Hasta La Gadget!

When a product takes well over a full year to go from introduction to release, it’s natural for consumer expectations to amp themselves up a notch or two. Such is the case with Razer’s Chimaera, an Xbox 360-centric wireless gaming headset that was initially teased at CES 2010, and just started shipping to end users early this year. The company’s been in the gaming headset business for some time now — if you’ll recall, we thoroughly enjoyed our time with the (wired) Carcharias headset right around two years back. This 2.1 system promises to give Xbox Live yappers exactly what they’ve been waiting for, but is it really worth the $129.99 entry fee? Head on past the break for our take.

Continue reading Razer Chimaera wireless Xbox 360 headset review

Razer Chimaera wireless Xbox 360 headset review originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Apr 2011 12:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Given the one-size-fits-few nature of most audio products, it’s good to have choices, and Sony happens to have two new pairs of headphones designed for very particular segments of your life. If, say, you’re a traveling music lover who doesn’t happen to have the disposable income to obtain Sony’s premium $300 MDR-NC300D noise canceling buds (which the company claims filter out 99 percent of noise), you’ll find a cheaper alternative in the new $70 MDR-NC13, which only make a estimated 87.4 percent of background distractions go bye-bye. C’est la vie. If, on the other hand, you need to throw sound from one end of your mansion to the other for hours on end, the MDR-RF865RK wireless headphones might be the wide receiver you’ve been dreaming of — Sony claims they’ll play audio up to 100 meters away from their dock, which provides up to 25 hours of playtime after a 3.5 hour charge. No price or availability for the wireless cans, which were just announced in the UK, but you’ll find the NC-13 on sale at Sony’s online store right now. PR after the break.

Continue reading Sony’s NC-13 buds cancel noise, RF865 cans transmit across a football field

Sony’s NC-13 buds cancel noise, RF865 cans transmit across a football field originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Mar 2011 05:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mad Catz’s Airdrives sit outside your canal and let ambient sound in

This next sentence is going to drive some of you crazy: bike friendly headphones. But before you scroll past the rest of this post and start writing angry comments about road safety and how listening to music means cyclists deserve to die (whilst forgetting that you regularly balance a hot cup of Starbucks on your paunch while texting and driving), read a little longer.

The Airdrives are from Mad Catz, and they don’t block your ears at all. Unlike earbuds or over-ear designs, the Airdrives sit on that little cartilaginous nodule at the front of your ear-hole. The speaker is held there by the cord, which hooks over your ear and cinches tight. This also helps keep them in place, which is essential when doing sporting activities.

Because the sound is sent in from the outside, it’s no different from listening to the radio in your car. You can still hear ambient sounds, and identify the direction they come from. The design also combats listening fatigue, letting your ear shape and process the sound from the ‘buds as it would any other external sound.

I’m interested to try these out. Too-loud music will of course still be too loud, and drivers will still hate you for wearing them, but for podcasts they may just be ideal. The Airdrives also have inline controls and will answer your compatible phone. This last is probably a terrible idea, though. It’s one thing distracting yourself with a phone-call when you’re in a two-ton cage and can only kill others. When you’re on a bike, you can only kill yourself.

Still want to write a nasty comment? Go ahead. Just don’t say I deserve to die because I don’t use the same environmentally destructive form of transport as you do. From $15. Pictured model $50.

Airdrives product page [Mad Catz via London Cyclist]

Airdrives on Amazon [Amazon]

See Also:

• Budfits Keep Earbuds Where You Want Them
• Headphone Hat For Stealth Listening
• Awareness App Pipes Outside Sounds to Your Headphones
• Tunebug Turns Your Bike Helmet into a Speaker
• Bike Speakers Rock Your Commute
• Wireless Bike Speaker Beams Tunes From iPod To Handlebars
• Podio Bike Speakers Turn Cycling into “Enjoyable Melodious Tour …

Westone isn’t exactly a household name, even in the earphone universe. But what the company lacks in recognition, it more than makes up for in quality. If you’ll recall, we had a listen to its ES5 custom in-ear monitors earlier in the year, and while they cost a staggering $950, they also managed to melt our brain and thoroughly spoil us in the process. Thankfully, there’s a budget alternative: the Westone 4. Granted, even 50 percent off still lands you right around $449, but many audiophiles would argue that said price is a small one to pay when looking at a quad-driver setup, a three-way crossover network and an insanely robust set of earbud tips. There’s no question that these guys are aimed at the professionals in the crowd, and if you’re interested in seriously stepping up your mobile listening game, you owe it to yourself to peek our full review. It’s after the break, per usual.

Continue reading Westone 4 earphones review

Westone 4 earphones review originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Mar 2011 14:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Samsung Tango View Cleaner has an onboard webcam and mic

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

Samsung Tango View Cleaner-Bot Streams What it Sees
If you’ve always wanted some sort of spy cam in your home, and your floors are perpetually dirty, Samsung has created the hybrid device you’ve been looking for. The Tango View VC-FL87W is an autonomous, Roomba-like vacuum cleaner with a built-in webcam that can stream its view to a smartphone or tablet. An onboard mic and low-light video support make it a sneaky (creepy?) way to keep tabs on what’s going on in your abode when you’re not around to keep an eye on things. Or you can just have fun getting a mouse-eyed view of the world as your floors get cleaned.

Samsung Robotic Vacuum Cleaner [Akihabara News via Slashgear]

Expedition Tripod Is Made of Wood Instead of Metal
The Expedition Tripod is made of sustainably harvested varnished ash in Germany. Why wood? It absorbs vibration better than metals like carbon, steel, or aluminum (or so they manufacturer says). And craftsmen have used the same techniques to build it for over a century.

Wood Camera Tripod [Photojojo via Uncrate]

LinkedIn and Snaptu Join Forces to Bring a Smartphone-Style App to Feature Phones
For international users who want to access LinkedIn on the go but are lacking a smartphone, life will soon get easier. LinkedIn is working with mobile developer Snaptu to create an app that lets dumbphone users access their update stream and profiles, search their network, accept invitations, and invite users to their network. Snaptu is also working with Facebook to bring the social network to feature phones.

LinkedIn Teams Up With Snaptu [TechCrunch]

Google Joining In on the NFC Payment Game
Although Google has explicitly stated that they don’t sell hardware, they have, according to Bloomberg’s sources, been purchasing “thousands” of VeriFone’s NFC payment terminals. The search engine giant is planning to install them in the tech-forward cities of San Francisco and New York City so users can swipe their Android smartphone to pay for transactions. There have been previous rumors that Google was developing their own payment system; this Verifone-purchasing information is right in line with that.

Google is said to ready payment test in New York and San Francisco [Bloomberg via Engadget]

Harman GHS-1 Gaming Headphones Look Sweet, Are Packed With Features
Currently available for $80, Harman’s GHS-1s feature a directional (cardioid) boom mic and passive noise reduction for filtering out background noises. It’s got in-line volume control and mic on/off switch as well as a mechanism in the headband so it can fold up compactly. They’re designed for longwearing comfort, and won a Red Dot Design Award for their good looks.

GHS-1 [Harman via Crunchgear]

Magic Spoon, A Simple Solution for Transporting Flatware
When I decide to eat some food in my room, it’s always a pain to juggle a glass, plate, and forks or spoons as I walk across the house. The Magic Spoon design fixes at least part of that problem by elongating and bending the handle of your utensil, turning it into a hairpin-type clasp. Just slide and clamp it onto a plate or cup to secure it.

The Magic Spoon [Yanko Design]