The Kids Designer sounds like a great idea, but the reality is rather different. The tablet’s button is awkwardly placed for left-handers, and the software could be a lot better. This is a 8x5in (roughly A5 size) graphics tablet aimed at children from three to eight years old. It works with Windows XP, Vista and 7 and simply requires a free USB port.

Genius says the product helps kids learn colours, shapes, maths as well as having fun drawing, painting and playing games. It’s certainly a noble aim, but we’re slightly baffled as to why Genius has opted for a tablet rather than a specially designed mouse or touchpad. It’s arguably as difficult to learn to control the cursor with a pen as with the latter two devices. Unlike mice and touchpads, a tablet is mapped to your screen, so you have to move the pen to the edges to position the cursor in the corresponding places on the screen.

Plug and Play Simplicity via USB

Kids Designer tablet has a USB interface that’s easy to use and install. It comes in an eye-catching design that offers a 5 x 8″ working area with an Enter key and a pen clip for easy storage. The Enter key also acts as a hot key to launch specially-made learning games. The tablet comes with a number of games on the included CD to help kids learn or just have fun.

Multiple Games for Fun and Learning Included

The specially developed game software helps inspire kids from age 3 and up to accelerate their learning skills in colors, shape, math, and general thinking. Now children can express what they are thinking and create what’s in their imagination using the included game software. The included series of games such as Travel the World and Math Hero help your kids learn while having fun. Colorful Painter lets children explore their creativity and imagination. And games like Fish Catching Fun are also included for pure enjoyment and excitement.

What’s in the Box

Kids Designer Tablet and Pen, CD including Kids Designer game software, multi-language quick start guide.

System Requirements

• IBM PC-compatible Pentium 233 or higher
• Windows 7/Vista/XP
• Available USB port
• CD/DVD-ROM drive

Technical Specifications

• Dimensions: 340 x 234 x 20 mm
• Weight: 879g
• Active area: 5″ x 8″
• Resolution: 2,540 LPI
• Report Rate: 125 PPS

Having toyed with the Grandias joypad I was expecting very little joy from Genius’ latest force feedback joystick. But it’s not bad. Unfortunately, that’s about as high as I can go with the praise for this feat of engineering.

The build quality isn’t the highest, as I’ve come to expect this month from Genius products, but what it does, it does adequately. Even though, it feels entirely too lightweight and plastic, it comes with a few neat additions which I didn’t necessarily expect.

Force Feedback joysticks may not be all the rage but there are still some great games that deliver great performance and that in game feeling when used with force feedback. Genius has some new offerings in joysticks with the MetalStrike line and the top of the line being their MetalStrike FF with force feedback. The MetalStrike FF has thirteen base buttons with three thumb buttons on the joystick along with a trigger switch and a two position rocker switch. There is also an eight position hat switch for views or other uses on the joystick as well as a simple throttle slider on the base.

The Turbo button also on the base is used in conjunction with the trigger button so you can rapid fire using a triple shot instead of a single shot for intense gun fire. This makes a really nice feature playing in games that have limited ammunition so you can shoot a few bullets at a time and not run out of ammo too quickly.

The Genius HS-03U USB  Gaming Headset with Vibration is the perfect audio device for gaming, entertainment and all around use for both the  microphone and general listening pleasure. The light headset is very comfortable and includes some nicely padded ear pieces that are very comfortable with that just right grip to your head.

Genius makes some of the best products for computing with not only innovative designs and fantastic features but keeping style and good looks in mind as well. The HS-03U USB Gaming Headset with Vibration is a great looking headset, well built and very comfortable. The headset comes complete with inline adjustments and a rubber coated microphone boom for easy adjustments while gaming, recording or using a VOIP.

Foldable USB gaming headset with vibration function Easy installation; plug and play with USB In-line volume control for volume and microphone
Noise-canceling microphone assures clear voice.  The HS-03U includes the great vibration that adds to your gaming experience while playing, the headset has some vibrations for low loud noises just like those of a bass subwoofer. The loudness of the volume has to be pretty decent to get a very noticeable feel out of the vibration but you can still tell its there when it is at lower volumes.

At a comfortable listening level for gaming during some of my favorite games and Tabula Rasa that I am currently reviewing you can notice the vibrations very subtly for an even better in gaming experience. That little bit of vibration and shutter during the louder gaming experiences adds to the gaming fun and brings you more into the game.

The form factor is strikingly different, and quite attractive at that. The cam itself is rectangular and closely resembles a pen drive or MP3 player. It rests on a single jointed hinge stand, with one face that sits flat on the desk while the other folds out on the front axis, capable of bending all the way to about 160 degrees. One can also perch the unit on top of the monitor, which is another common place to position the cam.

Genius comes with special cover design. Special cover allows you with one movement to slide the covet and continue your online chat, it is a really useful solution for personal privacy sake, no need to make any additional manipulations with your webcam when video call is finished, just to slide the cover. Compatible with all most known messengers as Skype, MSN and Yahoo messengers. Special feature named as motorized auto focusing lens allows user to be free in movements, and in the same time be in best possible focus which is also coming with natural, sharp and bright image.

In the VGA mode it manages to transmit upto 30 frames per second, when running at 1.3 mega pixel capacity it delivers upto 8 frames per second. But with the maximum resolution of 2.0 mega pixel it continues to produce upto 6 frames per second, which is at per with the standard. The package is bundled with Cam Suite, Genius Application-Webmate and Crazy Talk Avator Creator. You can also share your personal video clips with YouTube channel using this unit. In built microphone is there to transmit audio clearly. It is able to have a viewing angle of 45 degrees in up and 90 degrees in down.

In the nutshell these are the key features that will please you. So hopefully this is going to be your smart choice when you are planning to have a live videoconference or chat.

Genius’s G-Note 7000 tablet has an A4-sized active area. This is impressive as no other tablet costing less than £300 gives you as much room. It also includes some clever note-taking features.

Installing the G-Note is a frustrating task. We followed the instructions only to find that it didn’t work, and it took us several reboots and a lot of unplugging USB leads before it sprang into life. If you buy one, expect to take a little time to get it working. Its recessed USB connector is also a pain, and we found ourselves constantly having to reconnect the cable when it worked loose.

The G-Note takes five batteries: one in its pen, and four in the tablet. With batteries inside, the tablet can store notes when you’re away from your computer. We were sceptical about this, but we found that it actually works very well; you can scribble notes using the special pen, and a set of buttons with an LCD lets you store multiple pages.

This Genius G-Note 7000 is a multi-functional digital device thatdigitally capture notes, doodles, drawings and inspirations anywhere, anytime. Put the paper on the digital pad, turn on the power and you can write down everything you want with the digital pen. What you wrote is immediately saved in the digital pad memory!Its built-in32 MB memory can store up toone hundred pages andwith an SD card slot,this G-Note 7000 also works as a mass storage device. Connect the G-Note 7000 to your PC with the USB cableand with the G-Note Editor, you can view, organize, annotate and edit the digital pages. Plus, you can copy or attach the pages into Outllook Express, Word, Powerpoint or Excel and share them with others by e-mail!ThisGenius G-Note 7000 A4 Size Digital Note and Tablet is theperfect professional tool formeetings,notes taking and presentations!
Technical Details

• Genius G-Note 7000 v2A4 Size Digital Note and Tablet General Features:
• Digitally capture notes, doodles, drawings and inspirations anywhere
• 8.5 x 11-inch working pad, suitable for A4 paper Uses digital note and tablet function
• Cordless pen for digital note and tablet 32 MB internal memory Can store up to 100 pages
• SD memory expansion slot (card not included)