Part 3
By Terry Currier
Navigation Networking Scanners Speakers Storage Tablet PC Wireless Networks
For coverage of: Digital
cameras, PDAs, Phones, Watches
For coverage of: DVD
writers, Keyboards, LCD monitors, Miscellanous
product, Photo printers
Kenwood www.kenwoodusa.com
The Kenwood Excelon™ KNA -DV2100 DVD is a touch screen vehicle navigation system. They improved graphics for the route maps and increased its mapping database with 40 new cities in the U.S. and Canada, added over a quarter-million more miles of roads and highways, and more than one million points of interest. The new DVD software release, model KNA-MP212, covers the continental U.S. and Canada and in an improvement over earlier software, provides more detailed coverage of areas. With the new software it now provides mapping of 5.8 million total miles of roadways in North America, with dynamic route guidance over more than 1.86 million miles. Preprogrammed points of interest in the location database have been increased to 1.8 million. Other improvements, such as one-touch access to “Detour” route navigation, reduced screen brightness for evening driving, and new color schemes to improve map and screen visibility have also been made. The suggested retail priced is $2,550.
Navman www.navman.com
Comes complete with road and street level maps for either major Western European countries or the United States. It also has door-to-door routing. Working with a GPS powered from iPAQ Pocket PC it gives vocal turn by turn instructions.
Pharos www.pharospgs.com
The Pocket GPS Portable Navigator works with Pocket PCs to give visual and voice directions. Works with a CompactFlash GPS receiver and Ostia routing and navigation software. Built-in antenna with 12 parallel channels. Comes with a car adaptor.
Pioneer www.pioneerelectronics.com
AVIC-90DVD Navigation System with DVD Player is a slender in-dash DVD-ROM/DVD Video player that fits in a single DIN-sized space. It instantly feeds you details on over 2 million points of interest (restaurants, hotels, gas, and more) plus driving directions for the continental US and Canada. With GPS it knows where you are, and via voice control you can even ASK it for directions. And when you're not navigating, use it to play DVD movies for rear-seat passengers. MSRP is $2,300.
TeleNav www.TeleNav.net
Their system works with your Nextel phone. Enter the destination by pressing (1), or saying (2), it then ask you for the city and state, then street address. Then as you drive the system will be giving you directions through your phone. Price varies whether or not you have a GPS enabled phone.
IOGEAR www.iogear.com
Their HomePlug Ethernet
Powerline Networking Bridge enables you to network your home computers through
the most pervasive medium in your house - the electric power lines. Share
Internet connections, printers, transfer files, play games, and more. The USB
Adapter allows you to network your home computers through the electric power
lines in the house. Easy to understand step-by-step instructions are included.
Hawking Technologies www.hawkingtech.com
Announced the introduction of new Gigabit networking
switches and a new Gigabit Ethernet Network Interface Card (NIC)
to break the
pricing barrier to the next generation of networking technology--Gigabit
networking. The release of Hawking’s 4- and 8-port Gigabit Switches as well as
its 32-bit PCI Network Card makes high-performance networking more accessible
to a larger base of consumers--at much lower prices. The Hawking Gigabit
switches have full 10/100/1000M auto-sensing ports and perform at the same
speed and throughput as more expensive brands that retail up to $1,000.
Estimated street prices for the Hawking 4-port switch, H-GS4T is
$99; the 8-port switch, H-GS8T is $199; and the 32-bit PCI
Network Card, H-GA32T runs $29.
NETGEAR www.netgear.com
With the Powerline USB Adapter (XA601) and Powerline Ethernet Adapter (XE602) you can easily connect computers all through the house without drilling any holes in the wall.
HP www.hp.com
The HP Scanjet 8200 series comes with a automatic document
feeder (ADF). It is quiet and fast with preview scans in four seconds, helping speed
the total scanning task. Capable of true 4,800 optical dots per inch (dpi), it
comes with six convenient one-touch operation buttons. Tasks that can be
initiated with a simple press of a button include easy save, e-mail, optical
character
recognition (OCR), copy and scan photos and documents. The HP Scanjet
8200 series includes three different models, each with software to meet
specific user needs.
The 8200 scanner ($500) is geared toward users who perform
primarily image-intensive scanning. This model has up to 4,800 optical dpi
resolution and 48-bit color, and comes with a transparent materials adapter built
directly into its lid. The 8250 scanner ($900) is intended for users with both
document and imaging scanning needs. Fast, efficient paper handling with an ADF
gives users the ability to scan up to 15 pages per minute (ppm) and two-sided
scanning capabilities. The 8290 scanner ($1,500) is designed for users with
document-intensive needs and comes with an ADF that can process scans at up to
25 ppm, and can duplex with the flip of a switch. The Scanjet 8290 comes with a
wide variety of in-box software, including Kofax VirtualReScan (VRS) image
enhancement. Expected to be available beginning June 16 in North
America
I saw the HP 5500c scanner at the ShowStoppers and was
impress with the automatic photo feeder (3 x 5 and 4 x 6 inch photos only). Goes
for an estimated retail price (ERP) of $300, it will scan up to 2400 dpi
and
48-bit color. It can scan 35 mm negatives and slides using included lighted
adapter. Preview speed is 7 seconds. Comes with a one year warranty. The 3570c ERP
is $150, and will scan at 1200 dpi and 48-bit color. It can also scan 35 mm
negatives and slides using the included lid with built-in lighted adapter.
Preview speed is 10 seconds, and has a 90 day hardware warranty. The HP Scanjet
3500c flatbed scanner will do 200 dpi and 48-bit color with an ERP of $100. The
2300c will do 600x1200 dpi and 48-bit color. Preview time is 15 seconds, the
ERP is $70.
Altec Lansing www.alteclansing.com
Long known for their high quality I was surprised to find
that they are now making speakers priced down all the way to $20, and yet still
with the Altec Lansing quality. The 621
system has 143 watts of total continuous power (200 watts peak). Two shielded satellites
speakers, Mylar Tweeters, ported wooden subwoofer with an MSRP of $150. The
2100 PC speaker system has a ported subwoofer to deliver rich, accurate sound
to keep the music pumping with 35 Watts total continuous power RMS (50 Watts
Total Peak Power). Two satellites, digital controller with an MSRP of $100.
The AVS300 system is a 3-piece system that connects quickly
and easily to your PC for improved sound. High performance 3" drivers,
satellites magnetically shielded comes with a MSRP of $40. For good sound at an
affordable price, try the 220 system. This two-piece system works well for
music and gaming. 11 Watts total continuous power RMS (20 Watts of total peak
power), with two shielded satellites all for a
MSRP of $30. 
When two and three-speaker systems just don't cut it, look at
the Altec Lansing 6-piece speaker XA3051 system. It features a center channel,
a powerful subwoofer, and surround sound that put your TV's speakers to shame.
Feel the bass. Unleash the power. 56 Watts Total Continuous Power RMS (4x5 W/Satellites;
17.5 W/Center; 18.25 W/Sub), 100 Watts Total Peak Power.
EVSonic (website is down)
Owned by Telex has been in the professional audio industry
for over 75 years, doing the sound for bands like Rolling Stones, etc. Now they
are taking the rock concert experience and putting in on
consumers desktop with
their EVSonicXS 2.1 ($99), and EVSonicXJR ($99) speakers with 5.1 surround
sound system for the PC and Mac. The XS side speakers have one 4” satellite
woofer, with a 1” horn tweeter and 60 watts per channel. The base unit has a 6”
long throw subwoofer with 125 watts. Acoustically engineered cabinet design
with front panel system power/volume control. The XJR satellite speakers have a 1” dome
speaker, 30 watts per channel while the base has a 5.25” woofer with 60 watts.
Sonance www.sonance.com
Elliptical footprint design, Sonic Eye™ Technology make for
most ingenious in-ceiling loudspeaker on market. The Sonance Ellipse 1.0 LCR
footprint makes for an angled baffle design that is recessed into the ceiling.
This design creates a highly accurate, enclosed driver array with controlled
dispersion to allow the tweeter/midrange array to pivot up to 20 degrees –
greatly enhances speaker placement options. The user can precisely control the
directivity of the critical mid- and high-frequency range of the speaker
regardless of room acoustics or the listener's position in relation to the
speaker. Suggested retail price is $350 per speaker.
Unwired Technology www.unwiredtechnology.com
Unwired Technology LLC, announced from CES 2003 that it has
received commitments from several automotive Original Equipment (OE) providers
and major aftermarket manufacturers to use Unwired’s WhiteFire™ wireless
headphone technology in their upcoming entertainment systems beginning in late
2003. It delivers up to four stereo or eight monaural audio channels
simultaneously via wireless headphones or speakers. The technology allows users
to select audio from various on-board vehicle entertainment systems such as DVD
players, CDs, video games, radios and other devices. WhiteFire code can also be
transmitted via well-known radio frequency formats such as IEEE 802.11b.
Archos www.archos.com
Their MiniHD is pocket sized with storage capacity of 10Gb to 40Gb. Available with a USB 2.0, PC Card, or FireWire interface. Power comes from the port so no external power supply is needed. Weight is 6.5 ounces, rotation speed is 4200 rpm.
Bantam www.bantamusa.com
Wearable USB drive to quickly transfer files from computer to computer –
great for students and professionals. Available in 32 MB and 64 MB models. Weatherproof
casing, LED status indicator, secured password option, weight: .4 oz (11 g)
USB-32 $49.95, USB-64 $79.95
Belkin www.belkin.com
Storing and moving data has never been easier. Simply plug into the USB port on your laptop, PC, or
workstation, and start saving and transporting your important business and
personal data. Then you can read, write,
copy, and move data from your hard disk drive to the USB Flash Drive, or
from the Flash Drive
to your drive. It doesn’t require a battery or special
software and is fully compatible with Windows ME, Windows 2000, Windows XP,
Linux Kernel version 2.4, and Mac OS. Drivers are available for Windows 98,
Windows 98SE. The USB Flash Drive is available in 16, 32, 64, and 128 MB
versions to give you enough room to store documents, presentations, downloaded
music and videos, high-resolution photographs, or whatever other files you want
to take with you. Comes with a 3-Year Belkin Warranty. 16MB is $60, 32MB is
$80, 64MB is $100, 128MB is $140.
Maxtor www.maxtor.com
I had a 40Gb hard drive with over 20Gb of free space, but when I saw a Maxtor 120Gb on sale for $90 after rebate I brought it. Besides that gave me a push to finally install Windows XP Professional.
Maxtor DiamondMax® 16
hard disk drive is designed to efficiently meet the need for capacity. Comes
with Maxtor-developed Parallel ATA/133 Interface giving a maximum data transfer
rates of 133 MB/sec. The Maxtor Quiet Drive Technology provides users with
superior disk drive acoustics by reducing noise levels and improving sound
quality. The Shock Protection System
(SPS) and Data Protection System (DPS), give the drive enhanced
protection against both operating and non-operating shock to eliminate costly drive
returns.
Their latest additions are the The DiamondMax 16 and the
DiamondMax Plus 9 are designed for capacities from 60 GB to 160 GB. Both
feature industry-leading 80 GB per platter areal densities. It gives the user high
performance with data transfer rates up to 150 MB per second. Built on the same
platforms the parallel ATA DiamondMax Plus 8 is the company’s first single head,
single disk performance 7200 RPM drive, and the Fireball 3, a single head,
single disk 5400 RPM drive. Both drives will be available at 20, 30 and 40 GB
capacities.
At 150 MB per second maximum data transfer rate, serial ATA
improves hard drive performance to keep pace with the rapidly increasing
performance. With a point-to-point connection architecture, and a rich command
set for managing hard drive activity and data flow along the interface, serial
ATA advances the performance and efficiency of the drive to system interface.
SanDisk www.sandisk.com
The Cruzer is their new portable upgradeable UPS storage device.
A 4Mb MultiMediaCard “starter” card will be given with the new Compaq Presario
3000 notebook PCs. The owners will be able to upgrade them to larger capacities
with SD (Secure Digital) cards ranging up to 256Mb, or MultiMediaCards up to 64Mb.
SmartDisk www.smartdisk.com
Their new line of FireLite™ portable external hard drives is
palm-sized, durable and stylish. They feature a unique combination of software
and hardware to help you get the best possible performance. When a typical
FireWire hard disk receives a read or write request for an odd-sized piece of
data, it stores the data to a buffer and performs complicated operations to
resize it. FireLite FireWire drives eliminate this process by ensuring that all
data is correctly sized and aligned – before the data is sent to the drive. It
uses FireWire or USB 2.0. They feature a blue "brow" logo that lights
when the drive is connected; it turns off when it’s safe to unplug. Available
in capacities of 20 Gigabytes (GB), 30 GB and 40 GB. Their desktop hard drive allows you to take advantage of
extremely fast data transfer speeds and spacious storage capacities. Available
in 60, 80 and 120 GB with plug and play installation. Works with FireWire,
USB
2.0 or USB 1.1. Air mount design suspends the disk in a cushion of air, protecting
your data while also keeping drive noise to a minimum.
Rover
is a compact, portable data storage/transfer device that doubles as a MP3 audio
player. It has exceptional sound quality as an MP3 player and is the ultimate
in simple data file transfers (no cables or software needed). Convenient connections
– for external devices such as speakers, via headphone jack. Get up to
12 hours continuous play from one AAA alkaline battery. Capacity is 64 MB or128
MB. Interface: USB 1.1 or USB 2.0 port. User controls: Play, Pause, Skip Forward/Backward,
Volume Up/Down.
Norcent www.norcent.net
Norcent had a cross between a PocketPC and Tablet PC using Microsoft CE for a MSRP of $500, but it is not listed on their website. It is suppose to be out in June running WindowsCE.
ViewSonic www.viewsonic.com
The Tablet PC V1100 is a fully functional network-ready PC
in a convenient tablet form factor featuring integrated WAN, LAN and
Wi-Fi. It uses the Microsoft® Windows® XP Tablet PC edition software. It
has handwriting recognition capabilities and compatibility with Microsoft
Office applications. At only 3.4 pounds it is light, easy to use, and carry. Optional
dock adds one-touch access to common USB peripherals, local area networks,
integrated CD-ROM and AC power adapter. Comes with a 866MHz Mobile Intel®
Pentium® III Processor, 20.0GB hard drive, and 256MB RAM. New bezel design
features eight, one-touch access buttons. The screen is a high resolution
10.4" XGA color display for bright, crisp images providing a rich
multimedia experience (just what you would expect for ViewSonic.) One year
limited warranty on parts and labor. Built-in microphone and two speakers.
System includes Firewire, two USB ports, one Type II PC card, and one Type II
Compact Flash.
The big thing at CES was the announcements of companies releasing systems with 802.11g. Although the standards for it are not officially released many companies are releasing product based on the standard. It was felt that they were close enough to release with maybe just a minor updated driver needed in the future. They operate up to 54Mbps in the 2.4GHz frequency, and are compatible with the 802.11b standard. The 802.11g standard is expected to be ratified by the second quarter of 2003 (although one vendor thinks it will be the third quarter.)
ActionTEC www.actiontec.com
Announced a complete family of 802.11g products. This includes a 54Mbps Wireless Gateway combining an DSL modem with a wireless networking router, a 54Mbps PC Card, Access Point, Router and Ethernet Adapter. They will feature plug-and-play installation with ActionTEC exclusive Connection 1-2-3™ and/or the ActionTEC Installation Buddy™ software. Support is given for Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) security standard with data encryption and first-time user authentication, as well as 40-bit WEP, 128-bit RC4 and 152-bit RC4 data encryption. A unique second PC Card slot in the 54Mbps Wireless Gateway will support a variety of network expansion cards, such as a Bluetooth-based card permitting Internet access for handheld computers. The PC Card ranch will reach up to 412 feet indoors and 1870 feet outdoors.
Belkin www.belkin.com
Introduced was
a complete lineup of 2.4GHz/54Mbps 54g Wireless
Networking products. Consisting of a 54g Wireless Cable/DSL Gateway Router
(F5D7230-4 – ESP $150), 54g Wireless Network Access Point (F5D7130 – ESP $140),
54g Wireless Notebook Network Card (F5D7010 – ESP $80), and 54g Wireless
Desktop Network Card (F5D7000 – ESP $80). These will provide a wide wireless
range, requiring 75% less access points to cover the same wireless area as an
802.11a network, and include 64-bit and 128-bit WEP encryption.
What sets the Belkin line of 54g Wireless Networking
products apart from the competition is their included software programs.
Designed to assist the end user in using these products they include its Easy
Install Wizard, which eliminates the need for users to deal with complicated
information such as IP addresses and host names in order to connect the router
to the Internet, and takes the guesswork out of setting up a router. Once the user inserts the CD into the
computer’s CD-ROM drive, the Easy Install Wizard takes over the job of
determining what type of connection is being used and setting up the router to
connect to the Internet Service Provider. Once the router setup is finished,
the user has an option to set up more computers, or begin surfing the
Internet. It is compatible with Windows® 98, 98 SE, Me, 2000, XP, and Mac® OS
8.6.
In addition they include the Belkin Parental Control: Web
Content Filter Software Program. This software allows users to protect their
children and family members from potentially harmful web content and to guard
employees on the job from objectionable websites. It allows users to simply
select access rights from over 30 categories of possible questionable websites;
it does not require the user to add each individual website to restricted
access status.
D-Link www.dlink.com
Demonstrated its AirPlus
Xtreme G networking line including the DI-624 Wireless Router with 4-port
switch and the DWL-G650 Wireless CardBus Adapter. D-Link gives both 64/128-bit
WEP encryption for a secure transmission. They used Orthogonal Frequency
Division Multiplexing (OFDM) modulation to split the signal into specific frequencies
that are evenly spaced to reduce interference. Using it ensures a cleaner
signal throughout the wireless network compared to the .11b standard. Based on
the Intersil Prism GT chipset that combines both the 802.11b and 802.11g into
each unit. The DI-624 comes with firewall security and four 10/100Mbps
auto-sensing ports. It includes a embedded DHCP server that when enabled with
automatically assign IP address to wireless clients. Additionally parental
control features are offered to allow parents to block web sites with specific
words, or web sites. The DI-624 ESP is $130 and the DWL-650 is $70.
For coverage of: Digital
cameras, PDAs, Phones, Watches
For coverage of: DVD
writers, Keyboards, LCD monitors, Miscellanous
product, Photo printers
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