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September 15, 2004 |
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This week's buzz: all cell phones, all the time. OK, that's not strictly true. A laptop with some interesting multimedia capabilities and an Internet stream ripper did manage to divert your attention away from cell phones this week, but just barely. Top of the list: BlackBerry 7100t. Get the scoop.
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BlackBerry 7100t
Our editors said the new RIM BlackBerry 7100t now "has mass appeal," and it's looking like they're right (aren't they always?). The new BlackBerry owned the search boxes this week with its lovable combination of quad-band GSM/GPRS phone capabilities, built-in Bluetooth, pseudo-QWERTY keypad, and business-class e-mail skills. Don't you just want to give it a hug? The BlackBerry's positioning aims its cannons straight at the Treo 600, which leads us to our next contestant...
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Treo 650
Not that the Treo 600 isn't a solid competitor for the BlackBerry all on its own, but once leaked photos began to hit the Web, buzz around the hopefully forthcoming Treo 650 hit a fever pitch. The nitty-gritty: a new 1.3-megapixel camera with digital zoom (and possibly a lens cover), a backlit keypad, Bluetooth, a higher resolution screen, and a faster processer (312MHz). However, reports that the new Treo will be completely incompatible with any previous Treo accessories dampened enthusiasm a tiny bit.
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HP Pavilion dv1000
Sometimes, you folks are just plain sensible. Or, you're just plain in a hurry to start listening to music and watching movies without the agonizing wait for your laptop to boot up. Hard to say which is the real reason, but the HP Pavilion dv1000, a sensibly priced notebook that lets you play CDs and DVDs without launching Windows, rolled through the search results like an out-of-control snowball. Interestingly, the dv1000's main competitor in bootup-free media enjoyment, the Toshiba Qosmio, was nowhere to be found. Maybe it's just too hard to spell.
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LG G4020
We just love it when we can give you exactly what you want. We see, say, a ton of search results for the LG G4020, which is something we like to call a "phone.com." That is, it's your basic generic midpriced flip phone, with middling features and, according to user reviews, decent performance. But just as you start searching for it, we get a little Quick Take posted, and we're all too happy to direct you to the meat of the matter: the free-with-activation listing at Shopper.com. You're welcome.
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StationRipper
The latest craze in online music is streaming radio, and the latest craze in streaming radio is recording those streams. It's an activity that's in legal limbo right now, so we suppose it's as good a time as any to record as many streams as you can for future consumption. No doubt someone will lay down the smack in the relatively near future. Currently, you seem to be leaning toward StationRipper as your recorder of choice, but don't miss RipCast Streaming Audio Ripper, Streamripper for Winamp, or RadioLover, if you're on a Mac.
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