Devices Site

The d20 is possibly the ultimate symbol of nerd-dom. And of course, you’d expect MIT students to fully embrace the joys of Dungeons and Dragons. So it’s entirely appropriate to find this giant 20-sided dice at MIT’s Killan Court.

The frame-and-fabric sculpture is, of a course, a tribute to the late Gary Gygax. What the D&D inventor really needs, though, is a permanent granite d20 tomb. Much better than those lame old Pharaohs, who could only manage to build their mausoleums in the shape of a d4.

The Tech [MIT via Laughing Squid]

Picture: Eric Schmiedl

Posted Mar 26th 2008 2:38AM by Thomas Ricker
Filed under: GPS, Handhelds, Portable Audio, Portable Video
Reincomm just announced the new iriver NV Life, the official name of its M20 prototype. New in that they’ve done away with the big, navigation pad of the original NV in favor of a more sleek, easily portable SatNav device with PMP functionality. Still, it’s a near spec-for-spec clone of the bigger, bulkier NV. Available in either 2GB ₩328,000 (about $367) or 4GB ₩358,000 (about $400) 4GB capacities, the SiRF Star III GPS device dedicates an SD slot to maps and second to augment the onboard flash. Inside, the WinCE 5.0-based device packs an FM-transmitter, DMB TV (with GPS PiP support), and a wide selection of codecs synonymous with the iriver name. The only downside is the display: 800 x 480 pixels spread across 7-inches of glass. On par with the industry but pretty poor when compared to cellphones which offer the same resolution on 2.8-inch displays.

Gallery: The iriver NV Life: as stirring and confusing as life itself

[Via Akihabara News]

Thinnest, smallest, fastest. The modern gadget market continues the Olympic ideals of Citius, Altius, Fortius (look it up).

Like the macbook air, the innovative Israeli Modu cellphone now has a class-leading claim, although unlike the Air, Modu’s achievement is backed up by the Guiness Book of Records. Modu emailed today to tell us the good news:

Modu has been awarded the Guinness World Record for the world’s lightest cell phone. Modu checks in at an incredible 1.41oz (or 40.1g)

Just how light is that? As we know, these things are best illustrated by office stationery: The MacBook Air fits into a manilla envelope, and, according to Modu’s Matt Stewart, the Modu is “about the same weight as a handful of paperclips.”

Product page [Modu]

Posted Mar 25th 2008 6:41PM by Darren Murph
Filed under: Misc. gadgets, Home EntertainmentNow that Blu-ray has emerged as the lone HDM victor, that aging VCR is likely looking for a new home (if it wasn’t already). Thankfully, we’ve found the perfect excuse to rip it wide open versus hauling it off to the local thrift store. In one of the more elaborate how-to guides that we’ve seen, Charles Palen explains how to create a wind-powered LED by using scrap parts within a VCR, one your youngster’s pinwheels and a varied array of power tools, wiring and calm nerves. Notably, an unwanted CD-ROM drive can be used if you’re dead set on watching those Disney classics on VHS one last time, but regardless of which apparatus you destroy, be sure and hit the read link for the step-by-step.

[Via instructables]

Western Digital is getting colorful with their new bright and shiny USB hard drives in bronze, titanium, westminster blue and cherry red all with a soft touch finish. They all feature a built-in capacity gauge to show you how much space you have left, back-up software and security measures. You can look for a 250GB model for $170 or a 320GB drive for $200
[ Source ]

Microsoft’s stepping stone to a true next-gen mobile platform, Windows Mobile 6.1, has already been largely outed thanks to a Motorola leak and Sony Ericsson’s XPERIA X1 reveal at MWC last month — but Microsoft probably still feels entitled to throw its own little party, and it might just be happening soon. Pocket-lint claims that Redmond plans to officially launch 6.1 at CTIA next week — April 1, to be exact — though there’ll be a wide gap between any announcement off in Vegas and actual availability on retail handsets, so it really doesn’t mean a whole heck of a lot to consumers right away.
[ Source ]

Retro ipod Alarm Clock - black
Synch it up to your iPod and, hey presto, it’ll wake you up to your favourite tune from the Hit Parade, or your toppermost playlist, for that matter

See price

Posted Mar 26th 2008 4:14AM by Joshua Topolsky
Filed under: Laptops
According to Jenn Lee over at Pocketables, Sony’s recently introduced “Fresh Start” — the crapware-killing do-over it’s charging $50 for on VAIO TZ2000 setups — will be making its way to all of the company’s Windows devices very soon. Apparently, Sony Senior Public Relations Strategist Jon Piazza told the site that, “Fresh Start will be rolled out to the entire product line by the end of this summer,” after being asked about the possibility of a UX180P getting a new lease on OS life. It sounds like a lovefest, certainly, but wouldn’t it be nice if we didn’t have to pay a premium for our systems to be free of mucky bloatware and storage-hogging garbage? You listening Sony?

Somehow I’m not too keen on the idea of having a computer built from wood (its case, that is), but the Ryou collection from Universal Roaming of Japan comprises of six models made from Japanese Judas trees, featuring lacquer, silver/gold powders and other culturally-inspired designs. Specifications on these units include :-

• Intel Core 2 Duo T5500 1.66GHz processor
• 2GB RAM
• 80GB hard drive
• Dual-layer DVD burner
• WiFi connectivity
• 3-in-1 memory card reader

No idea on how much these will cost, but it ought to hit your wallet hard. Each purchase does not come with an anti-termite warranty though.

The first pictures from the G.I. Joe movie (coming out next year) were just released and they give us the first small glimpse into the design of the characters. From the looks of Snake Eyes above, the filmmakers are going for a Batman Begins, realistic gritty-cool look, rather than a Batman Forever trip-candy cartoon crap look.

And if you mention that this isn’t technically a gadget, then you didn’t blow up your G.I. Joe toys when you were a kid, or used them as eating utensils, or played with them as table tennis pads, or pretended to speak to them while your parents weren’t paying attention. Because that’s what every kid I knew did back in the day.