Ah, summer. Long, sunny days. Vacations at the beach. And, if you're in the United States, the Independence Day holiday. Which is why this weekly wrap-up is coming a day early: tomorrow my colleagues and I will be busy eating grilled meat and watching fireworks, all in the name of patriotism.

Because it spans the middle months of the calendar, summer can also be a time of reflection. We took the opportunity this week to look back on all that's happened so far this year and came up with a list of notable notebooks from the first half of 2008. We also pointed our viewfinder to the months ahead, when parents and students will be scouring the weekly ads for a back-to-school laptop (check back all summer as we post more back-to-school reviews).

Another theme to emerge this week: solid-state drives. OCZ Technology Group announced three low-cost models in its Core series of 2.5-inch drives. Apple significantly cut the price of the SSD-equipped MacBook Air. Meanwhile, CNET Labs staffer Dong Ngo uncovered a device that could let you make a less-expensive DIY solid-state hard drive. And SSD manufacturers defended themselves against charges that their products were energy hogs.

In product announcements this week, we saw a pink version of the Fujitsu LifeBook P8010E (too bad it's not available in the States). Gateway added three new models in its existing notebook series; all three include 64-bit Windows (stay tuned for reviews). HP broke out its first Puma-based systems, ... Read more

This laptop's parents must be very proud.

When people refer to a seasonal business, they usually mean the holiday shopping season that starts with Black Friday. But the real season for laptops has become the summer shopping phenomenon known as "Back to School." For college students, a laptop is virtually required equipment, and even high school and grade school kids are getting in on the act.

To help you pick the perfect system for your academic needs (or to send those Facebook party invites from), we've scoured the retail shelves of big box electronics stores to find the specific configurations and model numbers you're most likely to find in Sunday sales circulars throughout the summer.

Below are all the retail laptops we're reviewing over the course of this summer. If you bookmark this page and check back regularly, we'll add links to the reviews as they go up and then present our favorites from each category.

Note: Laptop models listed as XXX haven't been officially announced yet--check back for updates.

Entry Level ($699 or less)
Compaq XXX
Dell Inspiron 1525-121B
Sony VAIO NR430E/L
Toshiba Satellite L305-S5875
Toshiba Satellite L355D-S7815

Budget ($700 - $799)
Dell Inspiron 1420-123B
Dell Inspiron 1525-122B
Gateway T-6836
HP Pavilion dv2915nr
HP Pavilion dv6915nr
Toshiba Satellite A305D-S6848

Mainstream ($800 - $999)
Dell XXX
HP Pavilion dv2945se
HP Pavilion dv9925nr
HP Pavilion dv6985se
HP XXX
Sony VAIO CR510E/P
Sony VAIO NR498E/W
Toshiba Satellite A305-S6858
Toshiba Satellite U405D-S2852

High-end... Read more

(Credit: Gear4)

The cubist period for speakers seems to be alive and well, whether we like it or not. As a reflection of its widening influence, the latest example comes from the U.K. with Gear4's "BlackBox Micro."

As the second half of its name implies, it's the little brother of Gear4's larger wireless BlackBox system. As the first half implies, it's a black box.

The smaller sibling isn't wireless, unfortunately, which is one reason the traveling speaker goes for about $40, as quoted by Electronista. Gear4 claims that the USB device has unusual quality for its size, thanks to an "SFX gel base driver" along with a standard one that improves its bass and high notes, respectively. Either way, it could be a perfect addition to a geometrically inspired decor, along with the "Audio Cube" ottoman.

(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)

Because of its solid and comfortable everyday driver demeanor, buyers of the new 2009 Acura TSX will probably opt for the five-speed automatic transmission, for ease of driving in traffic and urban settings. And that's unfortunate, because to appreciate Honda's capability to build truly efficient engines that deliver both economy and power, you just need to get the six-speed manual transmission.

Our TSX came with the manual transmission, and it made driving the car a joyful experience. Of course, the many cabin electronics didn't hurt either, if we discount the mass of buttons on the instrument panel and steering wheel. Acura evolves its excellent navigation system further by adding weather reports and better integration with live traffic. We also had a pleasant surprise in audio sources, finding the TSX not only adds a USB port, but Bluetooth streaming as well.

Read the 2009 Acura TSX review.

With only a couple weeks to go before the 2008 E3 Media and Business Summit, video game publisher Electronic Arts is giving the press a sneak peek at its new video game lineup, including products resulting from its partnership with Hasbro.

Mr. Potato Head hosts EA's game Hasbro Family Night.

(Credit: Electronic Arts)

In the forefront is the Hasbro Family Game Night video game for the Nintendo Wii and Sony PlayStation 2, a result of the 2007 teaming of the board game company and the video game company. With Hasbro's Mr. Potato Head as host, EA said families can partake in classic versions of Connect Four, Boggle, Yahtzee, Sorry!, and Battleship, as well as versions of these games with new twists.

The game publisher will also debut a digital version of Sorry! Sliders, a board game that Hasbro will be selling this fall.

NCAA Football '09 is just one of the new "All-Play" games for Wii.

(Credit: Electronic Arts)

Other games displayed by EA at recent coast-to-coast press events include Wii- and PlayStation-adapted games Boogie:Superstar, Littlest Pet Shop, a new Monopoly game, and Nerf N-Strike, which comes with a Wii remote and Nerf gun duo.

All the above titles will hit shelves during the fall of 2008.

Casual gaming aside, last week EA also announced a new lineup for its "EA Sports All-Play" series, which is introducing games specifically designed for the Wii. EA said the new games will level the playing field between ... Read more

(Credit: Nokia)

Headset makers probably aren't hurting for business these days, at least in California and Washington state. But even without the new laws, Nokia may have found another market.

Its "Wireless Loopset" is a device designed to hang around the neck that basically turns a t-coil-equipped hearing aid into a Bluetooth headset. In addition to providing the wireless connection, the Loopset includes such features as vibrating alerts and single-button dialing, according to Gearlog, and willl also work with cochlear implants.

While looped around the neck, the device greatly reduces the chance of interference because of its close proximity to the hearing aid. Nokia expects the Loopset to ship next year, selling for about $315.

Look where I've gone at home...

(Credit: FlightMemory.com)

If you're a serious airline geek like me, you've saved every airline boarding pass you've ever used. No, it doesn't make sense but you do it anyway. But until recently, my boarding passes sat in a box with really no practical use except for the occasional bookmark. That was until I learned about a Web site that lets you put your flight history to very good use.

FlightMemory.com is a fantastic and free Web site that allows you to log your commercial flights into a database that will then give you oodles of cool statistics. You can see how long you've spent in the air, how many miles/kilometers you've flown, your total number of flights, your shortest and longest flights, a map of all your routes, and your top airlines, airports, routes, and aircraft types. FlightMemory even will tell you how how many times you've circled the Earth, and how many times you've flown to the moon and the Sun. Logging in all those flights does take a lot of time, but the results are worth it once you add everything in. Though my boarding passes only dated back to 1996, I was able to recall most of my prior flights from memory (geek alert!). For many flights I couldn't recall whether I had a window, middle, or aisle seat, but the site will track that as well. ... Read more

Nvidia's second quarter business update, released Wednesday, was mostly bad news for the company. But there's potentially bad news for consumers, too. Nvidia revealed plans to take a $150 million to $200 million charge to cover anticipated repair and return costs arising from a "weak die/packaging material set in certain versions of its previous generation GPU and MCP products used in notebook systems."

The release goes on to explain that the cards aren't faulty on their own, but that the materials have demonstrated higher-than-normal failure rates in combination with other components in certain laptop configurations. (Clear as mud, no?) According to a follow-up from the IDG News Service, the problem is associated with the laptops' thermal design; Nvidia has reportedly provided laptop manufacturers with a driver that will cause system fans to start operating sooner in hopes of mitigating the problem.

Which manufacturers got the driver? Good question. The company seems determined to avoid listing the specific GPUs affected or the manufacturers whose laptops have shown problems. I've contacted Nvidia to see if we can get any more information, and I'll post an update when I hear back.

Meanwhile, let me know in the comments if you've had temperature-related issues with an Nvidia card in your laptop. Be sure to include your laptop model number--maybe we can find a pattern.

Update: I heard back from Nvidia representative Calisa Cole, who said that obligations to customers (i.e., manufacturers) prevent them from providing specifics ... Read more

The MacBook Air is now cheaper if you want the flash-memory hard drive option.

(Credit: Apple)

Apple has quietly reduced the price of the flash-memory version of the MacBook Air by $500.

Appleinsider tipped us to the new price, which can be found at the online Apple Store. Before today, you would have paid a $999 premium if you wanted a MacBook Air with a solid-state hard drive, but Apple has reduced that premium to $599. It's also now cheaper to upgrade the processor from 1.6GHz to 1.8GHz, $200 instead of $300, on either the flash model or the one with the standard hard drive.

PC companies have been interested in flash memory hard drives for some time, but it's not clear how well they are selling. Using flash memory instead of moving parts to store data improves the reliability of the system; hard drive failures are one of the most common problems experienced by notebook users.

But it's still very expensive to choose a flash drive over a regular hard drive, and potential customers might not be able to justify spending that extra $999, or even $599. Reliability is important, but so is price, and recent news that flash-memory drives are actually a drain on battery life won't help sell them as an upgrade option.

I had a charter family membership Seattle's Experience Music Project or EMP, which opened in 2000. But after a couple years, I gave it up. The exhibits didn't change enough to warrant a lot of repeat visits, our periodic out-of-town guests had all been at least once, and the promise of early alerts about live shows at the museum never seemed to come through. (The one show I really wanted to see, the Television reunion in 2001, was sold out before I was ever informed about it.)

Seattle's Experience Music Project

(Credit: Cacophony, Wikimedia Commons)

With a teenaged niece in town and my daughter just getting old enough to enjoy the museum experience, we decided to rejoin yesterday. After facing a few years of low attendance, the museum has made a lot of positive changes, like lowering prices for memberships and daily passes and offering free admission on one evening per month.

As part of this revamp, they killed MEG. Also known as the Museum Experience Guide, MEG was a portable device about the size of a portable CD player with a laser scanner, headphones, and an LCD screen. Visitors would point the scanner at a point on the wall and hear information about the exhibit and maybe some relevant music--for example, famous guitarists like Vernon Reid shredding one of the museum's rare guitars. Nobody loved MEG: they were awkward to carry and hard to figure out, and I always ended up putting mine down ... Read more