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The parts of the Nintendo 3DS layed out for all to see

Gadget Lab Notes is an eclectic roundup of gadget news briefs and intriguing products that catch our eye.

The Nintendo 3DS Gets Dissected By iFixit
The guys at iFixit announced that the 3DS is “the most camera-laden device we’ve ever taken apart,” with two cameras used for 3D recording and one for displaying 3D images. The motherboard features a Nintendo 1048 0H ARM CPU and a Fujitsu MB82M8080-07L, among other chips, and two LCD layers are used to create the parallax display that results in 3D footage when viewed from the right distance. The 3DS got a repairability score of 5/10, which means it’s not too impossibly difficult to tear apart.

Nintendo 3DS Teardown [iFixit via the Giz]

Thanko’s EARINALM Earphones Have a Built-In Alarm
If you’re taking a nap on the bus or the train, you may prefer falling asleep to your tunes rather than to the random bustle going on around you. But then how do you know when to wake up? Thanko’s EARINALM earphones solve that problem with a built-in alarm clock on the remote control. When the alarm sounds, its ringing will replace your music. It’s available for 2980 Yen, about $36.

EARINALM Earphones [Thanko via Akihabara News]

Japenese Human-Shaped Mobile Phone Is Designed to Relay Voice and “Human Presence”
Japanese researchers have created a mobile phone robot called Elfoid. Shaped like a palm-sized pseudo-human and covered in a “skin-like” outer layer, it’s designed to transmit both voice and “human presence,” which is done by mimicking the speakers head and upper body movements. They hope that by making the phone feel like the person you’re speaking with, you’ll feel closer to them (as opposed to being creeped out that you’re dialing your friends and loved ones on a voodoo doll-like skin phone that’s wiggling in your ear).

Mobile Phone With Human Touch and Elfoid, A Pocket-Sized Android

Zero Xu Is The First Street Motorcycle With a Swappable Battery Pack
Zero’s Xu electric motorcycle is the first model to get juice from a removable, exchangeable power pack. The integrated charger powers up the pack in 2 hours, but an optional standalone charger can quick-charge it in about half that time. The Xu, which starts at $7,995, is definitely designed more for short-distance commuting than cross country treks: it only has a 30-mile range.

Xu [Zero via Designboom]

OLED Display and Camera Are Combined in Bi-Directional OLED Prototype
The Fraunhofer Institute’s prototype bi-directional panel intersperses CMOS photoreceptors between AMOLED pixels so that the display can display and observe objects at the same time. Such technology could be used in wearable displays, or give your smartphone or tablet screen additional functionality as a scanner.

Bi-Directional OLED Microdisplay [OLED Info via Slashgear]

Why break Dr. Dre, Justin Bieber, 50 Cent or Ludacris off a ‘lil somethin’ somethin’ when you can endorse yourself? That’s a question that the engineers at V-Moda have found themselves centered on the past few months, and now they’ve got a solution: the Crossfade LP Customs. They’re half gimmick, half hilarious, and 100 percent awesome. $199.99 nets you a customized set of cans, with seven plate colors to choose from and the option to add up to 11 characters of text. You know — plenty of room for “BEATZ BY ME.” Get at ’em in the source link below, but be prepared to wait two to three weeks for delivery. What, you expecting VIP treatment or something?

V-Moda’s Crossfade LP Custom headphones drop the Beat, make you the superstar originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Feb 2011 14:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Etymotic, a company we’ve seen here at CES and in the past, has developed a pair of earplugs that protect your hearing against things like loud explosions and gunfire. The EB1 and EB15 Electronic Blast PLG Earplugs, retailing for $449 and $499, respectively, are aimed toward buyers such as hunters, musicians and soldiers — folks who are exposed to loud noises and need protection. The analog earpieces are powered by a 312 hearing-aid battery and will last three weeks. There’s no on/off switch — just a high and low gain control. High gain is used for environments that require an amplification and the opposite applies for low gain. In other words, if a soldier is out on the battlefield and needs to hear an enemy inside a house, he’d switch to high gain to generate a louder sound. The difference between the plugs is simple: the EB1 is for people who are going to be around one-off noises and the EB15 are for those who are going to be exposed to prolonged noises. We got a chance to test out the plugs on the loud show floor and we gotta say, the difference between high- and low-gain modes is easily recognizable and we feel like these earplugs will make superb head-hole protectors. Plenty of complicated graphs and numbers in the gallery below.

Etymotic EB1 and EB15 earplugs hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 11 Jan 2011 05:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Talk about a long wait. Razer’s Chimaera — which first popped onto our radar in prototype form here in Vegas a year ago — is finally shipping to end users. That’s according to staff at the company’s booth today at CES, who seemed quite pleased that they could change their answer when asked about it from eager (read: impatient) customers. The website still hasn’t been updated, but the 5.1 channel surround sound headset ($199.99) should be more widely available to purchase soon. Also, a 2.1 version will be on sale for $129.99, rocking a fairly similar design and charging station. For those needing a refresher, this is a wireless Xbox 360 headset, complete with an equalizer, audio out jacks (on the station) and a flip-down microphone. Have a peek at the gallery below, and feel free to start checking your doorstep at an unhealthy clip.

Razer Chimaera emerges at CES 2011, starts shipping to consumers originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Jan 2011 09:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Here’s an idea: start a headphone company, and then consult any ‘ole musician for sponsorship. It’s bound to work out well for you. HP has locked arms with Dr. Dre (and The Biebs!), Sleek Audio has done likewise with 50 Cent, Harman AKG has teamed with Quincy Jones, and now, Signeo is looking to Ludacris for a boost in the marketing department. Here at CES, the aforesaid outfit has just launched the cans you see above, aptly titled Soul by Ludacris. As you’d expect, they look mildly similar to the Beats headphone range that has seemingly taken the world by storm, and according to the release after the break, Luda was tightly involved in the construction of them. The Soul brand is debuting with five models in the line: the SL300 noise-cancelling headphones, on-ear SL150 / SL100 models and the SE99 / SE48 earbuds. The whole crew is tweaked to emit fairly intense bass (“without sacrificing the clarity of mids and highs,” mind you), and while no pricing details are being shared just yet, we are told that you can find your own Soul when they hit shelves in “early 2011.” One more look and the full release are after the break.

Continue reading Signeo reveals ‘Soul by Ludacris’ headphone series at CES

Signeo reveals ‘Soul by Ludacris’ headphone series at CES originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Jan 2011 11:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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