The makers of the Chumby, a hand-held, cuddly computer in a beanbag, are finally starting to ship out retail units to the earliest of adopters. Though still in low numbers, it’s a promising bit of news for a gadget we’ve been frothing at the mouth to get a hold of. Featuring a spiffy little touchscreen with an accelerometer built-in, the Chumby is a widget ‘toy’ with an open development environment, allowing hackers and companies to create nifty little, internet-connected (via wifi), widgets that can sit at your bedside.

There are already a handful of hot widgets available to play with, from the eBay auction to Flickr stream widgets. My Chumby (should it ever be mass-available), will be used as an internet-aware alarm clock, syncing with time servers worldwide and streaming my music of choice to gently prod me awake. Developers, get on it.

Not safe to stick in a stereo, but safe to use when sticking other things together, the Indispensable Tape Dispenser is every mix-tape fans dream come true. Shaped like an original cassette tape and packed with two-sided sticky tape, I can see this getting added to lots of kids adding this to their wishlists this holiday season.

When money isn’t an object, a toilet is an object you’re too good to touch. Thankfully Toto comes to the rescue, with their luxury model toilet, the Washlet S400. Featuring a remote open and close lid AND remote flush, built-in air purifier, 5 types of ‘cleansing’ modes, heated seat(!), warm air dryer (oh!) and a built-in air purifier, the S400 gives the discerning user the peace of mind one needs when entering a bathroom. I haven’t found any price points yet, but, if you’re honestly considering a purchase, I doubt that matters much to you anyways.

Read more: Toto Washlet S400

Alright, now we’re getting somewhere! I made the switch to rechargeable batteries years ago, but I’ve always had a nagging issue, that appears I shared with many others: finding the damn charger. Now, problem solved. British technology firm Moixa Energy has created the USBCell, an ingenious invention which houses a normal battery with a flip-top USB plug, allowing you to recharge the battery directly from any USB port in your home or office. This includes directly from a Sony PS3, Microsoft Xbox 360 or Nintendo Wii! The batteries need around 5 hours of constant charge to reach 90+/- percent of their 1300mah charge and will run you slightly more than you’d expect from rechargeable batteries, but, in the long-run, you’re doing the right thing for the environment and also looking damn cool while doing it.

Read more: USBCell, rechargeable USB batteries

Finally! A Chinese manufacturer who appears to take a lot of influence from Apple’s industrial design team, has released a little tidbit of information on their miniOne mobile device, which is without a doubt a lovely little iPhone clone in the making. With a screen slightly smaller than an iPhone (by .2 inches), the miniOne features touch-screen technology running Windows CE 6.0 and supports GSM and TD-SCMA If they can offer this baby at a significantly lower price-point than an iPhone and actually include phone capabilities in Europe, I could see myself making a go for it, considering the iPhone will take too long to get to Europe and also cost slightly more than a PS3 (but will be so much better than a PS3). The miniOne from Meizu will launch in China at the end of 2007 and the company is stating that US and EU launches will follow, but only in the form of a media player. :(

Read more: iPhone and miniOne compared (Via: Meizu discusses miniOne at CeBIT)

Man, I have to apologize already for the title up there, but it was so bad I just had to do it. Soooo yeah, stare at the photo closely. What is it you ask? 2.21 heads of lettuce? Nonononono my friends. What you’re seeing up there is the Iceburg Lettuce safe, sure to be a hot “as seen on TV” seller if I’ve ever seen one! It looks absolutely realistic at distance, is made to be kept in your fridge and features a spacious hidden compartment underneath where you can store your (non-perishable) valuables while you’re on holiday or just in need of a witty place to hide that engagement ring you want to give to your ladyfriend.

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Are you, or do you know a sleepyhead that constantly misses school, meetings or doctors appointments? Then a Clocky is all you need. An awesome little wheeled robotic nuisance, Clocky is an alarm clock for your bedside table, only, it’s on wheels. Clocky gives you one chance to wake up when it’s alarm goes off, if you snooze, it takes off, wheeling around your bedroom bumping into things and causing havoc while still blaring the latest horrible single from Fergie. That is, until you wake up and stop it, either by catching it and turning off the alarm, or hitting it with a golf club.

Read more: Clocky

Yeah yeah, so CES 2007 is like, so last week and hey it wasn’t really all *that* great, especially after Apple completely took the wind out of it with the announcement of their iPhone. There were some standouts however, most notably (at least to me) iRiver and their new lineup, which is not only super sexy, but also approaching Apple in industry design quality, though bordering on Sony-influenced lines and glossy black plastic, which starts to worry us a touch. But eh, enough of that, here’s some highlights:

See more after the jump..

Read more of ”Gearlust: iRiver’s CES 2007 product lineup“

Home exterior lighting is often a sadly ignored part of home ownership. Usually home owners just flood their front yards and walkways with inefficient and downright horrid light, annoying neighbors and visitors alike. Though I don’t really expect discount catalog stores like Herrington to solve these problems, this time they’re offering a great little accessory for any walkway or path on your property. Requiring only solar power with no wires or accessories needed, Sun Bricks add a charming level of lighting and safety to any dark paths. Integrated solar panels provide up to 8 hours of light per night, powering Amber colored LEDs putting off a warm glow to guide visitors and owners alike.

Read more: Sun Bricks