Gadgetory

this week on the cnet tech review new betas of iOS and ie how to put itunes on a diet God games that put the fate of the world in your hands and a GPS unit for all you truckers out there it's all coming up right now good buddy hi everyone I'm Hollywood and welcome to the cnet tech review where we collect our hottest videos of the week and tell you what's good and what's bad in the world of tech and offer some unique tech wisdom in the form of the bottom line let's start with the good at Apple's music event held here in San Francisco a couple weeks ago Steve Jobs gave us a little sneak peek at iOS 4.2 an update aimed specifically at the ipad now that the beta version of the update has been released into the wild brian Tong is here with a taste of what you can expect hey guys Brian song here with sina com and Apple's iOS 4.2 beta that specific to the ipad was recently released so we wanted to show off some of the major improvements and some of the more subtle ones as well the biggest addition is multitasking and it works just like it has on an iPhone double click the home button and you'll see apps that are currently running in portrait mode you'll see six apps at a time and in landscape mode you'll see seven now what's great about this is that I've been dying for Pandora to have multitasking on the iPad and it looks like the app was built already with that in mind so it works like a charm I can listen to my pandora stream while checking out a recipe for dinner or surfing the web now just like an iOS 4.1 once you've accessed the multitasking feature you can swipe to the right to reveal the music controls and more a new change is that the screen orientation lock is now accessible here so you can lock the ipad to portrait or landscape mode the physical button on the right hand side that used to be the screen lock is now a mute switch but I'm not sure if I like that change it and the biggest addition that I love the ability to control the brightness of the screen with this slider without jumping into the preferences thank you now folders is here on the iPad and you can put up to 20 icons / folder compared to only 12 on the iPhone airprint makes its debut and the wireless printing option is integrated into the apps so if I'm in the mail app it will show up here and I'll be able to select a printer it sees and choose how many copies I want you'll also find printing in the photo app and Safari airplay is Apple's wireless streaming feature that streams to the new Apple TV or other compatible devices you'll be able to access it in the ipod app movie app and youtube app now let's show you a few other features in 4.2 game centers here on the ipad and it's pretty much what we've seen in iOS 4.1 male now has a unified mailbox for your multiple accounts and you can also organize your emails by threads which I love Safari has an updated icon that now shows you how many Safari pages you have open in the background and closing them feel snappier than before now all of you fans of the Notes app will now be getting a few other fonts that you can change in the settings instead of just marker felt so you guys can rejoice and if you're using the ipad 3g with the cellular data option turned on you now have the ability to toggle between 3g and edge if you want to reduce the drain on your battery even if it means slower download speeds I'm Brian Tom for cnet com and remember this is the beta and there's sure to be more improvements on the way before it's November release but we wanted to give you a sneak peek at iOS 4.2 in action yeah maybe Brian's not sure how he feels about that screen lock thing but I'm sure I do not like it at all okay speaking of betas the pre-release version of internet explorer 9 is now available as well and with so many other web browser options available from Firefox to Chrome even opera I pretty much never use IE anymore but as seth rosenblatt found out Microsoft's browser may just be worth another look after several months of teasing internet explorer's upgrade with a series of feature free developers previews Microsoft has unleashed on the world a fully functional Death Star I mean fully functional beta of its next-gen browser the new Internet Explorer 9 beta some of IE 9 betas features bring it up to parity with other browsers well other improvements definitely push it ahead as you can see from the interface the minimalist approach to browser UI is a major change to Internet Explorer but Microsoft takes a slightly different approach than its competitors which have also stripped down you eyes tabs are on the same level as the location bar whereas Firefox Chrome and opera all have tabs on one row in the location bar on a second it looks fine on a widescreen desktop monitor but on a standard laptop screen the combination of tabs on location bar feels a bit cluttered Microsoft has included the ability to ripped ABS off in two separate windows and you can arrow snap them as well since the search bar is gone you've probably inferred that Microsoft has beefed up the location bar search feature this too now sits on a level playing field with competitors although internet explorer's version has some nice twists to it you can also change search providers at the bottom which is a slick merge of the old search bar functionality into the location bar another interesting feature comes from Microsoft's take on the trend of browsers becoming the operating system since Microsoft already has an OS Windows anybody they've taken steps to integrate ie more thoroughly into Windows pin sites allows you to pin websites directly to the desktop taskbar in Windows 7 however it only works when your taskbar is in the default bottom position hopefully that will be fixed before ie9 leaves beta windows 7 jump lists have been integrated for websites that include that functionality and thumbnail controls and inbox counts in webmail pin sites are now included too there's a new tab page that utilizes favicons instead of snapshot previews which is different but definitely likeable the download manager has been beefed up with enhanced reputation based security features which have not been seen in browsers yet but do exist in modern security suites the add on performance advisor will automatically tell you when toolbars and other add-ons slow down IE improved process isolation prevents individual tab crashes from killing the whole browser and there's now an option for automatic updates as you see in Chrome performance has been a perennial stumbling block for internet explorer but the new JavaScript engine chakra combined with full hardware acceleration means that this isn't just the fastest internet explorer yet it's also the most competitive now whether it can stay that way is up to Microsoft with your first look at internet explorer 9 beta i'm seth rosenblatt frisina have the words minimalist and microsoft ever been used in the same sentence before but hey if they can strip down the interface and beef up the features i'll give it another shot why not there was a time when the fanciest piece of tech in the cab of an 18-wheeler would have been the CB radio but as with most professions technology continues to change the way truck drivers do their jobs car tech editor antuan goodwin brings us this first look at a gps system designed specifically with truckers in mind the car tech guys here at cnet spend a good deal of time on the road every week testing the latest cars GPS devices and in car gadgets but you know who puts us a shame when it comes to raw seat time truckers isn't it about time somebody designed from car tech specifically for these masters of the road enter the pc miler navigator 450 GPS for truck drivers the pc miler looks like your average consumer gps device it's got a 4.3 inch touchscreen a mini USB connection for charging and an SD card slot for loading data and maps going a step further this unit also features a headphone jack and the TMC antenna input for an external traffic receiver there's also an input for the included magnetic external gps antenna that increases positioning accuracy when the unit's mounted in a compromised position of course there's also the internal gps antenna if you don't want to fool around with the rudder in the cable for this guy powering up the pc miler reveals that this is no typical in car navigator running a version of the copilot 8 navigation software that's specific to trucks the pc miler has a host of features that make it useful to big rig drivers users can input the height length with weight and weight per axle of their truck to receive truck specific routings users can also save multiple routing profiles to hold these presets for later retrieval presumably after inputting this data the pc miler won't try to send you under low overpasses or across bridges that won't support your payloads wait the unit also features state mileage logs which is quite useful for independent operators for billing purposes the copilot software is very flexible with rutting presets for automobiles motorcycles bicycles and RVs as well as walking directions so you can even use the pc miler outside of your truck however there are a few things that we don't really like about it from a software standpoint the copilot software can be a bit too complex and tricky to use one adjust the volume good luck finding that on your first attempt the hardware also suffers from a tricky car cradle that makes it difficult to adjust and tricky to connect the external gps antenna so do the advantages of the truck specific hardware and software outweigh our nitpicks about the interface and cradle design check out the full review at cnet com to find out I'm antuan goodwin this has been your first look at the pc miler 450g pf4 truck farmer what a cliffhanger Antoine feel free to go check out the full review at cnet com but here's a hint he liked it enough to wear a trucker hat for the video so it can't be too bad plus I call him rubber ducky now and I've said it before and I will say it again routers and Ethernet hubs are awesome and powerline adapters don't even get me started so naturally I am super excited to see this network kit singled out as an editor's choice tell them about it dome how I adapted at those that help you expand your local network via your home electrical wiring today and show you the best one to date hello my name is dango and this is the lie why powerline AV network it from Western Digital this kiss is the first among homeplug AV powerline adapter that own CNN's errors Choice Award now there are few reason why this kid is the best first of all it come with two identical adapters each has four network ports this means you can use up to 4 internet ready devices at the far end of the power line connection at the new end where the other adapter is connected to your router instead of losing one that will port for it you now actually gain three this is because the adapters can also work as a 4-port hub so out of the box the kid can support up to seven devices the light white kids adapters the rather bulky also have a nice design with detachable power cables this allows user to place the adapter away clear from the power socket the adapters have an on/off switch and a sink button pressing on this button within two minutes from each other when create a private network between the two adapters preventing other homeplug AV adapter from connecting to them this is a good security feature in case you want to keep others living in the same apartment building for example from tapping into your local network or the internet connection the livewire adapters are also great where it matters the most performance in our testing the to produce the highest throughput speed among powerline adapter we were reviewed for these reasons at about 110 dollars the WD live wipe our kid is possibly the best band for the book on the market for more information on it check out the in-depth review at sea calm once again my name is dong woo and II was just seeing the first look at the lie why powerline AV network it from western digital what did I tell you I'm all tingly let's take a quick break so that I can calm down a bit but we'll be back with more Cena tech review right after this welcome back to the cnet tech review our weekly video digest of all things good and bad we've seen here at cnet TV continuing on with the good many of our shows have titles that are pretty self-explanatory the apple byte all about apple news and apple products how-to videos show you how to do things and so on so the scene at top 5 should be pretty easy to figure out right well usually it is let's face it nothing like coming home with a new TV that impossibly bright picture the new features you scratch your head over and of course that giant box you don't know what to do with I'm Brian Cooley here with the top five TVs as rated by cnet so far this 2010 number five a ty at cnet rating 7.6 now brace yourself in this competitive class we have a lot of ties coming up this one's between the LGP k 9 50 series and the samsung see 8000 models the PK 950 is LG's best plasma ever we think a real flagship it has a magic wand remote we think works well but is still kind of a gimmick streaming services on this guy are a little thin compared to some of the competition but it's an affordable TV the Samsung see 8000 is an edge-lit LED LCD with 3d ability a really good picture as well but the remote was a mess and it didn't include any 3d glasses streaming an app support was superb though but the price kind of tempered things it was almost unconscionable at number 4 the panasonic g20 g25 series cnet rating 7.7 great black levels so the colors really pop lowish power consumption and a rather effective anti-glare coating but this plasma is a little behind on the streaming functions and there are persistent complaints rumors that this series has trouble with black levels as it ages over time coming in at number three cleverly enough is a three-way tie all with a scene at rating of 7.9 first there's panasonic tc-p z1 series their flagship with tremendous black levels and color rendering really solid wireless technology to connect your components to it at a nice slim case but as you might imagine all this comes at a steep price next up is Sony's HX 909 a great-looking LCD set with both 3d ability and 2d to 3d conversion that actually works well like most on our list it has a good array of streaming services perfect if it didn't start it close to 3 grand street we'd be a little more excited and also here is vicios to xvt series anything but overpriced in the visio tradition we think it's a great value this LED LCD has Wi-Fi built in outstanding streaming services probably the best and a bluetooth remote with a qwerty keypad but the awful viewing was weak and the LED backlighting could be a little uneven number 2 is a two-way tie this is set up coming in both at a cnet rating of eight point out the Samsung c7000 has superb internet streaming in widgets and apps it's the least expensive 2010 plasma so far to offer 3d and the picture performance is really good too LG's le 8500 series is interesting we actually dropped this local dimming LED LCD television from a monster cnet rating of nine down to eight because of uneven backlight again yet it still impresses with otherwise outstanding picture and low power use this is an early 2010 set by the way so no 3d built in but it does have a good array of streaming features by the way before we get to our number one TV in this top 5 be aware of a controversy swirling out there around 3d TV it may have some health risks in the minds of many including I strain dizziness headache and nausea and that's just from watching the marriage ref I thought it was funny anyway seventeen percent of Americans are already sure 3d TV makes you ill another fifty five percent aren't sure it doesn't the jury's out that's a pretty wide population so try it out before you buy okay our number one TV as of this point in 2010 is a one way it's an on-time finally it's the panasonic viera BTW 20-25 series with a big cnet rating of 8.7 outstanding picture in both 2d and 3d modes that's a tough trick a strong if not class-leading set of streaming services and it includes a pair of 3d glasses it does have some minor concerns about those fading black levels and being a plasma it's a little bit power-hungry so there you go a top five that somehow had nine products in it find all our TV reviews at cnet com the televisions are right there just click on the left side easy to find I'm Brian Cooley thanks for watching we'll see you next time so what's it going to be the Le 8500 or the 2x VT maybe the HX 909 is more your style regardless of which one you choose I will have no idea what you're talking about and with that let's take a look at the bad I'm not going to spend a lot of time explaining this next video because well I'm in it so suffice to say that itunes is probably taking up too much room on your computer and i'm here to fix that hi i'm holly wood from CNN and i'm here to show you how to install itunes on windows without the bloat many thanks to our ZDNet colleague ed bott for posting this lifesaving how to if you used itunes on windows you know it's big slow and filled with features and components that you do not need I mean think about it every iTunes installation has the necessary elements to control several different ipods an iphone or an ipad or an ipod touch it syncs with Apple TV it has that whole store element has networking features you may or may not need and then there's quicktime it's huge well ed has helpfully created a step-by-step list for installing only the features of itunes that you need now I suggest you start by uninstalling any previous versions of itunes and downloading the Installer all over again you probably want to uninstall bonjour too if that's in there next download the itunes installer but do not run it now navigate to wherever you downloaded the file called itunes setup.exe right-click on itunes setup.exe now you may have to have winzip installed because you want to extract the file to folder called whatever whatever itunes setup now you can see all the individual installation components check out ed's article for a full list of all the things contained in the installer for our purposes suffice to say you don't need all of them okay here's where we customize if you only want to use itunes with an ipod that's not an ipod touch so a mini a classic a nano or a shuffle then move these three files into a new folder you'll need apple application support msi quicktime msi and itunes msi or itunes 64 msi on a 64-bit windows system now press the windows key and then hit our for run and then drag the first file into that window this will put the folder path and the full file name into the run dialog that's actually a cool trick all on its own and then after the last quotation mark type / passive and hit enter or click ok now this will actually install that component so do the same with the other two packages in your folder and once you complete the installation you'll have an itunes that lets you manage music on any ipod that's not a touch you can rip in burn cds play music and shop the itunes store it's kind of like an iTunes Classic if you will ok but what if you want to connect an Apple TV or browse iTunes libraries on your home network you'll need the same three packages plus the modular MSI package which you also install using the slash passive command you'll need bonzers installed on any computer whose library you plan to share now what if you're managing an iphone and ipad or an ipod touch well you'll need those original three applications apple application support msi quicktime msi and itunes msi and you'll also need apple mobile device support msi or the 64-bit version if you have 64-bit windows finally there's the tricky issue of Apple software update you really don't want that to come along and undo all your hard work now if you do enable automatic updates just make sure you download them and then manually install updates following that same process now bot also recommends disabling two of itunes startup files which can really slow down your boot times and they don't seem to help you in any way to do that click start or hit the Windows key run and then type ms config DXE now click the startup tab and find itunes helper exe and QT task exe and uncheck the boxes next to each one then click apply now you'll probably need to restart your system but after that you're off to the races and you will be writing a much Limor much faster horse winner first thing that how to I'm Molly wood and you're welcome glad I could be of service let's move right along to this week's bottom line shall we pundits have often referred to the iphone as the jesus phone well on this week's tap that up Josh Lowensohn has found a Holy Trinity of games for the iphone and ipad that will actually let you play God or at least a god welcome to tap that app I'm Josh Lowensohn and this is the show where we cover the hottest apps in the mobile space this week we're looking at apps that lets you play God all three of them are iPhone games that put you in complete control of a virtual world where you can do good or bad sure their time wasters but some of the ones on this list can be just as fun and addictive is full game titles let's start off with pocket god from bolt creative which is probably the best-known God game on the iphone and one of the best-selling iOS games to date since launching in january of last year it's been updated with 33 content updates all of which have added mini games and activities you can do with the game's pygmy tribe the game provides a number of ways to end the lives of these virtual people be it feeding them to the Sharks burning them with a magnifying glass striking them with the lightning and even harpooning them underwater and bringing them back to life is as easy as hitting a little plus button in the top left hand corner but there's more to the game than merciless death you can help your pygmies catch fish fend off bad guys and pass the time by dancing to the beat of your finger tapping the screen there are also mini games galore like a spinoff to the popular iOS game doodle jump and a cliff jumping game similar to the also popular Canabalt along with the basics the game offers a number of add-ons that lets you reskin the characters and their surroundings as well as add new animations these costs a dollar a pack and are entirely optional but are a nice addition to big fans of the game up next is God finger from ng moco a game that has you micromanaging the lives of your followers who you can get to do manual labor and return for coins the game has you expanding the world in erecting buildings terraforming mountains controlling weather cycles in creating bodies of water the aim of the game is to get more and more followers and to keep up the energy of your workers and the building's they're working on both of which can be replenished with mana mana regenerates but sometimes not quickly enough more can be purchased using in-game currency which is bought with real world dollars similar to other ng moko freemium games godfinger is free of charge and can be played without spending a penny although if you want to build up your world quickly and spend less time micromanaging your followers you can spend a few bucks godfinger can be found on both the iphone and the ipad but between the two the iPad is both better looking and easier to play oftentimes you'll be pulling a follower from one side of your virtual planet to the other and this has made less of a hassle with a larger play space it's also easier to see more of the game store items at once last on our list is finger Zilla by a nerd soap this to buck title is easily the most manic of the bunch and puts less of a focus on helping small people survive versus letting you destroy anything and everything in sight in finger Zilla you are a destroyer of worlds and you can blow up buildings automobiles army vehicles and just about anything with your finger much of the gameplay depends on you simply mashing your finger on the screen though making use of the iphones multi-touch screen lets you play with several fingers or a friend to rack up higher scores there is also a strategy in working on a certain part of the city and its landmarks before the citizens can rebuild them the game has seven levels that are ready and willing to be destroyed as you gain access to later levels they're larger and there are more things you can destroy there are also extra levels and power-ups that can be bought including a mutation pack which brings extra destruction and an add-on that gives you more time within levels at the end of each time level you get a summary of how much damage you caused which includes things like helicopters buildings and people that you squashed iPad users looking to try the game out can pick up finger zilla megacity which brings the same gameplay mechanics but lets you see more of that on the screen at once so these are just three absolutes you play God and based on their success more likely on the way don't forget that if you've got an app that you want us to tap send us an email at tap that app at cnet com I'm Josh Lowensohn and thanks for watching the bottom line this week thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's apps actually aren't most iphone users self righteous enough without giving them a real god complex just kidding everyone just kidding and that's our show everyone join us next week when we will have a whopper of a prize fight between two big 4g phones until then there are tons of great videos available every day at CNN TV com see you next time and thank you for watching