waterproof

Everyone needs a waterproof TV, of course, but not everyone has a swimming pool to make it truly useful. That's why Envirovision has made an LCD for commoners like us, whose aquatic viewing habits are confined to the bath. But to add a bit of luxury to this household staple, it's now offering a 19-inch version as well.

Like earlier versions, the "Freeview Waterproof Bathroom Television" can be installed practially anywhere that plumbing allows, including the shower. Even more versatile are its waterproof speakers, which are either built into the set or available separately to be … Read more

Summer will be here in a flash, and we'll be forced to abandon the comfortable confines of our favorite TV-viewing lounge chair. But that doesn't mean we'll have to stop watching.

Frontgate's "SunBriteTV" doesn't just have a bright LCD screen that can be seen in daylight, but it also is outfitted to protect against the elements with an "all-weather enclosure safeguarded from rain, dirt, insects and scratches." Even its cable ports and remote are watertight and dust-resistant.

This Terminator of television sets, which can withstand temperatures ranging from minus-24 to 122 … Read more

We loved the floating MP3 player showcased recently by fellow Craver Tim Moynihan, despite his rather graphic description of its design (which, we suspect, says more about Tim than the device in question). But it's got some competition in the hypercompetitive aquatic music market.

The "Drop Speaker" from Zumreed has waterproof controls so it can be handled alongside the bath, pool, hot tub or any other venue where you typically splash your electronics. And beyond the unique droplet design (get it?) that conceals an iPod dock insider, Technabob says the speaker comes in blue, white and orange … Read more

We've seen MP3 players for swimmers, but JVC's Digital Audio Player XA-AW33-W is the first we've seen that's custom-made for the bath. At least, it's the first one we've seen that's made to float.

The player holds up to 256MB of songs, and is battery-powered so that you won't need to worry about frying yourself in the tub. Its stand lets you listen to the player in unfloating mode, and the song-loading process is handled by a USB connection to your PC--when it's out of the tub, of course.

On the … Read more

Sometimes it seems that there's some kind of competition to see which gadget can be subjected to more abuse, especially of the water-torture variety: the MP3 player or the USB drive.

Although the latter gladiator seems to be well ahead in the games, a tough new media player has entered the contest--a 1GB version of the "Freestyle Audio Digital Music Player." (A 512MB model had been promised to come out this year as well, affixed to a helmet.)

Chip Chick says the 1.3-ounce player can be submerged up to 10 feet in water and last for … Read more

Waterlogged photos have cause to rejoice, as SeaLife has announced two new cameras. Like all SeaLife cameras, the Reefmaster Mini and the Ecoshot feature waterproof, beefed-up casings for rough shooting. The Reefmaster Mini can handle depths as much as 75 feet, the Ecoshot can sink as far as 130 feet underwater, and both cameras can handle drops of as far as six feet.

Other than their extreme ruggedness, the 6-megapixel Reefmaster Mini and Ecoshot are rather lackluster cameras. With a 42mm-equivalent, fixed-length lenses, they're not going to win any prizes for best feature sets. They have a unique Spy … Read more

Less than a month after their last announcement, Pentax has unveiled two new cameras. The Pentax Optio A30 and the W30 are two compact cameras that respectively offer high-resolution and waterproof shooting.

The Optio A30 is an ultracompact camera that packs a 10-megapixel sensor into a metal body that's just 0.9 inch thick. It uses a fairly standard 3x, 38-to-114mm-equivalent lens with Pentax's Enhanced Shake Reduction digital image stabilization. The camera includes a wide variety of features and modes, including a face-recognizing autofocus and autoexposure mode, a manual exposure mode for more advanced users, and a 30fps … Read more

Olympus has a handful of new digital cameras on the way, including two models with some interesting features we haven't seen before.

The 7-megapixel Olympus SP-550UZ replaces the SP-510UZ as the company's premier ultrazoom camera. While the SP-510UZ had a powerful 12x zoom lens, its replacement goes even further. The SP-550UZ uses the most powerful zoom lens we've seen in a midrange camera, a 28mm-to-504mm-equivalent telephoto lens that offers an 18x magnification factor. The zoom power is impressive enough, but the 28mm-equivalent wide-angle shot makes the camera seem even more appealing. The SP-550UZ features Olympus' dual image-stabilization … Read more

Can't live without your iPod, even when you're taking a dip in the pool or grabbing a quick shower? The EGO Waterproof Sound Case is a waterproof iPod speaker system that's made of the same shatterproof polycarbonate that goes into bulletproof glass. It protects your iPod from water, and it even passes the "will it float?" test. Specs include a pair of neodymium speakers, a waterproof membrane for the iPod Click Wheel, and 30-hour battery life (with four AA alkaline batteries). Throw in wrist and shoulder straps and an adjustable stand, and you've got … Read more