Author: ChipChick.com

Lenovo’s S10-3t is not just a netbook, it’s the industry’s first convertible netbook tablet to feature a capacitive multitouch screen (meaning finger tip touch instead of pressure touch). This kind of technology has mostly been reserved for more expensive laptops, but it’s finally making its way down into notebooks. Otherwise, the system’s specs are pretty standard – the system is running on an Atom N470 processor, 2GB of ram, it has a 10.1 LCD and a 2.76lb weight. Other features include DirectShare to quickly and easily synchronize files with another laptop without connecting to the Internet, Maplife location-based mapping software, and Quick Start 2.0 with ‘instant on’ function to access a range of applications and the Web without starting Windows.

The MoGo Talk for iPhone was pretty impressive in the way it discretely integrated a bluetooth headset onto the back of the iPhone. Now MoGo Talk has come out with a version of the BlackBerry – specifically the BlackBerry Curve and BlackBerry Javelin. Pricing for the MoGo Talk for BlackBerry will be $129.99 and it should be available to purchase soon.

MoGo Talk™ for the BlackBerry Curve is the first Bluetooth headset integrated into the back of your BlackBerry. MoGoTalk charges with your BlackBerry so it is always ready. MoGoTalk delivers superior audio quality in an ultra-thin (5mm) design. Mogo Talk’s folding earpiece lays completely flat, enabling it to store and charge on the back of a mobile phone or inside a laptop.

AirStash is the world’s first wireless flash drive that enables you to share media files with your friends. Let your iPhone or iPod Touch breathe with unlimited expandable storage that frees up the limited space in your iPhone or iPod Touch for more apps while providing wireless access to your ever expanding music, movies, and photos. Plug AirStash into the USB port of your computer and load up on media and document files. You’ll be able to use your  iPhone or iPod Touch to surf your media collection located on the AirStash instantly and wirelessly.  With the AirStash, you can share documents and presentations quickly and simultaneously to multiple devices without an internet connection.

We can see the endless uses for this little magical stick. Many new applications and more details are supposedly coming, but as per usual, availability and pricing is TBD so far.

The ThinkPad X100e is one of many laptops that Lenovo will be introducing in 2010 that has taken a completely new design direction. This model doesn’t constrain to the typical design elements of past Lenovo ThinkPads from years gone by, instead the X100e sports a radical new keyboard with chicklet keys, along with the multitouch touchpad. But none of these changes will hinder the overall quality we have come to expect from the durable and reliable ThinkPad laptops we have come to know and love. Lenovo promises that these keyboards are just as comfortable as their previous ThinkPad keyboards, and if anything they’ve just been improved. However, the traditional ThinkPad design will still be available on other new models.

Meanwhile, The new X100e is especially appealing with its sub 3lb weight and 11.6 inch display all for a price point starting below $500. Inside the system will sport an AMD Athlon Neo MV-40 / AMD M780G with ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics with other AMD Athlon Neo and Turion options available later on in the first half of 2010.  Other specs include upto 4 GB max, 160 GB/250GB/320 GB 5400 RPM, ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics, stereo speakers, built-in mic, optional bluetooth, Ethernet, 4-in-1 card reader slot, upto 2 hours with a 3-cell 2.2Ah battery, and up to 5 hours with a 6-cell battery. Pricing for the ThinkPad X100e starts at a very affordable $449.

The ThinkPad X100e excels in the areas important to business users with professional-grade features, exceptional usability and outstanding mobility.

• Professional-Grade Features – Equipped with choices of AMD Athlon Neo single and dual core processors and Turion dual core processors¹, the X100e provides strong performance needed for multitasking and running typical office applications. It also has the performance needed to support corporate operating systems like Microsoft Windows 7 Professional. The X100e comes with Lenovo’s ThinkVantage Technologies, hardware-software tools that help customers deploy, manage and maintain their PCs. The laptop features global availability and technical support along with a variety of warranty options.
• Exceptional Usability and Design – Lenovo designed the small and compact X100e to be incredibly comfortable to use. An 11.6 inch high definition display provides ample screen real estate, and an ISO full-size keyboard with a multitouch touchpad and Trackpoint make navigation easy. The new contemporary keyboard design features enlarged keys, removal of rarely used keys like System Request and the embedded number pad. The X100e also brings color to ThinkPad with a new choice of heatwave red in addition to midnight black models.
• Outstanding Mobility – The X100e maximizes mobility with models starting under three pounds. For wireless connectivity on the go, the laptop comes with 802.11n WiFi and optional Bluetooth and 3G.

The new Lenovo ThinkPad Edge is a new affordable ultraportable laptop that features a stylish industrial design and substantial battery life, which is perfect for students or anyone on a budget. The Edge has a 13.3 inch widescreen (16:9 aspect ratio), a 4 GB maximum for ram, all in a total body weight of 3.6 pounds. This new design is also spill resistant for sloppy kids (like us) and has a TrackPoint and 2-button multi-gesture touchpad. Available colors will be Midnight Black – Smooth, Midnight Black – Gloss, Heatwaver Red – Gloss. Battery life issn’t too shabby either, at upto 3.7 hours with a 4-cell battery, and upto 5.9 hours with a 6-cell battery (AMD), upto 5.9 hours with a 4-cell battery, and upto 8.9 hours with a 6-cell battery (Intel). Available processors for the model will be the AMD Turion Neo X2 Dual-Core Mobile Processor, AMD Athlon Neo X2 Dual-Core Processor (AMD M780G, RS780/SB710), Intel ULV SU4100, SU7300, and Intel GS45 (too many choices quite honestly). Pricing for the ThinkPad Edge will start at $549.

If the businessmen and women were getting nervous that the latest ThinkPads are getting a bit to consumer looking in design, not to worry since the ThinkPad W510 features the same common ThinkPad features you have grown accustomed too. Instead it just has some of the latest Intel dual Core i7 processors to help speed up your workflow.  The ThinkPad W510 sports a 15.6” LED display with a 16:10 aspect ratio, up to 16GB of ram, an optional NVIDIA Quadro FX 880m card, 4 USB ports, and an ExpressCard slot,  all in a chassis that weighs 5.89lbs and it can manage up to 18 hours of battery life with a9 cell battery. Pricing will start at $1599.

The WirelessMediaStick by HSTi – Home Server Technologies Inc. is just another goody we will be seeing this week at CES.  The WirelessMediaStick streams your media files from any computer within a wireless network to any USB enabled DVD/Blu-ray player, TV, stereo or digital picture frame. Just plug it in and the device is now connected to your files, so that you’ll be able to play your music, videos and photos instantly. The WirelessMediaStick is essentially a virtual mass storage device which streams video, photos and music stored on any shared computer or mass storage device within your home/office network by utilizing your existing wireless router.  It eliminates the need for a media storage device to be placed next to your DVD player, TV, or Digital picture frame.  It is compatible with virtually any manufacturer’s audio/visual device that supports viewing/playing of stored media through the USB port.  The technology is managed by a web based interface accessible from any computer in your home. The WirelessMediaStick doesn’t need to be re-programed when you put more media on to your network; it automatically discovers it.  In addition, you can utilize your existing remote control so it is very easy to use. No pricing or word on availability yet but when we find out next week, we will update this post.

Laptops heat up. And mine is no different. Every night, I perch on the same place on my couch almost every night to sit and do work (and by work I mean go on Facebook) with my notebook computer on my lap. After a few hours, I find myself sweating, and realize that my computer is close to overheating. I have to take a break from work, which often results in channel flipping and a phone call or two. By the time I get back to my work, I have completely lost my train of thought, or if I decide to cool off by putting on some shorts, I run the risk scorching my thighs from the heat of my laptop. A constant problem, I was excited to give the ThermaPAK HeatShift laptop cooling pad a try.

The ThermaPAK is a half inch thick quilted rectangle that sits on your lap and provides protection from your blazing hot laptop. It comes in 13, 15 and 17 inch rectangles in black, pink, and a special white/silver version designed to match your Mac that costs around $27.99. The pad feels kind of like one of those lead aprons the dentist makes you put on before he takes your X-Ray, but a lot less bulky. So I put the pad on my lap and got to typing. About an hour later, at the point when my laptop is normally burning off the top layer of my skin, I was as perfectly cool calm and collected as when I started working. No channel surfing break was needed! Unlike a blanket or towel to act as a buffer between you and your laptop, the ThermaPAK actually deflects and redistributes heat from your laptop, which means that neither you, your computer, or the ThermaPAK get hot. It’s not a piece of material between you and your laptop. Instead, it’s a pad made of high tech material that helps redistribute the heat from your laptop to keep both you and the laptop cool. This has obvious benefits for your lap, but there are some added benefits for your laptop as well. Laptop overheating can seriously damage your machine. There are a few options you can take to prevent this type of damage from occurring. You can buy a USB fan, which is basically a costly fan that plugs into your USB port and protects your computer from overheating.

The downside of a USB fan is that it takes up a plug in your USB port, it uses about 20% of your battery, and sometimes they make a heck of a lot of noise. Not to mention that they are bulky and an added weight to put in your laptop case. The ThermaPAK on the other hand, offers a different option. It doesn’t require refrigeration, it doesn’t require battery, and it doesn’t need to be plugged and it doesn’t take up too much room. It’s just a pad that goes between you and your laptop.

It works like this: When a laptop cooler featuring HeatShift Technology is place under any notebook computer, the crystals inside are in a solid state. As the underside of the laptop begins to warm up, this heat is transferred to the HeatShift technology device. This transferal of heat gradually changes the PCM crystals into a liquid. ThermaPAK’s pad grooves channel air under the laptop, and use the second law of thermodynamics to draw heat from the laptop.  After the laptop begins to cool, the HeatShift Technology devices changes back to a solid crystal – ready for the next use. The ThermaPAK worked exactly as promised. If your laptop is prone to overheating,

Conclusion

I would recommend this product to protect you and your laptop from the heat. That being said, I can’t imagine lugging the ThermaPAK around in my laptop case for the simple reason that it’s a little heavy. This product is great for keeping next to your favorite nook where you like to sit with your laptop to grab as a buffer from the heat.

The Good: Inexpensive TSA approved for travel. Distributes heat as promised to protect your legs and your laptop. Doesn’t require batteries or any kind of power whatsoever

The Bad : I can’t really see myself carrying this thing around unless I had a serious overheating problem with my laptop.

The DLO JumpStart is a new attachable battery pack plus sync cable for the iPhone, iPhone 3GS, iPod Nano, iPod Classic, and iPod Touch. For an iPhone 3G, the JumpStart can provide you with nearly double the battery capacity, or rather – it will provide you with almost an extra 100% extra charge while you’re on the go. Using the JumpStart, you can also charge and sync your iPhone/iPod to iTunes.We tested the JumpStart with the iPhone 3G. As much as we love the iPhone, it can barely make it through a day of heavy use without needing extra power. So a battery pack is an essential iPhone accessory to carry with you.

Design:
The JumpStart’s design and form-factor is pretty unique. Many iPhone battery packs inconveniently attach to the bottom of the iPhone and stick out below the iPhone as a dongle or they stick out substantially below the device. Fortunately the JumpStart’s design is smarter then that. The JumpStart attaches to the bottom of the iPhone, and and to the back of your iPhone where it uses suction cups to stay securely attached to your iPhone. The suction cups do a nice job of staying securely attached to your iPhone and they’re easy to take off and reattach. The design doesn’t add too much bulk to the iPhone either and it still allows you to slip it into your pocket without too much fuss. The Jumpstart also doesn’t weigh much at all, so it wont weigh down your bag. However we do have one minor gripe with the design, the cap covering the mini usb port is a bit flimsy and looks like it can break off easily.

Functionality and Performance:
A mini USB cable comes with the device that plugs into it for charging and syncing. The back of the JumpStart has a button to push to let you know its current power status. While charging, a red light at the top of the device shows up.  To indicate when the device is fully charged, the light turns blue. While the device is connected to your PC, if you Dock your iPhone/iPod into it, it will also conveniently sync and charge your iPhone.

We charged up the JumpStart several times and used it to charge up a dead iPhone 3G. Each time the JumpStart provided almost a full additional charge for the iPhone, but never quite a 100% full charge. When charging a dead iPhone 3G, within a few minutes or less the device had enough power to turn on. And it took the JumpStart almost 2 hours to charge the iPhone 3G and drain itself of its own power completely.

Conclusion:
The JumpStart isn’t the highest capacity iPod battery pack on the market, and we would have liked it to have had a standby mode to conserve power, but overall it’s a well rounded device that is easy and convenient to use. Just like you would throw a pair of headphones into your bag, you really need a battery pack to get through the day if you won’t be by an outlet or USB port. I cant tell you how many times I have found myself running around an airport looking for an available outlet to charge my iPhone. The few outlets that are available are usually taken, and often there isn’t enough time to sufficiently charge the iPhone either. That is just a typical situation where an iPhone battery pack is needed, but there are many reasons to need a battery pack and the reality is that the iPhone’s battery life falls short. I definitely wont be leaving home without the JumpStart in my bag. You can pick up the DLO JumpStart for $59.99.

The Good: Easy to use, convenient design, provides nearly an extra full charge for the iPhone 3G and other iPod models

The Bad: No standby mode to conserve battery power, cap covering mini USB port is flimsy

In China, the world’s fastest train which has only been around since last Saturday, has already hit its first speed bump. The Bullet train was forced to stop when a passenger violated the “No Smoking” sign which set off an alarm that forced the train to stop for two and a half hours, which is nearly as long as the train takes to cover the 1,100 kilometer (684 mile) distance between Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, and the central city of Wuhan.

“Smoking is strictly forbidden on the Wuhan-Guangzhou high-speed train, even in the toilet,” a spokesman with the Guangzhou Railway Group Corporation was quoted as saying. “It could trigger the alarm and even cause equipment failures.”

Unfortunately, the smoking culprit fled from the train before he could be caught by authorities. Moral of the story here kids? When they say “No Smoking” – they really mean it.

[via Yahoo News]

Originally we were going to have our Chip Chick team list every gadget they used the last ten years, be it low tech or high tech. But then we soon realized that would probably need a blog of its own. So instead we decided to list a few of the gadgets and technology that impacted our lives – good or bad over the last 10 years. As we all racked our brains to come up with this list, we couldn’t help feel a bit nostalgic and amazed at how fast technology has changed and then completely depressed by how many thousands of dollars was spent to get all of these wares!

“Chip Chick” Helena Stone, Editor in Chief

Nokia 8290 – It wasn’t the first cell phone I ever had, but it was the first GSM phone I had that let me both SEND and receive text messages. Unfortunately no one in the states that I knew at the time was able to send text messages yet, nor did they know what they were. So I racked up charges sending SMS’s back and forth to friends overseas where the folks are always a step ahead of us Americans. The phone also had faceplates, and I bought tons more of them off of eBay. I would match my phone to my outfit each time I went out and everyone thought that I was soooo cool. Now they probably wouldn’t.

Toshiba Pocket PC e750 – It wasn’t my first PDA. Actually, my first PDA was a Compaq Aero running Windows CE with a monochrome display. The Toshiba e750, however was a different beast with a color display and WiFi! Not that there were many places that had WiFi back then. Unfortunately, the first e750 got stolen out of my car trunk when I parked downtown in New York City one night, and the second one got left behind while I was strolling Ikea, never to be seen again. Sniff.

Rio 500 Mp3 Player – My first MP3 player. Back then there was no iPod, and hardly anyone knew what an MP3 player was. But this little DAP was so much smaller than my Discman, it was a little miracle. Unfortunately, the battery was pretty bad and only lasted a few hours. Still, I loved it and even went out and bought a 64MB SmartMedia card to expand its total memory to a whopping 128mb.

Samsung 14″ LCD (Model Unknown) – It was the first LCD display that was affordable at a time when 14″ LCDs typically would cost a grand. After that Samsung, CRTs left me forever and I never looked back.

Sharp Actius MM10 – This laptop weighed just 3lbs before netbooks ever existed. It cost $1499 but it was practically thin enough to slice bread, and I was really able to throw it into my purse. Sure it was slow as heck, but every time I pulled it out, people were blown away.

 

Lydia Leavitt, Features Editor

Sony RADIO Walkman – I remember strapping it on my arm PRE iPods and going running at the track at my highschool… during boys football practice.

Sony CD Walkman – Going skiing with a CD Walkman (which was rebranded from Discman in 2000) being all pumped up listening to Green Day at which point it would skip within one second and continue that way until you would finally give up.

Flat Iron/Hair Straightener –  Ohhh the hair straightener. When frizzy hair went out of style.

Creepy Crawlers from Jakks Pacific – Amazing arts and crafts projects where you would mix this weird rubber cement and make your own centipede. I had a brother.

Droid – My social media world at my finger tips and it’s not an iPhone – in fact I’m going to tweet this as soon as it goes up.

 

Scott Schaen, Reporter

Tivo Series 1 – For encouraging me to not revolve my life around TV.

Oral B Pulsar Toothbrush – Because they cost just as much as the replaceable toothbrush heads and they last twice as long. Also it’s one less thing to keep plugged in your bathroom.

Viper Remote Starter for Your Car – So I didn’t have to freeze my butt off in the cold anymore looking for my keys and waiting for my car to warm up.

Linksys WRT-54g – For unleashing the wireless frontier into my home and for allowing us to settle with non-3G iPhones.

Flash Drives – Because they made the 3 1/2 1.44 MB inch floppy extinct.

iPhone – Because while my current intelligence remains at the average level, my perceived intelligence (thanks to the iPhone) shoots through the roof…

Lydia Fazzio, Contributor

iRiver MP3 Player – Helped me forget a bad relationship

Sony Ericsson T610 –  I changed the cracked screen myself by ordering parts from Thailand and felt so empowered.The phone died a few weeks later.

Palm Treo 680 –  Oh how I miss the todo list on that thing- helped me survive first few years in New York.

Polar F6 watch – Free with my gym membership.

Sony Reader Touch – Had it 2 weeks before sending it to Gazelle.com- impulse buy for my birthday- got a eee pc instead

Had SPRINT as my mobile carrier in 2000 when I first moved to NYC

ASUS Netbook 1008HA –  Birthday gift to myself and first time I ever created a dual-boot machine.

Sylvania “cheapo” DVD player from Radio Shack –  at 29.99, we could not say no.

Tweezerman Nose hair clipper –  Uh… not for me..really.

Ali Heriyanto, Editor of Chip Chick & Chip Chicklets

Kazaa, Morpheus, WinMx, Napster, Limewire – Do I really need to explain?

Motorola V60 – Used it till it literally fell apart into pieces in my hands. I never had the same phone that long (which was only a year) nor did I get a Motorola ever again for years.

Nokia 8810 – Spent $1000 dollars on this phone which also included a velor pouch and had to use it to wipe the damn phone every minute because of how greasy it got. Ended up on eBay very quickly.

Pentium 4/AMD Athlon – Let the chip wars begin.

Primera CD Printer – A heaven sent machine that printed directly onto printable CD’s and I never had to align an adhesive CD label again!

Rio Nitrus – First real MP3 player I had.

APEX Modded DVD/DVD-R/DVD-RW/CD-R/CD-RW Standalone Player – I could play a pancake in this machine and it would work.

Sony Ericcson T68 – My first color cellphone.

Fujitsu Lifebook Laptop – I remember pounding on the doors of the Fujitsu Canadian headquarters in Toronto begging them to open up so that they could fix my dying laptop. Truly this was a vacation to remember….

Omnipoint, voicestream, and Jamie Lee Curtis – What were the previous identities of T-Mobile and I’m a lifer going on 8 years with them.

Palm VIIx – It had wireless, I could check my eBay auctions, and email. It was the best and most advanced device of its time. It even went with me on my first trip to Las Vegas.

Think your Michael Phleps? Well prove it! The Freestyle Series from Liquid Image is the first swim goggle with an integrated digital camera. They are a slim design perfect for guys and gals who want to show of their breast strokes. The goggle contains a 62 degree lens to action while swimming and playing in the water. The built-in camera has a 1.3 MP camera mode and a video mode that records VGA video at a rate up to 30 frames per second with audio.   To operate just press On/Off/Mode and another button for the shutter. To record a photo or a video, simply turn on the camera, choose the mode, then press the shutter button.  The memory is not expandable so you better capture worthwhile footage with the internal memory of only 4GB.  The Freestyle Series Swim Camera Goggle is estimated to ship in April 2010, in time for the summer and will be available in the colors blue, black, and red.

The eStarling TouchConnect is one of the latest digital picture frames to sport a touchscreen display, wifi networking and even social networking apps. The TouchConnect can be linked to a Gmail account so that you can view your Gmail calendar, and even email yourself photos to view on the photo frame. The device also works with RSS photo feeds so that it will display photos coming in from an RSS feed. Picasa, Flickr and Facebook are three of the photo sharing sites that the picture frame is compatible with – the frame can pull pictures off of the sites to play back. But finally, the killer app has got to be its Twitter app, which lets you read status updates, and even send out tweets of your own. Otherwise the TouchConnect is pretty ordinary with  a 10.2″ display with a 800×480 resolution and it comes with 2GB of built in memory. For a limited time only, the eStarling TouchConnect is available for $199.

3G mobile broadband on the go is great, but the costly monthly fees and long term contracts have kept it from becoming adapted by the masses. This might soon change when DataJack launches at CES next month. The service offers 3G highspeed data for just $39.99 a month, and that is without any contract commitments. On top of that, the service offers truly Unlimited data – it doesn’t have the standard 5GB a month limit that other 3G data providers like Sprint, T-mobile, Verizon and AT&T maintain on their wireless broadband plans. DataJack also promises no early termination fees, no deposits, no credit check, and their USB modem costs just $99 at signup. The modem also conveniently has a micro-SD slot so that you can use it as as USB key as well.

As if that isn’t enticing enough, if you stay connected to the service for 12 consecutive months, DataJack will offer subscribers one free month of unlimited 3G Internet access.

It looks like DataJack is operating over a GSM standard since its web site says that it “Works seamlessly across DataJack’s 3G Broadband Network and EDGE networks” and operates on “850/1900/2100/AWS” with upload up to 5.76Mbps and downloads up to 7.2Mbps.

Until now the amount of contract- free 3G broadband choices in the U.S. has been very slim.Virgin Mobile offers prepaid 3G data but it’s costly, their $60 offering provides users with only 1GB per month. DataJack’s plans not only undercuts other prepaid mobile broadband options, but it also undercuts the contract based ones from the big wireless providers. Plus, with an “unlimited” plan not being capped by any megabyte restrictions, it makes the service tempting enough to replace your home highspeed data connection altogether. SlingShot Prepaid Mobile Broadband is another 3G prepaid mobile broadband alternative, but it’s difficult to locate a store actually selling it altogether.

Here is to hoping that DataJack launches with a good coverage area and is able to offer good speeds and great service, because if that proves true, I for one will be dumping my $60 a month Sprint data plan to move to them.

So at this point we’ve seen LEDs show up just about everywhere. Belts, T-shirts, hats, glasses, tiles, and now you can have a spiffy LED faucet too. The Single Handle LED Glass Sink Faucet will impress your guests with a waterfall light show as they wash their hands. But why? Just because you can. The Single Handle LED Glass Sink Faucet retails for $65.00 and comes with a ceramic valve. I will say though that if anything, it will encourage folks to wash their hands more just to glimpse the lightshow – now that’s a good thing.