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Review: IOGEAR’s external video card

July 10th, 2007, 8:01 am by

UPDATE, 7/13: OOPS. One correction on the external card is that it does support resolutions up to 1280×1024, which technically is high-definition video. Thanks to reader Jeff, an HD nut, who pointed this out. D’oh!

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IOGear in Irvine is best known for its KVM switches, or gadgets that let two computers share one keyboard (the “K”), one monitor (the “V” as in video) and one mouse (the “M”).

iogearvideocardweb.jpg

Now, it’s offering a video card — the USB 2.0 External VGA Video Card (GUC2015V) – for one computer to share two monitors. The cool thing about this gadget is that it’s an external card, so no need to pry open your PC and figure out where to insert it. Install the PC-only software and then just plug one side in to a monitor (using a video cable, which you’ll have to buy) and the other side to a computer (using the provided USB 2.0 cable).

Configure Windows display settings to utilize two monitors and you’ll get your computer’s image on two screens! Bad news: This is for Windows users only. A Mac edition isn’t in the works yet, says the company. For the nuts and bolts review, read the review HERE.

I should mention that IOGear isn’t the only one out there — it’s just one that I recently got my hands on, tried it and tested it to work. Some others:

* XG Station from ASUS has a 3G graphics card, USB 2.0 ports and Dolby headphone jack.

* The not-very-cheap SideCar from Digital Tigers. You can add up to 4 more monitors with the $1,909 SideCar Quad MMS.

* The Tritton See2, which seems on par with the IOGear card in EverythingUSB’s review.

* ArsTechnica story on new PCI Express technology and ability to handle higher-powered graphic chips.

**This just in*** EverythingUSB‘s managing editor Ian Chiu just told me his group of reviewers have also tackled the Samsung 940UX, the first USB monitor, which is basically powered by Displaylink – the same core as the IOGear. Read its review HERE.

Review: T-Mobile’s HotSpot @Home

July 3rd, 2007, 5:50 am by

Last week, I wrote about T-Mobile launching a new service so customers can use Wi-Fi to get better cell phone coverage at home — and pay a bit less on phone calls made using this wireless technology. (And read to the end to learn about how to win this service free for a year.)

Then I tried it out.

One word: Stunning!

But you probably want more than one word. A full review can be found HERE. But a few things to mention that are best said online (as opposed to print)….

For those catching up, T-Mobile’s new HotSpot @Home service turns a house into a Wi-Fi hotspot for your cell phone. But don’t think of this as Vonage or Skype or other Voice over Internet Protocol service for cell phones. Somehow, T-Mobile allows calls to automatically switch from cellular technology to Wi-Fi technology mid call. And I didn’t even notice the switch.

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Chatting on the phone and walking into a Starbucks I had never visited before, the little icon on the phone went from cell logo (above) to the Wi-Fi logo (below). Of course, the image below is taken from my home network, which I call Oklahoma for no reason whatsoever.

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Read the rest of this entry »

Gadgetress review: Comic Book Creator

April 11th, 2006, 7:00 am by

WeeBoy Gadgetress in the paper? Must be Tuesday!

Today I reviewed the Comic Book Creator software from Planetwide Games in Aliso Viejo. The software was a side project for the company, which was focused more on video games like RYL: Path of the Emperor. Planetwide designed the comic book software for gamers. They take screen shots of their game play and then turn the scenes into personal comic books, complete with thought bubbles, comic fonts and LOUD! words followed by exclamation points. Read my review here.

Comic Boko CreatorBut of course, this isn’t limited to gamers, which is why this caught my eye. It’s for modern-day scrapbookers or photo-happy parents who want to document every part of thier life. This is like that, but more fun. I created my own funny page using some crazy photos of my little cousin, who makes faces even when the camera isn’t clicking. I call him WeeBoy. See his adventures in a JPEG, HTML, BMP or PDF file (which the program automatically does for you).

WeeBoy v. SuperLimeI spoke to Planetwide Monday to get an update on the company. They recently announced that Sony Online is going to add the comic-book service to its online games and National Geographic is going to make its own version available. The company is getting bites from all over the place, from cartoons to other game makers.

The product has gotten a lot more attention than any of Planetwide’s games. I guess that’s good timing for Planetwide. The company is in the process of doing a reverse merger with a public entity called SP Holding Corp. that should be completed on or around Saturday. Following a 300-for-1 reverse stock split, Planetwide will own 95 percent of the newly merged company.

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