http://www.hardwaregeeks.com Tech News and Reviews Blogs and More en Michael@hardwaregeeks.com Copyright 2010 2010-09-02T08:49:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/att_share_brand_ambassador/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/att_share_brand_ambassador/#When:21:26:00Z A few years ago when the Motorola Razr was the hottest phone on the Market and Cingular Wireless was still around there was a little known program that I was apart of. I don’t recall the name exactly but I am pretty sure it was called My Cingular (someone from at&t feel free to correct me on the name). The program allowed Cingular now at&t customers to talk about their phones on myspace which at the time was very popular and other sites like xanga and they were rewarded with points that they could cash out for prizes I still have some of the things I cashed out my points for like a Sean John Book Bag with a little cingular patch on it. There were also surveys that you’d fill out to earn points and if you uploaded a camera phone picture you also got points. They even from time to time offered tickets to concerts for free!  News 2010-09-02T21:26:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/zboost_metro_by_wi_ex/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/zboost_metro_by_wi_ex/#When:08:49:00Z If you are an apartment dweller in a big city like I am, you probably suffer from what I call iPhone Syndrome. Symptoms are great sex life, phone and shitty service.  The problem in cities like NY when it comes to cell phone reception is not the lack of coverage but the thick walls, and the tall buildings. Some high rises in NYC have horrible cell service because they are so high.  If you have ever stayed in a Hotel in NYC any room over the 6th or 7th floor tends to have horrible cell service, and a lot of high rises have ZBoost type devices installed in them.  News 2010-09-02T08:49:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/microsoft_hardware_releases_arc_touch_mouse/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/microsoft_hardware_releases_arc_touch_mouse/#When:16:02:00Z Microsoft today released the ARch Touch Moise, the first mouse designed to flatten so you can easily take it with you and curl or pop upwards for comfort. The mouse also features a capactive touch scroll which eliminates the click wheel. The Arch Mouse is available for Pre-Sale on amazon.com, bestbuy.com and buy.com for $69.95 and will ship in early December. The mouse will be available for sale online and in stores in January 2011. Microsoft 2010-09-01T16:02:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/review_charge_base_ic_and_charge_base_360_from_nyko/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/review_charge_base_ic_and_charge_base_360_from_nyko/#When:09:42:00Z If you own a gaming console such as the PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii you know how hard it sometimes can be to keep your controllers charged and hell even find them for that matter. I know that I am often ready to play a game of Madden or Halo and when I sit down on my couch the battery on my Xbox 360 controller is drained. I forgot to charge it. So I decided to play my PS3 and it just blinks three times and shuts off same for my Wii. Even though I have rechargeable batteries for all three controllers I end up putting in Duracell batteries in each. Simply because I forget to charge them. I think the forgetfulness has to do with the fact that when I am done gaming I simply place the controller on my coffee table and forget about it until it’s too late.  News 2010-09-01T09:42:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/hp_reveals_new_consumer_notebook_pcs/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/hp_reveals_new_consumer_notebook_pcs/#When:03:22:00Z HP today revealed some pretty cool consumer notebook PCs from the Pavilion dm3 which is great for back to school to the ENVY 17 3D that any entertainment enthusiest will love, theres pretty much something from everyone coming out of HP today. There is even a new TV connect device that will allow you to stream content form your notebooks to your television wirelessly. “With these new technology and design enhancements, we offer customers visually stunning entertainment and an overall better computing experience. These new HP notebooks and accessories deliver breakthrough technology, power and advanced styling to satisfy the most discerning user.” said Kevin Frost VP and GM Consumer Notebooks and Personal Sstems Group at HP. HP Hewlett Packard 2010-09-01T03:22:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/review_toshiba_satellite_t235/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/review_toshiba_satellite_t235/#When:15:45:00Z Toshiba use to be known for plain bulky systems that offered you a lot of power and no style. However over the past two years I have seen a trend at Toshiba, where they are more style focused and are now designing more and more stylish systems and quite honestly raising the bar. The Satellite T235 is a perfect example of this trend at Toshiba. No PC maker that I can think of is delivering such a stylish product at an affordable price point ($630). Toshiba has done a magnificent job with the T235 as it’s beautiful and powerful. Available in three colors Gemini Black, Red and White the T235 has a etched metallic interior that Toshiba calls its Fusion Chrome finish. Toshiba 2010-08-31T15:45:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/hp_probook_4720s_review/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/hp_probook_4720s_review/#When:19:22:00Z It’s been a year and a few months since HP announced the very first ProBook back in April 2009 and it has quickly become one of the best business notebooks on the market. Honestly I think it is also one of the best Notebooks for consumers as well and I think its lame that HP gears it towards its business customers. HP’s business team has brought style to business, and their consumer team should pay attention. The ProBook 4720s is a beautiful beast, with its huge 17.3 inch widescreen display and powerful Intel Core i5 (M430 2.27 GHz) processor. The system comes with 4 GB of memory and an ATI Radeon Graphics Card. It is the most beautiful system I have played with recently and one of the most powerful. When I first opened up the 4720s I had to take a moment and admire it. Who knew simple could be so beautiful. Everyone I show the 4720s too or any other ProBook for that matter comment on how stylish they are. HP Hewlett Packard 2010-08-30T19:22:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/travel_stix/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/travel_stix/#When:06:11:00Z It’s always a good idea to keep important information on your person in the event of an emergency, especially when you travel. You never know what may happen and a third party may need this information to properly treat you medically. You never know when you’ll be in an accident. I never really gave too much thought about having this information on me at all times until I was introduced to a product called Travel Stix. Travel Stix is a 2GB creditcard sized USB stick that allows you to store your important information on it and is both PC and Mac Compatible. News 2010-08-30T06:11:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/hp_pavilion_dv6z/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/hp_pavilion_dv6z/#When:20:45:00Z I am a huge fan of HP Notebooks and every now and then I get super excited about a new HP system. Normally it’s the high end super expensive system but this year it’s the Pavilion DV6. Why? I think it’s its simplicity. The HP Pavilion dv6 is powered by an AMD Phenom II P920 Quad-Core Processor, 3GB of Memory a 500 GB HDD and a ATI HD 5650 Graphics card that delivers beautiful graphics to the 15.6” widescreen display. The first thing I noticed about the dv6z was even though it is not the top of the line notebook as an Envy 15, it looked just as good. The external paint job is one of the coolest I have seen, and the black cherry champagne finish is nice as well. (I have no idea who came up with that color name but they obviously have too much time on their hands) HP Hewlett Packard 2010-08-26T20:45:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/roxio_creator_2011_brings_3d_to_your_fingertips/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/roxio_creator_2011_brings_3d_to_your_fingertips/#When:20:23:00Z Roxio recently released Creator 2011 which makes it easy for everyone to create 3D content in their home on the cheap. I have had a few days to play with Roxio Creator 2011 and man I have had a lot of fun, turning regular old pictures into 3D masterpieces in a few simple steps. You can convert your current 2D images and video files or record video or snap pictures form within the program, and then you can easily convert them once you figure out how to work the program. I did have to play around with the settings before I completely understood it all. But once I learned the ins and outs it was a breeze. News 2010-08-26T20:23:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/telenav_launches_onmyway_for_iphone_and_android/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/telenav_launches_onmyway_for_iphone_and_android/#When:13:43:00Z Today TeleNav launched its popular blackberry app OnMyWay for the iPhone and Android devices. OnMyWay is a cool app that works with your GPS program. What it does is auto replies to text messages and even automatically sends text messages to the person you are meeting up with that you are on your way, how far you are and when to expect you. The iPhone app is available now on the iTunes store but I haven’t seen it on the Android Market Place just yet (2am this post goes live at 8am). I was able to check out a demo back in January in San Francisco and was pretty impressed. Since then I have tested out similar apps like DriveSafe.ly and non of them can compete with OnMyWay. News 2010-08-26T13:43:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/my_thoughts_on_the_samsung_epic_4g/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/my_thoughts_on_the_samsung_epic_4g/#When:18:31:00Z The Samsung Epic 4G will be available the 1st of September for $249 with a 2 year contract from Sprint. Check out my video below for my thoughts. News 2010-08-24T18:31:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/wd_livewire_powerline_av_networking_kit/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/wd_livewire_powerline_av_networking_kit/#When:12:35:00Z Today Western Digital took another step out of the storage realm and into the networking world with their new LiveWire Powerline AV Networking kit (HomePlug AV). The kit allows you to bring your entertainment equipment to the web provided they have an Ethernet port. What exactly is LiveWire? Well it basically allows you to connect your BluRay player, Television and even TiVo to your home network and the internet using your electrical wires. No need to configure a wireless network and or wire your home with cat5 cable. Western Digital 2010-08-24T12:35:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/unboxing_the_netgear_wndr3700_wn2000rpt/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/unboxing_the_netgear_wndr3700_wn2000rpt/#When:00:21:00Z Check out the unboxing video below and check back in a week or two for our review on both, News 2010-08-24T00:21:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/driven_to_the_edge_in_nashville/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/driven_to_the_edge_in_nashville/#When:03:05:00Z Last week I had a chance to test out the new 2011 Ford Edge Sport and SEL. I had the time of my life. Ford invited me to check out the new Edge in Tennessee and allowed me to take it on a nearly 100 mile joy ride through the scenic and twisting roads of Tennessee. Over 400,000 Ford Edges’ have been sold and it is the most popular crossover of its type. The first model I drove was the sport which comes with AWD, and 22” rims standard, handled beautifully. It drove it during one of the heaviest downpours I ever experienced, and it took every twist and turn as if I were going straight even while driving in the rain. It is definitely one of the most fun cars I have driven. News 2010-08-23T03:05:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/trade_in_your_coolit_domino_for_a_coolit_eco_alc/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/trade_in_your_coolit_domino_for_a_coolit_eco_alc/#When:16:43:00Z CoolIT today announced a trade-in program that will allow owners of the Domino Liquid Cooling system to trade it in for a newer eco ALC at a cost of $50.00 a savings of $30.00. Not a bad deal if you ask me the eco ALC is a lot better and saves more space in your system than the older Domino ALC. For information on how to trade in your Domino for an eco visit http://www.coolitsystems.com News 2010-08-20T16:43:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/published_some_handy_sharepoint_admin_utilities/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/published_some_handy_sharepoint_admin_utilities/#When:16:23:00Z I published some handy administrative utilities I’ve written over the years to CodePlex for all to use. Currently I just have two projects published. EmptyRecycleBin - Empties the administrative recycle bin for a site collection GetEmptyFolders - Scans for and finds all folders with no files in them. Also finds lists and libraries with 0 items in them. Note: In 2007 their isn’t really a good way to scan for list items under a folder, just for files. So if a folder only contains list items (like other folders) it can erroneously get listed as empty. http://spadminutils.codeplex.com 2010-08-20T16:23:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/ultimate_gamer_season_2/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/ultimate_gamer_season_2/#When:12:30:00Z A few weeks ago I had the chance to see the filming of an elimination round of an Ultimate Gamer Season 2 episode. While I can’t tell you who was in the elimination round, what game they played and who won, because I am sure the producers would kill me. I can say the entire experience of watching these guys and gals battle it out was intense. While watching the producers and director work their magic, it was interesting to see how much goes into one show. I was sitting where the producer and directors were and just to see all these monitors with different camera angels and four other monitors with the game ready to be played was interesting. News 2010-08-18T12:30:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/hp_touchsmart_600/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/hp_touchsmart_600/#When:01:53:00Z If there is one thing your home can not be without, it’s the HP Touchsmart PC, I say that because it in my opinion is the central hub of the home. It’s a refrigerator door replacement. It’s your brand new Cook Book, it’s a radio a television its so much more than just a computer that no home should be without it. I have placed my Touchsmart 600 by my front door which is in my living room, and I use it as a security center (have a camera on my outside door that feeds to it), as a stereo, a picture frame and a messaging center where family members leave each other video and written notes. While my Touchsmart ended up by the front door, there are perfect spots all over the home for it. My favorite is the kitchen counter. Why? Because of its cook book app called Recipe Box. How the app works is it allows you to browse popular cooking websites and clip recipes. It recites the recipe to you. How cool is that? HP Hewlett Packard 2010-08-17T01:53:00-05:00 http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/what_happens_when_you_shake_up_an_intel_ssd/ http://www.hardwaregeeks.com/index.php/site/what_happens_when_you_shake_up_an_intel_ssd/#When:00:42:00Z About a month ago at a press event, Intel showed off their SSD Drives and they showed it off by placing it on a paint shaker with another non SSD drive. Watch what happens. News 2010-08-17T00:42:00-05:00