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PC Authority Issue: December, 2007

Australia's premier computer magazine, PC Authority gives you the facts, opinions and insight to make informed PC and tech purchasing decisions.

Issue: 121  |  December, 2007

What's in this issue

Current issue – 10th Anniversary

Issue 121 | December 2007

What's in the mag?

· 10th Anniversary Special
· iPod Touch
· Dell XPS laptop
· AMD Barcelona Quad-core
· Next Gen Wi-Fi
· Games of the year



This issue we celebrate the 10th anniversary of PC Authority with the biggest issue of the year. Having trawled through the past ten years worth of PC Authority I feel particularly privileged to be writing this. PC Authority is no longer the cheeky young upstart that first appeared back in November 1997, but a stalwart of Australia’s tech industry.

To celebrate we’ve printed the covers of every issue ever published which not only makes a nice keepsake (it’s unlikely to happen again) but gives a great timeline of technology trends and launches throughout this period.

Ten years ago we were known as PC@uthority: it looks like a broken email address now but back then, all the hip kids were doing it. We were shouting about the affordable power provided by Intel’s ‘awesome’ Pentium II but what was really noticeable were the PCs’ exteriors. Every PC on test was a beige box with beige monitor, beige keyboard and beige mouse. If you were lucky you’d have beige speakers too.

This month in addition to reviewing the long awaited Barcelona chip from AMD and the sensational iPod touch, TomTom (almost) revolutionises the world of GPS and some of the best games we’ve ever played are tested.

We look at Hollywood’s depiction of tech toys and gadgetry in the movies and examine just how true to life they really are. We also examine whether you can survive on online applications alone and have a look at how software’s user interfaces are designed. Beyond that, we’ve loaded 32 extra pages with essential Christmas gifts and gadgets.

Finally, don’t miss next issue where we reveal the winners of our Reliability and Service awards.

Nick Ross
Editor
PC Authority




Articles in this issue

Acer Aspire 9813WKMi
A huge screen and an affordable price, but it doesn’t rival a desktop PC where power is concerned

AMD Barcelona
We test AMD’s first quad-core processor for both speed and power efficiency

Apple iPod Touch
Not without its impracticalities, but the touch is a simply brilliant marriage of software and hardware

Apple TV
A promising start for Apple’s living-room takeover, but we’re still waiting for the best bits.

ASUS A7S
If you’re looking for a well-featured, great-value desktop replacement, the A7S fits the bill

Asus A7S
If you’re looking for a well-featured, great-value desktop replacement, the A7S fits the bill. Plenty of grunt, a 200GB drive and great features - Asus is looking better and better.

Asus VX2S Lamborghini
There's substance beneath the hood of this fully-featured, stylish laptop. Plus, it’s the cheapest lamborgini you can buy.

Belkin N1 Wireless Modem Router
Mediocre value for the features and performance on offer.

Buffalo Nfiniti WZR-AG300NH
Excellent speed, both wired and wireless, but this comes at a hefty price.

Can you survive on online apps?
Online services are growing smarter by the day – but can they replace desktop applications? We spend a week working online to find out.

Canon EOS 40D
Superb build quality and performance make this a worthwhile upgrade for serious amateurs.

Canon HV20
Canon grabs the crown for the most fully featured HDV camcorder for under $1500

Canon Pixma MP180
It certainly isn’t pretty, but with results like these for such a low price the MP180 is hard to ignore

Clive Barker’s Jericho
You'd have more fun sticking a pickaxe up your nose.

D-Link RangeBooster N 650 DIR-655
Packed with great features and offering decent coverage, the DIR-655 is a winner at this price.

Dell Inspiron 1720
Well built, fast and with a great screen, the Dell also has superb battery life.

Dell Inspiron 1720
Well built, fast and with a great screen, the Dell also has superb battery life.

Dell Latitude D430
Great for executives on the move thanks to size and decent battery life, but the missing optical drive disappoints

Dell Latitude D430
Great for executives on the move thanks to size and decent battery life, but the missing optical drive disappoints.

Dell XPS M1730
If you want a monstrously powerful laptop, look no further.

Dell XPS M1730
Awesome power and features at a Reasonable price – but keep it plugged in.

Desktop Replacement Laptops
All the power of a desktop PC in a fraction of the space. We put a selection of desktop replacements to the test.

Desktop Replacement Laptops
All the power of a desktop PC in a fraction of the space. We put a selection of desktop replacements to the test.

Enemy Territory: Quake Wars
Fantastically fun and balanced play, especially if you don't Rambo your way through the game

Epson Perfection V200
Excellent quality and speed for reflective media, but the V200 makes heavy work out of transparencies

FileMaker Pro 9
Welcome enhancements in all areas mean there’s something for everyone – even database novices

Google SketchUp 6
Improved interface and drawing capabilities, new photo matching and hand-drawn effects – and it’s still free

Guitar Hero 3
New songs and a battle mode make Guitar hero III a winner

HP Pavilion HDX9003TX
A great desktop replacement thanks to the huge screen and dual 200GB hard disks, but its price is too high.

HP Pavilion HDX9003TX
A great desktop replacement thanks to the huge screen and dual 200GB hard disks, but its price is too high.

Iliad eBook Reader
An impressive paperback replacement with a remarkable display: it’s only let down by the unintuitive software.

Informatix Piranesi 5
Piranesi gets the major overhaul of interface and tools that its extraordinary creative power deserves

Keeping people happy
David Kidd investigates why open source software still falls into the same old traps

Kodak EasyShare 5300
Great design, great photos and some clever features, but it struggles to justify the high price.

Lego Mindstorms NXT
The perennial kids’ favourite evolves into an exciting gateway to advanced engineering

Lenovo 3000 V200
Not a stylish machine, but it’s good value, well built and boasts surprisingly impressive battery life

Linksys WRVS4400N
A business-orientated router with average performance

MSI RX2600XT-T2D512EZ
Good performance and value, plus plenty of media-centre practicality in this silent graphics card

NEC VERSA S3300
Solid, but not flashy. However, a great price and decent battery life give it an edge.

NETGEAR WNR854T
Great speed for a wireless router, but lacking features for the price.

Paragon Hard Disk Manager 8.5 PE
New wizards make it easier to use, and the range of operations is impressive for such a reasonable price

Samsung Q1 Ultra
Baby steps inch the UMPC concept forward, with the Q1 Ultra the best version yet. But it’s still undeniably niche

Samsung SyncMaster 245B
It’s accurate, adjustable and stylish, and the price simply beggars belief. An instant classic

Shooting for Film Festivals 101
If you want your film to look good in front of an audience of thousands, these are the cameras you should be using.

Should you buy an iPod Touch?
With the iPhone (presumably) only a few months away, we compare how Apple's touch screen marvels compare.

Sony VAIO VGN-AR49G
A Blu-ray drive is just about the only justification for the Sony’s high price; it’s poor value overall.

Sony VAIO VGN-AR49G
A Blu-ray drive is just about the only justification for the Sony’s high price; it’s poor value overall.

The Orange Box
Valve may have missed the point of episodic gaming, but this is one of the best value gaming packs ever released

Tick Tock - 10 years on the Intel clock
Intel unloaded a swag of new Penryn-class CPUs at CES today. Zara Baxter explores the new platform and what it means for your PC.

Tips and tricks for shooting HD video
HD cameras are wonderful, but to wrangle the best out of your camera there are a few things you should know before you start rolling.

TomTom Go 720
The 720’s features make it a winner. But the high price reflects Map Share: which isn’t available in Australia

Toshiba Satellite P200
It lacks the frills of others here, but the Toshiba is ideal if you want a 17in screen at the lowest price.

Trendnet TEW-631BRP
Decent features and speed, but still lacking in this company.

ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite 7.1
The Vista version lacks many of the features of the XP suite, while slowing down the PC noticeably in usage

Zyxel NBG-415N
Poor coverage means the Zyxel isn’t a bargain.

What's on the disc

PC Authority Issue: 121
December

PC Tools Antivirus
Bullguard
Cyberlink PowerDirector 5 VE
Microsoft Office 2007
Paragon Partition Manager 8.5 Personal

Freeware
AbiWord
Ambient Design ArtRage
Audacity
DeepBurner Free 1.8
GIMP help files
GTK+ 2 Runtime Environment v2.10.6 (required for installation of the GIMP)
Open Office 2.2
PDFCreator 0.9.3
The GIMP 2.2.13

Entertainment

Games
ET Quake Wars
World in Conflict (Demo)

Editorial
Real World Benchmarks
Creating a burned CD-R from an ISO image with DeepBurner
Download iPod tools

Updates

Windows
Ad-Aware 2007 7.0.1.6
Adobe Reader 8
AVG 7.5.446 Free Edition
EditPad Pro 6.2.2
ExplorerXP 1.07
Google Desktop Search 4
Google Earth 4 Beta
Microsoft Windows Media Player 11
RocketReader 8.20
Spybot Search & Destroy 1.4
True Launch Bar 4.1
Tweak UI
WinRAR 3.62
WinZip 11.0
Zone Labs ZoneAlarm Firewall

Internet
AOL Instant Messenger 6.1
Crazy Browser 3.0 Beta2
CWShredder 2.19
Diino 4 Trial Account
FileZilla 2.2.32
Google Toolbar 4.0
Mozilla Firefox 2.0.0.6
Mozilla Thunderbird 2.0.0.4
MSN Messenger 7.0 (98/ME)
Portable Firefox 2.0.0.6
Remote Administrator 3.0
SpamBayes 1.0.4
Trillian Basic 3.1.6
Windows Live Messenger

Patches
ATI Catalyst 7.3 Control Center Package (XP)
AVG Free Edition Updates
DirectX
Norton AntiVirus definitions update
NVIDIA Forceware drivers for the FX, 6000. 7000. and 8000 series GPUs. Version 162.22 (Vista)
NVIDIA Forceware drivers for the FX, 6000. 7000. and 8000 series GPUs. Version 162.13
NVIDIA Forceware drivers for 7800 and 7900 GO Series Version 84.63 (Laptops)
Spybot Search & Destroy Update
VIA HyperionPro drivers 5.12A
Realtek AC'97 Codec
Realtek AC'97 Codec (Vista)
Realtek High Definition Audio Codecs
Realtek Realtek High Definition Audio Codecs (Vista)


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November, 2009
Issue: 144
November, 2009

October, 2009
Issue: 143
October, 2009

September, 2009
Issue: 142
September, 2009

August, 2009
Issue: 141
August, 2009

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