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TrustedReviews takes its turn with Panasonic's TX-P42G10 plasma
A little skeptical of rave review the HD Guru gave to Panasonic's NeoPDP-equipped G10 plasma? After reviewing the smaller 42-inch TX-P42G10 from the G10 plasma series, the good folks at TrustedReviews have another data point for you. The set turned in a solid performance without blowing away the reviewers -- which to our reading back up feelings around these parts that plasma still has an edge over LCDs in some performance areas, including black levels, off-axis viewing and motion resolution. It's interesting that even though the review itself is pretty reserved, the set scored very highly (9 out of 10) in the "image quality," "value" and "overall" categories. It sounds like TrustedReviews was torn between pulling the trigger on the G10 or waiting a few weeks for the V10 models -- a feeling we know all too well. Hemming and hawing aside, it sounds like the mid-tier G10 sets (below the V10 and Z1 lines) have plenty to offer those not ready to jump the plasma ship just yet.
Samsungs R522 laptop still not official, gets reviewed anyway
Waiting for official confirmation on that R522 that was spied a few weeks back? It doesn't look like you're going to get it, at least not yet, but that hasn't stopped TrustedReviews from giving one a proper once-over regardless. The site's 15.6-inch review unit sports a 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo T6400 processor, 4GB of RAM, and a 320GB disk -- plenty of power in a fairly small and nicely styled package. Decent battery life, too, clocking nearly 3.5 hours under mixed use. However, cable-free connectivity options were somewhat less impressive, lacking 802.11N, Bluetooth, and any sort of cellular wireless. So, a solid choice if you're not looking for the latest in connectivity options or don't mind toting along an external adapter. Prices are said to be between £550 and £600 ($800 to $875) with availability over there starting next month. Samsung's still staying mum about a release on these shores.
LG's HB354BS Blu-ray HTIB gets a thumbs-up review
Although pricing info for LG's HB354BS Blu-ray HTIB wasn't available by the time it hit the internet, TrustedReview's impressions of the all-in-one sound pretty favorable. Whether it's because LG chose to focus on quality over quantity by delivering "only" a 2.1-channel system or Mark Levinson sprinkled some audiophile-approved fairy dust over the pieces, it all came together pretty nicely. Once things were set up, the slick UI and retractable iPod dock went a long way towards minimizing the light and hollow feel of the individual parts, and sound quality that didn't immediately fall apart with increasing volume didn't hurt either. As expected, the Blu-ray visuals -- rivaling LG's standalone BD370 -- didn't disappoint, which sealed the deal for this system. Even for surround sound, we'd take a solid 2.1-channel system over a lackluster 7.1-channel one, and TrustedReviews did too, giving it the HB354BS a recommendation -- assuming it hits the streets at a reasonable price.
InFocus Play Big IN80 projector gets reviewed; it's a keeper
The crew at Trusted Reviews didn't waste any time getting their hands on the just-announced InFocus Play Big IN80 projector. Better still, they liked what they saw. Despite initial trepidations about how the IN80 would fare compared to the £400 cheaper X10, they found performance significantly better in the bigger brother. Better contrast (with an emphasis on deeper black levels) and higher brightness earned points, and overall the review pegged the IN80 as the "knee" in the price-to-performance curve. The only niggles that turned up were fan noise and DLP rainbow effects, perhaps more noticeable due to the IN80's brighter lamp. Sounds like a worthy competitor to the Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 1080, but take our advice -- don't go looking for those rainbows; see them once and you're ruined! [Via AboutProjectors]
Samsung Q1-SSD reviewed
We've just come across a complete review of Samsung's Q1-SSD UMPC, the first device in its class with a solid state NAND flash drive. Sammy's had some ups and downs with its Q1 devices over the last few months, giving us all the more reason to wonder what Riyad Emeran of TrustedReviews had to say about it. The verdict? That 32GB flash drive is pretty freakin' fast -- Emeran noted the Q1-SSD booted in a snappy 22 seconds, notched a PCMark hard drive score of 5895 (more than twice as fast as an HP Compaq nc2400), and was able to perform a complete system restore in just over four minutes. However, that performance increase for the flash drive doesn't translate into as large of a battery life jump as we'd like, given that the battery only lasts about three hours, compared to two hours on the original Q1. But the worst aspect of the Q1-SSD, as TrustedReviews notes, is the fact that its retail price is £1,400 ($2,663) -- double the original MSRP of the Q1 (£700, or $1,331). For that level of coinage, you may just want to stick to the pokey-but-slim Compaq nc2400 to lighten your gadget bag.
Acer's 32-inch AT3205-DTV LCD reviewed
We know there are a ton of Brits anxiously waiting to hear whether Acer's 32-inch AT3205-DTV LCD, at only $1,888 dollars, is really such a bargain, so we won't keep you in suspense: according to Trusted Reviews, it most certainly is. Truth be told, the picture actually sounds like it leaves something to be desired -- black levels and fine detail aren't the best -- but they seem to fall in the acceptable range, and the 1366 x 768 screen apparently delivers vibrant colors and good brightness levels. Other plusses include the built-in Freeview tuner (no CI slot for adding subscription content, though), powerful-for-a-flat-panel sound system, and a plethora of connection options, including HDMI and DVI, component, three SCART ports, and digital audio out. So, if you can deal with some slightly gray blacks and a bit of a, um, bold design, then fear not, British friends, because your quid will be well spent on the Acer.
Fujitsu-Siemens' 3G-enabled Lifebook E8210 reviewed
With most manufacturers concentrating on making smartphones ever-smaller, it's refreshing to see Fujitsu-Siemens flip the script and release what may be the world's biggest Windows-powered handset, eschewing CE for XP in the process. Actually, F-S is marketing the six-pound Lifebook E8210 as a laptop, what with its 15.4-inch, 1,680 x 1,050 display, 2GB of RAM, and full-size keyboard, but any data-centric device that can make cellphone calls (thanks to the built in HSDPA-compatible 3G card) is a smartphone in our book. Whatever you wanna call it, the E8210 impresses on many fronts, says Trusted Reviews, who give the 2.16GHz, Core Duo T2600-powered model nine out of ten stars, highlighting its connectivity (802.11/a/b/g, Bluetooth, HSDPA/UMTS/EDGE/GPRS, PCMCIA/ExpressCard slot, four USB, and even serial, parallel, and D-SUB ports), security (fingerprint reader and Smartcard), and benchmark performance. The only downsides here seem to be the lack of a 3G CDMA option and the ATI Mobility Radeon X1400 graphics, which definitely makes this Lifebook anathema to gamers -- but at over $3,500, the E8210 is clearly being targeted at corporate, and not LAN party, deployment.
