Verizon Hub has been discontinued.
(Credit: Verizon)Earlier this year, Verizon stepped into the Voice over IP business with the Verizon Hub, which had far loftier ambitions than simply replacing your landline.
With weather and time widgets, a calendar system, traffic information, a family bulletin board, and even support for streaming video clips from V Cast, the Verizon Hub promised to be a one-stop-shop communications center for your home. We admit we were intrigued when we heard about it, and we even thought it had quite a bit of promise in our review of the device.
Unfortunately, the Verizon Hub just wasn't successful. The hardware was expensive--it was $200 for the Hub and $80 for additional cordless handsets--and the service was an additional $35 a month. Perhaps there was a failure in marketing the product to the mainstream. In any case, Verizon has stopped selling the Verizon Hub. A Verizon representative we spoke to assured us they will still provide service and support to existing Hub customers.
But maybe the real question is whether the Hub could have succeeded in the first place. In a time where we can replicate much of the same functionality with a laptop and a cell phone, is something like this even necessary? Perhaps there's room in the future for a convergence device--a touch-screen tablet, maybe? Let us know what you think about the Hub or "kitchen computers" in general.
(Via Zatsnotfunny)
HP Photosmart Premium with TouchSmart Web.
(Credit: HP)HP on Monday introduced the HP Photosmart Premium with TouchSmart Web, believed to be the world's first Web-connected printer with a touch screen. I had a chance to get an exclusive look at the new device, and I'm really impressed with HP's effort to reinvigorate the printer as the central hub in the digital home.
The Photosmart Premium with TouchSmart Web is poised to become HP's flagship printer when it's released in September. It's got all the common features we now expect to find in an HP Photosmart All-in-One, including printer/fax/copier/scanner, USB 2.0, 802.11b/g/n wireless, Ethernet, Bluetooth connectivity, HP's paper feed technology that automatically senses the size of media needed to a complete a job, five individual ink cartridges, and the ability to print screenshots directly from a PlayStation 3.
The real crowning feature, however, is the TouchSmart Web control panel that lets users connect to the Web and use custom apps from services like Fandango, Google, and Coupons Inc.
The massive 4.33-inch LCD touch screen is by far the largest display I've ever seen on a printer, and it's not just for looks--it actually has a purpose. ... Read more
With every new USB device I acquire, my desire for my Dell XPS M1330 laptop to have more than just two USB ports grows stronger. Perhaps now I can finally get my wish.
Tuesday, LaCie introduced two stylish USB 2.0 hubs, the Core4 and Core7, which seem like they will work well with laptops. Designed by Sam Hecht--an award-winning, U.K.-based, industrial designer--these two hubs offer functionality, portability, and style. Both come in a compact form factor, with cables tucked away when not in use.
The Core4 supports up to four USB devices, while the Core7 can handle up to seven. Both come with a Mini-USB male connector, which is the most popular connector for portable USB devices and will come in handy if you forget a USB cable.
The two hubs are also bus-powered, meaning they will work without a power adapter. However, you will need a power adapter if you use multiple bus-powered USB devices with the hubs; this is because a computer's USB port has only enough juice to power so many devices at a time.
The Core7 ships with a power adapter, but the Core4 doesn't; you can purchase one separately if need be. The Core4 comes in three different colors: warm gray, blue, and orange. The Core7 comes in warm gray only.
LaCie's Core4 and Core7 USB hubs are available now and cost $10 and $20, respectively.
Work and play living together in harmony.
(Credit: Cabracega)As the Google campuses proved long ago, employee productivity depends largely on comfort and morale. While I've given up on begging human resources at CNET to hire an in-house chef, maybe they'll front the bill for a set of USB sofas.
A concept design by Cabracega for OFFF Lisbon 2008, they might look like your average La-Z-Boy, but each one functions as its own autonomous USB hub with seven cables that stick out of the cushions and allow the lounger to plug in multiple peripherals or store content.
The real appeal, though, is that you can also connect the couches together and form a cohesive Megazordian USB hub in which users can share content and work as a team at the same time! Oh, CNET HR, you're a lucky bunch: at this time, the USB sofas are still conceptual and waiting for funding, so please go here and donate to my comfortable cause.
The new Media Hub NAS servers, MNH400 and NMH300, from Linksys.
(Credit: Linksys)Network-attached storage servers, in my opinion, have generally not been user-friendly enough. Even the easiest-to-use ones require some getting used to.
This is looking to change with the two new Media Hub series released under the networking giant's marketing brand "Linksys by Cisco" at CES this year, the NMH400 and the NMH300.
The NMH300 series is ...
Read the full post at CNET's CES 2009 blog.
We've discovered a way to take a bunch of gadgets that belong in the trash and turn them into energy for everyone! Listen and find out how. (well, other than the fact that we're simply that awesome.)
Listen now: Download today's podcast
 |
EPISODE 114 |
Plasma plants to vaporize trash and create new energy
Chick-fil-A stuffing a space station in every kid’s meal
Get into the festive spirit with Christmas Jewel USB drive
Update: Vivienne Tam HP Digital Clutch
Tool Time
BeoSound 5 controls your digital home theater in grand, futuristic style
It’s about time
Naf Naf Sunrise Effect alarm clock - a less SAD way to wakeup
PRETTY
Samsung Cleo cell phone sashays into Canada
Pink Watch
Guitars for Girls -Guitar Hero and Rock Band
Gender Gap
The Chair for Man
VOICE MAIL
Peter from Frampton
I had to share this with people who would appreciate how this could be a necessary ‘food accessory’ for some, but to others, it is just wrong.
Leia E.
Apple Valley, MN
Hey Gadgettes,
Why, why, why? Well, actually, for cancer research. But at least it’s the real thing and not Swarovski crystals. Note the convenience of being able to remove the diamonds to stick in all the jewelry you have that doesn’t already have diamonds.
Also, the blog it came from has the potential to be a great source for you all. Love the show!
-Rabbi the Linguist
P.S.: Why the hate on LARPers but the love of Utilikilt owners? The two groups overlap quite a bit. If you’re gonna dis on LARPers, at least limit it to the ones who can’t distinguish the game from reality. Some of us just enjoy some escapism and creative use of our imagination from time to time, but we understand that, when the game is over, it’s over. (It’s also a good way to socialize - is this a good time to mention that I’ve never been in a LARP that wasn’t at least 40% female?) Our characters may be us (a first-time LARPer often ends up playing herself) but we are not our characters. Those who don’t understand that are likely to be marginalized in a serious game.
I will, though, give you mad props for liking Utilikilts. They’re quite comfortable and the ladies seem to love them. (Gotta love geek
girlfriends!) Keep on rockin’ that podcast.
From Dr. Jason
Lita Ford parties like it’s 1989
(Credit:
Xtreme Technology)
A few years ago, I bought a fancy home phone so I could set it to forward calls to my cell. Not long after, I found a better and cheaper solution by ditching the landline completely.
I am not alone. According to Nielsen, 17 percent of U.S. households--some 20 million homes--are without a wired telephone, instead relying solely on mobile phones.
This brings up a question of what we should do with that fancy home phone. I do miss the comfort of using the big handset rather than fumbling on the tiny, onscreen keyboard of my iPhone.
Xtreme Technology has an answer. It recently announced two new Xlink Bluetooth gateways, the Xlink BT and the Xlink BTTN, that allow you to use your regular telephone to handle your cell phone service.
Both gateways let you take cell calls on your landline phone and support up to three Bluetooth-enabled mobile handsets. The new XLink BT, however, is for those without a landline service, like me, while the XLink BTTN lets you take your landline calls on your mobile phone and vice-versa.
I don't care much for the Xlink BTTN but the Xlink BT would definitely do, at least by letting my cell charge while I can still talk. And when I get mad, I wouldn't risk smashing my beloved headset on the ground.
The new Xlink BT and BTTN cost $80 and $110, respectively. They also come with optional unlimited long distance calling for $25 a month, which is expensive compared with other options out there. I would recommend having long-distance calling incorporated on your cell phone plan.
(Credit:
Gizmodo)
Non-Star Wars enthusiasts may find these items utterly tacky on their desktops, but the official R2D2 and Darth Vader USB hubs were designed for hardcore fans who are in a galaxy of their own, far far away. In addition to the four USB ports, the R2 hub turns its head, lights up, and whistles the signature sounds associated with the droid. The Vader model features its own sound effects and glowing red eyes.
Unfortunately, the USB hubs appear to be located in a particular region of the universe called Japan, at least for now. Though we're sure that with so many Star Wars devotees patrolling our galaxy for such paraphernalia, it really shouldn't be too hard to find one popping up on online stores and auction sites soon enough. Gizmodo says both the R2D2 and Darth Vader USB hubs will retail for $66 each starting in July.
(Source: Crave Asia)
(Credit:
Forbidden Planet)
It seems like yesterday, but it was a year ago that we were in the throes of Transformers mania. For months its merchandizing machine was flooding the market with everything from earphones to shoes trying to capitalize on the blockbuster movie. We thought they'd exhausted all the possibilities, but apparently one was left out near the end of the geek food chain: a USB hub.
It's not as bad as it sounds. Though hardly the most sophisticated gadget, the "All Spark" cube bears a design and significance that true bot-fans are sure to appreciate, as Everything USB notes. Dedicated to the hallowed object of the same name, which has the power to create Transformers, the four-port hub even talks the talk--according to its product description, this USB block utters robotic phrases when devices are plugged in, such as "We must protect the All Spark Cube." Irritating.
(Credit:
Gadget4all)
If there's something that even arch-rival Giants and Dodgers fans can agree on, it's that there are zillions of USB hubs on the desktop market. But what about for the car? For 12 bucks, Gadget4all is selling a four-port charger that can plug directly into the cigarette lighter socket for all your in-car gadget needs. Because you never know when you might need a snack or a megadose of aromatherapy to prevent a case of road rage.
