CES - Computers and hardware

CES: D-Link joins WiDi wireless display crowd

LAS VEGAS--You've heard of Netgear's new Push2TV HD--now there's competition.

D-Link announced at CES 2011 that it supports Intel's Wireless Display technology, known as WiDi, with a first product called the MainStage.

Like all WiDi-based accessories, the MainStage allows people to instantly display a laptop's (and even some desktops') screen on the big TV.

Supporting the next generation of WiDi, the MainStage is very similar to Netgear's Push2TV HD. According to Daniel Kelly, D-Link associate vice president of marketing, the reason D-Link waited until now to support WiDi is because this technology is … Read more

CES: Verbatim Titan XS: Superportable USB 3.0 external drive

LAS VEGAS--Just a day after Seagate announced what's arguably the most compact portable hard drive, the GoFlex Slim, the record is now broken by what Verbatim announced today, the Titan XS SuperSpeed USB 3.0.

While it's hard to put in numbers how much smaller the Titan XS is, I've seen them both and it is indeed smaller--though admittedly not by much.

The Titan XS is a rugged portable drive, though not nearly as rugged as the ioSafe Rugged Portable. Like the name suggests, it supports SuperSpeed USB 3.0 (5Gbps) and is housed in a shock-resistant … Read more

CES: Verbatim unveils little portable drive that's big

LAS VEGAS--I reviewed the Lacie FastKey a month ago and thought it was as compact as a portable drive could be. I was proven wrong today.

Verbatim announced at CES 2011 its own version of a portable drive that's based on a solid-state drive. It's called the Verbatim USB 3.0 External SSD. It is even smaller than the FastKey and offers up to 128GB of storage (as opposed to 120GB that the  FastKey has).

Verbatim says this new ultra-slim portable drive supports transfer rates of up to 190MB/sec when used with the USB 3.0 … Read more

CES: ViewSonic introduces large screen LED monitors

LAS VEGAS--When ViewSonic announced last year that it was moving to LED-backlit displays only, it certainly wasn't kidding. It's already announced the VA48m-LED series, so why not throw in one more today?

On Thursday, ViewSonic announced the VX53mh-LED line, available in 21.5-, 23.6-, and 27-inch sizes. Each includes a 1920x1080-pixel resolution, with two HDMI inputs and a single VGA input.

Other specs include a 2ms response time, 30,000,000:1 Dynamic Contrast Ratio (don't bet on that), and built-in SRS sound.

The VX53mh-LED line with ship with estimated prices of $189 (VX2253mh-LED), $239 (VX2453mh-LED), … Read more

CES: ViewSonic debuts new LED monitor series

LAS VEGAS--This week, I expect every new monitor announcement to include the word "LED" or "WLED" variant in it. This one is no different.

On Thursday ViewSonic debuted the VA48m-LED monitor series. The monitor comes in 19-, 21.5-, and 23.6-inch sizes, each featuring a WLED backlight and integrated speakers.

Key specs:

1920x1080 resolution (1440x900 for the 19-inch) 10,000,000:1 Dynamic Contrast Ratio (not happening during real-world use) DVI and VGA inputs 5ms response time VESA mountable

The VA48m-LED series will ship in February for the estimated price of $149 (VA1948m-LED), $169 (VA2248m-LED) … Read more

New laptops roundup, day one

Keeping track of all the new laptop introductions made at CES can be a full-time job (at least it is for us). To help you find the coolest portable PCs, we've rounded many of this week's announcements up by brand, while at the same time highlighting our favorites.

This collection highlights choices from HP, Samsung, Lenovo, and Toshiba. Stay tuned tomorrow for roundups from other PC makers, including Dell, Acer, and Sony.

Rounding up HP's new laptops Samsung's new laptops Lenovo laptop roundup Toshiba's CES laptops

BenQ business monitor houses VA panel

LAS VEGAS--Business monitor announcements are never very exciting, but to its credit, BenQ does its best with this one.

BenQ introduced today its BL series of monitors. Targeted toward business users, the monitor will come in 19-, 22-, and 24-inch sizes.

The monitor will feature what BenQ is calling the Automatic Eye-Protect Sensor, which I'm guessing translates to ambient light sensor, but I can't be 100 percent sure on that.

It also includes an "ultra-flexible" adjustable height stand, which, you know, makes me really curious as to just what that means. A 1920x1080-pixel resolution and Vertical … Read more

Facevision releases budget Skype-certified HD Webcam

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LAS VEGAS--A year ago, Facevision introduced the first Skype-certified HD Webcam, the FV TouchCam N1, that was capable of streaming high-definition video over the Internet, turning video chat into a much better experience. It was one of a few HD Webcams at the time.

For this reason, the FV TouchCam N1 was rather expensive, costing around $120 when first released (it now has a street price of about $100).

Today, the company announced and demonstrated at CES 2011 a new version of the Webcam that offers the same capability but at a significantly lower cost, the TouchCam V1 720p HD … Read more

CES: Meet Microsoft's new multitouch mouse

LAS VEGAS--Not mentioned at today's CES keynote address from Microsoft was something new--a multitouch mouse that's been designed to bring special gesture features to Windows 7 users.

Readers with a good memory might take one look at what Microsoft is calling Touch Mouse, and recognize it as the "Cap Mouse" from October of 2009, which the company unveiled as one of five mousing prototypes. Since then the mouse has cut the cord, tapered out in front, been given a completely different finish (black and red instead of gray and dark gray), and a $79.95 price … Read more