In case you were waiting for Microsoft to come out with something more unique than the slim new Xbox 360, it looks like you won’t have to wait that long. They’re coming out with a new Halo: Reach-themed limited edition kit that comes with enough bells and whistles to make it stand out from the crowd of regular Xboxes. Not that we’d really take a gaming console to a place where we can lose it in a crowd of consoles, but we’re pretty sure some of you look—and pay a little bit more—for this kind of uniqueness. To the tune of $400, or $100 more over the vanilla Xbox 360 S.
Gamers have known this for years: There are loads of different surround sound gaming speaker kits, but Logitech’s Z-series have always been awesome. Of course, this will still probably pale in comparison to their older $400, 505-Watt Z-5500 set, but the Z506 is being offered as a more flexible set that can take any entertainment device, including portables, set-top boxes and game consoles aside from a PC—all for a cent under $100.
The title explains it all: this power strip by Wet Circuits is basically waterproof and thankfully idiot-proof. We don’t know why we found the demos intriguing enough to explain why we suddenly want a waterproof power strip (since we don’t really remember the last time we poured water or thought about sticking a pair of tweezers into a live power strip), but hey, you might have a use for this. Water-resistant (the other videos show it working under water), protected from touch and tweezer-related idiocy, overheating, sparks, and supposedly lasts four times longer than the average power stip, this four-socket strip sells for $35.
More demo videos after the break if you can’t think of anything better to do with your YouTube-watching minutes. Or, if you’re also entertained by cheesy sales pitches (“isn’t this amazing?”), weirdly upbeat voice-dubbing (“hopefully, these are not my last words…”), and cute sales reps (“Jolin”).
Altec Lansing’s new Octiv Mini isn’t the most advanced iPhone speaker-dock out there, but it’s relatively affordable, which makes it good enough for us and every other Average Joe who happens to have an iPhone. Regular charge and audio playing is a given on the compact Octiv Mini, but Altec Lansing also offers a free Alarm Rock app to go with it, adding a handy alarm clock function to the device without having to add any more built-in tech that you’re going to have to pay for. The design’s pretty original too—a nice little bonus if you’re into tweaked geometric shapes.
Logitech’s Google TV-running set-top box will now be known as the Revue. News of Google putting out a TV box has already been out there for a while, but the name makes it officially official. Named after the entertainment revues of the early 20th century that combined music, dance and sketches (or what we know today as variety shows, or “America’s Got Talent” if you add a few judges), the Revue is pretty multi-talented as well, acting as a DVR as well as a means of giving you access to online entertainment through your HDTV.
