The Tweets are flying with reports that upon connecting to Google's free holiday Wi-Fi, people are getting redirected to Google's Nexus One page. Smart, sure. But is it fair play, or does this self-promotion spoil Google's charitable act?

Travelers are reporting that, in many airports, connecting to Google's free Wi-Fi redirects browsers to the Nexus One home page at http://www.google.com/phone/. Between the iPhone's ubiquity and the Droid's aggressive marketing campaign, Google has to think outside of the box to stay competitive in the smartphone market. Plenty of people took advantage of Google's generous offer this holiday season, and redirecting to the Nexus One page is a surefire way to raise awareness about the new phone.

This promo comes in addition to the Nexus One banner that was displayed under Google's search box when the phone launched earlier this week.

When Google displayed a Chrome banner on their homepage last month, we wondered if it could alter the course of the browser wars. Could their considerable influence change the status quo for smartphone advertising as well? As Google's empire continues to expand, this type of self-promotion seems inevitable. But does it leave a bad taste in your mouth? [TechCrunch]

Now this is a smart, sensible idea for pest control. While you're at it, why don't you get that mouse crawling inside your wall with a grenade?

[Johannes Vogl via Today and Tomorrow via Boing Boing]

So many gadgets around, so little cash with which to buy them. That's where convergence comes into play—and the enTourage eDGe dualbook is a great example. I'd get one myself, if only they weren't so damn big.

It looks like a laptop, with the left side devoted to a 9.7-inch e-paper screen, and the right side a 10.1-inch color LCD. Obviously, the left side is for reading ebooks on, and the right side has all the functions of a laptop—but running on Android. You're able to download apps to it, and with any luck the eDGe will attract some custom apps which will suit the integrated nature of this dualbook.

It's not just half an ereader, half a tablet. The two sides actually talk to each other very effectively, with one example being when you highlight a word or sentence on the ereader side. On the right side, a box pops up asking if you'd like to google the word, search for it on the dictionary, look it up on Wikipedia, and so on. Any notations you make on the ereader columns will be transferred to the tablet side for storage, and if the book contains pictures, you can choose to view them on the color tablet half.

You can either hold the eDGe like a book, with both screens in front of you, or fold it back on itself, so you see just one side. The outside has a glossy sheen, choose from red, blue, black or white, and the inside is silver. It looks nice, if a little cheap. I'd like to see them work on the design some more, if they bring out a second model.

The ereader works just as well as the Kindle, in my opinion. Flipping pages was easy—and fast—with the page buttons located to the left of the screen. The screen is very large, so you actually get quite a bit of white space located around the text, for writing in. You can flip to other chapters by pressing the stylus (which slots neatly into the back) on a bar at the bottom of the screen. Or, load the library function on the right side of the screen, and choose chapters there.

Using the tablet side is as easy as you expect it to be. It runs Android, so everything's really user-friendly. The touchscreen was really responsive for a resistive panel, in the 20 or so minutes I played with one I didn't have any problem opening icons. The actual machine runs pretty fast, I didn't notice any notable lag or programs freezing. To input text, there's a virtual keyboard (which fills half the LCD screen), or you can use the stylus, and write on the ereader side—it converts it into text. Or, plug in a keyboard via USB or Bluetooth.

Right, so here's the thing—I was bowled over by how many features the eDGe had. For $499, it's incredible. But I'd wait until they make a smaller version, the thing is just too big to read books on, you can't really hold it up in one hand (it's quite heavy), and as the page buttons are located to the left, you have to use your left hand. It's just a bit awkward to use, unless it's laid flat on a table in front of you. But hey, if you've got mutant hands and are able to handle it with ease, go for it—it'll make you as happy as larry. Whoever he is.

Ultraportables and netbooks with an optical drive are a rare breed. But Gateway did manage to cram a DVD drive into their 11.6-inch EC14D while keeping the overall weight at about 3.5 pounds.

Beside the optical drive, the EC14D features a 1.3GHz Intel Ultra Low Voltage processor, 320GB HDD, up to 8GB of RAM, HDMI port, webcam, card reader and Windows 7 Home Premium for $630. It's not as cheap and small as a netbook, but I think ultraportables like this one offer a better balance of functionality and portability. Expect to see it on store shelves starting this month.

Gateway EC Series of Ultraportables Gets New Model with Integrated DVD

Stylish and Slim, the Gateway EC14D is an Ultraportable Entertainer; New Gateway EC58 Models Are Sleek and Slim with an Impressive 15.6-inch Display

IRVINE, Calif.—(BUSINESS WIRE)—The new Gateway EC Series ultraportable notebook PC line is expanded today with new EC14D configurations that include an integrated DVD drive – a feature that is rarely found on compact notebooks with an 11.6-inch widescreen display.

"The integrated DVD drive in such a compact device will be a huge benefit for customers who want the flexibility to enjoy and share different movies, music, photos and more stored on a DVD or CD."

The addition of an integrated DVD drive makes the popular EC14D line even more feature-rich for students, families and anyone on the go. Designed to be the ultimate line for mobile enthusiasts, the new ultraportable line comes in a very portable form factor that weighs only 3.55 pounds so it's easy to take on the go in a book bag or backpack.

"Customers understand how convenient it is to have a notebook PC that is portable enough to take nearly anywhere to stay connected and have fun – and the new EC14 brings a new element of entertainment to customers with the ability to watch DVD movies, play games on CD and DVD and more," said John Nguyen, product marketing manager for Acer America. "The integrated DVD drive in such a compact device will be a huge benefit for customers who want the flexibility to enjoy and share different movies, music, photos and more stored on a DVD or CD."

The 8X Super Multi double-layer DVD drive lets customers read all types of DVD and CD media, so they can enjoy popular movies and games while on the go, as well as have access to music files and photos for downloading and sharing on websites.

Optimized for Mobile Connectivity

Savvy mobile PC users will appreciate that the new Gateway EC14D ultraportable was designed from the ground up to deliver the maximum battery life for on-the-go computing. Available with a 6-cell battery, the Gateway EC14D notebook line provides battery life of up to eight hours, so customers can use it nearly all day to stay in touch.(1) As a result, customers reduce their energy consumption since they go longer without having to recharge.

Poised to take advantage of this extra battery uptime, the Gateway EC14D notebooks come with the latest in connectivity – a reliable and far-reaching 802.11 b/g/N Wi-Fi connection. With it, customers can access hot spots at restaurants, coffee shops, hotels and at airports in order to browse the news, check weather, reply to email and stay connected.

Abundant Features and Technology Packed into a Compact Design

Small business owners and professionals who want to remain productive on-the-go will find the Gateway EC14 ultraportable notebook the ideal choice for them. The large 11.6-inch HD TFT LCD display delivers a 1366x768 resolution for crisp and clear visuals. Its large size relative to the form factor gives plenty of room for viewing multiple applications and documents while also making room for a full-sized keyboard for typing with ease.

Customers can use the built-in webcam to record video and photos and post them to video and photo sharing sites, blogs and social networks like Facebook and YouTube. Customers can also stay in touch via video chat, while enjoying excellent voice quality with reduced background noise through the built-in digital microphone.

Powered by an Intel® Ultra Low Voltage Pentium® Dual Core processor, the Gateway EC14D line is ready to take on web browsing, movie viewing and running everyday applications. Also, the notebooks come with a 320GB hard drive, a multi-in-1 media card reader and 4GB of memory that may be upgraded to 8GB (requires two 4GB modules).

The sleek, modern design captures the essence of mobile computing, while details such as rounded edges, engraved logo and silver trim make the design even more eye-catching. The textured palm rest provides a comfortable hand rest for consumers.

Gateway EC14D models come with Windows 7 Home Premium, which makes mobile computing more reliable and responsive, enhancing the user experience. In addition, the Gateway EC notebook line is Energy Star qualified.

Configurations, Pricing and Availability

The Gateway EC14D will be available later this month at leading retailers starting at a manufacturer's suggested retail price of $629.99.

Gateway EC14D07u:

* Intel® Pentium® ULV Processor SU4100 (1.3GHz, 2MB L2 cache, 800MHz FSB)
* Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
* 11.6-inch HD Widescreen Ultrabright LED-backlit TFT LCD (1366 x 768 resolution, 16:9 aspect ratio)
* Mobile Intel®GS45 Express Chipset
* Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
* 4096MB DDR2 Dual-Channel 667MHz memory upgradeable to 8GB
* 320GB(2) 5400RPM SATA hard drive
* Integrated 8X Super-Multi DVD player
* Integrated webcam
* Multi-in-1 digital media card reader
* Intel® Wi-Fi Link 1000 802.11b/g/Draft-N WiFi CERTIFIED® featuring MIMO technology
* Gigabit Ethernet LAN
* Three USB 2.0 ports
* HDMI port
* Multi-Gesture Touchpad
* Standard 6-cell Li-ion (5600 mAh) Battery
* 3.55 lbs.
* 11.49" (W) x 1.12" to 1.18" (H) x 8.33" (D)

Full Productivity and Entertainment in a Lightweight Design and Large 15.6-inch Display

In addition to the new Gateway EC14D with integrated DVD drive, Gateway is offering new models in the rest of its EC Series notebook lines. The larger Gateway EC58 notebooks are thin and light enough to take anywhere with a slim one-inch profile, yet they have a large 15.6-inch LED-backlit display that features a 16:9 aspect ratio and 1366 x 768 (WXGA) pixel resolution.

Like all the EC Series notebooks, the EC58 provide outstanding battery life and communications. The high-capacity 6-cell Li-ion battery on these models gives users up to eight hours of uptime,(1) while integrated 802.11b/g Draft-N wireless provides a reliable untethered connection to hotspots and wireless networks. Further enhancing battery life and providing excellent performance, the EC58 notebooks use ultra-low voltage Intel® Core™ 2 Duo and Pentium® Dual-Core processors.

The new Gateway EC58 models will be available later this month at a manufacturer's suggested retail price starting at $649.99.

Gateway Limited Warranty, Service and Support

The Gateway EC Series notebook PCs are backed by a one year warranty.(3) Gateway's commitment to quality and reliability is evident in its award-winning line of PCs as well as in its exceptional service and support programs. In addition to the company's standard limited warranty options, its extensive online support center helps customers maximize their PC investment; it gives them easy access to customer support representatives and information on important issues such as warranties, technical issues and upgrading.(4)

About Gateway

Since its founding in 1985, Irvine, Calif.-based Gateway has been a technology pioneer, offering award-winning products and world-class service to customers worldwide. Gateway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Acer Inc., the world's third-largest PC company. See http://www.gateway.com for more information.

All offers subject to change without notice or obligation and may not be available through all sales channels. Prices listed are manufacturer suggested retail prices and may vary by retail location. Applicable taxes extra. ©2008 Gateway, Inc. Gateway Terms & Conditions of Sale apply. Trademarks used herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of Gateway, Inc. in the United States and other countries. Intel and Core are trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States and other countries. Other product or service names mentioned herein are the trademarks of their respective owners.
(1) Your computer's battery life may vary depending on product specifications, computer settings, and applications or features launched. Gateway Power Save button must be enabled to achieve the 8+ hours. All batteries' maximum capacity diminishes with time and use.
(2) Accessible capacity varies; MB = 1 million bytes; GB = 1 billion bytes.
(3) Service methods subject to change without notice or obligation.
(4) Limited warranties and service agreements apply; visit gateway.com or call 1-800-846-2000 for a free copy. Service agreements are issued and performed by third parties. May not be available in all locations. Availability varies. Other conditions apply.

[Engadget]

I'm not just sure how practical this is, but ION has just announced details of its iType keyboard, a full-sized, battery-operated keyboard. Available in the second quarter of 2010, there's no price as yet. Or whether it's wireless or not. [Slashgear]

San Andreas fault fans, there's a new TED in town. The United States Geological Survey has developed the Twitter Earthquake Detection project, in an attempt to improve its handling of those natural disasters when they hit across the U.S.

The USGSted project relies firstly on an application programming interface that collates tweets with earthquake-related keywords. You know, like earthquake, quake, tremor, theearthmoveddarling, that sort of stuff. The USGS then gathers data from the quake, like magnitude, location, depth below the surface and number of tweets received.

While the Twitter Earthquake Detection project may not give the USGS any serious information on tremors, here it's all about the qualitative. The reaction and memory of someone caught in an earthquake can end up being just as useful to scientists as mere cold, hard science. [USGSted on Twitter Via ecopolitology]

On Haier's stand at CES they're displaying some really innovative wireless TVs. Helping breed innovation amongst the stand-goers, they've also got a wall asking people to "share your ideas." Let's hope the following ideas came from Vegas locals, at least.

What, you mean like 3D TV? Did you even PAY ATTENTION when you walked through Central Hall to Haier's stand?!

I dunno, guess you're just not looking hard enough. I found a screen cleaner wipe in a condom wrapper.

I want whatever rock this person's living under, if he's never seen an iPod Shuffle in his life.

You mean you DON'T want to look like these guys?

I love that someone corrected the original writer, saying "it does exist," and then some lone rambler got all over-excited and had to exclaim "finally!!11!!!1!" on it. Class.

That's not necessarily a good thing, you know. Last year at CES, a friend of mine got flashed at in the men's loos. I've been holding on since I got here on Monday.

Actually...that's not such a bad idea.

Digital photo frames? Errrrrrrrm, MEH. Casio's Digital Art Frame, however, I could almost write a QVC script for. It takes your own digital photos and transforms them into paintings - well, it turns them into digital images with special effects.

There are, apparently, eight art form effects, including oils, pastels and watercolors, and the frame also plays audio files and videos. But let's focus on the pictures for the moment. I reckon you wait for Digital Art Frame 2.0, which will be able to turn your pics into Van Goghs, Velazquezes, Reubens, Basquiats, Picasso, Johns and the like. Oh, and the guy who did the Dogs Playing Poker pic.

[Daily Mail]

At least you can't see all the people around you, pointing and laughing.

Price:

$20

Design

The As-Seen-on-TV Hat (I swear to God, that's the actual name of the product) comes in a variety of colors and patterns and in both baseball-cap-style and visor. I went for the camo visor, because I'm a pretty stylish guy. Along the sides of the bill, there's a nylon guard to block out ambient light, and for your viewing pleasure, there's a magnifying glass hanging down midway along the bill. You insert your iPhone (or whatever other video-playing device you want) into a flap, where it sits at the end of the bill.

Here's how bad this product is: Not only does it ask you to stuff your iPhone into a pocket at the end of a camouflage visor, iPhones don't even fit in the pocket. Neither did my Droid, although the iPod Touch fits okay.

Oh, and it comes with a weird semicircular flap of nylon with a velcro strip that I cannot for the life of me figure out how it attaches. It's really embarrassing; that flap makes me feel like I'm too dumb to use the dumbest product I've ever seen.

Performance

The plastic window fades and distorts your video, which severely impairs the cinematic experience the As-Seen-on-TV Hat tries so very hard to provide. The magnifying glass is adjustable (you can move it closer or farther from your scared, stressed little eyes) but not removable, so you're stuck with a distorted picture that was already blurry and faded from the plastic window covering your video-playing device.

Oh, and you'll definitely go both blind and celibate if you use this too long. It's kind of a twofer that way.

Verdict

I rate this a buy if only for the name you'll make for yourself on public transit if you wear it. If you don't want to be known for your ridiculous, half-nerd half-hick headwear, it's a pass.

It's the greatest iPhone/iPod accessory ever

It's the worst iPhone/iPod accessory ever

Razer, the firm that brings us all those high-end gaming peripherals, has made its first foray into the XBox market with a couple of add-ons. The Onza controller and Chimaera pro gaming headset will be available later this year.

The $50 Onza, with its swanky green trim, has Razer's Hyperesponse Technology, (blah blah fishcakes) adjustable tension analogue sticks and a multi-function button that you can program yourself to perform specific actions. Batteries not included, as they have power cords.

And then there's the Chimaera. Costing $130, it supports 5.1 channel surround sound system, and allows you to connect multiple Razer base stations via its Daisy-Chain cable system. [Techtree.com]

Clue: It's not the world champion Conker player's special box. There's a clue in those last two words, though.

It is, my friends, a big bunch of Woodvibes - sex toys made of wood. Which is what I thought they provoked. Jonas Lonborg's creation (ingredients: aluminum, electronic gizzards, er, wood, special box which charges them up through induction) is so full of double entendres, I think I'm going to pass out from the pleasure. [Yanko]

Those clever people at Sigma have just announced the arrival of NeoVue, a wireless streaming platform that will let you watch stuff from your small-screened gizmo (laptop, phone) on a bigger-screened gizmo (telly.) Yay! [Wireless Developer's Journal]

Yesterday, Obama's Chief Technology Officer went to Vegas to hang out with Blam, Chen, Frooch, et al. And what did he get from Consumer Electronics Association head honcho? Not a request for POTUS's cell number, but a bollocking.

A light bollocking, admittedly, but Gary Shapiro called him out on what he sees as the Government's inability to encourage tech entrepreneurship. "When it comes to innovation, there's a lot the government can do, and there's a lot they should not do," said the head of the CEA, the mooks behind the CES beanfest. "The government doesn't spur innovation or entrepreneurship. The government often gets in the way."

The CEA wants the US to facilitate the movement of skilled workers between countries such as India and China, plus a change in trade policy to allow American exports to compete with cheaper goods from elsewhere. Other little slapdowns included the $787 billion stimulus act ("panic spending") which must have had Chopra reeling.

Well, no it didn't actually. "We have to eat our own dogfood," he replied. (Really, Mr Chopra, I can't recommend it lowly enough) "Gary is right about the federal deficit. We are in an economic crisis but we are going to tackle it. We have to get it right." Right. [BBC News]

President Sarkozy, that small man with the excellent peripheral - wife Carla Bruni - could be going for the Internet giants in order to claw back some of the revenue he claims that creatives are losing through piracy.

In his traditional new year speech outlining his plans for the next 360 or so days, Sarkozy announced plans to tax overseas search engines, Web portals and ISPs such as Google, Yahoo!, MSN and Aol) despite the fact that Google doesn't pay tax in la belle, fromage-y France (its european tax is paid in Ireland.) The thought behind it is that the companies should pay tax on the revenue generated by French Internet users when they click on an ad banner or sponsored link.

Despite the fact that his three-strikes law is now on the statute book, my money's on Google and the other behemoths telling Sarkozy to stick it where the Google Street View don't shine. In fact, they're probably developing plans for Google Colonoscopy. Coming to a head of state near you soon. [CNET News]

Now this is what I call an iPod dock. Behind it, crazy guy Moritz Waldemeyer, the guy behind OK Go's LED suits for their tours a couple of years back. What is it, chaps? A smoky, light-y Home Disco!

Waldemeyer was commissioned by swank UK design-porn magazine Wallpaper to come up with a Home Disco. Doubling up as a coffee table, the HD (my kinda HD, forget all that 1080p bollocks) has a "Haze Machine" - what non-dry ice smokers would probably call a bong - which will certainly fire up the party when Great Auntie Ethel comes to stay. This is so on my list of 2010 Chrizzle presents. [We Heart]

Despite the fact that we thought they had become extinct in, oh, 2009, Pleo is, apparently, back for 2010 with a second-gen model, and an outsized version of the current, extinct model. [Engadget]

Monster just announced a new line of headphones named after noted songsmith Sean Diddy "Sean Puffy Puff Puff Daddy" P. Diddy Combs, this time as earbuds rather than the over-the-ear Dr. Dre Beats headphones.

Like Dr. Dre and Lady Gaga before him, Diddy has designed his own audio ware, with leather-wrapped earbuds in a variety of colors (including pink, for the ladies (in his Mercedes)). Availability and pricing are still to be announced, but given the past prices of the admittedly excellent but also incredibly expensive Beats line, the earbuds might, in fact, be all about the Benjamins. [Chip Chick]

At CES, The world's greatest Elvis impersonator sings his song at the Motorola booth. This last year, Moto's Android-powered Droid fast tracked them back to relevance.

When I have nothing better to do, I love killing a few minutes with music maker apps such as Melodica or Band on my iPod touch. From the looks of it, I might have to add Looptastic to the arsenal.

Looptastic is a weird app that takes parts of DJ apps such as Ableton or Traktor, parts of production apps such as Reason, and throws a Korg Kaoss pad in for good measure. The final result: a casual noisemaker that lets you intuitively hack together a loop-based mix in rapid fashion.

The core of the app is built around a collection of sample loops that you string together to build a beat. From there you can sequence those loops and throw effects on top with the X-Y effects pad. The app starts at $5 bundled with a single style of music, but there's also a $10 version and will soon be a $15 version that will let you import your own music. Nice. [Sound Trends via CrunchGear]

C'mon, like you didn't see this one coming. 25 bucks here. [Etsy via Geek Sugar via Unplggd]