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Digit Online

Finally Sony’s stepped up to the plate with a Walkman that supports video! Eighteen months after rival Apple Inc. raised the bar with its video iPod, the NW-A800 arrives. There are three models, the NW-A805, A806 and A808. The only major difference is in the amount of flash memory, which is 2G bytes, 4G bytes and 8G bytes, respectively. The screen is a 2-inch LCD (liquid crystal display) panel with QVGA resolution (240 pixels by 320 pixels). It’s orientated in portrait form rather than the landscape form used on the iPod, but videos can be viewed with the device either held vertically or horizontally.

What about the old “Watchman?”

Digit Online

Nikon has updated its Coolpix range of digital still cameras. Chief among the new models is the 7.1-megapixel Coolpix S500, which boasts several points over competing compact cameras with optical image stabilization, according to Nikon. The camera is ready to take a picture in an industry-beating 0.6 seconds from the power button being pushed, has the fastest shutter release lag time of 0.005 seconds, and the most compact body, the maker said. It measures 88 millimeters by 51mm by 22mm. It will be available in Japan from March 16 for around ¥30,000 (US$251).

Definitely cool pix.

Fujitsu’s Three-Pound Laptop Gem - News and Analysis by PC Magazine

Aside from Sony, few companies can integrate an optical drive into a sub 3-pound laptop. But Fujitsu’s found a way to do it, with the Lifebook P7230 upgrade announced today, which adds yet another ultraportable to Fujitsu’s diminutive lineup. The unique modular bay can fit a dual-layer DVD burner, an extra battery to give you up to 9.5 hours of battery life, or an extra hard drive that can be configured in RAID. Pretty impressive for a little guy.

Very nice.

Digit Online

Considering the relatively high-cost of Blu-ray Disc recorders, anything that reduces the price is welcome but Sharp’s latest recorder does away with something that’s previously been essential: the TV tuner. Instead, the BD-HP1 can use the tuner in Sharp Aquos LCD TV sets. It hooks up via iLink (IEEE1394) and can power just their tuner, so the entire set doesn’t have to be switched on to make recording possible. But it does mean you can’t record one channel while watching another. It costs about ¥150,000 (US$1,260) in Japan. A similar model is due to go on sale overseas later this year. Sharp hasn’t yet determined the exact timing, markets or pricing.

We still ask: Will Blu-Ray be the next Betamax?

Digit Online

The BDP-S300 will cost about US$600 — about $400 cheaper than Sony’s current BDP-S1 — and can send out video at 24 frames per second, which is the rate used for films. Doing so is said to provide an image closer to that of film than of video. It will also upconvert lower quality signals to 1080P for output over the HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface) connector and works with “Bravia Theater Sync,” a system that more closely integrates the control of the player with that of the TV. Sony hasn’t announced the player for other markets beyond the US.

Question: Will Blu-Ray be the next BetaMax?

Shiny Shiny: RICOH Caplio R6: The World’s thinnest digital camera?

Apart from being such a Weight Watchers’ success story, the R6 is also quite a good camera.

So buy a few dozen already.  That will cover the “rich” part, as they go for GBP 299 - which we are guessing is about a zillion dollars at today’s exchange rate.

3 men indicted in stock hacking scheme - Yahoo! News

According to the 23-count indictment, unsealed in Omaha, Neb., the three men bought stocks through the U.S. online firms with their own accounts. Operating from Thailand and India, the men then allegedly used stolen identity information to pose as other online share-buyers — inflating the value of the stock.The men then sold their own shares at a higher price — turning a substantial profit, prosecutors said.

You are free, however, to subtly let potential clients know that no hedge fund accounts were hacked into, as far as you know.

Apple may soon introduce speedy mini-laptop - Mar. 8, 2007

Apple may sell zippy notebook computers later this year that use the same type of fast memory as music players and digital cameras, driving down prices of hard-disk drives, an analyst said on Thursday.The maker of the popular iPod music player and Macintosh computers hopes to introduce so-called flash memory in small computers known as subnotebooks in the second half of 2007, Shaw Wu, an analyst at American Technology Research who has a “buy” rating on Apple shares and does not own any stock, said in investor notes on Wednesday and Thursday.
A shift to flash memory in place of much slower hard-disk drives would eliminate one headache for consumers: lengthy start-up times when turning on computers.

Apple keeps trying to make us switch over. One of these day’s we’re going to do it.

Priciest Private Jets - Forbes.com

What does a billionaire do when having a private jet becomes so affordable that mere millionaires can swing the cost?He trades up–to a Boeing 747-8, say, or to a Airbus 380–costing $280 million and $300 million, respectively.

Back in 1996, when Boeing introduced the first “personal use” version of one of its commercial airliners, the $30 million Boeing Business Jet (a reconfigured 737) was treated as the last word in spaciousness and luxury. Now, compared with competing luxe lifts, a 737 looks like mashed potatoes.

Well, maybe not the A380. We like hassle-free aircraft.

Best Rides For Billionaires - Forbes.com

This September, Rolls-Royce will start delivering what could be the hottest new status symbol for billionaires: the $412,000 Phantom Drophead convertible.But a fat wallet does not an owner make.

“No matter how much money you have, you’re just not going to be able to decide that you want one at the drop of a hat,” says Rolls spokesman Bob Austin. “It’s sold out almost two years in advance. If you’re a billionaire and you decide you’ve got to have one, you have to get in line–and there are few things that billionaires get in line for.”

Or you could simply outbid the other billionaires for it.