Crave

(Credit: Cambridge Consultants)

People who like getting physical with their gadgets may warm to a new Internet radio that must be moved around to operate.

The Q2 Cube radio from Cambridge Consultants and Armour Group will change to one of four preselected stations when it's turned over on its side. Tilting the speaker back or forward lowers or raises the volume.

The Cube seems to be a bit bigger than palm-sized, so it would fit neatly on a cluttered desk. It wouldn't do as an alarm clock, since tossing it from the bedside table would presumably only change the station.

The companies are calling the device "revolutionary," though in what sense is unclear. In the old days, radios also had to be tuned by turning something--a large dial.

There's no word on price yet, but the Cube could be in some U.K. stores for the holidays.

(Via Wired)

For this week's installment of the weekly Crave giveaway, we have one of our best freebies yet: Sony's LBT-LCD7Di Muteki shelf system.

What's sweet about this iPod audio system is that it also does video, as well as plays back DVDs and CDs (there's a radio, too). Equipped with a 7-inch LCD screen and three-disc DVD/CD player, you can watch movies and iPod videos right on the system, no extra display required. As for power, you get 360 watts (180W x 2), and Sony throws in a karaoke feature that lets you sing along to your favorite tunes. Is that hot or what?

Normally, the Sony LBT-LCD7Di Muteki Shelf System would cost about $500, but you have the chance to get it gratis.

So, how do you try to win this Sony mini AV powerhouse? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.

• Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, no need to register again.
• Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated.
• Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified.
• The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive (1) Sony LBT-LCD7Di Muteki Shelf System. Approximate retail value is $500.
• If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
• Entries can be submitted until Monday, November 2, at noon ET.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENT OF ONE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR D.C., 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Sweepstakes ends at 12 PM ET on November 2, 2009. See official rules for details.

Good luck.

Life-changing.

(Credit: On the Cuff)

Started thinking about your holiday shopping yet? Looking for stocking stuffers? Nothing says "I love you" like kitchen gadgets, right? (Note to my husband: actually, nothing says "I love you" like a new MacBook.)

You know how it is. You're washing the dishes, and soapy water runs down your arms and under your sleeves, and it's just plain gross. Well, after years of suffering, Rana Bauer decided to "end this nightmare for all"--seriously, that's what her Web site says.

Bauer invented On the Cuff, a pair of stretchy cuffs you slip onto your wrists to stop water before it makes a mess, eliminating extra cleanup afterward. The cuffs come in a mesh bag you can hang them in to drip dry after each use. Buy a single pair for $8 or a four-pair pack for $25.

Bauer claims the product has "changed her life." I can't guarantee it'll do the same for you, but you may find it useful.

You're approaching the kitchen sink with raw meat all over your hands. Now what? You contort your hands around to turn on the water without making a mess, or you make a mess and then spend an extra five minutes sanitizing the faucet. Or, you take advantage of Delta Faucet's new Touch₂O technology and touch the faucet with your wrist, forearm, or elbow to start and stop the flow of water.

Use the handle as you would any ordinary faucet, or open the faucet and then start and stop the flow of water with a simple touch to the faucet. Tap anywhere on the spout or handle to turn the water on or off. After 4 minutes of inactivity, the automatic water shut-off kicks in--a major plus for households with kids.

The faucet comes in two- or three-hole installation options and is available in chrome and stainless-steel finishes. Check it out below, and snag it for $300 to $450.

"

Wal-Mart is preparing to offer in-home tech support to its customers, according to Reuters.

The retail giant will partner with product-support firm N.E.W. Customer Service Companies, the report said. By the holiday-shopping season, all U.S. Wal-Mart stores plan to offer customers the opportunity to use N.E.W.'s service in their homes. Reuters said the service already kicked off this month in specified locations.

Wal-Mart will give shoppers the option of buying service plans "on a prepaid card, ranging from $99 to $339," Reuters said. The service plans will provide "basic television installation on the low end" to more advanced services like home-network or home-theater installation. Reuters said the plans include a "preliminary consultation and a tutorial after installation is completed."

The decision to bring on a Geek Squad-like service seems to underlie Wal-Mart's desire to become a major player in the electronics business. It may also solidify its position as Best Buy's most dangerous brick-and-mortar competitor since the death of Circuit City and its FireDog in-home service.

(Credit: TerraCycle)

A New Jersey-based environmental firm has developed audio player speakers made from recycled chips and candy bar packages.

TerraCycle is using its large waste-collection program to turn Doritos and Cheetos bags, as wells as Mars candy wrappers, into funky, foldable speakers.

The Frito-Lay Speakers have a 3.5 mm universal plug and don't require batteries. They sell at Radio Shack and on the TerraCycle Website, where they're listed for $19.99.

Founded by Princeton dropout Tom Szaky, TerraCycle "upcycles" waste into over 100 useful products, such as backpacks made from Capri Sun drink pouches, pencil cases made from Chips Ahoy wrappers, and kites made from Oreo cookie bags.

The company collects waste from groups across the country and donates money to charities for each item received. It aims to save thousands of tons of packaging from entering landfills each year.

If you're new to the whole USB media player category, it goes something like this: storage brands like Western Digital, Seagate, and Iomega are looking for ways to tap into the growing number of consumers who have multimedia files stored on their computers and want to bring them to their TVs without much fuss. Of course, game consoles such as the PS3 and Xbox 360 offer similar functionality as part of their extensive repertoire (as do some Blu-ray players), but products like Seagate's FreeAgent Theater+ Media Player are targeting a more price-conscious consumer who doesn't want--or need--to deal with a full-fledged console.

The model we tested is the "plus" version of the Theater HD, and it addresses many of the complaints we had about the early version that was released in April 2009. Instead of just offering a component video connection, the Theater+ adds HDMI with 1080p output (for easier hookup to an HDTV and higher maximum resolution), an Ethernet connection (for streaming digital media files over a network), and better file support (it reads more file formats). Like its predecessor, this model comes in a bare-bones "bring your own drive" version ($150 list), as well as one that includes a 500GB FreeAgent Go drive that slides into a slot at the front of the unit and lists for $289. Any Free Agent Go drive, regardless of capacity, fits into the unit just fine, and the drive can be formatted for Windows PCs or Macs (NTFS, HFS+, or FAT all work).

Read the full review of the Seagate FreeAgent Theater+.

For this week's installment of the weekly Crave giveaway, we've got something for all you folks who would like to upgrade your wireless routers but haven't yet: the Belkin N+ wireless router, which features 802.11n 2.0 technology and earned a CNET Editors' Choice award last year.

In his review, Dong Ngo said the Belkin N+ is "a great performer with excellent range and throughput speed" and that it's "worth every penny of its $100-or-so price tag." As a bonus, it also has a USB port on back that delivers limited network-storage functionality. (Read the full review.)

Normally, the Belkin N+ would cost about $100, but you have the chance to get it gratis.

So, how do you try to win this wireless router? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.

• Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, no need to register again.
• Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated.
• Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified.
• The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive (1) Belkin N+ Wireless Router. Approximate retail value is $100.
• If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen.
• Entries can be submitted until Monday, October 26, at noon ET.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. MUST BE LEGAL RESIDENT OF ONE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES OR D.C., 18 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER AT DATE OF ENTRY INTO SWEEPSTAKES. VOID IN PUERTO RICO, ALL U.S. TERRITORIES AND POSSESSIONS AND WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW. Sweepstakes ends at 12 PM ET on October 26, 2009. See official rules for details.

Good luck.

(Credit: Inventables)

You know how annoying it is when you stick your bread in the toaster and accidentally set the dial too high, and when your toast finally pops up, it's darker than you want, or burned?

Granted, most of us over the age of, say, 6 are probably able to handle an ordinary toaster most of the time. But don't you want to watch your toast, well, toasting? Don't you want to see the magic happen?

This concept transparent glass toaster lets you do just that. Or, rather, it wants to let you do just that. Yeah, I was disappointed, too, when I read that the transparent heating glass technology does not currently heat the glass enough to toast bread. But the vendor thinks that a little R&D (and, I'm guessing, a lot of VC cash) could solve that problem.

At any rate, it looks cool.