The 7 best gadgets of 2012
|
Gadgets have become the new
oxygen. We just can’t seem to survive without them. While we are surrounded
by these countless pieces of digital wizardry, there are a few products that
truly leave a mark and make some people think about trading their kidney for
them and somehow also justify that decision... almost. Here is a
list of seven such must-have gadgets that have captured people’s imagination
this year so far
|
1Apple MacBook Pro with Retina
Display
When one talks about notebook computers, it is mostly about the processing power, storage, battery life, portability, so on. While the new MacBook Pro goes a notch or two higher on most of those fronts with the quad-core Intel Core i7 processor, next-gen Nvidia 650M graphics, all flash storage and a 7 hours battery backup, what is truly groundbreaking about this device is its display -- The Retina Display. With a resolution of 2880 x 1800 pixels packed into a 15.4-inch screen, it has full-HD displays for breakfast. Statistically speaking, this screen has 3 million more pixels or 2.5 times the number of pixels found in a high-definition TV. In simple terms, the display is so sharp that it may make your eyes bleed (figuratively, of course). No number of adjectives or statistics can do justice to this screen. It is like the Matrix; you have to see it for yourself. 2Canon EOS 5D Mark III Canon’s legendary full-frame DSLR, the EOS 5D Mark II got its long-awaited successor this year. The EOS 5D Mark III is a 22 MP advanced DSLR that retains most of the good karma of its predecessor and brings a lot more up-to-date features to the table. Other than the 22 MP sensor, you have a sharp 3.2-inch LCD display, along with a large optical viewfinder. But the most notable upgrade is the 1080p full-HD video recording that is almost professional grade. The built-in HDMI port lets you connect the camera to any HDTV and watch the videos directly. It performs admirably well at high ISO levels – meaning, the camera is excellent for night photography too. Talking of ISO levels, they go as high as a staggering 102400. The operational shutter speed on this DSLR can go up to a maximum of 1/8000th of a second and the continuous shooting mode lets you take six shots per second. There is no built-in flash but has a provision for attaching one. Let’s not forget that this is a professional-grade camera and those who use them don’t bother about tiny built-in flashes, if any. They use their own, along with a wide array of lenses available for such devices. If you are a casual or amateur photographer, the Mark III is not the ideal device for you as it will burn a huge hole in your pocket. 3 The New iPad Yes, that’s what it is officially called by Apple and not iPad 3 as we all refer to it. The device that “everybody wanted but nobody needed” three years back, has come a long way since its inception. The new iPad boasts features and processing power that can put to shame some of the desktop PCs we use. The new A5X chip with quad-core graphics processing is capable of crunching four times the pixels as compared to iPad 2 and yet retains a battery life of close to ten hours. The new iPad also has a 5 MP iSight camera for taking some crisp photos and recording 1080p full HD videos. Primary connectivity options are Wifi and 4G (works on 3G too till we have 4G). And did we mention that the new iPad has a Retina Display too? A resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels on a 9.7-inch screen! Enough said. 4Nokia 808 PureView Once a runaway market leader, Nokia hasn’t had the greatest of runs in the past couple of years, thanks to some stiff competition from Apple and Android smartphones. More than the hardware, it is in the mobile operating system (OS) space where Nokia has conceded some serious ground. But if there is one area where they still hold sway, it is the mobile phone camera. The Nokia 808 PureView takes the Megapixel game to unprecedented heights. While the most recent digital cameras and smartphones in the market sport at best a 24MP and 12MP sensor, respectively, Nokia has managed to put a 41MP sensor on its latest smartphone. It is not just the number of pixels that matters but what you do with them and Nokia has taken a smart route here. While 41MP remains the marketing pitch, they have incorporated an 8MP mode and all those extra pixels translate into a lossless 4X Digital zoom, which in this case functions like an optical zoom on digital cameras -- without the bulge, of course. The picture quality is better than anything one has seen on mobile phone cameras and also rivals some of the popular aim-and-shoot cameras in the market. Add to that the capability to record 1080p full-HD videos. The Nokia 808 PureView may not be the smartest of smartphones out there, but if you are looking for the best camera-phone money can buy today, it is second to none. 5 Samsung i9300 Galaxy S III While the Nokia 808 may have the best camera among phones, the Samsung Galaxy S III is arguably the most powerful and the best all-round phone of 2012 so far. Far from being a one-trick-pony, it has too many features to brag about. If a 1.4 GHz quad-core processor and a 4.8-inch Super AMOLED screen with a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels weren’t enough, there is a plethora of connectivity options, great audio quality and a brilliant 8MP camera capable of simultaneous HD video and image recording. Face and smile detection, image stabilisation and touch focus are additional perks along with a 1.9MP front camera that is also capable of recording 720p videos. The phone runs on Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) OS and brings to the table several enhancements to the OS that make the ICS experience significantly better than other devices running on the same OS. Samsung is one of those rare companies that have displayed the aptitude to take on the innovative might of Apple and keep it on its toes. Talking of Apple, this is the quarter for the sixth coming of the iPhone. Speculating about what wonders it will bring forth is a futile exercise. If one could guess that correctly, Apple wouldn’t be half the company it is today, would it? 6Amkette EvoTV Given the success of smartphones, every device is looking to get smart and so is our Idiot Box. We have seen a major influx of SmartTVs over the past 12 months or so, but the price remains a deterrent. Also, most of us have bought our LCD/LED/Plasma TV not too long ago and replacing it so soon is not a smart idea. But if you can’t resist the internet connectivity and other features that a SmartTV brings to the table, Amkette EvoTV is just the device for you. It simply converts your not-so-smart TV into a smart one for a fraction of the upgrade cost. Other than providing Internet connectivity, it turns your TV into a gaming station and a media centre capable of playing several audio and video formats, including full-HD content. Connectivity options include Wifi, 4 USB ports, LAN port, HDMI out and audio ports. The EvoTV is powered by an Arm Cortex A9 processor and Mali 400 GPU, 512 MB RAM and has 4 GB of storage which can be expanded further using the SD/MMC memory card slot on the device. It runs Android 2.3.4 OS thus opening doors for thousands of apps. The bundled wireless touch- and motion-sensing remote is fun too and a great addition. Lastly, if you want to use it as a PC, just plug in any wireless keyboard and you are good to go. And the best part: all this for under `10,000. 7Sony PS Vita Can a gadget-list ever be complete without a gaming console? The PS Vita is for the purists, the true gaming aficionados. Yes, smartphones and tablets do bring a lot to the table but gaming using real physical controls and not just a touch-screen is a different experience altogether. Also, the PS Vita gives you access to several gaming titles that may never be released on your phone. Add to that superior graphics, cross platform compatibility with the PlayStation 3, Six axis motion sensor, rear touchpad, front and rear cameras to create augmented reality experiences in your games and a lot more that actually accentuate your gaming experience. However, these are still early days for the PS Vita and there are very few titles that make use of most of the features above. So unless you are the trendsetter, we would advise you to wait a little longer before investing in this device. There you go. So take your pick as to which of the above device would you like to flaunt. |
DNA 120728
No comments:
Post a Comment