Gadgets Connect

by Darren Murph, posted Apr 17th 2008 at 6:14AM Make no mistake, we’ve seen some fairly boneheaded moves (even someone rocking this very same gaffe!) made by technologically-illiterate bank robbers, but the latest case involves a fellow who was quite the opposite of that. Yes, the 20 to 25 year male who decided to hold up an Alabama bank the day before his taxes were due actually did the deed without hanging up his cellphone. And there’s surveillance footage to prove it. (Read the full post about ‘Robber holds up bank, doesn’t bother to get off his cellphone’…)

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If you are a fan of manga or anime, often we see attempts to translate great storylines and intense drawn energy into live-action films - often with disappointing results. One notorious example that easily comes to mind is Guyver or The Bio-Booster Armor Guyver for you manga junkies. While the original anime series was great entertainment to watch, let’s just say the American 1991 live-action movie The Guyver was like witnessing a bad train wreck unfolding in slow motion. So you can imagine to my shock and horror when I hear that the rights to one of my all time favorite movies and anime series has been acquired and will be made into a movie.

But wait?

(Read the full post about ‘Ghost in the Shell to be made into live 3-D movie’…)

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by Darren Murph, posted Apr 16th 2008 at 10:03PMWe know, it’s a dream of yours to one day hear what Neanderthals from eons past sounded like when they conversed of DAPs possessing a few kilobytes of storage space and longed for computers that wouldn’t take up entire caves. Okay, so maybe that’s a stretch, but an anthropologist at Florida Atlantic University has seemingly figured out a way to actually recreate what ancient human speech (probably) sounded like. By utilizing reconstructions of a trio of Neanderthal vocal tracts, the crew was able to engineer what a spoken “E” would’ve sounded like via a computer synthesiser; in time, they’re hoping to construct an entire Neanderthal sentence. (Read the full post about ‘Computer synthesiser enables Neanderthals to be heard’…)

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AxelR, a member of the Excellent DP Review forums, has snuck a look inside the code of Nikon’s new firmware update for its flagship D3 camera. What did he find? References to a future D3-X model with a whopping 24.4 megapixels. He searched the v1.10 code for the string “D3X” and came up with the following: 6048×4032 24.4 M 4544×3024 13.7 M 3024×2016 6.1 M 5056×4032 20.4 M 3792×3024 11.5 M 2528×2016 5.1 M 3968×2640 10.5 M 2976×1976 5.9 M 1984×1320 2.6 M The most interesting post in the forum thread comes from Thom Hogan, the author of several books on Nikon DSLRs and general Nikon authority. (Read the full post about ‘Is Nikon Prepping A 24 Megapixel D3 Replacement?’…)

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Sega Toys have lifted the veil on its Music Robot ODO that bears a resemblance to the Sony Miuro, making this a more affordable alternative for folks who think that the Miuro is extravagantly priced. The Music Robot ODO does fall short in comparison to the Miuro, where the missing WiFi connectivity and digital camera functions are the most notable ones. Still, it retails for slightly a tenth of the $1,000 plus price point which the Miuro demands, making the lack of features much more palatable. The LCD display shows off the current “mood” of the Music Robot ODO, dancing along to the tempo of the current tune playing. With the included remote control, you will be able to “drive” your tunes pretty much everywhere you go in your home. (Read the full post about ‘Music Robot ODO’…)

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by Paul Miller, posted Apr 16th 2008 at 1:25PM It’s official, Microsoft knows no shame. We used to think that the Zune tattoo guy was bad for publicity, but now it’s clear that the video promo team needs zero outside help in dragging whatever shred of dignity this company has through the mud. Whoever thought up this Bruce Springsteen-defiling “Rockin’ Our Sales” piece of garbage to promote the launch of Vista SP1 should be fired instantly and sued for defamation. It’s just that good. (Read the full post about ‘Microsoft burns our eyes with Vista promo video’…)

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A survey by Infosecurity Europe found that women aren’t too good about keeping their computer passwords a secret. The survey included 576 office workers and was conducted in London outside Liverpool Street Station. Unfortunately, women were more likely to give away their password to a person posing as a market researcher than men by a wide margin. 45% of women versus 10% of men were willing to give their passwords away for the lure of a chocolate bar. Now to be fair, men and women both have a lot they can improve upon when it comes to giving away personal information. Participants were also asked to provide the names and telephone numbers of co-workers to be entered into a drawing to go to Paris. (Read the full post about ‘Women are more likely to give up passwords for chocolate’…)

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by Darren Murph, posted Apr 16th 2008 at 6:17PM Calculator watches, a staple of the average’s geek wardrobe since before your grandmother was born, have been called out, as David Jones’ own homegrown version totally trumps anything out there on the pre-fabricated market today. The cleverly-titled µWatch was born after a Casio CFX-400 bit the dust after years upon years of telling time and determining averages, and while it seems as though a bona fide front panel is still in the works, we’re personally hoping that currently unoccupied Design & Construction portal gets updated with a how-to guide. Check out the read link for a few more shots of the early prototype and the current build.[Via OhG (Read the full post about ‘DIY’er crafts scientific calculator watch, TI-30 is like “what?”’…)

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by Thomas Ricker, posted Apr 16th 2008 at 5:26AM
It was a long time coming, but we finally have a full review of Sony’s PFR-V1 “personal field speakers.” C|net’s intrepid review team took the headphones for a spin and unsurprisingly found them to be “expensive and impractical” and almost entirely lacking in bass. Goofy looks aside, they did move the music from inside your skull to in front of your face as promised. Of course, that little novelty comes with excessive sound leak to the annoyance of those around you. As such, the headphones are limited to at-home or closed-door office use unless you relish the scorn of others. (Read the full post about ‘Sony’s PFR-V1 headset rated “very good” despite impracticability’…)

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by Darren Murph, posted Apr 16th 2008 at 11:28AM We know, most of you even remotely interested in the F-200 either already own one (and you’re playing it right now, aren’t you? Don’t lie.) or are waiting intently for the Pandora. Nevertheless, the cats over at Ars Technica managed to wrap their paws around the GP2X F-200 and give it the full review treatment — needless to say, impressions were (fairly) positive. Immediately recognized as a “hybrid of Sony’s PSP and the Nintendo DS,” the gaming handheld possessed a bright, clear LCD, somewhat “tinny” speakers and the ability to chew through batteries without shame. Still, aside from a few minor niggles, the critics found it to be “well worth the $170 price tag f (Read the full post about ‘GamePark’s GP2X F-200 handheld gets reviewed’…)

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