Have Laptop Will Travel

Telecommuting is good for you

Originally posted on November 22, 2007 @ 11:47 pm

Most laptop owners use their gadgets to work remotely. They may do their spreadsheets, answer and send emails, or write in any place while they are in restaurants, cafes, or at home. In other words, telecommuting has become the primary use for mobility devices. And for good reason. Researchers have found out that a telecommuting setup can increase morale and job satisfaction and can also lessen stress.

This finding was made after analyzing 46 studies on telecommuting and the general consensus is that working remotely using laptops, cellphones and other devices can have more benefits than disadvantages.

According to Dr. Ravi Gajendran of Pennsylvania State University, the telecommuting setup gives employees more control on how they work and this affects work-life balance, stress and morale.

Telecommuting as a work arrangement is growing all over the world, much more in the United States. Just last year, 45 million Americans already telecommute, a 4 million increase from 2003 figures. The developments in mobility devices and faster broadband access is making this transition easier for many. Gajendran said that this could even lead to more savings and a more positive impact on traffic and pollution.

Alienware to ship select notebooks, desktops with solid state drives

Originally posted on October 9, 2007 @ 11:25 pm

The hard drive sector has not seen a lot of groundbreaking innovations in many years but the growing popularity of solid state hard drives may be a sign that the hard drive market is about to enter a new age. We all know how delicate traditional platter-based hard drives are. Any kind of sudden bumps could damage the sensitive mechanism inside the drive and we’re not yet even talking about the platter itself. With the release of more and more high capacity flash based drives there really is a growing interest in solid state drives as a legitimate successor to the old technologies.

Alienware, the well known gaming desktop and laptop maker, announced that it will begin shipping solid state hard drives in some of its desktop and notebook models.

The company’s Area-1 ALX and Aurora ALX is touted be the first desktops to be equipped with a 64GB solid state disk or SSD. No price was announced yet for the product but a cursory look at Alienware’s website shows that it is charging $1,700 for a Raid 0 configuration employing two 64 GB SSDs.

That is a very high price to pay for a new technology. But then, it is also understandable, given that SSDs are still prohibitively expensive at this point of its existence because the demand still has not reached a critical level that would warrant a lowering of prices. SSDs are really a good choice though because of its faster access time, lower latencies and the aforementioned resistance to hard bumps.

I’m definitely going to jump on the SSD bandwagon — once prices drop to realistic levels.

ZoneAlarm Spyware Free for just one day!

Originally posted on November 13, 2007 @ 10:10 pm

Here’s something that you should take advantage of if you read this early enough. ZoneAlarm will be offering its Anti Spyware suite for FREE but only for Tuesday. This software usually retails for $29.95.

It should be noted that this free version is not the full featured ZoneAlarm Internet Security Suite. But even with that limitation it still contains its highly effective OSFirewall as well as the usual spyware detection and removal, blocking of suspected spy sites and a year’s worth of free updates.

If you want to get the free software just go to this link before 7 AM PST, November 14.

HP aims to lower power consumption in three years

Originally posted on January 10, 2008 @ 11:34 pm

The recently concluded Consumer Electronics Show may be an exercise in consumerism but sometimes something noble comes out of it. Take for example the recent announcement of HP that it is committed to cut the energy consumption of its products by 25 per cent by 2010. This includes all of its desktop and laptop offerings.

This is good news because a lower power draw on electronic products means that energy consumption could also lessen, which in the end will have a positive impact on the global energy problem and the global warming. I know that we’re just talking about one company here. But one company taking a step in the right direction could lead to more companies following in its footsteps and I’d like to think that this would cumulatively bring really positive benefits on a global scale. That’s reason for optimism, right?

Dell enters tablet market with Latitude XT

Originally posted on December 14, 2007 @ 5:28 pm

The long rumored tablet PC from Dell has finally been unveiled a few days ago. The Latitude XT is a convertible tablet that can turn from Laptop to digital slate in a cinch. The company is aiming the product at education, health and corporate markets.

The device is just 3.5 pounds and features a 12 inch widescreen that could either be LED or CCFL. The LED screen will be thinner and lighter but the CCFL, which is ultra bright, could be used outdoors without any viewing problems. Contrary to earlier demos that showed the Latitude XT to have a multi touch display a la iPhone, the actual model is just a single touch affair. The screen will be digitized and a digitizer pen is included — ejecting from the left portion of the device.

Dell’s entry into the tablet market could have a positive impact on prices. Right now, tablet PC prices are still on the higher end of the price spectrum.