Category — Gadgets

You know, I’ve always been a big fan of Motorola cell phones, especially the Motorola Razr - moderately priced, very sleek, and durable enough for every day use.  But, I have to admit, when I read about the Motorola Aura phone, I was a little perplexed.

In case you haven’t heard of it, the Motorola Aura cell phone is a “poster child” for excess.  At $1,999, the Aura cell phone features a circular sapphire screen, a Swiss-made swivel mechanism, an alluminum keypad, PVD coating (often used on expensive watches). The phone is set to be released in December.

Look beyond the pretty face of the Aura cell phone, and you’ll find a 2 MegaPixel camera, MPEG-4 video playback, MP3 and Bluetooth compatibility, a 2 GB internal memory, and Quad Band GSM/Edge.

Undoubtedly, a solid phone in a finely-crafted package, but my question remains. I know there are always a select few to whom budgets are irrelevant, but in the face of a Wall Street collapse, record unemployment rates, and millions of foreclosures looming, I have to wonder, is this really the right time for the Aura?

If the Aura’s near $2K price tag is just chump change for you, check out the iDiamond iPod.

I love the curvy contours of this Colombo Two phone by ChahaunStudio. Makes me want to trade in my cordless phone for something a little more creative.  The Colombo Two is designed in honor of legendary Italian designer Joe Colombo, renowned for his futuristic modern designs.

The cordless phone features 10 polyphonic ringtones, caller ID with 50 call memory, answering machine with controls on the handset, and remote access.  In addition, the Colombo Two phone includes ring delay selection, a backlit screen, and message indicator.

The designer-inspired Colombo Two phone comes in white or coral, and it is wall-mountable. If found it at Colloco, a UK-based retailer.

According to Yahoo! Tech, IMOVIO’s iKit computer is being called a “pocket mobile companion” by the company, but really it has opened up a whole new line of verbage to describe smaller than small gadgets-  it’s a sub-sub-notebook computer.   Count them- 2 “subs”.

With a 2.8 inch screen, the iKit features a full QWERTY keyboard, a webcam, Linux OS, and a mini USB port.  A full size SD card slot supports cards up to 8GB, and there are 64 MB of RAM. You can surf the Internet with this mini notebook computer via WiFi, or hook up via Bluetooth technology, but don’t confuse it with a cell phone or you’re in for a disconnect.

Reportedly, IMOVIO’s iKits will be sold as optional add-ons ($161) for laptop computers and as a high-end cell phone accessories…so no purchasing this one separately for now. And that’s just too,too bad.

Does he look a little alarmed?  It’s because there are only 4 days left until Halloween!  Have you been procrastinating your Halloween shopping?  There’s still time to express order from some retailers if you hurry! Let’s take one last look at Halloween props and gadgets for 2008.

This quivering doorman prop, which would make an excellent entrance for your Halloween party, is 6 feet tall.  There’s a built-in motion sensor which activates creepy quivering and funny phrases.  The candelabra lights up and flickers too.

Running your fog machine and keeping up with trick-or-treaters can be more than one person can do on Halloween night.  This fog machine timer lets you preset the intervals and duration of fog machine bursts.  It’s compatible with most fog machines and has a 5 foot cord.  I found it at BuyCostumes.Com for $14.99. Last minute reminder- don’t forget fog juice!

The next time you’re playing Nintendo Wii or XBox, think twice before offing anybody or anything.  According to an  article I read yesterday, a Japanese woman was jailed on charges of hacking to commit the virtual murder of her online husband’s persona after he unexpectedly divorced her.  Whew!  Time to step back into reality.  All of these acts supposedly took place within a game called “Maple Story”.

More in video game news… keep faithful old Fido away from your Nintendo Wii, and your iPod for that matter.  According to Britain’s Daily Telegraph, a recent study by PetPlan (a pet insurance company) named the top ten electronic gadgets for injuring pets.  iPod and Nintendo Wii topped the list, followed by Sony Playstation, and Nintendo DS.  Injuries named in the study included everything from falls to electrical incidents…eeewww.  One other thing that ranked high on the pet injury list- karaoke machines??  I don’t even want to know the details on that one.

Sony camcorders have really caught my eye lately…especially the memory stick compatibility feature.  How convenient to plug in a memory stick and easily transfer home videos to your computer, YouTube, or anywhere else? Sure beats my old compact VHS camcorder, which might even be a collectible by now!

The Sony Handycam above features a 30 GB hard drive (20 hours of video), 40X digital zoom, and 2000X digital zoom.  There’s also a 1 button disc burn feature to allow you to instantly transfer the video on the hard drive to a DVD. The camcorder’s LCD screen is a 2.7 inch touch panel model.  The specifics say that this camcorder will support memory sticks up to 8GB, and you can bypass the camera’s hard drive for recording straight to a stick. The Sony DCR-SR45 camcorder is available at OneCall for $399.

I’m just going to be honest here…I’m not ready to part with my old VCR tapes.  As I was sorting through some old things in preparation to switch to a new media cabinet, I decided to keep almost all of them.  And, since my old VCR is broken, I’m going to have to come up with something for playing them or converting them to DVD.

I like this Toshiba DVD Recorder/VCR combo because it comes with upconversion to play my old media in near HD quality.  It also has bi-directional dubbing capabilities which means I can transfer my old VCR tapes to DVD…and then, just maybe, get rid of the old stuff.

The DVD/VCR combo also includes camcorder controls with front DVD input for easily transfering home movies to DVD.  Expecially handy if some of your home movies are on those old compact VHS tapes that require an adapter for inserting into your VCR. You can find the Toshiba D-VR660 DVD Recorder at U.S. Appliance for $209.

If you’re ready to get rid of some of your old media, here are some quick tips for recycling old electronics, CDs, video tapes, and cassette tapes.

Seems as if weather watchers and home weather stations have evolved with the rest of us in the wireless age.  Now you can check the weather with this sleek gadget that looks more like an iPhone than a rain gauge or a thermometer.

The Color Forecast Station is made by LaCrosse Technology. It includes a wireless sensor, for placing outdoors, and offers a host of weather-related information including indoor/outdoor heat index, barometric pressure, humidity, etc.  The Forecast Station also features a full-color animated display, atomic time, an alarm and perpetual calendar.

I like that you can receive information from up to 3 wireless sensors with this weather station.  Put one outside, and one in the house, and maybe track the weather in your neighbor’s yard??  Just throw in MP3 playback and GPS capabilities, and this thing would have it all.  The La Crosse Color Forecast Station is available at Wireless Weather Stations for $59.95.

Here’s an assortment of geek-worthy toys for gadget gurus everywhere. First up, and my favorite of the three, is this remote control Multi-Color LED light, which would be a perfect addition to your Halloween props. The color-changing LED light plugs into a standard light bulb socket, and can produce dozens of colors.  You can even adjust the brightness and adjust transitions from color to color.  I found it at ThinkGeek.

Ooh, and here’s a kinda spooky, kinda goofy, computer accessory, just in case you’ve ever wanted to wear your USB drive on your finger.  The skull rings above are made by Solid Alliance and they open up to reveal a USB gadget with 2 GB of storage space. The skull rings are available at Geek Stuff 4 U for $145.  May the force be with you.

And, if you’re into robotic toys, you should check out this guinea pig robot named Gupi.  The virtual pet makes more than 30 noises and responds to your voice.  He charges via the carrot, and comes with a cardboard house.  You can find Gupi the guinea pig at I Want One of Those.Com.

Are you guilty of talking on your cell phone while driving?  Not a good idea.  According to the experts, driving while talking on a cell phone makes it harder for you to maintain steady control of your vehicle, and increases your likelihood of an accident.

If you’ve recently been pulled over for using your cell phone (without a headset) while driving, you might be interested in this deal from Headsets.Com.  They’re giving away free Bluetooth headsets, specifically the Plantronics Discover 925, to anyone who can provide proof of a receiving a citation after July 1, 2008.  Limited quantities (just over 700) available.  Here are the details on the free cell phone headset offer.

Even if you haven’t received a ticket for gabbing on the freeway, you might want to consider a Bluetooth headset for keeping your hands free while driving.  The Motorola H375 cell phone headset is available at Hello Direct for $39.99.