Here’s a pretty unsual iPhone protection case made out of sheet metal. It’s designed by Ryan Glasgow for LtdTools and can be yours for $95.

iPhone case [ryanglasgow.com]

Nicola Harper from Edmonton, Canada is transforming obsolete electronic waste into fun and geeky gifts. Here’s her latest lovely creations, sold at her site Geekware. If you want one of them you’d better be quick since most of the items are available only in very limited editions.

Here’s a lovely example; an old Little Professor (toy calculator from the early 1980’s) has been transformed into a clock

And here’s an old iMac keyboard that also serves as a clock.

Finally, a magnetic message centre made out of an old G3 keyboard.

Circuitboard Notebook [Geekware.ca]
iMac Blue Bondi Keyboard Clock [Geekware.ca]
Little Professor Clock [Geekware.ca]
iMac Graphite Keyboard Clock [Geekware.ca]

GadgetSharp just did a post about 8 really cool and futuristic yachts. I’m especially fond of the ‘Infanitas’ by E. Kevin Schopfer featured above. Check them all out:

8 Futuristic and Innovative Yacht Designs [www.gadgetsharp.com]

Many iPhone users are jailbreaking their phones to get access to the forbidden applications that Apple don’t want you to run. I haven’t done it myself, but when you look at the apps you can get I admit that it’s tempting. The top thing that I’m missing is multitasking. Here’s a list of 21 forbidden apps that you can get if you jailbreak your iPhone. Featured above are Multifl0w that is a multitasking handler, MyWi turns your phone into a Wi-Fi hotspot and My3G that fools apps into thinking they’re on Wi-Fi rather than 3G. 18 more apps listed over at Networkworld.

21 apps Apple doesn’t want on your 3.0 iPhone [networkworld.com]

I just stumbled across this post from GamingBolt where they present a short list of 6 technologies they want demoed at this years E3. The E3 will be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center between June 15-17 and hopefully we will see the upcoming PSP 2 (mockup above) and 3D gaming amongst other interesting stuff. Check out the full list over at GamingBolt.

6 Technologies we want demoed at E3 2010 [gamingbolt.com]

Today Panasonic announced that their new Full HD 3D theatre system is available at Best Buy’s Magnolia store for $2899.99. The system will give you a 50-inch 3D capable Viera VT20 plasma, a 3D capable blu-ray player (DMP-BDT300 – SRP 399.95) and one pair of Panasonic 3D Active Shutter Lens Eyewear (TY-EW3D10U $149.95). Full press info inside.

PANASONIC’S GROUNDBREAKING FULL HD 3D HOME ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEM NOW EXCLUSIVELY AVAILABLE AT BEST BUY’S MAGNOLIA STORES

SECAUCUS, NJ / RICHFIELD, MN (March 10, 2010) – Panasonic and Best Buy today continued their commitment to bringing 3D technology into American homes with the world’s first consumer purchase and retail availability of Panasonic’s Full HD 3D1 home entertainment system certified2 under the new Blu-ray DiscTM Association (BDA) 3D standard, sold exclusively at select Best Buy stores via Magnolia Home Theater.

The new range of Full HD 3D capable VIERA Plasma HDTVs and a fully-featured 3D Blu-ray Disc3 player will bring a new era of immersive visual entertainment into consumers’ homes, by creating a 3D experience that easily rivals the best that can be seen in cinemas. By delivering a full 1080p-resolution image to each eye, Panasonic’s Full HD 3D technology offers consumers the highest possible visual experience. To enjoy Full HD 3D programming, users wear a stylish and lightweight pair of active-shutter eyewear. The sets are also Full HD TVs that display pristine 1080p content in two dimensions (2D) for conventional HD viewing.

“Television has successfully moved from black and white, to color, to High Definition. But immersive, totally realistic 3D imagery has been the final frontier and beginning today, Panasonic has conquered that as well,” said Bob Perry, Senior Vice President, Panasonic Consumer Electronics Company. “Best Buy has been a proactive and important partner in bringing 3D into the living rooms of America and we are happy to share this milestone with them.”

“The demand for 3D technology in the home is just beginning for consumers,” said Michael Vitelli, President, Americas, Best Buy, “and Best Buy is uniquely positioned to bring this experience to life for our customers through our Blue Shirts and Geek Squad Agents. We are thrilled to partner with Panasonic as it allows us to be the first retailer to offer this complete 3D home theater solution and underscores our promise to always deliver on the latest and greatest technology.”

Beginning today, Panasonic’s Full HD 3D Home Theater System will be exclusively available at select Best Buy Stores via Magnolia Home Theater. The total combined SRP of the Panasonic Full HD 3D Plasma Home Theater System components is $2899.99. The system consists of a 50-inch class (49.9” measured diagonally) Panasonic VIERA VT20 Plasma 3D HDTV (TC-P50VT20 – SRP $2,499.95) which includes one pair of Panasonic 3D Active Shutter Lens Eyewear (TY-EW3D10U), and the Panasonic BDT300 3D Blu-ray Disc Player (DMP-BDT300 – SRP 399.95). Additional pairs of 3D eyewear will be available with an SRP of $149.95. The individual components of the system will also be sold separately.

The VT20 is a Best Buy exclusive model and is equivalent to the VT25 series that was voted “Best of Show” at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show. The BDT300 is also a Best Buy exclusive model and is equivalent to the BDT350 which received the Consumer Electronics Association’s esteemed Innovations Award for its innovative 3D technology.

In addition to the 50-inch class size, the Panasonic Full HD 3D Home Theater System will also be available in a 54-inch class (54” measured diagonally), 58” class (58” measured diagonally) and 65” class (64.8” measured diagonally) screen sizes with suggested retail pricing and availability to be announced at a later date.

To create the best possible 3D picture, Panasonic has developed new, faster screen phosphors; coupled with its 600Hz sub-field drive, the new displays output alternating imagery at 60 frames per second to each eye. The brain then combines the images and interprets them as 3D.

The BDT300 outputs stunning, rock-solid, and immersive Full HD 3D imagery to compatible displays. It also handles a wide variety of audio standards, and up converts all standard definition video formats. The BDT300 utilizes groundbreaking technologies incorporated in Panasonic’s proprietary UniPhier LSI chip, enabling the player to flawlessly process the large quantity of visual information necessary to create a Full HD 3D image in 1920 x 1080 resolution. Adaptive Chroma Upsampling insures that colors will be faithfully reproduced; and all native digital DVD formats are up scaled to 1080p resolution quality.

Panasonic’s Full HD 3D products meet the recently announced Blu-ray 3D™ specification standard. This standard, which represents the work of leading Hollywood studios and consumer electronic and computer manufacturers, enables the home entertainment industry to bring the 3D experience into consumers’ living rooms on Blu-ray Disc, the most capable high definition home entertainment platform. Individual manufacturers and content providers will now be able to provide the technical information and guidelines necessary to develop and bring products to market.

In January, DIRECTV and Panasonic announced a strategic relationship that will make it possible to bring 3D TV into the homes of millions for the first time. DIRECTV’s HD 3D channels, powered by Panasonic, will offer a 24/7 3D DIRECTV Cinema and pay per view event channel focused on movies, documentaries and other programming, a 24/7 3D DIRECTV on Demand channel and a free 3D entertainment channel featuring event programming such as sports, music and other content. In addition, to celebrate the launch of Panasonic’s Full HD 3D Home Theater System, DIRECTV is giving the first customer to purchase the system at today’s Best Buy launch event in New York one year of free programming, including its upcoming HD 3D service, which will be available this June.

“The superior quality of the HD 3D programming that DIRECTV will debut in June will be unlike anything that is available in the television market today,” said Eric Shanks, executive vice president of DIRECTV Entertainment. “Being able to experience that quality through Panasonic’s Full HD 3D home theater system will make our customers feel like their living room is a 3D movie theater. We have had a long- time relationship with both Panasonic and Best Buy and we are proud to be partnering with these industry leaders to make the next frontier of television a reality.”

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment has been the leader in the 3D revolution taking place in the entertainment industry. The company has consistently supported efforts to bring consumers the benefits of 3D entertainment as quickly as possible. In particular, Fox has distinguished itself by partnering with companies from other industries, including Panasonic, to make Full HD 3D TV a reality in the home.

“3D has invigorated the theater experience and it will be the same for the living room,” said Mary Daily, Executive Vice President, Marketing, Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. “Panasonic has announced amazing new products today and along with Best Buy’s commitment to the format, 3D will become a game changer for the home entertainment industry. We are thrilled to have Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs as our debut title in the Blu-ray 3D format. The Ice Age franchise has grossed nearly $2 billion in worldwide box office and sold more than 75 million units in home entertainment. Blu-ray offers the premiere high definition viewing experience for the home, and Blu-ray 3D uses the advanced quality to bring the movie theater 3D experience to your home.”

In addition to its new 3D technologies, each Full HD 3D Plasma model incorporates a rich set of advanced features. VIERA CAST™, Panasonic’s innovative Internet programming package, gives viewers the ability to access feature films plus information and communication offerings including Amazon Video on Demand™, Bloomberg News, Fox Sports, Netflix™, and Skype™ on Your VIERA TV, among others.

To bring the excitement of Full HD 3D and Panasonic’s range of home entertainment solutions to consumers, Panasonic will launch a 15-city, Panasonic Touch The Future nationwide tour next week. The tour will kick off in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles beginning March 15 and then visit Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Miami, San Francisco, Phoenix, Seattle, Detroit, Minneapolis, Dallas and Houston in March and April.

For more information on Panasonic’s Full HD 3D technology as well as product images, please visit www.panasonic.com/3D.

A few weeks ago I published a small guide that showed how to install more RAM in your MacBook and today I’m showing how easy it is to put a bigger hard drive in your MacBook. Come inside for the full guide.

The most time consuming part of upgrading your MacBook is copying all the data from the old drive into the new one. I used a free application called ‘Carbon Copy Cloner‘ and the whole process took about 8 hours (give or take 1 hour) for duplicating a full 160GB drive of data into the new, bigger drive. I used a small USB SATA 2.5 inch drive case that can be bought for around $15.

So mount the new drive in the case and put Carbon Copy to work. I started the process before I went to bed and when I woke up the drive was duplicated.

The rest of the process is much quicker and I managed to do the whole switch in around 10 minutes. Start by flipping your MacBook over and take away the battery protection plate.

Then you take away the battery and remove the screw holding the hard drive in place (using a high quality Philips screwdriver).

When the screw is gone, you can take out the drive and detach it from the SATA connector.

The next step is removing the four small screws on the side of the drive using a Torx T6 screwdriver…

…and attach them to the new drive. You also have to move the small plastic from the old drive to the new one.

Attach the SATA cable, put the new hard drive in place, tighten the screw and put in the battery and close the case. You’re done. Your machine should now be equipped with a new, bigger drive. I went for a faster 7200 RPM 500GB drive from Seagate (compared to the old 5400 RPM 160GB drive). Remember to get a drive that is compatible with the MacBook – check with your local dealer.

I just wanted to do promote this great software package that MacHeist have put together. I bought it myself and some of the applications are true gems. I especially like the clipboard manager ‘Clips’, ‘CoverScout’ an application that will let you add missing covers for iTunes albums and the really nice ftp application ‘Flow’. There’s only 2 days to go and the whole bunch of software can be yours for $19.95.

MacHeist nanoBundle 2 [macheist.com]

Today Apple finally unveiled the actual launch date for the iPad – and it’s Saturday, April 3. You can do a pre-order starting on March 12. More information inside.

Pre-Order on March 12

CUPERTINO, California—March 5, 2010—Apple® today announced that its magical and revolutionary iPad will be available in the US on Saturday, April 3, for Wi-Fi models and in late April for Wi-Fi + 3G models. In addition, all models of iPad will be available in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK in late April.

Beginning a week from today, on March 12, US customers can pre-order both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G models from Apple’s online store (www.apple.com) or reserve a Wi-Fi model to pick up on Saturday, April 3, at an Apple retail store.

“iPad is something completely new,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We’re excited for customers to get their hands on this magical and revolutionary product and connect with their apps and content in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before.”

Starting at just $499, iPad lets users browse the web, read and send email, enjoy and share photos, watch videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more. iPad is just 0.5 inches thick and weighs just 1.5 pounds—thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook—and delivers battery life of up to 10 hours.*

iPad’s revolutionary Multi-Touch™ interface makes surfing the web an entirely new experience, dramatically more interactive and intimate than on a computer. You can read and send email on iPad’s large screen and almost full-size “soft” keyboard or import photos from a Mac®, PC or digital camera, see them organized as albums, and enjoy and share them using iPad’s elegant slideshows. iPad makes it easy to watch movies, TV shows and YouTube, all in HD, or flip through the pages of an ebook you downloaded from Apple’s new iBookstore while listening to your music collection.

The App Store on iPad lets you wirelessly browse, buy and download new apps from the world’s largest app store. iPad includes 12 new innovative apps designed especially for iPad and will run almost all of the more than 150,000 apps on the App Store, including apps already purchased for your iPhone® or iPod touch®. Developers are already creating exciting new apps designed for iPad that take advantage of its Multi-Touch interface, large screen and high-quality graphics.

The new iBooks app for iPad includes Apple’s new iBookstore, the best way to browse, buy and read books on a mobile product. The iBookstore will feature books from the New York Times Best Seller list from both major and independent publishers, including Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins Publishers, Macmillan Publishers, Penguin Group and Simon & Schuster.

The iTunes® Store gives iPad users access to the world’s most popular online music, TV and movie store with a catalog of over 12 million songs, over 55,000 TV episodes and over 8,500 films including over 2,500 in stunning high definition. All the apps and content you download on iPad from the App Store, iTunes Store and iBookstore will be automatically synced to your iTunes library the next time you connect with your computer.

Pricing & Availability
iPad will be available in Wi-Fi models on April 3 in the US for a suggested retail price of $499 for 16GB, $599 for 32GB, $699 for 64GB. The Wi-Fi + 3G models will be available in late April for a suggested retail price of $629 for 16GB, $729 for 32GB and $829 for 64GB. iPad will be sold in the US through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and select Apple Authorized Resellers.

iPad will be available in both Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + 3G models in late April in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK. International pricing will be announced in April. iPad will ship in additional countries later this year. Purchase and download of songs and videos from the iTunes Store requires a valid credit card from a financial institution in the country of purchase. Video availability varies by country.

The iBooks app for iPad including Apple’s iBookstore will be available as a free download from the App Store in the US on April 3, with additional countries added later this year.

*Battery life depends on device settings, usage and other factors. Actual results vary.

And if you want to read more about it, here’s Microsofts press page: microsoft.com/presspass/presskits/windowsphone