Everybody knows that Dr. Pepper is one of the few carbonated drinks synonymous with online gaming, so a new deal by Keurig may make its upcoming Keurig Cold machine a winner in the make-it-yourself beverage market.

The normally coffee-focused company has reached an exclusive deal that will let you make some of the Dr. Pepper Snapple group’s drinks when the SodaStream rival launches this Autumn; and while no specific brands have yet been mentioned, if the two in the company’s name don’t appear then something is seriously messed up in the world. Add to this Keurig’s deal with Coca-Cola last year, and we’re seriously disappointed that Pepsi signed with SodaStream preventing us from enjoying the perfect trifecta of gamer fuel drinks. Let’s just hope that the create-your-own recipes taste at least recognisably similar to the real things, so we can forget all the generic recipes likely to be released for it as well.

One of the problems with modern smart phones is that all their modern capabilities comes at a price: they’re MASSIVE power hogs. Unless you have an external battery pack or a spare battery to swap in at those key moments, you will probably find yourself charging them incredibly often, perhaps even in the middle of a day. If statistics released from Blu Products are to be believed, however, we may just see a model that bucks that trend. Included within a range of new Android-powered smart phones – revealed by the company today at CES – is the Studio Energy, a 5-incher that claims to be capable of four day’s “standard” use, which in realistic terms means even a moderately heavy user might find it enough to get through the weekend without plugging in.

Part of this longevity comes from its whopping 5,000mAh battery pack, which is even capable of charging other devices by plugging them straight into the phone if you’re so inclined. The other contributing factor is the phone’s hardware itself, which sadly fails to impress: the low-end 1.3GHz MediaTek processor may be an efficient, low-power piece of chippery, but it’s also not the fastest or most capable processor out there; and combined with just 1GB of RAM the result may disappoint those looking for performance. Meanwhile, the display is only capable of Enhanced Definition 720p resolution rather than full HD; and with just 8GB of storage, HSPA+ data and 8-megapixel rear / 2-megapixel front cameras, many others are likely to walk away disappointed too. The budget phone specs however do give this model a budget phone price – the Studio Energy is expected to retail at just $179 (roughly £118) unlocked when it ships in late January, which may make it a decent choice for the budget-conscious smartphone purchaser; or as a backup phone for the outdoors man likely to spend long periods away from a mains socket.

Hot off the heels of its existing MHL 3.0 cable spec that delivers 4K Video over MicroUSB and keeps the device charged, The MHL Consortium has taken the wraps off of SuperMHL, which goes even further. SuperMHL – which appears to be geared towards being a HD Cable replacement – not only increases the maximum picture resolution up to 16 times that of “Full HD” 1080p – in other words, what other media is referring to as “8K HD” – but is cable of a wider range of colours. 281,474,976,710,656 of them in fact, thanks to support for up to a 48-bit colour space, which should allow for more true-to-life shades. Future devices that support the new standard – which aren’t even available to the public as yet – will also be able to use the cable for linked communications; so theoretically if one had a TV, receiver and Blu-ray player all linked up using SuperMHL cables, then one remote could control them all.

Both ends of the SuperMHL Cable

The new standard is capable of delivering power output up to 40 Watts, even while it delivers video, meaning it will also be capable of simultaneously charging a device while you watch. 40 Watts is powerful for most high-end tablets to charge efficiently; it might even be in the range for certain laptops. As for Audio, there’s also support for all-encompassing sound technologies like Dolby Atmos and DTS-UHD for clear, crisp HD sound as well. Finally, the cable is reversible; allowing it to be used either way around much like USB Type-C. The cable technology will be available later this month – but devices that use it are likely to be a while away still, so while the technology will be in our hands shortly it will still be a long wait before we’re watching 8K TV regularly.

With the growing trend of late being to listen to music at the highest possible quality (even when it doesn’t actually make a discernible difference to the human ear), Sony took to the stage at CES today to reveal its second high-resolution music player: the Walkman ZX2. Designed both to upscale the quality of more compressed music formats and online streams using DSEE HX tech; and to keep music of all kinds sounding crystal clear with an S-Master HX digital amp, this new aluminium-bodied offering from Sony is designed to offer the best quality music whatever your format, with MP3, WMA, AAC, FLAC, AIFF, WAV and ALAC including DSD files supported at bitrates up to 192kHz/24-bits. A sizeable 128GB of internal memory is on-board, but should you have a music collection at half as big as that of one of our DJs here at Sanitarium.FM, a microSD card slot is also available for extra space; or you can use the built-in Wi-Fi to stream your music from online radio stations (cough) or download your tracks from online music stores.

In terms of the software on board, the Sony Walkman ZX2 takes the unusual step of running Android 4.2 Jelly Bean, though Sony say using such an old build of Android as the base for their new music player was a concious choice due to its stability. By being Android-built, the Walkman ZX2 will also be compatible with many music and other Apps from Google’s Play Store, although apps targeting only newer Android versions beyond 4.2 will obviously be out. You will be able to use services such as Tidal and many other high-res streaming services though. You’ll also be able to listen to the music through compatible wireless headsets through Bluetooth, which will also make use of LDAC tech for enhanced clarity – though this is likely to cut into the battery life. Still, with the device rated to last 60 hours on a single charge, there should be plenty of power available to let you rock out until you crash out if you so choose.

Sony are not yet confirming a price point for the new device, which press rumours place at a range around $1,100 to $1,200; however, representatives state that a final decision on pricing will be made soon in time for the device’s planned release this spring.

Ever since Nintendo revealed upgraded new models of its popular Nintendo 3DS and 3DS XL Handheld consoles (called, appropriately, the “New Nintendo 3DS” and “New Nintendo 3DS XL” respectively), Nintendo fans around the world have been eagerly awaiting their launch. Both models hit store shelves in Japan last October, followed by Australia and New Zealand a month later, but elsewhere in the world Nintendo has kept quiet on their plans – all we know for sure is an international release is planned for “2015”. Now though, we have a hint that a European release may not be far away.

Similar to what it did for the launches of the Wii, Wii U and Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo has announced a new Ambassador Promotion giving additional rewards to early adopters of the new console. Although the promotion is currently limited to selected Club Nintendo members, interestingly this does not seem to be limited to people in the original 3DS ambassador program – so all Club Nintendo members may want to check their inbox in the next few days to see if they’re eligible.

Should you be lucky enough to qualify, the exclusive Ambassador Edition set will be available to you at an asking price of £179.99. For this, you’ll receive a white New Nintendo 3DS model (note this is not the XL, which does not seem to have a similar promotion at this time) in a special ‘Ambassador Edition’ box; along some exclusive Ambassador Edition cover plates, and a slick Super Smash Bros. set in case you want to mix things up. Nintendo is also throwing in a charging cradle, stylus and a 4GB microSDHC card.

Although Nintendo are still keeping mum on the final launch date for the New Nintendo 3DS existence of this special, limited-availability promotion (which is basically a glorified invitational pre-order bonus) suggests that we may not have much longer to wait.