Gadgets Blog News

When I was in Seattle last summer, I had the opportunity visit the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame. As I entered in, I saw a very large sphere that had many images from old sci-fi shows being projected on it. I only bring this up because I thought that sphere was unique to the Science Fiction Museum, but this spherical screen is available for anyone. All they have to do is order the Pufferfish PufferSphere, which can be set up with some inflating. Which leads me to wonder how they get the projections up there. It appears that after a client inflates the PufferSphere on the easy tote base, there is an internal projection unit that takes care of that. (Read the full post about ‘Pufferfish Puffersphere’…)

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Averatec has released the 2575 12-inch notebook which is the newest addition to Averatec’s line-up of ultra portable consumer machines. With this latest offering, Averatec has integrated design and functionality with the hopes of attracting consumers interests, which could be difficult, especially with the slew of new notebooks hitting the market lately. So, does the Averatec 2575 have anything new to offer to the ultra-portable notebook market? Depends on what your needs are and what you are looking for in portable computing machine. In addition to the “contemporary design” the Averatec 2575 comes pre-installed with Vista Home Premium and features an AMD Turion 64 X2 dual core chip, 2GB of RAM, 250GB hard drive, ATI RS690 integrated graphics, a 1.3 megapixel webcam and a 4-1 card reader. (Read the full post about ‘Averatec releases the 2575, a 12-inch ultra-portable’…)

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Posted Mar 21st 2008 3:02PM by Paul MillerFiled under: Transportation While we spent our high school days trying not to cut our thumbs off in shop class, these West Philly High School kids have been making a run on the $10 million Automotive X Prize. They’re building a plug-in diesel hybrid in an attempt to reach that magical 100 mpg mark “without sacrificing style, safety or affordability.” Pictured above is a previous project, a K1 Attack modded up hybrid and biofuel-style. Seems like they’ve got the chops, but they’re certainly up against a lot of competition.Tags: amps, plasma, cellphone, gear (Read the full post about ‘West Philly High preps plug-in hybrid in bid for Auto X Prize’…)

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HP has announced the upgrade to the current dv2000 notebook, the new 13.3-inch dv3000 retains a similar look as the previous model although it offers a slightly smaller overall size. The dv3000 features a 2.5GHz T9300 Penryn Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB of RAM, 160GB hard drive, GeForce Go 8400M graphics with HDMI out, a dual-layer DVD burner, VGA webcam and is running Windows Vista Home Premium. The dv3000 is expected to retail for around $1,399, which is not a bad price, except it will only be available (beginning in May) in the Asian market. Via [Engadget] Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed → Tags: wireless, gps, DVD, hdtv (Read the full post about ‘HP unveils the dv3000 laptop’…)

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Rogers has just announced the addition of two new high speed data modems, the Novatel X950D and the MC950D. Both modems are tri-band HSPA and Quad-Band EDGE/GPRS and according to Novatel are made to offer “maximum performance and durability.” The X950D is an ExpressCard modem and the MC950D is a USB modem. While Rogers has announced the modems they are not yet available, the X950D and the MC950D are both set to be released later this summer, both will retail for $49.99 with a three-year agreement. Read [Novatel Wireless] Via [EngadgetMobile] Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed → Tags: gadgetry, gadgets, AAC, toys (Read the full post about ‘Rogers to intro the Novatel X950D, MC950D data cards’…)

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Posted Mar 21st 2008 12:20PM by Ryan BlockFiled under: PeripheralsOur latest micro-series, Screen grabs chronicles the uses (and misuses) of real-world gadgets in today’s movies and TV. Send in your sightings (with screen grab!) to screengrabs at engadget dt com. You’d think a car with AI sophisticated enough to carry on a lengthy conversation with its driver would kind of obviate the need for a keyboard, but hey, maybe that’s why we’re not in the TV business.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Tags: mobile devices, players, pvp, buyers guides (Read the full post about ‘Screen grabs: KITT the chatty car somehow still needs an Apple Bluetooth keyboard’…)

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Product: Sandio 3D Game O2 mouse (aka 3D Motion Controller with Laser Gaming Mouse) Price: $79.99 Rating: 5.5/10 Pros: A good core laser mouse, comfortable wrist attachment, programmable mini joysticks and cool lookin’ lights. Cons: Not as plug-and-play as promised with certain programs. Programming interface is not very intuitive. Some ergonomic issues as well. Overall: As a regular mouse, this works pretty well but the 3D components are more awkward than necessary. Only consider buying if you have a specific non-gaming 3D need, forgiving hands, a strong wrist and lots of patience. In a 2D computer screen world, it can really become a pain in the wrist to try and navigate virtual 3D environments. (Read the full post about ‘Gamertell Review: Sandio 3D Game O2 gaming mouse’…)

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In what seems like a strange story, Opera has announced they are now including a direct link to the AccuWeather mobile website from the Opera Mini start page. While Opera Mini seems to be the favorite mobile browser right now, and I do appreciate their effort to make my weather checking ability quicker and easier, couldn’t I just bookmark the weather site of my choice? Nonetheless both Opera and AccuWeather seem pretty pleased with the announcement. AccuWeather’s Senior VP of New Media saying: “We’re very pleased to offer our weather directly to Opera Mini users from their start page.” Opera’s Senior VP of Consumer Products said: “Offering fast and convenient access to pertinent information is part of that experience and is even more critical on a mobile device. (Read the full post about ‘AccuWeather.com now included on Opera Mini start page’…)

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I have to wait for Firefox 3, as much as I want to upgrade now, what with the promise of better memory management and performance increases, because I depend too much on the over 2 dozen extensions that I have. But Mozilla got smart with the upcoming next release of Firefox - they’ve launched a competition (Extend Firefox 3) to recruit developers to create brand new extensions that take advantage of new features in FF 3, as well as to simply upgrade existing extensions so that they continue to work. Prizes include travel to a Mozilla Developer Day, development gear (including a macbook air), and Firefox swag. Come on Firefox community - keep me loving my browser! Tags: high definition TV, hdtv, Ogg Vorbi (Read the full post about ‘Mozilla launches Extend Firefox 3 Contest’…)

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Posted Mar 21st 2008 6:20AM by Thomas RickerFiled under: Gaming, HDTV On June 12th, 2008 there’ll be no place to hide from the release of the gunmetal MGS4 PS3. Well no place except every single country other than japan where the ¥51,800 (about $520) limited edition console will exclusively launch. That wad of Yen nabs the limited edition 40GB console with a Metal Gear Solid 4 Guns of the Patriots software bundle and like-colored DualShock 3 controller. How you like that, Ol’ Snake? [Via Impress]Tags: hdtv, cameras, tech, high definition TV (Read the full post about ‘Limited edition Metal Gear Solid 4 PS3 heads to Japan’s Outer Haven’…)

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