Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
Yaskawa’s Motoman-DIA10 is like your average mail boy, only on steroids. It can sort through an impressive 1,000 pieces of mail in under an hour with its two fully positionable He-Man sized arms. Its creators claim that they only plan on marketing the Motoman as a backup for your workers. Yeah right, more like a…
By slapping magnetic contact lenses onto your eyeballs, sensors can track where you’re looking. This could have important applications for the disabled, especially for those who rely on their eyes for control instead of disabled body parts. Right now, however, the Office of Naval Research is the largest sponsor, so you can probably file this…
A little bigger than the Bose SoundDock but mercifully smaller than the iPod Hi-Fi, Samsung’s piano black MM-X5 iPod docking station has a little extra trick up its sleeve: a slot-loading CD player. Of course, it might take some time for me to locate my CD collection, but it’s still cool. The MM-X5 ought to…
We have more stuff coming up from E3, but in case you’ve missed our live coverage of the Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo press events, here’s a quick recap of the most important things: Microsoft • Microsoft’s big Halo-themed Xbox 360 announcement came not with a bang, but a whimper. • Still, that case does look…
HDMI is the way you’re gonna want to hook up your fancy HD home theatre setup. But if you’re running cables at lengths of over 30 feet, you’re going to need to spend tons of money on overpriced cables in order to keep the signal integrity up to snuff. Right? Well, not necessarily. The Honeywell…
Here’s as close as Team Kotaku could get to the PSP before being tackled by a security guard in a Ratchet and Clank costume. [kotaku]
Samsung’s just announced their new ultra-compact L83T digital camera, a diminutive 8-megapixel point-and-shoot with a 3x optical zoom. It’s also got a nice, big 2.5-inch LCD screen on the back. It’s a pretty basic yet decent looking camera that should appeal to those who just want an easy point-and-shoot without a ton of bells and…
If you think all flat panels are the same, you haven’t seen the stuff I’m about to show you. Remember that Wi-Fi 1080p plasma we told you about in April? Well that’s it, above, and look ma, no wires. (Okay, there’s a power cable plugged into the wall — who do you think built it,…
iTunes 7.3.1 & Quicktime 7.2 are out right now. [Apple]
Chinese scientists have reportedly developed a plane that flies less than two feet above the surface of the sea. With speeds of up to 300kph (186mph) the new plane, known as Wing In Ground, can carry up to four tonnes on take-off while using half as much fuel as a normal aircraft does. And the…
Tired of those lame, overpriced DVD-based board games that end up in the storage closet after a few nights of play? Last night our E3 liveblog mentioned that the movie trivia game Scene It? Lights, Camera, Action is coming to the Xbox 360 complete with custom controllers (pics post-jump), a library of multimedia questions (including…
There’s a lot of water floating around in the air everywhere, and inventor Max Whisson has figured out a way to extract it using Max Water, a wind-powered contraption he named after himself. Max Water uses the concept of condensation, where lower temperature allows less water to hang around in the air, and Whisson says…
Today at its holiday preview in New York, Samsung showed off three camcorders that the company wants to use to jumpstart an industry that has slowed down. These cute, extra shiny devices are keyed into your particular video preference. Want to burn to DVD? Capture in HD? Get it up on the web ASAP? Choose…
Yes, these now-blessed hands that typed this story got to rock out on the Rock Band drumset earlier today. Here’s what I thought: The drums were designed with care. Four pads with subtle color rings can be adjusted for play while either standing or sitting, while a foot pedal for the bass sits on the…
Nintendo put a promo video online for Wii Fit and its Balance Board accessory that shows its new title in action. After watching the video, we found out that Wii Fit can calculate your Body Mass Index (BMI). Here are some other secrets we found out about Wii Fit: -The Balance Board features a pressure…
Google updated its maps page today to include a maplet system allowing for the overlay of anything from YouTube videos to Flickr photos on the map. [Reuters]
Lockheed Martin, everybody’s favorite war profiteer, is hard at work on its new MULE robotic vehicle, a little guy that’s able to traverse all sorts of terrain without help from human handlers. While still a ways off from hitting the sunny shores of Iraq, as it’s not due ’til around 2013, its Engineering Evaluation Unit…
Nintendo says the Wii may still be hard to find this holiday season. [Reuters]
From Jason Chen, live at the PS Event: “They’ve gotten a version of PS Home working on a Sony Ericsson cellphone. It’s not 3D, but the communication and chat features working on the phone.” Can automatically send photos to PS Home’s 3D environment (say, as a picture on a wall of your virtual home.) They’re…
Click to viewFrom the press conference, Jason says: “Kaz is holding a brand new PSP, and will be available in September of this year. Still has UMD, still has a 4.3-inch screen. It’s 30% lighter, however, and 19% slimmer. And they improved the loading to load games faster. But the improvements is in video output:…