Gadget news

The main competitor to Logitech's famed G5 gaming mouse, Razer's DeathAdder boasts better axial accuracy and greater customizability--differences which you may enjoy discovering in splendid detail over at sister site CNET Reviews. Please note, this mouse is made for right-handers, so lefties may have an issue with the thumb buttons. Check out the full review for information on system compatibility before you buy.

Not an avid gamer myself, I can only point out that the mouse sports an intimidating reptilian name and a neat glowing blue tri-snake-ular logo. Allow me to quote from colleague Rich Brown, who provides … Read more

Pro-audio manufacturer M-Audio has unveiled a new $99 vocal recording package called Session Music Producer. Unlike their previous podcaster-targeted product, Podcast Factory, the Session Music Producer bundle consolidates the microphone and computer audio card into a single, idiot-proof USB microphone appropriately named the Producer USB. If nothing else, the sheer magnitude of M-Audio's 16mm cardioid capsule Producer microphone (see photo) will intimidate rival podcasters into submission.

Beyond its monolithic size and inexpensive price, there are two factors to the Session Music Producer bundle that are worth noting. First off, it comes bundled with M-Audio's capable Session multitrack recording … Read more

One of gamers' biggest beefs with the PlayStation 3 will soon be a thing of the past. At the kickoff press conference for the Tokyo Game Show, Sony Computer Entertainment President Kaz Hirai confirmed longstanding rumors that a rumble-ized version of the PS3 Sixaxis controller is on the way. The Dual Shock 3--which looks essentially identical to the existing Sixaxis PS3 controller--will hit Japan in November, then make its way to North America and Europe early in 2008. Devil May Cry 4 and Metal Gear Solid 4 are two of the first 11 games that will support the new Dual Shock's vibration function, and existing titles can be retroactively updated to support rumble via online updates.

Other notable announcements from Hirai's keynote:… Read more

News aggregation community Digg has announced a number of new features designed to take the site's social networking beyond simply "digging" and "burying" headlines and blog entries.

Starting Wednesday night, members of the site can further customize their account profiles so that they more closely resemble something on a social-networking site--more personal information, bigger photos, and a more extensive record of site activity. They will also be able to use their friends lists as content filters so that their "social news" comes from a select group rather than the Digg community as a … Read more

The last few days rumors have been circulating that Sony was preparing to announce a new rumble-equipped controller for the PS3. As you may know, the current PS3 controllers don't shake, which we assume was because Sony got slapped with a lawsuit in 2004 for allegedly stealing Immersion Corporation's rumble technology for its Dual Shock and Dual Shock 2 controllers. But after Sony ponied up $90 million, the two sides had reportedly been mending fences, and that some rumble was on the way. Now IGN's confirmed that indeed something is shaking with the PS3 controller.

IGN's … Read more

Certain members of TechRepublic's staff boast that particular breed of inquisitiveness that makes them want to pry stuff open and check out its insides. We're talking about electronics, of course, not kittens. It's pretty innocuous, really, except that it totally voids your warranty. Legally, we here at Crave cannot condone the dismantling of electronics, nor of kittens, for that matter.

Anyway, TR has been nice enough to let sister site News.com republish part of their "Cracking Open" series, where they dive into all manner of contemporary and vintage electronics. This time it's an … Read more

Text-message spam may go up this November for voter-age youth.

Turns out that young people are more likely to vote when they receive a text-message reminder, according to a new study published this month by researchers at Princeton University and the University of Michigan.

The researchers ran their test in the November 2006 election, with text reminders sent to roughly 4,000 young voters. Researchers pulled data and cell phone numbers from voter registration records at the Student PIRG's New Voters Project and Working Assets Wireless; and following the election, they matched the files to find out which registrants … Read more

The official CNET review for Apple's iPod Touch is now live, joining the slide show we posted on Friday. I have to admit, this was a tough product to review. It's easy to get hung up on what the iPod Touch isn't (it's not an iPhone, and it's not a high-capacity PVP), and lose your objectivity on what the iPod Touch really is: a cool, innovative gadget.

After all, if you could put the iPhone genie back in the bottle and pretend it never existed, wouldn't a product like the iPod Touch seem breathtaking? … Read more

Nickelodeon parent Viacom is as ever-optimistic as SpongeBob himself. The company is releasing a new line of higher-end consumer electronics branded with ubiquitous characters such as Dora and SpongeBob.

This isn't Nick's first foray into electronics, but apparently it's the first time the company isn't slapping the images onto schlock, according to an article in The New York Times.

One of the least expensive items in the new lineup is $29 SpongeBob alarm clock. I must say, it could be awfully satisfying to thump SpongeBob on the head in order to catch a few more minutes … Read more