While we've already seen older iterations Netgear's powerline-based networking products, it's just today that the new Powerline HD Plus Ethernet Adapter Kit ($170) and Powerline AV Ethernet Adapter Kit ($150) have become widely available. Both systems transfer data at 200 Mbps over your home's electrical wiring, but the big difference is that the Powerline HD Plus system includes a socket so you don't miss out on the plug space. Now if only my apartment's electrical were as reliable as its airspace, I might consider the purchase. [Netgear]

When you hear about a camera that's the size of a trailer, you figure it's a novelty used by a struggling artist looking to make a name. But watching this clip that explores the giant photography of John Chiara, you realize he's not just a salesman exhibiting a clown camera. He's an artist who painstakingly sets up a shot that's balanced with car lifts, controls the exposure by placing his hand over parts of the lens and then develops the film in a sewage pipe. And the results are pretty extraordinary. This clip documents Chiara's complete process and it runs about 7 worthwhile minutes. Load it up when you've got the time. [via Neatorama]

Eye-Fi just made a series of announcements that will please existing users. By October 5, their cards, new and old, will receive a firmware update to double photo upload speeds on all models. Also, MobileMe was added to the list of supported services and those interested in advanced functions like geotagging will be able to buy the options in an ala cart subscription menu. Good stuff—read on for the full release.

EYE-FI MAKES PHOTO UPLOADS TWICE AS FAST;

LAUNCHES CUSTOMIZED SERVICE UPGRADES

Also Adds New Photo Destinations; Cards Now Available at Best Buy Stores Nationwide

PHOTOKINA, COLOGNE, Germany, Sept. 23, 2008 – Eye-Fi Inc. (www.eye.fi), makers of the world’s first wireless memory card for digital cameras, today announced enhancements to its family of Eye-Fi cards that will make the upload of digital photos from camera to computer twice as fast. The faster wireless speeds will also be made available to existing Eye-Fi users at no extra cost. In addition, users will be able to upgrade their Eye-Fi cards to add the individual services they want, including Web sharing, geotagging and hotspot access.

“Faster wireless uploads and the ability to add new services to your Eye-Fi card are significant advancements in making it more convenient and rewarding to save and share digital memories,” said Jef Holove, CEO of Eye-Fi. “Even better, we’re able to offer this new convenience and flexibility to current users as well as new customers.”

Beginning October 5, new and existing Eye-Fi card owners can easily add features that are not already included on their cards and renew annual services. By using the updated Eye-Fi Manager Web application, users can add the following services to their cards:

o Web Sharing – Users who have an Eye-Fi Home card can add Eye-Fi’s popular Web sharing service to send photos directly from their camera to one of more than 20 online photo sharing, printing, social networking or blogging sites using a wireless network, saving the time and hassle of manually uploading from the computer. Annual service fee: $9.99.
o Geotagging – Users who have an Eye-Fi Home or Share card can add geotagging to their card. Geotagging invisibly adds geographic information indicating where the photo was taken, allowing users to map where their memories were captured. Annual service fee: $14.99.
o Hotspot Access – Users who have an Eye-Fi Share card can upgrade their card to automatically upload photos away from home at more than 10,000 Wayport hotspots and through open hotspots. Annual service fee: $14.99.

Also announced today, Eye-Fi users will be able to upload photos directly to one of two new online photo destinations: Apple’s MobileMe and AdoramaPix. MobileMe members can wirelessly send photos from their camera directly to their MobileMe Gallery which can then be viewed by friends and family on the Web, iPhone, iPod touch and Apple TV. Available now, users will also be able to upload photos directly from their camera to their AdoramaPix account, where they can edit, share and make prints.

As a significant nationwide expansion, Eye-Fi cards will be available for purchase at more than 900 Best Buy stores throughout the United States, as well as at Circuit City, Ritz Camera Centers and major online retail sites.

By October 5, users will be able to enjoy Eye-Fi's faster upload speeds and service upgrades, and purchase cards from Best Buy stores nationwide.

At the Photokina trade show in Cologne, Germany, Sept. 23-28, Eye-Fi will demonstrate its family of products in booth # B19b in the USA/Canada Pavilion, Hall 4.1.

The Xbox 360 is a powerful gaming system and media player, but few people know all of its ins and outs. Techradar publshed a "10 Tricks" article on the console, and while most of the information will not be news to the average Giz reader (OMG THE XBOX PLAYS MY IPOD!!), we found two tricks that we hadn't seen before. First, you can play online without a LIVE gold account by fooling your Xbox into thinking it's on a LAN with XLink Kai. The other tip is that you can reset your video settings to factory default by holding "Y" while booting the system. Hit the link for the rest of 'em. [Techradar via Kotaku and image]

Before Gizmodo, I worked in the bowels of the broadcast industry for a number of years. I was either shooting video or cutting video every day, all day. And while Final Cut Pro and Adobe After Effects were both tools I used with some proficiency on a daily basis, I've never seen a post production demo as incredible as this clip from the University of Washington.

Essentially, you shoot some crappy, low-rez video of a still scene. You then reshoot the same scene with a digital camera (with higher resolution). Software can automagically combine these images to upconvert the video AND fix problems in the image— all while compensating for 3D space. Make sense? The remarkable demo will clarify things a bit:

What's especially notable is that the software can fill in the nasty bits of the scene despite the videographer/photographer rotating their view (you see this as they shoot around the tree) and despite any lens differences (the software can compensate for different lens sizes/distortions).

Also, note that many details from the source video are retained (the glass reflections in the statue shot may be the best example), which means that the photograph's information isn't the only information we see in the composite image.

I'm not quite convinced that the entire process is quite as automatic as the students would make it, but the technology is extremely promising all the same. And at this point, it should only be a matter of time before we see the idea work its way into our favorite post production products. [Project Page via bbGadgets]

The Xtand is a solid aluminum stand that not only holds your iPhone when your hands have better things to do, but does so in that "I'm an aluminum stand that looks like an iMac stand" kind of way. It's 100% fanboy gear, but we have to admit, the 360-degree rotation and cable management system (aka hole in the back) actually look kind of convenient. No word on price at this time. If only Jeff Foxworthy's career were alive right now, we could end this post with a decent "you might be an Apple fanboy if..." joke. Our condolences to his family. [JustMobile via MobilitySite]

While we're rarely captivated by drawers here on Giz, Fractal 23 is more than worthy to take a place next to USB fart warmers and the like. Because by properly staggering 23 drawers of varying sizes, Takeshi Miyakawa has made use of every inch inside this cube...the hard way. My IKEA dresser is more than a little jealous; it's turned to booze with my old Wal-Mart patio set that hangs in the garage. Here's a bonus shot:

[Takeshi Miyakawa via DVICE]

1. Call 1-800-4-MY-XBOX
2. Demand your reference number ASAP.
3. Call escalated support at 866-506-3826.
4. Speak to someone who can actually help.

Make sure to write this down. You're gonna need it. [consumerist]

This AC wall adapter is no ordinary AC wall adapter. It's loaded with an A/V recorder that can save 66 hours of footage to its 2GB microSD card. And even if the wall socket is turned off, a built-in lithium ion battery will keep shooting for 3 hours of glorious, socket-height footage. Yes, that's the extreme low angle stuff. We're talking shoes. We're talking you didn't vacuum under that couch. It's just more evidence piling up to an unavoidable fact. In the future, everyone will know what everyone else looks like naked. Or we'll at least have some hot shots of one another's bare feet. [product via ohgizmo]

The gadget: The Eye-Fi. It's an SD memory card that adds Wi-Fi to any camera. Plus the free Eye-Fi service supports automatic uploads to 20 different web photo sites (like Flickr) as well as a computer on your home network.

The verdict: It works flawlessly.

The performance: Like we said, the Eye-Fi works flawlessly. Setup takes roughly five minutes (you program the card through your computer and bundled card reader.) From there, you simply snap pics in the range of your router, and chances are, by the time you go back to your computer, the pictures will be viewable. If your router dies, you turn off your camera, or even if you take out the card and put it back in, the photos will upload when you get things sorted out again. It's actually a normal 2GB memory card underneath all of the other functionality and can work as such.

The catch: We figured iIt must drain more battery —but apparently in-camera SD power standards dictate that this extra consumed power needs to be minimal, to the level of not noticeable to the end user. Unfortunately, the product doesn't support hotspots.

The price: $100

The verdict Part II: Sure, the Eye-Fi is basically a cradle replacement. But snapping photos and automatically uploading them in real time to share is truly fantastic, especially when the images can be better than one's camera phone. And the entire product experience is built with Apple-like simplicity. If you can get over the price and are sick of cords, we strongly recommend the purchase. Available now. [eye-fi]