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Have you got a palm treo 650 phone?

Then you might be interested in Fake Call for the Palm Treo 650. This allows you to use the calendar to schedule the Palm Treo 650 to ring as if you had an incoming call, and can save you from boring meetings or other sticky situations.

To read more about Fake Call for Palm Treo 650, click here.

I am not in the position to acquire any new home gadgets at the moment, even the last gadget I bought the XBOX 360 media centre has not been used to it's full potential.

Instead any extra money I get now will be channelled towards my I want to fly a hang glider across the UK challenge.

Anyone want to buy a lonely XBOX 360 console?

If you like me bought an XBOX 360 core system to use as an MCE 2005 extender, then you would have been caught out by the fact that you can't update the firmware on your console to the latest version via XBOX live if you don't have a storage device (either the HDD or a memory unit), even though the spring update press release says you can. Microsoft are yet (as of July 2006) to release the update on CD/DVD to allow this to be done offline.

There are a number of reasons why you need to update the firmware of your xbox 360 console to the latest version. The spring update includes a number of DVD player enhancements which would make your use of the XBOX 360 as a media hub much more enjoyable. The major one for me was the ability to stop the console from automatically playing a DVD left in the drive, when the console is powered up using the power button. It now goes to the dashboard. The full list of enhancements is here.

The other thing I noticed when I updated my console via XBOX live was that my console now had support for the live camera accessory, something that was not available on the console before, so obviously console updates is the preferred way for adding support for various accessories (the HD DVD drive will be available soon), which is why I'm a bit annoyed that the console was not designed with some form of onboard memory to allow for these without having to buy external storage units.

I don't think it was an oversight, rather a deliberate way of making sure that people buy additional accessories to generate more funds of Micro$oft! Even the HD component cable is not included in the core system.

I was lucky to be able to borrow a HDD storage device from a colleague at work, perform the update, and return the unit, so now I have the latest firmware (June 2006), on my XBOX 360 and have not spent un-necessary funds on an accessory I don't need.

Just for your information, you don't even need to create a profile on XBOX live to perform the update, the first thing the console does before trying to sign in is to see if there are any updates, so you can perform an update without having to log in or sign up to XBOX live. The best way to do this is via the Test XBOX Live button on the Network section of the system blade.

Having spoken to Xbox 360 support personnel on 3 different occasions, I can confirm, that at the moment, you will need at least a memory unit to download any firmware updates to your xbox 360 console from the Xbox live site!

Another ploy by the Microsoft corporation to squeeze more money out of individuals!

What really annoys me is that their press release blatantly lied about not requiring one, and I don't see why technically one is required. Surely during the design process they knew they would be rolling out firmware updates via xbox live, so they could had made provision for this without having to require an external storage device, unless of course they knew that the main purpose of the console was going to be gaming! So the additional media hub facilities were an after thought to gain an extra market share!

I recently bought a XBox 360 console to use as a Media Center Extender, as I quite loved the idea of my family having arm chair access to our complete ripped CD collection, our ever increasing collection of digital photos that would never otherwise see the light of day, as well as access to the few DVDs we had and our home videos which I had shot.

With Media Center Edition 2005 firmly established as a favourite easy to use HTPC application, and me having a fairly new windows XP machine in the study, and not wishing to shell out £800 or so to get a living room acceptable HTPC, using the XBox 360 as an extender to my current PC which I would need to install MCE 2005 Edition on seemed a good choice, and Google seemed to have many references to the increased use of the XBox 360 as a media hub in the house.

Having had access to a Liteon 5025 PVR/DVD recorder over the last 12 months or so, I knew that our family had no use for a PVR, so I wouldn't be using MCE 2005 for live TV or recording. It wasn't until I started adding all the bits and pieces together that I realised how far from the £210 commonly quoted price this new media hub was going to cost.

Not being a gamer, and to cut costs, I decided on buying the Core system and building on that.

XBox 360 Core System £210
HD Component cable (to complement my new LG RZ37LZ55 HD Ready LCD Television) £20. Joytech sell a cheaper version.
You will need a VGA cable to connect the Xbox 360 to a computer monitor, the cable included with the core system can be used to connect it to a CRT TV, but for a better quality signal you will need the RGB scart cable.

Xbox 360 Universal remote console £20. Even if you buy the premium pack, the included remote does not have the complete features provided by this remote.

XBOX 360 wireless adaptor £55 (I needed this since I didn't have a wired network point near my TV, and wasn't in a position to run one). For best performance, your MCE 2005 PC should be connected to the wireless access point via a wired connection.

A digital optical cable to allow me output 5.1 surround sound from the Xbox 360, as the HD Component cable only outputs stereo (I haven't checked if this is Dolby, but guess it is).

One annoying thing that I recently found out was that you need a storage device to be able to download updates to the Xbox 360 via Xbox live, contrary to the press release that was sent all over the place by Microsoft when the much anticipated Spring Update was released in June. So here I am with a XBOX 360, and I can't download the latest firmware to the console because I don't have a memory unit or Hard drive. Obviously Microsoft still thinks the XBOX 360 is primarily a gaming console and the media hub facilities where just an after though. I haven't bought a storage device or memory card yet, as I don't think I really need the spring update yet!

Finally I have had to pay £72 to get a legal copy of MCE 2005 to run on my study PC, and this had to be a fresh installation, as MCE 2005 will not upgrade Windows XP Home Edition.

Now I have everything to connect my XBox 360 to my TV as well as allow it to act as a MCE 2005 edition extender, does my family now get the full MCE 2005 experience from the sofa? NO.

I will be explaining in my next post what a let down the XBox 360 as a MCE extender is.

more reading
XBox360 as Media Extender
The Wii games console

My latest home gadget is the LG RZ37LZ55 HD ready LCD TV which I bought recently as part of my quest for a Digital Media Experience.

The LG RZ37LZ55 is an affordable good quality 37" HD ready LCD TV, and though it is not the latest model from LG, it still offers good value for money. Not every one will like the styling of the LG RZ37LZ55, especially with the 2 speakers on the side, which are not removable. It also comes with a desktop stand. The TV has an analogue tuner which I don't use, as I have a SKY box connected via scart RGB.

In terms of connectivity this home gadget the LG RZ37LZ55 offers 2 Scart sockets, 1 composite, 1 component, 1 VGA and 1 HDMI interface, so will connect to any device you can think of. A RS232 control interface is also included for those computer geeks who want computer control.

The quality of the picture is very good, and when I connect my gaming home gadget the XBOX 360 via the component input the HD picture is stunning.

What I don't like about this home gadget Non detachable speakers (not a lot of LCD or Plasmas have these anyway), but would have been nice especially as I intend to wall mount mine. The TV does not scan the inputs for a signal, so if I switch on the XBOX 360, switch off the SKY box, I get a no signal screen saver, it would have been nice if the LG RZ37LZ55 automatically detected that there was a signal on the component input and automatically switched to it (maybe this is available in more expensive sets?). When the aspect ratio on the TV is set to automatically detect from the broadcast signal it puts grey bars on the side of 4:3 broadcasts, I would prefer black. On the whole I'm pleased with the set. Points to note: The TV remote is supposed to be a programmable universal model, but I couldn't get the remote to control my SKY box or Samsung AV601 receiver. If you are used to CRT pictures, it takes time to get used to the LG RZ37LZ55 LCD HD ready TV, especially when watching poor quality broadcasts, as the high quality screen really shows the artefacts. I am still trying to get the picture settings adjusted right especially for watching DVDs, as the dark scenes from the movie 'Tears of the sun' where not watch able last night with the current settings, so you will need to adjust the factory preset settings.

I got mine from Dixon's Online for less that £1000 (2006), I got an automatic £25 web discount as well as an additional £10 pricerunner discount (check pricerunner site for the current discount code). Took 6 days to arrive from ordering. The price of the set seems to be coming down everyday, with some outlets now selling it for £900. I you are looking for an affordable 37" hd ready LCD, the LG RZ37LZ55 might fit the bill, as with everything, you get what you pay for, so don't expect this TV to out perform a similar sized LCD from a leading brand manufacturer.

LG RZ37LZ55 TV Problems

There have been a few problems reported on this LG TV, howver the only one I've encountered is the issue of the LCD TV not waking from stand by. I've not heard of a fix for this problem by LG, but since switching off the telly from the main and turning it back on again overides it, I can live with it. Update 2012: Almost 6 years of owning this High Definition LG TV, and I'm very satisfied with the product, it now is connected to a SKY HD box, and I watched the London 2012 olympics in full glory HD including Hussain Bolt and mates breaking the 100m relay record. LGs are reliable TVs.

Over the next few days or weeks, I will be putting things in place so the family can experience digital media in our main lounge.

The plan is to get a new HD Ready flat screen display, use a XBOX 360 as a Media Center Extender to allow us access to our music, photos and videos in full HD glory. The XBOX 360 will also replace my DVD and CD player, so the lounge should look tidier with all CDs, DVDs and fewer electronic gadgets around.

I have started the process this weekend by buying a Toshiba 320GB external USB hard drive. This external USB hard drive will have all my CD's ripped to it in MP3 format, hold the few DVD movies we have, I will be using a DVDShrink to copy just the main movie, eliminating all un necessary extras. The hard drive will also hold the family photos.

I'm half way through ripping the CDs, I used Windows Media Player, though there are other options available. I'm not too fussed about quality, so I used maximum compression during ripping.

I've bought the XBOX 360, but am waiting for a few extras, so haven't bothered opening the box yet. The order of the HD LCD TV will be made in the week.

I will also have to install windows media center 2005 on my study PC, so there is a far bit of work to be done.

I will keep a diary of how things go, and will do a few write ups when finished.

Make your Mobile Phones, MP3 plays and Laptops harder to sell if stolen, by following the UK police crime initiative.

Register your valuable property https://www.immobilise.com/

Keep a record of your mobile phone IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) http://www.met.police.uk/mobilephone/imei.htm

Go to your mobile phone company website for extra security information - list below: http://www.met.police.uk/mobilephone/links.htm

If you are buying second hand gadgets or devices, check them against the database to see if they have been reported stolen.

Update May 2008 The article originally linked to in this post is no longer available on the internet, and I can't find a replacement. I don't have this ADSL router anymore, so am unable to retrace the steps to reset this router.

Recently I had a software problem with one of my home gadgets the Conexant AMX CA61E ADSL Router, that required a hardware reset to put it back to the factory defaults.

Luckily I found the following Reset the Conexant AMX CA61E ADSL Router article which gave me all the information I needed.

Unfortunately, I was missing pictures, so it took me about 15 minutes to find the actual jumper that needed shorting, so I've decided to take some pictures of the Conexant AMX CA61E ADSL Router to help anyone who needs to do this in the future.

The picture below shows underneath the Conexant AMX CA61E ADSL Router, with a hole made in the label to gain access to the screw holding the unit together. You will need a Philips (star/cross) screwdriver to open the unit.


Once you open the unit, you will see the circuit board as shown below. Click on the photo to see a higher resolution version, with jumper J7 circled.


A close-up of the J7 jumper is shown below.


Finally the picture below shows how you short the jumper following the instructions in the Reset the Conexant AMX CA61E ADSL Router article.


Once you have completed the hardware reset, you will need to re-configure your Conexant AMX CA61E ADSL Router.

UK mobile phone giant O2 is recalling the X1 mobile handset due to a risk of overheating.

O2 recalls incendiary X1.

If you know of anyone using the X1 mobie phone let them know.

High Definition TV HDTV, finally arrives in the UK as two of the major broadcasters today announced their plans to start HDTV transmissions in the UK.

The BBC plans to start HDTV trials with its coverage of the world cup and this years coverage of the Wimbledon championships.

BBC to start HD trials

SKY TV today also released prices for its HDTV service. With a monopoly of the satellite market, the prices are not cheap.

SKY HDTV

Its a bit early for me, and the price of SKY's system is too much for me to even consider. Did I mention I don't have a HD TV yet?

Cable company NTL:Telewest launched the UK's first High Definition TV service yesterday.


Full details at:

PC Computer and The Register

The service is available to those who have the Telewest TV Drive PVR set top box, and there is an additional premium of £10-£15 depending on your current TV package.

Details of programs available on the Telewest HD service are sketchy at the moment, you ca visit Telewest's TV Drive website for details.

In the meantime SKY is still saying that its HD service is due for launch in the first half of 2006. SKY HD.

I'm putting up my Garmin portable satellite navigation up for sale, as my current car has an inbuilt system.

The system I have is 3 yrs old, and so might not be able to compete with modern devices, however when I bought it, it was an affordable way to have Satellite Navigation especially if you needed to use it in more than one car.

I did a review of the unit for the Lexus Owners Club, and it can be found here.

The recent introduction of more stylish units like the Tom Tom has almost meant that portable satellite navigation units are almost becoming a fashion accessory on the same lines as the latest mobile phone, MP3 player.

Finally my SKY Digital satellite receiver box got updated with the new SKY TV guide yesterday, and I have tried out the personalised SKY's TV listings. It is not exactly what I was expecting, but it surely is a very useful feature.

The new SKY personalised TV listings is actually an enhancement of the favourite channels feature that had been present in the SKY TV guide previously. The enhancement includes an increase in the number of channels you can add to your favourites from 10 to 50, but more importantly the addition of the option to view your favourite channels as a list and a 7 day guide of those channels which then acts as your personalised SKY TV listings.

For those who have not used the favourite channel feature before, here is how it works.

SKY TV personal listings setup

Using the SKY Digital digi box remote control, press the services button.

Choose favourite channels from the options listed.

You are now presented with a screen showing the channels available on the SKY TV digital platform.

Using the up and down arrows on your remote go through the channels, and for everyone you want to add to your favourite channel press the yellow button, a tick should appear on that channel.

Continue through the TV listings until you have selected all the channels you want to add, or you reach your maximum of 50, then press the select button to save these channels. If you want to remove any channel just press the yellow button when you have that channel highlighted, and the tick will be removed.

Once you have finalised your favourite channels, press the TV listings button on your SKY Digital digi box remote control, and you will be presented with the TV guide main menu. You will notice at the bottom right of the screen the favourite square with an arrow pointing down, if you now press the Blue button on your remote control, you will be presented with your favourite channels as a TV listing, this also contains a 7 day guide which you can now use as normal.

The new feature should be very useful to people who have only Free to Air (FTA), Free to View (FTV) or limited subscription channels, as they can now have a TV listing that shows only the channels they have access to, and they don't have to go through loads of extra channels just to see what is available to them.

Personally I think those who are subscribed to all premium channels and thus have access to a larger amount of channels might not use this feature regularly, as they might think they would miss a an interesting program on one of their less favourite channels.

TIP: When adding channels to your favourites, you can get more value by not adding +1 channels to your list, but using the scan feature while watching a channel to see what the +1 channel is showing as most +1 channels are just one channel number up (More4 being an exception).

If you've found an interesting way of using this SKY TV listings feature, leave a comment letting me know.

Sorry for the lack of posts recently, I have been very busy both at work and home, and time has been very tight to play with gadgets or search out new ones. I have also been working hard trying to find sponsorship for my hang glider adventure so blogging has had to take a back seat, and there are still a lot of things I'm involved with at the moment so it might be a while before I can resume my weekly posts. Anyway here is a little issue I had to deal with this week.

Further to my earlier Email from your K750i mobile phone post, all has been working okay with my SE K750I mobile phone, email wise until recently when I tried to send myself an email at work, and it failed!
My first reaction was that there was a problem with Virgin's mobile phone network, that turned out to be false as I could surf the internet of the SE K750I.
Further investigation showed that I was able actually access the POP3 account setup on the phone, but the problems was when it tried to send the email using the smtp server specified the mobile phones email configuration. If you remember in my earlier Email from your K750i mobile phone post I had to use my personal smtp server for sending email as Virgin Mobile does not provide an email service. Since I did not know the IP address my phone would be using to connect to my home PC, I had to configure my home firewall to accept connections from any IP address. Somehow that setting on my smtp server had changed to allow only local connections. I changed it back to allow all connections and now my SE K750I is now happily sending emails out again.
For the benefit of all you potential spammers, I don't use the default smtp port for connections from the internet, my PC has a dynamic IP, which you don't know and I have a DNS name which you will never guess, so I don't have an open smtp relay.

This is one of the downsides of the email client on the SE K750I, it does not support authenticated smtp, so you will only be able to use this phone to send emails if your mobile phone network provides email service, you have your own smtp server and know how to configure it to work with the SE K750I or you can find an ISP that provides a POP3 logon before smtp service.

Good news for SKY Digital subscribers.

You can now have a personalised TV listings of your sky digital box, you no longer have to put up with having to scroll through all the 200+ channels.

Details at 50 Favorite Sky TV channels.

I've recently had to spend some time changing the configuration of my Misterhouse based home automation system since it had started behaving erratically.

The problem was with some of the hardware used in the system rather than the Misterhouse software itself which I have been running for about 3 years and have found to be very reliable.

The first hardware to fail was the wireless router that connected the Misterhouse Windows NT4 computer to the internet and the main home computer. This meant I could not remote connect to the Misterhouse computer and administer the system, though the system was still running albeit erratically, as I could not reset the state of some of the X10 hardware used in my home automation system.

The other item that failed was a TM13 X10 receiver which was switching off the unit connected to it at times when it was not supposed to. I haven't gotten to the root of that problem, so I've removed the electrical appliance connected to it for the time being.

Everything is back to normal now after decommissioning the NT4 computer and running the Misterhouse software on my XP computer.

I now have to budget for a new wireless router, and I would like to replace the NT4 computer with a new PC which would double as a media storage device for my DVDs and music CDs, but it looks like my home automation needs will have to take a back burner, as I'm going to be concentrating my efforts on my hang glidingfor the first half of this year.

Yaesu FT 817 Qrp transciever

In my last post I had the picture of my Amateur Radio Yaesu FT 817 transceiver gadget.

Amateur Radio was a hobby I picked up in the 80's when I was in Nigeria, and back then it was an elite hobby, as with no internet, and telecommunications very expensive, it was kind of cool to be able to talk with people all over the world from the comfort of my room without incurring any expensive call charges.

As a student, it also meant I learnt more about physics and Electronics, this was good for me, as I was ahead of my classmates in School. My knowledge of geography was also very good, as each time I made contact with someone, I would check the map to see where they were located.

Back in the 80's being a student, I could not afford to buy Amateur radio equipment or any other gadgets off the shelf (not that any was available in Nigeria anyway), so most of the equipment I used was homebrew from electronic parts easily found locally and using circuit diagrams found in magazines I was sent from overseas. I was also fortunate to also benefit from a United Nations program that donated electronic kits to the developing countries, and got a 20m transceiver kit. This transceiver kit operated on 14Mhz short-wave, and gave me the opportunity to contact people worldwide.

Being located in Nigeria meant that a lot of people wanted to make contact and get sent a card confirming the contact so they could get various awards, many friendships were made, one of the best benefits I had from the hobby was I was able to get a very good job in Lagos when I completed my NYSC having studied Electronic Engineering.

Coming to the UK, meant that while I could continue to pursue the hobby and play with more electronic gadgets, I didn't really enjoy the hobby that much anymore, as there is a larger population of Radio Amateurs in the UK, and thus people wanting to contact you are less. This is one of the reasons why I haven't used this gadget that much recently.

As someone mentioned in the comments, I might use the radio to keep in contact during my upcoming hang glider adventure, though I will not be able to use it when actually flying as the UK license does not permit this.

For the record, my nigerian call signs were 5N9GOM and 5N2KRC, I also had the UK callsign M1DMG, my current UK call sign is M0DMG

For more details about this Yaesu FT 817 gadget and amateur radio, see the links below.

Radio Society of Great Britain
American Radio Relay League