Archive for October, 2009

Kempler & Strauss intro Billionair 6 WinMo phone

Posted in Mobile Phones by Conner Flynn on October 6th, 2009

Kempler & Strauss intro Billionair 6 WinMo phoneKempler & Strauss have been busy. The other day they unveiled a small and cool watchphone. Now they’ve announced the their newest Windows Mobile handset, called the touchscreen Billionair 6.

This 3G HSPA handset features a 624MHz ARM processor, GPS and WiFi, and has a micro SD slot for up to 4GB of storage, along with a 3 megapixel camera. Dubbed the B6, it runs a custom interface over Windows Mobile and even sports an accelerometer. The B6 is $260 and it’s available right now.

Sanyo eneloop batteries are pre-charged using clean energy

Posted in Batteries by Conner Flynn on October 6th, 2009

Sanyo eneloop batteries are pre-charged using clean energySanyo’s line of Eneloop batteries are as green a battery as you will find and they have some more improvements to make them even more Earth friendly. These newly upgraded Eneloops can be recharged around 1,500 times, which is said to be a new record for the industry.

The batteries come pre-charged from the factory using clean energy from renewable solar power. If we had to guess, we would say that the other big names in batteries are watching very closely indeed.

Kohjinsha Netbook concept with dual 10.1-inch screens

Posted in Netbook by Conner Flynn on October 6th, 2009

Kohjinsha Netbook concept with dual 10.1-inch screensDual-screen notebooks are still popping up and the latest is Kohjinsha’s dual 10.1-inch screen netbook prototype, which was spotted at the CEATEC show in Japan. Just like the Lenovo W700, which started it all, one screen slides behind the other so you can use one or both.

Of course this makes it just a bit thicker than your average netbook. Under the hood you’ll find Windows 7, a 1.6GHz AMD Athlon Neo MV-40 processor, maximum 4GB RAM, and a 160GB hard disk.

Cassette Tape Measure for 80s DIY projects

Posted in Tools by Conner Flynn on October 5th, 2009

Cassette Tape Measure for 80s DIY projectsThis Cassette Tape Measure is pure 80s on the outside and pure measuring tape on the inside. It’s a product that’s funny and useful at the same time. How can you not buy one for $8? It’s labeled “Professional Sound”, while it very unprofessionally exclaims, “Pull me!”. Seems rude.

You can either buy this for $8 or try to make your own. Just make sure that if you do make your own, that you actually put a measuring tape inside. I made one once and forgot to do exactly that. The result was measurements like 1/4 of Night Ranger’s Sister Christian intro or 1/16 of Don’t fear the Reaper. And the tape took forever to wind back inside too.

Xbox 360 Wireless N Adapter coming November 3rd, $100

Posted in Xbox 360 by Conner Flynn on October 5th, 2009

Xbox 360 Wireless N Adapter coming November 3rd, $100Good news and bad news. The good news is that the Xbox 360 Wireless N Adapter will be available on November 3rd. The bad news is that it will cost you $100 to get your Xbox 360 online using it.

Yep, looks like that $100 rumored price we heard about awhile back is right on target, according to GameStop. I don’t think they are going to sell very many at that price. Is this Microsoft trying to offset the recent price drop of the console itself?

Foodle is a fork, knife and spoon that lets you doodle

Posted in Concepts by Conner Flynn on October 5th, 2009

Foodle is a fork, knife and spoon that lets you doodleKids love to doodle. And they love to do all kinds of things at the table rather than eating the meal in front of them. Well, the Foodle should have them covered at the dinner table. It’s a fork spoon and knife that they can eat with using one end and a colored pencil on the other.

It lets kids eat and doodle on placemats simultaneously. How much do you want to bet that kids confuse which end is which and continually stab themselves? Foodle is just a concept for now, thank god. Otherwise there would be a lot of kids with eye patches.

Panasonic MW-10 Media player

Posted in Panasonic by Conner Flynn on October 5th, 2009

Panasonic MW-10 Media playerThe name makes it sound like it’s small enough for your pocket, but actually this media player from Panasonic Japan features a 9 inch screen with a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels, along with a CD player, FM radio, an iPod dock and 4GB of internal memory. Not exactly portable.

The device also has a SD card slot and USB port for all of your audio and image files that are elsewhere. From the built in amplifier you can expect an output of 5W × 2ch.

Microsoft looks to build a better mouse

Posted in Microsoft by Shane McGlaun on October 5th, 2009

msmouse1Microsoft is big in the R&D realm for all sorts of things from hardware to software. In fact, the company has the largest R&D budget in the world at over $9 billion according to some reports. Microsoft makes all sorts of computer mice and the firm has unveiled five prototype mice that combine new input methods with tried and true form factors.

The prototype mice were debuted at the UIST conference and combine the typical mouse with multi-touch technology. Microsoft thinks that the new mice can set a new standard for interaction. One of the most interesting is the FTIR Mouse that uses a camera to sense where the user is touching the clear surface and react to the input.

46 million 3DTVs will ship by 2013

Posted in Home Theater by Shane McGlaun on October 5th, 2009

panasonic-3d-plasma-540x404There have been more 3D films hit the theater this summer than I can ever remember seeing before. It wasn’t only animated films in 3D either; there were some live action films. I for one am glad to see 3D going so much more mainstream and I can’t wait to get 3D content in my living room. According to a new report from GigaOM Pro, 3DTV shipments are set to boom over the next few years.

The research firm estimates that between now and 2013 there will be 46 million 3DTVs shipped. Big supporters of the 3DTV format will include Sony and Panasonic who will both look to 3DTV to boost slowing sales.

Netgear unveils Rangemax Wireless-N Gigabit Router with USB

Posted in Netgear by Shane McGlaun on October 5th, 2009

netgearrangemax-sbIt used to be that the wireless router only did one thing and threw in a few wired ports for computers close to the hub. Today the wireless router is becoming a converged device that serves multiple purposes. Netgear has announced a new router called the Rangemax Wireless-N Gigabit Router with USB model number WNR3500L.

The router has gigabit ports on it for fast wired connections and has a single USB port on it. The USB port will allow you to share USB peripherals with the wired and wireless network including hard drives and other devices.

Wii Fit Plus officially available

Posted in Nintendo by Shane McGlaun on October 5th, 2009

wiifitplus-sbThe original Wii Fit was a huge seller for Nintendo with the game topping chart lists and selling as many copies as Nintendo could ship. Since Wii Fit launched it has sold almost 8 million copies in the US alone. Sunday marked the official launch of the new Wii Fit Plus.

The new game comes in two bundles, one has the game software and the balance board and the other is the software alone for users who purchased the original Wii Fit. Nintendo also says that the game will import user data from the original Wii Fit to the new one as well.

Gateway’s EC18T tablet with Windows 7

Posted in Notebooks by Conner Flynn on October 5th, 2009

Gateway's EC18T tablet with Windows 7Gateway’s new EC18T tablet laptop is one sexy beast. It’s like the Ferrari of laptops. It boasts an 11.6-inch touchscreen that rotates and folds back onto the keyboard, keeping the whole thing slim and sleek.

Inside it’s packing an Intel Core 2 Duo processor, up to 4GB of RAM, and a Mobile Intel GS45 Express graphics chipset, with Windows 7 Home Premium or Basic running the show. That’s about all we know at the moment. Nothing yet on pricing or availability, but we’ll keep you posted.

Apple not happy with new Woolworths logo

Posted in Apple by Conner Flynn on October 5th, 2009

Apple not happy with new Woolworths logoAttorneys for Apple have initiated a legal response against the largest supermarket chain in Australia. At issue is a logo that Apple says is too similar to its own trademark. You can judge for yourself, but I think Apple is way out of line on this one.

It all began when Woolworth’s Supermarkets announced in August 2008 that it would refresh its corporate branding strategy with a new logo. The Australian company hasn’t mentioned apples at all in relation to the new logo. They claim that the stylized ‘W’ has been paired with “an abstract leaf symbol” to represent fresh food. But it didn’t take long for others to note its similarity to an actual apple.

Kempler unveils W PhoneWatch

Posted in Watches by Conner Flynn on October 5th, 2009

Kempler unveils W PhoneWatchKempler & Strauss has just unveiled the W PhoneWatch, which looks like a great watch/phone. It’s similar to the LG GD910 but smaller. Despite the small size, no stylus is needed for the touchscreen interface. What you get is a full media phone with 4GB of storage and a microSD card slot and it will play videos and music.

But why stop there? It can also use its camera for video recording. Bundled with the W PhoneWatch is a matching Bluetooth headset called the Communicator. The phone is a quad-band GSM device and should work on AT&T and T-Mobile for voice. They don’t mention EDGE or 3G for data.

Blue Blood Xbox 360 Controller looks pretty cool

Posted in Xbox 360 by Conner Flynn on October 5th, 2009

Blue Blood Xbox 360 Controller looks pretty coolYou don’t see a blue Xbox 360 controller everyday, now do ya? And surprisingly, it looks pretty sweet in that color. For just $30 you can get this Blue Blood Xbox 360 controller kit from XCM, which includes a blue shell and D-pad with some glowing LED buttons.

It’s a beautiful thing in electric blue. If nothing else, it should impress your friends, who don’t have one. The only problem is that now it won’t match your Xbox 360′s color. Oh well, I think I could live with that.