Daily deal – Sabrent pocket USB HDTV tuner

by Scott Carmichael on

My deal for today is for the Sabrent pocket USB HDTV tuner. This tiny USB key contains a full HD tuner, and allows your laptop (or desktop) to pick up the signal from any local TV station, (analogue or digital). The digital signal compatibility ensures your device will still work after the big switch being made in February of next year.

With this device, you’ll be able to plug in the included mini antenna, and watch TV on your computer. Software is included for recording TV shows, and there is support for an electronic TV guide. If you have ever been stuck in a hotel with a 20″ wood grain TV, and nothing more than 4 channels of local farming information, then this device might be able to keep you entertained for a while.

The Sabrent pocket USB HDTV tuner is on sale for just $39.99, shipping is about $7 and tax is collected in IL, FL, TX and NC.

The package contains the USB tuner, a mini HD capable antenna and a credit-card size remote control. The included software works on Windows XP and Vista, sorry; no Mac support.

Rick Steves in Iran

by Josh Lew on

Rick Steves is the kind of guy who can tell you where to find the best Chianti in Tuscany. No one would label him an intrepid travel journalist… Until now. Steves, known as the host of PBS shows about traveling in Europe, recently went somewhere that few people in his line of work have gone before, Iran.

He spent 10 days traveling through the country earlier this summer, camera crew in tow. Though the show filmed during the trip will not be aired until next January (on PBS, of course), Steves related some of his Persian experiences on his blog.

He was also interviewed recently by Budget Travel Magazine. He related how he found the strict theocracy to be quite stifling, but how Iranian people were surprisingly friendly, good humored, even mischievous. “I’ve never had so much fun talking with people.”

Should Steves Iran journey inspire you to pack you bags, keep this in mind: all travelers are required to be led by a registered travel guide. Sound intimidating? It’s not really so bad, at least according to Steves. “I met a lot of Europeans using a Lonely Planet guidebook, and they technically had a guide, but he was off somewhere having tea.”

Photo from Flickr user Jayne Dough

Venezuela: Simpsons unsuitable for children, replaced with… Baywatch???

by Anna Brones on

The Simpsons is such a TV-institution that it is pretty much enjoyed all around the world. If you think Homer is amusing in English, just try him in Danish. But not everyone finds the classic dysfunctional family humorous. In Venezuela the TV show has been dropped from morning television because it was deemed unsuitable for children.

The BBC reports that Venezuela’s TV regulator finds that the show sends “messages that go against the whole education of boys, girls and adolescents.” Which show does a better job of sending positive messages to children? The bikini-clad, silicon-stuffed ladies of Baywatch apparently. That is exactly the show that Caracas TV station Televen decided to replace the mid-morning Simpsons slot with.

The Simpsons might make it back onto Venezuelan TV, just later in the evening. That way children can have their morning cereal with suitable half-naked American women instead of the unsuitable deadbeat, donut-eating father who says “doh” a lot. We wouldn’t want children growing up with a bad example now would we?

Big in Japan: Sony Reveals the World’s Thinnest TV

by Matthew Firestone on

Anyone who has ever been to Japan can tell you that this country has the most amazing televisions in the world. For years now, ultra-thin plasma TVs and high-definition broadcasting has been the standard, and with each new year it seems as if the best is yet to come.

Truth be told however, you haven’t seen anything quite like this yet…

Earlier this week, Sony announced that in December, they will release their ultra-thin Organic LED TV, a new generation television with a thickness of just 0.12 inches or three millimeters.

Yes, you read that correctly – Sony’s new TV screen will be about as thick as a few sheets of paper stacked together!!

Sony’s new technology is based on organic light emitting diode (OLED) technology, which will most likely transform the realm of electronics in the years to come.

An organic light-emitting diode is any light-emitting diode (LED) whose emissive electroluminescent layer is comprised of a film of organic compounds. These compounds are deposited in rows and columns onto a flat carrier by a simple printing process, and the resulting matrix of pixels can emit light of different colors.

In the case of TVs, OLEDs are self-luminescent and do not require a backlight. As a result, a screen sandwiching a very thin layer of organic material between two plates uses less power and offers brighter images and wider viewing angles than liquid crystal display panels.

All of this translates directly into the thinnest TV screen you could possibly imagine.

In December, Sony’s flagship Organic LED TV, dubbed the XEL-1, will be 9.9 inches (25.1 centimeters) wide and 5.6 inches tall (14.1 centimeters).

It will also have a hefty price tag of over 200,000 yen or US$1,740.

In an official statement to the press, a company spokesperson stated: “Going forward, Sony will progressively develop its OLED TV business alongside its existing line of ‘BRAVIA’ televisions.”

Currently, the BRAVIA flat-screen televisions are some of the most successful flat-screen TVs on the market, especially since Sony is expected to unveil the world’s largest flat screen TV in the months to come.

Although the flagship OLED TV will be modest in size compared to the huge TVs currently overwhelming the market, it’s hard to deny the coolness factor of the XEL-1.

Imagine a TV so thin that it virtually disappears when you view it from the side – amazing.

Of course, it’s only a matter of time before OLED technology improves to the point where the same technology could be applied to big screen TVs as well. Consider for a moment the possibility of a wall-sized TV so thin, that it could literally be hung as if it was a large tapestry.

The applications of OLED technology are, needless to say, endless. Currently, there are plans to use OLEDs in everything from computer displays and portable system screens to advertising billboards and car navigation systems. They can even be used for general space illumination, and may one day transform the way we light our interiors.

The future is indeed looking brighter.

Low-Budget Airline Jetstar is Going Places

by Kelly Amabile on

What happens when flight attendants do their own traveling? That is some of what you’ll see if you live in Australia and have access to the new documentary Going Places, a creative marketing tactic from the folks at budget carrier Jetstar. While it’s not exactly an Aussie version of Flight Attendant School, the eight-program series (which premiered today on Channel Nine) will follow eight Jetstar cabin crew members during training maneuvers and travels to several Asian countries and Hawaii. (Of course, these are all destinations where the carrier flies.)

Promotional material for the series claims that Jetstar is going behind the scenes at it “moves into the highly competitive international market.” As Neil noted earlier this year, the airline was named Best Low-Cost carrier by Skytrax. The Australian-based airline runs dozens of flights within OZ and to destinations throughout Asia, including Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, Cambodia, Malaysia and others. They also fly to Honolulu from Melbourne and Sydney. (I recently flew them round-trip on a short hop from Melbourne to Hobart and was satisfied with the service and budget price – US $170.)

You can view an intro and clips from episode one — looks like your standard reality-TV without too much excess drama. Will it make you want to fly Jetstar on your next vacation or sign up to work for the young company?