HIS Releasing First PCIe X1 ATI Graphics Card June 30, 2006
READ MORE Peripherals
HIS—Hi-Tech Information System Limited—is poised to release the first X1 PCIe graphics card based on an ATI X1K chipset. The card, which is an X1300 512MB HyperMemory and is being targeted at Dell, HP and IBM systems that don't have the more advanced graphics card friendly X16 PCIe slot. You'll also find dual link DVI and a quieter fan that extends the card's life dubbed the iFan. Watch out, HIS, or you'll be iSued.
Since it's based on the ATI X1300 chipset, you'll find all the features that make ATI one of the top graphics cards companies out there. Its ATI Avivo technology improves playback of H.264 video and the HighDynamicRange rendering helps in the anti-aliasing departmant. Of course, if you're in the market for a fancy, beast of a card, you should probably look elsewhere.
It'll be available by the end of July for $119.
Press Release [HIS Graphic Cards via The Inquirer]
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Brix Unveils Two Sirius Receivers June 30, 2006
READ MORE Portable Media
Brix has unveiled two Sirius receivers that are set to hit the shelves in November. The Sreamer GT3 is essentially a rebranded version of the Sitius Starmate Replay. Nothing too spectacular. It has an amber backlit display, 30 programmable presets and a new, slimmer design.
The Streamer 3 seems to be a rebranded Sirius Sportster 4. It has a large dial knob, amber backlighting, song alerts, 30 presets and a full-frequency wireless FM transmitter. Both of these units will support the universal docking connector, so it should be an easy upgrade, if you decide to do so.
New rix Streamer GT3 & Streamer 3 (PHOTOS) [Orbicast]
Last Chance: Windows Vista Beta 2 Download June 30, 2006
READ MORE Software
If you're thinking of downloading Beta 2 of Windows Vista, you might want to get on it right away, because the last day for either downloading the software or ordering the DVD is today, June 30. According to Microsoft blogger Ian Moulster,
"In case you weren't aware, we are only providing a limited number of copies of Windows Vista Beta 2--either download or physical copies--and we're fast approaching the cutoff point. What this means is--if you want to get a copy, get it now (and I mean now)."We've been toying with this Beta 2 of Windows Vista, and although we had a few installation woes—it wouldn't install on our first attempt—it's a smooth-running Beta with no crashes so far, and the new Aero interface looks positively swank. We wanted to try out the Beta version of Office 2007 along with Vista, but that didn't work out at all. It simply wouldn't install. We've heard the two don't like each other for some reason. Perhaps that's why the release of Office 2007 has been delayed again. Guess that's why they call it "Beta."
Get Vista beta 2 before we stop downloads/orders [Ian Moulster's Blog, via Lifehacker]
Jabra A125s Bluetooth iPod Adapter June 30, 2006
READ MORE Portable Media
Back in March we first heard word of Jabra making a Bluetooth adapter for the iPod. Rubbish, we said! Jabra is too good of a company to waste their time and energy with the silly little iPod. Well I have eaten my words because the A125s iPod adapter is coming, soon.
This Bluetooth adapter can connect wirelessly to any Bluetooth stereo headset or headphones. It provides 10 hours of music streaming and 250 hours of standby time via a rechargeable battery. It will be available in August for $75.
Jabra Bluetooth for Ipod coming in August [MobileMag]
Coming Soon: Matrixstream 1080p IPTV Streaming June 30, 2006
READ MORE Home Entertainment
You've seen how voice-over-IP services such as Vonage and Skype have turned the world of plain old telephone service upside-down, and now Matrixstream may be just about to play a similar trick on the cable TV and satellite TV market space with its end-to-end IPTV (Internet Protocol Television) set-top box and transmission technology.
Here's the Matrixstream MX1020HD set-top box, currently in the testing phase, which is said to be able to deliver 1080p video over an everyday "best effort" broadband connection. According to the company, the system accomplishes this feat by using H.264 compression and proprietary XML streaming technology built into its head-end units it'll offer to service providers, and then decodes those signals with this set-top box which could be coming soon to a home theater near you.
The best part of this equation is that by the end of this year, IPTV might give you choices beyond just cable or satellite TV. Small, hotly competitive service providers are currently gearing up to offer the same services you get on cable and satellite, at even higher resolution. Sounds pleasingly disruptive.
Product Page [Matrixstream]
Target, Red Cross First Aid Kit June 30, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
Everyone knows you haven't lived until a Black Cat has exploded in the palm of your hand, preferable with the fist closed. Sure you can pour water on the wound and try to clean it up before going to the hospital, but this first aid and preparedness kit from Target should do the trick this fourth when your hands are burned to a crisp. This kit includes whistles, dust masks, duct tape, a poncho, a radio, a color book and even more. It sounds more like a detox kit rather than a first aid kit, but whatever.
First Aid & Preparedness Kit [Yanko]
Fireworks Photo Tips June 30, 2006
READ MORE Digital cameras
Big holiday weekend coming up, and you might want to take a few pictures of the bang bang on Tuesday night. But that can be tricky. Ed Krimen at Photobird gives us his top five tips for shooting fireworks, which might just make the difference between bringing the shot home to momma and ending up with some, uh, modern digital art.
Sparing you the details, here are the top five tips: use a tripod, use a remote control or a timer to press the shutter button, use a long exposure time and shutter speed, turn off the flash, and pick a great location. Sounds like a lot of common-sense suggestions. We might add one more: while you're taking pictures of fireworks, don't forget to look at them with your own two eyes.
Top 5 tips for shooting fireworks [photobird]
Sharp Releases Fax Machine That Records Calls June 30, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
As a man who curses out fax machines with reckless abandon, I'm actually quite concerned about this new system from Sharp. These fax machines will record up to 45 seconds of any voice calls made to the machine for later perusal and/or for serving restraining orders.
The line, called Fappy, is... wait, Fappy? WTF?
Sharp Fax Combats Malicious Phone Calls By Recording Them [Textually]
Service for Agoraphobics Makes Trees Laugh June 30, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
This is just about the most—erm...—intriguing set of design projects I've seen in a while. They showed three projects at the Royal College of Art show this year. First, pictured here, is a phone for autophobics, folks who are scared of being alone. The system allows them to talk to themselves so no one else can hear.
Then there's a service for agoraphobics, the folks who don't want to leave the house. They receive a special phone number and are connected with a random autophobic—two birds with one stone! Finally, there is a videophone trained on a stand of trees. When the trees shake, the agoraphobe hears them laugh. When they are still, they whisper. Go ahead and do what you want with that information.
Weird objects for weird users? [WMMNA]
Super TV-B-Gone: Bulked Up to 90-Foot Range June 30, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
If you absolutely positively must kill every TV in the room within 90 feet, here's the do-it-yourself project that puts your TV-B-Gone on steroids. If you're handy with electronics, all you need is one TV-B-Gone unit, a certain transistor, a 9-volt battery and 20 infrared LEDs.
Substitute that puny 3-volt watch battery inside with a 9-volt battery, solder it all together and boom! You have yourself a TV-B-Gone on hyperdrive. No matter where you point it, any TVs within 90 feet are toast. Well, they're not damaged, they just turn off. And then you have sweet, sweet silence.
Think of it, any TV within earshot at an airport, for example, is immediately silenced with one push of a button. But then, wouldn't that be inconsiderate of your fellow passengers? Don't others have the right to be continually brainwashed with incessant commercials? It's their choice.
Ultra TV-B-Gone [Instructables] Thanks, Phillip!
Sticky Yard Digital Measuring System June 30, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
There's a variety of sophisticated laser measuring devices that cost an arm and leg—this one we reported on not too long ago costs $450—or you can take a look at the Sticky Yard Digital Measuring System, a combination of software and hardware that makes it damn-fool easy at about a tenth of the price.
You apply the Sticky Yard, which is available with either adhesive or magnetic backing, to whatever you'd like to measure, take a picture of it, and then using the Sticky Yard software, you can accurately measure anything in the photograph. The $49.95 package includes an adhesive and magnetic Sticky Yard and the software.
Product Page [Emerge Industries] Thanks, Jim!
Sidekick 3 Unboxing June 30, 2006
READ MORE Mobile phones
You haven't lived until you've seen Zapruder-esque footage of someone opening a Sidekick 3 and mumbling to themselves. Great stuff.
CHT 9000: The First Chinese 3G PDA Phone June 30, 2006
READ MORE Mobile phones
Pretty much a repackaged HTC TyTN (HTC Hermes), the CHT 9000 from Dopod is the first 3G Chinese PDA phone. If it keeps the HTC TyTN's design, there's Tri-Band UMTS, WiFi, and a slide-out keyboard with Chinese phonetic characters to enter in data. Running Windows Mobile 5, the phone has USB and microSD for connectivity and storage. The HTC TyTN should be available in Europe at the end of July, for those who can't read Chinese.
Ok, so there's not that much new here, we just wanted an excuse to show that picture.
CHT 9000 [Phone Daily via Phoneyworld]
Sneak Peek At The Back Of Sirius’ New Player June 30, 2006
READ MORE Portable Media
Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin used the Convergence 2.0 conference as a chance to act like a maniac with a knife, by whipping out their new beta player prototype and waving it around tauntingly. One photog was quick enough to snap a pic of the side and back, which is enough to give us a sneak peek at the dimensions and connectivity.
There looks to be an expansion port for removable memory (?) on top, along with a headphone jack. It looks thicker than an iPod, but that's probably for all the satellite receiver components along with music playback.
A quick glimpse at Sirius' new portable [Tech Effect]
Luxury Multi-Function Steam Shower - $22,587 June 30, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
This is out of range for most of us, so we'll just have to gawk and drool like the plebes we are. The shower is made of silicon-free safety glass in either clear or tinted blue. With great wealth comes great lack of shame.
You can lift up the two seats to form a bench to sit on while the generator gives you a relaxing steam. It also comes with such luxury features as the "LED-enabled chromatherapy, the aromatherapy, the built-in sound and the touch-display and remote control."
I think we should get one for Giz HQ. Live-blogging from the shower!
Product Page [Megabad via Trendir via TechEBlog]
MTV Puts New Shows on iTunes June 30, 2006
READ MORE Home Entertainment
If you're a fan of MTV's cable offerings—Spike TV, Nick at Nite, TV Land, Logo, MTV and the N, rejoice as some choice shows from those channels are going up on iTunes. Yes, all fifty-eight of you will get to download such quality entertainment as "Blade: The Series", "Sit Down Comedy with David Steinberg", "Fatherhood", "Hi-Jinks", "Noah's Arc", "U.S. of ANT", "Wisecrack", "Viva La Bam", and "Beyond the Break".
These will be priced the same as current shows at $1.99 for an episode and more for a complete season. Order today!
MTV Networks & Apple Bring More Music, Comedy & Entertainment Programming to the iTunes Music Store [Apple]
Ear Candy From Skullcandy June 30, 2006
READ MORE Digital Audio , Gadgets , Home Entertainment , Peripherals , Wireless
Audiophiles listen up. Upmarket audio supplier Skullcandy – what a great name - has just announced a lovely set of noise canceling headphones. The oddly named Skull Candy NC 635 Proletariat promise to tune out the noise of your kids, wife and manager at work when you just have to hear that latest Kylie pop nugget. They also incorporate the company’s LINK technology, a hands-free system that lets you take phone calls directly into the headphones.
Google Launches Paypal Killer June 30, 2006
READ MORE Home Entertainment , Laptops , Online , PC , Software , Wireless
So, what the hell happened to Gbuy? Apparently by the time it crawled through the Google marketing gauntlet, the new shopping service had a new name, Checkout. And it’s finally hit the US with rollout expected here in the coming months. So what is it?
Get TV On Your Old Mobile Phone June 30, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets , Mobile phones , Online , PDA , Peripherals , Smartphones , Software , TV
Haven’t got a 3G phone? Feeling like a peasant? No worries. Not everyone has a 3G handset and many people think that rules them out when it comes to getting TV on their mobile phone. But it’s not true. ROK TV has just announced support for 12 new Windows Mobile handsets, bringing the total supported to 37.
Memorex World Cup USB Drives June 30, 2006
READ MORE Portable Media
Memorex isn't one for rushing things, since they're just now getting around to releasing World Cup themed USB drives when the World Cup is halfway over! We're guessing it was a manufacturing problem, since releasing these things when two of the countries are already eliminated is kind of putting salt on fresh wounds.
The available countries are "England, Italy, Holland, Germany, France and Spain", with Spain and Holland already going home. Better hurry and order these now or else it may be too late!
INGERLAAAAAND!!!
Plextor PX-B900A Blu-ray Burner June 30, 2006
READ MORE Portable Media
Now that big names like Samsung and Sony have their Blu-ray burners out, it's time for the smaller guys like Plextor to jump in the party. Plextor's planning to ship their new Blu-ray burner in September, supporting 2x write and both 25GB and 50GB discs. It writes also standard and dual-sided DVDs along with CDs.
No price yet, but our guess is it'll be cheaper than Sony's. Finally, no more swapping burned porn DVDs in and out!
Plextor readies Blu-ray recorder [Reg Hardware]
Microsoft Ultimate Keyboard: Wireless, Rechargeable, Backlit June 30, 2006
READ MORE Peripherals
If Microsoft calls this the 'Ultimate Keyboard', does it mean they're getting out of the keyboard business after this? Or are future keyboards going to be named the 'Good But Not Quite The Best Keyboard' or 'The Penultimate Keyboard'?
Goofy names aside, this keyboard really does look pretty swanky. There's the matted black finish, wireless-ness, comfort-style split keys, backlight, rechargeability, proximity sensing for auto-lighting as a user approaches, and Bluetooth support. The release date is sometime late this year, and we can't wait. We're suckers for a sweet keyboard design.
Ultimate Keyboard [Microsoft]
Cleverest Laser Etched Powerbook Yet June 30, 2006
READ MORE Laptops
Etching the 'Son of Man' on the back of an Apple Powerbook? That's pure genius. If we were this smart we would have gotten more from the insurance pay-out from burning down the old Gawker HQ. Also, we wouldn't have just revealed that we committed insurance fraud. C'est la vie.
Dan's laser etched powerbook [Flickr]
The Sensor Clock: Please Keep Jokes to a Minimum June 30, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
Maybe in eastern Asia they're a little more comfortable with making consumer electronics in the shape of...well, body parts, which may explain how the Sensor Clock came about. Aside from looking sort of like "that," it does actually have some uses. The three "windows" (excuse the Google translation) show time, temperature and date. When it vibrates (...), the Sensor Clock lights up is a colorful display. It's £17, but the look on people's faces when you show them it may make it worth importing.
Product Page (in Japanese) [Rakuten]
Jump-Drunk: Shot Glass Checkers June 30, 2006
READ MORE Home Entertainment
As if we needed to figure out an excuse to quaff multiple shots, Shot Glass Checkers takes the time-tested game off the top of a cracker barrel and into the student sensibilities of the 00s.
Get jumped, drink a shot. Get crowned, and your opponent drinks two shots. Lose, and you're drinking all the shots left on the board, buster. A great way to experience the wonders of tequila, alcohol poisoning, or both.
Shot Glass Checkers [productdose]
iPod Nano Now iPod Sport Kit Compatible June 30, 2006
READ MORE Portable Media
Five weeks after the initial announcement of their partnership with Nike, Apple has released the required software update for its iPod nano that allows it to interact with Nike's Moire running shoe. Christened by both companies as the iPod Sport Kit, the iPod nano + Moire marriage lets runners keep tabs on various statistics, including length of run, distance of run and current speed thanks to a small sensor inserted inside the shoe.
Today's iPod software update includes iPod nano software version 1.2, which, in addition to support for the iPod Sport Kit, fixes several bugs as well as introduces a volume limit for the iPod Shuffle. ITunes was also updated, to version 6.5, which lets users sync their exercise data to nikeplus.com.
The iPod Sport Kit is expected to ship in July.
Get iPod Updater [Apple via iLounge]
Solar Tent June 30, 2006
READ MORE Gadgets
Get all "Inconvenient Truth" on your campmate's asses with this solar tent. It has a set of panels that capture and store the precious rays of the sun to power interior LED lighting or to recharge your batteries.
It comes in 4- and 6-person versions which cost £80 and £110 respectively. They seem to be only available in Canada, so get your hiking boots on.
Product Page [Canadian Tire]
COGNITRON: It Feels Your Pain June 30, 2006
READ MORE Robots
This whole release is pretty weird—lots of rhetorical questions and little meat—but Dr. Raja Chatila of the French Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique is working on a robot system called the COGNITRON designed specifically to help us with our every day tasks: "Research breaks down into four capacities required by a cognitive robot companion: perception and cognition of environment; learning by observation; decision making; communication and interaction with humans."
Sounds like some pretty standard stuff, but they're building their robots to work in homes and clutter environments and to let us know when the mail arrives, when the toast is burning, and when we need a quickie by palpitating its fleshy pink silicone bushing. Wait, what? That was part of my own research.
I Robot, your companion [Eurekalert]
Toshiba Shows Off New microSD Cards June 30, 2006
READ MORE Portable Media
These new Toshiba cards are 256MB, 512MB and 1GB and are primarily used for cellphones and portable audio players. The two lower capacity cards will be available in July, and the 1GB card in August.
You know, we'd prefer larger phones and music players if it meant that manufacturers could standardize on one format and pump more storage capacity into it. Is an SD card too big? How about miniSD? Did they really have to make microSD?
Toshiba announced its new microSD card family [slashphone]
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