So I'm reading a recent copy of Wired and I find out that my new favorite hobby, crossword puzzles, is OUT. Sudoku is IN. (And the little dog is UP). I got into crosswords playing Ink Crosswords, a free game that comes in the Microsoft Experience Pack for Tablet PC. But that's okay. I can be a follower as well as the next guy.
But we're Gearlog. We don't want our Sudoku puzzles to be the same as everyone else's. We're techies. We're geeks. And then it hits me. I run the idea by the powers-that-be, fully expecting that she'll shoot it down, as usual. But no! She loves it! And with these words of encouragement, "Now, will you get out of my office!", I'm off to create the first edition of what will become a weekly feature:
BINARY SUDOKU!
If you haven't tried Sudoku before, you'll want to start with the Newbie puzzle. But if you've been playing for a while, or if you just like to dive in with a pencil in each hand, then take a stab at the Power User puzzle. Either way, have fun:
This just came over the wires. In the press release, a company spokesman said, "We realized that if people had more hands, they'd be able to use more devices."
ThinkGeek has always been one of the best sources for useful and not-so-useful doo-dads for the true geek and the people who love them. I'm particularly enamored with items like the Monty Python and Star Wars bobbleheads, the Shower Shock caffeinated soap, and the Midas Remote Control Watch (" Walk on down to the local bar and take control of those big screens").
The store has just announced the addition of six new products to its catalog. My personal favorites are the BuzzAire super-caffeinated oxygen inhaler (don't mind me. it's just a little asthma) and the Wireless Extension Cords. All I can say is FINALLY! I'm also very intrigued by the Sphorb. I can't wait to get my hands on one.
Here's how they describe the new items:
USB Tanning Center ($24.99): Geeks are notoriously pale no more! With this easy-to-install UV light, anyone can achieve that deep, dark island tan without having to leave their desktop.
BuzzAire™ ($12.99): For those who feel their double mocha latte with an extra shot of espresso just does not cut it any more, this device offers a quick blast of super-caffeinated oxygen for a buzz that no coffee can compete with.
The Screened Sphorb™ ($39.99): In a recent survey conducted by ThinkGeek.com, 100 out of 100 people rated this as the number one product in the world. Unfortunately, words alone can not describe the greatness the Screened Sphorb™ possesses.
Grow Your Own “1UP” Mushroom Kit ($9.99): Finally, Super Mario Brothers lovers can grow their own green and white polka dot mushroom. Who says you have to collect 100 coins to obtain an extra life?
Wireless Extension Cords ($34.99): Tired of tripping over the tangled mess of wires from all your peripherals? These highly anticipated wireless extension cords provide power to any unit within 100 feet of any outlet. Users are seriously urged not to cross between transmitter and receiver.
The iZilla ($499.99): The end all, be all of digital music players, the iZilla has two terabytes of memory, capable of storing over 600,000 songs in every available format. This handsome, white briefcase weighs just a touch over 30 pounds, is Bluetooth and Wi Fi enabled and runs on 16 ‘D’ batteries.
ThinkGeek must have also pulled some strings because they're the first ones to have the long-awaited Sony PS3 in stock. Supplies are limited. Good luck.
Last week at Gearlog, we installed, ran, and benchmarked Windows XP on three Intel-based Apple Macintosh computers: a Mini, an iMac and a MacBook Pro. What we found was shocking: Windows XP ran faster on Apple machines. What happened after the tests was even more shocking.
Upon finishing the last of the tests, a dull thud shook the lab, and the lab filled with a noxious odor. At first, our young team thought the Macs, perhaps not thoroughly engineered to handle the new Intel processors, may have been overheating. And then without warning ... he appeared. "Clippy," Microsoft's beloved paperclip, poked his odd, poorly animated eyes around the edge of the Mini's desktop. Then, he stepped into full view. He looked ... different ... as if he were more powerful (and annoying) than before. Clippy was back, and this time he meant business.
"When Clippy appeared, he winked right at me as if saying, 'I'm back, Joel buddy, and I'm feeling better and badder than ever,'" reported Joel Santo Domingo of PC Magazine Labs, one of the original testers of Windows XP on Apple for Gearlog. Santo Domingo, as if under a spell, went on to explain that he discussed a variety of "plans" with Clippy that involve "conquest" and "domination" of unspecified geographic areas.
While conducting the interview with Santo Domingo, all work halted when Sascha Segan, also of PC Magazine Labs and another of the original testers, entered the room yelling, "All I know is that damn Clippy keeps looking at me." Segan began violently pointing at the XP Desktop displayed on a nearby MacBook Pro. "He's out to get me. I know it. I don't trust that F*#@ing paperclip. I thought he was gone, but now he's back!" He then flailed wildly at the laptop until he was restrained and forcibly removed from PC Labs by security personnel.
An expert from Microsoft, who happened to be visiting PC Labs that evening, tried to explain the unprecedented appearance and metamorphosis of the animated paperclip on the Macs, "It could only take an utterly unpredictable event (Apple moving to Intel processors) compounded with another unforeseen action (installing Windows on a Mac). It must have torn a hole in the fabric of reality, and Clippy stepped right through it." He winked then smiled. And that's all I remember.
In an unrelated story, Con Edison has reported a gas leak near the PC Magazine Labs building. A Con Edison spokesperson has confirmed that the gas is neither toxic nor explosive, but may have a hallucinogenic effect on anyone inhaling it near Intel-based Macs running Windows XP.
When I tell people about a new robot, the most common response by far is, "Can it bring me a beer?" The difficulty with this task, though, is that programming a bot to negotiate its way to the kitchen, find the refrigerator, open the fridge door, identify a beer in a can or a bottle, open said beer, then find its way back to its thirsty master is dauntingly complex.
Realizing that the Holy Grail of home robots is the beer-fetching bot, BrewBot LLC has approached this challenge in a new way. What if, instead of fetching a beer, the bot was the brewer?
Enter R.A.L.P.H. (for Robotic Alcohol Lugging/Pouring Helper), which is just a concept device - for now. R.A.L.P.H. contains within its stocky little body an entire steeping, boiling, fermentation, and refrigeration system; all you need to do is keep its charging station stocked with hops, yeast, and water. Via a top-secret proprietary process, new batches of beer can be ready in minutes. (I tried the brew myself; tastes a lot like Milwaukee's Best.)
R.A.L.P.H. responds to any voice command that includes the word "brewsky," allowing for the user's eventual inability to form complete sentences. When the bot is summoned, it wheels itself over, produces a plastic cup, and emits a stream of beer through its "mouth."
BrewBot's CEO, A.E. Roman, says the company is still looking for backers, but he's quite confident they'll be able to make R.A.L.P.H. a reality. "We think R.A.L.P.H. will be quite popular with college students, particularly in frat houses," he said. "For the females, we're considering a refinement in which R.A.L.P.H. would hold a girl's hair back if she has to, well, you know."
We were surprised at how big Logitech's G15 keyboard is, but info from our moles inside Logitech's research lab indicate still bigger keyboards in the works. This prototype of the G30 includes a double row of numbers and extra QWERTY keys.
Since the purpose of the additional keys remains unclear, we can only speculate as to what the company's plans are. I have two theories: First, it's possible that Logitech is creating an extension to the Roman alphabet, adding some of the letters found in the extended Cyrillic or Asian languages.
It's also possible that the company is planning for humans with extra digits, extra capable typists of the future. And I for one welcome our new twelve-fingered overlords.
Do you work long hours in front of your computer? Are you too tired for your lover by the time you come home? Then try LaptopLadies' new line of Laptop Lingerie. Laptop Lingerie prepares working women for a sexy, unforgettable night with their one-and-only.
—Dual-Layer Panties with USB Ports. These dual-layer cotton lace panties come in four arousing colors: RAM Red, Bluetooth Blue, Wireless White, and Graphics Green. You can also choose between 1, 2, or 3 USB ports for accompanying the Heated Robe, Webcam Wonder Bra, or Musical Slippers.
—Webcam Wonder Bras. Forget that bulky digital camcorder. Let you and your main squeeze have a real escapade with this wonder bra, complete with 2 webcams. It lets you capture those unforgettable moments in bed—at the chest level. Available in three colors: Blazing Beige, Portable Pink, and Ctrl+Alt+Del Charcoal.
—3.0 GHz Heated Robe. The 3.0 GHz Robe is made from the finest cotton, offering you warmth through those chilly nights and a fan to cool you through those sizzling nights. It both heats and cools at a mere 3.0 GHz. Comes with two pockets to store your USB cables. Available in NumLock Navy and MousePad Magenta.
—2GB Musical Slippers. Fancy a little Marvin Gaye? Or how about Celine Dion? Add passion to your night with these pre-loaded musical slippers, including the hits "Let's Get It On," "You're Making Me High," "Forever and For Always," and "Glory of Love." Available in two colors: Berry Bass and Treble Teal.
—"Hands Off My Keyboard"Boxer Briefs. I know that ladies love to wear their man's boxers. So here are boxers of your own with a clear message if you're just not feeling up to it. Comes in Blue Screen-of-Death, Megabyte Melon, and BackSpace Brown.
—"Too Fast For Your Processor" Tank Top. And if your lover just can't keep up with you, then this tank top is for you. Comes in Blue Screen-of-Death, Megabyte Melon, and BackSpace Brown.
Laptop Lingerie* is sold separately or as sets. If you purchase a set, you'll receive a free 20-inch laptop bag for carrying your laptop and your Laptop Lingerie. All lingerie available in the following sizes: Ultracompact, Compact, and Widescreen.
*Care Instructions: Be careful when configuring your Laptop Lingerie. Sparks may develop when operating under high levels of tech enjoyment.
Ever have one of those days when you walk up to your office's soda machine only to find out that your favorite soda is sold out? I don't drink soda that often, but when I do, I usually choose Dr. Pepper. Unfortunately, so do the rest of my co-workers, so Dr. Pepper is usually the first soda to go.
Now, imagine that you could have any ordinary soda, and magically turn it into the flavor you crave? The biomedical and consumer tech company IPIFINI has developed such a concept, known as Programmable Soda. From the Web site:
"Programmable Liquid Container technology employs buttons on the container's surface that release additives into the liquid. Additive buttons allow for “programming,” or selecting, variations of the liquid in the container. For example, a programmable cola bottle with buttons for lemon, lime, vanilla, and cherry flavors as well as a caffeine button allows for 32 combinations of soda."
Although the patent is still pending for this kind of technology, I bet many manufacturers and distributors are hoping it comes to be, considering it will make their jobs a little easier with less demand on certain soda products.
Man, those Boston folks really know how to dream up an innovative product.
I'll wager almost everyone reading Gearlog knows that Apple has a landmark birthday coming up Saturday: number 30. And PC Magazine's been reviewing the company's offerings nearly that long. Well, one of our Gearloggers, Sascha Segan, who also happens to be a PC Mag lead analyst, decided to go back to the archives and compile a brief history of the magazine's coverage of Apple's offerings, from Mac to Newton to Pippin (remember that ill-fated gaming venture?).
Sascha's narrative is a great history lesson, but it doesn't stop there: He actually scanned pages and pages from the old articles, starting with the first, "Surviving an Apple to PC Switchover," and uploaded them as PDFs. It all makes for a fascinating timeline. So run, don't walk, to "30 (Well, 24) Years of Apple Coverage." Enjoy!
Want to show off your majorly hot boyfriend/girlfriend? Or perhaps you always want to keep your family with you in style.
SMOY's PhotoCuff is the hippest new way to share your favorite photos. It's a vinyl bracelet! Cut a photo down to size, slide the photo into the frame, slip the bracelet on your wrist, then snap into place. You'll also find two handy pockets on the bracelet to store and carry extra photos if you want to change photos to fit your mood.
The PhotoCuff is designed and made in Brooklyn, NY by Spencer Moy, an industrial designer. Since the bracelets are made of vinyl, they are completely waterproof (but not the photos, obviously).
There's four different styles to choose from:
-SOHO 1 ($17): available in 6 colors (pink, blue, mint, lavender, cream, or black), 8 inches in length, and includes one picture frame on the bracelet.
-SOHO 4 ($20): 6 available colors, 4 frames, 8-inch length.
-Brooklyn ($25): 2 colors (brown or black), 3 lengths (7.2, 8, or 9 inches), 4 frames.
-Chelsea ($28): 3 colors (silver, gold, or blue), 3 lengths (7, 8, or 9 inches), 4 frames.
Shipping costs $4.99, and all orders are sent out between 1 and 4 weeks.
Intel holds a Mobility Day once a year to show off their latest concept designs and processors. The bulk of the products being shown off is, of course, the Intel Core Duo processors. Intel rented a penthouse at the Hudson Hotel, in New York, and here are several things that caught my eye.
Last year, it was a Tablet PC surfboard. This year is the Tablet PC Guitar. I tried to run away, tried not to look, but it was too late, I had asked my first question. The guitar is made by Fender, and Intel was able to integrate the HP Compaq tc1100 Tablet PC into the back of the guitar. Flip it over, and you can play it like an actual electric guitar. They even hired a musician to jam at the penthouse, and using an application like CakeWalk Sonar, he could record his own tunes directly into the Tablet PC. He was combining tracks that he had made prior to the event. Now, the guitar doesn't have any USB ports or any type of visible data transfer connections. How did he do it? He emailed himself the clips through yahoo mail. Thank goodness for WiFi. Moving on. The Montevallo PC is another conceptual design. It's a convertible tablet that slides, rather than rotates, into a notebook. They showed this off at Spring IDF, and it's not even conceptual anymore since Acer is doing it with the Travelmate C200. I digg the design, but tablets are still a while away from gaining acceptance.
For all of you suede lovers, Toray Ultrasuede can drape your laptop in suede, velvet, or whatever material you want to rub your hands against. Just make sure you don't get water on it. The company does apparel and industrial designs, and Oh, did I mention those are Core Duo laptops. In other aesthetic news, I was blinded by an emerald green Core Duo notebook from iBUYPOWER. I also saw a pretty yellow Asus Lamborghini notebook and a white clad Hypersonic thin and light. And yes, there are plenty of modern day scenarios where we can use these Core Duo laptops. Intel showed off their latest partnership with Skype, which allows up to a 10-user conferencing, though I barely know 3 people that uses Skype, and supposedly the 10-user conferencing is only available with Core Duo processors.
Core Duo laptops are also high definition friendly. Not really news, but they showed off the Toshiba Qosmio with an HD DVD player. Editing HD content was also done using a Core Duo laptop and Pinnacle Studio software. They even attached an off-air HD TV tuner to a Core Duo laptop, while using Windows MCE to record all the HD content.
To sum it all up, Intel Core Duo processors are fast and they can multitask. Maybe it's time to upgrade.
It's tough to get your fingers on a well made ultraportable that's decently priced. That is, until Gateway stepped into the picture. The Gateway E-100M reminds me of the Motorola Razr of notebooks.
This piano black miniature is almost as thin as the Toshiba Portege R200, but doesn't put a world of hurt on my pockets. However, it's not completely perfect given what's under the hood. The components are the latest Intel Yonah processors — that's the good news. But they're the lowest breed, integrating the Ultra Low Voltage U1400 Core Solo(1.2Ghz) processor and only 512MB RAM. Performance is much like the R200 — dreadful. Although if all you're doing is word processing and spreadsheets, the E-100M is an affordable alternative to the R200, and even the Lenovo Thinkpad X60s.
Battery is good with the 3 Cell, and a whole lot better with an extended 9 cell battery($79.99). It doesn't have a built-in optical drive, but an external drive is available($199.99). The price starts at $1,574.
The rumors are flying, thicker than ever: will there be an actual Apple iPhone?
The current round of rumors started with an Australian report citing executives from BenQ and several financial firms as saying that some Taiwanese manufacturers were competing to build the device. That was followed by a virtual scrum of analysts falling all over each other to predict Apple's move: first a VisionGain analyst saying the iPhone would appear on new wireless carrier Helio (via MobileTracker) and then a somewhat confused report on our own PCMag.com from Rethink Research, predicting that Apple will work with Intel, an Asian manufacturer, and existing carriers to build the phone.
I want to see an iPhone as badly as everyone else, and not just because I sit near "MacBook Pro" Cisco Cheng, "Intel Core Duo" Joel Santo Domingo and "iPod Hi-Fi" Mike Kobrin. Phones generally have hideous interfaces for anything beyond basic voice calling, and the market could do with a big dose of that old Apple magic for making things intuitive and easy-to-use. An Appl-ization trend on mobile phone interfaces, if it bleeds over to other manufacturers, could really be a shot in the arm for high-end data services that right now only geeks bother to learn how to use.
It wouldn't take innovative new features for an iPhone to be a hit. It would just take unlocking the features high-end phones now have, through an attractive, easy-to-use interface that always works.
I have no idea whether Apple will actually release a phone -- their smoke is opaque to me -- but I doubt they'll do it at next week's CTIA trade show. I also think they'll have to establish their own virtual carrier, or MVNO, like ESPN Mobile. (For global markets, the phone would probably be GSM, so Cingular and T-Mobile subscribers would be able to use it with their existing SIM cards.) The Motorola ROKR debacle shows that Apple doesn't play well with others: that phone was held up for a year in bickering between Motorola, Apple and Cingular, and ended up looking like the product of too many hideous compromises. Apple's strategy has always been to deliver a complete experience, and I don't see why they'd settle for anything less with the iPhone.
The popular Tamagotchi Virtual Pet continues to attract fans both young and old, ever since it hit toy shelves in 2004. Bandai America recently launched the advanced Tamagotchi Connection Version 3, which allows virtual pet owners to log on to TamaTown.com for more interaction with their pets. Version 3 is doing so well that Bandai America reports its selling twice the amount than of Version 2, and more than 50,000 users are visiting TamaTown.com each day.
Version 3 features three refreshed games, 20 additional characters, and 24 new design styles, including Translucent Black, Translucent Pink, Zebra Stripes, Green Snake, Sky Blue Circles and Pink Ribbon.
This year, Bandai America will launch new Tamagotchi lanyards so that you can wear your virtual pet around your neck.
Mixx It
Digg It
Stumble
More...
Last week at Gearlog, we installed, ran, and benchmarked Windows XP on three Intel-based Apple Macintosh computers: a Mini, an iMac and a MacBook Pro. What we found was shocking: 
