The PCMag labs changed from a cold, sterile place of work, to a bumpin' club yesterday as we tested Activision's newest game: DJ Hero: Think Guitar Hero, but with a turntable instead of a guitar. Needless to say, a lot of scratching, mixing, and sampling went down.

The testing has been rigorous. Being a big fan of Guitar Hero and Rock Band, I can easily say that DJ Hero is more difficult at first. It definitely takes some time to get the techniques down. A full review is on its way, but until then, check out the hands-on video after the jump. DJ Hero is available now for $119.99. 

The HP Dreamscreen is a gadget that doesn't seem to know exactly what it is. And that, I suppose, is part of its charm. It does the whole digital-picture-frame thing, though HP will cringe if you refer to it as a digital picture frame. Really, it's a media networking device that exists somewhere between a photo frame and a notebook.

I had a chance to play around with the gadget last night, and, all things said, it's pretty smooth. I asked the HP rep why it didn't have a touchscreen (the controls are touch, but are built into the bezel of the device), and he answered that it was less of a cost concern than a getting-fingerprints-on-your-screen concern. But heck, that hasn't hampered the iPhone's popularity, has it?

Check out a quick video of the device in action, after the jump.

Recently I got a chance to sneak a peek at Disney's new film, G-Force. No, we aren't doing movie reviews here at Gearlog, but I wanted to see if the 3D graphics were all they're cracked up to be.

Truth be told, the movie looked pretty cutting-edge. One particular scene comes to mind: It was a chase scene between special agents and the hero guinea pigs, when they "just so happen" to run into a fireworks set-up crew. Fireworks appear to fly into the audience and around the fuzzy rodents (as an epic "Carmina Burana" plays in the background). Michael Bey would be proud.

Our editor-in-chief Lance Ulanoff was at the Kindle DX launch event at Pace University in  Manhattan today. Not only did he live blog the announcement and take photos, he also managed to shoot some quick video of the new widescreen eBook reader during the hands-on time after Amazon founder Jeff Bezos's presentation. Check out the video, after the jump.

 

Honda was in town today showing off its recently announced Stride Management Assist and Bodyweight Support Assist prototypes. Designed by members of the team that brought the ASIMO Humanoid robot into the world, the two wearable devices are aimed at improving locomotion in users.

PCMag editor-in-chief Lance Ulanoff and myself had the opportunity to see the devices up close--and to try them out. After the jump, check out footage of Lance taking the Stride Management Assist and Bodyweight Support Assist prototypes for a spin around the W Hotel in midtown Manhattan.

And for a full-hands-on--well, legs-on--review of the new devices (and a slideshow), check out our story at PCMag.com.

Sony unveiled an irresistible compact video camera today, the HDR-TG5V. It combines the small shape of Flip cameras that have changed the consumer video market with high-end features previously found only in larger cameras.

The HDR-TG5V shoots 1920-by-1080 high-def video and can snap 4-megapixel photos. You can save your work to the 16GB of internal flash memory (enough for 6 hours of high-def video). If that's not enough room, you can add a Memory Stick PRO Duo to more recording time. Naturally, it offers a Carl Zeiss Vaio-Tessar lens with 10X optical zoom.

I love that the HDR-TG5V also offers GPS for geotagging your work. The camera's 2.7-inch screen can display a map interface with pushpins showing every location that you've shot. Tap one of the pins to call up that video.

When you're using it for still photos, built-in smile shutter technology takes a picture only when your subjects have a nice grin. You'll also get face detection, to make sure your subjects are in focus.

This camera just rocketed to the top of my wish list, but it isn't cheap. It will be released in May and will sell for $999.99. Sony will also offer a travel kit, including a battery, travel charger, and pouch, for $100.

Robots dancing to K-Pop? Seriously, what's not to love? Robotics kit manufacturer Bioloid had a handful of custom bots on hand at Toy Fair that danced together.

The robots were built using the company's bipedal humanoid kit, and programmed with the Behavior Control Programmer software kit, which lets users generate unique motions and behaviors, like, say, dancing.

Check out video of the Bioloid bots in action, after the jump.

The Sony-Ericsson Idou concept phone is one of the most buzzed-about devices of this year's Mobile World Congress. Introduced on Sunday night, the phone offers an impressive 12.1-megapixel camera.

The handset also offers a number of entertainment features and runs a yet-unnamed version of the Symbian OS. It also boasts a 3.5-inch, 640-by-480 resistive touch screen. Beyond that, the details are fairly sparse--including the actual model name, which will most likely be changed before release.

Our mobile analyst, Sascha Segan, did manage to get some hands-on time with the device. Check out a video of the Idou in action, after the jump.

Gearlog was on hand at the Morgan Library and Museum in midtown Manhattan for the launch of Amazon's Kindle 2. The latest version of the company's popular ebook features a number of improvements over its predecessor. PCMag executive editor Dan Costa got some good hands-on time with the gadget--enough, in fact, to write a preview of the device.

He also, thankfully, had both a video camera and an experienced Amazon representative to take him through the paces. Check out an up close and personal view of the hot new device, after the jump.

...this should explain everything

So, we told you about the OhMiBod, but what about something for the guys? How about Daihaku Inc's Virtual-Hole? I won't go into too much detail about the Virtual-Hole beyond saying that, if you're an adult, you can probably figure out the purpose of the thing.

What's interesting about the Virtual Hole (at least for our purposes), is the fact that the device syncs its sensations to corresponding adult movies. The company buys the rights from movie production houses and programs them to work with their device.

Also interesting: the company is working on a way to sync the Virtual-Hole with online chats.

It's perhaps not all that surprising that, when Ford president and CEO Alan Mulally took the stage yesterday to close out the first full day of CES 2009, he was far more interested in talking about the future than the president.

Gearlog had a front row center view of the proceedings, and we even managed to capture a bit of video when we weren't too busy snapping pictures and typing with our other hand.

One of the coolest demos of the evening involved EVA--that's Emotic Voice Activation--a dashboard-based helper avatar designed to help users "drive better and safer, and Also help [them] connect better," according to Ford. From the looks of it, EVA is something of a car-based personal assist. Check out the video, after the jump.

You traditionally don't really see a lot of plant-related technology at CES. After all, most of us are too busy doting over our shiny new gadgets to be bothered to keep house plants alive. PlantSense is looking to make the job of not killing plants a touch easier with its EasyBloom sensor. After all, the company points out, almost a third of the plants bought in the US every year (about $21 billion worth) die within the first year of their purchase.

Plug the EasyBloom into a pot and it will monitor soil conditions, temperature, and moisture. The device has a built in USB dongle which users plug into their computer after 24 hours worth of data collection. The company's site monitors the conditions and lets you know what plants will thrive in them.

The gadget is available now for $59.95 from Amazon, Brookstone, and other stores. Check out a video of the EasyBloom in action, after the jump.

Here's something we hope to see a bit more of at this year's CES: fuel cell technology. Medis Technologies showcased a battery at last night's Digital Experience that it claims is "the world's first personal, portable, fuel cell."

The new Medis 24/7 Fuel Cell Power Pack is relatively low priced, easy to use, and green. After you take it home (the battery retails for $24.99), pull off the tape and squeeze the device--the borohydride-based proprietary fuel will go to work, producing emission-free electricity.

One squeezed, the Power Pack will give you 20 watt-hours of power, which the company says can charge a phone up to six times.

Check out a video of the Medis 24/7 Fuel Cell Power Pack, after the jump.