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“The World’s Thinnest Notebook”

Got your attention yet?

When Apple makes a claim, they tend to not pad them. The MacBook Air is going to slot right between the MacBook and the MacBook Pro, but let us tell you. This laptop, announced just this morning, is compact. 0.16″ at it’s thinnest point and 0.76″ at it’s thickest. It will literally fit inside of an envelope and at it’s thickest point is smaller than the thinnest part of the class leading Sony TZ series.

The MacBook Air has a 13.3″ LED backlit display, 1.6 Ghz or 1.8 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo (60% smaller design specifically made for this laptop - wide as a dime, thick as a nickel), black LED backlit keyboard, built in iSight webcam, ambient light sensor, magnetic latch closing mechanism, multi-touch trackpad (with double tap, pivot and rotate, pinch zoom), 1.8″ hard drive in standard 80 GB form or optional 64 GB solidstate drive (no moving parts), 45 Watt MagSafe power adapter, Micro-DVI video output, 802.11n wireless, Bluetooth 2.1/EDR, 5 hour battery life, optional external SuperDrive, 2 GB memory, and last but not least: environmentally friendly internal components like fully aluminum case, mercury and lead free display, BFR free circuit boards.

What this means to you: Everyone is on the quest to find the perfect combination of features and weight in laptops and lighter is always better. The MacBook Air represents a major leap forward in laptop design. Ready your wallets, pre-orders start today.

Cost: $1800 @ Apple [Availability: Two Weeks]

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We’ve been talking a lot about cars here on GP lately, but if you don’t know the 2008 Detroit Auto Show is going on right now and there are some cars you should know about. The Cadillac CTS Coupe Concept is one of them. We can’t recall the last time we saw something this sexy from Cadillac. Skin-ladened rap videos aside.

Powered by the 304 horsepower 3.6 Liter Direct Injection V-6, the 2+2 seater really evokes four-wheeled (20 and 21 inchers to be exact), six-piston caliper brakes on cross-drilled rotors, LED lighting, B-pillar less design, Recaro seats and Bose audio system.

What this means to you: Let’s hope this one gets approved, and more importantly doesn’t get slapped by the ugly-stick we know as “safety rules and regulations” before it comes to production.

Cost: Concept

UPDATE: The CTS Coupe is now slated to be built by GM with a proposed roll out date of June 2009 as a 2010 model. Few changes from the concept are planned. Read article here.

Make sure to see the other angles after the jump. One image doesn’t do it justice.

Read the rest of this entry »

Military looking accessories are in. Why they are we’ll leave to your own personal judgements, but if you’re looking for the perfect item to decorate your house with that’s guaranteed to make someone either want to yell “Frag Out!!” or pick it up and wonder then the Hand Grenade lamp is it.

The hand grenade oil lamp is made from an actual US army surplus grenade and can be purchased in either gilded gold, silver or natural finish (our choice). Let’s hope manufacturing defects don’t include “leaving the detonator and powder still intact.”

Got to admit, it’s unique and if you’ve got that one friend who watches Black Hawk Down or Saving Private Ryan once a week then you’ve got the perfect house warming gift.

What this means to you: We don’t condone owning a grenade that serves any other purpose than illumination.

Cost: $60 @ Unica Home

First, Pioneer wins no awards for the name of this receiver, but they do should be awarded for packing this much technology into a mid-range receiver. It’s got three HDMI inputs, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio, HDMI HD upscaling, six digital inputs, microphone based multi-channel acoustic calibration, Digital iPod input, XM and Sirius Satellite Radio, and 130 watts to each of it’s 7.1 channels.

What this means to you: Those of you looking for a well price receiver but don’t want to spring for Pioneer’s Elite series will be more than pleased with the VSX-1019TXH-K.

Cost: $600 this June @ Pioneer

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When you think of a “hybrid” do you immediately think of an exorbitantly priced underpowered vehicle with questionable styling? Do you also think that with today’s gas prices and fuel uncertainty a hybrid vehicle is becoming an ever more viable option?

Now, when you think of a Chevy Tahoe do you immediately think of stump pulling, boat towing and people hauling? Do you also think of $75 fill-ups at the gas station?

Well, GM most likely reckons you have because the Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid is a big step in the right direction for our ideal vehicle. It’s roomy, comfortable, tough and powerful. It also aims to save us countless dollars at the fuel pump. The 6.0 liter V-8 hybrid engine still churns out 332 horsepower with 6,000+ pound towing capacity and manages to do so with gas mileage comparable to a 2008 Toyota Camry.

What this means to you: It won’t completely stop trips to Exxon to sign away your paycheck, but it will certainly make those wallet-breaking trips less frequent and keep you on the go. Oh, and laughing at that vacation bound family of five packed like sardines into their Camry.

Cost: $50,490-$53,300 @ Chevrolet

The advent of digital music has usually been associated with products like the iPod, iTunes or whatever mp3 player you use. Manufacturers have designed their products around them and you’ve been relegated to using them instead of the other great services out there like Pandora and Rhapsody.

The Squeezebox Duet from Logiteceh lets you play songs stored on your computer, listen to thousands of Internet radio stations, or conntect to online music services. Better yet is it’s gorgeous and intuitive multi-room controller which uses a 2.4-inch color display and scroll-wheel navigation that makes it simple to browse, select, and play music. The small base unit has 24-bit digital audio converters, sophisticated audio rendering technology, and digital outputs. It uses ethernet and true 802.11G
Wi-Fi for flexible connectivity,

What this means to you: The computer free, simple to use and easy to setup Squeezebox Duet is ready for prime time in our offices and home. No more running to the iPod to skip tracks and playlist control.

Cost: $400 @ Logitech

Scenario: You’ve just bought a new phone. You’ve paid out arse for it despite getting the $200 discount for signing a new 2-year contract. It’s gorgeous, cutting edge and you can’t help but hold it everywhere you go so you can use it at a moment’s notice.

Some bastard walking around the corner bumps right into you while you’re texting your friend’s saying you need every last detail of their contact info to drop into your new phone. Bam, your new gadget goes flying out of your hand and sliding across the ground after hitting no less than two corners, one wall and something sharp.

Luckily your phone remains intact but then you realize there is a gaping scratch the size of the Hudson River across your shiny new screen and there’s literally a chunk or plastic missing out of the corner of your phone.

Scenario 2: Same arse bumps into you. Your phone goes flying. You pick up your phone after giving said arse a dirty stare. You pick up your phone and smile because there isn’t a single scratch on it. You thank yourself for having purchased a BodyGuardz scratch-proof transparent skin which uses the toughest film on the market and requires no special care or maintenance. You walk off in untouched glory.

What this means to you: We’ve been using the BodyGuardz on our Treo, iPhone and iPods here at GP for a month now and cannot tell you how many times it’s saved our gear from the treachery that is, New York streets. They’re available for everything from your iPod to your digital camera. Forget the extended warranty, get BodyGuardz.

Cost: ~$25 @ BodyGuardz

No one wants to swing the typically exorbitant costs of buying a down vest. If you’re looking for a good winter vest you can throw together with some of your other outerwear take a look at this puffer vest from Express for Men. It’s perfect for pairing with a sweater or long sleeve and it has just enough detailing to make it look like it’s not just a typical brand piece.

It has button up clasps as well as a zipper, ribbing on the waist a textured stand up collar and the shell is 100% nylon.

What this means to you: Well priced doesn’t have to meet low style.

Cost: $70 @ Express

Perfect for your next getaway to a warmer place or this coming summer excursions iHome’s Cycler is a water-resistant iPod speaker enclosure perfect for the beach, pool, and your bike. The water bottle like design clamps to your bike frame just where your water bottle wood with it’s enclosed mounting bracket and can be controlled through handle bar mounted remote control. And like any good dock, it’ll charge your iPod when it’s plugged in through an AC outlet.

We doubt the manufacturer endorses this, but we’ve strapped this guy right near the shower with controls right at hand. It’s handy, quick and serves a purpose outside of it’s original intention, which is always fun. Voila.

What this means to you: There are few places your iPod can’t go. The Cycler simply makes it that much easier.

Cost: $80 @ iHome

HP Signature Series EX double-cutaway guitars are a great value for those of you looking to rock it out at non-rockstar prices. The Signature Series EX uses a Maple veneer making it both lightweight, comfortable and on-stage looks. They utilize Grover tuning gears, humbucking pickups and a stop tailpiece with tune-o-matic bridge.

What this means to you: Guitar Hero may sound cool, but so will the tunes off this.

Cost: $300 @ ZZounds

Tip: We put together a custom HP Special EX in Peavey’s Custom Shop just for the hell of it. For those of you want total control over what your axe looks like then this is where you can do it. With an Alder wood body, tobacco sunburst color patter, ebony fretboard, mother of pearl inlays and black hardware we came up just shy of a bank breaking 2 grand.