Hasta La Gadget!

Mom / wife / building superintendent still won’t let you get a drum set, huh? Well, you can show them, you can show them all with the new iGOG VelAUcity app, which for a mere $5 lets you do velocity-sensitive drumming on the iPhone. It works pretty great, too… to an extent. The technology appears to be based on the iPhone’s built-in mic (VelAUcity doesn’t work on an iPod touch), and the app recommends you use it with headphones, but not a headset with its own built-in mic, which would gum things up. In practice the drumming is really great, with multiple hit points on the drum pads and pretty good velocity sensitivity (for an iPhone app), but there are plenty of mic-introduced foibles like the potential for feedback or stray noises messing things up — you basically would have trouble using this in a live application, though there are plenty of sliders so you can tweak things and give it a shot. Our favorite part perhaps is the mic trigger mode, which lets you do your fake drumming next to the iPhone, adding a whole new level of fake realness. Our least favorite part was the crashiness and the buginess — part of which might’ve be blamed on our speed-strapped 3G. Don’t say we didn’t warn you. Video demonstrations are after the break.

[Via Create Digital Music]

Continue reading iGOG VelAUcity brings velocity-sensitive drums to your humble iPhone

Filed under: Cellphones, Software

iGOG VelAUcity brings velocity-sensitive drums to your humble iPhone originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jealous of the way those hipper-than-thou ZipCar people are always unlocking the doors to their rented Minis with an iPhone? We aren’t either. But if you are looking to recreate that scenario with your Dodge Dart, have we got a gadget for you! If you already own a compatible Viper security system, the SmartStart module will let lock and unlock your car, arm and disarm your car alarm, pop the trunk, or fire off that panic alarm — all from your cherished handset. There are two modules available, priced at $299 and $499, depending on which Viper system you’ve installed. You also need a SmartStart account which will run you $29 a year (the first year’s free). But don’t take our word for it — check out the action-packed video below for a breathtaking recreation of the system’s features.

Continue reading Viper Security launches SmartStart iPhone app for well-appointed whips

Filed under: Cellphones, Transportation

Viper Security launches SmartStart iPhone app for well-appointed whips originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 13 Oct 2009 13:06:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oh sure, we Americans love our fast food. And we love our technology. But do we really love the latter? Withings has just announced that the world’s first WiFi-enabled bathroom scale has made its way into the States after a few months abroad, and we have to say, this could change everything. When pouncing upon it, the scale automatically records the user’s body weight, lean / fat mass and calculated body mass index (BMI) to his or her secure webpage, and if you’re more the iPhone type, it can beam data to a Withings iPhone app as well. It’s available now for $159, but you can certainly wait ’til your latest diet has had some sort of effect before bringing one home. A delightful demonstration video is waiting for you just past the break.

Continue reading WiFi-enabled bathroom scale slides into USA, overweight Yanks sluggishly back away

Filed under: Household, Software

WiFi-enabled bathroom scale slides into USA, overweight Yanks sluggishly back away originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Oct 2009 10:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You know, after getting beat up last year at the Engadget HQ Halloween party for daring to dress up as an iPod, we’re ready to exact a little bit of revenge with this most excellent robot mask idea. The idea is simple enough: it simply pairs the MouthOff app with a cardboard box and tinfoil, but the results speak (and lip sync) for themselves. Check out the video how-to after the break.

Continue reading DIY robot mask uses iPhone display to lip sync your drunken Halloween slurrings

Filed under: Cellphones, Wearables

DIY robot mask uses iPhone display to lip sync your drunken Halloween slurrings originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 08 Sep 2009 10:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Well, it just passed through the FCC last week, and it looks like TomTom itself is now finally getting a bit more specific about when its new Car Kit for iPhone will start shipping. While it’s still not providing an exact date just yet, the company’s newly-updated FAQ now says that the device will be available directly from TomTom sometime this October. What’s more, the company also says that the kit (which also works with the iPod touch) will be initially sold without the TomTom iPhone app, contrary to what was previously rumored, although it’s not clear if a bundle with the app will also be available at a later date.

[Via NaviGadget]

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS, Peripherals

TomTom’s Car Kit for iPhone will be your co-pilot in October originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Sep 2009 14:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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