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Cambridge University researchers have developed a $3 LED-based lightbulb that is 12 times more efficient than regular tungsten light bulbs, three times more than low energy ones. It lights up instantly, lasting for 100,000 hours, The cheap lightbulb could cost the energy bill in any house by as much as three quarters. In fact, if…
Though we’re glad iTunes went DRM-free, we were pissed you had to upgrade your entire collection to DRM-less, 256kbps bliss. But now you can upgrade individual tracks (30 cents each) or albums (prices vary). [iLounge] https://gizmodo.com/itunes-wants-250-to-upgrade-my-music-collection-or-th-5130870
Here’s a sad one: the Google Maps car took out a baby deer, and it recorded the entire process for all Google Maps users to see. For shame, Google Maps car! As you follow the street view scene down Five Points Road in Rush, NY, you can see the deer run out in front of…
If Palm ends up in court over the Pre’s multitouch, it’ll join a prestigious line of firms that have tussled with Apple, which loves a good legal battle almost as much as sexy aluminum. https://gizmodo.com/apple-hints-at-palm-pre-legal-battle-5136645 In Apple’s legal trail are, for the most part, corpses. Save for one little skiffle with you-know-who that haunts them…
Before the Grand HD Cinema, I honestly didn’t know that a USB to HDMI converter was possible. (Though in truth, it’s still really only half possible.) The Grand HD Cinema does indeed take USB video (along with audio) and upconvert the stream to a 720p HDMI signal that can drive six different HDMI devices. As…
The Storm’s wunderkind network chip, which plays on CDMA and GSM networks, and fancier 3.2MP camera is why it costs $203 to build, about $30 more than the iPhone 3G. [BW]
Now is a really good time to pick up a second-hand Gulfstream. Why? In our bailout-ridden times, a private jet has become as stigmatic as those knockoff L.A. Lights you had on the playground. Seasoned in their coverage of the many laments of being rich, the NYTimes talked to many current and former jet owners…
The Triceracopter is half Triceratops, half helicopter. Built as a sculpture in 1977 by artist Patricia Renick, it’s now available now for the discerning collector/dinopilot. The Triceracopter is subtitled “Hope for the Obsolescence of War,” and I guess that’s why it’s a dinosaur combined with a military helicopter. But somehow I feel like it promotes…
High-tech snowboards, stainless steel tubs, and man-styled scooters – take a break from the dreary winter weather with the week’s best from Uncrate. This week at Uncrate: We get clean in the Stainless Steel Ofuro, keep our liquor stash well-hidden in the Gunning Box Bar, and mix fashion and functionality with the Banana Republic Patch-Pocket…
This lady is going to be even more confused when she tries to find where the film is to take her pictures in to get developed. [Failblog]
Who in their right mind would dare hack a construction sign with zombie warnings? Well, apparently some people in Austin—probably some pesky University of Texas students according to a local traffic controller: https://gizmodo.com/hacking-road-signs-is-frightningly-easy-and-funny-and-5136970 Jones, who has one of only two keys to the locked access panels on the portable signs, said that the hacker broke…
You know how some jerk in a water gun fight always cheats by grabbing the hose? Well, this pilot could totally beat that guy at his own game. Click to view[via gizmowatch] UPDATE: According to The Telegraph, the device is called the JetLev-Flyer. It runs $227,000 and can be purchased here.
"Engineers now predict the day will come when we get all our newspapers and magazines by home computer," the narrator says with a hint of sarcasm, continuing, "but that’s a few years off." Indeed. The piece is about the earliest days of digital media, when the lucky few home computer users could view content from…
In testing iPhoto ’09 for my full review, I plowed through more than 30,000 photos using over 40 identified faces, mostly human. Here’s how iPhoto’s face detection and recognition works—and doesn’t work: https://gizmodo.com/iphoto-09-the-definitive-review-and-tip-sheet-5142596 Face Detection Apple says it uses facial detection to determine the existence of faces, and then facial recognition to separate one person…
It’s so sunny here in Madrid. I wish I could be out flying these Star Wars spaceship kites, instead of working here. OK, I lied: I actually wish I was out having tapas and wine. I mean, I like the TIE Advanced, but I like tapas and wine more. [Think Geek]
Berkeley University scientists demoed a remote-control Rhinoceros beetle at a conference this week, repeatedly flying the cyborgian creature into observers’ faces while screaming “WE ARE GODS! WE HUNGER FOR BLOOD SACRIFICE! The first part of that, the true part, represents a huge step in the mechanical control of living things. It’s far from the first…
I understand people really close to dogs. I am. I love Jones like if he was my own son. Seriously. But paying $150,000 to clone a dog after he dies, like this couple from Miami? https://gizmodo.com/gizmodog-drugs-addy-attacks-jesus-and-mario-takes-ove-391371 Absolutely not. After all, cloned animals or people are not the real thing, no matter how much they look…
The unbelievably awkward LoveTrainer sex instruction headset was weird, sure. But fake? This morning we got an email from the alleged creator—”World Renowned Sex Doctor” Itami—aaaaand he’s never heard of it. https://gizmodo.com/lovetrainer-headset-coaches-you-in-the-art-of-love-is-5140820 Dr. Itami, who is actually not a sex doctor by any means, said that a competitor was “illegally using images and video from…
CubeCheater-a Rubik cube solver in 20 moves-is one of those iPhone applications that make you smile when you see it in action because it is simply pure genius. This is how it works. • First you have to tell the app the state of your Rubik’s cube. • You can do this with two methods:…
Opera Mini‘s final release addresses most of the problems we found in our beta test, and is available now in the ‘Communications’ category of the Android Market. Changes for this release: 1. added JSR-75 (File API) support which gives access to the SD card for uploading and downloading and also the possibility to save pages…
