Springoo

There are lots and lots of science sites out there doing similar things – LiveScience.com, Scienceblog.com, Scienceblogs.com, Sciam.com,physorg.com,ScientificBlogging.com, ScienceDaily.com. Except for ScienceDaily ( though I love those guys), they all do some original content and which one you prefer to read really comes down to where you fall on the political spectrum as much as the tone of the publication.

I help out on ScientificBlogging.com on occasion, mostly because I have a friend who is over there, and basically I help by distilling news releases into articles and making sure the pictures are pretty. I haven’t written any original articles yet, though a lot of people do. At some point when I write articles more regularly, I will do that too because it’s probably the most politically neutral of the science sites. You don’t have rants against religious people or certain political parties as part of their editorial or “what sells” policy.

This is a special case though, so I am writing today. I am just publishing this on my site because it has nothing to do with any of the science sites and I don’t want it to reflect on scientificblogging.com, who basically seem to be interested in creating the non-agenda driven site everyone claims to want.

Ordinarily I would tell anyone who is trying to get the word out about science writing that Reddit is the way to go. In my opinion ( and it’s just that ) Digg is more for technology and Reddit is more for science.

It turns out Reddit may not be a friend to science articles if you place articles from the wrong science sites.

Digg has ( or had ) a bury brigade, groups of malicious users who kept content off the front page by voting it down and voting their own things up. I am not sure what they get out of that since Digg doesn’t seem to award prizes or pay money for the people with the most popular articles. Actually, I don’t understand a lot of about Digg but I assumed that Reddit, being a more scientific readership, was also more mature.

I got an email yesterday from another volunteer editor at scientificblogging discussing why his articles never showed up on Reddit. I assumed it was a mistake. When I went to his profile it showed them. But then I submitted one and it never showed up either. It’s in my profile as submitted, it just never makes it to the main page.

I don’t know a lot of about the mechanics of Reddit but I started looking around and found my rating: -18. Now why would I have a – 18? It’s not like I put up advertising or post my own articles. I could even understand being 0 if no one liked what I put there but instead I am effectively buried before any of my posted articles get seen. They do not exist to anyone except me.

I found the common denominator and wrote my friend back and told him I had probably submitted too many for scientificblogging, around 15 over the last three months, so it looked like self-promotion. He didn’t seem to like that, since he had submitted only 4 articles and his content never showed up either, so he did a search and sent me the results.

Searching on ScienceDaily.com has about what you’d expect for the premiere science news release aggregator. Lots of posted articles from many different people.

Searching on scienceblogs gave him an entirely different result. Scienceblogs had a few different people over the last year but one stood out even under the quick search:

Wow. That grrlscientist person really loves scienceblogs. So he searched on her name and found not only does she love scienceblogs, she submits them exclusively ( or not, how much time would you spend searching after the first 25 are all from the same site? )

Then he highlighted the URL of the scienceblogs sites she submits and all of them are in the form: http://scienceblogs.com/grrlscientist/ – every single one.

So she is writing the articles on scienceblogs, submitting them to Reddit herself, and has 600 Karma ( the Reddit measure of popularity ) for doing so.

How is that not self-promotion or spam but I have -18 for submitting 5 articles per month ( out of 500 written each month ) from one site?

For submitting less than two dozen news articles, not even stuff I wrote, the same things you find on ScienceDaily or anywhere else that does news releases, I have -18 Karma. A scienceblogs writer is using Reddit as their personal PR organ and has over 600.

Reddit is not a big company, I assume, though they got a lot of money for what they do, and it may be that their Terms of Service are not carved in stone. It may also be that they don’t have an automatic mechanism to recognize self-promotion. If they do have an automatic mechanism to detect self-promotion, it would surely have caught someone from scienceblogs violating it so flagrantly.

It may be that Reddit has its own version of the Digg bury brigade. I doubt ScienceDaily has any grudges against ScientificBlogging, since they are 10X the readership and aren’t in the original content business, so it probably isn’t them. Likewise, LiveScience isn’t worried about anyone small.

On the other hand, Scienceblogs seems to think they invented the concept of science and blogging, even though scienceblog.com and lots of others were around before them. About scientificblogging.com, one of their people wrote:

wordmunger Jan 30th 2007 – “I don’t think we need to worry about it as competition — it’s a poor imitation of ScienceBlogs. It hurts my eyes just to look at it.”

Scientificblogging.com doesn’t do tirades against Republicans so it is truly not a competitor, it does news, original content from some pretty famous writers and allows science writers to host their own blogs on the site. That’s 0 for 3 in comparison to scienceblogs, unless you consider fame for political polemics the scientific kind.

Heck, some people over there even think they invented putting social news site submissions below their articles, a real revolutionary concept in 2007:

Tim Murtaugh Jan 30th 2007 – “Dude — they stole my icons to Digg, Newsvine, etc.”

Yes, they think that they invented both science writing and the little icons that social news sites provide to make it easier for readers. I wonder if scienceblogs people think they invented Drupal also?

Again, it would seem unlikely Reddit is doing this as any kind of formal policy. Favoritism of any kind in the democracy of social news will get you killed by your readers.

Or will it? The obvious test is to post content from a different site and see if it shows up. So he did. Here is how it looked a few hours later:

Yes, it’s right there. It immediately got 2 down votes, so maybe the Reddit bury brigade hates USA Today or marks anyone who posts science content from scientificblogging.com for termination. But the scientificblogging.com posts still are nowhere to be found. Only in the personal prefs part of the submitter.

So ScientificBlogging.com posts are magically prohibited from even showing up but an author on scienceblogs doing blatant self-promotion has 3 up in the span of 2 hours without being marked or anyone thinking that is out of the ordinary.

If this gets published at all, it’s because Reddit support never responded to the email questions about what constitutes spam and self-promotion. If it is published I am going to have someone put it up on Digg because I know on Digg it has at least a fair chance of being seen.

It’s unlikely you will find that on Reddit any time soon.

Calling all Millionaires. We are putting together a list of everyone in this industry that has made a million dollars from domain names. The list is long but we need your help to complete the list.Please submit names of fellow domainers that have made it big in the comments below. We will alter the post and put the millionaires that people suggest directly into the post.

As new people join the list we will try and do a blog post about them. Also as we get to it we will do a post about everyone already on the list.

Adam Dicker (DNForum)
Ammar Kubba (TrafficZ)
Anthony Peppler (Peppler)
Bill Mushkin (Name.com)
Bob Parsons (GoDaddy)
Bruce Tonkin (Melbourne IT)
Chad Folkening (eCorp)
Champ Mitchell (Network Solutions)
Chris Ambler (eNom)
Chris Maroney (Original Afternic)
Colin Yu (Reinvent)
Dan Parisi (WhiteHouse.com)
Dan Warner (Fabulous)
Dean Shannon (Fabulous)
Eliot Noss (Tucows)
Eric Harrington (Moniker)
Eric Rice (Bulk Register)
Frank Schilling (Name Administration)
Fred Hsu (Oversee)
George Decarlo (Dotster)
Gregory J. Manriquez (NameDrive)
Howard Neu (Traffic)
Jay Westerdal (DomainTools)
John Kane (eNom)
Jon Whelan (Original Afternic)
Joyce Lin (007 Names)
JP Vazquez (Capitol Domains)
Kevin Ham (Reinvent)
Kevin Medina (RegisterFly.com)
Lawrence Ng (Oversee)
Marc Ostrofsky (Business.com)
Markus Schnermann (Keyword Domains)
Matt Bentley (Sedo)
Michael Arrington (Pool.com)
Michael Collins (Afternic)
Michael Kovatch (IPhone.com)
Michael Miller (BuyDomains)
Mike B (Weblog.com)
Mike Mann (BuyDomains)
Monte Cahn (Moniker)
Page Howe (Seniors.com)
Paul Stahura (eNom)
Peter Forman (Register.com)
Pinky Brand (idNames, Network Solutions, Arcemus)
Ray King (Snapnames)
Richard Forman (Register.com)
Rick Schwartz (Traffic)
Richard Kirkendall (NameCheap.com)
Rob Hall (Pool.com)
Roger Collins (Afternic)
Roland Chemtob (Branded Holding Group)
Ron Wiener (Snapnames)
Russ Goodwin (Naugus Limited)
Sahar Sarid (Recall Media Group)
Sean Muller (eNom)
Taryn Naidu (Pool.com)
Tim Schumacher (Sedo)
Thunayan K. Alghanim (FMA.com)
Vern Jurovich (Proformainc.com)
Will Pemble (Web.com)
Yun Ye (UltSearch)

I know I have forgotten about 300 people so please help us out.

Got a new computer for Christmas? Are you worried about all the spyware horror stories you’ve read? You should be. I’ve heard varying numbers, but it’s said that putting an unprotected computer on a high-speed connection results in getting infected within a few minutes. I just read that the time is getting longer, but that’s not much comfort. By all means you should have a router if you’re on a high speed connection. A router provides some protection, but is only the beginning. Ok, now the new machine is booted up the first time and ready to go. It’s on the net. In this order, here’s what to do.

1.  Update Windows immediately. In the Windows Security Center in the Control Panel turn on automatic download and installation for updates. Unless the computer came with a third party security suite or firewall, turn on the Windows XP firewall.

2.  Update the pre-installed antivirus definitions and other security apps. Set them to auto update.

3.  Download and install an alternative browser like Firefox or Opera.

4.  Lockdown Internet Explorer. Yes, do it even if you use a different browser.

5.  Install at least two anti-spyware apps. My top two recommended free apps are Ad-Aware and Microsoft AntiSpyware. Update definitions for both and turn on active protection in Microsoft AntiSpyware.

6.  Install some free protective programs like SpywareBlaster and SpywareGuard from Javacool Software.

7.  Install IE-SPYAD, which puts nearly 20,000 known dangerous domains in IE’s restricted site zone.

8.  Install a HOSTS file from here or here.

9.  Educate yourself on how to not become infected in the first place.

10. Surf safe and practice safe hex.

http://blogs.zdnet.com/Spyware/index.php?p=733

Your data’s trapped on a dead computer. You lost your login password. You never wrote down the product key on a non-working Windows installation. Your Mac won’t start.

Don’t pay the extortionists at the computer repair shop 800 bucks to get your data back or start up your dead computer. Plenty of free tools can help you and are available for download right now. Today we’ve got our top 10 system recovery picks which span operating systems but all cost the same: exactly nothing.

Which one of these tools is right for you depends on your skill level, operating system and particular problem. Do yourself a favor and burn yourself a disc with a couple of these before the terrible day when you need ‘em happens.

Lifehacker’s Top 10 Free System Recovery Tools

• 10. SuperDuper! (Mac boot drive maker)
• 9. Magical Jelly Bean Key Finder (Windows)
• 8. USB PC Repair Kit (Windows)
• 7. Undelete Plus (Windows file recovery)
• 6. System Information for Windows (diagnostics)
• 5. DasBoot (Mac boot CD maker)
• 4. Ophcrack Live CD (Windows password cracker)
• 3. Ultimate Boot CD (bootable diagnostic CD, x386)
• 2. Knoppix (bootable CD, x386)
• 
• http://lifehacker.com/software/lifehacker-top-10/lh-top-10–free-computer-system-recovery-tools-251903.php

Launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour. This is a five minute exposure taken from about 7 miles away from the pad. Taken with a borrowed all-manual Nikomat camera, 24 mm lens, f/16, Kodak Royal Gold 100 film. When the exposure was stopped in this shot, the shuttle was approximately 229 statute miles downrange.

You can have an erection once dead

A death erection (sometimes referred to as “angel lust”) is a post-mortem erection which occurs when a male individual dies vertically or face-down – the cadaver remaining in this position. During life, the pumping of blood by the heart ensures a relatively even distribution around the blood vessels of the human body. Once this mechanism has ended, only the force of gravity acts upon the blood. As with any mass, the blood settles at the lowest point of the body and causes edema or swelling to occur; the discoloration caused by this is called lividity.
Sorry, no photo for this one!

Your hand can have a life of it’s own

Alien hand syndrome (or Dr. Strangelove syndrome) is an unusual neurological disorder in which one of the sufferer’s hands seems to take on a life of its own.

AHS is best documented in cases where a person has had the two hemispheres of their brain surgically separated, a procedure sometimes used to relieve the symptoms of extreme cases of epilepsy. It also occurs in some cases after other brain surgery, strokes, or infections. The HAND is after you!

Don’t laugh too much, it can kill you

Fatal hilarity is death as a result of laughter. In the third century B.C. the Greek philosopher Chrysippus died of laughter after seeing a donkey eating figs (hey, it wasn’t THAT funny).

On 24 March 1975 Alex Mitchell, a 50-year-old bricklayer from King’s Lynn, England, literally died laughing while watching an episode of The Goodies. According to his wife, who was a witness, Mitchell was unable to stop laughing whilst watching a sketch in the episode “Kung Fu Kapers” in which Tim Brooke-Taylor, dressed as a kilted Scotsman, used a set of bagpipes to defend himself from a psychopathic black pudding in a demonstration of the Scottish martial art of “Hoots-Toot-ochaye”. After twenty-five minutes of continuous laughter Mitchell finally slumped on the sofa and expired from heart failure. His widow later sent the Goodies a letter thanking them for making Mitchell’s final moments so pleasant.

A weapon could make you Gay

Gay bomb is an informal name for a potential non-lethal chemical weapon, which a U.S. Air Force research laboratory speculated about producing.

In one sentence of the document it was suggested that a strong aphrodisiac could be dropped on enemy troops, ideally one which would also cause “homosexual behaviour”. So that’s how they got Saddam!

It’s true, Men can breastfeed

The phenomenon of male lactation in humans has become more common in recent years due to the use of medications that stimulate a human male’s mammary glands.

Male lactation is most commonly caused by hormonal treatments given to men suffering from prostate cancer. It is also possible for males (and females) to induce lactation through constant massage and simulated ‘sucking’ of the nipple over a long period of time (months).

Bart Simpson’s Tomacco (half tomato, half tobacco) was possible

A tomacco is originally a fictional hybrid fruit that is half tomato and half tobacco, from the 1999 episode “E-I-E-I-(Annoyed Grunt)” of The Simpsons; the method used to create the tomacco in the episode is fictional.

The tomacco became real when it was allegedly produced in 2003. Inspired by The Simpsons, Rob Baur of Lake Oswego, Oregon successfully grafted a tomato plant onto the roots of a tobacco plant, which was possible because both plants come from the same family.

It’s OK to have a third nipple

A supernumerary nipple (also known as a third nipple) is an additional nipple occurring in mammals including humans. Often mistaken for moles, supernumerary nipples are diagnosed at a rate of 2% in females, less in males. The nipples appear along the two vertical “milk lines” which start in the armpit on each side, run down through the typical nipples and end at the groin. They are classified into eight levels of completeness from a simple patch of hair to a milk-bearing breast in miniature.

You can die on the Toilet

There are many toilet-related injuries and some toilet-related deaths throughout history and in urban legends.

In young boys, one of the most common causes of genital injury is when the toilet seat falls down while using the toilet.

George II of Great Britain died on the toilet on 25 October 1760 from an aortic dissection. According to Horace Walpole’s memoirs, King George “rose as usual at six, and drank his chocolate; for all his actions were invariably methodic. A quarter after seven he went into a little closet. His German valet de chambre in waiting heard a noise, and running in, found the King dead on the floor.”

Picking one’s nose and eating it might be healthy

Mucophagy (literally mucus-eating, also referred as picking one’s nose and eating it) is the consumption of the nasal mucus, boogers, and other detritus obtained from nose-picking.

Some research suggests that mucophagy may be a natural and even healthy activity, which exposes the digestive system to bacteria accumulated in the mucus, thereby helping to strengthen the immune system.

http://www.2spare.com/item_39909.aspx

We bring you the “Top 20 Strangest Gadgets and Accessories” that our editors have come across in recent time. If we happened to miss any, please leave us a comment.

[ShoutIt]

20. The Talking Lips

Not your ordinary speakers, these “Talking Lips” actually have moving lips that synchronize with your mobile phone or online chat conversations (Skype, etc.). They come in three different colors (silver/black/red) and connect to your phone or computer via USB. Fortunatley, there’s an on/off switch on the bottom that will come in handy after the few seconds of entertainment are up.

[Source]

19. Portable Cardboard Speakers

MUJI, best known in for their innovative yet simple products, has come out with speakers made of cardboard and a few electronic components They ship unfolded in a clear plastic pouch — fold them up and they’re ready to use. Now that’s what I call portability. MoMAstore has them available for puchase now at $42 USD.

[Source]

18. Talking Japanese Watches

Now available from FredFlare is this innovative new watch that not only tells time but teaches you Japanese as well. By pressing a button, you can activate the speaker which responds with the time in Japanese. It also features a stylish retro design and comes in five different colors – priced at just $20 USD each.

17. The Baller Cheating Pen

Did you always dream of a pen like this? The Baller Pen features a retractable 6.5″ sheet which can be written on. On the UV coated front side, you are able to use fine tip markers/sticks while the back side is erasable which makes it perfect for writing on with pencils.

[Source]

16. Cup Noodle Stove

The “Cup Noodle Stove” is the best thing that could happen to ramen lovers short of going to Japan. Forget the microwave, place your favorite Cup Noodle flavor on the stove and power it up. In just a few minutes, your ramen will be piping hot and ready to eat.

“The heat temperature can get pretty high for a little thing like this. So don’t try to make any damn omelets.”

[Source]

15. Gas Powered Blender

Tailgating parties aren’t complete without the “Daiquiri Whacker Gas Powered Blender”. It comes with an unbreakable Oster blender jar and a Mountain Safety Research aluminum fuel bottle (for gas mixing/fuel storage). This powerful blender will start any party off with a bang, get yours now for just $275.00 from TheBigChill.

Powerful enough to whip up a batch of your favorite blended drink faster than you can say” Dos Margaritas por favor!”

[Source]

14. The Mini Desk

Made by MiniStatements, the “Mini Desk” looks good enough to drive. The entire desk is constructed from what looks like a real Mini with its top chopped off, interior gutted, and left door panel removed. It supposedly retails at a whopping $4,400, email the company for additional information.

[Source]

13. Wood LED Clock

When turned off, this clock looks just like a regular block of wood. Once powered up, the LED lights display the time on this still regular looking block of wood. Time adjustment knobs and a “power adapter” jack can be found on the back. These wooden clocks are made by Japanese company Takumi and are available now from Dynamism at the price of $379.00 USD.

[Source]

12. Headlight LCD Combo

Now you can sit in front of your headlight and watch your favorite DVD movies. Someone decide to cut you off? Show them so love by putting on a movie.

Screenlights have come up with a piece of technological wizardry — “a fully functional headlight that has an embedded LCD screen within. This mod comes in 3″, 4″, 5″, and 7″ flavors. The 3″ screen will peg you back by $900.

[Source]

11. Rat Race Clock

Amsuing yourself at work just got a little bit easier with this “Rat Race Clock”. Watch the mechanical rat run on a treadmill, whilst moving “gears that advance the hour and minute hands”. Powered by 4D and 2AA batteries, this clock can be had for just $24.99 from ComputerGear.

[Source]

10. Radio Toaster

With “The Only Radio Toaster” you can not only prepare toast but also listen to FM radio at the same time. The toaster is housed in a slick silver brushed-metal case and features an electronic sensor which automatically adjusts the toasting time based on its internal temperature (this will come in handy since i’m not a morning person). Also included are multiple toasting settings, easy-to-read radio controls, and built-in cord storage to keep your kitchen “clutter-free”.

[Source]

9. The Sauce Dispensing Chopsticks

With these sauce dispensing chopsticks you’ll never have to dip your sushi in soy sauce again. For $21 you can own two pairs of these chopsticks, which are made from polypropylene and ABS, meaning they will break before you know it. Additional info on this Japanese invention can be found here.

[Source]

8. The Head Bath Cap

If you’ve been waiting for a cap that gives your head/hair a good bath than the solution is here. Presenting the “Head Bath” cap, just place it over your head and let water start running into it. This thing not only looks funny but supposedly “helps your hair grow faster and fuller” by penetrating the pores in your scalp with the trapped water.

[Source]

7. SatuGO – Bouncing Digital Camera

This nifty little bouncy ball type gadget is actually a digital camera that snaps 3.0 Megapixel images when bounced. The SatuGO is notable in that it includes 1GB NAND memory and sports a timer/flash so it can also be used as a webcam. Just plug it into your computer’s USB port for quick and easy recharging. No word yet on pricing or availability.

[Source]

6. Touch Rubik’s Cube

The Touch Rubik’s Cube puts a new twist on the classic puzzle game. It uses six different materials: metal, wood, textile, stone, rubber, and plastic, engaging users to use their senses. This also enables blind persons to enjoy the wonders of a Rubik’s cube.

[Source]

5. RSStroom Reader

Introducing the RSStroom reader by Yi Tien Electronics, with this gadget you’ll be able to print the latest RSS headlines directly on to rolls of toilet paper. It also features Wi-Fi Connectivity, USB 2.0, and RSS 2.0/Atom compatibility. This reader interacts with your toilet bowl “biometrically” which basically means when you sit down this thing will weigh you. Depending on your weight, it’ll deliver you a customized news feed.

[Source]

4. BriefSafe

The problem with most safes is that experienced burglers know how to crack them. “Brief Safe” offers the next best thing which is basically stained underwear that securely stores valuables in a 4″ x 10″ secret compartment with velcro closure. Available now for $9 from Shomer.

“Leave the “Brief Safe” in plain view in your laundry basket or washing machine at home, or in your suitcase in a hotel room – even the most hardened burgler or most curious snoop will “skid” to a screeching halt as soon as they see them.”

[Source]

3. Knife Block Shaped Like Human Head

Put simply, this solid lime-wood knife block shaped like a human head would be a refreshing addition to any boring kitchen. This piece was hand carved by Irene van Gestel.

“This is a lovely design-student project: a hand-carved knife-block shaped like a man’s head, the knives sticking out of it in gruesome humor.”

[Source]

2. Shower Belt

While not on the cutting edge of technology or gadgetry, this shower belt did provide me with a few minutes of laughter. The “Shower Belt” designed by Carl Hagerling can easily attach to any faucet with the buckle acting as a fully functional nozzle. Get off work late and want to freshen up before heading out on that big date? Just whip out your trusty shower belt for a quick wash in the bathroom.

[Source]

1. Synthetic Human Skin Laptop Bags

This expensive ($601 USD), but striking laptop bag is made from synthetic human skin. The “Skinbag” is shock absorbant, has 1 cm padding (fabric lining), and 1 side pocket for all your accessories. It measures approx. 39 x 29 cm or 14 x 11 in. and doubles as a regular carrying bag.

“The bags dedicated to electronic machines are waterproof and proctective jackets and become autonomous organisms. They anticipate the fusion between the digital and the organic.”

[Source]
Top 20 Strangest Gadgets and Accessories

Here is a list I have compiled of headphones that I have used over the past two years. I have owned at one point or another all of these headphones at one time. As most web designers know it is very very important to have good headphones seeing as more often than not it’s just you and your laptop plugging away with html, php, flash, etc. So without further adieu here is what I have experienced with each of these bad boys.

(To see the a more comprehensive list of headphones as composed by comments here and on the digg post see Top Headphones Remastered.)

Bose Triport
Price: $149.99

I’ll confess when I first saw these headphones I thought, how could these cone looking headphones produce good sound at all. However, I decided against my first instinct and bought a pair. Along with being Bose, as most audio gurus will tell you is slightly overrated in terms of sound, I had my own doubts. However I was pleasantly surprised. First off they are ultra comfortable on your ears because they are so lightweight and the padding they use is soft and not too suction-like. Secondly, unless you have unusually large ears, they earphones should fit around your entire ear which blocks out quite a bit of sound and produces very good sound quality.

Sound Quality:

On the Alicia Keys song that I used, if you’ve never heard her sing she has a very rich voice that covers a tremendous range, these headphones performed excellent against her raspy voice, trebles were good, bass was good, mid-range was sweet sounding. I’d say you can’t go wrong with these headphones at all.

Cons:

If I had to point out one design flaw with these headphones I would say that the plastic ring connecting the two earphones is not extremely durable. Bose did make an improvement over their first Triport which just had cheapo plastic, and added a nice neoprene sleeve over this new edition Triport which gives a more quality feel and increases durability.

Dorkiness Factor:

I’m not sure these headphones would exactly get you girls but you won’t be made fun of either. I mean if Dwayne Wade of the Miami Heat can sport them on national TV why can’t you (oh, wait I’m not in the NBA and shoot I’m not famous either, crud).

Recommendation:

For all the reasons I listed above, I do believe that for the money these are a great pick and you can’t go wrong with these headphones. If you want to be blown away with the sound I’d recommend listening to Brian McKnight with this pair of phones.

Where to Buy: Bose Triport

Bang & Olufson A8
Price: $159.99

Perhaps my favourite headphones of all time these are the perfect low profile headphones that fit easily into your pocket with amazing sound quality. Trust me I’ve owned all of these headphones and this one is by far the one I would take with me if I could only take one. The best song to listen to with these headphones is “The Blower’s Daughter” by Damien Rice, first of all this song is one of the best songs of all time, second you can even hear the background studio noise because the headphones are THAT good. I would venture to say that Bang & Olufson makes the best sounding headphones. If they ever came out with a noice canceling headphone it would blow the water out of everything out in the industry right now.

Durability:

I’d say they are more durable than most headphones because of the metaal earbands with the rubber lining. The only problem that I have had with them is I once dropped them in water and they stopped working for awhile, so as long as you don’t do something like that I think you’ll be fine.

Design Aesthetics:
The A8’s are low profile so no worries there. I’d say the only time I felt most like a dork was when I kept telling people to listen to my headphones and compare them to their stock ipod headphones.

Recommendation:

One of the two pairs of headphones that I use pretty much everyday, the A8’s are perfect for my walk to work (through downtown San Francisco) and are perform just as well at home. If you want a high performing, great sounding, durable campanion to your IPOD I would get these hand’s down.

Where to Buy: Bang & Olufson A8

Bose Quiet Comfort 2 – Acoustic Noice Canceling
Price: $349.99

Before I go onto my review of these headphones and everyone goes on to talk about how great these headphones are I must say that I too think they are GOOD headphones as well. Here is a statement that I’ll standby 100%, the Bose Triports that only cost half the price of the Quiet Comforts have a much better sound than these headphones. Most people will contest that these phones sound better but the way to actually test the sound quality is to sit in a quiet place and listen to both the Triports and the Quiet Comforts, the difference is staggering. From the trebles to the bass the Triport is just able to produce a crisper sound, you can just feel the singer’s voice and the vebratto.

Durabilty:

These headphones will stand the test of time. They are much better constructed than the triports and will be able to take a beating. The head band that connects the two earphones is about 3/4 of an inch wide and very very durable, you definitely get the same tough/industrial feel that you get with the Sony DJ headphones reviewed here as well. The only part you will be changing out is the batteries most likely.

Sound Quality:

As discussed before, for the price, the sound quality is a bit lower than expected. I believe that people often confuse good quality sound with the noise canceling that the Quiet Comforts provides. The Quiet Comforts do provide excellent noise canceling, I can testify to this, as I wore them on an airplan and couldn’t hear the engine or that typical airplane buzz at all. If I were looking into the market to buy a pair of noise canceling headphones I would definitely go with these bad boys.

Recommendation:

Don’t get me wrong I like these headphones for noise canceling I just have a hard time recommending the Quiet Comforts just based on sound quality. I would say if you are traveling in airplanes, trains, or on a whole in noisy environments a lot then these are actually really good headphones to buy because of their effectiveness blocking out sound. I would say if you are a consultant that hops on a plane more more than 4x a month this would be my pick for headphones.

Where to Buy: Bose Quiet Comfort
Price: $179.99

The two pairs of in-ear headphones that I bought were the Shure E3C’s and the Ultimate Ear super.fi 5 Pro’s and though I don’t like to bash another product I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that the Ultimate Ear’s and miles better than the Shure’s. There is definitely a reason that 90% of the professional music community uses the Ultimate Ear headphones. Though I’m not a huge fan of in-ear headphones if I had to recommend a pair of headphones it would be the Ultimate Ears. Ok, ok but this is a review of the Shure E3C’s, they are cheap. Quite simply, these headphones, at the E3C level, are Sony Fontopia’s for a higher price with a better in ear foam bud, and I might argue that the Fontopias are better. I once again used the Alicia Key’s song “If I ain’t got you” as a good song to test these headphones out. What I found was that the when her pitch got higher the E3C’s sounded very tinny and almost hurt my ear from the badly balanced treble. I chose a song with a lot of range because on a whole it is unfair to judge in-ear headphones on their bass performance, it’s just not going to be there with any of them.

Recommendation:

If you work out don’t buy these headphones. The main reason I say this is because when you’re running if you hit that wire at all it will reverberate back into your headphones and will be very disturbing. Though this is true with most in-ear headphones, in fact if you’re working out just buy cheapo headphones or if you want better sound go buy the Bang and Olufson’s they will work perfect. In fact I can’t recommend these headphones at all in light that the Ultimate Ears are available and are exponentially better in my opinion.

Where to Buy: Shure E3C

Sony MDR-EX71SL Fontopia Headphones
Price: $49.99

If you’re looking for the most bang out of your buck and a good trooper of a pair of headphones these are it. For in-ear headphones they are very good. These headphones aren’t tinny and handle bass very well when I tried playing some 50 cent on them while working out. Probably the second most important characteristic about in-ear headphones asides from sound quality is the foam earbuds that come with the earphones. The Sony Fontopia’s come with 6 pairs and they should fit most people’s ears comfortably, if you can handle in-ear headphones without headaches. Sidenote: check to make sure that you can handle in-ear headphones before you buy them, it is a very different feel than regular headphones you may be used to. Most people that don’t like in-ear headphones either get headaches when they wear them or the ear foam buds don’t fit in their ears.

Recommedation:

Buy if you are looking for those headphones to get your from point A to point B. Perfect for the train ride commute that is less than an hour. Don’t buy if you are planning on using these guys for hours on end while doing homework or web designing it’ll give you a headache or your ears will start throbbing…ok yours might not but mine did. This isn’t a Fontopia thing, it’s an in-ear headphone thing, though like I said in-ear works for some people just not me and I’ve owned some pretty good in-ear phones which right now my sister is enjoying (she loves in-ear headphones and CAN wear them for hours on end). Good buy if you like in-ear headphones, not super expensive and provide good value.

Where to Buy: Sony MDR-EX71SL Fontopia

Sony MDR-700DJ Studio Monitor Series
Price: $149.99

This is a pair of headphones I hold near and dear to my heart. Always by my side, the MDR DJ700’s were made famous by the 1000’s of DJ’s that swear by these headphones. Don’t believe me, go out this weekend to your nearby club and see what headphones the DJ is sporting, it’s the 700’s guarnteed. These headphones are quite simply a perfect balance of sound quality, durability, design aesthetics, comfort, and overall feel.

Sound Quality:

This time I gave these headphones the full test. When I first bought these headphones it was because of the incredible hype around them that existed, but still I waited awhile, a long while. Finally after a particular hard day at work I broke down and ordered them off of Amazon ($83 bucks right now) and I wasn’t disappointed. The sound is incredibly rich. When I say rich I mean the bass is complete, soft when the drums are lower, crisp when it’s a cymbol, just nice and balanced. You will never flinch because the sound is too high-pitched or uncomfortable with these phones. I guess I can’t say more than these headphones are just balanced, however if you do buy them make sure to use the extra adapter and listen to them through your receiver. Oh, now that is amazing, the extra power that using the 8mm brings is such off the hook.

Durability:

By far the most durable of all the headphones reviewed. Double enforced head band, metal components, half the reason that DJ’s use these headphones is because they are soo durable. You can throw them around (did that), sit on them (that too), and overall do everything you aren’t supposed to do to them and they will keep on ticking.

Recommedation:

For anyone that will be listening to music for longer than an hour at a time. That’s calling all you engineering students out there, web designers, programmers, and anyone else that spends more time on their computer than they should. As far as design aesthetics these headphones are beautiful, we’re talking the Jessica Alba of headphones. I know that there are now more expensive new generations of this headphones and better DJ headphones out there, but there is a reason these headphones have become a classic.

Where to Buy: Sony MDR-700DJ Studio Monitor Series

Ultimate Ears super.fi 5 Pro
Price: $249.99

Best in-ear quality headphone brand out there. Great fit with the foam pads (very important with in-ear headphones), great sound quality. I love the range of the super.fi 5 Pro’s and would definitley recommend giving a bit more money to but this version over the cheaper version. I know easier said than done, I had to skip a few meals and eat to ramen for the month of September, but I can now say it was worth it. Ultimate Ears was a brand started by a sound engineer in the music industry and it shows in pretty much the entire product. If you are into heavy bass or trebles these headphones will cover the range of music easily and well. To test the bass out I listened to a lot of down tempo, drum and bass, stuff and can say I could easily pick out snare drums and different bass drums. Surprisingly, also, after wearing these headphones I didn’t have a headaches because the fit with the foam pads was so secure.

Recommendation:

Yep, I recommend these headphones as an alternative to noise canceling headphones and as the best in-ear headphones around for the money. If you are debating between Shure and Ultimate Ears I would recommend the super.fi Pro 5’s, or just Ultimate Ears in general.

Where to Buy: Ultimate Ears super.fi 5 Pro

Apple In-Ear Headphones
Price: $39.00

Don’t buy these headphones. Ok now that I’ve gotten that out of the way let me tell you why. I bought these headphones so that I could use them to work out but they performed so terribly that I had to return them the day after. First off the ear buds don’t fit correctly, and though I did manage to get them to fit for a second of two they will definitely fall out during a short run. In addition the sound quality is no better than your typical Apple Ipod stock headphones and realistically I wouldn’t even accept these headphones as a gift.

Where to Buy: Apple In-Ear Headphones

Bang and Olufson Form 2
Price: $99.99

Aesthetically I’m not sure about these headphones at al as they are black and someone spaceship like, however musically they perform very well. Since you can try these out at the apple store, to test the sound quality, I would first listen to the Alicia Keys song “If I ain’t got you” any of the other headphones and then listen to these headphones. Eventhough they may not block out the sound very well because of their ear phone design the quality is top notch.

Recommendation:

I’m not sure I can recommend this as a buy because for $100 this is a bit over priced. I see this pair of headphones as a tweener between a really good pair of headphones and your stock headphones. I would suggest you save your money and buy the Bang and Olufson A8’s or the Bose Triport’s if you are thinking of spending this kind of money on headphones.

Apple Ipod Ear Phones
Price: $29.00

The stock ear phones that come with ipod are actually probably the best stock ear phones that you will ever get. They are stylish durable, produce decent sound, and overall are a good pair of headphones if you don’t want to spend anymore money. They will however not block out any sound and if you do ride the train or are in an airplane your music will be competing with the outside noise and airplane engine.

And that concludes my headphone review (I swear I thought this article would never end, I just about wore out my keyboard). If you found this article helpful I’d be much appreciated if you would digg this article.

10 Headphones Reviewed

Posted by steve on October 03rd 2006 to General