Here's Xacti what we saw

We took Sanyo's new Xacti HD1000 camcorder along to a launch this week for a test run. This video starts off looking like a Tease-Mobile event, but it's actually Sony Ericsson and network 3's party to celebrate the release of  a purple K770i. Nice bit of kit. No expense was spared as the Burlesque artist warmed up the audience for a set from Bob Geldof's DJ daughter who arrived fashionably late at the Bloomsbury Ballroom in London . . .and not wearing even a hint of purple. From her reaction to one fan, Peaches clearly doesn't do requests. But Ms Geldof mashed up a few tracks and made way for the Sugababes. The Xacti performed well in low light and it was so easy to transfer the content on the SD card to a PC and then upload it to YouTube.   

Purple power

Girls Aloud took to the stage at London's Sketch for a private gig to launch the release of Samsung’s new F210 mobile and Emily Merritt was there to record this demo. The £129.99 phone is a tiny 88mm x 31mm and boasts a 2MP camera, MP3 player and 1GB of memory, and the option to add another 2GB with the micro SD card slot. When closed the ipod-esque wheel controls the MP3 player which comes fully loaded with Girls Aloud tracks. Plus, ever heard a song playing and you can’t remember the track name? Just press the music recognition key, hold the phone up to the music and it will instantly tell you the track name and artist. It will be hard to resist the temptation to cheat in the pub quiz! The nifty swivel action spins the phone open to reveal the navigation wheel, slim-line keypad and coloured screen plus an exclusive selection of Girls Aloud wallpapers to choose from.

Pot it there, Nintendo

A DAY barely goes by without a new title for the DS. And Nintendo are launching World Snooker Championship season 2007-2008 with this amusing advert, based on the Nicole Kidman Brain Training commercial. There's around  400 hours of gameplay and a minimum of 1,000 frames of Snooker. And you use  the stylus as the cue to pot the balls with a choice of  professional Snooker players, each with his own unique abilities based on real personal abilities. Available on October 26.

WIN new Sony Ericsson K850i

PHONE giant Sony Ericsson launches its first 5 megapixel camera phone in the ultra-stylish shape of the K850i  Cyber-shot this week—and we have one to give away before it hits the shops on Wednesday.
It’s the natural upgrade to the top-selling K800i, which was the Gadgits phone of   the year, 2006.
Featuring auto-focus and Xenon flash to produce true digital camera results, it also takes up to nine shots in a burst with BestPic mode, so that you can select your favourite picture.
Unlike the K800i, there’s no ugly protruding lens cover on this model—it retracts automatically with one press of the camera button. Another improvement lets you switch quickly between camera, video and picture viewing modes.
The K850 has all the other features you’d expect from a multimedia phone.
A new media browser puts all of your stored media, from photos to podcasts, in one place, offering you a unique Sony Ericsson media experience.
For your chance to win one, email us the answer to your question, with your name address and contact number by 8am tomorrow, Monday October 8. Is the K850i a) a Walkman phone, b) Cyber-shot phone or c) an iPod phone? Send your answer here comps@notw.co.uk

Usual rules apply. Editor's decision is final.

Top ten audio gizmos

LISTEN and learn—today we reveal the top ten most wanted audio gizmos. They were chosen by 1,000 music lovers who were given the chance by Duracell to try out loads of new products at this year’s big British pop festivals—and then vote for them. Predictably, iPod got Number One spot—but it was the little Nano (£168 for 8GB version, left) that won, beating its bigger, more expensive iPod siblings through its compact size and sound quality. No2 was the Go + Play from speaker people Harman/Kardon (right). Its stylish arch design is more than matched by sound quality. You simply slot your iPod into the cradle at the top and wow, you’ll love it. Price: £198. No3: Sony’s NW A808 (right)— bigger screen than the Nano, and many users found the controls superior to the Ipod wheel. You get a stonking 30 hours play on one charge and 8GB storage. Price: £143. No4: Hesh headphones from Skullcandy (left) pump sound into your skull with an intensity found in no other headphone in this £30 price range. No5: The magical bins of Bose QuietComfort 2 (right) are also noise-cancelling and transform travel on planes and trains. Price: £224. No6:  The JBL On Tour sound (left) system allows you to plug in most MP3 players, PCs and laptops. At £82 for the six-watt version, this is a top travel companion.  No7: Apple’s own Hi Fi (right). For anyone who has to have the genuine iPod partner, this is it. It delivers crystal-clear, high- quality sound for £219.99.
No8: JVC’s monster MP3 Compatible Woofer CD System with Built-in Guitar Amp (bottom left) is a boombox which pumps out sounds at 60 watts for £173.
No9: Another portable MP3 speaker system. The Creative TravelSound (bottom middle) lets you listen to high-fidelity audio dock, charge and play back your iPod. It also has a wireless infrared remote. Price: £50.
No10: The desktop Logi- tech AudioStation Express (bottom right) allows you to view podcasts on your TV as well as housing a wide range of MP3 players and iPods. Totally portable too for around £50.

PS3 prices slashed

THE price of the PS3 is being slashed to £349 for a new 60GB value pack and £299 for the 40GB entry level—to boost Christmas sales of the high quality console. Sony Computer Entertainment UK announced the new deal will be launched on Wednesday and they envisage having a total of 65 games available for the console by December.
The 40GB HDD version includes: wireless controller, USB, Wi-Fi and HDMI connectivity. But the new model will no longer be backwards compatible with PlayStation®2 titles.
The 60GB PS3 WILL have backwards compatibility, a SIXAXIS wireless controller and two games included in the price.
Managing Director Ray Maguire said: “As we approach our very first PlayStation Christmas, it is satisfying to be able to offer UK consumers the choice of two PlayStation 3 packages both now representing remarkable value.”
“We have a brand new 40GB machine that represents an excellent entry point into the world of High Definition games and movies, and we have the fully featured 60GB machine being offered with two next generation gaming experiences at a highly competitive price.”

13 gigapixel power

READER Pete Smith sent this amazing link demonstrating the power of 13.4 gigapixel camera technology. The footage comes from a camera perched on the roof of a building at 7th Avenue and 110th Street in New York City which panned the skyline for just over two hours.
New York-based artist Gerard Maynard constructed the 13-gigapixel panorama by stitching together 2,045 images from his shoot. It took nine months with the help of Kolor Company, a French firm that specializes in panorama stitching tools, to put this film together and launch it on a website.
It took one day for the software to detect and optimize the 2,045 images.
And 46 hours to render the 13-Gigapixel panorama. So don't expect to buy a mobile phone with a 13 gigapixel camera anytime soon. For more details, click here

Fon for everyone

Wi-Fi just got a whole lot more interesting with a new scheme which allows you to use a stranger's home hub.

It was launched by BT last night at the Tate Modern with the help of Peaches Geldof.

BT have teamed up with Spanish phone company FON  to create a new Wi-Fi network based on members sharing their own home wireless hubs.

If you are a total broadband user, you will have the option to link up your home hub to a public network and if you tick that particular box it will also allow you to log into broadband via anyone else's hub who has also opted to share.

It has amazing potential. Just imagine, if everyone in one town, say Nottingham, all opted to share their BT home hub, you would have free Wi-Fi in the whole of that city. It would mean you could make free calls via a Wi-Fi mobile phone handset, or you  could access the net on a Wi-Fi laptop anywhere in that city.

And BT say the system is totally secure because in effect they are splitting the access of every member to a personal and public sector on every home hub.

Only drawback might be, if you are the only one sharing in your street, you might find a load of FON members  camped outside your house using your Wi-Fi.

Peaches wasn't exactly keen to share as she spun her tunes last night. "I don't do requests," she said. Apart from big corporate gigs on a school night, maybe.

For more information, click here