I’ve noticed that over the past year a bunch of these mini-kegerators have popped up.  Now, I love the idea of a kegerator in general – it’s wonderful to have your own tap whenever you want, and it’s so much better than opening a can or bottle.

But regular kegerators, like the ones that are used in bars, are pretty big and expensive.  So, these mini-kegerators really caught my attention at a recession-friendly price of $100 or so.

These mini-kegerators use 5 liter mini kegs that are produced by a few breweries like Heineken.  Ounce for ounce, they are generally cheaper than buying a six pack, and about the same price as a 12 pack of imported beer.  So, you’re not really getting a whole lot of price benefit here – it’s mostly convenience.

In any case, I found the T-Fal BeerTender (above left) at Target this week in the clearance aisle for only $35.  That’s a huge deal, since the list is $150.

The BeerTender is pretty large, so it takes up a decent amount of counter space in my kitchen.  It has the footprint of one of those convection toaster ovens.

The best part of this thing is that is serves your beer perfectly chilled.  All you do is plug it in and turn it on, and you’re set.  I dunno – it’s just wonderful to have beer on tap at any time, and I love it.

If you live by a Target, I’d stop on by just to see if one of these things are available.  They’re perfect for your kitchen, garage, mini-bar…even bedroom.  And since the price of these things has dropped so dramatically, you can’t really go wrong.

The Vikings perfect season is over.  They lost with a minute left in the 4th quarter due to an unfortunate interception that bounced out of Peterson’s hands.

The Saints remained perfect, despite falling behind by 21 in the first half.  The Saints allowed Ricky Williams to score 3 TDs, but then scored 36 points themselves in the 2nd half to pull out the win.  It wasn’t a pretty game for New Orleans – Drew Brees threw 3 INTs and he lost a fumble as well – but a win is a win, I suppose.

The Bengals demolished the Bears in Cincinnati, winning 45 to 10.  This was a big game for Bengals’ RB Cedric Benson, who was cut by the Bears 2 years ago.  Benson apparently got his revenge, rushing for 189 yards and a TD, while the Bear’s new RB, Matt Forte only rushed for 24 yards.

Yahoo! Sports had an interesting article today about the gambling implications of all the horrible teams this year in the NFL.  They’re bad for business, because Vegas just can’t really put up a line that’s as bad as these teams.

For example, the Packers gave 9 points to the Browns, but won by 28.  The Chargers gave 5.5 points to the Chiefs, but won by 30, the Colts gave 14 points to the Rams, but won by 36, the Pats gave 15.5 points to the Bucs, but won by 28, and the Jets gave 6 points to the Raiders, but won by 38.

These odds are all horrible for Vegas because some teams are so incredibly bad that they’re almost sure picks not to cover.  The Jets only gave the Raiders 6 points?  The Raiders are only averaging 9 points per game.

And the Raiders are horrible to watch.  Luckily, their games have been blacked out often this year.  I actually feel bad for Raider head coach Tom Cable – he’s the coach, but he’s being forced to stick with JaMarcus Russell, who’s 47.2 QB rating is 2nd to last among QBs.  It’s not really a fair situation, and you can make your assault joke here, but really, it’s understandable that he’s frustrated.

I’ve already stated my love for Hulu.  I think it’s a very well designed service that provides a fair balance between content and commercials.

But perhaps not for too much longer.  Deputy Chairman of News Corp., one of the largest shareholders in Hulu, said on Friday,

“I think a free model is a very difficult way to capture the value of our content. I think what we need to do is deliver that content to consumers in a way where they will appreciate the value. Hulu concurs with that, it needs to evolve to have a meaningful subscription model as part of its business.”

That’s bad news for Hulu users, and for Hulu itself.

Here’s the problem – right now much of Hulu’s content is already free from other sources.  You can watch TV for free, or if you have a Tivo, you can record the content that Hulu provides and just skip through commercials.  And, of course, you can just download episodes from bittorrent.

The convenience that Hulu provides will be negated by a subscription model, unless the cost of the subscription is very, very low…which is unlikely.

It’s unfortunate that Hulu is making this move, because it will slow the addition of new users, while destroying Hulu’s existing user base.  More importantly, it will really slow the progress of a service that has a lot of potential for the future.

Sure, perhaps Hulu isn’t profitable now, but ads will become more valuable as Hulu grows and acquires more information about its users.  It seems like Hulu’s investors are unable to see the future value of the service, and are instead looking to make a profit today.  That’s not the Internet model – it never has been and probably will not be.

Amazon revolutionized the ebook market in 2007 when it released the Kindle, an ebook that can download content from Sprint’s EVDO wireless network.  Since then Amazon has release two new versions of the Kindle, the Kindle 2 and Kindle DX.

This week, Barnes and Noble entered the ebook market with their own device, unfortunately called the Nook.  The device, like the Kindle, allows users to download content wirelessly (from AT&T’s network), but also features a few interesting extras, like a color LCD touch screen and the ability to lend books to others.

Both the Nook and Kindle cost $259, so it seems like the Nook is a better deal than the Kindle.  Also, the Nook runs on Google’s Android platform, so there is potential for Nook apps down the road, while the Kindle is relatively closed.  Nook also supports ePub, an open ebook format, so you will likely have access to more content with the Nook down the road.

Still, I’m not completely sold on the ebooks in general at this point.  The eink technology that both the Kindle and Nook use for book reading is great for battery life, and good in terms of viewability, but poor for anything else.

The main problem here is that eink needs to be refreshed every time the screen changes, and this takes a couple of seconds.  That’s ok when you’re just turning pages, but it’s not a good solution for anything else, like web browsing or reading anything that needs a lot of scrolling or page turning.  Also, there’s no color with eink – again, ok for just books, but a key limitation for the platform otherwise.

Unless you’re in a big hurry to get an ebook, I’d wait a year or so.  I’m guessing that the technology will evolve considerably, making ebooks a more versatile and useful device.

If you have a newspaper subscription, you know that papers sometimes sell additional advertising in the form of stickers on the front page.  The New York Daily News did this with a PC Richard & Son  sticker on October 14th.  However as you can see from the picture above, the sticker covered up some letters in the headline to…er…change the meaning of the headline.  The original headline is below.

Although this is obviously an unintentional mistake, the sticker did produce a bunch of complains.  It didn’t help that C.C. Sabathia had a particularly menacing look on his face.

Today Apple updated their desktop, notebook and accessory product lines with several products.  The company bumped up the specs on their iMac, Mac Mini and MacBook, and introduced a completely new accessory called the Magic Mouse.

The new products bumped up Apple’s stock nearly 5% for the day, putting the company near its two year high.

Apple’s new computers weren’t that interesting, but the Magic Mouse does seem a bit intriguing.  The mouse is buttonless, and uses touch gestures to do things like scroll and flip through web pages.

It sounds neat, but at the same time I like mouse buttons.  The blank top of the mouse seems foreign to me, and I’m eager to check one out at the Apple store.

Depending on how your league scores QBs, Tom Brady got you between 40 and 80 points this weekend.  With 5 TDs in the second quarter alone Brady had one of the best games of his career.

On the other side of the field, the Titans completed only two passes for –7 yards.  I’m not sure how many NFL teams have been held to negative passing yardage in a game, but I can’t remember seeing a stat like that before.

Chris Johnson did rush for 128 yards, but the Titans didn’t manage to put up any points, losing 59-0, one of the most humiliating losses in the last four decades.

Then you have the seemingly unbeatable Saints, who put up 48 against the Giants.  Brees threw for 4 TDs and the game was pretty much over after the 1st half.

Minnesota is also still undefeated as well.  For all the criticism that Favre got, he’s definitely exactly what the Vikings needed.  It’s strange also, because Favre this year isn’t the Favre of old.  He’s only thrown 2 INTs all season – a stunner considering Favre threw for 22 INTs last year.  With a legitimate passing threat, Favre also opens up room for Adrian Peterson, who rushed for 143 yards on Sunday.

And yes, the Broncos are still undefeated as well.  I have to say, I heard probably ten different football analysts predict that the Broncos would have a horrible season in 2009, while only a few predicted that they would have even mediocre seasons.  I’m not sure if their success is due to defensive coach Mike Nolan or head coach Josh McDaniels, but either way it’s working.

Since I was in Vegas, I was able to watch the Bills-Jets game live.  It’s crazy how heavily hyped the Jets were after their first three games, but this week they looked terrible.  Mark Sanchez looked like a third stringer, throwing 5 INTs, many of which could have led to at least a game winning field goal.  The Bills won the game with 2:44 left in overtime after coming back from a 10 point deficit and holding the Jets scoreless for 3 quarters.  And although it sounds exciting, it was not at all.

The worst trend by far this year is the throwback uniform.  I don’t know if they use these uniforms to bump merchandise sales or what, but it’s a really distracting trend.  It doesn’t help that most of the uniforms are horrendous looking, like the Broncos’ striped yellow setup tonight.

And if it’s not the uniforms, it’s all the pink they’re wearing this season, which TJFKAK informed me is for breast cancer.  First of all, if the NFL is raising awareness of anything, it should be for 2nd string players that take a beating during their career and now can’t find work as they slowly deplete their bank accounts during retirement.  I mean, the last thing the NFL needs to worry about is breast cancer.

What is this?  It’s a fan.  Or, more accurately an air multiplier.  This odd looking device is made by Dyson, who also makes those $500 vacuum cleaners that don’t lose their suction.

The air multiplier isn’t actually fanless – the fan is in the base.  Air is accelerated in the base and pushed through the ring, supposedly producing an interrupted, steady stream of ‘smooth air.’

I have to say, this thing looks cool, and the idea is great.  But the air multiplier will put you back $300 – kinda pricey for a fan.  Also, judging from the video on Dyson’s website, this thing is kind of noisy.  You wouldn’t want to use this guy at night when you’re trying to sleep, for example.

Really, the air multiplier seems to solve a problem no one really has.  I don’t mind fans with blades, they’re powerful, quiet enough and cheap.  Sure, cleaning is a pain, but it’s not a $300 pain point.

It’s hard to believe that the Broncos are 5 and 0, and after this week’s win against the Pats I gotta admit, the Broncos are the real deal.  Their defense continues to make huge stops, and Kyle Orton is doing quite well…in fact so far this year he’s thrown for only 1 INT and 7 TDs.

The Bengals are also real contenders this year.  They improved their record to 4-1, with their only loss coming against the Broncos.  The Bengals have been buoyed by their rushing game of all things.  The NFL’s leading rusher through week 5 isn’t Adrian Peterson…it’s Cedric Benson, who has rushed for 487 yards.  Let me say that again…Cedric Benson is the NFL’s leading rusher.

And who is the league’s leading receiver?  Steve Smith.  No, not the one on the Panthers…the one on the Giants.  He leads the league with 481 yards, while the other Steve Smith doesn’t even crack the top 20.

Third on the list is a TE, Dallas Clark – that’s also surprising.  Sure, it’s early in the year but it’s not often you see a TE not named Tony Gonzalez putting up so many yards.

There are also some surprises in the losers column as well.  The Titans, for example, are 0 and 5 after putting up the league’s best record last year.

It’s no surprise the Rams, Raiders, Chiefs and Lions are struggling, but how about the 2-2 Packers, 2-2 Cardinals and 2-3 Texans?  And although they still have a respectable 3-2 record, the Dallas Cowboys are looking horrible.  The 0-5 Chiefs took them into overtime this week, although luckily Dallas pulled out a win.  Had they lost, it would have been the end of their season.

The most interesting race this year may come from the AFC East.  The Jets and Pats both have 3-2 records after losses this week.  The Pats have struggled, and seem far from their undefeatable form from 2 years ago, and the Jets have chalked up 2 losses after a 3-0 start to the season.

I also love the NFC South, where the Saints and Falcons are really impressing.  The Falcons made the 49ers look silly this weekend, and they’ve proved their legit and not just a one-season-wonder.

This awesome vid has been making the rounds on YouTube today.  It takes place in San Francisco’s Chinatown.  Apparently, these two women were having an argument over a bus seat and…well…just watch.

I have to say though, FOBs really need to beef up their verbal insults when they come to the US.  The “you’re stupid” argument that the chinese woman is using is just not very effective.  I was hoping she’d break out the n-bomb, or at least the c-word.

Still, she makes up for it with her flying chun li kick.

If there is one type of chinese that I don’t want to mess with, it’s the large mongols like this woman in the video.  She’s huge and pretty strong, and unlike most chinese that are usually quiet and subservient, she really doesn’t take shit.

Anyway, this is a MUST SEE video.  Check it out below:

Update:  The translation of chinese is below:

TRANSLATION (Sorry if my translation is off)
Old Man#1(0:01 Beat that bitches ass.
Old Lady#1(0:02): Don’t hit her.
Chinese Lady in the Pink(0:23): Don’t let that bitch bully you.
Chinese Lady: (0:09): This bitch got the nerve to yell at me for me asking her politely if i may sit down. She is hogging the seat and won’t let me sit. (0:48): If that bitch didn’t want to let me sit down don’t mean she got to bitch at me. (0:59): I didn’t yell at you bitch why you going off on me. If I don’t stand up for myself, she won’t get scared. (1:44): Dare to fucking pick on chinese people?
(2:05): This bitch hogging the seat and I asked nicely if I may sit and that bitch kept hogging the seat. She has no heart, always bullying chinese people.
Old Man#2(1:26): Hit that bitch.
Old Man#3(1:33): Beat that bitch ass.
Old Lady#2(1:37): Don’t fight no more.
Old Man#2((1:59): Beat the fuck out of her till she is scared!

Remember American Inventor?  It was an American Idol-style show where contestants put their inventions up against each other to win $100,000.  It was an interesting idea, but conceptually the show failed because the world of inventions are too broad, making an apples to apples winner difficult, and often frustrating to find.

Shark Tank also puts inventors on TV, but instead of competing for a single prize each year, they compete for financing from a panel of five sharks.  The sharks include founders of Internet and software companies, Daymond, who co-founded Fubu, a real estate mogul and a vendor of ‘as seen on tv’ products.

You get the good of American Inventor, because you see the steady flow of both good and bad inventions.  Plus, you get to see the negotiating process between the sharks and inventors, which is often pretty exciting.

It’s really a solid take on the inventor concept.  Check it out on ABC Tuesday nights.

The Raiders are a horrible football team, led by a horrible quarterback.  I wouldn’t care so much, except that they are the local team here, so you kinda can’t help but watch them.

Starting with JaMarcus Russell.  With a QB rating of 42.4, he ranks far below the next QB on the list, Jake Delhomme, who has a 54.3 rating.  Russell has thrown for only 500 yards in four games.  And TDs?  Only one.  The most notable statistic is his completion percentage:  39.8%.  For every four completions, he throws six incompletions.  That’s why the Raiders have only scored 10.5 points per game this year, second only to:

The Rams.  St Louis has put up 6 points per game so far, including two shutouts.  The Rams have put up an average of 251 yards per game, on their way to an 0-4 record.  I think without a doubt, the Rams and the Raiders are competing for this year’s Lions award.

On the other end of the spectrum, the Broncos are appearing more and more legit each week.  They held a decent Cowboys offense to only 10 points, while Kyle Orton put the Broncos up by 7 with only two minutes remaining.  And guess who Orton threw that game winning TD to?  Former holdout, Brandon Marshall.

What’s funny is the Broncos are not winning for their offense, which was their forte last year.  This year, the Broncos only have a below average offense.  They’re winning because their defense ranks first in the league, allowing only 6.5 points per game.  That’s incredible, especially considering the Broncos ranked third from last in the league only a year ago in defense.

Another surprise on defense are the 49ers, who have allowed only 13.3 points per game, 2nd best in the league.  The 49ers are an impressive 3-1, their only loss coming from Favre’s 2 second miracle throw last week.  With 3 wins in 4 games, the 49ers are a third of the way to a playoff berth, if the NFC West is anything like it was last year.

The best team in the league coming out of week 4 is, of course, the Saints.  Not only are they 4-0, this week they beat the Jets, who were looking quite a bit unbeatable themselves.  What’s surprising about the Saints is there balance – sure, they have a top 10 passing attack, but their rushing game also ranks #2 in the league.  Combined, that gives the Saints the #1 offense in the league so far.

And they’re not to bad on D either.  So far, the Saints rank 7th in terms of points scored per game, which is spectacular because so far many of the Saints’ opponents have had lots of garbage time in which to put up points.

The other 4-0 team that is worth mentioning is the Vikings.  They’re not quite perfect yet – there’s still 7 minutes left in the 4th quarter – but they’re dominating the Packers so far.

Sure, the main story here is the new Vikings with Favre vs. Packers rivalry, but the most impressive stat tonight has been the O-line.  So far, Aaron Rodgers has been sacked 7 times, compared to Favre, who has not been sacked at all.

That’s no longer a rivalry – that’s a massacre.  Just as I’m writing the Vikings sacked Rodgers for a safety, putting them up 30 to 14.  Not pretty for Packers fans, but really there was no QB battle at all tonight – Favre has thrown for 3 TD, no INTs and 270 yards, Rodgers has 1 TD and 1 INT and 246 yards – not close at all.

I do have to say though, you have to give it to Favre for coming back, whether it’s just for revenge or an inability to retire.  He’s doing great this year, must better than last year, and he’s on a better team too with a legit chance at making it to the Super Bowl.

If you’ve been to Starbucks in the last few days you’ve probably noticed the company’s newest product, Via instant coffee.  The company has been promoting Via heavily by giving away free samples.  This weekend, Starbucks will also run taste tests in its stores, where customers will likely put Via up against the company’s brewed coffee.

I tried my first cup of Via today with mixed results.  I tried the Extra Bold version of the product, Specialty Roast and Medium versions of Via are also available.

Via is sold in thin packages that have become common among powdered beverages.  Unlike Folgers, which uses crystals, Via looks like finely ground coffee.

Making a cup of Via is simple – all you do is pour Via into a cup and add water.  This worked well for me, Via dissolved well and the coffee looked, well, like a normal cup of coffee.

Via didn’t taste exactly like brewed coffee, however.  It was a bit weak for my taste, especially compared to Starbucks’ brewed bold coffee, which is pretty strong.

This is the main problem I have with instant coffee, or even home dripped coffee for that matter – most of the time it’s just too weak and watered down.  I do have to say though that Via was closer to a traditional cup of coffee than other instant brands.

Overall, Via isn’t world changing, but it is a good option if you’re stuck without traditional coffee.  However, for about a dollar per packet it’s an expensive cup of instant coffee.

If I had a pack of Via handy in the office I would consider whether I want to walk to Starbucks, take the time to brew a cup of dripped coffee, or use Via.  Unless I was really strapped for time, I think I would prefer to walk to a Starbucks.  However, I would prefer Via over most home made drip coffee.

I think mainly what Starbucks is selling here is a brand name.  There doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of innovation with Via over other instant brands, and while Via does taste better than other instant coffees I’ve tried, it’s still at most a time-saving option, not a preference.