Mmmmm… prizes

Manhattan’s Red Sky last night played host to a gathering of geeks and geek sympathizers the likes to which the world has never seen (at least not this week, granted it was only a Monday night — but that’s neither here nor there really. You get the point.) Anyway, the occasion? The CrunchGear One Year Anniversary Celebration, of course. What else could have drawn such an odd amalgamation of minds? I actually don’t have an answer to that question and I’m not sure that one even exists.
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A few months back I reviewed a little product called the Lapinator. It was a simple product made from 3M Thinsulate. The premise was simple, when using your laptop, the Lapinator was positioned between yourself and your machine. In addition to providing cushioning, it prevented your crotch from erupting into flames under the heat of your laptop.
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Keyboards are such a fundamental component of computing that they often exit largely unnoticed. That old dependable cornerstone of your life that you probably only consider when something is wrong with it. It’s easy to do.

Unfortunately, this position leaves the keyboarding with few advancements as the computing world upgrades at the rate of Moore’s Law. But change is in the air, or perhaps on the desk, because sitting before me, beneath these fingers, is the Logitech Wave — the first truly innovative keyboard to emerge in some time.
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Not quite. While the SanDisk Contour is without a doubt the sexiest looking flash drive that I’ve ever seen, the device is suffering from one major disparaging oversight. Read More

I’m a certified bag nut. I seem to acquire them everywhere and frequently have to purge my collection to make space for actual possessions — otherwise I’d just be carrying around bags in larger bags (it’s happened before). That said, I’m distinctly aware of pack-efficiency. The more they can carry, the better, as long as the size doesn’t expand.

There is, however, one trend that I can’t figure out; a feature common to practically every new bag in production. I’m referring, of course, to the iPod pocket, a “feature” with no true utility.
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Logitech announced today the MX Air, its newest play at the home theater PC market. The mouse brings a lot of new elements to the market and I’m happy to say that it performs quite nicely.
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Ever notice how the fancier electronics get, the less productive they become? Yea me too, and it’s a problem. Sure that 16,000 function cell phone/PDA/radiation detector/meteor deflector/oral hygiene device looks cool, but do you really need all of that crap? The answer is no, you don’t. And I’ll tell you why.
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Since I’m from New Orleans, that pretty much makes me the only Cruncher who has ever been on a boat. Yea it’s a stereotype, but in this case it’s true — I’m from NOLA and I grew-up fishing.

There is good reason for it though, fishing is one of the most relaxing activities on the planet. It’s peaceful and detached and it offers a lot of time to avoid responsibility. Needless to say, I don’t get to do enough of it these days, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t.
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Logitech today announced two new webcams that each incorporate hot Carl Zeiss lenses. The QuickCam Pro 9000 (above) is true 2-megapixel cam intended for desktop use, while the QuickCam Pro for Notebooks incorporates the same features into compact and portable unit that includes a tripod. Both of the units carry a price point of $99 and should be available soon.

I had the opportunity to look at these a couple of weeks ago and I can attest that they have the best image quality of any webcam I’ve seen. It’s game changing sort of stuff. The interesting part though, is that Logitech now has an exclusive arrangement with Zeiss Optics that allows them to be the sole producer of Zeiss-equipped webcams.

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So sitting in the offices today at Next New Networks, we were alerted to a tragedy of epic proportion. As he was charging his battery earlier company founder and creative director, Fred Seibert experienced the unthinkable! The battery for his 17-inch Macbook Pro suffered a rupture due, I think, to previously addressed battery defects.

No but seriously, if you haven’t sent in your recalled batteries yet, get on that stuff. They can, as you see here, explode. We were at least fortunate enough to not be engulfed in a fiery lithium ion inferno.

Bonus pics after the jump! Read More

“The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters” is a film sure to interest most of you. It follows Billy Mitchell and Steve Wiebe, the two most notable “Donkey Kong” players ever, in their ongoing quest to dominate one another. It is a real-life tale of shady characters, heartbreak and deceit. Oh, and video games. Enjoy the trailer.

Logitech is beginning to drop a barrage of gear. The first set of gear up is aimed at the notebook market. By far the most interesting product from this array is the Alto Connect (pictured above). In addition to providing a better angle on which to pound away on your computer, it also offers a four port USB hub and cable management. It’ll retail for $80 — but that’s not all!
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Sonos is busy this week. After announcing Phil Abram as its new president and COO, the Santa Barbara based company has announced an arrangement to offer its wireless music boxes in Best Buy stores.

The Sonos BU130 is available today in more than 440 stores and will be featured in more than 600 stores by the end of 2007. It will be showcased with a live, interactive multi-zone display.

Depressingly, however, the wider availability does not signal a price drop for the excellent, but expensive, device — it will maintain its $999 price tag. Nevertheless, the greater visibility afforded by a prominent Best Buy display is certain to augment Sonos’ sales greatly and increase awareness of the company.

Sonos
Best Buy

We’re RICH!
Not content with hegemonic domination of the Internets, Google is now seeking dominion over the open road. Earlier this week (read: yesterday), Google and Pacific Gas & Electric tested a collection of hybrid vehicles that could turn the industry on its head (roof?). Read More

Sonos has announced the installation of Phil Abram as its new president and chief operating officer. He comes fresh off an 11 year stint at Sony where he held a number of strategic management roles, the most recent being vice president and senior general manager of television products.

The move could signal a significant strengthening of the core for Sonos, who, to date, has released superb products, but only managed to cater to a mostly niche market. As of now, however, it remains unclear what sort of impact this hire will have on the company. We’ll continue to monitor the goings-on at Camp Sonos and keep you all posted on whatever gels.

Dear Microsoft,

Blake Robinson here. I’ve been a Zune user from the beginning despite resounding clamor railing against my support. It’s a decent device that gets the job done as well as anything else out there. So what if you put too much stock into the wireless sharing function. It might be useless and I’ve still yet to “squirt” a single track at anyone, but I did finally see a Zune in the wild (owned by a cute girl who I would have gladly squirted). Nevertheless, I still dig the interface and despite the fact that it weighs as much a cinder block, I still carry it around like a jackass. I can live with that.

My problem with you stems from your ridiculous and asinine decision to not support OS X. Since moving to New York, I’ve only been in possession of my MacBook Pro and I’ve grown exceedingly frustrated with my inability to upload new music to my device. Sure I love Arcade Fire and all the other stuff I have on there, but I can really only listen to the same stuff so many times before I want to split your head open with a brick (fortunately I have a Zune on hand that should do the job).

Even Apple in all its insular anti-wisdom supports your OS with its dominant iPod. I know you want to win and that in your mind, supporting Apple with Zune is probably something akin to feeding the enemy, but did it ever occur to you that perhaps, just maybe, part of the iPod’s success stems from the fact that ANYONE CAN USE IT?!

Stop alienating potential customers and make your crap work on OS X so I don’t have to listen to Brand New one more time. Clearly it’s turning me emo. That is all. – brob

The SureFire Titan is an LED flashlight that packs a blinding wallop. This tiny device features a variable-output LED that allows you to select light inputs between one and 30 lumens.

To top that off, it is housed within a fine looking titanium canister. At least I think it’s fine looking. Maybe I’m distracted.

Available now for the low, low price of $500.

Product Page [via Uncrate]

Belkin announced today the availability of four new chargers for iPod. The Power Dock AV allows you to charge via an entertainment center while the Power Dock works through a computer. There is also a Charging Kit for car use and a Power Adapter for wall chargin’.

The devices are available now for prices ranging from $24 – $49.

Belkin

Here’s a useful solution for traveling professionals. The Dual-Access Computer Case features a quick access laptop space. It can also store about a weekend’s worth of clothes. Exterior zipper slots are present for files and various other gear.

Available now at Magellan’s for $139.

Dual-Access Rolling Bag [Book of Joe via Gizmodo]

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The Apple Store is back up and we have on our hands something that I wish was available three months ago. As we speculated yesterday, a new MacBook Pro has joined the ranks of Apple’s high performance machines.

The systems are now available in speeds up to 2.4GHz. Additionally, the 15-inch rig can now be equipped with a 7,200rpm 160GB hard drive. You may recall that the slower 5,400rpm hard drives were my only real complaint about the MacBook Pro.

Finally, the biggest overhaul to the system comes in the form of new discrete graphics. It has been decked out with a GeForce 8600m GT 256MB. Not only is this a significantly more powerful GPU, it’s a notable step away from the ATI solutions that have powered all of the MacBook Pros to date. Oh and it also has and LED display, which I guess some of you might care about.

Apple

What’s cooler than lolcats? That’s actually a trick question since nothing is cooler than lolcats. But this will, at least, get you wetter than lolcats (presumably).

The Kohler WaterHaven is a $3,300 showering monstrosity. It features seven water outlets. Yes, seven holes from which it can blow its watery load all over you. The WaterHaven holds two shower heads, four body sprays and one hand shower.

Be careful though, accidents happen: Read More

Due to iPhone shortages, one unit will be shared amongst three users in rotating weekly blocks
According to a survey conducted by WR Hambrecht & Co, many AT&T stores have no firm idea as to when the retardedly anticipated iPhone will arrive in stores. Some locations place it on June 15, others on June 22 and many haven’t the foggiest notion.

In addition to the vague release date, the stores are also unsure as to how many units they’re going to have. The highest speculation was 40, but many were lower.

Who knows what the future will hold for the iPhone? I for one don’t rightly care.

Most AT&T stores expecting less than 40 iPhones at launch [AppleInsider]

OK, OK, this isn’t really a big shocker, but it’s worth a mention for those of you have not yet considered it. Although iTunes is now offering DRM-free music, that doesn’t mean you can go distributing it willy-nilly.

You see, like previous iTunes tracks, the m4a file is embedded with your account information. TUAW’s Erica Sadun did writes:

Try this yourself.

1. Launch Terminal. You’ll need to be comfortable at the command line to perform this check.

2. Navigate to one of your iTunes plus downloads. If you have a US iTunes account, you can download the iTunes plus “Ooh La” single of the week.

3. Use the UNIX “strings” command to look at the text in your data and grep to search for your name. e.g.
strings 01\ Ooh\ La.m4a | grep name
Alternatively, open all the strings in TextEdit:
strings 01\ Ooh\ La.m4a | open -f.

Bottom line: DRM-free doesn’t mean that Apple suddenly supports piracy.

Like I said, no shocker, but keep it in mind before you start uploading albums like crazy.

Don’t Torrent That Song… [TUAW]

In the iPod age, headphones have become a fundamental part of lives of practically everyone. While many individuals are complacent living in lo-fi, unaware of the depths their music holds, some intuitive listeners yearn for something better. For those select few, it is often necessary to own two sets of headphones: a pair of earbuds and a pair of muffs, such as the HD650s.

Released in 2004 the Sennheiser HD650 rig is a heavy favorite of audiophiles everywhere — and for good reason. The 650s combine unparalleled comfort with some of the lushest sound quality to be found on any setup.
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