Computer Shopper back issues from February 2004:
Our readers have spoken.(from the editor in chief)
Feb 01, 2004; ... After enduring the many year-end retrospectives that cropped up as 2003 wound down, you now know what the experts have to say about the winners and losers of the year. But what do your peers consider to be the best? At Computer Shopper, we've always been firm believers that while our ...
Props for WordPerfect, please!(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
Feb 01, 2004; ... "Alfred Poor's Computer Cures" column (December, p. 151) had a question about how to create PDF files without having to pay a king's ransom for the full version of Adobe Acrobat. Alfred suggests Xelerate's $49.95 Power-PDF 2.0, as well as ScanSoft's $199.99 PaperPort Pro, in ...
Bogus batting average?(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
Feb 01, 2004; ... In the January "The Hard Edge" column (p. 136), Bill and Alice say New York Yankee Derek Jeter's .324 batting average means he gets a hit only one-third of the time at bat, so he doesn't do the job he's paid to do 68 percent of the time. They compare that to a PC, saying if it boots 33 ...
Corrections.(Correction Notice)
Feb 01, 2004 ... In our January feature "Function Over Format" (p. 104), a testing error caused us to underreport the results of our DVD Read Test (Copy 500MB Folder From Rewritable Media) for the Iomega Super DVD Writer and the LG Electronics GSA-4040B. The results should have read 2.37 (DVD+RW), 2.60 ...
Are price wars in store for broadband in 2004?(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004; ... First, there were the speed wars and the installation wars. Now price appears to be the next battle in the campaign for broadband supremacy between cable and DSL providers. After shrugging off aggressive DSL price offers for the past year, cable providers are beginning to turn ...
Wal-Mart to launch notebook line.(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Wal-Mart Stores (www.walmart.com) is developing a plan to launch its own brand of notebook computers. The retail giant plans to begin offering notebooks under its own brand name early this year, according to industry sources quoted in a report published recently by The Taiwan ...
Switching channels: PC makers want to be TV stars.(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004; ... PC makers like Dell, Gateway, and Hewlett-Packard used to be happy just running ads on television for their computers. Now they want to sell you the TV set, too. Computer manufacturers entering the consumer-electronics market have pinned their biggest hopes on LCD--and, in ...
Return to vendor: HP puts recycling in the box.(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Hewlett-Packard has announced it will include postage-paid envelopes with some of its inkjet-printer cartridges in an attempt to spur recycling. The envelopes have been enclosed with new HP 56 and 57 inkjet-cartridge boxes since December. Until now, the inbox postage-paid ...
Senior netizens: older users are flocking to the Internet.
Feb 01, 2004 ... 25% Growth in Net use by seniors 65 and older Despite the stereotype, it seems that the older generation actually isn't afraid of new technology, according to recent findings from Internet-research firm ...
What won't they hack?(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004; ... A one-time use digital camera, widely available in camera and drug stores, has been hacked, allowing users to download images from the camera and reuse it without paying for processing. The Dakota digital camera costs about $11 at Ritz Camera stores. (Similar models are sold at ...
Let your PDA control your brain.(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Need a little cranial stimulation, and no Starbucks is in sight? South Korean startup DreamFree (www.dreamfree.com) hopes to perk things up with the Peeg, a peripheral for PDAs that is said to stimulate brain activity. The Peeg, short for "personal electroencephalogram," is ...
One word for the future of storage: plastics?(news)
Feb 01, 2004 ... HAS FLASH MEMORY MET ITS MATCH? Researchers at Princeton University and Hewlett-Packard have recently demonstrated the ability to store information on a plastic polymer called Pedot that someday could join flash memory and optical media as one of the storage technologies of ...
Google says no to drug ads.(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Search giant Google (www.google.com) says it will no longer allow unlicensed pharmacies to buy advertisements on its Web site, following similar moves by rivals Microsoft and Yahoo. "We are planning on verifying sensitive pharmaceutical ads using a third party to ensure ...
America Online to open up AIM.(news)
Feb 01, 2004; ... America Online has announced it is opening the door for Macromedia software developers to create applications on its AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) and ICQ products. AOL will offer a software-development kit for AIM and ICQ to Macromedia Central, the software maker's initiative ...
Attack adds: number of new viruses and worms.(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004 ... While the number of new software flaws dropped in the third quarter of 2003, the number of new viruses and worms jumped 26 percent, according to a report prepared by network-security firm Internet Security Systems. Even more ...
A small cell with Windows.(Gear)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Samsung SCH-i600 Smartphone Looks and brains: Samsung's new handset, the SCH-i600 Smartphone, will redefine your notion of the smartphone. Gone are the days of brick-bodied PDAs with cell-phone capabilities. This $399.99 device amazingly squeezes the power of ...
Mobile movie machine.(Gear)
Feb 01, 2004 ... The sophisticated $449 Lyra Audio/Video Jukebox RD2780 from RCA is about the size of a small picture frame and weighs 10.5 ounces, belying its capacious 20GB hard drive. On the 320x240-pixel screen, you'll be able to view MPEG-1 and MPEG-4 ...
Finger-pointing.(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004 ... Passwords are passe. Thankfully, APC's Biometric Finger Print Reader helps make personal security cooler and more convenient. Using this $49.99 reader, only your fingertip is needed to access your password-secured Web sites and Windows applications ....
Light and breezy.
Feb 01, 2004 ... Claiming to make your computer cool in more ways than one is the Memorex Modz Glowing LED Fan. More than just your average cooling-fan attachment, this affordable $10.99 fan also illuminares your PC case with its slick blue LEDs. Usable ...
Plug 'n' sync.(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004 ... Who says you can't take it with you? With Forward Solutions' Migo, you can replicate your Windows desktop on any computer. Available in 128MB and 256MB versions ($149.95 and $199.95, respectively, the Migo not only saves your important ...
Pocket shots.(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004 ... Shoot from your hip pocket with the Kyocera Finecam SL300R digital camera. Little more than a half-inch thick, this camera has a distinctive swivel design, as well as a 3x zoom lens. Though tiny, the Finecam captures sharp ...
Type (in) style.(Trends)
Feb 01, 2004 ... Update your PC through your keyboard. Logitech's $249.95 DiNovo Media Desktop offers a unique way to add new features and improved aesthetics to your machine. Slim and trim, the DiNovo relies on Bluetooth wireless technology to communicate directly ...
Streaming isn't stealing, so set my digital audio free: I selected it, I paid for it, and I should be able to play it on any device I please. Are you listening, Apple and Microsoft?(opinions)
Feb 01, 2004; ... I BROKE THE LAW LAST NIGHT. Unfortunately, the transgression was both unexciting and unrewarding, which just might lend some credence to the hackneyed adage "Crime doesn't pay." And why should it? I was only trying to listen to digital audio files I'd legally purchased. The law ...
Ambitious amateur shutterbugs catch digital-SLR fever: with prices falling below the $2,000 threshold, film fans previously resigned to digital point-and-shoots are venturing into dSLR territory.(opinions)
Feb 01, 2004; ... FOR A WHILE, THE TREND IN digital cameras has been toward pocket-friendly, svelte models with high megapixel counts. Everybody seems to want an ultracompact, stealthy snapshooter for conveniently capturing life's fine and not-so-free moments. And in recent months, manufacturers have ...
CMOS will soon crop CCD out of the digital picture: the CCD has long dominated the world of digital photography, but the CMOS has advantages that will change all that.(opinions)
Feb 01, 2004; ... IT'S TAKEN A WHILE, BUT I'VE finally switched over to the complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) side of the imaging battle. The charge-coupled device (CCD) has dominated digital and video imaging, while the CMOS folks have argued their chip is better because it's cheaper and can ...
The top 25: Computer Shopper editors handpick this month's best desktops, notebooks, LCD monitors, audio players, and security software.(top 25)
Feb 01, 2004 ... <Pre> HOME DESKTOPS PRODUCT PRICESPECS MPC ClientPro $1,999 2.8GHz Pentium 4; 256MB DDR; 80GB All-in-One hard drive; DVD/CD-RW; 17-inch LCD; www.buympc.com ATI Radeon 9000 Apple iMac $1,799 1.25GHz PowerPC G4; ...
HP scores big points with first gaming system.(HP Compaq X09 Gaming PC)
Feb 01, 2004; ... NOT CONTENT TO SIT BACK and watch Dell and Gateway go after gamers' dollars, Hewlett-Packard has launched the Compaq X09 Gaming PC. With a functional and attractive Cooler Master case, a 3.2GHz Pentium 4 processor, and an nVidia GeForce FX 5950 Ultra graphics card, our $3,897 test system ...
Marriage of PC and TV has no better half.(Pacco Ix My CIU)
Feb 01, 2004; ... NOT ALL CONVERGENCE DEVICES RESULT IN A happy marriage. Witness Pacco Group's $1,399 Ix My CIU (Central Interface Unit). The system combines a flat panel television with a PC, but the TV screen is too small for most viewing scenarios, and the PC is slow. Worse, the television can't talk to ...
Adequate office performer underachieves at home.(Gateway 510X)
Feb 01, 2004; ... FOR GENERAL COMPUTING, THE $1,199 GATEWAY 510X gets the job done, hut there's nothing to distinguish it from other PCs in its class. It's well-suited to a business environment, but abysmal 3D performance and the absence of media-connectivity options will disappoint home users. ...
$349 desktop deal too good to be true.(Systemax Venture C11R)
Feb 01, 2004; ... INTEL INTRODUCED ITS 1.1GHZ CELERON CHIP BACK IN August 2001, but Systemax must have discovered a stash behind some boxes, because it's using that very chip in its $349 Venture C11R. This is an incredibly low price for a Windows system, but we're still surprised by its assortment of aging ...
Ultimate game machine ups the drool factor.(ABS Ultimate M6)
Feb 01, 2004; ... SPEED IS THE NAME OF THE ABS ULTIMATE M6'S game. Not only does this gaming machine boast AMD's brand new 64-bit Athlon 64 FX-51 processor at its core, but it's also the first PC we've tested with ATI Technologies' new Radeon 9800 XT graphics card. Not surprisingly, the system turned in ...
Poor screen and battery spoil inexpensive system.(Averatec 5110P)
Feb 01, 2004; ... ALTHOUGH AVERATEC'S $1,499 5110P LAPTOP IS attractively priced, this Centrino unit turns in average performance and disappointing battery fife. For the most part, the 5110P came to us comparably equipped in relation to other thin-and-light notebooks we've seen. Inside, along ...
A top-notch tablet PC that's lightweight, speedy.(HP Compaq Tablet PC TC1100)
Feb 01, 2004; ... HEWLETT-PACKARD HAS ADDED NEW LIFE TO ITS Tablet PC line by launching the $2,299 Compaq Tablet PC TC1100. This new tablet features many improvements absent in its predecessor, the TC1000. The TC1100 gets a much-needed component boost from a 1GHz Pentium M processor, 512MB of ...
Laptop proves powerful, but not too portable.(Gateway M675XL)
Feb 01, 2004; ... GATEWAY'S M675XL NOTEBOOK IS LIKE AN OVERSIZE Winnebago that's so big it exceeds highway weight limits. This huge $2,599 desktop replacement provides all the comforts of home hut is just barely mobile. We tested Gateway's top-of-the-line M675XL machine decked out with a mean ...
This fresh apple is the best of the bunch.(Apple PowerBook G4)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Editors' Choice MAKING BIG NEWS, APPLE'S 12-INCH POWERBOOK G4 is the smallest notebook ever to come out of Cupertino. To pare the $1,799 ultraportable down to size, Apple cut a few corners from the original, but it's still a winner. The updated 12-inch PowerBook ...
Updated power, stamina revive the R series.(IBM ThinkPad R50 (1830-6FU))
Feb 01, 2004; ... Editors' Choice IBM'S NEW THINKPAD R50 SHEDS THE R SERIES' MORE restrained past and emerges as a powerful, long-lasting desktop replacement. Although it's no longer a budget notebook, at $2,139, this machine is still an excellent choice for business or personal use. ...
Fast, affordable notebook has media connections.(WinBook C120)
Feb 01, 2004; ... WINBOOK PACKS ITS C120 NOTEBOOK WITH ALL the standard attributes traveling professionals expect. This affordable $1,499 thin-and-light system even finds room to squeeze in a couple of surprise features that will gratify the digital-media guru in you. Running Windows XP ...
Fusion of PDA and laptop yields a slick Ubergadget.(Sony CLIE PEG-UX50)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Editors' Choice SONY'S CLIE PEG-UX50 IS A PALM OS-BASED "PERSONAL entertainment communicator" that looks more like a mini-laptop than a handheld. Despite its ridiculously expensive $649.99 price, the CLIE manages to be a slick, yet highly functional, gadget that includes both ...
Minor tweaks to handheld add basics, but not buzz.(Toshiba Pocket PC e405)
Feb 01, 2004; ... TOSHIBA AMERICA'S NEW ENTRY-LEVEL HANDheld the $299 Pocket PC e405, updates its predecessor with an additional 32MB of flash memory, a snazzier case design, and some nifty voice software. The e405 packs a formidable 300MHz Intel XScale PXA261 processor and 64MB of RAM, but only ...
Digitize and track your card stacks.(Corex CardScan 600cx)
Feb 01, 2004; ... The $249 CardScan 600cx business-card scanner from Corex revolutionizes how business people build a contact database. Measuring only 2x6.8x4.8 inches (HWD), the 14-ounce scanner draws power from its sole PC connection, a USB cable--no bulky adapter required. Hardware setup is ...
An easy, affordable alternative to the iPod.(Dell Digital Jukebox)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Editors' Choice THE 15GB DELL DIGITAL JUKEBOX (DJ), the PC maker's first hard-drive-based digital audio player, delivers simple, straightforward music playback. While we were also impressed by its solid design, clean sound, and outstanding battery life the $249 price is what ...
Slick camera phone delivers worldly features.(Samsung SGH-V206)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Editors' Choice WITH A BUILT-IN SWIVELING CAMera lens and sleek, silver style, Samsung's SGH-v206 is a real head turner. This $299 mobile phone isn't all looks and no brains, however; it also has its share of high end features, including world-roaming capabilities and an ...
Stylish dye-sub printer for on-the-go photos.(Canon CP-300)
Feb 01, 2004; ... WITH A BATTERY FOR PERIPATETIC PRINTING, the tiny Canon CP-300 photo printer delivers a head-turning design and equally attractive photos. At $379, it's pricey, though. The 300dpi dye-sub printer is housed in an unusual-looking 2.2x6.7x4.8-inch (HWD) rectangular box with a round ...
Hit the road with a mobile photo lab.(HP Photosmart 245 Compact Photo Printer)
Feb 01, 2004 ... PHOTO-SNAPPING FOLKS WHO NEED IMMEDIATE results, such as realtors, insurance adjusters, and the deeply digital-photo obsessed will appreciate the $199.99 HP Photosmart 245 Compact Photo Printer, a portable inkjet that delivers beautiful prints. But they'll have to plug it into a DC car ...
Great price, image quality boost camera's appeal.(Canon EOS Digital Rebel)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Editors' Choice CANON U.S.A. HAS BROKEN NEW GROUND WITH ITS EOS Digital Rebel camera and kit, offering a digital single-lens-reflex (dSLR) model with an interchangeable lens, all for less than $1,000. Its performance and capabilities are only slightly scaled back from Carton's ...
Low price can't redeem design, image flaws.(AG Neovo F-417)
Feb 01, 2004; ... THE TERMS "GOOD VALUE" AND "INEXPENSIVE" are not always synonymous, as thoroughly demonstrated by AG Neovo's 17 inch F-417 TFT LCD monitor. This $399 flat panel is certainly priced low, but its flawed features and poor performance yield an overall unappealing deal. The F-417's ...
Convert VHS to DVD with an easy-to-use kit.(Pinnacle Studio Moviebox DV)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Editors' Choice TRANSFERRING CONTENT FROM VHS to DVD can be fraught with perils, but not if you use Pinnacle Systems' versatile, competent $249.99 Studio MovieBox DV hardware /software combo. The handsome, brushed-aluminum chassis has FireWire, composite, and S-Video ...
Small projector delivers a dazzling performance.(Mitsubishi XD50U)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Editors' Choice MITSUBISHI ELECTRONICS AMERICA dazzles its customers and competitors alike with the $2,795 XD50U DLP projector. This 3.4-pound XGA device throws out bright, colorful, and sharp images. It also includes a CompactFlash-card reader and the ability to project your ...
Poor pix mar $99 camera.(Gateway DC-T20)
Feb 01, 2004; ... We wish we could recommend Gateway's 2-megapixel DC-T20 snapshooter, but its serious image-quality problems could ruin many memorable moments. And that's too bad, because this $99.99 camera is slimmer, better built, and more stylish than its price would indicate. The T20 offers ...
Small wireless bridge makes expansion easy.(Buffalo Airstation 54MBPS Wireless Compact Repeater Bridge-G)
Feb 01, 2004; ... EXPANDING A WIRELESS NETWORK CAN BE A chore, but Buffalo Technology's $99 AirStation 54Mbps Wireless Compact Repeater Bridge-g makes it significantly easier. This small 802.11g repeater uses a technology called Wireless Distribution System (WDS) to relay data between other Buffalo access ...
Fast, simple Wi-Fi router that's perfect for novices.(Dell Truemobile 2300 Wireless Broadband Router)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Editors' Choice DELL'S $89 TRUEMOBILE 2300 WIRELESS BROADBAND Router serves up superior performance and a well-rounded feature set ideally suited for home users. Installation, at least for those using Windows 2000 and XP, is streamlined and simple, making this 802.11g router a ...
Creative control: Adobe's latest upgrades to Illustrator and Photoshop incrementally improve already solid graphics applications.(Software)
Feb 01, 2004; ... THE LATEST VERSIONS OF Adobe Systems' core graphics programs have been given the "CS" tag to signify they are part of the company's Creative Suite, which includes InDesign, GoLive, and the new Version Cue collaboration tool. Each program is available separately, and while it may be cheaper ...
Firewall keeps your PC safe-at a cost.(Norton Personal Firewall 2004)
Feb 01, 2004; ... NORTON PERSONAL FIREWALL (NPF) 2004 DEFENDS your PC against attacks by hackers, port sniffers, and other malcontents. It's easy to set up, and you don't have to touch a thing to make your computer invisible to intruders. But at $49.95--and considering this version's merely minor changes ...
Get privacy protection while you surf the net.(Anonymizer Private Surfing 2.1)
Feb 01, 2004; ... ANONYMIZER PRIVATE SURFING 2.1 IS A SET OF tools that routes all your online activity through Anonymizer's proxy servers to conceal your identity. The $29.95 package is a one year, subscription-only service. The Anonymizer toolbar plug-in hosts seven tools that basically switch ...
Proof of OCR app's worth is in the free print.(Abbyy Finereader 7.0 Professional Edition)
Feb 01, 2004; ... FINEREADER 7.0 PROFESSIONAL EDITION FROM Abbyy Software House once again raises the bar for desktop optical character recognition (OCR) applications. At $299.99, FineReader is pricey, but if you own a scanner with bundled software, you'll probably quality for the competitive $149.99 ...
Past antispam champ loses its killer crown.(McAfee Spamkiller 5.0)
Feb 01, 2004; ... INCORPORATING NETWORK ASSOCIATES' PURCHASE OF Deersoft SpamAssassin Pro, the $49.99 McAfee SpamKiller 5.0 continues a strong spare-fighting tradition with a slick new interface. It proactively filters mail coming into MSN, Hotmail, or standard POP or MAPI e-mail clients (though not AOL), ...
Movie-authoring suite cuts to the chase.(Sonic MYDVD Studio Deluxe 5)
Feb 01, 2004; ... SONIC SOLUTIONS' $99.99 MYDVD STUDIO DELUXE 5 contains all the tools most users need for basic movie authoring and editing, burning audio CDs, backing up a system, and playing DVD movies. It's also the friendliest, most intuitive DVD/CD suite on the market, though power users will find its ...
Turn your PC into a digital-audio studio.(Cubase SX 2.0)
Feb 01, 2004; ... FROM ITS BEGINNINGS AS A HUMBLE MIDI SEQUENcer for old Atari computers, Steinberg's Cubase has gradually developed into a full-fledged digital-audio-software studio. With its move to the SX version, Cubase's MIDI engine was revamped for the first time, and the audio engine from Steinberg's ...
Affordable air supremacy.(Logitech Extreme 3D PRO)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Editors' Choice Gain the competitive edge over your airborne adversaries with the Logitech Extreme 3D Pro joystick: This $34.99 gaming upgrade enables uncanny control of virtual aircraft so you can concentrate on owning the battlefield. Setup is a cinch. We followed ...
Answer the call of the best WWII game yet.(Call Of Duty)
Feb 01, 2004; ... OUTSTANDING WORLD WAR II FIRST-person shooters aren't rare, but Call of Duty surpasses them all with its intense solo missions and fast-paced multiplayer modes. Call of Duty features many of the best aspects of its competitors. You play a rousing sequence of missions from the ...
Comic-book shooter proves an unlucky 13.(XIII)
Feb 01, 2004; ... XIII IS A CEL-SHADED FIRST-PERSON shooter based on a long-running French comic of the same name. The game definitely plays up its roots, complete with readable sound effects and pop-up panels. But while it has style, it won't grip most first-person-shooter fans. XIII, or "13," ...
2003 Shoppers' Choice Awards.(Readers' Choice)
Feb 01, 2004 ... Looking for some expert advice on today's best technology and where to buy It? You've come to the right place. * Each year, thousands of Computer Shopper readers take the time to vote in our Shoppers' Choice Awards, an annual referendum on the best products, services, and ...
The digital den: Microsoft's Media Center software has come of age. Has the hardware followed suit?(Media Center PCs)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Like most pioneering products, Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition was less than perfect in its first iteration. But the software and its accompanying hardware showed promise. Designed to transform the PC into a home entertainment hub, it let you watch, pause, and record live ...
PDA prize fight: Palm OS 5 dukes it out with Windows Mobile 2003. Which PDA operating system packs the biggest punch?(Palm OS 5 versus Windows Mobile 2003)
Feb 01, 2004; ... Microsoft may rule the desktop world, but in the battle for handheld supremacy, it's still anybody's game. Although the Palm operating system--found in handhelds from PalmOne, Kyocera, Sony, Samsung, and other manufacturers--has held a market-share advantage since the beginning, Windows ...
The Hard Edge: chips galore! RFID is coming; guitars go digital; and the horror of running Windows CE in your car's engine is dangerously near.(Alice & Bill)
Feb 01, 2004; ... ALICE AND BILL GET A LOT OF inspiration while waiting: waiting in line at the grocery store, waiting in traffic, even waiting for a cellphone call to go through. In fact, nothing makes the dynamic duo search for technical solutions and hard-core, hard edge innovation more than the act of ...