Gadgets 2008

With the Chinese Propagana Olympic Games now here and everyone basking in the spirit of athletic competition while China restricts Internet access even to mainstream media sources, it seemed the time was right to report on this cool gadget known as the “Freedom Stick.”

Engineered by folks who know a thing or two about government oppression of ideas, this German creation is a USB drive that costs about $20 US and comes pre-loaded with software which will get around and frustrate any monitoring software and firewalls by masking computer communications and bouncing it around the world and back through a wide network of anonymous computers, thus avoiding detection and preventing organizations like the PRC from tracing your signal.

Course, what could bring freedom to those behind the Chow Mein curtain could also bet used to mask communications of our enemies here in the States. So you can be Uncle Sam will say buying one here is a “no-no.”

Hat Tip - Core 77

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I’m not certain if the ‘iMovie’ name is a trademarked term, because I have seen this label used on an Apple (of course, the “i” prefix was a dead giveaway).  In that case, this was for a product that can edit home movies. However, there is another product that has been labeled iMovie, but it is not software. It’s the RAmos iMovie, which is a movie viewer that looks (dare I say it) rather sexy. 

It has a 4.3-inch WQVGA display, and it is very thin at just 10mm. The video support includes RMVB, AVI, FLV, WMV, MPG, MP4, DAT, and 3GP formats.  It can also support popular audio, photo, as well as text files.  Not only that, but it has TV out as well as integrated speakers. 

The RAmos iMovie is made in China, and is available in three models.  The 32GB version is about 1499 yuan ($219), the 16GB is 999 yuan ($145), and the 8GB runs for 699 yuan ($102).

Via [PMP Today]

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by Paul Miller, posted Aug 8th 2008 at 5:56PM
Yeah, we get it, flexible electronics — sans application — are about as exciting as the circuitry under your keyboard. But it’s Friday, and this here story has real-live carbon nanotubes, so you know it’s a winner. Takao Someya of the University of Tokyo has built for himself a stretchy, flexible conducting material using carbon nanotubes mixed with a polymer. The nanotubes are mixed into a compound called “bucky gel” to prevent clumping, and after some rubber-like flourinated copolymer is mixed in and it’s all poured onto a glass plate, holes are punched in the material to better flexibility. Apparently it ends up looking a bit like a nylon stocking, but we won’t hold that it against it, since it can be stretched up to 38%, while also managing to be 100 times more conductive than any other elastic material. The possibilities for such technology is pretty much endless, but we’d say “nylon stocking that is also, conveniently, a computer” is the first product category worth felling.

[Via I4U]

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

by Paul Miller, posted Aug 8th 2008 at 3:07PM
Ad Astra’s VASIMR plasma rocket is about ready for testing, only problem is it requires the vacuum of space to do it in. NASA is now considering taking the rocket up to the International Space Station, clipping it on and firing her up — perhaps even using it to reposition the station. Formerly of NASA, Franklin Chang Diaz left to form Ad Astra and perfect his plasma rocket, which he hopes will be able to take space vehicles from low-earth orbit to the moon. The rocket draws its own power from solar cells, and then uses radio waves to heat argon into plasma, and directs that plasma using magnets. Pretty fancy stuff, and since the rocket is reusable and can propel payloads double the size of equivalent chemical engines, there could be cost savings in the long run. Right now it seems the main hang ups for NASA are where to attach the rocket to the ISS where it won’t be interfered with, and how to get it into space after the space shuttle is retired in 2010

[Via Newlaunches.com]

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Filed under: Transportation

by Joshua Topolsky, posted Aug 8th 2008 at 3:29PM
Been having a tough time figuring out just what CERN’s Large Hadron Collider does? Worried that it will create a Möbius strip (a rip in the fabric of space where time becomes a loop)? Just love to jam? Watch this CERN-sponsored rap after the break, and have your universe totally destroyed. Er, but not for real.

[Via Protein Feed]

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

It was only a few weeks back that Sony announced they were opening up the Reader, however for those that currently own one of the original PRS-500 models there is a pretty big drawback.

The update will not be offered for the PRS-500, and users would have to upgrade to a newer PRS-505 in order to receive the EPUB format support. Of course Sony is attempting to make up for it, but at the same time they are really just enticing you to buy a new Reader.

They are offering a $100 credit for your current PRS-500, which means that you will have to pick up a new PRS-505 for $299, and then ship your old Reader into Sony to receive your credit.

Long story short, if you are a PRS-500 owner you can get a new PRS-505 Reader for $199.

I guess depending on how much the EPUB format will offer you personally, this deal may or may not be worth it. Of course, if you were considering an upgrade anyway, it may not be a bad time, a quick check on some used PRS-500 Readers shows me that $100 is not all that bad of a deal, a little lower than what I found on eBay, but it would at least take away the hassle of listing it and selling it.

Read [SonyStyle] Via [jkOnTheRun]

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Back in the eighties, we all thought that our phones would eventually have video cameras and displays by the year 2000. Well, most of us have webcams and Skype that can accomplish this, but that has been only in the past few years.

However, the UseeIsee takes this video communicating technology off your computer and puts it on your kitchen counter, just where we thought it would be back in the day.

In fact, you can have this new technology for a flat fee of about $39.95 a month, which features unlimited calls to landlines and mobile phones in North America. According to the UseeIsee Picture Fone’s site, they “just may teach a little humility to fat cats like AT&T, Vonage, and Sprint”. That’s a pretty big boast to make, but it is cheaper than most wireless plans.

The monthly fee may be inexpensive, but the unit for the phone, the GXV-3000, costs about $249.95. This advanced IP video phone is based on SIP and H.264 standard. It also has a 5.6 inch TFT color screen, as well as “superb audio and video quality, rich functionality, ease of use, [and] stylish exterior design”.

So we’re looking at quite an expense here, but that might be a small price to a pay for a device that looks very user-friendly. Perhaps this device will allow grandparents everywhere to be able to view their grandkids in real-time video.

Source

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Alright, no matter what anyone says, there is never too much Star Wars stuff, especially when it comes to R2D2 gadgets.  Well here is one more and for once it’s not some luxury item that you could never afford.  This one is a projector alarm clock, so hopefully you have a blank wall somewhere.  It’s be a bit difficult to read on a wallpapered wall or one cluttered with photographs and posters.  The site is fairly skimpy on the specs of this clock.  After all, it is just a clock, even if it is cooler than the rest purely because of R2.

It doesn’t do flips or list off what R2 inspired sound effects it spouts off.  It just says it features R2D2 sounds, which could mean anything.  Don’t they know we need more details, or at least an in action video?!  Sadly, this isn’t a US product, those of you in the UK get to have all the fun.  Apparently the grass is always greener on the other side of the pond.  The projector is being sold on Amazon’s UK site and even has free delivery.  To get one of these little guys it will cost you £19.99 or about $38.

Source: RetroToGo

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Did you know that salt has anti-aging properties and promotes relaxation? Me neither, but luxury Japanese spa, Saltasia, is based entirely on the idea that women (at least those for whom money is no object) would gladly pay a premium to spend time in rooms lined with hexagon-shaped salt tiles with fancy colored LED lights behind them. Joining fees are between $1,000 and $25,000, so this is no regular day spa; it’s a long-term investment in peace of mind. I would love to see a menu of treatments.

Via Trends in Japan.

Folks who love a rich, creamy stout crowning their favorite lager in a pint will definitely find the Brütül device handy. It allows you to concoct such a drink right in the comfort of your own home without having to head off to the nearest pub.

Brütül (brew tool) introduces the ultimate device for creating the classic Black and Tan and other delicious layered beers. We logged hundreds of hours designing and building the world’s most versatile beer layering device, the Lagerhead Black and Tan Turtle. Equipped with the “Snapper” bottle opener, this handsome Chelonian pours a delicious layered beer time after time.

Hmm, I’m really thirsty for some golden nectar right after this post, but it might be a bit too early in the day to start knocking back some booze.

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