Sunday, January 27, 2008
Entertainment
Amazon MP3 Service Going Global; Epic iTunes Battle on the Horizon
11:15PM Haroon Malik | Amazon’s digital music catalogue is all set to go global, and although a launch date has not yet been settled, it shall hit sometime this year. Given Amazon MP3 offers DRM-free tracks, which are generally cheaper than iTunes limited, equivalent offerings, we cannot help but think an epic battle between the big As is all set to take off. More »
Random Stuff
Old Websites Sure Are Funny
3:59PM Mark Wilson | Digging through websites cached from the 90s is akin to seeing a celebrity’s high school yearbook pictures—during the early, awkward years of the web, brave companies made a stab at winning consumer hearts through 15″ CRTs and 14.4k dial up modems. Inspired by this MSU page, we decided to take a gander through the Internet Archive’s Wayback machine (a service that started saving pages in 1996). Needless to say, we found some funny stuff. More »
Entertainment
Circuit City Clearing Out HD DVD Players For Cheap, For Ever
2:00PM Matt Buchanan | A Circuit City employee writes on the High-Def Digest forum that Big Red is taking Toshiba’s already deep HD DVD price cuts a step bloodier: They’ve tagged the cheap HD-A3 and higher-end HD-A30 as clearance items, moving them out the door for US$100 and US$150, respectively. Placing HD DVD on clearance effectively means Circuit City is quitting the format, at least on the hardware side. Someone ring the bell, please. [High-Def Digest via Max Console] More »
Peripherals
Nex-Sys Corner V1 Desk is Comfy, Costly
12:40PM Haroon Malik | When you spend more time at your computer than Big Bird spends in Sesame Street, you’re going to need to be comfortable. The Nex-Sys Corner V1 Desk tries to address the issue. You may mistake the luxury sit-up for another rock band peripheral kit, but don’t be fooled. The Corner V1 has support for 2.1 speakers, height adjustable flat screen monitor and comes with a custom car seat to suit your disposition on the day you spend 1700-freaking-US-dollars on a desk and chair. More »
Gadgets
Sony Mylo 2 Now Available
11:40AM Haroon Malik | Sony’s portable web surfing device, the Mylo 2, which has full flash support, a touchscreen and Wi-Fi connectivity is now officially available for sale. The first shipments will take place on Monday, but you can go ahead and orders yours now. Check out out our complete Mylo 2 strip down, and groping session to make up your mind whether it is worth the US$299.99 asking price. AU: I remember when the first Mylo was launched, I innocently asked whether or not we’d see it down here. The response: “Hahahahahaha!” (Okay, not really, but they did say no). My point is, if you want one of these, you’ll probably have to import. [Sony Center] More »
Vehicles
Tesla Roadster Gets Street Legal Status, Crushed into a Pulp
9:30AM Haroon Malik | The Tesla Roadster just had an appointment with the crash test dummies and a solid concrete wall. Good news—it got smashed up beyond recognition and is now street legal. The road to legality involved front and rear crash testing; windshield and rear view mirror visibility tests, as well as standard fittings compliance on vehicle parts. The automobile annihilation can be viewed in the gallery below. More »
Peripherals
Silex WUSB Device Server Gives You Pseudo Wireless USB
8:20AM Haroon Malik | The Silex SX-2000WG USB Device Server is a nifty little gadget with a ridiculously long title. The WUSB will allow you to network your USB dependent peripherals wirelessly, they can then be reached via any computer on your WLAN. It is both Windows and Mac compatible, and works by utilising software that emulates a direct USB connection. The WUSB supports transfer speeds of 12Mbps, it can stream low resolution music and video and even sync your iPod. Wired free living will set you back to the tune of US$149. [Everything USB] More »
Random Stuff
The Truth About Google
6:20AM Mark Wilson | From Indexed, one of my favourite sites on the web. It’s funny because it’s true. [indexed] More »
Gadgets
Apple Patents Show Shuffle-Esque Remote Control, Other Goodies
6:20AM Haroon Malik | Apple has just walked home with six new patents, one of which details an iPod shuffle-like remote control. The image may not tell us much, but a reverse side clip is clearly visible, as is some form of circular control, which could be a scroll wheel or four way control pad. The iPhone comes with a basic in-line remote; could this be a more sophisticated offering? The other four patents described the following. Update: These products do not seem to be bringing anything new. The lanyard looks to be an iPod nano peripheral; both iPod shuffle iterations indicate the current model, and the remote has a striking similarity to the current iPod remote control, with integrated FM radio. The image technology may still be a note worthy patent acquisition. More »
Software
