The Geek’s Gift Guide

David BottManager, IT & Networks

St. Catharines Public Library

Gadgets & Gear for Your Geek

Gadgets: Memory

Memory Storage– Floppy disks are slow, low-capacity

(1.44 MB) and unreliable USB Thumb Drives

– Faster, higher capacity & more reliable– Replacing floppy disks and CD-R / DVD-R

New generation of USB drives– U3 and PortableApps.com– Applications run right from the drive

Digital Memory Cards– Cameras, MP3 Players, Phones

Compact Flash, SD Cards, MMC Portable USB Hard Drives

– USB 2.0, Firewire, Ethernet/NAS

USB Thumb Drive with U3

Stores data & applications– Office applications & documents– E-mail, browser & bookmarks– Passwords, anti-virus– Free & commercial applications

U3– Proprietary software pre-

installed on certain models

PortableApps.com– Free alternative that you can

install on any USB drive

Digital Cameras

Point-and-shoot Digital SLR Get that perfect shot

– Instantly preview every shot Edit & print your own digital

pictures Make digital movies Post pictures online

– Flickr.com– MyPhotoAlbum.com– Facebook.com– Weblogs (aka “blog”)

MP3 Players

Hottest MP3 Player on the market:– Apple iPod

“Shuffle” Redesigned “Nano” Redesigned “Classic” New “Touch” – based on the “iPhone”

interface

Digital Video Recorders & Players

Not your father’s VCR– Pause & rewind “live” TV

Appliances:– TiVo*, AppleTV– ExpressVu PVR– Cogeco DVR– Sony, Panasonic, Phillips

PC-Based:– MythTV,– Windows MCE

Portable– iPod, Archos– Cell phones– Sony PSP

GPS Devices

Global Positioning System– System of 24 GPS satellites– Device uses Trilateration

Various Implementations– Factory-installed devices for cars– After-market installations– Portable Units

Software & USB GPS Receiver– Laptops, Palm Pilots & iPAQs

PDA – Personal Digital Assistant

PocketPC, Palm Pilot & even Linux E-mail & Internet

Address Book Calendar Task List Applications

– Word processing– Spreadsheets

Media– Audio & Video

Digital Camera

Cell Phones - Convergence

One device to do it all! Krzr, Blackberry, iPhone

– Phone– Audio & Voice Recording– Video & Pictures– Internet– E-mail– PDA– Camera– Games

Wireless Technology

802.11 a/b/g/n– Computers, PDAs– WLAN - 30m up to 100m– 11 Mbps, 54 Mbps, 108 Mbps+– Similar technology to cordless phones

Bluetooth– Keyboards, mice, headsets, cell phones– PAN - 10m

CDMA & GSM– Cell phones– PC Cards (for laptops)– Must be in digital coverage

area for enhanced services– Service is very expensive

WiMAX – Wireless Internet Access– New broadband service offered by Bell/Rogers– Portable; can be used anywhere service is offered– $40 - $60 per month for up to 3 Mbps– Provide high-speed access in rural areas– Utilizes digital cell tower infrastructure to deliver

“last mile” connectivity– Capable of ranges up to 70 km or 70 Mbps**– Typically 10 km at 10 Mbps

Fun & Games - Handheld

For the serious gamers:– Sony PSP– Nintendo DS

Some devices have:– Built-in web-browsers– Wireless– Media Player for movies and music

Fun & Games - Console

Console-based systems:– Microsoft Xbox 360

(HD-DVD*)– Sony Playstation 3

(Blu-ray DVD)– Nintendo Wii

Some models have:– Built-in hard drives– Wireless access– Media center for movies and

music

High Definition TV (HDTV)

What is it?– Standard Definition

480 Lines 4:3 Image Ratio

– High Definition 720p (progressive) 1080i (interlaced) 1080p (progressive) 16:9 Image Ratio

What kind of TV do I need?

High Definition TV - Plasma

Plasma Television Advantages:

– Slim, light & generally cheaper than LCD in larger sizes

– True black and very good viewing angles

Disadvantages– Shorter lifespan than LCD– Phosphors lose luminosity

over time– Results in gradual decline of

picture quality– Screen burn-in; Susceptible

to reflection glare in bright rooms

– Run hotter than LCD

High Definition TV - LCD

LCD Television Advantages:

– Slim and light; very good viewing angles

– Does not suffer from screen burn-in

Disadvantages– Poor black levels– Slower response times;

results in image “ghosting” and blurring of fast images

– More expensive to make than plasma

High Definition TV - Projection

Projection Television– Different types:

Front vs. rear projection CRT, LCD and DLP Cheaper than LCD/Plasma CRT has poor viewing

angles; expensive to repair LCD has “screen door”

effect DLP is best

Getting High Definition Content

How Do I Get It?– Most HDTV sets are considered

“HD Ready”, which requires: Built-in HD Tuner CableCARD Set-top Box (STB)

– Free O-T-A (“Rabbit Ears”)– Cable (Cogeco, Shaw, Rogers)– Satellite (ExpressVu, StarChoice)– HD-DVD or Blu-ray DVD Player

Beta vs. VHS all over again Disney supports Blu-ray Universal supports HD-DVD

Questions?

This presentation can be downloaded from:

www.stcatharines.library.on.ca/content/present