gadget

[via Gizmodo]

As rumored, Nikon's D90 is the first-ever DSLR with HD video recording, but maybe more importantly for actual photographers, Nikon is promising much of the same low-noise performance of their higher end DSLRs. The brand new12.3-megapixel image sensor was developed in-house like the D3 and D700's (the D300 uses a Sony sensor) and you can crank the ISO up to 6400, so we're hopeful. It's a mutant DSLR (not in a bad way) bringing down features from the higher-end cameras at the same time it cribs more hold-your-hand consumer stuff from the point-and-shoots. Now about that HD video.

[zol.com.cn (translated) via pocketables]

We've known for a few months now that the China-only Lenovo IdeaPad U8 release would hover around the Beijing Olympics, so it should come as no surprise that the new MID has just made its official debut there. Authorized by the Beijing Olympic Organizing Committee, the 10.6-ounce device features an 800MHz Intel Atom Z500 processor, 1GB of RAM (up to 2GB supported), 6GB SSD, dual cameras, 5-hour battery life, and support for mobile TV. The CMMB (China Multimedia Mobile Broadcasting) USB dongle shown above is being used to provide users with free, live coverage of the Olympic games and can receive other broadcast signals as well.

First shown at CES 2008, the U8 is also connected to the hilt, with 802.11b/g wi-fi, Bluetooth, GPS, and EDGE connectivity, not to mention "3G network support and WiMAX Internet access" (according to the translated specs, anyway).

[TestFreaks via Makeuseof ]

TestFreaks is an excellent cross-check review website for gadget freaks. It aggregates both expert and amateur reviews from all over the web (both from US and non-US websites) and nicely presents them in an easy-to-digest manner. There are thousands of gadgets here, including MP3 players, digital cameras, cell phones, HiFi speakers, keyboards, headsets, memory cards and so on. For each you can see a quick overview, manufacturer description, product specs, expert and user reviews, related forum threads,image gallery, video gallery and more.

I know we have mentioned a number of cool gadget review sites before, these are ExpoTV (video reviews), Swotti (quick opinions), and ReviewGist but so far TestFreaks is my favorite. Not only does it combine the features offered by other websites but also does this quite well so you won’t get overwhelmed. Definitely a website to bookmark. Some of the noteworthy features:

Product Profile:

Each gadget has a profile page. Here you can check out gadget images, video reviews, and rating scores (i.e. general user score, expert score, design, value for money, features, ease fo use, performance etc.) Check out the screenshot below.

Side-by-side Comparion:

That’s another handy feature. If you need to make up your mind between 2 or more items you can compare the gadgets side by side. Quite handy.