PS3 levels up: StreamMyGame.com has released, for free, its Linux Player, which allows any game created for use on a PC to be played on a PlayStation 3 running the Linux system. You need to have Linux installed on a PS3 (versions such as Ubuntu and Yellow Dog Linux will do the trick). It works by feeding the game from one computer via the StreamMyGame server back to a second computer, PS3 or other Linux device. The server is compatible with Windows XP and Vista, and the second computer or PS3 doesn't have to have the game loaded on it. StreamMyGame is available for free by registering at www.streammygame.com.
Wave goodbye: Sony Ericsson has crafted a shiny new toy with hidden character in the Z555a mobile phone. When the phone rings, the caller's name appears on the glossy silver exterior. If you don't want to take the call, you literally shake it off — sensors in the phone pick up the motion, a la Nintendo's Wii, and the would-be partner in communication is rejected, all without having to open the clamshell phone. Alas, it's basically a one-trick pony with a fancy saddle, lacking a decent camera and with no MP3-playing ability. The handset will be released in the first quarter of 2008 on an as-yet unannounced network. More details can be found at www.sonyericsson.com.
Chilling out: What's missing from any worthy laptop is a decent cooling system — it's part of the bill for traveling light, and the bane of many an overheated lap. Of course, there are many external fans available, typically built into a small platform for the laptop to sit on and running off the computer's USB port. Digital Cowboy is cranking down the heat with its CRF-102 Notebook Cooler (www.digitalcowboy.jp) The gadget sports a 22-cm fan working at 600 rpm and a relatively quiet noise level of 18 to 20 dB, and the platform can tilt between 15 and 32 degrees. It measures 300x270x25 mm with the one downside being that it weighs in at 750 grams. Priced ¥4,980, it is out now.