Thursday 20 December 2007

Samsung P2 MP3 player

The Samsung P2 MP3 player is one of the latest touch screen media players to hit the market. Apple must be starting to get a bit nervous with devices such as the P2 closing in on their iPod touch and iPhone market share.

My first impression of the Samsung P2 is that it looks great. I love the contrast of the bright blue illuminated icons and the black casing. It features a 3-inch wide screen display with a resolution of 480x272 pixels and the icons are clear and intuitive.

Bluetooth 2.0 support provides compatibility with Bluetooth speakers and up to two Bluetooth 2.0 headsets at once (within a 32.8 feet range). A firmware upgrade was provided this month (December 2007) that enables you to direct incoming calls from a Bluetooth enabled mobile phone to the P2.

The music player supports playback of MP3, WMA and subscription WMA files. The touch screen interface allows fast and intuitive access to songs, genres, albums, artists or playlists.

An FM Radio is supported that scans the entire FM range in less than 60 seconds and supports up to 30 preset stations.

The picture viewer function provides a nice interface that lets you view all of your pictures as thumnails and once you have selected a picture you can flick to the next picture in your collection by simply swiping your finger across the screen. A 4x zoom is also included.

Video playback is supported in MPEG4, SVI or WMV9 formats.

Specifications:
  • Display: TFT - WQVGA at 480x272 pixels
  • Touch screen: Yes
  • Memory capacity: 2Gb, 4Gb, 8Gb?
  • FM Radio: Yes
  • Bluetooth 2.0 functions: 2 headsets, speakers, incoming calls from Bluetooth phone
  • File formats: MP3, WMA, OGG (UMS only), JPEG, SVI, WMV, TXT
  • Connectivity: Bluetooth, USB 2.0, SMS
  • File Management: PC application, PC playlist (SPL, WPL), Mobile Playlist, Library(Artist, Album, Genre, Title DB sorting)
  • Dimensions W,H,D(mm): 133.2 x 143 x 42.9

Friday 14 December 2007

Bluetooth spamming gets green light

Bluetooth spamming is now legal in the UK due to a recent evaluation by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

Bluetooth will no longer be covered by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR), that set out rules for people who wish to send you electronic direct marketing. It was decideded that regulation 22 which covers email and text messages sent over public communications networks does not by definition cover Bluetooth technology.

Users will have to be more careful about when they have their Bluetooth devices turned on and make sure their Bluetooth security settings are enabled. Most mobile Bluetooth devices are still in the 10m (class 2) range which should help keep users protected from long range Bluetooth hack or spam attacks.

Monday 10 December 2007

Nextlink Invisio G5 headset released

Nextlink, who supply equipment to SWAT and special forces across the globe, have announced that their INVISIO G5 headset will be released to the consumber market.

The INVISIO G5 is worlds smallest Bluetooth headset - measuring 3.3cm long and 1.6cm wide and weighing less than 6 grams.

A unique feature is a protective charging case that not only protects the headset when not in use, it also charges the headset each time you put it in the case. This increases the talk time up to 20 hours and 30 days of stand by time.

It also features Nextlinks "Soft Spring" technology which allows the G5 to be adjusted in length to fit the shape of anyones ear.

Thursday 6 December 2007

Ultra small Bluetooth USB adapter

Trust have announced that they have the worlds smallest Bluetooth 2.0 USB adapter on the way.

Trust state that their Bluetooth USB adapter will only protrude 7mm from a notebook when inserted. The great advantage here is that you will never need to remove the adapter. Just plug it in once, forget about it and give instant access to your Bluetooth mouse or create a wireless connection between your notebook/PC and Bluetooth devices.

No release date is stated on Trust's website, they just say "coming soon".

Trust website