What gamer hasn't longed for his or her very own arcade machine? DreamAuthentics aims to fulfill that longing. You can go to the site and peruse 360-degree views of the different cabinet styles available, all of which can be customized to your particular gaming needs. The consoles can be fitted out for up to four players, and be able to play up to 5,000 games as well as DVDs and music files. You can add hookups for cable and Web access, and integrate a custom computer platform on which to play PC games. You can even hook up an Xbox or PS2.   

The upcoming racing cabinet (left), shipping this fall, will come standard with a force-feedback steering wheel, gas and brake pedals, an adjustable seat, a 27-inch Wells Gardner D9200 arcade monitor, and a five-speaker sound system, among other features.

Prices range from $3,495 on up (the Dream Racing Cabinet will start at $5,995), so save your quarters.

The rumors have been swirling for weeks, and now it has been confirmed: Dell is buying Alienware. The reasons for the deal are pretty obvious, combine Dell's economies of scale and production-savvy with the fat premiums Alienware charges for its gaming systems and you have a marriage made in MBA-heaven. (If there were such a place) As IDC Analyst (and my buddy) Rick Shim told CNN:

Companies such as Alienware, VoodooPC and Falcon Northwest have been pioneers in capturing customers willing to spend $7,000 or more for a computer

That beats trying to make money on $500 PCs.

Still, the real question is: Is Dell cool enough to own Alienware? (We know they have enough money.) The claims of Alienware selling out started circulating as soon as aquisition rumors started. Alienware customers pay more precisely because it is not a Dell. This is a more than a point of pride, it is the way gamers identify themselves. If Dell wants to keep these guys from making a Voodoo or Falcon NorthWest ther next PC, it had better tread lightly--and keep the freaky alien logo.

With so many gadget choices out there, it's no wonder that companies are packing everything they can into one device. But how can you switch from one device to another with ease?

The Plantronics Pulsar 590 Series Bluetooth Stereo Headset lets you switch between your Bluetooth phone and music player or while watching a movie on your laptop so you'll never miss a call. The Pulsar 590A gives you up to 12 hours of talk time and 10 hours of listen time. Plus, they're great for traveling with its foldable headband design.

One of our readers swears by the 590A. He says that he uses it on trains and buses, and it produces incredible sound.

The Pulsar 590A Bluetooth Stereo Headset includes: AC Charger, In-Flight Cable, USB Charger, and Travel Case.

Available at Amazon.com for $119.24.

[Thanks for the tip, Leo!]

When I think about how I'm going to decorate my new apartment, mood lighting seems so retro and cool.

If you can't afford the popular Ambient Orb ($149), the OGGZ is the next best thing. OGGZ are color-morphing lights that glow and change colors. You can use them on their stand or as portable rechargeable lights. 

The OGGZ is shaped like an egg and is squeezable, so you don't have to worry about it easily being broken. Get a set of 3 OGGZ with the base charger for $49, or a single OGGZ for $19.

CoolStuffCheap.com is also selling the OGGZ 3-Pack for $44.99.

Since Easter is coming up, the OGGZ is the perfect gift.

BYO has hit home at Sony: Every aftermarket (replacement) car radio/CD player sold by the company, starting with the $100 entry-level product, has a front-mounted line-in jack, so you can bring your own music player along for the ride. And every radio/CD selling for $120 and up supports MP3, WMA, and Sony's own ATRAC-3. Here are automotive highlights from Sony's annual line show for dealers, editors, and analysts. It was held in Las Vegas this year, on the opening day of the NCAA basketball tournament, making for a crowded town.

The radios all have impossibly small buttons; don't lose the remote. And none have USB jacks on the front, which would let you plug in virtually any music player or music-laden USB, play the music, see artist and track information on the radio, and control the player from the radio.

"None, currently," clarifies Sony's Rich Sandler. "We're aware of what's available." Audiobahn, JVC, Kenwood (now) and Alpine (coming in spring, 2006) have USB jacks, as do Fiats in Europe through the Blue&Me arrangement with Microsoft. A $100 plug-in adapter, the XA-300, lets Sony car radios pull in USB music and see information on the radio but not control the players.

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Slideshow | All Shots

Soundcast Systems came in to the office yesterday to show off their upcoming iCast and AudioCast products. They also brought a microwave oven, a 2.4GHz wireless phone, and a frequency analyzer to show how their technology avoids any interference. The iCast serves as a wireless link that can wirelessly connect your iPod to your stereo from as far as 150 feet away.

Sure enough, even with the oven nuking and the phone transmitting there were no hiccups in the music.  This is pretty remarkable for a wireless audio system that uses the crowded, unregulated 2.4GHz band.  PC Mag recently tested the StarTech Airlink, but it had problems with the microwave and phone on. According to the company, its advantage comes from using Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum (FHSS) technology to dynamically change channels and it encounters interference.

The iCast and AudioCast are basically the same product, but the iCast is desigend to work with, and charge, iPods when docked. The AudioCast works with any audio source. The transmitter/receiver combination will cost $299 and you can purchase additional receivers for $129.

The bad news is that the products won't be on shelves until May or even June. The good news is that if you check out the company's Web site you can register to win a free Soundcast system when they start shipping. When review units are available we will get them in the lab and do some more rigorous interference testings.

What would it take to get you into a diesel-engine car? Will you wait till diesels run clean, and there's no engine clatter? Until somebody makes diesel airplane engines? Until a diesel-engine car wins an auto race? Done, done, and done.

In March, an Audi won the Sebring 12 Hours endurance race, four laps ahead of the gasoline-powered runner-up. And technology has eliminated the noise of diesel engines; there's none inside the car and hardly any outside. A sophisticated common rail fuel-injection system propels an atomized stream of fuel into the cylinders at twice the speed of sound, ensuring that air and fuel are properly mixed. They start almost instantly, even in the cold.

As for running clean, this year the EPA ordered fuel companies to stop whining and start refining diesel fuel with low levels of sulfur, the pollutant that's responsible for the rotten-egg smell and black soot. Most diesels also run on biodiesel, fuels in part made from vegetable oils or animal fats. So if the Jetta ahead of you smells like a McDonald's, now you know why. New technologies, such as particulate filters (here now) and the injection of urea into the exhaust stream (coming), make diesels even cleaner.

In European countries, Herr Doktor Rudolf Diesel's 1892 invention purrs along under the hoods of one-third to two-thirds of all cars. But here in the U.S., only a dozen passenger-vehicle models with diesel engines are offered: a bunch of brawny American trucks/SUVs, the Mercedes-Benz E-Class, and four Volkswagens. California, Maine, Massachusetts, New York and Vermont effectively outlaw diesels, and some automakers say they won't introduce diesel cars until they're allowed in every state.

Still, I don't think you can deny that we're entering a golden era of performance coming from a wider array of engine types: gasoline or diesel boosted by hybrid, turbocharged, or supercharged technologies. If you're a stop-and-go driver, hybrids make sense. But if you rack up a lot of highway miles and/or spend a lot of time idling, a diesel may be your best bet. Wait a year and you'll see more choices. Diesels are definitely back.

Ho-hum. Audi won the 12-hour Sebring endurance race again in 2006, making it seven in a row. What's different about the latest victory is the car's powerplant: a diesel engine. This is the first time a diesel-engine vehicle has triumphed in a major automobile endurance race. And it's also a shot in the arm for the image of diesels, which account for nearly half of all passenger cars sold in Europe but for only a fraction in the U.S.

The LeMans Prototype Audi R10, with its V12 turbocharged diesel engine producing 650 hp, finished four laps ahead of the runner-up. A sister R10 diesel retired at the midpoint while leading; Audi called the retirement "precautionary." (Translation: An overheating problem from track debris clogging the radiator fins could have caused embarrassing engine failure.) From Sebring, it's on to the most famous of all endurance races—the 24-hours LeMans, in June.

Audi had a slight advantage going into the race: Rules allow slightly bigger diesel engines than gasoline engines, with more turbocharger boost (pressure), and a gallon of diesel fuel has 12 percent more energy than gasoline. Other diesel-engine cars have competed in major races, but have had less success. A Cummins diesel racer won the starting pole position for the 1952 Indianapolis 500, but wound up finishing 27th.

I consider myself an avid Pac-Man gamer. There's just something so loveable and quirky about that 80s chomping yellow guy. I've played Pac-Man, Ms. Pac-Man, Pac-Man World, and Pac-Man Pinball, but have yet to try Pac-Man World Rally.

Thanks to clubNAMCO.com, I can further my Pac-Man obsession. clubNAMCO was launched to offer merchandise based on the classic Namco arcade games. Right now, you'll mostly find Pac-Man products, such as Pac-Man T-Shirts, a Pac-Man Plush Cushion, and a plush collection of Pac-Man's colored enemies, including Pinky, Inky, and Blinky.

The site is still fairly new, as the "Office Fun" and "Accessories" sections haven't been filled with merchandise yet. But, you will find the Arcade Corner, offering video game ringtones and the Namco Mobile Arcade, offering various cell phone games, like Pac-Man Bowling, Galaga, and Stack'um.

Some Pac-Man Trivia (courtesy of Game Spot): In July of 1999, Florida resident and die-hard Pac-Man fan Billy Mitchell achieved the first perfect score in Pac-Man (3,333,360) after playing for six hours straight. He beat all 256 screens eating every dot, fruit, and ghost (all four ghosts were eaten with each power pellet) - using only one Pac-Man! Okay, so I'm not that obsessed.

[via Joystiq]