Travel Tech

	March 22, 2006 Travel Tech by Paul Thurrott I was preparing for a trip recently, and it occurred to me how much my travel experiences have changed over the years. I'm a desk-bound information worker of sorts, so it's always a bit jarring to find myself on the road with only a small subset of the computing power and resources I typically use. In the past, I tried to overcompensate by bringing an excess of technology with me on the road. However, as the years have passed, I've discovered that there is a healthy middle ground between carting your entire office around and leaving behind all technology for the duration of the trip. So, what do I carry on? [ GET MORE!] Microsoft Moves Xbox 360 into Children's Market by Paul Thurrott In a move designed to attract the type of video gaming audience that would more typically choose a Nintendo device, Microsoft this week revealed the first in a series of Xbox 360 game titles aimed at children. Dubbed Viva Piñata (seriously), the game will be accompanied by a children's animated TV show, music, and more traditional toys. Microsoft calls it a "product collection." [ GET MORE!]
			We've tabulated your votes! Here are the results (from 76 votes) of last week's Connected Home Quick Poll question: "How vital is the cell phone in your life?"     - 26% I carry mine everywhere and upgrade to new models frequently.     - 32% I'm a frequent user, but I use land lines just as often.     - 32% I have one, but I use it primarily for emergencies.     - 11% Cell phones are evil. Check out our next Quick Poll question: "Do you go to the movie theater anymore?"     - Of course! The communal experience of the movie theater is eternal.     - Yes, but not as often as I used to. Too expensive, and people are rude.     - Never again! My home theater is better and more convenient. Vote now at the Connected Home Media home page!

Microsoft Preps IE 7 Beta Refresh by Paul Thurrott On Monday at the Mix '06 conference in Las Vegas, Microsoft will issue a refreshed version of Internet Explorer (IE) 7 beta, which the company is describing as feature complete. The company will also discuss the next version of IE at the show, which will likely include features that didn't make it into IE 7, including a true download manager and more seamless inline Web page searching. [ GET MORE!] by Paul Thurrott and Jason Bovberg DRM-Encoded Songs Lower Battery Life As if we needed yet another reason to despise Digital Rights Management (DRM), reports are emerging that suggest the songs encoded with DRM technology—used by online music services such as iTunes and Napster—are more harmful to the battery life of portable MP3 players than are non-DRM-encoded songs. CNET did a debatable test of this theory, in which it compared DRM-encoded WMA files with plain-vanilla MP3 files. (A better test would have included all WMA files.) In the CNET test, a Creative Zen MP3 player achieved 16 hours of playback time using MP3 files, but could hit only 12 hours with DRM-backed WMA files, a 25 percent (and 4-hour) hit. Tests of Apple's FairPlay DRM scheme, which iTunes uses, resulted in 8 percent less battery life when compared with similar MP3 files, both played back on an iPod. Because I always copy music from online music stores into a restriction-free MP3 format before using them, I don't really see this problem, and I recommend you all do the same, as well. [ COMMENT IN THE BLOG!] MacBook Pro Power Connector Bursts into Flames The only truly innovative new feature on the Apple MacBook Pro is its MagSafe connector, which uses a magnet to connect the power cord to the machine, ensuring that anyone who yanks the cable will simply unplug the device and not send the computer hurtling to the ground. But it turns out there's a dark side to this feature: It's a fire hazard. When a MacBook Pro customer posted pictures of his fried machine on the Web, Apple demanded that he remove them in order to avoid the inevitable media backlash, but the company did replace the customer's MacBook Pro. [ COMMENT IN THE BLOG!] Microsoft Leader Disses $100 Laptop Project Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates last week made fun of a project that seeks to supply poor and developing nations with inexpensive $100 laptops, presumably because his company was shut out of the project because Windows is too expensive. "The last thing you want a shared-use computer to be is something without a disk ... and with a tiny little screen," Gates said, apparently missing the irony of the fact that Microsoft just announced its Ultra-mobile PC platform for devices that feature tiny screens. Those machines, however, will retail for $800 to $1000, a far cry from MIT's $100 laptop project. Gates continued, "If you're going have people share the computer, get a broadband connection and have somebody there who can help support the user, geeze, get a decent computer where you can actually read the text and you're not sitting there cranking the thing while you're trying to type." Hey, if anyone understands computing in developing nations, it must be the world's richest man. [ COMMENT IN THE BLOG!] PlayStation 3 Will Have 60GB Hard Drive, Online Service After months of silence, Sony is finally revealing details about its upcoming PlayStation 3 video game console, which was recently delayed until November 2006. First, the device will ship with an upgradeable 60GB hard drive, quelling rumors that the drive would be optional. The PlayStation 3 will also be backed by an Xbox Live-like service called PlayStation Network Platform (PSNP). Sexy name, eh? As with Xbox Live Silver, basic PSNP services will be free, although it will also let users play games online. The service will include video chat, messaging, matchmaking (gaming not dating), and game data upload and download functionality. It will also feature online content downloads—similar, again, to Xbox Live. Those plucky guys from Sony will catch up to Microsoft eventually. [ COMMENT IN THE BLOG!] Maxfield Turns MP3s into Childs' Play Are you a parent worried that your children might damage expensive MP3 players or, worse, their ears while listening to music at high volume levels? Check out Maxfield's MAX-JOY MP3 player, which is designed especially to meet the needs of 6-to-12-year-old children. Every aspect of the device-operation, design, material, headphones, display, price, as well as optionally installed audio fairytales-has been specifically engineered to meet the abilities and wishes of children. [ GET MORE!] Kim Paulsen - Group Publisher Karen Forster - Editorial Director Paul Thurrott - Features Editor Jason Bovberg - Senior Editor © Penton, 2006. All rights reserved. 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