Digital Technology for Digital Living.
April 26, 2010
Gadgets and Small Home Entertainment Centers
One of the most fascinating new types of gadgets on the market is the portable
video device. Portable video devices are also called portable media devices
and sometimes portable entertainment devices, and are direct descendants of
the MP3 player. In addition to the digital audio that MP3 players could provide,
portable video devices can play video on built in color LCD screens, display
digital photos on the same screen, and many models can even be used to
play video games as well. These gadgets have a lot of features built into
small packages and come in a tremendous variety of different models that
range from very basic models all the way up to home entertainment systems
in miniature.
On the lower end of the portable video device spectrum are models that are
about the same size as many audio only digital devices, yet have a surprising
capacity to store video. These gadgets can easily fit in the palm of one’s hand
and display video on a screen only an inch or two across, depending on the
model. These gadgets can cost as little as fifty dollars and are available
anywhere.
On the larger end of the spectrum are some really impressive portable video
devices. These gadgets have hard drives that are bigger than the hard drives
in the computers that many of us are still using, and can store anywhere from
dozens to hundreds of hours of video depending on the format that the video
is stored in. Archos is a major manufacturer of these gadgets and builds a ton
of features into its higher end models. For example, Archos makes one model
that has a screen that’s over four inches across that has touchscreen
functionality. This model has built in WiFi capabilities that enable it to access
the Internet in a variety of different locations that have wireless hot spots. It
even has a built in Opera web browser and the ability to zoom in on specific
parts of a web page in order to allow its user to read the page better. It can
also display the contents of its screen on a normal TV set in order to provide
better visibility. It can also display PDF files that it has downloaded from the
Internet as well.
Archos also provides an impressive array of accessories for its higher end
portable video gadgets. For example, it’s possible to get various docking
stations for the devices that enable them to record video that other devices
play. This, combined with the ability to display video on a TV screen, can
make an Archos portable video device the DVR component of your home
entertainment center. This is especially useful because it provides the option
of watching anything on the gadgets hard drive either on the full sized TV set
or on the go, and the decision can be made on a moment’s notice. Archos
also supplies video cameras that can be mounted on bike helmets so that its
portable video devices can essentially be converted into camcorders. Plus,
with options of recording video in MPEG-2 or MPEG-4 formats, these high end
gadgets give their users a good deal of control over how video is recorded.
If you’re a busy person who loves TV and video, these entertainment centers
in miniature are the perfect gadgets for you.
Gadgets boy | Comments (0) | Geek, General, Musicgadgets,gadget,gadgets shop, latest gadgets, new gadgets
April 25, 2010
Are there any new and cool gadgets for the kitchen?
We thought this might be an interesting topic to explore.
Yes, we know about the slap chop! What else can you think of? Everyone loves a good kitchen gadget.
Hmmm . . . and they only cost $19.95!
Gadgets boy | Comments (13) | Geek, Generalgadgets,gadget,gadgets shop, latest gadgets, new gadgets
April 24, 2010
Kind of Random, yet interesting . . . The Spy Ear
The video has the SPY EAR (Two-Way Communications System). The Spy Ear is a complete two-way communications system enabling one to receive sounds or voices from a distant location up to 500ft away without any wires. We haven’t tested it and don’t know these guys; however, seemed potentially interesting to our audience. Let us know if it is a go or no-go if you end up taking a look. We like spy gadgets so are always out looking for a new one to show everyone.
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March 18, 2010
Google wants to BUILD your new TV!
Well, they at least are evidently going to start working with Sony and the rumor is Intel on a new TV that they want to act as an entertainment hub for your living room. Here are gadgetlounge we think that makes a lot of sense. We’ve had a pretty powerful computer hooked up to our living room tv for a quite awhile.
Google TV or perhaps “G-TV” will use the Android OS and may have a set-top box and an actual TV. In addition to regular tv, it will have lots of other functions that you would expect like Hulu, YouTube and other web-video sources, as well as games and apps for social networking. Google is of course interested in order to add some advertising to your tv. They own a few resources in that area so far, but this could serve as a big push. Let’s see how Apple responds . . .
Gadgets boy | Comments (0) | Broadband, Digital TV, Geek, Social Networking, applegadgets,gadget,gadgets shop, latest gadgets, new gadgets
June 10, 2008
AMD Turion Ultra notebook platform
AMD Turion Ultra notebook platform
AMD (Advanced Micro Devices) launches its next-generation mobile processor – the AMD Turion Ultra notebook platform.
AMD state that the new processor is the first real opportunity to capitalize on their US$5.4 billion acquisition of graphics company ATI in July 2006.
A successful launch of the new AMD platform is seen by some as a turning point for AMD to take advantage of ATI?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s graphics expertise and Intel?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s failure to deliver its new laptop system.
By AMD?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s own admission, it?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s been a challenging time for the company as it attempts to go head to head with Intel and increase its market share which grew to 18% in 2007. Despite the current financial climate, the mobile computer market has become a key battlefield for chip makers. AMD sees mobile success as critical to its future growth; in 2007, AMD notebook sales grew by 53% compared to Intel?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s growth of 33%. Overall laptop sales grew 37% worldwide from 2006 to 2007, particularly in emerging markets such as Central and Eastern Europe, and the Middle East and Africa, which has experienced 67% and 45% growth in sales respectively.
But it is the home entertainment market that could be key for AMD and also signal the death of the home desktop PC, as laptop power and graphics become increasingly sophisticated. Personal laptops now outsell home desktops, with 83% of people in Europe stating they use their notebooks for entertainment alone, such as HD gaming, HD DVD, streaming live TV and accessing the internet. AMD have tapped into this entertainment-driven market with specific features that enable the user to experience high quality graphics without draining the battery life of the notebook – enabling a mobility not previously seen before.
Click video below to watch Alberto Macchi, Managing Director, AMD Europe join spokespersons leading computer manufacturers including Acer and Packard Bell to discuss the exciting new platform?¢‚Ǩ¬¶
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March 17, 2008
Beer OS – Happy St. Patrick’s Day
Every year on March 17, we honor Saint Patrick (circa 385?¢‚Ǩ‚Äú461), one of the patron saints of Ireland. Whether or not you choose to celebrate the holiday by wearing green, eating Irish foods, imbibing Irish drink (usually Guinness), or attending parades, we wish you a safe a happy holiday.
Everyone wants to be Irish on St. Patrick’s Day… even computer operating systems. So as you raise your glass to St. Patrick this year, try to pretend your beer was a computer operating system. It might go a little like this…
Macintosh Beer
Considered by many to be a “light” beer. All the cans look identical. When you take one from the fridge, it opens itself. The ingredients list is not on the can. If you call to ask about the ingredients, you are told that “you don’t need to know.” A notice on the side reminds you to drag your empties to the trashcan.
DOS Beer
Requires you to use your own can opener, and that you read the directions carefully before opening the can. The can is divided into eight compartments of 2oz each, which have to be accessed separately. A lot of people keep drinking it after it was discontinued.
Windows 3.1 Beer
Was the world’s most popular beer in the mid-1990s. Looked a lot like Mac Beer’s. Requires that you already own a DOS Beer. Claims that it allows you to drink several DOS Beers simultaneously, but in reality you can only drink a few of them, very slowly, especially slowly if you are drinking the Windows Beer at the same time. Sometimes, for no apparent reason, a can of Windows Beer will explode when you open it.
Windows NT Beer
Windows NT beer could only be purchased by the truckload. This caused most people to have to go out and buy bigger refrigerators. The can looked just like Windows 3.1 Beer. Touted as an “industrial strength” beer, and suggested only for use in bars.
Windows XP Beer
Tastes like Windows 2000 beer but comes with a pretty dress. It opens sometimes without asking and if you leave a case of it open for awhile, it might explode all over your basement. Oh best of all, sometimes Windows XP Beer likes to open your front door and let people in to hang advertisements all over your house and steal your credit card number.
Windows Vista Beer
Windows Vista Beer looks a lot like the newest Mac Beer but tastes more like Windows XP Beer. Most people will probably keep drinking Windows XP Beer until their friends try Windows Vista Beer and say they like it. Many people try Windows Vista Beer, then spit it out and spend hours trying to put Windows XP Beer back into the same can.
UNIX Beer
This very heavy beer comes in 32oz cans, and has been around for years, rumor has it that it was originally brewed as a hoax by a couple of bored workers, only for them to find that some people actually liked the stuff. It tends to be drunk only by freaks or eccentric academics, often with beards; and drinkers of it do not like drinkers of any other beer. In its basic form it doesn’t look particularly impressive, but with the addition of a magic ingredient named “X”, it can be converted into an all-singing all-dancing beer on a par with the others. Many other varieties exist, with a huge range of flavors and (often unpronounceable) ingredients. Mac Beer has many of the same ingredients as Unix Beer.
OS/2 Beer
Tasted like a mix between Unix and DOS Beer. Allowed you to drink several DOS Beers and a Windows 3.1 Beer simultaneously, but slowly. You never saw anyone drinking OS/2 Beer, but the manufacturer (International Beer Manufacturing) claimed that 9 million OS/2 Beer six-packs were sold. The best place these days to find a an OS/2 Beer is inside an old ATM machine.
Amiga Beer
The company went out of business, but their recipe was picked up by some weird German company, so now this beer is an import. This beer never really sold very well because the original manufacturer didn’t understand marketing. Like Unix Beer, Amiga Beer fans are an extremely loyal and loud group. When this can was originally introduced, it appeared flashy and colorful, but the design never changed much over the years, so it looked dated in its later years.
VMS Beer
Requires minimal user interaction, except for popping the top and sipping. However cans have been known on occasion to explode, or contain extremely un-beer-like contents. Best drunk in high pressure development environments. When you call the manufacturer for the list of ingredients, you’re told that is proprietary and referred to an unknown listing in the manuals published by the FDA. Rumors are that this was once listed in the Physicians’ Desk Reference as a tranquilizer, but no one can claim to have actually seen it.
methodshop | Comments (0) | Geek, Softwaregadgets,gadget,gadgets shop, latest gadgets, new gadgets
March 04, 2008
IT Through The Decades – Olivia Munn
Olivia Munn, the foxy geek hostess from Attack of the Show (G4 TV) and Playboy Magazine (Feb 2007), is in a new viral YouTube video for Dell Computer called “IT Through The Decades.”
The clip helps promotes Dell’s servers by poking fun at all the poor IT related decisions companies have made the past few decades (1978-2008). In the clip, Mike the IT guy suggests “new” technologies like databases and bar codes and gets made fun of by his colleagues.
Olivia doesn’t have a ton of lines but she definitely adds some sex appeal to the YouTube clip. Warning: It’s a little long (especially for a “viral” clip). Olivia fans will also probably get a kick out of seeing her dressed up in retro 70′s and 80′s outfits. You can save this clip off YouTube by following these instructions.
If you’re looking for more Olivia Munn, just Google search her name. YouTube is full of clips of her doing things like riding a Hawaii Chair, seductively eating hotdogs and recovering from a baby oil slip. Too bad she’s dating that turd biscuit Bryan Greenberg from One Tree Hill.
methodshop | Comments (0) | Geek, Videogadgets,gadget,gadgets shop, latest gadgets, new gadgets
February 07, 2008
Croatian Smurfs Fail World Record Attempt
Last month, 395 Croatian men, women and children covered themselves in blue paint, dressed up as Smurfs and got ready to go down in history… as failures.
The “Croatian Smurfs” had gathered in an attempt to smash the previous world record for “most Smurfs gathered together at one time.”
Unfortunately due to a research error (possibly caused by Gargamel), their attempt was all in vain.
According to the latest, but out of date, Croatian printing of the Guiness World Records book, the record for most Smurfs gathered in one place was 291. With 395 Smurfs, the Croations thought they were sure to earn a new world record.
However in 2007, a group of students at Warwick University beat them too it. The Warwick students had managed to round up a grand total of 451 Smurfs and according to Guiness, currently hold the world record.
They were close, but Croatians needed a little over 50 more Smurfs to beat the Warwick University record. Perhaps they should have contacted Guiness World Records before the attempt. I want to feel bad for them, but just seeing the the 2 words “Croatians” and “Smurfs” in the same sentence kind of freaks me out.
A somber spokesman for the Croatians had this to say: “We could easily have got more Smurfs, but we thought that over a hundred more than the American record… would be enough.”
In case you’ve never heard of The Smurfs before, they are are a fictional group of small blue creatures who live somewhere in the woods. The Belgian cartoonist Peyo introduced Smurfs to the world in a 1958 Belgian magazine called Le Journal de Spirou. However, Smurfs are probably best known from the 1980s animated Hanna-Barbera Productions television series, The Smurfs (DVD).
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September 12, 2007
Urine Powered Batteries
Before you flush the toilet, you might want to check the power level in your batteries. You could be flushing away a free source of energy.
In 2005, Scientists in Singapore developed a battery powered by urine. The Scientists were able to produce electric power using liquid as a catalyst thanks to a special mixture of magnesium and carbon inside the batteries.
Now, a Japanese company has brought this urine powered battery technology to market with the NoPoPo (Non-Pollution Power) Aqua Batteries. Just use the included plastic pipette to inject urine into the battery chamber. Grossed out by pee? You can also use other types of liquid including beer, apple juice, cola, and saliva and of course urine. When I first heard about the NoPoPo, I thought it might be a joke. Making silly inventions is a popular hobby in Japan called Chingdogu. But the NoPoPo is no joke.
A single urine powered AA battery can power a flashlight for about 20 hours (500 milliamp-hours). Not exactly the most powerful battery on the shelf, but it’s a great start for this environmentally friendly energy technology. The NoPoPo aqua powered batteries are currently only available in both AA and AAA sizes, but the company has future plans to produce all common battery sizes.
Off the top of my head, here are just a few reasons why you should love the NoPoPo:
- used batteries contain mercury and are bad for the environment
- using your own body fluids to power batteries will save you money
- it’s a reliable source of power for life saving tools like flashlights and radios
- people who live in remote areas and don’t have access to fresh batteries can now use battery powered gadgets and technology
Unfortunately the NoPoPo can currently only be purchased in Japan. Hopefully one of my Japanese readers will send me some.
BeSocial: methodshop.com | digg story | flickr
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Popstar Feets – Celebrity Shoe Blog
The next time you do a Google Image search of your favorite musician, don’t be surprised if a picture of their shoes ends up in the results. Who do you have to thank for this unusual honor? Her name is Helen Lawrence and her blog, Popstar Feets, might be one of the most original blogs ever created. When getting an opportunity to take a photo with popstar, most people like to shoot from the waist up. Not Helen. She prefers to angle her camera a little lower and checkout the celebrity footwear. Then she blogs about it.
Here’s an interview with Helen Lawrence from Popstar Feets complete with an exclusive ;) picture of Adidas sneakers that belong to Chris Martin from Coldplay.
BeSocial: methodshop
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August 22, 2007
Largest Hand in the World
Lui Hua can’t play the Nintendo Wii or Guitar Hero. He wants to but he physically can’t…. at least not yet. Why? Hua suffers from a rare condition known as macrodactyly. When he was hospitalized in Shanghai last month, his left thumb measured 10.2 inches and his index finger measured close to 12.
From The Shanghai Daily:
“It was the biggest hand in the world,” said Chen Zuliang, a hospital official. “Liu?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s fingers stopped growing in recent years so plastic surgery was at last possible to correct the malformation.”
On July 20 surgeons undertook a seven-hour operation to reduce the size of Liu?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s fingers and thumb. Doctors removed 11 pounds of flesh and bone in the procedure. A second surgery is scheduled to take place. Enlarged limbs can be caused by a number of medical conditions. Lymphedema is perhaps the most common cause and results in some extraordinarily enlarged limbs.
BeSocial: methodshop | digg story | flickr
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July 25, 2007
Cheapest Linux Box Ever
Linux users are so creative… and cheap. Sometimes their love for free open source software takes hold in other ways. For example, check out this picture of a custom Linux box I found on afrotechmods.com.
Ubuntu Feisty OS: $0.00. Cardboard box: $0.00. Duct tape: $1.00.
Having the bitchin’est case mod this side of the trailer park: priceless.
BeSocial: digg it | flickr | methodshop
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June 28, 2007
Mr. Wizard R.I.P.
Don Herbert, who explained the wonderful world of science to millions children on his Nickelodeon cable TV show “Mr. Wizard’s World“, has died after a long battle with multiple myeloma. He was 89.
Herbert used basic experiments to teach scientific principles to his TV audience via an in-studio guest boy or girl who assisted in the experiments. Herbert liked to perform his scientific experiments as “tricks” to get the kids hooked, then explain the science behind it later.
Herbert wrote several books, including “Mr. Wizard’s Supermarket Science” and “Mr. Wizard’s Experiments for Young Scientists.”
In recent years, he helped set up his website mrwizardstudios.com.
[Via latimes.com]
BeSocial: digg story | methodshop
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June 14, 2007
USB Fart Fan
Chances are, you have at least one coworker with a tendency to “let one go” at the office. Hopefully you don’t work in cramped cubicle farm. It’s not exactly a fun time. Especially when the said fart “lingers” and someone has overkill the room with Axe Body Spray (Paul).
Honestly, we all blow hot air from time-to-time… whether it be talking smack to our boss about how busy we are, or literally blowing hot air after a big Mexican lunch (Chris). In the latter case, it?¢‚Ǩ‚Ñ¢s good to know we have back up from the good folks at Thanko.
She looks pretty happy. I wonder what she ate for lunch.
The Thanko USB seat vent is designed to cool off that hot seat of yours while increasing air flow to the immediate area. Greg at GetUSB.info proudly filed this under useless USB gadgets. That’s probably because he doesn’t know Chris or Paul.
BeSocial: digg story | flickr | methodshop
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June 08, 2007
Badonkadonk Land Cruiser Review
Every once in awhile I’ll find something really random or weird on Amazon.com (can you say Mongolian Goat Hide Pillow?). But I think that a personal land cruiser/tank named after a giant ‘ass’ takes the cake.
The JL421 Badonkadonk Land Cruiser is a custom made tank modeled after Jabba’s Sail Barge from Star Wars. The exterior is a steel shell with a rust patina. Remember this is a “tank” so there’s lots of protective armor like fixed slats protecting the windows, and a unique industrial-strength rubberized flexible skirt that shields and protects the wheels to within an inch of the ground, while still allowing for enough flex to give clearance over bumpy and uneven terrain.
And if you wouldn’t be noticed enough just by driving around in a mini tank, the Donk features lots of exterior lighting. We’re talking head and tail lights, turn signal lights, trim lighting, and underbody lighting (did they have ground effects on Tatooine).
Don’t forget to bring your iPod while you’re cruising around in the Donk. Inside there’s a 400 watt premium sound system with PA system that you can use to blast sound outside the vehicle.
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