Tesla driver fails to complete world tour after crash on the home straight

Car accident stops 80eDays Tesla Roadster from completing world tour

An unfortunate traffic accident brought Rafael de Mestre’s electric trek across the globe to an abrupt halt today, stopping his Tesla Roadster a scant 600 miles from the finish line. “Game over,” the world traveler wrote on Facebook and Twitter, posting a picture of the damaged vehicle and assuring readers that he survived the ordeal. Since then, he’s only offered a small update, lamenting the loss of his faithful electric carriage and sharing a short video of the accident’s aftermath. Lend the dejected driver some moral support (or just engage in digital rubbernecking) at the source links below.

Update: We initially reported that Rafael was just a kilometer from the end of his race when he crashed, but he in fact wiped out 1,000km from the line — still very unlucky considering he’d traveled 24,000km unscathed.

Filed under:

Tesla driver fails to complete world tour after crash on the home straight originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Sep 2012 11:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceChargelocator (Twitter), Electric Race (Facebook)  | Email this | Comments

Evernote Moleskine Smart Notebook Makes Digitizing Notes Easy

While you can take plenty of notes with laptops and tablets, it’s still convenient to be able to note stuff down in a notebook with a pen. If you’ve ever wanted to easily digitize everything that you jot down, take a look at the Evernote Moleskine Smart Notebook. It’s been designed so that you can easily transfer it to your smartphone.

evernote moleskine smart notebook

The Evernote Moleskine Smart Notebook works in tandem with the Evernote app and it allows you, once you’ve snapped a photo of your notes, to quickly digitize them. This means that the text and notes can be searched through easily. The paper is specially formatted for use with the app to ensure the best quality scans, and you can tag pages and passages with Smart Stickers and arrows. It’s definitely an interesting way to minimize your footprint, if you don’t want to lug your laptop to class when taking notes (or doodling.)

evernote moleskine smart notebook bag

While it won’t replace your computer or tablet it should allow you to be more effective with your notetaking. It’s available for pre-order from Evernote for $24.95.

evernote moleskine smart notebook scan

[via Uncrate]


Smartype Keyboard Includes Display to Help You Touch Type

More than a decade ago, I decided to learn how to touch type. I didn’t use any tools or special programs, I just placed my hands on the keyboard and tried to find the right keys without looking at it. It took some time, but these days my hands flutter across a keyboard very quickly indeed, but I can see the reason for a keyboard like the Smartype.

smartype keyboard touch type apps media

Smartype includes a full-color LCD screen, that reminds me of some of electronic typewriters, that shows you what your are typing. If you’re not a touch-typist, it stops you from constantly glancing at the screen and back to the keyboard. The creators claim that the Smartype keyboard will even make touch-typists more productive. That seems somewhat counterintuitive to me, but maybe the visual cue will help.

The display on the Smartype keyboard promises also to run widgets including minimal versions of Twitter and Facebook so that you can share things without even having to open a full-fledged app on your tablet, smartphone or browser. You’ll also be able to run other handy apps like a PC status bar or e-mail and calendar notification apps. Unfortunately, though, the Smartype is only planned for Windows computers at this point, and it doesn’t have a numeric keypad either.

smartype apps

The Smartype will be available for pre-order soon, but no official price has been announced. For now, you can register your interest over on their website.

smartype keyboard touch type apps media side

 

[via The Verge]


How To Simulate the Universe On Your Laptop [Video]

The universe is a huge, complex, beautiful-yet-terrifying place, and we’ve spent a lot of time studying it. While some of the more complex models of the universe call for super-computers and tons of processor power, MinutePhysics has one you can run on your laptop. More »

JumpSeat Chairs Allow Maximum Seating in Minimum Space

I’ve attended assemblies where some people had to sit on the stairs at the sides or on plastic stools because the auditorium was just jam-packed full of people.

I’m sure there are a whole lot of schools with auditoriums where people are being seated too close (or too tight) for comfort. Which is why those establishments that are just about to build theirs might want to consider installing these JumpSeat chairs instead.

JumpSeat

They’re innovative and neat, but most important of all, they’re compact. That means you can fit more seats into the same amount of space, thanks to a unique folding mechanism which uses wood ribs layered over metal. Each seat folds up to less than four inches thick, too, so maintenance can sweep through each aisle with ease.

The JumpSeat was designed by Ziba Design for Sedia Systems.

[via Chair Blog]


Forget Coach, Boeing’s Aeroloft Can Sleep Eight [Flying]

The days of obnoxious, crowded air-travel are still here for most of us, but the elite just got an upgrade. Boeing just started putting out a version of its Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) 747-8 that sports the Aeroloft, an eight-person sleeping area. More »

Inhabitat’s Week in Green: go-kart made of Lego bricks, TOTO toilet bike and the launch of ‘Willow Glass’

Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week’s most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us — it’s the Week in Green.

DNP Inhabitat's Week in Green TKTKTK

As we head towards the home stretch of the 2012 presidential campaign, we’re closely watching both candidates to see what they’re doing for the environment. The Obama administration scored a major win for fuel-efficient cars this week by finalizing new standards that will increase the fuel economy of cars to the equivalent of 54.5 mpg by 2025. But what about the cars that are currently on the road? This week we test drove a 2013 Ford Focus Electric through the streets of San Francisco (we admit, we did get a bit of range anxiety). And in one of the most interesting automotive stories from the past week, the world’s first 3D-printed car — the Areion EV– reached a top speed of 141 kph.

Continue reading Inhabitat’s Week in Green: go-kart made of Lego bricks, TOTO toilet bike and the launch of ‘Willow Glass’

Filed under: , ,

Inhabitat’s Week in Green: go-kart made of Lego bricks, TOTO toilet bike and the launch of ‘Willow Glass’ originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 02 Sep 2012 10:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Pioneer Unveils Its Cheapest DJ Controller Ever, The DDJ-WeGo

Pioneer has a bunch of DJ controllers that it offers on the market today, and the one thing they tend to have in common is they are very expensive. If you ever thought it might be cool to learn how to be a professional DJ, but you didn’t want to spend thousands on your own DJ controller check out the new DDJ-WeGo. Pioneer says this is the least expensive DJ controller it’s ever offered.

ddj wego

The device will be available in September at an MSRP of $399 (USD). That price includes Virtual DJ Limited Edition software supporting Windows and Mac computers. The device doesn’t need an AC outlet to operate, getting its power from the USB port on your computer.

It comes in five different body colors including white, black, red, green, and violet. It has dual jog FX wheels, pulse control with lights for real-time feedback, and built-in audio ports. The device also has an integrated sound card for music storage and portability.


This Stealthly Analog Smartwatch Can Be Your Little Secret [Watches]

Smartwatches can have some pretty useful functionality, but maybe you don’t want to broadcast to the world that you’re wearing one, or maybe you just prefer good old-fashioned analog. The Citizen Eco-Drive Proximity was made with you in mind. More »

South Africa Miners’ Murder Charges Provisionally Withdrawn: Prosecutor

JOHANNESBURG- South African prosecutors provisionally dropped murder charges on Sunday against 270 miners accused of killing 34 striking colleagues shot dead by police but they could be recharged when investigations are complete.

“Final charges will only be made once all investigations have been completed. The murder charges against the current 270 suspects will be formally withdrawn provisionally in court,” Nomgcobo Jiba, the acting national director of prosecutions, said in a nationally televised news conference.

Read More…
More on South Africa