Hasta La Gadget!

When Google first announced Chrome OS, there were a lot of skeptics. Is the browser really all we need anymore? If you’re the right kind of person, sort of. Chrome’s meteoric rise in market share has taught something extremely useful to a company who lives and dies by whether or not you are connected to […]

Bike Bag? Camera bag? Where do I sign up?

Today, the stars have aligned to bring the perfect Friday afternoon item for Gadget Lab. As an aficionado of both camera bags and bicycle bags, imagine how fast I scrambled to my keyboard when I saw this camera-carrying backpack, from none other than Chrome, the bike-messenger-bag people.

It’s called the Niko, and it’s similar in concept to Kata’s 3N1 bags, with a wraparound flap to open the bottom section and a separate, zippered and lidded compartment up top for sundries.

Like all Chrome bags, it consists of an outer nylon shell with a truck-tarp interior, rendering it all but totally waterproof. And like all Chrome bags, it has that big seatbelt buckle on the strap for quick-release. Sometimes, though, this release is a little too quick, like when some idiot comes up and jabs the switch, dropping your gear to the ground. It has happened to me, and it has also happened to Brad over at Urban Velo, who brought to Niko to our notice.

In use, the 2.5-pound bag will hold cameras, lenses, flashes and other gear in its padded, compartmentalized interior. Outside there are some Velcro straps for holding a mini-tripod, or even a pump. And because it only has one strap, you can swing it from your back to your chest to grab the camera whilst still on your bike.

Chrome bags are usually pricey, but they are also expected to last forever. Camera bags are also very expensive. So expensive, in fact, that they make the Chrome Niko look pretty reasonable at $95.

Will I be buying one? Nah. I already have the Kata, and if I fancy taking a camera out with a bike, I also have Chrome’s Citizen messenger bag, an expensive, heavy piece of kit which — when combined with Photojojo’s Anybag insert, is more than bag enough for anyone.

Chrome Niko product page [Chrome via Urban Velo]

See Also:

• Hands On: Kata 3N1 Camera Backpack
• Mamba Shift Backpack Swallows Almost Everything
• Hands-On with the Ortlieb Velocity Backpack

Could this be a case of Baidu’s browser in Chrome’s clothing? The Wall Street Journal seems to think so and the Chinese company isn’t exactly dismissing the KIRF claims. Announced back in April, the recently beta-released Baidu Browser brings a “sleek, stripped-down interface” eerily reminiscent of Google’s web-surfing entry to an otherwise Internet Explorer 6-loving Chinese population. The copycat similarities don’t just end in the looks department: there’s also an app store, fast-tab functionality and familiar menu icon placement. In its defense, the company claims its 30,000 plus free app offerings, in addition to China-specific entertainment features are enough to set it apart. Sure, this may seem like a case of the Asian search giant that doth protest too much, but it’s the company’s desire to drive traffic to its own engine that has us seeing Google.

[Thanks, Hardy]

Baidu Browser tips hat to old Steve Jobs’ quote, steals Chrome’s special sauce originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Jul 2011 19:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jennifer Boriss, a Firefox dev, went to the mall seeking test subjects to help improve the browser. She expected to meet people with a range of tech savvy, but she was’t expecting a man who’d never before touched a mouse. More »

How do you solve a consumer education problem like the Chromebook? You put it into the idle hands of urbanite travelers — that’s how. The fast-booting neither laptop, nor netbook entity with negligible storage and not-yet-defined purpose will find a temporary summer home at select Virgin America gates and New York’s Ace Hotel starting Friday. Jet-setters flying between San Francisco and either Chicago O’Hare, Dallas / Fort Worth, or Boston Logan can get an on-the-fly, marketing-fortified crash course in Chrome OS computing by visiting special ‘Chrome zones’ located near departure gates. Virgin’s also thrown in some free in-flight WiFi to ensure you test drive Google’s Cloud-dependent lap-dweller . And if you’re one of the millions of tourists planning on seeing the Big Apple in all its humid splendor, the Ace Hotel’s got an on-the-house stash that lobby lizards can use, but only guests can take out. But the promotional push doesn’t just stop there: all partners involved have bundled specialized travel-planning apps into the experience — sure to be ripe with cooler-than-thou recommendations. It’s a noble attempt by our search giant overlord to make a name for its portable computing entrant, and a helpful distraction from that armrest hog next to you.

Continue reading Chromebook boards Virgin America, checks-in at Ace Hotel for summer vacation

Chromebook boards Virgin America, checks-in at Ace Hotel for summer vacation originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Jun 2011 18:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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