By David Ponce

This application has been a long time coming, but for $0.99 cents, Gmail users can now have push notifications. So instead of setting your phone to check every X minutes to see if you have a new email, you will be notified as soon as you get it. It’s supposed to save battery life, not to mention keep you connected at all times, like the good Internet addict that you are.

I’ve downloaded the app, and have been playing with it for the last little bit. For my impressions, keep reading.

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By David Ponce

You want to scar your little one for life, then let us suggest this bright yellow UFO Cap Umbrella from Korea. It’s not quite a raincoat. And it’s really not an umbrella. You might say it’s a little bit of both, but that’s being generous. The product page pitch will have you believe it’s convenient, folds into a small, easily carried bundle and hey, leaves you with your hands free to do whatever. But don’t fall for any of this. What you’d really be purchasing is a yellow, PVC kick-me sign for your kid. He’ll remember this in therapy, trust us.

Incidentally, if you’re cruel and actually want to go ahead with a purchase, well we can’t quite figure out how much it is as no price is listed on the website. It’s not like we’re going to make it easier for you to torture your child anyway.

[ Product Page ] VIA [ Neatorama ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I’m not so sure if I like the weird wavy design of Verbatim’s new InSight external USB hard drives (though the glossy piano black finish is eye-catching) but I can definitely get behind the always on display which shows the drive’s name and available free space even when it’s disconnected from your PC. As far as I can tell the drives are available now in a 320GB capacity for $119.99 and 500GB for $149.99.

[ PR - Verbatim Launches InSight Portable USB Hard Drives with an Always On Display ] VIA [ Ubergizmo ]

By Andrew Liszewski

According to a recent article on the New York Times website, getting hit in the head with a baseball traveling at a ‘mere’ 32 MPH will result in a skull fracture every time. So you’d expect that major league ball players would want the utmost protection for their heads when they step up to bat, like the new S100 helmet from Rawlings which can protect an athlete’s head from a 100MPH pitch thrown from just 24 inches away. But surprisingly when the helmet was shown to some MLB players they scoffed at the new design citing concerns that the extra padding was too bulky and too geeky-looking… Seriously?

[ NYTimes.com - Safer Batting Helmet Draws Resistance From Some Players ] VIA [ Popular Science ]

By Andrew Liszewski

When I reviewed the Flip UltraHD I found the audio to be quite decent given the smallish microphone located on the front of the device. But if you want the audio done right on your pocket-friendly video recorder you might want to go with the Zoom Q3 (~$250) from Samson. It features a generously sized stereo condenser mic on top with an X/Y configuration for true “stereo imaging” and audio is captured as 44.1/48kHz 16/24-bit Linear PCM WAV files or MP3s up to 320kbps. The downside though? It only records video at PAL or NTSC resolutions, though with a 32GB SDHC card you can expect to capture about 16 hours of footage.

[ Samson Zoom Q3 ] VIA [ The Red Ferret Journal ]

By Chris Scott Barr

If you’re looking for an interesting alternative outdoor shower, this cool Solar Power Shower might be the thing you need. Most outdoor camping showers use the sun to heat up a container of water, then spray that heated water on you. It’s a concept that works, but unfortunately you either need a large container, or you’ll run out of water quickly. Thankfully this Solar Power Shower can provide lots of warm water without taking up much space.

The idea behind this particular shower is that if you combine really hot water with cold water, you’ll get a nice steady flow of warm water. It’s a simple enough concept, one that works in almost every modern house. The solar panels heat up 8 liters of water to 140-degrees in around 2 hours. When you’re ready to shower, just turn on a garden hose that’s connected to it, and “you and your family can take several showers consecutively before the tank needs to reheat.” Needing a hose means it’s not very portable, and the $200 price tag is a bit salty, it’s still a cool idea though.

[ Herrington ] VIA [ Dvice ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Have you ever been out drinking and were served something that tasted reminiscent of goat pee? First, I’d wonder just how you know the taste of goat urine, and second I’d advise that you might have gotten yourself a glass of rotgut. If you’ve not heard the term, it’s basically really crappy booze that some bars try to pass as the good stuff. One company has developed a special tool that can let you know if the drink is up to snuff.

The Rotgutonix can taste the difference between the good and the bad, letting you know if your drink contains one of six specific brands of alcohol. These would be Johnnie Walker, JB, DYC, Havana Club, Pampero and Brugal. So next time you’re out at the bar and think you’re getting ripped off with cheap booze, just bust this thing out. Sure, you’ll probably get shown to the door for being a douche if you say something about it, but I’m sure it’ll be worth it.

[ Curiosite ] VIA [ CoolestGadgets ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Off the top of my head, I can think of at least a half-dozen gadgets of mine that can be recharged via a USB port. This is rather handy, as it means I can charge them at my desk without the need to crawl under my desk to search for an open outlet. Unfortunately if I want to charge more than one of these devices when I’m in say, a hotel room, I have to carry around a clunky charger of some sort. Sure, my iPhone came with a spiffy USB port charger, but it only accommodates a single device. Thankfully iLuv has me covered.

The iPhone accessory maker has announced a three port iAD117 USB wall charger that will be useful to almost any gadget lover. There isn’t much to say about the device, other than noting the three USB ports good for charging many different gadgets. The two prongs that go into your wall outlet fold down to give it a sleek and slim look when not in use.  At $20, I know this would be a perfect addition to my laptop bag when it hits stores next month.

[ iLuv ] VIA [ Crave ]

By Andrew Liszewski

A few weeks ago we brought you this ridiculous F1Showcar Motion Simulator and lamented that the $44,900 investment only included a 19-inch LCD display which would hardly provide a ‘realistic’ driving experience. Instead, we’d have liked to have seen a screen like the one the RS1 Xtreme M3 Simulator from Texas Sim Racing Inc. comes with. Specifics about its actual size aren’t listed on the website, but the display does provide 180 degrees of “immersion screen technology” which works in conjunction with a 3-axis motion actuator system that’s capable of acceleration up to 2G’s. I have to say I completely agree with the company’s slogan, “it doesn’t need to look like one, It only needs to feel like one” though they should also include a bit about it costing like one too, since you’re looking at about $30,000 for this particular setup.

[ RS1 Xtreme M3 Racing Simulator ] VIA [ Born Rich ]