Gadgets, Gizmos, and Games for Geeks

iPod accessory maker Griffin Technology just rolled out their new cases for Spring 2007, and the highlight of the bunch is their new Reflect case which adds a slick chrome shell to your 5G iPod or 2G iPod Nano.

Those of you lucky enough to own a boat can now watch high definition satellite TV when you head out to sea. This marine satellite antenna system continually adjusts to point at the correct location in the skies for you to watch HD satellite programming wherever you go.

Some guy who was frustrated with his broken LCD monitor decided to take out his frustrations on the poor thing using a BB gun. Now it goes without saying that you probably shouldn’t try this at home.

Don’t care for the clean design of the PS3’s SIXAXIS controller? Why not make it super fugly with these analog joystick covers from Japan. These oddly textured silicon caps attach to the top of the PlayStation 3’s analog sticks, supposedly protecting the thumbsticks and providing grip, all while making your controller the ugliest one on the block.

For about the price of fifty iPod Shuffles, you can own one of these exclusive MP3 players made from rare woods and precious metals. Made by Russian electronics maker Gresso, the Symphonia series of media players are handcrafted from rare 200 year-old African Blackwood and gold.

Sharp just introduced a shmancy new handheld in Japan, called the EM ONE. Highlights of the new PocketPC include a large 4.1-inch touchscreen display and dual-slider tray that provides easy access to a full QWERTY keyboard and navigation controls.

The Wii’s Opera web browser is definitely better than, say, the Playstation 3’s browser by a long shot, but there are still some things that are a bit less convenient than on a normal computer. The folks over at Warp Pipe Technologies have built a web-based service called Wiiminder that makes it a bit easier to navigate on the Wii.

The tracking technology known as RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) is showing up everywhere from grocery stores, to shipping containers, to gas station, to toll roads. Now, your intestines can join in the radio wave fun! Kodak has filed this patent application for RFID tagged capsules that could be swallowed to track activity in a patient’s digestive system.

This theft prevention device is sure to scare off even the most hardened criminal. The custom-built Tesla coil emits a massive purple electrical field around the owners car, making thieves think twice before even looking at this car.

From the company that brought you the original Tamagotchi “virtual pet,” comes a new gadget which takes that basic premise and injects your own personality into the equation. Bandai’s Human Player starts out by asking you fifty personal questions, then creates your own digital Mini-Me based on your personality traits.

Got an itch to play some old Nintendo and Super Nintendo games? The FCTwin console lets you play both NES and SNES cartridges using a single, low priced console. While it’s definitely not an official Nintendo product, the console does play original cartridges from the popular retro gaming systems.

Take one part wet bar, one part living room, one part barbeque pit and one part home theater and you’ll begin to understand the magnificent grandeur of the Ultimate Outdoor Theater from Cal Spas. The hot tub and sauna maker recently showed off this amazing outdoor living space which could be the envy of the whole neighborhood.

According to a user over in the Cheap Ass Gamer forums, a SKU popped up in Game Crazy store’s point-of-sale system for a new Xbox 360 model, listed as follows: “GM-XBOX 360 (black/ 120GB) $479.99 NEW $439.99 USED.”

If you’re one of those guys who just has to have the biggest screen on the block, but doesn’t want to give up the picture quality of a direct view set, check out this new 65-inch plasma set from Vidikron.

The new Alpine iDA-X001 car stereo features some really deep integration with Apple iPod portable music players. First off, it offers complete album and track information, including album art which all shows on a bright 2.2-inch (320×240) color TFT display.

The folks over at LucasArts are showing off some pretty cool new tech that’s planned for the upcoming Star Wars: The Force Unleashed, planned for next-generation consoles. The first video shows off the enhanced AI engine (called “Euphoria”) which provides each enemy with a “central nervous system,” which makes them intelligent and emotional reactions to stimuli in their environment: The second video shows off “Digital Molecular Matter,” which provides objects with much more realistic physical properties than seen in other game engines.