Hi-tech Frontier

Edifier iF500 iPod/iPhone Speaker My eyes usually glaze over when I come across yet another iPod/iPhone speaker dock, but there’s just something about the iF500 from Edifier that managed to pique my curiosity, and I think it might have something to do with the massive bulbous speaker clearly designed to mock subtlety. The iF500 supports various models of the iPod and iPhone via a built-in dock, but an aux input also allows you to connect anything featuring an audio output like cellphones or other MP3 players that clearly aren’t worth mentioning by name. A “5 driver speaker system incorporates unique vibration and resonance control technolories coupled with low frequency porting and mid-range tuned cavities for smoother cleaner audio” and it also comes with the company’s patented EIDC or ‘Electrical Intelligent Distortion Control’ system if inane acronyms are an important feature for you. But if looks or sound quality aren’t enough to convince you to drop $249 on the iF500, keep in mind...

Frolicat Bolt Takes The Effort Out Of Playing With Your Cat I have a cat, and like most other felines she loves laser pointers. I generally spend a little bit each day using it to drive her crazy. It really doesn’t take much effort, and it entertains me almost as much as it does her. However, if you don’t feel like putting all of the effort into waving you wrist around, you can get a device to do it for you. ##CONTINUE## The Frolicat Bolt is a laser pointer that moves around on its own. You can set it on a table (or any other surface really) and have it move the laser in a random pattern for 15 minutes, after which time it will automatically turn off. You can also put it on manual mode and use it like an ordinary pointer. If you’re too busy to keep up with your cat, you can pick one of these up for just $20.

iDive300 Waterproof Case For The iPod & iPhone I always thought that diving itself was supposed to be an enjoyable activity, so I’m scratching my head as to why anyone would need to bring along some other form of entertainment while down there. But that’s exactly what the iDive300 deep dive waterproof case is for. It’s designed for the iPod, iPod Touch and the iPhone and allows you to watch movies or listen to music (with an included pair of over the ear speakers) at a depth of up to 300 feet underwater. And while down there you’ll still have control over your media thanks to a set of waterproof buttons on the side of the case. With a price tag of $349.99 the case is kind of hard to justify, even if it does make decompression stops a bit less boring, but it does come with peace of mind thanks to a replacement warranty for your iPod or iPhone should anything ever happen to them as a result of the iDive300 failing.

Elecom U2H-TC410B Wall Socket USB Hub Well this one’s pretty self-explanatory. Elecom’s horribly named ‘U2H-TC410B’ USB hub is designed to mount to the side of your desk or a nearby wall, thanks to its magnetic backing or a set of included hooks, so that you always have easy access to a set of 4 USB ports. And the ports are generously spread out to accommodate thicker USB cables or larger flash drives. $39.99 from AudioCubes in your choice of black or white.

iPhone OS 3.0 Bluetooth Speakers These cubic mini speakers comes with a built-in rechargeable battery that lasts up to 8 hours. The wireless Bluetooth technology allows you to stream the music from your iPhone or iPod. The E-blue Bluetooth Speaker drive unit is made of Titanium. It features fantastic bass, mid-range and high audio output. The E-blue Bluetooth Speaker for iPhone 3GS is available over at USB Brando for $68.

USB Hub with Card Reader and Thermometer This 3-in-1 USB gadget features a 3-port USB 2.0 compliant hub, a card reader that supports most of the latest memory cards, and a Fahrenheit thermometer. ##CONTINUE## Features: 3 Port Rotary USB Hub USB 2.0 Card Reader: MS/M2/SD/SDHC/MicroSD Temperature Meter Dimension: 7.2 cm x 7 cm x 3.3 cm Weight: 111 The USB Hub with Card Reader and Thermometer is available over at the GizFever.com website for $11.99. There are three different colors to choose from: blue, green and black.

Illuminated USB Audio Tube This illuminated tube is actually an external and portable sound card. Simply hook it up to your PC via USB and you can then plugin your headphones, speakers or microphone. It is the best entertainment for games, DVD and music, etc. In addition, it looks like a transparent vacuum tube appearance. The USB Tube Delight Audio is yours for $32 from the USB Brando website.

Multicolor USB Jellyfish Aquarium Here’s a new version of those popular jellyfish aquariums. This latest “moody light” model is equipped with multicolor LED lights that lets you circle though five soft lights. Watching the lifelike Jellyfishes swimming, let your stress fading away and gives you sensation of relaxation. It is so simple in the operation! Just add water into the tank, connect the USB cable to the USB port. A small motor generates a current in the water, encouraging the jellyfish to swim gently and freely. The jellyfishes won’t starve or make a mess, they just swim and sleep whenever you want. ##CONTINUE## Features: USB-powered desktop aquarium Swimming jellyfish and life-like motion 5 bright LEDs – cycle through colors or select your favorite one On/Off Switch Plug and play No batteries required Dimension: 175 x 122 x 255mm (approx.) Weight: 750g The USB Jellyfish Mini Aquarium with Moody Light is yours for $49 from USB Brando.

Robotic Dog With Solar System I really like reading or browsing about technology whatever look like and will spend my time all day long to browse information especially about technology. One day I’m surprise that I found a sophisticated stuff. I conclude that this is because the development of technology. Robot is also proving that technology develops rapidly. ##CONTINUE## What makes me surprise is the robot is in the form of a dog and the most interesting is that it can be changed into 6 different forms including boat and car. The gadget called 6-in-1 solar robot kit. I realized that the price is not cheap enough but I want to have it someday. For the power on, this robot using a solar system, even it uses natural solar system so it very ecologically friendly. The sunlight will go through the panel system and produce heat. The heat will make the robot move. And we can minimize the use of electricity because we don’t have to charge it everyday. It really amazing, having a robotic pet a...

MyDeskFriend robot penguin will link to Facebook, be a true friend Robots and other devices linked to social networking sites aren't exactly anything new, but few have been in the form of tiny robot penguins, and even fewer have been tiny robot penguins with hats. That bit of mold-breaking comes courtesy of upstart Arimaz of Switzerland, which is now busy showing off its MyDeskFriend "Facebook companion" that's set for release this September. As you can see in the video after the break, the bot is able to mosey about your desk without falling off and react to your voice like any good robot, but its real secret is that it can connect to Facebook and read your messages, or even be controlled (some may say tormented) by your real Facebook friends. Look for it to run $99 when it's released.

Sungale WiFi Widget photo frame Sungale's recently unleashed a WiFi-enabled, widget-having digital photo frame -- the ID800WT -- and the fine folks over at Zatz Not Funny have taken it for a little spin. The 800 x 600 resolution touchscreen boasts 512 MB of internal storage, and widgets for weather, news, Picasa, YouTube, Gmail, and Internet radio. The reviewer didn't find the widgets to be particularly awesome, in many respects -- their implementation, for instance, made the Gmail app "nearly useless" because it displayed only a few lines at a time, and many had trouble connecting to the internet properly. It wasn't all doom and gloom, however -- they really liked the frame in theory, and thought that the company was shooting for the right idea -- they just didn't actually succeed. The frame will be available sometime in the coming month for about $165.

AgfaPhoto rolls out rugged, waterproof DV-600uw camera AgfaPhoto's new DV-600uw rugged camera may not be quite as stylish as Pentax's latest ruggedized offering, but it looks like it has it beat where it counts, with it able to handle submersion in water up to 33 feet deep (compared to the Pentax's 16 feet), and hold up to the usual drops, dust, and dirt for good measure. Unfortunately, things are a bit less impressive when it comes to the core camera specs, with this one packing just 6-megapixels, no optical zoom, and a plain old VGA movie mode instead of 720p -- not to mention just one choice of color. If that extra ruggedness makes the difference for you, however, you can pick this one up right now for $199.

Sanyo's Eneloop lamp heals your ecological soul We've been fans of Sanyo's rechargeable Eneloop batteries since they first entered the market in the lazy NiMH and NiCd days of 2005. We remember this because we, like Eneloops, don't suffer from the memory effect of our predecessors. Ok, ok, that date's in the press release but that doesn't change the fact that Eneloops will maintain their charge over time even when stored, ununsed in a drawer now does it? Anywho, Sanyo just announced its rechargeable Eneloop Lamp that serves to light your home when upright or your path when held like a flashlight -- automatically, just as soon as it passes the 90-degree mark. It also features a healing function that waxes a cool blue light into the tragic abyss of your misery and despair. The internal AAs recharge in about 12-hours when set atop the included induction charger. Fully charged, you can expect between 3- and 45-hours of white light, 12- to 16-hours of the blue stuff,...

Dell's 12.1-inch Vostro 1220 gets official We'd already come to grips with the fact that a Vostro 1220 was indeed on the way, and now Dell's own Japanese branch has confirmed it. Over in the Land of the Rising Sun, the 12.1-inch business laptop has gone legit, bringing with it Intel processor options (a 2.20GHz Celeron or 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo, namely), 1GB or 2GB of RAM, a WXGA (1,200 x 800) glossy display, 4-cell battery (a 6-cell is available), WiFi, three USB 2. sockets, FireWire, gigabit Ethernet, VGA output, ExpressCard slot, a multicard reader and a 1.3 megapixel webcam. The unit should start shipping soon in various configurations, with a lower-end build tagged at ¥79,980 ($837); needless to say, we're expecting a US announcement to follow in short order.

Sony patents new Cell-based PS2 emulator At first glance, we thought this all sounded a little too familiar: as you know, some PS3s had software-based PS2 emulation way back in 2007. So it was a little bit of a surprise when Siliconera unearthed patent docs dated last December (and only published by the patent office late last week) for the technology to decode and recompile software written for the PS2's Emotion Engine on the current device's Cell Processor. There's been some speculation that this functionality might be included in the rumored slim PS3 at some point -- either in the form of support for your old school PS2 discs or for digital downloads. Who knows? You might be playing your old copy of Shrek: Super Party! on your PS3 sooner than you think.

Motorola Clutch i465 Sprint subsidiary Boost Mobile got first dibs, but now it's the parent's turn -- which means Sprint proper will be taking delivery of the Motorola Clutch i465 for its Direct Connect iDEN network this summer. No exact release date was given, but interest parties are welcome to sign up now to be informed when they can drop the cash -- $39.99 on contract, to be exact, after the application of a total of $70 in rebates on a new two-year agreement. The little beast gives you full QWERTY (a Motorola first for iDEN), mil-spec 810F compliance for withstanding the worst you can throw at it, Bluetooth, GPS, and a VGA camera that isn't likely to win you any photography awards. Of course, if you want it that badly, you could just make the leap to Boost today -- but otherwise, stay tuned.

HTC Hero spotted on Orange UK website The HTC Hero has made its first appearance on a UK carrier's website, but finds itself burdened with a teasing "coming soon" badge. Having talked to Orange, we can confirm previous reports that the device will be available for free on some, as yet undetermined but surely eye-gouging, price plans. The company said they are still testing the device and should have pricing information by tomorrow. Expect T-Mobile to quickly follow suit and unveil their Hero by another name (G1 Touch?), also fully subsidized. Both carriers will be offering the graphite edition of the phone, so if you have your heart set on the white Teflon-coated goodness, you may have to go the SIM-free route.

Nokia N97 getting firmware 1.1 on July 1 There's no shortage of complaints -- some minor, some not-so-minor -- about the shipping firmware in the N97s that are already out in the field (our wonky backlight comes immediately to mind), but fortunately, it seems that Nokia's looking to tackle the issues perhaps more proactively than it's ever done before. Nokia Conversations' official Twitter account has announced that the "first variants" of the N97 (which we would take to mean the North American version, since the US got it first) will be blessed with firmware 1.1 starting on July 1, which hopefully will be available over-the-air without any Nokia Software Updater silliness. No word on what exactly will be changed in the new release, but honestly, if we can just get the LL Cool J startup screen, that'll be good enough for us.