Product: Little Horn Speakers

Manufacturer: Specimen

Wired Rating: 5

More audio gear should look as awesome as the Little Horn Speakers from Specimen. Out of the box, these full-range speakers are a thing of exceptional beauty: The 14-inch-diameter horn carved from high-density fiberglass sits atop a Baltic birch plywood throne that houses a Fostex FE-108 Sigma.

So how so they sound?

We paired our speakers with Neuhaus Laboratories’ T-2 tube amplifier (a less expensive alternative to Specimen’s own EL34 amp), and pumped digital tracks via a laptop in the linoleum-tiled room of the Gadget Lab. The noticeably colored sound seemed reasonable: Mids are more or less crystal clear; the bass is a little weak and the highs suffer from slight clipping (also expected), but we were more or less satiated, especially as we tweaked the setup.

Because the speakers are an imposing 36 inches tall, we first positioned them on the floor. But after listening to a range of genres — everything from Yo-Yo Ma and Sarah Vaughn to Tom Petty — we detected obvious high-frequency room reflection. Translation: Keep these suckers on a desk or shelf.

Although repositioning the base did wonders for the sound, we were shocked at how the speakers stacked up against a Reagan-era set of refurbished Polk Monitor 5s. Compared to those vintage speakers (which currently retail for only $150!), the Little Horns just didn’t have the same presence. The brush drumming behind Sarah Vaughn all but disappeared; the oomph of Tom Petty’s rhythm section faded away. And just maybe that’s not such a bad thing. The difference between getting your eardrums blasted in the front row versus taking in more ambience from the back of a large concert hall is entirely personal.

We can’t tell you what type of listener to be. But we will say this: You’re better off getting a set of speakers like the Polk Monitors and using the excess cash to buy tickets to a Tom Petty concert. That’s a sound decision we can get behind.

WIRED Stunning craftsmanship. As conversational a piece as audio gear can get. Reasonable mid-range tones. Scaled-down version of the massive pro speakers used on stage by musicians like Andrew Bird.

TIRED Even Bose’s top-of-the-line floor speakers are cheaper. Cheap plastic input terminals should be made of metal. Bass weaker than an MGD Light — we had to use boundary reinforcement (i.e. positioning near a wall) to squeeze extra decibels.

Product: Youngblood Chillydog

Manufacturer: Forum

Wired Rating: 4

Sometimes you just don’t get lucky. We tested the Youngblood Chillydog on a gritty icepick of a day with just enough new snow to disguise ice patches — never mind softening them. But hey, we at Wired love testing new equipment in the toughest conditions, so we clipped in and headed down the mountain.

To our astonishment (and delight) we found an untouched run, tucked in between the trees. The wind disappeared, and the snow was new and deep. The nose of this park board floated above the powder and gave us a fast ride down to the bottom of the run. For a brief, shining moment the day turned around.

This board’s continuous rocker is shaped like the bottom half of a circle, with extra pop in the nose and tail. This shape is meant to increase the board’s versatility. The Chillydog performs well in powder, and is actually very forgiving with poorly executed jumps.

The nasty conditions soon picked up again, and because of the low visibility, we took a few big unplanned jumps. Surprisingly, the Chillydog let us keep our footing, even when we landed awkwardly.

Still, this is not a board for those with slight builds. We found the board stiff to press on flat ground and rails, and this inflexibility combined with the board’s rocker to make the Chillydog squirrelly on groomers. Turning at high speeds felt like steering a triceratops. The board seemed intent on following its whims, even as we threw weight back and forth to make it pay attention.

In short, the Chillydog is like your weird uncle from Wyoming — full of obscure skills that come in handy in very specific situations, but difficult to deal with on a day-to-day basis. In attempting to create a board that’s perfect on everything from park to powder, Forum basically stretched this one far too thin.

WIRED Sweet graphics. Versatile in some surprising (read: mega-harsh) conditions. Forgiving when landing jumps at less-than-ideal angles.

TIRED Stiff to press and tough to turn. Unforgiving ride on groomers is completely unforgivable.

The National Geographic Magazine is a icon, just about everyone has heard of it or more then likely, read them either in school or at home. As a publication “Inspiring People to Care About the Planet”, the print version is full of information about nature, human interest stories, discoveries and maps.

What’s really cool is that every edition since 1888 has been digitized and is being offered on a 160GB external hard drive of which 100GB is free hard drive space. They say that the free space on the drive can be used for personal use or perhaps future updates because there really aren’t any foreseeable plans for them to slow down.

The hard drive will set you back $199.95 but along with the digital copy, you’ll also receive a DVD that contains additional scenes about how the publication is made, digital photography tips and interviews with some of the photographers involved with the magazine.

Via: Crunchgear, Downloadsquad

• Myka Ion Nettop Media Player
• Lenovo Q700 Entertainment PC
• Olive Opus 2TB Digital Music Server
• Kids Gadgets – Mark My Time Digital Bookmark
• Tokyo Movie VIP Seats At $300 A Seat

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Coated brings you the coolest gadgets and best geek toys.

The Complete National Geographic On External Drive |
Home Gadgets | Post tags: education, entertainment

For many industry insiders, it was pretty clear that the name of the new Apple Tablet PC was going to be the iSlate, at least that’s where the evidence was pointing towards. It looks like another name as risen as a viable option for the yet unnamed tablet. The new rumor is the tablet may in fact be called the iGuide.

In this case, a trademark registration was performed under the Delaware-based iGuide Media, LLC, the sole purpose of which appears to secure the trademark “iGuide” on behalf of Apple Inc. Confirming this was Apple’s Senior Trademark Specialist Regina Porter’s signatures on the application which further connected the Delaware company to Apple Inc.

Apple is keeping their options open and for those that don’t like the name iSlate because it sounds more like “is late”, there is now another possible name. I guess time will tell if Apple will select one of these two names or throw us all for a loop and select something completely different.

Via: Ubergizmo

• Apple Tablet To Be Named iSlate?
• 7 Inch Apple Tablet In 2010
• Apple Tablet Computer By March
• CrunchPad Tablet Alive And Well
• Microsoft Courier Booklet

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Apple iSlate or Apple iGuide |
Apple News | Post tags: Apple, tablet

It looks like we may soon see Xbox Live enabled games ported to Windows Mobile phones. A recent job posting for the role of the Principal Program Manager – LIVE Engagement on an employment board seems to confirm this.

The successful candidate will be responsible in helping to “drive the platform and bring Xbox LIVE enabled games to Windows Mobile” through “avatar integration, social interactions, and multi-screen experiences.”

We should see some interesting developments next year in the mobile gaming scene and this move may also help the struggling Microsoft platform compete with others such as Google Android and the Apple iPhone.

Via: Inquisitr

• Microsoft OneApp For Non-Smartphones
• Windows Mobile Install Base Falls Behind iPhone
• Zune HD Twitter App Censors Swearing
• Lumino Project Adds Third Dimension To Microsoft Surface
• Windows Black Screen Of Death

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Windows Mobile Phone & Xbox Live Together |
Mobile Phones | Post tags: microsoft, smartphones

The Samsung N220 netbook is the latest netbook to come with the new Intel Pine Trail processor, the latest iteration of the highly popular Atom processor commonly seen in netbook designs.

Along with the new Atom N450 processor, the 10.1-inch display touting netbook also comes with 1GB RAM, 250GB hard drive, GMA 3150 graphics, a 0.3 megapixel webcam and a 6 cell battery that is capable of providing up to 11.5 hours of continuous use…nice.

In terms of network connections, the N220 includes the usual WiFi support (b/g/n) as well as Bluetooth 2.1+EDR. The Microsoft Windows 7 starter edition operating system is also preinstalled on the unit. Color selection for the N220 will include the traditional black as well as a glossy green. The Samsung netbook was spotted in Europe where it was retailing for 350 euros. Assuming it does make its way to the US, we should see it retail for about $500.

Via: Engadget

• Samsung Go Netbook $100 Discount With Times Reader 2.0 Subscription
• Samsung Go Netbook Comes To AT&T
• OLED Notebooks To Debut Next Year
• Samsung CL80 Point And Shoot Digital Camera
• Google Chrome OS Netbook Rumors

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Samsung N220 Netbook With Pine Trail |
Consumer Electronics | Post tags: netbook, Samsung

As fun as the Apple iPhone can be, it still isn’t as user-friendly as many of the newer smartphones in the market today. For instance, while today’s average smartphone supports a separate physical keyboard, the iPhone doesn’t. Unless, of course, you jailbreak your iPhone and use the BTstack Keyboard software.

This bit of software was developed by Matthias Ringwald, a wireless sensor network expert in Switzerland. Ringwald was frustrated at Apple’s refusal to let iPhone owners use the device’s Bluetooth capability for anything more than connecting with other users and using certain accessories. Now, his $5 creation (available at the unauthorized Cydia marketplace) can let owners of jailbroken iPhones use Bluetooth keyboards with their devices.

Ringwald and another developer are now planning to improve on their creation, eventually letting owners of jailbroken iPhones use other Bluetooth devices such as optical mice. There’s also talk of software that lets users play iPhone games with Wii and Playstation 3 controllers — but, of course, only on jailbroken iPhones.

Of course, this is all in hopes that Apple won’t brick iPhones that use the software.

Via: WSJ,

• iTwinge Physical iPhone Keyboard
• Apple Tablet To Be Named iSlate?
• Lenovo Wireless Multimedia Remote With Keyboard
• New Apple iPhones With Possible 5MP Camera
• 7 Inch Apple Tablet In 2010

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Jailbroken iPhones Can Now Use Keyboards |
Apple News | Post tags: Apple, bluetooth, keyboard

Some sleuthing Apple fans have recently uncovered iSlate.com, a domain that Apple had bought over two years ago. It’s easy to start rumors that the much-awaited Apple Tablet will be named iSlate, but their findings does support the idea.

ISlate.com’s “Whois” record tells us that Apple bought it back in 2007, and transferred the address to the registrar MarkMonitor.com, which handles domain registrations for Apple and other companies. Possibly to hide products before release?

Further sleuthing uncovered the fact that iSlate.com was registered as trademark by Slate Computing, a supposedly Delaware-based company, in 2006. Googling doesn’t return such a company, so it’s suggested that Slate Computing is a dummy company used to hide Apple, the real trademark owner. Apple has done this trick before with the iPhone, hiding it behind the bogus “Ocean Telecom Services.”

If the Apple Tablet really is set to be released in January 2010, then we don’t have much longer to wait whether the rumors are true. If the tablet DOES come out as “iSlate,” we can thank the guys at MacRumors for letting us guess it.

• 7 Inch Apple Tablet In 2010
• Apple Tablet Computer By March
• CrunchPad Tablet Alive And Well
• Microsoft Courier Booklet
• iTablet – The Apple Tablet Rumor

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Apple Tablet To Be Named iSlate? |
Apple News | Post tags: Apple, tablet

Coke Zero has just recently teamed up with social media platform Facebook in launching their Facial profile application, which lets Facebook users search the world for other people who look like them. The cola company believes that if Coke Zero tastes just like real Coke, then it’s likely everyone has a look-alike somewhere around the world.

The Facial Profiler Facebook App basically scours the ‘Net for people who look like you. If you want to try it, all you have to do is to download the App and upload your photo to the database. Coke Zero has claimed that the database is already returning matches, and believes more matches will be made as the database grows.

I think the Facial Profiler Facebook App is fun at the very least. It isn’t likely to have the same goof-ups that HP’s “racist webcam” once did, when it failed to recognize ethnic faces. Overall, if you’d like to know how “common” your face is, try the App out and see for yourself.

Hopefully security agencies and governments can use such technology to find criminals and bring them to justice one day.

Via: Now Public

• Pingo Penguin – New Facebook Friend
• Viral Video Of Groom Twittering At Alter
• If You Have Friends, Thank The Internet
• Google Introduces Social Search — Now You Can Find Your Friend’s Blogs
• Memorex MyVideo HD Pocket Camcorder

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Coke Zero Introduces Facebook Facial Profiler |
Internet Gadgets | Post tags: Coke, facebook

If you had a choice of watching either an HD movie or a 3D movie, which would you choose? In 2010, you may not have to make this choice thanks to DirecTV and assuming you have the right components in your home entertainment system.

DirecTV, a US satellite TV provider plans to offer the new TV service in March 2010 after its satellite is successfully launched and achieves geosynchronous orbit. In order to enjoy 3D programming, consumers will need a 3D HDTV and with CES 2010 (Consumer Electronic Show 2010) around the corner, there’s a good chance we’ll see some new flat panels that support 3D television. At CES 2009, there were already several brand names such as Panasonic, Samsung and LG that were touting their digital gear.

2010 will be an interesting year for 3D programming and if all goes according to plan, consumers may be treated to a variety of movies, sports and assorted other programming all in 3D and HD. How nice would it be to watch a new movie such as Avatar at home using this new technology.

Via: Techtree

• Sony To Lead Shift To 3D Television
• Digital Camera Sports 158 Lenses
• Lumino Project Adds Third Dimension To Microsoft Surface
• ContourHD Waterproof Case Lets You Shoot HD Videos Underwater
• NVIDIA GeForce 310 Video Card

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DirecTV 3D HD Channels In 2010 |
Home Entertainment | Post tags: 3D, HD, TV

GSM encryption, a 64-bit encryption algorithm which has been in use since 1988 to secure phone calls has been hacked. The news was announced at the Chaos Communication Congress Conference being held in Berlin where Karsten Nohl, an engineer, reported his findings. His method of cracking the code was through the use of brute force, using random strings of numbers until he was able to successfully guess the password.

The A5/1 privacy algorithm is a 64-bit key, but since 2007, there has been a 128-bit key known as A5/3 available for use. The problem is that the new encryption key is not widely used at this time and although more secure, it still has the same flaws as the 64-bit key, namely that it to could be hacked with brute force given enough time.

As it stands now, the GSM Association has responded to this news by advising that phone operators can use a modified 64-bit key for network security, but again, we are left with the same security holes. It should also be noted that having the correct code does not allow a hacker to eavesdrop on specific calls directly, but rather opens up the stream of digital information through which the hacker must navigate.

Via: Engadget, Gadget Venue

• Kindle DRM Protection Hack Discovered
• Motorola Droid Running Milestone Firmware
• Google Launches Public DNS Service
• NecroMac — A Very Egyptian Computer Mod
• New Apple iPhone Worm In The Wild

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GSM Security Encryption Code Hacked |
Online News | Post tags: hack, security

For the ultra rich gamer that has just about everything, there’s a new toy available, the Nintendo Wii Supreme game console. Designed by British designer Stuart Hughes, this piece of consumer electronics is fashioned out of 2,500 grams of 22ct sold gold and includes front buttons made out of 78 quarter-carat flawless diamonds. This isn’t the first time that Hughes has dabbled with expensive gadgets as past works have included a Nokia smartphone that’s covered in gold and silver.

Needless to say, the Nintendo Wii Supreme game console is a limited edition product, with only 3 functional devices having been designed, with designs taking six months worth of fine craftsmanship to complete.

According to Hughes, these units are the world’s most expensive gaming station available and at $485,000, we’ll take him at his word.

Via: Gadgetlite, Fox News

• Sony PS3 Sales Very Strong
• EA’s Need For Speed Sales Surpass 100 Million Copies
• Nintendo Wii Gets Full-Scale HK MP5 Submachine Gun Accessory
• Candy Colored Nyko Wii Wand Controllers
• Nintendo Wii Cyberbike

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$485,000 Nintendo Wii Supreme Game Console |
Consumer Electronics | Post tags: expensive, nintendo, wii

Add an LED to just about anything and you’ve got a cool light show that attracts attention. LED lighting has been added to pretty much every device under the sun that you can think of from USB gadgets to geeky home decor, computer cases and toys. As to why you’d want to add LED lighting to a faucet, I guess the answer would be because you can.

In this case of the faucet system, the LED lighting serves more the purpose of a light show and perhaps if people (ie kids) are mesmerized by the colored water, it may just encourage them to wash their hands just that much more. In this day and age of infectious diseases such as H1N1 (Swine Flu), this can’t be a bad thing.

The LED Glass Sink Faucet retails for $65 and includes a ceramic valve.

Via: Chip Chick, Hardwaresphere

• Gessi Bathroom Fixtures – Water From The Ceiling
• Fog Free Shower Mirror By Shaper Image Syncs With MP3 Player
• Hygienic Door Handle
• Pressalit Autoclose Toilet Seat Covers
• Bathroom Shower Curtain Stops Water Waste

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LED Glass Sink Faucet |
Home Gadgets | Post tags: bathroom, faucets

Meet Le Trung, a robot inventor. Like many, he spent the Christmas holidays with his family, making merry. He even took gifts and a girl that cost him £30,000. No, this isn’t a high priced hooker, this is Trung’s Fembot, an autonomous robot that he designed and built.

Her name is Aiko and apparently her advanced artificial intelligence allows her to communicate using 13,000 different sentences in two different languages, English and Japanese. Aiko also comes with facial recognition, silicone breasts, errr skin and a real-hair wig that was created by a doll company. She is touch sensitive and has the ability to recognize the difference between being stroked gently versus being grabbed, the latter resulting in a slap across the face.

Aiko has all the senses accept for the the sense of smell. As Le put it, “But Aiko is always helpful and never complains. She is the perfect woman to have around at Christmas.” Doesn’t this sound like the plot for the movie Lars and the Real Girl?

Via: Crunchgear, Gizmodo

• Actroids, The Life-Size Humanoids That Look Like You
• The Honda Brain Machine Interface
• Robot Alarm Clocks Are Here To Serve

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Le Trung And His Robot Wife |
Autonomous Robots | Post tags: robots

Rumors are going wild about ASUS’s much-awaited, yet much-speculated, Eee Pad tablet. A leak has suggested that it will be using an NVIDIA Tegra chipset, possibly the next-generation one. This could mean the rumored 4-to-7-inch tablet can support 720p HD — and even possibly up to 1080p HD if top-of-the-line NVIDIA hardware is going to be used.

What’s more, there’s also news that the Eee Pad tablet is going to have multi-touch support. Aside from being obvious good news for fans of multi-touch, it also means that the tablet won’t be running on any Windows OS platform. Windows 7 DOES support multi-touch, but unfortunately has to be ruled out because it doesn’t support Tegra — or any other ARM processor, for that matter.

Instead, it’s rumored that the Eee Pad tablet is going to run on Android 2.x instead, as it doesn’t have a problem supporting multi-touch on newer processors.

These changes all sounds great, but they do come with its own share of bad news — ASUS probably won’t be shipping the tablet within the first quarter of 2010. It seems the upgrades understandably will take some time to put in place.

Via: Electronista

• OPPO To Release Android Smartphone Next Year
• Archos 9 Tablet With Google Chromium OS
• Notion Ink Smartpad Tablet
• Android Market Reaches 20,000 App Mark
• Download Evernote Through Android Market

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ASUS Eee Pad Rumored With Tegra And Multi-Touch |
Consumer Electronics | Post tags: Android, google, tablet

With social media platforms with the likes of Twitter using URL trimmers to help users stay under the 140-character limit, YouTube has recently decided that its own URL was too long. The video-hosting site has recently launched youtu.be, its official shortener for YouTube videos.

The youtu.be shortener is going to be used only for YouTube links, so anything with this shortener can be trusted. (Just to make sure you don’t go thinking YouTube is suddenly up to something.) The shortener will still have the same video ID’s, so developers can still show thumbnails, embed videos, or see if you’ve got a viral video on your hand that is spreading.

To use the shortener, use the AutoShare feature in your YouTube account and sync it with, say, Twitter, and the URL will be automatically shortened. If for any reason you want to shorten the URL manually, you can simply replace the “http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=” part of the URL with “http://youtu.be/” and that’s it.

YouTube hopes that several other “cool things” can sprout from the new shortening services.

Via: YouTube Blog, Tech Radar

• Castoven – YouTube Video Playing Microwave
• YouTube Coming Up With iTunes Killer?
• Google To Caption YouTube Videos Automatically
• YouTube To Offer 1080p Video
• Vimeo Makes It To iPhone And Android

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YouTube Comes Up With Own URL Trimmer |
Online News | Post tags: google, YouTube

Until recently, photovoltaic cells (for the rest of us, “solar energy panels”) were expensive, cumbersome, and unattractive, and had limited uses aside from generating electricity for homes. This newest upgrade, however, may eventually let you charge your devices simply by walking around in the sun.

Researchers at the Sandia National Laboratories have created tiny, glitter-sized photovoltaic cells (shaped like snowflakes, no less) that use 1/100 of the material to generate the same amount of electricity as standard photovoltaic cells. These solar sequins may eventually make it to textiles, clothing, and other oddly-shaped surfaces.

The great thing about these tiny photovoltaic cells is that if one of them happens to die, it doesn’t compromise the entire panel as it does in conventional arrays. This makes them ideal for flexible surfaces such as tents, tensile roofing, and (of course) clothing. As the technology develops, they may even eventually replace traditional solar cells.

As of now, the cells produce energy at 14.9% efficiency — awesome in relation to the average 13-20% efficiency offered by commercial modules. Here’s to hoping this technology develops very, very quickly.

Via: Inhabitat

• Traffic Light With Countdown To Go Green
• Solar Powered Traffic Lights
• Solar Powered Bluetooth Headset
• iPod Touch Solar Charging Case
• Ford’s Electric Cars Will Communicate With Power Grids

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Photovoltaic Cells To Charge Gadgets While Walking In The Sun |
Solar Powered Technology | Post tags: solar

Nicholas Negroponte may have had laudable good intentions when he first came out with the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) initiative, but his first device, the XO, was a failure in many fronts. Now, wiser and bolder, Negroponte is going to give it another go, this time with plans for a $75 tablet and newer, better versions of the OLPC computer.

The original XO didn’t do so well in its aim to provide an over-simplified, $100 computing solution to kids in the third world. As deadlines slipped by and prices rose, netbooks soon came into the scene, offering suitable computing power to anyone with a few hundred dollars for it.

This time, Negroponte and his group has plans to release “vaporwear,” a tablet with 800Mhz processing power and an 8.5-by-11-inch touchscreen display. It’s expected to be sort of a big iPod Touch, bringing affordable entertainment and educational media to developing countries.

“Vaporwear” likely isn’t going to be a fully functional computer, since tablets don’t really do all that well on that front. The OLPC 1.5 (a $200 upgrade to the XO, due out next month) and the OLPC 1.75 (a dual-screen PC due out 2011) will take care of that. It’ll be interesting to see whether Negroponte and the OLPC group does better this time around.

Via: Wired

• Orange Tabbee Tablet
• Lighthouse SQ7 Should Be An Interesting Couch Tablet
• ASUS Eee Pad Rumored With Tegra And Multi-Touch
• 7 Inch Apple Tablet In 2010
• NZXT Hades Chassis Has A Lot Of Fans — Literally

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OLPC Planning Ultra-Thin $75 Tablet |
Consumer Electronics | Post tags: PC, tablet

On behalf of the team at Coated, Merry Christmas to all of our readers. We do hope you have a chance to spend some time with friends and family and perhaps have a glass of egg nog, or maybe something stronger.

We’re going to be taking some time off as well to enjoy the holiday season with our family but will be back in a couple of days to share some more cool gadgets and gizmos that we find.

In the meantime, if Santa is still on his way to your place, you may want to check out his new pimped out sleigh or perhaps use NORAD’s service to track his flight around the globe.

• Norad To Track Santa Claus
• Hand Grenade Christmas Tree Ornament
• Santa’s Sleigh Goes Hi Tech
• Xbox 360 Holiday Bundles
• Merry Christmas And Seasons Greetings

© Coated, 2009.

Coated brings you the coolest gadgets and best geek toys.

Merry Christmas From Coated |
Gadgets And Gizmos | Post tags: Christmas, holiday, Santa

There’s been a lot of chatter about the Google Nexus One, and although there has been considerable buzz about this new product, there’s been little in the way of a possible release date and hardware specifications. That is until now.

Engadget has discovered that the new Google phone will be available on January 5th but on an invite basis. What exactly does that mean is anyones guess. How do you get onto the invitation list and will Tareq and Michaele Salahi try and crash this invite only party? For the average Joe, if you’re really keen on being one of the first to buy this phone, you might have to turn to Ebay or another online auction site in the hope that one of the invited guests tries to sell his phone.

In terms of hardware, the Google phone will come with Android 2.1 and at 11.5mm thick, it will be slightly thinner then the Apple iPhone 3GS. Other features include 512 Flash, 512 ROM, 4GB microSD (expandable to 32GB), Bluetooth 2.1+ EDR, WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n, HSPA 900/1700/2100 and a 5MP camera with 2x zoom, autofocus and flash.

• OPPO To Release Android Smartphone Next Year
• Archos 9 Tablet With Google Chromium OS
• Android Market Reaches 20,000 App Mark
• Download Evernote Through Android Market
• Google Nexus One Smartphone

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Coated brings you the coolest gadgets and best geek toys.

Google Nexus One Hardware Specifications |
Mobile Phones | Post tags: google

If Art Lebedev was the minister of transportation, he’d like to see semi-trucks fitted with 2 LCD display screens on the rear doors and a digital camera mounted on the front of the truck. His concept idea is known as Transparentius and it’s his vision of road safety. Picture this, flying down the highway making good time, only to find yourself behind a slow moving truck. You’d like to pass the truck but are unable to see what lies ahead.

With Transparentius, the front mounted digital camera will relay road information that will be shown on the rear LCD screens. This way you always know what is ahead of the truck in front of you. This isn’t the first time that Lebedev has played around with screen technology as an earlier idea of his was the Optimus Maximus keyboard which was a keyboard that featured a digital screen on each key.

Lebedev does have a good idea but there are some things he’s going to have to work on before this ever saw the light of day. First is cost, what would this system cost to fit onto a truck? Then there’s the concern truck drivers may have about the fragility of the display screens considering that they will be loading and unloading gear from the rear of the truck which could possibly damage the system.

It’s unlikely we’ll see this system any time soon on our local roads and highways, I still think simple ideas are sometimes the best.

Via: Coolest Gadgets, DVICE

• Traffic Light With Countdown To Go Green
• UVonion, The Solar Powered Ultraviolet Lamp
• Solar Powered Lunchbox
• Concept Gadgets: iStick – A Future Apple MP3 Player?
• LED Hourglass Lantern | Unusual Gadgets

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See Through Trucks For Road Safety |
Cool Designs | Post tags: concept, traffic

Along with the earlier rumors of a possible 7-inch Apple Tablet, another development for 2010 will the introduction of the next generation Apple iPhone which will feature a 5 megapixel digital camera.

According to unnamed sources, OmniVision Technologies will see a doubling in CMOS image sensor (CIS) orders from Apple next year and part of this order will include the 5 megapixel CIS. Although Apple is hush on this order, it is widely suspected that the 5 megapixel sensors will be integrated into the next generation iPhones that we will likely see in mid 2010. With other Apple announcements due early next year, it’s hoped that Apple might shed some light on this and perhaps flame the fires a bit by giving us an inkling of what the new iPhones will have in store.

Via: Digitimes, Gadget Venue

• iPhone App Developer Earns $1 Million Monthly
• Apple iPhone Official Formula 1 Video Game
• Apple WWDC 2010 – iPhone 4G Maybe?
• Toshiba Opens Doors For 64GB iPhones
• 2G And 3G iPhones Now Have Video Recording

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Coated brings you the coolest gadgets and best geek toys.

New Apple iPhones With Possible 5MP Camera |
Apple News | Post tags: Apple, iphone

If you’re not overly familiar with Foxconn, it’s probably because they are an OEM firm that develops computers that are then branded and released by other pc makers. Foxconn has created a new netbook called the Foxconn SZ901P.

What’s interesting about the Foxconn netbook is that it will support two different operating systems. The first is the more popular OS, Microsoft Windows 7. The second supported OS will be a customized Linux distribution known as FoxOS.

Other then the OS, the netbook does appear fairly ordinary and will include the typical items found such as Vga, 3 USB ports and a 2 button touchpad. There are few details in regards to pricing, processing power, storage capacity as well as RAM, but when the Foxconn Netbook enters the US market, there’s a good chance you won’t recognize it due to it being rebranded.

Via: Liliputing

• Haleron Swordfish 20 Netbook
• Dell Unveils Intel Atom Netbooks
• $99 CherryPal Africa Netbook
• Onkyo Japan Releases NX707A4 Netbook
• Asus Releases Its First Multi-touch Netbook

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Foxconn Netbook With Linux Distro |
Consumer Electronics | Post tags: Linux, netbook

Its been a long standing rumor that the Apple tablet was on the way and one of the many questions raised was why it has taken so long for Apple to release their tablet considering the plethora of tablet devices commercially available.

The Apple rumors continue up to this day with the latest being that Apple has asked select application developers to ensure that their software works on screen sizes larger then the 320×480 currently present on the iPhone. The reason being that Apple has been quietly preparing their Tablet PC with a possible announcement in January 2010. According to BGR sources, it is almost a certainty that there will be a 7-inch tablet and this may be in addition to the 10-inch rumored tablet to come. It’s not long before we will be ringing in the New Year and it will be interesting to see what Apple has in store.

Via: Redmond Pie

• Apple Tablet Computer By March
• CrunchPad Tablet Alive And Well
• Microsoft Courier Booklet
• iTablet – The Apple Tablet Rumor
• New Apple iPhones With Possible 5MP Camera

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7 Inch Apple Tablet In 2010 |
Apple News | Post tags: Apple, tablet

After its takeover of Sanyo, it didn’t take long for Panasonic to announce that it will be working on a joint venture to develop a new lithium ion battery that is capable of powering all the gadgets & gizmos in the average home for over a week. When Panasonic made the announcement, they were referring to the average Japanese home, not the average power hungry US home.

The new battery is still in the development stage but should be commercially available sometime in 2011. The new technology does sound like another alternative to add to the growing list of alternative green technologies such as fuel cells and solar batteries. Along with this development, Panasonic is also planning to integrate a monitoring system that will allow consumers to view their energy use through their television sets.

Via: Gizmodo, Gadget Crave

• Lithium-Ion Out, Zinc-Air In
• Sanyo Xacti DMX-CG11 Camcorder
• Qi Wireless Power Standard
• Sony Long Life Rechargeable Battery
• Battery-Less Wind Up Universal Remote Control

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Long Life Panasonic Lithium Ion Battery |
Solar Gadgets | Post tags: battery, Panasonic, Sanyo

Product: Custom V-Rocker

Manufacturer: Burton

Wired Rating: 8

(Editor’s note: The author’s personal board is a Burton. As are her pants and jacket. And, uh, her hat.)

Their sheer ubiquity and variety in price points has made the Burton brand a little less edgy than it used to be. There’s no better way to advertise your n00b status than to trot out on the slopes festooned head-to-toe Burton. You might as well scream, “I just bought a kit straight off the rack! And I’ll probably knock you down if you ride the lift with me!”

But there’s a reason for Burton’s ubiquity and continued customer loyalty. For your money, a Burton is one of the best boards you can buy.

The Custom V-Rocker is one of Burton’s best boards to date. The Burton V-Rocker places a rocker between your feet, with two additional rockers at the tip and tail that lift them completely off the snow. This rocker shape makes spins, jumps and butters (on-the-ground tricks) unbelievably easy and fun.

V-Rocker also features Burton’s channel technology, which debuted around 2003. Channel technology refers to the single channel that runs down the spine of the board that is only compatible with Burton EST or 3-D bindings. If you’ve already spent $600 on a new snowboard, it would be annoying to have to drop another $300 just to be able to ride it. That’s like Apple changing the size of the headphone jack so that you could only use special Apple-supplied headphones to listen to an iPod. But the price is worth it. The bindings are micro-adjustable and incredibly responsive to shifts in weight.

The board was a little soft in powder, but that’s not a major complaint. Where we really have a problem is that this board does not come in small sizes. The V-Rocker was soft enough for me to have a decent ride in its smallest size at 151 centimeters, although I normally require a smaller board. But if I wanted a stick that actually came in my size, I’d have to opt for something called “The Lipstick.” Really, Burton? Do you think there aren’t any dudes out there who are under 5 feet 5 inches?

WIRED Exceptionally soft and springy. Great trick board. Turns quickly. Classy, understated graphics.

TIRED Blatant size-ist misogyny. Soft on powder like Downy is soft on fabric. Might be a little too responsive for novices.

DRM protection technology does have its places, and we’ve already lived with the fact that we can’t really share our MP3’s among all the devices we want to. But DRM on e-readers such as Kindle has always boggled us — why can’t we buy e-books and read them on other devices?

About a year ago, some hackers cracked the Kindle and allowed the exporting of purchased e-books into PDF format, which allows them to be viewed in any device that supports it. Apparently Amazon has yet to address the security hole, and it’s taken so much time to do so that Israeli hacker Labba and some other hackers found yet another workaround just recently.

Labba originally posted a challenge in a forum and, aided with other hackers, broke the Kindle’s DRM protection yet again. Labba mentions that should Amazon decide to release a security patch to address this hack, they are confident that they’ll still be able to crack it again — pretty much like how Apple’s iPhone gets jailbroken after every single update patch.

But if you’d like to avoid all that hassle, you can just buy real books…

Via: Boy Genius Report

• Amazon Gifts Kindle Users With Better Battery Life
• Pre-orders Taken For Sony Reader Daily Edition
• Asus Dual Screen Eee Reader
• Large Screen Amazon Kindle Announcement – Wednesday?
• Motorola Droid Running Milestone Firmware

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Kindle DRM Protection Hack Discovered |
Consumer Electronics | Post tags: Amazon, hack, Kindle

The guys at Mozilla Firefox have a lot to be cheerful about this holiday season — it was announced earlier this week that Firefox 3.5, Mozilla’s latest browser offering, has overtaken Internet Explorer 7.0 as the world’s most widely-used browser, capturing 22% of the browser market.

The news comes off the heels of news earlier this month that Firefox had overtaken IE in overall use in Germany. While Internet Explorer as a whole still leads the worldwide browser market with a 55% share, Mozilla has increased their own chunk of the market to 32% and has been steadily gaining ground on Microsoft.

Meanwhile, IE’s own latest browser offering, IE 8.0, is still neck and neck with Firefox 3.5 with a 20% market share. Both companies have seen a decline in their last-generation browsers, seemingly after users upgraded to the newer versions.

What about Google’s Chrome? Based on the buzz, it’s creeping up on Firefox as well, offering more flexibility and faster boot-up times. Whether or not it will surpass IE as well remains to be seen.

Via: Read Write Web

• Firefox goes gold on June 17th
• Firefox Mobile Browser Close
• Chrome Mac Beta To Debut In December
• Mobile Firefox Gets New Logo
• Google Chrome Hits Version 4 For Microsoft Windows

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Firefox 3.5 Now World’s Most Widely-Used Browser |
Internet Gadgets | Post tags: browser, firefox, Internet Explorer

NZXT, that popular developer of gaming cases, just came out with their latest offering — the Hades chassis. This little baby focuses on airflow, with no less than five fans keeping the system cool while hardcore gamers get their gaming fix.

The Hades chassis has two intake fans (200mm, at the front and side), two 140mm exhaust fans up top, and one 120mm rear exhaust fan. All the fans except one (one of the top fans) come with the chassis, which should be more than enough to keep the game going for a while.

The Hades chassis seems infinitely upgradable — nine drive bays (four of which could be devoted to 3.5-inch drives instead of the standard 5.25-inch ones), a bracket for two SSD drives, and mounting holes for a dual radiator on top.

With all its fans and upgrade options, the Hades chassis should last a pretty long while. Get ready to shell out around $90 when you’re planning to get one for yourself for the holidays.

Via: Maximum PC, TFTS

• Orange Tabbee Tablet
• Ripple Look Mac Mini Like PC
• Buffalo USB 3.0 External Hard Drive
• Lighthouse SQ7 Should Be An Interesting Couch Tablet
• OWC 1TB Firewire/USB Hard Drive

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NZXT Hades Chassis Has A Lot Of Fans — Literally |
Consumer Electronics | Post tags: PC

Developing Apps for the iPhone and iPod Touch isn’t really that profitable for most people, unless of course you make it a full-time business and make it big with great Apps. That happens to be the case of Tapulous, the developer of such games as Tap Tap Revenge.

Tapulous, a small company that only employs 20 full-time workers, has reported that their monthly income has hit the $1-million mark. The game Tap Tap Revenge alone has generated more than 20 million sales, and 600 million games being played.

The research group comScore had earlier this year reported one out of every three iPhone App users have Tap Tap Revenge on their devices. It’s obviously very profitable, even though Tapulous hasn’t given us the exact figures.

Tapulous generates its income through games sales, advertising, and music sales. With more than 50 million iPhones and iPod Touch units sold so far, the prospect of making it big through iPhone App development has never looked this tempting.

Via: Phonesreview

• Apple iPhone Official Formula 1 Video Game
• Apple WWDC 2010 – iPhone 4G Maybe?
• Toshiba Opens Doors For 64GB iPhones
• 2G And 3G iPhones Now Have Video Recording
• Tesco Mobile iPhone – Is It Worth The Money?

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iPhone App Developer Earns $1 Million Monthly |
Mobile Phones | Post tags: Apple, iphone

Firefox, one of the most popular internet web browsers will be launching as a mobile version called Fennec very soon. In fact, the launch date could be as close as just a few “days away” from now.

When Fennec does launch, it will initially be available through the Ovi app store for the Nokia N900 smartphone. From there, Fennec will roll out to other mobile phones. Mozilla is also planning on releasing mobile versions for Google Android and Windows Mobile but it’s unlikely Apple iPhone users would have access Fennec any time soon.

The open source mobile browser comes with some handy features including the ability to synchronize with the desktop version, scaled pages and web page zooming through tapping. It will also support add-ons, a very popular Firefox feature, though there is word that the plugins may be different “because it is a browser for a mobile device.” As such, the plugins may take advantage of some of the features currently present on the mobile device such as geo-location.

Via: BBC

• Mobile Firefox Gets New Logo
• Mozilla Firefox Web Browser 3.5 Announced
• Firefox 3.5 Now World’s Most Widely-Used Browser
• Google Nexus One Smartphone
• Vertu Unveils V Accessories Series

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Firefox Mobile Browser Close |
Internet Gadgets | Post tags: firefox, mobile phone, Mozilla

Step aside LG RoboKing, Neato Robotic vacuum and the Electrolux silent vacuum, there’s a new player in town. It’s quite a change for the computer maker that is better known for their Eee netbooks and their new educational robot, but Asus wants a piece of the home cleaning market and is releasing their own robotic vacuum.

The Asus vacuum which is shaped like Roomba is called ECleaner. This robotic vacuum includes a couple of neat features such as a 6000-hour UV light to disinfect floors and a built in fragrance dispenser. There’s even a remote control for this battery powered unit.

Although there are not a lot of details, it appears that ECleaner has a couple of preset cleaning patterns as well as a photo sensor so that it avoids falling down stairs. There really isn’t any new innovation in this vacuum cleaner design, but what’s nice about it is that it is competitively priced at $150.

Via: Slippery Brick, Wired

• EeeBot, The Asus Android Powered Robot
• LG RoboKing Vacuum Cleaner
• Neato Robotics Robot Vacuum
• Silent Vacuum Cleaner With iPod Dock
• Asus Releases Its First Multi-touch Netbook

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Asus Robotic Vacuum Cleaner |
Household Gadgets | Post tags: Asus, vacuum

A pair of good zoom binoculars may be the more popular gadget for viewing distant objects but Leica has come out with their Monovid Monocular. The Leica product measures 3.9-inches long, is fog proof and can be submerged up to a depth of 16.5 feet and still function. By being waterproof, the monocular may be of particular interest of those involved in water sports such as snorkeling or swimming.

The Leica monocular also comes with an 8x zoom and has the ability of viewing objects as close as 9.8-inches by using a special lens attachment. The Leica Monovid Monocular is an expensive toy, retailing for $500 so unless you’re a seafaring pirate in need of an upgraded monocular or someone that has some really cool things to look at, this device may not be for everyone.

Via: Geeky Gadgets, Technabob

• The Air Board Personal Hovercraft
• Helmet Hummingbird Feeder
• Leica X1 Compact Digital Camera
• 5.0 Digital Binocular Camera

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Leica Monovid Monocular |
Outdoor Gear | Post tags: binocular, Leica, outdoor

To commemorate the 30th anniversary of their US brand, Ricoh has released a limited edition camera, the GR Digital III. The point and shoot camera design was jointly created with “Stussy”, a clothing brand. The new design features Stussy logo as well as blue accents throughout. As a limited edition, production has been capped to 500 units but I’m not sure if the few simple design changes are going to be enough of an incentive.

In terms of hardware specifications, the limited edition model is the same as the GR Digital III that went on sale over the summer and features a 10 megapixel 1/1.7-inch CCD sensor sensor, 3-inch LCD display, 4x digital zoom and video capture in 640×480 screen resolution.

The Ricoh camera will go on sale in Japan this coming February for $1,100.

Via: Gadgetlite, Gizmodo

• RED Scarlet Professional Camera
• Leica X1 Compact Digital Camera
• Stanford Scientists Introduce Open Source Camera
• Samsung Introduces Slim And Light ST45
• Samsung WB5000 With 24x Zoom And 720p

© Coated, 2009.

Coated brings you the coolest gadgets and best geek toys.

Ricoh GR Digital III Limited Edition Camera |
Digital Camera Gadgets | Post tags: camera, limited edition

Product: Mininets

Manufacturer: Roundup:

Wired Rating: 0

We may all be computing on the same worldwide cloud, but Japanese mininets are higher fliers. They manage to be even smaller than American models without sacrificing a lick of performance.

1. Sony Vaio P
This little laptop is light (1.4 pounds) but certainly no lightweight. With its 2.0-GHz Intel Atom processor, 256-GB solid-state drive, 8-inch display, onboard webcam, and Bluetooth, the latest Vaio is a tempting proposition. While considerably smaller than a standard-issue Web slinger (9.7 x 4.7 x 0.8 inches), it’s definitely the biggest of this bunch. But the factor that really tips the scales in its favor is that you can get it easily in the US.

WIRED Hasta la vista, Vista; Konnichiwa, Windows 7! Least frustrating keyboard in the test. Wide 1600 x 768 display was born to stream Web video. Port authority: two USB jacks and an SD card slot.

TIRED Only 3.5 hours of battery life. Won’t fit in any noncargo pockets. Costs more than many budget laptops.

$850, sony.com

2. Viliv S5
If pocketability were an Olympic sport, this device would take home the gold. At 6 x 3 x 1 inches, the S5 slides effortlessly into jeans and jacket pockets alike. The 5-inch touchscreen is solid for Web browsing and media viewing, and the 1.33-GHz Atom processor does a decent job of running multiple apps. But with only a virtual keyboard, you might want to postpone your email assault till you’re back in the office.

WIRED Up to six hours of juice. Vertical screen orientation handy for RSS. Dedicated menu button makes for simple navigation. Bust out the Guitar Hero emulator, because the stylus looks like a guitar pick.

TIRED It has a stylus (boo!), and if you want to use your fingers instead, you have to push really hard. Cramped 32-GB drive. Nowhere to stash the f@#$ing stylus.

$550, myviliv.com

3. Sharp PC-Z1 NetWalker
This petite, Ubuntu-powered ‘puter is smaller than a paperback (6.3 x 4.3 x 0.8 inches) and weighs less than your lunch (0.9 pound). It’s also fast: Thanks to the ARM Cortex-A8 processor, the NetWalker starts up in three seconds and zips around the open source OS with ease. Unfortunately, typing is painful on the Lilliputian keyboard.

WIRED Vivid video on the 1024 x 600-pixel display. 10-hour battery. Decent optical point mouse.

TIRED Scrunched QWERTY requires hunt-and-peck typing. We know we’re supposed to dig the cloud, but only 4 GB of built-in flash memory?! (To be fair, it’s expandable to 16 gigs via MicroSD.) Unless you read Japanese, you’ll have to install your own Ubuntu build. (Good thing it’s free.)

$500, sharpusa.com