Tech Eye: Wake me up before you go, go
Despite the objections of the authorities we had a rare old time with just these two crude, if potentially dangerous and criminal, objects.
Now we're all grown up and can comb our own hair and milk our own cows, and we find our enjoyment elsewhere, but in the case of this little humdinger the proportions haven't changed a jot. Behold, although you may have to squint a little when you do you're beholding, the iRiver U10.
Although more complicated than a box of matches, it's not much bigger, and its interface, while a bit daunting at first, is as easy to use and as much fun as striking a flame near petrol. The entire front is a whisper higher than the main unit so to navigate through the features you press down on the edges. It's got music, obviously, with MP3, an FM radio and built-in mic for recording.
But what point would there be in having such a lush 2.2 inch screen and not having video? So it's in there too, and although it might be small, the clarity is stunning.
But the really sweet part is the funky optional (and by optional we mean extra money) docking station, which looks like those chairs you thought astronauts sat in when you were a kid.
The retro cradle gives it stereo speakers, a snooze button and an in-line socket, meaning this could replace your hated alarm clock as the coolest bed-side item since God got jiggy with Adam's ribs.
The only problem is that if it goes off early in the morning and you react like TechEye does to its current waking device (i.e. leap from the bed and fling it against the wall with a force that would have The Hulk looking a bit concerned, before returning to your drink-sozzled slumber) then maybe it's not the gadget for you.
Expect it to be out in mid August. The 512MB costs about zł.950, the 1GB near zł.1,100 and the must-have docking station is around zł.300. But be warned, iRiver is planning an 8GB version before the year's end, and 30 and 60GBers next year.
Still, like a guilty looking child near a yellow slick in the local swimming pool, we just can't wait.
Now we're all grown up and can comb our own hair and milk our own cows, and we find our enjoyment elsewhere, but in the case of this little humdinger the proportions haven't changed a jot. Behold, although you may have to squint a little when you do you're beholding, the iRiver U10.
Although more complicated than a box of matches, it's not much bigger, and its interface, while a bit daunting at first, is as easy to use and as much fun as striking a flame near petrol. The entire front is a whisper higher than the main unit so to navigate through the features you press down on the edges. It's got music, obviously, with MP3, an FM radio and built-in mic for recording.
But what point would there be in having such a lush 2.2 inch screen and not having video? So it's in there too, and although it might be small, the clarity is stunning.
But the really sweet part is the funky optional (and by optional we mean extra money) docking station, which looks like those chairs you thought astronauts sat in when you were a kid.
The retro cradle gives it stereo speakers, a snooze button and an in-line socket, meaning this could replace your hated alarm clock as the coolest bed-side item since God got jiggy with Adam's ribs.
The only problem is that if it goes off early in the morning and you react like TechEye does to its current waking device (i.e. leap from the bed and fling it against the wall with a force that would have The Hulk looking a bit concerned, before returning to your drink-sozzled slumber) then maybe it's not the gadget for you.
Expect it to be out in mid August. The 512MB costs about zł.950, the 1GB near zł.1,100 and the must-have docking station is around zł.300. But be warned, iRiver is planning an 8GB version before the year's end, and 30 and 60GBers next year.
Still, like a guilty looking child near a yellow slick in the local swimming pool, we just can't wait.
