Abit NF7-S
ABIT's new NVIDIA nForce2 motherboard, the NF7-S, supports the AMD Duron, Athlon, and Athlon XP, and also features dual 400MHz DDR memory controllers.
Acer TravelMate 225X
Acer was one of the few big name manufacturers that were able to meet our stringent pricing criteria. The submitted notebook, the TravelMate, is not a so bad overall, but it couldn't win out against the smaller manufacturer's abilities to get top components at short notice. Where Acer excels is in after-sales support.
AIPTEK POCKET DV II 1.3M LCD
The Aiptek Pocket DV II is an extremely cute little DV camera and is the perfect video analog of the tiny 'party snapper' digital still cameras that have been popping up. Not at all for serious videography, the Pocket DV II features a 1.3-megapixel CDD, a 1.4in LCD preview screen and some very simple design.
Another dimension
As futuristic technology concepts go, 3D screens have been right up there with the teleporter as an aspirational idea that could change the way we see the world, yet the idea still resides in the realm of the science fiction.
Another Dimension - Part Two
As futuristic technology concepts go, 3D screens have been right up there with the teleporter as an aspirational idea that could change the way we see the world, yet the idea still resides in the realm of the science fiction.
AOC LM800, NEC LCD3000, SAMSUNG 172W
I've predicted 2003 will be the year of the TFT, with massive price cuts on the way that will give CRTs a run for their money. The year is already looking good with these three models entering our testing Labs.
Apple iBook
The iBook represents the budget- end of Apple's notebook range. Its sturdy white lid, and solid base give it a quality feel, and it even manages to come in at only 2.5kg, including power pack.
BELKIN F8T001
With Bluetooth-enabled devices taking off this year, (slowly, slowly), it's inevitable that more and more Bluetooth adaptors will appear on the market. We reviewed the Gigabyte GN-BTD01 (February 2003, page 44) and now the Belkin F8T001 USB Bluetooth adaptor.
COMPLETE DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY SE
The Complete Digital Photography is an excellent and comprehensive book about all aspects of digital photography. The author makes a strong distinction early on however: this is a book about digital photographs taken with a digital camera, not film photos scanned to be manipulated. This is an important point, as the book goes into great depth about how to take photos under varying conditions and then manipulate them afterwards.
Dell Axim x5
Dell has waited several years to release its own PDA, and now committed to Pocket PC, Dell's main weapon is aggressive pricing that's on the verge of insane.
Dell Optiplex SX260
Dell's OptiPlex range is aimed at the corporate market, and traditionally bog-standard and boring boxes with little imagination and componentry to match, but the OptiPlex SX260 is a totally different beast.
Extreme programming
Don't be confused; this XP has little to do with Microsoft. It's what happened when software developers pushed the best practices of programming to the edge, to the extreme.
Extreme Programming - Part Two
Dont be confused; this XP has little to do with Microsoft. It is what happened when software developers pushed the best practices of programming to the edge, to the extreme.
Hands On : Bigger is Better
With the increasing size of operating systems, games and the broadband smorgasbord of music and movies, it's just a matter of time before that dreaded message box pops up to tell you just how little space you have left.
Hi-Grade Notino 3400s
The Notino 3400S is the second cheapest notebook in this roundup. Unfortunately, it's outdone on almost every other front by the opposition.
Hi-Grade Notino 4400
Superior build quality is one of the most desirable features to have in a notebook, and this Notino is one of the best examples in this month's roundup.
HOW TO DUNK A DONUT
Almost a complementary tome to The Ignoble Prizes, How to dunk a donut is written by Len Fisher, a scientist who has often been approached by corporations to perform some truly bizarre studies.
How To: Safe From Harm
Traditionally firewalls were the bastion of large, publicly accessible networks to keep hackers out. But in a world connected by the Internet, every machine hooked up to it becomes publicly accessible, and so it's vital that every machine is equipped to protect itself, and the network it may serve, from attack.
How To: Setting Up Exchange Server 2000
Although there are many free and inexpensive email servers available (such as Sendmail, Mercury Mail and Mail Enable), if you want the full functionality of Outlook such as calendaring, scheduling and fax integration, you need Microsoft Exchange Server 2000.
InFocus X1
Whenever PC Authority reviews a data projector, we try it out with DVDs and games, and we test entertainment projectors with PCs just to see how they handle applications other than those they’re specifically designed for.
Linux
Mike MacCana ponders the wine industry, rants online, and discovers a neat tip for intra-server messaging...
Login: Tim Dean - Ubiquity everywhere
Ubiquitous value network!' – invariably asserted by a Japanese Sony executive, with arms triumphantly raised in the air at the point where they utter the word 'value', and with a maniacal glint in their eye exposing their lofty vision of the future.
MACROMEDIA CONTRIBUTE
Macromedia Contribute is a program for managing and updating Website content and has been designed for businesses without access to technical Website administration resources. Therefore it's perfect for non-technical computer users for managing their Website.
MACROMEDIA DIRECTOR MX
Macromedia Flash (May 2002, page 60), Dreamweaver, Fireworks and FreeHand (Studio MX, November 2002, page 71), have all been given the MX treatment, and now it's Director's turn.
McAfee Firewall 4
At first glance, not much appears to have changed from version 3. A closer look, however, reveals that the engine in version 4 has been tweaked and optimised towards a more powerfully specified product.
Norton Personal Firewall
With less hand-holding and a greater feeling of control and configuration, Norton is definitely geared more towards the advanced user than McAfee. Although the interface is quite different, it's undoubtedly a more professional product.
Norton Personal Firewall 2003
With less hand-holding and a greater feeling of control and configuration, Norton is definitely geared more towards the advanced user than McAfee. Although the interface is quite different, it's undoubtedly a more professional product.
Note-worthy
Almost five months on from our last notebook roundup, where we were slightly unsettled and amazed that it was possible to call the latest notebooks 'desktop replacements' and actually mean it, the PC Authority team is back with another comprehensive round up of mobile monsters.
Note-worthy (Part 2)
The notebooks were subjected to several benchmarks to give an objective evaluation of their speeds, performance and applicability.
PC Club Highlander 1.8GHz
With the exception of the badge on the lid, PC Club's Highlander is almost identical to both ModTech's and Targa's offerings.
PC DELL Dimension 8250
After January's shenanigans with this system, it's nice to have it back in the testing Labs. My initial impressions haven't changed: this is one mean system that will handle anything you throw at it, and the benchmarks back that claim.
Pioneer Value NBPD270
Pioneer's Value notebook is another well-featured offering, with a large variety of ports, a combo drive and a very handy three-year warranty.
PROCREATE PAINTER 7
Painter 7 is a digital painting application that simulates the realistic subtleties of an artist's style using natural media, such as water colours, inks, oil paints, coloured pencils, felt pens, chalks, pastels, and more.
Protac i-Buddie
The i-Buddie’s biggest claim to fame in the notebook stakes is that it keeps its travel weight down by eschewing an in-built battery. The reasoning is that most notebooks are either used at home or the office, where they’re plugged into the mains, but aren’t powered up on the road much.
Sony Cineza VPLHS10
Sony's first Cineza, the VPLHS1, was an innovative projector: it featured 'sideshot', horizontal as well as vertical keystone correction which meant it was the first projector that could be placed in the corner of a room, and still project a perfectly rectangular image in the centre of a wall.
Targa Visionary 4E
The second of three notebooks with identical bodies, designs, and almost identical specifications, the Targa Visionary 4E proved to be a powerhouse when it come to the PC Authority benchmark suite, ripping through SYSmark2002 and 3DMark2001SE Pro with ease.
The 64-bit question - Part 2
In the early-to-mid 'nineties, the industry was buzzing with speculation about the 'new' 32-bit computing platform and, more importantly, how it would integrate into the 16-bit environment.
THE IGNOBLE PRIZES
Marc Abraham's Ignobel Prizes is the latest book in a series that seeks to highlight some of the strangest scientific research papers to be published. From the founder of the esteemed Annals of Improbable Research (www.improbable.com), the Ignobel Prizes award scientists for some truly bizarre work, including the research into dunking biscuits (see How to Dunk a Donut).
Toshiba Satelite 1110/0035Z
Not a bad notebook, the Satellite 1110 marks Toshiba's first foray into the sub-$2,500 notebook market, and it's a welcome one. By its own merits, the Satellite 1110's specifications are reasonable: 1.5GHz Celeron, 128MB RAM, 16MB RADEON Mobility, 20GB HD and DVD-ROM, but in comparison to the field it was average in all regards.
Twinhead Elfio!2003CTZ
Even if the Twinhead Efio! 2003CTZ couldn't hold its own with the big boys here when we benchmarked it, we were highly impressed with the unit's features and pricing, which countered its relatively low performance and rocketed it into the top three in the Labs.
ULEAD DVD MOVIEFACTORY 2
The menu setup panel is where DVD menu layouts are customised with thumbnails, backgrounds and music.
WACOM CINTIQ SX
Wacom has been in the touchscreen and tablet industry for years, and is the manufacturer supplying the majority of screens for Tablet PCs. With the rise of interest in Tablet PCs, Wacom's local branch was keen to let us try out one of its newer standalone touchscreen products: the Cintiq.