Friday, 31 October 2008

SR-71A Blackbird

Ray Samuels Audio recently released an updated version of their very successful portable headphone amplifier the SR-71. Similar in design to the predesseor that it replaces, the SR-71A is said to inherit the same sonic signature, but come in a smaller package. It also incorporates a three-position gain control switch that will please users of sensitive IEMs. Do check out this page for more information.

Saturday, 25 October 2008

LiveWire IEM

LW

Here's a really short review of the LiveWire In-Ear monitors (IEM) after a few weeks of good listening. Initially, I felt that there was a serious lack of bass, but I soon realised that I was not wearing it correctly. As the LiveWire was my first pair of custom IEMs, I did not know how to wear it and could not get a good seal between the IEMs and my ear canal.

After a little trial and error, I manage to get a perfect seal. This is when the true colours of the LiveWire come out. The bass was tight, without being bloated. The mids and highs were detailed, and the sound staging was airy. Overall, the sound quality seems rather close to the Westone UM-2, but with more detail in the mids and highs. To nitpick, I would prefer it to have a little more bass to add more impact. The LiveWire has a high sensitivity and can be enjoyed un-amp. However, it sounded better with a good amp set at low gain. I will rank the LiveWire 7.5 out of 10 points. :-)

Friday, 24 October 2008

MindNode 1.2

Our favourite mind-mapping software for the Mac, the MindNode has been updated to version 1.2.

Tuesday, 21 October 2008

Selamat Datang

Blue Monster went on another trip over the weekend, this time to Kuala Lumpur. He learnt the words Selamat Datang which meant welcome in Malay. KL is the capital of our neighboring country, Malaysia. Looks like he is going places huh?

Monday, 20 October 2008

Words Of Wisdom

Lord, help me to do great things as though they were little, since I do them with Your power; and little things as though they were great, since I do them in Your name. - Pascal

Sunday, 19 October 2008

Nuvi 760 firmware - 4.20

Garmin has released a new firmware for the Nuvi 760. Version 4.20 fixed a couple of bugs, most importantly it resolved Text To Speech stuttering and corrected saving location by touching the vehicle icon issues.

Saturday, 18 October 2008

New MacBook benchmarks

Macworld has posted some benchmarks that they had ran comparing the old MacBooks with the current generation (Aluminum and white) ones. Do check out the interesting results on this page. :-)

Thursday, 16 October 2008

Nikon D700 reviews

The D700 is the second Nikon DSLR to feature a full-frame sensor and is often known as D3's baby brother. It incorporates the specifications of the D3 into a body that is near the size of the D300. These characteristics makes the D700 an ideal camera to bring along for holidays or as a backup camera (with a full-frame sensor). DPReview and Thom have both written reviews on the D700 and provide a very good read.

Wednesday, 15 October 2008

New Apple LED Cinema display

0810LED24display.jpg

Made of aluminum and glass! Armed with a universal MagSafe connector that charges a Mac portable, a new Mini DisplayPort connector, a USB connector to provides access to three USB 2.0 ports, a built-in iSight camera, microphone and built-in speaker system. The new LED Cinema Display is not only functional but looks stunning as well. It will be available in Nov 08 and will be going at S$ 1,448.00.

Carbon Copy Cloner 3.1.2

ccc3.jpgCarbon Copy Cloner was updated to version 3.1.2, do see this page for more information.

New portable Macs

Apple announced a revision of their portable Mac lineup today, and in our opinion, this is one of the best hardware product announcements for 2008. Here's an overview:

0810macbook.jpg

13-inch MacBook - Alu
2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB RAM, 160GB HDD
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
S$ 2,088.00

2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB RAM, 250GB HDD
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
S$ 2,588.00

13-inch MacBook - White
2.1GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
1GB RAM, 120GB HDD
Intel GMA X3100 graphics
S$ 1,588.00

MacBook Air
1.6GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB RAM, 120GB HDD
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
S$ 2,888.00

1.86GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB RAM, 128GB SSD
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
S$ 3,988.00

0810macbookpro.jpg

MacBook Pro
2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
15-inch widescreen
2GB RAM, 250GB HDD
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M + 9600M GT with 256MB
S$ 3,188.00

2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
15-inch widescreen
4GB RAM, 320GB HDD
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M + 9600M GT with 512MB
S$ 3,988.00

2.5GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
17-inch widescreen
4GB RAM, 320GB HDD
NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT with 512MB
S$ 4,388.00

*All pricing & data obtained from AppleStore Online.

Tuesday, 14 October 2008

OpenOffice 3.0

OpenOffice 3.0 was finally launched today! This version is significant to Mac users because users are not required to install X11 in order to run OpenOffice. The only drawback now is that it is only available for Macs running Intel CPUs. Do check it out and download a free copy here.

Monday, 13 October 2008

Words Of Wisdom

We cannot earn our way to heaven
By word or work or worth;
But if we trust in Christ to save us,
Then we'll enjoy new birth. - Branon

Saturday, 11 October 2008

APRC 2008

IMG_2651.jpg
We found ourselves once again at Bandar Tenggara, where the Malaysian stages of the Asia Pacific Rally Championship was to be held. Although we were literally washed out during the initial stages, the weather cleared up just in time for us to enjoy the later Special Stages with lots of mud action (on both cars and spectators)! Thanks, Jessie! :-)

Friday, 10 October 2008

Hurray! Fuel prices reduced

Hurray! Fuel prices were reduced $0.05, RON98 now cost $1.87 per litre. :-)

Tuesday, 07 October 2008

Strange looking thing

What is this ugly thing? Well, they're the impressions of my ear. They are for making custom earphones, similar to those used by the hearing-impaired. It was made in January, and I just received the actual earphones today... Hurray!!! It was a very long wait indeed, but the sound produced by the pair of earphones was really sweet. I'll let it burn in a little to see whether there is any improvements to the sound.

Monday, 06 October 2008

LX-3 - The great little camera

We had the chance to play with our friend Jeff's latest toy, the Panasonic LX-3 compact digital camera recently. It's a gem! 10 megapixels, 24mm Leica lens, large F2-2.8 aperture, 16:9 aspect ratio and better noise control than LX-2. Click on the above image to view (100% crop) the comparison between ISO 100, 200, 400 & 800. *Images contributed by Jeff

Saturday, 04 October 2008

Thom reviewed Speedlight SB-900

My friend told me that the SB-900 is a fantastic flashlight for Nikon DSLR, I was curious and did a little research. Here's a review that I came across. :-)

Friday, 03 October 2008

Words Of Wisdom

A careless word may kindle strife,
A cruel word may wreck a life,
A timely word may lessen stress,
A loving word may heal and bless. - Anon

Thursday, 02 October 2008

Nikkor AFS 50mm f/1.4G

NikkorAFS50.jpgA lens long overdue for replacement, the former Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 was an extremely sharp and versatile lens that has served lots of photographers well. But, the technology is a little dated. Lets welcome the replacement, the Nikkor AFS 50mm f/1.4G which was announced at Photokina recently. It should arrive at the stores by year end.

Wednesday, 01 October 2008

Nikon D90

nikon_d90.jpgNikon launched a new budget DSLR, the D90 recently. Some of the feature that interest us are: 3-inch LCD, up to 4.5 fps, 11-point AF system, 12.3 megapixels, built-in flash with 18mm lens (DX format) coverage and a movie capturing function. At last, a DSLR that can capture movie! The D90 allows users to shoot 320 x 216 pixels, 640 x 424 pixels or HD720p (1,280 x 720 pixels) movies at 24 fps motion JPEG format. We may get one soon, if the price is right. :-P

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