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Tokyo Flash Oberon Watch Has a Name, Look Straight From Kubrick's 2001
Posted by Adrian Covert at 8:30 AM on November 24, 2007
Thanks to companies like Tokyo Flash (and Nooka, among others), I'm starting to care about watches again. The rise of mobile phones many years ago made me see watches as pointless and boring, as they were all Rolex clones, or wanted to include a million pointless meters on the face. But watches like the Oberon get a second glance from me. Minimal, attractive and creative, the contrast between the watch and its display makes me want to stare at it forever. And in case you're wondering, dots on the outer ring are hours, dots on the second ring are single minutes and dots on the inner ring are blocks of 10 minutes. It's 14,900 Yen at Tokyo Flash. [Tech Digest]
Phillips line of Xenium 9@9 mobile phones are best known for their incredibly long battery life. The new Xenium 9@9u that has just been given the FCC unveiling, seems to be at the bottom of the Xenium battery life scale, with an expected run time of one month on standby and up to 8 hours of talk time from a single charge. 
In the spirit of the 
The second Nokia patent Unwired View's 
ThinkGeek started selling this surprisingly affordable neon signage kit. A power supply is $US30, and it can control up to 22 of the blue letters, which cost $US7 each. If you're just looking to run some buzzing neon, and don't care what it spells out, you might do better on eBay under the neon Beer-aphenalia, where signs start for less and quickly rise for the neon worth a Bud Light babe's weight in cheese factor. I'll forgo my predictable "Gizmodo" sign for that Kirin and Sushi piece any day. [
It's dumb to test the Amazon Kindle by sitting at a desk, pressing a lot of buttons. The real judgment as to its usefulness has to come after experiencing it throughout the week in three key real-life reading scenarios: 
Make's Phil Torrone is in Japan, visiting some old blog fodder in person, like this Japan find from 2005. Underneath an office building in the Otemachi business district of Tokyo is an underground rice and vegetable field. Created in a former bank vault, this hidden garden is maintained "using computer-controlled artificial light and temperature management. It was brought into being by a personnel company as a means of providing agricultural training to young people who are having trouble finding employment and middle-aged people in search of a second career." It's pretty cool, although it probably uses more energy to keep the garden healthy than it's worth if you look at what it produces. More photos at Make.
Ever wonder what your girlfriend does when you are not around—and how she gets her hair so shiny and manageable? If so, this wireless hair dryer spy cam may be right up your alley. There are a number of versions available at varying price points, but if you want the ultimate in fashionable spying technology you will have to step up to the X-Vision option that allows users to remotely beam images up to 450m. 
If you're one of the unlucky souls cursed with a 
Nothing will distract your wife from the fact that you bought her a vacuum cleaner for Christmas like wrapping it in a gaudy, colour-changing box. She'll barely notice that you bought her an insulting present that she'll get no joy out of using and that, because it's "hers," will make you feel absolved from helping with the chores because, hey! Flashing colours! You can grab three of these awful things for about $US35. [
The folks at Wizard Universe have put together a comprehensive list of the 50 greatest fictional weapons of all-time. Many of your favourite imaginary superweapons are on there, although the order may be a point of contention (along with some glaring omitions) with fanboys across a wide array of genres &mdash including video games, movies and comic books. And if it is controversy you are looking for, consider that He-Man's Power Sword ranked higher than the lightsaber. Hit the following link for the complete list and let the nerdfight begin. [
The bulk of Cliff Biffle's excellent first impressions takes apart the Eee PC's impressive streak of 
Oakley sunglasses are expensive. But apparently, they're expensive for reasons other than the recognisable "O" logo that's stuck on them. Nope, they're resistant to shattering if something strikes them, unlike other sunglasses that'll happily embed shards of themselves in your eyes when hit. They can also withstand 2 pound weights falling on them and handle lasers better than other glasses. They test all these things in the "O Lab." The Nice folks at NotCot got to check out the O Lab, providing photos and video of the machines used to test expensive sunglasses. 
Recent patents filed by Apple reveal that the company may be looking to extend the multi-touch functionality found in the iPhone and iPod Touch to devices that can utilise the whole hand. Using an array of sensors, these products would be capable of recognising which part of the hand is making contact with the surface as well as the proximity of the hand to the device. In the end, users would be able to perform actions far more complex than simple tap and dragging motions.
Lotus makes a sexy car on their own, but teaming up with die-cast maker Hot Wheels they've really outdone themselves. A 1:5 scale model created for SEMA, one of its most distinctive characteristics is the exposed centre spine which incorporates switches and gear linkages while supporting that massive wing you see sticking out the back. Mostly men want nice cars to attract women and get them sex. This car is so hot it can skip the finding a woman part. [
We just got a mysterious invite to a party in swinging London: an "exclusive pre-launch unveiling" of a "significant Anytime/Anywhere Computing" product. God only knows what it could be. The pic above, which came in the e-mail, depicts the popular OQO model 02 UMPC—called E2 in Europe because of the O2 cellular carrier. We're told this is not just an update to the 02, but "something new." What do you suppose it could be? [
Recycling circuit boards for use as everyday, decorative objects is nothing new—but you have to hand it to a guy who takes the concept this far. Although, I doubt that you would be pulling in a lot of tail rollin' down the street in a circuit-board-covered beater with Thomas Dolby blaring on the radio. [
Apparently the science of cocktail robotics was woefully neglected until some enterprising alkies created Roboexotica, a convention to celebrate cyber-assisted drunkenness. The action is taking place this weekend in Vienna, and from the looks of the opening night pictures, things are still as academic as they were when I was in college. (Just looking at this 
Researchers at Duke University have teamed up with the Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International in Kyoto to get a monkey's brain to control a pair of robot legs through the internet. By mapping the monkey's brain signals while walking (through electrode measurements), Duke researchers were able to pinpoint the activation areas to specific leg movements. 
This is Ken Shuttleworth's absolutely phenomenal design for an ten-storey office block. The squeeze box-shaped building will have a roof garden that contains a sundial whose gnomon will be provided by a monument that was built back in the 17th century.
Omigawd, these PlayStation Phone shenanigans are really beginning to get up our noses here at the Giz. Yesterday we told you how Jim Ryan had been 
This is a tow rope wound around a centre pin, for easy windup. It's rated for 1500 kg. Not sure I like this thing that much. Some simple designs—a tow rope—shouldn't be messed with. Just learn to wrap your ropes like a sailor. You don't want to be dealing with knotted equipment when emergencies come up.
