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Hey home theater PC lovers! Those of you who are still waiting around for CableCARD-enabled machines in order to get high-def cable in your home theater setup don't have to wait much longer, since these CC machines are finally shipping.... Read More »
I've been waiting for this good news from HP for awhile: their laptops are finally, officially, and definitely going to get LEDs inside of LCDs. Judging from family names, the two confirmed machines, the HP Compaq 2510p and 2710 tablet (not the laptop above), they likely aren't high end beauties like those DV pavillions you've seen in the Shawn White and Jay Z commercials. But they'll have the battery saving, bright tech inside their screens, and that makes me happy on the insides.
Hewlett-Packard(HP) plans to ship in the third quarter an ultra-light notebook and a tablet PC with light-emitting diode displays...
350 enormous wind turbines are to be placed 13 miles out from England's coast, making it the biggest planned project of its kind. Once fully operational, it would generate enough electricity to power half of Southwest England.
This must come as a mixed bag for those happy-go-lucky sea-birds. On the one hand the less fossil fuel being burned the better, but on the other there are 1050 (that's 3-per tower) bird-maiming blades being installed at a cruising altitude of 150 meters.
World's Largest Offshore Wind Project? [EcoGeek]
Bird Flight Info [EarthLife.net]
A reader claims he just participated in a survey for a wireless remote from—probably from Logitech—that looks like it's in the final design stages. The tipster claims the keyboard is probably going to be branded either the "Slice", "Keymote", or "Digital Living Keyboard" under the DiNovo line.
Of course, this is a survey and all of this stuff is probably not even close to being final, but it's a nice sneak peek into what Logitech could be thinking about doing. See the full specs after the jump.
Remember when getting a camera under $150 was essentially as good as throwing your money away, getting a pen and paper, and drawing a picture yourself? Well gramps, get with the times. You can get a pretty decent point and shoot for under a buck fiddy now, and Laptop Mag's got a comparison of ten of them.
There's no big winner here, but take a look at the shots and see which one you prefer. They all look pretty decent to us, and should be fine enough as a gift for your parents or someone who doesn't really care about squeezing the last ounce of quality out of his purchase.
Ten Quality Cameras You Can Afford [Laptop Mag]
Set the TiVo! David Pogue's new show Science Channel show, which he writes and stars in, starts tonight. 8 pm on the Science Channel! Every Fri for 6 weeks. Also on Discovery HD starting June 7. It's going to... Read More »
Just when we thought the Creative Zen Stone was the only thing they had up their sleeves, Creative's gone and released a Zen Wav in Singapore (their home country). The device looks like a Nano competitor with a set of integrated speakers, 2GB storage, FM radio, voice recording, and a photo/video playback mode.
There's no word whether this will be available in the US, but the price there in Singapore seems to be $117 when converted to bucks. But if Creative wants this to stand up to the best-selling iPod Nano they've got to bring the goods. And when we say goods, they take that to mean building a player that looks almost exactly like the Nano except for some speakers and a different control scheme.
We saw the 8600 back in April when it was posted on Carphone Warehouse, but now someone's posted an "official" picture of it in the mobile review forums.
Along with the picture, which looks tons better than the render last time, there are more specs as well. The phone will have Series 40, a 2-megapixel camera, quad-band GPRS/EDGE, Bluetooth, and a QVGA display. That's pretty much all we know for now, but it's been approved by the FCC, so it'll probably be released somewhere sometime soon.
I'm not usually keen on Nokia's designs, but this 8600 looks pretty darn hot.
Forums [Mobile Review via Unwired View]
Most alarm clocks have only one way of waking you up—with an annoying buzz that goes on until you hit snooze. The Hybrid Alarm Clock concept has two. It can either go off like a traditional alarm clock or it can wake you up silently with a pulsating light (in case you don't wanna wake up your significant other). I can barely wake up with 3 alarm clocks, so something tells me the light show ain't gonna work. Nice design (kudos to its creator Francesco Costacurta), but my tired bones need something like Clocky to get me going.
Hybrid Alarm Clock [Yanko Design]
See those shots right there. The guys at Techwarelabs claim they're "spy shots" of Intel's first quad-core notebook. They're not the most flattering shots around, but if the pics don't do it for you, maybe the specs will.
Looks-wise, the Type 02 isn't the kind of robot you'd wanna bump into in a dark alley. Yet despite its black, Grim Reaper-like profile, the Type 02 isn't a Terminator in disguise.
No, this baby was created for the Tamanoi Vinegar Corporation to give presentations on, yep, vinegar. The robot stands 6 feet tall, and is 220 pounds. It's first job will be to entertain guests at Tamanoi's "Cyber Trip" amusement theater, which sits in the company's offices. You can check out the robot's action in a video clip (and gallery) after the jump.
It may be the end of the work week for most of us, but the elves at Dell are still churning out products. Their latest is a Latitude Convertible Tablet PC, the company's first Tablet. Senior Vice President and General Manager of Dell's Business Product Group, Jeff Clarke, is seen cradling the newborn in a video posted on the company blog.
Here's what we know so far, plus the vid. (Never mind the shirt)
On my recent visits to see the latest TVs, I started to get the sneaking suspicion that the interfaces were getting more user friendly. I mean, that isn't hard: TVs have notoriously bad interfaces, and unless you are Brian Lam or a member of the AVS Forum, you might have a hard time calibrating your TV to exacting specifications. Do I have evidence from Sony, Philips, Mitsubishi and others that they are in fact responding to these silent cries for help? You bet.
We're a month or so from iPhone, and phone nuts talk about the LG Prada as being one of its main competitors. Another one of those "iPhone-Killers" every phone company is pushing. But I just got an LG Prada, and based on my hands on time with that and my session with the iPhone back at Macworld (not the papercraft in the photo), I can say it's a great phone, but it's also no contest.
iPhone wins.
This power strip has surge protection, noise filtering and a microprocessor capable of turning off all the peripheral devices when the main device is turned off. So, when you turn off your PC, it can shut down your speakers, printer and other extras, too. It is available for $35, which isn't too bad for a quality surge protector that's smarter than average.
Product Page [Via Red Ferret]
For some reason Amazon has some pretty great deals on both old and new MacBooks. We can see giving instant discounts and $75 mail-in rebates on the old models (which lowers prices by up to $200+ on some) since... Read More »
The BlueQ is simple device: a wearable Bluetooth wristband that vibrates when your phone gets a call, letting you place your phone into your pocket, bag, or briefcase without fear of missing anything.
Why is it useful? Because even if you do keep your phone in your pants on vibrate, most of the time it's still loud and annoying. Or, your phone can even be the opposite and vibrate too softly for you to feel it.
We got our hands on the BlueQ wristband and can safely say they do everything it claims to, but it'll make you look like a dork in the process. Well, more so than you are now.
Ahh, Friday. Got to love them, and it is time for my weekly post relating to something or anything beer related (in preparation for the weekend, of course). This week we have a plasma beer mug. It has hollow walls for the plasma gases. The hollow gassed wall get bright and excited upon placing on the charging cradle. You can even direct the plasma around the glass with your fingers. It is available for $25 and will surely take all of the attention away from you at your next gathering.
Product Page [Via nerdapproved]
An internship job listing over at Danger, Inc. spills the beans about what could be some future GPS integration into Danger's devices—namely, the Sidekicks. Whether that means it's going to be in Sidekick 4's featureset or as a separate add-on for Sidekick 3's, we're still unsure. What we are sure of is that tons of pretty ladies will show up at its unveiling.
For those of you who are interested, the applicable part of the listing is:
The San Mateo fairgrounds in California are hopping because tomorrow is the start of Maker Faire. The fair will be a weekend full of projects, demonstrations, entertainment and fun where the DIY'ers across the world come together to show off their goods. Hit the link below to see everything that will be going on this weekend. Even if you aren't a maker, it is worth checking out all of the goods.
Maker Faire [MAKE]
Every year Crumpler barters its laptop, photo and messenger bags in exchange for beer. The tradition started five years ago in Australia, and this is the second time the event is being held in NYC. Bring in a case... Read More »
Pork is essentially synonymous with barbecue in my area of the South, so the Lil' Pig barbecue from Traeger makes sense in a creepy meta-way if you can get past the doe-eyed cuteness. The grill boasts 418 sq. inches of cooking surface, an internal hopper, a stainless steel door handle and a multi-position digital thermostat control.
So while it's "some pig," (Giz reads!) the $1599 price tag might swing you toward some grilling gear a little less porky pricewise. There's also a Longhorn grill for you Texans.
Product Page [Traeger via shiny shiny]
It is a period of civil war. Pirate torrents, striking from hidden basements, have plundered the vaults of Hollywood movie studios, the recording industry, and software monoliths, who have now formed the COPYRIGHT ALLIANCE. During the battle, pirates managed to steal copyrighted material as well as the not-so-secret plans of their LOBBYISTS and LEGAL TEAMS, with enough power to lobby and sue an entire planet.
Pursued by the newly formed COPYRIGHT ALLIANCE, composed of 29 entities, such as Viacom, Microsoft, Disney, MPAA and RIAA, pirates raced home aboard their mopeds and bicycles, custodians of cracked copies of Windows Vista and bootlegs of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, looking to save their people and restore freedom software, movies and music to the galaxy.
Backers of stronger copyright laws form lobby group [CNET via Techdirt]
With the Xbox 360 Elite making a lot of hubbub lately, Geeks.com decided to clear out their older, platinum Xbox 360s by offering them for $100 off. You get all of the regular goods including the 20GB hard drive,... Read More »
Just when we thought we had seen all the SideShow news from WinHEC, out comes i-mate with the View 2010. The 14-inch portable display has an XGA touchscreen, and in addition to retrieving info from your Vista PC it can also hook up to a keyboard and mouse letting you check email messages, watch videos and do simple Internet browsing. No word on pricing or availability, though it sounds like a larger version of Ricavision's eChatte.
Press Release [PDF]
Some people—not necessarily us—would drink a whole lot more lattes and cappuccinos if they weren't such a pain in the ass to make. Nestlé Nespresso and DeLonghi aim to remedy that with Nespresso Lattissima, a machine that does all that milk frothing for you, saving you the trouble with just a single touch.
Impartial onlookers at the machine's unveiling said its results were "amazing," but we have our doubts. It looks like it's a convenience, though, with its auto-clean function and an adjustable cup platform that lets you choose any container size from coffee cup to tall latte glass. Take the jump to see a video of this upcoming machine in action.
This is not the first time we've mentioned a Windows Vista crack, and it won't be the last, but now a hacker group known as NoPE somehow managed to create a cracked Windows Vista DVD that works immediately, out of the box, with no serial number or activation keys required. Just like some of those corporate versions of Windows XP that worked for years, the hacked Vista product appears to be already activated and it even automatically updates itself with the latest patches.
The cat and mouse game continues, where Microsoft will counter this, and then the hackers will respond, and so on, and so on. Of course, activation schemes, digital rights management and security measures only affect the honest people, inconveniencing them and sometimes even stopping them in their tracks, while the h4ck3rz rise to the challenge every time with their formidable sk1llz. Sigh.
NoPE release new Vista crack and is best to date [Newlaunches]
"PBJ-14" (Jones, 2006)
Interview/Article by Jonah Brucker-Cohen
In the multifarious world of consumer electronics and fetishistic objects, designers and corporations attempt to create products that evoke some kind of emotional or aesthetic connection to their users in order produce forms of "gadget lust" and indoctrination to keep people buying more. Taking this credo to an extreme is London-based artist and designer Crispin Jones. From his compelling efforts as a graduate student at the Royal College of Art's Computer-Related Design MA to his professional art-meets-product-design collaborations and solo projects, Jones' work examines the tumultuous and playful side of consumer devices and their connection to human civility, physical thresholds, and creative methods of automizing repetitive tasks and actions.
Gizmodo caught up with Jones to discuss his approach to design, products, and how technology should be customized to our state of mind and location of use, rather than a single device for everything. Images and interview after the jump.
It must be miniature day today at the Giz—maybe because we all feel like getting small this weekend—but this Mini Desktop Filing Cabinet will go perfectly with those diminutive chair models we showed you earlier. There's a difference, though. This scale model might actually serve a practical purpose; it's made for business cards, where you can file them away using their included alphabetical index dividers, and then promptly forget about them. Or, you can just be a little more modern and scan them in, and then forget about them as they reside on your database.
If you insist on paper, these two drawers can hold 400 business cards each, and clockwatchers will also like its teeny LCD clock/calendar. Hey, this is perfect for all those TPS reports you've been working on. Or, it might be a good prop for your Land of the Giants diorama, and what the heck, it only costs $13.98.
Product Page [Lighter Side, via CrunchGear]
In the universe of gadgets meant to monitor or conserve energy usage, this is the first we've seen that takes an anime approach. The Lifinity ECO is either a thermostat or a energy monitor (or both), using helpful cartoon penguins that keep tabs on your heating and AC settings, as well as the stuff plugged in around the house.
Currently only available in Japan, naturally, under Matsushita's National brand, we hope Panasonic considers bringing it to the US, where energy awareness is getting super serial. My only problem with the Lifinity ECO is this: the penguins I know like the AC cranked to the max. How's that gonna help shrink a guy's carbon footprint?
Penguins at home [Akihabaranews]
If you can't actually have designer furniture in your hepcat bachelor pad, now you can possess a veritable Greatest Hits of Chair Design in 1/12 scale with the Masterpiece Chairs of the World Collection. That oughta fit in even cubby-hole apartments. The little seats are highly detailed, and some of them have removable cushions. That chaise lounge even reclines a bit.
These miniature chairs are available in six volumes, each group costing between $38 and $50. The models don't have much practicality, but they just look cool. Check out the gallery to get an idea of their scale.
Masterpiece chairs of the world collection (Japanese translation) [Rakuten, via TFTS]
No longer will you watch War Games, green with envy when Dr. Falken plays with his homemade flying dino. For $69.95, you can order your own, a green potbellied "durable foam" version that Firebox claims will swoop and glide around the park (or cubicle cluster). More pics and info after the jump.
Here's a new way to annoy everybody with your various noises: the Talking Photo Frame that lets you load up five 10-second messages, each one corresponding to one of its photos. Don't be fooled, these are old-school paper photos that you place into this $61 frame, and you record those sounds by pushing its Rec button and using its built-in microphone.
Of course, this wouldn't be a product for true gadget aficionados, just an idea for a little gift that you might give Grandma after you've slipped in a few pictures of you and the kids, complete with a little spiel from each one of you. She'll love it. You won't.
The Talking Photo Frame [The Uber Review]
