Angry Birds Air Swimmer

by Edwin - on November 10th, 2012

So just when you thought that you have managed to escape the shadow the of Angry Birds franchise, here we are with another “attack” of those feathered fiends, where it will tear out a £49.99 hole in your pocket, as though there were some Bad Piggies residing in there. The Angry Birds Air Swimmer will literally be transformed from its presence in smartphones, tablets and Smart TVs to the air, and you need not exhaust yourself by flinging it, but rather, use a far more elegant method of piloting it via remote control.

Of course, it goes without saying that common sense needs to be applied when you fly the Angry Birds Air Swimmer around the home – it is best to avoid expensive vases or the urn that holds your great grandmother’s ashes, while not touching moving ceiling fans is also another brilliant idea. It is filled with helium, and each purchase will also come with a King Pig balloon for you to re-enact the final level in Angry Birds games. Touted to be of high quality and durable, this Angry Bird is capable of remaining inflated for weeks on end, and is a snap to refill.

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Angry Birds Star Wars makes a landing, the Egg is strong in this one

by Edwin - on November 9th, 2012

Do you find it rather interesting that a game like Angry Birds have actually branched out to be such a phenomenally successful gaming franchise, so much so that I believe anything else that Rovio releases (which they did with Amazing Alex) will never be able to live up to the Angry Birds folklore and reputation. In fact, you can call Angry Birds as the Golden Goose of Rovio, and another golden egg has just been laid – this time around merging with yet another hugely successful movie franchise that was recently sold to Disney – Star Wars. What do you get when you put two and two together? Why, Angry Birds Star Wars, of course!

It should not be too difficult to find someone who is a fan of both Angry Birds and Star Wars, and you would be pleased to hear that Angry Birds Star Wars is now available for download over from the Windows Phone 8 Store. Basically, both Red Bird and Pink Bird have undergone an epic transformation in their timeless (and endless, at this point in time) battle against the Bad Piggies. Be prepared to go on an intergalactic adventure by grabbing your lightsaber, although it does make me wonder just how birds are able to grasp a lightsaber considering they lack the necessary digits to do so save for feathers.

You will be able to visit iconic Star Wars locations such as Tatooine, the Death Star and the beyond. After downloading the game, in can be installed right away.

For folks who are still running on Windows Phone 7.5, there might be hope for you just yet as there is a possibility of Angry Birds Star Wars arriving on that particular platform. The thing is, both Rovio and Nokia want to do everything in their power to ensure that the Angry Birds Star Wars experience on the older version of Windows Phone will not arrive gimped, making sure that some semblance of quality control has been put in as well. Keep your feathers crossed, folks!

Press Release

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People-Powered Medical Devices?

by Alison - on November 9th, 2012

Medical devices seem to get smaller every year. Think of something as simple as a pacemaker or hearing aid. Like their bretheren PCs, these gadgets that help enhance and extend our lives continue to shrink. Yet the size of a power source to drive the device cannot decrease in size at the same rate.

Like with solar power, what if power for medical devices could be generated by natural means – our bodies? There would truly be no limit as to how small an electronic medical device could get. And therefore replacement surgeries could be a thing of the past. Did you know our bodies maintain fluids in the ear that contain an electrochemical gradient? A report in Nature Biotechology featured Boston scientists who harnessed power from this liquid in the inner ear of a guinea pig. Using a tiny circuit board implanted into the furry friend’s ear they measured electricity via radio waves. Though only a nano watt every 5 hours, it is a start. It certainly won’t power the world, but the important thing to know is the guinea pigs hearing was not harmed in the entire process – making the experiment a minimally invasive process with no damage. So yes, perhaps a day will come when our bodies can be used as a power source and decrease the need for replacement surgeries on life saving devices.

Thanks: Technology Review

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LG EA93 UltraWide Monitor announced

by Edwin - on November 11th, 2012

LG achieves yet another first with the announcement of the LG EA93 UltraWide Monitor, which is the first monitor of its kind in the world to boast of a 21:9 aspect ratio. Delivering 29” of viewing real estate, the LG EA93 UltraWide Monitor will also come with a 4-Screen Split feature as well as 100% sRGB color space expression, delivering better multitasking and multimedia capabilities for anyone who decides to pick this puppy up – whether for the home, at work, or at the office. Specially designed for maximizing productivity, this particular monitor will feature an IPS display in order to produce extremely vivid and lifelike colors.

I guess you can say that just about any work environment will definitely more than welcome the LG EA93 UltraWide Monitor, where 29” of viewing real estate definitely delivers a whole lot of space for multiple documents and windows to be viewed – simultaneously, giving you a far more decent working environment as you spend less time switching between windows. It is definitely a case of experiencing a large viewing real estate once, and finding it rather difficult to revert to what you were used to. Not only that, the expansive display also enables additional spreadsheet columns to be viewed simultaneously, or you can opt to read a two-page document side-by-side.

Other than that, graphics professionals, too, will find the LG EA93 UltraWide Monitor to be an outstanding device. The monitor itself allows artists to see more as well as do more with their time. Being seen by some (pun not intended) as the ultimate multitasking tool, the 4-Screen Split feature will divide the screen into two to four segments, where each of them is able to be uniquely customized.

For entertainment purposes, the UltraWide Monitor’s 21:9 aspect ratio remains very close to the dimensions of movie theater screens, and thanks to its cinematic dimensions, the monitor can show off films just the way they were meant to. Gamers too, are not left out with this new monitor, as one can play games as well as videos from their smartphones on the monitor thanks to the included MHL connection, and throw in another pair of 7W stereo speakers, and you get quite the immersive entertainment experience. No idea on pricing, but the LG UltraWide Monitor will arrive in South Korea early November.

Press Release

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Samsung brand reboot reported for CES 2013

The blue oval may be headed out the door sooner than later if those “in the know” with Samsung are to believed about a full brand reboot around the time of CES 2013. Reports come from Channel News in Australia where they’ve got some anonymous sources speaking to the idea of a “more vibrant international brand image.” They’ve made it clear that this new look and feel will be brought on by none other than Brandstream and its powerhouse CEO Scott Bedbury.

This fellow Bedbury is known for creating the Nike “Just Do It” campaign that turned the company into an international beast of a brand. He also made Starbucks into the beast it is today with the comfy chairs and CD sales we now take for granted in coffee shops around the world. Samsung’s rebranding is said to be taking on a bit of a “feel” change, concentrating no longer so much on the “features and benefits” of the devices they sell, but on “lifestyle activities” instead.

History images via Samsung Village

We had a conversation about this sort of shift just this past week in a column by the name of Device Specs are Over, Long Live the Ecosystem. Basically what appears to be happening here is the peak of excellence in smartphones and tablets – or the peak of what consumers could possibly want in a device without getting something to back these devices up. Backing them up – that means creating a software and brand ecosystem to make them all worthwhile.

It’s as if there’s a world without roads and manufacturers have been selling bikes without making enough effort to create the paths that people need to ride them on. If Samsung does indeed continue on the brand ecosystem path they’re on now, a complete rebranding around the time of CES 2013 would certainly not be out of the question. Here’s looking forward to it!

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Amazon Prime gets monthly option (with a sting)

Amazon has quietly added a monthly option for Amazon Prime, the retailer’s two-day shipping, media-streaming, and Kindle loaning membership service, though shoppers pay a premium for flexibility. Until now, Prime had only been available as a year-long subscription, paid upfront at $79 for as many two-day shipping items, as much Amazon Instant Video streaming, and access to the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library, as the user wanted. Now, you can have the same for $7.99 per month with no minimum term.

The new, recurring fee option is likely to be useful for those that are convinced by the value of Amazon Prime after the month-long free trial option, but are wary of locking themselves in for a full year. It should also net Amazon some new users over the holiday period, given the potential for internet shopping is likely to rise.

Another possibility is that the monthly Prime scheme could be appealing to those looking to skip from Netflix, Hulu Plus, or other streaming media providers. Amazon’s catalog of shows and movies is claimed to number in the “thousands” according tot he retailer.

However, flexibility comes with a price, and that’s a larger fee overall if you stick with monthly Prime payments. A year’s membership is $95.88, or $16.88 more than the annual cost.

There’s no sign of similar monthly options in other locations where Amazon Prime is offered – the UK, Germany, Japan, and France – though the deal does vary depending on which services the retailer promises in each location. While there’s no Amazon Instant Video, for instance, next-day shipping is the norm rather than two-day shipping as in the US.

[via Engadget]

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