Doritos Tablet: The Alternative to the iPad

Yummy!

iPad Parody

How many notebooks can you buy for $500 and get the same functionality as the iPad?

The New Apple iPad...Another Letdown

Sure, Apple makes truckloads of money each year with their "new" technology, but for the drones to just sit back & say this new tablet is revolutionary is plain naive. Yes the original iPhone & its 3G versions are great & innovative from their first release dates, but this new device cannot cover or replace what you already have in a phone or netbook. Look a little deeper...

It has too much of an overlap. It can't take place of your phone/laptop/netbook or whatever portable computer you use. Why? Where is the multitasking with the new processor (which might be nVidia's second generation Tegra chip)? Where is at least one camera for video conferencing? It can't take place of your phone...simply because it's not a phone. Yes it might become a possibility to make calls from this device using a VoIP application(like the one available just last night) but I can't see this actually being held up either someone's head or used through a Bluetooth device.

The only big selling point with the larger screen size is being an e-book reader. The transition between pages makes it look & feel like you're turn the pages. Some productivity applications will be nice but who knows yet how frustrating work will be with the lack of physical keyboard?

So, what is the new iPad then? Combine the two things below:

+

It seems that they've made another "device" to add to everyone's collection who are doing just fine with what they have already. This device is just an iPod Touch placed on the lame All-American diet of McDonald's making an overweight oversized Ipod with less features. You'll pay a minimum of $500 for the 16GB version & a maximum of $830 for a 64GB version with 3G. That's all before the cost of accessories that should come with it...a $40 VGA cable, camera kit for reading images, then the overpriced keyboard dock.

Apple should be aiming higher than what they provided yesterday to avoid any chance of being over shadowed by a much more capable device. Their only chance of delivering on their promise of a useful device is to come through with features that we don't know of yet or applications that will only be feasible on the large screen of the iPad. Basing it on yesterday's showing, it's not worth the price.

If you want to branch out from the large corporation holding you in to their standard, check out something like MSI's 10" tablet coming this year. They showed it off at CES recently. Specifications will be optional to the consumer...how it should be.

[For more information, read Engadget's full editorial on their take from yesterday's offerings from Apple's event]

The (Last and Next) Decade in Gadgets

Pretty enjoyable article concerning the future suggestions & trends of technology.

The (Last and Next) Decade in Gadgets by Popular Mechanics

Funktionide - The Robot Replacement for Human Contact

This is just weird

1 Gigabyte 20+ years ago

This will tell you how fast technology has grown in that amount of time. That little SD card in the top right is the same space-wise...but much easier to stuff into your little point and shoot camera. That large contraption to the left is from 1987 and has the same whopping 1GB of storage.

Find My iPhone Works: ...One Man's Story

It's one of the coolest features that a cellphone can have on it. It's also one that you hope to never use. Well, Kevin had to. Even though he accidentally left his precious iPhone in a place of business, he was determined to get it back. After using the Mobile Me feature to track down to a more exact location, the iPhone thief was surprised he had been caught, but was forced to give up the phone. He was surprised how well the mapping worked and pinpointing the device. Read the complete story...

Wii Blamed for Ridiculous Injuries

Up to ten people a week are being hospitalized with injuries caused by playing Nintendo Wii games, prompting doctors in Britain to issue warnings of the dangers associated with the video game system.

"There has been a 100% increase in patients complaining of Wii-itis," Dr. Dev Mukerjee of Broomfield Hospital, Essex, told The Sun newspaper. Most patients are admitted after playing tennis or running games which involve sudden movements, resulting in tendon stretching or tearing.

"It's possible Wii-itis may lead to rheumatism or arthritis later in life. Patients often have inflamation of the shoulder or wrist," said Dr. Mukerjee. Another common injury is dubbed Wii-knee, blamed on the bending of the knee from the Wii-Fit game. This involves a special platform and a series of movements ranging from yoga to strength-training moves.

In extreme cases, the kneecap can be dislocated or pop out of joint.

Doctors treat Wii-knee with cortisone injections, icing, and anti-inflammatory painkillers. Treatment can last for three months.

So, what to do? As with any exercise program, doctors advise stretching exercises before play.

New Shiny Urine Recycling Center...Wanna Try?

So would you be the first person to try this out? Imaging your own sweat, bodily excrement, etc. being pumped through a machine so you could drink it again. Still thirsty?

After five days of ill-fated attempts, International Space Station astronauts today ran two successful tests of equipment on board designed to turn urine, sweat and moisture from the air into drinking water, NASA.gov reports. NASA now must decide whether the contraption, deemed essential for hydration of future astronauts traveling farther out into space, should return with the space shuttle Endeavour on Sunday or remain on the ISS for further testing.

After some tinkering by station commander Mike Fincke and shuttle mission specialist Don Pettit, the Urine Processor Assembly, successfully finished a full five-hour run. The astronauts successfully operated the system again three hours later after it cooled down. The $154 million water recycling system is part of a $250 million regenerative life support system designed to sustain larger space station crews with fewer supply drop-offs from visiting spacecraft; the first six-person crew is due to arrive at the orbiting lab next May.

The space agency even added a 16th day to the astronauts' mission in the hope they could get the urine processor flowing smoothly. Last week, the water-and-urine recycling system malfunctioned during four tests, including one in which the processor shut itself down after running for only two hours and another in which it triggered an alarm on the space station.

Crew members today are transferring materials set to return to Earth from the station to the Endeavour. If all goes well, water made from recycled urine will be added to the menu during extended space missions, alongside astronaut cuisine cooked up by food scientists in the Space Food Systems Laboratory at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, who have been trying to spice up space fare.

Cell Phone Stops Bullet...but Fees Don't Stop

While riding on his John Deere, Richard suddenly felt a “hard punch” hit him in the chest just over his heart. The Tammany News reported that when he grabbed his sweater to find out what the heck slammed into him a .45-caliber slug fell on the ground. What was going through his mind?

The bullet struck the cell phone that was in his chest pocket, tore it in two, and slowed the bullet just enough to keep it from entering his chest and piercing his heart. It is unknown, as of the writing of the article review, where the bullet came from but officials believe that it came from nearby hunters.

Not only did this incident make Ronald appreciate his life more, I’m assuming, but it also motivates him to be more active for stricter restriction of firing guns in the area. The Richards already sent a letter to Chris Cooper, the St. Tammany Parish District 2 Councilman, in attempt to compel him to do what he can to pass more strict ordinances concerning firearms. Now that this story has worldwide attention, I assume changes will soon be made.

I wonder what he’s going to be doing with the bullet. Who needs a bullet proof vest when you’ve got a cell phone?

Sunlight Melting Hotdogs & Steel?

Using just the power of the sun a fancy setup, you can cook whatever you want in about 3 seconds. Don't try this at home...

Google's Android Operating System

Finally, something to give Apple iPhone's OS some competition and functionality...Google can of course handle this with its wide variety of powerful applications that love to sync on multiple devices. Maybe in the future they will bring it to AT&T for the rest of us.

Microsoft's Sphere Preview

This is the same multi-touch technology used in Microsoft Surface, but it is mapped across a multi-touch sphere, allowing users on all sides to use the device and send data to other users interacting with it. Hopefully they will invent some useful programs for everyday consumers so the technology won't be held back to convention type gatherings.

Bugs that eat waste & make us gas?

Exactly, now scientists in Silicon Valley have genetically altered bacteria in order to possibly help out with our huge energy crisis on gas. The idea, simply, for "bugs" to eat waste & give us fuel in return. Instead of barrels of oil climbing to even higher prices, we will depend on this research for a better alternative. Better yet, the fuel acquired by these bugs would be carbon negative, or cleaner than the air outside the car. Click the fuel to read the article.

"...the bugs excrete a substance that is almost pump-ready."

The New Picture Taker

I received my new toy last Thursday and am pretty excited about taking tons of shots this weekend...It's the new Canon EOS Rebel XSi. After months of research on different Digital SLR cameras by Canon, Nikon, and all the other brands that are always playing catch-up, I decided on the XSi. Newegg had a nice deal going on Tuesday last week...so some early learning of the camera before a trip this summer definitely doesn't hurt things. Expect pictures-a-plenty to follow.

Here are the Key Features

• 12.2 Megapixel CMOS sensor
• Canon's EOS Integrated Cleaning System
• 3.5 frames per second
• 3.0" LCD with Live View shooting
• 9-point wide-area AF system with f/2.8 cross-type center point
• Picture Style image processing parameters
• DIGIC III image processor
• Digital Photo Professional RAW processing software
• Compact and Lightweight body
• Fully compatible with all Canon EF and EF-S lenses and EX-series Speedlights

Uno: Unicycle-Motorbike-Segway Hybrid

Are you kidding me...like a motorcycle isn't dangerous enough, plus the way people drive today. Now, getting around the hospital for work would be interestingly fun, but anything else is just plain silly. Enjoy the retarded looking invention.

Here is an excerpt from an article on this thing:

Built by Ben J. Poss Gulak, it's an electric vehicle that uses a similar sort of microgyro-motor system as the Segway, but with two gyros: one for forward and back, and one for turning. Its got just one control —a power switch— and everything else is done by leaning, which must make for one hell of an adrenaline-packed ride. It's the culmination of a number of vehicle projects by Ben, and uses electric propulsion for eco-friendliness, since Ben visited China where he found that "the smog was so thick, we never saw the sun."

Ben designed the 120-lb vehicle himself, using Google SketchUp to help with the plans as he couldn't afford professional software. How does it perform? We don't know, but we suspect it's a lot of fun. And though Ben got some advice from expert motorbike modders, and a robotics expert for the gyro programming, he deserves a round of applause— he's only 18 years old. And that's just amazing.

Bringing Life Outside

An unborn elephant, perfectly formed in every way. A dolphin swimming in the womb, just as it will have to swim in the ocean the moment it is born. An unborn dog asleep as if by its master's side. Using new technology, these images, published in UK's Daily Mail, reveal what until now has been a secret - exactly how animals develop in the womb. They were created by the same team who in 2004 showed how human embryos "walk in the womb".

Using a combination of three-dimensional ultrasound scans, computer graphics and tiny cameras, the team were able to show the entire process from conception to birth. "These kind of images from inside animals have never been seen before," Jeremy Dear of Pioneer Productions, who made the film, told The Daily Mail.

"We worked with dozens of zoos and animal sanctuaries across the world. There were a lot of different challenges - recording a dolphin is very different from an elephant, for instance. "Animals were trained to sit still near the scanners and we also inserted cameras into the womb via the elephant's rectum-But it has been worth it. It one sequence we follow an elephant developing. When it is finally born, there is not a dry eye in the house.

"The images in the film are a testament to the ingenuity and patience of the production team led by Yavar Abbas and Dr David Barlow, who worked with some of the world's leading vets to obtain these pictures." The images were created for the program Animals In The Womb, a two-hour show to be broadcast on the National Geographic Channel.

Researchers used scans to track elephant calves developing for almost two years in the womb - the longest gestation period of all mammals. It shows at 16 weeks the elephant fetus starting to look more like an elephant as the trunk develops. At almost a year, the trunk is longer than the legs, and by 14 months, the characteristic elephant ears are visible. They will eventually grow to almost two feet across to help regulate the body temperature of the fully mature-elephant. At birth, he will weigh nearly 260lb and be able to take his first steps in minutes.

Animals closer to home were also studied. A golden retriever fetus is shown exhibiting some of the same behavior as family pets, panting with its tongue out, while still in the womb. Program makers also reveal the moment at eight weeks when a baby dolphin learns to swim while in the womb. During the next few weeks, it develops flippers, a tail and a blow-hole before being born after a year, and must be able to quickly swim to the surface to take its first breath of air.

Experts also found that at 24 days, the dolphin embryo develops tiny leg-like buds, which then disappear over the next two weeks. After 11 weeks, the dolphin embryo's fins display bone structures resembling human hands, which experts believe may show that dolphin ancestors were land dwellers. The footage also shows how many animal embryos are like human ones.

"The incredible thing about the early images is how we all look very similar - it is obviously we humans share a common mammalian ancestry very early in life," Mr Dear told The Daily Mail.

Automated Restaurant...no more tipping!

Here is BBC News reporting on the German invention that will take all those waiters & waitresses out of the picture when it comes to having a meal in this restaurant. Yes, the food is still prepared by an actual human, but do you trust a robot to take on that task yet?

Running-Powered Bike, Pure Retardation

The point of this compared to a normal bike is...? You let me know

Google takes over Outer Space

Awhile back Google's Labs created a nifty way to browse over the Mars Landscape(You can see the elevation of the planet through the infrared map). Afterwards, Google Moon was released, showing all Apollos reference to specific locations on our Moon.

Today, Google has released Google Sky. Now you can "explore the far reaches of our universe." Well, not really, because we have seen very little of the big sky, but you can see some pretty interesting things...all the planets in comparable size to the rest of the universe(the part that we know of currently), certain locations astronomers have been studying, constellations, etc. The constellations are actually drawn out with the connecting stars to make it easier to point out. So, along with Earth, Maps, Moon & Mars, you can explore deep space with Google Sky.