Gadgets Base

Yet another ultra-portable styled notebook is hitting the market, this time its the GeCube Genie PC and it comes complete with a trick of its own. In a twist on the tablet pc with a rotating display, the Genie PC’s display will actually separate from the notebook. The Genie PC features a 7-inch display, a pretty low 2GB of flash-based storage, runs a Linux-based OS and retails for $450.

Now back to that detachable display, it kind of sounds better or at least more useful than it may prove to be with actual use. See the display is not touch-based. It does have a trackpad on the side, so you could still sit back and browse around the web, that is until you needed to type something.

Of course in all fairness, the detachable display may have still have a good point. For example if you were sitting at a table or desk setup, having a removable display would possibly allow you to set it up in an slightly more ergonomic manner, well maybe ergonomic is s bit of a stretch but at least you could have the display directly in front of your eyes perhaps saving your neck a little.

Via [DVICE]

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Recently during a Washington think tank, The Urban Institute discussed the phenomenon that as the number of iPods sold has increased, so has the rate of violent crime. The discussion seems to focus on iPods of course, but electronics in general are also mentioned. Some arguments for a connection between iPods and violent crime are that iPods are very coveted, iPod owners are easy to spot and are not always alert to their surroundings, which makes it’s harder for the thieves to get caught. Also, the Urban Institute points out that robberies by young people have increased more than for adults.  But there are arguments against a connection as well, for example there was also an increase in crime before the introduction of iPods. So the only thing you can really say is that, just like you learned in school, “Correlation does not imply causation.”

Still, it’s better to be safe than sorry. There’s the obvious suggestion to swap out the white earbuds for some cheap headphones so that it looks like you are too poor to afford an iPod. There are other ways too. How about you don’t have to listen to your MP3 player while you are at the subway platform or walking down the city streets, there’s too much ambient noise anyway. My cousin’s high school has a good policy, it doesn’t allow students to bring electronic devices to school or else they risk having the devices being taken away and not returned to them until the end of the school year. Last but not least, you can deter theft by getting another mp3 player instead of ipod, because people may not steal it if they don’t know what it is.

Read [Orlando Sentinel]

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The new 1400 series are part of Magellan’s fast growing GPS lineup. These new GPS units are very thin and designed to fit in the pocket and work as soon as you turn it on. Basically, these new GPS units all feature a 4.3-inch anti-glare touch screen, and a cool new interface called QuickSpell. This allows you to get the address you need without typing a whole lot. It also comes with SmartDetour, which does just what it says, it finds different routes in case there is a lot of traffic.

Overall, all of the GPS units in the 1400 series feature the following:

• 4.3-inch WQVGA full-colour, anti-glare touch-screen display.
• Centrality Atlas III GPS chipset.
• 2-D and 3-D map views with auto day/night mode switching.
• Trip computer and trip planner.
• QuickSpell, which intelligently searches and checks spelling when entering addresses.
• SmartDetour to route drivers around heavy or stationary traffic.
• Postcode search: 7-digit postcode searches in the United Kingdom and 6-digit postcode searches in the Netherlands.
• Pre-loaded speed-trap database providing known camera locations for each region.
• SD card slot for additional maps.
• USB port for PC connection and in-vehicle power.
• Worldwide reversible maps (where U.S. maps are compatible with EMEA products, and vice-versa).

More specifically, the basic unit which is just the RoadMate 1400, comes with NAVTEQ maps. The cool thing about this is that you can choose which maps you want to display so this will come in handy if you only need maps for a certain area. These areas are France, Italy/Austria/Switzerland, Sweden/Finland/Norway/Denmark, Great Britain/Ireland/Northern Ireland, Germany/Austria/Switzerland, Spain/Portugal and Belgium/Netherlands/Luxembourg. Another cool feature is that it comes with a database of safety cameras, which would show cameras for each region. So far, it is retailing for 179 Euros (around $275 US).

Moving onto the next GPS, the RoadMate 1415, which is basically the same but it comes with text-to-speech functionality. It comes with NAVTEQ maps which feature maps of all of Europe, thousands of POI’s, and it is set to retail for 229 Euros (around $350 US).

Finally, we have the RoadMate 1425 which comes with live traffic updates, and a lifetime traffic subscription which updates in real-time. This will provide accidents along your chosen route, comes up with alternative routes, and changes the expected time the trip will take based on real-time traffic. It also comes with over a million POI’s, which is a lot more than the other 2 models. Expected retail price is 279 Euros (around $427 US).

“We are developing products at Magellan that are designed to exceed consumer expectations in price, content and connectivity. The RoadMate brand is an exceptional example of a value-priced line that delivers great GPS performance as well as unique and compelling features,” said Christian Bubenheim, vice president of product marketing, Magellan.

Lastly, all of the RoadMate 1400 models come with a windshield mount and a cradle, 12V car charger, and an adhesive disk for on-dash mounting.

Read [Magellan]

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Posted Mar 7th 2008 9:37PM by Darren Murph
Filed under: Peripherals
Given the fact that most (all?) 3G USB modems won’t even fit in the macbook air’s ultra-cramped USB port, it’s practically a foregone conclusion that some of that sex appeal is going to be forfeited when busting out a dongle to keep using your current wares. Enter the AirQueue, which is hailed as the first USB extender designed specifically to work with the MBA — whatever that means. Truth be told, we can’t figure out exactly what makes this any different than other extenders made for helping folks out in a squeeze, but at least it’s only $6, right? Oh, and if you’re aiming to make things extra unsightly, be sure and pick up the pictured $38 ExpressCard adapter — your coffee shop style quotient will be tanked in no time.

[Via MacsimumNews, thanks RD]

Going in extreme contrast to the newest Swiftpoint mice from Simtrix, you’d imagine the Jupiter mouse (pictured above) to be something you’d find in your local stationery shop, down the paperweights section. But believe it or not, the Jupiter mouse is not just a concept, but a new kind of mouse that really works as a navigation device for your computer. It got its name from the obvious resemblance to the Big Red Planet, not to mention the presence of that big swirl smack in the middle of it, looking just like the big storms on Jupiter (the planet) itself. How does it work? Crazy like no other, if you ask me. Actually, to scroll right, you just tilt it towards that direction. Ditto for trying to scroll left, up or down, I suppose. The tilt sensors also work to regulate the speeds at which the cursor scrolls, depending on the user’s commands, of course. Currently, it’s available in Japan for only ¥ 13 980 (or around $135 US), but you have to wonder, who’d want those? Maybe a techie environmentalist with an interest in astronomy? Well?

Read [Trends in Japan] Via [Gadget Venue]

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Posted Mar 7th 2008 11:31PM by Joshua Topolsky
Filed under: Gaming
Like they say, all’s well that ends well — and that’s certainly true in the case of a gamer named Nathaniel. If you’ll recall, the Xbox 360 owner had sent his very personalized console into Microsoft for repairs, making very clear that the signed and drawn-on system had great sentimental value to him… which the technicians in Redmond promptly ignored. After the console returned to him wiped clean of the aforementioned “value,” it seemed like all hope was lost. Luckily, the kind souls at Bungie have taken it upon themselves to try and right the wrongs perpetrated in this case, and have mailed Nathaniel a super-ultra-mega awesome package, featuring a Legendary Edition helmet signed by most of the Bungie studio staff, the soundtrack disc signed by Martin O’Donnel, a jacket, t-shirt, limited edition wireless controllers, and much, much, much more. Hit the read link to get the full story, and check out Nathaniel’s thanks to the gaming community and Bungie.

[Thanks, Saad]

Tired of the standard old baby names, trying to think of something unique to hopefully have your newborn standout a little. Well look no further than your phonetic SMS spellings, or mis-spellings as they really are. According to the Thaindian News in addition to a corruption of the English language we are also seeing an unusually high amount of mis-spellings in baby names.

“The use of a ‘y’ instead of an ‘i’ has hit epidemic proportions, as has the use of ‘k’ over ‘c’ like in the names Jaykob and Lynkon, double letters like Siimon and Chriss and hyphens like Emma-Lee,” News.com.au quoted McCrindle, of private research agency McCrindle Research, as saying.

While we certainly cannot disagree with anyone trying to stand out a little, lets remember our kids are going to have to deal with these names and likely mispronunciations their entire life, or at least until they get old enough to take control and officially change their name.

Via [textually.org]

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In a move similar to Circuit City, but not quite as generous an offer, Canada’s Future Shop is helping those customers that were unfortunate enough to commit to the now dead HD DVD format.

The offer from Future Shop does have some nice points and some limitations. First off they are accepting standalone hd dvd players that were purchased anywhere. The offer gives customers $100 that they can use to purchase either an LG or Samsung Blu-ray/HD DVD combo player. This does mean that you have a pretty limited selection, but at least you can still play any HD DVD movies that you already purchased, plus any new Blu-ray titles that you pick up in the future.

If you are looking to trade-in your HD DVD player you may want to act quickly, the offer ends on April 3, 2008. The players that Future Shop receives from the trade-in program will all be donated to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada so they can be used in their after-school and evening programs.

Read [Future Shop] Via [Engadget]

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The Sony Ericsson Xperia X1offers a 3.2 megapixel camera with auto focus, photo light, and video recording, as well as the following features:

* full arc-sliding QWERTY
* Windows Mobile 6 operating system
* 3-inch wide VGA (800 x 480) touchscreen display,
* A2DP Bluetooth
* GPS
* WiFi
* microSD
* 400MB
* quad-band GSM/EDGE
* 900/1700/1900/2100MHz UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA (or 850/1700/1900/2100MHz)
* 4-way key and optical joystick

Via Engadget.

The LG KT610 offers a 2 megapixel camera as well as the following features:

* QWERTY
* 3.6Mbps HSDPA
* GPS navigation
* 2.4-inch QVGA main
* 1.45-inch 160 x 64 pixel external display
* Bluetooth 2.0

Via Engadget.