Matching Your Socks Made EZ

A bunch of sock companies have innovated since I last bought socks for my son. These handy multi-stripes on the foot of the sock help you match up pairs of socks without having to eyeball it. Hanes calls it EZ Sort. Same thing.

Spyder "Small to Tall" Growth Feature

Spyder knows their kids' ski gear is expensive. And with kids growing like weeds in between ski seasons, it's hard to justify buying a pair of ski pants or a jacket that will only fit for one season. So they have this built-in expandable hem system. When the kids grows out of the clothing, they actually haven't. Because you can take out the hem and suddenly the garment is an additional 2 inches bigger. Sold me. Now we've got ski wear that's strong enough to last two seasons and will fit for that long too. Not to mention, its extended life as a hand-me-down.

3D TV

Got to hand it to Sony Europe for getting me interested in 3DTV. This commercial shows people who don't have TV what a 3DTV screen looks like when you don't have the glasses on. It looks like crap. So you have to wonder what it would look like with the right specs in your head. Something, I imagine you will be able to do when you walk into a Sony dealer. So simple. The best ones usually are. You don't even notice the gratuitous use of Kaka, the footballer.

Crimespotting: Like watching youtube but more interesting.

Internet Eyes has come up with novel way to get someone to pay attention to Britain’s 4.2 million security cameras. Sure, it's "crowdsourcing," but if you get beyond the overused, misunderstood and already annoying term, not to mention the privacy issues it brings up, it is a pretty cool way to prevent the classic "asleep at the wheel" security guard situation that is in almost every Three's Company episode. If you see a crime and report it you can make big pounds.

adiFIT™ toddler sneaker sizing.

The adiFIT™ sizing system by adidas ensures a perfect fit for small feet. A removable insole in each shoe has lines indicating where toes should and shouldn't be for a proper fit. Why? Because you can't always get a straight answer out of a three year-old about how his Superstars feel. But when you can see for yourself, you know. Alas, even this good of an idea is not photographed or merchandised anywhere on the shoe-shopping crazy web. And when you open the box, it's hardly celebrated with a hang tag. It has a ™ so somebody must have known they were onto something. I think I have to take my own photo tomorrow of it and repost. It's a real difference and a missed opportunity. I figured at least Zappos would have done something with it. Nope.

Goldfish can survive immediately in Amsterdam tap water.

The water here isn't full of chlorine or fluoride, so I guess while it's not saving your teeth from cavities, it's also not killing you child's new pet. Makes setting up an fish tank way easier than having to wait a few days. The aquarium shop I learned this from has been in business since 1895, so I believe them. Plus, the Dutch know their shit about water.

The-Unlimited-Data-Across-All-European-Countries Plan that doesn't exist.

If it were true, it would be a "best idea." But there are no unlimited data plans across Europe. Why wouldn't Vodafone or T-Mobile offer something like that? They have networks in all the countries. Let's put it in American to get some perspective here. The way things are now, it's like this: you live in New York and have to do business in Washington for a few days. Your data charges run you into the thousands of dollars because you used your phone in DC the way you normally do in NY. That's what it's like if I go to Paris on London. Is this some EU regulatory thing or are the carriers just gouging businesspeople because they can?