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New devices prevent people bumming cigarettes off you

It's becoming harder for smokers to coexist with nonsmokers, what with all the nonsmoking in restaurants and bars. But if Crown7's smoke-free smoking devices catch on, a utopian society where smokers can "smoke" without pissing off everyone around them may yet exist.

The battery-powered devices use cartridges filled with nicotine, tobacco flavoring, water, and delicious propylene glycol to recreate the sensation of smoking. Instead of smoke, the "smoker" exhales a purportedly odorless vapor.

The device is available in three designs: cigar ($65), cigarette ($100), and pipe ($150).

According to the Crown7 site, each cartridge … Read more

XtremeMac iPhone car charger

I got my hands on XtremeMac's latest in-car iPhone power adapter, the InCharge Auto. As luck would have it, CNET car tech writer Kevin Massy loaned me his trusty desktop car lighter power supply to see if the adapter was worth its salt.

The result? It works! In fact, the adapter's standard USB connection will likely work on other USB-chargeable products as well.

For just $20, this seems like a good solution for charging you iPhone between destinations.

Cases help iPod commune with nature

As much as we appreciate the aesthetics of natural wood finishes when done well, the idea doesn't always work for all things technological, especially the iPod. But sometimes, concepts work best when they're integrated less with the design of the core product.

Miniot's "iWood" line, for example, borrows from some retro designs we've seen recently to create a cigarette-style case for Apple's media players made of various hardwoods. The sylvan look is available in maple, walnut, mahogany, cherry and oak, Red Ferret says, for 75 to 175 euros (about $102 to $237). We'… Read more

Cigarette phone packs real smokes

We'd think this was a gag gift were it not coming from Asia, which is notorious for its nicotine-addicted societies. A Chinese company is marketing a working GSM phone that, according to Gearfuse, actually holds a half-pack of real cigarettes in a case on the back of the handset. The phone itself has a camera, color display and MP3 compatibility. And if you're willing to spring $175, you can get the "luxurious VIP kit," which includes a lighter and pack of Chonghwa smokes, as well as the phone, in a commemorative box.