Amid the flurry of excitement surrounding the Digital Technology Week/DigitalLife kick off last night, I managed to grab a hold of Sonic the Hedgehog for a quick photo-op. Shameless, I know but I couldn't resist. It was tricky too because man that kid is fast!

The reason for Sonic's presence was to help build up some buzz around Sega's upcoming Sonic Wide Fire game title, exclusive to Nintendo's Wii console. To give everybody a sneak-peek, Sega had a Wii set up running the game. Using that crazy Wii controller you can move and steer Sonic accross three dimensions (jumping, crawling, flying, you name it), just by tilting and swinging the thing. One sequence I saw involved Sonic inching along a ledge trying to avoid nasty spikes and other Indiana Jones-style traps. I just hope if you die you won't have to start all over from the beginning. I hate that!

If you want to see more Nintendo Wii and Sega Sonic action be sure to drop by DigitalLife, which starts tomorrow and ends on Sunday, October 15 in NYC.

Thanks to Reviews Editor Brian Bennett for this post!

We're all concerned about identity theft and online security these days. GuardID Systems said enough is enough, and created the ID Vault, a rugged little USB device with smart-card technology. You can store usernames and passwords for your online accounts and then automatically sign on without having to re-enter your info, preventing nasty hackers from stealing your data.

The ID Vault is something like an ATM card. You can't automatically sign into an account without having the ID Vault plugged in. And you can't bypass the ID Vault without entering your PIN.Sounds pretty cool in theory, right? Well I decided to take this bad boy home for a test drive. (Literally, check out that tire-tread pattern!)

After loading the software on my computer (Windows XP only, folks), a little icon appeared in my system tray. I plugged the USB device in, and a screen immediately popped up asking me to create a PIN. Then I merrily began entering my usernames and passwords. For my e-mail account and all other non-financial sites, I just had to sign in online, and the ID Vault asked me if I wanted to save my data. But for financial sites, like my bank's, I had to go through a list of available companies to find the right one, and then enter my information.

The ID Vault worked just as it should, prompting me for my PIN when I visited various sites and then automatically logging me on. Another way I could sign on was to just click on the icon and then choose from the different accounts saved. But what would happen if the ID Vault wasn't plugged in? I disconnected it and tried accessing my bank account. A warning popped up telling me that I needed to plug in the device before it signed me on. Of course, I could still go to every site and dutifully enter my username and password if I wanted to, but that would leave me vulnerable to all those spying eyes.

You can pick up your own ID Vault for $49.95. And check out the quote from PC Mag's own John Dvorak on the back of the box!

 
Post by Angela Chang

Apricorn's Aegis Mini Ultra Portable Hard Drive probably won't win any beauty contests, but it sure is handy! Plug it in and this little hard disk just plain works like you were plugging in any old USB flash drive. The Aegis Mini, a 1.8-inch bus-powered external hard disk that's mounted in a shock-resistant enclosure, works with MACs or PCs. Available with USB 2.0 or FireWire connections and in two different capacities—30 or 60GBs—it also comes bundled with Apricorn's Data Protection Suite.

On a recent two-week sea kayaking trip in California, I took almost 2,000 pictures and the Aegis was invaluable for quickly off-loading my 2GB SD card every day using my hosts PC (yep, I got to leave the laptop home!). The included EZ Gig II Backup and Disaster Recovery Software for Windows is great too.

The software package combines backup and synchronization that can be encrypted for better security, just in case the drive was to fall in the wrong hands. In terms of ease of use, the drive is plug-n-play and hot swappable, and all its drivers reside locally and load automatically when the drive is plugged in without you having to do anything.

At the Aegis Mini's heart is the Travelstar C4K60 "Slim" (just 3.5 ounces) hard disk from Hitachi. Its skeleton is a 16-point omni-directional shock mounting system. While its plastic skin isn't really glamorous, the drive comes with a neoprene slip cover for added shock absorption (as well as a one-meter USB extension cord).

The 30GB and 60B Aegis Mini versions sell for $149 and $199, respectively.

PCMag's Networking & Software analyst Davis Janowski wrote this review!

Haiku Review: Sony NW-E005F Walkman

      Long battery life
      Feather-light, fast charging time
      glitchy audio.

The full length, free-verse version of the Sony NW-E005F Walkman review can be found at PCMag.com.

It's almost time to let your breath out, gamers: Final Fantasy XII is nearly here. The game's developer, Square Enix, announced FFXII's release at a press conference today in Times Square. An FF fan from PC Magazine headed over to take pictures and report; take a look at Whitney's story and Arielle's pictures here. Even better, FFXII will be previewed at the DigitalLife show (October 12 to 15, at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in NYC). Fans can stop by to play the game and preorder before the game's actual release on October 31.
 

For those of you a little out of the Final Fantasy loop, Version 12 has been a long time coming. Fans of the award-winning FF franchise have waited years for this release. Delays and development changes plagued production, and while the Japanese version was released half a year ago, U.S. fans have had to wait it out.

The FF series  has been groundbreaking in the gaming world, and this latest installment promises not to disappoint. FFXII features two main characters: a young man named Vaan, who is seeking revenge on the empire that killed his brother, and Princess Ashe, the sole heir to Dalmasca. Fans can expect amazing graphics, a new battle system, expansive maps, and intense combat scenes in the game.

Crazy with anticipation? Don't worry, the wait's almost over!

Post by Angela Chang

As swift as a track star winning the 500-yard dash, T-Mobile's Dash may take home the crown for the next best T-Mobile handheld.

According to Phone expert Sascha Segan, "it has excellent phone performance, combines EDGE with Wi-Fi for networking, and runs the Windows Mobile Smartphone 5 operating system."

The Dash weighs 4.2 ounces and dons a landscape-format screen. It utilizes T-Mobile's new MyFaves service, which "lets you call five contacts anywhere in the US for free, putting cute icons for the five contacts on your home screen and letting you call or message them with a few clicks." How adorable!

An exciting feature of the Dash is that you can play video in full-screen mode! That is, if you don't mind watching video on a 2.5-inch screen. Its video playback lasts for about 5 hours 12 minutes which is pretty impressive I think.

Sascha wasn't so crazy about the device's volume button, but he did appreciate the Wi-Fi for networking.

For Sascha's full review, head on over to PCMag.com.

The T-Mobile Dash will sell for $299.99.

Are you ready to say goodbye to your rusty old plasma TV? Yesterday, in Sydney, Australia, Arasor International and Novalux showed off the very first laser television. "Laser" sounds very cutting edge, but it's what the technology brings to the table (or to the wall) that really matters, and it looks like Arasor and Novalux have it covered. They claim that laser TVs would be half the price of plasmas of comparable size, have twice the visual quality, and use one-quarter of the electricity that today's plasma and LCD TVs use.

The technology surrounding the device helps create a visual quality unlike anything we have seen to this point. The TV uses an optoelectronic chip produced by Arasor that powers the Novalux-developed laser-projection device. The companies are currently in the process of selling their device to major TV manufacturers, and you should be seeing laser TVs under the familiar names of Samsung and Mitsubishi on the shelves around Christmas 2007.

The chief executive of Novalux is already saying laser TVs will be the death of plasmas, because of the added benefit lasers offer to screen sizes over 40 inches;he predicts LCDs will hang on and dominate the smaller screen market. Those are big words for an unproven company with an unproven technology, but if what it claims is true (lower price, better quality), Novalux and its partner Arasor might become the king of HDTV.

Post by Don Reisinger

When I was faced with a pile of floppy disks that were of little to no use to me, in the storage sense, I decided to launch my DIY Fashion accessories line. But now that I've stumbled upon an excellent practical application. the Diskette Notepad, (Source: Chip Chick), I've decided to expand my operation into office and school supplies. Here's how I did it:

Today, Sony announced the Altus portable stereo headphones (MDR-D777LP) that offer up to 80KHz frequency response.

The Altus headphones feature:

• an aura-nomic design (covers the entire ear and eliminates pressure) and padded ear cups
• single-sided cord (to minimize tangles)
• built-in ambient sound-in switch (to listen to outside noise)
• drawstring pouch for storage and carrying case

Why the name, "Altus"? Jim Leahey, Sony's general manager for peripherals and enhancements,  says: "We named this product Altus to represent the incredibly high frequencies and natural-sounding audio the headphones deliver."

The Altus headphones won't be available for purchase until November, but you can preorder a pair now for $150 at www.sonystyle.com/altus. Prefer to try before you buy? Visit any Sony Style store starting tomorrow to test them out.

The $150 price tag is a bit too steep for me, but seriously, anything is better than my Sony MDR-100 headphones I use for my computer! The ear cup's padding is about to completely rip off!

[via PR release]