You see those mack-daddy headphones above?! Those could be yours too from V-Moda. The company is offering free customization with every pair of LP Crossfade Custom’s you buy on-line. V-Moda is just one of many companies that are adding some glitz to their headphones. Monster, Beats by Dr. Dre, Fanny Wang, etc… the list is endless of companies taking this new direction of sound and personal style. However, these companies are simply offering color customization options.  However, V-Moda is turning their flagship headphones into a fashion accessory or branding tool, without sacrificing sound or quality.

But the best part here is that not only are you getting a custom made pair of V-Moda cans that can be spruced up with your choice of image or logo, but you aren’t spending an arm and leg on it either. Furthermore, when ordering a Crossfade LP Custom you can choose from a total of 12 colors for the shields, and three ear pad colors. You can also add optional text to the shield such as your name.

The V-Moda Custom Crossfade LP Custom retails for just $199 which is super reasonable price, and a smart marketing initiative by the company to re-imagine an older pair of headphones in the V-Moda arsenal.

Besides turning up the style on the LP Crossfade Custom, V-Moda has a very exciting 2012 coming up. We can’t get into specifics, but the concepts introduced are the first of its kind from a ‘headphone’ manufacturer. Audiophiles will be drooling when these new concepts come to fruition and headphone junkies will love the newest addition in V-Moda’s carefully crafted and balanced over-ear headphones. Let’s just say that your iPhone/iPod Touch will never look or sound better…

V-Moda is entering 2012 will guns blazing and we can’t wait for them to unleash their wrath. With the release of the V-Moda M-80, LP2, and health conscious Faders last year… they have set the bar high and we would expect nothing less.

Picking out a pair of glasses is no easy feat, but with DesignYourOwnEyewear, you can upload a photo of yourself and then create a custom pair of glasses. The glasses can be customized with a custom lens opening, bridges, horns, in a variety of solid and design colors and complimentary lens shades. As you’re designing the glasses, you can of-course preview the look of the glasses on your own photo.

Believe it or not, the concept of designing your own fashions is nothing new – just recently we posted about My.Suit, a company that lets you design men suits online, and Converse has been letting you design your own sneakers for some time now.

Colorless laser engraving is soooo last year. Coveroo has announced their latest update to their ever growing line of laser engraved backplates for cellphones and Blackberries. Today, new HighColor printing processes will be used to ensure accuracy and brilliant color for Coveroo licensed artwork. The design won’t fade, rub off or get dirty like traditional skins. Meanwhile, the concept of Coveroo stays the same – basically you can swap out your existing backplate with a custom one from Coveroo’s huge catalog of licensed brands that span from vintage images of Beverly Hills 90210 to Resident Evil. With this launch also comes the announcement of the new Marvel Collection and NBA logos, which will be the first to be using this new color technology. The Marvel characters included will be Wolverine (how apropos), Hulk, Captain America, Spiderman, and Thor. Prices will range from $9.95 to $59.95 depending on your device. The color option will first be exclusive to the new Marvel and NBA designs, along with the existing UCLA, Garfield, Hot Wheels, Star Trek, Streetfighter IV, and Resident Evil 5 Coveroo artwork.

The Spark Nano GPS Tracker from Brickhouse Security looks more like a toy than a powerful GPS Tracker. Claiming to be one of the smallest and lightweight GPS Trackers out today, it can easily slip into a  pocketbook, jacket pocket, or any discreet place so you can track someone or something. The sensitivity of the device will allow for real time location updates on your computer or you can get alerts via text message or e-mail when your Spark Nano has left the building, so to speak. It works off both GPRS and GSM networks so it allows for a better area of coverage. Another nice feature is that it has a built-in panic button, perfect for children traveling on a school trip, so you can watch ever move they make till they come home. The only downside to what is a unique item is that you will have to pay a monthly fee to actually utilize all these great services. You’ll have to pay for a subscription and if you want to use the added features you’ll have to pay additionally for that too.  Spark Nano GPS Tracker retails for $299.95. It may just be cheaper in the end to hire a Private Eye…

Design:
The Lubix NC1 Bluetooth headset is designed to not only be wearable as a necklace but also be customizable to your taste. Lubix offers consumers a chance to create a skin for their pair of Lubix NC1 headphones and you can choose from predetermined designs or you can create one yourself.  The skin itself is of good quality since the folks behind Skinit are behind it, so we were more than pleased. The pair we tested actually had two skins included which was a nice touch.

The Lubix NC1 headset may look a bit out there since the earphone pieces are a bit on the large size. However, they are designed this way because of all the jog button controls that are located on the left earphone. The headset is held in place together magnetically in a form that resembles a pendant. The two pieces easily pull apart when you are ready to use them. Once you are done using your phone for the moment, then just bring the two parts together and they will seal closed magnetically.  The necklace cable is comfortable to wear and you can adjust the choker for neckband length. Included in the package is a manual, large/small eartips, USB adapter, and USB cable.

Setup:
Like any typical Bluetooth headset, the first thing that needs to be done is for the device to be paired. There are no batteries that need to be inserted but the device does need to be charged. Once the charging was completed, the next logical step is obviously to pair the device with your cellphone. I was using the new Blackberry 8900 Curve and turned on the Bluetooth feature to begin searching for Bluetooth devices in the area. Immediately I switched on the headset and held in the Talk/3D Sound button on the Lubix NC1 and the blue LED started to flash to indicate the pairing had begun. The Lubix NC1 was picked up immediately and I paired both devices. Now both the audio and phone calls would be heard and received by the device.

Features:

A key selling point of the Lubix Bluetooth headset is the stereo quality with 3D sound effects. I was impressed with the sound quality overall considering this is not a dedicated pair of headphones. The sound was of decent quality and when you switched on the 3D sound effects it only enhanced the aural experience. The different options consist of lowering the noise in the background of the song, delivering music that gives the impression of a live performance, or enhancing the vocals. With each effect you could hear a difference, which again I did appreciate for a bluetooth headset. Changing the volume can be done from the NC1′s earpiece’s jog button. Since the controls are on the left earbud of the NC1, it will take sometime to train yourself for as to which button does what, if you do it blindly. But if you just take the piece out of your ear for a moment the task can be completed easily.

Using the Lubix NC1 as a headset, I was able to hear callers on the other side of the headset just fine. However, when I was in a noisy environment, people on the other end of the call said that they did have problems hearing me because of surrounding noise, and as a result I would have to speak up a bit. Hopefully the next version of the NC1 will include noise cancellation tech in it.

The only real disappointment I had with the Lubix NC1 was that the buds were just too big for my ear canal. I switched to the smaller buds that were included and even squishing and pushing made no difference. They still kept falling out of my ears. If I stood still they stayed in my ears but as soon as I walked they popped right out of my ears. Of course I could just have an abnormal small size canal so this might only be an isolated problem with me. Many folks out there may not have the same issue.

Conclusion:
The Lubix Bluetooth Stereo Headset accomplishes what it set out to do. Be a decent handsfree device as well as a fashionable pair of stereo headphones. The fact you can customize (if you so choose) the NC1 with SkinIt skins and wear it as a necklace is a nice touch that makes it stand out from the very crowded Bluetooth crowd. Except with my own personal issue with the eartips – I think anyone who purchases the Lubix NC1 will be happy and pleased with a uniquely stylish and customizable product and the fact it can do two features well. The Lubix Stereo Bluetooth Headset SkinIt Bundle retails for $60 and the headset itself is available in blue, black or white. The Lubix Stereo Bluetooth Headset without the SkinIt option retails for $54.

The Good: Customization via skins is cool, fashionable pendant design, good stereo sound quality, easy setup.

The Bad: Eartips were a bit big for me, lack of noise cancellation

Indeed – There are so many job classifieds web sites out there, who has the time to sift through all of them daily? Not only does Indeed let you search through popular job posting sites, it also offers free daily alerts based on your keyword and location. So every time a job posting for an “executive blogger” comes up, you’ll be notified right in your mail box of that days related job postings.

Fatwallet – If you’re going to buy something online, whether it be business cards at VistaPrint or a new Macbook from the apple Store (granted, if you are able to afford to buy anything at all), then you might as well make back some money on your purchase. Fatwallet offers money back from most of the popular online retailers. Cash back rates vary from one e-tailer to another, with most just a few percent – but you’d be surprised how much money that ends up accumulating over time. And either way – it’s extra money in your wallet. Since being a member in 2005, I’ve made almost $600 is cash back payments. FatWallet also has a strong user forum where people posts great coupons and steals. Other notable (and very addictive) sites for great bargains that we recommend is BensBargains.net, TechBargains.com and SlickDeals.net.

Emurse – Emurse is a free resume builder which provides all the tools you could possibly need to present a professional and powerful online resume. You get a customized web address for your resume that offers visitors the ability to save your resume as a Word Doc, PDF, text file, HTML file or you can offer potential employers the option to subscribe to it via an RSS feed. Emurse also offers instant notifications when potential employers view your resume.

Media Convert – Whether you need a screenshot of a web site or you need to convert a Word document in to a PDF, don’t fret if you don’t have the money to shell out for the necessary software. This site will take care of all of these things for you for free. Media Convert offers an assortment of useful services such as converting a Powerpoint presentation in to a video, generating image thumbnails, and combining multiple video files in to one – as well as many, many more useful stuff.

Hulu – In case you’ve missed the commercial with Alec Baldwin playing an alien, then allow us to introduce you to Hulu. Hulu offers free streaming episodes of popular TV shows as well as some movies. We’re talking big time network shows like the Family Guy, Battlestar Galactica, and Saturday Night Live – you know, the good stuff.

Mint – Mint is an all in one finance service which is aimed at helping you manage your money and manage your debt. The site helps you figure out your taxes, keep track of your transactions, and stay in control of your budget. The service will even send you emails and SMS alerts when there has been a change in your finances.

txtdrop – Practically every wireless provider has recently raised their text messaging rates. And lets face it – all those texts add up on your bill. Save some money easily by using this web site to send messages. The site also offers a Mac OS X Widget, Vista Gadget, and an iPhone optimized version of the site. However, if you’re an iPhone or iPod touch user, we recommend trying out the Pinger Textfree app which lets you send and receive text messages for free.

Weebly – Perhaps you’re looking to become your own entrepreneur and start your own business or maybe you already have your own business but don’t have the collateral available to hire a web designer and make your own web site. If that is the case, check out Weebly which is one of the best and easiest to use web-based web site creators. What especially sets them apart is that they also offer free domain hosting, so your site will have a professional .com address as opposed to some ugly yourcompany.freehosting.com. Of course, you will have to pay for the domain name, but those are usually just $10 a pop at GoDaddy.

If anyone has any other great recession helpful web sites that they would like to recommend, please let us know!

Spring is in the air, so why not add some tulips to your desk and you won’t even have to water them. The USB Tulip Hub has to be the cutest USB hub I have ever seen and we have seen quite a few in our day.  The tulips stand proudly in their plastic white flower box waiting for someone to plug a usb cable into its petals. It can handle up to 4 USB connections and will work with either PC or Mac. The USB Tulip Hub retails for $22 at Fredflare.

The HexoLight 3000 Sound Activated LED Lighting System is the perfect compliment for any hardcore Guitar Hero enthusiast because who doesn’t love a good lightshow when playing plastic instruments? This lighting system takes the game to new levels with its pulsating colors that pulsate to the beat of the music from the game. It comes with 3 pods of color: red, yellow, and blue lights in an octagonal shape. You can customize different shapes and configurations, the threshold of the sound, and you can control the speed of the flash. The best part is when the drums and guitars are put away, the HexoLight 3000 will work with your iPod or any other audio source resulting in the same neat effects.

The Sonos Multi-Room Music Digital Player system is for people who love music. Not just like music – LOVE music. It is meant to fill your home with it no matter where you go. In the living room, kitchen, bedroom, or den. Just about anywhere you might be at a given moment – you can have access to your entire media library.  The Sonos gives you the freedom to stream not only your media files but internet radio or local radio channels.

Setup:
When we first received the Sonos we almost passed out by how many boxes there where. Not that I’m put off by the quantity of boxes, but I certainly had in the back of mind that this was not going to be easy to setup. However I was wrong! The unpacking took me longer than actually setting the Sonos up. We got a chance to review the Sonos Speaker Bundle 150 as well as some extras which comprised of the Wireless Controller, Zoneplayer 120, Zoneplayer 90, 2 Sonos Loudspeakers, Sonos Zonebridge, and a cradle for the controller. Like I said – that is a lot of boxes. Once unpacked it may seem a bit overwhelming as to where you should put all these pieces. The first thing I did was decide where I would put the Zoneplayer 120 along with the speakers. Granted I don’t live in a huge luxurious home so it took some finagling to decide where I would put and keep the speakers since the Zoneplayer 120 does need to be connected to a router or modem via ethernet. So that was a bit tricky. Luckily, all the components of the system have a streamlined design that any Mac owner would appreciate. They blend into your home without looking like an eyesore. The ethernet cables also have a flat design to make it easy to blend on to walls for decent wire maintenance. Another nice feature is that both the Zoneplayer 90 and Sonos Zonebridge are both wireless so they can be placed anywhere in your home so that you can really complete that experience of having a fully amplified musical abode.

Installation:
After placing the Zoneplayers were I wanted to them to be, the next logical step was to install the software. I have an iMac and the installation was done in 10 minutes. You follow the onscreen prompts and the devices are picked up around your home. You’ll have to repeat the steps to have the computer recognize the other Zoneplayers scattered about but with just the press of a button on each player the software picks it up and installs it. You can label each player for the area its in. Lets say the Zoneplayer 90 is in the living room – so you can label it living room etc… this will allow you to control that device when you are in the room or not by giving it a name associated with its location. Once the devices were picked up it was time to import my MP3s….that is where I hit a snag. Everything was going too perfectly! I repeatedly kept coming across the same error over and over about how my files couldn’t be imported followed by the file name. After spending some time on the Sonos Support forum I downloaded the newest version of the software and tried again….Still no luck. So again…I headed over to the forum and it seemed to be only a problem with those who have Mac computers and not so much with a PC. After additional digging, I found a suggestion to change my file sharing settings and modify my file name of the location of where my MP3’s were coming from….it was becoming a big hassle.  Finally, finally after changing just one more permission under the Security Settings and then Firewall settings I was able to access my files. This was after three hours. I was a bit upset that this wasn’t something that was mentioned in the manual or easily accessible on the forums unless you dug through and found it.
However setting up the radio functionality was a lot easier. It took 2 seconds, it asked you where you reside and then a whole list of stations pops up for you to listen to. Of course there is the ability to preset the stations you love. I was finally ready to begin my Sonos experience.

Interface:
The Sonos controller is just like it’s other components sleekly designed and easy to use. Everything is very visual and doesn’t require a graduate degree in engineering to figure it out. The right side of the device resembles a iPod scroll wheel to obviously scroll through the menu options or songs available on the system. Its big bright LCD screen makes it easy on the eyes as you scroll through your options.
The first place I wanted to play my music was in the kitchen. Nothing gets you in the mood to make a meal like a little Andre Boccelli. I selected kitchen and the Zoneplayer I set up in there started to play music through some desktop speakers I connected to it. Standing in that room I gave the controller over to my co-editor who was itching to listen to a little Alanis and she started her Zoneplayer in the living room. So at one moment we had different music playing in two different parts of the apartment. In a smaller space than an average home, music from one room can over power the other room. So be careful when you set it up, that you take into account sound absorption so that you don’t irritate another Sonos listener.
When the controller was given back to me I decided I wanted all the rooms to listen to my fave song that just came on and very easily I was able to make that happen by selecting all the Zoneplayers to play the same song. The controls were super easy to navigate and a nice new feature is that you can now control it from your iPhone or iPod Touch via a free Sonos app. So there is no need for me to keep passing the Controller around and around to operate the system. Once the app is downloaded onto your iPhone you can easily do all the same functions. So it’s like having another controller in the room without having to pay extra for it. Again the interface is sleek and extremely easy and with the ability to see all the music and FM stations available on your system to control.

Conclusion:
The Sonos Multi-Room Music Digital Player is perfect for those who have large homes and want the ability to have music playing in random parts of your home that suits your own personal taste. No more telling mom or dad to shut off Frank Sinatra or vice a versa about your loud heavy metal. It’s also perfect for businesses like restaurants and spas that want to give customers a more personal experience as well as save money with unnecessary and costly wiring for other complex systems that do the same thing but on a different scale. I was extremely happy with my time with the Sonos and except for that little snafu with importing my MP3 library, it was overall a great experience. However I would have liked if the Zoneplayers did have a built in speaker so that you had the option to not attach external ones. This takes up space that sometimes you just don’t have, as well as creating more visible wires.
Of course such a luxury music experience doesn’t come cheap, the Sonos BU150 Multiroom Music System bundle typically starts at $999 and up. But sometimes the cost of music is priceless.

The Good: Very user-friendly. Excellent design concept and software interface. Perfect for large homes or businesses looking to add a personal touch. Liked the iPhone app a lot, saves money on having to buy additional controllers.

The Bad: Would have liked to have had a bigger troubleshooting section in the manual for possible Mac problems importing your MP3 library. You have to attach speakers to every Zoneplayer to hear music, would have liked built-in speakers. A bit pricey but you get what you pay for.

Well we certainly have seen alot of earbuds in our day but this certainly takes the cake for awhile. If you thought the giant earbud speakers were impressive, then you’ll love this. This little earbud keychain MP3 speaker may not be practical at all but it will certainly get you alot of attention. Just plug it in to your MP3 player and you’ll have a live working speaker. When done, attach it to your keys. I can’t imagine how good the sound is from this thing especially considering the size. No pricing is available from the manufacturer Bluw but I assume it will be available soon. I mean just look at it?! How could it not be.

Head on over to Chip Chicklets to see more kid oriented coverage from Toy Fair ’09.

Head on over to Chipchicklets.com to see what other more kid orientated toys Techno Source has in store for 2009.

For all the self evolved people out there, this one is for you. YourOwnDoll is a site that will let you make custom bobble heads of yourself. Perfect for weddings or just remember me type gifts. Each doll is made of clay and created from a photo you send to the company. I’m not sure if I would give a smaller version of myself as a gift unless you are looking to breakup with someone. But if you feel the best gift to give someone is a real mini me version of yourself, you’ll need to cough up $159.