Top Six Netbooks at this time

Mobile computing has been hit by yet another wave of new laptops known as netbooks - offering low cost, internet-centric mobile computing devices which have low power consumption, hence offer longer battery life of close to 10 hours.  With many netbook options available in the market, it can get confusing as to which netbook to choose. So we have a roundup of the top six netbooks available in India.

HP recently launched their Mini 210 Netbook in India with a 10.1-inch diagonal LED display. It is only 0.9-inch thick and weighs only 1.22 kg which makes it an ideal Internet companion to be taken anywhere. This HP Mini 210 ultra-portable NetBook powered by an Intel Atom N450 and Windows XP Home OS is available in India for about Rs 16,200. 

Acer India has launched another version of their very popular Acer Aspire One series netbooks, called the Acer Aspire One 532h ultra-light netbook for the Indian market, which is powered by Intel Atom N450 Processor, comes preloaded with a user-friendly Windows XP Home and offers about 8+ hours of extended battery life. This new Acer Aspire One 532h netbook is available in India for Rs. 17,900/-

MSI too has launched one of its newest netbooks called the MSI WIND U210. This netbook is powered by ultra-low voltage 1.6ghz AMD Athlon Neo processor and features a 12.1-inch HD WXGA display which is powered by the ATI Radeon HD graphics and is ultra-slim at 0.55-inch thick. This new netbook will be available in India with Windows Vista Home Premium or Windows XP for Rs. 23,499/-

Samsung announced their new Samsung NC10 Ultra-Portable Netbook which features a 10.2-inch LED display. It is powered by a  1.6 GHz Intel Atom ULV (ultra low voltage) Processor N270. The Samsung NC10 Netbook PC with a 160 GB hard drive and Windows XP will be available in India for Rs. 28,500.

The new Asus Eee PC 904HA netbook comes with Microsoft Windows XP and is equipped with an 8.9-inch, WSVGA TFT display. The netbook is powered by an integrated Intel GMA 950 Graphics chipset with shared memory, capable of a maximum resolution of 1024 x 600 pixels. With a 1.6 GHz Intel Atom ULV (ultra low voltage) Processor N270. This new Asus netbook with a 160-GB SATA hard drive and Windows XP OS is available in India for Rs. 22,990.

MSI’s  latest addition in its notebook range is its new MSI X410 notebook computer which is powered by Ultra Low Voltage 1.6ghz AMD Athlon Neo processor and features a 12.1-inch HD WXGA display which is powered by the ATI Radeon HD graphic. This new netbook weighs a mere 1.5 kilograms with the battery, which makes it the world’s lightest and slimmest 14-inch laptop computer in the market today. This MSI X410 notebook with a 14-inch LED backlight display is available in India for Rs. 32,599 which places it among some of the higher end netbooks or basic laptops.

The new HCL AXML0301 MiLeap ultra-portable will be powered by Intel Celeron M processor 353. The netbook features a 7-inch WXGA display, a 30 GB internal hard drive, and is supported by a 900 MHz Intel Celeron M ULV Processor 353, with 512 KB L2 Cache. This new HCL MiLeap netbook with the Ubuntu Linux preinstalled as OS costs Rs. 11,900, making it one of the cheapest netbooks in the market.

10 things to keep in mind when buying a DSLR

Many new photographers today face a very common dilemma - how to choose which DSLR to buy? First they need to understand what a DSLR is. A DSLR stands for Digital Single Lens Reflex camera. These cameras offer more control in the hands of the user then other conventional digital cameras. They also provide an option of choosing what type of lens the user wishes to use depending on his preference for a particular style of photography. In the following article we will discuss the 10 most important things to look for when buying a DSLR.

Step 1.  What is the camera going to be used for? One needs to be sure of what the subject of his photography is going to be, is it going to be a fast moving object or landscapes or wildlife? Once that is decided he can look for a camera that suits him most.

Step 2.  The size of the camera is also an important factor when it comes to choosing a DSLR. One needs to be sure how comfortable he is going to be when carrying a DSLR around, as most of them are heavy and bulky in comparison to digital cameras they might be used to.

Step 3.  Sensor size plays a very important role in the final output of the camera. The larger the sensor size, the more megapixels it can pack and the higher is the quality of the image produced. Traditionally full frame cameras have a 35mm sensor which do not crop or resize the image, hence providing an almost exact replica of what the user sees through the viewfinder. But full frame DSLR’s can be very expensive and are mostly used by professionals.

Step 4. Till recently the LCD on most DSLRs only offered the consumer the option to preview the pictures that he has taken, but nowadays many new DSLRs offer the option of using the LCD like a regular digital camera to see what the user is clicking; without the need to use the optical viewfinder at all times. This helps many macro photographers when focusing close objects.

Step 5. The type of memory card it uses also is very important. Most DSLRs use Compact Flash memory cards although some use SD cards. If one owns a standard digital camera he may wish to look for a model of DSLR that uses the same variety of memory card that can save him from buying a new card.

Step 6. Most DSLR’s come equipped with a standard lens but which lenses one wants choose to invest in depends entirely on the choice of pictures he wants to be taking: for close up of insects or flowers one may need a macro lens, and for landscapes and city photography one might be happier with a wide angle lens.

Step 7. The type of format a DSLR takes pictures in is also very important. Most DSLRs today take pictures in RAW format which is basically the equivalent of a film negative, which gives him the option of tinkering around with the picture using special softwares usually provided with the camera and helps in producing the desired pictures.

Step 8. The ISO sensitivity of a DSLR basically tell you how good the camera will be when taking pictures in low-light conditions, without a flash. Higher ISO settings will make the picture brighter and reduce blur but will also make the picture distorted, which is usually known as noise. The quality of the sensor will govern how noisy a picture is.

Step 9.  All DSLR cameras provide the option of changing shutter speeds. The shutter sped is basically the time for which the shutter stays open and allows the sensor to be exposed to what the lens is looking at. Higher shutter speeds will reduce the amount of light entering the camera but will allow the user to take pictures or fast moving objects. In low-light conditions, reducing the shutter speed helps one take better pictures.

Step 10. Pixels and Megapixels. The biggest misconception is that higher megapixels mean better picture quality which is not the case. Mexapixels in a DSLR will only govern how big the actual picture is going to be. The overall quality of the picture still depends on how big and how good the quality of the sensor is.

Who is the Leader in Mobile Phone Sells..

Smart phone sells is what has kept the global phone market growing. In the first quarter of this year sales have increased by seventeen percent. During this same period iPhone sells increased one hundred twelve percent.

Smart phones are more than a cell phone. With a smart phone you can access the internet, download music, listen to radio, find your car and much more. In general, smart phones are more expensive to purchase and own. Not only do you have a voice plan that you pay for you have a data plan as well.

As popular as the iPhone is it is not the global leader in the cell phone market – not even close. In fact, the iPhone has less than three percent of the global cell phone market. Nokia is the leader with thirty-five percent; Samsung is second with nineteen percent and LG third with around nine percent. Even Sony Ericcson and Motorola have a greater market share than the iPhone.

Of market share for smart phones BlackBerry gained the biggest jump this year but Nokia still holds first place at forty-four percent. RIM the manufacturer of the BlackBerry is second, Apple third and the Android coming in forth.

The Android shows promise in edging out the iPhone as well. While the iPhone may be the most recognized or prestigious smart phone it has a long way to go to become the dominant player in the market. Some analysts believe that the restrictions that Apple places on their products are what ultimately will limit their growth.

Android 2.2 Froyo is coming soon..

With this update, Nexus One is supposed to run 5 times faster.

• Android 2.2 has lots of exciting features like
• Streaming DRM-free music from their home computershome computers over the air to an Android smartphone
• Boosted Javascript performance for speedy browsing
• Camera improvements
• Portable WiFi hotspot and tethering
• Adobe FlashAdobe Flash Player 10.1 in the browser
• New ad-format support, etc

So far only HTC have stepped up with their plan and will most likely offer updates to their 2010 model handsets. However the update wont be ready until the second half of 2010. Here is the official word from HTC.

"If your phone was launched this year, we will most likely offer an upgrade for it to the Froyo version. This includes popular models like the Desire and Droid Incredible as well as hotly anticipated phones like the Evo 4G, MyTouchMyTouch slide and upcoming models. We will announce a full list of phones and dates once we are closer to launching the upgrades. We are working closely with Google and our other partners to ensure we have the earliest access to everything we need to provide a complete and solid Sense experience on Froyo. We expect to release all updates in the second half of this year but can’t be more specific yet."

So, users of Nexus One, HTC DesireHTC Desire, HTC Evo 4G, Motorola Droid, Droid Incredible, myTouch Slide can expect Android 2.2 on their handsets soon.

Google says Google TV coming this fall

After months of speculation, Google Thursday unveiled Google TV, described as a way to meld surfing the Internet with channel surfing.

At the Google I/O developer conference in San Francisco early this afternoon, the company announced that it's working with Intel, Sony, and Logitech to develop Google TV as an open platform.

TV-maker Sony hasn't released pricing plans for the so-called smart televisions, which could go on sale as early as this fall.

In what officials called a true team effort, Intel will supply microprocessors for the Sony-built televisions, while Google provides its Android operating system, Chrome Web browser and other tools.

Google officials said the offering aims to offer TV watchers the search capabilities and video options of the Web they see on the Web.Logitech is building a special remote control, along with a wireless keyboard for the system. Third parties can add other applications to the system.

"It's about making your TV more than just TV," said a Google spokesman.

At the demo in today's conference keynote, Google compared a basic TV channel guide to a Google TV.

Using Google's well-known search capabilities, the system is designed to let users search for when their favorite show will be on next or when a Red Sox game will be airing.

Once the search findings come up, users will be able to click on an upcoming airing and automatically set it to be recorded to the DVR.

Rob Enderle, an analyst with the Enderle Group, says the Google TV features are good ideas that have been a long time coming.

"In the right format and with the right usage model and customer experience, people could adopt this," added Enderle. "Folks probably won't be doing much browsing on their TV. But consuming Internet media? Certainly. Up until now it has been too difficult for most to do that. Google is moving to change that."