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Zippo has always accepted larger custom corporate orders, but recently they’ve introduced a new flash-based online tool that lets you customize an individual lighter, for those who don’t need hundreds with a photo of their cat on it. You start by choosing the Zippo’s finish—brushed, painted, or chrome—and you then have the option of customizing…
Facebook Timeline is already cinematic—a whooshing biographical column of your entire life, writ enormous. So turning it into a movie is the next natural step. Too bad Facebook’s directing debut makes you look so dull. https://gizmodo.com/facebook-timeline-review-this-is-the-greatest-thing-fa-5843354 The process is simple: hand over your privacy rights to TimelineMovieMaker.com and then let it scrape your profile for…
If you’ve ever wondered how quickly evolution works, well, now you have an answer: slowly. Very. Slowly. In fact it takes at least 24 million generations for a mouse-sized animal to evolve to the size of an elephant. The research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, looked at the timescales involved…
Cycling in cities is a great idea: it’s quick, cheap, and you even get some exercise. But the number of people that don’t wear a helmet is frankly terrifying. Maybe this folding helmet will help change that. Designed by French studio Agency 360 in 2010, but going into production this year, this folding helmet is…
Say hello to The Bold Team. Sadly, this animated foursome is RIM’s attempt to capture the youth market. They urge the younger generation to “Be Bold”. Something tells me it won’t work. This pink and purple mess looks a bit like an advertising executive just vomited his late-night cocktail onto a page and presented it…
Data centers are power-hungry, and Facebook’s Oregon center in Crook County is no exception, using 28MW. While that’s fairly standard, it has doubled the power use of the county. The entirety of Crook County uses just under 30MW. Add to that the fact that this is only Facebook’s first phase of data centers in this…
According to the New York Times, 91 per cent of Americans aged 28 to 35 use their mobile devices on the toilet. So, a big hello to anybody reading this while relieving themselves. But there are more mobile phone toilet facts. And they get better. According to the survey reported by the Times, apparently a…
SlingPlayer is arriving on the Kindle Fire today, which is great news if you’re a fan of what Sling offer. The only downside is that the app alone costs $29.99. Is it worth it? From what we’ve heard, the Fire app doesn’t retain the same functionality as the standard Android version launched last year. Instead…
This wonderful wood turning video is an amazing example of an incredibly talented man making something very, very difficult look insanely easy. Marvel at how a single woodworker turns a tree into a beautiful lampshade. This video was posted by Sören Berger as an example of his work. My favorite part is where he positions…
Apple has just appointed John Browett, chief executive of UK electronics retailer Dixons, as its new vice-president of retail. It’s the first external senior-executive appointment by Tim Cook, and will see Browett take over the whole of Apple’s already incredibly successful retail strategy. No pressure, John. [The Guardian Image: Shutterstock]
The newest version of Firefox is now available for the PC and Mac. Its newest features include a Forward button that remains hidden until you actually need it, support for full-screen APIs, and better extensions management. [Mozilla via the Verge]
We use polyurethane to make just about everything—garden hoses, furniture, the entirety of my local 99-cent store. It’s easy to produce, durable, and dirt cheap. What it isn’t is recyclable—there isn’t a single natural process that breaks it down. That is until a newly-discovered Amazonian fungus takes a bite. Pestalotiopsis microspora (not shown) is a…
A helicopter’s rotor design may allow for vertical takeoffs but that comes at a price—the backwards moving blade counteracts the helicopter’s forward momentum, causing it to stall at high speeds. But one German firm believes that outfitting the blades with bumps inspired by the fins of humpback whales will speed whirly-bird flights significantly. A humpback…
Rearranging your furniture is easy enough but your lighting tends to stay where its been since you moved in—limited by the location of available outlets. Or it was limited at least, until the folks at Modern Lantern designed a table lamp that doesn’t need them. The Modern Lantern is powered by a Li-Ion battery seated…
Last November I flew a P-40 in California, one with three confirmed kills, rescued after a crash in a Pacific island. If I get to fly a P-40 again, I hope I get to do it like the Texas Flying Legends: over St. Barths island. The experience over Sonoma was exhilarating for an airplane nerd…
If you use a non-T-Mobile network to connect your T-Mobile device to the Internet, you’ll want to start looking into alternatives—like now. Documents leaked to TmoNews show the carrier will cap off-network connections after as little as 50MB of data come April. According to the leak, the cutoff limit will be staggered by the amount…
Part of why Special K—the drug, not the cereal—has become so massively popular in the club scene is because of its ability to instantly improve the user’s mood. Now, doctors in Texas are studying if that effect can help treat cases of severe depression. Conventional anti-depressants like Prozac are effective but take weeks, if not…
Fixed skateboard trucks, no matter how loose, just can’t flex enough to match the carving ability and dynamic movement of a surfboard. The SurfSkate’s specially-designed front truck, however, lets you carve tarmac like swells in the Pacific. The SurfSkate features a 360-degree rotating front truck that’s significantly more narrow than the fixed rear. The free-rotating…
Earlier today, President Barack Obama took part in a Google+ Hangout. You might think this was a cheap campaign stunt. (And it kind of was!) But a serious technology employment question came up, and the President flubbed it. https://gizmodo.com/hang-out-with-gizmodo-and-president-obama-5880672 Jennifer Weddel, from Fort Worth, Texas asked the President why H1B visas are being still being…
The new Koss Porta Pro KTC headphones aren’t exactly new. They’re an update to a product that’s been a mainstay since the ’80s. And now you can get these retro cans with an iOS remote. It’s about time. Koss’ on-ear, folding headphones have barely changed since they were first unleashed on the Walkman-rocking masses in…
