The Hardware I use
Main Computer
This serves my my storage warehouse + Home Theater in progress. A Pentium 4 HT Processor, with a 2gigs of DDR400 RAM, storage of a 200GB internal, supplemented by a 350GB iOmega external hard drive. On the visual side, a 17inch LCD monitor complements my a little outdated NVidia Ge-Force 7300GS 512mb Graphics card pretty well. Of course, it has the usual bells and whistles, 2 DVD ROMs, a Pinnacle PCTV Pro110i TV Tuner card complete the lineup. And yeah, I’ve switched back to Windows Vista, considering it is the only OS that gives a complete Media Center Experience.
I know 550GB of storage is a bit on the lower side, but I’m considering investing in a 750GB external drive too, so that should bump up the storage a bit. I’ve also got a 2.1 Creative I-Trigue speaker system hooked on the machine above, which delivers fantastic sound quality. To complete the Home Theater experience, I’m considering investing in a 22″ widescreen LCD monitor, but thats put on hold due to a sheer lack of funds.
Laptop
Until about a week ago, this section would not have existed. However, since my dad decided to get a new laptop, his old one was up for grabs. The rest, as they say, is history. The whole purpose of getting this laptop revolves around having a supplementary machine that runs Linux standalone, for usage on the move. A Celeron M, running at 1.5GHz, with 512MB of RAM and 40GB of storage, this pretty much suffices for my needs, as of now. The laptop runs Ubuntu 8.04 as a single boot, since it seems pretty pointless having multiple operating systems floating around on the same machine. Besides, its always been my desire to have a standalone Linux box.
It is not state of the art by any standards, but I’m looking at upgrading the memory to a gigabyte, which maxes its memory capacity, and should suffice me for another year, at best.
Mobile Phone.
I’m a strong believer in converged devices. My Nokia N82 is also my digital camera, mp3 player, GPS device and organizer. the 2Gb microSD card that came with it is good enough, although I might seriously consider the 4Gb and 8Gb cards once they’re affordable.
Of course, the phone is Internet enabled on Vodafone’s Rs.200 a month plan, basically for checking my gmail,(synced via IMAP), on the move, for the occassional blog post, for viewing my facebook newsfeed, and for booking the occasional movie ticket and the latest cricket score . As close to convergence as it gets.
I’ve also used the Nokia N95 for a little over a month, before which I used a Nokia N80 for a little under a year, and after which the worthy N82 upgrade happened. There is also a Nokia N73ME lying spare at home, thanks to luck. My brother also uses a Nokia N82, deeply influenced by me of course.
Car Music Player.
I have a Sony XPlod GT470US System in the car. It comes with the standard CD player, that can also play mp3s, as is the case with most audio systems these days. However, the icing on the cake is the Front Auxilary in, which I hook up my phone to, for music or for answering calls, which play on the car speakers. I’ve got 4 speakers in the car, two Sony component series speakers alongside the front doors, and two in a tray on the boot. I’m sandwiched between getting a subwoofer -amplifier combination or two more speakers, but again, financial constraints have played a strong part in turning me away from it. The system also comes in with a USB socket, and I’ve dedicated a 2gb flash drive completely for the car, which has all my music.
Other Hardware.
I’ve a D-Link DI524 wireless router that shares my ‘not something to be proud of’ by American and European standards, 256kbps unlimited Broadband connection. All my other devices connect wireless to it, though I think I’ll need a range extender to have a strong signal at every nook and corner of my house.
Additionally, like every other IT guy, there’s a 4gb flash drive I carry around.
I’ve invested separately in a Windows MCE Remote, as a part of the Home Entertainment System off the main computer. A wireless headset completes the lineup, though currently I’m having a tough time getting it replaced.
Update: - As on 23rd April, 2008, I also own a Maxtor OneTouch III portable 80GB Hard Drive
I’ve also got a Creative Zen Touch 20gb Mp3 player, for which I find no use for currently, and hence my dad pseudo uses it now. (obviously after spending money refurbishing it).
