“Be careful with those…” Star Wars lightsaber flash drives.

“Lightsaber flash drives” you say with abated breath and a racing heart. Yes, your very own futuristic death sword retired and sent back into the working world as a lowly flash drive. The storage size is a bit puny as far as modern flash drives go — only 1GB — but that shouldn’t stop the most obsessed Star Wars fans. The icing on the cake comes in the form of exterior illumination when plugged in.

For only $20 at ThinkGeek, why not?

After all the Boobie banning, there is a twist — Apple working on “Explicit” app category.

Want a direct 180 from what we were told late last week and into this week as to the “Great Boobie Ban of 2010″? If you somehow managed to miss the news, Apple went on a puritan rampage last week, removing somewhere just south (or north, depending on where you get your fill) of 5,000 “sexy apps” that were…too sexy for the app store. Apple said complaints from women for women and of course children spurred the removal. Never mind the fact that there are parental controls, and above all else, the ability to actually skip past apps you don’t find to your liking.

The PR nightmare in all of it however was the fact that “mainstream sexy apps”, such as those being marketed by Playboy, SportsIllustrated, and similar publishers escaped unharmed. It’s ok though. There’s no need to continue living with an elevated heart beat or twisted undies as iPhone devs have discovered something rather interesting — a new “Explicit” category in the dev tools used to upload apps to Apple for approval.

Excuse me for a minute while I lose my composure….Why the fuck didn’t Apple just keep this category under wraps until it was ready, announce/release it, then go over the apps that they banned and notify developers they were moving said apps into this new category? Doing so would have prevented the shitstorm of negative press that has descended on Cupertino like the plague. I mean, doesn’t leaving everything intact and transitioning it over seem like a much better solution than the path they’re taking? Once again, those running the App Store are doing a bang up job, proving the argument that humans really aren’t that far removed from Apes.

/rant.

Whew. Alrighty then. What do you have to say?

TUAW

Wonder gadget provides 18% fuel mileage increase simply by plugging metal and plastic into your cigarette lighter. Skeptical? Join the club.

I really try my hardest not to let preconceived notions and conclusions from clouding my ability to reason and judge a gadget fairly. But this wonder gadget, aka “The Current Regulating Efficiency Booster“. Generally speaking, when a gadget that promises so much, costs so little, and has a name or catch phrase a mile long, your red flags should start waving loud and hard. To some, $80 may seem like a fair chunk of change for a “novelty” gadget. But this is an auto gadget, which, are often priced fairy high to begin with.

The real thing running through your heads right about now however is probably “How does it work”. Let’s let the manufacturer, Hammacher Schlemmer, handle that one…

“The device simply plugs into a vehicle’s DC outlet and stabilizes the electrical current flowing to the electrical control unit (ECU)–the computer that controls the engine’s fuel injection and ignition systems–to improve gas mileage. The device mitigates electrical interference from the stereo, lights, air conditioning, and more that can negatively affect the ECU’s ability to optimize fuel injection and fuel efficiency.”

So, simply plugging in some bundled metal and plastic and then jamming it into a cigarette lighter will give me up to 18% fuel efficiency gains? Ya, not so much. Also weighing in on the side of common sense is the fact that this device was only tested on one, count it one, car. Further adding fuel to this speculation driven fire is that only cars older than 2 years and with 12V systems can even benefit from the CREB (I took the liberty of shortening that mouthful for you).

Let’s recap: $80 for some plastic and small traces of metal that when plugged into your cigarette lighter magically transform wasted electrons into extra gas mileage…? I’m not saying avoid this at all costs. Just hold off on purchasing this until someone actually tests if across a large test bed of vehicles. How’s 2040 sound to you?

BTW, any auto-engineers or just electrical engineers in general want to weigh in on the validity of such claims?

CrunchGear

The home moisturizer for geeks: R2-D2 USB Humidifier.

Simply put, if you’re an older geek (or one that’s older at heart), Star Wars is somewhat of a staple experience in your life — especially the “real” older geeks. Growing up through the 70′s and 80′s seeing Star Wars unfold for the first time is something magical that few will ever experience in any form for a long time to come. While you may not be able to fully recreate the splendor and awe Star Wars first had on you as a younger human, you can at least start your children out young. I don’t know if it’s just me or what. But I seem to have this stigma of humidifiers being associated with young children and sleeping. So….

The R2-D2 Humidifier. If you’re going to safely gas your kids with H2O, why not do it in the manner in which you wish you were brought up — as a geek. The only caveat I can find is that it is USB powered meaning you’ll have to have a computer of some sort next to a small child. Or if you wish, one of those USB AC adapters will work just as well. Really, there’s nothing not to like. Just be careful with all of that moisture if you do choose to put it next to a computer. Water and electronics aren’t exactly BFF’s.

[Product Page: Think Geek -- $19.99]

Geeky-Gadgets > TheGreenHead

The face of IE 6 in 2010 and beyond…

Ok ok, I know. You’re thinking another IE 6 joke/rant. Well, this one is actually quite funny and doesn’t really need much else. (**See picture below) Simply put, IE6′s web standards compliance are so lacking, (and terrible at what they do manage to muster in support these days) that it will take a pretty face such as subject 1 (top) and turn it into subject 2 (not top). In real life, it’s not quite that drastic — to a human face anyway. Either way, the geek in you should find this at least mildly amusing. Am I right?

DailyWhat > Embiggen (Flikr)

The Terminator Edition iPhone Case Mod.

Of the few faults I have with the iPhone, the back casing really isn’t one of them. It’s designed well and does it’s job. What more could you ask for? For some, the move to plastic casings after the first gen iPhone was done largely to (1) reduce cost and (2) increase reception to the more cellular loving characteristics of plastic over metals. Understandably, some want the added reception of plastic and the sleek, sturdy look of metal. Solution: Titanium alloy.

You see, Titanium alloy is a much more RF transparent metal than say aluminum (which Martin also tried, though to disappointing results). Obviously, Titanium alloy is also bit too cost prohibitive for a large scale, mass market object such as the iPhone. But for a single user with access to decent CAD software and the required machinery to construct said case, the outcome is only limited by the level of the individual’s creativity.

The creator of the Titanium alloy iPhone case above, Martin, says that besides being sturdier and enjoying the same amount of reception as with the old plastic casing, it looks helluva cool. We don’t disagree with you one bit Martin.

As for plans to expand production — consider this a DIY project. Time to get crafty.

Engadget > ModMyi

Handango assimilated by PocketGear. New “uber store” 140,000+ apps strong.

It’s always fun to look back in time to the world in which it was even only a few short years ago. (Besides, a few short years ago is like a decade or two in tech years). So what was the mobile app scene like? Handango and PocketGear wear “the” mobile app stores. The big draw was that their respective app libraries were massive, in part because of the countless mobile platforms all supported under one roof. That multi-platform, app goodness has just received a fresh kick in the rear as PocketGear has announced that they have purchased Handango outright.

In case you were counting, this new uber store is now 140,000 (and growing) apps strong. As always, platforms all across the board such as Symbian, WindMo, Android, BlackBerry, and more will find something to take away from this new store. Being that I love options myself, it’s definitely worth at least one look to see if there’s anything unique. I’ll say that I generally avoided stors such as Handango and the likes back in the day simply because the storefronts themselves just weren’t ever that great, nor were the apps. ‘Tis a new time however.

For those of you feeling adventurous, would you feeling inclined to give this new multi-platform uberstore a shot? Or do you still find yourself preferring the much more tightly integrated individual app stores? Drop it below.

BGR