HP Touchpad – A Short Consumer review

People are getting mad about touchpad or better we call it tablet PC with touch interface. With the success of Apple iPad every company want to get some market share of these touch Pad. In the Contest HP Touchpad was launched recently with 9.7″ screen size. It cost 399.99$ for 16Gb model and 499.99 for 32Gb. But does it stand aside with competitors like Apple iPad and Galaxy Tab from Samsung ?

HP Touchpad Front View
HP Touchpad Front View

If we talk about look and feel it’s weight is about 750 Grams, which is heavier than iPad 2 and Galaxy Tab, even slightly heavier than not so good competitor Motorola Xoom. It’s back is made of plastic, black and with piano like finish. It is concave in shape which feel very comfortable while holding it in hands. It is equipped with Wi-Fi & Bluetooth for communication. It does not have SIM Support at the moment.

It’s 9.7″ Display is equipped with LED Backlight and comes with Multi Touch capacitive system. If we talk about speed it has 1.2Ghz Snapdragon Dual core APQ8060 processor but while using it does not feel like so fast. It also have a front facing 1.3 MP camera and microphone for Video calling support.

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Microsoft Streets and Trips 2010

Microsoft Streets and Trips has always been a favorite when it comes to planning trips. That doesn’t really change with Microsoft Streets and Trips 2010, although some of the updates are not all that exciting.

For those unfamiliar with Streets and Trips: in effect, it makes your netbook or laptop into a complete device for trip planning and GPS navigation. As was the case with earlier versions, Streets and Trips 2010 comes in two different forms: the software-only version, with a price tag of $40, and the software / GPS locator combo package for $70. Streets and Trips works with most NMEA 2.0-compatible GPS receivers, so if you already have a suitable receiver, you just need the software.

Microsoft Streets and Trips 2010
Microsoft Streets and Trips 2010

The newest version is not that much of an advance on the previous one. It does include updated U.S. and Canadian maps, as well as some timely additions to the lists of points of interest. The major innovation, though, is the ‘Send to GPS’ feature, and also a useful function for exporting route info in GPX format. These additions are reasonably welcome, even though they are of somewhat limited use.

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Get More Space And Go Into Game Mode With Kinect

Kinect offers a highly interactive experience that most gamers are going to find deeply engaging. The hardware powers up immediately the system is switched on and takes a quick inventory of what the player looks like and assess the amount of space available in his immediate environment, then its game ready.

Kinnect
Kinnect

The Kinect hardware comes with a digital camera and an IR projector with depth sensors which enable it to see even if the room is darkened. Kinect also makes use of four microphones in addition to an audio process that enables it to capture voices from different angles in a room and also eliminate surrounding noise in the environment. There is also a motor base which allows the hardware to move around and track the movement of individual players in a room.

In creating Kinect, Microsoft also developed specific software to get the hardware to function the way it presently does. The hardware also has its own unique processors and relies on actual power to work. To balance this, Microsoft has created a unique adapter for the new slim 360 hardware which delivers more power to USB hubs. Older systems require that Kinect has to be plugged directly into a wall socket in addition to any USB port on the 360 system.

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