How to Make the Switch from iOS to Android [How To]

You’ve been hanging back, waiting for the dust to settle around the iPhone 5 debut. Now that the reviews are in, you’re out. It’s time to trade in the Cupertino Kool-Aid for some Jelly Beans. Here’s how to do it right. More »

MooresCloud Light runs Linux, puts LAMP on your lamp (video)

MooresCloud Light runs Linux, puts LAMP on your lamp video

Yes, we’ll admit that we borrowed that pun in the title. MooresCloud founder Mark Pesce’s Xzibit reference is still a very apt description of the Light, his company’s Linux-based LED lamp. The Australian team’s box-shaped illumination runs the open OS (including a LAMP web server stack) on an integrated mini PC with an accelerometer and WiFi. The relative power and networking provide obvious advantages for home automation that we’ve seen elsewhere, but it’s the sheer flexibility of a generalized, web-oriented platform that makes the difference: the Light can change colors based on photos or movement, sync light pulses to music and exploit a myriad of other tricks that should result from a future, web-based app store. When and how the Light launches will depend on a Kickstarter campaign to raise $700,000 AUD ($717,621 US) starting on October 16th, although the $99 AUD ($101 US) cost is just low enough that we could see ourselves open-sourcing a little more of the living room. At least, as long as we don’t have to recompile our lamp kernel before some evening reading.

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MooresCloud Light runs Linux, puts LAMP on your lamp (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 13 Oct 2012 10:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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X1 Robotic Exoskeleton Helps Astronauts Exercise and Could Benefit Paraplegics on Earth

A lot of the technology we enjoy here on Earth started out as tech created for the space program. NASA has a very cool robot working on the International Space Station right now called Robonaut 2. New technology that has spun off from the Robonaut 2 program has been unveiled that could help astronauts exercise while in the weightlessness of space – and could possibly help paraplegics on Earth to walk again.

x1 robot exoskeleton

The technology is called the X1 robotic exoskeleton and was developed in cooperation with NASA and the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition. The exoskeleton weighs 57 pounds and can be worn by humans to help assist or inhibit the movement of leg joints. By inhibiting movement, the exoskeleton could also provide resistive exercise.

The exoskeleton is worn over the legs with a harness that reaches up the back and around the shoulders. It offers 10° of freedom in the joints with four motorized joints at the hips and knees along with six passive joints that allow for sidestepping, turning, pointing, and flexing the foot. The system offers multiple adjustment points allowing the X1 to be used in a variety of ways. For instance, the exoskeleton could be used to help astronauts carry heavy gear on the surface of other planets and could possibly be adapted to military transport use here on Earth.


Photographer Sues Apple For Stealing Her Eye [Apple]

When you’re advertising something called a “retina display,” what better to use than a picture of an eye? You better make sure you’re using the right picture though; a photographer is suing Apple for stealing her’s. More »

Facebook’s First Ever Ad Gets a Hilarious Toilet-Themed Parody

It’s no secret that Facebook’s not doing so hot ever since they went public. The social network recently hit 1 billion users and to keep their numbers up (and perhaps to try making Facebook more relevant?), they recently released their first ever ad.

facebook parody

Oddly, the ad highlights how Facebook is like a chair. I kid you not. The ad talks about chairs and comes across as one of those artsy-fartsy videos that force you to come to some deep realization at the very end. Throw in doorbells, airplanes, and bridges, and that’s the ad for you in a nutshell.

Here’s the original Facebook ad, in case you haven’t seen it yet:

There’s only one mention of Facebook in the commercial, and the site isn’t featured even once, although that’s understandable considering this is a branding ad. However, the ad leaves a lot of room for ridicule and that’s the route that a lot of people did since it came out. One parody likens Facebook to toilets – you’ll have to check out the clip below to find out why. (Warning: Language NSFW)

[via CNET]


Cavemen Would Have Killed For These Modern Stone Tools [Design]

A huge part of human history revolved around tying stones to sticks. We don’t do it much any more, but if we did, we’d be super good at it. These modern stone tools prove it. More »

Amazon Acknowledges Uneven Lighting On The Kindle Paperwhite

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The Kindle Paperwhite is an amazing ereader. It’s arguably the best on the market. But it’s not flawless. Some users, including several TechCrunch writers, noticed the lighting on their Paperwhite is not evenly spaced, resulting in odd, slightly distracting gaps at the bottom of the screen (see the pic).

Well, in a recent statement, Amazon stepped up to the plate and addressed this lighting issue as well as reaffirming the Paperwhite model has less storage than its predecessor and lacks text-to-speech. Even with these, let’s say design decisions, the Kindle Paperwhite is a fantastic ereader. As John states out in our official review, it’s a reader’s dream.

Full statement,

We want you to know…

Kindle Paperwhite is the best Kindle we’ve ever made by far, but there are certain limitations and changes from prior generations that we want you to know about.

Kindle Paperwhite does not have audio or Text-to-Speech. This makes the device smaller and lighter than it would otherwise be. Audio and an improved Text-to-Speech engine are supported on Kindle Fire and Kindle Fire HD.

Under certain lighting conditions, the illumination at the bottom of the screen from the built-in light is not perfectly even. See examples of how the screen looks in different lighting conditions. These variations are normal and are located primarily in the margin where text is not present. The illumination is more even than that created by a book light or lighted cover. The contrast, resolution and illumination of the Paperwhite display is a significant step-up from our prior generation.

The Kindle Paperwhite has 2 GB of storage. Some previous Kindle models had 4GB of storage. 2GB allows you to hold up to 1,100 books locally on your device. In addition, your entire Kindle library is stored for free in the Amazon cloud, and you can easily move books from the cloud onto your device.

Thank you, and we hope you enjoy Kindle Paperwhite.
– The Kindle Team


Bang & Olufsen BeoVision 11 Smart TV

Bang & Olufsen BeoVision 11 Smart TV

Bang & Olufsen has rolled out the new BeoVision 11 Smart TV. Available in 40-inch, 46-inch and 55-inch models, this Smart TV features a full high definition 1080p resolution. The BeoVision 11 works in conjunction with Bang & Olufsen’s BeoRemote app, that enables you to transform your iPad or Android tablet into a trackpad keyboard. The BeoVision 11 provides six HDMI ports, Ethernet and a pair of USB ports. The 40-inch model retails for $7,748. [Slashgear]

An Interview With Josh Bechtel, The Inventor Of The Bicymple

rooftop3

There’s been quite a bit of disruption in bikes recently and the Bicymple is no exception. Designed by Josh Bechtel, the bike aims to be easy to ride, trouble free, and less expensive than traditional gear and chain models. You can check out a video here but we got a chance to talk with Josh a bit about his new design.

TC: What’s the impetus for this?

Josh: Ultimately, my passion for bicycles is the driving force behind the Bicymple. I’ve been riding bikes regularly since I was a child. I have more bikes than I care to admit to strangers on the web and people I’ve only just met. It’s a problem. I love cross country bikes, downhill bikes, road bikes, single speeds, fixies, cruisers, city bikes, clean bikes, rusty bikes, light bikes, heavy bikes…shall I go on? I think unicycles are great, too!

I built my first home-built bike back in the late 90′s. It was a traditional full suspension bike and I even successfully raced it. At the time, you could get away with that sort of thing, but as bike technology and building methods and materials advanced, it became tougher and tougher to compete in that way–especially for an average guy with a full time job and bills to pay. When the movement toward minimalist bikes came back around, it revitalized the bike builder in me and got me thinking about ways I could leave a mark, no matter how small it might be, in the world I am so passionate about. I started riding a single speed with a coaster brake that I had built up mostly out of used parts and it just made me so happy it got me thinking about how far one might be able to go in that direction. I started with a sketch of a standard bike and began crossing off parts one by one and addressing the problems created with each deletion until I ended up with a direct drive, freewheeling bike. From there, I felt like it might actually have become too simple. I felt it needed something else–a surprise in its back pocket–and the rear-steer was just the solution. I fully realize the contradiction this presents with the concept of simplicity and like the tension that creates.

TC: Is this the first bike of this particular type? I seem to remember seeing something like this before, but why this style and why now?

Josh: Yes and no. There have been swing bikes before, for certain, but they were all chain driven. There have been direct drive bikes before, too, but none (as far as I’m aware) had any lockout mechanism for the rear steering and they were all non-freewheeling and had smaller wheels, which severely limited their real-world practicality and left them in a purely “trick-bike” niche. I imagine most are familiar with the old penny farthing, too, and there are obvious connections there, too.

The bicymple might, however, bring these previous concepts together in a way that hasn’t been seen before. There seems to be a misconception out there on the web that I think that the established bicycle design is somehow lacking or insufficient, but that’s simply not the case. To me, that would be like thinking that anyone who ever picked up a paintbrush thought that Michelangelo just couldn’t hack it. I think that idea is a bit silly, really. The bicymple provides yet another outlet, another opportunity to accomplish the same goals as many other bikes, it just does it in a different way! Part of what makes life so great, in my mind, is diversity–and the bicycle world is a great example of this!

TC: What did you have to change to get it work properly? Is it really like a unicycle with another wheel? Something else?

Josh: At first glance, especially when you see someone riding it, it’s easy to see the similarities with a unicycle. Right away “the two-wheeled unicycle” became a nickname for it and the obvious oxymoron created by that name is pretty entertaining to me. It’s actually how I tend to explain it to those who haven’t seen it. The things that set it apart and make it special are obviously the rear steering, but also the fact that the rear steering can be locked out, allowing it to be ridden just like a regular bike. Many comments out there on the web overlook this key fact. It’s one of the subtle surprises that the bicymple has up its sleeve. The overdrive hub is another surprise. It is currently in development and has caught the attention of many in both the bicycle and unicycle communities. The classic thinking is that the only way to go faster with a direct coaxial drive is to increase the size of the wheel, which was the famous fatal flaw of the penny farthing. A few clever designs out there for unicycles have gotten around this but at quite a price. We’ll be able to accomplish the same goal at a price that should be quite affordable. It’s a compact, sealed, zero-service unit so you’ll never have to think about it–and it certainly won’t get your pants leg greasy!

TC: How much does it cost to build? How much was your prototype?

Josh: We’re not addressing dollar amounts until we’re able to offer an accurate
retail price.

TC: Bummer. When will you be ready to build some? Will you sell it via Kickstarter?

Josh: Our plan from the start has been to get an initial run built and provide them as test bikes to select bike shops. The incredible support and enthusiasm and sheer number of purchase requests from around the globe has made us consider a different approach. There is a very good chance we will be on Kickstarter in the coming weeks. Stay tuned for that. Crowdfunding is such a fantastic way for people to get their hands on products they never would have been able to before, so we’d be silly to not pursue that.

TC: What would you say to people who say it looks pretty goofy? Does it look as weird as those recumbent bikes?

Josh: I think it’s great if people think it looks goofy! I think it looks goofy too! It’s just not something many of us are accustomed to seeing. Ultimately, though, many, many people have expressed a great deal of interest and think it is a beautiful sort of goofy. From the first sketches, that’s how I felt about it. Wait, recumbent bikes look goofy?

TC: Have you ridden around on this in Bellingham? What do people think?

Josh: Oh yes, the bicymple has been out and about plenty. The reception has all been incredibly positive. I get yells from people across the street, from over fences and through windows, all curious and wanting to understand what it is they’re looking at. It is certainly eye-catching and incredibly unique. Those who are adventurous love the fact that the rear can be set loose to swing freely and really like the challenge it presents. Those less adventurous appreciate the ability to lock the steering out and pedal normally. I look forward to the bicymple getting in the hands of some really skilled trials riders to see the sorts of things they’re capable of doing with it–unicyclists, too! Thanks again, and let me know if you have any other questions!


Apple, other thin laptop makers pass latest round of EPEAT tests after summer mini-drama

MacBook Air 13-inch front view with grass wallpaper

Apple gave eco-friendly computer fans a brief jolt this July after it backed out of EPEAT certification, only to restore most devices just days later. While we can’t say we’re completely shocked at the follow-up, EPEAT has confirmed that at least one “ultra-thin” laptop from Apple has just cleared the verification process. The as yet unnamed system is more likely to be a Mac that had already earned the recycling-friendly rating in the past, such as the MacBook Air, rather than a sudden turnaround for the MacBook Pro with Retina Display. The look wasn’t exclusively devoted to the Mac side, though — EPEAT cleared Apple’s computer as part of a wider test that also greenlit extra-thin portables from Lenovo, Samsung and Toshiba. We’ve reached out to get a more definitive list, but the approvals should ease the minds of those worried that ever-slimmer laptops are forcing us to give up our green efforts.

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Apple, other thin laptop makers pass latest round of EPEAT tests after summer mini-drama originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 13 Oct 2012 08:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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