Wize Blog

Word 2008 Overview for Mac

Word is that Word for Mac 2008 has some pretty cool options. Below is a video that gives you an overview of the program.

Samsung Armani Phone on the Cat Walk

There's just something about a phone that's introduced at a fashion show.

The Samsung Armani camera phone was introduced last September Giorgio Armani fashion show.

Armani had stated its case about the avon guard appearance of its product: “We make as much of a personal statement with the mobile phones that we carry or the televisions that we have in our living rooms as we do with the shoes and bags we wear or the furnishings we choose.”

Now that's stylin'.

Photokina wrote about the phone yesterday, saying that the credit-card sized, touch screen phone has >businesslike and classy appearance.

It's a phone for a minimalist having only two buttons on the front.

The phone has a pretty good camera, too (that is for a cell phone)--a 3MP with a LED flash and 4X digital zoom (note that's digital not optical so that when you zoom in, your picture won't be as clear as it would be if it were optical).

Letsgomobile has a full review of the phone.

 

HP Photosmart M527 Digital Camera Reviewed

At $130, the 6MP HP Photosmart M527 digital camera doesn't seem to be a bad deal. But buyer beware--Digitalcamerainfo.com came out with a review today and said, "what consumers save in dollars, they lose in photo quality."

If you can ignore the fact that the picture quality is only average and are considering an inexpensive camera, here are the specs--

CCD Size--1/2.5-inch CCD sensor, 2934 x 2171 total pixels, 2864 x 2152 effective pixels
Zoom--3X optical
Shutter Lag--.83 sec
Shutter speed--2 to 1/1000 sec
Memory Slot--SD
Picture Modes--Auto (default), Action, Beach and Snow, Burst, Fast Shot, Landscape, Macro, Night portrait, Portrait, Self Timer, Sunset
Video--Has video; 20 fps, VGA 320 x 240

One thing is for sure--this camera can be fun: HP Design Gallery lets you add artistic effects directly on your camera – no PC or software needed. Make your photos look like cartoons, sketches or antique photographs. Add fun borders and tint photos to black-and-white, sepia and more.

JVC Everio Hybrid Camcorder Video Review

Introducing the smallest hard drive based camera in the world...

Just in from Tiger TV is a review of the JVC  Everio Hybrid Camcorder with a Konica-Minolta lens with a 35X zoom. It's got a 30GB hard drive, that's 7 hours of recording time.

The camera also takes a micro SD drive. It has manual shutter control and a 2.7 LCD screen. Has other modes too--snow mode and twilight mode.

Check out the video review below. It's first rate--

Nikon D60 with 2 Lenses a Deal

Ritz camera has a deal on its D60. You get two lenses with the 10MP camera, a 18-55 VR (Vibration Reduction) and a 55-200. Both those lenses are excellent for a hobbyist who wants to become professional. You also get a gadget bag and DVDs, not to mention free shipping.

Most reviewers at wize.com give this camera a 5/5 rating.

Here's one of the reviews for the camera as seen on wize.com:
"Out of the box, just point and shoot. It's that easy. Whether you're a beginner or an avid pro, you can't go wrong with the D60. Make sure to use an ultra high speed SD card to maximize the features in the camera. The 18-55mm AF-S VR lense included with this kit further demonstrate the potential that this camera has. Battery life was longer than expected considering the 2.5 inch LCD screen. I took over 400 pictures over a period of 3 days before having to recharge the battery. Built in flash is good for up to 15 feet but would recommend a speed light. If you're having second thoughts about this camera, don't. You will not regret it."

18.4 Inches of Screen Comes to America

The reviews for the 18.4-inch Acer Aspire 8920G, which has arrived in America, are coming in. CNET and Laptop Mag have come out with the skinny on the machine, which costs $2,599 (for the model that was reviewed at Laptopmag).

CNET The editors gave the laptop a 7.9/10 rating, saying that the new design is "a step in the right direction." They like the full-size keyboard and the Cinetouch media navigation.

Laptopmag The 4.5/5 rating  praises  the 1080p LCD panel and the True 5.1 speaker set-up. This review gives the "quick-specs" of the machine, which are:

Operating System: Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate
RAM/Expandable to: 4GB/4GB
Hard Drive Size/Speed: 320GB/5,400 rpm
Optical Drive: 2X BD-ROM/DVD±RW DL

And let's not forget that this laptop comes with a TV tuner.

A Look at the Canon HG10 Camcorder

Lots of people are trying out their new HG10 camcorders on YouTube (see video below). The Canon HG10 AVCHD Format Hard Disk Drive Camcorder records high definition video directly onto a hard disk. Here are some specs:

Full HD CMOS sensor
Advanced DIGIC DV II image processor
SuperRange Optical Image Stabilization
Instant Auto Focus
2.7" Widescreen Multi-Angle Vivid LCD
10x HD video zoom lens
AVCHD Format HDD in a Compact Size¹
Full HD onto a 40GB Hard Disk Drive
HDD Still Photo Grab from Video
1/2.7" CMOS Sensor, RGB Primary Color Filter

The camcorder weighs 1.1 lbs (not including lens or battery pack).

Here's some sample footage for the Canon HG10 camcorder--

Jailbreak Your iPhone

Want non-approved Apple apps on your iPhone? Then you're going to have to jailbreak.

CNET has come of with a video showing you how to put "apps on your iPhone the nonApple way."

Jailbreak means you're going to set up your phone to accept third party apps.

It's all at Ziphone.org, a site where you can download a program that can unlock your phone to use other networks other than AT&T and/or where  can set up your iPhone to accept anyone's apps.

The program modifies your iPhone and then reboots. It doesn't take long.

Installer is the app that lets you install other programs.

Five Easy to Use Camcorders from Wize.com

If you're looking for a camcorder that you can just turn on and start videotaping, wize.com has a list of the ones that are easiest to use.

Here's the top 5--
1.  Sony DCR-DVD108 At around $300, this camcorder weighs 16 lb., has a 1/6" CCD, uses a memory stick pro memory card. Shown to the left.

2.  Thomson EZ201 At around $85, this camcorder weighs .22 lb, uses a SD memory card.

3.  Sony Handycam DCR-SR42 Costs about $500.

4.  Sony Handycam DCR-SR200 At about $650, this camcorder weighs 1.15 lb. and uses flash media. This camcorder also has One touch video to DVD. That means you hook it up your camcorder via the base that comes with the it to your computer with DVD burner and USB connection or DVD recorder then just press one button and it starts recording to your blank DVD.

5.  Canon ZR800 Weighs about .83 lb CCD is 1/6"

CNET Video Top 5 Worst Downloads

CNET has a video that makes fun of some downloads that are so "bad" that they're "good." A psychic color test comes in at number 1.

Here's the video--