Archive for the ‘Hardware’ Category

Laser Printer Over Inkjet Printer: Top Seven Reasons

Friday, February 24th, 2012

Almost as universal as the dilemma of whether to buy a house or rent, and with an equal number of factors for and against each decision, is the decision between buying an inkjet and laser printer! Each type of printer has its own ups, its own downs, its varying capital and ongoing costs for ink cartridges,laser toner, etc. However, they are not the same by any measure… there is certainly a ‘best’ type of printer for you, according to your printing habits. We help you find it!

Vaules of inkjet printers exist.Nobody can deny with any credibility that those printers do have some great features.But it must also be said that a laser printer is a much wiser choice.The advantages of laser printers are huge, making them far superior to the inkjet.To sate the curiousity of those who wonder, the following gives the INSERT advantages that will be yours when you choose a laser printer.

1 – Toner accounts for the many more copies that a laser printer can turn out as opposed to an inkjet printer. Yes,a toner can produce more copies than a cartridges of an inkjet. Over time, a toner can prove to save a significant amount of money over time.

2 – Do you need a printer that can make copies fast as possible? If you do then you should consider a laser printer since it has more speed than an ink jet printer. Inkjet can most certainly not be used when it is time bound.

3 — Laser printers have a tendency to be more durable. Their design is much more aesthetic and futuristic. This allows the printers to deliver on their ‘life expectancy’ far longer than an inkjet. To be honest, would you actually buy a printer only too witness it’s breakdown or death in just a few months? A better option to help you save your expenditures would certainly be to purchase a laser printer..

4 – Quality of image is the most important benifit for buying a laser printer. A laser printer is of the highest quality because of the details of the pictures and texts you would get from it. Forget about imperfections such as streaks, smears, and filminess. Choose a laser printer over an inkjet, if the quality of the images produced is your first matter of concern.

5 – Should a mistake be made while instaling, an inkjet cartridge might start to leak. If you buy a laser printer, you won’t have to worry about ink leaking from the cartridge and thereby causing damage to your printer.

6 – Laser printers are much more cut out for business use than an inkjet. You do not want to add a printer that does little to improve the operation of the office. Stick with a laser printer and avoid a number of hassles.

7 – And that aforementioned business benefit which u can apply for serious home use as well.

It’s true that you can only gain benefits when you buy a laser printer.

Author Bio: Need to know more on the benefits of a laser printer? There is a place you could visit.Check the thoughts shared at laser printer review website at http://www.laserprinterreviewsblog.com/.

 

The Convenience of 3M Pocket Projector Review

Friday, February 24th, 2012

The 3M pocket projector review is with regards to the size of the late 90′s mobile phone that is 4.5″x2″. Around the front with the product is really a little lens opening, within the back again is in which you will uncover the power and movie connectors, and within the side is often a single energy button along with a lens concentrate wheel.

The 3M Pocket Projector review is powered by an internal Lithium-Ion battery pack which ought to provide sufficient juice for about an hour of continuous use. Inside of the product is really a very small 3M projection module, which makes use of an LED light for illumination. Obviously, as frequent travelers, you happen to be almost certainly scratching your head asking yourself just why on earth you’d ever before contemplate carrying a pocket projector inside your luggage.

The first, and almost certainly most logical situation to the projector would be to give company presentations applying your laptop computer. Anybody in existence that has needed to drag a projector via the airport will recognize just what a discomfort within the ass it’s, to not point out getting to offer using the continuous threat with the weak projector becoming broken mid journey. The second, and a lot more entertaining circumstance is employing the projector for amusement. The 3M Pocket Projector Review arrives with connection cables for typical movie sources too being a VGA cable for connecting it to some laptop computer or other unit having a VGA plug. So, how nicely does the projector carry out in every of those a couple of scenarios? This all depends upon your expectations. Should you convert the projector on with all the expectation of obtaining super bright illustrations or photos like with a regular projector, you’re likely to be very disappointed. In the event you convert it on expecting really small, you happen to be in for any pleasant shock.

The projector projects its picture using a brightness of about 7 lumens. Once you evaluate this towards a typical projector which has an typical output exceeding 1000 lumens, you will fully grasp how the picture isn’t likely to be appropriate for each and every predicament. First of all, the area definitely has for being dim, secondly, the picture can truly only be concentrated when it stays smaller sized than about 70 inches diagonally. Equally of those restrictions make discovering an appropriate wall or display pretty tough, but by no signifies make the projector ineffective. Actually, I’m truly quite impressed while using the outcomes from this kind of a small box. Seeking back again at equally of individuals scenarios I pointed out; presentations and amusement. Giving a presentation with 3M Pocket Projector is very feasible, however the area genuinely will need to be dim, and it only creates sense when you’ve merely a handful of folks seated all over a table searching in the wall.

Amusement is really in which the projector excels. In case you uncover your self stuck someplace with no television, you merely change within the unit and change any open wall room into your personal minor movie display.

Author Bio: Read more about 3M Pocket Projector Review at http://www.pocketprojectorreview.net/3m-pocket-projector

 

Some Features of 3M Pocket Projector Review

Friday, February 24th, 2012

As we find some of the pico projectors to be very basic and fundamental, one of the latest products that is innovated today like 3M Pocket Projector Review is one of those products that is changing people’s expectations of what a pocket projector can do. The 3M Pocket Projector is really a pocket-sized projector but do have a 15-lumen pictures that has a good color saturation and a contrast that is perfect for a mobile presenter who really want to travel the light. To make it easy in presenting without wires, there is a gigabyte of internal storage and a MicroSD card that is accompanied with this pocket projector. But take note, the 3M Pocket Projector doesn’t only show you pictures it also features some support that is coming from the Microsoft office document and as well as from Adobe PDF’s and from some common video formats. In this 3M Pocket Projector Review, we will discuss some of the features that it offers to its customers that make it hailed to be a presenter’s perfect pocket-sized partner.

The first thing that is featured on this 3M Pocket Projector Review is the image quality. As I said a while ago this pocket projector is rated up to 15 lumens meaning the images are clear and bright in a dark room, it is about 14″ diagonal where the image begins to dim gradually. When it is in a brighter environment, the thing that is called the “sweet spot” for projection to take place is about 15″ to 20″ diagonal. The 3M Pocket Projector is capable enough to hold on it’s own well-lit room provided that you will keep the image size reasonable. The contrast that it has is very sufficient for word or Power Point documents, while the images and some videos will do benefit from more restricted lighting conditions.

The second best thing that is featured on this 3M Pocket Projector is its wireless presentation. You have to know that this projector is really more that a projector because traditionally projectors are more likely to be computer monitors than televisions that need an external source in order to handle the decoding and the playback of content to be projected. This could really be anything, either it is from a DVD, an iPod or a laptop. Well this projector is very different because it will not require you external source for several common document types. Since many are using PowerPoint to make their presentations, this pocket projector will not require you even a single wire to run those documents because they have a Microsoft Office Support that directly allow the projector to run your presentation. Aside from Power Point support this pocket projector can also handle Adobe PDF image files, documents, MP3 music files and some other common digital video file formats.

Whatever you give on this projector it will automatically display it even though the navigation that is needed is not just as fast as it would be on laptops and computers but if all that you need is to display a file then the 3M Pocket Projector is really capable of doing that.

Author Bio: Read more about 3M Pocket Projector Review at http://www.pocketprojectorreview.net/3m-pocket-projector

 

SoundCards, Audio-Interfaces, USB Mixers For Music Production

Friday, February 24th, 2012

A soundcard is what lets your computer play music. It also lets it understand sounds. In music production a soundcard is what lets you record and play back sound. There are many, many, many soundcards on the market, and most are not meant to do much more than playback music and movie audio. Even most of the top-line cards are meant for high quality playback for games.

There is another device called an audio-interface. Used in recording this device does the same basic things as a soundcard when it comes to recording, but it also includes a pre-amp that boosts the signal. That signal boost helps get rid of the problem of low and bad quality recordings.

Another important difference is that an audio-interface generally has connection ports for real microphones and instruments. Most soundcards can only support the small mics used for chatting, although better quality ones can support audio connections that might let you hook up other mics and instruments. However you will have to use adapters, and an important thing to remember is that the more times a signal has to move through an adapter, the worse the quality gets.

So now we know that a soundcard is best for playing music and basic recording functions, like speaking. If you want to record singing, or someone playing an instrument properly, you need to invest in an audio-interface.

An even better investment for a serious home producer is a USB mixer. A USB mixer offers the same ability to interface real instruments as a USB audio interface, but also gives you the ability to mix your recordings just like they do in a larger studio.

A mixer board lets you adjust the volume that a signal is recorded at. This helps you get a fine tuned recording, making it much easier to sync your volume levels in a song. More important is the fact you can record more than one signal at a time. Depending on the number of inputs, a whole band can record a song in real time. This is good for a band wanting to record a live track, or album. With a good enough quality laptop, a USB mixer board, and some extra recording gear, you can record a whole performance.

Another important thing a mixer can do is split a signal out to other sources. This can be used for basic things like using headphones, or for hooking up an effect, or effects for the signal. Sometimes you want to record with effects already in place, a mixer lets you do that.

A mixer board also has built in EQ, or equalization. This lets you adjust how your signal is recorded. It can be used to shave out unwanted sounds, to boost the frequency ranges of what you are recording, and/or to generally get a fine tune on your recording.

Many USB mixers have some built in effects. Most often compression is included. Compression is used to control the volume of the signal automatically. It can be used as simply as making sure that your levels don’t go outside of a certain range, or for very specific sculpting of what is being recorded.

So now you know the differences between a soundcard, an audio-interface and a USB mixer. There is a large amount of price overlap with these devices. Using this information, with what you know about your computer and most importantly your needs in recording, you can make an educated decision for what you need to buy.

Author Bio: My name is Ryan and I am a home producer. Click this link to take a look at some different Audio-Interface cards and USB Audio-Interface systems: http://themusicproducerdude.com/audio-interface Click this link to take a look at Some Top Quality USB mixer boards: http://themusicproducerdude.com/usb-mixers

 

The Revolution of Wireless Portable Printers

Friday, February 24th, 2012

Wireless portable printers allow you to wirelessly print pictures, documents, contracts, timetables on the go from a variety of sources. With a wireless portable printer you can print out the files and images you need from: USB sticks, phones, cameras and laptops – all without the hassle of cords and wires. Simply turn on the blue tooth, and get printing!

These devices come in all shapes and sizes, but tend to be small, low maintenance, effective printing machines. Almost all of these modern inkjet printers print in surprisingly high resolution, quickly and easily. Not only this, but the prices of these printers are quite low, many ranging from just a few hundred pounds. They can be slipped into a laptop bag for printing practically anywhere.

Portable wireless inkjet printers are a compact and lightweight option for use with laptops, as well as other devices. They run on batteries; some can even charge their battery off a car’s cigarette lighter.

I for one think that these wireless portable printers will revolutionise how printing is. A few decades ago people thought that laptops were a ridiculous concept. Who really needed a computer that much on the go? Yet here we are where most families own a laptop, if not two. Wireless portable printers will go the same way, maybe not yet at their current level of technology. But what happens when they are are more practical, able to print as many sheets as ordinary printers, have a very long battery life, and more importantly are able to print on the go?

Printer has been a modern staple for many decades, as has been computing. However in the last decade a transformation has taken place allowing computing to be done on the go. Meaning the laptop was born – allowing people to work, read, watch videos and listen to music wherever they went.

Yet this transformation didn’t happen to printers.

Until now.

Desktop PCs have been transformed into highly powerful and intelligent laptops, only a decade later has this revolution in electronics caught up to the printing world.

But in what form? How come I’ve never heard of them?

Three words – Wireless Portable Printers. These highly sophisticated and advanced – yet remarkably cheap devics have taken printing to the next level. But what exactly are wireless portable printers?

As the name would suggest, these devices are portable – meaning they’re generally small and compact – usually no larger than is needed to print of an A4 sheet. They’re light and durable which is necessary as you can imagine to survive being constantly carried around. But what’s more is the wireless function on these printer wonders. The wireless function allows you to connect a mobile phone or laptop wirelessly via blue tooth or an internet connection to allowing printing.

What does all this mean?

It means you have cheap, compact and highly advanced laser printers capable of printing hundreds of sheets of high quality wherever you go – quickly, wirelessly and efficiently.

But how do these devices work? How much do they cost, and where can I find unbiased information and help?

Author Bio: Jonathan Tiberius is an expert in both Wireless Portable Printing as well as Portable Printers of all types, and if you’re interested in any you should certainly visit one of his information help-sites now!

 

Top Ten Features of a Colour Laser Printer

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012

There are lots of different colour laser printers that are made by various manufacturers. Each colour laser printer is categorised differently according to its primary function(s). Here are the top 10 features that you can expect in all or some of the models available.

1. Flexible Printing Options

Photo laser printers are efficient in printing on photographic paper as well as standard paper in coloured and monochrome settings. Even ordinary laser printers can print using different settings on more paper sizes than ink printers; however, the quality may not be of the same standard as a dedicated photographic printer.

2. Faster Colour Printing

Most printers that use ink cartridges can print in colour as well, but their speeds are not as fast as equivalent colour laser printers.

3. Faster Monochrome Printing

When using the black ink, laser printers can even print faster, making them ideal for businesses.

4. Improved Error Handling

One of the problems of many inkjets is the frequent paper jams that can occur during a print operation. These jams can be inconvenient and difficult to deal with and waste valuable ink and paper since a reprint is necessary. Many laser models including multifunction printers are less likely to have those problems and can handle the problem well if it occurs.

5. Better Print Quality

Many laser printers have better print quality than ink printers because the laser printers make use of toner powder which cannot be smudged like ink. Some of the higher quality printers can print nice photographs in a similar fashion to photo printers. It is the laser itself that plays a significant role to printing accurate documents.

6. Use of a Toner

There is no colour laser printer that makes use of an ink cartridge. Instead, a toner container is used. This may be a bit bulkier, but it serves as a solution to the ink spillage problems in the past. These containers also need to be replaced less frequently as they are capable of printing more pages. This saves some of the times where you need to place an order or go out to find a replacement.

7. Multifunction Capability

Multifunction printers not only make use of the laser to print quality documents, but also are capable of scanning and sometimes faxing. If the printer has a scanning feature, it should have a copying feature as well since it makes use of the scanner and printer functionality.

8. Networking Support

Because of their fast printing speeds, laser printers are ideal in the office. Most likely, multiple computers need to use printer to carry out their operations. In order for this to be possible, the device must be connected to a unit that always stays on and remains within the network.

With printers that have networking support, they are now able to serve as individual nodes that can connect to the router so all computers can use it. Some even have wireless support, making it easier for other computers in the office or home to use.

9. Camera Connectivity

Some printers have USB ports or card readers that allow cameras to connect to the printer for direct printing. This is useful for quick printing without the need of a PC.

10. Handy Software

Colour laser printers often come with handy tools that can monitor the toner cartridge, allow different templates to be printed, and add other useful features for people to make the most out of the specs of the printer.

Author Bio: Vincent Rogers is a freelance writer who writes for a number of UK businesses. For a wide range of printers and products by brand, he recommends Printware Ltd, a leading provider of Colour Laser Printers.

 

Canon Vs Epson Inkjet Printers

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012

Canon and Epson are two of the leading manufacturers of inkjet printers worldwide and both are hugely popular when it comes to consumer choice in the UK. Making a decision on your next printer will undoubtedly be tough as both manufacturers are continuously striving to innovate in design, technology and features. Your final choice of an inkjet printer should boil down to the exact features that you need. Some of the best devices from both companies will be compared in various angles to make the decision easier.

Design

Canon is famous for their PIXMA series, with each model often having a black and curvy finish to blend in well with black desktops, laptops and other peripherals. Epson’s printers take a more traditional approach while their photo printers end up being quite compact.

Technologies and Features

Canon’s latest PIXMA models like the iP2702 are ideal for printing clear photos without depending on a laser, so the cost of the printer is lower. It uses a special system known as ChromaLife100+ for printing photos that are long-lasting. It even comes with a software package called “Auto Photo Fix II”, which enhances the quality of the photo. Borderless print options are available and speedy as well. It is also efficient in printing sharp text as it is backed with the Pigment Back Ink technology.

The price of the iP2702 is roughly £45and Epson has a few models that have the same price tag as well such as the Epson Stylus D120. This printer is aimed more towards the versatility of printing pages faster using a technology called the Dual Black System which virtually doubles the print speeds of traditional inkjet printers. The quality is up there as well thanks to the Epson DURABride Ultra Ink technology which is comparable to the quality of laser prints. Although the Epson Stylus D120 isn’t designed as a colour inkjet printer like the iP2702, it manages to print some impressive glossy photos.

Variety

Epson offers a greater variety of printers with prices starting £50 and rising beyond £700 where high quality office and photo printers are being offered. Epson looks to be a good choice for people that want a great selection of printers that can do a lot of different things so that a photo printer and laser printer aren’t needed in the same room.

Canon has a significant advantage in photo printers since Canon offers a greater variety of digital cameras than Epson. Features like camera connectivity and overall photo quality are their strong points while Epson makes a slightly bigger impact for businesses.

Overall Quality

Taking the technologies and different models into the equation, both Canon and Epson showcase some fantastic models for both business and home users. Users that want a reliable photo printer should stick with a Canon brand, even though Epson offers some decent models as well. Canon camera owners will better benefit from the consistent photo quality coming from the image down to the print. Epson shouldn’t be counted out either because of their innovative technologies that prove that inkjets will still have a place in the industry despite the success of laser printers.

Author Bio: Derek Rogers is a freelance writer who writes for a number of UK businesses. For a wide range of printers and products by brand, he recommends Printware Ltd, a leading provider of Canon Inkjet Printers.

 

Online UPS: Boost Efficiency and Lower Cost With Eco Mode Operation

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012

Specific Online UPS features, such as Eco mode operation, offered by certain manufacturers, grant best power protection and optimized battery lifetime, as well as low running costs achievable normally with lower priced Off Line, UPS systems.

Off Line Uninterruptible Power Supplies ( UPS) systems, including Line Interactive types are frequently preferred over Online types for small office or datacenter applications, justified on the basis of lower procuring and running costs, in spite of relatively poorer protection. This approach disregards existing differences between Online UPS systems, such as the ability, of certain online systems to operate in Economic (Eco) mode, which may offer better power protection at lower cost.

Simple Off Line UPS systems, connect the load directly to the input AC line. Line Interactive systems have also the ability to correct UPS output if AC input voltage deviates beyond preset limits by means of an auto- transformer based Automatic Voltage Regulator. In case of significant utility voltage deeps or outages these systems transfer the UPS to battery operation.

Due to its direct connection to input AC power, Off Line types, including Line Interactive systems offer higher efficiency when compared to an Online UPS. But, unstable grid environment, such as exercised in summer due to air conditioning, or in stormy winter seasons with frequent power excursions or outages, might cause these systems to suffer from frequent transfers to battery operation. Thus, exposing the critical load to possible failures due to unsmooth or unsuccessful transfer, or to battery failure, because of numerous battery discharges, which decrease drastically battery life time.

An Online UPS system, frequently called Double conversion system, first converts the AC input voltage to stabilized DC, which is then converted back to AC, to feed continuously the critical load, with pure stabilized sinusoidal output, coming either from the input line via AC/DC converter, or from batteries in case of power failure.

The described Online Double Conversion topology, although providing best protection reduces Single Phase UPS efficiency to about 90% compared to 97%, achieved with Line Interactive systems. The added running costs, associated with lower efficiency may add about 10% per year to initial UPS cost, if cooling costs are disregarded.

Recently Online UPS systems with Eco mode operating regime are offered by certain manufacturers also for low power single Phase Online systems. The Eco mode operation, if selected, enables an Online UPS to work directly from utility mains transferring automatically to Online operation in case of outage or excursion beyond set limits of the incoming AC line.

There is however a big difference between the Line Interactive UPS and Online system working in Eco mode regime. An Off line UPS system MUST work continuously from mains using the battery backup mode for short backup times, while an Online system CAN work continuously in both modes.

A Line Interactive UPS, will work on mains even in unstable grid environment with frequent transfers to battery as explained. An Online UPS in a similar environment will behave similarly if set to Eco mode. But here, most of the described hazards can be avoided by selecting the Double Conversion mode, in unstable grid season. Some UPS systems will automatically change the working regime to Online operation, even if Eco mode is selected, upon sensing unstable utility environment.

The gain associated with Eco mode is quite tempting. By offering both best protection and high efficiency, it is a kind of best of all worlds’ solution. UPS systems with Eco mode feature, grant in average about 5% power saving, just considering UPS efficiency. Taking in account also cooling requirements, close to 10 % of wasted power can be saved, decreasing UPS initial investment by almost 20% per year, compared to normal Online UPS operation.

Worthy of note, the Eco feature doesn’t normally have a price tag. Its implementation is mainly software based, and manufacturer’s preferred competitive attitude is not to increase UPS price. Online UPS Systems with Eco mode should therefore be preferred unless other considerations prevail.

Author Bio: Meir Portnoy is VP of UPSonNet , a leading source of information about Power Conversion and UPS systems. For more information about Eco mode systems, as well as other important features offered by UPS manufacturers visit UPSonNet website, for: On Line UPS:Price and Features Guide.

 

The Five Essentials of Tablet PCs

Tuesday, February 21st, 2012

Tablet computers are by no means a new concept. They have been there before. That it failed to click or carve out a niche for itself is a different story altogether. But it seems Tablets are back in news once more. And this time, it’s riding on the Apple wave. For the iPad that Apple has brought to the fore this Saturday has caught the fancy of everyone out there.

So let’s have a closer look at this upcoming platform and see what it can do for you.

A handheld device – It would be inappropriate to call them mini laptops. They are branded as “slates” by computer manufacturers and mainly contain touch screen with size ranging from 5 to 10 inches. Their touch interfaces enable you to watch movies, browse the web, flip through e-books or play games. Most of the releases would be during the second half of this year from HP and Dell stable, but the most important launch is that of the now already famous iPad from Apple that has already started its sales journey from the 3rd of April after being first formally announced in January.

Fulfilling the need. Apple CEO Steve Jobs, during the launch of tablet PC, sat relaxed on an armchair and browsed the web and viewed a film on the iPad. In his view, the primary intent of slates is to bridge the gap between Mac Book laptop and the iPhone. Basically tablet PCs allow mobile reach to Internet content like games, newspapers, and movies. Phil McKinney, HP CTO also quoted that there is an innovative category of PC devices for buyers now which can be attributed to the aggressive growth of touch screens and mobile Internet.

What a fun. If you are missing on having a keyboard and lots of functionality typical of a laptop, why worry. You still have a better choice of reading books and entertainment through Tablet. As customers using Tablets need to be engaged with better options, the challenges of improving the tablet PCs are enormous and most companies are innovating to stay ahead as quoted by Vira Chen, working for a Taiwan-based PC maker.

For the moving professionals. Despite being regarded for entertainment, you can still use it for business purpose like making presentations while you are traveling, say on a plane. It is also handy especially when you pass through security check in comparison to a heavy laptop with its accessories. David Milman, CEO of Rescuecom is quite confident about its business utility in future. The tablet PC is fragile if you handle it rough and hence it needs to improve in its built.

Niche utility. Quoting positively about the Tablet PC, Steve Rausch, director of Information services at Gibson General Hospital in Princeton, Ind, mentioned that their physician staff would be very satisfied to work with iPad, which is similar to iPhones in weight, comfort and utility if it would be operated with their software. Currently the device operates applications from Apple’s App store only and experts have the opinion that it is best targeted for specialized task like staff recording field data.

Author Bio: Markus Reily writes for the E-reader forum and the Good E-reader website about the latest E-reader News and is interested in technology.

 

IPAD the E-Reader Killer

Tuesday, February 21st, 2012

The iPad is the latest in the ‘i’ series of consumer electronic gadgets after the iPhone and the iPod Touch and one that promises to take things to a new high, both for its users as well as its maker Apple. Essentially a multifunctional device, the iPad can be both a PC as well as an e-reader at the same time. A whooping 140,000 apps can be availed of from the Apple App Store as of now and the figure is ever increasing. And if that’s not enough, the iPad is also compatible with all the apps present on the iPhone or the iPod Touch.

The e-reader news that’s slowly but surely gaining prominence is that the iPad will not only render e-readers obsolete but is also likely to bring in revolutionary changes in the entire publishing industry. To what extent e-readers are likely to be affected by the advent of the iPad is what this article is all about.

For starters, e-readers are handheld electronic devices which has the capability to simulate a conventional text book. The story of e-reader and e-reading started with Amazon launching its Kindle in November 2007. This prompted others to join the party so that what followed next is an onslaught of e-readers. Companies like Sony or Barnes & Noble soon became major players in this segment along with numerous other vendors both with established brand names or without. But, there’s no denying the fact that the monochrome e-readers were in reality a step back from the in vogue multi color and media capable laptops. However, e-readers continued to advance with time so that the e-readers of now are capable of connecting to the net and download e-books on its own. They now have HD resolution, the facility to customize text along with so much more.

This perhaps led to the demand for gadgets which can serve both as a laptop as well as an e-reader. E-Readers changed their features to include wireless net connectivity as well as higher screen resolution. Thus came into being a new breed of a hybrid between the e-reader and Laptop.

Apple happens to be one of the pioneering companies towards this development. iPad is one of its contributions to the continuous line of gadgets that work as a mobile communication device as well as an e-reader. It has a large 9.7-inch LED backlit screen and weighs just 680 gram. For connectivity, it comes with Wi-Fi and 3G features. It has various memory options ranging from 16, 32 to 64 GB which factors the price range from $499 to $829. It has an IPS multi touch screen and can be used for browsing or emailing. It can perform as an e-reader and has stupendous multimedia capabilities. With such amazing features, it’s all but certain that with iPad in the scene, the very existence of e-readers is at stake.

Now for some statistical facts – the Amazon’s Kindle is the largest selling e-reader in the US and is the reading device of choice for reading 32% of all e-books sold in the US. Also, every 5th book sold in US happens to be an e-book. All of this means a huge market for the iPad to drive into. Another immense advantage with the iPad is that while Kindle takes books to its screen, iPad can takes even periodicals and magazines in its folds. Sure e-reader prices are coming down while governments too are keen to promote e-readers with a view to save papers and hence trees. But then, even here iPads can do a far better job with its multifunctional capabilities and touchscreen display. In fact, at the Princeton University, a recent attempt to introduce kindles as an alternative to real books did not turn out to be encouraging for Amazon.

To further improve its appeal, Apple is in the process of setting up an iBook Stores in line with the iTunes. For books Apple has co-opted with publishing houses like Penguin, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan, and Hachette which are all big time book publishers.

The iPad is a marker to the future of today’s print media. What is today’s print content world be the online content of the morrow for downloading and reading depending on personal choice.

Author Bio: Markus Reily writes for the E-reader forum and the Good E-reader website about the latest E-reader News and is interested in technology.

 


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