Crave

So you've found the perfect spying device, a pinhole camera built into a tie that's "virtually impossible to detect with the naked eye." Its high-resolution video can also be seen on a 2.4-inch LCD screen that fits neatly on its cigarette-pack-sized recorder that holds up to 4GB of data, complete with remote control. All this doesn't come cheap--nearly $1,300, actually--but it's worth it because no one will ever suspect a thing, right? There's just one problem: You never wear a tie.

Another high school reunion is just around the corner. After the last one, you vowed to do whatever it takes to rid your body of the scourge of modern physiology: cellulite. Desperate times call for desperate measures--so enter the "CelluBike."

We honestly have no idea what to make of this monstrosity. It looks like some kind of futuristic flight simulator or MRI chamber. As we understand it, you peddle the bicycle while a "certified technician" points a bunch of infrared lights at your "problem areas." Then, according to its Web site, thermal energy "… Read more

--APPLE: Remember 1984? (ShinyShiny)

--NEWS: New street train and rapid bus transit project for Buenos Aires (Treehugger)

--MICROSOFT: Retailers aim to get Vista boost (CNET News.com)

--HISTORY LESSONS: Harnessing wave power, 1934-style (Treehugger)

--GREEN TECH: Futuristic driverless electric bus (BornRich)

--WEB 2.0: PowerSnap bridges gap between local and Web-hosted photos (Webware)

No matter how hard we try to avoid it, bargaining with our children eventually creeps its way into parenthood for many of us. For example: You let them watch TV only if they've read for a certain amount of time. The problem for us, however, is that we promptly forget to check the clock.

That's why we need the "Mark-My-Time Digital Bookmark," as featured on Chip Chicklets. Not only does it help you keep things on schedule, but it also helps children learn to tell time. After all, what better incentive do kids have than figuring … Read more

If you're going to start messing around with combo gadgetry, at least be creative. That's the lesson that should be learned from Hammacher Schlemmer's "Finger Drum Mousepad." Rather than some useless combination like a mouse pad with built-in speakers, this electronic drumming surface lets you strum your fingers to eight percussive sounds, "including bass, snare, two rack toms, a floor tom, hi-hat, crash and ride cymbals." You can even record up to 30 of your creations so you can play back the most annoying ones for all to hear, over and over.

If there's one thing everyone agrees on, it's that we all need a better way to charge the multiplying electronic devices that run our lives. One of the more anticipated technologies in this department, for example, has been the "WildCharger" wireless recharging pad. Herman Miller, the office furnishing designer extraordinaire that gave us the "Aeron" chair, has apparently a concept similar to the WildCharger's and plans to use it in future desks.

The company has licensed a system called "eCoupled," which uses a magnetic field that can theoretically charge cell phones, … Read more

So much for playing Mozart to your unborn child. Instead, some companies are trying to introduce babies to music with MP3 players designed for the crib. The trend has resulted in partnerships such as one between Creative Technology, maker of the "Zen," and Playskool, maker of "Mr. Potato Head" (and countless other toys). TG Daily says the two companies have joined forces to market such products as the "Made for Me" line of MP3 players, which come preloaded with songs for babies that can be replaced as they get older. We, however, will draw … Read more

In my opinion, the Happy Fish Speakers don't actually look anything like fish--more like trilobites turned on their side. But I digress. These inexpensive ($16) USB-powered speakers, sold by Hong Kong manufacturer Brando (also known for the Wii Sports Pack), contain LEDs that will cycle through a range of colors. We've seen plenty of animal-shaped speakers, from pigs to my beloved penguins, but these are a tad more abstract. Kind of late-'90s-iMac-ish, actually.

Personally, I think it could grow a tad annoying to have something like this flashing its multicolored lights next to my computer all the … Read more

Pentax announced two new 7-megapixel digital cameras for the spring, the Optio T30 and M30. The high-end T30 sports a 3-inch touch screen as its biggest feature, while the more conventional M30's appeal is in its solid feature set and much smaller price tag.

The Optio T30's touch-screen LCD functions much like the Sony Cyber Shot DSC-T50's, with most settings and features accessible through the touch screen's menus instead of buttons. It also includes a basic paint mode, for editing and drawing on images in the camera itself. Besides the touch screen, the T30 includes face-recognition … Read more