holiday

Christmas is coming, at least according to our local supermarket, which is selling Advent calendars. But we're not interested in such chocolate/door-related interfaces, oh no. Not when IWantOneOfThose.com is still trading bagatelles and fripperies with which to while away the hours--or seconds, depending on how easily amused you are by the likes of fighting granddads, cuddly polar bears and inflatable horses.

And so it was that the three wise men of Crave UK journeyed afar, following a star. But it was good old I Want One of Those bearing the gifts, as the IWOOT Christmas gift line-up … Read more

Like a technology showcase, our planet holds some absolute gems for geeks who go in search of them. The difference is that, of course, Earth is much bigger. Earth also has a hell of a lot more water. With only 30 percent of the planet being land, it makes our search for the 10 most geektastic holiday destinations significantly easier.

We employed the globetrotting abilities of Google Earth and a plethora of ideas to construct a detailed and visual tour of the places every self-respecting geekling needs to fly themselves to. Do you want to visit the house Steve Jobs … Read more

Though it's only July, Samsung decked out the Clift Hotel in downtown San Francisco this week with its holiday lineup of gadget gifts.

Pictured here, for example, is a camera that's compact but also packs a nice punch. Not only does it have touch-screen controls and a nice swivel handle, which allows easy, lower shooting angles, but it shoots video in 720p. Samsung says it went with progressive (the "p" in 720p) instead of interlaced (720i) for its first high-definition camcorder to allow better slow-motion replay of home movies. The camera also has 8GB of flash … Read more

Media sites are watching how we consumers spend our money this holiday season. And it looks like a double victory for the tech world.

First, online sales are up more than 25 percent from last year. Consumers are apparently comfortable now with last minute online buys.

Second, HD flat screens and Nintendo's Wii were both big sellers this season. This week tech gadgets will have to compete with even more heavly discounted general merchandise.

I'm hearing some analysts on CNBC today saying brick and mortar discounters were not even making a profit on the flat screens they sold. … Read more

Just spotted on Buy.com: a 4GB Creative Zen V for $116--and with free shipping. Sure, it's after a rebate (doesn't say whether it's instant or mail in...I'd guess the latter), but still: a 4GB flash MP3 player for under $120 is quite a deal in my book.

A digital music application that forces Apple, Sony and Microsoft to play nice? It's a Christmas miracle. Or something.

Recently released SimpleCenter 4.1 from Universal Electronics is a PC-only software application that organizes and plays any music, movie and photo format. It's an equal-opportunity program, able to sync media files with a diverse group of devices--an iPod, PSP, Xbox 360, Nokia N80, N93, USB sticks and other PlaysForSure players.

On the plus side, posessors of the Nokia N80 can wirelessly update their media content from their home PC using SimpleCenter, which is cool. However, though SimpleCenter allows … Read more

Even if the people in your life are spoiled, you don't need to turn to coal as a holiday gift. Instead, you can stuff stockings with gift cards that send cash in their honor to a worthy cause.

Changing the Present lets you make charitable contributions in the name of a loved one. Unlike other do-good gifting services (see below), you and your giftees can set up personal profiles that specify favorite causes. Plus, Changing the Present's Stupid Gifts Hall of Shame could be a destination in its own right (although I think fake vomit makes a fine … Read more

We took an unofficial vow of temperance (not the alcohol kind) in blogging holiday-related items, but not for politically correct reasons. It's just that many of them are useless.

There are always exceptions, however, especially to any rules we half-heartingly make here at Crave, and this one from I4U News is one of them: a snow-globe USB mouse. Our only regret is that it's made by Thanko, a Japanese company that we find increasingly annoying because of its inane products.

Just don't make any Wii-like sudden movements with it. You wouldn't want to spill its stagnant … Read more

Not to brag, but Crave gets invited to lots of holiday parties. More parties than we care to attend, in fact. And while we do try to send heartfelt regrets to, say, our parents, for the most part we reserve our witty comments for this site. Which is why we're fond of the Holiday Party Excuse Generator from interactive design firm Enlighten. You select the type of party, your feelings for the host, the tone, and how believable you want your excuse to be. The Excuse Generator does the rest, producing pithy replies that start with such phrases as &… Read more