Now a PC costing you mere Rs.5000/-

The $100 computer has finally arrived. For a mere Rs 5,000, the urban employee with a shallow pocket can make his dream of a home PC come true. The home users PC is a product of Novatium, a Chennai-based startup in collaboration with MTNL. The 'Nova' is a Net PC. Then we will get about internet Nova PC.
"The Internet Nova PC is not very different from a TV. Just switch it on and do whatever task you want to do after you connect to it. Then switch it off," says CEO Novatium Solutions, Alok Singh.

A Net PC is a computer which has a central processing device connected through a server. This means, all functions are handled and data stored in a central location, while the computer helps to connect you to it.
Truly convenient, but the question is, what of the security and privacy of the data?
"While the firewalls have been taken care of, the more important thing is the security, especially since there are so many files. No one is given your password, except a few members of the service providers, who do not access the information," says MTNL Executive Director, A K Sinha.
But here's the downside. With just 300 MB in the initial package, it calls for spartan usage of space. And there's no CD or DVD drive. Also the dependence on the connectivity of the service is not a comfortable feeling.

Mini USB becomes standard for chargers of cell phone

There are so many cell phone manufacturers, and each one seems to have a different-sized plug needed to charge up its phones. Now five of the world's biggest cell phone manufacturers have finally decided on a standard plug size for cell phone chargers. Nokia, LG, Samsung, Motorola, and Sony Ericsson are among the first companies to subscribe to the standard, with the other smaller manufacturers expected to soon follow.

The bad news? That standard size is an uncommon plug known as Micro USB, slightly smaller than the ubiquitous Mini USB plugs. The manufacturers probably picked that smaller size because of the steadily diminishing cross-sections of many of today's ultra-thin cell phones. Now if the same standardization would happen with laptop charger plugs, our world would get just a bit less complicated.

Say Bye-Bye to CDs while on your Car

The last thing you need to be doing when you're driving on a busy highway is rummaging around in your glove compartment for a CD. That's why the Blaupunkt Melbourne SD27 makes sense. It's the first of many car receivers we'll be seeing in the next few years that do away with CDs altogether. Compatible with SD/MMC cards, it plays MP3 and WMA files while displaying either folder names or ID3 tags from all of your music files right there on its LED display.

Along with this $160 unit, Blaupunkt also offers an optional adapter for your iPod (you can rest it on one of these), cellphone, Bluetooth or GPS navigation device. If that's not enough, it can snag music off any of your USB devices, and it also accepts plain old analog 3.5mm audio plugs. Just about the only thing it's missing is satellite radio capability, and, oh yeah, it also lacks that CD slot, which we're not going to miss one bit.

SECURITY ALARMS

Intrusion & theft have always been common. However, you are also at greater risk when you're out during the day or away on holiday, as is evident from the recent surge of burglaries taking place all over the country, especially in urban pockets of india. In big cities daytime assaults on ladies and children when they are home alone by forced entry & also by servants who open the doors to their accomplices are rising by the day.

Keeping burglars at bay

Protecting your home/business premises with an intelligent burglar alarm system which will guard your doors, windows, grills and other entry points has become essential. This is achieved by installing security sensors at vulnerable entry points. In the event of an intrusion, an alarm is immediately raised through powerful sounders and an attached speed dialler will call you, your family, your friends, the police & anyone else (upto 15 people) you would like to be notified & deliver an emergency message recorded in your very own pre-recorded voice.

Types

Both wired & wireless burglar alarm systems are available in the market. While wireless systems are more appropriate for smaller apartments and commercial spaces, wired systems provide a more comprehensive and cost effective coverage in larger areas. And surprisingly, these systems do not cost the moon. You could buy a burglar alarm system with a dual message (1 burglary message & 1 additional message of your choice e.g. medical emergency) & a 5 year product warranty starting as low as at a mere Rs. 9000/- Some of these burglar alarm systems can even be controled through your mobile & also have the option of inbuilt remote automation. Which allows you to operate electrical devices by smply pushing buttons on your mobile.

Noise Cancelling Headphones

What are they?
Noise-canceling headphones reduce unwanted ambient sounds (i.e., acoustic noise) by means of active noise control. Essentially, this involves using a microphone, placed near the ear & electronics circuitry which generates an "anti-noise" sound wave with the opposite polarity of the sound wave arriving at the microphone. This results in destructive interference, which cancels out the noise within the enclosed volume of the headphone. Keeping noise low at the ear makes it possible to enjoy music without raising the volume unnecessarily. It can also help a passenger sleep in a noisy vehicle such as an airliner.

How Effective they are?
Retail nose cancelling headphones typically only cancel the lower-frequency portions of the noise; they depend upon traditional noise suppression techniques (such as their ear cups) to prevent higher-frequency noise from reaching the interior of the headphone.
Before going for a pair, keep the following in mind:

• Because of the shorter wavelength of the high-frequency sound. Active cancellation is much less effective at higher frequencies.
• They consumer power, usually supplied by a battery that must occasionally be replaced or recharged.
• They may not cancel all sound effectively. Some noise-cancelling headphones can be overloaded by low-frequency pressure waves, distorting the desired signal.
• They work well for sounds that are continuous, such as the sound of a refrigerator, but are rather ineffective against speech or other rapidly changing audio signals.
• They may introduce additional noise, usually in the form of high-frequency hiss.
• They are generally more bulky than traditional headphones.

Laptop Data cards

Facts about Laptop Data cards in INDIA

What are they?

Would you like to surf the net while lazing on the beach ? Or even in your car, on your way? Get yourself a datacard for your laptop. It's a small card - slightly bigger than a credit card with a small antenna.
Insert it into your laptop and browse at length. And its not just the internet - you can also log on to your office LAN or intranet and access your mails and other files. So even while you're travelling, you can stay in touch with the sales, MIS and other automation systems.
Various telecom companies offer different tariff plans for their services. Do a through research and shortlist your options before you decide which one to go for.

Look for...

The single most important feature to be scrutinised is the speed. Well, they may not match the speed of your broadband connection at home or office. But they're not too bad either. The companies claim that a peak speed of upto 100-150 kbps is possible, though they concede that the average speed may be much lower. The average speed is far lower at 33-56 kbps.
Data cards also allow you to make a phone call. Just plug the earphone into the PC and talk on. Charges for these calls are according to the standard plans. and one can not opt for value-added services such as a caller-identification services.
If you want to send and receive messages, that's possible too. The charges for phone calls and SMSes are usually the same as you would pay for your mobile phone. One thing you must always remember to do: charge your laptop battery, and you can use the card wherever you go.

Choosing the right inverter

Choosing the right inverter.

The first item to consider while buying your inverter is the power that the inverter would provide. To do that you will have to look on the back of each items that wil run from the inverter and find the wattage draw. Once you have totalled up the wattage you need simply find an inverter which will provide about 50% more than you require. That help compensate for inductive surge requirement caused by pump motors and compressor motors. Now find out the size you need for the battery pack. If the inverter must produce 500 watts all the time then the battery must also provide 500 plus the wattage lost from the inverter conversion function. It means that you must check the rating of the inverter to find out the loss.

Types of inverter: Modified sine wave & Pure sine wave.


The difference between a modified wave and a pure sine wave is in the quality of the waveform as teh inverter creates AC power from DC. Advanced switching circuitry enables pure sine wave inverters to more accurately mimic the power you find in your household outlets.

Modified sine wave inverters are fine for most applications - particularly where the appliances has its own power adaptor, such as with chargers and laptop computer. Some types of audio quipment, like personal stereos or amplifiers, will create a 'buzz' when running on modified sine wave power. Some motorized euipment will also not perform properly on this type of power. A pure sine wave inverter will eliminate such operational isues and is also a good choice when the equipment being used is sensitive, such as with research or medical equipment.

What shoud i look for?
Check energy efficiency of the inverter, the charger quality, and battery life. Which should ideally be about 4-5 years. The energy efficieny, usually noted in the brochure, should ideally be about 85 %. This means that only about 15% of energy is lost when the inverter converts direct current from the battery to the alternating current used to power household appliances. Lower the energy loss, lesser the battery back-up needed. Charger quality is important because you need to constantly recharge the battery. An efficient charger saves electricity.

Types of headphones

Types of headphones

Headphones are a pair of transducers (devices that convert one form of energy to another) that receive an electrical signal from a media player or receiver and use speakers placed in close proximity to the ears (hence the name earphone) to convert the signal into audible sound waves.

Canalphones:

Canalphone are earbuds that sits directly inside the ear canal.

Although canalphone offer portability similar to earbuds, it often acts as an earplug to block out environmental noise.

Sony ericsson is using canalphone in its latest walkman series phone.



Cirumaural:

Circumaural headphones have pads that go around the ears. They are usually very large and very comfortable. This is the type commonly used in recording studios and among audio enthusiasts. Circumaural headphones are the kind that wrap your ears completely, they are high on audio fidelity, and are designed to cancel out all the noise from outside. Such headphones are usually used by DJs and audiphiles.

Supra-aural:

Supra-aural headphones are much like circumaural, only the pads go on top of the ear, making them lighter and smaller. They may have circled pads, much like circumaural headphones, only smaller and go on top of the ear.

Earbuds/Earphones:

Earbuds are headphones of a smaller size that are placed directly outside of the ear canal, but without fully enveloping it. They are generally inexpensive and are favored for their portability and convenience. However due to their inability to provide isolation, they're not capable of delivering the precision and rang of sound offered by any full-sized headphones and canalphones.

Advantage LCD

LCD : the basics

Contrary to what your might think, LCD technology has been around longer than plasma. It's that plasma affinities with larger screen size gave it a head start over LCD, which has only recently started to conquer its size demons and break free of it its traditional PC shackles. LCD TVs work like this. A liquid containing individually controllable crystals is suspended between two transparent panels, and when these crystals are activated by voltage, they align themselves so that they either allow a certain amount of light (produced by a florescent tube behind the panel) to pass through the panel, or else block it off. Both the lit and unlit crystals create visible pixels that together compose the final image on the screen.

Why buy LCD?

Screen life - We've seen some industry claims that LCD can last twice as long as plasma (around 40 years at 4 hrs of use a day). Even though we suspect that such claims show a distinct LCD bias on the part of the source. it does seem that LCD can last a bit longer than plasma.

No Screen burn - Plasma screens are susceptible to something called screen burn, which occurs when a bright image, is displayed on sceen for an extended period of time. The constant saturation 'tires' plasma's phosphors. leaving a permanent shadow of the bright image behind. LCD technology is pretty much immune to this problem.

Slimness - Because there is no need for gas filled or heavy glass fronts in a LCD screen, LCD tend to be slimmer and lighter than plasmas.

Brightness - LCD technology can generally deliver brighter pictures than a plasma - though more brightness isn't automatically better if it is used to disguise a lack of contrast.

Power consumption - LCDs generally use less power than plasma TVs because they don't need to power hundreds of electrodes to stimulate phospors.

Advantage Plasma

Advantage PLASMA

LCD & Plasma TV are both hang-on-the-wall TV technologies. But they have very little else in common. They work very differently, and the results both have there pros and cons. Here is a round up of the advantages of each technology.

Why Plasma?
Grey scale response / contrast- Plasma technology can deliver superior subtleties - which means plasmas can generally give you more detail in dark picture ares.

Response Times - Response time is the amount of time, measured inmilliseconds that it takes for a pixel to go from inactive to active back again. Although the latest LCD screens have made big mprovements in this area, plasma is still considerably better, so its picture quality generally sufferes less.

Size - LCD is catching up, but it's still cheaper for manufacturers to use Plasma for really big screen sizes - certainly 42" and above - than its for them to use LCD. On the other hand, plasma isn't really viable at sizes smaller than 32".

Viewing Angle - LCD screen frequently boast viewing angles of anywhere upto 175 degrees. But our experience suggests that these figures are very optimistic, as LCD pictures start to lose lots of contrast & colour at angles much less than those quoted. Pretty much all plasma screens, on the other hand, retain their quality upto around 160 degrees.

Colour Saturation - Plasma traditionally scores high here because of the way it blocks light, turning off pixels when they're not needed so that no stray light can dilute its coours. With LCD there's always some stray light in the mechanism, which adds a greying influence to colours.