Gmail No Longer Gmail In Germany, Becomes Google Mail Instead

It’s official, Google has lost the rights to the Gmail name in Germany thanks to a similarly named paid email service. Daniel Giersch, founder of “G-mail…und die Post geht richtig ab“, has been at odds with Google since 2005 about the Gmail trademark. A court decision in mid-2007 ruled that Google would not be able to use the Gmail brand for its e-mail service there. Users in and travelling to Germany will have to copy and paste “mail.google.com” into their browsers to access their Gmail accounts. I’m just puzzled why they haven’t paid this guy a few million bucks to buy over his company yet. [The Local DE via HardwareZone]

Sitsack Is The RAID 0 Of Sitting Equipment

When it comes to redundancy, I don’t see how much more you can get by putting a plastic chair on top of a bean bag. Bean bags are supposed to be for chilling, relaxing while plastic chairs usually mean serious work by giving you stability, putting one on top of the other is like putting a square peg in a round hole. Some say it solves the problem of falling over when leaning back (or as we call it here in Singapore, rocking) on your chair, but I’d stick to Homer/Edison’s six legged chair for that. I guess we’ll have to wait for a review to really judge. [OhGizmo]

Panasonic Joins The Atom UMPC Frenzy With The New TOUGHBOOK

Less than a week after Kohjinsha introduced their pair of Atom powered UMPCs, Panasonic introduces their new TOUGHBOOK based on Intel’s ultra-cheap and ultra-low powered processors. Not only does it run Vista noticeably faster than other Atom devices, it’s probably the toughest UMPCs around too, being shock-proof and water resistant and all. Don’t try bringing your prawn into the water when you shower though, it’s water-resistant, not water-proof. The CF-U1 will be available in Japan in October[AkihabaraNews]

GotWind’s New Gizmo Recharges Your Mobile Phone While Dancing

Mobile Phone Operator Orange has teamed up with GotWind to produce a kinetic charger for mobile phones. Weighing only as much as a phone and having the size of a deck of cards, the device straps onto your arm and uses its magnets and weights to generate an electric current, which in turn charges your mobile phone. Needless to say, clever people will just grab the device and shake it like a polaroid peeeek-cha. [Reuters]

Kohjinsha’s Atom UMPCs Unveiled

Before the EEE PC, the cheap UMPC domain was mainly ruled by Japanese manufacturer Kohjinsha. However, the sluggish GEODE/A110 processor and the lack of updates (until now) have made many of their fans jump ship to other options such as the Asus EEE PC and the HP Mini-Note. Kohjinsha looks to set the record straight by unveiling two new models powered by Z520 atom processors.

Mitsubishi’s 3d TVs Adds A New Dimension To Your Viewing Experience, No Really

Instead of chasing the 4K train, Mitsubishi has decided to add an extra dimensional feature to their latest line of TVs. Don’t start cutting your cellophane sheets yet though, gone are the days of red and blue 3D paper glasses. These babies make use of circularly polarized glasses – pretty much the same ones they hand out at your local IMAX theatre.

New Canon Printers Goes Well With Propeller Hat, OshKosh B’Gosh and Lolipop In Your Mouth

The Canon Selphy line of printers have been refreshed with two new designs, the C760 and C770. Basically the same dye-sublimation technology at 300dpi is being used here, no surprise there, since print quality and durability is amazing even on the first generation models. Both models sport a 2.5″ LCD, a card reader for 21 kinds of memory cards, and optional bluetooth. The C770 adds IrDA and support for an optional battery pack.

Bill Gates To Retire From Microsoft June 27th

After heading Microsoft for 33 years, William Henry Gates III, probably the world’s humblest former-richest-man , will be retiring form the company he and friend Paul Allen co-founded on June 27th. His various duties will be inherited by three people, including current CEO Steve Ballmer.

Connect-A-Desk Laptop Holder Gives You Table Convenience On The Move, Takes Away Dignity

If you’re a guy who’s constantly on the move like myself, you’d probably be interested in this ingenious yet simple gadget by ThinkGeek. The Connect-A-Desk gives you a surface for your laptop wherever you go, enabling you to walk and do some (hopefully productive) work at the same time. Just think of the possibilities, no more dreaming on the subway, no more looking away from the screen when walking home.

RPG Piggy Bank Gives You A Reason to Save – A Rather Pathetic Reason

TakaraTomy, co-maker of The Transformers toys may have solved one big problem for most gadget lovers – The hole in the pocket. Deposit some money into it and you will be able to purchase weapons, armour and other items for your character. Theoretical maximum capacity is approximately 50,000 yen (around US$500). No news yet if other currencies will be supported.