Hey there sailor, we imagine you’ve been doing your fair share of button mashing what with a certain new bit of software out and about, but how would you like a whole new control paradigm? Taking up Steve Jobs’ war on buttons, a group of grad students at Japan’s Keio University have put together a comprehensive robot control interface that relies solely on finger swipes, taps, and presses. By employing the iPhone’s built-in accelerometer and multitouch screen, the robot can replicate a humanistic walking motion, perform sidesteps and, when called upon, kick a football with gusto and presumed passion. Your destination is just past the break, where the video demo awaits.

[Via HDBlog.it]

Continue reading Walky robot understands iPhone gestures, football fanaticism (video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Robots

Walky robot understands iPhone gestures, football fanaticism (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Nov 2009 04:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Via [Engadget]

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How Do You Trim the Top of a Hedge With a Ride-On Lawnmower? [Lawnmowers]

The answer: with a crane people…with a crane. It makes perfect sense now.

I mean, the manual for the ride-on lawnmower did not specifically state that you couldn’t raise it up with a crane to trim the top of a very large hedge, so that’s just what two lunatics from Cambridge New Zealand did.

“The mower was doing an all-right job, but I reckon it would work better on a hedge that’s not so spiky.”

Maybe they need one of those Zero-Turn mowers with a larger cutting deck instead of a basic lawn tractor. Yeah, that’s the problem with this whole setup. [Stuff NZ via Fark]

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Lenovo ThinkPad W701 hints at Core i7 Extreme in FCC reveal

Lenovo can’t be feeling too much warmth toward the FCC right now. After Intel and Wistron combined to remove any mystery from its next IdeaPad, here comes the latter with yet another filing revealing yet more tasty morsels of knowledge. Wistron’s latest submission is for a “Notebook Computer with Wacom Digitizer,” which immediately points us toward the high-end ThinkPad W series,with the W700 being the only Lenovo laptop to sport such an appendage so far. Reassuringly, the new model name appears to be W701 and we’ve spotted a 2GHz Intel CPU, 320GB Fujitsu HDD, and a Samsung-made 17-inch WUXGA (1920 x 1200) display in amongst the test specs. If your appetite hasn’t been titillated already, the only contemporary mobile CPU from Intel that we know to run at a default speed of 2GHz is the quad-core Core i7-920XM, which comes with 8MB of L3 cache, 3.2GHz single-core max speed, 55W TDP, and a truly stratospheric price. We might have a Holiday Gift Guide candidate for 2010 already.

Filed under: Laptops

Lenovo ThinkPad W701 hints at Core i7 Extreme in FCC reveal originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Nov 2009 06:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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1950s Stereo 3D Projector Is Luke’s Grandpa [Retromodo]

I first saw this 1950s projector when I was a kid. He was evil, he killed that Old Dude, but at the end the Goodguys blew up his Badass Star. It comes without its black cape and lightsaber, but works.

The Stereo Realist Model 81 3-D Slide Projector was manufactured in 1950 by the David White Sales Company of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It has dual lenses—with 3.5″ focal length, f.2.8 aperture—and runs on two 500-watt bulbs which are cooled by two separate fans.

Not old school enough for you? Fear not, my dear readers, for you have to feed two slides at a time into this thing—to create amazing stereo images—by hand: There’s a slide tray on the top of the projector, with a rotary carrier that pushes the slides when you activate the handle on its back.

Darth Vader is now for sale on eBay, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the great Ralph McQuarrie owned or saw one, once upon a time. [eBay via Star Wars Blog]

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Sony’s Crazy Interactive TV Patent Lets You Throw Tomatoes at Actors [Sony]

Somehow we missed Sony Computer Entertainment America’s fourth wall-breaking patent application earlier this month, but here’s how the concept would work: Using a PS3, you’d control an on-screen avatar to throw tomatoes at actors, and even kick their ass…literally.

“Avatars displayed to a user, in response to user gestures in the real world, e.g. in response to manipulation of a game controller or other such expedient [PlayStation Eye or wand-based motion control?—Ed], may toss tomatoes that stick to the actor’s face or bounce off the actor’s face and roll along a table that appears in the movie or television show.”

The virtual avatars would be overlaid just like Joel Robinson’s silhouette in Mystery Science Theater 3000. In fact, the patent application actually mentions the cult U.S comedy series.

“The avatar of the audience member 39a is now out of its seat, has rushed up to the actor in the scene, and has kicked the actor in the behind while the target is still displayed. The first participant to accomplish this may be awarded points…The kicked individual may be displaced or the portion of the body that is kicked may respond. Key to this aspect of the invention is modeling the physics and the interaction of the impacting object, e.g. the duck and the underlying object, e.g. the water, in a way that is realistic. Known game technology techniques can be used to accomplish this modeling.”

Sony’s patent also mentions the possibility of overlaying advertising like Nike and Coke logos. Come to think of it, being able to throw tomatoes at ads might actually get me to stop skipping them. At least until the novelty wears off. Either way, crazy stuff, no? [USPTO via Silicon Era via Kotaku]

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Sprint’s HTC Hero Takes Inevitable Price Dip to $100 [Dealzmodo]

After the HTC Droid Eris, a rebadged Hero, debuted on Verizon for $100, Sprint’s Hero couldn’t well sit at $180 and expect to sell—and now Best Buy has stepped up, selling the Hero at $100 with contract. [Engadget]

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iPhone Home Button Earrings: Please Don’t [IPhone]

No. WRONG. Drop that! Bad cat! I’m sorry, but when it comes to geeky jewelry, I would only buy a Lego ring. [iPhone India via Makezine]

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Apple Black Friday Possibly Leaked (I Really Want It to Be True) [Rumor]

According to Boy Genius Report, this may be Apple’s Black Friday deals. According to this image, they will be applicable only on November 27th. They seem too good to be true:

• 25% discount off all Macs.
• Up to 15% of all accessories, Apple software, and Apple hardware.
• Up to 30% off all iPods.

The only catch: The discounts are not applicable to the iPhone or the iPod Shuffle. [Boy Genius Report]

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Hey there sailor, we imagine you’ve been doing your fair share of button mashing what with a certain new bit of software out and about, but how would you like a whole new control paradigm? Taking up Steve Jobs’ war on buttons, a group of grad students at Japan’s Keio University have put together a comprehensive robot control interface that relies solely on finger swipes, taps, and presses. By employing the iPhone’s built-in accelerometer and multitouch screen, the robot can replicate a humanistic walking motion, perform sidesteps and, when called upon, kick a football with gusto and presumed passion. Your destination is just past the break, where the video demo awaits.

[Via HDBlog.it]

Continue reading Walky robot understands iPhone gestures, football fanaticism (video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Robots

Walky robot understands iPhone gestures, football fanaticism (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Nov 2009 04:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Via [Engadget]

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Stantum’s unlimited multitouch meets Mini 10 in a fight to the death

Filed under: Laptops, Tablet PCs

Stantum’s unlimited multitouch meets Mini 10 in a fight to the death originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Nov 2009 01:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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