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Many of us are so used to working on a computer desktop that when it comes time to purchase a new computer, we don’t consider other options. Today, computer notebooks – which were once called laptops – offer a number of advantages over a computer desktop. Here are just five reasons why you should take a second look at notebooks.

1. Mobility

You might be used to pulling up a chair to your computer, but it makes much more sense to pull your computer up to your chair. Laptops can certainly be used at your desk, but you also have the option of bringing them to the spot where you’re most comfortable. Maybe you’d like to surf the Web in the evening out in the living room or catch up on your favorite blogs before bedtime. Notebooks with wireless connectivity can travel with you throughout your home, so you can check your email or do your Internet shopping anywhere.

Of course, notebooks also make sense for those who are on the go. Students can take laptops to class and to the library, while businesspeople can take them along while traveling. With WiFi so widely available, it even makes sense to have a notebook while on vacation. With the right notebook, it’s easy to take photos with your digital camera, upload them, and email them to friends and family before you even get back home. Or you can use it to write a vacation blog and include those pictures from your digital camera.

2. Better Displays

The size and quality of computer notebook displays has improved so dramatically that there’s little difference between laptops and a computer desktop. For example, you can get Apple’s MacBook with a 13.3-inch LCD widescreen (1280 x 800 pixels), a 15.4-inch LCD widescreen (1440 x 900 pixels) or a 17-inch widescreen (1680 x 1050 pixels). Similarly, the Compaq Presario has a 15.4-inch display.

3. Lighter Weight

Just a few years ago, even the lightest notebook was a pain to lug around. Today, though, laptops are increasingly easy on the back. The MacBook is slightly over an inch thick and the Toshiba Portege weighs in at about four pounds. While that’s still heavy compared to come of the new ultralight convertibles (Fujitsu’s LifeBook U810 weighs only a pound and half), it’s a significant improvement over the old seven-pound laptops.

4. Better Computing and Battery Power

Historically, two drawbacks of notebooks were their limited RAM, limited space on the hard drive, and short battery life. Times have changed, though, and laptops now have as much power under the hood as their computer desktop cousins. The MacBook, for example, has 1GB of memory (configurable up to 4 GB) and a hard drive that’s configurable to 250GB. This means that your software will hum right along and you’ll be able to zip through programs as quickly and as easily as you do on your desktop. Likewise, batteries in today’s notebooks don’t heat up and don’t conk out.

5. More Features

In older laptops, the computer’s size and weight limited the number and types of features available. Today, with smaller processors and other components, there’s room to pack more features into notebooks. For example, the MacBook has a DVD player, built-in webcam, built-in wireless capability, two USB ports and a FireWire port, built-in microphone, and audio and digital input/output.

There are so many advantages to owning notebooks that, before you buy your next computer, it’s worth your while to take one for a spin.

Before you decide to go wireless or not, there are many points to consider. You may be asking yourself if wireless is for you. Well, today, many people are asking themselves the same question. If you watch the headline news, you are bound to see stories involving mergers, federal regulations, and new tax rules. This all points to the fact that VoIP has made a definite impression on American citizens and is here to stay. It may be difficult for some people to remove the telephone cords from their homes; we have depended on them for over 100 years. But once many people take the time to weigh the pros and the cons, most choose to go wireless. Here are some reasons, why you should make the switch to wireless.

1. Wireless Creates a Faster Network

Wireless networks are fast. With VoIP, you can create a network that incorporates data, audio, video, and computer web features. You can easily monitor your network for problems and troubleshooting is much simpler with web based applications rather than hardware applications. VoIP uses less bandwidth than other applications and this in the long run saves money. This is of special value to businesses. Businesses can also provide better customer service with integrated programs. Not only does this increase productivity, but also it saves time and money in the long run.

2. VoIP Saves You Money

Overall, VoIP is much more inexpensive then PSTN. You simply pay for your Internet service, and then whichever VoIP provider you choose. For a one time monthly fee, you can have unlimited local and long distance phone calls. You will need to check with the VoIP service provider that you choose for exact details on their rates. Sometimes, your VoIP service provider will allow free calls within the world to another computer, yet there may be a fee for calls worldwide to a landline phone. Always check with your chosen service provider for exact details regarding your chosen plan. Included in many VoIP service plans are free features. These features include Voicemail, Caller ID, Call Waiting, Do Not Disturb, and more. Again, check with your chosen service provider for an overview of all the features bundled with your plan. The biggest benefit is the unlimited long distance calling. This has proven to be the number one reason why most businesses are switching to VoIP. For businesses such as sales or jobs that have mobile employees, these benefits go without saying. But overall, the average cost of VoIP is considerably less when compared to the cost of PSTN.

3. VoIP Enables you to Talk with More than One Person at a Time

With VoIP, you can talk with more than one person without paying extra for services such as three way calling. With VoIP you can have more than three people on the phone at once. VoIP is the perfect solution for those who want to explore the features of conference calls. This is very important for businesses that have employees overseas. By using the video conferencing features, employers will increase their productivity.

4. Enjoy Greater Flexibility

By using VoIP, you can take your VoIP equipment with you whenever you travel. Your VoIP service provider will send you a converter that will allow you to use your converter with any standard telephone. The converter comes programmed with your telephone number, allowing you to take your phone and phone number with you worldwide. All you will need is a high speed Internet connection and you can use your VoIP phone service. This is of extreme benefit to mobile employees. No longer are outdated telecommunications systems necessary, or are employees trying to run businesses on prepaid cell phone plans. By using VoIP, an employee will have access to his/her phone number, wherever they are located. Whether out of state, in a hotel, or traveling on a business trip, customers will be able to call the same number as well as leave voice mail on the employee’s computer.

5. You can Save Money for Family and Friends by Choosing Your Area Code

Many VoIP service providers will give you the option of selecting your own area code number. This is a tremendous benefit to family and friend members who can call you locally, if you select the same area code number.

After deciding to shift to a Windows Vista OS, you need to decide on which Windows Vista version you should pick. Before you consider shelling out $400 for a Windows Vista Ultimate license, you really should ask yourself exactly what features you need and want so you can decide whether the price is right.

Windows Vista Home Basic

This is the most rudimentary version of Vista available. It has the more secure IE 7, the firewall, the quick search functionality, and easier connectivity. When it comes to the features that distinguish Vista from previous versions of the Windows OS, though, Home Basic is somewhat lacking, though it does offer parental control.

Windows Vista Home Basic is a good choice only if you use your computer solely for web surfing and basic document processing, or if your computer is just barely powerful enough to run Windows Vista.

Windows Vista Home Premium

For an extra $40, you can get much more out of Windows Vista. Aside from including all the features of the Home Basic version, Home Premium offers all of the window-dressing that makes Vista look like Vista. You will have pre-packaged games and Aero interface capability. Aero gives your windows and icons a 3D appearance and smoother transitions, as well as allowing you to add transparency effects to window borders. Home Premium offers tablet PC functionality, document collaboration, and scheduled backups. Home Premium also offers the fully integrated Windows Media Center for all your home entertainment needs, plus a moviemaker which is HD format-capable.

Windows Vista Home Premium is designed for the user who uses the computer for PC and network gaming, since Premium supports DirectX 10, with its advanced graphics technologies incredible graphics rendering. Premium is also designed for watching High Definition movie, editing/making video clips, burning DVD copies, and interfacing with the Xbox 360, which Home Premium edition automatically detects to allow for Video, Audio, and Picture sharing.

Windows Vista Business

Windows Vista Business drops Parental controls, Media Center features, and pre-installed games for obvious reasons. Vista Business does have the rest of the Home Premium features plus support for business applications and business data security (fax, remote desktop connectivity, file encryption, and complete shadow incremental backup). This version of Windows Vista is, as the name implies, strictly for business purposes.

Windows Vista Enterprise

Windows Vista Enterprise adds Microsoft’s BitLocker encryption technology to the feature set found in Windows Vista Business, but this version of Windows is only offered to businesses participating in Microsoft’s Software Assurance program.

Windows Vista Ultimate

This edition has everything that is included in the Home Premium and Business editions. Vista Ultimate also adds Enterprise’s BitLocker encryption technology for the computer’s hard drives, protecting the drives so that only authorized users can boot up the OS or view the files contained in the drives.

Because of its full complement of features, Vista Ultimate is perfect for people who use the PC for fun and business in equal parts, as well as users who want to be protected from data loss and PC theft.

Copyright © 2007 MALIBAL, lLc

Next to cell phones, MP3 players are the must have, hot product everyone wants to own. There are lots of great players available, but how do you know which one is right for you? Here are some tips that will help you make the right decision before purchasing an MP3 player.

Tip #1 – Type of MP3 Player – There are basically four types, flash, hard drive, micro hard drive and CD based players.

Flash players are small, have a memory chip built-in, and are more durable with no moving parts, which mean they will not skip a beat during sports activity or running. Because of their compact size, space is limited to 4gigs or less depending on the model you choose. iRiver, SanDisk and Creative MuVo are three popular brands of flash memory players.

Hard drive players are great for anyone who wants to take their entire library worth of music with them. Featuring high capacity storage ranging anywhere from 4gigs to 60gigs of hard drive space. With so much disk space available, you can also store data files, pictures and video, allowing for true portability.
Unlike flash players, hard drive players are larger in size, cost more and have more movable parts, which may not make it idea for physical activity. Popular among the brands are Apple Ipod, Creative Zen Vision, and Wolverine MVP models.

Additionally you can opt for an micro hard drive player. Micro MP3 players are a cross between a flash and a regular hard drive player. Max storage capacity is usually 8gigs, have a miniature hard drive, and are light weight and compact. These players still have movable parts and some models include non-removable re-chargeable batteries.

CD MP3 players are similar to CD players, except they can read data CD’s. Capacity is the same size as a CD which is 650mbs, and the music needs to be burned. They can also play standard CD’s.

Tip #2 – Digital Format – Not all players support every music format but should play the standard mp3, wma, wav formats. For additional audio format, look for players that support aac, asf and ogg. Not stopping at audio format, you may also have a need to view video formats such as mp4, mov, wav, avi, and flash. To get the most out your purchase and enjoy your favorite digital pictures, look for models that support picture formats such as jpeg, gif, tiff and png. Flash Players such as Creative Zen, iRiver Clix, and Cowan iAudio can display text documents.

Tip #3 – Battery Life – Next to storage capacity, battery life is probably the most critical consideration with MP3 players. Options include standard batteries (AAA or AA type batteries) or rechargeable batteries. With standard batteries, you can easily replace them when needed, while some rechargeable models are non-removable lithium-ion batteries, and typically last two to four years. Since flash players need to be synced more often, recharging occurs as you sync. For larger players, battery life is usually longer but may not always be the case. Make sure you inquiry about battery life for those models.

Tip #4 – Features – With the capability to view video and photos, bright color screens with image display are usually a favorite among buyers. Voice recording with built-in or optional voice recorders, let you record seminars or meetings. Want to listen to other music, some models include an FM tuner for listening and recording (mp3) radio stations. Players such as Apple iPOD and Creative Zen line allow for personal information management options such as phone books and calendars that can synchronize data between desktop applications and the player.

Other features to consider: advanced playback features such as shuffle, repeat, resume, and playlist functions. Newer models now offer the ability to create on the fly playlists, smart playlist for grouping songs in shuffle mode and automatic volume control that makes songs play at the same volume. Don’t forget about music search and sort options to find songs.

Tip #5 – Connectivity Options. Most if not all MP3 players support USB 2.0. Other connectivity options you may want to consider is Firewire, audio and line inputs. Some next-generation models include Ethernet, Wi-Fi, or Bluetooth capabilities.

Tip #6 – Functionality – Don’t just consider bells and whistles when looking for the right MP3 to purchase. Functionality is usually what makes MP3 players stand apart from each other. Test drive each player and notice how easy or hard it is to navigate the menus. Do the buttons feel cheap or easy to press? Is the screen display sufficient in bright light? Is it compact enough for daily or sport activity? What accessories are available for the player?

No matter what model you choose, an MP3 player will be a great addition to your entertainment hardware!

Laptops are the firsts ones to use bluetooth technology. But technology is inevitable and today, more and more gadgets, such as smartphones uses the same technology to communicate with other devices.

The new Apple powerbook G4 are among the first computers to offer Bluetooth technology 2.0+EDR. The 2.0+EDR technology, which still backwards compatible with 1.0, is up to three times faster than previous versions, offering maximum data rate transfers of up to 3 MBps. Being the first company to certify a system with 2.0+EDR, Apple continues to make great use of the Bluetooth technology.

Full support In addition to the powerbook G4 portables, there are other Bluetooth enabled computers available from Apple, including the iBook, iMac G5, eMac, and the Power Mac G5.

Making life easier When you turn the Bluetooth feature on, your Mac can easily perform a file transfer or even a synchronization. From the Bluetooth selection menu, you can choose to either send a file or browse devices, quickly and easily. Or, you can click the sync button in iSync to update your cell phone or Palm OS handheld.

The Mac and GSM/GPRS mobile phone with Bluetooth work to make each other more useful. By using iSync, you can keep your phone updated without having to type any info, as you can keep the information in the more manageable address book on your Mac instead.

You can also use your Bluetooth enabled Mac to print documents and digital images to select a printer that also supports the technology of Bluetooth. Or, you can also use a headset to talk to your friends during an iChat session.

Your Mac also has the ability to use Bluetooth technology to communicate with your Palm OS handheld. This way, you can perform a HotSync operation without using any cables. You can also send your business card or calendar events directly to someone else’s handheld usingthe technology of Bluetooth.

The implementation of Bluetooth by Apple is the latest in a series of moves that have caused great shift in the computer industry. Apple established USB as the standard interface with the launching of the first Mac back in 1998.

Since then, Apple established the 802.11 wireless standard of networking with the launch of the iBook and AirPort in 1999. During 2003, Apple launched AirPort Extreme, which was based on the new 802.11g high speed technology of wireless.

Now, Bluetooth helps to further strengthen the dominant position of the Mac in wireless communications, helping to preserve Apple’s reputation for being the first to market with innovative technology that integrates right into the operating system.