Archive for September, 2007
Join The Cat Mouse from Japan
A Cat Mouse sounds like an oxymoron, but only in Japan can you find such an interesting computer peripheral. Actbrise has released a cat that is actually a computer mouse, and it has a design that leans more towards the joystick than everyone’s favorite pointing peripheral. Tilt the cat left and the pointer will move accordingly. A quartet of buttons on the back cater for normal clicks and scrolling purposes. It relies on a wired USB connection to work and retails for $70 each. Why so expensive, you ask? For starters, it is handmade by skilled craftsmen, and anything crafted out of hand normally carries a premium price tag.
Source: New Launches
Palm Centro says, “Hello World!”
Palm has just released its smallest smartphone known as the Centro, and you definitely won’t expect the usual high end features that come with Palm’s releases (admit it – their line of Treos always worked up a frenzy each time they were released, only to be superceded by other notable handsets a short while later). The Centro will strangely enough, occupy the low end segment of the mobile market as Palm aims to revive its flagging fortunes by offering a (much) cheaper alternative to the highly desirable iPhone. The Centro is but a stripped down version of the Treo, being smaller and lighter, and will retail for a mere $100 – a price point that is sensitive enough to make it an impulse purchase in some cases.
Continue reading » Palm Centro says, “Hello World!”
Competition Time – Win an Electric Scooter
We wrote about the Jamie Oliver survival kit earlier in the month, it’s pretty cool but at the end of the day it’s a set of pans. However the marketing company are running a cool competition to get the word out called Hack the Kit
For a chance of winning a cool electric scooter all you need to do is submit a hack:
What’s a “hack” you say? Well, it’s a way of solving an everyday problem (like, what to do when you get hungry behind the wheel?) with an ingenious solution (fry an egg on your car’s motor!).
We want you to think of new ways to use the Jamie Oliver Survival Kit and come up with crazy, fun or useful hacks.
All ideas will be considered. No hack too bizarre. Just make sure it uses the Jamie Oliver Survival Kit, submit your hack idea here and you’ll go into the draw. Make sure you get your submission in by 12th October 2007.
Whoever submits the best hack will win the scooter (valued at ~$350) and if the hack is from one of our readers (which after reading some of the witty comments you lot leave we have a very good chance) we’ll also win an electric scooter, which we will then give away to another CG reader so there are a potential two scooters up for grabs (oh and 20 sets of Jamie Oliver pans).
To enter, you need to get your creative juices flowing and post your idea over on hack the kit and make sure you set the source to Coolest Gadgets.
Have fun.
Windows XP won’t bow out so soon
Looks like even a powerful corporation like Microsoft will have to bow down to pressure from its customers, and the company has decided not to cut off life support from the Windows XP operating as it originally intended to. Where major PC manufacturers were supposed to stop selling XP-powered machines from January 31st onwards this year, they successfully lobbied Microsoft to allow them to do so until June 30 – basically an extension of five months. Microsoft currently aims to keep ye olde XP on retail shelves for a while longer, while enabling computer makers in upcoming markets to construct machines that run on the Windows XP Starter Edition until June 2010. That’s pretty good news to me – it means my XP machines ought to receive support at least until then, when Vista’s major bugs would be but history then.
Continue reading » Windows XP won’t bow out so soon
The Wooden Chair Mat
Wheeling your chair along carpet is no where near as much fun as a wooden floor, but we can’t all have the luxury of a nice wooden floor, some of us have to put up with cheapy carpet tiles. However we can now experience the fun of wood thanks to the hardwood office chair mat.
This portable office mat is 1″ thick, comes fully assembled, stays in place, and will not warp or deteriorate, unlike typical plastic office mats that crack and splinter. It has two fold-out wings that are connected with a patent pending recessed hinge system hidden from view that will not mar surfaces nor snag carpet.
The wooden mat will set you back $299.95 and only covers 48″ x 49″ (not enough space for any decent chair race) so maybe carpet tiles aren’t that bad after all.
Anti-stress milk, from Japan of course
Yet another strange product from Japan. This time, it’s a natural product. Milk. However, it’s not normal milk.
It’s taken from cows only once a week, at the break of dawn. This way, the milk is about 4 times richer in natural melatonin than usual. Melatonin is considered to be a strong stress reliever.
The fact that the milk is bottled at no more than 6 hours after the milking also helps it to retain natural properties.
What’s truly stunning about this milk however is its price: $43 for a 900-milliliter bottle. Quite ‘spensive, isn’t it?
The original press release is right after the break.
Continue reading » Anti-stress milk, from Japan of course
ElmoSapien – How to Humiliate your Robosapien
ElmoSapien is the latest free custom personality for WowWee’s Robosapien RS Media robot. In this video, complete with a furry red costume and Elmo’s attitude, watch ElmoSapien interact with other robots and clumsily initiate his plans for world domination. Robosapien RS Media owners can download the ElmoSapien custom personality for free at the URL below the YouTube Embed code. The ElmoSapien custom personality contains over 210 unique voice files.
Continue reading » ElmoSapien – How to Humiliate your Robosapien
