Into Tech

Ebay might the home of bargains but it’s also home to a special breed of idiot. One of the golden rules of taking part in online auctions is: never bid while drunk. Well, someone must have been rightly rat-arsed to pay £5,100 for a second-hand Sony laptop. The auction seemed legit – nothing fancy on offer, no special offers just this sales message:

“You are bidding on an EXCELLENT CONDITION Sony VGN-FJ270/B notebook. Had this notebook for less than 4 months. Got it brand new for Christmas and had limited use. Everything is still in like brand new condition”

Well, at least one half of this sales transaction will be very happy while the other is, no doubt, nursing the hangover from hell and wondering why his credit card is being refused. Ebay has removed the listing since.-Martin Lynch

[Techeblog]

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The big online push for the PS3 was always on the cards, especially since the Xbox Live service is so massive, and yesterday Sony let the cat out of the bag.

It’s called Playstation Home and will be an online world, vaguely similar to Second Life, where PS3 users get to meet, greet, hang out, what high-def movie trailers and even create a little bit of world content. Players can create an highly customised avatar and they also get their own apartment [above] which they can decorate to their heart’s content.

Developments in the game world though – public spaces where people meet –will be controlled by Sony to ensure that it stays family-friendly. You can also expect to see ads. There will be places dedicated to different games, prizes for reaching certain levels in games, a Hall of Fame, places to shop and share things with others, and even show the content stored on their PS3 to others while in their apartments.

Home goes into closed Beta testing soon and will launch in the Autumn, which probably means Christmas. This is ambitious stuff and may finally provide Xbox Live with some real online competition. And it’s free, which is always good. -Martin Lynch

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The 11th Star Trek movie will be released on Christmas Day 2008, Paramount Pictures announces.

That’s the rumour of the day, folks. Microsoft is readying a Zune phone to take on the media-hogging iPhone.

In a hush-hush, wink-wink, tap your nose scenario, the good people at Crunchgear have received some Deep Throat information that claims Microsoft will bring out a Zune phone. The site classifies the tip as a ‘sound tip’ but hedges its bets by claiming it is just an unconfirmed tip at the end of the day. So far, this is what’s predicted:

It will be smartphone that will not run Windows Mobile but have an interface similar to Zune.

It will ship in time for Christmas [highly optimistic]

There are far too many ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ and ‘maybes’ here but it does seem logical that Microsoft would like some of that yummy, high-margin iPhone business. Your thoughts?-Martin Lynch

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Apple reports a 78% jump in quarterly profits thanks to strong Christmas sales of its iPod digital music player.

I thought that the first fatality to emerge from the console launches would be:

a. Someone dropping a big fat and heavy PS3 on their friend’s head while crossing the living room

b. Death by Wiimote: Airborne Wiimotes from the sweaty palms of excited players felling family members over the Christmas period.

The truth is even more bizarre though. A competition at a local US radio station to win a Wii ended in the tragic death of one contestant. In a contest called “Hold Your Wee for a Wii” [cute] contestants were invited down to the station to drink as much water as possible without taking a whiz.

For 28-year old Jennifer Strange, it proved too much. After competing alongside almost 20 others by drinking 8oz bottles of water every 15 minutes, she left the competition and later rang in sick to work complaining of ‘terrible pain’.

She was found dead later that day and the official report concluded that her death was consistent with water intoxication.-Martin Lynch

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For those three or four of you out there who have managed to make it through Christmas with cash still burning a hole a in your pocket, you might want the latest in luxury iPod add-ons.

This is the George, from Chestnut Hill Sound, and is designed not only to massage your keen auditory senses but its £350 price tag will gladly blow a gaping hole in your New Year’s Resolution not to spend any more money on unnecessary gadgets.

The product is being touted as the “first digital audio system to combine an iPod music playback system, full feature wireless remote, AM/FM radio and alarm system in one product.”

The [big] remote also acts as the face panel which is a novelty but the omission of DAB functionality is glaring in a product that costs this much. Some retro wood finishes are also available for an extra £30, if the you have any change left over.

For those on more sensible budgets, check out the less expensive, non-radio, yet stylish Amplifi dock from Griffin.

Some more pics after the jump.-Martin Lynch

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LONDON (Reuters) - Online retailers look set to be crowned
among the victors of the Christmas trading war this year
alongside an uneven showing on the high street.

LONDON (Reuters) - Skint? Unwanted Christmas gifts? In the
wrong job? From making a little extra cash to joining
millionaires’ row, auctioning goods online can spell success.

As you can imagine the number of Wii-related home disasters has increased exponentially over the Silly Season. Thanks to wiihaveaproblem, this is the first one I’ve seen caught on video camera and it’s a classic. The video shows many things, including:

(a) How aerodynamic the Wiimote really is
(b) Where not to stand when filming Wii users
(c) Why you should always wear the wrist strap

Nintendo actually warned of the dangers of poor wrist strap action before Christmas, when it seemed that excited and sweaty-palmed users were having problems not destroying their TVs and loved ones. See the December chart on the most Wii-destroyed household items here.

The real moral of the above story though, apart from always wearing your Wiimote strap, is never, ever give technology to your mother. Ever. – Martin Lynch

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