Buffalo's stylish Skype speakerphone on the cheap

Headsets for making internet telephone calls, particularly for Skype, are ten-a-penny, but there aren’t a great number of speakerphones and certainly none is as stylish or cheap as the latest from Buffalo Japan.

For ¥9,800, Tokyo businesses operating on a shoestring can avail themselves of Buffalo’s elegant BSKP-CU202/SV. As with most products from the firm, the naming is a mess, yet the functionality is anything but.

The desk-phone needs no drivers, simply plugging into a USB port. As it’s bus-powered, there’s no need for an AC adapter either. In addition, a total audio output of 6W through three channels makes the setup a reasonable speaker system for most machines.

Lastly, with both echo- and noise-canceling circuitry installed, the CU202 should put paid to those annoying quality problems that dog Skype and its 171 million users worldwide. Oh, and we should probably point out that there’s absolutely no reason not to plug in and fire up an alternative/better VoIP app, such as Gizmo.

Golden Week in Japan: Showers predicted...

This weekend sees the sticky old Golden Week public holiday period begin in Japan, with a mad rush to do exactly the same thing as everyone else and sit in traffic jams or visit incredibly crowded 'attractions.' Naturally, we can't help ourselves and will be doing the same, as will all the tech companies in this fair land.

New desktop computers from Hewlett Packard

Update immediately three series of its desktop computers presented by Hewlett Packard. Ей были представлены новые модели серий s3000, a6000 и m8000.It had before new models s3000 series, and m8000 a6000.


Все новинки выполненные в интересном и привлекательном дизайне.All new items performed in an interesting and attractive design. Модели серии a6000, в минимальной конфигурации будут стоить около 350 долларов США.Models series a6000, as a minimum configuration will cost about $ 350. Модели этой серии построены на базе процессоров Intel, и оснащены, по умолчанию, 512 Мб оперативной памяти.Models in this series are based on Intel and equipped by default, 512 Mb RAM.

Modei, s3000 series, are based on processors from AMD and a default 1 GB of memory. Эти модели обойдутся пользователю в 500 долларов США, в минимальной конфигурации.These models cost a user $ 500 in a minimum configuration.
And the most expensive and advanced, m8000 will be equipped as Intel, and AMD. Иц цена начинается от 950 долларов.Its price starts at 950 dollars. Модели этой линейки будут поставляться с HD DVD приводами.Models this line will ship with HD DVD drives.

Все новинки уже доступны в продаже.All new items are available for sale. Их цена изменяется в зависимости от конфигурации, которую можно варьировать в самых широких пределах.Their price varies depending on configuration, which can vary in a wide range. Компьютеры всех трех серий будут поставляться с предустановленной Windows Vista.Computers of all three series will ship with Windows Vista preloade

New Robot Looks Strikingly Human

The ultra-lifelike robot Repliee Q1 made quite an impression at the 2005 World Expo in Japan. Shown below (at left!) with co-creator Hiroshi Ishiguru, the robot is so lifelike that roboticists may want to start working on a Bladerunner-style Voight-Kampff test now.


The ultra-lifelike robot Repliee Q1 made quite an impression at the 2005 World Expo in Japan. Shown below (at left!) with co-creator Hiroshi Ishiguru, the robot is so lifelike that roboticists may want to start working on a Bladerunner-style Voight-Kampff test now.


(From Ultra-Lifelike Robot Debuts in Japan)

Repliee Q1 has silicone for skin, rather than hard plastic. It has a number of sensors to allow it to react in a manner that appears natural; it appears to flutter its eyelids, chest movements correspond to breathing, and other tiny shifts in position that mimic unconscious human movement. The android can mimic actions made by a human; this helps the robot's movements appear more lifelike. By facing a person with reflective dots placed at key points (like wrist, elbow, palm), the robot can try to match those points on its own body with those of the person who is "modeling" human movement.

The greatest limit to the lifelike movement of the robot is that it has only 31 actuators in its upper body; a nearby air compressor provides the energy needed for articulation.

In his excellent novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep, Philip K. Dick explores what happens in a society when android replica humans cannot be physically distinguished from human beings. Only the Voight-Kampff empathy test can make the distinction, when used by a trained officer like Rick Deckard:

"I'm not a peace officer," Rick said. "I'm a bounty hunter." From his opened briefcase he fished out the Voight-Kampff apparatus, seated himself at a nearby rosewood coffee table, and began to assemble the rather simple polygraphic instruments...
(Read more about the Voight-Kampff test)

San Francisco's Wave magazine recently wondered whether or not candidates for their mayoral elections were humans or androids; they applied an empathy test to make sure. See Is Your Candidate Human?. Read more about Repliee Q1 in Ultra-Lifelike Robot; more materials available at Android Science. Thanks to Andy Gowland for contributing the tip on this story.

Panasonic tweaks SD camcorders to ‘Full HD’ at 1920 x 1080i

Barely five months after announcing the world’s first video camera to record HD TV images to an SD memory card, Panasonic has replaced it with a cheaper, more-capable model that it claims breaks new ground.

Last November’s HDC-SD1 has been ruthlessly elbowed aside by today’s release of the HDC-SD3, which offers video recording at 1920 x 1080i pixels, compared with the earlier model’s 1440 x 1080i resolution.

If you’re thinking the difference is minimal, you’re probably right not to be bothered unless you’ve just bought the SD1. The newcomer not only lays down a few thousand more pixels per frame, but it’s also likely to be ¥30,000 cheaper at ¥150,000. That includes a bundled 4GB SDHC card.

Both cameras use the relatively new AVCHD compression technique to fit high-definition video onto current-generation media, such as the SD cards used in this case. A similarly revamped DVD camcorder has also been announced in the shape of the HDC-DX3.

Although Panasonic claims the SD3 and DX3 are the world’s first ‘Full HD’ camcorders, which the 1920 x 1080 specs justify if one overlooks the interlaced/progressive debate, the website for the SD1 and DX1 still prominently touts them as ‘Full HD.’

On the cameras themselves, only the latest versions have a corresponding badge, as you’ll see in the second photo above. There are no details of the new cameras on the Panasonic website yet.

Aside from the ballyhoo over line counts, upgrades to the included editing software and some minor tweaks to the casing, such as to the grip of the SD3, the new camcorders seem unlikely to make much of a splash when launched in Japan on April 25.

Samsung SyncMaster 225MS-R: Ready to Make Waves in Japan

Samsung SyncMaster 225MS-R will soon hit the market and that too in the ‘the land of the rising sun’- Japan. This wonder shows off its widescreen LCD display bestowing you with 22″ wide angle viewing and a substantially clearer presentation integrity as well as maintaining the maximum resolution of 1,680 x 1,050.

It further features a contrast ratio of 700:1, brightness level of 300cd/m2, too good, a DVI-D HDCP port and an HDMI 1.1 port which provides you with that added zeal and high definition thirst! This magnificent piece of marvel has a price tag of 380 Euros and will soon be made available in the Japanese market.

Unmatchable HD LCD TVs by NEC: Strictly for Professionals

NEC has made public its two latest and the hottest LCD TV screens strictly for professionals. I guess they must be having enough mettle to prove what they have boasted!

These 2 LCD TVs definitely have a good backup in regards to their functionalities. They come up in diagonal sizes ranging from 40-inches to 46-inches with 1366×768 max resolution, 500 cd/m2 of excellent brightness and 1200: 1 of contrast ratio, too good for the professional front I am sure.

Both models also feature HDMI and DVI-D HDCP.
Professionals will be having the time of their lifetime with this awesome LCD TV!

Toshiba Matsushita Announces the World’s Largest 20.8-inch Polymer-type OLED Display

Although it’s not the largest OLED display but it’s the largest one based on low-temperature poly-silicon technologies. The new 20.8-inch model from Toshiba Matsushita Display Technology employs lately developed techniques for unvarying coating of organic electroluminescent materials and the optimized combination of electrodes and organic materials. It not only reduces the power consumption but improves the screen’s bright ness too. But, the 1,280 x 768 resolution is not so inspiring. The company is taking it as a step forth towards the “next-generation” of TV sets and monitors.

FED TVs Likely to Hit the Shelves in 2009

Sony lately showcased its FED (field emission display) TV technology in Japan, which is touted to be a tough competitor to other display technologies such as OLEDs, SEDs, and backlight LCDs.

The 19.2-inch FED panel comes with a 1,280 x 960 pixel resolution, contrast ratio of 20,000:1, and a brightness of 400cd/m2. The FED displays are said to be having better brightness at low power consumption.

Anyhow, we won’t be able to see the FEDs until 2009.

World’s First 42-inch Plasma TVs with Full HD Panels Debuting April 27th

April 27 is the scheduled date for the launch of Panasonic maker Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd’s world’s first 42-inch plasma TVs with full high definition panels in Japan.
With its new superior line up of full HD models boasting an image resolution of 1,920 by 1,080 pixels, Panasonic aims to challenge rival LCD TV makers. The new 42-inch TVs are anticipated to cost from $3,449 to $3,617.

Matsushita also revealed its plans shell out $2.4 billion to build the world’s largest plasma display factory.

Samsung’s 24-inch LED Backlit LCD Panel: The Finest Picture Viewing Ever

Samsung’s latest and the hottest innovation is an add-on to its fleet of monitors. This monitor bestows you with that high quality ‘picture viewing experience’ that you had never thought of. This small blaster incorporates a 24-inch LED backlit LCD panel which can distribute a very high end quality booster for that perfect spotless, crisp viewing experience. We can definitely say that in a way it gives out true-to-life color.
One may view this marvel even through an angle of 180-degree, this thing is seriously catching attention of the critics too, so does this mean that this kind of viewing is possible practically from any place within the room?
It bestows the max resolution of 1920 x 1200 and a contrast ratio of 1000:1.Its practically the best buy for the Artists and the designers, I suppose.

JVC Flaunting Its Gigantic 110-inch Rear Projection TV

Bigger is always better in the high definition TV dome and JVC understands that very well. Now, JVC has showcased its gigantic 110-inches rear projection TV that flaunts full HD (1080p) at Finetech.

The grotesque TV consumes a low power of 220W, which is much less that the power consumed by an average PC. It boasts a constrast ratio of 5,000 to 1, and a female-to-TV ratio of 7:1.

If you happen to be in Japan this December, you make get one for youself by paying a stocky price of $50,500. Just think of playing your favorite game on the big screen!

Toshiba to Drop a 30-inch OLED TV in 2009

While Sony is flaunting its 27-inch OLED TV and FED plans, Toshiba has made public its plans to roll out an 30-inch OLED display in 2009 and will be the largest among all those, which are in the development phases at the moment. They don’t think of going staright into competition with the LCDs but they did emphasized on the lower manufacturing costs, better viewing angles, and contrast associated with the OLEDs.

‘SyncMaster 275T’series by Samsung : Quite a Competition!

Samsung may soon be launching its 27-inch wide monitor ‘SyncMaster 275T’ and that too in the Korean market. It’s here to give competition to the good old 24 inch HDTV market. It shows its compatibility with the 3000:1 contrast ratio and 1920×1200 resolution.

The SyncMaster 275T has functionalities - four USB 2.0 ports and a variety of inputs like S-Video, component and DVI sustaining HDCP(High-Bandwidth Digital Content Protection). A separable speaker (option) is also offered. recommended price is 1,340,000(KRW).

Panasonic TH-65PX600U Plasma HDTV Review

manufacturer: Panasonic
model: TH-65PX600U 65-Inch Plasma HDTV
category: TVs
review date: April 2007
reviewed by: Adrienne Maxwell
Introduction
I’m not sure what I was thinking when I requested a review sample of Panasonic’s TH-65PX600U. No, that’s not true. I know exactly what I was thinking: “Hmmmmm, 65-inch 1080p plasma…ooooooooo.” The allure of it managed to push a few relatively important details aside, such as where in my house I would put it and how I planned to get it there. The panel weighs 174.2 pounds – that’s without the speakers or pedestal stand, both of which are optional accessories that cost extra ($600 and $1,200, respectively). Needless to say, this isn’t the type of product you casually throw up on the wall for a short-term viewing period, so I went with the optional stand, which is itself a serious piece of hardware: it weighs about 55 pounds, and its base (48.9 by 16.5 inches) is too large to sit atop my normal gear rack or any other short cabinet in my home, for that matter. Ultimately, I decided that, for my purposes, it would be fine to simply set the plasma on the floor.

28-percent of Americans now own an HDTV

You don't have look too awfully far to find at least a couple of pals who have made the leap to HDTV, and according a recent survey by the Consumer Electronics Association, over one-fourth of American households now sport a high-definition set. The pie chunk represents around 35 million displays in all, with more than half of 'em coming in at 40-inches or larger, and while these current figures might be satisfying, the CEA is estimating that another "16 million HDTVs will ship into the marketplace this year alone." Additionally, the survey found that just 86-percent of owners were "highly satisfied" with their purchase, while we assume the other 14-percent are still left wondering why they're watching large moving blocks instead of a legible image. Interestingly, traditional means of broadcasting weren't the only mediums getting utilized, as a substantial amount of customers were noted as actually turning to the internet to get their programming fix, which leaves us to ponder just how rapidly the broadcasting ways of days past will transform in the years to come.

Would dual must carry be good or bad for HDTV?

While there is little doubt in how analog broadcast television is going to meet its demise, the jury is still out on analog cable. While some of use think that cable companies will use the DTV transition to move customers to digital cable, others aren't so sure. FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is now proposing what is being referred to as dual must carry, which would require cable companies to carry both the digital and analog version of each local affiliate's feed, unless the cable companies switch to an all digital network. Sure all digital network seems great to us, but for all those without QAM tuners in their TVs, this means a converter box on every TV just like the OTA folks. The FUD is getting really deep in here, but somehow we think Kevin might be on to something. If cable companies are encouraged to go to digital and since digital SD channels use far less bandwidth than analog ones, that means more room for HD and other digital services we love.

28-percent of Americans now own an HDTV

You don't have look too awfully far to find at least a couple of pals who have made the leap to HDTV, and according a recent survey by the Consumer Electronics Association, over one-fourth of American households now sport a high-definition set. The pie chunk represents around 35 million displays in all, with more than half of 'em coming in at 40-inches or larger, and while these current figures might be satisfying, the CEA is estimating that another "16 million HDTVs will ship into the marketplace this year alone." Additionally, the survey found that just 86-percent of owners were "highly satisfied" with their purchase, while we assume the other 14-percent are still left wondering why they're watching large moving blocks instead of a legible image. Interestingly, traditional means of broadcasting weren't the only mediums getting utilized, as a substantial amount of customers were noted as actually turning to the internet to get their programming fix, which leaves us to ponder just how rapidly the broadcasting ways of days past will transform in the years to come.

Panasonic TH-65PX600U Plasma HDTV Review

Introduction
I’m not sure what I was thinking when I requested a review sample of Panasonic’s TH-65PX600U. No, that’s not true. I know exactly what I was thinking: “Hmmmmm, 65-inch 1080p plasma…ooooooooo.” The allure of it managed to push a few relatively important details aside, such as where in my house I would put it and how I planned to get it there. The panel weighs 174.2 pounds – that’s without the speakers or pedestal stand, both of which are optional accessories that cost extra ($600 and $1,200, respectively). Needless to say, this isn’t the type of product you casually throw up on the wall for a short-term viewing period, so I went with the optional stand, which is itself a serious piece of hardware: it weighs about 55 pounds, and its base (48.9 by 16.5 inches) is too large to sit atop my normal gear rack or any other short cabinet in my home, for that matter. Ultimately, I decided that, for my purposes, it would be fine to simply set the plasma on the floor.

CEATEC: Hitachi TVs reprocess HD video on the fly

Hitachi will soon ship two large plasma televisions equipped with internal hard drives and a chip that can reprocess high-definition video at a lower bit rate in real time, allowing users to double the amount of video they can record.

The W50P-XR10000 and W60P-XR10000 plasma TVs have screens that measure 50in and 60in across the diagonal, respectively. They are both equipped with a 250GB internal hard drive that can store 23 hours of HD content in standard recording mode. Both models were on display this week at Hitachi's booth at Ceatec.

For users who want to store more than 23 hours of content, the W50 and W60 offer two additional recording modes that rely on a ViXS Systems Inc. chip to reprocess the video stream at a lower bit rate, effectively doubling the hard drive's capacity to 50 hours or 65 hours, depending on the recording mode selected.

The W50P and W60P are priced at ¥550,000 (US$4,658) and ¥950,000, respectively. Both TVs will go on sale in Japan during the fourth quarter of this year.

The W50 and W60 join other televisions in Hitachi's product line that offer internal hard drives for recording video content. On sale in Japan since May, these models include the W37L-HR9000 and W32L-HR9000, which sport 32in and 37in LCD screens, respectively. The W37L is priced at around ¥300,000, while the W32L costs about ¥250,000.

Analysts predict no dominant next-gen console

The games industry has long been acknowledged as a lucrative business to be involved with, which is why reports from market analysts on the prospects for new consoles command such attention.

The latest, from respected analysts IDC, comes to the conclusion that none of the next-generation games machines currently on sale is likely to lord it over the others. The report excerpt (the full hit will cost you $4,500 – see what we mean about the cash in all this?) does, however, conclude that Nintendo will be top of the pile in the short run.

Analyst Billy Pidgeon says, “…none of the three new consoles will dominate the market in the next five years like the PS2 dominated last cycle; however, Nintendo's Wii will outship and outsell the 360 and PS3 in 2007 and 2008.”

Considering that we’re already seeing the Wii forging ahead, that much doesn’t bring a great deal to the table, although we can't help but wonder if the soon-to-be rumbling PS3 might spring a few surprises.

Students recreate building-sized Donkey Kong in Post-it notes

Lightly whisk 6,400 colored Post-it notes into a team of ten geeky engineering students, top with a fetish for retro arcade games and bake on a four-storey building overnight and whaddya get?

Yep — a Technicolor paper-based recreation of Donkey Kong circa 1981 at the University of California. Boink.

Is e-cash killing real money in Japan?

Next month in Japan sees the beginning of the endgame in an ambitious scheme to entirely do away with paper tickets across Tokyo’s complex public transport network. The new the Pasmo IC-card ticketing system will work seamlessly with several existing smartcards to make life incredibly easy for the busy Tokyoite.

Pasmo is the latest RFID/IC card on the scene – it joins Suica, Edy and their variants embedded in a host of mobile phones to complete a comprehensive cashless network for both travel and shopping. A typical day for a hypothetical Tokyo resident might see him use such e-cash technology a dozen or more times, as follows:

• 7:00am: Bus to station from home using Pasmo.

• 7:15am: Wave Suica card over ticket gate to begin commute.

• 8:30am: Arrive at Shinjuku station, exiting using Suica again.

• 8:15am: Pick up morning snack at convenience store, paying with either Suica or the Edy or Osaifu-Keitai (mobile wallet) in phone.

• 11:00am: Canned coffee from Edy-enabled vending machine.

• 1:00pm: Lunchbox from local shop with new Osaifu-Keitai reader.

• 6-7:30pm: Suica into station, to buy evening sports paper and a dried squid snack from kiosk on platform and out again at home station.

• 8:00pm: Pay for new sofa on credit using phone’s iD credit-card chip at furniture store.

• 8:15pm: Fork out for few rounds of sake at local bar – oops, cash only.

• 9pm: Family dinner at chain restaurant – Edy does the trick.

• 10:30pm: Pasmo home again on the bus.

At first, this futuristic lifestyle is undeniably fun, and there’s no doubt that IC-card technology is convenient. However, on the downside, many of these services are available only to people able to secure credit, as the final charges appear on the monthly phone bill.

As more deals are thrashed out to allow interoperability and a single IC standard draws closer, could we be facing a future where anyone without credit or the desire to embrace technology faces becoming a second-class citizen? ‘Ugh – real money? No thanks, it’s filthy.’

WiMax wireless pushed to handle HD TV

Mobile WiMax continues to make rapid strides in the race to establish a long-range alternative to Wi-Fi, with the latest breakthrough being a demonstration of wireless high-def TV broadcasts.

Using a tweaked IEEE802.16e setup, Japan Radio Company (JRC) and Runcom Technologies recently showed HD TV video being transmitted at 30Mbps, which was more than enough throughput for the HD vids.

The two companies combined their wireless expertise to create a base station and user terminals using WiMax IEEE802.16e-2005 on the 2.5GHz portion of the spectrum.

Emphasising the significance being placed on WiMax to challenge other technologies, JRC general manager Fumio Murakami said: “Japan … is expecting superior performance from the WiMAX networks to compete with the existing broadband wireless networks in the country; The collaboration with a pioneer … such as Runcom supported JRC in its plan to demonstrate such performance to the leading operators in Japan.”

While any large-scale commercial deployment of WiMax specifically for video broadcasts remains uncertain, it’s clear that, whatever it is used to transmit, the standard has a bright future.

PSP gets trial at Arsenal and firmware upgrade in Japan

Just as the PlayStation Portable has had its firmware updated to make it that little bit more useful, so we receive news of an unusual trial involving the Sony handheld system in the UK.

So far, only Japanese PSPs have been able to download the update to firmware version 3.30, which adds a range of new screen resolutions for showing H.264 MPEG-4 videos. The usual release pattern should see the update released first in the US within days, then in Europe in a few weeks.

Aside from adding high(ish)-resolution 720 x 480-pixel playback (among other sizes), the new firmware also adds menu thumbnails for videos and RSS items and better performance from downloaded PSone games.

Elsewhere, Arsenal FC’s Emirates Stadium is about to host an unusual field test using PSPs in the hands of football fans. The new S.PORT system will be tested by wirelessly beaming replays and statistics to PSP screens during Arsenal games at the stadium.

Reports suggest that the new technology could be used in other venues for different sports, so don’t be surprised to see legions of nerds fumbling with their toys blissfully unaware of another goal bursting the net or a streaker at Wimbledon.

Panasonic tweaks SD camcorders to ‘Full HD’ at 1920 x 1080i

Although Panasonic claims the SD3 and DX3 are the world’s first ‘Full HD’ camcorders, which the 1920 x 1080 specs justify if one overlooks the interlaced/progressive debate, the website for the SD1 and DX1 still prominently touts them as ‘Full HD.’

On the cameras themselves, only the latest versions have a corresponding badge, as you’ll see in the second photo above. There are no details of the new cameras on the Panasonic website yet.

Aside from the ballyhoo over line counts, upgrades to the included editing software and some minor tweaks to the casing, such as to the grip of the SD3, the new camcorders seem unlikely to make much of a splash when launched in Japan on April 25.


Barely five months after announcing the world’s first video camera to record HD TV images to an SD memory card, Panasonic has replaced it with a cheaper, more-capable model that it claims breaks new ground.

Last November’s HDC-SD1 has been ruthlessly elbowed aside by today’s release of the HDC-SD3, which offers video recording at 1920 x 1080i pixels, compared with the earlier model’s 1440 x 1080i resolution.

If you’re thinking the difference is minimal, you’re probably right not to be bothered unless you’ve just bought the SD1. The newcomer not only lays down a few thousand more pixels per frame, but it’s also likely to be ¥30,000 cheaper at ¥150,000. That includes a bundled 4GB SDHC card.

Both cameras use the relatively new AVCHD compression technique to fit high-definition video onto current-generation media, such as the SD cards used in this case. A similarly revamped DVD camcorder has also been announced in the shape of the HDC-DX3.

Logitec transforms iPod into alarm clock with bells on

No, it’s not a late April-fool joke – the iPod/alarm clock combination you see above is a real product, announced today in Japan by Logitec, with speakers cunningly disguised as bells.

The Dialive will be available in the middle of this month in either black or white for around ¥8,000, adding bells and a snooze button to any full-size iPod from 4G on or either model of nano. There’s a refreshingly low-tech plastic dial on the back that adjusts the size of the dock connector.

As for the specs, the snooze button adds nine minutes to your kip, the speakers output 6W total, there’s a dinky little volume control on the back and the Dialive even charges the player via a mains connection.

Suvil Bluetooth handsfree — does what it says on the box

Suvil is one of those firms that produces plenty of the little bits and pieces you never knew you wanted. One case in point is the Hong Kong company's ClipFree iAudio BT (top) Bluetooth add-on for pretty much any piece of kit with an audio output. We took a quick look at the gear this morning and were pleasantly suprised.

The ClipFree does the whole BT thing just the way it should — the package includes a dongle for a stereo, cellphone or whatever, a clip-on receiver, both in- and over-ear headphones and a couple of different audio jacks, so connectivity is simple.

Performance is fine over 5m or so, but you might not want to push it to the claimed 10m range, and audio is generally clear. The auto-switching ability — between an audio source and an incoming call, for example — is smartly done and battery life is reasonable at four hours of use or 120 on standby.

Suvil also has a range of Wi-Fi necessities, such as the Wi-Fi Hunter (below), a bare-bones key-chain 802.11 b/g detector. Currently, we only have pricing in Euros (€89 for the ClipFree and €15 for the key chain) but US and Japan readers can expect to see Suvil gear in the stores any day now.

Mobile phone sales grow — except in Japan

Worldwide mobile phone sales grew 21.5 percent year on year to 251 million units in the third quarter, with India and China driving growth, according to research from Gartner.

Gartner predicts that sales for the year will fall just shy of one billion phones. Sales should reach 986 million units by the end of the year, the research group said.

Europe, one of the most mature mobile phone markets in the world, showed just 1.9 percent growth over the same quarter last year.

Asia Pacific experienced the most dramatic gains, with sales of 80.8 million units during the third quarter, an increase of 54.7 percent over the same period last year. That significant growth happened despite a decline in sales of 4.7 percent in Japan compared to the third quarter in 2005. An increase in retail outlets and better distribution channels in emerging markets such as Indonesia, Philippines and India significantly offset that loss though, driving growth in the region.

Other regions of the world also reported solid growth. In Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, sales grew 19 percent compared to last year, to 48 million phones. North American sales reached 40.8 million units, up 12 percent. Sales in Latin America grew 13.7 percent over the same time last year, to 29.8 million phones.

Gartner reported that the smaller phone makers will increasingly struggle to compete against the giants. In the third quarter, Nokia, Motorola and Samsung together accounted for 68 percent of phone sales.

Among those three, competition is fierce. While Motorola increased its market share during the quarter, it lost its number one position in Latin America, to Nokia, and also lost its number two spot in Western Europe, to Samsung. Nokia has the largest market share worldwide, but failed to grow its market share in North America during the quarter.

Nokia's worldwide market share was 35.1 percent, up from 32.5 percent in the same quarter last year. Motorola had 20.6 percent, compared to 18.7 percent during the third quarter in 2005. Number three vendor Samsung had 12.2 percent market share, just slightly down from 12.5 percent last year.

Man thrown in the slammer for selling bad ringtones

Next time you fancy getting the theme from The Godfather or Close Encounters as a cellphone ringtone, just be careful where you buy it — you could be helping put the seller behind bars.

It's pretty hard to believe, but the Malaysian press is reporting that some half-assed market trader who has been selling unlicensed ringtones has been arrested by their equivalent of the RIAA.

He faces up to five years in jail and a massive fine just for peddling annoying crap — personally, I'd pay him not to sell that junk ever again to anyone.

Legs everywhere rejoice as dog humps USB port silly

The outrage — how could they? One of those USB ports in the video is clearly exposed for the world and his wife to ogle. Filth.
Update: We have the dogs in stock — over 1,000 shipped so far!

Wireless USB finally arrives on the desktop in Japan

After several months, Y-E Data’s YD-300 WUSB hub is finally on sale in Japan — for ¥39,800, or almost $350.

If that seems like a lot for a four-port USB hub, that’s because it is. Also, it’s not technically complaint with ‘official’ WUSB, so Y-E Data has to call it an Ultra-Wideband Wireless Hub (UWB), but that won’t stop Japan’s computer nerds lapping it up.

The technology promises wireless USB transfers between anything connected to the hub and a dongle that plugs into a PC over up to 10m. Speeds are similar to those from regular, wired USB 2.0 connections (480Mbps), so the attraction is in clearing up a little cable clutter.

That and being first on the block to use yet another new wireless technology of course.

Digital photo frame plays MP3s, video, does laundry

Over the years we’ve seen plenty of photo frames that include LCD screens for displaying digital photographs but few have been as cheap or as versatile as the Exemode DPS700 from KFE Japan.

KFE has plenty of prior for selling simple camcorders and the like for £50, so JPY10,000 for the DPS 700 photo frame isn’t too much of a shock – its abilities, however, are.

The white plastic frame, which looks like it would nicely complement an iMac, encloses a 7in widescreen TFT that has a resolution of 480x234 pixels. That screen is used for viewing JPEG photographs stored an any of five different card types – SD, MMC, Memory Stick, CompactFlash or xD-Picture Card.

Look closely at the bottom of the frame and you’ll spot a clue to the most surprising part – speakers. They are present because the DPS 700 can also play back MP3 and WMA audio files, as well as video files ranging from the various flavors of MPEG (not the black sheep MPEG-3 of course) through to DivX 5.0.

As if that weren’t enough, the menu software can display both English and Japanese and there are video and audio outputs, a headphone jack and a USB port for connecting a digital camera or another slab of media if those multiple card slots aren’t enough. It even comes with a remote control. Has there ever been a more feature-packed cheapo gadget?

Update: As ever, anyone outside Japan interested in getting one of these should drop us a line and we'll see if we can arrange something for you.
We're at usb-dog [[att]] digitalworldtokyo.com or just use the comments.

CEATEC: NEC to sell water-cooled PC with Blu-ray drive

Japanese users won't have to worry about a noisy cooling fan disturbing them while they watch high-definition movies on NEC's newest computer — the PC, equipped with a Blu-ray drive, uses water-cooling instead.

A prototype of the PC, called the Valuestar X VX780/GD, was on display this week at the Ceatec exhibition in Chiba, Japan.

As most Japanese live in small apartments, PCs often do double-duty as both a computer and an entertainment system. But the use of cooling fans means that PCs are not as quiet as standalone DVD players, often interrupting the movie-watching experience. The use of water-cooling means NEC's Valuestar X runs quietly, making just 31 decibels of noise, or slightly more than a whisper.

Priced at ¥543,000 (US$4,612), the PC is clearly not intended for people on a budget. But for those willing to pay more for a high-end system, the Valuestar X, which is due to go on sale in December and runs Windows XP Home Edition, offers some impressive features.

In addition to the Blu-ray drive and water-cooling system, the PC offers a digital television tuner, a 3.4GHz Pentium D 945 processor, 1GB of RAM, and dual 250GB hard drives. It also includes a remote control and a 20in widescreen LCD with internal flat-panel NXT speakers that provide surround sound.

CEATEC: Toshiba develops laptop HD DVD writer drive

On Tuesday Toshiba will unveil the first slim-type HD DVD writer drive suitable for use in laptop computers.

The SD-L902A drive is the standard 12.7mm high, which means it can fit in the drive bay of most laptop computers. It can read and write HD DVD, DVD and CD discs, Toshiba said Monday.

It will be shown at Ceatec, Japan's biggest electronics show, which begins Tuesday. At last year's Ceatec, Toshiba debuted its slim-type HD DVD reader. The first laptop to feature the drive, its Qosmio G30, went on sale earlier this year.

Samples of the new writer drive will be available to PC makers by the end of this year, and if it follows the same path as the read-only model it could be on sale in laptops in 2007.

HD DVD is one of two formats battling to replace DVD as the de facto storage standard for high-definition movies. In addition to their home entertainment applications the discs can also be used to store data. A single-sided HD DVD-R can store 15GB of data. A disc for the competing Blu-ray Disc format can store 25GB on a single-side.

This year's Ceatec is expected to see the unveiling of several new products for the two new formats. The show will kick-off with a Sony news conference at which the company is promising a new Blu-ray Disc product. Sony hasn't said what it will be but the company recently showed a prototype Blu-ray Disc video recorder. A similar prototype recorder was also recently displayed by Hitachi.

Clarion car sat-nav designed to go places

We all know we’re not supposed to leave out car navigation systems actually in the car when it’s parked, lest they become just another crime statistic, which is probably why Clarion Japan has blended its newest sat-nav with a PDA that slips in a pocket.

The ¥50,000 DrivTrax P5 weighs 198g and measures 90 x 132 x 22mm, making it about the size of a paperback book. The 4.3in screen is touch-sensitive (is there any product that doesn’t want us to poke at it these days?), coming with a stylus for operating the various menus.

The GPS satellite navigation contains maps of all of Japan, from which driving directions are read out by the voice guidance function. A USB port is included to allow Clarion to update the maps in future should, for example, Tokyo be decimated by giant fire-breathing lizards.

Aside from that, the DrivTrax also has a database of 11 million addresses and telephone numbers in its 2GB of flash memory and can play back MP3, WMA and WAV audio files. The operating system is Windows Mobile 5.0 and the battery lasts 4.5 hours after a full charge from the car’s cigarette lighter socket.

NEC’s PaPeRo blogs better than some sites we know

If you thought maintaining a personal website was as easy as it gets these days, then NEC’s new robotic blogging assistant might make you reconsider.

The company’s PaPeRo domestic robot has been around in prototype form since way back in the 20th century (ok, 1999) but has been a little behind the times when it comes to getting with the zeitgeist, so is only now stumbling into the whole blogging thing.

As of this month, however, PaPeRo has caught up with the rest of us and will be showing off his online skills at the Conference of the Association of Natural Language Processing on March 20 in Shiga, Japan.

Those new abilities allow the ‘bot to listen to anything his owner says to him about, say, their day just gone, process what he hears and then use the keywords to search the internet for related multimedia content.

After that, whatever online goodness PaPeRo digs up gets dumped onto the owner’s website along with a video recording of the conversation that prompted the cybernetic creativity. All the human blogger has to do is to feed PaPeRo the blog login details and a few handfuls of batteries every day. Just be careful what you tell the little fella about that clandestine dinner assignation, ok?

Sony Cyber-shot DSC N2 at Camera Labs

Those guys over at Camera Labs must eat digital cameras for breakfast, such is the rate at which they go through them. The latest to get the CL treatment is Sony's 10-megapixel DSC N2, which looks like a pretty sweet compact to me.

CEATEC: Sony unveils Blu-ray recorders and PCs

Sony will launch a pair of Blu-ray Disc video recorders in Japan this December, the company said Tuesday at Ceatec.

The machines both feature hard-disk drives for day-to-day recording and a Blu-ray Disc drive for longer term storage. The BDZ-V9 has a 500GB drive and the BDZ-V7 has a 250GB drive. There are two digital tuners in each recorder so that two high-definition programs can be recorded simultaneously.

Both were unveiled during a news conference at the Ceatec show, which opened Tuesday and runs until Saturday at Makuhari Messe in Chiba, east of Tokyo.

The recorders are designed to appeal to videophiles with demands for high specifications, including Linear PCM audio and 1080p output, which is the highest of several image levels judged to be high-definition. The recorders can also be connected to Sony's recently launched high-definition camcorders by a Firewire connection and can playback the AVCHD-format discs used in the cameras.

The higher capacity BDZ-V9 will be launched on December 8 and the BDZ-V7 will follow about a week later on December 16. They will cost ¥300,000 and ¥250,000 (US$2,541 and $2,118) respectively.

The machines fill an important gap in Sony's high-definition strategy, which by now has HD-capable products in several parts of the consumer video market including televisions and video camcorders. These will be joined in November by the PlayStation 3 game console and then in December by the two new recorders announced Tuesday.

Launching the recorders internationally is possible but nothing has been decided as of yet, Sony said.

Sony also announced the addition of Blu-ray Disc to more PCs in its Vaio line. The Vaio Type-R master is an Intel Core 2 Duo-based machine loaded with high-definition editing and authoring software. It will be available from October 28 at prices between ¥230,000 and ¥550,000 depending on system configuration. A Blu-ray Disc drive will also be offered as a build-to-order option with Sony's Type-L computer.

CEATEC: Higher than high — HD TV res goes through the roof

Sharp raised the bar for high-definition LCD screens this week with the demonstration of 64in prototype with a resolution of 4,096 pixels by 2,160 pixels — four times higher than current high-definition displays.

The screen, the first such prototype developed by Sharp, was on display this week at Ceatec. While projection display systems have been developed that can match the resolution of Sharp's latest prototype, this is the first time that an LCD has been produced with a resolution this high, said Toshiyuki Matsumara, a company spokesman.

The Sharp prototype's resolution tops that of a screen demonstrated last year by Taiwan's Chi Mei Optoelectronics. That display, unveiled last year in Yokohama, Japan, measured 56in across the diagonal and had a resolution of 3,840 x 2,160 pixels.

Sharp developed the prototype display to keep up with changes in the motion picture industry, Matsumara said. As studios move from film to digital media, resolutions will go higher and displays will need to keep up, he said.

Prototype display technologies have been a highlight of this year's Ceatec exhibition. Toshiba and Canon demonstrated a television with a 55in SED (surface-conduction electron-emitter display) screen. The screens, which offer higher contrast and lower power consumption than other flat-panel technologies, will enter production next year.

Japan's public broadcaster, NHK, showed a system it calls Super Hi-Vision that offers a 16:9 aspect ratio picture with 4,320 horizontal lines — double that of Sharp's prototype. The NHK system, which has been demonstrated before, is still under development.

Terabyte drive without the terrifying price

Hitachi reckons its groundbreaking 1TB hard drive will be ideal for storing the ever-increasing libraries of home movies, photographs and other media we all have these days, but it's a fairly safe bet that consumers of 'arthouse' cinema, illegal warez and pirate movies will be beside themselves with glee too.

The Deskstar 7K1000 from Hitachi Global Storage Technologies (HGST) is the world's first unit to offer 1TB on a single 3.5in hard drive. It goes on sale this quarter for $399, which is a surprisingly low price, given that two 500GB drives currently cost more than that.

On the technical side, the new drive uses perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) on five platters spinning at 7,200 rpm and has a large 32MB data buffer — that's about twice the size of the buffer on current large drives. Predictably, the 7K1000 is likely to end up not just in general home PCs and specialist gaming rigs, but also, rebranded as CinemaStar, in Tivo-like digital video recorders, in which it will be able to hold over 120 hours of HD TV.

JVC's semi-pro video deck with MiniDV drive

We can't get enough of hard-core A/V products like this HDD/DVD/MiniDV video-recording deck that JVC has just released in Japan. For ¥200,000 owners of the SR-DVM700 get to take home hardware that will set them up as serious videographers - or at least as YouTube superstars.

The onboard hard drive is a replaceable 250GB, the DVD burner supports DVD-R/RW/RAM and the MiniDV deck allows, of course, for importing that precious high-definition video from cameras such as Sony's HDR-HC3.

The myriad input and output options include S-Video, composite, various analogue and digital ports and RS-233-C. On-deck controls are limited to comparatively simple dubbing back and forth between media but connect the machine to a PC and a whole world of non-linear editing is at your fingertips.

Sanyo’s tiny 720p HD TV video camera fits in a shirt pocket

The latest in a long line of Xacti-branded video cameras from Sanyo Japan, the pistol-grip-style DMX-HD2, is being touted as the world’s smallest and lightest digital video camera. At just 235g, it’s undeniably tiny, but what else does the ¥100,000 shooter have to offer?

First off, the still-shot resolution of the tapeless HD2 is an impressive 7.1 megapixels and snaps can be taken at the same time as laying down video to an SD card. Speaking of resolution, video is recorded as 720p MPEG-4 at 30fps, so it’s short of full HD TV but still in the ballpark. A 10x optical zoom is slightly less than might be expected, though.

To make best use of that high-definition video, there’s a single HDMI output as well as a USB port on the camera itself and S-Video and composite connectors on the included docking station. The LCD screen is a fold-out 2.2-inch number, while audio options are limited due to the absence of either a monitor headphone or microphone jack. The built-in stereo mic will have to suffice.

In terms of the onboard software, a nice feature common to Xactis is the ability to make simple edits in the camera, thus cutting out the need to hook up to a PC. Lastly, an 8GB SDHC memory card can hold up to 170 minutes of footage at the highest quality, so we can see the HD2 being snuck into a few cinemas around the Pacific rim.

British firm helping shape the future of computer displays

This one sneaked in under the radar last week, but a medium-sized company from Cambridge, England, called DisplayLink has landed a significant contract with Toshiba that is almost certain to change the way we look at our computer monitors.

The contract sees DisplayLink’s technology powering Toshiba’s latest Dynadock range of laptop PC docks to enable them to deliver high-resolution images to full-size monitors via a USB 2.0 connection.

The £129.00 Dynadock PA3542E-1PRP that’s available now in the UK plugs into a single USB 2.0 port on a laptop. It can drive a monitor up to 1680 x 1050 pixels while simultaneously powering a sound system and standard USB peripherals and while powering phones, PDAs and the like.

The advantage of the USB method is initially in reducing cable clutter by cutting out the standard VGA lead monitors have always used, but the next generation of DisplayLink technology is the one to look out for, as it will use wireless USB to drive displays with no cables at all.

Making HDTV buying less fuzzy

I work for a TV station and haven't even bought a new set yet, then again that could be the reason people call me cheap. While that might be true, there is a lot more to it than just that. Too many questions surround the buying process and probably like you, I've heard too many horror stories. In fact, some family members of mine were sold components they didn't even need!

Choices are great, don't get me wrong, but when it comes to digital TV, the choices can be a little mind boggling. For example, how do you know which type of television set to buy? Go to your closest TV store and you have choices like CRT (Cathode Ray Tube), DLP (Digital Light Processing), LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and Plasma (I didn't know donating blood was an option!). Sorry, I only have a four year degree - I didn't realize it would take a PhD to buy a TV set.

"It's important to understand the advantages and disadvantages of each type of HDTV," says Angie Hicks, founder of Angie's List. "Researching the different options will help you purchase the HDTV that best fits your needs and budget. You should consider the size of the room where you'll watch the HDTV. For example, an LCD makes a great space saver for a room because of their slim and lightweight design."