Here is how it works: the wallet connects to your cellphone via Bluetooth. When the two objects are separated by more than 15-30 feet, the wallet will sound an alarm. So, in reality, it is really protecting you from losing two important items. The wallet also features a biometric fingerprint reader that will only open for its owner. On the other hand, if you leave both your cellphone and wallet behind, you are still screwed. Probably even more so since the wallet was so dammed expensive. The wallets are available for pre-order now in several colors, with shipments starting on December 11th. [iwallet via Gear Diary via OhGizmo via DVICE]

Aside from the phone-control feature, this motherboard will come with support for up to 5 PCIe x8 connections, SATA 6G, and USB 3.0 technology. Unfortunately there's no release date or pricing information yet. [Asus via PC Perspective via Engadget]

More like it's the size of a matchstick head and I can definitely picture it hammering an eardrum the moment someone drops it into the ear canal. And, I shit you not, this "headset" comes with a super strong magnet for easy retrieval! What could go wrong?!

But wait, there's more! Since this was originally designed for Secret Service types in mind, there's also a Morse code communication feature that allows for silent communication with another party. Perfect for tapping out SOS to your doctor when you go deaf and need a consult.

Just $200 and this guaranteed trip to an emergency room is yours for the taking. [Skymall via OhGizmo]

Brian Hogg is a puppeteer and a writer. He builds puppets for money at Hoggworks Studios—including the Mosspuppet and Ask Palpatine—and likes to make fun of people.

As great as it seems, this concept is seriously creepy because it powers itself by converting the glucose and oxygen found in blood into electricity. Though somehow getting your blood sucked by a gadget is worth it for the endless potential applications. I'd probably just end up using it to moderate comments, but what would you do first with your implant? [Core77 via Geekologie]

This week, Gizmodo is exploring the enhanced human future in a segment we call This Cyborg Life. It's about what happens when we treat our body less as a sacred object and more as what it is: Nature's ultimate machine.

Basically you're cramming a Bluetooth module and a microcontroller into a toy Communicator and then pairing everything with your phone. As long as you've got voice dialing, you can leave your phone out of sight and be the snazziest Trekkie on the streets. Just don't come crying to me if someone stuffs you into a locker, trashcan, or wormhole. [Make]

The module relays this information to your GPS unit via Bluetooth where you will be able to view a set of customizable gauges that provide details on things like fuel economy, RPMs, throttle position, intake manifold pressure, coolant temperature, intake air temperature, and emissions.

Awesome? Yeah, sure. Will it save Garmin from destruction at the hands of a possible Google navigation juggernaut? No, probably not. [Cnet via NaviGadget via Ubergizmo via DVICE]

I don't even know why this iPod thingie—which includes microphone, wireless, headphone, memory, display, and media player—is for. Would this be paired to an iPhone? It doesn't make sense, since the iPhone is already a media player. Why would I want to have a second one on the headset itself? Maybe to connect to another non-media-playing cellphone? Do those exist anymore? Does Steve knows about this, per chance?

Steve. [Baltimore Sun via 9to5]

About a month ago, Jabra sent a little bag out to its regular reviewers. Inside was a stone—a literal, polished stone—and that was it. It was a cheesy PR stunt, the kind we see all the time, but when I got the headset itself, it made sense. The Jabra Stone, when docked, is a near-seamless pebble, broken only underneath, at the headset's hollowed-out ejection point. It's a stunning headset, actually, which sounds weird coming out of my mouth. (Or fingers! Who's counting.)

The Stone's specs are appropriate to its pricepoint: it'll pair in regular and A2DP modes for voice or music listening, respectively, has a minimalist status display, a noise-cancelling mic, volume controls—though here they're managed with a touch-sensitive shell rather than buttons—and a charging dock. The claimed talk time is two hours per charge, and the dock is good for three extra charges. Standby time is a respectable 12 hours 12 days.

And to be honest, aside from eking out a little extra battery life over competitors' products, there's not a whole lot a company can do to make a Bluetooth headset technologically interesting. What they can do, and what Jabra has done with the Stone, is focus on style and feel. Bluetooth headsets look dumb, and they're awkward to wear. The Stone is a headset designed with these thoughts in mind—it looks as not-dumb as a headset can; it feels as not-awkward as a piece of plastic in your ear conceivably could. It's self-conscious, almost embarrassed for what it is.

Long-term testing might bear out some initial concerns about battery life and the practical convenience of carrying around a slippery little battery rock, but my first impressions were uniformly positive. The Stone paired almost instantly with an iPhone, a Pre and a Hero right out of the box, sound quality was clear, and three ears of varying shapes and sizes found the angled earpiece plenty comfortable.

The Stone will be available at AT&T stores from November 8th, priced at $130 right alongside the Platronics Voyager. From the looks of it the Voyager edges out a win on battery life, but the fact that Jabra's put even the tiniest bit of sex into their newest piece goes a long, long way. [Jabra]

By Texas Instruments, a new, 6mm-square Bluetooth system-on-a-chip can operate for "more than a year" on a small button-cell battery (like you see in watches or very tiny remotes). Everything from cellphones to laptops could get a battery boost from the technology, but low power, low cost Bluetooth also opens to door to sticking the technology in more places, too (imagine an RF remote or console controller that you don't need to recharge).

It'll be interesting to see how many companies adopt the new tech when it's available next year, along with how many side with the latest developments in Wi-Fi instead. [Texas Instruments and Press Release]

SenseMe is sort of like Apple's Genius playlists, though hopefully it works a little better. Using Sony's MediaGo PC software, your tracks are passed through a 12 tone analysis, and automatically sorted into 12 channels like "Relax" or "Newly Added".

The MediaGo software has also been updated. Version 1.2 adds an iTunes-esque front-end to the PlayStation Store, which is clearly a must given that converting old UMDs for the PSPGo is a no-go. [PlayStation Blog via Kotaku]

The Problem

Honestly, there are plenty of reasons to be uneasy about Bluetooth headphones: They run off battery power, so you need to be mindful of keeping them charged; they're often styled strangely to accommodate the necessary wireless hardware; they're more expensive than equivalent wired headphones; and most of all, they sound like crap. Or, so you've heard. You know, from other people, not with your ears. The colloquial "heard." Er, you know what I mean.

Perhaps even more than choosing the best Bluetooth headphones, the point of this little exercise is to figure out if A2DP, the technology, is even worth your time. After all, it isn't really worth going to the trouble and expense of untethering your headphones if they barely qualify as headphones. So first, some background:

The Advanced Audio Distribution Profile, or A2DP, is an umbrella term for the modern Bluetooth audio profile, meaning the standards by which Bluetooth devices send a receive audio. It complements the Headset Profile (HSP), which takes care of low-quality mono transmissions, like those to single-ear Bluetooth headsets, to provide the capability to listen to music without too much distortion. And that's the crux of the A2DP problem, both real and perceived: It's better than mono Bluetooth, to be sure, but is it as good as a wired headset? Or more realistically, is it close enough that it doesn't really matter?

Since A2DP audio is encoded and recompressed at the source, leading to (sometimes drastically) differing audio quality betwen devices, I paired a number of sources—an iPhone 3G, an HTC Hero, a unibody Macbook Pro—with a veritable stack of headphones to see if the end result, the sound that actually hits your ears, is worth the trouble. Here are the best five:

The Headphones

(Click the chart to enlarge)

Sony DR-BT50

Street Price: $125

The only cup-style headphones included in this roundup, the Sonys serve as a sort of reference for sound quality, features, fit and comfort. Also: impracticality. If you're planning on using a Bluetooth headphones as they're generally understood to be intended, you're probably not looking for bulbous headhuggers like this.

That said! They've got by far the bassiest, clearest sound of the lot, and the included controls, though they can take a while for your fingers to map out, are more complete than any others. Using these headphones is a joy compared to most others, but only in a situations where they're appropriate: Sitting on a sofa? At a PC? I don't really know. Whatever they're meant for, the lack of a USB charger corroborates the theory that they're not really intended to be that portable.

Far and away the best, most balanced sound; moderate noise isolation

Wider set of controls than any other headphones, but probably more than you need, or your handset even supports

They're too big to exercise or travel with

Motorola Motorokr s305

Street Price: $40

Something about this headset is immediately alarming. It feels cheap, it comes with very few accessories, it even looks a bit dated—it sort of feels like you've accidentally been handed a stray accessory, dropped out of a Motorola Rokr box, yearning to be reconnected to its parent phone. But seriously, give it a minute.

You could find plenty of things to complain about with the s305s, but hell, I just don't want to: With these cheap, stripped-down headphones, Motorola shows that they understand the draw of A2DP better than anyone else. They sound fine—solid mids, relatively clear highs, adequate bass—without sounding overequalized; their fixed fit works well enough on most heads, without sacrificing weight or durability; they connect with ease, and offer minimal, though adequate, controls; they charge quickly via USB, for a playback period that'll outlast any workout session. And most of all, they're very, very cheap.

Minimalist: easy to use and set up

They're gloriously cheap

It feels light in the hand and on the head; it also feels a bit flimsy

Jabra Halo

Street Price: $120

Nobody's going to dispute the Halo's stylishness, especially in this company—most of these headphones looks like they were designed in the late 90s (Why? No really—this doesn't make any sense) and many come in form-factors I haven't seen since I carried a Discman. For what it's worth, the Jabra's matte black, ultra-thin headband take on Bluetoothery is eye-catching, and there's nothing expressly wrong with it.

Nor is there anything terribly wrong with the sound: It's abundantly clear, though not very bassy—something that could be pegged as much on the sometimes awkward fit of the Halo's earpads as on their actual drivers. I had the most pairing issues with the Halo, but they all mysteriously resolved themselves eventually—par for the course with Bluetooth, and less of a concern than you might think, since one they're paired to a device, they're paired to a device. Controls, aside from volume, which relies on a jumpy touchpad on the earpiece, were simple and intuitive. The price, I guess, is the only real kick in the balls from Jabra's headphones: The street price is a hefty $120

HEADPHONES FROM SPAAAAAAAAACE

They're comfortable, and it's easy to forget you're wearing them

Too expensive for what you get

Logitech Freepulse

Street Price: $90

Logitech's gone all-out with the Freepulse, and you'd be hard pressed to find a hardware feature—aside from USB charging—that these things don't list on their spec sheet. They've got by far the most versatile Bluetooth transmitter, meaning that they can be paired with just about any device comfortably. Controls are subtly built into the earpieces, but once they've been explored, they're easy to reach and utilize during exercise.

I found the fit to be a bit strange, since these particular headphones, despite looking like a traditional wraparound headset, actually hang on your ears by means of floppy little rubber loops. They're secure enough, sure, but they don't exactly cram the drivers against your ear holes; hence lack of great bass. Oh and hey, no mic! These things aren't cheap, so, uh, what the hell?

Best Bluetooth transmitter of the bunch—fits just about any device

They fit everyone fine, but nobody particularly well

At this price, where's the mic?

iLuv i222

Street Price: $60

In a lot of ways, the i222 is a cheaper, newer equivalent to the Freepulse: Its design looks newer, albeit a little Bluetooth-headset-y, its feature set matches the Logitech's almost point for point, and, crucially, it has a mic, because almost every A2DP-enabled playback device is, let's face it, a phone.

Interestingly, the iLuv's battery life trumped even the most expensive headphones in my limited testing. My main cause for concern is a generally plasticky feeling: I can already see multiple areas of concern on the headset, and online reports go some way to confirming my worries about durability.

Tons of features for the price, including a Bluetooth transmitter

Build quality is a concern

Post-Game

If all these evaluations sound a little bit tentative, that's because they are. Each headset evaluation was underscored by a fundamental discomfort with A2DP because, well, it's not that good.

Don't get me wrong, it's better than I expected, and a far sight better than you might predict if you were weened on Bluetooth earpieces. But the sound is flat, lacking in bass range and sacrificing detail on higher tones. And even if these headphones are specifically tuned for playing back Bluetooth streams, the few that include direct line-in support, like the Jabra Halo, give you a ready-made comparison between wireless and wired sound. Spoiler: It isn't all that flattering for the ol' toof.

This casts A2DP headphones in a different light, not as a viable, wireless, futuristic alternative to regular headphones, but as a degraded, battery-hungry, expensive compromise. You buy them because you need something wireless—that's it. There's no other reason.

The Winner

As such, the headset I'm most comfortable telling people to buy is also the cheapest. There will be people who'll want something else—the Sonys are the best bet for, say, a PC gamer, and the iLuvs are an obvious choice if your music-listening devices don't actually support Bluetooth. But more than anything, I see A2DP headsets as a way to listen to music during a run, or on cable-averse exercise machines, as a way to listen to a charging device while you wander around a room, or as a way to merge your everpresent Bluetooth headset with your earbuds.

For this, the Motorola s305s fit the bill: They're light, functional and simple. They sound fine. They look OK. They sync with almost anything. They win because they do as much as you can ask of Bluetooth headphones, and they do it on the cheap.

Our tipster also said that the headset fits directly into the charger, and when docked, the two look like a stone. Hence, Jabra Stone. The ultimate test, of course, is how well the Stone fits onto your ear, since that's where it counts. [Thanks tipster!]

Update: Here's a second pic from another tipster. Thanks guys!

Electric Pig says that the headset will have noise cancellation (as does many of the headsets out now), and it won't need a boom mic (again, same as a bunch of other Bluetooth units you can buy now). So what's special? Besides the "soft rubber padding", we have no idea until the 20th. [Jabra Stone via Electric Pig]

Yes, Kopin has decided the best place to put its latest .44-inch SVGA resolution LCD microdisplay (or CyberDisplay as they call it) is in front of your face. No really, you will see the 15-inch virtual display right in front of you with it positioned on the headset's arm.

The headset, or more like wearable computer, runs Windows CE and has a speedy ARM Cortex-A8 processor. You control the interface with the microphone and speech recognition from Nuance that has advanced speech-to-text capabilities. Now the headset has Motorola branding on it, but there is no mention of a real partnership as far as we can see.

Beyond it having its own interface based on Windows CE, it could pair with your Bluetooth smartphone. Ideally it would display your phone's operating system in front of your face. Take that Redfly!

And if all that wasn't futuristic enough for you it will have a head tracking and body gesture sensor that will adjust the device to body movements. Its high end Lithium Ion batter promises eight hours of juice. I don't see why they couldn't just fit in wireless charging while they are at it.

Now this is clearly a render, but the company will be showing prototypes this week at the Embedded Systems Conference. Kopin plans to begin shipping a Gen 3 Golden-i Eval SDK in December and actually expects to ship the product in 2010. The future of wearable computing is upon us and I'm totally fine looking like a douchebag. [Kopin]

While solar can't tackle most realtime energy demands, it's plenty to handle a Bluetooth headset in standby—which we must say, seems like a decent use for the tech. You'll never have to worry "is this thing that makes me look like a douchebag even working???" again.

Additionally, should you choose to purchase two headsets and actually wear them at the same time, you'll be able to appreciate A2DP (stereo Bluetooth) through multiple pairing. You know our feelings on that maneuver, so to state them yet again would be unseemly.

This solar bluetooth headset can be yours for $67 from Brando. [Brando]

Crunchgear got their hands on it in June, but this version, closer to release, seems like it's been refined and cleaned up for a Christmas-time launch.

The docking mechanism works by first latching another iPhone back onto your 3G or 3GS. There's a hole in the back for the Bluetooth unit, as is the thought process for other Mogo units. To remove the headset, push down on the left side and it pops out. To charge, pop up the charging port on the bottom and plug in a microUSB charger.

This is one thing we'd like to see changed so that the headset can charge directly from the iPhone's power supply so that it's always juiced up. It would reduce battery life, but if you're always on your Bluetooth headset anyway, it'd be super useful. And, if they could build a battery pack into the unit, that would solve two problems at once.

As for the performance, it's actually surprisingly good. The wife said I sounded as good on this tiny sliver of a headset as I did on larger ones, and I could hear her just fine as well, even though she was at a gas station. One tricky part was to make sure the ear padding is oriented the correct direction. If you flip it around, the headset falls off easily.

Whether or not the Mogo Talk for iPhone is worth $130 is up to how much you talk on your phone. I, for one, love the fact that I can now always have a Bluetooth headset with me, but the problem of always keeping it charged (especially with the need for separate microUSB charging) still remains. As much as having to use a Bluetooth headset is a hassle, I don't want to get ticketed for talking on the phone while driving, so using the Mogo Talk would make the whole thing less of a pain. [Newton Peripherals]

As you can see, the headset is more earring than funky robotic ear leech, and it actually looks kind of nice in a futuristic fashionista kind of way.

Like a traditional headset, you tap the sensor to answer an incoming call, and talk into the air like a idiot as normal. But you look good, especially if you happen to be a model. [Fandi Meng via Design Blog]