Going back to one of last weeks Blogs (I write these things then think of extra bits a few days later) about gadgets.  I decided to thumb through that well-known magazine and see what other items there are that could be deemed useful/useless.  There is the “Toast n Egg” - a 2 slice toaster for all your toasted bread requirements complete with compartment for poaching, frying or boiling your egg.  Or there is the Card Beeper” - a handy device made from titanium/stainlessstell/rubber that beeps every 20 sec’s to remind the absent minded that they’ve left their credit card at the checkout.  For the enviromentalists out there what about the “ECO Showerdrop” - a shower timer that measures how long you’ve been in there and and how much water you’ve used (could save you some dosh and lower your emissions).  For the non green fingered out there how about the “Power Plant Growing Machine” - this mains powered box of tricks let you grow plants in any season without the need for soil (the picture just looks like a plastic box with a plant sticking out of it).  I could go on with more (Salt+pepper maracas for instance) but I dont want to sound too cynical which I am not by the way.  I am sure that alot of the gadgets that are available do serve a useful purpose and add a bit of fun to the proceedings but do sometimes question the fine line between useful / useless.  If anyone has a favourite gadget let me know

With movie technology and special effects showing no sign of slowing up hopefully these will be transferred to your “Big Screen” at home.  I imagine there are instances when a film was brilliant and a joy to watch at the cinema but when it was released for home viewing it didn’t quite do it justice??  How will the awaited James Cameron epic “Avatar” fair when its released in the future on DVD and Blu-Ray?  I always find it difficult to put my finger on why a movie is deemed a “classic” - it all boils down to personal preference.  With TV screen technology changing every week it now allows that cinema experience to be sampled in the comfort of your own living room.  We probably have yet to see a major shift to 3D film and TV (famous last words??) however once again how these will translate from the big screen to the small screen remains to be seen - maybe all it will take is the “snowball effect” of one blockbuster then the rest may follow.  Then it will be up to the TV manufacturers to follow suit and produce a screen capable to showing real 3D images.  What the BIG SCREEN does the small screen follows????

Sometimes there can be a conflict between form and function.  With a growing desire to make things smaller some manufacturers may be going too far in designing their products so they are smaller – the two products that spring to mind are mobile phones and laptop computers.  Here at A2000 Systems we sell 2 ranges of Cable management Systems – the SPX and the XPC.  Whilst they basically serve the same purpose of hiding your cables and giving you somewhere to put your visual/audio equipment we feel that form plays an important part of these units.  The SPX is 62cm high with 2 shelves and the XPC is 90cm with either 2 or 3 shelves.  We could have made them shorter or taller, with another shelf but we feel that the design we have come up with is spot-on for most peoples requirements.  We also make the XPC as a 60cm/2 shelve unit which does sell but people seem to prefer its longer brother. Again personal preference plays an important part in the selling of all products but we like to think that we have struck a happy medium between form and function.

Here at A2000 Systems we get a range of magazines as we advertise our products in them.  My favourite one (without name dropping) is billed as “The worlds best selling Gadget Mag”.  Its 258 pages packed full of articles and reviews for a massive range of products including mobile phones, laptops, TV’s, watches, bicycles and a huge selection other products known to man.  Any gadgets you can think of (and some and couldn’t even make up) are seemingly in there. Whilst a majority of these serve a purpose and function there are quite a few that are “odd” to say the least.  Like the desktop miniature combustion engine or the wearable sleeping bag.  These items are probably not cheap but I imagine there are people out there prepared to part with there money for these “must have” gizmo’s.  One of my favourites was the “trendy” pencil-sharpener that cost a couple of hundred quid – amazing!!  There will always be a demand for these sort of items with manufacturers having to come up with new and wacky ideas to compete in this competitive market.

Well it’s that time of the year again and everywhere you go Christmas fever is gripping the nation.  Adverts for Xmas presents are increasing be it on TV or in the shops.  With the current financial situation being what it is I imagine people are watching not just every pound but also every penny.  Its not just the public that appreciate “value for money” but also us here at A2000 Systems.  Whilst we generally sell more items just after Christmas we also have to be well prepared for should we see a rush before Christmas.  It can be a tricky task getting everything to gel be it getting materials from suppliers or advertising our products to potential customers.  Every other manufacturer is in the same boat as us, which can compound the matter.  Being busy and selling products is good for us and we will rise to the challenge of sending out people’s orders in time for that important deadline.  It is a balancing act either having enough stock or not having enough – too much and items are sitting on the shelve for long periods and too little means a delay in getting people’s orders to them on time.  We strive to get it right not just at Christmas but also for the other 364 days of the year.

As a manufacturer of a range of wall mounted TV brackets we soon realised that there was a need for a piece of furniture for the placement of peoples audio and visual equipment. Quite a few people where chasing out walls so they could bury their cables but this is a time consuming and messy option. When we realeased our wall mounted Cable Management Systems we soon realised that we were on to a winner. Now we have re-designed the original version its even easier to install. We think its the “business” - just ask our previous customers. Its all well and good having all your equipment on a table but having all the cables and leads dangling there is not very tidy or pleasing to the eye. Now more and more manufacturers are realising this and making their tables and stands with built in cable managements. This is all well and good but the table still takes up valuable fllor space. By mounting your visual system on the wall it frees up that space and personally I think it looks better. However it all boils down to personnal preference with a huge and bewildering array of table/stands/wall-mounted cable managements out there to choosed from. So which is better - you decide!!

In our extensive product range we use quite a bit of packaging.  This comes in many forms - cardboard, paper, bubblewrap etc.  The cardboard boxes we use are specifically made to order for us as well as the other items we use.  We also receive component parts that make up some of our products and these are packaged in a variety of wrappings.  Whenever possible we strive to re-use these items be it cardboard, paper or bubblewrap.  This has a 2 way effect - one we are hopefully doing our small bit to save the environment but also by us buying less packaging from other sources we can pass on the money we save to you the customer.  If for instance a customer has returned either a damaged or unwanted product to us we always strive to re-use that packaging as well.  As we are constantly being told to re-cycling so its up to all of us to do “our bit” whether its big or small   So when you receive your order from A2000 Systems please think about what you are going to do with that packaging - its not only good for the planet it may good for your wallet!!

Apologies if I have already touched on this subject before but I was reading a well-known gadget magazine and in it they have a page called “Retro Chic” in which they review products from a specific year. The December issue is devoted to the year 1982 and has a review of the first mass-produced mountain bike (a steel framed 15-speed affair).  This bike is barely different to the one I ride except that mine has 21 gears and front suspension.  Whilst the actual nuts+bolts technology has advanced at such a pace thus making products better I do feel that while its OK to have modern products that look like their “old-school” counterparts I see some manufacturers have seemingly lost the way and not kept the original concept and idea that made the original what they are.  Today to bring back certain objects from the past whilst keeping their groundbreaking size and appearance wouldn’t set sales alight (e.g. the personal stereo which was the size and weight of a house brick and that if you were lucky the batteries would last for the duration of a C60 cassette!)  There are select bunch of personal favourites that have been brought back to life but unfortunately have lost a bit in the translation!!  Idea  - spot on / Effort – could do better!

With more and more people investing in either a Plasma or LCD TV its interesting to know what part these pieces of equipment go on to play in their audio / visual set up.  My parents 32 inch LCD is basically used to watch a wide range of TV programmes – some interesting and some not so riveting!!  They have a DVD player and VCR recorder, which are mainly used by me to watch the odd DVD or record something for the folks!   It all boils down to personal preference – one set-up for one person may not be the “bees knees” for a more technology-orientated person.  You see in some of the audio/visual publications a wide range of people’s home cinemas all with a varying range of specifications and prices.  People are using their set-ups for a wide range of uses – not just for watching the usual programmes or movies on.  With an explosion of games consoles and Blu-Ray players these TVs are being used to their full advantage in showing not only what the screen is capable of doing but also what the other equipment can do.  TV’s have come along way and will continue to expand and develop into ever more advance systems for that “Audio/Visual Home Cinema Experience”

Once again time and fate finds us at that time of the year again - “CHRISTMAS!!” You can not seem to escape it with alot of stores and other sources seemingly advertising their wears earlier and earlier - why they dont make XMAS an event that last 365 days I dont know?? Here at A2000 Systems we are gearing up not only for the run up to the big day but also for the aftermath - the New Year. Even through we do see an increase in sales of our extensive products we generally find its the New Year period that sales take oof for us. This I imagine is due to the “January Sales” where manufacturers and retail outlets are trying to tempt the public with ever increasing bargain offers that are just too good to pass up - £50 here / 20%off there etc. So with the money you have saved on that big screen TV why not spend the surplus cash on maybe a bracket or even one of our stylish and practical Cable Management Systems . All our products represent value for money which in these cash strapped times is what we are all looking for - every penny matters! So instead of just looking at buying your new TV look at the bigger picture of where and how you are going to place it - whether its free standing or being mounted on a wall - check out A2000 Systems and have a Merry Christmas!!