Ooooh—This is a weird one. Using LDR photocells and an arduino, this handheld sequencer is capable of scanning an image and spitting it back out as a sequence of haunting MIDI notes. If you are as interested as I am in seeing how this would interpret a photocopy of the butt, then by all means follow the link and build one yourself. [Gieskes via Make]
Boy Genius Report is claiming they have acquired the original two-page document that was leaked earlier concerning a rumor that Verizon could require a $30 data plan for all new smartphones starting November 14th. Except for Government customers, this change would affect all Verizon customers. In addition, in 2009, select web devices that carry a full HTML browser would also require a data plan, either $15/month for VCast or the Connect or Premium Plan which includes data.
Of course, the changes only apply to new wireless plans and phones launched after November 14. Any existing PDA or smartphone customer with Data Block, Pay As You Go, or 10MB/$24.99 feature would not be impacted. However, any existing customer who wishes to have a smartphone activated after the 14th would be subject to this new policy. [Boy Genius Report]
A tipster tells us that Target’s selling these “6 in 1 device charger” things at Target for $30, capable of charging six things at once. If that sounds familiar, it’s because that’s exactly what the Chargepod does. In fact, this version is so “familiar” it even stole pages out of Callpod’s user manual. What’s even worse about this lousy (probably Chinese) knockoff is that Target’s selling it under their own Target brand. If all this is true, shame, shame on you Target. [Thanks Tipster! - Photo Credit Ben Johnson]
Update: Ben Johnson tells us that even the tips supplied don’t match the ones on the box. You get no generic USB or Samsung Blackjack, but you do get an iPhone connector (not 3G-compliant).
They’re secret. They are kinetic. They’re made of rubberized rocket fuel. And they fire up destroying absolutely everything they encounter, bouncing through bunkers, filling buildings with extremely hot flames, obliterating everyone and anything inside with fierce heat. The Pentagon officially calls them “kinetic fireball incendiaries”. Other people call them kinetic rocket fire balls, and the way they work make them totally terrifying weapons.
The difference between these fireballs and other high-temperature incendiary weapons like the CrashPAD or the Shredder—two modified bombs designed to eliminate Weapons of Mass Destruction—is that these don’t do a good job on keeping dangerous substances under control. Once the bomb—made of explosive and incendiary material—hits the target, there’s always an ejection of material to the atmosphere, which could be perilous for the population or the troops.
The kinetic rocket fire balls, however, don’t explode. Once they hit their target—delivered by a altered bomb—and ignite, they just bounce randomly finding their way across every part of the structure. In the process, they emit an extremely high temperature flame, vaporizing everything around them at 1,000 ºF. This behavior, bouncing everywhere and reaching each place, makes them extremely effective at destroying any kind of substance or contents in the structure.
In fact, these Weapons of Bouncy Destruction can be used against both chemical or bacteriological facilities, as well as nuclear facilities, without breaking the buildings and spreading radioactivity. For now, they are “secret” and have never been used in real action—or so they said—but they have been tested successfully in underground bunkers and may be already under limited production.
And yes, you can cue in the Jerry Lee Lewis. Now. [Danger Room]
Studios are pimping out Blu-ray titles heavily this holiday, and it might be the first time that we see a significant amount of players hovering around the $200 mark. Still, just because the technology is more inexpensive doesn’t mean everyone will be ready to get on board. The economy still sucks and there are several people out there who think Blu-ray won’t have a long tenure as the top format. So, my question to you is: will you finally go Blu-ray this holiday?
Research group SquareTrade recently released the results of a large cellphone study. They tracked 15,000 individual handsets over their first year of use, and they found some big discrepancies in reliability. The iPhone malfunction rate sat at a comfortable 5.6%. The Blackberry (in its various incarnations) jumped to 11.9%. But it’s all superior than the Palm Treo, which malfunctioned 16.2% of the time within the first year.
To be honest, none of these numbers are particularly good, and I have a feeling that there might be a confounding iPhone White Glove Effect—I keep that phone’s glass screen in mind each time I put it in the pocket opposite my keys. (Ironically, iPhone users were found 3% more prone to accidentally damage their phones than their Blackberry/Palm counterparts.)
When projected to two years, the iPhone’s failure rate jumps to 11% while Blackberries level to 14% and Treos reach a scary 21%. I guess it’s a good thing we have those ridiculously binding contracts to bail us out after all. [SquareTrade via CNET]
The Moshi IVR clock is one of those rare, heartwarming products that serves two marginalized demographics: the blind and the chronically rude. For blind folks the benefit is obvious, as all of the clock’s major functions are controlled with easy verbal commands. This includes alarm deactivation, but not necessarily how you’d anticipate. “Gggugugughghghhhhh” or “SHUT UP” won’t do the trick — you’ve got to greet Moshi to initiate voice commands, then politely ask it— uhh, her — to turn off the alarm. Sort of like if you’re speaking to a human, if that human hovers by your bed and played a plastic recorder into your ear each morning at 7:30am.
As a product, the Moshi is pretty focused. There’s no radio or MP3 support, and the alarm and voice command options are limited and unchangeable, though there’s a pleasant “Sleep Sound” ambient noise function. The concept of an alarm clock that requires an ongoing, if easy, conversation to function properly is enough to justify its reasonable $50 price, and endorsement by the World Blind Union would seem to indicate that it’s not a complete gimmick. Feature demos and purchase page are at the source link. [Moshi via Crave]
The next time some tough guy on the street tries to pressure you into buying cheap Christmas bulbs JUST SAY NO! Apparently, the market for counterfeit holiday decorations is increasing at an alarming pace—and these lights can pose serious safety hazards. They might try and sucker you in by saying things like “this is the real deal” and “come on man, don’t you want your house to look like the Grizwold’s for only $5?” But be warned—this lifestyle isn’t “cool” or “glamorous.”
Do you want a nasty shock or a tree fire? Well do ya? Hell no you don’t. So, watch out for “surprisingly low prices, uncommon labeling or certification marks and a lack of sales tax on a receipt since counterfeiters generally don’t report their sales. Consumers should also be aware of street vendors and unauthorized dealers.” If this message scared only one of you straight, then I (and the National Electrical Contractors Association) have done our job.
Counterfeit Christmas Lights Pose Safety Hazard for Consumers Decorations with Fake UL Labels Among Growing Range of Counterfeit Electrical Products
BETHESDA, Md., November 11, 2008 — Counterfeit Christmas lights—including those with fake Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. (UL) labels—pose a threat to consumers for their potential inability to meet electrical safety and fire codes. The traditional holiday decorations are part of the rapidly growing crime of counterfeit electrical products in the United States—90+ percent of which are imported from China. Now reaching epic proportions in a $130 billion industry, counterfeiting is a crime that threatens the lives and safety of all U.S. citizens and electrical workers. “Underwriters Laboratories Inc., like many other Intellectual Property Rights and Trademark owners, has seen a dramatic increase in the amount of counterfeited products and trademark labels on those products in the past, several years,” stated panel participant Robert Crane, lead enforcement manager, Anti-Counterfeiting Operations, UL, Chapel Hill, N.C. “For several decades, UL has integrated security features in many of its labels.” Crane participated in the opening panel discussion last month in Chicago as part of the new Anti-Counterfeit Products Initiative hosted by the NECA-published Electrical Contractor magazine, Bethesda, Md., and The Electrical Distributor (TED) magazine, published by the National Association of Electrical Distributors (NAED), St. Louis. The joint industry initiative is endorsed by NAED, NECA and the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA). Crane stated that more recently, holographic labels were developed to further thwart the piracy of UL labels with the first holograms introduced in 1993 for decorative lighting strings and outfits. Since the holograms were so successful, said Crane, in 1996 additional categories for products manufactured in China also required holographic labels. This year, he said more requirements have been implemented regarding the use of holograms along with a newer hologram technology including the newest gold holograms. A few warning signals for counterfeit lighting include surprisingly low prices, uncommon labeling or certification marks and a lack of sales tax on a receipt since counterfeiters generally don’t report their sales. Consumers should also be aware of street vendors and unauthorized dealers.
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Published by the National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA), Bethesda, Md., Electrical Contractor magazine delivers 85,300+ electrical contractors and more than 68,000 electrical contracting locations, more than any other industry publication.
If you spot a hole in the side of your house that a bunch of wasps are constantly going in and out of, obviously building a nest, what do you do? Do you get a can of Raid and spray it in there and hope you don’t get stung? Do you just stay the hell away from where all those scary wasps are hanging out? Or do you build a homemade wasp sucking machine to get those bastards out? Personally, I’d go with option 2, but I’m happy to show you the awesome results of option 3.
This machine was the fulfillment of a childhood fantasy!
Growing up in the country, wasps nests and the possibility of getting stung were a frequent nuisance. I have no sympathy for yellow jackets that do not produce honey, and sting!
In the summer of 1996, opportunity presented itself. Near a picnic table where some of us at work were always having lunch, there was a wasp nest in a crevice in the building. Wasps were frequently bothering us, but we could not even see the nest, just a gap in the concrete that they used for their entrance.
Now of course, I could have just used a shopvac, but you don’t want to leave one of those running for hours on end, and then you can’t see your catch, and how the hell is one supposed to empty it?
I happened to have this incredibly powerful blower that I purchased at a surplus store thinking I might use it for a pipe organ, but never used. Given this opportunity, and the blower, I decided to build a dedicated ‘wasp sucking machine’.
The blower and 1/3 hp motor came as one unit, connected together with a flatbelt. I know, the shopvacs are supposed to have 5 horsepower, but they don’t suck much harder than this unit, and they just don’t last. The box has a glass lid so you can see the status of the catch, and only bug screen for a ‘filter’ so there isn’t much to resist the flow of air. A piece of metal or cardboard can be slid in a gap where the hose connects to seal off the box, and the box just sits on top of the intake spout for the blower, so it can easily be removed from the machine for purposes of showing off one’s catch.
Sweet mom of god, if I never see that many wasps together in one place in person I’ll be able to die a happy man. [Wasp Sucking Machine via Make]
We post about Batman on Gizmodo because, much like Iron Man, he’s the sort of comic book hero who epitomizes a gadget freak. Seriously, he’s a guy who’s poured his life, savings and genius into developing toys that grant him to fight alongside Superman, let alone take a phone call without his cell connection dropping.
But ironically enough, this eBay-buyable Batmobile, a converted 1973 Opal, is filled with tech that’s been out of use for well over a decade. (Superman’s grandma has a newer cellphone than this “superhero.”)
1. SONY Digital Navigation System #NVX-F160
2.SONY Pre-Amp XDP-U50D
3. SONY Magic Link System with pager. This is the original car PDA system before there were PDAs. Google Sony Magic Link System to get an idea. I do not know how to use it but it is there. I think you send emails, messaging, etc.
4. SONY Magic Link SkyTel Card
5. SONY 10 Disk CD Changer CDX-U404
6. SONY Hi-8 VCR
7. Pioneer CD player DEH-85 in the dash….comes with the batman theme on cd!
8. Alpine Bat Phone #91530
9. Pro Series Boston Acoustic Kicker Box #6-2 with bat decals inside clear plexiglass
10.Rockford Fossgate Puch 45 Amp
11.Super Nintendo NES Game system with Batman Forever game…….yes, a game system that plays batman!
12.SONY Interface Equalizer #XE-744
13.Alpine 80-80 Remote Commander RMX 38 (something to do with the alarm I think)
14.Alpine Alarm 8401 with paging system, unlocks and opens doors, windows…It will take you a full day just to learn the alarm system.
Poor Batman, calling back Alfred on an analog network after getting his page…only to look up cheat codes for his one SNES game. If the Joker gets wind of this, there will be no living with him. [eBay via Jalopnik]
Boy Genius Report is claiming they have acquired the original two-page document that was leaked earlier concerning a 
A tipster tells us that Target’s selling these “6 in 1 device charger” things at Target for $30, capable of charging six things at once. If that sounds familiar, it’s because that’s exactly what the 
They’re secret. They are kinetic. They’re made of rubberized rocket fuel. And they fire up destroying absolutely everything they encounter, bouncing through bunkers, filling buildings with extremely hot flames, obliterating everyone and anything inside with fierce heat. The Pentagon officially calls them “kinetic fireball incendiaries”. Other people call them kinetic rocket fire balls, and the way they work make them totally terrifying weapons.
Studios are pimping out Blu-ray titles heavily this holiday, and it might be the first time that we see a significant amount of players hovering around the $200 mark. Still, just because the technology is more inexpensive doesn’t mean everyone will be ready to get on board. The economy still sucks and there are several people out there who think Blu-ray won’t have a long tenure as the top format. So, my question to you is: will you finally go Blu-ray this holiday?
Research group SquareTrade recently released the results of a large cellphone study. They tracked 15,000 individual handsets over their first year of use, and they found some big discrepancies in reliability. The iPhone malfunction rate sat at a comfortable 5.6%. The Blackberry (in its various incarnations) jumped to 11.9%. But it’s all superior than the Palm Treo, which malfunctioned 16.2% of the time within the first year.
To be honest, none of these numbers are particularly good, and I have a feeling that there might be a confounding iPhone White Glove Effect—I keep that phone’s glass screen in mind each time I put it in the pocket opposite my keys. (Ironically, iPhone users were found 3% more prone to accidentally damage their phones than their Blackberry/Palm counterparts.)
The Moshi IVR clock is one of those rare, heartwarming products that serves two marginalized demographics: the blind and the chronically rude. For blind folks the benefit is obvious, as all of the clock’s major functions are controlled with easy verbal commands. This includes alarm deactivation, but not necessarily how you’d anticipate. “Gggugugughghghhhhh” or “SHUT UP” won’t do the trick — you’ve got to greet Moshi to initiate voice commands, then politely ask it— uhh, her — to turn off the alarm. Sort of like if you’re speaking to a human, if that human hovers by your bed and played a plastic recorder into your ear each morning at 7:30am.
The next time some tough guy on the street tries to pressure you into buying cheap Christmas bulbs JUST SAY NO! Apparently, the market for counterfeit holiday decorations is increasing at an alarming pace—and these lights can pose serious safety hazards. They might try and sucker you in by saying things like “this is the real deal” and “come on man, don’t you want your house to look like the Grizwold’s for only $5?” But be warned—this lifestyle isn’t “cool” or “glamorous.”
If you spot a hole in the side of your house that a bunch of wasps are constantly going in and out of, obviously building a nest, what do you do? Do you get a can of Raid and spray it in there and hope you don’t get stung? Do you just stay the hell away from where all those scary wasps are hanging out? Or do you build a homemade wasp sucking machine to get those bastards out? Personally, I’d go with option 2, but I’m happy to show you the awesome results of option 3.
We post about Batman on Gizmodo because, much like Iron Man, he’s the sort of comic book hero who epitomizes a gadget freak. Seriously, he’s a guy who’s poured his life, savings and genius into developing toys that grant him to fight alongside Superman, let alone take a phone call without his cell connection dropping.
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