washing machine

The 404 428: Where we prune the hedges of many small villages

What happens when one extremely popular tech TV show with an attractive female host blatantly takes the slogan of a much lesser known Internet radio show with three mildly humorous, if not a bit awkward, post-pubescent manboys? You're about to find out on today's episode of The 404, where Attack of the Show's GadgetPr0n stole our tagline, "High Tech, Low Brow." Now, I'm a little unwilling to compromise my relationship with Olivia Munn, the , but Jeff and Wilson are heated and propose an all-out battle for the right to the slogan!

The new simulated reality video game DJ Hero keeps on adding musicians to the growing list of special guests- this time, they just recently announced a collaboration with Daft Punk. The game will come out on October 30th, but we're pretty psyched to mash-up tracks from those French Robots. Well, Jeff and I are- Wilson is still confused about how the game works and why people listen to music in the first place.

Which brings us to a huge Calls From the Public- we got so many voicemails over our three-day weekend that we have to take the entire second half of the show just to play them all. Of course, we have to re-visit the dreadful washing machine/computer hypothetical that got drummed up on Thursday's show. In a world where humans are enslaved by free-thinking computers, the man atop the washing machine reigns supreme King. This fall, look out for Wilson G. Tang break-out role in...THE CLEANER.

EPISODE 428 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

The 404 427: Where despite all our rage we are still just rats in a cage

Today's episode of The 404 is especially passionate, maybe because we know it's the last one of the week. No show tomorrow, but look out for two special throwback episodes coming your way Friday and Sunday. Anyway, onto today's stories. As the title states, we're taking a trip back to our childhood and remembering some of our favorite Smashing Pumpkins songs and music videos. They've had so many hits that it's hard to pick just one, but I'll always love the video for 1979, and judging by the 5,298 five-star rating, I'm not alone, but who says it has to end? Pumpkins lead singer Billy Corgan recently announced plans for a new album! "Teargarden by Kaleidyscope" will include 44 songs and will be available for free!

Of course, if you want hard copies and album art, you can also get limited edition EPs with collectors art and high quality audio. The album won't be finished for awhile, but Billy says the music will sound more like the Pumpkins' first few albums: "psychedelic, atmospheric, melodic, heavy, and pretty." We can't wait!

Next, we run through a slideshow of the eight technologies to thank the 1980s for. The list includes the Walkman, the Personal Computer, the CD, and more--mostly these things just give us an opportunity to make fun of how excited everyone was to run a 4.77MHz processor with TWO floppy disk drives.

In any case, the list leads us to the strangest hypothetical situation we've ever posed to each other: if you had to choose between using a COMPUTER or a WASHING MACHINE for the rest of your life, which one would it be? The catch is that you will be banned from using whichever product you don't pick for the rest your life. The rest of the world would go on as normal, so only you are are making the decision. Listen to the show to hear our choices (I think you'll be surprised) and leave a comment on this blog telling us you think.

We finally have another contest for all the gamers out there! Jeff got his mitts on two copies of EA NHL 10, which improves on the NHL 009 gameplay with a new "board play" feature that allows skaters to pin opponents against the boards and kick the puck. If you want to win the game, you're going to have to work for it. Here's what you do: take a picture of yourself standing on the ice of a hockey rink with your most creative 404 sign! Best sign on the ice gets to choose between the XBox 360 or PS3 version, and don't even think about using Photoshop or Jeff will hunt you down.

Since there's no show tomorrow, you have plenty of time to call 1-866-404-CNET and leave a funny/bummer/impression/hate/idea/question voice mail, and if you can manage to produce a coherent thought, we'll play it on the air! Have a great weekend everyone, we'll miss you! :)

Episode 427 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video Image Credit: Smashing Pumpkins and EA Sports… Read more

The 404 406: Where we're finally getting a price drop

The Sony PlayStation is finally getting a price drop, but some dummy retailers in Europe are actually increasing the price of the Xbox Arcade console set. In other news, a Twitter user is offering his followers a line to God, Starbucks says OK to freeloaders, and we also debate the most prolific technology of our time! You'll never guess what Wilson has up his sleeve...

In case you haven't heard, our economy is in a little bit of hot water right now, and while most companies like Sony are slashing prices to keep up with the competition, the geniuses at Microsoft EU are actually increasing the price of the Xbox Arcade from ?129.99 to ?159.99. Furthermore, the five Xbox Live Arcade games will no longer be included in the bundle. The company's excuse is that it is to "counteract the poor pound-to-euro currency exchange rate." Who allowed this to happen at Microsoft? At least fix the failure rate before you increase the price!

In other news, Starbucks is opening its doors to Wi-Fi freeloaders. We reported in the past that several cafes in New York are banning cell phones and laptops, cutting off Wi-Fi access to discourage freeloaders from just hanging out and surfing the Web for free. Starbucks has always been an easy place to gain paid access to the Internet, and it will continue to provide a welcoming environment for customers to enjoy their $68 cups of flavored coffee.

Many more stories to get to today, including a Twitter account that gives followers a direct line to God and a hilarious poem from our buddy CHRISTOPHER WALKEN!

EPISODE 406 Subscribe in iTunes audio | Suscribe to iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more

(Almost) waterless washing machine on its way

Just a cup of water and a bit of detergent. That's all that needs to be added to a virtually waterless washing machine from British company Xeros that's poised to hit the North American market.

The dirty job is done by small nylon beads that pull stains off garments and lock them into the nylon's molecular structure. The beads don't even seem to suffocate easily--they can continue to absorb dirt over hundreds of washes.

The technology builds on research out of the U.K.'s University of Leeds and has been applied in a concept washing … Read more

Whirlpool fabric freshener takes the ire out of ironing

I know I talk about laundry a lot, but let's face it: I do a lot of laundry. Probably close to 20 loads a week. So it's on my mind pretty much all the time. (Why, yes, I am a terribly fascinating person!)

My children don't help to reduce the amount of laundry in the house--in fact, they add to it by leaving clean clothes crumpled in a heap on the floor. By the time I get to the pile, it's a wrinkled mess. So, to the machine it goes, even though it would ideally be … Read more

Haier: Lessen water and energy use with a new washer

Many traditional agitator washers use about 48 gallons of water for a normal wash cycle. That's a lot of water. But short of washing your clothes in the creek, what exactly are you supposed to do?

Haier has come up with a way to lower water and energy usage with a new top-loading machine that uses just 24 gallons of water for a normal wash, and improves timing on the quick cycle. The Encore washing machine uses a shower rinse system that showers clothes with water, then spins and drains simultaneously, saving water on every load while removing more … Read more

Vatican credits gadget for liberating women

If only Circuit City had hung on a little longer, it might have promoted the hell out of this.

The Vatican's official newspaper, Osservatore Romano, has decided to credit a household gadget--the washing machine--with being one of main reasons for female emancipation in the 20th century.

The article enjoyed a headline that positively rippled with gaiety: "The Washing Machine and the Emancipation of Women--Put in the Powder, Close the Lid and Relax."

It suggested that the humble washing machine might have done more to liberate contemporary womanhood than, say, the contraceptive pill, or being able to … Read more

One-button laundry

The people in this house seem to wear clothes every single day. Some of them even change their clothes multiple times a day, and my children believe that if you have worn an outfit for even one minute, it is laundry.

Say what you will about my parenting, but there is a lot of laundry to be done in this house. And my husband, who is a software developer and who can hook up complex home theater systems in nanoseconds, professes that the washing machine is "too hard" for him to master.

The Reason washing machine eliminates this … Read more

A greener washing machine

There are plenty of green washing machines on the market these days: some are constructed to be energy efficient while others reduce the amount of water used. But Indesit has developed a new kind of green washing machine--one that is constructed from recycled materials, reducing the CO2 emissions, cost, and raw materials necessary to build a washing machine. Indesit is making use of the recycled materials in two different washing machines, the Aquarius and Ultima. Both are part of Indesit's Hotpoint line.

The washing machines are built using a high-grade plastic polymer made from shredded plastic waste, which was … Read more