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idealo: Samsung promises a home cinema system without burdensome cables with their HT-X810 model, which they presented at the CeBIT 2008 German electronics conference. A wide, black and nobly formed bar, that should be placed under a flat screen television and also includes an integrated DVD player, as well as integrated speakers.

Despite missing satellite speakers, the chic device should still be able to provide the now mandatory surround sound cinema experience, available with Samsung’s other wire filled models, like the HT-TX35R or the HT-TXQ 120R. Only the subwoofer is separate, though it is also set up wirelessly. This is likely the case because the subwoofer would shake the whole system too much if it was included. The acoustics can be adjusted to different living conditions through internal calibration and the surround sound is achieved without any laborious cables.

Because flat screen televisions have long been operating with higher resolutions than standard TVs, the player can display DVDs in 1080p on demand. The DVD player is also perfectly suited for playing DivX films, JPEGs, DVD audio, CDs, MP3s and WMA. Four standard HDMI 1.3 ports allow for connections with additional devices. So the HT-X810 actually doesn’t completely get away without any cables.

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NaviGadget: At CeBIT in Germany Asus announced a GPS enabled PDAphone called M536 which has full qwerty keyboard in the front just like a Blackberry.Asus M536 is the successor to Asus M530W but adds new features such as the touch screen, a biometric finger print reader and a GPS receiver. Kind of different with M536 is the square screen resolution at 320×320 instead of the usual 320×240 pixels.

Main features:

• A-GPS compatible SiRF III GPS receiver
• 2.4″ TFT LCD
• TI Omap 2430 processor
• Triband GSM, GPRS, EDGE, dual band 3G and HSDPA with 3.6 Mbps
• 256 MB of ROM
• 128 MB of RAM
• 802.11b/g Wi-Fi
• Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR
• 3.2MP digital camera
• VGA camera (0.3MP) in front for video conference
• Biometric reader
• HC MicroSD port
• Lithium-Ion of 1200 mAh Li-Ion battery
• Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional

Asus M536 will be marketed in June or July 2008 with an approximate price of 550 €.

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TrustedReviews: iPods and games consoles have already attempted to improve our fitness, now mobile phones are giving it a go…

Following Apple and Nike come Samsung and Adidas who have jointly announced the ‘miCoach’ (F-110).

A GPRS/EDGE slider with 2MP camera and 2in LCD, the miCoach is a decidedly mid-range handset at best, but what it does bring to the table is a pedometer and heart rates monitor which can be hooked up to keep you informed how near/far away you are from an exercise-induced heart attack. The phone then has the pluck to offer you training tips based on this data (increase/decrease intensity, distance covered, time spent, etc) with ‘motivational’ phrases such as “Speed up to power zone”.

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NaviGadget: We already talked about a company which designed a GPS module for the iPhone called LocoGPS. The same people have now designed a wireless module to do the same job and is expected to hit the market as soon as Summer 2008. Also called LocoGPS.Since the bluetooth on iPhone is reserved for only wireless headset they actually used WiFi to transmit data between the GPS receiver and iPhone. To make this possible the GPS receiver integrates a processor, Wi-Fi antenna, and even a microSD card slot to store the maps. The navigation software itself will also be accesssed via the WiFi GPS receiver using a web interface. The navigation software used and customized for LocoGPS is iGO 8.

This WiFi powered LocoGPS should be available as soon as June and should cost about 120 € with navigation software included

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Absolute Gadget: Navman has updated its S30 and S50 sat-nav models to include 3D Landmarks of more than 1,000 buildings in cities across Europe. The devices will also feature a new content and services package called Navman Connect.Navman claims its Connect service includes Europe’s first Local Search function for locating specific shops and local amenities when on the move.

The S50 3D links to an online local directory search via a Bluetooth connection to a mobile phone is required and network charges may vary. 

Users can also use Local Search to identify shops, amenities or facilities on the Navman Connect desktop software before setting off on their journey and download them to the device.

Beneath the surface the S30 3D and S50 3D have also benefited from the inclusion of SiRF’s InstantFix II technology, reducing the time taken to fix on GPS satellite signals to as little as five seconds, even in built up areas.

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HiddenWires: InFocus, the industry pioneer in digital projection technology, has introduced the IN83 Full HD 1080p projector to the UK – the latest addition to the ‘Play Big’ line-up. Celebrating InFocus’ reputation for excellence and value in the projector market, the new IN83 combines state-of-the-art technology with sleek, low-profile design and ease-of-use to deliver a stunning HD video experience at class-beating prices. From any Full HD source, the IN83 will ensure that film and gaming enthusiasts see every detail of 1080p entertainment magnified in perfect clarity.

Armed with the latest DLP DarkChip4 technology with BrilliantColor from Texas Instruments, the InFocus Play Big IN83 full HD 1080p projector offers a native 5000:1 contrast ratio (boosted to a maximum of 15000:1 using the iris) that ensures deep, rich blacks and bright, pure whites while preserving all of the subtle shades in between. With a video optimised brightness of 1,600 Max ANSI lumens, the IN83 is bright enough to deliver film-standard, D65K colour accuracy in nearly any home theatre on screens up to 4.3m wide, even with ambient light during a daytime movie or sporting event.

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Reuters: German shoppers seeking bargain Blu-ray video players now the format has won out over HD-DVD should not expect significant price cuts before the Christmas shopping season at the end of the year.“We don’t see big price drops in the next four to five months. Around Christmas, we can expect more dramatic price decreases,” Michael Langbehn, spokesman for the German Blu-ray group and Panasonic Germany said on Tuesday.

Panasonic will start selling its DMP-BD30 Blu-ray player in Germany at the end of this month for 499 euros, half the price of its first Blu-ray player selling in this market.

But Langbehn said it would take two to five years for a mass market to develop, leading to further big price cuts.

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NaviGadget: Magellan RoadMate 1425 is pretty much identical to 1415 but also adds a fully integrated live traffic feature and lifetime subscription to the service.Here are the full set of features for the 1400 series:

• New 4.3-inch WQVGA full-colour, anti-glare touch-screen display
• Acclaimed, easy-to-use, intuitive user interface
• Fast and precise Centrality Atlas III GPS chipset delivering superior GPS performance and navigation
• 2-D and 3-D map views with auto day/night mode switching
• Trip computer and trip planner
• QuickSpell, which intelligently searches and checks spelling when entering addresses
• SmartDetour to route drivers around heavy or stationary traffic
• Postcode search: 7-digit postcode searches in the United Kingdom and 6-digit postcode searches in the Netherlands
• Pre-loaded speed-trap database providing known camera locations for each region
• SD card slot for maps
• USB port for PC connection and in-vehicle power

Magellan RoadMate 1425 will be available in Europe and retail for 279 €.

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Electronista: Meizu has been removed from the show floor at the CeBIT technology expo over copyright issues for its MiniOne smartphone, according to a new report by Germany’s Heise. Local police on Wednesday morning declared the booth closed and insisted on the removal of virtually every item on display, including marketing pamphlets as well as demonstration models. Meizu has not commented on the action, which brings a premature end to its presence at the Hanover show.Officials additionally confirmed that other companies are being pulled from the show today as part of a wider initiative, though full details are not likely to be revealed until a press conference on Thursday.

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Audio Junkies: Clarion has released a new high end hard disk based GPS module called the NAX973HD. Measuring just 1.1″ high, the NAX973HD contains a 30GB hard drive pre-loaded with map data for 30 countries. A 400Mhz processor provides instant route calculation, while a built-in RDS-TMC tuner provides “up to the minute” traffic information and automatic re-routing around accidents or congested areas.

The NAX973HD also features a 12-channel GPS receiver, an on-board gyroscope, voice recognition, text to speech in 6 European languages, Bluetooth connectivity and a USB port for backing up addresses and customized POIs.

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BusinessWire: The closure of two of Germany’s HDTV channels in recent weeks has cast a shadow over European hopes for a rapid transition to High Definition Television, according to analysis published by the Strategy Analytics Broadband Network Strategies service. This report, “HDTV Channels Shut Down: A Sign Of Things To Come?” concludes that Europe’s television providers should concentrate their resources initially on building pay television rather than advertising-based business models in order to reach the critical mass of HD content and receivers necessary to make HDTV a self-sustaining business.ProSiebenSat1, one of Germany’s leading commercial television broadcasters, closed its two HDTV channels on February 15th after concluding that audience figures were insufficient to justify their continued transmission. The decision leaves Germany with only a handful of HD channels, most of them only available to pay TV subscribers.

“It was always highly ambitious to expect advertising revenues alone to support HD channels in the early years,” comments David Mercer, Principal Analyst. “Significant audiences cannot be built until the market has been seeded with millions of HD receivers–and this was always going to take a number of years.”

The report finds that only 5 percent of Europeans who currently own an HD-Ready TV are, in fact, watching HDTV channels. In spite of these early difficulties, the report concludes that the number of European HDTV subscribers will grow steadily towards 3.5 million by the end of 2008. By 2012, Strategy Analytics predicts that 20 percent of all European households will be watching HD channels.

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Electronista: Electronics multinational Pioneer may be nearing an end to its plasma TV business, according to reports. The Japanese business paper Nikkei reports that the company may completely cease production of plasma panels as soon as this year, and instead turn to ones produced by Matsushita Electric Industrial, the world’s largest plasma supplier. Pioneer representative Ema Suzuki, meanwhile, tells the Associated Press that the company is reviewing the nature of its plasma business, given faltering sales.

Nikkei notes that while Pioneer initially hoped to ship 720,000 plasma TVs for the latest fiscal year, that number was scaled back to just 480,000. The plasma division may post a loss of 10 billion yen, equivalent to €63 million. The company is said to be shutting down one of its Japanese plasma production facilities entirely, and dedicating the other two in the country to assembling TVs.

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