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Gefen HDMI Splitter For Simultaneous HDTV

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Gefen’s new 1:5 splitter for HDMI v1.3. accepts one HDMI signal from Blu-ray players, DVD players, set-top boxes, digital video recorders and game systems.


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It delivers the same audio and video to five HDMI displays and projectors at the same time. Greater signal distributions can be achieved when cascading two or more splitters together.

With support for the full scope of the HDMI v1.3 format, this Gefen splitter passes through HDCP-compliant video in resolutions up to 1080p full HD with deep colours. Multi-channel audio is delivered alongside in Dolby TrueHD and DTS Master Audio formats with lip-sync for demanding applications such as games.

Installation is plug-and-play easy, requiring a source connection to the splitter’s HDMI input using the six-foot HDMI cable that comes in the package. Five flat-panel displays and projectors connect directly to the Splitter’s five HDMI outputs.

CEC pass-through compliance, simple installation and support for the expanded HDMI v1.3 format makes the splitter a valuable addition to any digital signage, entertainment, staging or corporate installation. Gefen also offers a 1:2 HDMI v1.3 splitter for smaller home theatre and presentation applications.

RRP
1:5 Splitter $967

Telstra Capped Plan For Video Conferencing

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Telstra Enterprise and Government customers can now bundle their video conferencing much like they do a mobile phone with the hardware, data access, connectivity and usage available as a monthly capped plan.Telstra Executive Director, Convergent Sales, Paul Geason said Telstra was adopting this new approach to HD video conferencing, known as 1 Touch Video, in response to the growing headache reported by customers overwhelmed by the complexity of bringing video conferencing to life in their organisation.

“Video conferencing is fast becoming a critical tool in the business tool-box and 1 Touch Video service makes it accessible by removing the complexity traditionally involved with dealing with multiple people,” says Geason. “Customers can pay a flat monthly fee, similar to a mobile plan, for a HD video conferencing service that takes care of the design, install, network and maintenance, with no upfront costs.”

The 1 Touch Video service will initially offer customers the choice of a meeting room sized HD video conference over dual screen on the Polycom HDX 8004 or the smaller Polycom HDX 4002XL designed for the executive office or home. Australian-based company, Broadreach Services, has worked with Telstra to deliver the video capability within the Telstra Next IP network. The service will initially be available for metro sites with plans to roll out to regional Australia in the new year.

Harvey Norman Profit Drops 29.6 Percent

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Consumer Electronics retailer Harvey Norman who are now under pressure from both Dick Smith, JB Hi Fi and current market conditions has reported a 29 percent fall in first-half profits which fell from $174.14 million for the same period last year to A$123.5 million at December 2008.

Despite the bad numbers, Chairman Gerry Harvey is bullish and sees only better things ahead for the company. “Trading conditions remain challenging, but our core segments are resilient and our brands are growing market share in all key product categories,” he said in a statement. He did admit to his Irish operations struggling. “Trading conditions in Ireland remain extremely difficult. We have taken an impairment charge of $17 million against the written down value of our plant and equipment in Ireland.”

The franchising operations segment results were down from $171.24 million in HY2008 to $149.42 million HY2009 a drop of 12.7 percent.

Sales from the company were up slightly from $764.67 million to $770.35 million, while its EBIT was almost halved to $181.6 million in HY2009 compared to $344.28 million in HY2008.

Telstra COO Winn Quits

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Telstra Chief Operating Officer Greg Winn is to return home to the United States at the end of this month, ending a three-and-a-half year association with the Telco giant.

Initially on a two-year contract, Winn – along with former public affairs chief Phil Burgess – was brought in by Sol Trujillo and was known as one of the three amigos being one of the trio of top American executives at Telstra.

A critic of the Federal Government’s internet filtering programme, Winn headed Telstra’s networks and operations, and has been a key driver of the transformation of the company’s IT systems, networks, product development and procurement processes. He was integral to the building of Telstra’s nationwide Next G mobile network, as well as the company’s Next IP network.

Winn also oversaw delivery of field workforce productivity improvements focused on reducing costs while demonstrably improving the customer experience.

JB Hi-Fi Sells Used Phone As New

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The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is alleging that JB Hi-Fi sold a used phone as new to the same customer on two separate occasions in June last year.According to the ACCC’s website a customer bought a phone that was thought to be a new Nokia mobile phone from a JB Hi-Fi store at Westfield Kotara, NSW, when in fact on each occasion the phone was a returned used product.

A complaint was made to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission after the consumer found contacts and video clips created by the phones’ previous owners.

“When buying a mobile phone consumers are entitled to expect it is new and hasn’t previously been used or returned as faulty. Supplying a used product by mistake or otherwise is deceptive,” ACCC Chairman, Mr Graeme Samuel said.

To address its concerns, the ACCC has accepted court enforceable undertakings from JB Hi-Fi Group Pty Ltd that it engaged in false, misleading or deceptive conduct in breach of sections 52 and 53(b) of the Trade Practices Act 1974.

The undertakings relate to the sale of returned mobile phones at its Kotara Westfield store in NSW from 1 January 2008 to 28 August 2008. JB Hi-Fi has undertaken that it will:  not make any representation to the effect that the mobile phones it supplies are new when this is not the case  publish corrective notices in the Newcastle Post newspaper and in the Kotara Westfield store for eight weeks, and  extend its existing trade practices compliance to cover mobile phones. 

As part of the undertakings, JB Hi-Fi has also agreed to provide either a refund or a replacement to those customers who purchased a new mobile phone at the Kotara Westfield store during the period from 1 January 2008 to 28 August 2008, and later found it was not new.

The ACCC said JB Hi-Fi had been very cooperative in resolving this matter. In this incident, JB Hi Fi claims a procedural error meant returned mobile phones were accidentally mixed with existing stock when they should have been returned to the supplier.

Vodafone Cuts Cisco Deal

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Vodafone has released a new business package aimed at small-to-medium enterprises, which it says will help integrate companies’ mobile, fixed line, voice and data requirements.Working together with Cisco and Research In Motion, Vodafone Business One includes a WiFi package, outlined as five service bundles, which expand on the original Vodafone Business One service. Service bundles are platforms for businesses to build their own telecommunications service around. These bundles are then supplemented by additional service features and hardware infrastructure.

“Vodafone Business One uses Cisco Unified Communications to ensure the service evolves to meet ongoing business requirements,” says Ian Ross, Head of Managed Services Innovation, Cisco Australia and New Zealand. “Feature enhancements and services add-ons are already part of the roadmap – including tight integration with PC applications, visual communications, web collaboration tools and physical security.

“These solutions will help businesses to manage their communications more effectively by using the network as the platform for productivity improvements.”

In addition to providing a wireless email and data solution, it enables customers to make and receive WiFi phone calls while leveraging the strong security, authentication and management capabilities of the BlackBerry Mobile Voice System (MVS) technology and BlackBerry Enterprise Solution.

Security System For Home Office

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Cage Security’s new secure Internet Protocol-based security monitoring service is said to offer reliable protection for your home and for your workplace using a dual-path security monitoring system.


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One path is a simple connection to your home or business internet router, transmitting securely over the internet. The second path is a wireless connection via a mobile phone network that also transmits securely over the internet. Both paths link to Cage Security’s fault tolerant back-to-base 24-hour National Monitoring Centre.

“Your home and your workplace contain your most treasured possessions and are reflections of you and your lifestyle,” says Cage Security’s Bruce de Graaf. “It’s vital to put plenty of thought into keeping them safe.”

When an alert comes through an operator at the monitoring centre will quickly call the client company, phone the alarmed premises, alert the police or ambulance service or send out a guard patrol. The system is also aware if the client’s alarm is unable to communicate with the National Monitoring Centre, which occurs if the system is destroyed or stolen. Monitoring operators can respond immediately, informing the client and taking the necessary and appropriate action to prevent a security breech.

RRP
From $800 installed

IDC Revises IT Value Forecast Down

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IDC expects the overall ICT business market in Australia to reach a value of almost $47 billion by 2012, down from the 2008 forecast of $48 billion, in a report made available today.

The analysis report titled Australia Vertical Markets 2009-2012 Forecast and Analysis, IDC has revised its verticals forecast compound annual growth rate from 4.0 percent to 3.6 percent over the period 2008 to 2012.

In tough economic times, the natural inclination for companies is to put major transformational initiatives on hold and focus on tactical optimisation of business operations. “However, in this slow ICT spending environment, it’s more important than ever for suppliers to identify and focus their businesses towards key customers, new offerings and new vertical industries that will yield the greatest opportunities in order to make the most of the economic downturn,” said Melissa Martin, Senior Analyst, IT Spending and Verticals.

“Suppliers that push too hard on the brakes will not only limit their viability in the long term but also miss key growth opportunities in 2009,” she added.

 


Ranking of the top vertical markets in Australia in 2009 remains unchanged: Banking, Finance and Insurance at $8.8 billion and 21.1 percent of the business market; Government at  $6,1 billion and 14.7 percent and Communications and Media at $5.3 billion and 12.7 percent.

However, it is the Government, Education and Construction sectors forecasted to experience the fastest increase in ICT investment in the next few years (with respective CAGRs of 6.1 percent, 5 percent and 4.7 percent in the forecast period) as the Government aims to stimulate the Australian economy by increased spending and incentives in these sectors.

The vertical industries that will be the biggest losers in current economic times will be Retail, Transportation and Business Services. A very large part of these industries in Australia produce or sell intermediary goods destined to be consumed by other industries.

Modem Router Offers Increased Wireless Coverage

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A new modem router has been specifically designed for the home or small office, and allows users to share a high-speed ADSL Broadband connection with up to 250 other network users.

Edimax’s nMax AR-7265Wn is an 11n ADSL2/2+ modem router and works with all existing ADSL types, such as ADSL, ADSL2 and ADSL2+, supporting a maximum download speed of 24Mbps.

Based on the 802.11n wireless standard, the AR-7265Wn offers data transmission rates up to 300Mbps and an increased wireless coverage.

Providing a greater range and faster speeds, the 11n technology allows users to create a secure and stable wireless network to share photos, files, music, videos, printers and network storage among the computers in the network.

It supports Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) which enables users to set up advanced wireless security, simply by pushing the pairing button on the router.

Claimed to be easy to install, even for inexperienced users, the router supports Virtual Server and Virtual DMZ functions for increased security. Furthermore, by providing three detachable high-gain antennas with a standard SMA antenna connector, the unit allows users to enhance the wireless range even further by replacing the antenna.

RRP
$175

USB Drive Worth Weight In Gold

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UCC Australia has imported Super Talent Technology’s PICO-C Gold, a 24-carat gold-plated, water-resistant USB drive that weighs less than 5gms. It is smaller than an SD card, and can store over 2,000 MP3 songs.


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The unit uses chip-on-board (COB) technology to squeeze 8GB of Flash into an impressively small 31.3mm x 12.4mm x 3.4mm gold-plated steel case. It is shock-resistant, and has up to 200X (30MB/sec) transfer speeds. The Pico-C Gold includes a sturdy gold chain, and looks more like a fashion accessory than a high performance Flash drive.
“Is it the speed, the ruggedness, the water resistance, the incredibly tiny size or the pure elegance that people like most in our Pico-C drive? Who knows?” says Super Talent’s marketing director Joe James. “But, this combination of features and style is not offered in any other terrestrial storage device, which makes it a real craze.”

RRP
$84.95