BenQ dog tag MP3 player goes a little too far with World Trade Centre imagery on its advertising.

BenQ will recently be bringing out a new ‘dog-tag’ style MP3 player called the MusiQ. A great looking little player that comes in 512MB and 1GB file size, coming with a built in microSD card.

Two different types are available for boys and girls and some reports say that for a limited time BenQ are giving away limited edition gift set with carry cases and arm braclets with the players that are due for release on Dec 15th.

One very interesting point that seems to be making it’s way around the blogsphere is that BenQ are using images of the crumbled World Trade Centre to push it’s products. In my opinion, this is incredibly tacky and in very very poor taste. Surely the marketing department at BenQ could have come up with something better than that?

Ipod phone or iphone on the horizon?

From all accounts it looks as though Apple is bringing out an iphone. There has been a lot of buzz around the net of late about Apple’s foray into the mobile phone / mp# player combination, however a new patent application filed by Apple very strongly suggests that an iphone is on the way.

The patent describes “a portable computing device capable of wireless communications, comprising: an enclosure that surrounds and protects the internal operational components of the portable gadget, the enclosure including a structural wall formed from a ceramic material that permits wireless communication”.

The patent was filed back in Aug but was made public by the US Patent and Trademark Office on Friday.

Technology Magazine Red Herring reported that Apple has contracted a firm located in Taiwan to make over 12 million units of this new device but this has not been confirmed or denied by Apple.

Keep your eyes out early next year as this is the rumored release date of Apple’s latest gadget.

If you liked the Samsung YP-K5, check out the Samsung YP-K3

Scheduled to make a debut at CES in Janurary, Samsung are tempting us with the delivery of a new MP3 player. Slimmer than the Samsung YP-K5, the YP-K3 seems to be a lot slicker and thinner than the last iteration of the model. One interesting rumor is that this new version of the player isn’t going to have the tell tale in-built speaker that made the YP-K5 so different.

All in all it looks like a very cool gadget set to hit the marketplace next year for all you technology heads.

Crayola launches kid friendly MP3 Player

Crayola, the company we know and love responsible for many many kid-friendly edible/non-toxic products has decided to delve into the MP3 player market.

Announcing the Crayola mp3 player. Now you and I both know that most kids aren’t going to be doing online shopping looking for digital cameras, online coupons and MP3 players, so why would Crayola bring out an MP3 Player.

My thought is that my kids love music, and I know loads of other kids that do. The idea of giving my child a MP3 player that they can use and share is of great value to me as a frazzled parent on a long road trip.

The Crayola MP3 Player has large buttons to help little fingers navigate through songs etc, and also has two headphone jacks so they can share with a brother/sister or friend.

With the ever growing popularity of podcasting and audiobooks there is bound to be a plethora of kid related stuff floating around the net these days and it looks like Crayola want to cash in on this.

Podcasting getting bigger and bigger

According to a recent survey conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, it seems that the amount of podcasts and people listening to them have increased dramatically in the past few years.

"We are at a crossroads of a major transition in the way media content is delivered," said Mary Madden, a senior research analyst who worked on the Pew survey.

Using Podcast Alley as an example, the number of podcasts now available on their site has grown from fewer than 1000 podcasts in November 2004 to over 25,000 today.

Part of this huge growth is the release of Apple’s iTunes software, which brings podcasts to the masses without the need for a high level of technical skill.

It seems that roughly 12% of the population now listens to some form of podcasting, meaning there is room for growth as this medium starts to eek its way into the mainstream.

iPod in the air – in-flight displayed stream your iPod video content

Apple has teamed up with a range of different airlines to offer in-flight docking systems for iPods on international flights. For any of you who have traveled overseas on long flight, you know who frustrating it is when your MP3 Player runs out of batteries and are forced to watch the crappy in-flight movies.

The iPod docks will be set in the arm rest of seats on airliners of Air France, Continental, Delta, Emirates, KLM and United airlines, offering passangers an opportunity to charge their iPods while 10,000 feet above sea level.

Another very handy feature is that video content from your iPod can be streamed onto seat-back displays meaning you can watch all your favourite movies straight from your iPod video.

Virtual reality iPod

How’s this for cool. A pair of glasses that generate a virtual 44’ screen viewed at around 9 feet in front of your face that connects to your iPod Video.

These virtual display glasses also come with built in headphones giving you a surround sound home theatre entertainment experience without thousands of dollars of high tech equipment and pesky cables and wires.


Coming with 16 million colours and 23 degree filed of view, these little beauties let you watch any movie in style from you 30gb video ipod on the train, bus or even in the pool if you so wish.

Go to the official website