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Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Bottom Shelf Blends: Seagram's VO & 7 Crown
Today, I go further down the bottom shelf with a comparisons of two Seagram's whiskeys. Seagram's was once a mighty Canadian beverage company with distilleries in Canada and the US, including Four Roses and LDI. It owned numerous brands including Crown Royal and also marketed spirit-friendly soft drinks such as ginger ale and tonic water. In the late 1990s, however, the company was bought out and sold into many pieces. Today Pernod Ricard, Diageo and even the Coca-Cola company own pieces of this once proud company.
The only whiskeys that still include the Seagram's name are two diageo blends: Seagram's VO and Seagram's 7 Crown.
Seagram's VO, 40% abv ($16)
According to David de Kergommeaux at Canadianwhisky.org, Seagram's VO is "produced at Diageo's distillery in Valleyfield, Quebec, with some spirit components coming from other plants."
The nose is extremely sweet. It smells like artificial maple syrup. It tastes about like that too. It's syrupy sweet with maybe a slight spice in the background giving way to a vaguely vodka-like alcohol quality. The finish has some ginger. This is sort of a caricature of what I think of as bad Canadian Whisky, sweet without much else going on.
Seagram's 7 Crown, 40% abv ($13)
Possibly because of the Canadian heritage of the company, most people seem to think Seagram's 7 is a Candian Whisky, but it's an American blended whiskey. American blended whiskey must contain 20% straight whiskey and the rest can be neutral spirits (i.e. vodka), coloring and flavoring. The distillery isn't disclosed but for years the whiskey was distilled at LDI, the former Seagram's distillery in Indiana.
The nose is very vaguely whiskey smelling. That's about it. The palate is just foul. It's sweet and only tastes very vaguely of whiskey. It's sort of a generic whiskey taste, though it's more spicy than sweet so tasting blind I might have guessed that it was a really bad rye, but it doesn't have any really distinctive qualities. The major flavor is just alcohol. The finish is like the taste in your mouth after a bad hangover. There's just no reason to drink this.
Well, based on these, I would say the once mighty Seagram's name has definitely fallen on hard times.
7 comments:
What?? No review of last year's 750ml Seagram's Extra Dry packaged with Seagram's Du-Rag? You stay classy Seagram's!
- August 1, 2012 at 9:44 AM
You're not supposed to sip this neat. When I was in college and ran out of beer and gin & tonic, I used to enjoy the occasional refreshing highball, the 7&7, that's Seagram's 7 and 7up, or sprite. Here's my recipe: Start with a tall highball glass. A plastic cup also works well. Fill with Ice. Add 1-1.5 oz. Seagram's 7 depending on how hammered you want to get. Then top off (or drown) with 8oz. of 7up or sprite. Recommended food pairings are taco bell, cheesy fries, buffalo wings, pizza, hamburgers, or any combinations of the above.
- August 1, 2012 at 12:31 PM
I would have expected this blog to have been more kind to these brands considering it is now yet another subsidiary of Diageo.
I'm pleased to see that at least a semblance of integrity has been retained.
- August 1, 2012 at 4:58 PM
You know, they could make Seagrams 7 a lot better blend. It still is made by ldi I am pretty sure. I get a good rye tastes in it, but there is so damn much caramel in it that it just ruins it. And as far as Seagram gin goes, still one of the best gins on the market I think. Still aged about a month in used bourbon barrels. I still enjoy it.
- August 3, 2012 at 4:43 AM
gin not in barrels its colored not aged through juniper berrys for hour and a half
- February 18, 2013 at 10:40 AM
I'm very surprised by this negative blog. I've love Seagram's 7 for 27 years and it is always my "go to" whiskey. it has my loyalty and stands out as a brand leader among whiskeys to me!
- November 23, 2014 at 8:30 AM
- Unknown said...
I've bartended for 25 years and VO or 7 have always been a good well whiskey. They taste pretty close and nobody ever complains.
- April 6, 2019 at 3:33 AM


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We say it every December, but this time we mean it - this is the best year for gizmos ever. In addition to impossibly tiny phones, incredibly sharp digicams, and elegantly enormous TVs, this season brings us toy robots that don't suck, an all-powerful new game console, sleek portable video players, and revolutionary home appliances. You've been good all year, haven't you?
Photographer: Craig Maxwell
Illustrator: UPSO
Stylist: Shannon Amos/Artist Untied
Take a Picture, It'll Last Longer
By Sonia Zjawinski
Two words: optical zoom. The Samsung a940 takes 2-megapixel stills, focusing in on subjects without nasty pixelation. The hi-res CCD makes the action caught in video mode worth the screen time, and the a940 supports TransFlash memory cards, letting you save loads of pics, video clips, and even music in MP3, AAC, or AAC+ formats. Text messaging is incredibly easy with the phone's speech-to-text dictation feature - say what you really mean, no crummy abbrv8ns needed.
a940: $400, www.samsungelectronics.com
Optical zoom:
The a940 uses a 2X optical zoom to zero in on subjects instead of relying on software to digitally enlarge images. The result: sharp, detailed photos. And the heavy-duty optics don't add bulk, either: You'll barely notice the lens and flash tucked into the hinge.
Rotating LCD:
To help frame shots, the 1.5-inch LCD rotates 90 degrees in either direction, making it simpler than ever to take compromising party pics and contemplative self-portraits. Plus, the large screen makes viewing photos easy on the eyes - no more squinting to check your snaps!
Use the camera to photograph that superhot honey's business card. Through the magic of optical character recognition, the letters are transformed into text data that's then transferred to the phone's contact list. It's the ultimate address book for the terminally lazy.
Watch where you point that thing! The Professional Executive Model is made from the same types of exotic wood used in handgun grips. Carved from your choice of Cocobolo or Honduras rosewood, no two phones are alike because no two grains are alike. Its midsection is made from aircraft aluminum, its buttons are stainless steel, and its screen is protected by abrasive-resistant acrylic, so even those with a lot of junk in their trunks won't dent this hard body. With a laundry list of extras - 1.3-megapixel digital camera, camcorder, 32-Mbyte internal memory, MMC card slot, Bluetooth, digital audio player, FM radio - this fully loaded piece is equal parts style and substance.
Professional Executive Model: $1,900, www.mobiado.com
The Finns struck silver in '98 with the 8810 mirrored slider, and fans have lusted for another beauty ever since. Nokia has finally answered the call with the 6265. Boasting a QVGA color display that works in both portrait and landscape modes and a 2-megapixel digicam (complete with flash and 4X zoom) that can record video, this metallic mobile is even better than its ancestor. The question is: How did they also squeeze a digital audio player, a MiniSD slot, and Bluetooth into its 0.87-inch-thick case?
6265: About $300, www.nokiausa.com
It's a Sidekick for grown-ups. The MDA features the same design and sliding screen as its youthful counterpart, but plays older brother by running the-bermature Windows Mobile 5.0. Use the 2.8-inch touchscreen and QWERTY keyboard to check email, IM, and update your blog. Built-in Wi-Fi lets you hop onto any network for even faster data transfers. Now that's smart.
MDA: $400, www.t-mobile.com
That rosy RAZR you've seen in-celebrity hands but not in stores is finally available to commoners. Like its black and silver siblings, the Special Edition Magenta RAZR (originally made for tennis star Maria Sharapova) is housed in-aircraft-grade aluminum, flashes chemically etched metal buttons, and snaps digipics at up to 640 x 480 pixels. Using a GSM band, you'll soon be chatting like Paris Hilton in more than 100 countries. éEsta caliente!
Magenta RAZR: $300, www.motorola.com
Not many phones can get you out of a bad date without a human accomplice. The Slider Sonic's Rescue Ring calls you at a scheduled time, and a prerecorded voice helps you make an excuse to jump ship. The compact handset doubles as a WMA and MP3 player (with 16 megs of internal-memory, plus a TransFlash memory slot). It also packs a 0.3-megapixel digicam for capturing stills and minivids, so you can show your friends just how creepy the "match" you met online truly was.
Slider Sonic: $250, www.kyocera-wireless.com
So your eyes aren't what they used to be. Nothing to be ashamed of. Just follow Colonel Klink's example and order a phone monocle. The rubbery magnifier wraps around most candy bar mobiles, enlarging screen fonts up to 200 percent so even you can read text messages. Available in seven colors, the phonocle has a grippy exterior that keeps your cell from sliding off smooth surfaces.
Phone Monocle: $10, www.enablemart.com
Finding a cool-looking hands-free kit for the car is harder than scoring cheap gas. Designed to resemble an old-fashioned microphone, the HF-6W plugs into your ride's lighter socket and borrows from recording-studio tech by using four tiny, high-grade mikes to catch every expletive of your road rage. Meanwhile, trusty Bluetooth lets you yap wirelessly so you can keep your hands at 10 and 2.
HF-6W: $179, www.nokiausa.com
They're not strong enough to rock the block party, but LG's 2-watt portable stereo speakers do-provide sufficient boom to get your hotel room hoppin'. When it's time to check out, the set folds into the same footprint as a clamshell talker, leaving plenty of room in your luggage for all those "liberated" shampoo bottles.
Portable Stereo Speakers: $60, us.lge.com
Think the ROKR sucks? This iPod-esque mobile liberally borrows details from early versions of Apple's digital audio player, right down to its click wheel-controls. With 1 gig of internal memory (whoa!) and a TransFlash card slot, the 1886 is more jukebox than phone. Plus, it syncs with both Musicmatch and iTunes. A 2-megapixel camera shoots stills and 30-fps MPEG-4 video. Too bad it doesn't look like the nano.
1886: $300, www.hop-on.com
The PEBL V6 is sculpted out of metal and then coated with a rubberized material to make it look like it's been smoothed by the sea. How romantic! Plus, the coating helps keep fingerprints from marring its onyx exterior. More cool features: The stone phone shoots 640 x 480-pixel digipics, and its hinges are spring-loaded so it snaps open like a switchblade. You talkin' to me?
PEBL V6: $300, www.motorola.com
Don't call it a smartphone: This cell is more play than work. It uses high-speed EV-DO to stream video-on-demand. Stereo speakers flanking its 1.75 x 1.5-inch, 320 x 256-pixel screen pump impressive sound. And though a QWERTY keyboard lets you respond to email, don't expect to do much else of import - the VX9800 doesn't have an OS dedicated to handling other software, so you can't review Word docs or run other productivity apps.
VX9800: $350, us.lge.com
Baby Got Backlight
By Evan Shamoon
You are what you watch - and owning the world's first LED-backlit LCD makes you the Mack Daddy of television. Sony's Qualia 005 features a tri-color LED system that fires sharp bursts of luminosity through the screen image, resulting in a wider and more accurate range of colors. The set also displays images at a full 1,080p, so you can play your new PS3 videogames in all their native hi-def glory. With a sleek design and 10 speakers powered by a beefy 100-watt digital amp, this 46-inch black beauty brings haute couture to your living room for about the price of a new Scion.
Qualia 005: $15,000, www.qualia.sony.us
While most LCDs start with a white light and push it through filters to put color onscreen, the Qualia 005 is backlit by Sony's new proprietary Triluminos array of individual red, green, and blue LEDs.The result? The first LCD that's actually more vivid than a CRT monitor, displaying hundreds of thousands more colors than its competitors.
This set may not make your surround sound system obsolete, but it sure tries. Sony packs 10 speakers into the TV's 5-inch-deep frame - four tweeters, two midrange drivers, and four woofers - all powered by a 100-watt S-Master digital amp. And with a host of digital and analog inputs, it doubles as the most expensive boom box ever.
The Qualia's 25 input and output connections - including two HDMI, three iLink, three S-video, a PC video, and six audio inputs - are all located on the separate Media Receiver Unit. Attach just one long cord and you can hide the unit anywhere you want, leaving the wall-mountable screen's profile unencumbered.
Most high-end TVs strive to be sleek and elegant. Hannspree takes the road less serious with its line of flatscreen LCDs. Rather than simple black-and-silver rectangles, these sets range in shape from Buzz Lightyears and basketballs to fire engines and wristwatches. And the tech within is solid: Smaller models run up to 1,024 x 768 resolution, while widescreen units (23 inches and larger) are HDTV-ready, able to output 480p, 480i, 720p, or 1,080i content. The sports-inspired sets will impress even the most rabid of fans. When watching the Knicks and Spurs battle for a playoff slot, rest easy knowing the basketball-shaped TV uses NBA-approved leather.
Various models: $400 to $1,200, www.hannspree.com
JVC 70-INCH LCoS
In the hi-def orchestra, liquid crystal on silicon, or LCoS, has long played fourth violin (behind plasma, LCD, and DLP) due to its Stradivarian cost. JVC finally makes LCoS affordable, thanks to a new manufacturing technique that stabilizes performance and maximizes production yield. Plus, the process improves contrast and reproduction of dark colors. This 70-inch, rear-projection 1,080p set has optical digital audio output and inputs galore - including dual-HDMI, component, and FireWire ports and a built-in media card reader - so you can plug in everything from a camcorder to a CompactFlash card.
HD-70FH96: $6,000, www.jvc.com
This plasma set's picture quality is as much about the glass as it is the gas. Its crystal emissive layer - essentially, a magnesium-infused glass structure that helps conduct energy - enables each cell to be charged and discharged much faster. That means improved contrast ratios, brightness, and black levels, not to mention energy efficiency. Stick your memory card into the included Media Receiver and marvel (or cringe) at your digital photos on the 50-inch screen.
Elite PRO-1130HD: $6,500, www.pioneerelectronics.com
The term "home cinema" goes from wishful thinking to wide-eyed blinking. This projector is actually more powerful than those found in most multiplexes. It has a native resolution of 1,280 x 720 and can throw a 10-foot-wide image up on a wall without a significant loss in clarity. Factor in the AutoScope add-on that stretches the picture horizontally to give those classic anamorphic CinemaScope and Panavision films a true 2.35:1 aspect ratio - sans black borders - and Quentin Tarantino may start crashing your pad for movie night.
VX-2c: $30,000 ($9,000 for CineWide with AutoScope), www.runco.com
Decoding TV spec sheets can be tricky. Here's a quick-and-dirty guide to the lingo.
The highest-res HDTV standard currently available. This format shows images by refreshing all 1,080 lines in every video frame rather than only half the lines per frame like a normal TV signal. Each of the 60 frames per second is a full progression from the previous one - hence "progressive" (and the p). Computers use this standard, which yields more fluid motion and less flicker than standard TV screens.
This high-definition format displays images with 1,080 lines in an interlaced manner (noted by the i). "Interlaced" means that the TV presents only half an image at a time. The screen flashes 60 times per second, alternating between the odd- and even-numbered lines of an image. But because it happens so quickly, these sets of interlaced lines appear to the viewer as full screens, albeit with considerable flicker.
A bit thicker than your Visa card, this device slips into a slot on your HD display, allowing you to watch digital cable programming without a cable set-top box. It's not all gravy though - make sure your card is a two-way device, or video-on-demand and electronic program guide features won't be available.
The difference between the light intensity of the brightest and darkest possible tones a display can reproduce. The greater the difference, the sharper the display. For instance, 10,000:1 provides a supercrisp picture.
Commonly associated with computers, this all-digital connector can transfer data between your television and your camcorder, hard drive, or even PC at speeds of up to 800 Mbps. Dropping that latest episode of Extras from your laptop onto your DVR has never been faster or easier.
A 19-pin connector that links your audio or video source (DVD player, game console, receiver, etc.) to your TV. One HDMI cable provides more than enough bandwidth needed to handle uncompressed hi-res video and eight-channel surround sound.
The level of detail at which your set was designed to present images. Displays scale up smaller images and scale down larger ones to fit into the area of the native resolution. It's the same effect as losing clarity and sharpness when you enlarge a small image in Photoshop or see digital artifacts after shrinking an image to view on your iPod nano.
She's Alive!
By Patrick Di Justo
Amazing Amanda really is amazing: She talks, senses, and understandsthe world around her far better than many toddlers. She speaks English in charmingly not-quite-grammatical sentences. She tells time and adjusts for daylight savings. She identifies what she's wearing and complains if she doesn't like it. Best of all, she comes toilet trained. Amanda can do all this and more with just 32 megabits of memory. While her repertoire of actions is limited and repetitious (and, really, what kid's isn't?), what she can do is so realistic it's scary.
Amazing Amanda: $100 (ages 4 and up), www.playmatestoys.com
Voice recognition
After a brief setup of her clock and calendar, Amanda establishes who her "mommy" is (using voice rec to remember her primary caregiver) and can understand 50 spoken words. Her comprehension isn't perfect - several times Amanda failed to identify my baritone voice as Mommy. But she did politely offer to play with me until Mommy came back.
In addition to singing and making animal noises (oink!), Amanda plays Funny Face. She announces an emotion, such as sadness, and microactuators in her face contort her features into approximations of that feeling. The faces are coupled with appropriate sounds. (Sorry, no real tears - the instruction manual warns that Amanda is, uh, allergic to water.)
Amanda's plastic food (included) is embedded with RFIDs. If she asks for a cookie and you serve her spaghetti, she protests. RFID sensors in her neck tell her what she has on (additional outfits available this spring); sensors in her rear alert her when she's on the potty (included); and sensors in her scalp remind her that you're brushing her hair, which she loves.
Developed by mechanical engineering students, Deflexion makes light of other strategy games. Each player begins with 12 Egyptian-themed pieces and a laser built into the board. The goal is to arrange your pieces so that the laser's beam bounces off their mirrored sides in a path to your opponent's Pharaoh, killing him. And no, the laser doesn't have that effect on people.
Deflexion: $38 (ages 9 and up), www.deflexion.biz
These foam covers hook onto standard bicycle or skating helmets to give them, and your children, a whole new look. Designs include a screaming frog, a smiling ladybug, and a scramble of gray matter. The brain cover is embedded with blinking LEDs for safety and lets your daughter masquerade as a highly advanced alien taking a cycling tour of Earth. Who cares about aerodynamics when your kid is showing off her big flashing brain?
Nogin Sox Decorative Helmet Covers: $20-25 (all ages), www.noginsox.com
Repurpose your Matchbox cars as dino-bait. Unlike last year's Robosapien, which had to be controlled manually, Roboraptor "wakes up" in predator mode and automatically hunts and bites any small moving object in its field of vision. Touch sensors in the creature's mouth let it know when it has a grip. After a few shakes it releases its victim, then continues roaring and sniffing, seeking to feed its insatiable appetite for prey. The dinobot can also be controlled via an infrared remote. Your little red Corvette is toast!
Roboraptor: $200 (ages 8 and up), www.roboraptoronline.com
This totally kid-powered molded-plastic car needs neither pedals nor batteries. Its design puts Newton's action-reaction law to work: Torque applied to the handlebars transfers lateral motion to the wheels, converting angular force to linear momentum, which accelerates the car. The more riders drive (er, weave)-la Maggie Simpson, the faster they'll go. The transmission smooths out the jerky motion and propels the vehicle at up to 6 mph. Go, speed racer, go!
Plasmacar: $70 (ages 3-12), www.plasmacar.com
Even before Elmo makes it out of the box, he can know your child's name, birthday, favorite food, and siblings. Each Muppet contains a small computer that parents can program from a PC (the CD-ROM and USB cable come in an exterior pouch). Elmo also has a repertoire of songs, games, and stories. On the big day, Junior can unwrap his gift and hear, "Hello, Dieder! Let's play." He'll feel like the most important person in the world - or the star of a Twilight Zone episode.
Elmo Knows Your Name: $40 (ages 18 months and up), www.fisher-price.com
What better way to really understand the physics of radio than to build one from scratch? This is an actual heterodyne, or vacuum tube, radio - just like the one Grandma used to listen to. The tuner is a variable capacitor, and it uses coil antennae to pick up short- and medium-wave (AM) signals. It's all enclosed in an ultramodern old-timey wooden box.
Radio Ace Vintage Radio Kit: $120 (ages 12 and up), www.thamesandkosmos.com
Keep your fledgling stunt pilot's feet firmly on the ground. The Mako Shark Jaw has an aerodynamic design that makes it highly maneuverable. Air from the front wing flows over the top, creating a partial vacuum and inducing lift, just as with a regular aircraft. But then, that over-the-top airflow is directed strongly downward, creating a vortex between the front and "internal" wings, which reduces drag and creates even more lift. The airplane does not need a conventional vertical tail and rudder - all directional navigation comes from adjusting the airflow over the wings via radio control. An electric fan in the rear pushes the craft, which also glides amazingly well.
Mako Shark Jaw Jet: $160 (ages 10 and up), www.iwatoyco.com
Aibo is a mobile computer posing as man's best friend. The latest rover maps a room and remembers the layout when it returns. Using voice recognition software, it identifies speakers and learns new commands (you have to teach it to bark). Install the included software and Aibo can sync with Microsoft Outlook to remind you of appointments. The app even enables the bot to network wirelessly with your computer and roam the house, streaming everything it sees and hears back to your machine - call it Snoopy mode.
Aibo Entertainment Robot: $2,000 (ages 8 and up), www.aibo.com
This mad-scientist lab packs major gross-out cool. It's stocked with offal- and insect-shaped molds and specially textured, colored, and flavored gelatins in the guise of chemicals. Your kids can mix a packet of pinkish gray gelatin, pour it into a brain-shaped mold, and in a few minutes they'll have a realistic-looking brain they can squish between their fingers and eat, mwah-ha-hah. Other packets turn into malted-like liquids that look remarkably like blood and mucus. Shake, anyone?
Doctor Dreadful Freaky Food Lab: $25 (ages 5 and up), www.funrise.com
Out-of-this-world sound
By Sean Cooper and Lucas Graves
Mars attacks! Wait, make that Planet Shenzhen. Chinese audio heavyweight Shanling launches an all-out assault on your CD collection with this space-age player. Though exquisite to behold, the curvy exterior is actually more about function than form: Shanling designed the limited-edition T300 around a highly regarded top-loading Philips CD system that's no longer in production. Inside the solid aluminum chassis, audiophile-grade processors upsample standard 16-bit, 44.1-kHz CDs to ultrarich 24-bit, 96-kHz audio, while cutting distortion to a bare minimum. Finally, four retro vacuum tubes take the digital edge off.
CD-T300: $7,000, www.musichallaudio.com
A unique swing-arm transport system, built by Philips, guides the laser across discs in an arc rather than a straight line. This design reduces tracking errors - tiny misreadings that audiophiles say make CDs sound clipped. Shanling dug up 300 of the transports to use in the players (Philips stopped making them in the '80s). When they're gone, they're gone.
Most CD players have only one conversion chip, which transforms the digital information on Franz Ferdinand's new disc into spunky punky dance rhythms. Here, the bit crunching is split between eight processors - four per channel - to limit signal jitter, a source of distortion in single-DAC players.
After the disc's 1s and 0s are converted to analog waves, four Electro Harmonix double-triode valves boost the signal for output to a preamp or receiver. Hi-fi nuts praise the ear-pleasing harmonic distortion that tubes contribute, which gives music additional warmth. The mellow orange glow looks pretty hot, too.
Nothing takes the "Yeah!" out of your Lil Jon rap-alongs like getting tangled up in headphone cords. Not a problem with these buckets, which blast stereo sound from MP3 players or cell phones wirelessly over Bluetooth. (The included silver dollar-sized adapter lets you use them with your iPod or other non-Bluetooth devices.) A telescoping mike helps with gabbing, and six buttons on the right earpiece skip through tracks, adjust the volume, answer your phone, and pause the music while your gadgets remain safely tucked in a pocket. If only there were a button to improve your rhyming.
Pulsar 590A: $200, www.plantronics.com
Where's the joy in listening to webcasts of obscure Sex Pistols covers if you can't slam around the backyard to the beat? This tabletop speaker box uses 802.11b and g connectivity to unlock Internet radio from your PC. Switch it on and load the latest lineup - more than 2,500 stations at last count. It'll even stream music files stored on your computer, letting you switch to something more familiar when the Urdu version of "Anarchy in the UK" starts to grate.
AE Wi-Fi Radio: $350, www.acoustic-energy.co.uk
Denon stopped short of cladding this system in white acrylic, but full iPod integration makes it the perfect mate for your Apple player. Hook up your third- or fourth-gen 'Pod to the S-301 and use the remote to navigate song menus displayed on your TV. The DVD player can upconvert video to hi-def resolution, and sound-processing technology from Dolby simulates 5.1-channel surround out of only two speakers and a subwoofer.
S-301: $1,599, www.denon.com
Don't let Wi-Fi wonks have all the fun zapping music around the house. This bookshelf system comes with a USB dongle that connects it to your PC wirelessly over the 2.4-GHz band - no 802.11 network required. When not streaming digital tracks, fire up the disc drive and spin the full monty of music formats (DVD-A, MP3, WMA, and more) or connect the EX-D5 to a TV and make headway on your Netflix queue. Bonus: The stamped birch speaker cones make for interesting cocktail conversation - JVC soaks the wood in sake to make it malleable before shaping.
EX-D5: $605, www.jvc.com
Now that stereos and CD players are being replaced by PCs, a high-quality sound system built around your computer makes a lot of sense. The iCub jams a digital-to-analog converter, subwoofer, and amp into a single box, letting you pump up digital beats without a pile of components - just add speakers and you're ready to rock. Three high-efficiency BASH amplifiers pack a combined 400 watts into the compact 11-inch cube. Hook up your PC (or other audio source) through RCA or optical connectors and you'll have plenty of bass in your place.
iCub: $750, www.audioplusservices.com
Free, www.musicbrainz.org
Take charge of those poorly labeled tracks that lurk in the nether regions of your music library. Tagger cross-references the acoustic fingerprint of each untitled tune with the online MusicBrainz metadatabase, then fills in the missing info for you. It was about 85 percent accurate with our playlist cruft.
OTS Labs OTSTurntables
$50-80, www.otsturntables.com
This virtual DJ rig lets aspiring beat blenders polish their skills without shelling out for pricey gear. Cue up WAVs, MP3s, and CD tracks, sync tempos, and use the software faders to adjust volume and cut between songs. Or switch to autopilot and let OtsTurntables manage the mix.
$19, www.ambrosiasw.com
Some episodes of Car Talk are so timeless you want to hold onto them forever. With WireTap Pro you can grab Click and Clack's RealAudio feed and save it in perpetuity. The app captures anything coursing through your computer's sound card, saving it as a high-quality AIFF or compressed AAC or MP3 file.
$25, www.rogueamoeba.com
AirPort Express is great for streaming music from Mac to stereo, but until now it worked only with iTunes. Airfoil ends this tyranny, letting you send any sound from your G5 to your audio rig: Windows Media Player, MySpace jams, or even goofy computer alerts.
Wear it like a necklace, hang it from your ear, or hide it where the sun don't shine (your pocket, of course). MobiBLU's 1-gigabyte MP3 player is less than 1 cubic inch small and weighs about half an ounce. Cooler still, it can pick up and digitally record FM radio or your voice (top that, nano!). It has an OLED display for navigating songs and stations, supports USB 2.0 for high-speed music transfers, and can even handle WMA files.
DAH-1500i: $130, www.mobibluamerica.com
At almost an inch thick, the Nexus isn't the sveltest player on the market, but it uses the extra girth to deliver something most MP3 players can't: XM Satellite Radio. When docked in its USB cradle, the unit pipes live XM to your stereo or pulls songs from your PC's music library. On the road, you can switch between MP3s and stored satellite shows (holds up to 50 hours of radio in its 1-Gbyte hard drive). Best of all, someone is sure to find a hack for getting XM tracks off the Nexus and into your PC.
NEXUS50: $TBA, www.samsung.com
HARMAN KARDON MOBILE iPOD SYSTEM
It's all fun and games until you wrap your Porsche around a tree while cuing up "Rock and Roll, Part Two" on your iPod. Save loved ones a lot of grief and install the Drive + Play system. This car kit works with any dockable iPod to help you keep your eyes on the road while scrolling through tunes. The backlit LCD mounts on the dashboard and displays the player's menus while the shifter-like remote gives you easy access to the controls. The setup can be jacked directly into your car's electrical system or powered by the lighter socket.
Drive + Play: $200, www.harmankardon.com
30 Under $30
Gizmos, gifts & stocking stuffers
By James Lee
Stuck at 10 smokes a day? Get down to 5 with this cancer-stick counter. Clip it to the top of your pack and track your habit by tapping a button every time you light up. The number on the LCD will guilt you right out of that addiction.
Nothing takes the fun out of ice cream like finding the gobs missing from your Gobfather. Give your roommate a subtle hint with this plastic security lid. He'll need the secret combination to plunder your coveted Ben & Jerry's.
This ice cube tray creates frozen sculptures that double as shot glasses. Fill the rubber mold with soda, water, or juice and throw it in the freezer. Use the resulting prechilled cups to toss back your liquor of choice. In the morning, use leftover cubes to cool your headache.
Hang up on telemarketers and other annoying callers with help from this sound f/x generator. It plays doorbells, screeching tires, Chinese food delivery, a police siren, and static noises to … Is that the baby crying? Gotta go.
Tote up to three memory cards in SD, XD, or Memory Stick Duo format in this plastic carrier. An antistatic coating on both the case and the card partitions keeps your data intact, and it hooks onto your keychain so you'll never lose your memory. Just don't lose your keys.
Finally, a finger you're supposed to stick up your nose. Direct the AA-powered plastic digit into your schnoz, flip the switch, and the recessed blades safely trim unsightly nostril hair. Just don't do it in public, please.
Turn your cellie into a classic gag prop with this foam banana phone cover. Slip in your mobile and you'll look like a maniac talking into a piece of fruit. Comes in clamshell and candy bar phone versions. Hilarious!
Marco! Glub blob! Speak clearly underwater with this agua megaphone. It creates a pocket of air you talk into to transmit your voice through H20 undistorted. Use it to taunt fellow swimmers up to 15 feet away - they'll understand every word.
Snapshots bulk up your wallet when all you really need in life is money. This plastic case holds just the essentials: A clip grasps your greenbacks and your platinum cards slide into a slot. An optional lanyard ($6.95) keeps your stash safe from pickpockets.
This cooking timer uses a measuring tape to tell you how many minutes have ticked away: Tug it out and it shortens as time passes. From across the room, it's easier to read than a digital clock, so you won't turn your pricey Kobe steak into chewy old shoe leather.
If playing Scrabble isn't dorky enough for you, use these L33T letter repl4c3m3nts to raise the bar for your next game. Sorry: No extra triple-nerd points allowed.
Here's a vase you can fold away when your carnations kick it. Shape the thermal plastic sheet any way you like, then run it under cold water to solidify the container. After you toss the flowers, warm it up, flatten, and stow.
Devour those embarassing romance novels under the covers with this bedtime reading tool. A 5 x 2.3-inch optical lens offers 1.5X magnification; the LED provides light for 20 hours of page turning. Plenty of time to find out who Brad loves best. (Sigh …)
Wear while driving to detect oncoming Zs before smashing into oncoming trucks. This gizmo rests on your ear and senses shifts in the angle of your head. Nod too much, and it protests like a screeching, scared-to-death passenger.
iPOD ONESIE
Not everyone likes kids, but everyone loves iPods. Disguise your little bundle of joy as everyone's favorite MP3 player with this baby suit. The best part: It's pure cotton and machine washable, so you can relax when your toddler downloads his lunch onto it.
It's a ball! It's a Frisbee! It's both! Flatten this toy into a disc and toss it through the air. It randomly transforms from one shape to the other midflight, so you never know what you'll be catching.
Loud neighbors? Get even by blasting the Revenge CD in their direction. Plug your own ears and crank it up to 11 to unleash the soothing sounds of a screaming baby, a game of bowling, and 18 other unbearably annoying tracks.
For some reason, dogs rarely dump near trash cans. Next time you take your canine for a walk, slip the leakproof nylon Poopsadaisy over his collar and Scout can carry his own leftovers. Just don't confuse it with your doggie bag from last night's dinner.
This three-prong device rotates marshmallows rotisserie-style for faster s'more production, leaving you free to focus on other critical fireside activities like singing "Kumbaya" and drinking spiked hot cocoa.
Rock out with these sticks that can emulate a drum set, from snare to crash cymbal. Impact sensors on the tips detect when you strike a surface, causing built-in speakers to pump out the beat. Now all you need to be a rock god is some pyrotechnics and a fog machine.
Just flip the switch and these bulbs will eliminate stinky, embarrassing odors: everything from gym socks to cabbage-and-bean casserole. It's all made possible by a magical titanium dioxide coating that kills smells as it oxidizes.
Use this wireless PlayStation joypad to kill zombies - and your social life. As the batteries fade (after about 60 hours), jack it into a controller port to charge it up so you can continue to blast the bad guys while ignoring your friends.
For your friend who's too negligent to keep a sea monkey and too irresponsible to raise a cactus: a potted plastic sprout that needs no TLC. This photovoltaic dicotyledon flaps its leaves in response to sunlight.
You don't need two hands to wield a power drill, so you shouldn't need two to extend your tape measure. The AutoTape will shoot out up to 7 feet without bending, and up to 25 feet total, all at the press of a button.
Connect this minispeaker to a 9-volt battery and hide it somewhere in your victim's vicinity. The devilish device will chirp loudly every three minutes - bugging them just often enough to drive them crazy, without giving up its location.
If Aibo dropped out of obedience class, he'd probably end up like the iDog. Instead of obeying commands, this bot amplifies tunes from your MP3 player. Watch it dance to the beat of any musical genre.
Designed by plastic surgeons from Taiwan, this pillow's memory foam is molded to the contours of the perfect butt. Sit in it to encourage your saggy buns to reshape themselves into a toned, runway-worthy derriere.
Once you get up off your bottom reformulator, this pedometer counts the steps you take and the calories you burn. Should you stumble into a bad neighborhood, it's armed with a 120-decibel panic alarm.
Mount a PSP in your car so you (or preferably your passengers) can watch movies while you roll through town. The gooseneck swivels 360 degrees for sharing the vids with folks in the backseat or even the next lane.
Take full command of your friends, family, and coworkers by slipping on this mask to Vader-ize your voice. Buttons on the chest plate activate quotes and classic James Earl Jones asthmatic breathing.
Supersize your image
By Marty Katz, Seth Kaplan, and Mathew Honan
Enthusiasts are breaking their piggy banks for this must-have digicam. It takes low-light and wide-angle shots that a few years ago digital photogs only dreamed about. The 5D's secret is its 12.8-megapixel CMOS sensor that's as big as a 35-mm negative. The imager's full-frame size means you can take advantage of Canon's entire line of pro lenses without shortchanging their angles of view, which is a significant problem in cameras with smaller sensors. And an optional Wi-Fi pack ($999) can send your rich 35-Mbyte pics to your laptop or an FTP folder.
EOS 5D: $4,900 (body only), www.usa.canon.com
All digicam sensors produce grainy images at high sensitivities and in low-light conditions. The 5D's 12.8-megapixel complementary metal on silicon has heat control and filtering for incredibly low noise at high ISOs. All of which means you can shoot beautiful handheld portraits even in light too dim for reading.
Last year's 20D had a tiny 1.8-inch LCD with a viewing angle of only 40 degrees - it was tough to see if you weren't looking at it head-on. The 5D features a bright 2.5-inch LCD with a 170-degree viewing angle, making it possible for your friends to crowd around for an impromptu slide show.
The 5D's wealth of options and settings can be both intoxicating and confusing. Luckily, button functions like ISO and exposure compensation are right under your thumb, and the 1.75-inch LCD on top of the camera gives you an at-a-glance read on autofocus mode, white balance, battery life, and more.
The D200 offers near-pro quality at an incredibly low price. At $3,200 less than the Canon 5D, it's almost as good at shooting low-noise pics at high ISO settings. Rubber weather gaskets and a rugged magnesium body protect its 10.2-megapixel sensor, and an optional battery grip ($189, shown here) accepts AAs, so you can easily replace them on the go - no recharging downtime. An onboard database stores settings for Nikon lenses, even ancient manual focus ones, and a history menu keeps track of the last 14 adjustments you made.
D200: $1,700 (body only), www.nikonusa.com
This belt would make Batman jealous. Attach your choice of pouches and holsters to this padded waist belt in either locked or sliding mode. Each add-on has well-placed pockets, zips, Velcro, padding, and dividers for quick access and protection. When the going gets rough, whip out the water-resistant bags stored inside to shield your gear from dust, rain, and bugs.
Modular Belt System: individual pieces $13-50; systems $150-295, www.thinktankphoto.com
This 25.3 x 24.1 x 10-inch behemoth can take five minutes to produce an 8 x 10. But with nine fade-resistant inks and a 4,800-dpi color resolution, its output is absolutely top quality. It can print as large as 13 x 19 inches, even on thick media like high-rag-content art paper. The 8750 accepts memory cards and connects to your digicam via USB 2.0 or Bluetooth (optional, $79). Best of all, it can hook up to your network via Ethernet.
Photosmart 8750 Professional Photo Printer: $499, www.hp.com
There are two kinds of external drives: failed or yet to fail. Upgrade to a RAID (redundant array of independent drives) model to protect your precious photos.This reliable 1-terabyte toaster hums along quietly. If one of its four drives craps out, it can reconstruct your files from the others. It's also an eight-port USB hub, Internet gateway, and proxy server.
Yellow Machine P400T Terabyte Storage Appliance: $1,299, www.yellowmachine.com
Take your show on the road with this 3.9-pound phone book-sized projector, which delivers crisp 1,024 x 768 resolution at 2,000 lumens. Automatic distortion correction quickly puts you in presentation mode to display stills and videos. Pull images from your laptop with its onboard PC Card slot and USB ports, or use its 802.11g card to snag pics across a Wi-Fi network. Improved lamp reflectors allow it to use a relatively low-watt light, eliminating noisy fans and long cool-down time.
Powerlite 755c Multimedia Projector: $1,699, www.epson.com
This lovely sequel to the popular SD20 continues Canon's tradition of ultrafashionable cameras, boasting a retractable 2.4X optical zoom and a docking station for charging, outputting video, and connecting to a PC or printer. The tiny cam (3.8 x 1.8 x 0.9 inch) is available in four fab metallic finishes (violet, red, black, and gold). Looks aside, the PowerShot spoils with a wireless remote that can control playback and printing when docked and 16 shooting modes customized for everything from snow to fireworks. Plus, it takes SD cards and supertiny MMC cards.
PowerShot SD30: $500, www.usa.canon.com
Pentax continues to cram more features into increasingly trim camera dimensions - this one's a stunningly small 3.4 x 2.1 x 0.7 inch. A 2.5-inch LCD with built-in backlighting is easy to view even in bright sunshine. Its antishake tech will keep things stable as you shoot MPEG-4 movies, which you can tweak with onboard editing functions. There's also a 3X optical zoom for incredible telephoto shots and a sliding door that protects it when not in use.
Optio S6: $350, www.pentaximaging.com
It's all screen! A huge 3-inch LCD engulfs the back of this 3.8 x 2.3 x 0.9-inch minicam. In addition to helping you compose beautiful shots, the screen lets you review images at more than 50X magnification and displays up to 36 thumbnails at once. There's plenty of room to open a menu and still see what you're shooting with the 3X optical zoom - text and visuals appear side by side. Set the E6 to make four different exposures of each shot and compare them onscreen to pick that perfect snap of Muggs in the park.
Xacti E6: $400, www.sanyo.com
You're not going to get a high-end, high-definition camcorder for $80. But you can get a toy that delivers amazingly good 320 x 240 video at 15 fps. The included Muvee editing system is crap, but Mattel wisely used a nonproprietary AVI file format, compatible with Final Cut Pro or iMovie. Vidster is the perfect gift for budding Kubricks. Redrum!
Vidster: $80, www.mattel.com
Tapeless camcorders may have brought digital video to your shirt pocket, but they've been limited by an inability to shoot more than a few minutes in high-quality modes. The Everio GZ-MG50, at only 4.3 x 2.8 x 2.6 inches, overcomes that performance problem with its 30-Gbyte hard drive. It can store more than seven hours of DVD-quality video (or 37 hours in its lowest-res mode). And for the clumsy, a freefall sensor even knows when the camera has been dropped and shuts down the hard drive.
Everio GZ- MG50: $1,000, www.jvc.com
This cam is de rigueur for anyone aiming to storm the Sundance film festival or make family vacation flicks suitable for the multiplex. It produces full 60-fps video at broadcast-quality 1,800i resolution and in 16:9 widescreen format. The 2.7-inch touchscreen, great low-light ability, and time coding will help you shoot like a cinematographer. Back in real life, however, you can remove the shotgun mike and audio box and this bounty of video tech becomes small enough - 7.5 x 4.1 x 2.7 inches - to cram in a (large) pants pocket. Plus, there's a decent 3-megapixel still camera in it, too.
HVR-A1U: $3,100, www.sony.com/hdv
Noise in the hood
by Katy Neusteter and Josh McHugh
You no longer have to choose between work and a day on the slopes. A new line of Bluetooth-enabled snow clothes keeps you plugged in on the mountain. Dubbed Audex, the collection is centered around a radically updated version of Burton's original iPod jacket. Now it can toggle seamlessly between your MP3 player and your cell phone, which you hear through egg-shaped Motorola speakers in the hood. A panel on the left sleeve lets you operate a pocketed mobile, so you can dial into the morning meeting between runs. The microphone is embedded in the collar to keep wind and other outside noise to a minimum. Once the meeting's adjourned, use the same controller to shuffle through songs on your iPod, which is connected through wires built into the parka's liner. Hear that? It's the half-pipe calling.
Audex Men's Cargo Jacket: $600, www.burton.com
This jacket provides the highest level of waterproofing available; its seams are welded shut. Under-arm vents help you manage the climate inside while you're on the move.
Caller ID and song info appears on the sleeve-mounted control panel. But for tune navigation you're limited to volume, forward, and back buttons.
The Audex line, which includes beanies and helmets, works with any cell phone that supports Bluetooth headsets. The gear also works with most iPod models (but not the shuffle).
Pop out your iPod, cell phone, the control pad, and the speaker modules, then throw the parka in the laundry. The integrated wiring withstands machine washing and drying.
To return shots like a pro, you need a pro's magnetism. Ordinarily, the impact of a ball deforms a tennis racquet for about 0.004 second, subtly reducing the efficiency of your swing. But hard hits actually keep Fischer's racquet rigid: Piezoelectric quartz crystals in the frame turn stress and vibration into electricity. The juice flows to five mini-magnets embedded in opposite sides of the head, which repel each other and return the frame to its original form faster. It's legal for tournament play; use it to take down the less-stiff competition.
Magnetic Speed: $190, www.fischertennisusa.com
Make goalies quake in their nets. This power-boosting soccer cleat comes with a removable weighted insole that adds 1.4 ounces to your toes - essentially turning your foot into a sledgehammer. Slam one into a ball and watch it fly by defenders up to 5 percent faster. If your lead feet start to weigh you down, swap in the lighter insole to reduce the total load to 10 ounces. Rubber strips across the top of the shoe add grip for evasive ball handling, and extra-broad cleat mounts mean less impact to your bones with each step. The other team won't know what hit 'em.
+Predator Absolute (available in men's and women's sizes): $200 per pair, www.adidas.com
Big tricks comes from small sticks. This short board is one of the lightest rides on the mountain, thanks to a Nomex polymer honeycomb core that's half the weight of standard aluminum honeycombs. (Sikorsky uses Nomex in the blades for its Black Hawk helicopter.) To keep turns tight, a thick, reinforced ridge down the center of the deck boosts torsional - side to side - flex. See you in the air!
L.O.F.T. Snowboard (153, 156, or 160 cm): $699, www.salomonsports.com
Monitor your heart rate without feeling like you're wearing a girdle. This pulse-tracking watch features a fingertip panel on the front bezel so you can check on the ol' ticker without the standard-issue chest strap. Of course, it includes one of those for hard workouts when continuous monitoring is best. A pace counter chimes when you're, uh, slacking off.
PulseWare Duo: $125, www.highgear.com
Exercising until your heart's thumping like Miami bass actually makes for a bad workout. Overtraining your body forces it to fuel itself with stored carbs, which means you're burning less fat. Enter heart-rate monitors like Highgear's PulseWare Duo. When calibrated correctly, they keep you at maximum belly-busting efficiency. Here's how to use one. - K.N.
1. Find your resting heart rate
When you wake up, take your pulse for a minute. (Hold your index and middle fingers on your wrist right below your thumb and count the beats.)
2. Find your max heart rate
Engage in your choice of aerobic activity until you're breathing too hard to carry on a conversation. Take your pulse again. (Or, if you're lazy, get an estimate by subtracting your age from 220.)
3. Use your monitor
Enter both resting and maximum heart rate numbers into your heart-rate monitor, as well as your age and weight. (Some models ask for and crunch even more data.) Use your monitor to stay in the zone: between 60 and 90 percent of your maximum heart rate.
4. Track your progress
As your fitness improves over time, your resting rate will get slower. You'll want to recalibrate your monitor. (Start over at step 1.)
Venture into backcountry where cell phones dare not tread. Garmin's Rino radio sports a range of 12 miles and comes armed with a GPS receiver, altimeter, weather radio, and digital compass. So, from the bottom of Royal Gorge you can pull up detailed maps of the area on the generous 2.2-inch color screen, check for storm warnings, and walkie-talkie your mates in Tahoe to remind them to have the aprés-ski snuggler a-waitin'. If you're within 2 miles of range, you can even beam your coordinates to your buddies' GPS so they know how long you'll be.
Rino 530: $500 each, www.garmin.com
The diva of home theater
By Darren Gladstone, Grace Aquino, and Lucas Graves
A Media Center PC plays many roles in your home theater. It's a DVD player, DVR, MP3 jukebox, and - if you can't even stay offline long enough to watch an episode of South Park - a fully functional living room computer. The problem: Most are ugly, whirring beige boxes you'd never want near a sleek plasma (or even a bulky CRT). Not the Aria. Its metal case comes in a range of hot-rod colors with names like Infineon Red (shown here), Monaco Yellow, and Bavaria Blue Candy. And because it uses AMD's power-efficient Turion 64, internal temperatures stay low so you won't be bothered by buzzing fans come showtime. Worried about power? Fear not, there's plenty of beast in this beauty. Components like Nvidia's 7800 GTX video card and a Pioneer 16X DVD-burning drive make it ideal at tasks such as 3-D gaming or ripping music and video. It'll eat your TiVo and your PlayStation for lunch.
Aria: $3,500 and up, www.voodoopc.com
DVD archival system
You can load more than MP3s and TV shows on the Aria's 500-Gbyte hard drive - Voodoo's Media Center comes with proprietary DVD-ripping software so you can back up every movie you, uh, own. It even automatically downloads box art and credits for your stored flicks.
Front-mounted LCD panel
The crown jewel of this PC is its built-in 7-inch touchscreen LCD. It serves as a second monitor, enabling you to set recording functions without taking a break from the game or browse the program guide while Nip/Tuck plays on your full-size screen.
Dual TV tuner card
With the multitasking VIBE Nvidia TV tuner card, you can record two shows at once or watch one program while recording another. It won't capture hi-def signals, but it can upsample standard-def video to fill an HD screen and color-correct broadcast TV to look better on your crisp flatscreen.
Tear up that holiday wish list - this is what you want. The impossibly sleek AV 500 is the size of a very small paperback, yet it sports a crystal-clear 4-inch LCD and a 100-Gbyte hard drive that can store up to 140 hours of video at near-DVD quality. That's more than 90 feature-length flicks in your hand. It works with most music, video, and photo formats and can record tunes or shows through its composite and S-video inputs (it can even pull photos straight from a digicam). If the onboard widescreen starts to feel a little cramped, connect it to your TV for a bigger view.
Mobile DVR AV 500: $700, www.archos.com
APPLE VIDEO iPOD
After five generations, the iPod finally plays video. The 2.5-inch, 320 x 240-pixel color screen is kinda tiny, but at less than half an inch thick it's the slimmest mobile movie viewer to date. Scoring legal content - including episodes of Desperate Housewives and shorts like Pixar's Boundin' - is easy through iTunes 6, and, hey, it's still the best damn music player on the planet.
iPod: $299 (30 Gbytes), $399 (60 Gbytes), www.apple.com
The iPod, PSP, and probably even your cell phone all play MPEG-4 video. If only you had something to watch. Use Neuros Audio's ultraportable recorder to create MPEG-4 files from TV feeds, DVD players, or any other video source with a composite output. The unit records to CompactFlash or SD cards (not included), and features a USB 2.0 port, making it easy to transfer files to laptops, PDAs, or handheld entertainment systems.
Neuros MPEG-4 Recorder: $130, www.neurosaudio.com
Go ahead - record that show. This one, too! Heck, record everything! It's not a problem if you've got Pioneer's DVD-burning DVR. Armed with a 160-Gbyte hard drive, it sports enough space to hold up to 340 hours of video, or all five seasons of The Sopranos - five times over! If that's still not enough, save shows to 8.5-Gbyte dual-layer DVDs. Each holds up to 24 hours of TV, about twice the capacity of a standard DVD. And at 16X speed, you can spin off a night's worth of viewing in no time. Not that you'll be drumming your fingers while you archive: This DVR will simultaneously play back TV from the hard drive and burn discs.
DVR-633H-S with 160-Gbyte HDD: $599, www.pioneerelectronics.com
TiVo, long the sweetheart of the DVR world, isn't getting much love lately. The problems started when the company instituted a mandatory one-year service contract, which didn't change the cost but garnered loads of ill will from consumers. Then a software glitch resulted in several users being told that their recorded shows would automatically be deleted from their recorders - a copy-protection feature was accidentally tripped. A TiVo spokesperson says the incident was just a bug that affected only five or six users. But that hasn't stopped DRM watchdogs from dog-piling on the besieged company. With TiVo losing street cred, perhaps it's time for you to try something new? A slew of competitors sure would like you to think so. - Cathy Lu
Get ready to live large
By Jacob Ward
You could run a restaurant out of this 850-pound stainless steel monument to refrigeration, but it's good for storing Pudding Pops and leftovers, too. The Colder and Warmer settings on older fridges pale in comparison to the Pro 48's - its onboard microprocessor manages such an intricate chilling mechanism that you'll soon know whether you prefer lettuce at 35 degrees Fahrenheit or 36. Other features include LED illumination, automatic purification of ice and water, a touch-and-glide retracting crisper, and a Holiday mode for temporarily shutting down one or both of its sides. All this on less energy than a 100-watt lightbulb.
Pro 48: $12,000, www.subzeropro48.com
Air circulation
Ever wonder why tomatoes freeze at the back of the fridge and beer bottles sweat up front? Air circulation, or lack thereof. Inside the Pro 48, two compressors combined with three evaporators keep air cold, fresh, and constantly moving, which maintains everything at the same temperature.
The Pro 48's touchscreen controls let you decide exactly how cold you want your food to be. Once set, an onboard computer compensates for changes in temperature, so putting hot pasta in the fridge will never alter the internal temperature of the entire box more than 1 degree.
Storage bin
The durable, dishwasher-safe stainless steel storage bins fit under any of the cantilevered, spill-proof shelves and can be transferred directly from the fridge to the oven and back again. Marinate a slab of salmon, broil it in the oven, and refrigerate the leftovers - all in one container.
Smart door
The triple-paned glass panel filters harmful UV rays that can lead to food spoilage. It also lets you decide on a snack before opening the door. For more energy savings, the hinges use a cam mechanism to finish closing the hatch automatically, and if you leave the door open for too long, the fridge beeps until you close it.
Liberace, meet Arthur C. Clarke. Storied piano manufacturer Schimmel hired superdesigner Luigi Colani to reimagine the traditional 88 keys. Colani gave the classic grand piano a modern, organic shape and a few virtuoso upgrades. The Pegasus features an automatic lid, an ergonomic curved keyboard, a hard-wearing auto-body lacquer, and an integrated adjustable-height stool. No word from Liberace, but Prince and Lenny Kravitz think it's cool.
Pegasus Grand cc 208 p Piano: $200,000, www.schimmel-piano.de
This oven does double duty. Pop a turkey into the Connect Io in the morning, and it'll keep the bird cool until you whip out your cell phone, key in the access code, and start cooking din-din. By the time you get home, it's ready for carving. The double-walled oven fits standard cabinetry, features an ample interior (4.25 cubic feet), and accepts commands from any PC, Mac, cell phone, or landline. The appliance can even be preprogrammed for timed operation on the Sabbath.
Connect Io Intelligent Oven: $9,000, www.tmio.com
Don't think of it as a laundry machine; think of it as a cappuccino maker for fashion. The Tromm front-loader uses steam, rather than a tub of suds, to clean your clothes. That means it uses 44 percent less water than conventional washers, more clothes can be cleaned at once, and garments won't shrink as much as they do when they've been fully immersed in liquid. The Tromm will also unwrinkle your duds in minutes and remove odors without having to go through a full wash cycle. Plus, the beltless motor design makes it nearly silent.
Tromm Steam Washing Machine: $1,499, www.lge.com
An insouciant piece of home furnishing with a lovely, fruit-filled nose and a brilliant, metallic finish, the Monogram walk-in wine vault stores up to 1,100 bottles on brass-labeled redwood shelves at a perfect 55 degrees. The included barcode system lets you scrutinize your inventory on the built-in flatscreen. That way, even if you're a bit foggy about what you've had to drink, your cellar will always know.
Monogram Walk-in Wine Vault: $35,000, www.monogram.com
MéBELFORM ROTATING BED
The vibrating bed's got nothing on this sleeper. The motorized berth turns 360 degrees at the push of a button. Want to look out the window, then at the TV, then out the window again? No back-breaking lifting required. Downsides: This merry-go-round requires special sheets, and you may need a few minutes to figure out which way you're facing when you wake up.
Histoire D'O Round Bed: $4,477 to $7,105, www.mobelform.com
Batman's transformation from millionaire playboy to daring crime-fighter began with a statue - a bust of Shakespeare concealing the switch that opened the door to the Batcave. This 21.5-inch-tall resin replica accepts plugs from any AC-powered device and then plugs into the wall. You can't have the dark knight's smoke grenades or grappling hook, but you can rig the switch to open your garage door, fire up your G5, or buzz in your girlfriend. She might even mistake you for a superhero.
Shakespeare Secret Remote Control Bust Prop: $295, www.wickedcoolstuff.com
Upgrade your seat from coach to first class. The Swash 600 adds a preprogrammed his-and-her warm-water wash; a heated, contoured, gentle-close seat; and an air dryer (all controllable via wireless remote). The throne takes a little getting used to, but once you're acclimated, choose from a variety of settings for temperature, pulsation, and pressure. It seems the only thing it can't do is blast your waste into the atmosphere.
Swash 600: $600, www.brondell.com
You've spent all that cash on a flatscreen plasma TV, why not show it off at your next cocktail party? Make it part of the decor with Detour's slowly changing image loops. Choose from morphing flowers, modern decorative patterns-la Charles and Ray Eames, and black-and-white illusions that would mesmerize even Escher. Got your own design in mind? The company does custom patterns, too.
DetourDVD: $25, www.detourdvd.com
Designer Margaret Orth has fashioned the ultimate accent for any room - a dimmer switch with advanced pom-pom technology. Hold the soft, antimicrobial electronic fibers, and the circuit gradually powers up or down. The stain-resistant fabric cleans up with a damp sponge. Finally, a light controller that gadgeteers can rally round. Cheerleader not included.
Pom Pom Dimmer: $129, www.ifmachines.com
The new definition of gaming
by Darren Gladstone
With the launch of the Xbox 360, Microsoft kicks off the next round of console wars. This powerful rig delivers stunning graphics and promises to usher gaming into the era of HDTV. But being first has drawbacks: no 1,080p resolution (just 1,080i and lower) and no high-definition optical drive. Still, Sony better watch its back.
Xbox 360: $300 (basic) or $400 (deluxe), www.xbox360.com
Now your console can match your couch. Microsoft is so eager to become the hub of your home entertainment center, it's offering swappable front panels ($20 each) for the 360. Pick one to reflect your room decor, your outfit, or your mood. Want wood paneling? A ceramic motif? Gaming never looked so fabulous!
Two Versions
The basic 360 ($300) comes with a plug-in controller and standard A/V connector. The deluxe 360 ($400) adds a 20-gig hard drive and oodles of accessories. Though the drive sounds sexy, it's the add-ons - hi-def connection cable, Xbox Live headset, remote, wireless controller - that make it worth the extra $100.
New consoles generally have specs comparable to a PCs costing three times as much. (Vendors sell hardware at a heavy loss, hoping to make the money back with games.) The 360 sports three IBM core processors running at 3.2 GHz each, and a 500-MHz custom ATI graphics card.
The 360 can deliver multimedia from a Media Center or other Windows PC. That means easy access to all the HD video, photos, and MP3s on your home network. The console also has three USB 2.0 connections, allowing it to read files from digicams, MP3 players, and even Sony PSPs.
Lots of hotshots try testing their quick-draw and skeet-shooting skills on console games like The House of the Dead and Time Crisis. The problem is that conventional light gun controllers don't work with HDTVs. A camera that you place on your TV reads the position of the LED lights on the RGT:G1's scope and barrel, and uses that to triangulate exactly what you're aiming at. It turns your den into a firing range (so long as the room isn't too bright). The G1 works flawlessly with PS2 and Xbox titles.
RGT:G1 Light Gun and Camera: $50, www.erealgames.com
Look who's rockin' now. You - at least in front of your PS2. Plug the Guitar Hero SG digital six-string into your system and tap that inner Eddie Van Halen. Composed by the same musical geniuses that brought karaoke to the home console via Karaoke Revolution, the included game turns your pad into a virtual concert hall. The track list (30 songs from hair metal to Hendrix) will thrill anyone who's ever dreamed of shredding in front of a sell-out crowd.
Guitar Hero SG Controller and Game Disc: $70, www.guitarherogame.com
Standard keyboards are for losers! With the Ergodex pad, you can yank the keys off and put them back wherever you want. This modular setup comes with 25 moveable, customizable keys. By sticking them to the surface of the USB pad and assigning a command to each, you can cobble together the ideal controller for your hand, your reflexes, and any game's demands. There's only one drawback - you won't be able to blame your keyboard the next time you get totally pwn3d in a Quake multiplayer match.
DX1 Input System: $150, www.ergodex.com
Don't wake the neighbors getting your fix of teeth-rattling bass. Turn off the subwoofer and strap the ButtKicker under your chair to deliver 100 watts of low-end thump directly to your rump.
ButtKicker Gamer: $150, www.thebuttkicker.com
Hide your PC from h4x0rz with this no-fuss device. External portable protection dynamically masks your IP address, while the firmware inspects all incoming and outgoing data packets for signs of tampering.
ST-100 Internet Security Suite: $80, www.stingrayinc.com
Quick, get in a round of Half-Life 2 while your boss is out! When she returns, step on this footpad. It minimizes the game window and pops up something else - say, a spreadsheet - to cloak your shiftless ways.
StealthSwitch: $40, www.stealthswitch.com
Give yourself an edge at the next first-person-shooter tourney. This mouse lets you crank up the sensitivity level to a blazing 2,000 dpi and add weights to its base to alter its feel … and perhaps improve your aim.
G5 Laser Mouse: $70, www.logitech.com
Sim racing fans are the hardest of hardcore gamers: Who else would pay more than a grand for a controller? The 6000 GTS's industrial design looks like it was ripped straight out of an F1 car - and it might have been. There's no flimsy plastic here! The two-toned leather grip, paddle-style shifter, metal foot pedals, and even the torque on the wheel smacks of authenticity. The only thing missing is some trunk space to store this monstrous peripheral and a display that tracks your virtual-miles per gallon of Mountain Dew.
Trackstar 6000 GTS: $1,158, www.ecci6000.com
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ECCI RACING CONTROL Craig MaxwellWired Tools 2005

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Adventures Plus school-age careAdventures Plus is the Anoka-Hennepin School District's school-age care program, offered to all families in the school district and provided at each elementary school. Care is available before- and after-school, and on non-school days which include winter, spring and summer breaks.
Registration for the 2019-20 school yearRegistration for the 2019-20 school year is open through August 18. Registration will be closed through September 8 while our staff process and finalize school-year registrations. Materials were mailed to incoming kindergarten students late February. New families are welcome to apply, but currently enrolled families will receive first priority. Registration for Summer 2019 programs is now closed.
About the programThe Adventures Plus program aims to develop the whole child by providing age-appropriate learning experiences and opportunities using a theme-based curriculum with activities that include:
- Arts, crafts, dance/movement and drama
- Literature and music
- Sports
- Cooking
- Science discovery
- Sensory and outdoor play
- Small- and large-group activities
- Field trips
- Opportunities for homework assistance
Care optionsA variety of flexible care options are available to meet your families needs.
- School year care: Elementary before- and/or after-school, from 6:30 a.m. until the school start time and from school dismissal time until 6 p.m.
- Non-school days: Child care is available for elementary school-age children on most days that school is not in session, including winter and spring breaks, from 6:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. (Student must be using school year am and/or pm care to enroll for non-school day care.)
- Summer care: All-day care is available at select school sites for students entering kindergarten, elementary and middle school, Monday - Friday from 6:30 a.m. - 6 p.m.
How to applyAdventures Plus is a popular service and child care openings fill quickly. Pre-registration for the school year and summer programs occurs online each March. The program accepts registrations throughout the year and children may be enrolled as openings become available.A two-week notice may be required before your child attends the program. The safety of your child is important to our staff, please provide at least two emergency contact persons. It is extremely important to keep your information up-to-date. If you change your job, move or change your telephone number, please update your online account information.
ContactRamsey Elementary Adventures Plus15100 Nowthen Blvd.
Ramsey, MN 55303Phone: 763-506-4013
Site Coordinator:Jessica firstname.lastname@example.com
Phone: 763-506-4113
Program hours:6:30 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Current families
School year program details
Adventures Plus school-year care flyer 2020-21
Adventures Bound school-year brochure 2020-21
School-year rates
Summer program detailsSummer 2020 Adventures Bound flyer
Billing informationAdventures Plus Billing Office2727 N. Ferry St.
Door No. 5Anoka, MN 55303Phone: 763-506-1400Fax: firstname.lastname@example.com office hoursMonday - Friday
7:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.


text:
Persona 2: Innocent Sin
Persona 2: Innocent Sin data can be imported into Eternal Punishment
A feature included in Persona 2: Eternal Punishment will allow players to import save data from Persona 2: Innocent Sin into the game. According to Atlus, you won't have had to beat the game either in order to take advantage of the feature, as all it needs are stats and level data. The "fusion skill […]
Persona 2: Innocent Sin headlines
Persona PSP pub "looking into" digital AU releases
Good news for Antipodean JRPG fans – European publisher Ghostlight is planning to bring its entire catalogue to the local PlayStation Storefront.
Persona 2: Innocent Sin Collector's Edition is full of swag
Ghostlight have released details on the European Persona 2: Innocent Sin Collector's Edition, and it is full of goodies. The UMD game comes encased in a double-sided inlay box, which contains a t-shirt, soundtrack CD, six cards which are double-sided art cards, and an A3 poster. The t-shirt is only available if you order from […]
Persona 2: Innocent Sin advises on chatting up demons
If you're not familiar with the subtle art of demon negotiation, come and be educated thanks to a new trailer for Persona 2: Innocent Sin.
Wednesday Shorts -Screens, trailers, and random musings
There's a motherlode of stuff through here – come in and skim, or don't come crying to me next week when you're ill-informed.
Persona 2: Innocent Sin US launch trailer
Atlus has opened pre-orders for Persona 2: Innocent Sin, due later this month, and confirmed the publisher's usual bonuses. Sweet trailer ahoy.
Quick shots - Persona 2 screens tease Euro PSPs
Atlus has posted a few screens of Persona 2: Innocent Sin, recently confirmed for European PSP release through Ghostlight. It's interesting to see how much the graphics have improved since the first Persona, and then look at the jump between it and Persona 3. Anyway, check 'em out through the break.
Ghostlight to bring Persona 2 PSP to Europe this year
Ghostlight's announced that it's to bring Persona 2: Innocent Sin to PSP in Europe this year.
Persona 2 PSP English localisation confirmed, launches this fall
Atlus has confirmed it'll localise Persona 2 for a US release this fall for PSP. It comes after an old-school newsletter tease of the localisation last week. Siliconera has some English-looking screenshots of the game. The game launched in Japan last month, with Ghostlight releasing Persona 3 Portable in the UK last month. Persona 4 […]
Persona 2: Innocent Sin gets delay in Japan
Atlus has announced overnight in Japan a delay for PSP remake Persona 2: Innocent Sin.
Check out an introductory video for Persona 2: Innocent Sin
Atlus has released an intro video for the PSP version of Persona 2: Innocent Sin.
Persona 2: Innocent Sin detailed for PSP
This week's Famitsu has confirmed that Persona 2: Innocent Sin is being remade for PSP.
Persona 2: Innocent Sin latest
Persona 2: Innocent Sin data can be imported into Eternal Punishment
Persona 2 PSP English localisation confirmed, launches this fall


text:
Description:RoHS Compliant 36GB 15K Fibre Channel40 pin 2GB/s FCAL-2 Hard Disk Drive Part Number(s)Manufacturer Part# MAS3367FC
Overview:The Fujitsu Enterprise MAS3367FC is a 36.7GB workstation class hard disk drive. Its maximum internal data transfer rate of 118.2 MBps is very fast compared to the typical Hard Drive. This is a 15000 rpm drive and has an 8MB cache.


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Junior Arch
Junior Arch is the most indispensable back saving tool. Junior can pick up and carry any straight section of log from 4" to 16" in diameter weighing up to 1000 pounds
6" universal log stand
The 6" universal log stand attaches to LogRite's 42", 48" or 60" Cant Hooks or Peaveys.
60" cant hook
This cant hook offers an extra foot of leverage and a bigger hook for moving big logs easily. Will grip 10" - 36" diameter log.
60 Industrial Park RoadVernon, Connecticut 06066United States
© 2020 LogRite Tools LLCAll rights reserved worldwide


text:
Baby Bath TOP-TO-TOE® Reviews
JOHNSON'S® Baby Bath TOP-TO-TOE® wash is an ultra-mild cleanser for baby's delicate skin and sensitive eyes. Milder than baby soap, the NO MORE TEARS® formula is as gentle to the eyes as pure water that cleanses baby during bathtime.
Reviews reflect the honest opinions of beautyheaven members. As part of the beautyheaven rewards program, all members receive 5 points for each review they submit.
You need to log in or become a member to leave a review.
Johnson's ® Contact Details
Lovely smell and texture
This oil has a very mild and pleasant smell to it. I applied this to a damp face and it absorbed quite well.
A nice feeling cream
This cream has a very mild and pleasant scent.
Good Foundation
I got colour matched at priceline for this foundation and i did think it was too dark for me once I tried to wear it at home.
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text:
Oxford Music Online
- Coverage Dates: Antiquity to present.
- Update Frequency: Quarterly
- Audience: General, research, student
- Oxford Music Online (formerly Grove Music Online) is a scholarly encyclopedia of music including biographies of composers, performers and writers on music, as well as articles on styles, terms, genre, concepts, acoustics, notation, and instruments, their makers and performance practice. Coverage ranges from classical music to ancient music, opera, church music, popular music, light music, jazz, and world musics from many regions, countries and cities. Articles are accompanied by links to digital images, digital sound and related Internet sites.
Express Link (bookmark): http://www.galileo.usg.edu/express?link=grou-reg1


text:
Share the post "Patriarch Kirill celebrates thanksgiving at St. George's in Beirut"
On November 14, 2011, in the course of his official visit to the Patriarchate of Antioch, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia visited St. George's Cathedral in Beirut. There was a multitude of the faithful – Orthodox Arabs and people from the Russian diaspora in Lebanon.
Patriarch Kirill led the congregation in a thanksgiving. Among the worshippers were Patriarch Ignatios of Great Antioch and All the East and several hierarchs of the Church of Antioch.
After the service of prayer, Patriarch Kirill was greeted by Patriarch Ignatios. In his response, Patriarch Kirill said in particular,
'Last time I was here, the cathedral was in ruins. Now looking at this restored beauty with joy and gratitude to the Lord, I can testify that God has not allowed the violation of the holy place, and the church has survived and has been restored to its original beauty.
'A visit to Lebanon always makes an imprint in one's soul because this land is part of the Holy Land. The foot of apostles stepped here and the Christian Church originated from here. The Church of Antioch saw great deeds performed here such as works of holy fathers, outstanding church authors and thinkers. She saw the work of prominent church canonists and jurists who participated in creating the laws of the Byzantine Empire known as the Code of Justinian.
'This land is also known for its defense of Orthodoxy against heresies and schisms. It was a place on which the fate of the Universal Church depended. This greatness of the Church of Antioch, the greatness laid down by the efforts of Sts Peter and Paul, has survived through centuries to be manifest today in a special way bearing witness to Christian values in the multicultural society of Lebanon, Syria and other countries of the East.
'We all belong to one Orthodox Church in which all national and political frontiers are removed. We live the same life wherever we may be physically – in Lebanon, Syria, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus or other country, because we are united by one Church which is the Universal Orthodox Church which has preserved the greatness and holiness of the Tradition coming from the holy apostles'.
Addressing the Russian-speaking members of the Russian Orthodox parish, which has existed in Beirut under the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Antioch since 1948, Patriarch Kirill said, in particular,
'Many of you live in mixed families, many of you are involved in the life of a bilingual culture, and the very belonging to two cultures is a great richness. But there is a condition for the bilingualism and biculturalism to become richness: by no means should one culture and one language oust the other. Those of you who come for Russian Orthodox services are people who realize clearly that under no condition the native tongue and culture should leave your life. And the Church helps you to preserve your bilingualism and biculturalism which help you to enrich your personality'.
Patriarch Kirill thanked the head of the Church of Antioch for the support he gave to the Russian Orthodox parish in Beirut.
As a token of the communion in prayer at the cathedral of Beirut, Patriarch Kirill presented the church with an icon of Christ sitting on the throne, saying, 'This is a symbol of kingship, a symbol of the spiritual power of His word. It is a symbol of the power a person acquires when touching Christ. I will be glad if this icon is kept in this holy place as a symbol of my love of all those who serve in this cathedral and who worship here'.
DECR Communication Service


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Related Products
Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut ea commodo consequat. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation.
Symphony is Medela's latest innovation in hospital-grade electric double pumps. With breakthrough 2-Phase Expression pumping, Symphony is proven to reduce pumping time through faster let-down and milk flow and remove as much milk as a breastfeeding baby. Symphony implements the results of extensive research on electric breast pumps initiated by Medela and conducted by internationally renowned lactation researcher Peter Hartmann, Ph.D.
Want to pump hands-free? Watch the Easy Expression video to find out how.
When the Symphony message reads, "invalid card" it could mean that the card in the pump is not the correct program card; the card could be damaged or the card is not inserted correctly.
Unplug the pump and remove the card. Check the card to make sure it is the correct card and also check for damage. Replace if necessary. Make sure the card is inserted in the direction of the arrows and the arrows are visible.
Plug in the pump and press the let-down button and the power button at the same time. Hold for several seconds and release. Try the pump again. If this does not correct the problem, the pump would need to be sent back the rental station for return to Medela.
The Symphony automatically shuts off after 30 minutes with both battery and electric operation.
Use the individual setting and press the "let-down" button to directly use the expression mode.
Yes, the Symphony Protective Membrane can be boiled without harm.
If the Symphony cover pops up while you are pumping, it may be due to an obstruction in the tubing.
The button all the way to the left is the on/off button. The knob in the center of the unit controls the suction and speed. The button all the way to the right is the "let down" button. This button interrupts the first phase (stimulation phase) so you can go right to the expression phase without waiting for the 2 minute stimulation phase to end.
In the past it was thought that mothers needed to make more and more milk as their babies grew. Scientists now know that a healthy milk supply remains fairly constant over the six (6) months of exclusive breastfeeding. Your baby will take the amount he needs.
During the early weeks, babies eat very frequently and grow very quickly. By day 10-14, babies should regain any weight they lost after birth. For the next few months babies will gain about an ½ ounce to 1 ounce a day.
Around three (3) to four (4) months, a breastfed baby's rate of grown begins to slow down. Your milk supply will continue to satisfy the baby until it is time to introduce solids at 6 months.
Be the end of the first week of life, women who are breastfeeding one baby normally make between 19 to 30 ounces of milk each day. Infants between one (1) and six (6) months of age normally drink an average of 19 to 30 ounces a day.
An average size "meal" for a baby is between three (3) to five (5) ounces of breastmilk. Formula is harder to digest and less well absorbed. Formula fed babies may need larger feeds. Consult your healthcare professional for advice.
*When ice pack is frozen solid
Before using for the first time, clean and sanitize kit parts: breast shields, breast shield connectors, white membranes, yellow valves, breast milk bottles and lids.
Clean breast pump kit parts after each use.
Whether your product instruction manual is lost, ripped, or covered in spit–up — We always have it available for you here.
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text:
United Nations Foundation Calling All Influencers with a Global Perspective on Social Media and Sustainability
Registration Opens For Rio+Social, Where Social Media And Social Good Meet This Summer
Washington, D.C.
May 14, 2012
Serena Jiwani
Registration is officially open for Rio+Social, the innovative event bringing together leaders in social media, technology, global issues, and sustainability at Rio+20, the United Nations conference on sustainable development taking place next month. Influencers, bloggers, innovators, policymakers, non-governmental organization representatives, and stakeholders dedicated to building "the future we want" are invited to attend and apply for accreditation at www.rioplussocial.com.
On June 19, 2012, emerging leaders in digital media will join with world leaders and key UN voices at Rio+Social. This global conversation will open the Rio+20 dialogue to everyone, to facilitate the exchange of ideas on how new technology, as well as digital and social media can advance sustainable development. The organizations that produce New York's annual Social Good Summit, which has been dubbed the "Digital Davos," are taking the conversation around the power of social media and global issues to Rio. The unique partnership between the United Nations Foundation, Mashable, 92nd Street Y, Ericsson, Energias de Portugal (EDP), and LiveAD encourages a robust conversation around sustainability and will continue the dialogue after Rio+20.
"The intersection of social media, technology, and sustainability is located in Rio this summer. Rio+Social is an event that pulls together new voices, new energy, and new solutions to global problems, and the dialogue begins now," said Aaron Sherinian, Vice President, Communications and Public Affairs, UN Foundation. "Thousands have already joined the online debate about how social media can have a positive impact on issues ranging from energy to the environment to health and economic development. The Rio+Social community points to a future of digital collaboration that encourages innovation, supports the UN, and helps build a brighter future for everyone."
Confirmed speakers include: Fábio Barbosa, CEO, Abril Group; Gro Harlem Brundtland, Former Prime Minister of Norway, Director-Emeritus, World Health Organization; Pete Cashmore, Founder and CEO, Mashable; Fabien Cousteau, Ocean Explorer and Founder, Plant a Fish; Luciano Huck, TV Host and President, Instituto Criar de TV, Cinema e Novas Mídias; Florian Jürgs, Co-Founder and CEO, and Thorsten König, Co-Founder and CMO, KUULUU; António Mexia, CEO, EDP; Maura O'Neill, Chief Innovation Officer, USAID; René Silva, Founder, Voz das Comunidades; Leonardo Tristao, Business Director, Facebook Latin America; Ted Turner, Founder and Chairman, UN Foundation; and Hans Vestberg, President and CEO, Ericsson. Additional speakers will be announced later this week.
To register and for more information, visit: www.rioplussocial.com.
About Ericsson
Ericsson is the world's leading provider of communications technology and services. We are enabling the Networked Society with efficient real-time solutions that allow us all to study, work and live our lives more freely, in sustainable societies around the world. Our offering comprises services, software and infrastructure within Information and Communications Technology for telecom operators and other industries. Today more than 40 percent of the world's mobile traffic goes through Ericsson networks and we support customers' networks servicing more than 2 billion subscribers. We operate in 180 countries and employ more than 100,000 people. Founded in 1876, Ericsson is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden. In 2011, the company had revenues of SEK 226,9 billion (USD 35.0 billion). Ericsson is listed on NASDAQ OMX, Stockholm and NASDAQ, New York stock exchanges.
About EDP
EDP – Energias de Portugal – is a global energy company engaged in the electric utilities and gas sector. EDP is the thirst largest producer of wind energy in the world and, for the second year running, is the world's leader in the electricity sector of the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes. EDP Group today serves as a benchmark in the global energy market, as a result of it's solid vision for the company and the sector and also a philosophy of growing integration and the pursuit of excellence that is firmly rooted in the EDP culture.
About LiveAD
LiveAD is a creative agency that believes in the potential of relevant contemporary ideas, enlarging them through the integrated use of digital media and PR. It is currently working with the following brands: Nike, Doritos, C&A, Grendene, Multishow, Lacoste, Itau, Ketel One, J&B and Baileys. LiveAD is a member of the Society of Digital Agencies (SoDA), a group made up of the world's key digital agencies. LiveAD has been recognized on Facebook Studio Awards in 2012, Cannes Lions Festival in 2009 and 2010 and 2011 SXSW Interactive finalist.
About Mashable
Founded in 2005, Mashable is the top source for news in social and digital media, technology and web culture. With more than 50 million monthly page views, Mashable is the most prolific news site, reporting breaking web news, providing analysis of trends, reviewing new web sites and services, and offering social media resources and guides.
About United Nations Foundation
The United Nations Foundation builds public-private partnerships to address the world's most pressing problems and broadens support for the United Nations through advocacy and public outreach. Through innovative campaigns and initiatives, the Foundation connects people, ideas, and resources to help the UN solve global problems. The Foundation was created in 1998 as a U.S. public charity by entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner and now is supported by global corporations, foundations, governments, and individuals. For more information, visit www.unfoundation.org.
About 92nd Street Y
92nd Street Y is a world-class nonprofit community and cultural center that connects people at every stage of life to the worlds of education, the arts, health and wellness, and Jewish life. Through the breadth and depth of 92Y's extraordinary programs, we enrich lives, create community and elevate humanity. More than 300,000 people visit 92Y's New York City venues annually, and millions more join us through the Internet, satellite broadcasts and other digital media. A proudly Jewish organization since its founding in 1874, 92Y embraces its heritage and enthusiastically welcomes people of all backgrounds and perspectives. 92Y is an open door to extraordinary worlds.