CASIO RELEASES FIRMWARE UPDATE FOR EXILIM PRO EX-F1 ULTRA-HIGH SPEED BURST SHOOTING DIGITAL CAMERA

Update Adds New “Prerecord Movie” Function That Permits Movie Capture to Commence 5 Seconds before the User Actually Presses the Movie Button

DOVER, NJ, JULY 7, 2008 – Casio America, Inc. and its parent company, Casio Computer Co., Ltd., announced a firmware update for the EXILIM® Pro EX-F1 digital camera today. The update will add Casio’s unique “Prerecord movie” function to the camera, helping to ensure that users will never miss another once-in-a-lifetime scene when shooting movies. Firmware Ver. 1.10 for the EX-F1 will be available on Casio’s English website starting July 8, and thereafter on websites in other languages.

Released in March this year, the EXILIM Pro EX-F1 features ultra-high speed burst shooting, enabling users to capture every instant of each priceless memory at 60 still images per second in high resolution, 6.0-megapixel quality. It also comes with a High Speed movie mode that records up to 1,200 frames per second, permitting ultra-slow motion playback of movement that is too fast for the human eye to perceive. The EX-F1 has won great acclaim and popularity as the first of an entirely new genre of digital cameras that is totally changing the nature of photography.

Casio introduced Firmware Ver. 1.02 in April 2008 to improve the camera’s ease of use. That release offered a greatly reduced start-up time and enabled high speed zooming when recording Full High-Definition movies. The new Firmware Ver. 1.10 adds the Prerecord Movie function, which, when turned on, permits movie capture to commence 5 seconds before the user actually presses the Movie Button. Prerecord Movie works with all movie modes, including 30 fps Standard movie mode, the 300 fps, 600 fps and 1200 fps High Speed movie modes, and the Full High-Definition movie mode. This firmware update will help users get the most out of their EXILIM Pro EX-F1 digital cameras. The days of shooting movies but missing the best part of the moment are gone.

Firmware Ver. 1.10 for the EXILIM Pro EX-F1 will be available for download free of charge from Casio’s website.

New Features in Firmware Ver. 1.10

Prerecord Movie function added, allowing recording to commence 5 seconds before the user presses the Movie Button

• Compatible with 300 fps, 600 fps, 1200 fps, and 30-300 fps High Speed movie modes

• Compatible with 1920x1080 pixel Full High-Definition movie mode

• Compatible with 1280x720 pixel High-Definition movie mode

• Compatible with 30 fps Standard movie mode

Click on the image above to get the high-res image

F-35 Shopping List

29,036 pounds of composite, aluminum, titanium, and miscellaneous alloys for the fuselage.

1 × Pratt & Whitney F135 afterburning turbofan.

1 × Rolls-Royce Lift System (for STOVL model).

1 × Multi-Mission Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) Radar.

1 × Electro-Optical Distributed Aperture System, for full 360º situational awareness.

1 × Electro-Optical Targeting System + 1 × Sapphire Window.

1 × Helmet Mounted Display from hell.

1 × GAU-22/A 25 mm cannon.

1 × 8" x 20" Multi-Function (panoramic projection) Display System (image below).

[The Dew Line]

Citing industry sources, Marketing Week heard that the relationship between the two companies has become "frosty" and that Sony would “never give its PlayStation branding” to a Sony Ericsson joint venture. If it were true, it could go a long way in explaining the recently released F305 which is certainly not PlayStation branded and seems to fall well short of a fabled PSP phone. Could it be that Sony is throwing Ericsson scraps while they keep the juicy ideas to themselves? There have been a lot of rumors thrown out there about a PSP phone, and so far nothing has materialized. We will just have to wait and see. [Marketing Week]

TOSHIBA EMPHASIZES INNOVATION AND STYLE WITH NEW QOSMIO FAMILY

Qosmio Series Consists of Three Distinct Models that Uniquely Sport a Quad Core HD Processor, Gaming Grade Graphics and GPS Chipset

IRVINE, Calif., (June 17, 2008) - Toshiba’s Digital Products Division (DPD),
today announced the expansion of its flagship Qosmio brand with three unique laptops, the Qosmio G55, Qosmio X305 and Qosmio F55. These new laptops are specifically designed for users who enjoy gaming, multimedia and advanced mobility technology.

“The Qosmio has long been the standard of excellence in the multimedia laptop space, in both styling and entertainment capabilities,” said Jeff Barney, vice president and general manager, Digital Products Division, Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc. “In an effort to take this standard to the next level for gamers and multimedia enthusiasts alike, the three new Qosmio models have been tailored specifically towards their personal interests, while staying true to the incredible user-experience that the Qosmio family is known for.”

Designed to meet the needs of a growing demographic of digital consumers, each new Qosmio harnesses unique features that set them apart from their respective Qosmio siblings.

The Qosmio G55 is the world’s first notebook to incorporate a parallel media co-processor, which is based on the revolutionary Cell processor1 technology co-developed by Toshiba, Sony and IBM. This technology is best known for its use within the popular Sony PlayStation® 3 and various supercomputers. Branded as the TOSHIBA Quad Core HD Processor, users have more power than ever to control and create personal movie projects with unmatched speed and efficiency. Additionally, the Qosmio G55 sports up to 500GB of hard drive storage space, and is the first laptop from Toshiba to include an expansive 18.4-inch diagonal widescreen TruBrite® high-definition display sporting a true 16:9 aspect ratio that’s perfect for serious filmmakers.

As high-definition digital camcorders become more affordable, people quickly learn that video editing is a time-intensive process. Video often must be converted from the camcorder’s format into one the editing software understands (called transcoding). Burning the video onto a DVD requires reducing the resolution to standard-definition and then transcoding the final product to a DVD Video MPEG2 format. A 10-minute video can take an hour or more to transcode using a high performance processor. Offloading that work from the CPU to the TOSHIBA Quad Core HD Processor boosts the transcoding speed up to 10 times2 faster. The Toshiba DVD Player software also takes advantage of this extra performance, upscaling DVD video to high definition.

Toshiba’s Qosmio X305 is a powerful gaming rig that’s built around a stunning 17.1-inch diagonal widescreen TruBrite high-definition display. Designed to provide gamers with the highest laptop performance possible, select Qosmio X305’s take advantage of the latest NVIDIA® GeForce® 9800 GTX GPU3, up to 1GB VRAM graphics memory, dual hard drives with up to 400GB of collective storage space, as well as leading-edge DDR3 RAM4. Collectively these features power a premium gaming machine that’s designed for high-level competition, while also looking the part of a gaming machine with an aggressively bold chassis and red-flamed Rogue design topped off with Toshiba’s Fusion™ finish.

The Qosmio F55 with its 15.4-inch diagonal widescreen TruBrite high-definition display is a worthy gaming machine that also takes mobility seriously. Sporting gaming grade NVIDIA GeForce 9700 GTS graphics users can enjoy a fluid and impressive gaming experience. Toshiba’s first laptop with a built-in GPS receiver and Garmin™ mapping software, the Qosmio F55 frees users from the need for an Internet connection when searching for millions of points of interest, as the built-in GPS system empowers users to determine their exact location in relation to their destination within moments.

Beyond the laptops, the new Qosmio family has the power to be extended into the living room through REGZA LINK™ HDMI technology. This standard feature enables simultaneous instant device configuration, and the ability to control REGZA LINK enabled devices, such as Toshiba’s REGZA™ HDTVs and a Qosmio laptop with a single remote.

Adding to their quality appeal, the Qosmio X305, Qosmio G55 and Qosmio F55 feature several prominent design characteristics that magnify the cutting-edge nature of the series. Each Qosmio sports a striking new chassis design and Fusion™ finish, Feathertouch multimedia buttons, a flush-mounted Touchpad, a high-speed eSATA port and Harman® Kardon high-fidelity bass reflex speakers with a built-in sub-woofer. These features do much to enhance the overall quality and premium feel of the new Qosmio series.
Each new Qosmio model will be available later this summer from a variety of major consumer electronics and computer stores nationwide or available directly from Toshiba at www.toshibadirect.com. Additional information is available at www.explore.toshiba.com/Qosmio.

All new Toshiba laptops are RoHS-compatible5, effectively reducing the environmental impact by restricting the use of lead, mercury and certain other hazardous substances. Beginning in the third Quarter of 2008, Toshiba will offer a computer trade-in and recycling program for all manufacturer’s PCs to reduce environmental impact and promote efficient utilization of resources. To learn more about this free PC recycling program or to find out how to recycle other consumer electronic products, please visit: www.toshiba.eztradein.com/toshiba.

Other details are slightly less impressive. It's quad-band GSM with only EDGE, has a Power Pack CCP-100 purchasable accessory for backup battery capabilities, stereo rear speakers, Bluetooth connectivity to other phones for multiplayer, Memory Stick Micro slot, built-in FM, TrackID track recognition, and a "selected market" release in Q3 of this year. Se-nse says it'll be formally announced on Tuesday. [Se-nse]

• Electric controlled
• Canopy
• Cannon
• Swing wings
• Landing gear
• Landing gear bay doors
• Steering of front wheel
• 2 Engines
• Pneumatic compressor
• Pneumatically controlled
• Brakes (main fuselage+wings)
• Arrester hook
• Flaps (front & aft on main wings)
• Glove vanes
• Air Intake Control System doors
• Main landing gear lock
• Manual controlled
• Vertical flaps
• Differentially controlled stabilators
• Air fuel intake nozzle
• Ejection seats

It may not fly like the A-10 RC model, but Jeroen's creation is equally as impressive on its own right. [Flickr via Brothers Brick]

The girl's actually holding the F703i, not the F706i, which inconveniently doesn't have a photo of her in a tub demonstrating how it works. Use your imagination please.

[New Launches]

Using a petrol-powered disc cutter, 40-year-old Taylor sawed the Ford Fiesta in half, almost setting it on fire in the process. Both the Fire Brigade and the police were called in, amid reports of a crazed man on the loose with a chainsaw (memo to onlookers, KNOW YOUR TOOLS).

Taylor, a builder, was originally going to restore the Fiesta but, realizing it was beyond repair, decided to scrap it. And then the clampers turned up. "We tried to talk to [the parking enforcers]," said 40-year-old Taylor. "I said, 'you're not taking it.' I got my cutter and cut it in half," he said. "[I'm] happy I got one over on them. They're jobsworths, for the sake of an inch and a half on the path."

The clampers saw it differently, however. "We were astonished at the reaction this gentleman had to the fact we put a clamp on his car," said a spokesman for NCP Services. "It was a remarkable incident which highlighted some of the problems my colleagues face while they're doing what is a very important job in ensuring that motorists tax their vehicle." Yes, but—

"And in cutting his car in two," continued the spokesman, "he managed to put both himself at risk and also a number of bystanders—along with ourselves, the police had to be called and the fire brigade, as he set fire to the car while cutting it in two." Finished?

Apparently not. "Fortunately, the only damage was done to his car and as far as our people are concerned we stand by what they did." Thank you. [The Sun and BBC News]

• Both can do full high-def shooting—Casio at 1080i but Samsung beats it, with 1080p
• The Samsung can do slow-mo at 300 frames per second (presumably in standard def, but maybe in HD; Casio can do 300fps, 600fps and 1200fps
• Both can take still pictures while shooting video—very helpful indeed
• Although the Samsung is positioned as a camcorder and the Casio is called a camera, they both have 6-megapixel CMOS sensors

Given the CES announcement and the Korea launch, we can only assume that the HMX20 will be one of the items in Samsung's summer line show lineup. That's good news for everybody—except maybe Casio. [Samsung Press Release via PC World]

Woodhead compensated for the 1200fps' paltry 336x96 frame size by stitching four different Mentos tests together, and the results are awesome. Globs, ribbons and rings of Coke that are impossible to track in real time come to life when seen in slow-motion.

Watch out later today for another homemade slow-mo video; things will only get messier. [Robert Woodhead]

You've already seen the slow-mo tomato blending, and you've seen the slow-mo DIY backyard Discovery Channel. You get it, it can do slow-mo. But there are other features that stand to be demo'd on video, so take a look:
Let's recap exactly what talents the camera has that have not, in any meaningful combination, been seen before in a consumer-level camera:
• Slow-mo video shooting at 300, 600 and 1200 frames per second
• Fast-slow-fast shooting from 30fps to 300 and back to 30 — I call this the "she walked in the room" mode, because it's what they do in cheesy 80s movies to indicate the protagonist's love interest
• High-speed 6-megapixel shots at 60fps
• Strobe shooting of stills at 7 frames per second with standard flash; 60fps with LED flash
• Full-resolution still shooting while capturing HD video
• Fly-in and fly-out auto modes, which capture still shots at 60fps when the subject enter or exit the frame

EX-F1 as Camcorder
As a camcorder, it covers a lot of bases. In HD mode, it can shoot 60 "fields" at 1920x1080—that's code for 1080i—and 30 "frames" at 1280x720, all the while letting you take a total of 20 6-megapixel still shots. Since David Pogue's review ran, Casio published firmware 1.02 that fixes a major complaint: When shooting video, you now can actively use the 12x optical zoom lens.

We've covered the slow-motion camera already quite a bit, but let me be clear: it shoots 300, 600 or 1200 fps and encodes them on the fly to an H.264 file at 30 frames per second. So 1 second of shooting equals 10 seconds of footage. This causes some challenges, like long periods of lag between action, but there's a very easy in-camera editing tool that deletes all unneeded footage. You can't use the zoom in high-speed mode, but trust me, there's no time to zoom when you're shooting like that.

As you saw in the video above, there's also a mode for going from standard-def 30fps to slow-mo 300fps and then back again, what I call the "she walked into the room" mode. It's pretty cool, and probably more useful than just standard slow-mo.Also, to recap: when shooting at 300fps, you get "standard" video resolution of 512x384. At 600fps, it drops to a tolerable widescreen, 432x192. But when you shoot in 1200fps, you end up with a bizarre 336x96, really long and thin. There's also a major loss of light when switching from standard to slow-mo, and then each subsequent jump. 1200fps is only good outdoors on a very sunny day, but even 300fps is no good in any kind of dim light. It makes sense, of course, but you need to consider it, especially if you're into experimental amateur porn cinematography.

Auto-focus is decent for still shooting, but I sometimes found for slow-mo video that it was simpler just to go manual. If you start recording slow-mo video out of focus, there's very little hope that it will focus during your shot.

One other frustration I experienced was that videos occasionally came out garbled or unreadable. I hope the 1.02 firmware update has a fix for that—I can only assume it's a known and fixable problem, albeit an annoying one.

EX-F1 as Still Camera
To be clear, this camera is the anti-DSLR. It's as digital as you can get, so you have to expect some photographic shortcomings. But the tradeoffs are reasonable, with still options that are not available anywhere else.

You can shoot full-resolution 6-megapixel stills at up to 60fps, to ensure that you get a decent pic of a fast-moving subject. I preferred to use something more like 7fps or 15fps with pets and kids, since they're not that fast, and you have no idea how annoying it can be to flip through 60 or more identical-looking shots. As with slow-mo video, you do lose the higher f-stop settings when you set it for 60, as everything would just be pitch black. What you do get, though, to compensate, is a strobe flash. Though Pogue thought it was too explosive, I thought it works well when you need it. As you can see from the screenshot above, you can use a real flash up to 7fps, and then you have to switch to a mellower LED light, which can't illuminate everything, but is better than nothing. We intend to subject this camera to some further in-the-trenches club shooting courtesy of Gawker video guy Nick McGlynn (shown here helping me demonstrate flash-strobe mode): The coolest easy-to-miss still settings are the fly-in and fly-out modes: You train your shot on an object like a birds nest or hummingbird feeder, press the shutter and wait until the critter arrives. The camera shoots continuously at 60fps, but only starts saving when it detects the motion, presenting you with a solid set of 60 stills for you to choose the best ones. The other mode does the opposite. You aim it at a critter that is not moving, and when it starts to move, and exit the frame, the camera saves the shots, so you get a dramatic action shot of its departure. As I hinted, low-light shooting isn't great, and the tiny, experimental CCD CMOS in the camera is especially noisy. ISO 1600 is a rainbow of nastiness, and should only be used as a last resort: Shadows are even pretty noisy at lower ISO settings—here's 800:Annoyances aside, I found the EX-F1 to live up to our Bestmodo status because of its versatility and originality. It's nice and rugged, too, capable of withstanding being flung into the air (what good is slow-mo if you can't move fast?). It had a nice long battery life, too: I shot for six days straight—gathering plenty of video and tons of rapid fire full-resolution stills—before the battery died.

Update: Some of you asked about memory capacity, and even though I was shooting with an 8GB SDHC card, the hard limit is 4GB of video. For stills, the buffer can hold 60 shots. Here's the details, from Casio:

The limit would be 4GB of [video] recording. So at 1080i you are looking at about 40 minutes. Now if you had a 8GB card you could [stop and] then take another 40 minute video, but the file system hits 4GB and has to stop recording. [For stills] you can take 60 shots before the buffer is full. So you can do 60fps for 1 second or 30 fps for 2 seconds, 20 fps for 3 seconds, etc.

Everything is a twitch here, a blur there—you have to realize that this whole two-minute video consists of just 10 to 12 seconds of real life, shown at 300fps or 600fps. (1200fps turned out to be too much of a novelty, too dark to be practical, as you can see in the tomato-blender vid.)

Shooting slow-mo takes some getting used to, and because you end up with long stretches of zero movement, the in-cam video editor is not just a luxury but a necessity. In the end, though, everything looks like it's ready for Discovery Channel. I think that chipmunk's gonna be a star. [Casio Exilim EX-F1 Full Review on Giz]

Watching him explain it, the genius of Dr. Bevilaqua's F-35B Shaft Driven Lift Fan is obvious. After all, the invention is quite simple. According to Bevilaqua, the best way to create power from the engine is by using a turbine. That power then gets moved forward using a shaft that connects to a fan, providing the vertical lift on the front of the plane—and all while the turbine exhaust is redirected to the ground to lift the back of the plane.

The result is a supersonic plane with great maneuverability. Like a car, Bevilaqua explains, the pilot starts the engine, engages the clutch that activates the lift fan, increases power—and off it goes. To make things even better, the bleed air coming off from the top runs over the winds so the F-35B handles smoothly while going vertically, "like if it was mounted on a hydraulic lift."

The idea, he says, came at the very end of a nine-month study to see if it was possible to do a supersonic successor to the Harrier for the Marine Corp. "I had to come up with a way to increase the thrust of a jet engine so that you could take off vertically, but yet not make it impossible for the airplane to go supersonic."

Dr. Bevilaqua—who started working with Hans von Ohain, the German engineer who invented the jet engine with the Heinkel He 178, and encouraged him to think not about math but about engineering—sketched his first idea on a napkin, which was a turbine with a drive shaft sticking out the front of the engine. He got it to a propulsion expert at Skunk Works to see if it was feasible or not. From there it was transformed from paper dream to reality: Lockheed Martin applied for the patent in 1990, which ended up being one of the factors that landed them the massive $200 billion contract for the Joint Strike Fighter against Boeing's X-32.

[Govexec, Global Security, Skunk Works and Wikipedia via The DEW Line]

The screen of the F-A50 is a 16-inch 1366 x 768 pixel widescreen, and inside there's a Core 2 Duo running at 2.1GHz, with 2GB of RAM and an Intel x3100 graphics unit. It runs Vista Home Premium SP1. There's also a 250GB SATA drive, DVD recorder drive, wi-fi, Bluetooth, a type-2 PC card slot, and an SD card slot. These last hide beneath a flap, along with some of the USB ports. Though it doesn't seem to have a webcam, it does at least promise to be a quiet machine with only around 30dB of noise according to Fujitsu.

It's 15.5 x 12.9 x 7.1 inches, and if its white iMac-esque looks don't please you, then there's a "pink opal" limited edition available too. It's available in Japan soon for around $1,260. [PC Watch and Akihabaranews]

All three models have iPod connectivity, Bluetooth, MSN Direct, DH radio, XM and SIRIUS Satellite radio, CD and DVD-playback, as well as the advanced conversational voice recognition system. There's a 5.8-inch hi-resolution touch panel display, USB interface and SD card slot, plus maps from Tele Atlas of the US, Canada, Alaska and Hawaii. Available in June, the three models will cost $850, $1,100 and $1,200, respectively. [ecoustics.com]

This is probably the happiest tradeoff of resolution to slow-mo devastation. The first video records at 512x384, while this one drops you down to a funky widescreen 432x192.
The 1200fps setting is pretty much a novelty more than anything else, since you need a ton of light, and it records at an all too wide 336x96. We had to crop it so that it made any kind of sense, but here's a screengrab of the original vid:There's more to come with this fun little camera, but we wanted to give you a rather violent taste straight away. You're welcome. [Casio Exilim EX-F1 Full Review on Giz]

And for those of you who can't get that song out of your head, here's a link to the 99-cent MP3 on Amazon. [Hide and Seek by Imogen Heap]

The low light performance sucks, courtesy of a tiny light sensor, which is half the size of a beginner's DSLR. So you need brilliant lighting to avoid dim or blurry shots. And Casio's solution of "one of the brightest and fastest flashes ever on a consumer camera" ain't much of one, unless you're into harshly lit photos.

Topping that bit of suck off, the digital (not optical) eyepiece is crummy, and both start-up and focusing are sloooow. No zooming, during HD video capture either. And high-speed videos offer no sound or any setting changes mid-filming. But overall, Pogue says that those sniggles are "like complaining that your 7-year-old violin virtuoso is lousy at sports" and that "Casio deserves congratulations for innovating in so many big, bold, industry-defying ways." Buy it for speed, not the other stuff. [NYT]

The report comes after investigators finished looking into an accident that happened last November. Part of the airframe of a F-22A fell off into the engine intake, causing a whopping $1.2 million of damage.

And, while we understand that machines so amazingly complex will always have flaws that need to be ironed out, let's hope they used SuperGlue with the F-35 Lightning II. Or gum. [The Dew Line]

"The aircraft flew very well, exceeding my expectations," Kromberg said. "I was surprised by the amount of power on the takeoff roll. And the handling, particularly with the gear up, was phenomenal. The aircraft was very stable flying in formation with another airplane. It was really a joy to fly."

So there you go: two thumbs up from Señor Flipper. I don't know about you, but I'm happy that the $40 billion total development costs have resulted in a plane that handles phenomenally well with the gear up (which is more than you can say about the Strategic Defense Initiative).

The F-35, nicknamed Lightning II in honor of the WW2 fighter P-38 Lightning, has flown only 28 times, all of them except this one commanded by Lockheed Martin's own test pilots, Jon Beesley and Jeff Knowles. The last flight happened on March 12th, for its first aerial refueling test shown here:

The F-35 Lightning II is scheduled to debut in 2011, after its maiden flight back in 2006. Powered by a Pratt & Whitney F135 afterburning turbofan capable of delivering 40,000 pounds of force, with an additional Rolls-Royce Lift System for the F-35B short take-off and vertical landing variant, the F-35 has been designed to be the número uno strike fighter in the world until around 2040.

At that point, we all hope that 1) no more modern fighters would be needed after that date, or 2) they develop Veritech fighters to defend Earth against the Zentraedi. [LockheedMartin and Wikipedia]

It sounds fairly dubious, but it seems that shortly after take-off, one 22-pound BDU-33 dummy bomb from a group of six just "fell off" one of the F16s that was heading for a practice bombing run in Kansas. The first indication that something was amiss was apparently at the bombing range itself, where only five impacts were recorded from that aircraft.

There I was thinking that flyers were heroic, intelligent keen-eyed guys. I mean, you'd think you'd notice bombing Tulsa wouldn't you? Mind you, I've never been there. [Danger room]

According to their findings, the miCoach is easy to use and the features would definitely be a useful tool for fitness-minded individuals. Even the phone itself was impressive with features that include a 2-megapixel camera, 1GB MP3 player, microSD card slot, Bluetooth 2.0, and quad-band connectivity. However, the major problem is that users cannot take advantage of this software on any other Samsung phone—and the company claims that there are no plans to remedy that anytime in the near future. Still, it seems like a fitness tool with some potential—and customers looking to shed a few pounds can get their hands on one starting this April. Pricing information has not been made available. Hit the link for the full review. [Pocket-lint and miCoach]

The F5's magnesium frame, outdoor friendly display, resistance to dust and moisture and an easy-to-clean surface add to the semi-ruggedness of this Tablet PC. At 3lbs., it houses an HDD or an optional 32GB solid-state drive, a 2-megapixel camera, and, like its bright-red ancestor, a built-in mono speaker. There's no optical disc drive, though, as often is the case with these smaller tablets. It'll be priced from $2700 to $4000, not including the sweet dock, external keyboard or mounting hardware for the dashboard of your intergalactic space saucer emergency vehicle. [Motion Computing]

The sets, which are out in Japan on March 25, range from $3,700 (KDL-46F1) through $2,700 (KDL-40F1) to $1,850 (KDL-32F1). [Impress]

Be careful with the Turbo Boost button, you wouldn't want to crash that Enzo at high speed, now, would you? Available now for about $25 each. [Strapya World via Technabob]

Jesús Díaz: How many pieces do your models use?
Ralph Savelsberg: I don't really keep track of how many parts I use for any particular model. I can really only guess. The smaller ones (the F-15, Su-27 and E-2C) probably use between 1,500 and 2,500 parts each. I wouldn't be able to narrow it down any more precisely without taking them apart and counting. The B-1B is a lot bigger and heavier and probably uses between 6,000 and 10,000 parts.

JD: How's your typical building process?
RS: There are quite a few builders who sit down and start building. I can't quite do things like that, or perhaps it doesn't actually lend itself very well to the subject. I use pictures and plans of the aircraft. 1/72 is a fairly common scale for model aircraft and it's comparatively easy to find proper drawings on that scale. My planes are 1/36 mainly because I can simply scale them up by a factor of two relative to the scale drawings.

JD: So you use drawings first?
RS: I usually make a number of drawings (the old-fashioned way with a pencil and paper) trying to figure out how to represent the aircrafts' general outlines, such as the shape of the wings, for instance, in LEGO parts. There is only a limited range of angles available in LEGO plates, so getting the angle of the leading or trailing edge of the wings right can be tricky. I used a pythagorean triple (3,4,5) to do the tailplane on the B-1B and used a combination of different angle plates to get the wing on the E-2C right. That's the sort of thing I really have to work out on paper.

I sometimes also make drawings of specific parts of a plane, such as the nose on the E-2C or it's radar dish. I find that simply putting parts together doesn't work as well for me as visualising the shape, thinking about how to build it in LEGO and then making a few drawings before I start to build. The Su-27 was almost completely designed on paper. The F-15 was a lot simpler somehow and came together without too much preparation.

[Flickr via Brothers Brick]

Plus, the F636HT features a generator that can heat and treat your guns on the go—and the included solution is good can clean up to 1000 guns. Unfortunately, it won't make your guns softer and gentler to the touch nor will it leave your weapons with a fresh lavender scent. Oh, and it costs a whopping $7100. [Sonics Online via Ballerhouse via Uberreview]

The phone has a slightly smaller 2.8 screen at 240 x 320, it has quad band, 3G (but not the US flavors), haptic feedback on the touchscreen and a 5MP camera. It also has a limited set of widgets for the front page, including a birthday reminder, world times and that's pretty much it. (It's not open source, so you can't add to it, or write your own, either.) The phone's touchscreen supports swipes through menus, but in the opposite fashion you're used to on the iPhone. (Swiping down moves the cursor down, not up, as you can see in the video.)