Gizmodo
In Brief
In Brief
In Brief
Hugms: Hugs Over SMS
Hugms, by Mark Argo (of .dot .dot .dot fame), is definitely in the running for the most bizarre Bluetooth-enabled device I've seen. The squeezable, torpedo-shaped hugging unit communicates with your Bluetooth-enabled cell phone to convert the power of your hug into a respective text message. I truly kid you not:for example, a long squeeze would look likeThe hugms also uses light and color to indicate if you've been hugged and what sort of hug it was. If you're interested in the hugms for your surely speechless beau, the project page even includes a video of the hugms in action, but, as a thesis project, it's unlikely to be available to the public anytime soon. More »
'hhhhhhuuuuuuuuuuggggggg'
while a short and hard squeeze would look like
'hhHHUUUUUUugg'
In Brief
Spectra Imported Electric Scooter
Treehugger shows us the Ibiza Scooter (no relation to the aforementioned light fixture), an electric wheeler with a range of 28 miles and conveniently, a speed of 28 MPH. It runs for about $1,560 and leaves Treehugger debating the environmental impact versus the human cost of its Chinese "heritage". Imported by Spectra Importing in Canada, it comes replete with the requisite Chinese graphics, lights, turn signals and horn. More »
In Brief
Ibiza Outdoor Lights with Speakers
Italy's Oluce has unveiled their new line of outdoor lights called Ibiza. The Oluce fixtures are made out of white, weatherproof polyethlene and feature an integrated speaker. They're not wireless, sadly, with a separate stereo cable included. The speakers also only put out 20 watts, so this might be the type of fixture for your local dark (yet style-conscious) parking lot instead of your own backyard. Available now, if you can hunt down an Oluce distributor.Product Page [Oluce via MoCoLoco]
In Brief
DIY Inwall Touchscreen
Mavromatic moves gracefully into part two of their do-it-yourself inwall LCD touchscreen project, discussing the decision to go with an industrial panel over NEC's. He has plans to update it shortly, but for now, there are some great pictures of his progress insofar. While this post is a little bit short on content for the moment, part one makes for a good read, too. He plans on having it function as a digital picture frame when idle and wants to include a microphone and speakers as well. A very cool project for anyone wanting to install a similar solution in their humble keeps. More »
In Brief
Hottt: Panasonic AG-HVX200 DVCPRO HD P2 Camcorder
It looks like some interesting cameras will be unveiled at this year's NAB. A week back we heard about the JVC GY-HD100U, a three-CCD camera that could record at 720p (progressive scan). Good, but not as crazy as the unconfirmed details of the Panasonic AG-HVX200 DVCPRO HD P2 camcorder, which is being listed as supporting resolutions up to 1080p at 60 frames per second. If that doesn't make you start to salivate, let's just say that it's pretty much as good as it gets, resolution-wise, with current technology. The price will be high, for sure, but it looks like Panasonic has a contender in the top-end HD video space to go up against Sony and Canon. (Thanks, Jeff!) More »
In Brief
Hitachi Deskstar 7K500: First 500GB Drive
Hitachi's Deskstar 7K500 offers two flaps of firsts, being not only the first to hit half a terabyte in a single drive, but one of the very first to use the SATA II interface—that means more data at faster speeds. If you don't have an SATA II interface in your PC, though, Hitachi will be offering a $500 version with an 8MB buffer and a parallel ATA interface (the long, flat, ribbon cable kind). If you want the SATA II offering, it's just 20 bucks more—plus you get a bigger 16MB cache. More »
In Brief
T-Mobile Official HP iPaq h6315 ROM Update
The HP iPaq h6315 Windows Mobile smartphone has been troubled since it first launched on T-Mobile, with email and connectivity issues that caused the carrier to effectively pull the device off its shelves. Now they're releasing a new ROM update that purports to fix most of the issues, so if you've already plunked down the cash for a h6315 you feel like you're stuck with, you'd be well served to give it download before you go crying to T-Mobile for a replacement (and if it doesn't, you should). More »
In Brief
Motorola MPx4 Details; Update: Lies!
MSMobiles, the only tech site run by a real, live madman (mad about Windows Mobile, of course!), is reporting details of the hybrid offspring of the hit Motorola RAZR and the unreleased-in-the-States MPx smartphone. The new hybrid will be called the 'MPx4,' feature a RAZR-like flat design, but no built-in QWERTY keyboard (the very thing that makes the MPx unique). Essentially, it's a RAZR running Windows Mobile, with an updated screen and camera, as well as built-in Wi-Fi. It sounds hotish, but you people know how I feel about the lack of QWERTY keyboards in smartphones (I need thumbkeys; it's in my blood). More »
In Brief
TiVo Pop-Up Ads Are Huge
I had thought, perhaps, that the TiVo users were getting a bit worked up over the TiVo pop-up ads that are in testing, because last I heard they only take up a quarter of the screen. Matt Haughey
In Brief
Shuffle Swimsuit Models for Charity
Nearly-naked college kids posting with iPod shuffles for charity. What's not to love? (I mean, besides the charity part.) More »
In Brief
RFID Implantee Graafstra Interviewed
Remember the guy who had an RFID implanted in his hand? BMEzine's Jordan Ginsberg has a nice interview with Amal Graafstra, the geek in question, about why he did, it, what the procedure was like, and what he plans to do now that he has a radio-frequency tag stuck in his hand. More »
In Brief
• ABS Ultimate E2 Media Center PC First Look [DesignTechnica]
• Toilet Tree [Treehugger] More »
Afternoon Bits
Product Highlights• ABS Ultimate E2 Media Center PC First Look [DesignTechnica]
• Toilet Tree [Treehugger] More »
In Brief
Nikon D50 Entry-Level DSLR Details Leaked
Nikon Germany accidentally let the product manual for the new Nikon D50 leak on the web for a bit. It's been pulled already, but not before the pertinent details of the new entry-level DSLR were extracted. Expect the the D50 to have a 6.1-megapixel sensor, a silver case, and use SD cards for storage. Now all we need is a price (expect it well under a grand). More »
Laptops / PCs
Dell Sells Samsung Q30 as Latitude X1
Dell surprised me today with the announcement of the Latitude X1 Ultraportable, better known around these parts as the Samsung Q30. Dell licensed the design from the Korean manufacturer and is selling it through their site starting at $1,700. It's a fine bit of laptop, with a 1.1GHz Pentium M, sealed anti-spill keyboard and all the fixins'. It's not quite as nice looking as the Samsung model with that dour Dell grey, but who cares? This is a great little laptop for a very reasonable price. It might even miss the Dell laptop curse, too, and stand more than 12 months of abuse. More »
In Brief
