It’s that time of the year again, back-to-school. I still remember those days. Even though it’s been 2 years since I’ve had to go back to school, I still love this time of the year.

This time of the year also means students will want the latest gadgets before heading off to college. That’s where we come in and tell you some of the hottest gadgets out there and what you need to make this year in college a success.

Check out the full story, here!

At this point, we have all heard of the pending technological apocalypse that will be delivered by the last source we ever thought. Not Apple, Microsoft, or the Peoples Democratic Republic of Korea, but rather – the sun.

Oh yes! Screw what the hippies say, the sun is  public enemy #1. If we could, we should blow it up…or at least try…like Superman-IV-style. The sun is not trying to kill us yet, but it is trying something worse. The sun, the giver of light and life (sorry creationists), is trying to destroy our entire technological infrastructure. Imagine more than a million people without power, the distribution of drinkable water disrupted, transportation, communication and banking upset. In short, trillions of dollars in damage that everyone thought would come with Y2K. (more…)

Click to view larger image

Big Brother is about to encroach on your living room. The California Energy Commission is proposing stricter energy-use rules by banning retailers from selling wide-screen TV sets 40 inches or higher. The Commission wants to reduce the strain on the states energy grid and avoid building new power plants because the amount of energy a TV uses is proportional to screen size.

The Consumer Electronics Commission is opposed to this plan because it would eliminate approximately 80 percent of all wide-screen digital TV sets, which would bring about massive job losses and a loss of approximately $50 Million in sales tax revenue. The regulations, if unopposed, are expected to be approved this summer.

Am I the only one who thinks this is one of the stupidest ideas ever proposed? I happen to enjoy HDTV. I like watching “Heroes” and having every image of Hayden Panettiere in bright, close up quality. The last time I checked America is about choice, if you don’t like HDTV’s then don’t buy one. What right do you have to tell me how big a TV I should have? The answer: you don’t. (more…)

Way back in 1993, AT&T released a series of commercials called “You Will,” which showed off some “fantasy” technology that they predicted would become a reality in the coming years. Watching them now, it’s amazing how many things they got right. It’s almost too good…

There is no doubt that college students depend heavily on the internet for a lot of their needs. And it’s not only the entertainment quotient of the internet (movies, music, torrents, games) which attracts them. There are also useful web based tools available which helps them immensely in their day to day lives. The following list includes 21 great tools/sites for school and college students. The tools are completely web based and almost all of them are free to use. Some of them are general tools useful for every internet user while others are specific to the needs of college students. [Dumb Little Man]

College Student Invents Affordable Solar-Powered Fridge

A British college student has invented a new type of solar-powered fridge that can be built entirely from household materials. According to 21 year old Emily Cummins, the fridge works with the help of evaporation.

The fridge stays at a comfortable 6° C without using any power, and can keep perishables cool for days. [Cleantechnica]

BC Beats #1 UNC, Loses To Harvard

On Sunday night, the BC Eagles were on top of the world after their basketball team upended No. 1 North Carolina. Now, it’s Thursday morning and things are not looking quite as rosy. They skyrocketed from outside the Top 25 up to No. 17 after the UNC win and were pushing a 10-game win streak, so thing were looking pretty good for the remainder of the season. Now what’s this about the Harvard game? [Deadspin]

With recent automotive and sexual breakthroughs in technology, we are finally on pace to live in a true blue (neon blue) futuristic society, impending apocalypse be damned.

Mowing the lawn as a child is a rite of passage, passed down through several generations of Americans that prize green, well-trimmed grass more than raising a family To sport the greatest looking lawn is to live out the American Dream; when its condition is less than stellar, you might as well leave town before the neighborhood chases you out.

But wait! Help is on the way – solar-powered robot help.

If you have ever dreamed of a robot tending your garden (I’m sure most of you have), your fantasy is now a reality. Husqvarna has developed a solar powered robot lawn mower (!!!!) that’s virtually silent and can be programmed to mow at your discretion. Once the robot is done the task at hand (it works on a 40-minute charge), it will return to its charge base…on its own.

This is what £2,000 ($4,000) will buy you. Your move, Japan…

Watch the Robot Mower in action after the jump! (more…)

In our endless search for maximum comfort, man has gone to great lengths to feel at home, whether on the road or in air. A moment away from our mobile devices makes us irritable; JetBlue knows this and is planning to keep us connected.

The Wall Street Journal reported today that JetBlue will begin a trial run with free in-flight Wi-Fi for passengers aboard selected planes starting December 11. Yahoo and Research In Motion Ltd. are the supported formats thus far, meaning that browsing will be limited to email and IMs.

Still, it’s better than nothing for tech-types that need their quick fix. (more…)

Facebook and my Blackberry Pearl are like crack cocaine to me… I’m hooked!

Facebook loves Blackberry, and Blackberry loves Facebook – so they got hitched, banged out a kid, named it ‘Facebook for Blackberry Application‘ and he/she/it has only made my addiction to both stronger…if that’s even humanly possible.

The Facebook for Blackberry application is obscenely easy to use and has allowed me to stay connected to my friends at all times. Now I can update my status on the fly, post/tag mobile picture blogs and – you guessed it – much, much more!

There are some kinks that need to be worked out: AT&T users have had trouble downloading the application and people with certain operating systems have experienced crashing problems – but the 38,000 people who have downloaded the application since it’s launch on Oct 24 can’t be wrong. With mostly positive reviews and word-of-mouth advertising spreading like the Southern California wild fires we can only expect that number to rise.

If you have a BB and you’d like to download the application visit the Download Page.

After the jump check out screen captures of the application in use, feature listings and user download statistics. (more…)

As reported earlier this year, Facebook has been rumored to announce an online music service to compete with iTunes and MySpace in the near future.

This just in: the “Facebook Music” platform will serve as the social networking giants first step into the music space.

The new platform is set to be announced at ad:tech in New York City next week. Leading up to this announcement Facebook has been holding top-secret meetings with high-level representatives at each of the four major music labels.

Here’s how it works: (more…)