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Take a Linksys running custom firmware, tap into the hardware to power a circuit controlling the locks, and SSH into the router with custom iPhone and Android apps to flip the circuit. Easy, right? [Sunlight via Make via Engadget]
Mark Twain and Nikola Tesla: The most powerful of minds, and the best of friends. Here, a captivated Sam Clemens tests Tesla’s inductively powered incandescent lamp. The mad scientist lurks in the background, like, well, a mad scientist. It’s not terribly surprising that the two men were friends, since they were both revered figures in…
The shark-filled aquarium at the Dubai mall, full of 33,000 sea creatures and 2 million gallons of water, has sprung a leak through its 30-inch acrylic walls. This won’t end well! Updated: Now with video! The leak had people wading out of the mall. A representative for Dubai’s civil defense force said they’ve got the…
It’ll be at least a decade before the Bloom Box solves our energy crisis. In the meantime, you’re gonna have to turn off your gadgets. This concept uses ambient light to gently remind you which are still sucking power. https://gizmodo.com/giz-explains-fuel-cells-and-bloom-energys-miracle-box-5479460 The design bears the creatively-sequenced name Saving Energy Multitap, and it’s intended as a replacement…
I’m pretty sure BSMT GARBAGECAN is not where this package was intended to be delivered. But hey, UPS delivered it, and that’s all that counts, I guess. Martin says: On Monday I couriered an envelop containing paper objects and a DVD from Toronto to New York, to be included in an exhibition that will open…
Someone did a real version of Buzz Lightyear, just in time for Toy Story 3. And to spook me once again, like Real Mario and Untooned Homer. Christ. Why don’t they stick to folder art? [Raoninery – Thanks David Keyes!] https://gizmodo.com/buzz-lightyear-goes-to-infinity-and-the-internationa-394730
The Palm Pre unveiling stands in my memory as one of the most refreshing moments in modern history. Palm had done it—they had created a great phone Nokia would’ve killed for. But today, that’s just not enough. https://gizmodo.com/live-palm-keynote-5126468 As Palm teeters on the brink of either ruin or acquisition, let’s take stock of what they…
It’s in French, but you owe it to yourself to flip through one man’s war story of crafting his own SLR camera, which he machined from scratch. The pictures alone will make you feel properly inadequate. [Forum via MAKE]
In today’s Remainders: Empires. Apple tends to theirs at their annual shareholders meeting; Verizon reinforces their cellular empire for Spring Break action; and the Galactic Empire’s graphic design team faces off with Ole Miss’s new rebel mascot. And more! It’s a Mascot! Ole Miss has been without a mascot since 2003, when its Colonel Reb…
Instead of hiding dust-ball-hunting spaghetti cable monsters behind furniture, I’ve decided to embrace chaos and transform it. Actually, my wife has. These decorative cable clips seem perfect for it, and simpler than squiggling cords on the wall. [PA-Design via Unplggd] https://gizmodo.com/camouflage-cords-5408432
Six years ago, David Cope destroyed one of the world’s most talented composers. Her name was Emmy, and she’d written thousands of musical scores that were indistinguishable from classics by Mozart. But Emmy’s younger, brighter daughter named Emily lives on. David Cope is an emeritus professor at University of California. His last piece of music…
All these wonderful things we’re learning today, from data! First, we find out that Android is a guy thing. Now, we discover that the iPod Touch shares more demographics with glittering vampires than smartphones. iPod Touch: Kid stuff. https://gizmodo.com/androids-dude-problem-5480177 The age distribution makes a lot of sense, especially with the direct available comparison of the…
From what we’ve heard about the development process of Windows Phone 7, rumors about the OS predated its earliest seeds. How? The secret lies deep underground in Redmond, buried with a little project called Photon. We were posting about Windows Mobile 7 (and 8!) in great detail back in 2008, and we weren’t the only…
We have some astounding discounts on laptops including a huge deal on the Dell Studio 15 in Promise Pink. If you’ve held out for a cheap Xbox your stinginess has finally paid off and you can celebrate by pillaging hobomodo. Top Deals: • 15.4″ Dell Studio 15 for $654 plus free shipping (normally $1150). •…
There are four individuals on the run with artificial organs they haven’t paid for. And we need you to help track them down and retrieve their artiforgs. Repo Men earn good money ($7,500 per each artiforg retrieved), and never have a boring day. Click here to apply. (Only registered Repo Men who follow all local…
There are over 130,000 apps in the App Store. About 100,000 of those expect you to pay cash money for a download. Sometimes it’s worth it! Often, it’s not. Prof. Dealzmodo’s here to help you tell the difference. https://gizmodo.com/the-app-store-economy-is-booming-5447110 Oscar Wilde was right about cynics: they know the cost of everything and the value of…
Opera 10.5 for Mac‘s out. It’s different from most browsers—the way it searches text in every tab from the address bar, for instance—but it’s ridiculously fast and worth a spin. Besides, can you have too many browsers?? [Opera]
I like my Swiss knife, but I like the Guppie better. Any multi-tool that makes me look like a Real Man, ready to go back to the Jurassic and kill a dinosaur, is a winner. Made by Columbia River Knife & Tools, the Guppie includes an adjustable wrench, screw driver with multiple magnetic heads, menacing…
Super-spec’d premium phones like the Droid and Nexus One are only part of Google’s long term plan for Android. What we have here is a glimpse of Android’s other future: Free. Android handsets are the new flip-phones! Sort of! Today’s Motorola Devour launch at Best Buy Mobile brought some extra goodies, including an awkwardly priced…
Ahead of a March 2 event and TiVo HDs suddenly going extinct, two listings for a TiVo Premiere HD and Premiere XL HD have popped up in Best Buy‘s system. https://gizmodo.com/tivos-got-something-major-coming-march-2nd-5469602 The Premiere XL is THX certified and records up to 150 hours of HD content. It’s $500. The regular Premiere records a third as…