One speaker can do it all
(Credit: Klipsch)Mono was the one and only way to listen to music and movies for decades.
But it's not ancient history. Mono's on something of a comeback, and the upcoming remastered Beatles catalog will be offered in an all-mono box in September. You can listen to mono over just one speaker, or with two or more speakers. But mono at its purest is a single-speaker deal.
A fringe segment of the audiophile community still buys mono phono cartridges to get the best sound out of mono LPs. Over at BuyMeGetMe they're listening to an all out single speaker mono system with a mighty 175-pound, all-American Klipschorn speaker ($3,999).
Yes, you could use any speaker, but since you're paying half the price of a pair of speakers, you might as well get a nice one. The Klipschorn was originally introduced some 60 years ago. It's still an amazing speaker.
Apple's Find My iPhone feature is helpful, but can be thwarted by tech-savvy thieves.
(Credit: CNET)Over the weekend, Livejournal blogger HappyWaffle (real name Kevin), posted a great story about how he purportedly used Apple's MobileMe service to track down his iPhone, which was stolen while he was at a bar. By using a laptop with a Sprint EVDO wireless data card, he and his friends figured out where it was and managed to get it back from the person who had taken it. They even used Google Translate to alert the thief (in multiple languages) that they would call the police if the device was not returned.
As good as the story is, a lot of it relies on iPhone owners having certain settings flipped on, as well as the person who has the phone not knowing the right ones to turn off. For one, they can disable all of the MobileMe features by simply yanking the SIM card out or deleting the MobileMe account from the phone. They can also perform a software wipe right on the phone, which means your data gets erased, however that means you can no longer track where it is without carrier intervention.
This isn't the main thing to worry about though; it's that... Read more
Yeah, this episode's intro gets weird.
It's a game game game game game game world this week as E3 has inspired us to dedicate this show to gaming.
Dong thinks project Natal is really cool, but feels talking to real people on the street is more interesting than talking to a 10-year old virtual boy who is just the first step in Skynet's eventual world dominion.
Later, I share my love for all things Bioware, past and future, including Dragon Age: Origins and The Old Republic and why these days, games can get away with things that movies cannot. Check out on this Dragon Age trailer to see what I mean.
Also, there's iPhone, PSP Go, DSi, and Zune HD talk. Well, maybe not "talk" but we do mention those at some point during the podcast...I think.
To subscribe to this podcast, visit us at our main page and click the podcast link on the right. Don't forget to leave us voice mail at 1-800-947-6399 or e-mail us at insidecnetlabs@cnet.com.
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Download today's podcast
(Credit:
Olive/Etsy)
I'd take a wild guess here.
Most of us travel in economy class and are likely to have a handcarry bag in-flight. And we know the majority of carriers provide passengers with miserable and flat pillows, which some airlines now even charge a fee for.
Enter Olive's Take Me Anywhere Suitcase designed to look like a pillow that could possibly let you cruise along to a slightly more pleasant journey.
Available on online handmade-goods marketplace Etsy for $40, the maker is willing to customize a color of your preference for the 15-inch by 11-inch travel case (smaller than an average cabin-size suitcase) and even sew a personalized luggage tag on.
The suitcase, made from natural linen and felt, doesn't look like it'd fit many things after being stuffed with cluster-free fillings, but you know us. Nothing will get in the way of a restful slumber.
(Via Crave Asia)
Listen now: Download today's podcast
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EPISODE 116 |
Sheruken Magnets (thanks Shalin!!)
Bellysonic speaker pouch will soothe you and your pregnant belly
New baby storage concept: Wall mounting (thanks Shalin!)
Snore Pro to help frazzled wives
Remote, sound-emitting anti-barking devices
For the romantically inclined: Thermal leak detector
... Read more
Time Magazine has named 23andMe, one of the first consumer genetic testing services, its 2008 Best Invention of the Year.
(Credit:
23andMe)
23andMe, named for the 23 chromosome pairs every human has, set itself apart from other DNA-testing services, because "it does the best job of making them accessible and affordable," according to Time.
The company offers a $399 DNA test that includes an ancestry analysis, and a health analysis. The health analysis tests for about 90 predispositions ranging from what eye color you'll probably pass on to whether you're likely to get arthritis someday.
Customers are sent a kit by mail that includes a test tube to spit in for the saliva sample and registration materials to log in online. Once the sample is registered and mailed to 23andMe, customers can expect results in about 4-6 weeks.
The company was co-founded by Linda Avey, a biopharmaceutical industry veteran with a background in biology; and Anne Wojcicki, an entrepreneur with experience in healthcare investing and a Yale University degree in biology.
Wojcicki's husband, Google co-founder Sergey Brin, has an additional reason to be proud of Time Magazine's list. The Tesla Roadster, an all-electric sports car made by Tesla Motors, was named runner-up. Brin has given some financial backing to the struggling company.
Other inventions that made it into the top 10 include Hulu.com, the video-streaming site that legally offers free TV shows and movies online; NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter; and the Large Hadron Collider.
The full list of all 50 inventions Time Magazine has named noteworthy for 2008 will appear in the October 31 issue, but it's already been posted to Time's Web site.
Social-media company Moblyng is offering music fans a way to keep up to date with their favorite artists. That is, if their favorite artists are a part of the company's new Moblyze Me campaign.
Currently artists participating in the campaign include Metro Station, Lucy Schwartz, Black Tide, and Gym Class Heroes. Moblyng has added a "Moblyze Me" button to each of the artist's MySpace profiles. Once you click on the button for your favorite artist, content concerning that artist will be sent to your cell phone--provided you enter your number.
You'll be able to "moblyze" video, slide shows, links to an artist's ringtone store, tour dates, and news.
For certain artists, you'll be able to enter a customized WAP environment and access their IVR line. Yes, I had to look up both of those acronyms.
Moblyng plans to introduce more artists from "major and independent" record labels. While the bands currently on the list don't intrigue me, if implemented well this could be a useful service if you're really into a certain artist.
Cab4Me Light finds your a ride in portrait and landscape modes.
(Credit: Cab4Me)Why isn't there ever a cab around when you need one?
The free Google Android application Cab4Me Light makes finding, scheduling, and calling cabs to your side virtually brainless. Cab4Me Light's interface is simple and efficient, with one tab that shows where you are on the map and another that shows the details of cab companies in your area.
Step 1, drag your approximate location on a zoomable Google map. You can use GPS to locate yourself or enter a new address or a contacts' address to call the cab to a different location. Step 2, either click the orange button to call a cab company or switch to the Taxi tab for a scrollable list. The application asks if you're sure you want to place the call, a good precaution.
There's more to it, of course. Press the Menu button and you'll be able to view maps in satellite and illustrated modes, you can view the map for taxi stands a short distance away, and you can ping Cab4Me with news of other gathering points, like train stations and hotels that they can add to their lists.
The "light" features in Cab4Me Light refer to the service's current way of giving you the tools to flag your own ride. The full version, still in development, will have you ordering cabs from the interface, without first placing a call.
Cab4Me will partner with taxi companies that will respond when you press the button. Why isn't that out yet? Those partnerships are still being finessed as cab companies opt in and fill up Cab4Me's database.
Get more news on Google Android, including a CNET video review of T-Mobile's G1 phone.
We've all heard the recommendations by now.
Proper tire pressure, removing the roof rack, closing windows above 50 mph, and using a car's air flow system before going straight for the AC can all lead to lowering a car's overall fuel consumption.
But exactly how bad are drivers when it comes to abruptly starting and stopping? And are they really shifting their manual transmission car correctly for optimizing fuel?
Fiat's new optional Eco Drive software will let its drivers know, the company announced earlier this month at the 2008 Paris Motor Show.
All Fiat drivers need is a USB drive and Microsoft's Blue&Me system.
Blue&Me is an onboard computer system currently offered in some Fiats and Alfa Romeos, and possibly soon, in Ford cars, as well. It enables drivers to listen to their MP3 player, make calls on their cell phone, and have text messages read aloud to them. The system includes a USB port, which Fiat has announced could be the key to a 15 percent reduction in a car's CO2 emissions.
Drivers can download the free Eco Drive software from the Internet to their computer and plug in any normal USB drive. Drivers then plug the prepped USB drive into their car's Blue&Me system and it will automatically start collecting data on the car.
The program will measure a driver's fuel consumption, speed, braking style, and even how efficiently he or she shifts gears with their manual transmission. It seems very similar in functionality to the PLX Kiwi from PLX Devices that plugs in to a car's diagnostics port.
Upon plugging the USB drive back into the computer, the software does an analysis of driving habits and makes specific suggestions for improvement. Users can also opt to join an online community of drivers called Fiat ecoVille.
The new software ties in to a campaign Fiat already has in play giving tips on saving fuel. While the bias is toward the Fiat car, the tips are useful for any driver.
For those non-Fiat drivers interested in collecting this type of data, there's always the PLX Kiwi or the Scan Gauge II.
In the time of triplicates, shredders and burn cans were SOP for destroying records at embassies and military installations. Today, information stored on hard disk drives far forward on the battlefield demand other methods.
Fujitsu has come up with a way to dispose of your brigade's database of informers and cash payoffs in a hurry. The Fujitsu ME-P3M emergency degausser combines state of the art with a good ole' hand crank, allowing a drive to be wiped clean in 10 to 20 seconds--even absent electrical power, according to Jim Preasmyer, business development manager, Fujitsu Computer Products of America (click here for PDF).
(Credit:
Fujitsu Computer Products of America)
A degausser (PDF), named after researcher Carl Friedrich Gauss, generates a reverse (coercive) magnetic force to demagnetize HDDs, rendering stored data unreadable and unrecoverable "by any known technology."
The unit is a takeoff on the Fujitsu Mag EraSURE line, used by the legal, medical, and financial professions and anyone else wishing to avoid database disasters like the 2002 debacle in which 139 Veterans Administration Medical Center computers ended up in schools and on the open market, where they were later discovered to contain current VA medical records and credit card numbers.
DriveSavers, a premiere data recovery service, has certified that the Mag EraSURE renders all data on HDDs "unrecoverable by commercial means," according to Fujitsu.
So while there may be something satisfying about leaving the quintessential thermite grenade to melt its way through the server rack when the huey is holding on the roof, given the advanced state of contemporary computer forensics you may want to start cranking instead.
