Entries from January 2008 ↓

Asus, popular computer peripheral manufacturer company and maker of the recently-released and popular EEE PC, has decided to spread the EEE branding to other products its got in mind, hoping to spread the success with it. Will the product branding actually work?

Source: http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/technology/Asus_Eee_701.jpg

Let’s start with the EEE PC. Originally named the EEE PC as an acronym for “Easy to learn, Easy to work, Easy to play,” the EEE PC already had a lot of hype surrounding it when it entered the market for two reasons - an attractive price point and a hunger for Ultra Mobile PC’s (think a laptop…when compared to a laptop). Although its price has been raised and specifications lowered, the whole deal did work out pretty well for Asus and the EEE PC has been a big hit in both enthusiast and mainstream markets.

A newer product, the E-DT (my guess would be DeskTop - that still sounds like a long shot though, for some reason), is basically an EEE PC without the monitor. Think Celeron processor, budget-friendly specs with EEE functionality. I don’t think it’ll be too successful as the EEE PC, mainly because the budget-friendly computer market is already pretty saturated with products, although the current announced price is still very modest (US$199). There won’t be enough demand to really rock the boat.

Source: http://regmedia.co.uk/2007/07/12/hp_iq770_front.jpg

The E-Monitor, on the other hand, really intrigues me. It’s a computer integrated with the monitor - think Apple iMac, or HP TouchSmart. Very like one or the other, it has the potential to skyrocket or go under - we’ve all heard of the Apple iMac (and probably secretly want one), whereas the HP TouchSmart…not so much. In fact, I had to actually search Future Shop for the appropriate picture, then find the corresponding name. Either way, all-in-one PCs are still not that common, but I think will be in the near future as they are convenient and becoming much more affordable, with the Asus E-Monitor announced at US$499 with the majority of that cost diverted towards the 19″ or 21″ monitor and the rest towards the specifications similar to the E-DT. Besides, the E-Monitor really reminds me of the EEE PC - it’ll be very easy to set up (potentially speaking, just pop in a pre-made driver CD) and relatively trouble free. Plus, this makes for great plan when it comes to mass production, financially speaking.

All this is still very premature speculation, and I’ll have to wait till the physical products actually arrive, so I don’t want to say anything I can’t take back and reading this statement voids me of this responsibility.

Motorola, one of the pioneers of the entire mobile phone industry, is rumoured to be making an exit out of the sector. Although this is quite a sad piece of news, I can’t say that I haven’t been expecting it to happen eventually. As I look back in retrospect, I smack myself for the lack of foresight. What on earth am I talking about?

Source: http://www.discountcell.com/cellular/images/v120c.jpg

In 2002, my mother decided to replace a piece of “CutEdge” technology (an adjective I will attempt to popularize with the use of this blog), her old Nokia phone died and she purchased a Motorola 120c. The Motorola 120c was with us until last year, when we decided the maximum ringer volume wasn’t loud enough and the battery life was dimming. The phone has been laid to rest, and replaced with a Nokia 6080 in a cruel twist of fate.

Source: http://www.cellphonebeat.com/images/lmj.jpg

A couple of years ago, the Razr was introduced to the world and next thing I knew, everyone had one. Heck, (maybe) even I wanted one at the time. Then, I never heard a word out of Motorola again. Sure, the Pebl was somewhat popular - but it didn’t have any specs or abilities similar to the rest of the phones of its age. I remember clearly, a friend of mine got the Pebl and I asked him what he thought of it - and he said “Sure, it can slide, but what else can it do?” - a statement that really hit me. People might’ve fallen for that Razr gimmick (dare I go there?), but it wasn’t bound to happen twice, with such a difference in ability.

Source: http://www.nachtraben.info/assets/images/Motorola_Logo.jpg

What was I trying to get at? Motorola once had things going for it - it was the at the summit of the mobile phone industry and on top of everything, creating phones that could potentially last a good decade. Then, things changed - priorities shifted, and so did the game plan. I mean, I’ve seen the Razr2 commercials, but I’m just not motivated to buy one. And the result? Motorola couldn’t keep up with the times, and now is rumoured to be left at an ultimatum - to quit, or be bought by a Chinese company (unlikely, but might be interesting). I can’t even express how deja vu this is for me, as it is somewhat similar to IBM and Lenovo.

IBM, a former titan, reduced to but a shell of its former self, was partly purchased by Chinese company Lenovo, and is now making a slight comeback. Could something similar to this happen to Motorola, or will they just abandon the mobile phone industry and expand further into other fields of their specialty? If it is the latter, I must say that I will dearly miss their phones and I’m sorry that it had to come to this.

Dear readers,

In case you were concerned, I am still alive. Sorry for the lack of posts in the recent weeks, I have been pre-occupied with many educational examinations. In any case, I know that this has been pretty inexcusable, so I’m going to try to compensate with more posts.

I realize that I’ve been quite inconsistent with my posting, which is something I will be trying to work on. Please, if you ever feel the need to motivate me, do so.

Loving the readers,

Herbert

When the term MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game) is mentioned, there’s definitely one that comes to mind - World of Warcraft.  And space-exploration is no news to the gaming industry either - with hits like Mass Effect and all those Star Wars games, who could forget it?  Nasa took two and two together and decided to combine the best of both worlds - to bring us other worlds - possibly galaxies, from outer space on their MMORPG.

Alright, so it’s just an idea - so what?  I personally think that it’s great to promote space exploration like that - it sounds like an interesting albeit bizarre way to appeal to mainstream crowds - from hardcore tech geeks to the newest users of the internet.  Imagine what this would do for the future - all those worlds that appear in sci-fi flicks could actually be colonized, thanks to the best scientists that were captured into this field of study by Nasa.

Source: http://www.militaryplaques.com/Emblems/NASA.jpg

My initial impression was skeptical - how would this game work?  How would it be appealing yet accurate enough to help people learn subconciously?  After all, games like Mass Effect and Star Wars did have stories in them, which definitely did not revolve around space exploration (er, primarily speaking).  I highly doubt Nasa would be interested in incorporating guns or weapons to make their game seem a little more interesting, and I think that it should be something to avoid - firstly, the gaming industry is already too saturated with shooters, and secondly it would take away from what I’d like to consider it’s primary purpose - to educate.

This is all assuming that Nasa does indeed go forward with the initiative and dedicates some resources to make this project happen - which I am hoping for.  I can’t wait for it to be officially released - hopefully at my favourite price (for free) and with as much quality as a regular game (doubtful, as they’ve got different purposes though).

It really looks promising, but many things that do don’t get proper recognition for it nowadays.  Hopefully this makes it through the threshold of success and into the world of Earth, so that we can further expand our little minds and stuff it all with knowledge of the outer limits of the nearby galaxies.

What do you get when you compare the functions of a Macbook and the thinness of a Motorola Razr? A Macbook Air, of course! As onlookers eagerly anticipated the announcement at Macworld, I was actually wondering what would come out of Macworld myself. I must admit that I’m slightly disappointed, as this announcement was nowhere nearly as impressive as the one about the iPhone - which was both revolutionary and successful. The Macbook Air has nothing as promising as the iPhone, besides its gimmicky thinness.

Source: http://images.apple.com/ca/macbookair/images/design_displayair20080115.jpg

I realize that the word “gimmick” might be quite offensive to the designers of the Macbook Air, so I’ll have to give them some credit - it’s definitely not easy putting together an object of such fragility and odd dimensions together. But let’s open up our eyes here, people - the Macbook Air sure has the form, but it has no function over the regular Macbook Pro, and a little edge over the Macbook for a much greater price. At CDN$1899, I believe that either a much superior Macbook Pro could be purchased for CDN$300 more, or the most powerful Macbook for CDN$150 less.

Let’s talk logically with specifications: the Macbook Air is equipped with a 13.3″ screen, 2GB of RAM, and 80GB of storage with a 1.6Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor. The cheapest Macbook Pro comes with a bigger screen and higher resolution along with it, as well as same amount of RAM and 120GB of storage (1.5x that of the Macbook Air) and a 2.2Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor. The most decked-out ordinary Macbook comes with double the storage at 160GB, half the RAM, a 13.3″ screen and a 2.0Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor. The most galling part - although the Macbook Air has “next generation wireless” connectivity, expect yourself to use some wires for an external CD-DVD drive - and probably an external hard drive. These days, with a mere 80GB of storage, you can’t expect to last that long.

Source: http://images.apple.com/ca/macbookair/images/design_gal12_20080115.jpg

One thing I did appreciate would have to be the multi-touch trackpad. You can pinch, zoom, and do all sorts of stuff - similar to the iPhone - on the new trackpad, which would be a sharp pro when it comes to productivity. Speaking of productivity, you can fit it in a Manila envelope! That, my friend, sure is powerful. I’m not sure how well it’d stand up against the brutal falls laptops usually have to endure though - and although it might look weak, I’m willing to bet that it’s nearly as strong as an iPod Nano (similar widths).

I’m sorry to say it, but the Macbook Air is not a revolution in a Manila envelope, people. Sure, maybe if it had a tablet screen and more impressive wi-fi capabilities it might have been, but if you’ve got CDN$1899 to spend, please do it on something else. Or buy a Macbook Air and be impressed for a couple of days, then go out and purchase that external hard drive and CD/DVD reader.

P.S. Hardcore Apple fans, please take it easy on me.  Pretty soon, I might be one of you - of course, not with a Macbook Air.