Many innovative toys have come out of this year's International Toy Fair in New York, including this cool device from Fisher Price that let's your kids turn themselves into cartoon characters.


Kids use the My Toon TV's built-in camera to take a picture of themselves or a friend, and then choose from 11 cartoon characters to 'merge' into. After their character has been created, they'll get to see it dance on the TV screen and get to join in themselves.

My Toon TV comes with 5 songs to dance to, but kids will be able to use their own favourite songs by playing music from their CD or MP3 players too.

This easy to use plug and play device will be on store shelves in June and will cost around US$69.99

Articles: OhGizmo!, Kid's Tech Toy Reviews, Coolest Toys

The "Roll 'n Pour" from Amazon.com takes the worry out of pouring drinks from large jugs and bottles.


Simply place the container or jug in the Roll 'n Pour and tilt it towards your glass. The jug will roll smoothly, resulting in a steady pour with little effort.

With the Roll 'n Pour, you'll never have to worry about annoying spills due to shaky or weak hands - perfect for kids and older people who might need extra help in the kitchen.

This useful product is available for you to order online now on Amazon.com for US$15.95.

Articles: CraziestGadgets
Product Page: Amazon.com

This concept jacket designed by German Rahel Ritchie, features an inflatable hood that can be blown up to function as a pillow.


The hood is removable from the jacket lining and can be used elsewhere, for example, as a float.


This functional and fashionable jacket, for some reason called "Never Stop a Rolling Stone", is also water-proof on the outside, and features a fabric on the inside that absorbs perspiration too, keeping you dry at all times.


There's no word on whether this interesting concept will be available in stores, but let's hope we frequent travelers will get a chance to buy this soon.

Articles: Gizmodo, Likecool
Product Page: Rahel Ritchie

This concept clock designed by Mike Mak Design tells the time with a pair of rotating discs that are made to look like eyeballs.


The Eyeclock tells the time in a 'fun' way - the position of the left eyeball signifies hours, while the right signifies minutes.


There's no word on whether the Eyeclock will go into production, but one thing's for sure if it does - telling the time will probably leave you cross-eyed.

Articles: Gizmodo, technabob, 25togo
Product Page: Mike Mak Design

The iPhone has proven that it can be useful for just about anything these days.. Besides being equipped with GPS and the optional hundreds of productivity and entertainment applications, the iPhone can now can be used to control a car.


Innovative automaker Rinspeed has taken electric concept cars to a whole new level with its iChange EV, featuring iPhone integration that lets you control the headlights, turn signals, among other functions of the car on the phone itself.

Besides being able to use the iPhone to lock and unlock your doors and start the car, it can even be used to adjust the height of the iChange EV's roof to make room for two passengers at the back.


This sexy, eco-friendly concept car will be debuting at this year's Geneva Auto Show, with pricing and full production details still unknown.

The Rinspeed iChange EV in action

Articles: The College Driver, Engadget
Official Website: Rinspeed

Motion sensing lights have been around for quite a while now, turning light automatically on when it detects any movement in a room or area, and turning off when you leave. Installation and costs of these types of lights, however, are quite complicated and expensive in most cases.

Smarthome's Screw-in Motion Sensing Light Adapter solves these problems, being really easy to install, and not costing at all expensive, and yet does the job equally well.

Simply screw in a light bulb into the adapter, screw the adapter into a socket, turn it on and it'll start detecting movement in all directions up to 5 meters.

It even has 3 adjustable dials that let you control the settings of the adapter's motion sensing sensitivity.

This motion sensing light adapter helps conserve electricity and is perfect for rooms, garages, walk-in closets, and hallways that you only occasionally walk into, which you don't want to be lit up all the time. It's also a great idea to use them as 'security' lights installed around the outside of your house to scare burglars away.

The Smarthome Screw-in Motion Sensing Light Adapter is available now on Amazon.com for US$24.99.

Articles: Newlaunches, Coolest Gadgets, GadgetGrid
Product Page: Amazon.com

The Gadget,Ink team and everyone at Simpur would like to wish all Bruneians a very Happy 25th National Day.

Together, we celebrate 25 glorious years of unity, 25 years of peace and harmony and 25 years of undivided love for our Brunei Darussalam, our Abode of Peace.

Official Website: The 25th National Day of Brunei Darussalam

Who would've guessed that luxury brand Chanel would design its very own Segway?

The Parisian fashion house that's known for specializing in luxury goods such as handbags, perfumery, and cosmetics among others has now ventured into a totally new market in the form of the uniquely popular two-wheeled, self-balancing electrical vehicle Segway.


Besides featuring Chanel-styled 'rims', the Chanel Segway boasts a Chanel 2.55 attached to its handlebar for storing your luxury accessories.


The Segway, popular in niche markets around the world, is controlled by leaning forward to go forward, by leaning back to go backwards, and by turning the handlebars to steer the vehicle.

Pricing for the Chanel-branded version of the vehicle has not been announced but since normal Segways range from $5,350 to $6,400, we don't expect this version to come cheap.

The Segway in action

Articles: Born Rich, Engadget
Product Websites: Chanel, Segway

Another useful device to have when you're in a place without electricity, or when the area you're in is suffering from an electricity outage is the Duracell Powerpack 450.


This stand-alone source of portable electricity can be used to power up laptops, mobile phones, lamps, tools and appliances with its 450W of household power.

The Powerpack 450 also features a car jump starter and air compressor - perfect for becoming an emergency kit for your vehicle. Duracell have also incorporated a voice technology that will talk you through how to use these emergency features.


The voice will also instantly tell you how long the battery will last once you plug any of your devices in to the Powerpack 450.

Simply charge this portable power supply at home beforehand, and you'll be ready for any powerless-outings and emergencies.


The Duracell Powerpack 450 is available for US$120-150. Let's hope these devices hit our shores soon.

Product Page: Duracell Powerpack 450

Do you feel that your cooking ingredients have to be precisely and perfectly in the right portion? Then KitchenArt's Gourmet ButterMate would be the ideal 'butter-cutter' for you..


This unique little device does one thing perfectly - cut your butter. With markings for cups, tablespoons, teaspoons and pats, this easy to use slicer will give you that 'extra edge' with your cooking!

Simply insert a stick of butter and move the slider to the desired marking and you're good to go.

The Buttermate is available online on Amazon.com for $6.49. Now who says we don't report on news for the cooks out there?

Articles: Gizmodo, Bookofjoe
Product Page: Amazon.com

Toy makers are getting more and more innovative by the year, especially with this ingenious idea of a toy from Interactive Toy Concepts..


'Duck Hunter' features a free-flying, flapping duck that you try to shoot down with a miniature infrared gun. You need to shoot this flying duck 3 times to get it to come crashing down, and you'll have 30 seconds to do so.

Charge the duck by placing it on top of the gun for 10 seconds and you're good to go again.

Duck Hunter Demo Video

The Duck Hunter will be available in the spring (March to June '09) and will retail at US$29.99.

Articles: Gearlog, CrunchGear, OhGizmo!, Newlaunches
Toy Maker Website: Interactive Toy Concepts

Do you remember those days when just about everyone you knew in school smelt of the same fragrance? Yes, those were the CK One and CK Be days..

The company behind those fragrances, Calvin Klein, will be introducing a new campaign next month, themed as "We are One", to promote the spirit of unity. Limited-edition 100ml collector's edition of CK One and CK Be will be decorated with the "We are One" slogan (in multiple languages) and packed in sexy modern packaging complete with a removable speaker at the bottom.


Calvin Klein's CK One and CK Be scents were a craze in Brunei, and all over the world in the mid-90s for its blend which includes papaya, pineapple, jasmine, Bergamot and Cardamom.

The "We are One" fragrances will be available worldwide for US$50.

Articles: Engadget, SlipperyBrick, The Design Blog

Have you ever had the feeling that you're wasting your time taking a shower when you should be at your computer clicking away on the mouse that you love? Have you ever felt that you can't bear to leave your computer peripherals behind, even for a few minutes in the bathroom?

If you've answered yes to both of these questions, then this is the soap for you.. (but we recommend that you get some help you computer addict!)


Taiwanese retailer Zakka's mouse-shaped soap is perfect for those who just can't bear not to have the feeling of a mouse in their hands.

These soap made for the geeks out there come in black and white, and are available online for NT$ 199.

Article: Gizmodo
Product Page: Zakka

Philips' Tapster Bluetooth stereo in-ear headset lets you listen to your phone's music with premium sound quality, and let's you answer your calls by simply touching its surface.


This headset not only looks cool, but is super-easy to use too. Swiping the device adjusts the volume, while a tap would pick up a call. Taking off the headset while you're still on a phone call will automatically transfer your call to your phone. Now how cool is that?


The Tapster even has Philips' Everclear Technology integrated into it which digitally filters out unwanted noise for people on the receiving end of your call. It will also automatically adjust the headset's volume if you enter a loud area.


Articles: Newlaunches, Dvice.
Product Page: Philips Tapster

Let's face it, waking up to loud buzzing alarm clocks early in the morning can be quite annoying, especially when you haven't had enough sleep. Fred & Friends' Early Bird Alarm Clock will help you wake up happier, and perhaps chirpier every morning..


This analogue clock will awaken you with the not-so-stressful, sweet and gentle chirping sound of a bird, which glows and pulses too.

The Early Bird Alarm Clock will be available online soon for US$24.99.

If only someone could come up with something to cure our Monday blues..

Articles: OhGizmo!, Newlaunches
Product Page: Perpetual Kid

Bossini s.p.a.'s stylish Aquavolo showerhead will give you the choice between a waterfall shower and a rain shower with just the flip of a lever.


The Aquavolo's stainless steel shower fixture lets you flip it back and forth whenever you need a change by incorporating an innovative showerhead design technique.

We're not sure whether we would prefer feeling like we're taking a shower in a waterfall or in the rain, but one thing's for sure, the Aquavolo does rather look quite classy.


Articles: Gizmodo, Trendir
Product Site: Bossini s.p.a.

Acer, the third largest vendor in the global PC market, has set its eyes on the ever-growing mobile phone market, after last year's acquisition of E-Ten Information Systems.

Acer officially introduced 4 phones from their new Tempo smartphone series at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona - the X960, F900, M900 and DX900.


Acer Tempo X960
The X960 features a 2.8-inch VGA TFT LCD touch screen, 3G HSDPA/HSUPA Connectivity, Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth and a 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus. It runs on Windows Mobile 6.1 operating system with a Samsung mobile processor.


Acer Tempo F900
The F900 features an even larger wide-screen touch display at 3.8-inches. It also runs on Windows Mobile 6.1 and features 3G HSDPA/HSUPA Connectivity, Wi-Fi, GPS, Bluetooth and a 3 megapixel camera with autofocus.


Acer Tempo M900
The M900 features a large 3.8” WVGA touch screen, Windows Mobile 6.1, Outlook Mobile and a sliding physical keyboard, similar to that of the recently launched HTC Touch Pro2 and the Nokia E75.

This designed-for-business smartphone features more or less the same features as the F900, but Acer has also included a fingerprint reader, which makes sure that only you can access your data.


Acer Tempo DX900
Acer takes it a step further with the DX900, by creating the world’s first dual-sim smartphone to support both 3G and 2G SIMs. Yes, this means that you'll get to have both your 2G and 3G sim-cards on one phone, without having to bring two phones around everywhere like you're used to all this while.



There's no word on when these phones will be released, or at how much they'll be priced, but we'll keep you posted.

Product Page: Acer Tempo Smartphone Series

Yes, the news from the MWC is coming in fast, with the big name players in the mobile market all trying to capture the limelight. HTC was no different, introducing 2 new phones to their collection, the Touch Diamond2 and Touch Pro2.


HTC Touch Diamond2
The successor to HTC's ultra-sexy touchphone Touch Diamond, the Touch Diamond2 incorporates a larger 3.2-inch wide-screen VGA touch display and 5 megapixel camera with autofocus. It also sports a new "touch zoom bar" at the bottom of the screen which lets you precisely zoom in and out whenever you please just by swiping your finger from left to right.


This phone also features an enhanced TouchFLO 3D interface integrated with Windows Mobile 6.1 which makes a user's "phone-using experience more instinctive". As part of this improved integration, the touch focus areas have also been enlarged to be more finger-friendly.

To make mobile Internet much more easier and enjoyable, HTC also introduced its Push Internet technology (to both Touch Diamond2 and Touch Pro2), which alleviates slow downloading and rendering of web pages on a mobile phone. Users can preselect their favorite Websites to get immediate access to them when needed.


The HTC Touch Diamond will be available in the second quarter of this year, but there's no word on how much it will be priced yet.

HTC Touch Diamond2 Video Demo

HTC Touch Pro2
Designed for business professionals to deliver the most powerful productivity experience, the HTC Touch Pro2 succeeds the bigger, less curvy Touch Pro.


The Touch Pro2 runs on TouchFLO 3D and features a high resolution 3.6-inch widescreen VGA display. It boasts an improved battery life from its predecessor, and now incorporates a touch sensitive zoom bar similar to that of the Touch Diamond2.

This cool phone is also packed with gravity, proximity and ambient light sensors, just like that on an iPhone.

Perhaps the most appealing feature of the Touch Pro2 is the large QWERTY keyboard that slides out of its side. Once out, the display can be tilted closer to you for better viewing.


With the Touch Pro2, HTC introduced Straight Talk, which lets users seamlessly transition from emails to single or multi-party conference calls. Simply flip the phone over and it automatically turns into a conference room speakerphone.

HTC Touch Pro2 Video Demo

The HTC Touch Pro2 will be available early in the summer of this year.

Press Release: HTC Mobile World Congress
Product Pages: HTC Touch Diamond2, HTC Touch Pro2

We never doubted that mobile giant Nokia would make big announcements not long after Sony Ericsson's at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona yesterday, and they didn't disappoint.


Nokia E55
Nokia's "Dean of Devices" Kai Oistamo started off the unveilings in their press conference by introducing what they claim to be the world's most compact and most thinnest smartphone, the Nokia E55.


This sexy smartphone features a compact QWERTY keyboard (with a new predictive text engine), and the works - 3G HSDPA/HSUPA connectivity, a 2.4-inch QVGA screen, 3.2 megapixel camera, 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi, 3.5mm headphone jack and Bluetooth 2.0.

The super-thin E55's ability to have up to 31 days of standby time, and the integration of an active noise reduction feature which removes background noises are perhaps the most appealing features of this phone.

Nokia E55 Demo Video

The Nokia E55 will be released this summer and will be available in silver and black for 265 Euros (approx. B$512).

Nokia E75
The announcement that probably was the most exciting of the day was the introduction of the E75, which sports a full QWERTY keyboard that slides out of its side, inspired by Nokia's Communicator range.


The E75 features a 2.4-inch QVGA screen, 3G HSDPA connectivity, 3.2 megapixel camera, built-in VPN, 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and support for up to 16GB microSD storage. It also will have up to 11 days of standby and 5.4 hours of talktime.



Kai Oistamo claims that the E75 is the best email device that Nokia has ever created to date, with it being the first device that ships with Nokia Messaging. This new application lets you access not only your corporate email, but even personal email ranging from Gmail and Yahoo! Mail to Hotmail, all on one easy-to-use application. Mail set up is a breeze - just input your email address and password and you'll be ready to receive all your email within minutes. There's no need to key in the usual complicated POP setting and what not.

Nokia E75 Demo Video

The Nokia E75 will be available in silver, black, red and yellow from next month at 375 Euros (approx. B$725). Nokia has just started accepting online pre-orders of the phone.

Ovi Store
The final announcement of the day was that Nokia will be launching its very own online app store and next generation media service, the Ovi Store. This store will let users download games, videos, productivity tools and just about any type of application that you're interested in.


It also features a smart content recommendation engine which recommends what to download, based on where you are, among others. For instance, if you've just landed in Singapore, it will prompt you to download travel maps and guides for Singapore, etc. The recommendation engine will even let you know what you're friends and family members have been downloading from the online store.

Over time, the Ovi Store will also learn your tastes and will anticipate what you want.


The highly-anticipated upcoming Nokia N97 smartphone will be the first to be pre-integrated with the Ovi Store once its released in a few months time, but everyone else with a Nokia phone will be able to download the Ovi Store on to their phones starting from May.

Press Event Videos: Nokia at Mobile World Congress 09
Product Pages: Nokia E55, Nokia E75, Ovi Store

As promised, the Mobile World Congress does not disappoint, even during its early hours. Sony Ericsson was the first to hold a press conference during this year's event, introducing a new series of products to be marketed as 'Entertainment Unlimited'. They have also unveiled two mobile phones to be launched under this new series, the W995 and the concept-named Idou touch-screen phone.


Entertainment Unlimited will bring together rich content, unique applications and the best in entertainment experiences to you. Sony Ericsson will be uniting their Walkman music, Cyber-shot imaging, Java gaming and messaging experiences all into one.

The first phone unveiled today, the W995 Walkman phone, offers the most complete communication package to date. This 'slide' phone boasts an 8.1 megapixel camera, A-GPS, Google Maps, Wi-Fi and a scratch-resistant display, among others. It will also include Sony's new Media Go software, which will let you send your photos and videos using Wi-Fi to your PS3.


Sony Ericsson W995


Arguably the biggest news of the press conference was the unveiling of the Idou, a glimpse of another one of a number of projects that will be launched under Entertainment Unlimited. The Idou (it will be changed to a more commercial name before this summer), features an awesome 12.1 megapixel camera with Xenon flash and an intuitive touch interface. Users will be able to tap their way to their favourite videos and music by using the full-touch media menu, based on the Symbian Foundation operating system.

Sony Ericsson Idou


There's been no news on the cost of both of these phones once they're available in the market, but you can look forward to the second quarter of this year for the W995's release, and the second half of this year for the Idou's release.

Product Pages: W995, Idou

All gadget enthusiasts will be looking forward to what comes out from this year's GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, which kicks off today.


Big names in the mobile world including Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Motorola, along with a total of 1286 organizations and companies, will be exhibiting at this annual event, which has been used as a platform to announce and showcase the latest in mobile technology.

The GSM Association unites more than 750 of the world's mobile operators, including DSTCom of Brunei, as well as 200 companies in the broader mobile arena, including handset makers, software companies, Internet companies and media and entertainment organisations.

Official Website: GSMA Mobile World Congress

Singaporean designers Kimming Yap and Yulia Saksen have won the Altec Lansing Future Sound Speakers category of a design competition by creating the 'MINI', a small speaker that can be attached to your favourite music device's 3.5 mm audio port (headphone jack).


The MINI is able to project an impressive 360-degree sound field in all directions, without any distortion.

Simply plug the speaker onto your iPod, twist the top to turn it on, and twist it further to adjust its volume.


Let's hope Altec Lansing starts producing and selling this cool gadget soon..

Articles: Designboom, Coolbuzz

Young, innovative UK-based company SquidLondon recently sold out of their limited edition collection of 100 umbrellas that change colour when they get wet.



These umbrellas feature hydrochromatic ink that's water-reactive, which start off white when dry, but come to life filling itself with multiple colours when the rain starts pouring.

SquidLondon conducts experiments with 'smart' materials and textiles to create a range of innovative color-changing products.

There's no word on whether they will be mass producing these umbrellas in the future. They are, however, in the process of designing their next collection.

Articles: Fashioning Technology, OhGizmo!
Product Website: SquidLondon