Best Gadgets World

While we still are yet to see an official announcement from Lenovo, the X300 ThinkPad has now been confirmed. Once again the leak and confirmation comes courtesy of Best Buy with a listing for the Lenovo “Topseller” x300 that will retail for $2,743.99.

The X300 features an LED backlit 13.3-inch display, 2.0GHz Santa Rosa Dual Core processor, 2GB RAM, 64GB SSD and running Windows XP Pro. While the X300 appears to be a legitimate model that will be available for sale, it is still unclear as to when it will ship.

Via [SlashGear]

Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed →

The worst part of losing a cellphone, is also losing all the contacts saved on the SIM card. To solve that situation, you must do back-ups often, and using the USB Phonebook Flash Drive is one of the options.

The working mode is very simple: connect the USB Phonebook to the cellphone, and press a button to save all the data of the phone memory + SIM card, into the flash drive. After the transfer is done, just connect the Phonebook to the USB port of your computer/laptop, and review all your contacts, or convert them to a different format.

The USB Phonebook Flash Drive costs $20,50 and there are different versions that work with various cellphone models, such as Nokia 7250i, Sony Ericsson K700i, Samsung E800, and many others.

Product Page

ZTE, the largest telecom equipment manufacturer in China, has officially entered the competitive U.S. mobile phone industry with an entry-level mobile handset, ZTE C88. Its subsidiary ZTE USA Inc. will carry this flip phone in partnership with MetroPCS. Just like any Chinese company entering the market, it is positioned as a “cost effective option for consumers who want a high quality, full featured handset at an affordable price point.”

The cost of ZTE C88 ranges from $129 to $149, depending on the promotions being offered. Unfortunately, it is not available nationwide as MetroPCS only operates in Atlanta, Dallas, Miami, Sarasota, Orlando, LA, San Francisco, Tampa, Detroit, and Sacramento.

You might notice the C88 is not a ground-breaking device. It’s not even that attractive. However, it is a mistake to underestimate the capability of ZTE. This is just a usual practice of many companies breaking international waters – launch its basic products first to test the waters. If successful, it will bombard the market with more exciting products.

Basic features include:

• 2-inch color screen
• Operates at PCS and Cellular bands (1900 and 850 MHz)
• Internet (WAP) Browsing
• Bluetooth headset support
• Camera
• Text messaging on a large, easy-to-use keypad
• MMS/picture messaging
• 60 MB of internal memory
• Capability to store 500 contacts
• Embedded applications - mail @metro, metro411, mobile IM
• Preloaded (Sodoku) and downloadable games, ringtones and Wallpapers.

Read [eCoustics]

Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed →

Posted Feb 9th 2008 5:25PM by Nilay Patel
Filed under: Misc. gadgets
In our opinion, the best rigs are the ones held together with duct tape and wired up with leftover speaker cable, but if you’re looking to class things up — and avoid any number of potential fire issues — NASA’s got you covered with the agency’s official Workmanship Standards Pictorial Reference. The exhaustive guide covers everything from wire splicing to connector tightness, and if you’re opening up walls to install a home theater or just trying to build the prettiest casemod on the block, it’s well worth a look — the rest of us can stick to using chewing gum and prayer to keep our gear running.

[Via Toolmonger]

Posted Feb 9th 2008 1:58PM by Chris Ziegler
Filed under: cellphones, Handhelds
Given the sheer bulk of press Meizu’s M8 has received over the course of its young, controversial life, it’d seem likely that even the slightest trickle of units onto Chinese store shelves would lead to unboxing shots, videos, and reviews within hours, wouldn’t it? Reports are starting to flow across the ‘nets that M8s are now being made available through several of Meizu’s suppliers, but without a single in-the-wild picture of a fully functional, final spec unit — from Meizu, much less a paying customer — we’re not buying it. For one thing, there aren’t any “zomg I just picked up my m8!” posts on MeizuMe; secondly, MeizuMe’s Err0r says that his site will be the “first place” we read about a release (and frankly, we believe him); and third, after the trials and tribulations the handset has gone through on its long journey to retail, you’d think that we’d at least see it at a trade show before it hit the streets. So, anyone want to prove us wrong by posting shots of their M8?

Posted Feb 9th 2008 6:03PM by Paul Miller
Filed under: Digital Cameras
We’re not how it slipped by before, but Nikon’s got one more in its new S-series Coolpix cameras, the S600. The 10 megapixel camera bests the recently-announced S550 with a 2.7-inch LCD, 3200 ISO and optical image stabilization, but cuts the zoom to 4x and jacks the price to $299. The camera will be available in March.

[Via gizmag]

I don’t use an umbrella because 1) I live in Southern California and it generally only rains 3 days a year, 2) I might poke someone’s eye out, and 3) Where do you store the thing when it’s wet?

Hironao Tsuboi, a creative designer, solved the third problem by creating anumbrella that stands on it’s own. That wasn’t as easy as it sounds; apparently he had to determine the center of gravity by a complex process by casting aluminum into different clay molds. Further series of tests were carried out to determine the optimal spread of the three legs.

Made of ABS synthetic resin (plastic), the umbrella remains steady but also handy when you need it, say if a spontaneous water pistol fight breaks out or in case you’re unlucky enough to live somewhere where it rains all the time.

Don’t run out to buy it quite yet; it still remains a concept project.

More on umbrellas:
Weather forecasting umbrella, plan for puddles
Almost unbreakable umbrella: Senz
Music in the Rain
NanoNuno umbrella featured in Time’s Best Inventions 2006
Protect your camera with the Popabrella

I still have my old Strawberry Shortcake and Care Bears metal lunch boxes somewhere at my parents’ house. I’ve thought about tracking them down before, as they’d probably be rather retro chic these days, but now I think I’ll keep them where they are.

They’d have nothing on this multi-level hamburger-shaped lunch box. Look at it. Not only is it microwaveable and in the shape of a hamburger, but it’s got three compartments and comes with a fork and spoon! My old lunch boxes only came with a thermos and are probably rusted shut by now.

Available for $9.99 from Shop Happy Trails.

Via Nerd Approved.

Posted Feb 9th 2008 3:43AM by Ryan Block
Filed under: GamingIt’s not the first we’ve heard of the Wii being used for rehabilitation context, but it would appear “Wiihab” is becoming increasingly frequent. According to the AP, hospitals in states like Missouri, Illinois, and North Carolina, and even Walter Reed Army Medical Center are all incorporating the Wii into physical therapy routines. Just in time, too, it would be really weird if Wiiitis or a nasty Wiinjury landed you in the hospital in the first place, your doctor used a Wii to hone his steady hand, and you didn’t actually get to use a Wii to get your ass well enough to be discharged. Ah, what a world.

Recently, there have been many price cuts and additions of cool new players, from the Microsoft Zune to Apple’s iPod Touch. A lot of which encourage people to stray away from Apple and Microsoft, most recently Creative has decided to cut prices of their 32GB Zen by about $30 in efforts to boost sales.

The price of Apple’s 32GB iPod Touch is $499, albeit comes loaded with a lot of cool features, but for the same storage, the Creative Zen is nice and compact device is now only $299. However, you can’t exactly compare this to the iPod Touch, so if you were to compare this to the ipod nano, for about a $100 more than the $199 price tag of the 8GB model, you get quadruple the storage plus an FM radio. With the new price cut, it is equal in price to the 8GB iPod Touch.

Via [DailyTech]

Keep up with the latest gadget goodness! - Subscribe to our feed →