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From text to Chrome [New Straits Time (Malaysia)](New Straits Time (Malaysia) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) From text to Chrome MANY classrooms these days still rely on the standard blackboard and chalk combo when it comes to teaching. When I was in school, only overhead projectors and transparent plastic slides were used to convey a message or theory in a lab. Well, the world has definitely changed since then and technology has made its way further into our educational institutions. Lenovo for example, recently announced a Chromebook that will be based on its popular Think- Pad notebook, calling it the Lenovo ThinkPad X131e Chromebook. Since all classrooms come with their own unique hardware and software needs, the Chromebook delivers the hassle-free experience of the Chrome operating system alongside ThinkPad's now staple rugged design. In fact, the Lenovo ThinkPad X131e Chromebook has specialised features including a rubber bumper that envelopes the top cover, more robust corners, reinforced hinges and hinge brackets to handle the expected rough-and-tumble lifestyle that students go through, and with a high definition LED anti-glare screen, the student's eyes would not have be strained too much either. Lenovo claims that the Think- Pad X131e Chromebook can last up to 6.5 hours on average use, and can be shared among multiple students with Google Apps for Education, in addition to carrying more than 1,000 web-based educational apps that can be downloaded from the Chrome Web Store. The Lenovo ThinkPad X131e Chromebook will arrive in the US at the end of February for US$429 (RM759) a pop. www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/ education/devices/lenovo- x131echromebook.html PIXEL PERFECT PHONE I GUESS if you are not going to drive home in a new car this Chinese New Year, you may want to settle for something more affordable - a new smartphone which comes in the form of the HTC Butterfly. This will be HTC's first smartphone to offer full HD 1080p resolution on a 5-inch Super LCD 3 display with Corning Gorilla Glass 2 protection. Your eyes will also relish the extraordinary 440 pixels per inch (PPI) performance, making text reading a cinch. It also looks great, sporting a smooth glossy finish and microgrill pattern that would turn heads whenever you take it out from your pocket. Underneath the hood, you will find a quadcore 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, accompanied by a high performance GPU and 2GB RAM. There will be HTC Sense 4+ running on top of the Android 4.1 Jelly Bean operating system, and just in case the 16GB of internal memory isn't enough, a microSD memory card slot is there for expansion purposes. Coupled with a 2,020 mAh battery and power saving software, hopefully it will be able to last a decent day at work with a high-powered display and processor. Shutterbugs will naturally be drawn towards the 8-megapixel f/2.0 28mm wide-angle lens with a backside illuminated sensor that lets it take better shots even under low light conditions. In front lies a 2.1-megapixel, f/2.0, 88-degree, ultra-wide angle, front-facing camera for those narcissistic moments, and can shoot up to four people for group shots. Each RM2,299 purchase will be accompanied by 25GB of free Dropbox cloud storage. www.htc.com THE 12-BUTTON MOUSE GENIUS has expanded its GX gaming series of mice with its latest addition - the Gila professional gaming mouse. I know that the word would resonate with gamers here simply for the context where it comes in, and you could say that it suits gamers who are seen to carry mad skills by others - in other words, they are extremely skilled. Well, the Genius Gila professional gaming mouse has been touted to be the ultimate configurable gaming mouse, but it really boils down to the preference of the gamer him/herself. Sporting a dozen buttons where just about every aspect can be tweaked according to gamers' preferences, we have on-the-fly dpi changes, weight, LED brightness, pulsation and colour, in addition to macros for a personalised playing style. Thanks to its on-the-fly adjustable dpi, you can change from 200 to 8,200, in addition to having a Sniper Mode that offers pixel perfect motion as it slows down mouse movements to a dpi of your choice as long as you hold down the assigned button. A 1ms response time also helps greatly to adapt to situations which require quick twitch reactions. There will also be half a dozen 4.5g weights which can be added to a compartment located in the underside for additional sturdiness, or sometimes when you need unburdened lightweight movement, just remove all those weights. A non-slick rubber coating will deliver a firm and comfortable grip, while the 1.8m long cable is made up of durable braided cable with an anticorrosive gold-plated USB jack so that you always enjoy long-lasting, high quality connections. The Genius GX Gaming Series Gila gaming mouse retails for US$99.99. www.gx-g aming.com/ ac tion>products _ detail&wtype>feature&id>16 BATTLE YOUR BOREDOM AWAY SOME of us have jobs that seem to take every single waking moment of our time, leaving us to wish that each day came with 36 hours instead of 24. Well, for others, we seem to find that we have more time on our hands than work, which could lead to a drop in productivity as boredom creeps in. Perhaps it is time to reinvigorate yourself with the BattleTank from Desk Pets International Limited. BattleTank is a palm-sized robotic tank which can be controlled from an Apple or Android mobile device, be it a smartphone or tablet. There will be a couple of navigation modes for BattleTank. You can get the tank to roam freely about, chase down an autonomous drone tank (which has to be purchased separately), or relive those historical moments through a re-enactment of your favourite tank battles with a friend. When hunting down an enemy tank, a successful hit would result in the target slowing down, making it even easier to further hunt it down, but if the tables are turned, your challenge level increases, where wit and skill would then come into the picture. The BattleTank has a built-in battery and USB flip down charger to help minimise battery costs, while offering you hours of inexpensive fun on end - much to the chagrin of your immediate superior, of course! The interactive tank is yours for US$24. www.mydeskpets.com (c) 2013 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |