Its Electronica

Dell’s innovative and stunning desktop system, the XPS One has arrived in UK, French and German stores. Although four months later than it was released in the Japanese and US markets, the inspiring Dell machine should still hit it big in the European market. Not only because of its power packed features but also because of the noble cause that comes with buying a unit of the XPS One. More particularly the XPS One PRODUCT (Red) which has an attached social cause in every units sold.

The campaign which started when it was released in the US market allots $80 to the Global Fund for every XPS One Product (Red) sold. Proceeds of the Global Fund will be used to eliminate AIDS in Africa. That $80 dollar is equivalent to more than 6 months of antiretroviral treatment for one person afflicted with AIDS. So when you buy the Dell XPS One, you just don’t get to enjoy its multimedia and computing features but you get to save lives as well.

The Dell XPS One boasts of standard specifications that includes Core 2 duo processor T5450, 2GB RAM, 500GB Serial ATA HD, fixed 8x DVD+/-RW Slim Slot Load Drive, integrated graphic media accelerator, 20-inch LCD display, 8-in-1 card reader and wireless keyboard and mouse.

But those specifications are more or less standard features of other Dell XPS Desktop System. What makes the XPS One stand out from all the other Dell XPS Desktop units is its Crimson red color. Plus of course the social implication that goes with buying every unit of the Dell Desktop XPS One PRODUCT (Red).

Product [Dell Europe] Via [Shiny Shiny]

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Posted Mar 15th 2008 11:55AM by Darren Murph
Filed under: Wearables

Considering that some digicams are emerging with built-in smile detection, we’d say whipping that grin of yours into shape might not be a half bad idea. Granted, Patakara’s latest certainly isn’t the first, but rather than just shaping your smile, this thing actually exercises the muscles around your mouth — presumably to help you cheese more intensely for even longer periods of time (you superstar, you). Heck, there’s even three models with different resistance levels for those totally committed. But let’s be honest, you won’t even give those fancy Body Trainer headphones a second glance — are you really going to dedicate time each day for this? You are? Well, then by all means, hand over your ¥5,250 ($52) and get to chompin’.

[Via popgadget]

While most of us take the latest and greatest computer for granted, or at least the fact that we are easily able to purchase a computer. Not to mention we seem to be very worried about the next-generation movie players and have all gotten caught up in the recent format war (where Blu-ray came out victorious). But what if those options had not been available to us?

Being very into tech it’s easy to forget that some people may not be able to purchase such devices, not because of a financial reason but because their government did not allow it. While I will not dive to far into Communism here, it is with very good news that there are some signs of change in Cuba, even if it is just a little at a time.

The Cuban Government has decided to ease up, just a bit and allow “unrestricted” sales on personal computers, DVD and video players (VCR’s). Based on an internal government memo these sales will begin to be available immediately, and in what seems like a strange twist showing just how skewed we can be, air conditioners will not be available until 2009 with toasters showing up in 2010. Now even Cubans will be able to put their computer additions before personal comfort.

While it may sound funny that air conditioners and toasters are coming in second, according to the report such devices had been limited due to power issues. Sadly though, that even though computers will become more available, the access that would connect them to the world, otherwise know as the internet is still going to remain in control of the government.

Read [Reuters]

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Posted Mar 15th 2008 12:48PM by Darren Murph
Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

Oh sure, iPods have found their way outside of our atmosphere before, but there’s just something magical about spotting one front and (off) center on the Space Shuttle Endeavour. Dollars to donuts it’s perpetually repeating the discography of Air.

As flash drives are an obvious-to-own accessory these days, the capacity of one’s drive is what determines the supremacy of the geek quotient in you.With the usual 1, 2 and 4 GB drives there aren’t too many achievements in the arena of storage devices. The 32 GB Flash drive is something that can help you stand out among those who have the customary low memory ones. It can accommodate a greater capacity of data and will act as a mini hard drive.
[ Source ]

MP3 players are available in abundance these days. Here’s one by Samsung called the YP-T10 that’s a simpler but feature rich player. It comes with support for media formats like MP3, WMA, MPEG-4 and WMVYou can also view JPEG images in this one. The two inch screen can capture resolutions of up to 320 x 240 pixels. This is synonymous to the resolution of most cellphone displays. With a capacity of 4 GB, the YP-10 can well be rated among the top notch flash MP3 players in the market.
[ Source ]

Posted Mar 15th 2008 10:42AM by Darren Murph
Filed under: Wearables

Make of it what you will, but Germany’s own Mac Life has apparently grabbed hold of a few more details concerning that SportBand we saw sashay into the FCC’s database late last month. Reportedly, the unit isn’t meant to replace the Nike+ipod system; rather, it’s an alternative for runners who’d prefer not to have earbuds in and a DAP on their person when logging their treks. As expected, time, speed, distance and calories will all be tracked, and each run can be captured and stored on the outfit’s website after you thumb a ride back home. We’re told to expect said device in April for €59.95 ($93), but only time will tell if that’s an accurate assertion (and true worldwide).

[Thanks, Susanne]

This past week, giant video game publisher Electronic Arts placed a hostile bid of $2 billion to take over fellow publisher Take-Two. Take-Two is the maker of the controversial but mega-selling franchise, Grand Theft Auto. So what does this mean if EA does in fact buy out T2? Well, it’s not as if there won’t be other video game makers, large and small, remaining. There are still literally dozens of them out there.

Every day, some kid wakes up and dreams of making their own video game, and some will. There will always be a niche for small game outfits, and large publishers like EA or T2 will gladly buy and/or publish those games to a national or international market. Video game development is no longer just the realm of bit monkeys who know assembly language so they can get the most out of game consoles.After all, I’ve seen game development for consoles (like Playstations and XBoxes) take place on Windows boxes with Microsoft’s Visual Studio, Photoshop and Autodesk’s Maya. Certainly the latter two pieces of software aren’t that cheap, but relatively speaking, acquiring the knowledge to use them is cheaper than the equivalent 20 years ago. Heck, I even know of a small game company that started just within the last year!

The gaming industry will continue whether EA and T2 merge or not.

What if you could talk… without really talking? Aside from saving you all the effort required to move your lips, don’t you agree that it would be the sexiest thing in mobile communications since the RAZR? Well, Ambient Corporation promises to give you just that, the ability to say words without opening your mouth. Just think of all the possibilities this will bring. Now, you can continue to annoy your peaceful old neighbors without even moving your lips, you talkative freak of nature you.

In a recent conference held by microchip manufacturer Texas Instruments, Michael Callahan of Ambient Corporation demonstrated how “Audeo”, the groundbreaking technology developed by their company, can let a user “speak without speaking” via a neckband and a nearby computer. The neckband is used to interpret the nerve signals in the user’s vocal cords and then wirelessly transmits it to the computer to be spoken aloud by a robotic voice. It doesn’t read your thoughts, though, but only the words that you “want to say”. I believe this is a significant step forward in the field of wireless communications. You have to see it for yourself to believe it (keep reading for a video demonstration).

Interestingly enough, this technology was not developed to aid cellphone users or any other kind public speakers with their endeavors, but rather to help those afflicted with motor neurone disease in voicing out their thoughts and opinions. As of now, the system can only recognize a limited set of about 150 words and phrases, but the company promises to further develop their technology so that a user can successfully say whatever they want in the future.

Product [Audeo] Via [New Scientist] Via [OhGizmo!]

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