Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

We saw the follow up to the Jawbone hit the FCC a few weeks back and it looks like Aliph has just made it official. The new Jawbone is being touted as “the best just got better” and assuming the same, or better sound quality that could be a very accurate statement. It looks like the new Jawbone has been put on a diet, as the new version is 50% smaller than the original and weighs in at just 10 grams. In addition the headset has “military-grade NoiseAssassin technology” which should only improve on the overall voice quality as compared to the original. The headset offers 4 hours of talk time, 8 days on standby and will achieve an 80% charge in 35 minutes with a full charge in just about an hour. 

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QStarz’s BT-Q810, which was launched last month, is being touted as the world’s most powerful Bluetooth GPS receiver. Well, that is due to the fact the BT-Q810 sports a 51 channel MTK chipset and offers up to 32 hours of use courtesy of its low power consumption hardware. This GPS receiver also has an adjustable update rate which range between 1 and 5Hz. This update rate makes the GPS well suited for road racers, autocrossers, and circle track racers.

In addition, the BT-Q810 also features a G-Mouse + Bluetooth in one, a wired and wireless GPS receiver, auto on-off function for smart power control, LED function that indicates Bluetooth connection, navigation status and battery/charger status. The BT-Q810 was officially launched in Taiwan but pricing and release date is currently unavailable.

Product [QStarz] Via [NaviGadget]

A fascinating report by the United Kingdom’s version of the Federal Communications Commission paints a vivid picture of a technology-driven world right out of a Vernor Vinge novel: Bluetooth implants in your body warning doctors of impending heart attacks; wireless sensors in cars slamming on the brakes before collisions; reminders from doctors to take medications based on wireless vital sign readings.

The Office of Communications, known as Ofcom, is the UK’s independent regulator of competition in its television, radio, telecom and wireless communications industries. Its new report, “Tomorrow’s Wireless World,” features technology innovations being tested in some British cities and it already has some privacy advocates shouting about a digital Big Brother. But the tone of the report is generally positive about the role technology could play in saving lives, trimming health care costs and making travel safer and greener. 

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Parrot’s latest digital photo frame is possibly the most expensive digital photo display that you could find on the market today. And aside from the fact that it was designed by an interior designer named Andree Putman, there’s nothing extra ordinary about this frame to merit such a high price tag. Putman was also responsible for interior design works on some posh hotels, so if that fact excites you then you may be pleased by the digital frame she designed for Parrot which is retailing for a whopping $500.

And what do you get from that price? Nothing much really, except for a typical digital photo frame that was built with a large plastic bezel. You’d also get a 10MB of storage capacity for around 400 of your digital photos, an SD card slot just in case the 10MB storage is not enough for your needs, and a power switch that turns the digital frame into a clock.

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I have seen the iPhone, and all the BlackBerry’s and other smart phones. Then I have heard the cold, dead polyphonic ringtone of my phone with its barely audible Casio keyboard cover of “Superstar”, mocking me. I bought my phone a mere eight months ago, just after the dawn of the iPhone, choosing it for its sleek size, and a consumer review which noted its superior battery life and technical bells and whistles. My phone is an excellent phone, and I could care less.

I want a phone that does everything else, maybe even magic. A phone that takes crystal clear pictures, develops them, and prints them in a matte finish. I want a phone that plays music-actual music, an instrument perhaps the oboe. A phone that plays videos of Bigfoot, The Lock Ness Monster, and proof of Alien life. The “Magic Super Amazing Phone” surfs the web utilizing a touch screen that touches back (delightfully tickling you, nothing else…dirty mind). This phone will not only let me access my email, but automatically interpret what I wish to write back in response and also access my regular mail always blocking junk mail and junk credit card offers. And it is not only compatible with Bluetooth, but Blue Fairy. A tiny blue fairy that whispers in your ear, and grants wishes.

My phone should basically be able to thoroughly thrash your phone. Grinding it to bits and pieces and recycling them. My phone is very green conscious. Now I know that no such phone presently exists, but I am issuing a call to all inventors, create this “Magic Super Amazing Phone” and buyers will come, oh yes they will come. Until that point though I will have to suffer, at least for the length of a very iron clad two year contract.

A few years ago, MP3 players were really popular and portable media players weren’t even really fully in the market yet. Over the past few years, many changes have taken place and video has now become a must have feature for many people. Bluetooth integration in MP3 players and portable media players would be nice, but that technology hasn’t caught on either. Ever since the iPod Touch came out, many portable media players began getting Wi-Fi as well, although it has not caught on with all devices, yet. Also coming with the iPod Touch was touchscreens. It seems that the average consumer wants good battery life, video playback, touchscreen, but above all, Wi-Fi.

In a recent study conducted by iSuppli, it seems that over the next 4 years, portable media players are set to grow steadily, but touchscreen and Bluetooth won’t be as prevalent in these devices as Wi-Fi will. If you take a look at the graph above, you can see that Wi-Fi is estimated to have strong growth, while the Bluetooth and touchscreen are not expected to grow nearly as fast or as much. As of now, only 4% of all portable media players and MP3 players have Bluetooth. I own a portable media player that has integrated Bluetooth, but the device itself doesn’t last nearly as long as it would on normal headphones, so I don’t use the Bluetooth much. iSuppli also predicts only a 4.3-percent growth in 2012, meaning a 197.1 million increase from 2007, and to 243.3 million devices in 2012. They also say that only expensive, high-end units will feature touchscreen. The interesting thing is that many portable media players that have Wi-Fi also have touchscreens. Personally, I agree with these results that I favor having Wi-Fi over Bluetooth or touchscreen. Do you agree?

Via [PMP Today]

Don’t think USB charger connectors are overrated? Maker of Bluetooth headsets JayBird does. That’s why it has implemented a new kind of charger for its new JayBird JB-200 Bluetooth headphones. The patent pending JayBird charging design consists of a “small flat metal charging material on the inside surface of the right ear piece, which when sliding the headset into the custom slot on the charging dock connects the headset to the power supply” for charging. And other than this novel new feature, this funky looking pair of Bluetooth headphones will do you good for 5.5 hours with music and 6.5 hours during calls. The standalone headphone set will set you back $130 a piece, although there are other choices for sales packages including one with a complementary Bluetooth adapter that’s compatible with 3.5mm headphone jack toting devices. It’s small enough to carry around everywhere you go, and yet it manages to pack some nice noise cancellation technology in its body. With headphones like these, who needs rock music?

Via [Just Another Mobile Phone Blog]

Samsung has launched its “Soul” mobile phone to the European market. To be released by major mobile phone operators in France, UK and Germany, the Soul boasts of powerful features making it worthy of being called Samsung’s flagship product for 2008.

The Soul’s got a 5-megapixel camera with 4x digital zoom, face detection technology, image stabilizer and Wide Dynamic Range. If you are into digital cameras, you’d know that these are features common to most point-and-shoot cameras available in the market today. But these digital imaging features are just teasers to what our dear European friends are going to get from the Samsung Soul.

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Bluetrek has just announced their latest Bluetooth offering, and while a decent looking headset its not quite as unique as the BIZZ, which featured a microSD slot for storage. Their latest, the X3 Bluetooth headset is a follow up to the X2 and offers an estimated 8 hours of talk time with 10 days on standby. The headset itself is weatherproof and should be comfortable to wear thanks to the variety of ear hooks that it comes with. The X3 is also lightweight coming in at around 0.46-ounces. Otherwise the headset was designed to take its fair share of abuse thanks to the rugged construction. Look for the X3 to be available this June, initially in the UK only and retailing for £29.99 (around $60 US).

Via [ubergizmo]

Nokia developed and licensed a technology called Wibree a few years ago, and intended it to be an alternative for the current generation of Bluetooth technology. Wibree requires only a tenth of the energy consumed by its counterparts, and was developed for short distance communication between two devices, like say a Bluetooth headset and a mobile phone. And recently, a company called CSR demoed a new device powered by Wibree at a medical conference in Luxembourg.

What exactly did CSR demonstrate? Well, for one, they demoed an “ultra-low-power” version of the Bluetooth system required in pairing a BT headset and a mobile phone, claiming that their device can run up to 10 years on one button cell battery. Now while this is certainly not the first time that we’ve heard of something that last for years without charging, it’s hard to say something developed by Nokia would be bogus or unreliable.

Still, it would be interesting to see this technology developed in its full potential, since the current generation of BT headset’s batteries could really use a boost. Maybe we may even see the day of disposable BT headsets. That’s worth a try.

Via [Crave]