Archive for July, 2007

Good points Cayla. One thing to note however. With cell p…

Cayla wrote: room.   Bluetooth offers several security modes. When any other device tries to establish a connection to your device, you have to decide to allow it. Security methods include authorization and identification procedures that limit the use of Bluetooth services and require that you make a conscious decision to open a file or accept a data transfer. As long as these measures are enabled on the your phone or other device, unauthorized access is unlikely. You can also simply switch your Bluetooth mode to "non-discoverable" and avoid connecting with other Bluetooth devices entirely.     Good points Cayla. One thing to note however. With cell phones it is still possible for someone to Bluetooth into your phone, even without you giving authorization (if your phone is on discoverable). This is especially true of Motorola devices. This does not occur on all cell phones, but most. Once someone is bluetoothed into your phone, they can do nasty things like make calls, surf the internet using your phones internet, and access your address book. This is why it is important to ALWAYS turn your Bluetooth discoverability OFF when you are not using it. That's what I mean when I say insecurity :P Cheers,

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Hi,   Bluetooth is essentially, as said, a wireless conne…

Hi,   Bluetooth is essentially, as said, a wireless connection. Like most wireless connections, it uses a radio frequency; 2.45 gigahertz (between 2.402 GHz and 2.480 GHz). It avoids interference by transmitting a weak signal (a 10m range), doesn't require a line of sight, and can connect up to 8 devices simultaneously. Bluetooth 1.0 has a maximum transfer speed of 1 Mpbs, 2.0 has 3 Mbps.   Bluetooth uses a technique called spread-spectrum frequency hopping that makes it rare for more than one device to be transmitting on the same frequency at the same time. In this technique, a device will use 79 individual, randomly chosen frequencies within a designated range, changing from one to another on a regular basis. The transmitters change frequencies 1,600 times every second, so it’s unlikely that two transmitters will be on the same frequency at the same time. This same technique minimizes the risk of disruption, since any interference on a particular frequency will last only a tiny fraction of a second.   When Bluetooth-capable devices come within range of one another, an electronic conversation takes place. The devices then form a personal-area network (PAN), or piconet. Once a piconet is established, the devices randomly hop frequencies in unison so they stay in touch with one another and avoid other piconets that may be operating in the same room.   Bluetooth offers several security modes. When any other device tries to establish a connection to your device, you have to decide to allow it. Security methods include authorization and identification procedures that limit the use of Bluetooth services and require that you make a conscious decision to open a file or accept a data transfer. As long as these measures are enabled on the your phone or other device, unauthorized access is unlikely. You can also simply switch your Bluetooth mode to "non-discoverable" and avoid connecting with other Bluetooth devices entirely.     Hope this clears things up! Let me know if you have any further questions :smileyhappy: -Cayla

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For what it’s worth, and I’m thinking this is moreso what…

For what it's worth, and I'm thinking this is moreso what you were meaning; It's better to save your money and purchase a computer that is higher end at the time of purchase. An example would be to purchase a computer with a dual core processor, or even a quad core processor, over a cheap single core processor. You'll be able to upgrade it easier down the road, getting more life out of your computer, whereas, with a cheaper one, you'll be at the bottom end of the upgrading chain. But, as everyone else is saying, don't wait forever. Set a goal for how much you need to save up, while watching prices/specs. Keep up to date on the newest technologies by going in to your local Future Shop and checking out our newest stock, or even checking them online. :) And now that we have the forums up and running, if you have any questions, you can ask them right here!

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I personally hate waiting for anything so your best bet i…

I personally hate waiting for anything so your best bet is to build a custom rig that contains a motherboard which is equipped with the latest technology (socket lga 775 [core 2 ready], ddr2 pc 6400 or more, pci-e slot, etc.). This way you can have a decent computer now and won't have to buy a completely new system later on. If building sounds intimidating to you then you can always ask a Future Shop representative to help you find a retail computer with a mobo that reaches the expectations above.

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I’m assuming you didn’t accidentally mean "more expe…

I'm assuming you didn't accidentally mean "more expensive now or cheaper later". Assuming you don't want to play the newest and most graphically intensive games, I'd wait until you can get a decent workhorse processor and RAM wise, and then keep that for a long time. Powerful computers from 2003 can still get the job done today! They may not be as fast as the top of the line now, but if you buy a cheap computer now and a cheap computer in two years, you won't have the enjoyment of being at the top of the totem pole, so to speak :) I'm speaking from my own preference obviously, and everything said above me is completely true. You don't want to keep putting off your purchase, waiting for the latest and greatest, but to me it doesn't sound like that type of situation. If you take my advice, make sure you ask the expert about the product service plan that we offer. It's a good way to make sure that the awesome computer you bought doesn't cause problems a year and a half down the line... I know the pain :(

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you really do have to settle down eventually though, beca…

you really do have to settle down eventually though, because you will always be at the same point when your buying. There will always be something brand new out withing 3 months that will blow yours out of the water. So just wait the longest amount of time, or until you see something released and go out and buy it right off the bat. At least then you will have the jump on technology for a few weeks.

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Ah. If I had a dime everytime this question has been aske…

Ah. If I had a dime everytime this question has been asked. :-) If you wait for the next best thing, you wait to see if something else better will come along. You will wait and wait and wait. at some point you will have to take the plunge and accept that whatever you buy will be oudated by next week. I am also looking for a computer but I will buy after this month since Intel is expected to slash their prices. Maybe I can afford a quad core at that point!! ;-)

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Is it better to buy a cheaper computer now or wait a while longer to buy a more expencive but better computer?

Is it better to buy a cheaper computer now or wait a while longer to buy a more expencive but better computer?

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AMD Processor numbering

As explained on AMD's website , the second letter in AMD processor models is determined (in alphabetic order) by the level of mobility of the processor (mobility is defined by power consumption, lower consumption = longer battery life). Therefore a TL processor will have higher mobility, and therefore better batter life, than a TK model processor. Hope that helps and thanks for the question!

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Difference between AMD TL-56 vs AMD TK-53 Processors

Does anyone know the main differences between these two laptop processors?

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