newVideoPlayer("halo3_gawker.flv", 475, 286); Usually, I hate the unnecessary swag. But this Xbox 360, Halo 3 Edition bag, is pretty much the best set of press junk I have ever seen. The duffel bag is printed with Halo 3 logos, my gamer tag, and the slogan “finish the fight.” There are two limited controllers with figurines, dog tags that say Spartan “Ordnance,” UNSC, with my gamer tag. MREs (Meatloaf and manicotti), gold subscription cards, a Halo 3 wireless headset, and of course, the game itself and the Xbox 360 Halo Edition. Did I mention the game came in a pedestal covered by a Master Chief helmet? (No, it does not fit, unfortunately.) Here comes the unboxing… er unbagging.
We’re unsure if this is a policy or a one-time incident, but Jason O’Grady from ZDNet is reporting that an Apple store refused to service a hacked and unlocked (for T-Mobile) iPhone, saying the warranty was voided and blacklisting “the phone against future service, or return.”
Although Jason’s colleague eventually got Apple to take the iPhone back for a return, they did charge him a 10% restocking fee even though the phone was under two weeks old. We’ll try and find out whether this is a company-wide policy or just a store manager shooting off the cuff, but to play it safe, wipe out your iPhone and put the AT&T SIM back in when you take yours in for a service or a return. [ZDNET]
When the next phase of wide-area wireless networking rolls out, AT&T and Verizon Wireless will be using the same technology, the 100-megabit Long Term Evolution (LTE). Not surprisingly, it will be the same technology used by Verizon’s GSM-flavored corporate parent, Vodafone.
newVideoPlayer("crazyjunkrobot_gawker.flv", 475, 376); If you can sit through this Theramin-tinged cacophonous din, you might just start to appreciate this pile of junk and household detritus playing the erstwhile wonderful Gnarls Barkley song, “Crazy.” Brooklyn’s Ranjit Bhatnagar created this junkbot and Theramin combo, whose sound felt almost to us like some sort of hypnotic Indian chant. We’re especially fond of the frog who’s responsible for the rhythmic clunking noise, and we also dig those Stoned Wheat Thins crackers, which incidentally, don’t get you stoned. But that sound. Does that make me crazy? Does that make me crazy? Possibly. [boingboing]
One of the ideas submitted to the Next Generation competition featured in Metropolis Magazine was this Kinetic Energy-harnessing battery charger by Yael Miller. The concept is to take something we’re already doing—such as working out, flopping around in a baby rocker, vacuuming, or flushing the toilet—add the piezoelectric effect, and come out with batteries that are charged by “human power.” Imagine all the television remotes we could power just from flushing our droppings. [Reuben Miller via Oh Gizmo via Boing Boing Gadgets]
Blogger (and early iPhone adopter) Jordan Golson just got this text message on his iPhone this morning:
AT&T FREE Msg: Good News, your messaging package now includes text, picture & instant messages all for the same price of $19.99 per month. No action required
Could this mean we can finally send pictures via MMS (multimedia message service) and get IM? The thing is, none of your intrepid GizEditors got a message like this. Sounds like a hiccup and a dream. Readers? [MacApper]
We asked you yesterday whether you were happy or annoyed that rumble is back on the DualShock 3 for the PS3, but this new revelation may change your answer. GameDaily BIZ confirmed with SCEA that the rumble technology in the DualShock 3 is exactly the same as the on in the DualShock 2, and doesn’t take advantage of “Immersion’s new next-generation vibration technology.”
newVideoPlayer("robotclimber_gawker.flv", 475, 376); Behold the Climb@tron Robot, sucking up to a window and walking its way up and down as if it’s defying gravity. It’s looking a lot like that “Brainzord” window-climbing robot that we told you about earlier this month, made by the same company. But wait a second. There’s some fast and footloose video editing going on here, where we don’t get to see the robot take more than three steps at a time. Does it lose its suction? Does it suck? Somebody invest $9.50 and find out for us, then make a real video for proof. [Personalrobotics, via Coolest Gadgets]
Google is not leaving anything to chance, and according to an Australian newspaper is now planning to span the Pacific Ocean with its own undersea fiber optics cable to blast the world with its do-no-evil goodness. Owning a fat pipe like this will make Google the Big Dick of the high seas, making it cheaper for the company to move data and to dominate all those other weasels that are selling internet bandwidth.
Let’s hope Google’s alleged entry into this bandwidth biz will bring prices down, because with the way things stand now, even though there’s a glut of dark fiber spanning the Pacific, the stubborn owners of all that potential bandwidth aren’t budging on their too-high prices. Do it, Google, and get going on that wireless carrier threat you made, too! Teach the rest of the world your catchphrase: “Don’t be evil.” [New York Times]
iLounge got their hands on the soon-to-be-released iHome iHC5. This clock radio has decided to branch out from the iHome’s comfortable iPod market, and instead is trying to attract media cellphones. While it does do some interesting things like stream music from your cellphone or PC using Bluetooth, it does have a couple of problems.
