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Thunder 30 amplifier from Orange

By CrunchGear, on 2010.03.06, 07:00.03 pm

Stage aesthetics all contain a common trend. Generally, the equipment should be seen as little as possible, leading to pretty much every guitar amplifier in existence being black. Orange Amplifiers said, “To hell with all that nonsense” and proceeded to create some of the most visually offensive and sonically powerful amps on the market. Their latest release, the Thunder 30, should start coming out into the wild sometime this spring.

What you get are four EL84 class A power valves pumping out a total of 30 watts. A new addition to Oranges is the twin channel setup. Your standard clean channel and a dedicated overdrive/distortion channel with shape control. They also threw in an FX loop not found on previous models.

Configurations include the head alone, or in a front loaded 1×12 combo. We’ll have a full review for you guys as soon as we get our hands on one.

National Geographic reprints every issue to an external drive

By CrunchGear, on 2009.12.30, 12:02.46 am

natgeo National Geographic Magazine has been one of the most important publications ever printed. From the insightful articles to the brilliant photography, NatGeo has been the benchmark that other magazines compare themselves to. Now, you can own a copy of every single issue without having to build a new addition to your house to store it.

What you get is a digital version of every issue, including the articles, pictures, maps, advertisements, everything that’s made NatGeo great over the years. It comes on a 160GB external hard drive, of which only 60GB is actually pre-loaded. Of course, you could probably pick up a 160GB drive for only $80, but it wouldn’t have all the NatGeo content. The package also comes with a DVD offering tips on better photography, a behind the scenes look at how National Geographic is produced and interviews with some of the photographers about their most famous pictures. It’ll set you back $199.95, but I think it’s totally worth it. Honestly, I’ll probably be ordering a copy for my personal library.

[via Download Squad]

Seagate makes the wafer-thin 2.5-inch Momentus hard drive official

By CrunchGear, on 2009.12.14, 08:36.47 am

We knew this hard drive was coming, but the info we had suggested that it was going to make a CES debut. No matter, the 7mm thin Seagate Momentus hard drive is official and Seagate is calling it the thinnest in the world. In the world!

The technical specs that leaked early all seem right on. The 8MB, SATA drive will come in either 250GB and 160GB flavors and spins at 5400RPM. The new drive joins the rest of the Momentus line up, which now seem downright fat at 9.5mm high. Expect OEMs and integrator partners to get access to the new addition in January. The rest of us will have to wait a bit longer.

SEAGATE UNVEILS WORLD’S THINNEST 2.5-INCH HARD DRIVE
FOR SLIM LAPTOP COMPUTERS

SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif. — December 14, 2009 — Seagate Technology (NASDAQ:STX) today announced the Momentus^® Thin drive, the world’s thinnest 2.5-inch hard disk drive for ultra-portable and entry-level laptops, high-end netbooks, backup devices and consumer electronics. At a wafer-thin 7mm in height – 25 percent slimmer than traditional 9.5mm 2.5-inch laptop hard drives – the Momentus Thin drive gives original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and system integrators significantly lower cost-per-gigabyte storage than solid state and 1.8-inch drives, enabling a new breed of entry-level thin laptops.

Of all netbook computers available today, 90 percent feature 9.5mm 2.5-inch laptop drives because solid state and 1.8-inch hard drives are largely cost-prohibitive for this market. The Momentus Thin drive provides the lowest-cost storage for netbooks and thin laptops, enabling computer makers to offer systems that reach a broader market.

“The Momentus^® Thin drive promises to help computer makers differentiate on mobile-computing form factor and better compete in the fast-growing markets for thin laptop PCs and netbooks,” said Dave Mosley, executive vice president of Sales, Marketing and Product Line Management at Seagate. “Seagate is committed to helping its OEM and system integrator partners meet market demand for thinner laptop PCs and plans to expand storage capabilities for thin laptops as demand for these slimmer models continues to grow.”

The Momentus Thin drive rivals traditional 2.5-inch laptop drives in performance and power-efficiency, enabling thin-chassis designs in all segments of notebook computing and allowing OEMs both to design in greater value on high-end netbooks for easier upselling and to create a wider value differentiation between consumer and commercial laptop PCs. The Momentus Thin drive features two capacity points – 250GB and 160GB – an 8MB cache, a Serial ATA 3Gb/second interface and a 5400RPM spin speed. The drive is scheduled to ship to Seagate’s OEM and integrator partners in January 2010.

Kindle 2 goes to $259, International GSM version coming October 19

By CrunchGear, on 2009.10.06, 11:20.10 pm

This just in: the Kindle 2 is falling from $299 to $259 and they will be selling an international version with built-in AT&T SIM card for $279 on October 19. Quoth the suits:

“Kindle has revolutionized the way we purchase and read books, by making it mobile, easy and intuitive,” said Randall Stephenson, chairman and chief executive officer of AT&T. “We are excited to work with Amazon to help readers access books even faster and from significantly more places than ever before, including more than 100 countries and territories around the world through AT&T’s global wireless coverage.”

The new international model will be available for sale in 100 countries. No word on international content but presumably that’s a matter of rights management in each country.

Amazon Lowers Price on #1 Bestseller Kindle to $259 and Introduces New Addition to the Kindle Family of Wireless Reading Devices–Kindle with U.S. & International Wireless
#1 bestseller Kindle now $259,Kindle with U.S. & International Wireless now available for pre-order at $279 and ships Oct. 19

SEATTLE, Oct 07, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN 90.80, -0.11, -0.12%) today announced that it is lowering the price of its #1 bestseller Kindle to $259, down from $299. Also today, Amazon.com introduced a new addition to its family of portable reading devices–Kindle with U.S. & International Wireless. Kindle with U.S. & International Wireless now enables readers to wirelessly download content in over 100 countries and territories. Readers can pre-order Kindle with U.S. & International Wireless starting today for $279 at www.amazon.com/kindle and it ships October 19.

“Kindle is the most wished for, the most gifted, and the #1 bestselling product across the millions of items we sell on Amazon, and we’re excited to be able to lower the price,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon.com Founder and CEO. “We’re also excited to announce a new addition to the Kindle family–Kindle with global wireless. At home or abroad in over 100 countries, you can think of a book and download it wirelessly in less than 60 seconds.”

Kindle wirelessly downloads books, newspapers, magazines, blogs, and personal documents to a crisp, high-resolution 6-inch electronic ink display that looks and reads like real paper. Kindle utilizes the same 3G wireless technology as advanced cell phones, so you never need to hunt for a Wi-Fi hotspot or sync with a PC. Readers can wirelessly shop the Kindle Store, download books in less than 60 seconds, automatically receive newspaper and magazine subscriptions, receive personal documents, and read from their library–now in over 100 countries and territories.

“Kindle has revolutionized the way we purchase and read books, by making it mobile, easy and intuitive,” said Randall Stephenson, chairman and chief executive officer of AT&T. “We are excited to work with Amazon to help readers access books even faster and from significantly more places than ever before, including more than 100 countries and territories around the world through AT&T’s global wireless coverage.”

The U.S. Kindle Store (www.amazon.com/kindlestore) now has more than 350,000 books, including New Releases and 104 of 112 New York Times Bestsellers, which are typically $9.99 or less. More than 75,000 books have been added to the U.S. Kindle Store in just the last five months. Starting today, Lonely Planet guides are now available in the Kindle Store, joining existing travel guide selection from publishers Rick Steves, Frommers and Michelin.

“Lonely Planet is excited to make a vast selection of travel guides from Australia to Zanzibar available to Kindle customers around the world,” said Lonely Planet CEO Matt Goldberg. “Travelers can now pack as many Lonely Planet guides as they want into Kindle’s 10.2 ounces and download new guides wirelessly while travelling around the world.”

Over 50 top U.S. and international newspapers such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Washington Post, Financial Times, The Times (UK), Le Monde, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, and the Shanghai Daily are available in the Kindle Store for single purchase or subscription, and can now be delivered wirelessly in over 100 countries and territories. Over 35 top magazines, such as The Economist, Newsweek, Time, The New Yorker, Foreign Affairs, The Atlantic, Forbes, Fortune, PC Magazine, and The New England Journal of Medicine are also available for single purchase or subscription, and can also be delivered wirelessly in the U.S. and abroad. U.S. Kindle customers can also continue to take advantage of the Kindle Store’s selection of over 7,000 blogs and receive new posts while traveling overseas.

Kindle with U.S. & International Wireless offers customers the same features that have helped make Kindle with U.S. Wireless the #1 bestselling product on Amazon.com, including:

– Slim and Trim: At just over a third of an inch thin (0.36 inches) and weighing just over 10 ounces, Kindle is pencil thin and lighter than a typical paperback.

– Reads Like Real Paper: Kindle’s 6-inch electronic ink display reads like printed words on paper because the screen works using real ink and doesn’t use a backlight, eliminating the eyestrain and glare associated with other electronic displays.

– Stores Up To 1,500 Books: Kindle’s 2 GB of memory holds up to 1,500 books and Kindle books are automatically backed up by Amazon so customers can re-download titles from their library.

– Read For Weeks On A Single Charge: Kindle’s electronic ink display sips battery power so users can read for over two weeks with wireless turned off and up to four days on a single charge with wireless on.

– Read-To-Me: With the experimental Text-To-Speech feature, Kindle can read most newspapers, magazines, blogs, and books out loud.

– Automatically Syncs With Kindle and Kindle Compatible Devices: Amazon’s “Whispersync” technology automatically syncs customers’ last page read, bookmarks, notes, and highlights across Kindle with U.S. & International Wireless, Kindle with U.S. Wireless, Kindle DX, and Kindle compatible devices like Kindle for iPhone.

– Wirelessly Receive and Read Personal Documents: Wirelessly send, receive, and read personal documents in a variety of formats such as Microsoft Word and PDF.

– Instant Dictionary Lookup: Kindle comes with the New Oxford American Dictionary and over 250,000 definitions that appear instantly at the bottom of the page.

– Choose Text Size: Kindle lets readers customize their reading preference by providing six different text sizes.

– Bookmarks, Notes, and Highlights: By using the QWERTY keyboard Kindle users can add annotations to text, as well as highlight and clip key passages and bookmark pages for future use.

DXG Releases All-weather Pocket HD Camcorder

By PC World, on 2009.09.17, 10:10.11 am

DXG today released the DXG-125V, a new addition to the company's affordable camcorder line. Priced at $140, the DXG-125V captures high definition video and...