If you're going to hold something in your hand for over 8 hours a day and have it part of your desk landscape, it should at least be nice too look at—and if you're lucky, functional, too. We're talking about the humble computer mouse; specifically, the new Microsoft optical mouse designed by Philippe Starck, which we had a chance to take for a test drive.
Read MoreIt's not exactly the iSight, but we're feeling guilty about the fact that we hardly ever cover webcams so we thought we'd drop a mention of the QuickCam Communicate, a relatively inexpensive new webcam from Logitech that's designed to be clipped onto an LCD monitor or laptop screen.
Read MoreMaybe it's the wannabe evil supervillain in us, but we're always happy to see lasers being added to gadgets, and the forums over on 3dgpu.com have a good rundown of new Logitech Mx1000 Laser Mouse. Why is a laser mouse better than a regular optical mouse? Supposedly it offers up to 20 times more sensitivity to surface details, which means better tracking for designers and gamers (and can supposedly even be used on a mirror, something that flummoxes an optical mouse). We'll pick one up soon, try it, take it apart and report back if there's anything besides mousing you can do with the laser. [Thanks, Bill]
Read MoreOk, there's at least one thing different about the HP iPod: you can cover it with customized stickers (actually, you could probably use those stickers with the regular Apple iPod, too). They're offering one free when you buy an HP iPod, with the first ones available promoting different artists, including Ashlee Simpson, The Cure, Gwen Stefani, Keane, Lloyd Banks, Sting, the Who, the Hives, Toby Keith, and Vanessa Carlton. [Thanks, Wirobro] UPDATE: They're calling it "Printable Tattoos" and if you don't happen to want Ashlee Simpson on your iPod (what's wrong with you?) you can buy the special die-cut paper and print out your own iPod covers with just about anything you want on 'em.
Read MoreJapanese firm Persol has a neat tool for the camgirl on the go, er, we mean, the road warrior telecommuter; a 300,000-pixel webcam and headset mike with a carrying case that fits them and the cables. Should sell for about ¥5,000 ($45 US), which is still a lot considering how big of a nerd you'll look and feel when you bust this out. [Via Ascii24]
Read MoreEarJams snap onto your existing iPod Earbuds (Ear jam, ewww) and in general you can expect more volume, more bass and depending on your ears they might be more comfy. We tried the "beta" versions, and we liked them. It's usually not a good idea to jam something "beta" in ones ears, but that's what we're willing to do for you. For $19.99 it's a good way to upgrade your headphones. That said, if you're looking for the best headphones, check out our "Ask Engdaget" on that very subject.
Read MoreWe can only see this system benefitting a very intense highly demanding job, like say the host of Cheaters (though this won't stop him from getting stabbed again) or perhaps an inner city police department (which is what it's really made for). Vendoma's Mobile Digital Recording device is a high-octane system which is designed for anti-shock and to resist rugged vibrations. The cop cars are fully WiFi'd during all manners of pursuit, receiving crucial arrest information, while the user's wearable camera-button records the scene and transmits the video and audio to DVR. The DVR can be seen by any of the networked vehicles or from another networked location. When the vehicle gets to the main station the info is uploaded to a central site for storage. Not bad for the boys in blue, but somewhat suspicious for non-official use.
Read MoreThe true gadget geek on a diet won't settle for keeping track of their progress with anything less than this USB WeightSensor from Phidgets. It's a scale that can record your weight to your PC and then do just about anything you like with the data (assuming you or somebody else can write a script for it), like automatically email it to your doctor or post it to your weblog (or something else equally embarrassing).
Read MoreThey've finally figured out that if you're going to have a USB-powered fan on your desk it may as well double as a Flash memory card reader (there's also a version that doubles as USB 2.0 hub).
Read MoreIt's not like it's ever come up before, but we suppose these bendable, twistable USB adapters could come in handy someday. They bend 90 degrees up or down and rotate up to 270 degrees so you can get at those long-forgotten USB ports on the back of your desktop (you know, the ones so covered in dust by now that they're practically unfindable). You get both a regular and mini adapter in the package, though they managed not to say whether they're USB 1.1 or 2.0, which does sorta make a difference. [thanks to all the comments we have arrived at the conclusion that it does not, in fact make a difference]
Read MoreIf all the flash drives out there just don't cut it for you, I/OMagic's GigaBank 2.2 may be your worth looking at for your next upgrade. As one might suspect, this little bugger holds 2.2GB in a 2" x 0.5" x 2.5" case, with a folding USB 2.0 plug. All this for the not too shabby price of $190. All that is fine and dandy but we're just kind of confused about the intended user. It's kinda small if you're dealing with huge graphics and video files or attempting to back up your hard drive (as the press release bizarrely recommends) and way too big to waste on transporting your spreadsheets and pics of the kids from that last swim meet.
Read MoreDidn't take them long after their iPod inMotion imMini to catch up with the 4G iPod; apparently Altec Lansing just released the inMotion iM3 for your latest version of the iPod. We were a little confused because they stated it's "The ultimate portable audio system for the iPod mini!", but make no mistake about it, that's a 4G iPod sitting pretty right there. It also serves as a docking station and has the 24-hour/4 AA battery playback, auto shutdown, a second input jack, and a remote control. Still pretty steep at $180 US, but at least it's right purdy. [Thanks Peter]
Read MoreGetting us one more baby step closer to these things actually appearing in proper PDAs and cellphones, Garmin says that they're putting Cornice's 1-inch 2GB mini hard drives into their StreetPilot 2620 and 2660 GPS navigation handhelds so that you'll have plenty of space for all the maps and location data you could possibly want to load onto them.
Read MoreYamaha's latest "home keyboard" models (if you were going to diss on them you'd definitely be calling them organs rather than synthesizers) come with the ability to hook up to a DSL modem and download new songs to pick out on said keyboard, karaoke tunes with lyrics to sing along to, or just muzak. We'd just love it if you invited us over to your house and you ineptly picked out a couple of songs for us, then set it to muzak mode to provide us with some relaxing background tunes. So please, get one as soon as possible. There are a just a few minor things that concern us, such as why it needs a DSL connection to download MIDI files with some text attached, or why it costs two hundred and twenty fricking thousand yen, for example. For that sort of money, you could rig up a bunch of Angelshare wine coolers filled with Taittinger into a twenty-one-gun salute and still have enough change to post bail when the Feds caught you for unlawfully having fun (maybe). [Via Japan.CNET.com]
Read MoreWe'll cop to making a few visits to the new Kid Robot store in SoHo (just to browse, we swear), but now that we've spotted these speakers we might have to stay away until they sell out (as you'd expect, each line only comes in an extremely limited edition). [Thanks, Regine]
Read MoreAwhile back we showed you how to boost the range of your iTrip mini with a simple hack, but if you'd like to see a "proof of concept" with a lot more power, binaryelysium.com has a great how-to. Keep in mind, use of the finished device is prohibited, at least in the US and Canada.
Read MoreOn the off chance you're still physically sending messages to other people through the mail, Casio has a new version of their postcard printer coming out next month. The PCP60 can use photos directly from a digital camera or memory card and has 188 different postcard templates to choose from. [Via I4U]
Read MoreMaking one of the fastest leaps in numbering nomenclature in hardware history, Logitech is preparing us for the MX1000 laser mouse. Didn't they just release the MX500 last year? That must mean they think it's a pretty good product. You read that right, it's a laser mouse, not an optical mouse. Apparently, the device uses a laser to get up to 20 times the tracking of your standard optical mouse. Also, included is one of those tilt-wheels that Microsoft is trying to force upon us. This preview is short, but if you want some sexy pics of some serious hardware, click click click...
Read MoreNew from PhoneLabs, a little something called the Dock-N-Talk that let's you dock your cellphone and use it with a regular corded or cordless landline phone. Seems sorta pointless, except that if you live in a house or apartment with crappy reception you can leave the phone docked wherever you get the strongest signal and still make cellphone calls anywhere in your home (and they actually make this point twice in the list of "Features & Benefits"). There's even an optional Bluetooth module if you don't want to have to deal with cables. [Via Blueserker]
Read MoreSony just intro'd a new digital printer called the PictureStation DPP-FP30 which ditches the inkjet thing altogether and uses a process called dye sublimation that basically heats the ink up, vaporizing it so that it sort of saturates the photo paper and you don't get any space between pixels like you do with an average inkjet printer. Most professional digital photo labs use dye sublimation printers so the big deal here is that they're finally starting to get affordable enough for home use (Olympus has a cheap dye sublimation printer out also).
Read MoreWe're always on the prowl for a good laptop bag that's not the boring-ass-free-one-that-came-with-a-Dell. So while out at SIGGRAPH we stepped out for a bit of shopping and we found a pretty slick bag in a record store—but one that it's not meant for laptops. The Technics Deck bag, designed to hold up to 30 records, fits our 15-inch PowerBook, as well as all the accessories we carry around, perfectly. You can most likely find them at your local DJ/record store, but they're around online too.
Read MoreActually, you can. NEC a 16x dual-layer DVD burner, of their own out. Not as nice as that Pioneer we just mentioned, but the ND3500A can burn DVD+RW, DVD+R, DVD-R discs rather quickly, with 1 hour taking less than 4 minutes, as well as 48x CD burning. The kicker is the use of NEC's Active OPC (optimized power control) software, which determines what the best laser power is for each media and adjusts it in real-time. It comes in beige, black and silver (how boring), with no word on price. P.S. - And in case that isn't enough for you, Iomagic has a new dual-format 16x DVD burner on the way, too.
Read MoreBecause you really want to get your toddler used to staring at a screen and plinking away at plastic keys from as early an age as possible. P.S. - You'd think they'd go to a little more trouble than something you have to strap onto a regular keyboard. [Via TRFJ]
Read MoreOk, so it's not quite as glamorous as some of the other stuff we've got lying around here but, hey, the Disc Hub caught our eye anyway. It's a plastic rack with neoprene-lined slots for holding those discs you never seem to put away, instead of stacking them haphazardly all over your living room, thus saving them from the ravages of spilled soda (Netflix likes them enough to give them away for free with the opening of a new account). The Hub holds eleven discs, each slightly off-center so you can get to them easily, and comes in four colors, including "Storm Trooper," which, while a blatant marketing ploy, still kinda gets us.
Read MoreSure, you'll pay about six or seven times more than you need to for this silver-plated 64MB USB Flash memory drive than you would for a regular, non-precious metals one. But at this point it's not really about that, is it? [Via bookofjoe]
Read MorePlextor's new ConvertX PX-M402U real-time digital video converter makes all the right moves, encoding video from any analog source not only into MPEG-1 and MPEG-2, but also into everybody's new favorite video format, DivX MPEG-4 (hello, Internet piracy!). We won't even pretend that most people are going to be using this thing to import video from a camcorder (we've all gone DV, right?), so fortunately the ConvertX PX-M402U also works perfectly well with TVs, DVD players, (and perhaps most importantly if you want to digitize all those old taped episodes of 120 Minutes you have lying around) VCRs. [Via I4U]
Read MoreAbout a zillion years later than it should have been, palmOne has finally come out with a WiFi SD expansion card that works with their handhelds. The problem is that (just as everybody expected) it only works with the Zire 72 (pictured at right) and the Tungsten T3, everyone else is out of luck. PC World tried one out with a Zire 72 and says it worked great, as well it should given how long palmOne must have been "testing" this thing. Should be in stores early next month with a retail price of $129.
Read MoreWe'd like to preserve our fantasy that bikers are far too rough and tough to even own something as dainty as a PC, but we're guessing there has got to be at least one super geeky member of the Hell's Angels who'd use the Road Tech HA90, a chrome-plated, handlebar-mounted MP3 player from Harley-Davidson. It's got big buttons that you can press even while wearing gloves and a large LCD display, but uses SD memory cards for storage (it comes with a 64MB one), so at most you can fit a gig in there. But remember, it's illegal to ride your chopper and listen to music in some states, don't get caught using it unless you're ready to take a chain to a cop's kneecap or something. [Thanks, Peaboy]
Read MoreA pair of new portable hard drives: the supersmall Cigar HD20 from Soyo (pictured at right), a 20GB model that supports USB 2.0 and is just 4.02 x 2.36 x 0.43 inches in size; and from CMS Products, a new 100GB version of the ABSplus, which is mainly meant as a backup drive for Mac users. Read - Soyo Cigar HD20 Read - 100GB ABSplus
Read MoreIf you can't quite afford that any of those Gucci or Louis Vuitton or Prada iPod cases we just mentioned, you may want to get something a little more on the low-end of the spectrum. Like the superCase, which as far as we can tell mainly consists of a dirty white sock and some cellophane. Not that it won't protect your iPod any better or worse than anything else, but it will give you tons of hipster cred with your burnout friends who already think you're sellout for buying an iPod in the first place. Currently on sale on eBay with an opening bid of $35.00. [Via Gadgetopia]
Read MoreIf you're the type to carry an iPod (and not, say, a Rio) we dare say you may be the type who's not afraid of the fashiony side of their personality—and who are we to judge you for your Prada, Miu Miu, or Gucci? We'll cop to totally being suckers for a fine label, but probably not quite enough to justify dropping a hundred bucks on any of these upper-deck cases for the iPod, at least not yet. Still, we'd be more than happy to give you some recommendations. Stay away from the Coach, rock the Paul Smith for next spring, the Dior and Louis V would be good for this winter, and by all means, if you must buy the Kate Spade, do it in Chinatown for $5. Just don't go overboard and get one of those Fendis that carry 40 iPods, okay? You're not Karl Lagerfeld. [Via Verbose Coma]
Read MoreYou know how you have all those walls in your apartment, but none of them are large enough, smooth enough, or white enough to use as a projector screen? Well there are these new smart projectors that use camera feedback and special projection techniques to automatically calibrate themselves to look good on any surface, no matter how rough. Sure, you're not going to get HDTV quality images (though the images do look fairly good) but you'll be able to project cute cartoons on pretty much anything, including those sinfully ugly curtains you keep meaning to replace, which is certainly a step forward. Just be careful watching your "home movies" on those street-facing windows.
Read MoreProbably not something you'll want to mess with if you haven't hacked your TiVo already, but Todd over at DisneyCorner.com modded his TiVo box to add an LCD screen that could display the channel, name of the show he was watching, how much disk space had been used, etc. You'd think after such a manly display of technical prowess he'd pick something other than the Westminster Kennel Club dog show to have playing on the TiVo when he took a pic of the final results. Doesn't he keep Invasion U.S.A. archived on his TiVo at all times like we do? [Thanks, Jason]
Read MoreKids are way too wired up these days to be tricked into playing with some forty-year-old piece of plastic with a screen made out aluminum powder and plastic beads, which is why the Etch A Sketch has been reborn as the ETO, a cheap video game-type toy that you hook up to your TV. You can still draw stuff with it, but there's also a maze game-building feature and some sort of "art assembly" area. It's still red and it's still plastic, but it's not clear whether shaking this thing erases all of your work or not.
Read MoreFor 250 bucks you'd probably just be better off buying any one of those tiny new hard drive MP3 players out there that can double as a mass storage device (i.e. most of them), but if space is at such a premium that even the iPod mini isn't quite mini enough, Verbatim is coming out with the Store 'n Go, a new 2.1GB portable USB drive that's roughly the size of a business card. Except for the part about how the iPod mini is also around the size of business card, you're gold.
Read MoreWhile the inMotion imMinis are certainly not the first iPod-centric speakers, they are the first we know of designed specifically for the iPod Mini. They hit you up with 24-hours playback on four AAs, fold-down size of 7 x 4.4 x 1-inches, and a dock, too. Not too shabby for $130 US, but does this mean Ms and Ns are the new X? [Via DesignTechnica]
Read MoreAs an apology for our previous link to the mousepad wax, we offer a link to a nifty idea in mousepad gaming. The Steelpad S&S is an aluminum mousepad that promises you better gaming, for the low, low price of forty bucks. Okay, not so low. That is a hefty price, but the aluminum look is in after all. The review says the pad is smooth and sticks to the surface under the heaviest use. Though the product hasn't been released yet, it should be ready in time for Half-Life 2. If you're looking for something to fill out your chrome-filled bachelor pad, check out the review.
Read MoreThey've been putting them in their laptops (like the RD3D) for a few months now, and now Sharp is coming out with their first standalone three-dimensional LCD monitor that works without any sort of special glasses, the 15-inch LL-151-3D. Still really only works with applications designed to take advantage of the three-dimensionalness of the display, but you can toggle it back and forth between 3D and 2D modes when you need to work on less exciting stuff. Should be in stores right now but set you back nearly fifteen hundred bucks, or over five times what you'll pay for a regular 15-inch LCD monitor.
Read MoreMaybe just the most littlest bit scared by Apple's new AirPort Express, SMC has a new pocketable wireless base station of their own coming out (yes, we know that ASUS has had one of these out for a while now). The value add of the SMCWTK-G EZ-Connect 802.11g Wireless Traveler's Kit is that it can pull triple duty as a wireless access point, an Ethernet bridge (for adding WiFi to a game console, for instance), and a WiFi repeater (among other traits), though it doesn't have any audio-out jacks for hooking it up to a stereo or pair of speakers like you'll find on the AirPort Express. [Via eHomeUpgrade]
Read MoreA bunch of Taiwanese technology companies are working on a new memory card with the utterly ungoogleable name "µcard" that's exactly the same size as an SD card but should eventually manage to squeeze a massive 2 terabytes of data on there (and that ain't a typo, at least not on our end). Lower-capacity versions should start showing up early next year, but if they ever get a 2TB card out you know it'll probably cost somewhere in the area of very freaking expensive.
Read MoreCome September 1st, if you're at all interested in a plasma screen TV capable of 68.6 billion colors, Hitachi's going to have five for you, ranging from 32 to 54-inches. It's the latest in their ingeniously titled WOOO line of home entertainment products, including some with built-in DVD players and hard drives (for recording TV shows—goodbye, standalone TiVo?). Plus they're not ashamed to let us know that they've developed a new technology that's supposed to dramatically prevent brightness degredation over a display's 60,000 hour expected lifetime, which is nice to know when you're dropping a few dimes on a TV. [Via Japan Today]
Read MoreThe new cable from Griffin is made exclusively for connecting a guitar directly to the mini jack input of a Mac. The high quality magnetically shielded cable eliminates the need for additional adapters when plugging a guitar directly into programs like GarageBand, Amplitube or other guitar recording software.
Read MoreWe've been teased and toyed with before, but it looks like palmOne may finally come out this month with an SD WiFi expansion card. It'll cost $129 and only work with their Tungsten T3 and the Zire 72 (pictured at right) handhelds (SanDisk does make one that works with the older Zire 71), but at this point we'll take what we can get.
Read MoreLooks like Orange wants to be one of the cool kids now (we reported on T-Mobile UK's 3G/GPRS launch last last month), and is providing its own 3G/GPRS card for PC owners. This enables users to access the web at top speeds near a respectable 384Kbps - that's "near broadband" for the marketers among us. Given that Orange claims to have a wider 3G network than its rival, Vodafone, (covering 60% of the UK population as opposed to a measly 42%) this is good news. The downside may lie in usability; rumor has it the interface on the Orange cards aren't as good, and only time will tell how reliable its network connectivity is and what kinds of download speeds subscribers can realistically expect.
Read MoreWe're totally crushed out on BenQ at the moment (although ASUS has been sending us mash notes lately), and though we're probably not gonna run out and buy it, we do like the looks of the M310, their brand new wireless optical portable mouse that's meant to be tossed in your laptop bag and which comes with a wireless USB adapter that pops inside of the mouse for travel.
Read MorePen2Net's Compupen is another entry into the "alternative input" category. It's a pen (obviously) with an optoelectric sensor that stores what's written and transmits it via Bluetooth (with 128-bit encryption) to a computer, where included software translates the writing to text. It takes standard ink and can write on any surface. We suppose this type of thing could be useful, but writing makes our hand cramp in a way no keyboard has ever done. That and our writing is almost illegible anyway, so the software would have its work cut out for it. Not that we couldn't see it being used with cellphones and PDAs for text messaging and data entry, but what we'd really just rather have better handwriting recognition on the device itself. That way when we lost our special pen we could still scratch stuff out with a fingernail. [Thanks, Joakim]
Read MoreThe new Kodak EasyShare Printer Dock Plus isn't really that exceptional; it makes 4x6 inch prints (or multiple pictures on 4x6 inch sheets) directly from both digital cameras and memory cards, something plenty of other manufacturers offer. But what is worth mentioning is that Kodak is getting even deeper behind wireless printing (which they already offer through their Picture Maker G3 kiosks) and in October they're coming out with a Bluetooth USB adapter for this thing that'll make it possible to print pics directly from cameraphones (yes, we know there are other Bluetooth printer adapters and even printers out there, but hey, this is Kodak). It looks like Kodak may actually be paying attention rather than just continuing their steady slide into irrelevance.
Read MoreWe've pretty much given up on trying to get take decent pics with a cameraphone, especially since hardly any of them sport a flash, and when they do, it's some anemic LED that can barely cast a shadow. Hopefully helping our plight, Linear Technology has developed a photoflash capacitor system that can recharge a small xenon flash in under a second, which is good because xenon bulbs are hundreds of times brighter than those little LED lights your phone has currently. They're also much closer to natural light, meaning your pics will turn out better. Linear hopes to see its system in cameraphones within 3 to 12 months, until then, continue on with outdoor, sunny-day cameraphone photography only.
Read MoreIO-Data is totally making us twitterpated, it's ridiculous; they love USB, and now they've finally picked up on that whole hostless-USB thing. They have a new device out called the Storage Link Adapter which will pull data off any standard USB mass storage device (digital camera, PDA, etc.) and drop it onto another (CD burner, memory key, etc.). Sigh. IO-Data, will you go steady with us? [Via Akihabara News]
Read MoreNormally we wouldn't even bother mentioning a new 802.11g wireless access point (no, not even one that sports a special "Super Wireless" mode that lets you double the speed up to 108Mbps), but Netgear's new WGT634U Wireless Media Router has a little something extra that we expect will be standard on all of these things sooner or later: a USB 2.0 port for attaching an external hard drive that anyone on the network can access. Plus they've cut a deal with Western Digital (sort of like Linksys' arrangement with Maxtor) to hook people up with drives that can used with this thing, though almost any external drive will work (even a lot of those Flash keychain drives) and they've even prepared a list of which ones are compatible and which ones aren't. [Via eHomeUpgrade]
Read MoreWe don't see a lot of consumer-end NAS coming through these parts—at least not without them branded as backup servers, or media devices—but Logitec Japan (no relation) is hooking us all up with a teensy weensy little USB 2.0/Ethernet (100, not gigabit) NAS device. The thing is only 5.2 x 3.1 x 0.9-inches; the 40GB version will run you $245 US, the 80GB will run you $370. But we're not sure how it's NAS if it's on USB, fine, fine.
Read MoreA couple of haptic interfaces are being worked on to give designers a better way to translate their ideas directly into the computer. The University of Buffalo's Virtual Reality Lab uses a glove with force and position sensors (like a vastly more useful Powerglove) and real clay (to provide accurate feedback) to manipulate Virtual Clay on a computer. This one won't be available for quite a while. A system that is available is the Phantom Haptic Interface, which uses a force feedback stylus which is apparently quite good, and quite expensive (a few thousand dollars). Eventually the goal is to be able to pick up and mold an object and have whatever you do exactly mimicked onscreen (in Alias or whatever) for further tweaking.
Read MoreTesting the boundaries of complete overkill, at least for the average home user, the Addonics MFR (Multi-Function Recorder) does just about anything you might want with a whole bunch of different memory formats. It can read and write to (we're using abbreviations here so as not to take up too much space) CF I and II, Smart Media, SD, MMC, Memory Stick regular Pro and Duo, Microdrive and xD cards (that's 11 different types of Flash media). It can also read and write to DVD+R, DVD-R, DVD+RW, DVD-R/RW, CD-R and CD-RW (those formats really need to be consolidated don't they?) either from a PC or from the cards. As if that wasn't enough, anything on there can be displayed on a TV of projector. Oh, and it can be used as an MP3 player, albeit a bulky, ugly one. It's $320 for the most tricked out unit, price goes down along with types of media it can read ($235 for one without all the DVD burning features).
Read MoreA neat but frustrating device from Japanese firm MIB: a USB-ported FM transmitter that plugs into your car's cigar lighter. Slot in a USB thumb drive with some mp3s on it and you can beam them to your radio using the Cigar Song Lighter? FMP3's simple play and cue buttons. (The question mark in the name is apparently intended, presumably to flag the Lost In Translation-style pun on "lighter" and "writer".) You can also plug in a USB card reader and play back stuff on whatever flavour of memory card pleases you most. At Y12,800 (about $115) it's an uneasy pricing point, though at least you don't have to worry about battery life.
Read MoreIt's nice to know that when you slam your smartphone or digital camera across the room in frustration that at least the the precious memory card inside will survive. Some tests by Digital Camera Shopper found that those tiny Flash memory cards are far hardier than you'd expect, with most of the CompactFlash, SD, xD, Memory Stick, and SmartMedia cards they tested surviving being dipped into soda, put through a washing machine, dunked in coffee, run over by a skateboard, and given to a six-year-old boy to play with. The only tests which stopped the cards cold were them being smashed by a sledgehammer or nailed to a tree, and even after those assaults it was still possible to extract some picture files from the xD and SmartMedia cards tested. [Thanks, Mike and Neil]
Read MoreSomewhat fittingly given today's news, I was walking down Orchard Street yesterday afternoon when I spied these two girls jumping up and down on an original iMac someone had thrown away (we've seen a lot of broken and obsolete computer gear tossed out on the street in our day, but this was the first time we'd ever seen an iMac). Anyway, not only did it not seem at all weird to them that I would pull a cameraphone out of my pocket to snap a pic, one of the girls even asked me if I was using a Treo (she'll actually be guest-editing Engadget next week).
Read MorePeter Rojas from Engadget gave us the scoop about the new iMac G5 unveiled at the Paris Apple Expo 2004. Here's the scoop: it comes in both 17-inch and 20-inch widescreen versions, and it's an all-in-one with everything built-into the monitor. The 17-inch model comes with either a 1.6GHz or a 1.8GHz PowerPC G5 processor, and the 20-inch only comes with a 1.8GHz chip. All come standard with 256MB of RAM (which is expandable up to 2GB), and the 17-inch model comes with an 80GB hard drive and a DVD/CD-RW combination drive, while the 20-inch model comes with a 160GB hard drive and a DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive. Click to see some more pics.
Read MoreHere's the scoop: it comes in both 17-inch and 20-inch widescreen versions, and it's an all-in-one with everything built-into the monitor. The 17-inch model comes with either a 1.6GHz or a 1.8GHz PowerPC G5 processor, and the 20-inch only comes with a 1.8GHz chip. All come standard with 256MB of RAM (which is expandable up to 2GB), and the 17-inch model comes with an 80GB hard drive and a DVD/CD-RW combination drive, while the 20-inch model comes with a 160GB hard drive and a DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive. Click to see some more pics. [Thanks, AFB]
Read MoreYes, it's a little later in the day than we wanted to announce this, but it is still technically Monday (at least here on the East coast), so here are the results of our second What Would (Steve) Jobs Do? contest, where we asked you to send in your best guess for what the new iMac might look like, or what other crazy new Apple products might get announced at the Apple Expo in Paris this week. First off, thanks to everyone who entered! Altogether we received literally hundreds of entries, after many laborious, sweaty, twelve-angry-men-style hours in the Engadget HQ boardroom we were finally able to settle on some finalists. Here goes:
Read MoreThe saga continues: Those pics of the new G5 iMac that were supposedly snapped in an elevator at Charles de Gaulle airport outside of Paris? That was a hoax. The guy behind the pics has admitted that it was just a 20-inch LaCie LCD stuffed into a PowerBook box. Nice try, though. [Thanks, Peter]
Read MoreOk, we'll be the first to admit that it seems a little bit unlikely that Apple would just leave a box with a new iMac in it just lying around piled underneath a bunch of other junk, but could this blurry shot contain a glimpse of the G5 iMac? Could also be a regular LCD monitor... [Thanks, Bill]
Read MoreWe got some pretty amazing guesses for our the second edition of our What Would (Steve) Jobs Do? contest (click here to see all the amazing iMac concept designs that were submitted), but to be perfectly honest no one knows for sure what Apple has up their sleeves for next week's Apple Expo which opens in Paris next Tuesday. The only thing we do know for certain is that they've got something cooking and someone snapped this pic of huge promotional banner at Apple's booth that is being draped in black fabric to help keep whatever they're announcing a secret. [Thanks, Pedro and Tom]
Read MoreWell, the HP iPod just turned up on HPShopping.com and it looks exactly the same as the regular iPod, at least as far as we can tell (we haven't seen pics of the back or anything yet). It looks the same, (i.e. it's white rather than blue-colored as some had predicted), it costs exactly the same, and isn't in any way discernably different from the one Apple already sells. The only difference is that Apple's iPod is on sale now while the Apple iPod from HP isn't expected to ship now until September 15th. UPDATE: Looks like there are a few differences.
Read MoreSo you bought a Mac, got that iPod thing going, you're even telling all your friends to ditch that old PC and join the rebellion. Why not show everyone how hardcore you are and make an Apple table to put all of your many Macs on?
Read MoreApple is recalling 28,000 laptop batteries for their 15-inch PowerBook because of problems with them overheating and possibly catching on fire. The batteries, which are only found in PowerBooks sold since this past January, were originally made by LG and so far have not resulted in any injuries. [Thanks, Raj]
Read MoreAre problems with the new fourth-generation iPod be more widespread than we thought? We mentioned a few weeks ago that some users were reporting problems with theirs (like weird static and hard drive sounds when you listen to music through the headphones jack), but at the time it seemed relatively isolated. Now iPodlounge says that in a survey (and it's admittedly not a very scientific poll) some 42% of readers complained of audio problems with their new iPod. Apple still hasn't officially owned up to any problem, though some (but not all) retailers are offering replacements for defective models.
Read MoreDon't even think about popping and locking without popping and locking your iPod (or iPod mini) into the iBoom, a four-speaker boombox that comes with a built-in FM tuner. Not exactly as backbreakingly massive as anything in Wild Style, but it does pay proper homage to its old school ancestors by requiring six D batteries to function. Should be out late next month. [PDF warning] [Via MacMinute]
Read MoreNot really news exactly to anyone who read the reports about the crazy long lines that formed outside the Apple Store in Tokyo the first day the iPod mini went on sale there, but the AP says that Apple has really been hitting Sony where it hurts lately, with the iPod (in all its various forms and colors) now accounting for six of the top eight best-selling music players in Japan.
Read MoreThere are a lot of crazy rumors going around out there that Apple is getting ready to introduce a new iMac G5 at the upcoming Apple Expo 2004 being held in Paris in a couple of weeks. So we're reprising our What Would (Steve) Jobs Do? contest. You know, the one we held back in June where asked you all to try and predict what Apple would introduce at their Worldwide Developers Conference. Anyway, this time around we're not just asking you to send in your best guess for what new craziness you think Mr. Jobs might unveil, we're also asking for your best prediction as to what the new iMac will look like. Here's the scoop: Send in some drawings or mockups of what you think the new iMac G5 is going to look like. And/or send us in your best guesses and predictions for what other big Apple announcement might be making. New Powerbooks? A remote control for the AirPort Express? New secret features for the iPod? You don't have to include illustrations (it won't hurt), but we do give big points for imagination, originality, and likelihood. Even better, courtesy of the good people at Griffin we're giving away two prizes this time. The winner of the best iMac design gets a brand new RoadTrip to use with for their iPod. And whoever sends in the best concept for a new, unannounced Apple product wins a new, unannounced Griffin product that Griffin won't even let us tell you about yet (but don't worry, you'll be happy). So bust out those pads of paper, and you may just be the next Phillip Burgess! Send your ideas, concepts, sketches, etc. to us at applecontest@engadget.com. Our final deadline is midnight EST August 25th (one week from today), and winners will be announced on the 30th, the day before the keynote. Oh, and if you work for Apple, don't even think about breaking that NDA, you dirty cheat.
Read MoreYou didn't think that Apple did all the work behind the iPod, did you? There's a little back story on Pixo, the company that actually developed the much-hyped operating system for the iPod in a mere two weeks (for a finished beta-ish stage, at least). They were already doing user interfaces for cellphone makers though, which certainly gave them a leg up, but still, that's kinda crazy. A little tech company, hit by the end of the bubble gets a knock on the door from Apple. "Hey guys, wanna give us a hand with this here flagship product? It would really mean a lot." And the official credit from Apple? They'll only say that Pixo "contributed a piece of technology" to the iPod. How's that for gratitude?
Read MoreYeah, yeah, yeah we already know that a G5 iMac is on the way, but ThinkSecret is confirming that a new version of Apple's iSight FireWire webcam (the original of which is pictured at right) is on the way as well. Doesn't sound like it'll be hugely different, mainly just some improvements to the mounting hardware.
Read MoreToday's Apple-rumor-based-on-a-patent-filing is for some sort of computer case with embedded LEDs that can change colors (must...resist...obvious...Hypercolor...reference). They filed for the patent back in February so it's not like we can predict when or if they might introduce a product using the technology (a new line of iMacs where you can adjust the colors at will?), but among the possiblities mentioned in the patent filing are casings that you users can adjust at will or that can flash different colors to represent different things (like when you have new email). [Thanks, Wirobro]
Read MoreThree months ago Apple filed a European design trademark for some sort of a handheld or tablet-style computer (it's hard to tell how big it is from these sketchs that accompanied the filing). Read into this what you will, but people have been buzzing about a tablet Mac for months and months now and Steve Jobs himself admitted that the company developed a new line of PDAs which they then abandoned at the last second. A new multimedia tablet, or could this possibly even be the design for the new iMac, which could turn out just be an all-in-one flat-panel PC? [Thanks, Tim]
Read MoreWell that didn't take long. Jon Johansen, aka DVD Jon, aka the wiseass who took on the MPAA and cracked the copy protections on the DVD, is back (not that he ever went away, except for the once having been on trial part) with his latest hack. This time he broke the encryption Apple uses to stream audio from iTunes to the AirPort Express, meaning that, at least in theory, you could set it up so that any application could stream to the AirPort Express. You think Apple will freak out over something that makes the AirPort Express only that much more valuable and useful to people? Yeah, probably.
Read MoreApple Japan seems to be turning up the heat on the promotional front recently; following its iPod trade-in campaign it's now launching an Apple Store affiliate program for websites that it looks like is open to anyone, provided the site passes muster (and is aimed at Japanese-speaking Japan residents, obviously). They're paying out 1% of the purchase price for referrals (2% during the launch promotion), so you're looking at perhaps $140 if you're lucky enough to get some high roller pick up a G5 and a 30-inch display through your site. One conspiracy theory doing the rounds is that Apple's trying to boost website and own-store sales to fortify itself against a possible attempt by Sony to squeeze the iPod out of Japanese retail stores, a tactic (so it's alleged) Sony employed against Palm to push the Clie.
Read MoreRemember iPodworld, that singularly bad idea someone had to do an entire print magazine devoted to the iPod? They had to find a new name. Apple doesn't seem to have a problem with Mac Publishing publishing a magazine called Macworld, but said they'd take legal action for trademark infringement if Mac Publishing didn't remove the word "iPod" from the name of their iPod magazine. So now the magazine is called Playlist, which is more generic, but also less likely to get Mac Publishing sued. Should be on newsstands August 24th, barring any more legal hijinks.
Read MoreApple may be playing a cat-and-mouse game trying to shut down Hymn, but supposedly there's an easier way to strip out the FairPlay digital rights management copy protections that Apple puts into songs purchased from their iTunes Music Store, and it doesn't require installing any sketchy semi-legal software either. We haven't tried this out yet ourselves (we don't have a Mac on hand at the moment), but apparently Apple already gives every Mac owner everything they need in the form of their iMovie software. Macnews.de reports that you can use iMovie's "Share" feature to export any song downloaded from the iTunes Music Store and save it as an unprotected AAC or WAV file. Anyone tried this out yet? UPDATE: This doesn't actually strip out the DRM, it just re-encodes the files, something which is considerably less exciting (and results in a loss of sound quality). Anyway... [Via Digital Media Thoughts]
Read MoreOver at Cult of Mac, Leander Kahney posted about Britain's Sun newspapers' handy guide to transforming a cheapo portable tape player into a trendy iPod using Tippex (aka White-Out) correction fluid: WHAT YOU NEED: Portable tape player, £4.99, Tippex, scissors and glue stick 'borrowed' from the office. And, of course, The Sun. You may also need to get a life...
Read MoreIt's pretty obvious what Mobliss's New York Times Crosswords entails. You guessed it, crossword puzzles from the Times. Yep, no more 'lugging' around that leaky pen and bulky Arts Section, now the daily crossword is simply a few clicks away, and all in the palm of your hand. Users can download the puzzle to their phones, input and edit answers that will save automatically, and view either just hints or the entire grid. The interface appears competent enough, although long time pen & paper crossworders, may find it to be a bit too constricting and hardly authentic.
Read MoreTrash them all you want, but RealNetworks says that they've managed to sell a million music downloads since they cut their prices in half to just 49 cents a song and $4.99 per album last week. We don't exactly see Apple shaking in their boots over either this or Real's recent moves to hack the iPod so that music downloaded from their Rhapsody online music store will play on the iPod, but at least it'll make it a bit tougher for Apple to justify raising the current 99 cents they're charging for downloads.
Read MoreWe don't think a lot of people are going to be interested in viewing the Olympics scores on their Pocket PC, but if you are there's a new application called "Mobilympics" for keeping track of a bunch of different events. The app requires a separate download of the Macromedia Flash Player for Pocket PC, which is kinda clunky, but the interface is pretty slick. P.S - Last week we posted a guide to viewing the Olympics for the gadget folks out there.
Read MoreResearch In Motion couldn't be bothered to ever get around to doing this themselves, but Information Appliance Associates has just come out with some software which should finally let Mac users satisfy their CrackBerry addictions. There's no support for email synchronization, but PocketMac BlackBerry Edition does work with Entourage, Address Book, iCal, Now Contact, Now Up-To-Date, Stickies, and is integrated into iSync.
Read MoreAs if there weren't too many DJs in the world already, now people who've never owned a record can become a celebrity DJ with their Smartphone and a new DJ mixing software app for Pocket PCs and Smartphones called SSEYO miniMIXA (there's already something somewhat similar available for Motorola phones) that promises to help you create hit mash-ups faster than you can say "DJ Keoki". The party gets really pumpin' when you start mashing up of downloadable audio and MIDI samples, ring tones, mic recording option, pre-recorded sound effects, and your own compressed audio files. Too bad miniMIXA isn't compatible with Nokia phones, there's nothing like a Nokia Tune, Hopping Bird two-step... [Via The Inquirer]
Read MoreApparently trying to smooth a path towards their own future bankruptcy, RealNetworks is going after Apple's iTunes Music Store by slashing the price through Labor Day of all music downloads from their own RealPlayer Music Store (which will play on the iPod now due to some hackery on Real's part) to just 49 cents, with most albums costing only $4.99. Since the kindly record labels aren't about to give up their own piece of the pie and we know that at 99 cents a download even Apple isn't making much profit, RealNetworks must be losing more than just a pretty penny on each sale (that's their CEO, Rob Glaser, pictured at right). Apple fans, now's your chance to put them out business!
Read MoreBetting that old people are less afraid of a touchscreen kiosk than a regular PC, an Australian company is testing a new system called MyPostie that lets the elderly scan a handwritten letter and send it off as an email to their children or grandchildren (we heard this rumor that the young people are crazy for this email thing and that most children have never even seen an actual letter). Not bad, but until they figure out how to get this to work with instant messenger (which is where all the real action is these days), we're not impressed.
Read MoreToday's fast-paced world demands ever more of our children and the Magic Messenger is here to help. It's a neat little device with a full QWERTY keyboard that connects to a landline and lets you send text messages to both cellphones and regular phones (converting your child's message to speech if the recipient's phone isn't text message-capable). Only available in the UK right now, the Magic Messenger costs £20 (which includes an initial three month subscription) and £4.50 every three months after that, with texts costing 10p each. It also has group sending, so your kids can blast messages out to many people at once, letting them learn the ways of the cellphone spammer at a young age. [via Textually.org]
Read MoreTiVo dodged a bullet yesterday, when despite the best efforts of the both the MPAA and the National Football League, the FCC granted them approval to add TiVoToGo, a new feature that would let users copy shows stored on their digital video recorder to other future TiVo boxes or a PC, or share them with some friends. The ruling actually only specifically relates to TiVos capable of recording digital television broadcasts, but why they needed the FCC's approval at all is a little complicated. The short story is that to appease the networks (who are worried that the transition from analog to digital broadcasting will make it too easy for people to copy pristine digital copies of TV shows and share them online) the FCC decided to require a little something called the Broadcast Flag, which would require any digital TV tuner connected to a digital video recorder to prevent shows from being recorded in such a way that they could be copied and shared. The Broadcast Flag is supposed to prevent people from sharing shows or transferring them from their DVR to their PC, which is why TiVo needed a waiver of sorts to add TiVoToGo. Still with us? Anyway, as we've whined before, what's messed up is that TiVo (and others) have to get FCC approval to add new innovations to their products in the first place. [Thanks, Jeffrey]
Read MoreWeb Remote for iTunes allows you to remotely control iTunes from any web browser. Just point the browser to http://yourmac:8080 and you can play songs, pause, get information about the song playing, view and play playlists. Works fine for PDA browsers and maybe even with smartphone-based ones, too (yes, you should be able to load this up with your Treo). So if you have an AirPort Express in your living room and your computer with iTunes running on your Mac in the basement, you can control the music from a handheld browser. We might do a How-To on this if enough folks need help getting this going.
Read MoreTired of using smileys in email? Good, we're certainly tired of seeing them. Fortunately for all of us there's a new way to convey emotion over email without resorting to such childish ploys. EmoteMail uses facial expressions, captured via webcam and typing speed as part of the message to help the recipient get a sense of the mood. Each paragraph gets "annotated" with a facial expression and a background color that changes depending on how much time was spent on that particular paragraph in relation to the others. So if you keep a poker face, type at a consistent speed and don't edit your emails, you're out of luck. But for everyone else, this could be a decent way to give people a better clue if that insult you just hurled at them was in jest or if you really do hate them.
Read MoreCodeWeavers says it is coming out with a new version of its software that makes it possible to run iTunes on Linux. CrossOver Office 3.1 will add support for the jukebox and music download software, though it's currently in preview form and is available only to existing CrossOver Office customers. [via #joiito]
Read MoreThis past Friday, Sony announced the two year anniversary of the PlayStation 2 online service, which holds the crown for largest online console community (in a pool of two competitors). Currently, the service has more than 1.4 million registered users and gains close to 1400 users a day. A large part of Sony's success has been—besides that it's free—SOCOM II, which draws more gamers per day than all of Xbox Live's titles combined. Sony does have their work cut out for them though, as Microsoft continues to enhance and grow its Live features. In order for Sony to keep pace, the company may have to start charging for subscriptions. But for the time being, they are relying on a healthy list of newcomers that are set to join the growing list of online titles, including Killzone, Gran Turismo 4, and Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal.
Read MoreOk, so today was HP's big day, what with the hPod and a couple of dozen of other new product announcements and all, so in case you're just tuning in right now, here's a brief round-up of our coverage today: hPod to outsell the iPod? HP's iPod from the back HP's Digital Entertainment Center HP's DJammer Stickers for personalizing your HP iPod It's official: The Apple iPod from HP...is just like the Apple iPod from Apple HP drops some TVs (and printers) on us HP takes the wraps off the HP iPod later today
Read MoreBesides the customizable stickers and all that, the one really noticeable difference between the regular iPod and HP's iPod is that it has the HP logo engraved on the back in addition to the Apple and iPod logos. [Thanks, Maxx]
Read MorePC World got the scoop on several of those new consumer electronics HP is announcing later today. There are two new LCD TVs, the 26-inch LC2640N (which'll cost $2499) and the 30-inch LC3040N (which'll cost $2999). They're also coming out with not one but two new 42-inch plasma TVs, PL4245N HD-Ready Plamsa Television, which'll retail for $4999 and have a resolution of 1024 x 768 (but not built-in HDTV tuner); and the PE4240N Plasma Television, which only has a resolution of 852 x 480, which is good enough for Enhanced Definition TV, but not quite up to snuff for high-def. Both do have DVI-D inputs, which is nice. Also in the home entertainment line-up: the EP9010 Instant Cinema Digital Projector (pictured at left), an HDTV-ready DLP projector with a built-in DVD player that's specifically designed for home theater use (rather than conference room use). They also have a bunch of new printers coming out (no surprise there). The Photosmart 2710 All-in-One combines a inkjet printer with a fax, copier, and scanner, and can print wirelessly using built-in 802.11g WiFi or an optional Bluetooth module. The Photosmart 8450 Photo Printer uses no fewer than eight different inks for making prints of digital photos and has an Ethernet port for hooking it up to a home network. Rounding out the bunch is the Photosmart 375 Compact Photo Printer, which is a portable model meant for cranking out 4-by-6-inch prints while on the go.
Read MoreMicrosoft, about to release their online digital music store (in typical late-to-the-game form), has apparently asked Apple to open up the iPod to songs purchased from their store. Yeah, they were rejected, just like a certain other company in Washington State was; looks like not even all their stock in Apple could get them to loosen their stranglehold on the iPod. Not that they really have to or anything, so are you really surprised? Could this mean that Microsoft is going to ask that certain someone for advice on how to manage proper iPod support?
Read MoreFiguring they can succeed where Gateway failed, Dell is set to expand their line of consumer electronics in a few weeks with a bunch of new flat-screen TVs and digital cameras, at least according to an analyst who says they'll have some major announcements in a few weeks. We'll keep you posted, but in the meantime you might want to wait before you buy a plasma TV from them.
Read MoreIn light of the whole Cabir fiasco, Nokia has announced plans to introduce encryption for all sorts of data on their Series 60 and 80 phones. Pointsec Mobile Technologies will help them out in this noble venture to protect email SMS and MMS's, calendar and address book info and memory card info from the prying eyes of nefarious evildoers. This protection will be coming out in the third quarter of this year and will first ship on their 9500 Communicator smartphone.
Read MoreYou know the video call has become commonplace when it gets features like hold, transfer and voice mail, but do they really expect an influx of video-eager calls during our office virtual meeting? Yeah, we guess so. Cisco's CallManager series is releasing the Tandberg 1000 which sports a 12.2 inch LCD screen, built-in speakers and microphone, as well as all the must-have elements like call control and a built-in directory. Hopefully the work-at-home crowd won't be implementing these too soon, we're not quite ready to give up working in our sweats.
Read MoreAbout a year ago HP decided to make our lives really difficult and announce 158 new products on the same day. Now it looks like they're getting ready to unveil a whole bunch more stuff, probably/hopefully not as much as last year, but the line up is set to include the long-awaited HP version of the iPod, LCD televisions, wireless "links" (whatever that is, sounds like a line of wireless media adapters), a digital media hub, and possibly a few other surprises. The lameness is that HP is building all sort of digital rights management into a lot of the gear, since they've decided they're more interested in pleasing Hollywood than their customers (they've apparently have also decided that they're not interested in making money, since why would anyone buy crippled gear if they didn't have to?). Anyway, the big announcement is expected around September 2nd or 3rd, we'll have a full report for you whether we like it or not.
Read MoreWe expected Intel to be interested in materials science, but anthropology? Apparently an anthropologist working for the semiconductor giant is putting the finishing touches on a three-year study of how Asian families interact with technology. The anthropologist, Genevieve Bell, lived with families in seven Asian countries and found Chinese people take their mobile phones to temples to be blessed (check), Muslims use their cellphones to locate Mecca (check), and other cultures burn paper cell phone offerings for their ancestors to use in the next world. Bell's anecdotes will enable Intel to create "cultural profiles" to help design teams come up with new product ideas. The study counteracts Intel's earlier ideas that a global middle class was emerging in Asia who use consumer electronics the same way the Western world does. Where they ever got that idea, we're not sure, being that China is one of the largest, poorest nations in the world.
Read MoreWe've ragged on Best Buy before for how annoyingly frustrating it can be to shop there (we're at the point where we'll only shop there if it's a dire gadget-related emergency), but they've managed to piss off someone a lot more powerful than us this time. The Ohio state attorney general is suing the chain, charging them with "a pattern of unfair and deceptive acts and practices", and alleging that they've been repackaging used electronics as new (which might explain why that external hard drive we bought there a few years back had so much porn on it—not that we bothered returning it) and failing to honor rebates, refunds, and exchanges.
Read MoreEffective later this week, Sony will be offering the PlayStation 2 for 104.99 pounds in the UK. But Microsoft has responded with their own price cut, soon to offer Xbox for a mere 99.99 pounds (or 149.99 euros on the mainland). Truth be told, these prices are a bit high (even after the cuts) by American standards. If you don't know the current exchange rates off hand, European consumers are looking to pay about $180 for Xbox and $190 for PS2—but that beats the $255 that had to be shelled out before this little pre-Christmas price war. Both Sony and Microsoft are hoping for boosts similar to those experienced after US price drops in June. Currently, PS2 is outselling Xbox by a range of 2:1 to 2.8:1 in Europe.
Read MoreSony's Qualia showrooms, like Ferrari dealerships, are not places you go near unless that bonus for landing the big IPO has hit your bank account. It probably comes as little surprise, therefore, to find that the latest in the Qualia range, the 46-inch KDX-46Q005 LCD TV, comes with a price tag of Y1,100,000 (just over $10,000). The list of features would take all day to run down because Sony's gone kid-in-a-sweetshop crazy and crammed in pretty much everything it can find (hell, there's probably a PSP in there if you can find the right slot to open), but the main highlight on the picture front is the use of an LED backlight, which Sony claims improves colour reproduction considerably versus the usual fluorescent kind. It's the first model to feature an interface powered by the PS2's Graphics Synthesizer and Emotion Engine chips, too, and comes with a clamshell, joystick-equipped remote control that looks like you could use it to pilot a plane and solve complex equations while you watch.
Read MoreHoping to get a little people power on their side in their battle to try and get Apple to open up the iPod to downloads from their online music stores, RealNetworks launched a "Hey Apple, Don't Break My iPod" online petition which quickly turned against them and filled up with such witty anti-Real chestnuts as, "REAL CRAP. rob you are a loser!" and "If you guys dare to touch my iPod!! Oh Boy...! Im so going to rip out your...". They ended up removing the link from their site and putting up another one which only lists people's names and nothing else.
Read MoreSo the big deal about Sony's new wireless LCD TV which they just announced in Japan, the KLV-20WS2, is that it uses WiFi (either 802.11a or 802.11g) to wirelessly connect back to a base station where you plug in your DVD player, game console, and/or cable or satellite box so that you don't have to run any of those wires directly into the television. Not sure if it has batteries or not (which would make it useful for dragging to different places around the house), but it's definitely a boon for anyone wants to wallmount their TV but doesn't want to deal with any cables (except for a power cable, of course) running up the wall. Sharp has had a couple of these out for months now.
Read MoreWe all know that HP's version of the iPod, which we're calling the hPod until we have something better to call it, is coming out next month, but apparently they'll be exactly the same as the Apple iPods apart from having an HP logo on the back. (This also means that it definitely won't look like the baby blue iPod HP pictured at right which HP CEO Carly Fiorina was showing off at this past January's CES). Doesn't sound like the hPod will be be too competitive with Apple price-wise either, since it'll come in a 20GB that'll cost $299.99 and a 40GB version that'll cost $399.99, just like the regular iPod. Not that we expected anything too different. Why would anyone spend more on an iPod than they had to?
Read MoreYahoo is now beta testing sending all their alerts via (including the latest news, weather, stocks, email notifications, and instant messages) SMS text message to cellphones. The main problem with this service (as well as other SMS news services) is all you get is a headline and not the story, which makes us think that they should really just offer a mobile device-friendly text-only email option, especially since most modern phones can check email these days. We signed up for Google news alerts using a special email account we'd set up for our cellphones (yes, we own more than one) and that's working out just fine so far (no spam from them either). [via MobileWhack via Russell Beattie]
Read MoreFor this week's installment of Ask Engadget, no less a personage than Kevin Kelly, co-founder of Wired magazine and current head honcho of one of our personal favorite websites, Cool Tools, asks: We've hardly gone to the movie theater in the last 5 years since we installed a do-it-yourself home theater in our bedroom using a computer projector, DVD player and surround sound. I've tried a number of low-end projectors. My last selection was an Epson Powerlite S1 which had a street price of $838, but I stopped shopping a couple of years ago, and in the meantime the S1 has been discontinued and the quality of new units has gone up. What's the best home projector that costs less than $1,000? I keeping thinking they should break the $500 barrier soon. I'm not interested in the many projectors that are better but cost more; that's no fun. Any suggestions for a good projector for home use?
Read MoreAlright, this week's Ask Engadget reader question comes from Peter A. who asks: What are the best headphones for my iPod? I bought the upgrade headphones from Apple, they sound great, it's just that I have to keep pushing them in to get any bass. Needless to say, I am getting pretty tired of doing that...so what should I get instead? We're big on the Sennheisers we picked up last year, but what would you guys recommend?
Read MoreA kind reader IM'd us a link to a coupon from Target for 25 free digital photo prints, and since there doesn't appear to be a catch, you can load up that SD, CF or Memory Stick and head down to Target (follow this link print out the coupon). Just make sure the Target in your area has digital printing—and that you get there before Sunday. We're going to bring in some "special" photos and see what happens. [Thanks, DK]
Read MoreIf you've been paying attention to the barrage of first person shooters set to hit this fall and continuing until year's end, then you may be feeling a bit overwhelmed—unless you just happen to have really deep pockets and hundreds of hours of free time. But for the rest of us, we could really use some kind of guide to help us sort through this madness. Luckily the guys over at IGN have compiled a list of all the most promising upcoming shooters for the PC. Plus they've added a brief description to each game that highlights its strong points. But at ten games thick, you're probably still going to need to do some more narrowing down, but at least it's a start. Enjoy.
Read MoreWe asked you to hit us with your best shot yesterday, and while we got a ton of great potential questions, we thought one about digital cameras might stimulate some interesting responses. Jeremy asks: What digital camera would you recommend for a mom? She wants a larger LCD screen so she can see the picture, and it needs to be small and lightweight to fit into her purse, and easy to use. Oh, and it has to take good quality images, about four megapixels. And, don't say a cameraphone. There are tons of cheap new four, five, and even six megapixel cameras out there these days, anyone have any good suggestions for our friend?
Read MoreReader Mike S. wants to know what the best laptop for travel is, and rather than actually take the time to answer this ourselves, we figured we'd turn this over to the collective wisdom and accumulated knowledge of the Engadget readership. Here's what he wrote: My old Dell is on its last legs and it's time to buy a new notebook. I need something that'll be good for business travel, since I take at least two or three trips a month. It has to be light (under four pounds), have built-in WiFi, and cost somewhere in the neighborhood of two grand (the less the better!). A built-in DVD drive would be nice, but is optional. Any Engadgeters out there think they can help a brother out with some suggestions?
Read MoreJapanese lesson of the day: hagaki means "postcard". Hence, the Hagaki PC, a low-rentish touchscreen device whose main selling point is the fact that it's a postcard-sized 13.5 x 11 cm x 1.8 cm (hell, that's a thick postcard) and weighs 340g. The guts are a 266Mhz AMD Geode SC1200 and 128MB of memory, and there are CF, USB1.1 and headphone ports. Everything goes a touch downhill from there, unfortunately; no hard drive, so you have to boot your OS off a CF card, microdrive or USB drive, and there's no inbuilt WiFi, ethernet port, or even modem. It'll run Windows 95/98/2000 XP or Linux, and should sell for about Y100,000 ($900). That's quite a bit cheaper than the Y180,000 that the somewhat-larger Sony Vaio U50 goes for, but a good chunk more than most PDAs. The twixt-rock-and-hard-place pricing and the DIY looks combined make it a little hard to get too worked up about this one.
Read MoreYou can finally show up that friend with the dual-processor workstation by slipping one of Orion Multisystems' new clusters, which comes in a 12 processor version that costs $10,000 and an even meatier version with no fewer than 96 processors that'll set you back a cool hundred grand (and we hope you are prepared to see a huge spike in your electric bill), under your desk. [Via Technology Trends]
Read MoreWe're hearing that next month Hush Technologies is coming out with a Media Center PC version of their ultraquiet fanless ATX PC, and not only will it come with up to 400GB of storage space, a DVD burner, a TV tuner, and 5.1-channel surround sound, but it'll also run on the upgraded 2005 version of Windows XP Media Center Edition that is due out soon.
Read MoreAs long as we're going overboard on HP today we may as well mention this oddity/example of their newfound closeness with Apple: for the grand prize for their Designjet 130 Printer series Extreme Makeover Contest for graphic designers HP isn't just giving away a bunch of HP printers, they're also tossing in a 15-inch PowerBook, a G5 Power Mac, a 20-inch iMac, and a whole bunch of Mac software. What they're not giving away is one of their own PCs, probably because they know just how most graphic designers won't work on anything except a Mac. [Via Your Tech Weblog]
Read MoreThe deadline to enter our WWJD 2 contest (where we asked you to send in your best guess for what the new iMac might look like or what other crazy new Apple products might get announced at the upcoming Apple Expo in Paris) came and went this past Wednesday and we got a ton of great entries. We'll be announcing a winner sometime on Monday, but before we mak e a decision we wanted to post up all of the concept images for the new G5 iMac right now to give our readers a chance to weigh in (and if we missed somebody's let us know!).
Read MoreWe hinted that this was on the way just last week, now Gateway's 700GR officially becomes the first PC to use Intel's new BTX (which stands for Balanced Technology Extended) advanced cooling system which makes it easier and more efficient to keep your PC from overheating by blowing air over horizontally aligned memory chips and upturned expansion boards, then over the chipset and CPU. In case you're thinking of picking it up, the rest of the specs on the 700GR are pretty decent: a 250GB hard drive, up to 2GB of RAM, a Pentium 4 550 processor, a dual-layer, a 128MB ATI Radeon X300SE graphics card, and an 8X DVD+/-RW drive.
Read MoreNext up: HP's Digital Entertainment Center, a Media Center PC that like earlier offerings from Gateway and Alienware (among others), actually looks like something that belongs in your living room along with all your other A/V gear. And the Pavilion dv1000 Entertainment Notebook PC (pictured), which has a Quick Play mode for watching DVDs or listening to CDs without having to bootup, a 1260 x 768, 14-inch widescreen LCD, a 1.7GHz Pentium M processor, up to 1GB of RAM, up to an 80GB hard drive, and a 6-in-1 memory card reader
Read MoreIt's still under development, but HP just showed of something called the DJammer at their Digital Experience webcast. Apparently it's some kind of iPod add-on that's specifically designed so that DJs can use the iPod to mix and cut like they can with digital turntables. [Thanks, Wirobro]
Read MoreIn the spirit of helping those of lesser geek fortitude, Jon's Guides has put together a pretty exhaustive guide on how to make your PC play nice with pretty much any Bluetooth device you might happen to own (and it seems like he's tested them all). It covers everything from setup to security and even has an advanced section for those who aren't scared of a little jargon. With this you'll finally be able to take full advantage of that phone you smuggled in from Europe. [Via David Smith's Bookmarks]
Read MoreP2P filesharing gets a bad rep from the recording and and movie industries, who're apt to paint it as a technology that doesn't have any legitimate uses. However, the Japanese government's National Institute of Communications and Information Technology is experimenting with a P2P network that links up 16 hospitals and allows them to do high-speed searches and transfers of encrypted patient information and high-quality 3D moving images. The aim is to avoid doubling up on medical tests, avoid the risk of double-dosing patients with drugs, and make sure that their medical histories are immediately available even if they switch hospitals. We assume they've built in a feature to stop interns from using it to swap J-Pop albums in their free time.
Read MoreOK, this is a slender excuse for news, but we couldn't resist mentioning Ascii 24's description of the IBM ThinkCentre S50 ultra small desktop as being "the width of four tennis balls", and they even went to the trouble of putting up a photo. We're not sure whether to be impressed or indifferent about the fact itself, but that's the sort of innovative reviewing we need more of.
Read MoreSeeing new desktop calculator models come out sort of reminds us of tweaks to a car model that's soon to be phased out (though 1.5 million are still sold in Japan each year), but we rather like the fact that Canon's new USB desktop calculator/ten-key add-on also has a USB 2.0 hub and cursor keys built in. The thought of all those USB cables snaking around is a bit unappealing, though. Also, there's fierce competition in the form of their own model with a built in trackball. What we really want is a Bluetooth calculator, though; that'd be something with real brag value.
Read MorePortable Media World has some real, no foolin', definitely not Photoshopped pics of the Gmini 400 from Archos, their new 20GB portable media player with a 2.2-inch color LCD screen that plays back both audio files (MP3, WMA, and WAV) and video files (MPEG4, DivX, XviD, and AVI). It also play games on the Morphun game engine, and views digital photos via a CompactFlash slot for transferring JPEGs over from a digital camera. Yes, the screen is small, probably too small to want to watch a movie on, but the GMini 400 is a lot easier to buy into if you think of it as just a regular MP3 player with the added bonus of a color screen for photos and videos.
Read MoreIt's pretty unlikely anyone who's ever used a computer hasn't been annoyed enough to give it a rude finger gesture but Hitachi's come up with a PC that can interpret hand gestures via infrared sensor and use them to operate the computer. For instance, moving your hand in the air from left to right would scroll through document pages. Hitachi figures the system could be useful for recipe-hunting housewives with food-covered hands or surgeons who want to instant message while in the middle of cutting people open. We still think this mouse thing is working out for us just fine.
Read MoreConspicuously absent from HP's big announcement of all those new Pocket PCs last month was their hx2000 series of handhelds, which still have yet to be officially confirmed even though there have been rumors about the series for a while. No one seems to know exactly when these might debut (sometime in November has been tossed out there), but listings for the "hx2100", "hx2400", and the "hx2700" turned up on HP's Pocket PC support website, which is pretty good indication that something is cooking. As far as we know, and you should take this with a grain of salt, the hx2100 is supposed to have a 316MHz processor, 64MB of ROM, 64MB of RAM, a 3.5-inch transflectice display, Bluetooth, and CompactFlash and SDIO expansion card slots; the hx2700 is supposed to have pretty much the same thing, just with a 624MHz processor, 802.11b, and 128MB of ROM; and no one seems to know much of anything about the hx2400.
Read MoreA typewriter that emails? Where the hell was this thing in our emo days? This is the ultimate for moody alternateens of all ages: a modified Olivetti Lettera 22 (created by Aparna Rao and Mathias Dalhström) that takes text input on "e-mail" letterhead, writes it to buffer, and when you pull the page out of the typewriter, sends an email via internal modem. Pair it with an e-text of The Bell Jar and some MP3s of your fave Cap'n Jazz seven inch, and you'll be all set for the 21st century. [Via Near Near Future]
Read MoreNeed we even resort to hyperbole to describe Optware's new Holographic Versatile Disc, which is the same size and shape as a regular DVD but uses holograms to potentially store as much as one terabyte of data? Nah, didn't think so.
Read MoreA mental image of an udder meshed with mother board is something we would usually avoid, but we'll make an exception with this guy's hollow plastic cow PC case mod. Since he's got an uncomfortably intimate knowledge of cow anatomy, he neatly packaged his mini ITX-based computer into a purchased expansive cow body. Somehow the fact that German Wal-Marts sell large plastic cows doesn't seem so unusual, but the case's butcher-style precise incisions are a tad off-putting. [Via GadgetMadness]
Read MoreGamePC does an exceptional write-up of the ever-growing Windows 64-bit Edition. The latest build is up to 1218 and the writer finds a lot to like in it. He calls it a major step forward, with improvements that are actually starting to outperform Windows XP Pro. Microsoft has finally incorporated 64-bit Direct X 9.0 components and Nvidia's 64-bit Forceware drivers, so the new version finally has some room to breathe. If you consider that previous builds of the OS have yielded performance loss, 64-bit fans will be happy to read the latest preview.
Read MoreThe BTX, or Balanced Technology Extended, system architecture spec has been around awhile now, but it's been pretty quiet. Usually these things take a big name or two to get started, so Gateway thought they'd kick it off this September. The chassis on one of their their up-and-coming desktop series will feature the BTX architecture, which allows for extremely efficient cooling by getting all their ducks in a line so to speak, blowing air over horizontally aligned memory chips and upturned expansion boards, then over the chipset and CPU. So it's kind of a win-win situation for both you and Moore's Law. If none of this means anything to you, that's okay, you'll just notice that your PC will be a little bit cooler and quieter.
Read MoreMaybe you should think twice the next time you see some couple making out like big time and you're tempted to yell at them get a room. Because if they're carring The Cloud, which, granted, would technically set them back $5,900, they could just bust it out right then and there, and then you'd be caught looking at their silhouettes 80s romance-movie style. You could always carry one just in case, you know, you and your 7 closest executive buddies were in the woods, and you needed to conference about something. At least we're sure Fabrizio from Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex would approve.
Read MoreWe're completely pathetic, but if people keep making paper cut-out gadgets we're going to keep linking to them (where's my paper Treo, dammit?). This one is a one-third scale replica of the iMac that turned up recently in a Japanese magazine, and is the perfect thing to go along with your paper Nintendo Famicom, Clie cradle, eMac, and Cassini space probe.
Read MoreWe almost forgot, I-O Data busted out another product in their LinkPlayer line to go along with that new AVeL networked DVD player. This one is a portable video player with a 20GB hard drive that can play MPEG-4/DivX video files and has a CompactFlash expansion card slot for transferring photos over from a digital camera. Not sure if this one'll ever grace these shores, but it honestly doesn't look like anything too special. [Via DAPreview]
Read MoreIt always makes us shiver when word hits the streets that a set of drivers will soon be followed by another set of drivers. In this case, it looks like the reason for the one-two punch is all good. ATI will be releasing a new package in early September that will don a new interface for controlling your video system settings. The screenshot in the article is pretty slick, and the functional additions are welcome, if done well. Things like auto-update and easier access to your card's power make us look forward to early September. Anything would be better than the oh-so 1999 ATI interface that us fans have to tolerate.
Read MoreThe DVR-A08 didn't make it out last time for our little roundup, but somehow we have a feeling this sucka may just be in a class of its own (at least it's certainly classier to own than any of the others in its class). 16x dual-layer writing—that's 8.5GB in about 25 minutes—for about $160 US, and with a face like that? Yes, sir, may we have another? [Via GadgetMadness]
Read MoreSo now we all know that building your own PC is like way better than buying the store brands (that's what we heard from DIY PC guys, anyway). So if you're looking to get started, Tom's Hardware has rounded up 13 barebones PCs for you to load up with the gear of your choice. You know, Pentium II 366, 10GB hard drive, 12x CD-R drive, all the hot stuff! Our tip to you: go for the Shuttle XPC, that little pony packs a punch. [Via eHomeUpgrade]
Read MoreThis week's HOW-TO is a handy one for the Mac folks out there who want to run multiple operating systems, but not install them to their hard drive, all using an iPod as a bootable FireWire drive. This HOW-TO is also helpful for trying out new software (on another OS), running developer versions of Mac OS (like Mac OS X Server or Tiger) as well as having a way to repair your Mac if for some reason it cannot boot on its own. At the end of this article, we also point to a way to simply back up your home directory (or anything else to your iPod) which can be handy too, and even used in conjunction with this HOW-TO).
Read MoreThe latest ATI Catalyst drivers have been released for all you power-users out there. Among the improvements? "Direct3D driver efficiency has improved considerably. Significant performance gains are noted in multiple "CPU-bound" cases, including 3DMark2001, Aquamark 3, Comanche4, Dungeon Siege, and Unreal Tournament 2003 and 2004. Typical improvements are in the 1-5% range." As we all know 1-5% can be the difference between life and death. One negative change to look out for is in City Of Heroes. Apparently, specular lighting and texture issues pop up, when playing with Windows XP. That probably scared off around half of you. For the rest, download away...
Read MoreWe'd prefer they wait until they actually have a product to ship since we have this dangerous habit of overhyping stuff that isn't even close to coming out yet, but Colossal Storage Company announced a new "breakthrough nanotechnology" using ultraviolet light that will someday (and with a big emphasis on the "someday" here) deliver up to 100 terabytes of storage in a 3.5-inch optical disk. Also, we're not exactly convinced this isn't fake. [Via Slashdot.org]
Read MoreTexas Instruments, STMicroelectronics, Broadcom, Airgo, Conexant have pieced together (much like Voltron) to form "WWiSE", a group aiming to revise the 802.11n wireless standard before it's set in stone by the IEEE. Basically the next flavor of WiFi we'll get to deal with, currently n is spec'ed to run at 135 megabits per second and be backwards compatible with b and g, but WWiSE wants to push that speed up to 540 megabits per second. And more surprising than the numbers, these companies are all offering to license the patents which would make their 802.11n possible royalty-free. Not a bad deal, IEEE, may we suggest you strongly consider it over Intel's similar, yet assuredly royalty-ridden proposal?
Read MoreThis is welcome news to those of us in the market for a new video card. Nvidia is about to feed a need in the marketplace, and it makes us want to kiss them. The Geforce 6600 will be an affordable alternative to the high-end next-generation cards available for the wealthy. Since Doom 3 and Half-Life 2 are raising the bar you may want to read this preview of the technology. Firing Squad tells it like it is, when it comes to hardware; and this is what they have to say about the 6600. "From a features perspective, the GeForce 6600 GT gives up nothing to its bigger brothers, the GeForce 6800 line. The 6600 is shader model 3.0 compatible, ensuring longevity, and we've been told that unlike the GeForce FX 5600 series, NVIDIA hasn't compromised the AA implementation on the GeForce 6600."
Read MoreWe're pretty sure it's not the same kind of thing as the Soken DVD players we told you about before, but Chinese manufacturer Jiangsu Shinco has released a budget DVD player "designed to cope with the poor quality of pirated video discs". Honestly, the only thing we're surprised about is why it took so long for a Chinese DVD manufacturer to pony up to China's biggest "industry": pirated movies. [Via BoingBoing]
Read MoreWe're in Los Angeles covering (and speaking at) at SIGGRAPH, the 31st International Conference on Computer Graphics and Interactive Techniques, and there were a few things that caught our camera's eye. Many of the exhibitors are really extending the amount of raw human input which goes in to character design and movement. Some are full body suits, others are robotic arm or sketch helper devices that will render objects in 3d as you "trace them" in the physical world. One thing saw a lot of was "augmented reality". Below you can see an empty train track in the physical world, but once you look at the track through a Dell Pocket PC you see there are "virtual trains" running around the track, and as you walk around the tracks, the display shows where the trains are in real-time. It's quite creepy, like that kid who could see dead people. And perhaps the coolest of all, a series of three robots that always keep you walking in the same spot, as you get close to the edge of the last one, the one behind you swoops around to start the whole thing over again. We tried it, staying in one place hasn't been this fun in years. Click here to view video (Windows Media). If you wanted to see more, go check out the SIGGRAPH blog.
Read MoreSomewhat similar in appearance to the Phantom Haptic Interface we mentioned a while back, the MicroScribe G2 takes a different approach at getting rendering data into a computer for tweaking and perfecting. Since it's much easier to make rough models in clay (or some other material) than on the computer, MicroScribe figured they could just go with that and designed their device to basically trace the physical object in three dimensions (you literally take the stylus and run it over the model to capturing its exact shape and dimensions). Simple enough.
Read MoreThis week's HOW-TO Tuesday is more of a journal of finding a solution for two things we wanted to do. The first— we wanted to use some of those car accessories that you plug in to to cigarette lighter in a car, but use them inside our house (we rarely drive now) and the second, add the thing that makes us better than most mammals, the ability to make fire— so this week's HOW-TO is How-To add a car cigarette lighter to your PC, it'll charge your stuff, but this mod won't accelerate your PC, rather— it will only accelerate your death if you use it to smoke up. A little background... After 4 years of buying accessories to charge our gadgets in a car, we noticed some gadgets, like our Pharos Bluetooth GPS only had a car charger, since we don't drive that often, we rarely used the GPS— but if we could charge it, keep around to remind us to use it, we would. So, with that— we started to research, er google, and found a Belkin AC to DC convertor for $29. Kinda neat, but we thought it would be cool to have one like a car that actually get burning hot, on the occasional chance we want to light up a fine tobacco product. We called the local car junkyard and it looked like we'd need to spend at least $20 on one from junked car, then we'd need to make our own convertor, add to all that, we wanted to put this in our PC. That's when we found exactly what we were looking for... The 5.25" Cigarette Lighter Panel. There are many places that sell these as low as $6 up to $20. The specs... Face plate pre-assembled Fits most cases in 5.25" bay Electric shutdown after 10 to 18 seconds Charges all the stuff you have in your car 12 VDC <9A when heating.. We ordered one up, and within a few days it was here. Our PC, a mild mannered HP Pavillion by day, was our subject. The rest of this How-To is pretty straight forward, if you have a PC with an extra 5.25" bay, this is a really simple mod. A lot of people make some cool PC mods that make their cases look like cars, so this is a nice touch. The installation... The kit. Back of the PC. Panel off. Bay out. Screws hold the bay in place. Plugging in the power. Mod in bay. Light'em up. Charge'm up. If you got'em, smoke'em... And there it is, we've been able charge our phones, a Bluetooth GPS and some other things (like power a XM Satellite Radio inside without using cradle, you normally need to buy that). And kids, always remember what Penn Jillette said about smoking— you should only smoke if you want to look really, really cool. Tune in next week, for HOW-TO make your own distiller from a PDA, and a USB cable. Phillip Torrone can be reached at his personal site, http://www.flashenabled.com and torrone@gmail.com
Read MoreThe US Army is embracing more PDA-style gadgets for real-time battlefield intelligence gathering. The CDA, or Commander's Digital Assistant, runs on Linux (which the army found to be "more stable" than you-know-what), uses a system of pulldown menus for filing reports from the field (ease and efficiency is a really big plus when you're getting shot at), and has a GPS attachment and a wireless connection for communicating back to HQ. The device has already been tested by a bunch of military units and is now only awaiting a final evaluation this before being shipped out to the field. [Note: the device pictured seems to be the original Pocket PC based unit which was scrapped in favor of Linux]
Read MoreIt appears Western Digital is finally figuring out how things really work; add a clear case, cold cathodes, and LEDs, and watch the performance of your hardware go through the roof. (Though we would be much more impressed if it had a window to the drive platters and heads; why someone hasn't already done this, we don't know.) Pyroport's review rates the Light-up 250GB external hard drive pretty decently, and when you're done ogling the shiny pretty lights it's got a USB 2.0 and two Firewire (regular, not 2.0) connections. Sure, no one's a fan of a power supply for a peripheral, but what're you gonna do? Like, how else do you expect to generate 8,500 candles in an external drive? [Via I4U]
Read MoreYes, it's a survey, and yes, the surveyed weren't asked to do anything like install performance monitoring software or hand over their machines for a few days for a double-blind study, but apparently the nerds who build their own machines not only garnered the highest average surveyed numbers for reliability but also scored really well in service. Not a surprise when you figure that anyone who can build their own PC probably knows how to fix it up, too. But either way they seem pretty stoked on their own PC building skills, and we won't harsh on that mellow. The thing is that the part of the survey where local joints (i.e. small time PC makers) scored almost equally well is kind of strange (most of the local joints we've ever seen are really bad ripoffs). Oh and Apple also came out on top of the charts, so obviously pride in your computer has nothing to do with how well you think it performs. We kid, we kid! [Via ExtremeTech]
Read MoreAfter a disappointing year, Nvidia is about to get back in the game. They've been playing catch-up with ATI for awhile now, but it looks like their sick of it. Sure, their latest generation of hardware needs more juice than a refrigerator — but it is fast, after all. And now comes word that the company is going to announce a new card at QuakeCon. [H]ardOCP dug up this little known tidbit from a boring company page, which quietly invites us to an hour-long conference call, where the announcement will presumably be made. It doesn't make for great reading, but it could be great news for fans of the company. Looking at my wallet, I hope it's a product that's affordable so I can actually play some of these great titles coming out.
Read MoreSeems that Belkin is going to start using Airgo's MIMO (Multiple Input, Multiple Output) technology in their wireless gear that lets you quadruple the speed of 802.11g from its current maximum of 54Mbps to over 200Mbps. The catch is the same one you'll find with all that Netgear and Linksys gear which doubles the speed of 802.11g to 108Mbps: none of the equipment is interoperable, so to get the full benefits of the boost you have to use the right kind of Belkin wireless access points with the right kind of Belkin wireless cards. The good news is that Airgo's MIMO format could very well end up as the basis for the new 802.11n protocol that is being hammered out by the IEEE, which means we might possibly see it in other devices in the not-too-distant future. The wireless access points should go for around $189 and the cards for $130 when they arrive sometime in mid-October.
Read MoreLooks like C Data Solutions is trying to edge in on the ultraportable market with their new Compact Flash Computer, a full (albeit very weak-sauce) Linux-based system jammed into a CF card. Well, it's not really a full system; the CF card has the 32MB RAM, 8MB flash, and the 66MHz SOC (system-on-chip, which we presume means Linux inside the processor) which also has support for Ethernet, WiFi, Bluetooth, USB, etc. But to actually use any of these interfaces, you have to get a second and third CF card and hook them all up. Oh, and this system is going to go for upwards of $800. So it's totally destined to take over the small form-factor market in a firestorm. Or not. [Via LinuxDevices]
Read MoreNot exactly sure what we'd do with one (though we're sure we'd find something semi-legal to do with it) or which category to put this under (it's not exactly a desktop or a handheld, and it's definitely not a laptop), but gumstix is selling a tiny 200MHz Linux-powered computer with 64MB of RAM and built-in Bluetooth called the waysmall 200ax-bt that's just 83mm x 36mm x 15mm. [Via TRFJ]
Read MoreWe all mourned when Sony broke the news that due to sluggish sales they were halting sales of their Clie line of Palm-powered handhelds everywhere except Japan, but apparently Sony execs, who always make the right decision about everything, are thinking about bringing the Clie back to the States, only this time running on the Pocket PC or Symbian operating systems. Not entirely impossible, but with the overall market for PDAs flat (and/or shrinking depend on who you ask) it seems like if they're gonna get back into the game it'd be with some kind of high-end Sony smartphone (which would make sense if they're considering the Symbian OS, though how they'd avoid directly competing with Sony Ericsson is beyond us) or maybe some kind of multimedia handheld like the ones HP is currently pimping.
Read MoreThose of us who bought Doom 3 have woken up in a cruel world. A world where an Intel 3.2 Ghz, Radeon 9700 Pro with 512 mb RAM rig cannot run their most-anticipated game. Well, okay, we can run it. But we can't get it to show anything better than 800x600 with medium quality graphics. It's a harsh reality that the game is designed for next-gen computers. But those of us who had hopes that our rigs would eke out a good speed are dismayed. It looks like the next purchase will have to be a $500 card. My performance was so bad that I won't touch the game until I save enough pennies for an x800. This piece outlines what you need. Take heed. The rumors of Doom 3's hardware harshness are true. Indeed, the minimum specs are as scary as the game itself.
Read MoreIf you have an older G3 Mac or want to use any old USB 2.0 webcam with iChat instead of buying an iSight, try the iChatUSBCam, a new add-on application that will enable you to do just that. We have a few old Macs and some webcams we're going to love trying out with this.
Read MoreSometimes a handheld comes out of left field and sort of blindsides you - the Tiqit is one of those. It's been so long since we'd heard anything about it that we'd figured they'd just quietly faded away, something which isn't totally unheard of for a startup. But not so! The Tiqit is alive and well, sort of. Like the OQO, it's a handheld computer that runs on Windows XP (though it'll also run Linux and Unix), but has a pathetically slow CPU (just 300MHz, or slower than most regular PDAs these days). Yeah, it has a full 56-key keyboard and a mouse stick with left/right buttons, but it's awfully thick and heavy, weighing in at a hefty 1.25 pounds. If we're lucky the next version will be slimmer, trimmer, and sport some built-in WiFi; assuming that the Tiqit survives long enough to see a second edition.
Read MoreWe'll be pretty happy if the next iMac looks a little like this, which is saying something because we don't usually get very worked up about all-in-one PCs very much. The TG LLUON LNLA11-1 has a 2.8GHz P4, a 17-inch LCD, 120GB hard drive, 802.11g, and integrated TV and DVD. We like, we like. And yeah, it will probably cost more than the new iMac too (they usually do, once they start looking too good to be a PC), with prices starting at $1,700 and going up to $2050 US. [Via Akihabara News]
Read MoreWe'd dismiss this as just some Mickey Mouse machine, but the Disney Dream Desk PC literally is a Mickey Mouse machine, just one that's aimed at pre-teens (at least the ones young enough to not be embarrassed to have one of these in their room when their friends come over). It's got the signature Mickey Mouse ears that double as speakers and more whimsical styling than you'll find in most PCs, but otherwise it falls into the lower end of the spectrum: a 2.66GHz Celeron processor, a 40GB hard drive, and 256MB of RAM. Should be out later this month with a retail price of $599, and a whole line of matching Dream Desk peripherals like a printer, game controller, and a digital camera.
Read MoreSeiko Epson has come up with a 5 x 3.2 x 1.3 mm gyro sensor for use in anti-shake systems for digital cameras and cameraphones. They're cranking up mass production in December, so it shouldn't be too long before cameraphones get yet another step closer to digicams. We kind of hope they consider using the sensor for something fun like controlling games as well, though.
Read MoreToshiba officially announced that they're getting ready to mass-produce a 60GB version of their tiny 1.8-inch hard drive, which is the same one used in the iPod and other MP3 players. This would be big news, except that Toshiba did a pretty good job of pissing off Apple back in June when some product manager accidentally let slip that these were on the way (and that Apple had ordered a whole bunch of them). So yeah, there's a 60GB iPod on the way for sure, just probably not until right around the end of year at the earliest, and if we had to guess, we'd say Steve Jobs will probably introduce it at Macworld next January.
Read MoreiPoding did something we do with most of our gadgets, immediately take it apart. iPoding took apart the new click wheel 4g iPod and posted some pictures, all of which are feeding the speculation about those possible new iPod features that haven't been announced yet. [Via Cult of Mac]
Read MoreNot that we really expect anyone to much care, but Iomega is coming out with a FireWire version of their REV drive, you know, the one that uses those swappable 35GB disks that cost about sixty bucks each. The original version of the REV drive which came out back in April only supported USB 2.0 and ATAPI.
Read MoreWe tried out that new caller ID spoofing service meant for law enforcement agencies, private investigators and collection agencies. We were able to make calls pretending to be from satan (666-666-6666) as well as from pi (3141592653), fake movie people (555-555-5555) and lastly, Tommy Tutone (867-5309). How did we do this? With a new service from Star38.com. We interviewed their CEO, who explains how this all works and more. Read on...
Read MoreJust like with regular spammers, Verizon is discovering that suing a text message spammer doesn't necessarily accomplish anything (though we bet it feels really good). They just won an injunction in federal court against Jacob Brown, who had been sending literally millions of spam text messages to Verizon subscribers, but he never bothered to show up in court and has pretty much disappeared completely, which is a pretty good sign that he probably won't bother paying attention to a court order. [Via TechDirt]
Read MoreA new worm is spreading that's got eyes and ears. Upon infecting your PC the Rbot-GR worm goes straight for webcams and microphones, meaning that if your setup is infected and your webcam is plugged in, an attacker can look in on you without you even knowing it (somehow we had this idea that having strangers watch you was what webcams were always for). Besides the voyeuristic stuff, the worm can also gather registration info and steal PayPal passwords, but don't fret, so far Rbot-GR hasn't been particularly widespread.
Read MoreUnscrupulous cellphone dealers in the Phillipines are taking advantage of people's fears about viruses and charging people 500 to 1000 pesos (around 9 to 18 dollars) to remove the Caribe virus from their Series 60 phones. Keep in mind that Caribe isn't much more than a proof of concept virus that does nothing other than use Bluetooth to find other phones to infect. That does slow down the phone a bit, but there's no data loss or snooping or whatever. In fact it's pretty easy to get rid of the virus for yourself with a file manager application so don't get suckered into paying someone else to do it for you.
Read MoreJust to remind everyone out there who uses a Palm that you're just as susceptible to viruses, worms, trojans, and other badness as your Pocket PC and Smartphone toting brethren, some developer created a new proof-of-concept trojan (i.e. it isn't self-propagating, so you have to be foolish enough to either install it yourself or open it as an attachment to an email) called Sierpenski's Triangle Trojan 1.0 that deletes all of the internal memory of handhelds running on the Palm operating system. Not the first one of these for the Palm OS, but with more and more smartphones expected to follow in the footsteps of the Treo, this certainly isn't the last, either. [Via Mobileslash]
Read MoreOk, so maybe it was a bit of an overstatement when a lot of people made when they said DVD Jon "cracked" the Airport Express (we're surely not innocent of this). But we stand by the statement that he hacked it—He did! He opened up unintended functionality, so we'll call that a hack, even if his process did turn out to be more than a little anti-climactic from a technical standpoint. The boys at gadgetwhore have explained exactly what DVD Jon really did: expose the non-secret, public crypto key used for streaming data to the Airport. If you don't follow, their analogy is pretty good: it's "very much like equating finding a house key on the street with burglary". So he didn't break down the door, he just gave us all a copy of the key that Apple left around. Either way, thanks DVD Jon! You're still the man!
Read MoreIn a totally unbrilliant case of taking this whole viral marketing thing a little too far, marketing firm CE Europe thought that sending people text messages that read, "Outbreak: I'm infecting you with t-virus, my code is ******. Forward this to 60022 to get your own code and chance to win prizes. More at t-virus.co.uk." was a good idea. Turns out they were trying to promote the impending release of the new Resident Evil movie, but the result was a lot of freaked out people who might have been hearing lately about how viruses were starting to show up in cellphones. Yeah, it's pretty obvious when you read the whole message that it's basically spam, but you know how these things work. [Via Textually.org]
Read MoreFor anyone really obsessed with security, the aptly-named PC Lock will help assuage your fears. The thing consists of an RF (we think) base station and a portable unit which doubles as an ID badge holder, and whenever one is taken out of range of the other the PC locks up, thus preventing your co-workers from sabotaging your desktop picture with something terribly inappropriate (and it'll also keep those corporate spies at bay, too). The only thing is, what's up with the serial connector? Do they even still make those or is this some holdover from an earlier era?
Read MoreThe whole thing smacks of a bored journalist blowing a story way out of proportion during a slow news month, but a South Korean newspaper is reporting about a new problem affecting bookstores there: students taking illegal pics of the pages they need from expensive textbooks (to write reports or study or whatever) rather than actually buying the whole book. Not that it's not happening or anything, just that you'd think students would just hit up a library where they actually have photocopiers right there waiting for you. [Via SmartMobs]
Read MoreYou know, if this thing wasn't real, we'd think it was one of the funniest joke-sites we've ever seen. For $29.95 you can have "GUARANTEED SECURITY" in the NETimer. (Being that security can never be guaranteed, we're quite glad a company has finally found a way to guarantee it! We hope they secure the patents for guaranteed security fast.) Basically, it's a timer that turns off your network connection at night, so the evil hackers won't come and steal your Outlook contacts and Fantasy Football spreadsheets. And you know it's got to be good, because Steve Gibson endorses it (that would be the guy with the reputation for being one of the most egotistical snake-oil peddlers in the computer industry). But if you're feeling a little sheepish about the investment, we have another suggestion for protecting your computer during the dark hours of the night. It goes something like turning it off.
Read MoreTurns out your photocopier needs virus protection, too, at least if you've bought one of those fancy new networked ones with an Ethernet port. Hackers have figured out how to exploit the PostScript language a lot of these multifunction devices use to communicate and a lot of them use embedded versions of Windows which makes them vulnerable to worms and viruses. What it means to have MS Blaster on your photocopier isn't exactly explained, but hackers could potentially use a security hole to steal any sensitive data that might be stored on these things. And we were starting to wonder why one of the copiers here at Engadget HQ keeps spitting out copies of that awful goatse.cx photo.
Read MoreForbes reports on a German security consultant who's worked out how to hack the RFID tags on products using a PDA with a tag reader and change the price information that'll be read at the cash register. This sounds like another example of publicity-seeking under the guise of pointing out a legitimate security issue; as is pointed out later in the article, the only encryption available for RFID so far is 8-bit, which is precisely why it's not being used to tag products in shops at the moment (that, and the fact that the cost per tag is still too high). Another flaw in the hack is that the approach involves replacing the information in one product tag with the data from a cheaper one, so unless the checkout's automated someone is going to notice when that whole fillet of beef tries to claim that it's a carton of milk. [Via the ITU Strategy and Policy Unit Newslog]
Read MoreGet that little lead bag for your cellphone ready; long distance Bluesnarfing (aka using Bluetooth to hijack a cellphone or PDA) is here. An Austrian Bluetooth researcher in Santa Monica Bay recently used an antenna and a modified dongle (don't do this at home, kids) to steal the entire address book as well as send an SMS from a target phone 1.08 miles away. (Looks like they could have also used the BlueSniper we reported on yesterday.) Along the way they saw dozens of Bluetooth devices that were similarly vulnerable, although they say they focused only on that one phone. Bluetooth-enabled cellphone makers (we're looking in your general direction, Nokia) are denying that Bluesnarfing is a serious risk because it has to be done in such close proximity to the victim, but it looks like that theory's out the window... [UPDATE: We've just been contacted by the Flexilis team who conducted the experiment in conjunction with Martin Herfurt, the Austrian researcher. They organized the event with Martin. Thanks, John!]
Read MoreAlso shown off at Defcon this past week, you can add the BlueSniper to add to your arsenal alongside your Sniper Yagi rifle. Like that other wireless firearm, the BlueSniper consists of a rifle stock with a scope and a yagi antenna attached to it. The team behind this one claims the BlueSniper can be used pick out and attack Bluetooth-enabled devices from up to a kilometer away, and is powerful enough to detect them even through building walls, but not quite powerful enough for busting ghosts.
Read MoreCASPIAN is a grass-roots consumer group fighting retail surveillance schemes since 1999. With members in all 50 U.S. states and more than 15 nations across the globe, CASPIAN seeks to educate consumers about marketing strategies that invade their privacy and to encourage privacy-conscious shopping habits across the retail spectrum. On their Moblog you can see 4 old guys protesting.
Read MoreCDV Software has partnered up with Gamespot to release the multiplayer demo for its upcoming strategy game Codename: Panzers. The demo will be available tomorrow, but can be reserved today. Yes, it requires registration, but if you want the game sooner than later, buck it up. The World War II title supports up to four players, who can go deathmatch or team up against two other players. The demo will include two maps, "Russian Village" and "Stalingrad." A couple of single-player demos are already available, but this will be your first chance to try out the multiplayer angle.
Read MoreLooks like the boys at Tom's Networking were able to hack the Linksys NSLU2, their USB-storage to network bridge that runs Linux. The intention was to get it to run not only as a file server, but also to act as a print server or any number of other things you can think up with a USB interface and a network (we've got a few, that's for sure). Unfortunately, after they got in they didn't seem interested in showing us anything they were able to accomplish, but it's the trip, not the destination, right? Someone give us a call when they've got that thing running folding@home.
Read MoreWe were waiting for a big player to come along and blow the whistle on VoIP security sooner or later, and the NY Times indeed has. But, as usual, their analysis comes off much more like an alarmist analyst than a realistic security prognosis. The premise is that with VoIP, now voice networks will experience the same security issues as data networks. Well, yes and no—in theory, VoIP packets could be intercepted and pieced together to recreate phone conversations; but in reality, almost all the big players (i.e. any of the ones you'd actually use), from Skype to Cisco to Vonage to Mitel incorporate encryption to prevent this. We're not saying encryption is the end-all-be-all eavesdropper countermeasure (there's still the ever pesky man in the middle attack, and so on), but c'mon, let's get real here. As far as these things go, we're not in all that bad of shape as of yet. We feel much safer sending our voice data encrypted over the internet than through a PATRIOT-ridden analog line, anymore. [Via TechDirt]
Read MoreApple may not have to bother suing RealNetworks after all, since it sounds like RealNetwork's efforts to "hack" the iPod so it'll play songs downloaded from their online music store might not have been as successful as they'd hoped. Yeah, we saw RealNetworks CEO Rob Glaser on CNN the other day showing it off, so we're sure they've gotten to work just fine for them, but out in the real world Julio Ojeda-Zapata actually tried this out and found that while Real's software detected both his new 4G iPod and his iPod mini just fine, he couldn't get any of the songs he bought from RealNetworks' store to work on either player. Anyone else take the plunge and been successful?
Read MoreHaven't jumped on the iPod bandwagon and upset that iRiver is still slow with its firmware updates? If you've got a Japanese H-series player, an independent group has released a firmware customizer, which lets you mess around with the look and feel of your player. Of course it could also completely mess up your player (and void the warranty), so play at your own risk, but if you're the impatient (or adventurous) type you could give it a go and hope for the best. [update] As you can see from the comments, the author says its cool for US versions as well. And here it is thanks stripwax
Read MoreJosh's second report from DefCon: Having trouble accessing that corporate network due to their new WiFi-proof wallpaper? Try a WiFi attack droid. Some clever hackers at the Shmoo Group made a device using a Sharp Zaurus, a 100 milliwatt Sanio wireless card, and some wires that fit into a tissue box (or another similarly-sized innocuous object. The idea is that you surreptitiously drop this thing off in an area with a WiFi network that you can't access and it sends a 900 MHz signal via a serial port transceiver to pass on the network. With a good antenna this means you can get online from as far as 40 miles away, though with the antenna shown you should be able to get about a mile or so of sneaky wireless access. A lithium battery should power this thing for up to four hours or so. [Thanks, Eric and Pablo]
Read MoreJosh is at DefCon this weekend and sends back his first report on what he's found there: What looks like an M-16 with a huge silencer instead of a barrel? The Sniper Yagi, of course. As likely to get you thrown in jail as logged onto a WiFi network, the Sniper Yagi replaces the barrel and firing mechanism with a 14.6 dBi yagi antenna and can get you online at up to ten miles — assuming your aim is good (playing lots of SilentScope helps). With dual Sony-Camcorder batteries this thing will lasts for up to eight hours, but really it's all about using a crazy looking gun to get online. A full How-To will be available, but if you get busted don't come crying to us.
Read MoreDespite the fact that Panasonic's latest webcam/server bears a certain resemblance to a character from South Park (don't worry, we're sure there's a warranty should the worst happen), we rather like its stumpy looks and the addition of 802.11g to the previous model's 802.11b, even if the camera is the 320,000 pixel resolution that seems to be standard on these things. Can be accessed via a PC (video streaming) or phone browser (still images only), with pan and tilt control available from both. It also detects infrared and will move the camera to point at anything that its IR sensor picks up. Should sell in the low Y40,000s (say $360-$400).
Read MoreCould someone explain to us why it took over twenty years for someone to get around to weaving a Pac-Man floor rug? P.S. - Thanks to Wille for the better pic. [Via near near future]
Read MoreEww, go play guess the thing: is it a dog toy or "marital aid". We're not sure what is more upsetting, the fact that we got most of these wrong or that there's a website devoted to this.
Read MoreAs long as you're adding dubs to your bike, you might as well get it properly tricked out and add the Down Low Glow to it as well. [Via TRFJ]
Read MoreEven better, Noel Jackson found a pic on WireImage of Paris Hilton holding a Sidekick II at T-Mobile's launch party for the new handheld (yeah, it's a slow Saturday, go watch the Olympics or something).
Read MoreJapanese ISP Livedoor came out a while back with a pretty slender idea for a service: you'd send them your CDs and they'd rip them into mp3s and send them back on CD-Rs. Whatever, we thought, and moved on. Then began the intimations that all wasn't well; after some downtime for "system maintenance" the service reappeared with a check box for you to confirm that you'd obtained the permission of the copyright holder to copy their work, plus links to the RIAA-like organizations who handle licensing and collect royalties. It transpires that while presumably the Man is still gracious enough to allow you to rip your own CDs, you can't use a commercial service to do it for you without getting the OK of whoever owns the recording. Sounds like a fairly tight-sphinctered law to us, but anyway. In mid-July, Livedoor pulled the plug on the service. Why? "No comment", they say, but we assume the industry leaned on them because they weren't going to trust people to really ask for permission before they clicked the checkbox. Those big nasties.
Read MoreWow, we thought we were badass when we attached a camera to our helmet and skateboarded down the street, but check out these videos of cyclists zipping around NYC in traffic while filming. [via waxy.org]
Read MoreOK, this might be an obligatory shot of a Japanese Honda car model, but she's not clapping those red-leathered hands for nothing. Honda just announced their development of the world's first pedestrian-warning system, named the Intelligent Night Vision System. The setup uses two far-infrared cameras on the front bumper to detect heat emmitting objects in the vehicle's path. The driver then receives visual and audio warnings in hopes they don't plow over that guy wandering in the middle of the road. The system will be available in the Honda Legend in Japan in the fall.
Read MoreNecessity is the mother of invention, or so we're told. Schneider National Inc. needed to know what the hell was going on with their trailers so they devised a tracking system with Qualcomm to figure it out. The new trailers include sensors to tell if they're empty or full, as well as sensors to detect if they're connected to a truck or riding on a railroad car. All this data is paired with a tracking system that transmit this data over cellular networks. Makes Smoky and the Bandit seem kind of primitive, doesn't it?
Read MoreVarious parts of the UK are conducting trials of the Alcolock, a breathalizer-type system that attaches to a car's ignition and requires the driver to blow into a tube before starting the car. If the blood alcohol content is too high, the car won't start. It's being targeted at those previously convicted of drunk driving, possibly as a way to regain their licenses sooner. On a side note, we wouldn't mind an alternative ignition system based on this. Though just the breathing tube alone, minus the suspicion. Put your key in and blow the breath of life into your car. Think of the power.
Read MoreIn an effort to get rid of those loud gas-powered mini-bikes that are all the rage right now, the Massachusetts Legislature is considering a bill that would lump Segways into the same category as the little crotch rockets. For Segway owners this would mean no sidewalks, no one under 16 and not going over 20 mph (not that that would be a problem since the Segway's top speed is 12.5 mph). UPDATE: Eric Fleming from Segway writes in the comments that the Boston Globe and Associated Press got this wrong, and that the law in fact wouldn't apply to the Segway HT.
Read MoreHeard those OnStar commercials on the radio where they play back "actual" calls made to the service? Well, The Morning News managed to get their perfectly-manicured mitts on transcripts for some of the service conversations that didn't make the cut: OnStar: Hello, OnStar. Customer: Hey, so, I got an important package in the trunk, but I think I locked my keys in with it when I was dispatching...er...loading it. OnStar: Not a problem, sir, I'm unlocking the trunk now. Customer: [sound of trunk opening] Whooo...Jesus, that stinks! OnStar: Are you OK, sir? Customer: Yeah, yeah. I just got to get rid of this package as soon as possible. Say, can you give me directions to an abandoned quarry, or maybe some remote wooded spot where I could leave my package? OnStar: Sure thing. I'm showing that there's an empty shaft at an old silver mine three miles southwest of your location. Customer: Perfect! That's great, perfect. I'm going to need a car wash, too. Someplace discreet, if you know what I'm saying. OnStar: Absolutely, sir. You and OnStar are speaking the same language.
Read MoreIf you think all Segway owners are tree hugging hippies, think again, my friend. This Segway owner had some handcarved wood fenders and wheel covers specially made for his Segway. Update: Turns out they're actually airbrushed, with lots of chemicals and earth harming stuff, take that mother nature!
Read MoreAfter taking a look at their puffy aluminum designs for 2005, it's no surprise Nissan invested big bucks in a new-fangled design review room for checking out their prototypes. The centerpiece of the room is a 5.5 meter-wide "power wall" which can display life-size car designs in three-dimensions using a complex twin projector computer system (it's even able to rotate the designs 360-degrees so they can be examined from all angles). The room also has the added bonus of helping replace the expensive, time time-consuming method of building life-size clay models with something that is a little more likely to impress the ladies.
Read MoreThere's a new theft protection system on the block, and while it's not quite the car-thief ejector seat we were hoping for, it seems to be working. This new security is in the form of grain-of-sand-sized laser-etched dots that get spray glued to pretty much any part of a new car worth stealing. They glow under black light and show the Vehicle Identification Number when examined under a 30-power microscope. The company behind it, DataDot Technology, claims they are responsible for a 95% reduction in cars stolen by professional thieves in Australia (we're not sure we buy that, but whatever) by making the parts more easily identifiable and thus not worth selling. Of course this doesn't stop other thieves from stealing your car for doing donuts, but hey, nothing's perfect.
Read MoreThe Smartruck III, the Army's newest command-and-control vehicle, has a veritable cornucopia of high-tech features that put nearly any Bond car to shame. It's got such crowd-pleasers as ballistic protection, smoke and tear gas launchers, a high-resolution 360-degree camera, onboard UAV control, a V-6 engine, run-flat tires and several computers with a satellite connection. It also features such creature comforts as air conditioning, an adjustable height air suspension and a full-reclining sleeper seat. Oh, and let's not forget the remote controlled .50 caliber machine gun with sniper detection capabilities for when you absolutely must shoot a big hole in something. All this in a stylish package that's prefect for cruising around both cities and battlefields. [Thanks, Chris]
Read MoreNot sure we like this, but it turns out that even the grand dame of gadgets, the Wall Street Journal's Walt Mossberg, came to pretty much the same conclusions as we did back in June about BMW and Apple's first attempt at adding an iPod to the driving experience: "For all its limitations, the BMW adapter is a welcome development. But it's frustrating that the car industry can't do better." We're sure we'll get back to finding him crotchety and grumpy soon enough.
Read MoreIf you're in Seattle this Sunday you can help send off the folks Segwaying across America for that documentary about Segwaying across America. They'll be making their first official stop at the Red Door Ale House Sunday evening, and leaving the next morning at 8am to begin their journey to very slowlytraverse 17 states.
Read MoreRich and eccentric? Care about the environment? Like funny-looking vehicles? Commuter Cars Tango 600 high performance electric two-seater contraption could find a place in your heart. It's got two 1,000lb/ft electric motors (one for each rear wheel), goes 0 to 60 in four seconds, has an SCCA- and NHRA-regulation-passing rollcage (it can take a 200mph crash; try that on your crotch rocket), excellent stability and seems to frequently win in autocross events. It just costs $85,000, which is where the rich part comes in.
Read MoreThe National Transportation Safety Board recommended yesterday that all US cars be required to have black boxes like those used in airplanes. Privacy advocates are freaking out because it's not clear who would own the resulting data, but you don't need to be John Gilmore to realize that these things will make it a little harder to argue your way out of a speeding ticket. In any case it's sort of a moot point; the NTSB recommendation came two months after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (which has the actual authority here) said it didn't see a need to require them because automakers were adding them to more models on their own. It looks like black boxes are already coming, required or not, and somebody out there is going to make a mint doing after-market "de-installations" of these things.
Read MoreWhat sounds a lot like the Microsoft skin patent, as well as the same tech tested by NTT Docomo, a German startup, Ident Technology, is touting Skinplex for human skin as transmission medium. While we thought Microsoft was pushing the envelope, Ident Technology says (in that overly aggressive German-way), "Ident Technology already has the key patents in hand." Skinplex operates at 195 kHk, a license-free frequency, and can be used for authorization requirements, like unlocking car doors, anti-theft devices or protecting portable electronics. The user wears an identifier on his/her body and then touches a receiver which is connected to say the car door. Ident is looking to compete with the RFID market since they say Skinplex will be more convenient and less expensive.
Read MoreWe know the volume of cars could be increased dramatically by computer-operated driving systems, but physicist L. Craig Davis recently published a study showing that most non-accident traffic is caused by, well, bad drivers—their excessive slow-downs cause ripple effects in the order of exponential magnitudes. Thankfully, he believes this could be prevented by a simple adaptive-cruise control system, which if one in five cars had, the flow of traffic would be dramatically improved. Instead of slamming the brakes, cars would instead absorb slowing traffic with the buffer of space between them, curbing the rippling traffic aftermath. Not bad, and when something accident-related does happen we can always deploy the robots. [Via TechDirt]
Read MoreDevising yet another ingenious way for people to accidentally kill themselves (or as the British euphemistically call it "death by misadventure"-damn you, British, and your clever way with words!), Trek Aerospace is working on a line of personal Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) aircraft, including the Dragonfly UMR-1, and our personal fave, the Springtail EFV-4A (pictured above). Let's just hope they can build one that goes more than 18 inches off the ground. [Thanks, aeo]
Read MoreHoping to make next year's Grand Challenge robotic road race a little more grand and little less of a, um, total freaking fiasco, DARPA, the government agency sponsoring the event, has set up some new ground rules. No one even came close to bagging the million bucks that was offered as a prize this year (they're doubling it to $2 million next year), and so rather than face a repeat of this year's race, which mainly consisted of robotic vehicles blowing up, crashing into walls, or simply failing to get more than a few hundred feet past the starting line, they're going to require teams to submit some video demonstrating their robot's ability to do something other than self-destruct. [Via Slashdot.org]
Read MoreIt seems that the Brits are, unsurprisingly trying to save money in their quest to ticket carpool lane cheaters. Actually having police do enough monitoring to act as a real deterrent is pretty costly, so they decided to let a camera do the work. In pursuit of that goal, Laser Optical Engineering has developed an infrared camera that exploits a small range of the infrared spectrum that is absorbed by human skin but reflected by all the non-organic parts of a car. This camera will be combined with an image recognition software to help eliminate the identification of other body parts as a second occupant, as well as shore up shoddy performance in lower light conditions (read: anything but bright sunlight; which is reputed to in short supply in England, isn't it?). We see a problem here, since windshields absorb infrared light, a "highly sophisticated – and vastly expensive" camera would do the trick. And here we thought they were trying to save money.
Read MoreAccording to recent reports, Acclaim has shut down its home office in Glen Cove, NY without any official word on its intention of filing for Chapter 11. Both the Austin, TX and Manchester (UK) offices were closed earlier, with rumors that employees had not been paid for the month of August. Now, while this looks to spell certain doom for the once great publisher, one analyst seems to think the contrary, "[Acclaim] will merely declare to keep their creditors at bay... They're not that bad off... I think that the rumors of their demise are greatly exaggerated." Could this mean we may still get a shot at 100 Bullets after all?
Read MoreNo, it's not a new upgrade of the classic fighter, it's the latest addition to 1up's 'The Essential 50' or "the most important games ever made". The game that singlehandly revived the early-90s arcade scene, hails at #32. In my humble opinion, this is a bit fo low blow, but then again, I'm perhaps too young to understand the significance of games like 'Rogue' and 'M.U.L.E.'. I'm saying, Street Fighter II changed a lot of little boys' lives, and I for one, will always carry a soft spot in my heart for the World Warrior. At any rate, it's a top-notch article documenting the history of the game, from its roots to its progeny. If you're feeling nostaglic take a minute and visit the link below.
Read MoreThough this BBC article is a little short, it does dare to touch on the possibilities of political perspectives in gaming. The piece mentions some of the tamer uses of games for social commentary. Toting titles like Tax Invaders, where Dubya fights for our right to lower taxes, seems to miss the point. Games are an art form. They can lead you through a place (Myst) or an idea (Black & White), making you see yourself, or the world, from a different point of view. The BBC's example of Tamatipico, a game where you are the boss of a small company, is probably the best example of how games can show us the world in a new way. The true measure of a man is what kind of boss he is. This is a new industry, so it's good to see any kind of discussion along these lines, so kudos to BBC for trying.
Read MoreBungie's founding father, Alex Seropian, has found a publisher for his new studio, Wideload Games, and their Halo-based first project. Aspyr Media has agreed to publish the upcoming action title built from the Halo engine and expected for release on PC and Xbox. Aspyr holds a leading share in the Mac game publishing market, and is duely excited about the prospects of publishing this caliber of game. As for the game itself, little else is known, but we can expect some details to leak as production should now begin to really take off.
Read MoreSouthern Methodist University and WomenGamers have teamed up to offer the first women's scholarship for the school's digital games education program in Dallas. "Game development studios and publishers must learn to capitalize more effectively on the increasing numbers of women playing games. We believe the most important step toward achieving that goal is for game developers' staffing choices to be reflective of the growing market of female gamers" (Executive Director, Peter Raad).
Read MoreWe don't really know what to make of this one, but it seems intriguing. Koreans will be enjoying (or not) a new gaming phone called the PH-S3500. The device will offer the player a unique control system that will work especially well with 3D games. The phone will offer four directional keys and two-handed control. No word on which games will be available. Actually there's not much word on the thing at all, that we can tell. But it does look sweet. Hopefully some of our Korean-speaking friends can check out the telecom's site and clue us in on what the PH-S3500 has to offer.
Read MoreSeveral weeks ago, Sammy & SNK announced they would unveil a new Atmoiswave-based arcade game at the 42nd Amusement Show in Japan next month, called Neo Geo Battle Coliseum. The official teaser site reveals that it's a tag-style fighting game featuring an extensive catalogue of NeoGeo characters—how many more of these can they possibly get away with? At any rate, a few screenshots have been leaked, albeit a bit blurred since they were illegally scanned. But you can definately make out Nakoruru (and Mamahaha flying above her) from Samurai Showdown...
Read MoreIn an interview with BBC news, Electronic Arts' VP of Corporate Communications, Jeff Brown, suggested that next-generation consoles will have a negative impact on the videogame industry. According to calculations, it may cost up to 200% more to develop games for the PS3 or Xbox 2 than it does for current systems. What does that mean exactly? Well, to be sure, EA isn't really complaining because (at an estimated $15 billion market value) the company won't have any trouble covering the costs. But for smaller third party developers, next-gen development may be out of the picture (without selling out), forcing comsumers with an ever-narrowing choice of games—and also a lack of healthy genre competition between companies. Ladies and gents, welcome to capitalism...
Read MoreThe upcoming Splinter Cell sequel will ceratinly be the best-looking game ever on X-box. Take a look at the latest screenshots on 3D Gamers and try to argue with that. Numbers one through three and number five seem to be the newest ones, while the rest are familiar (though they could be variations on familiar scenes). Sure, the characters look a little stiff, but the way the shadows dance off their faces should hide that. We can't wait to see this game in motion a little more. The clips we've seen are cut like a music video so we can't get a good look at the action. Usually, that would make us fear that the developer is trying to hide something from us. It's clearly not the case here.
Read MoreHell hath no fury like a gamer scorned. Word is beginning to leak out that Fable, the much-touted RPG from one of Peter Molyneaux's teams, may not be the epic we hoped it would be. These are just rumors, mind you, but the rumors are growing. A lot of the title's press has been based around the sheer size of the game. You were supposed to be able to play a character from birth to death, in a world that could handle the multitude of adventures in-between. We have faith that the team would never deliver something that felt like a quickie. Since the title has gone gold, we'll find out soon enough.
Read MoreIt looks like Black Wolf has just announced the latest fusion-concept destined for obscurity, or rather the bargain bin. What happens when you throw a bunch of Anime 'babes' into the local bowling alley? Well that's easy... Anime Bowling Babes. As it turns out, Bowling Babes will feature some "stunningly realistic physics"—we take it that's in reference to the bowling aspect of the game. Along with this Simulation Mode, the game will feature an Arcade Mode with exaggerated physics and special effects. Black Wolf has also added multiplayer (up to four) and a series of unlockables. No word yet on an exact release date.
Read MoreOn Monday, Acclaim will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. After news of massive layoffs throughout all sectors of the company, one source claimed, "This is now the end." Indeed, Acclaim's Texas office has already been shutdown, and 130 employees from the Manchester studio have been sent home without pay. At this time, the New York office is still operational, and we can expect the official announcement from them on Monday.
Read MoreA new demo is out for the tennis game, Top Spin. The screenshots for the title are certainly impressive, but we still yearn for the day when the old Dreamcast Tennis game can be matched. There was just something so simple and elegant about the controls. Top Spin will let you fill the shoes of today's tennis stars. But, curiously, the developer also claims you can develop your own style as you progress. We're not sure how you can have a game with a Venus Williams who plays like a Steffi Graf. Maybe the demo will give us a clue.
Read MoreThe official website for Burnout 3 is now up. It's pretty much the standard fair (features, screenshots, clips, soundtrack info, etc.), but worth a look. EA's also offering a code to enter in your shopping cart for free shipping, if you're too lazy to take yourself out to the nearest retailer come September 7. Let the hype machine roll. (Use the link below to visit the website)
Read MoreA Q&A for with the Online Community Lead for Matrix Online is available for your quick perusal. Some of the questions near the end of the piece get a little personal, but there are some good tidbits thrown in. For instance, the community tools are being tested with the game in the closed beta as we speak. Considering the strong community element in the Matrix Trilogy, there are many questions about how the game will let us interact. One method may be the ability to chat with AIM when you're jacked into the system (though the Lead wouldn't give much detail on this). They're keeping stuff pretty hushhush right now, as the programmers pound away for these last few months of development. ?a
Read MoreAs it turns out, BloodRayne will not be the only videogame vixen to be making her Playboy debut in the upcoming October issue. It looks like a number of characters will be jumping on the bandwagon and into the CGI photospread. Joing the sultry blood-sucker will be the likes of Mileena (Mortal Kombat), Nina (Tekken), Kurenai (Red Ninja), Tala (Darkwatch), and Luba Licious (Leisure Suit Larry). Sorry to disappoint, but not all the girls will be baring it all. But hey, you're just reading it for the article, right?
Read MoreThe Adventure Company has announced that Lee Sheldon, famed mystery writer, has signed on for the first title in a planned five-game Agatha Christie series. Sheldon has had plenty of prior experience in the videogame industry, contributing to works like URU: Ages Beyond Myst, Wild Wild West: The Steel Assassin and Ripley's Believe It or Not! : The Riddle of Master Lu. He's also worked in television including some writing credits for Murder She Wrote. The rest of the development team and the specific book to be adapted will be announced in September. The Adventure Company plans to release this first game by the fall of next year.
Read MoreVolition (of THQ) is developing a new Punisher game that has pratically nothing to do with the movie. In fact, it scraps the forgetable plot altogether, opting for a "ruthless, brutal, visceral third-person shooting experience that revolves around torture, interrogation, dismemberment, and all of the Hong Kong style action that lies inbetween." Hmmm... Really, the only noticable resemblance between the game and the movie will be the voice of Frank Castle. Yes, Tom Jane will lend his voicing talents, but not his likeness. In case you missed who Tom (or Thomas) Jane is, well, he played the title roll in last April's disappointing comic book adaptation. But fear not, from the sound of it, Volition plans to bring nothing but punishment.
Read MoreWe weren't exactly dying for a Bluetooth-enabled golf club, but this week's Circuits section of the New York Times has a story about people using wireless Internet-connected sports gear so they can "play" golf or tennis or whatever against someone who may be thousands of miles away. It's not exactly like the real thing (we don't see a totally decentralized Olympic Games anytime soon) but it does let you assess and compare your performance with friends who might simply live too far away for some head-to-head competition. [Thanks, Mike]
Read MoreSet to correspond with the release of the upcoming Mega Man action-RPG, Mega Man X: Command Mission, NubyTech is offering Mega Man-themed controllers for the PlayStation 2 & GameCube. The controllers are highlighted by their "innovative features" and "electric design" according to Nuby President Paul Chen. What exactly that means is a mystery for now since the official website displays only darkened silhouettes of the controllers. My guess would be a turbo button and some Mega Man decals. Still, Capcom's Todd Thorson assures us, "With the Mega Man X themed NubyTech products, fans of the series can fully immerse themselves in two great new Mega Man adventures this holiday season." If you're interested, the controllers should be in stores by late September.
Read MoreCrave Entertainment Group announced that Rob Dyer will be their new acting president and chief operating officer. Dyer is certainly "proven", having headed Crystal Dynamics for four years before negotiating its sale to Eidos, where he moved on to serve as President of North American operations there for six more years leading up to the present. In response to his new appointment, Dyer released a brief statement yesterday saying, "My goal is to use my experience and knowledge of the industry to help lead CEG through this period of growth as it evolves into a top tier entertainment distribution and publishing company."
Read MoreReady for another demo? The flood of free snacks continues with the release of Obscure: Learn about Fear. The download is a taste of the game that lets you follow a bunch of students as they stumble through a series of disappearances and odd events in their school. Based on the idiotic premise of most teen slasher movies, the game should offer a couple of thrills. And it sure beats a stick in the eye. Seriously, if you try it, let us know what you think. Gamers Hell was even kind enough to strip the file of its Direct X installer. We hate those.
Read MoreThe first official trailer for Chaos Theory was just released by Ubisoft. From the looks of it, Fisher seems to have done some training since we last met up with him-perhaps yoga classes. This doesn't look to be the stiff spy of old, as the trailer gives the impression that he'll be employing a lot more excessive (and deadly!) force this time around. You'll just have to see it to believe it.
Read MoreFor those of you with a need for speed in the morning, check out the Colin McRae 2005 demo. The upcoming game promises more cars and tracks, of course. Any sequel should do the same. But Colin McRae promises a nice mixture of the two. To advance in the game you'll need to drive a wide variety of vehicles on a wide variety of tracks. It's one thing to offer a variety of vehicles and courses, but to require them to advance is a nice touch. Look for the file dated August 23rd on the linked page for the demo download.
Read MoreNo, it's not a new strain of the infamous hallucinogenic drug, but rather the latest game in the acclaimed and highly addictive Metal Gear saga. Acid is being designed exclusively for the PSP, and looks to deviate from the series' standard. It's been labeled as a 'strategy game of some kind', but Kojima and the rest of the Konami staff have been shy about the details. Expect next month's Tokyo Game Show to answer a lot of questions. Stay tuned for future updates.
Read MoreIf you play a massively multiplayer online game like Everquest, or City of Heroes, you know how tough it is to gather resources or special items. That's part of the fun of the game. A few years ago, a trend started where people would sell their characters or items to other players on ebay for real money. The trend got so hot that companies started taking notice, and now do their best to monitor this kind of activity. But now the trend has transformed into a blossoming industry, "currency farming". Firms around the world are hiring workers to play MMOGs and gather resources, which are then sold to gamers who can afford this kind of thing. The dynamic seems to be that people in poor countries are playing online for people in rich countries, who want short-cuts to success. Nice.
Read MoreHere's a clip you have to see to believe. It turns out there's nothing funnier than a couple of kids playing Doom 3. There's some debate about whether the captured moment is real or not, but even if it isn't, it's awesome. Unfortunately, the clip has hammered the guy's server, so keep checking back at this link to see if someone has posted a mirror. It's worth the effort.
Read MoreGamespot has posted their latest impressions of World of Warcraft, the upcoming (ever-upcoming) massively multiplayer online game from Blizzard. The preview takes a look at some of the tweaks in the latest build of the public beta. A number of the details include refined transportation methods, graphic improvements and character re-designs. There's also a link to a new gameplay movie. Blizzard has certainly decided to go the cartoon-y route, but it looks like it's working.
Read MoreOver at GameSpy they're running a 'Designer Diary' series on LucasArts' upcoming GTA-esque Mercenaries. The latest feature, by Will Rosas, is a behind-the-scenes look at the artwork process for the game. Rosas starts will a brief breakdown of the team and their individual/group responsibilities. He then describes some of the difficulties of creating an environment that realistically portrays North Korea, including the characters and objects that populate that world. Rosas wraps up his 'diary' with a few words about the game's noteworthy special effects. All in all, it's a brief, yet interesting read for anyone who's curious about what goes into building a videogame from scratch. Use the link below to view the actual text.
Read MoreMaybe it's indicative of the summer slump, but recently LEGO Star Wars made quite an impression at several gaming conventions (including the San Diego Comic-Con & the Edinburgh International Games Festival), attracting enough attention to have big name publishers vying for its rights. It's now been confirmed that Eidos has bought the exclusive publishing rights for all territories outside of Japan. Development, for all major platforms, is being handled by Traveller's Tales—Amaze is working on the GBA version. LEGO Star Wars is set for release next April, coinciding with the release of the third film.
Read MoreMajesco and Playboy have reached a deal that will land the voluptuous blood-sucker—the star of BloodRayne and its upcoming sequel—on the October cover of Playboy Magazine. "Rayne is 100% topless and smokin' hot... This is a first in videogame history and trust us when we say that Rayne does not disappoint" (official website). It looks like Playboy decided to cut some corners, and rather than "touch-up" a real image, they've gone totally digital. Does that really turn anybody on? On second thought, forget we asked.
Read MoreThe upcoming Burnout 3, which should be a classic, will get a soundtrack that's custom-made for radio. The forty track CD will, in fact, mimick a radio station. The DJ for the game will be Los Angeles' DJ Stryker, and the rotation should emulate a standard day of listening to modern car tunes. Luckily, the tracks are of higher quality than most of the crap we get to listen to these days. Artists include Jimmy Eat World, The F-Ups and The Von Bondies. One thing that won't be different this time around is a lot of meaningless crashes with violent consequences and infinite pile-ups.
Read MoreThe years of waiting are coming to an end. Mere weeks after another A title launched, filling our nights with terror and giblets, now another inevitable hit has gone gold. The Sims 2 is off to the presses, where they may as well be printing money. The buzz on this one is as high as Doom 3, but a bit more mainstream. The last iteration of the game has broken all sales records on the PC, and holds the distinct honor of being the only game my gramma has played more than once. In celebration of the latest in The Sims family, let's all hold it in for just one more hour and see if we can pee in bed for the 100th time in a row.
Read MoreDuring the past year, Viacom CEO Sumner Redstone has increased his stake in Midway to over 70 percent. Although these moves were said to be independent of Viacom, Redstone recently filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, calling for a review of the company's expansion into videogames. However, analysts have been quick to dismiss the rumors, as Richard Greenfield (of Fulcrum Global Partners) expressed in Reuters, "Investors would look very dimly on an acquisition as the synergies are not that significant." Despite the doubt, Viacom's move into the industry would carry several key licenses with it, namely Nickelodeon and MTV.
Read MoreOver at GameCritics, Brad Gallaway got a chance to chat with Chuck McGee, creator of several homemade arcade cabinets. A lifelong gamer, Chuck got interested in building his own arcade machines when he stumbled across other's homemade blueprints while researching the MAME organization. As a technical professional (and lifelong gamer) he realized he had the skills and motivation to take on a project of his own. The results are quite impressive. Use the link below to check out the full interview, or click the picture to the right to head over to Chuck's website.
Read MoreThe granddaddy of all online warfare shooters is about to make another appearance on store shelves. Tribes: Vengeance has been spit-shined, rubbed down and given a big pep talk by its developers and should be ready for play soon. The game's official website is hopping with excitement, as the final days of development are here. The wife of the General Manager is the one who gives us the update, so you know they must be busy. "We are now putting the finishing touches on Tribes:Vengeance, " she writes. "Most of the artists have finished and the features are all in place. The programmers are working their butts off to fix bugs and the designers are ensuring that they wring every last gram of fun (hey, we are on the metric system out in Australia) out of the levels." We wish them luck.
Read MoreBreaking news out of Germany is that the Gametrak controller has won "Best of GC" at the Games Convention. Slashdot has picked up on the sotry so the Gametrak site is dead dead dead. However we tracked down this little blurb about the joystick, which you can check out until the mainstream press picks up on it. Not much to read here, but the thing came out of nowhere. It sounds like a good implementation of an old idea. We'll keep you posted.
Read MoreGamespot has scored the kind of exclusive that most of us would kill our computers for. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is now available for your enjoyment in glorious, moving images. The 98 MB file is what broadband was made for, friends. Get over there and see it for yourself. The footage won't cause a revolution, but it may get a gang fight going.
Read MoreI'm a little ashamed to admit it, but well, I still dabble in board games from time to time. And I'm not talking about computer ports of Risk or Monopoly, no, I mean juggling a pair of dice, staring my opponent down, neurotically calculating the possibilities on the board, you know... Sure it's a dying art, and most of us have better things to do on a Saturday night, but a few years back there was a revival—at least for my friends and I—by way of an intriguing German creation called Settlers of Catan. Needless to say, we traded and back-stabbed long into the night, building our towns and cities, and that oh-so-precious 'longest road'. Well, apparently Capcom picked up this little (dare I say) phenomenon on their radar and now has dreams of bringing it onto the N-Gage. Anytime I see 'N-Gage' in a sentence I can't help but feel nervous, but perhaps all those fond memories I have from years' past will make the wireless/digital conversion. Notice, I'm not holding my breath.
Read MoreAlthough at this point it may come as little surprise, it's still good to see that Sega and Take-Two are sticking to the recent trend of this year's bargain-priced ESPN Videogames' titles. Next up will be NHL 2K5 by way of Kush Games, now gone gold. Of course, like any perennial sports game, you can expect to be playing an 'improved' version of last year's make—2K5 will feature "Intense Contact Controls" this time around. But for $20(!), you can't really complain. In related news, this year's Madden has outdone itself, selling in excess of 1.35 million copies in its first week, as EA refuses to falter even in light of ESPN Videogames' price slashing.
Read MoreThe Beat Pad Pro is a peripheral for your PSOne, Playstation 2 or Xbox. It can help your social life thrive, or it could sink it forever, leading to countless hours on the therapist's couch. It all depends on how laid back you can be while bopping around in front of a television screen on a dance pad, trying to keep the beat with the latest dance game. If you can come off as relaxed and just having some fun, then you're fine. If you feel like the controller is your last chance to move like P Diddy, then you better check if your insurance includes psychoanalysis. Okay, we're not big on dance pads around here, that should be clear by now. But we are quickly becoming a minority. For some reason, people around the world like this stuff. Gaming Nexus takes a look at the latest dance peripheral from Mad Catz. They complain about the pad's grip on carpet, but that's about the worst they can come up with. Their final score of 85% seems a little kind, but maybe the reviewer was still high from the adrenaline rush.
Read MoreThis fall EA & Microsoft are teaming up to bring us the FIFA Interactive World Cup, combining Xbox Live competition with real-life drills, tips, and tricks sessions. The soccer, er, football tour will makes its way across six continents (sorry Antarctica), before wrapping up at the FIFA World Player of the Year Gala in Zurich. FIFA 2005 is set to hit stores this October, so in the meantime enjoy some fresh air. Go break out your old cleats and shin pads and hit the local park!
Read MoreKonami has announced that its port of the original Metal Gear Solid game is available to play on the FOMA900i mobile phone series. The original appeared on the little-known MSX2 home computer way back in 1987, and 'broke-ground' with its blend of stealth action. If you've got one of those FOMAs (Japan only, we think) then you can download or play online for $2.88/month. The game features a time attack mode, where you can battle the various bosses. There's also at least one goodie in store for those of you who manage to complete the game. (And no, that's not a screenshot of the game!)
Read MoreThe gaming world has always had a problem with women. It's not really the other way around. I've known dozens of women who could have been into videogames, or board games, or role-playing games, but they were turned off by the culture. I remember bringing my girlfriend/now-wife into a comic/game store in NYC once, and she couldn't take more than a minute in the place. She just didn't feel welcome. But unless videogames want to walk the same path as comic books (how many copies does X-Men sell these days? 200,000?) the industry better start trying harder to grab the chicks. Along these lines, the first Women's Game Conference is being held in Austin, Texas on September 9-10. The goal of the conference is to get everyone talking about what role women can play in making the super-successful game business super-duper successful. Every business has its down cycle, but that down cycle could be blunted by factoring in the tastes of the other 49% of the world.
Read MoreGuerilla Games has announced that a sequel to Killzone is in the works (and not for PS3). The first game has just now entered beta testing, but it looks like Guerilla Games and Sony are eager to catch-up with Microsoft's breadwinner, Halo. After all, the big hype surrounding Killzone is that it's going to be the 'Halo-killer' Sony has hoped for ever since, yes, 2001. Maybe they finally realized that besting a game that's three years old is not much better than me beating my grandfather in a race. And with Halo 2 around the corner, you can bet they're going to need that head start.
Read MoreThat's right, Gamestop is already taking orders for next year's inevitable return. And yes, it's still $49.99. I almost wish, well, I won't say it... oh heck, why not... I mean what is something truly crazy happens, like Mr. Madden himself goes on some binge-induced killing spree. What would these guys do then? You get what I'm saying here. Something is wrong with selling a game that doesn't exist. Well, perhaps I'm wrong. Madden 2006 does exist. It's just called Madden 2005, and all EA's got to do is get some "talented" programmer to change some names and numbers and maybe add some slick, new feature like create-a-sucker. Seriously, by the time we die, some of us are going to end of spending thousands of dollars on the same game.
Read MoreAfter a series of complaints from a troubled mother, Transit Windsor (Canada) has removed a Prince of Persia ad featured on some of their buses. Collette Clairmont complained that her 4 year-old son, Tristan, developed nightmares from a poster that depicted the "bloodied, sinister-looking" Prince toting his scimitar—and apparently, an identical ad in which he is carrying a gun? Wait a minute... "And they wonder why our jails are full and where these kids get these ideas from" (Betty Riley, bus rider). Here we go again...
Read More"It'll be somewhat of a departure from what id's done before," Carmack said about his next game project, during the keynote address at QuakeCon 2004. There's not much more to the keynote, unless you're someone who knows the jargon of developers. He gets into the creation of Doom 3, and talks about the freedom he and his peers now have to make whatever kind of game they can imagine. Carmack certainly doesn't preach like a Steve Jobs, but to a certain extent he's more effective because of that fact. His understated way just makes you realize how much he really does know. If you're a fan of id's games, listen in.
Read MoreVariety reports that Adrian Askarieh & Chuck Gordon, producers of the Spy Hunter movie, have grabbed another Midway title, Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy. The movie is set to follow the game's plot, chronicling the adventures of psi-powered amnesiac Nick Scryer as he infiltrates a psychic-terrorist organization. Askarieh tells Variety, "I've always been interested in the whole idea of psionic powers that have been developed by the government". As of now, there is neither a director nor studio for the production.
Read MoreThe NPD Group released the results for their study of online gaming habits. The study targeted the 13-44 demographic and not surprisingly, concluded that the majority of online gaming is spent on the PC. One interesting find, 10 percent of respondents stick strictly to mobile-based games—"they're close to competing with the console systems for the attention of online gamers," says Richard Ow (NPD). Another interesting find, males outnumber females 53% to 47% on the PC, but the numbers grow way apart when we're looking at PS2 & Xbox, try 88% to 12%. Finally, the average time spent playing games online is 6.1 hours (compared to 5 offline hours).
Read MoreOutlaw Golf 2 will try to outdo its predecessor with more attitude and brazen antics than ever. Some of the old characters are back for a second jaunt around the brand new greens. Other additions include stunt driving in your golf cart and caddie-bashing. To make things more fun, you can now beat up on your friends using Xbox Live! The first game in the series was mindless fun, so look forward to more of the same. Check out the latest slew of screenshots of Outlaw Golf 2 at Worthplaying.
Read MoreLucasArts President Jim Ward has confirmed last week's layoff rumors. 31 employees from the development studio were handed the pink slip in an effort to concentrate on fewer titles. LucasArts has also decided to outsource several games to third party developers—Star Wars Episode III will now be handled by The Collective. There have also been rumors that the development of KOTOR 3 was halted. In Ward's words, "[LucasArts needed] to make some fundamental changes."
Read MoreRecently, an old friend invited me to go bowling. The only thing was—being the middle of the afternoon—we were both at work (not to mention a hundred miles apart). But it was Polar Bowler. Free, and easily minimized. All you need is an AIM account, a buddy, and a few minutes without the boss breathing down your neck. To find the game go to the "My AIM" menu and select "Launch AIM.com", then click "Games" over on the left and scroll down to Polar Bowler. It's a trial version, so you only get one venue and one character. You're also limited to 20 matches (as host), but that's what creating a new screen name is for, right? Enjoy.
Read MoreLast week we announced the first details on Vivendi's upcoming GTA-esque title Scarface. A few more details have leaked in anticipation of the exclusive feature that will appear in the October issue of EGM. It's now been confirmed that the game is a continuation of the classic gangster flick. Senior Producer, Peter Wanat (producer of Chronicles of Riddick) claims, "Players have seen the movie... We would much rather give the player a unique experience." Use the link below to check out the first couple screenshots.
Read MoreThere's a wonderful list posted over on the AnandTech forums that lays out all the free games you could ever want. The user, randumb, has taken it upon him/herself to gather up all titles you can download. Some games are former retail products that you may not be aware are now available for free. Some games are freeware that should be on retail shelves. Titles included are the Zork series, Tribes and, one of our favorites, Little Fighter 2. We're absolutely positive that you'll find something to grab here. And if you see something missing, help randumb out and send him your suggestions. This could be the start of something big.
Read MoreFeeling nostalgic? Gamespot is offering two versions of the classic 'Complex' multiplayer map for DOOM 3. The map originated in Goldeneye, and reappeared (slightly altered) in Perfect Dark. Both versions are available for download, with improved lighting and different weapon placement. To get them, you've got to register as a Gamespot "DLX" member, but it's free (and harmless). Let us know how you think the Complex stands up to the test of time.
Read MoreGamespot's latest preview of the upcoming Rockstar North game, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas reveals the gameplay details of robbing your fellow man. The title is clearly going to have a lot of tweaks in it, adding new vehicles, swimming, superhighways and physical fitness. But the latest addition to be uncovered reminds us of the Thief series — which is surprising (but not unwelcome). During robbery missions you'll be rewarded for stealth. A horizontal meter will help you track how much noise you're making (like Thief's light meter), allowing you to sneak past trouble. The preview has a few more details up its sleeve so it's worth a read, if you don't mind knowing absolutely everything about a game before it's released.
Read MoreAtari has revealed the first details of its upcoming video game collaboration with hip-hop fashion mogul Marc Ecko. Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure will feature an original story and character developed by Marc Ecko and aims to represent true graffiti culture. A collection of 50 of the world's best graffiti artists have signed on to help create this authentic urban experience. The game revolves around the Get In-Get Up-Get Out gameplay mechanic. That is, 'get in' to the restricted area, 'get up' to the tagging site, and 'get out' before the po-po show up. Sounds like this one could go well beyond the simple concepts of Jet Set Radio or this year's Tony Hawk. Look for it next summer on PlayStation 2.
Read MoreOver at the RetroZone they've taken a slew of classic console controllers and converted them to USB for use on your PC. The site features NES (including the Advantage), SNES, Genesis, Atari Commodore, and Intellivision controllers/adaptors. There's also a kit you can buy to build your own "RetroPad". The prices are fairly reasonable, especially since the rest of the emulation technology is free.
Read MoreIf you've developed a recent case of carpal tunnel syndrome from playing way too much COH, then maybe you need to try something new, like reading a book perhaps... and have I got the book for you. NCsoft has teamed up with Cryptic Studios and CDS Books to bring us a series of books based on the City of Heroes world. The first volume, titled "The Web of Arachnos", will feature the back story of our beloved Statesmen, as well as introduce a group of villains. This first book should hit shelves by late 2005, so you might as well keep playing for now.
Read MoreSuperstar DJ, Paul Oakenfold, has agreed to compose an original score for EA'a upcoming sequel Goldeneye: Rogue Agent. Oakenfold has been featured in several other games, including 2001's Frequency and EA's upcoming installment of FIFA. In other news, Judi Dench ("M") & Christopher Lee ("Scaramanga" from The Man with the Golden Gun) have signed on to voice their talents for the project. Rogue Agent is due out November 15.
Read MoreSacred is probably one of the better games to be released in the last year. If its developer is consistent, then it's about to get even better. Just as I've been kicking the Sacred habit, word is out that Ascaron has announced a free expansion pack to their masterpiece. The expansion will add two new regions to explore. Anyone who has played the game knows that a region in Sacred is the equivalent to a whole new country, making this announcement welcome news. The expansion will also include new enemies and weapons. There goes my free time.
Read MoreTaking a hint from the Japanese, EA is cashing in on the game-to-toy phenomenon. The gaming giant has plans to release a line of Urbz figures to coincide with the release of the game. EA is looking to market to the large number of females (especially "tweens") who enjoy the original Sims games. It's a decent scheme (i.e. there's a lot of potential money to be made), as both the game and the toys will help sell each other. Atomic Toys is set to handle the manufacturing bit.
Read MoreThe Internet Archive recently unveiled its massive collection of game-related video. The files are sorted into categories, such as Previews, Speed Runs, Highscore/Skill Replays, etc. We recommend taking some time to poke around, as there are quite a lot of interesting finds.
Read MoreWhoever said the systems of yesteryear are obsolete? Certainly not GDG (Good Deal Games) Publishing. Come August 21, they're set to unveil Mighty Mighty Missile, a brand new Sega CD game, at the 2004 Classic Gaming Expo. It's set to retail for $29.99, which doesn't really seem like a good deal. But then again, we can't forget: "Mighty Mighty Missile game content is evolutive!" Now if only these guys would cook up some new games for the Atari Jaguar...
Read MoreAs much as last year's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time impressed me, I couldn't get over how repetitive (and boring) the combat got to be. The particular system just wasn't up to par with the rest of the game's components. Well, it seems that Ubisoft listened to the critics and has responded. Due out by mid November, Prince of Persia 2 has a brand new free-form combat system that includes 63 different weapons across 5 major weapons classes. From the looks of it, this system could give Ninja Gaiden a run for its money. Be sure to check out the in-depth video over on IGN.
Read MoreHere's a welcome reprieve from the latest round of videogame bashing. BBC has offered up an insightful piece on the good things that games can do for our kids — problem-solving, contributing to creative thought, and all that good stuff. Videogames are a comparatively young form of entertainment, which is why the constant din of game-bashing is so worrisome. First impressions last forever. The most recent example of sensationalist reporting, these "Xbox killings", are probably one of the most frustrating we've seen since the Columbine/Doom link reared its ugly head. Thank you, BBC, for taking a look at the quiet benefits of gaming.
Read MoreGames Radar is reporting that Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas will include a city called Los Santos, based loosely on our beloved Los Angeles. The sprawling metropolis will be surrounded by the super-freeways that we alluded to in our last post about the game. In typical Rockstar style, the title will include a plethora of details that will make it feel like a vibrant, living place. Amusement parks, piers, beach gyms, a Walk of Fame and a theater that resembles Mann's Chinese Theatre are among the touches we can look forward to.
Read MoreComputer & Video Games talks it up with Dene and Simon Carter, the team of brothers from Big Blue Box. The developer is getting ready to release Fable, for Xbox, and it looks like these two are pretty excited about it — as are we. The interview is interesting for its insight into the Xbox development process, and how it differs from the PC world(which is where the two guys come from). The brothers also get into some amusing stories about the game-testers' clever uses of Fable's touted AI system. And, of course, what interview is complete without heavy hints of a sequel?
Read MoreThere's no doubt that EA is expecting big things out of recently purchased Criterion's Burnout 3: Takedown. This time around the action is certainly going to be faster and more frenzied. As the title implies, this latest installment focuses on the takedown, which is fairly self-evident—run the other guys off the road. The new "trick" is highlighted by a special camera system that swings around behind you while slowing the action down to a crawl so that you can watch your dirty work in real time. And it all seems to be looking quite gorgeous. One final note: this one's going to be online for both PlayStation 2 and Xbox. Look for Burnout 3 in early September.
Read MoreThe rumors are flying. Since word hit that EA may be a more likely candidate for the Eidos buyout, reports have surfaced that Ubisoft is really after the McRae publisher Codemasters. However, Codemasters has denied the rumor. In regards to the Eidos takeover, Ubisoft has been involved in a series of "intense meetings" with the British publisher this past week. Recently, Eidos claimed it did not expect to make an announcement before the end of the fiscal year. Yesterday, there was news that EA had made a bid in the $300 million range. But neither Ubisoft nor EA has issued an official comment as of today.
Read MoreCryptic Studios is hard at work completing the first planned expansion pack for City of Heroes. Titled "City of Villains", the update will allow players to become, well, supervillains. Unfortunately, there is no word on its exact release. But in the meantime smaller updates will be incorporated into the game. Fans can expect new areas, new quests, and finally [drum roll]... capes! It's about time.
Read MoreBrilliant. Sometimes we wonder why we even spend a single dime on games. This piece of freeware came out of left field and slammed me in the face, knocking about two hours of productivity into a balck hole of glee and wonder. The original Sonic game is available at this link, in all its Flash glory. Sure, it runs a little slow. Sure, it's not an exact port. But it's a blast. If you have some free time over lunch to play, give it a shot. Just be sure you set a timer or something. Just in case you get as determined as I did. Oh yeah, and the reason why we spend money on games? I found the answer. So we can port them for free on the Internet, after fifteen years have passed.
Read MoreThose poor blokes in the United Kingdom haven't received the hottest game this side of Doom 3. Which uber-hyped title are we referring to exactly? City of Heroes, of course. The publisher of the title recently announced that the subscriber base had reached an astonishing 180,000 people. And that's in North America alone. Now our brothers on the other side of the lake are about to get a taste of what it's like to be muscular, and clad in tights. In preparation for the imminent, official release of the title Boomtown has posted a review, giving it a nine out of ten. They didn't find much to dislike, except a lack of things to do before the inevitable expansion packs. It should be noted that Boomtown has a nice layout, where they offer the review and then show the posts immediately below. More sites should do this.
Read MoreI don't know about your town, but last night there was an angry mob crowded around the local GameStop, pounding the plexiglass doors, and chanting "Madden, Madden, Madden!" So what was all the hype about? See for yourself, or check out the reviews first...
Read MoreIt's always questionable to follow up a rumor with a rumor; but we manage to do just fine around here, don't we? The rumor that Ubisoft was going to waltz in and buy out Eidos is now losing favor amongst those of us who live by innuendo. Apparently, the asking price was beginning to fly sky high for the funniest reason of them all — too many hands in the pot. Here's a snag from the Voodoo Extreme snag. "It is thought that the projected value of Eidos has been artificially escalated as a result of so many interested parties engaging in negotiations. Ubisoft's offer of $215 million apparently attaches an excessive 40% premium to Eidos' real value, and this could easily threaten shareholders' confidence in the plan." Sounds like the glory days on the Internet boom. Luckily it looks like the fine folks at both companies are wise enough to know a bad deal when they see it. We would like to throw Joystiq's hat in the ring. We can pay 25 bucks for the company. Take it or leave it. Oh yeah, scroll down to see the story.
Read MoreMilitary service seems to be all the rage today. Ever since Band of Brothers and Saving Private Ryan came out, there's been an exodus to war movies, biographies and the frickin History Channel. Of course, the war we're in now may also be contributing to the interest. Even the presidential candidates are comparing the size of their service on a daily basis. So, it makes sense that the game industry is swept up in the fervor, as well. The Pacific Assault website is parsing out screenshots to the fans, in lieu of the actual game, that was delayed recently. The screens will only help feed the hunger, we're sure. Who knows? Things could get to the point where a candidate running for office in 2024 can claim to have five Purple Hearts from three years of service in Call of Duty.
Read MoreWhich shouldn't be hard to do. The upcoming Starship Troopers game has an update on its official website. The media additions include screenshots of outdoor areas, pretty alien swarms and glimpses of the weaponry at your disposal. The shots don't look half-bad either, holding up to most modern engines. There's also a gameplay movie for your downloading pleasure. This may be the license's last chance to redeem itself in the fans' eyes. Let's hope the developer steps up to the plate.
Read MoreHironobi Sakaguchi, former Square VP, is hard at work on two new RPGs for his studio, Mist Walker. Sakaguchi has been out of the game for more than two years now, but he's got 20 years of experience to lend to brushing that rust off. Plus he's got Kensuke Tanaka (Final Fantasy Tactics Advance & PlayOnline) signed on as VP of Mist Walker. Sakaguchi has declined to reveal what platforms the games are in development for, but has promised fans he will deliver the same level of emotional impact as previous projects.
Read MoreTomorrow will see the release of the latest installment of the mega-blockbuster series, Madden NFL 2005. The large man with an attitude has been ruling the football roost for years. Some argue the titles' place on the top of the charts is deserved, while others believe fans buy it out of habit. Regardless, this year's version is anticipated for a number of reasons. First, as usual, are the graphics improvements. But then there's the fact that the Xbox and PS2 versions will support online play, with a free subscription to EA Sports Premium Pass. The premium service will offer up [drum roll] user-created leagues. The feature will be released later this year.
Read MoreThe French publisher Ubisoft appears to be on the verge of sealing an estimated $400 million takeover bid for British publisher Eidos. Negotiations have been in the works for more than two years now. Eidos has seen its share of struggles in recent years—need we mention the huge commercial flop that was Tomb Raider: Angel of Darkness. But with Ubisoft soon to be in control, and Toby Gard returning to the franchise, Eidos' stocks are on the rise. Look for more updates on the takeover in the coming days.
Read MoreHere's a fun one from the world of freeware. Sodarace allows you to design your own "robot" to race against the computer's design. The physics in the thing are a blast to watch, and the game plays smoothly. The little java app serves double duty as a design tool, for academics around the world. You have to see it to know what the hell we're talking about. Trust us, it's worth it. It's even worth installing java on your machine, believe it or not.
Read MoreThis one will only be available to Japanese consumers, but in case you wanted to place an overseas order, now's your chance. Tecmo is offering a DoA Ultimate LE Xbox to promote the upcoming game. For the price of 24,000 yen (about $215), you'll get, along with a copy of the game, a blue Xbox and S controller, a 12 month subscription to Live, and an inflatable Katsumi "cushion" (pictured right). There's an image on the front (similar to this post's) but I figured most of you would prefer the spooning position. Just imagine, this it what you might be staring at in the nights to come...
Read MoreGamespot has been living in RockStar Games HQ, from the looks of it. The number of features they've done on the title is staggering. This time around they give us the scoop on specific locations you'll be able to kill in, as well as new ways to get around. Apparently, GTA: SA will include super-highways that will help you maneuver faster and more efficiently. If you opt to stick to the streets of the city, you'll have extra help in the form of actual addresses. No more looking for the pink dot on the map. Now you'll be able to follow street signs to find your target. This is a spalsh of genius, since, over time, it will make the cities seem even more real. Our anticipation just jumped with this article.
Read MoreXbox IGN got a good look at a recent build of Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon 2. They note the improved graphics and the revised interface that gives the title a slick look. The developers want to improve upon the storytelling from the first game — something that many reviewers said was lacking. Though the IGN piece is worth a read, the thing we'd like to know about the game is how the revised gameplay is working out. The word on the game is that they've "improved" the gameplay in the wrong direction, removing some of the touches that made the original a classic.
Read MoreThe game industry seems to be prone to long spells of humorless content. The fact is, a funny game can be as entertaining as the best sit-com or movie. Lucas made a living selling funny adventure games like Sam & max Hit the Road and Full Throttle. But for some reason this kid of title has been rare recently. Sure, you have titles like Once Upon a Knight out there, but most games are unintentionally funny. Just in time to make us smile again, Bard's Tale is percolating to the surface. The title will offer us the chance to walk the land in a Bard's shoes, looking for cash and tail. Your sing-song skills are your magic power, and it looks like that will be the source of a lot of the humor. "The Bard himself is not any kind of normal hero," Brian Fargo, the designer explains. "He's more like Han Solo in that he is really only interested in doing something if it is somehow good for him. His real focus is on the pursuit of coin and cleavage. The Bard's abilities come from his music and the learning of new songs which are the basis of the magic system. When he learns certain songs it gives him the ability to summon creatures or people into the party."
Read MoreGood news for fans of the Myst games. The demo for the fourth installment in the series is due out on Monday. Unfortunately, it will be a Gamespot DLX exclusive at first, meaning if you want it you'll have to register. This time around, the developers are promising a more gamer-friendly experience. Which means, we assume, that the puzzles will actually make sense now. The demo will place you in Atrus' room, with one puzzle to solve. You'll also get a chance to check out a cutscene with Atrus' daughter.
Read MoreThe next installment of the never-ending Battle for Middle Earth Designer Diary is ready for a casual weekend viewing. This time around Dustin Browder, Game Design Director, offers up more insights on the game, with a focus on base-building and resources. Once again, the footage is impressive, making this game the Doom 3 of RTS games, in our minds. The tentative release date for the title is this summer, but don't go holding your breath on that one. We'll be lucky if we see it by Christmas.
Read MoreThe latest installment in the classic and ultra-addictive Worms series has a demo for our pleasure. The demo includes a single-player map set in ancient Egypt, while the multiplayer level lets you wage war in classical Greece. If you've never enjoyed the joy that is Worms, now's your chance. The download is a meager 145 MB, so what do you have to lose? If you like stratgey games, this is one of the few game series we can recommend without reservation. Hopefully, the developer (Team 17) has kept their streak alive.
Read MoreUnreal Tournament 2004 has yet another patch to download. This one brings the game up to version 3270. The list of adjustments and bug-fixes could fit into a small novella. The boys at Epic have clearly been busy. If you want to play with your frag-buddies you'll need to be current. Better download this puppy.
Read MoreWhile we're on the topic of Eidos, I thought it might be important to announce that the company's latest shooter Shellshock: Nam '67 has finally gotten a release date. Eidos has confirmed that its addition to the flood of Vietnam titles hitting the market is set of September 14. The game looks to be no walk in the jungle, as Guerilla Games (Shellshock's developer) has tried to recreate the experience of a rookie soldier on his first tour of duty in one of the most controversial wars of the modern era. War is hell, so don't expect to be feeling like a true hero after this one is over. If the game does deliver, this could be another important franchise for Eidos—and whoever ends up buying them.
Read MoreI knew something was suspicious when "Sudeki 2" mysteriously disappeared from that job posting on Climax's website just days ago. (If you missed the news, check our previous post) Now it's been confirmed, the mention of a sequel was simply a "typographical error". It turns out that Climax doesn't have the authority to announce such developments, being that Microsoft holds the IP for Sudeki. But there isn't a sequel in the works anyway, right? Climax simply meant to write plain old "Sudeki" in that paragraph about games in development, but wasn't Sudeki already on the market... Hmmm... Now I'm not so sure, but then again I can't say that I even care. Sudeki was one of those games we quickly forgot, er, never even knew. Regardless, you've got to crack a smile whenever bureaucratic semantics makes someone in the industry sweat.
Read MoreCome December 11, if you find yourself at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Vegas, well, you just might be competing for $50,000. No, this is no World Series of Poker event, it's Madden. That's right, EA has announced the third annual EA SPORTS Madden Challenge, set to kick-off in a city near you (32 across the nation to be exact). Each city's champion will find themselves competing for "best Madden player in the country" honors and well, I already mentioned the money... For those of you headed to training camp, look for Madden to hit stores Monday.
Read MoreAlas, it is true. We know that game delays are very, very rare, but it looks like Resident Evil 4 will suffer a lapse in scheduling. Capcom has dropped the bomb on its fans that the GameCube title will never see 2004. Don't freak out, though. RE4 was originally supposed to be a winter game, and it's still a winter game. A January 11th, 2005 release date will warm the coddles of your gaming palm. Not much of a delay, really. It is a shame that we won't be able to scare the hell out of ourselves on Christmas Eve.
Read MoreObsidian Entertainment may be busy working on the next Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic title, but they've found some time to slip another small project into their queue. Neverwinter Nights 2, the sequel to the best selling RPG classic, has begun to gestate. It should see a birthdate of 2006, sometime. It may be worrisome that one development house is tackling two huge projects at once, but the investors are probably happy as can be. Bioware, the original developer of the game, will pitch their two cents in. They promise fans that they'll have some input into the general design. We shall see. This is the kind of deal that rarely ends well.
Read MoreIf you've been gaming for a number of years, you'll know about the classic game, Lemmings. The addictive romp gives you a bunch of helpless beings who must be guided to safety. With a number of tools at your disposal you create the safest path from point A to point B. It's a great game, and a great sociological study. In fact, the game could also be called President of the United States. Now you can play the game in glorious dhtml. You read that right. The game has been ported to dhtml and can be played at the link below. It's remarkably faithful to the look and feel of the original. A truly impressive display of the magic one can make with a lot of talent, and even more free time. It's freeware. Go and enjoy.
Read MoreDragonshard is the newest game with an awful name. We have no idea how these things make it by marketing. Dragonshard is not a porn movie with dragons. No, it's the latest installment in the Dungeons & Dragons series of computer games. The official press release paints the setting best. "The 'Dragonshard' takes place at time when the world of Eberron is in chaos. Three forces are vying for control of a massive dragonshard, known as the Heart of Siberys. The ancient artifact has come to rest in a mystical part of Eberron known as Xen'drik, once home to ancient and powerful civilizations; it is now a place of mystery and monsters. Shielded by a circle of high mountains and blanketed by never-ending tempests and blizzards, this region has been shunned for millennia." Though press releases aren't really our thing, we must admit this one seems to have been written by a big fan of the D&D series.
Read MoreAs hinted by Fuzzy Gerdes' comment in the "Midway announces latest Deception" post, Midway has indeed revised the list of games for the second volume in their Arcade Treasures series (now due October 11). And that revision does not include Mortal Kombat—though both sequels are still in the mix. And so, if you're really fiending for the original you're gonna have to shell out the extra $10 for either special edition of MK: Deception after all. In case you're still curious, Stun Runner & Steel Talons were also dropped from Treasures, while Kozmik Kroozr' & Wacko were added. You can check out the complete list over at IGN.
Read MoreEvery year hordes of Madden fans pour over EA's player stats trying to figure out why their team's running back got stiffed on the speed, but the other guy's linebacker received a '95' tackle rating. Well, now you don't have to sift through all those menus to complain, IGN has made it easy for you. They've posted all the player stats on nice little spread sheets that you can print out and bring to the office for a hot debate. As of now, you can check out the entire NFC, plus AFC West (expect the rest of the AFC stats to show up before Madden's release next Tuesday). Go Eagles!
Read MoreAs a follow-up to all the outrage over Valve's treatment of small-time cyber cafes, there is this piece of news. Valve has opted to go with Namco, Ltd. to distribute its games to cafes in Japan. Games included in the package are Half-Life, Counter-Strike and Day of Defeat. From here on out, all cyber cafes in that country will have to go through Namco before they can offer the games to their customers. No more buying perfectly legal end-user copies and installing them on the PCs. Those days are over. Now you have to pay The Man. This may seem like a fair move if you consider that Valve works their asses off to get out good games. However, it seems counter-productive to zero in on small-time businesses, which are designed to get people hooked on your products. The general sense around here is that this move is motivated by the "bad kind" of greed — the kind that ends up shooting you in the foot. It's a complicated issue. But it could be made much less complicated if Valve were more open about this maneuver, and explained to its fans why they feel this is necessary. And don't give us that "Quality Assurance" crap. We'll see right through it.
Read MoreIn anticipation for the release of DOA Ultimate, IGN has brought us "The History of Dead or Alive". They give us a detailed rundown of each game in the series, claiming that Tecmo is where it is today because of the franchise. Now I'm not denying that fact, but I was just wondering what it is that makes these games stand out. And then it hit me. It's got to be those gorgeous graphics. Well, we'll see where looks can take them when Ultimate struts onto the scene in October. Perhaps the series will finally be able to challenge the likes of Tekken and Virtua Fighter after all. Seriously though, DOA is an underrated contender in the 3D Fighting genre, and you should all mark your calendars for October 4.
Read MoreWe all love nostalgia. That's why we collect things. And luckily for us, Retrogamer has a whole stockpile of adverts they've collected in their archives. Recently they posted a download of an ultra-hard-to-find UK advert for the Atari VCS. Oooh... Pele's Soccer... Follow our link to watch it; you'll also find a couple other videogame-related adverts for your viewing pleasure.
Read MoreClimax Studios recently revealed the development of a Sudeki sequel by way of a job posting on the L.A.-based developer's website—the specific reference has since been removed, but go ahead and search the link to see if you can spot it. No other details have been released, and it is still unclear as to which platform the game will be designed for—that is, Xbox or Xbox-Next (tentative title). Although Sudeki seemed to come and go, I suppose Climax is well aware of the gaping hole that needs to be filled in the Xbox's RPG category and must have every intention of staying with the genre until they develop a hit.
Read MoreSega has just revealed more details about the upcoming PC release. Now officially titled, Shenmue Online, the series will hop from console to PC as a MMO action RPG. Yep. The game will feature virtual recreations of 1980s Hong Kong and China. Sega promises that tens of thousands of players will be brought together as powerful militants capable of dishing out real-time beatings with their bare hands and feet, or just plain old weaponry. There are plans for a private beta testing this November (in case you're in Korea and know somebody).
Read MoreCrytek's Far Cry SDK wants to be man-handled by you right now. The download is available at the following link, and we demand that all the talented modders out there get to work right now. How else will we be able to add fresh life to the stale old Far Cry game? How else will we fly over the gorgeous landscape on our spiffy rocket packs? How else will you be able to get that dream job at Epic, designing the next uber-level? Yes, we in the gaming community are lazy cheapskates, but we're your lazy cheapskates. Now chop chop.
Read MoreIf for some reason you haven't already quit your job to go save the world from the impending invasion of hellspawn, or maybe you're just like me and haven't quite gotten the proper hardware together yet, then perhaps you're curious as to what those who are playing DOOM 3—like right this very moment—have got to say. Now, while there hasn't been a huge release of critics' (the guys & gals who get paid to play) reviews, a handful of average Joes have posted their initial impressions over at IGN. Needless to say, not a single one came close to calling out this game as a fraud. Yes, there were a few minor gripes, but no game is perfect. On another important note, one gamer claimed he was running just fine on a fairly outdated system—so don't worry about spending past the $55 price of admission. Follow the link to see what else they had to say.
Read MoreAmerican McGee has a great name, that just can't be real. He also has a great reputation, that just can't be real. Okay, that may be unfair. The game designer has been a part of id's best titles, and even released American McGee's Alice, to some fanfare a few years ago. But, otherwise, he's been making a lot of deals, and not much else, recently. McGee's own website shows off what he's been up to. It looks like he's going to stick to his creepy roots with a zombie game called City of the Dead. He claims it will be the goriest game ever made. Also on the slate is an action game, Bad Day LA. Hopefully the game will be better than the title.
Read MorePrince of Persia 2 has a pretty disingenuous name. All of us elderly dweebs remember the original Prince of Persia side-scroller very well. Its realistic body movement, and glittering effects made even the most jaded gamers notice. This means that the recent Prince of Persia game was actually number two, and the next installment will be number three. Ok, I'll shut up now. There's an interview on Computer & Videogames with Ubisoft producer Yannis Mallat. Mallat talks about graphic improvements that have been made as well as some game control tweaks that should make the title easier to slip into. So to speak...
Read MoreThe next Freedom Force game, Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich, will be self-distributed in North America, according to a new deal penned by Vivendi Universal and developer, Irrational Games. The deal should end up being a good one for the game house, since the word of mouth on their last title was hard to beat. Hopefully the game won't suffer the same fate as other exceptional sequels to exceptional games, like Thief II or Homeworld 2. While those titles sold well enough, they didn't start any fires. How games like Driv3r can sell millions of copies and games like those go unnoticed, is beyond us.
Read MoreCome October, Midway will be offering two exclusive editions of Mortal Kombat: Deception for the PlayStation 2 & Xbox (retailing for $60). Both versions contain identical bonus content, the highlight being an arcade-perfect port of the original Mortal Kombat. Interestingly enough, the port will also make an appearance on Midway Arcade Treasures 2 ($20), also due out October 4. Not to mention, Midway Treasures will also contain Mortal Kombat 2 & 3, plus about 20 other classics. However, Midway is doing all they can to deceive consumers into buying the Premium Pack (PS2) or the Kollector's Edition (Xbox) by featuring five distinctive packages—four for the Xbox. Follow the link to check out the pretty boxes, but save your kash for Midway Arcade Treasures 2.
Read MoreIn preparation for Doom 3's imminent release, some of us feel the need to tell the tale of our first run-in with the original game. For me, I was in college and hadn't been gaming for years. The Atari was the last piece of digital fun I had ever touched. Castle Wolfenstein was fun, but I only came across it near the release of this new game by id, called Doom. There were already rumblings in the game press (for what it was), and a screenshot I chanced across was too good to be true. So wehn the announcement came over email that the shareware demo was ready for download, I pointed my 9600 baud modem at the id servers and started downloading. Around a day later, the download ended. No joke. I called up my friend Russ (R.I.P buddy!) and told him I was about to start playing without him. He insisted he'd choke the life from me if I dared to even think of it, put on some pants, and ran over. For the next ten hours or so, it was all Doom, all the time. The opening scene, with its eerie music and distant roars and spectacular graphics, was almost too much to take. We switched off at the keyboard after each death, and before we knew it, the demo was over. Needless to say, we bought the game immediately, directly from id. The closest I got that feeling was when I first played the GBA version of Doom. If you've never played the original, and you own a GBA, do yourself a favor and play the original before you jump into number three.
Read MoreA good interview is posted on Voodoo Extreme with Lee Singleton, of Conflict: Viet Name fame. The piece really gets into what makes this game different — which inevitably leads to discussion about how the war itself was so unique. We're not ones to paste quotes, but we'll make an excpetion for this one. It really illustrates how thoroughly the developers have thought things through. "At the basic level, Conflict: Vietnam is a squad-based action game," Singleton said. "But the environments and enemy AI are set up in such a way as to make the player cautious. It's not the kind of game where you can just run through, shooting anything that moves. You have to creep along, plan ahead, keep an eye out for booby traps, and be a little afraid at every turn. In that aspect, you could almost consider it a bit like a stealth action game, except both your characters and your opponents are creeping around. Much like actual soldiers in the Vietnam War, players of Conflict: Vietnam will start getting paranoid when they see the brush shift ahead. Is it the wind or a camouflaged VC in waiting?" Creepy. Do you really want to pay money to get the same "thrills" those soldiers got? I bet you do. Us humans are so weird.
Read MoreThe dog days of summer sure are slowing down the release of new demos. Luckily, there was a new one released over the weekend which is actually fun. Starbreeze Studios' 3rd person title is called Knights of the Temple: Infernal Crusade, and it's now available on Worthplaying, for your twitching pleasure. The premise of the game is simple enough... kill everything in sight. You face foes with many different weapons, in a nifty, pretty city setting, called Petra. You also get divine powers, of course. What fighting action game would be complete without divine powers?
Read MoreFor all you European football fans out there, it looks like you'll have something to cheer about soon. Sports Interactive will be showing off Football Manager 2005 in Edinburgh this August. The developers plan to make themselves available for Q&A. Knowing you football fans, you'll give them a real grilling. Ask them if they'll change the name of the game to Soccer Manager 2005, so us Americans can know what the hell they're talking about.
Read MoreI hear over in Japan, Curry House Ichibanya is like the McDonalds of Curry Houses. And, just like here, millions of aspiring videogame enthusiasts can't wait to hone their virtual fast food skills. Right... GT4: San Andreas might have you inhaling burgers in between crime sprees, but Curry House has you running your own franchise. That's correct, it all starts with greeting your customers at the door, from which point you'll be forced to complete a variety of tasks to your customers' liking. If not, it's game over. Still interested, check out our link to the review.
Read MoreWorthplaying has posted a bevy of new images from the upcoming Xbox title, Rainbow Six 3: Black Arrow. The game promises a number of improvements over last year's hit. Changes include a new single-player campaign, with cutting-edge weapons and equipment. Also look for more exotic locales, like the Mediterranean and, er, Eastern Europe. Improved AI will call for back-up and use hostages as shields. Of course, the game could not call itself improved if it didn't include some new multiplayer aspects for Xbox Live! Capture the Point and Capture the Flag are two of the multi-modes in the game. For complete details, start clicking.
Read MoreYou can't access your Gmail account from most mobile devices, at least not yet, but if you've got PHP running on your server, you can download Gmailer and use your own server to check your Gmail from your cellphone or PDA. If you're not quite that motivated, here's a list of browsers that Gmail does support.
Read MoreAlphaSmart has a new portable word processor out called the Neo which is basically a keyboard with a small 5.75-inch by 1.5-inch monochrome LCD screen attached to it. It's aimed pretty much exclusively at the educational market, and is way cheaper and easier to carry than a laptop (at least it's easier to carry than most laptops) and more useful for taking notes or writing a term paper than a PDA (unless you invest in a good portable keyboard). The major downside is that you basically still need a PC or Mac to transfer files to (via IrDA or a USB cable) if you want to print something out (unless you have an IrDA-enabled printer), but it does get up to 700 hours of battery life on just three AA batteries and retail for just $249.
Read MoreLaCie, previously famous for the unstoppable extremeness of their Bigger Disk Extreme and their silver-ingot external drives, has dropped their latest silvery Porsche-designed external drive on us. The difference this time is the inclusion of a Linux distro on board courtesy of MandrakeSoft, so you can hook the GlobeTrotter up to any PC or Mac via USB, whence it will detect the hardware and boot you up a Mandrake Linux desktop. At 40GB the drive itself isn't tremendously large, and you're obviously not going to have much luck working on planes with it, but at $219 the pricing doesn't seem too steep. [Via Mycom PC Web (Japanese)] UPDATE: A couple of sharp-eyed readers point out that Mandrake won't boot on the PPC chips that Macs use, though you can access 10MB of the GlobeTrotter's hard drive space. Thanks for the correction.
Read MoreNew ruggedized laptop from NEC called the FC that's dust and water resistant and can survive a three foot drop and operate in temperatures randing from -20 to 50 degrees Celsius. Comes out on October 8th in Japan. [Via I4U]
Read MoreWe're not too sure how well these things are going to sell without the Dell girl hawking them, but Walmart is counting on a rebranded ECS A535 with a sub-$600 selling point to hit hard this back-to-school season. Not surprisingly, it's got an Athlon CPU (1.6GHz), a 14-inch XGA screen, gigabit Ethernet, USB 2.0, 40GB hard drive, DVD-ROM, WiFi, XP Home, and a rather pathetic 128MB RAM. Still, you've got to give them credit. Only Walmart can (and would) sell a laptop with a $3.75 margin. [Via Gadgetopia]
Read MoreWe're not really sure how it counts as a laptop, since if you had it sitting on your lap one of two things would happen: 1. your femur would be quickly crushed under its 21½lb weight, or 2. you would dislocate your shoulders reaching for the keyboard which is elevated 13-inches off your thighs. And despite its 1981-laptop stylings (including roller-mouse), if you are looking for a portable computer (and we do use the term very loosely here) with an eloxed aluminum case, a Pentium 4 processor, up to 2GB RAM, 15.1-inch screen, and, get this, four full-length PCI/ISA card slots, then look no further than the TETRASmart. For when you absolutely positively must be able to drop your laptop from 25-feet. [Via BIOS]
Read MoreOkay, we don't really know if it's a boy—it can be really hard to sex these things sometimes—but what we do know that is that the ThinkPad T42 has got WiFi and Bluetooth, a relatively lackluster 15.1-inch screen, up to 2GB RAM, the trademark IBM durability (via titanium carbon fibre composite reinforced plastic) design and, well, a price to match. This thing is like the KITT of laptops right now. Or that's what the BIOS guys tell us in their review of the thing, anyway (and we definitely do believe the part about it being expensive).
Read MoreIn celebration of the upcoming release of the OQO the company's director of product management managed to answer a few questions about everybody's favorite vaporware. For the most part they are unsurprising, talking up the product and playing down possible future upgrades in order to convince people to actually buy the current model and not just wait for the next version. A couple of things do jump out though. In a refreshing moment of honesty they express regret for the lack of USB 2.0 and built-in wide-area wireless. Also, in case you were wondering, OQO somehow "stands only for our product – a full pc that fits in your pocket" and nothing else, and they finally admit that their target markets are "mobile professionals who want all of their applications and data with them all the time and mobile workers who have a specific Windows application that they want to run in the field" and "individuals". In other words, anyone who will buy the dang thing.
Read MoreFirst Sharp goes and hooks up only the Japanese with their PC-MT2-F1 laptop (which, last we heard, had a Pentium III-M CPU, up to 512 RAM, and some other 2002 specs), but then they go and update it (no word yet on specifics), make it smaller, give it a touch screen, and start selling it only to businessmen. It's like waiting in line for some exclusive club that is never going to let you in. Hey, we'll take ten please, and on the double, thanks. [Via Akihabara News]
Read MoreThey're not the first to pre-install Linux on a laptop and send it out the door without the "Microsoft tax", but they're definitely the biggest to date: HP's nx5000 will ship with Windows if you want it, or for about $60 less you can get it with SuSe Linux (models start at about $1,140). The machine will support Linux CD burning, DVD and media players, WiFi, and comes bundled with OpenOffice. We're hoping this means a major commitment on their part to driver updates and Linux support—if it does, then we have a very good feeling for the penguin nerds out there. But we suspect HP may be lax with their Linux division, at least to start. It's a business machine and all too often those get the shorter end of the stick when it comes to getting up-to-the-nth-decimal version updates and bug fixes.
Read MoreDetermined not the leave the (probably grossly overestimated) market for multimedia laptops all to Toshiba and their new QOSMIO line of laptops which can play movies and watch TV without having to boot up, Dell and Asustek (aka ASUS) say they're working on 17-inch audio/video laptops of their own. [Thanks, Bill]
Read MoreAccording to a recent announcement, Microsoft has gone ahead and disbanded its first-party sports franchises, which include NHL Fever, NHL Rivals, and Inside Drive. Reports suggest that 76 employees were let go, as Microsoft has decided to focus on what it does best... in other words, HALO 2 and other "epic, platform-defining games". The sports division's fate was sealed long ago when, back in March, Microsoft announced it wouldn't be releasing any sports games this fall. Not to mention, landing the Xbox Live deal with EA pretty much gave Microsoft all it could ask for (i.e. Madden fanatics). Interestingly enough, Links and Amped were not cut from the payroll.
Read MoreLooks like Big Willy isn't the only one with the changing flat-panel art displays 'round the house anymore, is he? RGBLAbs is offering service to turn any screen into a "digital canvas for museum-quality art and photography" from classical to modern. We're not so sure even a full-spec HDTV (1920 x 1080 pixels) could come close to matching a medium-format print, and hey, it's no robo-sculptor, but we're won't be complaining come winter when we'll all be too sleepy to make that monthly trip to The Met. In the mean time, just try not to think of that precious 20K MTBF on your plasma going straight to the crapper.
Read MoreApparently some people installing Service Pack 2 for Windows XP on their PCs are experience some slow down in connection speeds with their FireWire peripherals. It's not the end of the world since once you update to SP2 you can just go back an install the SP1 FireWire drivers, but it is a headache and we've been holding off on installing the update until we hear some more. Anyone experience oddities with SP2?
Read MoreHot on the heels of his in-depth comparison of TiVo vs. Microsoft's Media Center, we asked Thomas Hawk to follow up for us with a list of ten things each of the companies could to do to win the War for the Living Room. It won't be easy (like TiVo making a version of their software for PCs? Not going to happen.) but we've got a feeling they might be better off listening up. The digital video recorder revolution is on, with two players, Microsoft and Tivo, having emerged as the most likely candidates to dominate. Microsoft is betting on their Media Center Edition software package, while upstart TiVo has the name brand recognition and strong reputation among loyalists and was first to market. Either has a shot at becoming the gold-standard. At present Tivo is winning in the quality game. This year Hughes released the HR10-250 Tivo PVR. If you have not seen time-shifted high def television yet, it is simply breathtaking. Microsoft is winning in the portability game. It is much easier to get content off of your MCE box than a TiVo. Below are my suggestions for the top 10 things Microsoft and TiVo must each do to win the battle for the living room. The top 10 things Microsoft must do to win the living room: Offer support for recording high-definition TV as soon as possible, including an immediate announcement of an anticipated delivery date. Offer quad (four) tuners - two for regular broadcasts and two for HDTV. There should never be recording conflicts. Provide easy support for 16:9 widescreen video display, including the development of a generic display driver that will display the Media Center software correctly on almost any 16:9 display. Forcing a plasmato display in 4:3 format for extended periods of time creates screen burn. Develop simple drag-and-drop archiving of shows to DVD. Words like codecs and drivers and DivX and Sonic DVD and memory buffer error should not be a part of the process. Media Center should handle large media libraries better. In the "instant on" world of today, media libraries (especially music) must be indexed and optimized to create instant entertainment. At present Media Center does not handle large digital media libraries well. Create a "My Radio" option and a "My Radio" guide. If I would like to listen to KFOG's "Live at the Archives" on Wednesday morning at 3 a.m., so be it. If I would like to get a season pass to Howard Stern, great. These files should be saved to MP3 and be portable. Improve stability. Media Center should be as stable and error-free as TiVo's Linux-based system. Provide ratings and preferences in the user profile rather than in the files or players. They must also create some kind of suggestions feature similar to Tivo for television and music. One huge step that Microsoft took in the right direction was creating a music ratings feature. At present these ratings must be the same for all users of a computer. If I like Nirvana and my wife prefers Alan Jackson then we are out of luck. Provide ratings and simple filtering capabilities for digital photos. If I want to show pictures of John and Alan and Pete and Bob while they are over for dinner then the filter tool in "my pictures" should allows for me to do this. Provide a host of additional remote services including email, voicemail, caller ID, vehicle tracking, home automation (lights, home alarm security, window shades, thermostat), and "My RSS" feeds. "My Art" should also be included. Wasn't Bill Gates running around buying up all the digital rights to fine art a while back? And the top 10 things TiVo must do to win the living room: Produce a standalone HDTV unit. The development and expected delivery of this unit should be announced immediately. Provide Ethernet connectivity to their HDTV unit and include the ability to share recorded files with a Windows-based PC. The fact that the Ethernet ports are disabled on the Hughes HR10-250 is simply ridiculous. Provide a DVD burner with all units. Copying should be as simple as selecting a program and pressing "Burn to disc" on a menu. Create a "My Pictures" and "My Music" option for their HDTV units that can access a music and picture library via an Ethernet connection. The current HDTV unit does not allow the TiVo Home Media option. Offer a software package for sale that will run on any Windows-based PC. TiVo should leverage their name brand recognition and become a powerful software player. Create WiFi-enabled devices to access TiVo media from any television in the house. I would also mention this as a must for Microsoft as well, were it not for the fact that they have already announced that this technology is on it's way in the form of "extender" units due out by the end of this year. Provide the ability to connect external hard drives. The robust 250GB drive on my Hughes HR10-250 will be a dinosaur in a few years, and you shouldn't have to hack into your TiVo box to upgrade storage. Improve their recommendation feature. The thumbs up / thumbs down system is good, but it frequently gets derailed by erroneous entries, changes in taste, etc. Like Microsoft's "My Music" ratings, at present TiVo ratings are limited one user per box. Tivo should allow profile ratings so that my wife and I could each set our own ratings. Similar to my suggestion for Microsoft, TiVo should develop a "My Radio" feature, and also develop a similar host of external applications including email, RSS feed reader, home automation, alarm, lights, shades, security, "My Art," etc. Merge with a cash flow positive company. TiVo is losing money. Yes, the talk turns to profitability at some point but at the present they do not have the bank account that Microsoft does to fend off lawsuits and the like. A possible merger candidate would be Netflix who does have real earnings. There are board relationships as well as corporate synergies where this might work. Thomas Hawk is a digital media writer and enthusiast living in the San Francisco Bay area.
Read MoreWith news of the X04 event being canceled and now rumors of the official unveiling of the Xbox 2 at the International Consumer Electronic Show next January, all signs seem to be pointing to a shift in Microsoft's priorities. After all, Microsoft has already revealed its intention to be the first to launch a next generation console. So it only makes sense that they would cut back on Xbox promotions and pool their resources into hyping what's "next".
Read MoreIn light of recent rumors that Microsoft was seeking to buy Nintendo, some crafty Photoshop editors decided to create an alternate universe in which Microsoft has always owned Nintendo. Use the link to Fark and check out what would have happened to some of the NES classics under the Microsoft license. Enjoy (and be glad we live in the world we do).
Read MoreNot that it's going to happen, but a German magazine says that Bill Gates told them he would immediately make an offer for Nintendo if the company's majority shareholder, Hiroshi Yamauchi (pictured at right), was willing to sell. Just think of all the mangled hybrid products they could introduce!
Read MoreThis week's How-To is a handy one for the folks out there who use the Vonage Voice Over IP (VOIP) service and happen to have a Pocket PC device with WiFi. We're going to show you how to turn just about any Pocket PC PDA device in to a real telephone with a working telephone number. At the end of this, we're also going to post our phone number so you can test it out (it might be a long distance call for you).
Read MoreWe saw this Bluetooth headset + adaptor for non-Bluetooth cellphones and were left rather unmoved, especially given the Y30,000 ($275) pricetag, but Wireless Watch Japan puts a pertinent spin on the news by reminding us of the fact that Japan is banning cellphone use while driving as of November 1, suggesting that we could be seeing a lot more in this vein before long. With pricing this steep, though, we'd have thought the usual cable type of earphone mic is likely to outsell the Bluetooth variety. Not much hope for makers of the usual kind of Bluetooth headset, either, as there are only about two Japanese phones that have Bluetooth built in as yet. [Via Wireless Watch Japan]
Read MoreThere's one more thing you're going to have to start looking for in cellphones: whether or not it has a near field communication, or NFC, chip in it. NFC is basically a super-short range wireless protocol that only has a range of a few centimeters but would make it possible for people to use their cellphones to pay for stuff or unlock doors. Sounds just like RFID, right? The main difference is that with NFC you're not just reading a tag, you can actually send information both ways, which means it can also be used for transferring files to a PC (and it's supposed to be cheaper and use less power than WiFi or Bluetooth). Anyway, Philips (and just to be clear we mean Philips the company and not Phillip who writes for us) just cut a deal to sell NFC chips to Samsung, so expect to see it show up in their handsets by early next year.
Read MoreSo a cellphone carrier in India decided they had found a new to try and collect on an overdue bill: start harrassing the person's friends and associates. Manish Jethani discovered that Hutch had been calling up the numbers of people he had recently contacted, asking for information about where he was and requesting that he pay his bill. Besides being sleazy, it also potentially cost him a lot of business since one of the people they called was a prospective business client. Apparently this sort of thing isn't even illegal there. [Via TechDirt]
Read MoreWe'd say something snarky about how the T-pod, this t-shirt with iPod headphones printed right onto it, might be a bad idea given how muggers in Britain are targeting people wearing Apple's signature headphones because the odds are pretty good they're also carrying a precious iPod. But as we wrote back in March, that story turned out to be a hoax.
Read MoreForget the Olympics—a new world record for cellphone tossing was set this past Saturday when Ville Piippo managed throw a handset (probably not his own) a full 82.55 meters, crushing the previous record of 66.72 meters. Sagal Kouki picked up first prize in the "Freestyle" category, though what exactly that event constitutes we don't know (and maybe don't want to know). [Via I4U]
Read MoreYeah, we'll totally admit that we're waiting with bated breath for Verizon to bring their high-speed EV-DO network (which can deliver DSL-level download speeds to your cellphone) to New York City, but while we know that they're gradually rolling that out nationwide, what we hadn't known was that they're also currently testing a fixed wireless broadband network in rural Virginia. The article doesn't say how fast the downloads are, but they may be moving to "WiMAX-certified" gear next year (WiMAX is basically a long-distance version of WiFi and the next buzzword we'll all be sick of in about 12 months). [Via TechDirt]
Read MoreWe don't want to get anyone's hopes up (including our own, sadly), but is Verizon Wireless expanding their high-speed EV-DO network to New York City? There are reports that the cellular towers are in place and that people with compatible handsets are getting EV-DO coverage when in the area. Not too massively shocking since you know they've got to be testing EV-DO all around the country, but could they be close to offering it here in the Big Apple? [Via GigaOm] UPDATE: Ok, now we're hearing that Verizon will switch on EV-DO in Philadelphia, possibly within the next week.
Read MoreSince the big three are still completely unwilling to settle on a single open standard for instant messaging, T-Mobile is hedging their bets and pre-installing AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, and MSN Messenger on Nokia's 6800 cellphone (that's the one with the flip out QWERTY keyboard which just happens to be handy for pounding out text messages). Yes, we know it'd be a moot point if it were easier for people to just install whatever software apps they wanted...
Read MoreIt might not go on sale until September 5th, but HP is getting ready to unveil their new branded version of the iPod later today, along with a bunch of other new consumer electronics gear. We'll have some pics and more details as soon as they're available.
Read MoreA company called Vivotech is using the the fact that people don't enjoy carrying a bunch of different customer loyalty cards (or keychain dongles) to push an even more intrusive method of getting ten cents off on paper towels. They're working on using kiosks at the store's entrance (which probably no one will stop at) to send ads, sales and specials to cellphones and PDAs via Bluetooth or IR. How are we supposed to sign up as I.C. Weiner of 123 Anyplace Street if our cellphone is beaming the store all of our demographic information?
Read MoreOk, so it's one thing for a cellphone to have a bug in it, it happens, but there's a defect in Siemens' 65 series of cellphones (including the C65, M65, S65, SL65, CV65, CT65, CXV65, and CXT65) that could potentially result in hearing loss. The risk is really low, but apparently there's a problem with the software where if a call gets cut off because of low battery it may play a disconnection melody such a dangerously high volume that it could potentially damage your hearing. Siemens isn't issuing a patch or a recall, but they are strongly recommending that users deactivate the disconnection melody.
Read MoreThat quiet recall Cingular issued for some of their Motorola V600 cellphones we were mumbling abouta couple of weeks ago? Motorola says that it absolutely was not a recall and that were only some "minor" RF issues with the phone which they decided to address "proactively" before there were any consumer complaints (which sounds a lot like a recall to us, but whatever, as long as they're addressing the problem rather than ignoring it). Anyway, Cingular is already looking ahead, and have plans to unveil a similarly featured phone sometime before Christmas. [Via MobileTracker]
Read MoreThat less than stellar battery life on your newest gadget may be less trouble than you thought, due to researchers at the Division of Mechanical and Information Engineers at Korea Maritime University. They've successfully figured out how to recharge a cellphone just by walking around, through a kinetic-to-electrical energy converter in some shoes, managing to get 5mW of electricity every few steps. Of course they're trying to improve on that, with plans to charge an MP3 player in 5 to 6 hours, which seems like a bit more walking than we do on our average day (but then we are writers, so what do we know). Still, it'll give us an excuse to get off our rears and actually walk to work.
Read MoreThis one is almost too easy to take the piss out of: Like Tamagotchi for lonely middle-aged men, a Hong Kong company is offering a new "virtual girlfriend" service for cellphones that mainly consists of a little animated figure that moves around on your cellphone screen that you're supposed to interact with. In reality, what your really get is a virtual gold digger that you have to continually shower with virtual gifts (which unfortunately you have to pay real money for) and affectionate text messages in order keep her from ditching you (and before you get any ideas, virtual cybersex is a no no). Should be out by November, with a virtual boyfriend to follow early next year. [Thanks, Will]
Read MoreCingular just signed up their 25 millionth subscriber and to commemorate the big event they went way out of their way and gave a lousy Motorola V220 cellphone to the person it turned out to be. They did make a donation in his name to the charity of his choosing, and it isn't that the V220 isn't plenty nice, but c'mon, hook the guy with a trip to Cancun or free lifetime service or something, not some phone he could have picked up himself for a few hundred bucks. [Via MobileTracker]
Read MoreRead into this what you will (and we're so tempted to refrain from our usual banter on this one), but a job posting has shown up on Apple's website looking for a hardware engineer to work in their iPod division who has experience in a variety of wireless protocols, including "GSM, Bluetooth, [and] IEEE 802.11". Some sort of wireless iPod in the works? Maybe, maybe not, but there has been plenty of speculation about this, and it sounds like they're at least might be exploring their options.
Read MoreWe're sadly all too used to lagging behind Japan when it comes to stuff like Chaku-motion (video clips that play when your phone rings—the young people over there are crazy for 'em), but now Spanish company MoviStar is bringing video ringtones to the West with "videotonos", a similar service that uses video clips taken from popular music videos. There's no word yet on when video ringtones will be available in the US, but after seeing the David Brisbal sample on the MoviStar site, we're somewhat less than anxious about it. [Via textually.org]
Read MoreLiterally lagging after everybody else, Sprint says they'll become the last of the six major carriers to offer Research In Motion's BlackBerry email technology on their network. They don't get into the specifics of any actual hardware, just that the technology will be available on select "devices certified to operate" on Sprint's network, which means we could see both regular BlackBerrys (like the 7750 offered by Verizon) and smartphones running on RIM's software. [Via PhoneScoop]
Read MoreA consulting firm in Austrailia has finally figured out a way to hook people over 40 on text messaging. The trick? Making the screens and buttons on handsets big enough for anyone over the age of 10 to comfortably use them. Next up: explaining why deaf people don't dig the iPod. [Via Textually.org]
Read MoreMobinote's new DVX-POD 7010 personal video player just popped up for sale for with a list price of $19,900, which seems drastically expensive until you realize they're talking about Taiwanese New Dollars (though it still comes out to about $585). For those keeping score at home, the Mobinote is that new iPod-esque personal video player with a 7-inch widescreen LCD screen and a 20GB hard drive that can playback MPEG4, DivX, QuickTime, and WMV video files. [Thanks, Ben]
Read MoreMaking life finally worth living again, Japanese action figure company Kubrick has designed a robo-holster for the iPod. You don't get much for your $45 since it doesn't appear to do anything more than just sit there (you'd think it could at least run off and call the cops when you pirate music or something clever like that), but whatever, Kubrick made it, so buy yourself eight and keep two in the original packaging. [Via RandomURL]
Read MoreThey've been hinting at it for months, but now Rafat Ali gets the scoop that Disney is definitely getting into the wireless game and will be launching both a Disney-branded and an ESPN-branded cellphone service sometime in the next several months. They'll actually just be leasing space on somebody else's network (like how Virgin Mobile leases space from Sprint), but at the very least expect plenty of cutesy Disneyfied handsets for kids, though we just hope they do something more clever than just slap an ESPN logo on the ESPN phones.
Read MoreEast Buchanan Telephone, a small local phone co-operative in Iowa, says they're fed up the cellphone companies not paying the same carriage fees that long-distance providers pay them for completing calls, and are contemplating taking a very drastic step: blocking anyone with a cellphone from calling their customers. Hopefully not the beginning of a very dangerous trend.
Read MoreIt's not like anyone ever got too excited about MobiTV, Sprint's streaming "television" service for cellphones, mainly because it's hard to get excited about television that leaves out the video part and instead consists of watching a steady succession of still images that load up one after the other every second (we sorta need the illusion of motion to get us going). Anyway, Sprint's figured it out this time and are back with Sprint TV, which can stream real live video and audio at 15 frames per second. This has the advantage of actually looking like TV (except for the part about watching it on postage stamp-sized window on a cellphone screen), and has a farily solid initial line up of CNN, NBC, Fox Sports, Weather Channel, E! Entertainment, and a few other premium channels. The basic package costs ten bucks a month (though all you get is a channel showing movie trailers and another one with clips culled from all their "real" channels), with premium channels setting you back and an extra $3.95 to $4.95 per month each. Right now the only compatible handset is Samsung's MM-A700 (pictured at right), but sooner or later there will be more.
Read MoreTalk about doing the right thing: Hoping to try and make things just a little bit easier for anyone affected by the recent hurricane in Florida, T-Mobile is offering free access across the entire state to their network of WiFi hotspots (which can be found at plenty of Starbucks, Kinko's, Borders, and airports).
Read MoreAll-in-ones? Yeah, we're down. All-in-one iPod transmitter, charger, cradle car-accessory? Yeah, we're down. For $80? Uh, okay, sure, we can do that, since it can transmit between 88.1 to 107.9 FM via dedicated controls and still leaves the control port up top free for other accesssories. Now, all they have to do is make it about 45% less fugly, and they'll really be in business. [Via MacCentral]
Read MoreCaught in the hellish strife that is modern living, we're not sure anymore what we're more scared of: gas attacks or cellphone brain cancer. And naturally, as Americans, we consider baseball caps our first line of defense. CR Clean Air took care of the former, so thank god someone stepped up to the plate to still our raging Treo-induced-tumor fears: Handy-Fashions.com has the Mobile Cap, a hat designed with an RF-insulating earpiece lined with material "used by the military to shield missiles in extreme microwave exposed environments" which claims 99.999% signal blockage for only $39.99. The moral of the story? You're already going to look completely stupid wearing one or the other, so you might as well be extra safe and wear both at the same time. [Via Reactual]
Read MoreA guy who used to work for Verizon Wireless has just been indicted by a federal grand jury on ten counts of stealing twenty million dollars worth of PIN codes for prepaid cellular minutes between November 2002 and March of this year and then reselling them to other people (how much he got for them it doesn't say). Fortunately Verizon managed to make stealing from them very easy by neglecting to cut off his access to an account where they kept the records for their prepaid service even after he left the company back last year. [Via TechDirt]
Read MoreDespite the best efforts of plenty of people to block this from even happening at all, both the Justice Department and the FCC are on a fast-track to approve the mega-merger between Cingular and AT&T Wireless by October. And even if Cingular might be experiencing some buyer's remorse given AT&T Wireless' recent nosedive in terms of customer satisfaction, number of subscribers, and reputation, they're past the point of no return because apparently neither the Justice Department nor the FCC are going to impose any serious restrictions on the deal that might give Cingular a way to back out. Not that we're saying they're trying to, it's just that $41 billion is a lot of money when you think about what they're getting.
Read MoreAs of now, unless you've got a sweet smartphone with a memory card slot, pretty much the only way to get photos off of a cameraphone here in the States is to transfer it over the network by email or MMS. Why? Because the wireless carriers can charge people for the privilege of being able to email photos or post them to the web, and don't want to make it too easy to transfer photos to a PC using a cable or a memory card (some carriers even disable this feature on phones with Bluetooth). This isn't the end of the world with the crappy, throwaway images we have now (it's not like you want to archive every single grainy 640x480 picture, do you?), but over at Forbes.com Tony Henning argues that this will be completely unacceptable (and bandwidth restrictive) once we start getting our hands on the higher-resolution cameraphones everyone else in the world seems to be enjoying. When cameraphones can start taking decent pictures it's only a matter of time until people start to ask whether there's any point in buying one that they can't use more or less like a regular digital camera.
Read MoreWhen we first saw an article saying that the city of Nagoya was shutting down cellphone base stations on its subway platforms we assumed that paranoia about phone-activated terrorist bombs had spread to Japan too. However, it turns out that the paranoia is about pacemakers being interfered with by cellphones, which the Ministry of Health reckons is a problem if the two get within 22 cm of one another. Given how crowded Japan's trains get (the old chestnut is that half the carriage breathes in while the other half breathes out), that's liable to happen pretty often, though admittedly we've yet to hear of someone keeling over after being zapped by a cellphone.
Read MoreWalMart, the purveyor of all things middle-of-the-road is adding a surprising item to its menu. WiMax (basically long-range WiFi) base stations will supposedly be attached to all of WalMart's numerous stores and bestow broadband internet access upon a good portion of the US. Of course it won't be WalMart tech behind the venture, they'll just be lending their "good" name to whichever company actually provides the gear. If this ends up happening it'll have some interesting results, mainly Low Everyday Prices on broadband. Always. Just don't be surprised when you see that god-forsaken smily face injected into your browser sessions.
Read MoreFortune has a lengthy look at the history of the cellular industry, starting with the invention by researchers at AT&T's Bell Labs of the whole concept of "cells", through to the invention of the first handset in the early Seventies and the placing of the first commercial cellphone call in 1983 (by Bob Barnett of Ameritech to the grandson of Alexander Graham Bell), and leading up to the present-day, when people are having trouble remembering what life was like before you could carry on annoying one-sided conversations everywhere. [Via Textually.org]
Read MoreSpeculation has been running rampant for months that Toshiba was getting ready to exit the handhelds business, with not even the leaked news of that new e830 Pocket PC enough to stop the whispering. No one seems to know for sure what's going on, but the latest twist to this not particularly compelling saga is that Toshiba is staying in the PDA game, but will be giving up the consumer part of the business to focus solely on the "professional" market.
Read MoreJust in case you want to trick out your cellphone with something a little more masculine than Swarovski crystals (hey, we don't judge either way), Modphone is now offering to swath your handset in only the finest, most exotic, stingray leather (and yes, that's a Motorola A630 they've "enhanced"). Will definitely cost you more than the phone itself.
Read MoreDespite the expected reservations, the Merc's Mike Langberg actually finds himself digging AT&T Wireless' new high-speed 3G service. He test drove it on a laptop equipped with a UMTS wireless card and was able to get downloads of up to 300kbps in places where the signal was strong, which is sort of like having a poky DSL connection anywhere you go (as long as you stick to Seattle, the SF Bay Area, Phoenix, or Detroit, that is). Getting the service on a laptop costs $79.99 a month; it's only $24.99 to get unlimited service on your cellphone (Motorola's ginormous A845, pictured at right, and Nokia's 6651 are the only two phones they're offering at the moment), but the catch is that if you try to hook the phone up to a laptop to use as a wireless modem you'll get charged per the kilobit at a pricey rate that will make you not want to bother.
Read MoreA working prototype of NeoSoltek's TNA-1002 Cliod PVP has surfaced for our viewing pleasure. It's got what is coming to be a common feature set for such devices with MPEG 4, DivX, JPG, MP3 and WMA playback, with the added bonus of a built-in TV tuner. We'd give them extra points for the OLED display, but we'd have to take them back since the screen is somewhat smaller than other PVPs (that's what you get for using OLED). To make matters worse, it only has a 2.5GB hard drive, which is obviously not enough space to fit our ever growing collection of Daily Show episodes.
Read MoreNot to be outdone by the recent tie-up between Apple and Motorola to get iTunes onto cellphones, Nokia has cut a deal with Loudeye, a company which doesn't sell music downloads directly to consumers but helps other company set up their own online music stores and distribution systems. This doesn't mean that Nokia is planning to set up an online music store for cellphones of their own that might someday compete with Apple's iTunes Music Store, though. It's more likely that Nokia is trying to lay the groundwork for the wireless carriers to do it themselves (who think they'll be able to make money selling wireless music downloads to their subscribers), in order to induce the carriers to buy more Nokia cellphones. Loudeye might not sit at the cool kid's table like Apple, but at least Nokia realizes that if the carriers don't get their cut they won't let anyone put iTunes (or any other music download software) on the handsets they're offering to their subscribers.
Read MoreSo a few months ago AT&T announced that once Cingular completed its absorption of AT&T Wireless (which was spun off from AT&T a few years back) that they would be taking advantage of the unused name (which was only licensed in the first place) and launching a brand new wireless service under the AT&T Wireless name (they'd actually be leasing space on Sprint's network). Confused yet? Now they're saying that AT&T Wireless has done such a good job of mucking things up lately and pissing off customers that they may have permanently damaged the brand name and so now AT&T is thinking of ending their licensing agreement due to a "material breach of the pact", which obviously required them not besmirch the good name of AT&T. Seems like the worst they could do would be to force them to stop using the name "AT&T Wireless", which couldn't possibly be too huge of a problem given that they're supposed to stop using the name in a few months anyway. [Via TechDirt]
Read MoreBecause having some box shout at people during a movie is definitely less annoying than hearing a cellphone ring, there's now a talking cellphone detector that can broadcast a pre-recorded message that "reminds" people to switch off their handsets whenever it detects a wireless signal—or in the case of sensitive areas where they're prohibited entirely, forces people to hand their phones over. [Via TRFJ]
Read MoreAmong the uses touted for Japan cellphone colossus NTT DoCoMo's FeliCa smartcard phones is ticketless check-in and boarding at airports. It seems that Japan Airlines has gotten giddy at the possibilities this offers and has decided to scrap tickets altogether; not only will you shortly be able to swipe 'n' bleep your way through the entire process for domestic flights with a FeliCa cellphone, if you're in JAL's mileage scheme you can get a new card with an IC tag embedded, so either way the days of the paper ticket are numbered...though not quite. They'll still be handing out boarding cards at the check-in counter "to prevent trouble on board", by which we assume they mean fights over who gets the seats near the exit with the extra legroom.
Read MoreFirst Motorola's V600 cameraphone was delayed for months and months. The phone finally came out in late March, only to have Cingular mysteriously stop selling it late last month. Now they're recalling the V600 entirely and giving customers a lesser phone, the V400, as a loaner until they can get some unspecified problems with the antenna and/or reception fixed. Anyone sent having problems or sent theirs back?
Read MoreSo a survey by TNS Telecoms found that a full 78 percent of wireless minutes go unused each month, and that people are paying more than they need to for cellphone service. It's more than just a little disingenuous, since a lot of these unused minutes are part of those "free nights and weekends" promotions, meaning that it's virtually impossible for anyone to use even a majority of the minutes given to them each month. What percentage of daytime minutes wireless subscribers use up each month is curiously absent from the press release announcing this news. But that shouldn't come as any surprise given that the press release was issued by TracFone Wireless, which offers pre-paid wireless phone service where people pay only for the minutes they use and is trying to lure customers away from the monthly service plans offered by the carriers. [Via MobileTracker]
Read MoreNo way! Someone found an even geekier way to carry your cellphone around than in a holster attached to your belt. It's the Phone Safe, a spandex wrist sheath with a little pouch for carrying around your phone. [Via The Red Ferret Journal]
Read MoreBack in June we released a free set of Presidential candidate ringtones in the spirit of freedom and patriotism. And what happens? "ClearSky Mobile Media" turns around and does the same thing, charging $2.99 for what we were giving away for nothing. So we're reminding our fellow citizens (and foreign well-wishers) not to waste their hard-earned dollars on ClearSky and instead to download the free ones we made. Anything else is Un-American. [via MobileTechNews]
Read MoreBritish company Forbidden Technologies thinks they've stumbled on yet another form of viral marketing: "viewtoothing", which mainly involves people using Bluetooth to beam each other video clips using their cellphones. And of course they have a new application called FORmobile that let's people do just that (as if it were somehow impossible to share video clips over Bluetooth already), which is handy because they want to sell it to marketers as way to expose consumers to clips of movie trailers, advertisements, etc. who will then share them with their friends (that's the viral part). Too bad they're going to discover the limitations of viral marketing when they see how badly the term "viewtoothing" fails to catch on. [Via Textually.org]
Read MoreThe FCC have ruled that marketers must have explicit permission from anyone with a wireless device before they send them spam, a ruling eerily similar in scope to the CAN-SPAM act for email which has been largely ignored by spammers. The devil's in the details on this one - this ruling only applies to email sent to your phone from the carrier. Most carriers have a special email address they use for your phone (i.e., 2061923343@carrier.com); checking email from your normal account isn't affected. Most importantly, SMS text messages aren't affected at all, which is pretty much what people think of when you say "mobile spam." The long and short of it is that the ruling is basically a loophole closure for the CAN-SPAM act, and doesn't really do much to protect us from all the text message spam on our phones. Hey, at least the FCC is trying...
Read MoreSo e.Digital, the company that makes those Kino personal video players with the 7-inch 16:9 widescreen LCD that Alaska Air is renting out on flights now (it comes pre-loaded with about 10 movies, a few TV shows, and over 100 songs), is making them available for other companies to customize and sell under their own names (which is what APS did for Alaska Air). Usually not the sort of news worth bothering about, especially since you probably still won't be able to just buy one yourself (not that you'd want to given the billions of other options which will be flooding the planet over the next few months), but it does mean we might potentially start seeing these things pop up on other airlines. [Via I4U]
Read MoreNot that you can put too much stock in these sorts of things, but there's a rumor that AT&T Wireless is backing away from plans to carry Sierra Wireless' new Voq Professional Phone, which runs on Microsoft's Smartphone OS., saying that it'll be supported on their network, but not sold by them. We're guessing that Sierra Wireless and AT&T's first date didn't quite pan out—did Sierra not pay for dinner or open the door for them on the way out? The big question now is what AT&T means by "support"; we're assuming it means they're just talking the kind of suppoer where you can slap your SIM in and you'll be able to make calls (which you can do with any unlocked GSM phone, really), but no one knows.
Read MoreJapan aftermarket car-parts maestro Autobacs Seven (no, we don't know what bacs are and why there are seven of them) is launching a handsfree kit, the DriveStation Car Navi Stand, that provides a dashboard mount for your cellphone, hooked up to a GPS receiver and a cigar lighter adaptor. A Java app for the phone to display the maps completes the setup. Only works with a few Vodafone Japan phones at the moment, though compatibility with more is on the way. Costs Y27,800 (about $250), which obviously is loads cheaper than buying a dedicated unit. Just try not to hit anything while you're squinting at your 2-inch screen, though, OK?
Read MoreOh, you probably don't want to bring your cameraphone with you on that next trip to Saudi Arabia. We already knew that they were banned there, but Alan Reiter called up the Saudi Embassy in Washington, D.C. and found out that not only will customs confiscate the phone on your arrival, they also won't be giving it back when you leave.
Read MoreWe thought we'd struck gold when we found this eBay post for a Zach Morris cellphone, the one that's a foot-long, got more buttons than your universal remote and proved Zach's early-nineties coolness. He was always chatting on this during class, then somehow this monster would disappear into his jacket pocket. But the seller says this Motorola Ultra Classic phone is "much like" the Saved By the Bell original, so we guess that doesn't really make the grade. Are you saying you don't want this for $50 bucks? Not even with the leather fannypack?
Read MoreWe're pretty sure none of the fine ladies we've been squiring about town would ever dream of using this, but Cingular is offering a new service called "Escape-A-Date" that will actually automatically call you at a pre-set time to help you extricate yourself from any unpleasant situations. There are even eight different scripts that prompt you to say the right things so you can make it sound like you've just gotten a very important and urgent call that requires you to leave immediately. [Via Unwired]
Read MoreYahoo! Japan, which rules the roost for online auctions in Japan, is adding a logical extra feature that snips the last shackle binding budding auctioners to a PC. You can now upload product snaps from your cameraphone along with the details of the junk—sorry, treasure—you're trying to shift, meaning that schoolgirls of an enterprising bent can start disposing of that latest present from their sugar daddies without delay. You can also use all the other auction features, too, so "down-to-the-wire bidding frenzy" now joins the list of surreptitious cellphone activities you can use to while away tedious meetings.
Read MoreEspecially useful since now that making regular voice phone calls is totally out of fashion, BT is introducing a new service in the UK that let's you send a text message to a regular landline phone. Since hardly any landline phones can receive text messages (believe it or not, there are actually a few out there), BT's service uses text-to-speech software to convert the message into a voicemail, even translating that text shorthand favored by teens into something a bit more comprehensible. Or you could just call and leave a voicemail in the first place. Your choice. [Via Textually.org]
Read MoreWe've gotta say, we're pretty stoked about the new Rio Carbon. The Rio line—especially the Nitrus—was already really minuscule for its class, but some recently surfaced side-by-sides prove that the Carbon is going to be even smaller—and yet still sport 5GB of storage. They're also making it mass-storage compliant (Rio players could previously load up with files, but only via software), which is a double-edged sword since many praised the Rio players' speed, which was attributed to its database filesystem. Also of concern is the rumor that the Carbon will be dropping gapless playback and OGG/FLAC playback; this would be a huge mistake, since they sell a huge amount of players based on those three features alone, and obviously are going to need whatever edge they can get over the iPod mini.
Read MoreIs Virgin planning to take on the iPod? We've already mentioned their new silver dollar-sized 128MB Wearable MP3 Player (pictured at right) before, but buried towards the bottom of Mike Langberg's story for the San Jose Mercury News about how more and more brand name companies are having their electronics built by obscure Taiwainese manufacturers (also known as ODMs, or Original Design Manufacturers) and it lets anyone get into the electronics game for cheap now, is the news that Virgin is planning on coming out with a hard drive MP3 player that'll go head-to-head with the iPod (not that that isn't said everytime someone comes out with a hard drive MP3 player). Should be out this fall, too.
Read MoreEveryone is abuzz over these cryptic words in Time Magazine's review of the new iPod about some unannounced new features: [Y]ou should know that internally the new iPod is a ground-up reconstruction, and its really compelling applications — the ones that very well might get the goat of anyone unable or unwilling to upgrade — are still secret. All that Apple is saying is that there's more to this than what's being publicized. So what could it be? An add-on radio? Photo and video capabilities? Bluetooth? WiFi? Some sort of fancy new dock? Why is Apple messing with us like this? They know how we fragile we've been lately. [Via iPodLounge]
Read MoreServing as a true inspiration to Bluejackers and Bluesnarfers everywhere, Engadget pal Mike Outmesguine was able to successfully extend Bluetooth's range (which usually isn't more than 30 feet or so, depending on circumstances) to over a kilometer. He attached a high-gain antenna to a cellphone (Sony Ericsson's T610, to be precise) and was able to successfully connect to a laptop roughly a kilometer away.
Read MoreEasily the best Mac OS X news I've heard today... (:= You can download Skype for Mac OS X Beta today! Thanks Dina for pointing me to Robin Good's post!
Read MoreThe Carbon, Rio's dimunitive new 5GB MP3 player which has the iPod mini set squarely in its sights, hit stores yesterday. The list price of $249.99 is the same as the iPod mini's, but you should be able to find it for less if you check around. Just make sure you don't get suckered into buying the limited-edition version, which mainly consists of an engraving on its stainless steel back letting you know that it's part of a limited-edition. Yawn. At least give us a different color or something. [Via I4U]
Read MoreNope, it ain't as fancy as PhatNoise's PhatBox or Rockford's Omnifi Auto Digital Media Player, which both put proper hard drives in your car, but if you're looking for a basic way to listen to MP3s in the car (and don't already own an iPod or other digital audio player), Logitec has you covered. The LAT-CARMP3 (the "LAT" stands for "Local Area Transmitter") is basically an FM transmitter with a USB port so you can copy MP3s onto a USB key drive and then listen to your music in the car. Navigation looks like it'd be a bitch (there's no display of any kind), but we sorta wonder whether it'd work with a proper USB hard drive. There's really no reason why not.
Read MoreWe wouldn't have said glowing psychedelic pillows were necessarily the path to your loved one's heart, but Swedish designers at Play Research Studio have created WiFi'd interactive luminescent (yes, all in one) pillows. When one pillow is touched the electroluminescent wires weaved into the other pillow glow so that physical interaction can be exchanged remotely. Or something like that. Only problem is that you can never be too sure who's on the other end of the pillow grope, since anyone within reach could be giving the pillow a feel.
Read MoreMy fingers just can't seem to find the pull-tab on that 5th Natty-Ice, hmmm, shall you call it a night? Hah, is the Pope Jewish? You whistle for Can Pull, and your lack-of-dexterity finds a new intern. Yes, Can Pull is sad in theory, but the neon polycarbonate pull-tab can opener would have looked hot hanging from your '92-era raver neck (like a rave pacifier for the beer-drinker set). Well, maybe not, but designers at Priestman Goode have named it the best beer drinker invention of all time.
Read MoreWe couldn't help but post an action shot of the T63 Artemis, that mall-patrolling security bot we mentioned this morning which should be replacing rent-a-cops everywhere within a few years. UPDATE: One the commenters points out the obvious: "That picture DEMANDS a caption contest!" So get on it!
Read MoreIn our coverage of the MTV Video Music awards we mentioned the HP Diamond iPod encrusted with over 120 diamonds that was given to P. Diddy. Erin Kane from On The Scene Productions was kind enough to send us over these exclusive pictures of the Sean "P.Diddy" Combs custom diamond iPod and cradle. Enjoy the bling.
Read MoreThis year's Republican National Convention is expected to attract over a quarter of a million protesters, with some estimates as high as 400,000. So far there've been a few notable arrests, including that bicycling SMS guy. In the age of a cellphone in every hand, and either a cameraphone or digital camera in every pocket, we're bound to get some amazing coverage of this historic event. That said, we've rounded up some of the links and going ons for the folks out there who either plan to get involved or just watch from the comfort and safety of their protective cubicles. Feel free to add your own links to additional sites and resources in the comments.
Read MoreThere were disappointingly few sneak peeks at new gadgets at this year's MTV Video Music Awards, but we did spot a few here and there, which we've compiled for you.
Read MoreFollowing Pentax, Canon, and Casio, this week's slew of new digital cameras comes to us courtesy of Sony, which just bounced out the DSC-T3, the DSC-L1, and the DSC-V3. Here we go: Following in the footsteps of the ultraslim DSC-T1 and DSC-T11, the 5.1 megapixel Cyber-shot DSC-T3 has a large 2.5-inch LCD screen and a 3x optical zoom lens, and is supposed to be their slimmest "full-featured" digital camera yet. Read - Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T3 The ultratiny Cyber-shot DSC-L1 is just 3.75 by 1.75 by 1 inches in size and has a resolution of 4.1 megapixels and a 3x optical zoom lens. Read - Sony Cyber-shot DSC-L1 And lastly, their new, more prosumer, camera, the 7.2 megapixel Cyber-shot DSC-V3, which has a 2.5-inch LCD screen, a 4x optical zoom lens, and both CompactFlash and Memory Stick memory card slots rather than the Memory Stick Duo slots found on the other two. Read - Sony Cyber-shot DSC-V3
Read MoreSo here we have the iUbi, a personal media player coming out soon from another previously unknown company called Rifa. It's got a 3.5-inch touchscreen, a 20GB hard drive and a 3-5 hour battery life. There's all sorts of hype (and by all sorts, we mean by the company making it) about its PDA functionality and add on WiFi-ness and how this sort of hybrid functionality is a new direction (i=internet and Ubi=ubiquitous). And stuff. So if we're reading this right, it's basically a PDA with a hard drive. Ummm...yeah. Good idea? Yes. Worthy of the hype? Eh, no quite yet. But soon perhaps.
Read MoreWe're not quite as excited about this as the guy in the picture, but the other news from Creative today is that they've got a new version of their MuVo² MP3 player coming out that packs in a built-in FM tuner and has most creatively been named the MuVo² FM. Apparently they're also taking a stab at the iPod mini, and introducing it in blue, green, and pink as well as the more traditional black and silver. [Via DAPreview]
Read MoreWe sorta bungled this first time around, but it looks like Creative has finally actually started shipping the Zen Touch, their new 20GB MP3 player with a unique (at least for now) llinear-style touchpad controller and a solid battery life of 24 hours. [Thanks, Richard]
Read MoreThat was fast: Joshua Kinberg, the man behind Bikes Against Bush who was planning to use a bike with a wirelessly-enabled printer attached to spray paint protest messages sent via the Internet or text message at this week's Republican National Convention, managed to get himself arrested on Sunday morning. The printer on the bike is only supposed to spray non-permanent chalk rather than paint, but he's being charged with vandalism anyway. [Thanks, Ben]
Read MoreWe're now officially sick of talking about the hPod or the HP iPod or the Apple iPod from HP or whatever, but we thought it worth mentioning that tech analyst Rob Enderle predicts that HP's iPod will outsell Apple's iPod due to their larger distribution network. We're not even gonna touch this one. [Via MacMinute]
Read MoreUttering what we can only hope will prove to be some famous last words, Gareth Jones, the chief operating officer of 3, a high-speed 3G wireless carrier in Europe, declared the other day that the company won't be giving their subcribers unfettered access to the entire Internet on their cellphones because, "People don't want open access, that's not what our customers tell us they want. Anyone in their right mind who tries to do anything on the Internet with a screen that size has to be nuts." How about asking AOL how well that approach works? [Via TechDirt]
Read MoreYou'd think that electricity and pouring rain wouldn't exactly complement one another, but these umbrella designers think they do, so we'll just shelve those uncomfortable thoughts for now. Firebox is selling the Bright Night Umbrella which acts as rain protector, light aid and gaudy fashion statement. Blade Runner did have something like this but somehow it just looked way cooler sheltering Harrison Ford. [Via GadgetMadness]
Read MoreMaybe it's just because we've been here in New York for such a long time, but we don't really notice the overall ickiness of the air anymore. Which is not to say it's all nice and fresh, but our lungs seem to have built up some sort of immunity, though not one we're willing to bet our long-term health on. So it is with some interest that we bring to you the Portable Oxygen Bar which is supposed to clean the air around you by "generating negative ion in electron theory." On second thought, maybe we'll just stick to our super-stylish surgeon's mask that we've been rocking Michael Jackson-style.
Read MoreDoes your sweaty, clammy mouse-hand make the poor device slide around like an oiled egg? Are you tired of shooting your mouse across the room, instead of shooting the newbie on the LAN? Well, it may be time to add the latest accessory to your gaming arsenal — Mouse Grips. The little sticky things slap onto your mouse and give you a more gripping surface to play with. If this sounds like a gimmick that couldn't possibly help your already stellar game, then read the review and be surprised.
Read MoreAmong the slew of new household products Mitsubishi has just announced are several refrigerators that will boost the vitamin C content of your vegetables by 10% during storage (though not if you leave them in there for a year or two, we presume). The trick is that instead of plunging your legumes into total darkness the "Delicious Vitamin Boost Light Power Vegetable Compartment" uses coloured LED lights at frequencies that don't "stimulate germination", and they have some graphs and photos of a cabbage to prove it works.
Read MoreNothing official yet (a phrase we weary of constantly repeating), but apparently the HP-branded version of the iPod will be announced at the Apple Expo on Paris and go on sale September 5th. We've heard conflicting reports about what it'll look like, but it's supposed to either be just like the regular iPod just with the HP logo on the back or it'll come in "HP Blue" like the prototype (pictured at right) that Carly Fiorina showed off at the Consumer Electronics Show this past January.
Read MoreCertain Japanese and Korean bookstores have been fuming over readers who pirate a magazines's content by snapping pics of the pages they want with their cameraphone and then walking out without buying anything. Sounds reasonable enough (maybe a little overhyped), but Jane magazine is taking the opposite approach, figuring that the-more-attention-the-better. The upcoming September issue of Jane features a "Jane Talks Back" section which encourages readers to snap a picture of the magazine's ads and email them back to Jane HQ in exchange for various freebies. The promotion is supposed to get readers "more involved" with the magazine and give the ad-makers a clue into what the readership wants. Anyway, since this is Engadget we should probably also mention that the promotion's official cameraphone comes from Samsung and the technology used to match the cameraphone images to the Jane ads was developed by Boston-based start-up Mobot.
Read MoreWe have no idea whether it takes decent pictures or not, but at least Oregon Scientific's three megapixel PV100 digital camera has a massive 3.5-inch LCD screen which takes almost the entire back side of the camera. P.S. - Anyone know who really makes this thing or seen it under another brand name?
Read MoreSorrent, a mobile games publisher, recently made Bush vs. Kerry Boxing available for all Sprint PCS subscribers. The game was built off of Sorrent's pre-existing Fox Sports Boxing engine, the developers simply added the two candidates. Both Bush and Kerry can bring the pain with special moves like the 'Right Wing Hook' or the 'Far Left Jab'. The result of each match is automatically uploaded to Sorrent's website, where anyone can view who is leading in the Pugilist Poll—not to be mistaking for the Presidential Poll. Apparently, 10% of the game's proceeds will be donated to Rock the Vote. Let's just hope all those young voters aren't simply persuaded by the candidate with the longest reach.
Read MoreAfter inventor John LeBourgeois read of New York City police killing unarmed Amadou Diallo with 41 bullets, he decided it was about time to create a less-than-lethal weapon that officers could use. By stuffing piezoelectric material into regular bullet casings he created an electric bullet that releases a shock 1 to 1.5 times the strength of a heart defibrillator. The new bullet makes most people drop immediately and barring heart attacks isn't likely to kill them, though some people are criticizing the powerful punch of the electric bullet as still plenty dangerous and say that other non-lethal methods need to be employed. [UPDATE: Amadou Diallo was shot at 41 times, but was hit with19 bullets.]
Read MoreIt was a late August Saturday night in Seattle, we decided not only to hit the dance floor, but boogie on down in a whole new way. All the cats in town are wearing big belt buckles now, so we thought, hey, here's our chance to show the world our latest hack, the Search Engine Belt Buckle. What is the Search Engine Belt Buckle? The Search Engine Belt Buckle is a PDA which shows 24 hours of all the bizarre and banal things people are looking for on the web. Art project or pointless hack? That's for you to decide, but all we know is that people are searching for some pretty freaky stuff out there, so why not put in a belt buckle and get on the scene like a sex machine?
Read MoreAre CDs the new towels? Many boutique hotels now offer CDs along with a stereo for in-room to play them on. We've long honored the tradition of stealing towel or two, but now we're at a crossroad. On our last trip we found these two unsealed CDs next to a vanilla scented candle. You're allowed to play them all you like in your room during your stay, but they cost thirty bucks if you want to take them with you. So you look at the CDs, you look at your laptop, and if you like the music but don't want to drop $30 do you just rip the CDs? Could this become the modern day version of stealing towels and those little shampoos? The difference is we could just rip the CDs, and no one would be the wiser.
Read MoreSteve Silberman recently published an article in Wired that documents new methods for training military personnel that involve, primarily, "surround sound action movies starring themselves." It's a colorful piece that explores the military's relationship with Hollywood, the videogame industry and Silicon Valley; what one Stanford Prof. has dubbed: 'the military-entertainment complex'. It turns out these new simulations our built around storytelling, while maintaining an emphasis on strategy and teamwork—the military is not attempting to build an army of Rambos here. At any rate, the article is well worth a read, just use the link below.
Read MoreGuess they couldn't let Pentax hog the spotlight for too long because Casio's just announced five new compact digital cameras of their own, including four new Exilims. Here we go: The Casio Exilim Pro EX-P700 is an upgrade to their Exilim Pro EX-P600, getting a bump up to seven megapixels but keeping the same 2-inch LCD screen and 4x optical zoom lens. Read - Casio Exilim Pro EX-P700 The Casio Exilim Zoom EX-Z50 and Exilim Zoom EX-Z55 (pictured above) are pretty much the same, both have a resolution of 5.3 megapixels and a 3x optical zoom lens, with the main difference being that the Z55 has a slightly larger LCD screen than the Z50 (2.5-inch vs. 2-inch). Battery life on both models is supposed to be 10% better than that of the EX-Z40. Read - The Casio Exilim Zoom EX-Z50 and Exilim Zoom EX-Z55 Casio claims that the Casio Exilim Card EX-S100 is the world's smallest digital camera with optical zoom and we're inclined to agree with them. Made of stainless steel, the EX-S100 is just 17mm thick, has a resolution 3.2 megapixels, a 2-inch LCD screen, and a 2.8x optical zoom lens. Read - The Casio Exilim Card EX-S100 The six megapixel Casio QV-R61 is meant as an entry-level model for their QV series of cameras, and has a 3x optical zoom lense and a 2-inch LCD screen (you can probably tell we're less excited about this one). Read - The Casio QV-R61
Read MoreYes, it's only a matter of weeks now... Fable has gone gold! Ladies and gentlemen, the agonizing wait will soon be over, as one of the most anticipated RPGs—scratch that—most anticipated games of all time is set to hit stores September 14. 'Nuff said.
Read MoreSince we've all said to ourselves, "I wish there was some way to go horseback riding without the horse and actually inside my own livingroom watching TV" at some point (what you haven't, what's wrong with you?), we present the Joba Horseriding Exercise Machine. Yes, you can now feign exercise on a gyrating metal saddle designed by Japanese co. Matsushita. We're thinking Japanese customers have a slightly different response to the product than a customer in, say, Lubbock, Texas. When in use you must outstretch you're arms to look as awkward as possible and while staring forward with a grin. Come on, don't you want one? — It's even got cute little metal stirups. Chaps not included.
Read MoreJust a final reminder that you have until midnight EST tomorrow to enter our second What Would (Steve) Jobs Do? contest, where you can send in your best guess for what the new iMac might look like or what other crazy new Apple products might get announced at the upcoming Apple Expo in Paris and win some fresh stuff prizes courtesy of Griffin. We'll announce a winner on Monday.
Read MoreIt can be hard to get your head around all the tweaks you can make to your computer. Gamers like to look for ways to get more performance out of their rigs, often buying up some piece of hardware in the hopes of reaching game nirvana. A less sexy way of getting a faster machine may be a simple software tweak. There are loads of apps available for free download that promise to clean out the extra flack. There are also lots of sites crammed with suggestions (and we mean crammed). But this is the first page we've seen in a long time, that lays out some simple steps you can take. Among the suggestions are shutting down services that run in the background (with a short list of safe possibilities), simple utilities and specific Windows updates. There's nothing revolutionary here, just plain common sense.
Read MoreAnd lest we forget, in addition to that new OptioX Pentax also introduced the Optio S5i today, a five megapixel version of their S4i digital camera which keeps the same 3x optical zoom lens and 1.8-inch LCD screen but adds a "coarse" handgrip to the mix.
Read MoreNext time you want to spy on some hippie goth kids pick up Quark's Candle Cam, a wireless video camera hidden inside an actual candle. What we're trying to figure out is how much the candle can melt down before your sneaky surveillance habits are exposed.
Read MoreThis past weekend the New York Times Magazine featured an article on the growing relationship between the US military and videogames. It's a fairly dense article, but worth a read. You can access it in its entirety on the NY Times website. I've added a link below, but you may have to register (it's free).
Read More(best viewed with 3-D glasses) This week's how-to is a fun one, we're going to show you how to make 3-D photos with any digital camera and some free software. We'll also explain how 3-D photography works and as a special treat, we've got a gallery of 3-D gadget photos to view along with how to make 3-D photos from NASA images.
Read MoreVonage has been busy lately, cutting deals with both Netgear and Linksys to make routers with built-in analog telephone adapters that'll work with their broadband Internet telephone service. The new RT31P2 from Linksys (pictured at right) comes with two phone jacks in the back for making Voice over IP calls with regular wireline telephones, while Netgear is coming out with pretty much the same thing, just with a wireless 802.11g thrown in there for good measure (though Linksys says they have one of those coming out, too). Read - Vonage and Netgear Read - Vonage and Linksys
Read MoreSanDisk is definitely milking this one for all it's worth: a newspaper photographer in Missouri accidentally positioned one of his digital camera a little too close in attempt to photograph a bridge that was being demolished. The explosion destroyed the camera, but his CompactFlash memory card (SanDisk brand, of course) managed to survive the blast with all of its photos completely intact, including the shot above, which was taken milliseconds before impact. Plus, make sure you click for some sweet action that a second camera managed to capture of the camera being blown up. [Via Designtechnica]
Read MoreOh yeah, now we can finally put aside our wine-in-a-box habit and move on to real bottles. The Angleshare WA-1 wine cooler can keep wine at perfect-for-serving 53, 57 or 60 degrees and the humidity level at 65% to keep that cork nice and supple. Don't know if this works quite as well for the newfangled plastic "corks" they have these days but we're certainly willing to down a few bottles to test it out. There's also protection from UV rays and a stabilized fan so that the bottle doesn't get shaken in any way. As if all this wasn't drool-worthy enough, they have 6 and 12-bottle coolers for those big dinner parties we keep swearing we're going to have.
Read MoreRemember dittoes? In schools across the country, there isn't much in the way of "take one, pass it down" anymore. Paper and pen are being upgraded to mouse and keyboard. Classrooms full of computers (never mind cellphones, PDAs, and iPods) present special problems and opportunities for teachers. And according to The New York Times, teachers are learning to fight fire (wire) with fire. Network software NetOp allows teachers to freeze student's desktops during instruction and watch what each student is up to during work time. Other teachers employ high-tech gadgetry to wow students into paying attention. The PC-projected lesson is replacing the chalk board and instead of chalk, teachers are using wirelss keyboards and mouses, typing up pop quizzes on screen which students respond to via remote controls. But before you think everything's gone Jetsons on us, a lot of today's gadgets are only modifying, not replacing, old-time teaching methods. During physics demonstrations, one MIT professor keeps his students awake by "accidently" blowing up a capacitor. "You have to make loud noises once or twice to snap them back to attention," he said.
Read MoreOur buddies at C|Net've got a nice little overview of the state of the RFID debate. While we're sure it's nothing you haven't heard before, it's always fun to read the latest salvos from the "The government/hackers will track every single move we make! We'll be totally 0WNED" and the "RFID tags are the only way to save our children/razor blades/parakeets from the terrible evils of shoplifters/kidnappers/dark magicians" camps. So go on and take a gander, but remember not to get too close to the mavens on either side. They bite.
Read MoreIf you take a look over to your right you'll see a new feature we've just added to the site that lists our most commented on posts from the past sixty days. We've had a bunch of great discussions about a wide range of topics since we opened up the site to comments a couple of months ago, and rather than bury them on the site we figured we'd try and find a way to highlight them. Check it out!
Read MoreSure, it feels sorta gimmicky, but Koyono is selling the BlackCoat-T, a t-shirt with a zipper right in front that hides a secret pocket for carrying an iPod or a cellphone or a PDA or whatever else you think you can successfully squeeze in there. [Thanks, Jim]
Read MoreFor the technologically-inclined surfer who already has that wireless Tablet PC surfboard there's now the Wave Pillow, an Internet-connected pillow that vibrates in time to the kind of waves that are at the beach that morning (or afternoon, depending on the hours you keep) so you can literally feel how heavy the surf is. You just connect it to your PC at home, use the included software to designate which beach you want to keep tabs on, and the Wave Pillow automatically grabs the wave info off the Wave Buoy website, where it gets translated into vibrations. [Thanks, Regine]
Read MoreWe're not even gonna get into how much people dislike the Explorer 8000, the combination cable box/digital video recorder Time-Warner Cable offers to its subscribers, but we're hearing that in a few weeks they're planning to rollout Scientific Atlanta's new version of the box, the Explorer 8000HD, which can record high-definition broadcasts. It's only going to have a 120GB hard drive, which might sound like a lot until you realize how much extra space you need to record high-definition TV, but supposedly it'll eventually be possible to add extra hard drive space via its FireWire port. [Thanks, Marc]
Read MoreA bunch of schoolkids in South Africa have apparently figured out how to tap into other people's cellphone conversations. A newspaper down there confirms that that it's possible to eavesdrop on other Vodacom subscribers' phone calls by calling the company's customer care service and then dialing a special code (or something like that, it's not entirely clear) which lets you listen in on a random phone call within a 15km radius. [Via textually.org]
Read MoreWhile we're waiting for these MPEG-4 cameras to have hard drives so they can actually start replacing bigger tape cameras, companies still seem more concerned with making the camera itself smaller and smaller. Sanyo's new Xacti DMX-C4 still just uses SD cards for storage, but at least it does weigh less than six ounces. It also has the best specs for a hybrid photo/video ultra-portable: 4 megapixels, almost DVD-quality video (you can fit about an hour's worth on a 1GB SD card), and a 5.8x optical zoom lens. And you can get it in either "romance blue" or "active orange". Coming out in Japan next month, but this probably will make it to the US soon under the Fisher brand name.
Read MoreEvery couple of years the mainstream press needs something dour to write about our favorite pasttime. ABS News is warning us that the videogame business is about to get hit hard by a downturn. There are lots of qualifiers in the piece, of course, since it's moslty speculative reporting — an oxymoron if we've ever heard one (yet so appropriate in this case). The writer is quite full of himself and feels he caught every angle of the industry in his analysis. His conclusion? "...If I was in the video game business, I'd be typing my resume." See if you can spot less than 20 holes in his theory. That would make a fun game.
Read MoreHas Usher been reading Engadget? It's about five years late, but the R&B singer is cashing in all this Internet-mania with a gadgety new song called "Dot Com". These are some of the actual, no foolin' lyrics: oooo i love the way ya dirty type i can take you home oooo i need your backspace in my life thank god you don't have a flatscreen please baby i got to see you i really want to please you so get on my laptop so i can download online...i love the way you log on we can do it all night i'll make you dot com baby if you sign on i'm gon make ya light up oo baby if you log on i'll make you dot com i wanted to linger with you baby at first sight you i get to use my f keys i can't wait to give you megabites i got other memory you need let ma fingers do the talking Why do we have the feeling that if it were us singing these words it wouldn't have quite the same effect? [Via Waxy]
Read MoreWe were just getting used to a world with the Canon EOS-20D in it when along comes some rumors/predictions of Nikon striking back with a whole bunch of new digital cameras. The lineup of new cameras due out this fall is supposed to include: The D3, a new 15 megapixel digital SLR. The D200, an 8.25 megapixel upgrade to the D100. The D2HS, a new version of their D2H digital SLR (which is pictured at right) with an improved 4.1 megapixel sensor. The DSX, an 8.2 megapixel version of the D2HS that doubles the number of horizontal pixels. [Via PhotographyBlog]
Read MoreWe're not sure we want to inhale anything these three are selling, but AWOL, or Alcohol WithOut Liquid, debuted their liquid-free alcohol vapor machine in New York this past weekend. AWOL mixes an alcohol like vodka or whisky with pressurized oxygen which you basically suck down for 20 minutes for a hangover-free alcohol hit. The machine looks ultra shady and the mouth pieces look suspiciously like recycled asthma inhalers, but the AWOL site insists that it's all very legal and safe and so forth. Nevertheless a state senator is already introducing legislation to ban the thing and bars and night clubs are decidely uneasy about it. We sure wouldn't feel confident accepting a puff from this smoldering-stared ladies man.
Read MoreWe hear that the Japanese take their fish very seriously, and when it comes to the issue of Japan's food safety, the Japanese consumer takes the more-info-the-better approach. They've already got a functioning beef tracking and data system by which the consumer can locate their steak's species, sex, stats, place-of-birth, farmer in charge, and location of the farm, all from a ID number on the beef packaging via any Internet connection. Now the fish business is the next food item to get the treatment and DoCoMo Sentsu (subsidiary of NTTDoCoMo) partnered with the Marine Fishery Systems Association to create a 2D barcode tracking system for all fish. Consumers can scan the barcode with their cellphones and determine even the name of the fisherman who caught the fish, the cooperative the fisherman belongs to and where the operations were conducted. Though we might like to know some info about our meal, we're thinking a full-on investigative background check on our grilled salmon plate is a bit much.
Read MoreYou gotta love how they do things in Italy. Apparently the problem of lawmakers chatting on their cellphones while in session has gotten so completely out of hand (you'd think they could be bothered to pay attention) that the speaker of the lower house of the Italian parliament is having loudspeakers, to be set at a very high volume, installed underneath each deputy's seat in an effort to drown out all other conversation. What, they've never heard of cellular jammers? We could totally hook them up cheap.
Read MoreSomehow we're not at all surprised by this: an Internet-enabled thermostat from Proliphix with an Ethernet port (which means you'll have to run some cable through the walls until they add WiFi) and a built-in web server that can serve up its own webpages and be controlled remotely from pretty much any browser. They claim it's the first of its kind, but it wouldn't be at all shocking to hear that someone else has one of these out). [Thanks, Nick]
Read MoreIf you're near Denmark—Arhus to be exact—anytime next week, try to catch the Read_Me 2004 festival. Over at the University, they'll be hosting a Software Art and Culture conference (Aug 23 & 24). It looks to be fairly heady material. For example, a quote from the website reads: "Software cultures initiate social change, act in political spheres, create and discover new artistic realms and methodologies." Yeah, E3 this ain't. There's also the Runme-Dorkbot City Camp (Aug 25-27), where you can expect "people doing strange things with software"—don't ask us... Just use the link and head over to the website, they've got some decent dialogue running there, if not completely quirky. [You may recognize the photo as the 'Aarhus Golf Klub', or not] ?a
Read MoreWe're not sure why the girl second from the right is holding a gun, but we do smell a lame corporate attempt to create a youth trend. Companies have been hoping hip teens take to wearable LED displays like moths to a flame (see Nokia's 3220 camerphone with "Xpress-On" ), and the latest to take a stab is Korean-based Xenofreaks. They've just introduced PIX, a device they tout as an "ego visualiser" (which makes it sound way better than it really is) that lets users communicate through a 2-inch diameter, 15x 15 matrix, LED-display. PIX uses images and text that can be static, scrolled, or waved, and if a pair is in close enough range they can communicate with each other via infrared. It's sorta like text messaging, except way more clumsy and potentially embarrassing, not that we didn't bust out the Hypercolor or BK-1s during our salad days.
Read MoreSomewhere out there a switch has been turned on. A game excutive has decided that we are ready for more content, or a marketing guy has read the tea leaves and found us wanting more games to play. After a long drought, where game demos were rare, we suddenly face a barrage of downloads. The latest sample of gaming goodness will be Dungeon Lords, a title that the publisher insists is highly anticipated. Actually, it does sound like it could be fun. Dungeon Lords claims to be the first first-person-shooter-type roleplaying game, with an RPG flavor and FPS controls. The story is crafted by D.W. Bradley, known for writing the Wizardry series. We all know that a good book writer doesn't necessarily make a good game writer, but we can always hope. The demo will be available on September 1st.
Read MoreJust a gentle reminder about the second installment of our What Would (Steve) Jobs Do? contest, where you can send in your best guess for what the new iMac might look like or what other crazy new Apple products might get announced at the upcoming Apple Expo in Paris and win some fresh stuff prizes courtesy of Griffin.
Read MoreIf the SlingBox Personal Broadcaster actually works, you'll be able to watch or listen to anything available on your home TV or stereo from any high-speed Internet connected device anywhere in the world. The $199 box connects to your home entertainment system and sends what's playing there out over the Internet to your computer or PDA in real time (Sony's LocationFree TV operates on a similar principle). SlingMedia says this thing will even let you watch TV from your mobile phone, but that could mean some jerky images accompanied by indecipherable audio, at least until we get to a Japanese-level of cellphoneness. [Via eHomeUpgrade]
Read MoreUltrasonically opening up cavities in the skin doesn't really sound good, but the FDA just approved the SonoPrep, which creates "channels" in the skin to help speed up delivery of anesthetics like lidocaine. It normally takes about an hour for painkillers to work, but the Sonoprep cuts that to just five minutes, making pin pricks from medical procedures a lot more tolerable. [Via BoingBoing]
Read MoreHello. Starting this Friday in NYC there's a new way to get hammered—a machine that combines oxygen and alcohol for inhaling. The creators call it a "Low-carb, low-calorie and hangover-free alternative to drinking"or "AWOL"—alcohol without drinking. We welcome our AWOL-bot oxygenating hooch machine overlords.
Read MoreYep, Canon's new digital SLR, the EOS 20D is for real. Plus they officially announced fivex other new digital cameras today. Here's the rundown: The EOS 20D - We already knew pretty much everything about this one since the specs leaked earlier this week, but here's the deal: an 8.2 megapixel sensor, powers on in just 0.2 seconds, and support for Canon's line of EF-S lenses. Read - Canon EOS 20D The PowerShot G6 - One of two new seven megapixel cameras (the other being the S70), the G6 has almost the same 4x optical zoom lens as the G5, tons of manual controls, and a 2-inch foldout LCD screen. Read - Canon PowerShot G6 The PowerShot S70 - Canon's other new seven megapixel camera today, the S70 is their followup to the S60 and sports a wide-angle 3.6x optical zoom lens. Read - Canon PowerShot S70 The PowerShot A400 - Canon's new entry-level camera, the A400 has a resolution of 3.2 megapixels, a 2.2x optical zoom lens, a street price of $179.99, and is set to come in four colors: silver, sky blue, lime green, and sunset gold. Read - Canon PowerShot A400 The PowerShot A95 and the PowerShot A85 - Their new five megapixel camera and four megapixel cameras the A95 is their replacement for the A80, and features a 1.8-inch LCD screen and Read - Canon PowerShot A95 The PowerShot A85 - Their new four megapixel replacement for the A70 (which was the best-selling digital camera in the US last year), the A85 has a 3.2x optical zoom lens and a 1.8-inch LCD screen. Read - PowerShot A85
Read MoreCome January up-and-coming video game developers will have an opportunity to showcase their works at The Big C (The BAWLS Independent Game Competition). Sponsored by—as you may have guessed—BAWLS (a high caffeine soda) and The Slamdance Film Festival (no, not Sundance!), indie-designers will compete for cash and prizes, judged by both jury and audience. Entries may be submitted by disc or URL (for download). Check out Slamdance for more information. As an aside, it's good to see events like The Big C popping up, as it's a true sign of the growing appreciation of video games as an art form.
Read MoreThe Moody Aquarium Washbasin: definitely the perfect thing to go along with that Aquariass aquarium toilet we just ordered (plus they've even tested it to make sure that the fish won't die if you fill the sink with hot water). Only $4,900. [Via bookofjoe]
Read MoreNo, it's not a rip-off, it's an evolution. 'Troid comes by way of Hermit Games, an indie-developer of sorts, perhaps best known for Super Mario Pac—a fusion of JetPac, Mario World & Mario Sunshine. 'Troid too, can be considered a fusion; think Asteroids meets Ikaruga (a noteworthy arcade shooter). "Extreme bullet dodging skills required for the highest scores." If you're up for some classic 'troid action (with a twist), check out the risk-free demo—just use the link.
Read MoreA couple of new minimalist new digital cameras from Ricoh today, the four megapixel RZ1 (pictured above), which is just 25mm thick and has a 3x optical zoom lens; and the RZ, which also has a resolution of four megapixels, but has a wide-angle 4.8x optical zoom lens. Both should be out next month.
Read MorePure Digital is coming out with a new version of their two megapixel disposable digital camera that comes with an important feature earlier models lacked: an LCD screen so you can actually see what you're taking a picture of. Not that that is enough to make up for the steep $19.95 price tag, that it doesn't take such hot pictures, or the fact that you still can't hook it up to a PC to copy all the photos on it (at least not without a little hackery) or pop a memory card out of it. Also, buried at the bottom of the article is the news that they're also planning a barebones camcorder can record up to 20 minutes of TV-quality which you'll have to bring back to the store to get burned onto a DVD. Oh, we can't wait. [Thanks, Anand]
Read MoreIt's a sad day when trikes for young children have to come accompanied with a woman minder in Matrix leathers—it's not, after all, as if your three-year-old is particularly likely to rev up and roar off to join a biker gang—but the OKO Trike at least manages to outdo the pram in providing an illusion of involvement in the whole propulsion and route-choosing process (and if they start to get antsy just set give them an OQO to play with). [Via MoCoLoco]
Read MoreThis is just precious. Some gamer has posted a huge list of game commercials on his website. The commercials cover the international stage. Japanese, Korean, British, American, you name it. Some of the Japanese ones are hilarious, like the Eye Toy commercial on page 2. I emailed twenty links to friends, and that's after browsing for just ten minutes. This is a resource worth checking out. We all know the pride we have when we see a game ad play in a theater. You can sit there smugly, knowing that the mainstream masses have seen how amazing your hobby is. Kudos to the site owner. Great idea.
Read MoreSo we're not exactly sure what it is, but we do know that Victor-JVC is releasing something on September 14th. It's got 4GB of storage as well as something to do with MPEG-2 and seems to fit quite nicely in the palm of your hand. There's some conflict over what exactly this really is here, with some saying it's an iPod Mini competitor that plays video, while another going on about how it's a mini digital camcorder (assuming the translation isn't complete crap of course). But hey, we'll all know in a little less than a month, right?
Read MoreGateway, KiSS Technologies, and a couple of others have had a few of these out for a while now, but I-O Data has a new networked DVD player of their own coming out, at least in Japan. The AVeL LinkPlayer has that fancy 802.11g WiFi that's being put into everything these days and over a home network can wirelessly stream MPEG-1, MPEG-2, DivX, XviD, and WMV9 (which is Microsoft's new high-definition video format) video files and MP3, AAC, WMA, and Ogg audio files that are stored on your PC's hard drive. Whether it can also playback DVDs with DivX and WM9 video files burned onto them is a little less clear, but we're guessing not. But even better, the LinkPlayer sports a USB 2.0 port for attaching an external hard drive in case you can't be bothered to stream things over the network. [Via Akihabara News]
Read MoreWe try to keep the Star Trek references to a minimum (it's just too easy, you know?), but we're not sure it's possible to write about the CirculaFloor, a movable floor that lets someone with a virtual reality helmet walk in any direction while remaining in the same place, without making at least a passing mention to the holodeck. We're having one installed here at Engadget HQ tomorrow. [Thanks, Sean]
Read MorePromising to do away with burned popcorn forever, the Beyond's Scan and Learn Microwave uses an attached wand to scan the barcode on packages of microwavable dinners and popcorn and the like. If the barcode is one of the more than 4,000 stored in its memory the proper time and temperature are set and you're good to go. If not, there's room in the memory for another 1,800 codes, so you're more likely than not to be able to cook whatever it is you want without actually performing the oh-so-onerous task of setting the timer yourself. Yes, we know, once the RFID revolution gets around to actually happening this final barrier to microwaving bliss will be removed, but until then this $179 contraption will have to do. Oh, and it has a blue LCD screen because that makes it cook more evenly.
Read MoreBefore it gets too late in the day we should mention that we're more or less turning Ask Engadget into a regular feature. The past couple (where readers asked for and received recommendations for the best travel laptop and suggestions for a digital camera for mom) went over so well that we're going to keep bringing it back every week until it slips our mind. So just like last week, send us your most vexing gadget-related questions and we'll post the best one up tomorrow.
Read MorePhilips hasn't gotten much love for their 15GB hdd100 or 20GB hdd120 MP3 players, and we've got a funny feeling that their new 30GB hdd130 isn't going to make much of an impact either. Please wow us or at least squeeze a 40GB hard drive in there or something. [We're issuing a PDF warning for that link.] [Via DAPreview]
Read MorePanasonic is tossing their new SC-HT1500 into the less than crowded pool of home theater boxes, but this one adds a few extras you won't find in most setups. For $999.95 you get a CD and DVD player, a DVR with an 80GB hard drive, a DVD-RAM/DVR-R burner, and a shiny silver 5.1-channel speaker system to match. All they seem to have left out is a WiFi adapter for accessing the media on your computer, but we weren't really expecting that anyway.
Read MoreWe spotted the teaser site for this last week, now Digital Lifestyles Group is now publicly pimping the hip-e, their new PC for teenagers. Turns out this bad boy is going to cost $1,699 (which fortunately won't take most teenagers more than a few days of working at the Sunglasses Hut to save up for), which gets you a PC with a 120GB hard drive, 512MB of RAM, a built-in TV tuner, speakers that can be removed and turned into a "beatbox" (whatever the hell that is), a 1.5GHz processor, a supposedly more teen-friendly front-end for Windows XP, a 17-inch display, and a DVD/CD-RW combination drive. Should be out in November, with everyone's fave non-blonde Ashlee Simpson helping promote it at malls across America. [Thanks, Marc]
Read MoreCalifornia's state senate has passed a bill that orders retailers to post signs that display videogames' ratings. The goal is to alert parents to the nature of the content of games their children might be purchasing (or more likely, that they are purchasing for their children). It's all the brainchild of Leland Yee who has had several unsuccessful attempts before getting this version of his bill passed—originally, he sought to have "Mature" games stocked separately and displayed at least five feet off the ground. Of course, now the bill must be vetoed by who else, but The Terminator himself. (FYI: "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" got a nifty "Teen" rating).
Read MoreThe official announcement isn't expected until later this week, but apparently Canon accidentally posted up some pics on their press website of their new digital SLR camera, the EOS 20D, which is supposed to have a resolution of eight megapixels (its predecessor, the EOS 10D, has a six megapixel sensor) and use the same EF-S lens mount as Canon's EOS 300D camera. Click more if you want to see the rest of the pics.
Read MoreWe now officially owe Om Malik, the master of GigaOm.com and telecom writer for Business 2.0 magazine, a favor. Last week he sat down with Tom Cullen, vice president of marketing for Sonos (a Santa Barbara, California-based start-up working on a wireless digital music system which may or may not have derived some of its inspiration from Apple's iPod) and came back with this short and sweet Q&A for us: Q: What's the big deal about Sonos and why should anyone care? A: Because traditional stereo is at risk from the Sonus Digital Music System. Q: That doesn't really mean anything. These digital consumer devices are pretty darn difficult for Joe Six Pack. A: I agree. We have focused very much on the set-up, in fact making it an automatic set-up. You can monitor anything from this little wireless controller from anywhere in the house. Q: What wireless standard do you use? A: It is a proprietary mesh wireless networking technology that uses the 2.4 GHz spectrum. Q: Of all the start-ups you could do, why focus on making a music player, for God's sake? A: Well, all of us wanted this system for ourselves. And we built it, and now we have a great product that is easy to use and has nice margins. Q: I heard you were being sued by Apple. Any truth to that rumor? A: There is no truth to a rumor Sonos being sued by Apple. Sonos is not being sued by any company for any reason. Q: When will the product be out in the market? A: In October 2004... seriously.
Read MoreYou'd have to be seriously—scratch that, morbidly—interested in TV to even consider one of these, but Japanese firm Infocity has announced a huge black box modestly called the TeraTANK-LE (Light Edition) that will simultaneously record six channels and store nine days' worth of programming for selective viewing and storage via a PC. Unfortunately, though it seems to have a decent range of search tools to pick out stuff from whatever it sucks in via its six inbuilt TV tuners, the recording process itself is anything but selective: it simply grabs everything on whatever channels you pick, and after nine days the old stuff is subject to a rolling erase. At Y840,000 ($7,600), this is definitely not for the faint of heart or light of wallet.
Read MoreSony has come out with three new "optical wireless" home theatre audio kits, the breath-exhausting "5.1ch DVD/Super Audio CD Digital Wireless Theatre System" range. The system used allows the transfer of uncompressed audio via infra-red, meaning that though you need power cables for the speakers you can eliminate audio cables running all over the place. Brace yourself for the prices, though; the top-range DAV-LF1, pictured, is set to go for an estimated Y300,000 ($2,700), though if you can forego the need for the "lipsync system" to match up the gap between video and audio the cheaper DAV-SR1W is a snap at less than a third of that price.
Read MoreRemember that big laugh we all had when China decided cellphones were too dangerous to carry because one "attracted lightning" to the tallest thing—a dude—on the Great Wall? Yeah, that was pretty good. Well, it appears Korea suffered two vaguely-similar incidents when a couple of people with cellphones were struck by lightning and killed. Before any more urban legends get started, at least one of them had their cellphone in their pocket at the time they were struck, so it's not like anyone is really sure that it was the cellphone that got them killed. [Via MobileBurn]
Read MoreLooks like those carefree days of not carrying an ID around with you in case the fuzz stops you up could be gone soon enough. Civil liberties groups are already up in arms, but we're not sure what took the cops so long; in Minnesota the fuzz have begun testing handheld fingerprint scanners which are wirelessly linked to fingerprint and criminal records databases. Apparently this is going to be rolled out right quick because Identix has dropped the price from $14,000 to $4,500 for each one of these IBIS (Integrated Biometric Identification System) scanner (which, in case you were wondering, runs MS Pocket PC OS, has an SD slot, and a color 320 x 240 screen). But can we just say that even at that heavily discounted price it smells a lot like government cheese? Because it does, especially when you figure that an off-the-rack Pocket PC with a fingerprint scanner and software won't set you back more than a grand or two at most.
Read MoreIntel's new LCoS, or Liquid Crystal on Silicon, technology was supposed to be the new new thing for getting the price of flat-screen (but not flat-panel) high-definition TVs to a point where most people could afford them. But even though a few manufacturers have already been showing off prototypes, Intel is now delaying the launch of the chips used in the TVs until they can work out a few bugs and get the price down a little more. We probably won't see the first LCoS TVs until sometime next year now. [Via Slashdot]
Read MoreYou'd think that one of the few small pleasures of destroying some gadget that's been driving you crazy would be doing it yourself. But if you can't be bothered, a company called WeBlowITup.com (get it?) says that for the princely sum of about a hundred bucks they'll use explosives to blow up your cellphone, laptop, or "small appliance" for you, and then send you a video commemorating its destruction. P.S. - Make sure to watch the sample video that's on there. It's as porno as non-porno gets. [Via LockerGnome]
Read MoreWe're not even gonna pretend that the switchover from regular TV to high-definition is anything other than a pain in the ass. It's not that the TVs costs too much or that there's nothing to watch anymore, it's just that it's hard for even the geekiest geek who doesn't happen to work in the television industry to keep up with all the different acronyms, formats, and competing standards. Fortunately, Tom's Hardware Guide has, well, a guide to getting down the basics of HDTV, like the difference between 720p and 1080i. [Via Digital Media Thoughts]
Read MoreSure it's kinda funny looking as it stands now, but the Puddlejumper raincoat could just convince people to forgo their oversize umbrellas and stop nearly putting our eyes out. It's got water sensors sewn into the fabric which trigger electroluminescent panels all over the coat. Each part of the coat triggers a different panel, so while walking through the rain you treat yourself and your fellow pedestrians to a little gaudy showcase. The luminescent panels are sealed, so there's no worry that the light show will end with you in the hospital. And thankfully the thing has a cowl that covers your face because, really, who the hell would want to be seen in one of these?
Read MoreYou can argue back and forth whether the four billion people in this world who make less than $2000 a year really need a computer more than they need, say, better health care or clean drinking water, but Raj Reddy over at Carnegie Mellon University, with the backing of TriGem and Microsoft, has developed a wirelessly networked PC for the world's poor called the PCtvt. The whole thing is supposed to cost less than $250 (which is still more than most people in the developing world can afford) and runs on a stripped down version of Windows CE that's specifically designed so that it can be used even by someone who can't read (sort of like the Simputer), but the basic idea is to get an inexpensive, bare bones computer into people's homes by giving them something that also doubles a TV, DVD player, and a videophone. [Via OnlineBlog]
Read MoreGive a Japanese marketing man a product first thing and come lunchtime he'll be itching to make a limited edition out of it. So it goes with Kyocera's latest, a less clumpy, more homey set of peripherals to help you integrate solar power into your house. Heavily influenced by the Microsoft ClipArt school of design, the connector and transformer shed numerous pounds and inches versus their predecessors and come decorated with sunflowers. Limited to 100 units each; best of luck shifting them, guys.
Read MoreYeah, it's not as sleek or small as the Optio S4 (you know, the one that can fit inside a tin of Altoids after you've removed all the mints), but Pentax just dropped a new five megapixel version of the Optio S40 on us. The Optio S50 has the same 3x optical zoom lens as its predecessor, and besides the extra megapixel the only main difference is a slightly larger LCD screen (1.8 inches vs. 1.6 inches).
Read MoreSomehow we can't help wondering if this is going to show up in the "Half-Baked Technologies of Yesterday" section in magazines fifty years from now, but the Personal Valet by Whirlpool claims to clean odors and smooth wrinkles from your clothes just like that. Apparently it even works on suede and sequins (though if we find out any of you are rocking sequins, we'll ban your IP), and all you do is add this Presiva formula, the thing heats up to about 120-140°, and you're done in a half an hour. Still, it's hard for us to care if we know it won't help out in the ever difficult pit-stain department.
Read MoreYou want a quiet PC, and you're not alone. We all know that. But if you're seriously considering a Hush, that DVR-centric passively-cooled computer we told you about before, you may be alone afterall (but only in terms of income bracket). If you're ready to shell out over three k for one of those solid-aluminum monsters, TrustedReviews is there to tell you all about what a feature-ridden AV beast it is, what with the S-Video and composite in and out, D-Sub, DVI, 7.1-channel surround, 2.8GHz Pentium 4, DVD-writer and all the fixin's. Just remember, you may need that kidney later, so think long and hard about this. [Via The Register]
Read MoreSeemingly intent on covering as much of our environment as possible with advertising, The Egg Factory has concocted (see, we could have said "hatched" there, but we never go for the easy joke here) the IntelliMat, a portable floor mat with an electronic display and speakers. The IntelliMat's can be loaded up with new ads over the Internet, and can even theoretically be used to give directions (though probably not to the mall's exit).
Read MoreIf you're planning on swimming in the Olympics, you've got to be prepared to go the extra mile to shave off a few hundredths of a second off your time. It's not enough to have laser remove all your body hair and wear rubber band underwear anymore, now Nike wants you to use their latest drag-killing device, the strapless water goggles. How does it work? Two independent goggle lenses get afixed to your eye sockets with medical-grade adhesive (read: superglue). Say, while you're at it, why don't you just get your toes and fingers sewn together like a duck?
Read MoreAdrenaline Vault has an interesting preview of an intriguing game, called Second Sight. The title will put you in the shoes of a guy with a heavy dose of psychic powers. Unlike other games where your hero can use his brain to push people around, Second Sight promises a more subtle approach. You get an arsenal of weapons to carry around, but the game's design requires you to be patient and use your head. As the preview says, your power is more for "distraction and intimidation." The Xbox title will be available in September.
Read MoreThey didn't find much success with the Netpliance, a failed Internet appliance that appeared and then disappeared in the late Nineties, but Digital Lifestyles Group are back, and this time they're going after teenagers, a group the tech industry has been cruelly ignoring all these years. The product? The hip-e, which is some sort of inexpensive all-in-one multimedia PC aimed at teens designed for music, movies, TV, instant messaging, and games—you know, all the regular stuff the young people dig these days (it may also have some sort of cellphone-type wireless component to it). They're planning the usual a viral marketing campaign and are looking for "Squad Leaders" for their street team. We recommend getting in on the ground floor with this one since they're 100% confident that the hip-e will be bigger than "Silly Putty®, the Slinky®, Gameboy, instant messaging, iPod or Escalade", but apparently not bigger than Jesus, at least not until next year. Let's just hope that hip-e isn't just hipe, er, hype. [Thanks, Marc]
Read MoreFinally, an article that isn't about how TiVo is going to die but about how it just might shake things up and transform itself into more than just a purveyor of digital video recorders. TiVo's secret weapon? Their acquisition earlier this year of Strangeberry, a company working on software that's supposed to make all this "convergence" crap we've all been hearing about not just a reality but incredibly easy to use, turning your TiVo box into a true digital entertainment hub. We already know that TiVo is struggling, so the only question is, will it be different enough and superior enough to make a difference, especially since it's not like Microsoft and lots of other heavyweights are spending loads of cash pursuing this same goal of making beaming digital media around the home effortless and transparent.
Read MoreNot that we think this alone'll be enough to turn things around for the once-mighty Kodak, but it looks like they're delivering on the promise they made this past March and will be coming out with a 3D monitor of their own called the Kodak 3D Stereo Display (which looks sort of like something you'd find in an opthamologists' office). They're describing it as "IMAX on your desktop" and unlike that one from Sharp we mentioned the other day, this one actually uses two high-resolution displays (which means it requires two separate video signals to work), mirrors, and a special lens to create the effect of three dimensions.
Read MoreAdweek reports that Vonage, our fave broadband telephone company, is looking to blow $50 to $75 million on an advertising campaing. Normally, we wouldn't comment on the billions companies spend on technology advertising, but a lot of money gets wasted on ads that not only don't help sell things, but often just confuse people even more (see TiVo's early advertising). That's why with a company like Vonage, where it's a new convergence technology that's already kind of difficult for most people to get, you gotta wonder whether a massive branding campaign is the way to go. The early adopters have all signed up, but there are still a lot of tech savvy consumers out there who haven't tried it yet. They already have to have broadband, aren't afraid of technology, and if they had a chance to see how it worked would likely be ready and willing to ditch their land line. The problem is that a 30-spot on network TV or a full page add in the New Yorker isn't going to do the trick here. So why not take $2 million of the budget (a tiny percent of the total) and send out those analog telephone adapter units with one year of service to people at tech sites and blogs all across the country (we're already paying subscribers, so we're not recommending this to score free service)? They all have broadband and they all love to talk. A lot. They'll help educate folks on what VoIP is better than any ad, and advertise Vonage free because, well, it's great. How's that sound?
Read MoreStill no photos (c'mon, somebody must have 'em somewhere), but a listing for the Rio Chroma has turned up on another retail site. The price is almost the same as before ($319.95 vs. the $316.41 BeachAudio.com had it for), but we managed to glean some more details about it, at least before they pulled them down. Here're the unconfirmed details (and yes, it's supposed to have a color screen!): 20GB hard drive. Support for playback of MP3, WMA, FLAC, OGG, WAV, and Audible audio formats. 16-bit color screen that you can use to view cover art or digital photos. Built-in voice recorder. SDIO expansion card slot for transferring photos to its hard drive from a digital camera. Drag-and-drop for transferring audio files (i.e. no more cruddy software interface). 12-hour battery Docking cradle (presumably with an Ethernet port like the Rio Karma) and a remote control. [Thanks, Cadilles]
Read MoreWe have yet to encounter a single person dying for a way to play all those Super Audio CDs and DVD-Audio discs they've amassed (not to say they aren't out there), but Onkyo has a new, somewhat less expensive "universal" disc player called the DV-SP502 that can play regular DVDs, DVD-R/RW discs, MP3CDs (and CDs with WMA files burned onto them), DVD-Audio discs, Super Audio CDs, video CDs, and regular old audio CDs.
Read MoreAt 2,400 euros it costs more than the camera itself (and defeats the purpose of paying extra for all that retro-styling in the first place), but Leica, working with Hugyfot, have come out with a waterproof underwater casing for their Digilux 2 digital camera that's submersible up to 80 meters. [Via PhotographyBlog]
Read MoreIt's a bit counterintuitive to a lot of the projects people are launching out there, but for what it is, it's much cleverer (and potentially much more aesthetically pleasing, depending on your tastes) than any wallpaper that blocks cellphone signals. Slather on a coat of DefendAir Radio Shield paint and you'll filter out radio frequencies between 100MHz to 2GHz (unfortunately that includes TV and AM/FM radio bands, but haven't you switched to cable and satellite radio yet, anyway?), just like that. It's just too bad they couldn't get another 400MHz of filtration up top, then they could wipe out WiFi, BlueTooth, WiMax, cordless phones, and loads of other stuff in the 2GHz range. Oh, and don't forget, Martha says: multiple coats for even color tones and a better Faraday cage. [Thanks, John]
Read MoreIt's pretty much an open secret that HP has been planning to introduce their own line of flat-panel TVs to compete with their ancient rival Dell (which has been selling LCD TVs for a while now), but what we didn't know was that they'd be ready in time for the big holiday shopping season, along with a new line of video cameras.
Read MoreWhat did we get the last time a company tried to link paper documents to digital assets? The :CueCat, RadioShack's utter failure (though not with the hacker community) of a semi-proprietary mass-produced barcode reader meant to web-enable their catalogs. So don't you think Paris-based Wiziway would be a little more clever when attempting the same trick? So they've got a proprietary hardware reader, proprietary software to run it, and best of all, instead of easily printed barcodes they now expect tags to be embedded into the paper. Are they joking? Oh, and did we mention you'll have to pay $100 for this thing (at least the :CueCat was given away for free)? It's like they're trying to insult your intelligence. There are way simpler solutions out there (including a few that work with cameraphones), but has it ever been that tough just to type in a URL? [Via BIOS]
Read MoreObviously a little late to cash in on the real ghostbusting mania that gripped the world about twenty years ago, a cable company in Britain is teaming up with a group of paranormal investigators to offer a home ghostbusting kit that consists of motion and humitdity detectors, a thermometer, an electromagnetic meter, and a webcam that connects to a PC so you can remotely track poltergeists even when you're on vacation. So basically you're paying a lot of money for a bunch stuff someone picked up at Radio Shack.
Read MoreThat motorist in Alaska who was charged with second-degree murder when police found a dashboard DVD player in his car after he struck and killed two people? He was found not guilty on both counts by a jury. Erwin Petterson Jr. claimed that he hadn't been watching a movie at all and that the accident was caused when he reached over to grab a soda. Not like that's better, or anything.
Read MoreSince this is the 5th-year anniversary of blacksocks, the Swiss black-sock subscription service which is like NetFlix for socks, except for the having to return stuff part, we thought we'd urge its inclusion into all companies' employee benefits packages, since everyone knows good-lookin' socks coordinate with employee morale. We would just suggest ordering from the domestic blacksocksusa but for some reason this American co-opt attempt of the Swiss-original turned out incredibly lame (we're thinking that its the 2001 birthdate had something to do with its unfunnily earnest dotcomness). If you're not a black socks fan, then there's also the toothbrush subscription service, Toothbrush Express, though as far as employee gifts we're thinking this might not settle too well.
Read MoreLast week's Ask Engadget about picking a good travel laptop was such a raging success (99 comments and counting) that we're bringing it back for a second round, with one twist. This time we're going to open it up to everyone, so send in your most urgent and burning gadget-type question in to us using the Contact Form at right, and we'll pick the best one and turn it into an Ask Engadget for tomorrow. PS - Mike S. sends his love and gratitude and says he's probably going to go with a ThinkPad.
Read MoreLeaving us with pretty much no place to escape our secret gambling addiction (bodies of water were our last remaining gambling-free refuge after discovering a gambling website that works on the Treo), there's now a floating Blackjack table called the SwimUp from SkyDancers International (which sounds less a company and more like some sort of airborne strippers organization) that comes equipped with waterproof cards and chips. Can anyone float us over some cash?
Read MoreScarface. That's right, Radical Games (creators of Simpsons Hit & Run) is developing a sequel to the 1983 gangster classic. It will feature an original script by David McKenna (Blow) set in the early 1980s that will take gamers from Miami to the Keys to the Bahamas and elsewhere as they try to rebuild Montana's empire. The game is set for a fall '05 release, but there are no specifics on which platforms it will arrive on. EGM's got an exclusive on this, so check out the latest copy for more details.
Read MoreWe're not entirely sure how long these things are going to last (don't rubber balloons usually deflate after a few days?) and we're not even goign to think about what would happen if you had a bunch of these at your house during a party. But what could be better than a $35 lamp that not only uses a really bright low-power LED, but could also be filled with any number of toxic, odiferous, natural-biological, or hilarious-voice-transforming gasses? Our vote: nothing. [Thanks, Forman]
Read MoreForget that South Beach baloney, this October everyone will be eating a strict diet of snakes. That's right, in a key announcement Konami revealed that Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater will be released in both standard and limited editions this October. Now hold on, don't break out the camouflage just yet because if you aren't reading this from Japan, you're gonna have to be importing those snakes. Look for MGS3 to arrive stateside by mid November.
Read MoreDon't say we didn't warn you this was coming. Bandai (with a two-fer today) launched the Tamagotchi Connection in two major markets (SF and NY), with a nationwide release planned for next week. It's basically the same thing as before, but this time it can spawn and communicate to with other virtual pets via an IR port—hardly ten years' advancement in technology. And though we'd still be surprised if such a huge, shamefully awful fad from the mid-nineties came back and bit us again, who knows? (Next up: OK Cola makes a comeback.) You'd probably better set aside the $20 now, before your kid rips your face off to get one of those things.
Read MoreLooks like the unsecure rap Voice over IP was getting before is pretty irrelevant now, as the FCC ruled today five to zip that VoIP communications must always be tappable. News.com calls it "a major step toward regulations designed to help police and spy agencies eavesdrop on all forms of high-speed Internet access". What it really means right now is your Vonage line or your WiFi phone, for instance, which were already tappable before through traditional means, can now be tapped right through the Internet. In other words, now those kinds of wiretaps can be done by the government in aggregate, and the telcos won't get to supervise (at least before they had to go through the phone company to place a wiretap, now they can just do it themselves courtesy of this mandatory backdoor). It also means that VoIP and broadband providers must use reversible-encryption if they want "secure" calling, which, of course, is a matter of time before it's broken and anyone can tap anything at anytime. Precautionary measures for dangerous times, or 1984+20? [Via BoingBoing]
Read MoreAthens, we feel for you and your $1.5 billion record security budget. While the Olympics always equals security nightmare, this years games have the most expensive and sizable security apparatuses to date. AP is saying $312 mill is taken up by SAIC's (Science Applications International Corp) system which uses 1,000 high-res infrared cameras to gather images and sound, 4,000 vehicles, 12 patrol boats, 9 helicopters, 1 sensor-laden blimp and 4 central-command centers. The images and audio gathered are matched against speech-recognition and stored images, and also ranked in order of security (eg. sound of car backfiring lower than sound of suicide bomber). The system covers all of Athens, the airport, 9 ports and any other Greek city used in this year's Olympics. The Greek government also expanded surveillance to monitor landline and cellphone calls in all related areas. Though you might mourn the Olympics' Orwellian state, all we need is another 1972-type incident and we'll all be living under that damn perpetual red alert.
Read MoreIt's 60s/Mod styled. Its locks can be (dis)engaged via a Bluetooth administrable fingerprint sensor. It will probably cost more than you make in a month. We're not sure if it's ready or still in concept, but either way we'll each take, what, six or seven? Sounds about right. [Via Land+Living]
Read MoreNot content with making just another air purifier, Fujitsu is taking it to the next level and introducing vitamin C vaporizers into their latest. Why? We're not totally sure, but we understand they it's good for the skin, or something like that. Or you could just drink an OJ, too, but maybe you want your house smelling like lemons all the time, who knows. [Via Akihabara News]
Read MoreWe guess this is what happens when frat bros face their biggest fear: warm beer. To combat the growing plague of half-empty, tepid kegs, some grad students at Cleveland's Case Western Reserve University created the Keg Wrap.Powered by an electric socket or cigarette lighter (tailgate party!), the Keg Wrap acts like a portable chilling blanket, letting you get rid of that bulky acompanying ice bucket, thus making the keg more portable. You would think someone would have already invented this, but we guess it takes those in the know to develop the goods since the frat brothers are getting $20,000 to develop the idea.
Read MoreLook, we don't make the stories, we just link to them, okay? From the X-files of gaming comes word that Mad Wax, a liquid wax in a bottle, can make your gaming smoother. We don't condone this kind of thing, since the wax bottle is only six bucks and could bankrupt our favorite mousepad manufacturers, if it actually works. But if you're willing to put up with the mess (see picture at right) then you should splurge and buy a quart. Personally, I think this is the kind of task someone would take on only if they had so much free time that they couldn't think of a single thing to do. But what do I know? I have a diary of the things I find in my keyboard after a cleaning.
Read MoreBrian Teasley, a member of band/cult the Polyphonic Spree (that's them pictured at right, we're not sure which one is Brian), didn't think much of it when one of his checked bags didn't show up after a flight from Dallas to Birmingham, Alabama, but airport security in Dallas sure did. They freaked out over a custom-made microphone in his bag, and after shutting down five gates, Dallas Fort-Worth International Airport security officials proceeded to use a bomb disposal robot to remove the bag from the terminal and take it an open field. Unaware that all of this was going on, Teasley managed to fly home to Birmingham (so basically his bag wasn't fit to fly but airport security didn't see any problem with letting a person who may have been trying to bomb the plane get on board), filed the missing luggage paperwork when his bag didn't arrive along with him, and went home, where he was promptly visited by police officers and other people wearing bulletproof vests. So how'd he prove that his explosively rocking microphone wasn't actually an explosive device? He gathered all of the police and security officials around his television, where he showed them a recent episode of Craig Kilborn of the band performing (with said microphone) that he still had stored on his TiVo.
Read MoreWe hate to admit it, but our one true driving weakness is the blind-spot. So yeah, when you see the Engadget-mobile cruisin' around Manhattan, you should definitely get out of the driver's black hole, at least until we pick up one of the new Volvos with BLIS (Blind Spot Information System). The system is comprised of a digital camera that fires off 25 times per second; if the system believes a car has entered the blind spot, a visual indicator is signaled to the driver. But if you're in fog, heavy rain, snow, or any other condition with limited visibility, the system won't exactly, um, work—like any person, really. Especially us.
Read MoreWe're totally not above being obsessed with toasters—lord knows we love our perfectly-burnt slices of bread. And Trabo's Block has got all the standard stuff you'd expect from a toaster (removeable crumb tray, timer, manual eject, cool walls, etc.), but what we're totally into is the on/off LED and the standard PC-power receptacle that would allow us to really provide our toaster with the right kind of juice. Notes on improvements for the Block 2.0: make it metal (enough with the ABS plastic already, guys! You're supposed to be a fancy Italian design firm!) and give it an Ethernet or (preferrably) WiFi interface, thank you. [Via MoCoLoCo]
Read MoreNot that we were exactly waiting with bated breath for these to come out, but the DualDisc, that double-sided hybrid disc format that fits regular CD audio tracks on one side and DVD music or video on the other, might be coming out as soon as we had expected it to. A German company says that the DualDisc infringes on a patent they hold for the DVD Plus, an earlier hybrid DVD/CD disc (as we've made it abundantly clear before, several hybrid DVD/CD discs have already been on the market for years), as well as some earlier licensing deals, so both sides are in the midst of negotiations trying to sort thngs out (translation: lots of lawyers will make lots of money and one side will end up paying the other side even more money).
Read MoreApparently the DVD business has gotten so tight that manufacturers in China are only able to eek out profits of a mere dollar per player these days, with the average price for a player made in the Guangdong province just $40.80. They also mention that a full thirty Chinese DVD manufacturers went out of business during the first six months of this year, though we can't decide whether the crazy part is that there were so many bankruptcies or that there must literally be hundreds of companies over there making DVD players.
Read MoreA couple of weeks ago Siva Vaidhyanathan wrote an editorial for us titled "The Trouble with Tethering", which argued that Apple's efforts to keep RealPlayer from selling online downloads that'll play on the iPod were ultimately bad for both consumers and Apple. The piece genereated a lot of interesting discussion, and Greg Scher, who blogs for our sibling sites The Spam Weblog and The Unofficial Microsoft Weblog, asked us if he could write up a little response to Siva's piece and we were more than happy to oblige. Go read Siva's original editorial here, then read Greg's so you can see what he's talking about. Tethering is a touchy subject. Before we can discuss the technology tether further, we need to distinguish Tethering from Tying. Making this distinction between business models and technologies is important because new entertainment services coming down the pipe will involve tethering. The business, legal and cultural communities should understand the premise of these technology implementations so as to be able to both think and act critically about the subject. Neither tying, nor tethering, nor corporate consultants, are by default anti-competitive. The proof, as with many things, is in the implementation. To rule out products according to binary conclusions would not be good for business, policy, or consumer decision-making. The competitive question is whether the standards employed are available, or unavailable, to competitors and whether these standards jibe with consumer demand for the products. Designing products such that the "parent" product is not complete without the addition of some add-on, or completing piece, is called Tying. Most all of the "tether" examples offered by Siva actually involve the historically common practice of tying. Video game platforms and games; ink jet printers and cartridges; coffee makers and espresso pods; Fairplay-wrapped iTunes files and iPods. Technology, not your free will, limited your choice of completing products to proprietary, or company-approved providers. Tethering involves making your use of a product remain within the limits of, or contingent upon, some agreement with the owner, or provider, of the product. Think of the bumper cars you used to ride at the amusement park. Within the limits of the driving space and your granted time, you could choose any car you wanted, drive around and crash into both friends and total strangers. However, you could not drive outside of the game space and when time ran out, your car rolled to a stop- much to your disappointment. There was even a metal tether brushing against the ceiling accepting the electric charge that powered the bumper car. Technology, not your free will, limited your use of the product to the terms of your agreement, whether or not this agreement is fully understood. In entertainment offerings soon coming to market, tethering will enable those who subscribe to music services to move files onto portable players within the terms of their subscription. While some object to the idea of "renting" music, those who do not object will gain the ability to move files beyond their local machine and internet connection. Whether or not these technologies will work as planned, be applicable to myriad portable players and be fully understood by consumers is information that will reveal itself over the next few months. You are surrounded by tied products. The WinTel platform is a tied experience. Your personal computer would be quite a boring experience without a video card. In general, however, you have a choice over the video card in your machine. On the other hand, when a handgun is designed to only work within the hands of its owner, most consumers would not argue this contingency to be anti-competitive. When only your key is the key that will unlock your automobile, most car owners would not object to this limitation of use. Extreme examples, but provided to make the point more clear. Like iTunes' protected files, MP3 files are tied to the presence of a standards-compliant player in order for you to hear the music. MP3, contrary to some assertions, is not an open format in the truest sense of the word "open". Makers of software and hardware players must pay a license fee to the owners of the MP3 standard in order to produce compliant products. The portability of MP3 comes at a price that is paid for by developers of MP3 players and encoders, like Apple. As a consumer, you should be aware of this. Someday, the ability to play an MP3 file may not be as free as it is today. The controversial way in which Real has challenged (or maybe not challenged) the DMCA should be understood. The DMCA places restrictions on those who might create technologies that circumvent the copy-protection schemes in place to limit use of certain media files and entertainment services (or even garage door openers). Real, through the Harmony implementation, has not circumvented the Fairplay DRM in use within iTunes, but instead has chosen to replicate the DRM. This little twist on the theme will is making for interesting fireworks. Apple's choice to close the iPod to competing, protected formats, combined with their expressed business model around the iTunes/iPod combination, plays counter to traditional tied business models. Normally, the hardware is sold at cost while the "software" (razor blades, ink cartridges, music) is sold at a profit. Instead, Apple has claimed that selling music is profitless, while selling hardware holds the long-term profit potential. Given this agenda, it would seem counter-intuitive that Apple would object to any party being able to play the files of their choice on the iPod. The more iPods sold, the better. There is no true bind between the iTunes and the iPod. Any file you purchase through iTunes can be burnt to CD, thus stripping the files of any copy-protection that previously limited your use of the files. The iPod will play any combination of MP3, AAC, AIFF, Apple Lossless, or iTunes protected audio. To claim the iTunes/iPod system is a closed system is not truly appropriate... for the moment. Apple's response over the next few weeks could reveal a surprise: the long-term success of the iTunes/iPod platform is dependent upon margins in both worlds - music and hardware. While music is sold with little margin, the promotional value of the store pathway is worth money. Over time, Apple's ability to squeeze large margins out of iPod sales will diminish with the growth of competing players, stores and services. The company needs both products, iTunes and iPod, to offer a financial return.
Read MoreKeeping people locked in cages has never been so complicated, but the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office in Florida is taking things to the next level with their new WiFi network. Besides using the system for wireless handhelds, they're also using the WiFi to monitor inmate location, keep track of inmates records and photos, and for making VoIP phone calls between deputies. It isn't as Orwellian as it could be—there are no wirelessly-enabled cameras in the showers and the guards can't use WiFi to remotely activate your shock collar, but at least if we find ourselves spending a night in the Pinellas County jail we'll be able to while away the time looking at Internet porn. (At this point taking away our laptop would surely count as cruel and unusual punishment, wouldn't it?)
Read MoreJapan's supremacy in the electronics world was at one point so great that even Western companies started branding their stuff with Japanese-sounding names. Some Asian firms were less subtle—hence, the PolyStation, Panosoanic TVs, and Misushita kettles in this gallery (site's in Japanese, but there's enough English to navigate). Misushita in Japanese means "I made a mistake", incidentally, and we'd have to agree. [Via del.icio.us]
Read MoreKorean company Virtual Lab System has a more elegant alternative to the on-off switch on your PC. The TouchONE ("Don't push, just touch!") is a silver pendant-looking device containing a touch sensor that sits on the flat surface of your choice and glows blue when touched. More than that, it also turns your PC on and off. The only snag, according to the folks at Akiba PC Hotline, is that the sensor is way too responsive, meaning that you can end up turning on your PC simply by trying to pick it up and move it. Fortunately, turning it off again requires you to hold a finger against the sensor for a few seconds, reducing the risk of unconsummated frag sessions. In any case, caveat emptor, as the Romans were fond of saying about their peripherals. [Via Akiba PC Hotline, which also has a video of the TouchONE in use]
Read MoreA new first-person shooter has been announced, right when people are about to get sick and tired of the whole genre. Futurebrighter takes place "on unknown frontiers of a distant univers (sic)". You assume the role of a convicted anti-hero (whatever that is), named Alex Carver. The prison ship you're on is attacked by a mysterious enemy, stranding you. The game will take place in a number of environments, including the prison ship and the exterior of a distant planet. Futurebrighter promises a mixture of action and tactics, with vehicles playing a prominent role in some missions.
Read MoreIt's about time someone reinvented the sink. Come on. Though the Thoms and Nilsson HF01 may not be the new sink—especially because generally the idea of a sink is that, you know, it's a basin for water—you could prep food on it, and cleanup would be a snap (except for the part about splashing water all over yourself). The water obviously has to go somewhere, and from what we can tell it looks like the soapy water running over the stone block "sink" gets channeled down the sides into its center support (which is made of maple wood). At least you'll never lose your wedding ring down the drain again, you horrible, horrible spouse. [Via MoCoLoCo]
Read MoreWe're not entirely sure how it works, but those crazy Japanese minimalists have done it again. When the TO:CA isn't plugged in, it's a block of wood. But better yet, when it is plugged in, it's still a block of wood. Oh, and it tells time digitally in addition to being a block of wood, that's right. Designed by Kouji Iwasaki, the moku-clock will set you back $285 US, not including bandages for the splinters you'll get when you try turn off the alarm first thing in the AM. [Via MoCoLoCo]
Read MoreCheck out this Doom 3 mod that transforms your standard-issue flashlight into a Hello Kitty face. Not quite your cup-o'-tea? You can always try the Batman insignia. Or even better, the pseudo-trendy Thundercats logo... THUNDERCATS HOOOOHHH!
Read MoreWith new iPod mini competitors popping up almost faster than we can write about them (GoVideo, Toshiba, Motorola, and Rio are all stepping up to the plate) we were just the tiniest bit surprised to see that Packard Bell, of all companies, is taking on Apple with the PokcetM@estro, a roughly credit card-sized 5GB MP3 player with an OLED screen and a built-in FM tuner. They're one those blast-from-the-past names that makes us think perhaps Wang, Tandy, or Digital are planning iPod competitors of their own.
Read MoreUpset because he thought one of them had stolen his Xbox and some of his clothes, a Florida man rounded up three of his friends to help him exact revenge on the supposed perpetrator(s) by breaking into their house and beating them to death with baseball bats on Friday morning. They ended up brutally murdering four men and two women, with one bludgeoned so badly that they still haven't been able to identify the body. Absolutely tragic. [Thanks, Dave]
Read MoreProgrammers spend months, years, decades pounding away (pun intended) at creating games for all of us and sometimes things slip by, and, well, you know.
Read MoreIf it's Saturday it must be time for another post about the Chroma, Rio's shadowy new hard drive-based MP3 player which we all though they were going to announce this past Monday but didn't. It might have appeared and then disappeared from Rio's website, but the Chroma has turned up on a few retail sites, including on BeachAudio.com, which lists it as a 20GB player with a retail price of $316.41. The Chroma is listed as "out of stock", and still there aren't any pics of it or any information about whether it'll have a color screen or not (someone out there must know something...). We're becoming more and more convinced that the Chroma is not the long-awaited Karma 2, and that Rio is still planning to release a second version of their flagship MP3 player next year. [Thanks, Jason]
Read MoreSo we've gotten word that you're not allowed to smile for the picture on your new biometric passport (the Brits are instituting this rule to comply with American standards). Nope, no big, toothy grin; a slight upturn of the lips is all you'll be allowed. And no sunglasses or hair slanting across the eyes either, though those don't really bother us. Who ever expected to be allowed to wear sunglasses in an ID photo anyway? Now it's just official. But the no smiling thing is just not ok on general principle. All these rules are of course so our oh-so-accurate facial recognition software doesn't fail miserably. We do love these modern times.
Read MoreThe Daily News tries their hand, er, foot at a new sneaker vending machine at New York's swank SoHo store Michael K. Originally debuted in Japan (of course), the Sneaker Vending Machine takes cash and dispenses a refrigerated Reebok Travel shoe in the size and color of your choosing for $60. We just want to know what happens if the shoes get stuck in the coil that drops the food into the bin. [via Popgadget]
Read MoreIt's not like they're never going to come out with a sequel to their EOS 10D digital SLR camera (pictured at right) sooner or later, but is Canon prepping an EOS 20D? There's some buzz that they're hard at work on one, and that it'll have an eight megapixel sensor (as opposed to the six megapixel one found in the 10D) and that it'll retail for $1,600. [Via PhotographyBlog]
Read MoreAs long as a radiator is going to heat your home it may as well dry your pants, right? Except for the part about how we'd rather just dry our pants the old-fashioned way (i.e. in a dryer) rather than have to deal with looking at that thing all the time. [Via MocoLoco]
Read MoreRainbow Six 3:Black Arrow was released yesterday for a reduced price of $40. The game seems to land somewhere between expansion pack and sequel—some people have been griping that the price tag is still too high. If you're not a huge fan of RS3 (you must not have Live) you may want to pass this one up, but for those of us who have made RS3 online a borderline profession, well, we've already bought it. New maps, new modes, and the first Live title to utilize 3.0 features. Yeah, this should tide us over until November 9. If you're curious, follow the link to metacritic to see what the reviewers are saying (A '79' average?! What gives?).
Read MoreThose with asthma know that pulling out that bulky inhaler during social situations doesn't always scream style, and most inhalers will easily brand you a dorky mama's boy no matter how hot your hair looks. That's why a graduate from Brunel University Industrial Design and Technology created Thinhaler, so that asthmatic sucking could be therapeutic and sexy. The 6mm thick inhaler can fit in the credit card slot of a standard wallet and costs the same as a traditional inhaler. It does carry smaller doses of the medication because of its size, but that's a small price to pay to achieve hip inhaling.
Read MoreLike we all don't already feel old enough — scientists at England's Loughborough University along with the building company Skanska, created The Third Age Suit which makes the user feel like an immobile old person. The suit isn't just to remind us of the onslaught of age, architects have been using the suit to help design better hospitals, retirement communities and aged-friendly environments. The suit has restrictors and splints that hinder movement, yellow goggles to create loss of vision, and gloves to create lack of tactile sense. Though we know the designers have the noblest of intentions, all of a sudden the future makes us want to crawl into the corner and cry.
Read MoreWe won't be truly satisfied until we can surround ourselves with dozens and dozens of speakers, but in the meantime Denon's new flagship A/V receiver, the AVR-5805, will have to suffice. The thing can deliver up to sixteen channels of sound, making it the first 16.1-channel surround sound receiver. There's just one problem: there isn't anything to play on it, since no one has gotten around to releasing any movies or music in 16.1-channel Dolby Digital yet (yeah, you can always double up on speakers, but that sorta defeats the purpose, doesn't it?). [Via QuenteCafe]
Read MoreWe need one of these for impromptu roommate relief, though your office might more likely use one to spruce up that staid annual work party: Office In A Bucket, OIAB. It's portable, inflatable (only with indoor outlet) and looks like a big white igloo. There's 2 sizes, 3x4m and 4x5m, and the body inflates with the bucket's interior fan in about 8 minutes. Now all we need is a very long extension cord and some blacklights and some WiFi and we'll be the coolest kids on the block. [Via Business 2.0]
Read MoreKonica Minolta has dished some more dirt on their first stab at a digital SLR camera, the Dynax 7 DSLR, which may or may not be coming out very soon, but will have an eye-sensor below the viewfinder, a six megapixel sensor, and anti-shake technology.
Read MoreI know, it's yesterday's news, Gates wanted to buy Nintendo. "It would be a great investment," agrees Perrin Kaplan, Nintendo's V.P. of marketing and corporate affairs. Of course, we all know by now that Nintendo isn't really for sale. However, what you might not have heard is that Eidos, which confirmed earlier in the week it was discussing deals for a takeover, would be a much more feasible bet for Microsoft. But they could be getting some stiff competition from the likes of EA, Activision, and even Ubisoft. Landing a deal with Eidos means gaining the rights to Tomb Raider (perhaps revivable) and Hitman, among other growing franchises. True, it's no Nintendo, but it's a start.
Read MoreWe knew we were out of the loop when we realized we've never come across what the LA Times calls the must-have party good of the summer, why, the molten chocolate flowing fountain, of course. At only 3 feet tall, it looks like an item Willie Wonka might relegate to the oompaloompa quarters, but the glitterati seem to like it since every premiere, convention and celebration has gotten one in the past couple of months. For $400-$700 you can have 180-degree molten chocolate continuously cascade from the top, while 300 of your closest friends cautiously poke pretzels and strawberies into the coco-flow. OK so maybe we're a little bitter, but somehow this doesn't hold up to the chocolate river.
Read MoreYou thought you were an audiophile? Well chew on this: the Nordic Concept turntable has two different cabinets, one for the platter, and one for the motor and phono preamp. The idea is that the very thin belt minimizes any transfer of vibrations from the motor, and the huge platter further minimizes vibration and assures a perfectly flat surface for your records. They've got ceramic bearings, vibration damped cabinets, and an extra heavy puck for level adjustment - and did we mention the "unconventional Nordic design"? Of course this all comes at a price - $9,800 for the turntable without preamp, $15,500 with. Quality doesn't cheap, you know.
Read MoreDesigned by Oliver Beckert, the Aquariass is an $1,100 aquarium that works with real live fish that you can add on to your toilet. The aquarium doesn't actually share a tank with the toilet, but you can guarantee there will be at least one visitor to your home who will be afraid to flush for fear of killing all the poor fish inside. And do you really want to have deal with that?
Read MoreHas Rio delayed the Karma 2, the next version of their flagship MP3 player? To be honest, we're not entirely sure. Gear.ign.com reports meeting up with Rio to check out their new line up of players, a line up from which the Karma 2 was conspicuously absent, with Rio explaining that its release has now been pushed back until spring of next year. Which leaves one nagging question: how exactly does the Rio Chroma fit into all this? The Chroma is the MP3 player that turned up and then mysteriously disappeared from Rio's website over the weekend, and was not among the other players they announced earlier this week, the Rio Carbon and the Rio Forge. So is the Chroma a different player entirely from the Karma 2 or are they same thing? Is it just a new version of the old Karma but with a color LCD screen? And why is it going to take them until next year to get this thing out if they were already showing off a prototype at this past January's Consumer Electronics Show? [Via DAPreview]
Read MoreDeveloped by a pair of researchers at Media Lab Europe, "Spin" is a set of keychains with LEDs that you spin around in a circle (get it?) to display the time using the same scientific principles as those "floating time" clocks which are a staple of SkyMall catalogs everywhere (Nokia's 3220 cameraphone has a similar optional feature, believe it or not). Way less handy than just checking the time on your watch or cellphone, but it'd be perfect for heckling people, which is why they need to trick this thing out so you can set your own customizable messages ASAP. [Via SmartMobs]
Read MoreMaybe it's kind of misleading for Archos to name it the 400 after it's previous 20GB MP3 player was the 220 (how about calling it the 420? Oh, wait...), but that's okay, it's still a 20GB player with a 2.2-inch color screen, MP3/WMA playback, line-in encoding, and a CF slot. There's just one big bonus: it plays video, supporting MPEG-4/XviD/DivX up to 704 x 480 at 30fps. It's not quite enough to sway us from the real deal, but that's a pretty hype bonus for reals. We eagerly await some real photos of this thing.
Read MoreThe first review from Jim Louderback on the PMC was titled "Another Dumb Idea from Microsoft", but now he's taken that back and called the Portable Media Center "dirty". Why you might ask? Adult video fans will be the biggest customers, snagging titillating videos to watch while riding or sitting in public spaces. The PMC is a weapon designed for two tasks: To mortally wound the film and video industry—as MP3 has done for the music business—and to make adult videos socially acceptable by creating an army of viewers brazenly watching dirty videos in public. And it gets better: I was wrong when I called the PMC "dumb." It's smart idea—smarter than I ever could have imagined, actually. You've got to think big to create something capable of simultaneously killing off one of America's best loved industries, while at the same time making pornography socially acceptable. This might just be the best Microsoft-related conspiracy theory ever! The whole time Bill Gates has just been trying to make porn socially acceptable, because obviously that's where the real money is at. We'll have our review of the Portable Media Center in the next week. So far we've managed not put porn on it or kill off Hollywood, unless you get off on home videos of robots running around; not that there's anything wrong with that.
Read MoreSynface, a prototype phone system for the hard of hearing has recently gotten rave reviews in a study conducted by the Royal National Institute for Deaf People. It uses a laptop with special software and a regular telephone to render a talking head, which recreates the lip movements of the person at the other end of the line. This allows the user to both listen and lip read in real time, which has resulted in some participants catching twice as much of the conversation. Now, we tune out half of our conversations anyway but it might be worth it to use this (even though we hear fine) just for the pleasure of depicting the person on the other end as a disembodies floating head. But maybe that's just us.
Read MoreCDPkorea has a whole slew of pics of the N10—iRiver's new pendant-style MP3 player that weighs a mere 22 grams and comes in 128MB, 256MB, and 512MB versions—which show just how small it really is (it makes a lighter look big). [Thanks, Kim]
Read MoreIt hasn't been officially unveiled yet or anything, but a French retail site accidentally posted up details about the PowerShot G6, Canon's new seven megapixel follow-up to their popular G5 digital camera. Expect a proper announcement from Canon soon.
Read MoreThere's nothing more delightful than squealing grubby rugrats racing around the shopping aisles when you're trying to get your Alka-Seltzer morning relief after a big night out. Fortunately British supermarket chain Tesco may have a cure. They recently funded a study that found that three-fourths of parents found shopping with children stressful (which is only surprising that there is a one-fourth that doesn't) and want to develop something called the "Tantrum Tamer", a shopping trolley (that's British-ese for Shopping Cart) twith an electronic screen attached to the handle of the cart for playing DVDs, CDs, and educational games. The real fun, of course, will be in seeing how ruggedized Tesco has to make the things to survive the brutal affections of the 3-9 year-old set that will be torturing these things and how they stop hacker-types from swiping them for home use and cracking them open to feast on the gooey electro-goodness inside.
Read MoreEpson is expanding their line of Livingstation televisions with built-in digital photo printers. Yeah, this was the butt of many a poorly-crafted joke at this year's Consumer Electronics Show, but besides the more obvious use of these things for viewing and printing digital photos (the TVs all come with multiple Flash memory card slots), in Japan they're already broadcasting TV shows and commercials that have printable content like maps and brochures (though it's obviously much easier to just use the Internet for this sort of thing).
Read MoreSlimDevices just prettied up their Squeezebox networked digital audio player a little bit. The two-line, forty-character display on both their wireless and wired models has been replaced with a 280 by 16 pixel graphic display (the display is also available as an upgrade for older models). There are also two new software releases that are available, one featuring an enhanced user interface based on the new display, and the other a visualizer feature for developers to play with.
Read MoreThis actually wasn't featured in Justin Timberlake's Rock Your Body video (and we're not ashamed to admit that we're overly familiar with that video), Lightspace is selling a customizable interactive LED dance floor called the Club Scene that besides turning your club into an electric wonderland can also detect where a person is on top of it in case anyone is up for a little game of Pong.
Read MoreSo Schlotzky's became the darling of the digerati last year when they announced that they were adding free wireless Internet access to their sandwich shops, claiming that they were seeing a solid increase in business (especially during off-peak hours) at test locations where WiFi had been installed. Turns out that giving away free WiFi wasn't quite enough to pack 'em in, since they've has just filed for bankruptcy. [Via TechDirt]
Read MorePocket Lint has a first look at the new Rio Carbon, Rio's dimunitive 5GB MP3 player which they're aiming directly at the iPod mini (it even has the same kind of polished metal back as the regular iPod, though they won't be offering personalized engravings). They say they sound quality is excellent (at least as good as the Rio Karma), but were also digging on the fact that you can just drag-and-drop music onto it, rather than having to load it up with some frustrating, buggy software app which just slows things down.
Read MoreRiding the expansion of the home security market is this blurry (seriously, that's the picture on the product page) monstrosity, a 16-channel digital video recorder (not to be confused with your TiVo). It is actually used to store security camera feeds (16 of them in fact) on a pretty hefty removable 250GB hard drive and can burn them onto CD's. All this so you can capture every second of the action as rival drug dealers storm your mansion. For those drug barons worried about powering their cameras, each of the 16 attached cameras can be plugged into power terminals on the box itself. Truly a bargain at half the cost, which is a not insubstantial $3,499, down from $4,799 list. Generous, eh? [Thanks, Marc]
Read MoreWe first mentioned this way back in March during those shadowy first weeks of Engadget, but CoasterDynamix says that "The Dragon", their expandable and customizable home model roller coaster kit, is finally for sale. You better really love toy roller coasters, because this thing'll set you back five hundred bucks.
Read MoreSharp's Lumiwall is one of those products that mildly screws up one's attempts to write a headline about it, because it does three things at once: it's a transparent solar panel that also includes a high-brightness LCD light. The idea is, obviously, to stick one (or as many as you can bear, structurally and financially) into your roof for use as a skylight during the day, then switch it on to light your home at night. The Lumiwall (OK, you don't have to put it in the ceiling) goes on sale in Japan on November 1 and is "open priced", which in this context means "however far you open your wallet you don't have enough cash to buy one".
Read MoreJVC/Victor has announced two new stereos to their HomeTheater line, the wireless-enabled TH-SW5 (sounds a lot like a British postal code), which transmits on the 2.4GHz spectrum (we don't believe it's Bluetooth, but we'd love to be proven wrong on that), and the TH-DD7, which opts out of wireless for higher-end sound quality. Both systems have a DVD-audio enabled progressive scan DVD player; the wireless will set you back about $640 US, the wired about $800. Will we pass on them? Yeah, probably.
Read MoreOk, now we think TiVo might be in trouble: is their biggest partner (and the source of the majority of their customers), DirecTV, getting ready to drop them? Right now DirecTV integrates TiVo's digital video recorder technology into their satellite television receivers (as DirecTiVo), but it looks like they've been taking some pretty clear steps to disentangle themselves from the company. First they sold off their share in TiVo. Then their chairman resigned from TiVo's board of directors. Not exactly the most encouraging signs, but then to make matters worse they've just announced that they'll be turning to NDS, a sibling subsidiary of News Corp., to supply them with digital video recorder technology, and will be offering consumers a choice between using this or getting DirecTiVo (guess which one will end up costing more). Why do we have this funny feeling that DirecTV won't be renewing their contract with TiVo when it expires in 2007? It might time for TiVo to take advantage of that free advice we we gave them back in May. [Via PVRblog]
Read MoreAnother new MP3 player with Bluetooth? MSI says that their new Mega Player 516 BT supports Bluetooth for "handsfree" function, but then doesn't get any more specific than that "users can benefit from the convenience of wireless Hansdfree function." Yes, but what exactly would that benefit be? You want to hope that they're talking about wireless stereo headphones, but we have a feeling that what they're really talking about is pairing the Mega Player 516 BT with a Bluetooth-enabled cellphone so that you can take a call when your phone rings, using your (wired) headphones and the player's built-in microphone to effectively double as a makeshift cellphone headset. But we can't say for certain. What we do know is that the Mega Player 516 BT has a paltry 512MB of storage considering its size, an SD expansion card slot for adding extra memory, a built-in FM tuner, and an OLED display. [Via TechDigest]
Read MoreThe Network Walkman NW-HD1, Sony's long overdue attempt to take on the iPod with a 20GB digital audio player of their own, has finally officially hit America. Of course, in typical Sony-style, they're bungling it. Besides the fact that it won't actually play MP3s (you have to convert everything to ATRAC3 first), they've set the list price at $399, which is a hundred bucks more than the 20GB iPod which actually does play MP3s. If anything Sony should be trying to undercut Apple, not trying to convince people to pay a premium for a player that's less useful.
Read MoreWell we could make the obvious Jesus-complex jokes, but we'll try to be above all that. It's hard though. After all Yoav Rosen did build these nifty pontoon things that let people walk on water. But no, we shall resist temptation. After all, even Leonardo da Vinci gave it a go. But we digress. These pontoons are made of styrofoam and have little buoyant flaps that rotate "from 9 o'clock to 12 o'clock" and act as paddles to move the walker forward. See, previous water-walking attempts had the paddles moving from 6 to 9 and of course resulted in the fools all drowning (not really). We're still confused since the article never says 9 o'clock in relation to what. External points of reference are quite useful, some might even say necessary, if you want people to have any idea what you're talking about. Anyway, the pontoons are tethered to each other so the walker's legs don't spread apart and make him look like an idiot. Can't have that happening can we?
Read MoreDoom 3 will be released at midnight tonight in select, lucky areas. If you are fortunate enough to be near a store that will be offering the game, then you should know that you're not as lucky as you think you are. No, the luckiest guys on the block will be those in Plano, Texas. The Best Buy in that damn town will not only sell the game for the bargain price of 55 bucks, they'll also show off a few of id's employees. Now, this could mean that you'll be rubbing elbows with their janitor, for all we know. But, still, it is id's janitor, after all.
Read MoreResearchers (and yes, it's always "researchers") at Purdue University, working with yet more researchers from Thomson, have been showing off a new high-resolution, 11.7-feet by 6.7-feet display that seamlessly joins together four digital projectors into one massive screen (perversely, they omit any details about the screen's actual number of pixels). They say it's meant for impressive-sounding legitimate uses like scientific simulations and looking at satellite surveillance images, but you know there's gotta be at least one rogue researcher sneaking into the lab at night to play FarCry with this thing. P.S. - Add your own caption for bonus fun. [Thanks, Barry]
Read MoreSanyo wants you to think pink with the Vizon LCD-15A2, their new pink-colored 15-inch LCD television which may or may not be a lame attempt to pander to the fairer sex (though we're always happy to see gadgets come in something besides silver). This one might also be for the lovely women of Japan only.
Read MoreWe were all "Wutwuut?" when we even found out that those Brits had banned cellphone use in their hospitals for fear of disrupting medical equipment—something at once totally sensible and positively frustrating, kind of like the FAA ban for cellphones in airplanes. But apparently now they're trying to rewrite the blanket law and make it a little friendlier for people to make calls outside areas of risk (i.e., the E.R.). Would that be, like, say, in the parking lot? They also want sort out dealing with lower-interference wireless devices so the staff can still be connected while on site; for all their sakes, we're going to try and make sure they don't find out about extreme Bluetoothing.
Read MoreNew from ParkerVision, an 802.11b wireless access point which they claim has a range of up to 5000 feet (at least when there are no walls or obstructions) which means it should still be pretty good indoors. It costs way more than the forty dollar wireless access points you can pick up these days from Netgear and Linksys, but if you're looking for full coverage, the 1500WR might be the way to go. [Via Digital Media Thoughts]
Read MoreThere's a new search engine on the block, IceRocket.com. It has some cool Google-like features, and there's a nice one for gadget folks that caught our eye and that we hope all search engines will adopt. It's called a "Search Relay": Email a Search This is for PDA users in particular and is unique to Icerocket.com. It's a pain in the butt to go to a search site, whether it's icerocket, Google, Yahoo, or wherever and input a search term. However, most PDAs are very email efficient. So we have created a "Search Relay". All you have to do is send an email with the search terms as the subject to search@icerocket.com and it will return the results to you via email. You can do the same with pics@icerocket.com or news@icerocket.com We tried this (pictured above) and it worked nicely. On a side note, could all the search engines please make some AIM bots, so we can add a "Search Buddy" to our AIM list? We use Instant Messaging more than anything else, so how about it? We have ones on IRC already. P.S. - There are sites offering "Google by Email", but it's being done by third-parties, not by Google themselves. [via BlogMaverick]
Read MoreA pair of new point-and-shoot digital cameras from HP today: the 3.2 megapixel Photosmart M307 (pictured above), which has a 3x optical zoom lens, a 1.8-inch LCD screen, and 16MB of internal storage; and the HP Photosmart R507, a 4.2 megapixel camera with a 3x optical zoom lens, a 1.5-inch LCD screen, and a special panorama mode for stitching together several photos into one large panoramic image. Read - HP Photosmart M307 Read - HP Photosmart R507
Read MoreSo a Swedish pastor from some fringe Lutheran sect was just sentenced to life in prison for using anonymous text messages that he said were from God to convince his nanny/lover (pictured at right) to murder his wife and attempt to kill the husband of his other mistress. Police determined that the text messages were in fact not divinely sourced, tracing them back to the pastor rather easily. Dude, we'd heard Sweden was crazy! [Via SmartMobs]
Read MoreAnd now the Rio Forge is officially out, their new line of Flash-based MP3 players aimed at those with a more "active" lifestyle (which we're guessing does not include sitting on one's ass blogging about gadgets all day). Like we'd heard, the Rio Forge comes in three versions (128MB, 256MB, and 512MB), all three of which feature built-in FM tuners, a stopwatch and lap timer, a battery life of 20 hours, and an SD card slot for adding extra memory. What we had not figured on was how ugly it'd be.
Read MoreThey've already got the HMP-A1 and the PCVA-HVP20, but could Sony have another, more slender, personal video player on the way? This one would be a 20GB model that supports MPEG1, MPEG2, DivX, and WMV video files, and is supposed to be out in Japan in time for Christmas (we have no clue whether this one will ever grace these shores). This also could be fake (and the pics do look the tiniest bit suspect, don't they?). [Via Portable Media World]
Read MoreOk, so it's not the rumored Rio Chroma we're now waiting patiently for them to get around to announcing, but Rio did introduce another MP3 player today. The Rio Carbon is their response to the iPod mini, and is a 5GB MP3 player that's set to retail for $249 and will have a battery life of about 20 hours or so. [Thanks, Wirobro]
Read MoreRave-MP is back. One of the original lines of MP3 players from those halcyon days before the iPod rumbled onto the scene, the brand has been revived (this time under the aegis of GoVideo) with four new budget models: the hard drive-based ARC2.5 and ARC5.0 (pictured at right), which will come in 2.5GB and 5GB versions; and the 128MB AMP128 and 256MB AMP256, which are Flash-based players that'll come with SD card slots for adding extra memory and will each run for at least sixteen hours off of a single AAA battery. Not that the looks of any of the original Rave-MP players were anything to write home about, but apart from the the designers making a clever reference to some of the old Rio players with the AMP128 and AMP256, we're not totally blown away and it's hard to see someone spending $229 for the ARC5.0 when they could get an iPod mini for just twenty bucks more. They were small and felt solid when we played with them the other day, but we have the feeling that the price on these things is going to have to be very flexible to compete with Apple.
Read MoreIf you're sick of the half-assed adult films in your hotel room, you'll be happy to know that Nintendo wants to fill the void. The debut of Pikmin 2 yesterday is going to go down in history as the first time a game has been released to retail outlets at the same time as hotels. Any lodging with a Gamecube installed will have access to the hit game starting now. While we don't see kids rushing to their closest hotel to do some gaming, it will be nice to get some real entertainment when we're on the road.
Read MoreIf you were disappointed by the lack of role playing games in the initial Nintendo DS line-up, then this should make you happy. Project DA (a working title) is an RPG in the classic sense, with class and battle systems accompanied by an epic story. A member of the development team gives an interview to Gamesarefun, where he reveals some details about the title. The link will take you to an excerpt of the interview, as well as a link to the game's (sparse) official homepage. Expect to hear more about this game, since it won't have much competition in the genre. The screenshot to the right is for the GBA version of the game.
Read MoreIt looks like that mystery peripheral for the Gamecube we've all been hearing about is a microphone. Speculation was rampant that it would be an Eye-Toy device that allowed users to control games by waving their limbs around. The fact that it's a microphone is still pretty intriguing. Look at what the Dreamcast's Seaman did for gaming. Okay, it didn't do much in the market, but if you ever "played" it you know that it was a spooky and addictive romp. For those who don't know of it, the game charged you with taking care of a fish-type creature with a human face. You'd communicate with it through a mic, feed it and grow attached to it (as repulsive as it was). Leonard Nimoy did the game's narration/instructions. Yes, that Leonard Nimoy. Nintendo's version of the tech will, no doubt, have more mainstream titles. Can any man deny the urge to ask Mario how he maintains his moustache?
Read MoreRecently, Nintendo Dream (a Japanese publication) decided to investigate the 'plug-in' socket on the bottom right of the Nintendo DS. Originally, this was thought to be the port where the stylus connected, but it's now been confirmed that that device plugs into the back. So what is this mysterious orifice? Nintendo's response, "It's a secret." Surprise, surprise. But speculation continues, and guesses range from headset adapter to internet connection to mini-bongo port (a la Donkey Kong Jungle Beat). We'll just have to wait for Nintendo to pull their card on this one. Any day now...
Read MoreIn the latest issue of Nintendo Dream, Nintendo has hinted at the possibility of manufacturing a variety of different colored DS units. This may come as little surprise, as Nintendo has been using this 'technique' since the days of GameBoy Color (and the two models of GBA). However, it appears that the company is not yet set on which colors it will go with, "We're thinking of releasing colors that are popular all over the world since the Nintendo DS will be launched simultaneously worldwide" (Nintendo). Rumor has it they're leaning towards 'Pikachu yellow' (but don't quote us on that).
Read MoreSorry dudes, these Nintendo hot pants aren't for you, but if you ever find a girl wearing these, marry her (might be tougher than it sounds—apparently they couldn't even find a real live girl to wear them in the photos).
Read MoreThe US Patent and Trademark Office has approved patent #6,769,989 for Nintendo. The decription of the the device is "an existing video game system...modified to include additional communication and storage capability via a modem and hard disk drive." The technology would allow "downloading from the Internet of entire games." Though rumor has been running wild that this is Nintendo's version of an Internet-based game system, Gamespot points out that the patent actually appears to be, well...you have to read it to believe it. You have to love us gaming fans. We get riled up like no one else.
Read MoreIt's sparked plenty of speculation about what they might have up their sleeves, but that patent Nintendo just received for "an existing video game system...modified to include additional communication and storage capability via a modem and hard disk drive," that would permit "downloading from the Internet of entire games" and would also incorporate a cable TV tuner and be able to pull TV programming guide data off of the Internet, isn't exactly as promising as it sounds. You'd think maybe it'd mean Nintendo was planning to launch some sort of online game service and/or PSX-like console with digital video recording capabilities, but it turns out it's just a supplement to an earlier patent related to the 64DD, Nintendo's failed hard drive add-on for their N64 console. Sorry. [Thanks, Jabari]
Read MoreWe can only hope this one is true. CNN's Game Over is reporting that more females are getting interested in gaming. A quick walk around this year's QuakeCon seems to be the basis of the argument, but they may not be far off the mark. Sure, walking into a Gamestop is like walking into a boy's locker room, but some girls find that a net plus. Most games are not exactly designed with women in mind, but that doesn't mean they can't enjoy them. One chick, quoted in the piece claims "We do it for the competition. We've finally found a venue where we can play and don't have to be bigger, stronger or taller." We're betting she still has to be real patient with her male counterparts.
Read MoreBest known for pushing the gameplay and graphics engines of our home consoles, Rare is taking a different approach for its upcoming GBA release. Meet Mr. Pants, the developer's unofficial mascot, and future star of perhaps another classic Rare franchise, perhaps. This one's actually a remake of the never-released Donkey Kong Coconut Crackers, which was a Tetris-like puzzle game with hand-drawn graphics and poorly sung soundtrack. Yep, that's Mr. Pants.
Read MoreFour more classic NES titles will be making their way to GBA late this October. Along with Metroid, we'll be getting the original Castlevania, Dr. Mario, and the questionable sequel to Zelda, The Adventure of Link. Each game will retail for $20 and should be a picture-perfect port of its original incarnation, now pushing more than 15 years.
Read MoreMajesco proves its dedication to Nintendo's current-gen handheld with a trio of new titles. The line-up includes Texas Hold Em Poker, Monster Trucks and F-18 Super Hornet. The poker game will allow you and a linked buddy to play up to 10 computer opponents for some betting action. Monster Truck lets you build your own monster to take into the pit. F-18 Super Hornet puts you in the cockpit of a pilot in the Iraq War. A good, solid mainstream list if there ever was one. Each game will be available in time to slip into millions of Christmas stockings.
Read MoreThere are some "unconfirmed reports" coming out of the Ziff-Davis Electronic Gaming Summit that Nintendo is feeling increasingly confident that they'll be able to get their new Nintendo DS portable game system in stores in time for Thanksgiving of this year (giving you a chance to annoy everyone by insisting on playing with it during dinner). As you'd expect, there's no official word from Nintendo, but as we know, the final design for the console has been confirmed and the number of third-party titles that should be available for it continues to grow. Expect some sort of proper announcement about this thing's availability soon.
Read MoreAccording to unconfirmed reports, publishing sources at the Ziff-Davis Electronic Gaming Summit suggested that the Nintendo DS will be released in the US by late November. You may remember that Japanese retailers were reporting similar dates in July. Again, there has been no official word from Nintendo, but as we know, the final design has been confirmed and the number of third-party titles continues to grow. However, there has been little information about which of these titles will be available at launch. Expect an official announcement soon, if the DS is really set to take off by Thanksgiving.
Read MoreYou may have read the recent list of international titles slated for release on the Nintendo DS. Now comes a list of titles that will be available in the western hemisphere. The line-up isn't comprehensive, but it gives us an idea of the breadth of support the little device will enjoy. Tempting titles included are Bomberman, Goldeneye and, of course, Sonic DS. Some of us still don't get what the big deal is about having two screens. It just seems gimmicky. But a lot of developers are eating it up, which could mean our gut instinct is, gasp, wrong.
Read MoreRegretfully, Nintendo has declined to offer a blowup Samus cushion in their upcoming Metroid Prime Bundle—looks like you'll only be sharing your bed with Katsumi this fall. What Nintendo is offering is a pretty sweet deal, albeit for newcomers mostly. You'll get a CameCube (with controller) plus two bonus discs, and all for just $100. The first disc is simply a version of the acclaimed original Metroid Prime, while the other contains a playable demo of the upcoming sequel packed with various featurettes. If you already own a GC and the first game you can get the demo disc by registering on Nintendo.com.
Read MoreNintendo is on a mission to remake the game industry. Their complaints that the industry is getting to big for its britches, and needs to go back to basics, has been hailed by many developers. Now Atlus, a game developer, has announced they'll be releasing a surgery simulator for the Nintendo DS, called Caduceus. The game will allow you to use your stylus to make incisions on the screen. One would assume that the second screen would be a monitor for the patient's health. This kind of thinking makes you realize that the second screen may be useful, after all.
Read MoreIn a recent announcement, it was revealed that the upcoming sequel Wario Ware 2 (GameBoy Advance) will make use of a built-in motion-senor device. Remember Kirby Tilt 'n' Tumble? Same concept. If you happened to miss that particular installment of the fluffy pink blob, the basic idea is that you control the game by tilting/jolting the GameBoy in different directions. Fans of the first Wario Ware should expect more of the same strangely addictive mini-games, 200 in all. Look for Wario Ware 2 to be released this October.
Read MoreNintendo has released a massive list of DS games that are currently in development. Although these titles have only been confirmed for release in Japan, expect any recognizable titles to be coming stateside. I've spotted a couple of classic franchises in the mix, including Megaman, Castlevania, Final Fantasy, Metroid, and all things Mario. Oh, and how could I forget: Jissen Pachislo Hisshopou! Hokutou no Ken (or rather, Fist of the North Star)! Head over to IGN to see the full list of all 72 games.
Read MoreA surprisingly detailed look at the upcoming Dungeons & Dragons Online game is posted on Games Domain. The interview with Ken Troop, Lead Designer, gets into how the team at Turbine is trying to make the MMG a digital translation of the pen and paper game we all know and love. Perhaps the most interesting snippet is this. "All of our dungeons are going to be instant spaces," the Lead Designer said. "There's no wide-open world that we just throw players into. That means that each dungeon will be 'instanced' for each party, and won't be populated by other groups of people trying to accomplish the same goals at the same time." This we have to see.
Read MoreShacknews has posted a few new shots of Hidden and Dangerous 2: Sabre Squadron. The four screenies show off the slightly updated visuals of the expansion pack for HD2. The new addition will add some real value to the gameplay with 9 new single-player missions, 3 multiplayer missions, co-op support for the expansion pack missions, and, of course, new weapons.
Read MoreThanks go out to "Pete" for an insightful and thorough peek at Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War. His hands-on look at the beta has yielded a good post that should get all you fans excited. Heads up for RTS fans, this game has great potential for anyone interested in a good RTS. The graphics are reminiscant of Warcraft 3 but also has style similar to Starcraft. Using Relic's new graphics engine that was also used in Homeworld 2, this game looks great. Also the strategy implemented in Dawn of War is astonishing. Almost every unit can be upgraded to be used for somthing else (i.e. Space Marine Dreadnaughts can be upgraded for either anti-infantry or anti-tank purposes). Also, squad based infantry makes for interesting strategies. For example, if artillery rains down upon a squad of Marines not much damage will be inflicted on them - but it might as well have. It throws the Space Marines into the air and separates them, greatly diminishing the squad's effectiveness and rendering them almost entirely useless. At least, until the squad gets a chance to regroup, which can be deadly in a large scale battle.
Read MoreVivendi has released its latest demo, which we will definitely be checking out. With all of the first-person shooters coming out these days, it's nice to see a game like Evil Genius poke its head up. The strategy title promises a fun (and funny) yarn, with amusing visuals and deep strategy. If you've always identified with the bad guy in movies, give it a download.
Read MoreThe long march toward gold has hit another snag for Half-Life 2. Gamespot is taking back its "scoop" that the title was beginning its march to our retail stores. Apparently, Gabe Newell's post was not Gabe Newell. Sure, he used Gabe Newell's account, but he wasn't Gabe Newell. No, Gabe Newell set his password to 'gaben' and someone figured it out. Bad Gabe Newell. You'd think after the last security disaster, the folks at Valve would insist all employees wise up. That clearly hasn't happened. If someone grabs the source code again, there's going to be a riot.
Read MoreEvery massively multiplayer game needs a stress test during the beta phase. In a nutshell, a stress test guarantees the best launch a developer can hope to get. A lot of the MMGs that have come out have been fun to play, but many have suffered from inconsisient performance when thousands of people start hitting the servers. Which will certainly happen for World of Warcraft. From day one, Blizzard can expect to host tens of thousands of people, so they've started a stress test. But to reach the number of people they need, they must open the beta up to more of us. So get in line, if you have any interest in getting a peek at the upcoming title. And good luck to you. First come, first served.
Read MoreThere's word at Gamespot that Half-Life 2 is going gold on Monday. They caught a post by Game God Gabe Newell on the forums that seems to indicate, in no uncertain terms, that we will see the game soon. How can we be sure that this isn't just specualtion? Well, the post is, "We're going gold Monday..." That makes it tough to read between the lines. This would mean that Valve is comfortable with the game — but it also means they're comfortable with the marketplace. It's a tough call to follow a title like Doom 3. Do you wait until the craze for your competition has died down? Do you trust that customers have another 60 bucks in their pocket? Regardless, we're looking at having the title in our trays within weeks, if not days.
Read MoreThere's no need to wait any longer. One of the best mods ever made is here for Unreal Tournament 2004. The latest iteration of Red Orchestra 3, the World War II mod, can now be downloaded with but a click of the mouse. This classic complete conversion recently won $10,000 at the Make Something Unreal contest, so if you're looking for some proof of its fineness, there it is. Red Orchestra 3 will include 2 tanks — the Russian T-34 and German Panzer IV. When this post is done, I'm climbing in to kill some Nazis.
Read MoreTechnically, you can have Half-life 2 on your hard drive starting today. Valve has announced that the upcoming tite will be steadily streamed to customers over the next few days. The streamed files will sit on your computer, encrypted, until you enter the registration key. Then all hell will break loose. Especially at the retail stores, where they must be quaking in their boots about this latest distribution method. Maybe if we got rid of this whole middleman thing in the game industry, the titles would be cheaper...Nah.
Read MoreWord over at Firing Squad is that Half-Life 2 may not play nice with the GeForce FX series of Nvidia cards. They do an exhaustive breakdown of the game and come to the conclusion that the game may default to DirectX 8, instead of DX9, which offers much more eye candy. These guys know their stuff, and give us visual proof, along with some number crunching. The issue is not only important to gamers, who want their expensive hardware to play as advertised, but it's also of concern to hardware reviewers. Now, sites like Firing Squad need to decide if they should reign in the Radeon cards' power to match the GeForce's. What is a fair benchmark, when one card is pushing more polys than the other? All in all, a disappointing find. And one we have not heard the last of.
Read MoreIf you've been looking for an excuse to buy Rise of Nations, then this may be what you're looking for. Microsoft has announced a Rise of Nations: Gold Edition. The repackaged deal will include the original game, as well as the expansion pack, Rise of Nations: Thrones and Patriots. The title will be on shelves this Fall. For a full run-down of what's offered, click away.
Read MoreSTALKER is slowly climbing our most-wanted list. The rumblings for the game began awhile ago, and not many of us paid too much attention. But as more shots emerge, and more details become clear, the title shines brighter. It would go too far to call it a Half-Life 2 contender, perhaps, but it's not too far by too much. Check out the latest shots and details over on Worthplaying and you'll see what we mean. That dog-thing probably reminds many of us of the terrifying walks home from grade school. Okay, it probably only reminds me of it...
Read MoreThere are too many Half-Life 2 movies coming out. Sure, they've all been seen before by a lot of us, but mostly at conventions. The fact that I'm able to oggle the latest clips at my whim is taking away some of the anticipation. So for those of us who are into delayed gratification, look the other way. For the rest of you (normal) people, here are two more clips of the upcoming hit. Go an enjoy yourselves while I wait in this dark corner for the game to come in the mail. Scroll down on the page for the links to the clips.
Read MoreThe big, bad Red Orchestra mod has been wowing fans of Unreal Tournament for a long time. The latest iteration, Combined Arms, will continue to impress, if this clip is any indication. For those who don't know it, Red Orchestra is a World War 2 mod that goes out of its way to be faithful to history. From the beautifully crafted guns, to the detailed uniforms, to the realistic locations, this is one mod that should be on every UT2K4 fan's list. Combined Arms will include updated AI, new maps and weapons, as well as a slew of details that will make it feel like a generational leap over the last RO.
Read MoreDespite another delay in the inevitable release of Half-Life 2, fans can look forward to two pseudo-new videos, both in hi-res (totaling just over 200MB). The footage comes from Valve's E3 presentation this past May. So needless to say, a few of you may have already seen these movies, but for you others, it's worth a peek. The first clip features G-Man's introductory monologue, while the second highlights the arrival at the City 17 station. Enjoy.
Read MoreA new Warcraft III map is available on Blizzard's website today. The map, called 'Excavation Site', is a 2v2 or FFA deal, with sparse resources. The official description: "With the help of Gazlowe's engineers, an unexplored city was recently excavated near Durotar. Quickly secure the gold mines in the center before your enemies do." I haven't had a chance to play it yet, but I can vouch for last week's gem. I've been playing 'Stone Cold Mountain' for a week straight and highly recommend it.
Read MoreAnother round-up of this week's mods is posted on HomeLAN Fed. The weekly public service offers up a link to UT XMP, a mod designed for Unreal Tournament 2004. The product was originally made for the (mostly) single-player Unreal II, but has been redesigned for the more popular multiplayer game. Also included in the list is a link to a CliffyB interview, with the designer's impressions of UT2K4's current mod community.
Read MoreJust in time for those wonderful weekend days, comes a 300 MB file that will make your Battlefield Viet Nam game play like a World War 2 game. The link includes the download, as well as a brief interview with the developer. A run-down of the mod's features reveals a well-planned project. You can listen to your favorite mp3s over a vehicle's radio. But be careful not to have the thing blasting on a stealth mission, since your enemy can hear your music too. Also, check out the before and after photos at the bottom. Many plans will be thrown out the window now that this puppy has arrived.
Read MoreHalf-Life 2 has one hell of an act to follow with Doom 3 out there. The recently released first-person shooter has satisfied most of us; delivering on great graphics, suspenseful gameplay and some old-fashioned fragging action. Now Half-Life 2 starts to get the same treatment Doom 3 got before its release, with a new piece on Firing Squad that rounds up what is known about the game's minimum requirements. The new Counter Strike Source that Valve just released gives us a rough estimate of what HL2 will pull from our silicon. Though the piece throws out some serious qualifiers, they do use some sound measurements to give us a close approximation of what the game needs. If you're considering a hardware purchase for Doom 3, but would also like to consider the other Big Title of the Year, then this is worth a read.
Read MoreWord is out that the Rome: Total War demo will be released this coming Monday. IGN is claiming to have the download in their hands, and are planning on letting us know what they think tomorrow. The demo is a "teaser demo", which includes a tutorial to help ease you into the plethora of tasks at your fingertips. If you want to jump right into the action you'll find yourself playing as the Carthaginans in the battle of Trebia, which should make sense to you historians out there.
Read MoreIn an unconfirmed report, Valve accidentally included a .gfc file imbedded with all of the dialogue from Half-Life 2 in the Counter Strike: Source beta it distributed to cyber cafes last week. The file was used for closed-captioning purposes and was not meant to be opened—perhaps why it made it into the CS beta in the first place. At any rate, the dialogue reveals all of the major plot lines, including the "surprise" ending. Don't worry, we won't spoil it for you, not yet at least.
Read MoreThe Half-Life 2 E3 movie that attendees praised so highly, is finally available in high-resolution. The download shows off around a minute of the game's graphics and gameplay. There's not much to sink your teeth into, if you've already seen the other available clips. But it is the best-looking film of the game that we've seen. The file clocks in at 65 Mb.
Read MoreThis week's mods list over at HomeLAN Fed has a nice surprise in it. A Far Cry add-on promises co-op play for the super first-person shooter. We haven't tried it yet, but the game style is sorely missed in the commercial version. There's no better way to bond with your buddies than to take out some baddies together, after all. The list also includes Battlefield: Viet Nam, UT2K4 and Quake 3 mods, so dig in.
Read MoreThe Nvidia-sponsored QuakeCon 2004 will feature a bunch of events that will make the most cynical bloke smile. The id Software challenge will let gamers take on id employees in Doom 3. They probably aren't that good (yeah, right). The NVIDIA PC Speed Building Contest challenges fans to make a computer from scratch in fifteen minutes. Participants will get boxes of computer parts, and tools, and that's it. Finally, the NVIDIA Overclocking Showdown invites us to bring in our rigs for a chance to claim the speed crown. All of this, in combination with the biggest Doom 3 LAN party in existence, and you can be sure the ticket price is worth it.
Read MoreValve has announced that all subscribers of their cyber cafe program can now begin testing the multiplayer component of Half-Life 2. The beta is actually Counter-Strike: Source, a remake of the original Half-Life mod—but this is the same source engine that will power Half-Life 2. The beta has a built-in bug reporting tool, plus all crashes will be automatically reported to Valve's database. There are plans to expand the test to all owners of Counter-Strike: Condition Zero later this month. If you'd like to learn more about the cyber cafe program use the link to view a directory of members that will carry Counter-Strike: Source.
Read MoreUbisoft's latest, a strategy game that takes you on the campaign trail was released today. Your job is to serve as the campaign manager for either Kerry or Bush—you can also create your own candidate or even use historical molds (like Roosevelt). It's up to you to use political strategy to secure the most electoral votes. No word yet on how much dirty work you can incorporate—you know, a little slander, a few "lost" votes, the usual. If you like you can compete against your friends' candidates online. The Political Machine is set to retail for a bargain $20.
Read MorePlanet Half-Life is reporting that Gabe Newell, of Half-Life fame, has posted a juicy tidbit. TheHalf-Life 2 Fallout Forums sometimes see the man pop his head up for an update. This time around he let us know that Valve's STEAM will start to pre-load Half-Life 2 updates next week. We won't give too much away, because, well, there isn't too much to give away. Head over and check out his post. Though the temptation may be to think the game is on its way, we would caution against it. It seems highly unlikely that HL2 would be released so soon after Doom 3. Why tread on the other shooter's toes? It wouldn't help sales of either game.
Read MoreHere's a link for both of you guys who could afford a GeForce 6800. 3DGPU does a good job of writing down a slew of tweaks you can throw at your super-duper card. Though the focus of the piece is on Nvidia's top-of-the-line hardware, the writer insists that anyone with a recent Nvidia card can benefit from the tweaks. Why's that? Simple. All the Nvidia cards from recent years use the Forceware drivers. Though each card has different ways of accessing the driver, the universality of the software is one of the more elegant aspects of gaming hardware. Check it out if you like to find geeky things you can do when you get home to your rig.
Read MoreThe upcoming fanboy-fest that is Star Wars: Galaxies: Jump to Lightspeed has sixteen new images to ogle, compliments of Gamers Hell (bringing their total to 86). Predictably, the pics look great, and make us all tremble. Lucas has never made a bad space combat sim. Ever. We don't think they'll start now, especially since they've been on such an impressive roll recently. Arguably, X-Wing: Alliance is still the pinnacle of Star Wars space combat games. If SW:G:JTLP can capture even half of its gameplay glory (with the addition of massive numbers of concurrent players) then Lucas may get our 13 bucks a month, after all.
Read MoreThe new demo of Myst IV has been released for mainstream consumption. The game that was once the best-selling title of all time, has reached its fourth generation, making players from coast to coast giddy, no doubt. This time around the developers believe they've built a title that will appeal to its massive base, and even pull in the hardcore gamers. Check out the 200 MB download and let us know if they're going to deliver on that promise.
Read MoreOur brothers over at Joystiq reported recently on someone who was very quick off the mark coding a mod for Doom 3 that sticks a flashlight onto the end of your gun. No sooner did this hit the ground than some enterprising souls hacked it to produce Hello Kitty, Batman and Thundercats versions. [Via BoingBoing]
Read MoreJust as I was about to head into a battle on Battlenet, comes news that a Warcraft III map is available for download. You have to love weekends. This week's addition to the ever-expanding list of expansion maps is called Stone Cold Mountain, for two to four players. I haven't had a chance to check it out yet, but it looks interesting. The official by-line: "The blizzard that once made the high crags of Stone Cold Mountain inaccessible has finally subsided. Rumor has it that the first expeditionary force sent to explore the area returned battered and broken. Time, it seems, has only made the mountain deadlier. " Yeah, whatever, as long as the snow runs red with the life-juice of my foe.
Read MoreThe next round of winners has been announced in the Make Something Unreal contest. You may think we've linked to this story before, but the fact is, this contest is the longest contest in the history of contests. It has so many rounds within rounds, it makes the head spin. This round, however, was a valuable one, with $150,000 awarded to 52 teams overall. The contest is broken down into 11 categories, with some categories paying out more than others. Best first-person shooter mod, for example, took home a sweet $25,000, while an audio mod brought in $2,500.
Read MoreThere are screenshots that stand out as classics. The Fat Zombie in Doom 3 that launched all the hype. The expansive outdoor shot that accompanied the announcement of Tribes. We think we found another one. It's not that it has the best graphics out there. It's not that the game itself is so original. But it leaks atmosphere and mood. Painkiller's expansion pack, due out later this year, is probably going to be more of the same. Run, shoot, jump, run. But we can say with some confidence that the title will have serious attitude. There's nothing like a moonlit night, dodging TNT-packin' baddies in a post-apocalyptic world.
Read MoreFrom the annals of yesterday's records, comes news that is quite striking. We all knew City of Heroes was burning up the charts and wowing reviewers, sure. But did you know they've already reached 180,000 subscribers?In North America alone! That's astonishing. The thing has only been out for a few months and it's reached a level of market penetration that Everquest took years to match. We're not sure if this outpaces Star Wars: Galaxies (probably not) but it must be damn close. Congrats to the developer for their success. Just goes to show you what happens when you make a game right.
Read MoreA good, thorough write-up of the upcoming Dungeons & Dragons:Online is over at IGN. The piece is custom-made for fans of the game, meaning most of us. The setting for the new title is Xen'drik, a land of adventure and history. The owner of the license, Wizards of the Coast, are hush hush about details of the area. But they will say that the setting has many treasures which noblemen are willing to pay a high price for. There's a follow-up tomorrow, where IGN will discuss more details with members of WotC and Turbine, the developer.
Read MoreThat didn't take long. The mod community once again steps up to the plate, and improves upon perfection. This one, just released, allows you to strap a flashlight to your machine gun. The folks at id probably knew this was going to be the first mod we'd see. There are so many comments about how dark the game is that a flashlight will make many people happy. The next mod should be a pretty pink ribbon to go around the monsters' necks. That should take some of the edge off the game.
Read MoreMy favorite gaming peripheral is the keyboard. What other device can give you so much control over the game? Can there ever be a better piece of hardware designed for interacting with a virtual world? Before I get too deep and lose you, let's take a look at Tom's Hardware's (sic) piece on gaming keyboards. This one is a doozy. You know you're in for a wild read when the first page of the article piles the test subjects on top of each other, like a sack of potatos. My vote for "cheesiest, yet coolest" is the Saitek. See what the reviewer actually thinks. He gave it more thought than I just did.
Read MoreHomeLAN Fed gives us a Planetside Q&A with Dave Georgeson of Sony Online Entertainment. The interview is a must-read for fans of the MMOFPS (massively multiplayer online first-person shooter, gasp). The game has grown over the months into a stable and intriguing experience. It somehow manages to balance the twitch gaming needs and the strategy needs of its customers. Though the title has taken a lot of its basics from the Tribes series, it's also managed to carve out a unique place in the industry. According to the interview, the game is doing well enough for the suits at Sony. Their plans for expansion include Mechs. Sounds good (and it better be for 13 bucks a month).
Read MoreIf the only thing keeping you alive is the occasional Everquest 2 preview, then here you go. Gamesdomain features a good, old fashioned peek at the upcoming massively multiplayer online game (as opposed to a massively multiplayer offline game?) The preview delves into how Sony plans on accomodating two kinds of players. Those who love MMGs, and those who would love to love them, but have no idea how to go about doing that loving. It's a hard balance to strike, but Sony Online Entertainment has been in the business longer than almost everyone. So if anyone can pull it off, these guys can. The preview also features an exclusive clip. No registration required, even.
Read MoreSega's Shenmue series is making the move to PC sometime next year. The new installment has yet to be titled, but will feature MMO play. With a $25,945,455 budget, Sega & JC Entertainment (Korea-based online developer) have been at work on this game since February '03 and are hoping that by bringing the series online they can tap a valuable Chinese market—there are already more than 10 million online gamers there. While just having launched a branch in Shanghai, Sega is also focused on bringing Phantasy Star and CTRacer to this market. Still no news as to when or if these games will see an international release.
Read More30-inch LCD HDTV? Check. Integrated Media Center 2004 PC? Check. Alienware brand? Check. Options up to a 3.4GHz Pentium 4, ATI Radeon X800 XT Platinum Edition with 256MB GDDR3 RAM, 12x DVD±R/RW drive, and Dolby Digital 5.1? Check. In a few years when all the hardware on this thing is out of date, it's going to seem like a bad investment for all those peeps who dropped 6½ to 8 dimes on it? Check.
Read MoreIf you've been aching for a chance to mod the hell out of the best-looking game ever, then you'll be happy with this news. Far Cry HQ has let slip that the Far Cry SDK will be released tomorrow, August 2nd. This move guarantees that the fan community will be able to work its magic on new levels, weapons, and all that fun stuff. Nothing would make us happier than the power of flight. Get to work, you talented masses. We'll be checking for the first mods online, tomorrow night.
Read MoreSony & S3 announced that the PSP will make use of the S3TC texture compression technology. S3TC compresses textures into very small files while maintaining a high level of detail and contrast. Although it's not the newest of these technologies, it's a trusted brand used frequently for the Xbox and GameCube. Despite the official announcement being made only yesterday, it's more than likely that some developers have already been using the technology for their PSP titles. Coupled with the recent news of another PSP technology, curved surface rendering, the SC3T should allow for some pretty awesome capabilities. Stay tuned for more PSP tech news as GDC Europe & the Austin Games Conference unfold.
Read MoreSony has just announced which titles we'll get a glimpse of this Fall at the Tokyo Game Show. The event, taking place from September 24-26 has been used as a launching point for many of the Playstation and Playstation 2 "A" titles. Alas, the only console that's represented in this year's line-up is the Playstation 2. No sign of a PSP product, or, of course, a Playstation 3 title. One can dream, can't one?
Read MorePerhaps it's more than a bit premature, but Amazon Japan has the PlayStation 3 listed up on their website at least year or two before it's supposed to be actually for sale. They're not exactly taking pre-orders, and there's no information on pricing and no pics or details we didn't already know, but that didn't prevent a few precognitive individuals from already posting up their reviews.
Read MoreSony revealed some detailed specs for the processors they're putting into their new PlayStation Portable game console everyone is currently salivating over in anticipation. Without getting too deep into it, basically the PSP's chipset is set to include a 333MHz CPU, a dedicated media processor, a 3D graphics engine, and processors specifically for security (to thwart piracy and hacking) and power management.
Read MoreLike we've said before, the combo of gamer and fitness buff seems like it would be a rare breed, yet the products keep coming. And while we've looked at game companies that have begun tapping the fitness craze with their own workout/gaming devices (like the Kilowatt Game Controller), it seems like the new MO is tricking out your standard bike as game controller. CatEye makes the GameBike which allows the user to place his/her bike into the holster, use the handlebars as controller and pedals for speed, for any PlayStation 2 race game. A few MIT students have also had a similar idea with their CycleScore, but have connected the bike to a decidely unfun sounding game with a hotair balloon.
Read MoreThis winter Sony will release a follow-up to the original Eyetoy game, called simply, Eyetoy: Play 2. The innovative peripheral has received little support from third-party developers, let alone Sony itself, but this new addition should be cause enough to dust off the old Eyetoy and plug it in again. The camera will now be able to track motion (and measure the speed of that motion) and Play 2 looks to take full advantage of this feature. The game includes 12 main events—including boxing, ping-pong, and a homerun derby—plus over 80 mini games. Besides motion tracking, Play 2 will also introduce 'color cam' (turning brightly colored objects into controllers) & 'cutout cam' (superimposing the player onto the screen).
Read MoreUh-oh. Word on the street is that Sony is going to miss their release milestone again on the portable PSP game system. All it took were a few words from Activision CEO, Bobby Kotick, to get the rumor mill grinding. The executive guessed (in a public way) that the product wouldn't smell the aisles of COMPUSA until the second quarter of 2005. Sony has had an ambitious release schedule since they announced the PSP, so this may be a lot of talk by people who want them to be off the mark. Wall Street is filled with skeptics, after all. The article ends up being a good run-down of all the missing details of the PSP; details that we'd all like to know sooner than later (like how much the thing is going to set us back).
Read MoreIf you've perused Sony's help-wanted ads recently then you might have noticed that the entertainment giant is looking for a network development engineer to assist in creating applications for the PSP's wireless LAN capabilities. Among the responsibilities for the job listing is: TCP/IP protocol stack development, which would be critical for online gaming or simple web browsing, but not required for basic wireless gaming. The PSP's networking capabilities are still very much a mystery, but look for greater details to emerge in the near future—perhaps at next month's Tokyo Game Show.
Read MoreSony announced that it has signed an exclusive deal with Evolution, the studio best known for the World Rally Championship series. The UK-based developers are currently working on the fourth volume in the series (due out in October), with plans for an original title coming from satellite studio, BigBig, in the works for the PSP. Back in March, Sony made a similar deal with Guerrilla Games (developer of Killzone). Sony's continuing ability to reach these exclusive deals helps to solidify their network of "second party" developers, which not only benefits the present, but also ensures timely contributions for future systems.
Read MoreThey must have some pretty l337 h@x0rs in the prisons over there because the Swedish Prison and Probation Service has elected to ban all PlayStations from cells because of fears they can be converted into devices for "making wireless communication" (we're guessing all coconut-radio style like the Professor from Gilligan's Island or something). [Via we-make-money-not-art]
Read MoreRemember a while back when we were all, "Yo, the PS3 might use Blu-Ray," and you were all, "Dude, that's either totally hot or complete suicide" and no one was really sure if they were going to take the risk? Well, they announced they're definitely using high-capacity Blu-ray drives (they helped create the format, so why wouldn't they?), which use discs which can hold up to 50GB of data, in the PlayStation 3. Now we'll just have to wait and leave it to them not to make it play ATRAC3 files only, or something.
Read MoreWe thought this was already pretty clear back in May, but its now even more confirmed than ever that Sony is going to have actual working hands-on demos of the new PlayStation Portable at next month's Tokyo Games Show (as if you needed yet another reason to hit up Japan). [Via PSP Rumors]
Read MoreIn another sign that we will link to almost anything with the words 'Playstation 3', check this one out. The next generation of Sony's baby beast will yield the power of the Blu-Ray. For those who have a life and don't need to keep up with these things, Blu-Ray is a disc format that Sony is hoping will be the next big thing in digital media storage. Many believe that DVD took off quickly because the Playstation 2 provided compatibility with the format. That's questionable, but Sony sure hopes it's true. Because if it is, then this time around they'll be reaping the benefits— it just so happens that they have a financial stake in the technology. Go figure. You have to love these guys. Really. They make Microsoft look like amateurs sometimes.
Read MoreGet ready for the next Metal Gear Solid game. Metal Gear Solid 3 is due out just in time for an express pickup by Santa. If you subscribe to the Official Playstation Magazine you'll get a playable demo of the title slipped into this November's issue. The demo will be the same one that gamers enjoyed at this year's E3 show. It will let you slip into Snake's shoes in a series of jungle environments, on a mission to rescue a man named Sokolov. As in other Metal Gear Solid games, you can choose to sneak around, or go in guns blazing. A lot of people came out of E3 insisting that the third installment will be a worthy follow-up to its predecessors.
Read MoreAt G-Phoria, Sony showed off an optimized build of the Killzone demo that first appeared at E3. Although the demo was still only two levels (and had no online multiplayer support), it featured improved graphics and added some CG cutscenes to the mix. The AI seems to be the most noteworthy aspect of the game. Enemies work well together, providing cover fire for each other, and use corners and other obstructions to keep from being hit. The demo itself is pretty short, and isn't enough of a look to really judge how close this game is to being a "HALO killer". But look for more news in the coming weeks, and in the meantime check out what GameSpot had to say.
Read MoreIf you absolutely positively have to have your laptop connected to the internet at every possible second and don't mind paying $80 a month for it, then this one's for you. What we have here is a picture-rich review of the Sony Ericsson GC83 PC Card, which'll hook you at a decently fast speed (the reviewer got 176-192 kbps, average is 100-130), sports quite the appealing interface and, best of all, is free (after a rebate which you'll probably either lose or forget to send in). Plus it comes with an aluminum case you could put use to put stuff into.
Read MoreJudie over at The Gadgeteer has a nice lengthy review (with lots of pics) of the NW-HD1, Sony's new Network Walkman digital audio player that we all love to hate on. It seems like everyone has already pretty much made up their minds about this thing, especially given its price ($399 for 20GB) and the fact that you need to convert MP3s to Sony's proprietary ATRAC3 format before it'll play 'em, but the battery life does more or less live up to expectations (it's more than twice as long as that of the new iPod) and Judie doesn't seem particularly put out by all the file conversion stuff as we would be.
Read MoreIGN got some hands-on time with the upcoming first-person Half-Life-like shooter by THQ. They only got to touch the multiplayer aspects of the game, but it seems to have given them a good sense of the graphics and weapons. Some of the Counter-Strike "champions" are contributing to the game, so you have to assume the multiplayer will end up shiny. Unfortunately, the touted physics engine didn't make the cut for the demo. Apparently it wasn't ready to show. Overall, they seem impressed with their limited time with the title. It's due out in Q1 of 2005, and IGN agrees that could be possible from what they saw.
Read MoreLarry Garfield takes a gander at the entry-level Sony Ericsson T237 and determines that it is, in fact an entry-level phone. But it's a decent entry-level phone, so if you don't feel like spending too much and don't want all those crazy features you could get this one. Or not. We trust you to make your own decisions.
Read MoreNARC, Midway's recreation of the classic arcade beat-'em-up, bares little resemblance to its forefather. Due out early next year, this crooked approach to fighting the drug war (D.A.R.E. this is not!) has players getting high on crack in order to lay down the smack. In fact, as an undercover, you're free to 'experiment' with any number of illegal substances, but there are consequences. Expect to be demoted if you spend too much time getting high and roughing up prostitutes. And speaking of beating up hookers, NARC looks to feature a pretty robust action/fighting system with a number of combos and takedown moves. It's definately over the top and certainly not for kids, but it looks like Midway could have a real crowd-pleaser in the works.
Read MoreRich Brome, the man behind PhoneScoop and one of our tight bros from way back when, was kind enough to send over a ton of pics that new Palm-powered SGH-i530 smartphone from Samsung (the both screens on it are distressingly nice). Make sure you click to see the rest of the gallery.
Read MoreAlthough the masses won't be playing for another two weeks, a handful of lucky critics have already gotten a chance to play through the entire adventure. And from the sound of it, they truly enjoyed their time in Albion. Of course, no one has been willing to agree that this is "the greatest RPG of all time", but Peter Molyneux's claim was destined to fall short along with many of the other lofty goals set for Fable nearly four years ago. With so much hype surrounding this title, expect a lot of grumbling come September 14. Yes, it's short, not 9 hours, but a seasoned gamer could run through in about 10-12. But a game like Fable isn't designed for speed. After all, it is much less a story-driven epic than it is a fantasy played out in a sandbox (a really big and beautiful sandbox). The developers are encouraging us to slow down, perhaps "live a little", and in doing so, we may find that Fable has something to offer that's unique, groundbreaking, and most importantly, fun.
Read MoreStoked as we would be to spot some of those helmet cam-wearing boys in blue sporting the JonesCAM 480EX while they're guarding next week's Republican National Convention, something tells us they'll be going for something a little more subdued (and that isn't designed for downhill skiers). [Thanks, Jurgen]
Read MoreTwo different versions of Ghost Recon 2 are currently in development. Red Storm is handling the PC and Xbox version, while Shanghai Studio is responsible for the technically inferior PS2 and GameCube version. The two games will feature two distinct storylines, as the PC/Xbox version will be set five years after PS2/GameCube's Ghost Recon 2. There has been no official explanation for the differences, but it could be related to North Korea's objection to the original (now PS2/GameCube) storyline earlier this summer. The PC/Xbox version could have been modified to satisfy an international online market. Either way, if you own multiple systems, there'll been some decisions to make come winter.
Read MoreSony's coming out with the VRP-T5, a new 160GB digital video recorder which connects to digital TVs and tuners via i.Link (which is essentially their version of FireWire). It debuts on October 1st, when it will retail for a rather pricey $665, and a has a nice old school computer peripheral styling to it rather than the typical A/V component look that pretty much all other DVRs have. Or maybe someone at Sony realized there were enough generic external hard drives out there and decided to throw in a DVR function to convince people to actually consider buying it.
Read MoreAs the next generation of A titles are released the Ideazon Zboard is keeping up well. The customizable keyboard has a Doom 3 mod, and will be ready for Half-Life 2 later in the year. According to the review there will be an Everquest 2 keyset as well. Gaming Nexus takes a close look at the device and adores the frickin thing. Not only does it support a slew of games, it also provides layouts for programs like Photoshop and Word. Okay, we've heard enough great things about the Zboard to believe the hype, a little. Guess it's going on the Christmas list.
Read MoreSometimes we dream of having the perfect family unit, sigh, but instead of the white picket fence we're going to snuggle our happy family into a big nest - like this one in the middle of an abandoned lot. Its actually a sofa called Tak, made by the dutch team, Tjepkema Studios. The best part is as your family grows you can add more big rubber branches til you've got a house full of plush brown twigs for your Mormon-sized commune.
Read MoreWe know you were hoping the shirtless hair-sweater had gone 70's-retro hip, but we're sorry to say, your day has not yet come (and it might not since supposedly Eighties retroness is giving way to Ninteties nostalgia). Maybe the Razorba, a special handle so you can use your razor to shave your back, is a little much, but it beats Nair parties and high-priced waxing salons. It does look a tad tricky so a mirror might be the way to go. Maybe natural is the way to go... [Via Popgadget]
Read MoreGigaOm has a review of the SCH-A790, Samsung's new worldphone that works on Verizon's CDMA network here in the States and can roam on GSM networks abroad. The one major downside: dismal battery life. It has a talk time of just two hours, something you definitely don't want to have to deal with when you're traveling overseas and might not be able to charge your phone that often.
Read MoreIf you missed Viewtiful Joe the first time around (it was released a year ago for the GameCube), be sure to check out its re-release for the PlayStation 2. Some of you may be groaning already about Capcom re-hashing a game that's now a year old, but I'm willing to label this sort of effort "timeless"-and if you're still doubtful the game is being offered for the bargain price of $30. Even if you're familar with the original version you may be interested in some of the bonuses Capcom has packed in (notably, Dante from Devil May Cry). Viewtiful Joe is quite an accomplishment in that it deviates from your standard beat-em-up action title without loosing touch with the 2D, side-scrolling roots it descends from-that sounds like somewhat of a paradox, but you'll just have to play it to see what I mean. Joe is the sort of nostaglia that lasts longer than a ten minute fix. Do yourself a favor and give it a try. If you're interested you can use the link below to see what other critics our saying.
Read MoreJust when we were starting to get complacent Pentax busts out the new swivel-style OptioX, a five megapixel digital camera that's only 18mm thick (making it the thinnest Optio yet), comes with a 3x optical zoom lens, and has a 2-inch LCD screen. Click to see a couple more pics. [Thanks, Gabe]
Read MoreWalking is the new pilates—we'll, that's what we're telling ourselves since it's the only aerobic effort of our day. So we might be keen on trying out the i-stepwalk pedometer by Japanese company Tanita Corp, which is powered by NTT Docomo's i-mode cellphone service. The i-stepwalk monitors your activity and transmits the info to an online site so you can analyze your progress (or lack there of).
Read MoreNot that it's entirely reasonable to expect it to totally kick ass given that it's also a cellphone, but Mobile Gadget News ran some benchmarks and found that HP's new h6315 Pocket PC Phone performed near the bottom of the pack on a variety of tests compared with six other Pocket PCs, including that ancient T-Mobile Pocket PC Phone from two years ago. We asked Phillip about how things have been going with his (or rather his wife's) h6315 and he said it's been working fine so far.
Read MoreIt was the world's smallest MP3 player for about a nanosecond, but PC Magazine plays with the Yepp YP-T5, Samsung's 256MB MP3 player which weighs just 1.3 ounces but still manages to squeeze and FM tuner in there. They like it lots, apart from how it uses USB 1.1 instead of USB 2.0 for transferring files over from a PC.
Read MoreSo maybe it's hard to get excited about yet another pair of digital cameras, but besides having nice large 2-inch LCD screens and 3x optical zoom lenses Minox's new six megapixel DC 6311 (pictured at right) and four megapixel DC 4211 are made out stainless steel. Not that fake, plasticky simulated stuff you'll find on lots of other cameras, but actual real live stainless steel. Read - Minox DC 6311 Read - Minox DC 4211
Read MorePC Magazine checks out the latest way to blow four grand on a high-end gaming laptop, For your money you get a 2.0GHz processor, 128MB ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 graphics card, a 60GB hard drive, a DVD+-RW drive, and a battery life of over four hours. Solid, yes, but nothing extraordinary given what else is out there at that price, so Falcon Northwest is doing a few things to differentiate themselves from the Alienwares of the world, like offering to custom paint the FragBook in any automotive finish you'd like (whatever you do, just don't get it in purple) and throwing in a padded aluminum briefcase free with every purchase.
Read MoreWe spotted one of these back in January at the Consumer Electronics Show, and while we were mighty impressed that Auvi's SA1500 20GB MP3 player was smaller, slimmer, and lighter than the iPod, the lack of an actually working product or demonstrable proof that they could actually out-Apple Apple didn't exactly have us writing the iPod's obituary. Anyway, they said the SA1500 would be out by May, which obviously didn't happen, now it looks like at least on retailer is taking pre-orders for October. We're still not convinced they have a real product yet.
Read MoreLooks like LG has an audio player on the way, but true to LG's form, the MF-HE700 seems like more of an amalgam. Which is fine by us—who doesn't want a 20GB player with 2.2-inch color screen, that plays audio and video (MP3, WMA, ASF, OGG, WAV, MPEG, DivX, JPEG, TXT), has an FM transmitter (we hope this isn't a misprint for having an FM receiver), and a Lithium-polymer battery that plays 8 hours of video, and 20 hours of music? Because that's just dandy with us.
Read MoreIt was getting damned difficult (not to mention messy) trying to figure out how to grill non-flat items in our Foreman Grill, so thank you, Sharp, for figuring out how to melt fat in a much more convenient (and futuristic) way. The AX-HC1 microwave oven uses "superheated steam" to melt the oil in fatty foods, resulting in up to 13% fewer calories. The shorter cook times also minimize the loss of nutrients that occur through cooking, though not sure anyone will care as much about that. The microwave goes on sale in Japan next month and Sharp plans to eventually roll this thing out worldwide.
Read MoreGeekzone disses on D-Link's relatively new DSM-320 digital entertainment adapter which wirelessly streams audio and video files from a PC over a home network using 802.11g, saying that the software isn't consumer-grade yet, it has trouble maintaining a strong connection to a wireless network (it keeps buffering constantly), and that overall its "[p]erformance is poor and the user experience is frustrating". They're sending theirs back.
Read MoreFor the first time, Sony displayed a 16 player online version of Killzone at last week's GC-Games Convention in Leipzig, Germany. It looks to feature pretty standard multiplayer modes: Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Assault (one defends, one attacks), Defend & Destroy, Supply Drop (capture the flag) & Domination (capture & defend key positions). There's also an option to add AI bots (up to 15) to fill the void in lightly populated games. Two maps were on-hand, a close quarters-style 'modern fortress' (multi-tiered with lots of walkways and windows) and a massive 'tropical canyon' level with dunes and palm trees, plus a number of buildings to fight in. Though there was no headset support at the event, the control scheme and framerate held up providing an overall enjoyable experience. Head over to IGN to read Peer Schneider's impressions.
Read MoreIt looks like someone cobbled it together out of spare parts, but Maycom's new M-bird XT-21, which comes in 256MB and 1GB versions, does possess the rare distinction of being one of the few MP3 players out there with built-in stereo speakers. Not that that makes up for the rest of it. [Via DAPreview]
Read MoreYou can either see it as a really crappy personal video player without a built-in screen (or a hard drive) or a really fresh portable hard drive case with a video out port for watching movies, but the one thing we do know about DViCO's new TViX hard drive enclosure (seriously, you really do have to provide the 3.5-inch drive yourself) which can playback MPEG-1, MPEG-2, and MPEG-4 video files and MP3, Ogg, and WMA audio files, is that at 19,800 yen it's pretty seriously overpriced all things considered.
Read MoreHey, we were just as happy as you to hear about the ATI HDTV tuner (the HDTV Wonder, as they call it), but now that PCWorld got ahold of one, we must admit we're not too stoked on the fact that apparently you must also already have a Radeon card in your computer to make use of it. But the thing does have a breakout box, a remote, and an HDTV antenna, so even with that Radeon card, it's still a really value-centric buy up in here. Apparently performance isn't too bad, too, so we're going to have to go on being stoked about it. For now, at least.
Read MoreAnother review of the MDA III (aka the HTC Blue Angel aka the Qtek 9090 aka the XDAIII), that new Pocket PC Phone T-Mobile is carrying (at least in Germany) that features a slide-out QWERTY mini-keyboard, WiFi, Bluetooth, and a built-in digital camera. Disappointingly, this review doesn't feature video footage of a Norwegian guy playing solitaire on it for five minutes, but it does feature plenty of high-res pics. [Via MSMobiles]
Read MoreAnd while we're on the subject of personal video players, ExtremeTech has a review of the new AV400 Pocket Video Recorder from Archos. It's not the Gmini 400 that everyone's buzzing about, but they're touting their new AV400 series (which comes in both 20GB and 80GB versions and both record and playback DivX files) as basically a portable TiVo. It comes with a cradle with all the necessary video inputs and outputs to connect it up to both a regular TV and a cable or satellite box and can pull electronic programming guide info off the Internet so you can schedule it record specific shows. The downsides are that since it's a handheld device it doesn't quite have the processing power of a regular DVR (which results in some noticeable differences in quality), and apparently the programming guide interface is not so hot.
Read MoreInfoSync has a review of Sony Ericsson's new phone, the Z200, which they somewhat uncharitably (though hilariously) describe as "the bimbo of the phone world" because it's "pretty, curvaceous, [and] a little slow". Yeah, it's lacking most of the extras we're growing accustomed to like Bluetooth or a built-in digital camera, it's a little bigger and heavier than you'd expect, and it gets poor reception, but the styling is way more distinctive than that of your average flipphone (yes, it sort of looks a tiny bit like an old iBook). Plus it has that circular LCD on the outside that displays an analog-style clock. Not that any of this matters all that much for our Stateside readers, since so far no US carriers have signed up for this one.
Read MoreDigital Photography Review takes a look at Canon's new PowerShot S1 IS, a camera that's a decidedly bizarre blend of many things—a sub-prosumer 3.2 megapixel digital still model with loads of camcorder features in a digital SLR style case without a hot shoe or interchangeable lenses. And it also happens to be Canon's first digital camera in three years with a 10x optical zoom lens (yeah, we found it hard to believe, too).
Read MoreNot that he can buy it anywhere here in North America, but Justin over at PocketPCTools is digging on the PocketLoox 720, Fujitsu-Siemens' new flagship Pocket PC. This is the one with the high-res VGA quality LCD screen, a 520MHz processor, built-in digital camera, WiFi, CompactFlash and SD expansion card slots, and that sweet new USB Host feature which lets you plug regular USB peripherals like a mouse or a keyboard into it (assuming there are drivers, of course).
Read MoreAs the Football Game Wars trudge on and on, Madden is always the clear winner, sales-wise. However, many gamers have begun to tire of the title, the same way many of us tired of the San Francisco 49ers winning every frickin' Super Bowl they played in, in the 1990s. Ironically, the San Franciso Chronicle's online presence, SFGate.com, has posted a love-fest that is, nonetheless, on the mark. I'm sorry, but I have to pull this quote from the article. It's just so irritating, and so correct. "Madden NFL Football 2005, which reached stores a week ago, is better than last year's version (again). It will almost certainly be the top-selling game of the year (again). And sports-loving children will brood in their rooms this week, wishing that the baby Jesus had been born a few months premature, so their Christmas lists could be fulfilled in August (again)." That should ruffle a few feathers. ESPN's latest attempt could make a dent, but don't count on it. Madden is the title to beat year after year, and unless they slip up drastically, you'll be looking at his ugly mug on the cover of a football game 30 years from now.
Read MoreThe latest tycoon-type game gets a good write-up over at Avault. If you like to micromanage the hell out of things, and you also happen to like animals, then why not combine the two and check out the game? The three page review can't help but compare the title to the classic Zoo Tycoon, but often notes that the newer game has more depth. For instance, instead of just putting your animals in cool surroundings (as you do in Zoo Tycoon) you have to provide the right environments, feedings, cage partners and playthings. Though they fault the lack of ambition in the game, it looks like the reviewer enjoyed himself, in the final analysis.
Read MoreSo we were chillin' at Engadget HQ when we heard some mad bumpin' outside. We went downstairs to check the scene and Pioneer was having a bass-off with Sony. After they cleand up all the glass from the street, we hit Pioneer up for a ride and they showed us the GPS/multimedia system, their in-dash DVD-based system with touch screen, and voice recognition. These things are sold as a package with more screens than you'll know what to do with, which you can use for the standard stuff like playing movies and CDs (no DVD-Audio yet), and hook up game consoles. It also features a GPS system decked with loads of topographical information that you can program to help find you over 12 million points of interests (like, say, the nearest cheap Chinese food restaurant, replete with on-screen brand icons), which are all also searchable by name, address and telephone. Click to check out the rest of the pics.
Read MoreIt's that time of month again. The new swarm of hardware is swooping down on the market and Logitech, as usual, has something new to deliver. Their latest wireless keyboard/mouse packages look to make deeper inroads on Microsoft's casual gamer market, with a tilting wheel and a bunch of one-touch features for the digitally-challenged. The five page review covers two of their products, the LX300 and the LX 501.
Read MoreFiring Squad has its impressions of the PNY Verto 6800 GT video card, with Nvidia technology. In standard form the blokes at FS break the piece of hardware down into all its tiny parts and, somehow, come to a solid conclusion — rating and all. In a nutshell, the Verto is a no-nonsense solution for those of us who just want the hardware, not a lot of bells and whistles, like free games or snazzy packaging. The price is still a bit high, coming in at around 380 bucks. But that's on the low-end of today's premiere graphics boards. For an exhaustive analysis of its strengths and weakness, give this a read.
Read MoreA relatively inexpensive new convertible-style Tablet PC with a 14.1-inch LCD screen has turned up on a French website. The BestWay 133VT looks like it's a rebadged version of Saga's Albatross Tablet PC (but don't hold us to that), and comes with a 1.3GHz Centrino processor, 256MB of RAM, a 30GB hard drive, a combination DVD/CD-RW drive, and built-in 802.11b WiFi. [Thanks, Christopher]
Read MoreNikkei BP has up a review (in Japanese, but with photos) of DoCoMo's premini, aka the Sony Ericsson SO213, which with a footprint significantly smaller than a standard business card is very possibly the world's smallest cellphone. Surprisingly, the physical interface doesn't suffer from the pint-sized form factor as much as you'd expect, and if you have small hands it's possible to punch in mail messages at pretty much the same speed as a normal cellphone. The upshot, they say, is that you're likely to find it hard to go back to your bigger cellphone once you get used to this one. If you're outside Japan, unfortunately, all you can do is make up your own cutout version of it and pretend to talk into that. Or we may have just hit on an idea for the ultimate Bluetooth mod—turn a premini into a remote handset with number display. Go on, we know you can do it.
Read MorePretty much an open secret for a few weeks now, Archos made the Gmini 400 officially official today. This is their new 20GB portable media player with a 20GB hard drive and a 2.2-inch color LCD screen that can play back both audio files (MP3, WMA, and WAV) and video files (MPEG4, DivX, XviD, and AVI), and that you can also use to play games (it uses the Morphun game engine) or view digital photos (there's even a CompactFlash memory card slot for transferring JPEGs over from a digital camera). You probably won't want to do much actual watching on that squinty LCD screen, so maybe it's best to just think of it as an MP3 player with some bonus features and everything will be fine.
Read MoreIf you aren't happy owning just one copy of Doom 3, then you'll be happy to know that id Software will soon be selling the Xbox version, too. The console iteration will include multiplayer co-op mode, which is a sexy idea in this age of deathmatch (and its 1000 variations). You'd think the non-PC first-person shooter would look a bit duller than the one we're used to, but this brief preview insists there isn't much difference. Graphics, however, are in the eye of the beholder.
Read MoreDave Thomas from AutoBlog contributes this special guest-review of Doom 3 for us: I'm not a regular Joystiq blogger. In fact, I'm usually testing new cars over at Autoblog. But for years I was a video game reviewer and recently Doom 3 made it's way to my desk. After installing it and fixing my sound card so I could hear the excellent dialogue and effects I was immediately immersed in this game. I'm not even a fan of the first person shooters, but I already love the latest edition to the signature series, although Doom 3 reminds me more of Resident Evil than the first Doom. As the hour reached 10 p.m. and the house was dark and quiet, Doom 3 took hold of my consciousness. The game is so well done that my heart was genuinely pounding as the first space zombies (I'm guessing that's what you'd call them) jumped out of the dark. Doom 3 follows the same recipe as a good scary ride at Universal Studios: build suspense, make it really dark and keep things moving quickly. I'm not sure how long the game will keep me interested but I'm willing to test my limits.
Read MoreWe told you a while back about Dell's new Bluetooth GPS receiver, BargainPDA just gave it the thumbs-up in a recent review. It's meant for use with Dell's Axim X30 PocketPC, is decently-sized for a device of its kind, and comes with the usual extra accessories (like a mounting arm and a car power adapter) that make it a little easier to justify its $250 price tag. Hey, whatever it takes not to have to roll down the window and ask for directions, right?
Read MoreThis is actually surprising. Gaming Nexus has offered up a review of the new portable gaming device/pda, the Tapwave Zodiac. The reviewer ate the thing up, giving it a 93%. This could be considered an outlier review, but the fact is the buzz is mostly good on this business toy. The most surprising part of the review is the size of the thing. All the promotional pics make it look huge, but it's barely larger than a GBA SP. "I find myself reaching for it instead of my GameBoy Advance," the reviewer writes. "It's one of the most amazing peripherals that I've had a chance to lay eyes on ever since I entered the gaming industry four years ago." It'll be a tough road for the new product, but if it can get this kind of dedication from a couple million more people, we'd have another playah in the business.
Read MoreYeah, it's got just the tiniest bit of that vintage Walkman aesthetic with those side buttons (though it's obviously way smaller), but iRiver's latest is a pricey new 1GB MP3 player with a 1.2-inch color LCD screen, the iFP-999. [Via DAPreview]
Read MoreFrom the ever-growing annals of fun freeware comes Gish, an Independent Games Festival Finalist. The platformer is an impressive piece of work, with a combination of excellent style and smooth gameplay. Even The New York Times loves it, and they hate everything. The great experience of this game starts with the official description: "With his gelatinous structure as his only means of defense Gish must follow the echoing cries of his damsel in distress deep into the earth bellow. What freakish creatures dwell in this subterranean land? Who is Brea's captor? And just how far down does the rabbit hole go? Life isn't easy when you're a 12 pound ball of tar..." Okay, we're sold. There are Linux, Mac and PC versions available. Heads-up: the link is a Flash site. Thanks to the resident Freeware Guru, 2Bear, for the tip.
Read MoreIt may not be as feature-rich as the new SMC travel router or as stylish as the Netgear travel router, but we have a feeling D-Link's new DWL-G730AP will be able to hold its own. The diminutive 3.25 x 2.5 x 0.75-inch device can run as a router/firewall, AP, or wireless client (i.e. repeater/bridge type functionality), and has all the other standard features (including WPA) for $100. But the big bonus? You can power the thing off of USB. That's what we're talking about! [Via NetworkWorldFusion]
Read MorePaul over at MoDaCo has what we believe what might just be the very first hands-on with Orange's new SPC C500 Smartphone, which besides being the world's smallest Smartphone with a capital "S", is one of the world's smallest smartphone with a lowercase "S" as well. (See, "Smartphone" with a capital "S" means a cellphone running on Microsoft's Windows Mobile for Smartphones operating system, while "smartphone" with a lowecase "S" just means a regular old smartphone. Yes, it's confusing and frustrating and annoying.) Returning to the matter at hand, the C500 weighs just over 100 grams and has a built-in digital camera, Bluetooth, tri-band GSM/GPRS, 200MHz processor, three times the battery life of its predecessor, the E200, and one of those new miniSD expansion card slots. Cleary infatuated with his little friend, Paul describes it as "light years ahead of anything in the market", which is too bad since the C500 isn't likely to be carried by anyone over here.
Read MoreWhether or not it will ever grace this fair country (as in America) we don't know, but what we do know is that a better pic of the rather poorly-named i-Bead 1000 has materialized (or at least a pic of it before it got rebadged). This is the one that only has a 1.5GB drive, but does support playback of a whole host of different audio formats (MP3/WMA/ASF/WAV/Ogg), and has a 128 x 128 pixel color LCD screen for looking at digital photos, a built-in FM tuner, a mic for digital voice recording, and a battery life of a solid (but not extraordinary) ten hours.
Read MoreWe're thinking that if you're going to use one of those weird kid monitoring devices, then at least matching baby/parent hip space-age watches are the way to go. London-based Boardbug makes baby/parent paired watches (because really, what's cooler than matching with mom before you're old enough to know any better?) so the parents gets constant kid-updates like "Toddler OK", along with the ability to set feeding time alarms. And they tell time, to boot. The baby-model has sound and temperature monitoring and a toddler-model has the virtual electrified-fence-style playzone. Seriously, we're not even joking (yes we are). [Via Shiny Shiny]
Read MoreNorwegian site mySmartPhone.no has some calm, soothing video footage (you'll see what we mean) of the Qtek 9090 Pocket PC Phone, which you might better know as either the MDA III or the XDA 3 (don't ask us why this one has so many different names, it's a long story). This is the phone that comes with the slide-out QWERTY mini-keyboard, built-in WiFi, Bluetooth, and a built-in digital camera. [Via MSMobiles]
Read MoreEveryday Robots checks out the latest version of iRobot's robotic vacuum cleaner, the Roomba Discovery, which gets an edge on its predecessor by being able dock itself automatically for recharging, recharge in about three hours (as opposed to the full 12 it used to take), a dustbin that's three times larger, and a new "intense cleaning" feature called the Dirt Detector that "focuses cleaning on dirtier areas" (which might be considered all areas in some bachelor pads). Best part: not only does it actually work better than the earlier ones, a lot of these new features were previously only found in robovacs costing five times as much.
Read MoreSomewhere between a TiVo and a Media Center PC, Interact-TV has just introduced the third generation of their Telly Home Entertainment Server. Like the two earlier incarnations, the Telly MC1200 is essentially a living room PC with a giant hard drive (you can actually slot up to three 250GB drives in there) that can record TV like a digital video recorder and has multimedia software for organizing the chaos that is your digital photo, audio and video collection. There are a few nifty extras, like you can copy your DVD library to its hard drive and store the actual discs themselves away somewhere (just like you did with your CD collection), or if you're at the office you can remotely schedule the MC1200 to record a TV show from a web browser. [Via eHomeUpgrade]
Read MoreFor a thorough runp-down of the 6800 offerings out there, this is a good piece to read. it ends up being pretty non-commital, but we'll excuse the reviewer for that. Let's put ourselves in his shoes. He's been given a bunch of versions of the same technology and he's supposed to pick the best one? The guy does a good jon of breaking down the main issues: performance, power consumption, memory type, warranty and, of course, price. He wasn't too impressed with the plain vanilla cards, and seems to urge us to spend the extra 100 bucks for the brand names. If he's willing to loan me the money, I'd be more than happy to do so.
Read MoreThe Ideazon Zboard has an awful name, but apparently the product works to spec. Avault does a write-up of the Zboard product that could be the company's break-through —the Doom 3 keyset. The review claims the device, which folds over the Zboard keyboard (sold separately), makes your interface with the game more elegant. The only barrier to the product's success is that it's really hard to get your head around how it works. Then, of course, there's the barrier that most of us are just fine with our current setup. Of course, if you are shopping around for a better gaming keyboard, this one seems worth a look.
Read MoreNow this is kind of funny. Haier has released a cellphone that would be kinda innovative if it weren't such crap. The $250 P6 is basically a phone in a voice recorder casing. In fact, it even has a voice recorder feature that can record a hot 15 minutes of voice memos. That's more notes than you'll ever need but certainly not enough for a recording a meeting or lecture. The form factor requires a small screen, which in turn leads to the (monochrome) display being flipped ninety degrees for use; yes, you have to turn the phone to view anything except the time on it, which would most certainly drive us nuts in about two minutes. Not that the phone is a total wash, since it does come with a built-in laser pointer, the true don't-leave-home-without-it device.
Read MoreDon't think we've ever been as pissed about our cellphone as this guy was after Verizon refused to replace his defective Kyocera 7135 (though we've been close). He decided to use it for target practice rather than pay the 350 bucks they wanted before sending him a new one.
Read MoreThomas Hawk pits his new Hughes HR10-250 high-definition TiVo (which is available for use with DirecTV) against a PC running on Microsoft's Media Center operating system (specifically HP's 873N), and while it's not exactly fair to compare the two, since Media Center doesn't support HDTV recording (at least not yet, it's coming soon), but not surprisingly he describes watching recorded HDTV on the TiVo as practically a religious experience. The Media Center PC still comes out tops in terms of portability, since it makes it incredibly easy to archive shows to DVD or save them to a laptop or other PC. [Via PVRblog]
Read MoreThe Sony SDM-HS73P 17 inch monitor seems to be an example of good technology crapped up by some bad design decisions. The good technology is the XBright screen tech (called XBlack by Sony) which provides much richer and more vibrant colors than traditional LCDs, at the cost of the screen being a bit more reflective. But the crapping-up of this product comes in several places. One is the large black bezel surrounding the screen. According to the review (and we haven't used one personally so we can't say for sure) it acts as a giant black mirror that draws attention away from the screen itself. The physical adjustment options of the monitor also seem to be lacking, with only forward and back tilting easily accomplished. No rotating without shifting the whole thing. Also, there's no DVI input, something any self-respecting LCD monitor should have these days. And at $609.99, it's hardly a steal.
Read MoreWe already saw the average Joe impressions—but c'mon, whada they know? It's about critical acclaim, right? What do the ones who get paid-to-play have to say? Well, the early entries are in and more are sure to start piling up. Use the link to head over to Metacritic where you can sort through the mainstream reviews. You may be surprised with some of what you find—then again, most is what you'd expect. For now, DOOM is holding steady with a '92' average. Enjoy.
Read MoreD-Link's latest foray into the security camera market is none too shabby. The DCS-5300G is an 802.11g security camera with some neat features. You can control pan, tilt, zoom, record in MPEG-4 (with sound; its got a microphone) at 30 fps, 640x480 via any browser, at an address of your choosing, thanks to the Dynamic DNS service feature. Coming in at $549, It's not that cheap but it is rather smart-looking. Of course the problem then becomes actually justifying the purchase to yourself.
Read MoreWow, so this is one of the most negative reviews we've seen in a while. The reviewer seems genuinely angry at HP for making the iPaq rz1715 so crappy. Though to be fair, the specs are less than impressive, even for a low-end model. The construction is universally cheap, except, amusingly enough, for the stylus. Continuing in the humorous vein, he rz1715 manages to underperform its predecessor, the h1945, in all the performance benchmarks, which is certainly not the way things should be. We're not going to give a blow-by-blow on the rest of the review, but given that the rz1715 lacks built-in wireless, has a mere 15MB of RAM available for actual use (after system processes are taken into account, and costs a massive $279.99, we just can't see people flocking to the shops if this review is even remotely accurate.
Read MoreThe Gadgeteer has a review of the HDPS-M1, a little gadget we didn't exactly expect to see from Sony when it was announced in Japan back in May. This one is a portable 40GB hard drive aimed at digital photographers that comes with built-in CompactFlash and Memory Stick slots (note the absence of an SD card slot) for storing all your digital photos when your camera's memory card gets filled up. We still don't expect this one to ever come out over here (though of course it still could), and it turns out that the reviewer got his through a retailer in Hong Kong.
Read MoreHere are some of the reviews hitting the wire of the Sidekick II (which is actually the 3rd one). Danger's info site with all the new features. CNet "T-Mobile Sidekick II" PCMag "T-Mobile Sidekick" MSNBC "T-Mobile's hiptop gets hipper"
Read MoreOh how we love our retro collections, at least the industry seems to think so. So come this November, Sega will be releasing Sonic Mega Collection Plus—a beefed-up version of the GameCube compilation released two years ago. You'll get all of your favorite (and not-so-favorite) Sonic games from the Genesis and Game Gear days—I know, there's no Sonic Drift 2 or Sonic Quest, oh, and no Sonic Triple Trouble either. But I wouldn't be too upset, there's plenty of ring-grabbin-loopty-looping to satisfy your inner hedgehog. And if that's not enough, Sega has thrown in some other Genesis gems, including Flicky & The Ooze (which one's where they again?).
Read MoreWhat do you get when you cross Sharp's already attractive Aquos line and a designer-name designer, like Toshiyuki Kita? The Designer Edition, duh. Their 37-inch widescreens have been designed with black lacquer, tan leather (ew), and black oak finishes, and have a 1,366 x 768-pixel resolution (not quite the 1,920 x 1,080 HDTV spec but we'll live) and an 800:1 contrast ratio. So it's not too shabby; but we're really concerned because they're claiming it has 3 million pixels (it actually has 1.05 million) by counting the three sub-pixels in every proper pixel (it'd be like Canon saying one of their three megapixel cameras had nine megapixels). We've never heard of a company do that, and it's as shady a marketing team can get. You really want them muddying your name like that, Kita-san? [Via Tech Digest]
Read MoreMobileBurn has a review of the K700i, Sony Ericsson's new cameraphone which comes with a built-in VGA quality digital camera with flash, a sizeable 41MB of available memory, a large-ish 172x220 pixel color LCD screen, MP3 player software, another application called MusicDJ for creating your own ringtones, Bluetooth, and an FM tuner. The K700i is also one of the first of Sony Ericsson's new line of phones that are meant to be held sideways when you're taking pictures so you can use more like you would a regular digital camera, and it sounds like MobileBurn likes most everything about it except its disappointing battery life. You can't win 'em all.
Read MoreBIOS Magazine has a review of the VGN-A197XP, one the latest in Sony's new VAIO A series of laptops. The A series is their latest foray into the world of portable multimedia PCs, and the VGN-A197XP sports a massive 17-inch WUXGA (1920x1200) display with Sony's new XBRITE technology, a 1.8GHz processor, 80GB hard drive, a DVD+-RW drive, 1GB of RAM, Bluetooth, 802.11g WiFi, and an optional AV Entertainment Dock that adds a TV tuner, personal video recorder, high-end digital audio amplifier and a pair of speakers. The only thing it sounds like they skimped on is the video card.
Read MorePerfect for the 21st century wiretapper, there's a new product called the USBBLAST R-1000 that plugs into your landline phone (they do still exist) and connects to your PC over USB to automatically record all those important conversations direct to your hard drive. [Via Mike's List]
Read MoreDuring G-Phoria, hosted in L.A. over the weekend, Nintendo featured a three-level demo of Donkey Kong Jungle Beat—the same one displayed at E3. In case you haven't heard, this latest version of Donkey Kong will borrow a page from DDR. Yes, now all that monkey business will come from a bongo controller—and I suspect you'll look infinitely cooler than you do on the DDR mat. Although, there's some growing suspicion that not much can be done with a couple drums. However, we all know Nintendo is the king of turning something simple into something simply addictive. Head over to GameSpot to read their impressions.
Read MoreThis innocent-looking plushie seems like a nice soft toy you could buy your newborn nephew. But oh, how wrong you are. Bring it home and a creepy spy emerges, designed to harrass you out of bed when you sleep late. The Japanese Tomy Sleep Watch Doll has six sensors, can say 1,200 sentences and after learning its owners sleeping habits, irritates the crap out you when you change your sleeping times. Why anyone would inflict this pain upon themselves, we'll never know, but we suggest sticking with your trusty old alarm clock.
Read MoreLatest job for Sony's QRIO robot: it's been appointed a "Science Messenger" by UNESCO and will be zipping round the globe to educate children about science and technology. We can't help being a little bit sour because no cool little robots came to teach us things at school; the closest we got was a clammy little old lady or two. [Via Impress PC Watch (Japanese)]
Read MoreIt can't run around (or scratch you up) like the real thing, but the Near Me, Sega Toys' eerily lifelike new robocat (really it's more like the cat equivalent of an android—call it a replicat?) can move its head, blinks its eyes, meow, and wave its paws in a way that when you think about it is way more creepy than cute. [Via TRFJ]
Read MoreShowing the rest of us how it's done, there is now a shopping arcade in Japan that's patrolled by a robot. Tsmuk's T63 Artemis can't oust rowdy teens, but it can sound an alarm if it spots suspicuous activity (how exactly that is determined isn't explained), and keep track of the license plates of cars in the parking lot. [Via Robotics @ Big Blog]
Read MoreNo movie buff's home theater would be complete without this here handmade Terminator sculpture. It looms a menacing six and a half feet high and is made entirely from old car parts. The bids on eBay Europe are up to £3,000 (around $1,800), shipping not included (though we shudder to think how much that's going to set us back). Ominous glowing red eyes, Skynet, and human slaughtering movement are also not part of the deal. Too bad really, since we sorta had this hankering to build our own giant robot army. [Update] so we managed to type 1,000 pounds into our handy online converter, thus coming up with a completely incorrect converted price. the proper price in dollars is about $5,400
Read MoreWhile the Segway HT hasn't been a huge commercial success in the consumer sector, people who build robots are tricking Segways out for all sorts of things. NASA's is taking their "Robonaut B" robotic astronaut, which can romp around the space station gripping things with its human-like hands and seeing things with its video camera eyes, and popping him onto a Segway and rolling around the joint and even the moon. Plus there's also the SPAWAR Systems Center in San Diego's Segway RMP (Robotic Mobility Platform) project which is mainly for moving weapons and military stuff around.
Read MoreThe Intelligent Machines Design Laboratory had its demo day recently and we were able to take a gander at a whole slew of new robots they have on tap, including: The Gropenator: Pictured above the Gropenator is a 5 degree-of-freedom robotic arm which can track and maintain a prescribed distance from any object in the three-dimensional space surrounding it. The CardShark: A blackjack-playing robot which can drive around, read the dealer's cards, then its cards, and then place the appropriate bet. The Gimp: This one will search for an open flame and then move using its two legs to a position close by and extinguish it. The TagBot: Aptly-named, these are little five-and-a-half-inch diameter, three-inch tall robots that will putter about, playfully cornering and evading each other in a game of tag. There are 26 in total, so go check 'em out (though we're discovering that sometimes the best part about building a robot is naming it).
Read MoreOk, maybe you don't wanna drop a hundred or two hundred bucks on a robotic vacuum cleaner. But for $20 you can pick up the RoboMaid, which we're 100% positive isn't a vacuum (it uses electrostatic pads to wipe your floor clean like a Swiffer) and fairly sure isn't technically a robot either (it has a sensor to detect walls and that's about it). On the other hand, it is advertised on TV, if that helps inspire your confidence, and apparently it's also "from Europe". [Thanks, Adam]
Read MoreWe're not sure we approve, but somewhere up in heaven Ted Nugent is smiling down on this paralyzed guy in Minnesota who created a wheelchair-mounted power crossbow so he could still bag a few deer now and again. [Via BoingBoing]
Read MoreAh, damnit; we'd just got the call from the boss to go and check out Seiko Epson's flying robot doing its stuff at an exhibition in Tokyo at the end of the month, when we find they've gone and held a press demo of the little beast in flight. Only consolation (not that this is schadenfreude or anything) is that the PC used for programming it for independent flight apparently threw a hissy fit on the day, so the only good video available is of a guy piloting it. They apparently also managed to get into trouble when it went out of Bluetooth range (we could introduce them to some guys who could help with that) just flitting around in an office, so it seems there's some refinement still to be done all round. One thing we can confirm, though, is that it has a camera on board to beam back images and (per the picture to the right) Seiko Epson has all kinds of sci-fi delusions in mind for its future uses. We'll still be heading to the exhibition to try and catch it in independent flight (and hoping we don't get an eye taken out by its rotors). [MPEGs at PC Watch] [WMV at MyCom PC Web and Japan.Cnet.com]
Read MoreThey might be able to track humans via their heat signature, but PARC's latest batch of robots are meant for rescuing people not hunting them for sport (at least that's what they're told). They're also equipped with cameras, microphones, sensors, and other equipment for mapping disaster sites, but apparently there's some all-too-human relucatance on the part of rescue workers to actually deploy the robots. [Via near near future]
Read MoreSeiko Epson's introduced a new, slightly improved version of their world's smallest flying robot, which is basically a wirelessly-controlled helicopter with two small ultrasonic motors (and we're not entirely sure what makes this a robot and not a radio-controlled toy, but Seiko Epson seems plenty excited about it so we won't spoil their fun). If you happen to be in Tokyo around the end of this month (Gareth, we expect photos), they'll be showing it off at a fair at the Tokyo International Forum.
Read MoreOk, maybe you didn't see the need to bid on that armored suit for fighting grizzly bears that was up on eBay a few months ago (and seriously dude, you're gonna so regret not buying that thing next time you run into a mess of grizzlies), but do you really want to miss out on the robotic arm that that crazy bear-obsessed guy from Project Grizzly is auctioning off this time around? Didn't think so. [Thanks, B.J.]
Read MoreGiven Japan's general robocentricity the question should perhaps be "why did it take them so long?", but Lego Japan has apparently teamed up with a company called Eiwa System Management to offer a system called Warp5500 that uses Lego Mindstorms technology to provide a Ministry of Education-approved curriculum for junior high school students that teaches them how to build robots. Given that our exposure to computers, let alone robots, in school amounted to programming BASIC on a BBC B, we're wondering if we weren't born too early. The learning curve for teachers can't be getting any easier, though. [Via Ascii24 (Japanese)]
Read MoreWhat? As if you didn't already know Japan's robots (and toys) beat our robots (and toys). So don't act surprised that for a mere ¥6,000 (about $55 US) you too can have a metal walking crab-robot. Sure, it only walks back and forth, but it does have an IR control and looks potentially hack-able. Just don't go making some kani-maki out of it, mkay?
Read MoreForgive us the visual pun; since they haven't built this yet, a robot tuna was the closest we could get. Anyway. Japan is planning to replace the observers who currently accompany fishing boats hunting tuna and bonito with a robot mounted at the centre of the boat that will take video of the catches and allow confirmation back on dry land that nothing irregular has gone on, in the interests of maintaining fishing stocks. While this strikes us as something that you could do fairly well with a video camera and a motion detector, there are no bounds to Japan's ability to develop ways to make the lives of its government employees easier. One of the key challenges, they state dryly, is to develop a unit that will withstand salt and rocking about.
Read MoreWe already knew that Steven Tyler was a fan, but CNN has some more details on Robo-One, Japan's twice-yearly robotics competition which ditches all the pretense of sports or scientific advancement and focuses on what we all really want: kickboxing robots that can fight each other Mortal Combat-style, with some of them sporting special deathblow moves like being able to pull off a somersault and crash down on their opponent from above. The highlight, of course, is the Rumble, when eight robots enter the ring and battle it out until only one is left standing.
Read MoreEveryday Robots has a review of the new Zoombot from Applica (which is part of Black & Decker), and sorta not surprisingly, if you only spend 99 bucks on a robotic vacuum cleaner you mainly get a no-frills robot that can't vacuum all that well, has worse battery life, and moves really, really, slowly.
Read MoreWe wrote a while back about Chroino, a robot developed by Kyoto University's RoboGarage whose claim to fame is that it manages to walk upright far better than the bent-kneed hobble of your average bipedal robot. At the time we couldn't dig up any videos of it, but a kind reader points us to some at RoboGarage's English site, which also showcases some of their other creations. [Thanks, Calvin!]
Read MoreApart from maybe making you want to cuddle with it, we're not entirely sure why Bandai is selling this lime-green spherical PC case (there may be some sort of manga connection) that turns into a robot. [Via Akihabara News]
Read MoreJapan's ROBO-ONE tournament, a yearly fixture in which a multitude of amateur robot developers gather together their creations and have them beat one another up, gained an unwitting and unusual supporter this year: Aerosmith's Steven Tyler. He apparently saw a relative of the robot above on display in Tokyo and was so taken with it that he ended up autographing its sibling. (More photos and video of the proceedings at PC Watch at the link below.)
Read MorePC World has an article about the personal robots that are coming our way tomorrow (that is, the royal tomorrow) and the ones that are populating our homes today. They don't reveal any new robots we haven't already covered, but there are plenty of neat tidbits in the article, like that an estimated 4 million personal robots will be sold in 2006, and that people have bought over 500,000 Roomba RoboVacs from iRobot. [via robots.net]
Read MoreUmm...we almost don't know where to start with this one. This guy named Wayne Chiangis is developing this thing he calls the "Deskoid RoboticPC" which, as far as we can tell is a desk unit (kinda obvious but this desk unit is adjustable) with a complete PC system (speakers, webcam, cable management, all that) that can move around (we guess) somewhat autonomously, which seems to be the robot part. What we can't figure out is the point of this whole endeavor. The idea of a person "relocat[ing] an entire PC to any room and begin[ing] to be product[ive] almost right away " (we fixed the grammar to make it readable there) is pretty normal. It's just that this problem has already been nicely solved by a humble device we like to call the laptop.
Read MoreWe know that not all Japanese kids get this kind of opportunity, but the mere possibility is nearly enough to make us move over there and create spawn in a place where students get to disassemble a working humanoid robot, and then rebuild it from scratch. The event is Robot Demolition LIVE2004, and right about now we're sorely wishing it wasn't just for kids. [Via AkihabaraNews]
Read MoreEven though Japan is the unrivaled world pioneer of robot tech, Japanese robot engineers have a hard time taking their bots to public places, like streets, squares, or shopping centers. Local police have put the smackdown on various public robot displays over the years, so now the Japanese cities Fukuoka and Kitakyushu have received a "Robot Tokku". Tokku are the new deregulated zones designated by the Koizumi government, and a robot tokku enables the testing of robots in the public environment — a must to develop consumer-friendly robot helpers. The first project under the new zones enabled a robot to go shopping in a busy Fukuoka district. Actually when you think about, the only thing that's bizarre about this story is that it wasn't already legal to hang out with your robot in public places.
Read MoreWe recently got a chance to chat with Helen Griener, Cofounder and Chairman of iRobot (best known for the Roomba Robot Vacuum). With the launch of new Roomba Discovery, the PackBots as well as I, Robot the movie, we had a few questions she was gracious enough to answer for us. Helen was named the Ernst and Young New England Entrepreneur of the Year for 2003 (with iRobot co-founder Colin Angle). She has also been honored as a Technology Review Magazine "Innovator for the Next Century," invited to the World Economic Forums as a Global Leader of Tomorrow, and has been awarded the prestigious DEMO God Award at the DEMO Conference. Her 15 years of experience in robotic technology includes work at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and MIT's Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. She holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and an M.S. in Computer Science, both from MIT. Needless to say, we have a slight crush. First up- name, rank, serial number? Helen Greiner Chairman and Cofounder iRobot Corporation Could you tell us how iRobot Corporation was founded? Colin, Rod and I founded iRobot out of MIT after Colin and I graduated (in 1990). The vision has always been to make robots that touch people's lives everyday and create a robotics industry. The plan has evolved over time by creating business model around the state of technology, the state of capitalization, and the state of manufacturing capability that existed. We have built robots that go deep into the bore of oil wells, toys that were marketed by Hasbro, museum displays, a prototype planetary explorer, a legged robot for underwater mines, a robotic fish, a swarm of 100 robots, and a robot that explored shafts in the great pyramid. What's your daily schedule like at iRobot now? Crazy, but always interesting. What are some interesting things about the Roomba in general, and what are the new features folks should be excited about with the new Discovery Roomba? The most interesting thing about is its ability to get around in any home on its own and clean well. This was thought to be impossible at such a low cost. So the combination of very inexpensive sensors made effective by very clever design, the multithreaded operating system running on very a very small microprocessor, and the really low power sweeper/vac. Also, The Discovery has a 16-bit microprocessor and flash memory. The Discoveries make a lot of improvement in the cleaning, lifetime, quick charge, and dirt storage, but the most compelling are the new robotic features. These guys actually know when they are picking up dirt and change the cleaning pattern to pick it up more efficiently. The coolest though is the home base station. The robot actually knows it is running low on juice and starts looking for its charger. When it sees the infrared lobes that the base station transmits, it gets lined up, then like under control of a tractor beam it heads into the dock and starts a recharging cycle. The first model that has this cost 249.99 but the other new model are compatible with the recharger accessory, which can be bought separately. PackBot is different division of iRobot, can you tell us about what these robots are intended for? Government and Industrial Robotics and Consumer Robotics are our division names. iRobot's PackBot is the new standard in unmanned reconnaissance and bomb disposal. It is a lightweight, rugged robot that can be carried and deployed by a single soldier. PackBot offers unprecedented mobility and durability-it can be thrown into a building through a window, climb stairs, drop 20 feet and still function properly. The robot was originally developed under the Tactical Mobile Robotics program, which was sponsored by Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Designed as a versatile payload carrier, iRobot has added reconnaissance payloads with pan/tilt head and night vision, Chem/gas/rad payloads, and a bomb disposal (EOD) payloads. The PackBot EOD has been used on thousands of bomb disposal missions and we are very proud of its life saving function. The one pictured was sent back to us from Iraq for analysis after a bomb detonated. In most missions, the PackBot EOD returns safely, but in the case where it is blown up, better a robot than a soldier. A geek aside: the PackBot is running a Linux OS with iRobot's Aware robot control software. Pictured: PackBot #129. Killed In Action. April 8, 2004 Iraq. Click here for a larger view. What was the relationship between iRobot and I, Robot the movie starring Will Smith? The name iRobot comes from a common source, the Asimov I, Robot short stories. We also like it because it can be "intelligent" robot or "I" Robot (i.e. the personal combined with the technology). We have done some joint promotions with the 20th Century Fox folks and I have been asked to talk about the state of the art in robotics at movie screenings. Colin Rod and I were all interviewed for the DVD version. What did you think of the movie? Would you say it's accurate in terms of where robotics is heading? I loved the movie. It kept true to the Asimovian principles and many scenes described in the book, but did not just follow any one story (which would have not made a summer block buster). The robot was a compelling character. (see final question) Besides iRobot Corporation, what robotic projects or robot firms have you been impressed with? Well, Rod's work at MIT on humanoids is very compelling; I just got the tour last week. And the demo humanoid, cardea, etc. Manuela at CMU has made great progress using robot soccer as a challenge (with Aibos) on robot cooperation, machine vision, and strategy. Acroname just came out with a line of fairly inexpensive robots for hobbyists. For anyone interested in robotics, what resources or conferences are coming up that you would suggest? THE ROBONEXUS> see www.robotnexus.com For the first time ever the US robotic community (led by a media firm called Robotic Trends) is putting on a show to rival the Japanese robot shows like Robodex. RoboNexus takes the best qualities of academic and business development events, consumer electronics and toy mega events, user group meetings and robotic competitions, and combines them into a single event.
Read MoreSamsung just introduced a bunch of new LCD monitors at the Asia Display 2004 conference in Korea. Samsung execs seemed most excited about their new mercury-free LED backlights because they comply with new environmental regulations but we're way more excited that they're just half as thick as previous models, brighter (they're 500 nits compared to the 250 that's average for an LCD), and have 92% color saturation level that supposedly produces colors "very close to nature". They also did away with the touch screen control panel, building it right into the LCD and thus making it even thinner still. The 17-inch and 21.3inch models were to be expected but there was also a 46" Portrait size (most likely to be used as in-store billboards) and a 2.6-inch model for mobile screens that we've mentioned before that'll give PDAs and cellphones a nice VGA resolution.
Read MoreIt took us a little while to figure out what in the hell was going with Samsung's latest MP3 player, but after consulting with a couple of Korean speakers to make sure we had things straight we were able to determine that besides being a USB keychain-style drive with up to 512MB of memory and a built-in FM tuner, the YP-53 also comes complete with CoolGate's remote access software so that you can pop this thing into any PC with a USB port and gain secure access to your home PC. [Via I4U]
Read MoreWe really don't know why CNet is so down on the Samsung Yepp Sport YP-60V. After all, it is a $175 256MB flash player that plays MP3, WMA and the ever elusive Ogg Vorbis, has both an FM tuner and a line-in encoder, plus—just so you know who it's really meant for—it's also got a heart rate monitor and calorie counter functions to help you attain that goal of becoming a summer beach god.
Read MoreEven more Samsung news today, but this one we're legitimately stoked about: the company says that they're going to start mass producing a new transflective 2.6-inch VGA quality LCD screen in December. Maybe we're crazy to get excited about an LCD screen, but this one is way better than pretty much any you'll find on a cellphone today—consider yourself lucky if your phone has anything close to 176x220 pixels—and besides sporting a full 640x480 pixels also has a resolution of nearly 300 dpi, which is almost three times that of an average laptop screen. Expect the new LCDs to show up in PDAs first and then smartphones later on.
Read MoreSamsung is getting set to become the third manufacturer (following Sony and Panasonic) to release a Blu-ray Disc recorder (the big deal about Blu-ray discs is that you can potentially wedge up to 50GB of data onto one of them, giving you plenty of space to record high-definition TV). Unfortunately Samsung gave consumers one very big reason not to buy this thing. Because of some annoyingness over finalizing formats Samsung weren't able to make the thing compatible with pre-recorded Blu-ray discs (cleverly known as BD-ROMs), which means it can only play rewritable Blu-ray discs and not high-def movies released on Blu-ray disc (should that ever happen). Due out by the end of the year, not that we really care at this point. [Via I4U]
Read MoreLamely cashing in on the Olympic fever that we hear is going around, Samsung is making full use of those official Athens Olympics sponsorship privileges they paid for. Their latest Olympics tie-ins are three special limited edition versions of their SCH-E470, SPH-E3200, and SPH-E3250 cellphones that come with gold-colored casings, 18K gold trim around the LCD screen, and an Olympics logo on them.
Read MoreNot exactly the first name that comes to mind when you think of digital cameras (cameraphones are another matter entirely), but there's a new six megapixel model coming from Samsung, the Digimax V6, an updated version of the Digimax V5 which should be out in September. A seven megapixel version, called (predicatably enough) the Digimax V7, is also on the way.
Read MoreThe US National Institute of Standards and Technology has come up with an atomic clock the guts of which measure 1.5 x 4 mm, which they claim is 100X smaller than any rival. Unfortunately it would end up measuring a slightly less impressive 1 cubic centimetre once an oscillator and control circuits are attached, but it looks like a big use for this might be in military location devices where space is not at such a premium. Benefits down at the user end should include better accuracy for GPS receivers.
Read MoreSince we don't actually have a proper kitchen (apparently an oven is considered optional in Manhattan) we forget that there are people out there who still cook. Which is why it hurts even more to hear that MIT has a "crude mock-up of a Manhattan apartment kitchen" where they're testing the kitchen gear of the future, including plastic containers (pictured at right) with sensors that can automatically keep track of how much time you have until something goes bad and adjust the estimate depending on whether the food is stored in a refrigerator or on a countertop, oven mitts with built-in thermometers that can annoy/remind you when you need to check on something, mugs that change color depending on their temperature and can tell you when you've put too much sugar in your coffee, and reusable meltable plastic wafers that you can reshape into cups or bowls or plates or whatever it is you're short on.
Read MoreWe were mighty impressed to hear that the Army is working on a mobile version of their Tactical High Energy Laser, which they're using to shoot down incoming rockets, mortar rounds, and artillery shells, but we were a little disappointed to learn that the THEL, along with the new mobile version (known as the MTHEL) constitute our nation's only laser weapons. Do we seriously need to get Phillip in there to set things straight?
Read MoreProving that people can always find brand new ways to accidentally kill themselves, some guy in England decided that it was a good idea to strap a jet engine to the back of his mother-in-law's wheelchair. He's been able to rocket the thing up to sixty miles per hour, but we have this sinking feeling that sooner or later he might find himself in need of a wheelchair of his own. [Via Slashdot.org]
Read MoreFlying cars, Super-Sonic Jets, Personal Underwater Transport, and Monorails—what do all these have in common besides being part of our unfulfilled childhood dreams of what our 21st century lives would be like? They're all part of a Berkeley Exhibit at the Bernice Layne Brown Gallery installation in Doe Library, which runs until September 30th.
Read MoreHere's a good step-by-step on how to enslave lower mammals in to producing power for a night light. Rodent power (specifically power from Skippy the hamster) isn't the easiest thing to take advantage of, but the article does a good job explaining the components and what's needed to get the pet juice (err...you know what we mean). This might make up for all the power that was wasted on that hamster dance back when everyone first discovered the Web.
Read MoreFrom artist James Clar, a cube made out of a thousand LEDs that "encourages the viewer to think about the limtations of current display systems and the representation of spatial data present in everyday life." Translation: no more having to look at MP3 "visualizations" to get your kicks. [Via MoCoLoco]
Read MoreThe translation is a little, um, rustic, but we're guessing that when the researchers at the Saint Petersburg State Marine Engineering Univeristy in Russia behind the Blue Space underwater vehicle say that it uses "muscle drive" what they really mean is that this two-seater submarine is pedal-powered. [Via near near future]
Read MoreHaving a pet in a cramped Toyko apartment can be a serious pain in the ass, so desperate to have something apparently a fair number of Japanese are snapping up the Antquarium, which is basically an ant farm filled with a gel that's both food and tunneling material for the ants (which are not included). Says one happy Antquarium owner, "As I live on my own, I wanted to have pets that are easy to take care of," and that he, "wanted to feel close to nature." Only in Japan could a big glass box filled with blue gel be considered nature.
Read MoreThat old HP inkjet we used to use for college essays may soon go on to loftier achievements—like saving the lives of burn victims. Researchers at Wake Forest, Clemson Universities, and the Medical University of South Carolina have found that skin cells can safely pass through the larger nozzles of older Canon and HP inkjet printers. After harvesting skin cells from healthy skin biopsies (sounds pleasant), the cells are printed on a gauze scaffolding, which form into sheets of tissue over a few weeks' time. The printed skin grafts are sturdier than conventional skin grafts (and more valuable than a senior thesis). Researchers believe printed skin may be clinically tested in a few years. [Via Roland Piquepaille's Technology Trends]
Read MoreRelying on DNA's ability to hold a vast amount of information in miniscule, molecular codes, Korean scientists have created the world's first Nano-DNA Barcode System (NDBS). Suspended in a DNA-friendly buffer solution, the synthetic DNA may be sprayed-on or suffused into items that are normally hard to tag with a sticker, such as oil, agriculture products, or even money, providing invisible information on product origin, quality, or supplier. And unlike the stuff in us, this barcode DNA doesn't mutate and is unhackable, making code alteration impossible. NDBS may soon be used to track an oil spill or an outbreak of mad cow disease, or even prevent counterfeiting money or luxury goods. Just don't expect to find Hermes DNA in your fake Kelly bag any time soon.
Read MoreThat human-powered helicopter we mentioned the other day? Oh, that didn't work out. Yesterday a group from the University of British Columbia tried to lay claim to a $27,000 prize offered by the American Helicopter Association with a helicopter they built, but the "atmospheric conditions" weren't right. After several attempts (and several broken parts), they gave up for the day, but said they'll be making another attempt again soon.
Read MoreSince sooner or later fuel cells are supposed to start showing up in laptops and digital cameras and cellphones and MP3 players (it's always just a year or two away), so it's a good thing the International Electrotechnical Commission has created a working group to start looking into the inevitable compatibility issues that are going to arise (not that anyone seems to care much about all the battery incompatibility issues that are out there) when everyone's gadgets come with micro fuel cells that require different kinds of refill cartridges.
Read MoreThe idea of a pedal-powered helicopter sounds about as air-worthy as attaching a bunch of helium balloons to a paddle-boat (not to mention bringing to mind weird images of that crappy Around the World in 80 Days movie). But on Tuesday a group of students and engineers from the University of British Columbia are going to test the "Thunderbird", an attempt to capture the $20,000 prize established by the American Helicopter Association in 1980 (which was way more money back then than it is now). The test is to use a human-powered helicopter to hover in a ten meter zone, at the height of three meters for one minute. Maybe it doesn't sound that hard, but over the past decade over twenty unsuccessful attempts have been made. We're hoping they grab their victory this year by using a device with two rotors (which rotate in opposite directions) in order to lift the 302 pound copter weight. We'll get back to you with the triumphant or utterly failed results.
Read MoreSince three dimensions are always better than two, a design collective by the name of Greyworld has just installed a little project called The Source at the London Stock Exchange that consists of a grid of 162 cables arranged in a square with nine little spheres mounted on each cable. The whole thing is eight floors high and relays info about how the Exchange is doing by moving the spheres around to arrange themselves in three-dimensional shapes, such as forming an up or down arrow to mark the movement of the market or spell out the names and prices of stocks. To prove they're not all business, The Source can also create more whimsical objects such as the DNA double helix or a sunrise.
Read MoreAnother one of those all-too-appropriate gadgets for these all-too-interesting times we live in, you can now pick up a handheld explosives detector to go along with that baseball cap that turns into a gas mask. The EVD-3000 can detect traces of C-4, TNT, dynamite, PETN, Semtex, EGDN, DMNB, RDX, and nitroglycerine in the air, providing results in just seconds. [Thanks, Marc]
Read MoreKeycards at hotels are so 2003. The Nine Zero hotel in Boston just installed a new system which uses iris scans to unlock room doors. Yeah, it means you don't have to worry about ever losing your room key, but the downside is that the hotel now has a copy of your iris scan in their database. Maybe not a big deal now, but if iris-scanning ever catches on as a more widespread standard for authentication you're gonna have to really hope that the hotel either deletes that file after you check out or that the take some basic steps to make sure it isn't ever stolen or abused. Especially because if it gets swiped you don't have to get your irises replaced (do we have to even have to bring up Demolition Man?). [Via We Make Money Not Art]
Read MoreIf you own a Suunto SPOT Smart Watch you usually charge it via plugging it in to an outlet or with the included USB charger (which in turn is plugged into your computer). We're going to show you how to make a pretty cheap and easy solar charger for your watch that doesn't touch any of the included cable(s) at all. And what we're going to cover will most likely apply to many other USB powered gadgets you have as well, so even if you don't have a Suunto N3 SPOT watch, there's some good info here. As an added bonus, we're going to give you a sneak peak at a solar powered charger for Apple's iPod. If you want to see that, just skip to the end. Ingredients ??? Sunnto N3 SPOT Smart Watch ??? iSun Solar Panel ??? USB extender cable We'll go over each one and where to get them in the next section. Suunto SPOT Smart Watch You'll need a Suunto N3 SPOT Smart Watch. You can usually score one around the web for under $250 and service for the year can be as low as $59. SPOT watches can receive personalized content such as news, weather and stock updates, calendar appointment reminders from Outlook, Instant Messages from MSN, sports, daily diversions, horoscopes and lottery information. They're not for everyone, but if you have one and use one you probably love it. iSun Solar Panel The iSun Solar Panel is a gadget that you'll use for all sorts of things besides this project, so we think it's worth the $69. The iSun is meant to use the sun's energy to recharge your gadgets, we've used our iSun over the last year for Pocket PCs, phones, GPS device, just about everything...and now we'll use it to connect up to a USB connector we're going to make. Here are the specs on the iSun. ??? Rated output: 2.2 watts (145mA @ 12volts, 290mA @ 6volts) ??? Temperature Range: -40F to 176F (-40C to 80C) ??? Voc = 15.2 VDC (12V setting) or 7.6 VDC (6V setting) ??? Dimensions: 7.25" x 4.5" x 1.25" (184mm x 114mm x 32mm) ??? Weight: 11 oz (311 grams) We got ours from ThinkGeek. USB Extender Cable The USB extender cable is just a cable we're going to hack apart to feed the power from the iSun Solar panel to the USB charger for the SPOT watch. A lot of the time you get these free with some type of purchase, but if you don't have one handy any computer store sells them or you can pick one up from a place like X-Tremegeek.com for $1.75. Cutting the Cord... USB cables have 4 wires, 2 for data, one for power and a ground. ??? 5V / Red ??? D+ / Green ??? D - / White ??? Ground / Black Using a Pocket Knife, or wire splicer cut the USB extender cord in half and expose the 4 wires on the female end (the side that will be plugged in to another USB cable). We snipped back the green and white since we're not going to use those (the data ones) we're only interested in the power and ground (Red and Black). Here comes the Sun Now, put the red wire in to the + (positive) input on the solar panel and the black wire - in to the negative. Using electrical tape or whatever you want, affix the two cords together. Plug the new USB cable we just made (with attached solar panel) to the Suunto USB charger. Here's the tough part, you might actually need to go outside to test the charger. Plugging in the watch, to the new cable, which is plugged in to the solar charger will give the watch a pretty good trickle charge. On the solar panel, you can always test to see if the panel is getting enough light by pressing the yellow test button. We let out SPOT Smart Watch drain to about 30% and after using the solar charge it fully charged in about 2 hours. Other USB devices? It's certainly possible this will work with other devices that can recharge via the USB port, we have a Game Boy USB charger a Pocket PC Phone edition one and so far it's worked out fine. And of course, since the iPod can be charged via USB now, that works too???but you can't charge it directly from the solar panel. The Solar Charged iPod Most iPods can now be used and charged via a FireWire connection or USB 2.0. So after we started charging our SPOT watch we looked around and thought the iPod was the next logical gadget to get some sun juice. Unfortunately plugging in our solar panel to the USB cable for the iPod won't do anything other than "wake" it up for a second. So what you need to actually do is use the solar panel to charge a series of batteries and those batteries will ultimately charge the iPod. Since we're just starting this project here are a few pictures of where we are at now. Once we finish, we'll make this a How-To article as well... we are a little concerned that some people might fry their iPods so we're spending some extra time on this one to make sure we document and experiment on our own warranty voided stuff first. Phillip Torrone can be reached via his personal site: http://www.flashenabled.com or torrone@gmail.com
Read MoreIf you own a Suunto SPOT Smart Watch you usually charge it via plugging it in to an outlet or with the included USB charger (which in turn is plugged into your computer). We're going to show you how to make a pretty cheap and easy solar charger for your watch that doesn't touch any of the included cable(s) at all. And what we're going to cover will most likely apply to many other USB powered gadgets you have as well, so even if you don't have a Suunto N3 SPOT watch, there's some good info here. As an added bonus, we're going to give you a sneak peak at a solar powered charger for Apple's iPod. If you want to see that, just skip to the end. Ingredients ??? Sunnto N3 SPOT Smart Watch ??? iSun Solar Panel ??? USB extender cable We'll go over each one and where to get them in the next section. Suunto SPOT Smart Watch You'll need a Suunto N3 SPOT Smart Watch. You can usually score one around the web for under $250 and service for the year can be as low as $59. SPOT watches can receive personalized content such as news, weather and stock updates, calendar appointment reminders from Outlook, Instant Messages from MSN, sports, daily diversions, horoscopes and lottery information. They're not for everyone, but if you have one and use one you probably love it. iSun Solar Panel The iSun Solar Panel is a gadget that you'll use for all sorts of things besides this project, so we think it's worth the $69. The iSun is meant to use the sun's energy to recharge your gadgets, we've used our iSun over the last year for Pocket PCs, phones, GPS device, just about everything...and now we'll use it to connect up to a USB connector we're going to make. Here are the specs on the iSun. ??? Rated output: 2.2 watts (145mA @ 12volts, 290mA @ 6volts) ??? Temperature Range: -40F to 176F (-40C to 80C) ??? Voc = 15.2 VDC (12V setting) or 7.6 VDC (6V setting) ??? Dimensions: 7.25" x 4.5" x 1.25" (184mm x 114mm x 32mm) ??? Weight: 11 oz (311 grams) We got ours from ThinkGeek. USB Extender Cable The USB extender cable is just a cable we're going to hack apart to feed the power from the iSun Solar panel to the USB charger for the SPOT watch. A lot of the time you get these free with some type of purchase, but if you don't have one handy any computer store sells them or you can pick one up from a place like X-Tremegeek.com for $1.75. Cutting the Cord... USB cables have 4 wires, 2 for data, one for power and a ground. ??? 5V / Red ??? D+ / Green ??? D - / White ??? Ground / Black Using a Pocket Knife, or wire splicer cut the USB extender cord in half and expose the 4 wires on the female end (the side that will be plugged in to another USB cable). We snipped back the green and white since we're not going to use those (the data ones) we're only interested in the power and ground (Red and Black). Here comes the Sun Now, put the red wire in to the + (positive) input on the solar panel and the black wire - in to the negative. Using electrical tape or whatever you want, affix the two cords together. Plug the new USB cable we just made (with attached solar panel) to the Suunto USB charger. Here's the tough part, you might actually need to go outside to test the charger. Plugging in the watch, to the new cable, which is plugged in to the solar charger will give the watch a pretty good trickle charge. On the solar panel, you can always test to see if the panel is getting enough light by pressing the yellow test button. We let out SPOT Smart Watch drain to about 30% and after using the solar charge it fully charged in about 2 hours. Other USB devices? It's certainly possible this will work with other devices that can recharge via the USB port, we have a Game Boy USB charger a Pocket PC Phone edition one and so far it's worked out fine. And of course, since the iPod can be charged via USB now, that works too???but you can't charge it directly from the solar panel. The Solar Charged iPod Most iPods can now be used and charged via a FireWire connection or USB 2.0. So after we started charging our SPOT watch we looked around and thought the iPod was the next logical gadget to get some sun juice. Unfortunately plugging in our solar panel to the USB cable for the iPod won't do anything other than "wake" it up for a second. So what you need to actually do is use the solar panel to charge a series of batteries and those batteries will ultimately charge the iPod. Since we're just starting this project here are a few pictures of where we are at now. Once we finish, we'll make this a How-To article as well... we are a little concerned that some people might fry their iPods so we're spending some extra time on this one to make sure we document and experiment on our own warranty voided stuff first. Phillip Torrone can be reached via his personal site: http://www.flashenabled.com or torrone@gmail.com
Read MoreIt's a good thing that Casio is working on a ceramic camera lens, because we really won't be happy until digital cameras are a couple of millimeters thick or so. It uses LUMICERA, a transparent ceramic that has a greater refractive index than that of optical glass, which means sooner or later will have digital cameras with even thinner lenses than we have now.
Read MoreSurely bowled over by the stunningly massive success of Nokia's N-Gage, Pantech & Curitel are coming out with the PH-S3500, a new cellphone designed specifically for playing 3D games that for some unknown reason they decided had to be circular-shaped. [Via Textually.org]
Read MoreWe spotted one of these at Motorola's big press event last month (see pic above), and while there still hasn't been an official announcement yet, a pic of spokesperson Catherine Zeta-Jones holding the A630 has turned up on T-Mobile's website (this is the phone that flips open to reveal a small QWERTY keyboard). We'll take that as a sign it should be available from them very, very soon.
Read MoreWe were all excited when we discovered a new version of AIM (AOL Instant Messenger) for Pocket PC on our new iPAQ h6315 Pocket PC Phone. The popular instant message application for Pocket PC hasn't been updated in years and the new version included with the phone as part of T-Mobile's IM suite works splendidly. Now for the disappointing news. Our quick-to-hack nature kicked in and as we tried to find the actual application on the device it was immediately apparent T-Mobile and/or AOL doesn't want people like us getting at it—the executable application is in the iPAQ ROM. In other words there isn't an easy way to get it out and put it on our other devices, which is a bummer. So it appears the only way to use the new AIM for Pocket PC is to get a Pocket PC Phone from T-Mobile; otherwise you're stuck with the old crummy version.
Read MoreGiving us at least a shred of hope that it'll actually come out here someday, the FCC just granted approval to the Blue Angel, HTC's new Pocket PC Phone (this is the one which goes under a variety of other names, including the MDA III, the XDA III, and the Qtek 9090). T-Mobile Deustchland is all set to release it in the next month or two in, um, Deutschland, but there's still no word about which carrier might offer the phone, which squeezes in quad-band GSM/GPRS, WiFi, Bluetooth, a built-in digital camera, and slide out QWERTY keyboard, here in the States.
Read MoreNews of a second new cellphone running on Microsoft's Smartphone operating system from HTC leaked out this weekend. This one is codenamed "Feeler", for whateve reason, and it's fairly similar to the newly-released C500 in terms of specs (it's got Bluetooth and built-in VGA quality digital camera). Should be out later this year under the name "Qtek 8020" among others.
Read MoreCourtesy of the FCC (once again), here's a sneak peak of a new phone from HTC codenamed the "Vivida". This is CDMA-based handset running on Microsoft's Smartphone OS will likely come from Verizon (no date yet), and features a sliding keyboard, Bluetooth, and built-in digital camera.
Read MoreSo Verizon's excuse for not making it possible to use the built-in Bluetooth on their new Motorola V710 cameraphone to transfer files over to or sync with a PC? That it's a "fraud prevention" tactic to keep hackers from Bluejacking your phone. We're sure they're telling the truth and that it has nothing to do with making money off of subscribers by charging them extra to email photos rather than just copy them directly to a PC.
Read MoreUPDATE: They finally made it official. If you're looking for the latest Treo 650 news, click here. Here it is, the new Treo! And it's supposed to be called the Treo 650, not the Treo 610. As we've mentioned before, it is supposed to have said to have built-in Bluetooth, a faster 312MHz processor, 32MB of RAM, a higher-resolution 320x320 LCD screen, dedicated answer and disconnect buttons, and a one megapixel digital camera. More details are sure to come, but in the meantime make you sure click to see all of the pics. [Thanks, Mike] UPDATE: A few other details we're noticing: a removable battery, a mirror next to the camera lens for taking self-portraits, a definite Bluetooth icon on one of the screens, a bigger speaker, and a more recessed SD memory card slot. Possibly also push-to-talk. Anyone else see anything new and improved that we didn't already know about?
Read MoreLooks like T-Mobile is getting the European exclusive on the E398, an MP3-playing cellphone that Motorola once tried to pass off as an "iPod that makes phone calls" (nice try there, guys). There's no hard drive or anything like that, but the E398 does have built-in stereo speakers (which are super rare on cellphones), Bluetooth, a VGA quality digital camera, and one of those newfangled TransFlash memory card slots. We have some bad news for anyone Stateside lusting after this phone: we asked Moto a few weeks back if there were plans for the E398 ever come out here and they said it was pretty unlikely.
Read MoreWell, we knew Nokia was angling for a return to the Japanese market, and now Motorola is getting in on the act too. They've inked an agreement with NTT DoCoMo to provide a dual FOMA/GSM/GPRS phone targeted at corporate users that should be out in spring next year. It'll be PDA-sized and (so the speculation goes) powered by either Symbian or Linux, and will include Bluetooth and wireless LAN (probably 802.11b, as it will be usable with DoCoMo's public hotspot network). It will also be able to connect via an ISP and browse regular websites, where current DoCoMo handsets are tied to i-mode and sites developed for phones. Pricing will be at a premium to the Y30,000 or so that most 3G FOMA phones go for. They also describe it as the first FOMA phone to be usable outside Japan, which is odd given recent news about NEC's imminent-looking N900iG worldphone.
Read MoreTo prevent screen damage or cracking, HP helpfully reminds new iPAQ owners not to "bang your iPAQ Pocket PC against hard objects" and "sleep on your iPAQ Pocket PC" which is really frustrating because lately we've been finding it hard to sleep without being snuggled up against our Treo.
Read MoreSpeaking of Nokia's 9500 Communicator, the rumor going around is that they're getting ready to introduce a smaller version called the 9300 next month that'll still flip open to reveal a mini keyboard and widescreen LCD, but drop the WiFi and built-in digital camera (which honestly seems like a completely stupid move). Apparently they'll still find a way to charge over eight hundred bucks for it though. UPDATE: If you're looking for news and more details about the 9300 Communicator, click here.
Read MoreYou probably held your first cellphone like it was a tiny, precious baby. But now you're on, like, your fifth phone and drop-kicking it just for laughs. Nokia picked up on your mounting abuse last year and built the rugged (if not clunky and feature-poor) 5100, and now they're back with the 5140. It's got a slimmer body, a digital compass and thermometer, and a whole lot more connectivity features than the 5100, including GPRS, WAP 2.0, Java support, and infrared. It can sync to a PC, although via a separately purchased data cable. Bluetooth is absent but at least it's water resistant, with a rubber and plastic casing to protect the electronics, while the battery has its own seperate water resistant cover. The 5140 is meant for people who go to sea or something but it just feels good knowing you can keep it in your back pocket on your next trip to the bathroom (i.e. it might be unpleasant, but your phone will survive). [Via Panbo.com]
Read MoreKids these days. With all their chat rooms, rampant texting, kiddie websites, and WiFi content, marketing to these fledgling gadget-status seekers is like shooting fish in a bucket. To cash in (again and again), Virgin, MTV, and Kyocera are offering a host of catchily marketed "Live Without a Plan," pay-as-you-go cellphones with minor feature differences to encourage constant upgrades. For instance, the newest model, the K9, is much like the recently-released V5. Both offer superphonic ring tones (they sound like actual music), "rescue rings" (like when you need to escape some unfortunate situation), a flashlight, and "exclusive" MTV content. But on top of all the TRL-appreciation both phones will encourage, the K9 also features sarcasm-instilling content from Comedy Central. Unfortunately for the kiddies, the K9 does not have the slide design of the V5. Maybe next time.
Read MoreThis was actually one of the very first gadgets we ever wrote about on Engadget, and though it still hasn't been properly announced yet, Samsung's Palm-powered SGH-i530 smartphone has turned up in an animation on their Olympics website. Anyway, we don't know when it'll actually become available, but what we do know is that it'll run on Palm OS 5.2, have 32MB of RAM, a 324x352 pixel LCD screen, an SD memory card slot, and a built-in megapixel digital camera.
Read MoreIf only that 90's-era lovable old lady of "I've fallen and I can't get up," fame lived in the cellphone age. Then instead of that crappy Lifeline necklace, she could use Precisa's new Secufone which has a GPS/GSM, personal alarm system, and cellphone service. Pushing the bright red alarm button connects the user with a call-center (admittedly not unlike the Lifeline), and then the GPS enables the call-center to precisely locate the in-trouble user. The device also has big ol' easy-to-use buttons for universal design appeal and will be available in the US and Europe by the end of August.
Read MoreHas HP officially announced that new iPAQ rw6100 Pocket PC Phone we've been spying for the past week? The press release is only in Korean, combined with the fact that it's compatible with EV-DO (which is a high-speed cellular networking standard that's popular in South Korea but only just getting off the ground here), makes us think it might be a while before the rw6100 ever makes it over here. Either way, the official specs list it as coming in silver and black pearl, running on Microsoft's Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition operating system, a 520MHz processor, a 2.8-inch, 262K color LCD screen, 64MB of RAM, 128MB of ROM, a 1.1 megapixel digital camera, SDIO expansion card slot, and the best part, built-in WiFi.
Read MoreAll the rest of those new iPAQ Pocket PCs HP announced last month are either out or are due out in the next few weeks, so where's the flagship model, the hx4705? This is the one with the high-res VGA screen, 624MHz processor, 64MB of RAM, WiFi, Bluetooth, CompactFlash and SD expansion card slots, and even a built-in touchpad. It was slated to come out sometime around the end of this month, then September 9th, and now HP is only listing it as coming out sometime this fall. The reason for the delay? There's no official word, but supposedly HP has had some trouble getting VGA-quality LCD screens to use in the handheld.
Read More<>Inspired by Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby's Design Noir, the victims behind Fashion Victims wanted to create clothes and accessories that dealt with the interactions between all the electromagnetic radiation of our gadgets and the "real" world. Notice how cellphone conversations always seem to annoy everyone around the person talking? Your desire to gag that loud-talking-man on the bus is a perfect example. The Fashion Victims people take it a step further, with bags and shirts that get a little more ink-stained with each exposure to cellphone radiation (be sure to check out the video). Given how much people use their cellphones these days it'll probably take about four seconds to get totally stained, so fortunately they can be turned off when they've had enough, though not until we get a visual reminder of our impending sterility. Yay!</>
Read MoreSo, in addition to worrying about what happens to your e-money and train pass if your new DoCoMo FeliCa smartcard handset should fall into the wrong hands, another thing that may have occurred to you is the potentially dire implications of having your battery die just before you suavely swipe your way past the cash register after that sushi dinner. Well, fear not: Sony has been kind enough to hold a PR event to tell us, among other things, that RFID chip in the phone still works even if the power is off. What happens if you run out of e-money? We'll get back to you on that one. This has been a public service announcement.
Read MoreSo not only is Sharp's new TM150 T-Mobile's very first one megapixel cameraphone (at least for T-Mobile USA that is), it also happens to be Sharp's first GSM handset to make it over here to the States, not that hardly anyone cares about these things except us. Anyway, besides the one megapixel camera, the TM150 also features a 262,000 color display and an SD memory card slot (!), but apparently no Bluetooth.
Read MoreJust to make you drool a little bit, check out this South Korean TV commercial for Samsung's SCH-V500 1.3 megapixel cameraphone, which is specifically designed for video conferencing or watching video clips and comes with a screen that has a hinge in the center so it can rotate 90 degrees into landscape mode. Could maybe, potentially, actually turn up over here someday, though we haven't heard anything specific about it yet. [Thanks, LucaLuca]
Read MoreWe reported a while back that it looked like NEC was soon to be releasing the first phone that would work pretty much everywhere (including Japan), and now we have something more than a Babelfished Italian website to rely on. The NEC N900iG will apparently work with FOMA, tri-mode GSM/GPRS, and (probably) UMTS, and looks like it'll be in line with the spec of DoCoMo's current FOMA range, with twin cams (megapixel outside and videophone-cam inboard), barcode reader, etc. Still no definitive word on whether this is going to go on sale outside Japan, however.
Read MoreBritish tots are about to put their American counterparts to shame with the MYMO, a pendant-style cellphone designed specifically for the very young people. Since your toddler might not be quite ready for full dialing privileges, the MYMO has just three buttons and can only call out to up to five numbers that you program into it (though if your five-year-old already has that many people they need to call on a regular basis you might be a bad parent). And most helpfully if you don't feel like chipping them or something, the MYMO also comes with a service called Loc8tion which can help track down your child should they wander off.
Read MoreWe weren't kidding when we said CompUSA was selling the HP h6315 a few weeks before they we're going to be released: here are some pictures of the one we picked up at the store today.
Read MoreThis one might only be for the Chinese market, but TCL has slender new clamshell handset running on Microsoft's Smartphone operating system coming out later this year called the e777 that is supposed to have a 262,000 color, 176 x 220 pixel LCD screen, an SD expansion card slot, and a one megapixel digital camera with a rotating lens. We'll keep an eye out to see whether or not any might be importing this one to the States. UPDATE: It's only a dual-band phone, which makes its release here unlikely.
Read MoreWe know that HP has been taking pre-orders on this for a few days now and that the official release date supposedly wasn't until September 9th, but if you're dying to get your hands on HP's new iPAQ h6315 Pocket PC Phone (the one with WiFi and Bluetooth and a digital camera) get your ass over to CompUSA. Apparently they've already started selling them. At least in a few stores that is, your mileage may vary, as they say. T-Mobile is the only carrier offering the phone right now, not sure if that will change or how hard it might be to unlock this thing or find an unlocked version for sale (but you better let us know if you find out anything about this).
Read MoreOne of the commenters responding to our post about the "Charm" (RIM's new, slimmer, more cellphone-like version of the BlackBerry) says that he's currently beta testing one and that while the predictive text function is intuitive and works fairly well, he still would have preferred separate keys for each letter (to shrink down the size of the handset RIM took a little bit of a design risk and put two letters on each key, using software to guess which one it is that you want). Still not entirely sure when this is coming out, but it can't be more than a couple of months or so.
Read MoreThey're absurdly over-watermarked, if you catch our drift, but some new photos have popped up on HowardForums of the S700i, Sony Ericsson's new swivel-style multimedia cellphone with a built-in 1.3 megapixel digital camera, Bluetooth, and Memory Stick Duo card slot. From the back it actually looks a lot more like you're talking into a digital camera than a cellphone (click on the "continue reading" link to see a pic of the back of the phone), though at least you aren't forced to engage in any sidetalkin'. [Thanks, riffola]
Read MoreWe don't know whether it'll actually ever get released (there seems to be some dispute over whether or not Toshiba is staying in the PDA business), but some more pictures and details of what would be their new flagship Pocket PC, the e830 have turned up, courtesy of the FCC, of course. It looks more or less like the e805, and is going to have a 4-inch VGA quality LCD screen, a 520MHz processor, built-in Bluetooth and WiFi, 128MB, and an SDIO expansion card slot. But what we're really sweating about is the optional dock attachment which has a VGA out port for rigging this thing up to a regular computer monitor and a USB host port for plugging in a mouse or a keyboard.
Read MoreWe'd almost given up all hope of this phone ever seeing the light of day, but apparently Samsung is confirming that the SPH-i550, their new Palm-powered flip phone, will indeed come out someday, they just won't say when or how much it might cost. We do know that it'll run on Palm OS 5.2, and have 32MB of RAM, an SDIO expansion card slot, and a built-in one megapixel digital camera.
Read MoreMobileBurn has some more details on the V975, Motorola's latest addition to their growing line up of 3G cellphones. As is becoming fashionable, er, practical with these things, the V975 doubles up on the built-in cameras, with one on the inside for making video calls and another one on the outside for taking snapshots. Also has a decently-sized 176x220 pixel LCD screen, and multimedia software for playing back MPEG-4 and WMV video files and WMA and MP3 audio files.
Read MoreMaybe the only thing worse than the resolution on most cameraphones is the absolutely cruddy "flashes" that come with them (assuming you're lucky enough to even get a flash, that is). Usually they aren't proper flashes like you'll find on a regular camera (which would kill your battery right quick), but timid LEDs that barely cast a shadow. Anyway, hopefully making it a little easier to blind people in a darkened bar, Lumileds is bringing their Luxeon Flash LED to America. This one is supposed to be roughly 12 times brighter than the standard LEDs found on cameraphones now, with the first cellphones using it due out here before the end of the year.
Read MoreMaking it three posts in three days about HP's new unannounced , iPAQabilities managed to score a PDF (in Korean) with full specs for the new phone. More or less what people were guessing, but it's set to have a surprisingly speedy 520MHz processor, a 2.8-inch color LCD screen, a built-in 1.1 megapixel digital camera, 64MB of RAM, 128MB of Flash ROM, a SDIO expansion card slot, a removable battery, and WiFi (but no Bluetooth), and work on both CDMA and EV-DO cellular networks (which means the phone could potentially be offered here in the States by either Sprint or Verizon, though we obviously haven't heard a peep out of either of them about this). And as before, there are a bunch of new pics.
Read MoreThe ship date supposedly isn't until September 9th, which is a couple of weeks later than expected, but HP is taking pre-orders on their iPAQ h6315 Pocket PC Phone, the one with GSM/GPRS, WiFi, Bluetooth, a built-in VGA quality digital camera, a 3.5-inch LCD touchscreen, and a snap-on mini-keyboard. List price is $599.99, with T-Mobile as the service provider. [Via Mobileslash]
Read MoreWe're not gonna pretend that it's any shock to hear that Motorola's MPx Pocket PC Phone has been delayed. We'd already heard that it's September release had been pushed back to late November. The latest word is that a November launch, if one was ever planned, has been scrapped and we won't see this bad boy until early next at least. Dear Motorola, do you really expect us to wait until 2005 when a new Treo is right around the corner?
Read MoreSome new, even more convincing photos of HP's unannounced iPAQ rw6100 series Pocket PC Phone which we mentioned yesterday. This is the one that follows hot on the heels of their recently announced (but still not quite yet for sale) h6315 Pocket PC Phone, and will reportedly (and this is still ALL unconfirmed) run on Windows Mobile for Pocket PC Phones 2003 SE, and have 64MB of RAM, 128MB of Flash ROM, a QVGA display, built-in WiFi, a 1.1 megapixel camera, but curiously, no Bluetooth. Make sure you click to see the rest of the pics, including one of a very prominent "HP" logo.
Read MoreWe're pretty much 100% certain that no wireless carrier is going to offer that new SPV C500 Smartphone here in the States, but if you're determined to have one, SoundSolutions has dibs on North American distribution and should have them for sale here sooner or later (but under the name "i-mate 3" rather than "SPV C500"). It's an unlocked tri-band GSM/GPRS phone, so it should work fine on T-Mobile, Cingular, and AT&T Wireless. (Warning: there is a very annoying PDF involved if you click the link.) [Via Smartphone Thoughts]
Read MoreSorta out of nowhere these pics have turned up of the Nokia 7260, which looks like a new version of their one megapixel 7610 cameraphone that just came out a couple of months back. It's hard too glean much info (any Czech speakers out there wanna help out?), but it does look like it'll at least sport a 128 x 128 pixel LCD screen, and be a tri-band GSM/GPRS phone that's also compatible with those new high-speed EDGE data networks.
Read MorePDA Gold has a review of the Yakumo Omikron, one the more affordable (and slightly smaller) Pocket PC Phones out there. You might experience some buyer's remorse if you're expecting this thing to be on par with any of the seriously fresher Pocket PC Phones coming out like the MDA III or Motorola's MPx from Motorola, since it only specs out with a 200MHz processor, 64MB of RAM, and a 2.8-inch 4,096 color LCD screen (which is sorta cruddy considering what else is out there these days). On the other hand, it does have a built-in digital camera and a removable battery, and there is another version that comes with Bluetooth. [Via Pocket PC Thoughts]
Read MoreSince HP's H6300, rumors have been flying that they're stepping up the line and adding the rw6100 series, which could well be an LG-rebrand. They've reportedly posted a product support page for the iPaq PocketPC rw6100 on their site, and some source emails have also tipped off iPaqabilities that HP is working with LG's SC8000 Pocket PC-based phone, rebranding it as the rw6100, which would have Windows Mobile for Pocket PC Phones 2003 SE, 64MB RAM, 128MB flash ROM, a QVGA display, WiFi support, a 1.1 megapixel camera, and (sigh) no Bluetooth. Only time will tell how much of this is true.
Read MorePC Mag got a sneak peek at a few of NEC's new cellphones, and while we're plenty pleased that their 1.3 megapixel cameraphone, the 535, is headed to the States, the one that really gets us all hot and bothered is their credit card-sized N910 cameraphone, which is only a third of an inch thick and weighs a mere 2.5 ounces. The catch (and there is always a catch) is that you can only use it with a headset. Except for the other catch, i.e. that it's only coming out in China (which is why showing with with New York City MetroCard is just plain cruel).
Read MoreMSMobiles has a couple of side-by-sides (with plenty of specs, of course) of several of the new Pocket PC Phones and Smartphone coming out, with the first one comparing the first three Pocket PC Phones with built-in WiFi, Motorola's MPx (pictured at right), HP's iPAQ h6315, and the XDA III (aka the MDA III aka the Qtek 9090 aka the CU928), and the other pitting Orange's new SPV C500 Smartphone against Motorola's contender, the MPx220. Read - MSMobiles - MPx vs. h6315 vs. XDA III Read - MSMobiles - Orange SPV C500 vs. Motorola MPx220
Read MoreUPDATE: Yep, Paris Hilton got hacked. Read the story here. No Paris Hilton, but there are plenty of pics of the other B-list celebs that showed up at the launch party T-Mobile held for the new Sidekick II the other day, including one of Nicole Ritchie holding a SideKick II that's been encrusted in crystals. [Thanks, Mike]
Read MoreWe hear that beer is very popular over there in Germany, so it's probably a good thing that Siemens is said to be working on a cellphone with a built-in breathalyzer that can detect your blood alcohol level and also handily tell you when you have a touch of the halitosis.
Read MoreIt might be a month or more before you can get your plebian mitts on the new Sidekick 2, but T-Mobile is making sure that Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan get theirs now—and that they be seen using the new handheld in public. They just held a big celebrity-laden invitation-only launch party in Los Angeles and gave away a few hundred of them to the likes of Lenny Kravitz, Owen Wilson, Elisha Cuthbert, and a whole bunch of less famous "youth influencers". Next up: to get the Sidekick 2 some cameos in hip hop videos, just like the first one did.
Read MoreYou have got to see this. Some guy named Brian has crafted a handheld PSone unit. And don't be fooled, this is no NEC [no offense Logan]. Talk about a labor of love, Brian has really poured his heart and soul into this thing. Check out the website for a detailed walkthrough of the entire process—incredible!
Read MoreEither totally brilliant or totally stupid (without actually trying it out it's hard to say which), a company in Hong Kong is selling add-on lenses you can affix to the camera in your cellphone using sticky pads (yes, sticky pads). The options include a telephoto lens (which magnifies things a full 1.5X!), a soft filter lens, a macro lens, and a two weird kaleidoscope effect lenses. [Via PDA 24/7]
Read MoreCNet has a little roundup of four new Pocket PCs running on the new Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition operating system, Dell's Axim X30, HP's iPAQ hx4700 (pictured at right) and rx3715, and the MyPal A730 from ASUS (they even through the Motorola MPx220 in there for good measure, since it does run on Windows Mobile 2003 SE, just on the Smartphone version). Not a major overhaul of the Pocket PC OS, but it does add a few nice features to the mix like the ability to switch between portrait and landscape modes (which was way overdue), better wireless security, and support for a wider variety of screen resolutions. Not exactly a great leap forward, but there's still plenty of grumbling about how HP and Dell won't offer upgrades to this latest version for owners of older Pocket PCs. [Via Pocket PC Thoughts]
Read MoreNormally wouldn't bother with something as lowly as a cellphone skin, but we somehow got the impression that a lot of our readers were Apple fans so we figured we'd point you towards a little something for giving your Sony Ericsson phone the look and feel (at least sort of) of OS X. [Via The Cult of Mac]
Read MoreWe were pretty into the Pantech's GI100 cellphone with biometrics before, partly because of its hot retro-futuristic stylings, but mostly because of the biometrics—so naturally we wouldn't expect a company LG to leave well enough alone. They've apparently got two phones ready and willing, prepped with biometric authentication, too (we have a feeling a lot more are right around the corner). Which isn't to say we're not equally stoked, just that we wish LG would release some information about these mystery phones to go along with the purdy photo. We'll keep you updated when we find out more. [Via Textually.org]
Read MoreSo a few weeks after they introduce their new high-speed 3G wireless service, AT&T has finally started carrying the Nokia 6620, the first smartphone that'll work with their slower, but more widespread, EDGE network. For those keeping score at home, EDGE is like a faster version of GPRS that manages to get download speeds around 50 to 155 kbps, while the 6620 is pretty much the same as the 6600 (which is available here in the States from T-Mobile), just with an added EDGE. [Via PhoneScoop
Read MoreBeing the completely closed-minded, xenophobic Americans that we are, we weren't all that interested in the news that budget-everything company easyGroup was starting a new low-cost wireless carrier called easyMobile in a bunch of European countries (they're actually just leasing space on other carriers' networks). That is until we heard that they were doing something a little unusual: unlike pretty much every other carrier, they aren't going to sell cellphones. Instead they're only going to offer SIM cards, and subscribers have to either buy their own phone or make sure that their current handset is unlocked and compatible with easyMobile's service. Not having to subsidize handsets could make it possible for them to offer cheaper rates, but last time we checked switching carriers to get a good deal on a new phone had become something of a time-honored tradition. [Via TechDirt]
Read MoreGiving parents an entirely new way to screw up their kids (and some freaky adults an entirely new twist on phone sex), Everspring is bring the Talking Toonies, a line of plush dolls with special cellphone pouches that double as hands-free speakerphones, to America. So far, so good, but when someone calls, the stuffed bear's lips actually move in time the words of the person on the other end, so it's as if you're actually speaking with the bear, which is going to totally confuse anyone under four.
Read MoreNothing confirmed yet, but apparently Sagem (the company behind that myS-7 Smartphone which is never gonna come out here) has a new cellphone on the way called the myX-8 that is supposed to have a 262,000 color LCD screen, a 1.3 megapixel digital camera, Bluetooth, and a miniSD memory card slot. For right now the "pics" are nothing more than renderings, but God help us if there is anyone out there foolish enough or bored enough to waste their time creating fake cellphone pics for some obscure manufacturer most people have never heard of. Just stick to Photoshopping fake iPods or Treos or whatever.
Read MoreWe'd all thought that Sprint was going to be the first US carrier to offer Daxian's sweet new CU928 Pocket PC Phone (you know, the one that slides open to reveal a small QWERTY keyboard and has a 400MHz processor, Bluetooth, 128MB of RAM, and a built-in VGA quality digital camera) but at least according to some FCC filings it looks like it's going to be Verizon (the logo is a dead giveaway). The icing on the cake: the phone is compatible with the new high-speed EV-DO network Verizon is building, though there's no indication when it might go on sale or how much it'll cost (we're guessing it'll be a lot). [Via Mobileslash]
Read MoreSo we were all hanging around the Engadget HQ watercooler reminiscing like we often seem to, when we started talking about our first cellphones, and about those pre-millennial days when they only did one thing: make phone calls. No email, no Bluetooth, and definitely no camera. Normally we'd selfishly keep all these entertaining anecdotes to ourselves, but we thought we'd force everyone to write them down to share on the site. And of course we're dying to hear what your first cellphone was, too. Extra points to any of you out there who actually had a Motorola DynaTAC 8000X. Ryan Block - I held off for a while because I wasn't living in the city, where a cellphone is totally essential. But when I moved to New York I started off with an Ericsson T28 on VoiceStream (that was back in the days before they got bought out by T-Mobile). This thing was killer; it was the smallest American phone at the time, and it had Tetris and was one of the first available with Bluetooth (though it was add-on that looked more like a huge cameraphone attachment). The thing had such a high SAR I was sure to get brain cancer in 6 months, and it pumped out so much juice it made my scalp sweat?when I used it within 15 feet of any speakers, they would often get this crazy squelching interference. But it was worth every penny. I went through like 4 of them in a year. Peter Rojas - As a so-called gadget expert, it's a little embarrassing to admit that I had trouble remembering what my first cellphone was. I was working at Red Herring (the original one) in the late Nineties and was given senior editor Brian Taptich's old Nokia as a hand-me-down which had been sitting around unused on a shelf for months after he left the magazine (after consulting with Eric I'm pretty sure it was the 6162?I never even noticed who the carrier was). I remember that no one bothered to erase the phone book before it was given to me, and I was too lazy to delete the entries myself. Not that it made much of a difference, since I hardly ever used it except when traveling for work?I couldn't even remember what its number was. The phone seemed completely dispensable at the time, though the first thing I did after I was laid off and forced to relinquish my cellphone was to sign up for service with Sprint and get a Samsung flip-phone. It was stolen less than eight weeks later. Fast forward a few years and I'm now obsessively checking email on my Treo every five minutes as if somehow a message going more than a few seconds without being answered will spell the very end of Engadget. Eric Lin - I wasn't ever that keen on PDAs, but I was always infatuated with mobile phones. However (just like with my first PDA), I refused to buy a phone before one was small enough to actually fit in my pocket. My first opportunity came when I was living in Oregon, working for an ad agency that had a number of clients in the cellular industry?even back in the mid '90s I was already a cellphone freak. I was moving to a new house and when I went to check it out I discovered that despite what the phone company told me, the land line didn't work. Calling the phone company again, I learned that it wouldn't be hooked up for another four weeks. Since I couldn't go that long without a phone, I used the situation as an excuse to get my first cellphone. It was an Ericsson 688 with the extra-thick extended-life battery that lasted about 2 days between charges and made the phone about as big around as a MagLite. I got a plan with free long distance and tons of minutes on AT&T. That day I gave all my friends and family my mobile number and never bothered to learn a landline number again. Simon Spagnoletti - I'm not a hundred percent sure, but I think my first phone was the Mororola StarTac on Sprint. Yeah, that sounds about right. Wonderful phone. Small (it's still thinner than some of today's phones), well designed (it helped inspire the Palm V, after all) and quite durable, which I unfortunaly put to the test by constantly dropping the thing on every possible side. But I'm better now, I promise. Of course, it had an absolutely awful OS, probably one of the worst I've ever used of another Motorola, a Samsung, two LG's and one or two Nokias I've had since. I've managed to block most of that out, but I do vaguely remember having to hit the FCN key every time I wanted to do pretty much anything. And I must have gone through at least three antennas. I still have the phone lying around somewhere and I'm sure even the last antenna is hanging off precariously. On the other hand, I still have fond memories of that green LCD. I'm a fan of color displays mind you, but there will always be a soft spot in my heart for that classic green. Katie Fehrenbacher - I moved to Brighton, England, during horrible floods and an epidemic of Foot and Mouth disease spreading across the country, so being stuck inside a 10 square-mile area and not knowing anyone I thought it best to get a cellphone. I got the Nokia 3360, which was the only free option at the lot, but it was still a lot better than the American ones I had looked over at home. Everyone was already texting like crazy in England and new English friends would constantly text me completely incoherent messages. But I remember you could email text to the phones, which seemed somewhat advanced at the time. The 3360 had no external antenna and was very square and dumpy, but in a cute way. It was also really heavy and brick-thick. I remember dropping it repeatedly and amazingly it never broke. Gareth Edwards - My first phone was a Sharp A241, which has to be one of cellphone history's tiniest footnotes. I got it while I was at university in Tokyo in 1996 because I lived in a bedsized room that I was never in. It was Japanese and gadgety when the rest of the pack were these boring straight-type things; it cost about $150. It was a PHS, which work off lunchbox-sized base stations that can be stuck pretty much anywhere, but there was never one near enough. I'd always be leaning out of windows pointing the phone around to trying and get a signal. My first real cellphone was a Mitsubishi D501i, one of the first i-mode phones with a color display, which I bought in 1999. It was cool in that it came with a real email address and a web browser, and you could write sites for it in HTML rather than learning the Martian code you needed to make WAP pages. It had a springloaded scroll/enter key that was fantastically useful, and I also had this thumb keyboard with shortcut keys for the major apps that strapped onto it with a velcro loop. The sound quality was awful and it had a terrible cheap purple plastic case and a dorky pullout antenna, but all those functions made up for it. Joshua Klein - Let's get old school for a minute?real old school. You remember the big square faux-leather bags that weighed a ton and had a handset connected to them by a long curly cord? The ones you had to plug into the cigarette lighter in your car? When I was in high school I had one of those, a 300-watt Motorola Bag Phone duct-taped into the emergency brake hole in my VW rabbit (the brake lever came out in an accident). No text, no camera, no data, no nada, just a nice thick cord and a residual hernia from lugging the thing around. The sound quality was terrible and you had to drive around forever to find a parking lot with reception, but damn I was cool going through the drive-through at to the Mickie-D's to see that hot girl from math class and pulling out the phone. "Oh excuse me, I have a phone call. Yeah, a phone call. In my car." Never mind that it was usually my parents wondering where the hell I was. The best part about it? You could really improve coverage by putting it on the roof of the car where it would act as a planar antenna. If you could do it without denting the car, I mean. Phillip Torrone - I'm pretty sure my first cellphone was a Motorola Ultra or Classic II brick-style. But I was always a data first kinda kid?shocking?so the devices I used most were the Motorola Marco the Apple Newton with a Wireless Paging card over my eWorld and Compuserve accounts. Yeah dawg, memories of kickin' it 1995 style. Almost 10 years of cellular now, and no tumors. But I am completely sterile.
Read MoreWe'd heard awhile back that Research In Motion was planning a slimmer, more cellphone-like version of the BlackBerry (many of which double as clunky cellphones, of course) codenamed "Charm". We'd almost completely forgotten about it (hey, there are a TON of gadgets to keep on top of these days), when some photos materialized over the weekend of a new BlackBerry which does indeed look a heck of a lot like a cellphone. There are hardly any details available except that it is supposed to have a high-quality screen and NOT have a regular QWERTY mini-keyboard like all the other BlackBerrys. Whether it'll be part of the BlackBerry line up or be the first of some new line of handsets we don't know. [Thanks, Wayne]
Read MoreWe've only run for Congress a couple of times, but even our Treo-addicted selves know better than to check email during a debate. You'd think people who've actually won elections would already know that, but apparently congressman Peter Deutsch, a candidate for the Senate in Florida, couldn't stop himself from pulling out his BlackBerry during commercial breaks while the in the middle of a debate with several of the other candidates. Properly chastened, Deutsch says he's going to stick to an abacus from now on.
Read MoreYou'd expect Japanese people to have more faith in their technology, but apparently not. A survey of nearly 6,500 people on cellphone battery life showed that most recharge their phone every day, since despite the extravagant standby times that makers quote, heavy usage of games, TV, video file playback, videophones and so forth eats up the juice in short order. Strange, then, that when asked how long they'd like their battery to last the top responses were "2 days" and "3 days", both with 27%, with "one week" coming way down at 11%, below "one day" (20%). Why not "forever"? Do these people like charging their phones?
Read MoreWe wouldn't bet our first-born on it, but PhoneMag swears up and down that a "trusted source" has confirmed for them that Motorola will be brightening our lives with their new MPx220 Smartphone on September 27th. The MPx Pocket PC Phone is supposed to appear a couple of months later, on November 30th, but we've heard rumors that it's been delayed until early next year. [Via Smartphone Thoughts]
Read MoreCNET has a story about WiFi being put into cellphones that doesn't tell us much we didn't already know, except that it's going to be T-Mobile that offers Motorola's new CN620 handset (you know, their new quad-band GSM/GPRS cellphone which uses 802.11a rather than 802.11b or 802.11g, which means most people won't be able to use) though it'll probably only available be to business customers. The other bit of news is that Sprint is thinking of offering a cellphone with WiFi of their own.
Read MoreJapanese cellphone firm KDDI has opened up the doors to their design department a little, and showcased some new prototypes and design concepts we're desperately hoping they get to the streets sometime before 2028. But they won't, we know, so don't mind us, we'll just be over here trying to ignore the Japanese in order to keep our heads. [Via Akihabara News]
Read MoreT-Mobile officially took the wraps off the next Sidekick mobile communicator today, which they're calling the Sidekick II PV-100 (not sure what the extra "PV-100" means). More or less as we figured, it's thinner than the old one, has a color LCD screen, better reception, a VGA quality digital camera, better battery life, built-in speakerphone, and will retail for $299.99 when it hits stores this fall. They'll also offer current Sidekick owners a discount if for upgrading. The negatives: no Bluetooth, and you still can't install software applications on it yourself like you can with plenty of other smartphones.
Read MoreThis one almost slipped by us: It's been more or less confirmed that the V710 will be in Verizon Wireless stores on the 11th. This is Motorola's new one megapixel cameraphone which comes with built-in Bluetooth, a 2.2-inch color LCD, and a TransFlash memory card slot (i.e. another supertiny memory card format you'll be forced to deal with). We'd heard it'll have a retail price of $249 with a two-year contract, but that could change between now and next week. [Thanks, Dave]
Read MoreWe're definitely not hitting up Samsung next time we need advice about the fairer sex. Yeah, their new SGH-E600C (which continues the long tradition of terrible, clunky and forgettable product names)is a "petite" GSM/GPRS tri-band cameraphone with a silvery casing, with a camera that has a multi-shot feature, which can snap 6, 9, or 15 pictures at one shot, and also supports video recording. But aside from the fact that it's just small and pretty, how exactly does it distinguish itself from any of the other tiny cellphones we lust after? [Via PicturePhoning.com]
Read MoreAside from being pretty good lookin' and probably uncomfortable feelin', Pantech's GI100 biometrics phone also has a 1.8-inch 260K color LCD (128x160 pixels), an external 1.2-inch color LCD (96x64 pixels), a 1.3 megapixel camera, 3 hours talk time and 200 hours standby, and is 3.1 x 1.5 x 0.9-inches. But biometrics and your cellphone, that's the hot tip—we have a feeling FeliCa could really use it. And aside from using a fingerprint scanner to lock/unlock your phone for authorized use, it also has a feature called Secret Finger Dial (what's secret about it, we just don't know), which binds up to ten speed dial numbers to your fingerprints. They also make use of the biometrics for game playing too, but we really just take solace in the fact that given how much our home Internet access goes out we could bind our ISP's tech support to the middle-finger salute (no word yet on what people with 11 or more digits can do to get additional key bindings). [Thanks, TheZodiac]
Read MoreThey may have needed a good eight months to get around to carrying the Treo 600 in the first place, but it's only taken Verizon Wireless a few weeks to follow Sprint's lead and offer the cameraless version of palmOne's smartphone in addition to the regular version favored by more voyeuristic cameraphone pervs everywhere. [Via Verizon Wireless Info]
Read MoreNot 100% confirmed, but it looks like August 26th will be the first date HP's new h6315 Pocket PC Phone (the one with built-in WiFi and Bluetooth) will finally go on sale, with T-Mobile set to be the exclusive carrier, at least here in the States.
Read MoreNot that we believed them anyway when they tried to make it sound like this wasn't in the proverbial pipeline, but there's some evidence (courtesy of the FCC, of course) that Toshiba is prepping a new e830 Pocket PC that is supposed to have a 4-inch VGA quality LCD screen, a speedy 520MHz processor, both Bluetooth and 802.11b WiFi built-in, 128MB of memory, and CompactFlash and SD expansion card slots. Toshiba is still keeping this on the downlow (as you'd expect), but it looks like the official release date could come sometime around September 15th. Toshiba has been rumored to be getting out of the handhelds game, is the e830 their swan song or are they back in for good?
Read MoreThe bastion of progressiveness that is Kuwait has outlawed using Bluetooth for nefarious purposes. Unfortunately, they appear to believe that the "wrong use of Bluetooth" has something to do with young men taking photos of women with cameraphones without permission (obviously they're not reading Engadget much over there). On the plus side, no matter exactly what they think you might have done, you can't be beheaded or anything; the crime of Bluetooth misuse is only punishable by up to five years in Kuwaiti prison. [Via Blueserker]
Read MoreThey might edge out Motorola's A780 for the title of "First Linux Smartphone in the US", but there's nothing too impressive about the specson Shanghai firm e28's new e2800+ Linuxphone (dual-band 900/1800MHz, GPRS/CSD support, VGA camera, QVGA 64K color display, USB1.1, IrDA, 300MHz ARM9 CPU, 32MB of Flash, 64MB RAM, SD/MMC up to 512MB, 3.9 x 2.3 x 1-inch dimensions), but hey, it's a start, right? No word yet on how you can get it to run folding@home or to obsessively update your kernel to the nightly build. One more thing: we know you can't wait to see Tux pop up on that cellphone boot screen for the first time, but apparently the e2800+ is only going to be available, at least at first, from a small service provider in the Chicago metro area.
Read MoreYou're only as old as you feel, remember? And apparently some Japanese phone companies felt like kicking it old school gradeschool with the AP-K303T. It's got a dedicated emergency button that calls the police station (we hope you have to like, press it a few times in case you didn't lock that keypad) and is aimed at the child, elderly, and female markets. See? This is what you get when you stick Kyocera, Toyota, and DDI in a room together with a bunch of coffee—a kids' phone that is so sickly adorable you actually kind want to eat it. Is that what the mean when they say candybar phone?
Read MoreThis one is so obvious that we're surprised no one's done it yet (or maybe someone has and it just never caught on or something), but Siemens' new SK65 cellphone squeezes in a decently-sized QWERTY keyboard by having the handset rotate 90 degrees. It's a layout they're calling "cross to type", but we'll try and think of something more clever than that. It's designed for messaging (obviously) and comes with RIM's BlackBerry email software built-in, Bluetooth (but no digital camera), a 132 x 176 pixel, 64,000 color LCD screen, 64MB of RAM, tri-band GSM/GPRS (which means it could potentially come out here), and it runs on Siemen's proprietary OS (which is sort of a minus). Should be out in October or November. Note to palmOne: rip this off for a future Treo.
Read MoreA pic and a little blurb about T-Mobile's new Sidekick 2 have turned up in the August 2nd issue of Newsweek in a piece about back-to-college technology, listing it as having a built-in VGA quality camera and a price of $229. We still don't think this'll be out until September.
Read MoreSo you might have read our report from Motorola's big press event last week. We had plenty of pics of their new MP3 players and cellphones (especially the sleek RAZR V3), but we stupidly forgot to ask them about the MPx100, Motorola's never-released Smartphone which quietly disappeared from their line up a few weeks ago. Fortunately our pal Rich Brome from PhoneScoop was also there, and he got the, um, scoop from them. Turns out that the MPx100 is indeed dead, mainly because Motorola didn't see enough demand for a candybar-style handset.
Read MoreIt's totally a tease, but the BuBL Space, a handheld cellphone jammer that's supposed to create a cellphone conversation-free zone around you of three meters, isn't actually for sale. Though they definitely do exist, cellphone jammers aren't legal for sale in most countries and when you click "Buy Now" it's revealed it's part of some high-minded art project from a couple of years ago intended to "evoke discussion about public and private space." [Via textually.org]
Read MoreWant to travel to the ends of the universe? Without fuel? Then you're going to need a solar sail, which uses reflected light particles from the Sun as its propulsion (they bounce of the sail and push it forward, hence the name). Conveniently enough, the ISAS (the Institute of Space and Astronautical Sciences) has completed the world's first successful full-scale deployment of the 7.5 micrometer-thick sails. A solar sail spacecraft is our current best best for deep space exploration, since it can pretty much go forever. Not quite the Millennium Falcon, but until we can crack that whole speed of light limit thing, it'll have to do.
Read MoreYou wouldn't think there'd be a way to really screw up the bicycle, but this guy managed to figure it out. You really do ride it sideways. [Via Metafilter]
Read MoreCheck out this series of TV commercials from Kyocera exploring perils of packing too many features into cellphones (though we sorta hope that vacuum messaging catches on). [Thanks, Rageboy]
Read MoreAll we gotta say is that when you've got that many $20,000 cameras you really have no excuse for not getting the shot. [Via BoingBoing]
Read MoreIt's build-your-own-caption time again. We'll start: Bob didn't realize until it was too late that eagles can outfly Segways while hunting for food. Death Race 2004: Segway vs. Bald Eagle. Guess which one is more endangered.
Read MoreWe begged, we pleaded, we gave some free advice, but NetFlix still isn't getting on it. So, Brian over at Stupid Simple Blog wrote his own NetFlix RSS queue maker. It uses wget and his mozilla cookies file to grab the HTML for his queue, then parses it with a simple perl script and writes the output to an RSS file. Not for the average person, but one step closer, unless BlockBuster's new service just does it and we'll switch to them.
Read MoreWe're already about a third of the way through the Olympics and it's pretty clear that we need to get a project plan and an Excel spreadsheet and start using Outlook to schedule in the handful of events we'd like to see. With something seven channels offering all of the coverage it's a little overwhelming if you want to catch just a couple events. There are lots of resources out there, like NBC's uber-site, but it's filled with ads, and since we're loathe to just record all of it and skip around fast-forward to find what we want, we've decided to put together some links and resources to help you surgically strike, er, wade through the morass and find exactly what it is you want to watch. A lot of this is pretty basic stuff, but if you've been feeling frustrated with Olympics coverage we hope this helps.
Read MoreRemember when we predicted that eBay's idea of allowing folks to sell digital music downloads would be a "smoldering wreck of an idea with little chunks of burning idea all over the place"? Well, we hadn't been right, but we were right. In the first hours after the site went live, a few songs appeared for sale (by people not authorized to sell them) and they were removed just as quickly as they went up. Since then there haven't been any more uploads and it looks like they're killing it off: "We may look at the results of this and say, 'Alright, this didn't work, the community didn't like that,'" eBay spokesman Hani Durzy said. "We have no idea, honestly."
Read MoreXM Satellite Radio and Starbucks are teaming up to deliver a new station to XM subscribers, the "Hear Music" channel based on Starbucks HearMusic compilation CD business. And it works both ways, Starbucks will be using XM in the stores to pump in the channel of their own creation. Starbucks, of course, also has WiFi in most locations now by T-Mobile as well as CD buring by HP in some locations. So XM Radio is a nice cherry on top of that Frappa-Technochino they're serving up.
Read MorePhilips just added a few new products to their Streamium line of networked home electronics which come with built-in WiFi and/or Ethernet ports so you can stream audio and video off of the Internet or around your home network: the SL300i and the SL400i, a pair of wireless digital media adapters, the MCW770, a wireless stereo system, and the MX6000i, a wireless home entertainment system.
Read MoreMakeup Mouse, your cheap Photoshop gleam hides the true nature of your bad idea. Please don't mislead the women's electronic goods market any more. [Via TRFJ]
Read MoreThe rumors about this broke over the weekend, but it looks like a pic and some specs have leaked out of Dell's new Axim X50 Pocket PC, which will have a 3.7-inch VGA resolution LCD screen, a 624MHz processor, 128MB of RAM, 64MB of ROM, built-in 802.11g WiFi and Bluetooth, a removable battery, and dual CompactFlash and SD expansion card slots. [Thanks, Phil]
Read MoreNEC's announced the 11mm-thick Tablet PC that Microsoft was waving around at a presentation a few weeks back. Called the VersaPro VY11F/GL-R, it's powered by Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005, better-looking than the blurred photo that was all we had up to now, and weighs in at 885g, though that does bump up to 899g if you add WiFi. 10.4-inch TFT screen, Pentium M 733 processor, three USB 2.0 slots, though battery life isn't all that impressive, at 1.6-2.4 hours using the small battery or 2.8-4.2 hours with the medium. Pricing looks to be around the Y300,000 ($2,700) mark, though since these are built to order that'll obviously slide depending on what you choose.
Read MoreNo photos or anything (we'd even settle for a blurry, hastily-snapped cameraphone pic), but word has leaked out that Dell is working on a new line of Axim X50 Pocket PCs, with the high-end model sporting a VGA quality 3.7-inch LCD screen, and look a bit like HP's "rumored iPAQ 2000" series. No word on wireless options, but the X50 is supposed to be out in October.
Read MoreThe photo is blurry as hell (doesn't anyone ever think to use a decent camera for these things?) and could very well be fake, but some details have turned up of what could very well be palmOne's new Tungsten T5 handheld. Most of the info jibes with that rumor we reported on yesterday that they were skipping the Tungsten T4 and going straight to the T5, and the unconfirmed specs list the new PDA as running on Cobalt (aka Palm OS 6) and having 128MB of RAM, a high-resolution LCD, built-in Bluetooth, WiFi, and a 520MHz processor. The slider is gone, but it will have the same D-pad found on the Tungsten C. Should be out by November. There's also word of the Tungsten E2, which won't be out until April of next year, but will run on Palm OS 6, have 64MB of RAM, and the same processor as the Zire 72 (and there's something weird about the range of its built-in Bluetooth being limited to just 2 meters, not sure what that's about). P.S. - Way too many rumors today... [Thanks, ticotek]
Read MoreOk, the cat is out of the bag about the new Treo Ace/Treo 650, but for their flagship PDA is palmOne planning on skipping over the Tungsten T4 and going straight to the Tungsten T5? We've already seen two competing sets of (probably fake) specs for the supposedly forthcoming Tungsten T4, but according to some German Palm-related website we've never heard of before (you can probably tell we're just a little bit skeptical), palmOne is working on a Tungsten T5 which is supposed to have a 400MHz processor, 256MB of memory, Bluetooth (but possibly no built-in WiFi), and come out in October.
Read MoreThey're sort of sneaking it in as part of Windows XP Service Pack 2, but Microsoft has finally released a long-overdue update for their Tablet PC operating system. And pretty much as expected, Windows XP Tablet PC Edition 2005 has improved handwriting recognition, better integration into Microsoft Office, and updated support for Bluetooth. We haven't installed the upgrade on the Gateway Tablet PC we have kicking around the office, but we'll try and give it a good shakedown soon. Anyone installed it the update yet? Is it noticeably better? [Via PDA Buyers Guide]
Read MoreNot that this wasn't already sadly obvious, but a new report confirms that sales of Tablet PCs are just not hot and that they're being outsold by regular laptops by a factor of 100 to one. They're not falling, it's just that they aren't picking up like they were supposed to. The big problem? Besides their admittedly limited appeal, Tablet PCs still cost too dang much, so it's hard to convince a lot of people who might actually find the whole pen-input thing useful (like students, for example) that they should spend the extra cash when they can get a perfectly good laptop for less. We keep hoping that sooner or later the cost of the technology will come down enough that it'd be feasible to make every laptop also double as a Tablet PC, but at the rate things are going Microsoft might abandon the Tablet PC operating system before that ever happens.
Read MoreThere's a very good chance you've never heard of them before, but there's a new slate-style Tablet PC from Electrovaya. The Scribbler SC-2100 comes with up to 768MB of RAM, up to a 60GB hard drive, a 1.3GHz processor, a 12.1-inch pressure-sensitive screen, a biometric fingerprint scanner for extra security, built-in 802.11g WiFi, and a keyboard/mouse docking station, though the biggest selling point for this thing it's advertised battery life of up to nine hours. [Thanks, Christopher]
Read MoreIt hasn't been officially announced or anything like that, but at a financial analyst meeting last week (maybe even the same one Steve Ballmer spoke at) Microsoft Senior VP Will Poole whipped out NEC's new ultrathin new slate-style Tablet PC, bragging about how it's just 11mm thick and weighs less than 2 pounds. And that's all we know about it for now—most unhelpfully for us he didn't mention more detailed specs, a possible release date, or how much it might cost. [Thanks, Christopher]
Read MoreThe news broke pretty early this morning, so if you're looking for our posts about the new iMac we've got you covered here and here.
Read MoreiPodlounge deviates slightly from its focus on you-know-what and has a gallery of photos of T-Mobile's new Sidekick 2, including a few showing it side-by-side with the old one and a Motorola V600 cellphone.
Read MoreHere it is, unveiled at the Paris Apple Expo 2004 - with around 7,000 people attending the keynote event, Apple announced the new iMac G5!
Read MoreNothing says "I'm a geek with bling" more than Marché Noir's Computer Key Rings. It'll only set you back $38 to $50 (plus shipping and handling) to kick it QWERTY style.
Read MoreIt'll cost about seven hundred bucks, but Sony says they'll have a 2GB Memory Stick PRO out by November that'll also have faster read/write times than most other Flash memory cards.
Read MoreNext time you roll up on those punk ass kids on your block, make sure it's with some dubs from Deuce, which is selling the world's first spinner rims for bicycles.
Read MoreSince apparently women don't like gadgets that don't remind them of other, more girly stuff (witness Samsung's line of compact-shaped cellphones) Wepro's come out with a line of USB Flash drives shaped like lipstick cases.
Read MoreThe Hello Kitty Desktop Vacuum Cleaner: because odds are your desk is filthy mess and you've been holding out for something perfectly kawaii to clean it with. [Via TRFJ]
Read MoreWhat, the place where you go to eat ice cream doesn't have an ultraviolet cellphone sterilizer? [Via Textually.org]
Read MoreHow did FoxTrot get the scoop on the new Sony? [Thanks, Paul]
Read MoreIn case there was any confusion over yesterday's report that Bill Gates was looking to buy them, Nintendo would like to make it clear that the company is absolutely, positively not for sale.
Read MoreAbsolutely demented, um, "enhancement" of some promotional video for Rockwell Automation that twists it until it gradually descends into incomprehensibility. [Via StreetTech] Watch
Read MoreWe recently got a chance to chat with Helen Griener, Cofounder and Chairman of iRobot (best known for the Roomba Robot Vacuum). With the launch of new Roomba Discovery, the PackBots as well as I, Robot the movie, we had a few questions she was gracious enough to answer for us. Helen was named the Ernst and Young New England Entrepreneur of the Year for 2003 (with iRobot co-founder Colin Angle). She has also been honored as a Technology Review Magazine "Innovator for the Next Century," invited to the World Economic Forums as a Global Leader of Tomorrow, and has been awarded the prestigious DEMO God Award at the DEMO Conference. Her 15 years of experience in robotic technology includes work at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and MIT's Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. She holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and an M.S. in Computer Science, both from MIT. Needless to say, we have a slight crush. First up??? name, rank, serial number? Helen Greiner Chairman and Cofounder iRobot Corporation Could you tell us how iRobot Corporation was founded? Colin, Rod and I founded iRobot out of MIT after Colin and I graduated (in 1990). The vision has always been to make robots that touch people's lives everyday and create a robotics industry. The plan has evolved over time by creating business model around the state of technology, the state of capitalization, and the state of manufacturing capability that existed. We have built robots that go deep into the bore of oil wells, toys that were marketed by Hasbro, museum displays, a prototype planetary explorer, a legged robot for underwater mines, a robotic fish, a swarm of 100 robots, and a robot that explored shafts in the great pyramid. What's your daily schedule like at iRobot now? Crazy, but always interesting. What are some interesting things about the Roomba in general, and what are the new features folks should be excited about with the new Discovery Roomba? The most interesting thing about is its ability to get around in any home on its own and clean well. This was thought to be impossible at such a low cost. So the combination of very inexpensive sensors made effective by very clever design, the multithreaded operating system running on very a very small microprocessor, and the really low power sweeper/vac. Also, The Discovery has a 16-bit microprocessor and flash memory. The Discoveries make a lot of improvement in the cleaning, lifetime, quick charge, and dirt storage, but the most compelling are the new robotic features. These guys actually know when they are picking up dirt and change the cleaning pattern to pick it up more efficiently. The coolest though is the home base station. The robot actually knows it is running low on juice and starts looking for its charger. When it sees the infrared lobes that the base station transmits, it gets lined up, then like under control of a tractor beam it heads into the dock and starts a recharging cycle. The first model that has this cost 249.99 but the other new model are compatible with the recharger accessory, which can be bought separately. PackBot is different division of iRobot, can you tell us about what these robots are intended for? Government and Industrial Robotics and Consumer Robotics are our division names. iRobot's PackBot is the new standard in unmanned reconnaissance and bomb disposal. It is a lightweight, rugged robot that can be carried and deployed by a single soldier. PackBot offers unprecedented mobility and durability???it can be thrown into a building through a window, climb stairs, drop 20 feet and still function properly. The robot was originally developed under the Tactical Mobile Robotics program, which was sponsored by Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Designed as a versatile payload carrier, iRobot has added reconnaissance payloads with pan/tilt head and night vision, Chem/gas/rad payloads, and a bomb disposal (EOD) payloads. The PackBot EOD has been used on thousands of bomb disposal missions and we are very proud of its life saving function. The one pictured was sent back to us from Iraq for analysis after a bomb detonated. In most missions, the PackBot EOD returns safely, but in the case where it is blown up, better a robot than a soldier. A geek aside: the PackBot is running a Linux OS with iRobot's Aware robot control software. Pictured: PackBot #129. Killed In Action. April 8, 2004 Iraq. Click here for a larger view. What was the relationship between iRobot and I, Robot the movie starring Will Smith? The name iRobot comes from a common source, the Asimov I, Robot short stories. We also like it because it can be "intelligent" robot or "I" Robot (i.e. the personal combined with the technology). We have done some joint promotions with the 20th Century Fox folks and I have been asked to talk about the state of the art in robotics at movie screenings. Colin Rod and I were all interviewed for the DVD version. What did you think of the movie? Would you say it's accurate in terms of where robotics is heading? I loved the movie. It kept true to the Asimovian principles and many scenes described in the book, but did not just follow any one story (which would have not made a summer block buster). The robot was a compelling character. (see final question) Besides iRobot Corporation, what robotic projects or robot firms have you been impressed with? Well, Rod's work at MIT on humanoids is very compelling; I just got the tour last week. And the demo humanoid, cardea, etc. Manuela at CMU has made great progress using robot soccer as a challenge (with Aibos) on robot cooperation, machine vision, and strategy. Acroname just came out with a line of fairly inexpensive robots for hobbyists. For anyone interested in robotics, what resources or conferences are coming up that you would suggest? THE ROBONEXUS> see www.robotnexus.com For the first time ever the US robotic community (led by a media firm called Robotic Trends) is putting on a show to rival the Japanese robot shows like Robodex. RoboNexus takes the best qualities of academic and business development events, consumer electronics and toy mega events, user group meetings and robotic competitions, and combines them into a single event. The event will be marketed to millions of business professionals, educators, developers and consumers throughout the world, and is expected to draw over 15,000 attendees, making RoboNexus the largest robotics event held in North America. The conference and exposition will be held at the Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara, CA on October 21-23, 2004. Last up??? The movie I, Robot takes place in 2035. What types of home robotics, and robotics in general do you think we'll see in 30 years? Neither Sonny nor the ne5 in general will exist in 2035. Two many breakthroughs would have to happen in technology and be commercialized in too short a timeframe. All need to exist to make a system. Power, actuators, sensors, perception algorithms are just not close today. Perhaps even more importantly, at the cost they would have to be, hiring a human would be more cost effective, thus without a business motivation we will continue to see humanoid demos, not real servants. That said, I think they will exist someday???maybe 100 years. Instead, in 30 years chores around the house will be a thing of the past. The robots will have evolved from automatic appliances to home automations systems. iRobot (and others) will be selling clean floor, clear windows, organized closets, mowed lawns, sparkling toilets, and dust-free surfaces that the consumer never has to think about. The robots just come out and do the job when it needs to be done. There will be a robot in every squad car and it would be unthinkable to send an officer into an unknown situation. Robots will help the massive problems cause by the world aging demographic. Predictions currently are dire about the availability of caregivers for the folks who will need them. Enter the robots, that allow doctor to go on house calls through telepresence, that bring your grandmother water in order to hydrate, assure medication compliance, and even find the spectacles that Grandpa has lost for the 1000th time.
Read MoreResearchers and engineers at places like NASA and Boeing are still thinking about that tired flying car idea, but now they are saying that the concept is still there and the goods are mere decades away (wasn't what they were telling us, um, decades ago?). So we figure by the time we're way too old to get behind the wheel maybe the first prototypes of these will finally have come out. But come on flying-car-designers, you can do better than an awkward Delorean-looking setup.
Read MoreNow that advertisements are being put pretty much everywhere anyone is ever going to look (think coffee cups and toilet stalls), marketers are wising up that it takes something extra to get our attention these days. Which is why we now have the Human Locator, which creates dynamic billboards and window displays that change based on who is watching them (need we mention Minority Report?). Developed by Montreal-based Freeset Interactive, the Human Locator uses off-the-shelf PC computers and cameras to track people (say, at the mall), analyzing their location, speed, and movement in real-time, then can appropriately tweak a battery of LCD projections, video monitors, even stereo equipment and water fountains to best catch their eye. Human Locator even tracks the number of people passing by, keeping tabs on who notices the ads, and can deliver these stats to its clients online.
Read MoreThat completely un-PhotoShopped pic totally convinces us that this is for real, but DesignNews has some rather spartan instructions (and yes, we realize these aren't the only ones out there) for how to make your very own hoverboard. Supposedly the Hovaboard (are they trying to piss off Jay-Z?) can achieve a vertical lift of 5 centimeters as long as you weigh less than 95 kg, and all you need are some boards, a lithium-ion battery, a motor controller, a segmented hovercraft skirt, and of course, a few ounces of love. P.S. - Remember how there was always one kid at every junior high who was convinced that the hoverboards from Back to the Future 2 were real? No? Forget it. [Via GadgetMadness]
Read MorePossibly a little more convergence than we're looking for these days, Compact-Impact is selling a titanium oxide toothbrush called the Soladey-3 that uses solar energy to create ions that "clean and sanitize" without the use of toothpaste. We're gonna have to hassle them for a review model of this one... [Via TRFJ]
Read MoreA survey of British youngsters aged 11 to 14 found that 80% have their own cellphone, most have a television and a DVD player and/or VCR in the bedrooms, and 25% have their own computer, and that they generally prefer spending time alone in their rooms chatting with friends online (or on their cellphones), playing video games, or watching TV rather than spending time with their family. This is especially disturbing news because before the rise of inexpensive electronics teens and pre-teens absolutely loved hanging out with their parents all the time. [Via TechDirt]
Read MoreWow, some people are taking the whole elevated alert thing just a tad too far. The Quantum Sleeper is a fully functional (if a bit cramped) safe room in a bed. It's bulletproof, airtight/watertight with a rebreather, backup power and air filtered and has one-way mirrors so intruders can watch themselves futilely try to get in while you sit inside and laugh and call your friends (and the police) on your cellphone, shortwave or CB radio. You can cower in style with the optional CD and DVD players, microwave oven, and refrigerator while remaining protected against gas attacks, bullets, fires, hurricanes, floods, kidnappers, stalkers and homicidal maniacs. As long as you don't have to go to the bathroom.
Read MoreNCsoft has announced a new contest celebrating the success of City of Heroes. This time around, fans will be able to express their adulation by competing in the City of Heroes Film Festival Contest. NCsoft has asked participants to create a short animated featurette (up to 3 minutes) based of the CoH universe—actually, entries don't have to necessarily be animated; game footage and live action are also permitted. Winners will be selected in both Best Action and Best Comedy categories and will receive a Sony DVD camcorder, as well as have their work featured in an upcoming DVD release of the game. On top of that, each winner will have one of their heroes featured in an issue of the CoH comic. Entries will be accepted until September 20.
Read MoreThis week we're introducing a new regular feature: the Engadget Interview. Every week J.D. Lasica will speak with someone who is helping shape this crazy world of gadgets and technology that we're all so obsessed with. We're inaugurating it with Jack Valenti, outgoing president of the Motion Picture Association of America, who spoke to Lasica about movies, technology and whether the new breed of digital gizmos threatens Hollywood. His last day at the MPAA's helm is Tuesday. Here are excerpts from that conversation: You have personally come to personify the MPAA- Well, I've been here 38 years, so if you last that long, you become an institution. Some people have portrayed you as anti-technology. Not guilty? Over time, I believe that technological innovation is the best way to go. All of our companies are working very closely with the best brains in the information technology industry right now to try to see if there's some way that we can deal with the piracy problem. I have said, technology is what causes the problem, and technology will be the salvation of the problem. I really do believe we can stuff enough algorithms in a movie that only the dedicated hackers can spend the time and effort to try to plumb through those 1,000 algorithms to try to find a way to beat it. In time, we'll be able to do this, because I have great faith in the technological genius that's out there. You've made your biggest mark fighting Internet movie piracy. Why? We know that with DVDs and VHS, we lost $3.5 billion a year worldwide due to analog or hard-goods piracy. Now, we don't have a number on digital piracy yet but know that digital piracy will be far worse than analog piracy if left unchecked. I've seen camcorded movies that are uploaded to the Net and they are very, very watchable. A lot of camcording is taking advantage of the fact you can go into a theater and plug in to one of those sound systems you have in the armchair for hard-of-hearing people. And the sound comes over crystal clear-beautiful sound. These camcorders are small, they're digital, and they do a remarkable job of duplicating the film.
Read MoreA few weeks ago, I overheard a guy at Catwoman say "I missed Miami Vice for this crap." One would think he'd slipped some vodka into his Coke, but perhaps he was just one of the many people who are into this whole retro-80s thing. Personally, I'd like to forget the 1980s as much as possible, but it looks like I'm in the minority. This page doesn't have one single link to a Reagan-era television show videogame. No, it has two links. Both Knight Rider and Miami Vice are getting their own titles, and you can get a peek at the action-packed pastels right here. I think they look unbelievably awful. I would go so far as to say that even David Hasselhoff would find these clips embarrasing.
Read MorePhillip's a busy man these days (he's hard at work in the lab trying to top his Search Engine Belt Buckle), so Josie Fraser is taking over Movie Gadget Friday for us: I'm kicking off with eXistenZ, possibly the best film ever made about the cutthroat world of computer game manufacturing. Canadian David Cronenburg is a man of many the appealing obsessions, notably a compulsion to include new and varied types of penetration in his movies and to mash up the technological and organic. Preferably through penetration of some kind. Just count the ways in which the Demon Computer Programmer Allegra Geller (played by Jennifer Jason Leigh) makes use of Jude Laws port in the movie. In the future, game programmers have terrible hairstyles, spend most of their time in their rooms alone, and have to create whole new worlds in order to be pleasured by anyone except themselves. So far so same ol'. On the progress side, Louise Bourgeois has somehow become the Jonathan Ives of console design. The Metaflesh Game Pod is a handheld "grown from modified amphibian embryos," pink-flesh-toned and distinctly maternal looking, that throbs and trills like a baby when you stroke its smooth, nipple-shaped control buttons. The pod connects via the literally named Umbycord to the system's output device – the central nervous system. On the down side, you have to have a port plug inserted into your spine in order to play. There's no firewall, so any viruses you pick up during play have to be treated at your local clinic. And backing up your files may require a surgeon. Maintenance seems fairly minimal though: excited ports can be lubricated with either spit or WD-40.
Read MoreContrary to pre-E3 rumors, production for an upcoming Metroid film remains unscheduled. This news was recently confirmed by Nintendo producer Yoshio Sakamoto in an interview with Nintendo Dream. However, the movie rights are still owned by action aficionado John Woo. Sakamoto reports that production could be a long way off given Woo's company's current priority, the Spy Hunter film adaptation.
Read MoreLast week on "Movie Gadget Friday" we showcased the Alien Motion Tracker, this week we present the Logan's Run Life Clock. Back in 1976 director Michael Anderson gave us a glimpse of a perfect future where no one lives past 30 and we're all dressed up ready to disco. Each human at birth gets a "Life Clock" jewel implanted in their hand which starts to blink as they reach 30, at which point they must go to the "Carousel" to be renewed in a fiery ritual.
Read MoreIf you've ever seen any of the Robotech series, you're probably a fan. For most of us in the United States, the anime series was our introduction to the Japanese art form. We'd never seen anything like it before. The space opera was well-crafted, looked great and even had passable dialogue at times. At times. The upcoming Playstation 2 game has some big shoes to fill. If you want to check out the latest images from the title, head on over to Worthplaying (who are always on top of this kind of thing). The pics aren't mind-blowing, but they pull off some of the original series' charm.
Read MoreLast week on Movie Gadget Friday we gave you a sneak peak at the new, more military-flavored Batmobile. Now this week with the release of Alien vs. Predator we figured we'd highlight the "Alien Motion Tracker" gadget that has been featured in a bunch of the Alien movies (when this thing is a beepin' you some humans are about to get eaten'). Unlike last week's Batmobile, we found out you can actually buy a working replica of the Alien Motion Tracker that blinks and simulates the radar effect for $399, alien(s) not included.
Read MoreIn a somewhat questionable move, Oscar-winning actor Ben Kingsley has agreed to play the role of Kagan in the upcoming movie adaptation of the so-so 2002 action game BloodRayne. Kristanna Loken signed on as the lead last week. The movie will be directed by Uwe Boll, remember, House of the Dead? Yeah, I missed that one too. But the script comes by way of Guinevere Turner of American Psycho fame. It's also rumored that Michelle Rodriguez is being considered for a part. The film should be out by next year.
Read MoreLast week we covered the Color Casio Camera Watch, and now we're up to one of our favorites. The TV watch. What it is: 1.5" TV-Wrist watch, TFT display with the worlds smallest commercially available tuner in the world (made by Sony). Tunes in any UHF or VHF broadcast. The headphones act as the antenna. Why we like it: You know, at first we thought this was going to be a lame novelty watch, but it actually works really well and the picture is super-sharp when you can get reception. We won't be watching Nip/Tuck on this, but if you're really into gadget watches, you can't go wrong with this one. Battery life is about an hour or so. It's big, it's bold, you'll be the alpha geek for sure. Where to get it and how much: Dynamism has these in stock right now for $199. Click here to watch a video of the TV watch in action (Windows Media).
Read MoreIGN has posted a new trailer for LucasArts upcoming "sandbox" action title Mercenaries. It's just under two minutes of in-game carnage. From the looks of it, "enemies" (it's hard to tell who is who) are just as mindless as the characters roaming the streets of Vice City. Only now, your character is a lot more nimble than stiff-moving Tommy Vercetti, and believe it or not, better armed—military chopper, anyone? Use the link to download. Enjoy.
Read MoreFrom the looks of it, our favorite primal beast-man, Logan/Wolverine of X-Men fame, will be making an appearance in Fight Club, the upcoming fighter for X-box and Playstation 2. Either that, or the developer is taking a big chance of being sued by Marvel Comics. Gamers Hell has some new screenshots posted with a character who looks a lot like the old curmudgeon. The images are pretty nice, but leave a little concern that the fighters will have that distant look in their eyes. Sure, not many developers have ever actually been in a fistfight, but it doesn't take much research to know there's a lot of flinching and grimaces. The expression on some of the fighters' faces will not do — no way, no how.
Read MoreTo celebrate the weekly American tradition of opening new movies on Fridays, we're inaugurating a new feature, Movie Gadget Fridays, where we'll highlight one sweet gadget from the world of film, from classic sci-fi flicks to upcoming blockbusters. This week's movie gadget is the new Batmobile, and this isn't some sissy Val Kilmer version either, this is the Batmobile gone stealth fighter gone SUV. Some fans caught some footage of the new Batmobile in action during filming for the new Batman movie which is being filmed in Chicago right now. Should be out in 2005.
Read MoreAw, dammit. The Playstation 2 game called Nightmare Before Christmas: Oogie's Revenge has been delayed. It was scheduled to be released this winter season, perhaps February. Now we're stuck with the ever-feared "next year" release date. The game promises to be a full-fledged sequel to the classic film of the same name. While you're checking out the brief and depressing story, you should follow the link at the end to get a good look at the Gamespot preview.
Read MoreWe've personally partaken in a couple, and why not? They're cheap or free, you can drink and talk (without fear of being maced, anyway), and you get to watch good movies. Well, not if your friends are having Romancing the Stone night. And, as always, the New York Times caught up with the trend late in the game (but shortly before hitting critical mass) and wrote up a hoo-ha about outdoors DIY theaters borne of digital projectors and warehouse squat walls. Just watch out for those mosquitos, some of them have Jewel of the Nile virus.
Read MoreCome this September, hordes of Final Fantasy diehards will be descending upon the narrow streets of Venice. Running from September 1-11, the 61st annual Venice Film Festival will feature a special preview of the upcoming computer-animated (movie) sequel to Square's classic RPG, Final Fantasy VII. Since the festival only invites entries that have never been publicly screened outside of their home country, this will be the first time we'll be able to see anything more than a trailer. Advent Children is also still set be released on DVD this summer in Japan.
Read MoreThe merger of TechTV and G4 is, perhaps, the worst merger in geek history. TechTV treated our love of all that is computers and gaming with reverance. They acknowledged that we're not quite mainstream, and they were charming because of it. Enter the villainous G4, with its flashy sets and fake smiles. Now we're stuck with a mediocre channel that isn't even available in my area anymore. Having said that, the channel is still a force to be reckoned with. Their awards show has pulled in biggish names like Carmen Elektra, and seems to have fanboys excited for its August 6th air date. The winners have already been announced and include: Best Racing Game, Need for Speed Underground Hottest Character, Rikku from Final Fantasy X-2 Favorite Character, Ryu Hayabusa of Ninja Gaiden Game of the Year, well, click on the link (hint: it's very uncreative)
Read MoreYeah, it's may be totally impractical, but we're super lusting after this prototype of a wearable glove camera that FujiFilm was showing off yesterday at the Future Creation Fair in Tokyo. No clue whether they're planning on ever commercializing this or not.
Read MoreWe'll spare you the "these boots were made for walking" line, but the Seven Mile Boots are designed to stroll around in and out of open wireless networks, and they are kind of Sinatra-style hot (that's Nancy not Frank). The boots have a wireless network, a microprocessor, sensors, amps and a speaker, and enable the user to listen to chat rooms with audio by automatically logging-in with the name "sevenmileboots". The boots are going to be on exhibit at the Austrian Ars Electronica Festival next week. [Via Near Near Future]
Read MoreIn preparation for next week's Republican National Convention the Federal Protective Service is outfitting 200 police officers with special helmet-mounted surveillance cameras that can wirelessly beam a video feed back back to a control room so that service commanders can see exactly what's going on in the streets and more effectively issue orders (these were also in use during last month's Democratic convention). We have a feeling that sooner or later all police officers walking the beat are going to be equipped with these. In the meantime, if we can avoid getting arrested for it, we'll try and snap some pics of someone wearing one of the helmet cams next week. [Via near near future]
Read MoreBy morning its your trusty ol' lie detector but by night its a sassy red polkadotted beanie perfect for ladies night at the Drunken Clam; really breaking out of the drab lie-detector mold never felt so good. Unfortunate appearance aside though, the new lie-detector cap created by Japan's Brain Functions Lab uses Emotion Spectrum Analysis to measure brains waves through the cap's 10 electrodes (polkadots). Supposedly Sharp is using Emotion Spectrum Analysis to measure consumer satisfaction of audio equipment, we just hope they're getting a new designer soon.
Read MoreLast week we did the Wrist Watch Walk-Talkie. This week, we bring you the Garmin Forerunner 201 GPS Watch. What it is: This watch has all the goodness of a GPS packed in to a small form factor and geared towards the gadget wielding jogger. It calculates speed, location, and altitude as you run. Software syncs up with you computer to keep track of distances and progress. Why we like it: The best part of using a GPS watch is you can use it to take routes and create your own custom photo maps. If you'd like to do this too, check out our How-To article. Where to get it and how much: You can pick one up on Amazon for usually less than $129.
Read MoreWe haven't gotten around to watching too much of the Athens Olympics but when we have watched we've been pausing the TiVo frequently to try and catch what technology they're using to time events. And it's the time-obsessed Swiss gadgeteers at Swatch determining who gets the gold, silver, and bronze (you may remember our feature about timing the Tour de France). During last Monday's 100-meter backstroke race, for instance, Swatch touch-sensitive pads accurately measured the one-hundredth-of-a-second difference between second- and third-place swimmers. The call would have been impossible without the technology. Track event cameras are even more sensitive, taking 1,000 images per second at the finish line. Swatch is also measuring volleyball serves with sonar, pacing cyclists via transponders, and tracking marathoners with microchips tied to their shoes. But what we really want to know is, will they be able to aid the beleaguered judges of men's gymnastics by 2008 in Beijing? (Poor Paul Hamm). [Thanks, Brian]
Read MoreWe see a lot of pet gadgets come across our desk and most of the time all we can do is shake our heads and ask 'when does the pet-love just go too far?' Pet owners have been chipping their pets for years so that they can locate runaway Rovers turning tricks in the next town, but concerned animal lovers say that the chipping system is outdated and the domestic chips are incompatible with international standards so you're screwed if you lose kitty on a trip abroad. That's why the company GPS Tracks created the Global Pet Finder, which is a GPS collar that automatically sends escape alerts to the pet owner's cellphone when it's left a designated area, like your backward. We're hoping the next series gets a sleeping dart function, so when poochy is running all over the place you can just press # on your cellphone and send him into a nice long nap.
Read MoreCan cellphones really get any smaller? We've already got ergonomists telling us that buttons and screens are getting so tiny that only three-year-olds will be able to use them, but so far wearable cellphones haven't quite taken off (even the mighty DoCoMo's mighty Wristomo proved a failure after all the initial buzz died down and Samsung killed off their watchphone altogether). It might just be a matter of time until advances in miniaturization make wearable cellphones a lot more feasible, but in the interim Motorola is working on splitting up the phone up a handful of different devices (possibly using IXI's Personal Mobile Gateway technology, though the article doesn't specifically say). One of their current projects is the SmartButton, a wireless Bluetooth-enabled badge that connects to your phone and that you press when you want to call someone (you use the phone's voice recognition software to actually dial). Or you could just use a Bluetooth headset, but we won't bring that up. [Via Blueserker]
Read MoreLast week we covered the TV watch, which is about as lonely and solitary as you can get with a gadget, but this week's gadget watch requires at least one other human, it's the Walkie-Talkie wristwatch. What it is: It's a Walkie-Talkie that sits on your wrist. Press to talk and voice activation—a little on the big side, but hey, it's a Walkie-Talkie. Here are the features: Uses FRS and GMRS 2-way local communication walkie-talkie frequencies 22 Channels (14 FRS and 8 GMRS) 1.5 Mile Range VOX Voice Activated operation Digital Watch with backlit LCD Why we like it: We've used these in the wild at conferences, instead of trying to call other people (and discovering that the calls never going through) when covering the floor, and we've also put them to the test at an MIT swapfest—they paid for themselves ten times over. Where to get it and how much: You can pick them up at Amazon for $24 each. There's also a "pro" version of these which cost $20 more.
Read MoreThough not quite in time for training up our boys and girls Athens, it appears Nike and Philips are finally launching their MP3Run PSA 260 we heard about in May. This is the $300 256MB WMA/MP3 player that wirelessly tracks and logs your training via a Bluetooth shoe attachment that measures the acceleration and deceleration of each stride 1,000 times per second. [Via Multisport Blog]
Read MoreIt's barely been out for a minute, but has iRiver's pendant-style N10 MP3 player already been knocked off? We can't tell for sure (and we're starting to really regret skipping all those Korean classes in high school now), but either MPIO's new FL300 bit a little something off the N10 or a bunch of people in South Korea had the same idea at the same time. [Via Akhibara News]
Read MoreIt seems that hospitals where anesthesiologists are responsible for four different operating rooms at the same time are taking advantage of wearable computing. Working with the principles that having people die on them would be a bad thing and the inevitable laws of physics (which state that an individual can only be in one place at any one time) they have instituted a program using a heads-up-display so doctors can see information from each of the four surgeries simultaneously, as well as alerts, medical charts and schedules. This allows the anesthesiologists (that is so not fun to write) to respond quickly to any crisis and hopefully avert any needless deaths.
Read MoreEarlier we covered the "Spin Time" gadget that uses little LEDs to create messages in the air when you spin it, using the same principle responsible found in those "floating clocks" and used to create the illusion of motion in movies. And now there's even that Nokia phone that does the same thing, so with all the recent interest we thought it worth mentioning that a few years ago we made a pair of basketball shoes that could spell offensive things to the other team (and fans) when you ran down the court. And then ya get worked.
Read MoreYou can't honestly expect everyone to look around for WiFi with some dull plastic widget, so for her final thesis project at Parsons School of Design Karen Lee created the Hotspot Bloom, a wearable plastic flower that lights up whenever you're close to a wireless hotspot. [Via we make money not art]
Read MoreLast week we covered the USB Watch for storing PowerPoints on that wrist real estate— This week, it's a camera watch, specifically the Casio Color Camera Watch. What it is: It's an all metal 25,344-pixel (176 x 144 pixels) color CMOS camera with 1-2X Zoom. You use the IR data port on the watch to transfer images to a computer. There's room for over 100 pictures and it of course has timekeeping, alarm, timer and calendar functions. Why we like it: With "camera phonbia" on the rise, this little watch manages to get off some decent shots for when you just can't whip out your trusty phone. Where to get it and how much: You can the Casio Color Camera Watch for as low as $129, we ordered ours through Casio, USA. Oh, and as always here's a quick video tour (WindowsMedia) of just some of the watches we're going to cover in the next month or so.
Read MoreSince the US has the largest prison and parolee population in the world, it seems fitting that probation officers are looking for help from the latest in parolee-monitoring tech. The Orlando Sentinel visited the American Probation and Parole Association's Annual Convention and came back with a few devices that'll will guarantee to be the single most annoying thing in a parolee's life. Like SCRAM, (secure, continous, remote, alcohol, monitor) which is an ankle bracelet that measures the wearer's sweat to determine if he or she is drinking any alcohol. Since some parolees are on a zero-alcohol program, the bracelet continuously collects bio-information and sends it to an online site. Another of the convention's devices was the Robocuff, a voice-authentification system that tries to guarantee that the voice on the other end of the probation officer's line is really the actual parolee. Since parolees are often under house arrest, or have a certain curfew, this stops relatives/friends from taking probation calls while the parolee's out partying it up. Note to self: avoid prison.
Read MoreWe keep hearing that steroids are totally not cool at the Olympics, but apparently some British and American athletes are going to be enhancing their performance at this month's Olympic games with a gadget called the CoreControl. It looks like a food processor turned on its side, but the CoreControl, which was developed by researchers at a company called AVAcore, actually cools blood passing through the hands and through the process of circulation manages to cool down the entire body within about five minutes or so. You'd think that holding a block of ice would have more or less the same effect, but it's probably hard to charge several hundred bucks for that (or then again maybe it really does help). [Via The Athens Olympics Blog]
Read MoreIt seems those NASCAR guys really like their tech. In fact, we're pretty surprised they're going with something like Bluetooth for this, and not WiFi, or something proprietary: Jeff Gordon, Greg Biffle, Kurt Busch and Jimmie Johnson have all been test subjects for a Bluetooth enabled driver's helmet that would be used to replace the coiled quarter-inch-thick data cable connecting their head to the car so as to make fast exits from a flaming wreck even faster. Apparently the big to-do with this is getting NASCAR to approve of it, because it could be used to sneak illegal traction control into the cars (not that it couldn't easily be done wirelessly with any other number of techniques). But what gets us is why they are using Bluetooth to communicate directly to the pit, and not to follow their previous model, which was helmet to car-radio to pit—Bluetooth would have them lose contact with their 180mph car once it's more than 90 feet away. Unless, of course, they've been listening up. [Via Blueserker]
Read MoreWhile we know most of us are probably not amping to get a day-by-day blow on our fertility options, Lady-Comp could be your friendly ovulation-meter. The computer wakes the user with a musical alarm, delivers a thermometer for body temp checking, and sends a "traffic light alert" — a green light day means you can throw all caution to the wind with the age ol' "rhythm method", and a red light day says don't even think about going Trojan-free or you'll get a bun in the oven. Too bad the $2,170-device would probably make you feel like a hormone-obsessed hippie, and besides which, everyone knows body temps can rise and fall for non-fertility reasons too.
Read MoreAlright, we're putting on our skeptic hat for this one: a photo has turned up of what is supposed to be a controller for the new Xbox 2. It's the one pictured on the left, and it looks about the same as the original Xbox controller (which is the one on the right) but is a little smaller and has some of the buttons in different places. We're not saying that this isn't a prototype or anything, or even just a new controller for the regular Xbox, but the guy who posted the pic says he got it from a "friend" of his (it's always a friend, isn't it?), and if we had to wager on it, we'd bet that this is simply a knock-off made by some anonymous third-party manufacturer somewhere. Anyone out there recognize it? [Thanks, anonymous tipster]
Read MoreSet for release this fall, Wings of War is a World War I combat simulation under development by Silver Wish Games. The game is set to follow both sides of the aerial combat conflict, with gameplay that includes not only dogfighting, but good ole' antiaircraft shelling by boat and by train. Gathering expects to publish Wings of War for both the PC and Xbox, boasting 70 stages of play with over 25 models of planes, plus bonus side missions that will unlock special upgrades—all for just $20. Oddly enough, the PC version is offering online duels and dogfights, but as of now, there will be no Live support for the Xbox.
Read MoreIf you own an Xbox and for some reason (it better be good!) you haven't played Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Microsoft and LucasArts are giving you one last incentive before the upcoming sequel drops this winter. That's right, KOTOR is set to be re-released in the Microsoft Platinum Hits Series, meaning the game will now retail for just $20. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up. After all, it didn't top most of last year's critics' lists for nothing.
Read MoreIf you've seen the Halo 2 movie trailer, you probably saw the www.ilovebees.com link at the end of it. The bottom line about that little oddity is that you're seeing a marketing tool. If you go to the site, you'll find cryptic messages about the game. It's a lot of fun to try and decipher what the hell they're talking about. But it's even more fun to watch other people try and decipher what the hell they're talking about. The latest little diddy reads "TRANSMITTING. Authorised personnel can check rendezvous info here. Unauthorised personnel should know that I have full license to use any means to protect the security of these new transmissions. I believe that punishing even minor transgressions with shockingly excessive force is the best deterrent. I am relentless and I have absolutely no conscience when it comes to executing my mission. Make your decisions accordingly." This forum on spong analyzes the possible meaning of the message. The crux of the discussion is whether this is a warning to beta testers to keep their mouths shut, or else...
Read MoreThis year's German Games Convention in Leipzig has offered up a peek at the upcoming blockbuster hit, Halo 2. Hundreds of people got to wait in line for eight stations where the game was running. Apparently, the crowd got a bit pushy at times, which is understandable. The writer likes to tout his former experience with the game, and used his knowledge to clean up when it was his turn. That aside, his enthusiasm is clear and makes for a good read. The hands-on articles will definitely increase in the coming weeks, so you can be sure that the fan press will let us know what they think. So far, so good. Our guess is that the pre-orders will be justified.
Read MoreWorthplaying has the latest images from the other most-anticipated-game-of-the-year, Halo 2. This round-up includes some gems of the multiplayer action that we're about to enjoy. The graphics truly look a generation ahead of the original's — the draping flag, the number of figures running around the screen, the shadows. As the release date draws near, rejoice in the droplets of data you are blessed with.
Read MoreIf Internet piracy ends ruining the film industry at least they'll be able to put all those empty movie theaters to good use: a theater in Logan, Utah set up video projectors in four theaters, hooked each one up to an Xbox and is now holding a weekly giant-screen Halo tournament every Friday night at midnight. They're even charging teams $60 to play and spectators three bucks a pop just to watch. [Via PSFK]
Read MoreTron 2.0 did boffo on the PC, with reviews favoring the creative action, and clever twists on old formulas. Now, the Xbox version of the game is coming to us from developer, Climax Entertainment. The console iteration will include more robust multiplayer modes, available on the Live! service, as well as via LAN. The preview is a couple of days old, but we haven't seen much written up about this exciting title. Exciting, at least, to those of us who can remember seeing the original film in theaters.
Read MoreAccording to an interview with CNN Money, Todd Hollenshead (id Software CEO) is doubtful that the Xbox version of DOOM 3 will make a 2004 release. "It's still up in the air," Hollenshead says. What's the hold up? The article cites "user interface issues" and "limitations of the Xbox's technology". The good news is that the team is dedicated to solving these issues and giving Xbox owners a version that is "just as good" as the PC. There was also talk of the Doom movie, now set for shooting this fall. In terms of id's future projects, Hollenshead mentioned plans for a sequel to Return to Castle Wolfenstein.
Read MoreMicrosoft has confirmed that MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf will be released a little earlier than the original January 2005 date—and we're talking days. As of now, Lone Wolf is scheduled to arrive in stores on December 28. Microsoft did note that the game could be ready sooner, but does not wish to put it up against Halo 2.
Read MoreBe still this beating heart. The classic Sonic games finally come to the Big Black Box. Fans of the sassy rodent-like creature have dreamed of the day when his best games would show up on our Xbox; it just seemed so unlikely. But, unless this is the cruelest August Fools joke ever played, we're going to get the best possible deal soon. Sega of America has announced a mega-collection that will include the following games and lock-ons: Sonic The Hedgehog, Sonic The Hedgehog 2,Sonic The Hedgehog 3, Sonic & Knuckles, Sonic 3D Blast, Sonic The Hedgehog Spinball, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, Sonic & Knuckles lock-on: Sonic The Hedgehog 2, Sonic & Knuckles lock-on: Sonic 3, Sonic & Knuckles lock-on: Blue Spheres, Sonic Chaos, Sonic Drift, Sonic Labyrinth, and Sonic Blast. In addition there will be Sonic comics and art galleries and other goodies. If this wasn't already too good to be true, the whole package will go for twenty bucks.
Read MoreGaming Nexus has a review of the Mad Katz Lynx Wireless controller for Xbox. If you've been eyeing the Logitech version, but found its 50-60 dollar price-tag a little high, then maybe Mad Katz's 2.4Ghz device is the way to go. The thing only costs 30 bucks, and promises a range of 40 feet. Its small formfactor should appeal to those of us with small hands (yes, I'm admitting it). Mad Katz is a reputable company and it's good to see them move into the wireless arena for our favorite big black box.
Read MoreNinja Gaiden: Hurricane Pack Vol. 1 is finally available for download. And its weighing in at a surprisingly light 2047 blocks, considering you get a new camera system, new "action engine", a new weapon, new costumes, new enemies, and well, just about new everything. You can also submit your score to the Master Ninja Tournament, possibly earning a trip to Japan to compete in the finals. But keep in mind that you can download the Hurricane Pack without participating in the tournament and yes, it's all free.
Read MoreOkay, so here's the catch, you're gonna have to go to London. Yep, any old average Joe can waltz on into Game Stars Live and (theoretically) get your hands on Halo 2. Expect some serious lines and seriously limited playing time if you splurge on the overseas ticket. But hey, drop us a line if you do end up going.
Read MoreWe haven't quite wearied of all these Xbox 2 rumors yet (trust us, we'll get there), but the latest is that Microsoft is furiously trying to get a working demo model ready for a surprise unveiling at this coming January's Consumer Electronics Show. This flies in the face of earlier speculation that they'd raise the curtain at the X04 event in September, but then again Bill Gates did introduce the original Xbox at CES a few years back. Either way they'll get the jump on Sony, which isn't scheduled to show off the PlayStation 3 until next year's E3 video game expo in May.
Read MoreIGN has posted a great article on the best multiplayer experiences available on Xbox. The piece doesn't limit itself to Xbox Live! Instead, it opts to sift through the entire Xbox library and find the best of the best. The effort reads like an awards article, breaking the games down into genre. Predictably, Halo makes the cut. As does Rainbow Six. But there are a number of surprises in there. Of course, we were won over when they mentioned Crimson Skies. Definitely worth a read if you're looking to add a couple of new names to your wish list.
Read MoreIf you tried to download the first volume of Ninja Gaiden's eagerly anticipated Hurricane Pack yesterday and failed, then you probably already realized this. But for those of you who—for some unknown reason—were holding off (it's free, remember?!), well, you'll just be holding off for a little while longer. The download has been pushed back until August 9. Tecmo wants us to believe that the delay was issued to give the slowpokes a few extra days to register for the second round of the Master Ninja Tournament. Let's just hope this doesn't turn out to be another long wait, like Gaiden's first time around.
Read MoreWill there be an Xbox 2 in 2005? Everyone is trying to make sense of some comments Steve Ballmer made last week at a meeting of financial analysts that seem to indicate that they won't have it ready in time for the big holiday shopping season next year, but if you look more closely at what his statement, he actually says that there won't be a new Xbox out "in the next year". That sounds way more like he's talking about the coming 12 months, something which makes even more sense when you figure that Microsoft's fiscal year runs from July 2004 to June 2005. P.S. - We were going to try and resist the compulsion to obsessively parse his comments, but obviously we can't help ourselves.
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