Positive reviews of Microsoft’s new Touchmouse

Can only improve on the multi touch Apple magic mouse with something a little more ergonomic to a normal humans hand (although it’s a little shame that its not bluetooth, only another USB dongle!)…

It’s so easy to use, there’s hardly anything to learn. Swipe down with three fingers, and all your windows are minimized; do the opposite and they’re all laid out so you can choose one. Swipe down with two fingers and the window you’re working on is minimized, and vice versa. You can also scroll left or right, say, on an Excel spreadsheet, by moving your finger in the direction desired.

An elegant addition: When you perform any of these multi-touch swipe moves, they’re accompanied by an attractive mini-animation next to your cursor, showing little blue representations of your fingertips moving, complete with misty blue trails that fade away. It’s a hint of how well-integrated the drivers are with Windows 7.

via Mashable

Hauppauge unveils dual CableCARD tuner for only $129

If you’re in the US and looking for a CableCARD based solution for Windows Media Center, this looks like a seriously good product…

The Hauppauge WinTV-DCR-2650 is a dual tuner CableCARD device that will connect to your Windows 7 Media Center PC via USB. Being USB could be a huge incentive to those who are craving CableCARD for their home theater PC (HTPC) but perhaps don’t have the room for an internal card (such as Ceton’s InfiniTV 4) in a small form factor PC. Hauppauge has priced the dual tuner device at a paltry $129! That is $120 less than the three-tuner SiliconDust HDHomeRun Prime, and $170 less than the four-tuner Ceton InfiniTV 4.

via The Digital Media Zone.

Windows 8 & Microsoft’s new touch mouse

The flick to pin gestures look really interesting considering how you can split and pin apps in Windows 8′s new start page UI design…

Last week Microsoft revealed the Windows 8 UI at the D9 conference that showed off a “Touch First” UI. Since then a lot of people have been saying that having a “Touch First” UI is going to be good for tablets but what about Desktop or normal laptops that are not touch devices. I then remember the video that Microsoft showed a few months of their new Microsoft Touch Mouse and remember there were some striking similarities between the two videos.

via Smarter Geek.

Tip for setting up Media Center’s pictures & video folders

If you’re like me and want to set Windows Media Center up to jump directly into your home server’s media folders, I find the best way is not to add them to the library, but rather use the slightly older method of moving the locations of the local ‘My Pictures’ folder to the shared folder.

This means when Media Center loads the folder you don’t see the share name, which you normally have to click though, but rather a list all all your picture folders directly.

Autologin on to a Windows Account

Here’s a useful tip if you ever need to setup a password, I use this approach when setting my Media Center, as with a password, Windows can remember network logins and connect without requiring a keyboard attached (useful when combined with the option to launch Windows Media Center on startup)

Go to the Start Menu, type netplwiz in the search box, and press Enter
If you have UAC active (which you should), you’ll need to give permission for the program to start.
The User Accounts window will open. Notice the option Users must enter a name and password to use this computer, uncheck the box and click OK.
You will be prompted for the login name and password of the user that you want automatically logged in. Enter the information for a user account that already exists and click OK.

Sony accidentally create compact and elegant Ps3 bluetooth keyboard

In a somewhat surprising turn around (from the makers of that hideous Google TV remote, remember?) , Sony have managed to produce one of the most elegant bluetooth keyboards I’ve seen in a while, whilst specifically designed for the Ps3, it will support any bluetooth system, and looks pretty perfect for my Windows Media Center…

Like old Think Pads, the keyboard has a nub in the middle that can be used to control the pointer for web browsing. It’s outfitted with Bluetooth, so it can be paired with other devices.

via Kotaku.