Tech Gadgets Reviews

by Darren Murph, posted Nov 29th 2008 at 5:26PM

We’re pretty sharp on the fairy dust market, and while it no doubt goes for a premium in certain parts of the world, there’s still a serious surcharge being added in here for transparency. Japan’s own Hario is catering yet again to the affluent among us with its Harion speaker set, which boasts a subwoofer, two mid-range drivers and a pair of acrylic tweeters — all encased in heat-resistant glass. Of course, the company is no stranger to pumping out exclusive glass-based kit and charging a wad for it, as this particular package will run customers a staggering 16 million yen, or just north of $168,000. Oh, but if you and ten others dial in right now, they can be produced and sold for just 10 million yen each ($105,030). Economies of scale, now that’s good stuff.

[Via Gearlog]

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 66 Comments

Filed under: Home Entertainment

by Darren Murph, posted Nov 29th 2008 at 1:55AM

It’s not often that you find a webcam that’s multifaceted, but Earth Trek’s webcam is just that. Dubbed the “hottest webcam” this world has ever seen (um, no), this unit packs a 1.3-megapixel camera, VGA capture abilities, auto focus / auto brightness and the real kicker, a 2-port USB hub. Probably still a ripoff at $45, but if you need those extra peripheral ports bad enough, who knows what you’d be willing to do.

[Via Pocket-lint]

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 12 Comments

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Peripherals

Our friends from Photographyblog have posted sample pictures from their EOS 5D Mark II taken using a Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 and a Canon EF 70-200 f/a lens. The file format used is 21MP “fine” JPEG and “standard picture style”. There are movies too.

If you missed it, the Canon EOS 5D Mark II got everyone excited because of its low-light shooting capabilities (high ISO) and its 1080p video recording ability. The first movie demo was created by Vincent La Foret, check it out. The 5D Mark II started shipping on November 25th.

by Paul Miller, posted Nov 29th 2008 at 1:48PM

“Cyber Monday.” You probably couldn’t pick a worse name for a day of conspicuous, retailer-defined consumerism, but you’re welcome to try. SanDisk decided to forgo the Black Friday insanity and instead run with three days of Cyber Monday sales, with up to 60% off those boring, ever-necessary flash memory products it’s so well known for — and Sansa players aplenty.

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 50 Comments

Filed under: Portable Audio, Storage

by Donald Melanson, posted Nov 28th 2008 at 9:34PM

We caught sight of Psyclone’s WildCharger-based TouchCharge kit for the Xbox 360 a few weeks ago but, in case you missed it, the company is also offering similar kits for the playstation 3 and Wii. At $49.99 the PS3 version is actually the cheapest of the lot, due to the fact that it’s able to use the controller’s own rechargeable battery, while the $59.99 Wii version and $69.99 Xbox 360 version each include some rechargeable batteries of their own courtesy of Psyclone. The charging pads themselves are, of course, interchangeable, and you can even charge more than one device on a single pad, although finding the necessary controller adapters separately seems to be another matter.

[Via The gadgets Weblog]

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 47 Comments

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

by Joshua Topolsky, posted Nov 28th 2008 at 10:00PM

Do you love love love Gears of War 2? Want to own the ultimate collector’s kit? Okay. Here’s what you get: Gears of War 2 Special Edition game, GOW2 hooded sweatshirt, GOW2 novel, the first issue of the GOW2 comic book, and Beneath the Surface: An Inside Look at Gears of War. Ready to own this extremely rare box of goodies? Here’s what’s what.

We’ll put up a gadget on the site, and you can only enter it until the next gadget lands (usually within a couple of hours). If you miss your shot, sorry, we’re moving on to the next gadget. Good luck! Oh, and don’t forget the rules. (Yeah, there are always rules.)

• Leave a comment below. That’s it! Who loves you, baby.
• You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) You can enter different giveaways in today’s Black Friday giveaways, but you can only enter this one once.
• If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you’ll be fine.
  
• Contest is open to anyone in the 50 States, 18 or older! Sorry, we don’t make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers or US contest laws if you have to be mad.
• Winners will be chosen randomly.
• Entries can be submitted until the next contest goes up. After that we’re all done. Good luck!
• Full rules can be found here.

Last round’s winner: Michelle Alaimo! (Remember, winners are selected at random.)

• Permalink
• Email this
• 3134 Comments

Filed under: Gaming

If your love of cars isn’t being expressed quite enough in your current home décor, you might check out this alarm.  There have been other alarms similar to this one, but luckily this one is a little cheaper than the others I’ve seen.  If you’re on the lookout for a gift for a guy impossible to buy for and he has a love for cars this would be an easy gift to pick up.  I’m sure he’d get a kick out of waking up to the sound of a high-powered V8 engine.

Although frankly I’m not sure how easy it would be to wake up to the sound of an engine.  It’s not that it couldn’t possibly be loud enough.  The issue more is if you live in the city, the sound of your alarm might blend into the traffic noise you’re used to hearing outdoors.  Luckily the engine noise will grow in pitch and intensity until you turn it off.  The clock also includes an AM/FM radio and can be powered by either the AC adapter or AA batteries.  You can purchase it for $29.95 on Hammacher Schlemmer.

Source: Bookofjoe

• Email to a friend
• Leave a comment

I am invited by the International Marketing Council of South Africa to see some of their best technology, and to get a sense of the country. All expenses are paid but I will write what I want about this trip. Africa is not the first place that comes in mind when we think about broadband connection and technology, so I thought that it could be good to go and check out what is going on there. I arrived two days ago in Johannesburg at the Rosebank Hotel and I met the other bloggers last night during an instructive dinner. Check out the photos by clicking on the gallery button, all names will be written later when I confirm the right spelling.

During the week, we will visit the deepest mine in the world (3.7 km underground!), and the largest diamond mining ship in a government secured area, this is for sure backed by some serious technology! We will get a demo of the South African electric car and I will discover the latest Web apps that are coming up here.

by Darren Murph, posted Nov 28th 2008 at 7:51PM

This one’s been a long time in the making, but the deal is finally done. Clearwire and Sprint Nextel have gleefully announced that the transaction to combine their next-generation wireless internet businesses is complete, and beers are on the two of ‘em this evening. On the real, the agreement dictates that Sprint hand over all of its 2.5GHz spectrum and WiMAX-related assets (including XOHM) to Clearwire; additionally, Clearwire has received a $3.2 billion cash infusion from Comcast, Intel, Time Warner Cable, Google and Bright House Networks. Details beyond that are scant, though we are told that the terms “originally announced on May 7, 2008″ are the ones being abided by, and the new company will retain the Clearwire name and its Kirkland, Washington headquarters.

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 32 Comments

Filed under: cellphones, Wireless

With many people tightening their wallets this holiday season, it makes perfect sense to consider gifts that fall within your budget - and the E-ZCHARGE docking station comes in mind. Retailing for a mere $10, this docking station is good enough to juice up your cell phones, iPods, portable media players and even Bluetooth devices without the use of unsightly long and tangled wires, thanks to the use of a U-shaped cradle and post that adheres directly to any phone’s charger without touching an electrical outlet.

Its ribbed inset provides a non-slip surface, and it is made of sturdy polycarbonate plastic for durability and protection. The E-ZCHARGE solves the problem of unwieldy and unsightly wires that consumers have begrudgingly accepted in lieu of neat countertops and floors. It unclutters as well as organizes for predictable storage and charging. E-ZCHARGE is an innovative non-electrical plastic stand that, with commercial-grade heat-resistant, double-sided tape, affixes to the charging module of small personal electronic devices. The excess cord that is on charging devices gets wrapped around the post, and the end of the wire is held in place by a patented hook. It is small at 2″x 21/2″x1/2″, lightweight (1 oz.), travels well, and is inexpensive. E-ZCHARGE is also available with imprinted corporate logos, and comes in Black and Grey.

You can pick one up for just $9.99 here.

Press Release

• Email to a friend
• Leave a comment