March 16, 2008

Web apps that transcend the Web. PCs that redefine what a PC can do. And oh yeah, a certain cell phone you may have heard of. We pick 25 breakthroughs that you can get your hands on right now.

By the PC World Staff

Published in the March-April 2008 print edition of PC World Philippines

NetGear Digital EntertainerHD EVA8000

Innovation: Only streaming-media device to play protected files in both iTunes and Windows Media formats. Also handles 1080p HD video and acts as a DVR.

Benefit: It makes life easier in a multiple-DRM world. Netgear’s Internet media player busts through the DRM (digital rights management) wall, and even allows you to check your e-mail and watch YouTube videos on your television.

HP TouchSmart IQ770 PC

Innovation: The first all-in-one PC on the market to boast a touch-screen display.

Benefit: Does for the computer what the iPhone has done for mobile handsets. HP’s kitchen-friendly computer is beautifully designed, and its touch screen makes it suitable for use on a countertop as well as a desktop. HP also supplies a software interface, optimized for use with the touch screen,that ties into news, weather, and calendar details, among other daily-living information. The handy, customizable HP control panel lets you quickly access photos, launch a photo editor, and play back music, too.

HTC TyTN II

Innovation: Clever, unique hinge lets you slide the screen up at an angle.

Benefit: Well-positioned QWERTY keyboard results in what looks like a tiny notebook that you can use in your hands or rest on a table.

The tilting screen is the main innovation, but the TyTN II is one of the most powerful phones available, period. Want a quick rundown of the specs? How about the Windows Mobile 6 operating system, a large screen, 3G wireless connectivity, GPS, a three-megapixel camera, and the ability to talk to corporate BlackBerry servers? Top that, iPhone.

Facebook API

Innovation: Platform lets anyone with a good idea and some coding chops add real value to Facebook.

Benefit: Facebook taps developers’ creativity, in turn permitting Facebook users to customize their pages.
Sure, the killer app of Facebook has not been written yet—and many of the ones that exist now are kind of silly. But Facebook has been on a roll in more ways than one, having led to the creation of the Google-backed OpenSocial, which looks likely to result in open platforms’ becoming widespread. Common ground should spark lots of creativity, and it should keep the social networking and media buzz alive.

DeviceVM Splashtop

Innovation: Allows a PC to boot in a few seconds into a simple, secure interface with a Mozilla based browser.

Benefit: Lets you save energy by keeping your PC powered off when you’re not using it.

DeviceVM’s Linux-based technology allows you to boot into its Internet-appliance-like platform in a few seconds, so you don’t have to spend minutes waiting for Windows to start up. If all you want to do is check your Web mail account or make a Skype call, for example, you’ll save both time and watt-hours. Though the technology is currently shipping as a feature only in the Asus P5E3 Deluxe/WiFi AP motherboard, it should be more widely available in desktops, laptops, and additional motherboards in 2008.

Toshiba Portege R500

You don’t have to give up much at all to go truly lightweight. Thin takes on new meaning with the lightweight Portege R500. But you don’t have to sacrifice function for form with this laptop, which is equipped with an ultralow-voltage Intel processor. The stylish 2.4-pound ultraportable manages to include both a rewritable-DVD drive and a 12.1-inch LED-backlit display in its svelte, 0.77-inch-thick chassis. Enough said.

Data Robotics Drobo

Innovation: Highend, redundant storage for the masses.
Benefit: USB 2.0 storage appliance delivers RAID 5 benefits without mindnumbing complexity.
“Redundant array storage” and “sexy” don’t normally go hand-inhand. But Data Robotics’ unique Drobo ($500, find.pcworld.com/59296) offers high-end storage features in a sleek design with software that doesn’t require a master’s degree in IT to figure out. Drobo uses storage virtualization algorithms to provide many of the benefits of RAID 5, but is relatively easy to set up: Just place the drives into the case, plug in the USB cable, install the software, and you’re off.