Gadgets

The NES Controller Optical Mouse

The original NES controller is incredibly iconic, which is why it lends itself so well to being hacked and modded in any number of ways. Today’s entry in the NES controller mod-o-thon: the NES controller mouse. Sure, it doesn’t look like it’d be comfortable to keep your hand on all day, but come on! It’s…

Wired Taunts Fat Geeks with Inedible Wii Cake

Wired has just launched their new How-To site, chock full of instructions and tips to do any number of things, some more useful than others (how to stalk people on Flickr? Awesome.). One that caught our eye was the Martha-Stewart-inspired Wii Cake. The problem? The cake is goddamned inedible. Sure, it’s really cool looking and…

Greg Packer Seen in the Wild, Still First in Line

Greg Packer, everyone’s favorite professional linesitter, was spotted by our enterprising videographer Alex Goldberg this weekend at the Village Voice Siren Festival at Coney Island. Where was he? Up at the very front, of course. Whether or not he’d ever heard of any of the bands he saw is currently unknown. You’ll always be at…

Japanese Hand Pillow: A Haiku

Only in Japan Would a pillow for your head Look just like Goatse. [TokyoMango]

Video of a WWII-era Airplane Landing on a Busy Highway

Boy, here’s something you don’t want to see while driving to grandma’s house. It’s a WWII-era airplane making an emergency landing on a busy Wisconsin highway, and the entire thing was caught on police video. The 1943 plane was on its way to an air show when it got engine trouble. The pilot, who has…

Senate Bill Could Compel “Top 25 Piracy Schools” to Use Anti-P2P Technology

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (pictured) has a fun summer vacation souvenir for institutes of higher education: His latest amendment to the Higher Education Reauthorization Act would require a college named to the list of “top 25” worst file-sharing schools to implement anti-p2p technology into its network, or risk losing some of its governmental funding.…

Rock Band May Not Cost $199

Yesterday we reported that a Rock Band bundle had hit Amazon for a retail price of $199. We were skeptical, as Amazon (and many retailers) can jump the gun on pricing, and EA has just announced that the $199 is nothing but “pure speculation.” It does seem, however, that the bundle itself was not put…

PS3 firmware 1.9 (read about it here) is out in the US alongside PSP firmware 3.52. [qjnet] https://gizmodo.com/ps3-firmware-1-9-details-announced-best-update-yet-281234

Megaphone, Cellphone Gaming is Social

Without downloading any extra software or performing special networking, one design student came up with a viable social gaming concept for cellphones. A large screen projects a game in which people can join at any time by calling a number just above the screen. Then, using the standard touchpad (through key tones), users can control…

Everything is a Transformer

What if everything—not just guns and badass cars—transformed into a lethal robot? We’re talking, like, you pick up a box of Maxi Pads for your sweetie, and they turn into a robot in the shopping cart, saving your life during a robbery (not to mention your self-esteem). Here’s a brief glance at what such a…

iWalk is So Much More than Just a Prosthetic Foot

A group of MIT and Brown researchers and engineers have debuted a prosthetic foot that propels the user forward using “tendon-like springs and an electric motor,” meaning it is even more like the real thing than traditional prostheses. Professor Hugh Herr, head of biomechatronics at MIT’s Media Lab, and a double amputee himself, tested the…

TankLimo Makes Partying in No-Go Areas a Lot Easier

For Hire: one armored personnel carrier. Gloss-white paint job, champagne-filled, smoked-glass fridge, racing green interior, seats eight, plus three crew. The crazy Brits who modded this are just waiting for a Jacuzzi and 44 feet of blue neon tubing (remote-controlled, natch). How much for the night? Between 1600 and 4000 (that’s from $3,300 to $8,233),…

Amp’d kick-the-bucket Q&A updated: new expiration date is July 31. To quote it out of context: “Potentially.” [Amp’d] https://gizmodo.com/ampd-mobile-shutting-down-july-24-prepayers-beware-281128

Certified Wireless USB Takes Flight In Inspiron, ThinkPad Laptops

Kiss your favorite cords goodbye, because Certified Wireless USB is throwing them out with the trash. Industry giants including Dell and IBM have come on board as early adopters of the new USB standard, which combines the data transfer rates of USB with the ease-of-use and cable-free nature of Bluetooth and WiFi. Dell is rolling…

Sling Media released a firmware update for Slingbox, it helps improve on its UPnP (Universal Plug and Play) performance. [Sling]

PS3 Sales Surge 135% Since Price Drop, Sony Seen Laughing on Way to Bank

Crediting a strategic price cut and a strong E3 showing, Sony is gloating over its latest figures: PS3 sales are up 135% since the July 9th announcement of the $499 price tag. With Xbox 360 sales dropping, new firmware updates enhancing the basic functionality of the system, Blu-ray pushing hard against HD-DVD and a growing…

Rock Band Pricing Revealed?

Just after we had a first look at the new drums from the upcoming game Rock Band, Amazon has priced the Xbox 360 bundle (so keep in mind, this isn’t necessarily final). For $200, you get the game, a mic, wired guitar and drumset. And hearts everywhere are broken. Most players will probably already own…

Boat in a Bag for Sailors on the Move

The MiniCat is a self-assembling catamaran. Costing $4,905, it consists of a couple of floats, sails, some aluminum rods, an alloy mast, a rudder, keel fin and a trampoline. You can assemble it in around half an hour (well, it would take me a couple of days—the Addy-Ikea Flatpack interface is not a sight most…

PS3 Firmware 1.9 Details Announced, Best Update Yet?

Sony keeps chipping away at the PS3, and they’ll carve a great multimedia system out of it…even if they need 100 years. The new firmware 1.9 update just hit in Japan and we’re digging some of the new features. Here are the complete changes, and the notes on what were most excited about. • Ability…

Buffalo 56GB Solid State Portable Drive

Buffalo is taking the gloves off the solid state market, releasing a portable drive (just 57x89x14mm) that’s up to a very palatable 56GB in size. Resistant to shock and ready to tumble, Buffalo’s newest iteration puts solid state into slap-fight range of smaller portable drives. Of course, at $828 the pleasure will run you almost…