PM360 March 2010

CuttingEdge

By Andrew Matthius

What’s not to love about the latest technology and the hottest trendy products? Our Cutting Edge section keeps you on the vanguard of electronic wizardry with our featured gallery of gadgets that are newly launched or coming soon to a store or website near you.

Rad Pad
On its high-resolution, 9.7-inch LED-backlit IPS display, Apple’s iPad ($499-$829) lets you surf the web, view photos, watch videos, and so much more. The large multi-touch screen lets you see web pages in their entirety and then scroll, zoom, and click all with the flick, pinch, or tap of your fingers. You can check mail and respond using the onscreen keyboard or jot down reminders on the note-taking page. The iPad can run almost 140,000 apps including an iPod app and iBooks. It will be available in Wi-Fi models (late March) and 3G models (April).

Let There Be Light … And Sound
The Klipsch LightSpeaker ($600) is the first product to combine efficient LED lighting with wireless ambient sound. A transmitter that connects to your laptop, iPod, TV, or home stereo system can send sound to up to eight LightSpeakers in multiple rooms. The fully dimmable LED bulb can also reduce daily lighting expenses by 80% as it uses 10 watts to provide light equal to 65-watt bulbs. The LightSpeaker can fit into any 5- and 6-inch recessed can lighting fixtures with a standard Edison socket.

Bottomless Box
The Boxee Box by D-Link (estimated under $200 later this year) lets you watch TV shows, movies, and other entertainment available on the Internet directly on your TV. Just connect Boxee Box to your HDTV and use your remote (with full keyboard) to choose your favorite digital entertainment. Boxee users can also access music and photos from sites such as Pandora and Picasa, view content from their USB flash drives or SD cards, and share content with
other Boxee users or on social networks.

Photo Finish
Sony’s Cyber-shot Digital Camera TX7 ($400) helps make your first shot your best shot. The camera includes an Exmor R CMOS sensor that delivers stunning low-light images and ultra-wide 258-degree panoramic shots with Intelligent Sweep Panorama Mode. Blurry images are no more with an Anti-Blur Motion mode, and the anti-blink function and Smile Shutter technology help you capture people at their best. The camera has a 3.5-inch touch screen display, and you can record HD movies in AVCHD format that can be transferred to full 1080i clarity and burnt on a DVD.

Up and ADAM
Notion Ink’s ADAM is a tablet expected to arrive on store shelves this summer. It comes in two versions: one has a Pixel Qi LCD LED-backlit display and the other a non-Pixel Qi LCD display. The Pixel Qi version has three display modes that help ensure a clear image wherever you are—including in bright sunlight. Both versions are Tegra 2-based with a dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 processor, feature a multi-touch 10.1-inch screen, a 180-degree swivel camera, and built-in 3G, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth. The ADAM runs Android, supports Flash, and has three USB ports and an HDMI out for full 1080p video.