If you're fed up of your crappy laptop speakers and looking for an inexpensive solution, then Logitech may have the answer. The company has just launched the Z110 stereo portable speakers for laptops for a tempting price of just Rs.625. The speakers will go on sale starting this month and should be availabe in your local hardware store. A logical choice? The Z110 is powered by USB and has a total output of 1.2W RMS.The speakers dont have any built in battery of their own so cannot be used without plugging it into a power source. The 3.5mm connector plugs into your laptop or it can very well be used for any other device like an MP3 player. The speakers are fairly small and compact with a decent design that wont look shabby besides your notebook. |
Showing posts with label GADGETS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label GADGETS. Show all posts
Nintendo has a penchant for stupid names and keeping that tradition in mind, they blew open the doors to their latest console (once called Project Cafe) at E3 2011, the Wii U. Umm yeah. So anyways, as speculated this console does output HD which means gamers can finally expect better looking games from Nintendo as well as third party stables. Because it's all about U The console doubles up as a controller as well so let’s say, you need to pass over the TV to your parents, you can simply plug the console out and continue your game on its 6.2 inch touch screen display. Price and availability weren’t announced yet but you can soak in all the details through the video embedded below. |
Acer is adding some more mettle to their already-existing, huge range of laptops by bringing in the 8951G and the 5951G notebooks. Belonging to the Aspire Ethos series, these laptops seem to be well-equipped, at least in terms of features and specifications.
An expensive Ethos
Both the 5951G and the 8951G will be featuring Core i processors and graphic cards from NVIDIA’s stable – GeForce GT500, to be precise. While the 5951G has an HD display with a resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels, the 8951G will have a Full HD 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution and both of these displays are encased in scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass.
The new Aspire Ethos notebooks also boast of Dolby Home Theater v4 solutions. The 8951G has five Dolby-tuned built-in speakers and Acer’s own Tuba CineBass subwoofer. On the other hand, the 5951G will support 5.1-channel surround sound with built-in stereo speakers and with the Acer Tuba CineBass booster. Rest of the specifications include an option between a Blu-Ray or an optical drive, USB ports, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and what Acer calls as big sized HDD for storage purposes.
While the specs and features look good, these Ethos notebooks will be priced from a whopping £999 (approx Rs. 73,400).
When HTC had announced the Evo 3D along with the tablet, we kind of felt that it won’t have a GSM version very soon. However, the latest proceedings around this smartphone is that a GSM version is very much in the works, although this is all based on some pictures showed on HTC’s new site for developers.
Very different to look at from other Evo 3Ds
From the images seen, it’s quite visible that the GSM version will be a little different at least when it comes to the looks of the handset. The rings around the icons which are otherwise present on other versions are not seen over here. Also there’s supposedly an older version of the HTC Sense running on this handset, which is a little strange. The speaker grille is also different and the camera lens is oval, rather than the round variant in the CDMA version. Moving to the back, there are some more changes visible. The flash component is different and so is the coloured ring around the camera module.
The back has changed, too
For now that’s about it on the GSM Evo 3D and we hopefully want to see some more developments on this handset including pricing and launch dates.
At Computex 2011, popular brand MSI unveiled at the event, its latest range of Wind Top series – Wind Top AP2000 and Wind Top AP2011. The desktop range has been readied keeping in mind the varying needs of MSI’s dynamic clientele, MSI stated. The Wind Top AP2000 is MSI’s All-in-One PC AP2000. The Wind Top series, MSI states upholds the needs of the business men and other professionals. Here’s a look at the specifications in detail:
Soaring high...
- Intel Pentium Processor P6200 (2.13 GHz)
- Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
- 20” 16:9 widescreen single touch panel (1600*900)
- 2GB DDR3 Memory, Max to 8GB
- 500GB Hard Drive
- Tray-in DVD Super Multi
- 1.3M Webcam and Microphone
In addition to the specifications mentioned above, MSI claims to have added several features including LED panels on their All-in-One desktop range to enhance its inclination towards global environment protection trends. Since LED panels consume 30 per cent lesser electricity, they seem to be a friendlier option.
Yet another one, in the series that was unveiled was the Wind Top AP2011 that comes packed with Intel’s second generation Core processor with immense power, which MSI claims is apt for multitasking purposes.
Popular technology brand, Lenovo has officially launched the ThinkPad X1 in India, today. The ThinkPad XI is a part of Lenovo’s much spoken about ThinkPad X Series.
Slim...
Lenovo claims that its ThinkPad X1 would make for an apt buy for those who look for cutting edge performance, a host of entertainment options, and mobility. One of ThinkPad’s most noticeable features would be the fact that it measures less than 17mm, which translates to a super-slim body. The ThinkPad's height is approximately that of a U.S. penny. The ThinkPad X1 comes with a 13.3 inches screen made of Corning Gorilla Glass which Lenovo claims add to its durability and rigidity.
The other features that Lenovo has packed include RapidCharge – a feature that can recharge batteries to 80 per cent in merely 30 minutes. Additionally, the ThinkPad includes VOIP experience bundled with noise and echo cancellation. The Lenovo ThinkPad is now available from Rs. 90,000 onwards, with the prices depending on the configuration.
For all you Android loyalists who aren’t really bothered about keynotes of any sort, here’s something to feast your eyes on. While what you’re going to see is just a teaser pic, you’ll nevertheless be delighted to know that this smartphone from LG which belongs to the company’s Optimus range is touted to be the Nexus 3.
LG joins the Nexus?
Apparently, this picture has been leaked by an LG employee in Indonesia, and appeared on a forum. It is said to be quite reliable. Earlier, there was a rumour doing the rounds of a leaked image that was touted as the next Nexus. While those were just rumours, the similarity between that smartphone and this one is quite obvious so there’s a big likelihood that LG is manufacturing the Nexus 3.
If you look at the history of Nexus smartphones, Samsung had made the Nexus S and the Nexus One was HTC’s brainchild. That kind of leaves us with LG who should be working on the next Nexus. Anyway there’s nothing more than a picture available for now, so stay tuned for more updates on this smartphone.
Tablets are getting more popular as time passes by and many traditional desktop and notebook manufacturers are also headed that way. Dell is one such company that is also working on tablets and has their Streak line of products with a new Streak Pro coming very soon.
Lack of security features on tablets might deny it a place in the office
V3.co.uk spoke with Bryan Jones, marketing manager for Dell in the consumer and enterprise segment for EMEA and during the interview, he mentioned that tablets were just a temporary phase like they were some three years back. He said that tablets would make their way into offices but they wouldn’t eliminate PCs and notebooks as the primary computing device. He said consumer devices like tablets don’t have the security features available on a notebook or a desktop PC, so these devices could not find a place in such an environment. He also said that for good levels of productivity, you would need a desktop or a notebook. He said that corporate would use tablets but as a secondary device and that desktops weren’t going anywhere.
Dell, a popular brand in the innovative technology space has introduced two additions to its existing Inspiron range in the country. The range, as the name suggests, is Dell's attempt to introduce its latest mantra - Change is Easy to the consumers. The Inspiron R range includes the 14R and 15R, these are 14 and 15 inch laptops respectively by Dell. The 'Change is Easy' mantra translates to its latest changeable lids concept. All set to Inspire? Adding a pinch of style, Dell offers as much as 10 different lids which can be changed by a 'pop and a click'. Additionally, the Inspiron R range comes packed with Intel's second generation core processors. It also comes loaded with Windows 7 Premium and upto 4GB of memory. Other features of the Inspiron R range, include -
The Inspiron 14R is available now, with prices starting from Rs. 34,300, and the Inspiron 15R is available for Rs. 35,300. The interchangeable lids has been made available at an additional cost of Rs. 1,999. |
| Iomega is a known name in the data protection manufacturer’s space. Enhancing this space furthermore is Iomega’s latest range of StorCenter PX Series. This range of network storage products is according to Iomega its most advanced series of desktop and rackmount NAS devices. The StorCenter PX Series includes four-bay and six-bay desktop models, as also a four-bay rackmount model. These models have been made available at configurations that are scalable, and which come at a competitive price. Iomega has incorporated in its latest series the Personal Cloud Technology, which according to Iomega will let users safely share data without bearing the brunt of additional costs.  The StorCenter PX Series The PX Series can be broadly classified to - Desktop StorCenter px4-300d and px6-300d and Rackmount StorCenter px4-300r Network Storage Array. The StorCenter px4-300d and px6-300d come in two, flexible desktop model configurations. The px4 comes packed with 4 HDD bays and boasts of upto 12TB of storage. The px6, on the other hand, comes packed with 6 HDD bays and includes upto 18TB of storage facility. The Rackmount StorCenter px4-300r comes with 12TB of storage options and comes packed with 4 HDD bays. |
The sound card business doesn’t see the same level of development as the GPU market, for example. This has been the case over the last couple of years with only a few vendors designing cards and audio processors. Most users seem content with the quality on onboard audio solutions on motherboards these days. Taking the processor approach, Creative has designed a new multi-core audio and voice processor called Sound Core3D.
More processing power thanks to four cores onboard the processor.
The solution will be available as an external device and an integrated chip on Creative’s vendor devices which can also include consumer electronics. Gigabyte is one of these vendors who will be using the chip on some of their solutions in the future. The chip is based on a 56-pin QFP package. The Sound Core3D chip uses four cores, 4 and 6-channel audio 24-bit DACs and even a headphone amplifier output. There is support for the usual digital outputs as well as a digital microphone in. The APU has been designed in conjunction with THX. The chip also has the usual set of enhancements for echo cancellation, noise reduction and normalization of audio.
Kingston is going to start their new HyperX line of solid state drives in India. Kingston’s HyperX line of products have been known to be performance-oriented. The new drives will be based on the SATA3 interface, on Intel’s 25nm NAND and will use a SandForce controller. Kingston claims that the SandForce SF-2281 controller being used on these drives is the fastest and the most reliable one around.
Impressive performance expected from the new drives
The drive will be available in 120 GB and 240 GB capacities. Kingston claims that the drive will be able to reach read speeds of 525 MB/s and write speeds of 480 MB/s. The drives are based on the 2.5-inch drive format. There’s an additional upgrade kit version being sold which will include a mounting plate, an external USB drive bay, a screw driver and a SATA data cable. The drive is said to sell from the 11th of July with a three-year warranty through Kingston vendors. There has been no pricing related announcement yet.
Kingston Digital has been a known brand for manufacturing storage capacities for quite a while now and it looks like they’re going a step ahead and giving some extra attention to Apple users. Kingston has launched a wireless storage device called the Wi Drive meant specifically for the iPod touch, iPad and the iPhone 3G/3GS/4. There's a USB port present to make it compatible with other non-Mac PCs, so you can transfer data onto it and access it from any of the aforementioned Apple devices.
Wirelessly store stuff on the Wi Drive
The Wi Drive comes in two storage capacities of 16 and 32 GB and comes bundled with a mini USB to USB cable. Kingston has a special app for the Wi Drive which acts as an interface for the iPod touch, iPhone and iPad. The device has 802.11 b/g/n wireless standard with WPA/WEP network security and supports various media file formats like AAC, MP3, MOV, MP4 and more for audio/video and then there’s JPG, PDF and many other formats for images and document files as well.
The Wi Drive’s pricing has not been announced as of yet, but when it does we’ll give you an update about it.
Normally June’s a pretty mellow month for video game releases what with E3 looming on the horizon. Still this month, there’s quite a bit of stuff coming out to satiate the bloodlust within. Enter the Games of June 2011.
inFamous 2 (PS3)
Tower offense
Cole McGrath, the electric courier from inFamous returns with even more super-powers in this charged up sequel from Sucker Punch. The action this time round has moved to New Marais, a fictional city based in New Orleans where Cole must face his toughest adversary yet. Gameplay stays the same as the prequel with the addition of user created missions that allow users to create and share missions online. Like LittleBigPlanet, only less cute.
Alice: Madness Returns (Xbox360 PS3)
Yup, she's angry all right
Forget about what you’ve read or seen in the movies; this right here is a highly twisted take on Lewis Carroll novels with content that’s not really meant for children. Alice: Madness Returns is essentially a third person action game with focus on melee combat that’ll oscillate between all out combat, puzzle solving and platforming. The game takes place nearly 11 years after American McGee’s Alice and will delve into Alice’s twisted past as she strives to liberate herself from it.
Shadows of the Damned (Xbox360 PS3)
Yeah, that's gonna hurt real bad
A demented love child between designers Goichi Suda and Shinji Mikami, Shadow of the Damned is an action horror game with a ton of crazy sprinkled in there thanks to Suda. In it you’ll play as demon hunter Garcia Hotspur who quite literally travels to hell and back in a bid to save his love. Be warned though; this game probably will contain a lot, and I mean a LOT of penis jokes, as was evident in the last trailer.
Duke Nukem Forever (Xbox360 PS3 PC)
His own worst enemy
The King’s back and he’s about to kick some butt cos he’s all outta gum. After nearly a decade, Duke Nukem emerges from the dead, courtesy Borderlands and Brothers in Arms developer Gearbox Software. Even though the game’s being released this month, gameplay is still reminiscent of the nineties with a focus on big guns, big enemies, toilet humor and tons of bodacious babes.
Red Faction Armageddon (Xbox360 PS3 PC)
Bring it
Red Faction Guerilla was perhaps the most open-ended, destructive game ever made allowing players to annihilate structures down to their very last brick. With Armageddon, developer Volition are planning on upping the ante with a lot more destruction and devastation, only this time they’ll have monsters as well. Wait, what! Yeah apparently, a few years after the events of RFG, humanity had to head underground due to unlivable conditions above the surface. In doing so they managed to awaken a race of Martian creatures who obviously are really cranky and not to mention hungry.
F.E.A.R 3 (Xbox360 PS3 PC)
Ketchup accident
F.E.A.R. was one of the most cathartic shooters in its time. It was scary, violent and shooting someone in the face with a shotgun while slowing time down was immensely satisfying. After a bunch of lackluster expansions and a rather average sequel, the F.E.A.R. franchise is about to kick start with F.E.A.R. 3. You’ll still have your creepy gameplay complimented by fast-paced kinetic action but now you can embark upon this journey with a friend as F.E.A.R. 3 will ship with co-operative play.
Notebooks have evolved from being computers for businessmen to mainstream computing machines. There are those who continue using notebooks on the move, while some others use notebooks as their everyday computers. In the midst of all the upgrades and updates being made by notebook manufacturers, marketing jargons and competition between brands, the consumer is left confused as to which notebook to buy. There are quite literally hundreds of models you can find in the market today. By the end of this guide, we hope to leave you with a clear picture of what a good notebook ought to have.
Choosing the correct type of notebook
Like we mentioned earlier, each person has different needs from the technology he or she buys. The needs differ from person to person and it’s important to choose a notebook that fits your needs. It’s important to set budgets for the purchase accordingly, as well. For example, don’t expect to find a high-end gaming notebook for anything less than 80,000 or so and don’t expect a Rs. 40,000 notebook to play high-end games.
Plenty of notebook types to choose from
The cheapest of notebooks in the market start from around the Rs. 23,000 range. Netbooks start at prices closer to Rs. 13,000. Broadly, there are four segments of notebooks that most people look at. Most people spend between Rs. 23,000 and Rs. 40,000 on a notebook. Many of these users are going to use these notebooks as their primary computer at home and maybe at work. These notebooks won't offer excellent performance for gaming and content generation purposes, but they will do just fine for desktop applications. Although cheap, they cover most of the needs that majority of the people have.
The slightly more power hungry user will want more performance than these notebooks can offer. While the feature set of costlier notebooks doesn’t change a whole lot, notebooks priced above Rs. 40,000 have faster processors and even entry-level discrete graphics solutions. Screen sizes also drop at this point. While most mainstream notebooks that we talked about earlier have 14 and 15-inch screens, notebooks above Rs. 50,000 or so can be found with smaller 13-inch screens.
Compact and portable, but might not offer excellent performance
Gaming notebooks are more expensive and way more powerful than the cheaper notebooks that we’ve been talking about. Prices of gaming notebooks start roughly from Rs. 80,000 and go on well over a lakh. These notebooks come with powerful graphics solutions and have large screens, as well. They offer poor battery life in comparison and carrying them around is a pain. On the other hand, there are ultraportable notebooks that are designed for people who travel a lot. They aren’t as powerful as the gaming notebooks but will offer way better performance than netbooks.
Processor
The processor is one of the key components of a notebook. An entry-level Intel Core i3 i380M might be sufficient for most purposes, but when you start using more CPU intensive software and multitask with a number of browser windows open, CPU performance is essential and a faster processor can come handy. Majority of all the notebooks sold around the world come with Intel’s processors, so although AMD too has solutions in the market, you’re more likely to come across a wider range of Intel processor-based notebooks. A decent speed Core i5 such as the 480M processor is a good start. Also look for one of the newer Sandy Bridge processors from Intel.
HDMI connectivity
HDMI connectivity is handy when at home you want to connect a notebook to an external display.
HDMI connectivity is handy if you own a LCD or Plasma display
Most notebooks these days that come with an HDMI port are also capable of playing full HD content smoothly. You can watch movies on your TV or use it as a primary display and use the notebook like a desktop PC. Simply connect a USB keyboard and mouse, disable the notebook display and you’re good to go.
Graphics solutionA discrete graphics solution is always a good idea. It allows you to play games on the notebook. The integrated graphics solution on the notebooks these days allow users to run HD content without any problems. If you’re looking at some gaming, or some 3D modelling on the notebook, then a discrete graphics solution is necessary. Obviously, the budget for the notebook should be above Rs. 50,000 to get a decent solution. A GT540M graphics solution on a notebook should offer decent graphics performance for playing most of the recent games at a normal graphics setting. The downside of using a discrete graphics solution is usually a somewhat lower battery life.
Screen and speakers
For a good entertainment experience, it’s important to have a large enough screen. The downside of this unfortunately, is that the laptop gets bulky. If you’re looking for a notebook that is a desktop replacement or is going to be used only in one place, then a 15 or a 17-inch can be a good thing to have. If you are going in for a smaller screen, try and find a notebook that offers higher resolutions. A resolution of 1366x768 is sufficient but having a high-density 1920x1080 does add a lot to the experience and offers you a lot of workspace.
A large screen and good speakers means you compromise on the size of the notebook
Most notebooks also have poor speakers that sound horrible and tinny. Before you buy the notebook, it’s a good idea to play some music or movies on it to ensure you get a good sound, but don't expect much. Speakers that are placed facing downwards often sound muddy so look for notebooks that have speakers at the front near the screen. If you’re particular about your audio quality, it makes sense to buy a pair of portable speakers, or good headphones as well.
Keyboard and trackpad
Cheaper notebooks have cramped keyboard layouts. Look for notebooks with isolated, chiclet-style keys. They are somewhat easier to type on.
A good chiclet-style keyboard makes typing a little easier
In the hunt of finding a large spacious keyboard, don’t ignore the trackpad. If you’re using the notebook on the move, you’re very unlikely to be using an external mouse, so you’ll have to depend on the trackpad to get the job done. Make sure that it’s large and has two separate buttons.
A good trackpad eliminates the need for an external mouse
The feel of the buttons should be sturdy, but have a soft feel to themselves, as well. Many notebooks these days have multi-touch support, so you can use gestures to complete simple functions quickly.
Bundled operating system
While looking for a really cheap notebook, you’re likely to find deals that might sound unbelievable. Manufacturers also offer notebooks without any operating system preinstalled or they might come bundled with Linux, which is free. If you’re specifically going to be using Windows applications, you might want to look out for a notebook with an operating system preinstalled, so you’ll have to spend additionally for the OS. If you get a really good deal on a notebook without an operating system installed and you don’t absolutely require Windows, you can choose to install a Linux distribution such as Ubuntu.
Battery life
Battery capacity is extremely important when it comes to notebooks. Most notebooks will only last around two hours on moderate use. Before you go out and buy a notebook, make sure you do your homework on the capacity of the battery. Some manufacturers will give you the option of choosing a larger battery with the notebook. If the price difference isn’t much, then take the higher capacity battery over the smaller one from the get-go.
Armed with that bit of information, you should be able to able to find the best notebooks deal by skipping all the jargon that the shopkeepers hurl at you. Happy hunting!
Just a while back, AMD announced their new range of 9-Series chipsets and in absolute rhythm, ASUS have launched their latest iteration in the Crosshair Series of motherboards, called the Crosshair V Formula. The motherboard not only supports the AM3+ FX socket, but also has support for Athlon II and Sempron 100 Series of processors. What’s nice to know is that this motherboard will also be supporting Bulldozer series of processors.
More power and more support
Crosshair V Formula has an ATX form factor and supports up to 32 GB of RAM on the four RAM slots that most standard motherboards feature today. Apart from that this also supports the AMD 3-Way SLI and 3-Way CrossfireX modes for NVIDIA and AMD’s graphic cards respectively. There are three PCIe 2.0 expansion slots for dual x16 speeds or x8,x8 and x16 speeds. The motherboard has plenty of USB ports with as much as six USB 3.0 ports and 12 USB 2.0 ports. Being the latest motherboard, the Crosshair V Formula also has ASUS’ UEFI BIOS menus to interact with the hardware directly.
The pricing hasn’t been announced as yet, but stay tuned for more information on the Crosshair V Formula.
3D is back and it’s bigger than ever before. This is not the first time the world has witnessed the wonders of 3D. In the earlier half of this decade, graphics card manufacturers started bundling 3d glasses to be used with their graphics cards and monitors. Things weren’t impressive and the hype quickly died out. 3D Cinema Zone at the LG Headquarters Now, close to a decade later, things have been heating up again. Watching movies in 3D at cinemas is a common thing. At home however, things are somewhat different. TVs are still pretty expensive and the technology hasn’t matured as yet. LG invited us to their headquarters in the heart of Seoul, South Korea to get our hands on the technology itself. The demonstration at their Cinema 3D Experience Zone was to highlight the weaknesses of the shutter glass and the advantages of using passive glasses. The scene so far 3D TVs are still expensive and the content isn’t available yet. Quite a lot of people seem to get headaches after watching 3D content for more than 15 minutes or so. There are a few issues with the current active shutter glasses that are used by most manufacturers other the obvious headache issues. The 3D glasses being used are somewhat heavy because of the batteries and the circuitry required in the glasses themselves. Wearing them for long periods of time can get a little tiring.  Active shutter glasses turning dark when placed sideways There are some other issues as well. The polarized glasses also block out a lot of the light which means that the TV needs to be even brighter. There’s also the problem of flicker which causes the headaches. Crosstalk is another issue where the two images being rendered leak into one another, which causes a kind of blurring which can be really annoying as well. LG's new 3D FPR Technology LG has designed a new technology to counter the problems being faced by early adopters of 3D. It’s called FPR (Film-type Patterned Retarder). LG has chosen to go with a somewhat simpler approach where passive 3D glasses are used. There isn’t a need for batteries anymore and there are electronics in the glasses themselves. Most of the work is done by the display itself. Because of the way the FPR technology functions, brightness levels are a lot better than expected.  LG's FPR display with passive glasses still work when placed sideways The TVs based on the new technology will be tagged as Cinema 3D TVs. There hasn’t been an official date for the launch of the TVs in India or any sort of pricing, but we can only hope to see it here within the next six months or so. |
MUMBAI (Reuters) - India's top car maker, Maruti Suzuki, is considering to build a factory in Gujarat with a production capacity of one million units, local media reported on Wednesday.
Senior management of Maruti Suzuki met with the Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday and expressed interest to set up a manufacturing plant in the state with an initial investment on 60 billion rupees ($1.3 billion), the Economic Times and Business Standard newspapers said.
Maruti Suzuki could not immediately be reached for comment.
Last year, Maurti Managing Director Shinzo Nakanishi said the company was looking to advance its capacity expansion plans to meet booming demand in the fast-growing south Asian country.
The company, 54.2 percent owned by Japan 's Suzuki Motor Corp, said it was building a second unit in Haryana to add another production capability of another 250,000 vehicles a year, scheduled for completion by April 2012.
Ilove colourful things, but this one might be a little out of my league; it’s pink, with orange tips. Yikes, that’s bright! However, the Roxy Reference 250 earphones definitely serve as a great accessory as they look cool, sound great, and have the added functionality of a hands-free.
Shiny happy earpieces
Design and features
The pair of earphones I’m reviewing are a bright bubblegum pink, with earpieces that look a little like those tiny orange boiled sweets I used to love as a kid. However, they’re also available in a really nice shade of green with bright blue earpieces. The microphone for the hands-free is also the same bright orange and has the JBL logo, as well as the Roxy branding on it. One good thing about this set of earphones is that they come with this nice little carrying case that can also double up as your PMP case.
Here are the specifications:
The pair of earphones I’m reviewing are a bright bubblegum pink, with earpieces that look a little like those tiny orange boiled sweets I used to love as a kid. However, they’re also available in a really nice shade of green with bright blue earpieces. The microphone for the hands-free is also the same bright orange and has the JBL logo, as well as the Roxy branding on it. One good thing about this set of earphones is that they come with this nice little carrying case that can also double up as your PMP case.
Here are the specifications:
- Compatibility: iPod (all models); MP3, CD and DVD players; laptop computers (all platforms); satellite radio; home stereos; airline sound systems
- Microphone: In-line-microphone with mute control enables hands-free operation
- Case: Matching carry purse included
- Input requirement: Main connection – 3.5mm stereo mini jack
- Power: 2 x 5mW
- Sensitivity: 94dB SPL/mW @ 1kHz
- Frequency Response_ 20Hz – 20kHz (–10dB)
- Input Impedance: 16 Ohms
- Wire length: 1.1m ( 43.3 inches)
- Dimensions: Diameter – 13.5mm (1.35 cm)
Performance
These are in-ear, so there’s a bit of noise reduction involved. I must admit that they’re a little generous with the mid frequencies, but the bass is loud and clear and the treble is sweet and sparkly. I listened to a lot of genres on it and found that it is best suited for hip-hop, pop and dance music as heavy rock and metal sounded a little muddy. The hands-free works well, but I heard a lot of hiss and both parties felt that the voice level could’ve been higher, so this is far from the best hands-free.
These are in-ear, so there’s a bit of noise reduction involved. I must admit that they’re a little generous with the mid frequencies, but the bass is loud and clear and the treble is sweet and sparkly. I listened to a lot of genres on it and found that it is best suited for hip-hop, pop and dance music as heavy rock and metal sounded a little muddy. The hands-free works well, but I heard a lot of hiss and both parties felt that the voice level could’ve been higher, so this is far from the best hands-free.
Carrying case adds a nice touch
Verdict
I really like this set of earphones in spite of the colours, which make me look a little fruity (absolutely no pun intended). I’d obviously be a lot happier with the green and blue ones, but I had no qualms wearing these around the office today, even with people giving me weird glances. The colourful carrying case also adds a nice touch.
I give these earphones 3 ½ stars. I’ve cut points for the overbearing mid frequencies and weak hands-free, but the overall sound quality is good and so is the design and appeal. So if you have Rs. 1,999 to spare and like colourful things that sound good and make your ears pop (not literally of course), the JBL Roxy Reference 250 is the right set of earphones for you.
Harman International Industries Incorporated today, announced the release of its new JBL OnBeat loudspeaker docking station. This is the first JBL dock that works with any iPad, iPhone or iPod device. The OnBeat features dual Phoenix full-range transducers with computer-optimized DSP equalization. It has a universal connector that docks an iPad, iPod or iPhone and lets you rotate iPod and iPhone screens to portrait or landscape orientation according to how you would like to view your content. The OnBeat also has an infrared remote (IR) that gives you full control over system functions and music navigation.
A multi faceted dock
The OnBeat has a USB connection to sync and charge devices when connected to iTunes as well as a 3.5mm stereo auxiliary input which can connect to your other PMP or audio device. This dock features JBL Weave design styling and looks pretty nice as well. It also charges your iPod, iPhone or iPad while you use it. The JBL OnBeat loudspeaker dock is available in April in jus one colour, black for $149.95 (Rs. 6,698). There's no saying when this dock will hit our shelves here in India though.