ezGear launches ezEars SX50 earphones

ezGear today launched its new, improved ezEars SX50 earphones for Apple's iPod. The ezEars SX50 use in-ear technology with soft rubber earpieces to provide a comfortable fit, and include three different pairs of earpieces in various sizes to accommodate all ear sizes. The improved fit provides better sound channeling to the ear, according to ezGear, and increases sound quality. "iPod users who tried the SX50s loved the sound and especially loved how comfortable they are, said Charlie Bernstein, president of ezGear. "Some people, who were not sure about the fit, opted for other solutions. Now that the ezEars have 3 sizes of earpieces, it's the perfect fit for everyone." The new ezEars SX50 ship in black or white for $20.

Popalive iPod remote to debut at CES

Alive-Style today announced that it will debut its Popalive bi-directional remote/dock for iPod with support for multilingual menus and song names at the CES trade show in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Popalive remote allows users to control an iPod and view its contents via a built-in 1.5-inch color LCD, drawing power from a built-in 350mAh lithium polymer rechargeable battery to offer omni directional RF signal transmission alongside bi-directional remote control capability. The device operates at 908.42MHz in the U.S. or 878.2MHz in Europe, and features an iPod charging dock with no extra battery required. The Popalive supports fourth- and fifth-generation iPods with audio out, S-video out, and a 30-pin iPod dock connector (pricing was unavailable).

Apple rejects Samsung's hybrid flash drive...

Apple may be set to use Intel's Robsen technology in the next generations of its Mac systems, as Samsung has revealed that the Cupertino-based company decided against using its forthcoming hybrid flash drives in new Mac models. Intel's new on-board module -- codenamed Robsen -- uses NAND flash memory as a high-speed buffer between system memory and the hard drive, storing system boot files and the most often-used data. Robsen reads and writes information several times faster than a mechanical hard disk, and uses less power which promises to increase the battery life of portable notebooks. Samsung's 'FlashON' hard drives, conversely, integrate flash memory into the hard disk itself. Microsoft has said it will ship Windows Vista with 'ReadyDrive' capability, offering built-in operating system support for disk caching to NAND flash devices.