The next time someone tells you that he/she is going to give you a call from their Gmail, try not to look as though they escaped from a nearby mental asylum. After all, it always remains to your advantage to be as cool as a cucumber regardless of the situation that unfurls, and to ask questions if you aren’t sure so as not to assume. This is where being knowledgeable comes in handy, and if you were to take this post into heart, it might just save you from future social faux pas situations. Google has just announced that they will allow you to make phone calls through Gmail – yes, something that we never really thought of was possible until today. No longer do you need to have two parties sitting in front of their computers to dial one another – why not just call the other person using your Gmail account? How does this kind of technological wizardry work? Well, let us get to the good news first – calls to the US and Canada will be free for at least the rest of the year, while those who are living in other countries will be billed really, really low rates. According to Google, they did work pretty hard to make sure these rates are competitively cheap, where you can start chatting to folks in the U.K., France, Germany, China and Japan amongst others from as low as $0.02 per minute. Yup, that’s right – it does make you wonder whether other VoIP companies will be able to compete on that front this time round. Dialing a phone number is easy peasy, working just like a standard phone. You click “Call phone” at the top of your chat list and dial a number or enter a contact’s name, and you’re good to go. Perfect if you want to make a quick call somewhere, or if the restaurant you’re at has really bad reception but a free Wi-Fi service – now how about that? Should you happen to have a Google Voice phone number, calls made from Gmail will display this number as the outbound caller ID. Heck, you can even set the settings to receive calls made to this number right inside Gmail.
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Hearing aids can be quite the obtrusive device for those of you who are conscious about how people will perceive you, as it hangs around your ear. While technological advances have come a long way to make hearing aids more discrete, they aren’t quite invisible yet for the average model. Apart from that, we also have headphones which tend to be bulky, although using a pair at home shouldn’t be too much of a fashion faux pas as nobody but the kids are there to poke fun at you. Why not silence them with the Beltone True? This is a new generation of virtually invisible hearing instruments which will wirelessly receive sound directly from TV, cell/home phone, stereo, PC, iPod or any audio device via a 2.4 GHz signal. The True works by enabling hearing-impaired users to comfortably converse with those nearby while retaining the ability to listen to music or watching their favorite TV program. Hmmm, doing both at once might not be recommended since you might lose your train of thought and be considered as having senility creeping in, but otherwise the True will be able to deliver excellent sound quality while doing away completely the embarrassing high-pitched whistling of hearing aids of old. Since it works differently from other wireless hearing instrument products in the market, it will not require you to wear a relay device around your neck that could end up being more cumbersome than imagined. Beltone True’s wireless innovation comes in the form of its new integrated circuit. It is twice as fast and holds quadruple the memory, where it allows the circuit to make wireless connections to other devices without any audible delay. A remote control lets you adjust each hearing aid’s volume independently, alongside its sound quality. Features include Direct TV Link, Direct Phone Link, Feedback Eraser and Speech Spotter Pro to get you started right out of the box.
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Nikon knows that the DSLR market has been growing from strength to strength as the prices of such devices drop due to advancements in technology, while the rest of the world is better able to afford said shooters which were once the domain of professionals and rich. Enter the Nikon D3100, the latest entry level Nikon DX-format digital SLR camera that comes equipped with a new CMOS image sensor developed by Nikon as well as a new image-processing engine which is more than able to capture high-definition images that exhibit superior image quality, alongside a Guide mode that enables users to capture images just the way they intend to. Not only that, the Nikon D3100 
will be released wih the AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR lens kit. One of the more common complaints about people who moved from a compact digital camera to a DSLR would be controls which are a whole lot more difficult to master. Nikon hopes to turn the tables around with the D3100, of course, by equipping it with a Guide mode that displays instructions for the most basic camera operations for shooting, image playback and editing and the application of camera settings, all smack within the camera monitor itself. This is not the first camera to feature such guidance as its predecessor, the Nikon D3000 that rolled out in August last year, have proved to be extremely popular among its users, hence making another appearance this time round. Apart from that, a new DX-format CMOS image sensor was developed by Nikon to complement its new image-processing engine known as EXPEED 2. Both will work in tandem to enable the capture of images which exhibit excellent image quality and definition. The D3100 will also come with a live view function that allows one to frame images in the monitor, whereas the D-Movie function will deliver support for high-definition movie recording. Despite offering an authentic DSLR camera performance, it will also help you move around in a more mobile manner thanks to its extremely lightweight (relatively speaking, of course) body. This 14.2 megapixel shooter will feature an SD/SDHC/SDXC memory card slot and retail for $699 as it hits the market this September.
Get it here - Nikon D3100
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Apple has stayed true to form, unveiling a new line of iMacs for the masses this time round to up the ante by making what is widely regarded as the world’s best desktop computers even better. The new all-in-one iMac line will feature the latest Intel Core i3, Core i5 and Core i7 processors, depending on your needs as well as budget, not to mention powerful new graphics that shouldn’t leave your computer chugging when it comes to heavy duty applications. Pricing isn’t too far out of reach for most people either, starting from $1,199 upwards depending on your computing needs. This new iMac line is the fastest ever with dual-core processor speeds up to 3.6GHz, while those who opt for quad-core processors will be able to see speeds of up to 2.93GHz alongside discrete graphics that include the powerful ATI Radeon HD 5750. The new range of processors will come with an integrated memory controller that helps it access the system memory directly, letting the iMac take full advantage of its faster 1333 MHz memory. Thanks to the discrete ATI Radeon HD processor, it is more than capable of delivering incredibly smooth, crisp graphics for even the most demanding and advanced 3D games, creative software and technical applications. With In-Plane Switching (IPS) technology, the iMac can deliver a brilliant image across a wide 178 degree viewing angle. Nice to see Apple also throw in an SD memory card slot which also supports the new SDXC memory card standard, making it possible to add another 64GB or so of memory to the cause when required. If you happen to have a penchant for the 27″ iMac, then you can also opt for a 256GB solid state drive (SSD) as a primary or secondary drive for a greater performance and storage boost, since the iMac SSD supports up to 215 MB/s data transfer rates for faster startup and application launch times. Each purchase of the iMac will be accompanied by Apple’s innovative Magic Mouse, with the option to bring home the new Magic trackpad as well for an added fee. You will also find that the Apple iMac
will ship with Mac OS X Snow Leopard, alongside iLife, Apple’s innovative suite of applications for managing photos, making movies and creating and learning to play music. Do you think it is time to upgrade your iMac?
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