Not only are the gifts covered in today's episode perfect to meet the mediocre expectations of a white elephant party, but this episode itself is in essence our very own white elephant gift to you! Interpret that as you will, and have a wonderful holiday, everyone!
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EPISODE 166
Gifts to bring to a white elephant Christmas
Snuggie for your neck (Thanks, Greg and Sam)
Snuggie for your dog (Thanks, Eric!)
... Read more
The Rihanna kitchen scale from ADE Germany includes an iPod dock and integrated speaker.
(Credit: ADE Germany)Do you love listening to music as much as you love to precisely measure cooking ingredients? Of course you don't. But that's not going to stop ADE Germany from slapping an iPod dock onto a kitchen scale early next year, with an expected asking price of $103.
The scale, which is curiously dubbed "Rihanna," includes an LCD that measures 1.7 inches by less than an inch and an integrated iPod speaker that plays beneath the glass measuring area.
The scale itself handles loads of up to 11 pounds, graduated in .04-ounce steps. It cannot, however, distinguish between kush or schwagg.
(Via Gizmag)
(Credit:
Withings)
For this week's installment of the weekly Crave giveaway, we're offering a high-tech health accessory, Withings' Wi-Fi Body Scale.
This thing not only automatically tracks and charts your weight (and the weights of up to seven other people in your household), but it records your lean and fat mass, and calculates body mass index (BMI). Plus, you can access your data (it's secure, of course) from any Web browser or Withings' iPhone app, WiScale. Better yet, you can even have the scale Tweet your weight loss (or gain) to all your Twitter followers. How awesome is that?
Normally, Withings' Wi-Fi scale would cost you about $160, but you have the chance to get it gratis.
So, how do you try to win this Wi-Fi scale? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.
- Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, no need to register again.
- Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated.
- Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified.
- The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive (1) Withings Wi-Fi Body Scale. Approximate retail value is $160.
- If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
- Entries can be submitted until Monday, November 16, at noon EST.
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENT OF ONE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR D.C., 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Sweepstakes ends at 12 PM ET on November 16, 2009. See official rules for details.
Good luck.
It even looks good.
(Credit: Withings)You take a scale. You give it Wi-Fi. And then you let it log in to your Twitter account to tell the world how much you weigh each morning. That's what this is: the Wi-Fi Body Scale.
At first it sounds silly, but the more I think about it the more I like the idea. If I'm trying to lose weight, this is a good way to force me to watch what I eat lest I embarrass myself in front of my Twitter followers. If it shows me blowing up like a whale instead of dropping pounds then I don't just know I'm doing something wrong, my peers do, too. Shame can be a powerful tool.
The $159 scale already records the user's body weight, lean and fat mass, and calculated body mass index (BMI) to a secure Web site accessible by the user. The Twitter integration, though, is a new feature. The Twitter feature is being called "peer motivation" by Withings, the scale's maker, and they're right. I'd call it "weight loss by fear as motivation," but I'm just some blogger.
It's hard to keep us out of the kitchen, for no other reason than we just really enjoy food! Today we offer up a dilectable assortment of gourmet gadgets.
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EPISODE 156
Cocoon Cooker Grows Meat In Your Kitchen (thanks Bill!)
Ultrasonic dishwasher cleans your plates with waves of sound (thanks Sam!)
Ravi cools wine at the very moment it is poured
Cosentino turns minerals and woods into truly unique surfaces
LED Grabbing Tool Picks Valuables From Where Fingers Fear To Tread
Taylor Digital Measuring Cup Scale
... Read more
ParaScale Cloud Storage's interface.
(Credit: ParaScale)Cloud storage is getting a lot more feasible for the enterprise.
ParaScale, a start-up that develops cloud-storage solutions, announced Monday the availability of its ParaScale Cloud Storage (PCS) software. The software, once installed on any standard Linux platform, enables the server to be linked with others to act as one massive file repository that offers high parallel throughput.
... Read moreWhat can we say? We're in the giving spirit this holiday. Whether you like 'em or not, they're yours now! Happy Holidays, everyone!
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 |
EPISODE 118 |
Nespresso Essenza Automatic Espresso and Coffeemakers with Nespresso Aeroccino Milk Frother
Cool party favor or life-saving tool? You be the judge
Blast Knuckles: For the woman on the go who needs that extra sense of security
Mobigrip gives you a firm grasp on your handhelds
Radio-controlled key finder makes life easy for the scatterbrained
Digital Spoon Scale, for obsessively accurate cooks
PRETTY
Sun and Moon Jars
Today, your eyes might not deceive you. But soon, they very well might.
Some extremely clever people at Cal (the one at Berkeley) have created a material that can control the direction in which visible light travels.
Apparently, this mystery material, some details of which might be revealed in Science and Nature magazines this week (People and OK weren't interested), deflects light around an object as perceived by an insouciant eye.
"In the case of invisibility cloaks or shields, the material would need to curve light waves completely around the object like a river flowing around a rock," the leader of the Cal researchers, Xiang Zhang, told London's Times newspaper.
(Credit:
CC dogbomb)
In essence, you are looking at, say, the Empire State Building or a John Malkovich-piloted Boeing 747 full of nasty missiles. If these objects are coated with the material, your eyes will see light from behind them, hence creating the illusion that the object in question simply isn't there. I know that there are terrible consequences that may leap to mind in these examples.
For the more technically-minded amongst you, I can tell you that the material the scientists created had to have elements engineered to within 0.00000066 of a meter. This appears to be in a realm that might make wafers suddenly feel ridiculously overweight.
... Read more
Luggage can be lifted and weighed with this strap-on digital luggage scale.
(Credit: Balanzza)As more airlines start charging for checked luggage and extra bags, penny-pinching fliers who shove all their clothes into one suitcase may face overweight bag charges or thrown-out backs.
Balanzza's Digital Luggage Scale is made to prevent travelers from over-packing luggage at times when a bathroom scale is unavailable.
First, the traveler wraps the scale's strap around the handle of a suitcase or bag. When they pick the bag straight up, listen for the device to beep, and set the bag down, the gadget readout will display the weight in pounds or kilograms.
The company is also producing a new ergonomic style of the suitcase scale that will ship at the end of July. The original product runs for $21.99, and the Balanzza Ergo will cost $24.95.
Anything more than 100 pounds is not safe to be lifted by the travel-size device--but if your bag weighs near that much, you may want to consider a new packing strategy anyway.
(Via ThinkGeek)
(Credit:
The Competitive Edge)
Those callous souls who gave their poor mums a Wii Fit for Mother's Day should take note: They can even the score between parents by giving a similarly subtle hint to dad this weekend. But why not be a little more creative?
Tanita is pushing its "BC-558 Tanita Ironman Segmental and Full Body Composition Monitor" as an ideal Father's Day gift. It's especially useful for those vain fathers who spend too much time at the gym and flexing in the bathroom mirror, because this scale measures the body by segments--as in arms, legs, and the trunk. It's probably equally appropriate for dads of the flabbier variety, as it gauges "segmental body fat" as well as muscle, bone mass, and metabolic rates.
For those fitness-challenged types, Tanita even makes another kind of scale that would be a perfect companion gift: a kitchen version that's sensitive enough to weight every Cheeto, right down to the crumb.
