Gizmodo: eb-100

Netronix E-Book To Have Touchscreen and Wi-Fi

Wilson Rothman — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 10:38:06 EDT

Taiwanese manufacturer Netronix is promising a new spin on an old idea: putting a touchscreen on an the EB-100, an E-Ink-based e-book reader. We've actually seen the basic design before, in the gen-3 Cybook by Bookeen. But there was never promise of touchscreen, nor anything said about 802.11g Wi-Fi, which Netronix is also offering. The rest of the specs are pretty straightforward: 6" screen, SD card slot, support for PDF, RTF, TXT, HTML, MP3, AAC, and some image files. But as much as I enjoy the Kindle, a touchscreen interface may really be what's needed to bring mass appeal to the e-book concept. You hear me, Jeff Bezos? [Product Page via Tecnogadgets]

EB Games/GameStop Black Friday Ads Revealed

Adrian Covert — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 19:36:31 EST

The black friday ads for EB Games/GameStop have hit and they're offering Virtua Tennis 3 on the PS3 and Naruto: Ninja Council 3 on the DS for $20 apiece, and World of Warcraft for $10. The rest of the deals are pretty unspectacular, but thats EB for ya. Oh yeah, select movie titles on Sony's format of the future, UMD, are only $3.99 (Minidisc 2.0 FTW!). [Black Friday on Giz]

Linux-based UMPC Will Come with GPS and HSDPA

Louis Ramirez — Fri, 08 Jun 2007 10:00:45 EDT

Internet devices are popping up all over the place nowadays, and the latest comes from the folks at EB. It reminds us of the Amtek a little bit...and the OQO2 a lot...but this one will pack Mobile WiMax, HSDPA and built-in GPS. On top of that it'll have a decent-sized 4.8-inch screen. It'll run Intel's new Menlow platform, which promises better battery life than current UMPCs. No word on availability, but this one's got us foaming at the mouth. – Louis Ramirez

Product Page [via UMPC Portal]

Panasonic Announces Ultra-Light Lanyard-Style Bluetooth Earphones

Charlie White — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 12:46:25 EST

Search far and wide for Bluetooth headphones and all you'll find are bulky cans that hang on your head or around your neck, weighing you down in short order. Panasonic aims to fix that with its EB-M70083 Bluetooth 1.2 earphones, the lightest yet at less than an ounce with a battery that lasts 4.5 hours when you're listening to music, or six hours when you're talking on a cell phone. Available first in Japan on December 11, they'll be $60.

Curmudgeonly commentary, plus an assessment of my experience with Bluetooth headphones:

Lanyard headphones are perfect for walkers, and if these Panasonic buds can deliver good performance with the battery life stated here, the company may be onto something. But in my experience, Bluetooth leaves much to be desired.

Is it me, or is Bluetooth a bit connection-challenged? I've tried a pair of Motorola HT-820 (about $70, pictured below) phones for listening to tunes on my Motorola Q, and even when the phone is in my pocket less than three feet away, it drops the Bluetooth signal often enough to be annoying.

It's also a bit dicey pairing the headphones with the phone. The process isn't anywhere near automatic, usually requiring a frustrating tweaking session each time I'd like to use them. And then there's the issue of short battery life.

Which brings up my experience with my Microsoft Bluetooth mouse (pictured below), a pointing device whose signal can travel through the wall of my home theater, but whose battery requires replacement on a too-regular basis, about once a month. And then, sometimes it just simply loses its pairing with its USB Bluetooth dongle plugged into the host computer, requiring a cumbersome re-acquaintance ritual that's starting to try my patience.

Overall, Bluetooth so far has been a pain in the ass. I'm starting to think this technology is not yet ready for prime time. Let's hope Bluetooth 2.0 is an improvement. Commenters, are you having similar experiences? – Charlie White

Panasonic EB-M70083 the lightest Bluetooth earphones [Newlaunches]

Rumor: PS3 Pre-Orders Begin Tomorrow at Gamestop, EB Games

Travis Hudson — Mon, 09 Oct 2006 23:18:47 EDT

Our beloved, and crippled cohorts at Kotaku got word of PlayStation 3 pre-orders. According to a leaked memo, the pre-orders will begin tomorrow, October 10 at Gamestop and EB Games locations.

On Tuesday, October 10, 2006, you will begin taking reservations on the Sony PS3 under SKU 020072 (PS3 Premium Edition) and SKU 020071 (PS3 Core Edition). YOU MAY NOT BEGIN TAKING RESERVATIONS FOR THE PS3 PRIOR TO October 10, 2006. Reservations are to be processed on a "first come, first serve" basis for your customers.

Jump to see the entire memo. You listening, eBayers? – Travis Hudson

From:*********
Subject: PS3 reservation plan and reservation allocations!!!

Date: 10/09/06 3:26pm

Attention store personnel:

On Tuesday, October 10, 2006, you will begin taking reservations on the Sony PS3 under SKU 020072 (PS3 Premium Edition) and SKU 020071 (PS3 Core Edition). YOU MAY NOT BEGIN TAKING RESERVATIONS FOR THE PS3 PRIOR TO October 10, 2006. Reservations are to be processed on a "first come, first serve" basis for your customers. Under no circumstances are reservation "places in line" to be held for customers. Our online reservation program will be activated at a future date: online reservations will be available as "bundle-only."

No forced bundles or any other customer "requirements" are allowed (our online reservation policy may vary). Reservations will be limited to one system reservation per household (customer is allowed to reserve 1 Wii and 1 PS3 if desired)

As these systems are in short supply and high demand, all stores are being allocated on their reserve quantity. Stores are not allowed to reserve above their assigned reservation allocation for any reason. Reserving above your assigned qty can result in disciplinary action.

Your assigned allocation for the PS3 is "16" units TOTAL between the 2 system choices. You are only allowed to reserve "16" units TOTAL of PS3. No more than 2 of these systems can be set aside to be purchased by store employees.

Please use the tracking form below to insure that you only reserve 16 units. Please record each customer's name and phone on the form below each time you complete a PS3 reservation.

As you process each reservation, you will need to communicate the following message to each customer:

Reservations/Purchases are limited to 1 per household.

The reservation guarantees the customer a place in line only: it does not guarantee that the system will be available at launch.

Gamestop is not responsible for allocation shortfalls or shipping delays caused by the manufacturer.

Online product pricing and availability will vary and be fulfilled independent of store reservations.

As a service to your customers, please try to capture each customers correct e-mail address when processing the reservation. This will allow us to send updates to the customer as more games and accessories become available for their system.

Rumor: Leaked PS3 Pre-Order Memo [Kotaku]