The Kindle 2 is the second iteration of Amazon’s e-book reader, and while not a complete redesign, it incorporates many features and improvements that make it a worthy upgrade. Amazon basically completely redid the the layout of the device making it much more user friendly. The keys are arranged in a more familiar keyboard like fashion, with a joystick like device allowing the user to move up, down, left, and right with ease. What’s even better is the new and improved screen – the new Kindle can display 16 shades of grey, vs the 4 supported on the previous iteration. What this means to you is a more newspaper-like look when looking at newspapers, and a more book-like look when looking at books. The new Kindle also boasts 2gb of onboard memory, more than enough for even the most avid readers.

Of course, not all improvements was hardware related – the software was much improved as well. Navigation menus have slimmed down a bit, giving the user less options but making it easier to find needed features, faster. A completely worthless feature on the original Kindle, the dictionary feature is now actually usable. Whereas it used to send you to a new page whenever you looked up a word, now the definition pops up at the bottom of each page. Finally, search has been given a facelift, and it’s now much more powerful and easy to use.

While devices like the Kindle 2 have been popping up here and there over the past year, is the market completely ready for it yet? No, but that’s not to say there are many people who will love the Kindle. Avid readers will love it for it’s ability to store hundreds of books in a footprint the size of a small magazine. Travelers will love it’s compact size and brilliant screen. Geeks will love it for it’s many technological gadgets. But with a price tag of $250, the big question is – is the average consumer ready for it?

There are hundreds of thousands of iPhone apps at the iTunes store, and a fraction of those are travel applications designed to appeal to travelers of all ages and types. No matter where you are in the world – an iPhone travel app can help you have more fun and discover more about the city or country you are visiting. Which apps are the most useful though, and which are really worth your time?

AroundMe is an app that gathers GPS information from your exact location, then tells you where nearby locations are. This is extremely useful if you are lost in a huge city, or on a desolate road to nowhere in Australia. AroundMe can pinpoint locations and directions for banks, gas stations, restaurants, stores, and more.

Gate Maps is an app that doesn’t sound terribly impressive, but it works well if you are in a massive airpoirt in a foreign country. This app minimizes frustration and confusion by helping you catch your flight on time without soaking your clothes with sweat.

HearPlanet is an ingenious money saver when museum hopping. It costs $5.99 from the iPhone app store, but it reads Wikipedia descriptions to you! If you walk by a historical street – and it has a Wikipedia article – it will read everything there is to know about it directly to you. So how does it save money? You never need to pay for a tour guide again. There are plenty of other self guided tour apps for the iPhone, but this one is the by far one of the best!

Say Where is another great app, that is absolutely free. You simply tell the phone where you need to be and it helps you get there. This is extremely useful for big city traveling especially if you are on foot or bike. You can switch to an input mode if the area is too loud for the iPhone to understand your babble.

LingoLook Flashcards is different from other iPhone apps. This innovative application doesn’t require an internet connection! It is used to help you communicate in a foreign country so you know what you are eating, or what disasters you may be getting yourself into. It can say the phrase out loud to the person you are talking to so you don’t embarrass yourself. However, most people seem to think it’s amusing to have a cell phone talk to the waiter or store owner instead.

Sit or Squat is the kind of app you might laugh at initially, but it’s actually really useful when traveling abroad or in your own home state or country. Basically, it tells you where you can find free bathrooms. In addition there are user reviews of those bathrooms so you know if they are clean or filthy. This app is a great way to beat catching a weird disease from a toilet seat! Oh, and it’s free too.
These 6 apps don’t cover all of the great travel apps out there, but they are a marvelous way to navigate in a place you have never been and are either cheap or free!

The Samsung TL220 with 12.2 megapixels shoots pictures clearly – no matter where you are in the world. For years now it has been every traveler’s dilemma to want to take pictures of yourself at a location – but no one to take it. So they settle for crappy self shot pictures and go on their merry way. The new Samsung camera changes that though, with an innovative mini screen on the front of the camera.

While this sounds like a novelty toy, this camera is no joke. It has image stabilization so all of your pictures come out clear and detailed, even if you are shaking in excitement and running to your next attraction. Other benefits include a lithium ion battery that can be easily recharged. Plus you can always buy extra just in case your battery dies at an important moment.

The Samsung TL220 also has a touch screen so you can edit and view your pictures quickly. Rapid burst mode allows you to shoot multiple pictures at once so you are sure to get the best possible image. The camera also boasts the ability to shoot photos in low light with or without flash, but a tripod is recommended to increase a stabilized and clear shot. Other special modes and editing options make photos fun to play too!

Plus, this camera has a scene mode for every possible situation including:

• Night
• Portrait
• Beauty shot
• Children
• Landscape,
• Text,
• Macro
• Sunset & dawn
• Backlight
• Fireworks
• Beach
• And snow

Each of these specific scenes makes it easy to choose the best setting. So whether you are watching fireworks in Australia, or trying to snag a photo of a museum plaque in Paris, you can get the picture right the first time! This is the kind of camera you shouldn’t travel without, and it’s an easy to use must have for shooting quick quality photos on the go.

It all started just a few years ago when Sir Clive Sinclair had an idea. He wanted to invent a vehicle that made it easier getting from A to B, and he did. It’s effectively a two-wheel scooter that runs off of electricity, except it’s driven by balancing it backwards or forwards. It sounds harder than it is, as it feels natural and relaxing when put in motion.

The Segway is not the revolution everyone thought it would be, but it is certainly a highly useful device when it comes to touring cities and theme parks, being used worldwide in all sorts of applications.

Nowadays, Segway tours are big business and it’s a great way to see a city at your leisure. It gives you the time to explore historic museums, beautiful parks and some of the most beautiful scenery available. Thankfully, there are Segway tours operating absolutely everywhere, from America to France and from Budapest to Vienna. This vehicle is highly adaptive and effectively does the walking for you, saving you the hassle and letting you explore longer distances, quicker.

If you’re a bit older and simply can’t manage a 5-kilometer tour, then a Segway trip is perfect! These scooters may look a little intimidating at first, but the Segway is easy to master and more importantly, fun to ride. It’s a safe and reliable way to get around the city without having to struggle to catch up. Anyone can drive a Segway and you don’t even need a license.

Tours have always been a hit and miss subject, but thankfully it would seem, the Segway is one of the smartest ways to make things a bit more fun and enjoyable. If you’ve not tried a Segway tour, then you simply must as it really does make things so much more enjoyable.

They’ve announced the coming of the latest entry of their fashionable Z-series line of digital cams – the FinePix Z37. This time though the digital cameras are targeted at both the tech-freak, AND the fashion/trendy consumer! The point is to have the FinePix Z37 not only look good, but to also offer those features that are needed to take great pictures and share them with those you want to, A form Social imagery networking if you will!

Targeted at those youths that are tech savvy or trendy (or preferably both!) The FinePix z37 aims to be affordable yet bundled with the latest features found in the above amateur cameras whilst adding social networking tools and features making it easy to take and share the best pics you can create! To top it off Fujifilm is still staying true to the Z-series roots by maintaining the visual charm that the Z-series customers like with this particular model.

Whats the visual charm? All Z-series cams are thin, sleek  and have bold color choices to add to the party flair that these cams were designed for! The FinePix Z37 is no different that the previous cams, in fact Fuji have actually made it even more thinner and sleeker than previous models. Then comes the tech part which wows many (this is just a small list of the features):

• 10-MegaPixel CCD sensor
• Sharp 3x optical zoom lens
• 2.7” LCD screen which is pretty large considering that the body of this cam is only 19.1 mm! You can put this cam even in the most cramped jeans pocket you have!
• A choice of blue, green or violet, which definitely will attract attention and match your mood or attire at the same time (and that’s what the fashion types want right?)
• the unique ‘Blog Mode’ that allows users to automatically resize images and movies making them ready for web use.
• ‘Scene Recognition Auto’ (SR AUTO) Mode’ which intelligently detects the correct scene setting without the user requiring to continuously select the mode on the camera, before taking pics.
• Long-life rechargeable Li-ion battery.

The FinePix Z37 will be released in August 2009 at a retail price of $149.95.

Today a camera twice as powerful can be purchased at half the price of that 2 megapixel cam and I’m going to review one right now!

The Fuji FinePix F70EXR is a 10 MegaPixel Digital Camera that is stuffed to the brim with technology and options! Featuring a 10x Long Zoom lens the FinePix F70EXR has been designed for demanding shots under less than welcome conditions! The cam is relatively tiny (easily fitting into ones shirt pocket) yet the long zoom option backed by FujiFilm’s award winning EXR technology allows you not only to capture long distance objects but the ability to do so under almost any lighting conditions and achieving outstanding results every time.

Using its Multi Frame technology the F70EXR climbs a notch up and actually takes on D-SLR level camera’s (ie camera’s used by Pro photographers) by taking wide aperture shots that usually is a D-SLR trademark, while still remaining a compact camera (average camera used by amateurs, hobbyists, basically anyone!)

The camera also features a `super intelligent’ flash, high contrast LCD, Dual stabilization (so that shots don’t come out blurred or distorted)  and advanced Face Detection and Automatic Red eye reduction technologies  built into it.

The F70EXR comes built in with approximately 47MB of internal memory and, of course, does support external memory via an SD/SDHC memory card interface. Still images can be captured up to a resolution of 3616×2712 and the default format it saves in is JPEG for still images and AVI for movies. The cam comes with the rest of the features expected of a good value digital camera (ie Continuous shooting, white balance,self timer etc) and can last up to 200+ frames for battery life

Looking at the features, the new Stylus Tough 6010 features a 12 Megapixel camera to make poster size prints. It is best for taking picture in tough conditions. Its high precision 3.6x wide optical zoom can prove to be great when capturing great scenes through to stunning close ups even in extreme conditions.

The Olympus Tough 6010 includes an Intelligent Auto Mode that has the ability to detect the 5 most commonly used scenes and adjust settings, focus and exposure automatically. Other than that it has a built-in Magic Filters to spice up your pictures

Other great features include

• Avoids blur thanks to Dual Image Stabilisation (combines mechanical and digital image stabilisation)
• TAP Control Menu for great convenience
• 6.9cm/2.7” HyperCrystal III LCD for best ever preview even in brilliant sunlight and at extreme angles (230,000 dots)
• Advanced Face Detection of up to 16 persons for perfectly focused and exposed faces. In combination with Shadow Adjustment Technology other main parts of the picture are also correctly exposed
• Liven up your memories with movie recording with sound (up to VGA resolution at 30fps)
• xD-Picture Card and microSD Card compatible

Available in Titanium Grey, Turquoise Blue and Lava Red, this shockproof, waterproof, and freezeproof µ TOUGH-6010 is a sturdy and reliable companion that will meet any challenge. It arrives in stores in July 2009 along with a new software version: Olympus Master 2.2 for more image management and editing possibilities.

Olympus

Powered by Intel’s Core 2 Duo processor the CX600 is equipped with a ATi Mobility Radeon HD4330 graphics card with 512MB RAM while on the other hand CR600 includes NVIDIA GeForce 8200M G graphics. It provides 500GB of storage capacity along with 4GB of RAM, a DVD SuperMulti burner, and a 4-in-1 card reader for storage.

In addition to that both notebooks offer 802.11 b/g/n high speed WLAN and the new Bluetooth V2.0+EDR module. Other than that it includes a 1.3 megapixel webcam on demand creation and sharing of video content from anywhere, to anyone in the world. When paired with MSI’s exclusive video recording capabilities, creating and sharing videos with friends and family is both effortless and fun.

. Other special features of both models include LED backlight displays, brushed metal touch pad buttons, and a keyboard treated to enhance surface texture and aesthetic qualities, creating a discreet yet high quality feel. In short, both the CX600 and the CR600 are portable fashion statements.

Key features include

• Bluetooth V2.0+EDR module
• 1.3 Megapixel camera
• 45 degree angled edges
• 500GB hard drive
• 4GB RAM
• Brushed metal touch pad
• Powered by Intel’s Core 2 Duo processor

The CX600 & CR600’s large 16″ display has a thickness of only 3 cm, 20 percent thinner than traditional 16″ notebook displays. With 6-cell battery, total weight is merely 2.48 kg.

It provides 250 GB of storage space  and eliminates the interrupt service time for bridge circuit board to convert PATA into USB singles. It aims for smaller foot print, optimizes performance and consumes less power making itself an ideal choice as a portable storage device.

Vice President of marketing Storage System Division of Samsung Electronics Choel-Hee lee said that The new high-capacity 1.8” 250GB drive enhances Samsung’s product offerings and is ideal for consumers who require a small form factor, high capacity data storage. He further added that it is extremely easy to carry around and is specially designed to withstand a free fall drop up to 50 centimeters and be resistant to a maximum shock incident of up to 1500G.

The new Samsung Spinpoint N3U comes in the range of 120, 160, 200 and 250GB storage capacities with disk rotation speed of 3600rpm. The drives are equipped with an 8MB cache memory is expected to hit the market this month for a MSRP of $199.

Key features include

• Supports USB 2.0 Interface
• Less power consumption
• Stores up to 125 Gigabytes
• Storage capacity up to 120, 160, 200 and 250GB
• 8MB cache memory
• Converts PATA to USB signals
• Disk rotation speed is 3600

The new VAIO W Series mini notebook pc is powered by Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz processor and is integrated with GMA950 graphics card. To fill up your important data it offers a decent storage capacity of 160GB along with 1 GB of Ram.

The VAIO W comes in three vibrant colors including berry pink, cocoa brown and sugar white. It features a 10.1 inch LED backlit LCD display and supports Wifi and Bluetooth connectivity. In addition to that it includes a Meda Plus Multimedia Streaming software that lets you stream wirelessly across DLNa-enabled devices and videos. Furthermore music and pictures can be accessd from your W Series to your PC or Playstation 3 and vice-versa.

According to the senior vice president of the VAIO business group at Sony the W Series lets you quickly look something up online whether searching for a recipe in the kitchen or relaxing on your recliner- there’s no need to trudge upstairs to your office. He also added that it’s sturdy enough for the kids to use, making it perfect for every member of the family.

For your comfort the Sony VAIO W features an isolated keyboard with springy and responsive keys. Its carefully designed touchpad and mouse keys make the PC functional and mouse movements easy to control.

Key features include

• Windows XP Home Edition
• Intel Atom N270 1.6GHz processor
• 160 GB hard drive
• 1 GB Ram
• Isolated keyboard
• Supports Wifi
• Bluetooth connectivity

Based on Windows XP Home Edition the VAIO W Series notebooks will be released in August for about $500.