LG KC910 Renoir: A Work of Art

The LG KC910 is all about pictures, hence the "Renoir" moniker. Yes, it bears a passing resemblance to the sleek LG KP500 "Cookie", but what the Renoir has that the Cookie doesn't is a stunning eight megapixel camera with autofocus and a xenon flash. It also comes with oodles of connectivity: 7.2Mbps HSDPA, Wi-Fi, and built-in GPS, which together allow you to geo-tag your works of art and upload them to the Internet.

Features:

• 8 Megapixel Camera
LG’s KC910 takes super-sharp pictures, thanks to an 8 megapixel camera with Schneider-Kreuznach optics and a Xenon flash. ISO sensitivity, which determines how much light the camera’s sensor takes in, can be set as high as 1600, increasing the camera’s performance in dark conditions.

• Touch Shot
Users can select an object to focus on simply by selecting and touching a focal point on the phone’s 3.0-inch wide screen. After touching an area to focus, users can take a photo simply by removing their finger from the screen. This feature means that users will never miss a shot while searching for the right button to press or get a blurry image because of camera shake.

• Creative Shot Modes
The KC910’s shot modes include:
- Beauty Shot: Automatically removing spots and imperfections of people’s faces, Beauty Shot makes sure that faces appear bright and clear in photos. It creates more attractive looking portraits without the need to use Photoshop software.
- Art Shot: Unlock your creativity with its Art Shot mode. Create an artistic masterpiece with effects including, black & white, warm & cold exposure and more.
- Smile Shot: Automatically triggers the shutter when camera detects a smile
- Continuous Shot: Fires nine shots in rapid succession
- Panorama Shot: Allows the phone to take panoramic images
* The LG-KC910 also includes Face Tracking and Blink Detection

• Dolby Mobile
Dolby Mobile provides rich, vibrant audio as well as more powerful bass to the music listening experience. At the heart of Dolby Mobile is an integrated suite of audio processing technologies which includes:
- Natural Bass - provides clean, powerful bass extension without artificial side effects
- Sound Space for Headphones - adds spaciousness and impact to headphone listening from stereo content.
- High-Frequency Enhancer – reinforces the highs that often suffer when music and other content are digitally compressed

• DivX/Xvid Playback
The LG-KC910 also makes it easy to watch high-quality DivX/Xvid video right out of the box. The handset includes the popular DivX/Xvid codec, a portable format compatible with a large and growing number of devices and platforms. This means there is no need to specially encode videos for the phone, transferring video files is as simple as drag and drop.

• Slow-motion Video Recording (@ 120 fps)/ Fast-motion Video Recording (@5fps)
LG-KC910 can record QVGA video at up to 120fps, which allows it to catch every detail in slow motion, making it perfect for capturing fast moving objects, such as those at sporting events. The LG-KC910 can also handle the opposite extreme, slowing recording down to 5 fps to record very slow-moving objects with a time lapse effect.

• A-GPS/Jogging Buddy
LG KC910 supports A-GPS ensuring that users always know their exact location. The handset also offers the ultimate convenience for exercise enthusiasts by using the advanced GPS technology. Whether walking, running or jogging, KC910’s Jogging Buddy provides up-to-the-second information including distance and time, and keeps an exercise log for you.

• The latest 3G Networks/ Wi-Fi
With HSDPA connectivity at 7.2Mbps and seamless connections through Wi-Fi, users can browse the internet at very fast speeds.

• Personalized Widgets and Active Flash UI
Users can choose widgets with customizable settings to appear on the idle screen. Widgets are easily added by dragging them from the menu bar. The widget screen is oriented vertically and users can scroll through widgets with the flick of a finger. Users can choose from a variety of colour options for the idle screen. With its online widget function the KC910 provides instant access to information like weather forecasts on its idle screen. Real time weather data from carriers’ online services will help users be prepared for unexpected weather.



Specifications:

General
2G Network: GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network: HSDPA 2100

Dimensions
Width: 107.8mm,
Height: 55.9mm
Thickness: 14 mm
Weight: 114 g

Display
Type: TFT touchscreen, 256K colors
Size: 800 x 480 pixels, 3.0 inches

Memory
Call records: 40 dialed, 40 received, 40 missed calls
Card slot: microSD (TransFlash), up to 8GB

Data
GPRS: Class 10 (4+1/3+2 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
GPS: Built in GPS Reciever
HSCSD: No
EDGE: Yes
3G: HSDPA, 7.2 Mbps
WLAN: Wi-Fi 802.11b/g
Bluetooth: Yes, v2.0 with A2DP
USB: Yes, v2.0

Messaging
SMS, EMS, MMS, Email

Browser
WAP 2.0/xHTML, HTML

Imaging
Camera 8 MP, 3264x2448 pixels, autofocus,
Video(VGA 30fps, QVGA up to 120fps)
Xenon flash; secondary VGA videocall camera
Camera geo-tagging, face, smile and blink detection

Multimedia
Java MIDP 2.0
MP3/MPEG4/AAC/DivX/Xvid player
Ringtones
Type: Polyphonic, MP3
Customization Composer,
Download: Yes
Vibration: Yes

Other Features
Organiser
Document viewer (DOC, XLS, PDF)
TV-out
Voice memo
Built-in handsfree
T9

Battery
Type: Standard battery, Li-Ion
Stand-by: 264 hrs
Talk time: 3 hrs

Intel Rumor: New Chips and Price Drops

According to DigiTimes, rumor has it that Intel is set to drop its prices as well as introduce new processor models. If they come to fruition, some CPUs could see price drops of up to 20 percent. Intel is also said that these new processors will be revealed next month. Reports say April 19 will see the launch of the Q8400 (95W) and Q8400S (65W), both clocked to 2.66 GHz but priced at $183 and $245, respectively.

The same report, which cites sources at motherboard manufacturers says that we’ll see more processors introduced at the end of May, including Celeron and Pentium Dual-Core parts, the Core 2 Duo E7600 and two new Core i7s: the 3.06 GHz 950 and the 3.33 GHz 975, priced at $562 and $999, respectively. The news comes just a couple of months after Intel dropped the prices on several processors significantly, with some of the cuts amounting to as much as 48 percent. The company's Celeron Mobile 570, Core 2 Quad Q9650 and Xeon X3370 all saw cuts of over 40 percent.

Here’s a full list of the aforementioned price drops and new releases, courtesy of DigiTimes.

Seven $200-300 Core i7 X58 Motherboard Roundup

Hunting for a motherboard for my next Core i7 rig, I stumbled upon a very informative article, tomshardware's thorough roundup of seven Core i7 motherboards in the $200-$300 price bracket.

According to them, there were originally ten candidates for the roundup but interestingly two failed to submit samples and one conked out before reaching POST (Power-On Self-Test).

They also warned that spending $200 or more on a new motherboard or simply paying an additional $100 just to obtain the new socket might surprise you with the realities of the Core i7, and checking out this roundup will definitely help you a lot in spotting gems from rubbles in the X58 market.

These are the following boards that were tested:

1. Asus P6T


2. Biostar TPower X58


3. DFI LANParty DK X58-T3eH6


4. EVGA X58 3X SLI


5. Foxconn Renaissance


6. MSI X58 Platinum SLI


7. ASRock X58 SuperComputer


The verdict? The Asus P6T gained top spot, which also happens to be my all time board favorite. Second place goes to MSI X58 Platinum running a base clock of 133.7 Mhz. They also concluded, and I quote:

"With a performance advantage of over 2% over the Foxconn, DFI, ASRock, Biostar, and EVGA products, Asus could have easily won the performance comparison even without its 0.20% base clock advantage. Exceptional performance at its stock settings earns Asus' P6T a spot in each Tom's Hardware lab as our reference platform for 2009."

Percent total performance difference from all benchies are shown below.


You can read more about the Core i7 X58 roundup at tomshardware here.

Stylish Compact Camera Roundup

Previously, we've rounded-up some budget compact cameras. Let's move on to the next level. Three stylish, compact yet bristling with clever feature digital cameras made it to our list.


1. Panasonic Lumix FX35

The 25mm wide lens on the Lumix FX35 ensures you'll easily squeeze all your extended family into the annual portrait. This metallic compact makes ease-of-use a high priority. It features Panasonic's Mega OIS stabilizer which can even out tricky exposures. It also has IA, which recognizes the subject accordingly. It also captures HD movies at 720p and can output them to your TV. With all this gallant help available it's a great shame that pictures are let down by some noise and softness.

The Lumix is undoubtedly easy to use and stylish, but the results just aren't good enough.

Price: $199
Love: Easy to use. Looks built to last despite lightweight design.
Hate: Occasional image softness and noise.

Specs at a glance:
3648 x 2736, 10 megapixel
4x optical zoom
2.5" lcd viewer
SD, SDHC, MMC
li ion battery
3.7x2.0x0.9, 4.4oz


2. Sony Cyber-Shot W300

The Sony Cyber-Shot W300 is beautiful yet tough. The titanium-coated compact is disarmingly attractive, sizing you up with its retractable Carl Zeiss optical zoom. It boasts impressive artificial intelligence, with Face Detection, Intelligent Scene Recognition, Smile Shutter and blur-banishing anti-shake all helping to make its 13.6 megapixel shots as pristine as possible.

The zoom is only 3x, and pictures can display an uncharacteristic hint of softness. That aside, the W300 is a stylish camera that refuses to compromise on photographic quality.

Price: $329
Love: High-resolution, detailed pictures. Stylish case.
Hate: Images can appear soft on occasions.

Specs at a glance:
4224 x 3168, 13.6 megapixel
3x optical zoom
2.7" lcd viewer
MSduo (pro) (HS)
NP-BG1 li-ion
3.7x2.2x1.1, 5.5oz


3. Ricoh R10

The Ricoh's retro styling wouldn't seem out of place in a James Bond Classic film, but despite its classic looks, its features could still summon up raised eyebrows.
The R10 has a versatile focus range, a large, clear, high-resolution LCD screen, plus other camera stalwarts such as face detection and anti-shake. The metal and plastic body is timeless rather than old-fashioned. Adding to the espionage theme, the camera also features a built-in electronic spirit level function, so you shouldn't end up with wonky horizons.

If you're a fan of refined glamour, the sophisticated yet modern R10 is a parfait.

Price: $299
Love: Intuitive menu system. Larger than average zoom lens.
Hate: Boxy, old-fashioned dimensions.

Specs at a glance:
3648 x 2736, 10 megapixel
7.1x optical zoom
3.0" lcd viewer
SD, SDHC
DB-70 rechargeable
4.0x2.3x1.0, 5.9oz

The Verdict: Despite a 25mm wide-angle lens and heaps of useful what-nots, the Panasonic FX35's lightly soft pictures let it down. With a 7x optical zoom, massively hi-res LCD and the unique electronic level function, the Ricoh R10 is excellent value and fun-packed, but just pipped to the winning post by the Sony Cyber-Shot W300. Stylish, effective, full of feature and not too expensive, the W300 is a colossally covetable compact.

Sansa slotRadio Player Available on March 31st

The Sansa slotRadio is all set to ship on March 31st after debuting at CES 09. This microSD music player can handle your digital music on your own microSD card, and can accept pre-loaded Billboard chart hits cards which has over 1,000 songs that are nicely categorized by genre. Like FM radio, songs are played in sequence and cannot be rewound or rearranged. However, you can skip individual songs as many times as you like, or switch between playlists with a touch of a button.

The die-cast aluminum player also features a 1.5" OLED screen for viewing artist and song information, a FM radio and even an integrated, handy belt clip for hands-free listening. It'll be available from SanDisk's own website on March 31st for $99 (which includes a card with over a thousand songs).