Fun Zone

Auto Locksmith Reading

emran — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 16:57:42 +0600

We are here to help you when you need it. We provide a 24 hour emergency auto vehicle locksmith service in the Reading and surrounding Berkshire area. Our auto locksmith services are available from practically anywhere in Reading - home, work, even at the side of the road - give us a call and we will come to you, 24 hours a day!

Reading Auto Locksmiths are able to pick open locks on practically any car so no matter what vehicle you have, give us a call for fast, professional assistance.

What if I am away from home and have lost my car keys?
No problem, using our specialist equipment Reading Auto Locksmiths can cut you a new car key wherever you are.

What if my car has an immobiliser?
Most modern cars do. However we can easily progam the new key to work with your immobiliser.

My car key was lost or stolen and I'm worried that someone may try to steal my car...
If you lose your car keys or worse, if they are stolen, it is important to make sure your car cannot be stolen as well.
We can reprogram immobilisers so that the old keys no longer work.

I only have a card on me - do I need to pay in cash for you to unlock my car?
No, we can accept credit and debit card payments at the side of the road using our mobile terminal.

How can I trust you with my car keys?
We are extremely professional and we have been CRB checked, so you can rest easy. If you would like to know more, give us a call - 07866 517 928

Why do you have more than one phone number?
We have freephone number so you can call without charge from a landline, but we also realise that 0800 numbers are chargeable from mobile phones. We provide a mobile number so you can call or text us using your
inclusive minutes/texts.

We are confident you will be 100% satisfied with our service

Auto Locksmith Reading

Logitech Z906 Speaker System

emran — Sat, 08 Dec 2012 15:58:05 +0600

Logitech Z906 Speaker System Review

It doesn't matter how hard your earphones pound your eardrums with cranium shaking noise, you can't truly call yourself a power user unless you're ticking off the neighbors and scaring the hell out of the dog with a surround sound setup that rattles the walls and punches copious amounts of bass. Without it, you might as well give your man-card away to someone who plans on fulfilling the requirements for membership in an illustrious club that demands everything be over the top.

Logitech's famed Z-5500 system fit the bill, and there are many who consider it to be the king of multimedia speakers. But a king's reign can only last so long before either being usurped, or passing the torch to a successor. In this case, it's the latter, with Logitech's new Z906 speaker system stepping up to the throne as the company's new flagship speaker-set. Like the Z-5500, the Z906 comes ready to tackle your entire entertainment center with enough inputs to accommodate up to six devices at once, including your TV, DVD, DVR, Blu-ray player, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii, iPod, and of course your PC or Mac. It has a Class-D amplifier, Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS decoding, 500 watts (RMS) of power, and an 8-inch side-firing subwoofer to deliver the kind of thunderous bass you've come to expect from Logitech. But is it worthy of sitting on the throne once occupied by the Z-5500s? Let's turn the dial up and find out!

Logitech Z906 5.1 Speaker System

Specifications & Features

Specifications

Frequency response: 35Hz – 20kHz
500 watts (RMS) total power (Subwoofer 165 watts, Satellites 335 watts)
Maximum SPL: >110 dBC
Signal to Noise ratio, A-weighted: >95dB

Subwoofer:

8-inch high-excursion ported driver (side-firing)
6th-order bass reflex enclosure
Class D amplifier

Satellites:

3-inch polished aluminum phase plug drivers
67 watts per satellite

I/O, Controls and Programming

Source inputs: Digital Coaxial, Digital Optical (2), 6-channel direct (3 x 3.5mm), Stereo (RCA), and Analog stereo-mini (3.5mm)
Supported digital formats: Dolby Digital and DTS Digital Sound
Stackable control console with headphone and Aux inputs

Package Contents

Subwoofer
Satellites (five)
Stackable control console
Remote control (three AAA batteries included)
18-gauge speaker wires (3 x 15ft, 2 x 25ft)
6-channel direct input cable
User documentation

Going by the numbers, the Z906 has all the makings of a solid 5.1 setup for the living room or PC / game room. It's capable of pumping out 500 watts (RMS), with 165 watts going to the 8-inch, side-firing subwoofer. But what's really great about the Z906 -- and something we'll cover more closely on the following pages -- is how well it blends into an entertainment center. The stackable control console is compact and comes with a wireless remote, while the satellites are sleek looking with rubber strips on the bottom instead of speaker stands, making them easy to place.

Inside the Z906 box, users will find the 8-inch subwoofer, four front and rear satellites, a center channel satellite, the stackable control pod, speaker wires, and a 6-channel direct input cable for connecting the speaker system to your PC.

The included speaker wires are only 18-gauge -- plenty sufficient for mainstream use -- but the nice thing here is that you can replace them with thicker wires since the satellites and subwoofer all use standard color-coded spring clip terminals. Logitech also marked the end of each positive speaker wire with a red border, so even if this is your first time hooking up a speaker system, there's little chance something will go wrong.

Whereas the Z-5500 speaker set looked like it belonged in a computer room, the Z906 is much sleeker and would have a better time blending in with a modest entertainment center, if that's where you plan to use it. The speakers sport a light black/dark grey, plastic exterior with a non-removable metal grille covering the driver. Though it's made of plastic, the speakers feel solid and slightly heavy.

We whipped out our allen wrench to take a peek inside one of the satellite speakers. The Z906's 3-inch satellites are sealed and use paper cones. There's no tweeter to help out with the highs, and Logitech instead relies on a compression driver design with phase plugs to extend the high frequency response and reproduce the entire sound spectrum. Each satellite is fed 67 watts (RMS) of power for a total of 335 watts

As previously mentioned, the satellites (and subwoofer) all sport color-coded spring clip terminals, so you're only limited to the size of the wire you can jam into the opening. There's no love for the banana plug loving crowd, which isn't surprising for a multimedia speaker-set.

The Z906 satellites also come with screw threads in the back in case you want to mount them to your wall. If going that route, you'll need to supply your own hardware though.

We know what you're really interested in, and that's the subwoofer. Audiophiles place a high value on subwoofers to accurately reproduce those rumbling lows, and regular Joes want to feel the thunderous bass rattle their internal organs. The one included with the Z906 speaker system is an 8-inch, side-firing, ported sub with a 6th-order bass reflex enclosure. In terms of size, it's a bit of a downgrade compared to the 10-inch subwoofer included with the Z-5500, it's supplied with less power too (165 watts on the Z906's subwoofer versus 187 watts on the Z-5500's).

Setting up a 5.1 speaker system can seem like a daunting experience if you've never done it before. Fortunately for new users, Logitech treats the process as if this is your first rodeo, leaving little room for error along the way.

It starts with the back of the 8-inch subwoofer. Here is where you'll find all the necessary connections for your PC and home theater gear, including a 6-channel direct input (cable included), RCA input, two optical inputs, and a coaxial input. Just below sits the 15-pin console connector, and below that are a series of spring-clip terminals for hooking up all five satellites, each one clearly labeled (rear left, rear right, front left, front right, and center). One thing to note about the 15-pin console connector is that you'll want to be extra careful when plugging it in. We actually managed to bend, and eventually break one of the pins because we didn't line up the plug just right, rendering the entire unit non-functional (it won't power on if all 15 pins aren't intact).

Perhaps for the sake of appearance, and to help with location, Logitech shoved the amp inside the Z906's subwoofer rather than have it protrude out the back as with the Z-5500. For those of you concerned about overheating, the subwoofer never felt hot during testing.

Assuming you're more coordinated than we are and managed to plug the control console into the subwoofer without issue, everything should fire right up. The control console serves as a HUD of sorts, with orange LEDs indicating which input you're using, the type of decoding selected, volume level, and which speakers are firing.

There's quite a bit you can accomplish with the compact control console. There's a mute button, a level select button to adjust the volume on each speaker/subwoofer individually, and an effect select button with the following options:

Stereo 3D: Provides a 3D surround sound effect through all speakers
Stereo 4.1: Plays stereo through both front and both rear satellites, plus the subwoofer
Stereo 2.1: Plays stereo through both the front satellites and the subwoofer

The control pod itself is relatively small and designed to stack with your other home theater gear, such as placing it on top of your receiver or DVD player.

On the right side of the control pod you'll find a headphone jack that, when utilized, mutes all other outputs, and an auxiliary input for connecting external devices like a media player.

We mentioned that the Z906 speaker system would fit right in with an entertainment center, and towards that end Logitech ditched metallic speaker stands in favor of rubber sliders on the bottom. This takes up a little less space and allows the speakers to blend in inconspicuously with the rest of your AV equipment.

Like previous speaker systems from Logitech, the Z906 includes a remote control so you can play the part of conductor from the couch or your bed. It requires three AAA batteries (included) and features an On/Off button, Input Select, Mute, Level Select, Volume/Level Up, Effect Select, Volume/Level Down, and Test button to make sure all the speakers are working.

To test the Logitech Z906 Speaker System, we loaded up a sample of low frequency bass tests, music files, CDs, games, and movies. Our goal is get an overall picture of performance rather than focus on just one area, like gaming. After all, not everyone is going to use these as strictly PC speakers, and likewise not everyone will shove these into their home theater setup.

Low Frequency Tests:

We hammered the subwoofer with a series of low frequency files, including those found here. The bass was more than adequate for an entry-level home theater, though it doesn't dip below 35Hz like a dedicated HT subwoofer would (or should). For the frequencies that it did it, the sound wasn't overly muddled.

Movies:

While watching movies, the Z906 system again proved that it's more than capable of serving entry-level home theater duties. The satellites pump out volume without distorting, and the bass delivers a respectable amount of oomph for a $400 setup. It doesn't punch you in the gut like subwoofers that cost three times (or more) than the entire Z906 system, but it's a big upgrade over whatever built-in speakers your HDTV is rocking, both in volume and impact.

Games:

Playing games is where the Logitech Z906 excelled the most. A 5.1 setup makes all the difference in the world, and while some headsets do a superb job of replicating the various sound fields, sitting in the sweet spot of dedicated speakers just has no substitute. The Z906 was designed to hit hard and loud, and it delivers on both fronts.

Music:

We loaded up a variety of music files and CDs to test the Z906's ability to rock and thump and twang, and so forth. Overall the Z906 performed well, though music listening doesn't play into its strengths. Without tweeters, the satellites struggle a bit with highs, something that was evident when we fired up our Gangsta grass CD. Gangstragrass mixes rap with bluegrass (with brilliant results, mind you), and while the Z906 proved it gets loud, the one-way drivers had a tough time piercing the high notes of the fiddle play.

That said, if you're not an audiophile, you'll think we're offer our rocker for picking on the music performance of the Z906. Logitech's flagship multimedia speaker-set doesn't sound bad, it just doesn't put you in the middle of the orchestra.

Performance Summary: Straight and to the point, Logitech has another winning multimedia speaker-set on its hands with the Z906 Speaker System. We've come to expect distortion-free performance at loud levels with hard hitting bass, and the Z906 delivers whether watching movies or playing games, at a street price around $320. The single satellite drivers struggle a bit with highs in music, but unless you're an audiophile, you likely won't notice.

Logitech put a lot of thought into the design of the Z906, taking aim not just at PC users, but home entertainment buffs too. Like the Z-5500, the Z906 can accommodate up to six connections at once, but the Z906 is far better suited for an entry-level home theater. The compact console center is stackable, and all five satellites are sleek and light black/dark grey to better blend in with your other AV gear. We also like that Logitech ditched individual stands in favor of rubber sliders, so you can place the satellites in and around your home theater without having them stick out like a sore thumb.

We do have some complaints with the Z906. While the speaker-set features built-in Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS decoding, it doesn't touch Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD Master Audio. There's also no HDMI pass-through, an inexcusable omission for a modern speaker-set looking to infiltrate the living room. And finally, the lack of tweeters hurts the Z906's overall performance when it comes to music.

Negative points aside, there's far more to like than there is to nitpick. The Z906 is loud, it's thunderous, and it looks sexy while filling your room with sound. Whether you're looking for a entry-level home theater speaker system or a high-end 5.1 PC audio solution, the Z906 is a solid option.

HOT (Plus Point)	NOT (Minus Point)
Hard hitting bass Gets loud without getting distored Tons of connections Uses standard speaker wire Built-in Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS decoding	No HDMI pass-through Where's the love for Dolby TrueHD and/or DTS-HD Master Audio? Struggles with highs when listening to music

ASUS ZenBook Prime UX32

emran — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 15:31:56 +0600

The ASUS Zenbooks are stylish and offer a wide range of configurations to help consumers find an Ultrabook that fits their budgets.Overview
This Ultrabook breaks the mold by using lower cost components including a traditional hard drive instead of just an SSD. Our thoughts on this setup might surprise you.
Build and Design
The UX32 has a classy if somewhat generic look; it doesn't have any striking features other than its thinness and bright silver color. The notebook's exterior is covered exclusively in metal alloys. The lid is a gunmetal gray while the rest of the notebook including the bottom of the chassis is silver brushed aluminum.
Saying this notebook feels solid is accurate - there is virtually no chassis flex. I'm especially impressed by the rigidity of the lid; it barely moves when flexed and no ripples appear on the screen when pressure is applied to the back. This means there is plenty of protection which is important in a notebook that will be transported often. Fit and finish is good; some edges are rougher than expected but said edges don't jump out as less than acceptable quality.
Those looking to upgrade the UX32 will find themselves out of luck; there are no user-accessible panels to replace components like memory or the storage drive. The battery is also not user-changeable but as we'll see later in this review, there is plenty of battery life to go around.
Input and Output Ports
Port selection is minimal on an Ultrabook due to the nature of their design; the UX32 includes all of the ports that count though including a full-size HDMI. Ethernet is not available which is unusual; most Ultrabooks make it available via a dongle. Somehow I doubt the inclusion of Ethernet is a factor in most Ultrabook shopper's minds.
All picture descriptions shown below are listed from left to right.

Left: USB 3.0, media card reader
Right: Headphone/microphone combination jack, VGA (via dongle), HDMI, 2x USB 3.0, AC power jackKeyboard and Touchpad
The full-size keyboard has chiclet-style keys. The white backlighting has several brightness levels and is quite functional in a darker environment. There is no flex and the keys have plenty of travel providing ample tactile feedback. Good feedback is what most Ultrabooks are missing. The keys have a soft but not rubbery feel and have a nice smooth surface. It's quiet too; my complaint with this keyboard is that the home, end, pgup and pgdn keys are integrated as secondary functions into the arrow keys. These keys should be dedicated. My other complaint is related; the power on/off key is a keyboard key in the top right corner. This key should be its own button in the chassis itself, away from the keyboard.

The large touchpad is a clickpad; press down anywhere to produce a click. I like this clickpad better than most I've tried; it doesn't require an unnatural amount of pressure to produce a click and the required pressure is consistent from front to back. I wish the clicks were quieter but overall this is an excellent solution.
Screen and Speakers
The UX32 has a 13.3-inch display. The best part of this display is the anti-glare coating which prevents annoying reflections in well-lit environments. The resolution is merely 1366x768, which is the minimum notebooks are sold with. Note that the Zenbook Prime is also sold in this same size with an amazing 1920x1080 resolution (for more money, naturally). As it stands the 1366x768 resolution on this unit means a lot of scrolling and an inability to use two windows side by side.
There is more good news about this display however: the picture quality is considerably better than expected; nearly all 1366x768 displays I tested up to this point have been lacking. The contrast of this display is the most noticeable improvement; black and white levels look less washed out. Additionally the saturation is markedly better; colors actually have some life to them. This display is advertised as having wide viewing angles and they are better; the display still washes out at extreme vertical angles but it's not as quickly as I'm used to. Side to side viewing angles are nearly perfect.

One last observation about this display is how far it tilts back; it doesn't go far enough past vertical, only to the 45 degree mark. Overall this display is better than average and the Zenbook Prime is available with a better display if desired.
ASUS uses a custom-engineered Bang & Olufsen speaker system that produces impressive sound given the size of this notebook. The sound resonates from the entire chassis not just two small speakers. They get loud enough for a few people to watch a movie and have appreciable bass.

Performance and Benchmarks
ASUS ZenBook Prime UX32 has the following configuration
13.3-inch anti-glare 720p display with wide viewing angles (1366x768 resolution)Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bitIntel Core i5-3317U dual-core processor (1.7GHz, up to 2.6GHz Turbo Boost, 3MB cache, 17W TDP)Integrated Intel HD graphics4GB DDR3-1600 RAM (max. supported)500GB 5400RPM hard drive (Hitachi HTS545050A7E380, 7mm thickness)24GB SanDisk SSD i100 cacheIntel Centrino Advanced-N 6235Integrated Bluetooth V4.0Integrated HD webcamNo internal optical drive1-year limited warranty w/ accidental damage protection48Wh li-ion batteryWeight: 3.2 lbs.Dimensions: 12.83 x 8.9 x 0.72 inchesPrice as configured: $899.99The specifications would be unremarkable for an Ultrabook save for two things, the first of which is the storage. The UX32 includes a traditional hard drive with a small 24GB SSD which is not Ultrabook-like. The SSD is slaved to the hard drive to help improve performance. The advantage is that the UX32 has a lot of space, double that of Ultrabooks using the largest SSDs available (256GB). The second interesting item is the display; it has an anti-glare surface and wide viewing angles. This is one of the first 1366x768 resolution displays we've used that has better than average picture quality. It's worth noting that the Zenbook Prime is also available with a crazy 1920x1080 resolution IPS display.
This configuration of the UX32 did just okay in our benchmarks; the performance holds up to everyday usage including Internet browsing but feels sluggish next to other Ultrabooks; the hard drive is unquestionably slow. Other variants of the Zenbook Prime are available with SSD-only solutions.

wPrime processor comparison results (lower scores mean better performance):

PCMark Vantage is an older benchmark that measures overall system performance (higher scores mean better performance):

PCMark 7 is a newer benchmark and measures overall system performance in Windows 7 (higher scores mean better performance):

3DMark06 measures overall graphics card performance for gaming (higher scores mean better performance):

CrystalDiskMark storage drive performance test:

Heat and Noise
The UX32 is more or less silent in all operations. The cooling system pushes air out the back of the notebook towards the display hinge, something that I'm not a fan of; I like to see the air exhausted directly out of the chassis instead of being deflected. Nonetheless the cooling system works well; fan noise is just about nonexistent with no whine and it keeps the notebook cool even under full load. The hard drive makes subtle clicking noises which are audible in an otherwise silent room.
Battery Life
We measured six hours, 35 minutes of battery life during our standard battery run-down test (Windows 7 Balanced power profile, 70% display brightness, wireless active and refreshing a web page every 60 seconds). This is an unremarkable time for an Ultrabook; it falls within the range of acceptability.

Battery life test results (higher scores mean better battery life):

The ASUS ZenBook UX32 is a recommendable Ultrabook; it has the right mix of quality and features. The display is pleasantly of good quality despite having just a 1366x768 resolution; the keyboard has the best feel of any Ultrabook we've tried and the touchpad is excellent; it even has decent speakers. One area where this notebook could improve is in performance; the included hard drive/small SSD combo while innovative (most Ultrabooks have limited storage space since they only have SSDs) is slow and the UX32 like most Ultrabooks can't be upgraded.

Other than the hard drive we find little to dislike about the UX32. ASUS Zenbook Primes are available with better displays and different storage solutions; things can only get better from our review unit.
Pros:

Better than average display
Good keyboard and touchpad
Nice speakers
Solid build quality

Cons:

Slow hard drive

Individual Ratings(Out of 5): *

Software & Support :4

Upgrade Capabilities :1

Usability Design :3

Performance :2.5

Features :3

Price/Value Rating :3

*Ratings averaged to produce final score

All About Hidden Camera

emran — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 10:30:23 +0700

Home Security Systems & Spy Camera Review For Home and Business

There really are a few pointers that just one really should consider with them when searching for the ideal wireless home security system. They are not just what types of safety cameras could possibly be used nor, for that matter, no issue whether the cctv dvr is using the required standard. It also has obtained to finish using the target and location using the method and its cameras, as will very likely be the overall performance of cameras in bad gentle furthermore to the clarity using the pictures they record.

With regards outside cameras, wireless home security system, there could possibly be considered a should look at the IP rating as this relates especially in the direction of the ability using the electronic camera to with stand the elements. bear in mind that in between wind, bad weather and snow, any outside gadget is susceptible to instant pieces of flying debris from the air, a range of humidity and humidity ranges and condensation, all of which could possibly be extremely damaging to some electronic camera that is not created robustly enough.
Indoors, the signal from electronic camera to internet or recorder should stay powerful or beneficial footage could possibly be lost, although the growth of stand alone cameras with inbuilt documenting competencies negates that risk.

Lux will very likely be the standard measurement of light, using the reduced lux rating the reduced the level of illumination in any granted place. When it arrives cctv cameras, that is of particular significance for outside techniques contemplating that of the should report much more than night, furthermore to the fact that their eyesight is not typically aided by flood lights or area lights. The lux rating that just one would like to possess is zero or one, the two of which show how the electronic camera can recorded obviously in very, really reduced light.

Top 10 Best Laptops

emran — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 10:27:37 +0700

Article Source: www.jitutechnology.com

Buying a laptop these days is really a hectic task. The bulk amount of Laptops present in market with variety of model is really enough to make your mind spin around and around. Most of the people have good idea for buying their laptop with their required specification and features but most of the people are confused about their choice.

So last week we studied about the laptops which are Good and are reviewed as best laptops. We are going to mentioned few of them here. Though there are large number of variety of Laptops present in the market, we are going to make your choicenarrow by listing top 10 laptops around the market these days.

Alienware M18x

The 18.4 inch display Alienware is completely tricked-out with lightening effects an is packed with top components in a very sharp looking design. The Alienware M18x laptops really look daunting and are best known forperformance. Game lovers are using it and it does not come at cheap price, it cost around $4529

MSI GT783-625US

The MSI GT783-625US contains all the trapping of Gaming Laptops. Also noticed that it cooling fans are extraordinary louder than any other laptops but it’s really cheap compared with its included features and it cost around $2599

Acer Aspire 5349-2635

The Acer Aspire 5349-2635 is really astonishingly likeable laptops for people at a very cheap price and it cost around $348.

HP Envy 17 (2012)

The most stunning screen of the HP Envy 17 is super-fast and is loaded with media center laptop. Its visual is awesome with lovely Beats Audio. You can buy it at around $1484 nearby your shop.

HP EliteBook 856w

Also known as the best for workstation laptop where there is need of highperformance and power spare. The HP EliteBook 8560w offers quad-processing with ISV-certified graphics and bulk list of top-notch features. The Best deal for laptop was found at $1489.

HP Folio 13

This is really a ultrabook with a very comfortable keyboard and a broad port selection at an lovely price around $900.

Samsung Series 7 (NP700Z5A-S03)

It is really lovely and is really winning for desktop replacement. You can get one piece for yourself at around $1299.

Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch

The Apple MacBook with really stylish and slim design gets brand new hardware and software. It comes with quad-core Intel Core i7 processor with AMD Radeon GPU and OS X lion. It cost around $1799

Asus Zenbook UX31-RSL8

The Asus Zenbook UX32-RL8 has overall better performance including good battery life than any competitor has a brilliant display; super sound with solid construction comes at around $1049

Apple MacBook Air-13 inch (Thunderbolt)

The Apple MacBook comes with core i5 processor with backlit keyboard and a Thunderbolt port. It comes at around $1299

Disclaimer: Please note it down the price mentioned above may vary according to your country and region.

Security System For Home & Business

emran — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 13:31:02 +0700

Wireless Home Security Systems Review For Home and Business

Wireless home security system possibly be used broadly in property or home income talk, but area is equally significant in conditions of choosing the ideal system. To this end, just one demands getting completely obvious on precisely where cameras are getting positioned earlier to choosing a system, with some using the particular problems getting addressed getting no issue whether cameras will very likely be used outside and, if so, their range from the important thing building. If they are getting used indoors, then their range from the electronic movement photo recorder and durability of signal remote cameras have.
With regards outside cameras, wireless home security system, there could possibly be considered a should look at the IP rating as this relates especially in the direction of the ability using the electronic camera to with stand the elements. bear in mind that in between wind, bad weather and snow, any outside gadget is susceptible to instant pieces of flying debris from the air, a range of humidity and humidity ranges and condensation, all of which could possibly be extremely damaging to some electronic camera that is not created robustly enough.
Indoors, the signal from electronic camera to internet or recorder should stay powerful or beneficial footage could possibly be lost, although the growth of stand alone cameras with inbuilt documenting competencies negates that risk.

BnB Tobacco - Cheap Tobacco for "TOBACCO LOVERS"

emran — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 16:21:17 +0700

BnB Tobacco offers cheap & best quality tobaccos ever.

An electric cigarette fulfills the same needs as a tobacco cigarette but without the immense health risks and social taboo. In many cases where the dependence on nicotine is not severe, the amount of nicotine in an electric cigarette may not matter as much as how closely the e-cigarette replicates the smoking experience. Such triggers as taste and the appearance of “smoke” (actually vapor) may be enough to calm the craving to smoke. Electric Cigarette batteries are rechargeable lithium the type. They will generally last for about 2-3 cartridges or the equivalent of 2-3 packs of cigarettes. The length of charge is of course different for everyone. As they are lithium ion, you can recharge them even if they are not completely empty to a full charge without adversely effecting the battery.

An electric cigarette can resolve most of the issues around smoking. If it’s cool to smoke a cigarette, it’s even cooler to smoke an electric cigarette. The presence of nicotine in small amounts can have the same calming effect as smoking cigarettes with more nicotine. An electric cigarette cartridge is equal to approximately 1 pack of cigarettes . This will vary depending on the type of smoker you are and the model of the ecig you buy. When you start to notice that you are no longer getting a decent amount of vapor in your draw, this means your eliquid is running low. At this point, you will replace or refill the cartridge. The Electric cigarette cartridge holds the e-liquid containing the nicotine. The cartridges come pre-filled in various nicotine strengths and flavors. Nicotine strengths are available to simulate regular cigarettes, light cigarettes, ultra light cigarettes and there is also a 0 nicotine strength. You can add flavor to any strength. There are too many flavors to list but some of my favorite are Chocolate, Vanilla, Cappuccino and Strawberry.

The electric cigarette is known to be more effective in giving smokers a nicotine fix compared to nicotine patches and gums. The inhaled nicotine vapor satisfies the nicotine craving in seconds unlike patches and gums that satisfies your nicotine craving in minutes. The initial investment of $70 or $200 may be steep if you let the math speak; the numbers will show that it is cheaper in the long run compared to traditional cigarettes. Because an electric cigarette uses no tobacco, users actually inhale a vapor which contains nicotine. Called “vaping” this has been shown to reduce nicotine cravings and to satisfy the smokers’ by replicating the physical process of smoking. This makes the e-cigarette more appealing than nicotine patches or gum. The relative value of e-cigarettes as a way of quitting smoking is debatable as well. For some, the e-cigarette is effective, particularly when the smoker slowly decreases the amount of nicotine in the e-cigarette. However, once again, time (or the lack thereof) has not allowed for much in the way of study. The attraction to the electric cigarette for many people is four fold. First, for those who are addicted to nicotine, the e-cigarette solves the craving. Second, for those who are not addicted but who use cigarettes as “something to do” with their hands, the e-cigarette replaces traditional smokes. Third, for those who are concerned about the effects of tar and other additives in traditional cigarettes, the electric cigarette lessen the worry. And fourth, e-cigarettes are a useful tool for those who are trying to quit smoking. The popularity of the electric cigarette has grown considerably in the last few years for two reasons. Doctors and scientists have intensified their warnings about the harmful effects of tobacco. In addition, it has become more and more difficult to find a location where smoking is allowed. As a viable alternative to traditional cigarettes, the electric cigarette offers the twin benefits of being healthier than regular cigarettes and more socially acceptable. The most highly touted electric cigarette on the market, White Cloud must have done something right. Their electric cigarette is by far the most expensive model you'll find. It's also the highest quality and was voted "best electric cigarette" by a panel of independent users. With one drag of a White Cloud Electric Cigarette, you won't wonder why it's the most expensive.
To give you a clear overview, an electric cigarette is basically a puffing device which resembles a typical tobacco or cigarette. In some cases, it is designed artistically so as to look identical to the real ones. Electric cigarettes make use of electricity through the battery source for heat to be produced which eventually vaporizes the liquid component therein. Some electric cigarette brands really integrate nicotine in the solution so to give the same taste like real ones do. Whatever your likings and preferences, you can always go for the best electric cigarette brand as considered by the majority of the users.
One more thing about how smoking an electric cigarette is not like traditional smoking; it isn’t messy. Many people are offended by the mess of regular smoking. With an e-cigarette, you don’t need a lighter or matches. You don’t need an ashtray because there are no ashes and certainly no disgusting ground up butts.If you’re a dedicated smoker, trying an electric cigarette will probably surprise you. You can choose mentholated e-cigarettes, or some with other flavors like fruit or coffee. You can get them in colors if you want to make a statement. You can choose the amount of nicotine you want or even start with a higher percentage and work down to a lower one. Anyway you look at it an electric cigarette can give you all the enjoyment of a traditional cigarette without the scary, messy parts.Containment. Because there is no smoke, an electric cigarette can only affect those who use it. There is no worry about second-hand smoke to infiltrate one’s home, office, or public place. Many establishments with strict no-smoking policies are more than happy to allow e-cigarettes. The one drawback is that many people do not know what e-cigarettes are and may assume that the vapor they see emitted is actually smoke. This of course is not true.

Invented in 2003 by a Chinese pharmacist, the electric cigarette has been met with both applause and skepticism. Today there are literally millions of e-cigarette users around the world and, as science has perfected the product, the demand is growing every month. With that, concerns over the safety of the electric cigarette have also grown.One approach to cease smoking is to substitute an electric cigarette for a tobacco cigarette. By reducing the amount of nicotine in the e-cigarette over time, you can lessen or eliminate the need for nicotine. Of course the real measure of whether or not using an electric cigarette will help you stop smoking lies with individual smokers. As with researchers, there is a mixed bag of success stories among users. As Mark Twain said "Quitting smoking is easy, I've done it a thousand times." But then, he didn’t have e-cigarettes. According to toxicology tests in 2008, assuming that the electric cigarette is the product of a reputable manufacturer, it is far healthier than a traditional tobacco cigarette. Also, these tests found that the level of any harmful chemicals at all in e-cigarettes were virtually the same as those found in nicotine patches.

The Electronic cigarettes or e cigarette is the latest electronic smoking alternative choice for traditional smokers. Electronic cigarettes are made up of three essential components; an e cig atomizer , e cig battery and the e cigarette cartridge . Electronic cigarettes are rechargeable and refillable and represent a huge saving in cost compared to traditional cigarettes. They are a very useful electronic alternative to help cigarette users to switch to a healthier alternative. The electric cigarette is a useful alternative in helping to reduce the urge of smoking due to the delivery of a small measured dose of nicotine.

BnB Tobacco offers best tobacco related items in the world

Denon AVR-2310 AV Receiver

emran — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 17:58:10 +0600

We Brits are a peculiar bunch. Obsessed by the weather, guzzling down fish and chips like there's no tomorrow and fanatical about a game where 22 men lump a ball around a big patch of grass - idiosyncrasies that sound strange to outsiders but make us the great nation we are.

Just like our tastes in home cinema in fact. We have very specific ideas about how we like our movies to sound, and that's something Denon has recognised with its latest range of AV receivers, two of which have been tuned specifically for UK ears.

The AVR-2310 is the most advanced of three new sub-£1,000 models launched by Denon this year, alongside the entry-level, 550W AVR-1610 (£349) and the step-up 840W AVR-1910 (£479). Both the AVR-2310 and the AVR-1910 are 'UK Tuned', which means that Denon's Japanese engineers have conducted extensive listening sessions with Denon UK's audio gurus and tweaked the sound until everyone in the room is happy. It's hard to say exactly what the 'UK sound' is, but it lies somewhere between the upfront brashness favoured by Germans and the softer, detailed sound that delights Japanese eardrums.

What UK buyers also love is a lengthy list of cutting-edge features to play with, and the AVR-2310 goes far and beyond the call of duty, offering a range of goodies that'll make any self-respecting home cinema fan feel like a kid in a sweet shop on pocket money day.

More on those later, but first let's talk aesthetics. Denon sent us the Black version but it's also available in Premium Silver if that floats your boat, and in both cases the company has crafted an undeniably attractive unit that doesn't rely on lights 'n' logos to underline its cutting-edge credentials - this earns aesthetic brownie points with a classy, understated look that Denon always does so well.

The vibration-resistant casing - bolstered by a rigid bottom chassis set on cast-iron feet - is reassuringly sturdy and the unit is surprisingly compact, slotting into the space normally occupied by my beloved AVR-3802 with loads of room around the edges.

Every aspect of the front panel is tasteful and user-friendly, the standout feature being a huge display window that presents the key info in large letters. A row of buttons is almost invisibly integrated along the bottom edge of the display panel, while all the other keys (governing menu control, surround modes and more) are tidily arranged along the bottom. You'll also find satisfyingly big dials for volume and source selection, plus S-video, composite, stereo audio and optical digital audio inputs.

On the back is a mind-blowing array of sockets that should keep you going for years to come. The highlight of course is the inclusion of five HDMI v1.3 inputs for hi-def gear, plus an output to pass the signals to your display. Like many of its rivals, the AVR-2310 features built-in upscaling circuitry that allows you to feed in an SD signal and get 720p, 1080i or 1080p out the other end.

Your audio sources are in good hands too, with two optical and two coaxial digital inputs (and one optical output), six sets of analogue inputs (and two outputs), 7.1-channel external inputs and analogue pre-outs. Add to that a shedload of other video inputs/outputs, an optional iPod dock connection and custom install ports and this receiver is just about ready for anything.

The Denon's surround back speaker terminals can be used for their nominated purpose, or you can reassign them in the setup menu for Front Height channels, speakers in a second zone or to bi-amp a front pair.

As mentioned, the AVR-2310 offers the sort of extensive feature list that you'd hope for at this price. It blasts out 135W from all seven channels and decodes the entire gamut of Dolby and DTS formats on Blu-ray and DVD, including hi-res Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD Master Audio tracks.

Denon has also joined Onkyo in offering Dolby Pro Logic IIz processing, which cleverly lets you add an element of height to the 5.1 soundstage - if you're prepared to install a pair of speakers above your TV that is. It extracts non-directional audio information contained in any soundtrack and sends it to two 'front height' channels, giving the impression that certain effects and ambience are emerging above you. It's an interesting idea and the results can be impressive, but we're not 100 per cent convinced many home cinema fans will invest the time and effort for such marginal benefits. Much more useful is Pro Logic IIz's ability to boost stereo sources up to 5.1 and 7.1 channels.

You'll find a wealth of other audio features, including seven Denon surround modes and the Restorer feature, which aims to improve compressed audio playback by replacing the data lost during compression. It's also equipped with Audyssey's MultEQ, which attempts to maintain the optimum sound quality at all times. Dynamic EQ and Dynamic Volume lend able support, respectively enhancing low-level dynamics and smoothing over sudden changes in volume.

Some hands-on time with the AVR-2310's operating system reveals it to be slick and easy to use, thanks mainly to the onscreen menus displayed via the HDMI output. The vast functionality on board makes this GUI a real godsend, and despite its unflashy appearance the clear, intelligent layout makes it a joy to navigate. You can tweak settings on the front display panel, but it feels laborious by comparison.

The exhaustive range of audio adjustments could take days to get your head round, but thankfully Audyssey's MultEQ auto setup removes the hassle. It takes all the necessary room readings for you (using the supplied mic) in up to six listening positions and then sets the appropriate levels. The results are fine, though a little manual tweaking was required afterwards to bring the sound up to scratch, particularly the bass level.

Denon has struck gold with the remote, which cleverly puts all the frequently-used controls on one side, then buries the lesser-used keys under a flap on the back. It's big, but the intuitive layout and clear labelling keep confusion at bay.

Not only is it easy to use, but the AVR-2310 is also a masterful performer. We sat throughTransformers on Blu-ray for what must have been the hundredth time, but such is the Denon's level of insight and energy that it felt like a fresh, new experience.

The Denon sets out its stall right from the movie's opening credits, lending warmth and presence to Optimus Prime's treacly voiceover. Cut to Blackout's attack on the Army base and the soundstage explodes into life, with the Denon orchestrating the carnage beautifully - rapid, biting machine gun fire rattles from the fronts and surrounds, the robot clatters around without a hint of hardness to the high frequencies, while surround steering is smooth, fast and precise. It's an invigorating listen that had me on the edge of my seat despite knowing exactly what was going to happen next.

Bass output is absolutely monstrous when needed, but remains tight and punchy. Pounding footsteps and explosions carry enough heft to shake the floor but sound nimble and sprightly, propelling the action along without bludgeoning you into submission.

Detail levels are exceptional, not only during the big action scenes but also during the movie's (few) quiet moments - background ambience and effects, like gentle robotic bleeps and the score's subtle percussion, are teased out and presented with sparkling clarity. Human dialogue is also smooth and well-rounded.

Switching to music material, the AVR-2310 demonstrates the same level of expertise. Its presentation of What The World Needs Now Is Love by Japanese jazz group Atagiin is so open and natural that the band could be in the room with you. Crisp percussion dances alongside the deep and agile double bass with perfect timing. And it goes for the jugular with Nirvana's Nevermind on CD, giving a fiery performance and conveying Kurt Cobain's voice in all its cracked, raspy beauty.

Verdict

As you can probably tell, we absolutely love this receiver. And with good reason - it's packed with features, easy to use and delivers a sensational performance with movies and music, all of which makes that seemingly high price tag suddenly look pretty reasonable. And the scary thing is, the AVR-2310 isn't even the best Denon has to offer this year - its new mid-range and high-end models are just around the corner, the quality of which will be beyond belief if this is anything to go by.

Sony STR-DA3700ES AV Receiver Video Review

emran — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:48:19 +0600

Today we're looking at the new Sony STR-DA3700ES Receiver. We're actually pretty excited about this one because we got to see it up close and personal at this year's CEDIA event in Indianapolis. What's the big deal? Well, Sony has completely redesigned the GUI on-screen display and setup system. They haven't just redesigned the setup menu, they've took an axe to the whole way you connect and engage music, video and streaming media. In all honesty, we had to restrain ourselves from lifting up the receiver to look for an Apple logo.

When we first set up the system it asked us for language and then took us through a series of guided steps to set up our network and speakers. This is done via a set of largely automatic, graphically-intensive prompts that make it so that even neophytes can get through the process unscathed. For speaker setup it used the included microphone to detect and configure our speakers. When it got to networking it asked a few questions and then proceeded to automatically configure the network and assign an IP address. There were no hassles and no hang-ups - it was really easy. In fact, it was far easier than any other AV receiver we'd ever used.

If you go back into the Setup menu you can see that it has an extensive graphic visual interface for setting up your room, noting the number of speakers and their designation. So to reconfigure your system - you just match what you see on the screen to what you're using.

Going back to the Main menu of the receiver we find six graphical menus: Watch, Listen, Favorites, Easy Automation, Sound Effects and Settings. The first three and Settings make sense right from the start, but Easy Automation might scare some people off, and Sound Effects is just plain wrong unless you click it and get explosions, car crashes and bullet ricochets... actually, that would be really cool.. but make no sense... OK, moving on...

The first place we went was Watch Now to check out the Internet Video subsection. It ran a quick update and landed us into a PS3-like menu system that displayed our options. Available was Video Unlimited, Amazon Video on Demand, Hulu Plus, Netflix, VUDU, NHL Vault, YouTube, Blip.tv, Crackle and tons of other micro apps. Basically, you can watch hours and hours of television and movies without ever connecting a single source component to the STR-DA3700ES receiver. That's pretty profound and this is one of the first AV receivers we've seen where content isn't an afterthought.

And it's not just the front end interface that's prolific - the receiver itself is amazingly advanced. On the back, for example - you've got your traditional complement of HDMI connections (5 in, 1 out) and speaker connections - there are 9 pairs but you'll have to rewire to switch your amps between Zone 2 and the Surround Back channels. But get this, there is a 4-port Ethernet hub on the back with RJ45 connections. How cool is that? That's about the most practical thing we've seen in a receiver since they started killing off the S-video connector. If manufacturers want the AV receiver to be the hub of your entertainment center - and having spoke to many of them, they absolutely DO - this is a great first step towards that goal.

This video's going to get out of control really fast - there's simply too much to talk about. For listening tests we streamed music from iTunes and listened to the Eagles' Hell Freezes Over album. "New York Minute" came across beautifully, with crystal clear highs and punchy bass - as we'd expect. It was great to HEAR the Sony and know that the amps weren't being sacrificed for the plethora of network features and the menu interface. Movies were equally impressive, with some streaming through the VUDU interface and others being sent over HDMI via an Oppo BDP-93 Blu-ray player. What we really appreciated was that the HD streaming looked almost as good as the uncompressed Blu-ray. The difference was audio, with the uncompressed Dolby TrueHD taking a front seat over the basic Dolby Digital, stereo and occasional Dolby Digital Plus of streaming media sources.

Sony is back in the game, except that they never really left, they just haven't been pushing the envelop over the past several years. Now other manufacturers are going to have to sit up and take notice - because if these features stay with Sony alone, there are going to be a lot of people taking a good hard look at the new ES line and considering jumping ship from their usual brands - at least if networking audio and video and ease of use is a high priority. At $1100, the STR-DA3700ES is more than a little attractive.

Apple iPhone 4S review

emran — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:22:31 +0600

Review: Apple iPhone 4S

Apple gives the iPhone a more human touch. (October 17th, 2011)

Much is riding on the iPhone 4S. It's not just Apple's usual stoking the fires of expectation: it's the new iPhone entering a market that's virtually turned on its head. Android is usually out front in share, and once exotic features like dual-core processors and big screens are virtually table stakes. With a seemingly safe outside design, then, Apple is counting not just on speed but on camera quality and a potentially revolutionary voice command system to take back its earlier place. But are those enough? We'll judge in our iPhone 4S review if Apple is back out in front.

MacNN Rating:

Product Manufacturer: Apple

Price: $199 (2 yrs, 16GB on US carriers)

The Good

Dual-core chip keeps it faster than rivals.
Excellent rear camera for quality, speed.
Siri makes voice commands natural, accessible.
iOS 5 helps Apple catch and maybe pass rivals.
iCloud syncing and backup.
Long battery life.
Still a great display.
64GB option.
Good feel in the hand.

The Bad

Siri only goes so far; no third-party apps, not enough voice feedback.
Call quality just so-so.
Might benefit from a larger screen.
3G stops at 14.4Mbps; no real 4G yet.
Design still somewhat fragile.
Video a bit prone to CMOS effects.

Design

It's the look of the iPhone 4S that has drawn the most flak: many were initially disappointed just because it looks like its ancestor, even if there's a lot of change on the inside. It's still worth exploring in the light of some key antenna changes, which we'll touch on later, and rivals that have appeared since the iPhone 4 first set foot in the world.

Even 15 months on, the basic design of the iPhone 4 and now 4S is still one of the nicest-feeling in the industry: between the glass and steel, it almost feels like jewelry. Stacked up in comparison, the Galaxy S II, while solid, definitely feels cheap with its nearly all-plastic exterior. Apple's design is slightly thicker overall at 0.37 inches than the 0.33-inch Samsung phone, but it's actually slightly thinner in absolute terms if you factor in the Galaxy S II's hump. No matter who you listen to, it's a lot thinner than the iPhone 3GS that we suspect many iPhone 4S buyers will be trading in.

In the hand, it still has a good grip and control. The design's hard-edged, Braun-razor-like shape 'bites' into the hand and is easy to hold whether it's up to your ear during a call or at waist-level while you check Twitter. The power, mute, and volume buttons are easy to hit and provide good feedback while feeling like they'll outlast the phone they're attached to. Our only concern with the buttons is the new support for using the volume up button to take a photo in iOS 5. What makes it good for volume occasionally leads you to jerk the phone out of position as you take the shot, since you have to apply more deliberate pressure.

Taking all the advantages of the iPhone 4 design also brings the faults. Apple may have wanted to improve reception with the glass back, but it still creates a design that's more fragile than the Galaxy S II or most other phones using plastic or aluminum. The completely flat back makes just resting it on a desk a slightly dicey proposition, as you risk a minor scratch if you drag it along the surface before you pick it back up. There's a good reason that AppleCare+ is now an option with accident coverage. Those of us prone to dropping or otherwise abusing our phones could end up cracking the glass and making a trip to the Apple Store for a fix.

Some will also make the usual complaints that have been true of every iPhone since 2007. There's no removable battery and no removable storage, so you can't extend the longevity or storage if you run out. HDMI is only available if you get an adapter, too. We've found these arguments becoming less and less relevant over time: there's both improved battery life and a healthy ecosystem of battery sled cases, and HDMI on any phone still usually needs an adapter cable.

Most importantly, there's now a 64GB iPhone: if you're willing to spend the $399 on contract ($849 contract-free) for it, you can get more storage than any phone has ever had. Most Android and BlackBerry devices can't even read the 64GB microSDXC card they'd need to match Apple, and the card's (official) $200 price will quickly make it more expensive to upgrade.

Sound on the design is mixed. It's a fairly loud speaker in normal use, but the inset design tends to lead to an all-or-nothing sound quality: either it's clear and loud or heavily muffled. If you get a case, get one that lets you expose the speaker to the outside. As a speakerphone, it does work well.

The display

Apple's choice of a 3.5-inch screen size has usually been fine with critics, but this year it's been a sticking point. Most have been pushing Apple to go to four inches or even larger, so when Apple revealed an external design that was identical to last year's, some thought it had lost the plot.

There's some merit to this. Having used a number of four, 4.3-, and even 4.5-inch Android phones, the iPhone 4S does feel slightly small. The larger screens have a definite advantage for comfort; they're easier for onscreen keyboards and better for games, since you're less likely to press the wrong onscreen button and can see more of what's going on if a game has always-on controls. You tend to sit further away from the screen, too, so it's more relaxing if you're on the couch or just don't have the best eyesight.

And yet, after using the iPhone 4S extensively, we can see why Apple wasn't in a rush to go to a larger screen size. One advantage of the current size is the ease of reaching every corner of the screen one-handed. Larger phones often force you to use the device two-handed to reach every part of the interface. Likewise, it's more pocketable. The Galaxy S II easily fits because of its thinness, but it's the exception, not the rule. The HTC Sensation, Motorola Droid Bionic, and other 4.3-inch phones are considerably bulkier. Apple could go larger in the future, but for now, we're happy with the size.

Apple's edge in display quality helps soften the hit even if you want a larger screen. The iPhone 4S' display is unchanged from last year, but that still means an extremely dense 640x960, IPS (in-plane switching) LCD. While the pixels aren't quite invisible, the display is so sharp that they might as well be; even very small text is readable, and photos leap out at you with detail. IPS, in our minds, is also generally superior to Samsung's Super AMOLED Plus, if just slightly. It's not as high contrast, but nor does it have that slightly oversaturated look; the iPhone is just that bit more color-accurate and produces a gorgeous picture that feels slightly more true to life. We also found it somewhat easier to see in bright daylight, which contrasts with an inherent AMOLED problem that even Samsung hasn't entirely solved yet.

Consequently, the iPhone still feels like it very much belongs in the modern era for displays. Most of its peers use at most 540x960, but on a larger surface. That's workable, but the difference is noticeable. We'll see how this changes once the Samsung Galaxy Nexus (possibly the Nexus Prime) and its kind arrive with big 720x1280 displays, but for now, we still like the iPhone 4S' window to the world.

iOS 5: core features

Every iPhone release is mated with a major iOS revision, and the iPhone 4S is the debut phone for iOS 5. Now that we're dealing with the final edition, a revisit is in order.

The most noticeable difference comes from the moment you open the box: you no longer need a computer to get started. Instead of being asked to sync with iTunes first, you're walked through a quick process of setting your regional info as well as your iCloud backup and sync preferences. You can still sync with iTunes later if you like -- that's what we did -- but if you're annoyed by desktop sync or just don't have much content you want to keep while offline, you're now free to get working right away. We suspect that this independence will be the most useful in China, Japan, and other countries where computer ownership is less common: in many cases, the iPhone might be the closest to a computer that the buyer might have.

That also means on-the-spot updates. Gone are the days of downloading 700MB firmware updates on iTunes; you now just have to download the much smaller changed files and can do it directly from the device itself.

Once up and running, the changes to the interface are at times subtle but quickly end up feeling like a greatest hits collection of additions from other mobile operating systems. Apple's handling of notifications is the most conspicuous: quite simply, it's borrowed from Android. That's not a bad thing, however. New alerts usually appear as subtle banners while you're using an app and then fold into the Notification Center, effectively an equivalent to Android's notification bar. Rather than pile up and get lost, app notices are now elegantly put out in front of you, and you can jump to exactly the app you needed.

Apple has smartly gone beyond the basics as well. Similar to some custom Android implementations, there are live widgets in the Notification Center. Right now it's limited to weather and stocks, but it's known to be technically possible to add more. Should Apple open it up, we can see apps getting their own custom tools. The lock screen is also finally more than just cosmetic: in a more advanced take than Samsung's TouchWiz, notifications of any kind will show up in the lock screen's free space; you just need to swipe and the phone will unlock directly into that app. You quickly get acclimated to it, and while it's not original, it's a good implementation that catches Apple up to its peers in a big way.

iMessage is another instance of borrowing a good idea, only this time it's made visibly better. There's little secret that it's Apple's answer to BlackBerry Messenger, and it does everything you'd hope for: messages arrive encrypted and in real time, and they come with live notifications of writing, delivery, and (optionally) being read. Unlike RIM's arbitrary one-device, cellular-only, PIN-code based system, though, an iMessage account can sit on any and every iOS device you have. We started a conversation on an iPhone and could finish it on the iPad. The BlackBerry PlayBook will get native BBM soon, but it remains to be seen if it will work on more than one device at a time.

Apple's approach isn't perfect; it can't use Facebook, Twitter, or other non-traditional sources for contacts. However, it's surprisingly organic. iMessage 'just knows' if a contact has iOS 5, and you start messages with contacts based on their e-mail address. We only know a few iOS 5 users so far, but just like BlackBerry Messenger, it's incredibly addictive and much cheaper if you would normally text often or wanted to text to another country. If there's something that could break BlackBerry owners from their habits, iMessage is it, and the recent four-day BlackBerry outage is a reminder that RIM's super-centralized system leaves it vulnerable where Apple is safer.

Other features of the OS aren't quite as big breaks from Apple's norm, but they quickly add up. We got the most mileage from Reminders; although it won't replace Evernote, it's simple to use and has a clever geofencing feature to trigger reminders based on when you get close to a location, not just at a set time. Twitter sign-on is integrated on a base level, so you can share directly from many built-in apps and sign on to third-party apps more quickly than you would otherwise. Newsstand magazine aggregation and Safari Reading List updates aren't as useful here as they are on the iPad, but they do help if you find yourself reading frequently on the iPhone. Wi-Fi syncing is finally here and lets you keep the iPhone up to date when it's docked beyond the computer.

AirPlay mirroring could be a minor ace in the hole. While it showed up on the iPad 2 first, the 4S is the only iPhone that supports the feature. It lets you not just feed out audio or video to another source but the direct footage, showing you even apps that have no built-in AirPlay support. Android still doesn't have a true equivalent to this, and it's a real boon if you're giving a presentation and don't want to tether. Although you won't play games on it, there's relatively little lag.

Siri

By far the signature element of the iPhone 4S is its new voice command system, Siri. Apple bought it in 2010 when it was just a web-oriented app, but it's now a full-fledged part of iOS that can handle everything from basic calls and music up through to more complex tasks like setting reminders and creating calendar appointments.

The system is based on a combination of Nuance's natural language recognition and the Siri app's ability to recognize actions in context. In practice, it means it can not only respond to direct commands but understand the intention, including more abstract commands and follow-ups. You can ask what the weather is, but you can also ask "will it rain?" and Siri will know you wanted an answer about the daily forecast in the nearby area. Follow afterwards with "how about in New York City?" and Siri will know from the recent conversation that you wanted the same info, just for a specific area. Get a text message in and you can not only have it read by voice but simply say "reply, sure I'm up for it" without having to type or clarify who you meant.

Siri can associate contacts as family members just by asking, and the syntax it recognizes is fairly broad. It can even recognize out of order speaking sometimes, so if you're not eloquent when you speak, it will still usually get you the answer you want. We noticed that the system was fairly tolerant of outside sound, too; you won't want to speak during a concert, but it has understood us in situations where we wouldn't think it would work.

Where it shines is when it can produce results that would normally require a fairly protracted process. You can "where's a good sushi restaurant?" and get results automatically sorted by rating and distance. Ask how to get to a location and it both assumes your current location and knows the address if you can only identify it by its name. Make a calendar appointment and, if there's a conflict, give you the option of moving the new appointment to a new time. Wolfram Alpha and Wikipedia engines are even built in, so if you're looking for calculations, stock values, or definitions, you don't have to load up the proprietary apps or web pages. At its best, Siri is a definite time saver, especially if you want to avoid using your iPhone in the car or would rather not pull it out during a run.

Having said this, there's clearly some points where it has room to grow. Some situations, such as asking for a basic weather forecast or running Wolfram or Wikipedia searches, won't speak out the results and require a look that you might not afford. The speech recognition itself, as good as it is, can be caught out as well: ask it about the capital of Uzbekistan and it won't understand what you mean. And we're wondering why Siri isn't enabled by default and has to be switched on (if very easily).

There are some technical limits, too. Apple's system is using its recently established, massive datacenters to handle the requests; travel abroad without roaming or take a flight without Wi-Fi and you're back to using the much simpler Voice Control engine first seen in the iPhone 3GS in 2009. Siri also only recognizes English, French, and German as of the iPhone 4S launch. No third-party apps currently hook into the voice system. And perhaps the most frustrating for non-Americans, it can't yet answer commands for locations outside of the US. Many of these will improve, but not in earnest until 2012.

We're not entirely certain why Siri is iPhone 4S-only, either, since it can technically work on the iPhone 4. Cynics will likely saythat Apple is simply trying to spur more sales of the newer model by withholding features, and profit is certainly a goal, but our experience also makes us think Apple is trying to set baseline expectations. Certain commands clearly institute a short but noticeable wait while Siri and its servers talk to each other, which leads us to believe that Apple wants the fastest processor and Internet connection possible to speed up the response.

Even so, it stacks up quiet well against the competition. Samsung and others often preload apps like Vlingo to provide some of the same intent-based commands, and every Windows Phone 7.5 device has some voice guidance support. In our experience, though, they're not as convenient and not as complete. Apple knows exactly what hardware and software it's targeting where Vlingo and even Microsoft have a degree of guesswork. The iPhone 4S' voice features are certainly more advanced than what Android 2.3 and 3.2 can do, since Google stops at simple voice searches and dictation -- which Apple also has, and which works well.

iCloud

Whatever your opinion of Android versus iOS, Google had an early and unambiguous lead in cloud services. Android users just have to sign in with their account and get access to all their calendars, contacts, e-mail, and more, even if it's a completely new phone. Apple has always had an advantage for local sync, but as the emphasis has steered away from computers to mobile, the iPhone has been hurting. MobileMe did very little as it cost money for what Google did for free and wasn't doing nearly as much.

iCloud changes that, at least in theory. At a minimum, it syncs calendars and contacts, as well as e-mail if you're willing to get a me.com address. Photo Stream gives room for the 1,000 most recent photos as well as permanent space for albums, and there's 5GB of space for free to store data that falls outside of that area, such as app data and settings, documents, messages, and the raw camera roll. Heavy users can pay for more, peaking at 50GB extra for $100 a year; given that it matches what Apple used to charge just for basic MobileMe access, it's a big improvement. If you let it, then, iCloud can store more than your iPhone can fit and, combined with iTunes re-downloads, could potentially let you skip local syncs altogether while still coming back from the brink if your phone is wiped clean.

How does it work in practice? At this early stage, it's a success, but a qualified one. We liked not having to worry about whether or not a new calendar appointment or would show up as well as having an always-up backup. Our experience was fairly painless, and we liked that we could fine-tune the iCloud backup to just touch on the specific items we wanted to keep. That said, there have been reports of sporadic iCloud connection problems as well as some instances of iCloud being over-aggressive in setting itself as the authority, removing info that it shouldn't have. If you have information that you absolutely can't afford to lose, it would be worth making a separate backup before linking your iPhone or other devices to the cloud.

Photo Stream has its own separate set of quirks. Once photos are linked to the stream, you lose some of your control over deleting those files. It also becomes something of a firehose: you can't filter which photos go to the stream, so you may end up inadvertently sharing the photos from the nightclub romp across your devices in the same stream as your family vacation. Even though none of these are automatically public, it's an important consideration if you have family members trying to share the same iCloud account.

Still, on the balance, iCloud helps Apple catch up and in some ways pass Google with the iPhone 4S. Google's experience with the cloud still gives it the edge both in maturity and breadth online: Apple gave up its public photo and web hosting in moving to iCloud, for example, where Google hasn't had problems keeping either. But Apple now has those core sync areas largely covered, and it's still much better at handling local sync without any official Google equivalent to iTunes on the horizon.

Performance: processor and 3G

Apple is still very new to designing its own processors, but it's quickly developing a reputation for punching above its weight class for performance. The iPad 2 is already faster than just about any other tablet, even though its A5 processor had to go against graphics powerhouse NVIDIA's Tegra 2 and some good showings from TI's OMAP chips in devices like the PlayBook. Some have been expecting a repeat in phones, although it's believed the iPhone 4S' chip is actually clocked lower, as low as 800MHz -- a possibly worrying sign when the Galaxy S II is clocked at 1.2GHz and some very high-end phones are coming in at 1.5GHz.

As we've learned from the desktop, though, the superficial numbers don't explain everything. Detailed benchmarks in the GLBenchmark graphics test and SunSpider browser JavaScript test have shown the iPhone 4S not just being faster, but almost exactly twice as fast as the Galaxy S II that was considered the gold standard. The browser gap is mostly Google's fault, as Android 2.3 only uses one processor core in the browser, but it still means that the iPhone 4S loads pages faster and doesn't change the unambiguous lead for Apple in graphics, where the dual-core PowerVR SGX543 is in an entirely different league.

That performance isn't always as easy to notice in practice, but the difference is there, including if you're coming from the iPhone 4. Whether they use a lot of JavaScript or not, web pages tend to load noticeably faster. Apps load a bit sooner. In day to day experience, the 4S just doesn't seem to slow down, even if you've left a large number of apps running in the background. Although iOS 5 isn't as robust for multitasking as Android, it's very good at producing something that feels subjectively faster. That's still true with half as much RAM, at 512MB versus the 1GB common to most Android flagships.

Games aren't night-and-day in terms of performance, but it's clear the iPhone 4S is sitting on a lot of potential, as evidenced by Infinity Blade's visual upgrade. The same advanced texture lighting effects and antialiasing (edge smoothing) that work on the iPad 2 work on the iPhone 4S, and they haven't manifested on Apple's peers yet. With A5-optimized games like Infinity Blade 2 and Rage's id Software working on much more optimized titles coming, the iPhone is still the go-to for mobile gaming and probably will be through at least the usual crop of new competitors in February.

It's in cellular data speeds where the tables turn, although not as much as you'd expect. Apple has only gone to the lowest possible HSPA+ (High Speed Packet Access) spec, at 14.4Mbps. While that's twice as fast as the iPhone 4 and a noticeable difference, it's not as aggressive as the 21Mbps on the Galaxy S II and a handful of other phones, let alone the LTE (Long Term Evolution) from phones on Verizon and (soon) AT&T. This is also only on the GSM version; if you're in the US on Sprint or Verizon, or KDDI Au in Japan, you're using a CDMA version whose EVDO (Evolution Data Optimized) Revision A speeds are more likely to get you a usable but slow 1-3Mbps at best.

Apple does make up for this somewhat in real-world conditions. Speed tests on the Rogers network in Canada showed about a 2Mbps difference in download speeds: the iPhone was getting between 5.2Mbps and 5.8Mbps where the our most recent test, the Galaxy S II, topped out at about 7.5Mbps. Upload speeds were also identical at a near constant 1.2Mbps. Your speeds will vary depending on the carrier, but we found that the faster speeds mostly mattered on the edge, such as downloading a large app, rather than being a constantly visible difference. With uploads the same, we didn't have a problem sending large batches of photos.

It's also hard to entirely fault Apple given some of the sacrifices its rivals have had to make to get faster speeds. Early adopters of LTE phones on Verizon know this all too well. As much as the devices have gotten better over time, phones like the HTC Thunderbolt are known to get as little as four to five hours of battery life when they're using their full 4G speed, and newer phones are only somewhat better. The iPhone 4S mostly struggles against phones that have struck a balance between battery and speed, again like the Galaxy S II, where a somewhat faster speed comes with a relatively small hit.

Camera apps and quality

Photography on smartphones has reached an unusual threshold: it's now good enough in some respects to challenge point-and-shoots that people were shooting with two to three years ago, and in some cases to compete with the better of today's compacts. Software is an important ingredient in that, and not just because of Internet access. Smartphones have sometimes been the first to get features that improve photography itself. The iPhone 3GS, for example, arguably popularized tap-to-focus.

Apple very conspicuously had that in mind with iOS 5 and the iPhone 4S. On a pure software basis, it's now much faster to get to the camera and take a shot. A double-tap of the home button brings up a shortcut to the camera on the home screen that lets you snap a photo without having to unlock the phone. Composition also brings in some more professional and even unique features. Grid lines are a given, but you can now lock the autoexposure and autofocus just by pressing and holding on an area of the screen, compensating for a bright sky or a dark foreground much like you might on a DSLR. We also liked the rapid, multi-subject face detection, although it's less often needed on a phone.

The iPhone 4S specifically addresses a creeping problem with shooting speed in smartphone cameras. When Apple's Senior VP Phil Schiller joked that Droid Bionic users might "go get coffee" while waiting to take a photo, he wasn't entirely kidding. Many phones, including earlier iPhones, can take a few seconds just to be ready to shoot, making it very likely you'll miss that crucial scene. Not so the iPhone 4S: the camera's not quite ready instantly, but it's usually ready when you are. It's much faster from shot to shot as well. While you won't be shooting sports photography, the iPhone is now quick enough to take multiple photos of an important moment. Only a few Android phones, mostly T-Mobile's HTC Amaze 4G and myTouch 4G Slide, have this kind of speed.

Some post-shot editing is now available, too, although it's fairly mild. Most of this is limited to the magic enhancement (effectively, auto levels from Photoshop), red eye reduction, and cropping. Still, it's more than what iOS 4 had, and it's useful if a photo needs just slight retouching before it goes out in e-mail or on Facebook.

Image quality itself has taken a leap over the iPhone 4. Using the same Sony eight-megapixel, backside-illuminated CMOS sensor as the Sony Ericsson Xperia arc and Xperia neo, the iPhone 4S is noticeably better in most areas. It can shoot better in low light, including some moderately dark environments where we would have expected a blurry shot. The new five-element lens is sharp and catches very fine details where even some other high-end phones can produce a slightly smeared look. Color is noticeably more balanced and usually produces the real color we remember seeing. Many phones' photo colors are either oversaturated or washed out, so to get it just right is no mean feat.

That lens goes on to encourage some shots that are often difficult to pull off, most of all macros. The lens has a wider f2.4 aperture versus the f2.8 of its ancestor, which lets it take in much more light and produce a shallower depth of field, or the amount of area that can be kept in focus. What you get is a pleasing effect with crisply focused subjects in front and a soft background that improves the effect. We honestly saw photos that we'd have been happy to take with a much more expensive camera, and for that matter were better than the phones that were using the same sensor.

Back camera shots

A few flaws do still exist. We've noticed that there can be some visible, though not intrusive, noise even in fairly well-lit scenes. It can sometimes be hard to get a dark foreground to brighten with autoexposure lock if the background isn't itself bright enough, although HDR (high dynamic range) mode can help offset this. And very occasionally, we've seen the camera blur a shot that should have been stable. Considering that even phones with better cameras like the HTC Incredible S and Galaxy S II don't always get that far, though, it does a good job.

Our main disappointment is the front camera, whose VGA (640x480) resolution is the same as last year and is really just useful for self-portraits and FaceTime video calls.

We did encounter an odd software problem with export. A few of our first direct photo and video transfers from the phone were partly corrupted on their way out when they reached iPhoto. As the files themselves are fine when e-mailed out, though, we suspect that may have either been a one-time hiccup or a software-specific bug. We'll watch it closely to see if it reoccurs.

Video is one of the biggest beneficiaries of the faster processor and puts the iPhone 4S on par with the best phones of the year. Apple's choice of a better image sensor helps here to some extent, since you get all the good color balance and sharpness. Many 1080p phones often end up losing detail, but not here. The CMOS sensor doesn't appear to be quite as good for motion as we'd like, though. There's a slight but noticeable ghosting effect on some subjects. By its nature, current CMOS sensors also produce the infamous "tower of Jell-O" effect, where the sensor can't quite keep up and subjects appear to wobble and stretch if you pan quickly. You won't be shooting an action movie just yet, although there's image stabilization that goes a long way towards averting the jittery look of so much mobile video.

We encountered an odd limitation or glitch with video uploading, too. At least when on 3G, it wouldn't let us upload video directly from the phone at a higher resolution than 720p. We're going to see if we can collect fresh footage and try again on Wi-Fi. It's not a dealbreaker, but when you jump to 1080p, it would be ideal to export that in every situation.

Call quality, the new antenna, and battery life

If there's an area where the iPhone 4S falls surprisingly short, it's in the phone where it earns its name. Call quality isn't bad, but it's only just average. There's a slightly muffled tone on both ends of the call, and Apple's only real edge is active noise cancellation to minimize background sounds. It's easy to understand, and the speaker is reasonably high volume; it's just not as piercingly clear as the Galaxy S II, which right now is our reference for what call quality should be. Speakerphone use is better, in part because the speaker placement on the bottom, not the back, gives the sound an unobstructed path.

What some might appreciate is, ironically, what they're least likely to notice. The 4S has a new, dynamic antenna system that switches between two antennas depending on which one will get the best reception, even if you're in the middle of a call or a data transfer. It won't usually improve service in a given area; we've checked reports, and a New York City or San Francisco AT&T user, or a fringe area Sprint or Verizon user, will still risk dropping calls. Apple has, however, tamed the steep signal drop-off by grabbing the phone too tightly or bridging the gaps on the unique external, steel band antenna. We couldn't make it go down by more than one to two bars. We would have ideally seen this a year ago, but we're glad to know that we can pick up the phone from virtually any position without feeling anxious.

Longevity thankfully is unchanged, if not better. Despite what many think at first, a dual-core processor can actually lead to more battery life by more efficiently managing tasks and simply finishing them faster. The iPhone 4S' official battery life is about the same as before with an extra hour of 3G voice. While testing that would be difficult, we can say the iPhone is surprisingly resilient. We worked the phone hard for most of a full day, with dozens of photos, some video, frequent data use, games, and calls, but the device still had about a quarter of the battery's charge left. More realistic use could let you stretch out the use of the phone for two days if you're careful.

Such performance isn't unheard of in the Android or Windows Phone worlds, but it's certainly rare and explains exactly why Apple didn't rush to adopt LTE. The runtime isn't the longest we've ever seen from a smartphone; the BlackBerry Bold 9900 gets closer to that title, although it's using a much smaller screen and a thicker body. For the display, speed and slim profile, it's still an acceptable tradeoff.

Wrapping up

If you ask someone who was disappointed with the iPhone 4S introduction what would have been different if it had been a 'true' iPhone 5, they wouldn't have much to actually say. A larger screen? A thinner shape? More often than not, it comes across as a psychological hurdle. They want it to be superficially new, whether or not it's actually changed underneath.

Again, some of that criticism is fair. Android right now is moving at a breakneck pace. The industry started out 2011 with 4.3-inch screens and dual-core processors still novelties, and now this is nearly the bare minimum for a high-end phone. They're gradually adopting features like NFC (near-field communication) and offering Internet speeds that are sometimes as fast as a good landline connection. If everything lines up, the Galaxy Nexus will be closer to a miniature tablet in your pocket, with all the power that entails, than a phone. Apple should be thankful it took as much a leap forward as it did in 2010, since the iPhone 4S still has some advantages in resolution and pocketability; they're just no longer the breakthroughs they used to be.

But we can't help but feel Apple has been clever by targeting the most difficult aspects of the phone experience to get right: the subjective, human experiences that mean the difference between swearing at your phone and swearing loyalty to it. Siri plays a large part in that. There's something to be said for setting your alarm for the next day just by using your voice, or asking your phone if it can sing and getting back HAL 9000's rendition of "Daisy" from 2001. It's about snapping photos of your kids that you'd be happy to put in a frame on the countertop or post on Flickr.

Rivals like, yes, the Galaxy S II can be good or even outstanding, but they're very much tailored to the technically savvy set. The kind of person that knows what DLNA means (Digital Living Network Alliance, if you're curious) or feels stifled if she doesn't have the complete freedom to replace every stock app with one of her own. That liberty, as refreshing as it can be if you're aware of it, is sometimes more theoretical than real -- and it often comes at the expense of how discoverable those features are to everyday people. Those we know who have Android, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone hardware often don't realize they have voice commands available, let alone have an inclination to use them. More flexibility in apps doesn't matter if there are fewer apps you sincerely want to use.

The iPhone 4S' main challenges, then, aren't so much competitors, though that concern is real, as just courting those who are already satisfied with the objective features of their phones. If you have an iPhone 4, it will be harder to justify buying an early upgrade, especially if you're not a power user. Outside of Siri, there's little that you'll get in software alone. The performance improvements are nice, but most who bought an iPhone 4 or a reasonably high-end smartphone in 2010 or 2011 won't necessarily cry out for a new phone.

Apple, we believe, is aware of this. It's not chasing after the chronic upgrader. Instead, it's looking for the person at the end of a two-year contract, the person who bought a middling or low-end Android phone and is regretting it, or the person who's never owned a smartphone before. Come at it from an iPhone 3GS, a BlackBerry Curve, or an LG Optimus S, and it's just as good as any dual-core HTC or Motorola or Samsung smartphone, if not better for being less intimidating and skipping that need to be charged twice a day.

We wouldn't drop everything to get the iPhone 4S if we'd just bought a premium device, but we're still giving it a high mark just because it hits all the right notes. It's fast, it has a great camera and a still superb display, and it has an easy to use interface that has addressed some of the key gripes users had while adding some distinct touches of its own. iCloud and Siri may be familiar, but they each go beyond the norm to make their features accessible and, importantly, worth using regularly. You don't have to remake the look of a phone to make it a big improvement, and while there are now a few Android phones we'd genuinely love to own, we can still say there's a good reason why the iPhone is sometimes the point of reference for everyone else.

APPLE iPhone 4S VS SAMSUNG GALAXY Note

emran — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:14:40 +0600

Reasons to consider the iPhone 4S 3.5G, Apple iOS 5.0
	Much more internal storage	64 GB	vs	16 GB	4x more internal storage, which means more music, photos and movies


	Significantly newer bluetooth support	4,0	vs	3,0	Typically faster data transfer and lower power consumption connecting to other bluetooth devices


	Higher PPI screen	329 PPI	vs	284 PPI	Around 20% crisper display of text, images and video
					Around 20% crisper display of text, images and video

	Smaller	58x115x9 mm	vs	82x146x9 mm	Around 50% smaller
					Around 50% smaller

	More apps available	iPhone App Store	vs	Android App Market	The iPhone App Store has over 500 000 apps vs 400 000 (around 30% more)


	Lighter	140 g	vs	178 g	More than 20% lighter
					More than 20% lighter

	More talk time	14 hours	vs	13 hours	Around 10% more talk time per battery charge
					Around 10% more talk time per battery charge


Reasons to consider the GALAXY Note 3.5G, Google Android 2.3 (Gingerbread)
	OLED screen	Super AMOLED	vs	LCD	The GALAXY Note has a OLED screen, which are generally brighter and more vivid


	Much higher resolution screen	1280x800	vs	960x640	Around 70% higher resolution screen
					Around 70% higher resolution screen

	Much more standby time	23,8 days	vs	8,3 days	Around 3x more standby time, less frequent charging
					Around 3x more standby time, less frequent charging

	Significantly faster processor	Unknown, 1400 MHz	vs	Apple A5, 800 MHz	More powerful processor, snappier and more responsive (around 80% faster)


	Significantly more memory (RAM)	1024 MB	vs	512 MB	2x more RAM, typically more responsive and better for multitasking


	Significantly larger screen	5,3"	vs	3,5"	More than 2x larger screen
					More than 2x larger screen

	Faster max data speeds	HSDPA (21,1 mbps)	vs	HSDPA (14,4 mbps)	Higher theoretical max data transfer speeds over cell networks (around 50% faster)

TEAC HD 007 3299 Review

emran — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:40:18 +0600

Product Description

Teac A/V Receiver - Retail

Discrete Output Circuit Configuration (D.O.C.C) , Quartz PLL Synthesized Tuning System , Manual/ Auto/ Preset Tuning , Multi Function Flourescent Display , A/B Speaker Selection , Binding Post Speaker Terminals.

Features

Manufacturer: Teac America, Inc
Manufacturer Part Number: AG-790A
Manufacturer Website Address: http://www.teac.com
Product Model: AG-790A
Product Type: A/V Receiver
Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR): 70 dB - PHONO(IHF-A), 90 dB - LINE(IHF-A)
Output Power: 100 W RMS (20 Hz to 20 kHz) @ 8 Ohm 0.9% THD - Stereo
Sound System: Not Applicable
Frequency Band/Bandwidth: 87.50 MHz to 108 MHz - FM, 530 kHz to 1720 kHz - AM
Dimensions: 5.47" Height x 17.13" Width x 13.19" Depth
Weight: 21.16 lb

Product Specification
Manufacturer:	Teac America, Inc
Manufacturer Part Number:	AG-790A
Brand Name:	Teac
Marketing Information:	Discrete Output Circuit Configuration (D.O.C.C) Quartz PLL Synthesized Tuning System Manual/ Auto/ Preset Tuning Multi Function Flourescent Display A/B Speaker Selection Binding Post Speaker Terminals
Product Type:	A/V Receiver
Frequency Response:	20 Hz to 20 kHz +/- 3 dB 20 Hz to 30 kHz
Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR):	70 dB - PHONO(IHF-A) 90 dB - LINE(IHF-A)
Output Power:	100 W RMS (20 Hz to 20 kHz) @ 8 Ohm 0.9% THD - Stereo
Impedance:	8 Ohm
Sound System:	Not Applicable
Equalizer Modes:	Bass: +9dB at 100Hz Treble: +9dB at 10kHz
Frequency Band/Bandwidth:	87.50 MHz to 108 MHz - FM 530 kHz to 1720 kHz - AM
Station Presets:	30 - AM
Interfaces/Ports:	1 x Headphone - Front Speaker Terminal
Remote Control:	Full Function Unified
Dimensions:	5.47" Height x 17.13" Width x 13.19" Depth
Shipping Weight :	19.35 lb
Additional Information:	AM Usable Sensitivity (IHF) : 55dB/m Frequency Response Noise: Line, +1/ -3dB Input selector: Tuner CD Tape Phono Aux Input Sensitivity/ Impedance: PHONO: 5mV/ 22 k ohms LINE: 220mV/ 22 k ohms

Yamaha RX-A2010 - 3D Ready HD Network 9.2 AV Receiver

emran — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 23:02:09 +0600

Product Features
- Amplifier Section
- Channel: 9.2
- Rated Output Power (1kHz, 2ch driven): 155W (8ohms, 0.9% THD)
- Rated Output Power (20Hz-20kHz, 2ch driven): 140W (8ohms, 0.06% THD)
- Dynamic Power per Channel (8/6/4/2 ohms):165/210/285/405 W
- CINEMA DSP 3D
- DSP Programs: 23
- Compressed Music Enhancer
- Virtual Presence Speaker
- Dialogue Lift
- SILENT CINEMA / Virtual CINEMA DSP
- Dolby TrueHD
- Dolby Digital Plus
- Dolby Pro Logic IIx
- DTS-HD Master Audio
- Pure Direct
- YPAO multi-point measurement with RSC (Reflected Sound Control)
- Adaptive DRC (Dynamic Range Control)
- Initial Volume & Maximum Volume Setting
- A.R.T. Wedge
- Bi-amp capability
- Audio Delay (0-250 ms)
- 192kHz/24-bit DACs for all channels (Burr-Brown)
- HDMI 3D passthrough
- HDMI Audio Return Channel
- Component upconversion
- Video adjustment
- Deep Color/x.v.Color/24Hz Refresh Rate /Auto Lip-Sync
- HDMI Input/Output: 8 (front 1) / 2 (Simultaneous)
- HDMI CEC (SCENE, Device control)
- HDMI upscaling: (Analog to HDMI / HDMI to HDMI)
- USB Input: iPod/iPhone, USB Memory, Portable Audio Player
- Network Port: Access to Pandora, Rhapsody, SIRIUS Internet Radio, Napster and vTuner Internet Radio services. Also DLNA 1.5 and Win 7 Compatible.
- Dock Port 1: (for optional YDS-12, YID-W10 or YBA-10)
- Front AV Input: HDMI, USB, Analog Audio, Optical, Composite and S-video
- Analog Audio Input/Output: 10 (front 1) / 1
- Digital Audio Input/Output: Optical: 4 (front 1) / 1
- Digital Audio Input/Output: Coaxial: 3 / 0
- Multi-Channel Input: 8ch
- Phono Input
- Component Video Input/Output: 4 / 1
- S-Video Input/Output: 5 (front 1) / 1
- Composite Video Input/Output: 5 (front 1) / 1
- Preout: 7.2ch
- Headphone Output: 1
- FM/AM Tuner
- HD Radio Compatibility
- SIRIUS Satellite Radio Ready
- On-screen display: Advanced Graphical User Interface with Status
- SCENE PLUS (12 sets)
- iPhone App Control
- Web Browser Control
- Remote Control Unit: (Preset, Learning, Macro)
- Sub Remote Control Unit
- Zone 2 Audio Output: Preout
- Zone 3 Audio Output: Preout
- Powered Zone: Zone 2/3
- Zone Video Output: Component/S/Composite
- Zone GUI
- +12V Trigger Output: 2
- Remote (IR) Input/Output: 2 / 2
- Party Mode
- RS-232C Interface
- Standby Power Consumption (IR only): 0.3 W
- Auto Power Down
- Dimensions (W x H x D): 17-1/8” x 7-1/2” x 18-3/8”
- Weight: 37.7 lbs.
- Shipping Dimensions (W x H x D): 21-3/8" x 11-3/4" x 22-1/8"
- Shipping Weight (lbs.): 45.2 lbs.

Yamaha RXA2010 - 3D Ready HD Network 9.2 AV Receiver

Surround Sound Processing

Audio Features

Video Features

Extensive Connection

Video Features

Extensive Connection

Tuner Section

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Zone Control

General

Yamaha RX-A3010 - 3D Ready HD Network 9.2 AV Receiver

emran — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 22:58:21 +0600

Product Features
- Amplifier Section
- Channel: 9.2
- Rated Output Power (1kHz, 2ch driven): 165W (8ohms, 0.9% THD)
- Rated Output Power (20Hz-20kHz, 2ch driven): 150W (8ohms, 0.06% THD)
- Dynamic Power per Channel (8/6/4/2 ohms): 175/220/295/410 W
- CINEMA DSP HD3
- DSP Programs: 23
- Compressed Music Enhancer
- Virtual Presence Speaker
- Dialogue Lift
- SILENT CINEMA / Virtual CINEMA DSP
- Dolby TrueHD
- Dolby Digital Plus
- Dolby Pro Logic IIx
- DTS-HD Master Audio
- Pure Direct
- YPAO multi-point measurement with RSC (Reflected Sound Control) and Angle measurement
- Adaptive DRC (Dynamic Range Control)
- Initial Volume & Maximum Volume Setting
- A.R.T. Wedge
- Bi-amp capability
- Audio Delay (0-250 ms)
- 192kHz/24-bit DACs for all channels (Burr-Brown)
- HDMI 3D passthrough
- HDMI Audio Return Channel
- Component upconversion
- HDMI upscaling (Analog to HDMI / HDMI to HDMI)
- Video adjustment with variable parameters
- Deep Color/x.v.Color/24Hz Refresh Rate /Auto Lip-Sync
- HDMI Input/Output: 8 (front 1) / 2 (Simultaneous)
- HDMI CEC: (SCENE, Device control)
- USB Input: iPod/iPhone, USB Memory, Portable Audio Player
- Network Port: Access to Pandora, Rhapsody, SIRIUS Internet Radio, Napster and vTuner Internet Radio services. Also DLNA 1.5 and Win 7 Compatible.
- Dock Port: 1 (for optional YDS-12, YID-W10 or YBA-10)
- Front AV Input: HDMI, USB, Analog Audio, Optical, Composite and S-video
- Digital Audio Input/Output: Optical: 4 (front 1) / 1
- Digital Audio Input/Output: Coaxial 3 / 0
- Analog Audio Input/Output: 10 (front 1) / 1
- Multi-Channel Input: 8ch
- Phono Input
- Component Video Input/Output: 4 / 1
- S-Video Input/Output: 5 (front 1) / 1
- Composite Video Input/Output: 5 (front 1) / 1
- Preout: 11.2ch
- Headphone Output: 1
- FM/AM Tuner
- HD Radio Compatibility
- SIRIUS Satellite Radio Ready
- On-screen display: Advanced Graphical User Interface with Status
- SCENE PLUS (12 sets)
- iPhone App Control
- Web Browser Control
- Remote Control Unit (Preset, Learning, Macro, LED Back Light)
- Sub Remote Control Unit
- Zone 2 Audio Output: Preout
- Zone 3 Audio Output: Preout
- Zone 4 Audio Output: Optical Output
- Powered Zone: Zone 2/3 (Zone 4 Optical)
- Zone Video Output: Component/S/Composite
- Zone GUI
- +12V Trigger Output: 2
- Remote (IR) Input/Output: 2 / 2
- Party Mode
- RS-232C Interface
- Standby Power Consumption (IR only) 0.3 W
- Auto Power Down
- Dimensions (W x H x D): 17-1/8” x 7-1/2” x 18-3/8”
- Weight: 40.1 lbs.
- Shipping Dimensions (W x H x D): 21-3/8" x 11-3/4" x 22-1/8"
- Shipping Weight (lbs.): 47.4 lbs.

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TEAC HD 007 3299 Review

Product Description

Yamaha RX-A2010 - 3D Ready HD Network 9.2 AV Receiver

Yamaha RXA2010 - 3D Ready HD Network 9.2 AV Receiver

Surround Sound Processing

Audio Features

Video Features

Extensive Connection

Video Features

Extensive Connection

Tuner Section

User Interface

Zone Control

General

Yamaha RX-A3010 - 3D Ready HD Network 9.2 AV Receiver

Yamaha RX-A3010 - 3D Ready HD Network 9.2 AV Receiver

Surround Sound Processing

Audio Features

Video Features

Extensive Connection

Tuner Section

User Interface

Zone Control

General

Security System For Home & Business