If you were starting to get worried that the new Gizmondo device would never see the light of day, fear not! According to an interview with Carl Freer, the company is hard at work on its next handheld, which he claims will feature a number of improvements on the previous, practically perfect iteration. First up, the new system will be built atop Windows CE 6 (which Freer claims has lots of "new goodies"), utilizes a separate graphics chip, will be an open platform with a readily available SDK, and can grab content form a web portal (Gizmondo.com, likely). Most interesting of all, however, is that Freer says the old Gizmondo units will be returning to store shelves. All of this magic is said to be happening by the end of the year -- though since we're nearly half-way through it, Carl and co. have a pretty small window. This is where the "exciting psychic worlds" come into play, right?

[Thanks, Trevor]

Are you hoping to enter a "two-nuclear detonation true high-definition era" of PMP'ing? Do you desire "really high-definition video playback" which brings a "new visual shock?" Do you want a media player with "super hard drive recorders, easily direct D1 quality" which are "worth your small taste?" If you answered "yes" to those questions, you want the Aigo Patriot MV5920 Dual-Core MP5 player! The unit features video playback at 720p (though not 720p screen resolution), can handle MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, AVI, DivX, XviD, ASF, WMV9, RM, MP3, WMA, WAV, AC3, and OGG files, and features a hard drive as large as 160GB... but that's not what you're really after, is it? What you really want is "unlimited life," right? Well, my friend "the curtain has been opened, such as what you."

[Via PMP Today]

Ah -- we'd know that backside anywhere. If you were super-duper stoked about the forthcoming HTC Touch Diamond, you might want to sit down. Apparently, High Tech Computer Corp. has already sent this beauty over to the FCC, where a room is currently filled with men in white coats meticulously judging the above label placement. Regardless, this might bode well for a US release of the company's latest and greatest... don't you think? While you ponder that brainteaser, feel free to truck over to the FCC's site and get all the information you could possibly want about the Diamond's RF exposure.

Just like we suspected, after a short delay, the succulent and delightful Motorola Q9c is now available from Verizon. Bonus shot -- instead of the $249.99 price tag we expected it to sport, it's actually bumped down to $199.99 with a two-year contract and online discount. So... what are you waiting for?

The next time you get popped for a crime you didn't commit and end up in the Big House, you're going to be real glad NCIC Inmate Telephone Services rolled into existence. The greatest dream of felons everywhere has finally come to fruition: you can now make collect calls to cellphones while you're serving your time. And hey, this isn't just some minor advance -- no, this is "lightning in a bottle," arguably on par with the first moon landing, finding a cure for cancer, or hitting that crazy high note at the end of "Happiness Is a Warm Gun." With a 20 percent call-completion rate, you don't have to defer your dreams -- rob a bank today, you'll definitely be able to make pricey collect calls to loved ones from jail!

[Image courtesy Celebrity Blackberry Sightings]

The hot word on the street is that Palm has all but confirmed the existence of two new phone models by ramping up a "launch developer" program for new applications. The devices, dubbed Zeppelin (a name we've heard quite a bit of) and Skywriter (which is new to us) could be slated for a Q3 release, as Palm is asking devs to turn in their applications by May 30th. Rumor has it that at least one of the units is a "Centro-like" Windows Mobile phone -- if that date is close to correct, it could very well be the "Wanda" that we saw back in January. The Zeppelin, on the other hand, is likely the WiFi equipped Treo 800w we've been hearing about for what seems like a million years. A mockup of a device (above) was included in the email, though we're pretty sure not even Palm could create a phone that ugly.

If you had a creeping suspicion that the iPhone-esque phone market wasn't crowded enough yet -- you're right. Apparently, Philips is about to throw its hat in the ring with a device called the Xenium X800. The familiar looking unit will sport WiFi, a WQVGA "e2e" (or "edge to edge") touchscreen, and appears to be running a proprietary OS which looks considerably better than most phones in this class. Sure, it's heavily knocking off Sony's XMB and that new BlackBerry OS 4.6, but there are worse offenses that could be made. No word on more detailed specs, but you'll know more when we do. In the meantime, take a look at a few more pics after the break.

[Via Unwired View]

Do you absolutely love Gateway desktops? If you said yes, prepare to be seriously stoked. The company is releasing a slew of new systems this week, ranging from cheapo starters to pretty heavily equipped gaming / multimedia models. We've got all the info that's fit to print (and frankly, some that isn't), and we've rounded up the basic specs and features after the break. Enjoy!

It looks like Verizon isn't taking those 700MHz spectrum open access rules very seriously, and a certain competing bidder isn't real happy. In a petition filed with the FCC by Google, the company alleges that Verizon is willfully ignoring the "plain meaning of the [open access] rule" by suggesting it will allow one type of access for users who use Verizon-approved devices, and another for those using third-party units. According to the document, "Verizon's position would completely reverse the meaning of the rule such that the open access condition would apply to none of Verizon's customers, and thereby render the condition a nullity." The search giant is calling for the FCC to block Verizon's $4.7 billion bid on the spectrum unless the company agrees to comply with the previously-decided open access rules. Since this isn't the first inkling we've had that Verizon wasn't down with open access, we're not surprised, but it looks like Google has a little more fight left in them -- and that could make all the difference. [Warning: PDF read link]

[Via IP Democracy; Thanks, Bram]

If you absolutely, positively haven't seen enough of HTC's newest iteration of its Advantage, the X7510, then boy do we have a treat for you. After the break, you'll find a charming video of one of these odd devices being unboxed. Sure, it looks pretty cool, but we're still trying to figure out just exactly what someone would be using this thing for. We're open to hearing your thoughts on the matter -- maybe you can convince us to make a purchase.

[Via Pocket PC Thoughts]

Apparently, RIM is a bit worried that the rumored high price-point for the forthcoming BlackBerry 9000 might be a bit too steep for some, and plans to offer a budget version -- sans 3G. According to the Boy Genius, an almost identical model of the next-gen phone will be available without high-speed data, and will have a slightly different bezel and back casing (which he's gotten a picture of, seen up above) -- though we're not sure why they'd go to the trouble of making a different body when only the guts will change. Clearly it's one of life's mysteries we weren't meant to understand.

If you absolutely can't stand life without a widescreen PMP one more moment, Yoto just might have you covered. Sure, the M300 looks like a lot of other "all screen" media players out there, but can those other models handle AVI, DIVX, MPEG4, RM, XVID, RMVB, FLV, MP3, WMA, FLAC, APE, JPEG, GIF, and BMP files? Do they have 400 x 240 WQVGA screens? Are they made by Yoto? If you answered "no" to any of those questions, you're not talking about the Yoto M300 -- and you're hurting our feelings. You might pause at the apparent compatibility issues (Windows 2000 and Windows XP only?), and maybe this doesn't actually have a touchscreen, and sure, it was never really cleared of those murder charges... you know on second thought, maybe this isn't such a good investment.

[Via PMP Today]

Look, we're not saying that FlipStart is on the way out, but when you only sell one product, put it on fire sale, and then your "store" page tells people that the stock of your device has been "sold out" and then directs them to a third-party retailer for accessories, well, things might not be looking so good.

[Thanks, Marke]

A company called GreenPix has created an astounding combination of sustainable technology and digital media virtuosity, dubbed the Zero Energy Media Wall. The system features the world's largest (so they claim) color LED display, powered completely by photovoltaic cells which are integrated into the glass curtain. During the day, the wall -- located on the Xicui entertainment complex in Beijing -- harvests solar energy, then expends the charge at night in a display of undulating colors. The system goes on display this month, but if you can't make it to China, you can watch a video of the work in action after the break.

[Via Technabob]

The Professor rounds up a handful of interesting and informative gadget-related science stories from the week and presents them in an easily digestible liquid form.