Hasta La Gadget!

Wouldn’t it be nice if photos you uploaded to Facebook, MySpace and Flickr just stopped being accessible after a while, saving you the almighty hassle of having to delete them yourself? Well, a few good Germans have come together to produce the X-pire! software, which promises to do just that — make online imagery inaccessible after a given period of time following their upload. It’s been around in prototype form as a Firefox extension, but next week should see its proper launch, complete with a subscription-based pricing model costing €24 per year. Yes, the observant among you will note that this does nothing to prevent others from grabbing those images and re-uploading them, but this software’s ambition is humbler than that — it just aims to give the less tech-savvy (or simply lazier) user a tool for controlling at least part of his or her presence on the web.

X-pire! software will add digital expiration dates to your photos, photo-related embarrassment originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 16 Jan 2011 22:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In a move that is sure to excite the outdoorsman (or outdoors-lady, as it were) in us all, German outfit Ego-Kits has unveiled the E-Powered Downhill Bike Kit so you don’t have to go through all that pesky exercise getting to the top of the mountain to enjoy the thrill of bombing back down. The kit comes with a 1200-watt aluminum motor that mounts under the down tube of 70 percent of downhill bike models, a battery pack (contained within an included backpack), charger, controller module, crankset, chain, and twist grip throttle with a battery charge indicator. We don’t know the price or when the system will officially go on sale, but we do know that when mounted on a mountain bike, it looks cooler than other, more pedestrian electric bikes we’ve seen previously. Jump after the break to see the Ego-Kit in action.

Continue reading Ego-Kits declares victory over nature, gravity with its E-Powered Downhill Bike Kit

Ego-Kits declares victory over nature, gravity with its E-Powered Downhill Bike Kit originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 11 Jan 2011 09:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We told you that this would likely go on forever. Nokia just announced that the company has filed claims in the UK, Germany, and The Netherlands alleging that Apple’s iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad are infringing upon Nokia’s patents. This adds 13 more patents to the 24 already asserted in the ITC and US federal claims. Here’s a particularly snippy remark made Paul Melin, vice president, Intellectual Property at Nokia:

“The Nokia inventions protected by these patents include several which enable compelling user experiences. For example, using a wiping gesture on a touch screen to navigate content, or enabling access to constantly changing services with an on-device app store, both filed more than ten years before the launch of the iPhone.”

The new Nokia patent claims are wide ranging covering user interface, on-device app stores, antenna structures, signal noise suppression, messaging functionality, chipsets, caller ID, display illumination, integration of multiple radios, and data card functionality. Click through for the full press release.

Continue reading Nokia ups the ante on Apple, adds 13 more patents to the 24 already asserted

Nokia ups the ante on Apple, adds 13 more patents to the 24 already asserted originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Dec 2010 08:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Little known fact about German street thugs–they’re not like the rapscallions of other nations. As it turns out, they’re big ol’ nerds who only victimize those who fall behind on today’s ultra-transparent information autobahn.

Recently, Deutchland officials voiced privacy concerns about the Street View feature of Google Maps which offers a ground level, 360-degree photo from nearly any vantage point along any street. In a concession, Google offered to blur out the residences of any Germans who wanted to opt-out of the feature.

Sounds like a fair balance right?

Not according to one group of geeky gangstas. An unidentified person or persons went around the city of Essen throwing eggs at homes that appeared obscured in Google Maps. They then proceeded to leave notes outside the properties proclaiming “Google’s cool” in English.

Google’s official stance on the nerdiest form of vandalism that has ever been committed: “We respect people’s decision to opt out and by no means consider this to be acceptable behavior.”

No word on if there have been any threats against those who maintain aol email accounts or people who still “RT” things on Twitter instead of using the embedded re-tweet feature.

via popsci 

If there’s one benefit to living in the technological backwater that is Europe, it’s that “innovations” like iAds take a little longer to filter though — but filter through they eventually do, as evidenced by Apple’s announcement that its mobile advertising platform is hitting the Old World this December. French and British iOS users will get to enjoy being pestered by L’Oreal, Renault, Louis Vuitton, Nespresso, Perrier, and Unilever next month, while their German counterparts will have their lives enriched in January. This follows on the heels of news that iAds is headed to Japan in early 2011 as well, covering the biggest developed markets with glorious promotional material. Advertisers don’t seem to be shying away from the platform, either, as Apple boasts it has signed up half of the top 25 US ad buyers (as judged by Ad Age). Full press release follows after the break.

Continue reading Apple bringing iAds to Europe in December, nobody rejoices

Apple bringing iAds to Europe in December, nobody rejoices originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 04:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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