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Things are certainly winding down here at the CNET New York offices as The 404 finishes up its last two live episodes for the year. In the studio with us today is Natali Del Conte along with her CBS producer Will--so it sounds like the show is about to get some Early Show love on Friday morning!
Today's show starts off on an unsettling note as we talk about word of U.S. drones being hacked in the skies of Iraq. Apparently, all that was needed was a cheap $26 program that allowed insurgents access to our unmanned aircrafts--how comforting!
Bonehead military security issues aside, it's about time the FCC addresses the all-too-common issue of blaring TV commercials. How many times have you blown an eardrum after an ad comes on that's 35 times louder than the program you were watching?
In our unintentional effort to destroy the green movement, we uncover the ridiculous side effect some new LED traffic lights are having involving their inability to melt snow. It's actually causing accidents, so maybe good-old-fashioned energy-sucking, heat-producing traffic lights were the way to go.
There's more 404 fun in today's show: Y2K memories, "Iron Man 2" talk, and the year's best YouTube videos!
EPISODE 489
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BMW's X6 is a bit difficult to digest, a coupelike body with the proportions and stance of an SUV, managing to lose the virtues of both types of vehicles. And now BMW has given it the M treatment, putting a massively powerful engine under the hood and fitting the suspension with all sorts of ingenious gear to make this vehicle handle like a sports car. Its greatest asset may be that it defies easy categorization.
Cabin tech is good, with really beautiful maps in the navigation system, but we do think that a $90,000 car should have an iPod connection as standard. The X5 M offers the same tech as the X6 M, yet has practical interior space, making it the more obvious choice. But then again, BMW's M cars have never been about practicality.
Driving enthusiasts and long-time city dwellers scoff at automatic parallel parking systems, but when it works as well as the one in the Lincoln MKS, well, you just have to marvel at the technology. This new MKS not only has the excellent cabin tech and luxury appointments of the previous year's model, but Lincoln added new tech features, such as the parking system, to really put this car over the top. Couple all that with the new Ecoboost engine, and it's a near technological masterpiece.
Lincoln's new MK naming convention may seem a little austere, but the luxury and tech in the new MKT is anything but. When you spend some time driving a car, and find you don't want to get out of it at the end of the journey, that speaks well for the car's comfort. We could hardly get enough of the MKT's THX audio system, the automatic high beams, and the adaptive cruise control. It is a little thirsty for our tastes, but 355 horsepower from the Ecoboost engine makes this cruiser get up and go.
So far, Audi's odd-numbered cars have been pretty desirable. The A3 is a practical and sporty little wagon, while the A5 is one of the better-looking cars to come out recently. But now Audi is replacing the A4 Cabriolet with a convertible version of the A5. Gone is that gracefully sloping roof, replaced by what is basically an umbrella, albeit one with acoustic damping built in to lessen road noise.
But Audi does equip the 2010 A5 Cabriolet with plenty of tech, including a navigation system with absolutely beautiful 3D maps. The drive technology is also interesting--it features a direct-injected turbocharged four cylinder, which strangely doesn't deliver on its promise of power and fuel economy.
Before we drove it, the idea of an X5 M seemed outlandish, and we suspected BMW's motives had more to do with marketing than the company's engineering reputation. How could an X5 all-wheel-drive SUV live up to the M badge? We should have trusted BMW, whose engineers are so pure of heart they would never let a vehicle wear the M that didn't deserve it. The X5 M is a monstrously powerful beast that handles like a sports car. In fact, we had to drive up next to other cars for a height comparison to remind us we were in an SUV.
Treating gasoline as fine whiskey, the hybrid Lexus RX450h sips rather than gulps. This luxury vehicle turns stereotypes of SUVs on their heads, getting excellent fuel economy while offering Lexus' latest cabin tech. It pampers occupants with interior and ride quality that rise above most luxury vehicles today.
The Maestro 5310's roomy 5-inch screen makes for much easier viewing.
(Credit: Amazon)Shopping for a GPS? You can get one with a 3.5-inch screen for as little as $50, a 4.3-inch screen for under $100, or a 5-inch screen for--well, these models are relatively rare, so prices start at around $300 and rise sharply from there.
Not today. TigerDirect has a refurbished Magellan Maestro 5310 5-inch GPS for $129.99 shipped.
What's the big deal about a 5-inch display? That seemingly small amount of extra screen estate makes maps easier to view and onscreen menus easier to operate. Consequently, I'd say it's a safer GPS than one with a 3.5-inch screen.
The Maestro offers everything else you'd want in a GPS, too, including text-to-speech (i.e. it pronounces street names), 6 million points of interest, a windshield mount, and optional real-time traffic.
Even if you don't spring for a traffic subscription (which costs $60 annually after a free three-month trial), you can use the Maestro's SmartDetour feature to plot a route around suddenly slow or stopped traffic.
You don't get a lot of fancy frills like Bluetooth or a media player, but I consider that stuff fairly superfluous anyway. The big screen is the big attraction here, and the traffic option is icing on the cake.
CNET hasn't reviewed the 5310, but the handful of user reviews over at Amazon are overwhelmingly positive.
Because this is a refurb, the warranty expires after 90 days. As always, I think that's a potential positive: whatever problem might have existed has already been corrected.
In any case, this deal has been running all weekend, so there's a chance it'll be ending soon. If you're in the market for a nav system and you'd budgeted $100 or so anyway, I'd definitely consider paying a little extra for this big, beautiful screen.
On Sale Now: $179.99 - $549.99
View the latest prices for Magellan Maestro 5310
Connected's pipe-arranging puzzles are like potato chips: Bet you can't play just one.
A few weeks ago, I received e-mails from two developers within the space of about two hours. Each was pitching a new, "totally unique" puzzle game, and would I like to review them?
Now, I'm a sucker for puzzlers, especially on the iPhone, but the App Store is already teeming with them--each one claiming to be "original," "addictive," "brain-teasing," and so on. How truly unique could either of these newcomers be?
The first one, Connected, instantly reminded me of countless lay-the-pipe-before-the-water-escapes games--until I started playing it.
Connected does involve pipes, but here you're not fighting the clock (or the water). Instead, you merely have to figure out the proper arrangement of preselected pieces, which can be moved but not rotated.
It's a bit like Traffic Jam, but damn if it doesn't manage to be original, challenging, and insidiously addictive. With each level I somehow managed to complete, I told myself, "Just one more."
Add to it an elegant, simple interface and you've got 99 cents extremely well-spent.
The other game, Wriggle, also costs 99 cents--but there's a try-before-you-buy free version as well.
Great for kids but fun for anybody, Wriggle puts a great twist on block-sliding puzzles.
At first glance, Wriggle looks like a kids game--but don't let that fool you. While kids will undoubtedly enjoy the colorful, smiley-faced worms, there's plenty of challenge here for all ages.
Your goal is to help the blue worm escape the maze in as few moves as possible. This is done by dragging the heads and/or tails of the various worms that stand in his way.
Again, you can see elements of Traffic Jam, but that game doesn't go around corners. Wriggle does, and, like Connected, it comes across as a wholly unique kind of puzzle.
Wriggle also offers a bit more replay value, with four difficulty levels and the option of replaying any puzzle to see if you can win in fewer moves. You can even tweet your progress, if you're into that kind of thing.
Initially, I judged both games by their covers (make that screenshots), and that was a mistake. Connected and Wriggle are perfectly priced and perfectly entertaining. I highly recommend both.
Seen any unique puzzle games lately? Are there any you just can't put down? Share your puzzle faves in the comments. In the meantime, check out these five perfect puzzle games for the iPhone.
Trapster alerts you to nearby speed cameras and "Smokey takin' pictures."
It's been nearly a year since the debut of Trapster, a controversial but popular app that alerts you of nearby speed traps, cameras, and the like.
Version 3.5 just hit the App Store, bringing with it some impressive--and, for many users, long-awaited--new features. Here's the rundown:
- Improved interface Five features (some of them new) are now accessible by tapping blue icons that span the right side of the screen.
- Bluetooth audio If your car supports Bluetooth, you can pair Trapster to your stereo to get audio alerts over your speakers. Even better, if your car supports A2DP (i.e. stereo Bluetooth), you can take advantage of:
- Built-in iPod controls Tap the little musical-note icon to slide open Trapster's iPod audio controls. Obviously, you don't need stereo Bluetooth to use them, but it sure is a nice combo. ... Read more
