[UPDATE] Updated pricing and disclosure. From the same manufacturer that brought us the apolco P3 pico/micro projector, which I reviewed here, comes another useful gadget – the wireless speaker. It’s wireless because, well, there are no wires connecting the speaker to your notebook/laptop/netbook or PC.
What is it?
The apolco W3 wireless speaker connects wirelessly to your notebook/netbook/PC and plays back whatever music or sound on your computer. The speaker communicates with the computer using a USB dongle, which you insert into the computer. The speaker operates on the unlicensed 2.4GHz frequency, which is also the frequency used by WiFi networks as well as Bluetooth devices. It can operate on 8 channels within the commonly used 2.4GHz frequency, so if you discover that there is interference, simply switch to another channel on the USB dongle, and the speaker will adjust its receiving frequency automatically, without intervention from the user.
Features
What is interesting about the W3 wireless speaker is that multiple speakers can be connected to a single USB dongle – up to 20! Its operating distance is up to 20m (no physical obstruction, “line-of-sight”), but obviously this is going to be environment dependent. If there are a lot of obstructions between the dongle and speaker, the operating distance will be reduced, more so if the walls are made out of concrete. Reflective surfaces will also affect performance – essentially, anything that may interfere with your WiFi signals should also have an impact on the wireless speaker.
Technical specifications
System Compatibility: Windows 98SE, ME, 2000, 2003 or XP, Mac OS 9.x/X PC interface: USB1.1 or above Working distance: Up to 20M Power supply: 4X AA Batteries/ USB JACK Dimensions: 70X70X70mm Weight: 150g (without battery) Freq Response Range: 20Hz~20KHz Max Power Output: 1.5 W(L) + 1.5 W(R) Max playtime:up to 10 hrs (varies on different battery type and volume level) Operating Current: <350mA Standby Current: <50uA Operating Humidity: RH 35%~85% Storage Humidity: RH 20%~95% Storage Temperature: -10°C ~ 60°C Operating Temperature: -5°C ~ 40°C RF Operating Frequency: 2400 ~ 2483.5 MHz Channel Number: 8 selectable channel Wireless Transmission Power: 10 dBm Channel Spacing: 10.24 MHz Transmission Data Rate: 6 Mb/sec
The dongle works without the need for drivers – I tested it on Windows XP, but didn’t have a chance to test it on the MacOS because my “hackintosh” netbook is having some issues booting at the moment. The speaker is powered by 4 AA sized batteries, or it can be powered by a USB cable connected to the computer, which would defeat the purpose of a wireless speaker! I have been informed that the 4 AA batteries can run for more than 12 hours continuously although it’s only rated to run for up to 10 hours in the specifications – obviously much will depend on the signal quality of the wireless transmission as well as the volume of the speaker.
What’s in the box
w3 wireless speaker
USB power cable (to power the speaker using a USB port)
USB dongle aka wireless audio transmitter
audio cable (for wired connections)
quick user guide
Performance
The speaker works as advertised, and sound quality is quite good although it is wireless (but then again, I don’t have a good ear to start off with!). Obviously, these are not audiophile quality speakers, but more of useful gadgets to have, especially when you want to connect more than one speaker wirelessly, in different rooms, to a single sound source. You can move the wireless speaker to wherever it is needed, as long as it can receive the transmissions from the USB dongle.
Verdict
The apolco W3 wireless speaker is worth considering if your primary objective is to have decent sound anywhere in your office, home or shop, without the accompanying wires. The sound quality is on par with other speakers of its size. Obviously, the sound quality cannot be compared to a proper hifi sound system, nor a 2.1 sound system. Logic will tell you by looking at the size of the speaker, certain compromises have to be made to cram components into such a tiny form factor. This is not to say that the sound is bad – far from it, as I’ve mentioned above. I only mention this so that people have reasonable expectations regarding the performance of this speaker. After all, if we’re smart enough not to compare the performance of a Kancil to a Mercedes S-Class, we are smart enough to know the performance differences between speakers of various sizes!
The apolco W3 wireless speaker retails for RM 259, and is available at the same retailers as the apolco P3 pico/micro projector. Granted, it is not cheap, but I guess wireless technology, at the moment anyway, does not come cheap! Click here for a list of retailers carrying the apolco W3. If you want to connect multiple speakers to one USB dongle, you can opt to purchase the W3 speaker only, without the USB dongle – but I’ve been informed that the USB dongle is by far the cheaper of the two items, at only RM30, give or take a few ringgit, so it may make sense to buy two complete sets if you’re looking for a pair of speakers, with the additional USB dongle as a “standby”.
Disclosure: The apolco wireless speaker was provided to me, on loan, by IBI Electronics Sdn Bhd. I neither received payment for this review; nor was I given a unit of the projector free in return for doing this review; nor was I given any sort of a discount for any of IBI Electronics’ products in return for doing this review. The review unit has been returned.
One of the two mystery gadgets which I mentioned here is the apolco P3 micro projector. Micro projectors are also known as “pico projectors”, and they are slowly becoming popular in the US. These are not intended as a replacement for the full sized projectors that you are accustomed to in your working life – rather, they are meant as a complement to these larger projectors. Obviously, shrinking projectors down to a tiny size (and I mean really tiny, as you will see from the pictures below) will require some sacrifices and compromises. But they bring with them advantages of their own, some of which cannot be matched by those ordinary and larger projectors.
What is it?
A micro or pico projector is a tiny, miniaturised projector. It has all the functions of a typical projector and due to its size, is not as bright as a normal sized projector. Its advantages are that:
it is very portable – it’s as small as a cigarette box!
can operate on battery power for as long as you have batteries.
the batteries are removable, replaceable and rather cheap to buy.
Its range is also not as far as the normal sized projectors due to its smaller lens. The target audience for such a micro / pico projector are:
businessmen on the move who need to a lot of business presentations, for example proposals, using their notebooks/netbooks. These are typically Microsoft Powerpoint presentations.
insurance salesmen who need to present their company’s products to customers.
professional project teams who want to discuss project matters outside the office – this is especially useful when the team is based at a client’s office, and the team is small-ish in number, typically no more than 8.
students who need to make presentations on their projects or research; or when collaborating within a team for a team-based project.
anyone who wishes to view videos or photos while on the move, whether connecting to their notebooks/netbooks, or any portable media player (PMP) which has a TV out / RCA connector (those cables wit the yellow, white and red cables). You can even connect it to digital cameras or video cameras to share pictures and videos of vacations with friends and colleagues while visiting – no need to lug around a huge (by comparison to the micro / pico projector’s size) normal sized projector.
Actually, anyone who wishes to view anything that can be played back by a notebook/netbook or PMP can use this micro / pico projector – whether the media is a presentation, a video, photos, etc.
Here are the specifications of apolco P3 micro / pico projector:
Resolution: 640 x 480 (VGA)
Brightness: 15 Lumens (Typical)
Contrast Ratio: 200:1 (Typical)
Focus: Manual
Image Size: 7 inch – 60 inch
Through Distance: 30” / 1.2 meter
Light Source: LED (20,000 hr)
Video Format: NTSC/PAL/SECAM
Speaker: 0.3W (mono)
Voltage: DC 5V
Power Consumption: 7.5W
Battery: 40 minutes (1050 mAh)
Inputs: PC: Laptop/notebook/netbook, PC, UMPC, MID (any computer with VGA output); Video: Mobile Phone, IPOD, PMP, PDA, Digital Camera, PSP etc (any device with a TV/RCA out connector)
How does it work?
Simple. Connect using a supplied TV out cable / RCA cable or VGA cable to your media device, which can be a notebook/netbook, PMP, digital camera, video camera or even game consoles. Point the micro / pico projector at a flat wall or screen, preferably as white as possible, with a smooth surface, turn on the micro / pico projector, manually focus for best picture sharpness and enjoy the experience! While on battery power, the unit can operate continuously for 40 minutes. The battery is removable and replaceable; I’ve been told by the distributor that each spare battery should cost less than RM 50.
The start up of the micro / pico projector is very fast – count to three, and it’s ready to project. It does not need to warm up, unlike normal sized projectors. The lamp is of the Light Emitting Diode (LED) type which is supposed to be more power efficient. The lamp has a lifespan of 20,000 hours. This means that if you use the device for 2 hours, every day, 365 days a year, the lamp will last for 10,000 days, which is a lot of of days. It’s a lot of years so you needn’t worry about the lamp spoiling within the first few years of usage.
Features of the micro / pico projector
headphone/earphone out jack. It is a standard 3.5mm jack. This means that you can plug in any industry standard headphone or earphone to listen to audio from the device connected to the micro / pico projector using the TV out/RCA cable. You can connect external speakers to the micro / pico projector so that an entire room can hear what is being played back.
the minimum focus distance is mere inches away from the micro / pico projector. Obviously, the nearer the “screen” (defined as any surface where you project the picture onto) is to the micro / pico projector, the smaller the image will be. The maximum image size is 60 inches or 5 feet, measured diagonally. However, if the screen is too far away, the image quality will deteriorate the farther you try to project. Focusing is done manually using a “dial” on the front of the device.
the lamp on the apolco P3 micro / pico projector is rated at 15 lumens. It is brighter than any of its two competitors on the Malaysian market, whose brightness is between 10-11 lumens. Therefore, the apolco’s lamp’s brightness is 50% more than its competitors in the market. A brighter lamp means that you can use the projector in brighter environments. If a projector’s lamp is insufficiently bright, you need to operate it in a completely, or almost completely, dark room, which is not conducive for note taking or discussions during a presentation. The apolco P3 micro / pico projector also has a contrast ratio of 200:1; its competitors do not specify their contrast ratio, and hence it is difficult to compare. Again, contrast ratio is also brightness related, with a higher contrast ratio being better.
the apolco P3 micro / pico projector has a built-in fan to cool the LED lamp. Because of the small size of the lamp as well as its brightness and the small tiny size of the casing, heat dissipation is not optimal. Therefore a built-in fan can help disperse the hot air that builds up within the unit, and as we know, heat is the biggest enemy of an electronics component. By keeping the projector cooler, this will help prolong the life of the various components in the projector, the most important being the lamp.
Unboxing video
Here’s an unboxing video that I did. Apologies for the quality of the video, it was taken in low light conditions and the video camera capabilities of my digital camera is far from ideal!
The contents of the retail package include:
apolco P3 micro / pico projector.
case.
AC adapter.
one 1050 mAh battery.
one mini tripod.
one TV out/RCA adaptor cable.
one VGA adaptor cable.
user manual.
Pictures of the micro / pico projector
apolco P3 retail packaging
Size comparison with an AA battery and 20 sen coin
apolco P3 projector front
apolco P3 lamp and reverse side – fan vent
apolco battery compartment
Contents of retail packaging
apolco P3 micro pico projector displaying a webpage from my netbook (distance between projector and wall = 3.5 feet)
Here are a few videos showing the apolco P3 micro projector in action. Note that the video shows the screen projected by the projector flickering – this is a common result of using a cheap digital camera to record videos. In real life, the picture projected by the micro projector does not blink. It is also of a higher quality than what you see on the YouTube videos, because YouTube compresses the video size to make it easily downloadable. Compression will result in poorer video quality. This is precisely the reason why manufacturers do not put up videos of their projector products in action! If in doubt about the picture quality of the apolco P3 micro projector, do visit any of the retailers mentioned at the end of this post to see the projector in action for yourself.
Note that I put the volume while playing the videos below to a low level since I am also narrating the video. If I put the video’s sound up, it will be too noisy for you to hear me speak! Do view the videos in High Quality mode (click the “HQ” icon) instead of low quality – you will at least get an idea of the quality of the projector.
Video showing micro projector connected to a netbook which is playing a movie
Video showing micro projector connected to a Nokia 5800 smartphone which is playing a movie
Screenshot of a paused scene from a movie playing on a Nokia 5800 connected to the micro projector
Verdict
The apolco P3 micro / pico projector is a useful device to have, for those people who are mostly on the move, who require a quick and easy way to share their presentations in form of Microsoft Powerpoint presentations, videos, or even pictures. It allows a medium group of 6-8 people to be seated comfortably around a table to view a presentation rather than crowding around a small notebook computer screen.
It is also useful for students who want to collaborate in small groups for their assignments or research. The device can then be used to consume some entertainment after a hard day’s work – by viewing a movie, viewing some photos, or even playing some console games. Since it is able to connect to any device that has an RCA out support, any portable media player such as the iPhone or iPod can be connected to the apolco P3 micro / pico projector – the small 3-4″ screens on these devices immediately becomes a 24″ or larger screen!
The apolco P3 micro / pico projector is tiny as you can see from the pictures above – small enough to be put into a shirt pocket for men, and put into a small handbag for the ladies. Since the battery is removable, the user only has to purchase as many additional batteries as they require – I would estimate that around 4 batteries will be sufficient for almost any situation. And since the batteries are light and small, there is no trouble carrying these additional batteries around; the cost of each battery is also not prohibitive.
The start up time of the projector is really fast – count to three, and you’re ready to project. This is unlike the normal sized projectors where you need to switch on the projector beforehand and give the lamp some time to “warm up”. Even when the apolco P3 goes into power saving mode, turning it on again to use is easy – just like when you are turning it on from a switched off position. The lamp’s lifespan is also very long – 20,000 hours, which means you can go years without having to worry about lamp replacement.
The apolco P3 projector is also smaller than its competitors in the market. It is also brighter – which means that you do not have to be in a really dark environment to project. This is more productive for group discussions and interaction, rather than having to sit around in a dark room while viewing whatever presentation the projector is projecting on the screen!
The micro / pico projector is not intended to be a replacement for normal sized projectors – both have their usage scenarios and target audience. We know that normal sized projectors are much brighter than micro / pico projectors and you can use them even in brightly lit environments. But they are not as portable, and the lamp is traditionally of a shorter lifespan than the LED lamps used by these micro / pico projectors.
I’ve been having fun with the apolco P3 pico projector that I am reviewing, to the extent that I am now watching some TV series through the projector – I used to view these short TV series using the phone. I’m still amazed at how the manufacturer managed to squeeze a projector into such a small casing! If you fit the usage criteria I described above, I recommend this product.
The apolco P3 micro / pico projector retails for RM 1,599. It is distributed by IBI Electronics Sdn Bhd (website is still under construction). The projector is available from Pineapple Computers, and you can find a list of their stores here. Do call them up if you’re interested to purchase one or would like to test it before purchase.
Disclosure: The apolco projector was provided to me, on loan, by IBI Electronics Sdn Bhd. I neither received payment for this review; nor was I given a unit of the projector free in return for doing this review; nor was I given any sort of a discount for any of IBI Electronics’ products in return for doing this review. The review unit is being returned at the end of the review period.
No, for the umpteenth time, it’s not the Nokia N97! …yet…anyway, here are two items that I’m reviewing over the next few days or so. Can you guess what they are? One is sure to blow your mind away (excuse all the marketing hyperbole) in terms of what you can achieve with miniaturisation, while the other is a very nice gadget to have.
Stay tuned for the review of both of these “toys”.
Ah, remember the LG 3G watchphone that was the subject of my lust (read my coverage here, here and here) sometime late last year when it was announced? Well, it’s finally confirmed to be coming, as in released, not necessarily in Malaysia. Sales are reported to commence firstly in Europe on the Orange network, followed by Asia, the Middle East, then Australia and Latin America.
The Novatel MiFi, a personal wireless broadband hotspot device which I’ve covered many times before in this blog, is confirmed to be coming in a GSM/WCDMA flavour which is compatible with the network standards we use here in Malaysia. It’s model number “MiFi 2352 Intelligent Mobile Hotspot” and mobilx, a large European based online retailer out of Hungary says it will ship beginning 20th June. The price is US$ 259, approximately RM 904 before VAT and US$ 310, approximately RM 1,082, including VAT (VAT = value added taxes, unknown if overseas purchasers will have to pay VAT though). Granted, the device is not cheap, but new and cool gadgets never are!
In case you are wondering what’s the big deal about the MiFi, it’s a wireless cellular broadband modem and wifi router all-in-one, with a built-in battery, good for up to 4 hours of operation. The WiFi function supports up to 5 WiFi clients, enabling you to share a single 3G/HSDPA connection out via WiFi. So, you can create your personal WiFi cloud wherever you are, as long as you can get a 3G/HSDPA connection! How cool is that? It’s been on my list of most wanted, most lusted-after devices for a long time now, ever since it was released. Various reviews on the interwebs wax lyrical about this device; I’m sure there will be competing products before long from other major names in this market.
The other cool feature about this device is that it has a microSD slot, making this device a mini-NAS (network attached storage) server, allowing you to share files on a microSD card out to the WiFi clients connecting to the device!
The specifications:
Technology/Bands
Tri-band HSUPA/HSDPA – 900/1900/2100 MHz
Quad-band GPRS/EDGE – 850/900/1800/1900 MHz
A-GPS and gpsOneXTRA™ support
Receiver equalisation
Receiver diversity
Antenna
Integrated diversity antenna
Integrated WiFi antenna
Integrated GPS antenna
Software and Applications (optional)(USB Tethered Mode)
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Sorry, correction to my earlier tweet about price of Mophie Juice Pack Air - it's RM286.20, must be getting old! 10% off RM318 retail priceabout 3 hours agofrom HootSuite
From the same manufacturer that brought us the apolco P3 pico/micro projector, which I reviewed here, comes another useful gadget – the wireless speaker. It’s wireless because, well, there are no wires connecting the speaker to your notebook/laptop/netbook or PC.
