Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
Anyone can fake a screenshot. Heck, anyone can fake an Apple Tablet—this is a lot easier. These screenshots of Chrome OS—with a Mac OS X-inspired dock—may be real, but they may be fake for a couple of reasons. https://gizmodo.com/apple-tablet-the-wet-dream-concept-5336204 First, the rumor is that Chrome OS will have a new windowing system. Basically, a windowing…
Dr. Dre, Interscope Chairman Jimmy Lovine and HP have teamed up in an effort to reconstruct the entire “digital music ecosystem” starting with a new line of laptops, software and headsets under the Beats by Dr. Dre brand. https://gizmodo.com/lightning-review-dr-dre-and-monster-headphones-vs-a-5033864 “I just want our product to sound better,” Iovine said. “The record business committed many, many…
This crazy contraption is a “Coital Model,” something used by condom manufacturers to determine when condoms break. Yes, that’s a big old penis on there. Uh, sexy? Over a period of 7 years, broken condoms returned to a supplier (SSL, Durex) via consumer complaints were examined to determine the cause of failure. Also, some consumers…
Thanks to written eyewitness accounts and mechanical drawings left behind by the artist, Leonardo da Vinci’s fabled mechanical lion walks again after 500 years. Click to viewOriginally designed to entertain the King of France, the robot has been recreated as part of an exhibit at the Chateau du Clos Luce in France—Leonardo’s last residence. Using…
Personal theory: Man has a natural propensity to question what he reads but believe anything he sees in neat infographic form. And this is one heck of an infographic, comparing budget airlines (like Southwest) to traditional companies like Delta. (Click on the image to see it bigger.) I have no idea whether or not all…
While the version number is still reading 2.5, some of the screenshots on the App Store are telling a different story. Hopefully, this is an indicator that Facebook 3.0 is on its way later today. [iTunes—Thanks Josh!] https://gizmodo.com/facebook-3-0-for-iphone-adds-events-and-photo-albums-b-5306627
At first glance, this ruggedized steel box looks kinda lame, but because it bolts to furniture from the inside (using supplied mounting parts), it actually wouldn’t be a bad way to protect your 17-inch-or-smaller laptop in communal living situations. https://gizmodo.com/thief-steals-laptop-taunts-victim-using-her-facebook-a-5338872 For its $80, the DormVault also comes with a combination lock, but I’d probably invest…
Good news: According to Yann Lafargue, PR guy at TomTom, the incoming TomTom GPS Car Kit will work with the iPod touch, enabling full GPS capabilities in Apple’s smart multimedia player: Oui, je confirme et il fonctionnera avec un iPod Touch ou d’autres logiciels de navigations concurrents. Pour la disponibilité, je ne peux pas répondre.…
Howard Stringer hasn’t managed to tame the 1000-armed octopus that is Sony just yet, but we like the man’s way of thinking. And being named Sony Ericsson‘s new Chairmen of the Board (starting October 15th) certainly can’t hurt the Ericsson end of things. Neither can Sony Ericsson’s new chief. [Sony Ericsson] https://gizmodo.com/new-sony-ericsson-chief-is-ready-to-make-the-hard-obvio-5338928
With all due respect to Flava Flav and his giant clock, this is more my speed. Although I can’t help but notice that the chain is too short to let him play it while wearing it. [Facehunter via Kottke]
The already first-rate i.TV program schedule app has a fresh trick: a universal remote control framework that could finally turn the iPhone into the ultimate all-in-one-clicker. To prove they’re serious about this, they’ve nabbed a pretty great first partner: TiVo. https://gizmodo.com/the-week-in-iphone-apps-into-the-deprivation-chamber-5061561 This means that TiVo HD and TiVO HD XL owners will be able to…
Remember back in school when you built some contraption to drop an egg without spilling yoke everywhere? Well Pop Mech essentially did the same thing, but they used a laptop. After wrapping a Dell Inspiron 1545 in an exoskeleton of foam-core boards, pipe insulation and tennis balls (hence the protruding, rounded edges), the laptop could…
Someone at Cupertino is a fan of the criminally short-lived Arrested Development, as evidenced by this entry in the iPhone dictionary of “Mayonegg.” Don’t get it? Here’s a clip to put it in context. Update: OK, so it looks like someone was just typing “Mayonegg” into their iPhone a lot and the dictionary learned it.…
The 6-ounce Verbatim InSight portable HD has an always-on display that shows its name and remaining capacity even while disconnected. However, I just posted it because I can serve some Brie and Reblochon on it. Hmmm, cheese. The 6 x 3.4 x 0.63-inch USB 2.0 InSight is a 2.5-inch drive running at 5400rpm, with an…
Why should you care that Sony Ericsson, which has been in all kinds of restructuring turmoil for months, has had its Chief Executive replaced? Because the new guy, Bert Nordberg, has some practical, but distinctly un-Sony-Ericsson-like views on smartphones: https://gizmodo.com/sony-ericsson-needs-a-boatload-of-money-to-stay-alive-5262461 Sony Ericsson has taken leadership in the music phones and the camera phones with the…
Woot’s original Sore Thumbs shirt sold out, so they’ve reprinted it for $20. But can you name all of the classic game controllers here? (If you can’t, we have a larger shot and the answer key.) From the designer: Atari 2600, GCE Vectrex, NES, NES Max, Magnavox Odyssey, Colecovision, Atari 7800, NES Advantage, Mattel Intelivision,…
Not content with stealing a UK woman’s laptop, iPhone, Nintendo DS and handbag—a shithead burglar has logged into her Facebook account, leaving messages like “on my new laptop”, “listening to music on my new phone feels so good.” The illiterate low-life went on to mock: “I have the laptop, phones ok but a bit scratched…
With the Pirate Bay set to close in the next few days, one anonymous user has put together a single massive archive of all 873,671 torrent files hosted on its servers. Remember: this is a torrent file index, not the petabytes of data they link to. The anonymous uploader who compiled this huge torrent told…
So Dell’s made-for China Mobile Mini3i is confirmed. But it’s no smartphone. Apparent hands-on reports suggest it’s a 2G device, with no 3G or Wi-Fi. However, it does have that 3.5-inch touchscreen and Micro SD card slot we heard about. https://gizmodo.com/dells-android-smartphone-new-photos-and-specs-5337228 Update: Dell has finally admitted that it’s developing mobile devices for China Mobile. Dell’s…
Many virtual rev-heads knew it was coming, but Logitech has now officially replaced its G25 Racing Wheel with the G27. The update adds shift-indicator LEDs that you help know when to up/down gear, and more programmable buttons on the wheel. The 11-inch, leather-wrapped wheel now has a total of six buttons (three for each thumb),…
