monster

editor's notebook You'd think with all the cell phone cameras out there snapping away at every inch of the planet, quaint little mysteries like Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster would be cleared up in a, um, flash.

Well, perhaps that'll turn out to be the case. According to the U.K.'s Telegraph newspaper, a kayaking IT professional recently used his mobile device to grab a photo of "Bownessie," the less-famous, English cousin of Scotland's spotlight-hogging Loch Ness Monster. The grainy snap shows four humplike shapes breaking the surface of a misty-looking body … Read more

This week, your regular Cravers are joined by special guest Brian Seitz, senior marketing manager for Windows Phone. Despite what that implies, we're largely up to our regular shenanigans. Namely, giant robots, anthropomorphized gadgets, and artery-clogging edibles. If that's not enough to pique your curiosity, we're hoping that Optimus Prime, an emoticon keypad, and a Jedi mind-trick of an iPhone accessory will draw you in. Plus, Jasmine actually ate this week's fat-worthy item.

Subscribe in iTunes SD Video | Subscribe in RSS SD Video… Read more

OK, this week we've got a hot one courtesy of the folks at Monster: the Monster Beats by Dr. Dre Beatbox iPod Dock.

This is one room-thumping iPod/iPhone stereo system. I should know because I reviewed the thing. I said that, "The Monster Beatbox has a simple mission that goes something like this: deliver big sound from a small box." And while I didn't think it delivered the most refined sonics in the world, I recommended that if you were looking for big, aggressive sound from a compact system, this was the one to get. (… Read more

The Monster iMotion CarPlay 3000 connects to an iPod or iPhone via its dock connector, providing power through a 12-volt car charger and sending line-level audio through a 3.5mm patch cable to the host vehicle's auxiliary input. However, the iMotion's most interesting feature is the way it enables the user to control the connected iPod by waving a hand near it.

Placing a hand in front of the sensor lets you toggle between play and pause. Swiping a hand from left to right in front of the device causes the attached iPod to skip forward. Swiping the other direction triggers a backward skip. Calmly stating that "these are not the Droids you want" as you do this has no effect whatsoever.

The controls are quite intuitive--enough so that we were able to figure everything out without an instruction manual. With a bit of practice, we were able to skip through tracks as fast as the attached iPod would let us with effortless and casual hand waves, showing off for passengers and--most importantly--keeping our eyes on the road.… Read more

In an ad depicting the growing Mini family, the company just announced that the Mini Paceman concept, unveiled at the Detroit Auto Show, has been given the green light for full production.

The ad, in a first-ever slow motion 3D (shown here in 2D), features an 1,800-hp monster truck jumping a Mini Cooper Convertible, a Mini Cooper Clubman, a Mini Cooper S, and a Mini Cooper S Countryman in front of a stadium audience. The ad debuts today in movie theaters.

The ad was pretty complicated to shoot, Mini said in a press release. It required a crew of … Read more

CNET Audiophiliac Steve Guttenberg joins us for another Friday episode of The 404, and there's a lot to discuss, including a new trailer for the upcoming "Back to the Future" video game, Steve's encounters with John Lennon, Andy Warhol, and Warren Beatty in the 1970s, how to convert stereo into 3D sound, and more earbud advice for Wilson's freakishly small canals.

Steve tables his usual list of audio-related speaking points to tell us about his celebrity encounters while working at an East Village movie theater in the 1970s. He begins with a story about an awkward encounter with John Lennon and Yoko Ono just two years after the Beatles split, then tells us why he cussed out pop art star Andy Warhol, and finishes with a brutal rebuff from Warren Beatty! When's the book coming out, Steve?

We're going to record a special yuletide episode of The 404 entirely dedicated to the "Back to the Future" trilogy, but we can't wait any longer to show you the debut trailer for the upcoming "Back to the Future" video game!

It's a five-part game that picks up on the adventures of Marty and the Doc as voiced by Emmett Brown himself, Christopher Lloyd! The first part entitled It's About Time comes out this month, part two called Get Tannen! comes out in February 2011, and parts three and four--Citizen Brown and Double Visions, will drop in March and April, and the finale Outatime doesn't have a release date just yet. It's only available for download on PC/Mac, iPad, and PSN--sorry XBox fans!

I swear that today is the last you'll hear about Wilson's tiny ear canals, because I think we found a solution. I reviewed the Monster Jamz headphones for CNET last month and ran into similar fit issues, so the company sent me its SuperTips Sample Pack of gel and foam tips that comes with a variety of alternate shapes and sizes. With Steve Guttenberg's help, we'll finally solve this mystery!

Just after the break, Steve tells us about a professor at Princeton University who converts stereo into 3D sound! Edgar Choueiri is the director of the Engineering Physics Program and a rocket scientist, but he also happens to be an audiophiliac and set up a special 3D sound room using two closely spaced speakers and his revolutionary 3D Pure Stereo system. Check out the Audiophiliac blog for more details.

One last thing before we take off: Gknee is one of the valiant chatroom moderators for CNET TV and keeps the #CNETFans channel SFW (with the help of DAKlives).

She's celebrating a birthday on Monday, so happy birthday in advance Gknee, and a personal thanks from Jeff, Wilson, and me to all the CNETTV moderators who volunteer their work for the love of the game--we couldn't do it without you guys!

No one can deny that the original Beats by Dr. Dre was a revolutionary headphone design. It brought style and pizazz to the headphone market, and turned on a new generation of music lovers to the joys of great sound. The Beats Studio ($350) is still selling like gangbusters, but the Beats line has expanded to include something better, the Beats Pro ($450).

The Studio Beats have a lot of bass, but the Pros have more and distinctly tighter, more visceral bass. The two headphones sound very different; the Pros have a brighter, more forward balance, and the Studio Beats … Read more

Our apologies to the listeners who waited patiently for us to fix the live stream this morning--CNET Live has a brand new layout and we're still working things out, so thanks for your patience and understanding!

Today's topics include a new generation of Four Loko alternatives, social-networking shoes, and Wilson's struggle to jam a big tip into a small ear canal.

New manufacturers are springing to life to fill the void left by Four Loko and Sparks, and one of them infuses alcohol into an aerosol spray of whipped cream. It's called Whipped Lightning, and it's the newest way to get alcohol poisoning thanks to its 30-proof, 15 percent alcohol content.

But if you really want to end up in a hospital, try whipping it onto a glass of 40-proof chocolate milk, the new newest Four Loko substitute coming soon to Minnesota, California, and Arizona.

Remember the Boba Fett Adidas sneakers we first saw on our buddy Peter Ha's feet back in September? Those looked pretty cool, but check out these new concept designs for a new pair of Adidas Superstars designed to look like Facebook and Twitter.

Luckily they're only concepts (for now), but with fools paying more than $1,000 for an official Facebook hoodie, it's not hard to imagine them arriving at Foot Locker in the near future. And while you're there, be sure to look in the clearance bin for The 404 Adidas Superstars as well. Thanks for the image Ddawg!

Tune in after the break as we advise Wilson how to properly insert the tip of an in-ear headphone like the Monster Turbine into his tiny canals. Be afraid--it's just as terrifying as it sounds.

The Monster Beatbox has a simple mission that goes something like this: deliver big sound from a small box. We'd call it monster sound, but the Beatbox doesn't quite go that far. But it certainly is compact and it certainly plays loud, filling even a fairly big room with sound.

That in itself is an impressive feat, and the $400 Beatbox may just be the loudest-playing iPod dock for its size. The first thing you'll notice about it when you pick it up--yes, there's a convenient carrying handle at the top--is that it's heavy, weighing … Read more