This lightbulb-shaped lamp can be affixed to a wall or placed on a desk whenever you need some extra light. Plus it has a touch activated dimmer to help you navigate treacherous terrain on a late-night trip to the bathroom. May also be amusing when placed overhead to indicate that you have a bright idea. Available for $US9.50. [Product Page via GeekAlerts]
The Skinny: The solio has a solar panel or USB input for charging up its internal battery, and on the other end, charging tips for USB, mini USB, nokia devices. One load has enough juice per load to bring a dead iPhone to 50%. The clear/orange plastic case looks really nice, and there’s a latch for hooking this onto a bag. This is the best looking Solar/Battery charger I’ve ever seen.
So you’re furiously reading all the news you can on the latest Hannah Montana game, but don’t want to be found out…what do you do? If you want to protect your precious core gamer cred, my advice is the new, improved StealthSurfer, which has all the network security tools to make sure nobody finds out what you’re getting into.
Manufactum, a German web retailer, has released a portable PC that is sure to delight Linux users. Weighing in around 900g, with dimensions of 180 x 112 x 48 mm, the “Manuscriptum” comes equipped with a 500MHz AMD Geode LX800 processor, 80GB hard drive, 1920 x 1400 graphics capability and 512MB DDR 400 RAM expandable to 1024MB. The device also comes pre-loaded with Debian Linux with a KDE desktop environment, and other essential software like Firefox, Open Office and the Foxit PDF reader. Despite its diminutive size, the price is anything but. Available for around $US650. [Manufactum via Linux Devices]
We’ve all been known to smack a fellow Wii Tennis player in the head, especially when down 40-Love, two games to zilch. DreamGear’s new Soft Sports Kit has playful Nerf-like attachments that help avoid the subsequent stitches. You put your Wiimote right into a little casing, then snap on the tip of your choice, Tennis, Golf or Baseball. (What, no Boxing Gloves?) It looks a little hokey, but it might just give Adam the edge he needs to finally beat me, cuz clearly nothing else works. Look for these soon for $US25—per Wii remote. [DreamGear.net]
• Rumours before UK iPhone release: British users to get bronze trim instead of silver? [Gadget Lab]
• Qualcomm’s low-powered IMOD display replicates the light-bending qualities of butterfly wings. [Extreme Tech]
• Moon filmed in HD for the first time, embarrassed to find age lines and stretch marks. [Pink Tentacle]
If you fancy waking up to the sight of your loved ones, you may be interested in this Philips AJL308 7-Inch Digital Picture Frame, Alarm Clock, Radio and MP3 player combo. This do-it-all device can even be loaded with pictures, video and music from a PC USB connection, memory stick or SD card. No doubt it would make for a sweet holiday gift for people with friends and/or a family that doesn’t suck. Available for $US129.99 [Amazon via Crave]
Da-Lite is taking home entertainment to ridiculous new places with a video projection screen that boasts a 184-inch diagonal (almost 4.7m). For those of you doing the math, that equates to a viewing area covering a 407cm(w) x 229cm(h) or a total viewing area of 9.3 sq m. No pricing details have been made available, but my guess is that if you are looking to pick one of these up you had best find a good financial adviser—and a decent builder that can knock down a few walls. [Da-Lite via Electronic House]
Jaehyung Hong, the the same designer that developed the Bluetooth lanyard we showed you earlier, has a slightly simpler design for us. This time it’s a set of keyboard dice assembled from the keys of an old keyboard. Each side of the die has a specific key that would correlate to any set of game rules. But don’t expect to be taken seriously if you try to drop these in a heated alley dice game. Check the close-up image for more dicey detail. [Yanko Design]
In an effort to combat rampant piracy in China, Paramount and Warner Brothers have begun selling legitimate DVDs there for only $3. And these titles are not some bargain-bin Steven Segal DVDs either, rather new releases that are only two months out from their theatre debut in the US. The $3 price tag is still over twice as high as a pirated copy, but the studios hope that customers will learn the value of the legal versions. Perhaps previous trial runs proved successful. Hey, we have piracy too! When are we going to get a slice of this? [ars technica]
