g-series
Latest
Panasonic's prototype Micro Four Thirds 3D lens and body arrive in Berlin
And here it is, Panasonic's prototype G-series micro-four-thirds shooter with new interchangeable 3D lens. We caught the pair hanging out at IFA with nary a soul around to take notice. Too bad for them, good for you if you've made the jump to a panny MFT as the lens will ultimately be compatible with your Lumix G micro system... probably -- unfortunately, Panasonic isn't saying which cams will be eligible for the software update. From the sound of it, the whole kit will get official in just a few week at Photokina with a new G-series body playing host to the new 3D lens. Here in Berlin, however, we've got a G2 body with an updated 3D image processing system doing the dirty work. Nevertheless, it was fully functional and produced a reasonable 3D image with plenty of pop that was ready to view on a brand new Panasonic 3D television. Come on, a 3D television is nothing without 3D content. Sneaky Panasonic, sneaky.%Gallery-101334%
ASUS G73JH-X1 gaming laptop hits the US
ASUS introduced its G73JH-X1 gaming laptop right at the start of CES this year, but it unfortunately didn't have much to say about pricing or availability at the time. That's now changed in a big way, however, as the laptop is available right now (at Newegg, at least) for the not-so-crazy price of $1,449.99. That will get you a 17.3-inch 1920 x 1080 display, a Core i7 720QM processor, 8GB of RAM, a 500GB hard drive, ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5870 graphics, and a DVD burner, among other more standard fare -- all in a suitably angular, eight-pound package, of course.
Logitech replaces G5 with Gaming Mouse G500, throws Gaming Headset G330 in for luck
It's tough to think of a well-mannered Earthling who didn't at least appreciate, if not adore Logitech's cutting-edge G5 laser mouse back in 2005, and at long last, said critter has a proper successor. Today, Logi's introducing the Gaming Mouse G500, which is designed with an on-the-fly adjustable DPI system (up to 5,700 DPI), a battle-worn finish, a broader thumb rest than before and a "smoothed-out pinkie ledge" to really round things out. The 27 gram mouse also packs a dual-mode scroll wheel, a "gaming grade" laser engine and a small bag of bragging rights to boot. Moving on, we've got the Gaming Headset G330, a rather unsightly bugger that sports a behind-the-head design, a noise-canceling microphone, in-line audio controls and a USB adapter. If you're interested in claiming either as your own, look for the G500 to ship in September for $69.99, while the G330 hits shelves this month for $49.99. Full release is after the break.
Logitech's Flight System G940 joystick almost replaces flight school
Not so eager to burn thousands of dollars and years of your life at flight school, only to get stuck with pitiful route options and no three day layovers in Barbados? Have a look at your next best option, Logitech's Flight System G940. Hailed as the company's first force-feedback flight simulation controller, this thing goes far beyond the simple call of duty. Instead of just tossing a joystick in a box and calling it a day, Logitech has also included dual throttle and rudder pedals, giving you 250 programmable button options and bragging rights galore. Sadly, you'll have to coast through the summer 'til this hits Europe and America in September, but that should give you plenty of time to save up the three Benjamins it'll require to bring one home in legal fashion.
Plethora of new Acer Aspires, eMachines, Gateway laptops and netbooks unveiled in one fell swoop
In addition to Timeline and the 11.6-inch Aspire One, Acer decided today to announce new laptops much in the way Nikon and other camera makers roll out their PMA lineup -- in groups of eight or more. By our count, we've got at least ten different models here. Aspire 5935 and 8935: The 18.4-inch 8935 laptop can output a 1080p resolution, True 5.1 channel surround sound and houses up to two HDDs totaling 1TB capacity. The 5935 meanwhile can hold just one 500GB HDD and doesn't do full HD. Both support up to 4GB DDR3 memory, biometric fingerprinting, 802.11 b/g, Bluetooth 2.0, and optional WiMAX. Aspire 3935: A 13.3-inch ultra portable with 1366 x 769 resolution LED-backlit LCD and Intel Core 2 Duo / GM45 express chipset. Features built-in Wi-Fi / WiMAX, up to 4GB DDR3 RAM, biometric fingerprints, and 8 hours of use with a 8-cell battery. eMachines D, E, and G series (pictured): 16 x 9 aspect ratio LCD. Available with Intel Celeron or Pentium processors for all models, plus option for AMD Athlon with E and G series. 14-inch D and 17-inch G have up to 4GB DDR2 RAM, 500GB HDD, while the 15.6-inch E series can feature up to 5GB. All of them boast a wide keyboard, WiFi, webcam, DVD drive, a 5-in-1 card reader, and Windows Vista SP1. Gateway EC series: Lightweight and less than 1-inch thick. The 13-inch netbook has an LED backlit screen with 16 x 9 aspect ratio, Dolby Sound Room, SSD, DDR3 RAM, HDMI out, optional 3G and Bluetooth, webcam, and capacitive hotkeys on top of the keyboard. Gateway 10.1-inch LT20, 11.6-inch LT30: Both are under 2.62 pounds, boast built-in WiFi, Webcam, optional Bluetooth and 3G modules, 5-in-1 card reader, and up to 160GB HDD. The touch pad supports multi-gesture features and reportedly it comes with a "cool protective bag" -- yay? Gateway ID series: Available in glossy midnight blue or night sky with a matte interior and silver-colored touchpad. It's got an 15.6-inch LED backlit screen, slot-in DVD drive, webcam with a curtain (for privacy, obviously), mult-gesture touchpad, and capacitive hotkeys on top of the keyboard. There's still got plenty of missing pieces here, such as pricing and availability for anything here, but one thing's for sure: we are thoroughly overwhelmed by the sheer number of new offerings.
Dell's 22-inch LED-backlit G-Series LCD now available in renewable quantities
After teasing its entries last month and offering up the 24-inch G2410 a couple days ago, Dell's officially rounding out its eco-game on the desktop panel scene with the 22-inch G2210, a display so energy efficient it can only display pictures of windmills and solar panels (seriously, hit the read link). The 22-incher has an extremely miserly 18 watt power consumption rating, compared to the G2410's 20 -- impressive, but you're probably more interested in the 1000:1 contrast ratio (dynamically boosted up to 1,000,000:1), 250 nits of brightness, and 5ms response rate over a resolution of 1680 x 1050. At $239, it's actually a little cheaper than anticipated, which might just give you some extra incentive to pick one up with your tax refund -- you environmentalist you.[Via iTech News Net]
T-Mobile dude promises more 'G series' phones this year
In an interview with FierceWireless, T-Mobile USA's senior VP of engineering and operations (and newly-minted chairman of 3G Americas' board) Neville Ray has slipped a couple juicy morsels in the process of talking up his carrier's ongoing 3G rollout. Besides mentioning that T-Mobile wants to double its 3G footprint in 2009, Ray says that "we will be launching more G series phones and other products... in the coming weeks and months." If we had to guess, this probably (hopefully) has something to do with that HTC Sapphire we've seen floating around lately. What's more, you'll see T-Mobile start to ramp up peripheral support this year -- gotta monetize that multi-billion-dollar network somehow -- with a modem launch. All told, these guys still have a long way to catch up in the 3G race with Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint -- but if you want bleeding-edge Android stuff, looks like they'll continue to be your best bet for a while.[Via TmoNews]
BenQ goes for the kitchen sink approach with new line of 16:9 monitors
Never one to go half-way with a product line, BenQ has now filled out its G-series of LCD monitors with a full complement of 16:9 LCDs, including both 1080p and 720p models. Those range from the 23.6-inch G2410HD and 24-inch G2411HD/HDA, which each boast an Advanced Motion Accelerator that BenQ says improves response time and brightness, to the decidedly smaller 15.6-inch G610HDA and 18.5-inch G910HD/HDA models, which use a dual lamp system to conserve energy depending on the level of brightness needed. Complete specs on each model are otherwise a bit light, but you can apparently expect dynamic contrast ratios ranging from 10,000:1 to 40,000:1, response times of 2ms to 5ms, and DVI, HDMI ports, and built-in speakers on a few of 'em. No word on prices either, but they'll apparently start hitting China this month, with a "worldwide" rollout planned for later in the year.
The making of Logitech's G-series peripherals
Design Partners, the company responsible for Logitech's G-series, has released a series of images offering a behind-the-scenes look at how the suite of wild gaming peripherals came to be. Interested to see the design process? Check out the galleries below -- we're particularly taken with the image showing a designer hand-crafting the G19's wrist rest. Galleries G35 Surround Sound Headset G13 Gameboard G19 Keyboard G9x mouse
Dell previews new G-Series monitors
Hot on the heels of Dell's new XPS Studio laptop release, the company's back with its G-Series LED monitors. We're assuming that the G stands for "green," 'cos they're really working the tree-hugging angle on this one -- pointing out that widescreen LED flat panels consume less than half the power of comparable monitors, and that their designs incorporate "environmentally preferable" materials. Two models are currently available -- the G2210 measures 22-inches, boasting 1680 x 1050 resolution and should fetch $279, while the G2410 24-inch boasts 1920 x 1080 (HD) resolution, with an asking price of $359. Both models are planned for late February.
Logitech G-series peripherals, Harmony 1100 hands-on
We just had a chance to get our hands all over Logitech's G-series peripherals, including the G19 keyboard, G9x mouse and G13 gameboard. The G19 keyboard feels very responsive if not a bit hefty, but the real catch here is the 320 x 240 LCD. You can navigate through YouTube using adjacent keys, and the Britney Spears video we ended up watching was particularly crisp. The rep told us it'd be able to play anything compatible with Windows Media. The G9x mouse is what you come to expect from earlier Logitech entries, with a very responsive scroll wheel. As for the G13 gameboard, the right side-mounted joystick felt very comfortable and all they keys well-placed. Programming the keys for the G13 and G19 was a fairly straightforward process with software. We also got some time with the Harmony 1100, but unfortunately we didn't have a chance to see how well it interacted with the computer. The device itself is surprisingly lightweight and the screen very bright. Hit up the gallery below for pics.%Gallery-40770%
Logitech launches salvo of G-series gaming peripherals
If you thought that Logitech was onto something good when they launched the WoW-ready G13 gameboard, the bigwigs at Logitech tuned into your brainwaves and decided to expand their gaming line. Engadget reports that Logitech is set to launch a slew of gaming peripherals to complement the success of their gaming pad.The first of these is the $199 G19 keyboard, which has a GamePanel LCD, a 320x420 color monitor that displays "valuable in-game information" for over sixty games including -- ahem -- World of Warcraft. Aside from macro-bound buttons, the keyboard also has a switch for disabling the Windows button, so players don't accidentally lock themselves out of their game when they nerd rage.There's also the G35 (I don't really know where they pull the number suffixes from), a $129 headset with 7.1 Dolby surround-sound capability and a "voice-morphing" option that allows players to disguise their voice or -- as the Logitech press release states -- "sound like (their) World of Warcraft character". With three different, swappable headbands, the headset seems configurable in more ways than you can shake a Snufflenose Command Stick at.Finally, there's the equally configurable G9x mouse, a $99 variant of the award-winning G9 mouse and should give the Steelseries World of Warcraft mouse a run for its money. Or your money, since that's almost a full hundred smackers for interchangeable snap-on grips, five ready-to-play profiles, and on-the-fly adjustable dpi. The keyboard and headset will be available by the end of the first quarter, and the mouse soon to follow.
MSI at CES: Wind U115 / U120, NetOn all-in-one PC, gaming laptops galore
If you thought that MSI would allow CES to pass it by without unleashing a veritable smorgasbord of new kit upon us, you're dead wrong. For starters, the company will be showcasing its Wind U115 and U120 netbooks for the first time in the public eye at CES, and those oh-so-intriguing NetOn all-in-one machines we spotted overseas will also be making their US debut. Said rigs will arrive in 16-, 19- and 22-inch flavors, and it's expected that Intel's dual-core Atom will be powering the trio. Carrying on, we've got the EX625 and EX623 entertainment lappies joining the EX family with inbuilt subwoofers and Blu-ray drives, and the GT725, GT727, GT627 and GX420 will all be sliding into the gamer-centric GX line. Finally, MSI will be demonstrating its first "eco-friendly carbon fiber concept gaming notebook," so we'll definitely be sashaying over to wrap our paws around that. Head past the break for the full release.
Lenovo prepping G-series IdeaPad netbooks?
Ah, the unsourced Digitimes rumor -- not quite as accurate as simply making things up, but almost always more interesting. This time the erstwhile trade rag says Lenovo's working on a new line of IdeaPads to compete with the flood of netbooks that's consumed the market. The IdeaPad G-series, as it's supposedly called, is said to feature a 14.1-inch display and run on the Centrino 2 platform -- which doesn't sound like much a netbook to us, but who are we to argue with a sketchy trade rumor? We asked a Lenovo rep about them, and while he didn't dive into any specs with us, he had heard of the G-series, but said they're probably / most likely not coming to the States, since they want to keep that premium vibe over here while they build the brand. We'll see how things shake out in the second half of the year, when these are supposed to hit, but it sounds like it'll probably be an Asia-only launch.[Via I4U News]
Sharp's latest 37-inch AQUOS LCD does 1080p
If Sharp's top-o-the-line R-series of AQUOS LCDs are a tad too rich and too big for you and yours, then try on the latest 37-inch G-series, g. The LC-37GS brings a full, 1080p HD resolution across that ASV LCD panel. Fine, while that resolution bests that of their 37-inch AQUOS LC-37D43U, you'll have to suffer a lower 2000:1 Dynamic Contrast vs. the 6000:1 found on the D-series panel. As to the rest: 6-ms response, 176-degree viewing angle, and 2x HDMI, 1x DVI-I, and 2x Firewire jacks for connecting your video camera and Sharp's AQUOS HD recording gear. Available in either side (LC-37GS20) or under-panel (LC-37GS10) speaker configurations for about ¥320,000 ($2,015) when these hit Japan in March. [Via Impress]
