By R.J. Huneke | Jan 24, 2012
It has been confirmed by Nokia: the smartphone with the most buzz at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show will be heading to retailers in March.
The Nokia Lumia 900 is a great example of an exciting new version of a phone almost up to the current Apple and Droid standards, so let’s take a close look at it.
Nokia is still hush-hush on the price tag of this sexy phone for AT&T customers – it looks and feels like the previous generation iPod Nano, with its sleek polycarbonate shell and shape. Their previous model, the Lumia 710, has gone down to less than fifty bucks, or free in some cases, so the Lumia 900 is expected to range from a buck fifty to two hundred samolians with a two year service contract.
Put plainly, if the Nokia 900 is less than two hundred dollars, then it will be a more affordable alternative to Apple and the Android’s champion Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket phone (currently $199 with a new two-year contract), and if it is not . . . well, it probably will not sell well.
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By R.J. Huneke | Jan 21, 2012
Don a light and warm fleece, and not only breathe clean air that is substantially warmer and more humid, but look weird… er… badass doing it!
The Subzero Warm Breath Mask might look as though it’s from Mortal Kombat and not Hammacher Schlemmer, but it is truly a remarkable medical-grade breathing mask crafted to spare the throat and lungs from the same freezing air that bitterly dominates the outside during the cold season.
Anyone who does not hibernate or migrate to the tropics during the earth’s harsh winter could use a Subzero Warm Breath Mask.
This beauty covers the bottom half of the wearer’s head – from the nose on down the neck – and seals it in breathable, wind-resistant Polartec fleece.
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By R.J. Huneke | Jan 19, 2012
A Wi-Fi blu-ray machine with 3-D, FLAC audio, and a sleek and sexy player fits in the palm of your hand? Wow!
Panasonic has long been considered one of the top shelf brands when it comes to consumer electronics, and their new lineup of blu-ray players will prove to greatly evolve the high definition movie environment.
One of the newest models revealed at the CES 2012 show was the Panasonic DMP-BBT01, which is like a shinier and skinnier black Wii. And yes, not only do these bad boys fulfill Netflix, Skype, and Amazon VOD via Wi-Fi but also smart phones, which can be used to function as the system’s remote control (so hunting down that damn remote that the cat, Cosmo, swiped far under the couch won’t be necessary).
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By Charles | Jan 18, 2012
I have never been so unfortunate as to have my cellphone drop into the toilet but, have heard countless tales of people who have lost it all in, what must be, the most demoralizing way possible. With their new WaterBlock technology, and your brave hand, HzO will make sure you never have to feel that pain again.
HzO’s WaterBlock technology protects all kinds of valuable electronics from humidity, rain, and even total water submersion. Unlike bulky waterproof cases, this invisible coating protects delicate circuitry at a molecular level, from the inside out – no need to worry about plugging up charging ports or headphone jacks.
The waterproof coating is created by placing any device or material into a vacuum chamber and replacing the typical atmospheric gases with an organic gas that builds up a solid thin film through a secret magical proprietary process.
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By R.J. Huneke | Jan 17, 2012
What spy would not like to sneak into their home, slowly roll back the door, and BAM shoot the lamp on to the utter surprise of a waiting assailant?
Inspector Clouseau would have loved this illuminating toy, if he could have afforded it.
The ambush can be thwarted and the attacker revealed in the unexpected switching on of the Bitplay BANG! light from up to fifty feet away.
For those who like the feel of a toy gun in their hand, this plastic remote will prove entertaining. Just pull the trigger, when the light is on, and watch as the lampshade is knocked askew by an invisible bullet, and the light is put out!
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Audiophiles are a difficult bunch to please. If a company adds a slight tint to the connector jack of their headphones, their consumers will quickly notice — and heaven help the poor manufacturer who decides to change the actual performance specs of a set of earbuds like Skullcandy did with their bass-boosting TiTANs.
While the technical specs of the 2011 TiTANs did not change (Frequency Response: 20-20k Hz, Impedance: 16 ohms, Max Input Power: 100mW), there were some rather dramatic alterations made to the design of the earbuds that confused a great many consumers. Foremost among these changes was the removal of the in-line volume control unit, a handy feature that made the TiTANs ideal for regular commuters and those who liked to stash their phones/MP3 players in the depth of their pockets but still adjust the volume. Curiously, the new TiTANs retained the customary $39.99 price tag of their predecessors, essentially offering consumers less functionality for the same cost.
The reasons for the removal of the in-line volume control unit were never made clear, but a frequent complaint leveled against the older models of TiTANs was their unfortunate penchant to discharge sharp shocks of static electricity into the wearer’s ears. I endured this quirk as it helped keep me awake and focused on whatever I was working on at the time, but a good many consumers who used their TiTANs while exercising found it too much of an annoyance to endure.
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A great gadget doesn’t need to be overly advanced. Sometimes, killer design is the real marker of a product that sticks in the memory. That’s what the developers of the Hidden Radio and BlueTooth Speaker have managed to create. It has a minimalist design, but still manages to fill a room with up to 80dB of sound from your favorite music, movies or games.
Simplicity is the key word here. From the operational mechanics (raise or lower the cap to adjust the volume) to the refreshingly minimalist aesthetic, the creators claim that all you need to do is find the Hidden Radio option on your BlueTooth device, connect to it and lift the lid to enhance your audio experience.
The gadget contains an AM-FM radio, can operate as a speakerphone and can run for up to 30 hours on its rechargeable battery.
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By Charles | Jan 13, 2012
Xbox Kinect isn’t just for controlling digital gaming characters anymore.
The self described geniuses at Chaotic Moon have taken a motorized longboard and put it on geek steroids with a Xbox Kinect, Samsung Windows 8 tablet, phidget interface module, and all terrain tires – because they can.
The aptly named “Board of Awesomeness” utilizes video and speech recognition along with location and accelerometer data to allow riders complete control of the board without the aid of any other controllers (and while only looking mildly crazy).
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A few days before Christmas, I found myself scrambling to find a last-minute stocking stuffer for my wife. Looking for something geeky, inexpensive, and practical I stumbled across the Robot Headphone Splitter on Amazon and fell in love with it instantly. By marrying (adorable) form with simple function, the Robot Splitter allows two people to plug their headphones into the same port- so long as they don’t mind decapitating a loveable little android and jamming their respective headphone plugs into its eye sockets.
The 3.5mm jack splitter connector is a concept almost as old as the original Sony Walkman, but the rise in smartphone entertainment and portable gaming has generated a huge amount of interest in this time-honored solution for how to share audio with a friend. Measuring 1 ¾” high by 1 ½ across, the Robot Splitter is a small, lightweight and attractive little gizmo that looks as good as it performs. After running a few tests on an iPod Nano, iPhone, PSP Go, and a Nintendo 3DS there was no detectable loss in audio fidelity or clarity.
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SolarFocus, makers of flexible solar chargers for mobile devices of all types, will be debuting the first solar powered Kindle cover at CES this week.
The SolarKindle cover takes the already paperless green nature of the Kindle to the next level by providing up to 3 months of unplugged use with just a “normal sunlight environment.”
Charging times do vary depending on the weather but, the guys at SolarFocus say one hour of charge time in direct sunlight can provide almost three days of reading time.
After charging the on-board e-reader, the SolarKindle automatically switches over to charge a built-in 1500 mA battery used to power the swing out LED reading light and provide extra power for the Kindle.
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