Official Steve Jobs Biography Finally Has a Title and Release Date

Not only has Steve Jobs given the thumb's up to an official biography about his life—the first ever official biography—but he's also agreed to be interviewed by the author, Walter Isaacson.

Titled iSteve: The Book of Jobs, it will be published by Simon & Schuster and will also feature interviews and facts from his family and Apple peers. Not to mention rivals' thoughts, too.

Despite plenty of people having penned tomes about the Apple CEO's life, Isaacson is the only one to get the big seal of approval. Having come from CNN and Time magazine, he's also written books about Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein. Unfortunately we won't be adding this book to our Amazon wishlists before Christmas as it's got an early-2012 release scheduled in, but as Isaacson's reportedly been working on it since 2009, you can expect a thorough look behind-the-scenes which has never been given before.

 

 

Woz Speaks of Hypothetical Return to Apple

Steve Wozniak mentioned that he'd be up for a return to Apple, the company he famously helped start in 1976 with Steve Jobs. While Woz didn't elaborate on what he'd like to do there, he didn't shy away from questions regarding a possible return.

"I'd consider it, yeah," the 60-year-old computer engineer said in an interview, when asked whether he would play a more active role if asked.

Woz went on to say that he thinks Apple "could be more open and not lose sales" (ostensibly referring to policies such as App Store approval).

Stealth Unveils The LPC-670 Mini-PC: Small In Size, Vast In Price

Stealth has been in the compact computing game for some time, and the company has just rolled out its most powerful pint-sized PC to date, the LPC-670. Packing Intel's Arrandale Core i5-520M, Core i5-580M, or Core i7-620M silicon, up to 8GB DDR3 RAM, a DVD or Blu-ray burner, a max 750GB 2.5-inch HDD or 128GB SSD, optional 802.11g WiFi, gigabit Ethernet, HDMI and DVI connections, Stealth's new mini-PC has the brawn of much bigger machines. The price of such lilliputian luxury? An account-emptying $1650, and that's just for the base model.

 

 

Public Bathroom ToeOpeners

I'm not saying I'm as bad as Howard Hughes, but I will confess toalways tearing a bit of toilet-roll of paper towel off and using it to open public bathroom doors with on my way out.

At $50 a pop, these Toepeners would surely end up saving shopping malls, offices and other public venues money over the long-run, with less paper wasted and thrown on the floor. Not to mention the debt to society they owe, with 999,999,999* different types of germs transmitted on bathroom handles every day. Public bathrooms of the world, please unite and buy a Toepener or two now!

Delkin Elite 633 Claims To Be The Fastest SDHC Card With 80MBps Write Speeds

Delkin says that the 32GB Elite 633 SDHC is the fastest in the world, with 80MBps and 95MBps write and read speeds, respectively, handily trumping Sony's new Memory Sticks. 

This card's ideal for people who shoot gobs of 1080p video, 3D movies, and high-resolution shots coupled with RAW files, but with a price of $440, it's only worth it for pros. And debutants.

Your iPad Can Survive a Bowling Ball

The makers of the G-Form iPad Sleeve claim you can drop an eight pound bowling ball on the sleeve (with iPad inserted) from a height of three feet, and the iPad will still work afterwards. The sleeve will cost $60 when it's available on May 1.

Toshiba Intros Camileo P100 And B10 Pocket Camcorders With Pistol Grips

The seasons come and go, but Toshiba's line of Camileo pocket camcorders tend to look the same, with their pistol grips and flip-out screens. But now, Tosh is getting ready to ship two new models in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, and one of them, at least, takes the company's design in a different direction. The B10 camcorder has a candy bar shape with a front-facing lens -- much like the Flip camcorders that kicked off the pocket cam craze in the first place. The B10 shoots at Full HD resolution, snaps 16 megapixel stills, has 16X digital zoom, and takes SDXC cards as large as 64GB. Prefer the ole' pistol grip? The P100 boasts the same specs and adds 8X optical zoom -- still a rarity in inexpensive pocket cams. Toshiba hasn't announced pricing yet, though the two will go on sale sometime in the second quarter.

 

 

Nu-Screen HD Polishes Your Screen, Doesn't Moisturize Your Lips

If you've ever been concerned about fingerprint smudges compromising your smartphone's password, this might just be a viable solution. Nu-Screen, a company little known around these parts, has launched the Nu-Screen HD polish stick which promises to leave a "slippery smooth, non-greasy surface" on your screen. 

 

 

Would You Let Someone Advertise on Your House if They Paid Your Mortgage?

Like the 2011 version of selling your forehead to an online casino company wielding a painful tattoo needle, Adzookie's offering to pay your mortgage for as long as you can put up with advertising their eyesore-inducing logo.

Although the US mobile advertiser hasn't started painting anyone's houses just yet, according to Adzookie's CEO they've been inundated with requests—over 1,000 of them so far. Applicants must "like" Adzookie on Facebook first (which might suggest this is all one big publicity stunt—never!), and they do have several other caveats:

"You must own your home. It cannot be rented or leased. We'll paint the entire outside of the house, minus the roof, the windows and any awnings. Painting will take approximately 3 - 5 days. Your house must remain painted for at least three months and may be extended up to a year. If, for any reason, you decide to cancel after three months or if we cancel the agreement with you, we'll repaint your house back to the original colors."

I'm glad they're offering to repaint the house afterwards—given how much a job like that can cost, it'd almost be enough to make the homeowner beg on the doorsteps of Adzookie again.

 

 

Bluetrek Carbon Headset

The Bluetrek Carbon has hit the FCC, showing off a carbon fiber boom and construction said to create an exceedingly light result. It's clear to see that the stalk there is actual carbon, with the body of the thing being barely wider than a micro-USB port, it shouldn't look to gaudy hanging out of your head. There's no mention of price or availability.

 

 

Finally, Bacon Cologne!

No longer do you have to dribble bacon down your chin to get a hint of pig on your throat—perfumers Fargginay have invented bacon cologne which has a mix of 11 essential oils in both the Gold (citrus) and Classic (spicy maple) variants, which cost $36 each.

 

 

Samsung's 3D TV Experience Is Getting Cheaper

As the battle between active and passive 3D glasses display technology heats up, Samsung has responded by announcing its cheapest pair of active shutter 3D glasses will cost $50 (previously $130) beginning May 1st. Additionally, all of its 3D-capable 2011 HDTVs will come with two pairs of glasses packed in, unless the purchase is eligible for the Megamind/Shrek starter kit that already comes with them. This move comes just as FPR-based displays from LG, Vizio, Toshiba and Philips hit the marketplace.  

 

 

One Use Soap

The thinking behind the concept is that every time you wish to wash your hands, you simply break off a piece of the soap brick, to avoid contaminating the rest of the bar. Of course, it's not likely as hygienic as a liquid soap dispenser.

 

 

These Bike Inner Tubes Wince When Punctured, and Then Self-Seal

Michelin's developed new bike inner tube tech to cut down on the devastation a puncture brings when you're out riding. The Protek Max tubes contain a sealant which sees punctures compress and then self-seal, meaning you can hop back on that bike instantly.

The surface of the inner tube is actually visibly different to traditional tubes, with little raised bumps that stop them from twisting. They also aid the self-healing process, by making the rubber compress (as opposed to expanding.) The air pressure theoretically should close the hole, with the inbuilt sealant then locking them up.

On sale now, they cost around $9 in two different sizes.

 

 

Carbon Nanotubes Used To Detect Cancer Cells

Cancer's not slowing its march to ruining as many lives as it possibly can, so it's always pleasing to hear of any new developments that act as hurdles. The latest in the world of disease-prevention comes fromHarvard University, where researches have created a dime-sized carbon nanotube forest (read: lots of nanotubes, like those shown above) that can be used to trap cancer cells when blood passes through. A few years back, Mehmet Toner, a biomedical engineering professor at Harvard, created a device similar to the nano-forest that was less effective because silicon was used instead of carbon tubes. Today, Toner has teamed up with Brian Wardle, associate professor of aeronautics and astronautics at MIT, who together have redesigned the original microfluid device to work eight times more efficiently than its predecessor. The carbon nanotubes make diagnosis a fair bit simpler, largely because of the antibodies attached to them that help trap cancer cells as they pass through -- something that's being tailored to work with HIV as well. Things are starting to look moderately promising for cancer-stricken individuals, as hospitals have already began using the original device to detect malignant cells and ultimately prevent them from spreading -- here's hoping it's qualified for mass adoption sooner rather than later.

 

 

This USB Cartridge Could Turn Your Analog Camera Digital

Photographers who want to go digital but can't bring themselves to get rid of their analog cameras have something to lust for. RE35 understands your plight and has come up with a digital cartridge than fits into any 35mm camera.

The RE-35 cartridge has a pull-out sensor, instead of film, that records your images in the cartridge's built-in memory. The cartridge connects to your PC or Mac via USB so you can transfer images and charge the cartridge.

 

 

A Checkerboard Home For the Elderly

Designed by the architecture firm Aires Mateus in Alcácer do Sal, Portugal, this has got to be one of the coolest looking places you could ever hope your grandparents would live.

The project is based on a attentive reading of the life of a very specific kind of community, a sort of a micro-society with its own rules. It is a program, somewhere in between a hotel and a hospital, that seeks to comprehend and reinterpret the combination social/private, answering to the needs of a social life, and at the same time of solitude. Independents unities aggregate into a unique body, whose design is expressive and clear. The reduct mobility of those who will live in the building suggests that any displacement should be an emotive and variable experience. The distance between the independent units is measured and drawn to turn the idea of path into life, and its time into form.

 

 

Panasonic's First Rewriteable 100GB BD-RE XL Discs Launch Later This Month

For those stuck between the flexibility of HDD storage and the archiving ease of BDXLs Panasonic is finally ready to bridge the gap with its new triple layer BD-RE XL discs, set to arrive April 15th in Japan. Being the first rewriteable BDXL is the LM-BE100J's claim to fame, which works out since the 10,000 yen ($118 US) asking price means buying two is probably out of the question. The latest burners from Pioneer and Buffalo already support the new discs, owners of other hardware may want to double check their spec sheets before ordering.

 

 

Audi Teams Up with Renovo to Produce Yet Another Jaw-Dropping Wooden Bicycle

Renovo, no stranger to beautifully-crafted wooden bicycles, has partnered up with Audi, maker of beautiful automobiles, to create another sweet looking series of wooden bicycles.

Called the Audi Duo City, Sport and Road, the bikes are certainly pricey at $6,530, $7,350 and $7,460 respectively, but if you know anything about Renovo or Audi this shouldn't be much of a surprise.

Another distinction between models, besides price, is that the City and Sport have an 8-gear setup for city riding, while the Road is a 20-speed racer with thinner tires and a sleeker, more aggressive profile.

 

 

Hands-Free Faucets Actually Grosser Without You Having to Touch Them

Talk about irony. According to a study conducted at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, hands-free faucets have a significantly higher chance of playing home to bacteria like Legionella spp., which causes Legionnaire's Disease.

The reason is hands-free faucets have more components than traditional ones, and bacteria was found to thrive in these parts in particular.

The findings fly in the face of why hands-free faucets are popular, and in one isolated case they've actually caused the esteemed Johns Hopkins University to remove them from their clinical areas.

As far as everyday use in public restrooms countrywide is concerned, everyone can keep waving their hands under these magical faucets without worry. The Johns Hopkins officials have assured everyone that we have little to worry about—it's the clinics and other sterile environments that need to take notice.