Top Stories
Day One Review: Garmin Forerunner 405 watch, GPS fitness done right
Dean Kamen unveils Slingshot, the ultimate water regenerator
7 household upgrades that prove going green isn't so hard (or pricey)
Sections
Archive
DVICE ARCHIVE FOR April 2007
When you're storing your most important data on a flash drive, this Corsair Flash Survivor will give you one less thing to worry about when you're skydiving, scuba diving, mountain climbing, or extreme fighting with your ex. Screw the...
POSTED Monday, April 30, 2007
Time so short that you're actually angry at your clock? You'll probably be inspired by this calendar turned art-deco piece from designer Susanna Hertrich. The Chrono Shredder will let you exact a little revenge on time itself. The Chrono...
POSTED Monday, April 30, 2007
Color us impressed. Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories kept track of all of the proposed toaster innovations out there, and then bested the lot of them with this toaster printer. It's not just a concept design; by all reports, it...
POSTED Monday, April 30, 2007
Taking a significant step toward a faster future, Japan plans to launch its first maglev train by 2025. Magnetic levitation is a completely different system from regular rail transport, using magnets to float the train above the tracks, reducing...
POSTED Monday, April 30, 2007
Witness: the first ever dimmable flashlight. Yeah, I know, it's strange that this didn't exist before, but perhaps there have been major advances in the flashlight technology industry as of late that those of us out of the loop don't...
POSTED Monday, April 30, 2007
Summer's getting ready to pounce, kids, and you'd best be prepared. Simply having a barbecue isn't enough these days — if you want your yard to be party central, you need to add a little entertainment. Fortunately for you,...
POSTED Monday, April 30, 2007
This strange-looking device is supposedly the future of gaming. A company called NeuroSky is developing a new type of controller, one that reads your brainwaves. The NeuroSky folks aren't so ambitious that they claim you'll be able to control...
POSTED Monday, April 30, 2007
An innovative designer is working on plans to add some kind of crazy wind turbine energy generator into the barriers between highways. The breeze from the passing cars would then generate a bunch of electricity, actually turning the congested,...
POSTED Monday, April 30, 2007
Need to get access to someone's Mac but don't have the awesome hacking skills necessary to bust through their passwords? Just get a MacLockPick, a USB thumb drive that'll cut through any Apple Computer's security like a hot knife...
POSTED Monday, April 30, 2007
Does your coworker have one of those Staples "that was easy" buttons on his desk, hitting it every time he moves a document from his inbox to his outbox? If so, you probably want to staple him to a wall....
POSTED Monday, April 30, 2007
Image via Ridiculopathy.com "I quit smoking 28 years ago," one executive told The New York Times, "and that was easier than being without my BlackBerry." Since the BlackBerry outage a couple of weeks ago, the press has been going crazy...
POSTED Sunday, April 29, 2007
Well, this is kind of upsetting. Along the same lines as that super-creepy beaver computer that we showed you a little while ago is the Mouse Mouse. Yes, it's a computer mouse made out of an actual mouse. This...
POSTED Saturday, April 28, 2007
Will the iPhone kill or bomb? This week, we think it has a good chance of succeeding, thanks mainly to Apple's simplified approach to making products. Not too much else got our attention in the cell-phone world, though we're...
POSTED Friday, April 27, 2007
Besides being the most radical-looking shift knob on the planet, the Gaslock Indy Cater has an energy-saving function. It tells you the exact point to shift to save gas, and if you follow its timely shifting tips, you can...
POSTED Friday, April 27, 2007
Want a keyboard that'll make your cubicle stand out from all the other boring workspaces in your office? Look no further than this handmade steampunk keyboard. Meticulously hand-crafted, it'll make you feel like you're typing up those expense reports...
POSTED Friday, April 27, 2007
Like many people, taking a magazine or book into the bathroom to pass the time seems like a good idea, but if you think you won't be able to finish before the commercial break, Envirovision has just introduced the...
POSTED Friday, April 27, 2007
Are you in the market for a new car? Yes? Wrong! You're actually in the market for a new hovercraft and you don't even realize it. Adjust your expectations accordingly. I mean, after all, you're an adult, correct? What...
POSTED Friday, April 27, 2007
Flyswatters are alright, but they're one of those objects that's kind of lost its luster by not being upgraded at all in the past century or so. How can I feel satisfied buying a product that doesn't have some...
POSTED Friday, April 27, 2007
Keys are pretty much the final frontier when it comes to consolidating all the crap you keep in your pockets. Once upon a time, you needed to juggle a PDA, cell phone and music player. Then PDAs and phones...
POSTED Friday, April 27, 2007
In golfing, there are other hazards besides losing your balls. For instance: stepping up to the tee and fumbling for your gear. The G-Clip Mini solves both problems, keeping your ball marker and golf glove (you need both items...
POSTED Friday, April 27, 2007
China has chosen someone to design the torch for the upcoming 2008 Olympics, and it's someone you might not expect. It's Lenovo, the company that makes the ThinkPads that IBM used to make. It seems kind of strange for a...
POSTED Friday, April 27, 2007
The press loves to talk about Apple. The cynics chalk it up to Steve Jobs's public relations savvy, while some journalists might counter that Apple products are unique, influential and iconic. With the iPod, Apple swept through and dominated...
POSTED Thursday, April 26, 2007
There are plenty of chess games on the computer that'll allow you to learn the game or play with your friends online, but none of them give you the satisfaction of having physical pieces in your hands. Sure, taking...
POSTED Thursday, April 26, 2007
Electric vehicle technology has made great strides in the past year, as evidenced by that wicked-fast and sexy Tesla Roadster and now the Velozzi you see here. While the Tesla is a real vehicle that'll be shipping this fall,...
POSTED Thursday, April 26, 2007
Honking and beeping alarm clocks are definitely not the best way to start your day, especially when you can have the pleasing sound of wind chimes teasing you out of your sweet slumber. You have your choice with the...
POSTED Thursday, April 26, 2007
Transformers mania is officially sweeping the globe, with normally non-transforming objects suddenly sprouting up with little robots hidden inside. A perfect example of the phenomenon are these Japanese headphones, which sort of transform into a robot while continuing to...
POSTED Thursday, April 26, 2007
Bang & Olufsen is known for creating pricey home electronics that sound as great as they look. It comes as no shock to us, then, that the company's BeoLab 9 speakers command a price of $9,000 a pair. Still,...
POSTED Thursday, April 26, 2007
Are you a total and complete wuss? It's OK — the first step to overcoming this problem is admitting that you have one. The second step is not wasting your money on things like this. It's a keychain that...
POSTED Thursday, April 26, 2007
Don't you hate when you're opening a bottle of beer and you wish you had a flash drive in your hands? Well, that common problem will plague you no more, as the Popdrive has arrived. Summer has officially been...
POSTED Thursday, April 26, 2007
What kid hasn't dreamed of having a huge arcade-game cabinet all to himself? Of course, when you finally have the means to actually live the dream, the prospect of a huge stand-up console in your apartment probably doesn't look...
POSTED Thursday, April 26, 2007
Good news! A British research team as developed a tool that allows computers to read lips of people on video and then text the transcripts to people. They hope to use it in security cameras, making the whole privacy-free police...
POSTED Thursday, April 26, 2007
Who needs a talking parrot when you can get a talking robot instead? The Echo Bot looks like an alien from another world and will record up to 10 seconds of whatever it is you want to say. The...
POSTED Wednesday, April 25, 2007
If you're looking for a street racer, the KTM X-Bow might just be the car for you. Its carbon-fiber chassis keeps its weight down to a featherlight 1543 pounds, and its 220-hp turbo engine built by Audi keeps its...
POSTED Wednesday, April 25, 2007
You're addicted to coffee, so you might as well get a coffee maker that really understands your chemical dependence. JL Hufford Coffee and Tea is working on just such a machine, a coffee maker that becomes in tune with...
POSTED Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Looking at this bed makes me crave scrambled eggs. The Lomme Bed, called the "ultimate combination between nature, art and design," is reportedly designed to make anyone lucky enough to be resting in it forget about the outside world,...
POSTED Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Looking to build a home theater that'll rival going to the actual movies? Why not get the same projector fancy theaters install? Sure, it'll cost you, but won't it be worth it? The Sony CineAlta 4K SRX-R220 is a...
POSTED Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Want to stop someone really, really fast? The new X-Net Car Arrest System will take any car down to a complete stop in a matter of seconds. How, you ask? Easy-peasy. Walk with me. The X-Net is, unsurprisingly, a net....
POSTED Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Eureka! I've figured out why Sony's PlayStation 3 isn't doing that well! There's just not an expensive enough model out there. Yep, the $600 version with a 60-GB hard drive simply doesn't pack enough punch for John Q. Videogame....
POSTED Wednesday, April 25, 2007
As any good Time Lord knows, nothing impresses the female companions like tightening a few bolts with sound waves. That's why the Doctor never leaves the TARDIS without his sonic screwdriver, a nice tool to have around when you're...
POSTED Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Who needs a Wii? Sure, they're super fun and everyone loves them, but, well… uh, they're hard to find. So just settle for some 15-year-old games while you wait for Nintendo to get its act together and put more...
POSTED Wednesday, April 25, 2007
At first we thought these were mere design concepts that might never actually be for sale, but these Pixel Watches from ODM are available today. You can get one in white, brown or pink, and its electro-luminescent (EL) band...
POSTED Tuesday, April 24, 2007
The VIOlight toothbrush sanitizer popped up on the Internet some time ago, but the crew at Popgadget has finally gotten a chance to try it out. The $50 gadget is supposed to sanitize up to four toothbrushes at a time...
POSTED Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Psst. Hey, buddy. Over here. Did you know that people are spying on you? Yes, even as you read this there is probably a hidden audio recording device nearby just waiting to pick up whatever you say. That recording can...
POSTED Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Headphones that simulate 5.1-channel sound have been around for a while, but I haven't seen too many that are said to render 7.1-channel sound, but that's just what Tritton's AXPC cans claim to do. It appears to have the...
POSTED Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Hey tough guy. You aren't impressing the ladies with your muscle shirt and Steven Segal poster. Today's women like a sensitive, refined man, not some oafish brute who spends too much time at the gym and wears musk scented...
POSTED Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Sometimes you just want to be able to bring a grill with you, because you just can't guarantee that there'll be one waiting for you at your destination. And are you really prepared to risk not being able to...
POSTED Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Advertisers, it seems, will not rest until every surface we see during the day is plastered with an ad trying to sell us something. We've seen previously untouched surfaces get the ad treatment lately, such as airplane tray tables...
POSTED Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Designer Jun Kurihara thinks clothes-hanger technology hasn't even come close to peaking yet. While a nice plastic model will keep your clothes generally crease-free, Kurihara's upgrade will remove any smoke odors as well, saving you a trip to the...
POSTED Tuesday, April 24, 2007
You might think you're a real hot shot because you fly in first class once in a while, but you've got nothing on the Russian tycoon who had BMW design a custom interior for his personal Boeing 787. It's,...
POSTED Tuesday, April 24, 2007
If you ate this cookie quickly enough, you might not notice how bad it is for you. Art and design team Andrew Andrew (the men who innovated iPod DJ-ing) hired a company that specializes in printing edible photographs (and...
POSTED Monday, April 23, 2007
Global warming and Earth Day notwithstanding, you can't be too rich, too thin or have too much water spraying on you in the shower. And we just can't seem to get enough of those fancy showers. That's where this...
POSTED Monday, April 23, 2007
While the Mini Cooper is a nice car for those short on space, there really isn't much room to stretch your legs. A specialist coach builder in Los Angeles decided to solve that problem and give riders a reason...
POSTED Monday, April 23, 2007
A kind of ho-hum Siemens refrigerator with a built-in TV was recently hacked by Kim Otto of Denmark's Innovation Lab, creating what seems like a great peek at what the future of home appliances will be. The fridge is...
POSTED Monday, April 23, 2007
You know, I've been saying for years that my TV just isn't as furry as I'd like it to be. I'm glad a major consumer-electronics company has finally stopped treating me like some sort of crackpot and realized that...
POSTED Monday, April 23, 2007
The thing about surgery is that it involves cutting. Which hurts. Yeah, there's anesthetic and everything, but when you're conscious again, all that cutting can add to an already a long and painful recovery. What if there were a...
POSTED Monday, April 23, 2007
Generally speaking, most people try their hardest to forget completely about any karaoke experiences that they might have had, and it's usually not that tough as not many people step up to the karaoke mic without a whole lot of...
POSTED Monday, April 23, 2007
While being a hip DJ might get you cred with your peers, your parents are still under the impression that you're just playing other people's music, which isn't a real talent, and you should go out and get a...
POSTED Monday, April 23, 2007
Pillow fights and who controls the television remote have a meeting of the minds in these concept Cushion Control pillows from designers Didier Hilhorst and Nicholas Zambetti. Three cushions make up the set, which could be considered the ultimate...
POSTED Sunday, April 22, 2007
I love things that transform, as any good child of the '80s does, which is why I am kind of taken by this Floris product. It's a floor that can turn into a table or chairs, making your room...
POSTED Saturday, April 21, 2007
Who likes gadgets you can wear? I suppose it depends if they're fashionable, useful or just downright cool. Luckily we had all three this week, from the chic E Ink watch to the "damn I'd love one of those"...
POSTED Friday, April 20, 2007
Don't look now, but bathtub racing is a real sport. There are many kinds: in water, over land, Australian, Canadian and others, but those varieties all require the use of real, porcelain tubs. That means design, innovation and heavy...
POSTED Friday, April 20, 2007
Robots take one more tiny step toward world domination with this Roomba that's been converted into a roving weapon. If you call AirSoft plastic pellets anything close to deadly, this laser-equipped Roomba might get you shaking in your boots....
POSTED Friday, April 20, 2007
When getting ready to wash the grime and goo from your little tyke, you certainly don't want to burn your child with water that's too hot. Finger and elbow methods aside, having a gauge to keep your mind at...
POSTED Friday, April 20, 2007
In what's sure to be one of the most annoying cell-phone developments since… well, ever, a California company has created a product that will allow people to override their friends' ringtones with ones of their own. So even if you...
POSTED Friday, April 20, 2007
Big news in the asinine HD format war: Wal-Mart has stepped in and ordered 2 million HD DVD players from China, and they're planning to sell them for $300 a pop next year. That's far cheaper than the lowest-priced...
POSTED Friday, April 20, 2007
This giant locket is more than a huge piece of bling — it hides a pretty slick piece of technology inside. It's a Kodak 1881 digital camera, and if you open it up you'll see two LCD screens that...
POSTED Friday, April 20, 2007
If the British have their way, we'll never have any superheroes created by cosmic-ray mishaps in space. Scientists from across the pond are working on a Star Trek-like energy shield that would protect spacecraft from harmful — and potentially superpower-bestowing...
POSTED Friday, April 20, 2007
If you're from the school of thought that if you just dropped a sizable chunk of money on a TV, you want everyone to know about it, this Plasma Lift probably seems like a stupid idea to you. But...
POSTED Friday, April 20, 2007
Could this be the navigation of a future Zune Phone? It's from a patent filed by Microsoft for "Tile Space User Interface for Mobile Devices," and it looks suspiciously similar to a certain other phone based on a music...
POSTED Friday, April 20, 2007
Way back in 2000, when the Internet was still wild, I started a new writing gig that required me to move from Atlanta to Southern California. While I had no problem moving some of my most valuable possessions (computer,...
POSTED Thursday, April 19, 2007
Subtitles are great for foreign films or if you're hard of hearing, but if you don't need them they can be a major distraction when you're trying to enjoy a movie. Your eyes always end up gravitating to the...
POSTED Thursday, April 19, 2007
We've shown you plenty of fancy mice before, but this Saitek Obsidian wireless mouse breaks new ground. It has that smooth allure of a device that's shed all its moving parts. Instead of a clickety-clackety or flimsy scroll wheel,...
POSTED Thursday, April 19, 2007
If you're a regular traveler, you know how annoying going through security checkpoints at the airport can be. They make you wait in line for what seems like forever, they go through your stuff, you have to take your laptop...
POSTED Thursday, April 19, 2007
Think you have a way-cool PC gaming rig with which to fully experience the blood and glory of a first-person shooter? Your opinion may change after you lay your eyes on Smooth Creations' Diablo PC. Don't expect this bad...
POSTED Thursday, April 19, 2007
There's no dealbreaker quite like toxic breath. You can be a totally sexy, intelligent, funny dude, but if you get in to some close talking and blast her in the face with some hot onion breath, there's no way she's...
POSTED Thursday, April 19, 2007
If there's a dorkier combo out there than Star Wars obsession and being a hot air balloon hobbyist, I'm not aware of it. But hey, don't be ashamed of your passions. No, blow them up to gigantic size so the...
POSTED Thursday, April 19, 2007
Impressively small, this pygmy cell phone from Haier knows how to flaunt what it's got. The oblong design is nice and glossy-smooth, and we particularly like how the keypad implements the same curves. It's called the Elegance — how apt....
POSTED Thursday, April 19, 2007
If you want to take your timepiece to the next level, Seiko has unveiled an E Ink watch for women. This bracelet watch gives you two options for telling time: the efficiency mode is for those who want to...
POSTED Thursday, April 19, 2007
Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later. What with the propigation of music-playing phones over the last couple years, you've got to assume at least a few people have ditched their iPods and started using their cell...
POSTED Thursday, April 19, 2007
Don't call Second Life a game. Every time I use the word to describe the megapopular online virtual world as I talk with a couple of reps from Linden Labs, the company behind the phenomenon, they correct me. Instead...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Driving, walking or running, the Mio DigiWalker H610 GPS is truly a handheld personal navigation and entertainment device that's committed to getting you there, wherever "there" is. Extremely portable, this small-form GPS weighs just 3.9 ounces. And therein lies...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
There's nothing quite like having a room hidden behind a secret bookcase door to make you feel like a badass superhero. Well, what's stopping you? Recent advancements in hidden-door technology have made it a downright reasonable option for today's...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Intel has unveiled a new concept portable PC called the Metro Notebook that could kick the UMPC to the curb. Ideally designed for the ladies (but I think the fellas are going to like it too), this notebook computer...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Having covered TV stands that double as home-entertainment speakers before, we're no strangers to setups like the AL-837 from Tank Audio. How is it things like this system always debut overseas and never here in the United States? The...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Body augmentation and modification is at the forefront of style and tech right now, but sometimes women are not entirely happy with the results of breast augmentation surgery. That's where these adjustable breast implants can be a godsend, letting...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
From the "are you f'ing kidding me?!" department comes the mouse jiggler, perhaps the dumbest and most useless computer peripheral I have ever seen. And that's saying a lot, as my job is basically to find and make fun of...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Nissan is working on a new system that'll allow your car to warn you before you drunkenly plow over a gaggle of pedestrians trying to cross the street. By using phones equipped with GPS, the system would be able...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Being a technology connoisseur these days means weighing yourself down with any number of gadgets — iPod, cell phone, GPS, PDA and all the rest. Though there have been attempts at uniting them all, you usually end up with...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Nothing says, "Hey, we're in a pretty hip place right now" like some really fancy lighting. And lighting doesn't get much fancier than theANEMIX. Using OSRAM LED technology, which use dual layers to create a trippy, 3D glow, theANEMIX...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
You think you're so cool, walking around with a cell phone, being able to call whoever you want from wherever you are at any time. Yeah, we're all soooo impressed. Well, Mr. Smartypants, did you ever think of how your...
POSTED Wednesday, April 18, 2007
We've seen sun jars before, but now "Joe," who runs a Geek Gear store out of Etsy, has created a mason jar that emits sun- (red) or moon-colored (blue) light at the flick of a switch. It's battery powered,...
POSTED Tuesday, April 17, 2007
When testing NASCAR's race cars, sometimes you need more than just a wind tunnel. After all, a mere wind tunnel can't take into account the effects of the tires as they roll across a flat surface. That's why the...
POSTED Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Being able to fly is one of the most universal dreams out there. Who hasn't daydreamed about flying through the air, or awoken to the sound of your alarm going off disappointed that you can't really leap off your...
POSTED Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Don't you hate it when someone bursts into your conference room during a meeting without knocking? Stop taping "room in use" signs on the door and install the Brighthandle: part door handle and part gatekeeper. The Brighthandle, developed by a...
POSTED Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Cars are becoming more like little mobile living rooms, what with computers, TVs, and video games coming built into more and more of them. The one thing a living room has that your car doesn't, however, is a surplus...
POSTED Tuesday, April 17, 2007
More art project than product, these mechanical spectacles caught our, um, gaze with their sweet retro look. Apparently they're totally wearable, and have a couple of design touches to make them more convenient: The nose bridge has a spring...
POSTED Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Remember the Rice Omelet mouse? That giant, uncomfortably realistic peripheral in the shape of a sloppy-looking chunk of Japanese cuisine? Well, if you were hesitating on picking one up until you had a matching USB setup, your long, painful...
POSTED Tuesday, April 17, 2007
"Yeah honey, I just need to run over to Ted's house to fix something. No, I'm not going over to grill burgers and get drunk in the middle of the afternoon! It's a weekday afternoon, what kind of self-control-lacking slob...
POSTED Tuesday, April 17, 2007
How much do you love to watch TV? According to Nielsen Media Research, during the 2004-2005 season, the average household watched more than 8 hours of television a day. Your TV watching will surely rise with a subscription to...
POSTED Monday, April 16, 2007
I think pretty much everyone who watches football on a regular basis has at one point or another wondered how in the hell those guys take such hard hits and keep on going. I know I, for one, would be...
POSTED Monday, April 16, 2007
If your home is already decked out with a Froot Loops cereal light, then you may want to complete your decorating scheme with some life-sized fruit loops. These wall-mounted rings aren't edible, but they are designed to be filled...
POSTED Monday, April 16, 2007
Tiny spy cameras are great and everything, but generally speaking you end up sacrificing quality for size. Tiny cameras just can't compete with the big boys. Or at least most of them can't — this Iconix HD camera is...
POSTED Monday, April 16, 2007
Surely if you've already gone far enough to pick up a keyboard handbag and keyboard shoes, you're cool enough to go all out and get yourself a pair of keyboard boxers. After all, they're only $16 (plus shipping), so...
POSTED Monday, April 16, 2007
Everyone knows that the Internet is very, very bad for children. All that information out there, the ease that they can communicate, it can only end in disaster! That's why it's important to be able to cut your children off...
POSTED Monday, April 16, 2007
Apple's call to the world has inspired imitations from players both large and small — now some folks you've never heard of are getting into the game. Deeda, known for, uh, having a website I guess, has a cell phone...
POSTED Monday, April 16, 2007
Samsung recently showed off three completely crazy concept PC designs, computers that have about a zero percent chance of ever hitting store shelves but show off the fact that Samsung has some creative designers on their payroll. First off...
POSTED Monday, April 16, 2007
Everybody's played Space Invaders at least once in their life. But you'd have to be pretty hard core about it to dare adorn your front porch with the Back Off Door Mat ($110). The Back Off Door Mat, designed...
POSTED Monday, April 16, 2007
New York City's latest subway line may include sliding glass doors set into glass barriers at the platform's edge. At least, officials are thinking about it. When completed in 2013, the Second Avenue subway will be the city's first...
POSTED Sunday, April 15, 2007
The Pentagon is working on a plan to put some Internet routers in space. Unfortunately, they aren't going to be there to provide a global WiFi hotspot. Instead, the wireless routers will be there to connect satellites in the same...
POSTED Saturday, April 14, 2007
Thinking of buying Apple TV? Or a hot new cell phone? Or a 1080p HDTV? We did hands-on assessments of them all during Review Week, not to mention a couple more. But Review Week was almost overshadowed by all...
POSTED Friday, April 13, 2007
Well, here we are folks: at the beginning of the end of the DVD era. Yep, sorry — I know it seems like yesterday that you just replaced your VHS copy of the Star Wars trilogy with the DVD...
POSTED Friday, April 13, 2007
The Sidekick, that lovable little e-mailing phone that celebrities are always seen typing away on, has a new little brother, and his name is ID. The ID is designed for people who want a Sidekick but don't like the...
POSTED Friday, April 13, 2007
A Wi-Fi enabled iPod is finally on the way, set to ship in the second half of this year, according to manufacturers in Taiwan. Wi-Fi could add convenience to the Apple music player, giving users the ability to wirelessly...
POSTED Friday, April 13, 2007
Unless you need to go on a long drive and really want to work on your tan at the same time, there aren't that many situations where this transparent concept car, called the eXasis, would be that practical. But,...
POSTED Friday, April 13, 2007
Sometimes, a product comes along that just blows your mind, leaving you completely speechless. A product that really is so ridiculous, so over-the-top, and so mildly upsetting that words cannot do it justice. The Compubeaver is one such product....
POSTED Friday, April 13, 2007
What is it about wood that makes gadgets encased in it look so much classier? Is it because wood reminds us of things like armoires and humidors, or is it because we've grown so tired of the plastics that...
POSTED Friday, April 13, 2007
Samsung is joining LG on the high road above the HD format war, choosing to stop taking sides and releasing a player that can handle both Blu-ray and HD DVD. Samsung's Duo HD player (BD-UP5000) will be able to fully...
POSTED Friday, April 13, 2007
I'm as big a fan of saving the environment as the next guy, so I appreciate the need to make sure our homes are as energy efficient and environmentally friendly as possible, but here's a design that takes it...
POSTED Friday, April 13, 2007
Rumors are flying around the Internet about Apple considering adding a subscription service to their iTunes Music Store. That would mean those of you out there who don't feel like dropping $.99 per track would be able to pay a...
POSTED Friday, April 13, 2007
I am not a thief. I've never shoplifted. I once took a candy bar from my sister, but felt so guilty that I confessed and paid her back — three times. I feel bad taking more than one sample...
POSTED Thursday, April 12, 2007
It's a funny thing, 1080p. As TV-resolution specs go, it's pretty damn popular — 1080p has gotten so much hype over the last year, I swear it must be represented by Lizzie Grubman. I mean, it's great if your...
POSTED Thursday, April 12, 2007
Here's an unusual circular cell-phone design concept by Dennis Wostrodowski that looks more like a UFO than a phone. Given the intrusive nature of cellphones, we're not sure we would want to call one The Intruder. But once we...
POSTED Thursday, April 12, 2007
Some researchers in Finland have made a machine that can manufacture "human spare parts." Yikes. Apparently what that means is, in their words:The methodology enables fabrication of nano and micrometer scale structures that can be used as parts of...
POSTED Thursday, April 12, 2007
DARPA, the research arm of the Pentagon that's responsible for inventing new and exciting technologies for our soldiers to use to kill people, is hard at work on making a famous sci-fi item a reality: Luke Skywalker's binoculars. Yes,...
POSTED Thursday, April 12, 2007
Sony has decided to bite the bullet and stop producing the "cheaper" 20 GB Playstation 3. At a whopping $500, the lighter model was vastly underselling the $600 model, one that came with a 60 GB hard drive, built-in...
POSTED Thursday, April 12, 2007
Who knew there was a demand for this, but a team of researchers in Japan has figured out a way to create cement that conducts electricity. Normal cement is a poor conductor because of its asymmetric crystal structure, but...
POSTED Thursday, April 12, 2007
Got a feeling your significant other is cheating on you? The Nokia N95 spy phone is dying to be your personal eavesdropper. The plan: Give him or her the phone as a present. To them, it'll look and function...
POSTED Thursday, April 12, 2007
Nothing wakes you up in the morning better than listening to some tunes in the shower. Unfortunately, the most common way of doing that is via a shower radio, and with the current state of FM radio many of us...
POSTED Thursday, April 12, 2007
Wind power is great, but don't you people know that the wind speeds are a heck of a lot higher when you get up off the ground? That's why this M.A.R.S. (Magenn Power Air Rotor System) is so smart....
POSTED Thursday, April 12, 2007
Real small — that's a good way to describe the Toshiba TDP-FF1, the company's "ultra-portable" mobile projector. Take it on the road to give presentations and then party with it back in your hotel room. Play some video games,...
POSTED Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Miss the warm glow of vacuum tubes? If you liked the crude yet fascinating Nixie Clock we showed you last year, feast your eyes on its chic refinements. Now you can get a blend of classic technology and craftsmanship...
POSTED Wednesday, April 11, 2007
When it comes time to run a multimedia presentation from your laptop to an investor who might make or break your Web 2.0 startup dream, those weak, tiny speakers on your budget notebook could kill the deal. One nifty...
POSTED Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Back in junior high, my school forced the kids to gather every textbook for all five morning classes before the day started, so you'd have to lug something like 500 pounds of books from class to class, leading to...
POSTED Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Epoq has introduced a compact portable media player (PMP) that's just slightly bigger than a book of matches. As small as it is, the company has been able to squeeze a 2.2-inch touchscreen into the gadget, which can play...
POSTED Wednesday, April 11, 2007
I don't know about you, but I'm pretty sick of the computerized sewing machine market. I mean, it's just so overcrowded. Who can tell the difference between all these crazy sewing machines? And I'm just tired of writing about them,...
POSTED Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Sony, who still remembers being king of the portable music player market, like, 20 years ago when people thought cassettes were totally rad, has just announced their latest stab at getting people to ditch their iPods, the E Series....
POSTED Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Sometimes these ostentatious, over-the-top gadgets designed to make rich people feel like they're really living the rich lifestyle go too far. I mean, yeah, slap some diamonds on your phone if it'll make you feel cooler, but when the...
POSTED Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Media pirates hate spending money on stuff like music or movies, but put a fancy piece of technology in front of them that'll help them download more stuff in less time and you'll suddenly discover that these people do in...
POSTED Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Remember those quaint days when the bathroom was simply a place where you went to do your business and get clean? Before it turned into some high-falutin' fashion statement, some personal sanctuary and shrine to relaxation? Yeah, those were...
POSTED Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Let's not deceive ourselves. Apple TV isn't the first device to do what Apple TV does, not by a long shot. It suffers many shortcomings. But for reasons that become self-evident the moment the familiar Apple logo appears on...
POSTED Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Holding the Meade mySKY GPS-enhanced multimedia guide in your hands is just like standing next to an expert astronomer as he describes what you're seeing in the night sky. Reminding us of the Celestron SkyScout, both devices automatically align...
POSTED Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Nothing says "no thanks, I'm not interested" like an 800,000-volt shock to the sternum, which is why anyone who fears for their safety while they walk home at night through the PJs should feel a bit more comfortable with...
POSTED Tuesday, April 10, 2007
The problem with waterskiing is that it's way too difficult to carry on a conversation while you're doing it, what with the water, the engine, and the distance from the boat. If you were wearing the Two-way Radio Life...
POSTED Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Having a generator around in case of a blackout is a nice idea, but not one that people who don't live in the middle of nowhere commonly go for. It's an expensive item to take on, especially when the...
POSTED Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Face scanning as a security measure has always been a neat, futuristic idea, but the logistics of it don't make a whole lot of sense. I mean, sure, it's cool that you can unlock your front door with just your...
POSTED Tuesday, April 10, 2007
You love your kid, don't you? I mean, you wouldn't want to leave him sitting in a soggy sack of his own urine, right? Of course you wouldn't. You aren't a monster, after all. That's why this Wet Diaper...
POSTED Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Have you ever had nearly $25,000 just lying around? While you could certainly buy iPods for almost everyone you know, what about if you threw your dollars at a snazzy speaker? That's right, just one speaker. Not a set, but...
POSTED Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Did you guys hear that by the year 2000 we'll be able to take 3D pictures? Yeah, I know, the future is going to be so crazy! I mean, just take a look at these sweet StereoVision VuCAM Binoculars....
POSTED Tuesday, April 10, 2007
We do reviews! It's Review Week here at SCI FI Tech, which means we'll be bringing you hands-on write-ups of gadgets both big and small every day. Adam Frucci kicks off the week by getting connected with Helio's new...
POSTED Monday, April 9, 2007
A team of Swiss aircraft designers are now flying a small model prototype of SmartFish, a lightweight and fuel-efficient hydrogen fuel cell-powered aircraft that's been in development for five years. So far the team has flown a radio-controlled test...
POSTED Monday, April 9, 2007
Consumer electronics are so boring with their vanilla design and color scheme. This has opened a whole new industry of cases, skins and wrappers designed to cover up the plain and make your device unique. In the ever-growing battle...
POSTED Monday, April 9, 2007
Science fiction may soon see another of its concepts defect to the realm of science now that engineers at Purdue University have an invisibility device in the works. Still just a concept at this point, the plan would be to...
POSTED Monday, April 9, 2007
Backing up your data is a pain, especially if you only want to back up certain things. You've got to either manually do it or have the foresight to set up a program of some sort that will do it...
POSTED Monday, April 9, 2007
While this little device might be designed to allow you to eavesdrop on people, it looks like it's really a vehicle of sweet, sweet justice. I mean, yeah, if you stick the M7 Secret Agency Spy Ear in your...
POSTED Monday, April 9, 2007
Want to get the attention of the U.S. Military? In a good way, I mean, not in the "we're going to invade your country and then make a bunch of mistakes and then be stuck there for a decade...
POSTED Monday, April 9, 2007
Xbox 360 owners are going to find that their gaming machine has a few new features in the near future, as Microsoft has a spring update in the works that will add MSN messenger functionality and a sleep downloading...
POSTED Monday, April 9, 2007
At what point is a gadget just too damn small? I thought a video player with just a 1.5-inch screen was too tiny but now we see for sale on Gadget Universe what's being dubbed as the "Ultimate Smallest...
POSTED Monday, April 9, 2007
How did we not get this one from Shiny Shiny? LG's new VX8700 phone, now available from Verizon, is one sweet slice of glowing cellular goodness. Definitley based on the company's Shine phone, the slim clamshell (just half an...
POSTED Sunday, April 8, 2007
Nothing says "relaxation" like lounging around in a sauna. The heat, the steam; it just makes you feel so good and drained. Normally you can only enjoy a sauna at the gym, spa, or ski cabin, but now you can...
POSTED Saturday, April 7, 2007
Our regular column, Shift, returned with a vengeance this week. The controversial tech topic of backscatter x-ray machines was the target, and our phalanx of columnists took it on with new opinions every day. Links back to all the...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
And so it ends. In our fifth and final column examining the use of backscatter x-ray machines in airport security, S.E. Kramer stays on target by jettisoning tangential issues about privacy and asking, "Will these machines actually make us...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
LEDs are taking the lighting world by storm, and Philips just took one step closer to that holy grail of smaller, lighter and cheaper illuminaton with its Luxeon Rebel LED. It's a lot smaller than the smallest surface-mount LEDs,...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
Okay, the first thing I have to do in talking about the Qosimo G40 laptop is give props to Toshiba in picking what is perhaps the best possible screenshot for showing off the new silver color scheme of the...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
So I've got good news and I've got bad news. The good news is that the surgery was a success, and we were able to completely remove that pesky appendix of yours, so it shouldn't be giving you any...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
This one is for you die-hard Star Wars fans out there. Don't you hate feeling like when you're out and about you aren't adequately displaying your awkwardly intense love for a 30-year-old movie? I mean, you can't exactly bring...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
This new phone from LG is a "banana style phone" due to its curvy shape when open. Technically, it's the LG-SV280, but much like the Shine and Chocolate, you can expect to just hear this referred to as the...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
The next time your kid begs you for a drum kit, just remember drums are noisy and take up a lot of room. Unless you're trying to get revenge on an ex-spouse, or happen to be a glutton for...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
Which idea came to the Dutch inventors first — building a wood-burning hot tub, or making it look like the bottom half of an orange pig? Whatever they were smoking, I'll take some. The polyester tub holds 200 gallons...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
It's been pretty well documented that overeager, sweaty-palmed Wii players are prone to flinging their Wii-motes every which way, often destroying property or people in the process. Sure, Nintendo recalled their originally-wussy wrist straps and replaced them with slightly beefier...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
I know I'm not alone in often wondering how come there's a pager that locates my cordless phones but not my TV remote? While none of the major TV manufacturers have thought to offer us such an indispensable feature —...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
Too cheap to foot the bill for a trip to Alaska to witness the majesty of the Northern Lights? That's cool. You're just missing out on one of this planet's most amazing natural phenomena. No problem. You can always...
POSTED Friday, April 6, 2007
In Part 4 of our weeklong series examining the use of backscatter x-ray machines in airport security, Leslie Shapiro doesn't pull any punches. Her Shift takes on the new technology in detail — and spells out exactly what we should...
POSTED Thursday, April 5, 2007
Geek fashionistas take note — a new accessory you slip over your wrist promises to make a great partner to your pocket protector. Based upon experiences from one of their interns (sounds reliable), Venture Designworks has unveiled the FreeHand as...
POSTED Thursday, April 5, 2007
Load all your digital music onto the 1.5-TB hard drive of moodSeer's moodCenter main unit (pictured above left), and it automatically categorizes each tune by mood. Similar to the KlipschCasting system we recently introduced to you, it connects via...
POSTED Thursday, April 5, 2007
Just because I'm a PC fan doesn't mean I have to be stuck with an ugly beige box. No, Apple fans, you aren't the only people out there who have the option of getting a cool-looking computer. Just take...
POSTED Thursday, April 5, 2007
Boy, this mouse sure is flashy. It's covered in what I can only assume are fake jewels, the kinds of things you would use to bedazzle a jean jacket if you were a 13-year-old girl in the mid-80s. If...
POSTED Thursday, April 5, 2007
Good news, perverts: cameras are getting smaller by the day. When at one point if you wanted a camera hidden in your hat you had to pretend to be a cowboy or a Sikh, now you can hide a...
POSTED Thursday, April 5, 2007
We've been staring longingly at the Butterfly cell phone all morning. The slick slider has a touchscreen, a weather indicator, and Wi-Fi — not to mention it's totally hot. Of course, anything this cool would have to be a...
POSTED Thursday, April 5, 2007
This is the XR-3 hybrid, a crazy looking three-wheeled vehicle due to debut in June. Technically a motorcycle by regulation standards, it's loaded up with a diesel engine as well as lithium-ion batteries, providing a whopping 125 to 225...
POSTED Thursday, April 5, 2007
Leave it to the brainiacs at MIT to come up with a huge leap forward in artificial feet while my efforts at the project are stalled out at the conceptual phase. Go figure. Anyhow, the folks at the MIT...
POSTED Thursday, April 5, 2007
Our week of opining continues, with another of our new columnists chiming in on the privacy-versus-security issues that arise with backscatter x-ray machines, coming soon to airport security checkpoints near you. Picking up this Shift is none other than Stephen...
POSTED Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Sometimes you don't have your hands free but you need light in the worst possible way. Sure, there are cumbersome headlights you can wear on a helmet like a coal miner, flashlights mounted to an elastic band around your...
POSTED Wednesday, April 4, 2007
It's a stool; it's a chair. This piece of designer Buro Vormkrijgers' Transfurniture is both, morphing from one to the other with a few bends and flips. Honestly, neither "mode" looks all that comfortable, though the aluminum and stainless-steel...
POSTED Wednesday, April 4, 2007
It's been a long time coming, but Apple has finally released its 8-core MacPro workstation. At the heart of this super system are two 3.0-GHz quad-core Intel Xeon processors that should run circles around other systems out there. The...
POSTED Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Nothing says "I love you" like a couple pounds of rose petals being blasted in your face at high speeds. At least that's what I think, which might explain why my luck with the ladies isn't exactly something to...
POSTED Wednesday, April 4, 2007
You can tell a lot about a person from their iPod dock. Circular and symmetrical: you like to be in control. Stone camouflage exterior: you're in touch with nature. And if you had the Dragon I, it might be...
POSTED Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Next time you take to the skies you won't be able to use your cell phone, but you might just be able to check your e-mail. It seems that U.S.-based airlines are all planning to jump on the Wi-Fi bandwagon,...
POSTED Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Want to impress everyone at the beach this year? You could dedicate yourself to going to the gym and attaining a sculpted physique, but that takes too much effort. No, it'd be way cooler if instead you rolled in on...
POSTED Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Hey kids! Feel like messing with your teacher and disrupting the classroom environment? Of course you do, that's half the fun of being a kid. Let me suggest you use this Froggie robotic pen? Yes, it's a pen that's...
POSTED Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Ikea and its cheap, sort-of-stylish furniture are already taking over living rooms and bedrooms everywhere, but could they take over actual homes as well? I mean, heck, their showrooms already make you want to design your interiors around their...
POSTED Wednesday, April 4, 2007
And now for Round 2 in our scrutinize-airport-security week, inspired by the advent of backscatter x-ray technology, a new system meant to obsolete pat-down searches at airports. Today's Shift is taken by Stewart Wolpin, who points out there are...
POSTED Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Vincent Kessler/Reuters A high-speed train recently set a new rail speed record in France, causing numerous Amtrak riders to choke on their liberty fries. The TGV doubledecker train shot from Paris to Strasbourg at 357.2 miles (officially, 574.8 kilometers) per...
POSTED Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Apparently, Segways are too intimidating when cops are riding them. I mean, you want to scare criminals a little bit, but the powerful image of a cop perched on the gyroscope-equipped dork machine pushed many hardened criminals to the...
POSTED Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Wireless USB has been on the way for a while now, and now it's finally here. The WiRanger Cable Free USB 2.0 Hub from Icron Technologies is the first wireless USB hub to use the familiar 802.11g band used...
POSTED Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Are you riding the wave of the future, watching videos on all sorts of formats and on different devices? If so, then you know how much of a pain converting formats is. If you're an Apple fan and have...
POSTED Tuesday, April 3, 2007
The first question that comes to my mind when I see something like this Inflatable Color-changing Lap is: why? But perhaps I should be less cynical and ask "why not?" instead, as really, this thing is kind of neat. I...
POSTED Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Even if you don't have a ton of memory cards, this USB Piggy Card Reader is just too cute for any animal-loving PC owner to pass up. And hey, you never know when you might need to read something...
POSTED Tuesday, April 3, 2007
. No, this isn't some modern take on the aluminum Christmas tree, but rather a dynamic sculpture that uses ferromagnetic nanoparticles to change its shape. Designed by Sachiko Kodama and Yasushi Miyajima, "Morpho Towers — Two Standing Spirals" is an...
POSTED Tuesday, April 3, 2007
I love to cook, but sometimes I feel like my appliances make it so tedious and difficult that it's not even worth it. I mean, if you have to exert yourself to the point of exhaustion why not just give...
POSTED Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Those super-dorky Transitions lenses that your dad wears might be on their way out thanks to a new tech developed by researchers at the University of Washington. The problem with Transitions is that they don't always fully change from...
POSTED Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Backscatter x-ray technology, a new system meant to make airport security searches easy and non-contact, brings with it concerns about privacy and effectiveness. With the multitude of issues at stake (touched upon recently by William Saletan over at Slate), we...
POSTED Monday, April 2, 2007
Oh man, life is so stressful! You've got a job, a significant other, and perhaps some little runts running around that you have to deal with. It's all so darned stressful! Argh! Simmer down! Take a deep breath. I've...
POSTED Monday, April 2, 2007
Your jaw might drop when you first glance at this electromagnetic photo frame, that is, until you spend a couple of seconds figuring out how it works. Working in the same way as the floating clock we showed you...
POSTED Monday, April 2, 2007
Riding a bike is great. Not only is it fun, but it's great exercise and it's one form of transportation that doesn't contribute to humanities pillaging of the environment. The only problem is that biking in cold or wet...
POSTED Monday, April 2, 2007
Does the coming of spring just inspire you to seek out snow-covered peaks where you can still be as extreme as you want? If you're that hardcore about your skiing, rock climbing and other winter whatnot, this avalanche transceiver...
POSTED Monday, April 2, 2007
Man, I grew up during the wrong decade. While sure, I enjoyed Legos and Tinker Toys and the original Game Boy, I certainly didn't have any toys that involved fighting robots. Sure, Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots were around,...
POSTED Monday, April 2, 2007
We're not sure what's behind the recent surge in toast technology, but we're also not opposed to anything that can upgrade the most important meal of the day. The Mool Toaster from designer Atil Kizilbayir is the latest high-tech...
POSTED Monday, April 2, 2007
In a surprising and awesome move, Apple and EMI announced today that they'll be putting EMI's catalog of music on iTunes in DRM-free format. That means you'll be able to buy music with no copy protection, allowing you to listen...
POSTED Monday, April 2, 2007
A hot-from-the-lab optical chipset from IBM promises to reduce the download time of a movie to as little as a second. It moves data at 160 gigabits per second by replacing electrons flowing through wires with light pulses. Of...
POSTED Monday, April 2, 2007
The days of keeping your thoughts to yourself may be numbered, as scientists in Switzerland have begun developing a machine that can actually read minds. Adapting the same thought-reading technology that a