Gadgets Base

Posted Mar 28th 2008 11:52PM by Ryan Block
Filed under: cellphones, Tablet PCs
We know Apple’s had its Inkwell handwriting recognition software in OS X for years now, so we might have otherwise just totally glossed over this Handwriting Recognition Engineer job listing on Apple’s site. Except for the part that reads: “The recognition technology you create may extend beyond Mac OS X to other applications and the iphone.” They always love to throw those little tidbits in there, don’t they?

[Via Macrumors]

Is there someone coming to your house you don’t want to talk to? Or perhaps there’s someone you’d like to impress on the dinner table?

For hardcore drummers who can’t seem to stop tap-tapping on anything, this drum table is perfect. It might look like an innocent table, but it’s actually equipped with various drums. Those dinners when you had to quell under your mother-in-law’s stern look are gone. Just tap onto the table and annoy her out of the house. The table comes in various configurations (2×2, 2×4, 3×3 and 4×4), with the largest one priced at around £1,450.

via

Posted Mar 28th 2008 9:19PM by Nilay Patel
Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment
Well, it’s no surprise that it was going to happen, but the HD DVD Promotion Group officially dissolved today, leaving behind nothing but this terse message directing us to individual “selling agencies.” And so, with literally nothing left of HD DVD, we formally close the sad chapter of consumer electronics history known as the HD Format War, remembering those times when hd dvd rode high, with low prices, more features and less restrictive rights management as its rallying cries, and the rantings of Michael Bay still only the delusional fantasies of a fool. May the resistance live on, and our PS3s always be reminded of a time when their ascension was not guaranteed. Red’s dead, baby.

This projector clock is reportedly so real, it feels like you can actually touch it.

It’s just like an ordinary wall clock except it’s so much cooler. All you need to do to project the image of a clock on any flat surface is to push a button. But if you’re feeling lazy to do even that, you can always activate the sound recognition option, which lets you activate and deactivate the projector clock by clapping your hands. Get one for yourself now for 69.95.

Posted Mar 28th 2008 12:05PM by Donald Melanson
Filed under: Portable AudioWith that little Department of Justice business out of their way, Sirius and XM have unsurprisingly been quick to start chatting up the all-important FCC, and a recent filing from the agency has now revealed that lawyers from the two companies have met with none other than FCC Chairman Kevin Martin himself, along with other higher-ups. Even more interesting, however, is that the same filing also includes a full rundown of the companies’ proposed post-merger pricing plans, which don’t appear to have changed much from those detailed way back in the early days of the merger. Starting with the basics, the Sirius and XM “Everything” plans will hang on to the same $12.95 per month price tag, and include approximately 130 and 170 channels, respectively. From there, each service has A La Carte options starting at $6.99 a month (with additional channels costing 25 cents apiece), along with the usual package options ranging in price from $9.99 for the Mostly Music and News, Sports and Talk bundles to $16.99 for the “Sirius Everything & Select XM” or “XM Everytyhing & Select Sirius” packages. Be sure to hit up the PDF available at the link below for the complete rundown.

Here is something that artists of the future will definitely be sporting. Okay, perhaps “sporting” isn’t a very artsy term, but it definitely looks like something artists would have, because it looks like a palette.

So far, this is Palette-Digital artist is only a concept, but a good looking entry to the Mircosoft NextGen PC Design Competition. All connections to the port are wireless, and there is even a DVD drive designed with it.

The only difference between this and a real palette is no one paints on the palette. Too bad the design does not come with a digital canvas, but it does have some interesting looking “paintbrushes”.

For example, I’m guessing that what we’re seeing here is some really cool Paint program. All you need to do is dip in the stylus/paintbrush into the paint, and it will be on your picture without any splotches or sloppy mixing. Give this to your kid if he or she wants to be a painter.

To be honest, I think the palette was the first ever palm pilot. You know, the stylus is the brush, and the screen the canvas. So it is no surprise someone would model a portable PC after it. I hope it becomes a reality, as it would be very cool to have one of these.

Source

Posted Mar 28th 2008 9:33AM by Joshua Topolsky
When you’re not heading to work in your space car or programming your robot maid to make dinner for the family, you’ll probably want to catch the American Idol 3017 on this Humax LCD TV concept. Designed by London’s Tej Chauhan, the future-retro model manages to look old while seeming completely fresh, recalling the “World of Tomorrow” depicted in Cold War-era renderings of the “future.” There’s no word on whether this is going to get turned into an honest-to-goodness consumer product (please?), but you can check it out if you live in Italy at the Zona Tortona design show, running April 16th to the 21st.

[Via Tech Digest]

You splurged and got the ipod nano in your favorite color, so why don’t you have matching earbuds? Now you can with Griffin Technology’s “Tune Buds” which come in 5 snappy colors (Silver, Light Blue, Purple, Light Green and Red).

At $19.99, your’e not going to expect the quality of your Shure earbuds, but they’re surprisingly good, especially with the bass, which is always tricky.

The secret is not only the neodymium dynamic drivers, it’s the specially-engineered ear cushions, shaped to perfectly conform to the shape of the inside of your ears, which means enhanced audio isolation from outside distractions. Size matters, folks.

With 3 sizes of interchangeable soft washable silicone ear cushions included in every package, there’s a size for everyone, so no more “ear-fatigue.”

Next time I want to skip work, I wonder if my editor would accept “my ears are fatigued” as an excuse?