Windows Experience Blog : Hardware

Brandon’s Guide to Awesome New Windows 7 PCs

Brandon LeBlanc — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 19:20:06 GMT

Many of you may be on the market for a new Windows 7 PC. Our partners are delivering new PCs we think you will love and just in time for the holidays! Below are hot and slick looking Windows 7 PCs in categories we think will be big for holiday 2009.

Please note that many of the PCs with features mentioned below are just one of many configurations these PCs come with. Many of these PCs can be configured and customized to your liking.

All-in-one PCs:

Sony VAIO L Series: Features a Quad Core processor, 24” widescreen touch display, discrete graphics, lots of memory and storage.
Dell Studio One 19: Features a Quad Core processor, lots of storage, a Blu-ray combo drive and an 18.5" multitouch HD widescreen display.
HP TouchSmart 300z Series: Features discrete graphics, an optional built-in TV tuner and a 20" multitouch widescreen display.

Ultra-thin PCs:

Acer Aspire 4810T: Offers a 14" screen, good battery life, and weighs only 2.4 lbs.
Dell Adamo 13: Features a slick looking aluminum chassis, 13.4" edge-to-edge HD display, ultra-slim .65" profile, Bluetooth and optional Mobile Broadband.
Toshiba Satellite T135: Features a 13.3" HD widescreen display, full size keyboard, 1.5" profile and weighs 4.7 lbs.

Touch PCs:

Lenovo ThinkPad T400smt: A lightweight Laptop PC with a 14.1" multitouch display, integrated webcam, and dual-channel digital microphone.
Toshiba Satellite M500: Features a lightweight, 14.1" touch screen and specializes in mobility. Note that not all M500 models feature Windows Touch however.

Netbook PCs:

HP Mini 110 by Studio Tord Boontje: Features both style and mobility with its 10.1" HD widescreen – and just 2.35 lbs.
Toshiba mini NB205: Weighs 3 lbs., has 3G Mobile Broadband and good battery life.
Lenovo IdeaPad S10-2: Features a multitouch pad, and a 10.1" LED backlit screen.

But wait! There’s more! Here are some other great PCs that really show off some of things customers do on their PCs everyday (yes, some people game every day):

Great Gaming PCs:

Falcon NW Fragbox: A portable desktop PC with a Quad Core processor, discrete graphics, lots memory and storage.
Alienware M17x: Features Dual GPUs, a Quad Core processor and 12GB of DDR3 memory (that’s a lot of memory!).
Asus G51Vx: A 15" gaming laptop PC featuring NVIDIA graphics with dedicated 1GB of memory, and a backlit gaming keyboard.

More Multimedia PCs:

Dell Studio XPS 16: Features premium ATI graphics, optional Intel Core i7 processor configuration, and your choice of either a 15.6" LED or 16" RGBLED seamless display.
HP Pavilion dv8t: Features an 18.4" HD widescreen, Blu-ray drive, TV tuner, and premium sound system with subwoofer and Dolby audio.
Toshiba Satellite A505: Features discrete graphics (certain configurations), a dual-core CPU, and premium surround sound speakers, and a HD 16" screen.
Lenovo IdeaPad Y650: A very stylish, thin, and light notebook at only 1 inch thick and weighing only 5.6 lbs.

All Around Great Everyday PCs:

Dell Studio XPS 13: Features a 13.3" edge-to-edge display, backlit keyboard and NVIDIA graphics.
Toshiba Satellite U500: Versatility, power and style and touch capable. A 13.3” mobile do-it-all machine.

Work from Anywhere (Mobility):

HP Pavilion dm3: Features a 13.3” ultra wide screen display and NVIDIA graphics, under 4 lbs. and 1 inch thin with great battery life.
Lenovo ThinkPad X200T: Features a lightweight form factor, Intel Core 2 Duo processor, and is a Tablet PC (great for taking notes during meetings!).

Safeguard Your Work:

Lenovo ThinkPad X301: Features GPS, Bluetooth and Unified wireless capabilities.
HP ProBook 5310: Features a 13.3” HD LED display with integrated mobile broadband and a thin and lightweight design.

We are also making it easier for customers to choose which Windows PC is right for them with an updated version of Windows PC Scout (previously known as Windows Laptop Scout).

Windows PC Scout has been completely updated with new PCs and new ways of helping customers better identify the PC they want based on their needs. Essentially Windows PC Scout “Simplifies your search” for the right PC. There are a couple of ways Windows PC Scout will help you find the PC you want:

Laptop 101: Educates you on Laptop PCs.
Usage: Discover how certain Laptop PCs are used for specific needs.
Recommend: Match your needs with quality-checked Laptop PCs by Microsoft. Windows PC Scout provides clear recommendations on Windows PCs at a variety of price points.
Buy: Once you’ve found a PC, Windows PC Scout makes it easy to click through to purchase the right PC for them through major retailers, the online Microsoft Store or PC manufacturer websites.

If you’re looking for a new Windows 7 PC – give Windows PC Scout a spin!

As you can see, there is such an amazing variety of Windows 7 PCs for you to choose!

Windows on Netbook PCs: A Year in Review

Brandon LeBlanc — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 00:08:59 GMT

It’s hard to believe it’s been a year since we first started to see netbook PCs running Windows come to market.

Little did we know that these devices would evolve so much in such a short time. A year ago, they were Internet-centric devices defined mainly by their tiny size and low cost. An interesting concept perhaps, but sales didn’t really take off until the category evolved into the more capable small notebook PCs we see on the market today.

For example, early Internet-centric models typically offered a 7 inch screen, very small keyboard, slow legacy processors, 512MB of RAM or less, and 1-4 GB SSD storage, whereas typical configurations today have 9 and 10 inch screens, near full-size keyboards, 1GB RAM and up to 160GB storage. Netbook PCs have now extended far beyond Internet browsing to be truly full-functioning small notebook PCs.

Initially, some in the industry viewed low-cost netbook PCs as a new challenge for Microsoft and an opportunity for Linux to make inroads in the consumer market. Some believed consumers wouldn’t want or need their netbook PC to be a full-featured PC. In fact, the exact opposite turned out to be true – a number of analysts and researchers following the space see ample evidence indicating customers really DO want netbook PCs to work like their larger brethren – and that the way the vast majority of consumers make that happen is by buying a netbook PC with Windows.

As a result, the growth of Windows on netbook PCs* over the last year has been phenomenal. We’ve seen Windows share on these PCs in the U.S. go from under 10% of unit sales during the first half of 2008 to 96% as of February 2009, according to the latest NPD Retail Tracking Service data.

*Netbook PCs are small notebook PCs with a screen size 10.2" and smaller and a price under $500.

Not only are people overwhelmingly buying Windows, but those that try Linux are often returning it. Both MSI – a leading netbook PC OEM – and Canonical – the vendor supporting the commercial distribution of Ubuntu Linux - stated publicly they saw Linux return rates 4 times higher than Windows. Why such a disparity? Because users simply expect the Windows experience. When they realize their Linux-based netbook PC doesn’t deliver that same quality of experience, they get frustrated and take it back. Here’s a telling stat: In the UK, Carphone Warehouse dropped Linux-based netbook PCs, citing customer confusion as a reason for a whopping 1-in-5 return rate.

Why are consumers choosing Windows? Because its’ easier to use, just works out of the box with people’s stuff, and ultimately offers more choice.

It’s easier to set up, easier to use, and easier to maintain – Over the last 25 years, we’ve learned a lot about what people want out of an OS, and we’ve built Windows to meet those needs, including:

There’s a wizard to help with just about anything, so you’ll never need to go to the command line and manually configure things.
Techs all over the world speak Windows, which means it’s easy to get help either online or in person.
It’s easy to stay up-to-date since Windows releases updates, patches and fixes on a regular, predictable schedule. And you can set your machine to download and install them automatically!

It just works with people’s stuff - A few examples of Windows unmatched compatibility are:

Windows supports nearly 3,000 printers, more than 700 digital cameras, more than 240 webcams and more than 180 digital video cameras.
Windows supports the broadest array of PC applications and games.

There’s more choice - 90+ partners ship Windows-based netbook PCs today, so you can get exactly the machine you want at exactly the price you are willing to pay.

Looking forward, we can confidently say that no matter how netbook PC hardware evolves, we’re gearing up to ensure that Windows 7 will run great on them. As we mentioned at PDC, we’ve been testing Windows 7 on netbook PCs since before Windows 7 was feature complete, and our plan is to enable these small notebook PCs to run any edition of Windows 7. From what we’re hearing, our partners are excited to get Windows 7 on these PCs as well.

The last year has been an interesting one, and seeing what’s happening in the marketplace already, and what we’re expecting in the next year, we fully expect the next generation of small notebook PCs will deliver even richer experiences and greater utility. That means that more than ever you’ll be able to find a small notebook PC that exactly fits your lifestyle and interests, just like you can with any other kind of Windows PC.

Device Stage – A New Way of Interacting with Devices in Windows 7

Brandon LeBlanc — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 08:48:52 GMT

Windows 7 introduces a new way to interact with your phone, camera, printer, or portable media player from the Windows desktop. Device Stage is new visual interface that makes it easy to find the things you want to do with your devices on your Windows 7 PC. You could think of Device Stage as a multi-function version of Autoplay where it displays all the applications, services, and information related to your device. Device Stage not only works for devices connected to a Windows 7 PC via USB, but also Bluetooth and Wi-Fi as well. In many cases, software installation isn’t required for Device Stage – with any additional drivers that might be needed automatically retrieved from Windows Update.

Device Stage is customized by the device manufacturer and specific to the devices you own. During Steve Ballmer’s keynote at CES tonight, the Nikon D90 was shown via IE8 during the Windows 7 demo showcasing the “Snap To” feature. They used the Nikon D90 because it is a device that works great with Windows 7 today. Part of working great with Windows 7 is that the Nikon D90 also supports Device Stage. When a Nikon D90 is plugged in to a Windows 7 PC, you can see how Nikon customized Device Stage specifically for the D90.

As I mentioned, Device Stage displays all the applications, services and information related to your device. In the case of the Nikon D90, Device Stage presents to the user the ability to import photos and videos off the device, browse files on the device, take advantage of the service from Nikon called my Picturetown, launch Nikon’s Nikon Transfer application, and get support or order accessories for the D90. You’ll notice Device Stage also displays how much battery life is left on the Nikon D90 as well as how much storage is left too.

Because Device Stage is a way of extending the features of Windows 7 to expose device capabilities, it also supports the use of Jump Lists via the new Windows Taskbar.

When a device is plugged in that supports Device Stage, it appears on the new Windows Taskbar in Windows 7 as an icon of the actual device. To quickly access all that is offered through Device Stage for that specific device, you can right-click on the device on the taskbar to see all the Device Stage options. You’ll notice for the D90, the Jump List displays everything shown in Device Stage for the device.

Simply moving your mouse over the device on the Windows Taskbar also gives you a quick glance at battery life and storage capacity.

In the next couple days I’ll be talking about Device Stage a bit more - highlighting different experiences Device Stage provides for different device types from different device manufacturers.

In the Windows 7 Beta, you will be able to experience Device Stage for yourself! I know folks will be wondering what devices will support Device Stage for the Windows 7 Beta too - click here for that device list!

Unboxing the new Microsoft Explorer Mini Mouse

Brandon LeBlanc — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 07:11:41 GMT

This weekend I decided to run out and pick up one of Microsoft Hardware’s new BlueTrack mice. I grabbed the Microsoft Explorer Mini Mouse which is perfect for folks who are on the go with their laptops. Both the Microsoft Explorer Mini Mouse and the Microsoft Explorer Mouse (for desktop PCs) are available this month at Best Buy stores. The difference between the 2 is the Microsoft Explorer Mouse is slightly bigger and rechargeable.

Microsoft BlueTrack Technology is a brand new technology for mice designed to work on more surfaces than both optical and laser mice. So how does BlueTrack Technology work? It uses a Microsoft-designed image sensor to generate a high contract image of the surface in which the mouse is on. This allows for greatly improved tracking accuracy. The BlueTrack “light beam” from the bottom of the mice is 4 times as large as the lasers used in today’s laser mice. Because of this, mice using BlueTrack Technology can be used on difficult surfaces such as granite, carpet, or wood.

The Microsoft Explorer Mini Mouse package come with of course the mouse and USB transceiver as well as a neat cloth carrier and a disc with the Microsoft IntelliPoint 6.3 software. The cloth carrier has the BlueTrack logo on it.

The design for the mouse is comfortable with 2 customizable buttons on the left side. The USB transceiver “snaps” into the bottom of the mouse and when it’s snapped in, it turns off the mouse so it doesn't use battery life when not in use. Here are a few shots of the mouse.

I also compared the Explorer Mini Mouse with the Wireless Notebook Optical Mouse 3000 and Arc Mouse.

The Microsoft Explorer Mini Mouse is certainly a mouse you should look at if you’re looking for one especially with the advantages of BlueTrack Technology.

A Comprehensive Look at the HP MediaSmart Connect

Brandon LeBlanc — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 12:16:00 GMT

Last week I had blogged about upcoming webinars from HP and Microsoft on the new Extender for Windows Media Center - the HP MediaSmart Connect (you can register to attend those webinars here). Today I'd like to take a more in-depth look at the HP MediaSmart Connect with an overview of the device.

But first, take a gander at today's Press Release from HP on the HP MediaSmart Connect...

Press Release: HP MediaSmart Connect Makes It Easy to Enjoy Digital Media from Any HDTV

Ok, now let's take a look at the device. First off - the form factor for the HP MediaSmart Connect is perfect for "extending" your Windows Media Center experience into other rooms in your home as it does not take up tons of room. Its exact dimensions (width x depth x height in inches) are 8.5 x 8.5 x 1.8. The unit would fit perfectly right next to a flat panel HDTV or on an open shelf. I currently have my review unit sitting on a small shelf next to the entertainment unit that my HDTV sits on. It would fit within the shelves of the entertainment unit had they not been completely filled with DVDs (heh). It is also not very heavy (around 3.5 lbs).

It will come in black with HP's identifiable "Zen" pattern on the top which also exists on some of their laptops (similar to the pattern seen on my HP tx1000 Tablet). You'll see in the photos I took of my review unit HP sent me that it doesn't have the "Zen" pattern however the production version will.

The front of the unit consists of 2 panels that open.

The HP MediaSmart Connect comes with 2 outputs for HD video: component out and HDMI.

Video output is either 720p or 1080i - with a switch (depending on your TV) in the front to switch between the output options.

There is a single USB port on the front as the HP MediaSmart Connect comes with the ability to read media off a USB device such as a thumbdrive or external harddrive. There is also a USB port in the back giving the HP MediaSmart Connect a total of 2 USB ports. If you want to get fancy you can add a HP Pocket Media Drive as there is a single slot for one in the front as well.

For audio you have stereo analog audio out and digital audio out.

You have several networking options with the HP MediaSmart Connect. It comes with a single Ethernet port supporting 10/100-Base-T or wireless IEEE 802.11 a/b/g/n. The wireless antenna is built directly into the device so there are no protruding wireless antennas to get in the way.

A Universal Remote is also included with the HP MediaSmart Connect. In comparison to the remote that comes with a HP Pavilion dv6871 - the HP MediaSmart Connect has more buttons designed to accommodate it's functionality as a digital media hub as well as Windows Media Center extender.

The HP MediaSmart Connect supports a variety of digital media formats:

Video: MPEG-1, MPEG-2 MP@ML, MPEG-2 MP@HL, MPEG-4 ASP, DivX®, WMV, WMV-HD, DVR-MS, H.264 (MP4)
Audio: MP2, MP3, WMA, WMA-Pro, AAC (m4a)
Photos: JPEG, BMP, GIF, PNG

The HP MediaSmart Connect also supports online services for digital media:

Snapfish
CinemaNow,
Live365

Some of these services work with Windows Media Center - such as CinemaNow.

In terms of features - you get the "extension" of Windows Media Center with the unit. But HP has added functionality on top of the Extender experience you get with Windows Media Center by giving the HP MediaSmart Connect the ability to also aggregate content for multiple "media servers" or PCs sharing media. If I have 1 PC sharing media and say a Windows Home Server - the HP MediaSmart Connect will aggregate content from both those systems. I currently have a HP MediaSmart Windows Home Server that the HP MediaSmart Connect finds content off of and aggregates it.

The HP MediaSmart Connect certainly comes with some pretty good specs.

Following up this post in the near future - I plan to post about several of my experiences in using the HP MediaSmart Connect.

Looking for the Logo: Update on Certified for Windows Vista

Brandon LeBlanc — Fri, 09 May 2008 08:58:00 GMT

I caught up with Deryl McCartney, Marketing Manager for the Windows Vista Logo Program, to get a general update on Certified for Windows Vista products as of today.

Just to re-cap: Certified for Windows Vista products are products that carry the above logo. This logo represents a group of applications and hardware that have gone through an extensive certification process that means they work great with Windows Vista. We want users who are looking for devices, applications, or PC components to easily be able to identify the ones that will give them the best experience in Windows Vista today. When I go into a store looking for something for my PCs I always "look for the logo".

As of April, we currently have over 5,000 products that are Certified for Windows Vista. Since last July, the amount of Certified for Windows Vista products has almost doubled! As you can see - we've seen quite a bit of growth with new Certified for Windows Vista products entering the market.

Deryl is very excited about some of the new Certified for Windows Vista products hitting the market today and wanted me to share a few with you:

Logitech Quickcam Ultra Vision SE & Logitech Quickcam Orbit AF (Logitech has quite a bit of Certified for Windows Vista webcams)
Philips Webcam SPC900NC
Gigabyte GA-EX38-DS4 Motherboard (perfect for building your own PC)
Epson Stylus Photo R1900
Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio PCI Express Sound Card

He also tells me that there is a special section off http://www.windowsvista.com/ designed to showcase all the great Certified for Windows Vista products (right-hand side) worth checking out.

And there is even a Sidebar Gadget for you to add to your Windows Vista desktop that keeps you up-to-date with all the Certified for Windows Vista products and lets you search for specific products to see whether they are certified or not. Download the Gadget here.

I've covered my experiences with several Certified for Windows Vista devices here on the Windows Experience Blog recently:

Roadtrip around Central Washington with Canon Digital Rebel XTi (with several panoramic shots created with Windows Live Photo Gallery).
ATI TV Wonder 600 USB to watch TV shows in Windows Media Center.
Logitech Cordless Desktop S 510 (keyboard and mouse set).
Microsoft LifeCam VX-7000.

I expect to be talking about some hot new Certified with Windows Vista devices in the very near future. And of course I expect to get regular updates from Deryl too!

And stay tuned as I have something else planned in regards to Certified for Windows Vista I think you'll like as well.

Watching TV in Windows Vista with the ATI TV Wonder 600 USB

Brandon LeBlanc — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 07:02:00 GMT

Windows Media Center makes it really easy to watch TV on Windows Vista (Windows Vista Home Premium or Ultimate) with a built in Guide that lets you browse TV shows and movies and schedule recordings of your favorite ones. Many PCs today come with TV functionality built in via TV cards. But not all Windows Vista PCs come equipped with TV capability. Unlike a few years ago - adding TV functionality to your PC is very easy. Let me share my experience in adding TV functionality to one of my PCs.

AMD brings TV capability to your PC through their ATI TV Wonder products. Some of their products are PC cards that must be installed inside the actual PC - and others are USB devices that can simply be plugged in to a USB port. I picked up AMD's ATI TV Wonder 600 USB TV tuner - which is Certified for Windows Vista. This small USB device lets you plug in a coaxial cable for TV capability or use an antenna for free over-the-air television - including over-the-air HDTV.

The ATI TV Wonder 600 USB has the following features:

USB 2.0
Hybrid TV Tuner Stick for:

Over-the-air Digital TV / HDTV1 (ATSC)
Over-the-air / Cable Analog TV (NTSC)

Remote control
Telescopic antenna to receive free-to-air TV channels
Capture from VCRs, camcorders with the included audio/video input cable

I took some unboxing shots to share with you:

Setting up TV functionality in Windows Media Center is really easy. If you have not used Windows Media Center before, when you launch Windows Media Center for the first time it will take you through a series of steps to set everything up.

If you have used Windows Media Center before and already did Windows Media Center's initial setup - to set up TV all you need to do is go to Settings and TV and click on "Set Up TV Signal". Windows Media Center will take you through a series of screens with options to set up everything you need for watching TV.

Picking up the ATI TV Wonder 600 USB TV tuner allowed me to easily add TV functionality to my main desktop PC. I had TV functionality in a matter of just a few minutes. Since the ATI TV Wonder 600 is a USB device, I can pack the device up and take it with me and use it on my laptop as well.

Hauppauge also offers products for bringing TV onto your PC and Windows Media Center.

I plan to dive deeper in several upcoming posts in using Windows Media Center and TV functionality.

Putting together the “Ultimate” PC

Brandon LeBlanc — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 07:44:00 GMT

This weekend, I decided to "evaluate" all my PC's on my home network. My main Desktop PC wasn't performing like I wanted it to and was running a combination of new and old hardware. I had a Test / Work PC running a combination of new and old hardware as well. My Test / Work PC was also running x64 which was something I wanted to move to on my main Desktop PC for quite some time now (I like being on the "bleeding edge"). So I decided to take the best parts of my main Desktop PC and my Test / Work PC and combine them together to create the "Ultimate" Desktop PC for myself. I was pretty satisfied with the results.

Here are the specs of what I ended up with:

Processor - AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4600
Motherboard - ASUS M2N32-SLI Deluxe
Graphics - NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GTS
Memory - 4GB
Keyboard / Mouse - Microsoft Wireless Laser Desktop 6000
Monitor - Dual 24-inch Dell UltraSharp 2407 Flat Panel Displays
Storage: 160GB Maxtor Harddrive, 160GB Western Digital Harddrive, 320 Western Digital Harddrive

I am also now officially running Windows Vista Ultimate x64 which can now take full advantage of running with 4GB of RAM. And in case I want more RAM, my PC is ready to "bring it on". I've heard some amazing stories with the power of x64 from my friend (and Featured Community) Carlos Echenique from PlanetAMD6 and am happy to join the x64 "club".

Windows Vista ships with a great way for users to tell just how "good" their PC is - called the Windows Experience Index. Nick actually did an in-depth blog post on the Windows Experience Index which is worth taking a look at if you haven't already. Here is the Windows Experience Index for my new Desktop PC I built this weekend:

Based on this score, you can see where I would need to improve my PC to boost my Windows Experience Index score up. If I replaced my current AMD processor with a higher end model, I could easily make this PC have a Windows Experience Index a 5.6 or higher.

I really had fun putting the new PC together this weekend and now have a fantastically "Ultimate" Windows Vista PC.

I've also put together a new page on the Windows Experience Blog for all the hardware I use. This page details all the PCs I use, my printer, my mobile PC's and everything else. If you're interested in knowing just exactly what I've got set up, check it out.

What do you think of my new PC? What do you think it needs to be even better? I'd love to hear from you on adding to this Ultimate PC. And if you've got an Ultimate PC of your own - let me know the specs!

Certified for Windows Vista Devices at DigitalLife 2007

Brandon LeBlanc — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 08:17:00 GMT

At DigitalLife this year, the Certified for Windows Vista program celebrates its 1 year anniversary. In 1 year, over 2,000 products from numerous vendors have received the Certified for Windows Vista logo. Windows Marketing Manager (and Certified for Windows Vista guru) Ben Reed takes some time to show us Microsoft's booth at DigitalLife this year as well as some new Certified for Windows Vista devices making their debut this year.

Video: Microsoft at DigitalLife 2007

Here are some of the devices Ben showcased in his video for you to check out:

Gateway One
Canon PowerShot SD750 (I own this camera and it's awesome)
Memento 100 Wireless Digital Picture Frame
Canon HV20
HP DV9000 Series Laptop
Buffalo Wireless-N Nfiniti Dual Band Router

It is great to see on top of the new Extenders for Windows Media Center that there is even more devices in the pipeline designed to take advantage of Windows Vista's many features.

If you own a Certified for Windows Vista device - leave a comment. I'd love to hear from you about your device!

The era of Quad-Core is upon us!

Brandon LeBlanc — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 01:48:00 GMT

On Monday, Nick and I flew out to San Francisco to attend AMD's Premiere Event announcing their quad-core Opteron processor. With Intel's quad-core hardware and now AMD moving full speed ahead - the era of quad-core processing is here!

Prior to the event, we met up with Featured Community members Michael Reyes, John Obeto, and Carlos Echenique to attend a blogger meet-up with some folks from AMD. Michael is from the website HardwareGeeks , John owns and runs the website SmallBizVista, and Carlos runs the website PlanetAMD64. I also had the huge pleasure of meeting Alessandro Perilli from the website Virtualization.info. Alessandro is one of the leading bloggers in blogging on virtualization technology on the web.

At the blogger meet-up, we were all surprised by a visit from AMD's CEO Hector Ruiz.

At the Herbst International Exhibit Hall, AMD had several demo stations set up for folks to play with quad-core PCs. Nick had a chance to play Midway's upcoming game Stranglehold powered by AMD's Phenom quad-core processor. AMD had several different demo stations including one demoing some very impressive video-editing capabilities.

Later, we were all bused over to the Letterman Digital Arts Center for the launch event. The Letterman Digital Arts Center was created by George Lucas and LucasFilm on the grounds of the Presidio. The Letterman Digital Arts Center houses many of the LucasFilm divisions (such as ILM) and is a state-of-the-art digital entertainment facility. When arriving, we knew right away we were at a LucasFilm facility as we were greeted by some familiar faces:

We then made our way into the Letterman Digital Arts Center where we were directed into their 298-seat, state-of-the-art, THX-certified screening room equipped for digital projection. It was a very impressive theater room. The event kicked off with AMD's Hector Ruiz announcing the Opteron quad-core processor and then introducing LucasFilm producer Rick McCallum to talk about LucasFilm's partnership with AMD.

Rick showcased a really neat video of the special effects ILM did for the movie Transformers. Take a look at the video:

Video: AMD Barcelona Launch: ILM Video

Overall, I shot over 9GB of HD video footage from the event. Using Windows Movie Maker, I spliced the video into segments and uploaded the special effects video above to Soapbox. If I had a quad-core processor, editing and rendering video such as my HD footage would be quite a bit faster and more efficient. Quad-core processors will offer quite a bit of advantage to Windows Vista users as they hit the market as they will enable the user to do much more with digital video, sound, and even games.

Special thanks to AMD for having us out for the event.

Hands-on with Certified for Windows Vista Devices

Brandon LeBlanc — Sat, 28 Jul 2007 00:44:00 GMT

I've got a couple of reviews on some Certified for Windows Vista devices I'd like to highlight from some friends of mine.

DCVIEWS has published its review of the Nikon D40x. The D40x is Nikon's consumer friendly DSLR (digital single-lens reflex) digital camera with quite a punch. I own the original Nikon D40 (no "x") which is still impressive even for a first release. The Nikon D40x takes 10 megapixel photos while my D40 takes only 6 megapixel photos. The D40x also offers taking photos at a higher resolution that my D40. Read the review from DCVIEWS for a more detailed analysis of the Nikon D40x. You can also head over to Nikon's D40x website to check out the feature and tech specs on the camera.

Andre Da Costa has a pretty extensive review on the Microsoft Wireless Entertainment Desktop 7000 keyboard and mouse. Andre notes the Wireless Entertainment Desktop 7000's tight integration with Windows Vista specifically with Windows Media Center. The Wireless Entertainment Desktop 7000 essentially gives you a huge step-up from the Remote Keyboard for Windows XP Media Center Edition in its design for use with Windows Media Center. I own both keyboards and the Wireless Entertainment Desktop 7000 is just amazing.

Two great reviews on two great devices.

Testing out the HP Pavilion Entertainment PC tx1000

Brandon LeBlanc — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 07:18:00 GMT

In January, Windows Vista launched with an impressive slate of Notebook and Tablet PC's. One of those PC was HP's tx1000. The tx1000 is a Pavilion Entertainment PC that is also a Tablet PC with an impressive set of specs:

AMD Turion 64 X2 Dual-Core TL-60 (2.0GHz/1MB)
2GB of DDR2 RAM
12.1" WXGA BrightView Widescreen (1280x800)
NVIDIA GeForce Go 6150
802.11b/g WLAN and Bluetooth
160GB 5400RPM SATA Hard Drive
LightScribe DVD+/-RW w/Double Layer
3 Universal Serial Bus (USB 2.0)
1 Expansion Port 3
TV-out (S-video)
Integrated Consumer IR (remote control receiver)
Integrated Altec Lansing stereo speakers
Fingerprint Reader

I was fortunate to be able to spend a few weeks test driving the tx1000 out. You'll note the integrated IR receiver in the above specs - that is because the tx1000 truly is an entertainment PC. The tx1000 comes with a mini Windows Media Center remote that can be docked into the left side of the PC. Whenever you want watch videos in Windows Media Center (or play music), you can pop out the remote and use the remote to navigate through Windows Media Center.

The tx1000 can be configured to come with HP QuickPlay 3.0, which includes a mobile TV module that supports Internet TV streaming. My tx1000 I tested out did not come with this capability unfortunately. What I did was I recorded TV shows on my desktop PC and when I went to travel, I would grab a few of my recorded TV shows and throw them onto the tx1000 to watch while on the road. This worked out real well for me.

Speaking of traveling, one of the coolest features the tx1000 comes with is dual headphone jacks. Instead of having to buy a little adaptor to allow two users to listen through the same headphone jack, the tx1000 does it for you. This makes the tx1000 a very nice laptop to have if you're traveling with someone on a long flight or road trip.

Windows Vista also lets you control the volume level of each individual set of headphones thanks to the new sound abilities Windows Vista ships with.

The tx1000, being a Tablet PC, enjoys many of the Tablet PC features that Windows Vista offers. I was particularly impressed with Windows Vista's ability to read my handwriting and format it to text. It was able to recognize much of my hand writing without any problem.

There are a few more notable features with the tx1000. The tx1000 comes with a fingerprint reader to automate logging on to the PC and also logging on to some of your favorite websites. You also get a 1.3 MP built-in webcam at the top of the screen. The webcam works well with Windows Live Messenger.

The tx1000 has a Windows Experience Index of 3.0 with the strong areas being in the areas of Memory and the Processor.

I ran Windows Vista at 32-bit although the tx1000 supports running at 64-bit.

Overall, I found the combination of being a entertainment PC and a Tablet PC to be a very interesting combination - a combination you really don't see much of today in Notebook PC's. What do you think?