Looks really swish. Clearly designed for touchscreens and the like, and I noticed a very subtle dig at the iPad in there: "the great thing about a PC is, you can do two things at once". They seem to have really thought about the interaction between different apps and the ability to switch between the two, move things from one app to the other. I like it.
I'm falling apart to songs about hips and hearts...
Thinking of getting a new PC (laptop) soonish. Needing to feel the value in everything I'm looking at one of the Dell Outlet machines.
Anyone got any experience of using them? Gonz I know you bought one and I remember you saying you were happy, what model was it, does it work nice? I want something that won't have the fan churning at full volume just because it's browsing the web.
Would I be better avoiding an i7 if I want to avoid fan churn, or would I be better going for one to avoid it?
Laptop advice you say? Great idea. I need to replace my sister's ageing netbook for a christmas present. She barely knows how to use facebook and has a 5yr old so it won't need to be able to run Rage at max res. Cheap and functional is where it's at so being an Apple dude I just automatically think I'll keep it simple and get a Dell.
Are they still fairly good value? Anything else worth a punt?
I had thought about it chief but it is just a little too limiting. It would be used as a 1 stop shop for all computing needs. Basic lesson plans (she's a teacher), timeplan stuff for her fella, general chaos for the little'uns.
I could get away with an ipad in a similar situation but she needs the mythical (cheap) jack of all trades and good at most - a WinPC is still knida winning that war I reckon. I'll have another look at the option though...
I've got to say, I have been thinking about how useful an iPad could be in lessons with not only access to a lesson plan, but any other resources you might need and usable while walking around a classroom. But even if she just needs to create and print off a document, that can be done on an iPad as long as she's got access to a wireless printer. Not so sure about the other stuff.
Really you'd want to be able to mirror what's on the pad onto a projector. Whilst that's either via HDMI cable or Apple TV it's not really feasible.
Depending on where you were using it it'd be a bit gimped without WiFi access as well.Schools in the UK won't let you just connect any old device to the network. If they even have WiFi installed.
Schools tend to get extremely jittery about you using anyting other than the equipment they supply.
I recently bought one of these: http://www.svp.co.uk/product.php?product=MTE-01117
For a mere £30. I use it to play all the avi. files I acquire from the web.
I had a old 1TB HDD lying around so it is a simple case of DLing a bunch of files, transferring them to the drive and then popping the drive into the player and enjoying them on the tv at my leisure. Without having to have my desktop and my xbox on at the same time as I was watching them on my big telly via the xbox-PC previously.
It does support 1080 and it remembers the last play point of every file you partially watch which is rather nifty.
The previous model had plenty of issues but this second gen is bloody marvellous.
It will only access a HDD that has low power usage requirements but it has a couple of USB slots and a SD slot too.
Menus are a bit cheap and cheerful but get the job done and for gods sake it was only £30!!
Gamertag: sgt pantyfire PSN: pantyfire Wii: What's yours?...Yeh thought so.
isanbard wrote: Laptop advice you say? Great idea. I need to replace my sister's ageing netbook for a christmas present. She barely knows how to use facebook and has a 5yr old so it won't need to be able to run Rage at max res. Cheap and functional is where it's at so being an Apple dude I just automatically think I'll keep it simple and get a Dell.
Are they still fairly good value? Anything else worth a punt?
A quick trawl through HUKD can be pretty useful. That looks like a cracking deal to me, but the comments are also highly useful. With any decent deal there will be plenty of people showing you alternatives.
I recently went for a Vaio with a lovely big hi-res screen, sacrificed a bit on HDD size and raw power, but never regretted it.
I wouldn't have a desktop again, but with laptops there's always a trade-off between size, weight, battery life, performance, screen and of course price.
I bought a Belkin Laptop Cooler to calm my Dell D630 down because the bottom of the casing was getting super hot. Using Speedfan to measure the difference, I expected bigtime drops in temperature. Sure enough, the hard drive temp drops from peak 45C to around 28-30C but fuck all happens to the motherboard and CPU core temps. They stay around 65-68C.
When the laptop's not stressed and idling at core temps 30C, when I switch the cooler on, the cores' temperatures start to rise. What the hell?!
I don't really know what a bad temperature is TBH, Speedfan shows a little flame so I assumed it was too hot. I'm just bemused that blowing hot air at laptop base increases it's internal temperature.
Steve Jobs wrote: I will spend my last dying breath if I need to, and I will spend every penny of Apple's $40 billion in the bank, to right this wrong. I'm going to destroy Android, because it's a stolen product. I'm willing to go thermonuclear war on this.
I don't want your money. If you offer me $5 billion, I won't want it. I've got plenty of money. I want you to stop using our ideas in Android, that's all I want.
In uni there where some characters in my class and I remember a few of us sitting around talking shit when one guy after a few minutes contemplation suddenly pipes up with, "You know, I admire Davros. Yeh, he wants to kill all life in the universe but he has a goal and is driven. You've got to admire that."
And that's what goes through my head every time I read or hear statements, like mod's, re Gaddafi, Jobs, Pol Pot etc...
Gamertag: sgt pantyfire PSN: pantyfire Wii: What's yours?...Yeh thought so.
It plays mkv files (they are Matroska aren't they?) and yes it supports the separate .sub/srt files. Depending on how that sub file has been written you can also move the subs position, size, colour and outline.
It plays everything as far as I know even Real Media files (I think Real want a license fee that's why they aren't usually supported).
I use the thing every night now.
Gamertag: sgt pantyfire PSN: pantyfire Wii: What's yours?...Yeh thought so.
Anyone here used/own an Alienware laptop? I've been lusting after the latest versions that feature HDMI in, so you can plug your Xbox 360 etc., into it and use it as a screen. I was wondering if the picture quality was OK. (And if the Alienware laptops are worth the price in general.)
I'm not 100% sure what the point of that feature would be.
Anyway, never used an Alienware laptop but in general look at the Dell Outlet for Dell kit rather than paying full retail. Also, if you check the specs you'll almost always find an identically spec'd XPS system without the Alienware badge tax and garish chassis.
Amazing, Nokia finally make a good looking smartphone chassis, and they've dropped Meego. Not sure how well think sell in the third world which is where there brand dominance still Carries weight, and their home country of course, but the Finns would buy anything as long as it was white and blue
First up, Windows 8!
http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/01/microsoft-unveils-windows-8-tablet-prototypes/
I'm in love.
Looks really swish. Clearly designed for touchscreens and the like, and I noticed a very subtle dig at the iPad in there: "the great thing about a PC is, you can do two things at once".
They seem to have really thought about the interaction between different apps and the ability to switch between the two, move things from one app to the other. I like it.
I'm falling apart to songs about hips and hearts...
Live Gamertag - Upper Echilon
PSN - UpperEchelon
Thinking of getting a new PC (laptop) soonish. Needing to feel the value in everything I'm looking at one of the Dell Outlet machines.
Anyone got any experience of using them? Gonz I know you bought one and I remember you saying you were happy, what model was it, does it work nice? I want something that won't have the fan churning at full volume just because it's browsing the web.
Would I be better avoiding an i7 if I want to avoid fan churn, or would I be better going for one to avoid it?
Cheers.
Laptop advice you say? Great idea. I need to replace my sister's ageing netbook for a christmas present. She barely knows how to use facebook and has a 5yr old so it won't need to be able to run Rage at max res. Cheap and functional is where it's at so being an Apple dude I just automatically think I'll keep it simple and get a Dell.
Are they still fairly good value? Anything else worth a punt?
You thought about an iPad, Isanbard? If she's a bit of a technophobe, it might be a better fit for her depending on what she wants to use it for.
I had thought about it chief but it is just a little too limiting. It would be used as a 1 stop shop for all computing needs. Basic lesson plans (she's a teacher), timeplan stuff for her fella, general chaos for the little'uns.
I could get away with an ipad in a similar situation but she needs the mythical (cheap) jack of all trades and good at most - a WinPC is still knida winning that war I reckon. I'll have another look at the option though...
I've got to say, I have been thinking about how useful an iPad could be in lessons with not only access to a lesson plan, but any other resources you might need and usable while walking around a classroom. But even if she just needs to create and print off a document, that can be done on an iPad as long as she's got access to a wireless printer. Not so sure about the other stuff.
Really you'd want to be able to mirror what's on the pad onto a projector. Whilst that's either via HDMI cable or Apple TV it's not really feasible.
Depending on where you were using it it'd be a bit gimped without WiFi access as well.Schools in the UK won't let you just connect any old device to the network. If they even have WiFi installed.
Schools tend to get extremely jittery about you using anyting other than the equipment they supply.
I recently bought one of these:
http://www.svp.co.uk/product.php?product=MTE-01117
For a mere £30. I use it to play all the avi. files I acquire from the web.
I had a old 1TB HDD lying around so it is a simple case of DLing a bunch of files, transferring them to the drive and then popping the drive into the player and enjoying them on the tv at my leisure. Without having to have my desktop and my xbox on at the same time as I was watching them on my big telly via the xbox-PC previously.
It does support 1080 and it remembers the last play point of every file you partially watch which is rather nifty.
The previous model had plenty of issues but this second gen is bloody marvellous.
It will only access a HDD that has low power usage requirements but it has a couple of USB slots and a SD slot too.
Menus are a bit cheap and cheerful but get the job done and for gods sake it was only £30!!
Gamertag: sgt pantyfire PSN: pantyfire Wii: What's yours?...Yeh thought so.
http://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/dell-xps-i7-2630qm-6gb-750gb-1gb-gt525-653-misprice-dell-1032655
Might be worth a read.
A quick trawl through HUKD can be pretty useful. That looks like a cracking deal to me, but the comments are also highly useful. With any decent deal there will be plenty of people showing you alternatives.
I recently went for a Vaio with a lovely big hi-res screen, sacrificed a bit on HDD size and raw power, but never regretted it.
I wouldn't have a desktop again, but with laptops there's always a trade-off between size, weight, battery life, performance, screen and of course price.
Google Engineer Trashes Google+
I bought a Belkin Laptop Cooler to calm my Dell D630 down because the bottom of the casing was getting super hot. Using Speedfan to measure the difference, I expected bigtime drops in temperature. Sure enough, the hard drive temp drops from peak 45C to around 28-30C but fuck all happens to the motherboard and CPU core temps. They stay around 65-68C.
When the laptop's not stressed and idling at core temps 30C, when I switch the cooler on, the cores' temperatures start to rise. What the hell?!
your mouth a little tomato sauce
65-68 isn't that bad. At full clack my HP is around 80.
Saying that it is basically fucked.
I don't really know what a bad temperature is TBH, Speedfan shows a little flame so I assumed it was too hot. I'm just bemused that blowing hot air at laptop base increases it's internal temperature.
your mouth a little tomato sauce
Kind of interesting
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/the-womens-blog-with-jane-martinson/2011/oct/21/siri-apple-prejudice-behind-digital-voices
Douglas Rain is still alive you know. Missed. Opportunity.
just ordered the biography
In uni there where some characters in my class and I remember a few of us sitting around talking shit when one guy after a few minutes contemplation suddenly pipes up with, "You know, I admire Davros. Yeh, he wants to kill all life in the universe but he has a goal and is driven. You've got to admire that."
And that's what goes through my head every time I read or hear statements, like mod's, re Gaddafi, Jobs, Pol Pot etc...
Gamertag: sgt pantyfire PSN: pantyfire Wii: What's yours?...Yeh thought so.
You've got to Reach for the Stars
I said Reach, climb every mountain, Reach for the moon....
edit: that media hub thing you linked to - does it do Matroska container and files with subs?
It plays mkv files (they are Matroska aren't they?) and yes it supports the separate .sub/srt files. Depending on how that sub file has been written you can also move the subs position, size, colour and outline.
It plays everything as far as I know even Real Media files (I think Real want a license fee that's why they aren't usually supported).
I use the thing every night now.
Gamertag: sgt pantyfire PSN: pantyfire Wii: What's yours?...Yeh thought so.
looks good, can't get that link to open for the life of me though.
done it.
I knew it, Android killed Steve Jobs.
Live: mr of unlocking Steam: parryfiend
now that's a voice I want on my satnav
Soooo, Ice Cream Sandwich looks yummie.
Looks like Google got it's act together just in time for the xmas season and the Windows 8 launch.
Wonder how ICS will run on older hardware.
Can't wait for MIUI and CM to get their mits on the source code.
Live: mr of unlocking Steam: parryfiend
So Windows XP is ten years old today. It was only this month it was surpassed as the worlds most installed operating system. Crazy.
oooooh baby.
(the one on the left, not that ugly shite on the right)
Anyone here used/own an Alienware laptop? I've been lusting after the latest versions that feature HDMI in, so you can plug your Xbox 360 etc., into it and use it as a screen. I was wondering if the picture quality was OK. (And if the Alienware laptops are worth the price in general.)
{Xbox, YouTube: Blue5wirl}{Steam, Twitter, Last.fm: BlueSwirl}{3DS: 0602-6557-8477}
I'm not 100% sure what the point of that feature would be.
Anyway, never used an Alienware laptop but in general look at the Dell Outlet for Dell kit rather than paying full retail. Also, if you check the specs you'll almost always find an identically spec'd XPS system without the Alienware badge tax and garish chassis.
Amazing, Nokia finally make a good looking smartphone chassis, and they've dropped Meego. Not sure how well think sell in the third world which is where there brand dominance still Carries weight, and their home country of course, but the Finns would buy anything as long as it was white and blue