Lenovo Includes Spam In Recent Software Update

A warning to owners of Lenovo ThinkPad laptops: If you’ve recently used Lenovo’s ThinkVantage automatic update software to receive updates for your laptop, you may have been hit with some annoying adware.

Owners of Lenovo laptops are noticing a pop-up ad that appears every couple of hours offering discounts on other Lenovo products. The intrusive ad does have a tick box for those who want to turn the pop-ups off, but customers are already reporting that this does not work.

Many Lenovo laptop owners have become enraged (and rightfully so) that Lenovo would so deviously include adware in with a software update and force them upon their customers. The source of this pesky pop-up appears to be in the latest update for Message Center Plus, an application intended to warn users of conditions on the laptop’s system that may need user attention. Normally, this would be a handy tool for system maintenance, but the inclusion of the ads corrupts the actual value of the application.

So far, users are recommending a complete removal of the Media Center Plus software, offering instructions on how to not only uninstall it, but also prevent it from being automatically installed in the future.

Lenovo has not yet given an official response to these accusations of abuse. However, ThinkPad owners are demanding an explanation along with a fix. Hopefully, Lenovo will remove the inclusion of advertisements from future software updates, or will at least give the user the genuine ability to disable them.

Triangle Laptops strives to promote the best system maintenance to improve the longevity of your laptop! For the best deals on Lenovo replacement parts and repair, check out the IBM / Lenovo sections of our online store!

Re-Use PlayStation 2 Controllers with Your PlayStation 3!

One of the biggest hassles of buying a new video game console is that you have to buy all new accessories! When the PlayStation 2 was released, not only were older PlayStation games playable on the PS2, but you could use all the same controllers as well. But when the PlayStation 3 entered the scene, Sony went wireless, creating a need to buy accessories that are PS3-specific.

Luckily, there’s still a way to re-use your older-generation controllers on the PS3! The PS2-to-PS3 controller adapter will allow you to connect PS2 controllers to the PS3 via its USB ports. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never owned a PS2 before; you can still save money buying much less expensive PS2 hardware. You won’t get the full functionality of a PS3 controller, but for many games on the market, this is still a wise, economical solution.

Here’s just a few...

In this past year, there has been a revolution of arcade-style fighting games. Series like Street Fighter, King of Fighters, and Tekken have had a long-running fan following, with new gamers eager to get on board. Fans know that the best way to play these games is with a full-sized arcade stick. But buying an arcade stick with the game can quickly turn a $60 purchase into a $130 purchase ($200 if you buy a stick for player 2).


But with the PS2-to-PS3 controller adapter, you can revive your old PS2 arcade stick for under $10! This is fantastic for those who have already invested in beautiful, custom-made arcade sticks, which can go for hundreds of dollars online. Casual players who still want to share the arcade experience can pick up cheaper arcade sticks for the PS2 for as low as $15. Quite a deal!

Similarly, music and rhythm games have grown in popularity over the past decade, starting with Dance Dance Revolution and leading up to Guitar Hero and Rock Band. The PS2-to-PS2 controller adapter makes it possible to use their PS2 counterparts on PlayStation 3.

Now you don’t have to burn money away on getting a healthy dance workout or rocking out with your friends!

And of course, it only makes sense to use PS2 controllers when playing PS2 games! Early adopters of the PlayStation 3 are able to play older PS2 and PSone games on their current-generation console. Plus, more classic PSone titles are being made available to download on the PlayStation Network, with talks of PS2 games to come!

Also available in our store is the PS2-to-PS3 memory card transfer cable, for moving your old game saves off your PS2 memory card onto your PS3’s hard drive!

Upgrade to the Xbox 360 120GB Hard Drive with Ease!

If you’re one of the early adopters of the Xbox 360 who only have a 20GB hard drive, you’re probably feeling the pressure of running out of hard drive space! There’s so much entertainment out there and within your grasp… Why let a little thing like storage slow you down?

Since the release of the Elite model, an Xbox 360 120GB hard drive upgrade has been available for those who take their gaming seriously. It holds 6x the data than the older 20GB hard drives, with plenty of breathing room for all your downloadables.

In this past year, digital distribution has exploded with a wide variety of downloadable games, movies, and other services. You can buy full movies in the Xbox Live Marketplace and also for rent via the NetFlix service. Most are also available in high-definition, though many standard definition shows will take up over 1GB of your hard drive space.

It's not just the downloadable content that sucks up space on the Xbox 360’s hard drive. Modern video games often require installing most (if not all) the essential game content to the hard drive; some titles taking up a few gigabytes of storage space. Not to mention the expansion packs that may follow.

The Xbox 360 120GB HDD is now available in our store!

The Xbox 360 120GB hard drive will require a data transfer kit (not included) in order to move your data from your old hard drive onto the new one. Even without one, installation of the new 120GB HDD is a snap and it’s still possible to re-download your purchased content from your Xbox Live account.

Digital Transition Complete! Media Center Users Still Waiting...

Did you catch The Simpsons this weekend? If so, that means that the digital conversion went pretty smoothly for you this past Friday. Of course, not everyone was as lucky...

According to the FCC, nearly 700,000 people called the federal hotline last week about the national switch from analog television signal to digital. Almost half of those calls took place on Friday, the day of the conversion deadline. The FCC had enlisted over 4,000 phone operators to handle the workload, making the average wait time under 5min per caller.

Users of Microsoft’s Media Center have been hit hardest by the transition, since the software was not able to reconfigure itself for the change in channel assignments. Microsoft has not yet sent an update to correct the flaw in Media Center, but is expected to as soon as possible. In the meantime, Media Center users who are more tech savvy can make the adjustments manually with these instructions.

The TV Digital Transition Starts Today!

A new digital era is upon us! Are you ready?

Today is the last day before analog television signal shuts down for good to make way for the digital. The digital transition has been in talks for just a little over a decade, with public service announcements preparing viewers since last year.

Several countries in Europe have already made the transition within the past few years, with the United States just catching up. There's no reason too feel bad, my fellow Americans—most other countries have yet to fully move to digital. Many countries like the United Kingdom have faced delays from technical complications and some have only scheduled to make their switch as late as 2020!

While the official deadline for the transition is tomorrow, June 12, 2009, over 800 television stations got a head-start on the switch. In September of 2008, Wilmington, NC was the first city in the United States to switch completely to digital signal. The FCC used the experience as a testing ground for how the transition may affect other areas around the country.

The common misconception is that a high-definition television will be needed for the transition. This angered many consumers who believed they now had to buy whole new (and then-expensive) TVs. While HDMI cables do carry a digital signal to a television, a high-definition set isn't necessary to continue watching your favorite shows on your faithful old TV.

In fact, as long as you subscribe to a cable or satellite service, you shouldn't need to do a thing! Those most affected are TV owners that rely on an antennae (or “rabbit ears”) to receive signal. TVs with digital antennas may need to be adjusted to adapt to the new signal, but otherwise will work fine.


A digital converter box is necessary to translate the digital signal over the airwaves into analog for older televisions. The US government invested over $2 billion to help people with the transition, funding vouchers to help pay for the converter boxes, public service announcements, and call support lines for those in need of further help.

Unfortunately, it's expected that approximately 3 million homes won't be able to make the switch by this weekend. The supply of government vouchers ran out well before they could get into the hands of everyone who needed one. Most of the people at risk are the elderly and those who live in deeply rural areas, whether because they could not afford a converter or news of the transition simply hadn't reached them. Additionally, viewers that live on the outskirts of broadcast areas may need to acquire a stronger digital antennae (even if they have a converter box), since digital signal has difficulty overcoming interference.

Less than 15% of American television owners rely on over-the-air signal to watch TV, but the challenges posed in the digital transition have inspired many to sign up for pay services like cable or satellite. Time Warner Cable and Direct TV gained nearly 100,000 new subscribers each within the past few months alone!

Others have investigated free online video services like Hulu to watch shows on their home computers. Even consumers who have grown tired of the increasing prices of cable or satellite have hooked their PCs to their TV as a more economical alternative.

If by Saturday morning, you wake up to a blank screen on your TV set, you can contact the FCC for help at their DTV website or call 1-888-225-5322.

Choosing the Best Landscape Lighting Light Bulbs

We’re always happy to receive feedback from our customers; especially when they provide handy tips for our products!

One customer, Jeff, recently contacted us about some landscape lighting light bulbs that he’d recently purchased from us. Jeff was looking for an solution for a landscape lighting solution that was both energy-efficient and cost effective. Luckily for both of us, he found our CFL landscape lighting light bulbs.

Jeff writes:

I reported last year that I was trying some 12V MR16 LED bulbs for our landscape lights. While they worked well, the better ones were pretty expensive at about $20 each. More recently I found a 5W Feit 12V MR16 compact fluorescent light bulbs that works very well in the landscape lights, and is less than half the price of the better LED bulbs. The Feit model number is BPESLEXN. I just finished converting all our 20W halogens to these CFLs, and they put out the same amount of light on 1/4 the power. Any noise generated by them is blocked by the step-down transformer, and the in-line X10 relay switch powering that transformer still works fine.

Thanks for the in-depth evaluation, Jeff! Triangle Laptops aims to carry the best products to suit our customers' needs. It's great to know that CFL light bulbs are proving to be the recommended choice for landscape lighting light bulbs.

E3 Predictions Confirmed!

The big E3 show is just about over and the most exciting announcements have been unleashed upon the drooling geeky masses.

Predictions Confirmed:

Sony PSP Go

We all saw it coming, but that doesn't mean Sony won't go through the formality of properly debuting their new PSP Go device. It's slightly smaller than the PSP-3000 model with no UMD drive. It comes with 16GB on-board storage and designed to take advantage of the PlayStation Network download services.

Many who hoped that the PSP Go would be an upgrade to their older models of PSP are disappointed at the Go's lack of features. Sony asserts that the Go isn't a replacement for the traditional PSP, but a lateral alternative for those who don't already own one and are now considering it. The PSP-3000 will be sold and supported along side the PSP Go, just as Nintendo supports both the DS and DSi side-by-side.

Sony didn't address the "PS3 Slim" rumors, leading many to believe that the "leak" was a hoax. However, now that we've seen the packaging that's been designed for the PSP Go, there's a noticeable congruence between the two. This goes on to support the theory that the PS3 Slim is a reality that will make it's official appearance closer to the holidays.


Nintendo: More of the Same

As expected, it was the same news we receive every year from Nintendo. A new Mario, a new Metroid, and a showcase of upcoming peripherals.

In Nintendo's defense, they may announce the same next-generation ports for old franchises every year, but once those ports are released they're usually very well-received. When Super Mario Galaxy was first announced, most brushed it off as, "Oh, it's just Mario on the Wii." But now it's regarded by many as the best game of that year and possibly the best Mario game to date.


Extras

• Left 4 Dead 2
  
  On the PC front, the most impressive title to look forward to is Left 4 Dead 2, a team-based online survival horror pitting 3 players against the entire zombie apocalypse.



• More Metal Gear!
  
  Hideo Kojima announced two new Metal Gear titles, Metal Gear Solid: Rising for the PS3, Xbox 360, and PC and Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker for the PSP. Kojima's team has also taken on the next Castlevania title, giving everyone hopes that it may yet be possible for a 3D Castlevania to be done well.



• Final Fantasy XIV Announced
  
  While fans wait patiently for Final Fantasy XIII to finish production, Square-Enix went ahead and announced the next installment in the franchise. FFXIV will be an MMORPG; the next-generation sequel to FFXI.



• "Project Trico" Unveiled
  
  The developers behind the amazing titles ICO and Shadow of the Colossus have been secretly working on a new project over the past couple years. Gamers finally got their first official look at the game, titled The Last Guardian. The story of the game centers around a boy and his giant baby gryphon. Not much is known about the gameplay, but so far the cinematic trailers have been rich with eye candy.

Save Money With Energy Saving Bulbs

A lot of people think that it costs a little more to "go green". Not so! In fact you can save money along with energy with compact fluorescent light bulbs. CFL bulbs may cost a little more than regular incandescent bulbs on the store shelf, but they'll save you a lot more money in the long run. Each CFL bulb uses less than 25% of the power than regular bulbs, saving you big on your monthly energy bill. CFL light bulbs also last much longer, so you don't have to buy them nearly as often.

How do these energy saving bulbs work? As you may know, a normal incandescent light bulb runs a current of electricity through a wire filament. The heat from the electrical current causes the filament to glow bright.

A compact fluorescent light bulb works a bit differently: The electrical current flows through the glass tube filled with argon gas and a bit of mercury vapor. The electrified gas emits ultraviolet light that excites a phosphor coating on the inside of the glass tube. It's this reaction that emits the bright visible light that comes from the CFL light bulb.

Older CFL bulbs were known to make a low hum or buzzing sound while they were on. This understandably made people nervous about using them, worried that they were somehow unstable. Newer bulbs, especially ones rated by the Energy Star program, make no sound at all.

We know what you might be thinking... "If CFL bulbs contain mercury, aren't they dangerous?" Not at all! It's been proven that while CFL bulbs do contain mercury, none of that mercury is released from the bulb as long as the bulb isn't broken. In fact, one old-style thermometer has more mercury inside it than 125 CFL light bulbs.

The Environmental Protection Agency is a heavy supporter of the use of CFL bulbs because they use 75% less power than traditional bulbs and they greatly reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions. Even with the concerns regarding mercury, the EPA maintains that using CFL bulbs as an alternative would introduce far less mercury into the environment than traditional, energy-inefficient bulbs. Energy Star also offers proper instructions for disposing CFL bulbs on their official website.

To begin saving on your monthly energy bill, you can find the type of CFL bulbs that suit your needs in our online store.