Prepping for an entire nation that will soon house possibly the world's largest elderly population, Toyota has unveiled their latest robotic human assist droid called the Delivery Robot. The small robot is a product of Toyota's Partner Robot program, an initiative focused on creating robotic solutions for the disabled.

Using speech recognition, stereo cameras and a laser range finder the Delivery Robot will be used for common tasks like taking out the trash, and opening doors. You can see video highlighting the Delivery Robot's finer points here.

Via Ubergizmo

Here's a new way to control a radio: by rolling it. The design is simple, with the direction you roll the R1 Radio doing one of two things. Sliding it up and down will adjust the volume, as well as turn the radio off; side-to-side and you can adjust tuning.

From the designer:

"An analog radio is one of most important product for a blind people. In the using a behavior of how people manipulated rather than burying all of interaction in to the product. So adjusting radio to the right station would require a new kind of manipulation rather than simply tuning a knob. 'R1' has designed for them to control the radio more intuitively. By using a wheel structure user can control the radio by physical movement."

The R1 Radio is a concept by South Korean-born Il-Gu Cha.

Il-gu Cha, via LikeCool

If I'd known Gratuitous Space Battles was going live this week, I would have adjusted the wallet threat level upwards. You know how the space combat scenes in Battlestar Galactica were terrible and epic and oddly serene, all at once? This game is like that. It has lovely graphics, a lot of depth, an alarming amount of replayability, and a great sense of humor, to boot. Plus, it's universal. Who wouldn't want to build spaceships and then throw them into massive battles so you can sit back and watch them pound the snot out of other spaceships? Isn't that the point of all science fiction? Isn't that why Wrath of Khan is the only good Star Trek movie?

After a lengthy beta period that incorporated lots of user feedback and lots of gratuitous improvements, Gratuitous Space Battles is now officially released. Not to say it's final. Developer Cliff Harris clarifies the announcement of the "release version":

Does this mean the game is finished?
It means the game is in a finished state, playable and is properly for sale, yes. It means people can review the game without thinking it's still in beta. It means that Positech (Me!) consider this to be a finished game, rather than an on-going beta test.

Is this the end of new features?
No. Definitely not. I already have stuff (like the converging lasers thing) in the pipeline to add in later updates. There is a ton of stuff I'd love to add (if the game sells!). It *does* mean that updates will be less frequent, but probably be more feature-related rather than focusing on bug fixing, and possibly bigger in scope.

This post is from our sister site, Fidgit, which is all about gaming. Head on over for more game news and reviews.

We love Klipsch ProMedia 2.1 computer speakers, and we were wondering why the THX-certified powered speakers have been scarce lately. Here's the answer: they're going wireless. They still deliver that kick-ass sound, and at $199, only cost about 50 bucks more than the wired version. Plug your USB wireless transmitter into your Mac or PC's USB port, and then you're rocking that 200-watt amplifier inside the ProMedia 2.1's awesome subwoofer.

There's a catch, though — that subwoofer still needs to plug into a wall outlet, and the two satellite speakers are still connected to the subwoofer with wires. The advantage? You can place those speakers and their sub 30 feet away from the PC. Might be great for listening to iTunes in the bedroom, controlling your PC via Wi-Fi with the Apple Remote app on your iPhone.

If the lack of complete wirelessness is mildly disappointing to you, the good news is that you can still get those original ProMedia 2.1 speakers for $150.

While we wait patiently for the Beatles catalog to be available for download, the Fab Four toss us an elegant $280 package that's eminently satisfying. On board this collectible green apple are all 14 of the Beatles remastered albums in both high-quality 24-bit FLAC files and 320 kbps MP3s.

Just pull up the stem and you have a USB drive full of music, the original UK album art, rare photos, 13 mini-documentaries, and expanded liner notes. Collectible, indeed — Apple Corps LTD and EMI Music are only harvesting 30,000 of these pieces of rare fruit, on sale December 7th and now available for preorder.

Via The Beatles

These badass-looking Knox Handroid Gloves are designed for people riding dirt bikes, ATV's or other vehicles where your hands aren't protected behind something.

These things not only make your hands look like they belong on a robot, but they keep them safe with "exoskeleton protection, a scaphoid protection system which provides protection against common scaphoid injuries to the bone connecting the thumb to the wrist, honeycomb gel impact protection, wrist guard shrouds, and the exclusive BOA lacing system." OK, that's awesome. No pricing info yet, but look for them in stores next March.

Knox via Uncrate

Showers are boring. I mean, what are you supposed to do while you're in there? You can't have your phone or a computer in there with you for obvious reasons. Are you supposed to just stand there while you get clean? We can do better than that.

The Roca Waterdrop Shower Room surrounds you by a 3D touchscreen, allowing you to watch movies while you bathe. The touchscreen also allows you to control the temperature of the water and the intensity of the jets. Finally, a reason to take a shower!

Yanko Design via Gizmodo

Tops on my home-entertainment wish list is the experience recorder invented by physicists played by Louise Fletcher and Christopher Walken in Douglas Trumball's Brainstorm. Such a gadget is highly fanciful (and likely to be co-opted by the military, just like in the film), but there are five bona fide home theater trends we'll see take off in 2010, almost all of which are connected to connectivity — and reality.

Samsung continues to burnish its image as the undisputed heavyweight of Asia's mobile phone market with the introduction of the SCH-W920. The new DMB phone won't win any style points, but is robust when it comes to features.

The unit offers a 3-megapixel camera, a 3,000 entry phonebook, video calling capability, a digital music player, Bluetooth and language learning functions that include a full-fledged English dictionary and TOEIC and TOEFL tests. The SCH-W920 will be offered in white and black for 500,000 korean won ($425).

Via Aving

Italian designer Carlo Martino has come up with a more-than-weird take on a basic household radiator: one that hangs, suspended, rather like the sword of Damocles (although you can swap the silken thread for a thick-as-you-like cable.) The aluminum column is six feet tall, and you can either screw it to the wall or hang it from the ceiling. If you do the latter, however, make sure there's at least 7'8" of room height, or you might find the paint job above you has gone a fetching shade of singed eggshell.

MocoLoco Via Trendir

How often do you buy a new computer? After two years? Four? For such complex products, we go through them pretty quick, and that adds up to a lot of ultra harmful e-waste.

It's something computer companies are already striving for, but designer Je Sung Park is taking the idea of a recyclable computer to its furthest limits. His Recyclable Paper Laptop is made from pulp and reprocessed materials, and would be broken down into the same when all is said and done.

Check out the gallery down below for more of Park's design.