The Sansa Fuze from SanDisk, is a cool little MP3/4 player along the same vein as the iPod Nano. We’ve recently been sent one to play with so here are our thoughts and findings (or a review so to speak).

Aesthetically the Fuze is a cute little player.The physical UI consists of a rotating front dial which also acts as the 4 navigation buttons with the center button for selection. The display crisp with a resolution of 220 x 176, large enough for watching the odd music video but you wouldn’t want to watch a feature length film on it. Sound quality was good (though as with just about any MP3 player the supplied headphones aren’t the greatest). What most impressed me about the Fuze are the extra features that you don’t find on other (note iPod) players, including:

• Built in microphone
• FM radio
• microSD Slot, a really cheap way to expand the capacity
• Easy to transfer files (drag and drop) without the need of propriety software

Though there are a few downsides:

• Propriety USB connection, it obviously comes the cable but a standard mini USB connection would be much more convenient especially for charging
• You bookmark videos but not audio books

The Fuze comes in 2, 4 and 8GB versions with prices starting from ~$70 at Amazon.

If you fancy winning our review unit be sure to check out our next coolest gadget of the week (don’t want to miss it, sign up for our free daily email digest).

If you’re an avid jogger or cyclist who still wants to enjoy listening to your favorite tunes while working out a sweat on the pavement, perhaps it would be more prudent to invest in a pair of AirDrives? These allow you to groove to your tracks without missing out on ambient sounds that could mean the difference between life and death as a vehicle bears down on your six. The AirDrives rest just outside the ear, allowing you to stay alert to traffic, announcements and people around you. Audio from your MP3 player are transmitted using bone conduction technology. You can choose from adult, kids, and iPhone versions which retail for £49.99, £39.99 and £59.99, respectively.

Source: Shiny Shiny

For those who are addicted to iPods, there is a new product that helps you to “cut the cord”. I’m not talking about breaking your iPod habit, because who would want to do that? I am talking about making your iPod experience cordless.

Using the iMuffs from Wi-Gear will remove the thin wires of the headphones by making them completely wireless. It works by plugging the Bluetooth transmitter into the iPod, and it works without any complex Bluetooth pairing. I was surprised that it worked so quickly.

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Chinavasion has produced an MP4 player known as CVSJ-1304-4GB, which is notable because it is 4.5 mm thick, making it the world’s thinnest.

Is it just me, or is suspicion aroused when I hear “world’s thinnest” (or world’s anything, for that matter). First of all, it is hard to verify that, as there are so many companies who make Portable Media Players (PMPs) worldwide. Not only that, PMP technology changes all the time, so by the time this report is written, some other company will come out with a product the world’s thinnest, smallest, or whatever.

I believe that Reachgood’s PMP said they were the world’s thinnest at 5.5 mm, and this new one from Chinavasion beats it by a whole millimeter! This unit has a 1.8 inch display with 160 x 128 resolution, a 2.5 millimeter headphone jack, a USB 2.0 port, as well as a rechargeable battery. It supports media formats such as MP4, MP3, WMA, ASF, and WAV, and even has an FM tuner.

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Fans of Legend of Zelda will definitely be thrilled to know that ThinkGeek is now offering the Ocarina for you to make music with. This is a real-world, playable musical instrument made from glazed earthenware - which means you will break it into a million pieces in the event it is used as a projectile in a domestic disagreement. There are half a dozen holes in total, and it plays note from C4 to D5. Each purchase comes with a song book complete with instructions on belting out your favorite Zelda tunes. To top it all off, a Tri-Force logo is located on the stem for that added authentic look.

I am always amazed with the new ways that we find to communicate. Ten years ago, most people didn’t use cell phones, and email capability was somewhat limited. Don’t even get me started on Instant Messaging or text messaging. Were they even around back then?

Now, there is new way to communicate with Speak-A-Message. This is a free audio recorder that can make or send voice messages through email. It is available for download, and shows up on the computer screen as a separate window.

The user has the option of putting a different “skin” on that window based on pre-programmed patterns or can even customize the skin with a digital photo. The user also has the option of adding sound effects to their message if they want.

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Samsung aims to launch a serious assault in the world of LCD HDTVs (not that they already aren’t trying their darndest best at the moment) with the new Series 9 LED LCD HDTVs. This flagship line is the second generation LCD HDTV from Samsung to utilize LED SmartLighting technology which merges both LED and 120Hz technologies for some truly stunning specifications and performance in the living room. More of these features will be listed down in detail after the jump, but to kickstart the entire new range, we will cover a couple of models - the 46″ and 54″ in this post.

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The XARA iPlay Jacket is unique and different from any other jacket you’ve seen, since it comes in iPod-white color and boasts a space for you to store your iPod inside safely and securely. Of course, since the iPod is well-hidden within, it makes perfect sense that the XARA iPlay Jacket comes with a sleeve-based iPod remote control for you to choose whatever track you want to listen to without having to take out the iPod and put it back in again. Features include a mesh lining, bungy sleeves and hem for wind protection while inner cuff hand warmers are there to help keep your hands warm and toasty during those chilly days. The XARA iPlay Jacket will retail for $150.

Product Page via OhGizmo!