Gone is the keyboard; just touch the 3.5-inch screen

Murray Hill
Sun

SAN FRANCISCO – Apple CEO Steve Jobs heard something familiar Tuesday at the Macworld Conference and Expo — a loud buzz from delegates who had just heard him describe the long-anticipated iPhone.

iPhone can take multiple calls and set up conferences, take photos through the two-megapixel onboard camera and send them in seconds. Voicemail is standard and users have the capacity to selectively listen to voicemail in whatever order they wish — avoiding wading through the mass of messages of a standard voicemail system.

It has no keyboard, just a 3.5-inch screen. The slim device fits in the palm of your hand with a glass face and a chrome back. It has no buttons other than volume, wake and sleep controls.

“iPhone is revolutionary and magical,” Jobs said. “We are all born with the ultimate pointing device — our fingers — and iPhone uses them to create the most revolutionary user interface since the mouse.”

Jobs described it as five years ahead of other cellphones.

From the screen, consumers can load music, videos, movies, audio books, contact lists, calendars, phone numbers, browser favourites and more all on the same device.

“It’s the Internet in your pocket,” Jobs beamed.

Instead of the familiar scroll wheel iPod users like so much, users brush their fingers across the screen to navigate to a particular song or movie. A tap of a finger on the screen plays that song. Album art is displayed in beautiful colour and to see a wider view you turn the device from a portrait mode into landscape mode and it automatically rotates the image and enlarges it to fit the screen.

The iPhone is available only as a GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) phone on the Cingular network in the U.S. and won’t be available until June. Rollout in Canada and other countries will follow. It will come in 4GB and 8Gb versions that will retail for $499 and $599 US on a two-year contract.

As an Internet device, the iPhone supports Apple’s Safari web browser.

A partnership with Yahoo Mail offers free e-mail to purchasers with push technology so e-mail is delivered to the device without having to get it. Another partnership with Google involves having Google’s search engine onboard, including Google Maps.

Apple has registered more than 200 patents on the iPhone.

Jobs said he hopes to capture one per cent of the world’s cellphone market — about 10 million devices — with the iPhone. But the consensus among delegates was that goal was very low.

Also Tuesday, Jobs said Apple will begin taking orders immediately for the $299 US video box called Apple TV. It will ship next month. The gadget is designed to bridge computers and television sets so users can more easily watch their downloaded movies on a big screen. A prototype of the gadget was displayed by Jobs in September when Apple announced it would sell TV shows and movies through its iTunes online store.

Jobs also announced Tuesday that the company in being renamed to just “Apple Inc.” He said the name change is meant to reflect the fact that Apple has matured from a computer manufacturer to a full-fledged consumer electronics company.

© The Vancouver Sun 2007

 

New toy rocks markets

Jim Jamieson
Province

Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs created a frenzy among Mac-heads and other technophiles yesterday by introducing its long-awaited iPhone.

A morphing of Apple’s iconic iPod media player and a cellphone, the iPhone is controlled by touch, plays music, takes digital photos, surfs the Internet and runs the Macintosh computer operating system.

Jobs, in his annual address at the Macworld Conference and Expo in San Francisco, predicted the iPhone will “reinvent” the telecommunications sector and “leapfrog” past the current generation of hard-to-use smart phones.

Signalling its increasing focus on consumer electronics, Jobs also renamed the company to Apple Inc.

The iPhone — which will retail with a two-year contract at $499 US for the four-gigabyte model and $599 for the eight-GB version — will launch in the U.S. in June through Cingular.

An Apple spokesman said there are no details yet for when the iPhone will be available in Canada.

The iPhone will compete for a share of the $127-billion world cellphone market against Motorola and Nokia, which are struggling to fuel sales of their own phones with music and Internet connections.

Jobs said Apple has a goal of gaining one per cent of the global market for mobile phones, or 10 million phones per year, by the end of 2008 — but most analysts thought that figure was low.

“The device looks cool, it’s thinner, has no buttons, so — just like the scroll wheel became the defining element of the iPod — it looks like a great idea,” said Simon Fraser University professor of communication Richard Smith, whose lecture yesterday morning was interrupted when news of the iPhone sparked an impromptu discussion.

“There have been all kinds of attempts to get more real estate on a phone, with sliders and hinges, but here you have buttons and screen in one interface.”

Smith predicted Apple’s design strengths and the iPhone’s ability to automatically synch with users’ computers will make it a formidable competitor.

“This is where the iPod just cleaned up, it was so tightly integrated with iTunes,” said Smith. “Now every iPod connector is a charger for your phone.”

The phone automatically synchs movies, music, photos through Apple’s ITunes Music Store. The device also synchs e-mail content, web bookmarks and nearly any type of digital content stored on a computer.

The iPhone also threaten smartphone makers Research In Motion (BlackBerry) and Palm (Treo), whose stock prices yesterday dropped 7.9 per cent and 5.7 per cent, respectively.

Jobs also unveiled a TV set-top box that allows people to send video from their computers and announced the number of songs sold on its ITunes Music Store has topped two billion.

© The Vancouver Province 2007

TECHNOLOGY: But sticker shock may prevent many from buying cool new item

Jim Jamieson
Province

What is it? Icuiti iWear for iPod

Price: $249 US

Why you need it: If you’re tired of squinting into that tiny iPod screen for a whole movie.

Why you don’t: You prefer big(ger) screens to watch your movies.

Our rating: Three of five mice.

For those of us who have been frustrated watching video on the crisp but annoyingly small screen of an iPod, a Rochester, N.Y. company is offering something completely different.

Portable display company Icuiti Corp. has launched its iWear for iPod, a high-tech glasses/earphones combo that allows users to watch television shows, music videos, movies and video podcasts on a virtual 44-inch screen.

As well, Icuiti says, no extra batteries or cables are necessary, as the iWear attaches to the iPod’s bottom dock connector. The company says it draws no more power than the media player’s screen.

The 110-gram device features twin, high-resolution 320-by-240-pixel LCD displays that are equivalent to watching a home theatre screen from 2.7 metres away.

Hi-fi stereo headphones come with the iWear, but they can be removed if you want to use your own gear.

It also comes with an adjustable nosepiece and independent focus adjustments (+2 to -5 diopters) so people can use it without prescription glasses.

Icuiti says 3D content will soon be available from its website, www.icuiti.com.

One of a raft of new gadgets we can expect to see heading into this week’s Consumer Electronics Show, the iWear — which has won a 2007 CES Innovations Award in the Portable Electronics: Audio/Video category — is available at Sharper Image or on the Icuiti website.

© The Vancouver Province 2007

 

Sun

SAN FRANCISCO — Adobe Systems Inc., the world’s biggest maker of graphic-design software, is working to fix a flaw affecting earlier versions of its Acrobat Reader software that may let hackers steal information. The security hole, which affects Adobe Reader running on the Firefox browser, lets hackers attach code to otherwise-legitimate documents found on commercial websites. That tampered link may direct users to fraudulent websites seeking bank account, credit card and other confidential information. Adobe Reader 8, which became available in November, isn’t affected.

© The Vancouver Sun 2007

 

Agence France
Sun

SEOUL — South Korea’s LG Electronics said Thursday it plans to sell the world’s first DVD player capable of playing rival high-definition DVD formats.

The dual-format player, to be released in the United States early this year, will end the “confusion and inconvenience” of competing disc formats for both content producers and consumers, the company said in a statement.

The high-definition player will play HD DVD format and rival Blu-ray format discs, the statement said.

In a replay of the VHS-Betamax battle between two types of video cassette tape in the late 1970s, the two different DVD formats have hit the market offering cinematic-quality images and interactive entertainment.

But they are incompatible, forcing consumers to choose.

Since they were introduced last year, companies have been fighting a fierce campaign to try to convince consumers that their product should become the dominant format.

Details of the new unit will be released at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next week, LG’s statement said.

© The Vancouver Sun 2007

 

Gary Gentile
USA Today

LOS ANGELES — Warner Bros. is set to introduce a high definition DVD disc that can hold films and TV shows in rival and incompatible formats, the latest sign that the year-long format war is long from over.

Warner Bros., a unit of Time Warner, said it developed the “Total HD Disc” to help break the stalemate between HD DVD, developed by a consortium led by Toshiba, and rival Blu-ray, backed by Sony. Both deliver sharper pictures and increased space for special features.

All but the most adventurous consumers have stayed away from choosing sides in the battle for fear of being stuck with the losing technology, much the same as happened when VHS and Betamax battled it out for videotape dominance in the 1980s.

Initially, Hollywood studios lined up behind one or the other formats. Warner Bros. first backed HD DVD, but then decided to release films and TV shows on both formats.

Some studios, such as Paramount Pictures, a unit of Viacom, have followed Warner Bros. in backing both formats. Only Universal Studios, a division of General Electric, is releasing films exclusively in HD DVD.

Sony Pictures, a unit of Sony Corp., 20th Century Fox, which is owned by News Corp., and The Walt Disney Co. have remained staunch defenders of Blu-ray.

Retailers and others had hoped the rival camps would compromise on one format, or that one would prove dominant.

But the decision by Warner Bros. to accommodate confused consumers by placing both formats of films on a single disc shows that the battle continues.

“The Total High-Definition Disc allows consumers to fully embrace high-definition viewing,” Ron Sanders, President of Warner Home Video said in a statement Thursday. “Warner Bros. was a force in creating the current market dominance of the standard DVD, and we hope that THD will make it easier for the average consumer to enjoy this next level of technology.”

Details of the disc, such as whether Warner Bros. would license the technology to rival studios, are set to be released next week at the International Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas.

Other compromise solutions are in the works.

LG Electronics said this week they plan on marketing a dual format DVD player. Other electronics makers are expected to follow suit.

Warner Bros. has also patented a disc that can contain three versions of a film — one in each of the rival high-def formats and a third that can be viewed on standard definition players.

Buying an iPod? You may want to wait

Michelle Kessler, Jefferson Graham and Mike Snider
USA Today

A year ago, the most state-of-the-art video game system in wide release was the PlayStation 2.

Most big, flat-panel TVs cost more than $3,000.

Six-megapixel digital cameras were high-end.

And no one was sure that Microsoft would ever get around to releasing another version of Windows.

How things change.

Tech companies constantly revamp their product lines, as anyone who has ever paid top dollar for a cutting-edge device knows. Driven by brutal competition, they release faster, cheaper, more feature-laden gadgets each year. More than 2,700 companies are expected to unveil their latest and greatest beginning Sunday at the giant Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, which is expected to draw more than 2,700 exhibitors.

The show’s 140,000 attendees will see firsthand the effects of Moore’s Law, an industry rule of thumb that says electronics roughly double their performance every two years.

But how much have they actually improved this year? Is it worth paying for a pricey, top-of-the-line camera, TV or other device that may be outdated — or obsolete — in a few months? Or would it be better to wait until next year to buy? USA TODAY asked the experts to find out. Here’s a product-by-product rundown for TVs, cameras, video games and more:

Televisions

Time to buy? Yes if you’re a big TV fan but the casual watcher may want to wait.

In late 2005, Sony surprised the TV industry by offering a 40-inch, flat-panel, liquid-crystal display (LCD) television for $3,500, says Rosemary Abowd, a TV analyst at researcher Pacific Media Associates. It was one of the lowest prices ever for such a big, high-quality LCD, she says. Today, similar sets sell for about $2,000, and prices keep falling, she says.

Quality is improving, too. Manufacturers are rushing to embrace high-definition screens, which have higher resolution and clearer pictures. More than 11 million HDTV sets were sold in 2006, says the Consumer Electronics Association, the trade group behind CES. Sophisticated sets with 1,080 lines of detail on the screen are becoming commonplace, up from 720 lines a year ago, Abowd says. (Traditional TVs have 480 lines of detail.)

And more sets come with ports for new high-definition multimedia interface (HDMI) cables, used to connect high-def digital devices — such as a TV and a high-def DVD player — to one another.

But the market is still evolving. HDMI may change, or be replaced by another standard, Abowd says. The high-definition content needed to take advantage of an HDTV is still not as plentiful as standard content. Comcast offers more than 100 cable channels, only about 20 in high-definition. High-definition DVDs are in their infancy. “We’re going through a transition period,” says Rich Dinsmore, an executive at the parent company of RCA.

Digital cameras

Time to buy? Yes. Midrange digital cameras now have more than adequate picture quality and features for the average user. But consider waiting until June, when Father’s Day and graduation sales lower prices even more.

About 31 million digital cameras were sold in the USA in 2006, an 8% jump from 2005, says research firm IDC. But analyst Chris Chute believes the industry has seen its last year of highflying growth.

“Next year will be flat,” Chute says. “The reason so many cameras sold last year is because many people bought second and third digital cameras. You can’t sell 31 million cameras every year. Otherwise, even my cat would have one.”

At the beginning of 2006, a typical camera had 6 megapixels of resolution, says Chute. More megapixels mean higher resolution and sharper images.

This year, Chute expects to see cameras with similar features but 8 and 10 megapixels of resolution. That’s enough to crop small portions of a picture and blow them up to large sizes.

Higher-end single lens reflex (SLR) cameras are expected to continue to post big price drops. Some models that were $1,000 at the beginning of 2006 fell to $499 by year’s end. Chute expects even steeper discounts in late 2007.

Video cameras

Time to buy? Yes. Prices are as low as they’ve ever been and may not go much lower.

The video camera market has been hit hard by digital still cameras that can also record short movies. Sales fell 4.7% to $1.28 billion in 2006, NPD says.

But consumers who want superior quality and long-record times still need video cameras, and they’re driving big changes in the market. Mini-DV tape cameras, long the standard, are expected to virtually disappear in the next two years.

Canon plans to announce today that its Elura midlevel lineup of video cameras will no longer be available in mini-DV. They’re being replaced by models that burn video directly to a DVD. (Mini-DV tapes can be viewed by connecting the camera to a TV set or by transferring video to a PC and burning it to DVD.)

DVD camcorders have a number of negatives — notably that consumers usually can’t record footage at the best quality for longer than 20 minutes. But people like the convenience. “We’re responding to the consumer,” says Mitchell Glick, Canon’s assistant manager of camcorder marketing.

According to NPD, mini-DV’s share fell to 41% from 51% a year ago, while DVD’s grew to 24% from 19%.

All new Canon DVD models will, for the first time, accept “dual-layer” DVDs, which offer nearly twice the storage capacity. They can hold more than 35 minutes of footage on each disc.

Meanwhile, Canon introduced a $279 mini-DV model at CES, its lowest priced camcorder ever, the ZR800.

The nascent hard-drive category — currently supported only by Sony and JVC — is also on a tear, growing to 15% from 2.4%. Hard-drive camcorders store video on a digital storage unit similar to those in a PC.

Digital music players

Time to buy? Not yet. Wait to see if new iPods come out at Apple’s Macworld conference next week — and if Apple’s competitors respond by lowering their prices.

Apple’s 30-gigabyte iPod, which sells for $249, was a huge hit over the holidays. It is similar in style to the previous year’s version but has a brighter screen and costs $50 less.

The popularity of this and other iPods helped the digital music player market grow to $4.3 billion in 2006, from $3.2 billion the previous year, NPD says.

That’s prompting more companies to enter the market, creating more choices for consumers.

Microsoft’s new Zune also costs $249 and has a 30-GB hard drive. Memory-card-maker SanDisk introduced its answer to the iPod at last year’s CES. The 6-GB Sansa was priced at $280. Now, a newer 8-GB model is being discounted at $180.

But Apple continues to dominate with 62% market share, says researcher NPD. The company is expected to announce new iPods at its annual Macworld conference next week.

Microsoft is likely to respond by releasing lower-priced Zune models, says NPD analyst Ross Rubin. “The Zune is the most serious challenge Apple has faced to date,” he says.

Video game systems

Time to buy? It depends. Nintendo fans can still get the latest games on the older Nintendo GameCube systems. But they might want to buy the new Nintendo Wii for its unique controller.

Owners of Microsoft’s Xbox and Sony’s PlayStation 2 systems might consider upgrading to the newer Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 systems if they have a high-definition TV. Both newer systems can broadcast games in high-def.

But others might want to wait until the new systems are easier to find and prices fall. By then, more games should be available, too.

“You’ll have more fun buying (a new game such as Guitar Hero 2 for) the PS2 than spending hundreds on a PS3,” says Geoff Keighley, host of Spike TV’s Game Head. “Put your money toward an HDTV and get the high-definition game system next year when there’s a better lineup of games.”

The video game industry began one of its periodic seismic shifts in 2006 when the Sony PS3 and Nintendo Wii hit the market.

Combined with Microsoft’s Xbox 360, which came out in 2005, the new systems will supplant the old market, dominated by Sony’s 6-year-old PS2.

The new systems are still hard to get. Sony shipped fewer than 800,000 PS3s to U.S. stores by year’s end. Many of those were resold on online auction sites for more than double their $499 and $599 list prices.

Nintendo delivered nearly twice as many Wiis, yet the system still fetched bids above $500, double its $250 face value.

All three systems are vastly better than their predecessors. The PS3 is 20 times as powerful as the PS2. The Xbox 360 is a dozen times more powerful than the original Xbox and can connect to an online community of more than 4 million members. Both output high-definition video.

The Wii’s graphic prowess is at least twice that of Nintendo’s previous system, the GameCube. But its real appeal is a wireless controller that can be used as a golf club, baseball bat, sword or steering wheel. “The challenge for Nintendo is to prove that the Wii isn’t just a fad that will fade by this time next year,” says Keighley.

DVD players

Time to buy? Probably not, as there are two competing types of new high-definition DVD players. “I would suggest that people wait out the high-def format war for another year,” Keighley says. “The leap from DVD to (high-def) DVD is much less pronounced than the leap from VHS to DVD. Regular DVDs still look great on most high-def TVs.”

Regular DVDs are expected to take a back seat as new, high-definition DVDs, which have up to six times better resolution, enter the market. (They must be hooked up to a high-definition TV to work properly.) Unfortunately for consumers, there are two high-def DVD types fighting to become the standard.

Blu-ray is supported by Sony and several studios. The PS3 video game system has a Blu-ray player installed. HD DVD is backed by Toshiba, Universal and Microsoft, which brought out a $199 HD DVD drive peripheral for the Xbox 360 in November.

Standard DVD players have become a commodity product, sometimes selling for as little as $30. But high-def models remain expensive. HD DVD players often cost $500 or more, while Blu-ray players often start at about $800.

Latest development, Warner Bros. has decided to try to break the consumer confusion by introducing an HD DVD that can hold both formats simultaneously.

PCs

Time to buy? Not yet. Wait until Microsoft’s Vista operating system is widely released this year, says PC analyst Samir Bhavnani at researcher Current Analysis. PC-makers will respond with a flood of innovative models, he says.

At last year’s CES, Hewlett-Packard proudly unveiled a $1,399 laptop that was among the most advanced of its time. It had a speedy Intel Pentium processor and a 40-GB hard drive.

The same amount of money today buys an HP laptop with an 80-GB hard drive and an Intel Core 2 Duo processor. The new processor, or computer brain, is basically two of the older Pentium chips squished together. That doesn’t make the PC twice as fast, thanks to bottlenecks elsewhere in the system. But it considerably improves performance, especially when several programs are running at once, says Bhavnani.

But the real innovation will occur this year, when Microsoft releases all versions of Vista, Bhavnani says. The first new version of Windows in five years is designed to better handle digital movies, television, photos and music, and to be more secure.

PC sales in the USA have stalled as consumers and businesses wait for Vista. They rose just 5% in the first half of 2006 from the previous year and were flat during the third quarter, says researcher IDC.

Michelle Kessler
USA Today

USA TODAY is here to help. Reporter Michelle Kessler solicited guidance from seasoned Best Buy Geek Squad agent Chris Barnes. Personal Technology columnist Edward C. Baig weighed in with his own advice. Here are tips and traps to help you get the most out of your newest toys, without having to shed tears on your owner’s manual, assuming the product even came with one.

Computers and home networking

Tips. PCs have long moved past letting you just process words, crunch numbers or surf the Web. Today’s machines often double as sophisticated home entertainment systems, some with built-in TV tuners. Consider hooking up a good pair of speakers to play digital music or connecting a TV to play digital video.

To best take advantage of all your new PC has to offer, you’ll want a speedy Internet connection (commonly through DSL or cable) and a wireless home network. Purchase a small box known as a router, which when coupled with the computer’s “Wi-Fi” capabilities, will let you surf throughout the house.

Transferring digital music or photo libraries from an old PC to a new one can be difficult because the files can be large. Instead of burning hundreds of CDs, consider purchasing a universal serial bus (USB) drive. They’re simple, reusable, and 1 gigabyte models can be found for less than $40, though they won’t hold much data. Just plug the USB drive into one computer, copy files, then plug the gizmo into the new machine.

If you’re moving a lot of files and programs from an older computer, consider a PC migration program such as PCMover from Laplink.

Traps. Not all programs can be transferred from one machine to another. You may have to download — and pay for — new versions. Some new PCs come with trial versions of software that expire after a few months unless you pay an extra fee. Evaluate these choices carefully, since it may be cheaper to shop around. But make sure you always have up-to-date anti-virus, firewall and anti-spyware protection. Computers without them are vulnerable.

Installing a home network can get technical, so you may seek help from a tech-savvy neighbor. Most important, make sure to turn on wireless security settings to prevent your system from being hacked. Such settings may or may not be turned on by default.

Digital music players

Tips. Popular iPods and other MP3 players do a lot more than just play music. Many can display pictures and, in some cases, play movies. And most can also store other types of computer files. Use your player to transport and store text documents, photos, PowerPoint presentations, contacts and other files.

For an iPod, choose “enable disk use” from Preferences menus found in iTunes software on a PC or Mac.

It’s great to own your own music. But many non-iPod users are satisfied “renting” songs under subscription models offered by Napster, Yahoo, Rhapsody and others. You can listen whenever you want on a PC and in some cases on a portable player.

Traps. Many players only work with certain types of music formats and online stores. For instance, the iPod is designed to work with your own music ripped from CDs, and with songs purchased from Apple’s own iTunes Store.

It will not work with songs downloaded directly from Yahoo, Napster and Rhapsody.

Before buying songs online, make sure the tunes’ formatting is compatible with the portable device you own.

If you are listening to music as part of an online subscription, remember you will only have access to tunes you do not buy as long as you remain a paying customer, and connect your portable device at least once a month.

Televisions and digital video recorders

Tips. Many new televisions are designed to double as computer monitors. Some can even connect wirelessly to a nearby PC.

Digital video recorders (DVRs) from TiVo and others let you record programs on your schedule, not the networks’. Among their tricks, they can let you schedule recordings remotely over the Internet to bail you out if you forgot to record the football game before leaving the house. Some TiVos also let you watch recorded shows on PCs, iPods, Treos, PlayStation Portables and other devices. Or you can burn shows to DVD.

Traps. Hopefully, the digital TV you received can display high-definition, because not all so-called digital televisions are actually HDTVs. Moreover, to reap the benefits of an HDTV, you need to be watching programs that are broadcast or recorded in HD. An increasing number of prime-time programs, sports events and movies are shown in HD and delivered via cable or satellite providers or “over the air” through an antenna. Some programs broadcast in regular or “standard definition” may not look so hot when you watch them on a new TV.

Conventional DVDs typically look very good on modern TVs, though they, too, fall short of full high-definition. But the rival next-generation DVDs that do display HD, either Blu-ray or HD DVD, are incompatible with each other. Rather than betting on one format or the other, let the marketplace sort things out before purchasing a pricey high-definition DVD player to go with your new TV.

Video game systems

Tips. Souped-up video game systems such as the new Sony PlayStation 3 and Microsoft’s year-old Xbox 360 deliver snazzy and realistic graphics. But the latest game consoles also pile on multimedia features. You get to compete with other players over the Internet, view slide shows and in some cases play high-definition DVDs.

Nintendo’s Wii has relatively primitive graphics and won’t play next-generation DVDs. But grab the motion-sensitive controller and swing it like a baseball bat, tennis racquet or whatever the game demands. You’ll have a blast and get a real workout.

Traps. Game consoles are plenty pricey. But be prepared to shell out a lot more loot for the games that play on them. And to get the most out of Xbox or PS3, you’ll want to connect them to an HDTV, perhaps an added expense.

The Xbox 360 system can connect to so-called Media Center PCs, which would let you play music and pull other content off those computers. Be prepared to tweak settings that can be tricky for non-technical users.

Through an add-in, Xbox can play back HD DVD discs but not Blu-ray. On the other hand, Sony’s PS3 can handle Blu-ray discs but not HD DVD.

If playing Wii, hang on tight to the controller, lest if fly off and hurt a bystander. Meanwhile, Nintendo will replace the original wrist strap for a newer, presumably safer version.

Digital cameras

Tips. Digital cameras may come with a couple of cables that can be used to connect to a PC, though USB is typically the standard. If your PC has slots for memory cards, you may not need to connect a cable at all; just insert the memory card which stores the captured images.

A few digital models from Canon, Kodak and Nikon let you wirelessly e-mail pictures directly from the camera via a Wi-Fi hot spot.

Traps. Photo-editing software can run slowly on older PCs, and video-editing software may not work at all. Check system requirements before installing. If the programs don’t work well, consider adding more memory to your PC — or buying a new one.

The photo software packaged with digital cameras is typically mediocre. Fortunately, better — and free — options are available, notably Google’s fine Picasa program, which you can download for Windows machines, and Apple’s iPhoto, included on all new Macs.

Camera makers haven’t standardized a memory card format, which is why you’ll see Secure Digital, CompactFlash, xD, Memory Stick and other types of cards. If your new digital camera is replacing an older one based on a different format, you have a few options. You can trade the camera in for a model based on the same memory format. You can buy an inexpensive USB card reader to handle different formats on a computer. Or you can stick with what you have, relieved that the price of storage continues to fall.

When nothing you do seems to work

Ready to throw up your hands over a tangle of cords or installation discs? Sometimes it’s best to:

Start over.

A small mistake in Step 2 of a tech project can cause big problems in Step 20. Most computer programs can easily be uninstalled, and electronic gadgets rebooted. But be aware that any saved information may be lost.

In many cases, you may have to physically turn off all connected devices — even ones that don’t seem to have a problem — to clear out the memory and start the process over.

Read the manual.

And search Internet message boards for help. Chances are someone out there has had the same problem.

Call for help.

Most large electronics manufacturers have toll-free phone numbers for consumers with problems. In some cases, you’ll have to pay for the call and/or tech support.

If the problem is more complex, such as getting several devices to communicate with one another, consider paying for a technical specialist.

Best Buy’s Geek Squad will run diagnostic tests on a PC for $69 in-store or will come to a home or office for $159.

CompUSA and many local companies offer similar services.

 

Edward C. Baig
USA Today

The new iPod you just got for the holidays does a lot more than play music. Its video quality is perfectly acceptable for music videos, podcasts and TV shows. But film junkies crave more than the iPod’s 2½-inch display can deliver.

I’ve been testing three portable accessories that let you watch iPod videos without squinting. The Sonic Impact Video-55 and jWin iLuv i1055 can play iPod video through their 7-inch displays. The Memorex iFlip has an 8.4-inch screen.

Such screen sizes are more common on portable DVD players. The iLuv doubles as a DVD player, though it fails to measure up to rivals in picture and sound quality or design.

In fact, none of these $200-$300 players, which can often be found for less than their list prices, blew me away. Still, they provide road warriors with decent alternatives to watching video on the iPod itself, provided you don’t mind schlepping these somewhat bulky players. After all, you may already be traveling with another video playback alternative: your laptop.

All three work with current 30-, 60- and 80-gigabyte video iPods. A closer look:

•Design and usability.

Because the thickness of the iPod varies between 30 GB and larger-capacity models, the video players rely on adapters or inserts to properly dock the iPod you are using.

The dimensions of the iFlip and Video-55 players are roughly comparable. Both are black, weigh about 2½ pounds and are about the size of a chunky hardcover book. The two fold shut like a laptop.

The Video-55’s few buttons surround the dock for your iPod making them easily accessible when you are watching videos. But I got off to an inauspicious start. I didn’t realize I had to insert an adapter inside the dock before sticking in my 30-GB iPod. The iPod got stuck, and I had to remove it with a butter knife.

Inserted properly, you have direct access to the iPod scroll wheel for changing videos, fast-forwarding, etc. But I ran into some trouble changing the volume via the Video-55’s own buttons on my test unit, an issue Sonic Impact says has since been resolved.

I also could have used a magnifying glass trying to read the tiny-type manual, though seeing the words didn’t necessary clear anything up. Sample: “After entering the MENU parameter-adjusting menu, the analog parameter on the screen will gradually decrease when the ‘-‘ key is pressed.” Huh?

You insert the iPod on the iFlip by gently sliding it into one of its supplied adapters and then pushing the holder down until it clicks in place. It’s a bit awkward. Once docked, you again have easy access to the iPod’s scroll wheel. Volume and menu buttons are on the side of the iFlip, a slightly less-convenient location than the Video-55’s buttons.

The black iLuv is a tad heavier than the others and is thicker around the middle. That’s not surprising given the presence of a DVD player. The screen is exposed on the outside of the iLuv. It pops up to reveal the compartment where you insert a DVD. Buttons on the face of the unit control DVD functions and not the iPod.

Alas, the iPod itself docks on the bottom of the iLuv device. It’s covered by plastic, except for a circular hole that lets you control the scroll wheel. But each time you want to change videos on the iPod, you must flip the device upside down. Major hassle.

• Pictures and sound

The designs of the iFlip and Video-55 let you rest the players on a flat surface and tilt the screen to a proper viewing angle. But the iLuv uses a stand that makes it difficult to view the screen directly. Either way, iLuv has the poorest picture and sound.

There’s surely something to be said for having the largest screen, a boon for the iFlip. But I preferred Video-55’s picture by a little bit and sound by a mile.

• Battery

When plugged in, the three devices can charge your iPod. Though I didn’t run an independent battery test, iLuv claims battery life of about 2½ hours for iPod or DVD playback, which may not get you through a long flick. Sonic Impact says the Video-55’s playback is four to six hours for movies or 14 to 16 hours for audio alone. (The sound is good enough where you might use it to listen to music in a hotel room.) Meanwhile, despite having the largest screen, Memorex claims five-plus hours of battery life.

• Extras

The iLuv earns brownie points as the only product in this roundup to also play DVDs. It’s also the only one to come with stereo headphones. A carrying pouch, car adapter, car-seat strap, video cable and remote control are also included.

Sonic Impact’s player comes with a bag, car charger and remote.

The iFlip includes two headphone jacks for private listening with a friend (same as iLuv) but is otherwise chintzy with supplied accessories. There’s no remote. A carrying case is sold separately.

Someday soon, perhaps Apple will oblige video fans with a larger-screen iPod. Apple is characteristically closed-lipped about future product plans. Until it does, it’s nice to know there are decent video alternatives.

Shoppers warned to put purchases out of sight in the car

Gillian Shaw
Sun

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