Gadgets and New Technologies

This bizarre looking mobile phone isn’t, as you might expect, a concept phone, or a prototype, or even some Frankenstein-phone cobbled together from old bits of meccano by a devout Transformers fan. It is, in fact, the new SoftBank 815T PB mobile phone, made by Toshiba, and which is actually going on sale! As you can see, it’s a genuine Transformer lookalike, but with the addition of full mobile phone functionality - including 3G, QVGA screen and a 3.2 megapixel auto-focus camera. More pics and details of SoftBank’s new transformer-phone after the jump. Now the Transformers movie came out last year, so you might have thought that SoftBank had missed the boat a bit. (Read the full post about ‘Toshiba Transformer Phone on sale’…)

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Posted Mar 2nd 2008 1:21PM by Paul MillerFiled under: Features, Misc. gadgets Our sources tell us Hanover is somewhere in Germany, but that’s all we’ve confirmed so far. Luckily, while we might fall short with this whole “geography” thing, we did manage to sneak onto the show floor here at CeBIT 2008. Most booths are still heavily under construction, but we did manage to pick up a few scoops before we passed out from the paint fumes. (Read the full post about ‘CeBIT 2008: we’re coming at you live from Hanover’…)

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Windows Vista has been out for over a year now, and yet many people are still hesitant to upgrade, and frankly, I don’t blame them. I have one machine that runs Vista, and that’s only because it came installed on my laptop. For many reasons I’m just not ready to upgrade the other half-dozen machines in my house, one of which is that I don’t want to shell out all of the extra dough when XP is doing just fine. Apparently there are plenty of others thinking the same way, and thankfully Microsoft has been listening. They have announced that later this month they will be cutting prices on their latest versions of Windows. The price cuts will range from $30 to $80 depending on which version you decide to purchase. A full copy of Ultimate has been dropped to $319, while the upgrade is now only $219. A Home Premium upgrade has been dropped to only $129. Microsoft has stated that they are hoping to attract more casual users to Vista, whereas they are still primarily seeing tech enthusiasts and early-adopters picking up the new OS. I’m still not sure that I’ll be picking it up, even with the new lower price. XP is doing just fine, and if it’s not broke, don’t fix it. Source: DigitalTrends (Read the full post about ‘Microsoft announces price drop for Vista’…)

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We’re always looking for ways for our laptops not to get overheated. But what if I say that the heat your laptop gives out could be harnessed for good use? A contender in the Greener gadgets Design Competion 2008, DORmino is the name of an eco-friendly mouse. The DORmino harnesses heat generated by your laptop and through its nanowires as well as induction charging technologies, heat is turned into energy which powers it. Since many leave their computers on for days at a time, using this wireless peripheral powered by mere heat seems ideal. I can’t wait to see it fully-developed and in the market. But ’til then, I’ll tough it out with my mundane mouse. (Read the full post about ‘DORmino: All It Needs is The Warmth of Your Laptop’…)

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Speck SK3PKNN Skin-Tight ipod Nano Skin 3 Pack Nano SkinTight rubberized skin provides protection against dust, knocks, and scratches. Includes removable screen protector to keep your color screen looking sharp! Technorati Tags: Speck (Read the full post about ‘Speck SK3PKNN Skin-Tight iPod Nano Skin 3 Pack’…)

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My 2GB USB drive works just fine for my purposes, but in case you need a lot of size, then you might want to consider this new 32GB flash drive by Transcend. Dubbed the JetFlash V60, it sports a size similar to that of a AA battery - so it’s pretty small and easy to take places. Additionally, it comes with a whole slew of features integrated into it, such as Website AutoLogin, PC-Lock, Mobile Favorites, Secret-Zip encryption, Data Backup and Online Update. It works well with both Windows and Mac, and it even works with Linux. So far, no word on availability, but expect it to retail for about $194, which isn’t too bad considering its storage capabilities. (Read the full post about ‘Transcend announces new USB flash drive, the JetFlash V60′…)

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Stupidiotic Black Bar Glasses Stupidiotic Black Bar Censor Bar GlassesBe ?UNSEEN? wearing these Stupidiotic Black Bar glasses.  On their own, Black Bars appear to be ridiculously silly looking sunglasses. In a social setting, they instantly become the life of the party. Inhibitions fade away. You?re immediately popular with the ?IN? crowd. Others will wonder if you?re famous or dangerous. Stupidiotic Black Bars look and photograph just like censor bars. Perfect for Bachelor Parties, Wedding Parties, Party Parties, Club-Hopping, Questionable Behavior, Risque Situations, Perp-Walks and Mug Shots. Let the paparazzi take their best shots.  You?ll always be the talk of the town when you?re wearing Stupidiotic Black Bars. (Read the full post about ‘Stupidiotic Black Bar Glasses’…)

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Google has continues to invest in projects other than what advertisements to post when someone searches for LOLcats by throwing the weight of it’s giant stacks of cash at Harvard’s George Church. Dr Church plans to spend $1 billion to tie DNA information to each person’s health history in an attempt to create a database for finding new medicines. His credentials are high as he helped develop the first direct genomic sequencing method in 1984.

It’s good to see the heavyweights of the tech industry to contribute to the overall science community. American science has been suffering in the last few years even as interest in technology has been on the upswing and this type of investment can only help in the long term.

(Read the full post about ‘Google invest in Genome project; continues world domination’…)

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LG is turning gold with their new L705iX shine gold cell phone. It comes with an average 2-megapixel camera, microSD card, 140 minutes of continuous calling time and 330 hours of standby time, and support for a 7.2Mbps HSDPA network. So far release info and pricing have not been unveiled, but it shouldn’t be too long. Check back for more updates. [Source] (Read the full post about ‘LG Drops the Shine Gold Phone in Japan’…)

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Dreamworks, who had been standing strong with their contract to Toshiba and their commitment to hd dvd have announced their exit plan. Their HD DVD movie shipments will end next week, but the exact release of upcoming titles on Blu-ray has not yet been announced. A few titles that were set for release such as the Bee Movie, Sweeney Todd and There Will Be Blood have all been canceled, and will be released only as standard DVD’s. The last and final HD DVD titles will include next weeks release of Things We Lost in Fire and Into the Wild, somehow I cannot imagine either of them selling that well. Via [EngadgetHD] Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed → (Read the full post about ‘Dreamworks to begin offering Blu-ray titles’…)

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