Finding bargains on electronics by surfing the web

Finding bargains in this internet era is never easier. Just a little internet surfing can reveal the best deal. Jennifer Openshaw wrote on MarketWatch how to using the web to track down the best deals on electronics. She suggested checking out the following web sites:

NexTag.com

NexTag is a large shopping search engine designed to search other shopping sites. It works a bit like Kayak.com, an engine that searches other travel sites for all the deals.

I especially like two NexTag features. One is a graph showing price trends for the product over the past eight months. The other is an alert function. You can set the price you're willing to pay and get an alert when a retailer offers it. It's like those alerts you get when your favorite stock hits the right price.

NexTag pointed to Amazon, which had a better deal than advertised, and TigerDirect and a few other "e-tailers." But it didn't find traditional retailers such as Target, Sears, or Circuit City. That's a shortcoming, because I think local buying choices should be considered. Still, NexTag is a good starting point to find the good deals.

Pricewatch.com

Pricewatch.com follows the Google approach to simplified search. But the retailer choices are heavily dominated by Wal-Mart; other prime locations like Amazon and TigerDirect aren't there. But the simple search will tell a lot, quickly, about the best prices.

StreetPrices.com

StreetPrices.com cuts a much wider swath through online and traditional retailers. It also dates the most recent update, handy in a market where prices are changing almost hourly. Here, too, you can set price alerts; you can also filter retailers based on their rating.

TigerDirect.com

TigerDirect is a direct retailer with pretty good variety and prices. What I like best, especially for you non-techie types out there, are the graphic-oriented explanations of how things work and what to look for in a product.

Shopper.com

CNET's Shopper.com site gives a good overall selection of retailers and prices, and techies will like the product reviews and comparisons. It's worth a look.

BlackBerry Storm Will Challenge iPhone

Research In Motion (RIM) just unveiled a new BlackBerry Storm smart phone without the physical keyboard. The Storm is a touch-interface 3G handset with Click-Through technology. It will be available from Verizon Wireless in the U.S. and from Vodafone in Europe and parts of Asia in time for the holidays later this fall.

The Blackberry Storm price in the U.S. hasn’t been disclosed yet. In the UK, you could get a brand new Blackberry Storm for free if you subscribe to a 18 month contract with Vodafone, and that will cost you $70 a month.


Onscreen Keyboards

As with the Apple's iPhone, the Storm uses a touchscreen where you move your finger lightly on the surface to navigate around the screen. But to initiate action, instead of double-tapping, you confirm a selection by physically depressing or clicking the screen. You will feel the difference when typing on the on-screen keyboard. To confirm a selection or menu choice, you press harder the screen that immediately generates distinct physical feedback. This physical feedback is to distinguish between just moving around the display and initiating an action. A firm press creates a sensation uncannily like pressing physical buttons making typing becomes easier and more accurate than on the iPhone or any other touchscreen keyboard.

The keys show up in two configurations. When you hold the Storm horizontally, you get a full keyboard that fills the width of the screen. When you turn it vertically, you get a SureType keyboard, like the one on the BlackBerry Pearl, with two letters sharing most keys, or you can opt for a standard phone keypad.

The Storm's screen, like the iPhone's, treats touch as more than just another way to move a cursor. Unfortunately, it can't do the iPhone trick of enlarging or shrinking screen contents in response to a finger pinch or stretch. But unlike the iPhone, it does let you edit by cutting and pasting and you can use a two-finger stretch to select text. You can also use a flick of a finger to scroll pages up or down, which is particularly handy for browsing quickly through a list of e-mails.


High-speed, 3G data services

The Storm will be able to roam both in the United States on Verizon's EvDO Rev network and internationally on high-speed GSM networks.

The Storm's browser is an improvement on previous RIM efforts, largely because Web pages are easier to view in the horizontal format and because you can pull hidden portions of the page into view with a finger.

The Storm lacks Wi-Fi, which iPhone users may miss, though access to worldwide 3G data speeds partly makes up for that.


Hardware and Goodies

Four hardware buttons at the bottom offer traditional BlackBerry and phone navigation aids: Red and green phone buttons for accessing phone features and ending calls, a button with the BlackBerry icon for accessing menus, and a return button.

The Storm has all the goodies you expect from a contemporary smartphone, including GPS, decent video and music players, stereo Bluetooth, and a 3.2-megapixel camera. RIM is making it easier to get third-party programs for the Storm and other handsets by setting up BlackBerry Application Centers with carriers.

The Storm has 1GB of internal storage, but it also has a MicroSD slot and will ship with an 8GB MicroSD card. Also present: a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, and a second external mic. The Storm, like the iPhone, has an accelerometer that adjusts the display's orientation as you rotate the device.

The Storm will support at least limited functionality for most older BlackBerry applications. But at launch, RIM says it will offer a developer's kit that will make it easier to adapt existing BlackBerry apps for the Storm

Comparing to iPhone, RIM's emphasis is on e-mail and business applications, and its products are designed to be managed by corporate technology departments. Like its predecessors, the new BlackBerry is aimed squarely at mobile executives. But the Storm incorporates much of the fresh thinking that characterizes the consumer-oriented iPhone.

Google first phone, T-Mobile G1

On September 23rd T-Mobile, a mobile operator owned by Germany’s Deutsche Telekom, presented its new phone, the G1, which is made by HTC, a Taiwanese manufacturer. The reason for the buzz is that the device is the first to be based on software called Android, made by Google, the largest internet company. The G1 will cost you $179 and will be available October 22.

Most mobile operators and handset-makers are searching for a platform for their mass-market phones of the future. Many have warmed to Linux, a free, open-source operating system which can be customised. Some are tweaking Linux to make their own flavours. Google’s Android is also a variant of Linux.

The G1 is slightly bulkier and heavier and—well, let's just say it—a little uglier than the slim, sexy iPhone. Weighing in at 5.6 ounces and just 0.6 inches thick, the G1 should fit relatively easily in a jeans pocket.

The G1's 3.17-inch screen is slightly smaller than the iPhone's 3.5-inch display, and at first glance, its interface looks a bit dull compared to Apple's red-hot handset. But beneath the G1's sliding display, we get a surprise—a full, Sidekick-sized QWERTY keypad, perfect for those who don't want to deal with a touchscreen keyboard. There's also a trackball, a Home key, and physical Call and End buttons.

While the G1's main screen isn't quite as eye-popping as the iPhone's, the Android-powered display was surprisingly responsive—a quick flick of fingertip opened a windowshade of applications, while tapping the status bar at the top of the screen instantly revealed e-mail, SMS, and voice-mail alerts. Indeed, tapping and scrolling around the G1's various menus was a seamless pleasure, akin to what you'd expect from an iPhone. The G1's peppy interface responded quickly.

You'll get the most out of the G1 if you're using Google's suite of online applications, all of which sync automatically the moment you sign in. The push Gmail client features threaded messaging, just like you'd expect online, and you can star messages, organize them with filters, and even conduct Google searches within the e-mail client itself. You can also use the client to check your POP and IMAP accounts.

The G1's dialer and contact list immediately grabs all your online Google calendar info and contacts—and for those with IM accounts, the G1 will indicate which of your contacts happen to be signed in for chat, an "online presence" feature familiar to anyone with a Helio phone. As with the iPhone, you can flick your contact list with a finger, spinning it roulette-style. Nice.

The Android Web browser on the G1 immediately takes its place as one of the top mobile browsers I've seen, right next to those on the iPhone and Nokia Nseries handsets. Pages rendered quickly (over Wi-Fi, at least) and perfectly; a tap brings up zoom in/out controls, while a touch-enabled magnifying glass lets you quickly scan lengthy Web pages. If you want to save a picture you just touch and hold; a contextual menu pops up with a variety of options, including saving the image to the phone.

Using Street View with the G1's built-in compass. Say you're facing north; you hold the G1 in front of you, select Street View, and you'll see your street from a north-facing vantage point. Turn east—with the phone still in front of you—and the Street View image follows. Angle the phone skyward, and Street View moves likewise.

The G1's music player is no great shakes; it'll play your standard MP3/WMA/AAC/Ogg Vobis files, but the bare-bones player interface can't hold a candle to the iPhone's. Also, there's no video player. And while the G1's three-megapixel camera tops the iPhone's 2MP shooter, the G1 doesn't come with built-in video recording.

All of the G1's main features are open to third-party development.

Mistakes that can invite identity theft on the internet

The following are common mistakes people make that can invite identity theft when surfing internet. You can avoid them by following simple tips described under each mistake.

Assuming Your Security Software Is Protecting You
Renew the subscription when the software prompts you. Make sure your security software is active when you're online and that it has been updated within the past week or so.

Accessing an Account Through an Email Link
If an e-mail message asks you to update your password, account number, or other information, don't take the bait. Access an online account only by using your existing browser bookmark or typing in the institution's Web address.

Using a Single Password for All Online Accounts
Use variations on one password. A well-crafted password uses a combination of at least eight letters, numbers, or punctuation symbols.

Downloading Free Software
Download freeware only from reputable sites.

Clicking on a Pop-up Ad That Says Your PC Is Insecure
When closing a pop-up, carefully click on the X on the upper left or right corner, not within the window. To avoid pop-ups altogether, enable your browser's pop-up blocker or use a free add-on blocker.

Shopping Online the Same Way You Do in Stores
Use a separate credit card just for your Internet shopping. Don't use a debit card. Sites that display "https" before their address when you're entering sensitive information and those displaying certification symbols from TRUSTe and other organizations are usually safe, but there are no guarantees.

Source: consumerreports.org
Graphic: wwnytv.net

Alien Computer World For A Child

A strange new laptop for a Peruvian child brought up in isolation from outside culture

Source: BusinessWeek

Asian Top Fashion Model Beauty

Exquisite, artistic picture of an Asian top fashion model.



Source: Wallcoo.net