The District Carbon is Trek's second bike to feature a belt drive, and it really doesn't skimp on the features. It sports an OCLV Carbon Fiber frame, making it light and strong. And that belt drive cuts the weight even more while staying clean and never stretching or breaking. But yeah, $3,360. When are Huffys gonna get these things? [Trek]

It has 12 different Star Trek LCARS (Library Computer Access/Retrieval System) interface themes, and the site says more will be available for download. File format support is listed as MP3, MP4, AVI JPG, BMP, and WAV.

What gave me goosebumps: Seeing that beyond the TR-590 Tricorder X-style design, there are also Medical, Borg, Marine, Workbee and Troi-styled models available. The starting price of $349 might bring you back down to earth, though. [AmeralisGrafx — Thanks Junior!]

As the lights dimmed and the familiar Star Trek Federation logo slid on screen, the emotion of all those hours of watching Next Generation reruns as a kid came sloshing back into my brain, dripping out of my eyes as tears of pure happiness. I expect that it was essentially the same emotion Star Wars fans felt during the opening credits of Episode 1, but without the massive letdown afterwards. (Ha ha, suckers.)

But yes, to answer your question, there's Kirk, there's Spock, and there's everyone you expect (even Pike!). Not all of the same mannerisms are there, but if you wanted to see the old actors you'd go watch the first six movies again. This implies that Kirk doesn't do a two-hour Shatner impression, which is, of course, good news. Instead, he plays Kirk as a intelligent, brash, but friendly youngster that has confidence oozing out of every torpedo tube. And the new Spock is more Sylar than Spock, to be honest; though the rest of the casting is essentially spot on.

So long as you go into the movie expecting a "Star Trek" movie, in that there's space and aliens and action and shooting and torpedoes and pew pew pew, you'll come out happy. The movie is targeted enough toward the mainstream in that someone with zero Trek experience would enjoy it. Director J.J. Abrams also gives enough shout outs to old time staples that trekkers will be giddy at the slight nods and fanservice that say, in essence, "thank you for supporting us all these years, now here's something you asked for."

Think of it like Casino Royale was to the James Bond franchise: fewer gadgets, more action and an incredibly pugilistic lead. And lens flares. Lots, and lots, and lots of lens flares.

Kirk's Enterprise has never looked better. These guys took the original ship, combined it with some designs of the Enterprise-B, then mashed it up with Picard's Enterprise-E and then added a dash of '60s non-Trek Sci Fi. The set design, however, is almost all touchscreen (like TNG), but with a tremendously updated UI. I'd hate to call it Apple-y, but there's lots of glass and slick white finishes. Retro this is not—you'll barely be able to equate the bridge to the original's, other than the fact that the players are all sitting in the right places. Why Bones canoodles in the bridge so much instead of where he's supposed to be is still beyond me.

And the plot? The plot makes as much sense as any other Star Trek movie. There's even a very good explanation of why this movie is the way it is, which is the most I can say about that.

This is what Star Trek needs right now. After writing on Next Generation, Ron Moore went on (about a decade later) to reimagine Battlestar Galactica, a relatively realistic show (topic-wise) that just happened to be set in space. Sci Fi fans have moved on from the utopian, and what many accused as sterile, confines of TNG to a grittier, less kempt future.

That's not to say Star Trek is now gritty—it's just more...modern. And more sexy. Like when you upgrade from a six piece KFC meal to a 12 piece bucket: you're going to get more breast and thigh.

It also doesn't have any crap about the Prime Directive or any undertones about race that TOS and TNG dealt with, but it is a very good "restart" of the franchise. With this film as the base, I cannot wait to see where the franchise goes from here.

Bonus: there's a four-issue Star Trek: Countdown comic series that prequels the movie. Though, you might want to wait until after you watch to read, since it gives away a few plot points. To tell you more would be to spoil too much. It's too much even to tell you what KIND of fans would like the comic. You can download the first one here for your iPhone.

The benefit to a belt drive system over a chain and shifters system is that it won't stretch and break over time like a chain, weighs significantly less, stays clean (and keeps your cuffs clean) and is quiet. The downside? It's more expensive. The two bikes Trek has unveiled, the District and the Soho, will run you $930 and $990, respectively. But as with all new tech, the prices are always highest right when it starts hitting the mainstream. Look for bikes with belt drives to start coming from many more big bike companies for much less in the coming years. [Trek]

According to both IGN and HD Disk news, the remastered video and audio is decent, but expect to see some artifacts and noise in certain areas. However, with dated material such as this that should be expected. The real interesting news is that the developers also attempted to blend in newly rendered CG shots of the shows visual effects—like external shots of the Enterprise for example. As you might imagine, these scenes tend to look out of place alongside the older footage.

On the plus side, there are plenty of extras to keep fans happy, like picture-in-picture video commentaries, a documentary outlining the new visual effects, an interactive 3D Enterprise tour that allows viewers to completely explore the inner and outer workings of the ship, as well "Blackburn's Treasure Chest: Rare Home Movies and Special Memories" chronicling the experiences of a regular extra on the set.

All-in-all it appears that the Trek HD DVD is a worthwhile pickup if you already own a player. However, others may want to wait until a clear winner is chosen in the format wars—because there will surely be other Trek HD upgrades in the future. [IGN and HD Disk News]

For one, the ball bearing cup that holds the crank was integrated into the frame directly, saving a lot of weight and space. And the seat post slips over the main frame, instead of inside of it, which increases pliability over bumps. These moves shave half a pound, making the bike about 15.4 pounds total.

Discovery is on the 5.2, not the 6.9. It's true; the team is on the 5.2. The 6.9 fuselages were not ready in time so we painted 5.2 fuselages with 6.9 decals. With team spec (Dura-Ace grouppo, Bonty bars, stem, saddle and RXXXL wheels) bikes weigh 7.0kg (15.4lbs). Not bad for our middle of the range fuselage, eh?

The bike is built in different models, with varying grades of componentry and in three varying grades of carbon fiber. The highest end material is OCLV Red, which is packed with a high amount of modulus carbon fiber in their most complex grid. While the whole thing is somewhat of a gadget, the front fork on some lower end models also have an integrated speed sensor that links to a computer by the 2.4Ghz range. That computer is good for tons of data, including:

Altimeter, Wireless Cadence, Maximum Cadence, Heart Rate Zones, Average Heart Rate, Maximum Heart Rate. Trip Time in and Above Heart Rate, Percent Grade, Average Percent Grade, Maximum Percent Grade, Current Speed, Average Speed, Maximum Speed, Odometer, Trip Distance, Elapsed Time, Ride Time, 12/24 Hour Clock, Pacer, Temperature Gauge.

And take a look at that seat—it's like a trunk. So, an automatic transmission ... trunk? What characteristic of an automobile will bicycles take on next? Cup holders? – Charlie White

Product Preview - Trek unveils new family of comfort bikes [Bike Gallery, via Treehugger]

The screenplay will be written by Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, neither of whom have written a Star Trek screenplay before. The burning question: Who will play Kirk and Spock? Expect to see the movie in theaters by November, 2008.

Question for Trekkie experts: How will the tech in this new movie be different from the original Star Trek series? Somewhere between Enterprise and Star Trek? Discuss. – Charlie White

Star Trek XI [IMDb, via I4U]

He says the retail price will be $299.99, but has a $100 rebate to get to $199.99. This, most likely, after you've signed over two years of your soul to Cingular. We'll see if it's true in two weeks. – Jason Chen

Thanks Tipster!

The current version of the ThumbDrive uses MPEG2 to compress recorded video, but an MPEG4 HD version is scheduled to debut in September. That way, you can record all that great DVB programming and save it on the spacious flash memory. Or you can just be normal and watch TV at home like everybody else, I suppose. – Nicholas Deleon

Product Page [Trek via Everything USB]