Jack Ratcliffe is a 22 year old editorial assistant from London. He demands interoperability and compatibility from all of his gadgets, which explains why his bathroom light turns on when his doorbell rings, but not why his favourite computer is his old-school Macbook. He has written for LatestGadgets since 2009, and is not afraid to make sweeping predictions about the future of technology. Regularly.

Current cost power monitor: Making you green with Envi

At first I was sceptical – how could a manufactured piece of plastic that plugs into my electricity supply actually reduce my carbon footprint? Once I plugged in the Current Cost Envi electricity monitor, however, my mature scepticism mutated into a boyish excitement. In an effort to reduce my energy usage, I had entered into a competition with myself. While reducing my energy consumption may be a challenge, setting up…

Amazon Kindle 3 review roundup

Amazon has announce that the newest version of its famous Kindle e-reader device will be hitting the (virtual) shelves on August 27th. At £109 for a Wi-Fi device, and £149 for 3G + Wi-Fi, the reading device is certainly one of the most affordable readers available – but is it better than a book? We’ve scoured the web to find out if the Kindle really is the droid we’ve been…

The Pioneer ICE car – triumph of the Technobrains

Since the late 70s, an epic battle has been fought between Petrolheads and Technobrains – the former hoping to keep computer-controls out of cars, with the latter championing the digital cause. And the Technobrains won. Today, high-tech electronics have taken over most of the monitoring systems under the bonnet (you should really check your own oil, though – use the long stick bit). Commanding the engine isn’t enough for some,…

Pet-nology: Three pet tracking gadgets

There are some huge similarities between gadgets and pets – people become excited when they get a new one, they are both well looked after, and when they go wrong, they cost a lot of money to fix. One key difference, however, is lifespan. Gadgets have a turnover of a few years, while pets will hopefully last at least a decade. Which is why when you lose a gadget you…

Acer’s HD revolution

Acer launched its summer computer range in Cannes, the home of emerging cinema and what better venue could there be to introduce Acer’s new systems, focussed on powerful visuals and HD resolutions? Perhaps the most interesting members of the new Acer family are the two netbooks – the Aspire One 521 and Aspire One 721. The new netbooks come in two sizes, 28 cm (10.1”) and 29.5cm (11.6”) and boast…

Smaller than a notebook, smarter than a smartphone: the Sony VAIO P

As the iPad nears its UK launch date, netbook manufacturers are getting scared – very scared. In the face of the tablet revolution, the choices are two: dissipate or innovate. Sony have chosen the latter option and created the VAIO P Series – an ultra-portable, lightweight computer with some heavyweight features. Advertised as “smaller than a notebook and smarter than a smartphone”, the VAIO P certainly lives up to its…

ViewSonic PJD6531 and PJD5352: ugly names, beautiful projectors

Beauty is only skin-deep, and so while on the outside ViewSonic’s latest projectors, the PJD6531w and PJD5352, may have the least appealing names ever, the insides produce some stunning images. They are the equivalent of an unattractive man painting a timeless beauty. It’s Leonardo Da Vinci painting the Mona Lisa. The PJD6531w Leading the beauty pageant is the PJD6531w, ViewSonic’s flagship device, which boats a high definition, wide-format, 3D-ready projection…

Push the button – Packard Bell’s social networking M-series laptops

Every now and then someone advertises a use of social networking that makes you cringe. Usually, it’s politicians trying to “reach the youth”. And usually, you’d expect better from technology firms. Enter Packard Bell, with its new Packard Bell Social Networks key. The Packard Bell Social Networks key is an extra button beside the keyboard on the company’s EasyNote TM notebooks that, when pressed, opens the Packard Bell Social Networks…

TomTom release Webkit enabled next generation GO LIVE 1000 satnav

If there were an agency tasked with preventing the extinction of old technologies, its endangered list would look like this: the floppy disk, the CRT monitor, the standalone SatNav. Due to poaching from the Smartphone navigation sector (headed by Google Navigation and Nokia Ovi), the indie SatNav is slowly being wiped out. However, TomTom is staging an audacious conservation effort with a new evolution of the personal navigation device –…

Blink and you won’t miss it – TV anywhere, anytime with Blinkbox

As broadband speeds increase, more and more consumers are using the internet as a way to digitally replace physical goods. It happened with CDs, when Apple’s iTunes and Spotify started supplying buy-to-own and advert-supported models respectively, and now blinkbox aims to do the same with video. The blinkbox service combines both Apple and Spotify’s selling strategies, offering paid-for feature titles, alongside free ad-supported TV and film content. And with over…