Hasta La Gadget!

It goes without saying that the world of social media has definitely changed the way we communicate with one another, and social networks such as Facebook as well as micro blogging sites like Twitter have introduced a new way we visit places – especially when we check in to various restaurants, hotels and shopping malls. Our modern day smartphones would be the primary device where we use social media most of the time whenever we are away from a desktop or notebook, while at the office or home itself, we will most probably be uploading photos of our latest soiree with the rest of our mates.

Having said that, have you ever wondered whether the humble shoe could actually jump aboard the social media bandwagon? This is exactly what I am talking about with sportswear giant adidas coming up with the aptly named Adidas Social Media Shoe. Thanks to the help of customizer NASH Money, adidas has managed to inject a healthy dose of technology into a 2012 adidas Barricade tennis sneaker, which transforms a phone into a shoe. Alternatively, those who are on the other end of the spectrum might want to argue, is this a shoe that has been turned into a phone? More details to follow in the extended post.

Fans tweeting athletes, athletes tweeting fans, these look set to be commonplace thanks to this highly modified adidas sneaker. Bear in mind that this will not enter into mass production, as it is a one-off concept sneaker that does lead to the intriguing question – what will the future hold when it comes to social media and sports? Imagine Usain Bolt at the tracks, tweeting his feeling about performing a triple double in Rio when 2016 rolls around, you can be sure that the classic Twitter fail whale might just make an appearance then.

The Adidas Social Media Shoe will merge an Arduino unit, a LCD display, and LED lighting in order to deliver a shoe which, by virtue of its existence, should deserve its very own Twitter account. The external LCD display shows off relevant information to user, while a personalized software will poll the Twitter API’s to share specific data on the shoe screen.

YouTube video

[ Adidas Social Media Shoe copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

Relive the nail-biting insanity and inherent unfairness of soccer’s penalty shootout over at Google right now, as you try to match our first-attempt score of 18 points and two gold stars. (We’ll update this post as soon as an Engadget editor gets a result we can be proud of.) It’s a ballistic way to end a run of Doodles that has already involved canoeing, hoops, hurdles and all-round Olympic work avoidance. Post your scores here at your own risk.

Update: Did we say 18? We meant 81, but forgot to take a grab, so officially we’ll have to make do with a top score of 34.

Continue reading Doodle friday: End your week with a penalty shootout

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Doodle friday: End your week with a penalty shootout originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Aug 2012 04:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you’re a fan of the novelty or the collectible, you might be interested to learn that in conjunction with the 2012 London Olympics, Apple been giving away a set of pins designed in the likeness of the iPad and iPhone on a daily basis. Only 1,000 are given out each day and they can be had at some of Apple’s retail stores located in the London area. They are given out on a first come first serve basis, so you really want these pins, you might have to go early to avoid disappointment. We have to admit that they are pretty cute and are probably the closest thing we can get to an iPad mini, at least for now until Apple announces it (if it even exists to begin with). For those who do not live in London or who did not drop by for the Olympics, don’t worry as there are enterprising sellers out there who have put these pins up for sale on eBay. They are pretty pricey for pins but we guess they might be worth something to collectors out there.

[Image credit – Andrew Wingert]

By Ubergizmo. Related articles: 40% of device thefts in NYC are reportedly Apple products, Samsung not allowed to use Steve Job’s quotes on Android for upcoming trial,

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