Haier

Hands on with the Ibiza Rhapsody

A few select reviewers got an early hand on the Ibiza Rhapsody player from Haier, but CES was my first chance and I walked away quite impressed, and wondering again why Microsoft hadn't done this much--or more--with the 2nd generation Zune player.

The devices are not exactly objects of art--the 30GB player, available now from Amazon.com for $288, is a simple metallic block, and the forthcoming 4GB and 8GB players look like smaller versions of the same design--but the screen is adequately bright and clear, and the company is offering a wide array of downloadable skins and themes … Read more

Mystery phone: the Haier Sterling

At first glance, you'd think the Haier Sterling is a joke--at less than 4 inches from end to end, it looks like a child's toy. But you'd be wrong. It not only turns heads, but it delivers too. You realize that when you turn it on and hear the loud, clear sound of glass breaking.

It features a 1.8-inch color screen, 1.3-megapixel camera, integrated headphone jack, FM radio, room for 500 contacts, Bluetooth and a microSD slot. Talk time is 3 hours; standby time is up to 200 hours. But what really distinguishes it is … Read more

Transformers laptop doesn't transform

As colleagues Will Greenwald and Neha Tiwari have noted, the new Transformers movie will mean big bucks in the toy and games market. But not everyone can get away with wearing an "Optimus Prime Voice Changer Helmet" to work, let alone past most conscious security guards.

So Haier is making it possible for so-called mature adults to show their allegience to bot culture with a laptop. Granted, it's basically a G70 notebook with a decal, as Engadget notes, though it does have a 17-inch screen, 2GB of memory and a 120GB hard drive. It also looks kind … Read more

Haier aims higher (or smaller) with phones

It seems particularly ironic that Haier--a company known for such hernia-inducing products as refrigerators and washing machines--would claim to produce "the world's smallest GSM phone featuring an MP3 player." But as Shiny Shiny notes, the world's smallest anything is claimed all the time, regardless of product or manufacturer.

Regardless of its Guinness status (the records, Caroline, not the stout), Haier's "Elegance" measures 3.5 inches long and features a Bluetooth stereo and either dual-band (U.S.) or tri-band GSM (Europe) technology, though there's no word of any camera. More than the specs, … Read more

Print out a hard copy of the TV

Leave it to Haier--a brand better known for its refrigerators--to design a TV with a feature we've always wanted: a printer port.

If this yet-to-be-released HDTV does what SlashGear says, the 47-inch L47A18 model will be able to grab screenshots of your favorite Battlestar Galactica scenes and print them out. It also has two USB ports and a memory card reader, so you can display photos and play your own movies and music on the set.

The downside, of course, is the price: $2,742. Even though it has full 1080p resolution, Haier isn't exactly known for its … Read more