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Behold: The Ultimate Racing Game Simulator

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 07:30 PM PDT

This is what happens when you let a bunch of engineers play with robots: you get things like the “Motion Cueing Design and Experimental Validation” machine. Roughly translated, this is the ultimate racing game simulator. I love science.

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Germany have built this glorious machine using an industrial robot arm. They call it the CyberMotion Simulator; the player sits in a F1 Ferrari cabin suspended 6 feet off the ground, and then drives the car around a projected track with force feedback steering and pedals. The researchers claim their are using the robot arm to study how we perceive motion, I think they just wanted to have a kick-ass F1 simulator.

Check out the video after the jump.

[via PopSci and IEEE Spectrum]

Kinect 250GB Bundle Confirmed

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 05:52 PM PDT

We heard about the 4GB Kinect Xbox bundle back in July, with its $299 price and matte finish. Rumors of a 250GB bundle proliferated after a few box shots made it look likely.

That 250GB bundle was recently spotted in Australia and appears to be a shiny, rather than matte bundle. In addition to the larger hard drive, the 250GB bundle will also include a headset, and come pre-installed with demos and apparently a game. No word on pricing of course or an international release schedule but it is probable they’ll have something for us by the holidays.

[via Joystiq and SlashGear]

Temperature-Variable Controller Will Make Your Palms Sweat Even More

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 05:30 PM PDT


Okay, be honest. It’s the final battle in an RPG, or a desperate standoff in Resident Evil 5 and you’re low on ammo. The tension builds, builds — and finds release in the sweat glands of your hands, which have been wrapped around the controller for a good hour or two already. And if Tokyo Metropolitan University researchers get their way, even the coolest cucumber in gaming will be feeling the moisture — because they want to make controllers that heat up.

I’m not sure they’re actually going to be pitching it to any game companies — this seems to be of more academic interest, with the side benefit of being something perhaps beneficial to the blind.

[via MIT Technology Review and Crave]

There Is Great Truth In These Pictionary Ads

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 04:00 PM PDT


We may live in an age of uncertainty, but if there’s one thing you can rely on, it’s how an unskilled individual will draw a helicopter in a game of Pictionary. My own games with friends have produced such interesting results that I keep all the drawings. There’s a discussion to be had here about the nature of symbols, the cultural underpinnings of communication, and much more, but that’s a post for another day (and another blog). More of these great ads at Whitezine.

[via NotCot]

In Which The Parlour Cannon’s Adventures Continue

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 03:30 PM PDT


Gentlemen.

I have invited you here today to demonstrate a device of immense destructive power, yet which will fit between a dog’s ears. Fitzgibbons, if you would remove the shroud from the device… thank you. I present to you, sirs — the Parlour Cannon.

What, you already have one? By all that’s tremendous, Mr. Caville, if you leave before the demonstration, I shall be forced to turn its deadly charge on you. Be seated, sir, and behold its power.

Review: Iomega Skin External Hard Drive

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 03:00 PM PDT

Short version: It’s an external hard drive, decorated by designer Al Borda. Iomega is hoping to capture the college market by providing an alternative to the plain old box external drive. It’s a quality drive, and while the decorative touches may not be for everyone, a 500GB external drive for less then $100 isn’t a bad deal.

Features:

  • Available in three different designs
  • Uses Iomega’s “Drop Guard” to protect from dropping up to 51 inches (at least to carpet)
  • Includes Iomega’s backup software, via download
  • Works with PC or Mac
  • MSRP: $119 for 500GB, street price around $89

Pros:

  • Bus powered
  • Small size, build quality feels good
  • Offers an alternative to the plain old box design

Cons:

  • Tries a little too hard to be hip

Product page

Full review:
It’s a hard drive. You put stuff on it, or back up your computer to it. Hopefully, if something bad happens, you can get your stuff back off the drive. The drive functions as expected, the USB 2.0 interface is the typical speed that we’re used to, nothing special there.

Where the drive does stand out is the design. Iomega teamed up with Skin Inc. designer Al Borda to create a product that appeals to the more fashion conscious user. Just like the old “beige box” computer was eventually replaced by glowing LEDs and cold cathode lighting, external hard drives are trying to get prettied up too. There are three different options in the Skin line, Iomega sent me the “Radical” which is a retro logo on a black top, with a yellow bottom. I’ll admit, my tastes run more to the understated, but the design doesn’t look bad at all. There are two other options, the “Red Hot” which is a red top with a black base, featuring the Skin logo, and the “Knock out” – a silver top on a black base, with the Skin logo in a gothic design. Obviously these are more aimed at the college aged crowd rather than your IT professional, but if you are looking for something that’s different from the standard box enclosure, I say go for it.

The enclosure by itself impressed me, just based on the build quality. It feels solid in your hand, but it’s not heavy. Iomega says in their product information that the drive is designed to withstand a drop of up to 51 inches without damage. That’s probably more then enough for the casual user, and my drop tests were successful; the drive continued to function despite repeated tests.

One thing that didn’t impress me was that Iomega didn’t pre-load the backup software on the drive. There is a small pamphlet on how to download the “included” software, but if you don’t have an internet connection, you’d have to use whatever backup solution is included in your OS. Additionally, and perhaps this just because I’m not a college student, the concept of hiring a designer to put a logo on an external drive just seems a little contrived to me.



Conclusion: The Iomega Skin hard drive is a great product. It has that Iomega quality, with a little dash of design flavor to make it different from the other offerings out there. Plus if you go online and look around, you can pick one up for less than $100. If you’re the kind of person who likes the Skin designs, go get one. You won’t be disappointed.


Al Franken Needs Your Help To Save Net Neutrality

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 01:30 PM PDT

Al Franken, the junior senator from Minnesota, wants you to help him save Net Neutrality. Given that Google may or may not be actively plotting to destroy Net Neutrality, it may be worth your time to sign the petition.

What will signing the petition do? Presumably very little. It's more of a show of support for the idea of Net Neutrality. We'll see if I start getting e-mails from Sen. Franken's office.

You know what would really be worth the time? Writing a letter to your congressman. That is, sitting down with a pen and a piece of paper and making a coherent argument in favor (or against—do what you want, I see) of Net Neutrality. Your congressman, who's more tuned into your concerns than your senator, who has an entire state's worth of people to pay attention to, would see the actual letter sitting on his desk and be like, "Whoa, what do we have here?"

Whereas if you send an e-mail it'll beep-boop on his BlackBerry, he'll see "Save Net Neutrality" in the subject line, and merely mark as read.

Same thing with signing a petition. It's a nice show of support, but don't expect any real action because of it.

Meanwhile, it seems the FCC is becoming increasingly frustrated dealing with the various ISPs, trying to get them to play along with Net Neutrality.

I have zero faith that, in just a few years' time, we will be looking at a multi-tiered Internet.

News Corp. will hand over giant sacks of money to your ISP, ensuring that you can load The Sun's Web site faster than you can load The Guardian's. Or that NBC Universal will cut a deal with your ISP to re-direct all your search traffic through its servers. "Looking for friends? Watch old clips on Friends right now on Hulu Plus."

And that's when we should all quit the Internet because, really, what's the point?

HP CEO, Mark Hurd, Resigns

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 01:28 PM PDT


HP CEO Mark Hurd has resigned, leaving CFO Cathie Lesjak to run the company on an “interim basis.” The reason for quitting? He was told to leave by legal counsel due to an investiagtion of sexual harassment against him by an outside contractor. According to the press release, “the investigation determined there was no violation of HP’s sexual harassment policy, but did find violations of HP’s Standards of Business Conduct.”

Hurd said: “As the investigation progressed, I realized there were instances in which I did not live up to the standards and principles of trust, respect and integrity that I have espoused at HP and which have guided me throughout my career. After a number of discussions with members of the board, I will move aside and the board will search for new leadership. This is a painful decision for me to make after five years at HP, but I believe it would be difficult for me to continue as an effective leader at HP and I believe this is the only decision the board and I could make at this time. I want to stress that this in no way reflects on the operating performance or financial integrity of HP.”

HP also announce preliminary third quarter financials. They are up 11% compared to the same quarter last year with revenue of about $32.7 billion. Sexual harassment cases notwithstanding, at least Hurd raised the company out of the doldrums this year and spearheaded the Palm acquisiton.

Nicholas Negroponte: The Physical Book Is Dead In 5 Years

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 12:31 PM PDT

Today at the Techonomy conference in Lake Tahoe, CA, CNBC's Maria Bartiromo sat down with a panel including Bill Joy, Kevin Kelly, Nicholas Negroponte, and 
Willie Smits. The topic was basically the future of technology. And Negroponte had the most interesting (or at least the most controversial) thing to say. The physical book is dead, according to Negroponte. He said he realizes that's going to be hard for a lot of people to accept. But you just have to think about film and music. In the 1980s, the writing was on the wall that physical film was going to die, even though companies like Kodak were in denial. He then asked people to think about their youth with music. It was all physical then. Now everything has changed.


Flash Rods Converts Toy Cars Into Flash Drives

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 12:30 PM PDT

I love this idea. Garage inventor Dave Hersch has made a business out of converting Hot Wheels cars into flash drives. Each drive is custom made, and you can choose your favorite from the FlashRods website. They only come in 4GB, and cost $25 plus shipping.

[via SlashGear]

Apple Is About to Own Your Face

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 12:23 PM PDT


My mom totally wants one of these.

My mom doesn’t know smartphones, but she wants Facetime. The same woman who used a Motorola RAZR for most of the last decade now wants to drop – or, more precisely, wants me to drop – $299 for a new iPhone 4 so she can see the grandkids. Why? Because it seems like magic to her that she can see live video of the grandkids without having to make my dad hobble over to the computer and fire up Skype.

Video chat is not new and to most geeks Facetime is an affornt to the hard work and patience they put into getting video chat to work over Wi-Fi and cellular networks over the past few years. The Euros all scream “But we had video chat on our Nokias during the Clinton administration!” while streaming zealots claim they were video chatting with each other for years before Apple barged in. But with rumors that the new iPod Touch will have a front facing camera and will be launched sometime in September, I think Apple is about to own the video chat space.

It’s not that Apple will be the only player – they’ll be the only player on the average person’s radar. Call me a fanboy, but when Apple convinces my mom, through a series of actually strikingly beautiful (or crassly materialistic, depending on your position) commericals. Add in facial recognition in iLife and sorting by faces in iOS and Apple is all about the face.

Why is this important? Well, to quote a famous Chinese manufacturer of laptops, it makes the PC personal again. It moves devices out of the commidity – read “Android” and PC – realm and into the realm of devices imbued with feeling. However tenuous and however hippy dippy that sounds, “feeling” has a lot to do with why people by CE devices. That and brand.

The real key, then, is how Apple will expand face-to-face communications and facial search. It is also important to assess how hardware manufacturers will follow Apple back into video chat. A lot of people have tried it but as efforts on the EVO 4G and other high-end devices attest, not a lot of people love the experience. If anything, Apple has made it dead simple to place a video call to my mom. If Apple releases a Touch with Facetime, things are going to change even more.

This means that generally most face-to-face communications that once were carried via Skype will probably be carried by Facetime. This also means Facetime compatibility will be key to future video chat efforts by almost every device manufacturer. It also means Apple will, for at least a little while, own a bit of the video chat space. It will also appear as the first mover in the video chat space, forcing others to catch up to it instead of the other way around.

What does this mean for you and me? It means more business adoption of video chat and less lockdown when it comes to webcams and cellphone cameras in some organizations. It also means we’re going to have look a little more presentable when we make calls, which is pretty rough if you’re me.

Apple iPod Touch FaceTime & iPad iOS 4 Event Happening In Weeks?

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 12:21 PM PDT

Apple rumors are fly left and right these days. That must mean something is happening real soon. MacMagazine just got word from one of their reliable sources that an Apple event is on the books for sometime between August 14-16, making Monday the 16th a shoe-in. They say the event is centered around both the new FaceTime-equipped iPod touch and the iPad’s iOS4 update. But as with most Apple press confernences, the event’s details won’t really be known until Jobs advances the keynote to the next point.

Update: MacRumors just noticed in the latest iOS 4.1 build that Facetime no longer needs a phone number to connect. Email address work also, which is perfect for, say, the iPod touch. Apple is about to own your face.

Chinese Laptop-Maker Rips Off HP

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 12:00 PM PDT

Our buddies at Shanzai found this great Chinese computer box containing a laptop made by Tenda that costs about $280 and runs a poky Atom processor. But if you were wandering the stalls at the computer bazaar, what would you notice: the sub-standard notebook or the excellent fake HP box?

First Apple and now HP. Is there anything China can’t completely rip off?

Best Buy’s CTO Tweets Out Pics Of A Rocketfish Tablet. Seriously, A Best Buy Tablet.

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 11:48 AM PDT


Well, look at that. A Rocketfish tablet. Can’t say we saw this coming, but Best Buy’s CTO and Geek Squad founder, Robert Stephens, just tweeted two pics of the surprisingly polished-looking tablet. We’re currently digging for more details but from what we can tell from the pics, the tablet looks remarkable similar to early HP Slate pics. Every seem and port seems to be the same right down to the (docking?) port on the bottom. Even if it’s not built on the same platform, the screen sizes look about the same, placing the Rocketfish tablet in the 9-inch range.

Best Buy’s Rocketfish brand is full of re-branded items like this. There’s computer parts, A/V equipment, even GPS units. We have no idea what OS the Rocketfish tablet is running, but if HP is making this tablet (and we don’t know for sure), then the tablet could either use webOS or Windows 7. The company previously stated the Windows 7 HP Slate 500 is headed to the enterprise space, rather than the consumer market. Perhaps this is HP’s answer. If the product fails, it doesn’t go directly on HP as most consumers wouldn’t know who actually made it. If the experiment works, then they can shift the Slate 500 (or its successor) to also serve the consumer space.

However, Stephens tweeted in early July that the company was working on an Android 2.2 tablet. This could be it. It’s hard to say at this point seeing as we’ve seen companies switch OSs mid-stream as a market correction. Either way, it seems as if Best Buy itself will be a player in the still wide-open tablet market.

Of course we don’t have any hardware specs for the device just yet. Hopefully we’ll find that out shortly, but something tells us Best Buy isn’t going to say much. This has the distinct smell of a viral marketing campaign.

[Thanks for the tip, Ray!]

New York Alleges LCD Price-Fixing By LG, Hitachi, Samsung, and Sharp

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 11:20 AM PDT


Accusations of price fixing like those now being filed in New York are nothing new, but as it turns out, the penalties don’t really stick. LG and Sharp paid hundreds of millions in a settlement back in 2008, Hitachi had its own scandal in 2009, and Sharp is already the defendant in a Dell lawsuit also alleging price fixing. Samsung seems to be the new kid on the block, but I think they can probably hold their own.

What does it mean to the consumer? Probably the same it meant the last three times: very little.

Mysterious ASUS Windows Phone 7 handset shows up in sibling spy shots

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 10:51 AM PDT

What do you do when your brother comes in for a trip home to Pakistan with an unreleased, previously unseen Windows Phone 7 handset?

You take pictures and put them on the Internet, of course.

Read the rest at MobileCrunch >>

GeekBeat.TV #18 – Apple-Specific Hotspot and Fighting Action Figures

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 09:05 AM PDT

Clearwire makes a hotspot device specifically for Apple products, Samsung has a new backlit LED display, Apple’s Magic Trackpad gets a review, action figures duke it out with a choose your own ending twist and GeekBeat.TV welcomes Jenn Lowell as a new blogger. Join Cali Lewis as she brings you GeekBeat.TV #18.

Study: Your Browser’s Private Browsing Mode May Not Always Be So Private After All

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 09:00 AM PDT

Your Web browser's private browsing mode, perhaps not as "private" as you would like to see. A new study, coming out of Stanford University's Security Lab in the Computer Science Department, says that modern browsers' private browsing mode may be undermined when visiting certain Web sites or by using certain extensions. Nice.

The study finds that private browsing modes are most often activated when visiting adult Web sites. You probably didn't need an academic study to know that, but it's good to see that fact supported by the Academy.

But that's what makes the results all the more troubling.

You visit whatever Web site using private browsing mode, and you expect that you're not leaving any unnecessary bread crumbs for your roommate or girlfriend or big brother to find. You don't want to have that conversation.

Or maybe you do, I don't know.

The study, written by the department's Applied Crypto Group, finds that there's two major flaws when it comes to private browsing modes: Web site security and browser extensions.

Private browsing mode usually works by not saving things like cookies and history files to your hard drive. Think of it like browsing the Web using a live Linux distribution: you turn the computer off and all your data is gone. Woo!

The mode works as advertised unless you come across Web sites that encrypt data—let's say a shopping site. That data could still be on your hard drive.

Extensions that involve search can cache data without your knowledge.

This covers all the major Web browsers, by the way: Firefox, Safari, Chromium, and Internet Explorer.

Solution? Well, you could invoke private browsing mode after disabling your extensions. That way you know the only thing between interesting Web site and your eyeballs is the browser's private browsing mode, without any third-party nonsense mucking things up.

You could also buy a secret, second computer and not tell anybody about it. It's a long way to go, but it's truly private.

Video: Red Dead Redemption‘s Legends And Killers Throw Tomahawks At Each Other

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 08:30 AM PDT

Oh, it's been about a month or so since Red Dead Redemption has spun around inside my Xbox 360, but Rockstar's new DLC, the Legends and Killers Pack, may convince me to give it another go.

The pack will be available for both the PS3 and 360 version for $9.99 and 800 M$ Points.

(Get it, M$? Clever, yes.)

I love the way the announcer here says "Tomahawk." It sounds like he's announcing a BattleBots fight.


Review: Logitech Alert 750i Master System Camera

Posted: 06 Aug 2010 08:29 AM PDT

Short Version: If you know how to plug in a lamp, you can probably set up the new Logitech Alert 750i indoor camera. Luckily, the 750i is much more useful than a lamp when it comes to home security and monitoring.

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Features:

  • Powerline set-up
  • PC-free recording
  • Pan, tilt, and zoom via software controller
  • Free on-line camera access
  • $299.99

Pros:

  • Small and unobtrusive
  • Easy set-up
  • Useful software

Cons:

  • Windows-only
  • Not wireless
  • Requires an accessible outlet

 

I’m kind of a connoisseur when it comes to home monitoring. My neighbor, a former Hell’s Angel named Carmine, dosed me with the camera bug when he installed six night-vision cameras on the front of his Brooklyn home, a 10×40 foot slice of heaven that, in short, was monitored like Fort Knox. He caught some kids stealing his car once and even got a great video of someone stealing the rims off of a Nissan in the neighborhood. Because I work out of my attic and don’t want to have to run down the stairs every time a Jehovah’s Witness ding-dongs, I decided to install a camera of my own.

I originally installed a wireless Linksys camera with Vitamin D but I may just switch to something in the Logitech Alert family – with a few caveats.

The new Alert series from Logitech offers extremly easy monitoring set-up with a few very cool features but it’s Windows-only right now and the motion detection software still leaves a little to be desired.

The Good
I was able to set up this camera in a few minutes. I unpacked it, plugged one end into the power outlet on the back porch and the other adapter into the power outlet near the router. The camera itself uses one cable and takes power via the thin ethernet cable supplied.

The included software allows you to pan and zoom across the frame – you’re really looking at only part of a wide-angle image and zooming and moving over it, so there are no servos to alert bad guys of your presence. The camera takes an “HD quality” picture and works in low light.

When your monitoring PC is on the camera will send emails when it detects motion. You can also connect to the camera using a web interface via alert.logitech.com. The interface mirrors the PC interface exactly, so this means you could feasibly turn off the PC during the day and monitor the situation from time to time. A built-in microphone allows you to listen in on conversations that thieves may be having while they do the old “toothbrush and camera” trick.

The camera also supports mobile viewing on iPhones, Android smartphones, and Blackberries. You can add multiple cameras to the system, allowing you to view different scenes from the same interface.

The camera also records to MicroSD and the video it grabs can be played back on any PC or Mac. This offers an off-line backup of suspicious activity.

The Bad
The web accessible systems are slightly hobbled by trial-ware. If you want to simply view your camera for up to three minutes at a time, you can use the free version of the software. This is literally just a viewer. You can also subscribe to the Logitech Alert Web Commander, a copy of the desktop software for the web. This costs $79.99 and enables ten minutes of live viewing as well as video replay, pan/zoom controls, as well as mobile access.

While I like powerline networking in some cases, you’re also hindered in camera placement by the fact that you need to be near an outlet to install the camera. While 90% of the time this isn’t a problem, but map out potential power outlets before you buy.

Finally, the motion detection software is a bit wonky. I sent the kids out to dance around in front of the camera and got no notifications. However, when the tree in the image waved even slightly, I was bombarded with notifications. However, in general if you set this camera on a less busy scene – a front door, say – it works well.

Bottom Line
The 750i is a great camera with a few minor problems. This is obviously a new product line of Logitech and they’re working on improving the software over time. I’m also going to review its outdoor brother, the 750e, next but generally Logitech’s Alert solution seems to be stable, usable, and almost idiot-proof. The fact that you can get a camera up and running in a few minutes is fabulous and barring a few issues with networking and motion detection, it’s a great way to keep an eye on the kids, a summer home, your special “grow area,” or the dogs.

Product Page
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