Hardware Journal

My Rendition of Kind-of-Ultra-mobile PC

My Western Digital My Passport Essential 160GB USB 2.0 Portable Hard Drive (Midnight Black) provides me with a surprising opportunity. I can use the virtual machines stored on my Passport to plug into any desktop ready to run VMware. This is my new definition of a “docking station.” I am actually considering bicycle riding with my Passport (in its padded case) to the W2 labor camp!

“iPhone 3G’s true cost is $1,237”

The valleywag says, “iPhone 3G’s true cost is $1,237.” It seems most healthy for me to see the iPhone as a multi-purpose device in a walled garden in a glided cage. For the new $199 price I am tempted to move on this. But, as the MacBreak crew talks, monthly costs can climb into uncertainty—and what about international roaming? However what seems the conservative thing to do is to find the cheapest blue-tooth phone and use the AT&T GoPhone® plan—however, this ghetto alternative means that I will never need to handle modest Exchange email traffic on the go… So I might just go for the new iPhone…

“ASUS Xonar U1 USB Audio Device Announced”

laptoping.com: “Asustek has introduced the ASUS Xonar U1 external USB audio device, aimed to provide laptop and desktop PC users with an improved audio experience.” This device might be an alternative to the little SPDIF dongle tied to my Dell portable.

Flirting with the Dell XPS

At this date and time I am almost sure that a portable computer made by Apple is in my future. (There are, however, rumors about some Dell Inspiron “Studio” machines coming out soon that might make me avoid a trip to the Genius Bar.) So, for the sake of research and historical coherence, here is a table of Dell XPS specs:

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