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H&R Block Tango 2008-03-19 22:14:37 Tango is the new kid at the H&R Block party of tax preparation offerings, among which TaxCut is the main attraction. The online service's sleek and stylish interface is one of the best looking, most intuitive, and easiest to navigate that we've seen.H&R Block says that the Tango site is designed for taxpayers who want a "do it with me" experience (which is why Tango includes unlimited free access to tax advisors via live chat, phone, or e-mail), though it's also likely to attract young, hip filers who want something less stodgy and more stimulating than the standard Block treatment.That's because Tango is oddly entertaining: The instructions have a casual tone, and a window on the right side of the screen dishes out commentary, tax trivia, and even compliments (it called me a "rock Read more:Tango
Pop-Up Stopper Free 2008-03-23 02:54:00 Eliminate irritating pop-up windows with this free program.Very few of us have a warm place in our hearts for browser windows that pop up in front of the screen without permission.The free Pop-Up Stopper
prevents them (and pop-under windows) from displaying. You can have sounds notify you when a pop-up has been blocked. The program also allows you to briefly disable the blocking by double-clicking the system tray icon or by pressing Shift or Ctrl when following a new link.This version features a new ad-blocking technology, an improved interface, and more sound and visual options to play when an ad is blocked. This free version is one of four versions offered.
Intel Lanches New Quad-Core Xeons 2008-03-26 09:23:18 Intel introduces new quad-core Intel Xeon L5400 Series processors on Tuesday,designed for energy-efficient workstations and servers. The L5240 processor runs at 2.5GHz and the L5410 processor runs at 2.33GHz. Both are quad-core, and both have 12 Mbytes of on-die cache and 1333-MHz front side buses. A number of systems vendors are supporting the L5400 series and L5210, including Asus , Dell , Fujitsu, Fujitsu-Siemens, Gigabyte, HP, Hitachi, IBM, Microstar, NEC, Quanta, Rackable, Supermicro, Tyan and Verari. The L5400 Series Xeons are also designed for multiprocessor servers in "high-compute density" environments (i.e., racks full of servers). The Xeon L5400 processors are built on the 45-nanometer process seen in the Wolfdale and Penryn desktop and laptop processors, including hafnium high- Read more:Intel
, Quad
Windows XP SP3 RC2 Refresh Available 2008-03-26 09:11:36 A new "Refresh
" version of Windows
XP Service Pack 3 Release Candidate 2 was made available Tuesday on Microsoft Update, according to Microsoft representatives.The primary goal of the release is for its developers to validate improvements to the Windows Update procedure, but a couple of minor additions were also included. As with the previous RC2, you need to download and run a small program available from Microsoft Download Center that makes a registry change on your PC in order for the update to be offered.Microsoft does not recommend using this still-beta version for mission-critical computing. The Refresh includes rollups of all previous updates, "as well as functionality that make it easier for enterprises to co-manage both Windows XP SP3 and Windows Vista PCs within same corporate en
Microsoft Office Live Small Business 2008-03-25 01:50:31 Microsoft is putting all its online small-business eggs in one basket and hoping to entice small businesses with free admission. If a product purports to let anyone with a small business build and run a Web shop, the aspiring e-merchant had better be able to create an attractive and useful site, do so quickly and easily, have access to necessary tools (like multiple e-mail accounts), and be able to call on straightforward but effective business-promotion capabilities. When testing Office Live SmallBusiness
(OLSB), I examined how it fared in those critical areas, both on its own and against the only really comparable service—Yahoo! Small Business. The results are pretty impressive.Until recently, Microsoft offered three different levels of its Office Live Small Business (OLSB): Basics, a Read more:Microsoft
, Microsoft Office
Sony VAIO VGN-SZ791N 2008-03-25 01:33:29 When Sony
kicked off its SZ series of ultraportables with the VAIO VGN-SZ170P, the company showed that it was the first to understand how important discrete graphics and an optical drive were to performance-seeking world travelers. Battery life was the only element that stood in the way of an SZ-series laptop overtaking the Lenovo ThinkPad X61 Tablet. The Sony VAIO
VGN-SZ791N ($2,499 direct) is the latest refresh. It keeps intact the successful compact design while providing a compelling performance boost with one of Intel's new Penryn processors, a 2.5-GHz Core 2 Duo T9300. In addition to tallying improved performance scores, the SZ791N sustained over 5 hours of battery life, enough to earn it an Editor's Choice in the ultraportable category.The SZ791N has a svelte, appealing look. The ca
Gateway P-171XL FX 2008-03-25 01:15:45 Gateway has had a gaming laptop in its lineup for years—the company just never advertised it as such. Its 17-inch laptop series, from 2004's M675XL to the current P-170L QS (recently renamed the P-171 FX), can be customized with a speedy processor, a powerful graphics card, and a wide selection of components. With this in view, it made sense for Gateway to come out with an official mobile gaming line, which it calls the FX series. The Gateway P-171XL FX ($2,999.99 direct) is the über-gaming machine out of three FX models being offered on Gateway's Web site. Although it lacks extravagant artwork or cool LED effects, the copper trimmings do make it stand out—at least a little bit. If you're a hard-core gamer, you'll appreciate the 2.8-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Extreme X7900 processor and the Read more:Gateway
Toshiba Satellite X205-SLi4 2008-03-25 00:27:40 Toshiba doesn't take it slow when it comes to updating the Satellite
brand. Ever since the company launched its first gaming laptop—the Satellite P105-S921—in early 2006, the torrential downpour of beastly laptops equipped with powerful graphics cards hasn't ceased. As of this review, Toshiba has a total of nine laptops that target gamers, four of them legitimate contenders against big names like Alienware, Dell, Gateway, and Voodoo. The Toshiba Satellite
X205-SLi4 ($2,499 direct) is the latest gaming laptop to emerge with SLI graphics and an Intel Penryn processor. These parts aren't as powerful as the screaming ones on the Dell XPS M1730 or the Gateway P-171XL FX, but the low cost of ownership relative to other gaming laptops should grab the attention of part-time gamers and college- Read more:Toshiba
Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 2008-03-24 11:45:44 The ThinkPad brand is an iconic image in the corporate world, but Lenovo
has been absent from the U.S. consumer laptop market—until now. The company's recently launched the IdeaPad line as its first set of non-business models to debut on these shores. Think of the 15.4-inch IdeaPad Y510 as the ThinkPad T61 Widescreen's alter ego, albeit with some trendier features, such as a fabric-like cover, a "frameless" widescreen, and five speakers, including a subwoofer. One gets the sense that Lenovo's foray into our consumer market is tentative, because the Y510 and the rest of the IdeaPad line (there's also a 17-inch version, and a couple of configurations of the model reviewed here) are not being sold on Lenovo's Web site. You can get them only through retailers, both online and brick-and-morta
Microsoft Windows Vista Service Pack 1 2008-03-24 11:18:16 A little over a year after the first appearance of Vista
, Service
Pack 1 (SP1) is nearly ready for download. [There have been a couple of release snafus, including the accidental release, on 2/21/08, of the 64-bit version.–Editor]. SP1 is a useful but not crucial update to the OS, and one that won't greatly affect your computing day, at least not outwardly. The bulk of the development effort has gone toward upgrading security subsystems—elements that enterprise clients find appealing but consumers and small-business users won't really notice (although they'll feel better knowing about them). The bottom line is that there's absolutely no reason not to download SP1 (which you'll receive automatically if you have AutoUpdate turned on), so it's almost a given that it will become the standa Read more:Microsoft
, Microsoft Windows
, Microsoft Windows Vista
, Windows
Adobe Premiere Elements 4 2008-03-27 04:49:54 A new interface and a number of new features bring AdobePremiere
Elements 4 to near parity with the best of the best in the consumer video-editing crowd. it's one of the few consumer editors that can't capture and edit AVCHD, the high-definition video format that's grabbing increasing market share in the consumer HD space. Second, unlike such programs as Pinnacle Studio Ultimate 11 and Ulead VideoStudio 11 Plus, Premiere Elements can't produce Blu-ray or HD DVD playable discs on DVD±R media. Though Toshiba has withdrawn HD DVD , this is still an issue if you're one of the estimated 1 million users to buy an HD DVD Player. Premiere Elements can record Blu-ray discs only to a Blu-ray recorder, which few consumers have.A new interface and a number of new features bring Adobe Premiere
Eleme
Hitachi P50X901 2008-03-27 04:06:59 Hitachi 's P50X901 plasma HDTV comes with an impressively complete selection of audio and video controls, but this stylishly modern flat-panel television has some major picture-quality issues. Its 50-inch, 1,920-by-1,080-pixel screen updates every other horizontal line per cycle, effectively making it an interlaced display. In addition, relatively high black levels result in poor average picture contrast. With an ever-increasing selection of true 1080p sets offering better contrast with fewer artifacts associated with interlacing, I find it hard to recommend the set for serious video aficionados.The glass-topped face and inch-thin side trim give the set a sleek appearance, and it's durable and easy to clean. Beneath its flat glass surface are standard-size bezels that, with the parameter t Read more:Hitachi
Velocity Micro Edge M40 2008-03-27 03:48:57 The Velocity
Micro Edge M40 ($2,980 direct) wants to bring hard-core gaming down to a more earthly price. As such, the M40 uses a relatively modest (but still quad-core) AMD Phenom 9600 processor instead of the overclocked Core 2 Extreme CPU found in many $5K boxes these days. Other pluses are a pair of ATI's Radeon HD 3870 graphics cards in a CrossFire configuration, dual 750GB hard drives, and a Blu-ray reader. On paper, this is a great system, but because of a flaw that's not really Velocity Micro's fault, the Edge is a bit underwhelming.All of the Edge's parts are high-end, just below top-of-the-line for each category. The version we got came in VM's Signature case, so it's a pretty beast with a windowed side panel to show off its dual-card goodness. All of the internal wiring is neatl
Canon PowerShot A590 IS 2008-03-26 13:44:41 Though perhaps not as well known as Canon
's sexy ultracompact Digital Elph series, the company's A series of entry-level cameras are equally worthy of attention for their ease of use and high quality. The new 8-megapixel PowerShot
A590 IS ($179.99 list) offers face detection, image stabilization, and manual exposure settings—features not typically found in budget cameras and sometimes missing even in some higher-priced ones. Throw in a 4X optical zoom, a 2.5-inch LCD, an optical viewfinder, a 5.8mm-to-23.2mm lens (equivalent to a 35mm lens with a 35mm-to-140mm zoom), and you've got a great bargain shooter. The A590 IS does have a few drawbacks: With its boring, gray body, it's not as stylish as the Digital Elph series, and although it's not heavy, it is bulky. And I would have preferred Read more:Canon PowerShot
Nikon D300 2008-03-26 13:36:47 Nikon the 12.3-megapixel D300, is a worthy successor in so many ways that you may never want to put it down. With a ton of features and terrific image quality, the D300 stands out as one of the best D-SLRs you can buy. Among the new features are a big 3-inch LCD, a 51-point autofocus system with 3D tracking, two live view modes, and enough manual settings to fill a 421-page user manual. Although the D300 is still a little expensive for this category, the image quality alone is well worth the cost. Regardless of price, with everything the D300 offers.Nikon offers two lens kits for the D300, or you can purchase the body alone for about $1,800. For my testing I used the DX 18mm-to-200mm (equivalent to a 35mm lens with a 27mm-to-300mm zoom) f/3.5-to-f/5.6G ED VR lens ($2,540 for body and lens) Read more:Nikon
Olympus E-3 2008-03-26 13:27:38 Directly competing against the Canon EOS 40D and the Nikon D300 the Olympus
E-3 is one big, bad shooter: Even for a D-SLR, it's pretty huge. But with girth comes superb image quality and a hearty assortment of features, such as a swiveling LCD, live view, two in-camera image stabilization settings, and an extensive menu system, to name a few. Although it can't quite match the Nikon D300 in image quality or feature set, I have no problem recommending the E-3 as a slightly less-expensive alternative in the semi-pro D-SLR category.You can buy a few different versions of the E-3. For $1,700 you get the body only, and the other two options are kits. The body can be combined with a Zuiko Digital 14mm–54mm f/2.8–f/3.5 lens (35mm equivalent: 28mm–108mm) or the Zuiko ED 12mm–60mm f/2.8–f/
Apple MacBook Pro 15-inch (Penryn) 2008-04-02 11:23:52 Apple MacBook
Pro 15-inch (Penryn), at $3,149 (direct), isn't the first laptop to undergo an Intel brain transplant in the form of a next-generation Penryn processor , but it's among the most sizzling we've seen so far. At the heart of this MacBook Pro, the 2.6-GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T9500 CPU and 4GB RAM played a pivotal role in tearing up performance tests, including a compelling 15 percent increase in battery life. There are other new additions worth talking about, but performance enhancements alone should encourage first-generation MacBook Pro owners and frustrated Windows users to take the plunge.With all the time spent on perfecting the MacBook Air 's design, it's surprising that Apple did little to enhance the looks of the MacBook Pro 15-inch (Penryn). Until someone can come up with a Read more:Apple
, Apple MacBook
Axiotron Modbook 2008-04-12 00:58:51 Apple has long neglected the tablet community by not offering a tablet PC of its own. But now, another company has stepped into the breach with its take on a Mac-based tablet PC. The Axiotron Modbook ($2,629 list) is certain to pique the interest of Mac-based graphics designers and illustrators who prefer to work with a pen rather than a keyboard. Axiotron literally took an Apple MacBook 13-inch (Core 2 Duo), ripped off the lid, and fused a Wacom digitizer screen to the chassis. The Modbook is a slate tablet (rather than a convertible tablet that would have had the benefit of an integrated keyboard), but it's a better alternative to plugging a Wacom device into an Apple computer. This slate tablet doesn't come cheap, though, and it's available only through Other World Computing, an online
Sony Walkman NWZ-S718F 2008-04-13 12:03:21 The $200 Sony
NWZ-S718F, one of the latest additions to the Walkman
line of portable media players, looks similar to the previous round of Walkmans. Ostensibly, this compact 8GB player's major selling point is integrated noise cancellation. Sony takes a commendable stab at noise cancellation here, but it's nowhere near as strong as with, say, Bose's Quiet Comfort 3 headphones. In addition, the circuitry works solely with the included earphones.The real selling point of the player is its excellent sound quality, which, paradoxically, can be fully realized only with an upgraded pair of earphones. This Walkman produces some of the roundest bass I've heard on a player, which helps overshadow shortcomings like mediocre video file support and a user interface that could stand a little sprucing u Read more:Sony Walkman
iriver E100 2008-04-13 11:47:14 The fun factor isn't so important in, say, a lawnmower or a dishwasher, but a portable media player should be fun to use, and the E100 just isn't. This player looks sweet and offers robust audio file support, as well as extras like line-in recording and a microSD slot, but it just doesn't deliver in the usability department. The controls aren't intuitive, and since the user manual is thin and vague, you can end up spending a lot of time fiddling with buttons and options until the player does what you want it to. I expected more from the manufacturers of the excellent Clix and the Clix gen 2. Ultimately, the frustration of navigating the E100 outweighs the player's laudable feature set.The player comes in 4GB ($110 street) and 8GB ($160) capacities and resembles the flash-memory-based Micro
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