Yamaha makes virtual drums legit

If technologists worked as hard on energy issues as they do on virtual drum sets, perhaps we never would have heard of global warming. That's the way it sometimes seems, anyway, given how many percussive instruments that routinely come to market.

At least the latest example comes from an established name in music, Yamaha, unlike many of the generic products out there. Its "YDD-60 Digital Electronic Drum Machine" not only lets you bang away all day, but it also works without drumsticks at all, bongo-style, and provides 230 digital voices to accompany your arrangement if you're tune-challenged, according to SCI FI Tech.

Even though the $200 price is more than we'd be willing to pay when it ships in August, it's a better alternative than the "Finger Drum Mousepad."