eK-gadgets info

What do you think about an iPhone for your home? Would you actually use? I certainly see the iPhone’s usability but would I get a home version? I think not, but let’s give it a closer look.The company manufacturing this device is OpenPeak and it has been working on this version for about a year and a half. Are they ready? Not yet! The final version will hit the market sometime in the first quarter of 2009.

The phone is said to have been designed as a communication center for the whole family and third party developers will be able to create applications specially designed for this iPhone. Ok, but why keep investing in landlines when you are mostly talking on your cell phone?

This iPhone Home will be available from Verizon and AT&T but you might find it available with other private resellers too. The price is rumored to be somewhere between $200 to $300. The price is not that bad for a smartphone but it might be too much for a phone you’ll hardly use. Sure OpenPeak says their product will have lots of other features, but I really hate being the one that tells them we have computers at home which are more than able to perform complicated tasks. And VoIP is one of them.

Still skeptical about this phone, but if you do happen to get it, do tell us more about it!

It’s nice to see Asus working on other laptops besides their Eee line. Asus has gone ahead and launched a few new laptops, both for business and pleasure, which we’re going to quickly check out for you.The B50A business laptop:

• 15.4-inch screen
• Penryn Core 2 Duos
• Intel’s GM45 Express chipset
• ASUS’s Expressgate SplashTop
• integrated X4500 graphics,
• up to4GB RAM
• 320GB drive
• spill-resistant keyboard
• Bluetooth, WiFi
• dual-layer burner
• 1.3 megapixel webcam.

The F8 laptops:

• 14.1-inch WXGA screen,
• Penryn Core 2 Duos
• 256MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3470 graphics with Express Gate,
• TV tuner with remote control,
• up to 4GB RAM
• 320GB drive
• 1.3 megapixel swivel webcam
• five available colors.

The F6 “scented” laptops:

• 13.3-inch screen,
• lids feature five available graphics and fragrances
• Penryn Core 2 Duos
• 256MB ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3470 graphics with Express Gate
• TV tuner with remote control
• up to 4GB RAM
• 320GB drive
• fingerprint scanner.

The G71V and G50V “Republic of Gamers” laptops:

• 17 inch (G71) and 15 inch (G50)
• Intel Core 2 Quad QX9300 processors
• 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9700M GT graphics
• 4GB of RAM
• 2x 500GB hard drives
• dual-layer burner
• 2.0 megapixel swivel webcam
• LED lighting effects
• gaming hotkeys.

Rounding out this week’s camera announcements are three models from Casio. The first two are stylish ultra-compacts with wide-angle zoom lenses. Here are their specs:Exilim EX-Z250 

• 9.1 effective Megapixel CCD
• F2.6-5.9, 4X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 28 - 112 mm
• Ultra-compact metal body comes in silver and black
• Sensor-shift image stabilization
• 3-inch LCD display with 230,000 pixels
• Uses new Exilim Engine 3.0 image processor
• Point-and-shoot operation, with more scene modes than you’d ever need
• New features include “handheld night scene” (I’ll believe that one when I see it), some kind of automatic contrast adjustment, and a facial skin smoother called “make-up shot”
• Face detection, plus an Auto Shutter mode which waits for your subject to smile, or for camera shake to stop
• Records movies at 848 x 480 (30 fps) using the H.264/AVC codec
• 38.5MB onboard memory + SD/SDHC/MMC/MMCplus slot
• Uses NP-70 li-ion battery; 280 shots per charge
• Ships in October for $250

Exilim EX-Z300  changes:

• 10.1 effective Megapixel CCD
• Slightly different lens; F2.8 - F5.8 maximum aperture range
• AF-assist lamp
• Can record movies at 1280 x 720 (720p) at 24 fps
• Uses NP-40 battery; 300 shots per charge
• USB 2.0 High Speed support
• Comes in silver, black, and pink
• Priced at $300

Casio also introduced the low-cost Exilim EX-Z85, which comes in two unconventional (but attractive) colors: orange and brown. Here are the details on this one:

Exilim EX-Z85

• 9.1 effective Megapixel CCD
• F3.1-5.9, 3X optical zoom lens, equivalent to 38 - 114 mm
• Ultra-slim metal body comes in orange and brown
• 2.6-inch, widescreen LCD display, with 114,960 pixels
• Point and shoot operation, with tons of scene modes
• Auto Shutter Function takes a photo when your subject is smiling, or when there’s no blur
• Requisite face detection feature
• Records movies at 848 x 480 (30 fps) using the H.264/AVC codec
• 41.2MB onboard memory + SD/SDHC/MMC/MMCplus slot
• Uses NP-60 lithium-ion battery; 240 shots per charge
• Ships in October for $180