Steampunk Justice LeagueInspired by the comic book, Gotham by Gaslight by Mike Mignola and Brian Augustyn (Batman vs. Jack the Ripper set in the late 19th century), the modder behind these action figures sought to place the members of the Justice League in the Victorian era.

I think you will agree that he did one hell of a job.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/343499/steampunk-justice-league-modded-action-figures
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HD DVD CES 2008 Booth tourDVD and Blu-ray had their booths right next to each other and as you might expect the amount of traffic was night and day. As you can see in the pictures, the HD DVD booth was pretty desolate, but the seating at the stage was full of people watching the demonstration.

We also tried to say hello to our friends in press relations, but like many people this late in the show, they already left.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/10/hd-dvd-booth-tour/Read more on "HD DVD's CES 2008 booth tour"!
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IBM Degrading PromoI have so many issues with this LCD shirt that IBM is making women wear at CES, I don't know where to start. First off, they're instructed to say "Are you looking at my chest?" as people pass by. And supposing I do just that, why have her feminine curves been replaced with a grotesque bionic interface? Don't tell me this thing is a touchscreen. The end result is that I pay no attention to the ad at all.

Sorry, IBM, there are some things technology can't improve. Spare this poor woman—bring back the sandwich board.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/343360/ibm-wins-most-sexist-and-degrading-promotional-device
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Beer MP3 Player at CES 2008Sounds like crap, less memory. Also Heiny flavored.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/10/crapgadget-ces-edition-round-7-64mb-beer-mp3-player/
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This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.Read more on "iPhone is the Next Sex Toy - Porn Industry Says"!
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Spanish Royal Language DirectorA new Wikipedia-style online tool designed to help the world's nearly 400 million Spanish speakers consult on proper use of their language launched officially on Thursday.

Spoken in more than 20 countries, Spanish poses a daunting and fluid challenge to academics trying to track variations in grammar and vocabulary; there can be many ways to say a simple word such as car or pen.

The Web site, called Wikilengua, in testing since August, works like the online encyclopedia Wikipedia, where Internet users can modify the entries they consult.

But Wikilengua contributors must register in order to edit entries, and supervisors check contributions and filter out those they deem inaccurate or inappropriate.

Thursday's official unveiling was at Casa de America, a cultural center that aims to symbolize and enhance Spain's strong ties with Latin America — and their common use of the world's third-most-spoken language, after Chinese and English.

"The first cyberspace forum that is open and dedicated to bringing together honestly all knowledge about the Spanish language was born today," said Alex Grijelmo, president of the Spanish national news agency Efe, part of the foundation that created the Web site.

"Wikilengua aims to serve as a place for reflection on language, the grand instrument of human intelligence," Grijelmo said at the presentation.

The site gets about 1,000 visits a day, and the number is rising steadily, said Javier Bezos, coordinator of the Web site.

It is the brainchild of Fundeu BBVA, a foundation created by Efe and BBVA, Spain's No. 2 bank, to monitor and offer advice on correct use of Spanish, especially in the news media.

The plan is to enlist the expertise of the Spanish Royal Academy, the official watchdog of the language, and 20-odd affiliated academies in Latin America, the United States and the Philippines.

"What we are doing with Wikilengua is open an immense network of highways granting access to the ... work of the academies," said Victor Garcia de la Concha, director of the Spanish Royal Academy. "Now we (have) a space for exchanging opinions, studies and suggestions."

Source- http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080110/ap_on_hi_te/spain_language_wiki;_ylt=AtjkpMJbq9wmUJg947qlBFsjtBAF
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Fyre TV Hands on with sexy modelFyreTV, the guys who are releasing a nondescript set-top-box that streams IPTV adult video straight into your living room just gave us a hands-on demo with their machine. Here's what we think: it's the best thing we've seen yet to bring you on-demand porn over the internet into your living room.

Fyre TV Screen demoYou've already seen the details. The FyreTV streams you DVD-quality adult IPTV from major studios, letting you enjoy content without having to store it locally. You've got three packages to subscribe with beyond the mandatory $9.99 monthly fee that gives you a certain bucket of minutes.
  • Buying more on-demand minutes to use as you watch, which will be somewhere between $0.17 to $0.24 a minute.
  • Buying a specific movie to get unlimited viewing.
  • Buying a monthly pass to get unlimited access (for that month) to a specific studio's content, which gives you all the movies in their catalog. This will be somewhere around $24ish, depending on the studio.
The box performance was great. DVD quality video was good on the cheap Vizio set they were demoing it on. The remote control was super responsive, and when you queue up a video it streams incredibly fast (probably because of their setup on the floor, so we'll have to see how it performs in the real world when we do a hands-on at home).

Other great functionality include bookmarking, favorites, playback history, playlists, scene ranking (1 to 5 stars), combination tag searches (Blondes, Boobs, Blondes + Big Boobs were the ones we used) and easy fast forward/rewinding through scenes.

FyreTV's best news is that their box will have no stickers or markings on it, so you can hide it in plain sight next to your DVR and have your in-laws be none the wiser. Why watch porn on your little computer monitor when you can watch it on a 150-inch HDTV in your living room?

Source- http://gizmodo.com/343506/hands+on-with-fyretv-the-best-porn-in-the-living-room-solution-yet-nsfw
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Xbox Live down reason is ServerThe weeks long connection troubles many Xbox Live users have experienced since the holidays was due, according to Microsoft, to heavy Xbox Live server load brought on by a record number of users attempting to access the service. Xbox group marketing manager Albert Penello told us that "It's wasn't a malicious thing." He explained "We had the biggest concurrent day we've ever had on Live. We had more people than ever signing up on Live, it was 9 million, then 10 million, and it literally was that a lot more people were trying to get on, sign up and play than we had expected over Christmas."

The continued problems were a result of not simply too many people trying to connect and play on Live, but also that too few Xbox Live team members were in the office to react. "It's easy when we're all the office in November, but on December 25th, it's harder to get a hold of everybody," Penello said, later adding "I hope people feel like [giving away a free Live Arcade game] is a fair make good for the inconvenience."

Penello also came to the Live team's defense, noting that "I'd also say in seven years, this has happened maybe zero other times, but I can't remember a time when, other than the slow downloads we had when we launched Video Marketplace, we have had a service outage that wasn't planned."

While Microsoft's Penello and Jeff Bell gave us the impression that the problem is largely addressed when we asked at CES, some of us at Kotaku are still having connection issues, specifically gamertag recovery unresponsiveness. Unfortunately, I'm away from my Xbox 360 and can't report on my own successes or failures with the service.

We've heard fewer complaints from readers over the past few days, but still want to hear from you if you're having troubles.

Source- http://kotaku.com/343152/microsoft-says-xbox-live-outage-due-to-server-strain
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Tata Nano- The people car previewThe $2500 Tata Nano was officially unveiled yesterday at the 9th Auto Expo in New Delhi, India. This vehicle boasts a "30hp 624-cc engine; a four-speed manual transmission; a disc/drum brake setup; room for five; and claimed fuel economy of 54 US miles per gallon." Check out the video below.



There's no power steering, and you'll find more instrumentation on many wristwatches -- the Nano has only a fuel gauge, speedometer, and oil light.

Why Tata Nano car is cheapCome on people, let us discuss....

Sources- http://www.techeblog.com/index.php/tech-gadget/pictures-2500-tata-nano-car-officially-unveiled-video-
http://www.gadgetell.com/tech/comment/new-nano-revealled-in-india/
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Sony Amazon drm free MP3 playerSony BMG is readying the other half of their reported move away from DRMed music, two days ago, they announced plans to release retail gift cards which can be redeemed for plain 'ol MP3s, but there was no word of a plan that wouldn't require people to actually leave their caves or, heaven forbid, dress themselves. Cue the other shoe: Amazon announced today that they will be hosting DRM-free Sony BMG tracks, completing its collection of DRM-free tracks from each of the four major music labels, which already includes EMI, Vivendi Universal, and Warner.

The Sony BMG tracks will be available "later this month" and should be priced commensurate with the service's current offerings.


Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/10/sony-bmg-to-add-drm-free-mp3s-to-amazon/
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Motorazr2 V8 Luxury Mobile PhoneUnderneath the shiny 18k gold plate, and tucked within the 12.05mm shell there is actually a pretty powerful cell phone but at $679.99 (unlocked) you are without paying for the “lavish 18k gold plated accents, engraved details and a black snakeskin pattern”, or not as the case may be! If you do want to buy it you will need to buy it direct from the MOTO Store in the US, or more probably get the person that does that kind of stuff for you to do it as I am pretty sure that us mere mortals aren’t the target market for this cell phone.

If you do get one you will be able to enjoy 8 hours talk time, 8 days of standby time, and of course it comes in a nice box and with a nice mini strap and polishing cloth to keep it nice and clean.
  • Exclusive edition featuring at least 18k gold plating on medallions, navigation key, and hinge.
  • Music player includes stereo micro-USB headset and a compatible Bluetooth enabled headset.
  • 2GB of on-board memory1 with a storage capacity of up to 1000 songs.
  • Opera Mobile Browser 8.5 provides a full HTML browsing experience.
  • High Speed USB 2.0 gives you fast data transfersSC.
  • 2.2” internal screen, providing twice the resolutionSC of the original RAZR.
  • MotoSync makes it easy to organize your corporate phonebook, calendar and emails.
  • Integrated Bluetooth wireless technology facilitates imaging, printing and peer-to-peer gaming with compatible devices.
  • CrystalTalk technology helps deliver clear voice quality in noisy environments.

Source- http://www.gadgetell.com/tech/comment/motorazr2-v8-luxury-edition-now-available-exclusively-through-moto-store/
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Intel explains MID vs UMPCDo you know "what the hell's the difference between a UMPC and a MID.

Fortunately, Dan Monahan, Intel's Global Internet Segment Manager of Ultra Mobility and the man who showed us (and the world) the UMPC for the first time at CeBIT took the time to set us straight. This is how it breaks down.

UMPC
  • Business-class device for enterprise users
  • Runs a "heavy" OS like Vista
  • Optimized for office-use applications like Excel, Word, etc.

MID
  • Consumer-class lifestyle device
  • Runs a 'lightweight" OS with quick startup like Linux
  • Optimized for things like media playback and web surfing
  • In 2009 (or so) Moorestown-based devices will be classed as MIDs only
So there you have it from the man who knows. Now use the term correctly please, especially you dear OEM/ODMs.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/10/intel-explains-mid-vs-umpc/
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Booth vs Regular babes comparison imagesGizmodo texts- I am not a fan of Booth Babes. That's not to say that I'm not a fan of the female form, but I find being tricked into liking some mediocre gadget because a girl in a bikini top is standing next to it pretty insulting. I do like pretty girls who have more going for them than being pretty, however, and there were plenty of them here at CES as well. So what do you think, dear readers? Do you like straight-up eye candy or do you like a little more substance? We've had Nick McGlynn trolling the show floor all week getting photographic evidence of both booth babes and regular babes. Who wins in this oh-so-shallow battle of the galleries?. These gallery is present at Gizmodo. Check out and leave your comments. Quite interesting.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/342516/the-ces-50+babe-battle-booth-babes-vs-regular-babes
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Kevin Martin at CES 2008FCC Chairman Kevin Martin announced at CES last night that his agency will be looking into Comcast's data-meddling ways. "Sure, we're going to investigate and make sure that no consumer is going to be blocked," he said.

Per FCC rules Comcast is allowed to use "reasonable traffic management" solutions to keep its network running, but Martin said he thinks Comcast and other ISPs should be required to disclose filtering to customers even if it's found to be reasonable.

That's pretty encouraging, but we'll see how this all plays out in the industry -- especially since NBC and AT&T execs were talking excitedly about ISP-based copyright filtering on another stage at CES earlier in the day.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/09/fcc-to-investigate-comcast-bittorrent-filtering/
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Mobility comparisonIn 2008, Intel will debut its 45nm Core 2 Duo processor (1.73-GHz) in the Acer 5920G, which will retail at $1299 -- priced at approximately $0.75/MHz. While back in 1992, the $2,675 Toshiba 1910CS featured the Intel 486 processor (33-MHz) -- priced at approximately $81.06/MHz.

This comparison shows just how much we've advanced -- computer processer wise -- over the last 16 years. Continue reading for a short preview of both laptops.

Source- http://www.techeblog.com/index.php/tech-gadget/ces-2008-feature-mobility-then-1992-vs-mobility-now-2008-video
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BD media transform picsDespite SlySoft announcing that BD+ was compromised, and promising an update to its AnyDVD HD software, -- which enables you to rip a Blu-ray discs -- here we are a few months later and the latest is that SlySoft recommends that you buy HD DVD.

But with Warner recently going blu, a question at the Blu-ray press conference was "did BD+ have anything to do with their decision?" And while Warner's answer was "no", afterwards it was brought to our attention by a Fox employee that BD+ has not been compromised. But, if that's true, then where do these HD Fox titles distributed via illegal means come from?

The situation is actually hilariously ironic, as in love with BD+ that Fox seems to be, high quality transfers of their movies still make it onto the internet because of the European releases of HD DVD -- not distributed by Fox and thus not Blu-ray exclusive -- are only protected with AACS. So if you think about it, without BD+, users would have to buy Fox titles to get them on their computer for other uses, but as it stands, it makes more sense for them skip laying down any cash and download the movies instead, nice job guys.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/09/bd-has-not-been-compromised-yet/
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Nokia hopes to launch six to 12 new phones customized for North American carriers in 2008, versus three in 2007, as the company aims to improve its weak market share in the region, said Mark Louison, president of its North American business, on Wednesday.

Nokia leads the global cell phone market but has struggled to compete in the United States where it ranked No. 4 with an 11% market share in the third quarter, according to Strategy Analytics. Motorola Inc, ranked No. 3 globally, was the U.S. leader with a 33% share in that period.

To change this, Nokia appointed Louison to his newly created role in July and has been working on boosting the number of phones it designs in collaboration with specific U.S. carriers since the fall of 2006.

"It's not unreasonable you'd see between 6 to 12 new operator-specific devices this year. It'll probably be more than this," Louison said in an interview at the Consumer Electronics Show.

"You'll see some of that in the first half of 2008, with the velocity to increase that in the second half and going full steam ahead in 2009," Louison said.

Source- http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,141227-c,ces/article.html
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Sony bd live at CES 2008It's pretty cheery in the Blu-ray camp this year, for several reasons -- and one of them is the launch of BD Live.

We're not exactly certain why they picked downloadable ringtones from Godzilla as the demo, but Veronica was brave enough to sit through the lowest point of Matthew Broderick's career to snag us this demo.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/09/video-downloading-content-with-blu-ray-interactive/
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Sunny- The weather botHe's winking at us, he loves everyone, and he talks out of his crotch. Say hello to Sunny, NOAA's taxpayer-funded weather bot.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/09/video-sunny-the-weather-bot-defies-explanation/
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Kibon iPod image
Remember that Unilever promotion that is giving away 10,000 iPod shuffles frozen inside $1 fruit popsicles? Well, we just got the pictures of how it actually looks inside:

A reader of our friends at Brazilian creativity blog Brainstorm9 got his prize and sent them the photos of the fake popsicle/package, designed to fool consumers and make the iPod sustain the sub-zero temperatures and the humidity of a freezer. The fake popsicle, which you can only see when you open the external packaging, was approved by Apple in Cupertino to guarantee that the shuffle didn't get damaged. If shows the following tag:

Not very lickable, but hey, it's a free iPod! Here's what it says:
Contratulations You won an iPod shuffle from the iPod on a stick Kibon promotion. To ask for your headphones, charging dock and manual with warranty, call 0800 707 1315, give your information and the serial number of your iPod shuffle. It's very important that you save this popsicle to show when you receive the complements. Expires on August 31 2008. Limited edition.
iPod Kibon image And then adds, "Don't eat." No kidding. Fortunately, they send you a real popsicle along with the iPod complements. And failing that, you can always use strawberry syrup.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/342608/images-of-the-ipod-frozen-popsicles-dont-excite-our-tongues-but-tickle-our-ears
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Compusa employees imageSo you're about to be laid off by your megacorporation that thoroughly mismanaged its position in the market and is giving you the shaft because of it. What's a CompUSA employee to do? We'd say adding your own photos to LCD product shots on the online store is as good a way as any.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/09/compusa-employees-adopt-subtle-dignified-method-of-saying-farew/
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The Agency PS3 Developer WalkthroughThe Agency for Sony's PlayStation 3 "focuses on spies and mercenaries in the modern world. Gamers all over the globe will be engaging in action and espionage in the treacherous underworld, using physical prowess, ingenious gadgets and unerring marksmanship to get out alive."

Exploring new territory in massively-multiplayer online gaming, this project from Sony Online Entertainment focuses on spies and mercenaries in the modern world.

Source- http://www.techeblog.com/index.php/tech-gadget/ces-2008-the-agency-ps3-developer-walkthrough
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NEC 2880 x 900 panoramic gaming monitorWhile everyone at CES is busy buzzing about Alienware's gorgeous curved DLP display (including us), NEC is quietly showing off its CRVD-42DWX+ display that's more or less identical: a 2880x900 (double WXGA+) panel with a contrast ratio of 10000:1.

We're assuming they're both built by the same ODM, Ostendo, so hopefully some healthy competition will help bring one of these two beauties within your meager gaming budget.

Unfortunately, like the Alienware model, there's no pricing or shipping information.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/09/nec-has-their-own-2880x900-curved-gaming-display/
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Blu Ray to PSP Movie Transfer demoWhen we heard about Blu-ray-to-PSP movie transfers getting all official we got pretty excited, even though the announcement was a little skimpy on the details: How big are the files? How long will it take to download a movie? How odious is the DRM? Most importantly, when? Well, we've got 'em all right here.

The deets: The movies are around 1GB (standard def and PSP-optimized) and take about 3-5 minutes to download via USB to the Memory Stick Duo in your PSP. Currently, the idea is that they aren't stored locally on your PS3. Sony expects it to be available sometime this year—nothing more fine-grained than that timewise, unfortunately

The sweet news: For now, the plan is that the service will be free and it "can be used potentially on any Blu-ray movie title." Hopefully that means it'll be available for every Blu-ray title.

The potentially bleh news: Sony is still in the processing of reviewing how the DRM is going to work, and how portable the copies are going to be (important, since they're stored on Mem. Stick Duos, which are pretty pocketable.) In particular, the number of copies you can make from each disc is still up in the air—so it looks like how many friends you can share with is definitely going to be limited.

DRM-wise it's nothing unexpected—given Blu-ray's emphasis on strong copy protection, Sony's obviously not going to give free reign with the PSP copies. But even with some limits placed on the service, it stands to be one of the best PS3-PSP connections yet.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/342980/blu+ray+to+psp-movie-transfers-how-its-gonna-work
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Westinghouse Quad HD displayWe promise this post isn't just a cheap excuse to drool over Halo 3 -- no, no -- this post is a cheap excuse to drool over Crysis running at native resolution. Westinghouse got smarter this year and made its two Quad HD LCDs on display a more prominent attraction in the booth, showing off 47-inch and 56-inch models. For those who haven't been keeping score, the 56-inch display is running at 3840 x 2160 Quad Full HD resolution (think 8.3 million pixels is enough for ya?) -- its little brother runs at 2560 x 1440 Quad HD and 3.7 million pixels. Both of these units are going to be released this year in Q2 ("March or April"), but you'll have to part with $10,000 to pick up the 47-inch and a whopping $50k to take home the 56-inch. The rep we spoke with mentioned they obviously weren't targeting consumers with these things so much as engineers, architects, visual imaging and editing professionals and production studios, and medical and geological professionals, as well as mining companies who've shown interest in the technology.

We fully concede there's no rational way to justify shelling out 50 grand for one of these things but damn, it doesn't stop us from wanting one at Engadget HQ.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/09/eyes-on-with-westinghouses-quad-hd-displays/
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Lord of rings HD imageNow that New Line has gone exclusively with Blu-ray, it seems inevitable that we'll get the epic Lord of the Rings trilogy on that format in sexy, sexy high-def. But what if you've already invested a few hundred bucks in the full extended edition trilogy? Will it be worth rebuying the movies in Blu-ray? In a word: yes, yes it will. Here are some stills from the DVDs compared to identical stills from the HD transfer. Make sure to click below mentioned images.

Lord fotr hd imageLord hd image
Get excited. Get very excited.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/342420/lord-of-the-rings-hd-vs-dvd-screen-captures-get-ready-to-buy-a-blu+ray-player
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Erector spykee robots image with modelWe already knew that a few new Spykee robots would be unleashed at CES, and what better way to check out?

Take a look on the image above.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/08/video-erectors-spykee-robots-take-on-ces/
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Microsoft brainwash server bookMommy, Why is There a Server in the House?" is a children's book dedicated to "Helping Your Child Understand the Stay-At-Home Server."

At first we snarked at this over-the-top marketing propaganda. But then it made us crap our pants with laughter.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/342499/microsofts-brainwashing-childrens-book-mommy-where-do-servers-come-from
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ipod death ad girlLook, we're all about making fun of a nanny state trying to get us to drop our earbuds for street crossing, but we're also against stupidity and what Australian police call a problem of "epidemic proportions": teenagers dying from crossing the street while listening to an iPod.

NSW Police commissioned these ads that we'd say make their point quite nicely -- and remind us of a contest submission from a while back. Obviously it's not the iPods doing these kids in, rather fast-moving hunks of metal and a near-idiotic lack of attentiveness, but if you're the absent minded type, perhaps unplugging your ears for street crossings would be a good habit to get into. Or you could, you know, look before you leap.

For more info, please have a look- [engadget]
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Multimedia Ring Box for ProposalThe Gadget: Euricase Multimedia Ring Box, adds a 2-inch LCD and 60 minutes of video to otherwise meaningless jewelry boxes.

The Catch: Sarah Meyers!

The Verdict...

I sleep on the couch for the three months following CES. Don't worry honey, you know I'd never propose to an internet celebrity with such a tacky, tacky product.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/342480/hands+on-proposal-euricase-multimedia-ring-box
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Prototype 8 inch Asus Eee PC picsWe're not saying we didn't believe Asus when they said they'd be rolling out 8 and 8.9-inch Eee PCs in Q2 (in multiple colors no less!) but it's always reassuring to see pictures. Spotted on a Chinese website, these side-by-sides show the two models to be nearly identical outside of the obvious bezel-reduction and plastic-lightening cosmetic work, even the resolution on both models is fixed at 800 x 480.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/08/pics-of-prototype-8-inch-asus-eee-pc/
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Shiro VJ MP4 playerThe Singapore-based Shiro Corporation joins the other consumer electronic manufacturers at CES 2008 to reveal their latest MP4 players. Looking at what the latest entries by Shiro, I can only say the MP4 players are going to be the devices a lot of yuppies will be, if not already, showing off in the near future and it could well be either one of these Shiro VJ, MD or MR.

Top of the line Shiro VJ is seductive, sleek and trendy looking. The large 2.4-inch TFT LCD with a 262K colors rendition takes your video and photo viewing pleasure to the next level which makes it comparable to watching video on television, sharp image and rich color.

Here are some of the features for Shiro VJ:
  • 2.4-inch TFT LCD display, 262k colors, 320 x 240 resolution
  • AVI and WMV direct video playback
  • MP3 / WMA / WAV audio playback
  • BMP / JPEG photo viewing
  • Up to 8GB built in memory
  • Micro-SD Card expansion slot
  • Built-in microphone for voice recording
  • FM radio with radio data system and FM stereo recording
  • Built-in rechargeable Li-Polymer battery
  • Up to 20hrs of music playback
  • Up to 5hrs of video playback
  • Dimension: 8.9mm (H) x 86mm (L) x 50mm (W)

Key features for Shiro MR include:
  • 2-inch TFT LCD display 262k colors, 176 x 220 resolution
  • AVI video playback
  • BMP / JPEG photo viewing
  • MP3 / WMA / WAV audio playback
  • Up to 4GB built in memory
  • Micro-SD Card expansion slot
  • Touch pad interface
  • Built-in microphone for voice recording
  • FM radio and FM stereo recording
  • Up to 10hrs of MP3 playback
  • Up to 5hrs of video playback
  • 7.9mm (H) x 88mm (L) x 46mm(W)

Key features for Shiro MR include:
  • 1.8-inch CSTN LCD display, 65k colors, 128 x 160 resolution
  • SMV video playback
  • BMP / JPEG photo viewing
  • MP3 / WMA / WAV audio playback
  • Up to 4GB built in memory
  • FM radio and FM stereo recording
  • Up to 12hrs of MP3 playback
  • Up to 4hrs of video playback
  • Metallic Finishing
  • 7.2mm(H) x 83mm(L) x 43mm(W)
Source-http://www.gadgetell.com/tech/comment/shiro-reveals-cool-mp4-players-at-ces-2008/


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China is shutting down about 200 Web sites for carrying illegal sex-drug advertisements, state media said on Wednesday, the latest in a string of measures to clean up the Internet.

About 6,000 Web sites have been found carrying illegal, sexually suggestive adverts involving sex-related drugs or health supplements, said the People's Daily, the Communist Party's newspaper.

Some 199 would be closed and 130 "rectified," the newspaper said. It did not say what would happen to the rest.

China has launched several campaigns to clean up online material and step up control of the Internet ahead of this year's Beijing Olympics, widely seen as a coming-out party for the rising political and economic power.

Last week, top publishing officials slapped restrictions on internet Web sites that allow users to upload video and audio, and asked all producers to check their inventory for risque material with threats of fines and other punishments.

"Some audio-video products, in the name of 'sexual health' and 'sex education', but without any scientific content, use colorful pictures or text containing seductive words to lure customers," a recently released government statement said.

Source- http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080109/wr_nm/china_sex_dc;_ylt=AmgC3HPusIPoNsHGfIkztuEjtBAF
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iPhone demo in handWe just had a hands on with this disastrous iPhone knock-off. The UI is like a pile of steaming poo, and the case is like...well, a pile of steaming poo.

In general, we thought it was excrement-like—avoid like you would carcinogenic toxins if you were not a smoker.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/342260/iphone-knock+off-on-demo-makes-us-weep-a-little
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Laser tv red color imageMitsubishi put together quite a spectacle to introduce its Laser TV last night at the Moon Nightclub at The Palms Hotel in Las Vegas, unveiling a 65-inch rear-projection set that uses a unique laser backlight.

The result is some of the most vivid color we've ever seen on any TV, especially the primary colors of red, green and blue. The blacks were midnight-dark, too, and there was even a 3D version of the TV (goofy glasses required) that only made us slightly cross-eyed. Mits officials said to look for the TV to appear on the market "later this year" at an undisclosed price, and added that it will cost about the same as flat panel TVs of the same size. How does this laser backlight work?
Mitsubishi Laser tv modelMitsubishi Laser color tv modelMitsubishi Laser color tv model imageWhen pressed for details, they kept repeating their mantra about laser being the "purest light source," but from what we could see, we think it must have something to do with hot-looking dancing girls, frickin' lasers, smoke, and maybe even mirrors. We were taking shots of the TVs, but all these women kept getting in our way. Oh, well.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/342045/eyes-on-mitsubishi-laser-tvs-look-amazing
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Yahoo logoYahoo Inc will create versions of its mobile Internet services to run on various phone platforms, potentially including Google's phone software and the Apple iPhone, a top executive said on Monday.

Yahoo is ready to demonstrate its commitment to mix and match services of its own with those of rivals in a new, more open strategy, mobile chief Marco Boerries told a meeting on the sidelines of the Consumer Electronics Show.

By offering Internet services that work on existing phones rather seeking to compete with mobile phone software of its own, Yahoo can reach hundreds of millions of phone users, Boerries said.

Sunnyvale, California-based Yahoo announced a series of enhancements on Monday designed to make Yahoo Internet services more easily accessible for existing mobile phones.

Over the last two years, Yahoo has struck deals with carriers and handset makers to place popular Yahoo Web services on phones in many markets.

WIDGETS

The plan includes allowing outside companies to create mini-Web sites that can be featured on the pages of Yahoo, in a bid to expand the number of consumers using Yahoo as a starting point to the Web.

Viacom Inc's MTV and News Corp's MySpace and eBay Inc are among the companies creating such mini Web features, which are known as widgets, to run inside Yahoo Web pages.

Yahoo is ready to create versions of Yahoo Mobile Widgets to allow users to keep tabs on their favorite Web sites on phones running Apple Inc, Google Inc, Microsoft Corp or Nokia-backed Symbian software, Yahoo's Boerries said in response to questions from analysts and reporters.

"Our job is to make sure Yahoo Mobile Widgets run on any platform that creates a good user experience," Boerries said.

"(Google) Android for us is another mobile operating system like (Microsoft's) Windows Mobile and (Nokia-backed) Series 60 that we plan to support once it becomes a reality," he said in response to a question from a Wall Street analyst.

In November, Google announced the Open Handset Alliance, a group of more than 30 partners ranging from component suppliers to handset makers to network operators. Several of these partners have said they expected to introduce phones based on the Google Android phone software by the middle of 2008.

Another analyst asked Boerries whether Yahoo would strike deals to feature other Internet content providers on its mobile widgets system, specifically social network site Facebook.

Boerries declined to comment, saying "I am not prepared to make any other announcement today but we are talking to a bunch of providers."

Asked whether Yahoo would be developing a special version of mobile widgets on the iPhone using Apple's Web toolkit, he stopped short of saying whether Apple Inc might announce such a partnership as early as its Macworld conference next week.

"We are not making any announcement here," Boerries said in response to a reporter's question.

He then paused and the room of reporters and analysts erupted in laughter. Apple tightly controls the timing of news releases in order to make any announcements themselves.

"We are going to make sure Yahoo services run on every device" that makes the Internet easy to use on phones, Boerries said.

Developers stand to make money from running advertising when users click on their widgets inside Yahoo. Yahoo will supply both brand advertising and Web search ads to developers. Widget creators also have the option of running other ads.

Source- And here is the rest of it.
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Xbox360 logo imageMicrosoft Entertainment & Devices chief Robbie Bach says he expects the Xbox 360 to topple revenue records in 2008, given total spending on 360 products last year.

After announcing over the weekend that it had sold 17.7 million 360 consoles worldwide, Entertainment & Devices chief Robbie Bach expects the Xbox 360 to topple revenue records in 2008, given total spending on 360 products last year.

"With its continued momentum in games, accessories and digital entertainment via our leading online service Xbox LIVE, and record-setting games and accessory attach rates, evidence is everywhere that Xbox 360 is thriving," Bach said.

Peter Moore replacement Don Mattick tells why in an email sent to his staff shortly after Bach's CES 2008 appearance on Sunday. "We have the big blockbuster hits that everyone wanted to play," he wrote. "Of the top 20 best-selling titles in 2007 this generation, 13 were on Xbox 360, compared to seven on the Wii and zero on the PS3 according to NPD."

Despite boasting an exceptional game library, Xbox 360 sold only 19% better than the original Xbox did in its first 24 months, according to NPD.

At its current rate, Microsoft stands to sell slightly more than 28.5 million Xbox 360s worldwide -- a far cry from the 100+ million that Sony's PlayStation and PlayStation 2 each sold in previous generations, and just 9 million more than the estimated 19.5 million Wii units already sold by Nintendo in just over a year.

Having already proved itself as a worthy system for hardcore gamers then, what keeps the 360 from realizing its mainstream potential? High failure rates and a homogeneous game library are often cited as culprits for its limited appeal.

Whatever the case, one thing's for sure: Western gamers like Xbox 360, even if it dies more often than it should.

Source- http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,141128-c,gameconsoles/article.html
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OpenMoko Linux Smart PhoneThe Gadget: OpenMoko's just-announced Neo Freerunner, which is the mass-market version of their previous Neo 1973 phone.

The Impressions: It uses the exact same UI as the previous version, but is actually really preliminary and buggy in the version we played with (it was power cycling for a short while). They assured us that the phone is really early in the development cycle. The UI looks nice and has glossy icons and not too much text (read: not too Linuxy for people who are afraid of Linux), but it's nothing you've never seen before if you've seen the OpenMoko phones.

The hardware is solid and feels about as wide as the iPhone, but a bit thicker (with rounded corners). It's too early to tell how well this will do in the mass market, especially compared with the Google Android platform, but Freerunner does show promise.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/341755/openmoko-neo-freerunner-linux-smartphone-hands+on
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Air Guitar Rocker imageHave seen a few useful improvements to air guitar over the years, but Air Guitar Rocker actually managed to snag a license from Activision. Granted, it does take your nerd level to unbelievable heights, but then again, it is slated to cost just $29.95 when it lands in March.

Be sure to click on through and catch a totally unprofessional air guitarist chatting it up with Mahalo Daily's Veronica Belmont.

Source- http://www.engadget.com/2008/01/07/video-air-guitar-rocker-thrashes-at-ces/
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Paramount Gate picsFinancial Times is reporting that Paramount has a clause in its HD DVD exclusivity contract allowing them to bail from the sinking HD DVD ship if Warner defected to Blu-ray, and they are "poised" to do so.

Warner's switch already put 70% of Hollywood's output on Blu-ray—Paramount rolling Blu-ray too would leave Universal and Dreamworks as the last major studios in the HD DVD camp, promptly and undoubtfully closing the books on HD DVD's future in Hollywood. Imagine: Michael Bay is sipping a mojito somewhere with a smile on his face.

Source- http://gizmodo.com/341983/hd-dvd-really-dead-now-paramount-following-warner-to-blu+ray+only-party
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Panasonic and Google internet TV dealWeb giant Google Inc is developing televisions that display Internet content such as photos and videos together with Matsushita Electric Industrial Co Ltd's Panasonic unit.

The TVs, to be launched this spring, will allow users to directly browse and access videos from YouTube, a video-sharing Web site owned by Google, and view Picasa Web Albums, a free online photo-sharing service from Google, Panasonic said in a statement on Monday.

"Panasonic's cooperation with YouTube and Google's Picasa Web Albums exemplifies our commitment to leading the natural evolution of the Internet and extending it to the High Definition television," Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company's Vice President Merwan Mereby said in the statement.

The news sent the shares of Matsushita higher right after the market open, but they shed 1.8% to 2,150 yen by 8:08 p.m. EST to underperform a 0.7% fall in the benchmark Nikkei average.

Late last year, Matsushita, the world's top plasma TV maker, said it would take control of a liquid crystal display joint venture and may build a new factory, marking a major shift in its strategy for the flat panel TV market.

Matsushita has until now invested aggressively in plasma displays in the belief that it was the most cost-effective technology for flat TVs bigger than 37-inches, while procuring LCD panels to make TVs for the smaller sets.

Source- http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080108/wr_nm/matsushita_google_dc;_ylt=AmR4nQSWgaaf_95dohNmAMkjtBAF
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Shiny Scary Iron Man Suit at CES
This is the Mark-1 suit that Iron Man hacks together in prison. The Iron Man movie will be out May 2.

Iron man suit imageTake a look at the suit in its full glory, plus awesome closeups of its actuators, in a gallery below.

Iron man suit pics
Source- http://io9.com/341828/shiny-scary-iron-man-suit-at-ces
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