Reader Steve Proposes U-HIP June 9, 2006
READ MORE Laptops
Sometimes we're like Simon from Americon Idol, sometimes we're like that weird lady from I Wish I Was a Millionaire or whatever, and sometimes we're like the people from American Inventor. Reader Steve noted, quite rightly, that we don't like UMPCs. He's proposing a U-HIP, an image of which we see here. We're not going into details because it's patent pending, but he says:
I have the feeling that Gizmodo has not been impressed so far by the UMPC's coming out, check out this concept. My problem with the UMPC's is the fact that it is just one more seperate OS to carry around and try to sync with whatever else we already have. The U-HIP addresses this by utilizing a single OS for everyone in the home and everywhere. I admit it's vapourwear at the moment but is (canadian pat pend), I just need someone to manufacture it. The design of this should put it well below the $500 range and I don't see $200-300 range unreachable.
What say you? Are UMPC or are U-HIP? Why is the UMPC sucking wind?
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Intel Gets More Aggressive, Pentium Prices to Plummet June 9, 2006
READ MORE PC
Chip giant Intel Corp. took the gloves off yesterday, announcing that it's going to be able to cut prices on its older chips faster because of its implementation of more-efficient manufacturing technologies. As Intel moves into a fourth factory it's built, it will be easier for the company to quickly ramp up to more 65-nanometer Core architecture products by the end of the year. According to Intel spokesman Chuck Malloy,
"We have a more aggressive product and manufacturing ramp, so those older Pentium products will move down faster. It's not like we're cutting prices for the sake of cutting prices."Although Intel wouldn't say how much of a price cut this would mean, analysts predicted that old-school Pentium chip prices could plummet by somewhere between 8% and 61% by late next month. This will make everything cheaper.
Intel says set to cut prices more quickly [Reuters]
Portable Cellphone Booth June 9, 2006
READ MORE Mobile phones
The video explains it all. If you are too concerned with cellphone etiquette then this may be the way to go, if you want to look like a fool, of course.
Information Page [Via Techeblog]
Cablevision Caves In, Postpones Network DVR June 9, 2006
READ MORE Home Entertainment
We mentioned earlier that Cablevision was in some legal trouble regarding its planned network DVR. If you don't remember, the network DVR differs from a regular DVR in that all of the content is stored on Cablevision's servers rather than a local hard drive while retaining all of the normal DVR features, such as pausing live TV and time shifting. Of course, Hollywood went crazy and started filing lawsuits left and right.
As a result, Cablevision said yesterday that it was halting the introduction of its network DVR, which was supposed to launch in the near future. It seems that the increasingly irrelevant "fair use" clause that Cablevision tried to invoke didn't help them out at all. The mighty hammer of Hollywood has stuck yet again. Honestly, though, are you even surprised?
Cablevision to Halt Video Recorder Test [AP/New York Times]
Design Concept: Electrici-tree June 9, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
This design concept for an unusual power strip was cast from tree branches, separating each receptacle to make way for those oversized wall warts. The back of each socket is magnetized so you can tack it onto anything metal. Along with the design comes a bit of tree-hugging eco-porn:
"Electrici-tree is a physical representation and reminder of how much electricity we are using. Its organic aesthetics are a gentle reminder of the nature around us, and what we are polluting with our over-use of power."Yeah, perhaps that is something we should think about every day. Maybe they'll actually manufacture these things before all the electricity is gone.
Project Page [Vahakn Matossian, via Core 77]
Kiber 6040/1030 June 9, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
Kiber is a Dutch company that makes a number of interesting watches based on Swiss and Japanese automatic and quartz movements. They just released the light yellow 6040/1030 automatic chronometer using a Valjoux movement with date as well as hours and minutes elapsed registers.
What makes this special, you ask? Well, it uses a very well-respected automatic movement and Kiber is a fairly nascent company in the Benelux region. If you like the looks, it's something to consider. It's about $890, which is a titch much for my blood right now— it's actually quite reasonable considering the movement—but it sure is purdy.
Product Page[Kiber NL]
Focal Aquatune Waterproof iPod Speaker Dock June 9, 2006
READ MORE Portable Media
The Aquatune waterproof case is a great addition to any summer gadget collection. The case includes 3 watt, 2 channel output speakers that are powered by replaceable batteries. The case, which is constructed of high quality polycarbonate material, will float in the pool or hot tub, protect your iPod and provide some block rockin' beats for everyone to enjoy. The strong, protective cases will also withstand falls—you know, in case you mistakenly throw it in the empty pool sometime in the winter. Unfortunately, it is only available in Japan at the moment for $130, but this dock is a great idea and one of the powerhouse U.S. iPod accessory makers should really jump on this idea.
Focal Aquatune waterproof case for iPod [NewLaunches]
Lego Coffee Maker June 9, 2006
READ MORE Games
These kids deserve our love and respect. They not only made a Lego Coffee Making Think With Tubes and Stuff (TM), they also posed next to it, rocking the full science fair regalia. I have pictures like this in the family album—me hanging out with my Atari 800XL, for example—and I don't look half as cool.
We're tracking them down right now so we can figure out how their magical thing works.
Lego Robotics[Marshall.edu via SingleServeCoffee]
TiVo Guru Guides a Go Plus KidZone June 9, 2006
READ MORE Home Entertainment
Run home right now and turn on your TiVo—the TiVo Guru Guides are running and you can now get recommendations from folks from Entertainment magazine and CNET, among others, as well as some sort of celebrity programming recommendations system so we can see what K-Fed is watching: four hours of buzzing static, some sex tapes, and this.
They're also launching KidZone, for kids, which comes with system 7.3 software and allows you to keep track of what the little ones are watching. Quite nice of them.
New features showing up at TiVo.com [Megazone via ZatzNotFunny
Video Game Detox Clinic Opens June 9, 2006
READ MORE Games
Who would've thought that the Netherlands of all places would be opening a clinic to help treat video game addiction? Under the auspices of Smith & Jones Addiction Consultants in Amsterdam, addicted gamers can sign up for the program where they try to kick the habit of gold farming, going on epic raids and beating just one more level.
The director of the clinic said that video game addiction is just like any other kind of addiction and that similar patterns of behavior can be found between alcoholics and video game addicts.
The moral of the story? Don't stay inside all day playing Xbox 360. It'll rot your brain.
Detox Clinic Opening for Video Addicts [AP/Washington Post]
Robot Touch: One Step Closer to World Domination June 9, 2006
READ MORE Robots
We took one step closer to becoming the pets of world-dominating robot machines yesterday, when University of Nebraska researchers announced an invention that gives robots a highly refined sense of touch.
Vivek Maheshwari and Ravi Saraf used nanotech to create a specialized electroluminescent film that glows when force is applied to it. Then, a special camera sees that light, turning it into data that gives a robot hand the machine equivalent of a sense of touch that's roughly as precise as human fingers.
This kind of tactile feedback is important if robot builders want to endow the machines with the ability to sense textures and hardness of objects, allowing them to manipulate delicate items and complex configurations with great precision. Now, when the robots decide it's time to begin to disobeying the Three Laws of Robotics, they'll be able to feel when they've broken every bone in our bodies.
Nanotech Sensors Afford Robots A Light Touch [Reuters, via 14U News]
Swarovski-Festooned Vinyl Killer June 9, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
Where will we see these ubiquitous Swarovski crystals next? The Swiss bauble maker may have gone too far in its quest to encrust the entire world in its tiny pieces of precision-cut glass, where now there's Vinyl Killer, a little VW Microbus covered with the shiny stuff, and its needle underneath makes contact with a vinyl LP as it drives around and around.
It's called the Swarovski Crystal Model Limited Blingbling Edition, and it's transporting a tiny built-in motor, amplifier and a speaker, all running on a 9-volt battery. The result is a circuitous cacophony, with the iconic Microbus making a tinny-sounding racket that may vaguely resemble music. Maybe they should have called it Ear Killer. It would be a gag gift if it didn't cost $520.
Product Page [Razyworks, via Born Rich]
Shower Monitor: Ruining Your Life in Eight Minutes or Less June 9, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
The Waitek Shower Monitor is a timer that activates automatically when the water is turned on, and then after a predesignated time limit between five and eight minutes, it starts emanating an annoying honk that can be heard all over the house. The only way to turn off that beeper is to turn off the water for at least two minutes. It has an LED readout that shows you how much time you have left as well as the temperature of the water.
Sure, water is cheap, but it can start getting expensive to heat that water. Shower Monitor's makers say that the average family can save $24 a month by limiting their showers to eight minutes each. But then, taking a nice long hot shower, one of the simple pleasures of life, is eliminated.
On one hand, this could be an excellent device in an apartment with a very small water heater and lots of shower hogs. On the dark side, it's yet another tool for fascist parents to have one more element of control over everyone's lives in the house. Plus, who won't go right up against that time limit? Then there will be an annoying beeping noise happening in your house every single day. If it's worth it to you, it's $110.
Product Page [Waitek, Ltd.] Thanks, Richard!
 Everything Delta [delta.standardplumbing.com] |
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M.I.T. researchers are working on using capacitors instead of the current electrolyte solutions to provide super-fast charging in portable devices: "Capacitors contain energy as an electric field of charged particles created by two metal electrodes and charge faster and last longer than normal batteries."
Watching the World Cup and getting drunk go together like Posh and Becks. Now you can get the Philips Universal Remote that's shaped like a football field, with the buttons representing the players. The added bonus is the bottle opener attached for easy drink opening.
These Emiteck engineers really took a hard look at the iPod and incorporated two of its best selling accessories, a protective case (leather, natch), and an FM transmitter for tunes in the car. Other than that, the player doesn't offer much beyond the basic USB 2.0 transfer and music playback. Even the screen is a basic monochrome LCD display. 
Would you look at that, no sooner did Panasonic roll out some more backwards incompatible memory cards do they introduce a product to work with them. The SDR-S200 camcorder records MPEG2 with its 10x optical and 100x digital zoom lens, and writes the data at up to 10Mbps onto its flash memory. Luckily, this supports both SDHC and the older SD cards.
Similar to the MERC Keyboard for Gamers, this gamepad is an add-on to your current keyboard to allow you to map custom key commands to an easy to reach location.
While most portable hard disks are boxy 6-sided affairs, SimpleTech eschews practicality and is releasing a 5-sided device. Yes, by cutting out one entire side, their 5400RPM, 8MB drives trade balance for style.
There is only one true way to play Sudoku. You have to go balls to the wall and use a pen. Only the weak and feeble use pencils or gadgets like this. This plug'n'play Sudoku adapter allows any television to be turned into a Sudoku'ing machine. It has millions of puzzles, multiple difficulty modes, hints and error checks—once again, for the weak and feeble.
Editor | Martin LynchContributor | Paul Lester Publisher | Tim Webb Head of Sales | Matthew Bush |
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