This is all centered around the Heat Surge Roll-N-Glow fireplace that actally rolls from room to room. How the Amish got involved in this I have no idea, but I do know that as they slave away on fireplace mantles, barns are going un-built, shunnings and exiles seem few and far between. What’s next? Will they trade in the horse and buggy for a Model T? It all seems like some sci-fi plot, where huge events are foreshadowed by strange behavior. What are they really doing? What happens when we take these heaters into our homes? Could this be the long dreaded Amish invasion that some of us have feared, where they turn the tables and take our technology, leaving us to plow fields and milk cows? Will I punished by our new masters for writing this? Probably not, since they have no internetz. Still I’m growing an old man beard and wearing plain clothes…just in case.

[Amishfireplaces]

Mitsubishi’s 65-inch LaserVue 1080p rear-projection HDTV is priced at a hefty $7,000.The TV will be released later this month. Unfortunately, there is no word on pricing for its 73-inch version. As a reminder, the LaserVue is a laser-based HDTV, which uses an array of red, green, and blue lasers to project its image onto the screen. According to Mitsubishi, this HDTV provides a color gamut over 200% NTSC standard, and consumes less than 200 watts. [CruchGear]

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While the story is pretty standard fantasy fare, the accompanying merchandise is a far cry from the dolls, t-shirts, and tiaras marketed to previous generations of girls. The top three best selling tie-in items all come from Bandai and none of them are cuddly.

Top of the list is the Henshin Keitai (transformation mobile) Curemo, a multi-mode toy that mimics the functions of a mobile phone.

The first, “shot mode,” is activated by turning the top of the handset sideways (like many mobiles). A creature from the anime appears on the screen and players try to “capture” its image when it smiles, a direct shot means the creature could turn into one of the sought after kings or a useful item. “Dekakeru (“go out”) mode” summons “Syrup,” the Pre Cure team’s magical bird of transportation, for a ride to another land. “Phone mode” brings simulated telephone correspondence from the characters to the screen and “communication mode” allows transference of items between Curemo users, in a manner that mimics contact info transfer by infra-red between real mobile phones.

The next popular product is the Rosepact, a flip-up device with a pen touch panel that, like the Curemo, involve simples games to acquire items to help the kings; in fact, items can be transferred between the two.

Rounding out the top three is the Mirukyu Plate (short for Milky Cure, one of the characters), a hand held plastic device with wand that, when touched to panels, activates a recording of character voices and an LED light display. That isn’t to say that Bandai is offering more standard costume fare, but it is the digitized toys that are selling.

Through toys like this, the newest generation of girls is learning to express their admiration for the favorite characters through digital means, leaving little doubt that they will be well-primed to embrace whatever digital lifestyle items are marketed their way in the future.

Joby GP2-E1EN Gorillapod Flexible Tripod for Digital SLR Cameras

WHAT IS IT?A portable 320GB hard drive with the ability to copy and play back movies, photos and music over all manner of hardware. To that end, it comes not only with the expected PC USB connectivity, but also with audiovisual outputs and a Scart adaptor, making it compatible with standard televisions and hi-fi sets. Waiting on the disk is software able to handle just about any audio or video format imaginable, and capable of upscaling the latter to 720p HD if you choose. The software is accessed via dedicated playback keys or the supplied remote control. Particularly noteworthy is the unit’s ability to cope with DVDs, though only as long as they’re copyright-free. Transfer a film to the Plextor using your computer, and the drive will store not just the video, but all the associated extras, such as menus and chapters - previously only possible if you manually converted each audio or video format.

If you’ve got the money, the Plextor PX-MPM320U Media Drive might just get the job done for you.

We have a few examples below in the TomTom ONE XL @ $159, which is being replaced by the TomTom ONE 330 XL. The Garmin 300 series and 600 series are now officially discontinued and they will be moving out of the picture.

Standard Screens - 3.5-inch

• Garmin Nuvi 200 at Amazon - $159 - Best Seller today at Amazon. No Text to Speech, Continental US Maps, solid interface and routing. See My Full Review - Nuvi 200 for more info.


• Garmin Nuvi 350 - Still $199 this week; very hot prices point for this unit. North American Maps, Text to Speech, and 5+ Million Points of Interest. Want Bluetooth? Get the Nuvi 360 that adds Bluetooth Handsfree, for a few bucks more at - $224


• TomTom ONE 3rd ed. - $137 and Free Shipping at Amazon; Entry Level TomTom with Maps of North America, no Text to Speech.


• Garmin Nuvi 260 at Amazon - $208 ($269 at Best Buy) Text to Speech, Maps of North America, solid interface. Same quality routing as Nuvi 200, just adds more maps and text to speech.


• The Mio Digiwalker C230 is $99 at Staples this week. A second tier brand that offers reasonable performance for the price. Has text-to-speech and US maps pre-loaded. See my Full Review of the Mio C230 for more information.
  

Widescreen Models

• Nuvi 760 - $378 - Thin design with Text to Speech and Maps of North America. Route Optimization - plug in multiple stops and let the unit optimize the route for fastest planning, adds Bluetooth handsfree and built-in TMC traffic. See My Full Review of the Nuvi 760.
• Nuvi 750 - $318 Thin design with Text to Speech and Maps of North America. Route Optimization - plug in multiple stops and let the unit optimize the route for fastest planning. Doesn't have the Bluetooth, or the Traffic capability that the 760 has. (Also available at Circuit City for $399 this week!)
• Garmin Nuvi 780 - $454 Has MSN Direct 2, with traffic and gas prices sent to your GPS. See My Full Review of the Nuvi 780 for more information.
• Garmin Nuvi 260W - $255 at Amazon; Text to Speech and a dead easy interface.
• Nuvi 650 at Amazon $249. Text to Speech, North American Maps, See My Full Review - Nuvi 660, which is the same model with the addition of the TMC Traffic, which is the main feature not included on the Nuvi 650.
• Nuvi 200W at Amazon $205 - No Text to Speech, Continental US Maps. See My Full Review - Nuvi 200W.
• Nuvi 660 at Amazon $299; still best seller at Amazon - Down $30 in recent weeks - Text to Speech, North American Maps, TMC Traffic Capability included. See My Full Review - Nuvi 660
• TomTom ONE XL 330 - $229 - Is the new Basic Widescreen for the TomTom line, Maps of North America, new Easy Port fold flat mount, and no text to speech - Move up to the TomTom ONE XL 330S for Text to Speech at $251
• TomTom GO 730 - $399 -New IQ Routes, Text to Speech, and more. Maps of North America.
• TomTom 920 - $330 - great value for the money. The recent upgrade allows TomTom to offer the older GO 920 for low money. Text to speech, maps of North America, and more - See my Full Review of the TomTom GO 920

Cooler Weather time to get out and exercise! The Forerunner 405 is still very hot, and Garmin announced recently that this reinvigorated Fitness line grew sales by 50% over year ago.

• Garmin Forerunner 405 is available now at $349. - the watch-like GPS enabled fitness device has a smaller design with all kinds of functionality, including wireless sharing.
  
• Forerunner 305 - $214 at Amazon - Heart Rate Monitor with wrist-mounted GPS Receiver, tracks distance and keeps your speed and pace. Syncs to computer for training records.
  
• Forerunner 205 - $145 at Amazon - Wrist-mounted GPS Receiver, no Heart Rate Monitor. Tracks distance and keeps your speed and pace. Syncs to computer for training records.

Featured recently in Kevin Kelly's Cool Tools (edited by Steven Leckart) so you know it must be good.

Here's Rob Kieswetter's August 19, 2008 review.
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Surfer's Multi-Tool

Since I started working in the shop about four months ago, I've been using The Tool fairly regularly, mostly to tighten or install fins with the flathead screwdriver and the Allen wrench. The little hook/prong tool is solid for jamming the string used to attach a leash to a board through a surfboard's leash plug.Though the Phillips rarely gets used in surf-related application, it's still handy to have for random, non-surfing needs.To buy all these tools separately, I guess you'd spend about 30 bucks, maybe less, so it's not a huge savings. But you have to factor in the convenience of the one-stop tool shop. That has value, to me, especially on the go, in the car, and on the beach. They're not flying off the shelves at our shop, but we have had several customers specifically request them and a few folks have been impressed after seeing them in action. I rarely use wax combs, but even if I did, I actually would hesitate to use this one, get it covered in wax, then throw it back in my pocket or bag. Once you get wax all over it, next comes sand, pet hair, you name it. Then again, carrying The Tool you'll always have a comb handy. In dire straits, you could use it and deal with the sticky aftermath.
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Added Leckart, "'The Tool' is a minimalist stainless steel multi-tool intended for surfers. It has an Allen wrench, Phillips and standard screwdrivers, wax comb and a leash hook. I asked a friend who works in a surf shop in Venice, California if he'd heard of it. Turns out he uses it almost daily."

From the Corsurf (The Tool's creator) website:
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The Tool

Finally, one tool is all you need.

It has a tool to change any fin system on the market: Allen wrench, standard and Phillips screwdrivers, a built-in wax comb and an all-new "leash hook" for those micro leash cups.

The Tool is made of high-quality, non-plated stainless steel so it will not rust or strip.

The Tool also comes with a lanyard strong enough to double as a leash string for those overhead leash snapping days.

For those far away trips or your local break, never be without again.
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Full disclosure: I haven't a clue what "micro leash cups" or "overhead leash snapping days" are — but you might.

$14.99.

Longcheer Holdings (a Chinese Mobile handset design house) has apparently selected Newport Nedia to provide middleware for multiple Mobile TV variant handsets that it is looking to release on to the market:

• TV350 – GSM/GPRS handset that supports the widely deployed DVB-T digital television standard using Newport Media’s NMI305 DVB-T SOC
• DT100 – GSM/GPRS handset that supports DVB-H as well as DVB-T using the NMI310 DVB-T/H IC
• IT100 – GSM/GPRS handset that supports the Brazilian ISDB-T mobile digital television standard using the NMI320 ISDB-T IC

The TV350, DT100 and IT100 were developed in order to provide a compelling TV centric user experience at price points significantly below competing 3G based products. All three handsets will be demonstrated at Newport Media’s booth (M483), inside the Mobile Zone at IBC 2008, Sept. 12-16, in Amsterdam.

So this is slicing the Mobile TV “bread” up in a different way - this time removing the 3G radio, and covering a number of the popular variants of Mobile TV broadcast - the only one I could see obviously missing is the CMMB (Chinese) standard…..

[Via: 3G.co.uk]

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