♦ YouTube on TiVo: It's about time

Digital video recorder TiVo is set to release a software upgrade that will let users access YouTube videos on their televisions, the company announced Thursday. The deal with the Google video-sharing site, originally announced in March, is scheduled to start rolling out in a few weeks.TiVo owners will need ...	1 vote

♦ Sony DSC-T20 cameras: sometimes they don't take pictures

Although it only applies to a small percentage of units on our shores, today Sony announced that "A certain number of DSC-T20 cameras (in pink and silver only) will vibrate when the power is switched on and will not be able to shoot pictures" due to a "mechanical failure that affected the lenses." Ouch. Since there haven't been that many incidents thus far in the U.S....	1 vote

♦ Monkey see, monkey do: Microsoft launches mobile app site (Updated)

Just days after the launch of Apple's App Store, Microsoft has put up a website that attempts to compete. I say "attempts," because the new portal, which is powered by Silverlight, looks very rushed. The site, dubbed "Windows Mobile Applications" under the slogan "DO MORE," aims to promote most of the applications currently available for Windows Mobile (estimated to be something like 18,000).	1 vote

♦ 60MP is the new 50MP

(Credit: Phase One)Less than two weeks ago, Kodak announced its new 50MP medium-format sensor, and only a few days ago Hasselblad announced its H3DII-50 camera based on it. The Hasselblad H3DII-50 became the highest resolution digital camera back...	1 vote

♦ Samsung introduces SL series of budget ultracompacts

Samsung SL310W(Credit: Samsung)Samsung just introduced two new budget models under a new "SL" series moniker. As seems to be rapidly becoming a trend, the SL310W incorporates a relatively wide-angle, optically-stabilized 28-100mm 3.6x zoom lens...	1 vote

♦ Samsung's new flagship snapshooters cool, but no longer NV-ious

Samsung TL34HD(Credit: Samsung)Personally, I thought "NV" worked as well as anything for the branding of Samsung's top-of-the-line ultracompact point-and-shoot cameras; nevertheless, for Fall 2008 the new leaders of Samsung's snapshot pack will be dubbed "TL". The two models announced today may have less interesting names...	1 vote

♦ Microsoft converts Live Mesh from private to public beta

Live Mesh is a new beta service offered by Microsoft that aims to allow users to access their data across multiple desktops, notebooks, and mobile devices. In other words, the service is primarily a syncing mediator for devices and data. Live Mesh has been in private beta ever since it was unveiled in late April. With Live Mesh open to anyone in the US...	1 vote

♦ June 2008 Windows XP Embedded updates released

Windows XP Embedded, the successor to Windows NT 4.0 Embedded, was released on November 28, 2001, and just like its PC counterpart, it is still being updated to this day. Microsoft has made available the June 2008 (a little late) updates for Microsoft Windows XP Embedded Service Pack 2, Feature Pack 2007, and Update Rollup 1.0. As usual...	1 vote

♦ Sigma releases another DP1 firmware update

(Credit: Sigma)Sigma this week has released another firmware update to its high-end compact camera, the 14MP DP1, which became available in March 2008. The firmware update, v1.04, adds several improvements to the camera. The zoom buttons can now be customized to control other functions such as ISO.	1 vote

♦ Panasonic debuts '3MOS' AVCHD camcorders

Panasonic HDC-SD100(Credit: Panasonic) In an effort to improve upon the light sensitivity characteristics of its prosumer AVCHD camcorders, Panasonic has switched to a new three-chip MOS system dubbed "3MOS" for its newly announced HDC-SD100 and HDC-HS100 models.	1 vote

♦ Flip Video's mighty Mino

Flip Video Mino(Credit: Flip Video)Although it was recently outed by B&H, Wednesday marks the official unveiling of Pure Digital's Flip Video Mino, the latest camcorder from one of the leaders of the low-res, straight-to-Web capture pack. Thinner and smaller than its popular sibling, the Flip Video Ultra...	1 vote

♦ Flashlight DVR brings us closer to living out our 007 fantasies

Well, maybe not quite 007. I mean, for one thing, could you imagine James Bond walking around with a huge flashlight sticking out of his back pocket? Well, maybe the Timothy Dalton 007, but he was never that cool to begin with. Dalton did redeem himself in my eyes with Hot Fuzz , however. Anyway...	1 vote

♦ JVC adopts AVCHD, CMOS for new HD Everios

JVC Everio GZ-HD40(Credit: JVC America)Updated 6/23/08 with information about the sensors.In an interesting turn, JVC's newest hard-disk-based HD camcorders--the Everio GZ-HD40, GZ-HD30, and GZ-HD10--will support AVCHD in addition to its traditional MPEG-2 formats. This is a great idea, at least for the interim...	1 vote

♦ Sleek 1080i HD camcorder unveiled by Sanyo

Today Sanyo announced a new member of its Xacti line, the Xacti VPC-HD1010 camcorder, a compact and lightweight (9.9 ounces with battery and SD card) full 1080i HD (1,920x1,080) camcorder. The HD1010 has a CMOS sensor that records both 1080i HD video and 4MP still images to either SDHC memory cards or the built-in 40MB internal memory.	1 vote

♦ Sharp's solar-powered LCD TV

(Credit: Crave Asia)At 26 inches for an LCD TV, you might sniff at its puny dimensions. But Sharp's shining some light on this particular flat panel, literally. Its 26-inch LCD TV, showcased at this week's G8 Hokkaido Toyako Summit, is powered by solar energy.	1 vote

♦ LCD making worse for environment than coal?

A chemical used to make LCD televisions and semiconductors could cause more global warming than coal-fired power plants, a report warns. Nitrogen trifluoride is a "missing greenhouse gas," according to a study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters on June 26. It's used in chemical vapor deposition, which makes liquid crystal displays, semiconductors, and synthetic diamond.	1 vote

♦ Y-cam Black: Internet cams need not suck

We've seen our fair share of Internet video cameras in our time, and the one thing they all have in common is the fact they're all either rubbish, broken in some way or just plain... sucky. One Internet video camera that doesn't fall into any of these categories is the Y-cam. Not only is it flippin' gorgeous and built like a brick house...	1 vote

♦ GPS with hands-free calling: Ask the Editors

Hi everyone. Starting this week, I will be answering reader questions about all things GPS right here on Miss Direction and Crave. If you need product recommendations, have questions about the technology, or ever wondered if a GPS can actually tell you to drive into water, this is the place to be. I'll be posting these Ask the Editor blogs every other week so don't be shy, send in those questions...	1 vote

♦ Are your shoes ringing, or is it just your feet barking?

ArchPort Shoes offers a hideaway wallet feature tucked into the sole of its "radically innovative" patented sandals and athletic shoes, with space for cell phones, GPS transceivers, wireless MP3 players, batteries, heaters, and other gadgets soon to follow. Company founder Matt Potts came up with the idea back in 1989 while playing tennis. "It's just not comfortable to carry stuff in your pockets...	1 vote

♦ Sony shows off some of its latest HDTV technology

The guts of Sony's OLED displays(Credit: Tweak TV)Kevin Miller, a contributing editor for CNET, was recently invited to Japan by Sony for a weeklong trip to show off some of the company's new HDTV technology. Among the highlights were Sony's new 4K by 2K projector...	1 vote