Archive for the ‘USB Gadgets’ Category
Thursday, December 11th, 2008 |
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I’ve seen that admitting to never have heard about Jabra headphones is some sort of a blasphemy. Doing some research, I discovered that Jabra Corporation, founded back in 1983 as Narcom Electronics Corporation, by inventor and entrepreneur Elwood “Woody†Norris, is a manufacturer of headsets for cell phones and other applications which are owned by GN Netcom, a Danish-based company. I haven’t got the least idea about Jabra, but now I know.
Two days ago, GN Netcom announced the launch of two brand new Jabra Bluetooth headsets, the M5390 USB and the BT530 USB Multiuse. Being so lightweight, you are able to live the most comfortable audio experience of them all. A great thing about these headsets is that they are compatible with eight devices, such as PDAs, cell phones and wideband PC soft-phones. On the other hand, you can use them with two devices simultaneously, so if the headset is connected to a mobile phone and a wideband PC soft-phone, you’ll be able to answer the phone that is ringing, no matter which one it is, using the same headset. If, on the other hand, the two devices the headsets are paired to are a computer and a phone, you’re allowed to listen to your favorite music on the PC and answer the phone, without having to change headsets.
When it comes to the features, the Jabra M5390 USB works with mobile and PC-based soft-phones, but there are versions that are compatible with standard desk phones also. The specs include: plug-and-play Bluetooth connectivity to PC or VoIP, Jabra PC Suite with e-hook functionality for Microsoft Office Communicator, Skype and Cisco IP Communicator, wideband audio and a microphone that has a noise cancellation feature, true wideband sound quality, two wearing styles (earhook and headband). The Jabra M5390 has a foot range of up to 200 feet and provides up to 6 hours of talk time and up to 60 hours of dtand-by time.
The Jabra BT530 USB, on the other hand, is equipped with a noise cancellation feature that is meant to eliminate background noise. The features include: plug-and-play Bluetooth adapter for PC applications and soft-phones, the same Jabra PC Suite that has VoIP functionality for Skype, Cisco and Microsoft Office Communicator. Pairing with 8 devices, this third generation ear gel design can be found in three different sizes which can be worn in the manner you most like, with or without the earhook. Weighing 0.35 ounces, the headset provides up to 5.5 hours of talk time, up to 250 hours of standby time and up to 33 feet as far as the foot range is concerned.
If you’re interested in purchasing these Jabra Bluetooth headsets, the BT530 has a retail price of $129 and is currently shipping. The other device, on the other hand, the M5390, has a retail price of $191 and is expected to start shipping from January, 2009.
(Source: coolest-gadgets.com)
Posted in Phone Gadgets, USB Gadgets | No Comments »
Tuesday, December 9th, 2008 |
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When you see how many devices are launched on market on a daily basis, how impressive they are and the revolutionary technologies they are based on, you can easily understand how much the humanity has evolved during the past decades. It’s amazing, you must agree, the fact that imagination has no boundaries whatsoever and this is the perfect premise for the world to change.
Imagine, for example, that you can use a device that is usually designed for specific purposes to do lots of other things that you would have never imagined and that you would have considered incompatible with the device in the first place.
You have a wrist watch. What is it supposed to do? Telling time, maybe? Isn’t this the reason they’re designed by all sorts of manufacturers? Ok, timepieces might be incredible pieces of jewelry also, but come on, they have to keep you connected with the time aspect. Everything else besides that is just a bonus, if I may say so.
Anyway, the point is that Thanko, a Tokyo-based company, has just announced an analog wrist watch that is equipped with an integrated video camera. You read it right, a video camera. These devices have become so small in the last years, that they can be incorporated in almost anything that a person would like. And the Video Camera Analog Watch is the proof that multifunctional devices are must haves these days. I’m not sure why someone would like to own such a device, but those who consider that keeping a close eye on their dearest ones is very important, they will surely appreciate this wrist watch.
It is able to record up to 2 hours of video using a mini camera that has its lens placed somewhere between 1 and 2 o’clock. Having a resolution of 352 x 288, the camera can be used to record up to 4GB of video material and the best thing about it is that it also records sounds. If you want to transfer the video on your PC, you can do this via USB.
Nevertheless, the device can also be used like a common watch. If you want to purchase it, you can do this for approximately $140. The bad thing is that it seems that this spy camera is available for now just in Japan.
(Source: Dvice)
Posted in Electronic Gadgets, USB Gadgets | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 4th, 2008 |
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Everyone is talking about the economic crisis several countries are going through for some time now. People are concerned about their future and financial stability and they’re more cautious about their savings as never before. In the given context, “ Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of Flash storage solutions and DRAM memory modules, today announced a limited edition 18-carat solid gold USB drive that comes with a serialized Certificate of Authenticity†(Note: today refers to October 28, 2008).
I don’t know about you, but I expect something spectacular from this company, if they want me to buy such a thing. Not only the features, but also the advertising campaign should blow me away, in order to make me consider the device instead of spending my money on a fabulous week in Ibiza, for example.
The limited edition drive from Super Talent Technology is a member of the Pico-C line, which is water resistant and supports transfer speeds up to 30MBps. The Pico-C has become the hallmark of style and quality in USB drives and is prized for its beautiful design and incredibly small size.
Now, for a limited time only, Super Talent makes us an offer that we can’t refuse (is it?): an 8 GB custom-made 18-carat solid gold Pico-C drive that includes: serialized Certificate of Authenticity, 18-carat gold keychain, FIPS certified AES-256 Encryption software, your text or logo laser etch onto the drive at no change and a black velvet jewelry box.
This rare collector’s item makes an eloquent corporate gift and is available only on a preorder basis for a limited time, with three to four weeks lead time. And it will only cost you $599. Isn’t this what you could easily call a lucky bargain?
(Source: gadgets.boingboing.net)
Posted in USB Gadgets | No Comments »
Tuesday, October 21st, 2008 |
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You’re caught in the middle of the most terrible working periods you’ve had in the last years and you’re on the edge of breaking down. As if it weren’t enough, you receive tons of emails from all sorts of people who must want something from you otherwise they wouldn’t dare to disturb you when you most need some peace. This kind of distraction is very common nowadays, especially because there are so many ways for you to be announced that you’ve just got mail.
Here’s a new way to be informed of all incoming emails without having Windows Live Messenger tell you in a square pop-up window at the bottom right hand side of a typical desktop display: via USB Webmail Notifier.
Maybe some of you, who do not enjoy very much the constant deluge of emails, won’t find the exact utility of such an office gadget. You work in an office with a computer that’s connected to the Internet and emails are part of your work routine so it’s to be assumed that you’re using an email client with notification settings as well. It’s enough you’re having all of those balloons popping up on your screen (hopefully in the lower corner) and dings that let you know that you’ve got mail. Therefore, such a device is the last thing you need, right?
The USB Webmail Notifier is a luminous desktop gadget that will light up when incoming email has reached your inbox. It’s kind of tough to miss this big blue envelope, isn’t it? The device connects to your private email account when you can’t and lets you know what is going on. It supports gmail, yahoo, outlook express and POP3 account and it works in the background to inform you every time you receive a personal email and even the capacity of unread emails. More than that, every new email will be illuminated soft light and associated with a sound.
There is no battery required, as we’re talking about a USB peripheral that can get power from your computer. All you need is a small cable and you’re ready to go. On the other hand, it can change colors to let you know when your inbox is almost full. Ok, the USB Webmail Notifier could be somewhat useful when it comes to webmail but come on, every webmail provider shows you the status of your inbox directly on the dashboard.
The USB Webmail Notifier comes with blue, red and green indicator and it’s compatible with Windows 2000, XP and Vista. There is no word about the Mac compatibility, at least not yet.
Measuring 74 x 30 x 47 millimeters (approximately) and weighing 62 grams, this could be the next device in the email notifiers list you’ve already own, for an amount of $17.00 from Brando.
(Source Dvice)
Posted in USB Gadgets | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 24th, 2008 |
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Imagination has no boundaries, I’ve said it before, and I could say it over and over again. Whether we’re fully aware of the development of mankind or not, we witness the immeasurable creativity of the human mind on a regular basis. It’s like an explosion that can’t be stopped, whatsoever, the primordial Big Bang that created the universe and reinvents it day by day.
Maybe I wasn’t born to be an inventor, I’m pretty sure about that, but I can’t explain myself how people come up with all sorts of unbelievable concepts. I, for example, have always thought that food has one purpose and one purpose only: to be eaten. It’s the tragic destiny of fruits and vegetables and I’m mildly sympathetic. It’s hard to be one, when you are not left alone and your life comes to an end earlier than expected. But what’s better: a sudden end or a bunch of ingenious people having you sculptured according to their imagination?
In this context, toast printers shouldn’t take us by surprise. They are not something new, but one of the finalists in the design competition run by the appliance manufacturer Electrolux brought a novelty which made everyone talk about it. It’s a scanner designed to print out any graphic or text onto a slice of bread and it’s said to be the first internet-enabled toasting printing appliance. I don’t know where this fascination with burning images into toast comes from, but one thing is for sure: you can read your RSS feeds or the latest headlines at breakfast, from your slices of bread and then eat them.
The Scan Toaster was created by industrial designer Sung Bae Chang, student of Sejong University in South Korea, and submitted it in the 2008 Electrolux Design Lab contest which ends October 9 in Zurich, Switzerland.
The small printer is about the size of a CD case and connects to a computer via USB cable. Once you’ve plugged in the toaster to a free USB port and the slice of bread is in its place, pictures, logos, news and weather are downloaded and the software will start burning what you want.
The toaster features a network of toasting “modulesâ€, meaning hot wires that rotate within a 30 degree radius and help burn the image or text onto the slice of bread. As far as printing elements are concerned, they are small enough to toast pixels at a fairly high resolution and with varying brightness (burnt-ness, in this case) and allow recognizable brownscale images.
The Scan Toaster is undoubtedly a very interesting concept, but it’s still in its design stage, so there are no plans to manufacture it on a mass scale. Although it’s fun to see what level technology can attain, I’m not sure I’d like my boyfriend to eat at breakfast a slice of bread with my face on it. For the only reason that having such a piece of art destroyed would be the greatest sin of them all.
(Source engadget.com)
Posted in Funny Gadgets, USB Gadgets | 1 Comment »
