Art student creates invisible car with cool paint-job

Posted by Cory Doctorow

Sara Watson, an English art student, turned a car "invisible" with a lovely trompe l'oeil paintjob:



Sara Watson, who is studying drawing at the University of Central Lancashire (Uclan), took three weeks to transform the car's appearance.
She created the illusion in the car park outside her studio at Uclan's Hanover Building in Preston.

The car is now being used for advertising by the local recycling firm that donated the vehicle.

New, smaller iPod Shuffle gets the power of speech

Half the size of the last generation but with twice the capacity, the latest Shuffle boasts a novel way of letting you know what track you're listening to: It talks.

Available now for $79, the new Shuffle (announced this morning on Apple's Web site—did someone heed Chris' call for fewer Apple events?) is billed as the "world's smallest music player," and indeed, it looks tiny—just 1.8 by 0.7 by 0.3 inches, or (as Apple helpfully notes) a little smaller than a AA battery.

Gone is the circular navigation pad from the last-generation Shuffle; instead, you get a new in-line remote on the earphone cord, which includes volume up/down buttons, plus a center control that lets you pause and skip tracks. Not bad, but here's the only problem: Third-party earphones won't work all that well with the new Shuffle, or at least not until someone makes a pair with a compatible in-line remote.

Also new: VoiceOver, an intriguing attempt to replace the Shuffle's missing LCD display with a computerized voice that tells you the track name and artist of the song you're listening to. Just press and hold the center key of the Shuffle's in-line remote to hear VoiceOver speak.

The new Shuffle also gets playlist support—at last—thanks to VoiceOver. Here's how it works: Keep holding the center key and VoiceOver will tell you what playlist you're listening to, followed by a list of all available playlists; click again when you hear the playlist you'd want to select.

Interesting … although based on the demo on Apple's Web site, VoiceOver isn't without its quirks. The voice itself sounds a bit robotic, and for some strange reason, Apple decided to give VoiceOver a male voice when synced with a Mac and a female voice for PC music lovers. Strange—why not give everyone the chance to choose for themselves? (Perhaps they will; guess we'll find out soon.)

That said, I like the fact that the new Shuffle (available in silver and black flavors) comes with 4GB of storage for $79, just $10 more than the old 2GB version.

So, what do you think? Like the new Shuffle? Thoughts on VoiceOver? Fire away.

Source: Yahoo!

MY POST-CHRISTMAS SEASON

My personal basket : HOT THINGS ON THE LIST


Here are the HOT THINGS ON THE LIST I retained from last year.

1. Apple IPod Touch 2g –I bought this gadget October last year which can do everything, its a mp3 player, video player, image viewer, calendar, wi-fi enabled gadget, organizer, and many more. It can do almost everything, plus it’s a touch screen gadget. I had a hard time thinking if I should buy this product or not, because I already have my PSP Slim and Lite which can do almost the same thing, but, a lot slower.

2. Palm Treo 680 – I got this smart phone June last year, the thing that I loved about this phone is I can use it to edit, update, and view my .doc, .xls, and .ppt files that other smart phones cannot do. Compared to others this smart phone can do it in a faster and accurate rate.

Here are the HOT THINGS ON THE LIST I have to let-go.

1. PSP Slim n Slite – I have to let go of this product in terms of using it as a mp3 player and video player since I already have my Apple Ipod Touch 2g. I only use my PSP when I play my favorite games and kill some time when I’m at home. I never brought it in the office since it will be hassle to bring a bulky system with its charger and UMDs.

When buying a specific product NOW especially we’re experiencing global financial crisis, you have to consider these things before buying something, like for me, I like to buy gadgets:

• Worthy of its price.
• Suits your needs.
• Warranty.

No iPhones, iPods at Bill Gates's house

Bill Gates's sprawling Washington state compound is, as you might expect, packed to the gills with bleeding-edge gear, from the heated floors and 20-seat home theater to the X-ray machine (for screening the mail, of course) and miles of fiber-optic cabling. But here's what you definitely won't find at chez Gates: an iPhone.

In the latest issue of Vogue, Bill's wife, Melinda Gates, reveals that among the "very few things" on "the banned list in our household" are—you guessed it—iPods and iPhones.

Brutal, yes—especially for Bill and Melinda's three kids (two daughters and a son, aged 12, six, and nine, respectively), who'll just have to grin and bear it as their little pals make merry with the latest and greatest iPod.

And even Melinda herself admits to an occasional pang of Apple envy: "Every now and then I look at my friends and say, 'Ooh, I wouldn't mind having that iPhone.'" (Ouch!)

Then again, what else did we expect from Microsoft founder Bill Gates? The man has his pride, not to mention scores of Windows Mobile and Zune team members who'd probably feel a tad bit hurt if Bill Jr. was running around with an iPhone.

So, which phones and MP3 players are on the Gates's "good-to-go" list? Well, there's always the Zune for music and video—not the sexiest MP3 player out there, mind you, but at least it's got Wi-Fi and a snazzy interface.

And of course, there are plenty of Windows Mobile handsets to choose from; personally, I'd go for the Palm Treo Pro (if I had to get a Windows Mobile phone, that is), although it's not exactly a barrel of fun for the teens. Or how about the HTC Touch Pro? That's a pretty cool phone … I guess (as I pat the iPhone 3G in my jeans pocket).

Yahoo! News

iPod Touch Bluetooth

As i was reading an article about the history of iPod Touch, I found out that iPod Touch 2g uses Broadcom BCM4325 a wi-fi chipset that supports Bluetooth and FM Radio. Although it was not officially announced and supported by Apple (this is the reason why Nike+iPod support was released, I guess so, as Apple has said that the Nike+iPod kit works on an unspecified 2.4 GHz radio frequency), maybe the reason behind this is they don't want to sabotage their then upcoming release mobile product which was the iPhone, since iPod Touch was made as a training wheel for iPhone.

Now it's time for me to find out how to activate this bluetooth and fm radio capabilities of my iPod Touch, but first I'll need to prove that the chipset mentioned above is indeed inside my iPod.

Apple stocks tumble as Jobs announces LOA

Apple stocks dropped an alarming 6.5% after trading hours when story got out that CEO Steve Jobs is taking a leave of absence for medical reasons.

For months, there have been speculation that Steve Jobs may be suffering from some health-related problems. This was the reason why he did not attend the MacWorld Conference (and did the keynote) last week.

Although he stated in an email to the Apple Community that he’ll be back by June, this news surely concerns people in the industry about the future of Apple. COO Tim Cook is taking over for the meantime.

Stocks dropped below the $80 mark after trading hours and continues to spiral down as the news spreads.

Source: YugaTech

Bye Bye PSP...

Over the crucial month of November, the Nintendo DS shifted a jaw-dropping 1.5 million units in the US alone (up 20% from last year) while the PSP languished, managing just 421,000 sales -- actually down 27%, in what was in general a tremendously strong

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Magnavox Blu-Ray Player, Blu-Ray Movie Titles, HDTV, Projector

Just received some advance gifts for Christmas which are way too cool gadgets. Here are some pictures for bragging. LOL

DVD and Blu-Ray Titles

Affordable Projector

Magnavox Blu-Ray PlayerI'll post more pictures and some tech specs entries by weekend...

PSP-3000

Yes, its the 3rd installment of the PSP system, The PSP-3000 will retain the 64MB RAM and 333 MHz MIPS R4000 (32-bit) CPU for faster load times. The main difference is the integrated microphone, so a headset will not be required for voice chat. Furthermore, it will be possible to play PSP games on Non-Progressive scan televisions. Another change will be a non-reflective screen so players will be able to play in brightly lit places without glare. The improved screen will also have greater contrast than the old one. The start and select buttons have changed form half-circles to ovals. Also, notice in the picture of the PSP-3000 above that the home button is now a "PS Button."

Bundles

The PSP-3000 will come in two bundles in North America. One includes a Mystic Silver PSP-3000, Ratchet & Clank: Size Matters, the National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets UMDMemory Stick Pro Duo and a voucher for a PS Store download of Echochrome. The PSP 4GB Memory Entertainment Pack includes a Piano Black PSP-3000, one 4GB Memory Stick Pro Duo, and a PS Store voucher for Everyday Shooter. According to Sony, a core pack will also retail later in 2008. In Europe the console will be released in eight different bundles. It will retail for 199 Euros in the Eurozone and £149 in the UK. movie, a 1GB

Release

The PSP-3000 will be released in the US on October 14, 2008 ($199.99 for the bundles and $169.99 for the core, which will be released later on), in Europe on October 15, 2008, and in Australia on October 16, 2008 for AU$299.95.

Nike shines a light

Customises its kicks and shows us the way home in the dark

Ever since we saw Michael J Fox's electronic, automatic Nike "sneakers" with power laces that did themselves up in Back To The Future II, we've hankered after a pair of high tech trainers. And by that we mean technology orientated Nikes rather than a pair of actual Hi-Techs. It's not the Eighties you know.

And yes, we know the Wi-Fi wired Nike Dunks were a cool concept, but anyone who's ever watched a T3.com video report will know we're all about the fashion, and the Dunks were uglier than Avram Grant in a girdle.

Enter the next gen. Utterly customised, the Illuminated Confusion shoes sport a pattern print with "neon green light-up lateral sides that either blink or glow". Just power each shoe up with a standard AAA battery (rechargeable USB cell preferable of course), hit the streets and never get hit by passing night time traffic again. Probably.

There's currently a two-to-three week waiting list, but that should just give you time to save up for the $400 price tag. Ouch. If it's any consolation, you do get a "free custom box" with each order. And when they mean free, they mean $400.

source: T3

Honestly I'm a Nike fanatic and I got to admit that every time they release an innovative set of shoes it will just simply amaze us and urge us to buy one (and I loved the Air Max 20, thats why I rarely wear them).

But, with this one, for a green neon light nike's jeesh $400 price tag is way too much, and take note its battery operated! Imagine the cost of changing its batteries.

The Coolest Gadget

Play Station 3 SLIM?

Behold the Play Station 3...

Source: T3

PICTURE: Could This Be Sony's PSPhone?

The gaming community is buzzing this morning from some supposedly leaked scans of a possible PSPhone would give it a full 480 x 272 display, mini-analog stick, and drop UMD in favor of playing full PSP games via M2. Turns out they're scans from Stuff magazine from months ago, which seems to have passed under everyone's radar (including our own, initially) because so few people seem to actually read it.

[Via PSP Fanboy, with help from Engadget Español]

"New in 2008: July-Dec
Top box: Between both keyboards there is a 3 inches screen with the same resolution of the PSP (480x272 pixels) which guarantees a good gaming experience. Good as well for movies.

Lower right box: PSP functionalities were replicated in this architecture, making possible that all PSP games can be played. It won't have UMD slot, but it'll have M2 cards instead

Left box: Slide on one side and you'll find a joypad with analog stick for PSP controls. Slide to the other side and a number keyboard will show up enjoying the ergonomics of Sony Ericsson.

Plenty of opinion, final word: Probability of existence: 35%"

source: engadget