This Bendiboard Retroboard Invaders is a flexible roll-up rubber keyboard adorned with those famous pixellated alien Space Invaders. It’s bendy, it’s got aliens, it’s got a space key depicting a laser gun-base. You can spill coffee on it safely if you get a little energetic in your gaming, and it’s US$40. Enough said, because I can’t think of a way of writing the Space Invaders sound effects down as text. [Technabob]
Sony’s just come up with the software development kit for the xPeria X1, designed to let programmers create new “panel” apps for the phone’s funky one-touch panel interface that sits on top of its Windows Mobile 6.1 OS. The idea is to create stuff that will “meet the consumer’s demand for a rich, individualised multimedia experience on their phone”—everything from search engines to social networking apps, all easy-access through the panels, or so says Sony anyway. If you’re keen to get to grips with making software for this phone, you’ll be able to get hold of the SDK for free here. Otherwise, check out a video of the panel interface at the Sony link. Press release below. [Sony]
Sony has had a little splurge of Blu-ray action, and come up with six new models of BDR-recorders/players that also sport hard drives which can record HD video. The T-series, BDZ-T55 and BDZ-T75 are the basic models, with 320GB hard drives, BD Live and memory-card ports and DLNA (on the T75). The L-series models BDZ-L55 and BDZ-L95 have 320GB and 500GB drives respectively, and a HDV 1080i/DV input, and 2 USB sockets for connecting digital cams to. The top-end X-series BDZ-X95 and BDZ-X100 models have 500GB and 1TB of drive room, Sony’s Cross Media bar GUI and the new Digital Reality Creation – Multi Function version 3 chip. Full specs below.
Buffalo has come up with a new network accessible storage system which not only hangs onto up to 4TB of your files but is also Time Machine and iPhone compatible. OK, so this last bit is over a dedicated web access system and the phone can’t save the files, but it can view the contents of music, photo and video files. The LS-QL/R5′s 13 x 18 x 22cm box can fit in up to four 3.5-inch drives, has a RAID-5 option, Gigabit Ethernet, a DLNA server and is due in late September for US$560 for a 1TB version, around US$710 for 2TB and US$1,300 for 4TB. [PCWatch]
Monster, usually better known for cabling, is now tackling powering your gadgets in an eco-friendly manner with a new range of standby-killing power strips. The Digital Life Power Centre Green Power versions being the first of two lines, aimed at connecting your computer gear up: when you turn off the computer, all the peripheral sockets get switched off too. There’re three versions—the MDP 650, 800 and 900.
newVideoPlayer("/nikond90samp_giz.flv", 476, 286,""); While some have been sceptical of the D90′s video recording as a useless gimmick, Nikon has posted a bunch of videos showing off some of the amazing things you can do with the camera. The above clip ticks off some of what you can do with a variety of lenses, toying with fisheyes or super-zooms, but the two below really show what the camera can do, like create stunning effects with a shallow depth-of-the-field, and the detail it captures in low light using a pumped ISO.
The BlackJack II (SGH-i617) finally gets its turn to ride the Windows Mobile 6.1 bus, which brings to it slight UI changes, better SMS threading, improved GPS navigation and internet connection sharing. There’s little reason why you shouldn’t get it, so download it now and join the 6.1 club. [Samsung]
Wired’s Danger Room blog is spot on in comparing Northrop Grumman’s upcoming solid state laser system to the Death Star. Promised to arrive before the end of 2008, and far earlier than Boeing’s 25kW laser, it’s supposed to have 100 kilowatts of power (SERIOUS pew pew action) and make use of multiple, less powerful lasers to form one giant one (see also: Voltron).
Researchers at the University of Tokyo have demonstrated a device that can create touchable, creepily invisible floating “objects” using focused ultrasound waves. Though the technology is early testing stages, its designers have already expressed an interest in weaponi- I mean, commercialising it for possible use in gaming and design applications. For now, the team has only been able to simulate resistance in one direction, but say that forming complex shapes and textures is plausible.
The upcoming Star Trek reboot by J.J. Abrams has a lot going for it, from interesting choices in actors (John Cho, Simon Pegg and even a cameo by the son of James Doohan, the original Scotty), to updated special effects and concepts. What we’re interested in are all the gadgets, from phasers to tricorders and even the ship itself.
