Something on the Side: All weather speakers

In this edition of Something on the Side, SEAN BACHER introduces B&W AM-1 Weatherproof speakers, the Flash Rod 1967 Mustang Eleanor external hard drive, the Blade Wolf DLC pack for Metal Gear Rising, Wolfenstein: The New Order, and a wind-up charger for mobile phones and iPods.

B&W AM-1 Weatherproof speakers

The Bowers & Wilkins (B&W) AM-1 is a durable, weatherproof loudspeaker that has overcome many of the acoustic challenges associated with other outdoor speakers thanks to a clever chassis design and the reversed tweeters and midrange drivers in the unit. The speaker is suitable for use both outdoors and indoors and is available in white or black finishes.

Expect to pay: R3 290 per speaker

Stockists: Order from http://www.bwloudspeakers.co.za

Flash Rod 1967 Mustang Eleanor external hard drive

This plug-and-play hard drive shaped like a 1967 Ford Eleanor is available in a capacity of 1TB and is compatible with PC and Mac. This means that, when plugged into a Mac, it will automatically launch the Time Machine backup software on the Mac and begin managing daily, weekly and monthly backups. Additional backup software needs to be downloaded if used on a PC. The hard drive can also be used to carry movies and music around. Attention to detail in the design of the Eleanor makes it a great alternative to the boring, box-shaped external hard drives.

Expect to pay: R3 500 excluding shipping

Stockists: Order from www.flashrods.com

Blade Wolf DLC pack for Metal Gear Rising

The Blade Wolf DLC pack for Metal Gear Rising is a playable side-story centred on Blade Wolf. It features abilities and characteristics for the character, while also expanding on each of his storylines and origins. The Blade Wolf DLC is available now for Xbox and PlayStation 3.

Expect to pay: 560 Microsoft points for the Xbox 360 and R85 for the PlayStation 3.

Stockists: Visit the store linked to your game console.

Wolfenstein: The New Order

Wolfenstein: The New Order is a remake on the of the original Wolfenstein 3D first-person shooter, which was released in the early ‚’90s. The game is set in an alternative history Europe during 1960, at a time when the Nazis won World War 2. BJ Blazkowicz, an American spy, is instructed to launch a counter-offensive against the evil doers. Players will enter Nazi strongholds and battle enemies who control super weapons, which they try to use to dominate the world.

Expect to pay: R560

Stockists: Order from http://www.wolfenstein.com/

Wind-up mobile phone and iPod charger

Plug an iPhone or iPod into the charger and start winding. Like many of the wind-up torches available, this wind-up phone charger also works off the cranking-for-power principle (the user pushes a lever up and down to create current). Once the user starts winding the charger, current is stored in the batteries, and is then used to charge the phone. The charger also doubles up as a torch.

Expect to pay: R250

Stockists: Order from http://www.mantality.co.za

* Follow Sean on Twitter on @SeanBacher