Audio/Video Gadgets

Do I realize that the cold seasons have passed and that the heat of summer is just around the corner? Do I ever, and frankly I can’t wait! It’s understood that some of you out there are fall and winter lovers. That’s cool, I’m just not down with it. The cold seasons have that unforgiving side effect of shivering which is enough to warrant disdain from this chilly blogger.

Now that the steamy seasons of summer are quickly approaching, it’s time to start planning for the chill that will start moving in around September. One of the reasons I despise winter so much is the way that winter apparel is always in the way of me fulfilling my gadget duties. Wearing clunky gloves means I can’t text message properly. Wearing a hat to cover my ears means I can’t listen to my iPod without looking awkward or feeling uncomfortable. The iLogic Sound Hat allows for an ear warming and music listening synergy.

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Say what you like about Blu-ray emerging as the victor in next-gen high definition wars, but DVD is still here to stay - at least for a few more years to come. With the credit crunch affecting virtually everyone from top to bottom (even more so in the latter category), not everyone has the disposable income to splurge on a spanking new HDTV. This means DVDs could remain in the market for a few more years longer than expected before HD content takes over. Apple is going to seize the opportunity to release films on their iTunes Store on the same day where said films are released on the DVD format in brick-and-mortar stores after coming to an agreement with a number of major motion picture studios including 20th Century Fox, Walt Disney Studios, Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Lionsgate, Image Entertainment, and First Look Studios.

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AT&T is nearly one year late to the game, having launched its mobile TV service this Sunday and playing catch up with bitter rival Verizon Wireless by offering broadcast TV services for those who are constantly on-the-go. Unfortunately, AT&T’s Mobile TV will be restricted to only a couple of clel phones, and high end ones at that. First off we have the touch screen maestro Vu from LG, while the other would be the Access from Samsung. The Vu and Access will retail for $399.99 and $299.99, respectively, although you can cut off $100 from that retail price with a mail-in rebate. Needless to say, picking up either would mean having you tie down yourself to a 2-year contract with AT&T.

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ZeeVee has announced the launch of its ZvBox today, bringing yet another consumer electronics product that is used for watching Internet TV, online video or computer content on that spanking new HDTV in your living room. This sounds like a timely device considering the explosion of Internet TV and movie downloads that have so far been confined to the (relatively) small display on your computer - unless you’re one of those folks who prefer working with your PC hooked up to your HDTV. Some other solutions to date haven’t exactly been working out too well in solving this problem as drawbacks include limited content, added subscription fees and the need for a box at each TV.

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Korean company DigiFi has developed a product known as the Opera, which has nothing to do with a certain genre of musical theater. However, if you want to use it to listen to opera, it will work for that.

This might not be obvious from the photo, but the Opera is a pair of headphones that was designed to wrap around the back of your head with an ear bud on each side. Even though the ear buds are attached, there is no cord connecting this headset to the iPod. Instead of a cord, it uses Kleer technology.

For those of you who are not familiar with Kleer, it is a wireless technology that claims to have better specifications than Bluetooth. In the case of the Opera, all you need to do is plug in the Kleer wireless transmitter to the MP3 Player’s headphone jack, and the headphones will be synced wirelessly to your player.

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When was the last time you found yourself in a store looking to purchase a new CD player? I’m not talking about one for your car, or even a portable one, but just a CD player for a room in your house. If you’re anything like me, it’s been a very long time. This is why companies that still make such devices are trying their hardest to make CD players more appealing to consumers. Take this strange CD-T300 Pro for example.

Shanling, the company responsible for creating this device specializes in making rather unique products. They stand apart both inside and out. It’s easy to see how the neon lights and interesting shapes are going to draw a few strange glances from visitors in your house, but that’s not what really sets this apart from the rest of the crowd.

The CD-T300 features four amplification valves which are supposed to offer some of the best sound quality around. How good is the sound quality? I can’t say for sure, but they seem to think its worth $12,000. I think I’ll just stick with my iPod dock.

Source: Crave

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The quest for the coolest gadget for many people ultimately boils down to finding a device that merges form, usability, usefulness, and time saving in one. When I think of the time wasted using a lot of video capture tools, it blows my mind that a more time efficient way of shooting a video and uploading it to your computer hasn’t been a key innovation from major gadget producers.

I think I’ve finally found that mix of effectiveness and ease of transfer in the Flip Ultra Video Camera. While it’s not the perfect gadget for the pro video photographer among us, it’s mix of over simplified usability and accessories makes it a great tool for the amateur shooter.

Possibly the coolest feature the Flip offers is its simple flip-out USB stick, which makes uploading videos as simple as whipping out the on-board peripheral and plugging it right into your port. The video transfer couldn’t be any easier unless it did it for you (which it probably will someday.)

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I can’t help but remember back to 1989, when the Tim Burton Batman film swept the box office. This prompted a whole slew of Batman-related products to hit the market, and consumers worldwide bought them en masse. Unfortunately, Batman merchandise completely tanked when they were re-released for Batman Returns.

It appears that this summer’s The Dark Knight, another Batman sequel, still has merchandizing potential. A company called Pop Gadget is putting out a slough of Batman products including Iron-on patches, 3D Magnet Heads, LCD Watches, and the Bat Logo MP3.

The Bat logo MP3 Player has 1GB worth of memory, which is enough for about 240 songs. All of this fits into a 7 centimeter housing shaped like the famous bat logo, and has a cool blue outline.

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