New Home Gadgets

Do you like to do a spot of reading just before you retire for the night? If a bedside lamp is too bright for your partner who can’t wait to nod off, there is always a more gentle approach - the Super Slim LED Page Light. This thin and lightweight solution allows you to continue flipping pages without disturbing anyone else around, boasting a quartet of bright white LEDs that reflect the light within the lens and projecting it onto the page subsequently without blinding you. All you need to do is place it on the book or current page and you’re good to go. Being highly portable, this $25 gizmo makes for a great traveling companion. (Read the full post about ‘Super Slim LED Page Light’…)

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With fuel prices hitting new highs every few days, it is little wonder that soon people might actually siphon fuel out from your tank if you park in a less than desirable spot. The Locking Gas Cap could act as a deterrent, as they help to keep your fuel where it belongs - in your tank. Of course, it would greatly help if you have a garage to park your vehicle in, but for those who are less fortunate, well isn’t it time you invested $19.95 in this? Prevention is, after all, better than cure.

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by Paul Miller, posted Jun 17th 2008 at 12:07PM
We’re sorry, we know Garmin puts a lot of TLC and, um, maps into these things, but we’re still having trouble swallowing the $1000 pricetag the company is placing on its new hotness, the nuvi 880. (Read the full post about ‘nuvi 880 is up for pre-order, if you’ve got $1000 you’re dying to part with’…)

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It seems that the new 3G iPhone won’t have the same $199/$299 price points all over the world, so those living in the UK can forget about a deliciously cheap 99 GBP handset. Apparently only current iPhone customers, new customers and current non-iphone AT&T wireless customers who are upgrade eligible will be able to enjoy the $199/$299 price points and nobody else. Sucks eh - well, at least you can always pick up the 3G iPhone for 1 Euro from T-Mobile.

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Intel has announced it is forming a new company called SpectraWatt, which will focus on the development of efficient solar cell technology. Further to that, Intel Capital will fund the new business with US$50 million.

SpectraWatt started life as part of Intel’s New Business Initiative group and is expected to ship its first products by the middle of 2009. It’s core focus is on photovoltaic cells for use in solar panels, but also to research and develop more efficient solutions to solar energy generation.

Four companies are involved in SpectraWatt, one of which is Intel, but Cogentrix Energy LLC, PCG Clean Energy and Technology Fund and Solon AG also have a stake.

(Read the full post about ‘Intel Capital invests $50 million in SpectraWatt Inc.’…)

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by Donald Melanson, posted Jun 17th 2008 at 2:55PMKlausner Technologies’ litigious ways have already proven successful with Vonage, and it now looks like the company has got what it wanted out of Apple as well, which it had sued (along with AT&T) back in December over the iphone’s Visual Voicemail feature. As Reuters reports, both Apple and AT&T have agreed to license Klausner’s patents relating to Visual Voicemail, and settle the lawsuit that was brought against them, although any other details are expectedly light at the moment. (Read the full post about ‘Apple settles visual voicemail lawsuit, licenses Klausner’s patents’…)

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by Joshua Fruhlinger, posted Jun 17th 2008 at 3:56PM
Tandberg looks to get a piece of the desktop videoconferencing market with its E20 desk phone. The company promises DVD-quality video (at 448P) in a fast, secure, and relatively affordable — at least when compared to its massive telepresence systems — package. The E20 is compatible with most IP phone and video services and also includes a 20kHz speaker phone, and — perhaps most importantly — a 10.6-inch widescreen LCD display with WXGA resolution. As far as speed, it’s listed with SIP up to 1152 kbps. Priced at $1,499, Tandberg argues a couple of these are a lot cheaper than a business-class ticket for that meeting in Europe. (Read the full post about ‘Tandberg E20 desktop videoconferencing phone says ‘Me too!’’…)

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Lord knows why, but camera makers still insist on putting flash units on the top of SLR cameras, and then immediately admit the mistake by including red-eye reduction features. If harsh shadows and shiny overexposed faces are your thing, then the on-camera flash is for you.

Otherwise, you need to take your flash off-camera. Unfortunately, those same budget DSLRs which incorporate a strobe often don’t have an industry standard PC socket, the easiest way to attach a speedlight to a camera using a cable. Imagine for a moment that computer manufacturers eschewed USB ports for proprietary connections and you’re partway to understanding the annoyance of this omission.

Alienbees’ new battery powered CyberSync solves the problem using two radio units, one on camera and one on your flash.

(Read the full post about ‘CyberSync Gives Flashes a Cheap Trip’…)

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Just shy of 2 weeks after Tomonobu Itagaki left Tecmo pursuing a US$1.4 million damages claim, the 300 other staff at Tecmo have decided to take action against the company.

The new lawsuit has been brought about by the staff because for the past 4 years they have not been paid for overtime. This is because Tecmo switched to a flexible working practice at which point it stopped paying overtime.

(Read the full post about ‘Tecmo now sued by all employees’…)

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Okay, so I wasn’t able to rip-off that old jingle very well. Of course, everyone has heard of the Clapper, but the Cliphanger is just as practical. The Cliphanger is a device that is designed to stick to any mobile device, so you can hang it up just about anywhere.

The design of the Cliphanger is quite unique and practical. On the back of the circular area where the logo appears is some strong adhesive designed to stick to any mobile device such as a cell phone, mp3 player, or camera.

The paperclip-like area has enough space to allow for a camera lens.

(Read the full post about ‘Clip on! Clip off! The Cliphanger!’…)

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