dating

If your gadgets outnumber your pockets but you're not quite resigned to suspender geekdom, there may be a compromise. Setgo's "Transport," as Dvice puts it, is "a kind of wearable man-purse for the 21st century" though we assume it's not necessarily gender-specific.

It's basically the equivalent of an updated tool belt with "strategically placed pockets" that's worn like a big sash over the shoulder instead of around the beer belly. The idea is valid, but we can't see paying $80 for something like this. And if you think … Read more

If you've always felt awkward in front of other people, especially the opposite gender, Avex Entertainment has an interactive DVD that it claims can help overcome that neurosis. Called Miterudake, which literally means "Just Looking," this DVD features videos of 50 women of various ages and nationalities staring straight at you. From time to time, the women will also talk to you (only in Japanese, unfortunately).

Personally, I find it strange buying a DVD that has people looking and talking to you. After all, anyone watching the DVD will soon realize it's all just a recorded … Read more

While the latest trend in online dating has been video with sites like WooMe and SpeedDate.com, Youniverse (pronounced "universe"), which launched Thursday morning, is all about pictures.

Instead of matching you up with people based on a fill-in-the-blanks personality quiz or a impromptu video chat, it attempts to appeal to the visual part of your brain by having you choose from a grid of thumbnails. Each thumbnail determines a various aspect of who you are and what you like and dislike. It's actually kind of fun, and when you've done it will take all that information and stack it together into a ready-made profile.

When it comes time to discover people who match up, the site has a built-in tool that will let you see the best compatibility based on how they answered the same questions, as well as sliders that let you hone down the results by age, gender, and location. You can then dig a little deeper by visiting those people's profiles, sending them personal messages, or exploring the people who they're compatible with.

To help promote yourself, the site has a widget that can be put on your blog or social-networking profile (embedded after the break). I'm assuming most people wouldn't want to do this, because it showcases some of your more private personality preferences.

Another Web service that's experimented with the idea of using photos instead of text is Vidoop which lets you sign into secure sites or fill out human-checking security questions with pictures instead of words. We checked it out back in April of last year.

… Read more

I'm sitting here, reading my morning e-mail and what pops up but a press release for a new dating site that purports to be "exclusively for intelligent people."

Called, wonder of wonders, IntelligentPeople.com, the site says that to sign up you must first "pass the IQ test required for admission."

Now, my first instinct was to look at the calendar. It's not April Fools' Day, right? No, I think that happened already. Maybe the people behind this site weren't smart enough to notice that it's way past April 1.

Well, snark … Read more

As the virtual watercooler remains abuzz about the Eliot Spitzer prostitution scandal, it was a bit of a twist to come across this National Public Radio piece on a Toronto-based Web site that's making millions by helping people have affairs.

AshleyMadison.com is apparently the largest dating service of its kind--its kind being those that hook people up who are already taken, sans the stigma of being a cheater. The site's tagline: "Life is short, have an affair," according to NPR.

It's also worth noting the question NPR put out there for discussion: "Is … Read more

We keep hearing that body conduction technology is the way of the future, usually in the form of sending soundwaves through bones, though some extremists apparently would like to turn the human race into walking routers. Usually the technology manifests itself as some kind of passive skull-vibrating headset, even under water, but rarely does it involve any kind of voice application. Now, after viewing the photo accompanying this item, we may know why. The "Roadrunner" Bluetooth headgear may indeed be effective when talking in a crowded room or in a convertible with the top down, as Gadget Review … Read more

Not everyone has the kind of decor that's appropriate for a couch made from a vintage British sportscar. Sometimes an American model is much more fitting. And what could be more classic than a 1957 Corvette?

Corbin has made a loveseat modeled after the iconic roadster for those intimate occasions at home, complete with "a romantic undercarriage lighting with an 110v lighting fixtures tucked underneath, tail lights, and exhaust pipes," according to BornRich. There's even a "smart dimmer" in the armrest's storage compartment for the perfect Barry White moment. And for those times … Read more

Today, we talk about Valentine Day's best and worst dates with ace reporter Caroline McCarthy. Also, Time Warner and Viacom are coming to Hulu, Spielberg's new video game Boom Blox, and EA's GameShow. We also hear from some our loyal listeners about Optimash Prime.

Listen now: Download today's podcast

Yeah, um, big surprise. The nauseating pink-and-red fever leading up to the holiday everyone loves to hate has resulted in higher traffic to dating sites, according to Web metrics firm Hitwise--and it's bigger than last year.

According to a Hitwise representative, dating site visits hit a peak shortly after the new year, presumably to fulfill those "get a girlfriend" resolutions or perhaps to deal with the aftermath of those awkward over-the-holidays breakups that seem to happen all too often. Traffic was back on the climb right before Valentine's Day, but Hitwise had not yet tabulated … Read more