Super Talent USB Flash Drives are coming to a store near you and no, you will not have to pay extra just because of the super fast transfer speeds.  The “Express Duo” is the newest flash drive from Super Talent and the price point is very nice on your wallet.  For only $14 you can get a USB 3.0 flash drive and enjoy the luxury for a little bit less than expected.

At 8GB of storage and about 67/MBs, the Express Duo is pretty fast for an expensive flash drive.  If you are all about large file transfers for work, or play, there isn’t any reason you won’t want  a couple of these around.  The 16GB version is also available for about $30.

What is the best price?

Well, the Super Talent products are about $15 less than other 16GB versions found at large electronics websites.  You are saving with ease and a product like this makes it more obvious that price comparison shopping is where it’s at.  Load up on these bad boys and enjoy speedy file transfers and plenty of space for backup if needed.

There are so many different types of laptops on the market today, how do you choose the one that will satisfy your needs? Some laptops have larger screens or more memory and some are just thinner than the rest. How do you decide which one will work for you?

I am a Dell guy, I am not going to lie. Every since I have been purchasing Dell computers, I have had little issues and I like that I can customize every aspect of the purchase. That takes care of the brand, but what about the specs? I, personally, like to have a reasonably larger screen because I am always doing more than one thing at a time, even on a laptop. If I am able to open up a couple of windows, or programs, and see everything at a glance, that is perfect for me.

I also know that to have many processes running at one time, you need a RAM boost. I like to hit up the 2GB range minimum and then always make sure that I am able to upgrade to at least double that for the future. Hard drive size really isn’t that important for my laptop as I save all my important files on a desktop and then I just up the GB’s until the cows come home. That way, as long as I have enough space on my laptop to get programs running and save minor items, 100GB or so is plenty.

That is pretty much all I look at. There are random other things like graphics cards, processors or motherboards that I could fit into my customization, but those things aren’t as important to me as they are in my main computer. So for that, I just skip and go with what is recommended by Dell.

Do you shop for your laptop by brand, hit up the best prices, or search out a complete customization?  Maybe you do all of the above and that’s what you like!

**The reasons I give in this post are based on things that I think are important when owning one or the other, you opinions may vary from mine and that is fine, let me know about them in the comments section!**

Flat screen televisions are popping up all over the place and the prices are coming down faster than Tiger’s ex-wife with a 9 iron.  You cannot get enough information about flat panel tv’s with all of the brands, cable options, contrast ratios, sizes, colors and HD-ness.  It sure makes it hard to come up with a conclusion that will make your family happy for years to come.  We know that the new televisions are NOT going to last as long as the old 2-ton console tv’s we are used to, but I really wanted to weigh in on the reasons I would choose a flat panel tv over an HD projector for my first HD experience.

Reasons I Like a Flat Panel Television Over a Projector

1. I feel like I have more options, at a better price when it comes to picture quality with a flat panel tv.  With a projector, no matter the brand, there are a ton of outside influences on the quality of picture and overall experience.
   The projector is effected by setup.  You have to know the right viewing distance, surface to project on and lighting in the room to get the best optimal experience.
2. With a flat panel tv you really need less room to enjoy the experience.  The whole purpose of the flat panel is to take up less room.  Now, if you are a lucky person that picked up the Mitsubishi 82″, then your room might have to be a bit larger than normal.  But if you are like most, your averaged size living room will do just fine with a 40″-55″ television.
   With a projector, if you want to see a 100+ inch screen (which is awesome by the way) you are going to need plenty of room just for that.  This means the possibility of using up one whole room in the house, or a section of your basement just for home theater purposes.  This can get a bit pricey in that you are either customizing a room or losing space in your home, such as additional bedroom or den.
3. The setting up of additional equipment can be a bit easier with a flat panel.  Most Blu Ray disc players, xBox360′s, cable boxes or surround sound is located right under the TV.  With a projector, it is typically setup behind you and all the above listed equipment is setup there too.  Now, try changing the settings with your remote.  Of course, you’ll have to reach behind you to do so.  That makes things less enjoyable in my opinion.

I know there aren’t as many people, average people, that have a projector setup, but there are some that went that route because they have the extra room.  Even still, I think that for your money (now) you can get a much better overall theater type high definition experience going with a quality flat panel television.  When you finally win the lottery or somehow can afford to purchase another television, maybe take a look at some of the HD projectors as an option.

As far as being the first time you upgrade from your 27″ squealing box tv, I would upgrade right to an easy-to-use flat panel that you can find just about anywhere.

ESPN has always been a leader in the sports world when it comes to all the sports you can pack onto one channel.  Take that note and add the fact that the network is going to be the first to go 3 dimensions.  That is right, ESPN is going 3D in June 2010.

The network is going to show a minimum of 85 live sports events during the first year and the first one is going to be a FIFA World Cup match South Africa vs Mexico.  There are plenty of other events, but the ones announced so far include 2011 BCS National Championship Game, college basketball, football, 25 World Cup matches and the Summer XGames!

I personally think that watching sports in 3D might be a little hard on the brain at first.  But once the headache is all worked out, it would be quite an experience.  ESPN has been testing the technology for about 2 years now and the CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association is claiming this as the “turning point for 3-D”.

ESPN will be the first to offer this experience and this rockets them to the forefront of the next big advance for TV viewing.  (Source: ESPN)

Search, cell phones, RSS feeds, code, documents, blogs, Gmail, picture editing, 3d drawing, plus 100′s of applications for everything you can think of.  Do you think that Google is taking over the world?  As one that is very good at getting around the web, checking out the newest apps and gadgets, I think that Google has a very tight hold…..oh whatever they want.

Today I read that Google is checking into creating their own cell phone.  Can you believe this?  A couple years ago I was excited to hear that Google might hook us up with free wireless internet (called TiSP) and now they have come so far in other places.  Right now the free in home wireless internet is in BETA and you can see 8 signs it’s coming right here.

So, the main news this morning was about the Google Phone.  The phone, called the “Nexus One” has many questions around it, but the main one is who is going to buy it and can Google top other models selling on the web like hot cakes?

Apparently, there will be an option for an unlocked phone, as well as, a phone that is hooked with T-Mobile and their network.  At least you have the option right away, unlike some phones that have come out recently.  Of course, Google can pay for this type of thing through advertising.  Google has mastered the technique of getting ads to people in the smallest spaces on the web.  If they can do this with the phone, Google will stand to make millions more serving ads to it’s phone users.

Critics say the system could fail like the “free PC’s” system that was unvailed a couple years ago.  Users got a free PC with ads displaying and that kept the cost to the manufacturer to a minimum.  The PC’s failed because the speeds were slow and users complained the ads being served took up valuable PC resources.  Can this happen to Google too?

In my opinion Google will not let this happen and has the knowledge, technology and money to make sure of that.  That doesn’t mean Google will not fail at it, but they have a very low % of failure based on the resources available.

Just announced, Xbox is adding new features on the next mandatory update coming up November 17th, 2009.  As soon as you turn your system on the update will occur so make sure you do that as soon as you can.  Why, you ask?  Because the updates are awesome and well worth it.  Let me explain.

New Updates for Xbox November 17 Include

Connect with Facebook – we all know that it was only a matter of time before Xbox would finally join up with Facebook to allow users to connect to friends, share photos or status updates and even excellent gaming moments right from your TV.

Twitter your kill count – now you will be able to keep all of your friends updated via Twitter right from your Xbox.  Why even have a computer?  The Xbox updates are extremely timely since all of the social networking done these days is done from just about anywhere BUT your computer.  Log on to see your friends posts, reply to tweets or send your mood across the whole Twitter network after some noob just flash bombed your ass from behind.

Get custom music with Last.FM – explore over 3.5 million songs in the Last.FM library, right from your Xbox.  Gold members are able to “love”, “ban” or skip songs in an attempt to create the best radio station ever.  You are the DJ and now you can listen to ALL of your favorite songs right from the best gaming and entertainment console on the planet!

Watch HD 1080p Videos from Zune – Now you are going to flip!  Zune brings you the highest quality HD videos to your Xbox download free and with NO delay!  Watch the TV shows and movies you want in streaming 1080p and 5.1 surround sound.  The “instant on” streams of high quality good-ness will blow your mind and don’t forget your high speed broadband, HDMI cables and HDTV capable television for this option.

Xbox is really starting to come alive.  What other features could Microsoft possibly add that would make the overall experience better?

Since we all know that you are on Twitter just like everyone else, I thought I would put up a list of the 5 reasons to use the Twitter application known as, TweetDeck.  I have been a member of Twitter for about 2 years now and, at first, really didn’t understand the whole concept, but now that many have found ways to profit from the service, more and more apps are coming out to make the possibility of making money even more real.

Enter TweetDeck

TweetDeck is one of those applications.  Simplifying your Twitter driven lifestyle one update at a time.  Here are the 5 reason I think you should be using TweetDeck.

#1 More Accounts

Supports multiple accounts, including Facebook. With one simple click you can have all of your accounts updated right in front of you.

#2 Added Visibility

You can add columns for search terms, mentions of a member, or just your friends feed.  Keeping an eye on trends?  Add a search column within the application and it will update each time the search terms are used.  This will allow you to keep an eye on topics of interest and possibly give you the chance to add like mind users.

#3 Quiet in the Background

Runs on your desktop, in the background, and you can tweet or search without even logging into the Twitter.com site.

#4 Time Saver

Allows you to keep in touch with MORE people, much FASTER and more EFFICIENTLY.

#5 The Cost

It’s FREE for LIFE!

The reasons might be quite simple, but they are my top 5 reasons for using TweetDeck.  One drawback I did find was not downloading it much sooner in my Twitter career.  Do you have any tips to add to this list?  Please send them to @consumrtechblog or leave a comment below!

If you thought that your xBox was the sweetest thing on the block because of some hack or upgrade, think again.  Xbox just annouced they have banned 1 million plus LIVE accounts because of modified consoles.
In a statment from Wednesday, xBox says:

“All consumers should know that piracy is illegal and that modifying their Xbox 360 console violates the Xbox Live terms of use, will void their warranty and result in a ban from Xbox Live,” Microsoft said in a statement Wednesday.

Apparently, most of the gamers have modified their consoles, or downloaded games illegally from file sharing websites.  File sharing websites have been quite popular lately and with the brains of many people working together, consoles and games can be hacked to play on the xBox console.  The simple fact that you bought a new xbox case isn’t going to get your banned.  It’s really more about the gamers that have taken it a step further to download and play retail copies of games, they did not purchase.

Don’t get me wrong, there are some pretty cool xBox mods out there, but most of them should be cosmetic.  In some cases, gamers have upgraded the hard drive to a larger one because it will hold more media, but in fact, that console might be blacklisted and will not work online from that point.

Some stores are seeing an increase in xBox’s that have been traded in, purchased and then returned again because “they do not work”.  When in fact, the console has been blacklisted and there is nothing anyone can do with it from that point forward.

Taken directly from the Microsoft Terms of 9/2008:

“Terms of Use” agreement, as of September 2008, Microsoft says that players are to use “only authorized software and hardware to access the Service,” and that they agree that their software and hardware “have not been modified in any unauthorized way … and that we have the right to send data, applications or other content to any software or hardware that you are using to access the Service for the express purpose of detecting an unauthorized modification.”

In addition, “any attempt to disassemble, decompile, create derivative works of, reverse engineer, modify, further sublicense, distribute, or use for other purposes the Service, any game, application, or other content available or accessible through the Service, or any hardware or software associated with the Service or with an original Xbox or Xbox 360 console is strictly prohibited and may result in cancellation of your account and/or your ability to access the Service, and the pursuit of other legal remedies by Microsoft.”

I think that is quite clear and there isn’t any need to guess as to what is not accepted. Of course, some people can twist words and take the policy their own way, but I think that if you read it carefully, you should be able to see what is not accepted by Microsoft!