Cool gadgets and new gizmos - news and reviews » Multimedia

GeChic OnLap 1301 USB monitor review: dual monitor for your laptop

Ionut Popa — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:46:03 +0000

I don’t know about you, but personally I’ve been using a laptop for work for the past couple of years, even if the price and performance difference could justify in some cases a desktop. I find today’s laptops sufficiently powerful for the tasks I’m performing, except one thing: screen real estate. If you feel the same then you might want to take a look at the GeChic OnLap 1301 (official page), a 13.3 inch LCD monitor that get power via USB and connects to your laptop via either VGA or HDMI. It’s a cheap alternative for building a multi-monitor desktop. [...]

Original article - GeChic OnLap 1301 USB monitor review: dual monitor for your laptop

Bose Companion 20 computer speakers: The Essential Gaming Sound

Alexandra Fistic — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 22:03:06 +0000

The sound of the game you play is one of most important aspects. You might lose or you might win what really matters, is the fun you get while playing! In order to have fun, one must immerse into the environment of the game. Just try to imagine a horror film and its fullest part of suspense. Would you be able to feel that suspense in the absence of the background music? Probably not and the same goes for your favorite game. What good quality does is help you enjoy better the movie, the TV show, the game! One of [...]

Original article - Bose Companion 20 computer speakers: The Essential Gaming Sound

Harman Kardon SoundSticks II: Looks Like It Came From The Future!

Alexandra Fistic — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 22:46:53 +0000

A passionate gamer has got to know the importance of every single one of his gaming tools. Most of those gamers would agree that the good quality sound is a must, in order to get inside the game and immerse in its atmosphere. Although the game sounds nice in the headsets, having the entire space that surrounds you vibrating just like your favorite game, is better. This review is for those in search of a good gaming tool related to sound and, hopefully, it will help you decide whether the SciFi looking Harman Kardon SoundSticks II Speaker System matches your [...]

Original article - Harman Kardon SoundSticks II: Looks Like It Came From The Future!

Logitech Z506: 5.1 Surround Sound Speakers

Alexandra Fistic — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:07:02 +0000

Nothing sounds better than a good game, in the book of a passionate gamer! Most of the times, the specific sound is what makes the difference between a good game and a mediocre one. And that is because it is the sound that allows you to feel the game, enjoy and explore it with your deepest senses. Nothing compares to the sensation of an entire room vibrating in the same rhythm as your favorite game. One of the desktop speaker systems that can do that is the Logitech Surround Sound Speakers Z506, a 5.1 system. Read the article and see [...]

Original article - Logitech Z506: 5.1 Surround Sound Speakers

Corsair Gaming Audio Series SP2500: Sounds Professional

Alexandra Fistic — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 20:12:13 +0000

Nothing compares to the atmosphere of a certain game that you like to play and what introduces you best into it is the sound! Just like a horror movie scene is meaningless without its background sound, because it is that specific music that creates the suspense! The same principle goes for games! If the sound is not flawless when gaming, the action doesn’t feel the same and an experienced gamer knows that, therefore the sound’s accuracy is, indeed, very important. Being able to feel the enemy vibrating throughout your entire room is quite an amazing sensation! This review is for [...]

Original article - Corsair Gaming Audio Series SP2500: Sounds Professional

Altec Lansing MX6021 2.1 computer speakers: Sound of the Future

Alexandra Fistic — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 17:59:19 +0000

The gaming industry has developed very much within the last decade. More and more powerful PCs have been created especially for that, as well as specific peripherals. If you want to win the game, everything is important! But what if you want to feel the vibration of the game? What if you want to immerse into its atmosphere? Then you purchase one of the surround sound gaming systems available on the market. Some of you might think that the headsets can successfully accomplish the same task, but the truth is that nothing compares to the feeling of having an entire [...]

Original article - Altec Lansing MX6021 2.1 computer speakers: Sound of the Future

Logitech F540 Wireless: wireless streaming to your headphones

Ionut Popa — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 18:23:12 +0000

Ever wished you could play on your console during the middle of your night but you were not able because your girlfriend (or boyfriend) was sleeping in the same room? The Swiss from Logitech consider this unpleasant situation is so common among serious gamers that they created a special gadget for them: a pair of wireless headsets capable of connecting to up to 3 audio devices. The headset Launched under the name of F540 Wireless, the new Logitech headsets come with numerous functions for selecting the optimal channel. This is why along with the classic modifying volume function you also [...]

Original article - Logitech F540 Wireless: wireless streaming to your headphones

Logitech Z906: 500 Watts of pure power

Marc — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 18:44:10 +0000

Some of you might be familiar with the Logitech Z5500, a 5.1 sound system that received very good reviews from users worldwide. The Z5500 was balancing money with quality in such a way that many an audiophile was impressed with the performance of a setup that was not high-end by any means. Well, Logitech are revigorating their 2004 success with the Z906 5.1 surround system, due this month. The new system does not really differ in terms of performance from the older model: still 500W of sustained power (of which 165 Watts come from the subwoofer alone), Dolby 5.1 decoding [...]

Original article - Logitech Z906: 500 Watts of pure power

Free audio books online – the alternative to classic books

Ionut Popa — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 14:58:16 +0000

We live in a society characterized by speed. We always hurry to reach our destination whether it is our workplace or a simple meeting with our friends. We are anxious to solve problems as fast as possible and, most importantly, we have no patience. For nothing. In such a society reading a classic book seems something taken from antiquity. To read a book you need time and need to be in a good mood. You need to be able to immerse in to the world of the book and think about nothing else. Things which let us be serious, few [...]

Original article - Free audio books online – the alternative to classic books

Cowon D3 – a high tech multimedia PMP player

Ionut Popa — Thu, 10 Mar 2011 18:45:35 +0000

When it comes to audio-video players the Apple iPod is probably the first product you tend to think about. However you do not have to have a strategically well placed apple on the back of your screen to listen to music at a high quality. There are a lot of alternatives that do just great and have decent prices. Even if it is less well known Cowon is one of the manufacturers that has lately produced a series of high tech top products. One example is the D3 multimedia player that has just appeared. Design and build At first the [...]

Original article - Cowon D3 – a high tech multimedia PMP player

iPod MP3 players – a short story

Mike — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 19:34:53 +0000

Almost everyone has heard of an iPod. What is an iPod? Well, itâ€™s a portable media player, it was designed by the company named Apple and its launch date was in the year 2001 on the 23rd of October. The line of products is a large one. It includes the hard-drive based iPod Classic, iPod Touch which has a touch screen, iPod Nano which can also play videos and the compact iPod Shuffle. The iPhone can also be used as an iPod but itâ€™s usually treated as a different product. Other iPod products that arenâ€™t produced anymore are the iPod [...]

Original article - iPod MP3 players – a short story

Sony brings new Bluetooth Headphones

Mike — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 13:44:28 +0000

Sony launched a couple of Bluetooth compatible headsets, specially designed for mobile phones usage, but which can also be paired with other gadgets, like PMPs or music players.

Original article - Sony brings new Bluetooth Headphones

4 incredible value digital picture frames

Ionut Popa — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 15:32:22 +0000

Are you a family guy or want to buy a nice gift for your friends moving to a new house? Maybe you should consider a digital picture frame, which you can fill with nice pictures took together on various occasions. I’m not going to go on and on about what a digital picture frame is but I thought I should mention how it works: you transfer/upload pictures to the digital frame and then you set up how you want to see them, one at a time till you choose the next or slide show mode, where pictures are displayed one [...]

Original article - 4 incredible value digital picture frames

Nintendo DS Lite portable console: a better Nintendo DS

Ionut Popa — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 12:34:51 +0000

Portable games consoles are a big hit of the past years, as teenagers are attracted to the idea of not having dead times while traveling from point A to point B. You might think that those consoles are not very advanced, but you’ll be very wrong, as both Sony and Nintendo have already released several versions which improve one upon the other. One such portable games console is the Nintendo DS Lite, a 20% lighter version of the Nintendo DS. It features two screens, the lower one with embedded touchscreen technology. It has two slots, one for Nintendo DS games, [...]

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Amazon Kindle 2 reader shows its face in hi-res pictures

Ionut Popa — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 15:23:08 +0000

E-Book readers seem to be a thing of the future as Kindle, the first e-B00k reader from Amazon was out of stock in their website for many days. Now with the imminent release of the Kindle 2 (it’s said that Kindle 2 will announced today, with a special Stephen King story), there’s hi-res pictures on Internet, which will only make you drawl thinking of the device. From what we’ve gathered it seems the Kindle Reader 2 will be slimmer than the first version and will sell for 359$ (update, now only $299), same as Kindle. Enjoy the pics. Update (new [...]

Original article - Amazon Kindle 2 reader shows its face in hi-res pictures

Sony brings out eight new cameras

Adrian George — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 22:01:30 +0000

Sony‘s warm up for the PMA photo exhibition, which will took place in Las Vegas (31 Jan – 2 Feb), includes eight new digital cameras along with the already seen catchy Sony Alpha DSLR-A200. However, today is the lucky day for amateurs, because the “jap” company announced only compact cameras (DSC-S780, DSC-S750, DSC-W120, DSC-DSC-W130, DSC-W150, DSC-W170, DSC-T300) and the big lazy fish in DLSR-Like range, DSC-H10. If you’re a begginer, you may hopefully take a look at the pictures below. The S series represents the entry level, and of course the cameras here are the cheapests. So, if your wallet [...]

Original article - Sony brings out eight new cameras

Turtle Beach Ear Force AK-R8 puts ten speakers in your ears

Ionut Popa — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 10:44:40 +0000

How many speakers does a gaming headset need to accurately reveal the position of your enemies when they are sneaking behind you? Turtle Beach thinks you need ten speakers and produced the Ear Force AK-R8 Gaming Headset.

Original article - Turtle Beach Ear Force AK-R8 puts ten speakers in your ears

Guess what? It’s a contest!

Mike — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 21:30:42 +0000

I've been planning in introducing a couple of contests here on GadgetRoad for a while. There's no big deal, just tiny questions and stuff. The most important thing is that I wanted to give some prizes too, as there are too few out there thinking to participate in a contest for free, no?

Original article - Guess what? It’s a contest!

How should multimedia receivers look like

Mike — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 11:33:03 +0000

We all know what a multimedia receiver really is, as we probably have one in our homes and use it daily while watching TV, so me movies or just listening to our favourite tracks. But, except the Apple TV and maybe a couple of models that you can count on your fingers, most these gadgets are dull looking, without any eye catching elements

Original article - How should multimedia receivers look like

Crysis pre-alpha build developer walkthrough

Ionut Popa — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 11:17:40 +0000

Crysis is definitely one of the most awaited games this year, as it is supposed to take advantage of advanced DX10 features thanks to CryENGINE 2 technology. Today a new developer walkthrough for a pre-alpha version hit the web.

Original article - Crysis pre-alpha build developer walkthrough