Its Electronica

Posted Feb 8th 2008 1:41PM by Nilay Patel
Filed under: Desktops

The sun just refuses to shine on AMD — according to several Taiwanese motherboard manufacturers, AMD is saying that the quad-core Phenom 9700 and 9900 are going to be delayed yet again, this time to the end of Q3. Apparently there’s a buffer-related glitch in the original design, so AMD is actually “canceling” the two chips and “reintroducing” the revised versions in Q3 as the 9750 and 9950 to “improve consumer confidence.” That’s certainly an interesting tactic for a chip that’s never seen the light of day — but we’d say that the best thing AMD could do to improve consumer confidence is stop talking and start shipping, no?

[Thanks, Mack S.]

[Via X-bit Labs]

How many of you claim that you carry a different cell phone every day? Not very many I’m sure. It is precisely this inability of ours that Modu mobile seeks to address. And if you still didn’t get it, Modu is a modular handset that can become anything you like.

The joyride starts with “modu jackets” – these accessories enable a user to completely change the look of handset every other day. Then there are “modu mates” – these basically mean a host of other gadgets that the handset conveniently docks into. Think car stereos, laptops, photo frames and so on.

Other companies seem to have bought the idea already. These include Blaupunkt, Universal Music and SanDisk. And yes, Modu is expected too hit shelves in Q4 this year itself and a host of “modu mates” will accompany the handset in all likelihood. More specs later.

Still incredulous? Go watch the video.
[Source]

I still want to believe that HD DVD is going to pull out of its slump and emerge victorious. Sure, it’s a pipe dream, but I can still hope right? I figured that with the cheaper players, they were sure to come out on top. Well, if you’re still convinced that they’ve got a shot, and you own an Xbox 360, now is a good time to get yourself and HD DVD player add-on.

Microsoft has officially announced that they’ve slashed the price of their HD DVD player add-on for the Xbox 360 by $50. Sure, this is likely an act of desperation to move the units before the format dies completely, but there’s always the chance for a miracle, right?

One thing to consider is that at $129, it will at least make a good upscaling DVD player. Don’t forget that you still get 5 free HD DVDs whenever you purchase select players (which includes this one).

Source: EverythingUSB

Posted Feb 8th 2008 10:54AM by Paul Miller
Filed under: Portable Audio

Isn’t that cute? It’s like two music players, but they make a heart! Oh, and look, there’s a crack down the middle, it kind of looks just like two people kissing. Maybe you can stick the Juno soundtrack on there and give half this Newman DAP to that special someone. It’s like giving a piece of your heart, only with plastic and silicon. What’s that? She doesn’t appreciate your finely honed taste in indie music? Well that’s no problem, just glue the two players back together and look at what you’ve got: a broken heart. Yeah, we can tell that this February 14th will be one to remember.

[Via Newlaunches]

Posted Feb 8th 2008 11:28AM by Paul Miller
Filed under: Laptops

Nothing much “official” at the moment, but Lenovo is prepping a laptop based on a low-voltage processor similar to that of the MacBook Air, which can only mean one thing: skinny laptop celebrity deathmatch. Lenovo’s X300 will run on a SL7100 chip, which is apparently a 1.2GHz Core 2 Duo that fits into the same form factor of the 1.6GHz / 1.8GHz chip options for the MacBook Air. However, Lenovo saw it fit to squeeze a DVD-RW drive inside this 13.3-inch laptop, along with 64GB of SSD, all for a “reasonable” price of $2,744 — at least, if Best Buy’s leaked spec sheet is to be believed. The screen is also WXGA+, which we’re assuming means 1440 x 900 instead of the 1280 x 800 MacBook Air. No word on a release date, but we hope it’s soon — that kid in Starbucks with the MacBook Air is giving us dirty looks.

[Via Electronista]

Griffin Airclick For iPod Dock

The AirClick is the iPod remote control that we have all been waiting for. AirClick uses RF signals that travel through walls for control anywhere in your home or outside, up to 60 feet away. The five button remote allows for play/pause, next track, previous track, and volume up and down. A hold switch on the side prevents accidentally disturbing your musical nirvana. The remote has a clip and velcro straps for convenient attachment an armband or to a bicycle frame or steering wheel, giving you untethered access to your tunes.

Technorati Tags: iPod & MP3 Player

Sansui, the Japanese company, acknowledged for its quality products, has introduced Sansui RZ-1047 Mpeg4 DVD player which is blessed with the latest technology. It is outfitted with NXT active speaker sets that promise to deliver lively sound. Furthermore, it is embossed with the advance DVD audio encoding technology so that you can get the most natural and clear sound quality. Also the peculiarity of this fantastic player is that it comes with 5.1ch NXT HTSS (5Wx5+20W).

The Sansui RZ-1047 Mpeg4 DVD player offers support to various formats including MP3, DVD+/-R/RW DivX, MPEG4, DVCD, CD, DVD and CD+/-R/RW. It is also PAL/NTSC compatible. It has a USB1.1 and a 3 in 1 Memory card (SM/MS/MMC) slot. It is also packed with MPEG-II video compacting technology. The video features U/V/Y color difference output. The Sansui RZ-1047 Mpeg4 DVD player is available in two different colors namely Black and Silver. No information on price as yet. Keep waiting till the time it reaches stores.

Source: Sansui

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The U.S. podcasting audience reached 18.5 million in 2007, according to eMarketer and was projected to top 65 million by 2012 with 25 million listeners downloading one or more podcasts a week.

Ad spending on podcasts in the U.S. is also expected to creep up, from $165 million in 2007 to $435 million in 2012.

Major podcasting networks like Revision3 are growing with the medium’s success by revamping their websites and adding new programming.

If you’re not already a podcast consumer, then check out the podcast section in iTunes. There’s a lot of great stuff from tech shows to yoga workouts. And they are all free. I usually watch 5-10 podcasts a day on either my iPod Touch or Apple TV. Makes the bus ride to work much more enjoyable.

Here are a few favorites:

• Diggnation - weekly rundown of the front page stories on Digg.com
• Tiki Bar TV - drinking games
• Unboxing Live - take a new gadget, and open it up while the camera is rolling
• Midwest Teen Sex Show - explores topics concerning teen sexuality from gym class to syphilis
• The Totally Rad Show - movie, comic books and game reviews
• Make Podcast - how to tweak, hack, and bend technology any way you want
• Play Value - the history of video games.
• NBC Nightly News - the full TV broadcast sans commercials

methodshop

Acer will release a new HD projector called the H5350. The H5350 features a 1280 x 720 image at 2000 ANSI lumens, a 2000:1 contrast ratio and a 28 dB noise level. It accepts inputs up to 1920 x 1080 in resolution from its HDMI input and has a 4000 hour lamp life. No word on price or exact release date yet.
[Source]

I’m about to say one of my favorite phrases again. Ready? “It was just a matter of time.” Video game maker, GameTank is working on a guitar game called Guitar Rising a la Guitar Hero that uses a real guitar. Actually any guitar. Pretty sweet. Take a look at the video below. It should be out late this year.

Now in case you’re thinking that you can learn to play guitar by playing this game, then you’ve already forgotten about Guitar Wizard that we saw in January at CES. Guitar Wizard is actually meant to help you learn to play guitar in a game-like environment.

via Engadget.