The newest sound card from Asus works with desktops and laptops.

One of the limitations of a notebook is that only select parts are upgradeable. The sound system isn't usually one of them, though external sound card solutions provide an end-around to achieving superior audio. One of the newest options is Asus' newly introduced Xonar U7, a compact and external USB sound card and headphone amplifier that you can use with your notebook or desktop system.

That CD you bought from Amazon 10 years ago now appears in your Cloud Player account.

Mega online retailer Amazon is embracing the digital age in a big way. The company today announced the launch of Amazon AutoRip, a retroactive service that provides customers with free MP3 versions of CDs they purchased from Amazon dating all the way back to 1998. For better (2Pac, Aerosmith) or worse (Backstreet Boys, Spice Girls), those tunes you purchased so long ago are automatically added to your Cloud Player library, free of charge.

Munitio makes the only 'bullet' we'd ever want to take to the head.

Usually when there's a bullet plugged into someone's ear, they're not getting up, at least not until they respawn. A company called Munitio, however, has built a pair of bullet-shaped earphones that aren't lethal. If you're familiar with the company, you know the referenced earphones as the Nines, which are shaped like tactical 9mm bullets. Munitio's relaunching the Nines with added features for mobile devices, and the company also shared a brand new product with us at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES).

If you spend your days dreaming of taking to the skies, Razer's new BlackShark headphones may be the peripheral to keep your head above ground, even if you aren't. The stereo gaming headset was designed to look and feel like the ones worn by attack helicopter pilots, Razer says, and if they look familiar, it's because the gaming peripheral maker already sells a branded pair for Battlefield 3 junkies.