Crave

I've been threatening to make my own MP3 player for a few months now, but after meeting with a group called Teuthis at this year's Maker Faire, I finally caved in and bought the Daisy DIY MP3 player kit. I mean, how am I supposed to objectively rate MP3 players for CNET if I haven't made one myself?

So here's a 16-slide photo gallery of the whole construction--starting with the bare board and ending with the final product. There's also a little time-lapse video footage of the construction in this week's Crave vodcast.

The … Read more

Ever been stuck in a can't-leave meeting knowing that the minutes on your parking meter are about to ding you? The PhotoViolationMeter will call to warn you that your meter is running low and let you buy more time over the phone.

The device, created by Photo Violation Technologies of Canada, also gives customers a variety of payment options, including credit and debit cards for the coin-challenged (the meter's wireless network capability allows for instant, real-time authorization of the cards--and free Internet hotspots for anyone who wants to do some on-street surfing).

The first wave of machines are … Read more

Earlier today, Will Greenwald outlined for all of you the sorts of electronics you could buy for the same price as an iPhone--iPods, gaming consoles, etc. But he missed a lot of really cool stuff, unfortunately. So, esteemed readers, here's what you can really buy for the price of an iPhone.

-- One USB rocket launcher ($40); 20 packs of chocolate covered espresso beans ($200); one pair of Reef flip-flops with built-in bottle openers ($42); 72 packs of strawberry Jell-O for the purpose of encasing your co-workers' office supplies ($90); 8 large meat-lovers' pizzas (~$100); two Marshmallow Shooter … Read more

For those that find the Mini too, well, mini, the BMW-owned brand is launching a stretch version, spy photos of which appeared on Spanish automotive site Km77.com. We saw various Mini concepts at the 2005 auto shows based on this new stretched Mini, but the new photos show the real deal. Km77.com apparently caught Mini shooting video of its new model in preparation for its launch at the 2007 Frankfurt auto show. The car will be named the Mini Clubman, taking its name from the original Mini Clubman launched in 1969.

Although previous spy shots of the new … Read more

We've shown you the taxis of the future. Could some of the following complete the city fleet?

DeputyDog, a blog about "stuff," has put together a list of the nine most interesting municipal-vehicle ideas.

It includes a German police car made from a Mercedes, New York cops on Segways, a Porsche Cayenne ambulance, a Ferrari 250 GTE that was used by the Italian police in the 1960s, a Lamborghini Murcielago and a Peugeot H2O fire engine concept car.

Can you imagine giving some poor guy in a Honda a speeding ticket when you're driving a Ferrari? … Read more

Someone with a very sharp eye noticed that Crave was shown in the "Activation and Sync" tutorial video on Apple.com for the iPhone. We're there in the good company of NPR, the Food Network, National Geographic, and the New York Times. They don't show the actual podcast on the iPhone, but someone over there is a fan!

A neat, little video shout-out, to be sure. I guess we didn't get on Apple's bad side too much with the iPod Challenge!

Working out can be such a bore without entertainment, and while we're big fans of flipping through magazines on the elliptical machine, the easiest way to zone out during any fitness activity is with some good tunes. When selecting a player for the gym, it's best to go with a Flash (solid state) player with a sweat-proof design, such as the RCA Jet. The Jet comes in your choice of 1GB or 2GB capacities, is inexpensive ($60 or $65, respectively), and offers plenty of workout-friendly extras--an armband, a stopwatch, and an FM tuner, to name three. Read the review … Read more

In addition to revealing the prices for iPhone data plans Tuesday, Apple also released another video showing how iPhone customers can activate their new phones from home.

With long lines expected outside Apple and AT&T stores on Friday, some analysts had expressed concern that the process of setting up an iPhone could turn into an all-night affair. But the companies are letting customers activate their iPhones over the Internet using iTunes. The video shows how plugging the iPhone into a Mac or PC steps the user through the signup process, which of course works flawlessly on the demo.… Read more

Unless you've cut yourself off from all media access this year, you know that on Friday, June 29 Apple will release its iPhone with AT&T. Ever since the device's unveiling last January, the tech world has been running in circles asking what the iPhone will be like, what it will do, and how it will do it. But because Apple hasn't been the leakiest of faucets when it comes to specs, the hype has resulted in a lot of speculation instead. Of course, that will all change in several days, as you can be sure … Read more