Gadgets

Apple’s Updated Dock for iProducts

After two years, Apple’s updated the Universal Dock to accommodate the Brady Bunch of iPods out in the market—it now comes with five adapters. Also thrown into the box is an Apple Remote, which can be used with the dock’s infrared sensor. One thing that’s missing is S-Video output, which has been booted in favor…

Movie Gallery, the number two video rental chain, has been browbeaten into bankruptcy by the vast array of forces assaulting B&M rental outlets—the bloodbath between Netflix and Blockbuster, web video, VOD and so on. Quick and dirty takeaway: The picture’s not looking pretty for your corner video store. [Crave]

YouTube Antipiracy Video Identification System Enters Beta Testing

The not-so hotly anticipated GooTube antipiracy system has jumped into beta. Creatively dubbed Video Identification, it’s a digital fingerprint setup where uploaded clips are matched against a stock of legit clips provided by their owners—YouTube will then follow whatever course the copyright holder wants, be it leave it or pull it. We’ll have a better…

The four-year extension of the net access tax ban has passed the House, 405-2. But it leaves the door open for taxes on “voice, audio or video programming” delivered through the intertubes, so VoIP and IPTV might be future tax revenue boosters. [CNet] https://gizmodo.com/house-judiciary-votes-to-extend-ban-on-net-access-tax-b-309967

Den Den Town: Osaka’s Akihabara-Style Geek Center

Super Potato wasn’t the only place Ashcraft took me in Osaka; no, that was just one small taste of our tour. We explored all of Den Den Town, which is Osaka’s version of Akihabara: a geek center full of electronics, manga, and video game shops. And unlike Akihabara, it hasn’t sold itself out to tourists.…

The Vending-Machine Ramen Taste Test

Here in Japan, if you want a hot cup of ramen noodles in soup, you don’t need to go to a restaurant or even to your kitchen. No, you just need about $2.50, a lack of respect for your taste buds, and to be near a vending machine. That’s right: you can get hot ramen…

New Block Tokyo Tower Lights Up and Transforms your Life

Japanese toy firm Gakken has brought out a light-up version of the Tokyo Tower for you to build. And if you don’t fancy having a 3’4″ red and white version of Godzilla’s favorite phallic object owning a piece of your floor, then you can always turn the waffle-shaped bricks into three other things: A hot-air…

Pyxis GPS Watch is Designed for Athletes, Not Aesthetes

The Pyxis GPS watch is a versatile gadget for exercise freaks — which also, judging by its looks, doubles as a blunt instrument that the CIA might use against their enemies when everything else has failed. With a gazillion functions, including time, speed, distance and even calorie consumption measurement, you can programme your goals into…

Another iPod Bug: Nike+ Doesn’t Work Well with Nanos

We just discovered this the hard way: The Nike+iPod peripheral that tracks your distance doesn’t let you play music on the new nanos. It’s a small, surely fixable bug, but it’s very annoying on top of the other issues we’ve had with this generational jump. Whether it’s the Cover Flow interface lagging (which has thankfully…

Man Drives From NY to LA in 31 hours and 4 minutes (Gadgets Helped)

Alex Roy was just recognized as the record holder for driving from NY to Santa Monica pier in 31 hours and 4 minutes, besting the time set by David Diem and Doug Turner, who were clocked in a Ferrari 308 during the 1983 US Express run of 32 hours and seven minutes. That’s a sustained…

Intel Talks Up Quad-Core Mobile Chip, Fancy New Cooling Tech

At its developer forum in Taiwan today Intel showed off its Penryn-based quad-core mobile chip we heard rumbles of in April that’s set to drop in the latter half of 2008 as part of its Montevina chipset, which will be replacing Santa Rosa. They also bandied about some new cooling ideas, like one based on…

Zilopop Sucks Away Bad Breath With Stainless Steel

This Zilopop supposedly rids your breath of weird smells by going into your mouth for two minutes. Does anyone have the science on this? Sounds and smells odd to us. In comparison, our Bongo rubs a stainless steel bar after he cuts “onions and things like that.” Not to rid his hands of the stench,…

Video of New Microsoft Surface Table Apps

T3 UK was late to the Surface Table coverage, but they did well by catching a video that shows off some visually stimulating concept apps that Chen wrote about a few weeks ago. I like the pond app that shows ripples on touch, and the multitouch paint app that can read all 10 fingers at…

LG’s running a contest giving away free loot for 15 to 30 second clips of basically anything—the theme’s “life’s good when…”—so basically anything. [LG Video Contest]

Skintile Electronic Sensing Jewelry Blings Your Mood

Designed by Philips alongside Stella, a project that is developing flexible electronic substrates for the medical world, Skintile jewelry is an adhesive body adornment that can light up depending on your mood. Everything is contained in the substrate—energy supply, sensors, actuators and display, and Philips rather saucily claims that it is “arousal enhancing.” Well, I…

7 Takes On Palm Centro

Released just yesterday, the Palm Centro has our eyes for a few reasons. First, their Treo smartphones have some of the highest ratings in smartphone history on review sites like CNET. So when Palm essentially shrinks their famous Treo and drops the price to $99 with contract, we have to take a closer look. So…

Japanese Toilet Outsmarts Gizmodo Writer

So I arrived in Tokyo last night after a delightful 13-hour flight, and because jet lag is totally awesome, I woke up at 4:30 in the morning after only 6.5 hours of sleep despite having been awake for nearly 30 hours the day before. What better time to make a video for you nice folks…

Last Weekend Was So Much Fun

Oh, you missed such a great time last weekend. Although, maybe we all had so much fun because you weren’t here—ZING! Here’s what you missed: Sex with Robots? Happening. Jailbreaking iPod Touch units on Macs is super easy. The Family Guy finally explained an issue we had with the Star Wars plotline. The iPod’s head…

Mercedes-Benz SilverFlow, In 50 Years

Mercedes-Benz claims to have a vision of the car market 50 years from now, and their contribution is called the SilverFlow (but ironically looks like gold). Instead of being constructed from metal, plastic and fiberglass components, the SilverFlow is made of micro-metallic particles that are controlled by magnetic fields. A key fob stores different designs…

Sony Sexes Up Laptops, Walkmans and Headphones as Part of Its Canvas Exhibition

Sony has commissioned three of Japan’s most promising graphic artists to add color to four of its products. Hajime Yoshio, ZanPon and Ryuji Otani are the trio behind the limited-edition laptops, cell phone cases, media players and headphones, part of the company’s Canvas show at its Ginza headquarters. A lucky few will be able to…