Products & Gadgets

Clean gardening

For plant lovers who are tired of getting muddy in the garden, a new product called Power Plant will help you grow plants without using soil.

Invented by NASA researchers, the product uses what's called "aeroponics," which allows the continual spraying of plant roots with super-oxygenated, nutrient-enriched water.

To start growing plants, fill the Power Plant reservoir base with tap water. Pour nutrients over a sponge, and place a card containing seeds on top. Then simply place it somewhere sunny.

Once sprouts appear, more nutrients and water-absorbing materials are positioned over every sprout to stimulate growth.

The Power Plant is about 20 cm wide and 15.5 cm in length and sells for $49. 87.

A cleaner cat box

For a cleaner cat box, a product called the CatGenie provides a no-touch solution.

This self-washing, self-cleaning cat box works with washable granules.

The device drains collected liquid through the permanent granules while simultaneously scooping up the wastes.

The wastes and liquid are flushed down the drain, while an embedded dryer blows hot air over the permanent granules to rid them of germs and odors.

The machine starts with a push of a button and can be pre-set with an accompanying timer.

The device is 53.3 cm tall and 40.6 cm wide, and is made of translucent material that is biodegradable and recyclable. The price is $279.

The 'thinnest' notebook

Many of today's notebooks sacrifice performance for that slim look.

But the world's largest computer maker, Hewlett-Packard (HP), is billing its new HP ProBook 5310m as a notebook computer that achieves a better balance. .

Dubbed as the world's thinnest full-performance notebook, the HP ProBook 5310m is 2.3 cm thin and sports a 33.8 cm diagonal LED high-definition display.

Equipped with an Intel Core 2 Duo SP9300 processor, the notebook delivers up to seven hours of battery life with its standard lithium-polymer battery.

The ProBook 5310m also comes with QuickWeb, a Linux-based operating system. The price starts at $699.

Wake up, shape up

For many of us, it's difficult enough to wake up early in the morning, much less get in shape.

A new gadget called the Shape Up Alarm Clock Dumbbell promises to help you do both.

The product combines an alarm clock and a dumbbell to encourage you to perform 30 repetitions before the alarm stops.

The gadget comes with a backlit digital LCD screen. Made by Fred & Friends, the Shape Up Alarm Clock Dumbbell runs on three AA batteries. The price is $26.95.

A 17-button mouse

Gamers will find it easier to pay attention with a computer mouse with 17 buttons.

Razer's new Naga mouse has a full 12-piece numeric keyboard on the left side to allow gamers to skip having to turn to the actual computer keyboard.

That frees up your left hand for movement controls.

Behind the new design is a 5600 dpi engine with a 1ms response time.

Razer offers add-on software to create unique commands and game profiles.

The company also offers a Megasoma gaming mouse mat to use with the Naga mouse.

The price starts at $49.99.

(China Daily 10/12/2009 page8)