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Read all 'Dick Tracy' posts in Crave
January 11, 2008 5:36 AM PST

Not quite Dick Tracy's watch, but closer

by Mike Yamamoto
  • 1 comment
(Credit: Chinavasion)

The proliferation of watch phones in the last year has given rise to countless Dick Tracy analogies, including many in this space. But the truth, as every schoolboy knows, is that the storied device created by Chester Gould in the '40s was never a phone at all--it was a two-way radio.

So for those who are really big fans of the strip, here's a wrist-bound gadget that comes a lot closer to the iconic original: a walkie-talkie watch. According to 7Gadgets, this pair has a range of more than 1 kilometer, supports multiple channels, and has rechargeable batteries.

The old-fashioned LCD readout and truck-tire black finish aren't much to look at, but Tracy was always all business anyway. We just wonder what the uber-detective would have thought if he knew that his communications device of the future, or at least something that resembles it, would be mass-produced in China.

April 17, 2007 11:31 AM PDT

Video watch gets a 'big' screen

by Mike Yamamoto
  • 2 comments
(Credit: Chinavasion)

The makers of a video wristwatch we cited awhile back are apparently benevolent types who don't want us to go blind squinting at a 1.5-inch screen. So Chinavasion has come out with a new model that ups the size of its color LCD to a whopping 1.8 inches.

As Technabob notes, it's impossible to call this a widescreen display with a straight face, but it does claim a full 16:9 ratio for MP4 viewing, as well as MP3 playback and an FM radio. (Whether it actually tells time is unclear.)

We're not sure how well this thing works, but the price is right: $56.74, which is even a tad cheaper than the original smaller version was a few months back. We're just not sure how it would look to lug one of these things around on one's wrist. But no matter what, it can't be as ugly as Discovery's wrist cam.

February 24, 2007 6:24 AM PST

Protect your valuables in living color

by Mike Yamamoto
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(Credit: Nakabayashi)

Why should safes always be the same boring, battleship-gray fixtures seen in the movies? After all, we've seen color applied with abandon to appliances ranging from stoves and refrigerators to red and flowered washing machines.

You can't unlock these home models with voice commands as with others we've seen recently, but they sure look a lot nicer. Japan's Nakabayashi sells these simply designed personal safes in your choice of primary colors, operated electronically with your personal numeric code.

At first we thought the bright hues might attract would-be thieves, but Tokyomango suggests the perfect place for them: among the jumble of toys in your kids' rooms. Even the most seasoned robber wouldn't be able to find anything there.

November 13, 2006 11:51 AM PST

MP3 watch can play on car stereos

by Mike Yamamoto
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We know what you're thinking: Another MP3 player, this one built into a watch. Big deal.

MP3 FM watch (Credit: Thanko RareMono Shop)

That's what we thought at first too, until we looked a little closer this "FMP3 Watch" from Tokyo's RareMono Shop, which we learned of through Gizmag. What caught our eye is this USB-equipped watch's ability to record audio from a variety of sources with or without a computer, then play it back wirelessly through your car stereo and other systems with an FM transmitter controlled on the wrist.

And, unlike some other watch devices, it actually tells time.

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