Gadget Access

by Nilay Patel, posted May 8th 2008 at 2:56PM
Times haven’t been so great at Helio, but it looks like the troubled MVNO could be snapped up by Virgin Mobile. mocoNews did a little digging after Virgin’s recent Q1 conference call, and says that the two companies are currently in merger talks. Since both companies use Sprint’s network, the tech would be compatible, and the deal would give SK Telecom a way to keep Helio going as it tries to gain a foothold in the US market. Nothing’s set in stone yet and the two companies aren’t talking, but we’ll definitely keep an eye on this one.

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Filed under: cellphones, Wireless

by Donald Melanson, posted May 8th 2008 at 3:48PMThe Sharp Zaurus name might not be quite the force it once was, but it certainly still has its die-hard fan base, as evidenced by the recent efforts of some enterprising individuals to get Android up and running on the slightly out-dated hardware. Now it looks like you can chalk up another OS port to its list of accomplishments, with an early release of Ubuntu now available for the handheld. As you might expect, the 0.1 release is a pretty stripped down affair, with the entire download weighing in at a mere 80MB. Omegamoon, the individual responsible for the port (as well as the aforementioned Android hack), is also quick to point out that it’s not exactly a practical option just yet, adding that, “there’s a lot left to tweak of course, but a full-blown Ubuntu is on it’s way.” If you’re the adventuresome type, however, you can find everything you need to get things rolling by hitting up the link below.

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Filed under: Handhelds

One of the things that I love about airline travel is the ice cubes in the drinks they serve. I always liked the cylindrical shaped cubes that were somehow hollowed out in the middle. Somehow, they were always better than the cubes that you crack out of the ice trays at home.

It appears that a Japanese company has cornered the market on unusual ice cube shapes with the Ice Mold, a spherical ice cube maker.

Oddly enough, the Ice Mold doesn’t work the way I expected it to. I thought that what would happen is that water would be put into a small sphere, and the machine would freeze it somehow. Then the sphere would be split in two down the planned seam.

Actually, all you have to do is put an ice cube or chunk of ice, and the Ice Mold forms the ice into a perfect sphere, with absolutely no seams at all.

Believe it or not, a spherical ice cube will melt more slowly, and will reduce its volume evenly. This Ice Mold can make ice balls in 55, 65, 70, and 80 mm sizes. Believe it or not, it can actually make 30-40 ice balls an hour!

Now, if they could make a machine that could make snowballs, that would be even more useful.

Source

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Was that meant to be a tongue (cord) twister ? Probably. And I must confess that I it was extremely difficult for me to pronounce it straight even once.

But that doesn’t have any bearing on what the product called Knit Komputer Kord Kozy can do for your computer’s power cable. Because, the designer of this brilliant product seems to have gotten it right. Completely. The hand-knit Knit Komputer Kord Kozy can shield the power cable within and gently guide it to the power slot. And if that’s not appealing enough, this cover (made from high quality ribbon-style yarn) can also be custom ordered in any color or length you need. A wonderful idea to deck out the power cord. Get yours from Etsy at $4.

Via DVICE.com.

It seems like its been forever since we have posted anything Vonage related aside from patent disputes and personal changes that we almost forgot they were still around.

This latest news however seems to be positive, Vonage and Covad Communications have announced a partnership that will allow Vonage to offer a DSL service. The new offering from Vonage will be a re-branded version of Covad’s DSL service and it will simply be called Vonage Broadband. The service is expected to be available by the end of this year and will offer download speeds of up to either 3.0 or 6.0 Mbps for home or small business customers, no mention of just how much this will set you back.

Read [PR Newswire]

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Candybar phones are so last century. Flip-phones are in and so are slider phones. But when an egg-shaped phone enters the scene…well, I don’t know what to say except it looks cool. 

Freelance designer Roman Tubl certainly has an eye for all things creative. Still just a concept, the EGG mobile phone is one flashy mobile phone ideal for those who loves to flash their phones more than they actually use them.

The phone is functional with its soft rounded body. Since the touchscreen future is now, Tubl incorporated a touchscreen display on the phone’s surface. Standard phone features include USB, Bluetooth connectivity, a 3.2-megapixel camera and up to 4GB of storage.

I’m not sure with you but the EGG phone could very well be the Google phone. Maybe it’s just the colors that remind me of the search giant…

Via [YankoDesign]

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How many times have you been stranded somewhere with a dead cell phone battery? I’m sure that it’s happened to everyone at least a few times, and it’s always at the most inconvenient time. There are many solutions out there to ensure that you’ll be able to get some extra juice to your phone, but here’s one that is a bit more eco-friendly.

Rather than relying on a single-use battery, or even one that needs plugged in between uses, the Hand-Crank USB Power Charger will give you some extra talk time with just a few turns of the handle. It will set you back $39.95 and will give you the necessary adapters for many different phones. It will also power many other USB devices. This might be worth throwing in your laptop bag, or even in your backpack when you go camping or hiking.

Source: Crave

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by Darren Murph, posted May 7th 2008 at 11:22PM
Enough of these overly pixelated, totally fuzzed-out captures of something supposed to Sony Ericsson’s Paris — we’re looking at the real deal now. This definitely sexy slider has somehow fell in front of someone without hands a-shakin’, and a smattering of distinct images are waiting just below in the read link. If you just like to be teased, the snapshots show a 5.0-megapixel camera and confirm that the keypad touts a two-character-per-button layout similar to the P1 — but really, there’s nothing like seeing it for yourself.

[Thanks, Kevin]

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Filed under: cellphones

by Darren Murph, posted May 8th 2008 at 9:34AM
Rolling around jacking up innocents and tossing Molotov cocktails is pretty enthralling on your vanilla 46-inch HDTV, but can you even imagine the rush of swiping a hot dog, burning out in someone else’s whip and then snagging a new pair of kicks on this? Researchers (and gamers, obviously) down at UC San Diego have re-engineered their middleware to enable such masterpieces as this to be played on the big monolithic HIPerSpace screen, and needless to say, we can’t imagine much real work getting done with this new functionality coming to light. Head on down to the gallery to see what you’re missing — science, research and 4.0 GPAs are such beautiful things.

Gallery: HIPerSpace monitor wall makes a great Grand Theft Auto IV canvas

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Filed under: Displays, Gaming

by Nilay Patel, posted May 8th 2008 at 5:02AM
Okay, so we’re not exactly doctors, but we couldn’t help but be intrigued by PEAK Surgical’s announcement today that its PlasmaBlade electrosurgery scalpel had completed preclinical testing with positive results. Unlike traditional electrosurgery tools like the bovie cutter, the PlasmaBlade operates at low temperatures, using pulsed plasma energy to cut tissue and control bleeding. Then, stupidly, we watched the video. Let’s just say now that it no longer matters to us that surgeons using the PEAK PlasmaBlade produce “minimal collateral damage” to tissue and that bleeding was reduced. Sure, it’s great for the surgeons, but our eyes? Not going to be the same.

[Via MedGadget]

Read - PEAK PlasmaBlade press release
Watch - PEAK PlasmaBlade demo video (WARNING: not for the squeamish, we mean it!)

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Filed under: Misc. gadgets