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Jul 26, 2011

Spray Paint Behemoth Bag Packs 22 Cans of Vandalism Or Art!

Should you find yourself preparing a massive spray paint project, you're probably going to need a massive amount of spray paint! Sure, you could juggle them, or throw them in a bag. Or carry this ginormous spray paint monster backpack.

The Black Ops Version 3, by Spraygrounds, has room for a staggering 22 cans of paint. That is a lot of paint. Perhaps you've been commissioned to redo the Sistine Chapel by a young new hip hop Pope. Perhaps you're venturing out into the desert, and are afraid of running out of spray paint, and are bringing 22 cans just in case.

At any rate, the padded bag not only offers ample room for paint, but a laptop sleeve, plenty of compartments, and is crafted from tough ballistic nylon. Alternately, you could only bring out one can of spray paint, and fill the rest with air freshener.Get it here.

New Sony Walkman Pops up on UK Retail Site

The portable cassette players once nearly universally identified as the Walkman may have seen better days, but their spirit is still alive, so far as Sony is concerned. The company is apparently set to release the latest entry in the line, the slick-looking NWZA865B, a 16GB portable media player with wireless file sharing and music streaming capabilities. 

The 16GB model is also likely one of a number of capacities to be offered, ranging from 8GB to 64GB. The device is available for viewing on UK retailer Buy.com with a £130 ($213) price tag and a July 31st release date.
 
 

Toilet 2.0 — The New King of Thrones

For as much time as people spend on the toilet, you'd think someone would have rectified the glaring design issues with them by now. What? The Toilet 2.0 by David Hakkens did?

The Toilet 2.0 has been redesigned from the bathroom floor up. It's constructed of Corian, a composite material created by DuPont, that's lighter, thinner, and stronger than traditional porcelain.

The master stroke is the design of the bowl itself. The shallow-bottom, wide-body, lipped design not only aids in self-cleaning but it keeps you from experiencing the dreaded "impromptu bidet" action of a seated flush. The system will even reuse grey water from your sinks and dishwasher to flush its lines behind the wall (fresh water is still used to clear the bowl). The Toilet 2.0 is still in the design stages, so you'll have to keep shelling out $6400 for your game-changing cans for now.
 
 

Jul 25, 2011

Virgin Media Testing 1.5Gbps Internet for Lucky Londonites

Jealous of Comcast customers with their 105Mbps cable hook ups or those lucky residents of the Kansas cities relishing in Google's 1Gbps service? Well add Londonites to the list of people that drive you to indulging in one of the seven deadly sins. Virgin Media has finally started testing its DOCSIS2-powered1.5Gbps network in the heart of merry ol' England. Right now it's being enjoyed by a group of test sites around Old Street that also get a 150Mbps upload connection.

Virgin claims it's the fastest broadband in the world, which may be true if you're not counting lab experiments. The really good news is that it's based on the same tech already delivering 100Mbps to residents across the country so, if the trial goes well, it should be trivial to deliver these mind numbing speeds to the rest of its customers.
 
 

Voomote One Universal Remote For Your iPhone

It's not the first universal remote adapter we've seen for the iPhone and, unlike the Surc IR case, you probably wouldn't want to leave this bulky add-on attached to your handset when not in use. But, the app does have some convenient features, like the ability to create custom layouts that can easily be switched based on the devices in a particular room. 

So you can setup a living room profile to control your big screen and cable box, and a separate bed room one for your more modest set and a stereo. You can also create command macros that fire up multiple devices with the tap of a single virtual button. The Voomote app is available for free in the app store, but the actual IR-blasting sleeve will set you back $99. 
 
 

Sony Cyber-Shot TX55 Packs 16.2-Megapixel Sensor

With point and shoot cameras apparently now up against a megapixel wall, manufacturers are focusing on adding quirky new features to keep you hooked on the upgrade cycle. Sony's new Cyber-shot TX55 includes several such additions, such as 'amazing' 3D image capture, 'extremely low' noise, and a new digital zoom technology, which promises to double the camera's 5x optical zoom range while still capturing 16.2-megapixel images at full quality.

 If the $350 camera really can deliver on its promise, then we may just have a winner. Sony says there's also high-speed autofocus that can lock onto subjects in 0.1 seconds, optical image stabilization, a 3.3-inch OLED touch-screen, and 1080i AVCHD video. It also includes some features found on the higher-end NEX-C3, such as Picture Effects, and a Panorama mode. Sony has yet to completely nix the Memory Stick slot, including one with the TX55, though there's also MicroSD support for those who prefer to take advantage of that more affordable memory card standard.

Jul 24, 2011

iCam Bypasses Clunky Factory-Installed Camera Interfaces with an iPhone

Zeki Ozek wants to complement your current camera with an iPhone and eliminate SD cards, clunky factory-installed interfaces and whatever else attaching Apple's smartphone to the back of your rig might accomplish.

He proposes we do it with iCam, a camera with a dock in the back that syncs up with an iPhone courtesy the 22 pin connector. The concept won a Red Dot Design Concept award this year, based on the design's incredibly broad potential. Strapping a powerful, portable touchscreen computer to the back of a custom-built camera can do that for you. Plus, wireless connectivity. Cannot understimate the convenience of that.

Cameras will be wireless, hyper-connected, uber-customizable devices in the near future anyway, but there's no denying the iPhone's potential in this early, specific case.
 
 

AT&T Google Nexus S on Sale Today, Exclusive to Best Buy

If you shelled out 600 clams for an unlocked Nexus S, buyer's remorse starts now: the subsidized AT&T version is out today. 

Available exclusively from Best Buy (and exclusively in black), the AT&T Nexus S will set you back only a paltry $99 with a two-year contract. Is the loss of color choice (and that whole "SIM-locked to AT&T" thing) worth the savings? We'll leave that up to you and your (Google) wallet.
 
 

MP3 Players That Look Like Bullet Shells

These cylindrical, bullet shell looking like device is actually an mp3 player that can double as a speaker. It's about 3 inches tall, 1.3 inches in diameter, supports microSD and plays MP3, WMA, APE, etc.

The speakers that come in the Singbox SV-606 are just mono, so you're not going to get any real punch behind it (which is not unexpected given the size, I guess) so you'll probably have to plug in some headphones. I wish it looked more like a bullet shell though. Get them here.

Jul 23, 2011

Oh No, Instagram Has Just Been Bieberized

Yep, that's right. Justin Bieber has joined Instagram and tweeted his first image. Yay? Within minutes, Bieber started gaining 50 followers a second and six comments a minute. And yeah, this first photo already accrued 300 likes.

One piece of good news for the geek crowd — Instagram is holding up under the strain of thousands of pre-teen girls flooding the service. That's something worthy of a good ole pat on the back.


Space Invaders Have Infiltrated Our Tools

While using the Space Invaders multi-tool you may think you are the master, bending it to your will, but think again. The Space Invader is crafty and patient. Methodical. It is gathering intel. It is only a matter of time.

In the meantime, though, this is a pretty geektastic way to screw things in (or up, depending on skill level). Just remember it is you who will be screwed in the end. Perhaps literally. These are aliens we're talking about. LINK HERE: You can get it here for $24. 





Google Acquires PittPatt, Wants to Know You on a Face-to-Face Basis

Google's quietly pitter-pattering its acquisitive ways back into the controversial realm of facial recognition technology. To do that, the company busted out its oversized wallet to fold Pittsburgh-based PittPatt into the Mountain View borg. Founded by a trio of PhD's from Carnegie Mellon University, this three-man strong outfit specializes in the sort of object recognition software you've come to know as "tagging." Is this a reversal of the Do No Evil tech giant's prior waffling on the dubious visioning tech, or just another massive weapon in its social networking crusade against Facebook? 

The company's new employees aren't exactly playing their cards for us to see. A brief statement on the triumvirate's site makes vague mention of "computer vision technology" being core to Google's products and points to the tech's planned integration in photo, video and mobile applications. So, basically, expect to see Picasa, Goggles, YouTube and Google+ watch you as you flaunt your internet celebrity ways to that front-facing camera.
 
 

Porsche’s Compass Watch

The compass-in-a-watch concept isn't exactly a breakthrough in functionality, but my goodness is Porsche Design's P'6520 compass watch pretty. Its black titanium case splits in two, with the Swiss movement timepiece on the top half and a removable liquid compass on the bottom.

The compass is viewed through mirrors on the compass face and the bottom of the watch half, and it works in both hemispheres. It's also waterproof to 50 feet. No word on the pricing just yet, but expect it to cost about what you paid for your car.
 
 

Jul 22, 2011

Apple: One million Lion downloads in first day

A cool one million downloads of Lion have been registered in the first day of availability. That's faster than any other OS release in the company's history, which lends perhaps a bit more weight to Apple's "best OS we've ever made" claim.
 
 

Android's UK Market Share Explodes as Apple Overtakes Symbian

Look at the chart above and you'll see two things happening. First, Apple has overtaken Symbian to become the top smartphone platform in the UK (with a 27 percent market share). And secondly, Android has grown 634 percent year-over-year to shoot into second place, with less than half a percentage point keeping it from the top spot (other reports already place it ahead). 

As you might expect, much of that growth isn't coming from folks switching from one smartphone to the other, but from new smartphone users -- Comscore found that 42 percent of all mobile users in the UK used a smartphone in May of this year, compared to just 27 percent a year ago. Of course, that also means that 58 percent of UK cellphone users are still potential smartphone users (to say nothing of those that still don't have a cellphone at all), so there's certainly still plenty up for grabs for all involved.




Who Is Alexander Calder and Why Is He Part of a Google Doodle?

Today's Google Doodle is a mesmerizing geometric mobile that slowly spins above the search box. The Doodle commemorates the 113th birthday of Alexander Calder, an American artist and sculptor famous for inventing the mobile sculptures.

Calder was a life-long artist who studied in New York and Paris. As his artistic talent flourished in the early 1930s, he became interested in wire sculpture and kinetic art. These two interests merged to create what would be called "mobiles," a French term that refers to both "motion" and "motive."

Originally these kinetic structures were moved by cranks and pulleys, but Calder developed a delicate touch and harnessed the natural air flow of a room to spin his creations. Calder's largest moving sculpture, a 76-foot-long mobile, hangs from the ceiling of the East Building of the National Gallery of Art in Washington D.C.

Calder continued to develop sculptures both large and small, mobile and stationary until his death in 1976 at the age of 78.

Google+ Racks Up 20 Million Uniques In 3 Weeks

Google+ is hot, hot, hot. The social network has pulled in 20 million unique visitors in a mere three weeks. Leading the way is the US with 5 million and India with 2.8 million uniques.

It'll be interesting to see if Google can expand the service fast enough to keep up this momentum. I like chatting it up in 140 characters or more and Google+ is just so light, fresh and fun. It's like Happy Hour all day long.
 
 

Jul 21, 2011

Go Green With The Sprout Biodegradable Watch

Watches are one accessory that's crying out for some green love. They're worn daily, changed often and killed frequently with an accidental bump. Sprout understands and has developed a line of fashionable timepieces that can be tossed away without remorse.

These watches are great. They are good-looking, colorful and 80-93% biodegradable. They are made of wonderful materials such as bamboo, organic cotton, mineral crystal lenses, and mercury-free batteries. Sprout has even managed to sell them at a reasonable price. The entry-level model starts at $30, while the top-of-line model climbs to a pricey, but not exorbitant $75.


Elecom’s Origami-Inspired Mouse Can’t Possibly Be Comfortable to Use

My eyes love the geometric nature of the Elecom Orime mouse. Something tells me my hands would not. Complete with five buttons (concealed by the mouse's design) and laser tracking, this RF wireless mouse is available for $85.
 
 

Panasonic Reveals Lumix FZ47 Superzoom, Lets You Shoot 1080i Video With Full Manual Control

Sure, these days nearly all digital cameras can shoot video, but only a small handful give you the power to manually select aperture and shutter speed while doing so. The Lumix FZ47 is Panasonic's latest high-end point-and-shoot to sport this functionality, providing full control over both video and still photo capture with its Creative Control mode. The 12.1-megapixel superzoom can shoot 1080i HD at 30 fps, though it's notably lacking in the 1080p department.

There's also a 3-inch LCD, 24x Leica zoom lens with a 25mm wide-angle focal length, and an option to shoot 3.5-megapixel stills while recording video. For photographers wiling to settle for a good deal less power, Panasonic also just announced its entry-level Lumix LS5, which includes a 14.1-megapixel sensor, optical image stabilization, and 720p video, all powered by a pair of AA batteries. The $400 FZ47 will ship next month, while the LS5 hits stores in November.

Jul 20, 2011

Bill Gates Wants to Build a Better Toilet

Bill Gates, nowadays basking in the accolades his philanthropy provides, noticed that toilets kind of suck in the developing world. Wanting to help stop the spread of communicable diseases, he's ready to put down $41.5 million for potty advancements.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is prepared to give that huge sum of money to universities that push poor nations' toilets into the modern era. They don't have to have ambient lights or mini-tablets. Rather, they should reinvent the concept by being sustainable, not relying on a sewer connection or electricity. Proposals have drawn up toilets powered by heat, microwaves, or solar panels, all to help prevent bacterial and parasitic infections.

I can't imagine what a microwave powered toilet would even look like, but any idea that shields you from diarrhea is a good one.
 
 

Scientists Genetically Engineer Mice With Super Endurance


How do you build a mouse that can run six-times farther than its average bretheren? Take away all its fast-twitch muscle fiber, along with its ability to contract its muscles.

According to ScienceNow, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania found the gene receptor that controls the protein responsible for muscle contraction. When they engineered mice to lack that protein, all the muscle in their body converted any fast twitch muscle (which is more powerful, but fatigues quicker) to slow twitch muscle fiber, which provided endurance gains.
But these behavioral quirks weren't quite enough to convince Khurana of the effect on muscles. Lack of the IL-15Rα gene could just be making the mice jittery or giving them extra energy. So the researchers dissected muscles from the longer-running mice. The muscles sported increased numbers of energy-generating mitochondria and more muscle fibers, indicating that they tired less easily. And when the researchers stimulated them with electricity, the muscles continued to contract for longer than normal, taking longer to use up their energy stores, the team reports in The Journal of Clinical Investigation.
The discovery of this gene could explain why some people are better endurance runners than others, and if discovered in humans (or any other animal, for that matter), could be used to create a human that could run and run and run and run. Although, the absence of speed and power might not be worth it.



Apple Refreshes MacBook Air with Sandy Bridge, Thunderbolt, and Backlit Keyboards

They say Apple updates its products like clockwork, releasing something new at the same time in the same place every year. Not so with MacBook Airs anyway. The outfit's gone and freshened up its 13-inch and 11-inch ultraportables -- the second such update in nine months. Although the industrial design hasn't changed much since the last generation, both models step up to Sandy Bridge Core i5 and i7 processors, Thunderbolt ports, backlit keyboards, and, of course, OS X Lion.

The 11.6-inch flavor starts at $999 with 64GB of solid-state storage, 2GB of memory and a 1.6GHz Core i5 processor. The higher-end of the two configurations costs $1,199, with the extra two hundred dollars doubling your RAM and storage. The 13-inch Air, meanwhile, starts at $1,299, with a 128GB SSD, 4GB of RAM, and a 1.7GHz Core i5 CPU. Step up to the $1,599 model and you'll get a 256GB SSD instead. Regardless, you're looking at Intel HD 3000 graphics across the board, along with FaceTime webcams, and two USB ports (plus an SD slot on the 13-inch version). The two differ when it comes to resolution and battery life: the 11-incher has a 1366 x 768 panel and is rated for up to five hours of battery life, whereas the 13-inch model has a 1440 x 900 screen and promises up to seven hours of juice. As for that 1.8GHz Core i7 CPU, it'll set you back an extra $100, and is only available on the higher-end 11-inch and 13-inch configurations.
 
 

Jul 19, 2011

Mac OS X Lion To Hit The App Store Tomorrow

Well it looks like the cat's finally out of the bag virtual box. Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer just confirmed that Mac OS 10.7 is due to hit the Mac App Store tomorrow, making Lion available as a 4GB download for $30.

The new operating system packs 250 new features, including an iOS-like app launcher, multi-touch gestures, AirDrop for direct file sharing, and system-wide Resume. More enhancements that will feel particularly familiar to iOS users include a new version of Mail with conversation view, and reverse touchpad scrolling.

Google+ App for iPhone Now Svailable

Google promised that iPhone users would soon be getting a Google+ app of their own, and it's now here. Not surprisingly, it looks a lot like the Android app, including views of your main stream and nearby users, sharing via Circles, and support for the Huddle group messaging feature. It's not a universal app, though, so iPad users are still left out for the time being, as are those with an iPod touch.





Victorinox Swiss Army Slim, Slim Duo USB Drives

For frequent business travelers, the days of carrying around a Swiss Army knife on your keychain were gone even before the TSA was born. Well, that familiar pocket multi-tool is back, in the form of Victorinox's Swiss Army Slim and Slim Duo. Both products pack a tool that many of us use far more often than scissors and knives: the USB flash drive.

The colorful, waterproof storage devices are finally shipping, in capacities that range from 4GB ($40) all the way up to 128GB ($350) with the Slim Duo (which, as its name implies, includes a pair of 64GB drives). Both flavors are designed to let you file photos and presentations, not your fingernails -- but if you're looking to do both, Vic's got you covered there, too.

Jul 18, 2011

Acer Debuts WiDi-Equipped Aspire 5755 Laptop

Intent on buying a new Acer laptop but not satisfied with the just-announced TravelMate 8481 thin-and-light? Then perhaps you'll find the company's new and slightly larger Aspire 5755 model more to your taste. This one packs a 15.6-inch display with a rather lowly 1366 x 768 resolution, but it at least boasts some built-in WiDi so you can easily view movies (or anything else) on a larger display without the need for any pesky cables.

Otherwise, you'll get your choice of Intel Core processors (up to a Core i7-2820QM), up to 8GB of RAM and a maximum 1TB of storage, NVIDIA's Optimus-enabled GeForce GT 540M graphics, and either a Blu-ray or basic DVD drive -- all for a starting price of £899 (or roughly $1,440).





AIAIAI’s PX-0 Headphones Have Childlike Looks, but Promise Grown Up Sound

Danish audio purveyors AIAIAI have made some good products in the past: look no further than the TMA-1 headphones. Now they've teamed up with Teenage Engineering to deliver these lovely PX-0 earbuds, they also have an inline mic/remote, which make them just as useful when paired with a compatible smartphone or MP3 player. They're currently selling in Europe for €60.
 
 

Ideum's MT-55 'Platform' Multitouch Table Goes Ultrathin



You'll find a devilishly thin (3-inches) table, complete with 55-inches of 1080p gorgeousness, a 5,000,000:1 contrast ratio, 178-degree viewing angle and support for a 64-bit copy of Windows 7 Professional. The internal computer includes a dual-core Core i5 CPU (2.66GHz), 8GB of memory and a 128GB SSD; you'll also find WiFi, Bluetooth and a slew of "hidden ports."

The entire thing is constructed from aircraft-grade aluminum, and it supports a total of 32 touch points. If you've got the $17,950 to take one home, have fun!

Jul 17, 2011

Watching Progress Bars Move Just Got Infinitely Cuter With the Nyan Cat Download

Just when you were thoroughly bored of the ever-cute Nyan Cat, Ben Stone has only gone and made a custom Nyan Cat progress bar, which works on Windows 7 machines. It's a free download, so nyan nyan nyan on over. Get it here.

Droid 3 on Sale Now at Verizon Wireless

Big news for Big Red-eyed fans -- the Droid 3's finally made its dual-core, qHD, global 3G surfin' ways official at the carrier's retail outlets. You can pick this QWERTY slider up now for $199 on a two-year contract, or just go whole-hog and pay $459 with no strings attached. It's not the operator's top of the line offering, nor is it the increasingly mythical Bionic, but it should satisfy your Android needs.
 
 

Jul 16, 2011

See Like a Shark With These Fish Scale Goggles

While they don't come with gills, these goggles are good enough for any trip to the beach. Because they're made out of actual fish scales. Unique! Designed byErik de Laurens, they're part of a project he calls Fish Feast.
 
 

HP TouchPad Goes on Sale in The UK

Here's an interesting titbit: HP's TouchPad has already begun to ship to speciality shops in the land of untamed energy usage and a holier-than-thou attitude, but for the pernickety among us, you may know that the company's first webOS slate hasn't actually hit the streets of Londontown.

Until now, the 16GB WiFi model is going for £399, while a doubling of capacity will tack on a few extra quid.


GScreen's Dual-Screen SpaceBook Touts Twin 17-inchers

There's a new dual-screen beast in town, and it's not settling for second best. The first run of SpaceBooks is now up for pre-order, with each one offering a pair of 17.3-inch displays that boast a 1920 x 1080 screen resolution. Each panel slides out horizontally (think wings, but on a laptop), and creates quite the spacious area for creative professionals to immerse themselves in. 

The entry-level piece is being hawked for $2,395, which nets you a 2.66GHz Core i5-560M CPU, 4GB of DDR3 memory, NVIDIA's GeForce GTS 250M (1GB), a 500GB HDD, DVD burner and a magnesium alloy frame. The pricier sibling is marked at $2,795, with that premium grabbing you a 1.73GHz Core i7-740QM, double the RAM and quadruple the bragging rights. There's no exact word on when these will ship out, but you'll need th in-between time just to wrap your mind around the object you're certainly still peering at above.




Jul 15, 2011

iPhone 4 Case And IR Remote

Mashed Pixel's Surc iPhone 4 case is finally ready take on the challenge of making Apple's slab a universal remote now that it's on sale for a mere $74.95. The built in MicroUSB hookup and included cable means it can stay on even while charging before jumping into action when the companion app is opened on the phone. It can be controlled via buttons, gestures or motion control, with plenty of programmability built in.

The only downside we can find is that this is definitely a goner whenever you upgrade to Steve's next iThing, and it means leaving the sweet, potentially reception-improving case you already picked out behind.

Are Tablets Really PCs?

Microsoft insists tablets are Windows-powered mobile PCs. Even Windows Phone president Andy Lee, who should be pushing for a WP7 tablet, said, "We view a tablet as a PC."

Since the early days of the Origami project, Microsoft has looked at the tablet as a desktop replacement. Slates ran Windows XP or Windows 7; never Windows Mobile or Windows Phone 7. This desktop approach hasn't worked so well in the past, but the company just won't let it go.

Microsoft probably believes its tablet strategy will work out better this time with Windows 8; but the runaway success of the iPad suggests otherwise. The iPad is popular because it is an oversized smartphone and not a notebook replacement.
 
 

Fujitsu TH40/D Tablet Finally Sliding Out in Japan

It's mid-July now, and things have been mostly quiet surrounding the 10-inch tablet's keyboard-packing goodness. The Windows 7 device, which debuted back in May, is now scheduled for a July 22nd release in its native Japan, according to new reports. Once that date rolls around, ¥80,000 (around $1,010) should buy you all the games of "hide-a-keyboard" that your heart desires.



Where Are All The Girls On Google+?

According to information from Google+ stat trackers SocialStatistics and FindPeopleOnPlus, the new social network is dominated by men.

 And it's not even close — up to 86.8% of all Google+ users are male. This distribution is much different from Facebook which has a 50/50 split of male and female users.

Jul 14, 2011

Even Batman Would Be Jealous of This Turbine-Powered Batmobile

The helicopter engine was originally used by the US Navy but has now been repurposed for this Batmobile. It packs 365hp and uses its jet thrust to "internally propel turbine blades that spin an output shaft after going through a planetary reduction gearbox". 

The Batmobile seats two in the cockpit where an iPad is set on its dashboard for no other reason than to have an iPad in a Batmobile dashboard. I'm sure Michael Keaton would even be impressed at how awesome this Batmobile replica is. 
 
 

These Retro Headphones Are Perfect for Any Era

IDEA International, the design shop, teamed up with one of Japan's oldest audio companies, Ashidavox, to create a pair of cans that look like they're from the 1970's. Or 60's. Or 50's. Whatever! They look as timeless as ever.

These IDEA x Ashidavox Dyanmic Headphones are obviously inspired (if not, directly related to) by the Ashidavox ST-90. The minimal retro design is the same but the headphone's internals have been reworked and rejigged around to provide better sound and comfort. The headphones can deliver a frequency range of 25-18,000Hz and use a special urethane material on its ear cups for more comfortable listening with the price of $140.
 
 

Bread In a Can


Mmm. Bread. Delicious (well, somewhat) canned bread. In Japan, canned bread is a tasty treat for otaku. Among the t-shirts and hug pillows being offered at an upcoming event for Xbox 360 gameDream Club, there are cans of bread. The cans feature characters from the virtual hostess game.

If you've never had Japanese canned bread, there is a novelty factor. Hey, bread in a can! But with so many delicious bakeries in the country, there's the simple question of why anyone would want it. Sure, you can carry it around, chuck it in your backpack. What canned bread does allow is the commodification of popular games or anime in way that bread wrapped in plastic bags does not. Slap an illustrated label on a can of bread, and bam, you've got Dream Club canned bread. Magic! It's much more striking than, say, Pokémon bread.

Canned bread is not a Japanese innovation. It's been available in New England for decades—B& M Brown Bread is a camping and emergency food stash stable. Boston brown bread was born out of necessity. Colonists baked bread from the resources they had, and since not all settlers had ovens, they cooked the bread in cans.



Jul 13, 2011

Magnetic Carabiners are the Next Big Thing

Black Diamond is developing carabiners that use magnetic power to lock themselves as opposed to the traditional twistlocks and screwlocks.

The Magnetron carabiner is supposed to be easier to unlock than traditional systems but still provide the same safety. Here's how it works:
• Magnetic attraction to a steel insert in the carabiner nose keeps two independent arms securely locked
• Locking arms must be individually depressed before the gate can be opened
• Once open, opposing magnetic fields repel the arms to ensure smooth and reliable gate operati
Ideally, it'll be a lot easier to use than the old method and can let people focus on scaling a cliff rather than screwing and unscrewing a carabiner. Sadly, the Magnetron carabiner won't be released until 2012. Guess my keys will have to wait.


Google+ Now Lets You Keep Your Gender Private

Google listened, and now lets you make your gender private in Google+. It also uses gender-neutral language—"they" as opposed to "him" or "her"—to make things simpler. Well done!
 
 

This Harry Potter Crop Circle Maze Definitely Wasn’t Created By Aliens

Neither aliens nor goblins had a hand in creating this "maize maze" near York, England—the farmer "Top Pearsy" (that's a name, yes) owned up and said he merely wanted to mark the ending of the Harry Potter moviethon.

Thank god he didn't carve the four Sex and the City women's likenesses in his corn fields.
 
 

Jul 12, 2011

Samsung NC215S Snetbook Delayed, Won't See Sunlight Until August

There was reported that Samsung's solar NC215S netbook was up for pre-order and now it's been delayed. Despite earlier estimates of a July 3rd US shipping date.

The solar-powered laptop won't make it to consumers until sometime in mid to late August, due to hold ups involving the machine's custom panels. They are hoping this doesn't spoil anyone's plans to journey out of the house this summer.

Klipsch’s Headphones Keep On Noise-Cancelling For 45 Long Hours

They can be used as normal stereo headphones should the battery run out of juice.

Coated in leather and with a 40mm woofer and 15mm tweeters inside, Klipsch's Mode cans haven't been priced yet but will be on sale sometime this Fall.
 
 

Bowers & Wilkins C5 iPhone Headset Oozes Luxury Into Your Ear Canals For $180

Crafted mostly from aluminum, its bullet-shaped earbuds look like a posh blend of the Zeppelin Air and Mini geared for mobile. The 'buds are iDevice compatible with an inline remote / mic to get a handle on phone calls or swap though playlists, and have a few unique features to boot. To ensure a proper fit on-the-move, you'll find Secure Loops that can be adjusted to hug the inner cartilage of your ear, along with added heft (Tungsten Weighting) near the inner-ear side for a tight seal. Internally, there's a Micro Porous Filter to widen the perceived soundstage, while also preventing any leakage to folks around you.
 
 

Jul 11, 2011

Why Google+? Your Parents Can’t Find You There

Presenting the next logical step in the "Google+ is good because it isn't Facebook" argument: you're much less in danger of constant parental surveillance. For now, anyway. Enjoy it while it lasts.

Acer's C110 Pico Projectors Aim to Please, Travel Well


The  DLP-powered beamer gets all the juice it needs via USB, measures just 110- x 85- 25mm and offers up a WVGA (854 x 480) native resolution. The LED bulb is said to last up to 20,000 hours, and it'll go from dead to dazzling in five seconds flat. 

Complete with an optional external battery good for two hours, a 1,000:1 contrast ratio and an identical WVGA resolution. This guy is to hit UK shops at the end of the month, with prices set at £199.
 
 

Steve Jobs Impersonator Officiates Mock Keynote



Well, there's clearly no better way to legitimize any new product than to have a faux Steve Jobs hawking it on-stage, in front of dozens of applauding mock journalists, with a 20-foot iPad 2 projected behind. The Jobs / John Stamos hybrid dropped by to pitch a Taiwanese company's vast selection of tea, of all things, for a TV advertisement that's apparently currently airing in Taiwan.

 Decked out in light jeans, a black mock turtleneck and sneakers, the impersonator even matched Steve's hair color, rimless glasses, and current weight. The only thing missing was an actual Apple product -- and months of media speculation. The "keynote" even ended with "one more thing," as they often do: Tea drinkers will have a shot at winning a bonafide iPad 2 with each purchase of oolong, milk, or Apple-infused Tong Yi Cha.







Jul 10, 2011

Pioneer's SE-CL331 Earbuds are Just Begging to Be Washed

The first-ever earbuds designed to be drenched they aren't, but they just might be one of the first to actually be "washable." Sure enough, Pioneer's new SE-CL331 headphones ($59.99) -- available in white, pink and bright blue hues -- can reportedly be "soaked and washed after every sports session without damaging sensitive electronic equipment." 

Furthermore, they boast a newfangled ear holder that keeps 'em in place while your body's in motion, and there's a two-layer mesh and rubber ring that'll prevent water from seeping in while submerged up to one meter of goop. The built-in 9mm drivers probably won't live up to Westone standards, but then again, you can't exactly take your ES5s into the kiddie pool.