Section: Audio, Portable Audio, Trade Shows, CES  While CES is lots of running around, and lots of working, it is hard not to have fun while attending. One of the most exciting parts, at least for the geek in me is that I can check out all of these products that I may not have a chance to see otherwise.
And one of those items was the Zune Originals, of course they were the Zune HD models, and I have to say that they looked super sharp in real life. Almost makes me want to sell my current Zune HD and pick up an Original. But in addition, the Zune booth was actually pretty neat to check out, they were highlighting the Zune dock, Xbox integration, the Zune software and the players.
A special thanks goes out to Energizer for supplying the Gadgetell crew with Energi To Go battery packs, which allowed us to keep our gadgets charged on the run and focus more on finding good stuff at CES and not having to worry about sitting next to a power outlet. For more information on the Energi To Go battery packs you can visit EnergiToGo.com or visit them on Twitter at @energitogo. Full Story » | Written by Robert Nelson for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Computers, Mobile Computers, Peripherals, Displays/Projectors, Trade Shows, CES MSI demoed a concept product called the Projector PC at the CES. It is a full featured PC that is combined with a projector capable of projecting up to 60 inches of full HD video. It is capable of directly projecting onto a screen or wall, and if used with an attachable stand, it can even project onto the ceiling, giving you a whole new level of movie experience. The mobility of this PC, combined with a HD-capable projector might just make this device a very popular entertainment station. While the whole idea of a Projector PC is very tempting, bear in mind that it is just a concept product. It may or may not hit the shelves, depending on the decisions of the guys at MSI. I personally hope that this product will be given some consideration. Press Release [PR Newswire] Via [SlashGear] A special thanks goes out to Energizer for supplying the Gadgetell crew with Energi To Go battery packs, which allowed us to keep our gadgets charged on the run and focus more on finding good stuff at CES and not having to worry about sitting next to a power outlet. For more information on the Energi To Go battery packs you can visit EnergiToGo.com or visit them on Twitter at @energitogo. Full Story » | Written by Cheng Hung for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Peripherals, Webcam/VoIP 
FaceVsion recently revealed a HD webcam for Skype, called the TouchCam N1. It comes in two flavors, one with dual unidirectional mics, and another without mics. The webcam features a H.264 video compression chip that assists in streaming 720p HD video. Streaming HD videos across the net requires you to have at least an 800 kBps connection (especially upload) in order to smoothly stream HD videos.) The TouchCam N1 is expected to be released next month. It is priced at $99 with dual unidirectional mics, and $69 without mics. Via [Engadget] Full Story » | Written by Cheng Hung for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Video, Accessories, Content, HDTV 
Today, Panasonic was showing off their no-set-box-needed Skype calling feature coming in Viera HDTVs. Panasonic has cooked in WiFi as well as cool apps such as Pandora, Netflix and yes, Skype. The result is interesting. Requiring only a camera accessory (Panasonic uses one with 4 cameras so users can be farther away from the camera), Skype calling looks to be very simple, even for the non-techie folks. A simple selection of the Skype app from the Viera menu and a few clicks later and the call was made. On the receiving end, a Skype “s” logo bubble bounced around in the bottom right hand corner of the screen alerting viewers that an incoming call is available. If you’ve used Skype, you know image quality and frame rate isn’t really impressive. Imagine that full-screen on an 42” HDTV. The result was a little off-putting but overall for what it accomplishes, its amazing. At CES a couple HDTV manufacturers were showing off on-board apps on the TV like Panasonic and Vizio. Pandora, Facebook and Netflix were the usual suspects but Twitter seemed to be gaining ground here as well. Bringing the net to the TV is a trend we’d like to see continue. If only they brought Flash 10 for sites like hulu.com, we’d have something big to talk about. As is, the Panasonic Skype demo was decent. We wonder how many customers will take advantage of it though. Company site: [Panasonic] Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Computers, Hardware  At first looks, the Sony Dash is a fancy picture frame. But when you get down to it, the Dash is what every geek and non-geek will want on their bed-side table. The 7-inch touch screen will give you access to over 1,000 internet applications thanks to Chubby to provide weather, traffic, sports, social networking, movies, games and other applications. This also includes everyone’s favorite streaming service, Pandora. It will be able to connect via Wifi to provide you with the day’s weather along with a calendar and clock. The Dash has the ability to wake you up by the music you like to hear, then be taken to the office and placed flat on the desk and provide you with the information you want to see throughout the day. Currently only at CES, we can expect the Dash to retail for $199. Read [Pocket-Lint] Image courtesy [Pocket-Lint] A special thanks goes out to Energizer for supplying the Gadgetell crew with Energi To Go battery packs, which allowed us to keep our gadgets charged on the run and focus more on finding good stuff at CES and not having to worry about sitting next to a power outlet. For more information on the Energi To Go battery packs you can visit EnergiToGo.com or visit them on Twitter at @energitogo. Full Story » | Written by Hunter Clarke for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Computers, Netbooks, Trade Shows, CES The Eee Keyboard has been floating around since about last CES. According to PC Mag, it is now slated to ship next month for $500 to $600. It’s on display here at CES. I got a chance to play around with the device, though only on the small screen, there was a larger screen connected to one unit, but the large display wasn’t working when I was there. The small screen did have some apps to play around with, though. The screen itself was capacitive, and was quite responsive. I was able to get around without very much lag not matter what screen. From the small screen just about everything is accessible: all types of media, web apps, a few games, file directory, a few dedicated apps and even the full Windows XP desktop. The Windows desktop didn’t display in its entirety, but moving a finger to the edge of the screen panned in that direction. It wasn’t a great experience, but it doesn’t seem like the Eee keyboard’s tiny screen was meant for any sort of trip into the Windows desktop. The typing on the keyboard wasn’t bad, about what you’d expect from any Eee machine with the chiclet-style keyboard. Based on my limited experience, it doesn’t seem anything mind-blowing aside from the fact that it’s an entire netbook/nettop built into a keyboard. But, if that novelty it worth $500 to you, go for it when it apparently launches next month. Read [PC Mag] A special thanks goes out to Energizer for supplying the Gadgetell crew with Energi To Go battery packs, which allowed us to keep our gadgets charged on the run and focus more on finding good stuff at CES and not having to worry about sitting next to a power outlet. For more information on the Energi To Go battery packs you can visit EnergiToGo.com or visit them on Twitter at @energitogo. Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Gadgets / Other, Miscellaneous, Trade Shows, CES I know you must be thinking about now “why does Intel need to get into the ebook reader market?” Don’t worry, what you’re seeing isn’t an ebook reader at all. The Intel Reader is actually a device that’s supposed to make it easier to read. It achieves this by taking a picture of any text, and reading it back to the user. See, not an ebook reader. The idea behind the Intel Reader is to help out those who can’t read: the blind, dyslexic, and others who would benefit from listening to text rather than struggling to read it. There is a stand that comes with the device so users can hold open a book to have it scanned more easily than holding the device and the open book at the same time. Read [Intel Reader] A special thanks goes out to Energizer for supplying the Gadgetell crew with Energi To Go battery packs, which allowed us to keep our gadgets charged on the run and focus more on finding good stuff at CES and not having to worry about sitting next to a power outlet. For more information on the Energi To Go battery packs you can visit EnergiToGo.com or visit them on Twitter at @energitogo. Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Computers, Networking, Trade Shows, CES D-Link seems to be a bit desperate for a way to differentiate it’s wireless routers from everybody else’s. Their solution to the problem seems to be to add a 3-inch touchscreen to an existing router. The D-Link Touch (DIR-865) is essentially the same as the DIR-825 with an added screen and an extra antenna. It has the same dual band wireless-n, same QoS, and same USB port for sharing a printer or storage across a network. The 3-inch screen will be able to help set up and maintain your network. There isn’t too much information available yet for the D-Link touch, but expect it to likely be disappointing and cost more than the $160 of the DIR-825. Read [Virtual Press Office] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Computers, Gaming, Accessories, Peripherals, Trade Shows, CES  Razer is best known for its variety of gamer-centric peripherals. Today at CES they were showing off technology that right now is focused on gaming, but has a wide variety of other uses as well. The technology is actually developed by a company called Sixense, the technology being Sixense TrueMotion. It will be Razer branded and marketed when it is released, however.
Sixense TrueMotion, simply put, is motion control in a 3D space. It uses two controllers that interact with a base station using a very weak magnetic field. That way, unlike the motion controllers on video game consoles (the Wii, Xbox 360’s Natal and Sony’s wand), the controllers don’t need direct line of sight to use their full capabilities. In the tech demo shown, you could use the controllers in a variety of ways that will seem vaguely familiar to anyone who has used multitouch inputs. You can zoom in by holding a button and bringing the remotes closer together, zoom out by bringing them apart. All the motions are 1:1, so it will pick up every movement you make, exactly how you make it. Right now the main focus of the Sixense controllers is gaming. The other demo was actually a Valve-created Left 4 Dead 2 demo that showed how the controllers could possibly be used for gaming. The results were impressive, especially considering the demo was built in only a few weeks. There are plenty of other applications, one example I was given was for media control, but everything is up to the developers. Sixense is hoping the controllers will ship sometime this year. Read [Sixense] Full Story » | Written by Shawn Ingram for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Audio, Portable Audio, Video, Portable Video, Trade Shows, CES It’s interesting to note that hardly any PMPs have been introduced at CES, thus far. It seems to be dominated by other popular gadgets such as eReaders, 3D TVs, netbooks, etc. However, iriver has announced a pretty nice spec-wise PMP featuring HD video playback as a key feature. The 3.5 inch screen contains a resolution of 480 x 320, Open API widget development, Wi-Fi connectivity, DMB-TV tuner, FM radio, eBook reader, calculator, voice recorder, and some other cool applications. In addition, it can handle a lot of formats including MKV, MPEG4, Xvid, WMV, and H.264; plus many other audio formats. Unfortunately, no word on onboard memory storage size, but there probably is an SD slot for additional memory. The Wi-Fi and HD video playback are some pretty cool features in the PMP, but too bad it will probably only be available in Korea. It is expected to start shipping at the end of January. Via [PlayerBites] Read [ITToday] A special thanks goes out to Energizer for supplying the Gadgetell crew with Energi To Go battery packs, which allowed us to keep our gadgets charged on the run and focus more on finding good stuff at CES and not having to worry about sitting next to a power outlet. For more information on the Energi To Go battery packs you can visit EnergiToGo.com or visit them on Twitter at @energitogo. Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Apple, Gadgets / Other, Miscellaneous, Features, Trade Shows, CES  A few nights ago, I and the rest of the crew from the *tell sites attended Digital Experience. It’s an event like all the rest at CES where we get a little more face time with the exhibitors. And naturally, we went to our sponsor, Energizer, first.
Energizer was kind enough to sponsor us for CES this year and hook us up with enough batteries to run the Las Vegas strip for at least a second or two. Thankfully, since our gear doesn’t have as many flashing lights for strippers and buffets, Energizer’s batteries kept us going. Here’s what I used for the show. iPower2 - I doubt it would look so elegant in expanded form (iPoweriPower), but this is a great choice for iPhone users. It’s similar to a case, but since there’s no power switch, this battery isn’t meant to be on your iPhone when it doesn’t need to be charging. When you do decide to hook up the battery, just slide in the battery and it starts charging just like that. There’s a really nice power bar on the bottom of the case that is a display of remaining charge of the case. This is triggered by the power display button on the side, which also happens to be the only button on this guy. It recharges over mini USB, and will sync while in the battery case as well. SP2000 - This is Energizer’s solar powered battery. It will harness the power of the sun, but will likely grab most of it’s power from the included power adapter. I’m yet to drain this one while out on the floor of CES. I’m also yet to open up the solar panels and convert some rays into volts, but I’m looking forward to it. So in short, this is just my way of saying thanks to Energizer for the sponsorship. Thanks guys, you kept me powered while out on the floor. Energizer Full Story » | Written by Jake Gaecke for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Gadgets / Other, Household, Lifestyle 
Demy is the digital splash-proof, kitchen safe recipe device that has some geeks interested. Sporting a color touchscreen, the Demy can save up to 2500 recipes and syncs to the keyingredient.com website via USB. The device is out now and costs $199. Demy has an accelerometer so it can be turned vertical or laid almost flat for optimal viewing angle and the screen turns the right way up. The unit is beefy, heavy even. You won’t be knocking this over any time soon. Beside your recipes, Demy has some handy other features such as a measurement conversion calculator and an ingredient substituter. Font size can be adjusted very easily. The screen is quite bright. Using the Demy was pretty intuitive. There seemed to be no perceptable lag in hitting a touchscreen command to the action being taken. Overall, I was impressed. Demy runs on either Mac or Windows and requires a USB 2.0 port. Word is a WiFi version is in the works, but no comment on timing. Product page: [MyDemy] A special thanks goes out to Energizer for supplying the Gadgetell crew with Energi To Go battery packs, which allowed us to keep our gadgets charged on the run and focus more on finding good stuff at CES and not having to worry about sitting next to a power outlet. For more information on the Energi To Go battery packs you can visit EnergiToGo.com or visit them on Twitter at @energitogo. Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Audio, Accessories, Communications, Accessories, Cellphones, Trade Shows, CES This new cell phone headset/MP3 player earbuds from Technocel is pretty interesting, but slightly stupid and pointless. The main selling point of this product is the fact that it vibrates when the music playing hits a low frequency bass note, designed to make listening to music a more fun experience. As if it wasn’t already. Otherwise, it’s your average cell phone headset since it comes with a mic that is compatible with most phones for hands free calling. If you don’t want to use it with a phone, you can always use it with your MP3 player. It is expected to be available on January 15 for $29.99. My main problem with this product is what if the earbuds vibrates and its ends up causing some ear damage? Hopefully Technocel put the Ear Vibe through extensive testing. Via [ipodNN] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Imaging, Camcorders, Trade Shows, CES At CES, JVC announced a new HD camcorder called the GZ-HM1 that they claim to contain a few notable improvements. Essentially, the product is being marketed as a high end camcorder designed for enthusiasts and semi-professionals. The new improvements are centered around increased low light performance, camera-shake compensation, and digital camera still image quality. A new CMOS sensor helps to alert the camera to increase sensitivity in low light environments and help achieve full HD video recording. In addition, the wide angle image as well as zoom usually fall victim to obvious camera shake. However, using new prism technology such as Advanced Image Stabilizer, JVC hopes to cut down on camera shake producer clearer images. In terms of still image shots, the camcorder can take 10MP images, which is comparable to normal digital cameras. The camcorder comes with the newly improved Everio MediaBrowser software for Windows. It allows the quick and painless conversion of HD videos to make it smaller and easier to upload to YouTube and other video sharing sites. Media files transferred to this program can be easily put onto iPod/iPhone/DVD. Expect the GZ-HM1 to be available in March for $1,199.95. Via [JVC] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Audio, Accessories, Portable Audio, Features, Trade Shows, CES 
Developed by a marathon runner who would finish long training runs with nothing hurting but his ears from the stock earbuds Apple supplies with their iPods, Yurbuds are an interesting add on. It turns out this runner was also a doctor and after some studying, developed Yurbuds, a soft silicone earbud tip that fits over the stock earbuds to provide more comfort. At CES, Yurbuds was custom sizing attendees via an interesting iPhone app. Yurbuds identified 12 sizes of ears and found most people fit within 6 sizes. They sized me up and found I was a size 7. Interestingly, the 5 other people I saw being fit were also size 7. The Yurbuds themselves are odd. They add a funnel of sorts to direct the sound from the earbud into your canal. If you can see from my awesome photo, there are small grooves in the Yurbud that avoid hitting nerves that can cause pain. They are left and right specific. Yurbuds are carried by Bestbuy and come in a package of size 5 and size 7. Users can try both and if they believe they are truly a 6, then they can contact Yurbuds and send in an image of their ear for confirmation and the company will send out the 6 if war warranted. The company seems committed to user happiness. Alternatively, customers and go the Yurbud website and get custom fitted directly from the company. The verdict
Stock Apple earbuds give me pain after about a half hour and forget about running with them. Essentially, they don’t seem to fit my ears to well. Yesterday, I had the chance to sit and listen to music while writing for a couple of hours with the Yurbuds in and had no pain. Whats more, there is no chance of them falling out when running. They fit very secure and the sound was impressive from what I assume are a pretty cheap set of earbuds that were supplied with the samples I got. In short, I was impressed. If you think Yurbuds might work for you to, the are $20 for just the Yurbuds, $30 for the Yurbuds and earphone combo. Yurbuds also fit over notoriously uncomfortable Bluetooth headsets and just about anything else that goes in your ear. If CES attendees who lined up 20 deep for a chance to get a pair are any gauge, Yurbuds will do well. Company site: [Yurbuds] Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Communications, Accessories, Cellphones, Smartphones, Mobile 
In a sea of boring cases, (really, CES is full of booths with nothing but bejeweled iPhone cases -zzzzz) Case Mate is taking an innovative step forward. Their newly launched site, imakemycase.com will allow users to create their own personal case that is created for them at the Case Mate warehouse and shipped. Users can get get quite creative. By creating their own personal case, users can choose background colors, add in designs created by artists and use effects to get nutty. Or if users are not feeling the creative juices flowing, they can choose from several commissioned artist created cases. All in all the site is attractive and making something that is just yours will help your iPhone stand out in a sea of clones. Company site: [imakemycase.com] Full Story » | Written by JG Mason for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
Section: Gadgets / Other, GPS/Navigation, Trade Shows, CES An announcement came at CES from TomTom about some new additions to some of their latest 2010 GPS models. Since there are so many GPS capable devices, not to mention standalone ones, it is important to offer some unique features in order to entice potential customers. Well, TomTom did just that by offering free lifetime map updates as well as free lifetime traffic updates. A traffic receiver will be included in the power cord, so whenever it is connected to the power cord, traffic updates will start flowing to the device. This will help alert drivers of speeds, possible traffic jams, and efficient routes. Traffic alerts are located on the right side of the screen, but there will be other screens that will display even more detailed information. Since roads are always changing and being added, it is necessary to have the latest maps on your GPS device, otherwise you risk traveling to a destination you did not intend upon traveling. As map updates become available, you need to connect your GPS to TomTom Home, which is a software that can be installed on your PC. From there, it will automatically download and replace the new maps. Maps are typically updated on a quarterly basis and users should be notified ahead of time. Both of these services will be available in Q2 of 2010. Read [BusinessWire] Read [BusinessWire] Full Story » | Written by Natesh Sood for Gadgetell. | Comment on this Article »
 
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