Devices Site

Posted Mar 9th 2008 5:29PM by Joshua Topolsky
Filed under: Gaming
Sure, your games are thrilling and all, but they don’t exactly cause actual pain, do they? Well, that’s all going to change thanks to the two twisted dreamers who started the company Mindwire, and their electroshock feedback device, the V5. That’s right, next time you get fragged in Unreal, sacked in Madden, or robbed in GTA — you get shocked in real life. Just the sadistic thrill you’ve been after, right? The device works by splitting your controller input to the “brain” of the V5 and your console, then sends electric jolts via electrode pads on your skin. Right now the company has a model tested and working with the PS2, Xbox, GameCube, and PCs, though they appear to be making preparations for current gen consoles in the next iteration of the device. If you’re content with the choices at hand, this self-torture can be yours for £99.99 (or around $201). Check the totally awesome video after the break to see the V5 in action.

[Via Coolest gadgets]

Dassault Systèmes invites the general public to join Fuchs in this charity race for Sports Without Borders via an Facebook application: virtual runners will be assigned 3D photorealistic avatars generated from 2D portraits and will select virtual running environments from a photo library. Once these steps completed, virtual runners will receive a video of their virtual run.

They can also build support for Sports Without Borders by inviting Facebook friends to participate, which will result in the creation of a solidarity chain linking all friends’ videos in a single virtual relay. Dassault Systèmes will feature the longest and zaniest relays in its Virtual Relay Hall of Fame on the dedicated mini-website, as well as a real-time counter of virtual (and real) kilometers run.

The kilometers run by virtual participants will be added to those run by Fuchs, and Dassault Systèmes will contribute accordingly to Sports Without Borders’ efforts to improve the living conditions of children in Latin American, Africa and Asia with athletic programs. Dassault Systèmes’ partnership with this dynamic NGO will leverage the universal appeal of 3D solutions in order to build awareness and support of Sports Without Borders’ projects internationally.

To follow or participate in the “Virtual Plus Reality Challenge”, please visit: www.3ds.com/VplusR

Posted Mar 9th 2008 3:35PM by Joshua Topolsky
Filed under: cellphones
Finally, iphone owners no longer have to mope around with a feeling of shame and embarrassment in their hearts: AT&T has blessed them with an “unlimited” calling plan. That’s right, if you so desire (and you do so desire, don’t you?), you can latch a $119.99 all-you-can-eat plan onto your super-device. Sure, it looks peachy, until you notice that despite your “unlimited” status, you still only get a measly 200 text messages, which is like a three-course steak dinner with no dessert. At least you’ll never again have to end a conversation with Mom because you’re worried about overages — though you’ll want to keep a close watch on those SMSs, since the prices seem to be constantly heading skyward.

[Thanks, impuLsive]

Maybe you were just surfing around for your next career or were up to something more sinful, when your boss decides to show up behind your back, literally. Instead of painstakingly trying to revive a decent screen on your PC, and in the process look like a silly baboon, you can now make a swift and smart move using the USB Smart Privacy Mouse and convince him that you were really being a sincere employee.

The USB Smart Privacy Mouse, as you must have already guessed, is for the wily amongst us. It has a “secret” button that can be configured to conceal any (and all) programs that you would consider private and instead bring up “decent” programs in times of need. So let’s say you are on a chat application, bitching about your boss and the devil himself walks in to say hello. Hit the button on the Smart Privacy Mouse, and voila – the screen displays the time report that you have been working so hard on. Happy boss, happy you. Smart indeed. Get wicked at $19.99.

Via The Red Ferret Journal.

Sign up for Popgadget Drop emails for weekly gadget giveaways and quick and simple tech tips.

At last week’s Apple event, Steve Jobs went over the SDK release and how they hope to manage it.  Job’s lightly reviewed reasons Apple would reject an iPhone application; things like privacy concerns, content, or interfering with their business plan.  Somehow, Sun believes they’ll build a Java version for the iphone.

According to InfoWorld, Java is planning on running the Java Virtual Machine on the iPhone.  However, according to the iPhone SDK documentation, the use of plug in architecture isn’t allowed.  It will be interesting to see how Sun works around this.

From InfoWorld:

Sun came to the conclusion it could make a JVM work on the iPhone after taking 24 hours to look at information on Apple’s SDK. Sun saw nothing in the public statements preventing the JVM from being one of the applications enabled on the iPhone, said Klein. Apple released the SDK in conjunction with the beta release if its iPhone 2.0 software; the general release of iPhone 2.0 is scheduled for June.

From the quotes used, attributed to Sun officials and analysts, they seem to forget Apple has complete control over the apps and absolute control over what gets on (unjailbreaked, at least).

Read [InfoWorld] via [Ars Technica]

Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed →

Posted Mar 9th 2008 7:08AM by Paul Miller
Filed under: Storage
Samsung promised it was coming in March, and here she blows. The Spinpoint M6 is the first standard-height 500GB 2.5-incher available, at a lean 9.5mm, meaning you can cram it into most existing laptops unlike the 2.5-inch 500 giggers from Fujitsu and Hitachi. Samsung’s using some Perpendicular Magnetic Recording tech to cram everything in, stuffing three 167GB platters into the 5400rpm drive. The M6 goes for $299 and is shipping now. If DVD burning is more your pace, Samsung also just announced an “industry fastest” 22X DVD burner, the SH-S223. The SATA drive can stamp a 4.7GB disc in 12 minutes, and does dual-layer discs at a respectable 16X. No word on price yet for that one.

My wife has a MacBook that I borrow from time to time. Now and then when I’m using it while plugged into the wall I’ll accidentally unplug the MagSafe power adapter. It’s really not a big deal, as it pops back into place rather easily. My wife, however, hates it when she knocks it out. I don’t really understand this obsession with having the plug stay in at all times, but at least I’ve found a simple gadget that will prevent it from happening in the future.

This is one of those things that you know the company that designed it will make a small fortune. It’s a simple piece of plastic that probably costs peanuts to make, yet provides a function that tons of people are going to want. You just plug it into the neighboring USB port, and it keeps your MagSafe adapter in place until you’re really ready to take it out. It’s cheap too, just $11.99.

Source: CrunchGear

Posted Mar 9th 2008 11:38AM by Darren Murph
Filed under: Misc. gadgets
Keeping with the Tangent tradition, the Quattro Mk 2 looks an awful lot like most every other tabletop radio the outfit cranks out. Nevertheless, this particular iteration pays no mind to DAB and focuses its attention on providing access to a smorgasbord of internet radio stations. Aside from featuring both integrated WiFi and an Ethernet port, you’ll also get WPA2 security support, FM tuning capabilities, a backlit LCD, a headphone jack and a auxiliary port for connecting DAPs / PMPs. Word on the street has the walnut and black models selling now for £179.95 ($362), while the glossy red and white versions demand an extra £20 ($40).

[Via Tech Digest]

Earlier this year we raved about the FPS Gaming Vest that punches you when you get shot, well if you don’t fancy being punched there is now an alternative, Mindwire V5 gives you physical feedback by way of electric shocks.

History of the Mindwire V5

“How much better would games such as Mortal Kombat or Streetfighter be if you were ELECTROCUTED each time you were hit!”

Sudenly there’s something to play for. Watch your opponent squirm as you beat him to a pulp, and fear every one of your opponents blows as you know its going to do a lot more than make your little animated character full backwards…

The Mindwire V5 works by connecting electrical pads to your body these then deliver a mild (we hope) shock when playing games. It has a ‘dumb dumb’ mode for existing games (reacts to the force-feedback signal) and offers other ’special’ features for specially designed games.

You can find more information and buy online for £99.99 (~$200) from the Mindwire V5 site [via The Sun].

USB Poise Lamp

This stylish retro designed USB lamp in silver is ideal for shedding a light on the subject when you’re burning the midnight oil. Due to the elbow design the angle of the lamp is adjustable to suit your needs whilst the power is supplied by any available USB port on your laptop or pc. USB 1.1 interface plug & play usable for Windows and Mac.