Toys and Games

Honestly, it never really occurred to me that there will be such a computer game made dedicated to the fine sport of equestrianism. Well, horse racing, yes, but equestrianism, never!

Obviously the Wii Fit will be one of the best sellers for Nintendo this summer, and the concept of fun exercise is very appealing to large mammals. It’s appealing to Atari too. Atari is releasing their own version of a fitness game called Family Trainer. In Atari’s version, you don’t use a step-on board like Wii Fit, the Family Trainer uses a floor mat similar to the DDR pad.(Is this thing going to slide and hurt people?)

Once Microsoft finally released Windows XP Service Pack 3 to the Automatic Update after a last minute delay you might think the worst is over, but for many it doesn’t look like that’s necessarily the case.

Apple has put out an official announcement that Steve Jobs and a number of other suits from Apple will be kicking off the Worldwide Developers Conference this year in San Francisco. The press release says that this years conference will showcase both the OS X Leopard and the OS X iPhone, but we’re thinking there will be a new iPhone announcement, too.

At CES back in 2007 there were several demonstrations of 60Hz TVs next to 120Hz TVs. The difference in image quality achieved through going from 60 to 120Hz was very impressive. Samsung wasn’t content to sit on its 120Hz laurels and has announced the first Blue Phase LCD panel.

LG Electronics launches its full HD PDP TVs ‘Xcanvas BoBos’ (funny name to speakout in shop) in Korea market, which features simple screen without frame and invisible speaker system. Supporting Smart Time Machine function, the Bobos (I wanna bobos tv? ROLF) lineup comes in three different sizes incuding 60- (model: 60PG70FHD), 50- (model: 50PG61RD) and 42-inch (model: 42PG61RD)

It's been almost a week since I played through the truly enjoyable and immensely colourful demo of the newly released Skin & Bones offering, and, well, I thought I'd let you know.

Some time since Reverend was here with a new model, but the time has come and the new model is the Reverend Roundhouse RT Guitar a Les Paul-look alike guitar that comes with the last innovations that Reverend has included in their models like Pin-Lock tuners, and an aggressive but warm tone because of the 5% hotter that the original pickups.

It has been quite some time now since the Agatha Christie: Murder on the Orient Express game was released from the Big Fish Games portal, so I guess blaming it all on the great length of this Puzzle game (as well as its file size), we only get to review it tod

The Spyderco Byrdwrench has an odd name. It’s not a wrench made by spiders for birds who spell their name with a Y like the British rock band. That would just be silly. What it is, is a multi-tool that’s a bit different from some other multi-tools. It sports a combination of one-hand open knife, slip-joint pliers, bit driver, and an adjustable crescent wrench.

TV is everywhere. From the moment of it’s creation, it has spread into every corner of our lives, like the plague. It used to be you could get away from the TV in your car. Not anymore, thanks to USTelematics, who are delivering IPTV to their Voyager in-car entertainment systems.

Imagine a future where homes look like oversized futuristic gadgets rather then the same old stale design. The Reboot is designed not just to look pleasing, but also to be entirely self-sufficient. It has energy collecting solar paint, wind turbines and a rainwater collection system, for hydroelectric energy and water for the house.

LG Electronics in the Middle East has released the Super Multi Blue Blu-ray Disc Rewriter, the BE06. The fastest rewriter that reads and writes Blu-ray at 6x. It’s aimed at laptop users or those with multiple PCs connecting USB 2.0 and a DC power connector.
It also has Optical Pickup Technology supporting Blu-ray disc write/playback, HD-DVD playback, and DVD/CD write playback. You can get one for $549, but as far as availability in the U.S., there’s no word just yet.
[BlurayDar]

At NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program Spring 2008 show, graduate students were exhibiting some interesting and unusual projects. Like Oscar G. Torres’s Helios Power Tree, for instance. The leaves are constructed from thin solar cells that are all connected to a battery at the tree’s base from the branches and trunk. The battery uses solar power to charge and powers blue lights around the tree. There are USB outlets on the base.

The Eee PC has revived the world of tiny notebooks with a cheap price, which made a lot of companies create their own computer with a basic configuration, and obviously, a low-budget cost.
With that being said, here is the $400 UMPC made by 3K Computers, and named RazorBook 400. The Ultra Mobile detail makes the LCD screen size be very small - 7-inches - and therefore the resolution is also low, at 800×400 pixels.

Unlike other type of gadgets that are more sophisticated on the US, the market of mobile phones is more advanced in Europe, and that is why “we” get most cellphone models sooner than the US, not to mention exclusive models.
The LG-BH620T is one of those cellphones - in the first phase it will go to Germany, but in the near future it will be represented on other European countries. In terms of special features, the DVB-T - Digital Video Broadcasting - is the main point of attraction.

Microsoft has come up with 3 new web cameras that go straight into the LifeCam series. The prices range from $17 up to $50, which in the end can be considered an affordable webcam, right?
The new models are codenamed VX-5000, VX-500 and LX-200, with the first one being the most expensive. The inclusion of MSN Photo Swap software on the VX-5000, so you can share photos easily, is probably one of reasons why it isn’t as cheap as the other two.

Sure, I can see the point in playing around with a small Indiana Jones dude in LEGO, and I can see the point in playing an Indiana Jones video game - but who would really be interested in playing the Indiana Jones LEGO video game. To me it’s just a really bad idea, what do you think?
Lego Indiana Jones demo now available for PC [joystiq.com]

Google just launched a new beta version of the Google reader for iPhone and other modern mobile devices. It looks quite nice and is very similar to the list view in the desktop version.

The Rush is an exciting project by the designer Martin Ruegg. At the moment it is just a concept but the idea is to control the camera by a small finger ring remote, and record all the data on a flash memory inside the camera. Nice one.
Rush [martinruegg.com]

Another mixer release today, now it’s the turn for Cortex that has released a new model similar to the previous one, also for bars and nightclubs which need a compact and lightweight device with high quality results. This is the Cortex MIX-R1U Professional Audio Mixer, that will make difficult the decision of choosing a new device for your rig.

Today Apple announced that they signed a deal with HBO to bring you a bunch of their hit series to iTunes. You will get goodies such as The Sopranos, Sex and the City, Deadwood, Rome, Flight of the Conchords and The Wire. Shows are available in the US, UK, Canada and Germany. Full press release after the jump.
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Gemini is one of the most successful brands in the club gear market, so DJs and clubbers should be happy to know that they have released a new mixer model, the Gemini MM 4000 DJ Mixer that comes in the same 19″ rack-mountable format that its product line brothers and its specially designed for voice recording and mixing tasks.

Pioneer recently unveiled a new 1080p home theater projector designed for its Elite line and enhanced with the company’s KURO display technology. It is known as the Pioneer Elite KURO Projector and you’ll find it pricing around $9,000.
The Pioneer Elite KURO Projector was designed specifically for the custom install market, offering Pioneer’s KURO display technology for “deep black levels and rich colors.” This technology is featured in the projector’s multiple viewing modes. It also offers dual HDMI 1.3 support.

Let's play the game. What's on your mind if I mentions the words Nouveau Riche?

Creative has doubled the gigabytes in their Shuffle-rival, the MuVo T200. The PMP had previously only been available in 2GB, but will now come in a 4GB version. The T200 has a compact 128 x 32 pixels 65k color display. With a non-replaceable rechargeable battery, Creative is promising up to 9hrs playback on a single charge.
Music is transferred via the built-in USB 2.0 plug, which also recharges it. MP3, WMA/WMA (DRM9) and Audible Format 2,3,4 files are supported, and Creative says that you can fit 133hrs of WMA-encoded music onto it. You also get an FM radio, with 32 preset slots and voice recording. No US price yet.

Of all the emotions we go through when playing games, frustration is probably the dominant one. Here, we have a psycological profile of the gamecube come to life. In the fall of 2003, Kathryn Elliot was asked to pick up a product, analyze the intricacies of color involved, then redesign it based on a dominant emotion associated with it. She chose Nintendo’s GameCube, so it was naturally going to depict frustration. She named it the Frustration Game Cube. Or Frube. It’s designed to aggravate, portray and possibly even relieve a player’s frustration, with Frube’s many changes.

This is obviously the Hamburglar’s getaway vehicle. Frankly, I’m surprised we don’t see this kind of thing more often, since Harley’s are a symbol of the American dream. Judging by the hoardes of obese Fast Food enthusiasts out there, the only thing more American is obesity. Which makes this a much desired vehicle.

Our favorite little Star Wars droid is like Rodney Dangerfield. He gets no respect. They make laundry baskets in his likeness, even soy sauce bottles. When will they give the droid some proper respect? Not today. Here is the latest R2 item. An ice bucket with Han Solo in Carbonite ice cubes. They managed to diss Han with this one as well.

Microsoft has launched the new WorldWide Telescope, a free web-based program that puts together images from the Hubble Space Telescope, the Chandra X-Ray Observatory Center, the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and others.