December 23, 2007

FBI's $1 Billion Biometric Database Will Help Catch the Bad Guys

Posted by Haroon Malik at 4:20 PM on December 23, 2007

Database%20Matrix%20GI.jpgThe FBI is planning to spend $US1 billion on the world's largest biometric database. The database will be used to create a big brother state, in which you will ultimately have little autonomy assist the FBI's efforts in catching the bad guys. Apparently, compilation of digital images, including mug shots, fingerprints and palm patterns have already begun.

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Gadgets

Foot Warmers Are Only a Power Source Away

Posted by Haroon Malik at 3:10 PM on December 23, 2007

Heat%20Foot.jpgHoly crap! We've just solved one of life's great mysteries, and wanted to let you in on it. Keeping your feet warm when you cannot be bothered/are too much of a cheapskate to invest in a gadget based solution has always been a problem, but we've sussed it. Here's how: get your feet up close and personal to your PSUs. That's all there is to it. Nothing more, we promise you.

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FSJ in Talks With Apple?

Posted by Haroon Malik at 2:10 PM on December 23, 2007

FSJ%20Jobs%20GI.jpgWe have all come to know and love the ramblings of FSJ, but apparently the real Steve Jobs is not best pleased. Daniel Lyon has been regularly updating his weblog, The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs, with details of an Apple led negotiation calling for a cease to the sites activities.

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Gadgets

Stanford Boffins Develop Super Battery

Posted by Haroon Malik at 12:30 PM on December 23, 2007

Super%20Battery%20GI.jpgUsing silicon nanowires, researchers at Stanford have managed to create an alternative to conventional lithium-ion batteries. The newly invented battery will have a 10 times greater capacity than Li-ion cells, which translates into mind boggling longevity for portable electronic devices.

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Gadgets

New Gadgets for KITT 2.0 Revealed, Leather Pants Not Included

Posted by Jesus Diaz at 11:42 AM on December 23, 2007

The new gadgets for KITT version 2.0 have been revealed, including every single technology a man who does not exist would ever need: laser weapons system, nanotech cloaking, laser-guided missile defense, 3D heads-up display, military-grade GPS, holographic projection and even a Mini-KITT reconnaissance drone (!?!) among 21 new gizmos. Surprisingly, all this technological terror leaves out three of the most amazing gadgets of the original KITT:

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Gadgets

How to Make a Bottle Rocket Out of Matchsticks and Foil

Posted by Brian Lam at 9:30 AM on December 23, 2007

Hey, this is a little random, but if you're bored visiting relatives with no gadgets to fiddle with, here's a tutorial for making a a bottle rocket out of matches and foil. Beats helping with the cooking. [Instructables 1 and 2 and Youtube]

Phones

8GB Nokia N95 Coming to North America?

The Nokia Guide recently found on Nokia's online Nseries US Portal, an inadvertent mention of a 8GB N95 NAM (North American Model). Also listed was an 8GB N82, but it was subsequently taken off the list, while this new N95... Read More »

Entertainment

Blu Site Hacked, Format War Battlers Post Your Flames Here

Posted by Brian Lam at 8:00 AM on December 23, 2007

Contrary to the spirit of Peace and Love on Earth this holiday, Blu-ray site was hacked to redirect visitors to the official HD DVD site, and a few weeks ago, the prestigious AVS Forum shut down the Blu and HD DVD section because of the jump in uncivilized discourse. We generally like higher brow comments here at giz, but you've all spoken. You want to fight about it. You want to get all hot under the collar, brandish your brass knuckles, and get into your karate stance. So go ahead, rip each other to shreds in this post as you debate the pros and cons of the Blu and HD DVD. No one can be banned for a statement in this post. Just don't ask me to drive you to the hospital or kiss your booboos better. Which format are you supporting? And do you hate the other?

P.S. Facts for the win. Arm yourself with knowledge of the State of Blu-ray and HD DVD posts.

Vehicles

Nissan GT-R Detects When Car is on a Race Track, Disables Speed Limiter via GPS

Posted by Adrian Covert at 7:15 AM on December 23, 2007

nissan5.jpgIt's no secret Giz loves the GT-R. We consider it the unofficial car of Gizmodo, actually. So imagine our collective giddiness when we heard that the Japanese model has a feature that uses GPS to detect when it's on a race track, prompting the Engine Control Unit to disable the speed limiter (which holds the engine at 111 mph in Japan).

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Phones

Bill Clinton Uses iPhone, His Tongue to Communicate

Posted by Haroon Malik at 6:30 AM on December 23, 2007

Bill%20Clinton%20iPhone%20GI.jpgOne lucky iPhone user got to have a quick chat with ex-president, Bill Clinton. Not only did our man get Bill to sign his iPhone (see picture), he also learnt that Bill has an iPhone of his own, which was gifted to him by el Jobso himself!

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Gadgets

Xbox 360 PC Case Mod Puts Your RRoD'd Console to Good Use

Posted by Adrian Covert at 5:45 AM on December 23, 2007

7521-450x-xboxpc_5.jpgWhy ship your RRoD Xbox to Microsoft for free repair, when you can sink more money into it and use it as PC case? But all joking aside, Tech E Blog has a nice feature on this casemod, which features a 3.0 GHz intel processor, 60 GB HDD, 8 USB ports and a red fan of awesome (RFoA?) wrapped up into a nice console package.

On the uglier side, it only has 512 MB of RAM and integrated graphics, but seeing as this is a project machine, it's not that surprising. Be sure to check out the video run through below, and the full gallery over at [TechEBlog via Technabob].

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Computers

U.S. Army to Instigate Wider Mac Implementation

Posted by Haroon Malik at 5:00 AM on December 23, 2007

MSFT%20Ap%20US%20CSA.jpgThe U.S. Army's office of enterprise information systems is introducing Mac computers to its systems, it is hoped the move will render the Army less open to attack from hackers. Further, by having Macs as part of their system, it is less likely a single attack will take effect across the whole network. These new measures come at a time when the security of digital information has increasingly been under threat.

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Phones

AT&T's Top Ten Ringtones of the Year

Posted by Mark Wilson at 4:15 AM on December 23, 2007

821bd811a105.jpgAnd the award goes to...major corporations who are making a killing on ringtones. AT&T compiled a list of their top selling ringtones of the year, and while comfortably hiding their massive erections behind the podium, announced them to the world:

1. Shop Boyz - "Party Like a Rockstar" 2. Mims - "This Is Why I'm Hot" 3. Soulja Boy - "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" 4. Nickelback - "Rockstar" 5. Akon - "Don't Matter"

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Computers

Asus U2 Laptop Rocks So Much Harder Than Bono

Posted by Mark Wilson at 3:32 AM on December 23, 2007

Asus_U2_A.jpgAsus has taken the gloves off, and with the world's eyes on the company in the wake of the widely successful Eee PC, they have the opportunity to upsell us with the sleek laptop designs they've promoted for a long time now. Their U2 notebook is ready for the challenge, a 11.1" widescreen Centrino laptop featuring a slew of technologies to support portability and functionality.

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Gadgets

Wii Headtracking Creates 3D Window Display

Posted by Mark Wilson at 2:07 AM on December 23, 2007

Johnny Chung Lee is the PhD student from Carnegie Mellon University who has been rocking Nintendo fanboy hearts pretty hard by making the Wiimote do some spectacular feats. We first saw him track his fingertips on the screen for a "Minority Report" type of interface. Then he created an interactive whiteboard. Now, he's managed to create a headtracking simulation through the Wiimote, creating an amazing 3D window on the world.

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