FROM GAMERTELL - An ingenious modder known as Jube808 has added a working touchscreen to his PSP. MORE » Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed → Tags: video, plasma, electronic toys, digital (Read the full post about ‘Modder hacks PSP, adds touchscreen’…)
What’s the next best thing to watching the Olympics live from inside the Beijing National Stadium? Why, carrying up to 4GB of music on the “Bird Nest” mp3 player everywhere we go, of course! Modeled after the famous stadium, the player features an LCD screen, FM tuner, voice recorder, and anti-theft security in the form of disguising itself to look like a misshapen lump of melted quarters, which thieves find utterly useless. Available now in 1GB ($19), 2GB ($24), and 4GB ($33) capacities. Via Chip Chick. Tags: cable, CD, Ogg, DAB (Read the full post about ‘Olympic “bird nest” MP3 player’…)
If you’ve followed the Braid story at all, it’s been incredible to see the hype mount behind this indie game. It seems to have brewed the perfect storm of a highly regarded developer, along with a timely release on the Xbox 360, and a game that just plain looks cool. It hit the Xbox marketplace on August 6th for 1200 points. When you look past the all-star developer, the months of articles leading up to the release, Microsoft pushing for the 1200 point price, and all that, what you have left is an impressively unique platformer. The game is quite Mario-like (it is an homage in some ways), and you basically walk around, jumping when necessary, sometimes landing on enemies to kill them. (Read the full post about ‘Review: Braid for Xbox 360′…)
by Darren Murph, posted Aug 13th 2008 at 5:10PM Yeah, you read that correctly — the obsessive audiophiles / videophiles at the Criterion Collection use Sony’s playstation 3 as its reference Blu-ray player. In all honesty, we can’t say we’re too surprised. Time and again, Sony’s latest console has been rated very highly as a dedicated BD deck, and the plentiful firmware updates ensure that it’s always at the forefront of whatever interactive functionality is next. This snippet of factual goodness was extracted from a recent writeup that took an in-depth look at how the CC would be revamping its home theater, and even famed calibration guru Joe Kane gave his approval at using the console for playing back Blu-ray Discs. (Read the full post about ‘Criterion Collection uses PS3 as reference Blu-ray player’…)
With the price of everything shooting skyward, it’s time to take certain measures to ensure you’re slowly moving towards using resources available to humans. For example, if you got floodlights or spotlights gracing your gardens, those still use precious electricity which used for much more important stuff, essentials even, like refrigerators. ThinkGeek has the answer to your problems. The Remote-Controlled LED Solar Spotlight has a solar panel in the middle which harness the desired solar energy and two sportlights flanking it. The spotlights have five LED lights each and have 360 degrees adjustability which means they can be used to focus on all angles surrounding the device. (Read the full post about ‘Remote-Controlled LED Solar Spotlight’…)
Chrysler is said to offer a new car cellular/Wi-Fi hotspot from August 25th onwards, and will work with all 2009 Chrysler models as well as specific earlier year models, enabling these vehicles to let you surf the Internet no matter where you are. This is made possible as the $499 router grabs EV-DO and WiMAX signals wherever you go, and since it is based on EV-DO, chances are this will have something to do with either Sprint or Verizon, or both. In addition to the initial $499 price tag, you will also have to fork out $29 monthly. I guess the people who benefit the most are the backseat drivers since your eyes will, you know, be concentrating on the road. (Read the full post about ‘Hotspot Device from Chrysler’…)
Now here’s a new tanning bed that sheds the old, boring image normally associated with it. This one not only helps you get a healthy and even tan no matter what season it is, it also boasts additional creature comforts such as surround sound, MP3 playback capability, Smart Voice, CliMax air conditioning, and Xsens that lulls you to a comfortable sleep thanks to a fragrant scent being sent through a ventilation system. You can choose from Starlight Silver, Mellow Lime, Sunrise Orange, Eternal Blue, and Bling Variant colors to suit your home. Once you’re done tanning, the Qsens system will spray a mist of water into the room to refresh and cool you down. No idea on how much it will cost though. (Read the full post about ‘Luxura x7 Tanning Bed’…)
by Paul Miller, posted Aug 12th 2008 at 6:23PM
Here’s a fun, not-completely-original, but still-pretty-neat idea: littleBits. Tiny, pre-assembled circuit boards that create a library of mix-and-match electronic components for building that next amazing wonder widget. Oh, and they’re open source. The “blocks” snap together via magnets, and there’s an ever-growing selection of modules to choose from. The project is still in its infancy, but we’re expecting to see some good work from Joe Hacker Guy on the DIY scene, or anybody else too afraid to pick up a soldering iron, once these arrive at some sort of retail availability. (Read the full post about ‘littleBits are like Legos for circuit boards’…)
by Darren Murph, posted Aug 12th 2008 at 8:16PM
In all honesty, USBfever almost nailed this one. The $22.99 in-car charger plugs right into your cigarette socket and gives motorists their cigarette outlet back along with 4 charging USB ports. The one (admittedly massive) tweak we wish it would’ve made? Replace that cig adapter with a traditional AC outlet. Yeah, yeah — that would make the whole thing a lot bigger, but you can’t deny that it would be way more useful. Version 2, anyone?
[Via Coolest Gadgets]
Filed under: Misc.
(Read the full post about ‘In-car charger presents four USB ports alongside cigarette socket’…)
by Thomas Ricker, posted Aug 13th 2008 at 7:29AM Ok, you’ve really gone and put us in a twist this time Philips. The he-man editors of Engadget haven’t exactly been wooed by Philips’ lineup of Active Crystals USB drives slathered in Swarovski excess. Then again, we’re not their target audience. Somehow though, these new 2GB Happy Laura and Naughty Raymond USB drive robots make us want to titter coyly with demure fingertips pressed lightly to our pouty mouths. But for €150 (about $223), we won’t. (Read the full post about ‘Charmed by Philips’ latest Active Crystals USB drives’…)
