Here’s a great design if you dare to be different. The Vintage iPod Tube Amp/Charger has the cool somewhat steampunk/Sci-Fi look of a mad scientists lair. According to the manufacturer, you ca enjoy your playlists with the “warmth and richness only a vintage tube amplifier can provide”. I don’t know about that, but I love the design.

Many musicians believe that the harmonic richness and the pure tone of tube-based circuitry can’t be beat. That’s their thinking with this device. Just plug your iPod into the Vintage Amplifier/Charger, sit back with the included remote, and browse through your playlists. They claim that audio details that have been lost in MP3 files through compression, dramatically re-emerge through the 25 watts RMS per channel, all-tube pre-amp system. It will cost you a hefty $800 to find out if they are right. No doubt some of us don’t mind missing out on the differences we can’t hear anyway, at that price.

The BodyGard Self-Powered Emergency Tool is like a high-tech Swiss army knife, without all the knives. Consider it the MacGuyver of emergency tools. You get 12 devices in one, along with a hand crank, so you can generate power when and where you need it, on the spot. Never worry again about your flashlight, MP3 player, cellphone or radio running out of juice.

It also comes with a flashing red light, a panic button for emergencies and a motion-activated security alarm that alerts anyone around you in the event of an emergency. They obviously took advantage of every square inch of the device. It even has an integrated storage compartment for pills, matches and other tiny items.

Most desktop chargers suffer from a case of severe ugliness. That’s where this one differs, with a brilliant endearing design by Sun Kyung Kim. It simulates the visual experience of ripples within a bird bath. Sun’s thinking is that humans like to have visual indicators for all things, mobile devices are no exception. Most chargers do not give you any visual indication of charge status, whereas this one will show you radiating rings of light that the indicate the charge status. To top it off, the thirsty birds on the edge glow once the rings of light reach them.

No word yet on when it might be available or pricing, assuming that it ever gets manufactured.

The WildCharge wireless charging pad that we heard about back in June is finally available for purchase. The charge pad uses a custom induction strip attachment that hooks on to your phone (or potentially other devices) and lets you charge it wirelessly by simply setting the device on the WildCharge charge pad.

The idea is great and was met with a lot of enthusiasm from the gadget community when announced, but its taken a while to get here. Shortly after the initial launch announcement of July 7, the company came out with news of pre-orders and then some pricing and a delay.

Gomadic Corporation released this week a device which lets you cleanly charge up to four portable devices at the same time. The Gomadic QuadCharge Universal Charging Station is priced at around $70.

The Gomadic QuadCharge Universal Charging Station lets one charge PDAs, cell phones, smart phones, Mp3 players, video/media players, portable video games and GPS receivers through the use of interchangeable adapter tips which lock into cables in the station. It uses one wall outlet connection to charge all of your devices.

The Belkin TuneBase gets a face lift with some welcomed improvements to this FM Transmitter. With ClearScan technology, users won’t have to wait for a stop light to adjust the station for clearer reception, instead the technology automagically finds the clearest station for you.

The button interface has been replaced with an LCD screen displaying the current station. A new Pro mode for improved audio quality and volume boost is integral, and an indicator informs the user when the mode is active.

It’s always refreshing to see an iPod accessory that actually looks useful; case in point: the Boblbee solar-powered iPod case. The Boblbee case completely encloses your iPod protecting it in a waterproof, shockproof cocoon of safeness. The case also acts as a charger drawing its electricity from the sun for you outdoor enthusiasts, miles away from any power outlets.

It’s not the most streamlined looking case and will definitely add some bulk to your MP3 player, but it will also potentially give you continuous, uninterrupted listening time outdoors, sun permitting. According to the company, the Boblbee can charge an iPod in around 8-10 hours when the solar panel on it’s back is exposed to the sun. If your player can last through the dark hours then the music would never stop. The device also has two 3.5mm headphone jacks to allow …

Check out this super tiny, simple adapter for charging the iPod Shuffle. Having extra-small features that may make the Shuffle itself jealous the Monster iSlimCharger USB charger consists of just one piece with no cables.

One end has a standard 3.5mm headphone hack and the other a standard USB connection. By simply connecting it to the only port available on the shuffle and then plugging it into your USB port you can charge up your shuffle on the go.

Monster has this little Shuffle USB adapter priced right at only $14.95 so your only worry will be losing the little guy in your pocket.

Credit: Crave

If you are looking for accessories to protect your iPhone from scratches, accidental drops and related wear and tear then perhaps one of the new items from Macally is up your alley.

The company has now released several handy iPhone friendly products to help you out and at decent enough prices. The mCase and mSleeve ($19.99) offer two slightly different ways to protect the corners and sides of your iPhone while allowing for ease of accessibility while the mPouch ($19.99, pictured) transforms into two position stand to keep your iPhone upright and always facing you.

With the mClip and mClip-X ($19.99) you can fasten your iPhone to a belt or other item and then twist it in either vertical or horizontal positions. The two Clips can also be used as stands for your phone too so there’s no more need to prop it up against …

Nyko has a new charging accessory that can help prolong your game play with the Nintendo Wii game console. The Charge Station can simultaneously charge two Wii Remotes by simply resting them in the dual charging docks.

The package comes with two rechargeable NiMH batteries that provide up to 25 hours of continuous use, each. Each of the rechargeable batteries for the Wii Remote also have a rubberized coating as Nyko’s way of helping players keep a better grip on their controllers.

Even though this charging station will charge up both batteries at the same time it takes a big eight hours for them to take on a full charge, which seems a little long to us. Of course if you do end up draining both of them after 25 hours of continuous Wii Sports action you’re probably due for at least an eight …

July 7th came and went and we were starting to wonder if WildCharge was going to start taking orders as we had expected, until this we checked out their site this morning. The website underwent some changes and it appears that ordering of the much anticipated wireless charging pad is going to be delayed by a couple weeks. Once the online store is enabled the WildCharge charger will be available only through the company website and will ship “shortly” after ordering.

There were also some more details available from the website about exactly how the wireless charger will work, and with what devices. The Motorola RAZR will be the first product that WildCharge will make an adapter for to allow wireless charging. This requires you to remove the existing back cover of the RAZR and replace it with the WildCharge …

First class passengers often are fortunate enough to have an outlet in-flight while the rest of us have to scramble at the terminal looking behind chairs for an open outlet to charge our gadgets between flights. Inflight Power has a charger cable that may even things out a bit.

The Inflight USB Power Unit plugs into the headphone jack available in most coach seats, (now that most don’t use the two little “sound holes” any longer) and makes that electricity available through USB ports on the device. I’m not sure exactly how much juice can come out of the headphone jack, but it can’t be a whole lot. Either way, you can then plug any USB powered gadget into the Inflight Power adapter to charge it up on the go, making those first class seats seem just that much less special.

The Inflight …

Brando has a new portable solar powered charger in their catalog that appears to be a fairly handy device. It measures only 137mm long and weighs a mere 240 grams which makes for a nice and compact fold-out package.

The charger uses solar power to charge up an internal battery that then can be used to power or charge your gadgets. It has a number of adapters from the standard USB output port to fit different types of gadgets, but what’s probably most notable is the fact that you can vary the output voltage to four different settings from 4.5V to 9V to comply with your particular devices circuitry.

If you’re stuck in a place without sun you can also charge the battery up from a standard AC outlet and some LED light indicators show the charge status of the internal battery when …

Ever since we’ve learned that wireless charging for consumers is going to be reality with the WildCharge charger, we’ve been impatiently waiting for the July 7th date to be able to order our own. Today it appears that the WildCharge home page has changed slightly, but just enough to communicate that they will be ready to begin taking pre-orders for their wireless charging pad. No word yet on exact price but we’re still with the understanding that it will be “competitive”.

Too many gadgets and too few sockets. Wait a minute, what am I saying? I guess you can really never have too many gadgets, but when you’re out traveling this summer you can avoid having to take turns charging stuff up with this 3-in-1 car adapter from Brando. It turns a single cigarette lighter adapter into 3, plus it adds a single USB port to charge up some other accessory that you don’t have a car adapter for, all for $20.