New Designs: Apple's Media Player and Nintendo DSi

Designing tech devices are never easy. There are some that at first I thought was bad but was good when i tried them on, and there are those who look really good but fell apart when I tried using them. Form follows function they say and let's hope that the new Apple media player and Nintendo DSi screens enlargements work.

New Apple media Player?

Apple has always been considered as design masters by the tech world. Their works have been copied or emulated in some way by their competitors but they are still considered as the standard to beat. However, with the discovered Apple Patent, we have to say that this design really bugs the heck out of me.

The Baltimore Sun today found an Apple Patent on a device that would integrate a media player into a wireless headset. While only shown in one of the images, the display does show up in some of the diagrams and in the application itself. (marked "214" below)

Yes folks, that's an iShuffle with an earpiece sticking out of its back. From my point of view it's going to look like one of those Bluetooth earphones with speakers built in them. But wait there's more!

Will this design work? I personally have troubles with earphones as they have a tendency to slip off from time to time (and usually at the most inopportune time). Good luck with that Apple...

Nintendo DSi gets larger screens!

Since we're talking about designs, Nintendo's DSi will have another makeover with larger screens!

"Don’t look to the DSi LL expecting any special, new features. It’s essentially a DSi, only slightly bigger due to the inclusion of two 4.2 inch screens, as opposed to the two 3.25 inch screens built into a normal DSi, it is bigger. It also comes with more styluses than a typical DSi - it comes with the standard stylus that fits into the DSi and a larger stylus that looks exactly like a ball point pen."

This is the Nintendo DS for adults or kids with really big hands. Is the bigger screens enough for people to replace their Nintendo DSi/Lite/Phat? We'll see after the Holidays.

Source for Apple's Patents News
Source for Nintendo DSi's New Screens

Motorola Droid: Out in the Open

Besides being named from some Star War characters (remember C3PO and R2D2?), Motorola's Droid has finally been unveiled unto the world. We're not sure if the accidental posting of the specs to the previously brought down page (meaning: it's up now) will make any impact on it's sales coming this Holiday.

Here's what it has to offer:

The web is richer. Photos are sharper. Videos pop. It has the most advanced Google browser and Android 2.0 software with a blazing-fast processor and 3G speed for faster search. It has the world's thinnest QWERTY slider at 13.7mm. It can help you navigate turn-by-turn. It has a 5MP camera with a flash, plus loads of great camera features and a DVD-quality recorder to capture all the richer, bigger, wider experiences you're going to have. It's the phone with the "Hi" IQ.

Features seem to be above average compared to its other Android sisters. The one thing that most techies will be looking at will be the "DVD quality" video as most mobile phones have been known to have high megapixels for shooting pictures but have crappy video quality. Supposedly it'll provide you with flash 10 on your mobile phone, possibly allowing you to do things with your phone that you only thought was possible on a desktop, laptop, or notebook.

The next question is: will this be the one o put the iPhone down for the count? The iPhone design, quality, and craftsmanship is still heads above anything right now. However this may have a bit of an edge over its Android apps as it is open sourced, while Apple's is pretty much a tough nut to crack.

Available for pre-orders, priced at $ 199, two year lock (Verizon), and to be shipped out November 6.

Source

Apple has Met its Rival

The new Walkman X-series isn’t just another iPod killer but rather it’s a Walkman saviour. İt was way back in the 1970’s that Sony dominated for two decades music portability until the iPod tag along. When the Apple iPod was invented and launch, Sony didn’t even give a support about the MP3 and let the Apple iPod dominated and gained its crown.

This time around the new Sony Walkman X-series is turning the tide of the battle. Sony has a huge advantage when it comes to audio. Almost all Walkman players boast superio audio quality unmatch by any media player available in the market. It is equipped with noise cancelling technology and it is integrated with an advanced digital sound processor.

The X-Series supports MP3, WMA and AAC formats and downloading from an Apple iTunes Store music is a breeze. The X-Series has a smaller screen than that of the iPod Touch. It is 3-inches than the 3.5 inch screen from the iPod. Well, the size doesn’t have to be that bad since the screen size is compensated with crystal clear and vibrant images Sony has in store. With just the OLED in place it wipes out the iPod with its LED display, putting a better performance with vibrant video and pictures. Strikingly the Walkman X-Series can recieve digital TV broadcasts which looks stunning as ever.

The Walkman X-series sports a touchscreen compared to the iPod Touch’s unresponsive accelerometer. When it comes to looks, the X-Series is a bit like a block compared to Apple’s more sexier and curvier iPod Touch. Although the X- Series is smaller, putting it in your pocket would be an ease.

All in all this X-Series is a superb all in one media player. Maybe its hight time that the Apple has made its contender.

Sony Ericsson Equinox: Old Phone, New Cover?

Sony Ericsson's been in quite of a low lately as the iPhone and Android powered phones seems to have caught the people's attention. Although there are rumors of an Android phone in the works, we'll see it when there's a formal announcement. Until then, they will be rolling out some tried and tested phones but with a more glossy and better designed form: Sony Ericsson Equinox

"The Equinox(TM) phone is truly an interactive 3G(1) phone equipped with enhanced design features and built-in GPS. With eye-catching night effects, you can give your five favorite people their own, unique pulsating light effect and when a call comes in, you'll know who it is in a flash. The custom light features come in Amber, Sapphire, Beryl, Diamond, and Amethyst. The Equinox(TM) phone has an array of changing wall paper themes that will ensure you're always color coordinated.

The Equinox(TM) phone has a 3.2 megapixel camera and is loaded with great multimedia features, including an integrated application that lets you shoot amazing video and easily upload(2) it directly to the YouTube(TM) application. The Equinox(TM) phone also has an integrated FM radio and Stereo Bluetooth® wireless technology, and boasts gesture control that lets users reject incoming calls or silence an alarm with the wave of a hand."

Yup same features as previous Sony Ericsson mobile phone models but with different covers, alright. I guess their target market are those who's not really into the whole iPhone, techy phones but rather would go with how their phone looks like.

Me, I'd rather wait for the SE Android phone instead.

Press Release
Picture Source

Barnes & Noble misses opportunity to sell more

The Nook should be an immediate best seller but it seems to have a weird way of selling to customers. Barnes & Noble has more than 700 stores nationwide but only a select of them will be selling the eBook Reader in its stores.

"Instead, I was told as a customer, the booksellers will order a device for in-store customers from the BN.com website to be shipped to their home, much as the buyer could do online from home."

Good point, why go trek to a Nook-less Barnes & Noble store when you can do the same thing online? This leads to some people thinking that there's a shortage of actual devices since it will take a few days for the online purchases to get delivered to their house.

"Why they've chosen to go this route is a mystery to me—why would they want to add an extra step for consumers? We're not sure yet exactly which stores will be getting Nooks (or why—maybe a supply issue?); it's not a huge deal but it can't help the Nook's chances."

Nook's chances are already slim since its getting a wee bit crowded in the eBook Reader niche. Can this be a case of too early of a release? Is there a technical problem they're taking care of? Whatever the reason maybe if a product doesn't move fast enough then people may not be that patient enough to wait for them and transfer to another eBook Reader.

Source (Paid Content)
Source (Gizmodo)

The Latest Edition of Nokia’s NSeries

It couldn’t be that much bigger and better this time around. Nokia the leader in mobile technology has launch another one hell of a phone. A launch like this caliber wouldn’t be so intense and groundbreaking than ever. With the release of the Nokia N97 Nseries the ground is set for another one whooping daybreak for million of geeks waiting around the world.

The Android-Based G1 proved to be that QWERTY slider phones are really in for the taking. Clocking in at 117.2 x 55.3 x 16.9 mm and only weighing in at 150 grams this phone sure is in for the picking. Its 2mm thinner than its older brother the N96 and much bigger than the XPERIA. Well, who wouldn’t want that extra fat screen? The Nokia N97 features a 16M-color resistive touch screen and measures at 3.5” diagonal. It has a 360 x 640 pixels falling a bit short compared to the E90.

Like the N96, this little baby has a 5-megapixel camera with dual flash Carl Zeiss lens for ultra precision and detailed pictures on the go. They can easily be tagged through geo then A-GPS uploaded for OVI-share.

In terms of memory the phone has a 32GB on board memory and can be expandable with the use of a micro SD card. Just like the NSeries it still sports the same Symbian OS 9.4 with S60 5^thedition UI. Connecting to the internet would be breeze, it supports Wi-FI , Bluetooth and GPS, with 3 months free A-GPS via free voiced guided navigation through Ovi Maps.

With just a slight of touch,you can easily slide in the phone upwards to reveal its full QWERTY keyboard. All in all the N97 series is a great addition to the NSeries of Nokia, users of the old N96 will never be disappointed.

Kindle Strikes Back with "Kindle for PC"?

Amazon's got a big target on its back. Sony, Barnes and Nobles, etc. want a piece of the eBook Reader pie and  they're doing all they can to get it. So far, we haven't heard anything from Amazon, until today. Announcing the Kindle for PC! It is a Windows only (sorry Mac and Linux users) free program that allows you to read Kindle books on your PC.

"Kindle for PC is the perfect companion application for folks who own a Kindle or Kindle DX," said Ian Freed, Vice President, Amazon Kindle. "Kindle for PC is also a great way for people around the world to read the most popular books of today even if they don’t yet have a Kindle."

With Kindle for PC, readers can take advantage of the following features:

• Purchase, download, and read hundreds of thousands of books available in the Kindle Store
• Access their entire library of previously purchased Kindle books stored on Amazon’s servers for free
• Choose from over 10 different font sizes and adjust words per line
• Add and automatically synchronize bookmarks and last page read
• View notes and highlights marked on Kindle and Kindle DX
• Zoom in and out of text with a pinch of the fingers (Windows 7 users only)
• Turn pages with a finger swipe (available in a future release for Windows 7 users)

I'm still thinking how this would fight off the eBook Reader competitors as all it does is basically target those people without Kindle. I'm guessing that Amazon's focusing right now on eBook rather than Kindle 2 sales. Are they going to just let their competitors walk all over them?

Good luck to Amazon.

Price and availability to be announced soon.

Press Release

Acer Phoenix BIOS Emergency Recovery

This is for people who don't listen and interrupt the flashing BIOS for unknown reasons.

This will work provided the BIOS BootBlock isn't screwed up while your Main BIOS Image is gone so remember when flashing DO NOT FLASH the bootblock.

The bootblock is to initialize emergency BIOS recovery for some reason the BIOS screwed up.

Download the CrisDisk here.

Do the following on a spare working computer to prepare the BIOS Recovery Drive:

Rename a working copy of the BIOS to bios.wph.

UnZip & Extract CrisDisk to a folder called CrisDisk.

Copy and Paste the bios.wph inside the folder
(Remember to replace the sample bios.wph in the folder with your working BIOS!).

Plug a USB Floppy Disk with a Floppy Disk inside.

You can try using a Thumbdrive but the chances of working with a Floppy Disk is higher.

Right Click and run and WinCris.exe with Admin Permission.

It will format the floppy, copy the MiniDOS files inside with the bios.wph to create a emergency BIOS Recovery Disk.

I have tried this with Aspire 4530.

Do the following on the Computer which BIOS you need to recover:

Plug in the prepared USB Floppy Drive to the machine you need to recover the BIOS from on the left USB port which is the motherboard main USB (There are 2 such ports on the same side).

Remove battery and AC Adapter.

Press and hold Fn+Esc then plug the AC Adapter in while holding Fn+Esc.

Press the Power Button Once and release while holding Fn+Esc.

You should see the lights flashing meaning the laptop is in BIOS Recovery Mode.

The USB Floppy drive should be lighted up and you should hear the floppy drive reading after that you can release Fn+Esc.

After a while you should see either it power off itself or the laptop lights stop flashing.

Remove the AC Adapter, USB Floppy Drive.

Plug back the AC Adapter your laptop should be working again.

Insyde BIOS recovery is different.
1)EFI doesn't need a bootable thumbdrive because EFI uses GUID Partition Tables just a normal partition will be ok (I think).
2)You need to rename the EFI to the correct name so recovery bootblock will identify the correct firmware.

Windows 7 ISO CD Creator

Windows 7 ISO CD Creator
Using this utility you can create Windows 7 ISO CDs and Bootable Thumbdrive.
Download it here.

Cowon S9 an iPod Toch Killer?

When it comes to personal media player from Cowon nothing does it better than them. Almost all company wants a wager or get piece of that market share the iPod Touch is having right now.

The Cowon S9 features a slick 3.3 inch display compared to the iPod Touch’s 3.5 inch display. It comes to a second place with 8GB and 16GB models unlike with the iPod Touch’s 32GB. The S9 doesn’t even come close with the Touch’s built-in Wi-fFi support compared to the much less Bluetooth support.

There are some areas where in the S9 surely shines out from the rest of its competitors. When it comes to audio quality particularly the BBE+ sound field system really packs in a punch to compressed music files.

It has a unique tweeting system in which users can enhance their sound for their chosen preferences. They have added a new JetEffect and EQ enhancements settings that lets you control your sound just the way you want them to be. Talking about the sound, you need to buy yourself some decent ear buds because the ones they supplied can’t do the S9’s sick sound.

The Cowon’s S9 is a bit lighter than the iPod Touch and a bit smaller in terms of dimensions in all sizes. It sports a AMOLED (Active Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode) screen that is more brighter and color rich than the standard LCD screen use by many media devices. Movies played in the S9 are more stunning and more vibrant as ever, not only that it has a motion sensor, which means you can play your movies in widescreen.

It also features a FM radio and audio recording. Battery life is on the average for a couple of movies. Obviously though, it seems to be an Ipod Touch wanna be. Overall, the sound quality is the only thing that keeps this device afloat amidst its unresponsive controls.

Delete Windows System Files

If you play around with Windows System Files sometimes it is not possible to delte them off after you had your fun.
The following commands will make it possible to force their removal:

For Files:

takeown /f file_name /d y
icacls file_name /grant administrators:F

For Directories (will perform action recursively):

takeown /f directory_name /r /d y
icacls directory_name /grant administrators:F /t

Of Course you need admin permission as always.

Leaked! Motorola Droid and HTC Desire

Leakages and accidental releases seems to be the main marketing weapon nowadays as it's been extremely rampant going into the Holidays. It's not that we don't appreciate them, it's just that it's just so obvious. Nevertheless, they create a lot of news about the product and provides it with hype before the actual announcement. Here are a couple of mobile phones that were "accidental" in its marketing.

Motorola Droid specs accidentally posted online!

Motorola's pretty keen on accidentally showing their moblie phone's specs then suddenly pulling it back. It's no surprise that another soon to be released Motorola mobile phone, tentatively called Droid, has been "carelessly" uploaded to Motorola's US site. It's got the complete specs as well...

"Uh… so much for an announcement event? Or Motorola just doesn’t know what the hell is going on (most likely the reason), because the Motorola Droid makes an official appearance on Moto’s U.S. site. It just might be that we were sent this direct link which isn’t mean to be public, but… you know how that’s going to work out."

The site has since been pulled down. No word on the pricing and release date yet.

HTC Desire caught on camera!

HTC's Android phones have been such a hit that they've decided to create another one. A leaked picture of the HTC Desire has been seen in the wild and it looks pretty.

Too bad it didn't have any news on the specs, release dates, and pricing. We're keeping our fingers crossed that it'll be out before the Holidays.

Motorola Droid Source
HTC Desire Source

iTech's SolarCharger 906

With all these storms, typhoons, and flash floods, one of the most important things you should have is a mobile phone as it is the only way you can communicate with the outside world while you're stuck in a bad situation.

However, there will come a time that you will be unable to charge your gadget and then you'll feel really alone. That's what happened to me a couple of weeks ago when I got stranded on top of a building for a few days. It's a good idea then to invest on equipment that will help you charge your mobile phone or other electronic equipment in the house. Here is just one of them.

After a storm or a flash flood, the sun usually rises but you're still stuck in your location because of either raging flood waters or an inability to reach civilization due to destroyed streets and bridges. It would be wise then to check out iTech's SolarCharger 906.

Key Features

• Discreet and elegant product design
• Highly efficient solar conversion due to a high-performance monocrystalline solar panel
• Comes with 10 adapter plugs
• Red light indicator to show the charging condition
• Separate row of four battery status indicator lights specifies the device's charge level
• Dual mode charging: charged through a computer USB port and solar sunlight

Specifications

• Battery capacity: 1260 mAh
• Dimensions: 105(L) x 64(W)x 15mm(H)/
• 4.13(L) x 2.52(W) x 0.59(T) inches
• Weight: 100 grams /3.53ounces

Selling for $59.99 right now at iTech's site.

Source

First Hand Look at Sony Ericsson Satio

Well with the looks of it you might think it would be another Iphone killer but the guys at Sony Ericsson have another thing in their mind. They have created another hybrid jammed packed with cool features with the new Sony Ericsson Satio. The Idou is fully equipped with touchscreen from top to bottom.

Rivaled with the Samsung Omnia HD and Samsung Pixon the Sony Ericsson Satio does have a few tricks on its sleeves. The Saito sure has an exciting package in its arsenal.

The Satio is quite comfortable when you hold it. With its current dimension at 112 x 55 x 13mm this guys a crazy whooper. It sports a 3.5 – inch touchscreen handset without the extra girth and not to mention the behemoth 12 megapixel camera hidden underneath the cover.

The left side part has the screen lock slider, the proprietary all in one connectivity port the same as the one used with the PSP GO, and the MicroSD card slot as well. The memory card slot is covered with plastic so dust and debris won’t be much of a trouble here. You might be wondering why they aren’t using the M2? Well, Satio is the recent ones of those models to give away with that idea.

The Satio is packed with cool interesting features that would keep boredom at bay. The neat Media center is an exact replica on what you can find in the company’s feature phones. It’s stylish, attractive and easy for you to navigate media in and out in your phone. It has all the unique features that would make us drooling for more. It has video player, the Walkman player and also a neat image gallery where you can do almost everything with your pictures.

The new Sony Ericsson Satio is an all in one vibrant phone with lots of cool features.

Nook's a Success and Alex is a Tease

eBook Readers are the it tech gadgets of this season as almost every big time tech company is dipping its hands into this niche market. We've got an update from the two that are making news right now.

Barnes & Noble's Nook is a critical success!

Barnes & Noble's eBook Reader, called the Nook, is out and it is making a splash--no, a tsunami--of an effect on the eBook Reader market. It's even being touted by Gizmodo as the one to beat Amazon's Kindle 2 with a post like 8 reasons why you can finally love eBook Readers.

"...the Nook makes even the relatively benign-looking Kindle 2 seem like it was beaten with an ugly stick."

As for the official specs, it was in the hastily pulled down Nook site. Good thing that Gizmodo was able to get a screenshot of it before it disappeared. As a bonus, it's also got a feature by feature comparison with the Kindle 2.

The success of a particular product doesn't depend on the features but on the sales that it generates. We've heard of so many critically acclaimed gadgets that failed to make a profit, hopefully that doesn't happen here. Only time (and sales) will tell...

Spring Design's Alex has a video!

With eBook Readers coming out of the woodwork and it's no surprise that the eBook Reader we mentioned last time, Spring Design's Alex, has a video of an actual working product!

Everything seems to be in good order: Android OS, the second screen, music speakers, etc. Looks swell!  My only complaint is that they could've used a better video camera and have a healthy presenter--he sounds like he had a really bad cold!

Still no news on when it'll be coming out.

Nook Source
Alex Source

eReaders coming: Nook and Alex

eBook Readers seem to be making a mark on its own as Amazon's Kindle is in danger of losing its stamp on being the top eReader on the block. Here are just a couple of them.

Barnes & Noble eReader

They may deny that they're developing an eBook Reader, called the Nook, but all signs (and advertisements) point to Barnes & Noble developing one.

According to the WSJ, the Barnes & Noble reader will be announced tomorrow at $259. The descriptions match our exclusive photos exactly. They found the device through a premature ad shown on the NYTimes website!

Accidental or a marketing strategy to whet the appetites of eBook lovers everywhere? The next question is whether it will have enough features and pricing that can go up against Sony's and Amazon's eReaders? So far it's supposed to have colored screens and on screen keyboards. Unfortunately, it will be priced at $259. Not enough to really rock the eBook market, but is possible to get enough attention from possible buyers.

SUPPOSEDLY, it will be available on Tuesday (which is a few hours from now), so it's just a waiting game then...

Spring Design's Alex

Another eBook Reader, called Alex from Spring Design, is coming to the scene shows a feature that the current eReaders don't have: dual screen.

Spring Design’s new design brings two screen to an ebook reader and not in the notebook fashion like Asus’ design.  The Spring Design device, Alex, will feature a 6” e-ink display for reading large blocks of text.  It will also feature a 3.5” LCD touchscreen below that screen that will be used for functions such as web browsing.  The bottom screen will be powered by Android.  The device will have Wi-Fi as well as a 3G data connection, though no carrier is named yet.  All we know so far is the name of the device, its features and design.

Is this eReader blurring the lines between laptops, netbooks, and eReaders with this extra screen? We'll see soon as new info on this device rolls in.

Barnes & Noble eReader Source
Dual-screen eReader Source

Crystal Clear as LG’s GD900

Having waited for millennia for a phone like this couldn’t be much greater. When I first got the hand on the new LG Crystal GD900 I was in for a surprise.

The first thing I notice was the Crystal was dressed like a princess with all its glory and yet stays to be surprisingly cool as a jack in the box. If you fell for cupid’s arrow with the LG Arena then the Crystal will definitely make you fall in love with.

The new LG Crystal sports a 3-inch touch screen display at 480 x 800 pixel WVGA resolution. It can display up to 16 million colors and remains as crisp and vibrant as ever. Aside from the display the earpiece, the video call camera, proximity and light, It quickly locks automatically whenever your place the phone next to your ear whenever you have a call.

The bottom part of the phone houses a sensitive keypad for phone calls and end calls. It also has the same features that found in the Arena that made it famous, the S-class cube menu to access the rotating cube.

Sliding up the phone reveals the crystal clear keypad made out of tempered glass. It is touch sensitive and totally unique from the usual keypad you have found in most phones. The keypad is smooth to touch and tinker with the individual keys separated by grids.

The LG crystal houses a whooping 1.5GB internal memory and can be expanded with the use of MicroSD cards. It also features a 8-megapixel camera with Schneider Kreuznach lens and LED flash hidden underneath the slider. It has GSM/GPRS/EDGE and HSDPA 7.2 Mbps so connectivity wouldn’t be much of a trouble.

With our current active lifestyle it is just fascinating to see and hear, beauty and art can be combined into technology.

Sony’s Ultra Thin Netbook

It’s thin, light and sexy, that’s what Sony’s VAIO X series has to offer. The latest new addition of Sony’s laptop has been shrunk to a minute size, its ultra thinner and lighter than the Apple’s Macbook Air. The new Sony VAIO series sports an Intel Atom processor that surely gives the creeps of the current generation netbooks.

To make it more enticing for those who are concerned with the specifications, let me tell you this that the motherboard of the X-Series has all the components glued into one side only making more room for the others and to make it even thinner as ever. Some of the components are tightly packed into the rear side of device to make the front half for only the battery.

With this, the Sony VAIO only measures just 16mm all throughout, which is much thinner than Apple’s Macbook Air. Sony has added a couple of drop-down legs at the rear, in the case when you neet to connect an Ethernet cable. Not to mention that the connection is much thicker than the laptop itself. The legs are also use to plug in an optional extended battery in which it makes the front of the laptop much thicker.

The keyboard is large and evenly spaced out giving you more room to type with ease. The touchpad is quite small though, but not to fret, it offers complete maneuverability with precise control.

The Sony VAIO, sports in with a 11.1-inch screen something that most of us would expect on a mid-range netbook. Surprisingly thought it’s not just an ordinary screen that most of its competitors have but it is rather unique than the rest. The screen is crystal clear, offering vibrant crisp images and excellent color reproduction. It’s far better than Apple’s Macbook Air and Lenovo’s ThinkPad X301. The screen resolution clocks in at 1366 x 768 pixel resolution, enabling you to make room for many applications and small windows alongside the screen.

It packs a Intel Atom processor rather a bit disappointing as we hope that they would put in the new Consumer Ultra Low Voltage processors. Enough said, the Atom is set to 2GHz and is powerful enough to do daunting office tasks.

The Sony VAIO is great, with its elegant and stylish design that makes us drool for more. It’s impossible not get attracted to this beauty. In a nut shell the new Sony VAIO X-Series is simply amazing and well rounded piece of machine.

Personalize and Customize with Dell’s “Studio” Brand

Dell has finally introduced a new breed of laptop, introducing the new “Studio” line of products, designed specifically for consumer self-expression and creative living. Studio line products are designed to unleash the creativity within us. With this new line of products we can now personalize and express ourselves the way we want it to be inside and out. It is both a combination of aesthetics and technology rolled into one fresh approach of hi-def mobile lifestyles.

Well almost all people are looking for stunning and vibrant new designs well they won’t be disappointed when it comes to Dell’s Studio line of products. Staying true to its promise in giving consumers to express themselves and personalize the things they want can now step into Dell’s new Studio laptops. Two of Dell’s Studio laptops the Studio 17 and Studio 15 are relatively distinct in nature. These two laptops share the same qualities and both are unique in so many ways. The first thing you should notice about is that they feature sleek designs combined with striking visual elements. They also sport in a new personalization options with features a standard built in webcam, slot load drives, touch media and a built in media broadband.

Most the new Studio products inherit the same design, very much the same that Dell introduced the XPSTM M1330 laptops. From the name itself, Studio, the company ensures total customization and personalization. With the built in personalization option consumers lets them customize their laptop to his or her choice. Customers may pick from a wide options of colors to choose from, they come in Tangerine Orange, Plum Purple, Ruby Red, Spring Green, Tangerine and Jet Black. For added customization, Dell has also included an optional high gloss Grapit Grey that can be personalized and be trimmed around the display back. It is complete with many features for customers to personalize and enjoy.

Red Light Camera Detector from Hammacher Schlemmer

As far as camera manufacturers are concerned, you would think they would be at the side of the law. With car accidents and unruly drivers plaguing the streets, law enforcement has been trying its best to put order and safety in check. However, this red light camera detector from Hammacher Schlemmer seems to be encouraging more accidents and law breakers with their camera. This red camera detector has a 1.6” OLED display that maps out where red lights are located via its camera database. Updates for this database can be done by connecting it via USB to a computer. These updates cost $19.95 annually. The Red Light Camera Detector retails for about $199.95. If there are people who would be interested in this, it would be the teenagers and people who are up to no good!

(Source) Slashgear

RAM SPD Burner

I wish to share with you guys this tool ThaiPhoon Burner, I was introduced to recently by der_mali of Notebookreview.
Quite a guy as he had quite a few tip and tricks up his sleeve.
I will not reinvent the wheel instruction of how to use here.

BEFORE I FORGOT, YOU NEED A SUPPORTED CHIPSET TO READ THE RAM CORRECTLY!
THE SOFTWARE WILL NOT RUN CORRECTLY ON CERTAIN CHIPSET.

I did as instructed and flashed both my RAM to PC2-6400 from PC2-5300 but Aspire 4530 only reads 667MHZ as shown in CPU-Z.
But the RAM timings improved and performance improvement for free is considered great.
Only thing I have to warn you is like flashing BIOS it can kill your RAM, so try to flash settings as close to your original RAMs as possible.
Take a look at my upgraded RAM originally it was PC2-5300 at 333MHZ
I even got in an EPP Profile!
In other words this Tool is a must have!

Simple Step by Step Guide:

1)You must run this software on a Compatible Chipset.

Certain NForce Chipset like the one on the Aspire 4530 WILL NOT work.

2)First extract this program to a location you find comfortable to run it in.

Right Click and Run as Administrator.

Agree to the EULA.

3)Click on EPROM, Read SPD at 50H or 52H if you have 2 RAM SLOTS occupied.

If you have 1 RAM SLOTS only either 50H or 52H will be available.
If it is read correctly you should see the Module Specification read correctly as shown above.

An example of incompatible Chipset is shown below.


First notice the numerous SPD displayed.

Next the Module Specification is incorrectly displayed.

Do not proceed if you encountered the above.

4)Next Click on Browser button.

Then Click on Download button.

It will proceed to download all the RAM dumps from the server as shown above.

5)Using the search parameter find the next closest update in RAM Specification

For Example you have a Kingston DDR2-667MHZ find the next closest DDR2-800 based on the

Module Code Number and Parameters.


Click Save Dump and save it to a location on your Harddisk

7)Next Exit the Browser Back to the Main Menu.

Select Open and Choose the Dump File you saved previously.

8)It should open up the Dump File details.


Choose EEPROM Select Full Rewrite.

9)You should see the Full SPD Rewrite Windows as shown below.


Select the correct SPD Device Address and click on write.

Wait for the process to complete and you are done!

More Appeal and Pride for Your House With Address Plaques

Something about passing by any posh, exclusive and upscale subdivision always appeals to me. There's a lot to be pleased about, a lot of eye-candy. It is maybe because they have some really nice houses over there, the kind many can only dream of. Or it is maybe because their front yards are really well kept.

But there's always something else that seems to pop out to me. There's always something that makes their houses look a lot more elegant and beautiful. And I have realized many of them have one thing in common. Do you know what it is? It's actually a simple one, and really, not all that expensive. You can even have it in your own home.

I'm referring to address plaques. Yes, those little brass or shiny things you find by the entrance of the house with the house number and other details on it. It's like the house's identification card. Those shiny thingies make it easier for people to find the house, indeed. But they also offer something else.

While many homeowners stay too focused on repainting the house exterior, or cleaning the gutters, or trimming the bushes before the next summer hits, many also lose sight of the simple things that may instantly make the house a lot more presentable. I don't know about you but I find that houses with address plaques look a lot more dignified. It's like the people who live there take pride in how beautiful their home is.

Address plaques come in all sorts of styles --- from the classic and traditional, to the very modern and trendy. These also come in a variety of materials, so you can choose one that goes very well with the structure of your house. The most popular choices for address plaque are perhaps iron and granite. They look really solid and are very noticeable.

You can get creative with the kind of address plaque you would want to have at your front yard. Normally, the house number should be fine. But other families also put in texts like the street name or the family name. Some even put the house’s name on it, which makes it both snobbish but admittedly very sophisticated at the same time.

Address plaques are usually made rust-free, culled from the highest grade of materials so that it should last for years and years in or all kinds of weather condition. The best thing about it is its affordability. Like I said, it helps with the house's instant upscale makeover for just a really small, "within the budget kind" of range. In other words, spending for it is quite reasonable.

New All-in-One PC Using NextWindow Touch Screens

NextWindow, the market and technology leader in optical touch screens for desktop PCs and large-format displays, today announced that another PC maker will soon begin selling an all-in-one computer with NextWindow touch screens. Global PC and consumer electronics developer Medion recently announced plans to offer a multi touch-enabled system with a 24" screen. Branded the Medion X9613, the all-in-one PC will be available initially in Germany.

All-in-one computers represent a growing segment of the larger PC market. These products combine all hardware and software inside a computer's monitor, and they mainly are desktop systems though some, such as the Medion X9613, can be mounted to a wall. US-based electronics giants Dell and Hewlett-Packard were among the first companies to offer a PC version of the all-in-one computer. Both companies are using optical touch screens from NextWindow in their all-in-ones. Gartner is forecasting the number of all-in-ones shipped (with a screen size greater than 16") will double from 2009 to 2010.

(Source) Press

Issue For Aspire 4530 Owners on Windows 7

Please take note when installing NForce Drivers
Make sure your Add/Remove Nvidia Driver has the entries below:

Use the 15.45 NForce Drivers I advised (Can be downloaded on Guru3d.com) DO NOT USE 15.37 NForce Drivers from Nvidia except for the AHCI Storage Driver from 15.37.
Note you get SMU Driver and PCI System Management Drivers, otherwise you get a Fatal Machine Check error occasionally in Windows 7 Event Log, you won't see any BSOD but the error log will be there .
In conclusion use the Storage Drivers from 15.37 and SMU and PCI System drivers from 15.45.

Update:
Please update the Storage Driver from 15.51 (from Guru3D) the driver from 15.37 causes occasional freezing issue.

Barnes & Noble E-book Reader in the Works?

Image via CrunchBase

Rumors are circulating that Barnes & Noble, known as the Internet's largest bookstore, is developing an E-book reader.

With Sony, iRiver, and the still gigantic Kindle in the e-reader market do we really need another one? What's special about this one (supposedly)? The even bigger news regarding this particular rumored e-reader is that it will be powered by Android! Yes, the same OS that's been turning heads in the mobile phone industry today!

However, according to CNet Barnes & Noble is denying that they have one via a representative

"We have made no announcement of an e-book reader device," said Mary Ellen Keating, senior vice president of corporate communications and public affairs, pointing out that the company was already supporting a variety of e-book reader devices. However, she declined to comment specifically on whether Barnes & Noble was developing its own device.

Hmmm, are they or aren't they? According to the Wallstreet Journal and Engadget, they will be pushing this out by the Holidays. They even got a few details from their sources:

The device is expected to feature a six-inch screen from digital-paper maker E-Ink Corp. with touch input and a virtual keyboard, like the one used on Apple Inc.'s iPhone. The Barnes & Noble device is expected to also use a wireless connection to download books from the online e-book store that the books retailer unveiled in July, those people said.

If this is true then the Barnes & Noble e-reader should even be priced lower than it's competitors just because it's being powered by Android. Definitely something to watch out for this coming Holiday season.

Source

Western Digital 320GB BEKT vs 320GB BEVT

Western Digital Scorpio WD3200BEVT

• Unfortunately my drive has failed so no direct comparison will be available. However I will run pretty commonly available tools (No Downloads required), to get the benchmark score so you can compare it to the BEVT in your laptop.

• 5400 RPM
• SATA 3 Gb/sec
• 12 millisecond seek time
• 8-megabyte buffer

Western Digital Scorpio WD3200BEKT

• 7200 RPM
• SATA 3 Gb/sec
• 12 millisecond seek time
• 16-megabyte buffer

First lets look at the built in test results for the Nvidia harddisk controller

Go Device Manager, under IDE controller you should see a Nvidia NForce SATA controller if you didn't then you did not install the SATA driver.
Go Nvidia website to download and install their Storage Controller Driver.

Test 1

Test 2

You can roughly gauge the performance by looking at the scores.

Next we run the WinSAT Detailed Test for more information how to run it see this post.

Note that I am running on Windows 7

> CPU LZW Compression 100.80 MB/s
> CPU AES256 Encryption 41.59 MB/s
> CPU Vista Compression 297.90 MB/s
> CPU SHA1 Hash 459.58 MB/s
> Uniproc CPU LZW Compression 49.88 MB/s
> Uniproc CPU AES256 Encryption 20.91 MB/s
> Uniproc CPU Vista Compression 148.67 MB/s
> Uniproc CPU SHA1 Hash 230.29 MB/s
> Memory Performance 5024.46 MB/s
> Direct3D Batch Performance 53.83 F/s
> Direct3D Alpha Blend Performance 48.67 F/s
> Direct3D ALU Performance 31.23 F/s
> Direct3D Texture Load Performance 25.06 F/s
> Direct3D Batch Performance 54.56 F/s
> Direct3D Alpha Blend Performance 56.36 F/s
> Direct3D ALU Performance 31.81 F/s
> Direct3D Texture Load Performance 22.06 F/s
> Direct3D Geometry Performance 41.83 F/s
> Direct3D Geometry Performance 19.16 F/s
> Direct3D Constant Buffer Performance 19.80 F/s
> Video Memory Throughput 2831.65 MB/s
> Dshow Video Encode Time 8.18464 s
> Media Foundation Decode Time 1.24666 s
> Disk Sequential 64.0 Read 67.82 MB/s 5.9
> Disk Random 16.0 Read 1.58 MB/s 4.0
> Responsiveness: Average IO Rate 3.65 ms/IO 5.9
> Responsiveness: Grouped IOs 10.44 units 7.1
> Responsiveness: Long IOs 15.29 units 6.9
> Responsiveness: Overall 159.52 units 6.6
> Responsiveness: PenaltyFactor 0.0

The values in red is what we are interested in.
So do the same on your machine to compare the results.

Windows 7 Boot Optimization Error

I am not sure if you guys know you can manually invoke Windows 7 defragmentation Tool to do boot optimization by using the /b flag.

When you run defrag.exe, you get the following

Microsoft Disk Defragmenter
Copyright (c) 2007 Microsoft Corp.

The parameter is incorrect. (0x80070057)

Description:

Locates and consolidates fragmented files on local volumes to
improve system performance.

Syntax:

defrag | /C | /E [/H] [/M | [/U] [/V]]
defrag | /C | /E /A [/H] [/M | [/U] [/V]]
defrag | /C | /E /X [/H] [/M | [/U] [/V]]
defrag /T [/H] [/U] [/V]

Parameters:

Value Description

/A Perform analysis on the specified volumes.

/C Perform the operation on all volumes.

/E Perform the operation on all volumes except those specified.

/H Run the operation at normal priority (default is low).

/M Run the operation on each volume in parallel in the background.

/T Track an operation already in progress on the specified volume.

/U Print the progress of the operation on the screen.

/V Print verbose output containing the fragmentation statistics.

/X Perform free space consolidation on the specified volumes.

Examples:

defrag C: /U /V
defrag C: D: /M
defrag C:\mountpoint /A /U
defrag /C /H /V

Notice there is no /B flag but it is there.
However on a fresh Windows 7 installation when you try to do this with Administrative Permission in a Command Prompt Window.

C:\Windows\system32>defrag C: /B

You get some message saying it cannot be done like the following:

Microsoft Disk Defragmenter
Copyright (c) 2007 Microsoft Corp.

Invoking boot optimization on (C:)...

Analysis: 100% complete.

Some registry entries were missing from the boot optimization section of the reg
istry. (0x89000017)

How to resolve this?
The issue is the idle tasks Windows is scheduled to run hasn't run once yet hence it cannot initialize boot optimization.
So to resolve simply open a Command Prompt Windows with Administrative Permission again and run the following commands to invoke the idle task.

C:\Windows\system32>Rundll32.exe advapi32.dll,ProcessIdleTasks
After that the error message will be gone and you can run boot optimization manually.

Why doesn't this happen sometimes?
Because RunIdle task is scheduled to run eventually after sometime of idle usage
if you do boot defrag immmediately after installation,
RunIdle task hasn't got a chance to run at all so you have to invoke it manually
if you want to start the operation immediately.

Xbox 360 Dashboard: Facebook, Twitter, Last.fm, and Zune!

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Isn't there anything that Social Network Services (SNS) like Facebook, Twitter, etc. won't touch? It's not a surprise that tech, social, and gaming geeks have come full circle in Microsoft's Xbox 360 Dashboard coming soon.

Facebook's even better on Xbox 360!

From what I gathered from Joystick's preview is that the Facebook integration is even better on the Xbox 360 than it is on the PC!

Whereas the dot com site is plagued by a sluggish AJAX design, the Xbox app loads photos and galleries instantly, making it much faster and easier to browse through your friend's pics. On the Facebook website, you'll see ads clutter the screen as you browse individual photos. On the Xbox, however, each photo gets the full-screen treatment, with captions minimally presented at the top of the screen.

What's even better is that in the future, games will autopost via "Facebook Connect" all your game achievements and gameplay videos. Talk about bragging to the world that you've pawned the biggest and baddest boss in the game, eh?

Twitter's a small bird, Last.fm's ok, Zune Marketplace rocks!

Twitter is such a big phenomenon online but in the Xbox 360, it amounts to nothing more than a vanilla version of itself. Yes, you can post and read your friend's status and trending topics but that's it. No clicking on links nor viewing pictures. Ouch.

Another "why bother" is the installation of Last.fm. You can listen to music and view slideshows of the band/performer but there's no way you'll be playing music while playing a game. Sorry but you can't listen to your fave Barry Manilow song while killing zombies.

Besides Facebook, the saving grace of Xbox 360 seems to be the Zune Marketplace. Video and music downloaded to your Xbox 360 and then transferred to your Zune. Sorry rental lovers but this is only for purchased items only. If you don't have a Zune, you can still watch movies running at 1080p--yep streaming movies! It's not a Sony DVD Blu-ray killer (yet!) as the quality is not yet as high.

Source

Acer Harddisk Failure

Firstly, if the Harddisk came from an integrated OEM System, the warranty is honored by the OEM.

The warranty is not going to be the responsibility of the Disk Manufacturer unless the Harddisk is bought separately in a retail store, so if you run out of warranty you will have to buy a separate harddisk replacement by yourself.

Symptoms of Harddisk Failure:

• Windows hangs while Booting or takes a unusually long time.

• Windows hangs while shutting down.
  

• BIOS hangs while booting. (To restore normal booting from a normal harddrive simply enter BIOS and set Clear NVRAM to yes, Save and exit)

• Windows Event log report S.M.A.R.T(Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology) Failure. (A S.M.A.R.T Failure report definitely predicts a drive failure while not all drive failure will definitely be detected by S.M.A.R.T)

• Linux Desktop suddenly colour corrupts and doesn't respond at all.

How to resolve:

1. Boot from a Linux Live CD and copy all your important data to an external harddisk. (Do not attempt to boot from the failing harddisk, it only makes thing worse)
2. If you have a desktop and the notebook harddrive uses a SATA connector you can simply plug your notebook harddrive to a connector, boot from the desktop harddrive and copy the data off the notebook harddrive.
3. If the notebook harddrive uses a PATA connector then you need a bridge.
   
4. If the harddisk has failed totally it is impossible to retrieve any data unless you go to a specialized data retrieval centre which usually cost a bomb.
5. Do not go to those small computer shops that claims they can retrieve data, because they do not have the actually tools to do a platter swap to retrieve the data or recondition the harddisk, they are only out to cheat your money)

Yes I was unlucky enough to encounter a harddisk failure however I managed to salvage all the data I needed to a new Laptop Harddisk.
The new harddisk is considered a upgrade from WD BEVT Scorpio Blue to WD BEKT Scorpio Black.

The new harddisk spins at 7200RPM instead of 5400RPM and has a 16MB Disk Buffer instead of a 8MB disk buffer.
It also comes with a 5year warranty instead of a 3 year warranty.
The slight price difference justified the upgrade purchase.
Oh, and by the way the BEKT reports a 5.9 score in Windows Experience Index.

WD 320GB BEVT

WD 320GB BEKT

Christmas Decorations

Christmas is the time of year when families and friends gather around together to celebrate the birth of Christ. During this time there is always a feeling of togetherness, its a special time and people really do make an effort to be together and spoil each other with gifts. Its rare for someone to say they do not enjoy this time of year, many argue that is has now become all about commercial and its ruled by kids but no matter what your side of the argument is on that I am sure we can all agree that when it comes to large Christmas decorations we are all intrigued.

When you walk around during the holidays your eyes will notice the amazing selections of large Christmas decorations which will be in peoples homes inside and out, shopping malls, schools, offices, airports and more. Some people like to keep it simple with a few ornaments placed carefully within eyesight, where as others prefer to decorate all over with life-sized Santa's, reindeers, sleighs and even snowman. These larger decorations can be placed in a porch or better yet in the garden, if it was to snow it would really bring your decorations to life making it that bit more magical.

While the families are sitting around the living room on Christmas morning most likely playing the latest game consoles its a pleasant experience to take some time to yourself and admire your surroundings. The first thing you will see is your large Christmas decorations and this image will be one of the main things you remember about the holidays so be sure to decorate the way you and your family feel comfortable. Never follow the crowd just do as you please and what suits your families taste. Younger kids might enjoy the ornaments of snowmen and santa, these really can be precious.

A nice wreath hanging in the doorway is the perfect way to greet visitors during the holiday season and it gives a homily atmosphere making people feel welcome, this is the right kind of atmosphere to send out during the holidays and large Christmas decorations can do that and much more. Its a good idea to start early on your shopping and remember to cherish your decorations and keep them organized, they really are what people remember most about the holidays so be sure to make yours memorable.

How To Choose What Laptop System To Get?

Basically there are only a few questions you need to ask.

1.Size

How big you need your laptop to be?

Keep in mind size is related to weight, the smaller the laptop the lighter it usually is.

<12.1>

13.1 inches (Mainstream Laptops)

14.1 inches (Mainstream Laptops)

15.1 inches (Mainstream Intensive Gaming Laptops)

16.1 inches (Desktop Replacement)

>16.1 inches (Desktop Replacement)

Usually if you need to move it around 14.1 -15.1 inches would be around the max for mobility.

2.Usage

Processor

Intel

For Intel Processor typically it is easily identified
Intel Core i (Processor Class Number) - (3 Digit SKU Number)(Alphabet 1)(Alphabet 2)

The Processor Class Number is either 3/5 or 7.

3 refers to the low end Processors
5 refers to the mainstream Processors
7 refers to the high end Processors

The 1st Digit SKU Number refers to the instruction set in the Processor.

3X0 means

1. No Intel® Turbo Boost Technology,
2. No Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d), 
3. No Intel® Trusted Execution Technology, 
4. No AES New Instructions

4X0 means

1. No Intel® Virtualization Technology for Directed I/O (VT-d), 
2. No Intel® Trusted Execution Technology, 
3. No AES New Instructions

5X0 and above

1. All Instruction Set Supported

The 2nd Digit refers to the different Frequency of the Processor Family

For the alphabet there are a number of fixed Alphabets

M - Mainstream
Q - Quad Core (4 Cores, 8 Threads, No Intel HD Graphics due to high TDP)
X - Xtreme (Unlocked Multiplier)
U - Ultra Low Voltage (Low Frequency + Low Voltage)
L - Low Voltage (Low Voltage only)
E - Embedded (Not Upgradable)

AMD

For AMD Processor it is not as easy.

Generation Griffin

Identifier:
AMD (Model) X(No. of Cores) (SKU Alphabet)-(Frequency Identifier No.)(Odd/Even Last Digit)

1. Turion refers to high end model
2. Athlon refers to mainstream model
3. Sempron refers to low end model

X2 refers to Dual Core

Ultra refers to Total 2MB L2 Cache otherwise 1MB L2 Cache or less.

ZM refers to Turion Processor with 3 Power State
RM refers to Turion Processor with 3 Power State
QL refers to Athlon Processor with 2 Power State
SI refers to Total 512 KB Cache with 2 Power State

Frequency Identifier No. starts from 4X to 8X.

1. RM-70 starts from 2GHZ (Every 2 increase Frequency Increase by 100MHZ ) Odd Last Digit refers to an increase in HyperTransport Frequency from the Even Digit SKU  
2. RM-80 starts from 2.1GHZ (Every 2 increase Frequency Increase by 100MHZ ) Odd Last Digit refers to an increase in HyperTransport Frequency from the Even Digit SKU  
3. V refers to Low Voltage Processor

Generation Caspian

Identifier:
AMD (Model) (Generation II) Ultra (No. of Cores) (Type Alphabet) (3 Digit SKU No.)

1. Turion refers to high end model
2. Athlon refers to mainstream model
3. Sempron refers to low end model

Generation II refer to K10 Architecture

Ultra refers to Total 2MB L2 Cache otherwise 1MB L2 Cache or less.

Type Alphabet

1. M refers to Mainstream
2. L refers to Low Voltage

3 Digit SKU

6XX refers to Turion Ultra Series Starting from 2.4 GHZ, every increment in 20 increase by 100MHZ with 5 Power States
5XX refers to Turion Series Starting from 2.2 GHZ, every increment in 20 increase by 100MHZ with 5 Power States
3XX refers to Athlon Series Starting from 2.0 GHZ, every increment in 20 increase by 100MHZ with 3 Power States

Note Starting Frequency of L Series differ from M Series

Generation Champlain

 

The Generation Caspian adds Quad Core Mobile Processor to the market.

Identifier: X NNN
X is either X for Black Edition (Unlocked Multiplier 45 Watt TDP ), N for MainStream (35 Watt TDP) & P for MainStream Lower Power Consumption (25 Watt TDP), V for Low End (25 TDP Single Core).

1st Digit refers to SKU
9 - Quad Core with 21.3GB/s HyperTransport
8 - Triple Core with 21.3GB/s HyperTransport
6 - Dual Core with 21.3GB/s HyperTransport
5 - Dual Core with 17GB/s HyperTransport
3 - Dual Core with 64bit Floating Point Unit (I suspect it is the old Caspian Refresh) (All the new Champlain should have 128Bit Floating Point Units) 17GB/s HyperTransport
1 - Single Core with 64bit Floating Point Unit

All Champlain Generation has 0.5 MB L2 Cache per CPU Core.

Graphics (For Gaming GPU > CPU)

For occasional gaming get at least some decent graphics from Nvidia, ATi.

For Intel Graphics if you must at least go for 3150,4500MHD or the new Intel HD Graphics.
They have Video Codec Decoding Abilties for Adobe Flash 10.1.

For ATi any Radeon HD will do, DO NOT go for Radeon Xpress they are obselete.

For Nvidia, go for anything below 8000 Series. 7000 series are obselete.

Both Nvidia 7000 Series and Radeon Xpress do not support GPU computing and DirectX 10

Use Notebookcheck as a rough guide for gaming performance.

Class 3, Class 2, Class 1 are suitable for occasional gaming.

For more intensive gaming consider getting Class 2 and Class 1 Graphics however they are most available only on 14.1/15.1 inch and above laptops.

Reason being more powerful graphics requires more powerful fansink these contributes to size hence usually they can only be found on 14.1 inch and above systems.

RAM

I don't really bother as it is very easy and cheap to upgrade laptop RAM.

You get more cost saving upgrading RAM yourself than buying a high RAM laptop.

Harddisk

Size is of no concern as they come with at least 120GB and that is more than sufficient.

Edit:
With regards to how good a laptop is in terms of quality you have to look at the design layout.
1) Google the motherboard prints of the particular laptop
2) Heatsink size must be sufficiently large enough particularly for AMD Processor Laptops and those with Nvidia/ATi GPU, larger mass allows higher heat capacity so temperature will not be too high.
The GPU, CPU and Northbridge must not be too close to each other.

3) The capacitors must be of high quality

High Quality Capacitor
Lower Quality Capacitor