These sneakers apparently build your body 12 different ways, just like Wonderbread. Reebok claims these sneakers provide 28 percent more gluteus maximus muscle activation, and 11% more calf and hamstring activation.

(Reebok also claims that) “due to the instability of the balance pods, activities with unplanned side-to-side movement and/or any lateral-movement-sports such as tennis or basketball-should be avoided.”

Okay, so they work, as long as you don’t really exercise. This sounds like yet another fad shortcut to losing weight while expending little extra effort.

The idea that shoes can help tone you is in fact gaining traction among footwear manufacturers. The Wall Street Journal has more on the physiology behind “physiological footwear”:

Unlike traditional athletic shoes that are built to be stable, rocker-sole shoes are deliberately unstable. The effect, companies that make the shoes say, is similar to using a wobble board or balance board in a gym. To stand or walk in these shoes, you must engage more muscles than you do using regular shoes, the companies say. Manufacturers recommend you wear them during your normal activities, starting with short periods until you get used to them.

The test involved only 500 steps, and Reebok acknowledges that the effect may diminish as wearers get used to the shoes.

Studies done on the Masai, the first physiological shoe to hit markets, show that physical therapy patients given Masai shoes for three months recovered faster than their non-Masai-wearing counterparts. The shoes strengthened the small muscles around the ankles, and their weight helped wearers burn more calories, according to the WSJ article.

Reebok’s EasyTone shoes, on the other hand, are lighter. They also have only one study supporting that they strengthen muscles.

Reebok EasyTones, as well as the other physiological shoes on the market, strike me as yet another something-for-nothing fitness fad. By simply wearing the shoes, you firm up your glutes. I see this eventually going the direction of fads like the Atkins Diet and ankle weights (remember those?). Physiological footwear may have a permanent place in a niche market, but it’s not going to revolutionize female American butts. Only squats, lunges, and fewer donuts will accomplish that.

If you would, it’s your lucky day. Mobile company Peek has released a device whose sole purpose in life is to send and receive tweets. PC World has more:

Described as the world’s first dedicated Twitter device, the TwitterPeek offers a QWERTY keyboard, color screen, and measures 2.7 x 0.4 x 4 inches. It was introduced on Tuesday and is not unattractive.

Who needs this device? That’s a fair question…Presumably, some people are using Twitter as an e-mail replacement and do not want the monthly expense associated with smartphone use. Peek also makes similar e-mail only devices, which seem to address a much larger market (and support five accounts at a time).

This device sounds really limited. Will somebody who sees a reason to buy this thing speak up and change my mind?

Google is rolling out Onebox (or Google Music), its new music search engine, today. When you google songs, albums, an artist name, or lyrics, Google will generate links to full songs at the top of its search results. You can experiment with Google Music here. MTV has more details:

Not so much a new site as it is a new set of integrated options added to normal search results, Google Music connects people searching for artists, songs or lyrics with free streams of tracks care of MySpace’s iLike and Lala and with links to purchase songs and albums from one of Google Music’s partners.

A cursory test drive yielded pretty excellent results: A search for Beyoncé lead to a streaming version of “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” in seconds, and even digging up Mystikal’s turn-of-the-century hit “Shake Ya Ass” was no trouble at all. Though the demo video shows the music search working directly from the Google homepage, as of press time, it worked only from the Google Music page.

Google’s new music search capabilities give iTunes competitors a new leg up on Apple. Interestingly, it also excludes Amazon from its search results. The LA Times has more on the business behind Google Music:

The move was applauded by the music industry, which has been struggling against piracy that has siphoned off billions of dollars of potential revenue from musicians and recording studios. The industry is hoping the search feature will direct users to legitimate digital music outlets and in turn help them compete with free but often unauthorized sources of music.

But in steering millions of Internet users to its partner sites, Google is indirectly boosting the sites’ abilities to compete with iTunes, which was responsible for 69% of U.S. digital music sales in the first six months of this year, and 35% of all music sales, including physical albums, according to market research firm NPD Group Inc. Amazon, the second-largest player, accounted for 9% of digital music sales and 10% of overall music sales.

…the Droid is a large, slim (0.5-inch thick) phone with a 3.7-inch, 854-by-480 capacitive touch screen and a sliding keyboard. It has a built-in 5-megapixel camera, DVD-quality video recording, and Wi-Fi, and it makes calls on the Verizon Wireless network.

As an Android 2.0 phone, the Droid automatically syncs with Microsoft Exchange and has an improved Web browser compared to other Android phones. The browser supports HTML5 and double-tapping to zoom.

PC Magazine has a detailed Droid feature rundown here.

The CS Monitor follows rumors stating that Verizon could release three Droid phones this year:

Verizon is currently saturating airwaves with commercials for the Droid, which will hit shelves by the end of October. The iDroid commercial campaign takes direct aim at the Apple iPhone – in the TV spots, the Droid is lauded for having a sleeker interface, a full QWERTY keyboard, and more versatility than the iPhone.

“iDon’t have a real keyboard. iDon’t run simultaneous apps. iDon’t take night shots. iDon’t allow open development,” reads the ad copy. “iDon’t customize. iDon’t run widgets. iDon’t have interchangeable batteries. Everything iDon’t, Droid does.”

Wonder how many consumers will say “iWant one”?

Google recently announced plans to launch an app store for Google Wave. From The Next Web:

The most successful app store yet, the iPhone’s, has just blown past the 100,000 approved iPhone app mark and clearly Google have taken notice with their own Android Marketplace. Despite Apple’s success, it is undoubtedly Android who will win on numbers, with developers swayed by Google’s open source values and the openness of the platform as a whole.

Assuming Wave takes off, and people begin to “get it”, expect big things.

Amazon has reported that Windows 7, which comes out tomorrow, has become the “biggest grossing pre-order product of all time in the UK,” according to V3:

Windows 7 has overtaken Harry Potter novels and the Nintendo Wii to become the biggest grossing pre-order product of all time in the UK, according to e-commerce giant Amazon.

“The launch of Windows 7 has superseded everyone’s expectations, storming ahead of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows as the biggest grossing pre-order product of all-time at Amazon.co.uk, and demand is still going strong, ” said Amazon.co.uk managing director Brian McBride.

Windows 7 shows promise in living up to the hype. Too bad it took a crappy precursor (Vista) to help generate current demand.

Barnes & Noble’s new e-reader, the Nook, goes on sale next Tuesday. Wired calls it a Kindle-killer:

The reader…looks a lot like Amazon’s white plastic e-book, only instead of the chiclet-keyboard there is a color multitouch screen, to be used as a keyboard or to browse books, cover-flow style. The machine runs Google’s Android OS, will have wireless capability from an unspecified carrier and comes in at the same $260 as the now rather old-fashioned-looking Kindle.

And over at the Wall Street Journal, somebody got a peek at an at ad set to run in The New York Times this coming Sunday. The ad features the line “Lend eBooks to friends,” and this has the potential to destroy the Kindle model. One of the biggest problems with e-books is that you can’t lend or re-sell them. If B&N is selling e-books cheaper than the paper versions, then the resale issue is moot. And lending, even if your friends need a Nook, too, takes away the other big advantage of paper.

It’s nice to finally see some real competition in the e-reader space. The Wall Street Journal revealed yesterday that the Nook would cost $259.

Wal-Mart announced yesterday that it would begin selling no-contract cellphone plans. The Street has the details:

Straight Talk, which is a partnership with TracFone, a unit of America Movil(AMX Quote), will offer two plans for either $30 or $45 a month and will be available at more than 3,200 Wal-Mart locations starting on Oct. 18.

Retailers like Best Buy (BBY Quote) also offer no-contract cell phones in stores.

After nearly two years of selling a Kindle that only works in the US, Amazon has released
an international version of the device. The $280 reader ships on October 19, according to Wired, which has the scoop:

The new version, with the snappy name of “Kindle with US and International Wireless,” will sell for $280 and can be pre-ordered now. The current version will still be for sale, and Amazon is dropping the price from $300 to $260. The bigger Kindle DX is unchanged.

It makes the Kindle a travel guide, too: If you want the lowdown on a Kyoto temple, or are wondering where to get the best fries in Amsterdam, you can download a relevant guide on the spot. And for the first time, the Lonely Planet series will be sold on Kindle, along with the previously available travel books from Frommer, Rick Steves and Michelin. No wonder the Amazon press release has an ecstatic quote from AT&T’s CEO Randall Stephenson and not a word from Sprint honcho (and vanity TV pitchman) Dan Hesse.

Wired suggests early adopters might be sore about this new development. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos addresses the problem by saying that current Kindle owners, if they’re disappointed with the limits of their devices, give away or sell their old readers.

This new development is a sure winner for Amazon.

In the meantime, (breeder) Croft is putting in 14-hour days trying to keep up with the demand in Great Britain. She told Vieira and Curry she’s selling five to 10 a week, “but I got up this morning and I had over 500 inquiries on the Web site. So right now, there’s going to be a long waiting list.”

Teacup pigs, also known as micro pigs and micro mini pigs, are not yet sold in the US. It’s just a matter of time before breeders in this country pick up on the craze. At over $1,000/pig, the price is right. Wonder if they’ll make it into celebrity purses.