The problem with how we normally make coffee is that not only do you get all that roasty goodness out of the beans, things like acids and irritating oils come along for the ride as well. This can make those of us without iron stomachs rethink a second cup. So what’s a java junkie to do? Try a little cold brew.

The Toddy® Cold Brew System is the brainchild of former chemical superfreak, Todd Simpson. Designed and patented back in 1964 this thing uses cold water to brew a cup of coffee that is 67% less acidic than those produced by traditional hot-brewing methods. By using cold water, you’ll be able to enjoy your coffee without all of the things that can have you making a beeline for el baño.

The instructions are fairly straightforward. It’s basically four steps: grind beans, add coffee and water to brewing container (make sure to put the rubber stopper in the bottom unless you like to lick your coffee off the counter), wait. It takes about 12 hours for the coffee to do its thing.

The process produces a thick, deep umber liquid concentrate. It’s super-strong, so I don’t recommend doing shots of the stuff. One pound of beans produces about six cups of the coffee concentrate. The beans tend to absorb the rest. The Toddy people recommend that you combine one part coffee concentrate and three parts water/cream/whiskey/liquid of your choice. It’s basically a taste thing. Add as little or as much as you want and take it either hot or iced.

I have tasted the end result, and it’s damn good. It produced a smooth, less-bitter, brew that is ...There's more

Have you been craving some cool portable gear to pair with that new iPod this summer? The audio engineers over at iFrogz.com have come up with one hell of a great way to get the most out of your digital music library. It’s small, it’s round, and it’s The Bomb.

This bomb won’t get you put on any terrorist watch lists, but it will get you noticed the next time you whip it out and pipe your tunes in public.

The unit stores as a perfect sphere with both speaker halves coming together neatly hiding the coiled cord inside. When you’re ready to rock, simply pull the two pieces apart and connect them to your digital music player via the 3.5 mm input jack. And you have two choices when it comes to the juice. You can power it by either a USB connection or 3 AAA batteries. It also has an extra USB slot so you can connect to another external device (personal fan anyone?).

These little beauties are sure to come in handy the next time you are at the beach, camping, or just hanging out by the pool. They come in six colors including bright green and pink (for your girl, of course), and they’ll run you a mere $39.99.
www.ifrogz.com

The wait is over. Someone finally had the wherewithal to combine an iPod docking station/alarm clock with a giant vibrator. You knew it had to be done at some point. After all, how many times have you wanted to pair the two? I, myself, can’t even begin to count them.

Now you can have all the benefits of your favorite digital music player combined with the incredible sensation that only waking up to a high-frequency vibrating device can deliver.

The ingenious product wizards at iLuv, creators of a multitude of iPod accessories and Bluetooth devices, have just launched the iMM153 Desktop Alarm Clock with Bed Shaker for your iPod. Touted as a device that can wake even the heaviest of sleepers, the iMM153’s “bed shaker” is actually a small, round vibrating disk about the size of a CD. The little round wonder gets slipped under your pillow or under your bed where it begins to vibrate when the alarm goes off. Talk about your pleasant ways to wake up. Especially if you're not alone... It just might encourage you to set the alarm for your afternoon naps, too.

The iMM153 sports all of the typical features that ...There's more

Global warming pretty much ensures you'll be spending a lot of time in the pool this summer. And you'll want a frosty beverage there with you. Unless your float comes with drink holders, you'll need a way to keep that can nearby.

From Instructables comes this innovative use for one of those annoying noodles that seem to be required equipment for every kid at the pool.

So grab your noodle (just not a pink one, like in this example), and a couple of quick cuts and a little assembly later, you've got yourself a homemade floating beverage barge that'll keep your can close and cold, even in the midday summer heat.

Click here to get the complete instructions.

I’m a busy man. With stacking chips and sipping cocktails at underground bars, I have no time to watch TV. Luckily, we don’t have to catch our TV live since the invention of the DVR. Now we can come home and watch our shows when we want.

But what if I want more? What if I want to access Hulu, Netflix, and YouTube on my 58-inch flatscreen? Well, that's where the Moxi HD DVR steps in.

Unveiled at this year’s CES, the Moxi HD DVR brings the control and features we expect from a DVR and a whole lot more, such as:
- A 1.5 hour buffer for live TV (Ridiculously huge)
- Stores up to 75 hours of HD programming
- Photo sharing through Flickr
- Superticker lets you stay on top of sports scores, news, weather, stocks, and more, all while watching TV
- No monthly fees
- The ability to set recordings online

That last feature is huge for me, since my current DVR won’t let me do that. Plus, the ability to watch Hulu pretty much guarantees that something awesome will always be on.

$799 (20 payments of $39.95)
www.moxi.com

So Apple finally announced the new version of the iPhone, and from what I'm reading, the reaction was less than stellar.

I'm not going to get into all the techno babble and regurgitate all the specs for the thing, or all the developer stuff that was announced... head over to Gizmodo for that. They were there, they took notes, they know all the minute details... they even took the pic below of the new iPhone.

So, you want details, go to them. You want the highlights, read on...

As expected, some of the rumors were true, some were not.

Not true:
The new iPhone does not have a matte black shell. It is still shiny black, and is still also available in shiny white.

You'll also have to wait for your lime green iPhone at least another year... It is not, as was thought, going to be available in colors.

And the Apple logo does not glow on the back like the notebooks do. (Which was a rumor few believed anyway.)

It also, unfortunately, did not get the front facing camera people have been screaming for since it came out.

But, here's what it did get:
Besides a whole new slew of apps, including a slick one from TomTom that turns it into a complete GPS unit, and a medical diagnostic app that turns today's doctors into Doctors of the Future...

It also got faster. The (S) in the 3G(S) stands for "speed", and it'll ...There's more

Today at 1pm ET is Apple's WWDC 2009... the big conference where a turtle-neck-and-jeans-wearing Steve Jobs stands in front of a huge screen and unveils the next big Apple thing. Or things.

Today's conference is getting more buzz than usual for two reasons: 1 - There is talk that the ailing Jobs, who hasn't been seen in a while, will make the announcements himself... and 2 - The iPhone might be be getting some upgrades.

Now there's no consensus on what the new iPhone will have - or even if there is a new iPhone - but the Interwebs are all atwitter, and when there's Apple rumor smoke, there's usually fire.

Here are the most likely rumors to actually be unveiled as fact:

According to a lot of "leaked" images (including the one here from French site NoWhereElse.fr) the new iPhone will have a matte black shell, including an Apple logo that appears to be able to glow, like the one on their notebooks.

The new iPhone will have a better, front facing, camera, possibly with its own dedicated shutter.

There's also talk of a built-in video camera, which will enable video conferencing, or just more screwing around on Facebook.

What I am also hearing is that there will now be 4 phones in the line: with a 4GB and a 32GB joining the 8GB and 16GB.

One rumor has it that the 4G will start at $99 to try to recapture some market share that AT&T and Apple are losing to competitors undercutting the much more expensive iPhone, with their own handhelds with similar features. (Apparently AT&T has been on Aplle for a while to do this.)

After the conference is over, we'll see which of these rumors is true, and if we have a new iPhone to drool over.

Stay tuned.

I don’t even remember what life was like before wireless technology. I can vaguely recall masses of cords strewn across the carpet like some giant spaghetti being had just met the business end of a smart bomb. Phones tethered to the wall and reams of speaker wires hanging across your living room in some kind of homage to 19th century New York. Whatever your memories of wired days gone by, I am sure they don’t rank in your top ten. We’d just as soon forget them as relive them.

The fine people at Spracht have the same PTSD when it comes to things that are attached umbilically. That’s why they have created the Spracht AURA BluNote wireless Bluetooth speaker.

The BluNote allows you to listen to your digital music collection in high-fidelity sound wirelessly through any Bluetooth enabled device. It doesn’t matter whether your Imogene Heap is on your iPhone or your Postal Service is on your Palm. If it has Bluetooth capabilities you’re good to go. Another cool feature of the BluNote is its ability to act as a speakerphone if you are streaming your music through a wireless phone.

There certainly seem to be a lot of wireless devices creeping onto the scene lately and not all of them are worthy of your hard-earned cash. The BluNote is a solid offering. It lacks the bells and whistles found on some of the pricier models, but it still manages to get the job done with style and affordability.

It runs on 4 AA batteries or the included AC adapter. You can store up to 8 Bluetooth profiles so you can sync with multiple devices without having to set them up every time you want to jam.

Surf over to Spracht.com where you can pick one up for $129.00.

I love technology and I love music. They are like my chocolate and peanut butter, my G.I. Joe and Cobra, my Val Kilmer and Batman…no, scratch that last one. What I am trying to say is that with so much good music so readily available on so many wicked cool portable devices, there is no longer any excuse to be without it or to keep it to yourself. Intrigued? I know I am.

The innovators at YUBZ® will have your auditory salivary glands working overtime with their latest creation, the YUBZ MAGNUM™.

Trust me, you need one. The MAGNUM lets you take your music anywhere. It’s perfect for the office, the beach, roadtrips, African safaris, visits to Narnia... you get the picture.

The YUBZ MAGNUM is a brilliant fusion of design and multi-function portable madness. Part black leather-clad show of prowess, and part Bluetooth capable speaker system, it melds the two seamlessly. Not only can you sync it with your Bluetooth 2.0 capable devices to listen to your digital music library in crystal-clear Hi-Fi stereo, but it doubles as a wireless speakerphone. Amp your tunes through this sleek cylinder and when a call comes in it’ll let you know with an audible signal. Push the power button to talk and when you’re done, push it again to bring back the music.

The YUBZ MAGNUM is powered by either 4-AA batteries (not included) for about 10-hours of tympanic membrane tingling scintillation or with the included AC power adapter for non-stop action. It has a range of about 30 feet (10 meters) and, oh yeah, forget about having it roll around in your back seat. It also comes complete with a carrying case to keep your newest addition cozy and safe. Pre-order it now on YUBZ.com for about $130. Your music will thank you.

Computer gaming is hot. Literally. With games becoming more and more complex hardware manufacturers are racing to keep up with the demand. This challenge has hit the portable market right in the face. Serious gamers drool over pimped-out laptops crammed to the gills with high-performance processors and ultra-fast video cards. The problem is they pump out the BTUs faster than a Swine Flu outbreak. So why care? Two main reasons, really: overheating and unhappy gamers.

NZXT, a leading manufacturer of notebook cooling systems has just announced the launch of the Cryo S High-Performance Notebook Cooler. Sized for laptops up to 15”, this gotta-have-it-gadget for the gaming set has countered the local warming problem with amped up cooling fans and the wicked fast heat transfer performance of aluminum.

The brushed aluminum Cryo S is outfitted with two 120mm variable-speed fans and a rubber finish that lifts the laptop up off the cooling surface for increased airflow and enhanced performance. The Cryo S can be powered either by USB or the included AC adapter. There are also two additional USB ports because you can never have enough of those. Game on.

Retailing for $49.99 the new Cryo S is available this month on Newegg.com. For specs, glamour shots and more info on the NZXT Cryo S visit www.nzxt.com