Portable

Nintendo has finally announced a release date and price for its much anticipated 3DS. Those hoping to add the 3D portable games console to their Christmas list will be disappointed as it is not set to hit stores until February 26, 2011 – and that’s only in Japan. Other markets will have to wait a bit longer with North America and Europe reportedly seeing a release sometime in March, 2011. It also looks like the extra dimension won’t come cheap with an asking price of 25,000 yen (approx. US$299) in Japan. Read More

For those of us who love vinyl, a portable record player usually comes in a small suitcase-sized box. If you want to take a small step towards modern convenience and digitize your collection, you're looking at investing in some more kit and losing the portability. Crosley Radio has taken the record player out of the box, made it battery operated and thrown in onboard digital conversion capabilities for its Crosley Revolution CR6002. Although the player features a built-in stereo speaker, the company has also included the ability to pair the device with any FM radio. Read More

To maximize portability, mobile devices like the iPhone and iPad eschew the traditional keyboard for on-screen versions. While on-screen keyboards may be tolerable for typing the odd text message or entering a few words into a search engine, their shortcomings quickly become obvious. With mobile devices now packing processors powerful enough to handle word processing and other more intensive tasks there is a market for physical keyboards to turn an iPad or even a smartphone into an ultraportable computer. One of the better solutions we’ve seen to fit this bill is the newly announced Jorno Bluetooth keyboard from Cervantes Mobile. Read More

Digital file hoarders and multimedia fans looking for a portable drive solution will no doubt salivate uncontrollably at the announcement of a 1.5TB FreeAgent GoFlex solution from Seagate. The compact drive comes with a USB 3.0 interface, 192-bit Triple DES encryption and is compatible with both Windows and Mac operating systems. Read More

We're all aware of how annoying a tangled mass of electrical wires can be. Fortunately, a research effort from Fujitsu is tackling the problem at its very source. During a conference held in the Institute of Electronics, Information and Communication Engineers at Osaka Prefecture University, the Japanese electronics giant announced a major step in developing a wireless recharging technology that can work simultaneously with multiple portable devices. Read More

According to the Pentagon, improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, are the number one killer and threat to troops in Afghanistan. Now a new tool that shoots a blade of water capable of penetrating steel is headed to U.S. troops in Afghanistan to help them disable these deadly devices. Developed by Sandia National Laboratories researchers, the fluid blade disablement tool produces a high-speed, precise water blade to perform some precision type destruction on whatever IED it’s up against. Read More

The trickle of USB 3.0 devices hitting the market is steadily increasing and will no doubt be a flood before too long. Portable hard drives are likely to be big sellers and Samsung is helping to get the ball rolling by announcing its new 2.5-inch external HDD, the S2 Portable 3.0. The drive features an on-board SuperSpeed USB 3.0 interface and a 7200RPM spindle speed to slash the time spent watching a progress bar crawl across the screen when moving files. Read More

When I think of camping I think of open starry skies, the sound of crickets humming in the warm summer night, talking with friends and family around the camp fire and leaving the madness of the city behind. If however, your style of camping involves dragging as many creature comforts as possible with you, the VuQube VQ3000 could well be on your wish-list. Billed as the first fully automatic, light-weight, self-contained, portable satellite system with in-motion capability, the VQ3000 promises uninterrupted satellite TV reception wherever you roam. Read More

Samsung, the manufacturer with its fingers in just about every consumer electronics pie known to man, has announced a flood of new 3D-enabled products. There’s Blu-ray players – both standalone and as part of a home theater, as well as the world’s first portable 3D Blu-ray player. There’s also new 3D TVs, including a 65-inch model the company says is the world’s largest Full HD 3D LED TV, along with three new 3D enabled plasmas. Kind of gives the impression that Samsung thinks this 3D thing will be a little more than a flash in the pan. Read More