satellites

LAS VEGAS--Toshiba has always had a prolific variety of laptop lines and configurations, and CES 2011 has ushered in a variety of new products for them, including one fascinating prototype.

>>Hands-on with Toshiba's glasses-free 3D laptop

>>Qosmio X505, Satellite A665 3D Edition, Satellite A665, M645, and L series laptop coverage

>>Toshiba's new budget Netbook, the Mini NB505

>>AMD Fusion processor finds its way into budget 15-inch Satellite C655D

>>The Best Buy-exclusive Satellite E305

LAS VEGAS--Last year, Intel's new processors predictably resulted in a slew of new laptops afterward bearing the updates. To no surprise, Toshiba's newly updated laptop lineup incorporates Intel's second-generation Intel Core i-series processors, and the product line affected is big: new Qosmios, new M-series and A-series laptops, and even some new budget L-series laptops, too, along with a new version of the Satellite A665 3D Vision-enabled notebook we reviewed last year. Click below to check out some pictures of the models, and read on for specs.

LAS VEGAS--One year ago, the Best Buy-exclusive Toshiba Satellite E205 snagged our attention at CES 2010 with its striking design, impressive features, and most of all, its position as one of the first laptops with Intel Wireless Display.

The Satellite E305-S1990 announced today is this year's update, featuring a second-generation Intel Core i5-2410M processor and the next generation of Intel Wireless Display, which now supports 1080p video streaming. The Blue Label laptop remains a Best Buy exclusive, and it costs a little more, at $1,089. A slot-loading Blu-ray drive now comes standard, along with a 7,200 rpm … Read more

LAS VEGAS--Usually, when we heard of door-buster bargain laptops around the holidays, we tend to imagine 15-inch laptops wedded to Intel Celeron processors. The new AMD e-series CPUs might be nudging into the same territory, if we're to guess from the newly-announced Toshiba Satellite C655D.

The 15.6-inch laptop uses an AMD E240 CPU, part of the new AMD Fusion line of processors, helping keep the cost down. Up to 4GB of DDR3 RAM/320GB hard drive, a DVD burner, and 802.11n Wi-Fi in a 5.5 package for a starting price of $398 doesn't sound too … Read more

LAS VEGAS--If you're the outdoorsy type, chances are that you've often found yourself off the beaten path and away from the safety of a strong wireless signal. What if you wanted to update your family with your location from the top of a mountain? What if you found yourself trapped under a rock in the middle of nowhere and needed help? The Spot product family of GPS-enabled satellite messengers is one solution to your lack of signal bars, with the newest of these devices being the smartphone-enhanced Spot Connect.

The Spot Connect interfaces with a Bluetooth-paired smartphone via … Read more

Back in the days before home theater, only the most devoted bass fanatics used subwoofers. It's not that people didn't like bass, just that they bought speakers large enough to satisfy their bass cravings. Then again, the bass response required to play music isn't as demanding as movie soundtracks, so even fairly small speakers with 4- or 5-inch woofers could produce satisfying bass.

The best of today's small- to medium-size speakers produce much better-sounding bass than speakers did 10 years ago, so if you're primarily interested in listening to music and your speakers have 4-inch … Read more

The Satellite Sentinel Project, launched today, will be monitoring Sudan from above and sharing information with the world in near real-time in an effort to deter violence.

The oil-rich southern region of Sudan is poised to hold a referendum on January 9 that could decide whether Sudan remains one country, or becomes politically divided into north and south entities. Many expect that there will be violence leading up to the vote, as well as after it, and that the Sudan could once again descend into chaos as it did during its 20-year war in which an estimated 2 million people … Read more

Sirius XM has hit the 20 million subscriber mark, and it's calling on a member of The Beatles to commemorate it.

Starting tonight at 5 p.m. PT, several Sirius XM channels, including Paul McCartney's Band On the Run Radio, Howard 101, and Classic Vinyl, will air Paul McCartney's concert live from the Apollo Theater. The concert, which was first announced last month, is accessible at no additional charge for current Sirius or XM subscribers.

It has been a good week for Sirius XM. Last Thursday, the company announced that it had re-signed Howard Stern to another … Read more

In the battle between satellite and internet radio, there is definitely room for both products. But could satellite radio, with its first mover advantage and market penetration of all automotive manufacturers, soon be all things to all people by using recording devices to combine its wide channel variety with the personalization of internet radio?

A CEOutlook article alluded to this possibility, quoting analyst Matthew Harrigan who speculated that SIRIUS XM's satellite 2.0 would offer "'more personalized radio channel content using buffered content,' which would be 'cached onto a storage chip for later playback.'"

Putting on my … Read more