Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
There are so many apps out there for the iPhone, Android and other phone platforms, but so few essential apps. What’s the one app that you just couldn’t live without? For me, it’s Instapaper. I use it virtually every single time I ride the subway, and it’s allowed me to read so many amazing articles…
Here’s how to skip the Android tutorial forever. When presented with the cute Android robot that tempts you to touch it, tap the four corners in a clockwise motion: upper left, upper right, bottom right, and then bottom left. And just like that, you’ll never have to do that stupid tutorial ever again. Pro tip:…
RIM’s introducing BlackBerry Protect, a new feature that lets users wirelessly backup, restore, and locate their lost BlackBerrys for free. Basically your already very secure BlackBerry will be even safer. And you didn’t have to pay a penny. RIM: BlackBerry Protect allows you the ability to wirelessly backup, restore and locate your BlackBerry® smartphone. In…
Here’s a pretty over the top deal: you can get a refurbished Kindle 2 for only $110. That’s about $80 less than a new Kindle, and pretty much one of the cheapest ebook readers you can buy. UPDATED: https://gizmodo.com/kindle-now-just-190-as-ebook-reader-price-wars-heat-up-5569025 The Kindle refurb still qualifies for customer service and Amazon’s 30-day return policy, and represents a…
Sadly, there’s no free food for you all today unless you think you can sustain yourself on gum alone. But we’re hoping a BlackBerry for 1 cent will raise your spirits if you can stomach a contract with AT&T. Top Deals: • 15.6″ Dell Latitude E5510 with docking station for $909 shipped (normally $1407). •…
Is there anything the typifies the sybaritic complacency of the American consumer more than feeling personally slighted when somebody criticizes your phone? Put away your slings and arrows, mailroom pundits, and remember these fuckers work for us. Heard the one about Gizmodo and Apple? It goes like this: Gizmodo gets its hands on a leaked…
This crazy structure is part of the Treehotel, a new hotel in northern Sweden consisting of multiple treehouses all designed my different architects. That one up there is the Mirrorcube, named thusly because, well, it’s a mirrored cube. It allows you to see out from the inside at the forest and animals around it, who…
Google’s new Open Spot Android app turns finding open parking spots into a social game. You earn “karma points” for marking down available parking spots while others earn open parking spots by tracking down those marked spots. Each time you mark down an available parking spot in Open Spot, you gain a karma point. The…
Remember the halcyon days of last week, when the Fring iPhone app supported video calls over 3G to any Fring or Skype user? Fun while it lasted. Today comes news that Skype has blocked Fring altogether. Or did they? https://lifehacker.com/fring-iphone-app-supports-video-calls-over-3g-to-any-fr-5582736 The reported move ends a beautiful four year relationship between Fring and Skype. After the…
Fruit Ninja, an iPhone favorite, is coming to the iPad this week, the bigger dojo allowing for more luxurious, 8-finger multi-touch slashing and head-to-head competition against other players. Bigger, riper fruits and craftier ninjas? Sounds good to me. [TouchArcade]
When the last BlackBerry OS 6 preview hit, I was so distracted by all that dancing I could barely make out any new features. This latest preview gives a cleaner look, though. And so far, I like what I see. https://gizmodo.com/the-new-blackberry-os-6-0-video-and-details-5525343 It’s not like BlackBerry OS 6 is going to be a game changer. It’s…
This morning will mark BP’s umpteenth attempt at containing the ecological disaster they created months ago. And because they’re out of new ideas, they’re just trading in their kinda-working sealing cap for a (hopefully) better one. https://gizmodo.com/bps-new-containment-cap-is-kinda-working-5556307 While the cap is going on at some point today, it’ll be another 48 hours or so until…
No, this top isn’t woven from human skin but something potentially even more gross: Bacteria. Using a bathtub mixture of yeast, bacteria and sweetened green tea, designer Suzanne Lee produces extremely thin sheets of bacterial cellulose. When wet, they’re pliable, and can be shaped into clothing. The seams are simply “sewn” by squeezing two sheets…
First, Microsoft’s tablet hopes and dreams hinged on the HP Slate. That died. At least there were still rumors of the Courier dual-screen tablet! Until, well. But according to Microsoft honcho Steve Ballmer, there are Windows 7 tablets aplenty coming. https://gizmodo.com/hps-windows-7-slate-device-revealed-by-steve-ballmer-5442200 Ballmer’s remarks came at the opening of Microsoft’s Worldwide Partner Conference today. It’s not…
Researchers modified a standard TV remote to passively identify users through the small, personalized movements of their hands. The technique? Capturing accelerometer measurements every 100 nanoseconds. The level of accuracy? 60-90%. [BranislavKveton via NewScientist via Engadget]
One thing iPhone 4 and HTC Evo 4G fans can agree on: it’s a pain in the neck to get your hands on either. That’s making it hard for Sprint to get the 4G foothold they’d envisioned. https://gizmodo.com/sprints-htc-evo-the-first-ever-4g-phone-meet-the-new-5500343 That disappointment comes straight from the mouth of Sprint CEO Dan Hesse in this morning’s WSJ interview,…
Apple issued a support statement over the weekend regarding its Time Capsule data backup solution—some of them have been breaking well before they should. But it’s OK, models from between Feb and June 2008 can be replaced, free. If you have a malfunctioning, out-of-warranty Time Capsule that “may not power on or may shut down…
Simon Kang, the chief exec of LG’s Home Entertainment division, has said the Korean manufacturer is considering signing up to Google’s TV initiative, fearing it could be left out of a web-connected TV BOOM if it doesn’t. Saying he doesn’t want LG to “end up as just a hardware provider” the move would make LG…
Google has revealed its latest smartphone war weapon—Google App Inventor for Android. It’s a drag & drop app creation tool to help those without a collection of SDKs on their computer build apps, games and more. https://gizmodo.com/google-quietly-invests-over-100-million-in-zynga-read-5584118 Users build up custom apps from pre-defined “blocks” of code provided by Google, which are slotted together to…
Drones are ubiquitous on today’s modern battlefields, from Iraq to Afghanistan and everywhere in between. Automated, gear-lugging golf carts? Not so much. That’s about to change though, thanks to a little guy named GUSS. GUSS, short for Ground Unmanned Support Surrogate, is a short range hauler akin to BigDog, but without the terrifying night terrors.…
