Apparently, Kumho’s skid ‘n’ sniff tires are going out to the “trend-setting, fashion-conscious drivers” who want their cars to rock something that no one else has: the sweet smell of lavender. Now then, while I wholeheartedly applaud Kumho’s decision to bring something so unique to wheelwear, I question the choice of fragrance. Surely “Eau de Roadkill” or “Rocker’s Crotch” would have been more marketable than the scent most associated with a slightly incontinent old queen who thrilled millions during her lifetime—no, not Liberace, I’m talking about Britain’s late, lamented Queen Mother. Full blurb from Tire Rack’s product page is below.
The EGP-WP88 from Epoq is the first GSM wristphone that actually looks like a watch. Waterproof to 50 metres, the WP88 has a kinetic recharge system, meaning you can charge it just by walking around, and boasts a 1.3-megapixel camera, OLED display, plays MP3 and MP4 files and can transfer data via either USB or Bluetooth. You get between two and two-and-a-half-hours’ talk time, and 70 to 100 hours’ standby. Costing US$530, the Epoq WP88 goes on sale on March 1. [GadgetCraver via UberGizmo]
Above is Ricoh’s new R8 compact camera, a successor to last year’s R7, packing a 7x optical zoom along with a 10 megapixel sensor with CCD-shift image stabilization. It also has a 1:1 square image capture mode, for that medium-format feel, a 2.7-inch LCD, and captures images up to ISO 1600. Also new is the R50, limited to a 5x zoom, but with the same sensor and image stabilisation. More info below the gallery.
Motorola’s DH01 mobile TV, above, seen at CES last month, has been updated already. The beleaguered electronics company added a GPS navigation system to the DVR (and an “n” to the model number) and took its DH01n to Barcelona’s MWC to show off. It still uses DVB-H format, though, which ain’t exactly popular over here. [Motorola]
We have been saying it for ages, but now it’s official. HD DVD has been pronounced dead on Tuesday, February 19, 2008, even before the press conference has started, according to our Ichiroo, from Gizmodo Japan. Toshiba’s press release is out in the wild. The Format War is over. Full release after the jump. AU: Toshiba are holding local press conference at 11am today – I’ll see if I can gain any juicy info for you guys.
These Apple patents show standard trackpad, basic multitouch and gonzo “Advanced Multitouch” never seen before on shipping products. The advanced UI includes thumb/forefinger/middlefinger combos for saving, closing and opening files, as well as cut, copy and paste. (The patents assume the system can detect the differences between different fingers. [Macrumors]
Sometimes all it takes is a sexy looking mock-up to get you excited by a fictional product. I’m not saying that the PSP-phone is a fabrication of some overstimulated imaginations – in some deep, dark dungeon of Sony Ericsson’s design lab they probably have half a dozen prototypes. Bu that doesn’t mean that they’ll ever make it to market, no matter what Sony Magazine says.
If (and when) the PSP phone ever does come to market, I really, really hope it looks like this. I mean, come on… who wouldn’t want the two-way sliding mechanism, sleek black lines and full PSP controls). It actually looks like it would be good for both gaming and making calls.
Of course at the moment, this is a complete fake – the magazine even admits that the PSP phone only has a 35% chance of becoming reality. On a side note, I’m not entirely sure what mag it is – to me it looks like a Spanish version of Stuff. If anyone can confirm, post in the comments. It’s driving me crazy!
When you guys filled out our reader survey last year, we learnt a lot about you. Like how some of you are practically dying to spend some of the millions of gold coins you use to swim through every morning to help wash away the feeling of not making more money while you slept. And yes, I am jealous.
The only reason I bring up the absurd wealth of some of you (you know who you are), is because I may have found a way for you to spend some of that cash. eBay user jpaulhenderson5a4e is selling his music collection, which includes more than three million records and over 300,000 CDs for a whopping total of more than six million songs.
If the maths there seems a little bit off to you, it’s because the collection does include many duplicate copies. But still – six million songs! All from the 20th Century, all meticulously catalogued and organised, and currently housed in a climate controlled warehouse.
I don’t know what it is about steampunk, but we simply can’t get enough of it. Now we are ashamed to admit that our obsession has reached rehab-like proportions. However, it looks as though this steampunk Iron Man will have to keep us satisfied until we get the help we so desperately need. [Sillof via Fwoosh Forums via Fanmode via Plockhead] galleryPost('steampunkironman', 5, '');
So, The Rudd Government is thinking about legislation for ISPs to control online piracy. Which would be all well and good, if only we had access to online video here in Australia. While we’re languishing in the pre-historic age, the BBC has just made their collection of TV programming available for UK iTunes users.
Each episode will cost £1.89 (about $4), and will be made available online eight days after they’re broadcast.
For the life of me, I cannot understand why the local TV networks aren’t jumping up and down trying to get their programming online. Even if it means they just start with local productions and work out licensing for international programs later. Obviously the ABC does this already in the form of video podcasts (hurrah for Aunty), but by working together with someone like Apple, they could seriously create an extra income and reduce piracy in one swift movement.
In any case, judging by how long it took for the networks to agree for their EPG to be broadcast and how long Channel 7 took to let Foxtel rebroadcast their signal, we should have local programming online by about 2020. Hell, I’m being positive here.
