Marc and Mario are in the studio together with this week's special guest and co-host, Chris Hardwick.
Chris hosts the new PBS show Wired Science which airs for one hour without interruption at 8PM on Wednesdays.
Wired Science is a more in depth look at technology than its print media counterpart, Wired Magazine which is, as Chris describes it, "GQ for nerds" with its finger on the pulse of technology and the "Geek lifestyle."
Chris is also a stand-up comic, appearing regularly at The Fake Gallery on Melrose Avenue.
9 O'Clock Hour
Caller: Keith in Santa Monica - Laptop or Desktop? Dell or ???
Keith is going to buy an new PC and wants advice as to laptop or desktop, and also as to brand. He's read an article in Consumer Magazine praising Dell, but has also heard negative reviews of Dell elsewhere.
Laptop or Desktop?
Marc says that if mobility is not important, you get more bang for your buck with desktops.
Brand?
Marc is a huge fan of Gateway computers; desktop and laptop. Gateway excels where many others fail - customer service. HP and Dell in particular have had many issues with poor customer service.
Other brands that Marc approves of are Sony and Toshiba, but Gateway is unquestionably Marc's choice, especially as you can customize your purchase to meet your needs and budget.
Keith's budget is "up to $1,000" which Marc says is more than enough to buy a new desktop or laptop for Keith's needs, which are basic email access, internet browsing and word processing.
Chris also points out that while it's generally a good idea to buy the most computing power that you can, in terms of speed and memory, for Keith's needs, a fairly basic computer will be perfectly adequate, and Keith probably will not see any benefit from a faster processor or more ram.
Prize Award - Los Angeles Computer Fair
And Keith is the lucky winner of a family pack of 4 tickets to the Los Angeles Computer Fair, January 12 & 13 at the Pomona Fairplex where you can chose between thousands of vendors offering great deals on hardware and software at bargain prices.
Caller: Vance in the South Bay - Inkjet Refills & Bluetooth Headsets
Has a couple of older inkjet printers and wants to know where to get refills as the "big box stores" where he bought them no longer carry supplies.
Marc says that's one of the problems with older printers and as Chris points out, these days you can buy an new printer for more or less the same price as an inkjet cartridge.
What about refill kits? Marc does not like them, they often lead to poor print quality and it's generally better to buy cartridges made by the printer manufacturer.
If Vance is determined to get replacement cartridges for his old printers, Marc suggests trying 123 Inkjets, a Simi Valley company that carries refills for almost every printer.
Marc's been using Blue Ant's new Bluetooth headset which is fantastic and compatible with most modern cell phones. Click here for a review of the new Z9 headset.
Compatibility isn't generally a problem with bluetooth devices, however, some cellphones may have functions that are not supported by some headsets, so check the specifications before you buy.
What about buying a new Hard Disk Drive for his PC? Vance wants to know where to get one at a good price? Marc suggests trying PriceGrabber as prices on HDD's are really low and Vance can get a great deal on a new Maxtor.
Chris likes finding bargains at NewEgg, but as Marc points out, NewEgg is a California company, so they have to charge sales tax, unlike TigerDirect.
What's Chris' Favorite Tech Story?
Chris likes the story of Craig Venter, the man who mapped the Human Genome and quit his government job because he thought they were doing it wrong. Craig started his own company, Celera Genomics, got it right, and now is branching into Bio-fuels.
National Treasure - Out on DVD December 18
Nicholas Cage at his best in this 2004 movie is available on DVD on December 18.
The sequel, National Treasure Book of Secrets, is due to open December 21, so get the DVD to find out what the new movie is all about!
$14.99 at Amazon.com
Caller: Raymond in Long Beach
Has an Acer laptop and wants to know how to disable the touch pad. Chris says that typically that's done through the settings for the mouse in Control Panel, but Raymonds tried that with now success. Marc says to send him an email marc@kabc.com and he'll send Raymond specific instructions.
Chris Hardwick - Stand-Up Comedy Next Appearance
Chris will be appearing at the Irvine Improv with Joel McHale on January 4 & 5, 2008. Click here for details.
Chris Hardwick's iPhone Review
Unlike a previous reviewer, Chris loves the iPhone!
Chris has had no problems whatsoever with the iPhone, however, AT&T's coverage is woeful. Chris lives and works in Hollywood, and recently AT&T's coverage has been awful. When Chris called AT&T they told him that the problem was due to a failure to renew a lease on a Cell Tower, and they are "working on it." Chris thinks it stinks that AT&T could leave so many customers with no service or countless dropped calls in what has to be one of the most important areas of Los Angeles where most Apple users work.
Chris expects that once Apple releases an unlocked iPhone or makes it available through another carrier, it will be bye-bye AT&T!
What about the keypad? Marc tried it and did not like it because it lacks a tactile feel. Chris says that it's just a question of getting used to it; it took him about a week, and now that he's used to it, he loves the keypad, loves the iPhone, and hates AT&T!
Caller: Bill in Irvine
Bill develops Flash animation and bought Adobe's expensive CS3 package. The problem that he has is that once he's created the animation and tries to burn it to DVD, it degrades in quality. Bill's tried talking to Adobe's Technical Support, but cannot get an answer.
Marc says to drop him an email and Marc will get someone from Adobe to talk Bill through the process.
Buy Of The Week: From Chris Hardwick
It's a Samsung NV15 10.1 MegaPixel Digital camera for only $212.49 from Dell. It takes great pictures, ideal for beginners and intermediate users, and comes with a free 1GB SD Card.
Go to www.Dell.com and enter "NV15" to get a great camera at a great price.
Caller: Rick in Aneheim
Rick's ISP (AT&T Yahoo!) recently changed his home page, and the new one does not load properly.
Rick didn't realize that he does not need to use AT&T Yahoo!'s home page, through his browser settings he can set any page to be a home page.
What about email? Rick accesses his email through his browser on the home page. Marc suggests that Rick uses Outlook Express to download emails and if Rick sends him an email, Marc will send him specific instructions on how to set up Outlook Express to handle his email.
Caller: Richard in Calabasas - iPhone Good, AT&T Bad
Calling on an iPhone, agrees with Chris Hardwick's review of the iPhone, especially AT&T's coverage. On cue, Richard's call drops!
When Richard calls back, he says that he called AT&T about poor coverage in Calabasas and got exactly the same "Cell phone tower lease" story that Chris got! Is it a blanket excuse that AT&T is giving out to keep dissatisfied users quiet?
Caller: Caroline in Eagle Rock
Wants a portable black and white printer for occasional use. Nobody seems to make pure black and white printers and she does not want to get a color inkjet because the refills are expensive.
Marc points out that if she's only printing text in black and white, that should not use any color ink, but Caroline's not convinced. Mario suggests looking at Brother's range of personal laser printers which are small, cheap and light.
Wrap Up
Another great show. For more information on guest co-host Chris Hardwick, go to www.chrishardwick.com