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Latest Gear Live Videos
We are fans of The Daily Show for reasons like this - only Jon Stewart can get this type of reaction from powerful mogul like Jeff Bezos. Watch as Bezos comes on The Daily Show to let the world know about the Kindle 2, while Jon makes fun of just about every aspect of the product, from the price, to the notion of e-paper. Great stuff.
Gallery: Daily Show: Jeff Bezos on the Kindle 2
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Google Latitude can help you keep track of friends and family on your cell phone. Find your buds and their status on a map, then contact them with a call, IM or SMS. You have to have a compatible phone with images enabled such as Android-powered cellies, BlackBerrys, Nokia smartphones and Java-enabled devices. If you have an iPhone or iPod, there are plans in the works for those, too. Google promises privacy but you might want to think about how much you want your friends to know about where you go and when. This is a free service but carrier charges may apply.
Read More 
| Google Latitude
Gallery: Google Latitude Tracks Friends
Powermats Charge Wirelessly
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Misc. Tech, Videos, Wireless / WiFi, USB,
Powermat combines a super-thin mat and receiver to wirelessly charge 3 to 6 electronic devices, all at the same rate as their own chargers. Using magnetic induction, there are a dozen different receivers that will work with phones, PDAs, headsets, MP3 players, handheld games, GPS units, laptops, batteries, cameras, and more. For example, the one for home use comes with a storage tray and can handle up to 4 devices and has a USB port to charge a fifth. A fall debut is expected, so sign up on their site if you would like to be notified when the Powermats become available.
Read More | Powermat
Gallery: Powermats Charge Wirelessly
HTPC Building Series: Selecting our hardware
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Features, HDTV, Home Entertainment, PC / Laptop, Videos,
Check out out HTPC on a Budget series and join us in building a great HTPC for under $1,000.
In our quest to build a great HTPC on a budget, one thing we need to think about is the hardware and software we are going to use to build and run everything. We are going to be really ambitious here, scouring deal and coupon sites to find great hardware and software at even greater prices. If you come across anything, feel free to leave a comment and let us know.
The first piece of hardware we are focusing on is a motherboard from MSI that integrates the “Maui” platform - the MSI K912GM-FIH. This is one of the biggest leaps forward in HTPC technology, and as such, we are going to build this machine around this board. In case we need to prove our case further, check out this video we did on the motherboard before its release:
Click to continue reading HTPC Building Series: Selecting our hardware
Gallery: HTPC Building Series: Selecting our hardware
Nokia N79 Active With SportsTracker
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Smartphones, GPS, Videos, Wireless / WiFi,
Maybe the only exercise you get these days is on your Wii, so Nokia has upped its N79 smartphone to bring you the Active and get you out of the house. It has a SportsTracker application that utilizes an onboard GPS, accelerometer and data connection to keep track of your exercising. Track your miles run, speed, heart rate and include music. You can also upload to the SportsTracker website. The Active comes with a Polar Bluetooth WearLink heart rate belt and a CP-324 elastic armband case at a price of $492.00.
Read More | Mobileburn
Gallery: Nokia N79 Active With SportsTracker
BaR2D2 - Robotic Bartender
Posted by Sheila Franklin Categories: Design, Smart Home, Science, Videos,
Remember the Refrigerator that tosses beer cans? The BaR2D2 makes that look like an infant machine. Creator Jamie Price made the portable bartender in his spare time in his garage. BaR has a motorized beer elevator and ice/mixer drawer, a six-bottle shot dispenser, and sound activated neon lighting and sound effects. Jamie has full instructions available on Instructables if you would like to DIY. While you are there, vote for him so he can win some Craftsman tools to build his next clever creation.
Read More | Instructables
Gallery: BaR2D2 - Robotic Bartender
Video: Microsoft Songsmith first look
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: CES, CES 2009, Microsoft, Music, PC / Laptop, Software, Videos,
Our pal Robert Scoble was able to get an early look at the new Microsoft Songsmith software, and we were impressed enough that we wanted to give you guys a look at the video. Songsmith allows you to make music, that you sing to, by generating musical accompaniment to match a singer’s voice. You sing into your mic, and the software creates the backing music for you to make you sound good. It’s not just for novices either, as you can play instruments into Somgsmith for capturing, and it includes an intelligent scratchpad to allow it to work with new melodies. Kind of hard to explain, so really, check out the video. You can download a free trial at the Songsmith page as well.
Read More | Songsmith
Gallery: Video: Microsoft Songsmith first look
Okay, well, not really, but here on the eve of MacWorld 2009, we thought we might have a little fun. We adore The Onion here at Gear Live, and when we saw this video, we had to share it with you. After all, we know that Mac fanboys will buy anything, that prices on new Apple products can be high, and that sometimes battery life can be horrible. The Onion used that fodder to put together the masterpiece you see above, the first Apple notebook with no keyboard.
Okay, enough of that, we’ll be back with the real MacWorld 2009 news tomorrow morning!
Read More | The Onion
Gallery: Apple introduces the MacBook Wheel
On the eve of MacWorld 2009, Google has finally gone and released a Mac version of Picasa. Picasa 3 for OS X is a beta version of the massively popular Picasa photo management software that Windows users have been enjoying for about five years now. If you are unfamiliar, unlike iPhoto, Picasa doesn’t wrangle all your images into one area - instead, if finds them and leaves them where they are. If you move an image, it will know where it went. You can do simple editing, and since Picasa is a Google product, it ties in to all the other Google offerings in exactly the ways you are thinking. Yup, emailing photos using your Gmail account, uploading videos to YouTube, and sending both photos and videos to the free Picasa Web Albums service, where you can then share them with friends, the world, or keep them private.
Picasa is free, and you can grab it immediately.
Read More | Picasa for OS X
Gallery: Picasa 3 beta released for Mac
Once in a while we just have to let you know about something that adds no value to your life except for that of amusement. The Poking Box, (aka Tuttuki Bako in Japanese,) allows you to stick your finger inside and supposedly gives you the same sensation you would have by touching the onscreen figures. The silly gadget carries a MSRP of $49.99. We expect now someone will come up with something that will duplicate the sensation of pulling one’s finger.
Read More | Gizmine
