New gloves for touch-based smartphones

Cold climate smartphone owners forced to wear gloves this time of year know it can be tough –- if not impossible -– to use the touch-based screens unless you take off the glove to use a fingertip. A new product aims to solve this familiar Canadian dilemma.
This common problem -- especially this time of year -- is solved with the new Tävo Gloves ($39.99; tavoproducts.com), designed for use with phones such as the Apple iPhone and BlackBerry Storm.

The insulation in regular gloves usually prevents touch-screen navigation.
But these gloves have an electrically conductive overlay of nylon strips and silver sheen on the index finger and thumb, which Tävo calls “PlayPoint” technology.

Reviews of the product have found them to be comfortable, relatively warm and effective in controlling iPods and iPhones. What people reviewing them have said is that they also liked the silicon material on the palm and fingers "for an increased grip".

LG announces cell phone watch

Eat your heart out Dick Tracy!

Announced at last year’s CES, LG Electronics today will show off the world’s first 3G cell phone watch, dubbed the GD910, at the 42nd annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

The wrist-mounted phone houses a 1.4-inch touch-screen which can be used to dial a number, in case you don’t want to use the voice-dialing option. The GD910 also features Bluetooth connectivity (so it’ll work with your wireless headset), a speakerphone, text-to-speech technology (hear your text messages read to you) and a built-in MP3 player.

It also makes video calls, thanks to a small camera in the top right corner of the screen.

The WCDMA (wideband code division multiple access) phone supports the latest 7.2Mbps (megabits per second) HSPA (high-speed packet access) data system, so file downloads should be super fast.

Want to be accessible while going for a swim? LG says the GD910 is also waterproof.

Without reading any specs, we’re curious as to the size of this watch -- but you can be rest assured it’ll be on the bulky side, which might be a turnoff for some sci-fi lovers itching to wear this thing.

The price for the GD910 hasn't been announced yet, nor are there any carriers publicly committed to the product, but it’s expected to go on sale in Asia and Europe sometime by mid-2009.