Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

While some past pronouncements of world-changing inventions haven’t exactly panned out as promised, this latest one will at least have a pretty large stage on which to prove itself, with none other than Al Gore and others paying £1,000 or more apiece in the audience. As you might expect, however, things are being kept as vague as possible ahead of the big unveiling, which is set to go down later today in London. One of the few apparently clued in in the matter, British Inventors’ Society founder Kane Kramer, would only go so far as to describe it as “a new science, a Super Material,” adding that, “It would be 80 per cent cheaper than any alternative means of production, and it will contribute in a major way to reducing climate change.” So, it’s “something,” but we’ll just have to wait and see if it delivers as advertised.

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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!

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NEC presented a good looking computer codenamed P5010, it can be folded to have slim dimensions, or in case you want to work, just “open” it. The computer includes a handle on the top, which is pretty good for movability scenarios, but on the other hand, while using the handle it becomes easier to make […]

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Comcast is pissed. Per the FCC’s latest vote, it can’t provide cable to more than 30 percent of the country. It has a 27 percent market share right now with 26.2 million subscribers. With the FCC’s 30 percent market cap, it can add fewer than 3 million new subscribers before it hits the wall, pretty much ruling out acquisitions of other cable companies or any major growth.

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin’s proposal to limit the growth of cable providers had been floating around for a bit and was sort of expected not to fly, but two of the four other commissioners have thrown in with him on the vote. It’s possible–if not probable–that the courts could get involved and throw out the decision, which Reuters points out they did six years ago.

The final vote’s expected to go down sometime before Dec. 18–so the two commissioners have time to change their mind–but Comcast will probably start rabble-rousing long before then. They’re probably already in the vicinity anyway, going on about the FCC’s decision a few weeks ago killing apartment-exclusive contracts. All in all, quite a beating for cable from the FCC this month. [WSJ, Reuters, Flickr]

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“Mommy, what are those cookies doing?”
“Well, honey, they’re fighting, maybe pretend-wrestling, and rolling around, having a good time, that’s all. They’re getting in the holiday spirit!“
“Have they been good? Will Santa bring them lots of presents?”
“No, honey, it looks like they’ve been bad. Very, very bad.”
In addition to the four patterns you see here, this disgusting set of Kama Sutra-inspired cookie cutters includes four more positions that are even more raunchy. [Pipparkakan (Swedish), via TFTS]

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The Great Pepsi MP3 Giveaway returns, but this time with…Amazon? Yup. Starting Superbowl Sunday (Feb. 3), Pepsi’s stuffing 5 billion bottles of Coke soda with download codes, but you need five of ‘em to get a free song. That’s right, there will be no casual Pepsi drinkers getting free songs on Pepsi/Amazon’s dime–which is about 40 cents a track, down from the 65-70 cents Amazon usually places in labels’ pockets. Consequently, not all of them may participate, which is lame-o on their part.

It’s a promotion people, come on–it helped put iTunes on the map back in 2004 and it might help Amazon’s MP3 store gain some much needed visibility. What’s interesting is that Billboard says this contest might serve as a tipping point to push Sony BMG into selling songs in the MP3 format–right now, Universal and EMI are the only two major labels doing so. If the contest isn’t an adequate carrot, Wal-Mart might be providing the stick, since it’s rumored to be threatening to drop Sony and Warner’s catalog if they don’t supply its online store with the MP3 format.

Given the fear labels have of the iTunes monopoly, you’d think they’d jump at a player-neutral format, and moreover, the chance to promote alternate players in the online music market. I, however, am not jumping at the chance to drink Pepsi. Blech. [Billboard via Paid Content, Flickr]

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