Those of you who followed the Canadian iPhone 3G saga know that our country’s largest GSM provider (Rogers) can be… how shall I say… interesting to deal with? Well it seems there’s some confusion/concern once again over another anticipated smartphone, the Nokia E71. Over the past few days photos have been popping up showing the Nokia E71 available at Rogers stores across the country for the incredibly low price of just $49.99 with a 3-year contract and data plan.

But a friend of mine who went to a Rogers store this morning with hopes of picking up the E71 was told, after they had asked him for all of his contact info, that the price tags in store were actually misprinted and should have read $149.99. A pretty hefty $100 difference. And he was signing up for a data/voice plan that was considerably more than the $45 minimum as indicated under the price tag. What’s even more confusing is that the Rogers website lists the phone as being available for as low as $99.99, with what turns out to be with a limited time $50 mail-in rebate.

So what’s the deal Rogers? Why have stores across the country had this misprinted price tag for several days now? According to Canadian law you should be honoring the $49.99 price if you don’t see fit to update your in-store displays.

“Sale above advertised price - The Competition Act prohibits the sale or rent of a product at a price higher than its advertised price. The provision does not apply if the advertised price was a mistake and the error was immediately corrected. “

Have any of our Canadian readers had the same thing happen when they tried to pick up a Nokia E71 from Rogers?

While fighting games like Mortal Kombat, Street Fighter and even Super Smash Brothers remain some of my favorite titles from the past 20+ years, you never forget your first. And for me that was International Karate on the Commodore 64. For being a C64 game the graphics in International Karate were actually quite good, but I guess when you consider the game just consisted of a couple of sprites bouncing around, it’s not surprising the developers were able to include some impressive backdrops like the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Sphinx and pyramids in Giza and even the New York skyline.

Of course International Karate came out well before the days of finishing moves, fireballs and other gimmicks, and was basically just a couple of guys (quite possibly twin brothers resolving an eternal grudge) duking it out using nothing but their karate skills. You scored points or half-points based on the hits you landed, and the first player to two points won the round. And in the event the clock ran out, the player with the highest score claimed the victory. There was also a series of great mini-games you got to play at the end of each stage like breaking stacked blocks with your head or jumping/ducking to avoid a barrage of throwing knives. Who needs fatalities anyways?

International Karate was definitely one of the staples of my C64 (you could tell because it always had a home near the front of the diskette box) and from what I recall, the fighting mechanics and control were actually pretty decent. However, I distinctly remember one little quirk that drove my friends and I crazy. Besides moving your character around and punching and kicking, you were also able to control which direction they faced. Now in modern fighting games the two opponents automatically turn to face each other if they cross on screen, but that wasn’t the case with International Karate. If you jumped over your opponent (or simply walked past them) you had to make sure you turned around in time, otherwise you basically set yourself up for a fist in the back of the head. It wasn’t the prettiest way to win a fight, but to a kid a win is a win.

[ MobyGames - International Karate ]

If you’re having trouble sleeping at night, there’s a good chance it’s because you’re stressed about something, and are unable to get into a relaxed state. But there are many solutions on the market designed to help you calmly drift off when you climb into bed, and the NightWave is one of them. Instead of sounds, medication or a novelty sized club to the head, the NightWave uses a soft blue light that’s just barely visible in a darkened bedroom. The luminance of the light rises and falls, and the idea is that you’re supposed to lay in bed with your eyes open and synchronize your breathing with the light. Over time the rising and falling will become slower and slower, which is supposed to relax your body to the point where you’ll drift off to sleep.

Now I’m sure the NightWave Sleep Assistant will work for some people, but I don’t see what makes an auto-dimming light worth the $69.95 that first STREET is charging, no matter how much medical know-how went into its design.

[ NightWave Sleep Assistant ] VIA [ GadgetLiving ]

If you’re unhappy at work, particularly with your co-workers or boss, corporate sabotage or even theft aren’t the answer. But this is. The Sonic Nausea is smaller than the 9-volt battery that powers it, but is capable of producing a unique combination of ultra-high frequency soundwaves that can cause anyone in its vicinity to suffer headaches, intense irritation, sweating, imbalance, nausea and even vomiting. And, thanks to the “unique soundwave characteristics”, finding where the source of the annoying audio is coming from is apparently very difficult.

You can pick one up from SHOMER-TEC for just $29, but don’t forget that you’re not immune to its effects. And wearing a set of earplugs will probably make it an easy guess as to who was responsible for it.

[ Sonic Nausea ] VIA [ The Red Ferret Journal ]

There’s an endless supply of novelty wrapping paper on the market this time of year, but if you really want to blow someone’s mind on Christmas morning, how about handing them a gift that’s wrapped in uncut legal tender?

Available from the Bureau of Engraving and Printing online store, you can actually order uncut sheets of crisp new U.S. bills in either $1, $2, $5, $10, $20 or $50 denominations. Just keep in mind that those sheets actually end up costing more than their face value, so a 32-subject sheet of $1 bills runs $55, while a 16-subject sheet of $50 bills is $900. And if you go the latter route, I would make sure the giftee isn’t the type who just shreds the wrapping paper off their presents.

[ Bureau of Engraving and Printing Store - Uncut Currency ] VIA [ bookofjoe ]

By Evan Ackerman

Cats know where it’s at. All they seem to do is sleep, eat, sleep, stretch, get you to pet them, lick themselves, and sleep. I’m not sure what exactly they’re good for, besides being warm and fuzzy while making you feel jealous and somehow inferior at the same time. It seems like the Chinese have figured it out, though: cats are USB compatible. Simply jam your peripherals into kitty’s spine, or its mouth, and you’re good to go. If you want to see something really messed up, I might suggest plugging a couple USB Humping Dogs into it. Just picture that for a second and you’ll see what I mean.

Available only in lots of 100, direct from China.

[ Alibaba ] VIA [ Gizmodo ]

This post is syndicated with permission from GamerFront.net

Peak has crafted what I humbly believe is the best guitar controller available. Over the last week I have enjoyed playing with Peak’s Obsidian Starpex Guitar controller for the PS3/PS2. The awesome people at Peak have taken a wooden guitar body and inlaied the electronic components into the guitar. This, much like the Rock Band Ion Drum Kit will set you back a few bucks, but is a worthwhile investment if you’re really into RB/GH and you’re a PS3 owner like myself. Read on for the full review.

This controller easily beats out the game guitars for RB/GH. The strum bar is excellent with very precise response. It feels and functions much like the one from the classic Black/Red SG from the original Guitar Hero. The housing that holds the whammy bar, start button, and select button also make for an excellent hand rest to help with quick strumming. With the wooden body, missing notes because of the guitar neck misregistering is a thing of the past. The lower five fret buttons can even be used in Guitar Hero for a little extra fun. Taking away the fallacies of the standard controllers has brought some new life into these games for me. It’s fun to play when you can precisely control when your Overdrive/Star Power gets triggered and you don’t have to worry about missing that damned orange note…

I tried the Starpex out on all of the past and present games and couldn’t find any issues with its functionality. My only complaint would be the lack of a control pad/PS Button on the guitar, but I believe that would most likely ruin the aesthetic of the controller.

This controller is super fun to play with and I highly recommend to anyone that has the opportunity to pick one of these up, to do so. I picked up my Les Paul and Fender earlier and they just could not compare to the look and feel of this controller. For the PS3/PS2, the Peak Starpex Guitar Controller is definitely my instrument of choice.

[ Peak ] VIA [ GamerFront ]

By Luke Anderson

My mouse doesn’t really do anything more than a standard mouse is supposed to do. Sure, it’s got a couple of extra buttons that come in handy when playing games, or just navigating the web, however, it’s all very basic mouse-like stuff. I’m quite happy with my mouse, as I can think of very few other functions I would like for it to serve. However, it seems that there is a growing need for mice that also happen to be scales.

I can’t imagine what the average person would do with such a scale at their computer, unless maybe they do a lot of shipping, and their items are rather small. I also suppose that if you’re selling drugs, it might be quite useful to have a small, easily-hidden scale at your desk. Whatever it is you happen to need it for, the MSC-500 Mouse Scale can measure in 0.1g, 0.005 oz., 0.005ozt., and 0.1 dwt increments. If this sort of thing is up your alley, it’ll set you back a salty $60.

[ AmericanWeigh ] VIA [ CoolestGadgets ]

By Luke Anderson

About a month ago I called up my phone provider and attempted to have it shut off. I haven’t used the line since I got it, and don’t even bother leaving a phone hooked up to it, as it simply rings nonstop with telemarketers. Unfortunately, it would actually cost more to have it removed than to leave it on, since I have a package deal with my internet and TV. I’ve noticed that more and more people are ditching their landlines, however, this seems to apply mostly to the younger generation. The elderly are especially dependent on their trusty landlines, and this is a product aimed squarely at that demographic.

The Telephone Ring Amplifier is a simple gadget with a self-explanatory name. Plug this into your phone line, then hook it up to your telephone. Now the next time someone calls, this baby will blast out a ringtone at 75dB. That’s about as loud as say, your average vacuum cleaner. If you can’t hear that from across the room (or the other side of the house), then you’re probably going to have trouble hearing the person on the other end of the line. If you’re worried about the price, don’t. This little gadget will only set you back around $4. My only question is why it is obviously shaped to look like a mouse.

[ SourcingMap ] VIA [ RedFerret ]

By Evan Ackerman

The Yogen Max foldable laptop charger eschews fuel cells or any other fancy schmancy type of portable power technology for the worst source of power ever: you. Although the details are sketchy nonexistent, Easy Energy’s charger purports to recharge things like MP3 players or even laptops with your beastly muscles. Just step on the pedal for an unspecified amount of time, and your batteries will be charged an unspecified amount. It’s an eco-friendly and potentially convenient concept prototype, especially if you travel a lot, but seriously, they expect me to work to charge my laptop? That’s nonsense. Utter nonsense.

No information yet on price or release date.

[ Easy Energy ] VIA [ Coolest Gadgets ]