LATEST ADDITIONS

Steven Soderbergh's feature film, <I>Bubble</I>, premiered last week in high definition on HDNet. It also opened simultaneously in several dozen theaters around the country, all of them either Landmark theaters (owned by HDNet owner Mark Cuban) or independent art houses. Theater chains boycotted the film because in its simultaneous release on cable television, in theaters, and (this past Tuesday) on DVD, it represented a perceived threat to their box office revenue.

Worried about taking your iPod out in the rain? You needn't if you're wearing the BlackCoat Work from Ohio-based Koyono. The "Made for iPod" jacket's five pockets include one for your iPod. You can manipulate the player through the Elektex five-button fabric interface, sourced from Eleksen, a five-layer laminate of conductive materials. It's light, flexible, durable, washable, and (the company says) superior to the hard touchpads, flexi-circuits, and polymer switches used in other products. The BlackCoat Work will be available in March or April and can be ordered direct for $179.

Are your fingers itching to store and manage 7500 CDs by dragging and dropping on a touchscreen? The Q100 Digital Music Entertainment (DME) System is the first music management system to include a drag-and-drop user interface, according to the manufacturer Qsonix. You can D&D tracks or albums, fool with playlists, and so it all without navigating multi-step menus. The product comes with capacity of 160-400GB and a 15-inch TFT LCD touchscreen controller. Says Mike Weaver, president of Qsonix: "Qsonix re-unites users with their music by incorporating an intuitive, engaging and visual presentation that allows music to be accessed with the simple touch of the finger." Re-unites—I like that part. He continues: "Designed for even the most technology-phobic users, our system can be mastered in minutes and enjoyed for years by the whole family." If he does say so himself. Qsonix also sells industrial level gear to bars, pubs, clubs, restaurants, eateries, coffeehouses, hotels, department stores, retail outlets, and offices. Price: $5495.