Gadgets Future

by Joshua Topolsky, posted Jun 30th 2008 at 3:09PM
Yes — more breaking electric car news! Just after Tesla CEO Ze’ev Drori announced Telsa’s plans to build the Model S, Elon Musk began discussing its development of electric car tech to get the price of future cars to (and below) $30,000. When asked when that technology would be commercially available, Musk said that it shouldn’t be any more than four years from now. Granted, a $60,000 car is affordable but still quite steep for most buyers — but a vehicle mass-produced at half the price is essentially mainstream, which could have a substantial impact on the automotive world.

[Image courtesy of Edmunds]

• Permalink
• Email this
• 101 Comments

Filed under: Transportation

by Donald Melanson, posted Jun 30th 2008 at 4:08PMWhile those of us ’round these parts have pretty much given up on the idea of a DVD-playing Wii a long time ago, folks in Japan have had some cause for hope based on promises from the company that such a system was, in fact, headed for the country sooner or later. It seems like they’re now about to enter the acceptance phase as well, however, as Nintendo has just announced yet another delay to the system with no word about an eventual release date. According to IGN, Nintendo President Satoru Iwata would only go so far as to say that due continuing worldwide supply constraints on the current Wii, “the priority is on the current model.” One thing getting a boost in availability, however, is the Nintendo DS 1Seg TV tuner, which Nintendo says will get a retail release next month after previously only being available online.

[Via Joystiq]

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 42 Comments

Filed under: Gaming

by Darren Murph, posted Jun 30th 2008 at 10:24AM
You’ve seen it toyed with, you’ve seen it unboxed and you’ve read the review. Now, the moment of truth has arrived. iriver’s Lplayer is officially on sale here in the USA, with the 4GB models going for $109.99 and the 8GB editions demanding $159.99. You’ll also have to choose between white, pink and black, but don’t sweat the details, okay?

[Thanks, Jenn]

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 11 Comments

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

The battle of the bulge is a never ending one, and more often than not your pot belly emerges truimphant. Small Bite Inc. has developed a tiny device that could help you lose weight simply by preventing you from taking large bites during your meal. This small contraption fits in the mouth and restricts jaw movement, and you will be able to see results within six to nine months, so those looking for a quick fix can give this a miss and rely on other get-slim-quick schemes. Well, I’d take a more pro-active step and hit the treadmill at the gym daily instead. Which is your preferred weight loss method?

Gaming will never be the same again if you plan to rock with the Pyramat PC Sound Chair. This model comes with a couple of 8 watt speakers, a 40 watt subwoofer and blue LEDs to add to the atmosphere and overall coolness. Good thing this is wireless, so you won’t accidentally trip or pull it apart when you kick the chair back from the computer table. It is powered by rechargeable batteries and comes with an earphone socket that allows you to groove to your own tunes in privacy. The Pyramat PC Sound Chair will retail for a relatively expensive £249.95. I’d rather get a spanking set of speakers instead with that amount of dough.

It is good to know that just like sex, drinking is a universal value. How else do you explain the Star Trek Experience bar located at Hilton Las Vegas? Not to mention numerous drinking holes found in the Star Wars universe, but we’re here to concentrate on the former series today with a unique bottle opener.

As well as its supreme practicality, the Starship Enterprise Bottle Opener serves as a constant tribute to the most iconic pretend spacecraft in televisual history. Better still it’s embossed with the legendary NCC-1701 registration, so you can be sure you’re opening your bottle of wallop with a Shatner-era vessel. And that’s just as well because judging by his, erm, interesting cover of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds, Captain Kirk is the only member of Starfleet who likes a drink. Boldly going where no bottle opener has gone before. Make it so!

Well, only true blue Trekkies need to pick this up, as I don’t see the rest of the drinking crowd willing to fork out £12.95 for a ‘mere’ bottle opener when their teeth double up as one just fine.

• Email to a friend
• Leave a comment

by Donald Melanson, posted Jun 30th 2008 at 12:04PM
Viewsonic didn’t quite hit the mark with its recent attempt at a $500 projector, but it looks like it’s fared considerably better with its nearly $500 26-inch VA2626WM lcd monitor, which packs most of the features you’d expect from a pricier model. That includes the requisite 1920 x 1200 resolution, along with a 6,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, HDMI, DVI, and VGA ports, and even some 2.5 watt speakers, which can thankfully be removed. No word on specs like brightness or refresh rate, unfortunately, but those details should be cleared up by the time the monitor lands sometime next month for $529.

[Via Electronista]

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 9 Comments

Filed under: Displays

Asus’ new PCI-express TV card, the Asus My Cinema-PE6300 Hybrid, offers support for both digital (DVBT) and analog (PAL/ NTSC) TV programs. It will come embedded with a hardware MPEG2 encoder which will lift a great burden off the CPU where high-quality video output is concerned. Each purchase of the Asus My Cinema-PE6300 Hybrid also comes with a range of versatile utilities that enables users to appreciate all-in-one multimedia entertainment on the PC.

by Joshua Topolsky, posted Jun 30th 2008 at 2:27PM
Our favorite Terminator (and Governor of California) Arnold Schwarzenegger has just helped Tesla Motors make an announcement that’s probably sending chills through traditional automaker’s boardrooms. The company has just introduced a fully-electric, five passenger sports sedan dubbed the Model S, which will be selling for $60,000, and will manage 225 miles on a full charge. The carmaker says it will produce the vehicles in a brand new manufacturing plant it’s opening in Northern California. We’re on the ground at the announcement right now — no pictures or release date have surfaced yet, but you’ll know more as soon as we do.

• Permalink
• Email this
• 92 Comments

Filed under: Transportation

by Darren Murph, posted Jun 30th 2008 at 1:59PM
Alright Lenovo, we get that you have a ridiculous obsession with Beijing and / or the 2008 Olympics, but seriously, enough is enough. We’ve got desktops, laptops, USB drives and even torches to show your unending love for the Games; the last thing we need is a questionably useful MID all dressed up in game day attire. Nevertheless, the company’s Ideapad U8 MID has been spotted recently with a colorful motif to commemorate the upcoming spectacle, but aside from the new design, we’re assuming everything else is just bronze-medal worthy (read: the same as the non-decorated version).

[Thanks, Ricardo]

• Read
• Permalink
• Email this
• 13 Comments

Filed under: Handhelds