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Disneyland to Las Vegas on Maglev Train
2008-06-08 17:34:00
There has been an update regarding the proposed Anaheim-Las Vegas maglev train. The floating train project is moving forward as part of a transportation bill signed by President Bush that puts aside $45 million for the 300 mile-per-hour train. This project initially called for a $3 to $5 billion budget to get things started. The train is planned to sprint people from Disneyland to Vegas in under two hours! No word on proposed launches or actual construction, however, it’s assumed that Disney will get involved with some extra cash at some point. Slashdot
More About: Train , MagLev

Softbank 923SH - Aquos LCD Equipped Mobile Phone
2008-06-08 15:42:00
If you like the idea of the flippy screen Sidekick you’ll probably adore the 923SH which is just one of almost a dozen new phones to be released by the Japanese firm Softbank . The display on the 923SH is a smaller version of Sharp’s AQUOS LCD HDTV technology and thus it should have pretty ’sharp’ visuals (arf!). Video recording comes via its 29mm wide-angle lens, and can record at 15 fps (Frame per second) and 30 fps. The Softbank 923SH will be released in Japan in the summer in a range of different colours including black, navy, clear white, and silk pink. Source
More About: Mobile , Phone , Mobile Phone , Aquos

Apple WWDC 2008 Times and Places To Be At: Spy Pics
2008-06-06 11:25:00
Photos: Gernot Poetsch Alrighty!! It’s time to synchronise your timepieces people!  If, like me, you wont be over in the states on Monday Enadget will be feeding us the good stuff. If you (possibly) want to get all the juice about the: 3G iPhone Mid-range Mac desktop Tablet MacBook Tablet iPod touch New MacBook Pros Hang on though.  This is the WWDC (World Wide Developer Con) and is usually all about the software so Apple  may only announce one or two new pieces of hardware.  Maybe. Perhaps. In that case: iPhone 2.0 firmware OS X 10.6 Me.com Here’s a bunch of things that should help you out. Where you need to be: Steve Jobs WWDC 2008 keynote - live coverage All WWDC 2008 coverage [RSS] [Twitter] En Español: El WWDC empieza este lunes 9 de junio a las 10:00 PST USA… ¡prepárate! And here’s when you gotta be there: 07:00AM - Hawaii 10:00AM - Pacific 11:00AM - Mountain 12:00PM - Central 01:00PM - Eastern 05:00PM - GMT 06:00PM - London 07:00PM - Pari...
More About: Places , Times

Square Photos From Classic 5mp Rolleiflex
2008-06-06 10:49:00
If you like your snappers to have that shrunken retro chic then get a load of this because Minox have done it again! Like something straight out of one of those moving pictures that are all the rage at the present the Rolleiflex AF 5.0 is a “fully functioning, high precision replica of the world famous Rolleiflex 6×6 camera (scale 1:2)” It produces square photographs and the hand-crank is not just for show just like the original. It does have some help from more up-to-date tech with its a 5-megapixel sensor, LCD monitor and a miniSD slot. The black version is priced at €299 (£245) and the more flash Italian Red version will cost you an extra €30 (£25) more. LetsGoDigital
More About: Photos , Classic , Square

3G iPhone Ships out to UK July 2008!
2008-06-05 13:25:00
T3 have some pretty cool info. They say that they’ve had word that O2 has been warned that they are going to be “very busy” in the first week of July . Also they’ve been told (as I have) that June 9th would also be a hectic day. So the 3G J-phone should be with us in 4 weeks!!! To read their wisdom click the link above or below :0) UPDATE: It sounds like the ‘press launch’ of Stevie J’s keynote will also be later for us lot in the UK as we’ll have to watch it after the event via the Apple website and not live streamed as per usual. T3 iPhone News
More About: Iphone , Ships , 2008

V-Beat Air Guitar - Better Than Playing With Your Buckle
2008-06-04 17:01:00
Ok wannabe shredders and riff-meisters! You want that faux-guitar vibe but not be hooked up to a console? Also you don’t want people watching you strum your belt-buckle? Go over to Firebox and check out the V-Beat Air Guitar . The two-piece motion-sensitive “guitar” thingy makes noises by clipping to your belt then: Hold the headstock/fretboard bit in one hand moving it back and forth for pitch whilst your other hand “strums”. No huge Marshall stacks but the built-in speaker blasts out your strummage in three playing modes: Freestyle (play what you want), Easy Go (play along to pre-programmed rhythms) and Pop Academy (a step by step tutor mode). You can also switch between single notes, chords and powerchords and select various guitar sounds (don’t think Line 6 should be worrying though). All this for 25 notes - Try getting a vintage Strat for that!
More About: Air Guitar

Longer Wait for UK 3G iPhone?
2008-06-04 14:16:00
Now I’m a confused little gadget lover. I was all excited when I was informed that O2 was told to “be prepared for an announcement” next week which I obviously thought - iPhone v.2.0 launch! Now Apple has said that there are no plans for a pressday in the UK next week.  What? The usual thing is to have a live feed from the Jobster piped into a London venue for things like iPhone launches for instance. So, is the 3G iPhone being launched but later in the UK? Is it actually being launched at all?  Is Apple just playing things really close to their chest? I’m trying my best to get to the bottom of this.
More About: Iphone , Wait

PS3 Bluetooth Headset - SOCOM
2008-06-04 11:15:00
It looks like the soon to be here SOCOM Confrontation game for the PS3 will come with a free Bluetooth headset - remember the deal with ‘Warhawk’ last year? The difference is in the looks department.  Where the Warhawk one was, shall we say, a little ordinary this one looks pretty slick and very Playstation. It looks so Sony PS branded that I could easily be convinced that this actually an “official” PlayStation 3 headset! What do you reckon? PS3Fanboy
More About: Headset , Bluetooth Headset

Acer Aspire One Official Release and Prices
2008-06-04 10:23:00
I know how much you lot love the EeePC but now Acer ’s Aspire One has finally gone all official! Could this be the One to tempt you away from Asus? (see what I did there?) So the full specs are as follows: 8.9-inch 1024 x 600 LED-backlit display 1.6GHz Atom N270 512MB DDR2 SDRAM (expandable) 1.3 megapixel camera, SDHC and multi-format media readers 802.11b/g, Ethernet, three USB 2.0, VGA, and 3.5mm audio out One free mini PCI slot for WWAN 80GB hard drive (with XP) or 8GB solid state (with Linux) 2.5 or 5 hours on 3 or 6-cell batteries in XP model, 3 or 7 hours on Linux 1kg (2.2 pounds) Word is that you should be able to get your mits on one this month in blue or white (with black, red, and pink models coming soon).  You folks over in the states should see it released later this year. Look to be coughing up £199 for the Linux model, and £299 for the XP one. El Reg
More About: Release , Official , Prices

Playstation Home Is Nearly Here - Beta
2008-06-03 16:45:00
PlayStation Home will be here later in the year it seems in “open, working beta” format. I know you’re thinking “Google use this” but in their defense, Sony has actually come clean describing Home’s rollout as “similar to Gmail.” Could this be a way of covering their backs if parts fall over?  Nah.  Well.  Could be, I guess……. But hey - Playstation Home is nearly here! Wired
More About: Beta

Asus Eee-nlarge the Range
2008-06-03 14:17:00
It’s all happening at Asus ! As the rumblings predicted the range has now been beefed up with the Eee PC 901, 1000 and 1000(H). All these new models will have Intel’s 1.6GHz Atom CPU under the hood and screen sizes now range from 8.9 inches for the 901 to 10 inches for the 1000 and 1000(H). All nice so far :0) They’ve also added “Super Hybrid Engine technology” - this increases battery time up to 7.8hours! Not 8 or 7.5 ya hear!!??!! I’m liking the sound of the next bit: You also get 20GB of online web storage space.  So you no longer have to cart around a bag full of memory sticks or ruin the idea of portability with an external HDD!  Brilliant! :0) For the more fashion lead of you there will be an ”Infusion” of cover patterns in ”tasteful designs” and “vibrant colours”. Hmmm…….
More About: Range

Denon D-M37 DAB - Cheap and Nicely
2008-06-03 13:23:00
I like Denon . I’ve had seperates in the past and at the moment a little DM-31 rocks out in my bedroom through a pair of Q Acoustics 1020’s. Now Denon are annoucing a little star that wont hurt your wallet; The D-M37DAB. It shares its looks with the other DM’s and it can come along with or without a pair of Denon SC-M37 speakers. As its moniker suggests it is packing a DAB as well as FM radio.  It also provides a CD player that’ll read MP3 and unprotected WMA discs, a USB socket for playback of music stored on flash drives and a socket out back for hooking up one of their Pod docks as well as a remote. Now with Denon’s name I’d expect to be having to fork out between £400-£500 with speakers - oh no, the D-M37DAB will cost you £300 with speakers or £230 without. It should be out by the end of this month!
More About: Cheap

First Blu-Ray LP Disc Release - Audiophile HD
2008-05-30 11:48:00
If you want your cd’s to be Hi-Def then shout hurrah! If you are a fan of Divertimento then shout hurrah thrice!  The first release is from Thondheimsolistene, an orchestra from Norway. “Divertimenti will be released by the 2L label in full HD audioness along with a SACD track for those not rocking Blu-ray yet.
More About: Release , Disc , Audiophile

21st Century Pot Goes Digital - Plants Get Emotive
2008-05-29 14:32:00
This rather fab/spooky design idea from Junyi Heo lets you know how your house-plants are feeling. The pot is packed with sensors measuring temperature, soil moisture and the like and then displays the results as emoticons and symbols. If you do happen to overwater your chlorophyll based buddies the pot is clever enough to drain itself. It charges via USB and will  also send data to your PC for your perusal.  Yanko Design via Gizmodo
More About: Plants , Digital , Century

Asus Express Gate Splashtop Appears on Notebooks
2008-05-29 12:14:00
The lightweight Linux variant Splashtop that’s pre-installed on some Asus motherboards is bounding over like a playful puppy to a range of Asus notebooks, providing instant-on functions like wireless, web browsing, Skype, etc.  Good boy! Since the software runs from the RAM there’s no need for the full OS to boot up - this also means that it saves that all important battery life.  Roll over.  I reckon that this and other similar software will start popping up on more systems.  Beg. Have a goosey at the press jibba-jabba.  Fetch! Splashtop comes to ASUS Notebooks Complete range of ASUS notebook models provide ‘instant-on’ Internet and media access May 29, 2008 - SAN JOSE, CA - DeviceVM today announced the release of their award winning Splashtop™ software on numerous ASUS notebooks. Splashtop is a light-weight operating system that allows consumers to use their computers seconds after hitting the power button. Models spanning a wide range of segm...
More About: Gate , Express

10 Inches of Eee PC Pleasure
2008-05-29 11:38:00
Asus have confirmed that they will be launching the 10-inch version of their ever-so popular Eee PC on Tuesday at the Computex trade show in Taiwan. A spokesperson for the company has said that the larger-screened model should be on sale in the UK in November. No other details have been confirmed. Word out in the blogsphere is that it’s likely to be packing the all new Intel Atom chips, which are due for launch at the same time. Thing is - I thought the Eee PC’s main selling point was it’s diminutive size and ultra-portabilty.  Or was I wrong?
More About: Pleasure

Asus ROG XG Station - Multimedia Docking
2008-05-28 12:14:00
Asus has launched the world’s first VGA and multimedia docking station. The lovely ASUS ROG (Republic of Gamer) XG Station has gained the red dot design award honorable mention 2008. The Asus XG Station is bundled with the EN8600GT/HTDP/256M graphics card and is equipped with an Express Card interface “seamlessly integrating notebook computing with powerful PC graphical power”. It also incorporates 4 USB 2.0 ports and Dolby Technology – doubling as a USB hub that delivers true AV enjoyment. Read the full press release at New Launches
More About: Multimedia , Asus

A Mobile Marvel - Comics on Your Phone
2008-05-28 11:47:00
Wanna catch up with the goings on of Wolverine, The Hulk, DareDevil and the like from the comfort of your mobile phone? Yeah? Well Marvel Comics wants to do just that. A quote from Marvel (source IESB - link below): …View digital distribution of our comics as an area of great growth potential…and also soon in mobile distribution…so they can read our new comic books on their mobile device… My only worry is how readable will these be? Would the mobile devices mentioned just be the top end PMPs and things such as the e-Book or do they intend including phones?  Most computer screens are either 72 or 96 dpi.  The iPhone is 163 dpi, while the SE’s Xperia is rumoured to have a print quality resolution of 296 dpi.  So, in theory, Marvel and other publishers will be able to put more content on the screen or offer multi-resolution comics. I’m quite excited by the thought of this though………. Would you sign up? IESB
More About: Mobile , Marvel Comics

Jetsons Style - Jetpod Flying Taxi
2008-05-27 17:05:00
See the future in a Jetsons stylee! Well, the future if Avcen Limited with their Jetpod T-100 City Flying Taxi have their way. Described as a VQSTOL (Very Quiet Short Take-off and Landing) vehicle.  The company says it could be in the air by 2010. Could it be the official Olympic vehicle? The main idea is to see these sprinting between cities or perhaps the commute from suburbia to the city centre. Avcen says that 75 of these in London could relieve road traffic of 37,000 return car trips per day all the while keeping things quiet and requiring only short landing strips made of pavement or grass(?). I dread to think how much the charge for throwing up your kebab in the back on a Friday night would be! TAXI!!!!!! - Whooooooooooooooooooooosh! The Contaminated
More About: Style

L’Orange French 3G iPhone Deal?
2008-05-27 15:56:00
If you’ve been keeping up with the 3G iPhone leaks and news you will have seen mysterious queues outside Apple stores and excited reports about cargo ships from China. This one seems a little more real. French iPhone owners are reporting that they are being contacted by Orange , the official French carrier-partner, with special offers for the (rumoured) 3G model. PCInpact is claiming that a number of its readers have been called by Orange regarding an upgrade to the future Apple mobile. HMmmm…………&hel lip;.. The current owners are being offered a direct exchange of their existing iPhone and get the second gen version for 50 euros. The other option being touted is for those who want to keep their current iPhone, but also want the (supposedly) 3G version means they can buy the new model and receive a “generous” discount - but I think that’s just plain greedy!  :0P I’m sure all this will become apparent on 9th June Electronista...
More About: Iphone , Deal

Max Out in the MaxLounge Audio Chairs
2008-05-27 13:12:00
If you’re looking for one of those funky lounge chairs but are put off by their way not cool prices - check this out! The Maxlounge Inflatable Lounge Chair is a pretty cool looking chair complete with built-in speakers that costs under £30! Simply plug the audio jack into your MP3 Player and “experience total comfort and immersion in your media”. Due to the durable PVC design you can even take it outside, so it’s perfect for the beach, garden or live it up at a festival. Choose from either the Maxlounge Bossa (Right), or the Maxlounge Liquid (Top). Features: Easy to inflate and deflate Made out of very durable PVC 2 built in speakers for optimal sound Standard 3mm Jack for audio devices such as iPod, MP3 or CD player gadgets.co.uk
More About: Audio , Chairs

3rd Generation iDog for 3G iPhone
2008-05-27 10:24:00
Awwwwwwwwwww………&hell ip;….the iDog is on it’s third generation. Hang on? Third? Was generation two no good? Don’t we get to speak of him/her round the dinner table at family gatherings? Did they go off the rails and hang around with the wrong crowd? Is the bad dawg in the pound? I digress. The new dogbot will move its ears, wag its tail and tap its plastic paws in time to the phat beats provided by your iPod/iPhone. The bionic pooch will apparently synch very nicely with the beautiful 3G iPhone when it arrives. How much is that iPuppy in the window? £20 Brando.
More About: Iphone , Generation

Asus EBOX - Eee Desktop PC Set for June 3rd
2008-05-26 17:33:00
Asus is all set to launch their desktop PC version called the EBOX at Computex in Taipei next month. The details are, as usual, sketchy and have been ‘leaked’ to The Inquirer. What is expected is a new desktop model that will arrive on the 3rd June at the start of the computer show and it will be packing a 160GB hard drive, 2GB ram and run Linux OS as standard rather than Windows XP or Vista as with the rest of the Eee’s. I’m glad that it seems to have kept its Wii like styling. There has been whispers suggesting that the new desktop could be packing the new Intel Atom processor as it will be officially launching in devices that day. Via - The Inqurier
More About: Desktop , Asus

Samsung Shows Off 256 gig SSD
2008-05-26 17:19:00
Say WOW! This is (says Samsung ) the world’s fastest and largest capacity 2.5-inch, MLC-based SSD with SATA II Interface. Samsung has itself one pretty cool 256 gig solid-state drive. With sequential read speed of 200 megabytes per second (MB/s) and sequential write speed of 160MB/s the SSD is about 2.4 times faster than a typical HDD. The drive samples will be available by this September but making for the masses happens at the end of the year. There will be also a 1.8-inch version by then. Samsung

MiShare - iPod Tune Share
2008-05-25 13:26:00
“Check out this cut; it’s banging” Then comes the pre-worn, still warm, slightly waxy ear-buds that belong to your enthusiastic buddy attached to their iPod……… It doesn’t have to be like this!! MiShare puts paid to this lobe-gunk sharing and allows you to pass tracks from iPod to iPod. Just slot in an iPod at either end, press a button and then the last track played zooms across to the receiving Pod. If you don’t want to listen to the track there-and-then and wish to give it your fullest attention later - so be it.
More About: Ipod , Tune

N-Gage Games Will Be Transferable - Eventually
2008-05-25 12:47:00
So proves the power of blogs and the consumer! It’s been a mere week since the kerfuffle over the fact that N-Gage games were not transferable started to grab some folks attention. Nokia has now come out and said that users will be able to take their games with them to a new handset after all - RAH! Eventually. Hmmmm……….. According to Nokia communications manager, Oskar Södergren, some apparent “miscommunication” on Nokia’s part is apparently to blame for users being left up in the air on the matter. He goes on to say that something had apparently led to some “mixed messages” being passed around inside Nokia as well. He also added that Nokia has in fact “been working on a way for this to work since the relaunch, but it is taking some time for everything to fall into place.” PC World
More About: Games , N-Gage

Epson Hi-Res e-Paper - e-Ink
2008-05-22 10:56:00
Most of you readers here will have seen quite a handful of e-papers and designs using e-Ink but Epson ’s new prototype display demands a closer look! Why?  Well it features an eye lovingly high resolution for its dimensions: 3104 x 4128, swaggering in at something like 385ppi. According to FarEastGizmos, The e-ink is being supplied by E-Ink (duh!) and the low temperature polycrystal Si-TFT glass stuff is courtesy of Seiko Epson. Soon we shall be reading our e-paper on the tube (before some scally runs off with it no doubt).
More About: Paper , E-paper

Top Deck! Montegiro Lusso Da Vinci
2008-05-21 15:07:00
Keeping on the subject of top-notch and pricey Hi-Fi equipment how about this Montegiro Lusso turntable? Made up of three height-adjustable shiny cones made from alternate layers of acrylic and aluminum, and a larger, up-ened cone that supports the platter it kinda looks like an Alessi dining set. The arm is, of course, a Da Vinci Nobile carbon-fiber unit which holds a MG1 titanium cartridge. A special (!) version of the £25,000 turntable has another cone.  This supports a second, nine-inch SME 5009 tonearm. audiojunkies
More About: Deck

PrimaLuna Prologue 8 - Pod Dock Valve Love
2008-05-21 14:24:00
This work of valve artistry is the PrimaLuna Prologue Eight. Ok, looking closer it might look a little like a hard-drive caddy with a power brick and few light-bulbs on it but its makers say that the aural pleasure will blind everyone and then the love will truly start.  For a pod-dock and CD player that costs £1,590 it had better live up to the hype!
More About: Love , Dock , Valve

3G iPhone Launch - Official Release Date
2008-05-20 15:54:00
Well this is as near as I can get to confirmation that the fabled beast that is the 3G iPhone will be released in the next month! Apparently it is to be announced at the WWDC Keynote on June 9th and then the 2nd generation iPhone will be available worldwide right after the launch! Now, interestingly the 3G Phone de Jesus will no longer be available at a fixed price, well at least in some countries, word has it. More news as it comes - thanks to those that have emailed me with this stuff :0) Gizmodo picture credit ESKN.com
More About: Iphone , Release , Launch , Official