When we don't have privacy, then freaks with bullhorns start showing up. Keep our phone numbers unlisted. Keep our cellphone records private. Keep us safe in your loving arms, Ivan.

So damn right. To give you an idea about how easy it was to get this information, the only thing that John did was sign up for one of those "free cell phone records" listings and scan it for the cells and home addresses of the CEOs from the big three: Randall Stephenson of AT&T, Dan Hesse of Sprint Nextel, and Ivan Seidenberg of Verizon. There were a lot of Stephensons and Hesses, but only one Ivan Seidenberg. He confirmed the information and off he went in his car, ready to deliver his message about how important privacy is by showing him exactly how these awful information keeping policies could affect us.

Mr. John Hargrave, we love you. [Zug.com]

The Verdicts: First, the Panasonic SL-850 turntable: This turntable uses the first version of quadraphonic sound, CD-4, which means the turntable outputs four distinct, individual channels directly to 4 separate speakers. Though it's a form of surround sound, in my test track, "Musicione" by The Guess Who, the differences between stereo and quadraphonic weren't quite as obvious as, say, between stereo and a 5.1 surround sound mix. There's very little of that gimmicky "moving sound" that flits between each channel that's sometimes emphasized in 5.1, but there's definitely a noticeable difference between quad and stereo.

In the chorus of the quad version of "Musicione," each background vocal track gets its own channel, which is reduced to a mere two-way split in the sad stereo mix. Also in quad, there's a treble/bass split between the front and rear, even going so far as to split the drum set components (high hat and snare in the front, floor tom and bass drum in the rear), while the left/right split is saved for the band's two main instruments (piano left, guitar right). It's pretty subtle, and no doubt some of the subtlety was exacerbated by the questionable quality of my speakers, but a stereo version of the same song definitely felt flat in comparison.

The turntable also features an automatic start and stop, a welcome addition, as well as the standard 33/45/78 RPM modes. It's the only automatic turntable I've ever used—instead of lifting the needle and placing it on the record (crazy! I'll go to the gym if I'm gonna work out, you know what I mean?), you just flip a switch and the Panasonic does it for you. My particular model is missing the center pin that holds the record in place—in the past, I've filed down a wood pencil as a replacement, though the drill bit I found amongst my dad's tools (pictured) works nicely as well.

The downsides to quadraphonic? The needle, technically called the "Shibata stylus," is a specialized type. When the time comes for replacement, you can bet it'll cost more and be harder to find than a standard needle. Plus, there are comparatively few quadraphonic records out there—my dad's copy of The Who's Quadrophenia was actually only in two channel. While the SL-850 plays stereo like a champ, you're not buying it for mere two-channel audio.

The GE 4-Channel Receiver is an even more interesting beast. Its most striking feature is the built-in 8-track cassette player, though to my deep, deep disappointment, it refused to play the only two 8-tracks in my possession, a Motown compilation and the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. No amount of NES-style blowing into the cassettes or the player would yield any sound, so I suppose it must be busted.

But the receiver itself is a powerhouse—it's got both four-channel and simple stereo modes, a stylish AM/FM tuner, and a sweet balance joystick that lets you control which of the four channels (L/R front and back) gets the most emphasis. It was able to push my four speakers (a pair of giant Pioneer cabinets and a pair of slightly smaller Sonys, one of which was mysteriously and unsettlingly sticky) with a ton of power and pretty decent bass/treble control, thanks to a pair of sliders. Unfortunately, it's packing only a single audio input, so it might require an external A/V switcher if I wanted to line in more than just the turntable.

The GE unit is also a handsome-looking deck, with wood paneling all around accompanied by a chrome and black plastic front. The AM/FM tuner lights up in fluorescent green and has this great squiggly grid design, and it's very clear what every toggle and switch does. If it weren't for the busted 8-track deck, it'd be a winner.

Turntable:
Quadraphonic audio recordings sound great

Plays stereo and quad perfectly

Automatic start/stop is a welcome feature

Rare needle could be expensive and/or difficult to replace

Not the best-looking turntable we've ever seen

Receiver:
Powerful, customizable sound (joystick especially is great)

Stylish design

Single input necessitates external A/V switcher

8-track player doesn't work

Heavy as hell

Special thanks to my dad for hoarding all this ancient gear in our basement.

Gizmodo '79 is a week-long celebration of gadgets and geekdom 30 years ago, as the analog age gave way to the digital, and most of our favorite toys were just being born.

The jetpack in question only has enough fuel (mostly hydrogen peroxide converted to water) for about 30-40 seconds of flight, so even though he claims the jetpack achieves about 800 horsepower, he only gets up to 61 MPH. Still, that's far faster than we would have thought, given Mark's experience, but evidently this is an entirely different kind of jetpack. [MAKE]

Nick Andes, 29, and Doug Klinger, 30, were looking to beat the highest monthly text message total they could find—182,000 sent by Deepak Sharma in 2005—so they set up their phones to send multiple messages. On a test run in February, they found that they could send up to 7,000 texts on some days, which prompted their record-breaking attempt in March.

Throughout the month, their phones were so busy sending texts that Andes's wife, Julie, could rarely reach him because his phone was always tied up sending texts. Although some of the texts were simple—such as "Hello" or "LOL"—and a lot of them were repeats, at the end of March, Andes received an itemized bill of $26,000, which was so large that it came in a package that cost $27.55 just to ship to him.

Piling up such high bill for that many texts shouldn't have come as a surprise, except for the fact that Andes and Klinger both had unlimited text messaging plans. However, T-Mobile has apparently credited the phone bill and is now investigating the charges. Moreover, with Andes sending 140,000 texts and Klinger contributing 70,000 of his own, the two men were able to send about 217,000 texts, which is clearly over the 182,000 text message record they were able to find online. However, representatives at the Guiness World Records have yet to verify whether or not the two men have, in fact, beat the world record. [Yahoo]

For full resolution, click here.

It wasn't until the beginning of the 20th century that mass-produced recordings were available to the average person—the concept of buying music is amazingly new. (Or to some, ooooooold.) Just a century ago, the first records began to do for music what the Gutenberg press did for words. Before them, music was handed crudely from person to person; after, it could reach millions, untouched and unspoiled.

If we couldn't record music, the Beatles would have never left Liverpool. By the same token the Jonas Brothers would have never left Georgia or Disney World or the Old Testament or wherever the hell they came from. Talk about progress! There may be no accounting for taste, but you can thank these reproducible formats for the very existence of the notion of pop music.

Listening Test: It's music tech week at Gizmodo.

Album art used to be a serious pursuit, as if it was equally important to catch both the eyes and the ears of the music shopper. Perhaps, we don't need the allure of album art anymore, since we can instantly gratify our need to hear the music we want to buy or steal. But when I was growing up, it was vital.

Vinyl albums - The mama pajama of album art came from the cardboard, paper and sometimes tissue wrapping around and within 33rpm records. A favorite of mine was Prince's Purple Rain, because the lyrics were printed on the outside for easy sing-along access. ("Ain't gonna let the elevator break us down, oh no, let's go!") More often, lyrics would be found on that easily torn inner sleeve. The best album covers were the ones that opened, with a booklet of photos and lyrics inside. That was the jackpot.

45s, which I actually bought quite a few of in the early to mid 1980s (cuz they were cheap and I was a kid), they usually came in almost no protection at all, just a thin paper wrapper with a hole in the middle to see what was what. The way you could tell the best 45s was, a full-color photograph covered the whole glossy envelope—and there was no hole.

Memorable records:
• Queen - Flash Gordon Original Soundtrack
• Weird Al Yankovic - In 3D
• Pat Benatar "Love Is a Battlefield" 45

Cassettes - This was a dark time for album art and music packaging. Cassettes were frickin' ugly, especially those standardized ones released by Columbia Records, with the red block lettering on the side, and like zero information within. Sealed tight with cellophane, we were first introduced to the concept of needing tools to open our own music. (Though the really cool record collectors sliced open the easily torn plastic wrap, to protect the art within, I always thought of that as the equivalent of Granny covering her couch with plastic.)

As cassettes dominated vinyl, labels put more info into the packs, so that you'd get a piece of paper folded 97 times, out into this long thing. That was it for tape evolution, though—a frickin' long long piece of paper with tiny photos and even tinier lyrics. Folding it back in took origami ninja skill that I didn't have.

I enjoyed cassette singles (or "cassingles") because they were cheap, and only had the songs I cared about. Still, they came in a sleeve that was open at both ends, so the damn tape would always fall out.

Memorable cassettes:
• Steve Winwood - Roll With It
• Hall and Oates - H2O
• Prince - "Alphabet Street" cassette single

CDs - They actually started shipping in long rectangular boxes, so they'd take up exactly 50% of the rack space of a vinyl album. I think this was on purpose, so record stores didn't have to retool their shelving. The upside was lots of surface area for cover art, and the early days of the CD were like a return of album art. These long skinny boxes had huge busts of Jim Morrison, huge prints of the famed Zeppelin explosion that launched a band into stardom. The boxes were also wrapped in easy-to-tear plastic, so getting into your CD, though it took a few steps, was pretty easy.

But then the green freaks got their way, and the cardboard boxes were discontinued. Jewel boxes—and their never-too-popular "eco pac" brethren—just got thicker and thicker booklets, and more and more digital features. Worse, they came increasingly hard to open, to the point where record stores literally started selling specialized tools to open CDs. That's just wrong, but nothing is more wrong than the mercifully short-lived "dogbone" security wrapper, that scarred your jewel box for life.

Memorable CDs:
• Don Dorsey - Beethoven or Bust
• Paul Simon - Graceland
• Dire Straits - Communique

Digital downloads - And so we reach nothing. Not totally nothing, as it seems like every album still requires a 6-inch square illustration to validate its existence. But there's no series of photos, long lists of musicians and instruments and lyrics and writing credits. We're doing with less and less in the way of local information about our recordings—those booklets that told us who played sax on tracks 2, 3 and 7, they're disappearing. We can use the web to gather specifics when really necessary, but label-controlled artist websites really don't help. Some bands put out those digital booklets, but not many. And as far as track metadata, the details are scant. And the gratification is so quick, I almost yearn for the days when I needed a special knife to cut into my new CD.

Memorable downloads:
• Jack Johnson - On and On (first time I skipped the CD)
• David Gray - Life in Slow Motion (first "digital booklet")

I came across this excellent site, the Album Art Exchange, when thinking about this subject. If you want to get a sense of the history and the elaborate nature of album art dating back to the 1960s, I suggest you hop on over.

Listening Test: It's music tech week at Gizmodo.

Joel over at Boing Boing Gadgets says that Audiowood's founder, Joel Scilley, has a PhD in Media Studies, but instead hopped over to the Bay Area to pursue the most awesome profession of building wood turntables. The work pretty much speaks for itself, but I will say that I'm in love with that off-kilter platter on top of a tree stump slice. Swoon. [Audiowood via MocoLoco via BBG]

OK, actually it's sculpture by Jean Shin that's on display at the Manhattan Museum of Arts and Design through February 15. [NYT via Apartment Therapy]

World' Fastest Production Car:
During a speed test in Washington state, the twin-turbo, 1183 hp SSC Ultimate Aero hit an average top speed of 255.83 mph. That's about 3 mph faster than the next closest production car—the Bugatti Veyron. [Link]

World's Fastest Production Motorcycle:
The SSC Ultimate Aero speed test wasn't the last time the $1.7 million Bugatti Veryon got smacked around. Listed as the world's fastest production motorcycle, the (claimed) 194 hp 2008 Suzuki Hayabusa is actually quicker than the Bugatti. And it's a steal at only $12,000.

World's Biggest Plasma Television:
Who could forget the enormous 150-inch plasma Panasonic unveiled at CES? The 2160 x 4096 resolution screen is truly breathtaking in person, but only the richest of the rich will be able to afford this beast when it hits the market next year. [Link]

World's Smallest HD Camcorder:
Sony's HDR-TG1 is currently the smallest HD camcorder in the world, packing 1920 x 1080 HD video recording into a 1.3 x 4.7 x 2.5-inch titanium frame. Sure, there are other camcorders that claim to be the smallest, but no one can argue with the scientific accuracy of David Pogue's eyeball test. [Sony via Link]

World's Smallest USB Drive:
There are several manufacturers that claim their USB drive is the smallest, but the current leader appears to be Super Talent with an 8GB choking hazard that measures 31.3mm x 12.4mm x 3.4mm and weighs less than a nickel. Available for around $30. [Super Talent via Link]

World's Most Powerful Consumer Flashlight:
Wicked Lasers' 4100 lumens Torch flashlight will not only turn night into day, it can also be used to start campfires, scramble eggs, light cigarettes and melt faces. Available for $300. [Wicked Lasers via Link]

World's Smallest Working Revolver:
The SwissMiniGun is the smallest working revolver in the world at a mere 2.16-inches. It fires mini 2.34 mm caliber ammo at 426.5 f/sec—which is probably enough to kill you...or at least give you a nasty welt. [SwissMiniGun via Link]

World's Biggest Record Collection:
Paul Mawhinney spent a lifetime amassing a record collection consisting of over 3 million titles—and now it can be yours for around $1 a record. That is a real bargain when you consider that the collection has been appraised at over $50 million. [Greatest Music Collection via Link]

World's Most Expensive Home:
How much home can you buy for $2 billion? If chemical giant Mukesh Ambani's record breaking home in Mumbai is anything to go by, it will get you 22 stories, 400,000 square feet, and enough gadgets to trick out a football stadium. [Link]

World's Most Complicated Watch:
It took five years to plan and four years to build, but in the end watchmaker Patek Phillipe created what is surely the most complicated watch in the world with the Calibre 89. It features an astounding 33 functions, 24 hands and 1,728 unique parts. There are only four in the world and one was recently sold for nearly $6 million. [Calibre 89 and Forbes]

Paul's been building his collection for most of his life. He used to run a record store, and while running it he never sold the last copy of any album or single, instead keeping it for his archives. Over the years, those really added up.

Now, at an advancing age, stricken with diabetes and legally blind, Paul wants to sell the collection. It's been appraised at about $50 million, but Paul is asking a mere $3 million. He's had no serious offers, and an eBay auction back in February fell through.

In a time when you can access pretty much whatever music you want online, hard copies of albums are declining in value, both monetary and sentimentally. But to see such a mindblowing collection as this sitting in a basement, unwanted, is really heartbreaking. This is historic, no matter that we live in the iPod era or not, and it belongs in a museum. If only one cared enough to buy it. [World's Greatest Music Collection via Nah Right]

FOR VINYL BUFFS SONY OFFERS TURNTABLE WITH USB OUTPUT FOR CONVERTING RECORDS TO DIGITAL FILES

LAS VEGAS, Feb. 26, 2007 - Providing a clever approach for converting vinyl records to digital files, Sony today unveiled a turntable system with USB output.

The new PS-LX300USB turntable provides fully automatic operation of vinyl playback at 33-1/3 and 45 rpm speeds. It offers a belt drive system for reduced motor noise and rotational stability, in addition to a static balance tone arm with a bonded diamond stylus for precise tracking and low record wear. A supplied moving-magnet phonograph cartridge and built-in phonograph pre-amp allows for compatibility with A/V receivers without a phonograph input.

The turntable is packaged with Sound Forge Audio Studio software for simple professional-quality audio editing and production on a home computer, allowing for MP3 playback on portable music players.

The new turntable will be available next month for about $150 at sonystyle.com and at Sony Style® retail stores nationwide, as well as at military base exchanges and authorized dealers around the country.

Portable Turntable Ideal for Auditioning Vinyl [via SlashGear]

Now you can relive those olden music-stealing days a bit easier with these CD-Rs from eMARK. They look like vinyl records, so they will fit a down your pants a lot easier. Who would have thought that the day would come where Hanson, Pantera and Toby Keith could all share space on the same faux vinyl record? – Travis Hudson

eMARK Black Diamond Groove CDR [Newlaunches]

Now, if someone is between those two dishes and picks up the signal, does that make them data thieves? Probably, according to the numerous intelligent police officers on the WiFi beat around the country.

Project Page [Wi-Fi Toys via OhGizmo via The Gadget Blog]