As the latest airline to begin offering free in-flight Wi-Fi, Continental has announced their plans to allow passengers to have limited wireless access. The service will be similar to the Jet Blue service and allow passengers to use e-mail or instant messaging. Sadly web browsing and even downloading attachments will not be allowed.

A bit of good news does come with the Continental announcement, after you get board checking your email you will be able to amuse yourself by watching TV. The LiveTV service will offer 36 channels through DirecTV, first class passengers will be able to view for free while the economy-class passengers will have to pay $6.

In-flight Wi-Fi seems to be nearing a necessity as we have seen recent announcements coming from other airlines such as Southwest and Jet Blue. Lets just hope these limited services take note and begin to offer a full experience similar to Virgin and American Airlines.

Via [TechCrunch] Via [CrunchGear]

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Posted Jan 30th 2008 7:06AM by Darren Murph
Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals
Oh sure, one could argue (quite successfully, we might add) that Nyko’s Wireless Nunchuck was quite the blessing for those sick and tired of the factory tether, but what about all us chaps and dames who already purchased Nintendo’s version of the Nunchuck? Fret not, Wii faithful, as Nyko is coming to your rescue once more. The aptly-titled Cord-Free Adapter for Wii Nunchuck enables current wired Nunchuck owners to simply holster their peripherals, wind up the cord and enjoy all sorts of wireless freedom. Granted, we still feel that this February-bound accessory is priced a touch high at $19.99, but hey, it’s cheaper than buying an all new third-party ‘chuck, eh?

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Nokia’s Communicator line of smartphones are great for two things - keeping your life in perfect order as well as bonking inept subordinates under your charge. The Softbank 922SH smartphone takes the same design route as the Communicator, featuring a 3.5″ LCD ASV display (480 x 854 resolution), a 1Seg Digital TV tuner, a 2.1 megapixel camera, microSDHC memory card support, Bluetooth connectivity, and HSDPA - all packed into a package that measures 56mm x 116mm x 17mm for 132 grams. No idea on how much it costs but I think that antenna is definitely an eye-sore.

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LiveScribe unveiled its innovative new Pulse smartpen last year at the D: All Things Digital show, but never managed to meet its release deadline of the end of 2007. Now, it looks likely the Pulse will get a release in March with two configurations.

For those of you who haven’t heard of the Pulse before, it is–in its most basic form–a pen that can record the handwritten notes that you write, kind of like the Fly Fusion. But the Pulse is also a lot more than that, with extra features including:

• The ability to record audio and match it up to the notes you made. The writing can be shown back to the user with the audio synchronizing with the written notes
• Stereo audio recording through dual microphones
• Audio recording is enhanced by filtering out of any background noise, guaranteeing clear playback
• The pen can play back the notes in slow motion or sped up as the user desires
• Language translation comes as standard
• Built-in calculator
• USB connection
• Audio jack
• Speaker
• Ink cartridge for easy refills
• OLED display
• Hi-speed infrared camera (70 images a second)
• Samsung ARM-9 processor (32-bit 150Mhz)
• 300 mAH rechargeable battery and charging cradle
• The ability to share your notes with friends through 250 MB of space on the LiveScribe website and applications for sharing them via Facebook.

In order for the pen to work, it must write on to dot paper, which LiveScribe will offer for around US$5 per notebook. Those not wanting to pay for the paper may be interested to know there are plans to allow users to print their own dot paper on either a laser or inkjet printer in April.

The functionality of the Pulse is not limited to what LiveScribe offers users either. A development kit based on Java and the Eclipse development environment will be made available allowing users to program their own applications for it.

Two versions of the pen will be available containing either 1 GB (16,000 digital pages or 100 hours of audio) or 2 GB (32,000 digital pages or 200 hours of audio) of memory. The retail price will be $149 and $200 respectively.

Read more at CNET.

Matthew’s Opinion

This pen sounds like it could be quite useful due to all the added functionality it has on board. Imagine you are a reporter for a multinational and need to make quick and detailed notes at a press conference. With the Pulse, you could make quick handwritten notes, add additional information through speaking into the pen, and possibly get it all translated for other news desks at the touch of a button.

In some situations, it is certainly going to be easier (and quicker) to pull out a dot paper notebook and pen to scribble down some information rather than boot up your laptop. Even if you have a laptop, you may want to save the battery and write your thoughts down instead.

I am looking forward to reading some hands-on reviews of the Pulse when it finally becomes available in March. For more information right now, check out the LiveScibe website for a demo, pictures, and movies detailing the Pulse.

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Maplin has introduced its Mini Pocket DV with Sporty Cam device, boasting a detachable sports camera which can be hooked onto your clothing whenever you get involved in an extreme sporting activity. Capable of snapping 10-megapixel shots, the inclusion of a digital image stabilizer is a must if you’re going to be up and about so much. Other than capturing video, it also plays MP3 files with a 15-channel equalizer and four audio FX settings for control freaks. I would have preferred a smaller megapixel count so that you will be able to store more photos at one go - after all, 3 megapixels are good enough unless you want to print a really huge poster of yourself for everyone to admire at. The Maplin Mini Pocket DV with Sport Cam retails for £149.99 after February 20th 2008 - it is currently on sale for £99.99.

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NEC is set to begin pushing fuel cell-powered handsets if the pic we see here can be believed. The handset features a touchscreen display and what appears to be valve to potentially recharge the handset once the fuel has all been used. Color choices are a bit too pastel for our liking, but it appears the liquid provides the color, so perhaps we’ll get some cooler tones when it’s released sometime this year — if it’s released. No word on any specs, pricing, networks, or anything, so until we get that bit of detail sorted, enjoy the pretty pic.
[Source]

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These headphones have been shown by Monster during CES (take a peek at our coverage), but I had a little bit of private time with Monster Cables and the Beats by Dre headphones, in the Apple store on Stockton in an Francisco. The story behind the name is that Monster and Dr. Dre co-designed the headphones. Jimmy Iovine also contributed to the design.

Like most of you, I’m not an audiophile, but after testing them I have to admit that they sound a lot better than the average headphones. I will probably ask my (audiophile) buddy Eugene (who reviewed the Shure E500) to test them and share his opinion with you. The headphones are powered by AAA batteries, and look better in real-life than they do in the product photos, in my opinion. Come back soon for our full review. Available this summer for an above-average price of $400.

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Those who have trouble with allergies (and deep pockets) may try just about anything to help alleviate their symptoms, and chances are Victorinox had these people in mind when they developed this Swiss Army Tech Vest with Air Purifier. The purifier itself is located in the left breast pocket, and it supposedly transfers purified air to the funnel collar of the jacket where it can be sucked into sensitive lungs . My guess is that this jacket is nothing more than a means of separating suffering suckers from their hard earned cash, but I’m not willing to spend the $500 to find out if it works. [Swiss Army via Wired]

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If you are working in the construction industry, I’m sure you can identify with all the aches and pains that seem to pop up out of nowhere after an honest, hard day’s work. The half-body robot from Nagoya University could change that situation, being a one-handed power suit that was specially developed to help construction workers fit ceiling panels. The workman first uses his own strength to guide the panel into position, whereby the machinery will take over and hold it in place for fixing while the workman effortlessly rivets or screws it into place. The current prototype is still deemed too bulky for commercial use, so expect further slimming down efforts from the team of researchers at the university.

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Toktumi
Toktumi offers affordable PBX (Private Branch System) functionality. You can receive and place calls from the phone or the computer, the application has a neat Search-to-call feature that allows users to search for a person or company name in their computer, dial the phone number and access in one click a Google map to locate the person/company address. It cost $12.95 a month plus 2 cents per minute and you can try it before subscribing.

BloCafe
BloCafé=(Blog+Live Forum+Live Public Conversation)*pushing message. With BloCafe users can host live forums to share files/cooperate on files shown at their computer desktop with attendees while they’re talking, provide live conversation rooms to attendees to allow them talking in public, send push messages to attendees, and write their blog.

Movial
Currently, people cannot share their social media instantly with all their friends. Movial’s Social Communicator provides a solution to this need. This application offers a chat-like user interface, where users has their contacts, can access their video from their favorite social website (YouTube is used for the demo) and send it to their friends via the Social Communicator dashboard, and recipients receives notifications message on their comuter or their mobile phones.

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