Crave

All you Hemingway wannabes out there no longer have to freeze in the winter in your old drafty Defender. New, improved versions, resembling Papa's old British jeep, are finally on the way.

Rumors of a Land Rover Defender returning to the North American market are true. The car will be back in 2007 as a 2008 model. Soft-top, long-wheelbase and short-wheelbase versions are also "in the works," according to Atlantic British, which would probably know as the leading U.S. supplier of after-market parts for Land Rovers in the United States.

Land Rover wants to recreate the … Read more

I've seen plenty of offbeat gaming peripherals, and these are some of the strangest. The Fragpedal Deluxe, sold at ThinkGeek, finally lets you put your feet into gaming. The Fragpedal Deluxe is a set of two hard panels, each with two buttons. You set them on the floor under your desk and bind the buttons to different commands. Tap your left foot to throw a grenade, stomp your right foot to taunt an enemy, et cetera. Few of us are nimble and dainty enough to handle keyboards and mice with our toes, but stepping on a set of buttons … Read more

We've grown somewhat weary of iPod and MP3 accessories, as should be abundantly clear to anyone who reads this space regularly (all two of you). But everytime we're tempted to impose a moratorium, one comes along that we just can't resist. Today's example: the "i-Snake."

We don't know where to begin, but let's start with what we like: its name. Things start to go south in a hurry after that. One immediate question is its use--if there's an obvious one, we plead blind ignorance. Another point is its design, if it … Read more

I guess there are a lot of things you can do with a home planetarium projector, like the HomeStar Pro Planetarium that I read about on Uncrate. You can use it to create spectacular ceiling art for your next party (just make sure nobody spills anything on the $350 projector), or to woo that cute astronomy geek next door. Or, you could (gasp) actually learn about the night sky. It's got all kind of cool stories behind it, you know, like science-y stuff and mythology and whatnot. For real.

But, since it's Monday morning and I've already … Read more

Speaking of parental duties, what kind of values does something like a toy ATM machine indicate? At least a play cash register implies some responsibilities, such as work, commerce and what it takes to buy something. But an ATM?

Hammacher Schlemmer claims that the toy "helps children learn money management as they maintain a savings account up to $999.99." Two points here: First, so far as we can tell, many kids think of ATMs only as machines that spit out money. Second, $999.99?? That says it all. Maybe the smarter ones will teach themselves how to … Read more

When we saw the "iKids" safety system the other day, we liked the idea but suggested that it come with some other function that might give children more of an incentive to avoid losing it, such as games or music. Japan's Softbank Mobile has come up with a similar idea for an even more obvious device--the phone.

Mobile Magazine says Softbank is marketing its Toshiba 812T clamshell handset specifically for kids, as its pink and blue cases would indicate for the clueless. The phone has an emergency tab at the bottom that, when pulled, sounds an alarm … Read more

The people at WowWee don't waste any time. Just a couple of weeks ago, Crave wrote of an FCC application filed by the toymaker for a remote-controlled "FlyTech Dragonfly."

Now, T3 reports that it has gotten exclusive access to the robotic insect, with photos and YouTube video to prove it. Unlike lesser beings that rely on propellers and such for flight, according to the U.K. magazine, the Dragonfly is "the world's first robot to use brute flapping-power to remain airborne."

So the next time a co-worker buzzes you with one of those RC … Read more

Gag gifts are a lost art. All too often, we resort to the same whoopie-cushion cliches for lack of anything more inventive. The Onion Store, however, has put its exceptional snark quotient to good use with something different--and even better, it's aimed at least partly at geeks.

Last-minute pranksters might still have time to get the "GotchaBox," a set of boxes for three fake gifts: the "USB Toaster," the "Make-Your-Own Umbrella Kit" and the "Salt Of The Month Club." The box print is well done, easily mistakable for products from the … Read more

Will Orange soon be Google's favorite color?

France Telecom Group's mobile-telephony division Orange is in discussions with Google about a prospective "branded Google phone," according to a report in the Observer.

"Manufactured by HTC, a Taiwanese firm specializing in smart phones and Personal Data Assistants, it might have a screen similar to a video iPod. It would have built-in Google software (for) surfing the Web from a mobile handset," reported the Observer. "The companies believe that they have an affinity as brands that are perceived as both 'positive' and 'innovative.'"

Orange is … Read more