Gadgets Connect

Even though I cringed with each pull on a $5 slot machine, I still like the idea of Cantor Gaming’s new eDeck handheld gambling device. Available for high rollers (i.e., those who wrap chewed gum in $50 bills to play trash-can basketball with), the mobile gaming unit taps into the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas and allows gamblers to play slots, blackjack, and other games from the High Limit Slot Salon. Why would this appeal to someone like me, who now sticks to quarter slots? Sentimental reasons, really. First, my husband and I got married at the Venetian. Second, my parents go to Vegas three to four times a year (no joke) because my mom loves to gamble. Third, my best friend lives in Vegas. (Read the full post about ‘eDeck: Real mobile gambling for Venetian high rollers’…)

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As you may have heard, we had an earthquake here in Southern California on Tuesday, July 29th. Measuring a “mild” 5.4 on the Richter scale, it was enough for our house to shake for minutes, the water in the pool to wash over the sides, and to scare us out of our PJs. Seismologists have drilled into us Californians that there is a 99% chance that the big one will hit in the next 30 years, so the common thought that comes to mind is: “Is this it?” URGENT NOTE: The Red Cross has just established a “Safe and Well” website for today’s earthquake so make sure to register, or if you can’t find a loved one, input that info under “Search” function. (Read the full post about ‘Emergency gadgets for earthquakes’…)

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Once again proving that the ipod leads the pack where it wants to go, Dell Computers has introduced a new mp3 player for underi. If you remember the last Dell MP3 player, you know that didn’t end pretty. So what makes the tech world think this will be any different? The answer is WiFi. Dubbed the “Dell D.J.,” the sub $100 wifi mp3 will also incorporate Internet radio – which is a great feature. Few mp3 players come with a radio option and taking advantage of it’s wifi access means that the mobile crowd will be able to enjoy streaming of their favorite radio stations from all over the world. Very nice. There is also talk that the LCD, though small, may be a touch screen, but the buttons on the device itself tend to fly in the face of that wishful thinking. (Read the full post about ‘Dell goes once more into the breach with WiFi Mp3 player’…)

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It’s amazing how some simple things can be turned into cool geek products. This latest desk lamp designed by Japan’s 25togo looks very much like an oversized LEGO block. The top of the blocks have a snap-off top layer that can hold pens, pencils and whatever else that will fit inside it. The bricks are measured at 6” x 4” x 2.4”, which makes them quite a bit bigger than the standard LEGO block. It’d be interesting to see if anything can be actually built out of these lamps, perhaps an illuminated Christmas tree? The only downer is that these lamps are only available through 25togo’s online store, and are going for about $15 each. (Read the full post about ‘LEGO Lamps To Light Up Your Day’…)

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I recently had the opportunity to use skin samples from RedBeard and GelaSkins for the Nintendo DS in addition to GelaSkins for the PSP. Prior to receiving the skins I must say that I pretty much thought all skins were the same. Nothing could honestly be further from the truth. Though RedBeard and GelaSkins are only two brands in a much larger gaming skin market; the differences I found between the two were unique enough to say that the brand you choose is truly a matter of taste, no matter how you want to protect your Nintendo DS or PSP. RedBeard Nintendo DS Skins One thing that Nintendo DS owners will appreciate with the RedBeard skins is that they are re-enforced with a thick layer of epoxy. (Read the full post about ‘Review: RedBeard (DS) and GelaSkins (DS and PSP Slim) skins’…)

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Sony is said to be among the first manufacturer to take advantage of Centrino 2’s ability to switch between graphics chips with its Vaio Z570. Back in the days, “thin & light” (<4lbs) laptop users complained about having to choose between a decent graphics chip and a better battery life. The solution was to make manually switchable graphics: the user had to physically move a switch, and then reboot to use a different graphics chip. As we covered during the Centrino 2 launch, things ate getting better: the system can now switch between integrated (low power) and discrete (high performance) graphics without rebooting.

(Read the full post about ‘Sony laptop to feature reboot-less switching between Intel and NVIDIA GPU’…)

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In an effort to use renewable energy sources and less polluting products, I’m surprised that I never see barbecues being targeted. Everyone always thinks of cars or big industrial factories as the ones that leave the huge carbon footprint, but no one thinks about grilling. I mean, if you’re burning something, that smoke has to go somewhere. And I’m certain that propane is some sort of pollutant because it smells so funny. It appears that someone has addressed this issue with the Helios, an energy-efficient outdoor cooker. The dish that you see is not designed to pick up 400 stations, but for collecting solar energy. The solar dish, which is safely pointed away from you while cooking, is designed to heat a coil inside the barbeque and cook food. (Read the full post about ‘Helios: Changing Barbeques as we know it’…)

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Sylvania jumps into the netbook game with the G MESO that will be powered by Intel’s Atom 1.6GHz processor. In addition, this tiny device will come with the following specifications :- 8.9″ 1,024 x 600 resolution LCD display with LED backlight 80GB hard drive 512MB RAM (black), 1GB RAM (other colors) Rated 4 hour battery life You can choose from black, white, yellow and pink colors. Sylvania is currently targeting a $299 price point, although it remains to be seen whether Windows XP or Ubuntu Netbook Remix will be the operating system of choice. Interestingly enough, Sylvania makes light bulbs and affordable monitors, so it goes to show just how much of a commodity netbooks are at this point in time. (Read the full post about ‘Sylvania G Netbook MESO’…)

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VMware released a second beta release (Beta 2) for their VMware Fusion 2 product. VMware Fusion is a virtualization software for the Mac that lets you run other operating systems on the system at the same time OS X is running. This means, for example, that you can run Mac OS X, Ubuntu Linux, and Microsoft Windows XP at the same time on a single Mac (assuming you have enough RAM to run all these OSes simultaneously, of course).

There are a bunch of new features introduced with the Beta 2 release. The Unity feature that lets you display an application window from a Guest OS in a virtual machine now works with both Microsoft Windows and Linux.

(Read the full post about ‘VMware Fusion 2 Beta 2 for the Mac Available’…)

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Now is this a weird looking fireplace or what - it comes in the form of a briefcase which sends a message that this is highly portable, handle and all. Perfect for the upcoming winter (better be prepared than never, I say), the Travelmate makes it a snap for you to stay warm no matter where you are. No idea on what the Travelmate uses for fuel, but it is highly possible that it uses some sort of alcohol gel that other smokeless fireplaces make do with. Magnets will keep the glass sides in place, so you’ll have to remove those before you light it up. Make sure the glass sides are placed back in order to prevent any untoward accidents. The Travelmate fireplace ain’t cheap though as it retail for $3,300 a pop. (Read the full post about ‘Travelmate Fireplace’…)

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