We’ve obviously been talking about food a lot this week. Food and travel are always linked, as we remember places as much for their tastes and smells as we do for their sights and sounds. While I’m now an avid traveler, I grew up taking pretty standard vacations to Florida and all-inclusive resorts. As such, I didn’t really get to experience ethnic cuisines and challenging tastes until later in life. The baby in the video, however, is getting a leg (or tongue) up on the competition by experiencing flavors at an incredibly young age. OK, enough of me making this sound poignant. Just watch a baby eating wasabi already.
Do more with your mobile phone – 10 great mobile accessories
Welcome to the “summer edition” of ten great accessories for your phone. In this lineup, you’ll find everything from the coolest stereo Bluetooth headphones to the latest in mobile printing technology.
You won’t find any of these awesome products at the local mall kiosk, and it is needless to say that the list is a bit of a geek dream. That said – with a little bit of luck, there is bound to be something cool for everyone in the lineup.
Dell Wasabi
The Dell Wasabi is without a doubt one of the wackier products in this lineup – this small product is not the latest in flavor enhancers, but is actually a state of the art inkless mobile printer. The Wasabi uses technology called ZINK to print photos on self adhesive paper about two by three inches.
The photos can be sent to the printer using Bluetooth, or from a digital camera using Photobridge over USB.
The prints are vibrant, expensive and fairly useless. But despite its total uselessness, I can’t help but love this little printer. Being able to print stuff off your mobile phone is just a ton of fun. I do recommend keeping it away from your kids, because you’ll be ordering more paper in about 20 minutes once they get a hold of it.
PRO’S: Fun, decent print quality
CON’S: Limited use, expensive paper, slow printing, no iPhone support
Price: $79 + $12 per 24 sheets of paper
Where: www.dell.com
Blueant Q1 headset
Wouldn’t it be cool if you could talk to your Bluetooth headset? Instead of fumbling for your handset, or trying to use the voice recognition in your phone, you can simply tell the headset what you want.
The Blueant Q1 uses simple commands to dial numbers, check its battery life or even ask it “what can I say?”. The headset looks fantastic, has dual microphones with voice isolation and up to 100 hours standby time. The best part of the headset is that you can update its firmware using your PC, enabling it to be enhanced with new features or bug fixes.
PRO’S: Excellent audio, very reliable voice recognition
CON’S: Charging requires a proprietary cable, could have benefited from Micro or MiniUSB. Complicated speed-dial programming procedure
Price: $129.99
Where: AT&T and Sprint retail stores.
Altec Lansing Orbit MP3 portable speaker
The speaker in your phone may be suitable for some hand free conversations, but it’ll never provide the kind of sound you need for room filling tunes. The Altec Lansing iM207 Orbit MP3is a battery powered, and highly portable speaker capable of producing an amazing amount of sound from such a small package.
PRO’S: Awesome sound quality, compact, long battery life
CON’S: Single speaker/mono
Price: $39.95
Where: www.alteclansing.com
Sony Ericsson Bluetooth Watch
The Dell Wasabi printer gets some company in the weird and wacky department with the Sony Ericsson Bluetooth watch. This stylish watch communicates with a compatible Sony Ericsson phone to display incoming calls, messages and more. The watch is rechargeable and has a vibrating alert.
The “only Sony Ericsson phones” limitation is easily bypassed thanks to several applications that bring compatibility to Windows Mobile and Blackberry phones.
PRO’S: Instant access to incoming calls and messages, good battery life, awesome retro/geeky look
CON’S: Operation on non-Sony Ericsson phones requires additional software
Price: $349
Where: www.sonyericsson.com
Sony Ericsson HBH-IS800 stereo headphones
The Sony Ericsson HBH-IS800 Bluetooth stereo headphones are an absolute marvel of technology. Unlike other headsets that rely on bulky electronics, the HBH-IS800 houses everything right inside the tiny earbuds.
PRO’S: Tiny, good audio quality on phone calls
CON’S: Short battery life, no track forward/back buttons, earpiece heats up because of integrated electronics
Price: $199.99
Where: www.sonyericsson.com
iPhone zoom lens
There is no denying that the camera in the iPhone won’t be replacing your regular camera any time soon. Even the new iPhone 3GS only reaches 3.2 megapixels. None of the current models provide a zoom lens (at least not a real one), so this 6X optical zoom lens for the iPhone may be just what you need. That is, if “what you need” is another useless gadget.
PRO’S: You may be able to make the occasional decent looking zoomed photo
CON’S: You, your phone and anyone around you will look like a dork
Price: $19.95
Where: www.brando.com
A new smartphone
Why bother outfitting your 5 year old phone with new accessories when you could be out shopping for a new smartphone! Prices of smartphones are at an all time low, and even the most advanced models sell for under $200.
PRO’S: Newest features, fastest web access
CON’S: May require a contract renewal and addition of a data plan
Price: Under $200
Where: Your favorite mobile phone operator
B
odyGuardz device protection
If you have a really sleek (smart)phone, the last thing you want to do with it is wrap it up in a case or jacket. BodyGuardz are a fantastic protection method that leave your phone looking cool.
The product is made of military grade plastic film, and is cut to size for each specific phone model. Applying the film is a little tricky, but application is made easier thanks to a small sprayer containing application liquid. By moistening the plastic film, any minor mistakes can easily be corrected. Once installed, your phone gains a bit of grip from the film, and is scratch resistant from almost every angle.
PRO’S: Excellent protection, without spoiling the looks of your phone, affordable
CON’S: Installing takes a little practice.
Price: From $14.95
Where: www.bodyguardz.com
Tekkeon TekCharge MP1550 and MP1800 mobile chargers
Tekkeon chargers provide backup power for your phone in a compact package. Their 2 most popular backup power products are the MP1550 and the MP1800. The MP1550 provides power off rechargeable AA batteries (user supplied).
The MP1800 has an integrated Li-Ion battery pack, and adds a handy LED flashlight. Each unit charges off USB, so you can fill it up using your PC, laptop or any USB wall or car adapter. Output power comes out of a regular USB jack.
Both chargers come with a carrying tote and an assortment of charging tips.
PRO’S: Backup power for your phone, enough for 1-2 full charges, easy recharging
CON’S: None
Price: From $24.95
Where: www.tekkeon.com
Arkon phone mount
By now, most readers have hopefully invested in some form of hands-free communication for in their vehicle. Of course, that still leaves the issue of a loose phone lying on the dashboard or center console. This is where the device mounts from Arkon can help – these mounts are available for virtually ever phone on the market, and can be installed on the windshield, air vents, or any of about 10 other installation points.
PRO’S: Easy to install, available for almost every vehicle, PDA, phone, GPS unit or satellite radio.
CON’S: None
Price: From $19.95 for a mounting kit
Where: www.arkon.com
Big in Japan: What Exactly is Wasabi?
Did you ever wonder what exactly that green stuff is that you smear on your sushi?
I mean, we all know that wasabi (わさび, 山葵) burns like a hell-spawned wildfire, and clears the sinuses with a fiery vengeance. But, where does it actually come from, and how can something so seemingly innocent be so unbelievably potent?
For starters, the best wasabi comes from Japan (no surprise there), most notably the Izu peninsula in Shizuoka prefecture. Much like American horseradish, wasabi plants grow naturally in stream beds, particularly where there is clean water that is free of impurities.
If you’ve ever had the pleasure of smearing just a tad too much of the stuff on your tuna roll, wasabi is a nasal irritant that is more comparable to hot mustard than it is to chili pepper. That wonderful little chemical that can have you rolling your head on the sushi bar is called an isothiocyanate, which coincidentally inhibits microbe growth.
Although there’s no denying that wasabi brings out the flavors of sushi, it may have been traditionally added to raw fish in order to prevent it from spoiling.
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Needless to say, you shouldn’t eat raw fish unless you’re absolutely confident in the quality of the fish. Just because sushi makes an appearance at an all you can eat buffet doesn’t necessarily mean that you should eat all you can!
Interestingly enough, most Americans have never actually eaten real wasabi as the stuff sold stateside is usually squeezed out of a tube. In fact, this stuff actually doesn’t even contain any real wasabi, and is usually nothing more than horseradish, mustard seed, and green food coloring.
Real wasabi, which I can assure you has no equal substitute, is sold in Japan in the form of a root.
Before it can be used, the wasabi plant is grated on a metal oroshigane (卸し金), which is a special kind of grater used solely for wasabi. Traditionally of course, the best graters were made of shark skin, and today upmarket sushi restaurants in Tokyo still grate wasabi according to this method.
(By the way, the lovely lady in the picture to the right is my dear mother, who is clearly showing her prowess at grating wasabi. Of course, not that she would ever touch the stuff, or sushi for that matter, but you can’t deny that she has good technique).
Once the wasabi paste is prepared, it should remain covered until served in order to protect the flavor from evaporation. In case you were wondering, this is the actual reason why sushi chefs always put the wasabi between the fish and the rice.
Well, I hope this little lecture on wasabi has been informative. Now that you know exactly what wasabi is, go ahead and impress your friends with some wasabi trivia the next time you’re sitting at a sushi bar.
But seriously – go easy on the stuff – it really does pack a serious punch!