Solar-powered bra

A Japanese lingerie firm has unveiled the perfect gadget for eco-friendly sun worshippers - the solar-powered bra.
It comes with a detachable solar panel which can produce enough energy to power an iPod or mobile phone, reports the Daily Telegraph.
It is also equipped with plastic pouches that can be filled with water, allowing wearers to quench their thirst without having to buy and then throw away drinks bottles.
The bra is made of high quality organic cotton, to ensure its production has the smallest possible impact on the environment.
But the 'Photovoltaic-Powered Bra' won't be on shelves any time soon. It is still at the concept stage and has several problems that need to be ironed out. For one, it is damaged by rain.
Triumph International Japan concedes the bra will not become popular in its current form, as outer clothing renders its solar panel ineffective.
"People usually cannot go outside without wearing clothes over it," said Yoshiko Masuda of Triumph.
Triumph has previously released a bra than can be turned into a shopping bag and a bra designed to encourage the use of reusable chopsticks.
Source

XBOX 360 Finally Getting Blu-ray

After months of rumors and denials, the XBOX 360 with a Blu-ray disc drive is due to be manufactured soon and shipped in Q3 of 2008. Pegatron Technology, an OEM subsidiary of Asustek Computer, is reported to have received the winning order from Microsoft for a Blu-ray equipped XBOX 360.

Earlier reports cited Lite-On as the company with the privilege of building the new console for Microsoft. Lite-On is also currently one of the suppliers of the internal DVD drive fro the XBOX 360.

One of the strong points for Sony’s Playstation 3 has been the integrated Blu-ray player. The PS3 had the ability to draw both gamers and audio/video enthusiast, and this was proving to be a major advantage over its XBOX rival. It is estimated that 85% of Blu-ray players in use are PS3s. Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer had admitted that Microsoft had been working on support for Blu-ray under Windows during this year’s Mix08 conference. Rumors began to swirl and many began to expect Microsoft to announce a Blu-ray peripheral for the XBOX 360.

However, Microsoft came out and denied all rumors, stating that they were not exploring any kind of Blu-ray add-on or in talks with Sony about integrating Blu-ray into the XBOX experience. The software giant stated they would continue to invest in its XBOX Live online service as the means of high-definition content delivery. Toshiba received a crushing blow earlier this year at CES that Warner Brothers would be Blu-ray exclusive. This eventually led to Toshiba withdrawing from the HD format war and the demise of the XBOX 360’s HD-DVD add-on. It is interesting to note that sales of the XBOX 360 lagged behind Sony’s PS3 in the month of February, the same month Toshiba withdrew.

Many expected the death of HD-DVD would trigger a growth in Blu-ray hardware sales. However, to the dismay of the industry, acceptance and adoption of Blu-ray has been dismal.

The PS3 is one of the cheapest (relatively speaking) Blu-ray players available — and you get the console thrown in for good measure.
Source

New Xbox 360

Microsoft, according to insiders at Toshiba owner of the HD DVD patents, claim that Microsoft is working on a brand new Xbox that will incorporate not only a new HD DVD drive but a large hard drive a

nd new entertainment software that is a spin off from its struggling media centre offering.
The device is being developed in response to the PS3 driving sales of games software and Blu-ray content in several countries. A recent Sony Brand Wave study conducted in five countries including the UK, Australia, France Germany and Spain revealed that a key reason that consumers are buying a PS3 is because it includes a Blu-ray player.

Recent GFK research reveals that the recently launched Xbox 360 HD DVD attach player is not selling well. Another factor that impacted early sales of the Xbox 360 was that Microsoft failed to include a HDMI port - omitted because Microsoft wanted to cut down the costs of the console in an effort to compete up against the PS3.

The new Xbox device, while allowing for extensive gaming capability, will be positioned as an entertainment hub that includes gaming and extensive wireless networking capability as well as 1080p playback. There is also talk of it including a dual HD TV tuner and EPG capability and a docking port for an MP3 player. For Toshiba, the device is critical if it is to be successful in beating Sony and the Blu-ray promoters.

Also being discussed is the development of an open standard docking port similar to the 17 pin iPod port. This would allow all manufacturers to use the same port for docking.
Source

Watching movies on your head

Headplay has created the Personal Cinema System (PCS), a portable movie viewer/PC monitor.
Its principal component is a sun visor that sports a TV monitor under the brim for close, personal viewing.
The device will sell for $499.



Here is the visor itself. By staring directly into two independently focused eyepieces,
the mind "sees" a largish, rectangular movie screen, or virtual monitor, on top of a black background.

Source

Cell-Phone Boosters

Cell phone users are all too accustomed to dropped calls and dead zones. One way to alleviate those problems is to boost the phone's signal with an external antenna. One such device is the Spotwave Z1900, which is geared for homes and small offices of up to 2,500 square feet. The indoor, wireless system works with cell phones, PDAs and 3G laptop cards.



The Wi-Ex zBoost works in the 800MHz and 1900MHz bands, both at home and in the car. According to a New York Times story, it's legal for consumers to purchase and own the cellular boosters, but Federal Communications Commission regulations are unclear about whether they're legal to use. Wireless companies, the Times reports, say the use of unauthorized repeaters can cause interference.

Source

ENV-Motorcycle

Probably some of the reader are going to hate me for this post, but I am going to write and subsequently post it nevertheless.

I thought about how much people endanger the planet we're living on just by living here. And it's actually the mere fact of living - it's the way we leave. People don't care anymore about the nature, about the environment or about anything else, but themselves and their time. This is what matters today - time.


On the other hand, though people want everything they owe to be exclusive and good-looking. So I thought maybe some of us boys, would consider using a nice and environment friendly bike, like the one shown on the picture, which is also known as ENV. I know that the Harley fans will spit me in my face if I start praising the zero-cylinder gadget, but I'll do it anyway, because a zero-emission bike is worth talking about.

Yes, yes I know, you can't call it a real bike, if it is a two-wheeled trolley without cylinders, but think of the environment.

This is not the first 'green' motorcycle ever developed, but the predecessors of ENV were absolutely useless on the road, even though they emitted nothing hazardous to the environment. So far only ENV has made it through to ride the road. This is probably the first ever motorcycle which will be widely used on the roads and not only those of Great Britain. Great Britain - because this is the country of birth of this 'green' gadget.

The ENV (sounds like "E-N-V" to me - "ENVY") was developed in Britain's Intelligent Energy. The scientist and developers have enabled the ENV to use hydrogen-power in a removable fuel cell. The prototype emitted almost nothing and it is already known that it will be street legal.

So now, all you bike lovers, you who like to set their heads to the wind, and of course you who wouldn't like to leave a pollution trail behind... be happy because all your dreams come true. And they should come true until the end of this year, as the final version of ENV is planned to go on sale within the next months.

However, there is one more thing you should know about this two-wheeled gadget: it's maximum estimated speed is about 50 miles per hour (i.e. 80 kilometers per hour), so I don't think you'll get a chance to race a Harley on the highway.

ASUS Lamborghini VX2

The second coming of the ASUS Lamborghini - half a sport car, half a laptop - almost happened, though it still might last a bit.

It's been almost a year since first pieces of information about the first Lamborghini - the VX1 - reached us. If you look now at it and at the relation between the price and the number of positive feedbacks about this gadgets, you understand that people have realized its true value. Since the VX1 made it on the marker there have been sites posting reviews, comments and simple post about this gadget. This way the Lamborghini series from ASUS became extremely popular.

The popularity of the laptop might be explained not only by the brand name ASUS, but by the name of the series - Lamborghini. I mean there's hardly a guy who wouldn't, at least once, dream of driving a Lamborghini - the sportiest of all the sports cars. But ASUS made it possible to hold this wild beast in your hands, having it on your knees and pushing its keys.

So anyway, this popularity gave the creators of VX1 the idea that there should be another model in the Lamborghini series. It's a series, after all, and a series must have at least two models in its range. So they have come up with the ASUS Lamborghini VX2.

The strategy of giving us information on this gadget was the same as in the case of VX1: it was like waving a nice, juicy bone in front of a dog's nose. In other words: they gave us almost nothing.

Many of the gadget geeks were really disappointed with the history repeating (and I fully support them in this), but I guess it's better than absolutely nothing. Now we have at least something to speculate on. I'll be thinking how it'll be, how fast, what will be it's 'interior' and so on. You know, because at this point we know almost nothing about it... not more than there will be two external variants of the VX2: a traditional yellow a black, both with the Lamborghini logo, of course.

The only thing known about the interior is the CPU, which will be an Intel Centrino Duo. However, as much as I love Intel, I couldn't say that it would match half of the Lamborghini powers. But it is absolutely the best candidate for the role of second fastest gadget!

After the launch of Vista all over the world, they stuff it everywhere; even the Lamborghini VX2 will have it onboard (why spoil such a gadget?)

Well, I guess we'll catch up more on this topic later in this year, and I guess ASUS should organize a full time presentation this April at CeBITT 2007. And be sure to see me there, VX2, my boy!

Animals + Robots = Me Peeing My Pants

Is there anything scarier than the thought of an army of cyborg animals, programmed to rip out your jugular with no fear of death? I say no. Which is why the above photo keeps me up at night. Look at that rat! He has wires going into his exposed brain! Words don't exist to express that horribleness in that photograph! Augh!

And it gets worse! Apparently this goes way beyond, there is work being done on animals such as pigeons, bugs, and, I'm not kidding, sharks. Sharks! Half-robot sharks! I'm pretty sure DARPA has been recording my nightmares, as it doesn't get much scarier than that.

Japan's kitchen robot: A maid is still cheaper

Researchers at the University of Tokyo have developed this kitchen robot, giving it the ability to pour you tea and then wash the tea set when you're done. I mean, doing those things yourself is nearly unbearable, so I can see why one would want to spend millions of dollars developing a robot to do these basic tasks. Then they can sell them for exorbitant prices to the laziest rich people in the world. How can they lose?

I really love the fact that you can tell this thing was made in Japan because the head has these ear things on it that make the robot look like it's straight out of a Manga. I mean, come on… you know those ears don't provide any extra functionality. And why does it have to wear an apron? Shouldn't it have been built with the ability to withstand tea splatter? Keep working at it, Japan.

Project Epoc turns your brainwaves into a gaming accessory

This prototype of a gaming helmet, dubbed Project Epoc, looks to take your Xbox 360 obsession to a whole new level through your brainwaves. Yup, strap this baby on your head and you'll be mentally (and virtually) killing enemy aliens in no time.

The Project Epoc helmet from Emotiv Systems uses sensors to pick up electric signals in your brain generated by thoughts, feelings and expression. It can be connected wirelessly to various game platforms and sounds like a great outlet for gamers to engage in onscreen action in new and more exciting ways.

Could mentally controlling things in the real world be far behind?

Think about if this thing could create a virtual Pr0n reality, I will be the first one in ProjectW to put my hand on it and I wouldn't have to waste my time browsing the following thread: "Sexiest Women In Your Eyes [no porn/nudity!] Wet dream topic"

Logisys Optical Finger Mouse makes the world your mouse pad

When you're traveling by plane or train or using your laptop away from your desk, it's sometimes awkward to find a convenient place to mouse around. Attach the Logisys Optical Finger Mouse to your finger with its Velcro strap, and you can easily navigate your screen by pointing its 800dpi laser sensor at whatever surface is handy. Short of ditching the mouse altogether, it's ideal for people on the go, working equally well on either the left or right hand.

The mouse's unique design brings the thumb-operated left/right buttons and scroll wheel closer to your work, letting you keep the device attached to your finger as you type. Rather than moving your hand to grab the mouse, it's always literally close at hand. Then you can keep your hands on the keyboard, mousing around without moving them away because even the keyboard can be used as a mousing surface. Nice.

Looks like its $19.99 price is not an exorbitant amount to pay to change the context in which a mouse can be used.

Beer-launching fridge: Never leave the couch again

Robotic Beer Launching Refrigerator - The best video clips are here
Nothing goes together quite like functional alcoholism and crippling laziness, and that's why this beer-tossing fridge is such a wonderful invention. It loads up 10 frosty brews in its magazine, then launches them to wherever you'd like at the touch of a button. You might worry about getting whapped in the face by a flying can of Miller Lite, but this thing is so accurate that you shouldn't have to worry about that until you've had at least a half-dozen beers.

This thing just has to be seen in action, so be sure to take a look at the video. There you can witness the impressive accuracy of the fridge, as it tosses a good 10 cans through a small hole in a cardboard box across the room. Obviously this is a homemade project, but if they made one of these and put it up for sale I'd be all over it.

Wireless Musical Mousepad

The time has come for our mouse pads to be something more then just a smooth surface for your mice to move on. There are many variations of mouse pads but this is one of the coolest ones. It does not mean that it is something extraordinary.

The mouse pad can play music from virtually any audio device in your house. You would say that many gadgets can do that but this one is able to do it wirelessly.

Imagine your mouse pad playing your favorite song that is on TV now. This gadget can reproduce audio signals from your TV, any audio player, CD player, iPod, any other MP3 player. You will have pleasure listening to all this right at your computer desk.

However, the sound quality is not very high. Honestly saying this gadget's sound is poor. Besides, who is listening to mono sound anymore? It has only one speaker and it is not even big. The only advantage that it has is its mobility, and ability to let you listen to the music wirelessly.

The other feature that it has is the built in FM tuner so you will be able to listen to the radio at your workplace or your garage. The radio works without the transmitter so you can listen to it anywhere you want.

The transmitter is the other part of this gadget that comes with the mouse pad. This is what you connect to your audio devices in order to make the mouse pad rock. The transmitter works at a maximum range of 50 feet. However, we all know that the conditions for that have to be perfect. I would say that it is enough for my house, but it is not as good on my backyard.

It is very good as a mouse pad but it is not that good for listening to the music. There are many buttons on its edges and they are there to control the sound volume, radio etc.

This gadget has a grey mouse pad, and silver body. Besides, it has some black spots around the control buttons. This way it will fit any color of your computer, monitor, or keyboard. However, it is not very small and it measures about 8 x 11 inches.

Well, because it is wireless it needs batteries to run. I am not sure how much it will hold but it needs three AAA batteries to work.

This piece of technology is available for just $ 30 and if you want to be cool ad geeky you might want to buy it.

GSM lamp: Let there be light, eavesdropping

if someone gave you this stylish table lamp, you'd probably set it down on an end table and then forget about it except when you need a little light. Big mistake. But then how could you know that the lamp has a built-in GSM receiver and microphone, letting the owner dial in and listen to what's going on in your living room? The GSM Table Lamp turns an otherwise innocuous household item into an eavesdroppers' party line with a range of 15 to 20 feet.

While we're somewhat unnerved by the recent proliferation of spy gadgets, we have to respect the innovative use of GSM technology, which is starting to spread out from cell phones. And the lamp isn't without its "legit" uses: as an undetectable nanny monitor, for example. Still, you'd have to think that cheating spouses would be a more likely target. Just be prepared to drop about $1,325 for your spy gadget — couples' therapy might be a more affordable choice.

Special Vista Keyboard and Mouse

Finally when Vista software is out on the market the M'zoft Corporation has released its new wireless mouse and keyboard. The M'zoft Wireless Entertainment desktop 7000 is a set of a keyboard and rechargeable mouse.

The mouse is the M'zoft’s first rechargeable mouse and they have made it great. First of all, the mouse and the keyboard work using Bluetooth technology. They can work from up to 30 feet away from you computer. Not bad for a keyboard, huh.

Why is it made for Vista? Additional buttons like multimedia and some gadget buttons are placed on the keyboard. These buttons will work only with Windows Vista because only Vista has a "gadget" side-bar. And there are a lot of them, in addition to multimedia buttons that have become usual for a keyboard. The multimedia buttons will let you remotely control all the devices that are connected using Windows Media Center; this makes your keyboard a cool remote control.

Mouse keys are specially created for Vista too. For example, pushing the middle button (scroll) will let you see the thumbnails of all the windows that you have opened. The other cool function that is added: You can magnify a portion of the screen. This will help you when viewing some pictures, or reading small fonts.

Being made in grey colors the keyboard and the mouse will match any computer white or black. Besides, the keyboard is made thin and the buttons are pressed easily and don't make much noise.

The first rechargeable mouse made by M'zoft? Yes it is. The mouse has a rechargeable battery and you can charge it when you do not use the mouse. I think that would be at night, or when you are at work.

A vending machine that makes… pizza?

You can purchase all sorts of things from vending machines these days, from soda and candy to iPods and cell phones. But freshly made pizza? That just doesn't seem to make any sense. How can you make pizza in a vending machine? Has the whole world gone mad?!

Well, guess what? It's coming. Wonderpizza vending machines provide you with a 9-inch pizza in 2 minutes without you having to worry about humans touching it at any point in the process. That is unless the secret of the Wonderpizza machines is that they have very small people inside making pizzas very quickly. In which case I would feel pretty bad about buying pizzas from them.

Gadget Trak finds your stolen stuff for you

Getting your electronics stolen really sucks. You spend all this money on a new iPod or laptop only to have some sleazebag swipe it from your backpack on the subway — it just hurts. Until now, there wasn't much you could do to get your stolen toys back. But a new company is looking to make it easier to retrieve your stolen goods.

GadgetTrak is a small piece of software you can load on any portable USB device. When you report it as stolen, the software then loads itself on any computer it's plugged into, starts gathering data, then lets you know where it is. It's like lowjack for gadgets. The best part? The software is free. Yep, you can go download it now and load it on any devices you'd like. Now you have no excuse to worry about getting your stuff stolen, so go ahead and flaunt that gadget in any bad neighborhood you want.

Link

Healing Moon

Can the moon heal you of whatever ailments you're afflicted with? And even if somehow I could, would a replica of the moon share the original's healing properties? I highly doubt it. But hey, who am I to judge? But no, seriously, I'd judge you if you believed that.

OK, let's just call this e-Revolution Healing Moon a nightlight then. That should keep things civil. It's a neat light that automatically turns on when it's dark, and it has programmable cycles. It might not cure cancer, but it could be a soothing presence in a child's bedroom, or hey, even in your bedroom. But seriously, it doesn't have healing properties. Trust me.

The e-Revolution Healing Moon is available now for $100.

COMPUTER COOLERS

Buying a new computer involves buying a new powerful and big cooler. Especially for those who are crazy about overclocking and upgrading your machine to the limits. Of course, the best way to cool a powerful machine is to buy water or liquid nitrogen cooling systems and these gadgets will dost you a fortune. However, for those of you who don't want to waste so much money on that we present you two of the top coolers nowadays. Eclipse from Cooler Master and Big Typhoon VX from Thremaltake are one of the best in their class.



The Eclipse

Cooler Master has shown itself as very good cooler producer and the names of their coolers are unique too. Remember the old Mars coolers. Well, the Eclipse is one of those interesting names; I wonder why they named it like that.

Eclipse is the best air cooler that is made by Cooler Master as it says on their web site. It is a very unusual looking cooler and it is bigger than most of its analogues. Its special construction of the fan built into the radiators and its form allows the fan to blow the cold air not only on the processor itself but on the other parts of you computer as well. This fan will make your whole system cooler.

Its weight is not small, I would say it is pretty heavy because it weighs 23,5 ounces (670 grams). Moreover, they used aluminum to make; so imagine how big it is.

The fan is one of the most important parts of a cooler and this one has a 66 x 68 mm turbine fan. They used a long-life bearing that should serve you very long. It says that it will work for 40,000 hours which is four and a half years of 24/7 work. I guess that it would be enough for you.

The package that the cooler comes in is the biggest cooler package I have ever seen. It has everything you need there: even the thermo paste to install it on.


The Big Typhoon

I do not need to tell you how effective the Big Typhoon VX is. It is a better version of one year old Bit Typhoon (no VX). Many people liked it very much and now the Thermaltake Company has created a newer version of it.

This new Big Typhoon VX measures 122 x 122 x 103 mm and it is obviously smaller then the Eclipse cooler. Well, we will compare them later.

The fan is the part that Big Typhoon can be proud of. It uses a 120 mm fan that blows not only on the radiator but on the base of the cooler itself and the surrounding area of the motherboard. (There are thermal tubes there on my motherboard that come from the chipset.)

They used thermal tubes on Big Typhoon however the distance between the tubes is 1 mm and it is crucial that there would be no dust. Otherwise the gaps will be all dusty and the tubes will not work properly.

Big Typhoon VX comes in a smaller box and it also has the thermo paste included.


Comparison

So what is better the Big Typhoon VX or the Eclipse from Cooler Masters? Let us check some of the parameters first.

1. Installation and size
First of all you need some place to install it because some motherboards have not that much space to install such a big cooler as Eclipse. Big Typhoon VX on the other hand has a very compact base that you can attach to virtually any processor it supports.
Eclipse is much higher although it is thinner then the Big Typhoon VX so you should choose what you need and weather you can fit it into your case. However, the cases nowadays are big and wide so you should have no problems with that.
2. Weight
Weight becomes crucial when you install the cooler on the vertically standing motherboard. Although I think that most of the motherboards will hold such a weight but I am not sure.
Eclipse with its aluminum radiators and thermal tubes weighs about 670 grams however the Big Typhoon is much heavier and weighs 827 grams. The difference in 160 grams can play a big role for somebody.
3. Cooling
Cooling our system that is what we all want from our coolers. We have tested the two cooler stars and now we present you the results on that.
On the low RPM which is under 1300 the best cooler is the Big Typhoon. The thermal emission practically has not changed when we have lowered the RPM. Besides, at these RPM the Big Typhoon VX has got the lead in cooling the motherboard around the processor. Eclipse is not much weaker but it will still cool your system worse than it would do the Big Typhoon VX.
How about the medium and high RPM? Well the situation is not much different here either. Eclipse is not as powerful as the Typhoon.
4. Noise measurement
Nobody likes noisy coolers and this sound frustrates me very much. At the very low RPM the Eclipse cooler is the quietest. However this cooler cannot cool a powerful processor rotating that slowly. The maximum it can do is to cool down an office 50% load of Conroe 3.2 GHz. However, on the medium RPM of 1900 it does a great job of cooling the same processor with 100% load and demonstrates the noise of 26 dB. It is pretty good. However, on the high RPM the Eclipse cooler is one of the noisiest ones and you do not recommend you to use it at high RPM.
Big Typhoon creates the same 26 dB noise on minimal RPM which is 1300. However, the thermal emission of this cooler is much higher at this state. On the highest RPM the noise becomes 32 dB and the thermal emission is not very different from the low RPM one. I think that there is no purpose of using this cooler at high RPM.

It is up to you to choose which one you would like to buy. Can we recommend you a $ 60 Eclipse from Cooler Master if there is $ 27 Hyper TX with about the same productivity (However the noise level is higher)? Choose from a more productive Big Typhoon that costs $ 40 and les productive but quieter at lower RPM Eclipse

By TECHNOCOO

iRiver 8GB PMP Lasts A Very Long Time

iRiver makes nice MP3 and portable media players (PMPs) and its latest is another worthy addition. The X20 PMP comes in 2GB, 4GB and 8GB versions and lands in Japan first next month before making its way to the rest of the planet - eventually.

The X20 measures 33 x 73.9 x 16.6 mm and weighs in at 73g. It sports a very nice 2.2in display, capable of 260,000 colours and 320 x 240 resolution playback of MPEG-4 and WMV video files. Even better, the company claims that the lithium-ion battery can manage 22 hours of MP3 playback on a single charge, which is great.

It also boasts an FM radio and a microSD expansion slot. If you don’t fancy waiting months and months, it could be time to find a reputable Asian gadget exporter that doesn’t care what colour your cash is.

Prices in Japan, for the 2GB, 4GB and 8GB versions will be around £80, £100 and £130. You can safely assume they will cost at least 40-50% more by the time they get here. Jump now for another photo.-Martin Lynch