Gillian Shaw
Sun

1. LG Eve, $50 with a three-year Rogers contract

Smartphone offerings just got a boost with the arrival of LG’s Eve Android-operating system device on the Rogers network. At $50 with a three-year voice and data contract, it packs a hefty digital punch for the money. For social media fans, it brings together Facebook, Twitter and Bebo networks into one place with its social network services manager. A touch screen, sliding QWERTY keyboard and a built-in accelerometer, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS, along with a five-megapixel camera and video recording. Its face recognition feature is a plus — once a person is tagged in a photo the Eve recognizes that person to tag in other photos — and clicking on the photo puts you in touch via text, e-mail, phone or chat. www.lg.ca

2. Seesmic for Blackberry and Android, free

Just in time for your new Android phone or BlackBerry, Seesmic, makers of a Windows and Web application for managing your social networks, have delivered two new mobile applications. Seesmic for BlackBerry, an app that pulls your Twitter timelines into one interface that lets you create and view saved searches, see the Twitter lists you’ve created, shorten URLs, and send photos and configure notifications for direct messages and replies. On your Android phone, Seesmic lets you share videos on YouTube as well as using yFrog and TwitPic to share photos on Twitter, plus configure alerts.

seesmic.com

3. KeyScan KS810-P Color Document Scanner PC Keyboard, Keyscan, $132

KeyScan has announced a software update that delivers more features, plus makes its keyboard scanner compatible with Windows 7. Scans everything from paper documents to driver’s licence and other ID cards. www.keyscan.com

4. N310 Netbook, Samsung, $500

On the pricey end of netbook offerings, the Samsung nonetheless delivers the lightest of the lightweights in its class, and manages to include a keyboard that is 93 per cent of a full-size standard desktop keyboard. It has the heftier six-cell battery that’s supposed to last up to 9.9 hours, which I think is pretty much a necessity in a netbook given that they’re all about mobile computing. The 310 has Microsoft’s new Windows 7 operating system. Built-in 1.3-megapixel camera and Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR for easy data transfer from any modem multimedia device. www.samsung.ca

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

Keychain devices can provide emergency features, take your picture or recharge your electronic devices whiile they are keeping your keys in place

Melissa Guillergan
Sun

The keychains on the market today have the ability to do more than simply hold all of your keys in one place, open a bottle, or act as a miniature flashlight.

Some keychains have life-saving features while others serve as handy gadgets to help charge an iPod or to record short videos.

Here are some keychains that do more than just keep your keys in place:

Bodygard 5-in-1 Multi-Function Emergency Tool Keychain: One of the most well-rounded and functional keychains in the market today is the Bodygard 5-in-1 Keychain from Swiss+Tech. Don’t let its size fool you. Although it is just 1.75-inches wide and three-inches long, the Bodygard could save your life.

The two most significant emergency features of the keychain are the seat belt cutter and door glass breaker, which could help you quickly escape a fire, accident or submersion emergency. It can also assist you with helping someone else who may be in a vehicle-related emergency. The Bodygard also comes with other essential tools including a bright red light distress flasher, an LED flashlight and a sonic alarm that could help ward off potential attackers when walking to your car. The Bodygard 5-in-1 Keychain is available at Amazon.com for $22.99.

Solar Charger Keychain: The Solar Charger Keychain can recharge your mobile devices using solar energy. It is a great key chain for those always on the go who are heavy users of cell phones or portable MP3 players. The keychain can be charged with solar energy, a USB cable or A/C Adapter.

The complete package comes with everything you need including five different types of cell phone device connectors, ranging in brands including Sony Ericsson, Motorola and Nokia. A device connector that would fit your particular cell phone model and brand can be purchased at local cellular retail stores.

The Apple iPhone3G has a Solar Battery Recharger Phone Keychain that does the same trick. The Solar Charger Keychain can be purchased for about $35 and is available at Brando.com (usb.brando.com)

Keychain Cameras: Keychain cameras are small enough to fit in your pocket, typically measuring three-inches by two-inches. There are keychain cameras on the market that can take 2,560-by-2,048-pixel still images. Others have the ability to record up to 120 seconds of video.

They typically run on a single AAA battery. Reviews of keychain cameras vary, especially regarding the quality of photos they produce.

If shopping for a keychain camera, put in the extra money to get one that produces higher quality images.

Keychain cameras are also great for mobile webcams, which are handy for backpackers and travellers who want to stay in touch with friends back home.

Keychain cameras are available at various retail stores including Canadian Tire and range in price from $40 to $70, depending on the quality of pictures they produce.

Melissa Guillergan works for the Laura Ballance Media Group and loves looking for those Missing Parts that manufacturers fail to install in your ride.

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

Gillian Shaw
Sun

Hand warmer, eneloop kairo KIR-SE1SW, Sanyo Canada, $60

If you want to spread a little holiday warmth, check out this new hand warmer from Sanyo, first in its series of green products based on the Sanyo eneloop rechargeable battery. It’s high-tech goes toasty. Whether you’re standing on the sidelines or schussing down the hill, tuck these into your Olympic mitts and you can go back to enjoying the action instead of worrying about frozen fingers. About the size of a deck of cards, weighing 80 grams, it has an internal lithium-ion rechargeable battery. It delivers heat ranging from a low of 39 C to a high of 43 degrees. A full recharge takes about three hours, giving four hours of warmth at the low setting and three hours in the high mode. en.ca.sanyo.com/Eneloop-Kairo

Spin, Vestax, $280 US

Mac users can use their iTunes libraries to mix, scratch and play music like a real DJ.

A hardware-software bundle available through Apple, the Spin turns your Mac into a DJ setup. Compact, with a multi-channel audio system and touch sensor job wheels, it comes with DJ software in the bundle. The software is also available for a free 15-day trial or for purchase from www.djay-software.com or as a stand-alone from Apple retailers for $60 US. www.vestax.com

Vuzix Wrap 310 portable video eyeware, $250 US

For the road warrior on your list, the Wrap 310 transforms a small video screen into a 16:9 widescreen home theater with a virtual 55-inch display. The glasses provide up to six hours of viewing with two AA batteries. Watch 2D or 3D movies on the road, including movies and videos downloaded to your iPod, iPhone or other media player. vuzix.com

Adobe Photoshop Elements 8 and Premiere Elements 8 Bundle, $150

If you’re looking for photo and video editing software that delivers many of the features pros use, but at a consumer-friendly price, consider Adobe’s latest update on Photoshop Elements and Photoshop Premiere. It takes care of many editing snafus, from distortion when you’re editing to fit, to solving those pesky lighting exposure problems. People recognition helps you track down photos of friends and family in your files and the software’s auto-analyser will tag the media you download so you can find the highest quality photos and video footage. www.adobe.com/products/photoshopelwin

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

GILLIAN SHAW
Sun

More than a month after Canada was bypassed by Kindle in its release to more than 100 countries, Canadians will be able to buy Amazon’s popular digital electronic book reader.

Amazon.com announced Canadian availability Tuesday, in time for holiday shopping, but Santa will have to have dig deep to pay added duties and exchange that will push up the cost of the $259 US wireless device.

Jay Marine, director of product management for Amazon Kindle, said there is pent-up demand for Amazon’s best selling product.

“ We … have worked really hard to bring Kindle to Canada,” Marine said. “We know we have a lot of passionate customers and Amazon readers in Canada.”

“They tell us they read more often. There is the convenience of having it always with them. You’re 60 seconds away from a great book no matter where you are.”

Import fees and delivery costs mean the $259 US Kindle will cost Canadians at least $311 US or about $330 Cdn depending on the current rate of exchange.

Unlike the music industry, which was slow to catch up to digital downloads and has been fighting ever since to get users to pay, publishers don’t see ebooks as a drain.

“What I can say as an industry observer is that we view this as a beneficial announcement,” said Jamie Broadhurst, vice-president of marketing for Vancouver’s Raincoast Books.

“We welcome more formats and we welcome more opportunities for people to read books in whatever format they find convenient and most enjoyable.”

Broadhurst said ebooks, which represent less than half a per cent of the industry’s total annual $24 billion US sales in the U.S., don’t pose a threat to traditional book sales.

“It is very, very early days for digital books in Canada and the United States. Canadian book sales continue to increase.

“We don’t feel threatened by this. The more opportunities Canadians have to read in whatever format they choose, the better the industry will be.”

While the Kindle already faces competition from such products as Sony’s digital readers, netbooks and other options for accessing ebooks, Apple’s long-rumoured tablet, which is predicted to arrive in the first quarter of 2010, could prove more of a threat. Industry watchers speculate a screen larger than the Kindle six-inch version plus Apple innovation and the fact it wouldn’t be a one-trick pony could win over buyers.

However, Nathan Groezinger, who runs a website on ebook readers, at www. the-ebookreader.com, said with the Apple product likely to come in at a higher price, it’s difficult to predict which will win out.

“ The Kindle is the leading ebook reader on the market right now and as far as Apple is concerned, it is going to be hard to say,” he said. “It looks like the thing will cost a bucketful of money, but it looks like it will be a cool device too.”

Groezinger, who has both a Kindle and Sony ebook reader, said the Amazon product wins out for its wireless capability. While Sony has launched a wireless product in the U.S., it’s not offering that option in Canada.

“The wireless is the most important because you can just download to the device,” said Groezinger, who has about 150 books on his Kindle, which will hold up to 1,500 books.

Once Kindle ebook buyers purchase a title, with bestsellers around the $11 US mark, they can keep it on their Kindle or store it online. Kindle allows them to access it anytime, complete with bookmarks and any notes they have made as they read.

For that ebook investment, consumers get an ebook in a proprietary format so it can be read on iPhones, iPods, on computers and the Kindle, but not on other ebook readers.

The Kindle uses the 3G wireless technology used by cellphones for downloading and users can also download using a Wi-Fi connection, with books taking 60 seconds to download. The device can also be used to read magazines and newspapers; The Vancouver Sun and other Canwest papers will be among the Canadian offerings.

UBC spinoff plays on ability to absorb tastes of individuals

Gillian Shaw
Sun

A University of B.C. spinoff is building on current search-engine technology to deliver the next generation of tailored search offerings that could only come from a service that gets to know you almost as well as your mother.

Worio, technology that came out of the university’s laboratory for computational intelligence, is on the leading edge of a trend in which personalization and contextual search will replace the more scattergun approach that can come with simple keyword searches and other online interaction.

“We are developing what we call a web scale discovery engine,” said Ali Davar, chief executive officer of the now-Yaletown-based startup. It received Precarn (technology development) and National Research Council funding, along with $3 million in angel funding to develop the technology.

Davar said Worio provides discoveries — that is, added information delivered alongside search results — based on context and not just keywords.

“Discovery is different than search, the purpose is to understand automatically what you are interested in already and push you that information.”

Walking through examples of Worio in operation, Davar pointed out that when he looked up ‘semantic web,’ Worio not only returned the results you might expect from Google or other search engines, but added information he might not have known to look up.

“I was pushed a recommendation for the Vancouver semantic web meetup group,” he said. “Worio was able to understand this was something I might like.

“If someone had told me about this group I could go into Google and put in those words but the simple fact of the matter was that I didn’t know to go looking for it in the first place.”

While there are examples, such as Pandora music service that offer similar service but on a narrower topic range, Davar said the approach doesn’t work when trying to generalize to the entire web.

“We don’t have as much of a controlled environment as those smaller domains,” he said. “We have overcome those problems by using a combination of technologies.”

Among those is an automatic tagging system that considers a small slice of information that has been commented on or shared by users and generalizes that for the web.

“It basically brings order to the web by bringing a topical layer to it,” said Davar.

On the left-hand side of a user’s Worio home page are the keyword search results that would be returned by search engines such as Google or Bing.

The right-hand side features what Worio provides: Context-based discovery.

“We are trying to bring discovery to search,” said Davar.

And in social media meets search, Worio users can share information with friends and contacts, building a network and getting information relevant to their interests that may have been turned up in friends’ Worio research.

Users can tag information they find and share it with other users or they can choose to use the ‘private mode’ in which Worio doesn’t track preferences.

“It is somewhere between a traditional search engine and a stand-alone recommender system,” said Davar.

“It is bringing discovery into people’s day-to-day experience rather than making it a limited view of what the most popular things are that people have dug today.”

Early adopters are already trying out Worio, which is in beta, and a browser plug-in expected in the next two or three months.

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

Gillian Shaw
Sun

LIFECAM CINEMA, MICROSOFT, $90

High-definition in a webcam, the LifeCam delivers clear video with its ClearFrame technology, helping to overcome less-than-optimal lighting conditions. With 16:9 widescreen video capture with up to 30 frames per second, this webcam works from close up — four inches from the webcam — to far away, automatically focusing to adjust to the distance. It delivers 5.0-megapixel stills and comes with a flexible base that bends to fit on notebook screens and monitors. www.microsoft.com/hardware

VOYAGER PRO, PLANTRONICS, $99

A noise-cancelling Bluetooth headset, this is created for comfort so you can wear it for long periods of time. It has three layers of protection from wind noise, and a range of up to 10 metres. Talk time is up to six hours on a battery charge, with stand-by time up to five days. Call reject, last-number redial and voice-activated dialing, with a mute function that turns off and on with a voice prompt. www.plantronics.com

HP PHOTOSMART A646 COMPACT PRINTER, $150 US

With its own handy carrying case, this compact portable printer weighs just over a kilogram and prints up to five-by-seven photos, including four-by-12-inch panorama shots and four-by-six photos and four-by-eight-inch photo cards. A 3.45-inch (8.7-cm) touchscreen lets you view, edit and personalize photos right on the printer, without having to hook up to a PC. Add captions and do slideshows on the touchscreen. USB connection or direct printing from Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones, memory cards, PictBridge cameras and USB thumb drives. Includes photo editing like red-eye removal and photo fixes. www.hp.com

SOLO FX SPECIAL EDITION, ISKIN, $35

Now that the iPhone is available through Telus and Bell as well as Rogers, it should be good news for the makers of iPhone covers, who offer an ever-expanding range of options. The solo FX SE from iSkin aims for glamour and elegance in protective cases for the iPhone 3G and 3GS. In three colours: black, pink and white. It comes with two protective screen films, one ultra clear and one a special FX mirror film. www.iskin.com

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

81 per cent of marketers plan to boost spending online

Matt Hartley
Sun

The recession has forced marketers to rethink how they’re divvying up their advertising budgets, allocating more money than ever to digital marketing, a new survey shows.

Thanks to improvements in technology, the economic downturn and increasing demand from their audiences, 81 per cent of marketers said they planned to increase their spending online, while 49 per cent said they expected to boost what they were shelling out for mobile marketing on cellphones and smartphones, according to a Media Mix survey from Ipsos Reid, presented Wednesday at Marketing Week’s Digital Day conference in Toronto.

“We’re seeing a shuffle in the deck,” said Steve Levy, head of Eastern Canada market research for Ipsos Reid, who added that the survey’s results were more of a barometer for looking at the year ahead rather than in the rearview mirror. “We’ve been seeing a shuffle in the deck for some time, but it seems like it’s gaining pace.”

Advertisers said they planned to cut their spending on traditional media in the coming year, with 41 per cent of advertisers expecting to cut back on print marketing, while 26 per cent anticipated slashing their spending on radio ads and 22 per cent planned to pare back their television advertising budgets.

“In a lot of senses, the tough economy has been pretty good for digital marketers,” said Adrian Capobianco, president of Toronto marketing firm Quizative Inc. “The tough economy has challenged inertia. Everything is being evaluated. New things are being evaluated and what you’ve done for the last 10 years is being evaluated in the same way. The dollars are shifting.”

Ipsos Reid conducted the Media Mix survey in early September in conjunction with the Canadian Marketing Association and Marketing magazine, polling 540 Canadian marketers and agencies.

In a separate survey, Ipsos Reid found that Canadians are warming up to Twitter, but that the social-networking phenomenon has a long way to go before it reaches Facebook-like levels of familiarity.

About nine out of 10 Canadians have heard of Twitter, up from just 26 per cent of Canadians who were aware of Twitter back in March, according to the survey, unveiled at the conference.

However, only five per cent of Canadians say they are active users of the micro-blogging service, where users can post updates about what they’re doing in 140 characters or less. Still, that’s up from the estimated one per cent of Canadians who were using Twitter in March.

“If Facebook is mainstream, Twitter certainly is not,” Levy said. “It’s not uncommon that sometimes there is a gulf between what people know about, or more importantly what they think they know about, and what they do.”

Although Twitter has experienced meteoric growth over the past 18 months — the site boasted nearly 60 million worldwide visitors in September, according to ComScore Inc. — it still trails Facebook’s estimated 325 million global users. In Canada alone, there are more than 12 million Facebook users.

While Canadians are increasingly embracing the Web and social media, advertisers are still figuring out how to market to them online.

Although more than $1.6 billion was spent in Canada on online marketing in 2008, marketers only allotted 11 per cent of their overall budgets to Internet advertising, according to the Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada.

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

Website provides information on where you can drop them off

Larry Pynn
Sun

Recycling your old cellphone just got a lot easier.

Government and industry announced Tuesday the launch of a new Recycle My Cell website that will direct consumers to locations where they can drop off their old cellphones for recycling.

Visit RecycleMyCell.ca, type in your postal code, and you’ll receive information on several sites in your area that will accept old cell phones, pagers, smartphones, wireless personal digital assistants, batteries, external aircards, headsets and chargers at no cost, regardless of brand or condition.

Province-wide, there are 552 drop-off locations. Devices can also be mailed at no cost, using a prepaid shipping label downloaded from the web site.

The program, an initiative of the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association, asks consumers to ensure all cellphone accounts have been fully paid and service deactivated, and that any personal information is erased, including text messages, contacts and personal files.

All four recyclers involved in the program are ISO 14001:2004 certified or certified under Electronic Product Stewardship Canada’s recycling vendor qualification program, but are located in Alberta, Ontario, Quebec and Michigan — which adds to the environmental footprint of the program.

David Lawes, head of industry product stewardship programs for the ministry of environment, hopes to see the industry reach agreement with a B.C. recycler as the program evolves.

“Step one is getting these things out of consumers’ garages and shoeboxes,” said Lawes, noting there are also federal regulations governing the export of such products. “As the program continues to improve, we’ll be asking more questions around the environmental benefits [of shipping out of province].”

Telus‘ Shawn Hall said to his knowledge there are no B.C. facilities currently certified and audited for cellphone recycling, but that his company would consider using them as they become available.

“We’d like to keep it as local as possible,” he said. “As the recycling program becomes larger it can make that work, once you’ve got those economies of scale.”

E-Cycle Solutions Inc. is located in Environment Minister Barry Penner’s Chilliwack riding and is already certified by the Electronics Stewardship Association of B.C. for recycling electronic waste such as computers but does not currently handle cellphones. The company could not immediately comment on whether that might change in light of the new cellphone recycling program.

Mairi Welman of the Recycling Council of B.C. said her organization is supportive of the program, noting the potential for avoiding millions of cellphones ending up in landfills.

“They’re reliable industry partners that are involved in this thing,” she said of the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association. “These guys aren’t shady operators.”

More than 95 per cent of the materials in an average mobile device are recyclable, the association says.

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun

Joe Leary
Other

Download Document

Gillian Shaw
Sun

1. NONOTES, NONOTES.COM, FROM $9.57 PER HOUR CLASS

A solution if you’re given to snoozing through lectures — or as this Ottawa-based student-founded company points out, you’d like to focus on learning instead of trying to keep up your notes. NoNotes is a web-based service that has both a transcription service for students’ notes, plus a translation service. To use the service, create an account on the online site and then simply upload an audio file, which will be returned as typed content in your e-mail. It will also be available on the NoNotes server. NoNotes commits to having the transcription back within three days, but the company says normal turnaround time is one to two days, with an expedited service to come. The service comes in packages that start at $11.75 for one hour of class time, five hours at $53.75, and 10 hours for $95.75. www.nonotes.com.

2. GOD OF WAR III ULTIMATE EDITION, SONY COMPUTER ENTERTAINMENT AMERICA, $100

The God of War III Ultimate Edition for the PlayStation3 is scheduled for release along with God of War III next March, but starting in November, Canadians will be able to pre-order the ultimate edition from retailers here — and they’ll get a free voucher to download the God of War III E3 demo. The Ultimate Edition will include the game, plus a limited-edition art book, the director’s cut of God of War: Unearthing the Legend and a full-length movie documentary showing the history of the popular God of War franchise along with downloadable music. It also gives fans other exclusive features, including access to the God of War Combat Arena with up to seven unique challenges. The Greek mythology-based game turns the player into the ex-Spartan warrior Kratos, travelling on his adventures from the heights of Mount Olympus to the depths of hell. www.GodofWar.com.

3. iBEND ARTIST SERIES, WIDGET FACTORY, FROM $8

The thinnest iPhone and iPod Touch stand around now comes in the Artist Series, 12 designs and graphics to jazz up video and photo viewing on your mobile device. Weighing less than one gram and thinner that a few sheets of paper stacked together, the iBend is meant for holding your iPod or iPhone in the landscape position for watching videos and on-screen entertainment. Three artists featured, including Vancouver’s Vicki Wong of MEOMI. The stands come two to a pack. More at www.myibend.com.

4. MM450 BLUETOOTH HEADSET, SENNHEISER, $449

The noise-cancelling system on these headphones cuts out 90 per cent of background noise. With padded ear cushions for comfort, the headset folds up for travel and storage. Recharges via a USB port or the wall charger that comes with it, and has the different plugs you’ll need for travel in Europe, North America, the United Kingdom and Australia. www.sennheiser.com.

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun