Filed under: Robots

The always jam-packed ROBO-ONE competition in Japan was more heated than ever this year, with bi-ped robots tackling others and ripping them limb from limb. Okay, so maybe that’s somewhat of a stretch, but you can rest assured some serious throw downs, um, went down. Interestingly enough, we heard that an i-SOBOT competition was also included (infighting, anyone?), and that the Maru family’s King Kizer took home the gold. That’s all well, fine and good, but we know what you’re after — take a (long) look at the hundreds of photos waiting in the read link below.

[Via MAKE]

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Via [Engadget]

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Man Stuff - The Best of Uncrate [Roundups]

This week at Uncrate: We live the high life Vegas-style at the Palms Place Hotel, Condo & Spa, cover our walls in nostalgia with Star Wars Action Figure Prints, and hide all our travel essentials in the National Geographic Global Travel Jacket. We also get back into game shape with Nike Sparq, give our pets a unique hideaway with the Browning Passage Pet Cave, and nominate the Saleen S5S Raptor for the “most futuristic car” award.

Finally, we clean our clothes with steam using the LG SteamWasher & SteamDryer, check out the nice-looking girls at Zivity, and iron out our plot for global domination while aboard our WallyIsland.

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Apple patent apps reveal plans for iPhone as “lifestyle companion”

Filed under: Cellphones

While it doesn’t exactly come as much of a surprise, it seems that Apple has plenty more goodies in mind for the iPhone (and, presumably, the iPod touch), with a recent batch of no less than six patent applications revealing some of its plans to turn the device into what it describes as a “lifestyle companion.” In this case, that rather vague term refers to what is effectively an upgrade to the Nike+iPod system, with the iPhone’s accelerometer and other built-in capabilities also coming into play in addition to the usual external sensors. It doesn’t stop with workouts, however, with the patent applications also indicating plans for a diet coach of sorts, which could even make use of the iPhone’s camera to scan bar codes on products. Those components would also of course all work together, with the system able to suggest workouts based on your diet and physical condition and vice versa. Of course, these being patent applications, there’s no indication as to when we might actually see such a system, but it sure seems a good deal more likely than some of Apple’s other ideas.

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PWN 2 OWN over: MacBook Air gets seized in 2 minutes flat

Filed under: Laptops

And just think — last year you were singing Dino Dai Zovi’s praises for taking control of a MacBook Pro in nine whole hours. This year, the PWN 2 OWN hacking competition at CanSecWest was over nearly as quickly as the second day started, as famed iPhone hacker Charlie Miller showed the MacBook Air on display who its father really was. Apparently Mr. Miller visited a website which contained his exploit code, which then “allowed him to seize control of the computer, as about 20 onlookers [read: unashamed nerds] cheered him on.” Of note, contestants could only use software that came pre-loaded on the OS, so obviously it was Safari that fell victim here. Nevertheless, he was forced to sign a nondisclosure agreement that’ll keep him quiet until “TippingPoint can notify the vendor,” but at least he’ll have $10,000 and a new laptop to cuddle with during his silent spell.

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Spring Snowboard and Ski Reader Meetup: I’m Feeling the Love [Notes]

Hey, if you haven’t heard I’m doing an informal reader meet up April 5th, at (I think) Alpine Meadows in Tahoe. The point will be to ski or snowboard, while testing out some gadgets in the real world. What’s cool is that plenty of people are coming and that there’ll be some fun gear to play with while we’re there. And more and more cool gear is showing up at this shindig.

• Nokia is bringing a ton of N95s for us to use.
• Smith Optics will be bringing some of their new hot swappable goggles and fan driven turbo goggles to test out, along with a bluetooth helmet and I think lots and lots of headbands. (Slope style counts.)
• JBL is giving away headphones.
• VuDu is giving away a box!
• I’ll have a Garmin Colorado preloaded with Ski trail maps. Overkill compared to a paper map, but potentially useful for off-piste adventures and worth checking out in person.
• Zune’ll come along with a few loaners preloaded with Gizmodo approved snow shredding tracks.
• I’ll have one loaner of the Vholdr outdoor camcorder.
• Nacski might be setting up a bus ride system from SF.
• Silverado Systems is going to bring a pair of RED One cams
• I’ll bring a Dash GPS.
• No camera companies have stepped up to participate with batches of loaners of outdoor cams cough*olympuspentaxsanyo*cough, but I’ll keep trying.

If you want to come, I will welcome you with open arms as you spray fresh spring slush in my face. It will definitely be T-shirt weather by then, even more so than now. If you work for a gear company with outdoor gear, let me know if you want to bring some to show off.

Email me and I’ll put you on the list with more details.

More to come.

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Plasma Speakers Create Music By Being Badass [Clips]

Plasma speakers have been around in science labs since the 1950s, but that doesn’t make them any less amazing in the 2000s. Like a standard speaker, plasma speakers work by creating compression waves in the air. But unlike a standard speaker that uses magnets and paper/plastic/etc to drive these compressions, plasma speakers are using the non-gas, non-liquid, non-solid “fourth state of matter” plasma.

What can be tough to see in these demonstrations (the first is the completed setup, the second is an FM-based prototype) is that pitch is altered by the constantly shifting intensity of the plasma arc (the creator puts the frequency response range at 200Hz to 12kHz, and the speaker runs at 50W).

So are these beauts for sale? From the creator:

A lot of work to do before I could consider selling - the safety aspect for starters.

Apparently someone needs to send this guy the memo. The danger is precisely what makes plasma so freaking cool.

Thanks Martin!

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Motorola lets loose dual SIM card-packing MING A1800

Filed under: Cellphones

Motorola’s Linux-based A1600 MING 2 may still not have seen a release ’round these parts, but that apparently hasn’t stopped the company from churning out a new model in the form of the A1800, which has now wound up in the hands of The Boy Genius Report. According to BGR, this one shrinks things down even further while still staying “sturdy as a rock” and, somewhat interestingly, includes two SIM card slots. Apart from that, you can expect the CDMA / quad-band GSM handset to pack a 3-megapixel camera and built-in Bluetooth, but any other details seem to be a bit hard to come by at the moment. That unfortunately also includes any word on pricing or availability, though BGR says not to expect a launch at CTIA next week.

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Dash Full Review: Don’t Miss the Traffic Terminator [Reminder]

Hey, in case you missed it, don’t forget to check out the most thorough review of the Dash on the web—we drove over 1000 miles with it so you don’t have to. [Dash on Giz]

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Trakonya Mutator Force Feedback Device Makes You Pay for Bad Gaming Skills [Accessories]

The Trakonya Mutator attaches to a gamer’s wrist and will then shock said gamer if they screw up in-game. The device only functions with Unreal Tournament for now, but wider support is in the pipe works; next stop? Half Life—nice. We can think of a ton of games this type of self inflicted punishment would work well with, but for $59, we’re going to need wider support than just Unreal Tournament out of the box. Still, couple this with the 3rd Space Vest and you’ll be sure to end each gaming session with a flurry of bruises and fond memories. Bliss. [Product Page via Everything USB]

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Filed under: Networking

We like to think that NTT, Japan’s dominant telephone company, is a serious corporation. So when NTT DoCoMo issues a press release claiming to have successfully demonstrated the world’s first “molecular delivery system for molecular communication,” we figure this must be significant. The technology and biochemistry at the foundation sure seems to be. In an experiment, NTT DoCoMo confirmed the use of synthesized DNA to transport specific molecules through the body. The process converts chemical energy into mechanical work so there’s no need for an external power supply or control mechanism. The hope then is to one day plant a “biochip” in a cellphone which can read “excitement, emotion, stress or disease” from the simmering juices (blood, sweat and tears) pooled inside the meatsicles of “living organisms.” This is where things start to fall apart. Seeing as how this is Japan, that ambiguous target audience means you and your pets. Robots too, just as soon as they get skin. And when the English press release claims that a bio-chipped phone could be applicable to “fortune telling” — well, we’ve lost all hope.

[Thanks, StopSpamming]

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Via [Engadget]

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