beat

Blinkx launching video screensaver

Blinkx makes very slick video search technology that has been available for quite some time to consumers through Blinkx.com. One of the site's cool features is that if you enter in a search term, it will play in succession all the videos it finds that term in.

Now Blinkx is popping that idea out of the browser and putting it in a downloadable screensaver app. Blinkx Beat lets you create your own channels that automatically play when your screensaver pops on (or whenever you want, providing Blinkx Beat is configured as your PC's default screensaver). You can … Read more

Sega raises your heart rate, without games

The Wii Fit may have grabbed all the headlines for combining games and exercise, but it should be noted in fairness that other companies have been working on that mashup as well. Lately their efforts have focused on physical activities for kids, whether on stationary bikes or jet skis, but maybe that's just the beginning.

The latest evidence of the trend comes from Sega Toys, though it hardly looks like something aimed at your average adolescent. The "Body Trainer" sounds a lot like Yamaha's "BodiBeat," which chooses songs that supposedly match your heart rate, … Read more

Where Bakalar isn't just his name...he's actually Back-a-lar

EPISODE 39

Today, we actually get it right! We sucker in Tom Merritt to talk about Amy Winehouse's drunken badness, a guy gets denied an all-star game marriage proposal, unlimited cell phone minutes, and N+, like stick figure lemmings...but for Xbox 360, and Pimp My Ride for Wii. Listen in on the fun!

Listen now: Download today's podcast

PaRappalliteration: Major Minor's Majestic March coming to the Wii

Once upon a time, in the age of the Sony Playstation, a strange rhythm game appeared. It was called PaRappa the Rapper. It told the story of a flat, cartoon puppy who wanted badly to be a rap star. The game wasn't especially popular against titles like Metal Gear Solid and Final Fantasy VII, but its charming humor and bizarrely infectious music garnered a cult following. The game eventually saw a sequel on the Playstation 2 and, more recently, a remake on the Playstation Portable. To this day, a stuffed, singing PaRappa doll sits on a shelf in one … Read more

Dr. Dre's 'Beats' headphones

As far as celebrity-branded products are concerned, at least this makes more sense than the J. Lo USB drive. Dr. Dre --never one to miss a marketing opportunity himself--is getting into audio gear with a pair of headphones made by Monster.

But we're not sure if his name alone will justify the $400 price of the "Beats" line when there are so many other high-end headphones on the market. And as MobileWhack says, it might help if there was something current by Dre to listen to.

The Beat goes on sale, but not in the U.S.

When GM showed off its Beat, Groove, and Trax micro-concepts in New York earlier this year, it said that it would produce the model that proved to be the most popular with the public. Today at the 2007 Los Angeles Auto Show, we have a winner, as Chevrolet announced that it would produce the three-door Beat, which the automaker said had been the overwhelming favorite among online voters.

According to Chevy, the Beat will be aimed at "tech-savvy, young-at-heart" drivers, as evidenced by its pop-up navigation system. Unfortunately for those who like the look of the brawny hatchback, … Read more

T-Mobile unveils Samsung SGH-T539

T-Mobile and Samsung today announced the new Samsung SGH-T539. Also called the Beat, the SGH-T539 is a middle-of-the road flip phone with a relatively ordinary design and a feature set that pushes music to the forefront. On the exterior you'll find music controls and a green ring-shaped speaker while inside are a music player, Bluetooth, and voice dialing. Call quality was fine but the music player was unremarkable, particularly for a phone called the Beat, and the controls weren't terribly user-friendly. It's no Nokia 5300 Xpress Music to be sure, but it's still a decent phone … Read more

Yuraku's portable wireless Net radio

In journalism as in technology, one learns early to K.I.S.S. ass. That is, you Keep It Short and Simple, or end up feeling like an ass. So what's with the convoluted naming convention from some tech vendors? Take, for example, the "Yur.Beat Fusion Stream" from Singapore-based Yuraku. Who needs a lobotomy after that?

Names aside, Yuraku claims this is the world's first portable wireless Internet radio with full multmedia features. And there lies the catch. Want Internet radio? Well, you need a wireless hot spot to connect to. Although once online, you … Read more

And on day 67: $200 iPhone price drop and new services

Steve Jobs certainly knows how to surprise and saturate. Along with other Applephiles, I was following the live coverage of the latest Apple/iPod/iPhone news via Gizmodo, which couldn't refresh fast enough!

So much to digest, but the main points:

(1) iPhone price drop!? The 8GB iPhone's price fell markedly with this announcement to $399. (Say buh-bye to the 4GB model). Boy, I sure could have used that $200 for the past two months, but it's an inherent risk of being an early adopter. So there is a $100 premium for the phone part of the … Read more

Instant reactions to Apple announcements

I'm following the special "Beat Goes On" event being put on by Apple this morning in San Francisco's Moscone Center. Here are my first reactions....

Do-it-yourself ringtones for the iPhone. Great idea, but I want to be able to do it with any song in my iTunes library, not just songs I've purchased from iTunes. And only 500,000 songs are approved for this usage. And you have to pay an additional $0.99 per ringtone, in addition to buying the song. Kind of a snooze. I've seen people hack together custom ringtones from … Read more