The original had the distinction of being the first talking quartz clock, and the newer version appears to retain much of its functionality. However, the update also features LED lighting and speaks the date, weather and temperature data (in Japanese or English) when the top of the pyramid is pressed twice. Unfortunately, the clock is only available in Japan at the moment, but if Seiko does not bring it to the States, it will undoubtedly make its way here through exporters like Japan Trend Shop, Geek Stuff 4 U or Rinkya. [Seiko via Crunchgear]

iFixit's teardown didn't reveal anything totally unexpected, with the exception of an inscription on the logic board from the designer that reads: "with love,—bunnie." However, modders might be interested in the following highlights:

* Notable components found inside the chumby one:
* Freescale i.MX233 CPU, running at 454 MHz
* MMA7455 3-axis accelerometer
* Hynix 923E 64MB DDR DRAM
* QN8005B FM Radio chip
* An inscription that reads "with love, bunnie"

* The MicroSD socket contains a 2GB Kingston MicroSD firmware card,
which can easily be pulled out once the device is opened. Users can
load custom firmware and upgrade chumby one's storage in a snap.

* There are plenty of ventilation holes in the top and rear outer
cases. Such a Swiss cheese case design allows the chumby to stay
cool without the need for a fan.

* Volume control commands are sent via a rotary encoder that
translates angular degrees of rotation into binary code recognized by
the board.

* The wireless card is attached to a small interconnect board,
converting the four-pin connector found on the logic board into the
USB connector used by the wireless card. This could potentially mean
hacking/upgrading the chumby to 802.11n in the future, were you able
to find a USB Wi-Fi card of similar size.

* You can also unplug the USB Wi-Fi card and plug in regular ethernet
using a USB-to-ethernet dongle.

* The 2W mono speaker is mounted onto a resonance box which occupies
precious interior space, which could be used to stuff more awesome
hacking stuff into the chumby. Alternatively, it could be used as a
secret stash for narcotics.

Hit the following link for full details on the teardown. [iFixit]

But if I'm forced to use it, I won't complain. Designed by Florian Schärfer, the Melted Clock bed has integrated speakers, touch-sensitive buttons to snooze and control playback, and a haptic, touch sensitive alarm clock. Not a bad concept.

Still, the hammock and cocktails sound a lot better. [Yanko Design via Unplggd]

[Henrik Amberla via The Design Blog via Unplggd]

The Price

$100 for a limited time, $120 afterwards. Includes international power adapters and AC charger, but battery is sold separately. Starts shipping 11/25.

The Verdict

It's the same questionably essential yet unquestionably adorable Chumby, with a new case and a lower (and very tempting) price. I have no idea what its makers meant the original beanbag Classic (newly renamed) to be used for, but the One is more than a little reminiscent of old-school clock radios. And if you look at it as simply a badass clock radio, rather than an amorphous connected widget device, you really appreciate it. Imagine waking up to Pandora, then rolling over and checking your email and Twitter before hitting snooze for another ten minutes of sleep. Awesome, right? But what exactly has changed from the Chumby Classic?

Instead of the touchscreen-in-a-beanbag look, it's now rocking a smooth white plastic casing with a big honking volume knob on the side and a 3.5-inch resistive touchscreen. I really like the design: It's playful and chunky and thoroughly charming. Some may be bummed that the One loses the beanbag look, which is kind of a signature of the line, but I don't think it'll make that much difference. The Classic (beanbag) Chumby required a power cable so it's not like you could toss it around, and luckily the new design is still distinctive and fun—and if you really want the beanbag, it's not going anywhere. The One is simply joining the Classic, not replacing it.

The Chumby One does lose a few features found in the Chumby Classic—it only has one USB port compared to the Classic's two, and the formerly stereo 2W dual-speaker set is now mono speaker with the same wattage. The speaker is noticeably more distorted and muddier, and could use definitely use improvement, although it's not horrible and is fine at lower volumes.

But the Chumby One also gains 2GB memory (the Classic has 64MB), a li-ion battery (in addition to AC) and a faster processor. I didn't notice much improvement in speed, but it's not like it really needs a whole lot of muscle to display weather and New York Times headlines. The Chumby One's screen also seems sharper than the Classic's, and the overall package is shorter and narrower, though thicker. Chumby's selection of widgets, by the way, is quite good, with a huge selection of clocks, social networking services, news, RSS feeds, games and other fun little timewasters.

I'm conflicted about the Chumby One. On the one hand, it's totally unnecessary—it can't really do anything a modern smartphone with a dock can't do better, and at $100 it's sort of expensive for an alarm clock. On the other hand, I'm undeniably taken with this thing. It does a good job delivering the time, weather, news and RSS feeds, running Pandora and waking me up, and it looks adorable while doing it. If you're comfortable dropping $100 on a little plastic cube of widgets for your bedside table, go for it.

Awesome retro design with clean and simple UI

Runs widgets admirably

$100—substantial price cut, but not quite impulse-purchase territory

Doesn't do anything your smartphone can't

If Yamaha's MCR-140 is anything to go by, this little digital clock should also produce some great sound. The device is expected to hit shelves in Japan around December—although pricing has not been announced. [Yamaha via Akihabara News via OhGizmo]

Sony's ICF-CL75iP alarm clock has a 7-inch WVGA screen, 1GB of internal storage (and a USB port for more), a retractable iPod dock and an FM radio. It seems kind of excessive to have an extra screen when an iPod or iPhone is sitting right there, but as it plays video too (MP4, Motion JPEG and AVI), maybe you'd like to wake up to a video instead. It's available for pre-order now from SonyStyle Canada for $200 CAD (about $180 USD at the moment), shipping October 1st. [Sony Insider via Engadget]

That's right, there are AB, B, O and A Clockmen for some reason only the Japanese can understand. Speaking of Japan, that's where masochists will be able to score one of these starting in September. [Kaden Watch via Technabob]

For those that require more of a jolt, the alarm also comes with four preset nature sounds and an iPod/iPhone dock to add some aural stimulation.
The Wake-up Light isn't just good for getting out of bed, but can help users drift off to sleep as well; there is "dusk simulation" mode that gradually dims the light and sounds to send users to the dream world. The Wake-up Light ships on August 22, but it can be pre-ordered now for $199. [Geeky Gadgets]

Tied to the broader range of Beo home theater product, the BeoTime is a bit minimalist, even by B&O's standards—it's basically a stylized aluminum stick. But, as I'm sure the salesmen will be eager to tell you, it does so much more than an aluminum stick! On top of telling time, it can wireless switch B&O audio and video products on and off with alarms or sleep timers. Menus are navigated with the large center button, the snooze switch is the device's accelerometer, which triggers when the device is moved, and the alarm can be totally disabled by depressing the metal plunger protruding from the device's end. Time, alarm time and alarm source info are displayed on a set of low-res panels.t's a bit disappointing to find out that a $375 single-function device is powered by AA batteries (included!), but Bang and Olufsen says each set will last a year. Besides, if you're wealthy enough to own the full battery of B&O equipment necessary to fully take advantage of the BeoTime, you've probably got some manner of battery-changing servant. Available in August. [Bang and Olufsen]

Sadly, the source site doesn't allow embedding, so I've assembled a series of screen grabs to try and capture the raw violence I saw in the original video. The same video, coincidentally, you can catch in the accompanying link. [TechEblog]

This is the alarm clock that faithfully reproduces the subtle wit employed by P. G. Wodehouse's most famous character—the valet Reginald Jeeves—as he politely affirms the beginning of the day. The clock plays 126 different wake-up messages in the reserved voice of Stephen Fry, the original actor from the English comedy Jeeves and Wooster. When the alarm sounds, Jeeves speaks softly as he assuages your displeasure that the morning has indeed come: "Excuse me sir, I'm so sorry to disturb you, but it appears to be morning... Very inconvenient, I agree... I believe it is the rotation of the Earth that is to blame, sir," or asks "Shall I inform the news agencies that you are about to rise, sir? If you are not roused sufficiently, a series of beeps will ensue; a press of the clock's rosette cancels the beeps, prompting Jeeves to interject "Sir has a firm touch, but fair," as one of ten possible snooze replies."

The clock will run you $70—but it might actually be worth it. That is unless you would prefer something cheap and tawdry. [ThinkGeek via Slashgear via BBG]

Waving, however, could be a problem for this clock. Because it is buttonless, the only way to control all the settings and switch between the time, date and temperature settings is with motion sensors and gesture controls. I personally wouldn't want a clock that might turn off my alarm or change my settings every time I lifted my head to check the time in the middle of the night. [Homeloo via Coolest Gadgets via OhGizmo]

The design is pretty simple. You set the alarm, then you make you breakfast selections, and go to sleep. When you wake up, you'll have some toast, water or juice at the ready. Provided you haven't knocked everything over with your arm after a failed attempt to find the off button. [Yanko Design]

This will lead to bad habits and missed days of work, sure, and not to mention additional anger issues on top of what you're already suffering from, but it feels good. And that's all that matters. [Matthias Lange via OhGizmo]

This Do-It-Yourself Safety Alarm Clock will only shut off after you've unlocked it with a key. When you go to bed, simply set your alarm and lock it in by turning the key. In order for it to have the maximum effect, take the key out of the lock after you've turned out the lights and then toss it into the dark abyss that is your room. In the morning when your alarm sounds, you'll be forced to crawl out of bed and hunt for the key before you can unlock your clock and shut it up.

Knowing me, I'd probably end up making duplicates of the key and hide it under my pillow, but hopefully you won't be a remarkably industrious lazy ass and do the same. Head on over to Instructables to see how this Safety Alarm Clock is made. [Instructables via Make Blog Thanks Seung!]

Chronochrome actually displays time in simple 00:00:00 hour/minute/second format, but each number is represented by its own color. Sensibly, these numbers follow a pretty standard chromatic logic. And for those who don't want to sleep next to a whole Skittles bag worth of bad dreams, the clock doubles as a nightlight, displaying each digit in pure white.

The Chronochrome runs $73, though you may have to do some convincing for the manufacturer to ship outside of the UK. [Chronochrome via ShinyShiny]

As a product, the Moshi is pretty focused. There's no radio or MP3 support, and the alarm and voice command options are limited and unchangeable, though there is a pleasant "Sleep Sound" ambient noise function. The concept of an alarm clock that requires an ongoing, if simple, conversation to function properly is enough to justify its reasonable $50 price, and endorsement by the World Blind Union would seem to indicate that it's not a complete gimmick. Feature demos and purchase page are at the source link. [Moshi via Crave]