Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Gadgets
The Mind Chair Transmits Moving Images to the Brain Via the Skin’s Nerves
11:19PM Addy Dugdale | I got rather excited when I saw this, thinking that J and I could take it in turns to be Death Row prisoners on a Sunday evening, but apparently it’s not an electric chair. It is, my little bunnies, the Mind Chair, which uses sensory substitution techniques to allow the sitter to perceive moving images in their brain via nerves in the skin. Wowzers—more info below the gallery. More »
Phones
Opera 9.5 Mobile Browser About to Get Commercial Release
10:29PM Gizmodo US Edition | The latest Opera Mobile Browser, version 9.5, has just been previewed in time for GSMA 2008. The new version tries to be more like a desktop browser and adds a full text history search, allowing you to find pages you forgot to bookmark previously. Flash gets a look in too, since Flash Lite 3.0 support is included. More, including the press release, below. Claiming to be 2.5x faster than Internet Explorer Mobile, Opera 9.5 has an improved rendering engine to better handle JavaScript- and Ajax-laden web pages. It can also serve web content directly to a phone’s idle screen, which will either create some cool web-linked functionality, or allow mobile operators to splash more branding onto their phones. Opera Widgets, and Opera Zoom and panning make it sound like the iPhone’s UI, don’t they? More »
Computers
Knight Rider Mod Case Requires Leather Pants to Operate
10:00PM Jesus Diaz | Knight Rider, a shadowy flight into the dangerous world of a modded PC who does exist although we all wish it didn’t. Thomas Fan, a young loner on a crusade to champion the cause of the LED abusers, the lounge music fans, the tasteless, in a world of criminals who operate above the law. He just added a scanner to his “Knight Rider Tribute” PC mod, which starts and shuts down using KITT voice samples. “In light of the new series coming out, I bet a lot of fans are preparing and going crazy,” he told us. Whatever you say Thomas. As soon as you are not wearing leather pants, we will even watch your KITT PC in some video action. More »
Peripherals
Japan Only: Solar Charger Mobile Phone Charm
9:25PM Haroon Malik | Strap-Ya has accomplished what we thought was impossible; they’ve created a useful mobile phone charm: a small solar cell that retains energy for when your handset is out of juice. Simply clip it in, and it will give you the vital power boost in your second of need. If the sun is playing away from home, the solar charger even comes with an AC adapter that allows it to be charged up and used as a spare battery. Alas, it is merely a concept for us. The charger works with just a handful of Japanese handsets. [Product Page (Japanese) via Tokyomango] More »
Peripherals
MCube Concept is a Wireless Charger and Display Companion For Mobiles
9:20PM Gizmodo US Edition | Drop your phone near the MCube concept and it charges via short-range induction. There’s a Bluetooth link, which means SMS and caller info get shown on its Cocoon-like hidden display. Meanwhile, calls and MP3s stored on your phone can be played through MCube’s speakers and controlled by touch pads on its surface. Why do these great ideas just end up being design concepts? We want one. [Yanko Design] More »
Games
PS3 Gets Satin Silver Makeover in Japan
8:10PM Haroon Malik | Sony Japan just announced a brand new satin silver version of the PS3. The standard 40GB machine will hit shelves in Japan on March 6th, but don’t expect the colour refresh love to be extended to the States anytime soon (AU: Or Australia, for that matter). Press release after the jump. More »
Announcements
Notes: Commercial Gadgets, Keyboard Hygiene and Wear
3:40PM Brian Lam | I just cleaned my keyboard, and I admit, its been long overdue. All it took was a papertowel slightly damp to remove that slimy, salty (theoretically salty, from my sweat) feeling from the keyboard and rest guard. How often should someone clean their keyboard? How gross is it to use someone’s machine for an email check to find the keyboard is as filthy as mine was. More »
Robots
Robot Mod Uses Nintendo DS Touchscreen, Microphone for Controls
3:28PM Adrian Covert | Six engineering students in France have modded an open source Pekee robot to respond to Nintendo DS controls. It uses the the d-pad, microphone, gyroscopes built-in to game cartridges and a target interface on the touchscreen to control the robot wirelessly. Watching the video made me wonder why Nintendo hasn’t announced a DS-powered R.O.B. v.2 yet. It would be amazing. [Dev-fr.org via DS Fanboy] More »
Gadgets
Interactive USB Boxer Responds to Your Keystrokes, Throws Punches
2:47PM Adrian Covert | This boxer has to be the best USB toy since the humping dog. You use the arrow keys to throw punches and/or rotate the base, and the boxer throws punches at a speedbag that sits on your desktop. And it has bell and crowd sound effects. Awesome. Selling now for £29.99 (AU: $65). [Thumbs Up UK via Ubergizmo] More »
Phones
