Smaller and shorter than a credit card, thinner than a box of matches, but still as eye-catching as anything on the market is the MP-500 from Jens of Sweden, especially if you pick up the 2GB Excentrique edition with a 24 carat gold back panel.

It's amazing how much they can pack into the scratch-resistant shell. The MP-500 plays MPEG4 video and MP3, but can also be used as USB memory or a dictaphone. In addition, it has stereo speakers, a clock/alarm and FM radio with 24 pre-sets - you can even record radio shows via the timer. Software provided will convert all common film formats to MPEG4, with compression typically allowing 22 typical 25 minute TV shows to sit on the 2GB model.

The only drawback we can see is that it's so small, you'll have trouble seeing the shows on the 1.6 inch screen!

The 2GB Excentrique edition is available now for $274 ex VAT

Find out more

More portable players:
myvu personal media viewer
ThunderEyes MP3 shades

No matter how many CDs you pack in the glove box, there's never enough music in the car. Ok, there are various ways - both legal and illegal - to play your MP3 files on the move, but Sony's new GIGA panel offers a solution without extra hardware or the need to burn discs.

The Sony GIGA Panel in-car sound system has a removable front panel supplied with USB port, which connects directly to the PC.  Users simply remove the panel, connect it to the PC, choose the music data they want, drag and drop it onto the GIGA Panel, then reattach in-car and enjoy the sounds from the 1GB Flash memory, which can store up to 500 tracks. It's not just a cheap MP3 player either, packing a 24 bit DAC converter, BBE MP MP3 sound enhancement and an EQ3 stage2 equaliser. 

No news on price or release date as yet, we'll keep you posted.

More Sony:
Sony's colourful desktops
Sony's new GPS systems

Let's be honest, the right mobile is just as important for looking good as the shirt on your back or the shoes on your feet. So far, 3 has struggled to align itself with the beautiful people with any of its previous bulky 3G handsets - until now.

These LG U880 handsets, designed by trendy Italian fashion designer Roberto Cavalli, are now the fashionista's phone of choice. Just ask Victoria Beckham who apparently owns one of the hip handsets. On top of several cool points, the slimline LG U880, which weighs just 100g, also features a 1.3MP camera, Bluetooth, an MP3 player, the option of Dual Downloads and a 80Mb memory to store your favourite tunes on the move.

If you're a mere mortal, you can pick up a Cavalli phone in the near future from 3. Date and price yet to be confirmed.

Find out more

More 3:
3 offers Dual Downloads
3 launches mobile blogging

Online computer retail giant Dell has announced the use of Vodafone's 3G wireless broadband technology to Dell's notebook customers in the UK.

Beginning in the first half of this year, Dell will offer notebooks with optional integrated High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) wireless broadband capability, which will boost current 3G download speeds by approximately four times, allowing users to have readily available fast access to email, the internet and servers through the Vodafone mobile broadband data network. Of course we don't know when Vodafone will launch its HSDPA network and we bet it won't be until the autumn. Anyhow the built-in mobile broadband technology will also be backwards compatible with 3G technology and GPRS networks, so you'll be able to use it before then.

No specific date or prices as yet. We'll keep you posted. Oh and check out Samsung's very cool HSDPA phone here.

Find out more

More notebooks:
Dell's 20 inch notebook
Alienware's latest notebook means business

T-Mobile is launching the new BlackBerry 8700g in the UK, with an integrated Intel processor, a high resolution LCD and the promise of faster web browsing.

In addition to standard BlackBerry functionality including support for 'push' email, phone, SMS, browser and organising, the latest BlackBerry has been re-worked under the bonnet and now features an Intel processor, 64MB flash memory and 16MB SRAM - so faster browsing. You can also now view common attachments such as PowerPoint, Excel and Word. The 8700g also features a high res, landscape QVGA LCD display, along with intelligent light sensing technology that automatically adjusts both the LCD and keyboard lighting for optimised viewing.

The new BlackBerry integrates with all common corporate server software and allows individual users to access up to 10 email accounts from a single device. It will retail at £189.99, but from February, will be available for £79.99 with an 18 month T-Mobile deal.

Find out more

More PDAs:
Mio A201 sat nav PDA
Fujitsu Siemens PDA with built-in GPS

Drives get bigger, but so do our needs when it comes to storage. Our obsession with downloading will eat away at available space - and you can add to that the space taken up by System Restore on both Windows XP and ME.

Over at Propellerhead, you can find tips on clawing back the space that System Restore uses safely and in plain English, giving you some breathing space before the next outlay for a new drive or even a new PC.

Find out about this and discover many other useful tips for keeping your PC running smoothly over at Propellerhead.

We've become a nation living in fear of a wrong left turn. We can't leave the house without the security of that dashboard device. And this sat nav dependency hasn't passed the car hire world by, with rental giant Hertz now offering a specially-designed unit for their fleet

The Hertz NeverLost satellite navigation system operates in 11 languages, with the usual extensive mapping of the UK and Europe. It also has a wide, full-colour screen to show your route and points of interest along the way. A QuickSpell facility helps with those unfamiliar European place names and a multiple search option even allows you to search for hotels by name and rating and restaurants by cuisine type.

You can book the Hertz NeverLost now in the UK. Or alternatively, you can just take your own portable device with you on holiday.

More sat nav:
Indago add to the sat nav frenzy
Mio A201

Projectors used to be costly and bulky, an affluent addition to the house or office. Not so anymore, they're down in price and size - just take a look at Samsung's lightweight P300 pocket projector.

It's small, but with enough about it to match the bigger boys with an impressive battery life of 2.5 hours, 24 ANSI Lumen brightness and 1000:1 contrast ratio. Picture quality is improved with the Digital Mirror Device (DMD) that minimises loss of light in the projection process to improve efficiency. And of course, it's built to be mobile, so there's ease of connection to a variety of devices and if you are on the move.

You should be able to find it in the shops now, priced at around £399 excluding VAT.

More projectors:
Epson's projector with built-in DVD player
The smallest projector ever?

To be honest I am still getting my head around this one, but it appears that UK 3G network 3 is now going to start paying customers to receive voice calls and text messages. Of course they don't receive cash, but rather credit which allows them to make more voice calls, send messages or watch snippets of video.

It is all based around a new pay-as-you-go price service from 3 called 'WePay'. Basically WePay customers receive 5p credit for every minute for calls and 2p per text message received. The credit is added to their account the next time they top up their card. For example, when a customer receives a five-minute call, they earn enough credit to send two texts, or send a picture message or watch the highlights from two episodes of Coronation Street.

Alright, Google Earth isn't new technology, but if you're an Apple user, it's new to you. Yes, Google have finally got round to launching the program for Macs, around 7 months after the PC launch.

I'm sure I don't need to explain that you can zoom right into your hometown from space, tilting and rotating the local terrain as you see fit. When you get bored of that, you can look round for pubs in the area you haven't frequented and get directions there from your house. And of course, there's the rest of the worold outside of your staggering distance.

You'll need Mac OS X 10.4 and beyond to download Google Earth. Only the beta version is currently available - no Earth Plus or Earth Pro either as yet.

Via Stuff

More Mac:
Skype for Mac owners
Record HDTV on your Mac

The Time logo has returned to PCs in the UK only months after previous owners Granville Technology Group collapsed. Time UK Factory Limited, which manufactures PCs and plasma TVs, is starting a direct sales operation via Timeuk.com.

An official statement states that the facilities were "acquired from the administrators of VMT Ltd. VMT produced PC and plasma TV products for Granville Technology Group Ltd, which went into administration in July 2005. Granville was a reseller of TIME branded products." Granville Technology went into administration last July with debts of up to £70 million and the loss of more than 500 jobs. The new company currently employs around 30 people.

Find out more

New computer systems:
Sony's latest Vaio media centre
EPC's 2000GB media PC

The iTunes music store continued it's phenomenal growth in 2005 with a 241% increase in site traffic, according to research gathered by Nielsen NetRatings, taking the number of users from 6.1 million to 20.7 million - that's over 14% of active net users.

More interestingly, Nielsen NetRatings also tried to find out who those users were. The biggest age group was 12-17 year olds, with a slight bias towards male users. If that's not specific enough, the research company also claims that iTunes users were 2.2 times more likely to own a Volkswagen, the user's favourite drink would be cider and that same iTunes fan would read Wired.

I'm an iTunes user and none of the above apply to me. Better luck next time Nielsen!

Read the full story on the BBC

More iTunes:
iTunes RAZR phone
iTunes with added podcasting

Running a close second to the iPod right now in the accessories market is the PSP - and the latest add-on for you to consider is the Soundbag, a mobile speaker system for your new favourite portable console.

Designed as both protection and amplification for the console, simply plug in your console to the Soundbag via the audio jack connector to boost both the quality and volume of sound and to keep your player safe from bumps and bangs. If you have other portable players, you can plug those in too - though only PSP-shaped players will sit snugly into the wallet!

Powered by 2 AAA batteries that give around 6 hours of playback, you can pick up the Soundbag for around £27.

More for your PSP:
Shure E3g PSP headphones
Neuros MPEG4 recorder for the PSP

I don't think anyone in the UK could have missed or indeed failed to have been touched by the plight of the bottlenosed whale struggling in the Thames this weekend.

Our friends over at Bayraider have noticed a burst of whale-related eBay activity on the back of the whale's tragic end - thankfully not all of it blatant profiteering.

Amongst the items listed are a tribute cross-stitch pattern, a commemorative t-shirt or the inevitable fridge-magnet. On a more charitable level, you can simply donate some cash to the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) charity or bid for the watering can that was used to keep the whale moist during the doomed rescue attempt. A percentage of the winning bid will also go to the BDMLR.

For additional information and links to these auctions, visit Bayraider.

Having a good desktop sound system has never been more important with the advent of music downloads, podcasts and better quality streaming. So enter Creative, with their new T20 speaker system, part of their award-winning GigaWorks range.

The GigaWorks T20 speakers deliver full-range stereo sound without the need for a subwoofer. Sound quality is refined by high-end dome tweeters and mid-range cone drivers and boosted by enhanced bass, courtesy of Creative's BasXPort technology. The speakers incorporate separate controls for power, bass and treble, and a headphone port if you don't want to annoy the rest of the house or office at anytime.

Small enough to work well with both PCs and MP3 players, you pick up some T20 speakers for around £80.

More speakers:
Oregon's wireless sound system
Muji's cardboard speakers

We love full size GPS system but have always had reservations about sat nav via mobile phone. After all aren't the screens too small and the speakers on the phone a little too quiet? The guys at Gadget Centre have been trying out the ALK CoPilot Live 6, which works with Windows Mobile phones, to find out.

  Services and mobiles that track your kids are becoming more prominent and more popular. The latest solution on the market is the 'Find Me' service from ChildLocate.

If your child is lost or worried, he or she can text 'Find Me' to a central number when they feel they're in any danger. Within seconds parents receive an alerting text message followed by the location of their child. Once parents receive an alert, they can contact their child - or, if they are unable to establish contact, provide proof of where a child was when he or she last made contact.

The service is available as part of a ChildLocate subscription, which covers up to five mobiles and costs around £70 per year.

Find out more

More tracking:
Track your child with i-Kids
Sanyo's child-friendly mobile

It's getting increasingly difficult to find your ideal digital camera as new models hit the market almost every week - each offering something a little better for the money. This week it's Panasonic's time to pitch with their new digital still camera, the Lumix DMC-FZ7.

Following on from the highly-rated DMC-FZ5, the new model is equipped with a 6.0 megapixel CCD and powerful 12x optical zoom. A key improvement is the newly incorporated High Sensitivity mode in which the camera shoots up to ISO 1600, suppressing image blur caused by subject movement by shooting with fast shutter speeds. The camera also features Panasonic's Mega O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer), which detects and compensates for any hand shaking when taking your snap. The improved image processing LSI, Venus Engine II, offers excellent resolution and a shutter interval of just 0.5 seconds - meaning the camera is ready to take the next picture only 0.5 seconds later.

Add to that a brighter 2.5" LCD screen and an extended battery life and it's certainly a competitor for your cash. You can pick up the Lumix DMC-FZ7 from March. No UK price confirmed as yet.

More digital cameras:
More from Panasonics' Lumix range
Kodak Easyshare C663

There's a saying that refers to something pointless as "about as much use as an ash tray on a motorbike". So how do you stand with an iPod on a scooter?

If you want to live out your Quadrophenia fantasy, complete with Who soundtrack, then this mobile Stereo System with iPod dock by Scooterworks could be just what you're looking for. It's a do-it-yourself kit for P-series Vespas (the modern ones that aren't "twist and go") and includes an amp, two 4-inch Alpine speakers, replacement glovebox door with pre-cut holes, and a cradle/connector for hooking up your ipod or other player.

It's available online for around $299. Just mind that cliff edge when "Love Reign O'er Me" starts to blast out of the speakers.

Find out more

Via Engadget

More iPod:
Video recorder for your iPod
Selfridges sells iPod lessons

I think there was a time in the nineties when the Ministry of Sound could have passed for "cool", but that was then and this is now. Don't tell that to Three though, they've teamed up with the clubbing giant to bring you the MOS-1 3G mobile.

The phone itself is a smart looking black clamshell handset with the Ministry of Sound logo and a Ministry of Sound key for fast access to music. It also features a high resolution colour display for video viewing and an independently rotating 1.3 Megapixel camera. In addition, you 'll get free stereo headphones, a couple of Ibiza club hits to watch and all the 3G features you'd expect.

You can pick up the MOS-1 via threePay.

Find out more

More mobiles:
Orange launch the snow-mobile
Are you ready for VibeTonz?