From the wishful thinking department comes this video that claims that the X-Hawk flying car will be ready to take off by 2010. OK. Are you sure that's based on actual fact and not because you taught yourself how to make mediocre 3D videos on your home computer? Perhaps the X-Hawk can also help if a UFO attacks your city. Don't worry, if it doesn't work out SimCity 3000 will let you revert to an earlier saved game!
We all need to face the fact that flying cars aren't gonna be happening in any of our lifetimes. I'm sorry, I don't mean to piss on your campfire, but let's be realistic about this.
X-Hawk Flying Car to be Ready by 2010 [MobileMag]
Given the huge number of iPod docking stations on the market, you better have some special features to win a spot on Gizmodo's mantle (and justify a $549-$599 pricetag). This MacWorld Best of Show winner, which is in no way connected with Vandelay Industries but made by Chestnut Hill Sound, certainly stands out. Along with a bandless AM/FM tuner and a multi-featured alarm system, it is architected for future upgrades via a USB port and packs a bass volume knob in the back. The real draw, though, is the removable remote control, which enhances the functionality of your iPod in several ways. Take a tour of the GEORGE, and find out whether it's worth the asking price, in this photo gallery.
Adam over at Lifehacker has a problem. His wife locks up all his porn on a Windows machine that only she knows the password to. That's why Adam came up with a guide to easily crack a Windows password using the Ophcrack Live CD.
It's extremely simple. All you have to do is stick in the CD, pick the account you want to crack, and it'll start churning away. Useful if you have to break into a departed co-worker/wife/child/lover's machine. Or your own machine if you're an idiot and forget your password.
p.s. I made up that story about Adam. He keeps his porn on his own machine.
Screenshot Tour: How to crack a Windows password with Ophcrack Live CD [Lifehacker]
"Your finger's actually kind of a gross device." Hey dude, just because I pick out boogers the size of raisins doesn't give you the right to judge me man.
GottaBeMobile [via TechEBlog]
No one ever did master the art of sending photos from your camera to your PC wirelessly, but now a semiconductor company by the name of Artimi is hoping to give the concept another shot. They're working on a wireless USB technology that, with the aid of a USB dongle, would let you transfer up to 1GB of photos from your camera to your computer in about 30 seconds sans cables. Artimi is hoping to get some WUSB cams out the door by end of this year, with bigger names jumping on the bandwagon by 2008. We just hope it works, since last time someone tried this the process were slow and kinda clunky.
Artimi Wireless USB Technology for Cameras [The Future of Things]
Among the gripes people had when the iPhone was announced was the fact that you couldn't download music directly from iTunes onto your phone without going through your PC. Good news, as Apple's already taken that into consideration.
Their newest patent, published by the USPTO February 1, shows the iPhone communicating wirelessly to a "service", which may include a "client device" running a "local application", which then communicates to content servers and commerce servers. It's a little hard to digest if you're not a robot, but it looks like Apple's coming up with a way to upgrade phones remotely and/or purchase content as well.
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Now this is one pretty speaker. The Modal Water Speaker, designed by Kunihiro Tsuji, is supposed to represent the human body's composition of 70% water. Whatever, dude, it looks pretty sweet. How it sounds is another matter entirely, but we'll give ol' Tsuji the benefit of the doubt on that one.
Look for this at Milan's design week, that is if you're going to be there rather than reading blogs in your underpants. Hit the jump for a giant pic.
Folks with Windows Mobile or Windows CE-based PDAs have a love/hate relationship with ActiveSync. They hate it, and they also love to hate it. Microsoft's new Windows Mobile Device Center for Vista is supposed to make syncing feel a bit less like a kick in the nards and a bit more like an gentle brush.
Essentially the same app, we can browse our phone's files—both on-board memory and storage card—grab pictures off it, sync music and movies, and be directed to updates for our phone. There's, of course, contacts, calendar, email, tasks, notes, favorites, and files syncing just like before.
Not exactly a compelling reason to switch to Vista, but just one of the perks when you do. Check out more screens after the jump.
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Expected to be released on February 4, these rose-colored phones from Verizon should make for a nice present for the girl who's just had her cellphone contract expire. The Pink Strawberry Chocolate and the Fire-Red KRZR are expected to be $99 with a two-year engagement. Oh yeah, she'll love these much more than actual chocolates.
You can scope out the phones on Verizon's Testman site.
Testman [Verizon]
Verizon to launch KRZR Fire Chocolate Strawberry Soon [Phonearena via uber phones]
Guess there hasn't been anything good this time for the Wootoff to be going on for two days. You can also use the Woot-off checkers that auto-refresh the page so you don't have to.
Finding the right chair or sofa to cushion your derriere while playing marathon sessions of Gears of War isn't as easy as it sounds. Not only does it have to be comfortable, but it should also look cool. That's why we're liking the Sonic Chair. Design-wise, it looks like something you'd find in a footballer's mansion (or a PS3 launch party). But take a look closer and you'll notice the chair also has input jacks and built-in speakers so you can hook up your iPod, console—pretty much anything you want. It's also the first bubble chair we've found that features noise cancellation so you can lodge yourself in and make yourself oblivious to your surroundings. Sounds good to us.
Product Page [via Uber Review]
Ha ha, fooled ya. Fujitsu's releasing a Japanese-only phone, the F703, as a solution for people who really need to answer phones underwater. Or in water. Or anywhere around water. You can even safely wash your phone and still be able to carry on a conversation as if you hadn't.
Feel free to ogle the girl more after the jump.
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Similar to the EverFast USB charger, this Apex USB battery charger can charge four batteries in as many hours just from your USB port.
Essentially the same as a regular battery charger, this thing plugs into your USB port instead of the wall, which means the only people who have more USB ports free than wall sockets will want this. And if you combine it with the Battery Box, you have a stupid and inefficient way of transferring power from one set of rechargeable batteries to the other.
Product Page [Thinkgeek via PopGadget]
Canon designers must be getting penis envy over that Hasselblad 31-megapixel super-camera we showed you last week (or its 39-megapixel bro), because now we're hearing rumors that Canon might at least approach that pixel count with a 22-megapixel digital SLR in the works.
If the scuttlebutt is true, the upcoming 1Ds Mark III will add resolution over the current top dawg at Canon, the $6800 17.2-megapixel EOS-1Ds Mark II (pictured over there), and it'll deliver all these extra pixels in a body that's half the size of its large, heavy predecessor. Now all Canon has to do is create some lenses that can feed such a hungry beast.
Don't be planning any of those high-end shoots of yours around this highly capable shooter just yet, because those in the know say the camera won't be announced until PhotoPlus Expo 2007 in October.
Canon 1DS Mark III Camera? [Image Acquire]
For those of you who who beta-tested Windows Vista, you've got the chance to get 3 full copies for only $100 thanks to Microsoft's Family Discount reward system. The key you got for your free retail copy will work when registering for the Vista Family Discount, which gives you two Vista Home Premiums for $49.99 each.
For those of you who didn't beta-test Vista, you can still get the two for $99 deal when buying a copy of Vista, in case you've got multiple computers you want to install it on at home.
Vista Home Premium for $50 [The Green Button via Chris Lanier's Blog]
Is it just me, or is this Boston Aqua Teen business completely insane? How stupid are the police in Boston? And they're really going to sue Turner Broadcasting? They should sue themselves, as they're the ones that caused all of this panic. The media isn't helping anything by reporting this as a "hoax." It wasn't a hoax, it was an advertisement. They weren't trying to make it look like a bomb, which is why they make it covered in bright goddamned lights. Bombs would try to be discreet, not get people's attention and give them the finger. But it had batteries! Batteries, for the love of god! Oh, the humanity!
Am I way off base here? Is ATHF as bad as Bin Laden? Who is really to blame for the entire of city of Boston being shut down?
Established Evil Geniuses, look away. This is for the novice Evil Genius. The Evil Kinda-Smart-Guy, if you will. 101 Spy Gadgets for the Evil Genius isn't 101 spy gadgets neatly boxed for your use, it's a book that teaches you how to make your own gadgets to spy on your neighbors.
Most projects in the book can be done with a little bit of time and only $30, which is great, since your current schemes have probably been far from lucrative. But after knowing how to build your own nanny cam, figuring out how to see and photograph in the dark, wire yourself for undetected recording, and even alter photographic evidence, you're well on your way to attracting the attention of Batman and/or Jack Bauer. Wait, are they the same person?
Product Page [Amazon via Gearlog]
This week at Uncrate: We take care of our paranormal problems in the Ghostbusters Ecto 1, take care of our bodies during travel with No Cooties Travel Spray, and take care of our ever-worsening eyesight with DKNY Glasses. We also relax in the Bellazura Atlantis Tub while enjoying some of our reader's Favorite Wines, and "relax our minds" with the Volcano Vaporizer. Finally, we keep track of time with the Nooka Zub Zot Watch, remember watches of time's past with Watch Movement Cufflinks, and show you how to be just like Jack Bauer.
