Gadget News

Navigon is about to release a major update for its MobileNavigator GPS app for the iPhone that adds social media interaction, panoramic 3D views, and Navigon MyRoutes.

Today's episode of CNET's The 404 Podcast features a pink Ouija Board, the newest Facebook meme, search engine profiling, and Google's latest mapping feature that waves good-bye to your shopping privacy.

(Credit: Derrick Chen/The 404)

The infamous Ouija Board is still just as popular as it was when Hasbro first unleashed it in 1967. In fact, it even got extra publicity with a flaming cameo in last year's horror flick Paranormal Activity, but angry Christians aren't happy about Hasbro's latest idea for a Pink Ouija Board. Who knew that a pink square of cardboard and a magnifying glass could get so much controversy?

Please let this actually happen.

(Credit: Facebook)

First there was Doppelganger Week, then Urban Dictionary Week, and now we finally have a Facebook meme that The 404 Podcast can get behind: Can this pickle get more fans than Nickleback? In less than a week since its genesis, the Facebook group already has more than 100,000 members, but it still needs your help to get beat out Nickelback's 1,392,481 (and growing) fans.

This next story might make you think twice before ducking into the back room at your local video store. Google's latest "Store View" is as yet unconfirmed (but not outright denied), but the service will ideally let users check out the inside of any participating retailer through Google Maps. Imagine browsing the Web for a supermarket and then virtually inspecting the interior for the best way to route yourself through a grocery store and you can see why we don't quite understand the point of Store View.

Those stories and more on today's 404, plus a meaty Calls From the Public and more of your sticker picture submissions! Keep sending them to the404(at)cnet[dot]com and we might just feature it on the show! Much thanks to Derrick for sending us a pic of the cubicle dressing you see up top.

EPISODE 515 Listen now: Download today's podcast



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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast

Kindle accessory maker Octovo sent us an early review unit of its upcoming Kindle light, which is due out in March for $29.99.

After selling out over the winter holidays, Barnes Noble's e-book reader is back online and is set to arrive in BN stores by midweek.

Too busy creating a high-def cave for Sunday's game to keep up with this week's Crave? Here's what you missed while you were shopping for a 103-inch plasma.

We reviewed the BlackArmor PS110 USB 3.0 external hard drive from Seagate and found that it is faster than any other USB external hard drive.

As promised, Barnes Noble is again upgrading the software for its Nook e-book reader. Version 1.2 is considered a major upgrade.

To promote its Vlingo 4.0 Plus mobile voice app for Blackberry devices, the company is offering Crave readers the chance to win a voucher for its app along with a BlackBerry Bold from ATT sans service.

Video-monitoring software from a trio of former Palm executives has led to some interesting discoveries. CNET has an exclusive look at what Vitamin D turned up during its beta testing. pOriginally posted at a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10447691-56.html" class="origPostedBlog"Beyond Binary/a/p

The Sony Bloggie CM5 isn't as compact as competing models from Flip Video and Kodak, but it delivers an above-average feature set and video for the money.

Customers with cracked, tinted, or yellowed iMac displays say Apple is giving a cash reward for their trouble. pOriginally posted at a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-31021_3-10447690-260.html" class="origPostedBlog"Circuit Breaker/a/p

Sony's CFO says though it's "a little behind," the company would like to be competitive with the iPad. Why weren't they thinking of this before? pOriginally posted at a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-31021_3-10447511-260.html" class="origPostedBlog"Circuit Breaker/a/p

Aaxa Technologies has introduced the L1 Laser Pico projector, which it says is the world's first laser Pico projector with an internal media player and storage.

(Credit: Maahstud/The404)

We kick off today's episode of CNET's The 404 Podcast with a fun story about the Nestle Crunch Hotline number. The company's latest viral campaign offers a series of hidden menus within the prerecorded call center that lets callers choose between English, Spanish, and Pig Latin language options. You can also choose to hear prerecorded knock-knock jokes, "funner game options," and the weirdest feature of all, which lets you listen to the sound of bubble wrap. We attempt to call the number during the show, but the line is so popular that we keep getting busy signals, so call 1-800-295-0051 if you have time to waste after listening to our show.

Jeff also brings us an amazing deal from Dell for the new Alienware M11x. It won our Best of CES 2010 award and, judging by its size, it's comparable to a gaming Netbook. You get an 11.6-inch display and a 1.3GHz Pentium SU4100 processor inside as well as a battery with 2 hours of gaming play and 6.5 hours of standby time. Best of all, the gaming rig comes in at a base price of $799. No, we're not working on the Alienware payroll, but with portable gaming systems dropping in price, the appeal of PC gaming is bigger than ever and we thought our listeners would appreciate this deal. Check it out!

Lots more stories in the rundown today, including a $7,000 talking sex robot, a T-shirt that all predators will enjoy, the new Sonic the Hedgehog 4 trailer, and more!

EPISODE 512 Listen now: Download today's podcast



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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast

Technology from a Canadian company enables people to control objects using only their brain waves. Visitors to the upcoming Winter Olympics will be able to give it a try. pOriginally posted at a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-13860_3-10446694-56.html" class="origPostedBlog"Beyond Binary/a/p

Back in your hole, guy.

(Credit: Punxsutawney Groundhog Club)

2010 started off positively: an amazing CES visit, an uplifting State of the Union Address, and an entertaining Grammy Awards show. Yes, 'twas a great January...too bad that filthy, overgrown rat Punxsutawney Phil had to show up and ruin it with a dreary six more weeks of winter, which wouldn't be so bad except that Wilson won't have his iPad for another nine weeks.

Unfortunately, it turns out our furry little friend might be an amazing meteorologist, but his texting skills can use some work. It took Phil over two hours to send out his inaugural text message to awaiting subscribers. Phil took even longer to tweet out his prediction. Come on, Phil, are there no tween girls in Gobbler's Knob, Pa., that you can enlist to speed up your T9-ing? Maybe it's time for an upgrade.

The 404: Now broadcasting from your horse's assets

(Credit: CNET/The 404 )

Unfortunate news aside, we've also got plenty of exciting news to discuss, including this year's Oscar nominations! Of course, Avatar's nine nominations only make us that much more embarrassed about all of our trash-talking prior to watching the movie. But hey, we're big enough to admit our mistakes, however, infrequent.

And since that's more than I can say for some directors, we also have to take some time to run down this year's Razzie nominees. Will Transformers 2 take down G.I. Joe for worst movie of the year or Big Momma's House 2 circle back and reign supreme? Listen in to hear our predictions!

As usual, we've also got a few sticker pictures, but it's not even close to the number we've sent out so far, so SEND US PICTURES if you got them in the mail! Send all your tattoo and sticker pictures to the404(at)cnet{dot}com- we want to see them all!

Finally, today marks the premiere of CNET TV's newest show, preGAME! Hosts Jeff Bakalar and Mark Licea bring you all the latest gaming news plus in-house demos of the hottest games a week before they're released. The show starts today and runs every Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET. Check out all the preGAME action on CNET TV!

EPISODE 510 Listen now: Download today's podcast



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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast

Mock-ups of a Chrome OS tablet emerge much more quietly than Apple's iPad did. In some ways, Google's Chrome OS could be a better fit for tablets than for Netbooks. pOriginally posted at a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-30685_3-20000034-264.html" class="origPostedBlog"Deep Tech/a/p

Boot Camp 3.1 betters the functionality of a MacBook Pro running Windows 7, but it doesn't improve the battery life. pOriginally posted at a href="http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-31012_7-10431386-10355804.html" class="origPostedBlog"Windows 7 Insider/a/p

You may have heard that Apple made a little product announcement this week. But that's not the only thing that went down in the gadget world.

When Apple releases the iPad in March, several new e-readers may be rendered obsolete. Check out our list of e-readers in jeopardy. pOriginally posted at a href="http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-18438_7-10444360-82.html" class="origPostedBlog"Fully Equipped/a/p