Gadgets Blog News

by Joshua Topolsky, posted May 23rd 2008 at 8:46AM Just like we said, the Zune has made its first retail appearance in Canada. Come June 13th, our friends to the north will be able to get their hands on Microsoft’s media players, starting at $139.99 (for the 4GB flash variety), up to $249.99 for the big-daddy 80GB version. (Read the full post about ‘Zune shows up at Canadian retailer on schedule for June release’…)

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Flip lovers sit tight – there’s a new Flip about to hit the market.  Silent and unassuming, the new camcorder came without much fanfare.  A B&H print catalog simply listed the new camcorder from Flip Video—the Mino Flip. Currently there are not any available specifications about the new device.  The only thing known about it is that it has a list price of $179.99, comes in white or black and will be available on June 4. It may be assumed that the new device is the company’s new flagship Flip as the high-end Ultra also started out at $179.99.  Improvements in design, features, and performance compared to earlier flip models seem like a safe bet, but actual details are still unavailable. (Read the full post about ‘A Flip Video follow-up? The new Flip Minos’…)

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Both Google Health and Microsoft HealthVault are now offering their services - and servers - to consumers who want to store their personal health records (PHRs) online. Consumer advocates say they’ll be keeping a close eye on both technology giants to make sure they have a healthy respect for their customers’ privacy. Yet Google Health’s privacy policy admits that its service is not covered by the Health Insurance Portability and Privacy Act (HIPPA), which Congress passed 12 years ago to protect medical records. And HealthVault’s privacy policy makes no mention of HIPPA, instead asking consumers to put their trust in TRUSTe, the independent, non-profit group founded by the Electronic Frontier Foundation and sponsored by Microsoft and AOL, for enforcement of privacy standards. (Read the full post about ‘Privacy groups fear Google Health, Microsoft HealthVault.  Why you should too’…)

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As evidenced by the ever-popular Hello Kitty vibrator, and Gloomy Bear, cute Japanese toys are not always as sexless or as gormless as they may appear at first glance. Tomy’s “Healing Partner” doll may not be that cute, and isn’t covered in bloody wounds, but it follows the Japanese tradition of something which looks benign being a little menacing. The Healing Partner doll shadow sleeps with you- so using six sensors it goes to sleep when you do, and stays awake ungodly hours when you do. And then it lets you know what it thinks about your joint sleeping pattern by singing sweetly when it’s well-rested, or hurling abuse when you’ve been out all night, leaving it alone and shaking with fury, filled with robo-psychotic thoughts. (Read the full post about ‘Takaratomy “Healing Partner” doll’…)

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by Darren Murph, posted May 23rd 2008 at 3:23AM Chances are, you didn’t really need another option for a pink travel guide, but if that rosy nüvi just isn’t as sparkly as it once was, Medion’s lookin’ out for you. The outfit has just released its GoPal E3215 Glamour Edition, which reportedly features a perfectly average 3.5-inch color touchscreen, 1.7-centimeter thick frame, speed camera database and maps of Western Europe. (Read the full post about ‘Medion GoPal E3215 Glamour Edition comes in pink and pink’…)

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The Philips M600 is a candybar phone offering a 1.3-megapixel camera as well as the following features: * 2-inch 220 x 176 resolution display * microSD expansion slot * Bluetooth * 3.5-millimeter headphone jack * support for MIDI / MP3 / WMA / AMR files * USB 1.1 connectivity * dual-band GSM / GPRS * up to 40-hours of music playback on a single charge Via Engadget. Tags: cable, video games, pvp, digital (Read the full post about ‘Philips M600′…)

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We all know the Asus Eee Pc to come in the same color as the original ipod did - white, but apparently a French Asus Eee PC blog managed to pick up images of a sleek and stunning black Asus Eee PC 901. Other than the introduction of a new color, additional details are still very scant, but we do know that the Eee PC 901 will feature an Intel Atom processor, an 8.9″ display, Bluetooth connectivity, and metal alloy parts that make up the keyboard and hinge. There won’t be any WiMAX though. For further confirmation, we ought to wait till June since that’s when the Eee PC 901 is slated to be released. (Read the full post about ‘Black Asus Eee PC 901 spotted’…)

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We know you’re still digesting those Hello Kitty sushi cell phone charms we showed you recently, but since some of you would like nothing more than to see Miss Kitty . . . oh, I don’t know . . . thrown into an oven and baked up nice and golden brown perhaps (hey now, don’t judge us; you’re the ones who want it done), we just couldn’t let this one go. Making your dreams come true is one of our top priorities, after all. So please sit back, relax, and feast your eyes on the Deliciously-Browned Kitty Cell Phone Strap. Imagine: for just $4.36 from Strapya World, you could hang a baked Hello Kitty from your cell phone to show everyone how cruel, I mean cool, you’ve been to a defenseless feline who stepped into a dark room, put a finger where her mouth should be, and thought, “Hmm. (Read the full post about ‘Hello Kitty browned, baked, and hung from her head’…)

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With all the attention everyone is giving to the iphone and optimizing services for it, a growing number of applications are actually getting better for all of us.  Here is one little improvement for the iPhone that works great with Firefox.  This neat trick brings Google Reader to a sidebar in your Firefox (others too if you must) browser and it is pretty cool. This fun trick opens up Google’s Reader in a very easy to read yet not obtrusive sidebar with all my RSS feeds just begging to be checked out.  Here is how you swing this: 1. Open the Bookmarks Manager (Bookmarks/Organize Bookmarks…) 2. In Firefox 2, in the File menu, select New bookmark… In Firefox 3, press Organize in the toolbar and select New bookmark… 3. (Read the full post about ‘Everyone reaps iPhone attention: Google sidebar Reader’…)

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Most companies have, at some point, released some sort of themed device, with the theme of the last two years being this summer’s Beijing Olympics. Lenovo, put out their so-styled laptop, a very long time ago. Now Kodak is keeping true to customs with their Olympic-themed M2008 digital camera. The device features the Olympics logo, along with text that reads “Beijing 2008.” From a more technological standpoint, the M2008 offers a 10-megapixel camera and 3x optical zoom. The standard Kodak menu system can be viewed via the 3-inch LCD on the device.  You can even record events, sporting or otherwise, in 720p with the video functionality, a nice touch. (Read the full post about ‘Kodak unveils the Olympics-themed M2008 digital camera’…)

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