ASUS PadFone X To Go Global

ASUS PadFone X To Go GlobalAt the end of last month, the folks over at AT&T have already confirmed the price and release date for the ASUS PadFone X, a device that was first unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada, earlier this year. It did seem then with the announcement at the end of May that the ASUS PadFone X is due to arrive at stores this June 6th for $199 a pop alongside a 2-year contract, and it is also nice to hear that not only AT&T customers will be the only ones rocking to this device since there will be a global variant that is known as the ASUS PadFone S.

Yes sir, there are way too many similarities between the ASUS PadFone X and the ASUS PadFone S, where regardless of which particular model that you end up with, you will still have the very same 5” smartphone which can transform into an 8.9” tablet, alongside a quad-core 2.3GHz Snapdragon 800 processor running proceedings from within, 2GB RAM, Full HD displays, a microSD memory card slot, a 13MP shooter at the back with a 2MP camera in front, alongside 2,300mAh and 4,990mAh batteries.

The main differences? The 3G and 4G bands used due to the geographical locations as to where these devices will be released, in addition to Qi wireless charging being used for the US model due to its popularity in this region. Pre-orders for the PadFone X had already begun.

ASUS PadFone X To Go Global

, original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Cellphones, , padfone x,

Coca-Cola 2nd Lives Initiative Makes Good Use Of Old Coke Bottles


A bottle of Coca-Cola is often the symbol of refreshment, especially after a particularly hot and sweaty day out there. Now that summer’s here, it goes without saying that consumption of Coke might actually increase when you move to quench your thirst in the middling heat of it all. Having said that, what would you then do with with leftover Coke bottles? Most of us would have sorted out our trash for recycling purposes, but here is a novel idea under the 2nd Lives initiative that will see sixteen different replacement caps offer the used bottles a new lease of life.

First introduced in Vietnam, these replacement caps are given away to select customers who decide to bring home a bottle of Coke, where it offers a myriad of upcycled functionality. It does not matter whether you are a kid or an adult, the former will be able to enjoy water guns, bubble blowers, paint brushes, and drums, while the adults will be able to make do with the likes of spray bottles, soap dispensers, hand weights, and heck, condiment dispensers to boot.

While Coca-Cola is not exactly dying to revive their brand since they have no trouble selling their fizzy drinks at all, it is more of the competition who should be worried about this next step up.

Coca-Cola 2nd Lives Initiative Makes Good Use Of Old Coke Bottles

, original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Green, coca-cola,

Pirate Bay Co-Founder Arrested In Sweden

Pirate Bay Co Founder Arrested In SwedenAccording to the Swedish authorities, they have successfully apprehended Peter Sunde, the co-founder of file-sharing site The Pirate Bay. Sunde was said to have been on the run for close to two years before the long arm of the law caught up with him, where he has already been convicted of copyright violations as well as given a prison sentence. It has been said that Sunde is widely believed to have been residing in Germany before he was arrested in the city of Skane in southern Sweden earlier this Saturday. According to Carolina Ekeus, a spokesperson for the Swedish National Police Board, “We have been looking for him since 2012. He was given eight months in jail so he has to serve his sentence.”

Sunde happened to be one of the quartet of men who were tried in Sweden after being slapped with charges related to their activities on The Pirate Bay. All of them were on the receiving end of a year’s jail sentence, as well as a collective fine that measured up to 32,000,000 SEK (which is approximately $4.79 million at prevailing exchange rates), although eventually their sentences were reduced because of different kinds of appeals, although the overall fine was bumped up to 46,000,000 SEK ($6.88 million).

Pirate Bay Co-Founder Arrested In Sweden

, original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Computers, ,

Nokia Lumia 638 Sports Dual SIM, 4G LTE Connectivity

Nokia Lumia 638 Sports Dual SIM, 4G LTE ConnectivityThe Nokia Lumia 630 has been announced close to a couple of months ago, where it was also accompanied by the 4G-enabled sibling, the Nokia Lumia 635. Having made their mark in different markets, including India as well as various segments of Europe, the United Kingdom included, it does look as though there will be a third model that is part of the equation which was not announced, and that would be the Nokia Lumia 638.

It is said that the Nokia Lumia 638 happens to be unique in selected aspects of its hardware specifications, where it will not only arrive with 4G LTE connectivity, but it will also comprise of dual-SIM support to boot, a feature which has been found on the Lumia 630 variant prior. Apart from that, the Lumia 638 would also have the added advantage of carrying double the amount of RAM at 1GB, instead of the 512MB that the Lumia 630 and Lumia 635 tote around.

Other than that, everything else underneath the hood seems to remain the same, ranging from the 4.5” display to a 1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 chipset, a 5MP camera at the back and Windows Phone 8.1 as the mobile operating system of choice. Expect the Lumia 638 to be a China exclusive, which is something that we’ve seen happen in the past before in the form of the Lumia 920T.

Nokia Lumia 638 Sports Dual SIM, 4G LTE Connectivity

, original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Cellphones, , lumia 638, ,

GTA V In Commodore 64 Environment


Some games have extremely memorable cinematics, that goes without saying. However, have you ever wondered just how some of the more modern cinematics would have held up in an era where gaming did not have the advantage of the graphical firepower that we are all used to in this day and age, something that many of us have taken for granted? Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is one such title with a memorable opening scene, where it mimicked the Commodore 64 loading a game on tape. What if the tables were turned this time around?

Animator Balazs Kalocsai has decided to go against the grain this time around, having worked on showing off the title sequence for Grand Theft Auto 5 that is done in a low resolution format, ala Commodore 64.

Basically, all you need to do is to sit back, relax and enjoy what Kalocsai has done assuming Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is actually played on the Commodore 64. I would assume that if we were to call such efforts remakes, it might be a bit too much to do so. Perhaps a de-make might be the more suitable term to make use of here, don’t you think so? Ah, what other titles do you think would do well in a de-make?

GTA V In Commodore 64 Environment

, original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Gaming, ,

Titanfall Sniper Rifle Done Up In LEGO


When it comes to LEGO, you know for sure that this Danish invention is one that keeps on giving. The kids (teens and adults as well) definitely love the idea of a toy that can reinvent itself, not to mention the amount of precision required that goes into making one of these puppies is monumental to say the least. After all, who does not want to enjoy putting pieces of blocks together to flesh out an imaginary device or scenario? Nick Jensen, also known as Nick Brick by his YouTube handle, is a huge fan of Titanfall and he shows it via his equal love for LEGO. Merging interests in both ‘departments’, Nick has come up with the LEGO version of the Kraber-AP Rifle.

Titanfall gamers as well as enthusiasts will be able to recognize the Kraber-AP Rifle at first glance, with this being a bolt-action, one-shot, one-kill sniper rifle that pilots tote around. Of course, what is the whole point of having a video if there were not going to be any kind of special effects to go along with it? Nick has decided to throw in some special effects into the demonstration in the video itself, so you might want to be a wee bit more careful with the volume control on the video.

Titanfall Sniper Rifle Done Up In LEGO

, original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Gaming, , ,

Watch Dogs Trailer Done Up In Grand Theft Auto IV


Life is full of choices, isn’t it? If you are unable to make up your mind as to which particular open world game to play between Watch Dogs and Grand Theft Auto, why not enjoy the best of both worlds? YouTube user RavenswestR1 has come up with this rather unique re-creation of the Watch Dogs launch trailer, albeit using the Grand Theft Auto 4 engine to get the job done. This recreated trailer just about nails all of the camera shots as well as angles in a perfect manner, where he has also polished up his skills earlier by doing the Need for Speed movie trailer and the film, The Other Guys’ trailer, in GTA 4, too.

What do you think of this particular effort? Top marks should be given, no? This is not the first time that we have seen a trailer of a game done up in a different setting, using either another game or playing around with a movie’s franchise, and chances are, it will not be the last, either. Whatever the case is, this is an exercise in creativity that should not be stopped in any way, as who knows where the next Stanley Kubrick might get his inspiration from?

Watch Dogs Trailer Done Up In Grand Theft Auto IV

, original content from Ubergizmo, Filed in Gaming, , ,

Retired American Airlines Workers Who Took Pay Cut After 9/11 Lose Promised Privileges: Report

After 9/11 many American Airlines workers took a 35% pay cut to help salvage the nose-diving company. In exchange, workers were promised better health, retirement and flying benefits, but these promises have not been kept.

V. Stiviano Assaulted In New York, Lawyer Says

V. Stiviano, the woman who allegedly made secret recordings of Los Angeles Clippers’ owner Donald Sterling making racist comments, was reportedly beaten by two men in New York on Sunday night.

“They were about 5’7 and they knew exactly who she was. They began to hit her and called her the N word,” attorney Mac Nehoray told Radar Online. “Other disgusting slurs were made against her. She was able to run away and several onlookers then began attempting to apprehend the two men.”

He said the incident happened at about 7 p.m. outside the Gansevoort Hotel in Manhattan.

A bouncer at the hotel told the New York Daily News that “fists were thrown” in a brawl that broke out in front of the building and Stiviano was somehow in the middle of it. He said, however, that it wasn’t clear what role she played in the fight.

Stiviano’s attorney told CBS Los Angeles that the 31-year-old was punched “on the right side of her face several times.” The attorney added that Stiviano did not file a police report but will “probably do so.”

Fabien Cousteau Embarks On 'Mission 31,' Attempts To Live Underwater For 31 Days

The apple never falls too far from the tree. Or, in Fabien Cousteau’s case, the sea.

According to the BBC, Cousteau — the grandson of legendary explorer Jacques Cousteau — plunged into the depths of the ocean this week with the intention of building on his famed granddad’s legacy by pushing the boundaries of underwater living.

The younger Cousteau dove Sunday to Aquarius Reef Base, a “school bus-sized laboratory 60 feet below the ocean’s surface” in the Florida Keys, the AP reports. Cousteau, together with a five-person crew, is planning on spending 31 days underwater, where he hopes to film a documentary and conduct experiments on a nearby coral reef.

Dubbed “Mission 31,” Cousteau says his expedition was inspired by his grandfather — who, in 1963, embarked on a pioneering 30-day underwater expedition in the Red Sea.

“Mission 31 will commence to honor [Jacques] Cousteau’s original experiment by going deeper, longer and further,” the expedition’s website reads.

Jacques Cousteau died in 1997 at the age of 87.

More from the AP:

The idea for “Mission 31” came to Cousteau two years ago when he visited Aquarius during a fundraising push to save the lab, which federal budget cuts had threatened to permanently close.

“It reminded me that I’ve always wanted to live underwater,” Cousteau said Saturday at his training base in Islamorada.

“Mission 31” builds on the legacy of Conshelf II, the 30-day underwater living experiment in the Red Sea that Jacques Cousteau filmed in 1963 for his Oscar-winning documentary “World Without Sun.”

The younger Cousteau can do something his grandfather could not: broadcast the entire adventure live online and communicate with the public through social media and video chats with classrooms on land.

“For the first time I’m able to invite the world on a Cousteau expedition in real time,” said Cousteau, who has filmed documentaries on sharks and other marine life.

Jacques Cousteau was revered worldwide for exploring the ocean in a multitude of documentaries and books, as well as for pioneering the advanced scuba diving techniques used at Aquarius. While he developed underwater living experiments out of the belief that an overpopulated world might drive humans to live in the oceans, interest in the habitats waned through the decades until Aquarius was the last underwater research lab.

His grandson believes interest in the oceans is reviving as climate change threatens to disrupt life on land.

“Whether you care about economics, in your personal life or your business life, whether you care about your health or your child’s health, whether you care about saving creatures, it all pertains to making sure that our oceans are healthy. And our oceans are not,” Cousteau said.

Throughout the expedition, Florida International University and Northeastern University researchers will study the effects of climate change and pollution on the coral reef. The crew will experiment with new technology that uses sonar to create three-dimensional video images, allowing them to gather data and footage without lights that would disrupt the fish.

Diving with a Cousteau helps bring more attention to the scientific work being performed at Aquarius, said Andy Shantz, an FIU researcher who will spend half the month living and working at the base.

“These are really important issues and to be able to bring that out and get a bit of a spotlight on the research and the science behind it is awesome,” Shantz said.

The 400-square-foot pressurized Aquarius lab has six bunk beds and allows scientists to live and work underwater and scuba dive for extended periods of time, without needing to return to the surface or decompress.

It’s owned by the U.S. government and operated by FIU.

Astronauts train at Aquarius to simulate living and working in outer space. The lab’s technological edge doesn’t extend to its kitchen area. “Unfortunately for me as a French person, the food also will be simulated. Freeze-
dried, astronaut type of food, canned foods, things like that,” Cousteau said, grimacing.

Cousteau plans to resurface July 2, at the end of the longest mission ever held at Aquarius since it began operations in 1993.

Click here to watch the livestream video of Cousteau and his team on board Aquarius Reef Base.