Reviews

Image gallery: 3 encryption apps keep your data safe
If you carry your laptop anywhere, it could be lost or stolen — along with your private data. These 3 encryption apps keep your info safe and secret.

Review: 3 encryption apps keep your data safe
If you carry your laptop anywhere, it could be lost or stolen — along with your private data. These 3 encryption apps keep your info safe and secret.

Image gallery: 4 free video editors
Just shooting a video isn't enough -- you then have to edit it. These 4 free video editing apps can help you produce a video that everyone will enjoy.

4 free video editors bring out your inner filmmaker
Just shooting a video isn't enough -- you then have to edit it. These four free video editing apps can help you produce a video that everyone will enjoy.

Review: Kingston's new USB drive offers public and encrypted partitions
Kingston recently unveiled a new version of its DataTraveler USB stick that includes the ability to create two partitions, one for public use and the other for secure data storage, a very handy feature.

10 Great Google Chrome Extensions
With Google releasing a stable version of Chrome that supports extensions, it's a great time to install some of these enhancements for the Web browser. Google says there are now 1,500 extensions to choose from -- here are 10 favorites.

Review: Firefox 3.6 adds speed and Personas -- but is it enough?
Mozilla's Firefox 3.6 adds greater speed and some nifty features, but the new version is no game-changer.

Hands-on: The Jawbone Icon headset has style, a voice and an apps store
Aliph's Jawbone Icon, the latest in its series of consumer headsets, offers six styles, voice feedback, and an apps store that could make this one a winner.

Book Review: The Shift to Enterprise 2.0 Won't Be Easy
A new book by Andrew McAfee, who coined the term "Enterprise 2.0," acknowledges that the adoption of Web 2.0 collaborative tools in business will be a hard slog.

Review: Firefox 3.6 RC gives new life to an old browser
The release candidate of Firefox 3.6 is out, and it's faster, more efficient, and uses less memory than its predecessor.

Image gallery: 4 online backup services protect your data
Four online backup services let you stash your data in the cloud. We test them to find out whether any of them stand out.

Review: 4 online backup services protect your data
Four online backup services let you stash your data in the cloud. We test them to find out whether any of them stand out.

Engadget says Google's Nexus One is no iPhone killer
An Engadget.com review of Google's upcoming Nexus One smartphone found that it's 'not really very different' from Motorola's Droid technology.

Review: Lenovo IdeaPad S12 adds Ion for strong graphics
Lenovo has added Nvidia's Ion chipset to its IdeaPad S12 Multimedia mini for good performance in a lightweight netbook.

Review: SolarVoice 908 headset lets the sunshine in
Want to go green with your smartphone? Try the SolarVoice 908, a Bluetooth headset that charges itself via a built-in photovoltaic panel.

Image gallery: 3 top Linux distros go for different users
Fedora, openSUSE and Ubuntu Linux desktops may look alike, but they've got some important distinctions. We look at the latest versions of these well-known distros.

Review: 3 top Linux distros go for different users
Fedora, openSUSE, and Ubuntu Linux desktops may look alike, but they've got some important distinctions. We look at the latest versions of these well-known distros.

First Look: Google Chrome for the Mac -- fast, slim, and very beta
Google has finally released the beta of Chrome for the Mac, and while the browser promises some interesting features, it's currently only ready for testing.

First Look: Google Goggles tries to ID your world
Googles Labs' latest is a smartphone app that identifies whatever you take photos of. But Google Goggles is still very much in beta.

Hands-on: Google's Chrome OS is a work in progress
Google's Chrome operating system has created a lot of hoopla among tech watchers, but it's too soon to tell what the upcoming OS is really about.

Image gallery: 3 imaging apps
Imaging can help you preserve all your hard drive data by making a copy of all the populated sectors. We look at 3 backup apps that offer imaging features.

The ghost in the machine: 3 disk imaging apps
Imaging can help you preserve all your hard drive data by making a copy of all the populated sectors. We look at 3 backup apps that offer imaging features.

Review: Track your stolen laptop for free with Prey
The free, open-source Prey service can help you locate and possibly recover a stolen notebook. Is it as good as a paid laptop-tracking service -- or is it simply 'better than nothing at all'?

Image gallery: Office 2010 beta debuts major features
The first public beta of Microsoft's Office 2010 suite is fast and stable with some useful additions, including integration with Office Web Apps. Unfortunately, the most intriguing new features are only partially functional.

Hands on: Office 2010 beta debuts major features
The first public beta of Microsoft's Office 2010 suite is fast and stable with some useful additions, including integration with Office Web Apps. Unfortunately, the most intriguing new features are only partially functional.

Hands on with the Facebook facelift

Facebook's new redesign makes it easier to get at the service's most useful tools -- with one big exception.

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Hands-on with the MotionX iPhone navigation app

My favorite navigation app for the iPhone is MotionX-GPS Drive, because of its low cost, small footprint, and attractive and usable interface. The software just got upgraded to v3.0, with the new version fresh in the app store this week. I've been trying it for the past few days.

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Hands-on with the new Google Voice mobile app

Google Voice is a service that simplifies connecting with multiple phones. It gives you a single phone number that rings your home phone, cell phone, office phone -- however many phones you have. It's also a simple tool for managing voice messages. Now, Google Voice has a Web app that simplifies accessing the service on an iPhone or Palm WebOS device. The new app works very well.

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Chrome 4: King of the Web browser hill?

The latest Chrome Web browser is faster than ever, but what really matters is its new and improved feature set.

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Chrome: Linux's best Web browser?

The fastest Web browser on Linux by a gigantic margin is Chrome, and now that it supports extensions, it may just be the best Web browser on Linux.

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Dell introduces best Ubuntu netbook ever?

Early next year, Dell will be introducing the new Mini 10 with XP Home, Windows 7 Starter, and, what fits it best of all, Ubuntu 9.10.

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LockNote offers really simple encryption

If you need to encrypt text data, such as a list of passwords, it doesn't get any easier than LockNote, free, portable open source software for Windows.

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Thunderbird is Go!

After years of delay, Thunderbird 3.0, the open-source e-mail client, has arrived and it's proving to have been worth the wait.

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Google Chrome for Mac and Linux released

As anticipated since Google CEO Eric Schmidt announced as much in October, Google released its Chrome Browser for Mac and Linux today. I've been using the early Chromium developer builds for awhile and can say that Chrome is a good browser, but it certainly deserves that Beta tag.

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Bing Maps: Microsoft finally beats Google at its own game

The beta of the latest version of Bing Maps is out, and if it's tweaked properly, it will clearly be the best mapping site available. This may well be a first: Microsoft is on target, for the first time, to roll out a Web-based service that bests Google. I have details and screenshots in my blog.

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