GadgetReview

OK, so while this bike looks interesting enough, it also looks really for lack of a better adjective, stupid.  With the last decade seeing rise to the fixed gear bike (much to my disdain), this bike seems to absolutely epitomize that design mindset with a little impracticality thrown in for bad measure.

Looking at the picture of the dude sitting on this I can’t possibly fathom how you could want to ride this for more than a few blocks.  He looks pretty poised to take a dive off the front of the thing as soon as he hits a bump.  The only thing inner city about this bike is how ghetto it is.  What do we think?

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Today, I read an article that made me question my own sanity.

I read all about the Liquid Image Scuba Series HD320, and when you hear what this is and connect it to earlier work, then you’re going to have a serious problem yourself.  Because by the time I finish talking about this you’ll wonder the same thing I did:  namely, maybe Thanko’s Underwater USB Camera wasn’t so lunatic after all.

The Liquid Image Scuba Series HD320, you see, is a diving facemask with a side-mounted HD video camera.  All you have to do is line up the crosshairs on the mask with the thing you want to photograph, then press the button on the mask to take the footage.  It’s the equivalent of a five megapixel camera and can go as far down as 115 feet.

You can get one of these beauties via West Marine for just $300, but there are lower cost versions available.

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In an age where high-priced gaming peripheral bundles are becoming standardized purchases, Nintendo is set to release something huge.  Enter the Nintendo Wii CyberBike.

Packed with the new Wii game Cycling Sports, this might be the most expensive controller we’ve seen yet.  While no price has been determined it’s too bad Nintendo doesn’t release this for the holiday’s as it would be a great way to burn off some of those Christmas calories.  This bundle is set to release sometime in January of 2010.

The game itself has some environmental leanings as you try to clean up the earth controlling a variety of vehicles including a Gyrocopter.  The CyberBike has also been noted to control the Mario Cart game on the Wii.  Could we see this at some trendy LA gym in the future?

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Finding a good armband for your MP3 player can be a tricky thing.  Does it stay fastened to your arm without sliding?  Does it get in the way of what your doing?  I have tried a couple of arm bands in my day and I always ended up going with an around the hip accessory (tucked into my waistband) just because it worked better for what I was doing.

ArmPocket is an Eco-Friendly company that makes a variety of quality and utilitarian armbands for your Apple iPhone or iPod Touch.  To say it right now, the ArmPocket Sport 20 is the best arm band I have used yet and I highly advise you to check it out if you are looking for a competent and fairly priced exercise accessory.

Let’s start with features.  Assuming that you don’t have any other storage on your person, the ArmPocket Sport 20 has got you covered.  In the main chamber there are two elastic slots for an ID and credit card and it is big enough to hold an energy bar or gel in addition to your MP3 player no problem.  On the outside there is also a small loop to hold a keyring. …Continue reading: ArmPocket Sport 20 Review

Out at the University of Toronto, a whole lot of men all over the world are about to start cheering like no tomorrow–seems they’ve built a portable device that will accurately diagnose prostate cancer from a urine sample in less time than it takes to order and receive a pizza on a Saturday night.

That’s right–just thirty minutes and this Blackberry sized device will be able to tell you if you’ve got cancer.  No need for biopsies, no need for waiting days on end for lab results, no need for gigantic systems like you see above, just a combination of nanotechnology and biomarker readers working together to start simple, painless, noncomplex diagnostic processes for just about every human condition on earth.

Or that’s the goal, anyway–the device is in the engineering stage and should be ready for use within the next three years.  A fantastic goal, and I hope they make it.

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Another snoopy fitness gadget comes our way in the form of the Fitbit, which took the TechCrunch 50 by storm last year but couldn’t seem to get off the ground.  But it’s now got a launch date scheduled–this Tuesday.

The ninety nine dollar FitBit will clip to your clothes and, based on your movement, help determine how much exercise you’ve been getting and how many calories you’ve burned thanks to an internal motion detector.  Even better, you can keep track of all that stuff in a direct, graphic fashion by checking an icon of a flower on the side of the device that grows as your activity level grows.  And if you’re not that into flowers, word is you can actually change that icon.

But that’s not all!  If you wear the FitBit while you sleep, that motion detection hardware can actually track your SLEEP patterns based on how often you move in a day.  No worries if you don’t wear much that you can clip it to–the FitBit will work just fine on a wristband.

So if you’re out to get fit, the FitBit may be able to help.

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If you are turning over a new leaf of health consciousness and need a new pedometer to help reach your goals, look no further.  Oregon Scientific’s new Marathon Pedometer has all the important features to help you get your stride on.

The pedometer uses accelerometer technology so you can wear it lanyard style, clipped to a bag, or securely around your shoe.  Its backlit display has a clock, step counter, distance/calorie calculator, and a count up/down function to gauge where you’re at.

The pedometer even features a marathon challenge mode so you can see how long it would take to walk a marathon.  On sale now for $60.  Walk this way!

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Taking an aesthetic cue from the old Sony Sports Walkman series, the Predator VX360 is taunting you to strap it to your dome and take it off a cliff.  Probably the most accessible extreme camera I’ve seen, it seems like a perfect match for the maniac daredevil looking to capture some sick POV footage.

Capable of withstanding impact shocks, it can also be submerged in up to three meters of water and is resistant to salt water damage.  The base unit has an LCD monitor on it for immediate viewing to make sure you captured 100% of the purest of adrenalines.

However, coolness does not come cheap as the Predator VX360is priced at $550.

Check out the promotional video below: …Continue reading: Predator VX360 Wearable Extreme Sports Camcorder (video)

Just in case anyone wants to get sue-happy, let me preface this installment by saying that I am not a doctor, nor do I even play one on TV, but one of the biggest trends in gadgets is the electronic cigarette.  We reported on these once before, but early estimates show that these will be one of the big must-have gadgets for Christmas 2009.

The electronic cigarette, just for reminders’ sake, offers a new way to get access to nicotine by, instead of setting fire to nicotine-containing goods and inhaling the smoke, by putting nicotine directly into the electronic cigarette, vaporizing it,  and allowing it to deliver nicotine in slow bursts throughout the day.

Whether or not these things might help you quit smoking is undetermined, but it sure does look like to the layman that even if they didn’t help, there’d still be every reason to believe that these might be more healthy.  And in smoking, every little edge helps.

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The SwiMp3 underwater bone-conduction MP3 player from Finis is the only player I’ve seen or used that alleviates the suction problem experienced by other players.  While it does have problems of its own, it definitely deserves your attention if you are looking for a music player to entertain you while you are swimming laps at the gym.

Announced today, Finis has quadrupled the storage capacity of the SwiMP3 to 1GB.  Still selling at $150, you’d really have to be an avid swimmer to accept its high price point. …Continue reading: Finis Ups The SwiMP3 Player to 1GB