While it may have trouble prying folks away from their do-it-all GP2Xs, Plezo’s new PMG-250 portable media player looks like it could attract the interest of at least a few nostalgic gamers, boasting some game emulation support in addition to the usual audio and video capabilities. Of course, you’ll be somewhat limited in your gaming options, with the NES, Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Sega Mega Drive (a.k.a. Genesis) the only consoles supported, although that should still be more than enough to help you re-learn some of those old school skills you may have forgotten. The device itself also looks to be decent enough, with a 2.5-inch LCD, 2GB of internal memory, and an SD slot for some sure-to-be-needed additional expansion. Not surprisingly, this one looks to be exclusive to Korea for the time being, where it’ll set you back 169,000 won, or about $180.

[Via AVING]
more info
from engadget

Well lookey lookey, the cellphone fairy dropped us off an unbranded Motorola Q9 to fool around with. Cut to the chase: we’re not going to lie: the fact that it’s larger than the Q is somewhat unacceptable in our eyes — we really don’t care that it has HSDPA, 3G is no longer an excuse for a big ass phone. Also unfortunate: no more scroll wheel, you’re now stuck with the usual up/down rocker buttons. The keyboard, which looks especially tactile, isn’t really all that fantastic, and kind of reminded us of a grid of slick, round hard-candies. Basically, we’re not super stoked for the Q9, but hey, it ain’t over until it’s out, and this thing hasn’t shown any signs of US release in the near future, so maybe they’ll have time to work out some kinks.

From engadget

Gallery: Hands-on with the Motorola Q9 in the wild

    

Face detection on your average digicam may not seem that special, but strapping the feature atop your steering column can certainly make for a more enjoyable (and safer) driving experience. Lexus‘ new LS600hL sports a Driver Monitoring System, which places a detection device in front of the driver’s seat that keeps a close eye on the orientation of the his / her face, and if it sees that you’re peering off at the continually changing MINI billboard or checking out the overhead wind energy producer, it kicks into action. The system will send audible and visual alerts at first in an attempt to get your attention back, and can eventually “apply the brakes on its own” if the previous warnings prove futile. Moreover, it can reportedly “reprogram the steering ratio and amplify the intensity and quickness of the steering response” to keep motorists safe, but there’s no word on whether or not a retinal scanner add-on will be available to automatically adjust user preferences depending on which driver hops in the seat.

More info
from engadget

While we don’t have any clear word on when or if to expect Averatec’s 6700 laptop we just spotted to hit the States, things are a bit more promising with the Averatec 2371, which the company is also announcing today. The ultraportable is a slight bump to the 2300 line we spotted last year, and Averatec’s first laptop for the States running Vista. Along with Home Premium, the 2371 runs 1GB of RAM, a 120GB HDD, dual-layer DVD burner, 802.11b/g WiFi, an ExpressCard/54 slot and a 4-in-1 card reader — not too bad for a 1.3-inch thick, 4 pound, 12.1-incher. The screen runs at 1280 x 800, and there’s a 1.6GHz AMD Turion 64 X2 TL-52 processor under the hood. Prices range from $900 to $950.

From engadget

While we’re not going to fault manufacturers for trying to innovate, previous attempts at featurewatches have been, well, less than attractive. Looks like Epoq sent some of their designers to a watch shop, because their new EMP-CVWC-2/4 “MP4″ watch finally lets you keep that mashup of your favorite Battlestar Galactica scenes at the ready and still blend into polite company. Well, maybe — that’s still a lot of chunk to wear on your wrist, but we can’t see how anything smaller than a 1.5-inch screen would be useful. We’re assuming this is just a metal-and-leather reworking of the Shenzhen piece we saw a while back, since the basic specs are the same (apart from a bump in capacities to 2 / 4GB): 128 x 128 res OLED screen, MP3 / WMA / JPG support, voice recorder, FM radio, and a 2.5mm headphone jack. As with that Shenzhen, the dealbreaker is video support, which is limited to the goofy NXV format. The six people still interested should be able to find a 2GB model a couple weeks from now for about $170.

[Via I4U]
more info
from engadget

Just in case you were losing faith in WorldGate‘s ability to build back steam behind the trusty Ojo, we’ve got some positive news. The Ojo Shadow video phone will soon be loosed on the US market through a slightly unorthodox venue, as the Home Shopping Network snags the exclusive first launch privileges. The device is slated to make its television debut to American consumers at 8:00AM EST on HSN (set your alarms, folks), but for those of us who aren’t down with waiting, a set of two is available right now from the company’s webstore for $499.90. Users can expect a 854 x 480 resolution display, up to 20 minutes of video messaging, photo-based caller ID, and automatic white balance and backlight compensation, but we still say a webcam-based video chat would be much kinder to your wallet.

more info
from engadget

Nah, WiebeTech’s latest RAID enclosures can’t quite offer up the internal storage capacity seen on Novac’s iterations, but the RT5 and RT5e still pack an awful lot of capacity with a handle on top. The RT5 packs a nice variety of connection options, as users will find twin FireWire 800 ports along with one eSATA and USB 2.0 connector to boot, and there should be enough room in there to cram “up to 2TB” of HDDs for on-the-go redundancy. The RT5e differs ever-so-slightly by giving us the means to stuff five 750GB IDE drives in the case, leaving you with up to 3.75TB of space to read / write on via the sole eSATA jack. The enclosures sport five reloadable, lockable drive trays, a rugged exterior that shouldn’t suffer from minor bumps and bruises, and while an empty rendition will run you $1,699.95, WiebeTech will gladly sell ‘em pre-populated for anywhere from $2,259.95 to a steep $4,149.95 depending on drive selections.

More info
from engadget