We all grew up thinking that the Venus Fly Trap is but a plant, but apparently that is not the case with this artificial version. It still traps bugs though, but does not come with the nasty digestive juices that the natural version has. Instead, it can be baited to attract insects (shouldn’t be too hard for nocturnal insects - just light up the mouth and you’re good to go), trapping them via the motion-activated sensor only to be released in their natural habitat later. Perfect for those who want to study live bugs up close. The budding entomologist in your household will thank you for getting him/her one. (Read the full post about ‘Motion-activated Venus Fly Trap’…)
As reported late last week, there was an article that appeared in The Sunday Post claiming 90% DS game piracy rates in the U.S. The comments pertaining to that claim were said to have come from John Hillier, manager of ELSPA’s Intellectual Property Crime Unit.
ELSPA has now responded to the article, making it clear the claims made in the piece are false. A spokesperson for ELSPA said:
[John] didn’t quote The Sunday Post on any figures whatsoever … ELSPA would certainly never presume to comment about America or anywhere else outside of the UK.
According to ELSPA, the article appearing in The Sunday Post had been created from a number of different sources and merged to form a totally new and false piece of news.
Posted Feb 5th 2008 11:06AM by Paul MillerFiled under: Laptops, Peripherals Lenovo seems to think this whole “brick” terminology for laptop power adapters is some sort of slight on the good name of AC/DC adaptation, and is releasing a slim new combo adapter to fight that negative stereotype perpetrated by a biased media. The new $119 90W brick measures a half-inch thick and is about the size of a deck of playing cards. It can power your ThinkPad, IdeaPad or Lenovo 3000, but is also built to charge most phones and PDAs, and some music players if you buy the optional connector tips. (Read the full post about ‘Lenovo’s tiny new laptop adapter brick plays nice with others’…)
This quite splendid case mod is based on KITT, the talking car from Knight Rider. The most important part is, of course, the pulsing red light, but modder Thomas Fan has also made incorporated some pretty authentic looking elements from KITT’s dashboard. The whole thing can be started up and shut down by remote control, which is built into a car key fob.
Posted Feb 5th 2008 11:59AM by Donald MelansonFiled under: StorageThose looking for a bit more security than your standard off-the-shelf flash drive has to offer already have plenty of options to consider, and they’ve now got yet another courtesy of Kanguru, which just introduced its new KanguruDefender Pro drive. Available in 1GB, 2GB, and 4GB capacities, and in your choice of red, green, blue, tan and yellow “security colors,” the drive boasts hardware AES encryption, along with a tamper-proof aluminum casing and, of course, password-protection. Kanguru’s also seen fit to throw in a couple of decidedly non-security related measures, including custom printing and engraving (at an added cost, that is). (Read the full post about ‘Kanguru intros security-minded KanguruDefender Pro flash drive’…)
CNET UK reviews the Nokia 7900 Prism and writes, “For a 2-megapixel camera picture quality was good but it did take a long time to actually save the picture once it had been taken. It’s perfectly suitable for MMS messaging and small prints but don’t expect great shots in low light.” Read more about the Nokia 7900 Prism. (Read the full post about ‘Nokia 7900 Prism Review - CNET UK’…)
Posted Feb 5th 2008 12:31PM by Joshua TopolskyFiled under: Features, Wireless Since the first rumblings of the 700MHz auction began, there’s been a fair amount of confusion, doubt, and distress over just what exactly this whole thing means. With the champagne-chugging news that bids have reached the $4.6 billion reserve for the “C” block and enabled the “open access” rules in that sector of the bands — it seems prudent to explain just exactly what we’re getting into with this new chapter in the FCC-regulated airwaves saga, and what open access really means to you.The band explainedThe first thing you have to understand is that this frequency represents a much broader range for wireless transmission than any we’re seeing in wide use right now. (Read the full post about ‘Open access: everything you wanted to know but were afraid to ask’…)
As most of us saw this morning, the Apple online store went down, and when that happens the rumors start flying. This time it went down for a very good reason, Apple has added a 16GB iPhone and also a 32GB iPod Touch. The 16GB iPhone will join the 8GB model and it will retail for $499, the 8GB model will remain at $399. The 32GB iPod Touch will also retail for $499, while the 16GB and the 8GB models will remain at $399 and $299 respectively. Both are available immediately. While there still is not any 3G capable iPhone, the larger storage options for these models should appeal to those that were holding off due to a lack of available storage. With these rumors being put to an end, what will come next? (Read the full post about ‘Apple adds 16GB iPhone, 32GB Touch, both at $499′…)
A 16GB iPhone will go on sale in the UK today for £329 ($650). Brit blog Pocket Lint has confirmed the date with an O2 spokesperson: the official launch time is 1.30pm GMT, which, as I write this, is now. The Apple Store is also currently down, which all but confirms the news.16GB iPhone to go on sale in UK today [Pocket Lint] (Read the full post about ‘16GB iPhone Coming Any Minute Now’…)
USB Mini Vacuum Cleaner This USB powered mini vacuum cleaner is great for cleaning keyboards it works with any USB port PC or Mac comes with two interchangeable attachments the first is a flexible rubber flat tube for reaching between and under keys the second is a bristle brush for general areas. The mini vacuum cleaner also has a small LED under the main body for seeing in dark spaces and a high power boost button to give extra power when required. The coiled power cable can be stretch to 125cm and the vacuum cleaner uses an easily cleaned bag less design. Power consumption is less than 500mA so the cleaner will not over load the USB port. (Read the full post about ‘USB Mini Vacuum Cleaner’…)
