Latest Posts in Gadgetbox

Gadgetbox: Diabolical technology

August: it’s not just a month, it’s an adjective . Really, I’m not sure I could pick a less august month if I tried. For one thing, it’s hot. Wrapped in fleece blankets at a tanning salon while drinking hot-chocolate hot. And it’s quiet, like the calm before a world-shaking storm. Students are preparing to go back to school, parents are praying for the kids to go back to school, and all of us are looking glumly ahead to September. Which is not an adjective. Or at least, not yet.

So perhaps we can brighten our days with promises of gizmos and gadgetry to come. In this week’s installment of Gadgetbox, we’ve got a diabolical trio of technology: weapons from the future past, a pair of educated rodents, and a flightless bird that makes a heck of a cup of tea.

Tag, you’re vaporized

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Gadgetbox: Armored bling

If it’s gadgets you seek, my friend, then you’ve come to the right place. In my little blog of wonders, we have all sorts of fantastic gizmos and doohickies. Of course, we’re always on the lookout for new additions to our library of splendor, and this week is no exception.

So, come follow us through the halls of paradise as we discover a new contender in the peace talks over the next generation format war, the sweet fragrances of your personal data, and the only way to travel in the latest military-industrial complex style.

Sammy’s new player bridges the HD divide

“Hybrid” has got to be the buzzword of this decade—which, frighteningly is already on its way out. We’re going to need a new buzzword, stat: I suggest “fruitalicious.” Anyway, Samsung’s new device doesn’t run on a combination of gasoline and electric power, cool as that would be. Rather, it’s the second major hybrid next-generation optical player to hit the market, after LG’s BH100.

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Gadgetbox: Shower radio smackdown

It occurred to me this week that gadgets are really what separates us from every other species on the planet. I mean, think about it: ever seen a dolphin with an iPod? An elephant playing Wii? I don’t think so. Admittedly, I once saw a kitten with a cordless drill—but it was adorable .

Now, I’m not some sort of speciesist : I don’t think this makes us better than chimpanzees and three-toed sloths. It’s really just a shame that they can’t benefit from this week’s gizmos: a low priced HD DVR, yet another ingenious bread-warming device, and the next stage of shower radio evolution.

TiVo pushing play on low cost HD unit

The mobs that formed before the release of the TiVo Series 3 (the first from the company to support HD content) were no laughing matter. Have you ever seen a crowd of strung out HD junkies? It ain’t pretty. While they may have been somewhat mollified when the unit finally came out, many looked askance at the $800 price tag.

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Gadgetbox: Discount Darth Vader

Hail and well met, citizens of Gadgetistan! I understand that you may have felt deprived of any gadget news last week, and I am truly, madly, deeply sorry. I was unavoidably detained, you see, by some people who wished to have words with me, and were determined to make that happen using the most dangerous weapons known to mankind: small children who had consumed way too much sugar (seriously, where’s the arms limitations talks when you need them?).

Having escaped their greedy clutches, I bring you this supersized version of Gadgetbox for this annual Day of Convenience (7/11, you see), in which we discuss news from the big three of video games, a way to see your wireless network, and my Halloween costume for this year.

The big three at E3

The Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) may have died and been reborn from its own ashes as a much smaller todo, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not still one of the premiere events for big announcements in the gaming world, and sure enough, all three console makers dropped some news on us this week.

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Gadgetbox: Washable mouse

I know what you want to hear about—this week it’s all anybody wants to talk about. Begins with an “i,” ends with an “e.” That’s right, it’s the word “indefatigable.” Well, don’t trouble your pretty little heads, because we’re not going to fall prey to all that nonsense. When it comes to Gadgetbox, we cover all sorts of gimzos and doohickies—not just what everybody else is prattling on about.

So sit back and take a break from all the talk of convergence, revolutions, and life-changing devices with this week’s Gadgetbox. Instead, we’ve got news on Nintendo’s surprising deal with third-party developers, a rodent you can throw in the wash without getting bit, and a newfangled way of following the ol’ ballgame.

Nintendo shows third-party developers some love

Bandy about the phrase “third-party developers” nowadays, and you’ll get a collective wince from the Apple community. But not all companies are quite so restrictive when it comes to playing nicely with others.

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Gadgetbox: USBs for everyone!

Years upon years of painstaking research and I’ve come to one inevitable, terrifying conclusion: a conclusion that will rock this world to its very foundations and undo all that we know, or even that which we think we know. It’s a force which I’m loathe to unleash upon this green Earth, knowing as I do that it will only lead to madness on a global scale, but as I have already been infected, I am compelled to pass it on to the next unsuspecting victim.

So. It turns out that the word “Gadgetbox” fits perfectly into the classic 1958 hit “Lollipop.” To wit: Gadgetbox, Gadgetbox, oh, gadget Gadgetbox…*pop* ba-dum-dum-dum… ”

Dear lord. What have I wrought?

If you can get that damnable tune out of your head long enough to concentrate on the matter at hand, you can join me in this week’s installment of Gadgetbox. We’ve got a doorbell for ringtone fetishists, continued proof that you can add a USB hub to anything , and intelligence on the latest heavyweight to leap into the HD format fray.

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Gadgetbox: Phone frenzy

Gadgetbox is usually a strictly Wednesday affair, but as I spent the first half of the week in San Francisco for the madness that was Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference, topped by last night’s red-eye back to the East Coast, it seemed prudent to delay a day. Now you get the ramblings of my addled, sleep-deprived mind—lucky you! If someone would just invent a device that could, say, transport me instantly across the country , that’d be great. Get on that.

On today’s special Thursday episode of Gadgetbox we’ve got a slew of new phones from Sony (don’t worry, I won’t use the words “iPhone killer”); a new portable media player from Archos; and a new way to skyrocket your lameness quotient: electronic rock, paper, scissors.

You know what? I think it’s time we admit the truth: this world’s a loss. Time to write it off.

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Gadgetbox: iPhone killer?

Hello, fellow gadgetophiles, and welcome back to my volcanic lair for the annual Gagdetbox late-spring-almost-summer barbecue. I’ve been straightening up a bit in expectation of your imminent arrival, so try not to make a mess—it makes the robots angry (you wouldn’t like them when they’re angry). There’s chips and dip on the Surface, and one cold Dr. Pepper in the mini USB fridge. No fighting over it.

Once you’re settled, we’ll fire up the grill and check out this week’s exciting new installment of Gadgetbox. There’s a purported iPhone killer, gadgets that nix batteries and power adapters, and a way to get rid of some of that pesky exercise, all through the wonders of technology.

Touch of evil?

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Gadgetbox: You say you want a revolution

Wednesday. It once belonged to the god Odin (aka Woden or Wotan), the chief of the Norse pantheon, who was so consumed with knowledge that he gave up one of his eyes to attain the wisdom of the ages . I think Odin would appreciate that his day that has become synonymous with gadgets and gizmos here at Macworld and not, say, Thursday. I don’t care if that guy had a hammer. So did Bob Vila. What’s your point?

Microsoft and Palm apparently agree with my assessment, as both chose today to launch splashy new products. Will Surface and Foleo truly usher in revolutions in technology, or are they merely passing fancies? We’ll take a brief look at each, and throw in a third potential revolution for you digital hippies out there, all for free.

Touchy, touchy: Microsoft breaks the Surface

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Gadgetbox: Protect your accessories

Sci-fi writer Arthur C. Clarke once posited that any sufficiently advanced technology was indistinguishable from magic, which probably explains why I still believe my toaster is magic. I mean, look: I put in bread and it comes out toast . Think about it . I’m convinced that if necessary, we would be able to completely destroy any invading alien menace were we armed with toasters alone. Assuming that the aliens in question were really really afraid of toast.

Today on Gadgetbox we show you how to keep your fingers toasty in the winter, your beverage cold in the summer, and your precious artworks safe year round—all through the magical nature of fairy dust. Or technology. Probably technology.

Protect your fingers from the big chill

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