Monthly Archives: January 2010

iPhone Pilot: Strap on some cardboard wings and let's fly!

by andy
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iPhone Pilot: Strap on some cardboard wings and let's fly!

Parrot’s forthcoming AR.Drone is an amazing use of the iPhone as a remote control for a model airplane, but if you can’t wait that long or have just 99c to invest in some silliness, take a look at iPhone Pilot First, buy and download the app, then go to the website and pick up one or more pairs of free wings that you can print onto cardboard and then stick to your iPhone. Finally, start up the app and then swoop, shoot and bomb your way around your house and neighbourhood. It’s truly daft, as you can see from these videos. A high-tech executive stress reliever. You’ll have to provide Read more »

Bookeen intros thinnest ever eBook reader

by andy
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Bookeen intros thinnest ever eBook reader

There’s little doubt that eBook readers are one of the hot gadgets at present, and while the big players such as Amazon with its Kindle and Barnes & Noble’s Nook are what you might first think of when naming brands, others are doing some interesting stuff too. Take Bookeen, which has just introduced an advanced touch-screen reader that’s supposed to be the thinnest to date. The Cybook ORIZON features a six-inch ePaper screen with In-Cell touch capacitive sensing technology that means the gentlest of touchiest is all that’s required to control the device. It’s just a third-of-an-inch thick, weighs in at 8oz, has a resolution of 167dpi and 16 levels Read more »

Wi-Fi Body Scale transmits your weight to web and iPhone

by andy
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Wi-Fi Body Scale transmits your weight to web and iPhone

Wirelessly connected medial and health devices aren’t brand new, but French tech company Withings claims to have created the world’s first Wi-Fi enabled body scale. No longer do you have to put up with those boring bathroom scales that simply tell you on a dial or LED readout what your weight is. Now you can tell a website whether your latest diet, weight loss (or weight gain) programme is working out… or not. The scale is pretty smart as it goes. It uses bioelectric impedance analysis to calculate body fat composition, displaying it as a weight instead of percentage, and shows BMI. It can also recognise up to eight different Read more »

Guy travels 100 nautical miles in a pedal powered submarine

by Jayvee Fernandez
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Guy travels 100 nautical miles in a pedal powered submarine

Well this is one for the record books. If he makes it. Athlete Llyod Godson crosses the Ionian sea, replicating the journey of the mythical Odysseus from Corfu to Ithaca. That’s roughly 100 nautical miles with him traveling 8 km/hour pedaling. The sojourn started in September ’09 and he has completed the first leg a month later on October ’09. That’s phase 1. This January, he’s off to phase two of the journey and from his Twitter account (we’re not sure if its really him or the PR guy updating it) there’s been radio silence since the 4th. Godson, an aquanot, adventurer and athlete paddles at 90-minute sessions at a Read more »

Nook Wins Big At Crunchies Awards

by Noemi Twigg
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Nook Wins Big At Crunchies Awards

Up until recently, Amazon’s Kindle has been the dominant player in the e-book reader market. When Barnes & Noble entered the game with their own e-book reader, things started to shift. Dubbed Nook, the gadget was released late last year but has already gained recognition from the public as well as well known personalities in the tech world. The 2009 Crunchies Awards was held last week – a relatively newcomer in its niche. It is held annually by three entities – GigaOm, VentureBeat, and TechCrunch. This year’s awards is only the third. The cool thing about the Crunchies is that the Internet community is involved in deciding who gets to Read more »

The honest scammer: all you have to do is ask

by andy
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The honest scammer: all you have to do is ask

You know, there’s really no excuse for being ripped off on the Internet. If you want to know if a deal is dodgy, all you have to do is ask. Now, granted, it helps if you know what you might be up against. You can’t just come right out and say “Are you a criminal?” or “Are you going to rip me off?”, but you can take an educated guess. That’s what one Mike Nash did when he was connected by a Mr Robert Dutu. Mr Robert Dutu: Hello How are you? Am Robert Dutu I have a very important business proposition for your consideration. Please can we chat on Read more »

3M Ergonomic Mouse looks odd but cuts RSI

by andy
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3M Ergonomic Mouse looks odd but cuts RSI

The new Ergonomic Mouse from 3M may look like a joystick (or possibly something else, depending on how your mind works) and indeed it’s a tad odd for a mouse. However, it does tackle quite a serious issue for heavy computer users: Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI). RSI, which is a terrible condition, is alleviated by the user taking a vertical grip on the central column. This keeps the wrist locked and thus reduces pressure on the median nerve. Think of how you held a joystick in your 8-bit gaming days, and then think about how you move a mouse around, and that’s pretty much how you control this thing. Sounds Read more »

TouchCam N1: improving online communication

by Darice de Cuba
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TouchCam N1: improving online communication

faceVsion together with Skype is releasing a new HD webcam on the market. What makes this webcam different then other webcams is the fact that they handle their own encoding and processing. You will still need a fast computer and broadband internet though to take full advantage of High Definition webcam images. The TouchCam N1 is the first 720P webcam certified by Skype. Skype supports High Definition video calls starting from version 4.2 beta. TouchCam N1 will also work with other messengers app like Microsoft Live or Yahoo, although HD support is needed by those apps. Just this week I was contemplating purchasing a webcam to communicate with clients through Read more »

VOTE: For 2010 Barbie will be a Computer Engineer

by Jayvee Fernandez
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VOTE: For 2010 Barbie will be a Computer Engineer

Fellow geeks, we must do our duty. Only through our combined efforts will Barbie’s new profession for 2010 be .. a Computer Engineer. Every year, Barbie gets laid off from work. And at the start of the year, she resolves to excel in a new career but as she can’t make up her mind, WE have to help her out through a listing of job opportunities. You gotta love her for trying though. This is the site! http://barbie.com/vote The other choices are: Environmentalist, News Anchor, Architect, and Surgeon. In as much as Barbie would like to be an environmentalist, she is made of plastic. The other jobs are great too Read more »

Meet Roxxxy: The Sex Robot With a Personality

by J. Angelo Racoma
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Meet Roxxxy: The Sex Robot With a Personality

Trust the adult industry to be at the forefront of technological innovation. Over at the recently concluded AVN Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas, robotics company TrueCompanion unveiled its Roxxxy sex robot. The robot is touted to be as close to human as possible. [S]he … knows your name, your likes and dislikes, can carry on a discussion and expresses her love to you and be your loving friend. She can talk to you, listen to you and feel your touch. She can even have an orgasm! Roxxxy, said to have been developed over several years, is supposedly an anatomically correct robot that can respond to user interaction based on Read more »