According to an article in the March issue of “Nature” magazine, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a new “beltway” for the battery material, lithium iron phosphate, that could be used to create new batteries that would charge in seconds, and hold more power in a smaller space.

This new method, if it becomes commercially available (possibly in 2-3 years), would allow cell phone batteries to be smaller and charge in 15-20 seconds, according to the article.

If this becomes reality, this would be a big breakthrough for gadgets. Laptop batteries that currently last 45 minutes would last hours. Cell phone and iPod batteries that last a day would last a week or longer.

The new Palm Pre phone slated to come out in June-July of this year has a wireless battery charger.  If this technology could be combined with this new MIT battery technology, you could simply charge your cell phone at a Starbucks, while waiting for your coffee, without needing a charger or cables.

Needing to charge gadgets at home might become a thing of the past.  Like casette tape, and Standard Def TV, kids in the future will be asking the question, “What’s a charger?”

You may recall that I had a heck of a time getting an adapter for my LG EnV2 from Best Buy. Well, unfortunately for me, after only 24 hours of use, the adapter started to make scratching noises. It got so bad, it became useless in just 2 uses. What a quality product.

To make sure nobody buys this piece of crap product, I’ll put it’s picture below once again.  You can find it at Best Buy in the car & GPS section of the store.

Well, I still needed a working adapter so I finally broke down and checked the Radio Shack website.  Unlike the prices at Fry’s or Amazon, their price was a little more at $11.  That would be on the high side compared to the other places, but then it’s Radio Shack after all.  That’s what they’re known for.  But like 7-11, it’s really close.  In fact, there are no less than 4 Radio Shacks close to me.

Upon entering the store, the lady (yes, a female clerk at Radio Shack!) walked up and I explained what I wanted.  She went to the adapter section and they had everything there, including a Y adapter, 3.5mm to 2.5mm, female to female, except for what I wanted.

Interestingly, the one I wanted was placed in the cell phone area of the store, of all places.  The place that I would automatically assume it should be located, is exactly where Radio Shack put it.  The clerk told me that they had moved just that item over to the cell phone section recently.

These guys are a little smarter than Best Buy, that’s for sure.  Maybe there’s a reason why these guys have been around so long. The item is shown below on their website.

Although this adapter isn’t as slick looking as the one from Best Buy, at least it works.  So this round goes to Radio Shack of all places.

As you may know, I downgraded to the LG EnV2 because I hated the touchscreen on the Voyager. In any case, the headphone jack on the EnV2 (and probably all LG) is 2.5mm, and not the 3.5mm for normal headsets.  This means that I need a 2.5mm to 3.5mm adapter to use a headset to listen to my music on the LG.  I decided to take a look on Amazon to see what was available.

The list below shows what pops up on Amazon when you search for “2.5mm 3.5mm.”  Some items were only $2, up to around $12, but with shipping, it would be more like $7 to $19 or so.  And of course, I’d have to wait for it in the mail, which I wasn’t in any mood for.

Next, I did a search on Fry’s website and got the following list with the same search.  On here, they have adapters from 99 cents up to $5. Of course, the problem with Fry’s website is that there’s no direct connection between the online items and what’s available in their stores.  You can call them, but sometimes it’s very hard to find out if something is in stock at the store.  There’s no Fry’s close to me so I decided to keep searching.

Next, I did the same search on Best Buy’s website and came up with the following list.

As you can see, Best Buy’s search sucks big time. It lists 4 items which have nothing to do with what I was looking for.  For that matter, I couldn’t figure out how my 2.5mm search was matched with those items.  If you have any online store, rule #1 is to make sure that your searches work properly so people can find what they want.

In any case, being the Internet savvy guy that I am, I googled Best Buy’s website by using the search “site:bestbuy.com 2.5mm 3.5mm” and came up with the following list:

As you can see above, the top item on google’s list is exactly what I wanted.  I clicked on it and found the following item below on Best Buy’s website:

Interestingly, the item is under “Car & GPS”, then “Antennas & Adaptors.”  Sure.  I would have easily found this.  NOT!  Unfortunately, this item comes with a bunch of other adapters that I don’t really need, along with the one that I do need.  But since Best Buy is close, and they do have the “pick up at store” option, I decided to go ahead and pay $15 for the conveinience.

This last decision turned out to be a big mistake.

The closest Best Buy did not have this item in stock.  However, all the other ones did.  So I ordered it for pickup at the second closest store in West LA. The following email came back 20 minutes later telling me the store did not have it in stock and that I would have to call their 888 number.

After going back on to the Best Buy website and figuring out that there is no way to cancel the order, or to even change it for pickup at another store, I was forced to call their toll free number. After going through their bot, the nice lady on the phone changed my order to the Culver City store, which is the 3rd closest.

After another 20 minutes, I got another email telling me the Culver City store was out of stock.  OMG!  Now, I’ve already spent almost an hour with this crap. I could have almost driven to Fry’s and back in that time.

Once again, I call Best Buy and this time, another nice lady answers the call but she can tell that I’m getting pretty frustrated by now. She tells me that the online inventory is separate from the in-store inventory and that she will check the in-store inventory for me.  After a few clicks, she tells me that the West LA store does indeed have 6 in-store and that I can simply go to the store and pick it up.  So she cancels my online order, and out the door I go.

So next time, I’m just going to call the toll free number and ask for the in-store inventory instead of using their stupid website.  That’s the lesson I learned here.

I wish my story ended here but it goes on a little more.  When I got to the store, I decided I wanted to test the in-store people to see how smart they were.  At the entrance, the cell phone section had 3 live clerks helping people. I went to the first one and asked if they had a adapter for my LG EnV2 so I can use a headset. She told me no.  So, I showed her the SKU number for the item I was looking for.  She told me to ask the second guy there.  So far, this is a fail.

I go up to the second guy and ask the same question. He types in the SKU number but it doesn’t come up because unknown to me, I wrote it down wrong. He does a search on the Best Buy website and comes up with the same stupid list that I got. BWAHAHA!  I tell him how to use google to find it and he’s amazed how well google works.

He sees the item on his computer but can’t figure out exactly where it is. We walk to the MP3 area and it’s not there. He asks the Geek Squad guy walking by and he knows that it’s in the car adapter area.  He walks me there and finds the item.

Basically, this last guy is the only person that really helped me find my item. The online store pickup, didn’t help me, except to tell me to go into the store.  The first lady at the store didn’t help me. Only this last guy helped me.

Most people would have given up BEFORE the second call to Best Buy.  That should be an indicator to Best Buy that something is wrong with their setup and they will soon be on their way holding hands with Circuit City if they don’t do something about it.

Dont’ say I didn’t warn you, Best Buy.

So now that I have my new JVC HD camcorder, I wanted to improve the images by getting a lighting adapter. After looking around the “Interwebs,” I came accross this interesting Ring light from SR Electronics called the Digi-Slave L Ring 3200 (MSRP $269.95).  After ordering online, the unit was shipped very quickly.

L Ring 3200 with LED cover on

This LED based close-up photography light/flash can be used as a continuous light source for videography. In my case, it’s for making home made pr0n and other indoor activities where the lighting conditions are not great.  The “ring” is made up of a bunch of white LEDs and is amazingly bright.

The unit uses 4 AA batteries or you can plug it into an adapter (not included) but that would make it less portable when you’re moving around.

With the brightness setting at the highest level, it’s very bright and might be too bright for using in close-up situations, especially pointed at the face.  At the lowest setting, it’s still bright enough for normal close-up situations.

Left side close-up showing brightness control and left/right on/off switch

The picture above shows the knob for the brightness control.  It’s a bit small for my taste but I suspect that most people who use this may not be changing the setting all that often.  The little switch causes the left/right side of the ring to turn on/off.  This is for photography where the objective is to make the item look more 3D.  For most uses, one would normally have both sides turned on.

Right side close-up showing on/off DC input and sync

The picture above shows the on/off switch, the DC input and sync plug if you are using this unit for still photography.

L-Ring LEDs on

The picture above shows the unit with the LEDs on at full brightness.  As you can see, it’s pretty bright and will be able to light up objects or people 10-20 feet away.

The following pictures show the light in action.  The first picture below shows an object with regular indoor ambient lighting.  The object is about 12-15 inches from the camcorder.

Ambient lighting only

The following picture shows the same object using the built in LED light of the JVC unit.  As you can see, the small LED causes uneven lighting, not to mention a blue-ish tint.

JVC built in LED light

The next photograph shows the Digi-Slave with the LED brightness setting to it’s lowest level.  As you can see, the lighting is more even than the previous picture.  However, there is a similar blue tint as with the JVC LED.  This might be something that could be reduced or removed via white balancing on the JVC but this test was done with the automatic setting.

L-Ring set to lowest level

In the following last picture, the Digi-Slave unit is set to the brightest level. Now you can see that the lighting is much more even and the blue tint is gone.

L-Ring set to highest level

All in all, I’m happy with this product which operates and works exactly as advertised.  It’s a little bit on the expensive side but if you want your amateur pr0n to look good, you have to pay the piper.

Not satisfied with the lens that comes with the JVC Everio, I decided to get a wide angle conversion lens from Raynox (model HD 6600Pro-43), a Japanese lens company. If you’re wondering why you’d need a wider lens, it can be great for buildings, long exterior shots, and of course, home made pr0n.  The last use is what I’m going to use it for mostly.

The Raynox website listed the US distributor as Digital Distributors. The U.S. distributor had it in stock for $141.75 and after ordering it online, they sent it out the next day via UPS.

This wide angle lens screws onto the Everio without any adaptors so it’s a good match.  The mounting thread is 43mm and the front filter size is 72mm.

The first picture below is with the Everio set to the widest setting without the Raynox lens. Click on the pictures to see the full resolution version.

This next picture below is the Everio with the Raynox wide angle lens. Again, click on the image to see the full resolution version. You’ll notice some blur and distortion on the left side of the image.  This is a common problem with wide angle adapters, and I’ve seen it even on semi-professional pr0n and even cable TV content.  The blurring is not so much that it’s annoying but you can notice it.  If you zoom in, the middle area is sharp.

The picture below is the Everio with the Raynox lens and the Digi-Slave L-Ring light attached on the Raynox. This is the way it would be used if I was indoors needing a light.  Of course, in real use, I would zoom in to remove the ring in the picture.

This last picture is the same setup as the one above except that I’ve zoomed in to eliminate the appearance of the L-Ring in the picture.  As you can see, the end result is about the same as the setup without any extra lens.

So far, I’ve used this lens about 4 times with good results. The blurring is there, but not so noticeable that it ruins the image. If you were shooting something for commercial use, it may or may not be acceptable quality. For the price, it’s more than acceptable for home use.

One problem with the lens is that it blocks the built in LED light on the JVC. In fact, if you have the setting on the JVC for automatic lighting, and the LED comes on, it will cause a strange half light on the right side. So be sure to have the setting on the “off” setting before starting.

All in all, I can recommend this lens for light semi-pro use, home pr0n use, and any amateur use.

After getting a Vizio HDTV, I knew it was just a matter of time before I needed to upgrade my camcorder to HD.  My current camcorder is the old standard definition hard drive JVC.  I got one of the original models that has a plastic lens cap.

Some of the “must have” items this time around were:

• Hard drive storage
  I’m sold on no media, computer only storage of video.
• Integrated video light
  This is for home made Pr0n and video taping at conventions and other dark places.
• Small in size
  So I can carry this around all the time in case something exciting happens.
• Integrated lens cover

After looking at the Canon and Sony HD camcorders, I finally settled on another JVC Everio. This one is the GZ-HD40 shown below:

The GZ-HD40′s MSRP is $1,299 (online from $845-$1,299) and features:

• 120GB hard drive
• 10x optical zoom
• 2.8″ LCD
• HD (1920 x 1080) resolution in 16:9 aspect ratio
• Still resolution: 2432×1368
• AVCHD / MPEG-2 dual-format
  1 minute in MPEG-2 format is approximately 195 MB
  1 minute in AVCHD format is approximately 123 MB
• USB, Firewire, Composite out, Component out, HDMI out
  USB, composite and component cables included
• Microphone in, headphone out
• LCD video light
• MicroSD slot (card not included)
• Micro remote control
• Image stabilizer
• Night recording mode

The JVC Everio is small and light (less than 1 pound) and easy to carry around in a small pouch or purse.  The LCD is a good size and relatively bright even outside.  Compared to my old Everio, the sound comes in much better, and 120GB of hard disk space is more than enough for even a fairly long trip.

If you’ve never used a hard drive based camcorder, let me tell you right now that this is the way of the future.  When SSD prices come down, that’s the next stage.  Using tape or even DVDs will soon be a thing of the past.  Why have a bunch of tapes around your house when it can be all in your computer? It’s a no-brainer.

One of the big features of this unit is the dual recording format (MPEG-2 and AVCHD).  This is one of the major reasons for selecting this unit.  Not all editing programs use the new AVCHD format but it does save some disk space.  The editing applications that come with the JVC, as well as Adobe Premiere Elements 7 allow you to edit with AVCHD format.  Some Blu-ray players (e.g. Playstation 3) can play a AVCHD disk directly without even having it converted to MPEG-2.  However, it appears that you cannot fast-forward the AVCHD disk (at least not on my Playstation 3.)

If you’re using Adobe Premiere Elements 7, when you import the AVCHD format, it will convert it to MPEG format when writing out to the DVD so you will be able to fast-forward like a normal DVD.

On a smaller note, one of the most annoying things about my old Everio was the plastic lens cover.  Thank goodness this new version comes with a built in lens cover.  It may seem trivial, but it’s was much needed and a great addition to this new version.

While on this subject, JVC also changed the way the unit turns on and off.  When you flip the LCD open, it will turn on, then when you flip it closed, it will automatically go into some type of low-power sleep mode but will turn back on very quickly when the LCD is opened again.  This is so much better than the old unit that I have where you have to use a button to turn the unit on and off.  Nice improvement.

Most of the settings are changed via the micro-joystick on the LCD flip-out and is relatively easy to use. The modes and settings are organized well and the LED light can be turned on using the joystick without having to go into any modes.

As for the “Night recording mode”, this is different from the green IR night recording that you see from Sony or other manufacturers. This mode just changes the settings for darker situations and does work.  For example, without this mode, my computer area with the lights off (using only ambient lighting), looks almost completely dark.  But with this mode turned on, you can see everything.  However, it does cause some graininess so you’ll have to weigh that versus the darkness.

Well, you know I don’t do reviews without a section of complaints.  Here they are:

Although the Camcorder itself has HDMI output, strangely, the docking station does not have one. WTF? This is very odd to me. I guess they must think that the docking station will be next to your computer and not next to your HDTV.

One very interesting feature is the ability to take still pictures WHILE you are recording video.  It’s in video resolution but it’s a nice feature.  However, you can only take 3 still pictures maximum during each video shot.  In other words, after 3 stills, you would have to stop video recording, and restart a new video segment to get 3 more stills.  I’m assuming it’s some type of RAM limitation but sometimes this limit can be a little annoying.  Of course, you can always get stills after the fact on your computer.

The built in LED light is located on the right side and can cause uneven lighting, not to mention a blue-ish tint to the image.  If you want professional looking video, this will not do.  For amateur pr0n or vacation videos, it might be okay.

Here are some more pictures of the Everio from different angles.  Click on any thumbnail to see a larger gallery version.

All in all, I’m happy with this unit, especially compared to my older JVC.  I’m completely sold on hard drive camcorders and will never buy a media camcorder again.  Compared to SD, HD images on your big HDTV looks fantastic.  However, don’t expect HD quality that you get from those $5,000 professional units.  You get what you pay for.

A friend of mine got her T-Mobile G1 the first day it was available. Here she is presenting it between her boobs.  That’s how she rolls.  For the most part, she likes it but there’s some things she doesn’t like.

I played with it for a few minutes and found that I had the same problems I always seem to have with touch screens.  I don’t know if it’s something wrong with my finger or something else but I had the same problem with the iPhone as well.  The unit is a little thicker than I thought and much thicker than the iPhone.

The Android UI is not as completely intuitive as I thought it would be.  After calling her phone, I wanted to store the number into her contact list but couldn’t figure out how to do it.  Obviously, there must be a way to do it but pushing the menu button didn’t do it and I didn’t know what else to press.

My first impression of the phone hardware was so-so. I like the QWERTY keyboard but not too sure about the touch screen.  Android was a little harder to use than I thought it would be but it might be okay after you get used to it.

I’ll have to play with it more to decide if I want to go T-Mobile/Android right now.  Maybe I can talk my friend into letting me play with it while it’s between her boobs.  Or not.

Once again, it was time to visit the Westfield Century City Shopping Center to meet my friend. It hasn’t been that long since my last trip but as soon as I went into the parking lot, I noticed what appeared to be really early Christmas lights in October.

As you can see in the picture above, there are a bunch of green and red lights everywhere.  At first, I just thought it was some weird viral marketing for some movie.  Then I noticed a pattern.  Spaces that were open had green lights, and spaces with cars had red lights.

The picture below shows the lights close-up.

As a gadget lover, I had to get out of my car to take a closer look.  Upon closer inspection, each and every parking space has what appears to be a distance sensor that detects when a car is in the parking space.  I’m not sure what technology is being used (laser, sound, or other) but from what I could tell, it worked very nicely no matter how big or small the car was.

Frankly, from a shopper’s point of view, this is great.  As you are looking for a parking space, you can clearly see the green light which indicates there is a parking space available.  It would be difficult to install the same device in outside parking lots, but it sure seems to work great indoors.

Of course, these lights still don’t stop a-holes from taking your space before you get there.

When you have a laptop that you move around a lot, and like using a mouse (instead of the built in Touchpad) it becomes a pain to have to plug the receiver in and out of the USB port.  After a while, you can feel the USB port starting to feel like it’s getting loose.

Enter the Logitech V540 Nano cordless mouse shown below.

Logitech V540 Nano Close-up looks like a Batman mouse

The mouse comes in Batman black and costs $34.99 at Best Buy online ($37.88 with tax). I noticed that the price has gone up to $49.99 for some reason.  I guess I got lucky.

But I digress.

What’s cool about this mouse is what Logitech calls the “Plug-and-forget nano-receiver.”

Receiver size comparison with VX Revolution (left) V450 Nano (right)

The picture above shows the Logitech VX Revolution on the left, and the V450 nano on the right.  The VX scrolls faster and uses only one AA battery, instead of 2 for the nano (see picture below).

Battery compartment and receiver storage spot in front

The VX also has a bunch of other buttons that I never use.  The manual for the Nano says that the 2 AA batteries will last 12 months.  I haven’t used it that long yet but that’s a real plus if true.  I hate having to replace batteries.  There’s also a battery low LED indicator.  That’s a nice touch.

"Nano" receiver plugged into back of Toshiba

The picture above shows how small the receiver is plugged into a USB port on my Toshiba laptop. As planned, I’ve left the receiver plugged in to my laptop with no problems.  Plug-it-and-forget-it.

Logitech claims that the 2.4GHz cordless connection is very reliable signal and to put it to the test, I connected my Toshiba’s HDMI output to my HDTV and controlled the laptop with the Nano mouse from across the room.  Everything worked as advertised.

I’ve only been using it for a few weeks but I love the plug-and-forget it reveiver.  But this tiny revceiver has made me think why the laptops don’t just come with this built into the unit.  They have the Wi-Fi built in. Why not this?  I guess there’s no good standard.  Standards are good for something.  This would be one case of that.

For me, this is a no-brainer.  Anybody with a laptop, using a wireless mouse, should get this mouse.  There’s no downside, and it works great.  I highly recommend it.

So after weeks of waiting, my port of the Vonage number to my ooma account finally went though.  There was some type of problem verifying that I was who I said I was and I had to send them a FAX of my electricity bill, which is rediculous because with Vonage, I am able to use it anywhere I take their box.

But I digress.

So, I go online to vonage.com to close my account.  As per usual (for closing accounts at any big company), they want you to call a live person, but they are not open on weekends or holidays.  So I wait through the Labor day weekend and call them on Tuesday.  For some reason, the first 2 times I called, I got disconnected after getting to the initial person on the line who said they’d transfer me.  The first one was definitely in India somewhere.

On the 3rd call, I got an American (maybe) who did not have to transfer me.  He apologized for the slow service because the Vonage computer system was down and it was difficult for him to access my account.  As a matter of fact, I wasn’t able to log into my Vonage account before calling.  More reason to close my account.

Then the customer service rep told me that if I stayed, I could get 2 months free service. Eventually, he did close my account for me.  Finally.  But he reminded me that there is a charge to close my account.  I “forgot” to read the fine print in the Vonage contract which says they’ll charge me $39.99 to close my account.  Damn it!

If I knew they were going to offer me 2 free months, I could have called them 2 months before I switched over to ooma, and saved enough from that to cover the cost of closing my account.  Oh well.

Now, it’s going to take me 2 more extra months to break even on switching to ooma.  I sure hope ooma stays in business that long.  (Crossing fingers and knocking on wood.)