Remember DualPhone which I got so excited about? Several people also email me to ask me what I think about it. Sorry for the not replying but that’s because all I get from DualPhone is ‘Sorry, we don’t ship to Singapore’.

Anyway, Taiwanese manufacturer Sysgration gave this new cool Skype device ASG-300. The way it works is the same as DualPhone except you have to plug in your own phone.

As the saying goes, if you make it, Taiwanese will make it cheaper and better :-)

MacWorld just started and as usual, Steve announced two new product: iPod Shuffle and Mac Mini.

iPod Shuffle, a even smaller version to iPod Mini which comes with 512Mb or 1Gb for your MP3. Sure, there are similar product out there (e.g. Creative MuVo), but hey, it is an Apple, with its ubercool design and best of all, at only US$99 which is incredible affordable. I would seriously consider this if I have got my iPod.

Next is the Mac Mini, a SFF (Small Form Factor) Mac which also have a small price tag, US$499 :-) It is Mac Cube redux, it is Mac version of Shuttlebox (or mini-ITX), and above all, it is Apple answer to all the PC-iPod user: Buy a Mac box which cost only as much as your iPod which can replace your dell machine!

I would like to see a bigger harddisk (80Gb don’t cut it) and perhaps with a TV tuner card so I can run my MythTV PVR on it. But hey, this is good enough for me: It runs silently which means it is a perfect MythTV frontend! (Yes, MythTV runs on MacOSX). It is a super cool box that I can put beside my DVD player and hide my MythTV box in my rack. Heck, forget the DVD player!

So when will we get to see Mac Shuffle? :-)

One of my guys, Arvind, took the 3rd Generation iPod I bought in US yesterday. Today, he return my iPod with a Penguin on it :- Linux on iPod :P

What can it do? Well, other then playing MP3 (which strangely is bit slower), I can play some of the Linux games like tetris, pong, etc. Pretty Cool. Now, I am praying he can revert this back to my normal firmware even tho it is dual boot.

What the heck we doing this? Well, that’s something I cannot say here but hey, it is something fun so why not? Anyway, the reason Arvind asked for my iPod is because after combing the whole Sim Lim & Funan, it seem there are only iPod Photo & mini left in Singapore’s store. Not even 4G (which btw can’t do this) … iPod selling that well huh?

ps: I didn’t have digital camera with me so I stole the iPod picture from here. But that’s how it looks.

After waiting for nearly 2 years, the innovative virtual keyboard (called BTVKB) finally arrived in Singapore stores! Guess what I am getting for christmas? Ho Ho Ho!

Update: Damn, it does not work with any of my current portable gadget/phones yet :P

Moto Razr	SonyEricson S700	Treo 600	Blackberry

After tolerating nearly 12 months of werid stares from bystanders with my Nokia N-Gage, enough is enough. So shopping around in the last two days, I shortlisted my selection to the above four.

Surprisingly, Nokia wasn’t even considered – This is from a loyal Nokia user of at least three 3650, five 8850, two 8890, two 7650 and one N-Gage over the last five years. I actually waited 12 months for Nokia to come out with a decent phone that will save me but no, the latest 7260, 7270 and 7280 are disappointing :-( The glory days of Noka is 8850 but it has been downhill thereafter *sigh*

So anyway, I am still debating which one to go for.

In terms of design, Moto Razr win hands down! The coolest phone I have seen in the market since Nokia 8850 (see how many 8850/90 i got?). But the lack of memory expansion turns me off – 5mb isn’t going to be sufficient for me :P
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Okay, after the Skype DualPhone, we have 3G/WiFi phone (via Richard Stansty):

NTT DoCoMo and its regional subsidiaries are now offering business subscribers a dual-network 3G/VoIP handset that works as a 3G mobile phone, VoIP (voice-over-IP) terminal, or both simultaneously. The N900iL is based on a Linux-based 3G mobile phone software platform developed jointly by NEC and Panasonic…When used in wireless LAN mode, the N900iL supports call hold, call transfer, and other standard phone functions, the company says.

This isn’t funny anymore. I can’t keep up buying all these stuff…wait, I cant even buy them here in Singapore :-( And yes, for our dear friends who is in Japan (yes, Adam, you!), you can laugh all you want while I drool on.

And also, Joi has a related entry on NTT Docomo isn’t using Microsoft for their phones. Could it be due to this? It certainly does not inspire confidence regardless the accusation is true or false. But hey, I have my fair share of such experience …

Introducing DualPhone (via VoIP Watch)

The Cordless DUALphone is a cordless telephone that can be connected to a normal telephone socket and a USB port on a PC. The display shows whether your friends who also use Skype™, are online. If they are, you simply have to press the appropriate green button and talk to them for free – no matter where they are in the world. If their PC is switched off, or you want to call someone who doesn’t use Skype™, you simply press the other green button and call via the standard telephone connection.

I am ordering it right now!

I want this!!! (via Slashdot)

This is so much better then the Zaurus C760 I have now! It has the best resolution for a PDA (try beating 640×480) and now with build-in Wifi and 4Gb diskspace is everything I wish there is on my C760. Okay not everything but almost … (I also hope to have build-in Bluetooth & GSM/3G :-)

My Zaurus is the best little gadget I have and I bring it with me almost everywhere, especially when I have to travel a long distance. With a 512Mb SD card, I can watch nearly 5 hours of Xvid movie (and with enough battery to do some perl hacking).

Why am I so excited? It is almost functional computer at handheld size, running Linux and hackable to boot, and probably the first of its kind. Sure it is not as powerful as a full-fledge notebook, but if you study enough disruptive technology history (I did), then the same could be said of first generation portable-computer. Wanna bet where this will be in 5 years time?

ps: I always wonder what the hype is about Creative Zen. What’s so cool about a crippled device compared to a hackable Zaurus?

You know you are a geek when your wife bought an Wireless PS2 controller for your thirtieth birthday. But toys are just toys..stuff you buy for the thrill of owning a cool gadget, play for a while and then move on to the next. But hey, with a cool controller like this, maybe I can make some time to play my PS2 again. :-)

It is 2am in the morning. My jetlag finally hit me … I got knockout at 2pm and slept all the way until now. *sigh* Now I am wide awake and what should I do? :P

Let see, I could play with my new iPod ;-) I went to the Apple store today with Andrew and he convince me to buy one. (I think it is to reduce his guilt that he is buying one himself :P) I decided to go with it because iPod just come out with a new version. But I prefer the old one, which is cooler with its lit-up button and zero movable-part. And I better buy it before they ran out of stock :-)

I love how well iPod integrates with my powerbook! Just plugin and it just works. Beautiful and this is how software should be!