One of my favorite appliances is the washing machine and dryer.  It didn’t use to be, in fact washing machines used to be downright boring.  But have you seen the new Samsung and LG washing machines?  They are works of art with tons of gadgetry and LCD screens, etc…

With that said, most conventional washing machines are quite wasteful.  After cleaning your clothes the water is dumped down the drain.  And as much as I don’t like the wastefulness… I am not sure I want to recycle dirty underwear water.  The Mr. Klein concept washer reuses the water and filters it before the next wash cycle.  Still just a concept… will let you know if it makes it to prime-time.

Struggle with cracking raw eggs?  Your an idiot!  Check out the As Seen On TV EZCracker egg cracker.  This goofy gadget cracks raw eggs and can extract the whole egg or just the white.  Woopeee.  Video of the EZCracker after the break.

Not quite sure I would want need a chrome TV in my life… but if you do… Sceptre has released a Chrome 24-inch LCD TV.  Read on for details.

Featuring a crystal clear LCD display, these trend-setting TVs boast an ultra-fast 2 ms response time, 4,000:1 contrast ratio and dual HDMI ports for a complete home entertainment experience. Plus, the innovative USB port further expands functionality, allowing users to listen to music and view digital pictures quickly and conveniently.
“We design our television monitors to not only perform exceptionally, but to also look exceptional in any home,” said Cathy Chou, vice president of operations, Sceptre. “When it comes to form and function, we, at Sceptre, like to push the industry envelope.”
Energy Star 3.0 complied, these energy saving widescreen televisions are the perfect addition to any home décor, especially in the kitchen where the ultra-slim design and eye-catching chrome finish can complement stainless steel appliances for a high-end, modern look.
PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS

• Active Screen Size 24″
• Aspect Ratio 16:9 Wide Screen
• Response Time 2 ms (G to G)
• Contrast ratio 4000:1 (DCR) / 1000:1 (Typ)
• Resolution 1920 x 1080
• Dual HDMI and USB ports
• Brightness 300 cd/m2
• Viewing Angle:  170 L/R, 160 Up/Down
• Built-in speakers
• Neck & Base Detachable

Moshi or Moshi-Moshi means “Hello” in Japanese. It is also used to get someone’s attention like “Psssst!”, “Hey”, “Hey You”, etc. Well, the Moshi Voice Control Travel Alarm Clock sure got my attention. I am not much of a wake-up-when-the-alarm-goes-off kind of person, but if I have to be woken up by an alarm clock, it would probably be by this one. It is simple to use with quick setup and it REALLY talks with a very soothing, female voice (not sure if they have one with gruff-sounding male voice).  With its small size, it makes an excellent travelling companion – just throw it in your overnight bag and take it anywhere you go.

The Moshi  Voice-Activated Alarm Clock  follows simple voice commands like TIME, SET TIME, ALARM, SET ALARM and more. It even tells you the TEMPERATURE.  Just make sure you speak into the microphone clearly -  if you don’t, the lady inside the alarm clock can be a little sassy and will give you a litany of acceptable commands. 

Another neat thing is that the actual alarm sound is not your typical heart-attack-inducing BLARING sound. It starts up low and it gradually gets louder until you hit that snooze/off button. I’d say it’s a very considerate alarm clock. And you have three different alarm sounds to choose from.

So if you don’t want to be woken by something close to having water splashed into your face, dogs barking, cats-in-heat, fire alarm, or your stepmother’s knuckles being rubbed against your head – try the Moshi Voice-Activated Alarm Clock.

Paul Priestman has designed a water saving gadget for your shower called the Waterpebble.  The Waterpebble monitors the water going down the shower drain and alerts you of your water usage (like a stop light) with green, yellow, and red lights.

From afar, chances are you will be fooled into thinking that this thermos is actually a real Canon 70-200mm L-series lens, where the Japanese company was giving it out for free at the Olympic Press Center. None of them are on eBay at point of publishing, although we’re not too sure whether it will remain this way for long. Granted, this is one of the cooler thermos designs to date, catering to geeks and shutterbugs alike who love to have a hot cup of joe at hand all the time.

[Via]

We are big fans of the TiVo interface and ease of use.  Not much has changed with TiVo (sans sharing and some web additions) until now with the all-new TiVo interface TiVo Premiere ($299.99 to $499.99 for XL).  The new TiVo Premiere interface loves HDTV, is ready to connect to the web, and can search across many platforms including YouTube, the internet, cable, Netflix, Blockbuster, Amazon On Demand, and all new movie and TV collections.  The interface/database is improved as well with the ability to get more info on shows or actors by clicking.  Additionally you can now see how much space is left on your TiVo and have access to FrameChannel and Pandora Radio.

The new TiVo comes in standard Premiere and and XL model.  They both offer HD recording, an E-SATA port for external storage, 1080p video output, and a multistream CableCARD slot.  The XL version has a higher capacity (from 45 hours up to 150 hours) and THX certification.

If you are reading this, chances are you shop on the Internets, and unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that the Internets is a series of tubes infested with ebil hackers who wants to jack your stuffs.  Enter the SmartSwipe, a tiny black plastic Personal Credit Card Reader and Secure Online Shopping Assistant complete with excessively bright blue LED lights.  But enough conjecture…

Immediately upon opening the box I found one extremely comforting thing – a single CD-sized piece of paper with a three step installation process.  Seriously, it’s Barney friendly – Step 1, go to their website and download the install software – reboot.  Step 2. Plug the USB cable into a USB port (duh!).  Step 3. Start shopping online and follow onscreen prompts – swipe card, etc… That’s it!

So what does this little plastic dongle really do for you that makes you safer from the ebil internet haxx0rs?  Well for starters since you never actually enter your credit card info, even if you’ve got some evil keystroke capturing cootie on your system, the ebil haxx0r behind it will never see your credit card info.  In addition to that, your data is encrypted and that’s pretty cool.

The first time you open the Internet Explorer, after installing the SmartSwipe software and hardware, you are greeted with a their popup that reminds of the three simple steps of using SmartSwipe:

1. Shop – shop online at all of your favorite websites.
2. Click – when a website asks for your credit card number click the SmartSwipe button on your toolbar (this is important).
3. Swipe your credit card and follow the on-screen prompts.

There is a “Don’t show this again” check box, and a couple of help links to help you ease into the process.  The whole process of having to enter your credit card info becomes less painful, you do it once and allow the SmartSwipe to remember it and it will fill in the credit card info for you – I tried it on Buy.com, Amazon.com, and Pricegrabber.com and it worked flawlessly.  Also, some of the information normally exposed on the screen, gets removed by SmartSwipe replaced with blanks and little lock pictures.

On a somewhat negative side, SmartSwipe only works with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, a browser which I use for about five percent of my web browsing – Mozilla support would have made this a much more functional device for me.  On the whole, SmartSwipe still makes a good gift for that naggy relative or friend who constantly gets cooties “somehow” and still shops online.

http://www.smartswipe.ca/

iLuv Creative Technology, the leader in innovative solutions dedicated to developing unique accessories for Apple’s iPhone and iPod announces the iMM178 Vibe Plus, the next generation model from their Shake & Awake alarm clock dock series originally launched last year with the iMM153 . This Apple iPhone-certified new improved version features a sleek and slim black body design with a bed shaker that includes a speaker and volume control. iPhone and iPod users now have ten ways to wake up to their favorite music and this dock provides a 7 day – 5 day – 2 day alarm option for waking at a set time everyday, weekdays only or weekends. The Vibe Plus will be available now under $100 here or at www.i-luv.com and other retailers.

Key Features:
•    Bed shaker vibrates a bed or a pillow to wake up the heaviest of sleepers and includes a 3-level volume control
•    Built-in speakers featuring jAura acoustic speaker technology allow you to hear your music with depth and clarity
•    Dual Alarm function for 7-5-2 everyday, weekday or weekends wake options
•    Time-sync function that synchronizes time for your iPhone & iPod
•    Large easy to read digital display with 10 level LCD dimmer control
•    2 Way volume control – from the main unit or from the shaker
•    Integrated universal dock for your iPod plays and charges your iPhone and iPod
Digital Dual Alarm Clock Capabilities:
•    Dual alarm clock function allows a couple to wake to separate alarms
•    10-Way to wake up including to iPod, FM radio, buzzer, bed shaker, iPod + bed shaker, FM radio + bed shaker, buzzer + bed shaker

Radio Functions:
•    FM stereo
•    PLL digital tuning technology improves the radio signal clarity
•    Programmable presets for 10 radio stations
*Compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 3G, iPhone, iPod Touch 2nd generation, iPod Touch, iPod Nano 1st – 5th generation, iPod Classic, iPod with video, iPod 4th generation, iPod mini
“iLuv is very happy to add a premium quality version of our Bed Shaker Dual Alarm Clock to our series of alarm clock docks ,” said Howard Kim, Marketing Manager for iLuv. “This is a great solution for heavy sleepers and with the 7-5-2 day wake alarm function it meets everyone’s waking needs.”

As a follow-up to my previous post “A Good Electric Water Kettle – Just A Fantasy?”, thought it was time to get down to business and put a few kettles through a some paces.  A “standardized test”, if you will, fashioned by me.

As a refresh on my “methodology”, full pots filled to maximum were heated and timed, starting off with both cold and already-warmed heating elements.  For the “warm” boil, I heated a full pot of cold water, emptied the kettle, then re-filled with cold water and turned it right back on.  To gauge yield, I used 10-oz coffee mugs, filled to about 8 oz.

Read on for the full review of the Bodum Ottoni.

Bodum Ottoni Water Kettle Review

Quick stats

- Max/Min capacity:  64 oz / None (!)

- Average boil times: 

Cold – 7:10 minutes; filled to max / 51 oz

Warm – 6:45 minutes; filled to max / 51 oz

- Yield:  7 + cups

- Cord management:  Cord wraps around the underside of the base.  The cord goes around the outer edge of the base so it winds quickly and easily.

What I liked

The Bodum brand is well known worldwide and tends to push the design envelope.  The Bodum Ottoni is not an exception and has some very neat features.  The Ottoni goes against the tall skinny form factor and is short and wide.  The handle looks like it would swivel but is actually fixed in the position pictured above, which is fine because it feels ergonomically correct and protects your hand from the hot surfaces and steam.  In addition to the polished stainless steel the kettle has nice accents like a mahogany wood handle, brass, and even a blue bead lid handle. 

• Water heated in the Ottoni tasted good. 
• The interior container for the water is all stainless steel, no plastic!  Not even the inner lid is plastic.  (There is a strainer that has plastic but it is removable)
• The capacity is nice and allows for over 7 cups from one pot.
• There is not a minimum fill requirement… perfect for making smaller pots.
• The Pour spot is well designed and generous, pour as little or as much as you like.

What I didn’t care for

Considering my main purpose was to find a good water kettle with no plastic or rubber interior parts… this is one of the few I have found.  Not a lot of negatives.

• The Ottoni water kettle will not let you boil another round of water until the pot cools off.  It takes quite a while for the temperature sensor to register the cooled pot so making additional pots of water can be frustrating.