All posts by: Carl Laron

A sub-$60 home theater projector on Black Friday? Yes ... and no.

Electronics
By Carl Laron on November 10, 2011 in

Cheap digital projector

Black Friday is usually a great time to pick up technology products at a rock-bottom price. But it's also a time where it's pretty easy to get snared by tech that looks like a good -- or even unbelievable -- buy, but whose performance means it's not a bargain at any price. One example that we gave in a post last week were tablet computers selling in the $100 price range, and sure enough, the Kohl's Black Friday circular that leaked the other day had a couple of those. The ad also featured the Discovery Expedition Wonderwall Entertainment Projector as an "early bird" special at just a penny under $60. We saw this one all over the place last Black Friday, and it looks like we are in for a re-run, as it was also included in the Staples Black Friday ad that leaked on Wednesday -- and for even less ($49.99). So, what's the deal? Can you really find happiness -- and anything regarding acceptable picture quality -- in a projector that's this inexpensive? Join us after the jump to find out.

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Where NOT to buy your technology gifts on Black Friday

Electronics
By Carl Laron on November 4, 2011 in

Where not to buy your technology gifts

So, then, in case you missed it, a sneak peak at what could be the Black Friday specials at CVS made a brief appearance at some of the usual Black Friday preview sites, such as BlackFriday.com, only to be removed at the store's request. We don't know if the offers will be the ones that we'll actually see when the ad becomes official, but based on past experience, it looks like they could be. And based on past experience, it looks like CVS might be among the last places eager electronics buyers will want to be lining up come Black Friday morning. Read more

Netflix apologizes, makes things worse

Computers & Internet
By Carl Laron on September 20, 2011 in

Qwikster

Back in July, Netflix announced what amounted to a massive price increase when it removed streaming video from its DVD-by-mail service and made it a separate subscription. As we blogged about, fallout was swift and largely negative. Many predicted that customers would drop part or all of the company's services as a result. Those predictions have proved acurate.  Netflix reported last week that it now expects to lose 600,000 customers this quarter -- a far cry from the 400,000 it had expected to add instead. On Monday, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings emailed subscribers with an apology of sorts. The missive started: "I messed up. I owe you an explanation." However, the news that followed -- that Netflix would split into two completely separate services, one exclusively DVD by mail, the other exclusively streaming -- didn't exactly make most feel any better about things. In fact the near universal reaction has been "Guess what, Reed, you messed up again." Read more

Picking -- or painting -- the perfect screen for your home theater

Electronics
By Carl Laron on September 5, 2011 in

Projector screen

While bigger and bolder flat panel LCD and plasma TVs are now available, if you want a breathtakingly large home theater picture at a price that won't have you reaching for some smelling salts, nothing beats a home theater projector. As our newly updated report finds, performance has never been better, and costs have never been lower. But while using a projector can create a home theater that will leave your neighbors green with envy, it takes a little bit of work on your part to get the best results. Part of that is finding the right screen. Here are some helpful hints. Read more

Russian space hotel promises a vacation that's out of this world

By Carl Laron on August 26, 2011 in

Space hotel

Is a week at Disney World just not cutting it for you anymore? Is lounging on the beach of a tropical island just too boring? What about skiing the Alps -- been there, done that? Well, if you have a little spare change laying around -- about $1 million or so for a five-day stay according to Reuters -- in just a few years you will be able to enjoy a vacation that's far out -- really. If all goes according to plan, a Russian firm hopes to open the first space hotel in 2016. Read more

Blu-ray players deliver performance, features and value

Electronics
By Carl Laron on July 18, 2011 in

3D Blu-ray Disc player

While we are still not sold on this whole 3D thing, it's pretty clear that the consumer electronics industry is of a different mind. One of the barriers standing in the way of mass-adoption of 3D for the home has been high price. This year, equipment makers seem to be doing their part in at least lowering that hurdle. As blogged about earlier, we saw that when we updated our report on LCD TVs. Now that we've looked at the 2011 crop of Blu-ray Disc players -- many of which are 3D Blu-ray Disc players -- it's clear that the story is the same with those. Add in the Internet-streaming features that many Blu-ray players bring to the table -- eliminating the need for a separate digital media player (such as the Roku XDS) -- and the value becomes even more compelling. You can get the full Blu-ray Disc player story in our just updated report. Read more

Netflix raises rates: What are the alternatives?

Computers & Internet
By Carl Laron on July 14, 2011 in

Netflix raises rates

By now, most Netflix subscribers have seen the news, and it's not good. Depending on your plan and how you use the service, rates are going up by as much as 60 percent. The big change is that streaming video is being removed from the company's original DVD-by-mail programs. Instead, if you want streaming video you'll need to pay for a separate $7.99 per month subscription. While the cost of the disc-only plans are going down a little as well, the net result for someone, for example, on the current 1-disc-at-a-time program that also uses Netflix streaming will be an increase from $7.99 to $15.98 per month, or from $9.99 to $17.98 for those who also have access to Blu-ray Discs. Nice. Read more

The games smartphones play

Electronics
By Carl Laron on July 10, 2011 in

Angry Birds

On Thursday, Apple announced that iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad users had downloaded the 15 billionth app from the company's App Store. The odds are that it was a game as -- perhaps not surprisingly -- a just released survey by Nielsen reveals that those are the most popular type of app. In addition, the researcher found that users of Apple's mobile devices spend more time playing games -- much more in some cases -- than users of any other type of smartphone. Read more

3DTV for 2011: Cheaper and better, but does it matter?

Electronics
By Carl Laron on July 5, 2011 in

3DTV

We've just updated our report on LCD TVs, and one thing is crystal clear -- TV makers have lost none of their enthusiasm for 3D. While that feature was found in only the most expensive TVs last year, the 2011 TV line up includes tons of 3D sets, including budget options as inexpensive as $500 (for a 32-inch screen size). However, whether consumers have much enthusiasm for 3D in the home is more of an open question given lackluster sales that aren't expected to get much better this year. Now, there are even signs that theater-goers' passion for 3D on the big screen might be a thing of the past. Read more

FBI takes down scareware scammers

Computers & Internet
By Carl Laron on June 26, 2011 in

FBI agent

As we've blogged about in the past, scareware has become one of the top threats on the Internet. Because of their nature, most scareware programs are a challenge for even the best antivirus programs to detect and stop. Getting rid of scareware once it's grabbed hold of your computer is more challenging still. But because of the multi-national nature of most scareware operations, perhaps the biggest challenge of all is bringing their perpetrators to justice. Still, every once in a while the good guys do win a battle, and on Wednesday the FBI announced that it had busted up two scareware rings. Read more

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