A Yakuza-class bulletproof case for the iPod

What do you do when you accidentally destroy your treasured glossy media player from the Apple? How do you recover from having your iPod bludgeoned to death by being jammed against the handrail on a subway train? You make a bulletproof case, of course. That's at least what one fellow from the Kanto region of Japan decided to do when his iPod Photo was destroyed on his daily commute.

The case is 5mm thick all around, said to be strong enough to survive a .22-millimeter bullet. Of course, if the sniper has such perfect aim as to strike the click wheel or color display, then you're pretty much SOL anyways. The aluminium A5052 case is held together by beefy M3 hex bolts for good measure. Dubbed the "Armor Plate for iPod Photo", this crazy chromy yet powerful protector (Terminator?) tips the scales at nearly half a kilo (446 grams), making it 2.5 times the weight of a new iPod Photo.

Now I wonder if anyone would do something like this for the more contemporary Nano...
mobilemag.com

Talk Show Mishap

This guy must have smoked a huge joint before going on the air cause he has a laughing attack while taping his talk show.

MacBook Pro Disco Keyboard

Our friends at techeblog found an interesting way to take control of your keyboard. Someone named Alan used an iTunes visualizer plug-in to make his MacBook's backlit keyboard flicker to the music.

"Using an iTunes visualizer plug-in... I dimmed the backlight on the screen for better visibility of the keyboard, but the plug-in can also flash the screen backlight with the music."

Here's a video demonstration on YouTube.

Sound like fun? Do you want your MacBook's keyboard to flicker like the dance floor in Staying Alive?

1. Download the plug-in called iSpazz.
2. Uncompress the zip file and copy it to your Home directory's iTunes Plug-ins folder (Library > iTunes > iTunes Plug-ins)
3. Open iTunes
4. Press the "i" key to toggle the flicker on and off
   

youtube | digg story | methodshop

IPOD ART COVERS BY GELASKINS

Gelaskins is a new company who specialize in commissioning various artists to design iPod skins. The range is incredibly diverse and feature some stunning original concepts which give your pale old iPod a colorful new tan. With so many iPod accessories being a little generic in their appearance, an artist designed iPod skin is a great way to get your iPod to stand out from the 47 others in your train carriage every morning.
Via thecoolhunter.net by Andy G.

King of Nerds abdicates throne

Finally deciding that his 50 billion dollar stockpile would be sufficient to serve him appropriately enough in his golden years despite social security, Bill Gates, the King of Nerds, recently announced that he would be retiring from Microsoft in July of 2008.

In the letter to his employes,Gates wrote: For these last 31 years, I've had the best job in the world. I've worked with some of the brightest and most passionate people in the world. Together, we've built a great company whose products have empowered people around the world.

Keep Readin on PimpWiz.com

Hands on with the T-Mobile Sidekick 3!

Engadget's exclusive review and plenty of pics of the new Sidekick 3. This thing looks awesome!

read more | digg story

Steve Jobs Dress-up

Steve Jobs only wears black mock turtlenecks and jeans. That's it. He doesn't want to think about what he has to wear so he wears the same thing everyday. It may be easy for him, but what about the rest of us? What if we want to see our favorite CEO think different when it comes to his wardrobe once in awhile?

Check out this neat Flash game from geekculture.com called Steve Jobs Dress-up.

Steve may not be able to handle a wardrobe change, but that can't stop the rest of us from trying.

flickr | digg story | methodshop

Copy Videos off YouTube

YouTube.com is a great resource. Not many sites allows users to freely upload, view, and share video clips like YouTube does. YouTube even lets users easily post videos on their blogs and personal web sites. But because anyone can upload a video clip on YouTube, copyright violations are rampant.

In an effort to prevent the widespread distribution of illegal copied video files, YouTube encodes its video files in the Macromedia Flash format, which prevents viewers from downloading files and making digital copies.

Here's a step-by-step MethodShop.com tutorial on how to rip video files off YouTube.com and convert them for an iPod Video. This trick will work on Mac or PC using Firefox or Internet Explorer.

read more | digg story
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Nacho Libre Podcasts

Nacho Libre comes out in theaters this weekend, but if you can't wait until then to get your Jack Black fix, then maybe you should check out the Nacho Libre Podcasts. These Podcast "confessionals" take audiences behind the scenes with exclusive stories about what it was like to make the upcoming comedy film.

Nacho Libre opens in theaters nationwide on Friday, June 16. You can access the Podcasts via iTunes here.

digg story | methodshop.com

LoJack for your MacBook

Did your brand new MacBook get stolen already? Hopefully you had Undercover installed.

Undercover is an application that aids in the recovery of a stolen Macintosh. It works by transmitting the internet location (internal and external IP addresses and the router address) of the stolen Mac and by sending screenshots as well as images from any connected cameras. At one point these screenshots will sooner or later reveal the thief's identity (e.g. when chatting, reading and writing emails). Combine that with images from any connected cameras and you have a very powerful recovery tool.

As you can imagine, Undercover can be especially useful for owners Apple MacBooks with built-in iSight cameras.

But once you know the location of your stolen laptop, then what? Go knock on the thief's front door and get your ass kicked? No way. Orbicule, the makers of Undercover, then works with local police and law enforcement to help recover the stolen Mac. And if things go wrong, Undercover switches to plan B and simulates a hardware failure, forcing the thief (or someone who bought the stolen Mac on eBay) to return it to an authorized reseller. To alert the reseller, Undercover will start displaying full-screen messages and it will shout that the Mac has been stolen.

Owning Undercover is like having both a private detective and a LoJack for your laptop. Not a bad idea considering that 600,000 laptops were stolen in the USA during 2004 and only 3% were recovered. If only they made Undercover for iPods...

Undercover is only $30 and comes with a money-back guarantee. For more information check out: http://orbicule.com/undercover/

read more | digg story | methodshop.com

Cell Phone Jammers

We've all wanted to strangle them before. There's nothing worse than some jerk blabbing away on their while you're trying to enjoy a movie, meal at a restaurant, or a nice quiet nap on the bus/train ride to work.

You can try to send the offending mobile blabbermouth a few evil looks or the old "courtesy cough" but those passive aggressive gestures rarely work.

If you really want to shut down a dopey chatter box, then you'll need to acquire a cell phone jammer. [read more]

read more | digg story
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OS X Installer Music

Have you ever reinstalled your Macintosh operating system just to hear the music? Hopefully not, but if you've ever found yourself grooving to the soundtrack while installing OS X and wanted to know what you were listening to... then you are in luck.

Someone posted an iMix in the iTunes Music Store called Mac OS X Installer Music. It contains all the songs Apple has used since Cheetah.

You can use this link to open the iMix in iTunes or just sample individual songs from the list below.

• Mac OS X 10.0 "Cheetah" - Sofa Rockers Remix by Sofa Rockers
  
• Mac OS X 10.1 "Puma" - Sofa Rockers Remix by Sofa Rockers
• Mac OS X 10.2"Jaguar" - Sofa Rockers Remix by Sofa Rockers
• Mac OS X 10.3 "Panther" - Eple by Roykosopp
  
• Mac OS X 10.4 "Tiger" - Bytecry by Weevil
  

read more | digg story
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The RazorBerry aka "Motorola Q"

"Face it, you have an unhealthy relationship with your Blackberry.

At least now you have a sexier gadget to cling to. Motorola slapped some keys onto an extended version of their sleek and skinny Razr—hence the Q, long-awaited and finally available for purchase.

You've still got the little toggle, and the mini keys (although the Q's are spaced slightly farther apart for easier typing). But the Q also has a 1.3 megapixel camera (which takes pics and video), a removable memory card slot, Microsoft Mobile software, and an extended battery available to double the battery life (up to 16 days standby). The coup de grace though, is the Q's Razr-like packaging: barely half an inch thick, small, light, and just plain shiny and beautiful.

Desperate, dependent obsession never looked this good.

Motorola Q, available nationwide on Monday June 5." Via UrbanDaddy

U2 iPod is Reincarnated

Does this black and red iPod look familiar? It should. It's the second coming of the U2 iPod.

The original iPod U2 Special Edition was announced on October 24, 2004 and was the first black iPod Apple ever produced. Apple discontinued it about a year later on October 12, 2005 and rabid U2 fans have been without a Rattle & Hum to satisfy their portable music needs ever since.

Operating under some Mysterious Ways, on 06.06.06, (the day of the devil???) Apple announced a reincarnation of iPod U2 Special Edition. The encore version is actually $20 cheaper than the original but has a bigger hard drive, color screen and is video ready.

Like the original U2 iPod, the new version comes with the autographs of each band member engraved on the back (black metal this time, not aluminum) and a coupon for U2 content from the iTunes Store. The exclusive content offering includes 30-minutes of music videos and band interviews.


Let's compare the original iPod U2 Special Edition with the new reincarnated version.

Price
- original: $349
- encore: $329

Color of metal backing
- original
- encore: black

iTunes Music Store Coupon
- original: $50 off the price of a digital U2 box set called The Complete U2
- encore: free 30-minutes of music videos and band interviews


Here are some technical details for the new iPod U2 Special Edition:

• Holds up to 7,500 songs and album art
• Holds up to 25,000 photos
• Holds up to 75 hours of video
• Accessory-compatible Dock connector
• 2.5-inch (diagonal) color LCD with LED backlight
• Comes with earbud headphones and USB cable
• Autographs of all U2 members on the back
• Bright 2.5-inch display with LED backlight
• Up to 14 hours of battery life; up to 3 hours of slideshows with music; up to 2 hours of video playback
• Works with Mac OS X or Windows 2000/XP
• More info...

If you are a U2 fan who still hasn't found what you are looking for in a mp3 player, perhaps you should consider getting this newest member in the iPod family.

The iPod U2 Special Edition is available from Apple.com and Amazon.com.

read more | digg story
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Solio Solar iPod Charger

Need to take your iPod places without a power source? Maybe you need a Solio iPod Charger. This fan-blade solar charger allows your iPod to soak up sun rays when placed in direct sunlight (either outside or affixed to a window).

The Solio also has a high capacity internal battery that stores energy and then releases it when the unit is plugged into your iPod. A fully charged Solio delivers enough energy to extend iPod playtimes by up to 9 hours. And it doesn't take hours of charge time just to get enough juice to play one song. An hour in the sun can give your iPod up to a few hours of play time.

You can even plug the Solio into a regular wall socket to charge its battery for instant power anywhere. Not a bad idea since the Solio can store energy for more than a year.

The Solio may be perfect on your next camping trip, but you may want to avoid pulling it while walking down Madison Avenue... unless you want people to mistake you for Ugly George.

The Solio is available from Amazon.com.

[Via NTRONICS]

read more | digg story
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Giant iPod Seen From Space

Ready?
Open this link to Google Maps and zoom in all the way. Some keen eyed Google Earth users have found what looks like a giant iPod somewhere in Australia.

At first, many people assumed it was a clever iPod ad deliberately constructed by Apple. However, according to Really Rocket Science, the satellite image for that location on was taken on January 1, 1999. And as any true nerd knows, that's a couple years before the first iPod was even announced (October 23, 2001).

Although this satellite image predates the iPod, it's Nefertiti owner is much much older. You can see her wearing a pair of earbuds in the image below.

read more | digg story
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SpeckTone Retro iPod Speakers

Retro junkies rejoice. Speck Products just announced a top-loading iPod stereo speaker system called the SpeckTone Retro. Sure, there are hundreds of iPod speaker systems on the market. What makes this system unique is the design.

The designers of the SpeckTone Retro have succeeded in making a product that looks modern and retro at the same time. The way they've paired clean modern styled lines with the nostalgic elegance of the 1950's is very impressive. The end result is an iPod speaker system that doesn't replicate or compete with the modern, sleek look of the iPod itself.

The SpeckTone Retro comes in 3 high-gloss lacquered color finishes, black, white and green, and is available from Amazon.com.

Thanks to the guys at iPastudio for turning us on to this.

read more | digg story
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Rejected iPod Engravings

As you may know, you can order an iPod from the Apple Store with a custom, laser-engraved message. However, not everything gets engraved. Apple has been rejecting some messages for editorial reasons.

The following is a collection of engravings that were actually rejected by Apple, and some that probably should have been. Enjoy!

Full Story: Rejected iPod Engravings

read more | digg story
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