Archive for May 26th, 2008

Want to order online - but don’t care what you buy? The Something Store is for you!

Monday, May 26th, 2008

Call me strange (hey, it wouldn’t be the first time - or even the hundredth) but when I shop online, I usually have a specific something in mind. A book, some pants, that episode of The Hills I missed on cable, you know, something I want.

But some people, they just like to shop. And apparently, they don’t care what they actually end up with: as long as they’ve spent money, they’re happy. The Something Store is the perfect site for these people - or anyone with an affinity for playing the odds.

You send the Something Store $10, and they will send you… something. Something non-returnable, at that. It could be something posh and exciting, it could be something you’ll never use. You might like it, you might hate it, but at least you’ll have got rid of some of that pesky cash burning a hole in your pocket.

Via Shiny Shiny.

Nintendo adds more colors to European DS Lite palette

Monday, May 26th, 2008

Isn’t it amazing how something as simple as a new color can get a two-year-old device back into tech headlines?

The latest “news” about the 2006-introduced Nintendo DS Lite is that it will soon be available in more colors in Europe. While Americans must remain content with the two-toned cobalt/black model released a few months ago, Europeans (and Europe tourists) can choose from ice blue, lime green, and a shade of red that could only be called very cherry.

Via DS Fanboy.

Japanese scientist claims breakthrough with cold fusion experiment

Monday, May 26th, 2008

by Donald Melanson, posted May 26th 2008 at 12:10PM While recent attempts to create a perpetual motion machine somehow, inexplicably didn’t pan out, a physics professor from Osaka University now claims to have made a scientific breakthrough of another sort, with him now touting nothing less than a supposedly successful demonstration of cold fusion. That was apparently done by forcing deuterium gas under pressure into an evacuated cell containing a sample of palladium dispersed in zirconium oxide, which caused the deuterium to be absorbed by the palladium sample, resulting in a denser, or “pynco” deuterium, with deuterium nuclei that are close enough together to fuse. That process also supposedly resulted in a rise in temperature to about 70° Celsius, and a temperature in the center of the cell that remained “significantly warmer” than the cell wall for 50 hours after the test. Of course, there doesn’t appear to be any other scientists ready to back up the experiment just yet, so you’ll have to rely on your own armchair science expertise to get your hopes up or down accordingly on this one.

[Via Slashdot, thanks One]

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Filed under: Misc. gadgets

FCC considers move to regulate early termination fees

Monday, May 26th, 2008

The FCC is taking a new look at the cell phone Consumer Empowerment Act. The act, passed in September of last year, is looking to implement a pro-rated early termination fee system. In such a system, the amount of the ETF would depend on how much of the customers contract has been completed at the time of cancellation. Until recently most providers have charged a flat $200 fee. Sprint and AT&T are already offering such a pro-rated fee structure, and T-Mobile has announced plans to do the same. The act is also asking the FCC to order cell phone providers to allow customers 30 days or 10 days after
their first bill to cancel with no fee, however most carriers already offer this.

Via [MobileBurn]

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Earth Trek touts “world’s smallest” projector

Monday, May 26th, 2008

by Donald Melanson, posted May 26th 2008 at 3:11PM While it likely won’t hold onto the (slightly dubious) title for long at the rate mini-projectors are cropping up these days, Hong Kong-based Earth Trek has nonetheless gone out and proclaimed its new 90-805R projector to be the “world’s smallest” and, indeed, it is small. Measuring about 4 by 2 inches, the projector can apparently pump out a 22-inch diagonal image (no word from what distance), with an SD card slot and an A/V input provided via a 3.5 mm jack, not to mention a built-in speaker. No word on a price or release date just yet, but we’d assume they’d want to get it out relatively soon in order to beat the inevitable cellphone projector rush.

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Filed under: Displays

Samsung announces the 256GB flashSSD ealier than planned

Monday, May 26th, 2008

It was only a couple of months ago when we said that Samsung was planning to roll out a new 256GB SSD by 2009. And look what we have here right now, Samsung just announced its new ultra-fast 256GB SSD. Yes, folks Samsung was really dead serious in upgrading its previously released 128GB model with this new higher capacity flashSSD.

The 256GB flashSSD doubles the reading speed of the 128mpbs model with its own 200mpbs sequential data reading speed. Even better is its writing speed which now runs at 160MB per second as compared to the 70mbps writing speed of the previous model. And not only is the 256GB SSD ultra fast, but it is also enclosed in an ultra-thin chassis which measures only 9.5mm in thickness.

Samsung is also touting this new flashSSD as an affordable drive since it was manufactured using multi-level cell (MLC) technology which is rather cheap when compared to using a single-level cell technology. This technology will not only make the drive cheaper but durable as well.

This new flashSSD will start shipping hopefully by the end of the year. Although Samsung has not announced yet as to which PC makers will be using their new drive. But it will certainly serve the purposes of companies who are into the manufacturing of ultraportable PCs.

Via [Electronista] Via [Engadget]

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Cool your lap with a Log Pillow

Monday, May 26th, 2008

It’s a well-known fact that many laptops heat up considerably when in use for any long period. This of course has spawned hundreds of devices meant to cool off your notebook using any combination of heatsinks and pads. This Log Pillow takes a different approach to the situation.

Rather than trying to directly cool off the parts of the laptop that would be resting on your legs, this Log Pillow raises it up away from your legs to keep them cool. The “logs” are soft and cushy which not only keep you comfortable, but allow for better air circulation to the underside of the notebook. The front one even acts as a nice wrist rest for additional comfort.

What’s more is the “logs” are actually filled with buckwheat hulls and are crafted from hemp, which will appeal to your inner hippie. Unfortunately the $160 price tag will likely sway you towards finding a different cooling option.

Source: Dvice

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Sun beats Microsoft to ODF compatibility in Office

Monday, May 26th, 2008

Want to use MS Office to open and save ODF spreadsheets, word processing, and presentation documents, but don’t want to wait until 2009 to do it?  Sun has got you covered.  Microsoft recently announced that native ODF support would be coming to its popular Office 2007 productivity suite with the release of Service Pack 2, currently scheduled for early to mid 2009.  Users who either can not or do not wish to wait that long have an alternative though, and it comes from one of Microsoft’s chief competitors in the market for office productivity software: Sun Microsystems.

Sun has taken the open source OpenOffice suite of productivity applications, and offers a branded version called StarOffice 8.  The productivity suite, which includes word processing, spreadsheet, presentation, drawing, and database capabilities (think Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Visio, and Access) costs far less than typical licenses for MS Office, and offers nearly the same functionality.  Major advantages include full compatibility with both ODF and popular MS Office formats, including .doc/.odt, .xls/.ods, and .ppt/.odp, as well as significant cost savings versus a typical installation of MS Office. 

Building on this open architecture, Sun is currently offering the Sun ODF Plugin for Microsoft Office v 1.2.  The plugin integrates seamlessly with the Open and Save dialog boxes in Office, allowing users to choose one of the ODF document formats whenever they open or save a document.  In addition to delivering the plugin nearly a year ahead of Microsoft, Sun also touts the plugin’s compatibility with earlier versions of Office, including Office 2000, Office XP, and Office 2003, in addition to Office 2007 SP1.  The only version of MS Office not supported is Office for Mac, but this is because Sun has never delivered a Mac version of StarOffice (though rumors of a Java-based version for OS X persist).  Microsoft has made no indication of its intent to support ODF in older versions of Office.

Via [ghacks.net] Via [Sun Office Productivity]

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Physicists develop plastic semiconductors for laser diode use

Monday, May 26th, 2008

by Darren Murph, posted May 26th 2008 at 5:03AM
Not to get all scientific on you or anything, but a team of Imperial physicists have just figured out a way to use plastics in laser diodes. For the uninitiated, scientists have been unable to make plastic semiconductor laser diodes because they had not yet found / developed “any plastics that could sustain a large enough current whilst also supporting the efficient light emission needed to produce a laser beam.” Now, however, that obstacle has reportedly been overcome by making minor tweaks to a given plastic’s chemical structure, and the resulting material will transport charges some 200 times better than before without impeding its ability to emit light. By the sound of things, the crew behind the breakthrough isn’t quite ready to offer up the solution to manufacturers, but with a bit more work, we suspect that notion will change.

[Via Slashdot]

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Filed under: Misc. gadgets

Czeers shows off “world’s first” solar powered speedboat

Monday, May 26th, 2008

by Donald Melanson, posted May 26th 2008 at 8:44AM There aren’t many sorts of vehicles that haven’t been solarized, but it looks like Dutch company Czeers has managed to find one, with it now showing off what it claims to be the world’s first solar powered speedboat. Dubbed the MK1, the solar panel-ensconced vessel can apparently reach a top speed of 30 knots (or roughly 35 miles per hour), all the while operating in relative silence. The company doesn’t seem to have overlooked the other parts of the boat either, with it also boasting touchscreen-based control system and a suitably luxurious leather interior. No word on a possible price or release date just yet, naturally, but you can catch a glimpse of it in action in the video after the break.

[Via Uber Review]

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