What will they do next...

http://www.pixell.net/newton/

What will they do next...

Fake Ipod Nano

Actual device:



Mock-ups used in auctions:



Note: even tho some ebay sellers say mac compatible it is not. It WILL operate as a flash drive and you can drag n drop MP3s etc on to it but to convert the video files that can be played back on the unit you will need to use that Windows emulator.[/b]

Notice how the actual "wheel" looks raised in the mock up. This is not the case with the actual unit. If anything it is slightly indented.[/quote]

I put Hyfai in quotes since this seems to be the name assigned to the device from a Toronto reseller (looks pretty legit. Good feedback. Sells a number of them. Excluding the name of the ebay store from this review since 1) I didn't buy it from them and 2) to prove impartiality).

There is no name on the device, box or manual. Of course no warrenty unless the seller you purchuse it from offers one.

Once you have a good device you're set.

The upside:

MP3/WMA playback with ID3 tags.

FM radio with FM recording (not listed in manual or ebay auctions. When in the FM screen hit the menu key and you'll find the record option at the bottom)

Decent AMV video playback by comparison to other ones I've used. Note in the image below that it does not rotate the image to use the full 1.5" display so the top and bottom have bars. Anything less than high quality settings produced images that I found unwatchable. On highest settings it was viewable fine. Almost like watching a TV with an antenna getting in a station pretty good but not perfect. It did tend to lose frames in high motion video. Conan/Letterman/Leno slow motion programs are idea for video playback. Video playback is acceptable all things considered however do not expect Archos etc quality playback.

Game feature: Some numbers game that was useless. If you press up it'll actually cause a fatal error and reset the device. This was the only bug I've found.

Photo viewer: decent. Not stealer but alright.

Ebook: It'll actually read .txt files! Too bad it can't write to them to make a low end pda.

Also records voice in wav format.

Manual on/off switch on top for hard reset if needed (never needed it).

Uses freeware programs (included on cd) like Media Player Classic along with the amv conversion program to convert divx files into amv video for playback. Will convert a variety of formats. I've tried divx and real media. Both worked great. I couldn't get vcd standard mpg working however. Just freezes the program.

A beta homebrew firmware is out there for the unit (txt writing and timer record FM radio would be awesome). Will post details when I track down the site.

Same small size and lightweight like the real Ipod Nano.

The downside:

Uses a 2.5mm headphone jack to be used with included headphones.

Had to tweak the setting in the program slightly to get proper playback of video files.

The usb plug on the wall charge is slightly off centre as is the jack for the headphones. Both are firm and work perfectly however.

Some ebay sellers have been modding the units to display twice as much space so when the person tries to load that much on or reformat the device it resets making reading feedback remarks and even contacting previous buyers important. Mine is fine - using about 246 mb out of a
possible 256.

It DOES scratch just like the real Ipods just as easily.

Be careful of sellers who say their in your country but actually ship from overseas. Expensive as hell shipping/insurance and there's no point since I'm in Canada and I could find more than one reputable dealer.

Ratings: A+ for what it is. Once they improve the video quality I would seriously consider getting a 1GB model (or if I find another pretty good deal)


Photos:

The included acc's (excluding the manual, usb cable and install cd)




Shiney silver headphones with a white base. Very Jetson-ish. It's a good thing I kinda like them since with the 2.5 mm jack I'm stuck with them lol.

The actual wall charger is really neat since it used the usb cable as the cord for it. Very portable. The actual tongs for the plug retract into the device. Be careful of auctions that may include a charger that will not work in your area. Ebay feed backs I've read have been burned by this.


Unit on with the amv video feature playing a live action video:

Videohelp now has a PVP forum

http://forum.videohelp.com/viewforum.php?f=46

Review: MPIO FG200

The good:
Solid build
Nice price for a Video player
Very small
Comes in a varaity of sizes up to 1 GB
Internal battery; charges via USB

The bad:
Small screen (but you know that going into it)
Package decieves the customer by stating it plays divx when it actually only plays them by conversion to the poor quality, low resolution amv video format like all those chinese ebay MP4 players.


The ugly:

There is *no* way to turn off the timer on screen when watching a video. I've even used no name mp4 ebay players that know how to do that. Contacted tech support and the rep knew all about it and mentioned that others have called in as well and they said they have no fix for this.

The verdict: Back to Best Buy it went. D minus

Naked Gord's Electronics wishlist.

I have no idea where to buy these products. They are just listed by distributors on this website to try to find resellers.

1st place:

Specifications:

1) Functions:
  a) All in 1, DVD / MPEG4 / TV / FM / USB / Game
  b) Plays MPEG4 disc or file on USB disc
  c) Analog TV receiver (World TV system)
  d) FM receiver
  e) Reads USB flash disc or USB mini fix disc
  f) NES 8 bit game with two handle
  g) AV output / input function
2) FM output (88MHz - 108MHz) to transmit audio signal to car radio (optional
  by customer), you don't need to connect the signal cable
3) TV system includes almost all system in the world, PAL B/G, PAL D/K, PAL I,
  SECAM B/G, SECAM D/K, SECAM L, NTSC M
4) 8.4 inches sharp TFT (4:3), resolution (640 x 480 x RGB pixels)
5) Dimensions (L x W x H): 225 x 165 x 46mm
6) Weight: 0.93kg

Portable DVD/Game/FM/Divx Tablet w/ joystick
Identical product seems to be listed here
and here
and here
and here
and here (how many people are selling this fucking thing!)

2nd place: (close tie with first)

Specifications:
*brand new 7-inch 16:9 color tft-lcd panel.
*super strong electronic anti-shock(dvd 3 seconds, CD/VCD 10 seconds, MP3 90 seconds anti-shock).
*compatible with DVD/VCD/CD/svcd/MP3 discs. Nes 8 bit game disc
*inside super strong li battery, may play for 2.5 hours continuously(when playing discs). And card remote controller.
*free forward/backward search, free choose at 2-20 times speed
*built-in dolby decoder to decode mpegii audio and video
*may connect to TV, tft-lcd, could enjoy av entertainment with high quality image, either at home or outdoors
*switching power adapts to ac100-240v
*tv receiving function(pal or ntsc system)
*auto system av monitor.
Accessories
Audio cord, video cord, remote controller(include battery), switching power adapter, car power adapter, svideo video cord, external antenna converter

Portable DVD With Game

also here
and here (I smell a trend)


This one looks better (including having an LG TFT screen in it) however the picture and text show no existance of a joystick being included. More details here

3rd:




VCD/CD/MP3/NES/Karaoke/FM

Of all the products here this is the one I could see never being for sale in N.America/Europe w/o DVD support but what a combination of featues!

Honorable mentions:






TV/DVD/Divx

No game but does have a wireless FM transmitter as well as acts as a DVD-Rom

Region Free DVD Players in Canada

Looking for the Region Free DVD Players in Canada Listings?
Click here

Disposable Camcorder

The camcorder weighs less than 150 grams and holds 20 minutes of digital video and sound. It features a 3.6 centimetre colour playback screen and an ability to delete video, and it saves video on a memory chip instead of tapes.

After shooting, customers have to return the recyclable camcorder to their local CVS store and its contents would then be transferred onto a DVD disc to view and share for a $12.99 processing fee.

Source: Globe and Mail

I'm torn. More landfill crap (but parts of it are recyclable) however..wow - It makes me happy to be alive.

Hopefully soon enough tech peeps will find a way to mod/hack this to be reusable at the consumer level w/o the $13 USD price tag.

Zaurus used as cow collar

The title seems a joke, but is not. This guy has used a Zaurus PDA, a GPS, WiFi network card and a loudspeaker to create a virtual fence for cows.

That works like that: when the cow goes nearby the virtual perimeter the PDA emits a loud noise, like a lion or a snake was nearby. The point is that the cow should be scared enough to run away.

Read more here.

The original New Scientist article.

Posting source: LinuxPDA