Tech News

Coffee Makes Overachievers Slack Off

While most of us drink coffee to stay alert and actually get work done, new research suggests that it might not be the best plan for all us. In fact, drinking a ton of coffee may actually make over-achievers less productive. The research, conducted at the University of British Columbia, suggests that for individuals who…

Raspberry Pi Shipping Has Been Put on Hold

Bad news for those champing at the bit to get their mitts on the Raspberry Pi – both Element 14 and RS are waiting on CE mark certification before they ship their inventory of Pis to customers causing a further delay on orders. The good news is that 2,000 boards arrived in Britain on Monday…

Report: Ivy Bridge Quad-Core Processors Launching Next Month

There have been a series of hold-ups with Intel’s new Ivy Bridge processor line, but according to CPU World the wait is almost over; some of the new mobile and desktop quad-core chips will be launched before the end of April. https://gizmodo.com/intel-confirms-that-ivy-bridge-is-definitely-delayed-5888514 The launch, however, seems to be just for the fastest of the chips.…

House of Representatives Shoots Down Facebook Snooping Amendment

This week, Facebook user protection legislation passed through the US House of Representatives. It was planned to prevent employers demanding Facebook sign-in details from their workers—but it got shot down in flames. https://gizmodo.com/prospective-employees-are-now-being-asked-for-facebook-5894785 In the end, the final vote was 236 to 184, with just one House Republican voting in support of the changes. If…

This Flexible E-Ink Display Will Be in Real Devices This Summer

The future of digital reading is flexible. And by flexible, I mean bendable, not multipurpose. Now, LG has announced the first malleable, plastic e-ink display, and while it’s hardly Retina, it will be appearing in devices as early as this summer. https://gizmodo.com/what-would-it-take-for-apple-to-make-a-new-ipad-truly-e-5896631 The six-inch display is made of plastic, which allows it to bend at…

This Undulating US Wind Map Is Utterly Hypnotic

Earth’s wind patterns flow much in the same way as the oceans below them. This collaboration between Fernanda Viegas and Martin Wattenberg shows which way the winds of America are blowing. https://gizmodo.com/time-lapse-of-ocean-currents-looks-like-a-living-van-go-5896376 Appropriately dubbed “Wind Map,” it graphically displays barometric data—specifically surface wind speeds—collected from the from the National Digital Forecast Database. The page downloads…

You Can Get Speeding Tickets Aboard the “World’s Fastest E-Bike”

When does a power-assisted bike stop being a bike and instead becomes a moped? While there’s no defined limit, Specialized’s new Turbo e-bike is definitely toeing the line. The Turbo, which Specialized officially unveiled today, will reportedly have a top speed of 28 MPH (45KPH) with the help of its 250-watt Direct Drive rear hub…

Fighting to Die, Making Washing Machines Fly, and Gaming the Coriolis Effect to Smoke a Better Bowl

Roll that spliff phatly, pack some fresh ice into the binger, and set the Volcano to “toastify.” It’s time for tonight’s Stoner Channel. We’ve collected our best high-times material for the discerning pothead so sit back, relax, and pass that shit on the left, yo. PSA: If you have indoor grow experience hit me up,…

Perv Gets Prison After Victim’s Nintendo DS Captures the Act

John Fisher probably figured he’d gotten away with inappropriately touching that 10-year old girl. That is, until police showed him the photos his victim took of him mid-molestation on her Nintendo DS. Fisher, age 46, initially denied touching the unidentified victim in January 2010 and November 2011 but recanted his testimony and admitted guilt when…

Black Eyed Peas: Joints and Jams

In case you didn’t know, Buzzfeed’s new tech site FWD is powered by a pair of evil and horrible trolls with ginger hair and no souls. Today, those evil and horrible trolls tried to take down our own Mat Honan over his tastes in music; particularly Cher and the Black Eyed Peas. While it’s tough…

New Google Maps Makes Taking the Bus Easier

Public transit riders used to have to just settle for the route that Google Maps dictated—no discussion, no sharing of feelings, nothing. But, the newest iteration of Maps will tailor the route to your preferences while looking gorgeous on Ice Cream Sandwich. With version 6.5, Maps now allows the user to select his preferred method…

Jimmy Fallon Loves Voicemail Hacking and Criticizing People’s Phones

Jimmy Fallon’s Hacker 9000 is capable of instant voicemail hacking. If you are were an audience member on last night’s Late Night, you may have feared certain humiliation at the hand of Fallon’s “gadget.” Even more humiliating, however, may have been Fallon’s mockery of your smartphone. [Late Night With Jimmy Fallon]

These Crayons Can Be Used Like Lego Bricks

What is this sorcery? Lego bricks that can draw? It’s like, you know, magic. Colorful sweet magic that I want to lick. Yes, my fellow Lego nerds. These bricks aren’t official Lego products, but they work just the same as the real Lego bricks. It’s a great idea, even when they will get less useful…

Taposé: The Ghost of the Microsoft Courier Lives In Your iPad

Unlike every tablet that looks like every other tablet that looks like an iPad, Microsoft’s Courier was bold, imaginative and different. Of course, it got killed and was never released. But the spirit is still alive! The Courier’s dual pane versatility lives on with Tapose. https://gizmodo.com/courier-first-details-of-microsofts-secret-tablet-5365299 What does it do? On the surface, Tapose is…

Kindle Fire’s Software Update Enables…

Amazon’s pushing out a software update that has a few nice-sounding features like Book Extras, a reading view for Amazon Silk, movie rentals, and personal document storage on Amazon’s cloud servers. Parts of the list sort of read like an assortment of half-measures. Digital copies of textbooks laid out for print instead of Apple’s new…

Tapose App Gallery

That New “Donda Media” Site Is Fake As Hell (Updated)

Everyone’s chattering about Whodat.biz, the new site claiming to be from Kanye West’s insane tech startup Donda. By everybody, I mean The Washington Post and Twitter, which went bezerker over it, and, well, us. But Whodat.biz? Oh come on, now. If this ain’t a hoax, I’ll eat Kanye’s doo-doo. https://gizmodo.com/this-cant-possibly-be-kanyes-insane-tech-start-up-can-5897185 Now, Donda is real. Or…

A Blind Man Is Driving This Car

This is Steve. 95% of his vision is gone. He’s blind. And he’s behind the wheel of this car, travelling perfectly across his neighborhood. It’s an amazing feat. A technological miracle. Google’s self-driving car has now completed 200,000 miles of computer-led driving. Steve was part of that testing and he loved it: https://gizmodo.com/test-driving-googles-driverless-car-5662005 Here’s Steve,…

Google Now Has Analytics-ish Reports for Your Personal Accounts

Curious how many emails you sent last month? What your most frequent search term was? What countries you logged in from? If you use Google for everything, it can now tell you all of those things. Google’s new Account Activity feature not only serves to answer your curiosities about how you use Google’s services, it…

Bottle Holding Garbage Can Ring Makes It Easier To Recycle

In many parts of the world it’s ok to drink in public, so this simple plastic ring provides a clean temporary place to store empty containers until they’re claimed by someone who wants to recycle them. Without the Pfandring—which translates to Pledge Ring in english—bottles and cans are either just tossed away, or left piled…