Ever since Apple launched the iPad, we have a seen a tablet frenzy take over the gadget market. Tablets have become the hottest commodity on block, threatening to replace not only laptops, but even cell phones and televisions, as the number one device for communication and media consumption by the masses.  So far we have seen most manufacturers design their new tablets with a audience of students or gadget freaks in mind.  This is why Panasonic’s Toughbook is such a refreshing product, with a whole different audience in mind.  This is a tablet for men or, as the cliché goes, this is the tablet that separate the men from the boys!

The portable rugged machine has magnesium alloy chassis,  fanless design, which helps to protect it from water and dust, it is certified by an independent third-party test lab to meet MIL-STD-810G and IP65 standards for environmental conditions and according Panasonic can withstand a drop of 6 feet from any angle. The “tough guy” has 5.6-inch WSVGA sunlight-viewable touchscreen using TransflectivePlus technology with up to 6000 nit viewability, a 1.6 GHz Atom Z530 CPU, 2GB of RAM, a 64GB solid state drive, 802.11 b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth v2.1 + EDR, fingerprint reader, 2.0 megapixel auto-focus camera with dual LED lights, and twin hot-swappable batteries, which promise up to 9 hours of operation.

The Qosmio X500 Series notebooks feature Toshiba’s striking Fusion Finish in Omega Black with stylish red chrome accents and a  full keyboard with LED Backlighting and numeric 10-key pad, plus a touchpad with multi-touch control and gesture-commands. Inside it packs Intel Core i5 /Core i7 processor options with Turbo Boost technology, up to 8GB of RAM, dual-configuration 7200RPM HDD and solid state drive options, a DVD or Blu-ray drive, premium 5.1 surround sound system of harman/kardon and Dolby Home Theater audio technology, also three USB 2.0 ports, one eSATA/USB Combo port with Sleep and Charge, ExpressCard, IEEE 1394 and a 5-in-1 media card reader.

Naturally, the term “cheap software” refers to programs which don’t cost a fortune while still providing much value for the money spent. While it is an option to use, for example, word processors that were issued between 5 and 10 years ago, it is not advisable. Today, somewhat cheap software is available on the market that can do much more, much faster.

Most workplaces and home offices need a suite of programs that include: word processing, spreadsheet creation, multimedia presentations, and so on. With operating systems and computing power being updated to breakneck speeds at an alarming rate, it only makes sense to have the latest in office software tools to match. Some outdated cheap software you can buy may not even run on the latest computers, or may pose incompatibility issues.

If the investment in software is going to be made, it can be done within a budget while still getting current and up to date programs that will work for years to come. Cheap software today can, again, do things that only a decade ago were unheard of without spending a fortune.

To select the programs you need, do some research to decide what types of features will be beneficial to your most common activities. Select cheap software which will serve all those needs, while also taking into account potential needs which may arise, for instance, if your business grows. Being prepared in advance is ideal.

The Aspire Predator by Acer is a monster machine, equipped with the Intel Core i7 quad core processor, nVidia GeForce GTX470 Graphics Card with a three-way SLI support, and the amazing 9 gigabytes of DDR3 memory. The RAM memory can also be expanded to 12GB for maximum performance.

“Designed to conquer and destroy, the Aspire Predator boasts a rugged, intimidating chassis as well as super power and speed,” said Susan Hu, retail desktop product management for Acer Canada. “It’s a smoking hot gaming rig delivering eye-popping graphics and dynamic audio for a jaw dropping experience that will fire up even hard core gamers. Plus, plenty of room for future upgrades will assist gamers in their quest to reign supreme in the new world order.”

The Acer Aspire “Predator” Gaming Desktop PC is expected to be priced at $1.799 in Canada.

The new point-and-shoot digital camera has a black metal shell with a double coated lacquer finish. It is equipped with a 12-MegaPixel EXR Super CCD, 3-inch LCD displayand is capable to capture capture 720p movies. The features include 15x Fujinon optical zoom lens (24 – 360mm equivalent range) with Super EBC Coating that keeps ghosting and flare to minimum, next generation EXR sensor incorporates Phase Detection pixels built-in to the CCD to realize Hybrid High Speed Auto Focus and to achieve an incredible auto focus speed of 0.158 seconds and “work like external sensors on DSLRs”. Furthermore gyro sensor for the new image stabilization system, 360 degrees Motion Panorama, Pro Focus Mode – ideal for portraits and a Super Intelligent flash, which produce balanced flash illumination across the foreground and background.

“The primary concerns consumers have are speed of capture, blurry photos and image quality. With the FinePix F300EXR, you won’t miss the action or sacrifice image quality as it has Fujifilm’s EXR technology with Hybrid High Speed Auto Focus. It also has Intelligent Image Stabilization for users to achieve outstanding results in virtually any lighting condition without blurring,” said David Troy, director of marketing, Consumer Digital Cameras, Electronic Imaging Division, Fujifilm North America Corporation, “Combine those features with a Fujinon 15x long-zoom lens and a new high contrast LCD in a chassis only 23mm thick and it helps make great pictures that people will love.”

The FinePix F300EXR also offers these additional features:

• Super Intelligent Flash: The FinePix F300EXR offers a flash control system which efficiently controls the level of flash for a given exposure to produce beautifully balanced flash illumination across the foreground and background. Gone are the ugly washout shots where the subject is blasted with light and the background dark and unexposed. Super Intelligent Flash is most useful in macro photography where the contrast between subject and background can be especially challenging, but is also effective for night and backlit photography.
• EXR AUTO Technology: Prized for bringing a new level of image quality to the consumer compact market, Fujifilm’s EXR technology has the unique ability to switch its behavior depending on the shooting conditions by automatically switching sensor modes. The FinePix F300EXR can be left on EXR Auto Mode and the camera will do all the hard work for you, or alternatively, you can manually select one of three EXR Priority modes for high resolution (HR), dynamic range (DR) or high sensitivity and low noise (SN).
• Face Detection and Automatic Red-eye Removal: To provide perfectly exposed and focused portrait shots, the FinePix F300EXR is fitted with Fujifilm’s latest Face Detection technology which is able to track up to 10 faces simultaneously, at almost any angle to the camera. The system instantly corrects red-eye and then saves both the original and the corrected image file automatically.
• Photobook Assist: Photobook Assist lets you select and organize images in your camera to create a digital photobook. You can download the photobooks to your computer using MyFinePix Studio software that is included.

The FinePix F300EXR will be available in late August 2010 at a retail price of $329.95.

The new HeatoN’s EC-series include four mice with the same features and specifications, the only difference is coating, color and size.  They feature lowest lift-off distance currently available in any optical mouse on the market – 1.5 mm. Regarding ZOWIE, it is one of the primary features, cause “the lower the lift-off distance is, the easier it will be to get used to the feeling and anticipate where the cursor will land with each move”. When you play FPS games, you will often lift the mouse,  as you need to make swift movements to turn around quickly, regarding them a higher lift-off distance,  “means the cursor will start to move earlier than the gamers anticipate, which will affect their aiming a lot.”

“In my 10 years as a professional gamer, every day I have wanted to develop the ideal mouse for competitive gaming,” says Emil ‘HeatoN’ Christensen and continues, “as a competitive gamer, you have to be able to rely on your equipment to be functional at all times. The mouse is probably a gamers most important tool, so it is important that you can trust it to deliver. We have put our focus on precision, stability, durability and comfort. No more excuses. It’s up to you now!”

Other features include a DPI-adjustment with maximum DPI setting of 2000, improved mouse wheel with over 5 years lifetime, 1000 Hz USB report rate and as ZOWIE claims without need of any drivers installation, just plug and play anywhere. The EC1 and EC2 black model , has a rubber coating to increase the grip when holding, while the EC1 and EC2 pure white model, has the popular smooth coating which reduces sweaty palms.

The new mice will be available in August for €59.90.

Features:

• 100% stable optical mouse developed for gaming by HeatoN
• Ergonomic designed right hand gaming mouse
• 1.5 mm lift-off distance due to custom developed ZOWIE-lens
• Improved mouse wheel system
• 500/1,000/2,000 DPI adjustment
• 1,000Hz USB report rate
• Operating System:
• Win2000/XP/VISTA/7
• Mac OS X v10.2 after

Specifications:

• Frames Per Second: 6,500
• Inches Per Second: 40
• Dots Per Inch: 500/1,000/2,000
• Max. Acceleration: 15G
• 1,000Hz USB report rate
• Connector: USB
• Buttons: 5
• Dimensions:
  • EC1: 128 x 43 x 62~70 mm / 5 x 1.7 x 2.44~2.76 inch
  • EC2: 120 x 40 x 58~65 mm / 4.72 x 1.57 x 2.28~2.56 inch
• Length of cable: 2m / 6.6 ft

As LG claims the included polarized glasses, has not internal circuitry or batteries and helps to reduce eye fatigue when watching 3D content on the LG R590 3D.

LG’s first 3D notebook will be launched in Korea this month with price tag around $1300 and introduced globally in the weeks to follow.

The new LT32 notebook series measures less than an inch thin and weighs only 2.76 pounds. The line comes equipped with AMD Athlon Neo II K125  running at 1.7GHz, ATI Radeon HD 4225 Graphics with 384MB,  2GB of DDR3 RAM, a 250GB hard drive, Gigabit Ethernet, Wi-Fi b/g/n, integrated HD webcam,  3xUSB 2.0,multi-in-one digital card reader,  HDMI, VGA ports, full-size keyboard, multi-gesture touchpad  and 6-cell battery which enables up to 5.5 hourswork time.

“The new Gateway LT32 is a true ultra-mobile entertainment powerhouse netbook,” said Pete Dailey, senior product marketing manager for Gateway netbooks. “It delivers a heightened level of performance and HD entertainment with the powerful combination of AMD Neo processors, ATI graphics and the crisp and clear HD display. The HDMI port means that customers can enjoy their digital entertainment on a large external display wherever they go.”

Like the rest of Gateway’s new notebook and netbook lines, the new Gateway LT32 Series also features dedicated “social networking,” button to access most popular social networking sites – Facebook, YouTube and Flickr.