by Techno Witch on July 28, 2008
Going green is the latest big thing for companies and product manufacturers. Many different items we use with our computers are getting more energy efficient. The gear is also being built with materials that have less of an impact on the environment– certainly a good thing.
Fabrik has announced what it calls the world’s most eco-friendly external hard drive today called the Fabrik SimpleTech [re]drive. The drive enclosure is made from recycled aluminum and bamboo. Fabrik packages an Energy Star power adapter with the drive and the actual package material the [re]drive ships in is made from 100% recycled materials.
The [re]drive has 500GB of storage and promises 25% faster data transfer with its Turbo USB 2.0 connectivity compared to standard USB 2.0. Both Mac and Windows users can use the [re]drive and it ships with automate backup software for archiving important data. The SimpleTech [re]drive is available today for $159.99.
Via Gadgetoholic
by Techno Witch on July 28, 2008
By Andrew Liszewski
How’s this for a conversation starter at your next party? You’ll be hard pressed to find a guest who isn’t at least a bit curious about the basketball-sized glowing glass eyeballs you have sitting on your end table. Available from 5.5 Designers, the Cloned Eyeball Lamps are actually custom made based on the color and unique design of your own eyes. You apparently need to fill out a special form which includes selecting a color that best matches your peepers, as well as providing a set of photos of your eyes so that glassblower Livio Serena can accurately create an exact clone of them. I have no idea how much something like this costs, but it’s safe to assume it’s not the type of thing you’ll find a coupon for.
[ Cloned Eyeball Lamps ] VIA [ Shiny Shiny ]
by Techno Witch on July 28, 2008
By Andrew Liszewski
If you’ve ever spent half an hour in front of a mirror trying to tie a real tie, you know how tempting those clip-on models can be. But unless you happen to be 7 years old, you probably don’t want to get caught wearing one. So to make the process of tying a real one easier, the How Tie (designed by Dima Komissarov and made from 100% silk twill) includes easy to follow instructions on the tie itself. That way when you’re standing in front of a mirror you don’t have to keep glancing down at your laptop to see the instructions you’ve downloaded, since they’ll be staring you right in the face.
[ Fred & Friends - How Tie ]
by Techno Witch on July 28, 2008
By Andrew Liszewski
A company in Japan called Recruit Co Ltd. is using a unique system to lure people into the restaurants and cafes in the underground mall of the Tokyo Station. Developed by NTT Communications Corp. the system emits appetizing aromas that correspond to a video advertisement being shown on a 42-inch LCD display. The idea is that passers-by will be attracted by the smells, wander over to the kiosk to watch the advertisements, and then take a coupon book which will hopefully bring them into the restaurants. My only experience with artificial scents is the scratch n’ sniff stickers I had in grade school, and as I recall the only ones that didn’t make me wretch in disgust were strawberries and grapes. So maybe (and hopefully) artificial scent technologies have come a long way since then.
[ LCD display emits appetizing aromas along with the advertising videos in underground mall of Tokyo Station ]
by Techno Witch on July 28, 2008
By Andrew Liszewski
I have to say I’m a bit confused by this Dark Knight projector key ring. My first guess was that someone had a warehouse full of LED flashlights left over from the old, pre-Nolan Batman films, which would explain why it projects the old Batman logo. But since Batman & Robin (shudder) dates back to 1997 when cheap LED flashlights didn’t exist, I’m at a loss.
So my second guess is that this is simply a crappy Photoshop job and whoever put together this product shot couldn’t find a version of the new bat-logo to use. (Even though it’s used on the projector itself.) At least that’s what I hope is going on here. It would be pretty crappy to pick one of these up only to find it does project the old bat-logo for some reason. If I was in trouble and desperately needed Batman’s help I would much prefer the Christian Bale version to show up, instead of the George Clooney one.
You can get it from Play.com for about $16.
[ Batman: The Dark Knight: Bat-Logo Projector Key Ring ] VIA [ Nerd Approved ]
by Techno Witch on July 28, 2008
Good news for those waiting for the Cut & Paste feature for your Apple iPhone, Apple has so far failed to deliver the cut & paste feature to the iPhone 2.0 operating system, but all is not lost because it seems that Apple has been keeping a lid on things.
It seems they were indeed busy on building their cut/paste framework for the all new iPhone 2.1 OS and iPhone 2.1 SDK.
Apple has only just released the all new iPhone OS revision, iPhone 2.1 OS, to iPhone developers. The new iPhone firmware had by its side the iPhone 2.1 SDK as well.
I am not going to get all technical about the ins and outs of the frameworks; you can read more about that via TUAW. Got to admit we cannot wait to see cut & paste feature on the iPhone.
by Techno Witch on July 28, 2008
We want to know something and that something is ?Is Apple popular because of App Store or iPhone 3G? This is one question well worth thinking about, would you not agree.
Look at what Venture Beat is saying, they say that the App Store could in fact spread like wildfire through Apple?s product line, and that the newly launched App Store which we have to admit is very good indeed and the best thing Apple has done in a very long time may indeed transform the company again. Could you imagine Apple without iTunes, well could you in fact imagine Apple without the Apps Store?
The iPhone 3G has been the main news of late with people queuing for it, downloading the firmware update and so forth. Venture Beat say:
The Power of the App Store
Despite Apple?s desires, web app development for the original iPhone was lackluster. Some native apps on jailbroken iPhones worked very well, but others were complete crap ? and of course you had to jailbreak your iPhone to use them. As I wrote after it launched, compared to these two previous options, the new App Store is simply sublime.
It?s so good that I really believe it could become a fundamental part of Apple.
With each passing day I?m finding myself becoming addicted to it in the same way I was once addicted to the iTunes music store (and would be again if Apple would go all DRM-free).
Part of it is about the impulse buys. I?ll be sitting on the couch, bored, and will buy a new game to play. Some are too expensive, but most are still cheaper than an album on iTunes ? it?s an easy purchase to make.
But the main part is that quite a few of the apps and some of the games in particular, are just really good. This is also problematic because many are considerably more of a time suck than a simple iTunes music purchase.
I can?t imagine using an iPhone now without native apps. Soon, the same may be true for the iPod, Apple TV and even Mac computers themselves.
by Techno Witch on July 28, 2008
There are many rumours flying around at the moment on the web that the Apple iPhone 3G is coming to Orange UK in October. We will treat this as speculation until we hear different.
According to Omio they are saying that the iPhone 3G will become available on Orange in the UK as soon as October.
If this is all true then it looks like France will not be alone seeing as France Orange has the iPhone 3G. Let us look at it like this, O2 won the exclusive rights for the iPhone 3G in the UK, T-Mobile got it in Germany and as said above France got on Orange; surely other networks in all countries should have the chance in snagging the iPhone 3G.
Many customers in the UK might not like O2 for some reason, maybe Orange customers are loyal and wish to stay with this carrier, so why not release the iPhone 3G on the Orange network in October.
If Orange did get the iPhone 3G the sales of the device will increase immensely, come on we all know that Apple wish to sell as many of these phones as possible and the way to achieve that is to open the doors in all countries to multiple networks.
Are Omio dreaming, or are they on the ball with hot news that could possibly become reality?
by Techno Witch on July 28, 2008
By Andrew Liszewski
In Las Vegas the casinos do everything they can to keep you on the gaming floor so that you’re spending as much time as possible emptying your pockets during your stay. But a company called Cantor Gaming has realized there are still a lot of missed opportunities where a casino guest might be away from the poker tables and slot machines. (Eating at a restaurant, lounging by the pool etc.) So the company spent 5 years developing the eDeck which is a wifi equipped portable gaming device that allows casino patrons to gamble and play for real money wherever they happen to be.
Once you’ve setup an account, and have logged in on the device, you’ll be able to play casino favorites like blackjack, baccarat, slots, video poker and roulette. In the future the company hopes to offer new games including live-action poker, sports betting and even proprietary games. (Imagine Tetris played head-to-head for real money.) The eDeck is currently being tested by the Venetian, but at the moment the wireless network restricts the device to only working in the high-stakes slots lounge. But eventually, if the preliminary tests go well, you’ll be able to use the device everywhere in the hotel, even in your own room.
[ Cantor Gaming eDeck ] VIA [ Thrillist ]
by Techno Witch on July 28, 2008
Looks like AdMob is pushing the boat out a little as they announce brand new iPhone 3G advertising solutions and $1 million iPhone developers fund.
AdMob has recently announced that they are launching a global iPhone ad marketplace with a new Apple iPhone optimized interactive advertising formats. Ok some may find this a little confusing so let us explain.
Basically the brand new ads will include brand and performance formats that will operate in both the native applications as well as the browser environment built for the iPhone. Adding more to the flavour is the mobile ads company unveiling a developer program and a $1 million ad fund for developers worldwide to promote their iPhone applications, services and sites.
The ads blend graphical display with one of eight iPhone-specific actions which include iTunes – open the iTunes store and purchase music or video content from iTunes, Custom – ?interactive user experiences?, Video – view video and share video with friends, AppStore – visit the AppStore and download applications, Audio – listen to recorded or streaming audio content, Maps – launch maps and display relevant locations near user?s location, Call – initiate a voice call and Web – visit web pages.
Also in the news is launch advertisers include such companies as Ford, Loopt, Universal Pictures, Shozu, Electronic Arts, Jaguar and Land Rover, also publishers that participate at the launch include MovieTickets.com, Loopt, Mippin, AccuWeather.com and Flirtomatic.