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Sony's last cassette-blastin' boom box is precisely how Ruff Ryders roll('d)
Sony may not shed a tear for the 3.5-inch floppy disk when it meets its maker in March, but you'd better believe the company's crafted a retirement plan for the format that propelled it to fame: the compact cassette. To be fair, the CFD-A110 CD / cassette boom box above isn't actually a new product -- it's a relabeled CFD-A100TV from 2003 minus the nigh-obsolete analog TV band -- but if you're rocking magnetic mix tapes we're guessing you'll welcome this blast from the past. For your projected ¥20,000 (about $215) you'll get a pair of full-range speakers, 14 AM/FM presets, an external microphone port for karaoke and a remote when it launches in Japan this June 21st. What that won't buy you, however, is an obnoxiously large gilded chain, a beefed up left shoulder for carrying it around, and a time machine needed to actually fit in while using this. Ya heard?
Apple //e running source code loaded from an iPad
Stick with us here -- this is complicated but cool. So, Stewart Smith happened to see online that the Panic Software guys had an old Apple IIe (sorry, //e) sitting around their office, and he emailed to ask them if they could possibly use it to run an old text animation that he'd created for a song a while back. Being the considerate guys that they are, they agreed. There was a problem, though: Stewart's code was meant to be played on the old cassette deck source, and they didn't have one. "What did we have?" they ask, and the answer is, "an iPad." You can see the results in video over on their site, and they are magical. There are a couple of amazing things here: one, that the old source code can be "read" just as easily coming out of the iPad's audio port as it was when coming out of cassette tapes back in the day, and two, that the //e runs it so well. Let's also remember that we're watching it happen across the Internet in full audio and video quality, possibly even on an iPad itself. For all of the new and shiny that Apple has brought us recently, you almost forget how much history is building here, and it's somewhat surprising that a connection can be made between then and now so easily and elegantly.
Retro Cassette Stereo Mini Speaker gives a (tinny) voice to iPods
Those poor, poor speakerless iPod Nanos, Minis and the like -- how long have they had to suffer without a set of ultra-awesome speakers to give life to their music? Sure, there've been plenty of pretenders for the crown, but nothing quite as elaborately detailed as this Retro Cassette Stereo Mini Speaker. You read that right folks, stereo -- that means two, count 'em, two sweetly ornate sources of utterly unimpressive sound. Has the iPhone 3GS got an app for that? 'Course not. Read link details the full features, such as blister packaging (always good to know), and provides you with the means to acquire one in exchange for $32. Most righteous, no? [Via Gear Diary]
Maxell launches flash storage line
Could this mean the death of the Cassingle?
iri5 releases the ghost from the cassette machine
Over the last few months, artist iri5 has been compiling a collection of work on Flickr under the heading, "Ghost in the Machine." The pieces start with old cassette tapes and end in awesome. To quote the artist: The idea comes from a philosopher's (Ryle) description of how your spirit lives in your body. I imagine we are all, like cassettes, thoughts wrapped up in awkward packaging. Indeed. And they don't come much more awkwardly packaged than The Cure's Robert Smith immortalized above. Check out a close-up of his tussled chromium-dioxide hair after the break and be sure to hit the read link for iri5's full collection. The Jimi Hendrix experience alone is worth it.[Via GearDiary, thanks schillmoeller]
VHS casette hacked into USB drive? Yes, please
Don't bother asking questions, just admit to yourself that you really might want one (if not several) of these. Using very few materials, you can make yourself a USB storage device which looks just like a VHS tape with a giant wire sticking out of it! It's not a terribly complicated affair -- connecting the USB cable to a thumb drive inside the tape, some simple circuit board wiring -- and presto! If you're willing to spend three or four hours and around $10-15 a pop, you could finally make use of your lonely, disused 227 collection. Check out an informative, educational video of the process after the break.
For us 80s kids: Get a cassette case for your iPod nano
Cult of Mac turned me on to an awesome iPod nano case manufactured by Contexture Design in Vancouver, BC: it's made from a recycled cassette tape. Radical. But move fast -- there are only about a dozen left of these one-of-a-kind cases, which fit first- and second-generation iPod nano models. Each case is C$45 (≈US$38) with C$4 shipping. What better accessory for your feathered hair, fringed leather jacket and roller skates when you go all Xanadu for Halloween? [Via Cult of Mac.]
Vintage cassette tape holds Apple I BASIC, killer modem tune
Fair warning: this here post is nerdier than usual, and those who begin to feel nauseous at the mere mention of data-bending may want to refrain from continuing on. For you brave, hardened souls that are following through, feast your eyes on the "first piece of software ever sold by Apple." The Apple I BASIC cassette wasn't even included with all of the 200 Apple Is produced eons ago, but a few engineering souls have managed to extract the data and create an MP3 of the wave structure. Not surprisingly, the tone resembles that of a 1200 Baud connection, and if we should say so ourselves, would make for a wicked ringtone. Believe us, it gets even weirder in the read link, but you'll have to determine whether venturing down is something your brain can handle.[Via BoingBoing]
Hand crafted cassette tape lamp turns old tech into fresh lighting
Remember that hundred pack of blank cassettes you bought back in '93 when they hit 90-percent off? Man, those were the days. Unfortunately, you only got around to making three or four mix tapes, leaving you with quite a few unused hunks of junk cluttering up the closet. If you've managed to hang onto 'em just knowing a worthwhile use was just around the bend, congratulations. The ingenious cats over at Transparent House have glued an assortment of old tapes together and inserted neon lights within to keep things cool and create a rather impressive source of lighting. Oh, and if you can't figure this one out sans a how-to guide, maybe DIY work just isn't your bag.[Via technabob]
BTO's PlusDeck EX could save your marriage
Nothing sets an aging geek's pulse to pounding like the marriage of old and new with lots of buttons and a big ol' knob. Korea's BTO knows this, and offers up their PlusDeck EX as followup to their PlusDeck 2. They share the ability to convert your digital MP3s to cassette tape (and visa versa) while tossing in some crazy-luxurious 7.1ch surround, LCD control, 3.5-mm and RCA inputs (among others), AM/FM tuner and remote on top of the USB interface. Announced a few weeks ago, shipping now in Korea for ???319,000 or about $340. Yeah, we know, but just think of the points you'll score from your gen-x or boomer-spouse when you present them with a mix-tape, 21st century style. Crazy... like a fox.[via Akihabara News]
Ion Audio set to introduce TAPE2PC USB tape deck
It looks like Ion Audio is leaving no old school audio format behind, with the company now following up its USB turntables with its TAPE2PC USB tape deck. As the name suggests, the device will let you dust off your collection of Huey Lewis and the News cassettes and enjoy 'em in spruced up digital form. What's more, those looking to revive the art of the mix tape can use to system to make as many copies as they like, with settings available for both metal and CrO2 type tapes. According to Digital Lifestyles, UK retailer Firebox will be offering the device for "just under £100" (or $204) sometime before the end of the year, although we presume it'll also be available elsewhere. Still no word on a USB 8-track deck though.[Thanks, Simon]
