new(e)gear

Halleluiah, maybe Apple, Inc.‘s iPhone hype will start to fade a little now that some of us have gotten our hands on one. Gadget junkies lined up today to hopefully pick up one of the long awaited electronic device in years.

Apple stores in New York saw crowds of over 600 people and several dozen customers at AT&T stores — the phone’s exclusive wireless carrier for the next two years.

In San Francisco about 200 people stood outside an outlet. One customer mentioned that most of the phones out there today are garbage. He had been through several phones, even the expensive phones. He also claims that the iPhone is different and that it’s the latest toy so he had to get one.

For those of you who have been living under a rock the past 6 months or so, the iPhone melds a phone, Web browser and media player all in one device. Technology gurus say that the iPhone is a “breakthrough” device but are concerned about the smooth touch-screen interface instead of a keyboard.

In any case, if trends continue to go towards smart phones, I think the iPhone will be very successful seeing that it has just about everything users like (except the computing power of some smart phones that are already out there). All I have to say is to those who really want the iPhone — Good luck getting your hands on one and get ready to dig deep into your wallets for activation, monthly fees and oh yeah, the $499 sticker price on the 4GB model and the $599 price on the 8GB model. You’re looking at around $1400 for a two-year required service contract. IPhone away everyone!

Consumers planning to buy the iPhone when it goes on sale in the U.S. later this month will need to have an iTunes Store account before they can activate the device, according to information on Apple’s Web site.

A Separate Deal from Cell

Apple will require customers to establish a separate account with its online media service in addition to one with AT&T Wireless Services, which has signed an exclusive U.S. distribution deal for the iPhone.

The move will allow Apple to create its own billing relationship with iPhone customers, rather than collecting payments for any iTunes purchases they make via the mobile operator.

The iPhone is due to go on sale in the U.S. on June 29. The company has announced plans for a European release in the fourth quarter of the year but has yet to provide details, such as whether the European version will operate on 3G (third-generation) networks.

Don’t get too excited, this new technology is not out for the mainstream market yet. However this is pretty good news for photographers and photo enthusiasts. Eastman Kodak Co. said it has developed a color-filter technology that at least doubles the sensitivity to light of the image sensor in every digital camera, enabling you shutterbugs out there to take better pictures in poor light.

Kodak expects to provide samples of its new technology to a variety of camera manufacturers in the first quarter of 2008. This new technology is likely to be incorporated first in mass-market point-and-shoot cameras and camera-equipped mobile phones beginning sometime next year.

Usually new technology like this goes into the high-end products then trickle down, however the low end cameras can benefit from this more and there’s a huge market for camera phones to have better sensitivity in low light.

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I gleefully recently received an email from Alienware (I’m on their mailing list) and was floored when I saw the Hangar18. This is the ultimate in DVR/Computing technology? With Alienware’s Hangar18, you can watch, pause, and record your movies, TV shows, photos and internet videos on your widescreen TV in high definition. You’re probably saying to yourself, I’ve already have a DVR that does this. Wait, there’s more!

You can even listen to your favorite songs and artists with Hangar18′s onboard 5.1 surround sound amplifier, wirelessly stream all of your media to other PCs, mobile devices, and media extenders in your home. Plus, you can download content from all over the internet to one secure location to store and share with your home and others. Can your DVR do that? I know my current setup cannot.

Having options like 2 TB of storage space for your HD streams, 5.1 surround system pumping out amplified sound from this beast, and a standard Gyration remote control, eliminating the need for a mouse, you’ll be in full control of what you save, watch and share.

AMD LIVE! syncs up seamlessly with most of your current digital interface devices, which gives you convenient access to a wealth of automatic entertainment features. Hangar18 features Microsoft Media Center with Windows Home Premium which lets you do everything other Windows operating systems do, plus a whole lot more!

With all these features and power at your fingertips, new(e)gear definitely gives this powerful media system two-thumbs up! If you are wondering how much the Hangar18 will set you back, don’t bother. If you have to ask — it’s too much. Just kidding… Hangar18 starts at $1,999 at the time this article was published.

Technical Specifications:

Operating Systems

* Windows® Vista™ Home Premium

Processors, Chipset & Memory

* AMD® Athlon 64™X2 Dual core processors (Low wattage, 65 watts)
* AMD® AM2™ chipset
* Up to 4GB Low Latency DDR2 at 800MHz

Graphics & Video

* Standard: NVIDIA™ integrated graphics, HDMI out (720p)
* Optional: NVIDIA Dedicated Graphics, HDMI out (1080p)
* Connectivity
o 5.1 channel surround sound Audio Amplifier
o Analog Audio in
o Optical Audio out
o Subwoofer out

o Video out Standard:
+ HDMI Video
+ VGA
+ S-Video
+ Analog Video Out
o Dual TV Combo Tuners ( 1 analog, 1 High Definition )
o Up to 4 TV Tuners ( 2 analog, 2 High Definition )
Storage

* Standard 250GB HDD 7200RPM
* Up to 2 Terabytes at 7200RPM

Networking

* Wireless Connectivity
o Standard Internal Wireless 802.b/g
* Wired Connectivity
o Integrated Gigabit Ethernet

Audio

* Standard 5.1 channel Digital Surround Sound
* Direct Subwoofer connection

Peripheral Connections

* 4 Hi-speed USB 2.0 ports
* IEEE 1394a (4-pin) port
* 4-in-1 Memory Card Reader
(SD / MS / MSPRO / MMC)

Case & Chassis

* Height: 4.2”
* Width: 18.4”
* Depth: 15.55”
* Weight: 18 lbs

It’s great to see home computers and entertainment systems continue to come together to do common tasks. You can watch, record, pause or whatever you want to with your favorite shows in HD, save your photos and listen to music with the comfort of your couch. Instead of your not so comfy office chair. You are probably wondering how are they making this system secure? Is there a security package? And, what if the Hangar18 crashes or your two-year-old presses the wrong button? I spoke with Alienware and asked these questions and found out that the security package is Vista’s built-in security package. In regards to backing up data, Alienware mentioned that I could hook up a external hard drive via USB for backing up your data stored on the Hangar18.

Warren East, CEO of ARM Holdings PLC, mentioned at Computex that the iPhone will promote all smartphones. Apple first put out the Newton personal digital assistant (PDA) in the early 1990s, in which U.S. Robotics followed with its Pilot (which later became Palm). Adding computing functionality to mobile phones to create smartphones happened soon after. Seeing that everyone wants to stay connected while on the move is another reason small computing devices are even more popular.

This is not very new news, in fact East said “this has been an emerging market for a long time.” East predicts that sales will end up close to 200 million units, or double last year’s figure. He also adds that within the next few years, smartphones will make up half f the mobile phone market.