Andrew Tarantola, Author at Gizmodo

VaporBLUNT Pinnacle Lightning Review: Get High on the Down Low

You’re finally starting to make it in the world. You’ve got a good job, a sweet pad and the best damn tabletop vape money can buy. So why are you still smoking out of that metal sneak-a-toke from high school whenever you’re mobile? Instead, take a hit off the new VaporBLUNT Pinnacle. What Is It?…

Reviews Andrew Tarantola Apr 26 '13

How to Inspect Windmill Blades Without Ever Leaving the Ground

Getting to the top of a wind turbine is no small feat—akin to summiting the Washington Monument—and even more difficult when the wind farm is at sea. So rather than force human inspectors to make the perilous climb, Helical Robotics has developed a magnetic turtle to do it for us. Officially the HR-MP20, this single-handler…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 26 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: Melt Yourself Down – “Fix My Life”

Great googley moogley. Watch this on full-screen and prepare to melt into your chair. The music of Melt Yourself Down, a London-based Jazz Fusion group some describe as “Afrocentric jazz-tinged tribal pop” (the what?), is crazy good and the animation from Morgan Beringer is enough to make your brain jump clean out of your skull…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 26 '13

Crooks Don’t Stand a Chance Against the SWAT Bot

With so much crazy going around these days, its a hairy time to be in law enforcement. But with this door-breaching, bullet-stopping, car-towing robo-tank in front of them, SWAT units will be unstoppable. Built by Howe and Howe Technologies—the team behind Discovery Channel’s “Howe and Howe Tech: Black Ops Brothers,” the Ripsaw tank from GI…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 25 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: The Super Rope Solution

It’s a good business model, sure. I mean you’ve got a captive audience, which any infomercial host would kill for. But what’s with actually killing them? Pretty sure murdering your marketing base is going to hurt sales and next quarter’s growth.

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 25 '13

Rancid (with Sol Lewitt) – Learn to Say F*ck You to the World

The world is brimming with haters ready and more than willing to tell you just how much you suck and can’t do a damn thing right. But never mind them. If you’ve got something to express, it’s your responsibility to express it. Sol Lewitt, an American artist at the forefront of the 1960’s minimalist movement,…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 24 '13

It Takes a Small Artistic Army to Bring a Pixar Film To Life

Monsters Inc blew more than a few minds when it premiered in 2001. Sully’s coat comprised a million rendered hairs, and Boo’s oversized pink shirt moved with such a natural flow it appeared nearly life-like to audiences. And while advances in technology during the twelve years between the original film and the prequel—premiering in June—will…

Movies Andrew Tarantola Apr 24 '13

This Is the Camera That Found Dzhokhar Tsarnaev

Law enforcement didn’t pull any punches during its manhunt for the Boston Marathon bombers, going so far as to lock down an entire metropolis while they searched. Even when officers thought they had the second suspect cornered in Watertown boat, they confirmed their suspicions with a camera that can spot people from up to 10…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 24 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: Adventures of Christopher Bosh in the Multiverse!

Whaddya mean you didn’t know Chris Bosch was an inter-dimensional warrior of justice and Heat teammate Mike Miller, an inter-dimensional werewolf? Do you not watch basketball or something? [Deadspin] https://deadspin.com/this-chris-bosh-film-is-better-than-all-of-the-drugs-478109116

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 24 '13

How the US Built Its Super-Secret Spy Satellite Program

Ethics aside, espionage is an indispensable part of statecraft. The ISR [Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance] information gathered helps steer national policy decisions for everything from mundane trade negotiations to the blackest of ops. And nowhere is this more evident than in the development of the US spy satellite fleet during the Cold War. These orbital…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 23 '13

CUTLASS Supreme: How the Next-Gen Police-Bot Picks Bombs Apart in Record Time

The Wheelbarrow EOD robot has dutifully served the British Army since Lt. Col. Peter Mille first put one to work disarming IRA bombs in 1972. But these days, the 400 or so units currently deployed in the UK and abroad are quickly becoming legacy hardware. The British Ministry of Defence’s replacement: a state-of-the-art bomb-bot that…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 23 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: My Friend Kills Time

Norwegian filmmaker Jakob Rørvik follows the daily routines of Thomas Duggan, a design graduate from Central St. Martins during his self-imposed exile in the British countryside. This introspective documentary examines Duggan’s slow transformation as he withdraws from connected society. Whether it’s a change for the better or the worse is for you to decide. [Nowness]

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 23 '13

The 8 Types of Shovels Everyone Should Know

Humans have been digging in the Earth since the dawn of the Neolithic Revolution, some 12,000 years ago. While the earliest agriculturalists had to make do with shovels crudely fashioned from animal bones—shoulder blades were a popular choice—later material advances (namely stone, wood, and metal) led to the development of modern shovel designs and their…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 22 '13

Now You Can Watch Your Unborn Child in Ultra-Creepy HD

Ultrasound has revolutionized prenatal medicine but its monochromatic images can be difficult to interpret—even for trained operators. But with the help of next-gen rendering algorithms, doctors and expectant parents alike are getting an unprecedented real-time peek inside the womb. The HDlive system, developed by Dr Bernard Benoit of the Princess Grace Hospital, Monaco, is a…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 22 '13

Energizer Light Fusion LED Lantern Lightning Review: A Light for Every Emergency

It’s the middle of the night and you’re in the middle of nowhere when—whumpa, whumpa, whumpa—you get a flat. Rather than fumble through the tire change in the dark, why not keep this portable LED lantern in the boot should the need arise? What Is It? A 300-lumen area light from Energizer’s Light Fusion Technology…

Reviews Andrew Tarantola Apr 21 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: The Face of Another (NSFW)

Hardcore pharmaceuticals turning an apathetic, anonymous public into exhibitionists while conventional relationships crumble to dust. This totally not safe for work (unless you work at the Power Exchange) music video for Bot’Ox’s latest single featuring Anna Jane was directed by Berlin-based Flokim Lucas. This, the third single from Bot’Ox’s forethcoming album “Sans Dormir,” dropped Monday…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 20 '13

The Most Complicated Way to Make a (Mini, Lego) Free Throw

If Rube Goldberg and MC Escher sat down to build a LEGO contraption, it still wouldn’t be nearly as cool as this modular free-throwing automata from Philip Verbeek. Dubbed the GBC 5 (Great Ball Contraption-5), this self-replenishing ball tosser uses roughly 2,500 pieces in five modules with two motors and a 9V pneumatic pump to…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 19 '13

This Is the World’s Most Complicated Timepiece

Modern digital watches can be beautifully engineered and designed items, but they will always lack the craftsmanship that their mechanical predecessors possess. This hand-wound masterpiece, declared “the most complicated watch in the world” by its maker, doesn’t do anything a digital watch couldn’t replicate but it does so with soul. It also costs $5 million…

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 19 '13

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: Scars

What? You act like you’ve never seen a troop of baboons play Black Spire’s “Scars” before. Get with the times man. Kristof Luyckx directed the animation.

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 19 '13

Cokiyu: Your Thorn

Sublime melodies and gorgeous graphic design mate to create an explosion of organic animation in the title track of Cokiyu’s second album, “Your Thorn.” She crafts these esoteric beats using Max software, the video itself was directed by Ohashi Takashi.

Tech News Andrew Tarantola Apr 18 '13

Andrew Tarantola

VaporBLUNT Pinnacle Lightning Review: Get High on the Down Low

How to Inspect Windmill Blades Without Ever Leaving the Ground

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: Melt Yourself Down – “Fix My Life”

Crooks Don’t Stand a Chance Against the SWAT Bot

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: The Super Rope Solution

Rancid (with Sol Lewitt) – Learn to Say F*ck You to the World

It Takes a Small Artistic Army to Bring a Pixar Film To Life

This Is the Camera That Found Dzhokhar Tsarnaev

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: Adventures of Christopher Bosh in the Multiverse!

How the US Built Its Super-Secret Spy Satellite Program

CUTLASS Supreme: How the Next-Gen Police-Bot Picks Bombs Apart in Record Time

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: My Friend Kills Time

The 8 Types of Shovels Everyone Should Know

Now You Can Watch Your Unborn Child in Ultra-Creepy HD

Energizer Light Fusion LED Lantern Lightning Review: A Light for Every Emergency

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: The Face of Another (NSFW)

The Most Complicated Way to Make a (Mini, Lego) Free Throw

This Is the World’s Most Complicated Timepiece

The Weirdest Thing on the Internet Tonight: Scars

Cokiyu: Your Thorn

‘Macross Plus’ Is an Ultra-Romantic Classic That Refuses to Age

Stick It to Jeff Bezos by Turning Your Defunct Kindle Into the World’s Worst Typewriter

‘De-extinction’ Startup Wants to Revive Antelope Killed Off by South African Colonists

The Best Toys of April 2026

Dreame L60 Ultra Robot Vacuum and Mop With 35,000Pa Suction Is Now Over $400 Off as a Launch Exclusive Deal

Under-Oath Elon Musk Seems to Run a Different Company Than Public-Figure Elon Musk

Ambitious Experiment Aims to Test Tiny Nuclear Reactors for AI Data Centers

Here’s the Very Normal Reason the ‘Lanterns’ Trailer Disappeared

California Cops Can Finally Give Robotaxis Tickets

Andy Serkis Says Viggo Mortensen Was ‘Thrilled’ by Jamie Dornan Being Cast as Aragorn

Steam Controller Review: Trackpads Change Everything for PC Gaming

Soundcore Space 2 Review: A Shockingly Stellar Value for Budget ANC Wireless Headphones

Anker’s UV Printer Can Handle Almost Anything… If You Know What You’re Doing

HP’s EliteBoard Keyboard-Computer Proves We Can Stick a PC in Anything

Sleep-Tracking Earbuds Didn’t Fix Me, but They Did Open My Eyes

I’ve Tested a Lot of Bad Smart Glasses and These Are the Worst Yet

Roborock’s Qrevo Curv 2 Flow Is the Ultimate Robot Mop—If You Don’t Have Corners or Walls

Alienware’s $350 QD-OLED Gaming Monitor Nixes Everything for a Pretty Screen

Sony Inzone H6 Air Review: A Perfect Case for Open-Back Gaming Headsets

Anker’s EufyMake E1 Finally Brings Printers Out of the Dark Ages