Wakey wakey: All the news in 30 seconds

Friday morning at last and thoughts might just be turning to a spot of weekend exercise. This being 2008 and civilisation being in a state of advanced decay, that could well feature the Wii Fit, for which Nyko has just introduced a much-needed add-on.

The Energy Pak for the Wii Balance Board fills the existing battery slots with a single rechargeable battery that removes the need to stock up on AAs.

No more battery runs

To avoid the hassle of having to turn the board over to plug it in, Nyko has even included an extension dongle that brings the power socket to the front edge of the plastic platform.

The same kind of replacement power source has long been a Wiimote favourite, so success (and big bucks) are pretty much guaranteed. It'll cost around a tenner when it hits the UK.

Meanwhile in Japan, NTT DoCoMo last night announced something of a coup in the addition of LG's Prada Phone to its line-up. The designer-led handset should be a massive hit in the country where millions practically breathe Gucci and Vuitton.

The Japanese version of the touchscreen phone is similar to the one that has already sold 800,000 units in the rest of the world, with the addition of a Japanese interface and iMode services. Oh, and the avant-garde nibbles at the Prada after-party were divine.

OLED looking flakey

Another costly Japanese gadget, Sony's XEL-1 OLED TV, could be in for a spot of bother after a researcher found that its cutting-edge screen is likely to burn out after just 17,000 hours - far below the 30,000 (or 10 years) Sony claims.

Sony has yet to comment, but we can expect it to come out with all guns blazing in defense of its shiny little pride and joy before long.

Lastly for today, Intel continues its recent run of good PR form by telling us that it has signed up with NASA to create a better super computer for the space agency.

When completed in 2012, the new Pleiades project should be able to hit 10,000 trillion calculations per second. If that can't get us back to the moon, then nothing will.

That's it for now, but stay tuned to TechRadar for the rest of the day's news as it breaks or grab a feed here - get it while it's hot.

J Mark Lytle was an International Editor for TechRadar, based out of Tokyo, who now works as a Script Editor, Consultant at NHK, the Japan Broadcasting Corporation. Writer, multi-platform journalist, all-round editorial and PR consultant with many years' experience as a professional writer, their bylines include CNN, Snap Media and IDG.