Netbooks: where Windows XP shines

I have been a very happy user of the Asus EEE PC 901 for several weeks now. I really started looking into the EEE line just when it launched with the 701 model. The 701 was an excellent idea: as full portable computer as possible for as little money as possible. But I soon realized the 701 specs were falling a little short from my expectations. The main reason was the screen, and especially it's horizontal resolution of 800 pixels. The main reason for buying a netbook is Web browsing and 800 pixels across is just not enough. 90% of web pages nowadays are designed for XGA or 1024x768 resolution. So 800 screen means you are getting a horizontal scroll bar most of the time. Handling just one scroll bar (the vertical one) is what we are used to. Most Web pages are simply longer than the monitors we use. But two scroll bars are just too uncomfortable. So I was really happy to learn Asus planned to launch the 900 series with 1024 screen. And then just after the Centrino - based 900 had hit the shelves, the news abot the Atom - based 901 emerged. The Atom processor was promising a lot more battery run time. Hence the reason to wait for the 901.

I was little afraid the Atom would not be powerful enough to handle Windows XP, the default operating system coming with the Asus. My primary notebook runs a dual core Centrino Core Duo L7700 at 1,8GHz, and it just handles Windows Vista at an acceptable speed. So what was my relief when I first powered the EEE 901 once it arrived, just to see it was very fast running the supplied XP Home. I installed the Google Chrome on the EEE and have to admit it runs certain applications (the Google Reader for example) faster than the L7700 powered Lenovo X61s. Surely the Chrome V8 JavaScript engine contributes a lot here, but the end result is the end result. David beating Goliath - the EEE is full five times less expensive compared to the X61. Sure it lacks 200GB of secure storage, offering merely 8GB of free flash partition. But hey, it is a netbook, not a notebook. A portable computer with its primary goal to deliver full Web browsing experience you can take with you. And for $300, without large storage on board (meaning you do not have on it much you can lose), you won't be afraid of taking it with you much more often than before. For me it is a perfect computer for holidays. Runs long time on batteries (6 hours), is small and light, delivers comfortable Web browsing experience either with WiFi or with a 3G USB modem, and really if it gets stolen I won't be crying.


So all nice and easy? Not so... There was unfortunately a bad experience of setting it up. It was not preloaded with tons of bloatware (although I did uninstall several applications like Microsoft Works), but it came with really old version of Windows XP preinstalled. Working with the machine in the background (means I did not devote my full time to setting it up), it took me three days and multiple reboots to have Windows Update finish it s work of bringing the machine to the up-to-date state. This is something really hard to understand. A brand new model comes preloaded with three-or-more years old version of an operating system. And then it take so long and so much pain to have it aligned to the current state of art. After finally upgrading Windows with tons of patches, I set up the applications intended to be used and then took a drive snapshot with help of Acronis Migrate Easy. The primary flash drive of the EEE has been mirrored to the 4GB SD flash card, should I have to reload everything one day. I really wish Microsoft looked into what versions of their OSes are being distributed with current devices. Half of the frustration and the bad press Windows is getting comes from bad preinstallations prepared by the hardware vendors. Apple, by default, has full control of what is put in the hands of end users when they buy a new machine. Microsoft should too, or it will suffer even more in the time to come.

Panasonic FullHD Projector

FullHD has gone mainstream. So it has been just about time to find a partner for the Sony PlayStation 3. I have to admit the PS3 does not show any signs of physical or mental fatigue. It is still as beautiful and as jaw-dropping as on the day one in May 2007. The idea of setting a living room multimedia hub around the PS3 proved to be right. In tandem with the ReadyNAS, the PS3 is used very frequently to play and replay digital photos and DVDs. It also perfectly serves time-shifted recordings originating from the Drambox, the Linux - based satellite receiver. And it upscales standard movies to HD resolution. And yes, it plays Blue-Ray discs too. And... it is a game console.

So, the perfect multimedia hub needs a perfect display. I was looking for something of a decent size (say 80 inch diagonal), that does not clutter the wall. So a projector was the default choice. And FullHD (1920x1080 native resolution) was the key requirement, as I did not want to lose any detail from the pin - sharp pictures I have stored on the NAS server. Therefore I passed by several very interesting offerings, namely the Hitachi CPA-100 ultra-short-throw gizmo and the Nikko R2D2. Both of them are brilliant and both offer excellent alternatives to hanging an ugly box in the middle of the ceiling. But they are "just" XGA (1024x768) and therefore have not passed my criteria.

Restricting my list of potential targets to true FullHD devices, the Panasonic PT-AE2000 made it to the top, because of several unique features:

• Incredible contrast ratio of 1:16000 delivering real black darkness (even on a white pearl silver screen)
• 22db of fan silence. You can even hear a ticking clock when the projector is turned on.
• Very wide range of lens shift. Lens shifting allows setting the projector away from the central axis of the projected image. Like in a room corner or high on the ceiling, while the projected image may be just where you expect it to be. For details on this feature please see the Panasonic throw distance calculator.

After several days it really seems the Panasonic (PT-AE2000) is the perfect party for the Sony (PlayStation 3). It may sound strange at first glance, but... you know... opposites attract :). And if you feel 1:16000 contrast ratio is not enough, watch the PT-AE3000 coming out next month...

Confessions: good and bad picks

We are nearing October 2008 that will mark full three years of my blogging. I posted a lot on gadgets and devices and I have to admit not all of them proved long term as good as initially expected. To be honest: most of them failed and I either sold them on an Internet auction or they found the way to the big box I keep in my basement...

So the winners are:

• Sony PSP. I love the console, the speed of the games. And the latest version even has VoIP (as predicted).
• HTC SP5M. I lost it. And it was not 3G. But it would make it to the winners lounge. Non-touch Windows Mobile is really a good piece of an operating system.
• Google storage. I use it everyday. My Gmail is less than 20% full. And my Picasa holds my entire photo collection.
• Microsoft DirectPush. Love it. Even the 3G iPhone has it.
• HSDPA Internet on the go. Everybody is using it.
• Pandora. Fantastic. Shame the labels are killing it.
• Squeezeboxes. Have four of them, in use every day.
• Google Browser Sync. The only reason I still run Firefox 2.
• Cleartype. Turn it on, my friend. Life will never be the same...
• Google Office. Business still requires Word, but I do all my private stuff there.
• USB as a power source. Everybody uses it as if it was always present.
• SyncToy. Still helps me keep my stuff synchronized with the home NAS.
• Slimserver. Serving my morning music everyday.
• Google Notebook. Get it if you don't have it already. Only gets better with time.
• Samsung SGH-600i. Still my primary phone.
• Sony PS3. No wrinkles and no signs of being tired.
• Yamaha YSP. Fantastic and delivers on promise.
• Motorola IHF1000. Sounds great and delivers on promise with speaker independent voice recognition.
• Fujifilm S5Pro. I still admire every picture it takes.
• d-GPS. Goes everywhere I go with the Fujifilm.
• ReadyNAS. Everyday work horse. Runs out of space. Soon to be upgraded with 1TB drives.
• Hitachi 200GB FDE Drive. Love it. No hassles, fast and secure.
• Asus EEE 901. Fantastic for its price. And after months with Vista, XP seems lightning fast.
• HomePlugAV powerline networking. Plenty fast. I am writing this over the PLE200.
• Nikon D40. Light, easy to use and takes really great pictures.
  
• Fujitsu S300. Phenomenal, hassle - free ease of use.
  

And the losers:

• HTC JasJar. Too slow, to heavy and Windows touch is a crap for everyday use. Have I told you the batteries barely lasted 4 hours? No? You should have asked...
• Mobile Skype. I do not know anybody actually using it.
• TV sets with built-in browsers. Nowhere near. Laptops rule living rooms.
• Quicklogic. This one is a real dog at $1,50 or below. But I still hold the shares.
• Origami. Microsoft still has trouble reinventing itself.
• Planon RC800. Great idea, poor software and poor quality. I still carry it with me most of the time, but use only in emergency.
• Internet Explorer 7. Cannot imagine things may be sooo sloooow...
• A2DP. Incompatibilities, power issues consumption, poor sound. I am back to wired headphones. May be next Apple will change it...
• Mogo Mouse. Still needs a surface... Multi touch is the new kid on the block.
  
• USB Cells. Well... I guess I do not have any AA-powered device at the moment...
• WRV200. I celebrate the day I turned it off. I just hate when something needs a reboot to keep on going.
• Foveon. Great pictures if all stays still. Great idea, great chip, poor application performance.
• Linux on PS3. Takes too long to load and configure.
• UMA. The lack of QOS is killing the conversations.
• Toshiba camera. Why oh why it needs an ActiveX to display pictures?
• Nokia tablet. Despite numerous upgrades crashes every five minutes. Frustrating.
• Momento. WiFi that does not handle WPA. The devil in the details. As always.
• Belkin Network USB. Too slow over WiFi. May be 802.11n upgrade will give it a second chance?

Generally it is a pity so many gadgets failed to deliver on the promise. Beware...

Fujitsu ScanSnap S300

Two years ago I wrote about the Paperless Home personal project. Using very simple and cheap scanner I started scanning every important piece of mail (or other documents) coming in paper form and converting them to the digital format. I continue organizing my personal documents this way, getting rid of almost any piece of paper as soon as it arrives and finds its way to my secure FDE drive.

The end result is great. Whenever I have a need to get one of these documents it is a quick file search away and my physical cabinet for storing papers is almost empty now (well... may be not, but it is not filling up anymore). On the other hand, the process of scanning the papers has been fairly labor intensive. The scanner I used to use (an old Canon flatbed) was slow and the software was limited. Things like scanning double sided, multi page documents were taking long time and I could imagine not many people being patient and having enough perseverance to keep this process running every time something arrives in paper form.

So recently I have decided to upgrade the machinery. For a long time I have been tempted by the Fujitsu ScanSnap S500 / S510, especially after reading all the reviews on Amazon. What was holding me back was the price and the fact the S500 was a monochrome machine. So it was not a long decision after I learned there is a new kid on the block - the S300. Smaller than the S500, capable of scanning in color and (how I like it!) can be powered directly from the USB port, eliminating an extra power brick.

I am using the S300 for three weeks now and have to admit it exceeds my expectations in every aspect. The software is flawless. Sits somewhere in the background. I open the scanner, put one or more (yes, it has an automatic document feeder) pages in (like in a fax machine) and press the button. After just a few seconds a PDF file lands in one of the folders on the hard drive. There is an automatic empty page detection and the S300 scans both pages of a paper simultaneously. It even automatically rotates the pages to be landscape or portrait. With OCR in the background, the PDF scans are fully searchable by the operating system (I use Windows Vista, but can imagine this works on Mac OS the same way).

Put simply - the S300 is one of those technology marvels, that deliver. Both hardware and software stand out on the general landscape of problems you normally expect buying any computer - related device or application. I can highly recommend the S300 to anyone looking for a personal or small office document scanner. You won't find anything better on the market.