Archive for April, 2004
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Friday, April 30th, 2004
All-Wheel-Steer Riding Lawn Mower
Murray, Inc. has introducted the most maneuverable lawn tractor in its class. Murray’s 22.0 hp YardKing will be rolling into stores this spring so save up about $2300 for this new mower and be the talk of your block. The All-wheel steering gives the tractor the ability to turn on a tighter radius than conventional lawn tractors, which means reduced mowing times, fewer missed patches, and more precise trimming around trees and landscaping.
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Friday, April 30th, 2004
And the Fastest Throughput for 802.11g is…
In the May 18, 2004 issue of PC Magazine. D-Link Xtreme absolutely blew away all competition in both performance and distance tests, more than doubling the throughput speeds of all competing 802.11g solutions, posting an incredible 73.8 Megabits per second data throughput. The testing criteria for both 802.11g and 802.11ag products were measured in many categories, where D-Link hammered the competition in performance, distance and value.
Below are test results excerpted from the PC Magazine review:802.11g Performance @ 1 foot (throughput)*
D-Link 73.8Mbps Apple N/A** Belkin 25.3Mbps Buffalo 28.5Mbps Dell 21.1Mbps Gateway 22.6Mbps GigaFast 21.7Mbps Hawking 21.7Mbps IOGear 20.8Mbps Linksys 33.5Mbps Microsoft 21.2Mbps Netgear 35.0Mbps SMC 24.3Mbps US Robotics 25.1Mbps Zyxel 23.1Mbps
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Friday, April 30th, 2004
Sony DRU-700A Dual Layer Burner
Any day now, stores will be stocking Sony’s 5th generation dual format DVD burner, the DRU-700A (internal) and DRX-700UL (external). These new drives can record on the new DVD+R DL (Double Layer) disc, bringing the total burning capacity to 8.5GB vs. the current 4.7GB. Don’t expect 8x DL burning speeds yet, these drives can burn DL at 2.4x, 8x for DVD+R/-R, 4x for DVD+RW/-RW, and 40x CD-R/24x CD-RW. The internal model will cost about $200 and the external about $290 (street prices).
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Friday, April 30th, 2004
MailDefender
First off, did you know that there is a mail conference and it’s called Mailcom? Today, at that very conference, the BioDefense Corporation unveiled its 2-door MailDefender System. The system utilizes proven disinfection technologies such as ultraviolet, microwave, and a proprietary antimicrobial compound to stop biological pathogens like anthrax before they invade a workplace environment; protecting people and property from terrorist’s attacks and threats (also a great tool for furthering your Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). It effectively decontaminates deadly and harmful bio-contaminants and certain chemicals, including ricin, smallpox, plague, e-Coli, influenza, HIV and botulism. (In some tests, mail was decontaminated at a level nearly 1,000% more effective than the U.S. Army’s standard of safety.) If you’ve been looking for a system to dryclean your incoming mail and have about $60k to spend, contact BioDefense directly to place an order.
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Thursday, April 29th, 2004
New Talking, Winking and Blinking Urinals
WizMark has patented interactive urinal communicators which creates a whole new dimension, literally, to
the idea of interactive marketing. Lets say you need to take a pit stop, walk up to the urinal and your attention is immediately attracted to a promotional ad message contained inside an angled waterproof display located within the urinal, with flashing lights that are activated either by someone’s physical presence or by urination onto the screen. The screen also emits a pre-recorded audible message of up to 16 seconds upon activation. Even before activation, the auto-animated winking of alternating images on the 3.5-inch lenticular display of the device is sure to catch the eye of any man seeing this novel ad vehicle for the first time. If anything, this little device might help people aim better, and that’s good for everyone.
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Thursday, April 29th, 2004
Weblink II Now Supports Ethernet Port
I don’t know how this one slipped passed me… but a few weeks ago, Home Automation Inc (HAI), makers of the OmniPro home automation controllers, released an update to Weblink II which enables the built-in ethernet port. Weblink II is a software program that runs on any Windows machine and connects via RS232, RS485 and now ethernet to the OmniPro line of controllers, allowing you access to your home via any IP enabled device. Version 2.01.4082 also adds support for sending emails without specifying an SMTP server, Windows Server 2003, and enhanced SmartPhone pages. The update is free.
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Wednesday, April 28th, 2004
Videographic Memory
This is pretty cool gadget, I don’t know if I’d use it daily, but it would be fun to have one to mess with. Image taking your Sony DVD or DV camera with you on a trip or hike, but also attaching the VMS-X and a GPS receiver… get the point? The VMS-X is a spatial video collection solution that integrates a GPS receiver (1) with Sony digital video cameras (2) equipped with an intelligent accessory shoe. The VMS-X (3) attaches to the top of the camera and enables the recording of video, audio, and location data to tape or DVD. After data collection, you can process the data for rapid playback in Red Hen’s multimedia mapping application, MediaMapper, or ESRI’s ArcGIS environment. Now, you’ll know exactly where you were when you shot that great video of the ground.
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Tuesday, April 27th, 2004
8X DVD/CD Writer From Pioneer
If you’re like me and still have an old 2x DVD burner, you’ll love to hear that Pioneer is coming out with a 8X external DVD/CD writer. The DVR-S706 can be connected to an existing computer through a firewire or USB port making the upgrade a cinch. The coolest part is that you can burn a full 4.7gb disc in about 15 minutes! And with Pioneer’s advanced precision recording technology, you can be assured optimum recording performance, even if the blank disc is slightly irregular (why do they produce irregular discs anyways?). Additionally, new quiet drive technology reduces operating noise and vibration, making the burning process practically silent. They go on sale in May for about $260… I might wait for the dual layer burners.
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Tuesday, April 27th, 2004
FIA On3 Digital Media Player and Library
Today, First Intelligent Array, announced general availability of their FIA On3 Digital Media Player and Library. It’s an easy-to-use home entertainment device that lets users view videos and photos on the TV, and listen to MP3 music on personal stereos. The FIA On3 offers playback, remote access, an abundant storage library, and easy installation for a low starting price of $449. A PC is not required to view and listen to your digital media and you can choose from 80GB or 120GB storage. The FIA On3 supports analog and digital 5:1 audio connections as well as Component, Composite, and S-Video video connections. Up to four of these can be tethered together so you can enjoy your media in every room of the house. The FIA On3 can be purchased through online merchants PC Connection, Tiger Direct, and Zones, and direct from FIA.
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Tuesday, April 27th, 2004
Wireless Bluetooth GPS Receiver
Navman announced today the latest addition to its line of GPS products. The
Navman GPS 4410 is designed for use with Bluetooth-enabled Pocket PCs. This
upgraded version of Navman’s popular GPS 4400 leverages the power of their
advanced navigation software and the latest in wireless technology. It comes bundled with the latest version of Navman’s award-winning navigation
software, SmartST V2. Exciting new software capabilities include
Microsoft Outlook integration for advanced address-to-contact routing,
a time-saving zip code search tool, the ability to pre-select areas to avoid,
a handy town to town routing function, complete route summary, enhanced
zooming functionality and a 3D map display option. Other standard features include address-to-address routing, selectable map views, automatic and manual zoom for map detail control, Back-on-Track rerouting when off-course, day and night screen modes and an extensive points-of-interest library. The fully automated software provides voice guidance, in addition to visual driving instructions and, large display icons and easy-to-read maps provide an operator-friendly, touch-screen interface for added safety while driving. The complete solution contains detailed street-level mapping for the 48 contiguous states, Hawaii, Alaska and Canada. The Navman GPS 4410 and GPS 4100 are competitively priced at $319.95 and $219.95.
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Welcome to the archives here at MAVROMATIC.
These are a collection of our previous posts. If you'd like to read about the latest and greatest, click here.
Welcome to mavromatic! My goal is to bring to your attention the latest DIY projects, the greatest home automation and home theater products. As well as, the occasional offbeat entry, to spice things up a bit.
