8 Latest Gadgets Reviewed

iBall Slide i7011 Tablet

With so many companies producing tablets, the biggest question is what makes iBall Slide different? To start with one major point in favor of iBall is its low price and they managed this without compromising on performance. The capacitive multi touch experience is quite good. Performance-wise, Slide runs full HD video quite seamlessly but inbuilt speakers would dampen overall multimedia experience. One glitch, that we came across while using Slide is lack of external volume control. Low price also means that you would not get some features like rear camera or a sim card slot. For connectivity, you can use either 3G data card via USB port or connect your Slide to Wi-Fi network. If aesthetics are too much a concern for you then you might be disappointed.

Price: Rs 13,995

Dell Inspiron 15R Notebook

The new series of Inspiron 15R laptops from Dell enable users to switch between the designer lids on the laptop. The 'Change is Easy' interchangeable lids collection for India includes 10 eye-popping lids, sporting vibrant colours and unique India inspired designs. The notebook comes with a standard black lid and one additional 'Change is Easy' design lid of the customers' choice. Additional lids are also available for purchase. Some of the features which are a change from the older Inspiron 15R include a 2nd generation Intel Core i3 and i5 options and up to 4GB of memory, HD capable webcam, etc. The standard features include 6-cell battery, SRS Premium Audio and high-definition video performance. The unit is pretty much the same in terms of other ports, features to that of the older Inspiron R series notebooks. The unit comes with Windows 7 Home Premium pre-installed. The laptop features a chicklet style full scape island keyboard which is helpful for people who are attuned to the desktop style of keyboard with the separate numeric pad.

Price: Rs 35,300

Nokia C2-03 and C2-06 Phone

Both the handsets look very much similar to Nokia C2-02, and carry features to draw attention of the low budget mobile buyers. The devices are touch and type enabled and come in attractive colors with chrome finish with a slide-out keypad. Both the models come with 2.6 inches TFT resistive touchscreen and dual SIM with easy swap function for both SIMs. The phones feature a 2 MP camera, video recording at QCIF@15fps, 10 MB internal storage and microSD up to 32GB with 2GB included. On the connectivity front, both devices have the GPRS and EDGE. However, you have to keep in mind that both the models lack high speed 3G and Wi-Fi Internet connectivity. The C2-06 has a built-in 106 phone speaker with music play time of up to 35 hours, whereas C2-03 lacks a built-in speaker. In the price front, there isn't much difference.

Price: Rs 4,099 for Nokia C2-03, and Rs 4,807 for Nokia C2-06.

Seagate GoFlex Satellite Portable Hard Drive

If you are using Seagate GoFlex Satellite then you do not need any Wi-Fi router or LAN connectivity to access it over the network. Just plug it into a system and set it up and you are done. Power it on and check the wireless devices in your smartphone, tablet or laptop. Just select 'GoFlex Satellite' and enter the password (if you have assigned any). To access it over the Android or iOS, download and install the application from the respective market and you are ready to access your images, videos in your tablet or smartphone. We tried to access it over an Android phone. The application is simple and easy to use. We tried to stream videos and it worked perfectly fine. There are two LED over it --Wi-Fi and Power LED. On the right side, it has the power button and a USB3.0/2.0 connector at the bottom to charge or load the data in or from the disk. It has one Lithium-Ion non replaceable battery inside. Now that you can use GoFlex Satellite over Wi-Fi, you have to disconnect your connected device from the home network (Wi-Fi, not wired). That means you cannot access Internet over Wi-Fi, if you are accessing GoFlex Satellite. Disconnect it and then use the Internet.

Price: Rs 11,500

Antec High Current Pro 1200 Watt PSU

The PSU can handle up to four high-end VGAs along with other power hungry components almost effortlessly. The PSU is semi modular in nature as all the regular connector cables are connected by default to the main unit. There are other 6 pin and 8 pin connector cables provided which are modular and can be plugged onto the main unit if required. The unit uses an 80mm cooling fan on the front of the PSU but it proved more than just capable of keeping the PSU cool, even when the unit was running at 100 per cent load. Too bulky to fit inside a regular size cabinet; this one is specifically for gaming PCs.

Price: Rs 17,000

Glacialtech CPU Cooler

Glacialtech are out with 2 new CPU cooler ranges --the Glacialtech Igloo 5620 Series and the Glacialtech Igloo A330 series. The Igloo 5620 series is compatible with Intel (sockets 775/1155/1156/1366) and AMD (sockets FM1/AM2/AM2+ /AM3) processors, measures 3.93 x 2.44 x 5.31 inches (100 x 62 x 135 mm), weighs 11.28 oz (320 g), and come with a 92 mm fan installed. The latter is compatible with the AMD sockets FM1, AM2, AM2+, AM3 and weighs 220gms. Both the CPU coolers are priced moderately which could entice the user to go for one as substitutes to the original ones already provided with the CPU itself.

Price: Glacialtech Igloo A330 Series: Rs 515 + tax

Glacialtech Igloo 5620 Series: Rs 1,028 + tax

Iomega ScreenPlay DX HD Media Player

This Iomega media player can be directly connected to your TV set. With 1080p high definition video output it comes with 1TB of internal storage, which gives you enough space to store your videos, images, songs, etc. Besides, it has an Ethernet port also to connect with LAN and access the multimedia content on it. It also lets you access multimedia content on Internet websites. You can also go WI-Fi with an USB dongle. To copy the data into the hard disk, you can use the USB cable provided with it. There are additional 2 USB ports which are provided to connect an external USB drive or hard disk. The media player is a black colored glossy device with one power button and 2 USB ports at the front. At the back it has audio and video output ports, one HDMI port, USB port, LAN, optical and power port.

We copied a full HD video (1080p) in its internal hard disk and tried to play it. It worked perfectly fine without any lag. We also connected an external USB flash drive. With 1 TB of in-built storage, this is a pretty good media player for home users.

Price: Rs 12,999 (1 TB)

Belkin Conserve Valet USB Charging Station

The smart belkin USB charging station basically acts as a AC powered USB charging hub that can simultaneously charge upto 3 USB chargeable devices. The device is fashioned with a non slippery top where devices like phones, MP3 players, etc can be placed while they are being charged. There is a user controlled Start button for the device to begin the charge output to the USB ports. Once the device charges, the Conserve Valet automatically shuts down to conserve electricity and draws zero power. The main device can be plugged to the wall socket through a 2 pin plug. USB-mini USB and USB- micro USB connector cable are present in the box already. This device is bound to be particularly usefull for people with multiple devices.

Price: Rs 2,399