A collection of consumables, innovation and entertainment
CONSUMABLES
Sound screen
The Logitech Z205 speaker is meant to be clipped onto the screen, to save space. Two full-range neodymium drivers output stereo audio, a metallic front grill protects the drivers from external damage, the top of the device has buttons for adjusting the volume and powering the device on/off, and two connections at the rear (mini USB port for connecting to a laptop and line input for a cell phone or MP3 player). That’s it. It’s that minimalist.
It has its own USB audio device so it will work even on laptops or computers that don’t have any built-in audio. It nicely replaces the low-powered speakers in most laptops with loud, clear sound. The stereo drivers handle the mids exceptionally well. Of course, you can’t expect pounding bass in such a device, but there’s reasonable response in the low-end too. More importantly, it is loud enough to fill up a small room while maintaining fidelity. The carry-case provided makes the speaker portable as well. If you aren’t content with your laptop’s built-in speakers, the Z205 is an excellent replacement that’s well-designed, cost-effective and pleasant-sounding!
Rs. 2,195, logitech.co.in
RETURN OF THE MAC MINI
Scaled-down and slimlined, the runt of the Apple litter is slimmed down, toned up and its stylish, anodised aluminium case is now just 3.6cm high. It packs in an HDMI socket, 1TB of storage, 4GB of RAM, a competent, 2.66GHz dual core processor and Nvidia GeForce 320M graphics. That combination says “media server” loud and clear to us, with the HDMI — a first on an Apple device — plugging it into your TV or multichannel audio system. The cheaper model also does HDMI but with a 2.4GHz dual core, 320GB hard drive, 2MB of RAM and a DVD writer.
Rs. 44,900-64,900, apple.co.in
Nokia strikes back?
Nokia will be hoping to regain lost ground in Indian around the end of September with the launch of the N8, and the new Symbian^3 operating system (multi-touch interface and other bells and whistles). It will have a 12-megapixel camera (Carl Zeiss optics, Xenon Flash, a sensor large enough for a compact digital camera), 16GB storage (expandable via microSD cards), FM receiver and transmitter, social networking widgets, and more. Rumour puts the price tag just north of Rs. 25,000. Online buzz is positive so far; perhaps Nokia isn’t quite a thing of the past just yet!