It’s been some time since we haven’t covered any medical related gadgets but I think it’s now time to do so. We’ve come across a bluetooth heart monitor that might diminish just a little bit, the fear of being alone when one gets a heart attack. Such a device brings in the possibility of saving lives by sending an alerting text message containing an ECG to your doctor or at the hospital where the records are stored.

It’s just a prototype version that records your heart activity and sends an ECG to your mobile phone via Bluetooth. The device is pretty smart because it keeps track of your heart rate and in case of cardiac failure it takes action. Future upgrades of the device will include GPS, to find the person in the fastest possible time. The idea is great and we support it. Go further guys!

[Source via Ubergizmo]

Yes that’s right. If you need to make a point that your new flash memory line is really fast what are going to do? You get some fast Ducati motorcycles to exhibit and burn some tires. Eli Harari, SanDisk’s founder mentioned that with the debut of the iPhone and other smart multimedia devices the demand for bigger but most important, faster flash memories will go up.

Harari also expects the prices to go down as the flash memory manufacturers develop better and better solutions, but will the market catch up?

The retail prices for the new SanDisk Ducati flash memory line will range from $125 for a flash drive to $315 for the 8GB CompactFlash. All the new models will be used in digital cameras and other portable devices. Take a look at the pictures below for more info about the Ducati flash memory and flash drives:

[AFP via YahooNews] : image copyright AFP

There seem to be a bunch of GPS navigators these days, so here is another one from Sanyo. Easy StreetNav NVM-4070 packs a 4-inch wide screen (16:9), the receiver is a SiRF Star III and has 1.8 million POI. It has voice (text-to-speech) to read you the street names, an FM transmitter to channel music and navigation, and plays video, photos, MP3 and WMA files. From the picture you can also see that it has Bluetooth to connect your mobile phone, hands free calling, data transfer and SMS.

Sanyo Easy StreetNav NVM-4070 comes with an SD card slot and with 64MB built-in memory. That’s what you get for $500 and I think that’s damn expensive for what you get. You can also get the Sanyo NVM-4050 for only $400 but you lose the auto-rerouting, the FM transmitter, traffic, photo and video playback. Again, very expensive!

[PRNewsWire via Gizmodo]

Last week we had a ring that you could use to weak up in the morning without disturbing anyone else. It looks like Yanko Design is really into making extremely nice looking gadgets, because they have a new useful piece of gadget. It’s a ring you wear on your finger that locks all your programs when the distance between you and your computer is higher than a certain distance. A great gadget to keep all those work colleagues that need to take a peak on your hard work.

The design is from Yang Hai and we can’t stand without asking: can the guy tweak wedding rings to do the same thing? Right now it’s just a design, but since it’s a very functional concept we might see it live soon. [Yanko Design]

Research in Motion (RIM) announced yesterday the availability for the new BlackBerry 8820. The mobile is an upgraded platform of the BlackBerry 8800. In addition RIM has included a built-in GPS module and microSD/microSDHC.

The Wi-Fi cellphone supports the 802.11 a/b/g Wi-Fi standards to enable data access over Wi-Fi connections. It also support the UMA technology that offers the possibility to switch voice calls between a wireless carrier’s cellular network and a Wi-Fi network.

The built-in GPS module helps you navigate and provide “out-of-the-box” support for a wide variety of location-based applications and services like BlackBerry Maps. Upgrading the slot card, RIM increased the storage options from 2GB up to 32GB. Wow! That’s almost half of my hard disk.

Multimedia features have changed a little. The BlackBerry 8820 comes with a new and powerful desktop media manager - the Roxio Media Manager. It allows is users to easily search for media files on their computer, view and organize them. The Bluetooth uses the A2DP standard.

The new BlackBerry 8820 is expected in stores in the coming weeks. The favored carrier seems to be AT&T, but isn’t impossible to see T-mobile in the action.

via Market Wire

A rumor about Apple iPhone launch in UK circulates on the Internet. PC Advisor revealed that sources close to Apple said the UK launch is prepared for September 2007. Although the sources are considered almost sure, the UK mobile operator O2 has not reach an agreement with Apple to be the exclusive partner for iPhone.

However O2 had beaten off the rival Vodafone for signing the deal with Apple. Unconfirmed press reports announced that O2 has already signed the contract with Apple to carry UK calls for iPhone.

According to Yahoo News, PC Advisor had contacted O2 and a spokesman confirmed that O2 and Apple had not reached a deal on the iPhone. We can tell for sure that iPhone is expected in Europe before the Christmas. The month predicted for release was November, but looking at the phone’s success I would say Apple is hurrying for the European launch.

via Yahoo News

I think we are going to create a new category on Devicepedia about eco-friendly gadgets because global warming is a big problem. Since we talked about eco friendly traffic lights from Taiwan and Seville we have something new from Sharp that needs our applause.

Sharp street lights, models LN-LW3A1 and LN-LS2A1, that use solar energy good for 1800 lumens instead of electricity are going to be used in Japan (the most “eco conscious” country in the world). The two Sharp street lights models also come with earthquake sensors that will automatically turn them on for 48 hours if it’s over 5 degrees on the Richter Scale. Applause!

[Sharp via Akihabara]

From the moment I laid my eyes on it I knew this is another piece of gadget that is going to sell just because it’s a little bit weird. So if you are someone that won’t decide easily and always need someone else to back up an idea you need the “Decider“.

The Decider is a watch with a weird display. It shows YES or NO depending on what you need advice on. So if you want to know whether you should buy toilet paper (if you ran out of it) then take a look at your watch and it will display the right answer. The Decider, is a Mr Jones watch, with a stainless steel case, black and red wrist leather straps that will be produced in a 100 pieces limited edition. Price is £79.99

Mr Jones Watches via DesignCentre

Sony is getting really creative. Have you guys noticed the new colors for the new PSP slim models? If you put them one near another I am sure it looks just like a pastel, with warm and soft colors that might convince (or not) my father into playing poker. Sony guys, they are not really for 10 years old or for those over 50. We the 20-30 years old usually take some time off for a game on the new PSP. Why don’t you guys make something to suit our tastes, too?

The new PSP colors are Piano Black, Ceramic White and Ice Silver which are almost obligatory, and then Rose Pink, Lavender Purple and Felicia Blue. People are screaming for “bloody red”, “screaming yellow” and “midnight blue” not some threatening manhood colors.

I agree that many will like them, but please Sony, think of everyone. Bring in some more!

[Sony via Gizmodo]

Recently, a free wireless network has been launched in London. The free service is provided by the Free-hotspot.com and the Wi-Fi network infrastructure firm MeshHopper. They offer Wi-Fi access along the River Thames. The free access area covers 13.6 mile. The two companies intend to extend the network up to 22 mile by August this year.

The free wireless network is not really free. Its users must agree to view an advertisement at every 15 minutes. Otherwise they are charged with $6 (2.95 GBP) per hour. The wireless public operates with modest download speeds of 256Kbps. On the other hand the paid-for services operate at a faster 500Kbps.

“This really marks the arrival of free Wi-Fi in Greater London. Millions of Londoners, as well as commuters, visitors and tourists, can now expect to find free Wi-Fi as they work or play along the Thames.” - Dan Toomey, chief executive of Free-hotspot.

Similar free access networks will be created for other cities across UK.