Gadgets Control

by Donald Melanson, posted Aug 5th 2008 at 2:51PM Say what you will about J. Wong and his band of merry imitators at Meizu, but they sure are sticklers for details, which has led to a number of delays and endless tweaks to their now infamous M8 phone. As you can see in this latest pic apparently let loose by none other than J. Wong himself, they now seem to be putting the finishing touches on the device’s web browser and, as you might have guessed, they aren’t exactly taking their inspiration from Nokia. (Read the full post about ‘More Meizu M8 images released, device itself still unreleased’…)

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by Nilay Patel, posted Aug 5th 2008 at 6:03PM Sure, the Netherlands might be known for its windmills, but a group of scientists at the Delft University of Technology is aiming to harness the wind in a different way: by using kites to generate electricity. A recent test generated 10 kilowatts, or enough juice to power 10 homes, and the plan is to eventually send an array of kites called the Laddermill up to 30,000 feet in order to generate nearly 10 megawatts of power. Of course, that’s all in the future — for now, we’ve just got two dudes, a kite, and a pretty dry video after the break.[Via Inhabitat] Read PermalinkEmail this22 CommentsFiled under: Misc. (Read the full post about ‘Dutch scientists develop kite power system with enough juice for 10 homes’…)

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by Nilay Patel, posted Aug 5th 2008 at 11:31AM Seriously, we’ve been hearing about the EOS 7D for well over a year now, with the chatter predictably heating up before every major trade show — and with just over a month before Photokina, it’s happening all over again. (Read the full post about ‘Canon EOS 7D rumors heat up again’…)

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by Darren Murph, posted Aug 5th 2008 at 12:46PM No, no — Sammy wouldn’t dare dub this the Mullet, although we have a sneaking suspicion it would sell quite well here in the south if such a bold decision were made. Nevertheless, the i7110c (that’s more like it, no?) has just been revealed, and while a great deal of mystery still surrounds it, we are told that it will likely boast a QVGA display, a navigational cube that acts as a cursor controller, 5-megapixel camera (with flash), microSD expansion slot, multimedia player, Bluetooth and an FM tuner. (Read the full post about ‘Samsung i7110c breaks cover: business in the front, party in the back’…)

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The death of my very first and favorite PDA (Personal Digital Assistant, as they were called during those days) came quite suddenly. I remember coming back from work one evening and being completely shocked to find the PDA dripping with water as I took it out of my bag. I swore to never put a water bottle and my gadgets together again, but repeated the mistake soon after, this time with my cell phone. Perhaps I could have saved ‘em fellas if the Golden Shellback Splash Proof Coating had been available back then - assuming I were rich enough to afford it. This spray (rumored to be priced at $1000) can apparently protect electronic gadgets such as iPods, laptops, and cell phones from liquid, making them completely waterproof. (Read the full post about ‘Spray to make gizmos completely waterproof’…)

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by Nilay Patel, posted Aug 5th 2008 at 10:52AM Well, we’ve seen the Nokia 5800 Tube’s keyboard, home screen, video player, and uh, Bat-Sonar, so we might as well keep going with these shots of the browser. Kudos to Nokia for delivering something just slightly more impressive this time around than we’re used to from S60 Touch, but we’re still not feeling the super-90s aesthetic — check out those icons at the bottom. (Read the full post about ‘Nokia 5800 Tube browser screenshots appear, underwhelm’…)

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Memorex has just announced its latest range of portable hard drives - the sexy and stylish Essential TravelDrive that uses 2.5″ hard drives of up to 320GB capacity, and it will come in a plethora of vibrant colors while fitting into a pocketbook or purse easily. With capacities of 160GB, 250GB and 320GB respectively, the Essential TravelDrive portable hard drive provides users convenient, portable sharing and safeguarding of precious data, including photos, videos and music. The drive’s USB interface ensures compatibility with both Mac and PC desktops or laptops, and is powered via a USB connection, eliminating the need for an additional power source. (Read the full post about ‘Memorex Essential TravelDrive’…)

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Have you met somebody new and are curious to know whether you are dating a former criminal? Perhaps you are thinking about hiring someone as a nanny, but you want that extra bit of reassurance? What about your child’s school bus driver? Do they have a bad driving record? Now there is a simple and free way to find out thanks to a new website called CriminalSearches.com.

The website allows you to look up criminal records with as little information as the person’s first and last name. Searches can include all states or specific states.

(Read the full post about ‘Look up criminal records for free online’…)

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Users of the MySpace and Facebook social networking sites are being warned of two variants of a new worm discovered by security vendor Kaspersky Lab.

The worm is called Net-Worm.Win32.Koobface, with .a and .b variants found to be in use. Koobface is spreading due to the fact it uses your friends to travel across the social networks infecting machines.

Typically you will receive a message from someone tagged as a friend on MySpace or Facebook, there are many messages in use including the following:

• Paris Hilton Tosses Dwarf On The Street
• Examiners Caught Downloading Grades From The Internet
• You must see it!!!

(Read the full post about ‘Facebook and MySpace users hit by new Koobface worm’…)

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Sony’s repertoire doesn’t just stop at great looking LCD TVs and audio systems – they also cater to the home cinema crowd with the Sony BRAVIA Theatre RHT-G500 being the latest of such devices, targeted for use with HDTVs measuring anywhere from 32” to 40” in size. That’s not too much of a range to work with, but it’ll have to do for the moment. The RHT-G500 comes with a 3.1-channel sound system that is integrated into the TV stand. With the help of S-Force PRO Front Surround technology, the RHT-G500 is able to create a soundfield that envelops listeners in surround sound sans the need for rear speakers and wires which could be a potential tripping hazard. (Read the full post about ‘BRAVIA Theatre RHT-G500 TV Stand’…)

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