Hasta La Gadget!

Alt-week peels back the covers on some of the more curious sci-tech stories from the last seven days.

It’s not like we’re trying to out-weird ourselves, it just, somehow, keeps happening. At least one of this week’s offerings (we’ll leave it to you to figure out which) will possibly be the creepiest thing we post all year. As for the rest, well it’s slightly more palatable. We’ll get uncharacteristically pumped about cycling, meet some extra-terrestrial quasicrystals and enjoy some art with X-men credentials. This is alt-week.

Continue reading Alt-week 8.11.12: Robo-billies, quasicrystals and radioactive art

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Science

Alt-week 8.11.12: Robo-billies, quasicrystals and radioactive art originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 11 Aug 2012 15:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Buried within an announcement from Nissan about its NV200 diesel compact van hitting the London streets, the company has also outed its plans to trial the all-electric variant for ferrying people around the city. The e-NV200 went from concept to reality earlier this year, shortly after the diesel version got a New York paint job and was branded the “Taxi of Tomorrow.” The NV200 has satisfied all legal requirements and is set to challenge the iconic London black cab with its lower emissions, greater efficiency and, of course, competitive pricing. The e-NV200 prototype (not to be confused with the soon-to-be certified diesel version) is scheduled for testing in London during 2013. However, Nissan does note that rolling out the EV would only be realistic if there’s “increasing investment in charging infrastructure” across the capital.

[Image Credit: Auto Express]

Filed under: Transportation

Nissan’s e-NV200 all-electric van earmarked for a London taxi makeover originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Aug 2012 19:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With an opening ceremony celebrating social media and a guest appearance by the father of the world wide web, you would think the games are pretty Twitter-friendly. Well, not so much, as the hordes of London have been told to keep non-urgent texts and tweets to themselves to avoid disrupting TV coverage for those who weren’t lucky enough to score beach volleyball tickets. The recommendation comes after broadcasters bumbled through the men’s cycling road race due to a lack of available data from the cyclists’ GPS. The information bottleneck appears to be related to one specific network and sharing the data burden has been discussed, although probably not via Twitter. The IOC knows that telling the masses not to log on likely won’t have any impact — so, what’s next for the data haters.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless

Data-hungry crowds spoil Olympic TV coverage, archers alerted originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 30 Jul 2012 03:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Technology companies have been lining up to milk the London Olympics spotlight for all it’s worth. BMW isn’t shy about taking its turn, but it’s not looking to cash in — directly, we mean. The automaker is instead using its just-opened i Store to showcase everything electric and hybrid for downtown visitors who aren’t busy watching the cycling. Its centerpieces are unquestionably the i3 and i8, which won’t even go on sale until many months after the summer games’ closing ceremonies; the i3 on the floor is closer to the street model, though, and will tease EV drivers with BMW’s option packs. Should that make your bank account cringe far too soon, the i Pedelec scooter and the i Wallbox charger will be hanging around as well. If you didn’t book a ticket to Heathrow in time, don’t panic: the i line is going on a world tour this year that starts in Rome, swings past the US and Japan, and comes full circle to London in 2013.

Filed under: Transportation

BMW opens i Store in sync with London Olympics, shows tourists their electric destiny originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 26 Jul 2012 01:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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O2 is making good on its promise to coat the busiest parts of London in free WiFi. Between now and the end of July, seven locations including Oxford Street, Regent Street, Exhibition Road, Leicester and Piccadilly Squares will offer unfettered access — even if you don’t subscribe to O2’s cellphone network. There’s no word on if the network will remain free forever, but given the painful time we spent crouching in Starbucks doorways on recent trips to New York and Paris, we hope the company does the right thing for the sake of harassed visitors to the capital.

Continue reading O2 offering free WiFi around London’s busiest streets

Filed under: Wireless, Internet

O2 offering free WiFi around London’s busiest streets originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Jul 2012 06:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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