New products (week of Dec 31)

USB MICROPHONE

Razer Seiren Digital Microphone

$279.90

Want to be the next PewDiePie and make a living from streaming the latest video games?

Razer's Seiren Digital Microphone will not guarantee you can, but what it does offer is studio-grade recording coupled with idiot-proof installation. Razer claims that its newest digital microphone records at 192 kHz/24-bit resolution, far better than the levels found on CDs.

It offers four recording patterns, for podcasts, vocals, duets and conference calls.

SMARTPHONE

HTC Desire 620 Dual SIM

$358

Packed with premium features such as a five-inch super LCD display, quad-core processor and dual-SIM-card capability, the HTC Desire 620 Dual SIM smartphone is a steal.

Photo-taking looks to be its strong suit, with an 8-megapixel main camera and a 5-megapixel front-facing camera.

Both cameras can record video at 1,080p resolution. The main camera has a built-in autofocus feature and a continuous shooting function, letting you capture multiple photos in quick succession.

LAPTOP

Dell Alienware 13

From $1,999

Dell's latest laptop from its gaming subsidiary, Alienware, looks more spaceship than computer. It promises to offer incredible performance for gaming and multitasking as well.

At only 2.5cm thick, it weighs 2kg, not bad for a laptop that has Intel's latest i5 processor, 16GB of RAM and an Nvidia GTX860M graphics card.

The Alienware Command Center 4.0 software is included, letting you track the computer's performance and customise the keyboard's backlights.

SMARTPHONE CASING

VillageSmith Marvel Lenticular 3D iPhone 6 and 6 Plus Hard Case

$33.90 (iPhone 6); $39.90 (iPhone 6 Plus)

It will be about five months before the premiere of the next Avengers film. You can start preparing yourself with VillageSmith's Marvel Lenticular 3D iPhone 6 and 6 Plus cases.

The back panel features the six heroes of the famous team, rendered in manga style. Even the usually intimidating Hulk looks adorable.

The panel is in full lenticular 3-D, that is, the characters appear to pop out at you. No 3-D glasses needed.

KEYBOARD

Logitech Illuminated Living-Room Keyboard K830

$139

The K830 is designed to be used from the comfort of your couch or bed. Look ma, no wires.

It adds a touchpad for gesture controls like those you would use on a smartphone, making a mouse unnecessary.

The keyboard's backlighting adjusts its brightness automatically to ambient light. If no typing is detected, the backlight switches off automatically to save power.

It is rechargeable via USB. One charge is supposed to provide up to 10 full days of use.

BLU-RAY DISC PLAYER

Pioneer BDP-LX88

$1,999

Pioneer's latest Blu-ray disc player is no lightweight. It weighs 13.4kg. Pioneer says this solid construction delivers a better viewing experience, with less jitter in images and higher signal stability.

The player has an extensive compatibility list as well, being able to read Blu-ray discs, DVDs, CDs and even Super Audio CD and DVD-Audio discs.

It includes two HDMI outputs, two USB ports and even a LAN port, letting the user access sites such as YouTube and Picasa through the TV.

This article was first published on Dec 31, 2014.
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