Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period.
Just in case you've no real need for a seven-day forecast integrated into your timepiece, Oregon Scientific is hoping to lure you in with its proximity-sensing Weather In Motion clock. This stylish device sports a sexy black frame and an infrared motion sensor that changes the display based on how close / far away you are. When you're at a distance, expect to see the "current time, day and weather forecast displayed in large digits and icons," while walking up on it persuades it to show the "indoor and outdoor temperature readings, while the time and weather forecast icons automatically reduce in size." Furthermore, you can enable an automatic scroll mode that will "smoothly shift the information every five seconds." No word on when shipments will arrive, but it'll cost you $64.99 when it becomes available.
We've seen some relatively mouse-friendly attempts at a better mousetrap, but Rentokil's RADAR trap drops all the touchy-feely stuff and brings the pain action-movie-style: with infrared beams, a trick floor, and poison-gas dispensers. Mice are lured into the Rodent Activated Detection And Riddance unit by infrared beams, where the pressure sensors in the bottom of the box trigger the release of a "measured dose" of carbon dioxide, which Rentokil says is a "quick and humane" way of dealing with little Mickey. Once the deed is done, the trap fires off a text message to let you know that the rodent resistance is being dealt with, and prepares to strike again. No word on price -- Rentokil apparently only custom-installs the RADAR traps -- but availability is listed as "now."
Five MIT students under the team name BioVolt have created a $2 gadget that uses biomass to generate electricity. The output of the device isn't particularly significant -- six months to charge your cell means you shouldn't throw away that charger just yet -- but the low cost of the components, the availability of "biomass," and the capability for chaining multiple devices together means this is the perfect solution for isolated areas or poor communities. It's good news for the researchers too, who happened to win $5,000 in a design competition for their efforts. Good show lads.
It looks like Panasonic is venturing a bit beyond its electronics-laden comfort zone, with the company recently showing off some concept furniture designed specifically for flat panel displays (or, more specifically, its flat panel displays). For that, Panasonic turned to Swedish designer Axel Bjurström, who appears to have produced at least three designs accommodating a variety of different size screens. The least conventional of the lot is the "Stege" model pictured above, which we can only assume is designed to go along with some magical cordless TVs and other gear Panasonic has yet to announce. The remaining concepts (seen after the break courtesy of Fosfor Gadgets) include the "Ridå," which conceals your 50-inch+ screen behind a curtain, and the Staffli, which opts for an less-than-practical easel-type design.
InGrid has announced what it claims to be the "first all-digital home protection system" which it says not only "makes traditional home security systems obsolete," but even has the potential to "unleash a multi-million dollar revenue opportunity for broadband service providers in the future." While that remains to be seen, the system certainly looks to at least have the goods to keep your house relatively safe, including 24/7 monitoring from Guardian Protection Services, website access and control, and e-mail and cell phone alerts to warn you of potential dangers. The kit itself (which you install yourself) consists of a console, handset and base unit, along with sensors for your doors and windows, and a key chain remote to arm and disarm the alarm. You'll also have your choice of "Basic" or "Home" kits, the former of which runs $200 and covers 1,500 square feet, while the later will cover a full 2,500 square feet for $300 (additional sensors can also be purchased to cover larger areas). Of course, the kit won't do you a whole lot of good without the monitoring service, which you can expect to $30 a month for.
Truth really is stranger than fiction: not only has one former heavyweight champion managed to make a lucrative post-boxing career hawking electric cooking appliances, but now yet another former champ is throwing his proverbial apron into the ring with the release of Evander Holyfield's Real Deal Grill. The press release doesn't actually mention what makes the $99 CirTran-built grill any better than Mr. Foreman's product, but that doesn't stop the former Tyson snack from taunting "don't you think the latest grill is supposed to be the best grill?" Holyfield (or whomever scripted his lines) goes on to advise that "you must connect with a product like you connect with a punch...it's a real knockout of a product, and I am committed to making The Real Deal Grill a true champion." Good luck with that, Evander, but as Hank Hill might say, they're still selling your grill in housewares dude.
Update: Once again, The Onion proves eerily prescient (kinda) -- thanks Arthur B!
Today's "Adventure in Laziness" is brought to you by Whirlpool, which has just -- rather cleverly, we must admit -- announced an upcoming refrigerator with built-in espresso maker, saving you several precious steps during your rushed morning routine. No longer will you flutter between fridge and coffee machine like a caffeine-addicted idiot; instead, your milk, creamers, and sweeteners are just inches away from a freshly-brewed cup. Coming in January of next year for what will likely be significantly more than your standard icebox, the "20RI D4 Espresso" bodes well for future fridge-tech, and makes us yearn for the day when our Whirlpool sends us off to work with a warm cup of joe and welcomes us home at night with a frosty, self-brewed lager.
DigitalLife is all about the tweens today, and Nickelodeon isn't about to be left out in the cold -- the venerable network has paired up with Imation to release an array of brightly-colored gear for the budding young geek. In addition to a line of pretty-decent DAPs, it's a pretty broad array of stuff you'd be mortified to own if you're not 7, including Dora / Diego and SpongeBob-branded cameras in resolutions from VGA to 3.0 megapixels, a Dora the Explorer portable CD player, a SpongeBob 15-inch LCD TV and progressive-scan DVD player, and a whack-SpongeBob-to-snooze alarm clock. The best of the bunch appears to be the $100 7-inch picture frame, however, which has a pretty decent-looking screen. Check it all out -- along with some hands-on shots -- in the gallery.
We've been inching closer to low(er) cost solar panels (for the mainstream public to enjoy) for some time now, and apparently, AVA Solar Inc. is just about ready to start cranking out units that "will cost less than $1-per watt by the end of next year." The technology was reportedly developed by Colorado State University's Professor W.S. Sampath, and production is slated to begin soon in a "200-megawatt factory" that could employ some 500 individuals. Of note, it was said that the "cost to the consumer could be as low as $2 per watt," but even that figure purportedly rings up at about half the cost of current options.
GE is about to be bringing more good things to life with the launch of its DECT 6.0 phone / phone service called InfoLink. The premise of the technology is simple: instead of switching on your PC or looking at your PDA or mobile phone for basic info (such as weather, stocks, news, etc.) you'd simply pick up your color-LCD-equipped InfoLink phone (the "fourth screen" as they call it) and scroll through the information. The hybrid phones will deliver the goods over your DSL or cable modem, and will carry RSS feeds from places like MSNBC, the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration), and Homeland Security (for all your terror-alert needs). The InfoLink device will also do more boring things as well, like call-waiting and caller ID, HD-sound intercom, speaker phone, and melody ring tones. The sweet package can be yours in November for $179.99, with additional handsets available for $79.99.
It's one thing to have an outdoor viewable, waterproof LCD TV, but you can seriously up the bragging if that set is integrated right into your jacuzzi. For those that settle for only the best, Catalina Spas is offering up a "61-inch Theater Spa," which not only seats four very comfortably, but it also includes a 61-inch LCD HDTV that "automatically stores along the side wall of the spa and raises and lowers for viewing." Of course, considering that it's "priced upon request," you should probably bring the bank if eying this one with any level of seriousness.
Rest assured, we've seen some pretty fancymirrors in our day, but Daniel Rozin's Weave Mirror ranks pretty high up there. This zany installation relies on "768 motorized and laminated C-shaped prints along the surface of a picture plane that texturally mimics a homespun basket," and as curious mortals approach it, it "paints a picture of them using a gradual rotation in greyscale value on each C-ring." We know, you're probably still confounded at how this thing actually wows anyone, but give the video (posted after the jump) a peek and clarity will be yours.
We don't want to take this seriously, so we won't. Another company has claimed to have produced a device that produces more energy than is put in, which --we shouldn't have to tell you -- is impossible. The Daily Mail is the dumb -- but actually kinda clever, 'cause they'll get lots of readers, and they don't mind bending the truth -- deliverer this time, adding some kind of twisted authority to the "news." The company behind the free publicity is called EcoWatts, who are apparently keen to sell their £1,500-2,000 white tube thing to homeowners, with the aim of reducing their electricity bill (and not solving all the world's energy problems in one fell swoop, apparently.) Altogether now: "ughhh."
Look, we know how hard it can be to put out a fire with your typical, under -the-sink extinguisher. Sure, the flames are brightly colored and searingly hot, but it can be difficult to know where to aim that thing sometimes. Enter the BullsEye Fire Extinguisher Training System, which combines a laser-equipped, mock extinguisher, and a digital, on-screen "fire" display. Thanks to the BullsEye technology, you and your family and / or friends can learn to put out fires from the safety and comfort of your home or office, without actually have to burn down your safe, comfortable home or office.
Finally you can get your coffee served up just the way you like it... via the internet. Thanks to some caffeine-loving DIY'ers, you can now whip up (or at least serve) a cup of steaming-hot espresso from across the room, or across the Atlantic (though, why would you make a cup of coffee if you won't be able to drink it while it's hot?). Regardless, inspired by Larry Masinter's circa-1998 Hyper Text Coffee Pot Control Protocol, and utilizing the O2M8 WebBrick (a controller designed for automation in houses), the gang was able to put together a solution for coffee making that has been heretofore unseen, though (we suspect) desperately needed. Check the link to see all the percolating action unfold.
We've been inching closer to low(er) cost solar panels (for the mainstream public to enjoy) for some time now, and apparently, AVA Solar Inc. is just about ready to start cranking out units that "will cost less than $1-per watt by the end of next year." The technology was reportedly developed by Colorado State University's Professor W.S. Sampath, and production is slated to begin soon in a "200-megawatt factory" that could employ some 500 individuals. Of note, it was said that the "cost to the consumer could be as low as $2 per watt," but even that figure purportedly rings up at about half the cost of current options.
