Syabas, makers of the Popcorn Hour A110 and C200 network media tanks, have announced yet another streaming device called the Popbox. Unlike previous offerings the Popbox has no internal hard disk and relies on streaming video from external sources such as; USB devices, a local network and the Internet.

The Popbox supports a number of content providers (see screenshot above) however due to copyright some services, such as Netflix, are unlikely to be available to UK users.

According to Syabas the Popbox uses much of the C200’s hardware and is just as proficient with audio and video formats. One notable difference though is the interface which looks a lot more professional than the C200.

On that note Syabas are also promising a much improved and Flash based UI for the C200 early in 2010.

The Popbox will feature an App store allowing the user to download and install applications to the device. The Popbox is due in March 2010 priced at a very reasonable $129 although there is no word as yet on the UK price or delivery date. If Syabas run true to form expect bulk deliveries to be patchy for the first month or so.

Audio/Video outputs:

• HDMI v1.3a (up to 1080p)
• Component video (up to 1080p)
• Stereo analogue audio
• S/PDIF audio

  Interfaces:

• 10/100 Ethernet interface
• 2x USB 2.0 ports (1 front and 1 rear mounted)

via Digitalera

The new LG LU7000 LCD TV was launched at IFA back in September 2009 and we’ve had the 22” version on long term test for 6 weeks now, so how’s it performed? Read on and find out……

First Impressions

The LU7000 is finished in a very classy looking piano black, has a DVD player tucked away in its sloping stand and looks a million dollars. A thin transparent section below the frame finishes the TV off nicely.

The TV can be mounted on a standard bracket or you can use the inbuilt stand. A small base plate is slipped on to the slopping DVD to make the bottom flat when using the stand. This keeps the TV looking neat when it is hung from a wall.

The viewing angle from left and right is good however, as usual; it’s not so good from below. The LU7000 isn’t full 1080P HD and isn’t 720P either it’s the rather unusual, for TV at least, 1360×768. It does produce some damn good pictures though.

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Sony are bringing back the “Walkman” brand quite aggressively with various new models at different price points and capabilities. Today we take a look at one of the entry level models, the Walkman B series.

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Sony Ericsson launched their new Windows Mobile powered X2 smart phone at the London Design Museum this evening. It runs on Windows Mobile 6.5, has a 3.5” resistive touch screen and is available exclusively on Vodafone from the end of November.

SE have a range of home screens available preloaded on the phone as well as more that are downloadable. Take a look at the pictures above to see two of the panels and the panel picker. Panels range from the typical Windows Mobile look through to something that looks very much like Sim City complete with animated trains and boats. You can add widgets to these panels to further customise the phone to suit your personality.

The X2 has a side slide full QWERTY keyboard to compliment its touch screen and this will probably be the text input method of choice for most people as it feels very stable in use. Having said that if the handwriting recognition is up to the job that might be an even better option. A stylus is neatly stored in the body of the phone to help if you choose the handwriting route.

The screen is clear and bright with video looking quite impressive and I’m glad to see that a 3.5mm standard headphone socket is provided. The X2 has an optical mouse pad allowing you to move around the screen and select functions with ease. Sony Ericsson have made this even better by using icons in place of menu options where possible.

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The LG 22” LU7000 released back in September has just arrived for review. We’ll take a good look at it and report back fully in a few weeks but in the meantime here are our first impressions of the TV.

The LG is quite a looker with a DVD player built into its sloping stand and a nifty pair of sliding doors for the DVD.  This makes a nice change from the more conventional slot loading mechanism and gives the LG a very sleek and stylish look.  Unfortunately it doesn’t share the gorgeous Borderless design of it’s larger siblings.

The LU7000 has a full set of inputs including a USB 2.0 port that can be used to display your digital camera pictures as well as play your MP3s.

Expect to pay around £300 for the 22” and a little less for the 19” version.

LU 7000:

• Built-in DVD player
• Invisible speakers, 10W
• 1386×768
• HD ready
• 2 x HDMI
• 2 x Scart (1 x Full)
• 1 x RF
• 1 x Composite
• 1 x component
• 1 x PC input Plug and Play
• Digital Audio Out
• SRS TruSurround XT
• Freeview
• USB 2.0 (JPEG/MP3 Playback)
• Energy Saving Recommended

Back in March I enthusiastically extolled the virtues of my original Sennheiser CX300 in ear headphones. This outburst was brought on by the release of Sennheiser’s CX300 II Precision in ear headphones.

At the time I hadn’t tried a pair but after seeing them on sale for £13.99 from both www.7dayshop.com and www.play.com I took the plunge. These are in fact the Eco version which simply means that they are packaged in recycled cardboard rather than the traditional, impossible to get into, plastic.

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It might be time to upgrade my trusty Squeezebox. A recently announced addition to Logitech’s range of networked music players is the new Squeezebox Touch.

It has the same core capabilities of the squeezebox line (great sound quality and a very hackable server component) but adds a 4.3” touchscreen. This displays album art and details about the currently playing music, as well as allowing direct control with the touch interface.

Listed on the Logitech website at £259 it directly replaces the old Squeezebox model.

Last week we reported on the new 37” and 42” Borderless SL 9000 TVs from LG and now we have information on two more.

The SL 8000 (left) is a full HD TV with 200Hz TruMotion starting at 32” and going up to 47”.  It’s another very slim Borderless LCD TV with LED backlighting and shares the green credentials of the
SL 9000 series.  The TVs are also able to playback DIVX, DIVX HD and MKV files from USB drives of up to 1TB. 

The 19” and 22” LU 7000 TVs, (right) are aimed at the smaller rooms in your house. Having a built in DVD player they are ideally suited to the bedroom, kitchen or even a student pad. The DVD player is built neatly into the TV stand which slides open impressively when ejecting the DVD.  The LU 7000 also features LGs Invisible Speaker Technology just like the SL 8000 and SL 9000 so sound quality should be impressive for a small TV. 

As yet there is still no word on pricing for either TV series but, as with the SL 9000, it is said to be “competitive” so we’ll have to wait and see.  Both TVs should be in shops sometime in October. Read the rest of this entry »

LG launched their new Chocolate BL40 widescreen phone last night at a swanky party in the London Design Museum. I was lucky enough to get some time with the BL40 and as you’d expect it excels at displaying video on its 4” 21:9 aspect ratio screen.

The Chocolate uses an updated version of the “S Class” interface used on many of the recent LG phones. The rotating cube has been stretched and now mimics the applications and shortcuts setup on the phone. The interface is noticeably quicker than earlier LG phones such as the Arena I reviewed earlier in the year. This is no mean feat as the Arena is no slouch.

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Berlin played host last week to the IFA show. IFA is the “other” big event on the Consumer Entertainment calendar after CES and provides an opportunity for manufacturers to launch products to a European audience.

Sony were amongst the first companies to announce a raft of new products and here are the highlights:

W5810 and Z5800 Freesat TV’s (pictured). Both these sets offer 1920×1080 HD screens and built in Freesat tuners. You also get the latest version of the BRAVIA processing engine (Bravia Engine 3) and 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio. The Z5800 also includes MotionFlow 200Hz processing for smoother pictures.

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