Gadgets Blog

It’s always nice when you go camping and don’t have to worry about packing 15 different types of batteries.  The more solar gadgets you can have around, the less batteries you have to deal with.  Making this K-Light a convenient light to have around when it comes time to go camping.  Instead of worrying about having D batteries lying around, you just have to make sure to leave this out so that it can charge up in the sunlight.

Of course how effective it is always depends on how bright the sun is shining.  On a typical day though on low after an hour of sun you’ll get 2 hours of light or on high you’ll get 1 hour of light.  It has a lifespan of 10 years.  The lantern can be used as either a lantern or a flashlight.  It’s highly water-resistant, so you won’t have to worry about rain damaging it.  It’s not at a bad price either, it’ll cost you $49.95 from Pisat Solar.

Source: OhGizmo

Imation has just let out word that it will be shipping its widely anticipated M-Class and S-Class Solid State Drives (SSDs) on the American continent, offering power computer users the choice of lightning-fast performance packed into an energy efficient, affordable solution. Both of Imation’s M-Class and S-Class SSDs with Upgrade Kits will also be made available, providing users a with complete, easy way to upgrade your current computer setup that has a hard drive inside already, replacing it with the newly purchased SSD without having to purchase a whole new computer. This Upgrade Kit makes allowance for PC users to improving performance and extend the life of their computers without breaking the bank.

Both offerings from Imation are high-quality, second-generation SSDs that offer speedy boot times, allowing applications to load up much faster than what you’re normally accustomed to on a hard drive. Of course, this might result in a bottleneck on your processor’s part at the end assuming the SSD performs as intended, so we would say that having a decently powered machine is a good idea. The Imation Upgrade Kit is also something special, allowing users to enjoy the benefits of the latest SSD technology on their existing computers without having to migrate their data all over again to a new machine.

According to Subodh Kulkarni, vice president, Global Commercial Business, Imation, “We recognize that users have many choices when it comes to SSDs. Those who demand speed and performance in a high-quality, rugged solution can trust Imation SSD drives to enable the computer to keep pace with the latest applications and enhance the user experience. However, we are also very aware that today’s users want to extend the life of their computers, both for environmental and economic reasons. A computer that uses SSD consumes less power and gives off less heat, making it more environmentally-friendly. Therefore, Imation makes it easy to retrofit a traditional HDD system with an SSD drive for a fraction of the cost, extending the life of the system, but still enabling the user to consistently get better performance from their computer.”

You can get Imation’s M-Class and S-Class SSD drives in either 2.5″ or 3.5″ configurations, and these will be available in 32GB, 64GB and 128GB capacities. Prices start from $189.99 upwards for the M-Class while the S-Class is much more pricey with an entry point of $659.99. As for the Imation SSD Upgrade Kits, you can pick from either a 64GB or 128GB SSD drive that will start from $299.99 and $1,299.99, for the M-Class and S-Class, respectively.

Press Release

Samsung is back with a couple of new camcorders for those who are looking for a device that is able to perform video recording of your favorite memories without cramping your style or adding a whole lot of bulk to your travel bag. The two models in question are the Samsung SMX-C14 and SMX-C10 that look totally out of this world, being ergonomically designed, compact digital camcorders that comes in industry-leading style and design. Both the new SMX-C14 and SMX-C10 will also be adorned with Samsung’s very own stylish Touch of Color (ToC) finish, where a subtle hint of color is naturally blended into the deep black body for an attractive crystalline appearance (not to mention being a prime candidate as a fingerprint magnet).

The SMX-C14 and SMX-C10 will target the on-the-go consumer, featuring a 10x optical zoom coupled with Hyper Image Stabilization that ensure your shots taken are always clear and sharp, thanks to the reduction of blurry footage. Both models will also come with a 230k resolution swiveling LCD display that measures 2.7″ across diagonally, making it convenient to frame your subjects as well as review your footage without squinting as with many other older camcorders. Just like the full HD HMX-R10, the SMX-C14 and SMX-C10 comes with Samsung’s Active Angle Lens which reduces fatigue thanks to a much more ergonomic grip, minimizing stress on the wrist and elbow while removing the LCD display from the user’s line of sight.

Other features of the SMX-C14 include 16GB of internal flash memory, an SD/SDHC memory card slot, H.264 compression for video and a pretty substantial battery life of over two hours and forty minutes of recording time with each full charge. In addition, you will be able to take advantage of several unique features including time-lapse recording, animated thumbnails and a versatile charging system. There is no word on pricing, but we do know both the SMX-C14 and SMX-C10 will be out this July.

Press Release

Is Junior driving you up the wall that you have absolutely no idea on what can keep him in tow without you losing your cool? Enter the Didicar - it might sound extremely silly, but this wiggle-powered toy vehicle ought to keep your little one occupied for hours on end, giving you a little bit of “me” time that you deserve.

Kids only have to wiggle the steering wheel left and right to propel the Didicar forwards. And that’s just as well because most youngsters get bored of pedalling before you can say ‘But this cost mummy and daddy a fortune, you little…’. Ideal for use on flat surfaces, both indoors and outside, the Didicar is even capable of travelling backwards â€" simply flip the wheel 180° and get wiggling. Kids can even make it go faster by leaning slightly forward over the steering wheel and using their upper body when wiggling. We’ve had ours up to 6mph â€" and considering the average speed of traffic in most big cities, that’s pretty good going. If only they were road legal…

The Didicar could end up being the next scooter craze, although the £49.95 price point might put off parents who are running on an extremely tight budget at this point in time.

If you have a penchant for the great outdoors and love spending it with a loved one, might we suggest the Moontent? This is one handy piece of camping equipment worth owning, especially when you want to set camp in a no-frills and fast manner

The Moontent is the room with a view that pops up in seconds, no fiddling with tricky spindly things and strange flappy bits that have no apparent purpose. All you do is pop it out of its bag, flip it open, then peg down the corners - it’s a piece of cake (cunningly designed as a tent). It’ll keep you dry and cosy (as long as you’re not caught in a tropical storm), and in the blistering heat that is the English summer it’ll protect you too, as the tent’s material has UPF (Ultraviolet Protection Factor) of 50!

Not only that, the Moontent comes in handy when you’re going to spend some time with your family without leaving the home - after all, give it to a kid and he’ll use his imagination to turn it into some sort of fort or space station. Sounds like £34.99 well spent, especially when it helps pry the kid from his Xbox 360 so that you can have a go at Street Fighter IV on it instead for a change.

I am guessing that this Moonlight Concept Laptop is named because of its shape. Granted, its crescent shape makes it a lot sexier than most laptops, and it has some other unique features as well.

For example, it doesn’t have two halves with one screen and one keyboard. No, both halves come with touchscreens. The bigger screen is a 16:9 that serves as the monitor, with the other is a smaller 4:3.

This lower 4:3 display has a screen that can be used like a touchpad mouse. It can also be used as an annex of the larger screen, or it can run mini OS.

You may have noticed that the frame lights up, and there are special sensors that will keep them on as long as the user wants, I imagine.

Yeah, this Moonlight looks pretty neat, and what you can barely see are special legs that lift it above the ground. Hopefully these legs fold up into the frame. Speaking of folding, the way the Moonlight folds up is quite unusual. You know how most laptops fold up so the screen is on the inside, and protected? Unfortunately, the Moonlight has its screen on the outside. This could be a problem.

Well, I can use my imagination to picture an age where every laptop is like the Moonlight. Somehow it looks really futuristic, like out of a science-fiction movie.

Source

Have you ever bought a gift for someone that you live with, and you really “gave” it so you could use it? This might be the case for when a mother buys a child this new version of the DS Lite.

The child should be immediately suspicious as he or she notices that the DS is lime green in color. I can pretty much guarantee that any kid who is seen in public with a lime green DS Lite will be called some sort of name by the end of the day. I’m sure the kids will start with the easy to use “limey-fruit” and will eventually shorten it to “fruit” in a matter of days.

This version of the DS Lite, which really should be called “The Housewives edition”, comes with Personal Trainer: Cooking. Yeah, junior’s going to be completely addicted to that game!

Did I mention that this edition also comes with a matching carrying case? In all honesty, I don’t really use the carrying case, and I’m guessing most teenage boys probably don’t either.

So, if you are a young lad, and your mother gives you a Nintendo DS that looks like the one in the picture, don’t open it. Your mom will be all over it if you do. Instead, run from the house and exchange it wherever you can. It costs about $149, so you should be able to get yourself something decent for it, like a Nintendo DS of a proper color like white, black, or even red.

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I have seen this GameGrip on another blogs, and one of them called it “the world’s most absurd iPhone accessory”. Personally, I think that is a little too harsh.

After all, there are a lot of game apps available for the iPhone right now, so why not create something that makes the iPhone like a SIXAXIS in its shape?

Maybe it’s because we all know that the iPhone may be good, but it hasn’t replaced handhelds like the DS or the PSP. Perhaps I should say that it hasn’t replaced them yet.

After all, Apple has recently announced the downloading of its one billionth app. I’m sure that a high percentage of those downloads were Super Monkey Ball or other gaming programs. If more apps come out that are as good (if not better than) the action games on most handhelds, then the GameGrip should come with some buttons.

As you can see, the GameGrip is hardly portable, unless you got a deep pocket. You can also see how to connect it to the iPhone itself, and it will allow for use of the headphones.

If you are looking for a grip for your iPhone with bright blue silicon grips that are completely sweat-proof, then this is a very useful iPhone accessory. It will cost about $51.

Source

After a while it gets a little obnoxious having to deal with batteries in your controllers.  Especially if you have more than one.  If you have rechargeables in all of them, then you have to pull them out after they die and wait for them to charge back up again.  That is unless you keep a spare set lying around.  Well Energizer has created a new way to at least make sure your Wiimotes stay plenty charged without the hassle of changing out batteries.

It also allows for you to keep the sleeves on your controllers, instead of having to peel it off of the remote every time you have to change out batteries.  Just place it on the induction charger and it’ll charge up the rechargeable batteries within.  When you purchase the docking stand you’ll also receive 2 rechargeable battery packs.  The Wii Energizer 2x Induction Charge Station will cost you $49.99 from Amazon.  It’s not available just yet though, you can pre-order it now, but it won’t be shipped until the first of June.

Source: GadgetVenue

Home theater in a box really isn’t. It’s a surround receiver, some cheap speakers and a DVD player, sure, but there’s way more to the equation than just audio. And Epson is betting that with the transition to HDTV in full swing, people looking for an all in one solution to transform that den into a serious home THEATER will be looking their way. Enter the new Ensemble HD Home Theater kits.

Ranging from $5,000 and up, the new Ensemble HD home theater kits come with literally everything you need to turn that extra room into more than just a TV unit, but a silver screen theatrical experience. The bargain kit comes with a 720 front projector, while the $6500 and $8,000 model enjoy Epson’s 3LCD 1080p front projector systems. Also included in the kits are motorized 100-inch screen, integrated surround sound, AV controller with built-in DVD player, universal remote, and installation kit to get it up on the wall and hooked together.

Now sure, that sounds like a bunch of coin. But when you consider that piecemeal, this would probably all run nearly twice that (those 100 inch screens really aren’t cheap) even the bargain basement $5 grand kit amounts to a screaming good deal for those who like both pro sports and action flicks. The only thing really missing is the popcorn.

Hat Tip - Oh Gizmo

Sure, you can get an attachment for that Kitchen Aide mixer which will allow you to make your own fettucine, but short of cannibalizing your kids Play Doh pumper number 9, you won’t get the chance to make elbow pasta or wheel pasta or those cute little bow ties. If you could do that, then making pasta would be something more interesting as there are literally hundreds of styles of pasta that can be made by pushing your semolina through a die cast mold. This Japanese model, called “Pasta Pasta” does just that.

Okay, the Pasta Pasta only makes just eight different kinds, and you have to hand crank it, but still, it can be fun. You just mix up and refrigerate some pasta dough, and when it’s firm enough, roll up some into a tube and place it into the canister. Rig that into the pumping mechanism, and start cranking. The dough gets forced through the die cast molds and then all one needs to do is cut off the shape when it makes the required thickness. Lather, rinse, repeat.

In addition to fettucine, the Pasta Pasta makes bowties, elbows, wagon wheels, twirls, raviolis, medallions and what looks to be a shell like pasta.

Cool “as seen on TV” video here.

All parts are made of ABS plastic and clean up is promised to be simple. Cost is about $155 US from Japan Trend Shop.

Hat Tip â€" Random Good Stuff