retro

An iPod dock circa World War II

Forget about those updated boomboxes and cassette MP3 players. If you really want retro, this is the way to go.

This system from the Spirit of St. Louis Collection is designed to look like a World War II-era radio, like other models in the line, but this one has an iPod dock, CD player, and stereo speakers. And Chip Chick notes that it does have a working three-band radio as well, so it isn't totally artificial.

A kitchen accessory for the jet set

Longing for a stylish way to create more storage in your tiny kitchen? Borrow a solution from one of the tiniest food-prep areas known to man: the airplane kitchen. Thanks to trendy travel retailer Flight 001, you can get your hands on a vintage airline food cart for use as a dry bar, serving vessel, or kitchen storage.

The carts were actually used on planes, so they come complete with small dents and scratches. Fortunately, Flight 001 has prettied up the exterior with a number of groovy finishes to appeal to your modern sensibilities. Inside you'll find a retractable … Read more

Retro Tech: Mego's 2-XL

When I was growing up, the closest thing we had to artificial intelligence was something called 2-XL (if you're younger than 30, you probably have no idea what I'm talking about). We've always had trivia games--what made this one interesting, especially to a generation that's just seen Star Wars, was that these trivia questions were asked by a plastic robot.

In 1978, when I got my hands on 2-XL, I was ecstatic. It was the it toy back then. 2-XL was a trivia robot created by Michael J. Freeman, an inventor with an interest to educate … Read more

CBS Audience Network adds more retro programming

Looks like offering old episodes of Star Trek and MacGyver proved successful: CBS Interactive announced this week that it has added a selection of new "classic TV" content to its CBS Audience Network of online video partners.

Full episodes and clips of select seasons from Twin Peaks, Beverly Hills: 90210, The Love Boat, Family Ties, and Perry Mason are now available on CBS' 300-plus partner sites, which include downloadable video service Joost, AOL and its newly acquired social network Bebo, video-sharing site Veoh, and a few hardware partners like Slingbox. CBS has also added more seasons of MacGyver, … Read more

Atari's trip back to the future

The more things change, the more they stay the same. That, at least, can be said of Atari.

The company will be releasing a game that appears to compete with Nintendo's much-anticipated Wii Fit and its Balance Board, but it turns out that Atari had a board controller of its own back in 1982--we're talking the same year that Tron came out. According to Boing Boing, the "Joyboard" was a four-switch device that worked like a foot-controlled joystick but was eventually abandoned as "too finicky for nuanced control."

It seems doubtful that any of … Read more

Giant NES controller as coffee table, storage

20-year-old Australian Kyle Downes just finished building his most recent Ultra Awesome project: A massive working Nintendo controller that doubles as a coffee table and triples as a storage chest.

Built from a desire to improve G4TV's similar design, Kyle printed out a picture of an NES controller on A4 sized paper for the measurements and cut the whole thing out of 4mm Medium Density Fiberboard.

The result is every gamer's dream. It's another tribute to retro tech and the perfect piece of furniture to match your race car bed and sofa cushion forts.

Buzz Out Loud 716: Hope for old people (like Tom)

There's still time for us to strike entrepreneurial gold, we talk "malicious circuits," and Microsoft blah blah blah blah. Also, Popcorn Hour starts shipping its magical streaming box of wonder and it looks like we're in store for some wiener whistles. Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 716

Microsoft leans toward a hostile bid http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120966628366460063.html

Xbox 360 Blu-ray console shipping by September? http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/02/ xbox-360-blu-ray-console-by-september/

Researchers design “malicious circuits,” warn of potential risk http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/01/ researchers-design-malicious-circuits-warn-of-potential-risk/

Popcorn Hour’s … Read more

MP3 cassette to relive drive-in memories

While other car stereo makers are trying to disguise their systems behind faceplates of yesteryear, this music player is taking a different approach to the retro game. The "Cassette MP3 Player" from ThinkGeek looks like a regular tape circa 1976, but its real purpose is to house an SD card carrying digital tunes.

The ersatz device can be used in any cassette player, recharging and hooking up to speakers through its USB port. And it needn't be a dashboard version, by the way--we're certain that some poor souls will insist on reliving their glory days with … Read more

The Phonofone goes black

Sometimes the most popular gadgets on Crave are the simplest of all. (Who could forget those drive-in speakers or the singing theremin doll?)

Perhaps the best example we've seen lately is the "Phonofone II," a ceramic device that requires no external power source and relies on "passive amplification" instead of any digital wizardry to work with the earphones of an iPod or other MP3 player. And now it's being offered in black, a special edition of 200 available for a limited time.

Simple doesn't necessarily mean cheap, however, and this version of the … Read more