Just like furniture, gadgets now need to complement the interior. Look at the exterior differences of televisions over the years for example - you can clearly see how important design has become. Even Cisco (well known for its networking equipment) feels the pressure to design more aesthetically pleasing hardware. Take a look at their Linksys Ultra Range router. Buyers associate poor design with poor performance. Bad design is no longer tolerated.

Fed up with ugly routers and clunky hard drives, a growing number of consumers are looking for well-designed gadgets that complement decor instead of cluttering desktops and clashing with furniture.

Many credit Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) Latest News about Apple iPhone, with its strikingly simple forms, for raising the bar on expectations for good design in consumer electronics.

And while art and design professionals say that gadgets like mobile phones and personal computers are becoming increasingly well-designed, they also say many electronic products still need to work on their appearance.

Full article here.

Samsung opted for a rather unusual keyboard setup. Instead of the usual slide-out design, the Q1 Ultra has a split QWERTY keyboard, with each side of the unit housing 1 half of the keyboard.

Click here for more details on the Q1 Ultra.

If you have a few hundred dollars to spare, you can hire a professional to do the job for you. But after you’ve spent a load of dough on the set itself, the prospect of spending more for calibration may not be appealing. Armed with a few facts, the right software, and a little time, you can handle the task yourself for just a few bucks.
What Every TV Owner Needs to Know

Sure, everyone knows how to plug in a TV and tap their way around a remote. But if you’re looking for a great home-entertainment experience, here a few important things to keep in mind.

PC World has the full article.

Overview of the Samsung SyncMaster 2253BW 22″.

I have been using Samsung monitors for the last 5 years, and am happy so far with what comes out of their factories. The LCD screen on my desk is a Samsung SyncMaster 226BW 22″ LCD Monitor, which is one step up from the 2253BW (in terms of date of release) that this post is about. Although price differences between the two varies from 50 bucks to virtually nothing, it is worth taking a look at the Samsung SyncMaster 2253BW 22″ LCD Monitor. Both screens offer a resolution of up to 1680 x 1050, which should be enough for most users. The horizontal viewing angle of the 226BW is 10 degrees larger compared to the 2253BW. Both offer a brightness of 300 cd/m², 16.7 million colours, DVI, both weigh about the same. For some reason the 2253BW actually offers a better contrast ratio, 1:8000 with dynamic contrast. To be honest, I don’t really like the dynamic contrast - at least on televisions it’s clear when it’s enabled while moving from light scenes to dark scenes.

One thing that affects most LCD screens out there is backlight bleeding. You won’t notice it unless the screen is almost completely black, however it’s time engineers find a way to come up with a solution. Both screens are highly recommended, and the popularity of these monitors should speak for itself; these are good products. So do you have space on your desk?

Click here for technical specifications.

Overview of the :
WD Passport WDXMS2500 - Hard drive - 250 GB - external - 2.5" - Hi-Speed USB - 5400 rpm - buffer: 2 MB

Western Digital is without doubt one of the most respected hard drive manufacturers. Started in 1970, WD, as it’s widely known these days, has grown to a multi-billion dollar corporation with thousands of products.

At 250 GB, the WDXMS2500 offers plenty of space to backup your important files. I’m sure you’ve read the horror stories of people not properly backing up their files. Hardware failure can cost you a lot when your income is generated mainly from the stuff that’s on your hard drive! If hardware failure occurs you can quickly replace the hardware and transfer over your files from your external hard drive. With prices of external hard drives and other backup tools so low, there is NO excuse not to have your own backup system in place. Don’t take the risk, and spend that 100 bucks for a good external drive.

Some specifications:

Total storage space : 250 GB
Buffer : 2 MB (not that much, but reliability is more important than speed on backup drives)
Model size : 2.5 inch
rpm : 5400
Power source : USB
Colour : black

Average rating based on review sites : 7/10.

Ready to order?

CLICK HERE to check out the WDXMS2500 product page.

Overview of the Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300.

The Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300 processor is the entry level Quad processor with a front bus speed of 1333 mhz. With 6 MB of L2 cache speed isn’t a problem for this performance addicted piece of hardware. I still remember the days (not that long ago) when you had to pay double the price of what the Q9300 costs just to get a Quad core CPU. Intel has been revamping and updating their line of CPUs constantly over the last few years. They are slowly phasing out the FSB 1066 mhz family, and are already offering an amazing CPU with 1600 MHZ front bus speed (the QX9770)! You may think that the CPU speed of 2.5 ghz isn’t all that impressive, but wait till you see the overclocking capability of the Q9300. Nordichardware reported that they were able to overclock it to 3.7 ghz, a massive increase of almost 50%.

Compared to the older Q6600 (which sells for only a little less), you are getting a decent improvement in overall peformance on all levels. The only negative we noticed is when comparing this Quad CPU with a Duo Core during benchmark tests with such games as Quake 4. It is obvious that games (and many desktop applications) are still not optimized for use with a Quad processor. You could conclude that for the best performance in games released in 2007 and 2008 a good Duo core (the E8500 for example) will be more viable. Yet, to be ready for the future the Q9300 is a great investment.

Average rating based on review sites : 8/10.

You can purchase the Q9300 at trusted Amazon by clicking here. Or as second option, if you want a Duo Core - take a look at the E8500.

Overview of the XFX GeForce 9800GX2.

The days when graphic cards were small, taking up little space in your PC case are long gone. They’ve grown in size and demand more power. This in contrast to CPUs and some other hardware parts. The problem with graphic cards is that they emit a lot of heat, and that heat needs to go somewhere. The XFX GeForce 9800GX2 is the perfect match for demanding gamers. It’s simply a monster card packing 1 GB of RAM and a memory clock set at 2GHZ. The ever growing demands for high-end graphics by the next generation of games requires suitable hardware. XFX has done a good job at meeting those demands with the 9800GX2. This giant will easily outperform the very respectable Nvidia 8800 Ultra series, without a doubt. It’s not a cheap toy to have inside your PC, but boy - the fun you’ll have will make up for its price tag and space requirements. Crysis at maximum settings, here I come!

Average rating based on review sites : 8/10.

Are you ready for this monster? Check out Amazon by clicking here.

Short review of the Asus Striker II Formula.

Are you an ambitious gamer and only want the best? Perhaps this recent Asus motherboard will be the right pick for you. Asus has been developing motherboards for gamers for a few years now, and most of them have impressed gamers. This board is ready for your overclocking needs, comes with all the latest features such as Core 2 and Quad CPU support. Interestingly it packs DDR 2 slots, not DDR 3. There are several advantages though. Memory has been slightly more expensive lately, especially the new DDR 3 modules. Most systems are still being sold with DDR 2 memory - at 1066 mhz you will still have respectable memory speed.

This motherboard is definitely NOT one of the cheapest available. It’s a high-end piece of hardware, and the price reflects that (priced at around $340 usd). Please check where you buy it and see if it includes the PC game Company of Heroes : Opposing Fronts, it’s a nice bonus! The motherboard adds 10 USB 2.0 ports to your system, and can support up to 8 GB of RAM. You can add up to 3 SLI-ready NVIDA graphic cards, for the ultimate gaming experience. Overclocking is possible and rather easy with the provided tools. However, it does not overclock as good as some of the former Republic of Gamers motherboards.

Average rating based on review sites : 7/10.

You can buy it at Amazon by clicking here.

From The Local:

The big news on Saturday was meant to be the inauguration of Norway’s futuristic new national opera house, but all eyes were on special guest German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s plunging neckline, German tabloid daily Bild reported on Monday.

The paper said 53-year-old Merkel has never been seen in something so revealing, but called her choice “elegant,” “feminine,” and “stately.”

Merkel’s black evening gown paired with a deep turquoise bolero shawl and classic pearl necklace was a far cry from the stuffy pink gown she wore to a Bayreuth opera two years ago - which revealed tabloid-friendly sweat stains as she waved to eager photographers.

Click here for full article.

What VF said :

I like her new look. She looked way too boyish before the 2005 election. Is she revealing too much? I don’t know. Seems elegant enough. World news? Well we could argue about the value of Merkel’s cleavage on world affairs. But hey, it’s better than listening to the constant attacks between Obama and Clinton (which are getting old, really).

What MF said :

The value of this “news” is exactly ZERO. Has the media nothing better to report on? For God’s sake there are more pressing matters going on in the World. Like rising food prices, Chinese violations of Tibetans’ human rights, Iran’s nuclear plans, et cetera, et cetera. I do have to admit that it’s better than reading about that skinny rich kid Paris Hilton though. But that isn’t saying much! Let’s stop the madness.

In 2008, its sixth year, the war will cost approximately $12 billion a month, triple the “burn” rate of its earliest years, Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph E. Stiglitz and co-author Linda J. Bilmes report in a new book.

Beyond 2008, working with “best-case” and “realistic-moderate” scenarios, they project the Iraq and Afghan wars, including long-term U.S. military occupations of those countries, will cost the U.S. budget between $1.7 trillion and $2.7 trillion — or more — by 2017.

Interest on money borrowed to pay those costs could alone add $816 billion to that bottom line, they say.

Click here for full article.

What VF said :

Look, these wars are necessary. We need to fight terrorists to keep America and the world safe. Sure it’s costing billions and billions of taxpayer’s money - but have we had a major terrorist attack since 9/11? No. And God willing it will stay that way! Leaving Iraq and Afghanistan will only hurt our security situation. We can’t let terrorists take over those 2 countries and transform them into huge training grounds for attacks on Western interests!

What MF said :

What a bunch of crap, VF. Hey, I agree with ya that we need to keep terrorism out of our countries but let’s look at the whole picture. Is it worth spending trillions (yes, TRILLIONS) of dollars on wars, soldiers’ lives and our reputation when we can probably be just as safe without the wars. You did read those intelligence reports which stated that the wars only made the security situation less safe? 12 billion dollars a month. That’s 144 billion bucks a year! We could fix our crappy public education system, medicare, and let’s not forget the levees that need urgent repairs.