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 110

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ilQQ]>f - - --

1120,131. 140,1
132,138,129

News B Build a better PC liB

E'liryth inil YOII nee d til IInDW . bo ut whit'. b~l!n lID ing Processors Ei8
Dn In the wo rld of tlchno logy liver the past month: Every OJrretlt Int~ and AMO chip tested, from £36 to £780
Apple announus the ,Pad , Nv1dia Optimus primed to transform MotherbDard s 78
laptops . Microsoft urweib next-generationWtndll'oo'lS 7 Phooe find the ptflect mothert>oard to match your processor,We tett
operating system · Coogle dropslntemet LGAnS, LGA 1156 and 4M3 model<;
Explorer 6 5Upport • Microsoft reveals QHia Ml mDry 8Ei
2010 pricing . First loot : Acer.6.s~ OlIO! With 4GB DDR2 and OOR3 kits. plus two 8GB OOR3 kiB. you'U
532G laptop . First Loot: Pallllsonic's 3D find the ptffe(:1 $l!t of RAM for your PC
plasma TVs · First Looi:::Call(l(1's EOS 5500 PCea.l. 9D
Whethet yOl.J want uttra-cheap, ultra-silent or a media centre
cast, we've got the mod~ for yOl.J
What's New 14 PSUs 9Ei
The ultimate resource lor product reviews and rating5. our Make sure your PC has enough pOWf:r and is running effiCiently
huge tWlat's Newsection brings you 1m- best new PC kit with one of these powet supplies

PCs & Laptops 14 Audio WindDws 71aptDps 100

We test two new Dells and If you 'rt a budding guitarist. Intel's Core i3 budget processor provides incrtdible performance
Packard Bell's latest netbook che<:k out lindy's oolliantly at low pOces, so thert's nellet been a better time to buy a new
simple USB gui tar lead with laptop, We len nine budget models
Handheld! 3D built-in §(lUnd Cilrd
We ~ our haods on AcH'S CDmpact digital cameras 110
lirst android-powered Storage 44 If you want a camera that you tan take anywhere, one of these
smartphone, the A1 Liquid We test the world's forst compact models will be perfect, Some even have HD video
Blu-ray-capilble NAS device modes. so there's no need to r:MTY a camcordet as well
Printers &
Scanners 32 Networ1c"s
Howe a look at the latest MFPs E...erything you need to put RIlcyl:11I your PC TIS
from Canon and Brother together a kas5le-free home Tim Danton shows you how to d~ of
your old tomputet and peripherals !ega.y,
Displays 34 ~- and how to wipe your data securely if
The BenQ G2222HO is our Components 48 you'rt giving it away
new favourite LCD monitor. We put three new An graphics
find out why cards through tl\@irpaces Gilt HD on your TV
With the World cup coming up, the time
Photography 3& Games 5D is right to get rtady for high definition.
ActlieVl! profmiol'lill -quatity We give our ~rdict on the Julian Prokaza shows you how to re<:eive
flash photography on a budget Bioshod and Mass Effect HO channels on your TV
in our flash gun roundup sequels
Hack to thll futurll
Video 38 Softwarll 52 Simon Edwards e~plains how hackers will
Philips' curvaceous new Can the latest version of be targeting us and our internet-connected
B(u-ray playet is the PaintShop Pro ta~e devices in the future, and gi~s some tips
best-looking to date Photoshop's editing crown? on how to stay safe online

COMPlJT'£RSHOI'PER . MAY 2010

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 HDWTD ... 128 Helpfile 148
Make Windows behave like a Mac 128 PC won't power on 148
COrMIrt videos 'Dr free 129 Processor running at slower speed 149
Create a coat of arms 130
131 Media Center keeps waking up 150
Transfer your old files to Windows 7
Develop RAW images 132 Windows keeps scanning hard disk 151
Use Device Manager 134 Remove duplicate Vista 152
Spring-clean your hard disk 135 Laptop taking too long to boot 153
How It Works 136 Printer only prints cyan 153
Simon Handby ~~plains how YOU' PC gets CD trad names
Office Help 154
Our resident exp-trt answers your softwa re queries
Web Expert 138
Matt Prest on helps you boost your website's traftie with some
essential sean;h engine optimisation (SEO) tips Competition 157
Win a Monitor AudloAirStream 10 intemet radio and more!
Multimedia Expert 140
Jim Martin shows you how to make stunning HOR image:-; using Mailbox 158
multiple shots Of a single RAW image Your monthly miS$ives of wit and wisdom

Linux Expert 142 Under Development 167

We show '100 how to edit vid@Oand(OIWlKtacamcorderto O.vid Robinson OeSj)<lirs as his custard's backup!> bum
your linUK c.omputtr
Rants & Raves 168
Security Expert 144 O;w!d Ludlow discovers the absurdity anti-piracy laws
Simon Edwards explains how 10 ~eep your computer wmpletely
frfl! 01 spam Zygote 170
Zygote is excited by a phone powefl!d by sugary drinks
Advanced Projects 146
David ludlow 5hows you how to confogure advanced BIOS I Classmeds 165
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 CONTENTS

Welcome! While it may tie true that scratch or upgrade you r existing PC, this labs wipe your hard disk so that you're not
build ing your own PC is no will help you find the right kit. accidentally giving away private data.
longer the cost -saving If you'd rather just buy a powerful Security is something we should all be
exercise it once was, doing computer, our laptop labs (page 100) will be interested in, as hacker!; target our computers
so has one main advantage: of interest. This month the majority of the to st eal financial and private infOfmation_Our
you can choo5t' high -quality computers use Intel's new Core i3 and is guide to the future of cybercrime (page 124)
compo ne nts that match ","ocessors. So. despit e prices starting at under will show you how threats are evolving arld
your needs. This month £500, you'll find that these mode ls are how hacker!; could soon be atlacldng
we're helping you lind that kit with our huge significantly laster than laptops that cost internet-connected TVs and
Build a Better PC lilbs, starting on page 68. £700 a coup le of months ago. Simply put, you smartphones as we ll as pcs.
We've reviewed every single proa>ssor get iocredible power on a tight budget.
currently avallable from AMO and Intel - a Whe n you buy a ne w computer it can be
total of 6S chips in 311- 12 motherboards, 12
cases, 12 memory kits (4GB and 8GB sets) and
hard to kllOw what to do with your old one.
Fortunate ly, o ur guide to recycling (page 116)
David LudlDw
12 power supply units. Whether you're is here to he lp. We'lI show you how to dispose Ed itor
looking to bu ild your own comp uter from 01 your old computer legally arld securely

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C.non £OS 10000 & IS- SSmm Edima. 3g P(XtaI;ll, Rout"
3G-62 1On
s.,.son ic M12D 850W
FSP Ev,""st Pro 1200W
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MAY 2010 • COMPUTER SHOPPER
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 Jobs on the attack at
Pple CEO Steili': Jobs anoounad the i~ad, One controve rsia l omission from the iPad's

A the firm's long-rumoured tablet device, in

February.Jobs said there is room lor a third
device be~n the smartp.hone and the
laptop, but it has to be better than either of them at
tasks such as web browsing.. email, photos, eOOoks
armoury is support for Adobe Flash. It 's been
dismissed by App le for the iPhone and Steve jobs
doesn't look as if he 's about to cave in.
Instead, jobs branded Adobe a "lazy" company
befo re going on to say that f lash was "buggy" and
and vid eos. Apple is one of the few companies that it was th e primary source of all Macs crashing.
capable of (",ating a new mar1<.et for the tablet . He also said the technology is doomed . HOWi':ver,
"Some thought that netbooks were the answer, whe n jobs demonstrated the iPad 's browsing prowess
but they a",n't bette r at anything." proclaimed Jobs during his speech, large areas of the websites shown
during t he announcement. displayed the familiar'plug-in missing' icon that
The iPad will be pOWi':r"@dbya 1GHzAppie A4 iPhone ust'rs have become accustomed to.
processor, whkh is based on ARM technology, On a more positive 'lOte, the fact that it 's running
but Jobs didn't elaborate on the chip's capabilities. iPhone OS means it has access to the App Store's
In terms of wire<j conrlectivity. there's a 3O-pin dod 140,000 applications right from the off. What's more,
connector, as well as headphone and microphon e you 'll be able to ust' apps that you 've already
sockets, The iPad indudes support for 802 .11n WiFi purchased for your iPhone or iPod Touch without
and Bluelooth 2.1. Some ma.dels will also have having to buy them aga in.
built-in 3G capabilities.
Data tariffs have yet to be announced for the UK.
In the US, there will be two options: a SlS (around
(10) per month package wit h lSOMB of data or
$30 (a round £19) for unlimited data . Neither dea l
has a contractual obligation.
The device weighs just 680g and is half an inch
thick, making it an incredibly slim machin e;we
expected nothing less from App le, however. Despite
its very slee k design, battery life hasn't b~ n
compromised. You'll typically get 10 hOlJrs in ust'
and over a month in standby mode.
It has a 9.7in capacitive touchscreen with
a high-quality IPS LCD panel, as well as a
built-in accelerometer. Apple considers the
iPad as much of a gaming device as the
iPhone and iPodTouch: you tilt the iPad to
control games in the same way.
J The interface is very similar to the
1 iPhone's arld the iPad runs an updated
~ vefsion of iPhone as, but Apple didn 't say
• whether some of the updates would be rolled
ii out to th e iPhone as well. be tilted when you're p~ylng g.ames

Nvidia poised to transform games

vidia has announce<! its new Optimus poWi':r-saving prime<! for su ccess: it 's designed not to get in the way of
N te\:hnology. which enables laptops using it to
switch between the integrated and discrete graphics
users. inst ead allovving them 10 focus on enjoyi ng their
compoting experience, but also saving precious ba ttery
chips without the user's knowledge. From the life in Ihe process.
preliminary testing we've done so far, it 's going to be a The premise is simple: the more powerful discrete
must-have te\:hnology it you want to play games or gra phil3 chip will be completely shut off unless it's
watch HD movies while you're 011 the move. require<! by a particular applica tion, and the laptop will
Although switchable graphics aren't new.Opt imus resort to using the more power-efficient integra ted
is undou btedly an exciting development. Previous graphil3 chip. As soon as Nvidia's software detects that
implementations have forced users to jump throogh an applica tion needs the power of its graphil3 processor.
more hoops than there are in a multi -pack of Hula it automatically springs into action.
Hoops and. as a result. most have either given up or The change is completely st'amless. and you won 't
been forced into helpline hell. notice anything untoward when you're using the laptop.
The earliest systems require<:! users to reboot their Nvidia has achieve<:! th is by rooting the display throogh
laptop every time tlley wanted to plilJ' a game or watch the integrate<! graphil3 chip even when the discrete
an HD movie in order to fire up the more powerful CPU is in use. Wh afs more, Nvi dia says th at it will be
graphil3 chip. Later versions allowed users 10 switch continually updating ilslisl of applications that requ ire
without rebooting, but any application using tile the GPU "a bi t like an anti-virus update" - in other
graphil3 card had to be dosed down, and the screen words, Ihey'll be automatic.
flickered while the change was happening. Users don't Ifs a classic case of "why hasn't someooe else done
want to jump through hoops, which is why Optimus is this before?" but ii 's laken a lot of work behind the

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 When it comes to providing excellent
audio equipment:

iPad launch
Apple said that apps will bt> specifically optimiSf'd for the i~ad
"TEUFEL DOESN'T
MESS AROUND!""
tha nks to a newly update d version of the iPho rle OS SDK, ~t e xisting
apps wi ll run either in a window pixel-lor-pixel or b<! loomed to 200 per
cent in full -screen mode.
Apple al50 announced the iBook StOfe, specifically for ,",Uing ebooks
for the iPad.Apple 's UK we bsite fails to mention it, bu t a n Apple
5"akesperson told us that "iBooks wTll be available in the UK, but th e
timing of that will not be anoouoced until th e iPad gOf'S on sale",
The iPad wil l come in 16, 32 and 64GB capacities with 01" without a
3G modem built in. UK pricing is)'i':t to be announced, but in the US the
WiFi -only model starts at $499 (aroun.d £320) fOf the 16GB model,
going up to $599 (around (387) and $699 (around £452) lor the 32GB
and 64GB mode ll;. With built-in 3G, prices increa 5e to $629, $729 and
$829 (around £4D7, £471 and £536). The WiFi-only model shou ld be
available in th e UK in late March, with 3G models following in ApriL

• Apple 's dispute with Fujitsu ove r the iPad name, which has been
ongoing since September 2009, shows no sign o f abating. Fujitsu has
been selling its own iPad, a ll,5OOWindows CE point-of-sale d evice
used in retail stores, since 2002,50 it would seem to be within its rights
TEUFEL CONCEPT B 200 USB
to claim ownership of the name.
However, fuj itsu d idn't apply for the iPad trademark until 2003. Its
» Compact stereo for PC/ Multimedia
application was bogged down and eventua lly listed as "abandoned" in » Two slim speakers plus a 120 watt integrated amplifier
April 2009 be<:ause a company calle d Mag-Te k had alre ady claime d the » Integrated USB soundcard
trademark rights to the name for its line of PIN -entry keypads.
Following th e abandonm e nt, Fujitsu asked the US Pat e nt and
» Two inputs plus a USB hub
Trademark Office (USPTO) to re-open the application because » Extremely natural playback quality
Mag-Te k's IPAD had nothing to do with Fujitsu's iPad.The Trademark OOTrustedRt vltwuom, '012009:
Office agreed and re-opened the application. In September, the - These are wort h """I")' .;"!!Ie peony-, Overall: 10/10
USPTO puhlishe d Fujitsu's application as part of the proce ss that
a llows other trademark holders to oppose its registration within a
set period of tim e. At that point, Apple said it wasn't happy about
Fujitsu's application and filed its own application using a sh e ll
company called IP Application Development.
While Fujitsu's claim seems va lid,Apple can't just storm in and TEUFEL CONCEPT E 400
take Fujitsu's pending trademark because it wants the name .
Instead, it's going to have to argue that iPad is too similar to iPod
» Absolute top class 5-l
while filing its own iPad trademark re gistration . At the same time, multimedia speakerl
it will have to convince the USPTO that it won't confuse peQ9le » SI.lbwooferwith sao WItts
looking for Mag-Tek's PIN -entry machines, neve r mind Si e mens' maximum performanct
iPad motor trademark orCocorlUt Grove 's iPad bras.
» 300 mm bass speaer
in bass reflex casing
» Five identical satellitts

!s and HD on the move »

with two-way technology
Recommended fo rrooms
up to 30 m2
scenes. Currently, the technology is available only in system s using Intel
proceSSOf5 and integrated g "'phics ch ipsets; th is includes the latest
Tt chnlt]D.com, OS/2009:
- Un;n h;bftN purcl1ase l«ommenDation-.
only
Core i3, i5 and i7 Arrandale chips, as well as the 4 Snm Core 2 Du o and
Atom N400-series prOCe5S0f5.
We have an Asus Ul 50vf laptop in for review a t the m omen t, which
Overall: 92.85% , Gold A... rd
£401*
elCl ern ally loolo;s very sim ilar to other Asus ULSO-series models. Of COUf5e.
the major changes are inside and we ORDER NOW!
~
saw over nine hoors of batterylile in
our initial testing, wIlich is similar to
what we'd expect from a laptQ9 with
only integrated graphics. We are
waiting for Asus to confirm that the
laptop Wf!: hOM' has the correct
specification. and plan to have a full
review of the ULSOvt in next
CLICK: TEUFEL.EU/UK fi\
month's Shopper .
CALL: 0049-30-30093039 ~

.. Asus's \JlSOvl "'iiiiii;._l

- ....

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laptop u .... J-Ivklia's
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MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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NEWS

Microsoft unveils new mobile

Windows operating system
M icrosolt has unveiled i15 next-generation
mobile phone operating system, the
Windows Phooe 7 ~ries. marking a dean break
On opening the ~ople hub, you 're greeled
with a tile view 01 the contacts you interact with
the most. Scrolling sidewa)'$ brings up your full
from the firm 's ageing Windows Mobile platform. contacts list, while scroWng sideways once again
The Windows Phone 7 Series operating system is opens a central place from which to post updates
an evolution of the company 's Zune HD to Facebook and Windows live, whi le also
software. It's a massive step forward for checking on your friends' latest posts.
Microsoft and one that could be a huge hit with The Pictures hub has similar functiona~ty,
consumers. but we're not so convinced about its where you C3n view the latest photos uploaded
appeal to businesses at the moment. by your friends. Currently,Windows Phone 7
For the fi~t time , Microsoft has integrated Series appears to be limited to sharing
Xbox Live and the Zune 's music and video information only over Facebook and Windows
capabilities together 00 a mobile phooe, but the live, but we're hoping that it will expand to cover
innovations go deeper than that. Microsoft CEO other social networks and photo-sharing 5elVices.
Steve BaUmer said he ' chaUenged " the team "to Microsoft has said that every Windows Phone 7
delivt'r a different kind 01 mobile e~perience·. The Series handset must have at least a five-
Windows Phone 7 SeriesOS ' maJ1.:s a turning megapixel C3mera built in.
point toward phones that truly reflect the speed UnderGames,you can connect with
of people's lives and their need to connect to your Xbox Live friends, play games, coUect
other people and all kinds of seamless achievements and view your gamer profile.
experiences," Ballmer claime<!. If Microsoft can deliver sufficient content
The interface is a complete departure from at decent prices, this could be a decent
Windows Mobile and even early versions of competitor to the iPhone and iPod
Windows Phone, and uses a very simple tiled Touch, which currently rule the roost when
home screen. These ti les are updated in real time, it comes to gaming on the move.
lee<!ing inrormation from various soull:es to The Music and Video hub is similar to the
deliver a more interactive experience. It's the first ZunI' HD 's interface, with a collection of content ... AI! Windows Phone 7 Series hMId<elS will shafe
major interface overhaul we've seen since Apple from your PC and a selection of online music a cOl"np¥allwly high minimum <!)eellication
introduce<! tile iPhooe operating system more 5elVices. Every Windows Phone 7 Series handset
than three years ago. will also indude a built-in FM radio transmitter. in one place, syncing over the air with the cloud.
You can create customised tiles - for a Mobile Outlook has had a massive overhaul This means you can read , e<!it and share
particular friend, for example - and the Windows and it's now much simpler to wol1< through high documents very easily: it looke<! pretty
Phone 7 as will deliver an up-to-date and volumes of email There are tabs lor all messages, compelling during the demo we saw.
readable view of that person 's latest pictures and unread messages. flagged messages and more. Our only reselVations are tha t Windows
status updates from popular social networks; it's TeKl is very crisp and dear and, 01 course, Phone 7 Series may not appeal to businesses
a handy tool for stalkers, that's lor sure. there 's Exchange support right out of the box. because of aU the 'extras'. Full Microsoft Office
Microsoft's Bing search engine will be directly It's Pfob<lbly the best mobile email applicati on support and one of (if not) the best mobile email
integrated into every Windows Phone 7 Series we've seen to date , applications we've seen are all well and good,
handset thanks to a dedicate<! hardware button Sadly, Windows Phone 7 Series uses Internet but will bUSinesses be able to disable portions
lor one-dick access to search, no matter where Explorer as its web browser, but all is not of the as that they don't want employees to
you are in the phone's interface.The search completely lost. Microsoft has built auto-zoom use? Microsoft wouldn't comment. 50 we'll
engine has been optimise<! to provide intent- capabilities into the browser, meaning that even have to wait to find out.
specific results depending on the type of query. in its default viewing mode the main body of App~cations that have been developed for
Windows Phone 7 achieves its simplicity text is completely re<KIable ,You can also loom in Windows Mobile aren't supported in Windows
through a series of Windows Phone hubs, which using the bu ilt-in multitouch gestures (which Phone 7 Series but, fran~ly, a clean brea k was
essentially mash up related content from the every handset will have) and pin web pages to probably the only way Microsoft could remove
web, applications and 5elVices into a single view. your home screen. all the pitfalls of ils old mobile phone as.
There are six hubs built into Windows Phone 7: Finally, the OHice hub brings a familiar Hopefully, with a decent SDK and developer-
People, Pictures, Games, Music andVideo, Microsoft Office experience to your mobile friendly tools, there should be a decent number
Marketplace and OHice. These are fairly phone. There's built-in support ror OHice, of applications available by the time the lirst
self-e.-planalory, but the implementa tion OneNOle and Sharepoinl WCHtspace, and it's aU handsets come to ma r'<:ellaler this year.
looks very slick, On that note, Microsoft said devices are
already being buill by a variety of manufacturers
and will start to appear in time forChristmaS.The
list of partners indudes Quakomm, LG , Sam sung.
GarminAsus. HTC , Dell, Sony Ericsson and
TOShiba. Microsoft won't be building or selling its
own phones, but it will ta~e more responsibility
for the phones that are released.
For starters, there'll be a strict minimum
hardware specification, which inclu des a
capacitive multitouch screen wilh at least four
points of touch, an accelerometer, a live-
megapi xel camera and an FM radio, and there'll
be no custom skins lor the as. This is to make
.. Too Musk and V>deo hub pulls together liles sure that anyone who buys a Windows Phone 7
Irom your PC as we ll as o",lne content Series handset gets a similar experience.

COMPIITER SHOPPER • MAY 2010

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 NEWS

Google Apps drops Internet IN BRIEF

SYMB1AN BECOMES

Explorer 6 support SYMB1AN~3TO

SUPPORT MUlTITOUCH
Nokia has announced
oogle h~s announced tha t ihApps luite. which The move comes ~fter Microsoft admitted that a
G includes Coogle Docs, will no 1000ge. support
Internet hplorer 6 ~nd other out-of-date browsers.
flaw in IE6 was used by Chinese hackers to attack
Google (News, Shopper 266), Since then, the backlash
Symblan"3, which look s to b~ a
massive improvement on
prev ious version s of the OS.
"In order to continue to improve our products and against Microsoft's browser has been harsh and even led Major new futures include
deliver more sophisticated features and performance, to both the French and German governments telling multltouch guture support, a
we are harnessing some of the latest improvements in users that Internet Explorer is insecure and that they new user Int~rface with multiple
web browser technology. This includes faster JavaScript should ditch it completely. home scree ns and widgets,
processing imd new standards such as HTM LS. A5 a Many users caned for a similar announcement from yisual multituic.inZ manazement
result, over the course of 2010, we wiU be phasing the UK government, and a petition on the Prime and a new media interface that
oul support for Internet Explorer 6.0 3S well as other Minister's Number 10 website caned for the looks slmlbr to Apple's Cover
older browser<; that are not supported by their own govemment to drop Sllpport for Internet Explorer6.0. flow view on the iPhone.
manufacturers," !><lid the search giant in a statement. The petition, which had more than 6,000 signatures at
From 1 March 2010. support for older browsers will the time 01 press, argues Ihat IE6 "has some security HP'SANDROIO
be phased out from Google Docs and Google Sites. flaws that leave users vulnerable" and that the UK TOUCHSCREEN
Users of old browsers will lind Ihat these applications should follow the examples set by France and Germany. NETBOOK REVEALED
may have a higher kllency in use or may not wol1< The attacks on Google seemed to raise awareness HP has announced the AlrUfe
property.Google Apps will continue to work correctly in about Intemet Explorer 6.0's shoncomings, as the latest 100, a netbook runn ing Android
IE 7, Firelox 3.0, Google Chrome 4.0 and Salari 3.0, as web browser market-share ligures showed that Internet that will b. sold excluslyely
well as newer versions of these browsers, Explorer 8 managed to overtake IE6 in Januaf)'. throuzh 0 •. Th~ device uses
Quak omm's Snapdragon
processor Instnd ofthe more
wid ely used Intel Atom chip.
From what we've see n so
Your Starter for 2010: new far, the AirUfe 100 appears to
USe I modIfied "trslon of the
chassis HP employs for its

Office prices revealed u lstlng range of Atom , nd

Windows·b>osed netbooks.

fREETOMTOM LIVE fOR

M icrosoft has announced its pricing plan forOftice
2010, saying that it hopes to "make it easier
than ever before" for consumers to get hold 01 the
eKtra, as the boxed version has a recommended retail
price of £240. The Product Key Card is a slightly easier
pill to swallow at £190, but it 's still a £100 upgrade that
A YEAR fOR ALL NEW
CUSTOMERS
right version of Office lor their needs. MicrosoltWorks adds only Ou tlook 2010.01 course, if you 're using TomTom hiS , nnounced that
has been replaced with Ollice Starter 201O,I'o'hich is Exchange or need Outlook's functionality, there isn't aUnewTomTom XL Live and Go
completely I~ and will be bundled with new PCs. really a viable altemative. _50 satnl YSwill come with I
Ollice Starter includes lightweight versions of Finally, Oftice Professional 2010 will retail at a year's free Live subscrIption
Word and Excel and will provide users with "basic breathtaking £430 for the boxed copy and £300 lor a unt il Easter. TomTom Live's
productivity features". Microsoft hasn't detailed Product Key Card. This is undoubtedly a lot of money se rvices Includ e HD t raffk,
exactly what will be included in Oftice Starter 2010, considering the cont inually improving free altematives safety alerts, the latest fuel
but we expect them to be slightly more functional such as Google Docs and OpenOffice. prices and aCcess to Google 's
than the cloud-based Oftice services the company However, Ollice Professional 2010 is Microsoft's local search service.The offer
launched last year. OHice Starter users will be able to complete productivity suite and indudes Word 2010, will save buyers from having to
upgrade to the full version of Ollice 2010 at any time. Excel 2010, PowerPoint 2010, OneNote 2010, Outlook pay th e ES-per-month
The company has introduced a system called 2010, Publisher 2010 and Access 2010, as well as access subscription for the first year.
Product Key Cards for Ollice 2010. This gives users a to 'premium technicalsupporl' and the Office Web
key to unlock the version of Office Apps. Ultimately, that's a lot of software for NOKIA AND INTEL
2010 pre -installed on a new PC , and is the money, but most consumers that MERGE SOFTWARE
likely to result in more PC makers need this kind of power will be part 01 a PLATfORM TO fORM
installing OHice as standard on their larger organisation that relies on MEEGO
machines, because they know they'll Microsoft'sVolume Licensing. Noki a and Intel have announced
have the opportunity to up-sell their On that note, Microsoft hasn't that th eir Mn mo and Mob1l1n
customers to a full version. announced its Volume Licensing price operating systems have been
The wsic version ofOHice 2010, plans lor Office 2010 yet. but there 's mu ged to create MeeGo,1
Home and Student, will cost £ 110 still plenty of time ahead of the suite's Linu.-based OS supportinZ
indudingVAT for the boxed copy and scheduled June release. multlp" hardware archltecturu
£90 indudingVAT for a Product Key If you're unsure whether it's wonh and device types, including
Card. Office Home and Student 2010 the upgrade, Microsoft is running a free mobile phones, netbooks,
indudesWord 2010, Excel 2010, beta program so you can give it a tf)' t.blets, connected TVs and
PowerPoint 2010, OneNote 2010 and ahead of its launch. Head over to In_vehicle Infotainment systems.
access to the OHice Web Apps. Microsoft 's Office 2010 home page at The first devices are upected
OHice Home and Business 2010 ... Bo x dever: the basic "erslon www.miCfo50[t.com/o[fice/20IO/en/ later thi s yea r.
adds Outlook 2010, which costs £130 of Office will retail for £110 de/~ult, aspx for more information,

Click: dell.co.uk Call: 0844 444 3242

Sam·9pm Weekdays, 9am-6pm Saturdays, 10am'Spm Sundays

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 NEWS

(@"imltttOb
Acer Aspire One 532G
<E~r
A has shown 011 the lirst netbook to use
Nvidia 's next-genefiltion Ion graphia; chip.
The original Ion chipset tfilnslormed a netbook
the 532G, however, is Nvidia 's Ion 2 gfilphics chip.
which hasn 't been officially announced. Sefore
Acer's reps realised what we were doing. we
from a device that was 5Uitable for little more than managed to run a quick benchmari; using
browsing the web and writing emails and Word 30Mark03. It scored 3.049 points, which is about
documents into something powerful enough lor the same as the original Ion chip. so performance
gaming and HD video. doesn't look to have improved much.
Acer's Aspire One 532G is, in many ways, similar With that said, we weren 't expecting to ~
to the earlier S32h, which WilS the company's first major performance increilses.lnsteild we were
Intel PineView (Atom N450) netbook. The keyboard hoping to ~ a continued focus on improving
and tfilekpad have a lairly positive action. and the power consumption and efficiency using Nvidia's
l,024x600 display's viewing angles are good. Optimus technology (~News, page 8). Ion
The ports down the right- and left-hand edges was ultimately released to raise the 'good
of the machine have changed slightly. The 532G has enough' bar and it doesn't need to be filised
just two USB ports. compared to the three on the again at the moment. We 'Uleam more
532h (one on each side). The third USB port has about Ion 2 later this month and bring you
been replaced with an HOMI port. enabling you to more information soon.
connect the 532G to yourTV to watch HO videos. Understandably, Acer hasn't announced
Inside the case. the 532G is very similar to the pricing or availability lor the Aspire One 532G. ... Ace .. , Aspl,e One 5320 u.... Nvidia',Ion
532h. There 's an Atom N450 processor, 1GB of RAM but we'll bring you those details as soon as we 2 9'lIPhics, but we noticed little performance
and a 250GB hard drive. The headline inclusion for get our hands on a review modeL Impro~ment In a quick te$t

Panasonic's 30 plasma lVs

t's been two ye~rs in the making. but we Two pairs 01 shutter glasses are included
I finally got our hands on Panasonic's 3D TVs at
its p,ess conference in Germany in february.
with each TV (additional pairs cost £100). These
have been better synchronised with the frames
The 65in model (Viefil TX-P6SVT20) wit! to reduce eye strain. Instead of switching
cost around £4.000 when it launches later thiS between each eye immediately. a slight pause
year, while the 50in model (TX-PSOVT20) is eliminates any light leakage from the screen.
expected to cost £2.000. Panasonic says this is Both TVs have Viera Cast - Panasonic"s web
roughly £400 more than a non-3D TV. portal - which now includes video content from
The newTVs have improved image quality DailyMotion and allows you to make video calls
and power consumption. one of the problems to Skype users when you connect the optional
with plasma technology. They use around 40 per USS webcilm.They also have built-in Freesa! HD
cent less power than o'dinary plasma TVs. while and Freeview tuners. although not Freeview HO.
& Comlr.g out 01 ~ $Creen near vou: Panasonlc's
'30 high -speed drive technology' means that One other improvement is the audio return
3D TV. may be e ~pen.lve. but they ..... a lot .... the common problem of slightly blurry 3D channel. which a!lows sound to pass back to an
power than conventional plasma sets images has been much reduced. AV receiver via a standard HOMI ubiI' .

(0"@jIr:t:jb
Canon EOS 5500
he newest addition to Canon's popular line 01 (which doesn't change the still image capture
T consumer OSLRs is the EOS SSOO.1t has an
lS-megapixel APS -C CMOS sensor, 10S0p HD
settings) while recording video.
The 550D'5 body has gone through a number
video recording with lull manual control and of changes. the biggest of which is the new 3in
Canon's new 63-point iCFL metering system, first SCfE'i'n.Canon has changed the ratio from 4:3 to
seen on the semi-professional (OS 70. 3:2. but left the resolution at 1.024.000 pixels.
The 550D's sensor has an ISO range from 100 which allows the user to view 100 per cent
to 6400, expandable to 12S00. The highlight. captured images without the letterbox effect. It ... Canon's EOS 550D Is a consumer D5U! with a
though , is the improvement to the auto-ISO atso means thaI the interface has had to undergo very capable HD video mode
system, which lets you select a maximum ISO to a number 01 changes in the LiveViewfMovie and
ensure images have a minimum 01 noise. playbad modes. with the information now ilvailable by the time you read this with an RRP
As well as capturing still images. the EOS 5S00 overtaid on top. Following user feedback, the 01 £799 lor the SSOD IS-55 IS kit . However,
records video in 1080p full HD at 30, 25 and buttons have also been tweaked and are now Canon's pricing is a good deal higher than the
241ps, and also offers nop at 60 and 50lps.You much bigger and more intuitive. high street, $0 we"!1 wait to hear from retailers
can take control of exposure settings, depth of Canon's EOS SSOO is compiltible with and evaluate image quality before milking any
field and degree 01 motion blur, as well as all Canon EF and U -S lenses, as well as the judgements on this camefil. We're especiaUy
independent highlight tone priority control EX-series Speedlite flash units. It should be excited about its video Cilpabilities. though.

MAY 2010 · COMPVl"ER~

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THIS MONTH PACKARD BELL
For the best computing experience, a good dot s2
monitor is just as important as a powerful
processor. LCD screens may all look very *****
£300 inc VAT
From www.pcworld.co.uk
similar at first glance, but the best are far
superior. Our new favourite, the low-cost Packard Bell's dot s2 is a sleek, stylish netbook
that uses the new Intel Atom N4S0 proceswr.
BenQ G2222HD (on page 34), is an ideal This has an integrated graphics chip. which
upgrade for anyone with an aging display. should help reduce power consumption.The
battery life of eight hours in our light usage
If you want to upgrade your PC's test is great, but not quite the best we've seen.
components, our labs on page 68 covers It currently comes in red or black. although
our review sample is the forthcoming white
most of your needs. To play games, vef5ion, Despite its svelte profile, the dot s2 felt
well-built, with little flex in the lid and a firm
though, you'll need a graphics card. We keyboard panel, It's built from a number of
test three new ATI models on page 48. ma terials, with a glossy, patterned lid, a silver
keyboard panel and a metallic front edge,
You may prefer to buy a new PC, rather We were especially impressed by the hinge
than building one. If so, you have two assembly. which did a good job of hiding the
bulky 4400mAH battery but also let us tilt the
new options from Dell. The Dell Zinc HD lid back by around 160°, making it great lor use
(page 20) is compact and stylish, with a in cramped spaces, such as an economy airline
seal. The power button and a wireless indicator
great specification; while the Dell are built into either end of the assembly,
Inspiron One is an aU-in-one model with We were pleasantly surprised by the
keyboard , which provides good feedback and
a touchscreen display (page 24) . travel but has quite a stiff action. The ke)'$
Finally, we test a selection of budget have llat tops an d very little space between
them, but they're large enough to prevent
flash guns on page 37. A good flash gun, too many errOf5. and we found the dot s2
combined with an off-camera adaptor comfortable to type on. While Dell has made
some compromises in the layout. we were
such as the iShoot PT-04C (on page 20), happy to find a double-height Enter key and a
can help you achieve professional- large right Shift key, and the Control key is in
the proper position at the bottom-left comer.
looking portraits. The touchpad has a vertical scrolling area
and supports multitouch gestures (although
you'd be hard pressed to use them in such a
small space), but its see-saw button is stiH and
Seth Barton has ~ttle traveL It's set right on the edge of the
~se, so your thumb rests easily on it. but as it's
Reviews Editor so narrow, your thumb can brush the pad and
Ciluse the cursor to jump.
sl!th@ccmputl!rshcppl!rccuk

This month What 's New Cont ents

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... .......
PCSystems&laptops page14 Pnnt~rs&Stann~rs page3i? PhlJtlJgraphy page 36
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COMPVTER SHOPPER .. MA Y ~010

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 PC SYSTEMS & LAPTOPS

~ ~ r ~r"···"",~
~.... ..?'/.:/
.~ . .--: /-
,

/ '~j
'/ /.

The screen is blight, with an e~en backlight, but has Also inclu ded is.n Xsync dongle for easy file
a blue cast that can ma~e images feel cold. Vertical transfers bEtween the dot s2 an d other PCs.The
~iewing angles are w;,ry tight, and Ihe glossy screen software is already installed on the dot s2, so you
reflects ovemead lighting. $0 it's not simply plug the dongle into the
ideal lor an office environment.The SUMMARY netboo~ , plug the other end into
integrated graphics chip isn't quite VERDICT A ~.u t ifully d ~.ign<"<l. your PC , and you can instantly
powerful enough to pl<!y HD content _ n-buHt "", book witt> on .... coll..,t start transferring files or Outlook
- evenYooTube's nop content is .~rd , dec..,t batte ry li ~ and .om~ data bEtween them. As the dot s2
u .. fuI .-xtr.. is Ii~ely to bE a 5eCond computer,
jerky - atthough that's hardly a big
problem given the netbook's
l ,024x600-resolution display. 3D
games are out 01 the question.
NETIIOOK l.66GH. ln,el"" om N4SO. 1GB
RAM,l5OGB diole. Inte( GMA 31 SO gr.phia,
10.lin w i<l<->c,_ l CO, Wlnd""" 1 St."..,
bundling this simple tool is a
stroke of geniu~
It's these little extras that set the
FAQ
ZS,Z58"85mm, 1.3<g.one-Y'" RTB
The dot 52 comes with some dot s2 apart from other netbooks, I needa computer for a
useful extras. A full copy of
" " mini)'
POWER CONSUMPTION ('IW " • ..&y. 9W and combined with the comfortable Q technically cha llenged
Photoshop Elements 7 is installed lor ide, 15W .eli .... keyboard, bright screen and relative. What should I buy?
PAATCOOE l U,BGNOO,01 5
touching up your snaps. Although the OU.... LS w...w.pochrdboll.co.uk
excellent build quality, make it a
dot 52's Atom processor isn't up to
serious photo-editing. ii's a handy
app~cation for organising photos and
PERfORMANCE
compelling choice. Its eight-hour
battery life is respectable and at just
BOO, it's a little cheaper than the
A We're often asked this
question, as Shopper
readers seem to end up acting

- .-
milking quid edits - such as getting Windows 7 vef5ion of Sam sung's as unofficial t ech support for
rid 01 red-eye, boosting colour excellent Nl40. friends and family. If you 're
saturation or cropping. Bar/)' de la Rosa really sick of being pho ned on a
Sunday evening to be asked
wlty someone else's email isn't
wondng, you should ched out
the Alex laptop on page 27. It's
qu ite expensive, though, with a
£9.99 monthly f~.
Cheape r opt ions indude
buying a standard ~C and
sett ing up Windows to boot
dir&tly into a web browser.
Aud,o
c.:.... 11_1a
~G..hc.blt_
I!?tl«' ' -/ lO
pageQ
..
***-..*
,.,.,.,.,.
Networks page 46 Software 6- Games page 50 From here, the user can have
access, through bookmarks, to
web-based applications such as
,.,.-..,.,. onli ne storage, webmail and
,...,.eoc-......
""'''''' 1_\ 100 Dol"
MGI! ... **-..,. photo hosting.This will make it
...... lHE/I';O E.... _ ......*** hard for them t o mes s anything

_.w
. . . . , . _ .... <'900
Sri>II """CIe> • .oGI

...... "...
,.* ... *,.
......
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••••
CompDnents page4.il up,as they won't see the
Windows desktop and won't be
installing any applications,
Storage page 44 We're intrigued by the id ea
of a foolproof PC and will tackle
it in detail in a future issue.

Barry de la Rasa
Laptops and
handhelds expert

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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PC SYSTEMS & LAPTOPS

LENOVO
LINDY Idea Pad U450p
4 Port USB
2.0 In Desk ***
£576 inc VAT
From www.ilgs.co.uk
Hub
lenovo's new ldeaPad U4SOp is a slimline laptop with
****
£20 inc VAT
a funky texture d pattern on the lid 3nd ~eyboard
paneLThe styling may be a little busy for
From www.lindy.co.uk
some people but it 's certainly eye-catching.
lindy's cleverly designed In and its build quality feels excellent.At 2kg, it's
Desk USB Hub slots in to the at the limit of our definition of an ultra-portable. The
ho le found in most offke Oem battery lile of lour-and-a-half hour5 i5 di:;<lppointing for
for routing cables. The central a laptop with an ultra-low Voltage processor, but it's
core (onLlining the lour USB under5tandable when you consider th .. t the U4SOp has 4GB of RAM is 5Cored only 43 overall in our
ports and the captive USB plug a dedicated graphics card. which draws more power benchmarl:$. This makes it twice as powerful as a
is removab~. so you «In still than the integrated chips found in all the CULV laptops netbook. and its two cores mean it copes better with
thread chunky cables such as we'~ seen to date. multiple applications.The generous SOOGB hard disk
your PC's kettle power lead The 14;n 1.366x768 display's fluorescent backlight was good to see.
through the hole.A gentle is also less power efficient than the lEO variety. Colour5 The keyboard has a light action, with a crisp cut-oH
touch is required, as it's easy to are rich and natural but contrast is below par. and the point at the top 01 the keystroke that gives superb
snap the plastic dips holding screen's glossy fini sh creates reflections from overhead feedback. The touchpad is good too, and although it's
tile core in place. lights. Tight ~rtical viewing angles exacerbate this. as not as large as some. we found it responsive and
Unfortunately, the Hub lias you can't always place the screen at the best angle. smooth. III two large, separate buttons have a light
only a si ngle USB plug instead The dedicated graphics chip action and a decent amount 01
of two plugs or the option for a is an unusual inclusion in an SUMMARY travel. Small, metallic buttons on
VEROICT Wtth. wriou. mi. of
power adaptor, so it may have ultra -portable. The AT! HD 4330 the right side 01 the keyboard
compae! duign, OVD drive and
trouble wi th power hungry
peripherals. It's also expensive,
card isn't very fast though. 5Coring
lS.2fps in Call of Duty 4. Turning
ded ic.oted g r~ b. the U450p i,. i,.d control the volume, and a small
button above the power button lell
of aIllrade. but • maSler of none
but if you have a duttered the resolution down to 1.024x768 ULTRA_POIITAIU LAPTOP 1.3GH. lnt <l
you boot into Lenovo's OneKey
desk, the In Desk Hub is a and turning oH anti-aliasing helped Cor. 2 Duo sunoo. 4GB AAM. 500GB dili<. backup and recovery software.
must~h.lve. it to a barely playable 24.7fps.lt ATI Mob<Uty R.o.on HO 43~ gtilph>cs , The U4SOp is a cute little laptop
Alan Lu won't run the latest action games ovo. /·RW .01., 14in wi d~ lCO. that's light enough lor travening but
PAAT COOE 42966 Wor>dow1 7 Hom. ~iOOl 12 -~t, Zl<g.
at playable lrame rates, but the ).4<34Dx2l8mm. "",, ·yur RTS w..,..nty
lacks the long battery life of a
DlT.o.ILS wwwJind)o.<Q.uI<
U4SOp is capable 01 running older POWE~ CONSUMPTION lW naMby, decent netbook or many other
games and more sedate genres. 13W i<le. ~W oct " . ultra -portables. However, with its
such as role-playing games. PAAT Coo( M21l5UK dedicated graphics chip and built-in
LINDY The dedicated graphics card can OVO dri~. it's more like a compact
4 Port USB also be used to speed up video general-purpose laptop than a
encoding and some image-editing typical ultra-portable. If you're
2.0 Cable Hub software, but the 13GHz Core 2 looking for a small but capable
****
£11 inc VAT
Duo SU7300(ULV processor isn 't
built for speed. Combined with the
laptop. this could fit the bill.
Barry de la Rosa
From .Ii
co.uk
Lindy's compact Cable Hub is
designed for laptops. It
provides three USB ports am! a
EDITOR'S CHOICE
mini USB cable lor connecting
devices such as smartphooes
and digital cameras, It feels
very sturdy and well made.
A port on the side lets you
conned: a power supply for
power hungry peripherals,
although this isn't supplied. We
*****
£278 includi ng VAT
From www.simply..sus.oom

Asus's new Eee Sox looks almost identical to

J NETTOI' 1.6GH. In..l """" 3)0.
Wor>dow1 7 Hom< ~i um. 2GB
prefer the design of Sandberg's previous models, but it has been thoroughly RAM , 2SOGS hord df!l<. Nvidi.
almost identica l USB Hub for ove.-hauled inside. It ha5 a dual-core Atom Cor",,,~ , 222. 171lx27mm.

laptop (seeWhan N~. processor and Nvidia 's Ion chipset. which can • two·y.., coUtct·on<!·re!OOl
POWER CONSUMPTION lW
'''''''''n!y
Shopper 26S). which has the play HO video and provides plenty of ports.
OIondby.l1W >cI1., J<jW .ctjyo
same number of ports, but can
conned: to your laptop using
Six USB ports are provided for adding
peripherals and storage devices, and it includes I PAAT (01)1; (S 1012·WOO!Il
0£l1o.llS WWW..." ..C"",

6z
"0
two USB plugs instead of just 802.11n for f..st wireless networking. As. well as a FULL REVIlW o..c 2009
one to provide extra power, It VGA outpu t, there's an HOMI port lor co nnecting I
doesn't feel as wet! made and the EB 1012 to an HDTV. •
is a bit shorter. but it costs just The dual-core Atom 330 and 2GB of RAM
•
£1 more from www.sandberg. rea lly ma~e a difference in everyday use, with -. --
it. It's the better portable hub. much snappier Windows performance; it scored 50 per
Alan lu cent higher in our benchmarks than most nettops. the b..d 01 a monitor, creating a compact all·in-one
Windows XI' still ships on many nettops , but the Pc. Small, qu~t and ~t powerfu l enough for HD
'''RT CODE 42836 EB1012 uses the far more sophisticated Windows 7. movies andWindow:s 7. it's the combina tion 01
O[UJLS www.lir><iy,<o.ui<
About the size 01a hardback novel. the EB 1012 smart hardware design and a dual-core processor
comes wi th aVESA mount and so can be mounted on that edges it ahead 01 the competitiorl.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~010

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 PC SYSTEMS & LAPTOPS

ADVENT BYTE SIZE

Centurion CB E1 401 SOLAR
TECHNOLOGY
**
£699 includiog VAT
From www.pcworld .co.uk
INTERNATIONAL
Freeloader
Advent's Centurion CBEI401 is a gaming PC with an Pica
overdoded. water-cooled Phenom II X2 processor imd
an ATI Radeon HD 5750 graphics card. The water-
cooling has allowed Advent to increase the processor's
*****
inc VAT
£17
From www_solartech nology.
speed from 3.1GHz to 3.4GHz, but it could easily be co,uk
pushed further with a little twea~ing in the BIOS. It
also reduces the amount 01 noise. and even sitting next The PieD is a battery pack that
to the Centurion, you 're only aware of a low whisper. you can charge using sun~ght.
The dual-core Phenom is actually a rather cheap noi~ further. Advent h~s covered this vent with a dear Its pane l takes 10 hours to
processor, and disappointing at this price. It scored well sheet on the inside. We wonder why Advent decided to charge the BOOmAh battery,
in our image-editing test, where Advent's overdocking have a window in the lirst pl<!ce. While most of the wMe the mains takes on ly
significantly boosted the PC's single-core performance, large cables in the case have been tidily bundled, many three f'oOurs. You can also
but fell down on the video-encoding test, which unsightly smaller wires criss-cross the case. charge it from a laptop.
favour.; triple - and quad -core CPUs.lls overall score 01 Except for the water-cooling system, there's little of II you need to lop up your
92 doesn't compare very well with the scores from last interest inside the case. The motherboard is a dated phoroe or other portable
month's £700 PCs (see Labs, Shop{>f'r 266). model with two PS/2 ports and a parallel port instead gadgel's charge when you're
The HD 5750 is one of our current favoorite of the more modem eSATA, FireWire and digital audio away from a power socket,
graphics cards, and produced respeclable scores in our OUlp!JIS. The lack of spare PCI sloll is incre<:iible, and the Pieo is a flexible wily to
gaming benchmal1<S.The ability to Advent's decision to fill one of make sure that you never run
play Crysis at over 3011'5 means this SUMMARY the available slots with a wireless out of power. It's also one of
PC will t.:lke on any modem PC game VERDICT A _1I.,j~<igned ca •• and card beggars belief. Serious online the best-value battery packs
at high resolutions and detail settings, quiet w.t .... cooling can'l make yp for garners wouldn't be 5een dead we've seen ilnd a
and should last a couple of year.; u... poor chole. of mou...rboard, and using a WiFi connection, and the potential life-saver.
it's mucf, 100 oxpens'" slot would have been better filled
belore you need to upgrade. Barry de la Rosa
The Centurion has a bold design, DESKTOfI PC .t.MD _ II XZ S50 Block with a decent sound card.
Ed ; l ~ Wlodows 1 Hom. Pt.", .. ", M-bll. In the end, the Centurion DETAILS ............
and although we could do without the
4GSAAM , 15OGShorddi>l<. tGSATI~ sot.rtoc/"nology.co, u~
large illuminated AMD and Advent I'D S750.DVD+I-1\W .I- ot DVD-AAM.
CBEI401 is simply far too
logos, we appreciated the protruding
top panel wilh its large, backlil power
button and memory card slots. The
SISI<2<lS.S4-Imm.OM-Y'" RTS ~""ty
POWEA CONSUMPTION ZW <Ufldby,
100101' i<le. 131101' KIm
PARTCODli 6S~
expensive, It doesn 't (Orne with a
monitor or speaker.;, and yet it
costs the same as oor Best Buy
-P_.
rubber tray behind this is an ideal Yoyotech Warbird i650cs (see
place to leave any e>ctemaillard
DETAILS ...........,pcworId.co.uk
page 23}.That PC achieved a far ROCCAT
drives, wh ile another panel houses higher score in our benchmarks, Arva
four USB ports. an eSATA port and lias a better selection of ports
audio jacks.
The left side of the case has a
and comes with 7.15UITOund
sound and a 22in monitor.
***
inc VAT
E46
From www.oll'erdockers.
window with a vent buitt in, To reduce Barry de la Rosa co_uk

This compact gaming keyboard

fits a full keyboard into a liny
frame by merging the arrow
and page nav igalion keys with
the number pad.You switch
SAMSUNG between the two by hitting the
R520 Mode key.
The lunction keys are
*****
inc VAT
E460
built into the top edge 01 the
Cil5e, ilnd there are three
From www.dabs.com
programmaMe buttons.
GENEIlAl-f'URI'OSE lAPTOI' lntti Reinforted by a metal sheet,
We reviewed the R520 in Shopper 262.
Cor. <O\IoT6soo. 3Ga RAM,~a
but this newer model comes with di>i<. lnttlGM" . SOOM HDarophk",
the ANO can withstand game
Windows 7. With its glossy bli>ck lid ~nd DVO. / -RW +I-ot, IS.6inwidfl<f.... rage. With comfortilble keys
silver interna l design, the RS20 certainly LCD, 2.$:&- 31x376x2S6mm, that have excellent feedback,
looks a class apart, and you wouldn't OM-y• ., coUect-Or>d-... tu," """""I)' this is a de<ent gaming
PART COOf: NP.R52O-)Ml-4U(
guess that it's a budget model. DET"U www... m.u..l!.co..* keybo.ard. Logitech's Desktop
The IS.6in screen is bright and FUllREVIEW M., 2010 Wave is a better all-round
vibrant thanks to the lEO choice, though.
back1ight. The
integrated Inte l
graphics chipset can't
.. Barry de Iii RO$il
'''RTCOOE RQC- 12-5O(I
orr.o.u ............ro<oot.O<i
handle the latest 3D
games, but playing HD vide(l is no the RS20 is st ill more than adequate for office
problem. The keyboard actioo is light. with just ilnd internet applications. Its b~ttery lasted iln
enough resistance to provide excellent feedback for excellent 4hrs 17mins in our light usage test.
touch-typists. A!; an old model stock is running low. but it's a
The R520 is among the last of the Core 2 bargain at this price, and a great budget altema tive to a
Duo-based laptops, new Core i3 models are filster, but new Core i3 mode l (see page l00).

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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PC SYSTEMS & LAPTOPS

DELL
Inspiron Zino HD
*****
£540 including VAT
From De ll 0844 4 44 5818

An increasing num~r 01 Dell 's pes have

colourful designs. an d Ihe Zino HD is no
exception. There 's a range 01 attractive coloors
and patterns. while the fest of the lino's design
is both slee~ and curvaceous. Although it's not
quite as small as Apple's Mac mini. it 's still tiny,
and also whisper-quiet. me~~y, A built-in receiver
It's generously equippe<llor a mini PC at this would have been most welcome.
price, The optical drive can play but nol write The Zino is the first PC we've seen that
Btu-ray discs. HD video playback was smooth comes equippe<l with AMD'sAthlon 64 X2
thanks to the Radeon HD 4330 graphics chip. 3250e processor. It's a low-voltage model with a use a USB model. Wireless networking and a
althoogh this isn't powerful enoogh lor playing TOP 01 just 22W. Paired with 4GB of RAM, it memory card reader are already built in.
modem 30 games. There are no surround-soond managed an overaU score of 3S in our The lino is reasonably easy to upgrade for a
outputs other than the HDMI port. while the benchmarks, ma~ing it roughly equrvalent to an mini PC.Adding memory is a simple maner of
integrated sound chip supports only DVD- Intel (ULV processor designed for ultra-portable unscrewing the bottom panel to access the two
quality surround soond. This laptops. It 's faster than an RAM slots. atlhough you'd have to discard the
means you won't get the SUMMARY Atom-powered nettop. so it's two existing modules. The top panel pops off
best possible audio quality V£kOICT We '~rely see . PC that's more than quick enough for quite easily. but undemeath is a series 01 screws
from Blu-ray movies. and no bol h good value ...,d greal.looklng, bUI everyday office and internet and a plastic panel that should be remo~d
support for standards such this 8Iu-'''Y-equipped mini ' C scores tasks, but it's not ideal for careluUy as it feels rather fragile. Beneath all this
as DoIbyTrue HD. In both ""Iegone. more demanding woO;: such as is the lTB hard disk, which is a standard 3'hin
One of the four USB MINI PC AMD Allton 64 Xl 3<50.. Wlr><lowo vKleo enooding or ~rious SATA II desktop model Desklop disks are
pot'ts 011 the rear is occupied 7 Hom. !'remi"",, 4GB RfoM. HS ~ disk, image editing. cheaper than the 2'hin laptop disks usually
512MBAn MobRily R.adeon liD .)30, lound in mini PCs. so replacing it with ~n even
by the re<:eiver for the The huge HS hard disk
DVD+'_RW +/-0, SO-ROM.
included wireless keyboard 8S.198.200mm ...... -y ... ' RlB .... ".nly should be large enough lor aU bigger disk in future shooldn't be expensrve.
and mouse. Both of these POWER CONSUMPTION lW .t¥>dby. laW but the biggest media libraries, Dell's Zino HD doesn't have the fastest
are comfonable to use. Odlo, sew Klift while a pair of eSATA ports processor but the rest of the specification is
PART CooE DRZliOO2
Annoyingly. for a PC that allows you to ad d last generous, with lois of memory. a big hard disk
looks ideal for Irving room external hard disk<; for more and a Blu-ray drive, There are cheaper HD-capa ble
use, there's no media centre PERFORMANCE storage. No TV tuners are PCs, but none as compact. good-looking and
remote included. You could included, but these are cheap qu iet as the Zino.Only a few niggles. such as the
add one later. but the and can easily be added later. lack of HD audio output or a built-in remote
receiver will use up another There's no room inside for a control receiver. keep it from winning an award.
USB pot't and look a tad PO tuner, so yoo'U have to Alan Lv

EDITOR'S CHOICE
MESH
EdgelS Gamer CS
£19 inc VAT
From
**** ';
£699 inc VAT
From
' ~i:;'
't
Professional photographers use Mesh's £dgel5 is aimed at t!lose who wan t a
PocketWiI<lrd transceivers to laptop with bags 01 power. It's very fast for a
wirelessly trigger off-camera laptop at this price. with an Intel Core 2 OI.lo
flashes. but with prices from P8700 processor and 4GB of RAM. It managed a
f2{)(). they're too expensive for decent 77 overall in our 20 benchmari:s.
most ama teurs. The iSlloot The ATI Radeon HD 4650 graphics card
PT-OK fits in a standard helped it to achieve a frame rate of 39.4fps
!lotshoe and worked perfectly in oor CaU of Du ty 4 test. so you'll be
in our tens.lt·s RF-based, and able to play modem games at
worked through walls over reasonab le detail settings. The
dinances of up to 10 metres. Edgel5's 15.6in display is bright
Build quality could be and colourful. with a slight blue While we were happy to find four
belter. especially when cast to whites. USB ports. three of them are
accessing the transmitter's It's not as stylish as laptops from inconvenien tly situated on the front
battery compartment. but at big-name vendors. but the black edge of the case, where cables may get
this price)'<lu could just buy plastic case doesn't look bad. The in the way. Confusingly, there's a
two and keep one as a backup. keyboard flexes a little under switch that should toggle wireless but
Ben Pitt pressure, t!lough. and there 's little instead controls Bluetooth. Despi te
feed bad , for touch-typists. The some quirks. the EdgelS is a good
touchpad is large and responsive. choice for t!lose who wan t to play the
with large buttons. odd game on their laptop.

COMPUTER SHOPPER • MA Y~010

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Find more magazines at www.magazinesdownload.com
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 PC SYSTEMS & LAPTOPS

PC NEXTDAY
Zoostorm 72-430l Core
i3 Advanced HD PC
**
£700 including VAT
From www.p cnex tday.co.uk

Intel"s Core i3 processOl"5 provide plenty of

computing power lor a relati~ly low price. so
they're a great choice for a mid-priced system.
PC NeKtday"s f700 Z005torm 72-4301 uses just
such a processor. and should ha~ been a
balance<! PC that coold handle m05t computing
needs. Unfortunately. it quidly became obvious
that PC Nextday had made some odd choices
with the system·s specification. ma~e direct dis<:-to-dis<: copies. However. this The motherboard already hasVGA. OVI and
Instead 01 a dedicate<! graphics card. the PC isn·t ideally 5uite<!lor Blu-ray playback. HDMI outputs. so you (an connect it to an HD
72-4301 uses the (ore i3's graphics processor. Althoogh the integrated graphics can handle TV or add a second monitor.
which is integrated on the chip. It may be a Blu-ray-quality HD video. the 19in wides<:reen For audio output it has only the standard
clever technical arrangement monitor has a maximum three rear l5mm audio porl5. which support 5.1
that helps keep power SUMMARY resolution of just 1,440x900. surroond sound using the motherboard's Intel
consumption down. but it's vtRDICT o.<;>le a ~rfut budg~ 50 it can't display aU the HD audio processor. No 5/PDIF digital ootputs
not particularly powerful. Its ~ i3 proc ... .,... Ihi. sySl .... i. poor detail in l080p video. The are provided. which is disappointing on a
fine lor everyday office tasks value thank..< 10 ",me d..ckledly monitor is bright and e~nly modern Pc. There are si x USB ports on the back
and even a bit of photo or muddl.d compon.nt choic.. backlit but it doesn't have and two more al the front.
video editing. but it simply otSKTOP I'C Imo! w e i3· S40. Wir>dows 7 wide viewing angles. The Core i3 -54O is the laster of the two
C<ln't handle 3D games. It Hom. lffmi...., 6~· bi t . .eGB RAM. 750GB The microATX-sized case available chips. and runs at 3.06GHz.lt did well
manage<! a meagre 8Alps in .....d disl<. ao-RQM. OVO./·IIW ./· Ol. looks drab but is compact and in 01.1' usual benchmark tests. scoring 106
OVO./· RW +/·Dl 19"w>descrNn LCD.
Call 01 Duty 4 and cravvled sturdy. There's some room tor ovefilli. There·s 4GB of RAM filted. which is
37bl98x4Z6mm. one y.. r <OIloct ond
through Crysis at 3.1fps. ",turn w... "'nty exparnion but not a great plenty for most purposes.
Gaming isn·t important POWERCONSUMPT1ON ZW " . ...,"~ I deal. with just one Iree 3Y,in This system suffers from a la<:k of purpose -
to e~ryone. thougfl. and this i"e. 16(lW ' Clive bay. The large 7SOG B hard it"s too expensive for an office workstation. but
PAATCOOE Bn·O)1
PC has some great disk is welcome but not its monitor and graphics chipset aren't good
multimedia features. The hugely impressive. The Intel enoogh for multimedia or gaming purposes. last
most conspicuous features DHS5T( motherboard has month.Yoyotech·s outstanding Waroird i650
are its two disc dri~s - a just one PCl and one PCI-E (see Editor·s Choice. below) showed that you
DVD-RW and a Blu-ray drive x16 slot. plus two PCI-E xl can get a far better PC for £7OO. The Zoostorm
- so yoo could watch a 51015. one of which is blocked 72-4301 looks overpriced in comparison.
movie while buming a CO. or il you instaR a graphics card. Kilt Orph.:mides

EDITOR'S CHOICE
YOYOTECH
Warbird i650cs
***** "N
£700 inc VAT
From Yoyotech 0871 855 3380
***
£52 In c VAT
From www.ilgs.co.uk

Yoyotech·sWarbird i6SO is insanely powerful. For Thi~ $(llar-powered Bluetooth

£7OO. you get a dual-core Core is proceS50r. handsfree kit is the size of a
overclocked from 3.2GHz to 4GHz. with an cigarette packet. It comes with
appropriately massive he<ll5ink to keep it (001. a suction mount for a car
I! did incredibly well in our applfcation windscreen. and a clip lor
benchmarks. and it's graphics performance is similarly hooking it on to a sun visor.
quick thanks to a powerful ATI Racleon HD 5750 card. favourite P55 boards. I! has fewer PCI-{ x16 slots The solCHAT charges in 18
The 2lin lG Flatron W21S4TQ monitor has a and only supports dual graphics cards usingATi"s hours on a sunny day. or three
native resolution of 1.680xl .0SO.We CrossfireX standard. but it's still an over USB.A cigarette lighter
would have preferred a fuR HD impressive board with an excellent adaptor is also included.
Wir>dows 7 _ Pfemium&4· bit .
1.920xl.080 model. but tltis reputation for stable overdocking. Pairing the solCHAT with
.eGB RAM. SOOGB ~ disk. 1GB ~T I
monitor's image was bright with Ilcadoon HO 5150.0VO+/·1IW >/-QL The Warbird i650 has all the card yoor phone is easy. It supports
accurate colours and generally U .. w i d<>Cf"~ lCO. one ·y.... US slots you'lI need to make upgrade~ voke dialling if your pflone
pleasing to the eye. Although the wommty and plenty 01 room for adding drives does. and works with call
ViewSonk wireless keyboard and POWER CONSUMPT1O/'I lW to supplement the OVO writer and waiting. A caller 10 lunction
mouse set is nothing remarkab~ . its
"'rdoy.81W ""e.
P","" CODE 1'C68098
IS3W iKlr..
500GB hard disk. There are foor free says the name 01 the caller. At
perfectly functional. I
,"'" '~W 'e"'
2010 5ATA ports. th ree spare SV.in bays and this price. though. it's too
We were impressed to find an six Iree 3Y.in bays-In sflort. there·s expensive to re<:ommend.
Aws P7PSSO LE motherboard inside. nothing to fault on this system - it's Jim Martin
This is a cut-down version 01 the simply the best perlorming £7OO PC OETALli 1OWW.5<""'Oo.<om

Asus P7PSSO Deluxe. one of our we've ever reviewed.

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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PC SYSTEMS & LAPTOPS

BYTE SIZE DELL

ALTEC LANSING Inspiron One 19 Touch
Orbit USB
***
£39 inc VAT
***
£549 including VAT
From Dell 0844 444 5818
From www.amazoo.co.uk
We can see the attraction of all-in -one PCs, as they"re
The Oroit USB is ~ neilter than the tower. monitor ilnd cable me5S 01 iI
portable speaker typical desktop. The downside is that they cost a lot
for laptops. The more than equivalently specified desktop PCs. a fact
captive USB cable often not helped by the inclusion 01 a pricier
provides power and touchscreen display.
a umnection for the Dell's Inspiron One has such a touchscreen. It uses Although compact. it's a fully leiltured PC with six
built-in sound card. Sadly, infra-red te<hnology. with sensors around the edge of USB ports, FireWire. a memory card reader, integrated
there's no 3.Smm input for the display that detert the positioo 01 your fingers. It's webcam an d a OVO writer. Gigilbit Ethernet is present,
MP3 players. It feels sturdy and fairly accurate, but not as pin -point or as responsive as but the built-in wireless suppons only S02.11b/g.
well made and the USB cable the capacitativt' screens used 00 many smilrtphones. Inside is a respectable 2.6GHz Intel ~ntium Dual Core
handily winds around the rear. We're still not convinced that a touchscreen is much £5300 and 4GB of RAM. I! scored 68 overall in our
In use. a flip out sta nd props use on a desktop PC. as there's very little software benchmarks. so it"s easily powerful enough lor
the Orbit up at an angle. available to make the most 01 it. day -to-day tasks. A 500GB hard disk provides plenty 01
It sou nds louder than most Atouchscreen may be handy if you want to storage. Bear in mind. though. that you'll get a far
laptop speakers. but ii's ooly a wall-mount the Inspiron.lt hasVESA mounting points better spe<ified desktop PC lor the same money.
mollO speaker, and not stereo. for this on the rear. and feels sturdy. It's compact too. The Intel X4500 chipset isn't up to playing games.
which makes everything sound and with a built-in power supply. although playing HO quality video is
fla t.vocals and instruments The 01"11' resembles the crop only limited by the low resolution 01
SUMMA~Y
sound muddy ilnd bass is wea k. of touchscreen nettops we saw the display. The integrated 2W
Veho's Mimi wire leu stereQ \fDIDlCT Thi. compact !o«cllKl"Hn PC
last year, a short- ~ved fad led by speakers aren't up to much, lacking
i5nl fat.lly lI.wed, t.Jt II'. horo to fi nd
speakers (see page 43) are a Asus's Eel' Top ETl60Z (see a good aU·in-on. at I hl. ptlce. YOu'U
volume an d bass.
similar price and size, and their What"s New, Shopper 252). We gel bett.r ....Iu. from . desktop PC The Inspiron One isn't a bad PC,
superior audio quality makes found its all-black plastic casing a ALL-IN-ONE PI: Im.1 ~tioo> Duol Cor.
but it's not desirable. which we think
them a better buy. bit dull, and the chunky bezel ESlOO. W.ndow. T Hom< P,-<m;u m )l· bl!. is part of the point of a good
Alan Lu aroun d the displily doeso't help. 4GB RAM. SOOGB lin d d tsk.lnt.t GMA all-in-ooe.To get something decent.
Most modem desktop PCs, X4S00. DVO>/·RW +/.01.. lSI'>", you'll have to spend more.We·d
PART COOf E3S~ widescre"" l CO louchK,"". .l86,4]hl()4.
and the pricier aU-in-one models, recommend the Asus Eee Top
DETAJ.5 ......,.,..• lted.o"""lI_co.uk """"),Hf c<>l!.-ct·. nd ...<Ium w;",....,ty
have 22in displays - usually with POWEIICONSUMPT)ON 3W <landby. ET2203T (see labs, Shopper 266). It
Full HO resolutions. The One's 32W id l•. 61W oct""
P4IIT COOE 0001004
costs £214 more. but you get a lot for
lB'lIin display feels cramped in your money: a quicker processor. a
MACALLY comparison. with a relatively 21.6in full HD display. a HOMI inptlt
PowerlinkS small l,366x768 resolution. lor connerting external devices . basic
We've no quality complaints. gaming capability and a Blu-ray drive
***
£2 2 inc VAT
though, thanks to vibrant colours.
reasonable brightness and
lor HD movies, plus it looks like a
supermodel in comparison.
From http://froogle.
Ibitstore.com consistent backlighting. Seth Barton

The PowerlinkB is
a sma ll external
battery pack for
iPhones and iPods.l t
EDITOR'S CHOICE
conne<ts to the dock
conne<tor on all iPhones and
SAMSUNG
aU modem iPods apart from N140
the Shuffle. The Powerlin~8's
mini USB port is used for
charging and also acts as a
*****
£249 inc VAT
NETIOO~ Int.t AI"." N210. 1GB
RAM. 160GB disk. Inl.t GM A 950
&1OfIhic<, 10.l in 1.024, 600 l CO.
From www.morecomputers.com
pass- th rough port. connerting 1.2I<g. 38,273,188 ........ one·y..,.
coll.-ct·.nd·"tum ",.""nty
your Apple gadget to your The N140 is one 01 Samsung'~ latest PAUCOOE NH~HO·('\'03L1K
comptlter - so you don 't have netbooks.lts specifications are DlTAILli www",",m<IJnK.<O.uI:
to carry both thiS and the practically identica l to those of the
cable with you. company"s excellent N120 (see Labs.
When we tested it with a Shopper 260). with the addition 01
fifth gel"ll'ration iPod, the S02.11n wireless I"II'IWornng for faster
PoweriinkS added an WiFi connertions.
imprenivt' 11 hours of battery The N140 has the same
life wilen playing music. Sadly. supert. battery life 01 The price listed here is for a
it obscures the headphone pon eight-and-a-half hours whi te Nl40withWindowsXP
on models wIlere it"s next to as the N120. a bright installed. and at this price it's a
the dod (OOl"ll'ctor. namely screen and a large. bargain. A model with Windows 7
iPod Naoos andTolKhes, so it"s comfortable keyboard. Home Premium and a 250GB hard
not suitable lor aU models. The casing leels sturdy. and has a disk is also available lor £311 including
Alan Lu fancy new chrome trim and glossy ~ d. VAT (from www.oyyy.co.uk).lfyoucan
PA~TCOOE POWE RLINKS Un li ~e the N120. the N140's screen has a matte afford the la tter. we recommend buying it.
DETAIlS WWW.mo«lly·.Ufop<!.com
finish. which helps to reduce glare and reile<tions but either will make a line travelling companion
under bright lighting. lor tight wmputing ta5h.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~010

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 ,' : "
, -"' : ' ,.', II " -, ~. I \- r -,:t.;.~
ff~f,,', '-'~'~"~., ,~" "
... ... 1- ,
! ': " •
~ I I I •
r- 1 - 1_ 1"_\ ,

Litepad N890 & N890 Premium

Super-lightweight Netbook
Mia brings you Social Networking on the move. Weighing in at a Super-lite 900 grams · and with a profile of less than 26mm
• the Utepad N890 slips effortlessly Into any backpack or handbag.

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www.mlo.com explore more

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 HAIR

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 PC SYSTEMS & LAPTOPS

BROADBAND COMPUTER CO
Alex
***
Laptop: £400 inc VAT; Service: £9.99 per mon th inc VAT
From Bro adba nd Co mput er Co 0845 149 7000

You know how it goes: you help a relative buy a they're s;!fe if the
PC for their simple computing needs and then computer crashes. We'd
you spend the rest of your IiiI' providing free hiI~ preferred this proceS$
technical support. If that's a familiar story. to be automatiC, especially
Broadband Computer Co's Alex may be of gi~n the Alex's target user.
interesl. lt's a laptop with an operating system The system suffers from
that's designed to be incredibly 'MS}' 10 use, and some fairly hefty limitations
comes with lelephooe support lor £9.99 per at the moment. There 's very
month , Alternatively,you can pay f2S per little hardware support and
month to add broadband. It's you won't get any hardware
subject to a 3GB monthly fair-use to work that needs proprietary
policy, which is line for normal use. dri~rs. such as an iPod.
The operating system is a Linux Broadband Computer Co currently
distribution that's been heavily modified to lists a single printer on its website,
ma~e it easier to use. Just as importantly, it's although we'~ been told that any printer that
locked down so that ii's harder to break. To supports Linu x should work.
reduce the chances 01 problems e~n further, The laptop bundled with the \elYice costs
Alex is updated and managed centrally, so the £400 and is a Clevo M760T.This plain-looking
user doesn't have to worry about applying either application , so you can't work on two lS.4in model is lamiliar to us. as many other
patche!; or important security updates. spreadsheets at once, for example. manulacturers use this chassis lor their
AcceS$ing the Alex is a ~nle strange, as Photo editing is similarly simplistic, offering own -brand models. It'S a little underpowered
you must lirst plug a USB Latchkey into the basic colour, brightness and contrast cOlTection, by today 's standards, with a 1.66GHz Celeron
computer. The interlace will be a bit 01 a shock as well as cropping. red -eye removal and image T1600 dual-core proceS$or and only 1GB 01
to regular Windows users, as Alex hils been straightening. Images can be organised into RAM. After we'd installed Windows on the laptop
designed to keep things as simple as possible. albums, and you can add captions. to run our benchmarks, it achieve<i an o~rall
There 's no Start menu or task bar. Windows The web browser olfers all the leatures you 'd 5Core of 41, which shovvs that this is a pretty
can't be resized or move<i and you can only use expect to lind on a modem browser, induding slow machine. However, it's more than enough
the applications that come preinstalled.While multiple tabs. It comes with a range 01 plug-ins to run Alex and it<; basic set 01 applications. The
most operating systems have bright, large for view ing most content, but we found that the battery life 01 two hours 59 minutes is a little
unlabelled icons, Alex takes the PC back to Flash plug-i n didn 't work with Adobe's Flash disappointing. and means that this PC is only
basics and uses buttons with dear text labels. It checker website. There are also no online video good enough lor use around the home.
might not look as pretty as, say, Windows 7, but plug-ins. and you can't install any. We've been The large screen means there's room for a
it's instantly easier to understand. told that Alex will be updated with a beller Flash decent keyboard, and each key is tull -size,
The main wekome ween displays RSS plug-in and support lor online video. making it comfortable to type on. We found that
feeds (My News), a calendar with a list 01 the One clever thing about Alex is its error feedback was excellent. so typing long
day's ~nts, and notes. On the right-hand side messages. For example. if you don't ha~ an documents was no problem. The large, responsi~
01 the desktop there are quick-launch icons to internet connection and you open the brovvser. touchpad makes mouse movement<; easy too.
the only applications that can be used on Alex. you get a message that says, "Alex is not The widescreen display has a resolution of
As there's no taskbar and you can't Alt-Tab connected to the intemet and is therefore 1,280x800, which is plenty for the applications
between applications, these icons are also used unable to browse the web. Please check your that Alex provides, particularly as application
to switch between Windows. When an broadband connection: windows can't be resized or mo~d around the
application is open, it fills the entire screen and While the applications are really easy to use, 5Creen.lmage quality is pretty good, and we
there's no way to move a window or resize it. the operating system has some strange quirks. found that the screen was e~nly lit and
The available applications consist 01 a web For starters, you can't double -dick some it ems to produced bright, vibrant colours. Viewing angles
browser, email client (each Alex is sold with an perform an action. For example, double-dicking a were good , too, so you won 't ha~ to position
@alexli~.com account automatically) , office time slot in the calendar doesn't automatically the laptop carelully to get the best picture.
(Word and EKCel clones open a window to add a new Alex is the first computer we've seen that
only). photo editor, SUMMARY appointment: instead, you really makes things simple, but it's almost too
contact<; manager (called VERDICT It< , impli<tic aw<oach will have to click the Add event simplistic in many ways, and the supplied laptop
~ople), and a video and suit tho .. wfth very light """ds. but . button. Oddly. keyboard short is expensive lor its specification. Worst of all is
music player. No other Window, PC i•• ~tt~r....alu ~ and fa, cut<; for copy and paste work the monthly subscription cost, as we doubt
applications can be mon: ft.xlblo: option in all applications except lor anyone will get their money's worth of technical
installed, although the the web browser. Here, it's support from it, and the entire operating system
provided programs co~r IMot c, lo<on T16QO, lGa!\AM, 16008 disk. impossible to copy text from a shuts down if you don't pay.
most bases and should Intot eMA4SOOMHD Klilphics. OVO.I·RW web page, although you can II you're buying a computer for a novice
.1·OL.15...... v.1~ LC D , Uno.t . (.-IU .) ,
suffice lor simple use. copy text from the browser's and don't mind helping them out. you can
jh3S9.~68m'" ~.6Icg. - ' )IUI" RTa
The Word and E)((el address bar. get a better-specified Windows PC for less and
programs provide a similar
""""'1)1 Your files and documents set it up to boot into a web browser to use
POWER CONSUMPTION 8W ".ndby,
range of leatures to Google 3ZW i<l•. 41Woct".
PAltT COOE AIo>c
are stored locally on the free Googl~ applications (such as Googledocs,
Docs.They have fewer computer's 250GB hard disk, Gmai! and Picasa). This way you 'll avoid having
leatures and options than which is rather small by to pay any monthly charges. Howe~r, il you
Microsoft Ollice, but PERFORMANCE today's standards. Alex also don't want to spend your life handing out
enough lor simple home comes with MyVault , which technical support and you know someone who
use. Annoyingly, you can 't provides 10GB of online has very modest computing needs, Alex could
open more than one storage.This can be used to s;!ve you a lot 01 hassle.
document at a time in back up important files 50 that David Ludlow

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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 '- e ' ",

---
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 en ACER

c Liq uid
****
£314 inc VAT

...J From www.handtec.co.uk

Acer first got into the smartphone market in our tests we lound coloors to ~ natural

W last year, alter it acquired handset maker

E-ten, with a dun range of Windows
Mobile devices that failed to excite us.
and contrast excellent as long as the
lighting was strong. A battery life 01 over
21 hours is impressive lor a smartphone.

::I: The Liquid is a complete reboot it loob

entirely unli~e the po-evious models. and il
runs Google's Android mobile oper~ting
system. Inside is a 768MHz Snapdragon processor
but once you factor in WiFi and 3G usage.
you·n stin need to charge it every night.
Acer has gone for a light touch when
customising Android. However, it has installed two

C - not the lGHz model as seen in Google's own

Nexus One - tha t is easily fast enough to make
the liquid a pleasure to use.
widgets on the edges 01 the left and right panes 01 the
home screen. These let yoollick through a caroosel 01
content: the left widget can mow videos. photos and

Z On paper, the liquid is about the same size and music, while the right widget is dedicated to

«
~ight as the iPhone. HTes Hero and the Nexus One. bookmarks. Unfortunately. there·s no ea~ way to
although in re~lity it feels a lillie chunkier. 115 looks import the lalter from your desktop browser. Social
may not appeal to everyone - our review model aggregation - the ability to import contacts from
divided opin ions with its 5ta11< two-tone design. Black multiple services and merge them - is also absent.
and red models are also available. and the build quality Acer has bundled the DocumentsToGo document
feels confidently sturdy. The screen is bright and dear, viewer, which can be upgraded for S15 (about f9) to

::I: but doesn ·t have the sleek oleophobic fingerprint-

resistant coating found on the Hero or iPhone.
There·s a dedica ted camera button, a volume roc~er
and a 3.Smm headphone j ~ck. as
edit most Office documents.There·s a media seJWr so
yoo can stream multimedia from your phone over your
home network, plus copies 01 RoadSync·s Calendar and
Mail apps. Acer will offer a free

FAQ wen as a mini -USB port lor charging

and data trimsfer. The power button
is located conveniently on the left
SUMMARY
VERDICT A _ 1I·b<J111 phon~ wilh I f.'1
proce.. or aM 100d b~tlery li~. b<JI
upgrade to Android 2.1 and there·s
an app to ched lor updates.
With great battery life and
Can I u se m y ph o ne as edge of the phone. which handily snappy performance. the Liquid
Q a modem for my PC? doobles as a screen-lock button. The
Androkll .6 aM m o lod of sodol
shows promise, but ils basic
other standard Android controls are SMARTPHONE GSM 89J1'JOO/1800/19OO. implementation of the Android
First, check you're on a made up of touch-sensitive buttons interface holds it back. When Acer
A data plan that su p ~rts
tet hering (see W1Iat's Ne w,
beneath the screen. which we found
to be very responsive .
3G 9001190011100. Edg<. HSOfiO.. HSUPiO..
loSin 0l8O><80O rosolull"" lCD. S·m.gopi ~
""me,... 2'i6MB ""'''lIf. Bw.t ooth. WiFi.
releases its update to Android 2.1.
which includes features such as
USB<"""",,,Mty. S "",-,ro· 1.lhl.....
Shopper 266). Android pho rte Our only qualm with the 16.1 d'Y'· "orwJby. 1ISx(;4xHmm. ns& social aggregation. the liquid wiU
owne rs have a nu mt.er of hardware is the lack of a lens cover PART cOO£ ~ ([RA I_UK be a great all-roond package. Also it
o ptions, bu t t he safest w ay is for the S-megapi><l!1 camera. which isn·t currently available on a
to use the popu lar ~da Ne l means that if you aren't careful your PERFORMANCE monthly UK contract, so you'H have
applicat ion - also available for photos win end up looking smeared 111# to buy the phone up front.
BiadBerry. Windows Mo bile, and fuzzy. There's no flash either, but Barry de la R05a
iPhone and Pa lmOS. In its 'ree
form t his blods secure w eb
traffic, so you won 't be able to
check Gma il or use secure
shopping sites. Yoo can pay
aDtrOR1SiIGlH.OICE
$29 (£18) for a full version.
If you own an iPhone 3G or
NAVMAN AMAZON
3G 5, it couldn't be easier. In S303D Kindle 2
Sett ings, go t o Genera l,
Network arld set Int e rnet
Te t hering o n, then connect your
****
£66 inc VAT *****
£159 inc VAT
From www.handtec.co.uk From www.amazon.com
PC via US B or Bluetooth.
Windows Mobile users should The 530 3D 5atnav has a simple interface and The iPhone of t he eBook reader
b<! able to use the na tive provides trustworthy rou te information. It comes mar~et, the Kindle 2 operates on
Internet Sharing. but jf t his has with ma ps that cover the UK and Ireklnd. but you get Amazon's proprietary wireless network, which lets
b<!en disabled you can get only one year of Iree speed you browse and buy books directly from the device.
W MWi fiRoul er for {ZO (£1 7), camera alerts. Despite its It"s a weU...cJes igned eReader. whkh remembers
which turns your pho n.e into a low price, this satnav cuts your place in a book ami has the ability to add
Wifi hotspot. The latest version no important co rners. annotations and look up words from an integrated
of Palm's Wet.oS, powering the making the 530 3D a dictio nary. With lAG8 of storage space you're
Palm Pre Plus, also offers this goo<! choice for the unlikely to run out of room for your digital library.
capability. Symbian users occasional travt'ller although we'd have preferred to have a memory
should consider using who doesn't want to ca rd reader. too.
Joi kuSpot, currently € 9 (£8). shel l out for fea tures The Kind le 2 is great EREADER 61n mono dis~.
they"1I never use. value. but note that 1.,",B imemol memo<)'.
MOi I.Am;t ron ~ ZW .
Amazon loeb you into
Barry de la Rasa ST~NO~LONl 5AfflAV }'hin. }2Ox240 d i!.ploy. int<g"'t «i
its po-oprietary servke.
TXT . BooIc lorm.t~
nSx9x2{)}mm. 2a9s
lllptops and S<RFstortll ",Ith In'lantFb.... 1''''~ Mr. Novr'o .... SmonsT ZOO8
handhelds expert softw..... UK .rw:l I'......,. mop. making it hard to 'ARTCOOE BOO1ST96lC
PART COOE S30 D DETAILS ....-ww......."on.,om DU~IL5 WWW.iOffi'ron.wm
change your eReader
fUU REVIEW M., ~009 fUU REVIEW F<b 2010
at a later da te.

II Find more magazines at www.magazinesdownload.com

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~010
 HANDHELDS

LG
InTouch Max GW620
***
Free on £22-per-month, IS-month contract
From www.ylrginmoblle.com
£270 inc VAT SIM·free
from www.play.com

The InTouch Max GW620 is LC's first Android those in the other services. However. this
phone, and has a large slide-oot QWERTY process isn't automatic - you have to merge
keyboard and a customised user interface, your contacts manua!!y - and it supports only
although you have a choke of switching these three services. It's no match for either
between LG's interface and the standard HTC 's Sense or Motorola's Motoblur software,
Android home screen. LC's interfa<E~ diHers only In fact, we were disappointed to find that the large and far enough apan to make hitting them
slightly at lirst glance, adding" 5fTlaliloolb<lr GW620 uses Android 1.5 rather than the more easy. but they're rather stiff,The screen only
acroS$ the bottom of the home screen that recent 2.0 or 2.1 (though the la tter is only on switches to landscape mode when you slide OUI
matches the toolbar found on other lG phones. Google 's own Nexus One at present). Not only the keybwrd. overriding Android's settings. LG
Instead 01 Android's application screen, d~s it miss oot on the built-in social has replaced the Android vinual keyboard with
acce55e<J by dragging a handle from the bottom aggregation fea tures 01Android 2.0, such as its own alpha-numeric version, which isn't as
of the home SCfl'en, you press a button to take support lor multiple online accounts, but it also good. so you're bi-Iter off using the physical one.
you to LC's application ween, which is split into lacks multi-touch, and misses out on updates to LG has also opted for a non-standard button
~arious categooes. When you hold an application the web browser and camera applica tion. LG layout on its face. There are touch-sensitive
icon. you can easily drag it to a different won 't say whether it will offer a Iree update to a buttons lor Home and Bad commands. and the
category or to the home screen by hovering newer version of Android in the luture. large central button is the Menu key, which we
over an area at the bottom 01 the screen. Android 1.5 supports screen ,esolutions only lound unintuitive, but it also acts as the screen
LG has also changed the bi-haviour 01 the up to 320x480. which might explain why the unlock button. There's no dedicated Search key
home screen. Android splits this into three panes. GW620 d~sn 't have a larger toochscreen. such as you'd find on olher Android handsets.
and you can swipe side-to-si de Despite this. its screen is Pictures taken with the S-megapixel camera
to choose a pane. The home SUMMARY
bright and vibf<lnl, with a are crisp and have good contrast, but colours are
screen Wf<lpS aroun d, 50 that very responsive resistive a bit muted, LG I><!s included a really clever
VERDICT A good lim ~ ffon, bIIt lhe
you can keep swiping to cycle GW620 i, a~.dy 001 of dol. thanks to touchscreen. auto-lace-tagging feature that scans for laces in
through all the panes. LG has An<!roid 1,S, and th ~ comly key!>o-an:l LG d~sn 't specily a photographs and highlights them. II you then
also included non-standard c..'1mo •• up for poor performance processor, but it's said to cli ck on a high~ghled face, you can choose to
applications. such as the SHARTl'HON! GSM 8501900/1800/1900. be the same S28MHz link it with a contact from your address book.
QuickOftice document viewer. 3G 90011100. HSDPA, lin 320,400 Qualcomm chip foond in On the face of it. the GW620 is much
and its own social aggregation ... soIution lCD, 5-m.g>t>lxeI urn .... , 150MB HTes Hero. However, the cheaper than the HTC Hero, which on paper is
features (ca\led linkbook) that «_ge. Wifi, B1uot""th, uSB Con..ctMty. GW620 can be sluggish. very similar in terms of hardware , In use,
1,1 ..,.,,,' I.I~!I"", 20,8 daY" 'Undby,
are integrated into the address 1000SSxlfimm. H% The slide-out keybwrd however. we lound the GW620 wasn't anywhere
book, Once you've imponed 'ART CODE LGGW520SLV_UK has five rows of keys. with near as user-mendly. and felt noticeably slower.
your Google contacts and the top row reserved lor The keyboard is a huge advantage. but the
added Facebook, 6ebo or PERFORMANCE numbi-r keys so you company has some way to go before it catches
Twitter accounts, you can then don 't have to use key up with its nearest Android rivals.
link each Google contact wi th combinations. The keys are Barry de la Rosa

HTC APPLE
Hero iPhone 3G S
***** 32GB Black
Free on £20-per-month, Free on UO-per-month.
IS-month contract; £247 inc VAT
From www.three.co.uk
IS-month contract; £325 inc VAT
From www.t-mobile.co.uk
*****
£279 on £30-per-month,
IS-month contract; £549 inc VAT pre-pay
The Jet is slim and light. with a HTes recent optimisatio n 01 the From www,02,co.uk
be~utifu l OLEO screen and ~ last Hero means it now feels as fast as The 3G S is the best iPl>one yet. It's faster tl><!n
processor that makes using the the iPhon.e. The Sense software helps ever, and the large r 3-megapixel camera now
touchscreen or opening apps a you by merging your contacts across numerou s shoots video. The
breeze.The ~irtual QWERTY on line services. There are also plenty of apps oleophobic screen !iMAAT1'~E Otad-bond
keyboard works welL There's a ava ilable lor its is a de light to use, GSM , I~-I>and 3G,EDGE.
good web b.owse. Andro id OS. the as supports UMTS. HSOPA, 31>in 3;.0.400
, ...,IuIIOtlLCD.3-mogoplxel
and ema il app, and $MARTl'HONE 3.lin 800>:480 The oleophob H: ,"<>Iulion lCD. 5-m<gapix<l copy and paste, and um ..... 3~GB ,tonge,
S-amsung's widget ,"<>Iulion lCD. 5-m<gap ixel screen coat ing keeps <........ ~saMB storoge. the battery life is Sluetoo!h.WiFi,US6
catalogue is C¥t1 ..... <GS ,tonge, SIue!ootI\
the screen dear 01 Blu«oo!h, USB. Wifi good. However, it's <onntClMty, 5..,.,,,' lol~!Im<,
Wifi, USB conn.ctivlty, l..,.,,-s· COtlMCt Mty, 7,8""",,'
expensive. you have 121> doys' norwl>y.
reason<lbly well tolI<1 __.10o.ys·,Ur>dby, fingerprints. and the tol'time. 3U dO)'<' mndby. 116><6bl~mm. us&.
stocked. It's a grea l 109><~x12mm. 110g buttons are we ll 11b:S5.1-4m-n, BSg to use Apple's """ 'Y'iIr RTB -..mTonty
handset for anyone I'AAT CODE s.lMS8OOOBl. ~ UJ( positioned. The only PAIIT CODE 99I-IHMOOS-OQ iTunes 50ftware 'ART CODE MC133BIA
wtlo d~sn't require OfTAIlS www.wmwngmobile, bugbear is battery DETAIlS wwwhtcc<>m and there's not OETAIlS www,opple.c<>m/uI<
<O.U ~ FUll REI/lEW j¥l2010 FUll REI/lEW jon Z010 fUU REVIEW 0<1 2009
a wide range of lile, especially il you
additional soltware ....., ..' cIon't use 3G, WiFi -. .. ' _ 1=':. ._ much to01tempt
owners older t::~~~~~~~§J
....., ..
on the ir phone. and GPS sparingly. iPhones to upgrade. - ............-

MAY 2010 . COMPUTER SHOPPER

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 BROTHER
DCP-365CN
***
£68 it'IC VAT
From www.kikatek.com

At jusl £62, Brother's DCP-365CN MFP is an

inexpensive MFP, Still, it can do everything you 're
likely to n~d from a home MFP, from high -resolution
photo printing to running off a quick photocopy. We
were pleased to s~ a 10/100 wired Ethernet pon, so it borderless 6x4in prints from some programs, such as
can be connected 10 a network. We 've s~n several Adobe Reader, were printed with a lmm border.
MFPs with wireless networking, but a wired connection Although the DCP-365CN has a memory card
is often more stable and easier to configure. reader, printing photos from it isn 't very practical if you
The printer uses four individual ink cartridges have a large number of files to choose from. as you
inserted behind a panel at the Iront. from where in k is have to print a contact sheet before you can enter the
pumped to the print head. During setup we had to wait number of the photo you wish to print. If yoo plan on
for around four minutes wh ile the ink reservoir was doing a lot 01 direct printing, then we strongly
charged, but it took that long to instaU the software. recommend buying a device with a futl -colour screen,
The DCP-365CN comes with Nuance's ScanSoft capable of previewing your snaps, su ch as Epson's
PaperPort 11SE, a cut-down version 01 the PaperPort similarly priced Stylus SX215 (see Labs. Shopper 263).
document management application. which helps you The scanner interface is easy to use. it not exactly
organise PDF scans. Brother has also included a overburdened with fea tures. Scan speeds were on the
Windows 7 driver disc quick side - we had to wait just 33
Unfortunately. this MFP didn't SUMMARY seconds for 6x4in scan at 6OOdpi,
perform well in our evaluation of VERDICT Allhougill' " chup 10 buy, although it took almost three
print speeds and costs. Its draft lhe On-36SCN costs a 10110 run and times as long at 1,200dpi. We liked
prints are a quick 11 ,3ppm. but text
is a very pale grey - good enoogh il
----I
hu some prlnl qUilllty';:"=,:,,'" the level of detail visible on even
low-resolution text scans, and
fOUR-COlOUllIN~JET MfP
you want to check the spelling on 6.O!lCI><t2OOdpi print .. wlut"'" photo scans were vivid and richly
your work, but we wooldn't send it 33ppm monolll""", colouo- ",..I...." coloured. However, they also

FAQ
ope«l . 1.200 , 2 . ~i IQfI InOIut"",
to anyone else. Standard mono text usa, 101100 Ett..m.l inl..-foe... suffered from har5h and very
printed at a glaciaI3.1ppm. 15O><390><36Smm. """-)lNr on>~e w. ""nty conspicuoos dithering on areas 01
Surprisingly, the DCP-365CN 's POWER CONSUMnlON lW <"'ndby, subtle 5hading.
4W idte. 16W '<I~ Ult imately, Brother's
Q What kind of features do
I need to print photos
mixed-colour print speed of 2.1ppm
is faster than many budget devices, PART COOE DCP36SCNZUI
DETAIlS """",.brot",~o,uk
DCP-36SCN is an unremarkable
w ithout using my PC? making it one ot the bener MFP MFP. except for its price. It has
P£RFOIIMANCE
choices under £100 if you do a fair slow print speeds and relatively
Any printe r or MFP with a bit of colour printing. high running com. while Canon's
A me mory card reader or
USB PictBridge port can print
Photo prints also emerged with
painful slowness. Although they
Pixma MX340 (right) has more
features and bener print quality
photos without be ing con rlected looked smooth and sharp, jAlle areas for not much more money.
to a PC.This is known as direct suffered from a marked red tint. and KatOrphanides
printing. PictBridge lets yo u
conned your digital camera and
select t he pictures you want to
print using its screen. How well
t his worts defJends on t he
EDITOR'S CHOICE
design of the PictBridge
interface on yoor camera.
CANON HP
SOm e MFPs also let yO\.l Pixma MP640 Officejet 6000
choose wtl ich ~otos you wilnt
either by printing a contact
st.eel and entering t he number
*****
£129 inc VAT *****
£60 inc VAT
From . .~""i .~"'o."'k
of the photo you want to print,
or by choosi ng its filename from The Pixma MP640 is an This inexpensive
a menu on a small LCD. Neithe r excellent inkjet MFP business inkjet is
is ideal, as th ey te rld to be slow with 10t5 of features. FIVE_COlOlH! INKJET MFP a si ngle-fu nction
and confusing. includi ng wired and 9, 6OOxl, ~ pm! ,e<oiul""" pri nler wi lh a
Using an MFP with a wi reless networking. 9wm mono/8ppm colour m.o. 10/100 Ethemet
speod. 4,800':9,6OOdpl "'.... fOUR-COlOUR IUSINESS
de.::ent-sile.l colour LCD screen two 1 SO-sh~1 pa per ",wlUI""" USB, 101100 >Hlrt, a 2SO-sheet INKJET 4 , 8OO>.1~i
and a bui lt-in memory card trays. an autom atic Elt..m.I, 801, l1b/& w i rel,,~ paper tray and a ml>.imum rewlul"", USB . nd
reader is o ur favourite metho.l duplexer. a 7'hcm 1rO'" inlwod inlerfKH, maximum duty cycle 101100 EI .... r>etlnt..-foe.',
116.4s0.368mm. _-)lNr 164x4S8x389mm. """-)'N<
of direct printing. larger so-eens SCff{!n and CD of 7.000 pages per
RTB_'....I)'
make it >Hlssi bte 10 carry out printing tray. monl h. lt's not cut RI B.... "."'"
POWlRCONSUMI'TION ow POWER CONSUMI'TION 3W
minor editing and cropping With reasonable ",. ndby, lW idle, 14W .cti... out for photo printing, ",. rdly, 3W id le. lOW octi ..
before you print. print costs and PARTCQO[ 37.csWOl>AA but its mono and PARTCOOf COOS1A
OET"ILS _ .<. """.<o.uk onAJ.S wwwhp.co.uk
oUlSla ooing qua~ ty FUU RlVIW .t-> 2010
colour document
fUUREVIEW jonZ010
on everyth ing from quality is outstand ing.
Kat Drphanides pholOS 10 business pri nl speeds are fast
Printers and documents. this reliable and costs are low.
audio
all-rounder is up to AI £60. it wins our
almost any task. Business Buy award.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y~OlO

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 PRINTERS & SCANNERS

I~Q " ~ o\;" "o\; i1ol~ ,r.r.rtft.~J.

CANON CHOOSING A...
Pixma MX340 Multi-
****
£81 inc VAT
From www.office999.co.uk
Function
At just ov~r £80, the Pixma MX320 is a funy
Printer
featured four-ill- one MFP with print. 5<:ao. copy Mono text was as sharp as we've come to Follow the steps to find your idea) specs
and fax capabii;ties, as well as easy-to-configure expect Irom Canon. although coloor documents on PRlHTnCHNOLOc;y: 1nI:J<I
a02.11b/g wireless networking. It has a modest plain 80gsm photocopier paper printed with
PRINT RUOI.lJTlot,j: 4.8OO><1,lOOdpi
l00 -page paper tray and a 3D-page Automatic slightly too much ink. producing damp waves in
~ RUOI.I1T1ON: 1,200.l.4OOd~
Document Feeder (ADF) 10 make multi -page areas that were lilled with solid colour. Fortunately, fNTtRF"'U: IISB
faxes and copies easy. they didn't smudge and dried 5fT\oothly when laid
EJITIt.O.S: Pictllnd,. po<t
To include aU these features at this price. llat. Photo quality was surprisingly good lor a
Canon has made a few compromises: there's no printer that uses composite blacl3, although dar\: Rt<ommtndtd min .....", ",.y
memory card reader lor starters. Un like most of areas were a little pale in comparison to those
the Pixma range , the MX340 doesn't use individual from printers that use dye-based black for photos. A multi/unction printer combines
ink cartrid~s.lnstead, there's a pigment-based Thanks to Canon 's use 01 the ISOIIEC 24734 a printer and scanner in a compact
black cartridge, which is used to produce sharp, standard, print speeds are almost exactly as stated. unit. and also provides copying aM
quick-drying mono text , and a tri -colour cartridge, Standard-quality text emerged at a reasonable even fax facilities. This saves desk
which contains dye-base<! cyan, magenta and 6.9ppm, but colour documents printed at 1.7ppm. s,:oace and also money compared with
yellow ink. Both cartridges hOM' integrated print The 1.200x2,400dpi Contact Image Sensor buying two or more separate devices.
heads. There's no dye-based black. so black areas in (CiS) scanner makes an unpleasant whining noise,
photo prints are made by
combining the three coloured
inl3. The use of a combined
SUMMARY
but produces accurately
coloured scans and dear
photocopies. Canon's
D Basic models cost as little
as £40 including VAT, and have
specifications sim ilar to those
VERDICT The M~3M) do", """!)'thing,
coloor cartridge also means ""t II< print co,I< m.k~ It un<IJft.b1~ for SeanCear interlace provides shown in grey above. TheSf' are OK
that yoo 'lI have to replace the high·volume printing lots of ad""nced options for if funds and space are tight, but
entire cartridge il one colour FOUR·COLOUR INKJET MFP tweaking scans and can be qua lity and speed will be basic. print
runs oot before the others. 4.8OO><1.ZOOdpl p<!1'11 rHOIu!~ 8ppm configured to dose or remain costs expensive. and you won't get
The MX340 's print costs. monol$ppm <OIom moxifOOm ",0«1, open alter each scan. any lax capabi lities.
l.2OOxl.4OOdpi >con .., ..",I..... usa,
although expensive. aren't EIOl.l1blg wi,eIes. interl.<.... If you print regularly,you'U
prohibitively high if you use 19/!x4S8>41Omm, ..... "Y' ... IITB ,...mlnty save money and get better a Spending more invariably gives
Canon's high yield PC -S12 and POWER CONSUMPTION lOW SI.<>dby.
4W """ 13W oct~
print speeds and quality by a you improved speed and image
CL-S13 cartridges. Printing costs investing in a more expensive quality. TheSf' improvements are n't
come to 8.7p per page for device. such as Canon's directly proportional to price. though,
mixed colour and mono non-fax MP640 (opposite). so read our reviews for details.
i'ERfOl!.MANC.!
printing. but a mono page is an However, the MX340 's Re member that running costs can
alarming 3.6p. These costs are combination of quality and outweigh the price of the unit.
too high to make the MX340 a features are great if you
good choke if you print ~ery need a printl'f than can do n Sheet-fed scanners handle
day. but they're acceptable lor everything. but not very often. a multiple pages but flatbeds
occasKmal use , Kat Orp/lanide5 tend to give better image quality.
Cheaper models usually have a
flatbed. while pricier units combine
both features .

. . . If you 'll be printing hundreds of

SAMSUNG Ii.I pages per month. consider a
SAMSUNG laser rather than an inkjet model.
SCX-4600 CLP-315 TheSf' benelit from improve-<! print

*****
£103 inc VAT l\E,;<jijjJ
• ,. ' Ii ,, -
From www.digital-fusion.co.uk
****
£122 inc VAT
From www.dixons.co.\lk
spee ds and highr duty cycles. and
cost from around £120 includ ing
VAT. Vou' ll need to spend around
£250 lor a budget colour laser-
S ~m~ung's (omp...:t mono The CLP-315 is tile world's based machi ne.
laser MFP is a great deal smaHest (olour laser printer,
if you expect to print barely liIrger than most inkjets. 1":1 To make the most of the
less than 580 pages a and it's also one of the cheapest. Its mono print 1:.1 standa lone functions, you'll
month, and there speed of 14.7ppm is sufficie nt lor a personal printer. want decent front-panel controls.
are no hidden MONO lASER MfP although 3.7ppm for These can vary from a single copy
6()Ox6()t)djl i j>"int re>oIuti .....
consumable costs colour prints requires HOM£/Sfo11J.L. OFFICECOlOU~ button to something reSf'mbling a
12wm mOl< ifOOm '~. lASER 600d~ , l(i.ppm mono,
such as imaging 1,lOO>o:l ,<OOdpi.an some patience. Print dedkated copier. If fax is important.
4ppm <oIoor, USB int ..-fo<~,
drums. Print .. ,oWtion, usa ;nterloc., quality was excellent, you need to check that th e d~ke
243.388><313mm ....... yo ...
quality i~ among 276<416<409mm, ..... Y'" with sharp black text R1S~ty has a built-in modem.

-=-
RTB ",omonty
the best we've POWEIt CONSUloWTION 7W
and bright, glossy POWER CONSUMP'rlO!'I 6W
.to<>dby. 'dW idle, ~ . ct;'"
seen from a >W>dby. 7W kII<, 686W octi ... colour prints. Mono P","~T COO( Cl p·llSIXW
Other useful extras to consider
personal mono '","RT COOE SCX·4600 costs of 2.2p aren't bad, 0ET1dlS .......... ,...... "'''&,<0.'''' 1:.1 are memory card §lots.
laser. with sharp DU","1L5 www.......... n g.<O . u~ but 11.2 p for a FULl. REVIlW DK 2008 duplexing units for the printer andl
'"'-_--1
text and smoothly fUlL REVIEW ~r 20C
~haded images.
Scan quality is
~Iso up to scratch.
"--~ ... _
..=,;:I!!!!!!!!!!!!!!,;,,:-
....
mixed-colour page
makes the CLP-315
best lor occasional
colour print runs only.
or scanner. add itional paper tray§
and an Ethemet port to connect the
device to a networlc

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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 *****
£119 inc VAT
From www.lambda-tek.com/
components hop

The 22in 1,920><1 ,080 G2222HDL is the succe:;5Of to

the G2220HD (see Labs, Shopper 261) , which won a
Best Buy award for its great image qua lity and low
price. We were keen to find out if the new model could
take the crown from its now-obsolete $ibling.
The new mon itor looks identical to the old one,
with the same textured inlay on the stand, and a useful
ridge along the top th at ilctS ilS a convenient handle /(night, virtually unwiltchable. Switching off the
for carrying it. The G2222 HDl as the same Full HD dynamic mode for movies is preferable.

c
resolution as the older displiIY but uses LEOs rilther Response times in our gaming tests _re greil!.
than fluorescen t tubes for bacldights. with fluid motion during moments 01 fast action. You
With the two placed side by side, the new display can change image presets on the Ily using the menu
looks brighter with richer colours. We tweaked the system's arrow buttons, so you can opt for lM'rbiown
Standard mode's settings to get the most natural colours and dynamic contrast in a game, and switch
colouf"i, bul other presets use dynamic contrast and back to more natural colours for working with photos.
boost colouf"i to incredible degrees. which some people The screen's matt finish reduces reflection from
might li~e when playing games or watching movies. overhead lights. This can add graininess to the image
As usual, BenQ's menu system was dear and easy on some monitors, but we noticed this only when we
to follow, although the slight delay between menu weren't square on to the scret'n.
screens can be annoying. The menus indude brightnes.s, You won't get many eKtra features at this price. The
cont rast and colour controls, as we!! as a sharpoes.s screen doesn't swivel to portf<li t mode and tile stilnd
control that we found added too doesn't allow for height adjustment.
many artefacts to the imilge, Dynamic SUMMARY
There ilre no internal spea~ers,
contrast is available in certain presets, VEROICT Th ~ CUZ2HDL h'$ . n
although this isn't a great loss, as they
but is disabled in Sta ndard mode. LEO backligjlt for • brigjlt e r generally sound terrible. With no

FAQ At its maximum value, dynamic

contrast made colouf"i look overblown
but retained a remarkable amount of
p lct " ~, a nd <lill ha, g~",
contrast ..,d vibrant colau ...
221nWIDESCREEN LCD 1,920,1,080
HDMI input, you might need an
adilptor to connect certain devices,
but the DVI pon supports HDCP copy
Wh/lt do I need to get 3D detail Impressively, there were none ""t'" ....oortion. 1,000:1 (S,OOO,()(')fr1 protection, so you can watch Blu-ray
Q on my PC? of the sudden changes in brightness dynamkl cO<I'Cml rallo, 2SOcdlm'
boight ... " , VGA, DIfI, input'
movies, for example.
that can plague dynamic contrast POWEll; CONSUMPTION OW ,tandby, At this price, BenQ's G2222HDl
modes. Howevt'r, il tended to is great value and wins our Best
A There are two th ings you
need for t llis. Th e first is
a display that's capable of at
ovt'r-emphasise dar\; areas. ma king
some scenes in our test film, The Dart
19Won
PAAT CODE 9H.L.3RLN.lBE
DtTAI15 """",.o...q,C(I,uk
Buy award.
Barry de la Rosa
least a 100Hz refresh rate, This
enables the monitor to de liver
SO ' rames per second to each
eye. Few monitors currently
support th is refresh rale, tout iI 's
EDITOR'S CHOICE
a head lirle featu re in those that
do, so they' re easy to find.
PHILIPS TOSHIBA
The second part of the Brilli ance Regza
equatkln is a graph ics card and
230C1HSB
a pair of sh utter glasses. Nvidia
***** i -ir;r2!J!a *****
£479 inc VAT
42XV635DB
~
is t he on ly com"","y that offers From www.digitaldirect.co.uk
this combination with its 3D E1SSinc VAT • fl! ,• •
Vision kit. There 's II fulltist of From www.ebuyer.com Wi lhan From www.laksys.com
compatible cards at www. in tegrated
rwidia.comlobjectl3D_ Vision_ It may have iI Free~t HD Toshibil 's 42 in Regzil is su rprisi ngly
Requirements.html. This l ists tilt-only sta nd, receive r and cheap for an LCDTV 01 this size. It
some 3D monitors too. but Ph ilips' gre<lt picture has one of the best EPGs we've
You'll also nud a dual-core 230(1HSB is quali ty, this seen and better image quality
processor and Windows Vista or a fantastic 37in HOTV is than y<Ju 'd expect at this price.
7. II 's also worth t.earlng in monitor. Image superb value at under £500. We're With excellent
min.d that you may not be able qua lity is top-notch and it has big fans of LGs large-icon menu speakers,
t o see the 3D effect if yoo have HDMI, DVI and VGA inputs- If syste m, and tile speakers prod uce DolbyVolume
any eye problems such as you're after a slightly targer Futt d ear, deta iled sound. The on ly and an onsite
amblyopia or strab ismu s. S~ HD mo nitor than BenQ's hitch is a messy EPG, bUI this is an warranty, it's
http://www.visionJd.com/ G222 0HO (see right), this is an easy s3(rifice to make. a superb buy,
whycant.html for more details. excellent choke. 42/n ICD TV 1,910>.1,080 ... t Ole ,.solution.
17in lCOTV 1.920>:1.080 n.oti .... ,...,.tution. 1,)Oi):I(SO,()(')fr' dyn.omk) <<>nm>' ",'10,
nlnW(lESCltEEN lCtl l,9ZOXI ,08O cont'UI ratio nol diKlostd (SO.()(')fr 1 4SOcdlm' boi'''' ..... ~ 4. HDMI, hVGA,
Jim Martin not ...'""""tion, VCA. Olfl, HOM I. input>, dynamic), SOOcdlm' boiW>t ,.. ,~ l x HDMI, Ix Wf"P<" .e,", 2>< SCART i,....ln
Deputy Editor 1.Smm tiM in ...,dio input. _-pan usa bVC .... 1x compontot, 2x SCA RT ...".,1> PA~T CODE (2)(V61SDB

t.ub PART CODE 2.lOC lHSB/OS PAliTCOOO7lfl100

DETAIlS www.pftiiif'$,co,u k OETAU www.lg• .com ( O,U"
FUll REVIEW NO" ZOO9 FUll REVIEW Api" <!O10 FUll REVIEW Api" 2010

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 DISPLAYS

CHOOSING AN ...
HANNSG
HP222DJO LCD Monitor
Follow the steps to find your ideal specs
**
£132 inc VAT
From www,morecomputers.co.uk
""""'BIU; I""
NAT1V£ RESOUIlJON, 1.-«0:>:900
INPUTs.: \/GA, DVI
~mrndtc! min.".." In M
When it comes to 22in widescreen monitors,
you're spoilt for choice , There are literally scores
of models on the market, especially at this price.
The HP222DjO is one of three new 22in models
from HannsG, and it diftNentia tes itselt from
D A basic 19in lCO monitor with
the specifications listed above
witt cost around f80. It will be fine for
others by offering height adjustment. typical Windows wort., but is likely to
It 1001<; almost ret ro, and more like the boxy have >KX'r viewing angles, so you'll
LCD monitors of 10 years ago than the latest nH:d to sit stf<light on to see the best
curvy s<:reens ,The stand lets you f<lise or lower camera, bot oddly they're la belled as wanTl , nat ure quality picture. Colour accuracy may
the screen by 6Omm, bot the mechanism is stiff. and coot There's no sRGB mode, although you can not be very good. so it isn't ideal for
Beyond height adjustment. there 's little to control the red, green and blue levels individually. colour-sensitive work.
make the HP22 2DJO stand out. Surprisingly for a Presets are another odd omission. You'll have
new monitor, it has a 16:10 f<lther than a 16:9 to adjust brightness and contrast manually when . : . A VGA input enables you to use
aspect ratio. This is explained by the 1,680xl ,050 switching between office work and photo edit ing, D the monitor with any PC, but
resolution, which suggests that HannsG is using for example. Unfortunately, no amount of tweaking th e quality may not be quite as good
oldN lCO panels. All other 22in monitors we've could OIIercome the screen 's appalling contf<lst. as with a OVI Of HOMI input. Both are
seen recently have a l,920xl ,080 resolut ion. Instead of subtly graded shades of white, we simply digital connections and require a
However, if your eyesight isn't perfect, a lower S<fW a completely wh ite screen in our tests. This compatib le graphics card b<Jt avoid
native resolution may be a benefit. meant highlight deta ils in photos completely the nee<l for digital-Io-ana logue or
Still, the lack of an HOMI input is slightly disappeared - clouds vanished in bright skies, and ana logue -to-digital conversions,
disappointing. It has VGA and OVI inpu ts at the white clothes lost all texture. which can reduce image quality. A
bad, and the latter is HDCP compliant, so you We were also una ble to achieve a good colour digital connection automatically gets
can use a DVI -to-HOMI adaptor balance, and greys looked blue in the best picture; you won't have to
if you want to connect a games our colour tf<lcking tests. With adjust clock or pha~ settings as you
SUMMARY
console or a Blu-f<ly player. narrow viewing angles too, the do with an ana logue connection.
VD.DICT A rm l l""ly low
The HP222DjO has a typical ",ooIUlion ~n d poo< con !r~s! HP222DjO 's poor image quality Many OVI and all HOM I con nections
four-button menu system. It isn't m~b thl$ a monitor to avoid makes its other failings pale support HOCP. which letl you watch
the easiest to use, but at least 22inW~RlEN lCD 1,68O>ctOSO into insignificance. When excellent protected video cOI1 tent such as
the controls are located on the n.tlv< (..oI<I!I"", 1,000;1 (15,000;1 22io monitors such as BenQ 's Blu-ray movies on your monitor.
bottom edge of the display dyn.omk) coot,,,,, mil>. 2SOcd lm' G2222 HD (opposite) are available DisplayPort is becoming more popu lar,
!>rightr..-... VGA . nd DVl inptJ ! ~
rather than the sides. The menu tI....·yur .,..,.~e womr>\)'
for less money, the HP2220JO's but you'll e ither nH:d a graphics card
has few options beyond contrast POWER CONSUMPTION ("fW 5t..-.dby, only ad'l3nta~ is height with a matching output or a
brightness and colour settings. 21Won adju stment, and that's not enough OVI-to-OTs~ayPort adaptor.
The latter uses white balance PARTCODl HP2220jO of a reason to buy it instead.
symbols like those on a digital
DETAIlS ......... ,,,",,",,"co.uk
)imManin n A larger monTtor will be easTer
1::1 on th e eye and wit1 have a large r
resolution. Twenty· inch monitors
typicat1y have resolutions of at least
1,680xl,050, Models as small as 22in
can have resolutions of 1,920x1,080
(1080p), which provid es lots of room
EPSON PANASONIC JESSOPS for working with multiple windows
EH-TW2900 PT-AE4000E 8 " Digital at th e same time. For even higher

***** , .~~! ***** ~;~) Picture Frame resolutions. you'll f\eed a larger
display. A 3Din screen or higher wi ll
£1,156 inc VAT £2,049 inc VAT
From www.lambda-tek.com/ From www,rgbdirect,co,uk ***** ~ have a manive resolution of
componentshop

Thi $ is Of\e of _ -
the cheapest '!II -
.- The successor to the Ultimate
award-wi nning PT- ABOOOE,
Panasonic's latest Full HO
£49 inc VAT
From www.jessops.com
For under fSO,
th is Sin fra me
11I1I1!1nI
2,560xl,600. You' ll need a graphics
card with a duaHink DVI ootpul.

. . . If you want better picture

l 080p LCD ~ projeclor is stunning. ltl offers superb Ii.I quality. look for a monitor with
home cif\ema projectors Intelligent fra me Creation image quality a high contrast ratio. The higher the
availab le. It produces na t ural ensures tha I Hollywood movies and a sty~sh f<ltio, the whiter the whites and the
colo urs, and while its co ntrast is play smoothly and ima~s are design, It may blader the blacks. You'll also be able
good rather than excellent. yo u ir>c:red ibly crisp. It 's not the oot have Wifi, Bluet ooth or to see more fine detail in images with
won't be disappo inted with the cheapest project or on the battery power but it's the high contrast levels, Viewingangtes
sha rpness in Blu -ray movies. ma';;et , but if yo u can afto rd ii , best -value fra me we've seen. are important, as wider angles mean
With reasonable runn ing you won't you don't have to sit directly in fronl
costs of 7p per hour in regret DIGrTAl PHOTO FUME 8in d~ , of the monTtor to get the best picture.
economy mo6e, this is an buying it , 800_600 ""'Iv< 'esolution, 2GS int"'.-..I Wid er angles also allow more people
memor)', SO(He), MMc' M<m<>ry S' Ock
ex(ellent ( hok e. to watd! the scree n at th e same time.
Pfo, Pro DIIo. _D, cr, Micn>dri\I< ond US8
HOMl CINEMA PROjKTOR """" """'ge ,upport, jPEG orwITIFf Fast response times cut down on
HOM( CINEMA PIlOJEClOlt l , ~2O><1.080 n.tlv< .-."""!I"", <lJppor!, 21 h<252 • .omm.
""".yur ~T8 ghosting. b<Jt don't allow your~ lf
1.920><1.080 n.oti .... ,«<>Iu,;"", HI,OOO:I 100,000:1 """,,,,,,,.,io,1,600 wornn\)' POWEll. CONSUMPTION )W to be dazzled by the numbers. A
Conlr.5! m io. 1.600 ANSl i...,..", ANSIIUffiffi< , tandby. ~w on
response time of 2Sms or quicker
PARTCOOE V11H3~U PAIITCOOt P T· A E ~ PARTCOOl l~1
OETAILS .......... p>On,co.uk DETAlS www,pono""';c,co.uk DETAIlS ...-...w,j<>5op<,C<>m is fine for all applications.
FUUREVIEW M¥chZ010 FUU REVIEW M..- Z010 FUUREVIEW Apr Z010

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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 >
:J:
SONY
Alpha DSLR-A550L
***
E607 ;ncVAT
From www.pixmania .co.uk

D.. Sony is taking no chances with its consumer SLR

<
a::
fimge. with seven models from BSO to £800
ensuring therE'S something for everyone. The
ASSO is one of three new models that use (MOS
rather than CCO sensors. Sony is the last SLR
manufacturer to switch to CMOS technology, and
we were keen to see if the ASSO could turn around
the Alpha range·s poor track record for noise levels.
The impressive features include in-body There's a smattering of single-use buttons for quick

t!J stabilisation. superb baneIY lile and a high-resolutkm

3in screen that tilts up and dowo by 90 degrees. It "Iso
access to ISO speed, drive mode aod dynam ic range
settings. White bal"nce and autofocus optiOrls are less

e supports Uve view via a secondary seosor to deliver

uousually last autolocus. 10 previous SOrly SLRs. the
dowmide has been that this low-resolution live view
seosor's image cao·t be magoilied to fine-tune the
accessible, Ihough, aod some features. such as
depth-ol-field preview. are noticeably absent. For ooise
reduction, there's a choice of Normal or High. whkh is
bener described as 'high· or 'really high ·. The Auto ISO

l- focus manually. This time, a button switches from the

live view seosor to the main sensor. disabling autofocus
range can'l be customised, and Ihere's nOlhing like the
operatiooaillexibility oHered by competing models.

e but allowing up to 14x magnification. Combined with

the superb screen. this is the best live view mode we've
seen so far on an SLR.
Cootiouous mode ran at 7lps - far quicker Ihan
We really like the HOR mode, which combines two
exposures to produce a high dynamic range shot.
However, the lack of video capture is disappoinling.
Our image qual ity lests revealed little sign 01 noise

:J: anything else at this price. It's also fast er than any
SOHC card; performaoce dropped
to 3.7fps "fter 17 shots, or to 1.1fps SUMMARY
at ISO 1600 and accept"ble results at 3200. Still, noise

VERDICT Se~D"'ly fan .... d packed

reduclion could only be reduced by
shooting in RAW mode an d the

D..
afler 13 shots in RAW mode. with i~te~>li~g leatu~s, but the lock
jl'EG engioe slruggled to cope wilh
Alternative continuous modes rao 01 vide<> i$ di"'ppointing .... d dense textures such as fol"'ge. The
at 4.sfps and 31ps. and coolinued 10 .... tom.tic ~po"'rO$ ~ I d be bo,n.r automalk white balance was
adjust the locus aod exposure for DlGIT"L Slit U,MEAA 14 megapi~ vari"ble. even in overcast sunlight.
each frame.The camera was quick (4. S~l'3.0S61. 3, OfIlial 'oom (21. The A550 has many strenglhs,
in geoeral use. thaoks io part to a 82.Smml. 3in ~ (911 .600 pi,eI'l. SOHC but its JPEC output iso·t Orle 01
proximity sensor that triggers lhe and Memory Std Pro ouo slots (none them. Pt>ntax's cheaper K-x (see
How d~$ TTl n..sh autolocus as SOOrl as the camera is ""wti«JI. U·k>n bottory. llJo4,131xl4Omm. u/}s. Shopper 264 or WNW.
Q metering work? held up to lhe eye.
809&- """.yu< RTB warranty
P"RT CODE OSlRASSOl expertreview5.co. ukldigital-
At 809g with its 18-SSmm leos. DfT"I15 _.sony.<o.lil camerasI2739ZSlpentax-k-x) iso·t

A TTL stands for 'tnroogh

the lens', so TTL metering
is when a camera evaluates
the brightness of a SCI'n.e by
measuring the tight entering t he
it"s more substantial than SOrly'S
entry-level SlRs. ThaoHully. it"s lar
more comfortable to use too. --
PERfORMANCE
III i.
as sery, but shoots 720p video and
has a dear edge in image quality.
Ben Pitt

lens and hitting the sensor. All

digital cameras do this.
TTL flash melering (TTLFM) is
EDITOR'S CHOICE
an exterlSion of the 5a~
principle.A pre-flash is used to FUJIFILM PANASONIC
take a measurement of the Finepix S200EXR Lumix DMC-TZ6
flash's effect, and this is used to
adjust the powt'r of the main
flash to produce a pleasing *****
£306 inc VAT
***** IX, .;~,:
£190 Inc VAT Ii iz i
From www.amazon.co.uk From www.buyacamera.oo.uk
ex~sure. Nearly all digita l
cameras' built·;n flashes use this The S200EXR ....s a 14.3x zoom If you want a big zoom in a fairly
te<:hnique. External flashguns leos. which would be expensive compact camera. lhe TZ6 is ideal ~-'-:::~':::-L
must tie compatible with the to match on an SLR.With a big fitting a 12x zoom lens into such
camera lorTTLfM to work. handgrip, dua l leos rings lor lOom and focus plus a a small camera is a remal1:able achievemeol. but
Various advanced fonns of commalld dial lor adjusting exposure alld other more impressive still is how sharp the photos are.
TTLFM have been deve loped, settings, the S200EXR feels like an SLR in operation. Automatic exposures were oearly always perfectly
which use the lens' focus point This camera delivers judged. and sta ndard-
to ensure that the exposure extremely high image UlTAA·ZOOM DIGITAL definition videos were
U,MERA 12 ",.go~"" UlTAA-ZOOM DIGIT......
is optimised fOf the subject. qua lity wheo shootiog (•.000x3.0001. l H' opt i<oI excelleot. wi th smooth. CAMEAA 10 "",~ i ,.1>
Canon calls this E-TTL II, Nikon's at high sensitivities. ,oom (30.S·.:l6mmI.Vin lCO sharp images and a (3.6-48,1.736 pi" I.1. 1l,
is called 3D matrix metering. There·soolyVGA (130.000 pix"'). SOHC !lot clear soundtrack. ""titol>Oon1 (lS·3OQmm).
(.1M8 Imomal~lHon .. n..-y. SOHC 1Ioc (~8InlOmoll.
and SOI'1y's is ADI f lash. video and its hefty bulk The TZ6 ....s a
~,13l,' . 5m"n . 1l2Og. <t<o.rgeoble li·ion bott..-y.
WOO·I please some """.)'N' RTB wa,.. nty laotaslic leos, responsive """·yn, RTS ....".nty
people. However. the PARTCODE Pl0NC0I120A performance and a smart PARTCOOE DMC·TZ6I:8·S
Ben Pitt big zoom and sublime D£TAI15 ...........fuiiiitm.<<>.1il design aod produces DUAL'> www . ~wn i<.co.uk
Music and Full RI~ ...... 2010 fUll ~EVIEW Au, ZOO9
photography expert ergooomics make it an reliably excellent photos.
exce ller"l! choice lor It·s a great camera al a
outdoor photograplly. veIY reasonable price.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 PHOTOGRAPHY

METZ SUNPAK YONGNUO

Mecabli tz 36 C-2 PF30X YN460
***
£60 inc VAT
****
£71 inc VAT
*****
£37 Inc VAT
From www.bri sto l Fro m www.m ic roglobe.co.uk Fro m www.a ma zon.co.u k
cameras.co. uk
Sunpak's Pf30X is Flashguns don't come
This low-cost flashgun available in three much cheaper than this
d ~sn 't support TTL flash versions for different model. which isn't widely
metering (set FAQ.left). but camera brands. We available in the UK. but is
uses an altemative technique tesled the Nikon model. sold by BV-electronics via
for automated metering. An but it's also available for Amazon Marketplace.With no
integfil ted sensor m'Mlures the light Canon (part code PF30XC) TTL or interl1<ll metering. the
reflecting oft the subject and stops the flash and Sony (PF30XS) cameras. flash's power must be set
when enough light has been gathered. The Each model su pports tile brand'sTTL ma .... ally. The power cootrol
process is far from automatic the user must flash metering (see FAQ, left) for automatic moves in whole stops from
inform the flashgun of the selected local exposu res controlled by the attached camera. luU to 1/64 power. and
length, ISO speed and aperture via a series of Most TTL flashguns COS! considerably more recharging take$ 4.8 seconds at full
interconnected switches, and also extend the than the PF30X, so it'~ not surprising that its power. Light distribution is suitable for use
!Iash head to focus the beam to match the features are limited. There's no manual mode. with a SOmm local length. but an integrated
focal length. Still, we fO\.lnd that exposures were and there are just two buttons for adjusting diffusing panel drops over the head to su tter
reasonably balanced, adjusting automalicaity exposure compensation in half-stops lrom -1.5 lighl over a wider area.
to various distances from camera to subject. to + 1.SEV.TIle flash head tilts upwards by up to Manual control isn't mUCh use lor casual
Nearby subjects such as faces were otten 90 degrees to bounce light 011 the ceiling. snapping. but it's ideal for controlled exposures.
overexposed against a dark background. but giving far more natural-looking results than the particularly when using the flashgun off-
tilling the flash to bounce off the ceiling lillhe direct /lash. Its 30m guide number is more than camera.TheYN460 has a built-in slave mode to
room more e~nly. Performance was fast, al 3.9 twice as powerlul as most built-in flashes. and fire in sync with another flash, making it easy
secoods between flashes at lull power. saves users resorting to high ISO speed film. to trigger multiple uni ts wirelessly.lt ~omes
Manual mode is fixed al lull power and Powered by twoAA batteries, its a -second with a mini stand with a thread for tripod
automatic mode is a little unwieldy, but this recycle time ilt full power is slow. Otherwise, mounting. plus a soft ~ase.
makes sense for cameras lackingTTlFM, such the PF30X is a solid choice. with reliable TheYB460 is simple, effecti~ and incre<libly
as Fujililm's S200EXR (see What's New. Shopper exposures and a bounce function lor better good value. Pilir a couple 01 them with tile
266). Its compatibility with virtually an other results than any built-in flash can muster. iShoot PT-04C (see page 20) for a upable
shoe-equipped cameras is a bonus. Ben Pitt off-camera flash rig lor less than £ 100.
Ben Pill Ben Pitt
SUMMARY
SUMMARY VERDICT II', I littl. <law 10 ...,(har", betw • .., ,hOI< SUMMARY
VEliOICT An unu ... ~ l - ~nd cumbersome -
I~ i riy ~ nd 1<o(k< a ny monual (onlrol. but l ho PF30X inn vtliOICT With m.nual-only conlrol. it·, of limile<!
sy<tom fo r Judgi ng aIJlo m3l1( "'PO"'''''.
bUI ll', affordable opllon fo r fL><h·Ut . ulomatk . ><t><><u"" ~ <e O
.Ham. ra, bul ll', _ n " qulppe<! for
"<eM whon om..r .... Ihod' ...,n·1 available witl>o4Jllho r. bb il·i n ·m..-ho..t~ hl<eff«! off-cam«a wort. ond , u It> value lor man
CAMEllA. flASliGUN Guido """,be, 36m (ISO 100]. u.MERA flI\stic.UN Guide "".""... 30m (ISO 100), CAMERA FlASHGUN Guide ""mbt< 33m (ISO 100),
4. M bl tt« i... 11Sxl h:9Smm,2O'ig. 2x M bott. ,; ... l00x68x92m m. 220g. 40•.0. bl tt..-;' .. IlSx12. SSmm. 2SOg.
""'-y_ ~n W.....l nty ono-yN' ~TB w..,..nty ,....-yN ' ~n w...... nty
PART COOl ..00391SO)l;02J PART (00{ PF30XN PARTCOOl YN · ~
OETA1.5 www ...... tzflo>h.'o ... DETA1.5 www.••mplk.jp DETA1.5 www.N<yongnuo.com

FUJIFILM CANON PANASONIC

FinePix F70 EXR EOS 1000D & Lumix DMC-LS85
*****
£169 Inc VAT Vf2j%l
• \Ii 1,-
From www.brislo lcameras.co.uk
18-55mm IS lens
*****
£80 inc VAT
From www.buyacamera .co.u k
With its sleek, compact From www.b uyacame ra.co..uk The OM C-LS8S is the che~pest
body and lOx loom, the camera in Panasonic's range.The
F70EXR (Opes equally The l0000 's 2'1.!in l CD screen optica l image stab ili ~tion and 1/2.8 apertu re
wen with wide-angle is a li ttle small, but in every make it far better than most budget cameras
vistas and telephoto other respea it betters its rivals. Tllere are wtlen used in low-light co nditions, Its fully
portraits. PholOS look sharper and d eaner dedicated buttol1$ lor all the key controls and automatic mode delivered well-judged
than competitors ', low-ligh t images get a performance is good. with only 05 seconds expo sures. Deta ils
boost from Fujifilm's between shots.TIle 10-megap ixel sensor easi ly were sharp. colours COMPACT DIGlfAlCAMERA
ingenio us EXR C,"~;;;;.c.~-;;~~;;;;,,",C,~;;;O~;;;:--, competes wi th natura l and noise 8 mogop;'.l!. (3.i!6-I. 2.«a
sensor, wtlich can 9.8 megopi' els (l.616'VU), pricier 12- and levels t.etter than pOx"'). 4. opl ",01 mom
red uce llOise by lOx optical mom (27.21Omm). 15-megapi xel 10.1 m. &iIfIlxob (1.888xl.S92 from many pricier (33-132mm). SDHC slot
switching from 10 10 SDHC<!ot (.1MBlnt .......I). exa mples, with lar pi •• l.). 3, opl;u! IOOm. SOfiC
camera~ The l S8S
(SOMB into".,I). 2x M
Li·ion bottOI)'. S9x99>:21mm, (none), 7.•V. 1.000m.o.h bon''''''62x91xlOmm, 128g,
5 megapi xels. That it l00g. ""'-yu, RTB WOIT.my less noise than U·ionbonOl)' cuts back on ,..... )It ... U S w,m."ty
costs well under PART cOO{ Pl0NCOt 100.0. other sub- £400 PART (ODE 21t;6l101JM frillOlous extr~s. P.o.RT cooe DMCLS8SESS
£ 200 is the icing on DETAlS www.fuj i filrru o. u ~ DSlJI.s. We'd also DETAILS www.GIt\Otl.co.uk but de livers on DETAILS www.,..... onic .<o ...
FVU R£VIlW Jon 20tO FUU. IUVlEW Jon 2009 fUll REVIEW Sep 2009
lhe cake. It's our
favourite com pact
camera al any price.
recommend
Canon's EF SOmm
1/ 1.8 11 (about £75).
-- ergonomic;.
performance and
image qual ity.

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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 c PHILIPS
BDP7500
w ****
£195 inc VAT

c From www.expansys.com

stu-ray hasn't revolutionised home movie viewing in

the way OVDs did, but it's certainly here to stay. The

>
other options for watch ing films in high definition are The rear of the unit houses all the connections
to subscribe to Sky's HO movie channels or download you'd expect. As with all modern players, the HDMI
huge files from online movie services. Blu-ray releases port suppons the 1.3 standard.This means it can
aren't cheap, admiuedly, but movie rental services such ou tput the full bitstream of Dolby TrueHD and DTS
aswww.lovefilm .comnowstock illlnewreleaseson Master Audio soundtr<lcks to a compatible HDMI -
the formal and don't charge eXIra for them. equipped amplifier. This player also has its own built-in
This latest modellrom Philips is ilrnong the decoder, so you can output these <;oun dtracks through
best-looking players we've seen. Its dimensions match the multichannel analogue outputs. This gives you the
those 01other AV and hi -Ii components, but its curved full benefit olSlu-ray <lu dio with older surround-sound
edges set it apart from their usual boxy designs.The amplifiers, as long as your amp has a multichannel
disc tray is in the centre, with an LED display on the input. Other ports indu de optical and coaxial S/POIF
left and touch-sensitive controls on the right . A <;oft outputs, component and composite video connectors
blue light shines downward s from beneath the disc A flap on the front fascia slides back to reveal a
tray. The edge of the front lascia appears to have an USB port for playing media files from storage devices.
unbroken silver rim, although two sma ll joints mar the This supports only MPEG 2, DivX andWMV video files,
eHect somewhat if you look closely. You won't notice MP3 andWMA audio, and JPEG images.The support

FAQ them from your sofa, though.

We well' immediately impressed with Ihe
may be limited, but the menu system is a pleasure to
use and could be very handy for the odd photo
SDP7SOO's performance. It look just 24 se.:onds to sli deshow. The enl ire interface is stylish and minimal,
What channe ls are load our Spider-Man 3 disc, practically halving the time
Q available on Freeview taken by its predecessor, the BOP7300. and making it
and the induded Il'mote control is brilliant. with
responsrve controls that are both dearly labelled and
HD, and can I receive them? the fastest Blu-ray pl<tyer we 've seen. comfortably arrilnged.
Image qua lity from Blu-ray movies SUMMARY If you're alter a great-looking
f~view HD is finally VERDICT ... good buy if you _ nl
was excellent. producing illi the detail Blu-ray player with a mu t1: ich an nel
A with us, or some of us at
least. If you visit www.freeview.
we'd expect. Testing it side by side
with a couple 01 other recent players,
analog u., "'rround """Id, but
moS! fI"OpIt! a ... booll ... off with ~
output, this is a good buy. However, if
you don't need a built-in audio
cl>O"l"'r model or " Pi.lyStalion 1
co.uk I/ref!view/Services/ we found it very hard to find STANDALONE ILU ·I!AY PLAYER
de.:oder, you could pay £20 more and
Freeview-HD, you'll find a differences between them - any BbJ ·ray Ploy ... ProMo 2.0, HOI-tl, buy a PlayStation 3 Slim instead (see
,.astcode cheder that tells significilnt difference in picture quality <- " <ompoo ~., .tereo pl>ono, Labs , ShOPPl'f 264}.lt's also a great
you if you can rece i~ th e new is likely to be due to your TV. OVO <"....1and O(Itlcal SlPOIF ""!pot,, Slu-ray player, and has loads of other
W!h285. S6mm, - 'Y"" AT8
serVice. II 's currently limile.d to upscaling is another matter, howewr, warranty
useful functions, plus it plays games.
london and Man.chester, but and li ke its predecessor the BOP7S00 PQWEA CONSUMPTION OW . undJy, Those who want a cheaper option
other areas wTll be rolled out shines, with sharp strilight lines, 18W .ctivo should buy LG's 80370 for £130 from
between now and 2012. reduced compression artefacts and P""'T Coot: BOP1500BIJ 12 www.richl.fsounds.com.
OETAIU WWW.philipHO.uk
BBe HD and lTV 1 HD are vibrant. gr<lduated colour. Seth Barton
available to view now. The BBe
service is the same one that's
been availab le Ih roogh Freesat
for some tim e, w ith a selection
of th e best BSe content. The lTV
EDtrOR1SiIGlH.OICE
se rvice is a dedicated channel,
however, ralh er than the FLIP WESTERN DIGITAL
confusing red-button system UltraHD WD TV Live
that ap .,ears on Freesat. It
directly matches lTV 1's output,
and upsca les non-HD content .
*****
£140 inc VAT
i1?2%1
_ fl' '. M *****
£94 inc VAT
From www.p lay.com
Channel Four HD will join the
lin.e -up later th is year. The Ultra HD is the first Flip with This tiny device plugs
II you want to watch these an HOM I output, so you can into your HD TV and
free-to-air HD broadcasts, watch your HO movies back on plays media liles, either
you 'll need to buy new kit, your HO TV. lt comes with a fro m USS storage devices or
such as the Humax HD-fOXT2, red1argeable battery pack that streamed over a network. The list of
which we hope to review n.ext charges via the flip-oot USB connedor.You can also sup ported formaLS is im pressive, and it even handled
month. This is because they fit two standard AA batteries if you prefer. Slu-ray-qual ity video without dropping a frame.The
use the new DVS-T2: standard. The 8GS of fla sh attract ive interlace is simple to mtvigat e, and this is a
So far we haven't been able to memory will store around HOC ... MCOII[)(II 8GB n. .... great little device that lets you enjoy media files on
source a DVS-T2: ~c tun er for two hours of video. This m<m<><y ,t ocog<, your livi ng-room TV with the minimu m of fuss.
testing, but they should be has a resolution of 2.2·mtgopl,ol ' h .... CMOS
available soon. l,2BOx72:0 pixels. It looks OM""', 2.. teo "'Hr>. usB. MUlTlMEIlIA STtU...MINC PLAYER HOMI, component,

de ta iled, and exposures

HOM !, 106.S2.2lmm, HOg. (ompo<ilt. mini·j.odo: , "reo. O(Iticol SIPDlF, £tl.-",." 101100,2.
_ ' Y"" RTB "'.mlnt)' USB,SlJ ppom WM ... , ...... C,OU'W... ond MP3 • ..010, WMV·HO,
were well ba lanced. It has P...RT COOE U2120BlJK MPEG I, MI'£G2 (YOB), MI'£G4, XviD, o;.,x .rw:! H.2t>4 Ifideo, BMP.
Seth aartan idiot-proof con trols and OIT... I[5 .....-w.l .... lIip.com Ttr """ JPEG "'''g... 4Ox12S,100mm, - 'YN' RTB_ty
Reviews Editor FUU RlVlEW 0<, 2009 PQWER CONSUMPTION 9W on. 4W st . rw:Ib~
comes with simple
PART coot: WOBM POOOONBk·EESN
software for upload ing """"" I OETAILS ~.",dc: .< om FUll REVIlW J.... <010
your d ips to YouTube.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~010

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 VIDEO

BT
Vision+
***
£15 or £199 it'IC VAT
From www.btvision.bt.com

BTVision is an on-demand TV se.vice deli~red At the back,

over broadband. and is available ooly to 6T tneVisiont has two
Total Broadband customers. The Vision+ is an SCART sockets, S-~ideo and HDMI
update to the original silverVisioo set-top box outputs. Annoyingly. no HDMI cable is bundle<i,
and loo~ a lot slee~er in black. It's also even though this is the best way to connect the
undergone a lew twea~s to addreS$, among Vlsion+ to an HDTV.lt can upscale Freeview and longer than most PVRs offer. Pressing the up or
other things. complaints about the lirst box's standard-definition on -demand programmes to down arrows while waH:hing a programme tells
power consumption. nop or 10BOi o~r HDMI. you what 's on other channels. while pressing
Instead 01 leaving the hard disk spinning Setting up the box is easy:you just connect right shows what 's on next ,
permanently, the new version has a standby the power, network., aerial and AV cables. Two Bear in mind that you can only get the
mode that involves more than merely changing powerline networking adaptors are bundle<i in Visioo + box for £1 5 if you sign up to a ~iewing
the colour 01 the status LED from blue to case your BT Home Hub isn·t near yourVlsion+ pack - otherwise it costs £199. What"S more, this
purple. However, even with the hard disk box. These route your network traffic through cut-price deal applies only to new customers.
powered down, the box drew almost 12W in your home's power wiring. whiCh is lar neater This isn't the end 01 the bad news, either. Like
sleep mode. This is poor compared with many than using Etllernet cables and more reliable the old box. theVision+ has to be connecte<i to
PVRs, including Humax's PVR-9300T (see page than wireless, During the welcome screens, you'll broadband to operate. This means you can't
40). which uses just lW in standby. There's a be asked to scan for channels. Once this is watch Free~iew programmes i/ your broadband
'low power/off mode ', which consumes 1W, complete, you can start watching TV. connection is down.
but this is largely pointless as it doesn 't allow HD programmes and films are a~ailable to Another niggle is that tile box d~n 't have
the box to wake up to make recordings and download and watch later- they can't be DVB-T2 tuners, so it won't let you watch or
won't respond to the remote control. streame<i in real-time due to bandwidth record the new Freeview HD channels.lt"s harsh
At the front is a viewing card slot for adding limitations. These include 5.1 surround sound. to blame BT for this omission. as the tuners have
additional subscription channels, whkh are but this only outputs th rough tile SfPDIF output only just become available, but it means this box
cUJTently limited to the ESPN sports Channel, and not over HDMI - so those with HDMI - is rather outdate<i already. The dual Free~iew
There 's also a record button and di rect ional capable AV amps will be lorced to use SfPDIF. tuners let you watch one channel and record
controls that replicate tile remote 's. The Vision interface tmn 't changed and is still another. but the 160GB hard disk is rather small
Disappointingly. the USB ports on the front great.lt"s base<l on Mkrosolt Media Center, so lor storing recorde<i programmes.
and rear are not used. so you can't play musk. text and icons are large and easy to read, and the The box worke<i flawlessly during our tests.
~ideO\ or photos Irom USB storage de~ice5. EPG covers the neKt 14 days, which is much and standard-definition content streamed
smoothly without p.lusing or juddering. Picture
and audio quality was reasooably good, and we
appreciated the extra image quality and surround
Watch list Viewing packs sound in HD films. However, film buffs are likely
When it comes to on-demand content, you Rep lay programme or around half this for a to prefer postal rental services such aslo~efilm
can pay as you go or buy viewing packs. The single show from Sport, Music or Kids. There (especially with its wide Blu-ray range) thank<; to
cheapest viewing pack is Bronze, which are 2B Picture Box films available per month Vision 's relati~ely high prices and the lack of
cosh £7.50 fOl" the first three months and (MIne of t he m new releases), but there are choice in the PictureBox pad.
flS afterwards. Silvercosts fl0.S0 for around 600 movies in the pay per view Overall, the new blackVision+ box feels like a
three months and th en flB, while Gold section. Th ese cost from £2 for old titles, stopgap rather than a new product. It"s a shame
costs f12.50 and f20 thereafter. These B.SO for new releases and a hefty £5 for BT hasn't taken advantage of the USB ports, and
allow you to choose two, three and four new HD releases . However, these prices are doesn·t allow media streaming from your home
'packs' respectively from PictureBox Film, in line with rentals from the )(box 360'5 Zune network over Ethernet. Vision's only real
Sport, Music and Kids programmes. All service or the PlayStation 3's Video Store. competition is from Virgin·sTV bundles. The TV
packs also indude Replay, which is a Bear in mind that rentals last just 24 M+ p.lckage is comparable in price to Vision's
selection of content from BBC, ITV,Channel hours. You can watch your programme as Bronze deal when you factor in phone line rental
4 and Five from the past seven days. many times as you like in that period, but it an d broadband costs, but it also provides Sky 1.
If you don't fancy a 12-month contract mearlS you can't watch anything over two Sky 2, BBC HD and Channel 4 HD.
0f1 one of these packs, you can pay 99p per evenings without some very careful planning. II you're eligible to buy the Vision+ box for
£lS, it"s a good deal, but il your area is served by
Virgin. you 'll get more from it~ packages.
<I( BT Vi.iO<l·.
PiclureBox Fi lm
Jim Martin
pack offers 28 films
B month but no new
releases SUMMARY
VEkDICT The newlli .... n+ box i.
bett.,.. looking Ih"" tt>e old one,
bIIt bl'ingolinl••1<. to the table
b,r low.,.. pow .. con,umption
HARD 0151( FRHVlEW RECOIIOU 2>c
f ...... itw t ......... S·-Meo, .Ix SeARl,
HOM I ""'tpUts. OIltia SlPOIF ond
.,.,"" J*>ono ""!puts. 160GB M,d
disk, 360><./~6Smm. one ·y ....
coUKt·ond· ..!urn - 'ant)/
POWlRCONSUJoiPTlON 12W
.un.Jby. t6W on
PART COOE \Ii""".
DETAIlS WWWNvi.ion.bt,com

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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A.C. RYAN CHOOSING A..•
ACR-PV73100 PlayON!
HD Media Player
TV Card
Follow the steps to find your Ideal specs

****
£133 inc VAT
From www.scan.co.uk
lHTE~fACE: IJSB 0< PO
TUNEli; D'.-liII or h)tIrid
1Nfotrrs: !\ad", f~ (Rr)
CAPTURE f ORMAT; MPEGZ
There's a huge range 01 me<lia streaming devices weH labelled and make navigating the menus easy. HARDWAUC~ No
on the market. Our current favourite is the Volume controls let you tweak the levels without ~m ,..."ngroy
Western Digital's WOTV Live (see page 38). We're reaching for the TV remote , Howellef, the playback
not sore who A.C. Ryan is, but he (or she) can controls are bizarrely arranged , and the pause
certainly put together a very capable media player.
The PlayON! HD is much larger than the WD
TV live. but lor a good reason. A panel on the tme
button is inconveniently tucked away near the
bottom of the handsel.
You can browse files on USB devices, memo!),
D TV cards connect to pC!;
through a variety of interfar::es.
Internal cards fit into PCI or PCI~E x1
provides access to a 3'hin drive bay with support cards, an internal hard disk or from network slol$. External devices with USB
for dish up to 1.5T6. A hard di 5k ist)'1 a necessity. devices such as NAS drives and shared folders. It lnterfar::es are easier to install but use
however, as the PlayON! HD can play media files wiU also find UPnP media servers. File format up a USB port. USB stick and PC Card
over a network or from local storage devices. support is good , and it' ll play eve!)' format you 're versions are also available and are
Two USB ports on the side allow you to attach likely to need, indudingVOB with DVD menus and ideal for laptOfls.
these storage devices, while a USB tyPE B port H,Z64 video in an MKV container. A handy video
provides direct access to an installed hard disk. thumbnail appears when you scroll through such Ell Most devices receive only
There's also a memory card reader that supports files, but photos are a~o limited to a single a digital TV broadcasts, but hybrid
SDHC and Memory Stick Pro formats. thumbnail, when a page of multiple thumbnai~ tuners can also receive allalogue
On the rear is the usual HDMI output, plus would be much easier to naviga te. broadcasts. Terrestrial digital TV, or
component and composite jacks, There are some useful extras. Freeview as it 's commonly known,
Optical and coaxia l SfPOIF's are Internet radio is well implemented provides extra fre e channels, but you
SUMMARY
provided, along with a stereo and easy to browse butYouTube can't access subscription charvlels
VD.DlCT Thl. media player doe<
phono output. The 101100 ......!)'Ihingyou n.ed, and you can access has been removed from with a TV tuner carel.
Ethemet port is fine for streaming ;odd an ;"t. "",1 hard di,k, but it'. the latest firmware. Picasa Analogue ~oadcasts can produce
HD movie files but makes pricior Ihan I"" compOIi:l iOll i
:::'_ _ brows ing is still present, though, a superior picture to digita l
network file transfers to and from HARD [)lSI( STREAMING so you can browse online photos. broadcasts, but digital tuners don't
an intemal disk r>ainfuHy slow. MUlTIMEOIA PlAYER HOMI, The PlayON I HD is a good suffer from noise and ghosting when
There 's no built-in wireless cornp<>nent, """"""it<, " ...., phono media player with plenty of ports reception is poor. You can check
outpUI , <0. .101 an<! opll".1SJPOIf
networking, but you can add this lor attaching devices and the the digita l re.::eption in your area
output>. Supporu WMA, AM. ,OGG,
with an 8OZ.11n adaptor for as WAV, MP3 audio. WMV- HD, MPEG 1. option 01 an internal hard diSk. If at www.freeview,co.uk,Remember
(a~o available from Scan, part MP£G2 (vOB), M P£G4, Divx tx",D on<! you want to store files locally, it's that analogue broadcasts are being
code ACR-WN1000l). H,]6.4 file<. 221,16S,60mm. _-year a great option, but other\N1se it's phased out, so analogue-only tuners
RTa worranty
The power button is the only upensive next to theWD TV Live, are a pool" t:hoice.
POWEll t:ONSUMPTlON llW 00
control on the other\Nise plain (... llf>ouIl....-d di.... I""olled), WJ and its remote control and r>arts
fascia; eve!)'thing e~e is handled ~~~ 01 its interlace aren't as polished n Bask devices provide an RF
with the chunky remote control. PART CODE PI.1yOn!HD as those of the WDTV live. 1::1 input for connecting an aerial.
otTAILS www.atJ)'¥',com
The buttons on the remote are Seth Barton To connect an analogue video device,
sut:h as a t:amcoroer orVCR for video
capture, look for a composite or,
preferably, S-video input. Digital
tuners tend not to include this
Iml'f000Si<GlltOlCE feature. Buy a hybfid devke if
yO\.l want to re.::eive digital TV and
HUMAX KWORLD capture analogue video.
PVR-9300T PC160-2T
. . . If yO\.l want to u~ your PC for
*****
£170 inc VAT "----
From www.play.com
~ ~~:!T ii-a
From www.scan.co.uk
Ii.I video editing or as a digital
video recorder, you'll need to capture
video in an appropriate comp ression
Humax's PVR-93ODT Th is PCI «Ird is format. The most practical format is
is easy to use.The compatible with most MPEG2, which gives excellent qua lity
remote ((lntrol has motherboards, and is and reasonable file sizes.
well-labelled buttons, and the easy-to-navigate supplied wi th a half-height brac~et, Digital TV is broadcast in MPEG2
interface indudes a dear EPG , Its two digi tal so you can fit it into a low-profile case. A mini format, which makes it easy to record
tuners are capab le of showing a third progrillTlme aerial is included, but as usual you 'll be llKky to to diSK. Expect an hour of MPEG2
while you record two others. The 320GB hard get de<ent re<:eption using this. The dual F~view video to take up roughly 1.5GB of
disk provides up to 200 hours of fe<ording space, tuners let you re.:ord one chanr.el while watching hard diSK space.
Series !ink recording means you don't have to another, or record two channels at once.
remember to record every episode, It's a great II you 're looking for a basic dual ~reeview tuner n Most TV tuners come with their
way of enhancing your enjoyment of freeviewTV. for your Vista or Windows 7 media centre then 1:.1 own software for watchingTV
this is a good choice. If yoo're still using XP, then and scheduling recordings. Many
I-VJtO DISK RECOItOElt 320GB llatd disk. 2, djg~.1 t!lllm.
we recommend upgrad ing your operating system. tuners are also compatible with the
HOMI, 2, SCART, comPO'~" ".reo pI>ono orw:I opt~ Sl
POIf OIJlplJl ~ o.-.e-y .., RTtI w. nonty excellent Windows Me-dia Center,
roWER CONSUMPTlON lW "..-.db», 2~W 00 INTlRNAl TVTUNER 2, dig it. tu""" pel i"tmoe., RF. IR whkh is included with the Home
PAltT COO( PVR -~lOOT 1GB l ropul~ one-y ... na "'..... nt)' Premium and Ultimate versions of
DETt.IlS www.hJm. >o:<!igit.t"".uk PARTCOOE KW· I'<:160· 2T DETAIlS .......w~k-<am
WindowsVista.
FUll. REVIlW N"" 2008 fUll. REVIEW M. r 2010

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~010

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.. B U LLG UA R 0 At 8 uliGuard we want everyone to enjOy the online world with ease and confiden ce Our
"., products provide comprehenSive protection from online risks and secure your va luable
WITH YOU ONLINE '" data effectively
Find more magazines at www.magazinesdownload.com
 c COWON
E22GB
**
C £30 inc VAT
From www.advancedmp3
players.co.uk

::::J Cowon's lillest MP3 pI~yer. the E2. beilrs

mOte than a passing resemblance to
genre 01 music we tried sounded muddy.
and lacked detail and warmth. Bass was

<C Apple·s iPo<I Shuffle (see !..Jbs. Shoppe~

263). as its roughly the size 01 a pack
of chewing gum and lad:5 a screen.
There ilre many differences between
the two, though.
l
weak. which made bass-heavy music sound
flat and unsatisfying. Clarity and detil;1
increased significantly with a good
third-p<!rty set of earphones. Some tr<lCks,
especially jazz and classical pieces, still di dn ·t
The E2 h~s plilyback controls and a sound ~s dear as we'd like. and the bass stiR
power button on its right edge, while the volume wasn·t thumping enough for our tastes. The battery
controls and menu button are on the left. This is lasted for 10 hours and 36 minutes, which doesn't
preferable to the iPo<I Shuffle·s mOte minimalist sound like much but is in line with what we·d expect
controls. It makes the E2 mOte flexible too. as you can from a player 01 this size.
use any pair 01 earphones without losing playback The E21a cks the Shuffle's clip, which Iilstens it to
control- a problem lor the Shuffle. as its controls are your clothing. An integrated metal ring lets you hang it
located on an inline remote on the supplied ea rphones. from a keychain. but we don't think it's as useful as a
The E2 has its own problems. though. The buttons are clip. As with the Shuffle. the E2's 3.5mm headphone
rather small so people with large lingers will lind them jack doubles as a USB sodet for charging and datil
fiddly. and bi~rrely there isn·t a hold switch to prevent transler. A USB adaptor cable is induded. bot sadly. the
accidentill button presses. widely available Shuffle cable isn 't compatible.
The equaliser is an unexpected bonus on such a Cowon·s E2 is less liddly to use than Apple·s iPod
cheap player. Pressing the menu Shulfle and is dleilper too. The
botton cydes through the presets. SUMMA~Y audio quality is disappointing.
while a synthesised voice tells you VERDlCT CQWoII'$ E1 1<a ch.ap MP3 though. especially compared with
the name 01 each. Hold ing down ptay..r, bYl ft', .nli..ly O4Jld....d by that of previous Cowon players,
lh. com l"'l ili""
the botton randomises the plily which generally sound very good. If
order of your tracks, but there·s no flASl-ll'IEHOllY PlAYE~ 2GB capod\y. you·re looking for a small, cheap
5Upport for pl<!y1ists and the E2's SlJppot\. WI'IA. OGG. WAV. MPl . udio liln, MP3 player. we·d recommend
FAQ synthesised voice can't tell you the
name of your tracks. as the
USB int.rt. ~. 27xS<63mm. 16g._·yN'
RTSwor....,ty
PART CODE IAUD!OE2·oIGB
SanDisk's Sansa Clip+ (see below).
It has superior sound quality. <I
Shuffle's can. slightly longer battery lile and, best
Q What are aud io stream
input/output (ASIO)
drivers? Do I need one for my
USB sou nd u rd ?
We weren 't particularly
impressed by the sound quality
of the bondled earphones. Every
.... .
PER.I'ORMANCE
...., .,."
.~
of aiL it has double the storage
capacity lor only £6 more.
Alan Lv

low-latency ASIO dri~ rs

A are essential for
professional-qualityaudk>
recording on a Wirldows PC,
EDITOR'S CHOICE
and are usually su~lied by the
manufacturer of your audio LOGITECH SHURE SANDISK
device. However, many generic X-230 SE102 Sansa Clip+ 4GB
USB audio devices (such as
Lindy's USB Guitar Cable,
opposite) come without ASIO
*****
U I inc VAT
*****
£50 inc VAT *****
£36 Inc VAT ~
=.'i'iI
From http://accessories.euro. From www.superfi.co.uk From www.advan-cedmp3
drivers. Thankfully, generic dell.com players.co.u k
alternatiws are available. The SE102 headphones are among
Our favourite is ASSI04ALL, Logite<:h's the most effective noise-isolation This MP3 plilyer isn't much bigger
available from WoNW.asio4all. X·230 earphones we've heard. The 41cm than a matchbox, but it h<ls an
com. This 'ree generic driver speakers cable is a little short. but an FM rildio. 4GB 01 storage and <I
shoold work with almost any produce a extension leild is included. When microSO slot.ltl battery lasted lor
sound device. Once insta lled, sound that's de<lrer. richer and listening to musk wMe travelling over 17 and-a-hall hours. whkh is
you simply select it as the input more balanced than that 01 <lny on the London Underground. we impressive lor such a small player.
or output device for any audio other speaker set under £50. were able to hear line details that The buttons <lnd screen
program you want to use it The volume and bass controil are barely audib le using many are a touch mlall. but
with. If you have multiple audio <Ire on the right satellite and other noise-cancelling sets. the Clip + is still
devices (for example, a subwooler respectively, and We were surprised by the great v<llue.
motherboard audio ~O(essor <Ill the cables except power de<lr sound. although
and a USB one), you'll be able to protrude from the right sateltite. the bass wasn't <IS FlASI-ll'IEI'IORY PlAYER oIGB ~odty.
select which o~ ASI04AlL uses II you want <I set lor music or thumping as lin lCD. MicroSD slot. ,uppot\.WMA.
in its configuration screens. games. you won·t find better we would WMA·DRM. OGG.Aud ibl< . nd I'IPl .... io
speakers for this price. ha~e ~ked.
Iii.., USB int.rt. ~. ll<14.SSmmm. 29g.
""'·Y'" RT B.... .,.."ty
Alan Lu STE~EO S1UKERS 2.t COIlllgu'01~ EAIlI'lUGS 3.Smm st.reo jodo: plug. PA~T CODE SOMX 18R -OOolGK-E S7

DETAIlS www.<.ondi<l:.co.uI:
Audio and 3tw pcM'or. 3.Smm "'reo ub~ inptJ" 41crncot>l •• 1-4g
PART CODE ~10123 ·11 2O PAllTCOOE 5E102·(·E fUll. REVIEW feb 2010
storag~ expert
OETALli www.logitoch.<;om DETAILS www.>hJ ....co.uk
fULl.~EVIEW Apr 2OtO fUll. REVIEW Feb 2009

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 AUDIO

LINDY VEHO
USB Gui tar Cable Mimi
*****
£20 inc VAT r~:vtt\;i ****
£3 5 inc VAT
From www.lindy.co.uk From www.amazon.co.uk

If you'v~ ~ver felt that your electric guitar Veho's Mimi wireless speaker is no bigger
was trapped in the 20th century "'lith its than a glass tumble'. 50 we were surprise<!
amp and 'Aiin TRS C<)(Inector, lindy's USB to find that it contains stereo speakers
Guitar Cable could be e><actly what you rather than just one. Its built-in battery
need. It loo~ brilliantly simple: a thkk 5m charges over USB and lasts up to eight hours.
cable with a 'Aiin jack on one end and a USB connector on the other. This, combined with it5 Sill' and sturdy build,
The USB connector is <lctually a tiny USB wund GIrd, which was makes it attractive for mobile use with a laptop.
instantly recogni~d as a USB audio device 011 eVl!ry version 01 Windows. Wha t sets the Mimi apart from most portable speakers is its wireless
Linux and Mac OS X we tried. It's a welcome change from fiddling around connection. A USB dongle is included. and it connecte<!to the speakers
with fragile 14in-to-3.5mm conversion leads and line inputs_ instantly when plugge<! into our Vista laptop. It uses a 2.4GHl wireleS$
The audio quality was excellent. capturing the warm tones 01 our connection. which interfered with our laptop's WiFi reception until we
guitar beautifully. It 's a breeze to use with most PC guitar effects and switched the dongle to a different wireleS$ channel using its buttons.
audio ~iting software - we simply had to select the device, which appears The speaker also has a wired 3.Smm stereo input.
as a C-Me<!ia USB microphone, as our line input. Your usual audio device We were surprised by how loud the Mimi sounds. The bass is weak. as
handles the speaker ootput as normal. you 'd e><pect. but at least it doesn 't sound boomy and unfocused as with
We experienced a very slight delay between hining the guitar siring other 2.0 stereo speakers. The audio qualily varies a lot depending on the
and hearing the tone through oor speakers. thanks to latency issues with type 01 music played. CLaS$ical and pop music sounde<:l reasonably dear
Windows' default driver, but this isn 't a major problem. If it bothers you, and deta iled, although there was distortion at the highest volumes. This
both commercial and free low-latency AudiO Stream Input/Output (ASIO) distortion was much more notiCl!able in electronic. R&B and rock mUSiC.
drivers are ava ilable for generic USB audio devices. However, we had especially at high volumes. Music can al50 sound muddy, 50 subtle vocal
difficulty using these on a test system that also had other USB audio details can be lost. This was more noticeable in electronic and rock music.
devices installe<!, as they caused conflicts with our output device. The audio output is far from perfect. but we don 't expect spot-on
which has it5 own ASIO driver. sound quality from portable speakers. Compared with other portable
Issues such as this mean the USB Guitilr Cable is more suitilble sets. the Mimi sounds reasonably good and is a definite improvement
for practising or recording rough over most laptop speakers.
tracks than for final production. SUMMARY
The wireless connection is SUMMARY
but this isn't a major complaint, VERDICT An u<y and .ffordabl. way especially convenient for mobile VERDlCT V.ho'$ Mimi ~n~ ""ned.bu,
and the cable is priced 10 brin& your <lecuk &uiU' inlo Ihe use and is an unexpecte<! bonus i,',
a good ,hoke if you need compact
accordingly. Whether yoo 're dlgiUI'g. at this price. At 382g it isn 't 01" port.bI. <I • ....., <pe.k ....
practising in your bedroom or USBAUOtO DEVICE USB >O<Jnd <a,d. the lightest portable speaker STEREO SPEAKERS Z.O configuration. 3W
laying down a demo track. this Sm uble. " in connector. one·y.. ' RT8 on the mar1<et. but in every power RMS, 3.Smm stereo. Z.-4GH. w ~tle ..
is a must-have item for w...... nty other respect it's a highly i'"4'"ts.. W g. """~ ... RTS ..... rr.nty
tech -sawy guitarists. PAAT CODE 6 10-1 convenient design. PART CODE IISS.ooZW
Kat Orphanides Alan Lu OUAILS www.l'ffio· uk.<om

LOGITECH PHILIPS PHILIPS PHILIPS

Z-5500 Digital Streamium SHE2550 GoGear
NP2900 Extra Bass Muse 16GB
***** VI"iM
£254 Inc VAT ·1£1.
Fro m www.ama zon.co.u k
This surround-sound speaker
*****
£250 inc VAT " Iii:;~
From http://shop.philip s.co.uk
***** 'tdfb!
£6 inc VAT t!~
From http://shop.p/lil ipS.co.uk
***** ~
£133 inc VAT ~==
From www.amazon.co.uk
ki t has builHn decoding for Dolby
Digital and DTS soundtrack<;.You These earphones may be cheap, Ph ilips' GoG ear Muse has built-in
TheNP2900 " -
can connect a DVD player via the streaming audio _ but they're superior to sets tha t noise cancellation. so you can hear
optical aM coaxial SfPDIF inputs, receiwr is small. come with most MP3 players. your music dearty in noisy
or connect your PC's sound but its built-in They're comfortilble, and their environments. It has good audio
card to its three mini-jack inputs speakers sound rich aM powerful open speakers create a full, natural and video quality. as well as good
lor surround sound. Quality is It supports a wide range of audio sound that's well suited to rod. ba ttery life. It's not
great. with an emphasis on t he formats, and the included pop and dance music. The cheap, but it's a
upper mid-ran~ TwonkyMe<!ia Man.ager software earphones produce great player.
and treble.This is easy to use . A ran~ of internet solid b,m tones,
set is radio stiltions are ava ilable. and but not at the
lin 0400><240 resolution l CO. "'~
great you can add more. It's a little expense of clarity WM .... W MA· DRM.MC. OGG. w... MP3
value. expensive. but it's exce llent. and precision. l1l<I.. fil... WMV. MPEG4 AVI. MPEG4
MP4Yi<i<o fil.., BMP. jPEG imag< filo •.
SURROUND-SOUNO 5I'lAKlRS SOSW $TllEAfoW./G AUDIO REUIVER h EARPHONES 3.Smm stereo jad; ~ug. USB 1f>t er1. ~. 110.8>c55mm. 8%
power. 3. 3.5 stO<eo (5.1. 3, stereol. m ini·jad; i>oadf>h<>n' output. h <00 ..... 1.1m GlI>I• • 87&. "",,,~ "' i ty 106<18.... """' ye¥ RT8 ........ nty
<00 . ..1 SJPOIF. OI't",al SJPOIF ir>p<rts SJPDlf OIJt~ t . """' yeo< RTB ........ nty. 1~ n<y _ _ 12·Z2.000Hz. PAAT CODE SA lMUS16K1OZ
POWER CONSUMPTION 9W st. ndby. ""I'POI"'sWMA. AAC . Ogg.Wav and MP3 i "", od"",~ 1& <>hms DfTAI15 ......... ph l ll ~.<o.'""
'~ M .lIdio PART COOE NP2900Kl5 PAAT CODE SH!:Z550IOO
PARTC0DE 9701Hl1Z0 POWER CONSUMPTION 4W nan<l>y. 0flA&5 www . ph il ip~ .....u kl<o......... r
fUll REVIEW Ju l 2009 6Won foo REVIEW Jun 2009 fUll. REVIEW 1'1.. 2008

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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 W LG
N2BlD 2TB .~
- -
t!::J ***
£348 inc VAT
'.~ ----::-~

<C From www.scan.co.uk

I
a:
LG's N2S1D is the fil"5t netwOl"k attach ed storage
(NAS) devi~ _'ve seen to come filted with a Blu-ray
drrve. Of any optical drive lor that matter. Althoogh it
NAS with a built-in optical drive sounds gimmicky. it e.
could be quite useful. Users of computers without

CJ
optical drives . such as netbooks, can use the N2B1D to
install softwim~ from disc. Files can also be written to
disc althoogh . unsurprisingly. only one user can access makes it diHiwlt to troubleshoot. However, we had no

I- the Blu-ray drive at any one time.

Unloltunately, the web interface for burning discs is
problems using the N2B 10 to share a USB printer or
the conten ts of a USS di sk over our local gigabit

en
only auessible from the S<!me password -protected Ethernet network.Thell'·s also a memory card reader.
interface used to manage other, more sensitive so their contents, as well as those of USS disks. can be
settings. It"s unlikely you 'Uwant to give all usel"5 on automatically backed up onto the N2Bl0's hard disks.
your netwOl"k such unll'stricted access. The basic but they'll' copied into a confusing folder structure.
burning interface is quite clunky too. It wouW have This 2T6 vel"5ion comes with a pair of HB hard
been mOfe cOrM'nient ilthere had been a separate disc disks filted in easily accessible drive bays. In RAID 0
burning application that could queue disc burning jobs mode. 2T6 01 storage is available. but if a single disk
from multiple users and prompt for a new disc as each fails then yoo'Ulose all your data. Under RAID I, the
job is finished. We 'd also like to have seen the ability to available storage is halved. but your data is safe if a
automatically backup either all or a disk fails. The N2B 10's
po<1.ion 01 shared files to disc. SUMMARY performance, whether under RAID
Sadly. the N2Bl0 can't be used V£ROICT A NAS wiU, ~ built·in optkal o or 1. was ...mat we 'd expected -
drive i..,'t • bad idOl if you h.~ •
to play OVD or Stu-ray movies. roughly the same s~ed as it
n.!book, bYt LG', Blu-r~-"'l"ipped
There are plenty of other media removable USB hard di sk.
N2B1D didn't ny. "1"0 our~'

FAQ sharing leatull'S, though. We had no

trouble using the N2Bl0 as an
iTun~ music or UPnP media server
NUWORK STORAG: DEVICE 2T11 h.,d
dl"'. 10/10011000Mb ~ I' E _ . 3 . USB2
With it price ~r gigabyte 01
17p. the N2B1D isn't very
expensive, but you're still paying
port>. UPn~ m«lo.. i Tu".~ print. USB di'"
Can I sh are m y DVD and files can be downloaded over for a Blu-ray drive ...mich has been
Q writer wit h other BitTorrent withoot a Pc. Unlike the
one! FTP..",.rs."",-y..,RlBWiI".Oflty.
16S.16Sx2jjmm. poorly integrated and can't be used
(omputers on my network? disc-burning interface. this can be POWUt CONSUMPTlON 20W "' ndby. to its full potential. If you still want
UWoctiYt
accessed separately from the Il'st of an optical drive -equipped NAS,
'ART CODE N2B TOOl
LC's N2B1D (right) the web management interlace. chea~r vel"5ions with a OVD drive
A allows multiple
computers on a netwo .... to
Stored files can also be acc~sed
from any internet-connected PC
instead of a BR one and smaller
hard disks. are available. Check
share an optical dri~. This is through a web browser. Annoyingly, out our Labs of the latest NAS
useful for installing softwa~ this often failed to work in our tests
••• devices in next month's Shopper.
onto, or backing up files from, and the lack of documentation Alall Lu
computers without an ~tical
drive - such as netbooks.
If you don't want to invest in
such an expensive piece of kit,
it's sITU possible to share a OVO
EDITOR'S CHOICE
writer across your netwo .....
Ahead's po~lar Nero burning
WESTERN DIGITAL IOMEGA
suite used to include NeroNet My Book World eGo Portable 500GB
which did just this, but it's r>O
Edition lTB , ~'!
longer avai lable .You can buy
120% Alcohol, which allows
*****
EIl 7 inc VAT _ «4,_ ~'i:vJ
*****
£70 inc VAT
From
data to tM> written to or read
from discs, but it costs US$57 From http://www.misco.co.uk Some portable USB hard dish
(approx £36) and dOi':sn 't allow can ~1 cheap and flimsy,
OVO or Blu-ray movies to be This ITB NAS device looks sleek in but lomega 's eGo certainly
watched over a network. its glossy ...mite case.lt·s easy to doesn ·t. Although we
For most uses, though, it's far co nfigull' and is olle 01 the fastest wouldn't want to drop any hard
simpler to buy and sha re an single-disk NAS devices we 've disk, the eGo's metallic shell fee ls as though it
external USB OVO writer. seen. It's quiet. too. so couW handle a few knocb.
Easily-transportable portable it's unobtrusive and can NETWORK STOAAG: DEVICE It's one of the
models, such as Samsung's be used in a quiet room. HB ~d dl .... 10110011.000 fastest po rtable USB PORTABLE EXTlRNAl HARD
Mbitl. ".tW<;KI:. <"""",,,ion. Ix Dtst: 500GB <opKity. 5.-4OOrprn
SE-SOS4 (see What'sNew, The MyBook Work! disks we 've seen,
USB port. UPnP modi •. ffiJ~ . pi .... sp<ed.US8inlOrf",•.
Shopper 263), are avai lable isn't perfect - it has USB dtsl: . ,..J fTP"""o,,- whether it was 13S. 89.2Omm. ""0-)'"1'
online lor around £50. no print sewer and thr,,-)'N' RTB _rr""'Y (Qpying large or smaU RTB """onty
its remote access 'ARTCOOE WOH1NC10000 files, and EM('s useful PAIIHOOO4l;19
server isn't very_U RetroSj:le<:t Express HD DET.o.Il.S www.Iom<g.a-""opt.
Alan Lu designed - but its
~
backup soltware is
<~

PC systems and fUll REVIEW Jun 2009 Wll REVIEW De< 2009
storage ~xpert
~rformance and low irlCluded. Best of all,
cost ~r gigabyte the eGo costs just 15p
make it great ""lue. ~r gigabyte.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 STORAGE

KINGSTON
SSDNow V+ 128GB
***
£254 inc VAT
From www.kikatek.com

Kingston's latest 128GB 2.5'n solid sta te disk (550) 30 minutes longe r with the SSDNow fitted, although SUMMARY
for l<lptops com es with a comprehensive kit 01 there were only negligible impro~ements in boot an d VERDICT Kingston', !<olest $SO is f~st
accessones.A USB 2.5in disk enclosure and disk hibernation times. SSDs are far more accident-proof and come. wllh ev.rythlng you n.-ed.
bul ill comparatively low c.pacity
imaging software are indude<llor copying aU your than standard disks. and it's this added data security
and high l"1er mate II • poor choice
mes from your existing hard disk to the SSD, before that's the ~ey reason to invest in one.
fitting the 550 in your laptop. The enclosure then lets Kingston'S 128GB SSDNow is ~ery last with a weU SATA SOUDSTATE DISK 118GB i>¥d disk,
you fe -use you r old internal Iwd disk as a portable thought-out selection of accessories. However, like aU 114(;& lormott«i copKity (NTH), SATA
)00 Inl""o<.
USB disk .There are also drive rails and screws for current SSDs ifs cramped compared to traditional PART CODE SNVPll5 ·5,lI118GS
mounting the 550 in a 3,Sin drive bay. ha rd disks. and costs an exorbitant f2 per gigabyte. DETAILS www.k .. ptoo.com
We were also greatly impressed with the Still, if you need very fast lile copying, a longer
SSDNow's file copying performance. It's laster than battery life and added piece 01 mind regarding data
any traditional2.5in or 35in hard disk, or arry other security, then th is is the best SSD to buy.
SSD we've seen. Our test laptop 's battery even lasted Alan Lv

SHARKOON
SATA QuickPort USB3.0
****
£47 inc VAT
From www.scan.co.uk

SharkOOl1'S SATA QuickPort cradle is designed lor around 30MB/s slower than Buffalo's
people wtlo Irequently need to copy data to an d Irom DriveStation eKlerna l USB3 disk (5ee While'S
internal hard disks. It has a top-moonted slot fOf easy New, Shopper 264), but is stiU around foor times
connection of a 2.Sin Of 3.Sin SATA disks. No fiddling laster than a regular USB2 connection.
about with cables is required and the QuickPort then On the downside, the QuickPort is relati~ely
connects to your computer using either USB2 or expensive compared to both standard hard disk SATA TO usa HAAO OISK CUOOU T.I ...
USB3. Remo~ing a disk is as simple as pressing the enclosures and U5B2 di sk cradles, although it's still 00' 2.5i" or 3.Sln SATA Iw<J d i!.k ,
USBZ 0<><1 USB) ..1. 01"0<.
eject button and puUing the disk out. under ESO - so woo't break the bank. It"s also not as PARTCOOi 40«951009916
Using a 750GB Samsung SATA 300 disk, the fast as other com pa rable USB3 products. DETAILS www"I>i"toon.com
QuickPort"s performance o~er USB2 was in line with Nevertheless. the QuickPOf\'s convenierx:e is still
what we'd expect. When connected to our USB3- worth paying fOf if you have already upgraded to
equipped Asus motherboard. it averaged around USB3 and need to regularly work with internal disks.
l00MBI5 copying both large and small files,This is Alan Lu

SEAGATE SAMSUNG WESTERN DIGITAL

Barracuda 7200.11 Story Station lTB Scorpio Blue 500GB
15TB *****
£73 inc VAT 'i'i i ~" ***** '" '.: .
*****
E88 inc VAT
From www.sc.an.co.uk
From www.amazoo.co.u k Silmsung's first Western Digital's
cleshop external 500GB Scorpio Blue
Despite the huge 1.5TB disk lias a brushed lias an unbeatable
capac ity 01 this 3'hin meta l and grey plastic combination of high capacity
internal SATA hard disk. it finish, As well as looking sleek. it I\lnS quietly. and fast performance. It's one of the qu ickest
costs just 6p per gigabyte.We were imp ressed We were impres5e<l wi t h its perfOfmance in 2'lti n SATA disks we've ever set'n. yet it costs
by its performance in most of our file -transfer our file-transfer just over IIp per gigabyte. Unlike some earl ier
tests: it lagged benchmarks; OESICTOf'EXTERNALHAAO 500GB drives,
behind onty wilen SATA HAROOlS~ 1.5TB hord it's one of the 00i~ ITS copocity. 1~ thi s one's slim lY.ln SATAHARD DISK 500GB.
disk, 1.l91G8 f""""tted splndle~ , usa " I"",ce, o4lISGB form. n od copocity
writing small col'lcity (NTfS), S~TiV 'IOO fastest desktop ~ , 12O>c193mm , ", , ~ .~ .. ,
9.5mm case will (NTFSJ. SATA )00 in'..-f",•.
files. Cheaper ;",..-f. ce. 1 ~ spindle USB disks we've RTBw."onty fit in almost any 5,-4OOrpm Si'indl .~ 8MB
1.51B hard disks ~,32MB com.. 8.5m, <HI< seen, despite its POWEll CONSUMPT1ON lW laptop. II you cac ..... 12m..e,, ~ ' i"",.24<18IA)
are available, but tim •• ~8<lBl A) <>0< ... ....nen i<le
low cost per id le. "IW oct ~ need to upgrade <>0< ... wt..;, l<to
PART CODE SnlSOO~lAS P.... RTCOOE H)(·DUOIOEB PARTCOOi WDSOOOQEVT
the Barf<>Cuda is OiTAILS www..... gote.<om gigabyte 01 7p. the storage DETA.U www,,..,,,,<m:ti1tol,,,m
DETAILS ...........,...", '"nK'CO . u~
our pkk if you FUU R1V1EW Nov 2009 Backup software fUll REVIEW 1'10)1 ZOO9 capacity of your fUll REVIEW 1'10)1 1009
need plenty 01 is included, so it's laptop. then this
last storage lor
your desktop Pc.
icleal if you need
lots 01 storage.
: is the 2'hin SATA
liard dis.\; to buy. - ... -.-
_ '"" _ _ oi-
...... ~ e -

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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 EDIMAX The router has plenty 01 leatures, lrom
3G Portable remote management to keyword· and
address-based URL blocking. Basic QoS
Router 3G-6210n aUows you to assign bandwidth limits and

****
£80 in c VAT ,~~ 1·
, ... ! ..
From www.pcworld.co.uk
prioritise different lP ,md port ranges.
Dynamic: DNS settings, which en able you
to point a lixed URL to your router even il
its lP address changes, support a number
of popu13r free and commercial services. If
Edimax' s tiny ba ttery-powered 3G rou ter you have both wired and 3G connections
is about the si~e of a pad of cards and available. you can set one up as a backup
designed to let you share an internet connection, so that if your wired
connection wherever you are over WiFi. connection goes down, for example, the
A.s well as sharing a connection wi th laptops. you router can seamlessly switch to 3G.
can also use it to give internet access to other The router is 802.11n compatible and has a
WiFi -enabled devices. such as ,m iPod Touch. maximum throughput of lSOMbitls when using
To share a 3G connection you fil"$t need to plug channel bonding. This is turned on by default, but we
your wireless dongle into the router's USS port There's disabled it. as using two wi reless channels creates
also a 10/100 Ethernet port, which can either be used problems with extra intelierence. Using our (entrino 2
as a LAN port to give internet access to a wired device laptop we got throughputs of 24.44Mbitls at 1m and
or, using the dedicated button on the side. switched to 23.34Mbit/s at 10m. Sadly, we couldn't get a
a WA.N port This lets you tum the 3G-62100 into a connection at 20m: thiS lad of range is common to
standard portable router and share a regular internet most single-antenna. lSOMbitls, S02.11n-compatible
connect ion. such as those found in hotel rooms. routers. That said. lor its intended purpose. the
Configuration is easy. There are qu id setup tools throughputs and range are more than adequate for
on the accompanying CD and built into the routers sharing a 3G connection. Switching to Edima x's own
web interface. These ta ke you through configuring EW771SUn 802.11n wireless adaptor (£25). we saw
your internet connection (3G or wired) and setting up significantly lower speeds than with our laptop and
a secure wirele55 connectioo. range wasn 't improved. Edimax
Setting up a 3G internet SUMMARY claims the router wiUlast for
connection is easy. and a simple VERDICT With its com~ct .i",. low around one-and-a-half hours using

FAQ matter of entering the correct

connection information for your
internet provider. If you don't ~now
prke aM nable 10m rango, lhi. i. 04J '
f;lYOurite port. We 3G rout.,.. to d. te
3CWIRELESS POItTMU ROUTE~ 802.11&
the integrated li-ion battery. Our
tests confirmed this: the 3G-6210n
lasted for four hours using a WAN
Wh~t '~n I do to imprQV~
Q my Wifi signal?
your provider's details. Edimax's
website (hlfp:lltinyurl.coml
(150Mb~I.) . h IOJ100lAN ports..Z, WAN
pM. (Cobl.,3G ",,'0..,,). uPnP. Oos,
connection and two hours '-"lith 3G.
This is an excellent porta ble
16><102.69mm. _y,", __ nl)'
~TB

edimax3g) will help: just dick on the POWEll CONSUMPTlON 3W 00 router. and it's around a third of
Your wi reless broadband Compatible tab lor a complete li st. the price of Nov.tel's similar MiFi
A network can suffer
interfe rence from many sources,
This also tells you which dongles the
router is compatible with. Most
PAATCODE lG-6.21On
2352.11 you don't need the battery
life or portability . Zoom's Model
PERFORMANCE
ind uding ne ighbouring
networu atld oth er devices
th at use the sam e 2.4GHz
frequency as most routers,
dongles are supported. but Zoom's
Model 4501 (see What's NfW,
Shopper 266) has better support.
although no battery.
--5
-,. ' I
"-,-
0 -....... ' -"
.........
4501 (see Shopper 266) is much
cheaper and supports a wider range
of USS modems. but isn 't as fast
KatOrphanides
such as cordless phone s.
The fi rst thing to do is change
the channel your router uses:
channels 1,6 and 11 don't
overlap and are the safest
EDITOR'S CHOICE
choices. If this makes roo
differe nce, disable channel
0, SOLWISE
txmding. This setting makes Premium SEC-Cl062W
you r route r use two wire less
channels instead of one to
tK>ost perform ance, but also
*****
£15 per month (£10 for 0 , mobile customers) *****
£109 Inc VAT

a
From http:// b road band .02.co.uk From www.solwise.co.uk
irocreasl's th e chances of
interfere nce and often ca uses O/s broadba nd services aren't ~ Solwise's SEC-Cl062W is a
lots of problems, induding a available everywhe re. but if you 're professional -gracle wireless
serious loss of range. lucky you'll be able to receive its lP camera with motori sed
II changingyOlJ r rout er's 20 Mb itfs-rate.:l connection for £1S fIE!!" 2 pan and tilt, suitab le for
settings doesn't help, reme mber month. Our survey showed average ceiling-moun ting. It easily
that many routers allow you to download speeds of 11.1Mbit/s and l1 igl1 justifies its price. VKleo
replace their antenn.as and satisfaction scores. You don 't get a sta tic IP add ress. quality is brilliant. witil
switch them for something but extras inc lude 200 free SMS messages that you accurate colours and min imal graininess.
more ~erfu\. You could also can send from 02'S website. Packages are subject to To make the most of it. you"!l need an
buy a wireless re pe ater to a fair-use policy FTP serverwhere it can
extend you r networl< to othe r rather than a stated HOME lRo ... D8A.ND SERVlCE
upload JPE G sna psilots WlRH£SS IP CAMERA 6-IQ>. 480
areas 01 your hom e. download li mit. 2QMb<tl •. wi,eless roun<. tmlIiL when motion is ...oIution. lSfp•. 101100w;,ed
If iI's available Ire< mt.lllotion. lZ·mon,h cletected. You can even SOZ. l lbl, 1Mo".1 ..... mOllon

Kat Drphanides
where you live. it's a
great package.You
conUOd DET..t.l5 www.
broodNr>d02couk
FUU REVIEW Sop ZOO9
connect extemal sensors
so snapsilots are
-,...,
Otloctioo. _ · ~r RIa

POWEll CONSUMPTlON 3W on
even get a fS autom atically triggered 'ARTCOOE SEC-Cl062W
discou nt if Y<lu're an by events such as a
window being opened. fULL IUVllW 00 ZOO9
0 2 mobile customer.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 NETWDRKS

SYNOLOGY
:~,rr::;:~::::d~~~~~:.t
MU" ,) II
"01,I •••
CHOOSING A...
VS60
*** Wireless
£235 inc VAT
From www.cclonline.com Rauter
Synology's VS60 is an unusual connect to just about any PC Follow the steps to find your ideal specs
product. ~ looh like one of the monitor or flat-panel TV. There STMlDARD: B02. lin (3OOM!,;tl.)
company'S single-bay Disk are two USB ports - one althe ElHEIlN£T I'OIITS: four 1&100 M!,;II<
Station NAS devices, but its front and one at the rear - SO 8llOADBANO CONNEClJON: !themol W~N port
purpose is much more specific. you can connect a USB flash ~""""""",.-.y
The VS stands for Visoal Station drive and moose. If you connect a
imd it worn with a Disk Statioo's USB flash drive , you can save snapshots
Surveillance Station and allows
you to display live feeds from your
IP camera on a monitor or TV.
of leeds as )pEGs. The mouse lets you toggle a
C3mer,,'s feed between full-5ueen and thumbnail
views. Cameras that sopport pan, tilt and zoom
D A basic wire less router with the
specifiutions above will cost
around £40. Ewn b-udget routers offer
It's aimed at businesses using IP cameras for can alw be controlled using the mouse. Quality is a02.11n te<hnology now, although
security ra ther than traditklnal (CTV cameras, ma inly down to your IP cameras, rather than the th ey don't have as many featul1!$ as
which limits its potential audience somewha t. For V56O's processing. We didn't notice any drop in their more expensi~ counterparts, ,t
u se~ wanting this capability for home security, the quality compared with ~iewing our cameras' feeds doesn 't have a built-in modem, so
VS60 is rather expensive considering it doesn't on a PC monitor in Internet Explorer. you'll ha~ to use it with a broadband
replace the Disk Station's surveillance capabilities For a list of supported IP cameras, go to http:// modem that has an Ethernet fIOrt.
but merely allows you to view the live feeds. tinyurl.com/synologycameras. Frustratingly, Also available at this price are
In order to use the VS60, you'll need a Disk despite Surveillance Statkln supporting HD 150Mbit/s 'N-technology' routers.
Station NAS that supports firmware version webcams, the VS60 doesn't. Its ma ximum These have fewer antennas, but are
2.2-091 4 or later. This pro~ides the necessa!)' supported resolution is 720xS76 (standard PAL TV) often as fast as 802.1 1n devices. You
Enable Visual Station tickbox to configure which at 6Ofp<;. Audio is output ~ia a mini-j ack. un expect a transfer speed of around
camera feeds are a~ai lable to the VS6O. You'll also JThe VS6O's power consumption is low at just 30Mbit/s at 10m from any modern
need to connect the V560 to your nelWorI<: ~ia its 5W. However, the consta ntly flashing LEOs can 80Z.11n router.
10/100 Ethemet port. become annoying and there's no way to turn them
Everything is set up through the Disk Station's oil. This could be addressed in a future firmware E'l if you have ADSL,you should get
web interface. You sim ply drag update, which would be applied U a wireless router with a built-in
and drop cameras that have SUMMARY from a US B flash drive. ADSL modem. It will cost more than
been configured in Surveillance VERDICT A.. a r.rst·genem ion product, As it ' s a fi~t-generation th e equivalent cable router, but it lets
Station to the V56O's list to which is .150 very nkhe, the VS60 will product, there's dearly room you con nect your router directly to
app<'al only 10 Ihose who 'f'KificaRy
make them appear on your for improvement with the your broadband connection without a
n..,d it. E ~ n then, it's not ,re~t value
remote monitor. You can also V56O. Hopefully some of this separate modem.ADSLZ+ modems
choose whether to show four NETWOIIJ(VIOEO DEVlCl Suf'l'O<U up ' 0 can be done via firmware support b.-oadband connections up to
.1, IP ca."...•• ,VGA. , 00 3.Smm , ud",
or six feeds, with si x being out",",, 2>< USB porn, 1. 10/100 Eth<-m ..
updates. In the meantime, 24Mbit/s with an appropriate ISP.
the maximum. pM, 160><63,218mm. two-Y" ... RTB unless you ha~e a specific need
The V560 has a VGA output for this type of product, it's not n Most 802.11n wil1!less routers
only - a slight surprise at this
DETAILS www.synology.com
particularly good value. 1::1 use the ZAGHz frequ ency. This
price - but this means it should Jim Martin has good range but un be >H'one to
interference if it's near a lot of other
2.4GHz devices, such as other routers
and baby monitors. If you have trouble
getting a consistent wireless signal or
you want faster transfer sp~ds for
wireless video streaming, it's worth
LlNKSYS LlNKSYS buying a dual-band router, which can
WRT320N WAG160N use both the 2.4GHz and SGHz bands,
Alternatively, a hi-gain anten na un

*****
£63 inc VAT :.~!!~ Eq~:;1i tloost signals and improve ranges and
throughputs to the whole house. You
From www.amazon.co.uk From www.sc.an.oo.uk
un also add a hi-gain antenna to a
At £64, this is the Li nksys's WAGI60 N AD SL footer is easy to PC's network adaptor. If wire-d
chea pest dual-band confi gure, wi th a standard set of features network sp~ds are a priority, look for
Draft-N fouter we've including QoS and 10Cil1 wireless traffic shap ing, a rout er with Gigabit Ethe rn et.
ever seen. Even though it can tloth of which help to prioritise high-bandwidth
transmit on only one ba nd at a time, it's still services such as video streami ng, More . . . Many routers have built-in USB
inc red ibly fast in both 2AGHz and SG Hz mode, importa ntly, it produced some of the fa ste st Ii.I ports that allow you to connect
both with a 2AGHz transfer a USB drive and use the router as a
Ce ntrino laptop QUAL·BANDWIRHISS ROUTIR ipfeds we've ever "Dst WIRELESS ROUTER basic network storage device. If you
and using its Dr. 1t 8OZ.11 blgln dtJ .. -bo t><l seen, both with our 80Z.11 b/g/n ()OQMb"/.). 4. want to share a usa printer on your
(300Mb it I.), 4, 10/1001 101100 LI,N po<I', 1xW~N
own adapt or. I,OOOMbi, l. LAN porn, 1.W~N pM.
Centrino Z laptop and network, look for a wireless router
pM (.>.OSlO!. moOem~ uP<>P.
t inksys's UPnP, QoS with Linksys's with a built-in USB print server.
QoS. 34x20Z.16Omm. ""'"}'Nr
WRT320N is PART CODE WRT3Z0N WUS B600 N USB RTtlw.......-.ty Altematively,you can add a dediuted
also easy to POWER CONSUMPTION 'iW "" wire less adaptor. The PARTCOO£ W~Gl60N - U K ' wireless print server later. Fina lly, if
DETAIlS wwwll"sysbyciKO.com
use, mak ing FULL. REV1t:W Oct 2009
WAG I60N-U I( can't POWER CONSUMPTION 7W "" you're interested in making yoke calls
DETAJ.S ....,.·,.i.linksymyci"""<;Dm
it the ideal transmit on the SGHz over the intemet, look for a router
~~~I
--1:_·.....-
fULL. REvtlW Oct 2009
choice if you band, but it's easy to with built-in Vo,P suwert (and phone
don't need an """_ ....'" ~­ use, inexpensive and sockets) as this can save you money.
ADSLmodem. very fast.

MAY 2010 ' COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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 en HIS
Radeon HD 5670
I- IceQ 512MB
***
Z £75 inc VAT
From www.yoyotech.co.uk

w Whatever your budget, ATI makes a graphics card to

suit you.The HO 5800 and 5700 enthusiast cards are
now foltowed by more mainstream offerings, of which

Z this HO 5670 is the fil"$t we 've seen.

We tested the HI S HD 5670 !ceQ 512MB. which
uses HIS's heats ink design. This kept everything nice
the anti -aliasing to 2x to get a playable 31fps from
the card. These score~ are a long way behind the HD
5750, which managed just under 30fps in C'fiis.

CJ
and cool ~nd r~n quietly, too. B~r this one exception, More worryingly. the older HO 4770 is noticeably
the rest of the card is identical toATrs relerence design. quicker with 22fps in Crysis, yet costs the same.
There ~re three outputs, with HOMI , DVI andVGA The 4770 doesn't ~upport the fancy gr3phical elfects

D.. an provided. This means you can connect most

monitors without needing an adaptor. The card
supports ATrs triple-monitor Eyefinity technology,
in the latest DirectX 11 games, but then the HD
5670 doesn't have enough power to render these at
smooth frame rates anyway.

~
although this mid-range card will struggle to render One of the HD 5670'5 key advantages over more
any modern game across all those displays, with powerful cards is that it doesn't R'quire its own power
typical resolutions being 5}60xl.080. supply. instead drawing all it nee<:ls via the PCI Express
The HD 5670 is one step down from the HD 5750 slot.Th is make~ it ideal for upgrading PC~ with no
(see lIIhat'S New. Shopper 263). Its core dock speed is 6-pin power supply connector, such as many compact

CJ actually faster at 775MHz, a rise of 75MHz. However, it

has only 400 stream processors,
compilred to the 720 on the HD SUMMARY
designs. The card draws around 61W wilen gdming,
which shouldn't ov.ertoad most
power supplies.

tl 5750, and so can undertake lar fewer

calcul~tions simuttaneously - a fact
that became clear in our benchmarks.
There's 512MB 01 onboord memory.
VD.DICT The HO 5670 is onothe r
cOj>able graphics card from A11, but
the olde<" HO 4770 is bette<"volue
If you're looking to upgrade an
older PC to play the odd game
and you aren't too demanding
about detail settings, the HD 5670
HO 5670<hip>et. n5MH. cO« ~ d .

FAQ half that of the HD 5750, though this

is typical lor a mid-r.mge card.
In our tesllthe HD 5670 scored a
~1 1MBGDORS memory "",,,;,,g ol 1(;1-1 ••
PO Exp-... <16 2.1 i nt ..-lo<~
PAATCOOe 1-1567Q512
provides decent performance at a
reasonable price, Older cards such
as the HD 4770 provide more
Why . .. e the re 50 many respectable 41.81ps in Call 01 Duty 4. DflAILS www,hisd igitolcom bang lor your buck. though. and il
Q 5000-series graphics but struggled in the more demand ing PERFORMANCE
you wdnt to enjoy the latest
Ulrd5aY/l;~bte? Crysis test with only 16.9fps. OirectX 11 games then you need
prob~bly because 01 ill limited to spend a little more and buy the
The number of mCKlels in
A
~
All's 5000 generation can
confusing, but th ere's good
memory-. We had to reduce the
resolution to 1,2S0x 720 and lower
HO 57SO for around £100.
Seth Barton

reason for the variety. With

prices fOf new graphics cards
ranging from £40 for II HD 5450
to over £500 for II HD 5970,
EDITOR'S CHOICE
there's plenty of ground to
cover in t.elween. The eight
SAPPHIRE SAPPHIRE
models currently available are Radeon HD 5850 1GB Radeon HD 5770
the HO 5450, 5570, 5670, 5750,
5770,5850,5870 and 5970.
All produces II reference
*****
£215 inc VAT
***** " ~'!
From . i
design for each model. For
I')(ample, the HD 5970 has The Radeon HD 5850
3,200 strl'am processors, isn 't cheap. but lor The HO 5770 is
compared to just 80 on the HD keen garners it's the more powerful
5450. In the middle 01 the worth every penny. It 01AT1"s two new
range, dilfereoces can be slight. may not be quite as powerful mid-range cards. It h.ls SOO
Card manufacture rs such as as the HD 5870, but it's still mind-b lowingly quick. II strea m processing units, plus last
Sapphire arld HIS produce their has 1.440 stream processing units. which is only 160 memory and clock speeds. bu t is held back by its
own cards based on Ihe units fewer than the £300 HO 5870. US-bit memory- interface.
reference designs. The core Wi th 88.4lps in our II It did well in our r::::=:::-::-:::::::c=--,
specifications remain the same, of Duty 4 benchmark, it benchmarks, with a PCI EXPRESS GAAf'HICS CAllO
but variations can irld ude the wi ll tear through score 01 33.6fps in our An ~ HO sno.,.~,;.m~~;.,,,
850MH, <0« >PHd,
I
amount and type of memory. less-demand ing ti tles. It demanding Crysis test. momooy running .. 1.2(;Hz.
the design of the heat sink and managed a smooth It's cooler. quieter and PCI ExprH< .16Z.1 • ."..~
the type of video outputs. 42.4fps in our tough Crysis less power-hungry th.ln RTB war,""ty
test at a resolution 01 previous cards, plus PARlCODE Z116HlO· l(NI
Of.lAILS www... pphi.-.l« h.<O<n
1.920x1.2oo. proving th.lt there's support lor 2010
Seth aartan it's capable 01 pleasing DirectX 11. It can also
Reviews Editor
resutts in any g~me.The output digit~1 HD
HD 5850 also has lull audio and run triple-
support for DirectX 11. monitor setups.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 COMPONENTS

provides support for multiple monitors.

SAPPHIRE It has HDMI and DVI outputs mounted on
HD 5450 512MB the card, plus aVGA output on the
backplate that's con nected to the card
DDR3 PCl E HDMI via a ca ble. Sapphire also sells this card
"'li th ~ DisplayPort output (part code

****
£37 inc VAT
From www.la mbda-te k.co m/
11166-QO-20R), but it's less useful for a
medi a centre Pc. The three outputs allow
you to drive a triple -monitor setup, which
co mponent shop ATI calls Eyefinity, making this the cheapest
card capable of this.
Although graphics cards are synonymous with Sapphire's ~rsion of the HD 5450 is As with all 5000-series cards, the HD 5450
gaming, they h~ a lot of other uses too - not excellently designed, and should be compatible supports Direct)( 11. However, it's simply not
least letting you connect a monitor to your PC. with practically arry PC with a PO-Express x16 powerful enoogh to run modern 3D games
Other uses include video playback acceleration, slot. For starters it's a hall-he ight design, so it smoothly at the kind of det<lils levels required
multiple monitor support, speeding up parallel win fit in slimline PC cases.To do this you'(( need to benefit from the new graphics standard. It
processing tasks such as video encoding and to fi t the smaller, supplied, backplate. Such a struggled in our tests. and we managed to get
e~n ootputting HD audio via HDMI. backplate is big enough only for the DVI and Call of Duty 4 running smoothly only by turning
The HD S450 is by lar the cheapest card in HDMI connectors, but S<lpphire has thought fu lly off anti-aliasing and reducing the resolu tion to
the latest Radeon range to date. Such a card is induded a se<:ond backpla te so you can use an 1,280x720. We can't recommend this card for
ideal if you're looking to adjoining slot to host the running modem 3D games, and you should
build a media centre PC for SUMMARY VGA output. As expected, invest more to enjoy the latest titles at their best.
your living room. Like more VERDICT Although tile HD 545{) h~ . thiS card doesn't require a CPU usage of oor test PC was kept to a
expensi~ SOClO-series its u.e., old .... c.rd. con do most of separ<lte power supply, and minimum when playing Blu-ray-quality HD
cards, the HD 5450 these jobs and cost 1m according to ATI it typically video. It will also reduce video encoding times
supports HD audio lormats PC! EXPRESSCoRAPlflCS CARD An ~ uses just 19.1W. if used with an encoder that supports ATl's
such as DolbyTrueHD, HO 5<150 d1ipw, 6SOMH, <_ «>ffiI. If you're building a media Stream technology such as Roxio 's Creator
letting you ootput the lull S12M8 DD1\3 "''''''''Y running at 8OOMHr. centre PC, noise is a big issue. 2010 (OWlar 's New, Shopper 262).
PO hpreu . 16 2.1 im..-too.
audio glory- of Blu-ray PAlI:TCOD£ 11166-<11D-ZOfl This card's passi~ heatsink The HD 5450 is a smart little card, but its
movies to a surround- mea r-.s there's no whiny little uses are rather limited. Unless you want to
sound amplifier o~r HDML PERFORMANCE
Ian to annoy you: it's also output HD audio or run three monitors
It's also a good choice more compact than the one simultaneously, you're better oH buying the older
if you want to upgrade an on ATl's reference ca rd , so it HD 4350.This will do the same job, bu t you can
older PC, <IS tile single won't block an adjacent slot pick it up for as little 3S f2S inc VAT.
integrated graphics ootput on yoor motherboard. Seth Barton

in games. So, while the 5450 struggled through

SAPPHIRE oor games tests, the 5570 did much better.
HD 5570 1GB Its Irame rate 01 29.71ps in CaU 01 Duty 4
provides smooth motion for gaming, while
DDR3 HDM I dropping the resolution to 1,440x900
bumped the frame rate up to 37.1fps.lt

***
£73 inc VAT
From www.a wd -it.co,uk
struggled with our more demanding
Crysis test at 1,6BOxl,050, managing
21.5fps: howe~r, dropp ing the resolution
to 1,440x900 improved frame rates to a playa ble
With the Radeon HD 54SO low-profile graphics 27.2fps.This means you can ha~ a PC that ta kes
card only just out (see above) , it's hard to get low-protile cards and enjoy some light gaming.
excited by the low-prolile HD 5570, particularly Even so, the main use of this card is likely to The Sapphire card we reviewed came with
as it costs almost twice as much. However, this be for home theatre USE'". Here, tile extra stream DVI, HDMI andVGA outputs on a full -size
is a significantly different card. processors can be useful if you're running bracket: two s~m-line brackets are also provided.
The HD S450 is basically a slow graphics software that uses the gra phics card (GPGPU) to The lirst holds the DVI and HDMI ports: the
card lor decoding video and transmitting HD upsca le DVD, such as An:solt 's Sim HD plug-in for se<:ond holds theVGA ootput, but is optional as
audio, but tile 5570 is considerably more TotalMedia Tlleatre 3.With the S45O, SimHD is this outpu t can be unplugged Irom the card.
powerful. You can tell this immediately, as tile only capable 01 upsca~ng DVDs to a 720p Sapphire also makes a version 01 this card with a
5570 requires a Ian to keep it cool, while the resolution: with the 5570, it can upscale to DisplayPort ra ther than HDMI output. but we
5450 is passrvely cooled. Fortunately, the fan l080p.ln tum, it should mean that other don't currently recommend this for home use.
isn't noisy and, unless you applications th at use GPGPU, We can't help butleel that these dilferences
have particularly quiet CPU SUMMARY such as Roxio Creator 2010's aren 't worth the increase in price. If you're
and system lans, you're VERDICT A law-profil. card that', vi deo encoder, will run laster building a media centre PC for Blu-ray and aren't
unlikely to Ilear it above c. poOI. of pIoying garno., but tile", on this graphics card than they worried about DVD upscaling (or at least, don't
the noise of your case. .... bett.r_v,lue card< av, ll.able win on the 5450. mind upscaling to 72Op), the HD 5450 is much
The main diHerence pa lXPRESSGRAPHICSCARD ~T III.o <!<on As with all of ATl's better value. Just make sure you buy the version
between the two cards is HOSSro d1ip.et, 6SOMH,<_ «>ffiI. 1GB 5000-series graphics cards, the with a built-in HOMI port for conven ience.
the number 01 stream OOtU momoty running at 900MH', 1'C1 5570 is fully PAP-compliant That said, if you do use your media centre for
E><p<O" .16 imertoce
processors. The 5450 has PARTCOD£ 11161-OO-20R and can transport full Blu-ray the occasional bout of gaming, the S570 is the
just 50, while the SS70 1m HD aud io (DolbyTrue HD and only slim-line graphics card that will give you
400. The 5570 also has DTS HD MA) to a suitable decent 3D performance. If you don't need a
twice the amount 01 RAM , ampli fier. It will also speed up low-prolile card, though, and want to play games,
with 1GBof GDDR3. These the decoding of Blu-ray video, we recommend stretching your budget that bit
improvements Mve a few keeping processor utilisation further and buying Sapphire's Radeon HD S770.
advantages, most notably to a minimum. David Ludlow

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

Find more magazines at www.magazinesdownload.com

 en 2KGAMES

w BioShock 2
****
£20 ineVAT

~
From www.t hegame
collection.net
Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
and PC versions ava ilable

<C The original BioShock (see What's

New, Shopper 238) may have

C!J successfully blended tirst -per500

shooting with RPG -style character
adv~ncement. but it was the plot
and setting which reatly blew us
... At ,andom Intel"lla ls a Big Slste, wil l come to make a cl3im on Its young'"
b,eth,en. Watch out - $he's tough, ~ th<O and a highly agile OI)!)Onent

PREVIEW ~way. The undersea city of Rapture

is among the most imagin ative and evocative locations FOl1unately, your arsenal includes a number of
ever to feature in a videogame. Its faded grandeur and appropria te gizmos. Your rivet gun can lire trap rivets
Metro 2033 art deco styling perfectly ma tched the game's storyline
of big philosophical ideas in a utopia gone to helL
which attach to any surface and act as mini land
mines. The Cyclone Trap plasmi d can be set to fling
Tha t puts BioShock Z in a very difficult situation, enemies into the air and can be further enhanced to
and the developers have chosen bravely to revisit cause even more damage by unleashing lire. ice or
Rapture in this sequel. We 're happy to be back. but it's electricity into its swirling dea th tomado.
not quite as exciting the second time around. ~t ten Another opt ion is to enlist Rapture 's own security
years on, the plot revolves around the relationship systems. As in the first game, you can hack the gun
between Little Sisters and Big Dad dies. The former turrets and security drones you encounter. What's new
are geneticatly altered ch ildren tasked with harvest ing this time around is the Hack Tool. which lets you
Metro 2033 is a first-per50n the valuable ADAM serum th at provides Rapture's perform this sabotage at a distance using Hack Dal1S
shooter, ba~d 0f1 a Russian inhabitants. the Splicers. wi th their fantastical - plus it can launch short-lived mini gun turrets to
~st-apocalyptic novel, and st't powers; wh ile the latter are single-minded armoured assist you. The hacking ponle game has been replaced
in the remains of the Moscow leviatha ns tasked wi th protecting them. by a fast-moving needle that must be stopped in a
underground. The game is made As a prototype Big Daddy, you set out to rescue variety of shaded sections to succeed. You have to be
by new developer 4A Games, your own Little Sister. who also happens to be the careful as the game no longer pauses while hading.
though som e of its staff daughter of the game's new protagonist Sofia Lamb. making you vulnerable to attack.
previously worked on in the tradition of BioShock baddies. takes a strong The various guns all have a purpose. plus they are
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of view on the nature 01 human ex istence. She espouses upgradable and have v~rious ammo options. In
Chemobyl (see What's New, collectivist ideals in opposition to the self-sufficiency addition. you get a massive driU that makes quick work
ShopperZ32). Thankfu lly, this promoted by Rapture 's creator Andrew Ryan. Such of anything that comes too close. You'll need to
li~ar shooter seems to have ideologies are debated in au dio logs and brought to life scavenge every box. body and trash bin for ammo and
drawn from that game"s in locations like Ryan's 'Joumey to the Surface' theme money to keep yourself supplied, which we found a
technical excelleroce. pa l1<. but fail to ch ime as ~U with the plot and litt le tedious after a while. StilL it's a minor criticism.
In 2013 the world was gam eplay as they did in the first game. Happily. the combat is improved. with the weapons
devastated by an apoca lyptic Intellectual posturing aside, there 's plenty of action having a lot more poncho Despite some additions to
event, annihilating almost 01\1 of to get your teo:th into. The basic form at hasn't altered the roster. like the huge Bru tes. the Splicers remain
mankind and turning Ihe earth's from the first game. In fact, except for a slightly unint eresting enemies with little intelligence.
surface into a poisonous twea ked armoury. not much has changed regarding A big new addition to BioShock 2 is the multiplayer
wasteland. A handful of gameplay from the perspective of a Big Daddy. You mode. A refreshing change from the usual run -and -gun
SUrviVOf5 took refuge in the can venture outside occasionally. but the un delWa ter shooters. it has a variety of intriguing team-based
depths of th e Moscow sections are combat-free and merely act as plot modes inclu ding Little Sisters and a player-controlled
underground, and human devices. There are st iUhordes of insane inhabitants to Big Daddy. You unlock extra plasmid abilities as you
civilization entered a new Dark incinerate. electrocute or freeze using you r ADAM - play. and can set up different loadouts as and when
Age. Now in 2033. An entire derived special abilit ies (ca lled plasm ids). You can st ill you need them for offensive and defensive tactics.
gene ration has b~ n t.om and pick and choose from a wide range of such powers and BioShock 2100h and sounds sublime (both on
raised underground, and the pe l1<s, and upgrade the ones you prefer for even greater console and PC) with gorgeous lighting effects, artistic
~s ie~d Metro Station-Cities efficiency. Gain ing ADAM for this purpose forms the p<tnache and haunting music. In this respect though.
struggle fOf survival with each backbone of the more ambush-based gameplay. like.$O many others. its impact is lessened by its
oth er, and the mutant horrors The plot guides you through a series of im aginative similarity to the original - and anyone who hasn't
that await outside. locations. each with its own objectives, but these are experienced Rapture yet will be bett er served by
Early previ ews have also home to a handful of Little Sisters. Their Big submerging themselves in the first game. Fans of the
impressive, with inaedible Daddy protectors won't atta ck you original's g~meplay will lind plenty to
in-game lighting. The detailed unprovoked. thankfully. which SUMMARY enjoy here. with its ambush-centric
and atmospheric environments, provides plenty of time to set up VERDICT Th ~ .. ...., solid combat lending it a different fee~
tx>th underground and above cunningly thought-out traps. medlaniu, , ..at l<><;at;"n, ~n d • however. the new plot isn't an
the surface, also wowed us. For Once liberated you can take new multiplayt'r mode, but it essential addition to the canon -
more details, visit http:// charge of the newly rescued Sister. lacks 1M origi ""l,ame', imp.ct which is a real pity.
metroZ033game.com. guide her to an ADAM-rich corpse and FltST_PERSON SHOOTEII Requir .. A retum to Rapture was never
set her to work for your benefit. W<n<Jowo XPM".11. 2.4Q!, or going ma tch the ecstatic feel ings
d.... l...,..., p,o< . ..or. 2GB RAM.
Unfortunately. this witi soon bring engendered by your first undelWater
Seth aartan hordes of angry Splicers raining down
256M B Nvid;, 7900GT or bert ....
llGBdlsk ~ visit, but this is still a highly capable
Reviews Editor
upon you . so again you'll need to be PART COOE 8001755052 and beautifully executed game.
well prepared in order to survive. Seth B.1rton

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 GAMES

EA
Mass Effect 2
*****
£20 inc VAT
From www.thegamecoilection. net
Xbox 360 and PC versions available

If you pI~yed the exceUenl M~ss Effect (Wh~t'5 in -game characters, which
New, Shopper 248) then this sequel will come maintain the same high quality of
as both a treat and a shod. The treat is that scripting. ~oice acting and depth.
you can import your existing eIl.riKle, into The dialogue interface presents
MaS$ Effect 2, gaining combat bonuses and moral dilemmas.so that over the
al:;o aHecting events - to a limited degree - course of the game you build up a .. The cov .... system forms the basis of the combat system, and is
based on your previous actions. The shock reputation as either a Paragon or much Improved from the first game
is that unlike the original title. Ma55 Effect 2 is Renegade, which then unlocks
11'55 of a role -playing game and more 01 a further dialogue options. big choices and visceral combat. I miss the old
tactiC<lllhird -person sl>ooter. It's impossible to discuss the main plot games, where your character had to eat, and it
Gone is the familiar RPG mechanic of without reVEaUng a massiVE spoiler: suffice to took fiVE hours real time to fly somewhere.-
collecting items droppedlrom fallen enemies say that it involves you building up an elite Overhearing con~ersations not only adds depth.
and searching ~ry nook and cranny for squad to face a final threat. Your team consists but also leads to bonus side missions.
hidden stashes 011001. Your character has no of a mix of new characters and old faces. The new characters will delight you with their
invt'ntory, instead relying on research and the Each character you recruit offers a secondary various personalities and foibles, and it's a game
occasional found item to improve his arsenaL mission to help you gain their loyalty. While that will draw you in emotionally. so much so
It 's a brave move, but one that should draw traVElling the galaxy you can also stumble across that yOU'll lind it hard to let go once you've
more fans than it alienates. side mis5ions on unexplored wortds, or mine finished it. You can then replay it usingyour
Those retuming to the Mass Effect uni~erse resources to feed your re search, which gain you existing character to gain bonuses, or start a new
will find many of the criticisms of the first upgrades. If YOU 'VE played the first game, you 'll game to try out a different class, as well as being
game ha~e been addressed. Combat is far more be glad to hear there's no more bounCing around able to import your character into Mass EHect 3,
fluid, with an improved co~er system and a in that awful moon buggy. You now scan planets The graphics on PC are superb, even on
streamlined interface for issuing commands to from orbit and only land if there's a mission , hardware that barely matches the minimum
team -mate>. Moreover, new powers and We would have preferred there to be fewer specification. We were especially impressed by
abilities make it a more tactical experience: possible teammates to recruit. and more depth the loading times between areas. The controls
some abilities work in combination with others, to each character, and we felt less invol~ed with are intuitive: you can use the Space bar to pause
and wme are designed to the rest 01 the game world as a the game. bringing up a HUD that lets you gi~e
worl:: best against specilic SUMMARY result. Some side missions orders to your teammates, or you can assign
enemies, which ma~es your VERDICT A chang-< 01 diced;"" seemed to promise further plot abilities - yours or your teamma tes ' - to number
choice 01 team-mates critical. bring, men ,",citir>g comb.tto developments, but turned out keys, for quick activation, The Xbox 360 version
tI>e M. .. Effect unMorse while
Enemies themselVES are much .. taining Biow.,.', typical charm to be dead ends. is equaUy accomplished, with loading times
trickier, and you'll lind them However, there are stilt hugely reduced from the previous ~ersion,
...cnc»~ RPG ~ oq"i ... wrtl<l"""XPI
flanking you and taking co~er. V;".I1, 2.4GI-I. Int<l or 2GI-I. AMD some brilliant touches, This streamlined 5e<.juel may not please
The last-paced combat pnx<>,o<, 1GB RAM (\f",. I1: 2GB), especially developer Bioware's everyone, but it certainly matches up to the
may be central to Mass Effect 1<G8 d i'" ,.,..,.,GtFo<ce 6800 GTI trademark cultural and gaming series' premise of an RPG -tinged tactical shooter.
2, but it's not a one-paced Rod""" l)(1())(l w~h 256MB 01 references. not least the vendor II you 're interested in either gaming genre, then
IUIM CODE 8001VJ4OH K DET.... LS
aHair. You'll also in~est plenty mtpJlm.,,.Ift<tb ............ ( Offl in the Citadel who complains: this is a game that deserves your a!lention.
of time in conversations with "Nowadays games are aU about Barry de la Rosa

You control three separate characters; Papa

... ..rr,
I~
.,.~

DTP ENTERTAINMENT Doc, a Vooju priest; Jane Staning. a dashing and

Ghost Pirates of improbably proportioned pirate, and Blue Belly, a
. '" &.:
" ,,, - Ii '
Vooju Island
rotund cook with the mislortune of 5<liling
." "".I.
...
straight into the middle of the things. As the
adventure begins, all three have been separated ,i • . ' • . "
****
£18 inc VAT
from their bodies. Later in the game, they can
function in either ghost or corporeal form, ~ . .~ "
From www,amazon.co. uk Ultimately, your quest is to prevent an evil
Vooju queen and a foul pira te from raising forces
\
Set in an exotic world of e~il Vooju (~ke of unspeakable evil, aU while clearing the name .a. Th .. ls wl\atl\appen< when a kindly mermaid
Voodoo, only fictional) queens, bold pira tes of the swashbuckling pirate king. offers to <how YOU her giant sea monster
and green-skinne<! Iombies, Ghost Pirates is a The use 01 three characters means you can
comic romp in the tradition of the LucasArts ' tackle multiple pUldes at once. We occasionally Vampyre Story. your inventory can contain the
classic point -and-click had to resort to the traditional idea 01 an item, which then be combined with
adventures. Crea te<! by SUMMARY use-everything-on-everything other items and ideas as you find them.
Autumn Moon, the team who VERDICT Lovely gropni", trial and error method, but most Ghost Pirates isn't without its flaws, The plot
Int~gulng ch ...... ct .... and
brought us A Vampyre Story of the puzzles ripple with a is OVErcomplicated for such a short game, but
_Il-clo"ign<"d ""DIu m.ke up
(see What'5 New. Shopper satisfying internal logic, The experienced adventurers can expect around eight
2S4) last year, it uses the IQr tI>e obv>ou' """"'
~ot ''''0
"'-,::1 solutions are often as funny as to ten hours of play. Howe~er, we were
ADVENTllREC".AME 1.6GH.(PU. 1GB
same simple. but elegant RAM. 256 MB Dlrect~ 9,00 compatibl. they are logicaL producing impressed by the thoughtful. weU-paced puzzle
control system, and mix of gr.pOk> (ard, ~ GB di<l:,.,..,. results like a coconut-based design, rich environments. great characterisation
lovely painted backgrounds PMT COO{ BOO2WTBQZO light between a pair 01 an d humour which kept us smiling throughout,
DETAILS -"-,&'>o<t· ~"lOs,<om
with 3D character models. belligerent zombies. like A Kat Orphanide$

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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 w COREL

a:: PaintShop Photo Pro X3

****
£66 inc VAT

~
From www.amazon.co.uk

The veteran image editor PaintShop Pro has just

had a makeover and. unusually for creative
.software. it"s a pretty significant update -
.--
though the overhaul st ill needs some woO:. with
numerous bugs and a f!'!W glaring omissions.
PaintShop Pro finally gets its own RAW -

I-- processing engine (turn to page 132 for more

information on this process). Camera support is
reasonably comprehensive. although cemin

LL recently launched cameras such as Sony's A550

and Pentax's I( -series aren't compatible.
Sadly, PaintShop Pro's long-awaited
,
'-- •
C handling of RAW files is atrocious. The controls
are hopele ssly basic, with no picker tool for
custom white Nlance. no highl ight or shadow .---
Ul restoration and not even a contrast control.
Worst of aR. looming the prev iew to 100 per
cent magnification reveals glaring bloc~
artefacts (we suspect the demosaicing and
• COfel Painter Photo E..... nti... 4 i. a f~ntastic a lly useful tool
to he lp turn your favourite photos inlo artistic creations

anti-aliasing algorithms are at fault).

ThankfuUy , this problem disappears once the
image is sent to the main application for further
editing. but it makes a nonsense of the noise

FAQ reduction and sh arpness controls.

In the main application, you can use the
new Smart Carver tool to st retch or compress

Q What the advantages of

running virtualisation
photos into different aspect ratios, white
defining areas to protect or discard. It's ideal for
software on my PC? making photos tit a picture frame without
having to crop the edges. and also for removing
a stranger, or an ex, from a photo. It works
A Virtualisation software,
such asVMWare's
Workstation 7 on page 55,
better than Photoshop Elements' simil<ir
Recompose tool, being both easier to use and
allows you to simulate PC producing better results. A n!'!W Vibrancy tool
systems. Each of these can run boosts colours without spoiling skin tones. and
its own copy ofWirldows, or it's great fO<" livening up dull photos. • The PrOJecl Creator looi<s Invillng and i""ludes some really
any other o.,erating system Object Extractor provides a n!'!W way to cut u.eful features, but there are bug. that .till n-eed to be Iro.-.ed out
you choose. Practically out objects, but this isn't very successful, with
spe aking, you can swit(:h to a little built-in intelligence and an insistence on pasting addition to the package. Howe~r. it would ha~ made
virtual PC as easTly as opening the result into a new document, which isn 't always more sense to incorporate these features into the
an application or clicking a tab. helpfuL Images can be batch-processed. but only using Organi,er. There's not even an option in the Organi2er
There are numerolJs uses for the NSic controls in the Express Lab, and it still to send photos directly to Project Creator.
virtualisation. A common Orle manages to be unwieldy. It 's now possible to type text Also included is Painter Photo Essentials 4. a
is to eKpenmenl with oth er directly on an image rather than via a dialog box. simplified version of Corel Pa inter (see What's New,
operating systems, such as Most of the other n!'!W features appear in a pair of Shopper 2S6 or www.expertreviews.co.uk/
UnulC. This is far more bundled applications. The brand new Project Creator 5oftware/25186~/corel-painter- II). which specialises
convenient than setting up a offers various destinations for your edited photos: in simula ting brush strokes and other art isti( media.
hard disk partition and a Facebook and flich. prints (either 10000lly or via online This version can only work from an imported photo
dual-boot startup. services), coliages, calendars, HD video slideshoW$ and ra ther than creating artwork from s(fatch, but it's a lot
Oth er uses include t esting PDF albums. A bug meant that we had to copy pictures more sophisticated that the Bru5h and Smea r tools
softwarl', so you can try out to the desktop before the software could import them, found in the main editor. It"s great fun to play around
trial or beta software without but otherwise the interlace is frien dly and inviting. with. and has various practical uses lor graphic design.
irlStalling it on your own The slides how function includes the ability to We still have reservations about PaintShop Photo
~ rsion of Windows, where it incorporate existing video dps. although there 's no Pro's core editing tools. which aren't as elegant as
may impact upon other option to trim them. It includes Photoshop Elements'. Brush strokes
app lications. You can even use animated transitions and music, SUMMARY lag behind mouse mo~ments and
a virtua l machine to check out and you can even add narration. VERDICT Wltll plenty of n_ many tas~ take two or three clicks
~te ntially malicious websites although in our tests this played "'alu," - .ome o.cell..,l, oth .... when one would do. However. support
without undue risk. For more back a few seconds out of sync. terrible - t .....·• sl~llo..ds of usdul for advanced functions, such as layer
<luff for an i"""" .... i~ly low price
on virtua lisation, see How It Slideshow export options indude masks. make it an affO<"dable
(IoIAGE-tDmNG SOFlWARE R"'I\Jm
Work! in Shopper ZS6. Facebool<. flich and YouTube. but altemative to the full version of
WirldQW> XP (SP3)M<to (SP2)11. Core
here we experienced a gl itch that 0..0 l8lGfl> proc"I<K. 1GB RAM
Photoshop. The new features are hit
skevved our photos ' a5pect ratios. (2GB '<-COmmended). '.8MB and miss. but the indusion 01 the
Seth aartan Project Creator shows promise, Sfoph"'. )GB di>l: ,.-, excellent Painter Photo Essentials
Reviews Editor PRODUCT COOE Vsn,X3IEMB
though. and ooce these bugs are makes up for a lot of its problems.
DETAILli www."","'""."
ironed out it will be a valu able 8M Pill

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 SOFTWARE

SERIF
Dig ital Scrapbook Artist 2
****
£25 inc VAT
From www.play.com

better known lor its powerful but

S~rif i~ from a larger, but not huge. selection
aC~~5ible design software sudl as desktop at www.daisytrail.com. Ah andfulare
publishing suite PagePlu$ X4 (see Whal'$ New, free, but most cost 0.49 - crazy for
Shopper 262). However, it's not a huge leap what's little more than a laney c~p
forward from laying out magazine pages to the art pack. There's a £10 voucher in
more casoal pastime of digital scrapbooking. the box to get you started.
Scrapbooking is the collecting of photos. 01 COUf5e. you could design your
knick-knacks and memorabilia in books. Digital own bits and bobs to adorn your • A pholo book lor a ne wborn Is classi c sc.apbooklng lodder
Scrapbook Artist 211'15 you scrapbook on your pages, There's a good basic set 01
PC, combining digital images and clip art tools to help with this. These are don 't use the same one twice. There's built-in
together to make attractive IX'ge designs. One easy enough to use, and we particularly liked the photo-editing. so you can quickly add arty
key advantage of digital scrapbooks is that roughen tool. to give things an aged appearance, effects to photographs, or simply fi x red -eye
they can be shared online with others. and the scissors. so you can easily chop out bits is5ues. Pictures, picture IrameS,letters,
We _r1' disappointed to lind there 's no of any object you import or draw frel'hand. backgrounds and other bits and bobs are store<!
automated wizard to help users drop a few There are also handy tools for craft-specific in a bar on the left 01 the screen, making it easy
photos into a pre-designed page. Thankfully, tasks such as adding faux stitching. to find exactly what you want. The digikit
we soon found a menu with links to handy Text options are good: you can run te><t browser lets you quickly sort through all the
YouTube tutorials for all the ma in features - along a CUM'd path, for example. There are available scrap items and pick the ones you need.
these are hidden under the Online tab in the also advanced leatures such as blending. layers You can output your work to a printer, email
right-hand toolbar. The best choice for a and masks. It won 't trouble serious DTP or them to friends or upload the entire page to
beginner is to pick a pre-made photo-e<liting software, bu t DaisyTrail to share with others. File formal
theme, or Digikit, from those SUMMARY the tooll here are derive d from output includes JPEG and PDF options.
VERDlCT Th~ .. '. n-ot .",1 of dip
include<l on the disc. those in Serif's heavyweight Serif's Digital Scrapbook Artist 2 isn't as easy
"" included, t.Jt the 1000 provided
The Digikits provided are "'" of e>:ceHent quaUry, It', • great products and so work far to get into as we 'd hoped, and the selection of
beautiluHy put together, p"cka&~ for scrapbooting : ,~ , :::::;-j
:::
better than you'd expect. provide<l clip art, though high quality, is limited.
feeling both homely and We quickly made a basic ThanHully, it's a well -designed piece 01 software
DIGITAl SCRAPIIOOI(I'lG SOFTWARE
craft-li ke without being nail R. qui ..... Wir><low1 XP/\ohtol7, S12MB photobook. and adding with brilliant lools an d makes a grea t choice for
or cheap, The only problem is RAM,510MSdl",..,..,. pictures is a brel'ze - it even those who want to spend time making scrapbook
that only six are provided. PROOOcrCODE DS ~ 2 U SOV D DI keeps track of which pictures pages, invites, posters or greeting cards.
D£T~ILS www.• • •U.com
More kits can be downloaded you 've already added. so you Se th Barton

EDITOR'S CHOICE
MICROSOFT SERIF ADOBE
W indows 7 Home PagePlus X4 Photoshop Elements 8
Prem ium *****
£80 Inc VAT _ ~q~:'iI
+,.::._ *****
£57 inc VAT
*****
£65 inc VAT (upgrade from XP o r Vista)
From www.serif.com From www.amazon.co.uk
£95 inc VAT (full version) Desktop publishing is a com plex task, bu t Photoshop Elements 8 offers a subli me mix 01
From www.ama zon.co,uk Page Plus X4 makes it re marhbly accessible, am! powerful editing tools and photo-ma nageme nt
at a fraction of the cost of market lea6ers such features. Th is vers ion allows users to change the
Windows 7 is the oper~ t ing syste m that Vista as Adobe InDesign. You can lay out al most any shape of phot os by squeezing or stret( hing the
should have been. The slick new desktop not type of doru ment and o utput your wo lt. to PDF, background without affect ing key areas. It also
only looks gre~ t. but iKtuaUy increases your a printer or a file ready lor a commercial press. supports High DYIlamk Range photography for
productivity. II you 've bel'n persevering with Themed sets pro~ide matching brochure, combining images taken at different exposures.
Windows XP, it's time to upgl<lde, and serious business card, flyer, newsletter and poster We wouldn't upgrade from the previous
PC users should also switch from Vista. designs, and the software includes photo-editing w rsion, but Photoshop Eleme nts 8 is the
tools for tidy ing up your own image s, mak ing software to buy if you're new to photo edit ing.
OKRATING SYSTEM ~",," i f" lGI-1, 1""'><" "",", 1GB RAM Page Plus X4 one of the most leature-packe<l
(3.l -b ~),lGa ~A M (&Hit), Oi'OCIX 9 g<oopI»cs cord w ~h creative packages you can buy, I'HOTQ-EDmNG SOFTWARE Requir.. Windows XPNi .... /l,
126MB"""""Y (lor A<ro d"",,,,,). 16GB disk..,..,. 2GHz P"""'''''', 1GB RAM. 2G Bdisk ..,..,.
(3.2·M ),2OGB disl..,..,. (M·bil), DVO d<I .... DTJI SOnwAAE R. ", i'e> Window< XPNl5Iol1, 512MB RAM, Pltooucr CODE 650-15041 DlT~ILS ............. _ .coon/uk
PR()()UCTCODE 4FC-OOOO I DETAIlS www.m>Cro .... lt.com «OMS fr.. t.o.rd d isl:.",~PROOUCTC0DE 4fC-OOOOl fUU REVIEW "'" 2010
fUU REVIEW N<w 2009 DETA.l5 www,"";f.com fUll. REVIEW Dec 2009

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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 There's safe, And then there's really safe.

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 SOFTWARE

VMWARE
Workstation 7
****
£144 inc VAT
From www.v mwate.com/Vmwaresto re

VMWare WO<1<:station is 0111' 01 the oldest goes wrong after you ' ~e instaUed
con5Umer virtualisation programs, but Ihe~ some software, for instance, you
dafi it has some stilf competition. Microsoft, can revert to an older snapshot.
Sun and VMWare itself all offer free software You 're not limited to a single
that allows you to run guest operating systems snapshot for each system (as is
on your pc, each in its own virtual machine. the case, for example, in
For reasons why you may wimt to do this, 5ee Microsoft Virtual PC); you can
our FAQ on page 52. take as many as you like. The
FOOunalely. Wor1o;statioo 7 has lots 01 stulf program 's snapshot manager
that its free competitOr<; lacl For a start, you makes it easy and quick to see ... Wilh Vinual Workslation you can r.... loIS 01 vin ual machines In a
~n run several virtual machines al once in the all the 5f1apshots of any Pc. labbed Inlerlace w~lIe IlIdclng belween WI"<!OW$ and ~In u. easily
program's tabbe<! interlace, so you can flick Another useful feature is the
betw~n operating systems as easily as you abWty to group virtual machines in teams. Ooing and Windows 7.11 you have a ~irtual machine
would between tabs in a web browser. If you this me~ns you can start them all with a single that needs a bit more oomph, you can now
find that you're running too many machines, click, which will be useful if you're testing both mign it up to four processor cores and 32GB of
you can sim ply pause a running machine, server and client applications. You can also do memory. Our favourite fealure is the ability to
instantly releasing its resources lor use by yoor things such as specify a staggered startup for the capture a movie of your interaction with a
host PC or by other ~irtu~1 machines. machines in a team, so the server starts before machine ~nd to record and replay its acti~ity,
Another boon for anyone who does a lot of the client, for instance. Using the netwol1< down to instructions sent to the processor.
testing is the clone function. Using this you can functions, you can also isolate a team on their We love this program. It's easily the best
quickly create a new viltual own ~irtual netwol1<, giving virtualisation software we've seen. Professional
machine by cloning an SUMMARY them limited access to your software testers, developer$ and tech support
existing one. This way you vtl\OtCT Lowly softw.re, but iI'S host PC and your real network operatives wiU definitely benefit from its
stIR quit. e' pen.lve. Professional<
can keep one pristine - or none at aH. <>dvanced features 5Uch as snapshot
should buy il; hobbyists should
template for each OS you run d~ a f,. , .
all...,at"'. As you 'd expect, this version management and the ability to group virtual
and just make clones of it 01 Workstation supports machines into team~ Everyone else, who wants
VlRTUAUSATlON !iOfTWAAE R"I"ire,
each time you need a new Wlodows >WNo".lllS-, ZOOSIl ..... Windows 7. It's also the fir$t to try out the latest ~ersion of Ubuntu without
test machine. You can also [mo" <OO"<fIt distribution'), HGH< ~irtuali:;ation program to reconliguring their PC to dual-boot, should
create snapshots of a PC's PfOCes<o<, ZGB ~ ~ M support the transparent Aero simply download the free VMWare Player.
current state. If something theme on both Windows Vista Se th Barton

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SOFTWARE

... Aud k> C"aning La b m akes audio ' <!COfdj"9s ... Photomat;x llght is a k>W-<:05t introduct ion to • Mapzen has ils own iPhone a pp and also
sound as shiny and Ioud .. s possible high dynamic range photography makes it easy to edit OpenStreetM ap

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OpenStreE'tMap (www.openstteetmap.org) is
(HDR) images from sets of bracketed photos. to mapping what Wikipedia is to factual
Software lor turning vinyl collections into shiny Fo< more on this, ~ our tutorial on page 140. knowledge. It's a public map that anyone can
MP3 files has been around tor years, as the In most scenes, ii 's impossible for the camera add detail 10, and anyone can use the
number 16 in this package's title aptly to capture the lull dynamic range in a 5ingle inlorma tion 5to<ed within it fo< their own
demonstrates. In fact, there's very little that's photo, but by importing three or more into purposes. Maplen is an online tool that makes
new about this la test version - in terms of Photomati. Light, you can crea te a photo that editing this interactive map a little bit easier.
features, we struggled to tell the difference represents wh at your eye. sees more faithluUy. The advantages 01 OpenStreetMap over
between Ihis and version 10 (~e What's N~. The application is a cut-down Vi'rsion of its commercial alterna tives such as Google Maps
Shopper219). Tha t' s no bad thing. Audio big brother, Photomati x Pro (see 'MIat'5 New, are huge. Contributors can create detailed maps
Cleaning lab continues 10 cope admirably with Shopper 252). Light is even easier to use. of areas that commercial providers haven't
its "lIotted lash of recording audio files, It has a simple interfa ce onto which you bothered with, and 5pe.Cialist 5pin-oHs - such
sprucing them up and expolting them to audio can drag up to live bradE'ted images, which as www.opern:yclemap.org - canrepurposethe
CD, MP3 and a range 01 other formau. are woverted in seconds into <In HDR image data. As anyone can edit the maps, they can be
The interface is more inviting than before, through a process known as Exposure Fusion. updated quickly when re<[uired.
with unfussy graphics and an ovelView There are various sliders you can use to tweak OpenStreE'tMap has its own edito< called
waveform to help navigate around large the final image, including one to adjust the Potlatch. There 's not a lot to choose between
projects. It's still reliant on multiple pop-up weighting given to under- or oVi'rexposed these, but we like Maplen 10< allowing you to
windows, though, which can be untidy. When images. This aHects how bright the photo is. see all the nodes without selecting an individual
it come5 to deaning recordings, the<e are five While it's best to use a tripod to ensure route, and the simple pop-up controls for
approaches from which to choose: a tully your images are all the same, Light will splitting routes or att aching them logether.
automatic mode, a step-by-step wizard, a attempt to align hand- held photos. What it Mapzen has an uselul toolbar of routes, areas
preset library, 51iders for each process and won't do is reduce ghost ing caused by objects and locations at the top, 50 it's quic~ to label a
in-depth editing. This may leaVi' users feeling swaying in the breele, unl ike the Pro version. route as a track, an area as a meadow, or a
105t. but at lea5t the 5impler techniques afe the II you don 't have bracketed photos, you can point 01 interest (POI) as a bus stop.
easiest to locate. Avideo tutorial appears on use the Tone Mapping mode to create a Maplen also incorporates a social-
first launch to explain the ba5ics. pseudo-HDR image Irom a single JPEC 0< RAW netwO<1<ing aspect. You can see the location 01
Once cleaning is complete, a Mastering file. Light lac~ the adva nced Details Enhancer other users in your area, make friends with
section improVi'S the quality of recordings. This sett ings of Pro, but there afe still enough them and see the changes they've made. If this
can easily ruin perfectly good recordings, but controls to ach ieVi' the desired effect - eilher ta kes oil, then il should help organise those
it's mo<e u5elull0< mU5ic that hasn't ~n artistic or natural - by using 5moothing. living nearby to co-ordinate their efforts.
prolessionally produced - in othe< words, users ' micro-contrast, strength <lnd saturation sliders. Mapzen also produces a h<lndy iPhone app.
own music - adding punch and sparkle to help Images can be saved as 16-bit TIFF ()( JPEG The Maplen POI Collector is free lrom the App
reco<dings compete wi th commercial releases. files, but there's no integration with Adobe '5 Store, <lnd lets you add businesses and loca!
The CD-authoring lacilities go beyond the lightroom as there is with the Pro version. amenities to OpenStreetMap while you're out
needs 01 casual users, but are perfect 10< those HoweVi'r, at this low price _ can't see many and <lbout. Such an application should quickly
who want to create CDs with mo<e precision people complaining. OthE'r appUcations. such as enrich the map, as you can add detail instantly.
over track 10 points, fades an d overlaps than Adobe's Photoshop Elemenl5 and Core.I'5 Paint H~ver, we 'd rather see an app for Android
CD-burning soltware usually allows. Shop Pro, now include HDR suppolt, but they handsets, which seem a much better lit for the
Audio Cleaning Lab risks making a simple tend to lack tone mapping. which is one of OpenStreE'tMap community.
task nee<llessly complex, but it's idealfo< HORSoft 's biggest strengths. Maplen isn't a huge leap fO!Ward for
musicians who want an aHo<dable way to II you want to crea te both altist ic and more OpenStreE'tMap editing. but it does have some
prepare linished mixes lor public consumption. natural-looking effects with HDR teChniques, improvements over current tools and is wolth
Ben Pitt Photomati. Light is a great -value way to do it. a look if you 're interested in crea ting a publicly
jim Martin owned map of your local area.
Seth 8;lrton
SUMMARY
VERDICT Almon tGO """",rful I.". tM . imple ta'" SUMMARY
VERDICT An Ir...p..... i"" .nd u 'Y.lo ·U$O SUMMARY
01 tn n.ler""8 .... nyI to MP3, but this audio edit.".
~bo 11;0. ~ r~nr 0 1 other, """" (INti"" um introduct;on 10 HD ~ photogn phywhkh include. VlRDICT Slick"GOking OI1 line mapping softwa...
MOUgh contr(>l. '" mak. It g... at value for OponStt«tMap, but it', ""t ~ r..,.,luI ;"n"')'
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 U'l
a::
CJ
U'l
U'l
W
t.l
CJ
a::
D..
INTRODUCTION
Whether you're uperadinc"n
old PC or build,",,, ~w one"
"two processor un provide
jn~dible amounts of
(omputing power It low
prices, so there's no need to
put up with poor ~rform'l\(e.
All modem processors have
lit least two processi ng (ores,
.. Uowtng them to perform
Choosing a. ••
multipte uslls with ule. while
som e hoWe four cores for
handling espediJUy ohm, neling
work. Some of Intel's latest
Processor
he processor is ~tially the PC'~ brain and is listed. check the m~b immediately above arld below

T
proceS5ors even have built-in
,raphks chips capable of key to how last your comptJter i5. You can il. If tMre's little difference in per1orman~, you could
playing HD video smoothly, so .:hoose between AMO and Intel proceS5OlS, but W1!U find a b¥g~in.
you may not eYen h....'" to buy you"!l need a matching motherboard Avoid single-c:ore
.. Hpilr.te ,..,phiu unl. processors, arld opt lor at least a dual-core chip. INTEL PROCESSORS
This month we've telted These in effea have two proceS5OlS, which makes Intel's (tleron l>ui.l Core. Pentium Dual Cort, Cort 2
Inc:! •• ted " st."ering touL of multitnking (ruming more than one application at a Duo and Core 2 Quad processors all fit in motherboards
65 processors - 37 from Intet, time) more effi6en1. Quad-c:ore processors are faSler with LGAns sochts. but you must consider the
induding the l.1test LGA '156 stU depending on the software you use. as only ~ftain ~ 01 an LGA77S processor to find a compatible
and AM3 -compdible rnodoeb, applica tions are written to take advantage 01 them. motherboard. All Intel processor's speed (quoted in
.nd 28 from "'MD. Mlny (ost Whichever processor you.:hoose. you must use it gigahertz) is calculated by multiplying its extemal bus
less than £100, 10 there's no with memory of the appropriate speM. This is ~ by a 'multiplier'. For example, the lGHz Core 2
need to $klmp on power even determined by the memory controller. IntelLGA77S Duo E8400 ll:as a 333MHz elrtema[ bus and a x9
jf you 're on I budget . procesSOf"S depend on a motherboard's memory multipijer. Your motherboard must support the
controller. so RAM compatibility depends on the prOCe»OfS ~temal bus SpeM.
motherboard you choose. ProcesSOf"S with onboard HOW1!VI"f, the eKlema l bus speed is often quoted as
Alan Lu memory controllers - namely AM3 and Intel LGA 1156 the fronts ide bus (FS8) speed, which is the elrtemal bus
Senior staff wr~er
chips - have a delinitive compatibility list. See our speed mUltiplied by tom (quad-pumped). So the E8400
tables on page 74 and 7S for the details of the RAM can also be said to have a l,333MHz FSB. Des igned lor
Kat D,.hanide. ~s each processor su pport5. those on a budget, Pentium Dual Core processors are
Senior stalf writer
The pOces of processors can fluctuate widely. If you essentially the same as Core 2 Duo chips but with an
can't find the processor you want for the price we 've 800MHz FS8 - the Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad

COMPlJT"£R SHOPPER • MAY 20"10

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 PROCESSORS

This month

• -, '~' ,r.
~
INTEL
Celeron Dual Core and
Pentium Dual Core f;;"'i..~
Page70 ~
INTEL
Core 2 Duo
Page70
@j
INTEL
Core 2 Quad
Page 71

INTEL
ISJ
@{f]
Core i3, i5 and i7 ~ r;;1
Page 71 L.::J t..;;;,j
AMD
Athlon II
Page72

AMO
Phenom II
Page 72

processors reviewed here have l,066MHz and more. Models with the Extreme Edition suffix and quad-core variants (X2, x3 and X4
l,333HHz FSSs. AU the LGA77Slntel processors have an unlocked multiplier, so they can be respectively). Processors with the Black Edition
and motherboards in this month's labs test are easily overdocked to increase perfonnance but branding are multiplier unlocked and can be
compatible with each other. are very expensive. Intel is unlikely to release overdocked, OOo<;ting perfonnance further.
Intel's new dual-core Core,3 and is many more LGA 1366 processors. 50 buy one at Compared with their dosest Intel equivalents,
processors, as Wl'i! as the quad-core Core is and your peril: you may lind it hard to upgrade later. AMO processors have high TOP ligures, which
i7 processors, are different. They have integrated means they 're comparatively power hungry.
memory controllers like AHO's procesWfS, imd a AMD PROCESSORS More power-efficient versions are available, but
fixe<! external bus s~d of 133HHz. To use one, The speed of AMO 's ptocessors is worked out they're slower and more expensive. The
you need a motherboard with an LGA 1156 in the s.ame way as that of an Intel LGA77S triple-core Athlon lis and Phenom lis are a good
socket and DDR3 memory. By contrast,LGA77S processor (external bus t imes multiplier), but compromise, balancing reasonably quick
processors work with both DDR2 and DOR3 they all have a 200MHz external bus. They come performance and low power consumption.
memory, which may be preferable if you 're in two sodet designs: AM2+ and AM3. You can't Although AMO's processors aren't quite as
upgrading your PC on a budget and don't want use an AM2+ processor in an AM3 motherboard, fast as Intel's latest chips, they 're great value
to replace your existing DDR2 RAM. but you can use an AM3 processor in an AM2+ thanks to the low prices of both the processoo
Uniquely, the dual-core i3 and is processors board. This is handy if you're replacing the themselves and AM3 motherboards. The Athlon
have integrated graphic.o; chips instea d of relying processor in an older AM2+ system that uses II Xl processors are particularly good budget
on one built into your motherboard. If you want OOR2 memory, as AM3 motherboards require buys. While Phenom II X4 processors deliver the
to watch HD video and don't care about playing OOR3 memory and you may not want the best performance, they're not quite as good
the latest 30 games, they're a perfectly good expense of replacing your RAM. value as some of the Phenom II x2 and X3 chips,
alternative to a graphics card. The Core i7 We've only looked at AM3 processors here, which aren't far behind in performance terms.
processors and most of the Core is range support as the AM2+ socket is being phased O\.It and the
Turbo Boost which means they can increase latest Phenom II processors are available only lor
their dock speed when running demanding tasks. socket AM3 motherboards. AM3 processors Next month
The Core i7 900-5eries processors lit into the don 't cost much more than their AMl +
previous LGA 1366 sodet, which isn't compatible counterparts anyway, so there's lillie reason to BUilD A PC PART II
with the LGA 11S6 wckel. Although they're not opt for an older AMl+ chip. We test coo lers, la ns an.d Ia n controllers,
significantly faster than newer LGA 1156 Core is Both AMO's Athlon II and Phenom II plus front panel memory card re aders
and i7 quad-core processors, they cost a lot processors are available in dual-core, triple-core

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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 PROCESSORS

INTEL
CELERON DUALCOREAND PENTIUM DUAL CORE
Despite the names. Intel 's Celeron Dual Core and The Ceteron Dual Core E3000- and Pentium
Pentium Dual Core proce5SOfS have more in E6000-series, represented here by Ihe B200
common with (ore 2 Duo chips than with the and E63oo, are made with a 45nm process so
diswolinued Pentium 4 and Pentium D. They're they 5hould run cooler and u~ le~~ power than
variants of the (ore 2 Duo with less L2 cache. the older Allendale Celerons and Pentiums.

DIFFERENT RANGES
The B200 has a 1MB L2 cache and a 200MHz C!..iiJ?>
Pentium Dual Core E2000-5eries and Celeron
FSB,just like the ESOOO-~ries Wolfdale
Pentiums. It's slightly slow.:r than those Je/eron
Dual Core El000-series chip-; use the Allendale processors due to its 2x 32:KB L1 cache, which ua/Core
core and are made using a 6Snm proc:~s, so
they're not as power-efficient or cool as newer
is half the size of the E5000s' The E6300's
quad -pumped 266MHz FSB and 2MB of L2
...,.;:
Intel chips. They have a 200MHz external bus cache means it's faster than the E3200 as well
speed, quad -pumped to an eHective SOOMHz a~ the ESOOO-series Pentiums. The quicker overall
!ronlside bos (FSB). The ElOoos have just 512KB speed is largely due to the FSB providing faster SPECIFIC PROCESSORS
01 L2 cache, while Ihe EZOOO -series. represented access to system compooent~, 5Uch as memory If you want to build a budget PC that's also
here by the E22oo, has just 1MB olll cache_ and the graphics card. quick enough for demanding wor\:. a Pentium
Dual Core processor is a great choice. Every
LGAn5 motherboard in this month's Labs
MODEL SPEED RATING PRICE INC VAT OVERALL
can accept Core 2 Duo and Core 2 Quad
C~l~ron Dual Cor~ E1400 lGHl
Dual Cor~ E1SOO UGHl
** '" "55 processors as well as Pentium Dual Core chips,
so you can easily upgrade to a Faster processor
C~I~ ron

Dual Cor~ EI600 l.4GHl

** '" in future if necessary.
C~I~ ron

Dual Core 0200 l.4GHl

** '"
m " The E6300 offers the best value in the
C~I~ ron
**** " Celeron and Pentium range. Although the
Celerons are a Uttle cheaper, the small savings
MODEL SPEED RATING PRICE INC VAT OVERALL aren 't worth the noticeable drop in performance
PMtium DualCore EllOO l.lGHz ** w unle5S yoo're on the tightest of budgets. If you
Pentium DualCore E5200 25GH! *** '"n want a Celeron regardless, the B200 is f~~ter
Pentium DualCore E5300 2.6GH! ***1\" '" and cheaper than any of the El000 Celerons. The
Pentium DualCore E5400 2.7GHl **** '" "n ESOOO Pentium~ aren 't ba d proce5SOfS, but

Pentium Dual Core E6300 .~.-

2.8GHz '" they're not significantly cheaper than the E6300
*****
'" " so there ' ~ little reason to buy one.

INTEL
CORE 2 DUO
Most of the PC~ submitted to our Labs in the instruction~ needn't be duplicated acro5S two
past few ~ars have had Core 2 Duo processors, caches. A larger L2 cache boosts the processor's
but Intel is due to phase them out in favour of its performance by reducing the number of times it
Core i3 and is processors. They're still good value has to access RAM for new dat a. However, newer
if you 're upgrading from an older LGAns processors have shared L3 cache for better
processor or building a new PC on a budget. as performance, leaving each core its own L2 cache.
LGAns motherboards are still cheaper than
LGA 1156 versions for the Core i3 and is chips. DIFFERENT RANGES 1,333MHz FSB. They're also made using a 4Snm
We tested ~ven Core 2 Duos, from the E7000-series Core 2 Duo processors have a process. They have 32KB Ll caches (like the
2.66GHz E7300 to the 3.33GHz E86OO. Each 266MHz external bu~ speed, quad -pumped to a E7000 proce5S0rs) but h~ve the large~t L2 caches
series of Core 2 Duo processors has a different 1,066MHz FSB. They are made with the 4Snm of any Core 2 Duo at 6,144KB.
amount 01 L2 cache, but it's sh"red between process, so they should be cool and efficient.
both cores. This is more efficient when running E8000-series processor~ have a 333MHz SPECIFIC PROCESSORS
multithreaded applications, as data an d external bu~ speed, which is quad-pumped for a The E7000-series Core 2: Duo~ are better value
than their more expensive E8000-~ries
counterp<lrt~. All three E7000-~ries processors
MODEL SPEED RATING PRICE INC VAT OVERALL
perfonned well in all oor benchmarks, with little
Core 2 Duo E7300 2.66GH. ****
Core 2 Duo E7400 2.SCH! **** '" " price difference between the three. You should

Core 2 Duo E7 500 2.93GHI 1\"1\"1\"1\"* '" " therefore go for the fastest. the E7S00.
It's difficult to justify buying any of the
Core l Duo ESlOO 2:.66GHz *** '" '" E8000 models. The E8200 and E8400 aren 't
Core l Duo E9400 3GHl "'"
£126 " significantly faster than the €7SOO. The E8S00
Core 2 Duo E8500 3.16GH.
***
~ £143 "
99
and E8600 are faster, but their higher prices
make them poor value compared with Similarly
Core 2 Duo E6600 333GH. ** f205
'" priced but faster Core is proce~sors.

Click: dell.co.uk Call: 0844 444 3242

Sam·9pm Weekdays, 9am-6pm Saturdays, lOam·Spm Sundays

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 PROCESSORS

INTEL Core is and i7 (and AMD's Phenom

II), these chips haw no L3 cache to
share between aU four cores. This
processors have two 2,048 KB L2
caches, while the Q9OOO-series
chips have dua13,072KB L2 caches.
CORE2QUAD means they're likely to make Q90S0-series processo~ have a pair
Intel's Core 2 Quad processors have four cores, more requests to the system of 6,144KB L2 caches - the largest of
so they're ideal for funning multiple programs memory. We've tested five here. any LGA77S processor here.
simultaneously. Multithreaded programs, such as
most video-editing p<!ckages. can also put all DIFFERENT RANGES SPECIFIC PROCESSORS
four cores to wort. 011 a single task, which can The QaOOO -, Q9000- and Q90S0-series of chips The Q9SS0 and Q9650 are the fastest Core 2
produce impressive results in Ihe~ programs. use a Yorkfield core. wh ich is made using a 4Snm Quad processo~ here, but they're not as fast as
A Core 2 Quad processor is essentially two process. This makes them reasonably cool and the similarty priced Core is 7S0. The 08200 isn't
Core 2 Duos on one chip. Each ha!f has its own power efficient. They have a l,333MHl worth considering as it costs more than the
L2 cache, which the two cores share. Unlike the quad-pumped fSB, too, The Q8000-serie~ faster QB3oo, which is the ~st-value Core 2
Quad here. It costs just over £100 but performed
well in all our benchmark5. It 's a good choice il
MODEL SPEED RATING PRICE INC VAT OVERALL
you want to upgrade an existing dual-core
Co ... 2 Quad Q8200 2.33GHz ** m" " LGA77S-based PC, but bear in mind that Intel
Co ... 2 Quad Q8300 2.5G Hz **** will phase out the Core 2 Quads in favour of the
Co ... 2 Quad Q9400 2,66GHz *** "'"
m,
%
quicker lGA 1156-b</sed Core is and i7 chips.
Core 2 Quad Q95SO 2.83GHz ** £171 '" These newer processoo are a better choice if
Core 2 Quad Q%SO 3GHz ** '" you're building a new PC and want the ability to
"" "" upgrade to an even faster quad-core chip later.

INTEL 7S0 stamls apart as it ha~ four

cores and the same Lynnfield
CORE 13, 15 AND 17 architecture as the Core i7
BOO-series processors.
Intel's newest LGA 11 S6-b</sed processo~ have a Despite its name, the
confusing naming system. The family name isn't Pentium G6950 is a
very descriptive or helplul as some processo~ cut-down ve~ion of the
share a family name, such as Core is, despite i3 chips. It has just 32KB
having different architectures and capabilities. 01 L1 cache and 3MB 01 L3 cache.
All Core i7 processors are quad -core, but for every physical core, as it did with old Pentium
DIFFERENT RANGES they're more power-hungry than the Clarkdale i3 4 processors. Hyper-Threading can help 5peed up
All Core i3 and is proce~sors, except for the is and is chips due to their 45nm process. Their multithreaded programs, such as video encoders.
750, use the Clarkdale architecture, while every large 8MB L3 cache is shared between all four One feature shared by all the Core is and i7
chip, including the 750, has an integrated cores, which make~ them more efficient than the SOO-series proce~sors, but not the i3s, is Turbo
Northbridge. They also have direct control over Core 2 Quads, which have no L3 cache. The Boost. This is in effect a form of automatic
the PCI Express connections. The processors BOO-series i7 chips are compat ible with overdocking that adjusts a proces~or's clock
communicate with the Southbridge chip, which LGA 1156, while the older 9OO-series uses the speed above its stated frequency when dea ling
manages slower connections such as audio and older LGA 1366 socket. with particularly demanding task5.lt depends
SATA, using the Direct Media Interlace (DMI) , The Lynnfield-based Core i7 8oo-series, as on a capable power supply, well-designed
which runs at 2GB/s. well as the is 750, has the same integrated motherboard and adequate cooling. though .
The Core i3 and is 600-series are dual-core Northbridge and DMI bus as the Clarkdale-based
processors with 4MB of L3 cache. The 32nm i3 and is processoo. Older 9OO-series Core i7 SPECIFIC PROCESSORS
proce~s means they're cool and power efficient, chips don 't have direct control over PCI Express The Core i3 530 and 540 are both very capable
but what really sets them apart is their connections but use a high-speed QuickPath and reasonably priced, but with little price
integrated graphics chip. They're not powerful Interconnect (QPI) interlace to communicate difference betw~n them, there's no reason to
enough for the latest 3D games, but they can with the other system components. buy the S30. Although LGA 1156 motherboards
play high-definition video. To do so, you'll need a Hyper-Threading has also made it<; return in cost more than their LGA775 counterparts, i3
motherboard with an Intel HS7 or HSS chipset, all of Intel's LGA1156 and 1366 processoo, apart chips afe better in the longer term than Core 2
such as those reviewed on page 81. The Core is from the is 750. This gives an extra virtual core chips as they're great lor building a PC that's fast
now and can be upgraded to an even faster
LGA 1156 processor in the luture. If you want
this flexibility but can't afford the i3 530, the
5l0wer, cheaper Pentium G69S0 is an excellent
eo ... i3 530 2.93GH. **** '''' '''' budget alternative, It 's 5l0wer than the i3s but
Cor~ i3 S40 ~ 3.067GHz ***** £105
Core is 6S0 3.2GHz *** '"
m
just as quick as the Core 2 Duos revi~d here.
Core is GOO-series processoo are fast but,
Core is 660 3.33GHz *** "" unless you want a proc~ssor with a built-in
CoreiS66 1 333GHz *** ""
OS, '" graphics chip, there's no point in buying one over
eo ... is 670 3.46GHI *** (23S "" the is 750. This is just as quick or quicker than
eo ... is 7S0 Iiii-;;;;J 2.66GHz ***** "£217.... '"m any is 600 chip, yet costs less than any of them.
It's ideal for building a ~rful PC that isn 't
Core i7 860 2.8GHz ****
Core i7 870 2.93GHz ** '" exorbitantly expens ive. If you're tempted by an

Core ;7920 2.66GHz ** "" "" is GOO -series processor, bear in mind that the
661 is almost identical to the 660 except that it
Co ... i7940 2.93GHz ** "'"
(4 11 '"
' 52 has a slightly faster integrated graphics chip at
the cost of higher ~r consumption and a laCk
Co ... i7 9S0 3.06GHz ** £417
Core i7%O 3.2GHz ** £447 '"'" of hardware support for virtua~sation.
Core i7 %5 Extreme Edit ion
Core i7 975 Extreme Edition
3.2GHz
333GHz
**
**
".,
(742 '"
If you want to build an even laster PC, the
best choice is the Core i7 860, which costs just
'" £73 more than the is 750. El

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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PROCESSORS

AMD 235e and 250. which have 1MB of

L2 cache pl'f core. There's no l3
cache. but only S121(B of II cache
per core. This is the same as a
ATHLON II cache, which means the
processon will access the
Phenom II. but without the 6MB of
shared L3 cache to distribute data
AMO 's new Athloo II Xl processors are an nati~ relatively slow system memory efficiently. This means that in effect
dual-core AM3 modell;, unlike the I'henom II X2 more ohen but. as our graphs they're not as fast at multitasking. and
processors, which are quad-core chips with two on page 76 show, this had little impact 011 can also lead to reduced perfQ(mance in
non -fum:tional cores. They're made using the their perfom'lance in our tests. 30 games. However, these chips performed
same 4Snm pr<xE!Ss as Phenom II$, and fit in the Although the quad-core Athlonlls have the very well when combined with a decent graphics
same AM2 t and AM3 motherboards. 5ame amount of L2 cache (2MB) 3S their card. The triple-core Athlon II X3 processors are
Each AthlOllIl X2 COfe has 128KB of L1 and dual-core counterpa,,->. in ptactice there 's less to actually Alhlon II X4s with one non-functional
SIlKS 01 L2 cache. The only exceptions are the go around. They have the usuallZBKB of II core. so they're similarly specified.

SPECIFIC PROCESSORS
MODEL SPEED RATING PRICE INC VAT OVERALL
An Mhlon 115 <Ire great villue. but we were
Alhlon II x2 235e UGHz
Alhlon II X2 240 ~ 2.8GHI "'''''''''' '" .," particul<trly impo-essed with the 2.8GHz Athlon II

Alhlon II X2 245 2.9GHz

"''''''''''''' '" Xl 240. At £41 it's the cheapest AMO chip here.

Alhlon II Xl 250 3GHI

"'''''''''' '" " but it punched above il5 weight in our tests. It 's
an obvious Budget Buy. You can combine it with
Alhlon II X2 2S5 3.1GHz "''''*'''
•••
£SS
"0 " an inexpensive AMJ motherboard or use it to
Alhlon II x3 400e 2.2GHz •• m "
69
upgrade a slower processor in an AM2+ system.
If you want better perlormance for just a little
Alhlon II X3 405e 2.3GHI •• m
" more money. the £55 3GHz x 2 250 is ideaL
Alhlon II X3 425 2.7GHz
Alhlon II X3 435 2.9GHI
"'''''''''' £S3
" Athlon II processors are inexpensive and offer

Alhlon II X3 440 3GHz

"''''''''''
"''''''''''
£S7

'" "'" surpris ingly good perfQ(m~nce. The epitome of

this is the Athlon II X4 6l0. At £73, it's the
Alhlon II X4 600e 2.2GHz • '98
"n
cheapest quad-core chip around. With a dock
Alhlon II X4 605t 2.3GHI • "'"
speed of 2.6GHz. it's no slouch and it did well in
our video·encoding tesl5. lt"s a good choice if
Alhlon II X4 620 2.6GHz m
Alhlon II X4 630 2.8GHz
"'''''''''''''
.~ m '"
89
you 're on a tight budget. although it's not the
best choice for gam~ Of multitasking. For those
Alhlon II X4 635 2.9GHz
"'''''''''' '" " tasks. you 're better off with a Phenom II.

AMD
PHENOM II
at £61, is priced appropriat~ly for a
AMO 'S Phenom II processors have been t~ken that have AMO's 790 Q( 785 fast dual-core processor. However.
down a peg by Intel's new Core i3 and Core is chipset. Most AMl+ bOilrds will we prefer the Phenom II X2 550 8lack
chips. but there ~re still plenty of powerful and happily accept an AM3 Edition. It costs just £3 mQ(e. runs at
great-value models in the range . processor. but you'll probilbly 3.1GHz and has an unlocked multiplier,
Phenom II chips use a 4Snm manufacturing have to upda te the BIOS. whiCh makes overdocking easy. The X2
process. which makes them cooler, faster and 5SS Black Editi on performs only a little
less power-hungry than older Phenoms running SPECIFIC PROCESSORS bett~r. but costs significantly more.
~t the same speed. The four cores sh~re a 6MB Phenom II processors are avai!;lble in dual-. If you want more power for multithreaded
l3 cache (except the 810, which has 4M8) along triple- and quad-core versions. Black Edition applications, the Hekil triple -core processors are
with S12KB of l2 and 128KB of II cache per versions have an unlocked multiplier. which a good choice. The Phenom II X3 720 Black
core. The current range of AM3 Phenom II makes them easy to overdock without affecting Edition is easily the best processor you can buy
processors uses HyperTransport 3.1 to talk the HyperTransport or memory speeds. fQ( under £100. It has an unlocked multiplier. but
directly to memory and other components. This The best Phenom II X4 chips are similar in perlorms Y<!:ry well without any overdoc:king.
~llows for a maximum bus speed of 3.2ooMHz. price and periQ(mance to Inters Core i3. The The Heka and Deneb cores also appear in
although no chips use this speed at the moment fastest is the Phenom II X4 96S Black Edition. but AMO's energy-efficient Phenom II range. which
The AM2+ socket is being phased out, so aU at current prices the 955 8l<tck Editi on, which is indudes the X3 70Se, X4 90Se and X4 910e. All
current Phenom 115 are socket AM3. AM3 chips only slightly slower. is better villue. three have a Thermal Design Power (TOP) of just
fit in both AMl+ and AM3 motherboards. but The cheapest Phenom II in our group is the 65W, com pared with standard Phenom II TOPs
they're designed to work best with motherboards 3GHz X2 S4S. This uses the Callisto core which. of between BOW and 125W. This milkes them
suitable for use in compact desktop systems,
which don 't haY<!: the same level of cooling as
MODEL SPEED RATING PRICE INC VAT OVERALL
!;lrger cases. HoweY<!:r, unless you specifically
Phenom II X2 545 3GHI
Phenom II X2 SSO BLiI,k Edition i"::>i 3.1GHz
**** '" '" need a compact PC. this energy-efficient series is

Phenom II Xl 555 Black Edition 3.2GHl

*****
*..
£6'
" poor value for money.

Phenom II X3 70Se 2.5GHz *. '"

'"
92

"
One of the main advantages of AM3 Phenom
II po-ocessors is that they enilble you to upgrade
Phenom II X3 710 2.6GHz ** your PC gradually. first buying the processor to
Phenom II X3 720 S!;lck Edition ~ Z.8GHl
"'****
£9S
£92 "
9S use with an older AM2+ motherboard before
Phenom II X4 810
Phenom II X4 9-05e
Phtnom II X4 9100!
Phenom II X4 925
2.6GHz
2.5GHz
2.6GHl
2.8GHz
*.
**
**.
.. £120
£121
£131

"'"
"
""
upgrading to an AM3 bwrd and OOR3 RAM
when you can ilfford it. This is in sharp contr~st
to the expense of buying a new Intel Core is, i3
or i7 processor, motherboard and OOR3 RAM.

''""
Even if YOU're building a PC from $Cratch, the
Phenom II X4 94S 3GHz £114
**** combination of an AM3 processor an d a
Phenom II X4 955 Black Edihon ~ 3.2GHl
***** £122 m motherboard soch as Mus's M4A7850-M Pro is
Phenom II X4 965 8!;l,k Edition 3.4GHz **. ' HO no a lot cheaper than the !;ltest Intel hardware .

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y~OlO

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MAY 2010 ' COMPUrERSHOPPER

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PROCESSORS

BENCHMARKS _ AMD _ Intel

2D Performance PCMark Vantage

Imag e Multitasking Overall

• • • • . . . . I• •• • .. .. .. . .. .
To test processors we use ou r application su ite. RAM, and lGA 11 S6 chips in Asus's P7HS7Q-V We use the 5<lme tests in aU O\.Ir reviews. You
which we share with our sister publication EVa board with 4GB of DDR3 RAM. Each PC has can download the tests from www.custompc.
Custom PC We test AMO processors in an M51 a 512 MB ATI Radeon HD48S0 graphics card. co.uk/beflcllmarl:s/how-to -efl ter.html.
DKA790GX Platinum motherboard with 4GB of OUf reference PC has an AMO PIlenom II X4 SHTlNGS We run our application tests at
DDR 2 RAM. We test IntellGA775 chips in an 920 processor and 4GB 01 OOR2 RAM. Its results I,024x768 resolution..d in 32:-bit colo... r
Asus PSQ Pro motherboard with 4GB of DDR2 are normalised to 100 for ease of comparison. WE8 www.expertreviews.co .... k

Labs verdict Processors

If YOI.I·re upgradingyo ... r PC on a budget. yo ... If you can stretch yo ... r budget to around INTEL _ ..... 1lu.1 eo,. E&.300 ~

am 'lale ly opt lor Intel's Penti ... m Dua l Core £100. yo ... can buy a m ... ch faster processor. II '.INTEL
·~·~·"·_~·,"cccccc--------------:"""'
...., E"50 I'~ij
E6300 or AMD's Athlon II X2: 2:40. de~nding yo ... want to stick with AM3 processors. the ** ..... *
on yo ... r motherboard. 80th are grt'at value at triple-cort' Phenom II X3 72:0 81ack fd ition is a
around £50. 11 yo ... ·re b... ilding a new PC. the great choice. It costs just under £100 but
AtMon II X2: 2:40 has the edge. thanKs to a impressed us with its speed in all o ... r tests. The
slightly lower ~ice. The Phenom II X2: 550 Phenom II X4 955 is even q ... icker. b... t is also
81ack Edition is e~n faster and costs j ... st f2:0 more power h... ngry and costs £122. lf yo ...·d
more . All three win 8... dget Buy awards. rather go with an Intel LGA 1156 processo r. th e
We were also imprt'ssed with Intel's £105 Core i3 540 is j ... st as q ... ick as th e AMD
Pentium G6950. This cut-down version of the processors but ... ses less power. All are great AMD "" ....... nH 955 BIoc:k E_
pricier Core ;3 ~ocesso l"5 isn't as fast as the choices for b... ilding a powerf... l new PC at a *****
i3 chips. b... t it"s j... st as last as most of the reasonable ~ice. so they win Best 8...y awards.
similariy priced Core 2: Duos. lt·s an excellent For even ~tte r ~rformance. you have to reason to 09t for any of the other Core is
processor il yo ... want to tJuild an affordable spend well ove r £100. Intel's £144 Core is 750 chips, which cost more. or Core i7 processors.
but fast LGA 1156-based PC that can ~ q ... ad-core processor is the clear winner.lt·s which cost a lot more for only mod est s~ed
upgraded to an even laster processor later. incredibly quick for the price and leaves little increases. It wins OI.Ir 8est 8... y award .G:l

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Find more magazines at www.magazinesdownload.com
INTRODUCTION
It's easy to overlook th e
Choosing a...
Motherboard
motherboard when building a
new PC while concentrating
on more exciting components.
But this important piece of kit
detoe.mines which components very component in your PC connects to the processor. Refer to our table on page 84 for a list 01
are compatible and the future
upgradu you (lin make.
Mode m mothe rboards are
E motherboard, so ii 's essential that you choose
one with the appropriate sockets, slots and ports
to build a PC with ~II the features you need. II you 're
which processors can be used with each motherboard,
Motherboards use one of two types of memory:
DDRZ or DDR3. All LGA 1156 motherboards use DDR3.
packed with features such as planning to re-use some 01 your memory and expansion Most LGA77S and AM3 motherboards now use DDR3,
integrated graphics that can cards, you need to consider these too. This guide will but some use older DDRl, You may prefer a DDRZ
cope w ith Windows TsAero help you choose the best motherboard fQl" your n~ds. motherboard if you already have DDRl RAM you wish
inte riiICe and high·definition to re-use , This isn't a bad idea il you're on a budget as
video, so non-garne rs don't CHIP OFF THE OLD BLOCK DDR3 RAM doesn't provide a huge s~d boost.
have to pay ext", for II Dilferent proceSSOf5 use dil/erent sockets, so you must The maximum supported speed varies from board to
dedicated graphics ca rd. choose a motherboard with a socket matching your board. All the DDR3 motherboards here support
This mQnth we 've tested 12 processor. Intel motherboards come in two mutually memory with a speo:d of PC3-10600, although some
motherboards, eight for Inte l incompatible socket designs: LGA77S and LGA 1156. An support higher, overclocked speeds. All the DDRZ
processors lind four fOf' AMD. LGAns can't be plugged into aLGA 1156 motherbO<1rd , motherboards here will take PCZ-6400 memory , while
ranging in price from £41 to and vice versa. A different socket, LGA 1366, is used only some also support faster spet'ds and overdocking.
£146. No mllUer whU your by some very expensive processors, so we haven't There's no point in buying more than 4GB 01
budget is, we'U help you pick covered any motherboards using this. memory if you 're planning to use a standard 3Z-bit
the right one so you can build AMD motherboards also come in two socket version of Windows. This is because its 3Z-bit memory
your perfect PC with ease. designs: AMl t and AM3 , You can't use an AMl t address system can utilise around 35GB at most , II you
processor in an AM3 motherbO<1rd, but AM3 processors install a 64-bit version of Windows. you can take
will work in an AMZ+ board. An the AMD motherbO<1rds advantage 01more memory. so check your board's
Alan Lu here have an AM3 socket, as AMl+ is being phased out. maximum capacity. To edit high-definition video, you'll
PC systems and
storage expe rt All the AMD motherbO<1rds here support the AMD n~d as much memory as you can alford.
processors reviewed on page 72. 50 you don't n~d to Most 01 the boards here can be overclocked, and
worry about compatibility if you have a modem we've listed the maximum external bus speeds you can

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 MOTHERBOARDS

This month
INTEllGAnli MOTHERBOAROS
ASUS
PSG41T-M l X2
~!IIl

"SO
G41TM-E43
PagoBO
FDXCONN

......
G43MX

GIGABYTE
GA-EP45T-U03lR
Pogo90

INTEllGA115S MOTHERBOAROS
BlDSTAR
TH55B HD
"~.
INTEL

.....
DH55TC

GIGABYTE
H55-U03H
"~.
ASUS
P1H570-V Eyo
"~.
AMO MOTHERBOAROS
"SO
n O-G45
PogoB2
ASUS
M4A7B50-M Pro
PagoB2

..
FDXCONN
A7DA-S3,O
"
.....
GIGABYTE
GA-79DXTA-UD4

set in the BIOS in the tables on page 84. In most depending on the mode selected. However, they outputs are preferable if you plan to connect
cases you won't be able to get your processor to use the CPU, so are no better than software surround-sound speakers to your Pc.
run at anywhere near these ligures, however. RAID in Windows. The big downside is that il In addition, many motherboards have digital
your motherboard fails, you 'll need to replace it coaxial or optical S/PDIF outputs for connecting
SIZE MATTERS with an identical model to read your RAID hard to surround-sound speakers or amplifiers. Each of
Motherboards come in two common formats: di5ks. Currently, there are three types of the boards with HDMI ports can output audio
ATX and microATX. Both fit in any standard PC expansion card slot. PCI Express (PCI-E) x16 slots through this socket.
case. although some compact cases - often for are primarily for adding graphics cards. AU Some motherboards have integrated graphics
media centre PCs- accept only microATX motherboards have at least one such slot, and chipsets. None is currently powerful enough to
boards. There's nothing to stop yoo install ing a some have two, with support for dual cards using play modem games at high resolutions and
microATX motherboard in a full-size tower PC ATl's CrossFire or Nvidia 's SLI technology. PCI -E detail settings, but most of them can ealily
case. although the components on the board will x4 and PCI -E xl slots are used for adding handle 1080p video playback - an ideal situation
be doser together, which can hinder airflow and expansion cards, such as TV tune~ We've never if you want to watch Blu-ray movies.
make them harder to work on. MicroATX boards seen a card that re<Juires an ~4 slot, which aren't
also have fewer e~pansion options, so aren't the e5peciaUy common anyway, but PCI -E xl cards PORT A MANGER
wisest choice for a full-size case. win fit in the ~4 variety. Older PCI slots have You'll find a minimum of four USB2 ports on any
been around for years, but many of today's motherboard, but you 're likely to need more
INTERNAL AFFAIRS expansion cards still use this format. They are than this. The latest boards have USB3 ports,
Some of the latest motherboards do away with most often used for wireless networking or which are worth having if you need fast external
the older IDE connectors, which means you can't adding extra ports, such as USB or FireWire. storage - USB3 hard disks can be significantly
use older optical drives when building a new Pc. faster than USB? hard diSks. USB headers on the
MOlt boards still have one IDE port, though . SEE HEAR board connect to the front ports on your PC's
SAT A III is the latest version of SAT A and is Every motherboard here has integrated audio, case and can also provide more rear ports using a
starting to appear on some motherboards. On with analogue mini-jack: connectors. These backplate. Sometimes these backplates are
paper, it's twice a5 fast as the existing SATA II, support surround sound, and also provide line-in included free in the box.
bu t in our tests SATA lfI hard dish were no faster and microphone jacks. However, watch out for Some motherboards also provide FireWire
than their SATA II counterparts, so don't opt for boards that have only three connectors. These ports, which can be useful if you have a MiniDV
a motherboard purely because of its SATA III can't provide 5.1 surrou nd sound plus line-in and camcorder or external FireWire hard dish. PS/2
support. Many motherboards also have RAID microphone inputs simultaneously - they ports are handy for plugging in keyboards and
controUers for creating arrays using multiple hard operate by switching inputs for outputs mice without using up USB ports, but serial and
disks. These can improve disk access speeds, depending on whether you set the speaker parallel ports are only for very old peripherals
protect you r data against a di5k failure or both, configuration to stereo or 5.1. Those with six such as dial-up modems and old printers. @

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INTEL LGA775 MOTHERBOARDS

ASUS
P5G41T-M LX2
***
£41 inc VAT
*****
£43 inc VAT
From www.ginger6.co..uk From www.lambda-tek.com/componentshop

At just £41 , /\sufs PSG41T-M lX2 is cheap for a microATX motherboard MSl"s G41TM-E43 is a micrQATX motherboard suitable for building either
that uses ODR3 memory. We were surpri5ed to find no overdocking a compact media centre PC or a general-purpose computer. The
controls. This isn't a huge flaw as, for most people, the performance gains integrated Intel GMA X4500 graphics chip can play high-definition video
from o~rdocking aren 't worth the configuration hassle. and there's an HDMI port lor connecting a TV. in addition to DVI and VGA
The integrated Intel GM A 4500 graphiC'> chip isn', quick enough for monitor ports. YO\.I can use any two of these to drive two monitors.
playing the latest 3D games, but it is powerful enough to play HD video. There aren 't any SIPDIF ports for connecting a surround -sound
Unfortunately. it doesn 't have an HOMI output. milking this motherboilrd amplilier. but one can e~sily be added using a br~cket connected to the
less than ideal if you want to build a high -definition media centre PC SfPDIF header. These are available for around £5 online. The six mini -jack
Without HD MI to ~rry video and audio over" single cable 10 a TV, you'll connectors allow you to output analogue surround sound as well as uling

po<1. so you'll need a graptliu card i'

need to connect separate video and audio cables. There's only one YGA
you want to connect two monitors.
As expected for a compact microATX motherboard, there aren 't a huge
line-in and micropllone inputs.
There are lour SATA ports lor connecting optical drives and hard dilks.
Instead of facing upwardl. they are placed parallel to the rest of the
number of expansion options, but there are enough for most people. There motherboard. This can make connecting a SATA cable trickier. but can also
are two PCI slots for accommodating add-ons such as a wireless help make cable rum tidier. There's no RAID controller for using multiple
networking adaptor. There are foor SATA portS for connecting hard disks, hard disks together to boost speed or increase data redundancy.
but there's no RAID controller. Finally, there's a sensibly located PCI If you need the power of a dedicated graphics card. there'l a PCI
Express x16 slot For a Express x16 slot to take one. II yO\.l're more interested in adding an
de<:licated grapllic.s card. SUMMARY
expansion card such as a
Asus's PSG41T-M LX2 is sound card or TV tuner, there SUMMARY
VERDICT A,,,,'$ PSG41T_M LX2 I, cheap for 3
simply outclassed by the DDR3 microArx molhe<bo .... d, bul ill. cks. are two PCI slots as well as a VIRDICT MSI'. G41TM·E43 I. a good.-valur
competition. Whether you HOMI oo t;>JI and Ih...., ar<: b<tt..-·vitlue, PCI hpress xl slot. The large, and hufl"iy ~""'Ijle microATX
want to build a me<:lia centre more highly oqui~ . It.mali'l... avalLabl. paslive cooler lor the moI",-rboard witt. no senou. !taw.
PC or a general-purpose one, Northbridge chip means this INTll MOTHER80ARD LG~ 175, Int<l Vlll1nt.<I
INTEL MOTHERBOARD lGA175, ""'01Vlll1nt.<I
there are more generou51y ICHl chil""' . 2>c OOIO;hlots. h PC! ExJ>r<'" board is complelely fanless. I(H7 chip.... 2. DDR2 "Qts. 1.KI Exp'"" .16
equipped microATX .16 $101,2. PCI slol .. h 101: pori , 4x S~T. MSl's G41TM -E43 is a slot. Ix K I EXpres. xl $Io~ 2x PCI $lots. Ix 101
motherboards available, good-value motherboard porI.4. SATA II poru

such as MSl"s similarly ""'"

PAATCOOE PSG41T-M LX2IGB
with enough slots and ports PAATCODE G.1TM-E43
onAILS ht!pJlu~ .,su,.com
prked G41TM-E43 (right). for most people.

FOXCONN GIGABYTE
G43MX GA-EP45T-UD3LR
***
£SS inc VAT
****
£106 inc VAT
From www.lambda-tek.com/componentshop From www.amazon.co.uk

Foxconn's G43MX microATX motherboard can accepl up to 4GB of DDR2 Gigabyte's GA-E P45T-UD3lR is a lull-size ATX
RAM in its two memory slots. Although this should be enough lor most motherboard, so has plenty 01 ports. It can accommoda te
tash. especially if you're using the board to build a media centre PC, other up to 16GB of DOR3 memory thanks to its foor RAM slots.
microATX motherboards we've seen can take as much as 8G8 or 16GB. There 's no shortage 01 ports lor connecting storage devices - six SATA
The integrate<:llntel graphics chip can play HD video. but there's no HDMI ports and the bu ilt-in RAID controller allows you to create a RAID 0,1, 5 or
output. This ma kes it more inconvenient to connect a TV, since you need 10 array. There are eight USB ports and foor USB headers that can be
to run two cables, one for video (via VGA or OVI) and one lor audio. tumed into po<ts using ba<:kplates. so you could connect up to 12 USB
The BIOS lets you overclock the frontside bus and there are controls peripherals in total without resorting to hubs.
for adjUlting the voltage of the processor, RAM and chipset. There 's only PCI Express xl peripherall aren't particularly common compared to
one fan header for connecting a processor fan. This is inconvenient, but their PC! counterparts. so most motherboards have more PC! slots than
you can always add I~ns that connect to lhe power supply directly. PCI Express xl slots. The GA -EP4ST-UD3lR reversel this trend and has
There are six SATA portS lor connecting storage devices. which is four PC! Express xl slots and just two PCI 5l0ts. The graphics card slot is
generoos lor a microATX motherboard. There's no IDE port, so you can't I-queezed in between the RAM slots and the Soothbridge chip. so litting a
re-use an existing IDE DVD writer. As expected for a motherboard this particularly chunky graphics card could be troublesome.
compact. there are only two PC! slots and a single PC! Express xl slot. This The GA-EP4ST-UD3lR supportS processors with a Irontside bus speed
shoold be enoogh for most of 400MHz quad-pumped to 1,600MHz, althoogh most lGA77S
uses. If not. you can always SUMMARY
processors have just
buy USB adaptors instead. In 1,333MHz FSB speeds. SUMMARY
vtRDlCT The G43MX i.., ~ • bod or poorly
addition to the lour ports. de.igne<J motl>erboard. oot Its '1GB Gigabyte's GA -EP45T- VERDICT G i g~byt.·. GA·EP45T-U D3LR i.
each of the three headers m. morylimil.lad of IDE porn and UD3lR has plenty 01 slots , well'"'l" ipped oot r<:Latively
supports two ports each - so singl. I.n "'-..doer all count "i.i ....1 il and portS, but at £106, it's 0"P" n.j ~ lGAnS mom.,rboard

you could connect a total of a little expensive. You 're

INTEL MOTHERBOARD lGAllS.In..1G4l/1n, <I INTll MOTHERSOARD IGAnS.lntol P4S~nt<l
10 USB devices. !CH10chi""". 2x DOR2 slots, 1, P<I ~0 .. xI6 better ofl building a new ICH 10R , .. "..~ . x DOR) slots, 1, P<I E>q>tM.
Foxconn's G43MX slot, hPCI E""' ... . 1 $101,0< PCI $Iots,6, SATA PC using an LGA 1156 .1&slo'.4. PO E"", ... . 1 slou. 2x PC! slot<.
h IDE port, 6. SAlA II pori'
""'"
is a good microATX board, which will cost yOU
PART COOl G43MX PAAT CODE GA·EP4ST·UD3ll1.
motherboard. but it's leIS and have more luture
relatively expensive. upgrade potential.

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 INTEL LGAllS6 MOTHERBOARDS

INTEL
DH 55TC
*****
E6B inc VAT
***
E82 inc VAT
From www.cc lon line.co m From www.scan.co.uk

At just under £70. Biostar's TH55B HD means you can boild an LGA 1156 Intel 's DH55TC is a mieroATX LGA 1156 motherbwrd. Its compact size
PC tor little more than an old LGA77S-ba5e'd one. You might appreciate its an d H55 Express chipset. which 5Upports the HD--capable integrated
eye-catching black and red colour scheme if you 're fitting it into a ca~ graphics of the latest Core i3 and is processors, make it an appealing
with a transparent side paneL More practical are the power and reset choice for boilding a home theatre Pc. There's an HDMI port for
buttons, which are useful for testing the board during installation without connecting a TV or home-cinema amp. II you have an older amp. there's
having to connect your case's Iront panel buttons. an SIPDlF header, but yoo 'll need to buy a backplate to use it.
It's a (omlX'c! rnicroATX model thill's well suited for U5e in a media Unsurprisingly for an Inlel motherboard. there aren 't any overdoding
centre Pc. It supports the integra ted graphic<; chips built into Intel 's latest controls in the BIOS lor squeezing more perlormance out 01 your
Core i3 and is proce55OfS and has an HOMI port so you need only one processor. Intel would much rather you boy a faster processor instead.
cable to output audio and video. II you want to connect an older This isn't a major flaw lor most people, however.
surround-sound amplifier, there 's an SfPDIF header, but no actual output 1/ for some reason you feel the nee<! to lit a massive 16GB of RAM,
Adding an internal TV tuner or SO!lnd cud is easy as there are two PO then this motherboard will recognise it all, but you'll need to install a
slots as well as a PO Express xl slot. A dedicate<! graphics card can be 54-bit o~rating system to use it. There are six SATA ports bot no RAID
plugged into the PCI Express x16 graphics card slot, but it's located dose support. which isn't surprising for a minoATX motherboard. There are
to the passively cooled Northbridge. making litting a chunky card tricky. parallel and serial headers for connecting older peripherals. plus three USB
There are six SATA ports for connecting storage devices. bot no RAID headers allowing a total of nine ports if you use them all. Its slots and
controller to join multiple hard disks together. ports are well laid out. with no tightly spaced slots or protruding parts
In addition to the four to make fitting bolky Or
USB ports. there are three SUMMARY oversized components t, icky. SUMMARY
headers that can also bi' VERDICT A g~"'-.value m lcroATX LGA 1156
Intel's DH55TC is a good VERDICT Intel's DH55T< I. a very c"!>",ble
turned into portS using mothOfbo ...d that', good for both low-co<l mieroATX LGA 1156 lGA 11 S6 microATX motherboard, but
backplates. There are also 1'<, and mw~ cwu-. system, motherboard. but it's quite th"", ~'" chupe' ~Itemative,
headers lor adding paraUel expensive for its features.
IJlllEl MOTIiER&oA~D LGA 11S6, l"toIliSS
and serial ports for using chip...... OOIU>Iots. Ix 1'(1 E"I"'«5 .16 >lot. Unless you must have an Expreu chip<et 4x DDR3 >Iou. Ix P(I hpreu
legacy peripherals_ Ix PCI E","",,, ,1 sIol , 2x PCI 1101<. h 101: port. Intel board, Biostar's similar x16 .lo~ 2x PCI Exp<.".1 slot<. h PCI 0101 ,6><
OveralL the TH55B HD is 6xS"T""poru TH55B HD motherboard is a SATA II port,
PlJtTCOOETH5S6 HD PART CODE BOXOHSSTC
a great choice for building an DET"ILS wwwb>os(¥.com.tw
more sensible choice and it
DfTAILS www.i"teLcom
LGA 1156 PC on a budget costs £ 14 less.

GIGABYTE
H55-UD3H
****
£93 inc VAT
*****
E146 inc VAT
From www.sca n.co.uk From www.ebuyer.co m

Com~ct microATX motherboards are all well and good, but Ihey're no Asus's P7H57D-V Evo is an expensive motherboard, but you get a lot for
substitute lor a full-size ATX motherboard il you nee<! the flexibility of lots your money. It supports all the latest standard s, with two USB3 ports and
of expansion slots. Gigabyte's H55-UD3H has four PCI slots and one PCI two SATA III connectors. USB3 eKlemal hard disks are expensive. but are al
Express xl slot. which is more than many other bwrds. With eight USB least three times as fast as their USB? counterparts. making these ports
ports and four headers as well. you're sorte<! for e)(lemal expansion. worth having. SATA III is less impressive. In our lests, a SATA III internal
There are six SATA ports for connecting internal storage devices. but hard disk was no faster than the quidest SATA II disk.
no RAID support. This isn't a major problem, as you can use software RAID If you 're not yet ready to invest in the latest storage devices, there are
in certain versions 01 Windows 7. six SATA II ports lor accommodating existing internal hard disks and
There 's litlle point in overdoding RAM . but if you feel the nee<! to do optiul drives too. Unlike the SATA III controller, the SATA II chip 5UpportS
so. the H55-UD3H supports boosting DDR3 memory to PO-17600. RAID. For e)(lernal storage and peripherals. there are four USB ports and
Another largely unne\:essary but supported upgrade option is CroS5FireX. four headers. an eSATA port an d a FireWire 400 port and header.
Two AT! graphics cards can be plugge<! in, theoretically giving better 3D There are also three PCI Express xl slots and two PO slots - ideal for
performance over a single urd. Otherwise, the ports and slots are widely litting internal peripherals such as sound cards and TV tuners . There's
space<! out, so there 's little chance of one component obstructing another. also a pair 01 PO-E x16 slots with support for both Sll and CrossFireX,
If you need its plentiful expansion slots, then the HSS-UD3H is worth which links either two All or two Nvidia graphics cardS together to
the £20 premium over less inerease 3D performance over a single card. It's more cost -effective to
flexible mieroA TX buy a single. more powerful
SUMMARY
motherboards. However, if graphics card. though. SUMMARY
VERDICT If )'011 n..,d ~ LGA 1156
you care about the number mot hOfbo..-d wit h lots 01 eXpa<>5ion .lot, . t
AsuS 'S P7HS7D-V Evo is VERDICT A... ,·s P7H57D-VEva is .... pens;;e,
of expansion slots, then you'll • ",.,enable price, t hen Gigabyte" expenswe. but it's but it', poacked full of te.tu"" ~nd i, • •
also probably want the latest H55-UD3 Hi, a good choice overflowing with features. fut~"' ·p<OOf., i, currently po"ible
type of connectors 5Uch as Some are more useful th<!n INTEL MOTHERIOARO LG ~ 1156, lntel HS7
INTEl. MOTIiER&OIJtD LGA 1156. 1"' .tIiSS
USB3 and SATA III. For these, ~, cllipse~ 4, 0010 slot<.Z, PCI Exp''''
others, bot if you want to Expr",.lInt<lIiS7 Exp<." <hlpse! , •• DORl oIou,
look to A5US 'S P7H57D-V .16 >101<. Ix PCI Exp<<<5 .1 010', 4x PCI >101<. build an LGA 1156 PC with 2xPCI E"I"'''' x16 >loU.3.PCI Exp'", xl oIou.
Evo. It may cost just over Ix IDE pO<~ 6, S~T~ Hporu plenty of slots and USB3 and 1x PCI oIot<. Ix IDE port, 6x SAT" II port.
PIJtT COOE IiSS-UD31i PART CODE PlIiS1D_V EVO
£50 more. bot it makes an money is no object, this is
DETAlts www.gigabyte.alm.\w DETAIlS ht!p:lluIo: ~ "",.<<>m
even more flexible choice. the motherboard to boy_

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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AMD MDTHERBDARDS

MSI
770-G45
***
£59 inc VAT
From www.scan.co.uk
.
.' •• ," I ; '. ~•
.'
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.~ ,;
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•
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*****
£60 inc VAT
From www.scan.co.uk

MSl's 77Q-G45 uses a comparatively old AMD 770 chipset, but it supports Asus's M4A785D-M pro is a compact microATX motherboard with an
aUthe latest AMO Athlon II and Phenom II processors. f or overdocke~ integrated ATI R~deon gr~phiCi dlip capable of playing high-definition
looking to squeeze out a little eKlra ~rformance, there are controls for video, which could be useful if yoo want to boild a home theatre PC
boosting the Hy~rTransport bus speed, the equivalent of the frontsi de I! you later add a dedicated graphics card, the Hybrid CrossFireX
bus on an IntellGA775 motherboard , by as much as 690MHL There's also support can use both graphics chips together to theoreticalty boost 30
plenty of space for adding internal expansion cards thanks to the three PO ~rformance, although the s~ed gains are nothing to write home about.
slots and one PCI Express xl slot. Unusually, there 's support for only 00R2 memory. However, this board
There isn 't an integrated graphics chip, but there are two PCI Express wasn't significantly slower than 00R3 AM3 boards in oor tests.
x16 graphics card slots. 1/ two ATI graphics cards are litted. they can be The M4A78S0-M Pro has six USB ports, as well as three headers that
use<! together in CrossFire mode to increase 3D ~rformance compared to can be tume<! into another six pons using backplates, which shoold be
a single card. Usu ally it's best to buy a single more powerful card. as this is enough for aUbot the biggest of ~ripheral collections. There's also an
cheaper than two cards and gives the same ~rformance. eSATA pon for connecting fast external storage and five SATA ports.
Four of the six SATA ports. as well as the IDE port. are oriented paraUel As ex~cted for a microATX motherboard, the M4A78S0-M Pro has
to the rest of the board, with the remaining two ports pointing upwards. fewer expansion card slots for adding internal ~ripherals than a full- size
This can make cabling tidier. but also makes inserting cables more fiddly. ATX motherboard, with two PO slots and one PO Express xl slot.
Annoyingly, the two upwards-oriented SATA ports can be obstructed if a I! you want to connect a surround-sound s~aker system, there's no
graphics card is plugged into need to add a sound card as an optical S/POIF port is present as well as
the second graphics card slot. SUMMARY
the usual analogue
MSl's 770-G45 is a good SUJToond-sound ootputs. SUMMARY
VERDICT M51 ', 770.G4S I• • good all" (HJI>d
motherboard, but Asus's motM~rd. boll A,...,,', ,imil...ty prked
At just f6O, Asus's
similarty priced M4A785D -M M4A 78SD·M Pro i, better v~l ue ..-.d wou ld M4A7850-M Pro is a great ""at·val... mott...rt».rd and iH'P"CiaUy
Pro is even better value. It be. wi .... choke for most P"Oplc" ""od. choice for building a budget suit~bI. for b<l ~dini' media « nln: PC
doesn't have any of the .>.MO toiOTIiERBOARO AM)' AMD 71OJ.lMD
home theatre or general-
o'JotD MOT"~80A~D AM3, ~ MD 185G/ ~ MD
770-G4S's niggling issues SB710 , .. .,..t,•• DOR) sIot ~ Z. PC! h pm •• 16 purpose PC. It's a better- S8710 <;hi!",'. 4. 00/0;2 >lot,. 1x PO hI"'" x16
and also has an integrated <lot" 1. PCI E"",... " slot , 3. PC I <lots, 1x IDE value and better-designed slot, Ix "'t EXp'... xl <lo~2 x pel <lots. Ix IDE
graphics chip, which may !'Oft. f;>c SATA II port> choice than MSl's similarty port. Sx SAT~ II pons
PAAT CODE g 11 -1599-<l12 PART cOO£ M4~78S0-M PRO
save yoo the ex~nse of a priced 770-G45 and so wins
O£T.... LS www.moi.com.tw DETAILS http~/" k .. ... >.Com
dedica ted graphics card. our Budget Buy award.

FOXCONN
A7DA-S 3.0
***
£88 inc VAT
From www.morecomputers.com

Foxconn's A70A-S 3.0 has a distinctive yellow and black colour scheme, We 'd ex~ct a motherboard equip~d with the latest storage connection
which may be appea~ng if you want to fit it inSide a case with a side interfaces, USe3 and SATA III. to be fairty expensive. but Gigabyte 's
window. There 's support for up to 8GB of 00R3 memory. This is hall as GA -790XTA-U04 is reasonably priced at just over fl00. There 's a pair of
much as other DDR3 AM3 motherboards we've seen, but should be more USB3 ports, in addition to six USB2 ports, which are well worth having
than enough for any ta sk, even editing AVCHO video. - USB3 hard dis~ are at least three times as fast as their USB2
The integrated Radeon HD 3300 graphics chip is capable of playing HD coonterparts.1! yoo already have eSATA or FireWire disks, these can be
video. It can also be paired with a compatible ATI graphiCi card to increase used too thanks to the pair of eSATA ports and two FireWire connecto~.
3D graphics ~rformance, although the s~ed boost is marginal More The two SATA III ports are less com~lIing. as SATA III internal hard
useful is the ability to drive extra monitor.; using this pairing. disks are currently no laster than their SATA II equivalents. An eight SATA
There are plenty of expansion ports and slots, with a pair of PCI slots ports are oriented horizontally to the motherboard, which aids tidy cable
and another pair 01 PCI Express XI slots lor adding devices such as sound runs, but also ma~es inserting cables trickier.
cards and wireless networking adaptors. There are six SATA ports for There 's also a generous selection of expansion slots for adding internal
connecting internal storage devices. All six are oriented pa rallel to the ~ripherals. There are three PCI slots and a pair 01 PCI Express xl slots,
motherboard, which makes inserting cables tricky, but also makes cab~ng which should be more than enough. Up to 16GB of DDR3 memory can be
neater. For external ~ripherals. there are six USB ports and six more can fitted. and it can be overclocked to PC3 -1S000 speeds.
be added using the three USB headers. There's also an eSATA port, plus a Despite the large number
FireWire port and header. of ports and slol5, they are all SUMMARY
Foxconn's A70A-S 3.0 SUMMARY sensibly spaced out.
VERDICT G ig~ byt . ·o G~·790XT""·U ()4 ha.
has plenty of ports and slots. VERDICT Fo>cconn', 11.701\·5 HI i• • We were impresse<J with pI..,ty of slots a<>d supports the "'te,t
bot if you care about well-equipped motl>e ~rd. l>Jt It doesn't Gigabyte's GA -790XT A-UD4. standard. at a tawer plice than ~ comparable
expansion and flexibility then r'p""~nt the """ va.["" al this prtce It has plenty of slots and the Intel LGA 11 56 mot!>ert».rd
you 'll probably want to ...,.,0 MOTHERBOARD AM3, AMD 79OG)(JAMD
latest ports. yet costs £45 o'JotD MOTHERBOAAD ~M3 , ~MD 790)(/~MD
spend £ 13 more on SB7SO <hi"",!, . , OCR] sIot~ Z. PCI hpm •• 1~ less than a similarly e-quippe<! SB1SO chit>W<. 4, 00/0;3 <loto, 2x "'I E'I'<'fl' ,16
Gigabyte 's GA-790XT A-UD 4 >10". Z. PC! hpr<" xl ",ot<, 2. ~(I ,"ou. 1> IDE IntellGA 1156 motherboard. slot .. 2>< PO Exp,..,. xl >lou. 3x PO slou. 1x IDE
(right). It has even more port.6. SATA II port< It's a great buy if you need a port. 8, SAT~ " pons
PART CODE Al[)A-S l,Q PART cOO£ G~ · l90XT~· UD-l
expansion ca rd slots. as well flexible AM3 board with
as US B3 and SATA III pons. plenty of expansion options.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y~OlO

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'f,"I,hlWing for . limited time. "n.1I ",de.. delive'ed .i. R"~.I M. il P"c k, 1 P",I flrn Clu. within 1M U~. Ch.nnell,l"nd •.• nd 1,Ie "f M.n.
02009. Leu, Medl • . 1111 ' igl>tI ,.",,,,ed. Information i. ,ubieel 10 <h.noo without r.otlCt. Cruel,,!, tht C,uc'" logo . • nd The Memory Expe rt, .'e
tf,dem.,k! .nd <e,vlc. m",k, 01 Micron T.chnology. Inc. 1111 other trad,ml ,kI.nd "'Mee milk, lie property ollc..I, , ... peell., own, ... Le •• , M,dl .
I< I divi,ion of Micron Europe limited. Phone ,44 (0)1355 586100. f IX ,44 (0)1355 S86101. E..... II c,uci.lt"'uwortOmicron .<O<n. le",,' Medi. I< not
'flPQn,lble for oml<";on. or e"or, in 1y?Og,.p/Iy or pholO\lIlPny. Ad upi, ... lO d.~ . fll ' public"lion.

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MOTHERBOARDS

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COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO
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 MOTHERBOARDS

_ Intel LGA775
BENCHMARKS _ Intel LGA1156 _ AMDAM3

Overall Multitasking Call of Duty 4 (fps)

10111115&
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Image editing Video edit ing Call of Duty 4 (fps) Integrated

Hi.llt 1156
Intal11S6
bus rn !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!I
FOlcoOfl 715 '.2
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Our benchmark suite lor pes and laptops is belween test systems and our reference PC. With its range of stunning effects and ma5.lJve
designed to test a computer to the full. It As we use the same tests in our standalone explo5ioos. plus some 01 the most realistic
consists of lhr~ tests: image editing. video and Labs reviews, you can compare the character an imation, CaK of Duly 4 pushes a
encoding and multitasking. performance of compu ters across both. PC to its limits and lets us know if a
Our reference PC is fitted with an AMD motherl>oard is ca pable of playing game'!.
Phenom II X4 920 processor and 4GB of ODR2 5mlNGS We ron our application tests at
memory. We normalised "II its re5ults to 100, 1,680x1,OSO .... soIution and in 32-bit colour SETTINGS 1,680x1,OSO .... soIution, 4xAA,
which makes it easy to draw compari$()(ls WEB www.expertreviews.co.uk rIOrmill settings WEB www.caUofduty.com

Labs verdict Motherboards

You'd be forgiwn for thinking that all Building a PC based around one of Intel's latest INTEL LGA775 MOTHERBOARDS
motherboardS are the same, but this labs shows lGA 1156 processors doesn't have to be expensive MSI G4lTM-E43
if you use Biostar's great-value TH55B HO.It"s not
that they're rIOt. Some are distinctly better than
others, leading to some dear winners for each of without its flaws but, at a p!"ice comparable to *****
INTEL LGAn SG MOTHERBOARDS
the three processor socket types covered here . mothel1>oards us ing the older LGA775 socket, BIOSTAA TH558 HD
If you're bui lding an AM3-based PC on a budget,
our recomm endation is AsUS'S M4A7850-M Pro_
these can be o~rlooked. The TH55B HO wins our
Best Buy award. If you want to use the latest •••••
ASUS P7H570-V Eve
Despite its low price, it's equipped with a connection technologies with an LGA 1156
HO-capable integrated graph ics ch ip and plenty of prOCeS501", AsUS'S GA-790XTA-U04 is th e one to •••••
AMD MOTHERBOARDS
ports. It's a Budget Buy award winner. buy. It's relatively expensive, though, 50 think

.....
For a little more cash, Gigabyte 's GA-790XTA- carefully before parting with your cash. ASUS M4A785D-M Pro
U04 is an excellent choice - packed with the latest f inally, if you're building a PC using an LGA775 .*•••
technology at a fraction of the cost of a si milar processOl", go for MS I's G41TM -E43. It's cheap and GIGABYTE GA-7!IOXTMJ04 ~
Intel LGA1 156 motherboard. It's a Best Buy winner. versatile, making it a Budget Buy winner. ~

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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INTRODUCTION
If)too want your PC to perform
at its best, you need to make
sure it has plenty of memory.
When Windows runs out of
RAM, it uses the hard disk as
virtual memory. which will
slow your PC to a crawl. You'll
rleed at least 2GB for most
modern applications, tJut we
Choosing. ••
Memory
recommend 4GB for gaming or
vid eo editing. If you want to
edit HD vkleo or perform other
memory-intensive tasks, you'll
rleed eve n more RAM. the case of the 8G8 OOR3 kits, four spare sloll;, Most

T
he type of memory you should buy depends on
We've tested 104GB kits of your processor and motherboard. Picking the motherboards have a dual-channel memory bus, so
DDRZ and ODR3 memory and a right type of memory may seem oonfusing. but using pairs of memory gives a performance advantage
couple of 8GB DDR3 kits. We it's actually quite simple. Here we explain how to do it. over using single sticks of the same capacity. We've
t ested the RAM at a variety of First. find out which type of memory your included both 4GB kits (two 2GB) and 8GB k~s (four
speeds to see which of the fast motherboard uses. Modern motherboards use DDR2 or 2GB modules) in the group. We haven't include<! any
kits live up to their ratings and DDR3 RAM, but most new models use DDR3, which is triple-channel memory kits, as only rare and expensive
which of the morl' modestly supported by IntelLGA 1366, LGA 1156 and AMD AM3 LGA 1366 motherboards use them. We tried to get hold
rated kits would exceed our motherboards. LGAns motherboards might use either of P<lirs of 4GB modules for this test. but these are hard
e.flKlations. Whether you're DDR2 or DDR3, so check their specification carefully, to find, so you 'll have to go to some effort if you want
building a new PC or upgrading It's essential that you buy the correct type of to upgrade to more than 8GB of RAM, even though
your CUlTent one,you'll find the module, as DDR2 and DDR3 RAM are not compatible, most motherboards can handle up to 16GB.
memory to suit your ne eds arld Your motherboard 's manual will tell you which type of While 2GB is enough for basic desktop tasks, we
budget here. slots you have. If you don't have a manual, you can use recommend at least 4GB if you want to play games or
a tool called CPU-Z from www.cpu.d.com/cpul .pllp. e<!it video, If you're using a 32·bit operating system,
This will tell you the name of your motherboord, as well can only use aroun d 35GB of memory, To use more,
Alan lu as the type of memory installed, il5 Sile, and which you'll need a 64-bit operating system.
Senior 51aff writer
modules are in which slots.
RAMMING SPEED
Kat Dr.hanides A PERFECT MATCH CPU -Z's memory tab reports the speed at which your
Senior stalf wr~er
An the memory we've tested comes in matched pairs of current memory runs. However, th is figure is half that
modules, called kits, so you 'll need two spare slots or, in of the RAM 's effective clod speed, as both OOR and

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 MEMORY

This month
ooR2
CRUCIAL

KINGSTON
KHK640002KU~

CORSAIR

.....
TWIN2K4096-B500C5C

PH,

ooRl
KINGSTON

.....
KVR133303N9K2 /4G

CRUCIAL
BL2KIT25664BN13J7

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KINGSTON
KHX1S00CB03nK2/ 4GX

CORSAIR
CMX~X3M2A1600C7

PH,
KCOIM4GBNI12BOO/ 3-XL
"".
OCZ

CORSAIR

DDRZ memory tin transfer data twice per clock Intel's latest Core i7, Core is and Core 13 PC2-BSOO and 1,6OQMHz PC3-1ZSOO. These
cycle and, in effect, double their bandwidth. This processors have integrated memory controllers, RAM kits woo 't automatically run at their
is why they're called double data rate (DDR) and have dispensed with the old-fashioned FSB. maximum rated speeds when you insert them
modules. To confuse matters further. there are While the older lGA 1366 Core 17 processors (see How We Test on page B9). but you can
two ways of describing memory speed. support memory speeds up to l,6OQ MHz change the BIOS sellings 00 your motherboard
The simple5t is to list the speed in megahertz. (PO-12800), the newer LGA 11 S6 processors to increase their speed.
accounting for the double dau rate. which is support memory up to 1.333MHz (PO- 106OO). Overctocking your memory is rarely worth
usuaUy 800MHz for DDR2 and l,333MHz for Memory is backwards comtntible - you can the effort, as you un ~ from the relatively
DDR3. ManufacturNS aoo list the maximum run fastN memo<y at sIowN speeds. so loot for insignificant results displayed by our graphs on
traMfN rate in megabytes per second, which is the best deal Some memory manufacturers page 89. To boost your PC's performance, you'fl!
eight times higher than ~ megahertz figure, KI have toro Ofl tlleif websites that tell you which beller off overdocking your processor. However.
you'U ~ names sud! as PC2.&400 or PO-106(X). type of module is compatible with your PC. some budget RAM is stable enough to overdod,
Both DDRZ and DDR3 memory is available in Different RAM kill; with the same speed which meaM you can ac:hieve the performance
a wide va~ty of sPHds. Thtst are the modules' rating can also !law different latency timings. of 800MHl memory from a 667MHl kit, such as
maximum rated speeds. ~nd the memory win run Latency is the delay betwetrlthe processor Crucial's CTZKITZS664AA667.
fin!! at Mrt speed up to the maximum. £~ if requesting information from the memory and In general though. the speed of your memory
your motherboard doesn't support ~ memory the memory providing iL Lower latencies proNbly plays the Srt\ililtst part in your PC's
module's maximum speoed. the module w~1 stiU ge-nerally make fOf bener ~ormance, as it ~onnance lor mOSI applications, soyou're as
wort. at ~ motherboard's lov.r« speed. meaM the PC takes take less time to feld! data. wei oil buying a good PC2-85OO or PC3-10600
Intel Core 2 systems ~ ill mNl10ry This only reaUy makes a differ~e fOf lime- kit as aIlything more tlCper1sive.lf you haw a
controilN Ofl ~ motherboard, and this Umits critical software such as games. though. and buming need for speed then. as our tests !lave
the mel"l'lOfY speed. The speed shouldn't exceed tver1 then the advantage is negligible for most shown, some low-fated RAM modules {an be
the processor's frOfltside bus (fSB) speed. As a users. Most memory modules use the JEDEC overdocked 15 _II. if not better. than their
general rule. ~ocessors with ill l,066M Hz FSB or standard for later.6es. and these are the timings higher-rated countefl)arts.
faster can run PC-B5OO memory, while that most motherboards will detect and use. OvNdocking your PC can inCfl!aSf' its
processors with an SOOMHz FSB can run perfonnance, but you'll need a motherboa rd
PC -6400. Phenom and Phe-nom II processors PUSH ITTOTHE LIMIT that provides the relevant cOfltrois in its BIOS
have integrated memory controllers. A Phenom II If you wimt to overdock your computer, be and supports fast memory speeds to do this.
system can Iypitilly handle DDRZ memory up to aware that memory is also available at An overdocked PC may produce more heat, so
PCZ-8SOO and DDR3 RAM up to PC3-1Z800. higher -ra ted speeds. including 1,600MHz make sure it has adequate cooling. e
M....y 2010 ' C~ SHOPPER
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MEMORY

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'fATURfS
***** *** *** **** *****
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= = =
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66IMH, ~. l()66MH, 1.(166MHl 1,3J)MH, 1,313Mi,

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COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~O'lO

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 MEMORY

BENCHMARKS _
_
ODR2
DDR3 • Overclocked

2D Performance ;.J(r1ar.{ \ antagc ~ How we test Memory

Overall Mult it asking w~ t~st all our RAM on two similar

moth~rboards. for DDRZ, w~ us~ MSI 's
Crucial Crucial DKA790GX Platinum with anAMD Phenom
BI.2IUT25664BM'137 B12knm6ol8NI331 11920, while we t est DDR3 RAM on MSI's
79OGX-G65 with a Phenom 119Z5. At
Kingston Kingston
KVR1J:JJIlJII9K2J46 '02 their default settings, th~ boards can
KVR1l33113119K2141i
run memory at maximum s,.eeds of
l,066MHz and l,600MHz res,.ectively.
'"
kCOIM.aUfI2BOOI3-Xl
CGr5air
IWlX461l33C9 Most of the memory here is factory
overdocked and rated to work at high
Kingstun
IHI1600C8DlTl K21~61 Kingston
IHI1600C80311K2JUiI -
I ---
100- - - '02 s,.eeds. However, the Serial Presence Deted
(SPD) data stored on the DIMMs dot>sn't
Ctruir
TW3UGI333C9 '"
KC 011•• 68M 1128 0013-Xl
indicate these s,.eeds, so if you si mply
insert them, your motherboard's memory
ClrUir s,.eed auto~etection will clock them at a
Coruir
CMX861lMU1600C8 CIIII4S13M2A16C0C7 '02 lower speed by default - usually 800M Hz
for DDR2 and 1,333MHz for DDR3.
Cl)luir
TWIN2X40U·mOC51: kCOIMIUG8N1850012-XL '" As most of the modules are design.ed
to run at high sp~ds, our t ests simply
DCZ involve trying them at the auto-detected
Coruir
DCll61&DClYBSQ TWIN2U~8-1 S00c5C default s,.eed and then using our
motherboards' memory ratio settings to
Ctrp ir
kCOIM'UGUII50012-1l'" C"X86X3"~A16C0C9
99 test them at increasingly fast sp~ds, up to
our motherboards' maximums.
w~ were surprised to find that slow
Kintston DCl 99
KHlIo400Il2K2I46 OCZ:ll1600LV860 budget RAM could easily be overcloded
beyond its rated s,.eed, whil~ some of
Cl)Is,ir
CMI46XlM211600C7 98 the high-sp~d kits made our systems
unstable at their rated sp~ds. s~ our
tables and graphs (left) to find out which
Crucial
CT2KIT2S664U667
Crucial
CT2l1T2S6I4AU67
9. kits were quickest.

1O 40 so 80 100 m 1I)<\JilI80lJ:ll11J

Labs verdict Memory

Image editing Video en cod ing
This group test has made it obvious that all
Kingston memory is not equ al, but we found a Best
K'l'Rl333D3~gl2J4Ii Buy in each category. Th e best 4GB DDR2
RAM is Kingston's KHX6400D2KZI4G.
Crucial Although it's only rated at 800MHz, this
812KIT2S66018NI337
budget kit proved both stable and quick
Crucial Corsair when overclocked to l,600MHz.Of the 4GB
CT2KlT25SUU667 C,.186U"U1600C9 DDR3 kits, Crucial's B12KITZS664BN1337
couldn't be clocked beyond its rated
Kinoslln DCZ l,333MHz, but it has a low price and
IHI64000U2J4G OCZ:ll1600lY8S0
outperformed severa l overclocked kits
in our t ests, Finally, if you 're building
'"
Keo I,.46 BN!121 OOI3-IL a high-end system,OCZ's 8GB
OCZ3G16OOi.VSCQ DDR3 kit is good
Kings" n
KHJ1600C11 D3T1lV-4Ii I value and runs stably at its blistering
rat ed s,.eed of 1,600MHz. 1iJ
CorUir _ _
. Corsair
TWIM2U09 &-85 OOCSC TW314li133lC!l

Corsair Corsair KINGSTON

TWlUS\33lC9 rWIN2U096-8500C5C KHX640002K2/4G
Coruir
CMX4GXlM211600C'7
Crucial
CT2X1T25564U667
*****
".
kCOIM46BNII2BOIIIJ·IL
Kingston
lHI6oIOOD2K2J4Ii
CRUCIAL
BL2KIT25664BN1337
corUir _ _
CMXBGllM411600C9
'"
KeO I,. M-4Ii BNI8 S00I2·IL *****
DCl COrliair OCZ
0C13G1600lYBGO C,.146U"2A1500C'7
OCZ3G1600LVBGQ
1Il 40 6O .!JIIDI:>O rl 1O 60 10 IlJ 1]0
*****
MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER
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INTRODUCTION Choosing a. ••
Case
You un'! sta rt building _ PC
until you hive II use and
powe r supply unit (PSU).You
can spend I lot of money on II
$~",acul.r clSe with glow Ins de~l\y. your PC's case should be well vent~ated, hot air O\lt bu t can also let noise escape, Other cases
lEDs.nd I Perspu lide panel..
but It's build quality that's
fUUy import.nt. A poorly
I easy to open and ha~ quiel fans. Most cases place
greater emphaSiSon 0fN! 0<" two of these features,
bul 5eV1!fal of our favourites strike an ~n balance
ha~ insula ting materials inside to absorb noise,
although this limits tlleir a!:Hllty to dissipate heat.
The best uses have sound damping thilt can be
constructe-d clSe u n make and look good wh~e lhey'l'@at it. ~pla«d with extra fans if necessary.
your PC noisy or hot, l nd can Hard disks also make noise when in use, Many uses
.Iso wt your hi nds to shred s FANNING THE fLAMES use rubber grommets to stop the drive's vibfations
w~n you're UHmbUng lt . Many of the components in a PC produce a being transmitted to the case, We mention itl the
The humble power supply considerable amO\lnt of heaL If this isn't dealt with individual reviews when a case has this leatu~.
is often overlooke-d, butlt'J properly, your PC will ww down and become UIlSt/lble. A typical midi-tower case wiU have at least four
important t o buy one tnlt Uln Most PC cases have two lano; to provide airflow. An 3'hin drive bays and two S1),in bays. Make su~ the case
pnwi,u, your PC with I reli.ble itlt/lke Ian at the Iront of the case socks air itl and 0YI!f you buy has enough room lOt iIIl the drives you'a need.
source of POWIH". '" good - the hard disks, while an eKhaust Ian mO\lnted high on
quaUty mode-! should 11150 be the ~ar 01 the case e.peis the hot air that rises from HOME·THEATRE peS
quiet and efficient, lI nd h~e your motherboard and components, Two fans plilCed 80th of the home-theatre PCs (HTPCs) we revlfow
enough power plugs fOf I II the like th is should provide sufficient cooling fOt aU but the here can accommodate standard A1)( components.
components In your PC. most powerful PCs. The large!' tile fan, the dowl!f it has so yO\l don't hilVe to WOtf'j about buying 'ifTlall-torm-
to spin to m~ the same amO\lnt of air. This means lilCtOl' motherboards Ot half-height elCflansion u rds,
larger lans tend to be quieter than smaller lans, while Thi s is con~enient but it also makes them fairly la rge,
Alan Lu still providing the same lev@lolcooling, Although th ey're the same width as hi-Ii components,
Senior staff wr~er
they're arO\lnd 70mm deepef, so che<:k that they
FEEL THE NOISE lit in yO\lr rack or TV stand before buying. Moneual's
Kat D,.hanide. Some of the cases on test this month have been McnCaso 972 case includes a fuU 7in LCD touchscreen
Senior stall writer
designed entirely with airflow in mind. These have lots display tha t you can conne<:t to your graphic; card
of Ian mountings and grilles, which are great for letting and use to control the PC.

COMPlJT'£R SHOPPER • MAY 2OlO

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 CASES & POWER SUPPLIES

This month
CASES
THERMALTAKE WinlJRS lOl
'.'
AKASA ZIIl
'.'
ANTEC Thre~ Hundred
COOLER MASTER Gladiator SOD
ANTEC Solo
.....
POIJO 92

Pogo 93

THERMALTAKE El ement S Pogo93

ANTEC Nin~ H und~d Two Pogo93

FRACTAL DESIGN Define R2 Pogo93

.,..
COOLER MASTER CM 690 II Advanced
ARcnC CCOUNG Silentium n Eco-BO .....
.....
SILVERSTONE Grandia GOOl
MCNEUAL Mon Caso 972 .. .
POWER SUPPLIES
CORSAIR CX400W Pago gS

OC2 ModXStrea m Pro 500W P"'1" 9S

SILVERPOWER SP-SS650 Page9S

AKASA Eco-Friendly Power 600W P"'1" 9S

CHIEFTEC A-135 Aps·G50C .,."

THERMALTAKE Evo Blue WOl07
ANTEC TruePower New TP-G50 ........
Pago9S

ENERMAX Liberty ECO 620W

SEASONIC X·GSO ........
SEASONIC 104120 B50W
FSP Everest Pro 1200W
ENERMAX RevolutionB5+ l,050W
........
PC with two graphics cards or a quad-core

Choosing a... processor, consider buying a more po~rful PSU.

Check the table on page 98 carefully to ma ke
sure you buy a PSU with the right connectof'l.

Power supply
for e><ample, older motherboardS use 20-pin ATX
connectof'l, while new ones have 20-pin
connectors. Also, many high-end motherboardS
use eight-pin EPS 12V connectors instea d of the
OSI cases come without a power supply energy is dissipate-d as heat. which the cooling more common four-pin ATX 12V connectors.

M unit (PSU), so choosing one is the next

logical step. Whether you're buying a
power supply for a new PC or upgrading you r
sy stem must expel to stop the PSU overheating.
Inefficient power supplies require more powerful
and noisy cooling systems. An efficient PSU will
No power supply can simultaneously produce
its ma ximum wattage from each ra il. so check
c.JrefuUy to see how many walls a PSU c.Jn
current one, then~ are several factors to consider. run cooler and draw less power from the main .. produce in parallel on each rail More
Atypical PSU for a desktop PC has to output importantly, check the curren t rating on the 12V
five different voltages, known as rails. These are WHAT TO LOOK FOR rails, as these power the processor and graphics
BV, SV, 12V. - 12V and SV standby (SVS6). For most mid-range PCs wilh a couple of hard c.Jrd, two of the most power-hungry
Sadly, scrutinising the label won', ten you about disks and optical drives, a single graphics card components. Power supply calru[a tors such as
its reliability or efficiency. Voltage stability is the and a mid-range processor, a SOOW power Antec's at www.antec,Qucervision.comcangive
most important f~tor, as some components supply will suffice. If you're building a high-end you a good idea of how much power you nee<!.
may not start up if the voltage is too low, and
they could burn out if the voltage is too high.
The ATX specification for power 5Upp~es
sta tes that there can be a maximum five per
I How we test Power suppll~
cent variance (above or below) the voltage on Testing power supplies requires highly To test each power supply, we program
the 3.3V, SVand 5V standby rails, and up to 10 specia lised eq uipment.We used the latest the load teste rs to drain the amount of power
per cent on the -12v raiL For the 12V rails, the generation of PSU testing equipment at fSP's each mar1\.lfacturer claims its PSU can deliver.
voltage c.Jn ViJry by up to five per cent at typical UK ~anch office. By usi ng a combinat ion of a We measure the voltage of eiKh ra il at SO
load levels and up to 10 per cent at full load. Chroma 6314 load tester and Chroma 61604 and 100 per cent load to determine whether
The 5peCific.Jtion also states th at at fuR load power supply, we're able to measure th e it's with in the ATX specification. We th en
a PSU must be at least 70 per cent efficient A voltage stabi lity, overall efficiency and ~ower leave each ~SU running at 100 per cent load
power supply's efficiency indicates how much FactorCorrection (PFCj effici ency of eiKh for 30 minutes to find out if it can produce
power it draws from the mains to produce the pow~ r supply. stable voltages over an extendo!d period.
requested load , This is important. as any wasted

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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CASES

THERMALTAKE AKASA
WingRS 301 Zen
***
£35 inc VAT
*****
£36 inc VAT
From www.ginger6.cO-uk From www.dabs.com

Thermaltake's WingRS 301 is one 01 the Akasa 's no-frills Zen is one of the
cheapest cases around, Instead of a fult d'eapest cases here, but it's well
top, it has a plastic carrying handle that built, with intemal edges that have
ma~es it easier lor gamers to take their PC to events, been rOiled so you won't cut yourself.
If you plan to use the handle, you 'll welcome the case's light weight. A sliding panel in the front of the case conceals ports for two USB
For evel)'OIle else, the build quality is a little too flimsy. Not all the connections, headphones and a microphone. There's enough room inside
intemal edges are as smooth as we'd like, but we were pleased to lind for a standard ATX motherboard and, with seven blanking plates at the
tool-Iree clips to secure our 3V,in and 5'Ain drives. These also feel rather back. you'll easily be able to use all your motherboard 's slolS.
lightweight, so you might want to add an extra screw on the other side of The Zen has two extemally accessible 3'hin bays, which you can
the bays lor peace of mind, but they work well enough. There are four use to instal! memOlY card readers, floppy disk drives and other devices
external S'Ain bays and six 3'1.1in bays. Four of the six 3'hin bays come that you 'll need to access from the front of the case. Below these are
with mounting dips for standard hard disks. The other two, only one 01 four internal3'hin drive bays lor hard disks. You'll have to screw all your
which corresponds with an extemal blanking plate on the fascia, have a 3'hin drives into place the old-fashioned way, thO\.lgh , and there 's no
different mounting dip that wouldn't fit our standard drives. cleverly designed cage to minimise vibrations or aid cooling. The Zen's
Long graphics cards obstructed the hard disks in some positions, but four S'Ain bays use convenient plastic rails to hold your optical drives
you can work around this if you fit disks in the lower bays. The case securely in place.
comes with one 120mm rear lan, with space at the Iront to mount We were particularly pleased to find two 120mm, l,200rpm system
another of the same size. A heat duct in the side panel is likely to block fans, one at the front of the case and the other at the back. to provide
larger processor coolers, but it can be removed and replaced with a fan. good airflow. These large fans also keep noise to a minimum. There are
As we'd expect from a cheap no additional fan mounting
case, it has no sound SUMMARY points, bu t the si de of the SUMMARY
damping or dust protection. VERDlCT Th I<ca« <10« l hejob,lHJ l It<<>Oily ca5e is vented. VEROICT Wtlh fanl.1l<tlcbultd qua~ty and.
Aside Irom its price, rul bmelit i< t!>ot it', portable. II you dof,'t The Zen won't soit """.",.bIy k.w price. t he Z... r.uin, iu
there 's no compelling reason n""d thl s, ... k... '< Zen 1< a b.tt ... choice the most powerful PCs position M our f""""rlt. budget <Me

to buy this case unless you I4OITOWEIt 6>< 31'110 do .... boys, 4x Sill" d ~ ". with special cooling and MIDI TOWER 6x 3',;ln drM boys,.' S'Ailn drM
really need the handle. b;lys, 42Oxl9Ox478mm, S.lkg sound-proofing requirements, boy>. .SO>:200xS00mm. Skg
P"'~TCODf IIL60001NZZ P... RT cOO( "'K-ZEN01-BK
Al:asa's Zen is better made DflAll.'i www.th«moltoi: • .com
but it's a grea t choice for a OlTAlLS www. o~.CO . uI:
and more sp3cious. budget Pc.

ANTEC COOLER MASTER

Three Hundred Gladiator 600
*****
£39 inc VAT
****
£49 inc VAT
From www.digital-fusion.co.uk From www.scan.co.uk

The Three Hundred is Antec's The Gladiator 600 is popular with

entry-level gaming case. like the professional system builders, thanks to
company's other cases, ii's well built. its sturdy, praclical design. Its two
with intemal edges and corners that have been finished built-in fans - a 120mm fan at the front and a 180mm
neatly, so you're unlikely to cut yourself while you're working on it. The fan at the lOp - provide good airflow. There are plenty of ventilation holes,
Three Hundred comes with a 140mm fan at the top of the case and a which help with cooling. but they lack dust Ii!ters or 5O\.Ind damping.
120mm fan at the rear, which provide enough airflow to cool even the Building a PC in the Gladiator 600 is fairly easy, and we had no trouble
most powerful graphics cards and processors. Each Ian has a three-speed routing cables to any point in the case. At the rear, seven expansion slot
switch, so you can achieve the ideal balance between noise and cooling. blan~ing plates are held in pl3ce with plastic dips. It's not immediately
It has si x 3V,in drive bays, so there's plenty of room for hard disks. obvious how to remove these, and pulling on them in the wrong way can
None of these is exterNL so to fit a memory card reader or similar device , damage them. There's plenty of room for hard disks, drives and memory
you 'll need to use an adaptor in one 01 the three S'Ain external bays. card readers, wi th five intemal3V,in and five 5'Ain bays, all of which use
The front panel. which has two USB ports and microphone and drive ra ils for easy mounting. Only the S'.4in bays can be used for extemal
headphone sockets at the top, comes off easily. Hinged grilles provide drives, and an extra plastic cage is provided in case you want to add an
access to the drive bays and you can instaU addi tional fans. The side accessible 3'hin device. The fascia has headers for 3.5mm headphone and
panel also indudes a mounting point for a 120mm fan. mic connections, two USB ports and an eSATA port.
The front-panel cables reach everywhere except the vel)' furthest Our case had a few unfinished edges, particularly around the rear
comer of the case, so most motherboards 'i!tO\.lld be easy to install. blanking plates and inside the hard disk cage. These weren't sharp enough
Unl ike ... ntee's Solo, this to cut us, but we received a
case comes wilhout any SUMMARY couple of scrapes. While the SUMMARY
5O\.Ind-dampening mount ing VERDICT '" g",ol'''oluo gaming co", with Gladiator 600 does nothing VERDICT 1),i, 't\Jrdy, pr~ctic.1 ell", is •
kits for drives, but there's ~nty of .paco ond g"'o' a irflow, t h. n..-.e special. it's good value at jU5t good budget choice, but the", .... <he"!,",
little else to complain about. Hun-dred ', popularity i, wen o.""""d under £SO. However, it opl ions of ,imil..- qual.ity

If you want an inexpensive I4OITOWElt 6, 3y,in d,; .... boys, 3, S14in do • • doesn't have enough extra MIOITOwtR lOx lViin drM boys, 5, 5'Aiin 00..
case with plenty 01 room b;lyo, .S8XZOS,46Smm, 1.2~& features to make it a boys, .-IQXZOZ,486mm, 11<&
PAIlT COOl 01613-4S- 1 S)OO · ) PAIlT COOl R(· 600· U N1 · GP
for expansion, the Three significant improvement over
DflAll.'i www.onl«.com OETAll.'i www.rooI.rm ......com
Hundred is an ideal choice. Akasa 's cheaper Zen.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 CASES

ANTEC THERMALTAKE
Solo El ement S
*****
£67 inc VAT
***
£77 inc VAT
From www.sca n.co.uk Fro m www.mi com o nline.co.uk

The Solo is one 01 the best- designed The Element $ looks snazzy, with a
and sturdiest cases around, ~nd it now matt metal and plastic shell, and a
costs ~en less than it did when we last bright-red edge roond the door on the front
reviewed it (Labs, Shopper 254), It's heavier than most Behind the door are nine drive bay blanking plates, which
mid-priced cases, and the tough build and thick sides do an excellent job include sound insulation and dust filters. The power and reset buttons and
01 insulating noise. You can mount your hard disks using either rubber the usoal US8, e$ATA and audio ports are on a panel on top of the case.
grommets and long 5CreWS or cleverly designed elastic str~p5 th~t stop The rear and si des of the case were prone to flexing. The matt-black
the disks making contact with the metal case and eliminate noise Irom inside edges weren't as well finished as those of Aot!"C's similarly priced
vibratioo.lt's not a good idea to move the C3se with the drives in place if Nine Hundred Two, but none was sh~rp enough to do us any damage.
you're using this mounting method, though. The power supply is mounted in a separate bay under the
The Iront panel is e~sy to remove. Behind it. you C3n ~ccess the lour motherboard. The top of the bay, "'Ihich also bears mounting points for
3'hin internal bays via a hinged grille, which has a removable dust lilter two 2'hin laptop drives, must be removed before you can insert your PSU.
and can also be used as a mounting point lor additional case fans. There Unfortunately, the PSU enclosure requires some careful cable routing, so
are no external 3'hin drivt' bays, but one of the four S'Ain bays comes with not all your cables will n!"Cessarily reach across the length of your case.
a 3\1oin adaptor litted, so you can instaH a memory card reader or Iloppy The main bay is generously proportioned, with plenty of room lor even
drive easily. There are two USB ports, microphone and headphone large components. The rear blanking plates can't be reattached once
connections and a FireWire port, but no eSATA connECtion. removed, so there's nothing to protect your system from dust if you
A 120mm fan is mounted at the rear of the case. This has three speed removt' components later. There are plenty of fans and mounting points,
settings, the slowest 01 which is inaudible but stiU shifts a decent amount including 230mm lans in the top and side panels, but we'd have liked to
01 air. It's worth fitting see more dust filters.
additiooallaos if you plan to SUMMARY The Element S is a bit SUMMARY
use hot components such as VERDlCT Qul.t, $'Iu rdy and . ..y to build, noisy, but it looks good and vtRDlCT The EI ....... nt I, spadau. and loot.
powerlul processors and ,he Solo is one of our .II-tim. f• ....,.,..;.. PC has decent airllow. However, good, bul rrs flimsy bu ild ~nd unusual c.>bl.
we weren't impressed by its rout ing requlrem.nt$ failed to Impre .. u,
graphics cards, though.
The Solo is a quiet and 1'1101 TOWE~ ~ x l'hln dtM i>ays. ~' 5'';;;n dtM cable-shortening PSU mount I'IIOITOWEIt 1, l'lilndtM b.lys. )' 5\1.lndriY<
beautifuHy constructed case boy~ ~32x206>~7Omm . 921:& and flimsy con~truction, \>;I)'>. S411x231lxSOSmm. S.1'kg
PAAT COOE 0761345-08500-7 P... RTCOOf VK60001WlZ
that's easy to build. It wins especially as Fractal Design's D£T.oJl5 http://olornonts-th<nmltokuom
our Best Buy award. Define R2 costs just £B more.

ANTEC FRACTAL DESIGN

Nine Hundred Define R2
Two *****
£8 5 inc VAT
i"~1
~i" ~
****
£8 3 inc VAT
From www.quiet pc.com

From www.digital-fusion.co.uk The Define R2 is a low-noise case

that looks great. both inside and out.
We liked Ant!"C's original Nine Hundred case Its understated styling is miles away
when we reviewed it in 2007. It's still on sale, but Antec from the garish design 01 many similarly priced premium
has also released a sequel: the Nine Hundred Two. Like its predecessor, it cases. A door on the froot panel opens to reveal two external drivt' bays
10Hows all the design standards lor gaming cases, with a clear Perspex side - a S'Ain bay and an interchangeable 5\<\in IX 3'hin bay. The door is
panel and an industrial-looking front d!"Corated with hexagonal mesh. covered in sound-insulating foam, and two more doors below the bays
Antec has made a lew notable improvements. The case is heavier and open to reveal two dust filters in front of the internal3'hin bays. There 's a
more sturdy, it has more dust lilters, and external controls aHow you to 120mm fan behind one, and space for another Ian behind the other.
adjust the speed 01 the built-in lans and turn their lights oil. Inside, the white drive bafi and lans cootrast with the smooth black
The build quality inside is outst.Jnding, with no unfinished edges on its interior. There's a 120mm fan at the back and lots of fan-mounting points.
enamel interior. As well as a 200mm Ian at the top, it has three 120mm Most 01 the unused mounts are blocked by removable bitumen sound -
fans and two more mounting points. There's less room to work in the case damping p<!oels, but the bottom inta~e mount has only a dust filter.
than we'd like, particularly when tidying cables, installing the motherboard Another sound -damping panel covers one side of the case. There are a
and litting larger CPU coolers. Loog graphics cards can also be a tight fit - whopping eight interoal3'hin dr~ bafi, each of which has vibratioo -
it's worth connecting their power cables before slotting them into place. damping mountings. Evt'n the PSU bay has anti -vibration pads.
Despite its slightly cramped interior, we were impressed by the Nine Building a system in the spacious case was a pleasure. Even our longest
Hundred Two's high -quality coostruction. With loads of fans and no graphics card had plenty of room. Rubber grommets on the baCkplane let
vibration or soun d damping us thread cables through so
to speak of, it 's a little noisy SUMMARY as to maintain airflow, while SUMMARY
but provides great airflow to VERDlCT The Nin. Hundre<JTwo i,_11 a hole at the back provides VERDlCT Tho: Defi ne R2 1, spadous,
cool a powerlul system. built and provklu .. c<llen, cooling, but room for large heatsinks with 'O<Jnd'prool and nunning - ii', 'Imply one
noi.., c,," be • proble m of Ihe fi nest ""es we've .,.." ..,en
However, its brutish looks bolt-on backplate fittings.
and minimal sound damping MIDl TOWER 6. l 'hin drift i>ays.l. 51,O;n driY< The Define R2 is simply MlDl TOWER S. lVi in driY< l>oys. 2x 51,Oin ~
make Fractal Design's boy~ 49lxl18 •• 12mm, 11 .5~i one of the best cases we've boy<. +4O><207>5.21mm, l l. 5~
PART (OOE 076134S-<laOlO· 1 PAIIT (00{ FD·c ... ·DEF· R2·Bt
outstanding Define R2 our ever revi~d . It wins our
preferred choice.
l~U~I~';:m:'~'~'~':W:':'d~._____-==~='='=~=_
==·=n=~=«=']'=;'="='=~ ====:: e
MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER
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CASES

COOLER MASTER ARCTIC COOLING

CM 690 II Silentium T1
Advanced Eco-80
****
£90 inc VAT
**
£101 inc VAT
•
From www.overc lockers.co.uk Fro m www.quiet pc.com

The CM 690 II Advance<! midi-tower case The Silentium T1 Eco 80 is designed

is reasonably price<! and very weU made. From the front it to be both quiet and eco-friendly. To this end, it's
looks li~e other Cooler Master cases, but it's the details that impressed us. the only case here that comes with a built·in power supply - Arctic
Its rubber feet look like caterpillar tracks and help k~p it stable and reduce Cooling's Fusion 550 Silentium Edition.
vibration. On top of the C<lse, ilS well as power and reset buttons, two USB The case is compact and reilsonilbly attractive. A cover on the front
portS. an eSATA port, 3.5mm headphone and mic poltS, there's a shallow panel swings open to provide access to four extemal drive bays - two
recess that lets you wnnect a SATA drive without having to open the case. 3'hin and two S'Ain bays. The front panel houses reset and power buttons,
The case comes with thr~ fans and has mounting points for more. All while two USB POlts and a pair of3.5mm stereo portS are place<! along the
the intake fan mounts have dust filters, but the exhaust mounting points bottom left-hand side. At this price, we'd h3ve liked to see an eSATA polt.
just have a wide hexagonal mesh, which won't provide much protection Inside, you'll find an array of sound-dampening components, heat
against fluff if you don't mount a fan there. dissipaters and cooling hoods, as weU as a set of drive rails. The main
This isn't the quietest case around, but thanks to hard disk mountings sound-dampening feature is a hard dis~ bay made of dense foam. This
that reduce vibrations and pads around the PSU, it's not as lood as yoo'd eliminates vibration, but it intrudes far enough into the case to m~ke
expect. It has room tor four extemal S'Ain drives and six intemal 3'hin fitting a large graphics C<lrd awt;ward. There's no damping on the other
drives. The 5'Ain bays have built-in locking drive rails, while each 3Yzin bays, and the case is crampe<:l ~nd too shaUow for the largest CPU coolers.
drive sits in a tray that slides into its cage suppolted by rubber-coated Our Silentium system wasn't as quiet as we'd expected, but it didn't
screws. An adaptor lets yoo mount ZYzin and l.8in drives. There's masses make that much noise, largely because it has only two 80mm system fans.
of space for the motherboard It's also cramped, awkward to
and components, and even a SUMMARY build and feels roughly bu ilt SUMMARY
cut-out in the motherboard VERDlCT Th I. ca~ I. _n made and ...y 10 and poorly finished inside. If VERDICT Arctic CooUng'. allompllo ... due.
tray for large bolt-on coolers. build, wim plenty of lUlU""', bul ft'. >KIt yoo really want a quiet case, both noi ... ~nd ~rC04",ump!ion i.n'l ~
The CM 690 II Advan~ qulle the be<lin II. pri« calei<")l Antec 's Solo an d Fractal gr.at ,uce." on . llh... fronl
is a great case, but Fractal ICllTOWEIt 6>< 3Y>1I1 do .... boyo, 4x Sill" d ~ ". Design's Define R2 have I'IIOITOWER S. l'hlr> dI1 .... boy<. 2x 511 111 do1 ....
Design's Define R2 is b;lys. 214xSl1xS28mm, 9.f>k& plenty of anti -vibration b...... SSOW!'SU, 43S>:2)Ox4Sti<rrn, 112.&
PA,~TCODf ~C-692-KKN 2 PA,RT COOE AC-SiLENT1UM-T1
cheaper, better looking and mountings without the
D£T.... lJi www.oooIo""'<I".""'"
has more sound damping. cramped design.

SILVERSTONE MONEUAL
Grandia GD0 3 MonCaso 972
****
£144 inc VAT
***
£329 inc VAT
From www.scan.cO-uk Fro m www.quietpc.co m

Silverstone's Grandia GD03 is a home·theatre PC (HTPC) that doesn't You'd be justified in expecting a lot from a case that costs f329.
compromise on space. Its build quality is ootstanding. We loved its Moneaul"s MonCaso 972 HTP{ chassis is as polished and feature packed
brushed· metal finish, and it has enough room for a full ATX motherboard. as it is expensive. It has a built-in 7in 1,024x768 lCD touchscreen , which
There's plenty of space for additional components, with seven blanking yoo can connect to a spare VGA output on your graphics card and use to
plates at the back - enough for a graphics card, TV tuner, sound card and browse your me<!ia without turning on your TV or projector. It's perfect
anything else yoo might need. We had no trouble fitting a long dooble- for listening to music. The built-in memory card reader can handle most
height graphics card, whic:h is handy if you want to use your HTPC for formats except ~D, and the case comes with a Media Center remote.
gaming. and there 's enough room for all but the largest processor coolers. We were less impressed by the internal layout. Although the
The case isn 't designed for optimill cooling. however, as it comes with just illuminium case has plenty of room for a full ATX motherboard ilnd any
two BOmm fans, and mounting points for three more. This means it can components except the very tallest CPU coolers, the case was duttered
get rather warm and is best suited to lower-energy components. Dust with cables, not only from our PSU but also from extra buttons and the
filters protect most of the unused fan -moonting points. and the screen at the front.
thick-sided case helps to prevent sound leilkilge. The case comes with two 80mm filns at the back and space for two
The GD03 doesn't scrimp on storage potential with two external 5'Ain more just behind its twin 3'hin drive cages. Despite the lack of substantial
bays, five internal3'hin bays and an extemal one. Removable drive caddies cooling. it doesn't get too warm. It was a tad noisy, as there's no sound
let you hotplug two more 3'hin SATA drives. These are hidden behind a insula tion , although there are plenty of dust filters. It also has enough
metal flap at the front. along with the reset button, two USB poltS, a pair room for four internal3Yzin drives and one external S'Ain.
of 3.5mm stereo poltS and a FireWire port. Moneaul's MonCaso 972 is a large, well-made and feature-packed
The GD03 is beautifully HTPC case, but it's very
made and reasonably priced. SUMMARY expensive and its key feature SUMMARY
There's plenty of room, and VERDlCT Tho Gr...-.di. GD03 HTPC "'.. - the 7in screen - won't be VD.OICT The MonC. ,o 972 .... . very ext,.
building a system in it is easy. l.cks the ~Il< andwhi"I •• of .om. riv.l< of much use to most. no imaginable, bulan the ... extra • .-.due.
~irflow . nd c.... t. int.mal dutt..-
It gets a little warm inside matter how impressive it
and isn 't perfectly quiet, but HTPC 8x lY>in _ b;lys. 2x SWoin d~ boy>. looks. We prefer SilverStone's HTPC4< lY> in _ boo)". 1< SWoin_ boyI.
this is nonetheless a good 182,. 25x06mm. 1.9102 Grandia GD03, whic:h is ISa'OSx.11mm,6.J'\;&
PAATCODl SST·GD01B PAATCODl M~912
choice if you're building a much cheaper and felt less
home enteltainment PC cluttered during assembly.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 CASES

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Labs verdict Cases

Most of the cases we looked at are standard one of the highest-quaLity cases we've ever
midi-towers with lots of room for hard disks seen, an-d one of th e easiest in which to build AKASA
and expansion cards. Among the best was
Antec's Three Hundred, a budget case aimed
a system. It's reasonably priced and a great
choice if you want a quiet system. It wins
Zen
at gamers who want plenty of space for
upgrades. Our Budget Buy,Akasa's Zen, also
our ~st Buy award.
Finally, our Ultimate award g~s to
*****
has two fans and is slightly cheaper, but both
make it easy to build your PC.They lack
Fracta l Design's Define R2.1I looks stunning
and is incred ibly easy to build. We were
ANTE!:
extras such as drive rails, but this is a minor impressed by its vibration-damping mounts Solo
incon~nience, as most people are un likely
to swap drives regularly.
and its bitumen sound damping, sections of
which can be re moved if you want to create *****
Both cast's are we ll made, but neither can more airflow for a high-powe r system. It's
rival the beautifully constructed Ant e< Solo, si mply outstan-ding.
which has extra features, including If you're building an HTPC, we prefer the
vibration -sapping hard disk mounts and si mple style of Sil~rStone's Grandia GD03
thick side panels that minimist' noist'. It's to Moneual's expensive MonCaso 972:.GJ
*****
MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER
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POWER SUPPLIES

CORSAIR OCZ SILVERPOWER

CX400W ModXStream SP-SS650
**** Pro500W *****
£39 in<: VAT
From www.scan.co.uk
Corsair's eX400W 400W
:~:!: ~
From www.tekheads.co.uk
.. £61 inc VAT
From www.advancetec.
co.uk
power supply unit (PSU) is Kle~IIOf SilverPower is PSU manufacturer
an entry-level PC that will only b.e used for Despite its low price, Tagan 's budget brand, and its power supplies
basic t,ds.lt 's lant<lstic value at just £39 OC2's ModXStream Pro usually have captive rather than modular
including VAT. SOOW power supply has cables. The SP-SS650 is no e~ception.
The cables are built into the unit (captive) modular cables and Curiously. it claims to have four 12V rails.
rather than detachable (modular), so you 'll provides plenty of connectors each rated at l8A, with a combined output
need to tuck any spares out of the way. It has for your components. of 52A We were only able to locate two rails
plenty of connectors lor "II the devices you'U It perfooned brilliantly in our tests. on tl>e circuit board, These are configured so
want to power, including the new eight- pin outputting stable voltages on both of its 12V that one powers the processor and disk drives
PCI -Express graphics connector. rails (see 'How we test' on page 91), These can while the other supplies the motherboard and
By today's standards, 400W isn't much output 18A each for a total of 36A, so the unit PCI-E power cables.
power. but the CX400W handles it with style. can distribu te a total of 432W over these rails , All the rails outpu t a stable voltage at SO
It managed to deliver the full400W and was This PSU's efficiency averaged oot at 85 per per cent load, with a commendable 86 per cent
just under 84 per cent efticien! at fuU load. This cent. which isn't bad, althoogh higher-rated efficiency. The SP-S565 almost managed to
is slightly lesl efficient Ihan the higher-power supplies are even more efficient. A large, quiet maintain this at 100 per cent load.
P$Us but better than a generic unbranded fan keeps the PSU cool. making it ideal for a While it's not outstanding. the SP-S56S0
power supply. The 13Smm I.n keeps it cool media centre or desktop pc. With its low price, was stable in our tests and has a fairly quiet
but is a little noisy. This no-Irills PSU is a great three -year warranty and modular cables. it 120mm Ian. It doesn 't waste much electricity
choice for low-power pes, but OCZ's slightly wins our Budget Buy award. and , best of al~ it costs just £61 , which is great
pricier ModXStream Pro SOOW is better. if you need a 650W PSU on a budget.
SOOWPOWERSlJPPlY 1x l~mt>ottomlan, 2, lZV
400WPOWHI SUPPlY h HS<nm bottom ton, h 12V .. il ",ii>, modulo, ClIb/e, CONNECTORS lOJ~. · pin 650W POWER SUPPlY 1, l<!Omm bottom lon, .X 1ZV
CONNECTORS 20124-pin mothtfboard. Ix 4i>in CPU. 1x mott..rt>oord. 1x 4-pinCPU, h B-1'in CPU, 1x 6+Zi>in. 1x r. il> CONNECTOIIS 201l4i>'" mothtrtrDard. Ix 4i>'"
8 op"' CPU, 1, 6.~ · p i n PC I·[. 6, Mole,,-~, floppy, 6, SATA 6 ·pin PC I · ~ •• , Mole • • Z, floppy, 6, SArA CPli. hB opinCPU, 1, 6'~ -1' i n, 1. 6· pin 1'(1·[. 1. Mol ..,
PAATCQOI; (MPS\J · 400 PAAT CQOl; PSO·5OOMnp 1x floppy. 6> SAlA
DETAIlS _,c"",,;',<om DETAIlS _,oatodvloiO(j',com PART COOE ~-SS6SO
OIT..... S www''''rIOP''im.co.u k
VlRDlCT T"" fan', a littl ~ nOi,)" but if y"" wanta VERDICT Thi' qui.l. m~la, scow pow<:r .upply i,
ch~,ppowe' wpply Ia.- .n entry·te",,1 pc, the e"e Uent .. lu e .nd ~ &",.1 d>oice Ia.- .nyone wll h ~ VERDICT It. doesn't h....., modub, C-IIbles.o...t til .. i, ~
CX400W in good choice """'IO!' PC tNt n..dn n....... pow ... wpply groat·val"" 650W pow<:rwpj>ly

AKASA CHIEFTEC THERMALTAKE

Eco-Friendly Power A-135 APS-650C Evo Blue W0307
600W **
£74 inc VAT ***
£76 inc VAT
****
£63 inc VAT
From www.ebuyer.com
Chieftec's APS--6SOC is
From www.ginger6,co.uk
The Evo 81ue looks
From www.advancetec.
co.uk rated at 6SOW and has striking. thanks to its
modular cables, which is a side air ~nts and
Akasa's Eco-friendly Power 600W definite plus point in our books. 140mm blue LED fan. It
is relatively cheap. but it has captive rather There are two 12V rails. each rate<:! to supply has modular cables as yoo 'd
than modular cables. 2SA. with a total combined ootput of 46A expect at this price, but they're a bit
It has two 12V rails. each rate<:! at 30A. but On closer inspection we found that each short for a large tower case. Even in a
they can supply only 41.6A in total, which is a rail power~ one of two rows of modular cables smaller case, the short cables will make it
little low. One 12v rail supplies the at the rear of the power supply. We tricky to roote them neatly.
motherboard and half of the ATX12V recommend spreading the load by connecting The single 12V rail is rated at 48A. which
connector, while the second rail powers the a PCI-E modular cable to one row and the disk makes it one of the more potent we've seen.
other half and the PCI -Econnectors. Tl>ere are drive modular cables to the other row. There are two 6+2-pin and one 6-pin PCl -E
six Molex and six SATA power connectors. Stability was fine, but its efficiency of84 connectors. so this PSU will power a high-end
We saw no major problems in our tests. per cent at full load was average. and a far cry graphics card. Four SAT A and six Molex power
except for a wobbly moment when the second from the Seasonic X-650's 90 per cent. What's connectors should be enoogh for most PCs.
l2V rail dropped to 11.48V, This is still a pass, more. it was only 80 per cent efficient at SO The Evo passed al! our stability tests and
though, and the Power 600W was 88 per cent per cent load. This means it draws around 30W was 84 per cent efficient at both half and
eHicient at 50 per cent load. more than a PSU that's 90 per cent efficient. ful! load. Unfortunately, it became quite
The fan was quiet, but there was an If you can live with captive cables, lood at 50 per cent load. At ful! load, it was
unpleasant smell during oor tests. SilverPower's Silve,Power's 6S0W SP-S5650 costs £13 less downright nOiSy.
SP-SS650 provides SOW more for less money, and is more efficient. If you can't, Antec's While it's a stable PSU, the short cables and
ma~ing it the better choice. TP-650 costs only a few pounds more. noise mean it 's unpleasant to live with.

600WPOWHI SUPPlY h l<Omm t>otlom t. ,\ 2, IN 65OWPOWEJISIJPPlY h I~ bottomlon. Z, I~V 650W POWERS\JPPlY Ix l40mm bottom ton, Ix l~V .. i1.
,.il, CONNECTORS 2OJZ4-pin mott..rt>oord. h 4-pin ,.il>, moo.lar cob!., CONNECTORS Z4-p"' mott..rt>oord. modular GOble, CONNECTORS 2OJ24-pin mot"rto.rd,
CPU, h a · pin CPU. Z, 6.Z · pil\ Z, 6·p", I'(I· E. 6, Mol ... h • . pinCPll. h8-1'inCPU, 1, 6'~ -1' i n , Ix 6· pin 1'(1·[.4, I, • •pirr CPU. h a op", CPU . ~, 6. ~ -1' "" 1, 6· p", PCI· E, 6,
blloppy. 6> SArA MoI« , h flO!'PY. 6, SATA Mol ... 1x floppy, 4. SATA
PART CODE .o. x-pr06OfG~KUK PART CQOl; .o.1'S-65OC PART CQOI; WQ30T
DETAIlli _ .• k.,..co."" DETAIlS www.c .... fte<:.com OETAI.li www.t"rmoltak• .oom

VUlDICT A stable pow<:' wP~Y, but If . let do- by VERDICT A , I.ble. modul...-powe' wpply, but it', leI VERDICT Short C-IIble, and. noi.y I.n let down Ihi.
1'--< c.pll"" cable< _ and an unple><"nt 5tJ1~ n down by poor efficie ncy ot"""",I ... good pow .... upj>ly

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 POWER SUPPLIES

ANTEC ENERMAX SEASONIC

TruePower New Liberty ECO 620W X-650
TP-650 ***
£106 inc VAT ****
£117 inc VAT
*****
E77 inc VAT Itf~
'lL'
From www.pixma nia.
co.uk
From www.scan.co.uk
From w ww.scan.co.uk As well as its own -brand power
The Liberty ECO 6Z0W is a supplies, Seasonic makes PSUs lor other
Anle<:'s modular 650W capable PSU with modular manufacturers, such as Antec. The X-650 is
TrueP~r New TI'-650 cables, ~ has lots of connectors for quite expensive to<" a 6S0W power supply at
power supply provides a huge range of devices, including lour 6+Z-pin almost £120.
the lull range of connectors. PCI -Econnectors for multiple graphics ca,ds. Its single 1ZV rail is rate-d at S4A and should
including two 6+ 2-pin and It has two lZV rails ra ted at up to 30A. be enough for an overclocked PC full of drives
two G-pin PCI -Econnectors for two although combined they provide only 48A. or and even a pair of powerful graphiC$ cards,
powerful graphics ~rds , It has lour 12V ,ij;ls, S76W. As we 've come to expect from Enermax thanl:s to lour 6+2-pin PCl -E connectors. It has
with a combine<! ootpot of 54A. One rail supplies, performance was very stable. The eight SATA and eight Molexconnectors.
powers the motherboard and disk drives, liberty manilged86 per cent effiCiency at SO There were no stability problems in our
another Sllpplies the processor. and the other ~r cent load and SS per cent at full load. voltage test5. The X50 achieved S9 ~r cent
two power the four PCI -E power conne<:tors. Unlike other Enermax power supplies, the efficiency at SO per cent load and 90 per cent
Performance was excellent, with stable Liberty ECO 6Z0W doesn't have post- at full load. It was so cool when runn ing th at
voltages across all rails. Efficiency was also shutdown cooling to keep the Ian spinning the 120mm Ian only started spinning after a
impressive at 87 per cent at 50 per cent load after your PC has been tumed off to cool the few minutes at 100 per cent load.
and 86 per cent at full load. electronics mO<"e quidly. What's more. the If you use your PC all day. every day. the
Thanks to an incredibly qu iet 120mm fan lZ0mm is a lillie lou der than we like. X-650's excellent elticiency could make it
(at SO per cent load) and modular cables. the The liberty ECO 620W is reliable and well worth the extra cost over other 650W supplies.
TP-650 is a quality power supply that's ideal specified, but its loud fan means that we prefer but Seasonic's M12D costs only f 11 more and
for a powertul Pc. Antec"s cheaper TP-6SO. delivers SOOW.

6SOW PQWERSUPI'lY 1, l~Omm bottom 1"',4, 12V 6Zf1W POWER SUPPlY Ix lZOmm bottom fon. l ' UV 6SOWPOWEllSUPPlY 1<120""" bottom f. ... 1<UV <lIiL
rd >, mod.u' Gl Ol .. CONNECTORS Z0124-pio r.oi l ~ modulo.- u bi .. CONNECTORS 2012.-pin modu lo, u bi .. CONNECTORS 20124--pin ma_boord.
mOl hetboil ,~, 1, . _pin CPU, 1, 8 · pi~CPU • .i!>: 6+2-pin. l ' mothett>oord, h ._pin CPlI. Ix 8· pin CPll. 4, 6+2 ' pi~ a,
1< "'pin CPU, 1, 8 ' pOn CPu, . , 6+' · pin PO · E. Mot .., 1><
6-pin P(l.E. 9>: Mol .., 1, Hopp)'. 9>: $ ~T~ f>(1-E. S, 101'*,- b floppy. 8, SATA PART COl){ floppy, Il>< SAT~ PART CODl 6S(lKM
IWIT CODE TP-6SO EC ELT6 2O.1.WT-EOO DETAILS _ ...... ,"'"-'-«I,u. OET.... LS www .... <Onic.com
DlTAlLS www-'lnt«.<om
VERDICT A good all-ro«nd , upply, but .imbrly prico<l VERDICT It mighl h.... . xcoU.." . fficioncy, bul
VERDlCT The TP-650 .. st.oble. effid ent, moduLor. a<>d rato<l modelu", .lig~tly qu ieter ~nd "'" t~ e high prke mU n. it wiu toke • long ti"", to
quiet I nd grel l valu. - .... rything I PSU "'ould be marginaUy bo,lIor chok •• ..coup the co"

SEASONIC FSP ENERMAX

M12D 850W Everest Pro 1200W Revolution85+
*****
£128 inc VAT *****
£173 inc VAT
1,050W
From www.cclonl ine.com
Se~sonic is one of the largest FSP's monstrous Everest
****
£213 Inc VAT
From www.advancetec.
power supply manufacturers in the world Pro can deliver more co.uk
and makes PSUs fO<" other companies. such as power than you 're e~r
Corsair and Antec , as well as selling them under likely to need. Most 01 its 1.2kW Despite the eye-watering price, the 85 +
its own brand name. 01 power is produced by Six 12V rails. 1,OsQW is a mid-range model in Enermax"s
The 850W M1ZD has modular ubles, each rated at up to ZOA. These have a Revolution line. Most of the power is de~vered
which is sensible as it comes with a lot 01 combined ma ximum ol90A. by six 12V rails. each rated at a huge 30A. with
connectO<"s.lt has four 6+Z-pin PCI -E The Everest Pro is kept very cool by a qu iet a combined maximum of 87A.
connectors. eight SATA and eight Molex plugs. 1Z0mm fan tha t doesn't even spin up until the The modular cables provide an almost
The lZV supply is split over two 40A rails. power supply reaches SO per cent load, which lu dicrous number of power connectors: eight
with a combine<! maximum of 70A.ln our test5 is 6OOW. Other highlight5 indu de three 6+Z-pin PCl -E, two S-pin EPS12V motherboard
the M1ZD was rod solid and blissfully quiet_ 6+2-pin PCl -Ean d three 6-pin PCI-E connectof5. 16 SATA plugs and six Molex. A
Efliciency was also a highl ight - it was 87 ~r connectors and a full set 01 modular cables. 13smm fan keeps the Revolution ice cool and
cent effiCient at half load and 86 ~r cent It proved more than a match fO<" the continues to work after shutdown.
efficient at lull load. Chroma load tester (see 'How we test" on page The 85+ passed every one of our tests with
II you need ~ power supply that provKJes 91). Its rails remained within the ATX limits ease ~nd is highly efficient. too. at 89 per cent
more than SOOW, you 're spoilt fO<" choice. but and it was very eflicient It was 90 ~r cent at both half and full load.
the Seasonic M12D is leagues ahead of its efficient at hall load and 88 per cent at lull II you want the very best power supply
competitors. It may be a ta d expensive, but it's load. Enerma>:'s Revolution 85+ may have around, this is it. However, it's overkill for most
still great value lor those with top-end PCs more cables and post-shutdown coo~ng. but ~ople. as most PCs won't require this much
stuffed full 01 high-end components. it isn't worth the extra f:40. power 0<" half the connectors.

850W POWER Sumy 1x 120mm bot!om 1..... 2:< 12" 1.200W POWERSUmy 1 ~ BSmmbot!om l. n , 6~ 12\1 I.OSOW POWERsumv IX 13Smm bot!om I ..... 6, 12V
r.oits, modulorabl .. CONNECTORS 2012. · pi ~ modulo< eobleo CONNECTORS 2Oa.· pin
f. iI ~ ,.ils. modular ubt •• CONNECTORS l.-pin mothett>oord.
motl>ftbo. rd, 1x . -pOn CPU. Ix 6-pinCPU•• , 6,21'in rnoth<rt>oord. 1x ._pin CPlI. 2, 8-pin (f>U. 3, 6, 2. pi ... 3, 1x 41'in CPU, 2, 8 -pOn CPU. S. S, l -pOn PeI-t S. Mol ... 1x
PCI-E,8x Mot... 2, floppy, 8x S ~T~ 6 i>in Pel-E. ], Mol .., 1x floppy. 10, SATA PAIO"COl){ flopp)', 16, SATA
PART COOE 101 120·eSOW tv. .." I'ro I200W OUAILS Yoww.!>pgroop.<Q.tW PARTCODl ERVlOSOEWT
DETAILS WWW... I . Ot\k .Com OETAILS www ......... I • .co."k
VERDICT The e... ..,.t Pro i. an ow.",,,,,, power
VERDICT It'. « pen.iw, bullhi. p<I'I'I'<r ouppiy oupply l hat p rov~. hYge amounu o f p<I'I'I'<f, ,,.,t i. VERDICT An outstanding pow.f .upply Ihal '. q<J~ I ,
has all the connector> you'U nee<J, and il". dfid ent incredibly qu .. t. 11". elf"i .nt. too, and not elfie"nt and ha. more connector> than you'", (ikely
and q<Jlel. l oo exorbitantly ...,.,nolve 10 .... 0<1. but II', 100 e 'pen.lve fOf moot people

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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POWER SUPPLIES

MANUFACTUR'ER CORSAIR OCZ SLVERP{)WER AKASA CHIEFTEC 'n<ERMALTAKE "'''TEe E"ERMA~ sEASONIC sEASON IC FsP Eh£RM,o,x
_ I CX,"OOW ModX5trtlam 51'-SS650 Eco-Fri _ ~ .0.·135 Evo BIuo Truel'owe, Liberty X-6SO E.... 'e., Pro Re""MI",,8S*

..
~~W _ . APS~5OC WOlO?' _ TF>-6SO ECO 620W 1200W 1.0SOW

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BENCHMARKS
I Perfonnance Labs verdict Power supplies

Se"ooie m w '"
---
Efficiency at 50 per cen t
- - - - -----
.. When buying a po_r supply,
it seems you have to .,ay more
for greater reliability and
cards, and it's also very quiet. It
wins a Best Buy award.
Those with even higher

....
E..,IUX \,I5IW efficiency, Ho_ver, paying
more also means you get a
higher power output and more
aspiratioOlS and plenty of cash
will appreciate the sheer power
of F5P's Everest Pro 1200W, It 's

.....
bl,e
power connectors. Whether incredibly quiet and efficient,
StHDlllie' 5IW
, you nee<l these wi ll depend
on the demands of the hard
with a huge array of connectors.
but will set you back £173. It
Ene' .... 1i21W disu, drives and components wins an Ultimat e award ,GJ
------------------------------------
c.n••
"" " in your computer, and any
future upgrades you may be
!ho,moH.to planning to make. DCZ
C,*Hec For a typical modem PC, a
• • , • • SOOW power supply should
Pro 50 OW
St".. ic m w
M IUX \,t5 IW
--
Efficiency at lOa per cent
- - ------- .. suffice. This will allow you to
install a fairly power·hungry
graphics card and a couple of
hard disks in addition to the
*****
". -----------------------------------
.. standard PC comfJOnents. For
£52, OCZ's ModX5tream Pro
SOOW is a great choice, thanu
to its modular cabling. It wins a
ANTEC
TruePower
New TP·-S50

- - -- --- - - 85
Budget Buy award.
If you want more power and *****
Eoer.... slightly bett er efficie ncy, Antec's
TP-650 is a good choice; it costs FSP
an e)(\ra £25 and provides 6SOW. Everest
It comes with plenty of power
connectors, ioduding enough
1200W
for two high-powered graphics
*****
COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 NEfBOOK POWER
Go Anywhere Stylishly with FSP Netbook Adapter
• Uniy ....1DC ""'lit l00·240V
· DC Oulpu,: " V lOt NET ~ He l40J NB ltD
''''2'0
• Con>\N'tibie with All Ydo; Illput Nfltboob
· Comp,otible with HP, DIll, Au" t..novo, To.I>II>I, f ujillu,LG ...... c Netbooks
· e Chall8Hbl. Output TIf* (NET 40 &. HI! l.O)1 9 Chon\lubl. OUlpul n.,. lor HB 190
• Tr. But Qullllty ....."'.nu wlIlIinpUi f un ProtK lIon and Compltl'"
CirculI PrutKlIon
· High EfflcltlMJ ~ 'Me., CEe &. EMr;Y Sta'lrItl V ctrtlllcilion
· Full S'1e\)' ApptO¥.I: UUcUL, CEo CB. FCC, TUV

NET 40 I HB L401 NB L90

(Ultra Slim Type)

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INTRODUCTION
Intel's introduction of I new
line of mobile proceSIOf'S Is.
big event, $ 0 w,,'ve lathered II
selection of budget laptops
band on the new entry-level
Choosing a...
Core 13 chip to see how they
perform . For comparison,
we'~ .lso tested I more
expensive Core is model lind
Budget laptop
housing a laptop in the £5OO-to- £7oo price ~ry.'lhere, but they're sm~1l enough to put in a bag to

C
one thlt has anAMD chip.
By setting I budget of range usuaUy involves making SOlT1e signilicant carry aroond occasionaUy Of simply transport to a
between £500 ami £700, compromises. As such. it's more important than friend 's house. These computers have lower screen
we wllnted to set how ever to woO; out which taslG you want it to perform. resollJtions of 1,366x768, although this is stiU enough
manufacturers would fit Intel's and look for a computer that meets you r ~s. HHe desktop space to work on documents comfortably.
new budget chip into an we'Uexplain what to look lor and how to find your
entry-leveillplOp. Would they perfect specir.ution BATTERY LIFE
be abte to hit the HOG ma", Battery lile is important, but just how important
without cuttinc too m ..y HEAVY METAL depends on how yw want to use ywr computer. II
comen? Or would t~y uk" The laptops in this month's lab5 come with either yw're after a large 173in laptop, yw should eJq>ed:
adYanugt! of the c.hip's 15.6in fJl 17.3in~. The silO! you choose wil two-and-a-hall hours or more of battery life. Thi!; will.
PflXeuinl pow« to ueate the depend on what you want to Go with yoor computer. give you the flexibility to use your computer around
~rf"d desktop .eIMcementt laptops with 17.3in soeem are considerably larger than ywr house or even in the gard8l11you're after a
We were surprised by the the lS.6in models and can weigh more than 3kg. so 15.6in laptop and want to carry it around occasionally.
high quality of t his month's they're not ideal if you want a laptop that you can look lor longer battery tife so that you won't kaye to
entries, but there Wfl"1! some carry around easdy. They 're a great ~ if you're find wmewhere to recharge it so often.
clear winners . Rn d on to find looking for a laptop to use around the house instead 01 Our bendv"nillrk results on page 107 show how long
out which Is the best budget a de5k;top PC. though. The large screen size typically e~ laptop lasted in our light-use test. which simulates
laptop for your nu~b. ml!aM there's more room inside lor a better keyboard reading a web page. However, bear in mind that il you
too. These laptops will usually have higher screen perform more intensive tasks. such as ed iting video, the
resolutions 01 l,600x900, which give you plenty 01 battery life wiU rapidly de<:rea!Oe.
Barry de la Rasa des ktop space IfJl working on documents.
Laptops and
handhelds expert
A 15.6in laptop is generally a good compromi se THE EYES HAVE IT
between size and portability. At around 2.Skg. they're Pay particular attention to the quality 01 a laptop's
still not computers thitt you'd want to carry display, as you can't replace or upgrade it later. Our

COMPlJT"£R SHOPPER • MAY 20"10

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 BUDGET LAPTOPS

This month
ACER
Aspire 5740-332G25Mn
Pagel02

MSI
CR6lD-013
Pagel02

DELL
InspirDn1564

SAM SUNG
R580
Pagel03

PACKARO BELL

ACER
Aspire 774D-334G5DMn
Pagel04

SONY
VaiD VPC-ES1S0E/WI

OELL
Inspiron 1764
Pagel05

SAM SUNG
R780

review~ tell you whether ~ ~c:reen i~ ~ plea~ure As well as the graphic; chip and proceS5Of, when pressed. Some touchpad~ a150 recognise
to behold or a complete eyesore. larger laptop the amount of memory in each laptop has a multitouch gestures, soch as pinching your
displays tend to ha~ higher resolutions. which huge impact on pertormance. More memory fingers to lOom in to images, but these can be
make it easier to WOf1,; with larger documents enables you to run more applications at once tricky to perform on a small pad, and not aU
and use multiple windows at the same time. and manipulate complicated data faster. Today applications sopport them.
Most of the displays on our test laptops have we'd expect a minimum of 4GB of RAM in a
a glossy finish that enhances brightness and laptop, although to use this amount or more, BITS AND PIECES
contrast, making them ideal for watching video. you'U need a 64-bit version of Windows; the The bigger a laptop's hard di sk, the more files
The gloS5y coating reflects a lot more light than 32-bit ~rsion can access only around 3.5GB. and programs you can carry around without
a matt finish, though, e~pecially from fluore~ent Our benchmari: resolts on page 107 show having to use extemal disks , In general, the more
lights in offices, which can make the screen how each laptop performs in both Windows expensive the laptop, the more storage we 'd
harder to see property. Screen~ with a matt fini~h ta~ks and games, so you can find the model that expect, although we'd hope to see a 500GB hard
don't soffer from glare, but they make colours most dosely matches your requirements. disk in a laptop within the budget we've set this
look Ie~~ vibrant. Matt screen~ are increasingly month , We recommend at least two USB ports
difficult to find - none of the laptops in this TYPO NEGATIVE for adding storage, but an eSATA port is useful
month's lab~ ha~ one. A powerful "'ptop is of little use if its keyboard for connecting an even faster external disk.
and touchpad are below standard or badly Most laptops support the newest 802.11n
POWERHOUSE designed. Keyboards should feel responsive and wireleS5 standard as well as Gigabit Ethernet
E~ry laptop on the marlo;et can handle basic provide plenty of feedback so that typing is wired networking. Some have slower networlo;ing
desktop tasks, but the introduction of Intel's accurate and comfortable. <tdaptors, but the slower s~ds are un likely to
Core i3 and i5 mobile processors means that Some laptop keyboards have a few half -size make a difference for internet access and light
bu dget laptops can now compete with desktop keys and "'youts tha t differ from those of network use. Integra ted 3G wireless broadband
computers for performance. If you're looking for desktop models. Others provide numeric keyp<tds modems are rare at this price, although you can
decent Windows pertormance, there 's no reason for quick data entry in applications such as easily add a USB device later.
to buy a laptop with anything other than one of spreadsheets, although these can also have Apart from ultra-portable~ ~nd some budget
these new processors. The box on page 106 tells half-size keys and layouts that deviate from model5, most laptops have ExpreS5Card slots, so
you all about these new chip~ and how they the de5ktop standard, Our reviews describe you can add peripherals ~uch as a TV tuner
work. Of course, Windows performance isn't each keyboard and tell you how easy it is to without using up a USB port. Some laptops have
everything. If you want to play game~ on your adapt to any "'yout chaflge~, Expre5SCard/34 ~Iots imtead of the "'rger
new laptop, you 'll need to choose a model tha t Touchpads should be large and accurate, with Expre5SCard/S4 slots. so make sure you buy the
has a dedicated graphic~ chip, I~rge buttom that provide plenty of feedwck correct type of expansion card. @

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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BUDGET LAPTOPS

ACER
Aspire 5740-332G25Mn
****
£490 inc VAT
From www.lapt opsdi rect.co.uk

It may have a budget price, but Acer's Aspire with tho~ of rivals, which offer twice the
5740 oontaios brand new technology: an Intel storage. The laptop lacks a fevv other
Core i3-330M processor. While Acer has made features too, such as Bluetooth,
some compromises to pay for this processor, Fi,eWi,e and an ExpressCard slot. but
you won't get a quicker laptop at this pOee. it supports 802.11n wireless.
The 2.13GHz processor and 2GB of RAM The S740 uses Acer"S Gemstone design, with
managed an overall score of 74 in our its distinctive textured case and glossy lid. We
benchmarks. This is the kind of score we'd were a little worrie<l by the flimsy plastic bezel mou~. Two above the number pad control
expect from a laptop that cost over £700 a round the screen, and it's worth noting that Ace' volume, while three more on the left toggle
few months ago. The laptop uses the Core i3's offers only a one-year retum -to-base warranty wireless and Bluetooth and launch a backup
integrated Intel GMA HD graphic;. They're no as standard. A large cut-away section in the wrist program. which is odd. as there's no Bluetooth
good for games. though, and the 5740 failed rest forms the toochpad, which is smooth and support. An additional button can be customised
our Call 01 Duty 4 test. responsive. but the large see-saw button is flush to run a specific program or internet short cut.
HO video content plays without a stutter with the case and has little travel. We were impressed by the 15.6in, 1366x768
on the Intel graphics chip, but if yoo want to The numeric keypad next to the keyboard has screen. which is bright and has vibrant colours
immerse yourself in your films, you'll nffd to foor columns of keys and includes page and good contrast. We noticed a slight red cast
connect external speakers, as the built-in pair navigation keys. The keyboard uses flat-topped to whites that adds warmth to images and
are weak and lack bass. keys with a bit of distance enhances flesh tones. It's hard to achieve a
Thankfully there's an SUMMARY between them. The layout decent vertical viewing angle. however. and the
S/PDIF port, as well as an VlRDICT A de<;ent Core i3 "'plop for.....der is standard and the keys glossy screen is a nightmare under bright lights.
HDMI port that outputs £500. witll ~ brigllt scre<on and good batt~ry are large enough, but the A Core i31aptop for under £500 may seem to
both video and audio to ti~.but come .. h....., been cut. Spend ~ bit action is a little spongy and be a bargain. but Acer has cut some comers. and
an AV amplifier. """" and you can got ~ much b<tterlaptop provides little fee<lback. ifs worth checking that it has the features you
As well as cutting GENERAl.f'l.l~POSE LAPT~ Intol Core 1]·]3OM. There are a levv short need. MSl's CR610 may not have the new Core
down on memory, Acer <!G5 MM. 250GB d;,lo:.lntel GMA HD groph>a, cut buttons dotte<l around i3 chip, but for the same price it offers a Btu-ray
has induded a 250GB OVO . f·RW .f·OL. 15.6in wide5CJ"n LCD. Z.8k& the chassis. One disables drive and a much better warranty. Alternatively,
PARTCODl' l X.PM9O<.089
hard disk, which is D£TAIU www,oc..-.<o.uk the touchpad in case you Dell·s 1564 has more graphics power and a larger
disappointing compared want to attach an external hard disk but lacks 802.11n support.

MSI
CR610-013
****
£500 inc VAT
From www.argos.co.uk

MSl's CR610 is one of the f!'!W recent laptops powered, so they're not ideal for use when
to forgo Inters new Core processors for an watching movies. Thankfully. the CR610 has
AMD chip, a 2GHz Athlonll X2 M300. an HDMI output, so you can connect it
Predictably. thiS laptop didn't do as well as to a larger screen or an AV amplifier.
Core i3-based laptops in oor tests, scoring just There's also a 34mm ExpressCard slot
51 overall. The Core i3laptops we·ve ~en have for adding peripherals such as a TV tuner to
5Cored around 70, turn the CR610 into a capable media centre.
Even so. the CR610-0l3 can handle As well as a Blu-ray drive. the CR610
everyday jobs such as image editing. includes some features you might not expect two-year collect-and-retum warranty, so any
Performance isn·t everything. and this laptop on a £500 laptop. The 500GB hard disk is major faults are covered.
makes up for being a bit slow by including a generoos. and the shared eSATAlUSB port is The keyboard has moolded keys. but MSI has
Btu-ray drive. which is incredible at this price. useful for attaching external storage. It also has packed in a number pad, and the result looks
The dedica ted Ra deon HD 4200 graphics Bluetooth and 802,lin wireless networking. cramped. However, the keys have a light action
chip can·t handle games, scoring just 4fps in Ifs quite portable at 2.5kg. but a battery life of with a definite bite for feedback. The layoot
our Call of Duty 4 test. but it will decode HO two hours and 40 minutes means you won·t be isn 't standard. with the function key on the
content from the Blu-ray drive. The 16in able to stray far from a ma ins socket. bottom-left corner where the Control key should
widescreen display has a Ifs not the most be. and although the keys on the left side are
nOp HD resolution of SUMMARY a11ractive laptop either, nice and big. there 's a hall-height Enter key and
1.366x768.1t produces a VlRDlCT Whlle theCR610', Blu_ray drn." and although the glossy lid a half-width right Shift key. The large touchpad
bright picture, althoogh moke< it look like .n uciting laopt09, wo·d and thin screen bezel is responsive and has two large buttons.
we found that it looked prefer • I~,t.,.- pr""""'" .nd better Klffn migh t tum some heads, There 's no doubt MSI has made compromi~s
5lightly cold. with slightly the plastic: strip roond the to lit a Blu-ray drive into a £SOO laptop, but if
GENERAl·PURPOSE LAPT~ AMD Atlton II x~
dull reds and flesh tones. MlOO, 4GB MM. o;ooGe di"", ATI Hobitily keyboard panel looks really yoo·re not into intensive image or video editing
Reflections ma ke the ~eon HD~200~ , DVD.f·RW .f· Ol cheap, and on our review and don't need a lot of processing power, the
glossy screen hard to see. BD-ROM. 16<nwld=JftI\ ll:D, 1,510:& sample it was starting to CR6l0 is a decent entertainment laptop. If you
PAH CODl' CR610-0llU ~
We found the speakers come away from the case. don 't want the Blu-ray drive, Den's 1564 is more
DETAIU www.m<i.com
a bit tinny and under- Tha rlkfully, MSI provides a powerful and has much better build quality.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 BUDGET LAPTOPS

IDELL
Inspiron 1564
****
£508 inc VAT
From www.dell.co.uk

[)eU·s new Inspiron line has the same The rest of the keyboard is fairly standard.
custom-coloured lids and sleek design as its The keys have Ilat tops but enough
forebears, but under the hood yoo ·Ufind one spacing between them , and their
of Intel's new Core i3 chips with a built-in action is light with fairly crisp ...............;;~
graphics processor. feedback. The touch pad is large and Vf!:ry
With 4GB of RAM and a 2.13GHz Core responsrve, with two large buttons that have an
i3-330M processor. the Inspiron 1564 made eKtremely light action - so light that there's
light wort. of oor benchmarks. producing an hardly any feedback when you press them .
overall5Core 0174. Until recently. we wouldn't Intel's integrated GMA HD graphics chip can seen on some rival laptops. The internal speakers
expect to see a score this high from a laptop handle HD movies well but it struggles with are loud bu t lack bass. allhoogh sRs technology
costing 11'55 than £700. games and failed our Ca ll 01 Duty 4 benchman:. helps to wi den the sound stage. Luckily there ·s
A fast processor is aU very well bu t what Even with anti -aliasing turned off and the an HOMI port for digital output. so you can
about the rest of the laptop? The Inspiron resolution turned down to 1.024x768. it connect to an AV amplifier or sound system.
design remains basically the same, with a fairly managed just 11.5Ips. You may lind that The 1564 has most 01 the features you might
minimalist case and sturdy lid hinges tha t let some older games work.. but new games are expect at thiS price. although we ·d expect more
you push the lid back almost to a horizootal un likely to run smoothly. than Ihree USB ports 00 a lSin laptop and a
position. There are no flashy LED controls or A glossy screen coating on the 15.6in. larger hard disk than the 320GB model. There's
indicators, which is no bad 1,366x768 wide5Creen no ExpressCard port. Bluetooth or 802.lln
thing. Once again. DeU has SUMMARY display and tight Vf!:rtical wireless. so you won·t get the fastest network
swapped the default VUlDICT The 1564 is ~n ;mriOcti .... l.ptop viewing angles make it speeds. You can specify an optional Bluetooth
behavioor of the Function with ~ fa" Core 13 pro<~ ..or, bul il hau hard to get a good picture. card for £30 including VAT when yoo buy Ihe
keys - so, lor example, the r.liIti.... ly omaU hard dislt ond could do with and we lound the backlight la ptop. but the wireless card isn ·t upgradable.
F2 key now toggles a l>ell ... <ae~n a little dull Whiles have a A smart design and a powerful processor
wirele55. and you have to blue cast th at makes make this an aUractiVf!: choice at this price. but
press the Fn key to get F2. 4GB RAM. 34'0GB disk.lnlo! GMA HO g<ooph"" . images feel cold , and the Core i3 performance comes at the expense
II you find this coolusing. DVO . I-RW ·DllS.6in wide"" ........ LCD. 2.$' i although colours are of some other components. II you ·re on a budget
PART CODE NOOS60403
you can reverse the reasonably accurate, Ihey but need a fast machine for image ()( video
behaviour in the BIOS. aren't as vibrant as we ·Vf!: editing. the 1564 is a decent choice.

ISAMSUNG
R580
*****
£571 inc VAT
From www.lambda-tek.com/componentshop

We've long admired Samsung·s ability to make The R580 has a lairly comprehensive list 01
attractive laptops. and the RS80 is no ports. inclu ding an esATA port (shared with
exception. The glossy black lid has a subtle red USB) and an HDMI output. as well as a
glow. and the edges are softened by gentle 34mm €xpressCard slot lor peripherals
curves. The keyboard panel uses the same red such as a TV tuner. Both Bluetoolh
glow mot if. but with a wavy pinstripe pattem. and 802.11n fast wireless networking are
There's no flex in the keyboard, and little in included. There's no S/POIF au dio output or
the lid. The keys are well separaled , wilh flat FireWire port. and the memory card reader only
tops and rounded comers. (Americans refer to supports SO cards and t he older MMC lormat. graphics processor. but Samsung has added a
these as ·chiclet· keys. after a brand of chewing As with most laptop5, if you wanl to watch dedicated Nvidia GeForce 310M graphics card.
gum they resemble.) The action is light. with movies or listen t o music. you're well advised to which scored 16.61ps in our Call of Duty 4
adequ ate feedback. The number pad squashed att ach the RS80 to an AV amplifier or hi-fi over benchmark. At I,024x768 with anti -aliasing
in to the right of the keyboard has sm aller keys the HOMI port. The internal speakef5 are dear tumed off. it marlaged a more playable 25.8fps.
bul inclu des page navigation keys. and bright but lack bass, and are too quiet to fill This level of performance is fine for older or
The large. responsiVf!: touch pad is formed even a small room. The screen is bright and has more sedate games. but the latest action titles
from a translucent layer vibrant colours. although won't run at their best.
on top 01 the case. It ·s the glossy finish attracts The dedicated graphics also boosted the
almost invisible, so rellectioos.11 also has a main bench man: scores, pushing the R580's
VUlDICT "!"hl<~I·,olmded laplop
Sam sung has placed a combi.,.. raw p.rform.lncewflh Ih. ~bility slight red cast tha t makes higher than those 01 similar Core i3-based
blue LED at each comer, 10 ploy gamo<. and II<o.«nl keyboard. blues seem dull but laptops. An overall score of 79 is incredible at
although it's easy to find 1000chpad . nd di .pI")' m.lk. it ojoy!o use contrast is good overall. thiS price. and beats those of £700 laptops from
by running your linger c.EJllEIlAL-ru~POSELAPTOf> Inlo! eoroll.l3OM. At the heart of the a couple of months ago. With a battery life of
over the case. The see-saw 4GB RAM. 500GB di"'. Jllvidi.C.Fo<c~ 310M RSBO is Inters newest three hoors and 18 minutes, you can easily use
button is flush with the vaphla. DVD. , ·RW +/. 01.. lS.6lnwkl...,....... mobile processor. the the RS80 anyvvhere around your house .
case and hard 10 locate by lCD. 2.~ 2. 13GHz Core i3-330M, With so much power. a great keyboard and
touch. but it has a very PARTCODE JIIP·R5ro-)SOZUK and 4GB RAM. The screen and a low price. Samsung's R580 is an
DETAIlS WNW ....,,"''''.''''''''''''

L'Ii'g"" ••'"'"iOO=-.__________-'============='r:============='-'P'"",,"''',,''..';..""O"rnbo"."'d'-____••m':."i""g'"'••P~'op".."'d'."g"""."b'""d~g.'"'tbW""y_.______ e
MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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BUDGET LAPTOPS

PACKARD BELL
Easynote TJ75
***
£600 inc VAT
From www.pcworld.co.uk

Since Acer took over Packard Bell, it has is cramped and has only three columns of keys.
transformed the brand 's reputation from cheap Aseries of tOUCh -sensitive LED controls above
and nasty to affordable and stylish. The the keyboard let you toggle wireless,
Easynote TJ75 stands out with its two-tone touchpad and sound, control volume
colour scheme - the silVl'r band around the and launCh custom programs.
case and malchingsilver hinge assembly break We found the 15.6in screen bright and
up what would otherwi5e be swathes of cheap colourful with an even backlight an d a slightly
black plastic. The glossy lid has an attractive warm cast. Contrast was good, but tight vertical
pattern and dassy silver badge. viewing angles and a glossy screen ma ke it the very latest action games at their highest
Some of the TJ7S's design flourishes are difficult to use under overhead lighting. The settings, most games should run at a reasonable
less successfuL such as the 5eeS3W touchpad 720p resolution of l,366x768 is great for films, speed at lower resolutions with reduced settings,
botton. Not only is it thin, with sharp edges, but the internal speakers are weak and tinny, The T]75 is very quid: thanks to the 2.13GHz
but it stretches about a centimetre past each with poor bass. You 'll want to conned to an Core i3-330M processor and 4GB of RAM. It
side of the recessed louchpad area, so that the eKternal sound system via the HDMI port to get scored 73 overall in our benchmarks, so it can
ends are flush with the case and difficult to the full home cinema experience. cope with any task.
press. The touchp<!d ilsett is responsiVl', but the Intel's new Core i3-330M processor includes In our light-usage battery test, the TJ7 S
buttons let it down badly_ onboard graphic. but lasted just under three hours. Weighing 2.7kg. it
The keyboard 's Ilat Packard Bell has added a isn 't built lor evi'ryday travel, and its battery life
UMMARY
keys are set too close dedicated ATI HO 5470 is more than enough for occasional forays away
vtROICT A plu •..,t doe.ign ~nd bright
together, so it's easy to hit ~n add SOme da .. to thl. powerful Co ....
graphics chip, A5 with all from a power socket. The TJ7S lacks some
neighbouring keys. Each i3 laptop, but we didn't U'e the keyboard 0< new ATI SOOO-seriescards, common expansion ports, such as eSATA,
key has a light action and t<>u(hpad and ft lad. wme useful feaw ..... this supports the la test FireWire or an hpressCard slot. and there 's no
a wen-defined resistance DirectX 11 technology and Bluetooth, but it has an SfPDIF digital audio
GENERIJ..f'lJRPOSE LAPT~ Int" Core il- HOM,
point for feedback , 50 -ICe IlAM, &lOGe d ..... ATI Mobility!\adton HO HD sound from Blu-ray output and a very generous 640GB hard disk.
touch -typists should find S41()gr'phie>. Dvo. / ,RW ./_01., lS.f;in movies. It's no slouch, Despite decent performance and a huge
them comlortable. The wlo..,....., LCD, 2,7l:g scoring 19.7/ps in our Call 640GB hard disk the TJ7S's awkward keyboard
PARTCO[)l; l)7S-)N-07OUK
layout is standard, DETAIlS """",."..,k~.<o.u~
of Duty benchmarks. While and frustrating touchpad detract heavily from it.
although the number pad you won 't be able to enjoy Samsung's cheaper R580 is the better choice,

ACER
Aspire 7740 -334G50Mn
***
£600 inc VAT
From www,laptopsdirect,co ,uk

Mer's 7740 has a 17.3in screen and a Core i3 overall score of 7S shows. This laptop will (ope
processor, but costs less than some 1Sin with any task you throw at it.
notebooks. It's ideal for those who woO:: with The power and size 01 the laptop
large spreadsheets, as the wide screen can come at the expense of battery life,
display more data al a time, and the processor and the 7740 lasted for two hours 47
will crunch through complex calculations. minutes in our tests. This is fine if you 're using
Although this appears to be an amazing the laptop around the home, an d as it's 3.2kg.
dea~ it's worth noting the comers Acer has cut you 're unlikely to want to travel with it anyway.
to achieve this price, The most obvious thing it Its large, l,600x900 screen and HD -cap<lble blue cast makes the image feel cold and duHs
lacks is a dedicated graphics card: the 7740 graphics chip should be ideal for movies but, as reds. It's hard to adjust the screen vertically to
uses the Core i3's integrated graphics chip, usual it's the sound that lets the 7740 down, get a good viewing angle, especially as the glossy
which can handle HD vide<) content, but not The intemal speakers are dear and have a good finish reflects overhead lights.
much else. As it doesn't support full -screen sense 01 space thanks to Dolby Home Theater, The flat -topped keys have enough Sp<!CE'
anti -aliasing. it failed our Call of Duty 4 but they're simply too quiet and lack bass. between them to stop you accidentally hitting
benchmark, and even with anti-aliasing turned Thankfully, you can attach the 7740 to a home neighbouring keys. The action is stift, however,
oH and the resolution set to 1.024x768, it only cinema system via the HDMI port, or use the with limited travel and not enough feedback, At
scored II.7fps. It might be S/PDIF digital audiO port to least the layout is standard, with large Enter and
able to play older games, SUMMARY attach speakers. Shift keys on the right side. A numbi'r pad is also
but you 'll have to tum oft vtROICT o..<plle Ih. fM! "",wCo ... 13 The 7740 uses Acer's included, with four columns of large keys. The
advanced settings and proc...or . nd I.rg. S(~n , me 7740 i. l.l Gemstone design, with a touchpad is quite wide but ill large see-saw
lower the resolution. 00wn by , poor keytmrd and touchpad glossy lid and a teKtured , button is flush with the case and has little travel.
Fortunately, its dark grey keyboard paneL While Acer has done well to bring out a 17in
DESKTOI'-REI'lA.CEMENT lA.PT~ Int" eo....
Windows performance is i3-33OM , 4GB R,t,M, 500GB di<!<, In'" GM~ HD It lacks the gaudy LED-lit Core i3 laptop for only £600, we found too many
impressive, The 2,13GHz groop!>ic., DVO./-RW ./·OL DVD,IlAM , 17.3in control panels you 'll find compromises for us to recommend it, Dell's
processor and 4GB of wI<lH=.., lCD. 3.2kg on other Acer models. The 1764 is more powerful and better built, while
PAHCO[)l; LX.PLV02.OoIS
RAM are a powerful screen is bright. but the Samsung's R780 has superb build quality plus a
DETA.ILS www.o<;or.co.uk
combination, as the backlight is uneven and a powerful graphics card.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 BUDGET LAPTOPS

ISONY
Va io VPC-EB1S0E/WI
*****
£614 inc VAT
From www.la mbdate k.co.u k/componentshopj

The Vaio EB1SOE is another laptop with an The battery score 01 three hours IS
Intel2.13GHz Core i3- 330M processor. minutes was slightly dis.appointing. as
Combined with 4GB 01 RAM, this laptop this 2,6I<:g laptop is light enough lor the
managed an overaU score of 77 in our occasional journey. StilL the battery lile is
benchmarb, making it asiasl as some £700 long enough for use around the house.
laptops from a couple of months ago. The .screen is also less impressive than we 'd
Sony has opted lor a dedicated graphic; hoped , Its glossy finish reflects overhead lighting.
chip - the ATI Mobi~ty Radeon HD 5470 - as and its venical viewing angles are tight. Colours large, separate mouse buttons have a light action
the processor's integrated Intel GMA HD chip are natural and vibrant but its contrast isn't as and enough travel to provide feedback. They're
can't CO~ with modern 3D games. The ATI good as on some screens we've seen recently. set close enough to the edge 01 the case to be
graphic; card helped the EB lS0E reach almost The backlight isn't the brightest, but is mostly easily accessible by your thumb,
20fps in our (aU 01 Duty" benchmark. This is even, with only a couple 01 darker patches along The USB pon on the lelt edge of the case
not fast enough for hardcore gaming. but less the bottom edge. doubles as an eSATA port for high-speed external
action-oriented games, such as Dragon Age: The keys are flat-topped and have gaps storage should you fill the generous 500GB hard
Origins or Mass Effect 2 will run smoothly at between them. Their action is light, with distinct disk. The other three USB pons are clustered on
lower resolutions and with advanced graphics feedback that makes them a joy to type on. The the right side. An hpressCard/34 slot allows you
settings turned off. layout is standard too, with to add a TV tuner, for example, and there are
HO video won't be a a double -height Enter key, dedicated memory card slots for both Sony's
SUMMARY
problem, and there's an and there's even room for a proprietary Memory Stick HG-Duo and the more
VERDICT A be~uti"'lIy made "'plop, with ~
HDMI pon for outputting fan pr~ssor, <IK.nt k ~an:l ar.d .nough
four-column numeric popular SDHC card format.
to a home entenainment 3D pefform....::e for g~m.., but Somsu"&" keypad and dedicated page Design-wise, the EB lSOE stands out Irom the
system, The internal RS80 1$ just "good, , nd (h • • p... navigation keys, crowd with its quality milterials and build. Intel's
speakers are lairly loud, The touchp~ is a latest processor provides impressive performance
but tinny at high -IG8 RAM. 500Ga disk,An Mot> ~ i 1)l Rodoon HO recessed area of the wrist for the money, and the addition of a decent
frequencies and lack bass, S470 gnphOn. OVO . /-RW . / -OL DVO-RAM, rest with a roughened graphics card means you have access to a
50 to get the most out of 15.6..... IO"':~ LCD, 2.6l.g finish , It 's quite responsive, respectable range of gilmes. While this laptop is
PAAT CODE VKEBISQ£lWtCEK
films you 'd be ~vised to although we can see it qu ick, Sam sung's RS80 has a similar range 01
connect a sound system, getting grubby. The tvvo features lor less money. It's a better buy.

IDELL
Inspiron 1764
*****
£653 Inc VAT
From www.dell.co.uk

~II's 17.3in 1764 is the first laptop we've seen our call of Duty 4 benchmal'h outright. With
with Intel's new mobile Core is processor. The anti-aliasing off, it stili managed only 12fps.
2.26GHz Core-S-430M may seem only slightly It may cope with older games with
quicker than a 2.13GHz Core i3-330M, but it minimal settings at low resolutions.
has a trkk up it!; sleeve: Turbo Boost. Apan from the lid, which you can
This allows the processor to raise it!; clock order in a variety of colours (or save £30 and
5peed to 2.53GHz to power through tough get it in black), the 1764 is rather plain. The
jobs_With 4GB of RAM, the processor scored keyboard panel uses an attractive plastic that
an impre5Sive 83 overall in our benchmarh: looh like glossy bru~hed metal, but i5 thilnkfuliy ~mall. but very ~nsitive, and the two separate
we've rar~ly seen a faster laptop, and cenainly devoid 01 garish indkators and controls_ buttons have a light action and plenty of travel.
not at thi~ price, The 1764 M~ enough power The keyboard ha~ flat keys with cut-away The screen's glo~~y finish and narrow vertical
to Mndle any job - even video encoding. edges, so they're not to<) close together. They viewing angles make it hard to see in areas with
With Turbo Boost the processor also needs r~ttle a bit while you type, but the keyboard is bright overhead light!;, but colours are accurate
less power in standard mode, which can help firm and comfonable to type on, with a light and contrast good_A s~ght blue cast dampens
battery life. That said, the1764 lasted only tvvo action and crisp feedback. The layout is standard, reds and flesh tones, but the backlight is even
hours 41 minutes in our with a large Enter key and and bright. Its resolution of 1,600x900 means
tests. It's enough for use SUMMARY
a four-column number pad. there 's lots of desktop space, and HD movies look
around the home, but Our only gripe is that great. The intern al speakers are loud and dear,
VERDICT A pow ... ful C,..., 15 proc . ... or and
we've seen similarly sized a "''E", bright scoun mak. tt.i. ~n
Dell has reversed the with SRS technology that widens the soundstage.
laptops last for longer. attra.ctl"" "'plop, bul you c.n gel a behaviour of the function If you want a powerful desktop-replacement
While it can handle g.me.-cap;tbl. l.ptop lor •• im il... prke keys (F2 turns off wireless, laptop, Dell's Inspiron 1764 is a great choice.
HD video content. the and Alt-F2 opera tes the The compilny a5Sures us thilt this exact model
Core is's built-in GMA HD i s · ~)OM , -1GB RAM, 500GB di!ok. IntolGMAHD normal key), although you will be available by the time you read this, but
graphic; processor isn't vapl>lcs, DVO. /-RW +/-01., 11.3io wI<Iosc ...... can change thi~ in the ilt the time of going to press a cheaper model
powerful enough for lCD,2_9k.i: BIOS. Below the keyboard, (NOO76408) with dedicated All graphics was a
PART CODE No! di.do..d
games. It can't cope with a recess in the case lorms better buy. However, Samsung'~ R780 costs only
anti -aliasing. so it failed the touchpad.lt's a bit too a little more and can handle games.

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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BUDGET LAPTOPS

SAMSUNG
R780
*****
£649 inc VAT
From www.lapt opsdi rect.co.uk

This 17.3in wi descreen laptop is designed to Despite an this power. not to mention the
repl~ce a desktop PC, providing power in both size 01 the screen. we were pleasa ntly
Windows app~cations and game~ We're happy surprised by the battery ~fe of just
to report that it pulls it olf. over three hours. That's plenty for
Performance from the 2.1 3GHz Core using this laptop around the home.
i3-330M processor and 4GB 01 RAM was The screen's glossy finish rellects
ex~llent. with an overall S<:Ofe 0177 in our overhead lighting. an d its vert ical viewing angles
benchmarks. This laptop can handle pre tty are narrow. We also noticed a red cast. which
much any job you'd want to throw a\ it. reduces the accuracy 01 colours but makes The touchp<td consists of a translucent
The Pfocessor has integra ted graphics, bu t movies and pictures feel warmer. The backlight is teJCtured area below the keyboard, and Samsung
Sam sung has opted for dedicated graphic; bright and even. <lnd the la rge size and has <ldded <I small blue LED in e<lch comer to
instead. It's a good choice, as the Nvidia 1,600x900 resolution make it perfect for working help delinea te it. It's large and responsive, but
GeForce GT 330M powered this laptop to a on multiple documents at once. the see-saw button below it is flush with the
smooth 29.2fps in our Call of Duty 4 test. This The keyboard sits in a small cut-away area ca se and has little travel. Thankfully, it has a light
score wouldn 't impress a des ktop gamer, but so tha t the keys look more exposed. and the action and is qu ite comfortable to use ,
ii's pretty good tor a laptop. and it means 'chiclet' des ign -Ilat tops with rounded edges Sound from the intemal speakers was
you 'll be able to run the latest games, albeit at and a nice gap between each key - enhances this dear and loud bu t lacked bass, and you'll
lower settings than you eHea. The action is light. want to connect to a home cinema or hi-fi
would on a desktop Pc. with just enough resistance system if you're serious about using the R780
SUMMARY
Action games such as at the top 01 the stroke to for movies or music. There's an HDMI port for
VlROICT An attract l"" dMlgn, ..,Hd c."',
Crysis will have problems, provide feedback for touch audio and video ou tput, bu t sadly no SIPDIF
I'!g. b<ightscrun ~ nd grut ~1' fO<lnd
and you'll have to tum oH ~ rlormance j urtl fy ~.ry ~ nny of u... typis ts, The layout is digit<ll audio output. There's also a shared
most of the eye can dy to k78O's piice standard, although the eSATA port for connecting e>CIernal storage
get a good frame rate. but arrow keys aren't well when you've lilled the large SOOGB h<!rd disl<.
DISKTOI' REPlACEMENT lAI'TOP "'101c-
adventure. strategy and i3·3)OM , 4GB R.>.M. SOOGB disl<. Nvid i. G. F".'CO differentiated and posh and a 34m m ExpressCard slot.
role-playing games. GT 330M g<. pI>ks, DVD+I-RW +I-DL. 11.3i" other keys out 01 t heir The R780 is a fantastic desktop replacement
especially those optimised .... <!<we." l(D, 2.6kg normal positions. A laptop. It's quick in both desktop applica tions
PAH CODE NP-R 780-jS02L1K
for internet play. will run four-column num ber pad and games, and is a pleasu re to use. It wins a
DETAIU www... m••m g . <;oml u ~
lITloothly and look great. sits on the right side. Best Buy award.

Go ne are the days when you cou ld simply two yirtual processing cores (one for each
compa re processors by dock speed. Instead, real core) by doutJIing up on certain parts
modern chips have been designed to be more 01 the processor, such as the instruction
efficient, running applicatiollS quickly at pipe line, so that the operating system
lower dock s~eds. recognise the se processors as having
Intel's new Core i3 and Core is processors, four cores. When one real core is waiting
which feature in most of the laptops here, to perform a task, it can switch to the
are great examples 01 this principle, as second virtual COfe and process its data.
they'~ been designed for efficiency. FOf The result is faster performance with no
starters, they're made using a 32nm enra power ~uirements.
fabrication process.This meallS they're coo ler Core is processors have a second trick in
at the sam e clock speeds as the previous the form of Turbo Boost.This allows the
generation of chips, they can be made in a processor to boost its clock speed when it's
sma ller package and they cost less to make. dealing with heavy processing tasks. It works
The main benefit these processors by monitoring the processOf's temperature and
bring is integration, as a single chip now adjusting the dock spee d as necessary. For
contaillS the processor, memory controller example, if a program is using only one core,
and graphics chip. Not only d~s this help and no other programs are running, the id le
keep costs down, but it also offers massi~ cores wi ll be uOOerclocked and the aaive core ... Intel's new COI'e 13 and IS prOCHSOI'S are mOl'e
performance benefits, including quicker overdocked as high as it can go without efficient t han tneir predece. SOI" ~ nd integra t e
access to memory than with the old design exceeding the chip 's rated temperature limits. several components on to a si ngle chip
and its enerna1 memory controller. The new processors also introduce l3
The onboard GMA HD graphics chip can cache, which is shared across all the th e processor also used to communicate
d ec~ high-definition video, although it's processor's cores and helps boost access to with system memory.
not powerful enough for games. Its main shared memory. Each core also has its own L2 The net result of all 01 these changes is
benefit is that it significantly red uces the cache, which it can use for data that's re leva nt that Core i3 and is processo rs are smaller
laptop's power ~ uirem e nts as a whole. only to that core. In the old Core 2 design, and more efficie nt that the ir Core 2
The Core i3 aOO is ranges ha~ been processors had to share the L2 cache. predeo>ssors. This efficieocy means the new
designed to offer th e maximum processing Fina lly, Intel has introduced a single input chips are much faster too, 50 ~dge t laptops
capability at the lowest power cost . Both output (10) hub, which the processor uses to can offer similar performance to that of
chips are dual--<:ore , but they also use communicate with other syst em components. desktop PCS and can kee p up with laptops
Hyper-Threading. This te<:hnology creates This is faster than the old shared bus, which that cost £700 a coup le of months ago.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 BUDGET LAPTOPS

BENCHMARKS
Overall Multitasking Call of Duty 4 (fps)

Samsung R780 29_2

Samsung
I
Samsung
Samsuflg

Aeer De11 1764 Fail

Dell Acel mo Fail
Aeer Oell1564 Fail
Acet 5740 Fail

With its range of stunning effects and massive

Image-editing Video-encoding explosions, plus some of the most fl'.listic
character animation. CaU of Duty 4 pushes a
Dell 1764 Dell 1764 PC to its limits.
SETTINGS 1.28OxSOO resoiution,4xAA.
Samsung R580. Samsung R580 normal settings WEB www.callofduty.com
Samsunu R780 , Packard Bell
Snny . Snny
Aeer 5740 Aeer 5740
I Battery life Run time
Aeer 7740 Aeer 7740 Light-usage test (hours)
Dell 1564 Samsung R780
Acel
MSI Dell 1564 3h 22m
Dell 1564
-------
Packard hll MSI
• ,. '"
Samsung R580 3h1Bm
III 40 60
" '" " • ' 00
Sony 3h 15m

This is our main benchm~rlo; suite for PC5 and As we use the 5ame tests in our standalone
laptops, which we share with our sister and Labs re~iews, you can compare the
publication (vstom PC. It's designed to test performance of computers across both.
Windows PCs to their wry limit. The su ite II you're keen to see how your PC compares Acel
consists of three separa te tests: image-e<liting. with those we'~e tested. you can download the
~ideo·encoding and multitasking. benchmark suite from ww.v.cu5/ompc.co.uld
Our reference PC is fitted with an AMD bencllmarl:s/Ilow-ro-enrer.hrml.
Phenom II X4 920 processor and 4GB 01 DDR2 , , •
memory. We normalised all its results to 100, SmlNGS We run our application tests at "
which makes it easy to draw comparisons 1,024x768 resolution and in 32-bit colour Our b<rttery test involves light browser use with
between test systems and our reference PC WEB www.expertreview5.to.uk the .>creen at its medium bMghtness 5elling.

Labs verdict Budget laptops

While the overa ll leve l of quality was tlfight, co lourful screen, the R580 is the
phenomena l this month. the two perfect everyday laptop. and wins our
Samsung laptops stood out for their Budget 8uy award.
design. build quality and supe rb Samsung's 17.3in R780 is hard ly any
performal'lCe. MSI dese rves a mention for diffe~ nt from its smaller cousin, with the
bravely ignOfing the new processor. and same processor but a larger screen and a
opting instead to use the money saved to faster graphics chip that can handle all
include a Blu-ray drive, Howe~r. the new but the most graphically intense games.
COfe i3 brings a leve l of pe rformance we Uke the RS80. it has a se nsible allocation SAMSUNG
haven't seen before at this price, and even
the lure of Blu-ray cou ldn't stop us
of ports, support for 802.11n wireless and
an Exp~ssCa rd slot. as we ll as surprisingly
R7BD
marvelling at the powe r of the R580.
Coupled with a dedicated graphics chip.
superb keyboard and touchpad and a
good battery life for il$ size and power. It's
the pe rfect desktop ~ placeme nt and
wins our 8est 8uy award.
*****
! " \1

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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BUDGET LAPTOPS

MA NUFACTURER ACER MS I DELL SAMSUNG

Model Aspire CR610-013 Inspiron 1564 R580
5740-332G2SMn
Rilling

Proc"'''''
****
Intel Core i3-33OM
****
AMDAthlon II Xl 101300
****
IntelCorei3-33OM
*****
Intel COIl' i3· 330M

'''''
Memo<)' "wlaUed
MemOJ)/ slon (f......)
I.UGH:

'G'
2( 1)
2CHz

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2.13GHz

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2(0)
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Max memory
Dimlffi~(HxWxD) "'''
37><383x25Omm 4Ox374x247mm 33>c38OxZ48mm "'''
37><380x256mm
Weight ,.~ 2.5kg 2.5kg '''&

'-
Sound Realtek HOAudio Reallek HD Audio RealI"" HD Jwdio Realtek HD Audio
Pointing dev;ce Touchpad ,"""',.., Touchpad
Power consumption standby 'W 'W 'W 'W
Power consumption idk> HW
Power consumption active
"W
39W
2>"
'""
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DISPLAY ""
Screen sire 1S.6in w>desc.reen LC D 16in wid€'scrEt!n LCD 1S,6in widescreen LCD 1Shin widescreen LC D
Craphks adaptor Intel GMA HD An Mobility Ril(Ieoo HD 4200 IntelGMA HO Nvidia GeFon;e 310M
Grap!licsoulputs VGA. HOM I VGA, HDMI VGA , HOM I VGA,HDMI
Graphics memory , 28MB 5harl!d 2S6MBde<:lic.Jte<:1 64MS ~~re<:I SlZ MSdediuted
Nati"" J1!'wlution 1,366>:768 1,36fuc768 l,366x768 1.366x768
STORAGE
Hard di .... (available) ZS(X;B (220GB) SOO::;B (455GB)
320GB (28SGB,;;';;-___-;'SOOG'=':'"'."SOGS;'~'0 ; - - - -- -
Optical dri~ model Optiarc AD-7S8SH HL-DHT CT ION Opl iarc AD-nooH Slimtype A DSSMS
Optic.ll driw twe DVD+! -RW +/-Dl DVD+I-RW +/-DL SO-ROM DVD+I-RW +I-OL DVD+/-RW +I-Dl
PORTS AND EXPANSION
US B2~

FireWire
•
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3
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3
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Infnl red ~

Bluelooth " ,-" " "

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1~ 10/10011,000, 8Ol.11b/g/n Ix 10/1oo/1.ooo,80l.1 1b/g/n "Ix 1011OO/1 ,000.80l, l 1b/g 1~ 10/10011.000, 8Ol.11b/g/n
PC Card 0;/0\:0; ,~ Ix Ex,..essCard/34 ,~ bExfn~d/34

M""'m ,- " " "

legacy~ ,~ ,~ ,~ ,~

Memory GIrd read...- SO, MMC , Memory Stick Pro, xD SD. MM C, M...-no.y Stick Pm, xO SD, MMc'MerTIOI)' Stick Pm SD, MMC
Oth...-~ Mini-jack audio output/SJPDIF Min i·jack aud", outpIJ1. mini-jack Mini·jac k audio OUlput. mini·jack ESATA (share<:l with USB socket),
(sharM), mini-jack aud io input, miaop!lone input microphone input mini-jack audio output, mini-jack
mini-jack microphooe inpul microphooe input
MISCELLANEOUS
Cany;ngGlSl'
Oper.Iting system "
Win<.lows 7 Home Prflnium "
Wir><k:lws 7 Home Prem ium "
Win<.lows 7 Home P",mium "
Win<lovvs 7 Home Premium
64-bit 32·bil 64· b~ 3Z-bit
Oper.Iting !O)'5 tem B3d<up and re<wery soltw~re Restore piIft~ ion 6ildup ~nd r...-.t:M:<"j wttware
restore option
Softwilre included Microsoft Works 9. NT! Media Int...-video WinDVO 8, Microsoft Microsoft Works 9 M;clQS()ft Works 9. C)'berlink
Mak...- Worl<>' P<;merOVD 8

Other rtandard a=ri"" O,3·megapbcel webcam 1.3-meg<lI>ixel webcam;;--::---='~3-tm~",~"",

~_ ~",m;::==::
Optiol"lal el<tras (incVAT) £>:"Ira battery, t 100; Treod Dell Wireless 365 BluetOOl h Extra battery, £96
Messenger Laptop Sag. £30 Module, £30
BUYING INFORMATION
Parts and labour warranty One ye.>r RTB Two yei!r"S colle<t ar><! retum One yei!r collect ar><! retum One ye.>r col!e<t ~nd return
PriceincVAT
"'" '''''
,." '''' £571
PnceexVAT
Detaols
£417
www.ac...-.co.uk www.msi,com
£432
V'II"ffl.dell.co.uk
"'"
wwwsarmung.com/uk
Suppli...- www.laptopsd irect.co,u k V'II"ffl.ilrgos.co.uk V'II"ffl.dell.co.uk www.lambd.l-tek.com/
cOlTlf?"""n~
Part number LX.PM90Z.Q89 CR610.(l13U~ NOO56403 NP-RSIlO-JSOlUK

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 BUDGET LAPTOPS

PACKARD BELL ACER SONY DELL SAMSUNG

Easynote TJ75 Aspire Vaio VPC-EB1SOEjWI Inspiron 1764 R780
7740-334GSOMn

***
Intel Core i3· 330M
***
IntelCIl<" i3-33OM
*****
Imel C~ i3- 330M
*****
lole/Core i5·43OM
*****
Intel Core i3-33OM
l.nGHz 2.13GHz 2.13GHz ;>.26GHz 2.1 3GHz
<OS <VS <VS -<GS <VS
2(0) 2 (0) 2(O} 2(0) 2{O)
6GS ,es BGS 6GS 6GS
38x37h25Omm 45x41 1><274mm
"""'' SOmm 33x42Ox276mm 4Ox411x273mm
l.7kg
Reattek HO Audio
,~....,
3.2kg
Reallek HD Audio
Touchpad
''''
Realtek HDAudio
Toochpad
''''
Reatlek HO Audio
Touchp.ld
"kg
Realtek HD Audio
Tournt':"d
'W 'W 'W 'W 'W
' OW lOW 2QW "W 'M

15.6;n widescreen LCD 17.lin widescreen LCD 1S.6in widescreoeo LCD 17.3'n widescreen LCD 17.3io widescret!01 LCD
An Mobility Radeoo HD 5470 InteiGMAHD ATI Mobmty Radeon HD 5470 InteiG MAH D Nvidi<! Gef~e GT 330M
VGA,HO MI VGA,HDM I VGA, HOM I VGA, HO MI YeA, HOM!
S12 MBde<:lic.Jted 128MB:;h.Jre<:i S' 2MB dediCilted 64MB:;h.J~ I,024MB dedk.Jte<:I
1.366x768
'""""""
64OG8(~B} SOOG B(453GB) SOOGB (455GB) 500GB (456GB) SOOG B(450GB)
HL-OHTGT30N HL-OT-STGTZON TEAC OV-W28S-V

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i i' i< Mini·jack audio output, mini-jack
i i' micropnooe input
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Wi ~ 7 Home ~m;um W;~ 7 Home ~;um Window; 7 Home PrflO;um WiO<.lows 7 Home ~;um Win<.k:tws 7 Home Pn:-m ium
64-bit 64· bit M-bit M -bit 32·bit
a.v.:kup ,,,,d fl!<we<y soItw~re B.xkup.md ~ wftware Restore p;!rtition B.xkup ar>d re<J:M!<"j wftw~re B.lckup ar>d ~ wftware

Adobe Photost>op Elements 7. Micr"05oftWO<'<!; 9, NTI Med i ~ Vaio Medi~ Plul-. Mkrowft Microsoft Worb 9 Micr050ft Wo<b 9
Mkrowft Works 9. Cyt>eri.ink
PowerOV08
Maker W"'"
03·megapiXf"l webeam O.3-mega pixel """beam O.3·meg<l~eI wetxam 13·megapiXf"l webeam 1.3-megaf>""" """beam
Extra battery. £132 Unknown Extra battery. £96

One ye~r RTB One year RTS One ye;lf RTB One ye~r wI!e<:1 ~nd retum One ye3f collect.md retum
£614 £653
""" '"00
'''''
£511
www.padardbellco.uk
£Sll
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£S2l
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www.delLco.u k
£SS2
www......"sung.comluk
www.pcwortd.co.uk www.l<Iplopsdirea,co.uk www,l;!mbdatek.co.uk/ www.dell.co.u k www.l<Iptopsd;fI!<lco.uk
wmpooenUh<.£/
Tj7S-jN-07OUK LX.PLY02.Q4S vPCeB1SOEIWI.CE K Not disdosed NP·R78()..jS02Uk

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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 Choosing a...
INTRODUCTION
Digital SLRs may be getting
Compact digital camera
chuper lind Micro FourThirds OU may think that digital compact cameras have sensor, so its performance at 12 megapi xels is stunning.
cameras may be reducing
the size of mode ls with
interchangeable lenses, but
Y reached II stage where any model will produce
high-quality shots, but you'd be wrong. While
the number of features in cheap camerils has been
However, the dever way that this sensor has been built
means that it can switch to a true 6-megapixel mode
(not just resize images) lor tile ultimate in low-light
neither is as small or as cheap incr~asing. th~ variation in quality is som~tim~s performance. This gives th~ F200EXR a lIexibility not
as II (om pact. If you want astounding. H~r~, we'll expl<lin what to !oct out lor and normally seen in compact digit<ll cameras.
something you can carry how to boy the right compact for your needs_
around with you all the time - VIDEO KilLED THE PHOTO STAR
or simply don't want the bulk SENSOR SENSIBILITY The whole point of a compact camera is to get
of II camera with II replacea ble We've long been campa igners against sensors with something that's small enough to carry around
lens - now's the ideal time to pointlessly larg~ megapixel ratings in compact cameras eV~l)Wher~.It"s unlik~ly tha t you'd also want to carry
buy II compact. for several reasons. Primarily. the Si l~ of a compact around a separate camcord~r, so a compact camera's
As you'Usee from this Labs, means that the sensors used are g~n~ra lly very small. video mode is very important if you want to be able to
the cost of compacU "', Compared to a digital SlR cam~ra. this typically means tak~ impromptu vid~os to upload to YouTube. To help
fallen, but their quality has that eaoch pixel receives less light on a compact, leading you chose the best camera for your needs, our table on
risen. The ru ult is that you ca n to poor-quality photos and image noise. A smaller page 115 tells you the maximum resolu tion and frame
buy II camera cheaply that's sensor wiU struggle in low light. rate at which each 01 the cameras can record video.
capable of great quality shou, As a result. the size of the sensor used is important. Compacts with 640x480 video resolutions are line
stunning HD video and more. as is the camera's image processing. Unfortunately, it's lor basic video, but with YouTube now supporting HD
hard to tell by specifications alon~ if a camera will content, a ?lOp (1 ,280x710) option is much more
produce high -quality images or not. exciting. Still, the specifications can't tell you
Ben Pitt Our reviews are here to help, though, and will tell ev~rything. so you'lI need to read our r~vi~ws to lind
Music and
photography expert you how good each cam~ra really is. look out for out how good each camera's video mode is. Our
cameras with spedal trick<;, too, such as Fuji/ilm's reviews will also tell you about the r~corded sound
Finepix F200EXR. This uses a larger than average '/,~in quality. an important aspect that is often glossed over.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 COMPACT DIGITAL CAMERAS

This month
PENTAX
Optio MaS
Page 112

CANON
PowerShot A495
Page112

PANASONIC
Lumix DMC-FPo
Page 112

OLYMPUS
W7010
Page113

PENTAX
Dptio POD
Page 113

CASIO
Exilim EX-Z2oD
Page 113

NIKON
Coolpix S570
Page114

SAM SUNG
PL70
Page 114

FUJIFILM
FinePix F2DDEXR
Page114

MORE MEMORY can take: the larger the second number, the option on a camera helps compenS<lte for
The vast majority of digital cameras come with a doser you can zoom in on an object. hand -shake and can make all the difference
smaU amount of onboard memory, but this is These ligures are just guidelines, and having a between taking a perfect shot and a badly
only ever enough for a couple of shots. To use larger zoom range doesn't necessarily mean blurred, O\.It-of-focus one.
your camera seriO\.lsly, you 'Uneed to buy a better qua!ity. In fact, it 's often the opposite, as Our reviews explain how effective a camera's
memory card. Pretty much every camera here it's diHicult to craft a lens's optics to produce stabilisation software is, aU about its ISO
supportS SDHC memory cards, which are cheaply decent results throughoot a high loom range. performance and how good its shots reaUy are.
available in sizes up to 32GB. Canon's PowerShot Finally, the aperture range tell<; you how
A495 is different as it uses SDXC - a new much light the lens can let into the camera. The SCREEN TEST
standard that 5UpportS memory cards larger than lower the number, tl>e more light comes in, With a compact, the only way to compose a
32GB. SDXC is backwards-compatible with 5DHC therefore the faster yO\.l can take a shot and help shot is to look al the screen on the bad., as no
and SD cards, so you can still use tl>ese cards in to eliminate motion blur. With a wider aperture modern models have a viewfinder. The !<lrger the
your camera. However, SDXC cards can't be used you can take shol5 in lower light conditions screen and the higher the pixel count, the easier
with existing SD and SDHC devices, so yO\.l'U "'Iithout having to resort to adjusting the sensor's it is to compose shots, as they'U more dosely
need to buy a new memory card reader if you sensitivity. A wider aperture win give yO\.l a resemble wha t yO\.l can see in real life. YO\.I 'n also
want to use this standard direcdy with yO\.lr PC. narrower depth of focus, While a n<!rrow aperture find that a larger screen makes it easier to view
Finally, Olympus has announced that its new win increase the exposure time and give yO\.l a shots once YO\.l've taken them and discard any
range of cameras wiU use SD memory cards, but greater depth of focus. Compacts can't compete that aren't of sufficiently high qua!ity.
its existing model<; stit! use the old xD standard. with the aperture range 01 DSLRs, but you should
These are relatively expensive and pertorm look for a camera with a wide aperture of around BATTERY LIFE
poorly, slowing the camera down , as you can 112.8 lor decent performance indoors and out. With compact cameras sma!! enough to carry
see from O\.Ir review of the Olympus. A camera's ISO range tell<; you how sensitive everywhere, it's important that their batteries
the sensor can be made to lighl. The lower the don't run out. Our table tell<; you the type of
UFE THROUGH A LENS number, the lower tl>e sensitivity and, hence, the battery that each camera ta~es, and how many
With compact cameras yO\.l 're stud with the higher the exposure time needs to be. ISO shots it wi!! last for. Most compact cameras use
lens they ship with, so it's importanl to get a seuings help you take pictures in low light, as U-ion batteries, which last longer than their AA
camera with the right modes. The zoom range you can boost the sensor's light sensitivity and counterparts. Li-ion spares ten d to be more
listed in our table on page 115 tell<; you Ihe shool at fast spee<ls. The trade-off is that higher expensive, IhO\.lgh, and have to be recharged -
zoom multiplier, but the 3Smm equivalent value ISO settings introduce more noise into a shot sometimes inside the camera body. Models that
in brackets is arguably more importanl. The Finally, look for optical image stabilisation to t.:lke AA batteries are less common, bUI these are
smaller the first number, the wider the shot you help steady low-light and high-zoom shots. This far simpler to replace wl>en out and about. @

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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COMPACT DIGITAL CAMERAS

PENTAX CANON
Optio M85 PowerShot A495
**
£95 inc VAT
***
£111 inc VAT
****
£120 inc VAT
From www.bri stolcameras.co.uk From www.lambda-tek .com/ From www.play.com
componentshop
With ils M8S, Pent~x appears to be going aU The FPS's aluminium body is slim, stylish and
out to provide the most impressive ~cs for With most cameras at this price using reassuringly tough. We love the red finish, but
the lowest possible price. Inside the slim, 12-megapi><e1 sensors, Canon dese.ws high it's also available in black ex silver.
aluminium she/fillere's a massive 3in screen praise for bucking the OIIe rall trend with a It's remarkably well equipped for such a
and li ->on battery, and it can even record 720p 10-megapixel model. That"s more than cheap camera. 8attery life is great at 380 shots.
HO video - nOI bad for a mere £95. enough detail for a compact camera, and and the optical stabilisation system is
The screen's viewing angles aren 't great. should result in less noise in low ~ght. exceptionally effective, keeping around 80 per
though, becoming washed out when viewed This model was announced in January 2010 cent of shots sharp when loomed right in and
from above and turning into a surreal negative and is only just appearing in the shops. using a '/...second shutter speed. The 720p HO
image at other angles. VieWl'd head on, the Howe\ler, other than its support for SOXC cards video mode is anotller highlight, with sharp
screen produces a bright. vivid image, and (for capacities over SOH('s 32GB limit), the details, low noise, smooth automatic exposure,
brings a ~n~ of luxury to the camera. $<Idly, design seems quite dated. "'s small but chunky, continuous autofocus and access to the optical
the S<lme can', be said for its controls. The thanks in part to the use of AA balleries. These zoom. Sound quality isn·t fantastic but it
plastic mode dialloob cheap and the zoom are cumbersome compared to ali-ion doesn't spoil the show,
rocker that encircles the shutter release button rechargeable ballery, and they"re slow to Performance is excellent, too. We measured
feels fairly loose and indistinct. recharge the flash - we measured around six just 1.5 seconds between switching on and
UnlOitunalely, the 720p video mode is seconds between shots when illuminating capturing a shot, and subsequent frames
crippled by a 1Sfps frame rate, produdng very subjects at dose distance. and over 12 seconds arrived every 1.7 seconds. The l.Sfps
jerky results. To achieve a smooth 30fps, the when using the flash at full power. continuous mode lasted for just three shots,
resolution must be dropped to VGA. This is The ZVzin screen is the smallest ~·ve seen but after a couple of seconds it was ready to
particularly disappointing because picture for many months. The lens lacks optical capture three more. The Pf8 is also highly
quality is actually pretty good. despite the stabilisation or the wide-angle shooting that"s efficient when it comes to adjusting settings.
fixed-focus loom and poor sound quality. increasingly common among compact with a Quick Menu button providing direct
The MaS ditches Pentax's long-standing cameras. Its lcm macro mode is impressive. access to key photographic Options. The
menu system in f<lllour of one where options capturing details that are smaller than tile eye buttons are backlit for visibility in low light but
woU across the bottom of the screen. We can see. We 're also pleased to see that there·s their labels aren·t. so thiS is helpful only once
found this disorientating to navigate compared an orientation sensor for detecting when you've leamed what they all do. Tile screen
to the old system of discrete menu pages. photos h<llle been shot in portrait orientation could be better, with poor colour reproduction
There are some surprisingly advanced leatures. - a rarity at this price. As well as tagging when viewed at anything other than head on.
including exposure bracketing. but no manual photos for correct orientation on a pc, it 's used The lens and digital image processing
white balance option. Performance is excellent. to rotate shots during playback on the camera. performed superbly in our tests. producing
with just 1.9 seconds between shots. but tile When a portrait -sha~d photo appears, tuming sharp details and natural colours in a wide
flash slows it down to around nine seconds tile camera on its side ma~es it fiU the screen. range of shooting conditions. The sensor was
when firing at full power. However, the 0.9fps Image quality in most of our tests was the weak point, though, exhibiting a little noise
continuous mode is excellent at this price. exceUent. with well-judged automatic even in bright light and lots of it when low ~ght
Image quali ty in our tests was poor. even exposures and sharp focus into the comers at dem~nded high ISO speeds. Pan<lsonic's noise
lor a camera as cheap as this. Contrast was all zoom positions. Details fell away sharply in redu ction did an excellent job of disguising it,
overcocied, resulting in lost highlights. murky low light at high ISO sensit ivities. but noise however. and overall image quality was better
shadows and unnatural-looking colours. Focus wasn·t excessive, and nor were the surreal than average for a camera with a 12-megapixel
tended to be a little soft and low-light shots splodges of noise-reduction artefacts suffered 'I,,,in sensex. The superior stabilisation helped.
were ho~lessly blurred as noise-reduction by most 12-megapixel compact cameras. too, as it meant that high ISO sensitivities were
processing oblitera ted noise and details in There's nothing wrong with the A49S. and necessary less often,
equal measure. AI least the automatic if the price falls well below f 100 we·d have no We can·t bring ourselves to recommend
exposure settings were well judged. making the reservations recommending it. However. by the this camera unreservedly because of its noise
most of the camera's limited potential. time you 've budgeted for AA batteries and a problems. However, if your budget is
The MaS is almost a bargain. but image charger. for the same money you could buy particularly tight and HO video is an absolute
quality flaws mean its strengths are immaterial Panasonic's vastly more capable FP8. must , then the FP8 is an excellent choice.

SUMMARY SUMMARY SUMMARY

VERDlCT Trie, 10 provide 100 much I", 100 liltle- VlRDICT A """'pet",,1 bud~ "'~pp'''. b<Jt tho VEROICT Wfth • sled< o.",n, I""t performanc.
,"dly. lmag.. qUluty Is "".rlook<'"d. R.placlng prlc. I.n~ a< low IS tho ba<lc d",lgn "'~<I$. Ind g"'" fellu.... lndudlng 720p .,;0.0. _ coold
m.nus witll. scrolling opr>on. sysl"'" i. confusing Spending a Uttle .... lra wiU get yo<l • lot mo", Ii .... with the fPS's u"",mri;tble image qu;t/ity
COMP...cT OIGIT"L u.MEAA 12 mogap<xols. 3. "I'lic. 1 COMP...cT DIGIT... LU,MEAA 10 m.&iIfIIx.... 3,3, "I'tical COMP... CT DIGIT..... C... MEAA 12 mogop ixols. 4.6x"l'I><.1
"""" (32-_ ) . 3in LC~. Li ·ion botlety. S~h9O>19mm. zoom (3T. 1Umm), l'hin tCo. 2lc M bonery. 'oom (28· 128mm). V in tCo. Li ·ion bonery,
12~g. ""'.YU' RTlI ~"''Y 6.2<94x31mm. lTSg. """ .YU' RllI YmTon'Y 6Ox96.<2<Im-n, 131&, _ .~ .., RT B ...."..,,'Y
PART COO£ 15&-101 PART COO£ 42S9B010M PAilT CODE Ot1C-fP8EB-~
DET.u.5 www.j>Mwc.co.uI: DETAIlS www.<.>oon.cQ.uk DlT.... LS www . ~ >< . <o-" k

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 COMPACT OIGITAL CAMERAS

-
OLYMPUS PENTAX CASIO
1-1-70 10 Optio P80 Exi lim EX-Z280
***
£130 inc VAT
From www.c:amerabox.co.uk
***
£132 inc VAT
From www.amazon_co_uk
**
£134 inc VAT
From www.amazon_co.uk

The pla~tjc ~ - 701O isn 't as alluring as its The P80 is incredibly sm all and light. and its The Z2S0 is a good reminder of how much the
aluminium-dad rivals, but there are a lew curved metal body has a sophistica ted camera market has changed in recent months.
strips of metal to reinforce it and the overall elegance that few camera manufacturers With it<; 12-megapixel sensor, svelte, brushed
effect is reasonably smart. The 2.7;n SCfel'O has manage to pull off. It's well specified, too, with aluminium body, wide-angle lens, optical
excellent viewing angles and the backlit nop video recording and a wide-angle lens image stabilisation and HD video mode, it<;
buttons add a tooch of class to proceedings. with an 112.6 maximum aperture that's a little sub-£ l50 price is remarkable.
We were delighted to find a lx loom lens and wider than most of the other cameras on test. For one thing. it<; video capabilities are
optical stabilisation in such a compact, We like HO ~ideo modes on digital cameras, particularly impressive, capturing 720p HO
low-price camera. The 170-shot battery life but the P80 's isn't the best. Focus was fixed for video at a film-li ke Nfps, and with high-quality
isn't so impressive, though. the duration of dips, as was the optical loom , sound recorded at the same 44.1 ~Hz sample
Olympus has finally a<lmitled defeat and relying instead on a digit al 100m that produced rate used by audio CDs. With a dedicated ~ideo
will be switching from the slow, expensive xD blocky results, Noise was a big problem in low button, there 's no need to switch modes when
card formal to SDHC in its neKt batch of light, and the 8kHz audio sample ra te meant f(jpping from stills to video capture. Video clips
camer3S. However, the 7010 st ill u~s xD . At that sound quality was extremely basic. were sharp and well exposed, but darker areas
least there's an adaptor indude<l for using a There's no optical image stabilisation for were noisy , even when shooting outdoors.
microSD card. Performance was terrible when counteracting camera shake, either. Instead, Sadly, the Z2S0 is less successful when it
using xD, with up to eight seconds between Pentax offers a feature called Pixel Track SR. comes to taking photos. It's painfully lethargic.
shots, but it mar\(edly impro~ed with microSD, The name suggests that it's more sophisticated taking an average of 4,4 seconds between
increasing to 2,8 seconds. That's still nothing to than most electronic stabilisation techniques, shoH in normal use, and this rises to 6.1
write home about. though. Continuous which usually just involve hiking up the ISO seconds when using the flash. The continuous
shoot ing lasted for just two shots, but a speed. Howe~er, the results aren 't really very mode ran at 0. 3fps - that's more than three
High-Speed mode managed 22 shots at l1fps different at all, with heavy digital processing seconds between each photo, and hardly
by dropping to three megapixels. The slow ironing out many of the details in shots. constitutes a continuous mode at aiL Howe~r,
performance also accounts for the lack of HD Pixel Track SR takes a heavy toll on ~n alternati~ mode, labelled High Speed CS,
~ideo capture, The 701O's ~ideos are aU shot at performance, but even without it, the PSO is offers some compensation by capturing eight
basic 'IGA resolution with fixed loom and slow. It took around lour seconds on a~rage two-megapixel shots at 3.8fps.
focus and wnsistentiy poor sound, but the between shots, but this delay was lar from Our image quality tests revealed lurther
o~erall picture quality was otherwise OK. regular, sometimes taking up to six seconds. problems. Outdoor shOH in bright light were
Our dis~ke for compact cameras with Continuous shooting lasted for just two frames generally impreS5ive, but the lens produced
pointlessly high resolutions is well documented, at the highest quality setting. although chromatic aberrations in the corners of frames,
but even compared to similarly specified dropping the resolution increased this to five. re50lting in indistinct details and halos of
cameras the 7010's test shots failed to impress. The lens displayed sharp focus acroll its discolouration around high-contrast lines. E~en
Focus was poor towards the comers of frames entire worn range and, while the preview at the lowest ISO speed of 64, quite a lot of
at wide-angle loom settings, and a little soft image exhibited heary pincushion distortion at noise was ~isi ble, particularly around sharp
acroS5 the frame in telephoto shots. The wide-angle settings, the sa~d picture was details where the digital noise reduction
camera also struggled to cope with dense corrected digitally. Colours were a little appeared to be struggling to distinguish details
teKtures 50ch as foliage. Shots taken under over<;aturated lor our tastes, but it was possible and noise from each other. Worst of all were
artificial light h<>d an unpleasant yellow cast. to rein this in. Howe~er, we also found that we the photos taken indoors, with flailing noise
and outdoor images lacked the ~ibrancy of had to adjust the white balance under artificial reduction leading to grubby-looking results
other cameras' shot5. As usual for this type of light to avoid an unpleasant yellow cast to with barely any fine details, Colour
camera, noise was a big problem at high ISO pictures. High-ISO shot<; suffered badly Irom reproduction was exceUent when shooting
speeds. Although noise reduction did a decent noise, but no more than is usual for a under artiliciallight. but it was too late to
job of hiding it, it also obliterated a lot of fine 12-megapixel compact camera. salvage a good report lor image quality.
detail in the process. Shots at the top ISO 1600 OveralL the PSO's image quality sits in the The Z280's specifica tions and price are
setting were particularly ugly. middle of tMe p<tek at this price, but with poor tantalising. but by struggling in two of the
At this price, it's best to settle for a sma ller perlormance and highly disappointing video, most important areas - image quality and
loom range in a better all -round camera. there are far better options a~ailable. performance - it does it<;elf no favours.

SUMMARY SUMMARY SUMMARY

VERDICT The 7. toom i, worth n,lIing. but ot h..- VERDlCT We love the dinky d.,ign , but t here', VERDICT This i, ~ ClImer. that look> Ilnt.51ic
cameras offer bett.r Imag. q<Jality and Un!. e ls. to make thl' camera <land out from I on pape', bui lt', considerably Ie.. SO In practlcr:
perform.nce for me .. m. price glul of very ,imilMly specifH!d rival, image quality being the m. in ", ...I:-no ..

COMPACT DIGITAl CAMERA 11,6 megap i ,e!~ 7, optkal COMPACT DIGITAL CAMERA 12 "",g.op i ,e!~ 4, optkal COHP"'CTDlGIT"'lCAHERA 12 ""'&,pi •• I5,4, optkol.
IOOm (,a-l _ ), Vin leD,U -ion brnt<y, IOOm (<1.S-11Omm), Vin LCo.li-ion bottt<y, IOOm (26-10""""), l .T'" lCO, U-ion bottOf)',
S6x9a. 2t;mm, 12Sg, _ _y..r RTB .... ...MIt)' S4x97x22mm, 10Sg, _ _~ • ..-RTB ",.mlnty SSx9&c2Omm, 112£ on0-yNf ItTB wom.nty
PAItT CODE ~lS96l92 P"'1tT CODE 178S2 PAATCOOE EX-Z280SR!:o.o
DETAIL5 www.olymp"s.co.uk DETAIL5 www.pom... <o.uk LO_~_~
__- __~
_·'_WC_
·_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _~ e
MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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COMPACT DIGITAL CAMERAS

NIKON SAMSUNG FUJIFILM

Coolpix S570 PL70 FinePix F200EXR
***
£135 inc VAT
****
£157 inc VAT
*****
£163 inc VAT
~~ .
From www.amazon.co.uk From www.dabs..com From www_pixmania.co_uk

The SS70'~ met~l body (ooh sm~rt but it's not The PL70 is a tad chunkier than average, but its Fujifilm's FinePix F200EXR has been available
a particularly striking design. It's far more brushed aluminium front looks elegant. It 's just for over a year, but it still has the best image
eye -catching in black, blue. red or pink linishes. as impressive around the back. with a 3in LCD quality of any compact camera at any price.
The price quoted ablM' is for the re<l model screen and a twist dial fc>r quick access to its bar SLR-compact hybrids costing over £SOO.
the silver finish we were sent 10<" testing sells various shooting modes. A Function button The key to its success is its innovative
for £ 150 as we go to press. provides quick access to key photographic sensor design, which can switch between 12
Most of the 5570'5 features are typical for a controls. with other settings stowed away and six megapixels (and not simply by resiling
low-cost compact camera, with a behind the Menu button_ the 12-megapixel image). The 12-megapixel
12-megapixel sensor, VGA video capture, 2.7in Optical image stabilisation is included. but mode is best fO<" capturing sharp details in
screen and Li-ion battery that manages just we found it to be less effective than rival bright light, while the six-megapixel mode
220 shots per charge. The lens is more systems. managing only a 60 per cent success helps minimise noise in low light. A third
impress;ve, with a Sx zoom range st"rting al a r~te at the full zoom extension and a option produces six-megapixel image~ with a
wide-angle 28mm focal length. Its 112.7 '!,,-second shutter speed (over 90 per cent is high dynamic range, capturing more highlight
maximum aperture lor wide-angle shots is common). Combining it with electronic detail than other camera~ can muster.
bigger than most, capturing more light for stabilisation improved the success rate to 80 These groundbreaking innovations are
better images in gloomy conditions. However. per cent but crippled performance and made Ncked up by some great features. There's a Sx
1/6.6 at the telephoto end is ,maUer than usoal. various other settings inaccessible. OthelWise, wide-angle zoom len$, optical stabilisation to
The conlrol~ are 5parse, with no metering perlormarxe wa~ genera lly decent, but the avoid blurry shots, a 3in screen and a manual
modes, dynamic-range JXoce~~ing or other flash took up to eight seconds to recharge and exposure mode . Our only disappointment is
advanwl features to worry about. but this fire again. Continuous shooting was fast at that video is recorded at the standard VGA
keeps the menu simple and quick to navigate. lfps, but the screen was blank while shooting. resolution rather than lZOp HD.
The ISO speed control is more sophisticated It's great to see lZOp HO video at this price, Perlormance wasn't astounding. taking 3.4
than mOil, though. A Fixed Range Auto option and even better when it 's recorded in the seconds to switch on and capture a photo.
lets you specify the maximum ISO speed that's memory-saving AVC format with stereo AAC Successive shots started 1.6 seconds apart but.
aRowed - 400 or 800 - without having to set sound. However, it was let down slightly by aner three shots, slowed to 2.8 seconds apart.
the speed manually for each shot The Auto fixed focus throughout the length of clips and Continuous shooting ran at Z.5fps for three
ISO mode u~es 5peed~ up to 1600. so between noise problems when shooting in low light. frames. or O.Sfps ongoing. Thi~ i~ disappointing
these three options there 's a healthy amount The 12- megapixe~ '{" in sensor posed considering the camera's other strengths, but
of flexibility. Sadly, the camera's choice of ISO serious problems in terms of image noise in it's not unusual at this price.
speeds within the selected range was onen photos, too. However, 5amsung's digital Image quality is what this camera is all
ill-advised. It even ignored our wishes at times. processing handled it better than usual. Fine about. Innovations aside. its sensor has over
jumping to ISO 800 when we had selected 150 details had a syrupy texture, but othelWise twice the surface area of those in nearly all
400 as the limit photos looked impressively dean. particularly other compact cameras. and paired with an
Otherwise, the 5570 put in a solid in high-contrast lines. The lens perlormed weU, excellent lens, it produced incredibly sharp
perlormance in our image-quality tests, but it too. producing sharp focus across the frame 12-megapixel photos. Low-light shots showed
failed to di~tingui5h it~elf ag~inst similarly with no bad photos among our test shots. the biggest difference, though. Even at 12
priced competitors. Not surprisingly, low-light The Pl70 has a lot in common with megapi xels it was way ahead of the
shots were an woefully lacking in fine det<!il. Panasonic's FP8: 12-megapixel photos. 720p competition. with a little noise. but excellent
but at least image noise had been largely videos, optical stabilisation and a wide-angle retention of details. At six megapixels it was
eradicated at the same time. lens. The FP8 costs nearly £40 less. ha~ a longer even better. Flash photography was less
The 5570 does little wrong. but even at this battery life, superior video quality and more impressive as the camera switched to
price it'~ entirely rea~onable to expect quite a effective optical stabilisation. The PL70 has a unnecessarily high ISO speeds. but adjusting
lot more for your money. The 5x zoom bigger, better screen and superior still image this manually quickly fixed the problem.
wide-angle lens is the S570's best feature, but qua~ty. Either is equally deseJVing of your We loved the F200EXR when it cost £270.
many other cameras at this price ofter the money, but bear in mind that Fujifilm's At just £ 163, it's incredible value and miles
same lens specification, while providing fantastic FZOOEXR (right) costs just a lew ahead of its competitors. If you 're looking to
superior image quality, better features or both. pounds extra and does a whole lot more. buy a compact camera, this is the one to go for.

SUMMARY SUMMARY SUMMARY

VERDICT The 5x zoom w;de-.nglelen$ i, • VERDICT A um.,,~ not with.,.,t jt, ft.w., bul high VEROICT Wjth im~ge qu~lfty tnat". way .he~d of
w.lcome featil~. but lhere'$ nothing else h.... Image qual.ily atld nOp HO vide" ~'" atI the p~d. fle,INe controls .nd a great Sel of
lh~1 _".~nl$. ~commefl<i.llion imp",,,;"e COmbinalion ~ Ihi. p<ice lutu",., mi. i, atI uni>e'I~bie b<Jy

COMP...cr DIGIT"L CAMERA 12 meg-pix.... 5, op ~coI COMP"CT DIGIT"L U,MERA 12 m<goIp<_<b, 5• .",li<oI COMP"CT DIGrf..... C"MERA 12 m<g." ix<b, 5_.",1... 1
worn (28-14Omm). 2.lin lCO, U-ion bottOf)'. worn (2S-14Omm). 3in lCO, U-ion blIttery. 6O<96. Z"""'. 'oom (Z8-14Omm), U-ion bottery, 59x98><./3mm. 175g.
OfH! __ RTB WiOfJonty
Sl!<9Z,22mm. 120g. ono-y'" RTBYmT.nty U9g. ""'-YO'" RIB WiOffonty
P"RTCOOE VMA590EI PART CODE ECPL10ZZSPSCS PAATCOOE Pl0NC0129OA
0ET.u.5 wwwnlon.co.... 0ETAA.li www...... '"ngc.",. ~ co . u~ DlT.... LS www.f"jimm.co."~

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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COMPUTER RECYCLING

wasn't suppose<! to be li~e this_Under the

t If you have an old PC or laptop - or any other
Your shiny new PC has much -heralded European Union directive, the piece 01 electri~1 equipment lor that matter
arrived and it's time to Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment - then y()(J have a .social and legal responsibility
(WEEE) Regulations. our old computers, to dispose 01 it appropriately. In this feature, we
give your old one the printers and technological gizmos were meant look at your three main choices: sen it, give it
to b<lsk in a green glow as they ascended , at the away or recycle it.
boot, but what do you do end of their life, to a better place_Aglorious The environmental pressure group
place where they could be dismantled, recycled Gr~npeace is dear as to which is the ~t
with something even the and put to new purpose. option. "It's almost always better to upgrade old
bin man turns his nose up While most of us benefit from a doorstop equipment where possible than to recycle:
recycling scheme, confusion still reigns when it explained Tom Dowdall, greener electronics
at? Tim Danton talks you comes to our computing paraphernalia: what do campaign coordinator for the organisation. "but
Wf!: do with these once -cherished items when how long this is possible depends on the use of
through your options they reach the end of their useful ~fe? Many the Pc. Some studies reveal that reusing a
people don't realise that simply throwing them computer is 20 times more effective at saving
in the bin is illegal life-cycle energy use than recycling.-
The IT in dustry is responsible lor a huge We're going to eKplore aU the options to
amount of waste, much of it dangerous: tOKins discover wha t you can do with your PC: from
leach into the earth, heavy metal!; lind their way selling it. to the numerous ways Y()(J can give
into normal waste dumps and flame retardants y()(Jr PC away, until finally we reach the part
generate hanmful gases as they're incinerated. we 're trying to avoid: how to recycle your Pc.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 COMPUTER RECYCLING

BEFOREYOU DO ANYTHING ELSE •.• your data is to follow our advice in the 'Destroy The key to a high-qua lity photo is the
Whether you seU or gi~e away your PC. there are your data!' box on page 119. Even if you trust lighting; make sure you choose as bright a room
some ground J\Iles to co~r. While you own the the persoo you're passing your computer to. they as '100 can. Photo-editing software can help to
h~rdw~re and GIn do with it what you wish. the might accidentally lea~e the PC vulnerable to make photos more vibrant. but they can't add
software is a different matter. hackers who could recover your personal details. detail that was lost due to dark conditions.
When you buy or build ~ Windows PC. you're If you ha~e a Windows restore disc suppl ied You can also ad d eKlra photos. and we
using Microsoft·s software on the basis of a by your computer's manufacturer, the process recommend you do so. eBay charges eXIra for
licen~. You won't get into any trouble with should be easy: 51ip the dis<: into your drive an d hosting addition al photos. but the more you Ciln
Microsoft if you sen or give away your system. choose the option to boot straight from the make someone feel they know exactly what
Indeed. when we cont~cted the company it optical drive. To stop the computer from they're getting. the more likely they are to bid,
positively encouraged the reuse of old PCs. automatically booting into Windows as usual. You can even add photos to your eBay listing for
"I do belie~ that keeping PCs in Circulation is you may need to interrupt the bootup process by free by hosting them yourself - say. on your blog
a great thing for people and the environment pressing ~Iete or one of the function keys. - and then following eBay's instructions for
alike: said laurence Painell, Windows OEM and If no dis<: was supplied with yoor computer, linking them to the auction page. Visit http://
WGA product m~nager. But he ~Iso went on to you may find a hidden option - aga in accessed tinyurl,comlebayphoto for more information.
say' "Individuals n~d to ensure that they are by hitting the ~Iete key or a function key during Then we come to the words. You're there to
using genuine Windovvs operating systems as bootup - of restoring th e PC to its filCtory 5eIL so bring out the best points at the start to
it offers users the quality they expect and settings via a hidden partition on the hard disk. lure buyers in. Don't be tempted to gloss over
~dditional benefits such as full ~cce5S to Some manufacturers supply a plain Windows any d~m age or possible drawbacks. however. as
downloads. upda tes and enhanced fea tures: installation disc instead. The disadvantage of this this will create negative feedback.
Microsoft·s offiCial guidance follows similar is that it won't necessarily include all the drivers The linal point coocerns being specific. For a
lines. stating that the entire PC "may be your computer needs. 50ch as for the graphics PC or laptop. people will want to know not just
transferred to another end user. along with the card and network adaptor. In the worst-case that it's a 2.6GHl ~U; they'll want to know the
software licence rights. When transferring the PC scenario you have to locate those drivers exact model and the key specifications. You
to the new end user. the following must be Irom the internet ~ia another. working Pc. should also make it clear which version 01
included: original software media; manuals (if However. instaUation is otherwise relati~ely Windows is (or isn't) included. and that they
app~cable); Certificate of Authenticity (COA).· stra ightfo<ward. Boot from the disc and. when will receive aU the necessary p.1perwork.
If you bought your PC from a manufacturer. prompted, choose a fresh install of Windows. You may not need to enter all the
such as Dell or Mesh. the COA will almost Wh at if you choose to wipe your hard disk specifications yourself. If it's a PC or laptop
certainly take the form of a stider on the side of but don't ha~e a Windows disc and Gln't find that's already in eBay's product database, then
the main chassis. If you built it yourself, it's any hidden partitions? Then, unfortunately, you you can link your listing to the product - this will
probably sitting in a ceUophime wrapper along either have to choose a free operating system. then prefill ~ital details and pro~ide photos.
with the warranty information. such as Ubuntu Linu)(, or leave the next user with To check if your kit is in eBay's database, click
With any Iud. you mould also find the the task of buying and installing Windows. on the Find your product link under the PrefiUed
receipt or purchase invoke hi ding away there, So now, with your PC ready to m~t its new item information se<:tion of the Sell Your Item
too, Microsoft recommends that such proof of owner. it 's time to work out who th~t ludy form. You can then enter the part number (or
purchase is also passed on to the next owner. person witl be. fa iling that. the brand or product name) and your
and goes 00 to wam that the "original end user listing will be attached to eBay's existing product
cannot keep any copies of the software". npTm~r 1: SEU. IT information page for that product.
So with the paperworl< in order. it's time to There's one ~ery obvious lirst stop when it This also works well for products such as
ready the machine itself. and that means comes to selling your computer. eBay (IIMW. digital cameras. which are ideal for selling on
remo~ing all your personal files. You'll want to ebay.co.uk). At any 001' time. yoo'U find around eBay as they often retain their value. but don't
keep copies of these files for yourseU - check out 20.000 laptops and 15.000 desktop PCs being expect great success from old printers, for
the tutorial on page 131 to find out how to offered for sale. so it's dearly a vibrant place- example. After all. why woold anyone pay
transfer them from ~ Windows XP or Vista PC but equally. there's ~ lot of competition. So how even £10 for an old printer when they can buy
to a shiny new Windows 7 system. do you get the best possible price? a new one for as little as BO?
When it's time to start erasing. don't just First of aU, you shou ld follow the u50ai good There are a coople of extra things to coosider
head to My Documents. select aU the contents practice for selling on eBay. We created a whole that might help you make more money. first.
and dick ~Iete. A computer collects all sorts of book on this subject (The Inde~ndent UK Guide search eBay for computers similar to yoors: it
hidden information. whether it's your browsing to eBaylOIO.ISBN 1906372861. f7.99). but the may be worth more than you think. Also,
history - complete with passwords - or files you main points can be boiled down to photography. consider offering a Cilsh-ooly option if people Ciln
thought you 'd deleted. The safest way to protect the words you use. and being specific. pi d up your computer. With courier costs of e
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pr .... bullt PCs. Make sure i t's pa ssed on wit~ your old compoter, 01' t l\(! ... You may make mOl''' monev from you r old computer by selling IndiYldua l
c<>Pv of Windows won1 be va<1d components on eBav rath .... tllan t<Y!ng to sell the whole ~

MA.Y 2010 ' COMPUrERSHOPPER

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COMPUTER RECYCLING

around £20 for a typical pc, that could make -4 II your old PC Is
your listing look a whole lot more atlractive. of a Mgh enough
spec, Computer Aid
DEspite following the best practice for your
wil l tak,,'t and give
PC described above. you may still find that ~ a new ~ase olille
no-one bids for your item. This is especially true in another par! of
for home-built systems, where you don 't have thewot1d
the helping hand of a brand to lall back on.
In this case, you may find it's more pro/itable

----_..".- --
to sen the individual components. MemO<)' and
hard di5ks remain popular items on 1'8ay, and
you may even find that your motherboard and
case have some value.
There are numerous other online auction
sill'S catering lor the UK. CQout (www.cqout
com) can't match e8ay lor sheer numbers, but it
has the advantage 01 free listings. The name Loot
(www.loot.com)willalsobefamiliarto.myone
----
--_...__..---.--
-~-
~---.-
~-
_-_.
......--.--
who's been flat-hunting in London, and again
oHers free listin&5. such as Computer Aid (www.computeraid.org). dedicated to finding work opportunities for
This UK -registered charity reuses IT equipment in people with disabilities and other barriers to
(]pmnl 2: GIVE IT I'Wity educational. healthC<lre and community projects employment. and has an e-cycle arm that
Perhaps no-one wanted to buy your computer. in over 100 developing countries. recycles computers. Individuals can donate their
Perhaps YOO 're feeling that the spirit of "There's no need to do anything to prepare old Pes to the charity by dropping them off at
generosity still runs throogh your veins. the computers before sending them to us." one of its recycle site locations, but note that
Perhaps yoo can't be bothered to grapple with explains Sion Jones. the charity's PC Donations there's a £ 10 lee and the locations are currently
eBay for the sake of a lew quid. Whatever and Logistic.s Officer. ·Computer Aid data -wipes limited to Preston, Heywood (near Manchester),
your motivation. the most appealing option all equipment received to US MWtary standards Barking in East London and Porth near Cardiff.
for many people is to give the PC away to a using Communications Electronic Security Be careful if you opt to give yoor old PC to
friend 0( relative. Group (CE5G)-approved software. We provide an organisa tion whose histoty you don 't know.
One dra'-"ibad of this forced. benevolent or an easy and sustainable solution to disposing It's relat .... ely easy to become a registered
lazy act is that you risk becoming the only of IT equipment; donors of equipment don't charity, but not ali of them are transparent
soorce of techniC<lI support for the next owner. need to do anything." with what happens to the money they make.
We recommend that you prepare the computer One problem you may have, however, is 50 how do yoo choose?
in 3S strong a position it can possibly be. Load meeting the specification required by Computer As a minimum. _ recommend that you
it up with free malware protection. such as Aid: it can only reuse PCs that have a 1.4GHz or find them on the list of Community Microsoft
Microsoft Se-=urity bsentials. You should also higher processor speed. It' s not only interested in Authorised Refurbishers. found at hccp;//tillyurl.
ensure that Windows Updates are set to install PCs, thoogh: ·We can reuse mon itors that were com/re/uroishefI. This not only means they've
automatically. We wouldn 't recommend passing manufactured in 2002 or later. and we also need passed Microsoft's accreditation process. it also
on a system that's running Windows 98 or mice, cables and keyboards,· says Jones. means they qual ify fO( free copies of Windows
earlier; this is now too vulnerable to internet- So how do you get yoor computers to and Office. It's still important to provide proof
bome threats, and the recipient won't be too Computer Aid? Businesses are _II catered fO(, of an existing Windows licence, thoogh . as that
impressed when they discover they can't run with a UK-wide collection .\eIYice (you 'll be means Windows XP will be supplied rather than
modem software on it anyway. asked for a donation to help cover the cost of Windows 2000.
With these measures in place. make it dear the van and driver). but ind .... iduals can also The final consideration is to check what
to your friend or relative that this PC doesn 't .send their kit. ·We ask that they check their happens to your computer once its n........ users
come with a lifetime support package. It's hard equipment against the minimum specifications have finished with it. It it's going abroa d. fO(
enough keeping your own PC in good health for reuse. then they can either drop the instance. will it end up being dumped in a
withoot wOrl)'ing about its predecessors, too. equipment oft at our warehouse in north London landfill in five years' time?
or send the equipment to us using a courier.· If you use Computer Aid. there 's a good
GIVEYOUR PCTOCHARITY says Jones. If you have any questions about the chance the PC will be .sent to a recycling centre
The good news is that it 's actually easier to give scheme. email sion@computeraid.org. in the future. ·Computer Aid has been lobbying
a PC away to charity than it is to give it away to Many other charities are available. For fO( e-waste solutions in the UK and o~erseas and
friends. especiaUy if you choose an organisation example. Remploy (www.remp/oy.co.uk)is has been involved in establishing East Africa 's

WilY IIIIT liSE ynllil nUl P[: :nll snMETlllll[; ELSE'?

n the P~\t we 've written fe~hlre\ ~bout th e internet. weh a\ the Bees iPlayer and hardw~ re fi rewa ll in between the modem
how to turn you r old. unloved computer YouTube. requ ires decent hardware to fUn and your Pc. But now almost everyone uSeS
into som eth ing mo re useful inlte<l(j. S~d ly . ~ wire less or wi red router th~t indudes a
we just don 't th i n~ it 's pract ica l any mole ~ fiLE STORAGE Why not slap a couple hardwa re fi rewa ll as standard. What's more.
Cons ider the space cons umed by wh iff ing l1....lei of hard disks into your old PC. co nnect Windows XP SP3. Vist3 and 7 alt include a
beige boxes, not to ment ion the power they ;tto your "etwork and then use it to decent software firewall. too .
coniumI'. In most cas es. it now ma kes more stor e mus ic and photo,> For one. beca us" it's a
sense to buy dedi(3!ed dev ices. w31te of energy, part icu larly if your PC ulel an - PRINT SERVER The idea beh ind th is
older. energy· chomp ing processOf. Ded ic3ted et was simple enough: if you hod a few
IF'l\ DEDICATED INTERNET COMPUTER devices such as the Raidson ic IcyBox (see Labs, PCs on one network, you could hook
~ You could 1030 Windows or L,n ux on Shopper 247]. on the othe, hand. cost I"ss up a pri nte r to on old PC. shore it through
an old PC and th en turn that computer than £ 100, they're faste r and they support software ,md then let everyon e print viii th~t
into your internet system. perhaps keeping vita l standards like UPnP compu ter. However. Windows now mahs it
it in 11 diffe rent room to your ma in PC eilsy to sh3fe pr inters over ~ network. ~nd
However, we 're not conv inced that the INTERNET FIREWALL When everyone many pr inters (an connect di rectly to a
hassle of keeping an old PC updated and w~s us ing ~ S6K modem to connect to network, so the re's no need to leave one
patched is worth it, eSr>ec ially when much of the internet. it made SenSe to have a PC on all the time just for pr int dut ies. I...IIIIIlIIIii

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 COMPUTER RECYCLING

first e~waste recycling plant in Nairobi, Kenya:

'WIys Jones. "The plant provides sustairlable
solutions forWEEE once true end-of"lile is
reiKhed: Computer Aid is also WOfting with a
partner to set up a similar ctI'ltn! in Zambia.

GIVEYOUR PCTOAMUSEUM
1/ you think your compuW is somethng a
little bit out 01 tile ordinary. then the Museum
of Computing (www.museumofcompttting.org.
uk). in Swindon. Wiltshire. might be intet"t5t~
in taking it.
VJhen we ask~ if it h~ a list of dtsifable kit,
Simon Webb. wrator of the museum, replied:
· We don't have a list, but if somebody contacts
us by email or telephone, we can let tllem mow
if it's of intereSlto us. As well as computers,
we 're also interested in games consoles,
calculators and anything else computer-related."
Unless you happen to live nur Swindon,
though , there 's tile minor problem of gett ing
your computer - or other device - to the
museum. "Most people who donate bring tile •
machine to us, and we 're happy to oUtf a
complimentary tour of the museum in return, '
explained Webb. "If tlley can' t get to us we may
:~===---
,,- - .....
, "Ji : ; - ::;.-- --=---=.--
J~':.

be able to pitt it up, depending on location.

Small items can be post~, and we're I'\i.ppy to ,,-,---
. . ~---­

refund postage and pading."

To find out if the dusty PC in your attic is of
....:=---
=---
--- =--
inttfes!. ema~ infoOmuseumofcomputing.org.uk
or call 0783-4 3756Z8.

GIVEYOUR PC AWAY
So you'OIt tritd to seU your pc, none of your
friends Wilflts it, and it's not quite up to the
spec::ilication requir~ lor a charity. There's one
more route to ~ore before you recycle your desltop pc with linux install~, and a dozen centn! that accepts electrical goods. YO<N first
PC, and that's Freecycle (www.freecycle.org). people volunteered 10 take it off our hands. port 01 caU should be www.recycll.now.com.
This is similar to the danifj~ ads you used Because Freecyde is orgarlised a<ound locations, wtlich indudes a comprehensiOlt directory of
to find in the back of local newspaPtfS. with one standard procedure is IhattM: rl!'(ipient will re<yding centres in the Uk. It then ovefia)"l this
dilferel'lCe: everything is free. Your first step is to come to collect. information on to Coogle Maps, arld allows you
find your nurest Freecyde groop arld tllen join to lilttf down to centres that accept electrical
it. These art run through Yahoo! Croups, so DPTm~1 3: REtYCLE IT items: moS! don't.
you'll need a Yahoo! accourl! to sign up. First It's illegal to throw away electrica! equipment 8elore you resort to your local recydng
visit www.{reecycle.orglgroupluktohone in on in the same way you might arl old piece 01 (!'rltre, however, you have two further options il
your local group, and follow the links to become lumiture. "Most computers cOrltairl some you've rt(ently bought a rlew Pc. Urlder WEEE
a member. You may lirld there's a delay while potentially harmful !'Iemenll, though regulations. your manufacturer has an obligation
your membership is ratified. marlulacturers have dramatically r~uced to recycle your machirle. so check on its website.
OrlCe you 're irl, you carl post yoor memge, the51' in newer model<l: explains Malcolm Toshiba is everl more gentfous: it's currently
indudirlg photos, to your area's message board. Watson of Remploy. ' Older PCs COI'ltain a offering up to £ 150 ca5h lor your old laptop,
Therl sit back and wait to be COrltact~; yoo may variety of damaging acids and capacitOfS, although note that "the final value of the laplOf'
f'rld that lar more people gel in touch than yO<.l rIOt to mention chemic<tls that can reiease is dependent on its condition and specification".
think. last year we offtf~ a tired, 1999 Compaq toric fumes when heated." Visit www.toshjba.co.ul:JtraaeinfordeYils.
W3tso11 agrees with If you bought your new computtf from a
Greenpeac:e's Tom Dow<faU retailer, it is also ob!jgat~ to offer recycling
that recyclirlg should be the facilities, but only al the time of purrnase. lf you
Iast -U5e option. "Th is 5hould know you're going into PC WDfld to buy a new
Ilappen only when reuse and prirlter, for instance, th«o take in your old prirl{tf
rerT1ari1:eting are no longer at the same time. And if you're having goods
options. Most IT equipment de~vered, contact the nore belore you place
y.... I.,aI recyding bonks ' CW12 HZ contains ~luable metals and your order and yO<.lr old pc, for example, carl be

....
, '''1(1 10 llUO.L
.-'------~
'll:.lIlMlSfIK1WMGu.5

• • •
matl!fials, wilidl can be
stripped out and sold. Gold,
collect~ when the new one is dropped off.
Recycling options tlave improved in the past

--------
.".,..
---- - for eKampie, is commonly
fO<.lrld irl some processors."
~ years. but luke Upchurch of Consumers
Intemationa~ a charity that describes itself as the
But let's il'lsume you've only indeptrldent global campaigning voice for
extlausted an other options (onsumers, believes we ha'It a long way to go.

--
and no-one wants yoo. old "Consumers rleed to ask questions 01 retailers
Pc. It's vital that you wipe before buying ~ectronic goods arld find OUI how

---
-
.... Enter YOU' POllcode Into ~.recyd""ow.com to lee all your local
your hard disk u'iing Active(ll
KiliDisk (www.kil/disk.com)O<"
a similar program. With your
data destroyed, you now
they carl dispose, brirlg back or recycle products
after they purchase: he says. "Consumer
demarlds for responsible post-sate service is the
best way to get these (omparlies to take this
recycle cent.e" the n click on the Icon to _ wl>at t hey clll"lhandle have to find a recycli ng matter seriously." GJ

MAY 2010 ' COMPIJT"£A SHOPPER

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 HD TV SERVICES

tune into
HDTV
Got an HD TV but still watching normal TV on it? With more options for receiving HD
broadcasts than ever before, Julian Prokaza goes in search of the perfect package
he HO re~olution i~ well under way anything new bolting to an external wall For requ ired for HD reception, Subscription costs
in the UK, with the price of new customers, the setup cost includes the vary according to the Sky channel package, There
high- definition TVs and Blu- ray \(Jpply and inst~llation of a minidish, UK are six Entertainment Pa cks to choose from; the
players now within reach of just cover~ge is quoted as being 98 per cent. first costs £18 per mooth and additiooal ones are
about e~ef)'one. Blu-ray is only one part of the The dish m~y be the same, but the set·top £ 1 a month each, Movie Pa cks are £8 each, and
home entertainment sea change , though, and TV box required is different. The Sky+HD box is also Sports Packs cost from £9 to £12 each.
broadcasters are also embracing high -definition. a personal video recorder (PVR), with a hard disk Sky offers the wide!;t selection of HO
There are currently four ways to watch HO for recording programmes and pausing live TV, channels in the UK- 37 in all - but you ooly
TV programmes in the UK. with a fifth becoming It's al:;o compatible with Sky's 3D seJVice, due for receive them all if you subscribe to all 11 channel
available this year. Two win eventually olfer launch later this year (we'll be co~ering 30 packages, which costs £57.50 a month.
free-to-air dlannels that anyone with the technologies in another feature soon), Otherwise, you just get the HD channels th at
appropriate equipment can tune into lor nothing. There's a setup cost of £60 lor existing correspond to those in the channel packages you
wh ile two provide a veritable 5fTlorg~sbord 01 HO customers, £30 for new customers and no charge subscribe to: the Variety Pack includes four HD
programming for a monthly subscription. It 's also lor IleW customers who sign up ooline. The channels, including Skyl HD, for example (the
possible to Wijtw HD programmes online. Sky t HO box is free when you subscribe to the table on page 122 lists the various packs). A.U HD
We 're talking aboot Freeview HD, Freesa t HD Pack, which costs £10 per month and is subscribers receive three free·to· air channels
HD, Sky+HD. Virgin TV and BBC iPlayer. While irrespective of their channel pack~ge: BBC HD,
not e~e!)'one will be able to receive eve!)' Channel 4 HD and Luxe TV HD.lTV HD may also
seJVice, ~lmost eve!)'one should be able to be added manually, depending 011 which
get ~t le~st Olle, The question , then, is Sky t HO box you have (find out at hllp://
which HO TV seJVice is the best? tinyur/.com/iMldslry),
Sky d0e5n 't offer an on·demand
o SKY'S THE LIMIT seJVice yet. but an IPTV leJVice to
~ British Sky Broadcasting (BSkyB, or just Sky, deliver TV over broadband is planned.
~ as it's better known) announced its HD plans in In the meantime, its pay·per· ~iew
~ 2004, and the service launched In May 2006. Box Office movies seJVice provides
~ The Sky tHO is broadcast via the same sateHites some flexibility, with half· hourly
~ as its standard defin ition (SO) digital seJVice and ... The latest Sky +HD H6 start times on multiple channels.
:s recei~ed ~ia the same minidish. So, if you're box C3I'I record OVer a week Only two channels are dedica ted to
;t already a Sky TV subscriber, you won 't need 01 hlgh·del .... II!on b.OItdciIOs ls HD movies, though, and these don't

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 HD TV SERVICES

• Virgin's V+HD bo~ c,," record mere 20 hoors of HD recording may limit it<;
two HD channels while you appeal, The EPC requires too many button
watch, pause and ,.. wind a ltIi,d presses to get anything done, and the box is
prone to freezing lor anything Irom a couple
postcode checker at http:// of seconds to a minute while it accesses
allyouf5. virginmedla.com to see if information from its servers,
yoor property can be connecte<l. Virgin looks set to add ress these complaints
To get HD from Vi rgin TV you 'll need it<; alter its recent decision to team up with liVo to
come with V+ HD box.lnstaUation costs £75. Virgin TV develop it<; neKt-generation PVR_liVo pioneere<l
a Dolby Digibl 5,1 olfers two channels (BBC HD and Ch annel 4 HD) the PVR, and although the service flopped in the
soondtrack, un~ ke the HD movies on its cheapest M+ package, which cost<; £1150 UK, the software it developed 10 years ago is still
available through the Movies package. a month, plus f 5.50 a month lor the V+ HD box. weU ahead of anything that Virgin TV or Sky
The Sky+HD PVR has a 250GB hard drive Five more HD channels are available with the currently offers, The first liVo-powered Virgin
that can store 60 hours 01 HD content. A lTB Xl package, with two more, Eurosport HD and PVR is due later this year.
version has just been announced with room for Discovery HD, joining the ranks in the spring.
240 hours of HD footage, bot this costs an e)(lra This package costs £29 a month and includes the THE FREEVIEW OPTION
£249, l"'lin tuners mean you can rewrd two V+HD box as standard, Combining a TV package II you don't fancy paying a monthly SlJbscription
programmes while watching a third pre-recorded with Virgin broadband and telephone works oot to watch HO TV programmes, Freeview HD is a
one, The HD-optimised user int erface (the EPG) cheaper per service, Visit http://tlnyurl,coml low-cost attemative, It's an extension of the
is a little duttere<l, but most leatures are virginbundles lor details. existing Freeview digital TV service, which means
accesse<l with a button press or two and the With Sky offering 37 HD channels, Virgin TV that the HO content is received via a TV aerial.
whole thing is quick and responsive to use. currently lags far behind with just seven, soon to Freeview is a joint venture operated by the
Recordings can be set remotely via the Sky web be nine. Virgin Media's head 01 media relations, BBC, BSkyB, lTV, Channel 4 and Arqiva, and rose
site, text message or one of many free iPhone Asam Ahmad , told us that there wiU be "lots from the ashes of lTV Digital in 2002. lrials of
apps, but these are one-way processes that more new HD channels this year", but as we Freeview HD began in 2006 and broadcasts can
provide no feedback about recording claShes. went to press the details remained secret. now be received from the london Crystal Palace
Sky hasn 't made any announcements for However, live broadcasts aren't the only part 01 and Manchester Winter Hill transmitters.
making BBC iPlayer content available on its Virgin TV: the V+ HD box also provides access to According to the rollout sche<lule, 48,S per cent
set-top boxes, bot it doe<; have it<; own its on-demand service. This is like having the BBC of the country should be able to receive Freeview
equivalent web-base<l service in the lorm 01 Sky iPlayer built into your TV, and provides access to HD in time for the World Cup in June, with 98.5
Player (hup:!lsl<yplayer.sky-com). Sky SlJbscribers programmes shown on BBC, lTV, Channel 4 and per cent coverage arriving by 2012 (which is
can pay an additional £ 10 a month for a Virgin llrom the last seven days, This includes when the digital TV s"'lit chover shoold be
multiroom subscription and watch live some HD content, although currently only from complete). For more about the Freeview HD
programmes Irom their subscribed channels on BBC HD. When we checked, there were 45 HD rollout pl<lns, see hITp:lltlnyurl,comlhdroll,
their PCs. None of t his content is in HD, thoogh. programmes listed_The Xl package also
indudes TV Choice on Demand, which
LIKE A VIRGIN offers complete series, Here, 21 series
HD broadcast<; over the digital cable TV network were listed in the HD section.
started in 2006 with a trial 01 high-definition Virgin TV also provides an
on-demand programmes by ntl:lelewest. lhat on- demand pay-~r·view movie service,
same year, the company acquired Virgin Mobile, but with only 30 HD films ava ilable and
along with the rights to use the Virgin brand prices from £3 to £6 lor a 24-hour
name across aU its services, Virgin Me<lia's cable ~riod, Blu-ray rental services such as
TV, broadband and telephone services are lovelilm's are better value. Meanwhile,
available in 12,6 million homes in the UK, a PictureBox subscription costs £ 5 per
Since cab(e TV relies on signal!; transmitte<l month, and although it lacks the latest
via underground fibre-optic cables. you must live releases, it includes around 20 HO
in an areo that's served by Virgin TV's networl:: movies ~r month, Visit WWN,
if you want to sign up. Most urban areas are virginmedia.comlondemand to check
covered, but coverage maps aren't the best way the current on- demand listings.
to check. The network works on a street-by- The V+ HO box can record two
street basis and sometimes isn 't available in programmes as you watch, pause and ... Virg in TV can stream movies and programmes on demand,
blocks 01 flal5. It's better to use the on~ne rewind a third live channeL However, a but HO content is cu,rently on the spa,se skle

• • Simulcasting content
lthough it's a goal for aU broadcaster§ im.,orted), light entertainment and children's
A to transmit all-HD content, not alt
programmes are shot in HD, and therl"s a
Ted1nkaUy, ITV1 HO is also simulcast, but
the HD stream is available only when therl"s
an HD version of the current programme,
programmes in high-delinition, but it's the
nature documentaries that reaUy show off
vast archive 01 material that WM shot in SO. Otherwise, you get nothing. ITVI HD isn 't yet the lormat, David Attenoorough's Life was
As a result, none of the live terrestrial available on Virgin TV, although we'll be the most recent HD extravaganza, but you
broadcasters sim ulcasts an entirely HD interested to see if that changes in time for can see more regular spectacles on Discovery
version 01 it<; normal SO chanroels , the World Cup in June , HD and National Geographic HD. Sport really
Channel 4 and Chan roe l 4 HD are simulcast BBC HD simu lcasts HD versions of benefits from HD too, and the football World
for the entire programm e schedule, but gaps ~ogramm es where they exist and fills in the Cup should look great on BBC and lTV HD.
in the HD line-up are fil led with upscaled rest of the schedule with repeats of HD shows Films are the other mainstay of HD
(and unidentified) SD content. That may and selections from its archive, Even so, BBC schedules, While these pop up on ITVI HD
seem like cheating, but it means you can HD isn't a 24-hour chan ne l; it's off-air between and Channel4 HD from tim e to t ime, serious
tune into Channel 4 HD every time and get lam until6am, while the flou rs ol6am to 4pm movie-watchers are better served by the
the best qual1ty available, Sky uses t he same comprise programme ~eviews. dedicated HD channels of Sky Movies HD
approach lor its own simulcast Skyl HD Most programmes made in the past lew and Virgin lV'§ on-<1emand service, where
channel, and id entifies true HD material wit h years are in HD, but not aiL BBC HD shows a they're also accompanied by Dolby Digital
an appropriate onSCrl'en logo. mix of drama (ooth home-grown and S,lsoundtracks,
L -_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ~ e

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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HD TV SERVICES

sl<y freeiiat HD IiJIiJIiI !Player

SERVICE SKY+HD
...,- - VIRGIN MEDIA V+ HD FREESAT HD
~ s..<tiit.
FREEVIEW HD
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HD M cIIonMI> ..... HD _BIC ~. lux< MandXLp. d(. .~a&C ~ ISCHo,rTV HO UC 1«:1, JJV HO (Chom,14 HO Non<
TVHO,ChonnoI< HO, IIMIoty hd<, Chomo:I, H« Xl ~onIy. ondn",l«:It><pO<;lt'dr.lQ!O)
Sl)o 1 HO, fX HO, '>d-FI ChomoI. BPN HD. FlOIO.uw,. HD,
HO,E' Ho,M<Js-='ock:Ml\IN HD. ~ ~ Ho.l-fIV"
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Freeview HD uses the new DVB -T2 standard (see the box 'HO or not HOt opposile).lf you're offers over 100 SO channels, and its HO
IOlr broadcasts, and you'll need a fre<:view interested in following the ins and outs, the best broadcasts ~gan when the service launched
HO-compatible set-top box or TV to view them; place 10 slart is with the post on the BBC in May 2008.
existing Freeview equipment cannot ~ used. Internet Blog at http://tinyuri. com/BBC -HOb/og. Freesat HO is subscription-Iree. but you'U
At the lime of wriling. Freeview HO receivers The BBC is also under heavy lire for its need a satellile dish and a Freesat HD-
aren't yet available, but Humax has already proposal to introduce Digital Rights Management compatible receiver in order to watch it.
demonstrated it5 £170 HO -Fox T2 receiver (see (DRM) to the Freeview HD platlorm. The Receivers start at around £60, and Freesat HD
http://tinyuri.comlhumaxT2) , whichshouldbe problem boils down to Ihe BBC wanling 10 PVRs are available Irom around £220. Dish
on sale by the time you read this. Other encrypt the EPG data lor HD broadcasts on instaUation is usua lly an option at the point 01
Freeview HD recervers, including PVRs, are Freeview HO (but not the broadcasts sale, and costs around £100.
expected this year. themselves) and placing restrictions on the way Another option lor F,eesa t HD is an HD TV
Allhis slage ii's difficu!t 10 know exactly in which recordings of HD programmes can be with a built-in receiver. The Panasonic Viera
what to expect from Freeview HO. but 50 far used. As ever, the complaint is that any kind 01 TX-P4ZV10S plasma HO TV (see Labs, Shopper
ii's broadcasling BBC HD and ITVl HO, with encryption simply makes it more difficult lor 266) is so equipped, and you just connect the
Channel 4 HO and the new Fwe HO channel vi~rs to enjoy the programmes that they've leed from an existing Sky minidish directly
expected later in the year. However. Nndwidth paid lor (via the licence fee, in this case) in the to the back of the set. It takes a few 5eConds
limitations mean that there 's little chance 01 ways they want. while doing next to nothing to to;.can lor channels lirst time round, but then
dozens 01 Freeview HO channels ever appearing prevent serious copyright inlringement. Read tuning into the Freesat HD service simply
using the current technology. about the latest developments at the BBC involves switching to the appropriate TV input.
Even with just the planned quota 01 lour HO Internet Blog at http ://tinyuri,com//W-drm , A5 with Freeview HD, freesat HD isn't the
channels alongside around SO SO channels, many most compeRing choice lor HD aficionados.
viewers are unhappy wi th the BBC'5 plans to FREESAT HD There are only two channels - SSC HD and lTVl
squeeze wha t they see as too many HO channels Although Freeview HD plans 98.5 per cent HD - and the programme schedule is rather
on to the service. With only so much bandwidth coverage by ZOlZ , that's still two years away- limited as a result. The line-up may expand in
to go round , the complaint is that too much and the lack of suitable receivers means the the luture, but Freesat HD has made no
compression is ~ing used for what could ~ service isn 't available to anyone at the moment. announcements on new HO channels lor now.
considered a satislactory high-definition picture II you don 't want to wail lor subscription-free BBC iPlayer support, which is currently in bela
HO TV, you'll need to choose Freesat HD. testing. provides one potential avenue lor
Freesat is essent ially the expanded HO viewing. with content streamed
satellite equivalent to from the iPlayer site via an Ethernet port and
Freeview. The service is your normal broadNnd connection. However,
a joint non -prolit there are no plans to deUver anything other than
ve nture between the SD programmes for now.
BBC and lTV. Freesat
HDTVONLINE
• HUmIIX will be ~mong lhe ' irsl companies 10 II you don't laney splashing out on a new TV or
gel ~ Freevlew HO receive r InlO Ihe sh<>ps set-top box, then you can still see what the luS5

COMPllTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 HD TV SERVICES

lor up to seven days after they but the ability to tailor a package to your taste
were first broadcast, and the helps to bring the cost down.
BSC often makes complete Virgin TV has far fewer HO TV channels. but
series ava ilable in C3~ you its subscriptions are dlea per and it offe~ a small
missed the first few episodes_ selection of free and pay-per-view HD content
HO programmes can be on demand. Its UK coverage is more limited than
streamed for instant playback Sky's but, if you're on the Virgin network, it"s a
an d pl<lyed fult-screen, but the cost-effective way to watch HO.
high bandwidth re<Juirements As for free-to-view HD TV, it's Freesat HD
can make smooth streilrning or nothing at the moment. The equivalent
problematic. Programmes can Freeview HD is available in a few areas, but yOAJ
allema ti",,[y be downloaded lor can't buy the necessary equipment to receive
offline viewing using the BSC it at the time of writing. Both Freeview and
iPlayer Desktop application. This Freesat offer a limited HD channel selection,
oHers a longer 3O-day viewing an d this looks unlikely to change any time soon.
window for save<! programmes, However, BBC HD and lTV HD will be all you
and 5even days to finish wa tching need to watch the World Cup in high definition,
... Many of Pana<Onlc', HO TV, """" a built-In Freesat HD tuner once you'Vf! starte<!. 50 football fans shOAJld seriously consider these
HD programmes on iPlayer services, especially bearing in mind that Virgin
is about using just your compu ter. The BBC are encoded at 720p, which isn't as sharp as the currently lacks lTV HD.
launched its web-based iPlayer service in 2007 1080; and 10BOp HO broadcasts available by Finally, there's the BBC iPlayer.1f you have
as a way for viewe~ to watch programmes other means. The relatively low 3.2Mbitls bit the necessary computer setup, it reatly is a nifty
they missed when first broadcast. It carries rate means that fast-moving scenes can suffer way to experience HD. even if the quality isn 't
programmes from aU BBC TV and radio dlannels from compression artefacts. Nonetheless, iPlayer quite as good as other HO broadcasts. Plug a PC
(though some programmes are excluded 10<" HO programmes are significantly higher qual ity into your HO TV and you can even get the
licensing reasons), and HO content is part of than its SO programmes, making it an easy way big-screen experience, which is currently our
the pla tform. lTV, Channel 4 and Sky all have to get a clear view of your favourite programmes. favourite option fO<" anyone looking for
similar web-based services, but none of these is There's one further thing to note about BBC high-definition entertainment on the cheap. E!
currently available in HD. iPlayer, though. HD programmes weigh
SSC iPlayer is free to use, but you must live in at around 1.5GB per hour, so if your
in the UK and possess a TV licence if you want to broadband package has a monthly
watch live-streamed broa dcasts (though not for bandwidth cap. it probably won 't
ca tch-up programmes). You'lI also need a take long to exceed it.
reasonably powerful Windows. Mac OS or Linul(
computer with a broadband connection, and a WHICH SERVICE IS FOR ME?
monitor with a vertical resolution of at least 720 There's a clear division be~en the
pil(els. Bear in mind that nearly aU HO TVs can be HO TV platforms currently available in
used as computer monitors. A low-cost PC such the UK. with the widest choice of
as /\sus's excellent Eee SOl( EB 1012 (see Editor's high- defini tion content available from
Choice. page 16) attached to the TV is ideal for the subscription services. Of these. Sky
accessing these services. has by far the best offering. with a
Only a small selection of iPlayer content total of 37 HO channels. including
is available in HO, but yOAJ can browse high- recently released movies and major
definition programmes directly via www.bbc.co. sporting events. You'lI have to pay over
ukliplayerlrdbbcJid. Programmes are ava ilable SO quid a month to watch them all. .. For 1'0 TV on the eM"". BBC, iPlayer is ideal

•• • • Resolution. frame rates and compression

lthough high-definition video can mean even-num bered lines. When combined, these 1080i video at its native bit rate of lSSGBit/s
A anything higher than th e current
standanj definition (SO) resolution of
produce interlace<l video, known as 1080i.
1080i pro\lides a good compromise be~n
- but th e amount of compression varies
according to the programme content.
720xS76 pixels, broadcasters ha~ settled on resolution and motion smooth ness, but fast- Compression works by grouping similar
two formats for HO TV. These are 1,280x720, moving images can make it hard to recom bine pil(els together and updating Oflly those that
which pro\lides over twice the resolution of the interlaced fields, leading to messy picture have changed since the previous frame.
SO ~oadcasts, and l,920J<1 ,080, which has artefacts. Therefore, broadcasters have th e Programmes with slow. moving im ages such
five times the resolution. option to switch to l ,280x720 video for such as the news can be highly compressed
Resolution is orlly one aspect of an HO TV programmes. l ,280x7Z0 video can be because there's little change from frame to
image, though. Television is about moving transmitted full-fram e at SOfps using the same framf'. However, programmf's with fast
pictures, which are achieve<l by displaying amount of data as 1080i. These complete action, such as sports, need a high bit rate to
still images, or frames, in rapid succession. frames are known as progressive scan, which avoid blocky pictures and smeared motion.
in Europe, HD programmes are broadcasts at gives us the name 720p. However, no Sky uses highly efficient AVe compression
the same 50Hz frame rate as SO TV. broadcaster currently chooses to do this. to squeeze dozens of channels Ofl to its
The catch is that transmitting l,920l(l,080 Another solution is to broadcast 1080p at satellite service, with channel bit rates
video at SO frames per second (fps) requires 2Sfps, which means entire frames at the full ranging from around S.S to 16.2Mbits/s.
too much data barlCwidth, Broadcasters get l,920J<1,080 resolution but only 2Sfps. This Freesat HD and Freeview HD use the sa me
around the problem by using th e same trid: means motion isn't as smooth, but it gives format, with a bit rate of around 9.SMbit/s,
TV broadcasts have employed for almost excellent detail. BBC HD on Freeview is although this is drawing criticism in some
100 years: interlacing. Rath er than transmit currently broadcast in t his format. Web-based quarters (see http://tinYlJrl.comlhdqua/ity
full image frames, they trartSmit half- video is often streamed at 720p at 2Sfps to for more information). Virgin TV's digital
resolution frames, known as fi elds. Of the kee p the barlCwidth as low as possible. cable netwo~ has much greater bandwidth,
1,080 honzontallines that make up each The other part of the punle is compression. so it can get away with using the If'ss-
frame, each field altemates be~en All digital ~oadcasts are compressed- effident MPEG2 code<:. It uses bit rates of
showing only the odd-numbered and the otherwise, it WOlJld be impossible to transmit around 15Mbit/s for each of its HD channels.

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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 HACK TO THE FUTURE

Hackers, computer viruses and other threats have dogged computer users for
years, but what will tomorrow bring? Simon Edwards gazes deep into his
technological crystal ball and squints at the worrying future of online crime

hen a fortune-teller stares into IT'S ALL ABOUT THE MONEY that money is the motivation behind the vast

W her oystal bat! she dalms to see

through to the misty future and
oHers guidance to those wilhng
10 hand over the required fee. However, she
might be stumped when laced with questions
The original computer viruses were born of pride
or misplace<! curiosity. Anonymous individuals
wrote computer code to show how clever they
were, viewing .security software as a challenge. II
they could beat anti -virus programs produced by
majority of online threats. Viruses, compromised
websites hosting malicious exploits,lraudulent
emails and phishing websites have all been
designed to steal or generate money. As we
ponder the future ot malware and other threats,
about the state of tomorrow 's computer viruses, big names such as Symantec, McAlee and Trend we need to look at the matter in the conte)(\ 01
or whether or not tllere will be a global outbreak Micro then they would have outsmarted the criminal endeavour, rather than seeing online
of cybelWorfare. She ought not to be because, experts. In some cases their motivation was threats as a resolt 01 vandalism and other types
althoogh the internet threat landscape is increased as anti-virus (AV) programs improved of low-level dysfunctional behaviour.
continually evolving. there are some basic over time. According to one viru s writer, quote<! In 2008 it became dear that a new
principles that help us predict what's coming in Sarah Gordon's 1994 report The Generic Virus underground economy had evolved in which our
ne)((. Perllop<l surprisingly, these hold the human Wrirerll (htrp://rinyurl.com/GenWl2): ·People personal details were traded for cash on the
condition at their core. A 21st century Mystic may write to be famous, but in my opinion, the internet We covere<l this in Shopper 24S in an
Meg should haVl' no problems foretelling the better the AV programs get, the more motivated article called The Dark Economy' (hltp:lltinyurl.
:I: digital future and we'll explain how you too can some people will be. I get my motivation from com/darkeconomy). This situa tion not only
~ look into the future at internet threats.
g
challenging AV programs. As they get more continues today, but the illegal infonmation
We visite<l Trend Micro's Munich ollice and advanced (with better behaviour blocking and gathering and trading systems have grown even
spoke exclusively to the threat research team, heuristics) the more of a challenge and more sophisticated. Criminal organiS<ltions
~ These researchers investigate current threats motivation there is. People in it just for lame will provide services to others much like legitimate
~. an d new technologies with a view to discovering

•
tail. There has to be some technical motivation." business. They sell hacking tools in a web-b3sed
= what the next big security problems are going Today things have moved up a lew gears and arms market and operate escrow systems to
to be, an d they don 't use crystal balls, every reputable security company acknowledges ensure that the thieves don't rip each other oH.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 HACK TO THE FUTURE

Much of the criminal activity is based around cybercriminal's IT infrastructure and are the semi-legitimate way. Or both. In the worst cases
ma!ware, which forms the front line in the equivalent of a traditional gangster's 'muscle'. (for the individual visitor), it might try to load
criminals' activity. Some people create malware, Botnets provide masses of compoting power as malware on to their computer.
others sell it. while underground servkes oHer to well as the ability to bring down the websites Once ma!ware is loaded on a system, the
check the latest viruses to ensure that they and internet conneclions of large companies. compoter can be used as a tool to spy on ils
aren 't detected by the software produced by They can be used to send out billions of spam user. This means that usemames, passwords,
anti-virus companies. II 's a sophislkated emails, infect websites en masse and even host bank account details and other sensitive data
arrangement. both in terms of business and transient infected websites that come and go, can be siphoned off and sent to the attacker.
lechnology. One of Trend Micro's advanced making them very hard 10 lake down. Although you might think that this is the end of
threats researchers. Maxim Goncharov, spends a the story, the criminals who instaR the malware
lot of time moniloring and interacting with TRAFFIC DIRECTION SYSTEMS may not have a direct use for your data. We've
criminals as they go about their online business. Maxim also says that the criminals operate seen a preview of Symantec's la test intemet
"They have something like an underground traHic direction systems (lOS), These wor!: by threat report, which is due to be published in the
version of VirusTotal. to check that their selling types of internet traffic to other criminals. spring this year, In it the company discloses that
ma!ware can avoid detection, as well as services For example, a criminal might want to expose criminals compile lists of credit card numbers
10 monitor betnets and a complex malware American users to a particular fake anti-virus and bank details, which they sell oH in huge lim,
management system called Lone Wolf. This is program that automatica lly infects their However, the availability of cards has
based on a conventional software version - systems, wh ile sending a diHerent type of exploit dropped since last year, while demand remains
control program known as Subversion." to Germans, The same technique can ensure that high. This has increased the cost of buying the
Botnels are polentially vasl networks of phishing pages in English are sent only 10 information, The report also notes a disturbing
compromised computers - Pes owned by regular English-speaking countries, while Spanish new development whereby criminals are trading
internet users, They are part of the versions appear in Spani5h-speaking territories. 'dump tracks' - the whole information found in
At the core of this method is a combination of the magnetic stripe on a credit card. This data
language filtering and GeolP, which is a system can not only be sold for a higher price than basic
that can calculate a computer's global location information, but it's also more usable as it can be
based on its internet address. used to create a physical replica of the card.
How do the criminals control internet traffic Criminals are now advertising personal
like this? One common method is to create an services and, in a perverse version of online
infected page, or infect an innocent one, that business networking. researchers have found
ranks highly on the Google search engine (and by recommenda tions for people involved in money
the end of this paragraph you'll discover how to laundering and even for 'mules'. According to
improve a page's Google ranking. although you Symantec: "Mules are unsuspecting members of
won't read about this dirty technique in any the public who have been duped into accepting
search engine optimisa tion books), This means funds into their accounts. or accepting stolen
that lots of people wit! encounter the page. goods. like any other commodity, these people
Sending lin ks in spam email messages is another are traded on net forums by cybercriminals."
way to draw people to a web page, The infected At some stage a criminal will end up using
page calculates where in the world each visitor is these details to commit a frau dulent act, but it's
situated and the TOS uses this information to likely that the data will pass through a number of
decide what happens neJCt.lt might direct the hands first. Gerry Egan is Symantec's director of
user to a currently legitimate page to raise its product management in the security threat and
... Hackersl1eat each other as online businesses Google rankings, or it might open a Google response (STAR) team. "n and when your
and even have their own IT SuPpOrt InfTa$t rUCIure Adwords link and so generate revenue in a personal data is stolen online: he expl~ins, El

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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HACK TO THE FUTURE

sell it lor financial gain. These regular these are legitimate websites that have been
people wililikel)' haw ban~ accounts infected without their owners' knowle<lge. The
and credit cards that can be stolen. sites are hacked and a smaU piece of infected
Garners often h.we online .(Counts oode, or a special type 01 (iframe) link to another
that carry a high value - there has infected site, is inserted. When a computer loads
been a thriving market in hijacking or the web p"ge, it becomes infected.
emptying game$ accounts for years. There is also a view tha t sites being operated
Criminal!; might abo try a targeted by less moral individuals may host malware on
approach, where a specific (very rich) purpose. "Porn websites are hoste<:! by those
individual. comp<lny or group of with a flexible ethicalframewor\(: R"iner 5ays.
people are faced with a highly "They are more likely than some to host
convincing. customised attack. In the malicious iframes in order to gain a few
past, criminals have sent infected CDs dollars per installation of malware."
and USB keys to workers at banks and
other large organisations. Hardware DEATH DF A PC?
• Once your bank details Or ldently have been slolen, l!>ey may keyloggers can then be used to record Viruses and infected websites that attack
J>IISS between several crim ina ls belore they are ti""Uy used usernames an d password~ There have consumer electronil3 as well as computers are
been fears that last year's attack on likely to be a feature 01 future cyberattacks.
"it wiH often be passe<:! from criminal to criminal the recruitment website Momter furnished Currently computers are the main target for
before being used. Once in possession 01 a card, criminals with lots of personal information that online criminals. The PC and, to a much lesser
criminals may try to use it to buy goods. allowed them to target people with powerful degree. the Mac are both attacked because lots
"Alternatively, a criminal may leVf':rage the employment roles, such as CEOs of global of people use them for online banking and other
se.vices of a 'cash-ou t' criminaL These people companies. Targete<:! attacks can also use tasks that involve handling valuable information.
may charge nothing for their se.vices - that is information gleaned from social-networking Tomorrow's targets will be the devices that
the se.vice of emptying your bank account - but sites - a technology that has only become people use lor similar activities. This means tha t
take a comm ission on the transaction instead." Vf':ry popular in the last few yt'ars. the PC is going to stay at the top of the hacker's
The online criminals haVf': a large number of Businesses themselves are another big target. hit list for a long time to come. If a certain type
potential targets to consider. Although their although the scale of the problem is hard to of mobile phone became a popular way to access
primary objective is to ma~e money, there are a asoess. "We only ~ the tip of the iceberg." online banking. then you can guarantee that
number 01 ways to do 50, some of which are explains R"iner Link. senior thre"t researcher at criminals would start to produce malware
more subtle than others. We'Vf': seen tha t Trend Micro. "There are probably documents designed to target and compromise them.
criminals put a value on personal details for the cont<lining zero-day e><ploits being sent around From a criminal's point of view, hardware is a
purposes of ID theft, selling the data to ID and 50 on, but companies won't go public when much less important consideration than software
thieVf':s an d eVf':n pilfering online games login they're attacked. We have clients who have this when building an attack mechanism. For
details for financial gain. This means their problem, but we can't discusothem in detail" example, a modern Mac is exactly the same as a
approach to attacks is both inventive "nd varie<:!. Social engineering has repeatedly proven to PC under the hood . The very 5ame processors.
be a useful technique for fooling people into RAM, graphil3 chips and hard disks are used in
WHO ARE TOMORROW'S VICTIMS? taking unwise actOons. The criminals trick victims both computers these days. The difference is the
Tomorrow's victims will be the same as today's. into visiting fake or infected websites, operating system. Mal3 run OS X while PCs run
The only difference is that the criminals nee<:! to downloading and installing harmful software and completely incompatible variations 01 Windows
stay ahead of the game in order to compete with even responding to near-blatant attempts at or Linux. k. most computers in the world run
each other and remain profitable. Criminals will fraud. such as Nigerian 419-style scams. This last Windows. criminals concentrate on breaking into
always go for the easiest targets first, looking for con trick involves sending emails requesting your Windows PCs. The more popular Mal3 become,
low-risk, high -retum opportunities. This means help in some matter, with the promise 01 the more attractive they are as targets.
creating a widespread threat that has the delivering millions of dollars for no wor\( at all. Mobile phones don't mare the same
potential to affect millions of people. The For more details, ~ ww.vAI9t>atl'f.com. relationship as Mal3 and PCs. Even different
haders aren't going to single out an individual. Security companies daim that infected models from the same company use different
but instead hope to catch as many random websites constitute the largest single threat at combinations of hardware and sohware. This
people as possible. coUect their data and use or the moment. The general assumption is that means that there 's such a wide selection in use

STATES OF ALERT: CYBERA 11ACKS ON GOVERNMENTS

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 HACK TO THE FUTURE

at anyone time that a hader would have to HEAO IN THE CLOUOS

write many different viruses , worms or other Senior threat researcher Alice Dt'cker notes that
threats to catch a significant num~r of victims. the usual way to make money with TV
In thiS situation, variety is a delence. Once broadcasts is with advertising. The advertising
people settle on a specific mobile phone, system itself could ~ subverted and used either
however, it ~comes worth hacking. See the to make money directly or as part 01 a blackmail
cautionary tale of the iPhone on page 125. scam. "The intemet-enabled TV initiaUy has no
Many 01 the ~st-known anti-virus financial value," she says. 'What money can
companies produce an anti-virus product for criminals make? They could show you a
one or more types 01 mobile phone, yet they commercial that may be dick able. This way,
generally admit that the threat in this area is people's identity data can ~ stolen. If you don't
either very low or even non-existent. "Mobile click the ad you may ~ threatened with the
phone malware is in its infancy: explains prospect that pornography will pop up on screen
McAfee's principle security analyst Greg Day. when your children are watching."
"There are over 3S million viruses and Trojans The term 'cloud-computing' and 'the doud' is
that target PCs. That's not count ing varia tions - quite vague. These days it tends to mean ronning
the true num~r is far higher. Mobile phone applications directly on a server. This isn't a new
viruses number in the few hundreds or maybe concept for businesses used to dealing with
early thousands. There is st ill such a disparity of email and web servers.
environments: iPhones, Windows Mobile, However, the idea of running an application .a. Games con<oIes where you pay lor online
Symbian, BlackBerry, Android and others. There such as a word processor in the cloud is novel for content provide .. rich source 01 data for Node ..
is too much variety lor malware to lunction." most people as we're used to such programs
~ing software that runs on the computer sitting 'solutions' such as internet worms and Trojans
OARK CLOUO ON THE HORIZON in front 01 us. When you use Coogle Docs to embedded in pirated software still exist, but it's
We've already noted that software is much more create and edit word-processing or spreadsheet those fake emails, infected websites and even
important than hardware. Today's hackers documents, you 're experiencing what most infected email attachments that will continue to
concentrate on the unde<lying operating system people consider to ~ cloud computing. pose a real threat for the foreseeable future.
{such as Windows XP} and common applications You should already be able to see some of We also ~now that security software is not a
that they can access. At the moment, attractive the security issues surrounding cloud computing. panacea. Computer ShOpper'5 own anti -virus
applications include _b browsers as _II as First of all. your data is stored on a remote te~ts {http://tinyuri.comlshopperAl1andreports
software that web browsers use, such as Ado~ computer under someone else's control Every produced by Dt'nnis Technology labs {www.
Flash an d Reader programs. In recent months time you access that data you have to denn~techno/ogylab5.com} support this view,
security holes have ~en found in versions of authenticate with a remote system, which and few security companies would ~ brave
these programs, as well as Microsoft's Internet means that your username and password enough to daim th at they were wi nning the war
Explorer web browser. When we try to predict probably traverses the internet. After you log in, against malware. Nevertheless, an anti-virus
the luture 01 internet threats, _ can be sure parts 013ny file that you ac~ess also moves program wiH help protect your system.
that these types of programs will ~ targeted. through the internet. This potentially exposes
The only variations will be the hardware used to your account and its contents to wrong-doers far FREE ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
run the web browsers and necessary plug-ins. more than if you stored your photos, documents If you don't want to spend any money Wf!:
00 you believe that your TV could ~ and ema il on your hard diSk. However, it's recommend Microsoft's latest free anti -viros
hacked? Or your games console? The latest convenient to work this way as you ~an access program, Security Essentials (www.mkromft.
versions of these domestic home entertainment your data from any computer that you ~ke comISecu"ty_f55ent'als). For better protection
systems often inclu de the ability to access the (which is also another potential security flaw) you need to splash out, and currently any 01 the
internet, so that they can use BBC iPlayer, and, in some cases, you can use low-powered following are good choices: Kaspersky Intemet
YouTu~ and other popular services. computers to run demanding applications Security 2010, Norton Internet Security 2010,
If your TV has a web browser, then it would because they use the processing powt'r and PC Tools Spyware Doctor with AntiVirus and
be foolish to assume that it was in\IUlnerable to memory of the service provider's systems rather Trend Micro Internet Security 2010.
an attack. Before you ban TV from your than the resources 01 your own IT setup. It is also important to keep your system up to
household, remem~r what we said ear~er about The big cha llenge to companies that provide date with the latest security patches. This means
attractive targets. Once you and ha lf the popular internet services is to ensure that customers' updating Windows, your web browser and
sta rt banking online with your TV or PlayStation, data remains safe. Alice explains what this plugins such as Adobe Hash and Acrobat Reader.
only then will the hackers move in. And they will means in practice. "Services need to identify Fail to do this and you can't really blame your
Maxim Goncharov predicts that we'll see where data comes from and where it should go. anti -viros software if your PC ~comes infected.
anti-virus software ~ing installed on TV sets They need to protect against man-in -the-middle While the days of sale computing are
within the neld five years. attacks, where attackers intercept data as it probably a nostalgic fantasy (bugs have
The tradi tional view of a hacker attack passes by. Cloud service.s are not currently existed lor as long as computers have) , it's
involves a computer system ~ing manipulated developed in this way and can ~ fooled." not scaremongering to say that today things
by an unauthorised and eldemal force. So how Tomorrow's intemet attackers will be are far worse than they ever have been, and
could your TV ~ hacked if it lacks a hard disk or sophistica ted and realistic. They won't spend the problem isn't going to disappear.
any internal storage at all? Where would the hours trying to hack your mobile or TV while There is some good news. While the online
viruses ~ stored, for example? Similarly a games there are easier options available. As long as we criminals engage in a virtual arms war against
console doesn't ~m to provide a very rich continue to use PCs to a~cess online banks, security companies, sell our data for pennies and
environment for a criminal to exploit. Trend buy from ecommer~e sites and play complex cost companies billions in lost or stolen revenue,
Micro's threat research team sees opportunities subscription-based games, so the bad guys will the main security hole is our own gullibility. If
for criminals in the so-caUed 'cloud'. This means continue to attack via the home ~omputer. you become more suspicious of email requests
that while your PC, TV or console may not ~ Recent history shows tha t social engineering. to chan~ or confirm account details, pop-up
hacked , the data that flows between it and the where victims are fooled into making poor warning messages on websites and too-good-to-
computers on the intemet that power the decisions , is a very successful route to separating be true offers, then you're way ahead of the herd.
services you use could ~ stolen or corrupted. us from our cash and personal details. Technical And hackers are only interested in the herd. III

Click: dell.co.uk Call: 0844 444 3242

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HDWlD ...
Make Windows
behave like a Mac
If you have lots of programs running. it can be hard to keep
track of them. Adam Banks explains howto get some clarity
ultitasking is an impomnt feature 01 modern Et .. .into this. Each open window is scaled down
M computing. and one 01 the most confusing.
With umpteen windows stacked on top of one
another, it's easy to lose track 01 what you're doing.
IIti::I so they all lit side by side. To select the one
you ·re interested in. simply click it Altematively, click
elsewhere or press F9 again or Esc to return to normal.
Windows 7 has some new Features to help, and
since Vista we'~e had flip 3D, which fans out all n If this is too busy for your liking. press F10 to
your open windows so you can riffle through them. IE:.I show only the windows belonging to the current
Apple users, howe~er. reckon they'Vi" got the best application. For example, we have two Internet Explorer
so/utkm with hpose, a feature of Mac OS X that windoW$ open, so when one 01 these is selected, hitting
5hovvs everything arranged flat. milking it easy to FlOgives this result. Moving the mouse over a window
spot what you want at a glance_ pops up a caption listing the application and window
To get similar functionality in Windows, you'll title. You Cim't interact with the window previews. but
need a third -party add -on such as DhposE2. This is they stay live, with videos continuing to play.
free to download, and although designed for Visl,}
it woOs in Windows 7, too. It doesn't cope with . . . Click Start, All Programs, OExposE2, ~ttings to
dual-monitor sel-ups, though, so <lnyone using two Ii.I view its preferences. or simply double -clkk the
screens should steer clear. icon in the System Tray. In the Behaviour pane you can
specify your own hotkeys if you use F9 and FlO in other

D Visit hrrp:iitinyuri.comide)(posf in your web

browser. clid Download Now and save the file
to your desktop. Double-click the download to install
programs. Some of the other options are best left alone
- there are a few bugs in this freeware - but in the Feel
tab you can adjust the appearance of the Expose eHect.
the program. When it"s done. it will launch For example. Expose speed controls the speed of the
automaticaUy and a new icon will awear in the system an imated tramition effect, and Previews di splacements
tray at the bottom right 01 the screen. You don·t sets how much space is between each window. Another
actually need to use the icon, though. because by useful option is available under the Global heading -
delault OExposE2 is activated using func.tion keys. Open tick Auto-start at system Booting to load DExposE each
a selection of applications and hit the F9 ~ey on your time you restart Windows. Otherwise you·U need to
keyboard. Doing so tums a dunered desktop .. launch it manuaHy from the desktop short cut. GJ

..-..-.- ..---.-
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 ANY VIDEO CONVERTER

HDWTD ...
Convert videos for free
There are often times when you need to convert videos from one format to another.
Jim Martin shows you how to do it the easy way - and it won't cost you a penny
he ~ubject of video fOllTl~ls C31l be You may also need 10 find out which video . . . Another option is 10 oop the ~ideo il il

T completely baffling. which is why we

wrote a whole feature on understanding
video codecs back in issue 245. We 'Vf/'! include<!
format your device supports, including the ~ideo
codee. resolution , frame rate and bit ra te, plus
the audio codec, bit rate and sample rate.
Ii.I doesn 't match the aspect ratio of your
target de~ice. Clid the icon thaI resembles a
magic wand and a new window will open. The
the PDF of this in-depth guide on the cover disc easiest way to adjust the crop is to grab an ed~
for your reference.
The reason there are so many different
formats is down to the sheer number of video
D Download, instal! and launch Any Video
Con~erter. There are a couple of ways to
add videos to be con~erted. The easiest is to use
or corner of the video (your CUf'lor will tum into
a double-ended arrow) and drag it to the
appropriate place. You may need to untick Keep
playback devices, from pes and mobile phones to Windows Explorer to navigate to the files you Aspect Ratio if you want to change the aspect
portable media players and media streamers. No want to convert, then select them and simply ratio. You can dick within the selected area and
single format can cater for all of them. Quite drag and drop them on to Any Video Converter. drag it to the area you want to keep.
apart from screen size and resolution , there's the Alternatively, dick the Add Video button in the
iS5ue of compression. To stream video OVf'!r the program's tasl:bar and navigate to the files. r:I Click the filmstrip icon below the scissoo
inleme\, you'll need to use as much compression 1:.1 to see the brightness, contrast and
as possible to reduce the bandwidth needed. AI EI Your videos should appear in the list. saturation controls. There's also a drop- down
the opposite end of Ihe 5Cale. you'll wantlhe a Check that Ihe duration, Irame size and menu called Other Effects, which will allow you
least compressiOll and highest quality for frame rate (Frs) have been detected correctly. to rotate any video that may have been
w~lching ~ideo on a l~rge HO TV. You can pre~iew the ~ideo by dicking the ",cidentally shol in the wrong orientation - an
Thi~ means there win often be a need to left-hand button below the preview window. easy mistake with cameraphones. When you've
convert a ~ideo 10 a fomnallhal's better suiled finished making adjustmenls, dck Apply.
to the device on which you want to watch it. n There are two icons to the right of the
Perhaps you ha~e a home movie Ihal you wanl a ~olume slider. The first - a pair 01 scissoo I'!I Next, choose a profile Irom the menu in
to watch both on an HD TV and your portable - allows you to trim your dip before converting 1.:1 the top-right of the main interface. We
media player. You'll nee<:! two separale ~ersions, it. This can be useful if you require only a portion want to watch the video on an iPod Touch or
and it'~ easy to convert from one to the other of the video. When you dick on the scissors, a irhone but. as there's no preset for these devices,
using free software such as Any Video Converter, video dipping window will open. Play the ~ideo, we've chosen Customize<:! MP4 Mo~ie (o.mp4).
which you can download lrom ~rtp:/lrjnyurl. or drag the orange arrow to the desired start We'~e manually entered the Frame Size of
com/anyvideo. position, and press pause. To set this as the start 480x320, a Video Bitrate of 768Kbitsls and a
Before you start, it's important to remember point, did the (icon. To set the end point, Framerate 012Sfps (to match our original ~ideo).
that, just as with photos, you can't increase the repeat this process, but dick on the J icon. If you Finally, we chose the aac Audio Codec and set
detail in a ~ideo by increasing its resolution. If want to adjust these points, dick and drag the the BiUate to 128Kbitsls. Click the Con~ert icon
you start with a 64Ox480 ~ideo shot on a digital small blue triangles below the blue bar. in the taskbar and the conversion process will
camera, you can't con~ert it to 1,920xl ,080 and You can add other portions, or segments, by begin. When it's done, you can dick the Output
expect it to ~ lantastic. Oownscaling video, on dicking on the New Segment icon, which looks Folder button in the bottom-left comer to see
the other hand - from high-resolution footage to like a piece of paper with the corner lolde<:! o~er. the converted files, which can then be
low resolution - will yield much better results. When you'~e finished, click Apply. mnsferred to your device. GJ

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MAY 2010 . COMPIJTERSHOPPER

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COAT OF ARMS DESIGN STUDIO

HDWlD ...
Create a coat of arms
Now you can experience the days of chivalry without all that jousting and duelling.
Mike Bedford shows you how to create your very own herlaldic emblem
al1~ designing you=11 a coat 01 arms? E'I Coats of amns are usually split into Common examples are the fess, which is a broad

F Perhaps yoo're researching your family

history and are interested in your
ancestors' arms. Altematively, you might want a
a divisions. If you don 't want divisions,
select a colour for the whole shield by clicking on
the white box labelled Bad:ground Color or Fur
horizontal band, and a chevron. To add an
ordinary, did in either the large gret'n box for
the whole shield or one the smaller green boxes
coat of anms as a company logo or for a and go straight to Step 3. If you do want for the divisions and select Add an Ordinary from
character in a role-playing game. You could use a divisions. dick in the gret'n box and select Add a the drop-down menu. The controls for defining
drawing package such as CorelDraw, but this wiu Division from the drop-down menu. the ordinaries appear in the Edit area at the right
be time-consuming and the linal result may not The controls for defining the divisions appear of the s.:ret'n, and are the same as those for
come up to your expectations. Fortunately, in the Edit area at the right of the screen. Select designing divisions.
there 's an altern.liVi' that's both cheap and easy the required panem from the Divisions menu.
to use: dediCilted heraldry software. The names of the divisions will be unfamiliar ..:I The final element of your coat of arms is
The software we',e using is Coat of Anms unless you're au fait with heraldic tenms, but 1:,1 the charges. These include animals such
Design Studio, which you'U lind at www. you 'Hget the hang of them as you experiment_ as dragons and ~ons, plants such as roses or
inkwellideiu,com!coaLof-arms. There's a free Initially, the divisions will aU be the same colour. fleurs-de-lis, objects and geometric figures.
online version, and a Pro version that runs on so you might like to move on to the next step Charges can be placed anywhere on the arms or
your PC an d costs $9 (around £6) per year. and then come bad to this one. limited to one of the divis ions.
Here we're using the Pro version, which gives To add a charge, click in the appropriate
you ~ larger ons.:reen view, allows you to save ~ The next job is to assign what we would gret'n box and select Add a Creature or Add a
at a higher resolution and 11'15 you import your a caU colours. but are known in heraldry as Symbol (or Add an Image with the Pro version)
own images. Othe<Wise. the online version tinctures, to each of the divisions (or to the from the menu. The rest of the procedure is
wolts in the same way. Click the ~sign whole anms if it doe5n't have divisions). In the much like adding divisions and ordinaries, but
Software tilb to access it. Edit Object area there's a coloured box for each you can select multiple charges in various
Both versions require Java, so if you don't of the divisions and the borders betwet'n them. patterns. Note that charges can be resized and
have it, go to www.java.com/eflldowfl/oad. Click in a coloured box and a Color Chooser dragged around for accurate positioning. To
window will appear. The palette on the leh offers select a particular charge, or any other element

D Whefl you start the program, you'll see

a blank coat of arms in the traditional
shape. If you 'd prefer your coast of arms to be
1015 of options. but for a formal coat of arms.
choose from the lists on the right. These indude
metals (Or and Argent. which are gold and
of your design , dick in the green box that you
used to create it and select it from the list.

red<lngular or a diamond shape, dick the Tools silver), colours and several patterns. known as ~ When your design is complete, select
menu. Set Shield Shape and choose your shape. furs. Simply dick on any tincture and then Save. 1:1
Save Image from the File menu. If you're
You can also choose to add a scroll with a name using the Pro version , select the width of the
or mono undemeath the anms. Click the Tools .... Hany arms also contain ordinaries. which image in pixels before clicking Save. In the next
menu. Set Name/Motto and type in your text. Iii are bold patterns across either the whole window. provide a filename for the PNG file
select a font and pick a colour scheme. of the coat of anms or some of the divisions. and dick Save.GJ

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MAY ~OlO

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 UPGRADING TO WINDOWS 7

HDWTD ...
Transfer your old files
toWindows7
Upgrading to Windows 7 brings lots of benefits, but transferring your personal files
can be a pain. Jon Thompson explains how a free Microsoft utility can make it easy
'crosoft's Windows 7 operating system Take the time to make an assessment of files using the Customise buttons. This displays a

M is a big improvement on pre~ious

versioos. and it's well worth upgrading.
When you do so, it's a good idea to refom13t
which files yoo actively use. In many cases, you'U
find that yoo can free up large amoonts of disk
space by simply archiving old liles. Do this now
sub-window, aUowingyooto select what you
want transferred. If yoo need to remove files or
lolders from the list, dick on Advanced. Yoo can
your hard disk and install Windows 7 from to clear space and you'll save time later on. then deselect files by unticking the check boxes.
scratch rather than upgrading your current Click Next, enter a password il r~uired, then
Windows instaUatioo. as this gets rid 01 any E'I Download Microsoft's Windows Easy dick Next again to select a transfer destination.
accumulated junl for those upgrading from IIti::ITransler from http://tinyurl,com/ The program creates an archive and tells you
Windows XP, a fresh install is the only optioo_ WindowsfT. Select the corre<:t version depend ing where it's stored. Yoo can now exit the wizard.
The only drawback is that a fresh installation on whether your old Windows installation is XP
will wipe all your personal liles_These must be or Vista, and 32-bit or 64-bit. 1f you're not sure, 1':1 Install Windows 7 using the disc supplied.
saved el~where so that you can recover them. in Vista, click St.Jrt. type system and click System 1:.1 When it's complete, insert your USB drive
Windows Easy Transfer, which is available as a in the programs list. In XP, click Start and then and open it to display its files. These are stored
free dOW'nload, makes this process simp/e. It worb Run. Type sysdrn,cpl and press Enter. In each as a self-extrilcting archive, so there's no n~d to
for both Window XI' and Vista, and will ha~ you case, the resulting information will teU you if install Easy File Transfer on Windows 7.
up and running on Windows 7 very quickly. you r current version of Windows is 32- or 64-bit. Double-click the file called Windows Easy
Windows Easy Transfer can use a special Once downloaded, double -click on the Ea sy Transfer - Files lrom old computer. After a few
transfer cable to copy files directly from an old Transfer file and follow the installation wizard. minutes yoo 'Ube presented with a similar
Pc. For upgrades, you 'Un~d to use one 01 the window to the one you saw earlier when yoo
other two options: netwoJ1<-at\ached storage or n Run Windows Easy Transfer from the Start created the archive. but thiS time you 're choosing
an external storage device. An external USB hard K:I menu. The initial scr~n tells yoo what it liles to load on to the new computer. You can
disk is ideal if you have one, but if yoor personal can do. Click Next to continue. The next screen dick Customise to omit files, as before.
liles aren't too big. you can use a large USB flash asks which transler met hod you want to use , If
drive , which are very cheap. you're transferring files using an external device. t;I Click Transfer to start loading the files on
Before you begin, we recommend performing click the bottom option. Click Next ilgain, and 1:.1 to the new computer, To prevent hie
a full backup so that if anything goes wrong. you you'll be asked which computer yoo're using. corruptions or access conflicts, Windows 7
can roll the system back to a working state. Since there's only one option, c~ ck it. Windows deliberately hides the menu bar to prevent you
Easy Transler now builds a list of your files and from using the PC until the transler is complete.

D It's likely that you have a large number of

tiles on your computer that you've either
downloa ded or generated yourself. The chances
settings. This process may take several minutes.

. . . Easy File Transfer will identify the data it

FinaUy, dick on the option to see the files
that were transferred. Clicking the Program
report tab also lists any third-party applications.
are that yoo've also not accessed many of these Ii.I plans to transler for each user account, such as Adobe Reader, that Windows 7 thinks
files in years. and also from shared locations. Review these you'll need to install to access your files. G:]

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EDITING RAW IMAGE FILES

HDWlD ...
Develop RAW images
Ever wondered what your camera's RAW mode is for? Ben Pitt explains how this
powerful feature can help you squeeze the last drops of quality from your camera
igila! SLR ~mera~ usually save photos as make darlo; areas solid black, and bright areas can give photos an unpleasant colour cast.
I JPEGs. but they can also .save in RAW
format. This option is avaHable on an
appear .solid white, losing any details in these
parts of the photos. This problem is known as
Cameras' automatic white balance modes olten
successfully estimate the correct setting. but
inc:reasing number of compact cameras, 100. highlight and shadow dipping. By shooting in shooting in RAW mode lets you try out manual
RAW files are bigger than )pEGs. and they're RAW mode, you know that il the sensor can settings to line-tune the results. The camera's
compatible with far fewer software applications. measure it. it will be in your RAW file, You can setting is embedded into the RAW lile, but you
Don't let these drawbacks put you off, though. then boost the contrast lor punchy colours. ease can try out other presets by clicking on Camera
There's an enormous amount you can do with off to avoid clipping or use complex colour setting on the left and selecting a preset from
RAW files that simply isn 't possible with JPEGs. curves to achieve the best 01 both worlds. the list. In our case, the automatic setting (in
Digital cameras must do an awful lot of woO:: All RAW-capable cameras come with screi'nshot 1) wasn't bad but the Fine (S200K)
before they COlO save an image as a JPEG: J'l!move RAW-development software. These packages preset gives warmer. more llattering colours.
colour casts, optimise contrast, remoVi' noise, vary by manufacturer, but they all include a
sharpen details and more besides. The camera similar COI'e set of tools. In this tutorial we're n If none of the white balance presets is
ma~es alilhese decisions in a split second before using Silkypix Developer Studio SE, '-"Ihich is a ideal. RAW-development software olfers
it can save a JPEG. ready for the neXl shot. These bundled with Panasonic and Pentax cameras. various ways to fine -tune it. Silkypix has three.
)pEGs are often extremely jmpre~ive, but there's II you're using a camera Irom another One option is to click the White Balance button
m~arly always room lor improvement. manufacturer you can still follow this tutorial, as (with an icon resembling the sun) and adjust the
Capturing in RAW mode unlocks that the basic te\:hniques are common to pretty threi' sliders below, Another option is to select
potential A RAW image lile is essentially the much all RAW -development software. the Gray Balance Tool and click on an area 01 the
unprocessed data taken dire\:tly Irom the photo that should be grey. The third is to use the
camera's sensor, Rather than processing the
image in the camera, it's done using PC software.
This method of working lets you take your time
D Open a RAW image tile in your chosen
software. One 01 the most uselul tools is
the Histogram display, as it shows the range of
White balance adjustment tool. which appears in
a pop-up window when the button next to the
EXIF button is clicked. This adds a colour tint of
to lind the best settings. By bringing your own brightness in the image. Enable it in Silkypix by its own, which can be used either to counteract a
creative judgement to the process, the results clicking the button at the bottom-left 01 the tinted light source or as a creative measure to
are invariably superior to in -camera processing. screen. It's often interesting to see the camera give a pleasing colour palette to the photo.
One ~ey benefit of shooting in RAW mode is settings used to take the picture, so click the EXIF
tha t you 'll have a bigger range 01 brightness - button located next to the Histogram button. .... C~ck the words Standard colOI' and step
known as dynamic "lOge - to play with. We're Iii through the various presets listed here.
used to sei'ing photos with vivid, punChy colours, 11:1 Different light sources, such as sunlight, These are equivalent to the picture style presets
so cameras boost a )pEG 's contrast to give the U fluorescent tubes and the camera's lIash, found on some digital cameras, which in turn are
photo more impact. The downside is that it can have different colour tints. II left unchecked , they designed to emulate different types of film.

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 EDITING RAW IMAGE FILES

Monochrome is an obvioos example, but other bottom 01 the screen. Don't worry about the lirst ~ If you want to go bt-yond the presets.
option~ manipulate colour~ in ~ubtler ways. Thi~ three controls and concentrate on the Dynamic ~ Silkypix indudes some advanced tool~ for
section also indudes a Saturation slider, which range control at the bouom. Higher values will fine-tuning the noise re<!uction and sharpness. In
varie~ the inten~ity of colour5. reduce the brightnes~ of the highlights, ~o adjust our experience it's bt-~t to set the noise reduction
it so that the histogram curve dips to zero just as as required, and then increase the sharpness.
~ Click on Average contrast and ~elect it reaches the right edge of the graph. A5 always. Firlt of all, set the sharpnes~ to zero by selecting
K:i Standard trom the list. As with most make sure that the resu lts look good in the the No sharpneS$ preset. The button to the left
RAW-developm ent ~oftware, Silkypix boost~ the photo as well as the hi~togram . of the presets i~ actually two button~, so click the
contrast 01 photos by default, but selecting right hall to access the noise-re<!uction controls.
Standard reduces the contrast to neutral. This 1":'1 Arguably the most powerful tool for Noise tends to manifest itself in two ways:
usuaUy gives more natural-looking colours, albt-it &:I adjusting the brightness and contrast is colour and brightness, sometimes referred to as
less punchy and vibrant. Note that the histogram the Tone curve tool. It plots a graph 01 input chroma and luma. Chroma noise is speckled
curve is more bunched toward~ the middle now again~t output value~ to tran~form the image's diswloration. which i~ most vi~ible in area~ that
- redudng the contrast re<!uces the range brightness. Raising an area of the curve makes should be a single, consistent hue. luma noise
between the brightest and darke~t parts of the those tone~ brighter, but will also allect the comprise~ speckles that are brighter or darker
photo, and can recover shadow or highlight contrast of the areas either si de - a steep part of than they shoold be.
clipping. Yoo 'U know this is happening il the the curve has higher COIltra~t. and a shaUow part Silkypix has a control to reduce each of these
histogram curve hits the left (dalt) or right has lower contrast. It's best to approach this tool separately, so experiment with the 'False color
(bright) e<!ge 01 the display before it reaches with caution, as anything more than very subtle ctrl' slider to re<!uce chroma noise. and the Noise
zero. Otherwise, choosing a contrast setting is a treatments can make coloorllook artificially reduction control for luma noise. Find the setting
matter of taste. so experiment with the Contrast skewed. StilL it's uselul for subtle. precise edits. that largely removes the noise. but doesn't
control in the Tone section. It's also worth using Here, we've used it to make the dark areas a remove too many of the fine details. Skin and
the Contrast center and Gamma controls. both little darker without allecting the brighter areas. hair textures are particularty vulnerable to this.
of which adjust the brightness of the mid-tones. so keep an eye on them as you adjust. Also keep
I":t Noise is one of the biggest challenges for an eye oot for darker areas of the image. as these
.:I If the image seems too darl: or too bright. ~ digital cameras. Noise-reduction tend to show the noise more.
1:.1 the Exposure control is the one to tum to. processing is nearly always required to reduce
This i~ designe<! to replica te the expo~ure
compensation control on cameras. It's not as
effective a~ adjusting the camera. as it can't
the 5peckled grainine~s tha t blights photos,
particularly when a high ISO spee<! has been
used. However, thi~ proce~~ing stJ1Jggle~ to
m Once you 've found your preferred noise-
reduction settings. click the Sharpness
button and e~periment with these settings.
adjust the exposure settings use<! to take the distinguish between unwanted noise and subtle Outline emphasis increases the sharpneS$ of
picture. However. because RAW files have a detail~ in the image. and usually removes both in h igh- contra~t lines. while Detail emphasi~ boosts
wider dynamic range than jPEGs, you can often e<fual measure. Once noise reduction is applied it the definition of subtler details. although this win
adj u~t the exposure without introdUCing clipping. can't be undone, so there's a huge bene/it to also exaggerate noise. The False outline control
In our example, boosting the exposure by +O.6EV adjusting it in software rather than having it reduces the halo effect that can occur around
lifts the skin tones. but also results in highlight applied using default settings in the camera. sharp lines at high settings. although most of the
clipping. This is shown by the histogram curve, as Silkypix bundles its noise reduction and time you can leave it at zero.
the line hits the right edge before it reaches zero. sharpness controls toget her. which makes sense
as they're two sides of the same coin - you can't rr:. AU that remains is 10 export the final
E"I Most RAW-development software increase one without increasing the other. Click W image as a file that's compatible with
U includes a dedicated highlight -recovery on the word Natural and try out some of the other software. Type (trl-S to open the Save A5
control This subtly reduces the brightness 01 the other Sharpness/Noise presets. You'Uneed to dialog box, choose a filename and a location.
brightest parts of the image, and is ideal lor zoom in to 100 per cent magnification to see the The default ~ettings vvill5<lve a~ a high -quality
eliminating highlight c~pping without upsetting results accurately, so hold down Shift and hit the JPEG at the same resolution as the original
the fest of the image. In Silkypix. yoo'U find this right cursor key. You can lOom out again with image, which is perfect for most purposes. so
tool by clicking Highlight controller at the Shift and the left cursor key. dick Save to Iinish. 13:l

- ~

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DEVICE MANAGER

HDWlD ...
Use Device Manager
Whether you want to update drivers or troubleshoot hardware problems, the
Device Manager is the place to go. Jim Martin explains how to use it

T
he Device M~l1ijger allow~ you to view all
f. _.
~- ........_. . . ,-- .~

._.K --
the hardware inside your computer. It's _ 0-

..-
1. . . [ _
"Iso the pl<tce to go when you're haVing

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---
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problems with hardware, as it can help diagnose

----- 1._---
faults and update device drivers. To open the

.-
_l1000 .. _
Device Manager in Vista, go to the Control Panel,
System and Maintenance, Device Manager. In ...
~PIoIo""' ..
Windows XP, ii's the same procedure, but the . o.. _ell-110M
.II1WIt _ K........
o...c..
_ _ 1. _ _ _ " _ _

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Control Panel icon is simply called System. It 's ~ .... III ~I '" ..1....

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quicker to right-dick on My (omputer, then • , .lU .....
~~ "- ....." .
Properties, then Device Manager.

DEVICE SQUAD
. -, ~ ,,_III

"""... . ~-- -1._ ...

........ -. ... ,....

-
You may never have visited the Device Manager
before, as there's usually no reason to. When yoo
install a piece 01 new hardwilre. you'll al:;o install
any drivers from CD. This proceS!i automatically
copies files to the appropriate places and adds ..----
<1. -----
the hardware to the ~vice Manager list.
Although you can en~ble an d disable
hardware from the ~vice Manager, it's often
more convenient to do so from other places in
Windows. The same is true for updating drivers.
While you can manually initiate a driver update
__
_",.._D_"'....__·
_ ... _--
. .._-------
---
__..___-.---
.. ---
. __. --,
...
from an it em's properties page in the Device
Manager, there's usuaRy no need to do so, since
most drivers downloaded from manufacturers'
websites automatically remove old versions and
install the new ones,
However, when your hardware stop<; wOfting
properly or you can't automatically update
drivers, the Device Manager comes into its own.
The default view of devices by type shows a Here we'll assume that your Windows entry, look for Other devices. which should
coliapsed tree structure that shows just the desktop is showing enonmous icons and you include Unknown device in ill lis\.
headings, but it will automatically expand any can't adjust the resolu tion in the Display
category that contains a problem. You may see a Settings dialog. Et Right-dick on this, or on the name of the
yellow exclamation mark next to a component's U graphics card, and choose Properties. Click
Scan down the ~vice Milnilger list until
name, or a red cross (in XP) or an aJTOW pointing
downwards (in Vista). The exclamation mark may
mean tha t the hardware drivers aren't installed,
O you come to the Display adapters entry_
Click the + symbol and you should see an
on the Driver tab and you 'll see details of the
currently installed driver, if there is one. You may
see Microsoft listed as tl>e Driver PrO\lider, but
or that the hardware can't start. A red cros.s or exclamation mark, which means the drivers you should install the latest driver from your
arrow denotes thilt the hardware is disabled. aren't installed, 1/ there's no Display adapters graphics card m~nufacturer.

~ Visit the manufacturer's website to obt3in

-~ - 1::1
... Ocw;. Mon.gr,

~- ....
• • 1", 1l ,.1 ",
v_
the latest driver and download it. If
necessary, unzip it into a folder on your hard
disk-If the file is a self·executable - ending in
The n~me of your computer
..., 0 .exe - you can run it at this point. If not. retum

,-- * ....
Is at th e tOf> of the tree to the Properties page from Step 2 and click the
Oick the + symbol next to
each category to show the
.
_ .....
alu..""", 1tI<IOo<

tlook d'~
Update Oriver.. _button. Click the button labeRed
Browse my computer for driver software.
devices within .... LLltAR.oD 1 • lISI 0....:.
This PC has three disk drlyes
~ "'u*'
f loll1 R..<Iet lISI D.... ~ . . . Click the Browse", button on the next
W window that appears. Navigate to the
~ ...... woe WDS(J OO~ SC5l Dis6: Ofto<~
connected: a US8 flash drive, Ii- -:i. llr<ploy .d.pl= folder where you unzipped the drivers and dick
a memory card reader and an 10; .:,I ()V()/CI).RQM _ ..
Intemal hard disk . Th e first NeKt. Windows should install the d riv~, and
two are also li.ted under the It.- O; Hum," 1m""IU DNke> you may see the screen flicker during the
• '-4 IDE ... T........ TAPI<onI _
~ble Devices headlng_ process_You may also have to reboot your
I!io- :;;:: Krtb-ch PC to complete the instaliation. G:I

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 PC TOOLS OISK SUITE 2009

HDWTD ...
Spring-clean your hard disk
PC Tools Disk Suite 2009 , included on this month's cover disc, can cure a range of
hard disk ailments. Julian Prokaza shows you how it's done
t's ~ f~d of life that a Windows PC wilislow

I down over time, but this isn 't just a case of

old age kicking In. The problem IS a Side
effect of the way we use computers. where
It's free to register for a peTools Disk Suite
2009 licence key at WoVW.pctools.coml
Registration activates a new module for
working with hard disk partitions, but you'll
everything from web browsing to instaWng new disi-sllite/freelpromolSHOPPER051O, Follow need to e n.able this before you can use it,
software leaves behind redundant files. the instructions and you 'll receive th e key by by choosing Settings, Partition, Enable
This digital detritus builds up over time, email; jllst copy and paste it into the Partition Module,The new module will then
leading to wasted disk space, di sk fragmentation program's Register pane and cllck 'Register'. appear under the Status pane.
and a general Windows bloat tha t can degrade a
PC's performance. Routine maintenance to purge
these files is simple, but unless you know where Files and Recyde Bin; they may contain files you Choose a time and day to run the task then,
to look and what's sale to delete, simply deleting want to keep. The final option is Custom, which when you click the Finish button, it will be listed
files that look as if they're no longer needed can lets you select other folders. Tick the boxes for under the program's Schedule pane. PC Tools
create even bigger problems. the ~re~s you want to dear ~nd dick Start. Disk Suite doesn't need to be running for this
A much safer solution is to use a dedicated schedule to take effect; all scheduled tasks run
Iwd disk maintenance utility such ~s PC Tools E":I Another window will then open to automatically in the background.
Disk Suite. We 've provided a free copy of the full a confirm which folders will be emptied;just
2009 edition on this issue's cover disc. you'n click the OKbutton when you're happy with the n Another option worth using regularly is
need to register to g~in access to the full set of selection. PC Too15 Disk Suite will then show the 1:.1 Defrag, also found on the Status page.
fe~tures, but thi~ won't cost you a penny. status of the file deletions, along with the Defragmen ting a h~rd disk rearranges files that
amount of hard disk space that's being recovered are scattered far and wide to make them faster

D Instal! PC Too15 Disk Suite from the cover

disc. The program runs as a trial edition
until you register for a free licence key (see bo><-
in the process. You can opt to see a brief report
on the clean-up when it's finished. Otherwise,
just dick the OK button on the Operation
to access. Select the drive you want to
defragment (usually C:), select the Consolidate
Free Space action an d dick the Start button.
above), but you can access its main features in Complete dialog box to return to the program. Defragmentation can take some time, so it's
thiS mode. These are listed as buttons on the left worth creating a monthly schedule for this, too.
of the application window. To access the key . . . Cleanup and Optimize should keep your
maintenance tools, click the Status button. Ii.I PC in tip-top shape, but you need to n PC T0015 Disk Suite can a150 be used to fix
remember to use it regularly, If you 're the 1:.1 problems with ~ey Windovvs folders and
11:1 Click the Start button just below Cleanup forgetful type, click the Schedule... bullon at the repair a hard disk that contains errors. The
U and Optimize. This is the tool you 'n bottom of the screen to set thiS task to run Scandisk operations listed under Status, Repair
probably use most often, since it allows you to automatically on a regular basis. Click OK to let you check the hard disk for physical damage
delete the unwanted files that accumulate with confirm the list of folders to purge (as in step 3), and attempt to rescue data in the damaged
Windows' use. There are si x locations, or areas, give the task a name and select a frequency. sectors. However, the Repair boot record options
that contain files you can sa fely purge. However, Monthly should be sufficient for most PCs, but are best left untouched unless you're familiar
think twice about selecting Downloaded Program When Windows start [sic) works just as wen. with such aspects of Windows' operation. 1i]

... _...
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MAV 2010 . COMPIJTERSHOPPER
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HDWITWDRKS
Music recDgnitiDn
If you 've ever wondered how your computer or mobile phone can identify songs
from just a brief snatch of music, Simon Handby has tracked down the answer
songwriter. This da ta, defined and added by the

B
ack when musi<: only C<lme on Yinyl. files may contain additional inform ation that you
working out what you were listening to might expect, and some - such as album cover publisher, can be stored in the CD's lead -in area
was a case 01 reading the sleeve notes or artwork - th at you might not. This month we where there is about five kilobytes of free space
waiting for the OJ to enlighten you. However, look at where it come$from, how it 's stored and - enough lor about two page$ 01 text - or in the
over the p3st lew year.; Ihe way we slore, share wh at happens if it's not available. CD 's unused subchannels, which allow for abou t
and listen to musk has g()(le digital, providing 31MB of storage. Despite being supported by
new challenges fOf Odentifying and classifying OFFTHE BEATEN TRACK Sony. CD-Text uptake was patchy and even now
tracks, along with new opponunities. Our mu sic It seems surprising now, but when CDs fim went it isn't found on all audio discs.
libraries now consist 01 a mass of digital files, on sale in the early 19805 there was nothing in In 1995. the year before CD-Text arrived. the
while services well as Spotify and Napster let the audio discs ' so-called Red 800k specification lirst MP3 encoders ha d become availa ble. As
us stream even more. Social networks such as that allowed for identification or description of with early CDs. at first there was no way to
last.FM keep track of what we and OOf friends the music they actua lly contained. However, as identify the contents 01 an HP3 lile: early
are ~stening to. and use this infO<Tl1ation to make CD players grew in sophistication, and as audio adopters had to resort to naming files with a
new recommendations for music and gigs. CDs began to be played on computer CD-ROM two-digit track number, followed by the artist
For all this 10 wod, though, computers nee<! drives, an attempt was made to add ress the lack and track name, but trying to store any more
to underst<lnd wme basic; "bout each digitised of simple metadata describing the tracks. In inform ation in this way quidly became
track - not least what it is, who 's performing it 1996, CD-Text was introduced as an extension unwieldy. The problem was solved with the
and which album or single release it comes from. to Red Book that would store basic album and creation of 103 - a specification that allowed a
In practice, MP3, WMA, OGG and other audio track information, including title. performer and sma ll chunk of text data to be stored within the
file itself. Although this information was limited
to just 128 bytes, this was enough lor the basics,
and 103 quickly became the de facto st<lndard.
It was quickly superseded by ID3v2, which
stores informa tion in up to 84 frames. each of
which relates to a category such as artist or
composer. The newer standard allows up to
16MB of dat a per frame and anything up to
256MB of metadata per file. although in practice
tags rarely contain more than a lew kilobytes.
Another important change in ID3v2 was to
move the tag from the end of the file to the
Iront, so that it could be read at the very start 01
playback by streaming app~cations. allowing the
track to be identified stra ight away. Among its
other improvements. ID3v2 uses UTF-16
encoding. enabling it to store a full range of
international symbols - some thing fans of Faure
or Bjolt may appreciate. While 103, and the
similar systems supported by other compressed
audio files. provide a way to embed descriptive
data about an audio file within the file itself, this
data typically isn't present on a CD. so another
way needs to be found to gather it.

ACE Of BASE
In 1993. an American programmer, Ti Kan, began
distributing CDDB, a da tabase of audio CD
informa tion that matched individual CDs with
user-submitted track data. As CDDB grew, Kan
gave users the ability to read and update the
database directly Oller the intemet. Now ~own
as Gracenote, the service is still used by
applications such as iTunes, but it faces
competition from free rivals such as freedb.org.
Songs can be cons idered as a set of component frequencies that change ove r time. This graph For such services to work. they need a way to
(1) of MUSic isMarh by Boards of Canada plots frequency against time, with brighter colours identify a specific audio CD when it's inserted in
showing louder components over the song's five -minute length. Zooming in on a section (Z) a computer's CD drive. but discs aren't pressed
reveals its pea ks, the relative Il"e<1uency arld position 01 which can be used to generate a unique with a unique identifier. Kan's approach was to
fingerp rint (3). By comparing a finge lpfint calculated from a short section to a database create a fingerprint based on the CD's trad
containing entire songs, a match can be lound arld the song named. informa tion, which is usually unique to pressings
of the S<lme disc (see di agram, left), When a new

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 HOW IT WORKS: MUSIC RECOGNITION

several tens of servers in order to speed up Tune in CD DB Identifiers

queries. New releases are analysed as a series 01
10-miUisecond chunks, in ea<:h of which the 3,Z07 SECONDS (S3M Z7S)
strongest Irequency components are identified, ~
and their positions calculate<! in relation to an ~ OC87.01C
anchor point. These position ~alues are combined
through a technique known as 'hashing' to CHECKSUM 1ZTRACKS
produce a combined ~alue for each chunk 01 the The CDDS identifier is an eight-digit
song. Taken in sf<:luence over the full length of hexade.::ima l number in which the fir5t two
the song. these form a unique lingerprint that is digits are a checksum derived from th e
stored in the database. start points of each individual track on the
When a user submits a section of music, it's disc, The middle four digits re prese nt the
analysed in exactly the same way as a new total length in seconds of the audio
release to produce a fingerprint. This partial recO«iing, and the last two digits are the
fingerprint is compared to the full fingerprints in num ber 01 tracks.Taken together, these
the database until a match is found, and the almost always identify a unique recording
track details can be returned to the user's mobile - in this case, Radlohead's OK Computer.
phone. Explaining the system to Scjentific
American, Wang used the analogy of miliions of
seconds of songs "translated into consteUations Surprisingly, perhaps, the fundamentals of
of dots and printed out in a long line ' . music make it reasonably simple to sol~e the
"Imagine that the constellation of 1S seconds lim two problems. Whatever spee<I a song is
that you want to match is printed on a piece of performe<! at. the relationship between the
transparent plastic." he said. "You slide the lengths 01 successive notes (its rhythmic ratio)
plastic along the whole li ne of dots until you remains the same. For example, if a note is twice
.. Shllzam identilies whole tracks from just a few find the same pattem." as long as the note before it, this is still true even
seconds 01 music using a h""" database when the same melody is performed at a
RATTLE AND HUM different tempo. Similarly, although performing a
albom is released, the first user to query the Focusing only on the loudest component<; helps song in a different key changes the actual
d~tabase will present it with a dill: fingerprint reduce the impact of background noise , while frequenCies of its notes, the ratios between the
that it hasn't seen before. If the user submit<; tolerances built into Shalam mean it can cope frequencies of subsequent notes (the pitch
track information for that dilC, it's stored in tile vvi th a certain amount of speeding up or slowing contour) remains the same, Jt 's perhaps easiest
database alongside the disc 's identifier. When down compared to the original track, such as to understand this by imagining the musical
other userl subsequently insert the same CD, the when a club OJ alters a song's tempo to mix it notation representing a tune: changing it into a
identifier is calculated and sent to the database, with another. However, the system can only spot higher key moves all the notes up, but the
which can supply trad details for the dill:. the specific recordings of a song that it has melody still has the same pattern.
All the cases we'~e explore<! so far in~olve "heard ". Natural variations between A query engine can take advantage of this by
information that's already in a digital fO<Tl1at , performances mean that a new ~~e ~ersion, for only considering the rhythmic ratio and the pitch
which can be read and identified with certainty, example, would be unrecognisable, e~en if it WdS contour between successi~e notes in a melody,
but there may be times when a computer nee<lS by the original artist and musicians. rather than their absolute values. Taking the
to identify a song as it's played out loud, or e~en Other services, such as Midomi, instead example of TuneBot, de~eloped at Chicago's
humme<! or whistled. The chaUenges in doing so aim to identify a tune rather than a specific Northwestem Uni~ersity, notes sung by a user
are considerable: variable filCtors such as the recording. allowing user5 to hum, sing or whistle are lim matched (quantised) to the nearest true
quality of tile sound systems and microphones a track and ha~e it named. For such services to note. Starting with the second note in the
involved or the ~olume and n~ture of background work, they must also boild a reference database sequence, the pitch gap in semitones between it
noise make it tricky to match e~en a ~own of fingerprints - in this case one that represents and the note before is reeDrde<!, a minus sign
recording such as a specific pop single. A songs' melodies. One way to do this might be to indicating if the later note is lower. At the same
"performance" from somebody whist~ng or conduct a frequency analysis broadly similar to time, the duration of each note is gi~en one of
singing a tune themselves presents additional Shazam's on a set of reference songs, looking for five 'rhythm ratios' based on the length of the
problems, such as missing notes or poor pitching. a recognisable melody. In theory it might be previous note: much shorter, shorter, roughly
In fact. services such as Shalam (which identifies possible to look for mUSical notes, each of which f<:luaL longer or much longer. Doing thiS along
o~erheard music via a mobile phone) and has a ~nown frequency - middle C, lor example, the length of a sample produces a set of data
Midomi (which names a hummed, sung or is just under 262Hl. However, songs contain a representing its melody, which should look
whistle<! tune) use quite different approaches. multitude of instruments playing complementary similar independent of the exact key and tempo.
Interviewed by Scientific American in 2003, notes, and automated systems can't reliably tell Although the system can now search in it<;
Shalam co-founder A~ery Wang explained how which notes belong in the main melody of a database lor a match, other imperfections in
he was initially told by experts that recognising piece. A quick and easy alternative is simply to users ' performances mean it won 't always find
o~erheard music was "ne><t to impossible". use MIDlliles already created by humans, which an eMct one. However, with a reasonably
Music is the sum of many instrument<;, each represent songs as a set of notes and durations accurate performance to work from, a good
playing a r~nge of notes, eilCh of which get<; its - an ideal reference lor quick comp<lrisons. system can identify the closest matches, which
character from it<; own complex combination of With such a database, finding a match for a are li kely to include the correct tune.
frequencies and harmonics. It's possible to plot sung query - which doesn 't contain multiple It's worth noting that. while humans are far
the strength of a song's component Irf<:luencies instruments - should simply be a case 01 better than computers at recognising handwriting
against time (see diagram, left), but doing so in identifying its sequence of or faces, both humans and machines can
detail creates a huge amount of information to musical notes and loo~ing it up, struggle to recognise a sung.
analyse. However, Wang realised that at any but this assumes that a query is FURTHER READING whistled or hummed song.
point in time a song would ha~e a 'loudest' accurate, In reality most people P"r. findiol SWctu .... in Research suggests that
frequency component. and that the pattern of have imperfect pitch, and few Mldlo,lI<yan Pardo: people only recognise a song
these over the song's length would be unique. Sy vvill interpret a song in exactly http://rk7yurtcom;j6b.mw they know about two-thirds
producing a fingerprint based on this pattern the same way it's recorded, P~~r. An iOdus~l_stref1gth of the time when it's sung
- which Shalam calls a 'constellation' - aU the instead changing its tempo, :.,ud,o search a lJorithm, A~ery vvithout instrumental
an, (S~.amJ:
other frequency information could be ignored. transposing it into another hrtp://tirryurl, comlS58eba accompaniment by another
In practice, Shalam uses a database fO<Tl1ed key, cutting musical rests human - as anyone who 's seen
More On "ow Sha,am wo<h:
by the analysis of a claimed eight million short or simply getting the http://rinyurl.comJn3yj4w the intro round in NeverMirnj
recordings, which is held in the memory of odd note wrong. {he BUlZcoch will know. GJ

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 ~ Se~rc~ en.gine
w optimisation
c.. Improving your search engine ranking to ensure that your
website appears high in Google's search results is simple.
X Matt Preston explains how to bring more visitors to your site

W S
eardl engines use II huge index of all the words
and phrases found on all the web pages they
~now about. This index worh in the 5ame way
Search engine providef5 disapprove of people trying
to improve their search ranking artificially, but by
following some simple guidelines it's easy to ensure
as the index in a boollmagine that each page in a book thaI your website is successfuny crawled and indexed.
were a web page: the index at the back would record You should use a descriptive <title> tag in each of
the web pages on which each word could be found. The your web pages. Search engines use this tag as a source
index is sorted alphabetically. so you can quickly find of important information about your page. and often
words in the index and, hence. the web pages on which use it as the basis for the link in their results pages.
the words appear.
The technologies may vary slightly from site to site. E'I Next. add a meta description to your web pages.
but there are threo: main steps used by all search U This should describe the page in greater detail.
engines: crawling. indexing and search ing. Crawling is and may be used by the search engine to generate the
the way search engines find out about new and excerpt in the results page. This, in turn, win help
updated web pages that need to be added to the index. potential visitors to your site work out if your site is
This process involves downloading billions of pages relevant to them. The meta description tag shoold be
from all over the internet an d is usually achieved by an added to the <head> tag in your HTMl page. You
automated program that runs on a large number of shoold add a meta tag to all HTMl pages; for example:
computef5. These programs are called spidef5. or bots.
The Google crawling program. for eKample. is known as <html>
Googlebot. The crawling process begins with a list of <head>
URls generated from previous crawl processes and new <title>Welcome to Redcot Barn
websites submitted by webmastef5. As the spider visits <{ t itle>
each of the web pages in the list, it records the links <meta nd me- RDescrip ti on" conten t - n

found and adds them to the list of pages to be visited. Redeot Bar n is one of the best self-
The web pages that are downloaded by the crawling cater in g ho lida y co tt ages in Stratford
process are analysed and broken down into words aod Upo n ~von. It can accommOdate parties of
phrases, which are stored in the index. The index also 10 and has spectacu l ar vi ews across th e
notes s~cial content in the web page. such as the title. cou nt ryside ")
which is used to improve the search and present excerpts <Ihead>
INTRODUCTION in the results. The indexing process is clever and can <{html>
e>ctract information from a number of sources other Ne . t
A sea rch engine allows you to than HTML web pages. such as images and Flash liles.
find website' from all ove r the n Use <hl > and <h2> tags as well as bold fonts to
inte rnet in an instant. It's easy KEYTO IT ALL 1::.1 pick out headings and emphasise text. Search
to add your own website t o Searching involves matching keywords against words engines will ideotify these tags as a source of significant
t hese sea rch engines so people and phrases from the index to lind relevant pages. Each keywords and will increase the relevancy score when
u n access your (o ntent. search engine has a differeot method for calculating searches are made using them.
In thi s month's We b bpert, which are the most relevant resulu. The factof5 for
we ll explore how th ese sea rch what makes one resull more relevanl than another can . . . Don't Iry to be too dever and repeat keywords
engines work and how to add be quite complicated an d are often a wen-kept secret. Ii.I in hidden parts of the page that the user cannot
your webs ite to the ir indexes. see in an attempt to fool the indexer. Search engines
We l l also explain how you
ca n make your website m ore
search -engine frie ndly, from
D Addingyour own website to a search engine to
be crawled is simply a matter of going to its
individual submission pages, such as www.google.com/
are quite good at detecting thiS misuse. as their
reputation is based on the quality of their results.
In the WOf5t -case scenario. the search engine will
the way in w hich pages are ar:kfurl for Google. http://search.yahoo.com/info/suOmir. discover what you are up to and remove your
lurch ed to how resulU pages html for Yahoo! and www.bing.com/webmaster/ website from the index completely.
a re gene rated. Suomir5itePage.aspx for Microsoft's Bing. It's free. but Alternatively. sometimes you'lI need to prevent
You will need II publidy you must wait a few days for your website to appear in search engines crawling and indexing content from
visible website SIKh as www. the search results. bi-cause you have to wait for a crawl certain parts of your website. You might want to do this
redcotbarn.co.uk to be able process to visit your site and update the indexes. if certain web pages contain information that you don't
to add it to II search engine, Each search engine uses a different set of rules for want to make searchable. or if 1'00 have web pages that
so dedica ted web hosting deciding which web pages are most relevaot to a search lin~ to many gigabytes of data. Search engine crawlers
is esse nti al. query. so it can be difficult to work out how to make a tend to use a lot of bandwidth as they download all the
website rank well in results. However, there is a strategy reachable content on your website, so it's easy to
for designing or modifying web pages so they achieve exceed the maximum bandvvidth limit of a hosted
Matt Prestan good ranking in search results - it 's called search engine website by having lots of content available. Exceeding
Web developer optimisation (SEC). As many companies rely on their your bandwidth limit can ma~e your website become
website appearing prominently in search results, SEC temporarily unavailable or lead to ex~nsive hosting
has become a lucrative business. bills, so it's best to avoid it. Instead. add a special file to

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 WEB EXPERT

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the root of your website, called robots.txt; this Tools are free to use. You just need an active pages. You can also see a list of the top phrases
tells sea rch·engine crawlers which parts of your Google account. which is e3sy to create. Once used in external links to your site. such as in
website should not be processed. you have an account, you can log on to the anchor tags. Google is very intereste<l in how
A simple robotHxt file that prevents crawlers Webmaster Tools home page by going to the other people link to your site and includes this
processing files and directories looks like this: URL above. After you 've logge<l in, you can add informatioo in its relevancy cakulations. The
URLs for the websites on which you want to use Links to your site section also provides more
U~er -~ gent: the tools. such as www.5hop~fex~rt.co.uk. information about extemal links to your website.
D I ~a ll ow :Itmp! You can type in any URL at this point, even Sitemaps are metadata files you can add to
Di~~ ll ow : limagesl those you don 't own or control which is a your ~bsite to describe its layout. ensuring that
Di sa ll ow : lo l d/ l ndex . hlm i security problem. Before you can use the tools crawlers can find pages they might otherwise
on a partiC\.llar website. ho~ver. you have to miss. This is particularly useful if you have ~b
The first line aUoW5 you to give instructions to a prove that you're in dwge of it. This is done by pages with dynamic content, using JavaScript to
particular crawler. Using' in dicates that the either uploading an empty file to your website or create page links, or web pages that simply don ·t
rules should be applicable to aU crawlers. The by pasting a meta tag into the <head> section have any links to them. The 5itemaps section in
foRowing lines are rules that prevent crawling of of your website·s home page. Webmaster Tools allows you to upload and
specific directories and files, As you can see. it's manage sitemaps, For more information about
pOS$ible to alter the cootent that is indeKed by a n Once your webs ite has been verified, you sitemaps. see w.vv.-.xml·sitemaps.com; here you
search engine drasticaUy by altering this lile - 1:.1 can access the fu ll set of tools. These are will also find a wiZilrd lor getting started.
sometimes by more than you originally intende<l. divided into five main sections: Dashboard, Site Site configuratioo has a (rawler access
Google has a free set of tools called configuration. Your site on the web. DiagnostiCS section. which indudes a number of useful
Webmaster Tools (w.vv.-.google.coml and Labs. The Diagnostic.s section is where you utilities lor checking your robots.txt file and
webmastersltools) that can help you create a can find out about any errors that Google generating it if you doo·t have one. One of the
robots.txt lile, get more inlormation about which encountere<l when crawling your website, such tabs is Remove URl., which you can use to
parts of your ~bsite are being indeKed and as broken links or pages with miS$ing titles. resolve issues with pages that no longer exist or
diagnose other problems, such as broken links, You can also see an overview of pages that were create problems by being in the Google indeK. 1Il
that prevent pages being searchable. excluded by the robots.txt file to ensure that
you have it set up correctly. Ideally. you will
n Google·s Webmaster Tools anow you to want as few errors as possible, so you should Next month
a find out more about how Google (and ched this report often.
hence other search engines) ~s your ~bsite, The Your site on the web section provides HOSTYOUR OWN VIDEO
and provides tools to help diagnose problems various report5. including what kinds 01 searches We show you how to embed video in you r
and improve your overall search visibility. like people are using to find your website and an site without usingYouTube
almost all the Google projects. the Webmaster overview 01 keywords found in your indeKed web

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 «~ Mastering HDR
filw
I:L
photography
~
~
>< High dynamic range images can overcome the limits of your
~amera's sensor. Jim Martin explains how to create stunning
Images the easy way

I-:W V ou may have seen high dynami~ range (HDR)

photos on websites such as Flickr, or even in
advertising campaigns. The5e striking images
camera '-"Iill take several different exposures when you
posh the shu tt er button repea te<!ly.
It's also best to enable continuous or burst mode.

:...J have a grea ter range of luminance between the as this means you can hold your finger on the shutter

=-
lightest and da r1<est areas than standard photographic button and the camera will ta ke all the exposures in
techniques allow. They can more accurat ely repre5ent one go. If possible, set your camera to aperture priooty
the range of light intensity in a scene than a single mode and set the lowest possible ISO figure. This will
photograph, but the elfect can also be exaggerated to ensure tha t Ihe depth of field remains constant for each
create unreal-looking images. of your shots (only the shutter speed wiH change) and

~
The most common type of scene Ihat can benefit that Ihere's a minimum of noise. Finally, disable the
from HOR is where there's extremely high contrast. flash and enable the self-timer. as this will eliminate
Perhaps you want to compose a shot Ihat encompasses any camera sha ke, even if you're using a tripod.
a bright sky and a dark subject, such as a person walking A tripod is essential, since an your exposures nee<!
along a beach at sunset. The best you (imd your to line up perfectly. otherwise your final photo will be
camera) can do is to expose on a mid -tone 10 attempt blurre<!. This also raises the problem of moving subjects.
to cater for both the dark and light areas. However. this If you want to moot a s<:ene where objects are moving.
will inevitably mean tha t detail is lost in the brightest you'll need an AEB mode, plus a very fast shutter spee<!.
and darkest portions of the im age.
INTRODUCTION You could expo5e for the sky, but that would leave MAXIMUM EXPOSURE
your subject as a silhouette. This may be the desired You need a minimum of three shots - or exposures - to
Modem digital ca meras are result, but Ihere are often times when you don't want a make an HDR image. One needs to be overexposed to
incredible devices. With little silhouette, and harsh sunlight or backlighting would capture the ma ximum amount of shadow detail. one
or no technical knowledge, simply result in a white background when you expose correctly exposed for the mid-lone details and one
you can take perfectly the image to ensure your subject is easily visible. underexposed to capture the highlight details. You can
exposed, sharp photos in just Another good example is when photographing the also take shots in between these three if you like; this
/Ibout every situ ation. Simply interior of a cathedraL Either you end up with white can provide extra detail in the final image. However. for
press the shutter button and areas that used to be intricate stained-glass windows, most landscape photos, Ihree exposures will be
your carner.. instantly or blackness surrounding the coloured panes of glass. sufficient: one at -2EV. one at the proper exposure and
assesses the scene and selects This is where you need to use HDR , which is one at +2EV.lf you want to ta ke an indoor photo that
the appropriate shutter speed, essentially Ihe same as the old technique of exposure includes a view out of a window, you'll need at least
IIJ>erture and ISO 5lensitivoty. blending. The good news is that virtually any camera five exposures in the same range. If your camera ~mits
However, there are few can be used for this; you don't need a DSlR to take you to +1- 1EV, you'll need nine exposures.
situations wh'm~ a single advantage of this amaling technique. As long as you The final ingredient is HDR software. While it's
photo can capture the true can control exposure, you can create HDR images. possible to combine exposures manually in any
dynamic (/Inge of a scene. For image-editing application that supports layers. this can
example, you'll have SHfl WHATYOU'LL NEED take hours. Our recommendation is to use software
COlmtlen photos whee-e blue First. look in your camera's menus or on its buttons for that can automatically blend exposures. such as
skies becom e white, or exposure controls. Most ~ompact digit,,1 cameras Mve HDRSoft Photomatix Pro. Corel Paint Shop Pro or
foregrounds become black EV compensation, which is a slider that runs between Adobe Photoshop Elements 8. These applications can
when skies are blue. This is -2 and +2.lt may be - t l.S or -+ 3, but the important merge exposures in 5ecoods, while Photomatix Pro can
down to the sensor's li mited thing is to be able to control this manually. Some also align photos taken without a tripod and re<!uce
dynamic range. It mea ns they compilcts and most DSlRs have automati~ exposure ghosting caused by swaying trees. Jt can also apply tone
can't capture the full range of bracketing. usually shortened to AEB. This means the mapping. which es>entiany reduces the dynamic range
light intensity from true black
to true white . Instead, they
Ulplure" smaller r/lnge in
between these extremes.
To overcome thi s. you (lin
tIIk!! multiple exposures and
blend them together to (reate
images with a higher dynamic
range. He re we'lI show you
how to master this art.

Jim Martin
Deputy Editor
• L03d your bfad<eted photos Into Photomatlx and It • You ca n adj ust lhe ~ k oIlhe linal image by changing
will /IutomaticaHy blend them In second$ !hesettings In !he panel on !he Ie!!

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 MULTIMEDIA EXPERT

of the processed image so that it can be properly

displayed on a computer monitor.

USING PHOTOMATIX
Here, we ·Ube using Photomatix light, which
costs $39 (around f28) from w.vw.hdno{t.com.
It doesn·t have some 01 the advanced tone-
milpping options 01 Photomiltix Pro, but it will
stiR attempt to align yoor photos and is the
cheilpest wily to crea te HDR images.
Fiflt, you need to copy your bracketed
images to your PC's hard disk. These can be RAW
files or )pEGs. Select the exposures you want to
use and drag them on to Photomatix·s interlace.
Yoo'U see them ilppear in the main window '-"li th
tickboxes next to them. You can untick any yoo
don't want to use. but this is usually ifTelevanl:.
When the images have loaded . you·n see a
Next button. Click on it and the exposures will
be merged. A new window win open with the
image. Make sure that Exposure Fusion is
selected in the Methods & Presets pane.
Now il ·S time to adjust the settings to create
the desired effect for your photo. There are live
sliders: Accentuation. Saturation. Blending Point.
Shadows and Midtones Contract.
The best way to undefltand wha t these do is
to adjust each in tum to its extreme positions
and then back to the centre, watching the
preview after each adjustment. A«entuation • Here you can see how HDR can be u...d 10 creale a ""1.......·Jooking pholo u.ing Pholomali~ ·, Expo.ure
adjusts the strength of local contrast, while Fu,ion blend mode. Thi' shot was created from the three exposures shown above
Blending Point changes the weighting given to
the underexposed and overexposed photos. To adjusted last, since the other adjustments can
ilchieve a lighter imilge. slide this to the right. chilnge the ~turation of the image. Next month
The ShadoW$ slider lets you brighten shadow Once yoo ·re happy with your settings, click
details without affecting highlights . Midtones the Process & Save button. You can save the MASTER MONOCHROME
Contrast adjusts brightness and contrast image as a JPEG or TIF.lf you plan on editing Learn thor: techniques the pros use to
together. increasing brightness while decreasing the image further - to sharpen or blur it. lor convert colour photos to black and white
contrast, and vice vefla . Saturation should be example - then s<llle as a lossless TIF file. [D

II you shoot in RAW mode, your hard disk but yo u'll be able to uSe Details Enhancer to produce a 'proper' HDR image. In the example
will be lull of photos that can be tumed into adjust the settings. hor:re, we've taken a photo where the building
pseudo-HDR images. While it's preferab le to If none of the preset modes creates the look was in shadow and man.aged to extract Ih e
use thre e bracketed photos, it's possible to you want, yo u can manually adjust the sliders. detai llrom the RAW file to brighten th e dark
extract extra shadow and highlight detail Smoolhing is the most important setting as it areas. However, as you can see, Ihe sky
Irom a RAW image to create an image that has the biggest impact on the final image. It doesn't look particu larly natura l in the
looks similar 10 a rea l HDR photo. smoothes variatiorls in contrast across the processed version. This can be corrected
Photomatix Light allows you to do this picture. More smoothing creates a more easily by loading both the original arid
simply and effectively. Just locate Ih e RAW natural look, while less smoothirlg gives an processed photos inlo your photo-editing
file in Windows Explorer and drag it on to artistic (some might say cartoon- like) effect. software, placing them on layers in the same
Photomat;'c. Tkk Ih e box next to the You'l1 get the best re~ults from photos with image arid using masking to keep the sky
thumbn.ail 01 the image arid click Next. med ium contrast; shots with extreme contrast from the original arid the foreground Irom
The Exposure Fusion option wi11 be disabled, almost always require multiple exposures to the processed shol.

<1 0 .... original RAW

lile cont" ined a
building In shadow,
so much oflhe
detail was losl.
With the processed
version, the det"il
is restored. It 1001<5
like an HDR shot,
but we·d have
achieved a beller
re$ult If we'd talcen
multiole expo.ure$
to stM with

MAY 2010. COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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 I- Imp ortin9 and
Ell editing vl[teo
D.. Linux is perfectly capable of dealing with your video files, Here

><
W
we'll show you how to transfer files to your PC and edit them

C
onnectingyour digi'''' vKleo camera to it
Ubuntu linux PC should be pretty easy, as the
operatIng system has built-in support for
camcorders. However, there are some areas that could
give you problems. Before we start. we 'Ula lk you

><
::l
through the difficulties you might fa<e.
There are two types of video <:amera that you 're
likely to want to connect to your computer:
MiniDV or modem flash storage models. In short,
MiniDV models will be tricky to instalL Many need
to conned to a FireWire port and require a specific
dri~er.lt' s not impossible to work around the problem, • Modern flash-memory or Mrd-disk-based camcorden

Z but you're likely to J\In in to a number 01 difficulties

when doing so. Our ad~ice is to keep a PC running
Windows handy for connecting this kind of camera.
II you ha~e a flash-ba5ed or hard- dis~ -based
ar<) easy 10 con"",1 10 UbunlU

Alternatively, you can view the files by cliding on

Computer from the Places menu. You can then browse
LlNUX
.....I camcorder, things are a lot easier. In this section we'll your camcorder as though it were any other folder or

~r>.
-':-
5how you how to connect this type 01 camera and copy storage device. Any videos can simply be copied from
files from it to your Ubuntu computer. the device to your hard disk by dragging and dropping.

CONNECTING YOUR CAMERA VIEWING FilES

~ c.---~ Depending on your camera, you 'll have a choice 01 Before you start editing your videos (see opposite), you
If 'Iou are connection methods. If your camera use~ removable may want to check the files first and delete any that
plannmg to swit~h storage, such as an SO card, you <:an use a USB card you don 't want to use. Ubuntu can play back most file
to Unult, don't mISS reader. Ubuntu recognises these devices in the same types, and we had no problems with lOS0p HD video
our in-depth step-, way as Windows does. All you have to do with a <:ard files Irom our Samsung camcorder. However, some HD
by-step guide to thIS reader is take the memO!)' <ard out 01 your <amcorder cameras have been known to use strange fomnats, so
exciting as, °7".5.,1.
now for t .
and plug it in to your card reader. The card will become
a~ailable in Computer from the Places menu. All you
you may need to search the Ubuntu forums lor help.
To view a lile, simply double-click 00 it and the
in WHsmith have to do is copy the files you want lrom it. Totem Movie Player will start. By default this player
II your camcorder uses internal memory or a hard doesn't have a lot 01 video codecs (the software that is
disk, or you don't have a memory card reader, your only used to display a video file) installed, but it can detect
option is to plug in your camcorder using USB. In our automatically what it needs to install. When you first
experience, camcorders can use a weird and wonderful try to playa file you 'll see an option to install <tdditional
collection 01 USB cables, so remember to use the one plug-ins, such as the gstreamerO.10-ffmpeg H.264
that came in the box with your camera. codec. Select the default option and click Install.
Digital cameras may offer multiple connection Once the codec has been installe<!, you 'll be able to
modes, such as the Picture Transfer Protocol (HP), but preview your video. The software doesn 't always get it
video cameras have only one: mass storage. AU you right , so if the picture looks squa5he<!, select 16:9 from
have to do is plug your camera in via USB and it will be the View, Aspect Ratio menu. This should fix the video
recognised as a Ila5h storage device. II you have photos and make it look right. Once you've previewed your
stored on your camera from using its stills mode, as dips, you can simply delete those you don't want and
INTRODUCTION weU as videos, you'U see a dialog box telling you that .save the others to be edited.
·You have just inserted a medium with digitill photos. Installing the codec also means that supported
Your Linux PC can be just as Choose wha t application to launch: The default option videos will automatically have a thumbnail image
good at editing videos as it is will be F-Spot Photo Manager. Ooo't select this option: generated in the file browser. This is similar to the way
at editing photos. This instead select Open Folder and dick OK. in which Windows handles video liles. lt makes it easy
ste p-by-step guide will show to see quickly what you 've got and always select the
you how to .::anneet a digital •- 1111:011 DlIO •
right clip without having to pre~iew it first.
video Ume'!! to your Linu)( PC. Once you're happy with the files that you '~ copied
copy movies from it and edit yOU ........ Just Inserted I med ........ It.. from your camcorder, you can edit them in the package
them on your com puter.
dlllltIl photo • . c - . . ""It .pp/k.llt ...... to of your choice. We provide more details on how to do
s.unc" ,
Like everyth ing else in
Linux, aU the software we've
used hen~ is com pletely free.

David Ludlow
--
__ 111-'""_010" ..... _111""""""
.... _ .. 11'00,......"" _ _ "'''''" .....
th is in our guide to using Kdenlive opposite.

Next month
MAKING BACKUPS
Editor We show yoo how to protect your impOl"ta nt
fi les from disaster
• Select Open Fold"r 10 view your C¥1'Icorder'$ fll".

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 LlNUX EXPERT

HOW TO •••
Edit video
Ubunlu doesn 't come with an appli~ tion to edit
video, and it's only re<:ently that developers have
started to work 00 programs for this purpo:;e.
Currently. the best <:hoio~ is Kdenlive, but as it's
stiR unfinished, you may experience a few bugs. ~- - --~--
.!::.!! - _.!. ......
However, as long as you regularly save your ~: I--:
work, you can just reload it and carry on.
1-+':==
As Kdenlive's interface is relatively complex.
it's w()(th spending a few moments acquainting
; ~-;:- -:; i:"
yourself with the various controls (5ee below).
To jnstaH Kdenlive, use the Synaptic Package
Manager, under Administration in the System
menu . Search for ~d enlive in the Quick search
box, and marl< it for install<ltion. Accept the extra
-
packages when asked. You'll find Kdenlive under
Sound & Video in the Applications menu. ~ Trim the dips by ho~ring your mouse it). type in the title you want. changing the font.
1::.1 over the lelt or righl edge of it and. when size and colour as appropriate. You can move it

D Copy any video d ips from your camcorder

to your hard disk. Clips stored on the
camera or OIl a memory card will be too slow.
the cursor chan~s. drag the d ip to the desired
point. If you wanl to add transitions, you'll need
to ove rlap dips in adjacent video tracks.
around using the)( and Ycontrols at the top.
Click OK and then drag Ihe title from your dip
list to the beginning of track O.
Start up Kdenlive and dick the Add Clip button. Right-dick on one of the dips, hover over Add You can now click the Render button to
Browse to where you ·~ stored your clips, select Transition and then choose Dissol~ from the .sa~ your movie in whatever format is most
the ones you want apnd hit the Open button. menu thai a ppea~. appropriate. You'l( find lots of presets in the
Destination drop-down menu . To save to a DVD,
E'I Clips may take a few minutes to be . . . You can add a title to the start of your choose DVD. then PAL 16:9 VOB (assuming your
g indexed, and until they are they'll be Ii.I movie by clicking the down arrow next to video camera is widescreen). Tick ·Open DVD
greyed out. On~ this is done. drag dips one by the Add Clip button and choosing Add Title Clip. wizard alter rendering' and you'll be ilble to bum
one on to the timeline into track 1. Using the text tool (the icon with the letter T on a DVD with the resulting MPEG file. CD

The Kdenlive interface explained

The Rende r bUllon. Click Ihls when > - - - - - - - - -""\ r----------------~ Orag an e tlec1lrom lhe list on 10
yo<J're ready to export your Ilnlshed a clip 10 add Ihat etlect. You can
movie in a lomlalthat your player add multiple etle cts to e ach clip
Is compatible wllh. and adjust Ihel' properties with
Ihe Effect Stack la b on the left.

Click the Add Clip button to The J)!"o/ect monitor shows Ihe
import video dips from your hard whole movie, bUI you can switch
disk, memory ca rd ~ directly it lor a view of t he currenl clip
from your video ca mera . by clicking on the Clip Monllor
la b below.
These are the video clips in your
project. They ca n be added to the
Ilmeline as many times as yo<J like. II you maka a mistake, you can
use the Undo History to jump
back to the point I,om which
you wa nt to reslart.

These two wavelorms represent The zoom control lets you

lhe leI! and righl audio cha n""ls sea more detai l when you
In each video clip. need to adi ust ar.d ed il dips
mOre p'eclseIV.

The Ra zo, tool lets you split

The playback marker shows the video clips into mulliple chun"
cu rrenl pos ition In lhe movie. while On t ~ tlmellne.

There a'e two clips on lhe time line. The track5 ' ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; : : - - - - - ' The selection tool i, used lor dragging
work like layers in pholo-ediling software. Video ~ and trimming Cllp$ on Ihe tlmellne.
on lop will ob$Cu.e Clll» below unlen Ihe lop
video is transpa renl Or occupies part of lhe I,ame.

Click: dell.co.uk Call: 0844 444 3242

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 1:1::: shows you how to block these unwelcome messages

..... c..
-....
>< I
f your email pmgram has an anti -spam filter, you (an
U~ it to move sparn you've downlwded to a spedal
email folder. If it work.s as it should, all the email you
want will stay in the inbox, while the adverts, viruses
up to use a challorum, you can creale a new Coogle
Mail email address for free at/lttp:/lmail.goog/e.com
an d use that for your forum iKeount.
When you sign up wilh some ~bsites to use

tl W
and other rubbish will be stored in a folder called sparn. their serv"e~ you'll prob<lbly be asked if the company
junk or similar. In this m()(lth's 5Kuriryfx~1t we'll can provide your details to other companies. If you
5how you how to avoid spam messages and configure want to cut spam you should untick any boxes that

W
Windows Mail, Windows l ive Mail and Thunderbird to give this penmission.
block wam messages automatically.
BLOCKING SPAM

en AVOIDING SPAM
II there's a golden rule when dealing wit h unwanted
email.it.s never reply to a Sp<lm email. There are a
number 01 reasons why you might be tempted to reply.
but no good will ever come of it. Here's why:
II you use Windows Mail (Vista).liveMail (Windows 7),
Thunderbird or Outloo4<. you already have some
an ti-spam protection at your fingertips. Here we'U
show you how to configure them.

USING WINDOWS MAIL/LIVE

• Spammers collect email addresses. They do thiS so Although we recommend Thunderbird, you may want
that (ater advertising camp<ligns reach even more to use Windows Mail or Windows Live Mail.
people. When you reply to an email. you are confirming
that your email ad dress is valid and that a human is
reading email sent to it. D Click the Tools menu option and choose Junk
E-mail Options (Safety Options from the cursor
icon at the top-right of Live Mail) Irom the list. By
• Spammers usually don 't use their own compoters. default this will be set to No Automatic Filtering. To
Online criminals often use hijacked computers in order st<lrt, <:hoose the Low option, which oHers to move the
to send spam, which means that replying to messages most obvious spam to the Jun k E-mail folder.
will often just sen d a message to an innocent victim 01 There's also an option underneath that wi![ delete
a compoter virus. the suspect email This isn't a good idea, unless you 're
absolute!y sure that you only ever want to receive
• Sp<lm adverts may not be all they seem. II you didn't emaillrom people you list in the next step.
ask lor the communication, that business is behaving
unethically and quite possibly illegally. II your only Et Click the Safe Senders tab and make sure that
contact with a comp<lny is through spam, there are lots a the option at the bottom, COl l!ed Also trust e-mail
of reasons to distru st it. from my Windows ContaCll, is ticked. This mea ns that
emaillrom known Iriends and family won't be claSSified
You might be wondering how a spammer got hold as spam.lf you receive email from people....mo aren't in
of your address. Email addresses appear allover the your contacts list, you COln add their addresses by
intemet on websites and <:hat lorums, in databases dicking the Add button.
INTRODUCTION maintained by online stores and services. and in friends '
address books. Sp<lmmers COln scan websites and forums n Open your email inbox and select aU the Sp<lm
Anyone that uses email knows for email addresses. ha ck databases and use viruses to 1::.1 messages you COln lind. Drag them to the Junk
that s~m is a big problem. read private address books. E-ma il lolder on the left. from this point on , any new
Th e amount of junk e mail You can control how your email add ress appears on email that you download will be checked and messages
many of us receive is websites and forums. Consider using disposable email that the system dassilies as spam wiU be moved to this
overwh elming. The best way ad dresses lor certain activities. For example, il you sign folder automaticaUy.
to avoid it is to stop it arriving
in th e first pla(e, We'lI show .. _t _ _

--...---_....... -_.-
you how to avoid expos ing
your email account to - .... .....-r_ .....;or...............

--- ...._-_. __ ....-

spammers here. W ~ak anti-§pam §oflWar~ allows unwant ~ d
If you're already receiving -~-
0-. .. _ _ ..... _ _ , . . _ me§sag~s int o your inbox. Spam t ha t g~t§
some spam. there are three
main wllys to hllnd le these
--
.- .... -.._... _-- ..... _.
. I.- _ _ _ _.... . -..... _ I .... -J
through yo ur defenc~§ is described a§ a false
negative. When your inbox is stuffed with spam.

...... _
unwanted messages: using even though you have anti-spam protection.

......-
your emllil progrllm's built-in you're suffering from false negatives. Th ~ worst
_ - .... _1 _ _ -
anti-spam filter; instaUing 5,-."'''"'' .... ___ .. _ .. ___ ... kind 01 protection §uffers Irom both fa lse

._- ...._--_......-
---
""ti -s~m softwllre; lind using positives arld n ~gat ives. ln other words. you r real
an anti-spam se ...... i(e . We'll email ends up in the bin and your spam erlds up
Uke you through 1111 these in your inbox.
options on th ese pa ges. When you first start using an ant i-spam
app lication, you should keep an eye on your
spam folder. It's quite likely t hat some real email
Siman Edwards will erld up being marked as a false po§itwe.
Expert on se~Ulity
Similarly. don't t rust every message in your
... Use your email prog'~m's bui lt";n .. nt~spam protect ion inbox, as som~ §pam is likely to get through .
to help redUC& unwanted mail

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 SECURITY EXPERT

- ...--- .... -......-_.......

_....,--:=::.::::.=:---,...----
.... . . -_-.-
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-- -- -
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=---_.--
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-~

___. - ..-<-__ - ---

---------
-----~- -

::.::.....--
';I-.~ "_" '~
- "-_.'"
. . . Don't trust the anti-spam fiher to work addresses that appear. Click the New Card
Ii.I accurately all the time. Look at the button to add more addresses. and delete any
mes:xlges in your Junk E-mail folder occasionally th at you don 't want by highlighting them with
and. if you find any useful mail that has been the mouse and pressing the Delete key. Close the
moved here. right-dick on the message. choose window when you 've finished.
the Junk E-mail option and then dick on Mark as
Not Junk . The message will be restored to you r E'I Right -dd your acwu nt's name on the
inbox. Consider adding the email address of the a left-hand bar and choose Properties. The
sender to your Safe Senders list Account Settings window will appear. Click on
the Junk Settings option and ensure that the '00
USING THUNDERBIRD not mark mail as junk if the sender is in: Personal

D First ensure tha t your address book

contains the email addresses 01 people
you always want to receive ema il from.Clid on
Address Book' option is tid ed. Tick the option
called Move new junk messages to and choose
the Junk folder on: option. Select your acwunt's
Find a spam message. d ck once on its junk dot.
This wiU change to look li~e the flaming icon.
the Tools menu option and choose Address Book. name from the drop-down list. Click OK. Click it again to tum it off. Once all Sp<lm
Select Personal Address Book from the short list messages are labe lled with the junk icon, click on
in the leh-hand bar and check the names and n Click the Tools menu option and choose the Tools menu option and choose Run Junk Mail
1::.1 Options lrom the list Click the Privacy Controls on Folder. The sp~m should be sent to
button and then choose the Junk tab. Tick the the Junk folder. Check this folder from time to
box labelled When I mark messages as junk, imd time and rescue any real em ail that has been
select the option below this, called Move them moved there by unticking its Junk icon.1il
to the account's "Junk ' folder. Click OK .

. . . View your inbox containing a mixture of Next month

Ii.I spam and genu ine email. Find the small
junk icon, which looks like flames. probably just SET UP A SECURE WIRELESS NETWORK
to the right of the Sender heading. E<lCh mes:xlge Find out how to ~otect your hom e
has a dot next to it that 's al igned with this junk networl< with a secure wireless connection

..--'"--_ --_ -
icon. Look through your emails and, when you

--
-_.-
- -_.__....._...---
_.-
.- ---- .....-
...._---_
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..... -. --.-...
.......... -!-
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----
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'- ...- --
_ ... L -- ~ -
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-- ~ -
~-

--- --. ~-

. ,-

Stop viruses and spyware

Block hac kers and
protect p rivacy
• Opti mize speed and
perfo rma nce
• Automa tic file backup
• Free onli ne support and
loca l-rate phone assistance

Order online at
www.we broot.co.u klwise

_ _ '-"'I
Owebroot· "'onun _ _ _ '
amazol\1Xl.uk·

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 ccn Advanced BI[]S
~b configuration
zw Your BIOS is responsible for making sure that your processor
and memory are configured correctly. David Ludlow shows

~i3
you how to set it up
emaps the mo~1 important job that your 610S

P does is to tell your PC how fast the processor

and memory should run. II these settings ,lfe

cO::: incorrect, you may find that your computer either runs

«11. more slowly than it shoold, 0<" it will run faster but
could crash intermittently. It's therefore important to
ma~e SUfe that your BIOS is configured correctly.

PROCESSOR SPEED
To check your processor's speed, you first need to find
the correct setting. This may be in a dedicated menu,
such as Cell Menu , or listed under Ad~anced BIOS
Features. Whether you're running an Intel or AMD
processor, its o~erall speed is based on two settings: an ... Select the correct CPI.J Base Frequency to goet the ,ight
external bus speed and a multiplier (often called the processor speed
processor ratio in the 6105),
The external bus speed multiplied by the multiplier megahertz (multiply its gigahertz ra ting by 1,000).11
gives you your proceS5ofS speed, For example, a Core 2 you don't know your processors rated speed, you can
Duo E8500 has a clock speed 013.16GH7. This is made find a list of AMD processors at hup:llrinyurl.coml
up 01 an external bus speed 01 333MHz multiplied by a amdprocesJon , Typing the model name into Google
i<9 multiplier (9 x 333M Hz . 3.16GHz). will also bring up help. Simply divide your processors
II either 01 these settings is incorrect. your PC won 't rating in megahertz by 200 to get its multiplier.
run at its designated speed. In addition, if the extemal For Intel Core i3, Core is and Core i7 processors,
bus speed is incorrect, it will have a ~nock -on elfect on the external bus (probably called base dock or base
your memOl)"s speed. It's important to make sure that frequency) should be set to 133MHL As with At"1D's
this setting is COJTe<t First. you'U need to ~now how processors above, all you have to do to lind out the
fast your processor should run. The easiest way to do multiplier is divide your processor's rated speed in
this is to start Windows. Right-did Cornputer Irom the megahertz by 133. You can lind a list 01 Intel processor
Start menu and select Properties. You should see a speeds at http://tlnyurl,com/lnteiproce55orJ.
screen that liSlS your processor model name followed To make things even more confusing. older Intel
by'@ )()()(GHf. This is your proceS5Or's rated speed in processors often have their Irontside bus (FSB) speed
gigahertz. We'll show you how to check processor quoted. This is quad-pumped , so is four times faster
speeds lor aU processors below. than the external bus speed. To lind out your
For AMD processors, working out the processor processor's external bus speed, first find out its FSB
speed is simple, as the extemal bus speed (probably speed at hup:lltinyuri.comlinteiprocessorJ. Divide the
called HyperTransport speed in the BIOS) should be set listed FS6 speed by four to get the external bus speed,
to 200MHl. You can then set the multiplier. This can be and divide your processor's speed in megahertz by the
done il you know your processor's rated speed in external bus speed to get the multiplier.
INTRODUCTION

----- --_ _".,.

In last month's Advancl!d
Projects we looIIed at how to
configure your computer's
st(Wage and boot options. This _._-_ _- .
......
__

- _. .. _ _''''IAA
month we're going a bit more
in depth, liS w e took into how
..... _ ,"'Y
_ -"I~': ___ et-.

--.....- --.- ...-----··--··1

to configure your PC's
pro<eS$or and memory. It's '- '•

-_.. -'-.'-.". -
1::1- . - bO'_ "'_ _ QII

---- .._- -- --
important to check that the _ -..S!Il.SSLlSllfl.sssu.bI6O'
settings are correct .., your
computer may othe rwise run
stower that it's supposed to,
or be faste r but less stable .
--_
---
----
---
......./CON OO,

..... -'''''
, ,0000 ":1;1_ .. _
"..........t h",,-
___ '"-
..

- ..
---- _. -
eo... . _ .
David Ludlow - 1- ... ::J
Editor CPU·Z _,~,

... YOIJ ca n check your proce..or·s ra led speed In ... YOIJ can check yOUI' proce..or·s current selling. u.lng
Wlrodows' Cont'ol Panel the CPU-Z utility

, . COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 ADVANCED PROJECTS

--_. ---_ - - - .. _ .. - n
""_,, _ _ _ " _ _ ,"""'01 _ _
.... .....
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-
You can use tile Iree applkatlon HoI CPU T.51... lo pll$l\ YOU'
prOCessOf to ,\5 .ated .peed
Make $U", thoat YOU select the coo-reet memory .allo In order to .un yo ..... RAM al lIS
de $ignated weed

In your BIOS, find the options for CPU Ratio need to 3djust thiS. You can now dick Stop CPU memory is correctly configured. yoo can save the
(or mu!tiplier) and, depending on your processor, Bum-in on Hot CPU Tester. settings and continue.
base frequency, FSB or HyperTransport speed.
Use the plus and minus keys on your keyboard MEMORY SETTINGS POWER SEmNGS
to adjust these settings. Before we go back to the BIOS. ifs best to The final job in the BIOS is to make sure that
check your memory's correct speed and settings your PC is correctly configured to save power. To
CHECKING YOUR SETTINGS by going back to CPU -Z and cUd<:ing on SPD. do this. find the Power Management Setup (or
Your 610S may display your processor's speed This reads the configuration from your memory 5imilar) menu , Here you can change the Advanced
based on the settings that you've change<l. This to get the optimal settings. look at the Max Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI) mode.
~n help you make sure that you've configured it Bandwidth section and note down the megahertz Look for an ACPI option and set it to S3. rather
property. II not. don 't panic as it can be checked rating (this may be half the speed you·re than 51. This configures your computer so thaI
in Windows. To do this, ~ve your settings and expecting as memory runs at twice its stated bus in Sleep mode it will only supply power to the
reboot your compoter. speed, so DDR2 800MHz actually has a 400MHz memory. This means Ihat your computer will
Install CPU -Z (www,cpuid,comji'youdon't clock speed). look at the timings table and find only use a few watts of power; in SI mode pretty
already have it, and run the application. Click on the Frequency entry that matches your much the entire computer remains on in Sleep
the CPU tab and at the bottom you 'll see your memory·s Max Bandwid th speed. Note down all mode. which wastes power.
processor's current bus speed and multiplier. The the information in the table, including CAS# Under this option you'll be able to set the
multiplier may be lower than expected as latency, RAS# to CAS# and so 00. Restore On AC Power loss feature. This tells your
modern processors reduce it when your PC isn't Once you have this information, restart your computer wha t to do alter it's lost power - alter
busy in order to save power and reduce heat. computer and go into the BIOS and the menu a power cut. for e><ample. Off will leave your PC
To boost the processor to its maximum you used to configure your processor. Your ofl, On will make it tum on when power is
speed. download Hot CPU Tester (www.7byte. memory·s speed is defined by the processor's restored , and Last State will leave your PC off if it
com}. Install the software and run it. ignoring any external bus speed multiplied by a multiplier was tumed 011. but otherwise tum it bad on.
messages about buying the full version. Click called the memory ratio. Change the memory
Burn-in and Run CPU Bum-in. ~Iect CPU- Z and ratio until your memory is set to the correct WAKE UP EVENTS
the multiplier will be at its maximum {it may be speed. For example, on a Core 2 Duo E8500 You can also set your BIOS to define which
sluggish to switch to CPU -Z. but don·t worry}. (333MHz). DDR2 800M HI memory should be set devices can bring your PC out of Sleep mode. All
NeKt, check that the Core Speed is set to to a memory ratio of 1.2 (1.2x333 .. 400MHz). BIOSes have slightly different options. New
your processor·s correct rating. If ifs not and Your BIOS should then display the correct full computers will have an option to remove control
the bus speed is set correctly, you'll need to go memory speed; in other words, it will show from the BIOS and put it entirely on Windows.
back to your BIOS and adjust the processor's 800MHI for DDR2 800MHI RAM , not the 'true' This requires managing your devices through
multiplier. If the bus speed is incorrect. you 'll speed ol400MHz. Device Manager in Windovvs, using the Power
Some BIOSes don·t have a memory Management tab to select whether that device
ratio setting. but rather have a menu can be used to wake the computer,
option tha t lets you select your memory·s Most device$ don 't have these options, and

-*-
full speed, such as BOOMHz. Simply sele<:t you can only select which devices can and can't

-- -
-- - - .,.-
._-
i!!lW:!l
10_
i II_
1....'1
~
the correct speed from the drop-down list.
Next you 'll need to adjust the DRAM
Timing Mode. This should be set
automatically. but some memory defaults
wake the computer. These will typically include
USB device~. PS/2 Keyboard and PS/2 Mouse,
plus PCI or PCI Express devices.
We recommend leaving all these settings

--'- -". ----.. OIZIiS IJ_

to a slower speed to ensure your PC boots enabled. You can still manually control which
~-
~w ~" up. The memory timings will be the devices can wa~e the computer by viewing a
second set 01 figures you noted down device's properties in Windows' Device Manager
~"
m ~, w_ when you were using CPU -l.
The headings in the BIOS may not
and selecting the Power Management tab. E:!

~- match those taken from CPU-Z, and

---. ~.
---- ~ " •" •"
"
---,---------
'" '"
•
.--
,-,
there may even be more headings
displayed. What"s important is that the
timings in the BIOS are in the same order
as in CPU -Z. CAS latency (Cl) will be
clearly marked. Starting here. set each
row to the value in the COl1"esponding
Next month
WINDOWS 7 NETWORKING
Find out how to make Windows T§ file
and printer sharing wo~ with Window§
XP and Vi§ta
You can use CPIJ-Z 10 make a n.ote of Y"'" memory's
SUPpOrted speed$ row that you noted down. When your

MAY 2010. COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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HELPFILE
PC won't power on
Q I have an MUS A8N32:-SU motherboard,
an AMD 64 fX-60 dual-cort' proa>5sor and
two Nvldia GeForce 7900 GTX Cilrds. A
Your PC is qui te powerful. so the finger of
suspicion poin ts at the power supply unit
(PSU). Before you ch ange any h<trdware, rule
When I switch on the machine, nothing appears on ou t a problem with this. If you ha~n't already cheded
the mooitor and I don't hear the usu,,1 POST bee p its specifications against t he requirements for your
soonds. The PC comes on and the Ian starts, but setup, do so. If it meets them , check th at any modular
that's all. To switch it off, I need to keep my linger cables are wonected properly and double-check the
pressed on the onloff bunon. I've tried diffe",n! connections to the motherboard.
display cables and monitors but that hasn't helped. If your two graphics cards have auxiliary power
I've t ried taking out aUlhe RAM, d isconnecting sockets, make sure they're connected - if not, you
the hard disk.s and oe~n removing the graphics cards, need to connect a foor-pin supply to the
but stil l no POST beeps. I'm guessing it's the CPU or motherboard's EZ Plug. which is near t he main ATX
motherboard but I don't know which . Can you help? power connector. II all seems well, see il you can
Atj' jung, atifjung@gmail.com borrow a similarly powerful PSU from a friend to rule
, .. . . ._ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _~------, oot a pallial PSU failure.
II none of these st eps sol~s the
problem, dearing the motherboard 's
realt ime dock inform ation may help.
This is covered in section 2-20 of MUS'S
manual (ht1p:lltinyurl.comlasusmanuaf)
but, in brief, you unplug the PC, remove the
battery and move the CLRTC jumper from
pins 1-2 to pins 2-3. Leave it there for a
few seconds before moving it bilck and
refitting the battery.
If thiS fails and you're feeling pallicularly
brave, you can try unplugging the computer
and, after ta king anti-static precautions,
carefully removing the CPU cooler. Then
remove and refit the CPU, ma king sure the
... 11 your PC won' switch on. ched that the power cables a re socket lever clicks properly back into place
connected properly before refitting the cooler.

• • Resto re pO ln::s are deleted

I've been running Windows 7 on my laptop and The program is freeware and can be set up to
desktop ~C for a few weeks, having upgraded create a daily backup automatically if o ne doesn't
from Windows X~ to Windows 7 Home Premium. exist already for the day. It can also be run on
Everything seems fine except that my restore points demand to create a backup, in which case it
are deleted every time I restart, This happens on deletes any previous manual backup for that day.
both systems. To restore a backup, simply follow t he utility's
I traded this down to a VOLSNM ERROR 25, instructions. Whi le this isn't a perfect solution, it's
which occurs every time the system restarts. better than nothing. Although this is quite an old
According to the timestamp, this error occurs at the utility, as far as I've been able to tell, it's still valid
point of restart and oot at shutdown. for Vista and Win.dows 7. You can download
The error message is: "The shadow copies of ERUNT from www.snapfiles.comlger/erunr.hrml.

_........---._-__. _-
-_.
volum e C: were deleted because the s hadow copy Ron Lock, ron@ronzilla.co.uk
storage coold oot grow in time. Consider reducing
the K) load on th e system or choose a shadow copy
storage volume that is oot be ing shadow cOflied."
The only solution I've seen on the intI' met (quite
a few peop le seem to be suffering from this
problem) suggests doing a re pair install of Windows 0 __
7. This seems drastic, and I don 't understand why 0.-0 _ _
r ___ _
the same issue would occur on two different

-
machi rles if it were just an installation problem.
Although I haven 't found a proper solution
yet, I've found something that might be of use to
other readers: ERUNT. lt stands for Emergency
Recovery Utility NT, and it backs up th e Registry ... If you fir<:! tkat Windows 7 is deleting your re.tore
and certain critical files. point$, you can u.e ERU~T a. a workaround

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~010

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 HELPFILE

Your experts
Processor running at slower speed HELPFILE 148
t downloaded an d ra n the C~U-Z (www.
Q cpuid.com) ap~icat ion. 1t correctly
David Ludlow

-
Davi d has been writing about
detects my proa>ssor, displaying its CJ\l 10:..1_1--..1" 1....... 1_1 technology for 11 years and
name followed by its rated speed. However, in _ _c.o..l _ _ specialises in solving
tMoo_ __
the Core Speed box on the CPU tab, the spud netwO<1<ing and PC
list ed is much slower than t he processor's rated ........ _rnlGO hardware problems.
speed. Why is my compute r running so slowly ? ~ • _ toto ""'- 1 Ita Y
having previously
Ste ven Jameson __ ~c.o..(nf~_0\1_

,....,. - __
.'_'ID!
I
worke<:! in IT support.

-
Your processor is supposed to run slower Jim Martin

A than its maximum rated 5peed when

possible. Both Intel and AMD have
technology 00 their processors that reduces their
_

~(c.. 0II1
toto s.-t
_
IOIIlI.SKfllJ,lI\lWflVJ..o

,.., ....
_ _ • WI..,... t· -I )
1I 0 .
ll_
• • lZ or-
•• l Z - , -
....,.
.... .,.
Having reviewe<:! PCs for over 11
years and with a keen interest in
digital video and
speeds when they're not ~ing used heavily. This ' .... , h _ _ _ ,.. • .,. photography. Jim can
keeps your PC cooler an d, thank5 to the slower Ian

-.
_fSll 1»1.1..". solve your hardware
speeds requ ired, quieter. Processors running al lower and productivity
clod:: speeds also use less power. In CPU-Z. the problems. _ _ _ _ _..J_...
sllt'ed that appears after your processor's name tells
you its rated speed, while the Core Speed box tells - IIQICJ Si mon Ed wa rd s
you how last the processor is currendy running. .. CPU-Z shows you how fast your proc....or i. curr.. ntly With more than 16 years of PC
There 's a simple way to check what 's going on. running. A slow weed 1$"1 n.e<:euarlly a bad th ing e_perience. focused on protect ing
Download the HotCPU tester (http://www.7byte. computer users from
,omlindex.php?page~ download) an d install it on your your processors ra te<:! speed. If it hasn·t. there's hackers and other
computer. Run the application. click on the Bum-in probably a configura tion error on the BIOS. Our threats. Simon 'stlle
icon and dkk Run CPU Burn-in. This will push one core complete gu ide to the BIOS {see Advanced Projects on best man to help
on your processor to 100 per cent load. While the test page 146} will help you oonfigure it. Be careful making solve security woes.
is running. switch ba d<: to CPU -Z an d look at the Core any changes. as you can damage your computer if you
Speed box again. This should have increased to match accidentally overclock it too far.

OFFICE HELP 154

Kay Ewbank

Display driver stops working

and recovers
Q I have a Dell Studio XPS 8000 running
54-bit Windows 7. with SGB of RAM and
an Nvidia Geforce GT220 graphics card.
often Sei' the screi'n flicker and return to the Windows
desktop with the error message you mention.
However. TOR can be a little sensitive and reset the
It's all running really well except for a seemingly GPU for no app<!rent reason. even if you're just running
random error th at tells me: "Displ ay driver has a 2D applica tion 5Uch as Word. Having e~perienced
stOflped respond ing and has reoovered. Display th is problem first hand. we can appreciate how
driver Nvidia Windows kemel driver version 186.27 frustrating it is.
stOflped respond ing and has now successfu lly There's no magic fix for this. as the problem could
recove red." I've trie<:! down loading and installing be any number of things. l1"s easy to jump to the
CONTACTS
from th e Nvid ia website what I assumed was the condusion that the graphiC$ driver is faulty. but this is
Please contact the relevant
latest driver for 64-bit Windows 7. but the annoying a red herring in most cases. In our PC. the fault was a de pa rtment at th e e mail
problem persists. Any suggestions? bad stick of RAM; once replaced. the problem vanished. add ress list ed above . Yo u
David Clowes, ddowes@btinternet.com It may be tempting to head to the Registry and (a n also writ e t o us at:
attempt to disable TDR or change the timeout period
Th is problem affects only a small minority to try to stop the GPU being reset. but you should He lp

A of PCs and. unfol1unately. there's no easy

solution. Windows is trying to prevent a
total crash - or hang - which would require a reboot.
resist this and try to locate the cause of the problem
rather than applying a sticking-plaster .solution.
In extreme cases. it's necessary to reinstall
Comput .. r Sho pper
30 Cleve la nd St reet
London
W lT 4JO
Vista and Windows 7 have a Timeout ~tection Windows from scratch. but this won't help if faulty
and Recovery (TDR) leature. which tries to detect hardware is causing the problem. Ou r advice is to Please try to give fuU details 01
problematic situations where the graphiC$ procesoing remove all bu t one stid<: of RAM from your PC and your problem. We need an email
unit (GPU) is busy but nothing is being updated on the see if the problem goes away. If not. work your way address or daytime and evening
screi'n. leading the user to think the PC has crashed. through all the sticks to check that none of them is telephone numbers in case we
Windows resets the GPU in this situation. and you'lI causing the problem. nee<:! more information.
Other hardware issues that can Although the policy of
cause a TOR event indu de bad sectors Computer Shopper is not to
Display driver stopped responding and has reeov in RAM on the graphics card. bad publish readers ' email addresses.
Displ.y driver NVIDIA Windows Kernel Mode Driwr. Vfflion l Sl .7 sectors on the hard disk that result in we indu de them in Help so that
reponding and hIS succts~ully .ecovved. a corrupt Windows installation. GPU other readers with experience of
failure due to ovemeating or similar problems can share their
insufficient power. an d processor solution (please also cc any
overheating. Software issues can comments to the relevant Help
include problems with running department above). If you would
... Num.. rou. I....... can . ... ult in Timeout Detection and Recovery .. " o. multiple monitors. high resolutions prefer not to have your email
m e.... ges•• 0 the e_act cau.e Can be hard to d et ermine and Aero transparency eflects. address published. please say so. E!l

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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HELPFILE

Media Center keeps waking up

Q My Windows 7 Media Center PC
keeps waking itself up. Every lime
I go downstairs in the morning. it's
To do this, dick on the Stan
button. type CMO and press
Enter. Type 'powercfg -lastwake'
on. Why is it doing this and how do I stop it? and hil Ent er. The line that st,nts
Ma'*}onf>s 'Type:' will tell you which device
or SCheduled service CilUSed your
The culprit is likely to be either a computer 10 wa~e up.

A piece of hardware or a sche<:luled

service that's set to wake your Pc.
The ()(II'll way 10 lind out for sore is to wait
If it's a scheduled service. we
bet that ma-update_schedule<l is
causing the problems_To change
until your PC has been woken and then use a this schedule's settings, dick on
command line tool 10 find ()(Jt what woke it the Start button, type 'task
scheduler' and preS5 Enter. Using ... You can use a command line 10 lind oul which servke Of piece cA
the tree menu on the left-hand hardware Is waking yo,,", computer
side, navigate to the Task
Scheduler libral), Windows, Media Center folder. the command line and type 'powercfg
ScroH through the list of scheduled applications -devicequel) wake_armed'.
in the middle window and double-dick the This will give you a list of devices that can

....... __
...... _-
mceupdate_scheduled entry. wake your computer from sleep. A mouse is

,---_
---. . ....__._-' <- Clid on the Conditions tab and remove often to blame, as the slightest movement

_--_
the tick from the 'Wake this computer to run can send a signal to your Pc. To stop a device
this task' box and click OK. This will stop the waking your computer, run [){,vice Manager

-.........
-- .
...-.
scheduled seJVice waking your computer.
You can perform similar st eps if your initial
investigation led yoo to another scheduled task..
(type device manager into the Start menu).
Find the device in the list and dooble-dick it.
Select the Power Management tab and remove
... A scheduled 1M!< can be set 10 wake yo", It a device is waking your computer, yoo need the tid from the option to 'Allow this device
computer up al a given lime to find out which one it is_To do this, go back to to wake the computer'.

Wireless laptop won't connect

I have a Netgur DG834N router your router should maintain a list of its past IP suggests that something has changed: perhaps
Q to which I wirelessly connect a
couple of computers and an
assignments , but things can become confused.
Like most routers, the OC834N supports address
yoo have a new Bluetooth device, or more of
your neighbours now have competing wireless
XboK 360. Recently, my ageing laptop has reseJVations , and you can solve the problem by networks. Download and run NetStumbler
started fai ling to connect to the network, setting some up. (www.llf:tstumb/er.comldownloads}and make a
particu larly when waking from hit.ernation. Switch on all your computers and make sure note of the channel used by your network and by
On occasion, I've also had messages on my they're connected to the network. Log into the competing ones with strong signals. If you notice
second PC that there was an IP address router admin IX'ge an d select 'LAN IP Setup' dashes,log into your rooter and, on the Wireless
conflict. I've u~ted the drivers for my Intel from under the Advanced heading. Clicking the Settings page, change the channel from Auto to
nOOBG wireless card, but I still often have Add button will show a table of your connected either 1,6 or II, tl)ing to avoid channels used
to 'repair' my network connection to rejoin devices. Selecting the radio botton next to an by other networks. The problem may be that
the network. What's going on? entl) copies its details into the fields below, and your router is set to use channel bonding. which
Michael CoalS then clicking Add creates a reseJVation for it. If uses two channels to get throughput of up to
you do this for each device, they should use the 270Mbit/s. Change the menu option Mode to Up

A
Windows wams of an IP address same IP addresses every time you start them, to 130Mbit/s under Wireless Settings. Finally, if
conflict when one PC tries to use an eliminating conmcts. none of your wireless devices uses the router's
address that has already been leased Your connection issues are likely to be a 802.11n mode, change it to 'g & b', which c.Jn
to another. This shouldn't generally happen, as separa te problem_The fact that they're recent improve stability with older wireless cards.

·,•
·:
., ··:
·:•
'_ I ··
... J-oIetwork Stumble. displays al l the netwOfko that you. computer can detect.
Ustthem by Sig .....1(small numbers .... e stronger) to rind strong competitors,
... Change yOUr rooter's wireless mode and '/\a ..... elil yOu're having Pffl~ems t hen see II they're ll$Ing the same channel 0$ You

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~010

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 HELPFILE

Do I need anti-virus software?

I'm writing in the ho~ that you
Q can cla rify the effectiveness of
hardware firewalls that come
comment you made aboot Security Essentials
that says, "Although Microsoft doesn't build
anti-virus into Windows, it does offer free
example, yO\.lr lirewaH aHow<; you to download
everything. as it yn 't tell the difference between
a web pa~ and a virus.
with routers and the effectiveness of free malware protection in th e form of Microsoft An anti -virus appliC<ltion is designed to spot
anti-virus 5Oltware, especially Microsoft Security Essentials. It's fIOt intended to be as maliciO\.lS programs and neutralise them, but
Security Essentials. I regu larly visit a comprehensive as many th ird-party security anti -virus software can 't dete<:t incoming and
computer forum ca lled Te.::h-FOfums suites, so a subscription t o another package is outgoing connections and deal with them. So.
(www. fech -forums.net).Onthe forum probably a better option." without a rooter and its firewaH. a hacker could
I was lold by all the administrators and This flies in the face of what I was discover your computer, scan it, detect a security
moderators that Security Essentials is previously advised. Can you please clarify flaw and run an exploit to ta~e over your
just as good as, if not t.etter than, any the differences t.etween Security Esse ntials, computer or steal files.
paid-for anti-virus soltwarl'. or any free anti-virus app lication The real difference between free anti -virus
Heeding the advice of these very for t hat matter, and the pros programs and the producu you have to pay
technical and computer-minded and cons of just using the for is the tools they provide. If you pay for
individu als,l immediately fi rewall on my rou ter? security. you should really pay for the entire
unill5talled my copy of Anthony Fakir security suite. With security suites, you also
McAfee, downloaded get a software lirewall. This acts a little like
It's important to

A
Security Essentials and the firewall on your router, but it can offer
connected my router to distinguish betw~n a application control. This way. if your PC were
my computer, safe in the firewall and anti-virus to be infected by a tile that your anti-virus
kroowledge that my PC software. as they're designed application missed . the software lirewaH could
wou ld now tie even better to offer d ifferent types of stop this file ma~ing contact with the hackers
protected than it was protection lor yO\.lr PC. A lirewall who programmed it. This can protect your
before. I was also happy acts a little like a border guard , data and stop your PC being turned into a bot
that I wouldn't have to pay deciding which traffic is allowed that sends out spam or, worse yet, is used to
for any subscriptions ~nd into and out of your computer. attack other systems.
that my computer wou ld In the case 01 a wireleS$ router, Security suites also come with other tools
wo~ that little bit faster the firewall is set up by default to such as web scanners. which can monitor the
without McAfee slowing it allow all outbound connKtions (you websites you visit and stop you accessing
down. All was well until! can connect to anything). but infected sites. All these applications worl<ing
obtaine.:l a copy of the deny all incoming connections together increase your protection.
Complete Gujde to Windows (nobody yn conne<:t to you) . Not all se<:urity suites are the same. so read
7. There! notice.:l a This means that hackers can't our reviews on security suites (Labs, Shopper
scan your computer looking for 264) lor more information. As a basic minimum
security flaws to exploit, but it Microsoft Security Essentials is a decent
.. A. wl rele ... route< 11.. . a
built-In IlrewaH that oilers
doesn't mean you 're safe. The way anti -virus product that. in combination with
some orotKtlon aga inst firewalls work means that if you initiate a your rooter's firewall, will protect yO\.lr PC from
Inter""t Ikreals. bul you connection. malicious programs can still a wide range of threau. However. Kaspersky
SIIiI need SKUrily on yoU!" PC come in. If you visit an infected website, for Internet Security 2010 is even beller.

Windows keeps scanning hard disk

A while ago - and not for the first
Q
healthy disk, but you must rule out the
tim e - I inadvertently switched off poSSibility that there really is a problem. We
the comput er at th e mains. Th e assume from yO\.lr description that drive E is
next time I started it up. a page appeared
=.-.. _ ... _ . .
--
one of the partitions on your BOGB disk. rather
~
stat ing that Windows was "Checking the fi le than your USB disk.
system on E" and that "o ne of your drives From the Start menu, click Run, type CMD
needs chec~lng for consist ency". and click OK. Type 'fsutil dirty query E:'. which
_ . " ' .. , .... _(['.1
When I saw this message in the past, the should confirm tha t the volume is seen as ·d irty".
disk check complet ed, fi nding no p!"oblems, Now open up My Computer. right -click on drive -~­ __
P
~
I
I
o
"
"
and that was the end 01 it. This time, E: and select Properties. From the Tools tab, click P _ ... . " , _ - . . . ...... -
whenever I start up the PC, Windows goes Che<:k Now. Che<:k both the file system errors
through the same proce.:lure, with identical and bad sectOI"$ options, then click the Start
res ults (in oth er words, it finds no problems). button. This shooid start an in -depth error check.
I have t.een unable to discover any way of which will take a while.
getting rid of it . Can you help please? When the check is finished. repeat the fsutil
I have an 80GB hard disk divided into query as before. If the result is still dirty, you still
partitions C through H and an extemal40GB have a problem. You could try several things at
USB drive. I'm running Windows XP. this point. A third-party disk utility may contain
Keith Hellawell more powerful diagnostic and repair routines ... Ticking both options causes Check Dislc to
than Windows ' own: we currently recommend perform a more thorough scan. II "an take a wtIHe,
though, and II you're chKklng a sYstem disk,

A
Window<; runs this procedure il it TuneUp Utilities (www.rune-up.com).lfthe
you'l need 10 reboot
suspects a file system problem on a partition is smaiL you might consider backing up
disk partition, olten caused when a its contents and reformatting it. II all else fails,
disk write isn't finished due to an unplanned open a command prompt as you did for the only. Bear in mind that an undiagnosed problem
shutdown. Sometimes Windows can get fsutil query, but this time type 'chkntfs IX E:' may remain; if you want to restore checking on
·stuck'. repeatedly checking an apparently which will prevent start- up disk checks for E: all disks later, the command is 'chknt fs 10'.

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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HELPFILE

Which laptop bags will keep my laptop dry?

Q I walk to and from my wort. daily
and as a result su ffer from regu lar
soakings in the rain, snow or wet
Your best bet is to buy a waterproof
b<>ekpack along with a ~parate sleeve for your
laptop 10 protect it from knocks. Ov~rboard
air. I read your reviews on laptop bags as I'm (www.overboard.co.uk) ~I!s 20- and 25-litre
looking for a de.::ent ru cksack to carry my wa t~rproof backpacks with ~ith~r a 15.4 or 17in
work laptop in but realise.d that a key 51eeve for £45 and E50 respectively. You could
eleme nt was missing from all the reviews: also opt for a dilfer~nt sleev~, such as Pa kuma 's
how dry do these bags keep my laptop? ~c02bag (avai labl~ in si2~ from 7 to 1 S.4in).
Can you recommetld a suitable fu;:ksack
that will keep my laptop arld my lunch dry in
anything from a light shower to being
practically submerged?
Dave Webster; weblterd@gmail.com

A
We discu55ed at length about testing
how waterproof the bags wen~. bot
decided tha t we couldn't do this in a
meaningful way, especially as none of them ...... OYerboafd bags are waterproof, but you' ll
dlimed to be waterproof anyway. need a sepa.ate laptop sleeve

No operating system Remove

Q
I was inspired by an article in
Compur~r Shopper to bu ild my
utility disc Asus supplies 50 you can cr~ate driver
diSC$for use when instamng Windows.
duplicate
own pc. It fired up fi ne, but I
can't get any further with setting it up. I
You can choose which OS you want to run.
Some, such as Ubuntu, are free to download; ask Vista
chose an Asus H3N78 SE motherboard, a friend to download th~ disc image from www.
as I und~rstood that it had Linux 'tJurnt on', ubuntu.comlgetubunruldownloM and bum yO!J I now have a PC with two
but when I fire up with the Asus disc loaded,
it just prompts me to choose between two
a CD. Plac~ the Ubuntu CD in your drive. reboot
and follow th~ installation instructions.
Q operating syst ems on it by
mistake: Windows XP SP3 and
Nvidia driver pages or a Free DOS prompt. Tha t said. we'd r~commend Windows 7 Win-dows Vista (upgrade) Setup. The latter
What do I do next ? Home Pr~mium. OEM versions, for which is the d~fault option an-d won't ev~n boot.
Norm')n Brown, cMu@easy.com Microsoft provides no support. cost around £75. How do I restore my compute r to normal
We've written lots about Windows 7, part icularly an-d make it boot into Windows XP, untill
You'v~ built th~ PC successfuUy. but in Shopp~r 261 . which coin<;ided with its launch. n
A
upgrade to W indows Can j re move the
you don't have an operating system Subscribers should also have r~c~ive-d O!Jr Vista fiI~s safely?
- the disc you are booting from is a Windows 7 supplement with Shopper 265. Henry Chandler

Th~ probl~m

A
here is the boot
manager. which is listing that

Alkaline-powered MP3 player? your computer has two operating

systems installed and tries to boot into
Windows Vista as the default option. The
concerned aren 't covered in our WIlat's New or
Q
I need some help with purchasing only way to solve this problem is to remove
an HP3 play~r.1 would have sent Llbs sections. the Vista boot manager and go back to the
this query to the old BuyingC/ink We haven't reviewed any MP3 players that default XP versiOfl.
but I hadn't n-oticed it had gone from the run 011 alkaline or NiMH N tl eries for ages, but To do this, you'll need an original Windows
magazine! Wh~ n did it go? there are still a cO!Jple available. Alba's 4GB XP installation disc. Boot from this, and when
My girlfrie n-d and I are off to South play~r costs f28from Argos an d is 5ilv~r an d the · Wekome to Setup· 5Cre~n appears. press
America for six months in March. W~ comes with pink, white and black covers. W~ R to stan the Recovery Console.
want a couple of cheap HP3 players can'l vO!Jch for its au dio qualily or ~ven its When the Recovery Console st arts (it loob
that w~ won't mind being stolen but usability, but it fits you r requir~m~nts. l ik~ a Command Prompt) type fixboot and
that run off ordinary, easily available Another opt ion is Philips' GoGear pr~S5 Enter. This should fix the problem, but if
batteri~s (M or AM), as most of th~ SA2640, which is su pposed to last 30 it doesn't, stan the R~covery Console again
time we' ll be in re mote areas away hours on a single AAA battery. This 4GB and this time type fixmbr and press Enter.
from co mputers and flOwer supplies. play~r isn't widely available, but you can Th~se commands r~turn your hard disk to a
We're pre pared to sacrifice quality pick up refurbished m odels from sites such default Windows XP state.
for low cost. as www.{el~phon~sonline.co. uk. YO!J can remove any Windows Vista files
Simon Grimshaw. from your computer now. but be careful. as
sLgrimshaW@hotmai/.com it's not always easy to see where one operating
... Few MP3 players u "," AoAo
system starts and another one ends. To be
or MAo batteries these days.
Buying Help (as Buying completely safe, we recommend leaving aU

A
but they are stil i around II YOU
(linic was later known) look Mo.d enough Vista files alone for now. Wh~n you upgrade
finished in the July 2008 to Windows 7. perform a dean installa tion.
issu~.so w~'re surprised it"s taken making sure yO!J back up all your documents
you this long to notice! However, and other files, such as photos and booIo;marb.
w~'re still happy to answer readers' first. A clean install always wOl"ks out best in
buying questions where Ih~ products the long run.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~010

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 HELPFILE

Laptop taking too long to boot

.
----
- ~

Q t have a Fujitsu Siemens Amilo

D-1845 laptop that 's four or five
a lot 01 these, it's a sure sign that
this is your m"in problem.
-~-
~

years old now. It suits me well tJut It's not strictly necessary to have
, -,-- -"'--'" . "
it takes an age to go through the full boot
process arid connect to my broadband
con nection. I already have the maximum
most 01 these programs running.
Many are simply there to speed
up the appliC<l tion 's launch time ,--
'-- _
"11_'
,-"oc ___
,--
----
-----
--- '<-_...... •
"'-_ "
,--
'<--_ . . .
...
•

-----
1GB of PC2 700 ODR memory irlStalled. when you dick on its icon, while l
What can I do to s ~e<l up the boot
process? I have about 12:GB of 5~e still
avai lab le on the 80GB hard disk and use
others are waiting lor you to
connect peripheral!;, such as a
TomTom satnav or iPod. Still others
,--
,-
,--
~-----
:-.--~'-
_._- ,-- ,
_r_u
---
-~
' t . _.....
't. _ _ .....
't. _ _ .. •
•
external drives whe n requi red to stop filling are t"king up you r precious RAM
and proce)Sor time by constantly ,........
==,_ = .F '", =--_=.=
-
up the interna l hard disk. I think I could do e,
with deleting some programs and spring-
cleaning the Registry but I don 't know how
to go about it in a logiCilI and safe mann er.
I'm happy with my laptop'S ~rfonnance,
Checking lor updates to applkations
you have insta lled just so that they
can inlorm you when one is
available to download.
=-
• f'rog r","' thai run in lhe bac kg round a re often unnecessary
a nd can be disabled 10 speed up W lndovn' bool lime
but not the very long time it now takes to Disabling these 'helpers ' is easy,
boot up fully at'ld t.ecome ope rat ional. I and you 'll free up system resources and speed Another tab you can explore is Services. Tick
shou ld also add that it has anti-virus and up boot times, although you 'll sacrifice a little the option to 'Hide all Microsoft services' to Se<:
Zone Alarm software installed. Any helpful convenience at the same time. However, if you what other services are running. If you know you
suggestions would be gratefully received, disable something that you later realise you don 't need one, untid it. When you 've finished,
Andrew Slade, need, it 's just as easy to enable it again. did Apply and then OK. You'll see a message
andrew.slade l@btintemet,com In Win dows XP. dick Start. Run and then as king whether you want to reboot now or later.
type mscontig in the box that appears. In Vista Changes will only be applied when you reboot.
One 01 the main reasons why or Windows 7, type msconfig into the search bar You can also delragment your hard disk.

A Windows is slow to boot imd

becomes unusable is the number 01
appliC<ltions th at include themselves in the
and hit Enter, When the System Configuration
window appears, click the Startup tab and you'U
see the applkations that load when Windows
Open My Computer. right-dick on local Disk
(usually q and click Properties. On the Tools
tab. dick Defragment Now. Select the disk you
Startup section 01 System Conliguration. This starts. It's not always obvious what a program want to delragment and dick Analyze. II it
means aU these programs have to be loo ded does, so check the name 01 the executable in the recommends that you delragment the volume,
each time you boot your computer. While the Command column and search for it on~ne if dick Defragment. This will rearrange the files on
Windows de5ktop may appear in a reasonable you 're not sure, To disable any Start up Item, just your disk to bring together any fragments of liles
amount of time, it ta kes a while before you can untid the box next to it. Obviously, you 'Uneed that aren't stored contiguously on the disk.
reaUy do anything. which is due to the lact that to leave your anti -virus and firewall entries Other ways to speed up the boot process
aU these applications are loading. ticke<! it you want them to woO::. There are inclu de disabling unnee<led devices in the Device
You may even have noticed the programs' buttons to Disable all and Enable aUif you simply Manager (see page 134) and disabling any
icons appearing in the notification area at the want to run a quid test to see how fast your hardware such as RAID controllers, serial and
bottom-right comer 01 the desktop. If there are laptop will boot with all programs disabled. para llel ports and floppy disk drives in the BIOS.

Printer only prints cyan

I have a Canon Pixma iP300Q tried every deaning rout ine available through the nothing else. This should become staine<! with
Q pri nter, which is about lour ~ars
old, I recently litted a new ~Iack
driver interface, you have little left to lose from
trying to dean the print heads manually. Be
old ink, and you 'll need to repeat this many
times belore the old ink is mostly gone.
cartridge as it had run out, but since the n aU I warned that this can permanently damage them, Leave the heads to dry on some kitchen
get is the cyan colour. The cartridges are aU so it really is a last resort belore giving up. paper ovemight. and reassemble the printer.
in th e correct compartment alld sitting in the II you decide to dean the heads, remove all You 'Uneed to run several head-cleaning cycles,
locked position, and although I've dearM':d four cartridges and then the print head, which is but you should soon begin to see ink emerging.
and aligned the heads several times, it makes secured by a lever, Use sticky tape to cover the and eventually it may work property."
no dillereoce. I've exhausted one full cyan place where ink comes out 01 each not, you could try repeating the
cartridge and wasted half a re am of paper cartridge so they don 't make a mess, exercise. leaving the head to so"k
try ing all the ideas in the various help Opinions diller as to the best way to lor a few hours in a shallow saucer
programs. Can you help belore I throw th e
thing through the wirldow?
clean the head, but try
gently swabbing with
.... .:;il:l:t)_j:!~ ...
Of water. or even isopropyl
alcohol, bel()(e swabbing.
Ceorge Hemingway, a cotton bud soaked II after a couple of tries it
gw.hemingway@holmail.co.uk in warm water - still doesn 't work, the
problem is likely to be a
The problem may be that the print hardware failure , You can buy

A heads have lailed or are dirty beyond

the printer's ability to dean them,
but the cyan problem does sound unusuaL II
~ If your ptinter'.
nO! working
prOPerly, II ,oold
be due 10 blocked
new heads lor the iP3000
(part code QY6-0064-000),
but at aroun d £40 you 're better
you 've double-checked all the cartridges and or dirty prlnl heads oil buying a new printer. GJ

Click: dell.co.uk Call: 0844 444 3242

Sam·gpm Weekdays, 9am-6pm Saturdays, lOam'Spm Sundays

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 we.. How do I stop emails?
tJ..J Q I sent an em ail t o someone and asked

LL W for a Read R~ uest so I'd know when

.,-.,-'-'-
t hey'd read t ile ema il. I was q uit e
- .---
. .r-;C -_._.-._ ....
-..~--
LL~
pleased when I rea>ived the con fi rmation, but I
keep gett ing th em. I e<>n get up to 100 emails II
day confirming that my em ail has been read.
,
" )<_.- _ ...
~-- ---
~---

_.........._a_..-_-,
,.. .... ... _
...
--.- ..
..--. .-
.-.. -.....
- ...- . .-
I~

••
....----
I'~ contacted the re<:ipient an-d asked him to

...-- .. _--
~-----~.--
.,
stop sending me all these messages, but he ~-
~- . . ___ '. ___
CJ . _-- ... -
__
says he isn't. How can I stop this happi':ning?
--.--
I'm usi ng Outlook 2007.
j Goodwin
~----
"
._, _-
......,......
......
_-_-
-... .
_..... .._.....__.-
...
'----
The person yoo sent the email to isn't

A being completely aCWf"ilte, beC<luse in a

way he is sending you the messages.
What's prONbly happened is that his email
o
, '

program is automatically configured to

acknowledge such requests by sending Nck the
email - the read receipt. Unfortunately, it looks
as if something has gone wrong and that email is ... Add a rul" to d"let" duplicate meuage-sl n Outlook
somehow stuck in his Outbox. Every time he
sends emails - which might be automatically every In the ne>Ct page of the assistant, you C<ln add a second
few minutes - the email is resent to you, but it's not part to the rule to look for specific words in the subject
removed from the folder. I)( message body. Enter the text as it appears in the

Try contacting the recipient again a nd asking if he incoming messages, and th at should get rid of yoor
could check his Outbox and remove the stuck email. problem. Of coorse, you 'll have to empty your Deleted
If he won't do that and the problem continues, yoo items folder a little more frequently as it will fill up
have two choices.You could add an Outlook rule that with all these message>.
checks for the incoming message from that sender A second option is to add the sender to yoor
containing the Message Received te>Ct, and have the blocked senders list. You can add addresses to this list
rule ilutomatiC<lily delete the incoming emaiL That by choosing Tools, Options, Junk emaiL Select the
way, at least yoo won't have to delete the emails. Blocked Senders tab, and add the email address to this
To add the rule, choose Tools, Rules and Alerts, then list. It doesn't stop the ema ils arriving. just puts them
choose Add a new rule.The rule shoold start with Move straight into your Junk email foider.Ofcourse. this wiU
messages from a specific person to a specified folder. then fiU up with hun dreds of emails from this person,
The person is the email add ress of the person sending and if by some chance they send you an email you
you the emails, the folder is the Deleted Items folder. want to receive, it will be treated as junk.

Displaying names in an
INTRODUCTION
Have you got a sprea dsh eet
Access Combo box
thllt d~sn't ... dd up. II Word j have a combo box in my Access database Altematively, yoo could use a te>Ct box next to the
document that needs a text-
formatting mllcro or II
Q that lets teache rs select a st ude nt. It is
ord ered by th e StudentlD, and shows the
combo box to show the student's name using:

database that's waiting for II students ordered by tutor group fo llowed by student - combol . Co l umn(2)
report to be writte n? Don't name. Given the number of students that teachers
fret : we're here to help. Just work with, this is the way they tend to remembe r As numbering starts at 0 in combo box columns,
send us your query to the them, so they can st>lect the correct student this assumes the third column holds the student name.

__-- -
e mail address below and our relatively easi ly. Ho_ver, once they've
reside nt office applications tracked down the student, I'd really like the • • >
expert will find your solution. com bo box to display the student's name,
Please provid e as much whereas at the moment it shows the Tutor ...
infonnation as you can , Group, Is the re a way to do this?
induding the ve rsion of the
IIpptication you 're using."
Louise Anderson
--'''- - .
... --
"7""i"""i

~ _.-
--
-.!.-- -
. ---
sample of any data and details There are a couple of options. First,
of IIny st e ps yo u've already
A you coold change the query used fl)(

--
.... I

- .--
taken t o solve the issue. the RowSoorce of the combo box to I =..'"':. I I I
Kay Ewbank
concatena te the two columns so both are
displayed.This would be our favoured option ilS
- I I

Database developer and

productivity expert Kay
Ewbank I
it identifies Smith as being the John Smith in
Abbey4 rather than the John Smith in
WalWick3. To do this, you'd use cooe such as:

SELECT Student l D, TutorGroup &. .. -

-~

--
I I j I I I , -l. I •
& St udent Name FRO~ Students ... Use ~ t"" box to pick UP Information from a combo box

COMPVTERSHOPPER . M"'Y~OlO

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 OFFICE HELP

How do I stop Word hyphenating?

7 _ _ _ _ .. _ _ ..

Q In our company documents w e have

a number of Ie<hnical words that,
hyphenating words marked with this
style (and trying to do sfH!lling -
==
--~"""""B\
for clarity, _ want to avoid havi ng corrections or grammar checks on it).
hyphenated. Word 2007 has a nasty habit of Once you 've saved this style, you can
-:::- ---=---
----
sp litting these quite long words. 15 there a
way to stop Word hyphenating them?
apply it to any words you want .
Once you have the style available,
----
~ ---
___1-
---
--_.
---'-
- - .....-
Phil Chapman there is a further optiOll.1f you have
words tha t occur often, you can ~

A
There'l a two-part solution. You n~d
to start by creating a special style that
set them so that they're never
hyphenated. To do th is,you add them -:t_=
._-
f :.=

_
you can ilPply to words when they to the AutoCorrect list as formatted
occur in documents. When you tell Word not to
dleck the 5pelling or grammar 01 a word, it also
doesn't hyphenate words.
In the Styles area of the Word ribbon. dick
entries. First, select the word in a
document and set its character foot
to be No hyphenation. With the word
to be added to the list still selected, "-
... -------
.::---:::
~
:

I -;-= i[F.3

the diagonal right- arrow at the bottom right dick the Office button (the large
of the section to ma~e the Styles list appear. round button at the top lelt of the • Add t ..... lo.matted wo.d to the AutoCorrect entrIes to
Click the New Style button at the bottom suet-n). Choose Word Options, prevent it being hyphenated
left of the dialog and give your style a name Proofing. AutoCorrect Options. You 'll
such as 'No hyphenation'. Choose to deline set- the word in the right-hand side of the AutoText entries, again set 10 be formatted
a character style. AutoCorrect ~st: make sure it's set as a forma tted without hyphenation,To add a word as
Leave the paragraph style as Default entry, and copy and past e the same spelling to formatted AutoText, enter it, format it, then in
Paragraph font.Click the Forma t buttoo at the the lelt-hand column. That way, when the word is the Quick Access Toolbar, dOck AutoText, and
bottom, and choose Language from the options entell'd , it will be 'corrected' to the same sfH!lling then dick Save Selection 10AutoText Gallery.
that apfH!ar. Set the language to ~ English, UK, but set to the No Hyphenatioofont. You'll need to give it a name, select a gallery
then put a tick mark in the box labelled 'Do not A final option - as these are long words and an d so oIl, but tha t should make the formatted
check sfH!lIing or grammar'.This will stop Word presumably easy to misspell - is to set them as word available in the gallery.

Can I use a formula in each Excel tab?

I store data on the students in my
Q
End I f
dass in heeL Each page has the [f Inu msheets > I Shee ts + 1 Then
student's name in the tab, and it 'more than are needed , need to
worts welL However,l want to share the
sheet with other teachers, so that they can
- delete some

."
Fo r I - 1 To I numsheets - (IS he ets
paste their dass list over mine, The dasslist
is stored in a sheet called Tutor groups, and
wt. en you did on a student 's name on this
!----lr :::_
---
.-- .- Sheets ( I ) , 01'1 ete
Ne xt I

-- --- _.-
sheet, the correct student page sheet opens, End If
What I want to happen is that when the
teacher pastes the names into this sheet, the However, we dOll't advise you to automate
pages for their students are created with th e use code to chllllge the names of labs.
• YOI.I c,," the process, or at least dOll't expect other people
correct names in the sh~t tab, Dullt might be simple. to cOl>Y arid paste to use the automated copying operation, If you
Is it possible to put a formula in the tab of read thiS column regularly, you'll ~now that we
each heel worksheet? End If are great fans of automating OHice processes,
Richard Stevenson Wend but thiS one could give you a headache. You're
End With obviously an Excel enthusiast and good wi th

A
What you want to do is poS$ible, and End Sub code and the more advanced uses of spreadsheet
involves a macro something like this: functiOlls , UnleS$ you r coUeagues are similarly
This assumes the names of your pupils are enthusiastic, however, you will do a lot of work
Sub renameSheet s() pasted 00 to the sheet caUedTutorGps in developing the code, hand over a lovely
Dim ws As WorkShee t column D. This macro win replace the current spreadsheet and it won't work for them. They will
Dim i Row As I nteger names of the pupils on the worksheet tabs with then come to you to put it right, They 'll paste the
Dim I Shee t s As In t e ger the names entell'd in column D. However,you'll names in the wrong column, leave spaces at the
Dim i th isS heet As In tege r also need to add extra sheets for any occasioos top, or something unforeseen, Your spreadsheet
Se t ws - Worksheets(NTutor Gps " ) when you have more names in the new group also uses VLookup and cross-sheet cell references
Wi th ws than in the old group, and you'll also have to deal to pic~ the name of the student and the tutor
I Sheets - .Cel l s( ,Row s,Count , with the opposite situatioo by deleting sheets.To from the Tutor Groups sheet: all that would need
NO"). End( x l Up ). Row do this, you'll need extra code aloog the lines of: to be checked even if the shet-ts were correctly
Ith i sShee t - 0 renamed, and you'd net-d to replicate all the code
iRow - 1 Wi th ws on any new blank met-ts.
Wh i l e l thisSheet ( I Sheets IS heets ,C e ll s( , Rows , Count , NON), Presumably you r studeot groups change OIlly
I th lsS hee t - I t hls Shee t + End (x IUp) , RQW once a year, so our advice would be to get the
k - Sheets(l th isSheet ),Name In umsheets - Sheets,Co unt names of the students from the tut0f5, then use
If k <> " Tutor Gps " Th en If I Sheets + 1 ( I numsheets Th en the sheet-renaming macro yourself to do the
Shee t s(lth i sShee t l Name - 'need t o add extra sheets updating, If it were us we'd copy and paste by
.Ce ll s(IRow, NO" ) Value Sheet s.Add after,-Sheets(I), hand. It may sound luddite, but simplicity has
iRa ", - Ho w + I Count : - lnu msheets IS heets a lot going for it, G:l

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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 COMPETITION

Z WIN Monitor Audio

C AirStream 1()
l- M onitor Aud io's AirStream 10 is an entirely new way
to enjoy r3(jio. By combining th e po_r of thoe
internet with an easy user interface and
luxury design, AirStrt'am 10 lets)too listen to owr

I- 15,000 internet radio stations, glo~l music se rvices

and every music fi le on your home network. It even

w reaches into analogue to give you FM with RDS,as well

as providing full digita l DAB and a way to plug in your
MP3 playe r a'ld hi -Ij system .
We have two to give away, worth £245 each.

D.. www.monitoraudio.co.uk

~ I WIN loom ADSL Xliv

wireless modem/
WIN Idapti3
multicharger
C router with VolP Recharge aU your gizmos at once and cut cilble
clutter with Ida pt. The i3 syslem can charge over

tJ The Zoom X6v integrates a lull-rate ADSL 2/2+

modem, router, 802.11 wirele>!; acee)!; point, VolP
telephone adaptor. firewall imd lour-port 10/100
Ethernet switch into a single device.
3.500 dillerent products, including phones, h<tndheld
consoles and ba tteries, using a series 01
interchilngeable tips. Eilch Idapt comes with six tips
covering iPodliPhone, microUS8 and most common
The combination of networking devices. along with Nokia, Samsung an d Sony Eria;son phones.
Zoom's Fastlane Quality 01 Service and instaUation The i3 charges up 10 three items simultaneously,
wizard. simptify setup. increase dependability and provide and is power-eflicient. too. with an easily accessible
superior voice communications and video deliW'ry over of/switch. fl can charge devices in their cases and
the intemet. The FXO port also irn:ludes the TelePort. an doesn't need special charging cases.
inteUigenl relay thaI allows a single phone to ptace and We have 10 to giW' aWilY, worth £30 eilch.
receive both VolP calls and caUs oW'r the PSTN. www.idaptweb.com/uk
We have liW' to give away, worth £80 each.
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CDMPETmDN RULES
on~",w",""".q"'"~l""' ... bt~ " ......... wII "'" bt~ .. p«d '" ~I)'..-,.j ""....,.,..-,. . .."""'''''''''"'t • .......,..t .... ~......q,.'''~
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........ nto w "" ........... bt_.,._"' __ lIl '" "" "" ___ """,, ""'1<><Rthocompot-' to bt _to"" "'.~~ ....... .,_ .... F"',.Joo-""'""""' .... ''''"''
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.......... ,"-" ... ""be ...... ' ''''''''''''''' .... Fri'< ....._ .1h<

....
DooWo"'-"''''~~No_'''''''''''''''' _"' . ~ .""! "'''' '''''''''to _ _ ,
bt"""'oo11h<po1!o«) _ _ ... _
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~"""''''''''4O"otol

....-.. .... 'o _ boy«>J~ .. .......... ', """""'_""'1.

''''''''' _ ... .,....,.,'o be_.,. ....''' ''''''_'''''''''''be
""'""', ........ _todot..,..,. " " _ "' - . ' " , '" pn-. - .. - ..-,.j - ... -"''''''~'''' .... ,.,., ... ''''
..... _""""'omt<Idtl>tP">'f<lllon .....:I .... ..-. .......... ~ot_ I)'''' .. ~~_td to .... ro,.. """.,_ ....... ""oI"'''''"'''t<d_''''~ tI(''' ....
..,,-,._bt"'_ 'o """"""'~ ... """"..'.01__ "".)'<¥''' .. ", _.N '''''''''_wllbe_",~01
......""""""""' ... ..,.-.""'"""Y.

MAY 2010 . COMPUrERSHOPPER

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 MAILBOX
This month, readers take umbrage at presumptuous shopping
sites and the demise of the Shopper cover CD, but before we
tackle those issues, please allow us to bask in a little praise

* Test case f10,1, ':ohooocrs reviEWS help our reaoers

I have quoted your reviews many times to

121
1have subscribed to Computer Shopper
and your sister tit lePCPro lor many othe rs looking for advice, arld earned lots of
years arld have always enjoye<l the mi. brownie points in the process: it's high time I passed
of editoria l, reviews and news. However, when these on to their rightful owner. Thanks for a great
purchasing new kit (arld being th e eternal Kept;e) read and so urce of info rmation.
I haye always spent hours conducting my own Robin Roberts-Gram
research before buying.
I now finally admit that my time was wasted, We're always amazed when family and friends tel! us
as I always arrived at the same conclusions as you r they've bought expensive products withou t so much
excellent reviews. Today. I needed a new printer as reading a single review, whether in Computer
so I just che.::ked out your best buys and orderl'd Shopper or elsewhere. We pride ourselves on the
accordingly - the order was ~n dispatched within quality of ou r te~ti ng procedure~ and editorial. and
two hours. This has saved me masSf'S of time, arld I we're glad you find it useful.
have every confidence that I shall be ve ry pleased. People otten a~k why our review~ don't agree with
those of other magazines. and there 's

- EDITOR'S CHOICE
CANON HP
a ~imple an~wer. one product is not
always perfect for evetyone. We
review product~ based on the factors
Wf!: thin k are important to our readers.
Pixma MP640 Officejet 6000 PC Pro's readers tend to have slightly

.... *. i=.!mfd~:;~
iffiBIi
different priorities to Shopp~ readers.

--_......
ilJ1 ~ v.., Ou r reviews focus heavily on va lue.
~---- while PC Pro's focus more on a

~­
--
roo "'""" f1J6.OOiI ..
'-""'Jon '"'"
.......... 01 ........

.......
,-'!II).-~
\f01l," ",'.-Jc
d .......... Nun
~­
.-~
1 ~1CO!_

"".~
-".,.,...
~..,"'"
product 's performance. although we
also hand out our Ultimate award to
exceptional products that may not
offer quite the same value as ou r
Best Buys. Naturally, there will
always be people who read both.
tl71DJ,...1*
"""""' .... ...,.c,ot bot hopefully you can quickly tel!
"'" lor ..... fI*!tloc.
"""'".,..
if a product is right for you.
Il0>l111
We're always open to suggestions,
... 01.1, review. are the,e to ""ve you time In clIoosir>g the right p,oduct fo< so if we're not reviewing products you
your needs and budget want to buy. let us know.

PREDICTIVE PROFILING invalid inlormation to assume people's habits and

CONTACTS I'm fa5Cinated by prediction, being a routines. In fact, we would like to think we are

LETTERS PAGE
iellers@(OmpUlershopper.(O.uk
121 regular lottety loser (well, that much is
predictable anyway). However, I'm always
worried when prediction turns into assumption.
unpred>ctable and living much more flexible and less
routine lives these days. I am now going to tum into
a hermit, although someo'1l': out there has already
Just because I bought one VGA cable from foreseen this,l assume.
TECHNICAL ADVICE Amazon, the website assumes I wish to buy anything TonyWatson
r.elpfi ldkomputershop-pt< .co.u~ or everything re motely electronic every three days.
oflicer.e IP@(Om ~e rshopper.(O.u k
This makes me wonder. let's say I bought a Barbie for Profiling is almost unavoidable these days and, while it
my niece, some lingerie for my wife, Guitar Hero for can occasionaUy be useful. it's more otten an
COVER DISC ENQUIRIES
my son, Call of Duty: Modem Warfa re 2 for my annoyance. Why companies as large and exper;enced as
co~rdiscs@compute<shopper. co. uk
nl!jlh ew and perhaps even 'Call of Nature' for an Ama~on recommend products based on a single

SU8SCRIPTlON ENQUIRIES ageing relative. These would all be one-off purchases, purchase is a mystery. It's also rather strange that the
computersh<.>pperiPcis.ub •. CQ.uk but the people at online stores, travel companies and products they recommend based on items you bought
oreaR 0844 844 0031 supermarkets would have an odd profile of me. They otten make no ~en~. Just because you bought a p:ilir of
or vi,;t WNW.w b~nf(). (O .uk would convert my one-oil behaviour into a men 's shoe ... th at doesn't mean you migh t also want a
'prefere n« ' for those types of items, which is far p~ ir of wom en's sandals of th e same brand.

WRITE TO US AT from the case. 01 course, you can usuaRy opt ()(Jt of marketing
Compuler Shopper. The prob lem is that th ese companies often ema ils at any point If Y()(J can't ~e ~ quick or obviou~
30 Clevelar>d Street. predict behaviour on th e basis of a frequency 01 as way to do this , you can always set up fi ltering rules in
lor>don W1T 4)0 little as 0'11': event. They the n use this statistically your email progra m to send unwanted mess~ge~

COMPVTERSHOPPER . MAY~OlO

Find more magazines at www.magazinesdownload.com

 Bear in mind that this woO:.s only with
Linux and Windows, and not with diHerent
versions of Windows. If you want to
dual-boot different versions of Windows,

I=
_.
make sure you instaH the oldest version
.- t... 0::.:-- fi rst and leave the disk connected when
you install the newest version. This way,
Windows itself will let you choose which
operating system to boot from.

DISC DOWNLOADS

121
1 must protest about your
decision to stop providing
cover CDs and move to
downloading ISO imilges only, This is
discriminatory. It may be all right for tho!
... Amazon's r<);:ommendal ions can be hit and miss miljority, basking as they do in som ething
possib ly approilching the mythica l BMbitfs
straight to your spam or trash folder. We explained how speed, However, it certainly isn't all right for those
to do this in our 'How to .. ' section in Shopper 251, unfortunates who may not hilve ~oadband access
or who, like me, 'just about' have broadband ,
DUAL-BOOTING IS EASIER THAN YOU SAY I live in iI sma ll villilge about as filr away as it's
possible to be from my 8T exchange while still

121
1very much enjoyed your latest issue, as
always. In your article on dual-booting getting broadband access. I have to get up in the
Windows and Llnux (LillllxExpert, Shopper middle of the night to have any hope of achieving
265), you mention the alternative of using separate something bener thiln dial-up speeds, and that's
hard disks, This could be much simpler than you made only on a very good night,
it appear. On many comput ers, simply holding down The likelihood of getting a continuous broadband
tho! appropriate key whi le booting will let you choose connection for t he several hours it would take to
t ho! boot device, For instance, on my desktop PC download 650M B is roughly ilkin to success in the
(which has an MSI motherboard), it's F11, while on search for rocking-horse excretil,As I find the discs
my Asus netbook, it's the Esc key, No n~d to SWilP useful for occasionill softwilre, but don't in5tall most
disks or fiddle with BIOS settings. of it (as I fee l sure most subscribers do), why not Share your 3G
PederChristen5en, Sweden illiow your feilde rs to download just the softwilre
they wilnt rather thiln the whole ISO disc?
connection w herever
You're absolut ely right. Many motherboards now le t As you maintain that one of the driving forces you go with fa mily
you choose the boot device without entering the 610S. behind this deciskln is that it's better for the
This also means there's no need to open you r case and environment, such a facility would follow the same
and friend s
swap dish just to avoid entering the BIOS, and it adds logic by saving on the electrical power required to
only a couple of seconds to the boot time. If your download softwilfe you will never use ,
motherboard is from a company other than Asus or Glyn roster
MSI, simply look for a message on the POST screen
that 5aYs 'Press X key for boot options' Of similar, You We were hoping tha t we'd be able to oHer individual
should then see a li st of poss ible boot devices, which downloads for exactly the reasons you mention, but
can include opt ical drives and USB -connected drives. we weren 't able to organise thiS in time fO<" the first
Select the one you want (you'll need to know the make downloa d. For this issue, we've spli t the virtual disc into
and model of the disks containing operat ing systems) two halves, so readers can download just Eu roTa lk or
and your PC wiU boot from it, the other half, which contains a couple of other full e

IWRITE IN AND WIN!

If you wan t to gel t he most out of your home movies ilnd photogrilphs, then
Adobe 's Photo~hop f iernent5 8 and Premiere Elements B ilre the be st and The idea l surveillance
easiest way t o do so, If you fancy getting your hands on these products, solution for d umm y
there 's no need to put your hilnd in your podet all you have to do is write a
great leIter. Get it printed as o ur Star Letter, and a co py of both ilpplications
Drelof DIY security
will be winging its way to yo u in the post_ Now lPhone uun con
Photoshop flements 6 is the best home photo-ed it ing ~ pli cilt ion, lts otnjav 1M privilege
powerful features are taken from the full Photoshop applica t ion, so you carl with EcfllT'lCllO. new
ilchieve the 5ame resu lts, but Elements is a lot easier to use, Premiere J'hone opps iCofchl
fleme nts 8 does a similar job for movie mak ing, pulling it5 features from the
high-end Prem~re softwilre, but ma king it easier to use so you 'll be ilble to
produce Hollywood-style movi es from the comfort of your home_

(
...... , PLUS!
Every published letter-writer who provides their address
i:t;M~
also receives a Computer Shopper mug

MAY 2010 • COMPUTER SHOPPER

PC World
Find more magazines at www.magazinesdownload.com
LETTERS

it gave up the ghost, eve n though the drive had AS hard d is~ are mechanical devices, there's
been only lightly used solely for security always the possibility that they might fail
backup purposes at home. prematurely. You could argue tha t th is means
Expecting the unit still to be covered by they're not ideal as a backup medium. but the
WO's two-year warranty,l emailed the fact is that you've simply been unlucky. We
company but never received the courtesy of a know of My Books (and other extemal disks) that
reply. With a view to replacing the drive,l went have lasted much longer than two years.

._._. _.... _
--- in to various forums, only to find that WO II's import3nt to have a ba<:kup strategy that
external drives are not alone in having an involves more than just backing up your data to
_.......
:::-.:..:.::~=.:::;::
unacceptable failure rate, For example, a one drive. especiaUy if the data is criticaL If your
disproportionate number of peop le posting house wt're to llood. burn down or be burgled.
their star ratings on Amazon were complaining it's entirely possible th at you could lose both
• We·. .. aiming 10 malee download sizes small...., about si milar experie nces with Seagate, your PC and My Book in one go. Online backup is
but don'tlorgel IN I ii's cllea per 10 subscribe MaxtOf and Buffalo devices. I appreciate that a sensible alternative as the data is bad ed up
it's mainly the dissatisfied buyers 'Ntlo will muttiple times and stored elsewhere.
programs and the h~1t Toolkit. We 're working post comments, but still ... Altematively. burn DVDs or buy another hard
on brea~ing thi~ into even smaller chunb. The principal reason they suggest for disk and store it at a friend's house, remembering
It's also w()(th pointing out that sometimes early deaths is that these drives don't have a to burn eKlra DV[)s Of synchronise the hard disk
we won't be able to offer applications for coo ling mechanism (other than ventilation as regularly as you need to.
download, as some companies' distribution ho les). I'm surprised that the figures for Mean Knowing where to turn when a product fa i[o;
agreements prevent uS from putting the Time Between Fail ure aren't published for is tricky. as some manufacturers prefer to
software online. While .. II this may seem such units, and I'd be inte rested to deal with buyers directly. while
discriminatory to some people, don't forget read your vi ew, others require you to return the
that you can still boy or subscribe to the OVD The good news is that produ ct to the retailer from
version of Sho~r. Subscribing for a year costs although WD still remains sile nt, which you purchased it.
just 1:45, which means you pay only B.75 per after only a little prodd ing Amazon has an excellent
issue - that's cheaper than buying the CD-less Amazon came up trumps. reput ation for sorting out
issue from the nemagen\. Colin Hague, problems, so it's good that you
cmague@btinternet.rom bought the disk from there.
EXTERNAL DISK FAILURE We agree that many reviewers

121
Like many other PC users, I The problem with MTBF figures is write only of their bad
installed a USB e)(ternai disk dri~ th~t tlley pro~ide the mean figure. experiences, 3S those with
(a Western Digital My Book) for It doesn't guarantee that your disk
back ing up my desktop Pc. But after a while it wiU 13st that long. only that the .. Hard disks can lail prematurely,
started making dicking noises, es~cially when a~erage model wiU last that long. which means your backup
starting up. Silly me! I should have realised Most manufacturers quote MTBF strategy needs to cover the
that this was a death rattle. Within two w~1ts fOl" enterprise-dass dis~ only. poss;bi lity 01 this happening

COMPUTER
SHOPPER
SHOPPER OFFICE ADVERTISING
Fax02079076600
CONTRIBUTORS
conrribulorstkompurershopper.co.uk """""' - -
_.... """"''''-''''''
~" [O'To'U.I.SU IHl_

.. ...........
--""-~ -''''''''''

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Editor David Ludlow
~---, "" -"""'"
david@Computershopper.co.ul Email ;tds.,hopperOdenni<.co.uk Adam Banko, Gareth Beach. Mike
.....
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Richard Bennett 020 7907 6640 Ben Pitt, Matt Prestor>, Ju~an Proi<a>.a, ,.....,.,., ....
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Dej>uty Advertising Manager David ROOi n<on. Je>n Thompsor> _ .."'''''''''''... _ .... ''''''' .... _r'''
Reviews Editor Seth Sarton Andrea Mason 020 7907 6662 " to...,..
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.ethlikompute"J,opper.co.ul Sen ior Salu E>:Kutive PHOTOGRAPHY ""
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Futures Ed itor Simon Edwa rds Adam Willboum 020 79(J7 6621 Danny Bi rd, Jan Ohal:, n mo HeMi!<:",
Andrew Ridge, Hugh Tlve ifaU ,..,.",,",,,,,,,-,,,,,,",,,,,-,,-,
.imonlikomputfflilopper.co.ul New Media AccOIlnt Manager ""'_"'_ "'.... ~w ,, ~o

Online Ed~or Tim Smalley Gary Rayneau 020 79016612 MARKETING

~m@compufershopper, co, uk List Rental Ha.rl<eting Manage< and (mp!oyu 01 ~---
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Anthony Wh ite 020 7907 6471 the Year Claire Sera.. NTlRN ........... UClNSN(;
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PRODUCTION
Ha<i<eting. Editorial arx:l Competitions
Assistant Emily Hooges _........................
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Mi<l<eting PrD<luction Manager
Pro6uction Ed~or Jar>ey Goolding Fa. 020 1907 6066 .....,--r .... _ __ _ .. o;,., ....... ..
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Ge mma Hills
Art Editor Coo n Mad:lewort " Production Director RotHn Rya n
MANAGEMENT -..,~...,- .........-;, .
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Dell<!ty Art Editor Anand Parmar 020 7"i07 6052
Tel 020 79(J7 6000 ... , ... "'_,,_ .. - - i _ _
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Product"n Controller ........ "" "' . -... ,... "' .......~co..p. ...
GroupArt Editor 8iU SagnaU Publisning Direct", John Garewal
Ke rem Kolea ' 020 1907 6059
Groop A<lYertising DirKlor
jul;'" L"yd·[vans
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SHOPPER LABS COVER CDIDVD CONTACTS Circulation Director Marti n BellOn 1111I1 1 _ . . 1If1'M _
Senior StaflWriter Ala n Lu Gra r.am Sm ith 020 7907 6335 Finance Director Brett Reynold,
a/antkompurer,hopper.co.ul Cecil ~h~ey 020 79(J7 6333 Group Finance Direct", Ian Leggett
Ch ie f Executive james l ye _____ " _ _ Lot
s..nior Stafl Writer Ka! Ofphanides SUBSCRIPTIONS Chairmilll FeUx ~ nnis . ~. "'""""""'"

"",.....-, u,.,_
, ,", _... .,,--.. CD
katO<;ompurer>i>oPP"'·co.uk "CI...... _...- ..."<P "-'..,,_
Tel 0844 844 0031 PRINTING "-"... -...0_-,,,-,-
~taffWriter Sany ~ Ia Rosa
barry@l<:ompurfflilopper.co.uk
Fax0844 856 0650
[ mailcompshopperO~heIpIine.co. ul
Printed by SCP, Bicester, OxOfl
Distributo" Seymo ur 02(1 7396 8000 --
""''''',..".
~

COMPVTERSHOPPER . MAY~OlO

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 LETTERS

good experiences don't generally feel the n<*d

(or can spare the time) to tell everyone that their
quite serious ~rstatements in
the feature on data privacy (Who
-,- . .
hard disk hasn't failed. Others write reviews owns your data?',Shopper 2:66).
immediately aher purchasing an item, when The article said that all
reliability isn't a fa<:tor. organisations must register . .
It's tempting to assume that the failure
rate of external disks is due to the higher
temperatures, but this is slightly unfair to
wittl the ICO if they handle
personal data, tJ.ut there are
organisations that are exempt so
-
manufa<lurers. They have to ensure that the don't need to register. This may
disks they use are able to operate without any
active cooling. We spoke to Western Digital to
clarify this. Here's the respon~ we received:
' Western Oigit.ll specifically created the
Caviar Green family of hard drives for
co~r organisations run by some
of your readers, such as clubs-
even those registered as limited
companies - provided they're not
for profit. Howe~r, it's worth
- _._-- -.---
' :'J - ---
-
applications that require reduced power, clarifying that they still need to • Readers who want to enter Slloppet's competitions sl>oold vl$lt
heat and noise. In doing so, WD has reduced comply with the Data Protection http://competltions.elfpertreviews.co.uk
power consumption by up to 40 per cent Act in their dilta hilnodling.
compared to standard desktop drives with the Yoor artide quotes Mick Gorritt, who COMPETITION ENTRIES
combination of WO's IntelliSeek, NoTouch and says that "notifying is an important obligation In Mailbox, Shopper 266, you
InteiliPower technologies.
' Caviar Green drives are used in the
manufacture of WO's My Book family of external
for all organisations that process personal
information". It wou ld be a pity to make
exempt organisations register (due to the
121 reply to a letter at.out
competitions by stating that
"we can't accept entries for competitions
stora~ products resulting in a fan -less, low heat yearly f~ anod more bureaucracy) wh en they by email as it's not legal". Please t ell us where
dissipation and quiet design. The design of the don't ha~ to. you found this out. There may be readers
My Book enclosure is made thermally efficient Mike Watts who organise their own competitions wIlo
by allowing natural air circulation through need to know the truth.
ventila tion slots at the top and bottom, thus Jon Thompson replies: I'm indebted to Mr Watts Tim Hill
keeping the drive inside property cooled. for his detective worl<. Mr CorTili was speaking in
"All My Book external storage products are the context of a successful prosecution brought What we meant by this is tha t we can't enter
tested at the factO!)' prior to being shipped to against a company tha t should have registered , readers' information (from their email entries)
conSllmers, and WD currently provides up to but repeatedly neglected to do so. into the official competition web page because
three-year warranties across the family: There are indeed exemptions for companies this would mean they don't get to choose
that perform limite;:l internal data processing and whether to opt in or opt out of the data
DATA PRIVACY ERROR for dubs and societies. Rea ders who are not sure protection portions. It 's al50 possible that we

121
1enjoy Compute, Shopper and find whether they need to register to stay within the might make a mistake while entering the
it helpful and reliable. However, I law can call the Information Commissioner's information, whether that's their email address
thought there were a couple of Office on 01625 545740 for information. or even the answer to the competition itself. GJ

MAY 2010 • COMPUTER SHOPPER

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COVER DISC GUIDE

Full Products
PC Tools Disk Suite
disks can become bloale<l with file systems. Different levels of defragmentation are
provided in case you just need a quick defrag or you
U
'~~:,O::Z,f:"":':.,~I'ogPCTooi.o;
files and other
Di sk Suite helps want to schedule a complete optimisation of your disk.
you fix these problems with a few simple moose clicks. Elsewhere, the Backup feature allows you to make
The Cleanup an d Optimize feature lets you safely copies of your data that can be restored in the event
remo~ unneceSS3.y files from your PC without that files become lost, damaged or corrupted. Creating
deta iled knowledge of the Windows file system. regular backups is one of the most important steps you
Removing bloat win not only make your PC perform can take to ensure yOAJ don't lose irreplaceable data
better. it wiU al.o;o provide you with more free Sp3~. and files 5Uch as photos and documents.
Fragmented drives drain critical system resources, The Backup feature in Disk Suite allows yOAJ to
compromise your ability to access files efficiently and tailor the backup to meet your needs by selectively

c
slow down Windows startup. Defragmentation is one choosing the files to protect. It also allows you to
of the best methods of boosting system ~rformallCe restore files as needed, and verily your backup to
as it optimises the way files are arranged on the disk. ensure valuable data can be recovered when nl'i'ded.
By reO<ganising your PC's files using the disk Physical disk and file corruption is one of the main
defragmentation feature, the process of accessing causes of data loss. The Repair feature allows yOAJ to
them becomes more efficient. creates more free space monitor the health of your disk and file systems and
and allows you to use your computer more etfectiVl'ly. repair corruption and errors. It also allows you to
The Defrag feature provides you with a powerful s<:hedule or run different types of disk integrity checks
defragmentation tool tha t supports both NTFS and FAT so potential flaws can be discovered and resolved.

==--
- -

Norton Internet Carbonite Onl ine

Security 2010 Backup 3.7

-_- .....
~--
... "" ... . ..-. ...
G£I1lIG Ullm:D

. .i<ail_._
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IXINOIUMS7
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~
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Today's online thieves will take advantage of
any opportunity to steal anythingyou'Vl' got,
and their methods are getting more devious
and sophisticated every day. Symantec blocked an
average of more than 245 million attempted malicious
code attacks across the globe each month during
Making regular backups of your music files, digital
photographs and anything else you might haVl'
stashed on your hard disk is essential. However, many
PC users never seem to get around to copying files to
CDs or eKlernal hard disks and run the risk that their
important data could be destroyed or stolen.

_. . (1--
F.-~
_ _ . . ""_",,,... _ ..w... &ortrOis<
.....
200S. Phoney emails. fake websites and online ads Carbonite Online Backup takes the hassle OAJt of
~
"
"
"
trick innocent victims into divulging pef50nal data backing up by doing the job for you .The software runs

~-=
_ _ lIlI _
~.....,
~ 1 ",1f{J1lU.
_
......... ""-
_
...
_,..."' • . . . , . . , _ .... _110 ...
-
,looI_Pn.

...... _10 . . . . . . . . 10 _ _
such as online bank log-i n details and credit card
numbef5.Cyberaiminals then sell the information to
the highest bidder on the online black market.
Symantec"s latest product, Norton Internet
Security 2010, uses a new reputation-based model of
in the background, automatically encrypting files
before sending them to secure remote data centres.
The best news is that the amount of data a user
can store is unlimited, soCarbonite will back up as
much information as your intemal hard disk will hold,
IYPOlWI! .IORIUTIOI
~"'IoM ........., _ _..... security to attain unmatched detection of new Once installed, Carbonite scans your hard disk and
malware and advance far beyond traditional begins to back up all your files. Users can choose
-..----.~-
",,~I • -
..,. ..... . . . . . . i-.iglio
"" .... ,.._",. ... ..,. _ oNo signa ture- and behaviour-based detection. Carbonite's default backup settings, which

............ _-
---.....,,.,,.,--"""
.... _ .. .... ....", . ... tbI> .....
lIut .. ,_ .... _ . _ _ This vef5ion of Norton Internet Security 2010 automaticai!y back up photos, documents, emaill
.,,_ ... -.....,r-oo-~ .
indudes free updates and other important
... ~
for 180 days and,like
other Norton products,
file types, or you can
select a range of
makes no impact on individual files and
Graham Smith system performance, in folders to back up,
Senior Disc Editor spite of adding a whole protecting important
new raft of upda ted data that sit elsewhere
protection technology. on your hard disk.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

Find more magazines at www.magazinesdownload.com
 COVER DISC GUIDE

W here On Earth? East-Tee Eraser 2009

This program is lor ~nyone that wants to rivers. mountilins. cities and l<!ndma,b Prote-=t your data and
improve their geography, bot doesn't acroS$ the globe. You 'll also lind privacy and remove all
have Ihe patien,,, to stare at a map. statistic;. such as the populations 01 evidence of your computer
Where On Earth? is an entertaining countries. heights of mountains and and online activity with
w~y of memorising where places a'e and when volcanoes ["sl erupted. E~st-Tec Eraser 2009.The
=
what they're called. II geography ;511',
your strongest area, it soon will be. The
interactive gam~ make the subject
For fun , ~lect a continent and then
explore il.Try to memoo5e the locations
01 the countries, cities and landmarks,
aptly named Eraser
surpas~s the US
Department of Defense
.-
compeUing and help you to remember try a practice game, and then test standards for the
the geograpl1icallocations of countries, yourself against the clock. You 'll be permanent erao;ure of digital
award~ points for correct information and removes
answers, and you can review every trace of ~nsitive
your progress on any of the data from your computer,
continents and topic are~s. including internet history. web pages. pictures, unwanted
Need a pr<)(l<)<mciati<)(l cookies, chatroom corwersations and aU traces of files,
guide?You c~n hear the place documents, emails deleted in the past. as weI! as entire drives.
names in British or American East-Tee Eraser 2009 deans <fWay evidence from the latest
English (names such as ~rsions of the most popular internet brow~rs. including
'Xi xabangma Feng" can be Internet Explorer, Firefox and Chrome. and hundreds of popular
tricky to pr<)(lounce by just programs such ao; Windows Live! Mes~nger. Outlook Express
reading the word). Finally, print and Thunderbird, m your private data remains safe fore~r.

o ®o out some maps then fill in the

countries or cities of t he world
to see how many you get right.
This easy-to-use program aim lets you view the ~st of files
before erasing them and allows you to change the wipe
method directly from the program's interlace.

HDWlD ... "-,:-_0_-

.-
GetYDurvirtual disc _
_____

--.--
_M ____.
---------
_ ___ H
M~ _ _ M

_ _ _ M _ M _ . _• •
__

-_._---_
--
-~.---,
_M_oa_~ _ _ _ _ _

his month·s cover disc is available as a password is case sensiti~.The extracted file has
T downloadable disc image. Producing fewer
discs means there's less cardb-o<lrd and plastic
an .iso extension and must be burned to CD or
mounted with a virtual dri~ applicati<)(l before
-------_.-.....
---~-----~

used, fewer emissions from the production you can use it.
process and less poUuti<)(l when distributing the
magazine due to lower weight.We've aim had ~ To burn the ISO disc image to CD. use the
lots of requests from many of you for a disc-less 1::.1 Bum Disc Image (or similar) option in your
version of Shopper. so this means there·s greater disc-burning application. If your software doesn·t
choke on the newsstand. support the ISO format, you can downloa d the
AU you need to use the Shopper disc is a free ISO Recorder from Ilttp://isorecorrier.
blank CD and software that can write ISO aiexfeinman.com/isOff'Corder.htm or the
images. If you·d ra ther not burn a disc. you can excellent CDBurnerXP from http://cdbumerxp.se.
use an applicati<)(l such as Virtual CI<)(IeDrive to Browse to the unzipped ISO file in your
'mount ' the ISO image in a virtual drive. which burning application and pop a blank CD in your
you c~n then use as a normal CD. CD or DVD writer. Once the CD is bumI'd, eje-=t
it and reinsert it. If it doesn·t start automaticaHy,

D To downlwd your Virtual Cover Discs. visi t

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MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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 UNDER DEVELOPMENT

UNDER DEVELDPMENT
Flaming useless
Your computer is at more risk of fire than you may think, says David Robinson, as he
watches his best attempts to get his customers to be proactive go up in smoke
n his book The Seven Habits of You'd be amazed how often we visit

I Highly E/fective People, author

Stephen Covey puts "being
proactive" at number one on the
a server and lind the same tape has
been sitting in the drive lor a week
(in other words, with no backup
list. We try to be pro~ctive ,lI1d, 3S media rotation) and , obviously,
part 01 that ethos, we have a subject to the same physical rislts
program running on Barney, our that might obliterate that machine,
admin server, that lets us know
when things go awry on some c~ent RISKY BUSINESSES
systems. We started doing this after SO how big is the risk? Well in
one 01 our US customers had a 2007, there were 31 ,000 Fires in
series of email problems. We set it workplaces and 53,000 lire~ in
up 10 years ago. when we insta lled private dwellings, There are 2.15
their 'mission-critical' software. In million businesses registered lor
those days email was little more VAT, and roughly 25 million
than an afterthought: now , 01 households in the UK, The chance
course, it's miS$ion oiti<al too. of you experiencing a business fire
The problem was th~t the is therelore around 1,4 per cent
computer running the network- - about the same as winning a
wide spam filter, preventing spam tenner for three numbers on the
getting into their local mail server, lottery. For a home fire, it's rather
kept Idlling over. Messages were • Is iI network printer avai li!bie "Er.. ." he said, "The lactory's lower at 0,2 per cent, but you stit!
getling lost and we were getting for use? on lire." have more chance of seeing your
the blame, even though we hadn't Well there are fires and there computer bumt to a crisp than you
supplied the offending computer. If there's a way of performing a are/irf!5, and this was one 01 the have of scooping the Lotto jackpot,
ched, adding a new mini-program latter. It was especially nasty 01 course, not every fire would
SPLUNK ROCK is lairly simple. The checlts generate because the factory workshops had wipe out your computer, all your
I se~rched lor an inexpensi~ w~y of a binary result (OK ()( faulty), These a stock of bottled gas, Ouch, music or your collection of digital
automatically monitoring remote results are transmitted using simple The site is split in two sections, holiday photos, but you get an idea
problems and notifying people protocols - which easily pass with the main oHice on one side 01 the scale 01 probability, And
when stull needed attention, The through lirewalts - to our server, and the f"'tory and workshops on that 's higher than you might thinl
only (supposedly) free tool I could where another program keeps tabs the other, separated by a car park, Anyway, oock to the fire,lt was
find went by the evocative moniker on incoming messages, The current Most 01 the servers are in the oHice, a big one. The whole building had
of Splunk, Unlortunately, Splunk status can be viewed on a except the one that hosts the gone up in flames, taking the service
was dunky to work with, the d~shboard-style display showing service, ~ftersales ~nd warranty department se.wrs and all the
manual was incomprehensible and green icons for OK and red for records, which is in the factory desktop PCs with it, "If you give us
to get the real goodies you had to faulty, Email alerts can also be sent office. The two halves are linked by the b"'kups." we said, "we can
splash out on the commercial to an engineer when a fault occurs, a fibre-optic cable, It was here, install the software on a temporary
version, After spending a lot of time It's not yet in a polished state se~ral years ago, that an electrician PC,load the data Irom the backup
evaluating it. I gave up, Instead I where it could be sold as a product. acCidentally cut through the tapes and you'll have warranty
made Ian responsible lor conducting but it does a good job and allows us fibre-optic link but told Tall Paul records available tom()(row."
some experiments into what we to be proactive, dealing with most he'd managed to rejoin the cable, Where were the backup t<lpes?
could achieve using Delphi, our customers' system problems before The sparky then legged it. The stalf In a fireprool safe - not t<lken ofl
favoured programming language, they even know they exist, couldn't log into the main system, the premises, And where's the safe?
I'd decided on a simple 5() we sent engineer Mick to In the service department, which is
architecture with a program running FIRE FOX investigate, He foun d the join all now a pile 01 ~moking rubble,
on one or m()(e computers at At Christmas I received a flood of right - made with a reel knotl They're still looking lor it. We can't
customers' premises periodicaUy em~ils ~bout a system at a factory be sure, but perh~ps it 's the blob of
reporting ood to our office. The in the Midlands, Over a period of a CHILD'S PLAY melted stulf crushed under a large
customer programs could, in turn, few minutes every ched failed, Our logging system showed that RSJ that lell out 01 the roof,
trigger little mini-programs that resulting in a pile of messages in my oockups had been done each night I think the neKl ~tep is to be
~ performed a single check, such as: inbox, Using a VPN I logged into for the previous week: a good start. proactive and put up a job
Barney and checked the customer's II TP's staH had been following the opportunitie~ poster in Selly Oak

"
~
5
• Is a specific computer actuaUy
runn ing ilnd responding to network
;I' requests (ping)?
dashboard: there were more red
'Iault' indicators than s"'rlet shirts
at a Man Utd v Liverpool match.
guidelines in our handbook, each
morning those tapes would have
been removed from the server tape
infants'school. GJ

§ • Is iI partkular service on the host Sho<1ly afterwards there was a drive and from the premises lor safe
Z PC actually running? ",II on the mobile phone we keep keeping. A four-year-old could do it. David Robinson
" ,-
~ • Has the Iree s""ce on a for out-ol-hours suppo<1, It was Tall However, our advice is
Software and
systems develope!'

I nom inated disk drive la llen below

a certain level?
Paul the general manager, so ca lled
be",use he's six loot seven,
sometimes as welcome as a kebab
delivery at a vegan convention,

MAY 2010 • COMPUrER SHOPPER

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RANTS & RAVES

RANTS & RAVES

Mel Croucher, haunted by visions of a post-apocalyptic dystopia in his local
supermarket, issues a rallying cry to ci vilisation: save Tesco's computers

MEL CROUCHER Which is how we came to watch TIle Road AS I see it. here's how the doomsday scenario
inste~d . A depressing experience. TheRoild is a happens in The Rwd. A disgruntled programmer
RANTS two-hour epic about an unnamed catastrophe, a
devastated landsC<lpe. and hopeless survivof5
hacks into the Tesco computer and malks
everything up as two-lor-one. All other stores
who live off garbage while avoiding cannibals. follow suit, beC<luse that"S wha t marketing
Very much like my last visit to Northampton. managers always do, thereby crashing the
OFF OUR TROLLEYS Since leaving the cinema, I have b~n banking. wholesale and retail systems, and
These days. my wife and I can usually manage it wondering what the unnamed catastrophe in denying the distribution ol lood. luel and basic
about twice a week. As we get older, we prefer to the movie could poS$ibly have been. There was services. Storage depots are locked down and put
do it in the afternoon. And it may seem a bit no evidence 01 nuclear war. or a mutant virus. under guard by anmed patrols. who are attacked
odd, but we have a little ritual after the curtains or a giant asteroid. or even a UKIP p~rty by infant hoodies just for lun as their elders loot
get pulled and the lights go dim. We ha~ a quick political broadcast. It was as il aU normallile Primark for last -minute bargains. Everyone has
suck. She prefers aniseed bal~, but I like the feel h~d simply stopped suddenly. forgotten how to bake bread, pick cotton and
of a Polo mint 00 the tip of my tongue. We And then I remembered Northampton. milk chickens. and starva tion haunts the land.
fancied it this afternoon, which is when I heard which is where I witnessed instant social The fif5t instances of cannibalism near Kingsgate
my wile utter the immortal words, "Two seniors, meltdown because 01 a basic programming error. Plaza shopping centre. Northampton. go
please, lor Sex & Drugs [, Rock [, Roll!" Civilisation came to ~ temporary halt when the unreported. because the media no longer exists
She pante<l these amusing words to the lad Tesco computer went down and the checkouts without electricity or pubs. By the time everyone
running our cinema box office, who shuffled his ground to a halt. I was lud"y to get out of town realises that they an d lunch are one and the
brain cells then mumbled, "Nail ", I j ust had time intact as the panicking masses were denied same thing. it is Far Too late.
to tell him that 5n& Drugs [, Rock [, Roll is very their lood supplies and turned away. Within 10 Forget about Afghanistan. the election and
good indee<!, before he continued, "Nail , the minutes, hungty shoppers had started eyeing the World Cup. We must an pull together and
film's already started," Bummer. one another and drooling. concentrate every resource on protecting Tesco

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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 RANTS & RAVES

breaking copyright laws? Well. that's what we Although increased capability often
tried 10 find OUI by phoning the federalion inevitably leads to increased complexity,
Against Copyright Theft (FACT). today's GUls may nonetheless be too bloated
FACT is the organisation that works on behalf an d complicated to be fit for purpose if they
of film and broadcast companies to re<luce discourage po!ople from taking advantage of
piracy. You probably know it better as the the technology availilble to them.
producer of the irritaling adverts lellingyou thai Apple's iPad and Google's Chrome OS could
pirate DVDs are illegal and that downloading chilnge all this. Both do away wi th the desktop
movies makes you as bad as Pol Pot. Now, we metaphor, drop-down menus and overlapping
assumed that as FACT's job is to care about windows we're familiar with in current computer
copyright, it would know if it was illegal or not to GUls. The iPad uses multitouch gestures, while
break the copy protection on a disc with the sole Chrome OS will use a single tabbed browser
purpose of walching mull i-region films. We were window as an inlerface for web applications.
wrong; nobody at FACT seemed to know. They both have the potential to make PCs
In the end we found out on our own: the UK dramatically more ilccessible and could open up
has implemented the EU 's copyright directive as people's computers to m()(e complex tasks. If my
the Copyright and Related Rights Regulations non -nerd friends an d family are any indication,
2003. These laws make criminal offences of most people are far more comfortable using an
"manufacturing for sille or hire. importiltion. sale iPhone or a web browser than they are with any
or distribution of devices or products which are other piece of computer hardware or software.
primarily designed or adapte<lfor the purposes of Of course, I haven 't used either an iPad or a
technological measures" and "providing. Chrome OS computer, so my hope could be
promoting. advertising or marketing a service the entirely misplaced. The iPad could tum out to be
purpose of which iSlo enable or facililate Ihe an overgrown iPod Touch, while Chrome OS may
circumvention of technical measures' . In short. be a jumped-up web browser with ideas above
you can'l buy software t hat breaks copyrighl its station. Either way, I can't wait to find out.
protection - and we can't tell you about it.
So if you buy a Blu-ray disc legally from the
US and want to watch it in HO on your PC in this KAT DRPHANIDES
country, the wftware that would let you do this
is iHegal Is this necessary? After all, copying a
disc is illegal as it breah copyright law: in the
RAVES
same way, scanning a book and putting it online
is illegal yet there are 00 laws banning scanners.
The crazy thing is thiat, according to FACTs GAMING FOR GOOD
website, "it is not an offence to buy pirated The video games industry isn 't as well known for
DVOs". Only Ihe "production, di stribulion and its charilable work as, for inslance, the music
sale of pirated OVOs is a criminal offence". industry. However, we've seen some fantastic
In summary, then: if you use software Ihat combinalions of gaming and charitable
gives you the freedom to watch any disc that promotions that have led to successful events.
compuler~. The wobbly-wheeled Irolley~ of you 've legally paid for, you're breaking the law: OneBigGame (ww.v.onebiggame.org) · seeks to
civWsation must be filled. The barcodes of hope if you buy a pirated ovO and watch it, you're raise money to sol~ problems afflicting children
mu st be scanned. The checkouts of humanity nOI.ls it jusl me or should the government be everywhere, by creating video games through a
must fore~r go "beep". I ha~ seen the future if more focused in getting pirate OVO salesmen collaborative industry-wide effort". This is an
ever they should stop. And in thai Te5Co-bereft off our streets and 5pend less time writing ambitious goa~ creilting any game consumes
dy~lopia, we are all doomed. all -encompassing laws thai prevenllaw-abiding significant time and resources and developers
PC users from watching films flexibly? usually expect to get paid.
OneBigGame donales all profits to Save The
DAVID LUDLOW Children and the Starlight Children's Foundation,
,----~ ALAN W
RANTS RAVES
"only deducting the costs of running the
organisation and hosting the games portal".
Founde<l in 2006, OneBigGame's charitable
philosophy is about to come to fruition with the
release of Zoe Mode's musical ilction-puzzler
THE LAW IS AN ASS Chime, which is available on XboK Live Arcade
L<lws in the real world generally make sense. BACK TO BASICS an d costs 400 Microsoft points (around £3.40).
E~rybody knoW$ il 's iKegal to steal from a shop While my home computer is often engaged in GamesAid (www.gilm~aid.orglabout.php)
and the consequences of doing so. The law, in editing high-definition video or Photoshopping distributes funds to a range of charities,
Ihis case, is simple 10 undersland and 10 enforce. batches of images, my friends and family are predominately "to support children's charities in
Take things digita~ though. and the law more likely to be using their computers for less the UK. with limited ilpplication for overseas
becomes an incredibly stupid place where strenuous tasks, such as giggling at YouTube causes; for e<lucation, health, housing and social
nobody's sure what's going on and it's near videos or uploading photos to Facebook. welfare. Funds may also be deployed for career
impossible to work oul whether your actions are NormaUy, 1would snort at such a guidance and sport. Where possible, there will
illegal or not. and if they are. why. lackadaisical poverty of ambition with the be some form of technology/interactive play
Take, for example, OVOS and Blu-ray discs. disdain and contempt thai it deserves. However, element. bul that is nol a funding stipul ation:
There's software out there that strips out the my nearest and dearest may be reduced to using GamesAid gets money from direct donations
copy protection from these movies. The upside their compulers as nolhing more than glorified from games publishers and stud ios, charity
of doing thiS is that region encoding isn 't typewriters through no fault of their own. auctions, sponsored sporting events and
enforced an d you can play high-definition While computers hilve grown exponentially contributioos from the general public.
con lent over an unprOlecte<l digital connection, more powerful and capable in the past 20 years, The web has made it easy to donate money
such as to a DVI monitor. they still have the same desktop grilphical user to good causes, from simplifying payments to
The benefits of this are huge: you can walCh interfaces (GUls) they di d 20 years ago. User allowing charities to publicise their campaigns
a disc that you've bought anywhere in the world inter/ilce improvements such as the taskbar or through viral mar\(eting an d social media. A5
on any display. Now, surely this is all fine if you Expose have been made, but GUls are still shown above, sometimes contributing to charity
don't actually copy the movie and hence aren't fundamentally the silme. can be ilS simple as buying or plilying a game. GJ

MAY 2010 . COMPUT"ERSHOPPER

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ZYGOTE

ZYGOTE
but Zygote diSilgreeS, because she
has also invented a liltle gizmo
that may just change the future
of telecommunications.
The gizmo in question is a
mobile phone that runs on sugar.
It has a sleek, ultra -modern design
He may not have the best job in the world - he doesn't spend and features a 5fT1all glass flask
with a screw cap at one end and a
enough time sitting on his bum for that - but Zygote knows a keyp<td etched on to the surface.
To power up the de~ice, all you do
good thing when he sees it: a fizzy pop-powered mobile phone is pour in a small amount of your
favourite fizzy drink, shake it about
FURROWED BROWSE streamed U~e on YouTube, with a dock in at number 15, while a bit and allow enzymes to
Long ago, on the first Monday atter dedica ted online channel oHering wltware engineers rank number generate electricity from the
Twelfth Night, humble farm instant replays and a wealth 01 five, and a computer systems resultant carbohydrates_
labourers would trudge olf to eKlras, including interview5, analyst makes it all the way up Claimed to last up to four times
church toting the tools of their highlights and pitch reports_ to number three_ longer than a traditional lithium -
tr~de. When they amved. the Zygote reckons the likes of According to the survey, ion charge, once the bio-battery
clergy would bless their tackle in BSkyB should start pankking now, which ra tes income, the worl<: dies you can get rid of the waste by
a ritual known as the Plough because the quality and quantity of en~ironment and the physical and drinking it. Not so much taking the
Monday service. YouTube sports e~dusJvt>s can only mental demands made on the piss, as creating it.
That was then and this is now, get better. 5<l tell ite audiences are worker, the second best job in the
and when the Reverend Canon going to be decimated as soon as world is 10 li~ the life of a TOMTIT
David Parrott took charge 01 51 the masses figure out they don 't wFtware engineer, which offers It was just before Spm on a dismal
lawrence Jewry, which is just up need to pay Murdoch's monthly "the best hiring outlook of any Saturday in Warrington's
the road from the Sank of England ransom, because they can satiate available job in 2010". Only one Westbrook Centre, when a mystel)
in the City of London, he faile<t to their sporting appetites for nowt. occupation beats wftware man wa lked into the unisex
find a single ploughman in his In lact, it's only a matter 01 engineering to the top slot, and changing room al Asda. He looked
congregation. So as Plough Monday time before the mighty Coogle that is the job of an insurance around to make sure he was not
came aroond this ~ar. he decided launches its own premier league actual). That job also in~olves being observed and proceeded to
to .ebrand his service "nd use the championship for e~ery sport under silting on your bum a lot Wh ile you hide a digital computer camera
altar to display the tools of the the sun and awards each one its work oul the risk of robbery, in the overhead light fitting_No
mde 01 his new City- type~ own free YouTube channel. This pestilence. war. mayhem and doubt he was hoping to ogle
These tool<; indude<! an iPhone, will kill on the satellite death. The survey states that unisex demi-nudity, because he
a BiackBeny, a Windows-based broadcasters for good. dealing in5uch disaster in~0lve5 set the camera to auto-record.
PC and, just to ~ ecumenical, And having done that, Coogle less worry and stress than being a And automatic record is exactly
a Mac600k. can repeat history and start wftware engineer. In which case what it did. for half an hour before
Asking his flock to hold their charging us to watchlhem all Zygote would like to know what it was discovered.
mobiles up to Jesus, Canon Parrot o~r again. pills these insurance folk are on. Zygote can attest tha t the
prayed, "May our tongues be mystery man is pale-skinned , slim,
gentle, our emails be simple BUM DEAL SWEET NOTHINGS of medium height. around 32 years
and our websites accessible." The job-search portal CareerCast Chinese-born Daizi Zheng came to old, with a prominent nose and
Zygote cries Hallelujah and has published a new league table the UKwhen she was 16. and has short brown hair receding at the
Amen to all that. to help people identify the best spent the past few years studying temples. At the time of the incident
jobs inlhe world. The jobs include product design at Central Saint he was wearing a long dari< coat
OWZAT! e~erything from dental hygienists Martins College in london. o~r a fleece with a circular white
The future of pay-to-~iew sport is to oil-well drillers, but ii's the Among her startling innovations logo on Ihe left breast. And how
absolutely free! The mighty Coogle careers where you sit on your bum are vegetable-based cigarettes does Zygote know aU this?
has just done a deal with the a lot thai win out. In which case, that "can seriously benefit you Because the Peeping Tom forgol
mighty Indian Premier League, jobs in the computing world should from cancer·, and an inflatable to tum off the camera and
which fUns the mighty Twenty20 rank ~ry _II indeed, and Ihe Top pregnancy simulalor to deter managed to film himself in
cricket matches. In a global first, all T_nty ~st Jobs league table does muggers. Some people whisper great detail. Cheshire police are
60 games in the series will be not disappoint. Website de~eloper5 that Miss Zheng is taking the piss. currently -looking into it". [iJ

The name Wikipedia comes As an open-e nded resource. But if you deliberately
from wiki - Hawaiian for anyone Is allowed to be a abuse the wiki-man.
fart - and pedia - the Latin wiki-keeper. you may get flamed by
fo r sme lls like feet, other contributors.

COMPVTER SHOPPER • MA Y ~OlO

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