Into Tech

Chocolate fountains are just so 1970s, right up there with fondue and meringues. Still, life would be very boring indeed if it wasn’t for comebacks and makers Giles & Posner believe that there’s an upmarket for a £5,000, 24 carat gold-plated chocolate fountain.

Cordless and rechargeable it works with pretty much all types of chocolate and are on sale through Selfridges. Director of Giles & Posner, Justin Posner said:

“When asked to create this Christmas’s most spectacular chocolate fountain we went all out and came up with our new gold plated version. Gold and chocolate work so well together, as two of the most precious and enjoyed gifts associated with Christmas. We are delighted to have our new fountain showcased and available for purchase exclusively at Selfridges”.

There’s no doubting it’s pretty and more importantly, it’s exclusive. Just four of these are being made so there’s no chance that the hoi polloi will have one this Christmas.

That just leaves the Montagues, Bryce-Hartletts and Fortescue-Bretheringtons to compete with. Tally Ho! –Martin Lynch

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Thankfully y the whole Tamagochi and virtual pet thing passed me by but it seems there are still millions out there obsessed by the notion of rearing and controlling virtual animals.

First off, if a gadget is consistently beeping you to remind you to feed and entertain a virtual pet – and you do – then YOU are the pet. So, make what you will of Password Puppies.

These cheap gizmos claim to be the first voice activated virtual pet which will respond only to his/her master’s voice. Read on….

It is the very first virtual puppy that can be raised, trained and loved just by using your voice! First of all you need to adopt your puppy and give him or her a name. Your puppy will then only respond to its owner’s voice. To make your puppy appear all you do is call its name. Your puppy can even be taught to perform tricks such as ‘roll over’, ‘sit’ or ‘dance’. Password Puppies even has maze games that will help to challenge and train your puppy.

Remember, puppies like this are for Christmas, not for life. Ante up £15 here now. –Martin Lynch

[Red Ferret]

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O2 has decided that offering to bling people’s phones could be a Christmas winner. It could be right, too.

The only problem is that in order to get your O2 phone tattooed for free – yes FREE – you need to point your happy feet towards its store at 368 Oxford St, London.

Professional designers and tattooists RazorLab will be on hand until December 23rd to personalise your phone with a selection of very cool etchings. You can even bring your own. It takes around 20 minutes per phone and the peeps at GadgetCandy say that the O2 Angels are even on hand to dole out some stress relieving massages.

Vodafone, hello, Vodafone? Come in Vodafone! Lynch calling Vodafone!. Bling my phone you cheap bastards! -Martin Lynch

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phone tattoo art

It’s Christmas which means it’s time to mix pets and robotics, with varying degrees of success. The shops are filled will all manner of mechanical creatures from ‘Raptor-this’ to ‘Mega that’ . In staying with the theme, here’s one puppy that won’t spend Christmas shitting on your carpets and eating your cushions.

However, with an in-built VGA camera capable of 30fps video he just might catch you falling on your ass after too much grog or getting amorous with the missus under the mistletoe.

He’s a USB-powered dog with a Web-cam in his nose. When not making embarrassing videos of you, he will even do some tricks (sitting, that is). Jump now for full specs and tricksy pose shots. Yours for about £15 from Brando.-Martin Lynch

Specs

# Features: Robotic dog design
# It can perform different posts by controlling its legs
# Adjustable the angle of the cam
# Lens rotation for adjusting clear image
# Sensor: VGA 350k Pixel
# Resolution: 640*480
# Video format: 24-Bit True Colour
# Brightness: Automatic or manual controlled
# White balance: Manual adjust or Auto
# LENS-Focus: 5cm to infinity
# Frame rate: 30 frames/sec.
# S/N ratio: 48dB
# View angle: 360 degree
# Green LED indicator
# Interface: USB 1.1/2.0 compatible
# Support Windows 98/ME/2000/XP

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Few things top a real fire when winter draws in but since most of us live in big, smoke-free cities, the closest wel get to flames are the burned out of husks of cars nicked by our neighbourhood joyriders.

So, if you know someone trapped in the city this Christmas, you can send them The Alternative Fireplace DVD. I kid you not. Just slot this baby in your DVD player and press ‘play’. Choose from seven different fires on your TV - Log Fires, Coal Fires, Electric Fires (??) Coal embers etc – all complete with authentic sound.

That said, what the hell is a Gas Fire doing in there and can anyone tell me why this DVD has a Age Rating of 12+?

This oddity can be yours £15 in a few weeks.-Martin Lynch

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A veiled Muslim woman is to deliver Channel 4’s alternative Christmas message, the broadcaster announces.

A veiled Muslim woman is to deliver Channel 4’s alternative Christmas message, the broadcaster announces.

A veiled Muslim woman is to deliver Channel 4’s alternative Christmas message, the broadcaster announces.

A veiled Muslim woman is to deliver Channel 4’s alternative Christmas message, the broadcaster announces.

Sci-fi kitchens, you gotta love them. In fact, they are even better when they actually exist in the real world, like this super slick bubble kitchen from Italian designers, Sheer.

The Kitchen Sphere is a real eye-catcher, there’s no doubt. Just press a button and the top half raises to reveal everything you need to cook up a storm. Underneath, it’s a marvel of design and engineering. Built from carbon fibre and steel, it houses an extractor (in the hood), built-in double sink by DuPont, three infrared ceramic cooking hobs and a fourth one that uses a removable (genuine) lava stone.

Don’t forget the all important bottle coolers (x3), pull out table/counter, chairs and swing out trolleys/bin holders with anti-odour and anti-bacterial devices.

I want one. I can say that because there is no price and Christmas is a time for dreaming (and being disappointed) after all. Jump now for more photos. -Martin Lynch

[Ubergizmo]