Gadgets

The forces behind the HD DVD format are headed to San Antonio, Texas, to establish a toehold in the U.S. consumer marketplace.

Toshiba, which is spearheading the charge for the format, on Thursday plans to show off an HD DVD player at Bjorn's Audio-Video in the central Texas city--"for the first time to consumers anywhere at a retail location in the United States," the company said in a press release.

For those of you close enough to drive to Bjorn's, the demos will take place at 11:00 a.m., 2:00 p.m. … Read more

Speculation that Apple Computer would unveil a video iPod on Wednesday was right.

The iPod has "been a huge hit for us, so it's time to replace it," Apple CEO Steve Jobs said as he showed the new product at a press event. "Yes it does video."

The music player will come in a 30GB model for $299 and a 60GB for $399. Those are the same prices as current models, which have capacities of 20GB and 60GB.

Jobs kicked off the event in San Jose, Calif., by revealing a new iMac G5 that will … Read more

A handheld printer coming on the market this holiday season just might let you get in touch with your inner Martha Stewart.

The Xyron Design Runner inkjet printer lets you print directly on a variety of materials including fabric, wood, polymer clay, wallpaper and other surfaces. Previously, consumers needed to buy special printer adapters for odd-sized paper or transfer images using multi-step heat-based processes.

The printer is the brainchild of Stamford, Conn.-based Esselte's Xyron division, which is known for printers for stickers and Lexmark International, which is augmenting its acid-free inks for the product.

The printer will begin … Read more

They came from San Francisco, the Bay Area, California and beyond.

Just barely a month after the end of Burning Man 2005, thousands of so-called "burners" hit the streets of San Francisco on Sunday for a day of art, dancing, costumes and general celebration of the spirit and energy that dominate Nevada's Black Rock Desert late each summer.

The annual "Decompression" took place in San Francisco's Dogpatch neighborhood. And except for the lack of extreme desert conditions, many on hand said the event felt like the real thing.

That's partly due to the … Read more

If you buy all the recent talk of MP3 player-induced hearing loss, you kinda got to wonder whether constantly blaring those tunes through your earbuds in amplified 3D surround sound could exacerbate that potential complication.

Aural concerns aside, sometimes you just want to crank that Nine Inch Nails way up. UpBeat Audio's new Boostaroo Revolution aims to overcome the low volume and flat-sound problems sometimes associated with listening to digital music and movies on portable players. The 6 ounce, pocket-size audio amplifier and two-way splitter drives high-end headphones or mini-speakers, quadruples (yep, quadruples) their volume and images high-definition three-channel … Read more

Gadgeteers who find themselves short of power outlets for one reason or another might like this nifty little gizmo from Azio Corporation. The designer and manufacturer of computer peripherals (not to be confused with the Azio that makes digital music players) has come out with the Azio USB Phone Charger. It allows users to juice their phones using a computer or laptop by simply plugging the phone into a USB port.

Azio designed the charger for the road warrior, traveler or student who lacks easy access to public outlets and who doesn't want to worry about varying voltage requirements … Read more

Those who prefer an understated approach to fashion will probably shy away from iKuffs.

But those who favor flashy accessories might get a kick out of the new illuminated cuff links by Olagon Industries of Cleveland. The links utilize light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, to create a streamlined little glow from their center; a battery stored in the inner clasp of the link creates enough power to light up the accessory for up to 120 hours.

The gadgets come in brushed or polished stainless steel with six colors of LEDS: red, orange, yellow, green, blue and white. Subtle they're not. … Read more

After proving itself as a capable work horse, the Treo was showing a bit more of its fun side at this week's CTIA cell phone industry trade show.

Palm's smart phone took center stage in several spots on the show floor. Over at the MobiTV booth, the Treo was seen playing live television, while Audible was showing the Treo downloading audiobooks over the air. The Treo has long been able to play Audible content, but being able to grab new books on the go is a new twist announced this week. Meanwhile, Speck Products, a company best known … Read more

Ever stood outside on a freezing cold night rifling through a big ol' overstuffed purse for a pen, a cell phone, a spare quarter, a life-saving safety pin?

Rosanna Kilfedder, a 24-year-old design student at London's Brunel University, has. As is the case with true inventors, she didn't just fret about it, she designed a solution: the Sun Trap handbag, which has an electroluminescent interior light that goes on automatically when you unzip the bag.

"I had the idea for the Sun Trap handbag after seeing so many friends frantically searching their bags for house keys, usually … Read more