Mafia MoFo sets itself apart from the rest in several ways.  Mafia MoFo is not a MySpace game, which generally makes it more easily accessible, without the performance issues associated with Myspace.  However, what really sets Mafia MoFo apart from the rest is the amount of entertaining activities that are available.  Mafia MoFo is miles ahead of the other games in this regard.  Some of the virtual properties and activities available include a pharmacy for buying drugs, real estate purchasing (house and land), equipment shop, pawn shop, black market, point shop, used car lot, bus station, ability to drive to another city (if you have a car), jobs, hire a private investigator, stock market, gambling (lottery, slot machine, and 50/50 game), and more.  Players increase stats by working out in the gym.  Numerous crime jobs are available to increase experience and earn cash.  Of course, fighting is also available, as well as a hitlist.  The game is further enhanced with interactive contests and events that award prizes, such as a medal or other special item.  On top of all that, the job outcomes and other messages displayed throughout the game are humorous and very enjoyable, making the entire game experience pleasant and relaxed.

The game is brand new.  Therefore, it is being enhanced vigorously with new features and improvements.  Soon the game will feature the same fight list style familiar from other mafia games.  Since the game has just launched, new players are all the game really needs to be a big success and highly enjoyable for all players.  Come check it out!  The most important thing to concentrate on in the beginning is performing crime jobs to advance your level and working out in the gym.  By the time you’re ready to battle it out, perhaps the new fight system will already be in place!  So, get started building up your character so that once it is available, you will be ready!  Of course, you can also fight now from any player’s page in the meantime, if you so choose.  On one last note, be sure to check out the "How to Play" tutorial under the Account section.  If contains valuable information all players need to know.  Mafia MoFo is a bit different from the others, but easy to play once you get the hang of things.  Of course, the differences it features are what make the game as great as it is!

The very first version of the Rome Reborn product went under construction 10 years ago, and the task was finally finished last year. Included in it were 250 highly detailed structures, and a total of over 7,000 structures in all. They used a 1:250 scale model of Rome that took forty years to create (from 1933 to 1973). This smaller scale Rome was actually constructed out of Plaster of Paris. Using laser scanners they scanned the Plaster of Paris model and created the virtual model. The original use of this model was to be utilized in a theater at UCLA. Since last year the Rome Reborn Project has seen many faces, it’s most recent being Rome Reborn 2.0 which improved the detail significantly. Google then joined in and offered to include Rome Reborn in Google Earth.

With Rome Reborn in Google Earth, it’s the equivalent of an virtual time machine, which can be used to study the history of Rome and other great cities of the world. If you currently have Google Earth (any version), you can enjoy touring ancient Rome. Not only can you navigate around the structures, but you can also go in them, and enter areas like the Colosseum and even the Roman Senate. With more time, more information will be added researches believe. They also hope that by pioneering this research into the past – other researchers will catch some inspiration and create 3D models of other forgotten cities.

With Mafia Wars, you must endlessly get other MySpace game players to become friends with you on MySpace and then request approval to become family members inside the game.  Your player’s strength is greatly affected by the number of family members you have.  Bulletproof does not require this, which gives you a lot more time to actually play as well as preventing all the hassle of working to get all the family members (500).

Since your character in Mafia Wars should have so many family members, you also have to equip each with weapons, defense, and vehicles.  Bulletproof only requires that you look out for yourself and build your own character.

Ability points are more challenging to come by in Bulletproof, which makes them very precious.  This also makes the game more of a challenge, and thus more entertaining. 

One of the best aspects of Bulletproof is how interactive it is.  While Mafia Wars will offer you a special item every once in a while (that is not really beneficial since they are never used when you already have the napalm), that’s about it.  On the other hand, Bulletproof is highly interactive with several special items, competitions with other players to get items better than those you can obtain normally in the game, and more.

Bulletproof offers a comprehensive selection of jobs, investments, and inventory, with more on the way.  In fact, new content will be added on an ongoing basis.

The fight list is structured in such a way that only players within the same level range are able to fight during normal game-play.  This is especially useful for new players, but also high-level players since higher level opponents can typically withstand more hits, and therefore yield more experience.  In Mafia Wars, there are ongoing problems with the fight list that prevent you from facing comparable opponents.

Additional extras not present in Mafia Wars include an armory (which requires a special badge obtained by defeating an enforcer for access), junkyard for obtaining rare items not available elsewhere that are available occasionally by random, ranking system details, and more player information.  Being sent to jail is actually implemented in Bulletproof also.  While you can see a jailed count in the Mafia Wars stats, it doesn’t seem to be used at all during game-play.

Bulletproof is also being actively developed.  Therefore, suggestions and new ideas are being considered, and the game is being improved continuously.  Bulletproof seems to be a better game than Mafia Wars in virtually every aspect.  All it needs is more players.  Join in on the fun!  A support and community chat is also available for the game here.

User interface Features

User interface features affect nearly every user.  While it is not the most important part of an OS, user interface features often go a long way towards the impression of an OS, and will likely draw many comparisons to other Microsoft operating systems.  Windows 7 comes with a stylish end-user interface. You can expect icons to respond with quick animated movements, which is done to enhance the user experience. So far, compliments for the speed and ease of use of the user interface have been dominant for the new OS.

The desktop is clearly much cleaner and better organized, and comes with docking options that are similar to the Mac’s OS.  New applications and improvements to existing applications have been added as well. For example, you will find the calculator to be much improved and more powerful. It supports real life conversions and calculations, like weight and length converters.

If you are in the habit of placing sticky notes all over your monitor and work area, you will surely welcome the new stick notes application that comes with the desktop. You can stick as many virtual notes on your desktop, and delete them as you work. Now your workstation will certainly look cleaner and more organized. You are also saving trees by using less paper!

A new version of Windows Media Center will also launch with this release. New gadgets are being integrated into the Media Center and Windows Explorer. Gadgets are standalone applications that sit on the desktop (some are hosted on another server). There are web gadgets, sidebar gadgets, and sideshow gadgets (run on external displays).

System Performance Features

Windows 7 now offers support for virtual hard disks and boasts improved performance on multi-core processors, improved boot performance, improved SSD support and performance, and improved kernel performance.  Obviously, performance is a key goal for Windows 7.  With the current pre-release version, even at an unfinished state, it appears that Microsoft is doing extremely well in achieving this goal.  The pre-release version tested is remarkably stable and offers noticeably better performance than Windows XP with the latest hardware.

If you visit the control panel, you will find that many new items are added, including Accelerators, Display Calibration Wizard, Gadgets, Recovery, Troubleshooting, and more. Windows Security Center is now known as Windows Solution Center, and it is responsible for maintaining the security of the system.

Unique Features

The touch screen feature is a new and unique feature that enables many interesting touch applications. For instance, you can have a touch app that works exactly like a keyboard. This means you can type an entire document without the use of an additional piece of hardware. You can also use this feature to play the piano or do a painting. The feature is something that has not been previously available in earlier versions of the Microsoft OS.

Other unique features include speech and hand writing recognition. Hand writing recognition technology can help convert human handwriting into digital text.

Developer Features

Developers can look forward to using a new networking API to develop SOAP based web services in native (or machine) code. There are also new features that reduce application install times. Development of installation packages is simplified in the new OS as well.
 

Understanding the needs of small businesses and home users, MvixUSA has come up with a very attractive solution. The MvixBox offers many of the features consumers have been asking for in a network media player.  Here are some of the features that the new system offers:

Media server

The MvixBox provides gigabit network speed and large storage capacity, which makes it an ideal system for storing, serving, and transferring media files from one location to another. You can store media files, such as AVI, MPEG, and DIVX movies or MP3 files. From a different room in your home or a meeting room, you can access the content any time needed.

Web Disk Capability

The MvixBox is a Linux-based system, and it comes with what everyone expects Linux servers to include – Apache, MySQL, SQLite, and PHP. To make the server user friendly, a web-disk capability is also provided.  This means the user can drag and drop files between the PC and NAS server. User can launch applications like Windows Explorer, WebDisk Explorer, blog software, RSS reader, Torrent client, and more.  The setup ensures that anyone who knows how to operate a PC in the Windows environment will know how to handle a MvixBox.

Web Server

The web server is perhaps the most interesting feature of all. Since the MvixBox comes with support for Apache, MYSQL, and PHP, you can host web sites directly from the server. There are many different types of sites that you can setup – blogs, wikis, personal home pages, etc. If you don’t want to host web sites, you can even develop scalable intranet solutions using the database support.  This capability makes it one of the most affordable web server solution that the market has to offer for small businesses and home users.

DDNS Server

In order for a web server to recognize Internet domain names, there needs to be a DNS server (or in this case DDNS so that dynamic IPs can be supported). The domain name is mapped to the server IP address, and the DDNS service enables the server to recognize the domain name. Traditional servers supported mostly static IPs. For this reason, you can’t usually operate a web server from home, as most home Internet connections operate on dynamic IPs. Dynamic IPs change all the time, as they are assigned by the ISP. Fortunately, the MvixBox offers free support for dynamic IPs. There is no extra charge for the use of this service.

NAS, Torrent Sharing, and FTP Management

MvixBox offers a simple file sharing feature that provides file encryption when transferring files using HTTP or FTP protocols. You can use the built-in Explorer to transfer files, without having to install additional software.
The system boasts simple and secure administration.

As this is an NAS server, one would expect it to come with simple backup features. The MvixBox does come with easy-to-use data storage scheduling and synchronization. The software is included with the system.

For all the above features, an enthusiast would expect the price tag to be hefty. However, this is not true. The MvixBox retails for around $249.00.  Each unit includes two built-in hard drive bays that are capable of holding up a 1.5 terabyte (TB) hard drive. The hard drives are not included. Therefore, you can buy any size that best meets your needs.  Even with the most expensive hard drive bundled, the entire system still costs just about $600.
 

One of the first things you’ll notice about the camera is the Carl Zeiss lens located on the left side of its uniquely horizontal body. The microphone is located on the right, and you’ll also find a button beside the lens that allows you to take pictures. Around the Logitech logo is an indicatory illuminated circle that lets you know when the QuickCam Pro 9000 is on. It has a very unique, two-hinged support structure that bends in different shapes so that you have the versatility to either secure the webcam to a CRT or LCD monitor or stand it on a table.

Regardless of the features a webcam has, it must be able to transmit great image and sound for it to be a worthy solution. With a 2 megapixel Carl Zeiss lens, Logitech’s new QuickCam quickly put all our other webcams to shame. Everyone that we had a video chat with via instant messaging said the image transmitted was extremely sharp and of astonishingly high quality. Using the high resolution setting on the QuickCam, we were able to enjoy full screen video chat with contacts without image noise. One of the best features of the camera is HD recording, which allows you to record in HD, for those who love to make high quality videos and host them on your PC or online.

The QuickCam Pro can be purchased for about $113, which is affordable for the quality provided. You definitely won’t need another webcam for awhile if you purchase the new Logitech QuickCam Pro 9000.

Still in beta, Google’s "Chrome" has attracted less than 2% of the Internet browser market at its peak, but Google engineers are working to enhance the software to make it more appealing and useful to its users. One very popular idea for improving Chrome is the addition of an extension system, which will enable third-party developers to produce plugins for any number of add-on features, ranging from browser enhancements to RSS readers, calendar/reminder extensions, etc.Chrome users can then install the plugins to complete tasks that Google did not integrate into the web browser.

Mozilla Firefox, a browser that holds the record for the most downloads in a single day, has the ability to integrate third-party plugins, which has been perhaps the greatest factor in achieving its 20% web browser market share.

One of Google’s developers made the announcement that Google is looking into integrating third-party browser plugins for Chrome. They also released a design document that provided an outline for what needed to be done in order to add plugin support.  This functionality is certainly at the top of the wishlist for most Chrome users, and Google seems to be working on providing the support as quickly as possible.  The first plugins planned for integration include Flash and an ad blocker (ironic), which are some of the more popular plugins for Mozilla Firefox.

Unfortunately, Google has yet to announce when this implementation will be complete, but at least we know that they plan on offering extension support in the near future.
 

The casing looks great, even though there hasn’t been any word on the exact dimensions. It almost looks like the new PDAs or stylish cell phones, but a little bigger. It’s not available outside of Korea yet, but we’re just excited as everyone else. Pricing information should be available soon.
 

Basics of the Game

For those not familiar with the game, Mafia Wars is a Myspace game, produced by Zynga, that has garnered massive popularity since its inception.  In Mafia Wars, you are the leader of your family.  You build up your family, equip them with attack and defense items as well as vehicles, and fight with other families in the game, building your character up as you go with stronger attack, defense, health, energy, and stamina.

A players level, attack, and defense stats determine if they win a given fight compared to their opponent.  With each fight, your health is lowered, and if you run out of health, your character dies, which then requires a visit to the hospital or waiting for health to build up little by little.  Each time a player instigates a fight, stamina is used.  When stamina runs out, the player can no longer initiate a fight until either the next level is reached or the player waits long enough for more stamina to build up.

Energy is used for performing jobs.  At present, there are five categories of jobs, ranging from Street Thug Jobs to Underboss Jobs.  Higher level categories require more energy to perform, but yield more experience and money.

Recent Change Causes Massive Disappointment and Hostility

The hitlist has developed into an important part of the game.  Players can add any other player to the hitlist, which typically results in the target being taken out.  When a player is taken out from the hitlist, experience is lost, and the character is left weak.  However, for stronger players, being on the hitlist offered an advantage.  Until recently, fights won on the hitlist resulted in experience being gained.  Therefore, even though you took damage while being on the hitlist and stood the possibility of dying, you still could at least advance in experience.  However, Zynga has now changed the system in such a way that players no longer gain experience from fights won through the hitlist.

This widely unpopular change has resulted in several things:

1.  Players are added to the hitlist and constantly attacked with no benefit whatsoever.  If the player is strong, hitlist placement could be maintained for days, with constant attacks, requiring continual attention and limiting what else can be done in the game.
2. Many players enjoy fighting from the hitlist.  It does not possess some of the inconveniences that the fight section does, and makes for a fun way to build your character.  However, since this change, the hitlist is quite bare since no one wants to be on the hitlist or added to the hitlist in retaliation.
3. It takes much longer for a character to advance to the next level.  Previously, if your character was almost to the next level, but you were out of stamina and energy, you could count of being on the hit list to help get you to the next level.  Since this change, massive time is required to advance to the next level, which is very discouraging to many players.

In fact, since many players have invested considerable money into the game to build their character via Godfather Points, the level of action from players ranges from petitions and names being gathered for those who support changing the hitlist experience gathering back all the way to individuals considering a class action suit against Zynga, since the game is no longer what they invested money into.  Needless to say, the majority of players, especially those that play the game the most, are not happy with this change, and in fact, a large number of players have even abandoned the game due to this change.

Whether or not Zynga takes action to reverse the charge could well determine if the game remains popular at all, and the future of the game itself.

Update

Zynga responded to the dissatisfaction of players by changing the hitlist back to generating experience. However, they also introduced several new limitations and restrictions both to the hitlist and other aspects of the game.  In the meantime, we have done an extensive evaluation of the new Bulletproof MySpace game and the Mafia MoFo game, and feel that they are superior games to Mafia Wars, even before the hitlist change. We highly recommend that you check them out!

Familiar, Sturdy Design

When it comes to design, the Lenovo X301 has the same look as most other ThinkPad notebooks that have come before it.  It’s a personal choice if you like the ThinkPad design.  Some think it’s dull, some people believe it to be simple and effective.  It’s a matter of opinion either way.  However, there’s no argument that ThinkPad machines have some strong characteristics that stand out from the competition.  The X301 laptop weighs a little less than 3.5lbs with an 8X DVD burner and a 6-cell battery equipped.  The X301’s exterior is squared off and has a matte black finish. It’s dimensions are 12.5 x 9.1 x 0.9, and just like it’s predecessor the X300, the sides are slightly tapered. The X301 is a beautifully constructed machine with Lenovo’s internal roll cage design and a carbon and class fiber interior, which according to Lenovo, is not only stronger but lighter than titanium.

The keyboard deck and outer shell utilize a new rubberized soft touch paint which helps provide a more secure grip and a more comfortable feel. The X301 has all the regular connectors and ports with three USB 2.0, Ethernet, microphone and headphone jacks, DisplayPort, and a VGA connector. Unfortunately, no memory card slot is included with this laptop, which means you’ll have to use a USB card reader device or adapter to read from memory cards.

Display and Speakers

The X301 employs a LED-backlit, 13.3" (1440×900 resolution) display with a matte finish that prevents most glare. The high resolution certainly makes a difference when viewing documents and web pages, though the default text may be too small for some eyes. The backlit, low-reflectivity LED keeps the display legible when outdoors.  Rich colors and wide viewing angles are available for watching DVDs and other content. The stereo speakers lacked low-end punch, but due to their close proximity (they’re located in the palmrest), the volume was clear and loud. Above the display is a 1.3 megapixel webcam that provided somewhat dark visuals when tested through video chat.

With the high resolution (1440×900) 13.3" screen, the X301 is great for surfing the web and viewing documents. The LED display is amazingly clear for viewing outdoors because it’s extremely low reflectivity negates glare. The ThinkPad X301 features wide viewing angles with rich colors, which makes watching a DVD or other content more enjoyable.  The 1.3 megapixel camera (located above the display) was a little dark during the video chat tests performed via MSN Messenger.

First-Class Ergonomics

In line with all the other ThinkPad models, the X301 features a magnificent keyboard that definitely ranks with the top runners in the business. The typing experience is excellent because the keyboard provides space in between individual keys. The X301 includes a touchpad and a pointing stick (located between the G and H keys) for navigation. The touchpad may be small for some users since the design accommodates for the larger keys. A biometric fingerprint reader is integrated to the right of the touchpad to help keep private business away from unauthorized individuals.  Above the keyboard, you’ll notice buttons for volume, mute, ThinkVantage (for launching Lenovo’s system utilities), and, of course, the power button.

Performance 

The base configuration is equipped with 2GB of RAM and an Intel Core 2 Due (1.4GHz) U9400 Ultra Low Voltage processor.  The ThinkPad X301 achieved a PCMark Vantage score of 3157, which is 400 points higher than most ultraportables. It’s a great score, but still falls about 60 points shy of the Sony VAIO VGN-Z530N’s and almost 500 points shy of the Lenovo ThinkPad X200.

The X301 didn’t fare so well on all of its graphics tests. On the 3DMark03 benchmark, the X301 (which is powered by an Intel GMA X4500MHD graphics card) netted an 1812, a score that’s 400 points higher than its competitors and its predecessor the X300.  However, the 3DMark06 score was 200 points less than other machines in its category. F.E.A.R was also tested in auto-detect mode, and the game ran at a miniscule 14fps. When the settings were increased to maximum, it ran at only 6fps. W.O.W ran at 27.4fps, which is okay, but it is important to remember that this is not a gaming laptop, and should not be expected to out perform Alienware, for example.

Lenovo’s X301’s boot-up time was a little slower than expected. The X301, with its 64GB SSD, took about 1 minute and 37 seconds to boot-up Windows Vista, almost 30 seconds slower than the average ultraportable and 48 seconds slower than the older X300. The SSD did not disappoint and definitely lived up to its fast transfer time copying a 5 GB folder in about 2 minutes and 40 seconds, however. The SSD has a transfer rate of 32.4 megabytes per second, which is miles ahead of the 13.4 megabyte per second transfer rate of competitors using mechanical drives. If 64GB does not fill your needs for capacity, an upgrade option is available for a 128GB SSD, which costs $400.

Test Results

Wi-Fi and Battery Life

The 802.11a/g/n Wi-Fi moves data at an excellent speed of 20.8 MB/s at a distance of 15 feet from the access point, and 18.7 MB/s at 50 feet.  These are nice improvements over the 16.7 MB/s and 16.1 MB/s averages presented by the X300, and made for a pleasant surfing experience. Although the default configuration does not include integrated mobile broadband, you can add a 3G connection from AT&T ($80) or Verizon Wireless ($150), which also features integrated GPS. The X301 will support WiMAX and Ultra-Wideband technologies when they become available.

When it comes to long battery life, the X301 definitely falls short by quite a bit. Its six cell battery lasted only 3 hours and a half during tests.  On the same test, Sony’s VAIO VGN-Z530N lasted 5 hours.  A little more should be expected out of ultraportable laptops when it comes to battery life (at least 4 hours).

Software, Security, and Warranty

Those who care about security on their portable computers will definitely appreciate the X301’s full disk encryption, centrally managed passwords, ability to disable the BIOS port, and remote lockdown. The machine is covered with an extendable 1 year warranty and 24/7 tech support. Included with the X301 is Lenovo Camera Center, a 60-day trial to Microsoft Office, Access Connections 5, Adobe Acrobat Reader, and Roxio Creator Business Edition.

The X300 was an outstanding laptop released by Lenovo, but they have definitely done a nice job with the ThinkPad X301. They took all the good aspects from the X300, and made them better for the X301. With the new Centrino 2 platform and an ultra-fast 64GB SSD, the X301 comes at a price. If you’re looking for an amazing business notebook, though, it will not disappoint. One thing we’d have to mention, however, is that you should consider investing in a spare battery.

Technical Specifications

The notebook offers excellent performance powered with an Intel Core 2 Duo T9400, high-quality WSXGA+ screen, and numerous features that make the system stand out.  It is even bundled with useful accessories that do not normally come with a laptop, including a backpack and gaming mouse. The G50V is covered with a two-year warranty, and the first year includes accident damage coverage as well.  The ASUS G50V-A1 also comes with a recovery disk that can be useful in the case of emergency.

If the system was marketed as a business machine, we could stop there with an exceptional review.  However, while the laptop offers great stock performance, the G50V-A1’s over clocking and power management abilities didn’t fare so well. Even though the machine was nearly flawless during regular usage, it’s always a plus for it to perform during rigorous benchmark tests (WorldBench, Mobilemark, etc.). Another serious issue is that it lacks driver support for widescreen resolution (1440×900), which would come in handy. It runs perfectly in its normal resolution of 1680×1050, but having to step down to 1280×768 for a decent widescreen resolution is not a good look.

The G50V-A1 comes with Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit, with 4GB of DDR2-800 RAM. The notebook includes an 8X DVD-RW Super Multi drive, 8-in-1 memory card reader, built-in 1.3-megapixel webcam, and Intel Wireless WiFi Link 5100AGN with built-in Bluetooth support.  Overall, the G50V is a quality gaming platform.  The design and numerous features are great. The graphics card it uses (the NVIDIA GeForce 9700 GT) is a bit of an undershot for ASUS since it’s quite underpowered for a gaming laptop.

The A1 can be purchased for a little under $1600, but it may be overpriced since the ASUS G50Vt-X1 can be purchased for $1,250. It’s a cheaper machine, but it has a Core 2 Duo processor, a 15.6" 1366×758 display, and a NVIDIA GeForce 9800M GS, which is simply a better graphics card for a gaming platform.

CyberLink PowerCinema 6

With Schedules Recording and Time-Shift Playback, PowerCinema 6 turns your computer into a personal television recorder, which frees users from the chains of regular television.  The software offers support for MPEG-4 AVC hi-def video.  Multiple subtitles and audio tracks can also be recorded, which enables you to change the language while watching recorded television.

PowerCinema 6 also comes loaded with a number of new usability features. The Entertainment Interface categorizes your media, including Entertainment which would be DVDs, music, radio, TV and Memories that consists of videos and photos. It also automatically detects the size of your screen and sets video display to either 4:3 playback or widescreen. With color-coded hotkeys, you can easily navigate your way to key features of the software. You can use these color keys either on the screen or by separately purchasing the Cyberlink Remote Control. You have the option to Quick Review your recent photos/videos/music, and PowerCinema 6 also enables you to select a group of files to play or edit.

PowerCinema 6 provides quick access to your favorite audio as well. You can easily locate your music using Quick Music Search, which uses meta data information to find the desired track. Power Cinema 6 supports MP3, WAV, WMA, and Audio CD (CDA) formats.

The Moshi IVR alarm clock features TimeSet technology and is the first alarm clock that requires only voice commands to set the time and alarm. Using IVR Technology, Interactive Voice Recognition, commands are initiated with a simple "Hello Moshi".  The system responds by asking "Command Please?". The device’s IVR technology uses a mixture of HMM Phonetic Speaker Independent Recognition software and Neural Net software, which makes it possible for the clock to understand numerous accents and enables large vocabulary recognition. The alarm clock is always listening, screening conversations, and waiting for the keyword "Hello Moshi" to initiate commands.

Novel clock users will love the convenience of the Moshi IVR Alarm Clock. No more getting out of bed to turn it off.  You can ask Moshi the time while you’re getting ready for work, and it’ll also tell you the current temperature. A night light is included as well.  The Moshi IVR alarm clock is a great tool for blind and visually impaired individuals, and the World Blind Union endorses Moshi because of its simplicity with verbal commands.

Listed below are the voice commands available when using Moshi:

The audio and video is high quality, though.  Since Google Talk’s video traffic goes through Google servers, it’s expected to be more consistent as far as the connection then Skype since Google has endless bandwidth and server space. If you’re using an older computer, the PC may suffer poor performance during usage since the application utilizes a lot of resources.  There are no such issues with any recent system, however.

Straying from the path of other video chat products, Google Voice and Video uses a proprietary plug-in instead of Flash. A miniscule download of 2MB supports Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and Google’s own Chrome on a PC as well as Firefox on a Mac.  Details have not yet been released on support for other platforms, such as Linux, but ports for them may come later. Google Video and Voice made its official public debut at midday on Tuesday, November 18th. Now that Google provides Voice and Video, users have access to a vast array of tools with one login, including email, voice, chat, and soon even SMS. If Google ties in Youtube and Google Docs better in the future, the Google account will be nearly unstoppable.

Google’s Voice and Video is quite simple to use.  When the option is available, a "Video & More" button is shown in the chat messaging window.  Once selected, the plug-in will be installed and immediately accessible for video calls with friends.

Design and Dimensions

Even though there aren’t too many differences in the exterior of the models, we are going to point them out before we get to the hardware. The screen size is exactly the same at 3.5" on both models, which provides for an ultra-clear 480×320 screen resolution. The rear of the original iPhone has a smooth metal finish with a black strip at the bottom. The front of it has a shiny metal piece that surrounds the side of the phone and ends behind the screen. The iPhone 3G has a smooth piano black or white finish. It also has the shiny metal piece around the outside of the screen. The iPhone 3G features buttons that are made from a shiny metal, excluding the home button. This gives them a sturdier feel compared to its predecessor. The shape of the 3G phone is a major difference as the original iPhone is a little thicker and completely flat when set down. The 3G has more of a round feel to it that flattens out slightly around the edges. It has been said that the screen of the 3G heats to a warmer temperature than that of the original iPhone.

Features & Technical Specifications

Once we get under the hood, we begin to see where the 3G separates itself from it’s older brother. The iPhone 2G only supported WiFi, GSM, and Bluetooth. This means its speed surfing the Internet were quite limited. The iPhone 3G introduced 3G speeds to Apple’s flagship model, and it also supports WiFi, GSM, and Bluetooth. This makes for a better experience surfing, watching Youtube videos, and downloading data onto the phone from the Internet. The first generation iPhone supported the following frequencies:  GSM and Quad-Band (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz). The iPhone 3G supports all of those frequencies, but added to the list quite a few more to enable running at 3G speeds, including UMTS/HSDPA (850, 1900, 2100 MHz). The iPhone 3G also supports GPS, which was not included in the original iPhone.

Both phones have a 2MP camera, but do not feature a video recorder. The iPhone 3G weighs 4.7 ounces compared to the 2G’s weight of 4.8 ounces (not a notable difference). The only downside to 3G capabilities is that it eats into battery life.  The iPhone 2G beats out the newer version in that regard by providing up to 8 hours of talk-time compared to 5 hours with the 3G.

Bottom Line

Comparing two great phones is always hard, but Apple made a great move by creating the 3G iPhone. The iPhone 2G is impressive, but with the features the 3G provides and the transition with new phones all moving to 3G, it’s a definite requirement if Apple wants to maintain its new status as the #1 selling phone in the US.

It’s sister model, the Toughbook W8, has an anti-glare LCD display that is also 12.1". The main difference between the two machines is that the W8 weighs in slightly less and that the Panasonic Toughbook T8 has the ergonomic hand strap missing from the Toughbook W8. Also, the T8 includes Display Image Rotation software the W8 does not. The T8 weighs about 3.3 pounds, and the Toughbook W8 weighs in at a light 3 pounds. Both machines have exceptional battery life because of the low voltage Intel Duo Core processors utilized.

Both models come with Windows Vista Business pre-installed, but they can also be downgraded to XP if preferred.  Both models also come with complete wireless capabilities, including Bluetooth. Pricing on the Toughbook notebooks starts at $2,099. For the durability and power these machines can provide, it’s well worth the money for many users.

As for the Panasonic Toughbook F8, it is proudly branded as the world’s lightest 3G-ready notebook, wielding a 14.1" wide display and an internal optical drive. The Toughbook F8 took a page out of the book of its predecessor, the T8, by adding a handle. This gives it somewhat of a small briefcase appearance when shut. It comes with a DVD burner and a 160GB hard disk drive. Selling for $2,499, the laptop could be irresistible for businesses that require Panasonic’s expertise in designing solid, reliable, and highly durable portable computers.

To ensure the highest level of reliability and compatibility, the MasterDrive LX underwent SuperTalent’s formidable arsenal of validation tests. The SSD is completely interchangeable with mechanical hard disk drives since they use the same SATA-II 3Gbps interface. Built with NAND flash, these SSDs provide read/write speeds that max out at 100MB/s and 40MB/sec accordingly. The lifespan of the SSDs are significantly lengthened by the integrated ECC, bad bit management, and wear leveling systems.

The 64GB model costs around $179, while the 128GB SSD is priced at the bargain value of $299. The drives a certainly an attractive option for the stocking of a tech-savvy individual this holiday season!

If you feel like wiring the speakers up, feel free to use the included USB cable. It also comes with an auxiliary input in the form of a 3.5mm stereo jack so you can connect your iPod or other favorite MP3 player to the device. Inside the speakers is a rechargeable battery that can provide up to 12 hours of playing time from a single charge. No software is required, which makes for a ready-to-go solution out of the box.  The unit comes with a protective travel case to help keep the speakers safe, whether you’re walking over to a neighbor’s or on a business flight to France.