ALKHOBAR: Around the Kingdom many people are engaged in home improvement projects during Ramadan. Along with replacing sofas and carpets, why not consider upgrading your family’s entertainment options? It’s a gift that will bring pleasure to your loved ones long after Eid has come and gone.
Panasonic has brought its new line of VIERA flat screen televisions to the Kingdom. The range of special features incorporated in the VIERA televisions not only make life easier, but also look good while doing it. Described by HDTV.org as “the most stylish piece of kit we have seen,” Panasonic has replaced its traditional matt black and silver finish for a new all black look and split its old bottom-mounted speaker into two ultra slim side mounts. Encased in this classy package is the most advanced plasma technology available on the consumer market.
At the top of the new VIERA line sits the TH-42PY800 (42 inch) and TH-50PY800 (50 inch) models. Both are Full-HD and incorporate Panasonic’s V-real Pro 3 Technology for ultimate Full-HD picture quality. “V-real” is the collective name for Panasonic’s black-box imaging technologies that help create the beautiful, high-definition images that distinguish VIERA. Panasonic has combined technologies that were originally developed to produce the HD camcorders that relay the Olympic Games, with technologies that were created by the Panasonic Hollywood Laboratory for moviemaking. These technologies have now evolved into the V-real PRO 3 of the Full-HD 2008 VIERA models. V-real PRO 3 combined with Panasonic’s Mega Contrast of 1,000,000:1, which reproduces outstanding blacks with outstanding contrast, create a picture quality that is sharp, clear and as close to real life as moving images can be.
In addition to this brilliant picture technology, VIERA offers easy and tidy operation made possible by VIERA Link and the SD card slot. VIERA Link requires only one cable and lets you operate other connected Panasonic AV components using only the VIERA television’s remote control unit. Panasonic’s top two VIERA models are equipped with a slot for large-capacity SDHC cards. Remove the SD memory card from your digital still camera, slip it in the slot, and you can view a slideshow of your photos on the VIERA. These models also support the next-generation AVCHD-standard for full-HD moving images, which lets users directly enjoy high-quality full-HD moving pictures with the convenience of a cordless system.
Take that great VIERA television, connect it to a game console and what do you get? A whole lot of fun! Sony’s PlayStation3 (PS3) comes with an extended memory of 80 GB. This console is now the mainstay of the company’s hardware line-up. The PS3 is a total entertainment system featuring games and films on Blu-ray, as well as the ability to download exclusive content from the PlayStation Network, play games online and access the Internet at any time through an integrated Wi-Fi connection. Bundled with two games the console retails for Dhs. 1949.
The PS3 is great but if you are looking for a console with lots of power but a price that’s easier on the budget, consider Microsoft’s Xbox 360 Arcade. Microsoft has lowered the entry-level price of this console to SR799. In fact, Microsoft has lowered the price of all its available consoles in the Middle East. The new addition to the family of Xbox 360 consoles, the 60 GB Xbox 360 comes with triple the storage space of the original console, at a reduced price of SR1049. The Xbox 360 Elite, which comes with a massive 120GB hard drive, will sell for SR1,449.
Microsoft claims that the new pricing is part of its ongoing strategy to open up high-definition gaming and entertainment to an even wider audience, with something for everyone. The Xbox 360 platform is offering a broad ranging games portfolio for all ages and interests, with new titles for music lovers, family-friendly games and blockbuster titles for the committed gamer.
“We're proud to be expanding the reach of Xbox as the first next-generation console to break the SR800 barrier, making the platform hundreds of riyals less expensive than competitors” said Obaida Abu Aisheh, head of Microsoft Entertainment and Devices Division Saudi Arabia. “History shows that the majority of console sales happen after this price point has been breached, and we’re well positioned to take advantage of this mass market pricing. We’re passing on the benefits of being the first console to sell over 20 million units worldwide, and of the ever-expanding ecosystem of Xbox, to consumers. We offer a large library of games and family entertainment for Xbox 360, with 90 titles coming in the last quarter of 2008 alone.”
You might think that having one screen in the living room is enough, but the latest research has shown that these days people want to surf the Internet at the same time that they are watching television. They are either looking for information about what they are seeing on the TV, checking e-mail or chatting with friends online. But nobody wants a big, bulky PC in the living room, so Dell has just introduced the Inspiron Mini 9, which can go from coffee table to handbag in an instant.
With a starting weight of just 1.035kg and a piano black finish, digital nomads will value the Inspiron Mini 9’s durable design, with sealed keyboard and reliable solid state disc (SSD) memory storage. A bright 8.9-inch glossy LED display presents most web pages with no left-right scrolling, and the keypads are large and easy to navigate. Standard built-in Wi-Fi means quick and easy wireless Internet access. The Inspiron Mini can be further customized with optional technology such as a built-in Webcam or built-in Bluetooth. The Mini runs on Microsoft Windows XP Home or Ubuntu 8.04.
It’s great to have all this super technology at home, but what if you need to go out for an appointment in the middle of a football match? In this case, you’d better have Toshiba’s JournE M400 standing by. This is a portable multimedia player with an embedded digital DVB-T tuner. The Toshiba JournE M400 offers easy access to TV programs and it's also an easy-to-use multimedia player that allows users to watch movies, view pictures and listen to music.
“The JournE M400 is the first in the range of Toshiba's JournE products that can receive digital terrestrial television," said Santosh Varghese, regional general manager for Toshiba Gulf's Computer Systems Division. "It has been designed with efficiency and ease-of-use in mind. The touch screen interface is intuitive and with the choice of viewing TV, video, photos and music, it is an ideal portable multimedia device.”
The integrated DVB-T tuner enables users to watch TV wherever they are, even while on the move. The embedded Li-polymer battery delivers power for two hours - enough time to watch a feature film or a football match. The pocket-sized device shows content on its 4.3” color TFT-LCD screen and the anti-glare surface reduces light reflection, making it easier to watch content outdoors. Aside from watching television, users can watch videos (MPEG4 SP/ASP, MPEG subtitle, Xvid, VOB format), view photos or make slide shows (JPEG, GIF, BMP) and can also listen to music in stereo quality (MP3, WMA, AAC, AMR). All the content is stored in files which are easy to navigate around, so users can search via file type or by thumbnails to view content. The JournE M400 has a micro SD card slot and Toshiba will bundle a 1GB micro SD card with a SD card-adaptor for the customer to add extra memory.