Hasta La Gadget!

Driving cars on the floor is so passe, which is exactly why you need iHelicoter’s wall-scaling iW500. We’ve seen similar gravity-defying propositions in the past, but this is the first to be controlled by your iOS device. Belying its 90s toy looks, the car attaches itself to vertical surfaces with a sealed vacuum that even has enough suck to drive upside-down across your ceiling. As you’ll see in the video after the break, controls are handled using the built-in accelerometer on your phone or tablet as well as the touchscreen interface on the dedicated app. It’ll join a crowded starting grid of iPhone-friendly RC cars, helicopters and monster trucks, priced at $59.99.

Continue reading iOS-controlled iW500 RC car defies gravity, paint job may drive you up the wall (video)

iOS-controlled iW500 RC car defies gravity, paint job may drive you up the wall (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Sep 2011 10:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bone. Horn. Ride. The jokes write themselves

This is the Horn Bike iPhone case from Bone, and you can probably guess from the name exactly what it does. Your iPhone 4 slides into the silicone sleeve and a Velcro strap secures it to the handlebars of your bike. So far, so ordinary.

The neatness comes from the ‘horn’ part, which is in fact a horn speaker that channels the sound from the iPhone’s speaker forwards and at the same time stretches it out, making it up to 13dB louder. Not only can you now use all manner of cycle-computer or GPS apps, you can also listen to music, or hear turn-by-turn directions.

The Horn Bike will cost $30, which is pretty standard even for a non-bike-mounted, non-horn-sporting case, which leads me to conclude that it is a bargain. Now all I need is an iPhone. Unless anyone knows of an iPad bike mount, that is?

Horn Bike [Fruit Shop]

See Also:

• Honk! Anyone Home? 'Door Claxon' Combines Horn and Handle …
• Bone Amp Gives iPhone the Horn
• Pump-Rechargeable Air-Horn Great for Tourist-Scaring
• Horn Speaker Whispers Tunes in Your Ear

Samsung’s “20nm-class” designations for flash memory production are frustratingly nonspecific, but smallest processes or not it’s ready to crank out more chips than ever. Reuters reports the electronics giant just flipped the switch on its first new production line in five years, one that it’s calling “the industry’s largest and most advanced memory fabrication facility.” It could take up to nine months to get fully up to speed, but the increased production and reduced costs should keep the competition coming Samsung’s way for storage no matter what their current legal situation.

Samsung opens ‘most advanced’ 20nm-class flash memory production line originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Sep 2011 08:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Welcome to Australia, where men are men and only women like shopping. According to Ikea that is. The Swedish retail giant opened up MÄNLAND at its Sydney store over the first weekend of September. MÄNLAND, modeled on the kid-friendly SMALAND, is a place for women to park their partners while they shop.

MÄNLAND consists of pinball machines, table football and comfy Ikea sofas stocked with GQ and other men’s magazines. Thus ensconced, the men can while away the time as their other halves buy far more household wares than they planned to, just like any regular Ikea shopping trip.

And lest the women forget their charges when it’s time to leave, they’re given a buzzer which will activate after a half hour, reminding them to pick up their men from the playpen.

The male creche was little more than a Father’s day weekend gimmick, but I’d totally love to see it rolled out to all stores. Especially if they also serve Ikea’s awesome — and cheap — hot dogs.

IKEA introduces MANLAND, the creche for retail-weary men [News via the Giz]

See Also:

• Ikea
• Video: Inside an Ikea Factory

In-app purchases via iTunes have apparently been failing in a big way for the last ten hours and app creators who depend on this heavily taxed income are getting antsy. We’re hearing unconfirmed speculation that the problem may be connected to fake purchase receipts getting into the system. Whatever the cause, one developer told us the failure is “losing lots of sales” for apps that use receipt verification and is “threatening to more-or-less take down the entire IAP ecosystem.” Seeing as Apple insists on this being the only route for in-app purchasing, they’d better fix it pretty darned quick.

[Thanks, Tipster]

In-app purchasing fail on iTunes is starting to bug developers originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Sep 2011 08:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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