NZXT was on hand at PAX East and they showed us their new H2 Silent case. A sleek looking case that brings great features that you would normally find in a pricey full tower case in mid-tower size and at an affordable price.

The case come with some pretty cool features such as hot swap style fans, sound dampening, fan controls on the top and also a space for a hot swappable SATA drive bay on the top of the case. Very equipped case with a nice minimal but sharp look. It will retail for $99 MSRP.

LG had their new top of the line Blu-Ray player on display the BD690.

LG BD 690 is LG’s flagship player, full HD 1080p 3D-enabled Network Blu-ray Player features LG SmartTV. Loaded with all the apps though SmartTv on the Blu-ray players does not feature web browsing, 250GB hard drive with MusicID^®.  The player is also Wi-Fi capable, has DLNA and can be control via the LG mobile remote app.

Press Release

LG Electronics further expands access to content-on-demand with new Blu-ray Disc Players and Home Theater Systems

Leading the line-up being unveiled this week is LG’s BD690 3D-capable Network Blu-ray Disc player with LG SmartTV and an integrated 250-gigabyte (GB) hard drive, allowing for easy storage and instant playback of music, photos, personal videos and online movies from VUDU™*.

Demonstrating its focus on providing consumers with convenient access to nearly endless content options, six of LG’s 2011 Network Blu-ray Players and home theater systems are 3D capable and incorporate LG SmartTV.  LG SmartTV provides consumers with a simple-to-use interface that allows access to thousands of movies, customizable apps and videos.  For convenient navigation consumers can download a free app for iPhone and Android-based smart phones to control the unit, including a full QWERTY keyboard.

“LG is committed to offering consumers easier access to more content-on-demand, which is reflected in our 2011 line of Blu-ray products with new content partners, advanced technology and unique design,” said Jay Vandenbree, senior vice president, LG Electronics USA. “As the pioneer in providing content-on-demand options for consumers, LG builds on this reputation by offering full product lines designed to help consumers transform their home entertainment experience into something better.”

Consumers also will enjoy that most 2011 Network Blu-ray Players and home theater systems have available Wi-Fi connectivity (built-in or available with purchase of Wi-Fi adapter) that allows consumers flexibility when installing a home entertainment system by connecting directly to any existing 802.11n wireless home network. They also include Digital Living Network Alliance (DLNA) functionality, which expands entertainment options by enabling easier access to family videos and pictures stored on other DLNA-enabled systems, such as computers, making content options almost limitless.

Also included on many products in the lineup is the MusicID® feature powered by Gracenote®, which allows consumers to play a song from a movie or TV show by simply pressing a button on their remote control.  Gracenote then returns rich information on the song, such as artist and genre, along with album cover art.

Designed to complement the look of today’s HDTVs, LG’s Network Blu-ray Players and home theater systems feature slim, compact designs that allow consumers to easily blend their entire entertainment system into any existing room environment.

Network Blu-ray Disc Players
Leading LG’s 2011 portfolio of Network Blu-ray Disc Players is model BD690 – one of the only 3D-capable Blu-ray Disc player to feature an integrated hard drive, so consumers can consolidate their digital media files in a single device for exceptional high-resolution enjoyment.  Its built-in 250GB hard drive allows consumers to create a Media Library that delivers easy storage and instant playback of music, photos, personal videos and movies purchased from the VUDU service.  Also, digital media that may have been scattered throughout the home on PCs or digital cameras can now be simply imported via the USB or Ethernet port to create a single organized library of personal memories.

To take full advantage of the Blu-ray format, LG’s Network Blu-ray Players also provide convenient access to BD Live, which offers a wide variety of content, such as movie scene extras, new previews and the ability to read synopses and rate movies. Also included are Bonus View features that provide picture-in-picture access to Blu-ray Disc special features, allowing consumers to toggle between their favorite movie scenes and bonus features on the disc. For those with a library full of both standard and Blu-ray titles, LG’s players utilize 1080p up scaling of standard DVDs for a near high definition viewing experience – no matter what format is being played.

Nokia and Microsoft announced a partnership today to add Nokia to the the list of manufactures of Windows Phone 7 devices.  The deal will bring Nokia’s knowledge of hardware and creating some of the best phone hardware out there in the market with Microsoft new Windows Phone 7 to give users options of high quality devices.

Press Release

Nokia Corporation
Stock exchange release
February 11, 2011 at 09.45 (CET+1)

London, UK – Nokia today outlined its new strategic direction, including changes in leadership and operational structure to accelerate the company’s speed of execution in a dynamic competitive environment.

Major elements of the new strategy include:

- Plans for a broad strategic partnership with Microsoft to build a new global mobile ecosystem; Windows Phone would serve as Nokia’s primary smartphone platform.
- A renewed approach to capture volume and value growth to connect "the next billion" to the Internet  in developing growth markets
- Focused investments in next-generation disruptive technologies
- A new leadership team and organizational structure with a clear focus on speed, results and accountability

"Nokia is at a critical juncture, where significant change is necessary and inevitable in our journey forward," said Stephen Elop, Nokia President and CEO. "Today, we are accelerating that change through a new path, aimed at regaining our smartphone leadership, reinforcing our mobile device platform and realizing our investments in the future."

Nokia plans to form a strategic partnership with Microsoft to build a global mobile ecosystem based on highly complementary assets. The Nokia-Microsoft ecosystem targets to deliver differentiated and innovative products and have unrivalled scale, product breadth, geographical reach, and brand identity. With Windows Phone as its primary smartphone platform, Nokia would help drive the future of the platform by leveraging its expertise on hardware optimization, software customization, language support and scale. Nokia and Microsoft would also combine services assets to drive innovation. Nokia Maps, for example, would be at the heart of key Microsoft assets like Bing and AdCenter, and Nokia’s application and content store would be integrated into Microsoft Marketplace. Under the proposed partnership, Microsoft would provide developer tools, making it easier for application developers to leverage Nokia’s global scale.

With Nokia’s planned move to Windows Phone as its primary smartphone platform, Symbian becomes a franchise platform, leveraging previous investments to harvest additional value. This strategy recognizes the opportunity to retain and transition the installed base of 200 million Symbian owners. Nokia expects to sell approximately 150 million more Symbian devices in the years to come.

Under the new strategy, MeeGo becomes an open-source, mobile operating system project. MeeGo will place increased emphasis on longer-term market exploration of next-generation devices, platforms and user experiences. Nokia still plans to ship a MeeGo-related product later this year.

In feature phones, Nokia unveiled a renewed strategy to leverage its innovation and strength in growth markets to connect the next billion people to their first Internet and application experience.

New leadership team, operational structure
This new strategy is supported by significant changes in Nokia’s leadership, operational structure and approach. Effective today, Nokia has a new leadership team with the commitment, competencies and innovative thinking needed in today’s dynamic environment.

The Nokia Leadership Team, previously the Group Executive Board, will consist of the following members: Stephen Elop, Esko Aho, Juha Akras, Jerri DeVard, Colin Giles, Rich Green, Jo Harlow, Timo Ihamuotila, Mary McDowell, Kai Oistamo, Tero Ojanpera, Louise Pentland and Niklas Savander.

Alberto Torres has stepped down from the management team, effective February 10 to pursue other interests outside the company.

The renewed governance will expedite decision-making and improve time-to-market of products and innovations, placing a heavy focus on results, speed and accountability. The new strategy and operational structure are expected to have significant impact to Nokia operations and personnel.

New company structure
As of April 1, Nokia will have a new company structure, which features two distinct business units: Smart Devices and Mobile Phones. They will focus on Nokia’s key business areas: high-end smartphones and mass-market mobile phones.  Each unit will have profit-and-loss responsibility and end-to-end accountability for the full consumer experience, including product development, product management and product marketing.

Smart Devices will be responsible for building Nokia’s leadership in smartphones and will be led by Jo Harlow. The following sub-units now in Mobile Solutions will move under Smart Devices:
- Symbian Smartphones
- MeeGo Computers
- Strategic Business Operations

To support the planned new partnership with Microsoft, Smart Devices will be responsible for creating a winning Windows Phone portfolio.

Mobile Phones will drive Nokia’s "web for the next billion" strategy. Mobile Phones will leverage its innovation and strength in growth markets to connect the next billion people and bring them affordable access to the Internet and applications. The Mobile Phones unit will be led by Mary McDowell.

Markets will be responsible for selling products, executing compelling marketing and communications, creating a competitive local ecosystem, sourcing, customer care, manufacturing, IT and logistics across all Nokia products. It will be headed by Niklas Savander.

Services and Developer Experience will be responsible for Nokia’s global services portfolio, developer offering, developer relations and integration of partner service offerings. Tero Ojanpera will lead the Services and Developer Experience unit in an acting capacity.

NAVTEQ, an integral part of Nokia’s location and advertising business, will be headed by Larry Kaplan, and continue as a separate reporting entity.

The CTO Office will be responsible for Nokia’s technology strategy and forward-looking technology activities, including Nokia Research Center. It will be headed by Rich Green.

Design, responsible for Nokia product and user experience design, will be led by Marko Ahtisaari.

The CFO Office, responsible for all financial activity, will be headed by Timo Ihamuotila.

Corporate Development, responsible for driving implementation of Nokia’s ecosystem strategy and strategic partnerships, will be headed by Kai Oistamo.

Corporate Relations & Responsibility, responsible for Nokia’s government and public affairs, sustainable development and social responsibility, will be led by Esko Aho.

Human Resources will be led by Juha Akras.

Legal and Intellectual Property will be led by Louise Pentland.

Nokia Siemens Networks continues in the Nokia Group as a separate reporting entity.

Please visit www.nokia.com/press for press materials.

The Xi3 Slid3 is a new storage solution for the Xi3 Modular Computer system. It will allow you to add solid state or hybrid\ drive storage or external graphics cards to your Xi3 system.

Press Release

Jan 7, 2011

Xi3 Corporation Unveils its First External Storage Solutions for Xi3 Modular Computers

Xi3 Corporation Unveils its First External Storage Solutions for Xi3
Modular Computers

A family of Storage SLID3s
(available in solid state flash or spinning disk formats) and
the Hybrid SLID3 (a hybrid
SSD/spinning disk format) allow Xi3 Modular Computer owners to

add up to 2TB of external storage to their systems in an easily
mountable/attachable form factor

SALT LAKE CITY – January 7, 2011 – Xi3® Corporation today unveiled its first
external modular storage solutions for use with the Xi3 Modular Computer™: a
family of Storage SLID3™ hard-drives
and a Hybrid SLID3™ hard-drive.

Storage SLID3 hard-drives are available in solid
state flash or spinning disk formats. The Hybrid SLID3 is a hard-drive that uniquely couples both solid state and
spinning media into a storage solution that provides near SSD speeds at
slightly more than spinning media costs. These external Xi3 SLID3
hard-drives allow users to add up to 2TB (Terabytes) of storage to their Xi3
Modular Computer system. {NOTE: The
word SLID3 is pronounced “slide.”}

Housed in
a uniquely shaped aluminum casing measuring 4.9375- X 3.625- X 1.6875-inches
and weighing as little as 1.0 lb. apiece, each SLID3 storage solution utilizes Xi3’s SLID3 Interlocking Technology™ which allows SLID3 hard-drives to be permanently/semi-permanently attached or
connected to any Xi3 Modular Computer. When mounted onto a wall, these
load-bearing SLID3 hard-drives will
support both an Xi3 Modular Computer and an attached monitor.

“Although
more and more people are beginning to store their data in the Internet cloud,
we also recognize that a lot of us feel more comfortable knowing we have our
data right on our desktop,” said Jason A. Sullivan, President and CEO of Xi3
Computers. “That’s why we are formally announcing our Hybrid SLID3 and our initial family of StorageSLID3 hard-drives for this week’s 2011
International CES trade show.”

External SLID3 hard-drives will be available later
in the first quarter of 2011 in the following configurations, formats and
prices:

Storage SLID3
hard-drives (Solid State Flash)

·
64GB 2.5-inch eSATA SLID3 Storage Drive, $275.00

·
128GB 2.5-inch eSATA SLID3 Storage Drive, $350.00

Storage SLID3
hard-drives (Spinning Disk)

·
120GB 2.5-inch eSATA 5400RPM (Western Digital) SLID3 Storage Drive, $150.00

·
320GB 2.5-inch eSATA 7200RPM (Seagate) SLID3 Storage Drive, $170.00

·
500GB 2.5-inch eSATA 7200RPM (Seagate) SLID3 Storage Drive, $170.00

·
1TB 2.5-inch eSATA 5400RPM (Western Digital) SLID3 Storage Drive, $300.00

·
2TB 2.5-inch eSATA 5400RPM (Western Digital) SLID3 Storage Drive, $450.00

Hybrid SLID3
hard-drive (combination SSD/spinning disk)

·
504GB Hybrid (2.5-inch 4GB SSD linked with a 500GB
7200RPM {Seagate} SLID3 Storage
Drive, $225.00

External SLID3 hard-drives can be mounted or
attached onto an Xi3 Modular Computer or not. Mounting/attaching an external SLID3 hard-drive to an Xi3 Modular
Computer is as easy as

1. Detaching
one of the honeycombed, chrome-plated sides of the Xi3 Modular Computer,

2. Sliding the
SLID3 hard-drive into one set of channels
along the top, bottom or front of the Xi3 Modular Computer, and

3. Reattaching
the honeycombed, chrome-plated side of the Xi3 Modular Computer.

Xi3 has been making a ton of buzz since we last saw them at CES Unveiled in NYC back in November 2010. One of the additions to the Xi3 modular system they are showing at CES 2011 is the z3ro.

The z3ro allows you to share the main Xi3 system up to three different workstation and they will act and feels as their stand alone machine. They will all share the same processing power and resources though what Xi3 calls Modular Virtualization. This will lower power consumption and licensing cost for business.

From Xi3 Computers:

The Xi3 Z3RO Module

The Z3RO™ (Zero) Module is a companion product to the Xi3 Modular Computer.  Z3RO Modules connect to the Modular Computer and allow for up to three additional workstations that act and feel like a stand-alone computer.  They all share the processing power of the incredibly powerful Modular Computer.  We call this Modular Virtualization.  It is a method of reducing the price per seat, as well as power consumption per seat, without committing to costly virtualization software licenses and hardware.

One Modular Computer and 3 Z3RO’s Running as 4 Separate Computers

The Z3RO based modular network provides countless benefits over traditional server-workstation networks, as well as most virtualized networks, most notably cost savings and energy savings.  Adding Z3RO’s to a Modular Computer can reduce the hardware price per seat to about $350 and provide up to a 95% energy savings!!

Take a minute to play with our Cost Savings and Environmental Impact Calculator to see the incredible savings obtained thru Modular Virtualization.  There is a better way!  Welcome to the Xi3 Revolution

Karotz is a lovable robotic pet that does more than just look cute. It can learn your voice and respond  to verbal request for weather, traffic, news information facebook updates and email.

It also has a integrated webcam, which you can monitor your home and view on your smartphone or via the website. The little mini rabbits can be used to different settings such as weather and news and you can get additional ones as well. You can also “marry” two big rabbit so you can have one and your friend across town, across he country or across the world can have theirs and you can send message to on another and you can also do cool things like if you move the ear on your rabbit you friends Rabbit ears will move too.

THE INTELLIGENT RABBIT

Lifestyle:
–Learns its owner’s voice, habits and routine
–Responds to verbal requests for weather, traffic, news, stock updates, horoscopes & more

–Remindsyou of appointments, holidays, birthdays and more

–Wakes you up to your favorite music

Communication:

–Readse-mails, friends’ Facebook status updates and tweets aloud

–Allows the user to talk for free with fellow Karotz friends, via direct chat or a smart hone

Entertainment:–Plays Web radio stations, MP3 files/podcasts from USB drives, computers, phones & iPods

–Tutors kids by reading pre-recorded stories & coaching with educational games

–Interactive games and quizzes

Security:

–Integrated webcam sends images directly to a smart phone or computer, so you can see everything that Karotz sees-

-RFID chip sensor also provides instant updates, such as reporting when the kids get home from school

Community:

–KarotzStore website is a cooperative global online community where developers can create and sell apps

Availability: Across North America beginning in March

Rounding up our recent reviews of SSD products we take a look at one of the more popular SSD available the Intel X25-M 80GB solid state drive.

The Intexl X25-M is a very well build solid state drive with majority all metal outer shell with a plastic square ring on the top of it an you have your standard SATA data and power ports on the front.  This is one of the best SSD case builds I have seen. The SSD also comes with a drive mounting bracket to mount into a desktop case which is nice but there are better ones out there such as the Icy Dock that we reviewed earlier. For our testing we once again used AS SSD benchmark tool which you can check the link below to see how it works.

AS SSD Benchmark information

You can see from the pictures and video below that the Intel X25-M offers some of the fastest speeds in a mainstream SSD that you can find. Speeds are some of the fastest in the market in this category and price range. We reviewed the 80GB version in this series but there is versions available in 120GB and 160GB and would recommend looking at all of these and determine your storage needs against the price of each.  Even though the Intel X25-M is more on the expensive side of SSD drive you won’t regret spending the money on it.

Buy your Intel X25-M SSD from

Amazon.com

Click the pic to buy from Newegg.com

80 GB

160 GB

Here we take a look at the OCZ Vertex series of solid state drives wit the Vertex 60 GB SSD.

The Vertex line of SSD from OCZ are your mainstream/enthusiast line from them.  They come with a pretty nice casing that is all black with a metal bottom and a plastic cover on top. Not much to say here other than a nice build quality.

Setup is pretty easy but you’ll need to be sure to update the firmware on the OCZ before you install your OS.  For this review we left the firmware at 1.5 has we heard of performance issues for 1.6.  In the video review we use AS SSD benchmark for our test and you can check the link below for more information on how the benchmarking software works in the link below.

AS SSD Benchmark information

As you see in pictures and video below you get solid performance numbers from OCZ.  While it may not be the fastest out there you will get good performance from this drive and for the price its currently at I would definitely recommend this for your next OS drive.

Here we take a look a quick and easy solution to setup a 2.5 in drive in your desktop with the Icy Dock MB882SP-1S-1B 2.5” SSD / SATA Converter.

The Icy Dock is all plastic on the outside but made of a solid plastic that doesn’t feel cheap or flimsy. Around the dock you have ventilation spots, screw holds for screwing the driving to the case and the SATA power and data connections.  Inside is where you will find the internal SATA power and data connects that will connect to the drive when installed. When you install the drive the case pushed the drive up to the ports and locks it in. Very simple and easy to use and works with both SSD and SATA hard drive drives that are 2.5 inches. 

The dock actually cool the drive down quite a bit especially since 2.5 inch drives can get very hot for their small size.  If you are planning to install a SSD into your desktop this is the case to go with. Easy to use, cheap and keeps the drive nice and cool.

Buy the Icy Dock from

Amazon.com

Lets compared the Logitech HD Pro C910 and Microsoft LifeCam Studio.

Hardware

Both take a completely different approach hardware wise. The  LifeCam Studio takes a more traditional approach to the design of their webcam with an all aluminum body and flexible hinge with a tripod hole and can be pointed in several different direction. The HD Pro C910 is full wide angle design with a mix of plastic and metal making. The hinge is not as flexible as the LifeCam Studio. Its also a bit heavier than the LifeCam Studio as well.  Both have 1080p and improved audio but that’s where the differences come into play.

Usage

Both cameras are pretty easy to use and setup. Both use their own special software with LifeCam Studio using LifeCam software and the C910 using Logitech HD Vid. Both software packages work well and are simple to use.  The biggest difference between the web cams is the video and audio recording. Both cams tout 1080p capabilities but the LifeCam does not record video in 1080p and can only take pictures in 1080p which is a big let down since this is advertises as 1080p you would assume it could do video but video only records in 720p. The C910 records in full 1080p and looks great with sharp colors. One the flip side the audio is not as good in the C910 as it in in the LifeCam Studio that has audio that sounds like you are using a separate microphone.

Both cameras support HD video calling but you’ll need to make sure both party meet the specs required to use it.

Overall

You can’t go wrong with either webcam here it really depends on what you are mainly looking for. If you are looking for high image quality then the C910 is the way to go. If you want tripod support and great audio quality then the LifeCam studio is the way to go.

Check out the Microsoft LifeCam Studio Review here

Check out the Logitech HD Pro C910 Review here

Video Review Below