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A bit late on the uptake are we, but The Gadgenista recently featured the Applepod case for the iPod Shuffle:

Hahaha, a bit redundant but amusingly funny! I mean seriously, you just have to love what Apple fanboys come up with.

And can I just say I really love the rainbow colors? Hehehe. Look pretty cute as a buttoniere, too!

Each Applepod case is custom-made so you can actually pick the colors that you want. The case also has slots for the shuffle clip and for the headphones.

Got $12 to spend? Feeling a bit creative? Order and customization details available from here.

Tags: Applepod, iPod Shuffle cases

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Original post by Rico

Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio

The 5800 XpressMusic is stealing the lion’s share of the spotlight today, but the first S60 5th Edition handset out there actually isn’t the first to get hooked up with Nokia’s all-you-can-eat Comes With Music service. That honor will instead go to the lowly 5310 XpressMusic candybar, which will get access to about 2 million track downloads when it hits Carphone Warehouse in the UK in prepaid form for &pound130 (about $228) on October 16, a day earlier than rumored. Other models will have to wait, though Comes With Music versions of the ỗ 8GB and 5800 are both planned.

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Original post by Chris Ziegler

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment, Wireless, Networking

Sigma Designs has been dabbling in wireless HD technologies for eons, so we aren’t going to get too excited until we see this here system-on-chip (SoC) actually hit some products that we care about. Still, the CoAir is a fairly sweet concept, wrapping integrated wireless, coax and gigabit Ethernet capabilities into one single chip aimed at whole home networking. Put simply (or as simply as possible), this chip is the world’s first to “simultaneously deliver multiple independent streams of video and data over coax cable, Ethernet cable and wirelessly without compromising quality of service and throughput.” Based on the WiMedia standard, it can reach speeds of up to 480Mbps with UWB (ultra-wideband) wireless streaming, and room-to-room linkage via UWB-over-coax can peg those same rates. What we have here is a great basis for building a whole home server on, but until said device emerges and performs flawlessly, we′ll just smile and carry on.

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

Last month you let us know in the comments how you felt about the MPAA’s latest effort to close the analog hole — by removing the FCC’s ban on selectable output control (SOC), giving them the ability to remotely disable the analog output on your cable box — now try telling someone who can actually do something about it. The FCC has opened the petition to public comment until June 25, and replies to comments by July 7. Currently, the MPAA is arguing that allowing SOC will actually hasten the digital transition, once it feels comfortable offering early release flicks on HD video-on-demand, people will have more incentive to upgrade their TV sets. Of course, owners of older HDTVs without HDMI connections or anyone else who′d rather use analog outs would be left in the dark, and Ars Technica notes the EFF and Home Recording Rights Coalition have already spoken out against the plan. Give the MPAA’s proposal a read then let the FCC know which side of the line you fall on before it’s too late.

[Via Ars Technica]

Read - MPAA proposal (warning: PDF link)
Read - FCC Electronic Comment File Submission (The docket number for field #1 (”proceeding″) is 08-82.)

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Original post by Richard Lawler

Filed under: Gaming

Microsoft is making some noise today about the Xbox 360’s sales numbers — it’s the first of this generation of consoles to top 10M sales in the US. That’s well ahead of the Wii, which stands at 8.8M, and the PS3, which has under half the 360’s installed base at 4.1M units sold. Worldwide, the 360 is also doing quite well: Microsoft says it’s moved 19M consoles total, and that 12 million people are signed up for Xbox Live. That’s behind the Wii’s global sales of 25M units, but Microsoft isn’t exactly content with second place — it’s making a point to say that the 360 has the ” largest global install base of any current gen, high definition gaming console.” Take that, Mario. Meanwhile, the PS3s doing quite nicely for itself as well: in addition to outselling the 360 in both the US and Europe, Sony says worldwide sales were up an astounding 156 percent last year with a total of 9.2M units coming off shelves, and that it expects to sell another 10M consoles by March 2009. Looks like the console race is hitting the next level — any bets on how things will shake out in a year?

[Via Joystiq]

Read - 360 sales
Read - PS3 sales

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Original post by Nilay Patel

Filed under: Gaming

2008 was predicted to be a big year for the PS3, and it looks like things are going according to plan: Sony announced today that European PS3 sales had topped the five million mark, and that the PS3 has been outselling the Xbox 360 sur le continent since October. Combined with the Ṕ’s strong US showings lately, and that’s a pretty solid run — and we’d assume things are only get to get better once MGS4 hits in June. Hmm, looks like a few of you decided to take the plunge after all.

[Thanks, Nimro]

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Original post by Nilay Patel

Filed under: Wearables

Nah, it’s not April 10th just yet (in most of the world, at least), but one particular bloke managed to score one of Nike’s new SportBands at a London marathon exhibition today. The going rate on that side of the pond was &pound40 ($78), but we wouldn’t mind that dreadful exchange rate too much if you′re curious about eventual US pricing. Nevertheless, feel free to tap the read link to peep the unit fresh out of its packaging, but be forewarned, there aren’t any surprises.

[Thanks, Terry]

 

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

We’ve seen initiatives all over the globe created in an attempt to beat blindness, but researchers based at MIT are feeling fairly confident that their development is within a few years of being able to “restore partial sight to people who have slowly gone blind because of degenerative diseases of the retina.” The bio-electronic implant, which is about the size of a pencil eraser, would actually sit behind the retina at the back of the eyeball, and images would be transmitted to the brain “via a connector the width of a human hair.” As it stands, an FDA grant application is already in the works, and the scientists are hoping to have it implanted in an animal as early as this summer. Still, the solution only works for folks who “were once able to see and have partially intact optic nerve cells” — those who were blind from birth or suffer from glaucoma are unfortunately ineligible for the procedure.

[Thanks, Rusty]

 

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Wireless

Simmer down, NFL fans — we’re talking real football here, so we’d recommend hoping a flight to Europe if you’re interested in taking advantage of this. Reportedly, Bluepod Media has inked exclusive BT marketing rights with a bevy of Premiership football clubs including Blackburn Rovers, Birmingham City, West Ham, Portsmouth and Wigan Athletic (among others). The deal was worked out after successful trials at Portsmouth and Birmingham City, and going forward, Bluepod will be working with third-parties to “create and distribute branded content to football fans within all stadiums on match days.” Best of all, said content will be offered up to attendees gratis, while brand owners will be shelling out cash on a per download basis. Don’t worry, dear Americans, you can always order up a hot dog from the comfort of your Safeco Field seat with your DS — how’s that for a consolation prize?

[Via IntoMobile, image courtesy of Hobo Tread]

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Original post by Darren Murph

Designer DAB/FM alarm clock radio get March UK release.

Original post by Mike Slocombe

Aunty Beeb’s on-demand Internet TV service proves a hit

Original post by Mike Slocombe

Lucky Kent town gets the UK’s first fibre-optic cable network.

Original post by Mike Slocombe

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Ah — dead, eerily-prescient, 20th century authors… they just can’t stop proving you right, can they? In a decidedly Orwellian turn, British authorities are considering a proposal to implant “machine-readable″ RFID tags under the skin of some prison inmates as part of a plan to free up space in the country’s overcrowded prisons. Just like the nightmare world described in your favorite cautionary tales, the chips would enable authorities to track the location of implantees using satellite and radio-wave technology. The program would build off of the current ankle-tagging currently in place, and according to a official from the Ministry of Justice who finds the plan double-plus good, “All the options are on the table, and this is one we would like to pursue.” Of course, the controversial concept does have its detractors, Shami Chakrabarti, director of Liberty, says that, “If the Home Office doesn’t understand why implanting a chip in someone is worse than an ankle bracelet, they don’t need a human-rights lawyer; they need a common-sense bypass.” Shortly following this statement, however, Shami was taken to an interrogation room and outfitted with a rat-hood, and all record of her existence was erased from state records.

[Via Slashdot]

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Original post by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Portable Audio

Last we heard from Intempo, it was busy grasping for business with a slew of ho hum iPod docks, but it’s getting ‘08 started by offering up a slightly (keyword: slightly) more attractive item. The Daisy internet radio can access “thousands” of online and FM stations, and it can reportedly last for around 20 hours before needing a recharge. You’ll also find a pretty basic LCD, but outside of that, we wouldn’t expect a whole heap of extras. The Daisy is slated to hit production by next April and will land on store shelves with an admittedly steep £149 ($292) price tag shortly thereafter.

[Via TechDigest]

 

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Original post by Darren Murph

Filed under: Laptops

We’re not exactly sure what became of that biodegradable laptop being touted by NEC all the way back in 2004, but the concept of corn-based notebook casings is far from dead, with Fujitsu showing off just such a machine at this year’s CES. According to Inhabitat, “the main component is polylactic acid, also known as PLA, a resin that comes from the fermentation of the raw biomass from plants,” although a small amount of nasty fossil fuels must still be mixed in to create a housing with the proper structural integrity. Fortunately, once the rig is ready for the great gadget heaven in the sky, the plastic can be separated from the PLA so that the latter material can be left to safely biodegrade. No word yet on when we’ll see these edible inedible lappies hit the market, so for now we’ll have to continue kicking Mother Nature’s ass with our biannual tech upgrades.

[Via, and image courtesy of, Inhabitat]

 

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Original post by Evan Blass