Crave

Justin Yu has finally caught the SARS/swine flu that's been floating around the CNET New York offices. It was bound to happen, considering the number of makeout parties we have here. Filling his petite shoes, we have Mark Licea (aka MTI).

This ain't right.

(Credit: beautifulpeople.com)

On today's show, we talk about beautifupeople.com, a Web site that is finally coming to the United States, which only beautiful people are allowed to join. That's right: in order to join this dating Web site, you have to be pretty. Users must submit their pictures, then the community decides whether you're hot enough to join. Unfortunately, Jeff and Wilson will likely get rejected. We'll let you know what Mark finds out on the Web site.

Not cool.

(Credit: Phoenix New Times)

After that, we find out that older men who are less educated than their female counterparts are less likely to get a divorce and are generally happier in their relationships. So we guess all those cougar relationships out there aren't going to work out. We also check out a not cool "illegal alien costume." It might have been funny on "Chappelle's Show," but it's likely to get the crap beat out of you immediately.

Finally, we cover CNN's new Web site and we get to some video game news and commentary. The PlayStation 3 finally gets Netflix streaming after Xbox 360 has had it for almost a year now. Took them long enough, but we think this might start to change the balance of power in the video game console war, because it will be free on the PlayStation 3, rather than having to sell out $50 bucks a year for a Xbox Live Gold membership. Plus, Wilson gets close to beating Ghostbusters: The Videogame. His take? It's fun to watch, a little monotonous to play after a while, but a good buy.

Please, please, send in voice mails. We're running a bit low these days, and we love to hear your feedback. Call in at 1-866-404-CNET (2638). Call! (Especially if you're a lady.)

Like the iPhone 3G, the new iPhone 3G S won't be released to the entire world at once. Rather, it will be released on three dates following its initial June 19 debut. Apple announced the 90 countries at the WWDC 2009 keynote, but they flashed by quickly so we don't blame you if you missed your country. Here's what we know so far.

The iPhone 3G S: it's coming.

(Credit: Apple)

June 19 releases

• Canada
  
• France
  
• Germany
  
• Italy
  
• Spain
  
• Switzerland
  
• United Kingdom
  
• United States
  

June 26 releases

• Australia
  
• Austria
  
• Belgium
  
• Ireland
  
• Japan
  
• Netherlands
  

Dan the Mantern makes his triumphant return to The 404 to talk about his exploits as a newly single man. Yes, ladies, he is available. You can find him on J-Date. Today, we expound on weekend movies "I Love You, Man", "300," and "Revenge of the Nerds" and find out why Jeff Bakalar is going to prison.

Dan T. Allen: 22-year-old male seeking female.

(Credit: Wilson G. Tang/CNET)

Apparently, EA sent out packages of brass knuckles for the release of its video game version of "The Godfather II." Unbeknownst to them, it is a crime in most states to send brass knuckles, as they are in the same category of weapons as switchblades and gas guns. Also on today's show, we cover Vermont legalizing "sexting," a special eBay auction just in case you need to tell someone off, and Disney releasing a controversial animated movie featuring a black princess.

We've got a special treat for you today, as well. If you check your RSS or iTunes feed, you'll discover that we've officially pushed to you The 404 ringtones, including our main theme courtesy of Mr. Jamie Lewis and a Tom Merritt-inspired "Calls from the Public" ringtone. Also, if you have an iPhone, we've got special instructions on how to use our ringtones on your Jesus Phone. But wait, there's more! Yes, because of popular demand, we're pushing out acoustic versions of Jonathan Coulton's performances of "Codemonkey" and "Re: Your Brains" performed in our very own podcast studios. Don't you just love us?!?!

Remember to mark Thursday, April 16, as the day your life changes when Bore Out Loud and the Snore Oh Four battle to the death in a dance off (bring your tap shoes). Be sure to RSVP. We'll be partying hard at the whole upstairs floor of The Delancey in New York City at 7:30 p.m.

Update: The Palm announcement pertains to the Pre SDK--no additional details on pricing or availability.

You got to love when Palm preannounces an announcement for its Pre smartphone.

That's exactly what it's doing with a tantalizing teaser on the official Palm blog. And it claims no April foolery.

The post states: "We thought about running a harmless little April Fools' Day prank on the blog today...but instead, we thought we'd give you a heads-up (for reals) to check back later today (or follow palm_inc on Twitter) for an update direct from the Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco."

Everybody, of course, is hoping for pricing or a release date for the much-anticipated Pre, a Sprint exclusive. But there's also a high probability that Palm will simply announce the free, general release of the Mojo SDK.

Naturally, we'll bring you the news, large or small, whenever Palm does provide details.

(Via the official Palm blog via Engadget).

Hien Nguyen and her trusted love communicator: the Sony Ericson S500i.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CBS Interactive)

Editor's note: CNET editor and Crave contributor Dong Ngo is spending the month of December in his homeland of Vietnam and plans to file occasional dispatches chronicling his impressions of how technology has permeated the culture there. Click here for more of Dong's stories from abroad.

HANOI, Vietnam--Love, or the lack thereof, is an ongoing global issue. I offer no solution, but if you want to look for the one here in Vietnam, a word of advice: learn to text and know your emoticons.

While online dating services are rampant in the States (personally, I believe many young Americans aren't really sure what to look for in a partner and being impatient as usual, think spending money somehow helps solve this), things are a little different in Vietnam--in the big cities that is.

Here, there are no dating services (at least none that my friends and I can spot), and young people still mostly meet the traditional way--through friends, school, family, work, and so on. Those who do meet online most often become friends through blogging, forums, or online social activities.

(In small villages like the one in Ha Nam where I was born, dating hasn't changed much in the past 50 years. Kids are sort of matched up at an early age, oftentimes jokingly, by relatives or friends. When they grow up, if neither goes away to find a job elsewhere, chances are they will marry each other.)

But it doesn't matter how a relationship here starts; it seems all of them go through something I'd call the "@ phase of love," in which the courtship continues via cell phone texts and Yahoo instant messaging. Unlike in the States, where couples tend to move in together, people in Vietnam generally only live together once married. In between, they rely on cell phones and the Internet to stay close.

(Credit: Setgo)

If your gadgets outnumber your pockets but you're not quite resigned to suspender geekdom, there may be a compromise. Setgo's "Transport," as Dvice puts it, is "a kind of wearable man-purse for the 21st century" though we assume it's not necessarily gender-specific.

It's basically the equivalent of an updated tool belt with "strategically placed pockets" that's worn like a big sash over the shoulder instead of around the beer belly. The idea is valid, but we can't see paying $80 for something like this. And if you think that wearing just one strap instead of two will somehow lessen the date repellant factor, you'd be sadly mistaken.

(Credit: Tofugu)

If you've always felt awkward in front of other people, especially the opposite gender, Avex Entertainment has an interactive DVD that it claims can help overcome that neurosis. Called Miterudake, which literally means "Just Looking," this DVD features videos of 50 women of various ages and nationalities staring straight at you. From time to time, the women will also talk to you (only in Japanese, unfortunately).

Personally, I find it strange buying a DVD that has people looking and talking to you. After all, anyone watching the DVD will soon realize it's all just a recorded footage, and the situation is simply not the same in real life. But hey, this comes out of Japan and we've seen weirder stuff. So 2,625 yen (about $25) may just be a small price to pay to find out if the DVD can help the socially awkward "adapt to others," as stated by the company that created it. You just need to overcome that shyness to ask a pal for help in getting the Miterudake DVD on his/her next visit to Japan.

(Source: Crave Asia)

(Credit: Pro-Idee)

We keep hearing that body conduction technology is the way of the future, usually in the form of sending soundwaves through bones, though some extremists apparently would like to turn the human race into walking routers. Usually the technology manifests itself as some kind of passive skull-vibrating headset, even under water, but rarely does it involve any kind of voice application. Now, after viewing the photo accompanying this item, we may know why. The "Roadrunner" Bluetooth headgear may indeed be effective when talking in a crowded room or in a convertible with the top down, as Gadget Review suggests, but you'd look like some kind of Borg while doing it.

Its microphones are "strategically placed next to your voicebox"--which sounds even creepier--to minimize background noise aboard your alien vessel. For terrestrial use, it would be a perfect complement to the "Light Head Magnifier" to complete the ultimate date-repelling ensemble.

(Source: Gadget Review)

(Credit: Corbin)

Not everyone has the kind of decor that's appropriate for a couch made from a vintage British sportscar. Sometimes an American model is much more fitting. And what could be more classic than a 1957 Corvette?

Corbin has made a loveseat modeled after the iconic roadster for those intimate occasions at home, complete with "a romantic undercarriage lighting with an 110v lighting fixtures tucked underneath, tail lights, and exhaust pipes," according to BornRich. There's even a "smart dimmer" in the armrest's storage compartment for the perfect Barry White moment. And for those times when you're alone (more likely), that same space can be used to stow the remote.