplifier and a case. I got it when I was starting playing. It was my second guitar.

The Squire has the look of a Stratocaster, but isn’t as good of sound quality. You can make a Whammy Bar hole for it, but it doesn’t come stock with it. The Fender Squire also comes in a bigger size, but the Mini is for kids. It is a great length for a kid because it isn’t too long. It comes in a couple of colors, like other guitars, but one of the most common for the Squire is red. Mine was fire truck red. The amplifier that comes with it isn’t very big, but does make pretty loud noise. I keep it for when I’m doing performances just for looks. I plug my guitar into a bigger, more powerful amp.

There are good things about it. But it also doesn’t have the greatest sound quality. But that is about it for complaints from me. It is a good guitar for a kid who is starting out. If you having been playing for a while and are an adult, I would recommend a different guitar, like the Fender Standard Stratocaster.

Specs:

• Neck is maple and modern “C” shape
• Fretboard is Rosewood
• 3 controls: Master Volume, Tone 1 and Tone 2

Speck ToughSkin Case

Speck ToughSkin Case

(Apple iPhone)

I recently got an Apple iPhone and I kept dropping it. It got pretty scratched up and I wanted a way to protect it. I bought the Speck ToughSkin Case for $29.00 at retail price.

It did the job. Even if I did drop my iPhone it didn’t get too scratched up (Even if you have the case, do not drop it). But there were some bad things about the skin case. For one it was bulky and hard to get in and out of my pockets. I would have to pull and wiggle it to get it out of my jean pocket. If I was wearing shorts or sweatpants it was easier to get out but it would grip to my pants because of the grip bumps on the side. Also, the Speck case made the iPhone bigger, less sleek, and uglier. The case comes in two colors which is clear and black. It comes with a belt holster which clips on. The material used to make the case is rubber. I would recommend using this case if you were going hiking or some other out door activity where you are more likely to drop you iPhone. But if you are just using your iPhone for everyday use, I would recommend a different case. The Speck ToughSkin also is made for iPods, PDA’s and GPS’s.

Other cases made by Speck for Apple iPhone:

• Speck SeeThru Hard Shell Case and Holster (Red, Pink, Aqua, Green, Smoke) $29.00

• Otterbox Defender Case (Yellow and Black) $49.00

• AluSkin Silicone Case (Magenta, Floral Green, Orange, Rainy Sky Grey, Baby Blue, Ice Clear, Rose, Baby Pink) $7.00

• Cellet Silicone Case (Black, Red, Grey, Clear, Pink, Blue, Green) $19.00

• DLO Silicone Case with Headset Management (Black, Blue, Pink, White) $23.00

Fender Standard Stratocaster Review

Fender Standard Stratocaster Made in Mexico

The Fender Stratocaster (or Strat) was made in 1954 (Mass production). It was one of the most famous guitars (Eric Clapton made his famous) and a lot of famous rock and roll legends had one. Jimi Hendrix had a Stratocaster, which he used in a lot of his performances. I got it recently to upgrade the sound quality of my guitars.

I had a Fender Squire before this which was good for a start out guitar, but when I started recording music, I got the Fender. I have been playing guitar for 5 ½ years and have had 4 guitars during that. The best one was the Fender Stratocaster. My Stratocaster is Whammy Bar compatible, but some aren’t.

Specs:

• The body is made of Adler
• The neck is made of Maple, with a “Modern C Shape”
• The fingerboard is made of Rosewood
• There is 21 frets
• There is 3 Standard Pickups
• There is 3 controls: Master Volume, Tone 1, Tone 2
• The Bridge is made of Vintage Style Synchronized Tremolo
• The Hardware is Chrome

It comes in a couple of colors: Black, Electric Blue Metallic, Artic White, Brown Sunburst and more.

I would recommend this guitar for someone who had been playing for a couple years and are starting to record music. Retail price is about $400.00. It is worth buying if you are into music though.