A computer worthy of the next Mission Impossible film.

Yeah, like there's not going to be another Mission Impossible movie! If you saw MI3 (I really hope you caught it on cable and didn't waste good money in the theater) youd've noticed that the OQO handheld computer made a cameo. Its a great device (I own one myself) but it suffers from being underpowered. Yes, it'll push Windows XP, just not as fast as you're accustomed. There are a number of notebook or smaller devices out there that give you "desktop-like" capability. I also own the Fujitsu Lifebook P1510 which is an awesome, compact, flip screen tablet PC but the newest addition to the Lifebook line is just wicked. The Lifebook U810 Mini-Notebook.
Fujitsu claims that this is the world's smallest and lightest laptop. It has a 5.6" tablet flip screen. What's under the hood? An Intel A110 processor at 800Mhz and an Intel 945GU Express chipset with an onboard graphics processor, WiFi, Ethernet, fingerprint sensor for security, full QWERTY keyboard, 512 MB of Ram and a 20 GB hard drive all in its 7"x5"-1.56 lbs-body. That means it has enough power to push a full edition of Windows Vista or Windows XP tablet but still small enough to get lost in a bag! Its not a desktop replacement but at a meager $1099 ($999 for the base model) its easy to make it your "office on the road" or assist you in some tech caper. Or at the very least. make you the coolest looking kid in class.

HD DVD is gasping its last breath.

In a move that all but rang the death bell for HD DVD, Toshiba announced today that they "will no longer develop, make or market HD DVD players and recorders". Bu-Ray has been the next gen DVD format backed by 5 major Hollywood studios and the adult industry. And really, we know whoever the adult industry is behind will be the winner (need I remind you of the VHS-Beta war?) but the announcement that Warner Bros. made last month stating they would "...only release movie discs in the Blu-Ray format..." was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Both HD DVD and Blu-ray deliver crisp, clear high-definition pictures and sound, and were touted as "the" best next gen DVD. HD DVD however, was supposed to be cheaper because it was based on existing DVD technology while Blu-Ray boasted bigger recording/storage. In the end, size does matter (and I'm sure a lot of back door dealing) and Blu-Ray won.

Both Blu-Ray players and DVDs are likely to pick up now that a decision has been made becuase most of us were waiting for the dust to settle before runnning out and buying a new player and spending $20+ dollars on DVDs again. And Toshiba is expected to make out as well. Goldman Sachs has said that by having Toshiba only support one format could improve the company's profitability between $370 million to $460 million a year (Note to self, buy Toshiba stock).

The other thing not to overlook here is that Sony helped fuel the fire with the launch of its PS3 next gen game console which of course is also a Blu-Ray DVD player. Oh by the way, last estimate was the console had sold 10.5 million worldwide and with the recent price drop and this announcement you can expect quite a few more to sell now.

My advice to you? Go get yourself the cheapest Blu-Ray DVD player around that oh by the way also happens to be a next gen gaming console in the $399 PS3.

What's next, MP3 players in Happy Meals?

They're not yet but at this price it probably won't be long. I know that over the time the price of technology comes down but this is getting ridicilous. Its finally happened, a sub $10 MP3 player ($9.99 to be exact). Granted this isn't the player for the tech savvy 18-34 year olds but it'd be a great starter or kid's first player. Heck, at that price its practically disposable.

This is the My Player Kids MP3 Player (yeah I know, not an original name in the least) from Radio Shack.
The My Player comes with nine on-board video games (including; Drum it, Snack attack, Bobble goods, Slider, Maze, Snake stretch) a built in voice recorder, the ability to change faceplates, and runs off of 2 AAA batteries. So no worries about this thing losing a charge. The only drawback is that the player has only 32 MB of storage. Granted its no iPod Nano but 32MB will get you about 20 minutes of tunes. Not too shabby for a kid or throw in a bag to listen to while on the treadmill at the gym. At its small size, you could even keep it in your suit pocket to take voice memos.

If nothing else. it'll make one of the coolest stocking stuffers this Christmas.

'Tis been a while but oh the distractions.

Yes, its been way too long between posts.

The reasons? First, Assassin's Creed. One of if not the best game to come out in quite some time. I reviewed it here earlier but in a nutshell its a cross between Tomb Raider, Splinter Cell and Prince of Persia. Skin that package with some of the best graphics yet on next gen consoles and huge cities that are FILLED with people and you have the recipe for hours and hours of game play. I spent almost two whole days just riding my horse around the Kingdom (said Kingdom is just what you have to go through in order to get to the 10 other city areas) finding flags and killing Templar Knights.

Second, Cloverfield. Originally I wasn't going to get caught up in the hype but eventually (a week later) I went to see the movie. Then, after having my mind blown I sent the next weeks pouring through all the "Company Websites" that gave background info on the happenings up to the film. Yeah, you've heard all this talk about "we're never told how the monster gets there"? That's BS! There was tons of information available.....just set up in an elaborate way through those sites months before the movie hit the theater. My hat is off to J.J. Abrams.

So a quick post to get me back on track. I'm knee deep in watching "Torchwood" (a BBC original Sci-Fi TV show), playing Assassin's Creed and now Viva Piñata (long story but who knew papier-mâché animals could be so fun?) and reading the Halo novel "Contact Harvest". New posts about technology goodness coming soon.