If you’ve never seen the rise and fall of humanity as told by a series of pulleys, levers, and CO2 rockets, now’s your chance — a team of Purdue engineers have built a contraption that not only tells the history of the world through the end of days, but is also a contender for the world’s largest Rube Goldberg machine. The Purdue team’s “Time Machine” catalogs a history of dinosaurs, war, and rock ‘n roll before finally culminating in a cataclysmic inferno and efflorescent renewal in 232 steps — narrowly beating out the previous record of 230 set by Ferris State University in 2010. Impressive, but not officially the “world’s largest” just yet– the team is submitting a video of a flawless run to Guinness World Records to certify the historic thingamajig, hopefully eking out a victory with its two step lead. Rube Goldberg Machine to set new world record, bring forth apocalypse originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 19:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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The $350 ContourGPS sits among the top-tier of consumer-friendly helmet cams, but it’s always posed one major problem: you can’t really tell where it’s pointing. Sure, it shoots a pair of wicked lasers out of the front, but it’s always a challenge to gauge the extents of its 135 degree lens. We knew there was a secret trick in there waiting to be unleashed, which we got to play with at CES , and now here it is. Contour has released its Connect View functionality for iOS , letting you view live footage from the camera right on your phone. Keep reading for our full impressions. Gallery: Contour Connect View Continue reading ContourGPS Connect View app hands-on ContourGPS Connect View app hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 16:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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You know that pseudo-tactile feeling you get when you fondle your mouse’s clicky scroll wheel, the one that satisfies your obsessive need to touch everything? Logitech wants to give you more clicks, and smoother scrolling to boot. This M325 wireless mouse’s new “micro-precise” scroll wheel features 72 tiny ratchets, making our self-counted 22-ratchet mouse wheel seem downright barbaric by comparison — not that we ever really considered the number of teeth our mice had before now. The rodent’s 18-month battery life won’t quite live up to your 2-year Couch Mouse , but at least they can share a Logitech Unifying Receiver . Your scroll wheel of tomorrow can be had for $40 later this month, or
Continue reading …Man steers R/C car with his hands, not to mention an HTML5-based web app (video)
April 3, 2011 No Comment
With the right Arduino board, an R/C race car, a couple paperclips and the MacGyver spirit, we imagine most anyone can hack together a creative remote control these days… but how many can open-source an HTML5 web app that’ll do the deed from any tablet, phone or PC? Gaurav Manek crafted just such a thing, and he’ll demonstrate it for you on an Apple iPad in the video immediately above. What’s more, he’s also got a Kinect hack that uses Microsoft depth camera (with Code Laboratories’ NUI SDK) to control the very same with the wave of a well-placed hand — we’re already envisioning fisticuffs should he and a lab partner try for some head-to-head racing action. That said, you don’t need to wait for an illustrious creator to have all the fun. Why not download his source code at our links below and give it a go yourself? Man steers R/C car with his hands, not to mention an HTML5-based web app (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 14:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Osborne 1 celebrates its 30th birthday, and that of the portable computing revolution
April 3, 2011 No Comment
On April 3rd, 1981 — thirty years ago today — Adam Osborne unveiled the Osborne 1 at the West Coast Computer Faire in San Francisco. It had a 4 MHz Zilog Z80 CPU, two single-sided floppy drives, 64K of RAM, and a five-inch monochrome CRT display. Nothing particularly special there, even back in the day. No, what made the Osborne 1 extraordinary was the fact that the 24-pound plastic machine had a carrying handle on the back — and at the bargain price of $1,795 with software included, it became one of the first mass-produced portable computers to succeed. Which, of course, spurred competitors to create an army of even more “luggable,” loveable machines. Shortly after helping to change the course of history, Osborne and his computer fell into a spiral of pain , but the next time you admire the way your ultralight slides into a manila envelope, you’ll know who to thank. Find a short but sweet chronicle of the Osborne 1 at our Technologizer link. Osborne 1 celebrates its 30th birthday, and that of the portable computing revolution originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 13:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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When we reviewed the Nintendo 3DS ( both times ) there were some things we liked and others we didn’t, but one thing stood out as a true flaw: the battery life. Three to four hours on a charge just doesn’t cut it when portable game systems are traditionally known for shrugging off entire international flights. The 3DS would struggle with a puddle-jumper. Now, Nyko says it has a fix , and have released a battery backpack that promises twice the life of the stock console. Does it deliver? Not quite. Gallery: Nyko Charge Base and Power Pak+ Continue reading Nyko Power Pack+ and Charge Base for Nintendo 3DS review Nyko Power Pack+ and Charge Base for Nintendo 3DS review originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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“We call it a very nice phone and you can get it on a 12 month contract.” Oh, really, Tesco? Nifty! So, how much is that bag of day-old doughnuts… with and without a contract? Don : “Knowing my luck, if I buy this now they’ll have an iPhone 4 with a Bold keyboard on sale next week.” Darren : “Do you guys sell a vegan model?” Michael : “At Tesco, we’ve got raspberries, strawberries, and… ThunderBerries?” Tim : “With Android, are you supposed to squeeze it or shake it to tell if it’s ripe?” Chris : “You can find it in the toothpaste aisle of your local grocery store.” Myriam : “Behold the Desire Torch, a new AndroBerry phone from HTRIM… now available in the cheese aisle.” Richard Lai: “By popular demand we have extended our Tesco Mobile Rewards offer to our shanzhai range.” Sean Hollister: “And Tesco embraced fragmentation, the only way it knew how.” Vlad: “Hey, if RIM’s gonna use our apps on its tablet, then we’re gonna use its buttons on our phones. Fair’s fair.” [Thanks, Matt O.] Caption contest: this is why grocery stores shouldn’t sell smartphones originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 10:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …TiVo email database compromised by Epsilon security breach, spambots stir into action
April 3, 2011 No Comment
If you’re subscribed to any of TiVo ‘s email-based communiqu
Continue reading …Xperia X10 goes on sale for just a dollar on contract, Gingerbread-flavored future makes it appealing
April 3, 2011 No Comment
Okay, so a couple of weeks back, we wouldn’t have cared if Best Buy was willing to give us money to carry the Xperia X10 , we still would have steered clear of its flawed UI and outdated software. But Sony Ericsson did a funny thing last Friday by promising to slap Gingerbread on this 4-inch sucker, which makes its current $1 contract price an eminently more intriguing proposition. We scouted out Best Buy’s web outlet and couldn’t find the X10 listed at all, so this could very well be a final stock clearance of the handset available on a store-by-store basis. If you’re tempted to jump on what’s looking like the cheapest Gingerbread device for a while, you should be aware that the Android 2.3 update won’t be dropping until the end of Q2 at the earliest, so there will be a modicum of patience required. [Thanks, Adam] Xperia X10 goes on sale for just a dollar on contract, Gingerbread-flavored future makes it appealing originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 09:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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All we knew of the Nexus S 4G ‘s arrival so far was that it was coming in ” spring ,” but that has now been upgraded to “soon” courtesy of Best Buy. The retailer has listed the Sprint-friendy, WiMAX-equipped Android device for a $200 pre-order, and while it refuses to list a specific delivery date, asking for a shipping estimate provides the deliciously narrow date range of April 4th to 5th for those selecting the express option. That’s no guarantee, mind you, but it’s a pretty good indicator that Sprint users will have their taste of the latest pure Google flavor before too long. Continue reading Nexus S 4G up for pre-order at Best Buy, could be with us tomorrow Nexus S 4G up for pre-order at Best Buy, could be with us tomorrow originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 03 Apr 2011 08:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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