Newsgab

Which is more powerful: A computer in a traditional beige case, or a computer in a “ruby red” case? Well according to Dell, a “trendy” coloured computer is more powerful. Dell has released a new range of Inspiron notebooks for the colour conscious individual. So what’s so special about these notebooks compared to their normal line of notebooks? I compared the Inspiron 1520 coloured notebook with the equivalent “colourless” model, and the specs were identical. The only difference I found was the colour. And what a colour palette to choose from:

• Jet Black
• Alpine White
• Espresso Brown
• Ruby Red
• Mindnight Blue
• Spring Green
• Flamingo Pink
• Sunshine Yellow

“Today, Apple is going to reinvent the phone, and here it is,” company CEO Steve Jobs confidently said during a keynote speech at Macworld on Tuesday.

Jobs was presenting the new iPhone, the device which is supposedly going to revolutionise the mobile phone industry.

Not only is the iPhone going to revolutionise mobiles as we know them today, its even got a little bit of magic built it. “It works like magic…” says Jobs “It’s far more accurate than any touch display ever shipped. It ignores unintended touches. It’s super-smart.”

Yaaaaaawn!

I’m seriously struggling to understand exactly how ground breaking the iPhone is going to be. Sure, Apple may have created and patented the keyboard technology that is being referred to as “multi-touch” but is multi-touch really going to revolutionise the mobile phone industry and how will the touch screen handle the regular contact and hammering without experiencing the scratch issues found on many of todays iPods?

Good news for the few gamers without a portable video game system. If you have an iPod you can now download games from iTunes for just a few bucks.

The downloads cost just $4.99 from the iTunes online store. The games will only play on fifth-generation iPod and will not be able to play on your computer. The games will be controlled using the basic iPod scroll wheel and buttons.

Most of the games are simple puzzle type games due to the limited control and screen size. Notable games include Pac-Man, Tetris and Bejeweled.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Every single minute globally there are probably hundreds of thousands of people with groping hands, that is groping for a type of remote control gadget.

Researchers at Osaka University in Japan, have developed a hands on approach to the problem of losing remote control gadgets.

They want to project a screen to the palm of our hands. When we “press” the relevant option, with the other hand a camera records that motion. The data is used to carry out the command.

The bad news is that is is complicated to achieve, and a working prototype is not expected within five years. That is a long time these days for RD, perhaps they may consider it to be worth their time to see if it can make the bed as well.

Popularity: 1% [?]

A young Dutch architect has created a floating bed which hovers above the ground through magnetic force and comes with a cool price tag of 1.2 million euros ($1.54 million).

Taking his inspiration from the mysterious monolith in Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 cult film “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Janjaap Ruijssenaars took six years to develop the sleek black platform, which can also double as a dining table or a plinth

“No matter where you live all architecture is dictated by gravity. I wondered whether you could make an object, a building or a piece of furniture where this is not the case — where another power actually dictates the image,” Ruijssenaars said in a cool, I’m a designer and I must talk like this, kind of way.

Magnets built into the floor and into the bed itself repel each other, pushing the bed up into the air. Thin steel cables tether the bed in place.

I’ve always been a closet fan of robots, ever since the days of the Transformers or R2D2 and C3PO from the Starwars movies I’ve always marvelled at the technology that sits behind these masked men of steel!

Now I’m a slightly more grown up kid, it looks like the next generation are going to be spoilt with some of the latest releases from Japans toy makers Bandai.

Check out this guy! The 1.5-meter (five-foot) tall version of the Gundam – whose adventures in far-away worlds have been a longstanding hit on Japanese and US television — sends red laser rays from its head and flashing lights through its eyes (click thumbnail for larger image - the robots on the right by the way).

Weighing 35 kilograms (77 pounds), the robot strikes poses, makes robotic noises and fires away with its “Vulcan” machine gun.

The super-sized plasma war is hotting again up as LG launch it’s latest gigantic telly.

The widescreen wonder beats every other plasma in size…Measuring an eye-spanking 71-inches, the MY-71PY10 can be yours in one of two finishes, either slick black or if your feeling really flush, in genuine gold.

Yes…gold! as in a whopping 4 pounds of the shiny stuff.

Seriously stunning, it’s the world’s largest commercially available plasma, pumping out full Hi-Definition pictures and packing the latest HDMI connectors. (Click thumbs for larger images)

LG’s XD Engine also means standard-definition pictures look super sharp, while the included 600W speaker system means surround sound will be more than capable of making your ears bleed.

Popularity: 9% [?]

Microsoft has finally admitted that they are developing a portable media player that will go head to head with Apple’s iPod. Dubbed ‘Zune‘, it has become the worst kept secret since Israel’s nuclear weapons capability.

The player, which sports a screen larger than the iPod, a scroll wheel (where have we seen that before?) and wifi capability is Microsoft’s attempt at a vertically integrated business model.

Popularity: 1% [?]

According to a Bloomberg News report, Microsoft is developing an as-yet-unnamed device to rival Apples IPOD.

The MP3 Player from Microsoft is expected to include a wireless Internet connection, which will allow users to download music files without having to link the player to a PC.

It won’t be the first music player with Wi-Fi, as the MusicGremlin beat Microsoft to it earlier this year, however it’s still a big part of the functionality not currently offered on the IPOD.

Even more worrying for Apple, Microsoft is aiming to launch the wireless digital music and video player prior to Christmas which could seriously dent the number of Ipods purchased during the busy holiday season..

Currently Apple’s dominance of the market is reflected by a 77 per cent share of the digital music player market in the US, with its iTunes store used for 72 per cent of downloads, according to figures from analyst NPD.

In the future watches won’t be necessary. We’ll simply tap into our globally synched, broadband enabled brain clocks and the time will instantly appear behind our widescreen retinas. Or something like that. Until then mankind will have to make do with wristwatches. But why settle for dull digits and dials when you can go binary?

Say hello to the latest weird, and yet strangly cool watch: the Kerala Trance.

Despite a slightly Ibiza sounding name, it’s got a big geek angle too: the display’s in binary. Two rows of four LEDs tell the time; hours above, minutes below. Next to each LED there’s a number - add up the numbers whose lights are illuminated and you get the time.

Popularity: 2% [?]