Gadget Access

More leaked pics of forthcoming Sony Ericsson phones to whet your appetite, this time showing the new Sony Ericsson Bei Bei smartphone. Of course, it won’t actually be called the Bei Bei when it’s launched - like all Sony Ericsson phones, that’s just its codename, based on women tennis players. It’s also not a real picture, but a Photoshop mockup of what the real phone will look like.

Don’t let the Photoshopped image put you off, though - although a mock-up, it’s based on the actual phone itself, rather than some fan-boy’s fantasy.

Bei Bei will be a smartphone running the UIQ 3.2 user interface, the same Walkman player that’s used in the Sony Ericsson W960, radio, mp3 player (naturally), and a huge 5 megapixel camera.

Expect the Bei Bei to be on show next week at the Mobile World Congress (which is looking more exciting by the day!)

[Source: Unofficial Sony Ericsson Blog, Esato]

Samsung’s new top of the range plasma, the series 7 provides the top spot for their plasma line up. Having also announced the lower ranged series 4 and 5, the Samsung series 7 plasma takes the cake. Pioneer ruled last year with their very impressive Kuro line up, and Samsung is fighting back with their new plasma.

A common problem with plasma HDTVs is glare and reflection, the new series 7’s features Ultra FilterBright anti-glare technology, which reduces glare and does not effect the image, providing colorful, rich and clear pictures in bright rooms. A new software algorithm helps to reduce false image contouring and enhancing moving picture quality, leading to very impressive quality.

The Samsung series 7, or 7 series, consist of three rather large HDTVs; the 50-inch PN50A750T, 58-inch PN58A750T, and the largest 63-inch PN63A750T. Connectivity is very good with four HDMI 1.3 inputs, side mounted USB 2.0 port allowing music, and photo playback. Users can also access RSS feeds to view news headlines, weather, stock information and more.

All three sizes of the Samsung 7 series plasma will be avaliable in April 2008.

Google is making apparently some big changes to it’s SDK in response to developers reactions and comments to the first version.  Back to code they go making fixes and feature enhancements so when it finally gets to us, we are going to love it.  At least, that is what Google hopes.  In light of the undertaking, they are pushing back the date on their developer challenge so folks are not staying up all night to meet the tight deadline.

This is good stuff.  No one likes delays, but better to get it right than to just get it.  Remember, whatever is shown in Barcelona most likely won’t have this update so Android will be even better than what is shown.  Food for thought.

Read [TechCrunch]

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Posted Feb 5th 2008 1:05PM by Darren Murph
Filed under: cellphones
While those in London can use SMS to actually find a lavatory, folks passing through Western Finland will be required to bust out their handset in order to relieve themselves in select public restrooms. In an attempt to curb vandalism, the Finnish Road Administration has implemented a system along Highway 1 which requires restroom visitors to text “Open” (in Finnish, of course) in order to let themselves in. The idea is that folks will be less likely to lose their mind and graffiti up the place knowing that their mobile number is (at least temporarily) on file, but it remains to be seen if uprooters will simply take their defacing ways elsewhere or actually excrete in peace.

[Via Switched]

Do you have serious problems when waking up? Need the cops to help you out? With authority and a good message, the Police Alarm Clock has the duty to serve the community during the morning.

Measuring 6-inches high, and featuring a spinning blue light - just like car cops - the alarm has a default message for everyday, which goes something like:

This is the police, you have until the count of three or we’re coming in.

Along with the audio message comes the sound of the sirens, and the flashing light colored in blue - lets hope you wake up after all this. To make the police scene even more realistic, there is a Sleep Squad badge.

The Police Alarm Clock costs 13, or $25.

Product Page

Posted Feb 5th 2008 2:34PM by Donald Melanson
Filed under: Desktops, Laptops Linus Torvalds may have dabbled in Apple territory in the past, but he’s definitely not mincing any words about competing operating systems now. In a recent interview, Linus says that OS X is a “much better system” than Windows Vista overall, but that “in some ways is actually worse than Windows to program for.” Apparently these problems are rooted firmly in OS X’s file system (HFS and HFS+), which he describes as “complete and utter crap,” and even “scary.” Of course, Torvalds also took the opportunity to tout the many virtues of Linux, which he says is an “obvious choice for anything from full-blown PCs to phones or video players.” Damn straight it is.

[Photo courtesy of AP, thanks Ash]

Can we all just say “hallelujah” for MyRegistry? It’s an online gift registry which lets members add items to their gift registry from any store in the world, PLUS comparison shop using MySmartSearch, a search engine integrated into the service. Gone are the days of registering at numerous stores to get everything you want for your wedding or baby shower.

Along with the usual features — eCard announcement system, a reminder program and photo gallery — MyRegistry is adding the ability to register for cash with their “patent pending Cash Gift Service.” Say you’re saving for a house, you can name a fund and friends and family can contribute, using their credit cards.

I gave it a whirl (research only, of course) and after a couple of hours had a unique, centralized registry, plus I was able to add plane tickets to Aruba and other non-traditional gifts as well. (With over 92,000 stores participating, it’s hard to find something that isn’t available on the service.)

My only complaint? That this wasn’t around when I got married.

Posted Feb 5th 2008 10:24AM by Joshua Topolsky
Filed under: Laptops
If you’ve been wishin’ and hopin’ for a new Dell laptop, you might want to hold off for a little bit. According to a speculative report over at CNET, the company is planning on upgrading laptop CPUs to Intel’s fancy new Penryn chips, though the PC-maker is remaining tight-lipped about just which models will get the spike, if any. Sure, we understand that Dell doesn’t want to cannibalize its sales by hyping up new systems, but since it’s highly likely these will be broadly adopted for laptops in the future, and HP, Sony, and Toshiba (amongst others) are onboard for the 45-nanometer CPUs, you’d think Dell would say something.

Posted Feb 5th 2008 11:59AM by Donald Melanson
Filed under: StorageThose looking for a bit more security than your standard off-the-shelf flash drive has to offer already have plenty of options to consider, and they’ve now got yet another courtesy of Kanguru, which just introduced its new KanguruDefender Pro drive. Available in 1GB, 2GB, and 4GB capacities, and in your choice of red, green, blue, tan and yellow “security colors,” the drive boasts hardware AES encryption, along with a tamper-proof aluminum casing and, of course, password-protection. Kanguru’s also seen fit to throw in a couple of decidedly non-security related measures, including custom printing and engraving (at an added cost, that is). If that sounds like the drive for you, you can grab one now for $65, $85, or $130, depending on the capacity.

In a move that surprised many technology insiders, Apple has released new and upgraded versions of two products today: the iPhone (in my previous report) and the iPod Touch.

The iPod Touch gets a new 32GB version to go along with the 8GB and 16GB models. From the Apple press release (edited for only the iPod Touch information):

Apple today added new models of the iPhone and iPod Touch which have double the memory, doubling the amount of music, photos and videos that customers can carry with them wherever they go. iPod touch now comes in a 32GB model for $499, joining the 16GB model for $399 and the 8GB model for $299.

Both iphone and iPod touch feature Apple’s revolutionary Multi-Touch user interface and pioneering software that allows users to find and enjoy all their music, videos, photos and more with just a touch of their finger. All iPhone and iPod touch models include the latest software enhancements announced last month including the ability to automatically find your location using the new Maps application; create Web Clips for your favorite websites; customize your home screen and watch movies from the new iTunes Movie Rentals. Both iPhone and iPod touch feature the world’s most advanced mobile web browser in the world with Safari and great mobile applications including Mail, Maps, Stocks, Weather and Notes.

Pricing & Availability
The 32GB iPod touch is available worldwide immediately for a suggested retail price of $499 (US) through the Apple Store, Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers. iTunes Movie Rentals are available in the US only. iPhone and iPod touch require a Mac(R) with a USB 2.0 port, Mac OS(R) X 10.4.10 or later and iTunes 7.6; or a Windows PC with a USB 2.0 port and Windows Vista or Windows XP Home or Professional (Service Pack 2) or later and iTunes 7.6.

Like I mentioned earlier in my iPhone article, I really don’t think anyone in the Silicon Valley was expecting this development for the product. I mean, there wasn’t even a whisper of what was going on! The Apple Store went down for a bit, and when they came back, new products!!

Now the detractors of the iPod Touch won’t have as much to whine about anymore with the increased storage. Great news for a great product.

[Apple.com via Gizmodo]