Tweney.com - Mobile articles

Selected publications by Dylan Tweney.

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Articles selected: 21.
Canon PowerShot S70
So you fancy yourself a serious photographer, but you don't want to carry a big SLR or a bulky enthusiast camera? The Canon PowerShot S70 is made for you. (Mobile, 2005-05-01)

Casio Exilim Pro EX-P505
Most of Casio's Exilim cameras have been trim, low-profile units that fit easily into a pocket. Not so with the Casio Exilim Pro EX-P505, which is about as slim and elegant as a sock full of golf balls. (Mobile, 2005-07-01)

Casio Exilim Zoom EX-Z50
The first thing you need to know about this camera is that using it will not, by itself, make you more attractive. It will, however, make you feel pretty damn slick. (Mobile, 2005-05-01)

Death by Tech Support
After spending more than 13 hours on the phone trying to get tech support from the top 10 notebook manufacturers and a handful of third-party tech-support services, our fists were clenched in rage, a rage that subsided only after a few extra-large Sapphire martinis and a trip to the shooting range. (Mobile, 2005-07-01)

Fossil Wrist PDA
The Fossil Wrist PDA is a huge, gleaming chunk of metal and LCD that balances on your wrist about as elegantly as an elephant on a pogo stick. (Mobile, 2005-05-01)

Fujifilm FinePix F10
Even gadget-heads like us occasionally get tired of fiddling with dials, knobs, and buttons to get our devices working right. Sometimes, in the sleepy, alcohol-infused predawn hours, we just want to snap a picture of our new Reno friends without having to worry about whether we’ve picked the right white balance setting or adjusted the freakin’ autofocus properly. (Mobile, 2005-08-01)

Google Desktop Search Beta
If you're in love with Google and want to extend its all-seeing gaze to the intimate recesses of your hard drive, Google Desktop Search is the way to go. (Mobile, 2005-06-01)

Google Picasa 2
You know them: annoying Mac users who are always going on about Apple's supposed "usability," its "elegant design," and all its "great applications." Well now you can scratch one item off your Mac-using friends' brag list. (Mobile, 2005-07-01)

HP Photosmart R717
HP has figured out how to make excellent, user-friendly cameras, and it's not messing with the formula. (Mobile, 2005-05-01)

IBM ThinkPad X41 Tablet
To some, the Tablet PC operating system ranks right up there with Microsoft Bob, Clippy the Office Wizard, and Steve Ballmer as one of Microsoft's most obnoxious, useless creations. But the IBM ThinkPad X41 Tablet shows that it is possible to make a tablet that's usable, functional, well built, and even attractive. (Mobile, 2005-10-01)

JVC GR-D295u
Judging by its name, you'd think the JVC GR-D295u was a futuristic cambot with a remorseless drive to destroy all living beings. In fact, the GR-D295u is more like the guy who hangs out on the last bar stool next to the door, nursing a Schlitz: friendly, easy to like, and a bit clumsy. That's why we're calling it Norm. (Mobile, 2005-09-01)

Kodak EasyShare DX7590
Kodak's EasyShare DX7590 is a great choice for the X Games: It's a point-and-shoot camera that also has a powerful zoom lens, so you can get action shots of the half pipe even if you're stuck in the middle of the audience. (Mobile, 2005-05-01)

Konica Minolta Maxxum 7D
This impressively large, traditional-looking digital SLR lays it all out, with a profusion of dials, knobs, and buttons. Learning to wrangle these controls takes time, but the payoff is that you can make quick adjustments to your shots without having to go through a bunch of onscreen menus. (Mobile, 2005-06-01)

Mobile Film School
How to get the most out of your camcorder--even if you don't have Spielberg's talent or Lucas's budget. A detailed 10-page feature, including lots of tips and reviews, from the final issue of Mobile. (PDF) (Mobile, 2005-11-02)

Olympus Evolt E-300
Some things a man just can't explain: What drives him to drink. Why he can't stop a-cussin' and a-brawlin'. And why he lugs around a big, beefy digital SLR when there are pocketable cameras aplenty. (Mobile, 2005-06-01)

Palm Today, Gone Tomorrow
Palm is about to make the biggest decision of its corporate life: Switch to Windows, or face oblivion (Mobile, 2005-11-01)

Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ5 vs. Kodak EasyShare Z740
Whether it's because of fear, prudence, or a restraining order, sometimes you just can't get close enough for a decent photo. For situations like these, you need something more powerful -- like the 12x zoom lens on the Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ5 or the 10x zoom on the Kodak EasyShare Z740. (Mobile, 2005-07-01)

RIM BlackBerry 7100g
The BlackBerry 7100g combines the slim profile of a candy-bar phone with all the e-mail and internet savvy of other, less stylish, BlackBerrys. And you won't feel like an idiot holding it to your ear in a bar. (Mobile, 2005-09-01)

SanDisk Sansa e130
If you prefer the McDonald's dollar menu to dining at the Ritz, Friday night TV movies to Broadway shows, and big blocks of Velveeta to imported French Brie, then the SanDisk Sansa e130 is the perfect audio player for you. (Mobile, 2005-10-01)

Sony DSC-T7 Cyber-shot
Sony's slimmest Cyber-shot, the DSC-T7, is more than just a camera. It's skinny enough that you could use it to shim up a wobbly kitchen table or to wedge a door shut. (Mobile, 2005-10-01)

Tiger Telematics Gizmondo
Rocky Balboa. The Jamaican bobsled team. Ross Perot. We can’t help but love our scrappy, endearing underdogs. OK, maybe not Ross Perot. But definitely the Gizmondo. (Mobile, 2005-08-01)