combo

As much as we love the "George Foreman iGrill" and other MP3 barbecues, sometimes it's just too hot to cook for an August picnic. That's when a simple cold plate will do just fine--and this a handy way to keep your lunch fresh while taking along some built-in entertainment for the next tailgater.

Wagan's "Thermo Sport Fridge/Cooler" is big enough to hold 16 cans of your favorite beverage while it does double duty as a sound system that can play the radio or your MP3 tunes, according to Uber-Review. The only problem … Read more

Apparently it's not enough to have a mirror that sends text messages or even engages us in conversation. We need one that'll run Windows too.

Facing stiff competition in its mainstay telly business, U.K.-based Mirror Media has created a line that incorporates a PC into its reflective TVs in sizes ranging from 20 to 36 inches with frames in wood, metallic and other finishes, according to Chip Chick. It remains to be seen, however, whether they'll be able to create the ultimate convergence appliance by including a radiator.

There are all manner of combo mice that take on a variety of forms not included in their original job description, ranging from laser pointers to VoIP handsets (not to mention hand warmers and back massagers). But Ezkey has proven once again that there's no end to number of new acts we can expect from the hardest working peripheral in show business.

The latest incarnation is a mouse that doubles as a number keypad for uber-accountants and the like who need the ability to crunch at all times, according to PClaunches. Yet there's another thing that intrigues us … Read more

While the converging technologies of phones and music players continue to command attention, we should all be reminded that these aren't the only forms of consumer electronics that are morphing together. In fact, there's one new handheld that puts them all to shame in the all-in-one category.

How so, you ask? The "Brica ViewArt 1000" is an uber-device with a 2.5-inch display that "combines a still camera, camcorder, MP3 player, FM radio, voice recorder, e-book viewer, Webcam and a DVR," according to Technabob. So there.

But only 512MB internal memory for something that'… Read more

And then there were two.

Samsung will join its archrival LG in releasing a combo HD disc player later this year. According to a brief press release, the Korean consumer electronics giant will introduce the BD-UP5000 "Duo HD" player this year. The release also specified that the player will "fully support both HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc formats and their interactive technologies, HDi and BD-Java." No pricing or additional feature details on the Samsung BD-UP5000 were made available.

The official announcement of the BD-UP5000 confirms rumors that have been percolating for months. Most recently, Home Theater Blog … Read more

Rock's nutty professors have been hard at work cooking up the Meivo--a 22-inch LCD TV with a high-end PC stuffed inside it.

The Meivo (pronounced my-vo) is Vista-ready, meaning it'll have awesome media-handling capabilities out of the box, and it'll have up to two hard drives and an incredible four Freeview or analog TV tuners--a media junkie's dream.

This does overlook the impossibility of there being four things on Freeview at the same time you desperately have to watch. "Oh no, the repeat of Deal or No Deal clashes with Hollyoaks, the local news … Read more

Earlier today, we noticed a small item that was little bit buried on Engadget HD. The post referred to a report from Hi-Def Digest that said that Universal Studios Home Entertainment was "lessening its support for the controversial HD DVD/DVD combo format," and had "reconfigured the planned April combo releases of The Jerk and The Nutty Professor to be HD DVD-only." The article went on to say that the "latest move by the Universal comes on the heels of news late last week that the studio is discontinuing two of its most popular combo … Read more

As the convergence trend steams ahead, we've seen everything from air-purifying lamps to camera-speaker combos. (We didn't say it was a good trend.)

So logic would dictate that this would be inevitable: the keyboard PC. Cybernet's ZPC-945SL is an all-in-one QWERTY keyboard that includes an Intel Pentium 4 processor, up to 2GB of memory, a hard drive, built-in speakers, a mini-PCI slot and six USB ports, according to Tech Digest. But even though it sits only 1.5 inches high, we're not sure if it would be approved by the ergonomics police.

It's no secret that we're not terribly fond of uber-combo devices, particularly when mice are involved. But the "Mini-Memory Mouse" may be an example of one worth having.

This little guy includes flash drive storage for up to 1GB of data as well as functioning as an optical mouse with a retractable USB cable, according to Red Ferret. It can't point lasers or do yoga, but depending on the price (which wasn't provided), it could be a good two-fer deal.