What's most important in a digital picture frame

If you've been considering buying a digital picture frame, you may be seeing some with extras, such as a high-definition output for a wide-screen TV, or even entire gadgets built in.

The latest wrinkle is the cell-phone frame: T-Mobile's Cameo, a 7-inch picture frame made by Parrot, can be set up with a dedicated in-frame phone number to which your friends and family send images via picture messaging or email. Photos then appear on the frame. (Click on image at right for a closer look.)

It's an interesting idea, but not a cheap one. Besides the frame's $99 price tag, there's a $10 monthly charge for phone service, which T-Mobile says includes unlimited messaging to the frame. The Cameo has 64MB of on-board memory and an expandable slot for a micro-SD memory card.

Resist the temptation to buy such bells and whistles. Instead, focus on image quality, how reflective the surface is, how many connections the frame has, and how easy it is to use—the qualities we judge in our digital picture frame Ratings (available to subscribers).

For example, our top recommended digital picture frame (available to subscribers) was impressive, not because of some gizmo the manufacturer grafted on, but because it had sharp image quality, a remote control, 128MB of on-board memory, and extra interchangeable frames.

For help on how to choose a digital picture frame, see our free digital picture frame buying guide and watch our video guide to digital frames by clicking on the player at right.

—Terry Sullivan

Buffalo Tech's Shinobi: An extremely thin external hard drive

Portable external hard drives are my laptop's best friends. Although my personal notebook has a (once-more-than-adequate) 160-GB drive, often times I've found myself running out of digital storage space—especially for the huge high-definition video files I need to transfer from my HD camcorder to my computer for editing.

I already have several "pocket-sized" external hard drives to help manage critical back-ups as well as off-load some of the larger, completely-edited video files from my notebook. And it's a hassle to remember to tote those drives on long, weekend video shoots. But at a recent press event, I saw perhaps one of the smallest USB-powered drives that would be simple to carry—and doesn't skimp on digital storage space.

Buffalo Tech's "Shinobi" (a Japanese term closely tied to "ninjas" and "one skilled in the art of stealth," according to Wikipedia) is a scant 5-mm (0.2-inches) thick and weighs a mere two ounces.

The official press release pictures (Click on them for closer looks.) don't convey how truly "stealthy" the Shinobi is—especially when compared to more conventional USB external drives. But it's about the size and heft of a small stack of business cards, which is a form factor usually associated with external memory devices that use flash memory.

The Shinobi uses a 1.8-inch disk drive, similar to the hard drive found in the super-slim MacBook Air, said a Buffalo spokesperson at the press event. And drive makers (such as Toshiba) are ramping up capacities of both tiny 1.8-inch hard drives as well as solid-state flash memory devices to 250-GB or more, rivaling the storage space found in traditional PCs.

The Google Phone, at last

T-Mobile unveiled yesterday the world's first cell phone to run on Google's Android operating system, a modified version of the Linux operating system used on a small, but growing number of computers, set-top boxes, and other devices. Android's claim to fame is that its "open" architecture will encourage a broad community of software developers to create applications that run on the phone. We shall see.

The phone itself, called the T-Mobile G1 and made by HTC, will be available on October 22 at $179, including a 2-year contract. It's a touch-screen model that features a bright, 3.17-in display, a slide-out full QWERTY keyboard, built-in Wi-Fi, and a 3.2-megapixel camera. It's also one of the few phones that supports T-Mobile's fledgling 3G data network. Emphasizing Web connectivity, the phone comes preloaded with a full HTML version of the Safari Web browser and icons for launching—not surprisingly—Google Maps, YouTube, and easy access to Google Mail as well as other POP3 and IMAP e-mail services. You can easily flag, delete or move groups of messages and keep track of group conversations through threaded text messaging.

The phone (click on the image for a closer look) is a tad on the bulky side, measuring 4.60 in. x 2.16 in.  x 0.62 in.; it weighs a hefty 5.6 ounces. The claimed talk time is an unimpressive 5 hours. But the G1 does have an intriguing array of features, including a GPS-assisted internal compass that aligns Google Maps with the surrounding terrain, regardless of the phone's position. The G1 supports T-Mobile Hotspot @Home service that automatically switches the phone from the cell network to "free" VoIP service whenever it's in Wi-Fi range at home or when you're out.

Tip of the day: Protecting your gadgets

Summer vacations can be tough on cell phones, digital cameras, iPods, GPS, and other mobile electronics. How do you keep your portables safe from sand, surf, and other summertime hazards when you head to the beach or pool or hit the showers after a swim?

Some of us here at Consumer Reports have stumbled on a really inexpensive solution: the reseal-able plastic bag, more commonly used to keep food fresh.

Sure, stashing your stuff in a clear sandwich bag may not seem chic—especially given the myriad choices in protective cases for portable electronics. But it is a smart (and extremely simple) way to keep things safe. After all, if that bag can keep your ham on rye dry, it'll also keep your mobile phone moisture-free, too!

What's more, you don't even have to take your gadget out of its clear cocoon to use it in most cases. In one informal trial, a staffer had no trouble answering and talking on her bagged phone. That's a neat trick—literally—if you have to take a call while applying suntan lotion or eating ice cream. Another colleague was able to listen to tunes on his zipped-up MP3 player via Bluetooth headphones.

Scoff, if you want. But some protection is better than none. Right after we talked about this idea in our offices, a friend inadvertently went into a beach shower with her phone in her pocket. When last seen, she was still trying to bring it back to life.

Of course, a plastic bag provides no crash protection if you drop your gear onto a hard surface. But it is a low-cost, easy-to-find, and easy-to-fit-in-your-pocket-or-purse solution for common summer hazards—especially for kids with sticky hands.

For other helpful summertime tips, see our free "Guide to summer health & safety" on ConsumerReports.org.

The Kindle, the Reader, and e-ink: The buzz continues

Electronic-book (or e-book) readers, including the Amazon Kindle and Sony Reader, use an electronic "ink" (or e-Ink) display to reproduce text. (The image at right shows a sample of the e-Ink technology. You can click on it for a closer look.) You move through a book by pressing a button to pull the next page from the device's electronic memory. Current versions are imperfect, but in recent weeks a leading print magazine; you, our readers; and several design and media experts have convinced me to follow this fascinating technology more closely.

The print magazine is Esquire, which announced that its September issue will appear on newsstands with a battery-powered e-ink cover. Meanwhile, our test observations on the Kindle continue to draw readers and comments some eight months after we posted them. Our tests and your comments reflect a mixed verdict, highlighting many disadvantages as well as some pluses. Our take on the second-generation Sony Reader was similarly ambivalent.

But several lectures I've attended in the past week or so argue that flaws are inevitable when products break significant new ground—as these devices clearly do, being more legible and more portable than past e-books. Last week, while attending Stanford University's Stanford Professional Publishing Course, I heard professor Paul Saffo urge magazine editors to embrace the Kindle and its ilk, in spite of their flaws. Another instructor, renowned product designer Bill Moggridge, told me the Kindle has streamlined his research process by allowing him to electronically highlight passages in books and download those excerpts to his computer, saving him hours of transcription time.

Here at Consumer Reports, we recently enjoyed a lecture from Bo Sacks, an expert on so-called Electronically Coordinated Information Distribution, who predicts that e-books will command a growing share of the print market. That will happen, he says, as the devices improve and as the downsides of printed paper continue—notably its escalating cost and its long-term environmental issues.

—Paul Reynolds

How I accidentally erased my digital photos, then recovered them

It took me more than a year to shoot 488 photos and less than a second to lose them—purely by accident, when I unwittingly reformatted the memory card in my point-and-shoot camera.

These were photos I wanted to keep, capturing memories of my first trip to Yosemite, family and friends, even the before-and-after pictures of my kitchen renovation. But I foolishly ignored two commonsense pieces of advice every digital camera user should follow:

• Don't use your memory card for permanent storage. It's arguably the least robust, most vulnerable storage device you can use for archiving your pictures. Download images you want to save to your computer, an external hard drive, or a CD.
• Even if you don't peruse your camera's user manual cover to cover, at least crack it open to get some idea of how to use your camera’s controls and menus.

I shamefacedly admit that I did neither. While I printed out a bunch of pix, e-mailed others, and put a fair number up on a photo-sharing Website, close to half the shots existed only on the CompactFlash card that never left my camera.

"Hancock" coming to Sony Bravia TVs before Blu-ray, DVD, or cable

In what could be a glimpse of the future, Sony announced last week that it would offer its hoped-for summer blockbuster, Hancock, as an Internet download to Web-enabled Sony Bravia TVs before distributing it on cable, satellite, DVD, or Blu-ray discs.

The company hasn't revealed some important details, such as whether the download will be high-definition or even DVD-quality. Nor has it disclosed whether Hancock will be a rental with a limited viewing time, like a pay-per-view movie, or a purchase that viewers can record and keep.

One factor that greatly limits the impact of this announcement, and the potential audience, is the fact that Sony TVs don't offer built-in Web access, but require consumers to shell out an additional $300 for the Sony Bravia Internet Video Link add-on. Most of the other major TV brands with Web-enabled TVs—including Panasonic, Samsung, Sharp, and LG Electronics—don’t require any additional gear to download Web content. However, while TVs from these rivals can access news, sports, and entertainment content from a variety of providers, none yet have access to full-length feature-film downloads.

Sony Electronics has the unusual luxury of having a major Hollywood studio, Sony Pictures, as a sister company, giving it access to blockbuster movies. But it's still too early to see whether any other movie studios will support such a service, or even if Sony Pictures is willing to upset its traditional video-distribution partners—and the hefty revenue streams they provide—on an ongoing basis, especially since delivering more HD video-on-demand content is a key cable and satellite strategy.

GPS and the new iPhone 3G

Portable GPS navigation devices aren't just for car drivers and hikers anymore. An increasing number of cell phones are adding turn-by-turn navigation services and location-related capabilities. (See: "Cell phones that tell you where to go.") The latest of these is the recently announced iPhone 3G (Click on image), due out on July 11.

Our colleagues over at the Cars Blog can't wait to get their hands on a new iPhone—just like us here on the Electronics Blog. Naturally, they'll want one to test out how its GPS-based navigation feature will work compared to a dedicated GPS unit. And in preparation for the day we get a few into our labs (and test cars), they've already gone ahead and mapped out (sorry) some of the iPhone's navigation potentials. (See: "Apple puts new iPhone 3G on the GPS navigation map.")

The new iPhone shows promise as a full-featured smart phone with improved navigation abilities over the current iPhone. But:

Two digital photo frames that try to do more

The creep of convergence—that is, of devices that take on extra tasks once done by separate, standalone units—has now reached the digital photo frame, with mixed results. Yesterday, we blogged about the Sony DPF-V700, $189, a decent-performing 7-inch frame that's also a fine slide-show player for your HDTV. Today's post covers two more attempts to integrate a digital photo frame with another device: the SmartParts SP8PRT, $279, an 8-inch frame with a built-in printer, and the GE 27956FE1, $130, a 7-inch frame with a built-in cordless phone.

Both are the first of their kind that we've seen and tested in our labs. And an electronic picture frame that does more than just show off digital photos might sound cool—and a seemingly perfect gift for Father's Day or recent graduate.

Unfortunately, neither the SmartParts or the GE digital picture frame fulfills the promise of convergence.

The Sony DPF-V700 digital photo frame: A great slide-show player, too

If you've ever fed images from your digital camera to your HDTV, you've probably been disappointed at how they looked on the big screen. That's because most cameras can't output images in high-definition. Enter the Sony DPF-V700, $189. (Click on the image, right, for a closer look.) In our latest tests of digital photo frames, this decent-performing 7-inch frame proved adept at turning an HDTV into a megasized photo frame of superb quality.

On its own screen, the frame produced very good image quality overall, although it scored slightly lower in one image attribute, contrast, than in the others, color rendition and clarity. Its greatest distinction (besides being one of the first frames from Sony, whose HDTVs typically score very well in our Ratings of plasma TVs and Ratings of LCD TVs) is that it's one of the few frames with an HDMI output for connecting directly to an HDTV.

When connected to an HDTV via HDMI cable, the DPF-V700 successfully transmitted 1080i resolution images that looked as good on the big screen as on the device's own smaller display. That's an unusual achievement since most frames output only at low, VGA resolution, which invariably yields dreadful images on an HDTV.

As a slide-show player, the DPF-V700 has minor drawbacks. Most digital photos have either a 4:3 or 3:2 aspect ratio, squarer than the 16:9 aspect ratio used by HDTVs. When you view photos on a TV set, then, you generally must use the menu system on the frame to either zoom in and crop off images' edges or live with a letterbox effect-black bars framing the edges of your photo. Also, high-res viewing requires an HDMI cable, an extra that costs about $20.

The bottom line: This Sony is well-priced and performs decently as a photo frame, though it falls a little short of the very best models in our Ratings of digital picture frames (available to subscribers). But it's worth serious consideration if you're a slide-show aficionado who wants good quality images, but can't display them directly from a computer, which is the only other way to enjoy them in their original resolution.

—Terry Sullivan

DTV converters: Results of our tests of 14 models

Digital converter boxes that allow older analog TVs to receive digital signals—soon to be the only type of over-the-air TV signal, after analog broadcasts are discontinued next February—have been slow to arrive. But there are now at least 25 models available, at prices ranging from just under $50 to about $80, and we've tested 14 of them. We'll be posting results of these tests, with a comparison of those models, within the next week or so, along with more detailed buying advice.

[June 18, 2008 UPDATE: Our complete Guide to DTV converter boxes, including our Ratings of 14 tested models, is now available on ConsumerReports.org. —Ed.]

[June 10, 2009 UPDATE: We've hit a bit of a snag in posting the results of our DTV converter box tests on ConsumerReports.org. But we've posted more details about our findings in this recent blog post: DTV converters: Best performers from our tests. We'll continue to work on posting the fuller testing details—as well as new results from the latest converter boxes we're able to buy and get into our labs—as soon as possible on ConsumerReports.org. We regret this unfortunate delay. —Ed.]

Judging by our tests, there isn't much variation in performance. Every one of these boxes converted broadcast digital signals pulled in by our rooftop antenna (a standard residential model) into analog signals an older TV can accept. When supplied with a strong signal, all produced acceptable picture quality, though some were slightly better or worse than others. In addition, their tuners performed comparably in tests of their ability to pull in digital signals. That suggests you'd get the same number of channels with just about any model.

That doesn't mean you can expect to get the same number of channels as us, a friend in a different state, or even a neighbor across town. What you'll see depends on where you live, the local terrain, the number of stations broadcasting in your area, signal strength, and the antenna you use. It would be very difficult for any set of lab tests to accurately predict what you'll experience at home, given all these variables. Comments from some of our blog readers indicate that they have had problems with reception.

(Check out our special February 2009 digital-to-analog TV switchover section and watch our free five-minute video on ConsumerReports.org for more information about your DTV options. You can also click on the player embedded above to watch the video.)

The Wii Fit: First impressions from our lab

After an intensive few days of bending, jumping, and precarious balancing by Consumer Reports staff, under the watchful eye of expert testers from our Health franchise, we have our first test reports on Nintendo's Wii Fit, the wireless "balance board" that hit the market in North America earlier this week.

You can read on the Consumer Reports Health Blog what our testing experts have to say about the Fit.

Essentially a platform that senses and responds to body movement, the Wii Fit is an accessory to Nintendo's Wii game console, which, since its launch in 2006 has replaced the usual passive, "couch-potato" video-game experience with a more active, "get-up-and-play" activity.

The Fit offers interactive exercises in four areas: yoga, strength training, balance, and aerobics, along with fun "mini-games," such as ski jumping and hoola-hoops. The Fit also tests your center of gravity and registers your Body Mass Index (BMI), storing personal information on the Wii console so you can track your progress.

Says Nintendo's website:

Wii Fit combines fun and fitness in one product. It can change how you exercise, how you balance, and even how you move.

If you're convinced that you've got to have a Fit, a word of caution. Demand for the device is high and many retailers are temporarily out of stock. So before you lace up your sneakers to run out to your local game store, be sure to call ahead. Or, you can take the traditional gamer's approach: Sign up with retailers online to be e-mailed when the Wii Fit becomes available.

—Nick Mandle

May 28, 2008 UPDATE: Several readers have pointed out that the Wii Fit reviewers in our video were wearing shoes during tests of the Fit's balance board while Nintendo's instruction says that owners should be barefoot in order to prevent the possibility of slippage and injury. Because of the discrepancy, we have removed our video. —Ed.

Get your exercise shopping for Wii Fit

Nintendo wants you up off your sofa and working it with the new Wii Fit ($89). But it could be awhile before your exercise program begins. As with the Wii console, it's looking like the Fit (Click on images for closer looks.) will be a tough purchase.

A check of several online retail outlets, including Game Stop, Wal-Mart, and Amazon, led us to messages like "not for sale," "temporarily out of stock," and "preorders sold out." If you started shopping extra early, you may have been lucky enough to have bought a coupon for $5 to $10 that guaranteed you a Fit. Those seem to be sold out now, although double-checking with your local retailer may not be a bad idea. Once the product is launched on May 19, check frequently both online and in stores. If Wii sales are any indication, retailers will get shipments and quickly sell out, so you'll need to hit the right store at the right time.

At the very least, sign up with Best Buy, Circuit City, or another store for e-mail notification of availability.

You'll double your challenge if you're pumped for the Fit but don't yet own a Wii console. It's still hit or miss when you walk into most retail stores, and sites like Best Buy don't sell it at all online. You'll have better luck if you don't mind shelling out about an extra $100 for a bundle that includes several games. Retail price for the Wii console alone is $250. Think about grabbing one now if you can, before demand for the Fit diminishes supplies even more.

Meanwhile, in the U.K., where the Fit has already been on sale since April, it looks like demand remains high. We were able to find a few units of the Fit at Amazon's U.K. site and several online stores, while others were sold out. But don't exercise notions of buying from one of these U.K. outlets. They probably won't ship to the U.S., and besides, we saw them selling for almost double the U.S. price at about 95 pounds, or $170.

We'll be testing the Wii Fit for its health benefits in the coming weeks, so keep an eye on Consumer Reports.org and on Consumer Reports Health for our findings. For an early look, check out this Wall Street Journal review.

—Donna Tapellini

Digital picture frames: Models for Mother’s Day

Mother's Day is just around the corner, and if you're struggling to come up with the perfect gift idea, here's a suggestion: A digital picture frame. With prices for these frames dropping and more big-name players like HP and Samsung entering the market, now's a good time to pick one up for your Mom.

We recently tested 10 frames that measured 7 or 8 inches diagonally. The five best had very good picture quality. Among that group, our top picks include two newer models from major names—the HP df800, $140, a CR Best Buy, $170, and the Samsung SPF-83V, $190—along with the Smartparts SyncPix SPX8, $180.

[UPDATE: May 9, 2008: As one of our readers noticed, the price of the HP df800 (seen above) has changed to $170. Also, we've posted on ConsumerReports.org the complete, updated report on digital picture frames. Our latest Ratings (available to subscribers) contains information on 10 new models, including the HP df800. It's no longer a "CR Best Buy" due to the price change, but it remains one of our three recommended digital picture frames. (Also available to subscribers only.) —Ed.]

All have internal memory, so you can store photos in the frame and return the memory card to your digital camera, as well as a USB port for transferring pictures directly from your computer. Each works with a wide range of memory-card types. The HP and Smartparts include a remote control. With its WiFi feature, the Samsung allows you to view pictures wirelessly from a networked computer. The Smartparts uses a motion sensor to automatically turn on and off.

To see your photos at their best, look for a frame that's eight inches in size and has a resolution of 800x600. Avoid widescreen frames as they may distort your images. Also watch out for frames with glass over the screen, which can create glare.

Online subscribers can check our full Ratings of digital picture frames and other CR-recommended models, both of which we'll be updating soon to reflect the new models.

—Donna Tapellini

Portable chargers powered by nature

Imagine being able to charge your cell phone, MP3 player, and other electronic gadgets when you're on the go. And I mean really on the go—when you're hiking, biking, or whenever you find yourself far from any wall socket.

Well, that's exactly what the makers of HYmini and Solio had in mind when they created their portable renewable energy chargers. Both products are about the size of your hand, light-weight (about 3 and 6 ounces) and produce electricity from the wind and sun. The juice can be used to directly power a mobile gadget or stored within the chargers' own internal batteries for later—to charge a GPS unit during dinner at night by the camp fire, for example. (How much energy you get and can actually use varies greatly with environmental conditions and the specifications of each device—cell phone, GPS unit, etc.)

The chargers, which were recently on display at Greener Gadgets, a conference in New York City, haven't been tested by Consumer Reports. But they did capture our attention. Here's a quick look at these two innovative mobile power-supplies:

HYmini

It may look like a fan to keep you cool, but in reality the $50 HYmini is a cool way to get power. (Click on image above for a closer look.) Miniwiz, HYmini's maker, says the first generation of these hand-held turbines are designed to capture energy from winds of up to to 40-miles per hour—gusts similar to what you would get from jogging or bike riding. (The company offers armbands and bicycle mounts just for those kinds of activities.) But even when there is no breeze, HYmini can still generate power by connecting an optional $25 solar panel. (Up to four can be used to charge the HYmini's internal battery.)

PMA 2008 Preview: What's incoming in cameras and more

Each year, camera enthusiasts and pros wait to see what the major camera manufacturers will introduce at the annual Photo Marketing Association trade show (PMA), which will take place this year in Las Vegas from Jan. 31 through Feb. 2. And while some companies opted to unveil some products at CES, just three weeks ago, most have chosen to stick with PMA08 to introduce not only cameras, but also lenses, printers, software, and photo accessories.

Starting Wednesday, I'll be at the show, posting the latest news about cameras and related products and services to this blog.

Although I expect a few surprises at the show, some developments and trends are already evident. Here's what I expect to see, by camera type or technology:

Digital picture frames infected with computer virus

Best Buy tells us that one of its Insignia brand digital picture frames has been contaminated by a virus. The only model involved is a 10.4-inch frame bearing the number NS-DPF10A. If you're downloading photos by connecting this frame directly to your computer, you may be putting your system at risk. Owners should contact the company by calling 877-467-4289. Best Buy will help you determine whether your frame is affected and will let you know how to proceed if it is. The model, which was sold over the holiday season, has been discontinued and is no longer available for purchase from Best Buy.

The virus is not a new strain, so if your system is protected by antivirus software, it should catch and isolate the infection. In addition, if you're loading photos using a memory card, the virus can't be passed along that way, according to a Best Buy spokesperson.

So far, the company has received about two dozen calls concerning this issue. Best Buy is still investigating the cause of the infection. If you have another model of Insignia frame, and notice that your antivirus software is picking up viruses when you connect the frame to your computer, call Best Buy and let them know. Continue checking the Insignia home page at http://www.insignia-products.com/default.aspx for further developments.

And for additional computer safety tips, including Consumer Reports' Ratings of the best computer security software and online protection tools, check out our online cyber-security center.

—Donna Tapellini

Macworld 2008: Add to your iPhone; handsfree talk

Besides printers, scanners, and networked storage solutions, which you always expect to find at Macworld, the focus this year seemed to have shifted towards new 3rd-party peripherals revolving around iPhone. Dozens of new headset, headphones, and docking options have recently become available to support Apple's new flagship product.

Macally, a long time provider of Mac peripherals, offered Tune Pro and FlexTune. Designed for the iPod, TunePro is an audio minisystem with a flat-panel appearance and includes an alarm clock—perfect for the nightstand; FlexTune is a small but very versatile charger and speaker set for both iPod and iPhone. What was interesting about the latter was the way the speakers could slide laterally so the iPhone could be rotated to landscape mode for video viewing, to minimize the device's footprint on an office desk.

Skullcandy offers creative designs that appeal most to a younger crowd. They recently introduced the iPhone FMJ headset. They also offer full-featured wireless headphones. Most of their prices are under $100, except for the high-end phones, which retail for $169.95.

Ultimate Ears offered four models of high-quality headsets for iPods and iPhones: the Custom, the Triple.fi, the Super.fi, and the Metro.fi for the style conscious.

I briefly stopped by Xtreme Mac as well, and saw a wide variety of good-sounding, aesthetically-pleasing docking stations, speakers, and clock radios, most notably the Luna X2 and the Tango X2. They also offered nearly a dozen varieties of cases, pouches and protective covers for iPods and iPhones.

One of the more interesting presentations I attended was from Altec Lansing, who said their new T612 iPhone dock and speaker system (Click on the image at left for a closer look.) is the first to be "Apple certified", meaning Apple agrees to sell them in Apple stores. Apparently such certification is difficult to attain, as Apple has very tight engineering standards regarding specific emissions and GSM shielding. Capable of both desk and wall mount, the sound is very rich and clean. It is also backward compatible with dockable iPods.

MacBook Air: Some closer looks

A Consumer Reports colleague (Joyce Ward) and I met privately with Apple reps Tuesday afternoon for a personalized demonstration of the MacBook Air and other products. It was fun to take a closer look at these new offerings, even if just for a short time.

They say the MacBook weighs three pounds, but it honestly didn't feel even that heavy when I held it in my hand—it seemed lighter somehow. The screen was bright, the keyboard a joy to touch, and the trackpad "touch" software had specific settings for one-, two-, and three-finger operation. One finger can click, drag, or double-click. Two fingers flip, rotate, magnify, or minimize images or web pages by using a "pinching" motion. Three fingers let you "slide" from page to page, image to image. This software utility is currently fully compatible only with the Leopard Finder, Safari Web browser (seen on a Windows XP machine at left), and most of Apple's "iApps." Expect third-party support in the future.

Of course, one of the first things that came to mind when seeing the MacBook Air was, "How's this battery deal gonna work?" In case you hadn't heard, the battery in the MacBook Air is not user-replaceable. As a long-time traveling laptop user, that worries me. I always found having the occasional spare battery to be a good thing, especially on those extra-long excursions.

Apple insists its batteries are absolute state of the art, hold a charge very well, and have a very long life. (The 17-inch MacBook Pro's battery lasted 5.25 hours in our latest tests.) Nevertheless, Apple will try to ease your worries with a Battery Replacement Program: Bring your MacBook Air to the nearest Apple store, and the techs will replace the battery (while disposing of the old one in an environmentally responsible manner). Total cost: $129, the same as a new battery you would replace yourself in other models. In addition, more and more airlines today offer laptop power ports on their planes, and both Apple and third parties sell adapters. So as time goes on, the need for having all that extra battery power handy is becoming less necessary. (It was unclear whether this Apple store program was a "while you wait" service, or a "drop it off and pick it back up tomorrow" sort of thing. Time will tell.)

Apple's goal with the MacBook Air was to design a sleek laptop without most of the tradeoffs associated with ultra-portables. The full 13.3-inch backlit LED screen with 1280 x 800 widescreen resolution bears this out, as does the standard MacBook keyboard and an oversize trackpad that supports the one-, two-, and three-finger multi-touch technology used on the iPod Touch and iPhone. Nevertheless, for power users, there are some tradeoffs: There's only one USB port, no Firewire, no DVD, and the custom battery.

Which led to my next question for the Apple folks:  What if you're on the road, your Time Capsule (seen at right) is at home, and your system has a meltdown? Low odds, mind you, but there it is, coming from a geek who can't be too paranoid. They recommended two solutions. The first, of course, is to carry that $99 external DVD drive and your install disk with you. Another possibility is to install, from that disk, a copy of the Remote Disk application on someone else's Mac (or PC!) with a wireless card. Then you can piggy-back on their CD drive and run the installer to restore your hard disk. Clever, but all you're doing is imposing on a friend's good will—sooner or later you'll have to connect to some physical media to restore your system.

Next up in our interview session was the "Time Capsule" wireless backup solution. Security was my main worry with this product, so I asked our Apple reps: Should I be concerned with potential man-in-the-middle attacks when wirelessly backing up your hard drive? Not necessarily. Time Capsule is essentially a full Airport Extreme base station (a fancy term for "wireless router") combined with a server-class hard drive. It supports all the wireless security protocols found in any other wireless router, including WPA and WPA2. That was the answer I was looking for, but it was still unclear how simple that would be to set up for the uninitiated. It's not normally much fun for those who do it for a living. All that wireless security is well and good, but sometimes to an old school guy like myself, there's nothing more secure than a good honest wire, and fortunately for me, Time Capsule has three gigabit-Ethernet ports included. (See image at left.) But of course, that does me no good with the MacBook Air, which has not a single Ethernet port built-in.

—Thomas A. Olson

Free Internet Radio in Your Pocket

The Internet offers a growing range of free music services, from Napster, which allows you to stream albums at no cost, tailored to your taste, to sites like Pandora, Slacker, Finetune, AOL Radio, and others that let you create your channels that select music based on your preferences, and even adjust their programming on the fly as you tell the service what you like and don't like among the selections they've delivered.

Until now, listening to streamed music away from your computer has often meant paying a subscription, typically $15 a month, to online services like Napster and Rhapsody or the satellite radio services, XM and Sirius. You can then stuff a compatible portable player—sometimes a regular MP3 player but often a proprietary player you need to buy—with the service's music.

But Slacker is now one of the first online music services to offer portability without a subscription. You do need to buy a proprietary player, one of three new Slacker portable players launching later this month for $200 to $300. But you can then store free music from the site's 2-million-song library, either capturing it from their 100 channels or from the customized channels you've created at Slacker.com.

Macworld 2008: Preview

Apple goes into Macworld Expo, the annual party, love fest, and religious revival for the Cult of Mac, which opened today in San Francisco, following a year that's had a few fizzles (Apple TV, the first release of OS X Leopard, 10.5), one big hit (the iPhone) and under-the-radar sales growth of 40% for Mac desktops and laptops. The one adjective that no longer describes Apple is "beleaguered."

While analysts don’t see the same kind of explosive growth for Apple this year, they still hope a few compelling new products and services will keep the company on a growth track.

I do believe Apple will deliver. My first clue was this week's pre-event announcement of a new MacPro tower and XServe, powered by 8-core Intel Xeon processors, offering 2.3 times the speed and raw horsepower as the dual, quad-core 3.0 Ghz machines being sold only a month ago. If they couldn't wait one week to announce this, it often indicates they have so many other things to show us, there simply wasn't room in the Keynote program to hold it all.

Below is a distillation of predictions, hopes, and wishes from the amassed Mac pundits and bloggers for Keynote 2008:

Movie rentals in iTunes—Fox and Disney are reported as already signed on and almost everybody wants the "One More Thing" to be—at long last—the entire Beatles collection, made available at the iTunes Music Store (iTMS). (If that happens, no one will be crying over the loss of Universal.)

Improvements to iPhone: A 16GB, 3G model, with no limits on cell service provider—we can certainly dream, can't we? Also rumored is an iPhone SDK (software development kit), which would mean that there would be a market for third-party software. We might even see a demo of 3rd-party apps—something developers were clamoring for most of last year.

Office 2008—slam-dunk #2, as Amazon is already taking pre-orders. I expect someone from Microsoft will make the official announcement during the Keynote. (I'll write more on Office later in the week, when I get to see it for real.)

Leopard 10.5.2—this is almost a slam-dunk, as the Developers Cut is already making the rounds. There are at least 75 fixes and feature additions in the works, and this would be a perfect time to announce their deployment.

New Cinema displays with touch-screen and built-in webcam—possibly 24-, 27- and 30-inch models, an upgrade that is long overdue.

Blu-ray drives in some Macs—a rumor that is growing some legs, now that Blu-Ray seems to be winning the format war, and there is going to be a growing need to handle HD content.

Ultraslim notebook/touch tablet—this is the biggest rumor to make the rounds, and highly likely: Apple fills out its laptop line with an ultra-thin notebook, running on flash memory instead of a hard drive, sporting a 12-13 inch touch screen, which could possibly fold over to become a tablet Mac.

Final Cut Studio update—not likely, but definitely overdue, considering the plethora of new digital camcorders that have hit the market

Apple TV "2.0"—look for a "reboot" of this product, with new features, more storage, and built-in compatibility with iTMS movie-rental.

If you are not attending this year, here is a link to sites offering live blogging of the Keynote (SFW). Stay tuned!

—Thomas A. Olson

Thomas Olson, the Publishing Systems Administrator for Consumer Reports' Editorial, Design, Production and Pre-Press groups, has been a Mac enthusiast since 1984.

 

CES 2008: Green gains, but only so far…

This year's Consumer Electronics Show proclaimed itself the world's first carbon-neutral trade event, proudly detailing how it required suppliers of everything from displays to disposable plates to choose environmentally benign options. This was also the greenest CES ever in terms of what participants were shown and invited to discuss.

But a greenfest it wasn't. At best, environmental issues rose from the near-invisibility of past shows to a scattered presence on the show floor, with the occasional green or brown sign carrying a corporate pledge or strategy. The conference program featured a day of modestly attended panel discussions on environmental issues, in the farthest reaches of the Las Vegas Convention Center's cavernous South Hall. A few other green-themed sessions dotted the calendar.

I attended as many of those events as I could and chatted afterwards with some of the panelists, who included manufacturers, mostly from big companies such as HP, Sony, and Panasonic, and regulators but not environmentalists (organizers say they tried without success to get environmental groups to participate).

Here are some of the promising developments I heard:

Energy Star designations will improve and expand. As we'll report more fully in a few weeks, when our annual TV feature-content posts to ConsumerReports.org, a flat-panel TV can easily consume $50 or more of power a year, possibly as much or more than your fridge. Many plasmas and LCD sets now bear Energy Star labels, but the current requirements reflect only power consumption in the standby mode—which is many times less than sets consume during the eight or so hours in which they're on in an average home. Energy Star's administrator, Katharine Kaplan, says a new TV standard will be finalized next month that reflects power when the set is on. She also said that standards would be similarly upgraded for printers and some other gear in 2008.

CES 2008: Puzzling Products

I've been at this longer than most product evaluators—and WAY longer than most bloggers—so when I see a new product, I look past the flashy demos and colorful brochures, and ask some fundamental questions: Does this product improve upon, or at least match, what has gone before? Does it fill a need—real or perceived—in its intended market? Does it have the potential to enhance one's quality of life? Is it good value for the money? Does it fulfill its claims? Is it environmentally friendly?

As we browse the tumult of hundreds of small companies' booths at CES, we have to quickly filter out those of interest, which I do by categorizing the featured products in about a second or two. If the process takes longer, it's often because my eye falls on something puzzling, usually because one of my fundamental questions pops out. Here are a few of the products and ideas I saw here at CES, that I struggle with trying to figure out "what were they thinking?" I don't mention brands, because in most cases, there is more than one manufacturer producing something similar. Go figure…

Mirrored TV screens. I first saw this in a superstore in London, where traditional home décor and electronics clash. Now it's in the U.S. Put your flat-screen TV behind a one-way (half-silvered) mirror, and it disappears when it's shut off. But when the TV is on, that mirror still reflects light-colored objects—walls, clothing, furniture—negating efforts by the TV maker to design a nice, high-contrast image with deep blacks. More, the silvered glass blocks much of the light, making the image dim. (Click on the i