Gadgets Blog News

by Joshua Fruhlinger, posted Jul 20th 2008 at 7:22PM Nanotubes are the stuff invisible dreams are made of, producing batteries, ramen, tiny chips, and in this case, invisible tightropes. Nicola Pugno of the Polytechnic of Turin in Italy has figured out a way to spread invisible nanotubes 5 micrometers apart that he says could support an entire human. The resulting “cable” would measure 1 centimeter in diameter and weigh just 10 milligrams per kilometer. So, what would we do with this ultra-strong, invisible cable? Support things that weigh about as much as humans do, naturally. Really, though, this means that super-strong, super-small cables are coming, and architecture could be changed forever. (Read the full post about ‘Invisible nanotubes could support human weight’…)

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by Joshua Fruhlinger, posted Jul 20th 2008 at 11:28AM Now that all the SSD efficiency drama has mellowed out a bit, the guys over at Hot Hardware got their hands on an OCZ Core Series SATA II 64GB SSD and already pitted it against a WD VelociRaptor. The early numbers are impressive: The OCZ averaged read speeds of over 140MB/s and was writing at 87MB/s while the WD topped out at around 136MB/s read and 134MB/s write times. When it comes to applications and random-access times, though, the OCZ SSD scored some crazy fast times. In Windows Defender, gaming, photo import, and Vista startup tests, the SSD was getting things done at as much as 5 times the speed of the VelociRaptor. (Read the full post about ‘OCZ Core SSD vs WD VelociRaptor: the early performance numbers are in’…)

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After experimenting with almost every Bluetooth headset, I’m back where I started with the Aliph Jawbone, but with a shiny new one, which is 50% smaller than the original, with improved noise elimination technology ( amusingly called “NoiseAssassin” technology). “Military-grade” NoiseAssassin technology - Aliph develops technology for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, you see - means the Jawbone literally feels your speech with its patented Voice Activity Sensor (VAS) and distinguishes the sound of your voice from ambient real-life noise. (I couldn’t test it with Cluster bombs going off in the background, but found the closest comparison - a car filled with raucous teenage girls, all talking at the same time.) Just like the old model, the Jawbone II is simple to use. (Read the full post about ‘New Jawbone Buetooth headset - Size does matter’…)

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by Darren Murph, posted Jul 20th 2008 at 8:22AM We can’t help but love when a plan comes together, and if you’ve been hesitant about replacing your kitchen hood while secretly longing to redirect those funds towards a new LCD, there’s a compromise staring you right in the face. Faber’s luxurious Imago+ multimedia hood boasts a stainless steel / glass finish, fits nicely above your range and includes a 19-inch LCD TV with a 1,440 x 900 resolution, 300 cd/m2 brightness and 850:1 contrast ratio. Unfortunately for you Americans, the internal tuner caters to DVB-T signals, though the decent lineup of ports will allow you to connect up other sources of content. (Read the full post about ‘Faber’s Imago+ multimedia hood redirects attention from stove to TV’…)

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by Darren Murph, posted Jul 20th 2008 at 4:37AM This one has been around the block a time or two, but considering you have absolutely nothing else to do on a Sunday, you might as well dust off that DIY kit and get to work. What you’re looking at above is a genuine (albeit modified) NES controller playing a bona fide classic on a laptop. Amazingly, all of the software required for such a marvelously good time is stuffed tight within the controller itself. Take a step back and digest that — your very own NES emulator (with ROMs), shoved inside a Nintendo Entertainment System controller. Does it get any more awesome than that? Hit the read link to start building your own and let us know. (Read the full post about ‘Modder shoves emulator, ROMs into actual NES controller’…)

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by Darren Murph, posted Jul 19th 2008 at 11:56PM In reality, quite a bit of time has passed since we’ve heard of the next great leap in the (seemingly) never-ending journey towards quantum computing, but we’re incredibly relieved to learn that at least someone is still out there, somewhere, pressing on. An international team of researchers have reportedly shown that they can “control the quantum state of a single electron in a silicon transistor, even putting the electron in two places at once.” Essentially, the team is using tiny semiconductor transistors to “control the state of a quantum system,” but there is still a long ways to go before any of this is meaningful. (Read the full post about ‘Another breakthrough purportedly brings us closer to quantum computing’…)

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Who knows what you might think of as cool tomorrow? The only thing you can really know is what you like today. But our moods change like the wind. The human emotional spectrum is wide and varied. A blue watch from yesterday might seem like a bad idea for today. Our fashion sense can change just as quick as our moods. The Ohsen Multi-Color LED Watch tries to compensate for those who get bored easily. A button on top of the watch face cycles through a collection of seven colors when pressed. Some days are blue days and some are green. And yet others are pink. This watch from Ohsen offers the whole sha-bang. The water resistant analog watch isn’t even half bad looking when there’s no LED shining at all. (Read the full post about ‘Multi-Color LED Watch to match your mood swings’…)

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Talking on your phone while driving without a handsfree kit is a major traffic offence in most countries, and the CPC WristBand is here to solve the problem. This sub-$10 solution comes with a universal case and a wristband that is strapped around your wrist. Wrap the wristband around the wrist. Insert the flip or candy bar style cell phone into the clear pocket of the CPC WristBand. Now you’re free to communicate hands-free just like Dick Tracy it’s just that simple. The CPC WristBand is the world’s first and only hands-free cellular wristband accessory on the market that allows drivers over the age of 18 talk legally on the cellphone while driving. (Read the full post about ‘CPC WristBand’…)

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Designer Marc Schömann has certainly done well with this new cell phone concept known as the Cryptex phone. It takes long as all get out if you’re trying to dial a number during a frantic moment, so I would reserve this for casual calls and those who love to do things extreeeeemely slow. After all, you will need to turn each individual section to the correct number before the haptic technology provides a confirmation, so imagine performing an international call. That’s a whole lot of sections to turn, and by the time you’re done, your relief is turned into frustration as you’re redirected to the voice mail instead. (Read the full post about ‘Cryptex phone concept’…)

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by Paul Miller, posted Jul 19th 2008 at 7:16PM Sort of. Pwnage Tool 2.0 can’t handle 3G iPhones just yet, and we’re also faced with the teensy little problem of the Dev Team’s server being totally destroyed by downloads already — mirror please? — but the friendly little jailbreak app has finally been unleashed upon the earth. (Read the full post about ‘iPhone Dev Team unleashes Pwnage Tool 2.0′…)

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