Buying a New LCD TV - Read Our Tips Buying Guide

Buying a New LCD TV "Tips Buying Guide"

Buying a television is a major decision. Besides, you don't treat a TV in the same manner either - especially not if it's an LCD TV. If you're in the market to buy your very first LCD TV, here are some tips you might want to keep in mind:

LCD means liquid crystal display. Find your size.

Bigger is not always better, although LCD TV screens are certainly not wimps in that department. If you want big, you can go as high as 52 inches for most brands or if you have something bigger in mind, Sharp offers a 65-inch living room wall filler.

LCD TVs that range in size from 15 to 19 inches will work well in smaller rooms such as bedrooms and kitchens. Mid-sized screens starting at 26 inches up to 37 inches are good choices for living rooms, dens and some bedrooms. Remember, too, that size is relative to price. If you want to buy bigger LCD TVs, be prepared to pay premium, particularly for top brands. Watch your budget.

Test the unit.

Look at the screen and determine if the image impresses you. Ultimately, an LCD TV is simply a large gadget - it should perform for your viewing pleasure and no one else's.

LCD Review Guide - LCD TV Ratings Step One - How do LCD Displays Work?

Basically they work initially by blocking light. The display contains TN liquid crystals that are in between two perpendicular panes of glass that have been polarized. When light shines through this crystal matrix from one end out the other the intensity of the light is controlled and managed by the display. Displays with higher LCD TV ratings will manage this intensity more effectively. The variable voltage of the electrical charge that passes through will untwist the liquid crystals to vary the intensity of light in order for that light to pass through the second polarized pane. Higher LCD TV ratings will have a greater dark to light ratio.

The size of the display is difficult to manufacture in regards that more pixels and transistors must be added. Advances in the manufacturing process has lead to more affordable large displays.

The display can control the full spectrum of light to create the proper color. All the colors in the spectrum is achieved by dividing each pixel into three sub-pixels of red, green and blue that work together to calculate the pixel's overall hue. Each sub-pixel can range over 256 shades of intensity. Displays with higher LCD TV ratings will have lower amount of bad pixels which is caused if there is a problem with one of the transistors. The higher the resolution of the display the higher the amount of transistors the display contains since you are combining the 3 sub-pixels with the resolution.

The active-matrix inside LCD TV displays use TFTs, transistors and capacitors arranged in a matrix on a glass substrate which send electric signals down columns to the destination pixel.

TV Wall Mount Bracket Buyers Guide

There are an excess of TV brackets available on the market, with a plethora of different designs and price tags. Here are some simple tips to help you avoid the pitfalls of buying the wrong TV bracket. Ensure your TV is the correct size for the bracket and ensure it has the correct VESA spacing. 

VESA spacing is the distance between the mounting holes on the back of your TV, smaller TV's tend to have VESA 100 or VESA 200 spacing, VESA 100 means there are 4 holes laid out in a square shape with 100mm between each hole. Bigger televisions usually use VESA 400, ensure the bracket you are buying is VESA compatible and it has the correct VESA fitting.

Make sure the TV bracket you buy has space to run the cabling, it's all well and good mounting your beautiful flat panel TV on the wall, but if you can't plug it in what's the point?

Big AV the online TV accessories superstore offer an excellent wall mounted shelf complete with cable management, these can be a great buy to keep everything neat and tidy.

Tilt brackets usually have a 15 degree tilt and are perfect for when a TV is mounted quite high, this type of bracket is essential in some cases.

Swivel brackets, there are a number of swivel TV brackets available; some incorporate the tilt facility some do not, so check this before you order. There are 2 types of swivel mechanism, a cantilever arm is often used, this type of mechanism allows the TV to be pulled out, rotated to almost any angle and pushed flat against the wall, if you need to move the TV frequently this is the type of bracket you want. In a nutshell- 

1) Check the overall size of your TV and the brackets max capability, also check the TV's mounting holes to ensure compatibility. 

2) Decide if you want a flat, tilting, or swiveling and tilting bracket.

Some Tips For Notebook Computer Purchasing

Notebook, or laptop, is a portable computer that normally have :

Screen size : 12 Inch and up

Processor : Intel Pentium Dual-Core,Core 2 Duo or AMD Turion X2

Graphics : Integrated or External Graphic Card, from Intel GMA x3100 to AMD Mobility HD 3870X2

Weight : 1.9kg and up

Screen size : 12 Inch max

Graphics : Integrated Graphic Card, mostly Intel GMA 900 or 950

Weight : 1.1kg and below

1st, let's compare the screen size. With screen size 12 inch and lower, you might have a hard time typing documents in your netbook.

2nd, the processor. The faster the processor, the faster the page loads. 3rd, the graphic card. If your primary concern is playing games, you can skip the netbook altogether as their graphic are really really lame. Some claim that they install World of Warcraft inside their netbook, but with lame graphic card and small screen, how are you ever gonna enjoy playing that game. 4th, the weight. If you like to play games or watch movies, notebook is the way to go. If you surf the web more often and type short documents, netbook is you choice.

More Tips for NotebookComputer Purchasing

First, open the packaging - To confirm that whether is a new machine or not. Many consumers do not like the machine which the outside packaging is opened when they buy laptops because they worry about that the machine which the packaging is opened is a retreaded one or there are some replacement of parts.

Step one, check out the serial number. For example, you want to buy a Dell Inspiron 600m Laptop, you should confirm that the serial number of fuselage and the Dell Inspiron 600m battery are the same. Most of the fuselage and notebook battery should be affixed on the same serial number, if the battery serial number is different from the serial number of fuselage, the notebook battery may have been replaced.

Step two, check out the hole of Anti-theft lock. Step three, check out the bottom. Step four, check out the cooling fans. Step six, check out the keyboard. On the contrary, the prototype is generally the most reliable notebooks. 

10 Tips to buy recertified desktop computers

If you want a cheap computer without the risk of buying second-hand, you need to know more about the recertification and refurbished computers. I’ve experienced with this, and I spent much time online looking around for great deals on used computers that have been recertified.

Recertified means that returned to an authorized factory repair and have been tested and come with a guarantee to ensure that it works well. These computers are actually the safest way you can get a nice cheap refurbished computer.

But before you buy, take a look if these tips may help you.

1. Check hardware components are included, such as Monitor, Keyboard, mouse, speaker, CD/DVD or UPS. As I know, recertified desktop computers are rarely come with monitor. So checks the details of peripherals are include.
2. Find out the hardware inside the computer such as Processor,  Modem, RAM (Memory), Graphic card, Hard drive capacity, motherboard chipset, LAN card.
3. Make sure computer is upgradable; is it possible to upgrade the processor? Or can I add the memory to speed up the computer? I want to upgrade my graphic card, is it possible?
4. You are not to disparage the warranty and return policy; commonly it has 3 month warranty for recertified computer. Can you return the computer when it is in warranty and how fast the company will solve it?
5. Find out if you are to buy a new component or software to support the computer runs well. Such as modem, if you want to surf the internet.
6. Consider purchasing refurbished computer from a good branded one, there are various companies who sell refurbished computers. The main reasons for choosing for a branded one is that it comes with a warranty and also the buyer can be sure that the parts used are of good quality.
7. What Operating System and Software are included, Windows XP or Vista, spreadsheet software, office software, etc.
8. Test the computer to make sure all functions are working. Try to turn it on and off with yourself, does it work well? is it fast enough when booting.
9. If it is possible, ask the company if he allow you to use a short time period to check the quality before purchasing. I really don’t know if it is possible or not, but you can try it. It’s just my opinion.
10. Oh yeah, if you include the monitor, make sure that you can read all the text and graphic clearly in entire desktop.

System Cleaner 5.7 Tunes Up Your Computer and So Much More

Pointstone Software, LLC. announces the release of System Cleaner 5.7, a utility product for the Windows operating system. System Cleaner is a full-featured set of comprehensive tools that help you keep your computer running at peak performance.

Newark, DE (PRWEB) December 31, 2008 -- Pointstone Software, LLC. announces the release of System Cleaner 5.7, a utility product for the Windows operating system. System Cleaner is a full-featured set of comprehensive tools that help you keep your computer running at peak performance.

This newest version of the acclaimed performance increase software includes an improved Registry Cleaner and removes traces of personal information from the Windows environment and all of the latest internet browsers such as FireFox 3 and Opera 9.6.

System Cleaner quickly and efficiently cleans up and eliminates the things that cause crashes, slow your computer down, and lead to frustration. It frees up hard disk space by eliminating all of the "garbage" files that accumulate on your computer and slow it down. It can also look for any duplicate files that reside on your system. One module can scan the Windows Registry, remove useless entries, and then defragment the Registry so your computer runs better.

System Cleaner also protects your privacy by providing options that will eliminate the evidence of any activity on your computer along with a module that can securely "shred" sensitive data so it can't be recovered. System Cleaner goes further and provides a way to view all of the programs that are loaded when Windows starts, allowing you to delete them, disable them, and more. The program also provides an excellent way to uninstall programs that you no longer want on your system.

System Cleaner gives you the power to manage file associations, Internet Explorer Extensions, and explore your disk space to see which programs are using the most space. There's even a way to take a "snapshot" of your system so you can compare it to earlier versions to see what's changed. And if you change your mind, the "Rescue Manager" lets you undo things you've done.

System Cleaner is a suite of tools that can be used to keep your computer running the way it was meant to run. It's fast, it's efficient, and effective.

System requirements

System Cleaner will run under Windows Vista, XP and 2003. It requires 128MB of RAM and 10MB of free hard disk space.

Availability

System Cleaner is available for $34.95 from the Pointstone Software Web site at http://www.systemcleaner.com. A 15-day trial version is also available.

Conexant Broadens Market Scope With Addition of ADI’s PC Audio Codec Products

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Conexant Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CNXT), a leading supplier of innovative semiconductor solutions for imaging, audio, video, and Internet connectivity applications, today announced that it has signed an exclusive agreement with Analog Devices, Inc. (NYSE: ADI) to manufacture, distribute, and support ADI’s PC audio codec product line. Audio codecs encode and/or decode digital data streams, enabling users to listen to voice or music on a personal computer. ADI’s PC audiocodec solutions are targeted at desktop, notebook, and all-in-one PC applications, and are complementary to Conexant’s audio product portfolio. ADI’s PC audio engineering support team is now a part of Conexant’s Imaging and PC Media group, and will be based in the company’s facility in Waltham, Mass. Further terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

“This transaction is consistent with our strategy to augment our new-product investments with select acquisitions or additions in growth markets where we lead or have the opportunity to lead,” said Bernd Lienhard, senior vice president and general manager of Conexant’s Imaging and PC Media business. “The addition of ADI’s PC audio codec product line strengthens our position as a leading provider of audio solutions to PC manufacturers globally, and broadens our footprint within our existing customer base. We also gain an outstanding engineering team with a proven track record of providing superior customer service and support.”

Conexant’s innovative audio product portfolio includes high-definition (HD) audio integrated circuits, HD audio codecs, as well as speakers-on-a-chip solutions for personal computers, PC peripheral sound systems, speakers, notebook docking stations, voice-over-IP speakerphones, intercom, and audio-enabled surveillance applications.

About Conexant

Conexant’s comprehensive portfolio of innovative semiconductor solutions includes products for imaging, audio, video, and Internet connectivity applications. Conexant is a fabless semiconductor company that recorded revenues of more than $500 million in fiscal year 2008. The company is headquartered in Newport Beach, Calif. To learn more, please visit www.conexant.com

Safe Harbor Statement

“Safe Harbor” Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This release includes forward-looking statements intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements generally can be identified by phrases such as Conexant or its management “believes,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “foresees,” “forecasts,” “estimates” or other words or phrases of similar import. Similarly, statements in this release that describe our business strategy, outlook, objectives, plans, intentions or goals also are forward-looking statements. All such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements.

These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: pricing pressures and other competitive factors; our ability to timely develop and implement new technologies and to obtain protection for the related intellectual property; the cyclical nature of the semiconductor industry and the markets addressed by our products and our customers’ products; volatility in the technology sector and the semiconductor industry; our successful development of new products; the timing of our new product introductions and our product quality; demand for and market acceptance of our new and existing products; our ability to anticipate trends and develop products for which there will be market demand; our ability to successfully execute asset acquisitions, dispositions, mergers and restructurings; the availability of manufacturing capacity; changes in our product mix; product obsolescence; the ability of our customers to manage inventory; the risk that capital needed for our business and to repay our indebtedness will not be available when needed; the risk that the value of our common stock may be adversely affected by market volatility; the substantial losses we have incurred; the uncertainties of litigation, including claims of infringement of third-party intellectual property rights or demands that we license third-party technology, and the demands it may place on the time and attention of our management and the expense it may place on our company; our ability to identify and execute acquisitions, divestitures, mergers or restructurings, as deemed appropriate by management; general economic and political conditions and conditions in the markets we address; and possible disruptions in commerce related to terrorist activity or armed conflict, as well as other risks and uncertainties, including those detailed from time to time in our Securities and Exchange Commission filings.

The forward-looking statements are made only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Conexant is a registered trademark of Conexant Systems, Inc. Other brands and names contained in this release are the property of their respective owners.

Panda Security Renews its Microsoft Partner Certification

Panda Managed Office Protection Passes the "Platform Test for Hosted Solutions" to Renew License for Additional Year

Glendale, Calif. (PRWEB) December 23, 2008 -- Panda Security, a leading provider of IT security solutions, today announced the renewal of its Microsoft Partner certification for another year for Panda Managed Office Protection. In order to secure the license renewal PMOP first had to pass the "Platform Test for Hosted Solutions", a test designed for software solutions developed for Windows servers, which use Microsoft Office, SQL Server 2005 .NET Framework and/or XML Web services.

The certification verifies Panda Managed Office Protection's efficiency and outstanding performance in protecting systems based on Microsoft technology, and will give Panda Security access to first-hand knowledge of Microsoft technologies and innovations. This partnership guarantees that Panda Security will have the opportunity to adapt its solutions to Microsoft products and more efficient and accessible security for its customers.

Panda Security is also an Intel Software partner, a certification which guarantees that Panda Security products are optimized to offer better performance under Intel multi-core technologies. In addition, Panda Security is recognized by Citrix as a technology partner in the field of SCM, and has been certified by OPSEC (Open Platform for Security).

Panda Managed Office Protection:

Panda Managed Office Protection is a fully-managed, anti-malware and firewall Web service for small businesses and large enterprises with decentralized offices. The solution provides a straight-forward web administration console that lets users install and manage IT protection easily from any computer with an Internet connection. These capabilities allow for complete outsourcing of security management so that SMBs and remote offices can focus on their core business. Subscription to an outsourced security service like Panda's Managed Office Protection can help to further reduce software costs and management overheads related to hardware, additional security skilled personnel and other resources dedicated to antivirus for businesses.

As one of the first products in the growing Security-as-a-Service market, Panda Managed Office Protection ensures business continuity while offering higher availability with 24x7 support, providing the latest available product versions as well as signature file updates.

The product, which also protects laptop computers and remote connections through the installation of an ultra-light agent, benefits from Collective Intelligence developed by Panda Security which leverages collective knowledge in order to offer the latest malware signatures in real time.

About Panda Security:

Panda Security is one of the world's leading IT security providers, with millions of clients across more than 200 countries and products available in 23 languages. Its mission is to develop and provide global solutions to keep clients' IT resources free from the damage inflicted by viruses and other computer threats, at the lowest possible total cost of ownership.

Panda Security proposes a new security model, designed to offer a robust solution to the latest cyber-crime techniques. This is manifest in the performance of the company's technology and products, with detection ratios well above average market standards and most importantly, providing greater security for its clients. For more information and evaluation versions of all Panda Security solutions, visit our website at: http://www.pandasecurity.com.

10 Tips on Using Public Computers Safely

Using public computers at colleges, libraries, Internet cafes, airports, and copy shops can be relatively safe if you heed the following tips.

The browser keeps a copy of many things in its cache and it may be passwords or other sensitive bits of information. The next person on the computer may be savvy enough to recover this information.

• Always Log Out
  

Make sure you log out of Web sites by clicking "log out" on the site. Do not just close the browser and think you are safe. The next person may be able to open the browser and find you are still logged in. 

• Disable the Autocomplete Feature
  

Many programs (especially browsers and instant messengers) include automatic login features that will save your user name and password. Disable this option so no one can log in as you.

Internet Explorer

Before you go to the Web, turn off the Internet Explorer feature that "remembers" your passwords.

1. click Tools | Internet Options | Content tab | AutoComplete

3. Click to clear both check boxes having to do with passwords.

• Do not Save Passwords
  

Sometimes this feature is turned on, by mistake or on purpose. Make sure it is not enabled.

Internet Explorer

Go to Tools | Internet Options | Content. In the AutoComplete panel, click the Settings button and verify that the Prompt Me To Save Passwords check box is deselected. None of the other AutoComplete features needs to be enabled either, so deselect them as well.

Firefox

Choose Tools | Options | Security and deselect Remember Passwords For Sites

• Do not Leave the Computer Unattended
  

Especially with sensitive information on the screen. If you have to leave the public computer, log out of all programs and close all windows. Then erase your tracks.

• Erase Your Tracks
  

Web browsers such as Internet Explorer keep a record of your passwords and every page you visit, even after you’ve closed them and logged out.

When you finish your use of a public computer, you should delete all the temporary files and your Internet history.

Internet Explorer 7

Click Tools and then Delete Browsing History > Delete All

Older Internet Explorer

click Tools and then Internet Options

On the General tab, under Temporary Internet files, click Delete Files, and then click Delete Cookies

Under History, click Clear History

Delete all the files in the temporary folder of your user account which you can find by browsing to C:\Documents and Settings\username\Local Settings\Temp

Firefox Browser

Go to Tools | Options, click the Privacy tab, and select Always Clear My Private Data When I Close Firefox. By default, this erases your browsing history, download history, saved form information, cache, and authenticated sessions. Click the Settings button and select the options to erase your cookies and saved passwords, too

• Clear the Page File
  

The pagefile is the location on the hard disk that serves as virtual memory in Windows. Its purpose is to swap out data from RAM so that programs can operate as if they have more RAM available than you actually have installed in the computer. Anything that can be stored in memory can be stored in the pagefile. To have this automatically cleared on shutdown, you need to use Local Security Policy.

To access Local Security Policy, open Control Panel, double-click on Administrative Tools, and double-click on Local Security Policy. Then, click Security Options in the right-hand pane and scroll down to Shutdown: Clear Virtual Memory Pagefile. Double-click that item and make sure it’s enabled.

Note: On many public machines you won’t have the rights to get to Local Security Policy, and while this task can also be accomplished from the registry, on these machines you likely won’t be able to use regedit either. In this case, you can delete the page file manually. First you’ll have to change the settings in Windows Explorer. Click View | Folder Options and the View tab, then scroll down and click Show Hidden Files And Folders. Deselect the Hide Protected Operating System Files check box. Now, find the file named pagefile.sys. It is usually (but not always) on the C: drive. Delete it; a new one will be created when the system reboots

• Reboot When Finished
  

When you’re finished using the public computer, the final thing you should do is a hard reboot. This will not only clear the pagefile, if you’ve enabled that option, but it will also clear out everything you did from the physical memory (RAM).

• Create a Temporary Email Account
  

Most email accounts can forward to another one. If you are going away for a few days, create a temporary email account and forward your emails there. Once you are home, shut off forwarding and abandon the temporary email account.

• Carry your Own Software
  

There are many software applications that can run off USB drives. For example, the portable Firefox browser will keep its cache and sensitive data on the USB drive, not the public computer's drive. Also you can save files to the USB drive rather than the public computer's disk drive.

PortableApps website contains a whole suite of portable apps...and they are free.

• Watch for Snoops
  

When you use a public computer, be on the lookout for thieves who look over your shoulder or watch as you enter sensitive passwords to collect your information.

A cell phone camera or someone with a good memory could capture your information easily. Don't forget people can watch your hands and see what keys you press.