MAMBA TECH

THE TAG HEUER MERIDIIST: FOR THOSE WITH VERY EXPENSIVE TASTES

Watchmaker Tag Heuer's anticipated entry into the mobile market was an arrival filled with bling and opulence. Following Tag's tradition of fine design and craftsmanship, the hand-assembled phone consists of precisely 1963 individual parts, which demonstrates its attention to the finer details.

The device comes standard with an un-scratchable 60.5 sapphire crystal glass screen and a corrosion resistant steel outer casing. The phone is in standard candy bar form, with a secondary display on the top of the phone for the time and call status messages. Power performance is outstanding as the device boasts seven hours of talk time and a whopping 28 days of standby time.

However, in terms of features, it sports a meagre 2.0 megapixel camera and a dismal 2GB of internal storage space - with a memory card slot that can expand the memory by another 2GB. Other standard features include MMS, MP3 playback and voice recorder. Unfortunately, WiFi and GPS are not supported and HSDPA support is unclear. This phone is definitely not aimed at the high-end smart phone user but rather at the fashionista market.

For the form-over-function kind of guy, the device is available at the iMagine store at Vodaworld; if you don't mind, of course, laying down about R 40 000 for the pleasure.

YOUR DESKTOP CAN BE SEXY TOO

Who said the Apple OS was the only pretty operating system out there? Creating an awesome and completely unique looking desktop is easy; just add imagination and a little personal flair.

Inspiration: Before you embark on imprinting your user interface design skills on your beloved PC, it would be helpful to gather some inspiration from those who have already mastered the art. A great community of desktop inspiration fundis is the Lifehackers Desktop Customization pool on Flickr, which contains hundreds of screenshots of superbly crafted desktop designs.

Resources: There are many resources online to customise your desktop - from simple wallpapers to full-blown themes and icon packs. A good place to start looking is Google, by using the search terms 'Windows themes.' Do be aware that searches that contain terms such as 'screensavers' and 'wallpapers' were found in a recent study to offer up infected and malicious sites in the results. However, there are countless legitimate sites that offer premium quality customisation material for free. Have a look at deviantart.com or perhaps customize.org; two websites that provide superb quality resources for the passionate customiser.

Execution: Once you have an idea of the masterpiece you’d like to create, it’s time to get customising. Desktop customisation, like any great piece of design, isn't a once off thing but a work in progress. With time you will come up with new and great ideas on how to pimp your desktop even further! It’s mighty pleasing to have your stallion PC be something of beauty and the envy of your mates. It’s even more of a pleasure to work on a machine personalised with your creative signature style.

MOTOROLA'S FIRST ANDROID PHONE- THE DROID

With Android quickly becoming a mobile operating system leader, many handset manufacturers are jumping on the bandwagon and rolling out devices sporting the OS. The latest to enter this domain is Motorola. The handset is a beast when it comes to features and performance. The Motorola Droid is also the first android phone sporting the new Android version 2.0 OS.

With features such as a 3.7 inch touch screen, 256MB built-in memory, 16GB microSD card (expandable to 32GB), proximity sensors, ambient light, eCompass and a full QWERTY keyboard, this device really drops the motherload in terms of capabilities. In accordance with Motorola's exceptional design aesthetic, the device compliments its brain with its looks, thanks to a sleek industrial design and a minimalistic black exterior.

The phone also boasts handsome capabilities in the networking department with a compliment of Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS and HSDPA capabilities. It’s hard to tell if this phone is geared for the business user or tech heads, but judging from its specifications it will satisfy both. Consider that Time magazine has just named the Droid the best gadget of 2009, declaring it Android’s "first credible challenge" to the Apple iPhone.

There have been reports that the device's slow and buggy five megapixel camera is its downfall. However, Motorola is sure to fix these problems in their software upgrade packages and in later models of the phone.

This baby hasn't yet landed in South Africa and it’s unclear if and when it will be introduced into our market by the networks (although I’ll be very surprised if it isn’t soon).

3 GREAT DOCK APPLICATIONS

An application dock, traditionally a typically Apple Mac application, has steadily been gaining popularity on other operating systems. Docks are applications that act as program launchers, holding the shortcuts to your applications for easy access at any time.

They not only look neat, but also save time in accessing your applications. A dock provides a cleaner, quicker way of window management, switching and application launching.

There are many dock applications out there; however, I have highlighted three below that shine in performance and usability.

RocketDock (Windows Only)

The granddaddy of Windows docks, RocketDock is almost the de facto standard for those seeking a sleek, functional and quick dock for their PC. It has been around since the days of the XP OS, and has been the trusty stead of desktop customisers around the world.
Click to: rocketdock.com

Gnome Do with Docky (Linux Only)

With the countless docks available for Linux, Docky is clearly the winner as it takes application and task management to a new level. It is a mixture of a dock, application launcher and text based launcher (similar to that of the Quicksilver application for the Mac).
Click to: do.davebsd.com

Windows 7 Dock (Pre-installed on Windows 7 only)

A way overdue enhancement to the Windows OS. Windows 7's task bar comes default with its new taskbar/dock, which resembles the child of the Mac's dock and Vista's taskbar. The new taskbar/dock has been praised by many as a highly aesthetic and easy-to-use improvement of the Windows operating system.

THE LG SL90: A BORDERLESS LEAP

An almost wafer-thin frameless stunner, this is set to become one the most coveted home theatre eye candy items of the year (and into 2010). It seems like in recent years LG has been trying to assert itself as a stylish brand and, judging by their most recent products, they certainly seem to be succeeding.

The LG SL90 is a frameless design TV set that comes in LCD and LED versions. Its front profile consists of a flat panel of glass, from top to bottom; a design that sets a new precedent in appliance minimalism. The TV also boasts an exceptionally slim side profile; coming in at only 2.6cm in thickness for the LED model.

To complement the set's charmingly foxy looks, it comes equipped with an array of good features such as a true high definition resolution of 1920 x 1080p and an amazing contrast ratio of 3 000 000:1 for the LED model. The set also comes equipped with a USB port and Bluetooth connectivity.

Unfortunately, it only supports three file formats: MP3, JPEG and DivX. There are many other media codecs, like WMA, AVI and OGA, that are not supported, which may make the Bluetooth and flash drive support useless for some. Apart from that, the TV effortlessly displays a crisp and bright image of exceptional quality (if the video source is in HD of course). Sadly, as with any HDTV, standard definition terrestrial channels don't benefit from the HD technology.

So what’s the difference between LED, LCD and plasma type televisions? LCD and LED are similar technology with relatively equal picture definition. An LED, however, provides a much brighter image and a far higher contrast ratio (desirable for very bright rooms or areas). In terms of price range, however, you’ll pay for the benefit: an LED TV is usually double in cost compared to an LCD. A plasma TV also has the ability to display a high contrast ratio similar to that of an LED set, and has a wider viewing angle than that of an LCD. But in terms of pricing, Plasma displays are also more expensive than LCDs. For most people, an LCD set will do just fine (unless budget is not a limitation, that is).

LG SL90 (LCD) recommended retail price: R 23.000
LGSL90 (LED) recommended retail price: R 45.000

GOOGLE WAVE

Remember the days when Gmail surfaced? It was then an invite-only email service from Google that offered incredible storage space and a pleasingly fast interface. Remember how everyone scrambled for an invite, to be a part of this exclusive email revolution? Well it seems like Google is at it again with their new Google Wave service. A ‘wave’, a new concept in communication, can probably best be described as a fusion between instant messaging, email, a wiki and an online collaboration!

Google Wave is both a document and a conversation; it’s alive and in real time and is shared by all its participants. It has been said that Google Wave is what email would be like if it had been invented in 2009. A wave's participants can edit the conversation/collaborated document, contribute, rewind the process and play it back all over again, invite other participants to join the wave and it's all in real time, with live transmission as-you-type features.

Google Wave launched in September to a mere 100 000 early adopters worldwide. I was lucky enough and delighted to receive a Google Wave invite recently. The interface is awesome and the functionality and potential is truly exciting.

However, on the downside, at the moment Google wave is a lonely place as so few people around the world have access to it. It’s highly unlikely anyone in my circle uses it. Therefore I have yet to truly start Google Waving.
Click to: wave.google.com.