By Chris Scott Barr

Changing a lightbulb is rarely an exciting task, unless you’re trying to solve one of those age old questions such as “how many drummers does it take to change a lightbulb?” questions. (The answer is 1, if the drummer brings you a ladder.) So it’s only natural that companies are always trying to make bulbs that last longer and longer. Well now Panasonic is touting a new LED bulb that will last a whopping 19 years.

Can you imagine putting new bulbs in your infant’s room and not having to change them until they’re already in college? What’s even better is that this 60-watt equivalent bulb will only cost around $3 per year (as opposed to around $26 for a standard incandescent bulb) to operate. Even at $40 a pop, these things will definitely pay for themselves in the long-run. Unfortunately they’ve only been announced for Japan, hopefully we’ll be getting them over here before long.

[ Panasonic ] VIA [ Dvice ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Remember that spiffy Eee Keyboard that Asus announced back at CES? Well we’ve finally gotten a confirmation on a release. It seems that it will be shipping next month, for between $400-$500. In case you’ve forgotten, you’ll get an Atom-powered computer packed inside a keyboard with a 5-inch touchscreen and wireless HDMI. How awesome is that going to be?

VIA [ PCWorld ]

By David Ponce

Chemotherapy is relatively effective at treating cancer. But because its effects are indiscriminate it’s also unfortunately pretty good at damaging the patient in the process. It’s often a case of who’s more durable: the tumor or the patient. But with the recent FDA approval of the IsoFlow Isolation Catheter, all this could change. Developed over the last nine years by Robert Goldman, CEO of Vascular Designs (and inspired by the death of his own sister to the hands of the disease), the IsoFlow Catheter cuts blood flow to the tumor by inflating tiny balloons before and after the feeder vessel, then recirculating the blood through a different passage. Meanwhile, between the balloons, chemotherapy treatment can be infused directly into the tumor at a much higher dosage than could be possible otherwise. This provides for a more aggressive, targeted and hopefully effective treatment. Of course, this only applies in the case of tumors with a well defined shape and vasculature.

Goldman spent two years and about US$1.8 million developing the IsoFlow Catheter and with the recent FDA approval, the product is now available for purchase. We’re not sure how much, but if your life is on the line, it wouldn’t hurt to inquire.

Keep reading for more pictures, a video and links.

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By David Ponce

These handcrafted ceramic and cork speakers by Joey Roth claim better sound by virtue of their construction materials not absorbing any sound waves and thus more faithfully reproducing whatever it is the artist intended you to hear. Other features include:

Output – 15 W/ channel, Sensitivity: 89 dB, Frequency Range: 70 Hz – 20 kHz. System includes a dedicated amplifier based on the Tripath 2024 T-Amp, oxygen-free copper speaker cables with banana plug termination, and interconnects for RCA and 1/8″ sources.

The stand is made from maple plywood and the set costs $500. No stock right now, but you can head over to the product page to email and be notified whenever they’re back in stock.

Keep reading for a couple more pictures and links.

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By Andrew Liszewski

If I had $4,400 to blow on a new oven, you better believe the Liftmatic from Siemens would be at the top of my wish list. For those who haven’t seen it before (this is the latest model which recently received a slick facelift) the oven itself gets mounted to the wall of your kitchen, and instead of having to lift your food to get it inside, the floor of the oven drops down to counter level making it quite easy to load and unload. And as an added bonus, since heat rises, the hot air inside the oven doesn’t escape as quickly as it does when you open a conventional oven. The new Liftmatic’s also got a series of lovely MP3-player inspired push button controls, and features eleven different heating methods including defrost, top and bottom heating, convection grill and warming.

[ Siemens Liftmatic Oven (Translated) ] VIA [ Born Rich ]

By Andrew Liszewski

I know, a lot of you have probably given up your landline phone in favor of just using a cellphone, but those of you who haven’t will be happy to hear that traditional phones are getting a bit more useful. Panasonic’s new KX-TG9382T two-line phone for example comes with Bluetooth which not only allows you to use it with a Bluetooth headset for handsfree operation, but also allows you to wirelessly transfer up to 600 contacts from a Bluetooth equipped cellphone to its own phonebook directory.

It also features a 40-minute digital answering machine so you don’t have to pay for voicemail, three-line conferencing capabilities and a Silent Mode allowing you to turn off the ringer at preset times of day, like when you’re trying to sleep at night. $169.95 for a single handset unit and $229.95 for a double.

[ Panasonic KX-TG9382T ] VIA [ Akihabara News ]

By Andrew Liszewski

It won’t guarantee you instant electronic music superstardom, but the new microSAMPLER sampling keyboard from Korg might put you on the right path to becoming the next Daft Punk or Chemical Brothers some day. It’s specifically designed for live performances allowing you to create samples from a line or mic input, its own built-in gooseneck mic or even an iPod thanks to a handy dock. It comes with five different sampling methods including one shot, gate, loop as well as key gate and auto next, and the samples can be assigned to each key on the keyboard while a string of red LEDs shows you the sample status of each one. Available now for around $500.

[ Korg microSAMPLER ] VIA [ SlashGear ]

By Chris Scott Barr

If you like to have a drink directly after leaving the office, then you might find this interesting concept to your liking. During the day, the After Office Tie looks just  like any other. However, once your jacket is off, a small bit of metal at the tip is exposed. So what’s that little metal bit for? Opening bottles of course.

I guess I don’t drink enough (or actually work in a big fancy-pants office) to really find this to be all that useful. I suppose if enough people want it, it could easily be turned into a real marketable product. For now it will be shown at the London Institute of Contemporary Arts from September 30th to October 4th.

[ DesignBoom ] VIA [ CrunchGear ]

By Chris Scott Barr

Laptops are awesome, but they do have their drawbacks. My biggest issue is that I like to use a mouse, rather than the trackpad after a while. Sure, it’s fine for a bit, but a mouse is just so much easier and more comfortable to use. That’s why Logitech has announced a new product that will help in this area.

This anti-slip laptop board keeps your computer firmly in place and has a slide-out mousing surface. Now you can surf the web on your couch with a mouse. Sure, you could try using the cushion as a mousepad, but it doesn’t always work so well. Since the mousing surface retracts into the lapboard, it doesn’t actually add any extra bulk, making it easily stored. Look for this later in the month for $29.99.

VIA [ Logitech ]