Gearbox #26

We're still waiting for an in-case jacuzzi...

Gigabyte Bluetooth USB Dongle
Supplier: Gigabyte www.gigabyte.com.tw
Phone: N/A
Price: $99

It's hard not to snicker at the word 'dongle'. Or maybe it's just that the Atomic collective has the sense of humour of an eleven-year-old. Regardless, the word 'dongle' is rarely seen these days without the words Bluetooth or 'huge black' strapped alongside. Gigabyte is the latest company to jump aboard the sluggish wireless connectivity bandwagon with their creatively-titled Bluetooth USB dongle. 
As well as the dongle, Gigabyte have been kind enough to include a USB extension cord for those of us with an allergy to the rear of our PC cases, who are otherwise known as pussies. This makes it even more convenient to detach the dongle when it's needed elsewhere. Thanks to the USB nature of this device, installation is a total and utter cinch. Once you've plugged it in you'll be able to network with other Bluetooth devices, such as PDAs or mobile phones. You can even network with other PCs with the use of a couple of these dongles, but why you'd ever want to do is beyond us. Bluetooth just isn't fast enough for PC-to-PC communications -- that's why we have 802.11.

Vantec Nexus Multi-Function panel
Supplier: EYO www.eyo.com.au
Phone: EYO (02) 9822 2550
Price: $88

A modded PC without a tweaktastic front panel is like an American soap star without a boob job -- it's just not on. In the last 12 months we've seen a huge range of these front panels hit the scene, and the Vantec Nexus version is the latest panel that's begging to be whacked into any spare 5.25in drive bays you might have.
So what makes this front panel different to the rest? The inclusion of three differently-coloured face plates should be reason enough, as this means you shouldn't have any worries with colour co-ordination -- a fact that will impress all but the most style deficient of tweakers. Possibly the sweetest feature of this entire unit is the large dial on the front for controlling your CPU's fan speed. AMD users will surely appreciate this -- when not gaming you can leave your fan at whisper quiet speeds, then crank it up to earth-shaking level as needed.
While the LCD panel doesn't supply anywhere near as much information as the Lost in Space panel we saw a couple of months ago, it still shows you a couple of crucial bits of information; the temperatures from any of the three temperature probes that are included in the kit, while the CPU fan speed should also prove to be handy. Finally, a couple of USB 2.0 and an IEEE 1394 port round out the feature set of this very affordable gadget.

Gameboy Advance SP
Supplier: Nintendo www.nintendo.com.au
Phone: Nintendo (03) 9730 9822
Price: $199

Everyone knows the feeling, when you're stuck on a long boring bus or train ride and the only thing you want to do is play with yourself. Mobile phone games get real boring real quick and what you need is the variety delivered by Nintendo's Gameboy Advance.
But until now the GBA has been an awkwardly sized unit with visibility problems stemming from the lack of a backlight on the screen. Nintendo realised this and is launching the GameBoy Advance SP, a much cooler kind of GBA aimed at an older market, on 28 March.
Inside a nifty new clamshell design sits an everyday GBA with a couple of funky new features. Throw away those AA batteries, for the unit relies on a rechargable battery built into the unit. Just plug it into the wall and charge away.
This is handy because the all-new backlight on the screen sucks lots of power when it is turned on. The sheer joy of a backlit screen makes up for the extra power drain though.
The GBA SP is not a replacement for the original GBA, rather it is an expansion of the concept. At heart it is still the same old GBA, but the SP comes in a comfortable, stylish and refined package. Forget playing Snake, the GBA SP gives hours of gaming pleasure for all ages.

NIP-2000
Supplier: PC Toy www.pctoy.com.au
Phone: PC Toy (02) 9617 1180
Price: $149

You might have heard the tragic case that recently unfolded in Sweden when a scientist managed to toast his crown jewels by leaving a laptop on his lap for around 60 minutes. While we have to question whether or not this is the truth (we're sure he was actually sexually attracted to a car exhaust pipe that was still warm), if this did actually happen, he's surely ruing the day that he didn't buy a NIP-2000.
No, this isn't an Asian Terminator; it's a massive heatsink fan for the base of your laptop, with NIP standing for 'Notepad Ice Pad'. It's not the sort of thing you'll want to lug around with you wherever you take your laptop, as it weighs in at 1.7kg. Most geeks couldn't even bench press something this heavy, let alone carry it around all day. However, when you're at home it could save your future child-spawning capacity, but it's got a flaw that makes us wonder whether you'd be better off just using a hard-backed book.
The problem is that most laptops won't fit perfectly on this device, as it has upraised edges along the sides. If your laptop happens to be bigger than the pad, its base won't sit flush with the NIP-2000. And in this case, the benefits of using the NIP-2000 over a much cheaper book or a slab of plastic or wood is negligible.

Top Mount Window Kit
Supplier: PC Case Gear www.pccasegear.com
Phone: PC Case Gear (03) 9568 0932
Price: $22

Now this is something new. While side-mounted window kits are becoming more common than perverted sex addicts in Kings Cross on pension day, this has to be the first window kit we've seen that is designed to be mounted in the top of your 'box o' pain'.
Due to the varying widths of PC cases, this kit is available in two flavours: 38 x 13cm or 38 x 11cm. For the money, which is less than two packs of ciggies, you get a pre-cut Perspex window, rubber molding and a spacer to help you mark up the huge hole you're going to have to cut out of the top of your PC.
A highlight of the kit is the detailed instructions that are included. If you can build a 25-piece Lego kit, you're not going to have a problem installing thi