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Google wants to relieve New Yorkers of one of the Subway’s biggest annoyances: Planned service changes you didn’t know about. Now, whenever you click on a Subway station in Google Maps, the information box that pops up will display detailed service advisories like the ones the MTA posts on its website and in stations. The…
This morning, Gizmodo HQ ended up in a conversation over the utility of pennies. We all agree that they’re pretty useless. For the most part, they just end up in pockets and drawers and jars. It costs more than a penny to produce a penny. And trying to pay for something in pennies will net…
Good news if you’ve got a green thumb and limited space—Ikea now sells mini-greenhouses. And they’re only $20 a pop. You might need a couple of them to fit your garden, because at about 18-inches by 9-inches by 14-inches, they’re little (and adorable). But it’s the perfect size for your desk or your small pad.…
Located at the Lotte Department Store in Busan—the second largest city in South Korea—this mesmerizing fountain actually plummets five stories from the ceiling. And as the water drops tumble towards a small pool on the ground, they create complex designs and even spell out words like “Busan” and “Lotte.” The ten minute show, which runs…
Assembled new iPhone components and pretty new iPhone renders are helpful, but they can only get you so far. After all, they’ve been wrong before. But now we’ve finally got hard evidence that Apple’s next handset is going to be an entirely different animal, along with a strong suggestion that the iPad Mini is no…
Hulu Plus is on Apple TV now. Hulu just confirmed to us and in an official blog post that its streaming service is now available on Apple’s set-top box. It’s actually a pretty big deal. Hulu appearing on Apple TV is a major concession from Apple. To this point, it had blocked other content providers,…
It must be flattering to be Marco Arment, creator Instapaper and pioneer of putting articles aside to read in the bathroom. His app’s imitators are legion, and have grown by a very intimidating one: Facebook. Its “save for later” feature is no Instapaper. But it may not have to be. The new service, just rolling…
Good news for Android users who’ve had to stare with envy at their iOS counterparts enjoying free Spotify radio on their iPhones and iPads for the past month. The Android Spotify app has been updated to include the free radio streaming and is now available on the Google play store. Go get it. https://gizmodo.com/spotify-is-now-free-on-the-iphone-and-ipad-sort-of-5919500 The…
The wasps had already killed a man and stung dozens of others. But, located out of reach high atop a tree surrounded by rugged terrain, the massive colony was impervious to attack by the villagers of Jiangjin Tsz Wan Yuen Tsuen, China. The situation became so dire that the Army had to intervene—with flamethrowers. [The…
I don’t know if elves live in this house, but it sure looks like they might. Located on the Swedish coast, the 269-square-foot hut looks like a flower that just sprouted out of the ground. And it’s small not for lack of space or for maximizing energy costs, but because architect Torsten Ottesjö truly believes…
Keys are from the past. Here in the future we have lasers and the Internet and retina scanners and keypads and thumbprint scanners. Why are keys junking up our pockets? Down with keys! Down the to abyss of obsolescence along with steam-powered cars and leeches with you! Discuss. Image: Flickr user Pennuja under Creative Commons…
Dark Side of the Rainbow So, does this count as the first mash-up in media history? Baby Bong This is the best idea in the history of driving. Either that or the worst. [Flickr via WPD] Snoop Dogg “Can Live With” Two Year Norway Ban Snoop Dogg was visiting Oslo last month ahead of a…
Digital maps of the world have gotten so comprehensive, complex, and accessible that it’s easy to take marvels like Google Street View for granted. Leave it to these gorgeous, real-time ASCII renderings of Street View to remind you that holy crap it’s incredible. Coded by Peter Nitsch ASCII Street View plays on the ages old…
For the bike freak comes the Rem lamp, which takes its inspiration from the handlebar and brake mechanism found on a countless number of the timeless two-wheeled vehicle. Squeeze the brake, and the light turns off. But don’t worry, it’s not all stop stop stop; squeeze again and the light comes right back. I suppose…
In case you missed it, today is the day Pitbull made good on his promise to travel out to Alaska and perform as part of a Wal-Mart contest that was the victim of some good ol’ fashioned internet trolling. In honor of Pitbull’s good-natured approach to the whole thing, we should celebrate the man’s musical…
Apple has new ads out, and because Apple is a special company, we all care. Also, Apple’s ads tend to be well executed, occasionally bizarre in a charming way, and often Zooey. But this time? Ehhhh? https://gizmodo.com/ten-adorable-fun-super-gifs-of-zooey-deschanel-talking-5905864 The “Genius” series of spots is a pretty stark 180 degree slide from the haute marketing reached with…
There are many, many accusations being tossed back and forth between Apple and Samsung. There have been for months, there will continue to be. But perhaps none of them has perfectly distilled the fight that the two megacorps are having quite like Samsung’s Chief Product Officer Kevin Packingham did in an interview today with Wired.…
Cop movies are so predictable: Bad Guy does bad thing. Good Guy (cop) chases bad guy. Good Guy (cop) saves woman from Bad Guy, but Bad Guy gets away. Good Guy (cop) has sex with woman. Bad Guy does another bad thing; Good Guy (cop) gives chase. Bad Guy gets the drop on Good Guy…
Do you remember five years ago, when you could spot an iPod/iPhone owner from a mile away by their standard issue white Apple earbuds? There’s much more headphone diversity these days, but buds are still immensely popular and Apple sells bunches of them. Fanny Wang wants to stick it to Apple hard with Wang Buds.…
Apple had three favorite typefaces: Myriad, Lucida Grande and Helvetica Neue. Now there’s a new favorite: Avenir. It has appeared simultaneously OS X Mountain Lion and iOS 6—which means you will see it featured in the next iPhone. All these sans serif typefaces have a few things in common, but they all have a very…