Mobile Devices

Don’t you sometimes wish your PSP has a better grip? Most specially when you’re so into the game and the PSP’s form just isn’t cutting it.

Vis-a-vis Japan has what you’re looking for. The Flexible Hand Grip Pad Advance is an add-on device to your PSP Slim or Lite (a model is also available for the regular PSP) which could add a PS dual-shock controller-like look to your portable gaming machine. The under-the-console design means you retain access to all the buttons and controls of the PSP. Best of all, it only costs less than 5. But then again, it’s only available in Japan.

Check out the product page.

via

Here’s yet another portable media player that comes with hook, line and sinker that all you need to actually do is bother about the price. The iRiver X20 comes with 8GB of flash memory and a 22 hour battery life - perfect for those on long haul flights. A microSD memory card slot is there for expansion purposes just in case 8GB doesn’t quite cut it for you. It would be nice to see an improvement on the 2.2″ display though, as you can’t really spend too many hours staring at it. Would you drop $130 for this or take the tried-and-true iPod path instead?

While official details have not been announced on the Danger acquisition, Om Malik is speculating that Microsoft paid $500 million. Further speculation is that early investors got modest returns on the sale, but the later stage investors made out “like bandits.” Om Malik is also noted as saying:

The deal’s big sticker price is intriguing — leading me to believe that Microsoft wants to pull an Xbox on its mobile phone business.

Could this mean Microsoft is preparing to offer up some real competition with Android?

Via [CNET]

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by Mr. Alex of Geekfoolery

Just six weeks ago, Christmas gifts were opened, and gift givers gauged the reaction of their giftees–was that a polite smile, or a genuine, “Wow! That’s cool!” Despite the vast array of product research available to any consumer with an Internet connection, it’s still a tough call to know if gift is going to get used and enjoyed, or is it going to end up on a shelf in the back of the closet, or exchanged, or worse–regifted.

That’s why this post-Christmas review is coming in mid-February. I picked up a Rubik’s Revolution for the kids almost as an afterthought. I wasn’t 100% of what it was, but the kids had asked for Rubik’s Cube, and this looked OK and was only about $13. In the shopping cart it went as continued searching for the kid’s “main” gift.

Unlike the original Rubik’s Cube, which requires a learning or discovering a fairly complex series of moves to solve the puzzle, Rubik’s revolution is simplicity itself. It looks like a shiny Rubik’s Cube, but the sides don’t rotate. Instead, the center square on each face is a lighted recessed button. The instruction sheet describes six different variation on the same game of simply pushing the button that is lit. That’s it, basically… a face lights up, and you have to spin the cube around, find the lit square and press it. Allowable time between presses gets shorter and shorter, and pressing the wrong button ends the game. There are two person variations, other similar themes.

What’s fascinating about it is how compelling this simple game is, for pretty much anyone who picks it up. Kids, of course love anything that beeps and lights up, and the fascination derives from rules simple enough to follow and succeed at. Older kids I watched play the game derive different strategies for turning the cube to get to the lit face faster. Get on the two person game with adults and it’s as compelling as eating potato chips. It can get a little noisy and exciting, but that’s all part of the fun.

We’ve taken the cube to friend’s houses, and their kids master the game in seconds and remain fascinated for… well, maybe not hours, but a long time, anyway.

There were more expensive, more complicated, more involved toys under the tree, but I have been amazed at the lasting appeal of this thing. At $13, it’s a bargain anyway–the fact that it will get used is icing on the cake.

[MWC} HTC has announced a new affordable smartphone with their P3470. The new device offers a large 2.8″ touchscreen, TomTom Navigator 6 sat-nav software, as well as a 2 MP camera and 256 MB of flash memory.
The HTC P3470 will be available later this month in Europe, being offered first by Orange across the UK, France, Spain and the Netherlands for 449 Euros (~$650).
[Source]

Based on recent reports, HotOrNot is about to be purchased for $20 million dollars by investors connected with Avid Life Media. Avid Life is reportedly interested in setting up a larger HotOrNot media company and might be in the buying mode for a few other similar properties.

HotOrNot was originally founded back in 2000 by James Hong and Jim Young and has consistently generated enough traffic to attract interest. HotOrNot makes most of it’s money from advertising and premiums charged to their user base of nearly 5 million. Their annual revenue is estimated to be around $5 million, with $2 million in profit. Hong and Young will no longer be operating the business on a day to day basis and seem pretty happy with that.

“We’ve been working on HotOrNot for seven years now,” said Hong, adding “It’s time to break up with this girlfriend.”

Via [Tech Crunch]

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Korean cell phone giants LG have unveiled their newest cutting edge model the LG KF-700 at the 2008 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The phone features a sexy 3-inch touch screen which slides to reveal the numeric keys pad. The 3 mega pixel camera on this phone is lased with auto focus for improved picture clarity while Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP and shortcut scroll thumbwheel lets users select multimedia functions. Though there is yet no word on the KF-700’s price, it is expected to be available in the market by next month.
[Source]

Posted Feb 12th 2008 7:36PM by Darren Murph
Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment, Storage
Simmer down — it’s not like you haven’t seen advancements in blue laser technology before, and even though the current format war may still be raging when either’s successor rolls into town, Kaai and Soraa are already looking to the future. Reportedly, Khosla Ventures has invested in both of the aforementioned firms, and while company representatives aren’t disclosing much at the moment, we do know that the duo is exploring ways to “exploit gallium nitride, which is also the basis for existing blue LEDs and blue lasers.” Apparently, they’d like to concoct suitable replacements for conventional LEDs in the lighting market and make a showing in the optical data storage arena, too. But seriously, with 200GB Blu-ray discs, who needs to worry about the next best thing?

[Image courtesy of DigitalHomeMag]

Panasonic has just announced the world’s First 32GB* SDHC Memory Card With Class 6 Speed specification. This newly developed card, featuring a massive 32GB of capacity, is a perfect device for those wanting High Definition content, as it can record up to 12 hours of High Definition video. Available in April for retail price of $699.
[Source]

If you have a penchant for robotic projects, then the BotBrain Animatronic Robot Head Kit is a pretty good candidate. It is meant to help one pick up the basics of robotics and animatronics by leading the user through the entire assembly process of a fully functioning animatronic head. This head will be able to turn left and right, while moving eyes and eyelids add to the realism. The mouth can change according to how it is “feeling” at the moment, while integrated sensors enable it to react to changes in the environment. The BotBrain Animatronic Robot Head Kit retails for $449 so make sure you have a great love for all things robotic before dropping that amount of dough.