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Sony's ICF-B01 emergency radio with hand crank
Thanks to Walt Mossberg, we know how important it is to keep a crank-powered radio around the house, and now Sony has joined the likes of Eton and Freeplay in offering one of these necessities to its Japanese customers. The ICF-B01 isn't as full-featured as some of the models we've seen -- for instance, it doesn't seem to charge your cellphone -- but it does manage to pack in an LED flashlight to help you change stations while you're trapped in the dark. We're not sure how much loot Sony wants for this radio, but if it's more than $30, you're probably better off stocking up on batteries for your old Walkman.
PS3 pad loses DualShock name and vibration but picks up Wii-esque motion detection and wireless connectivity
In a shocking turn of events, the PS3 controller has gone from banamerang to wireless DualShock 3, except without the DualShock name and vibration.If you take a good look at the back of the new control pad (see the close-up above), you'll notice that the DualShock 2 brand name imprinted on the old controller has now been supplanted by a row of LED lights to show which input has been set, either wirelessly or via the wired USB recharge port. Sony's now the only name in-line for PS3 controllers either on the pad or in the press releases (see "the new PS3 controller").
Air Oxyride 100-AA glider takes wing
Panasonic's Oxyride-powered glider took to the air for the first time this weekend, with Panny's blogger declaring only that "it flew temporarily." While this publicity stunt/college engineering project isn't going to revolutionize transportation or aviation (despite Panasonic's tagline that the project is the work of "21st Century Wright Brothers"), we still have to give props to Panny -- and especially the team at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. The idea of building a manned glider powered by 100 AAs may have sounded impossible, but they managed to pull it off.
Quick Charge kit debuts at $29.99
Just a quick heads up: that Quick Charge kit that Joystiq took a look at earlier this month is available now for the not altogether horrible price of 30 septim...err, dollars. Unfortunately for them, I've already managed to free myself "from the tyranny and mess of cables" by picking up a couple rechargeable AAs and a wall-charger. Anyone have an ache that only the Quick Charge kit can soothe?
Air Oxyride: 100 batteries included
Panasonic has bumped up the power of its Oxyride batteries, claiming the new version is 120% more efficient than the original model. And to prove it, Panny has decided to launch an airplane powered by 100 AA Oxyride batteries (you might recall that the original Oxyride was heralded by a battery-powered ultralight vehicle). No word on how far the plane will be able to go powered on those AAs -- or whether Panny's actually managed to recruit anyone to fly the thing (though we hear Richard Branson is game). We assume that, after this stunt, Panny will roll out next year's upgrade with an Oxyride-powered space shuttle, and follow that one with a battery-powered lunar colony. Maybe after that, they'll consider something really dramatic, like beating disposable lithiums or rechargeable NiMHs in a digicam.
102,000 Disney DVD player batteries recalled
We see a lot of product recalls around here, and keep most of them to ourselves (unless, of course, we feel our readership faces certain danger), but we figured you'd be particularly interested in one that could prevent your kids' hands from getting burned. Memcorp, in conjunction with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, is recalling 102,000 battery packs for Disney-branded portable DVD players sold at theme parks and through Disney's online catalog from April 2005 through last month due to reports of overheating. Apparently the batteries, which were included with five different models (full list available by following the "Read" link), have drawn 17 complaints with regards to their toasty nature, including three reports each of property damage and minor skin irritation. This certainly isn't the first incidence of faulty batteries that we've seen, but usually manufacturers are thoughtful enough not to package them with products intended for children.
MIT researchers use virus to build tiny batteries
A small team at MIT has been spending the last few years trying to coax an organism to self-assemble into super thin lithium-ion battery out of tiny "nanowire" structures. The process involves a gene-manipulated version of a common virus which collects cobalt oxide and gold, and then assembles itself as an ultrathin wire on top of thin film. The wires are 6 nanometers in diameter, 880 nanometers in length, and a full fledged battery can be the size of a grain of rice. Once the genes are modified, the researchers say they can easily replicate millions of the wires. While this might sound like a good fit for a B-movie plot, it also sounds like they've managed to develop a rather large jump in battery tech. It looks like the first application for this tech will be for mini batteries like those of hearing aids, but there are hopes this tech can eventually make its way into laptops and perhaps even power electric cars in the future, thanks to its high density and potential for world ending catastrophe.
