Feature Articles

Top 100 Products of 2010

By Team HardwareZone - 30 Dec 2010

Picks 11 - 20

 Google Nexus One

Should Google's Android OS be the soul, then the Google Nexus One is the vessel that houses this open-source mobile OS. Announced and made available at the beginning of 2010, the Nexus One, preloaded with Android 2.1 and the first to receive the Android 2.2 update, had the right combination of hardware (such as its 1 GHz processor), and an intuitive user interface from the Android OS.

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 

The GeForce GTX 580 not only fulfills the Fermi promise of 512 CUDA cores, it also boasts a number of tweaks and optimizations to make it run not only faster but also more efficiently. Furthermore, this is currently the world’s fastest single GPU, and by a considerable margin to boot. In light of its improved performance and efficiency, what more could a graphics enthusiast ask for?

MSI 890FXA-GD70 

With its proprietary technologies like MSI's OC Genie propelling it above the competition, MSI's 890FXA-GD70 is a great choice for enthusiasts on the AMD platform, especially with its quad CrossFireX support. The excellent board layout serves to distinguish it further from its competitors while the affordable price tag makes it accessible to most.

OCZ RevoDrive PCI Express Solid State Drive 

The OCZ RevoDrive SSD uses the PCIe interface to deliver up to 540 MB/s (megabytes per second) read speeds, and random 4k writes at up to 75,000 IOPS (input/output operations per second). In layman’s terms, this drive is super fast. Capacity-wise, it is available from 50 to 480GB sizes. MTBF (mean time between failure) is rated at an impressive two million hours. In short, this is one of the kings of storage performance which enthusiasts can lay their hands on without an excessive price tag.

Data Robotics Drobo FS 

The Gigabit Ethernet-equipped Drobo FS is a data storage array that holds up to five hot-swappable drives. Its BeyondRAID technology serves to bring the benefits of traditional RAID systems, but without their limitations. For example, similar to RAID 6, it supports both single and dual-disk redundancy (switching between the two requires just a click.) But you can insert new drives or replace smaller drives with bigger ones without the need to change RAID levels.

 Panasonic VIERA VT20S 3D PDP (TH-P50VT20S)

Panasonic's VIERA VT20S is not just a stud in the 2D field. It also rocked our eyeballs with its impressive 3D picture quality and inky black levels. Equipped with a THX-certified display and VIERA Cast infotainment platform, this plasma display should be on your want-list if a solid 3D AV package is what you are after.

 
Panasonic LUMIX DMC-LX5
 

Reduced image noise, better grip, the clickable control wheel and dedicated video button makes this a worthy upgrade from the LX3. Coupled with the brilliant intelligent Auto mode, the Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX5 is one of the most impressive compact cameras you can find today.

 
Western Digital TV Live Hub
 

We did not appreciate the first-gen WD TV model too much, but it is good to know Western Digital has made progress since. The latest WD TV Live Hub media player features the Sigma SMP8654 workhorse, and comes with an internal 1 TB hard drive, HDMI 1.4, Media Server, and a Gigabit Ethernet port for blazing fast network transfers. Not to mention of course is its good fie playback compatibility that further makes this media player one of the  best in its field.


Toshiba Libretto W100
 

Taking touch screens to the ultimate conclusion is the Toshiba Libretto W100 with its almost button-less mini notebook. You do need to make some adjustments to get used to the notebook, as there is no physical keyboard - but in itself, the W100 is a strangely compelling look into the future of touch screen computing.

 Samsung Galaxy Tab

Samsung's attempt at a tablet, the Galaxy Tab has arguably the best implementation of Android on a tablet at this moment. With its more portable form factor and ability to make voice calls, it manages to distinguish itself from the iPad, chalking up an impressive 1 million unit in sales in the last two months of 2010. If it's an iPad alternative you need, look no further than the Galaxy Tab.

 

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