Sound quality is crisp, with a deep, tuneful lower end and, despite questionable looks.

One of the great mysteries that confronts modern man is his inability to program a VCR, so you would have thought that it was incumbent on manufacturers to make programming a DVD recorder simpler. Unfortunately nobody told the author of the Philips DVDR890 instruction manual. It omits a vital step from the general instructions for programming the device to record a show in advance - it took three attempts to get the feature to work, and only after stumbling across the missing instructions in the section for using G-codes (though I wasn't planning to use G-codes).

The Quark-killer has finally landed. For the last year, the hype about Adobe's replacement for the worthy but old-fashioned PageMaker (reviewed issue 22, p108) has been building to fever pitch.

A familiar face with a new name, and it offers support for a wider range of systems than before.

In a world first, we've managed to get our hands on a review unit of Sony's stunningly thin ultraportable. Most surprisingly, it sports the newest Atom chip from Intel - the Z550 2.0GHz and GMA 500 graphics.

Is there a market for 20-inch TVs? Sony's KDL-20S4000 looks unique, and you can carry it around the house.

The Game Boy Micro is a slick miniature gaming gem perfect for avoiding tiresome work

The best compact Sony yet, with bags of features squeezed into a very stylish package.

A nice idea, particularly for PSP owners, but it’s ultimately too restrictive to be considered a must-have item.

Easy to use and capable of good results, the superb range of manual modes makes this a good choice for enthusiasts.

Compro's VideoMate Gold TV may be an analog TV tuner card, but it's got one feature that alone makes it better then the DTV cards reviewed - it has a power pass-through for your PC's power switch.

The Web Excel PT-3830 is an 802.11b wireless access point, four-port switch and DSL router all-in-one. It's a good package if you want to share your DSL modem with a small network, but everything about the PT-3830 is definitely no-frills. Closer examination, however, reveals a highly configurable device.

Its one thing to flatter ones self but its another to be aware when its happening. Thats the impression I get when introduced to the Sony Vaio PCG-FX880K. Like the name?

Existing export capabilities and new support for dynamic components make this a must for professional users

Lighter than ever, but its all-round performance isn’t quite first class.

An expensive route, but the Netgear Prosafe SRXN3205 provides the reassurance of of an SSL VPN along with a long warranty.

New effects enable richer design results, while a host of other improvements boost productivity.

An exciting glimpse at future performance, but by the time games appear to make them worth buying, the price will have plummeted.

Classic gaming for the whole family, with roots in literature.

Canopus first made its name providing top-notch 3Dfx cards. Realising the deadly competitiveness and pace of that market, however, Canopus has moved on and repositioned itself as a company specialising in video editing.