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Logitech Mac-compatible webcam

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Logitech, which makes some of the best webcams for PCs, just announced its first Mac-compatible webcam, featuring premium autofocus technology and, most importantly, Carl Zeiss Optics.

Add the sleek black and silver Logitech QuickCam Vision Pro webcam to your Mac computer, and you'll be recording sharp 720p high-def video clips, and VGA-quality video at up to 30 frames per second while video calling with iChat and Skype. Features a 2-megapixel sensor, and Logitech’s RightLight 2 Technology, which enables the webcam to "adjust intelligently in dim or harshly backlighted situations."

Available in July for approx $129.99. Mac owners rejoice!

Pandigital combines kitchen TV, digital cookbook, and digital photo frame

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Earlier this month, Pandigital, maker of digital photo frames, released its multi-functional Kitchen HDTV/Digital Cookbook/Digital Photo Frame. From the most used room in your home, you can watch TV, view photos, and call up recipes on the 15" LCD screen. The device comes with preloaded recipes, and additional recipes can be loaded into the TV's internal memory. Photos can be loaded via the memory card reader or by connecting to Picasa, Google's popular photo sharing site. The 512MB of memory stores 3,200 pages of recipes or photos. It supports a variety of media cards, and a wide range of audio, video, and image formats.

The exterior of the device was designed with the messy kitchen environment in mind. A glass seal protects it from water, oil, and whatever splatters in its direction, and makes it easy to wipe clean. Because everyone's kitchen is a little different, it comes with three different faceplates (brush steel, black, and white), and can be mounted under a cabinet or on the wall, or placed on a countertop stand. Retails for around $400, and will probably show up on the shelves of large retailers such as Target and Amazon.com.

Via Kitchen Contraptions.

Deal Alert: 50% off SPECK cases for iPhones, iPods, Blackberrys, laptops, etc.

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We love a good sale and this one is big -- 50% off all the colorful SPECK cases for iPhones, iPods, MacBooks, PC notebooks, cell phones, BlackBerrys and even GPS navigation devices.

Yes, even the brand-new iPhone 3G PixelSkins lightweight cases are 1/2 off (though they seem to be out of stock at the moment). With three different types of cases - Tough Skin, SeeThru, and PixelSkin - there's something for every taste, and even more choices if you need a new iPod or iTouch case. (Pictured below: the soft rubber ToughSkin case.)
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Remember, the sale is only good through the end of the month and you need to enter the promo code: SPECK50 .

iFrogz Audiowrapz - iPod case with built-in speaker

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Audowrapz by iFrogz is an ingenious product -- a 100% silicone case that utilizes "passive speaker technology" that does not require batteries or draw power from your iPod. It turns your 3rd gen iPod into a little speaker that also protects your precious baby.

It has a pass-through port so you can switch to headphones if you want some privacy, but you'll need to take it out of the case to charge. The three metal grilles contain a total of two small speakers, but you need to crank the volume control to really hear it, and there lies my quibble with the gizmo. It doesn't even create as much volume as the built-in speaker on an iPhone, and with all the terrific iPod speaker solutions out there, it faces tough competion.

But at a price point of $25 bucks I'm not going to complain. I just can't wait for the next version.

Available from iFrogz in 8 bright colors and exclusively at Wal Mart.

Kensington's SlimBlade mobile Bluetooth presenter mouse

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You may not get excited by mice, but I have quite a collection of the cute critters. There's the Logitech multi-media zoomer, my pink Kensington travel model, the Wow-Pen ergonomic version, not to mention the drawer full of reject mice that weren't up to my exacting standards.

The SlimBlade Presented Mouse by Kensington is my newest pet. It combines a full-function laser mouse and presenter in one sleek device, and is still small enough to fit in your pocket.

Bluetooth connection; switch to go to presentation mode; goes to sleep when your notebook does; ultra-thin design for traveling - what's not to love? $59.99 at Kensington.

JT Baby USB flash drives - carry them around like coins

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Until recently, my thinking about USB flash drives went something like this: Why buy a dozen small capacity flash drives, when you can buy one really rugged 16GB or even 32GB flash drive that you can use for everything? Until . . . one day . . . I go to insert my super duper, rugged, weather-proof flash drive into my laptop . . . and it breaks into two pieces - just at that point where the rugged part ends and the USB connection (which of course is exposed when you're using it) begins. Betrayal! (Never mind that I may have been a bit heavy-handed and impateitn with it - the point is, it was supposed to be tough.)

So, now I buy throw-away flash drives and treat them like large capacity floppy disks. I don't commit, I make no promises - that way, I can't be disappointed. They're fun while they last.

These JT Baby USB flash drives are so tiny and flat, they can fit into little slots in your wallet, on a keychain, or on a cell phone. Pick them up from the site that sells all things USB -- Brando.com ($22 for 2GB, $37 for 4GB).

Get in line now - iPhone 3G release on July 11th

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With the new, lower price of the iPhone 3G that Apple releases July 11th, it is expected that demand will exceed supply.

Reuters.reported this statement from Morgan Stanley: "We believe the market generally expects a doubling of iPhone units with the lower price point ($199) and we believe this is realistic, if not conservative." The bank expects 27 million iPhones to be sold in calendar year 2009 "with an average revenue of $550 per unit."

As Mia wrote recently, the next-generation iPhone features a faster Internet access that will run on advanced wireless networks. That in itself is enough to get most of us iPhoners excited. See you in line.

Olympics on-the-go, but not for everyone

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I was thrilled to bring you the news that you will be able to watch Olympic events on your laptop, and even download them for later watching offline. And all for free.

And then I read the announcement more carefully. The system is available only to users of Vista. No Macs need apply, nor Linux users, nor even other Windows versions, like us XP users who are hanging in there as long as possible.

David Chartier at Ars Technica explains it all. Dang.

No word yet on NBC's plans for Olympics coverage adapted to mobile platforms like iPods and video players. But surely there will be some? Won't there?

Swim-Ring amphibious PC pool toy

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Oh yeah, this is just what I need; a portable office disguised as a pool toy. Unveiled at the Next-gen PC Design Competition, the 'Swim-Ring" device, shaped like a big floatie, can check e-mail, surf the net, play movies, games, and music. It also features a GPRS receiver, Bluetooth wireless solutions, finger-touch input, solar power driven processor, water-cooling system, magnetic charging interface, and water-proof design. And just in case you get lost in your pool (in which case, I want whatever you're drinking), the GPRS helps show you the way. The concept-only amphibious PC includes a backlight keyboard design (in case you're skinny dipping at night), a 7-inch LCD display, and a stereo speaker set.

I'll stick with my inner tube, thanks.

Via Born Rich.

Heelarious High Heel Crib Shoes - for babies who don't walk

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Why do we put real shoes on just born infants who can't even hold their heads up, let alone walk? Newborns' feet are like mush; they just dangle like a pair of earrings. Yet, we jcan't help ourselves, can we? Because what's cuter than a pair of teeny tiny shoes on a teeny tiny human being who doesn't have the awareness to complain about useless apparel?

Taking this silliness to a whole new level, a company has designed soft crib shoes that look like high heel pumps for budding Carrie Bradshaws. Purely for the amusement of adults, of course, as the baby could care less (until she's about 9, at which point she'll either love them or want to kill you for once making her look ridiculous). Heelarious shoes come in six different designs, and each pair comes in a little plastic purse with a rhinestone button closure. They're for infants who are zero to six months, so if you're going to have fun with these, you've got to buy them at birth. Once they're out crawling, it's too late.

Next time a friend of mine gives birth to a girl, I'm visiting the hospital with a pair of these. Every new mother needs a good laugh after what she's just been through, and I don't think $35 for a pair of these mock shoes is too much for a bit of comic relief at the beginning of a long journey. Look here for stores that sell them.

Fat Cat empty water bottle toys for dogs

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Some dogs love nothing better than to crunch on an empty water bottle -- must be that lovely sound -- so Fat Cat designed WaterBottle Crunchers toys. Consider it a great way to recycle and make Fido happy at the same time. Made of durable canvas, it's made to stand up to chewy pups.

Even though my doxies haven't tested it yet, Casey, the publicist, has a pit bull who's been tearing away at it for over a week, so that's good enough for me.

The set (an amusing catepillar and snake) will put you back $21.95 at Bamboo/ Fat Cat. The toys can be filled with empty water bottles up to 20 oz. in size.

PhoneTag's SimulSays visual voicemail for non-iPhones

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I used to think, "What's the big deal about visual voicemail? Who cares?" But now that I've been using an iPhone for about a year, I get annoyed with any phone that doesn't have it. Prioritizing voicemail messages and going back to important saved messages is an exercise in pure frustration without a visual log. And there's nothing worse than calling someone back and admitting that you don't really remember what their message was about because you couldn't find it among your 99 other saved messages.

Anyone who has an iPhone can appreciate the benefits of visual voicemail, even if they weren't particularly excited about this feature when first introduced to it. But what if you don't have an iPhone and have no plans to get one in the near future (there are, after all, plenty of good reasons to choose a different smartphone, especially if you're not addicted to browsing on your mobile)?

X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty - gamers' sound card

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If you're a professional gamer, you already know about Creative Labs' world class sound cards, and now they have a new one - the PCI Express Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion Series sound card - which, according to Creative, "delivers the ultimate PC gaming audio experience."

Here are its main features:

- 3D positional audio so accurate, you can locate your enemies through mere sound alone. Plus, the X-Fi CMSS®-3D gives you amazing surround sound even with normal stereo headphones.

- Unbeatable performance in your games with hardware accelerated audio and X-RAM.

- Voice Chats: Plug in your headset or microphone and hear the difference immediately. With high-quality input and hardware audio processing, your teammates will definitely hear you loud and clear.

- Dolby Digital Live: Connects to your home theater system through a single digital cable (available separately) for compelling 5.1 surround sound.

Note : Works with PCI Express equipped PCs, so make sure you're compatible first.

$199 at Creative Labs.

Would you like to be a paid freelance writer for Popgadget?

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Are you a tech enthusiast with an interest in sharing your take on technology for women? Consider becoming a Popgadget writer. Prior professional writing experience is not strictly required, but you should be someone who obsessively keeps up with consumer tech news, is familiar with blogging, and is available to write at least 5 posts per week. We pay on the high end of the going rate for blog writing. If interested, send an email to our editor Mia Kim at poplifeco@gmail.com, with the following information:

1. Name and location (city and country), and telephone number,
2. Languages spoken/written,
3. THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART: Three to four sample posts (images not necessary) (these should be examples of what your actual posts will look like on Popgadget, so articles from another publication may not be helpful),
4. Current profession/job,
5. Your areas of knowledge in relation to technology,
6. Some background information (formal resume not necessary),
7. Days and times you can be regularly available (this is very important, we need to be able to reach you);
8. Any other information you think would be helpful (such as other applicable experience in Internet technology, advertising, marketing, or business). We welcome entrepreneurial individuals with other talents aside from writing.

APPLY BY: July 7, 2008

Totally pointless but fun Zihotch Retro Phone Watch

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Now that we mostly don't need traditional wristwatches to urgently tell us the time, playful watch designs seem to have largely replaced the utilitarian digital watches of old. You can go sci-fi futuristic with watches from Tokyoflash or go the other direction and get something like this Zihotch Retro Phone Watch from AudioCubes.com, which reminds you of the olden days of rotary dial phones (you can pick it up for $80). Made by Japanese company Maywadenki, it's a rather huge piece if you have a tiny wrist, so it might be more appropriate as a Halloween costume if you go dressed as an old style phone booth.

Via textually.org.

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Coming soon: Weddings in space

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More news for the June bride--June 2011, that is. Get married in space. Well, some 62 miles up there, to be precise, on the Rocketplane XP suborbital spaceplane.

The one-hour flight-plus-ceremony will cost $2.2 million, but it's actually a bargain because the price includes the wedding dress. The price also includes a telecast for guests, but it appears that reception food and drink is still on you.

Father's Day Gift Guide

Father's Day is just a few days away . . . but there's still time to grab that perfect gift for your dad to make him believe you've been planning the moment for weeks (or at least an hour or two). Here are some of our favorites this year:

Almost indestructible camera
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If your dad can't bear to put away the camera, even while at the beach or pool, or while say, trying to escape a monsoon, then he'll surely appreciate what is deemed the World's Most Durable Camera. The Olympus Stylus 1030 SW is both shock-proof and waterproof, and can resist up to 222 lbs. of pressure. With 10.1 megapixels, a 3.6x zoom lens, and a transreflective LCD screen that is viewable even in bright sunlight, it's good enough to be dad's only camera. $500 at Hammacher.

This is not a beauty product - it's a "shaving aid"
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Many men act a bit twitchy and nervous when they're in the "personal grooming" aisle but give them the comfort of a few "For Men" bottles, and they're more excited about moisturizer than Estee Lauder. Clarisonic seems to understand this and they've made a manly dark gray version of their Sephora for $195.

A charging station for the gadget-head dad
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The sanctuary charging station lets your dad charge up to twelve devices at once, while keeping them neat(ish) in the reversible-fabric finished tray. The sanctuary is compatible with just about anything- from Blackberry to iPod/iPhone, and Samsung, Motorola, Nokia, and LG phones. More than 1500 devices are supported. The cords stay hidden and your dad won't be hogging all the outlets anymore. $130 from Red Envelope.

iPod in the shower
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Upgrade your dad's singing-in-the-shower routine with the iHome Shower Station. This shower station keeps the iPod totally dry and protected in its case and provides external controls. $70 from Brookstone.

A gift for Dad - for the day AFTER Father's Day

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Did Dad get the 62 " flat panel he wanted for Father's Day? A new home theater system? You'd better get him Zip Express as well then (and get one of the other siblings to kick in).

Basically, Zip Express partners with retail outlets (in-store and online) to provide next-day and five-day installation options for consumers, regardless of where they bought the goods. Or, you can just purchase the service when you buy Dad's new gizmo. Depending on the item, the prices range from $199 for a standard Home Theatre system to $399 for an on the wall TV installation package.

Unlike most service/installation calls, Zip Express guarantees you will be given a ONE hour window of time for the CE-certified installer to arrive. It's easy to schedule on the Web, and the installers take all the e-waste trash away with them, but you know what's the best part? They show Dad how to program and use the new remote! ($149 for Universal Remote programming which includes reviewing the existing TV and A/V components to make sure that they are compatible with the remote control; programming primary commands for up to 8 devices; and finally, training Dad.)

Recapture the 80s with this cassette tape watch

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I've written before about both my love of good (preferably large) watches and my nostalgia for cassette tapes, and here's a design that brings them both together with a dash of style.

It's available for £35.00 (around $69) from Asos, who for some strange reason have it in the men's section of their website... Hey Asos, girls can be geeks too, y'know!

[Via Shiny Shiny].

Cell phone radiation and brain tumors

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Come July 1, you can get a ticket for Talking While Driving in California. But no matter where we live, we all know we shouldn't drive while talking on cell phones because it increases the risk of accidents. An exception in California is car talk with a Bluetooth connection, but even hands-free phone time can be risky. Suppose you get distracted from driving because you're carrying on a Bluetooth argument with your cell service provider about mystery phone charges? Or with your kid for running up those charges?

But there's another potential danger from cell phones. What health risks, if any, might come from cell phone radiation? Especially risk of brain tumors?

I first wrote about this topic 8 years ago. While it's usually pleasant for a writer to discover that an ancient article is not yet out of date, this time it's a bit dismaying. In the year 2000 we didn't know for sure whether cell phone radiation could cause brain tumors. Now that cell phones are in the hands of maybe a billion people (and, more to the point, held to their ears only an inch or so from the brain), it's worrying to realize that nothing much has changed. We still don't know for sure.

Eco mobile phone made of corn - coming from Samsung

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If you can't sleep at night thinking about the environmental damage caused by your need to have a new cell phone every six months, you'll be glad to know that eco-friendly cell phones made of corn flour are about to be launched in Korea by Samsung Electronics. The Samsung SCH-W510 has a battery cover and other parts made of bio-plastic constructed from corn starch and other environmentally friendly materials. The W-510 is the first of its kind from Samsung, and, according to PCWorld, the handset contains no heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium). Apparently, the high price of oil is partially responsible for this renewed interest in using plastics made of corn in manufacturing.

Via Telecoms Korea, by way of textually.org.

The problem with iPhone and fingernails - stylus anyone?

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File this in the "ludicrous" file. Some of our gender have complained about how difficult it is to use the touchscreen with their long nails, since the iPhone screen only reacts to an electrical charge in our fingers.

Nail-wielding women are demanding a stylus option for the iPhone. Ladies! We want to get away from the tedious poking with a stylus. May I suggest you trim down the weapons so you can use your hands - and fingers - effectively?

Apple declined to comment about fingernails and the iPhone. In the past, the company has said that it's "more natural to use the pointing tool you were born with: the finger."

Via LA Times.

Cellscope cell phone microscope

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This cell phone microscope could be a real nuisance in the hands of a true germaphobe like Mia, who would likely use it to examine every item on a restaurant table, her dog's paw pads, and your hair follicles if you happen to be sitting next to her.

It's basically a cheap attachment that turns the digital camera in a cell phone into a microscope capable of individual white and red blood cells. Though at first glance, it may appear to be a mere novelty device like so many other silly attachments you can buy for your mobile, the CellScope was actually developed by a research team led by Dan Fletcher, professor of bioengineering, at the University of California, Berkeley. The team came up with this ingenious device in answer to a challenge: to solve the problem of the scarcity of medical equipment in developing countries for diagnosing and treating diseases. The attachment can be used for remote diagnosis of diseases such as malaria.

The team believes that if mass produced, the device could be sold for around $100, an incredible price for a clinical quality microscope that can send diagnostic data all over the world.

Core77 and Smart Stuff (original source: The Economist).
(Photo from website Blum Center for Developing Economies - credit: David Breslauer, Wilbur Lam, and Tom Hunt)

Share Central - Stop the swapping!

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Stop the swapping insanity! (And no, this isn't a reference to the CBS show "Swingtown.")

Kensington felt your pain and designed an easy solution for sharing USB devices between two computers without all that messy plugging and unplugging. Simply push a button and the Share Central automatically makes the swap.

LED lights indicate which computer has access; it's easy to set up; both computers have direct access to the printer (without networking) thanks to Automatic Printer Sharing; it eliminates cable clutter, and if it doesn't fit on your desk, it can be wall mounted. Share up to five different USB peripherals, such as printers, scanners, external disk drives . . . any USB device, basically. They also make a 1 USB and a 2 USB version($46.99 last time we checked.)

Not available until the end of the month, all versions, including the 5 share (priced at $79.99) can be pre-ordered from Kensington here and from Amazon.

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The world's most expensive bathtub

I have to admit that I'm not that into pampering. I know I might get my girl card taken away for mentioning this, but I'd rather have a quick shower then lie down and read a book than spend an hour flipping through a magazine in the bathtub with some kind of herbal mask (or worse, masque) covering my face.

But I know not everyone is like me. Most of my friends find a long soak in a hot bath relaxing rather than boring, and I know they would freak out (in a good way) at the idea of owning this blinging bathtub:

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Engadget reports that the Water Games Technologies Red Diamond bathtub is worth a jaw-dropping $47,000.

Snowflake's tiny mic has big ideas

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Last week, it was a tiny speaker, this week... a tiny microphone. If your laptop didn't come with a built-in mic and you want to get chatty over Skype or another VOIP/IM service, or your desktop mic is too big and bulky and you're looking to downsize, or you're a podcaster looking for an inexpensive but good-quality piece of audio equipment that takes up very little space, the Snowflake mic could be for you.

It can be clipped to your laptop (or I guess, to your clothing) and retracts for storage, and you can find it at Amazon for $59.
Via Crave.

[Image: BIOS]

Green Tech: "No More Power Bills -- Ever"

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That's the headline on this look at the awesome house that New Jersey engineer Mike Strizki hath wrought.

It's not what you thought the future would look like.

Strizki converts sunshine into electricity using photovoltaic panels - and then uses the electricity to wring hydrogen for fuel out of ordinary tap water. The result: For two years Strizki has bought no electricity, no gas, no fuel for his several vehicles. The home-made system cost more than half a million dollars to put together, so his reward is satisfaction rather than savings. But still.

The article, written by David Biello, was just posted on the Scientific American web site. Be sure to check out the accompanying slide show, guaranteed to startle. Whatever its undeniable virtues, this is not the sleek, shapely, clutter-free House of the Future we've all been raised to expect from 21st Century solar and hydrogen power.

Love the Lucy Bag -- laptop bags

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When I carry this bag I feel like a

How to plan a simple wedding. Yeah, right.

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It's June, after all, so let's talk weddings. Simple weddings specifically. And let's be clear up front that there's no such thing. Some weddings are simpler than others, maybe, but the possibility of a truly simple wedding is a myth.

My suspicion is that simple weddings aren't possible because that's the way we like it. Nothing about marriage is simple. Why should the initiating event be any different?

Case in point: a wedding I attended a few weeks ago. The bride insisted she wanted things simple, but her idea of simple was to skip the caterer and have her mother do all the cooking. For 200 people. Including the wedding cake. And hold the wedding and reception, and feed all those people, at home.

The mother of the bride is an old friend, so all Spring I heard a great deal about the burdens of putting on a biggish wedding at home, and preparing all the food as well. But the MOB is an excellent cook who gives big parties featuring her food. Even though I thought it was demented, it was quite clear that she loved the challenge of putting on this wedding pretty much single-handed.

Green Tech: How to spend less on gas by embracing hypermiling

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Yesterday I paid more than $50 for a tank of gas for the first time. I had been feeling cocky and virtuous - virtuous by U.S. standards at least. I got through our unlikely June spate of high 90s temps without turning the car air conditioning on, except for one trip home from the grocery store. (Just conserving the milk and yogurt, friends.) With prices predicted to hit $5/gallon by fall, more strenuous measures are required.

Going without A/C was easy. I don't commute, and I give thanks daily for my good fortune. My driving consists mostly of running local errands a couple of times a week. I have always ganged them together to save time; saving gas too, along with the planet, is a bonus I began to appreciate only a few years ago. Even if the car and the parking lot are broiling, going from building to ridiculously ice-cold building keeps you cool enough.

I already coast down hills so I can coast up the next one, and I coast when slowing for a light or a turn too, traffic permitting. My tires are properly inflated. A more abstemious car is not possible. So what's next?

Verizon LG Decoy Phone

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The Verizon Decoy launched this week ($179 on a two-year contract and after a $50 mail-in rebate) with the much-lauded built-in Bluetooth headset, as well as the usual specs, including a 2 megapixel camera, a 2.2-inch "mirror-like" 240 x 320 display, a micro SD card slot, V CAST music and video support.

Likes: Headset, tools, navigation, 5–way directional joystick, screen and I love that I can put it back in the phone when I'm finished using it. (Still, Verizon provides headset insurance, just in case.) One quibble: when the headset is out, the indentation worries my thumb, as if the cover is off.

Next, the tools: The calculator has the ability to do powers, for example 5^2=25. You never know when you may be called on to do advanced math, such as checking your tweenies' homework. Also, the EZ Tip Calculator is handy, if you're math challenged like me. Easy to set up, it makes that task very easy. The navigation software is intuitive.

If you like the Blackberry Pearl's scrolling "pearl," you'll like the joystick center button on the Decoy. And compared to a Razr, the resolution on the screen is very clear and bright.

Print photos during your picnic with Canon SELPHY CP770 printer

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This portable photo printer looks like a Sanrio lunch bucket for kids, which is perfect actually, as it gives off the impression of something light and easy to carry (which it is). The compact

Would you like to write for Popgadget?

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Are you a tech enthusiast with an interest in sharing your take on technology for women? Consider becoming a Popgadget writer. Prior professional writing experience is not strictly required, but you should be someone who obsessively keeps up with consumer tech news, is familiar with blogging, and is available to write at least 5 posts per week. We pay on the high end of the going rate for blog writing. If interested, send an email to our editor Mia Kim at poplifeco@gmail.com, with the following information:

1. Name and location (city and country), and telephone number,
2. Languages spoken/written,
3. THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART: Three to four sample posts (images not necessary) (these should be examples of what your actual posts will look like on Popgadget, so articles from another publication may not be helpful),
4. Current profession/job,
5. Your areas of knowledge in relation to technology,
6. Some background information (formal resume not necessary),
7. Days and times you can be regularly available (this is very important, we need to be able to reach you);
8. Any other information you think would be helpful (such as other applicable experience in Internet technology, advertising, marketing, or business). We welcome entrepreneurial individuals with other talents aside from writing.

New JVC Camcorders - dual-format

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Link Hydro Pack - Skullcandy backpack

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If you like to rock your tunes while you're mountain biking, hiking, or boarding, and can't stop to answer your cell phone or grab some hydration, then you'll love Skullcandy's new Link HydroPack which has controls for both your phone and iPod/MP3 player and a convenient water bladder. The controls of the right strap make it easy to control the music; the built-in speakers aren't bad for their size, and the set-up takes only minutes. My only quibble is that even though 6 connectors are included, they still didn't fit a Samsung cell, iPhone or Blackberry Pearl.

Bio Infectious laptop sleeves

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If the idea behind this bag design is to deter thieves, I think they've done a pretty good job. Whether you want to walk around looking like radioactive waste is up to you.

That would be neoprene radioactive waste actually, since the sleeves are made of neoprene rubber.

The 13" sleeve goes for $34.95, the 14.1" for $36.95, and the 15.4" for $38.95 at Designer Sleeves.

How to streamline the voicemail process

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Rob Pegoraro, the Washington Post's fine consumer electronics columnist, has helped me out more than once, and now he's done it again. He can help you, too.

Thanks to Rob, you can skip the irritating useless minutes-eating cell phone greeting-plus-menu-choices that callers must usually endure before leaving a message. He has revealed the secret codes that let you bound over this audio boilerplate to record your message immediately.

The catch is that you have to know which service your callee's cell phone uses. That's because each US carrier uses a different skip code.

Surprised? I suspect not. Of course each carrier uses a different code. Why should there be any consistency in these things? All that would do is make calling a teensy bit easier for the rest of us poor schlubs.

Here are the codes :
AT&T: 0
Sprint: 1
Verizon: *
T-Mobile: #

Much obliged, Rob!

Street-smart MP3 Music T-Shirts

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Despite having cell phones and MP3 players, most men I know cling tenaciously to the practice of carrying everything they need in their jacket pocket or distributed among various pockets of their pants (which, let's be honest, can lead to less than attractive results). We just can't seem to shake the notion that any carrying case other than a briefcase, messenger bag or backpack is a handbag, no matter what you call it. The "man purse" is still controversial here in the U.S., whatever the trend may be in Europe.

Until we're able to erase from our collective memories the man-purse episode of Seinfeld, we can just be thankful that these days cell phones and MP3 players are offered in super slim and lightweight designs, and that there are even some items of clothing specially designed to hide our devices.

The MP3 Music T-Shirt by Music and Sons, is an ingeniously designed and stylish wearable for you and your music player. You have to look close to even see that it's designed to hold your device. Your iPod or other MP3 player fits in a little pocket at the front of the t-shirt, and the special, short stereo earphones that come with the t-shirt connect to your player through an integrated cable, and pop out at the neck of the t-shirt in the back (see photos after the jump).

3.3 billion of us love our cell phones (and that's a good thing)

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It's hard for me to imagine 3.3 million people, let alone 3.3 billion, but that's how many of us are cell phone fanatics, or at least cell phone users, worldwide. Although cell phone sales have apparently dropped in Western Europe, by the end of 2007, India and China had signed up 154 million and 143 million new subscribers respectively.

And our worldwide love of cell phones is a good thing, too: The Scotsman reports that more and more of us are finding cell phones help us to stay connected with our friends and family, with texting cited as particularly useful.

Which means that I really should upgrade to a Blackberry, Palm Centro or iPhone for the good of society . . . right?

Via Textually.org.

[Image: Phones Review]