       |
Episode 56: Home Theater Projectors
SUBSCRIBE
In the first of a muiltipart series covering home theater, the Gurus of Cool talk projectors, theater seating and more. Plus, they discuss the latest Opteron-packing workstations, talk about cool geekiness and slam down another fresh Rapid-Fire Roundup® of Cool Products they've seen during the week.
Listen to Coolness Roundup
Chill in the Coolness Lounge
Features by the Gurus of Cool
HP xw9400 Workstation: AMD Opteron vs. Intel Core 2 Extreme
by Charlie White
HP released its xw9400 Workstation ($5999), a line of high-performance PCs incorporating next-generation 2000-series AMD Opteron processors. The company sent us a dual-processor dual-core workstation with two Opteron 2220SE processors running at 2.8GHz. Although the outside of the xw9400 looked a lot like its xw9300 predecessor we tested late last year, the inside was a different story. Running our suite of content creation benchmarks, we set out to evaluate the xw9400 and at the same time, see if two of these fastest Opteron processors could beat the speed of one Intel Core 2 Extreme (Conroe) processor. ...Read More »
Final Cut Pro Quick Tip #57
by Stephen Schleicher
When using a device like CitiDisk HDV FireWire drive to capture HDV footage, you’ll end up with .M2T files, which Final Cut Pro won’t open. In order to use these clips, they need to be converted. One application that does an exceptional job is MPEG Streamclip, and best of all, it’s free. ...Read More »
Garmin StreetPilot c550 GPS Navigation System
by Charlie White
The Garmin StreetPilot c550 GPS Navigation System ($800 street) is one of those technological devices that can change your life. Besides showing you near-perfect directions to almost any address, it can play MP3 files. It recognizes your Bluetooth telephone, and operate as a high-quality speakerphone, too. It knows about current traffic conditions, and can also show you how to get to local establishments such as restaurants, gas stations and hotels. We took the StreetPilot c550 on a 4000-mile road trip around the Midwest, and tested it in just about every situation for which it was designed. ...Read More »
Linksys Travel Router with SpeedBooster WTR54GS
by Charlie White
Internet access is becoming ubiquitous, but it's not always exactly where you want it to be. For example, sometimes if you're in a hotel room and you'd like wireless Internet access, there's only a wired network connection available. Other times, there are two of you with notebooks in the hotel room and only one wired connection. The Linksys Travel Router with SpeedBooster WTR54GS ($80) can solve that problem in an instant, turning any wired connection into a miniature wireless network. We took it out on the road, field testing it in a variety of situations. ...Read More »
Rapid-Fire Roundup® of Cool Products
24-Inch iMac
The iMac has gotten bigger and better with the release of the new iMac systems. The largest features a glorious 24-inch screen and 64-bit Intel Core 2 Duo processor with speeds ranging from 1.83GHz to 2.33GHz. Prices for the 24-inch system start at $2000.
Solar-Powered Driveway Markers
Make your driveway look like an airport runway with these solar-powered driveway markers from Hammacher Schlemmer. They gather solar energy during the day and then shine brightly at night, and you set them to either blink or show a steady beam, letting you land that oversized SUV land yacht in its stall without incident. They're 90 bucks for a set of four.
JBL Mt. Everest Speakers
These are some true bad muthas that weigh in at a whopping 313 pounds of audiophile fun. But, handling 500 watts of power doesn’t come cheap, they are $30,000 and are expected to be available September 21st.
Daylight Projection Clock
The Daylight Projection Clock from Oregon Scientific looks like a black monolith with a little silver projector hanging off the side. The red time numerals are presented vertically on the clock itself, while the time, temperature and date are projected on any surface. It's bright enough so you can see that projected image even during the day. It's $90.
Stickfas
These build-your-own action figures have been around for several years, but they still qualify as coolness. With new themes and designs coming soon, you can build your own superheroes, or create ninjas and pirates and let them fight it out. Each kit is about $10.
Sony HDR-V1E HDV Camcorder
Here's the pro model of Sony's latest line of HDV camcorders, and this one has two XLR audio inputs and true 24p recording. It will also have 16:9 native capture, using three CMOS imaging sensors instead of those old-fashioned CCDs. Charlie will be traveling to New York in a couple of weeks for its US debut, so he'll tell you more after he's seen it. The Sony HDR-V1E will cost about $5,600.
Color Phasing Light Speakers
Hook these speakers up to your favorite music player and sit back and enjoy the light show. These speakers change color to the beat of the music or to a programmed sequence. Kick back, light’em up, these speakers will get the rave started in some kid's dorm room this semester.
Storybook Digital Picture Frames
Storybook Digital Picture Frames look like old-fashioned wooden frames, but underneath is a 7-inch 480x234 LCD that you can load up with your favorite pictures using a variety of flash memory cards. Available in lots of styles, it'll look right at home among all those other conventional picture frames on your desk. It's $239.
Rev-olution Alarm Clock
The Rev-olution alarm clock looks just like the tachometer in a sports car and when it’s time to wake up, you wake up! Forget the beeps and drones of all the other clocks, this alarm sounds just like a sports car revving its engine.
HP 30-inch Monitor
Now HP jumps into the 30-inch monitor derby, and its 2560x1600 display will give Apple and Dell a run for their money. It's looking good with its thin black bezel, and it also beats the competition with a 8-millisecond response time and 1000:1 contrast ratio. Available in November, it'll be just under $2000.
Show Links
Charlie Named "Cool Geek of the Week" on BornRich.org
You can also subscribe to the Coolness Roundup Podcast using your RSS Reader.
VOTE
Please take a moment and vote for us at Podcast Alley. Your votes help us in the monthly rankings. You are allowed to vote once each month.
CONTACT US
Call Us
Call and leave a message on our tipline at (785) 727-1942 or on Skype
E-Mail of the Week
Send your comments and questions to
Where Are You?
COMMENTS
"Week after week, Stephen and Charlie boil down the morass of tech info into solid gold nuggets of information, with a dash of opinion thrown in. Nothing sterile here, they have timely hard-hitting news each week. "
"With all the information out there, it can sometimes be overwhelming to filter the signal from the noise. These guys send the signal loud and clear! Great podcast!"
"You can tell by listening to them they know their stuff and they're not fooled by hype. They calls 'em as they sees 'em. These two have reached escape coolosity!"
"Stephen Schleicher is very knowledgable about his technology and I can only assume he would surround himself with like company. Which is why I think Stephen and Charlie definitely know what they are talking about in the venue of tech tips and reviews. They rock my face off!"
This week's featured music:
Man Bites Dog:
Liar Liar Liar
LINKS
Charlie White
Verbatim
|
Coolness Roundup ©2006 Charlie White and Stephen Schleicher
No portion of this Web site or podcast may be used without the expressed written
consent of the authors.