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Techradar |
- Panasonic GF3: new release to be the smallest Lumix G camera
- Hands on: Panasonic GF3 review
- Panasonic: advanced GF camera to come
- Apple MacBook Air refresh arriving Wednesday?
- iCloud sues Apple
- Spotify signs Universal deal for US streaming?
- Tutorial: Windows shortcuts to save you time and hassle
- Review: Audio Analogue Maestro
- Review: M2Tech Young DAC
- In Depth: 17 things we'd change about names in Linux
- Review: Jamo wEAR In30
- Review: XTZ 99.26
- Windows 8 to have Xbox Live integration
| Panasonic GF3: new release to be the smallest Lumix G camera Posted: 12 Jun 2011 11:00 PM PDT Panasonic has unveiled the latest – and smallest – of its Lumix G cameras with its announcement of the new Panasonic Lumix GF3 interchangeable lens camera. Jump to: Panasonic GF3 hands-on review Boasting a Micro Four Thirds 12.1-megapixel Live MOS sensor and a Venus Engine VII HD images processor, the Panasonic GF3 claims DSLR-like image quality in its small, compact design, which measures just 107.5 x 67.1 x 32mm.
At these measurements, the Panasonic GF3 is 17% smaller and 16% lighter than the Lumix GF2. Beyond its slimmed down design, the Panasonic GF3 also offers Full HD video recording with full time AF and AF Tracking. The GF3 carries on the Panasonic GF2's touch screen functionality via the new Lumix camera's 3in, 460,000-dot LCD, while adding the recently announced Lumix G3's Pinpoint AF mode which can be set with a touch of the finger on the LCD. In burst shooting, the Panasonic GF3 can shoot 4fps at full resolution, while AF speed is measured at approximately 0.18 seconds (using the Lumix G VARIO HD 14-140mm f/4-5.8).
Other key features include a new control wheel that lets you scroll through your images, as well as the GF3's key functions, and a built-in flash. Available in five colours, the Panasonic GF3 release date and price have yet to be confirmed. 
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| Hands on: Panasonic GF3 review Posted: 12 Jun 2011 11:00 PM PDT The Panasonic GF3 is so small that at first glance you could be forgiven for confusing this latest Lumix camera with Panasonic's top-end compact camera, the LX5. Unlike the Panasonic LX5, however, the Lumix GF3 accepts interchangeable lenses and it is the company's smallest interchangeable lens camera to date.
The reduction in size has in part been achieved by a redesign of the lens mount box. When it was unveiled to a select group of journalists, Panasonic believed it to be the world's smallest interchangeable lens camera, but the manufacturer has been pipped to that particular post by the recent announcement of the Sony NEX-C3, which measures 109.6mm x 60 x 33mm, while the GF3 is 107.5 x 67.1 x 32mm. Nevertheless, the Panasonic GF3 is still 17% smaller and 16% lighter than the GF2 (read our Panasonic GF2 review) and it makes a significant difference to the camera's look and feel. A few changes to the controls since the GF2, however, mean that the camera is a little more comfortable in the hand and easier to use. Like the GF2, the Panasonic GF3 has a 3in, 460,000 dot touchscreen. There are also a few direct controls, though, including a new jog-dial (a first for a Panasonic G series camera) on the camera back which is useful for speedy menu navigation and setting adjustment.
The jog-dial also works as a four-way controller (there is a secondary four-way controller within it) and there are shortcut buttons to access the exposure, AF area selection, white balance and drive mode options. Though it is simple itself to operate, the shortcut markings are in white and are quite hard to see in some lights.
Audience Although it is small, the Panasonic GF3 houses a Four Thirds-type sensor and while it is primarily aimed at novice photographers looking for something a bit more than a compact camera, it is bound to attract the attention of enthusiasts as well. Panasonic's LX5 is a popular model with enthusiast photographers who want a camera they can slip in their pocket when they leave their larger DSLR or (earlier) compact system camera (CSC) at home, and the GF3 may give them pause for thought.
Panasonic says that the GF2 is set to continue, with the newer Lumix GF3 slipping in below it in the line-up.
Above: The Panasonic LX5 (left) next to the Panasonic GF3 (right). Quick Menu Like the recently launched Panasonic G3 (read our Panasonic G3 review), the Lumix GF3 has a Quick Menu that can be accessed via a button on the back of the camera (near) the bottom, or by touching the appropriate icon on-screen.
Conveniently, this menu is customisable, and by dragging and dropping icons it is possible to specify which features can be accessed and in what order they appear.
When activated, the Quick Menu can be navigated and options selected using either the touchscreen or the jog-dial and its central Menu/Set button. It works very well and manages to suit those who like button or dial controls, as well as touchscreen aficionados.
If you are comfortable with using the Touchscreen icon to access the Quick Menu, the dedicated button (which is also labelled Fn) can be assigned to access one of 15 features (including AE lock). Mode selection Many Panasonic GF1 (read our Panasonic GF1 review) users were disappointed by what seemed liked dumbing down of their camera to produce the GF2. The Lumix GF3 doesn't correct the major complaints – there's still no mode dial for example, but its small size and improved handling makes considerable recompense for this.
Exposure mode is selected either by pressing the Menu button and selecting the Rec Mode option to bring up the options, or by touching the icon in the top left of the screen to make the options available. It may not be quite a quick as turning a dial, but it only takes a couple of seconds.
Images One surprise with the Panasonic GF3 is that rather than having the 15.8-million-pixel Live MOS sensor of the Lumix G3, it has a 12.1-million-pixel Live MOS device.
This lower resolution device has been used extensively by Panasonic and it is capable of recording an impressive level of detail. Once the full production models are available it will be interesting to see if how this sensor performs when coupled with the advances Panasonic has made in noise control and the Venus Engine VII HD processing engine (pictured below).
The Panasonic GF3 I used was close to being a final production model, but there may still be a few adjustments made that can alter image quality. That said, the results look good. There's plenty of detail, exposures are good when left in the hands of the Multiple metering system and the auto white balance system does an excellent job in natural light. Shooting in a mixture of bright sun and deep shadows, there were very few occasions where it was necessary to use the exposure compensation facility. Autofocus Like the Lumix G3, the GF3 has Panasonic's new Pinpoint AF mode in addition to the AF Tracking, 23-Area, 1-Area and Face detection AF modes we have seen before on previous Lumix cameras. Pinpoint AF mode allows the AF point to be positioned anywhere on the LCD with just a touch of the finger. It's similar to 1-Area AF, but a key difference is that the target area is magnified on screen as the shutter release button is depressed so that you can check the correct part of the scene is sharp. In reasonable light and when the subject has some contrast, the Panasonic GF3's AF system brings the scene quickly into focus. When Touch Shutter is activated the AF point is selected and the shutter fired by touching the Panasonic GF3's screen. It works extremely well and is incredibly useful for all sorts of situations, including street and social photography where there often isn't time to faff about with AF point selection controls. Touch Screen
As you might expect, it is sometimes a little hard to see the scene on the screen in the bright sunshine, especially once it is covered in fingerprints, but I didn't miss any shots because of it. It's worth noting here that the Panasonic GF3 doesn't have an accessory port, so it isn't possible to use an external viewfinder. Built-in Flash The curved top of the Panasonic GF3 houses a small pop-up flash unit that's springs to life enthusiastically at the press of the designated button on the back of the camera.
It only has a guide number of 6m @ ISO 100, but it's useful for adding a bit of fill-in light or illuminating party shots, etc. I will want to test it further when the final production sample arrives, but the model I had performed well and using it resulted in good exposures. The Panasonic GF3 looks great and is perfectly balanced with the Lumix 14mm f/2.5 pancake lens mounted. This optic is likely to be the choice of enthusiast photographers who understand the benefits of a wideangle lens with large maximum aperture. This lens is available bundled with the Panasonic GF3 with a retail price of £549. Panasonic's 14-42mm is a more versatile optic, producing an effective focal length range of 28-84mm. It is more likely to be the first lens choice of novice photographers and can be bought in a kit with the GF3 priced £499.
Those who are torn between the two lens options may like to plump for the twin lens kit that includes both the 14mm pancake and the 14-42mm optics with a price tag of £629.
Touch Shutter mode is very useful for candid photography
Having a sensor that is much larger than the averag compact camera sensor means there plenty of control over depth of field. Note also the excellent white balance performance in the mixed lighting.
Though it's not the ideal sports camera, the GF3's continuous AF system managed to keep up with this skater as he moved nearer
The GF3's Multi zone metering system has coped well here
Shot with the 14mm f/2.5 pancake lens wide open to restrict depth of field
The Panasonic GF3 is small enough to not draw any unwanted attention when shooting out and about
Colour reproduction appears to be generally very good Panasonic is aiming the Lumix GF3 at novice photographers who want to upgrade from a compact camera, and on the basis of my time spent with it, I think it's a great choice for these users.
However, the Panasonic GF3 will also be of interest to enthusiasts who want a camera to slip in their jacket pocket. The Panasonic GF3's aluminium chassis gives it a high-quality feel, and it seems like a camera that will survive being taken on your travels. Panasonic has managed to simplify the handling without losing much in the way of control. Although Panasonic has put a lot of work into reducing the level of noise in the images produced by its Lumix G series cameras, their strength is still their performance in bright or 'average' lighting conditions. On the face of it, the Panasonic GF3 appears to be an ideal alternative to a compact camera. It offers good image quality, an extensive range of controls and simple, yet sophisticated, handling. I can't wait to get my hands on a full production sample! 
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| Panasonic: advanced GF camera to come Posted: 12 Jun 2011 11:00 PM PDT Panasonic intends to release a Lumix GF camera aimed at advanced photographers, the company has confirmed to our colleagues at PhotoRadar. Speaking exclusively to PhotoRadar's Head of Testing, Angela Nicholson, Panasonic's Director of DSC Business unit Ichiro Kitao said that although he was unable to confirm a date for such a camera, Panasonic plans to split the GF series into two lines and release a GF camera aimed at experienced photographers. This news will be welcomed by many owners of Panasonic's first GF series camera, the Lumix GF1, which is a popular choice for street and reportage photography. Panasonic GF1 users were largely disappointed by what has been referred to as 'dumbing down' of the camera line for the GF2, which has fewer direct control buttons than the Panasonic GF1, most notably there's no mode dial or AE lock, and has a touchscreen. Though the Panasonic GF3 is also aimed at novices wanting to upgrade from a compact model, it has more refined handling than the GF2 and is 17% smaller, which may make it attractive to enthusiasts. Kitao told us that the company's next priority is the GH series and bringing out a successor to the GH2. The GH series is Panasonic's premier camera line and is very important to the business, he added. Keeping pace with the improving image quality produced by APS-C format camera is a challenge for Panasonic, as it uses smaller Four Thirds-type sensors. Though they have some advantages over optical viewfinders, Kitao said he recognises that electronic viewfinders (EVFs) are still not widely popular and improving them is a key target – especially for the Panasonic GH3. Improving EVF resolution and refresh rate is a priority and Panasonic intends to liaise with its supplier, Epson, to achieve this. 
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| Apple MacBook Air refresh arriving Wednesday? Posted: 12 Jun 2011 09:25 AM PDT The expected 2011 refresh of the Apple MacBook Air may arrive as soon as this Wednesday. The renowned Apple leak-artist known as Chronic claimed on Twitter that he's "100 per cent sure" that the new iteration of the ultra-thin laptop will be landing in Apple retail stores on Wednesday morning. Meetings are thought to be happening at Apple Stores on Tuesday, which usually signals a new product will be hitting the shelves and Chronic is in no doubt that these will be the new Air laptops. The new MacBook Air refresh is expected to remain identical in terms of size and build, but is thought to include Intel's Sandy Bridge processors and the super-fast Thunderbird I/O technology. June production The revelation came following reports that Apple has placed an order for almost 400,000 new MacBook Airs to be produced during the month of June. Concord Securities analyst Ming Chi-Kou told the guys at AppleInsider that production of 11.6-inch and 13.3-inch models will be ongoing this month. He also reckons that Cupertino has ordered a final production run of 80,000 existing dual-core MacBook Airs, so the arrival of the refresh might not be as imminent as Chronic suggests. Another thing to note about this story is that, judging from his Twitter pic, Chronic is leading a double life as would-be Dragon King Vaseyrs Targerian from Game of Thrones. 
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| Posted: 12 Jun 2011 08:29 AM PDT The collective hearts of Arizona-based company iCloud Communications must have sank on Monday when Apple announced an online storage facility of the same name. But it seems that after three days of crying into their pints, those folks have picked themselves up off the floor and lodged an inevitable trademark infringement lawsuit. The company, which offers "Simple, Scalable, VoIP Solutions for Business and Residential" points out that it was using the iCloud name long before Apple announced its service at WWDC. Writ The writ demands that "all labels, signs, prints, insignia, letterhead, brochures, business cards, invoices and any other written or recorded material or advertisements" that use the name must be destroyed. The company also requests that "all monetary damages sustained and to be sustained... including lost profits and reasonable royalties" be taken care of by Apple. Disputes Apple has a long-running history of trademark disputes, with the battle over its rights to the term App Store making constant headlines, as well as its ongoing allegations that Samsung copied the iPhone and iPad. The iCloud Communications suit points out that Apple has serious history of treading on clearly marked toes. "Although Apple aggressively protects its trademark rights, Apple has a long and well known history of knowingly and willfully treading on the trademark rights of others - a history which began as early as the 1970s when Apple was first sued for trademark infringement by the Beatles record label, Apple Corp." It's hard not to feel a little bit sorry for the little guy here. Source: PC World 
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| Spotify signs Universal deal for US streaming? Posted: 12 Jun 2011 08:07 AM PDT Reports this weekend are claiming that our beloved music streaming service Spotify might finally be about to crack the US market after signing a deal with Universal. All Things Digital reckons that the agreement has been inked, meaning Spotify has three of the four major music labels in its corner, with only Warner Brothers standing in the way of a full house. EMI and Sony are believed to have signed the US distribution deals last year. The report claims that Warner might "cave in" pretty soon, meaning there'd be little standing in the way of Spotify taking its Premium service across the pond. iCloud threat It has been a long-standing ambition for Spotify to launch in North America, but those aims now seem to have a little more urgency following the launch of iTunes Match and iTunes in the Cloud last week. Also in the hunt for Spotify's space is the Amazon Cloud Drive and Music Beta by Google, although its arguable that the Swedish streamers offer a much better service than the big three. Those cloud-streaming portals don't allow users to listen to any music that they don't already own, whereas Spotify has proved to be a magnificent music discovery tool for members across Europe. Source: All Things D 
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| Tutorial: Windows shortcuts to save you time and hassle Posted: 12 Jun 2011 05:00 AM PDT The following tips will help you speed up the way you use Windows, making it easier - and quicker - to spend more time working and less time faffing about. The first thing to do is make your programs more accessible - the Start menu and desktop may be convenient, but there's an even quicker way to access programs, and that's the taskbar. Windows Vista and Windows XP users should right-click the taskbar and choose Toolbars to verify Quick Launch Toolbar is ticked; once it is, you can drag shortcuts on to the taskbar, giving you easy access with a single click. The taskbar works slightly differently - and better - in Windows 7. The simplest way to place a program shortcut on the taskbar is to open it, then right-click the icon that appears in the taskbar and choose Pin this program to taskbar. When you come to launch a program, right-click it to reveal its Jump List, a list of shortcuts to recently opened files as well as other useful tools. If you regularly open a specific document in this way, click the pin icon next to its name to pin it permanently to the Jump List. Use the Run dialogue box to quickly open system tools or programs. Press the Windows key and R to open the dialogue box, then type the name of the tool you wish to run: for example, to access Device Manager, type devmgmt.msc and press Return. For more Run dialogue box shortcuts, visit this page. Navigating to folders and files can be a time-consuming task. Windows 7 and Windows Vista both feature useful shortcuts; open a folder window and you'll see a Favourites list - you can drag any folder into this list, which will create a link giving you access with a single click. Windows 7 also introduces Libraries, special shortcuts that contain links to various related folders such as documents or pictures. Click the Libraries shortcut to view them all together - from here you can create a new Library, or open a library and click X location(s) to select which folders are incorporated into that Library. You've opened a folder packed full of files - if you know the file name, just type the first few letters to jump straight to it instead of scrolling through the entire list. Alternatively, place shortcuts to individual Control Panels on your desktop; just open Control Panel, select Classic view, then right-click the chosen Control Panel and choose Create shortcut, which can be left on the desktop or dragged to the Start menu or taskbar.
AEROSNAP: If you've got plenty of screen space, make the most of it by tiling your open windows across the monitor If you regularly need to copy specific files to certain locations in Windows 7 or Windows Vista, download and install the Magic Folder Gadget. You can configure it so that dragging and dropping files into it enables you to move them to a folder you choose from a drop-down list, or you can set up filters so specific file types go automatically to specified directories. Want to launch your favourite programs with a simple shortcut? Just right-click the program shortcut and choose Properties > Shortcut tab to set one up. Windows shortcuts Windows key and F: Open the Search window from within any program. Alt and Tab: Open the Switcher bar to move between open windows. Windows key and Tab: Open the Flip3D window. Shift and Delete: Delete any selected files or folders, bypassing the Recycle Bin. Windows key and M: Minimise all open windows. Shift and Windows key and M: Bring back all minimised windows. Windows key and D: Hide all open windows and show the desktop. Press again to reverse. Windows key and Pause/Break: Open System Control Panel. Alt and F4: Close currently open program. F2: Rename selected file or files. 
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| Review: Audio Analogue Maestro Posted: 12 Jun 2011 03:30 AM PDT Audio Analogue's Maestro range represents the pinnacle of its achievements: the Special Edition power amplifiers that carry the same badge cost in the region of £20,000. The Maestro CD player is the penultimate Audio Analogue disc-spinner, second only to the SE version which comes in at twice the price. Our test model is the second revision of the design, or CD192/24 REV2.0 as they call it in the technical dept. It differs from its predecessor in having a TEAC CD-ROM transport mechanism, chosen for its sturdiness and low-jitter output. The display has also been changed to a high-contrast VFD-type (vacuum fluorescent display) that uses white dots to produce a fairly small description of what the player is doing. This, combined with the lack of any direct track access from the remote, makes selecting specific tracks a little tricky. The handset also looks very cool in its jewel-like metal case and is appealingly solid. The buttons on the player's front are artfully arranged, but have very small legends. After a while, however, you remember that the one at 11 o'clock opens the smooth-action drawer and the central one instigates play, which is all you really need.
Connections are pretty much par for this price area; a pair of good-quality RCA phono sockets sit alongside XLRs and a single digital output. Sound quality The Maestro is an exceptionally refined solid-state player and also quite expensive. We particularly liked the quality of its high notes, which avoid the very fine grain found with most transistor designs and allows it to give a detailed, yet natural sound. It's also strong on timing, thanks to a degree of precision in the midrange that allows you to hear into each mix with considerable clarity; it could almost be a valve-based player, but has a touch more edge-definition and stronger bass than most designs. While we were not entirely in agreement about the Maestro, overall it proved to be the most popular player on the day. In fact, there is a lot to like, an "open and airy" soundstage that is well projected into the room and the "best image with wide-crowd ambience from the live Kraftwerk track". There were also a number of comments along the lines of "quite musical, good timing especially in the bass" and "good sense of acoustic, you can hear the hall this was recorded in" with regard to our La Folia piece. It even appeased the most critical panellist who clearly enjoyed the latter track, describing it as, "delicate, open and airy". This is a high-quality player in all respects and the only one that can combine superb detail-resolution with genuine musical fluidity. Timing is excellent, as are dynamics and these are the qualities that bring the music to life. 
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| Posted: 12 Jun 2011 03:00 AM PDT There are a lot of good DACs around, but few of them really stand out on technical grounds. Just recently, a few have appeared which support high-sampling-rate USB operation (previously limited to 48kHz) and that's obviously a good thing. M2Tech, however, has upped the ante by introducing a feature that was previously the sole preserve of some rare and expensive ultra-high-end kit, in the shape of 384kHz sampling. Yes, that's eight times 48kHz (and yes, eight times 44.1kHz, or 352.8kHz, is supported too). This means that a full three octaves of frequency response is now, in principle, available above CD's regular 20kHz limit. No one is suggesting we can hear as high as 160kHz, but ever since the dawn of digital audio there have been voices arguing that that much bandwidth headroom, if one can call it that, is necessary to reproduce sound in its full glory to the full satisfaction of a critical human ear. New ear's resolution What's more, 32-bit resolution is supported. CD, of course, uses 16-bit to give resolution of one part in 65,536, or just under 100dB signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in more familiar audio terms. 32-bit increases that by a factor of 65,536, giving a theoretical SNR of about 194dB. That's a completely unrealisable figure in practice, equivalent to about 100 microvolts of noise on the national grid 400kV supply network, but it does, at least, mean that the digital part of the system is not a limiting factor in any sense. Noise in a 32-bit system is down to good old analogue sources. One slight drawback with a product like this is the availability of software to play through it that will really tax it. If you search the internet you'll find plenty of high-res material, but it's mostly only 96kHz, 24-bit stuff. Even 192kHz sampling is hard to find and either 384kHz or 32-bit, never mind both together, is basically unavailable. What's more, at typical UK internet connection speeds you'd have to leave a download running all night to get a couple of hours' material. Future-proofing is a great thing, though, and indeed we're delighted to see a bit of forward-thinking in practice as it can only help to kick-start ultra-high-res recording and replay as an everyday reality rather than audiophile pipe dreams. In the mean time, it's good to know that more mundane digital standards are also catered for. If one can call 24-bit/192kHz 'mundane'. You might expect some deeply arcane technology inside such a DAC, but M2Tech has employed some surprisingly familiar parts. The allimportant DAC chip is one we've seen before in a few products and although it's usually used with its own digital filter, it can also be fed a signal via a different route, bypassing internal filters and increasing the maximum sampling rate. In fact, a handful of chips offer this possibility and we first saw it employed in the Cambridge Audio Azur 840C CD player, which rather impressively has 384kHz upsampling built-in. Freshly filtered
As with the 840C, M2Tech has built a custom oversampling filter, implemented here on a large gate array chip. That, in fact, is the fanciest part of the Young DAC's internal technology and in day-to-day terms the part that most clearly marks it out from the competition. Digital filters are only now coming to be appreciated as defining components within digital-to-analogue conversion circuits, but they can make quite a difference. This one has a 'minimum phase' response, which lacks the pre-ringing of more conventional 'linear phase' filters. For the rest, analogue circuits use familiar high-performance op-amp chips and good-quality passive components, while the power supply is an external unit. Digital inputs include one of each kind, while analogue output is unbalanced only. The front panel display is unusual but tells you what you need to know. Lacking native 384kHz source material and conscious that few users would even have access to 192kHz recordings (we had a few in-house ones to call on), we did most of our listening to the Young at 44.1 and 96kHz sampling rates, via both S/PDIF and USB. It's worth mentioning at the outset that we didn't reckon we could reliably tell a difference between the two: USB did sound worse fed from a desktop PC, but that's probably a conducted interference issue as a small laptop gave results practically indistinguishable from S/PDIF. Our comments, therefore, can be taken as representative of the DAC rather than of its connection mode. High-end is as high-end does The first thing to make clear is that the sound is certainly of high-end breeding. We would have been most disappointed had it lacked anything significant in terms of resolution or neutrality and, indeed, it scored highly for both of those. It's actually exceptionally revealing and brought out details we had forgotten about in some of our own recordings – things we remembered from the recording session but hadn't heard in a while via more prosaic replay equipment. At least, we'd probably heard them, but not been made aware of them. It's a subtle difference but in some ways it's a nutshell definition of high end: little details don't just exist, they practically reach out and tap you on the shoulder. If there were nothing but little details the sound could soon become tiresomely fussy, but here they are kept in context as part of a structured, cohesive whole. A concrete example may help illustrate this. One recording we've used a few times with high-res kit is of two voices and piano, a technically fine minimalist recording which sadly we can't recommend as it never got issued commercially. At one point the singers change places in front of the piano, one moving forward and to the right as the other joins in. On most systems this is audible if one listens out for it, but just occasionally a system will show it up sufficiently clearly that it really captures the attention, as was in fact intended at the time. With excellent amps and speakers in its train, the M2Tech DAC had no trouble at all pointing up this little bit of choreography, but at the same time kept the piano stable and the tonal nature of each voice unaltered. Familiar commercial recordings were similarly flattered, with insights popping up in all sorts of unlikely places. Hearing a recording completely afresh might be slightly overstating it, but things like appreciating a subtle change in a vocalist's inflection, or a slightly different sound from a drummer, can add new meaning and interest to a well-loved track. If we have any criticism, it's of the very low bass. Now and then, in recordings which really plumb the depths, we were convinced we missed just a little clarity of pitch in the bass. There's plenty of impact, and extension, as such, is pretty much peerless, but tuned low frequencies (church organ, upright bass, orchestral timpani and so on) don't always quite seem as certain of their tuning as can sometimes be the case. That's quite a minor point, though, and we have found over the years that getting extension, attack, and tuning in the bass all just so is one of the hardest tricks in audio – one largely confined to equipment in the high reaches of the high end. There's also something of an irony in the treble, which is beautifully pure and open, even with CD-format source material. That could somewhat undermine the case for high sampling rates, were it not for the fact that at 96kHz and upward it gets even better. Roll your own upsampler! We'll close by suggesting a shorter term use for the 384kHz sampling capability. Having set that up, it's possible to implement customised upsampling on a home computer, getting one more (small) step up with 'standard' digital source recordings. Treat computer-based upsampling with caution as some of it is frankly dodgy, but our experiment with the upsampling provided within Izotope products (by consent of most users, just about the best upsampling on the planet, and flexible in operation, too) suggested that this is a worthwhile tweak. This isn't the first 384kHz DAC, though it's the first affordable one. It won't be the last, either. But kudos to M2Tech for doing it and huge respect and admiration for doing it so well. 
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| In Depth: 17 things we'd change about names in Linux Posted: 12 Jun 2011 03:00 AM PDT What's in a name? Acronyms, in-jokes and lots of capital letters, if free software is anything to go by. We look at some unfortunate choices that have been made at this critical stage of development. 01. Mageia Mageia is probably the worst example of distro naming in living memory. We thought it was called 'Magela' at first, because we read the release announcement in a sans serif font. At least that's pronounceable, unlike the name we were meant to see. When a new project's forums have more posts on the pronunciation of the name than the code it contains, something's very wrong. Fortunately, this is a fork of Mandriva, née Mandrake, so the developers will be used to changing names midstream. 02. GNU/Linux With all due respect to RMS, the name GNU/Linux just doesn't work - it's ugly in print and even more cumbersome in speech. How do you say it? 'Guhnu Slash Linux'? We don't think so. How about 'Gnu Linux'? No, because then it's pronounced 'New Linux', which makes people wonder what was wrong with the old Linux. This isn't to decry the work done by GNU, but the name it wants is plain clumsy. 03. You're stuck with it Whatever you christen your project, once people start using it you're stuck with it. Established names are hard to change - who still prefers to call Snickers bars Marathons? Be careful when you try to think up a name, because it will probably outlast your interest in the project. 04. Gnome How are we supposed to pronounce this? Years of education (some of which we actually attended) tell us that the 'G' is silent, but many people pronounce it 'Ger‑nome'. This is confused further by the original GNOME acronym becoming less relevant and a trend emerging of people calling it Gnome instead. So, apart from how to write it and how to pronounce it, this name has no problems. How apt for a project that reduces options to lessen user confusion! 05. KOffice KOffice is a good name: it's obviously the KDE office suite. The component names seem sensible too: KWord, KSpread, KPresenter, KChart, Krita. Hang on, where did that one come from? Did the person responsible for picking sensible names go on a break? Even if they've used meaningful titles for most of the suite, some of the KOffice team have decided that it's possible to change the name of an established program and forked it into Calligra - not even 'Kalligra'. 06. Lignux If you think GNU/Linux doesn't work, how about Lignux? Yes, really. That was one of the names for Linux suggested by the GNU folks. Embedding their recursive acronym in the word Linux is even more ugly than sticking it on the front. Thank heavens that idea was abandoned. 07. *buntus There's nothing wrong with Ubuntu, or even Kubuntu or Lubuntu. Ubuntu was a good choice of name, easy to pronounce and instantly recognisable. It's just that every other Ubuntu respin calls itself somethingbuntu. Not only is this unimaginative and annoying, it also stops the distro from switching to a non‑Ubuntu base or gaining recognition as a distro in its own right, as Linux Mint has done, because the name will forever mark it as an Ubuntu respin. What next - Mikebuntu? 08. gNewSense Naming without thought for the consequences of pronunciation reached new levels in 2006 with the release of the gNewSense distro. Whatever the name was supposed to convey, the usual practice of a leading 'g' being silent produces an embarrassing pronunciation. Perhaps one day we'll see a distro specialising in non‑free software called gNonSense. 09. Recursive acronyms Gnu's Not Unix probably started it all and PHP Hypertext Processor was a reasonable implementation, but recursive acronyms have become a plague. SourceForge is littered with projects whose names are the most convoluted of recursive acronyms, and very few people are impressed by, or even interested in, them. 10. Debian Debian shows that you can break the rules and still have a name that works. This is an acronym that means nothing to most of its users, being composed of the names of the founder and his then girlfriend, but it also works as a word in its own right. It doesn't appear contrived and pronunciation is straightforward - although we doubt this was uppermost in Ian Murdock's mind 18 years ago. 11. Kthisnthat We see nothing wrong with the idea of KDE program names starting with a K, or a G for Gnome programs, but it can get a bit contrived. The name K3b tells you that it's a KDE program, although that's all it tells you. Letting us know what it does as well as where it runs would be nice. 12. Linux Linux itself isn't immune to name problems, though to be fair to Linus, as far as he's concerned there's only one way to pronounce his name. But then, we don't want projects named after their founders - or do we? 13. Eponymous projects Naming your project after yourself may seem like a good idea at the time, but what happens when you get bored and want someone else to take it over? It's almost as bad as when people give their child the same name as themselves. Still, at least William H Gates III didn't do this with either his children, company or software… unlike M Saunders I. 14. Micro$oft Are we the only ones to cringe when people use corruptions such as M$, or much worse, to describe Windows and Microsoft? Are we really so insecure in the superiorities of our beloved operating system that we have to resort to name‑calling? Doing this in a Linux forum is pointless; doing it in a Windows or mixed forum is no more than antagonistic. 15. Gimp
Here's a classic example of a key open source program having an unsuitable name, but it's too late to change it. A name as geeky as Gimp may have been fine when it was starting out, but you can't expect people to refer to images as having been 'Gimped', so even Gimp users turn to the term 'Photoshopped' to avoid sounding odd in normal company. 16. Windows is no better Windows users often cite meaningless names as a weakness of Linux, falling back on their shining examples of Internet Explorer and Word, and completely ignoring Excel, Outlook and many others. They mutter when these are mentioned, but leap upon you when you bring up the equally obscure Acrobat. "That's a third‑party program, it doesn't count," they exclaim, whereupon you can point out that all Linux programs are third party and rest your case. 17. Choqok In case you were wondering, the name of this excellent micro‑blogging client comes from the ancient Persian word for sparrow. If ancient Persian isn't arcane enough for you, we'll leave it to you to work out the relationship between a sparrow and micro‑blogging. It's got to be more than the fact that sparrows, like many other birds, tweet. 
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| Posted: 12 Jun 2011 03:00 AM PDT Jamo may best be known for speakers, but the company also offers a small range of in-ear phones of which the wEAR In30 is the middle model. The drive unit is identical to that used in, at least, one Klipsch model (Klipsch being Jamo's parent company these days), but other details are different and there's no reason to suppose that this would be a Klipsch retread. Jamo's description mentions 'passive noise-cancelling', by which is simply meant noise-blocking, as this model (like the others here) has no active anti-noise features. As it happens, we felt this was by a small margin the most effective at blocking external noise, but there's not really much in it. We also felt that it had the most noisy cable, very much prone to convey friction noise (against skin and clothing) into the ears. We're not sure the frequency extremes of the In30 are entirely honest; the response seeming to have a bit of a bathtub profile – lifted at both ends. Bass is persistently more present than we're used to, while treble has a little added fizz. Neither of these, however, prevented us appreciating the model's very good resolution of detail. It enables one to hear deep into any mix of instruments without ever stripping away the overall cohesion of the musical image. From classical to rock to avant-garde electronica, the music was presented in a convincing and communicative way. 
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| Posted: 12 Jun 2011 02:30 AM PDT Hailing from Sweden, XTZ has expanded rapidly to produce a bewildering array of electronics and loudspeakers. The company focuses on trying to provide strong value for money and its products seem to be very competitively priced. The 99.26 is the second most costly standmount in the range, but still only sells for £670. Marketed under the ambitious strap of, 'The world's most affordable high end,' the 99.26 has a lot to live up to. First impressions are good. The pairing of a 6.5-inch SEAS mid/bass driver with a ribbon tweeter is extremely unusual at the price, and the cabinet is solid and finished to an extremely high standard in a smart piano gloss. The only area that meets, rather exceeds, expectations is the grilles: they are affixed using old tech lugs rather than magnetic trim tabs. This minor quibble aside, we can't think of another speaker built like this for under £1,000. Removable links Internally, the 99.26 is clever as well. The crossover is adjustable by means of removable links that allow the listener to alter the treble output between -4 and +4dB. The large rear mounted bass port is supplied with a full-length foam bung for tuning purposes. How a speaker interacts with a room plays a considerable role in the overall performance and XTZ has to be commended for giving owners more flexibility than most in getting this relationship right. Sensitivity is quoted at 88dB/w which is respectable, although the fact that impedance is given as four to eight ohms leads us to suspect that the figure quoted is more likely to be into four ohms, rather than eight. The speaker faces no shortage of competition, but the combination of high-quality components, excellent fit and finish and tuning options mean it has to be considered extremely good value for money. Even allowing for the need to budget for a decent pair of stands to allow them to perform at their best (XTZ sell a dedicated pair for £100) they are still a very strong proposition. Best results We began listening with the bungs removed and the treble attenuation set to 0dB. Experimentation with placement resulted in us obtaining the best results with the bungs in place, a -2dB set on the attenuation and placement 25cm from the rear wall. Like many designs with ribbon tweeters, the 99.26 delivers an amazing insight into recordings. This is not the clichéd 'hearing things we'd never heard before', but more that it is astonishingly easy to follow every detail of recordings, however busy. The handover to the mid/bass driver is seamless and perfectly handled, and it presents a cohesive and tonally even version of events. Voices and instruments have a tangible reality to them, which is something many more expensive designs often struggle to pull off. This detail is well presented in a small, but believable soundstage. The presentation is relatively direct – the XTZs will not create the sense of space that some designs will, but neither is it a single beam of sound. Bass response is good. Fitting the bungs reduces the amount on offer, but the pay-off is an increase in speed and control that is lacking with the port in full flow. Foot-tapping The negatives of the XTZ are relatively small. The extremely high resolution does mean that the 99.26 is unforgiving of poor recordings and will also show up limitations in sources and amplifiers. Although it costs £670, it really ought to be partnered with an amp that costs rather more. That amp will also need to be relatively powerful, as the 99.26 does seem to be somewhat insensitive. The final criticism is in the subjective area of timing. In comparison to the Epos Epic 5, the XTZ seems less able to get the feet tapping, but then the Epic 5 is something of a sector leader. A must-audition There is a huge amount to like about the 99.26. This is a superbly built and very adaptable speaker. It offers a very even presentation and all at a competitive price. So, if your partnering electronics are up to the job and you mainly listen to well-recorded music, they are a must-audition. 
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| Windows 8 to have Xbox Live integration Posted: 11 Jun 2011 07:16 AM PDT Microsoft is planning to add Xbox Live to the forthcoming Windows 8 PC operating system. Following the successful integration into the Windows Phone platform, Microsoft VP Mike Delman said plans are afoot to bring the experience to its other platforms. Speaking to the Seattle Times, Delman said: "Live has been successful on the Windows Phone. Live will be built into the PC. It will be the service where you get your entertainment. "We were talking about it — you will not just see consoles and handhelds at this show (E3) next year, this show's going to morph into other devices." Like Apple When asked how Xbox Live will be integrated into Windows 8, Delman added said that Microsoft is seeking the same symmetry enjoyed by Apple users across Mac OS and the iOS devices. "There will be a lot of similarities in design and service philosophy. Whether it's us or Apple or anybody else, people want to be able to navigate through multiple devices in a certain ecosystem very seamlessly so we're committed to that. "Xbox Live will be the pervasive media service across devices." Skydrive and Live to unite It also seems that Microsoft will be unifying its cloud offerings under one brand, which means that current storage facility Skydrive and Xbox Live could soon come under the same banner. "We have a ton of assets. Unifying the assets will be good for us and good for consumers." The entire interview is a really good read. We'd recommend you head over to the Seattle Times to catch the rest. 
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Above: The Panasonic LX5 (left) is remarkably similar in size to the Panasonic GF3 (right).
Above: The Panasonic LX5 (left) next to the Panasonic GF3 (right).
Above: The Panasonic G3 (left) and Panasonic GF3 (right).
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