Gizmodo: James Bond

DNA Proves Your Fancy Suit Isn't a Fake

Kristen Philipkoski — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 14:40:00 EDT

Wool from Yorkshire in Northern England is so fabulous that bad guys want to counterfeit it. More »

A Back-of-the-Hand Touch Interface That's Perfect for Super Spies

Kwame Opam — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 11:40:00 EDT

This "wristwatch" looks clunky as all hell now, but with work it has some formidable applications. It was designed to use the back of your hand as a haptic interface. It's obvious. It was meant for James Bond. More »

Still Ordering Martinis Shaken, Not Stirred? Better Download This App, Then

Kat Hannaford — Tue, 31 May 2011 07:00:09 EDT

Honestly, if you thought James Bond's only tipple was a martini shaken, not stirred, think again—and cough up $2 for the Bond Mixology app, which carefully catalogues every drink from every scene from every Bond movie. More »

Bond #23: The Latest 007 Film Coming November 2012

Adrian Covert — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 02:40:00 EST

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It's official. Daniel Craig will appear in his third James Bond film (the 23rd overall). The spy flick picks up where Quantum of Solace left off, and this time around, Sam Mendes will direct, making it even more promising. More »

James Bond's Golden Gun Replica Made From Cigarette Case, Lighter, Cufflink and Pen Could Be Yours

Kat Hannaford — Fri, 07 Jan 2011 07:20:00 EST

Because the actual Golden Gun used in the James Bond film will likely never go up for auction, one of the few solid gold-plated replicas ever made is expected to sell for over $2,000 this month. [SWNS] More »

Guy Tries to Sell Watch for $9.95, Gets $66,100

Jesus Diaz — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 19:00:00 EST

That smiling white-haired guy with the wine glass is Bob, a Navy doctor who put his watch for sale on eBay for $9.95. He got it cheap at a Navy Exchange fifty-two years ago. The final auction price: $66,100. More »

Intriguing Gifts for the Dashing Spy

Bryan Gardiner — Tue, 07 Dec 2010 11:00:00 EST

Have a Bond lover in your life (who doesn't)? Skip the jet packs and dagger shoes this holiday season. Here are 9 semi-practical gifts guaranteed to satisfy the most fervent gadget-crazy spy. Sex puns sold separately. More »

Keep This Altoids Tin Martini Kit On You at All Times

Kyle VanHemert — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 20:20:00 EST

I will say this up front: I like projects that stuff cool things in little Altoids tins. Don't know why! I just do. But I think we can all get behind this one, which puts a martini in your pocket. More »

The 10 Greatest Fictional Inventors of All Time

Kyle VanHemert — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 12:00:00 EDT

Eureka has been Giz's celebration of inventors of all stripe, from Tesla to Popeil. But some of the most memorable inventors of our time were actually invented themselves. Here are ten fictional innovators near and dear to our hearts. More »

Tag Heuer's Squadra Night Vision Glasses Are For Alpha Eyeballs Only

Kyle VanHemert — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 01:20:00 EDT

Tag Heuer, best known for their fancy, manly watches, also makes fancy, manly eyewear, and the Squadra night vision glasses are their newest pair. They have titanium arms, high-contrast lenses, and make all the other spectacles nearby feel kinda wimpy. More »

James Bond's Gadget-Laden Aston Martin DB5 Car Could Be Yours For $5m

Kat Hannaford — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 04:44:00 EDT

You love James Bond as much as the next man, but $5m? Do you love Bond that much? Someone out there does—with one of the two cars driven by Sean Connery in the films now up for auction. More »

"High Def" Camcorder Watch Captures Unnecessarily Creepy Vacation Memories

Mark Wilson — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 08:30:04 EST

One day, there will be a camera in every object you see. In essence, each object you look at will be looking back at you. Until then, we just have this bulky HD watch. More »

Samsung "World's Thinnest" Watchphone Also Happens to Be One of the World's Only Watchphones

John Herrman — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 16:48:40 EDT

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Samsung's only real watchphone competitor hasn't even launched its product yet, so it's a little early for the marketing oneupmanship. Regardless, the S9110 is an impressive piece of kit, with a 1.76-inch touchscreen, Bluetooth, email support and MP3 playback. More »

James Bond Museum Permanently Blows Bond's Cover

Mark Wilson — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 14:40:00 EDT

After 20 years of collecting, one Bond enthusiast has amassed enough James Bond memorabilia to open a museum. More »

James Bond's Weird World of Inventions Chronicles 007 in 1966

Elaine Chow — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 05:00:00 EST

The James Bond series has always had gushing reviews of their gadgety goodness, even before Jesus' take on Quantum of Solace. This January 1966 article, “James Bond's Weird World of Inventions” look backs to the time when Sean Connery was filling 007's shoes. Remember the Disco Volante, the110-foot hydrofoil floating fortress? How about the Bell jet-pack Bond uses in the opening scenes of Thunderball? More »

Quantum of Solace Is the Perfect Bond Movie

Jesus Diaz — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 13:00:00 EST

The latest Bond is the perfect Bond Movie. Yes. It is. In fact, Quantum of Solace is not only the perfect Bond movie, it's the best Bond movie ever, period. Even surpassing Casino Royale-and I mean both the Craig's one and the original Peter Sellers, David Niven, and Woody Allen's delirium-which to me surpassed Connery's best (I know, sacrilege). It has everything a Bond film must have and more: Cars, cocktails, airplanes, boats, cocktails, smart hot girls, evil baddies, slimy baddie sidekicks, cocktails, and gadgets. Contrary to previous versions, the new Bond actually has some cool gadgets in it. I don't mean cheesy stupid mini-rockets firing from the exhaust pipe of an Aston Martin or laser watches that can cut through steel and french lingerie. I mean cool, believable technology that integrates in the movie transparently. To start with, real multitouch makes a stellar appearance with a giant Microsoft-Surface-style table which Judi Dench-the head of MI6-and other agents use with ease, simultaneously. In fact, the user interface on the table-albeit adorned for the required Hollywood eye candy-actually makes sense and is extremely attractive, gestures included. Everything on it is doable with current technology, even the part in which they place a dollar bill and it gets automatically scanned and identified. There's also the huge video wall at M's office. Unlike the multitouch surface, this is a CGI effect. However, with enough money and the use of transparent OLED technology and gesture recognition, the video wall is also perfectly doable. In fact, I saw something similar in my visit to Philips Labs last August, although that transparent video wall-a simulation of a glass storefront-used projection rather than OLEDs. Only a couple of technologies were exaggerated. One was Bond's cellphone camera capabilities-with 007 taking pictures of faces with 3D depth of field information from a very long distance. The other was the speed of data transmission between the cellphone and MI6's headquarters. However, you can perfectly imagine that all that may be real in the military world and just not available to consumers, specially looking at some of the latest camera and communications research. But what really makes this movie is not the technology. Yes, it plays an important role: Bond gets geolocation information on the baddies, and he uses his camera to get some of their pics, which then are analyzed and cross-referenced by MI6 databases. But none of it is a gimmick. There is no magic zippo lighter capable of launching kinetic rocket fire balls and save the day at the end of the movie. The technology in Quantum of Solace is realistic and it integrates naturally into the film, it flows with the plot. What makes it the best Bond movie ever is what makes an action movie good. The script to start with. Serious, but also witty, and with the right amount of reality stretching. It even has an underlying social theme, which is interesting and relates to the current world's political climate. Marc Forster's direction makes you wish he directed Indiana Jones IV. His movie runs like clockwork, with the action scenes being masterfully choreographed and filmed, and painting a deeper, much more complex portrait of not only Bond, but also M, who gets a lot more presence in this one (and is Judy bloody Dench. I rest my case). And then there is Bond himself. Daniel Craig really makes the movie work with his presence alone. He's a badass, but feels absolutely human. He has flair and a taste for luxury-wait until he arrives to Bolivia to see what I mean-but he gets gritty and dirty all the time. He could be a psychopath, but you can see that he has heart. He can seduce a women into bed like the best Connery would do, but you can actually see that he cares about her. You can feel that he is a hopeless romantic below the cold surface. A guy consumed by the need of vengeance and the contradiction of being betrayed by the love of his life. Yet, at the same time, he still loves her to the point of risking everything, even while she is dead. And he likes cocktails. Yes. Go. See it. Now. More »

Ex-CIA Officer Laments Q's Absence from Modern James Bond

Mon, 10 Nov 2008 14:30:00 EST

Quantum of Solace, the new James Bond movie scheduled for release in mid-November might be a fine movie, but something is missing. There is no Q. James Bond without Q is like toast without butter. Over more than three decades, Q's work amazed audiences and saved Bond's life. Q's inventions confounded Bond's adversaries and inspired engineers at the CIA-really-to stretch the limits of physics and adapt the most advanced technology to espionage needs. I used to run that department, the CIA Office of Technical Service. More »

Sony Starts Auction Royale For Bond-Themed VAIO TT

Elaine Chow — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 03:15:00 EDT

In case you're a huge James Bond fan just on the verge of buying a laptop, Sony's auctioning off a hundred 007-branded VAIO TTs to promote the Nov. 14 release of Quantum of Solace. Each 2.9-pound TT packs an Intel Centrino 2 processor, 4GB RAM, a 64GB SSD, an 11.1-inch XBRITE LCD screen and a built-in webcam. Along with the laptop, you'll also get a matching leather carrying case. In case you think Sony's just trying to get its Goldfinger on, all proceeds from the auction will go to 1% For The Planet, a charity that gets companies to donate 1% of their sales to environmental organizations. [Ebay] More »

This Week in Blu-ray: Bond Edition, James Bond Edition

Mark Wilson — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 10:00:00 EDT

Giz Pick of the Week: From Russia With Love More »

Swatch 007 Villain Watches, Because Bad Guys Aren't Spending Taxpayer Money

Mark Wilson — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 14:00:00 EDT

Generally when we lock all the doors, put on a tuxedo t-shirt and fantasize about being James Bond, we don't reach for our Swatch collection to complete the ensemble. But the new 007 Villain collection from Swatch simultaneously captures some of the camp and style of the James Bond films in something that you could actually wear every day. 19 unique watches in all, models start at $60 and work their way to $250. These three are from Live and Let Die, Goldfinger and the upcoming Quantum of Solace—that's right, we threw in a Roger Moore movie just to start a geek fight in the comments. [Swatch via OhGizmo] More »

Q Totally Phones in Bond's New Quantum of Solace VAIO

John Mahoney — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 09:40:00 EDT

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Overheard in MI6 4th-floor martini lounge: "Man, it used to be fun heading down to Q's lab. Shit blowing up all the time, everyone just grinning and shaking their head knowingly (oh, James) when I accidentally incinerated prototype after expensive and high-time-investment prototype. Now? Dude's just going to down to the high street shops and slapping some logos on. Look at this laptop—it's garden variety Z-series: 13.3 inches, Core 2 Duo, 128GB SSD, 4GB RAM, 3G connection, Blu-ray. And he's billing M £3,000 ($5,300) for it. Same for my phone. I mean, they're nice and all, but WTF?" [Gadget Review, T3] More »

Bullet-Shaped Bollinger Champagne Cooler, For 007's Giant Gun

Kit Eaton — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 12:10:00 EDT

A giant gun that fires bullets containing chilled bottles of Bollinger...sounds like a psychedelic James Bond-theme dream. But at least the bullet bit is nearly a reality. Bollinger has come up with this 007-themed champagne bottle cooler in time for Quantum of Solace that actually is bullet-shaped, though there's no giant Walther PPK to fire it. It's fabulously silly, and presumably fabulously priced since it's a strictly limited edition run of just 207. Maybe Bond should worry about it though: you know, the saying goes "somewhere out there there's a bullet with your name on it"... [Sybarites via Luxurylaunches] More »

Question of the Day: Do You Miss the "Q" Character in the New James Bond Films?

Sean Fallon — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 17:00:00 EDT

As most of you already know, Quantum of Solace is scheduled to hit theaters on November 14th. The second trailer for the film came out last week and while it does seem to feature some Minority Report-style gadgetry, there is still no "Q" gadget guru in the film. Personally, I love the direction that the Bond character is going in, so I haven't really missed the over-the-top gadgetry. But what about you? Do you miss the "Q" character? More »

Casino Royale Special Edition Is The First Second Blu-ray Double Dip

Jason Chen — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 20:00:00 EDT

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Casino Royale, a film from Sony Pictures, is going to be the title to hold the dubious honor of being ~~first~~ to double-dip on "Sony's" Blu-ray format. We're honestly surprised that it took this long. The $39 October 21 release will have seven hours of extras that weren't in the original Blu-ray or DVD release, which may or may not be enough to get you to buy the same movie twice. Those of you hoping the already more expensive Blu-ray format would have gotten studios on the "release once" method should really tone down your optimism a little bit. [Hollywood Newsroom - Thanks Christopher!] More »

James Bond's Sony Ericsson C902 Cybershot to go Public

Kit Eaton — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 06:10:00 EDT

Sometimes the strangest part of writing for Giz is decoding press releases: like this morning's Sony Ericsson one. Did they leave out an image of the upcoming special limited-edition C902 Cybershot James Bond phone to add to the mystery? Is it supposed to be kinda secret, à la Bond himself? Who knows: luckily T3 snagged a picture of the "titanium silver" phone. 007 himself uses it in the movie Quantum of Solace, and you can get your hands on one too. Hardware-wise the phone is unchanged from the 5-megapixel camera original, but will come with 007-themed content, including a "spy-style" game. Quite how this makes sure you're "ready for any challenge" I'm not sure. It's a mystery. As is price and release date. Blimey, Sony Ericsson's really good at this cloak-and-dagger stuff isn't it? [Sony Ericsson and T3] More »

Full-Size Cardboard Aston Martin for Papier-Mâché Bonds

Jesus Diaz — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 23:45:00 EDT

This Ashton Martin DB5 is a full-sized, almost-perfect reproduction of the original Bond car—down to the front-blinkers machine guns and Ben-Hurish wheels' blades—built using only cardboard and glue. It has no supporting structure, neither metal nor wood. Her Majesty's cardboard spy car was built by Chris Gilmour, who has a tendency to convert everything in 1:1 scale cardboard models, from bikes to giant strong boxes to dragsters to dentist chairs, grand pianos, and portable typewriters: More »

Get Your James Bond Blu-Ray Fix For 32 Percent Less Off Amazon

Elaine Chow — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 21:00:00 EDT

Excited about the quintessential Bond collection coming out on Blu Ray in October? Amazon's giving you an even greater reason to be excited—a 32-percent discount on several James Bond films, including a Sean Connery three-pack of Dr. No, From Russia with Love and Thunderball. The perhaps less venerable three-pack of Pierce Brosnan's Die Another Day and Roger Moore-manned Live and Let Die and For Your Eyes Only is also on sale. Each Blu-ray will cost $24. [Amazon] More »

The Real James Bond Comes to Blu-ray October 21

Jason Chen — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 15:40:00 EDT

The best (read: Sean Connery) James Bond is finally coming to Blu-ray when six older Bond flicks are released later this year. Dr. No, From Russia With Love, Thunderball, For Your Eyes Only, Live and Let Die and Die Another Day are hitting Blu-ray on October 21, the same time as the new Daniel Craig movie Quantum of Solace. There are a couple Brosnan and Moore flicks in there too, if you like that sort of thing. No pricing info yet. Expect to pay hundreds of dollars for the entire Bond series on Blu-ray, which you'll have to re-buy again in about 15 years when the next, better format/encoding standard is out. More »

The Veldini Q Wristwatch Was Inspired By James Bond: And it Has the Spy Gadgets to Prove It

Sean Fallon — Sun, 25 May 2008 19:00:00 EDT

Even if eavesdropping on your co-worker's personal phone calls is the closest you will ever get to becoming a spy, a watch filled with spy gadgets is hard for any man to resist. Perhaps that is why Veldini plans on releasing at least 3 different models of their new "Q" James Bond inspired wristwatch. Each will feature its own set of tools geared towards a specific scenario: outdoor use, spy use, and everyday use. More »

CIA Spy Gadgets Revealed: Q Ain't Got Nothin' On Langley

Wilson Rothman — Wed, 21 May 2008 10:00:00 EDT

This week is Gizmodo's salute to CIA spy technology. What's the occasion? The May 29th release of Spycraft: The Secret History of the CIA's Spytechs from Communism to al-Qaeda, by Robert Wallace and H. Keith Melton (with Henry R. Schlesinger). While we don't typically review books, this one happens to be the best we've ever seen on the subject of old-school spyware, a book the CIA itself held up for many many months before just barely deeming it safe for public consumption, a book that pretty much proves that all the freaky spy gadgetry you've seen in movies—and some that you haven't—is ALL TOTALLY REAL. More »

Autopage C3 Remote Unlocks, Starts and Tracks Your Ride Via Cellphone

Eric Sheline — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 20:17:07 EST

The C3 system gives a car owner a link to their vehicle from anywhere they get cell phone reception, using either java-based software or a WAP interface. Among its many features, C3 can unlock and start your car, track it via GPS, alert you to unwanted car movement, and arm your car alarm. Paranoid parents can also set a "speed alert" that will message them when the car exceeds a certain preset speed. More »

Jaeger LeCoultre Watch Unlocks Aston Martin DBS

Jason Chen — Tue, 11 Sep 2007 13:50:14 EDT

If buying a $332,000 Aston Martin DBS is in your budget for this year, why not spend a little more and get a $35,000 Jaeger LeCoultre wristwatch. It's not just a watch that looks great, it can actually lock, unlock and possibly activate the alarm (maybe) from a distance. Even though Bond has dabbled in BMWs lately, his heart's still with Aston Martin—except his version of the watch can drive the car, shoot missiles, electrocute sharks and orally pleasure a woman to completion. Plus, his is free. [Motor Authority via The Raw Feed] More »

James Bond Boat Car Available Soon For Less Than You'd Expect

Jason Chen — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 17:20:16 EDT

The folks in the UK have already had the Gibbs Aquada boat-car for a while, but us Bond-aspirers in the US will have our chance in the first half of 2009. The best news is we won't have to have Her Majesty's finance department for this one, since it'll be under $100,00 and be road and water legal. More »

007 Cellphone For the Secret Asian Man

Jason Chen — Mon, 14 May 2007 16:40:34 EDT

Oh yeah, we could totally see James bond using this gigantic monstrosity of a cellphone. In our opinion, Roger Moore could have used this VIP 007 cellphone from China back in the '70s, where it would seem completely futuristic and blend right in with the other tacky stuff they shoved into his films (call us Connery fans). More »

James Bond's USB Thumb Drive: Kills Men, Stores Data

Gizloco — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 15:10:07 EST

When James Bond isn't too busy killing Russians, blowing things up and banging 10s, he's bringing his valuable data with him wherever he goes. Word is he uses this special edition Micro Vault James Bond USB drive from Sony. The drive comes pre-loaded with the trailer for Casino Royale as well as four high def wallpapers from the film. Even nicer is the Virtual Expander program that compresses certain types of files so as to "expand" the storage size by up to three times. More »

Lipstick Pen: If James Bond Were a Drag Queen

Mark Wilson — Sat, 28 Oct 2006 14:30:19 EDT

Q: "Mr. Bond, please try out our latest invention in your arsenal." More »

007's Toys Suck: VGNTX007C James Bond Vaio Lacking EVDO

Brian Lam — Fri, 20 Oct 2006 20:24:33 EDT

Following the Casino Royale edition Sony Ericsson cellphones, Sony is dropping an attache case with special 007 Vaio and Cameras inside called the VGNTX007C Limited Edition Spy Gear. Q is on crack to pick this gear for Bond. Sure, that Vaio TX is a nice bit of hardware, with a Core Solo chip, carbon fiber frame, and an 11-inch screen. It even has a privacy shield, probably like the one made by 3M. More »

Sony Ericsson Releases Limited Edition James Bond K800 and K790

Jason Chen — Fri, 13 Oct 2006 15:18:08 EDT

Sony Ericsson's pumping up their upcoming Sony Picture's James Bond flick, Casino Royale, with some limited edition James Bond phones. Despite the fact that these K800s and K790s are old hat and James Bond should be using top-of-the-line gear (Q needs to read Gizmodo more!), they are pretty nice handsets and work on dual-mode UMTS (K800) and tri-band EDGE (K790). The phones will come with some wallpapers, ringtones, and themes all tying in with the new movie. More »

Spyrock: From Russia With Love

Noah R — Tue, 24 Jan 2006 10:31:02 EST

Russia is accusing the Brits of placing "spy gadgets" inside of fake rocks. From the looks of it, James Bond used some kind of handheld PDA to beam data to the inside of a fake rock. The Russian counterparts would, presumably, then upload the data from the rock using a similar PDA-like device. There is hidden camera footage of the spyrock, but no word on the type of devices used—or whether they were Bluetooth enabled, cellular, or simply i-Stones.

Hidden camera footage appeared to show individuals walking up to the rock by the side of a Moscow street, according to media reports. One man was seen on camera carrying the rock away. The rock appears to be about the size of a thick book.

James Bond Spy Camera

johnb — Mon, 15 Aug 2005 12:03:11 EDT

Buddup! Dwank! Buddup Dwank! Dum-dum-da-da-dum-dum. Dum-dum-da-da-dum-dum! No matter what happens, I'll still remember the old James Bond movies with absolute fondness. They can turn the franchise into a strange amalgam of Rambo and Lethal Weapon, but I'll always love the gadgets. More »