I needed a second set for myself, so bought a cheap one — Samsung E250. It comes with all the stuff that I need, such as Bluetooth, EDGE, MP3/AAC support, Java, FM radio, and most importantly good looks… well, it has got it all.

It has a sucky camera (VGA, 640×480 pixels), but I’ll never need to use it. My Sony Ericsson W810i comes with a very good camera but I’ve hardly taken any shots with it. It will also no doubt have some very cool apps available including games, online bingo, videos and other things like that. I don’t need too many apps but it is always nice to have a few things to play around with.

E250 is very light-weight (80 grams) and has interesting features such as mobile tracker, voicemail, offline mode, and more. Not bad for a $100 phone!

Got my new laptop today, Toby bought it for me from Germany.

The specs are: 1.5 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo T5250 mobile processor, 1GB of 667 MHz bus DDR2 memory, 2 MB L2 cache, 120 GB SATA hard drive, 15.4″ WXGA “CrysalBrite” TFT-LCD display (1280 x 800), double-layer DVD burner, Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100, 56 Kbps ITU V.92 modem, Gigabit Ethernet, Intel PRO/Wireless 802.11a/b/g, Type II and 1 ExpressCard PCMCIA slots, 4 USB 2.0 ports, IEEE 1394 FireWire port, 5-in-1 card reader (SD, MMC, MS, MS Pro, xD), infrared port (IrDA), mini-DIN S-Video output, microphone and speaker and so on.

And oh, it comes with German keyboard… there are some extra keys, and Z is placed on Y and vice versa!

I was about to get myself a Sony Ericsson W200i, but I changed my mind after reading all the positive reviews of W810i. Even though it’s priced double my budget, I bought it today since it’s rich in features and more importantly Linux friendly.

Being a “Walkman” phone, the sound quality is superb, and so are the earbud headphones. The packages includes two tiny external speakers, which are of very good quality and can come handy if you want to listen to Radio or MP3s when a sound system is not available. This nifty device has a 2 megapixel camera, GRPS, HSCSD, and EGDE connectivity, infrared and Bluetooth for wireless transfers, and so on. For storage, a 512 megabyte card is included (Memory Stick Duo Pro) and supports upto 2 gigabyte.

Once cool feature of this phone is the ability to use the data cable to recharge it, which can be very useful for a tech person like me.

The latest addition to my tech gadgetry is a night vision webcam. This A4Tech PK-7MAR “FlexiCam” captures 30 frames per second at 640X480 pixels both in daylight and absolute darkness.

For the night vision function, the cam uses 4 infrared LEDs which are placed around the lens. There’s a bright flash-like light panel on top of the cam that acts as a filler in low-light conditions. The cam is mounted on steel tube, which can be extended upto 16″ or 40 centimeters. The tube is flexible enough to be bended and stretched to bring to cam to eye level. A microphone is built-in as well which seemed to be of good quality. It has a “snapshot” button that can be used to take quick pictures (however, it’s a software dependent feature). The front-side sliding cover is a good attempt to protect the lens, and can come handy if you suddenly need to disappear from a chat session!

I got myself a DVD burner today. It’s an ASUS DRW 1608P3S drive, which can write at maximum of 16X on DVD±R, 8X on DVD+RW, 6X on DVD-RW, 8X on DVD±R (Double Layer), 5X on DVD-RAM, 40X on CD-R, 32X on CD-RW, and can read at maximum of 16X on DVD-ROM and 40X on CD-ROM.I also got myself 1 gigabyte TwinMOS DDR RAM, making my system happier with a whooping 2.25 gigabyte memory. Cool, huh?

I finally got myself a LCD monitor! It’s a Philips 17″ TFT LCD monitor and has built-in speakers, an USB 2.0 port for using peripheral devices, accepts both VGA (analog D-sub) and DVI-D (digital) signals, and is very easy to swivel and tilt. But what impressed me the most is it’s 8 ms response time! Isn’t that outstanding?Wondering what response time is and why it is important? Well, it’s the period of time required for a liquid crystal cell to go from active (black) to inactive (white) and back to active (black) again, and it’s measured in milliseconds. Faster is better: lower response time means faster transitions, and therefore, results in fewer visible image artifacts in the display of transition of text and graphics. Lower response time also resolves ghosting problems.

More details about the monitor (I’m sure you’ll never need them!):

Picture/Display
LCD panel type : 1280 x 1024 pixels, Anti-glare polarizer, RGB vertical stripe
Panel Size : 17″/ 43 cm
Effective viewing area : 337.9 x 270.3 mm
Pixel pitch : 0.264 x 0.264 mm
Brightness (nits) : 250 nit
Contrast ratio (typical) : 500:1
Display colors : 16.2 M
Viewing angle : – C/R > 5
Viewing angle (horizontal) : 160 degree
Viewing angle (vertical) : 155 degree
Response time (typical) : 8 ms
White Chromaticity, 6500K : x = 0.313 / y = 0.329
White Chromaticity, 9300K : x = 0.283 / y = 0.297
Maximum Resolution : 1280 x 1024 @ 75 Hz
Recommended Resolution : 1280 x 1024 @ 60 Hz
Factory Preset Modes : 15 modes
User definable modes : 50 modes
Video Dot Rate : 140 MHz
Horizontal Scanning Frequency : 30 – 83 kHz
Vertical Scanning Frequency : 56 – 76 Hz
sRGB : Yes

Connectivity
Signal Input : Analog (VGA), DVI-D, PC Audio in
Audio output : Stereo Audio (3.5 mm jack) 1x
USB : USB 2.0
Video Sync Input Signal : Composite Sync, Separate Sync, Sync on Green

Convenience
Built-in Audio: 2 W RMS x 2 Stereo Speakers
Convenience Enhancements : On-screen Display, SmartManage enabled
Monitor Controls : Auto, Brightness Control, Left/Right, Menu (OK), Power On/Off, Up/Down, Volume control
OSD Languages : English, French, German, Italian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish
Other convenience : Kensington lock compatible, FlexiHolder
Plug & Play Compatibility : DDC/CI, sRGB, Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
Regulatory Approvals : CE Mark, E2000, EMC, Energy Star, FCC-B, UL, CSA, SEMKO, TCO ’03, TÜV/GS, TÜV Ergo
Swivel : +/- 125°
Tilt : -5° to 25°
VESA Mount : 100 x 100 mm

Accessories
Included Accessories : AC Power Cord, Audio Cable, USB cable, VGA cable
Optional accessories : Super Ergo Base
User Manual : Yes

Dimensions
Depth (with base) : 210 mm
Height (with base) : 377 mm
Width (with base) : 375 mm
Height adjustment range : 70 mm
MTBF : 50,000 hrs
Relative Humidity : 20% – 80%
Temperature range (operation) : 5°C to 40°C
Temperature range (storage) : -20°C to 60°C
Weight : 4.8 kg

Power
Complies with : E2000, Energy Star, NUTEK
Consumption : 33W (Typical)
Off Mode : < 1 W
Power LED indicator : Operation – green, Stand by/sleep – Amber
Power supply : Built-in, 100-240VAC, 50/60Hz