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The line between personal computer and home entertainment system appear to be more blurred as each day passes. This is no exception with the all new HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center. At first glance it is a normal home entertainment receiver, upon further inspection, it houses Windows XP Media Center, an Intel Pentium 4 3.0Ghz w/HT, 512MB RAM, and ATI RADEON X300 SE Graphics Card with 128MB RAM, a 200GB hard drive AND a 160GB Personal Media Drive, a Dual Layer 16x DVD-+R/RW drive. Catch your breath, and we will continue. There is also an integrated Personal Video Recorder with dual TV tuners, a 9-in-1 memory card reader, 2 USB 2.0 ports, a FireWire port, gigabit ethernet, 802.11b/g wi-fi built in, and high-definition audio with 7.1 surround sound...phew!
With all this in a stylish case designed beautifully to blend in with the rest of your components in your entertainment room, the HP z545 Digital Entertainment Center definitely seems to be at the forefront of the living room media hub race, at least here in the US.
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| Sparktoblog
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| HPshopping.com
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Word on the street is that Apple is hard at work on finishing up design on yet another iteration of the ridiculously popular iPod. This time it will be a flash-based model, most likely in the 256 MB to 1 GB range, according to AppleInsider. While Steve Jobs had previously stated that he felt that flash drives weren't really what people wanted, they have been selling like crazy. It is understandable that Apple would want to cut into that market, especially since the iPod easily owns 92% of the hard drive based MP3 player market. Look for the announcement on this one to be made at MacWorld this January. The new iPod is expected to hit retail for less than $200 USD.Read More
| AppleInsider
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Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.
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I would take this one with a grain of salt until we get more solid evidence, but The Inquirer is reporting that Microsoft plans to release three versions of the upcoming XBOX sequel. There has been talk lately that the big M was thinking about removing the hard drive to bring down the cost of the next system, however it seems that they may be planning to actually release three versions of the XBOX 2. The first would be the standard game console, sans the hard drive. There would also be an XBOX 2 HD, which would include the hard drive along with some PVR functionality. Apparently, these two would launch in Fall 2005. Then in 2006 (probably around the time of the PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Revolution launch) Microsoft would release yet another version of the XBOX. This one is said to be a full blown PC with XBOX 2 capabilities out of the box. It would have a monitor, CD burner, and all the other PC fanfare - I am guessing this will be very close to being just a Media Center PC that plays XBOX games, and I expect it to sell similarly as well as the MCPC product line does - not very well.Read More
| The Inquirer
A Turkish petrol attendant recently thought his cell phone was stolen. He did what any of us would do - call your cell phone and see if anyone answered to try and recover the phone. However, when he made the call, he could hear the phone ringing nearby. It turned out that the ring was emanating from the stomach of his dog. Apparently, the dog got a hold of the phone, and swallowed it. Eventually, through the process of elimination, he was able to get the phone back. I don't know how willing I would be to check any missed voicemails after this phones recovery.Read More
| IOL
Do you like shopping around for the best deal? If something has a cash back rebate or price reduction, wouldn't you be more inclined to purchase it from the store with the sale rather than another store that sells it for the regular price? So would I. Apparently, Best Buy thinks that by doing so that this makes us "devil shoppers" and thusly they would prefer it if we didn't shop at their establishment. On the other hand, shoppers who don't care about prices or discounts are more than welcome to shop at their stores. Best Buy will even go out of their way to welcome these "angel shoppers" to make the comfortable enough to spend even more money. The funny thing is, whenever I go into Best Buy I know about 100 times more about the products I am shopping for than the salesperson trying to sell me the item. Either way, look for Best Buy to start training their staff to cater to the "angel shoppers" of the world over the next couple of years.Read More
| Wall Street Journal
Okay, about a week ago we asked you to develop the next iPod because we are pretty sure our readers can out think Steve Jobs. Thanks to iSkin Incorporated, we even promised to send chosen winners a free iSkin product. We got a boatload of submissions, and were able to narrow it does to the five best. We take a look at the winners after the jump.
Click to continue reading Design the Next iPod Contest Results
Well, the hour has arrived. Halo 2 is now officially here - at least on the East Coast for the time being. If you want to be technical about this, the game has officially been available in New Zealand for about 20 hours now. But I digress. Your favorite video game stores will be holding special midnight launch openings, some with special guests and music, to celebrate the release of what has turned out to be this years most widely anticipated game.RELATED:
Halo 2 Reviews
You know that itch I'm talking about. The "fresh new gear" itch. It burns a hole in your wallet, and completely diminishes your self-control. It's that shiny new cell your best friend just showed off to you, or maybe it's that cool new digital camera with twice the megs of your existing one, and it's smaller to boot. Everyday we at Gear Live see new gear, and the temptation to purchase one of our review items is always present, even if the cash isn't. Today, Gear Live asks you to think about when exactly is it time to upgrade your old gear? What are your options, and when should you actually just keep what you already have?
Click to continue reading The Upgrading Game: To Buy or Not to Buy
So, we have been pretty high on OfferCentric lately. After all, this network of incentive based sites has hit the internet hard and garnered itself a solid userbase due to their member-friendly attitude. In an attempt to continue the trend, OfferCentric is now allowing members to choose from cash cards or Paypal payments in lieu of a free gift.For example, if you sign up at DVRs4Free.com you are able to earn yourself a free TiVo Series 2 or ReplayTV. If you don't want either of those, then you can opt to get a $275 USD Paypal payment or a Visa gift card in the same amount. You can do the same at Cameras4Free.com, and choose a $325 cash prize instead of a digital camera. It is safe to assume that any future OfferCentric sites will also offer cash payments as well, just in time for the holidays. Sign up using one of the links above, and we will add your referal link to this story.
Edit: Not to be outdone, it looks like PrizeCube is doing the same thing. In fact, if you sign up for a free portable video player you can get a $500 gift card instead.
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