Electronic Gadgets

Iomega have partnered with Sonic Solutions to introduce a new partnership that enables consumers to buy as well as rent premium entertainment right from the comfort of their living rooms, allowing them to view said entertainment on their own TV sets without having to leave the home. Available in time for the busy holiday season, upcoming U.S. models in Iomega’s award-winning ScreenPlay HD Media Player line will see the incorporation of the Roxio CinemaNow entertainment platform. This platform gives consumers instant access to purchase or rent movies and other premium content as long as they are connected to the Internet, where one can view said content on either standard or high definition TVs. Needless to say, if you’re going to dabble with high definition content, you would do well to make sure you’ve got a speedy Internet line in the first place.

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The Xero e-board Neo is one of those products that is a specific niche audience. As it is, I am not one of those who wants to get on a skateboard and go 14 miles per hour.

Yes, this is the e-board, an electronic skateboard that can be charged up in three to four hours, and then go about 13.5 miles from there.

Of course, if you are going to make a motorized skateboard, then the skater is going to have to control it somehow. This is why Xero created a controller that resembles slot car racer controls. However, they gave it a disturbing shape…a gun.

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After a long, hard day at the office, it makes sense if you just want to kick off your shoes and de-stress right away. If you can’t really afford expensive spa treatments, the next best thing would be remedies that can be done at home – and this is where the Personal Relaxation Coach from Hammacher attempts to help.

This is the device used by the Mayo Clinic and Duke Medical Center to help patients reduce their stress and anxiety without medication. Synchronizing your breathing with the rise and fall of the device’s illuminated LEDs and audible cues has been shown to slow heart rate, improve relaxation, and reduce stress in as soon as five minutes. Relying on the same breathing techniques taught in yoga for relaxation and stress reduction, the relaxation coach takes a pulse reading from your thumb or earlobe and instantly develops a rhythmic breathing sequence for you to follow. About the size of an MP3 player, the device stores unobtrusively in a pocket, allowing convenient use before any potentially stressful event, such as a business meeting or prior to boarding a plane. Rechargeable battery lasts up to six hours after a three-hour charge.

A non-medication route, using lights to control your breathing? Would be nice to see the $199.95 you parted with for this include some sort of built-in aromatherapy segment for added effect.

The wonders of magnets – that’s what the Levitron Revolution World Stage attempts to convey to its purchasers where it is full well capable of levitating a globe by itself. While this is definitely not something new, read on in the product description to find out what is so different about it.

You see, the globe included with the Levitron Revolution World Stage opens up, and you can remove the magnetic platform inside. This platform can then be levitated by itself. But that’s not all! It can support up to 3 oz of additional weight, which means you can put whatever you want on top to float too! Your favorite action figure or toy car, maybe. Or a spaceship or a little TARDIS. And to really show it off, there are 8 blue LED lights in the mirrored base, and the floating magnet slowly rotates. In the end, you get one beautiful presentation piece for whatever you wish to present.

The Levitron Revolution World Stage is definitely one for those who love showcasing their latest rare figures from the Warhammer series or other tabletop games, or perhaps using it as a unique way to propose to your girlfriend with a ring floating on it? Expect to fork out $99.99 to bring this piece of scientific magic home.

Forget about the traditional methods when it comes to looking for hidden treasure with a metal detector in your backyard – the Treasure Seeker’s Shoes does so without having to burden your arm one bit. Why do we say that? Well, it is strapped to one side of your leg without making you look like some sort of nerd, alerting you to any potential treasure while you non-chalantly walk about.

These Treasure Seekers have the appearance of regular beach or summer wear, but have a nifty pack that straps to your leg and beeps every time your feet pass over a priceless Roman coin. There are three LEDs on the unit – green for normal (nothing detected), yellow for the slightest hint of something that might be worth digging for, and red for full-on ‘pass me that spade, I’m rich beyond my wildest dreams’ mode. Alternatively, if the squall of the beeping alarm is too much for you, you can always set it to vibrate instead. In truth, being discreet may well buy you precious seconds while you unearth your next treasure. When you’ve detected all you want to detect, you can simply unplug the detector pack and use them as normal sandals.

Made from black plastic, you can choose from small, medium and large sizes. The control box remains put on your calf courtesy of an elasticated band, while the box is no larger than a regular walkie talkie. Be prepared to get strange looks and questions from strangers as you walk around with this though. The Treasure Seeker’s Shoes retail for £39.99 per pair regardless of size.

Some of you might not understand that “in color” reference, but if you watch enough reruns of shows from the sixties, you will often see an intro with “Show name” in color. Yeah, back then, color television was like high-def. Pretty soon I’ll be saying that back then, color TV was like 3D.

It would appear that everyone’s favorite virtual pet from the late nineties has finally got a color upgrade! Yes, it took almost a decade before Game Boy got color, and it took Tamagochi just about that long.

This new Tamagochi, also known as the Tamagochi ID, has a color LCD screen and allows for downloading accessories, rare items, and mini-games. All a user has to do is download them with a separate mobile phone and transmit them through the infrared port.

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For parents who want to make sure that their kids get a decent head start in life when it comes to education, the 3D Interactive Smart Globe might help in their quest a wee bit, at least from the geographical point of view.

Simply pick up the remote-control Smart Pen and get started – touching the control panel and any country will give you masses of useful info about whatever you touch. Currency, capital cities, national anthems, history, current leaders, in fact, anything you could conceivably want to know about world geography. We rather loved the ‘find the city’ game, where the globe announces city names and you have to find them and touch them with the magic pen as fast as possible – and there are loads of other games that had us wasting way too much time (but in an educational way). There are around 30 other similar games to keep you on your toes, too. What’s more, the pull-out map of the UK reveals another surface the Smart Pen can tell you about in great detail.

This interactive educational toy is much better than a regular textbook or encyclopedia – after all, you don’t have to fork out money every few years to update the information within as that can be done electronically through a USB cable that is hooked up to your computer. All you need to do is register your globe online, and your Smart Pen will immediately start to receive world news updates and any information changes. Truly fascinating, and for just £99.99, we’d say this is money well spent.

What has taken years of development has resulted in a self-proclaimed “best underwater propulsion device” that is available in the market, making it the ultimate underwater scooter for both divers and snorkelers. Yes, the Bladefish Sea Scooters are capable of pumping out a whole lot more power compared to its predecessors that relied on lead acid propulsion.

Unlike them, these new models can be recharged in a fraction of the time and can be easily carried as hand luggage. They’re also much smaller than their leaden predecessors and are highly manoeuvrable and compact. All models include computer controlled circuitry, double seals and a battery life meter.

You will be able to pick up the Bladefish 1000, Bladefish 2000 and Bladefish 5000 for £245.99, £299.99 and £479.99, respectively. Needless to say, the more money you fork out, the faster you’re able to travel while underwater, but it is safe to say that none of these will help you outswim any predatory shark looking for a human fillet…