Cool Thing Archive

  • Friends Around Me iPhone/iPad app lets you interact with friends or strangers, just like they were really there

    Friends Around Me iPhone/iPad app lets you interact with friends or strangers, just like they were really there

    Posted on May 27, 2010 | No Comments
    Friends Around Me is a mobile app for iPhone and iPad that searches around you for nearby friends — or anyone else willing to say hello — and enables you to view their profile, look at and rate their photos, chat with them, or send them virtual gifts. The service joins together your Foursquare, Twitter, and [...]

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  • And now begins the BioShock MMO rumors

    And now begins the BioShock MMO rumors

    Posted on April 15, 2010 | No Comments
    Any of y'all beat BioShock 2? Me neither. Played it for, eh, 20 minutes, then moved onto Napoleon: Total War. Don't worry, though: the game is on my "to do" list. Also on my "to-do" list: whinge about an MMO based on BioShock.

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  • Robot + iPod touch = robovie mR2 (video)

    Robot + iPod touch = robovie mR2 (video)

    Posted on March 22, 2010 | No Comments
    Japan’s Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute (ATR) has unveiled robovie mR2 [JP], a cute desk robot that stands just 30cm tall and weighs 2kg. The cool thing is that users can place an iPod touch in his chest to control the robot (wirelessly via Wifi or by touching the screen).

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  • Oh look, another hack attack that could have been prevented

    Oh look, another hack attack that could have been prevented

    Posted on February 18, 2010 | No Comments
    I could sit here and talk about the latest big “hack attack” to strike the civilized world, but these have become so tedious. The story is always the same: hackers from scary place (here, China and Eastern Europe) attack Western government/corporation (here, corporations) for unknown, shadowy reasons. Blah, blah, blah. Instead, I'll take this opportunity to remind you all of a very basic thing: please use the Internet with care. Don't go clicking things willy nilly.

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  • Video: Ericsson gets fancy with 3D maps on an Xperia X10

    Video: Ericsson gets fancy with 3D maps on an Xperia X10

    Posted on January 19, 2010 | No Comments
    As someone who makes a living babbling about cell phones all day, I can’t complain too much about my job. With that said, the dudes over at the Ericsson Labs don’t have it too bad either. Their job, as I see it: Make something really cool Release the source code for aforementioned really cool thing [...]

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  • Nyko gaming accessories

    Nyko gaming accessories

    Posted on January 11, 2010 | No Comments
    Nyko, proprietor of fine gaming peripherals, showcased several new items at CES. For the Wii we have the upgraded Wand+, the Type Pad wireless keypad, the Perfect Shot pistol grip attachment, and the Charge Base Quad charging station. We also have a media hub for the PS3 Slim, and a new personal headset/speaker combo for the Xbox 360.

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  • AT&T and Samsung introduce the Solstice

    AT&T and Samsung introduce the Solstice

    Posted on July 30, 2009 | No Comments
    Earlier today, AT&T announced the touch-screen Solstice from Samsung. Equipped with a 3-inch touch-screen, an accelerometer, Bluetooth, a 2-megapixel camera and little else, the Solstice is an entry-level touch-screen device. But, the one really cool thing about the Solstice is that it comes with TouchWiz 2.0. The second gen UI from Samsung features live widgets, [...]

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  • For whatever reason, the knives are out for HP

    For whatever reason, the knives are out for HP

    Posted on July 29, 2009 | No Comments
    It looks like the cool thing to do now is bash HP over its environmental record. Yesterday's Greepeace action was a huge story for several minutes, drawing attention, apparently, to the company's rubbish record with respect to various chemicals in its products. And today The Register has photos of shipping containers, used to ship things.

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  • Very cool RC toy: “Mission Carrier SWAT truck” with helicopter (video)

    Very cool RC toy: “Mission Carrier SWAT truck” with helicopter (video)

    Posted on July 14, 2009 | No Comments
    Just yesterday we featured Bandai's cool remote-controlled heli-robot Sky Armor, and now the same company (its subsidiary CCP, to be exact) announced the Mission Carrier SWAT [JP], a combination of a truck and helicopter. And this toy is even better than Sky Armor. The cool thing about the SWAT truck is the sound and the elevating deck: Push a button on the remote to make the panels in the back of the truck open and reveal the mini helicopter inside of it. The helicopter can then be controlled just like every other RC helicopter (for 5 minutes after a 30 minute charge). Needless to say, you can also let the truck itself drive around.

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  • Michael Jackson’s sad, sad toy barn

    Michael Jackson’s sad, sad toy barn

    Posted on July 6, 2009 | No Comments
    These panoramas show the remains of MJ’s secret toy lair complete with C3-P0, Batman, and Darth Vader dolls along with some bikes, some Bruce Lee stuff, and a few lumpen Power Rangers. This is the detritus of an overgrown kid with attention disorder. It jumps from cool thing to cool thing and even includes an arcade [...]

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