Sunday, May 25, 2008
Cameras
Canon 5D Mark II Field Guide Listed on Amazon, Points Toward Sept. Photokina Announcement
3:27PM Matt Buchanan | While this isn’t the word of God (or Canon), it’s another piece in the pile of evidence that the 5D Mark II is on its way, and soon. Amazon has a listing for the Canon EOS 5D Mark II Digital Field Guide by Charlotte Lowrie, who’s written field guides for a smorgasbord of other Canon cameras. Unfortunately the pub date is listed as November, which points more toward a late September announce at Photokina than the early June date we’d heard before. Either way, sit tight, ’cause it’s coming. [Amazon, Thanks Alex!] More »
Science
Frenchman Plummeting 40 Kilometres From The Sky Will Break Sound Barrier, World Records
11:00AM Gizmodo US Edition | Michel Fournier is about to make the greatest leap of his, and anyone else’s, life. On Sunday, the 64-year-old retired French army officer will fly almost 40 kms into the sky in a giant balloon, step out of a pressurised capsule and plunge headfirst towards the earth, soaring through the atmosphere for an estimated 15 minutes. More »
Vehicles
World’s First Solar Speedboat Does 30 Knots Gas-Free
9:30AM Gizmodo US Edition | Looking to zoom through the oceans in a stylish, but also somewhat environmentally friendly, manner? Check out the Czeers MK1 prototype solar speedboat, a 10-metre long rig that manages to pack in 14 square meters of solar panels to power an 80KW electric motor. The MK1 plows through the water at a breakneck 30 knots, using no oil and producing no fumes or engine noise. Hit the jump for a video of the boat in action. More »
Robots
I For One Do Not Welcome Our Omelet-Cooking Robotic Overlords
9:30AM Gizmodo US Edition | Other people might be fooled by your cute oversized robotic eyes and your adorable chef’s hat, but I know what’s up. I know that underneath that innocuous, breakfast-making exterior lies the heart of a killer. You may be whipping eggs, chopping ham and grating cheese now, but one day your skills will turn from delicious to destructive. And when that day comes, I’ll be ready for you, robot. Oh yes, I’ll be ready. [Laughing Squid] More »
Software
Photoshop CS 4 Will Use Your Graphics Card to Run at Light Speed, Do Fancy 3D Tricks
8:30AM Matt Buchanan | The next version of Photoshop (CS 4) will be juicing up performance by taking advantage of hardware it hasn’t tapped before: graphics cards and physics processors. How much faster is the new 64-bit, GPU-injected Photoshop? At a demo at Nvidia’s HQ, TG Daily watched “the presenter playing with a 2 GB, 442 megapixel image like it was a 5 megapixel image on an 8-core Skulltrail system. Changes made through image zoom and through a new rotate canvas tool were applied almost instantly.” More »
Computers
Asus Developing Eee PC Touchscreen Tablet
7:30AM Matt Buchanan | Aussie pub Current is reporting that the Eee PC will soon morph into a “non-clamshell touchscreen-only device,” with an unveiling as soon as June 3 at Computex. Asus’s Australia retail manager confirmed they’re “obviously looking at form factors rather than just a clamshell” and that it would use a touchscreen. The caveat is that it ultimately might not wear the Eee badge since it’s wholly different from—and presumably pricier than—the rest of the line. It might seem like an off-kilter move, but a genuinely cheap tablet (say, US$500) could be as game-changing as the original Eee. [Current via Electronista] More »
Networks
FCC Planning New Spectrum Auction With Free Broadband for All
6:30AM Gizmodo US Edition | It looks like the FCC is taking up Congresswoman Anna Eshoo’s dopey scheme to deliver internet to the masses with another spectrum auction that would require the winner to offer free broadband to half of the US within four years, and 95 percent sometime after that. A nearly impossible task, on top of being silly in the first place, so don’t expect anyone to volunteer to pay for the privilege. There’s no set date for this proposed auction of 25MHz in the 2155 to 2180MHz range, but the FCC is planning to meet on June 16 to discuss the rules of the fail sale. [RCR Wireless News] More »
Gadgets
Sony Video Glasses Will Turn Everyone Star Trek Chic
5:30AM Gizmodo US Edition | Answering Mark’s prayers and bringing us all one step closer to looking like Geordi La Forge, Sony has unveiled eyeglasses that can show full-colour video images. The prototype supports a QVGA resolution, weighs 120g, is 3mm thick at the lens, and has a contrast ratio of 50:1. More »
Games
More Buttons, More Money: Guitar Hero World Tour Costs More Than Rock Band, US$190
4:46AM Matt Buchanan | It looks like all those extra buttons and cymbals in Guitar Hero: World Tour that will make it better than Rock Band (cause more buttons = more better) don’t come cheap. Gamestop is listing the bundle at US$189.99 for the Xbox 360 and PS3 (US$179 for PS2), US$20 more than Rock Band’s US$169.99 retail price. With tax, that’s over US$200—meaning music gamers might have to pick between being a hero or a bandleader. Update: At least it looks like quality gear—the Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith and Blink’s Travis Barker vouch for it in the vid below. More »
Phones
