Bananas are—and I don't mean to hyperbolize—the world's most perfect fruit. They're self-contained in one perfect serving size; offer their own grip for eating without getting your hands messy, and taste perfect in a bowl of serial. The difficulty is transporting them without getting them all brown and smushy, at which point they cease to be the world's most perfect fruit, and instead become the world's messiest fruit.
For just $6.99, you can purchase the Banana Guard, a plastic form-fitted shell in the vein of the individual cupcake protector that will keep your banana in perfect condition for that lunch hour. Specially designed to fit "the vast majority of bananas" the Banana Guard is available in five colors: Ravishing Red, Mellow Yellow, Sublime Green, Brilliant Blue, and Passionate Purple. The case also features small holes to encourage ripening and is dishwasher safe.
Let your bananas never get smushed again! This shall be our rallying cry.
[via The Consumerist]
I love the idea of tailless—er, wireless mice. Cords can get in the way at times; in my house, the tangle of cables behind my desk sometimes causes my mouse to get pulled back, as though being sucked into some sort of cosmic black hole. Wireless mice have much more freedom, but they're tethered in other ways. Battery consumption, for example.
A4Tech's come up with a nifty solution to that problem: don't wire the mouse; wire the mousepad. The dedicated mousepad plugs into your computer's USB port and provides power to the mouse via electromagnetic induction. There are downsides to this, of course. For one thing, those looking to use their computer while several feet away will still be limited by the length of the mousepad's cord. Also, I'd imagine that the induction will only work as long as the mouse is in contact with the pad. But on the flipside, you'll never have to worry about running out of batteries.
Besides its novel power concept, the mouse features the usual niceties: scroll wheel, 800dpi tracking, and seven programmable buttons (Windows may be necessary to program the buttons, but since it's a standard USB connection, it ought to work fine). It'll run 20,000 Korean Wan, or around $21.
[via Engadget]
Why does Japan always get the cool stuff? Maybe because they're closer to where it all comes from. It's just over two wiiks—sorry, weeks—until Nintendo's Wii console arrives, and already there's news on an "enhanced" version of the console that will only be available in Japan.
You may remember that when the Wii's specs were first announced, playing standard DVDs was among the bullet points mentioned, but this functionality was apparently removed. Turns out that's only half the case—Japanese fans will be able to pick up an "enhanced" version of the console which will play back DVDs. According to a Nintendo spokesperson, there are no plans to release this version of the console in any other region. Nintendo's logic for dropping DVD playback functionality was that low-cost standalone players are widely available—though apparently not in Japan?
This is hardly make-or-break for most people I know; then again, I know several people who use their PS2s as DVD players simply from convenience. It's nice not to have to hook up another device to your TV. Oh, well.
[via Kotaku]
It's the game console that costs less than $150 and is the most popular console in the US, despite having been around since 2000. That's right, it's your friend and mine, the PS2. We noted when we reported on Sony's abysmal quarterly results that PS2 sales were fairly flat, but no growth doesn't mean no profits. And in a move to perhaps bolster those flagging profits a little further in the holiday quarter, Sony has released a silver edition of its venerable console.
The silver edition has been available in Europe and Japan for some time, but this is it's first trip to our home shores. Besides the console, the package includes one PS2 DUALSHOCK controller (glad to see the PS2 is keeping the rumble). All that for $129.
I have to say that releasing the slimline version of the PS2 several years ago was a smooth move on Sony's part. I just helped my girlfriend hook up her PS2—one of the original models—and it looks positively gargantuan next to her tiny little GameCube. Yes, that's right, my girlfriend owns more consoles than I do—hands off, gents.
[via Joystiq]
Over the years, I've slow come to grips with the fact that—to the disappointment of my parents—I will never be a world-class pianist. I took lessons for five years when I was younger, but I detested practicing. And though I got back into playing a year or two ago, my keyboard is currently gathering a fair amount of dust.
That doesn't stop me from coveting this sweet Casio PX 800, though. It's got the full 88 key complement, and they appear to be weighted, better simulating playing an actual piano. The sustain pedal is integrated as well, meaning you don't have to shell out for it separately. For the technophile in you, the PX 800 has a USB port and an SD card reader. You can use either of those methods to copy music and song data to the piano as accompaniment, or you can store your own performances on the SD card. No word on whether or not they allow MIDI interface over the USB connection.
The PX 800 being released in Japan on November 17th for about $1075. No news on a US drop as of yet, but we'll keep an eye out.
Look, despite what people whisper behind my back, I'm not just a 12 year old boy in a 26 year old's body, okay? And that nonsense about me talking to some fortune teller machine is ridiculous—let's just drop it.
Then again, if I were a 12 year old magically turned into an adult, investing $9000 in a said fortune-telling machine would probably seem like a good idea. Even better, it's still quarter-operated, meaning that you have only to entice 36,000 of your friends to get their fortunes told in order to make back your initial investment.
Zoltar—Zol, to his fortune-telling buddies—can spit out 16 different fortunes in a creepy voice, or 23 different fortunes on a little slip of paper. My personal favorite? "Help, I'm trapped in a fortune cookie factory." It just works on so many levels.
While we're on the subject, did anyone else go back to watch Big as an adult and find the romantic sub-plot kind of icky? Yeah.
[via SCI FI Tech]
Listen, I don't care what LG wants to tell you. White chocolate? Not chocolate. I have on my desk a bar of Lindt 85% Cocoa Dark Chocolate which is so rich, I actually can't eat it. That's chocolate.
So even though LG is releasing their much-touted musicphone, the Chocolate (aka the VX8500), in a variety of other colors like white, green, and red, remember that there is just one chocolate, 'kay? The new colors are going to be available through Verizon, though no drop date has yet been announced. I'd expect them to be priced similarly to the current Choco-offering: retailing for $180, cheaper with contract re-ups.
We may be all about the gizmos here at Gadgetbox, but what good are those technological doohickies when we're constantly forgetting them? The $15 Doorganizer is out to help your forgetfulness streak. It hangs over a convenient door knob and has slots for holding papers, letters to be mailed, gadgets like your cellphone and iPod, and even a keyring. This way, when you're on your way out the door, you'll be reminded to bring those important things with you. The only shortcoming I can see is that it's far too small to hold my pants.
I saw a similar idea at some point for using an over the door shoe organizer to keep track of your associated devices and their accessories (chargers, cables, etc). The only problem, of course, is that they never let us out of Gadgetbox HQ. Still, sometimes it's nice to play "let's pretend."
[via Popgadget]
