Category Archives: Images

Google news: Nexus S, Android 2.3, Maps for Mobile, eBooks

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Today turned out to be an announcement-filled day for the hardworking team at Google.  The next true “Google phone” was formally unveiled, the next version of Android dubbed Gingerbread was detailed, Google Maps Navigation received a major upgrade, and now the search giant is the latest company to offer a vast eBooks store and ecosystem.  Let’s jump right to the facts, shall we?

Nexus S: The Nexus S, a collaborative effort between Google and hardware manufacturer Samsung, is the follow-up device to the Nexus One.  In similar fashion to its predecessor, the Nexus S promotes a “pure Google” experience, meaning that it runs the pure vanilla version of Android; you wouldn’t dare find an inkling of customized UI overlays like HTC’s Sense, Motorola’s Motoblur, or even Samsung’s own TouchWiz.  Unfortunately the specifications do not push conventional boundaries, although there are some new welcome additions that complement the new Android platform: 4-inch WVGA (480×800) Super AMOLED display (Samsung is touting the new “Contour Display” that’s “designed to fit comfortably in the palm of your hand and along the side of your face”), 1GHz Cortex A8 (Hummingbird) processor, 512MB of RAM, 16GB of onboard storage, 5 megapixel rear-facing camera with auto-focus, flash, and HD 720p video recording, front-facing VGA camera (640×480), Wi-Fi 802.11 n/b/g, Bluetooth 2.1, A-GPS, Near Field Communication (NFC), accelerometer, proximity sensor, three-axis gyroscope.  Ports-wise there’s a 3.5mm headphone jack and a microUSB 2.0 port.  The 1500 mAH Lithum Ion battery boasts the following life support: Talk time up to 6.7 hours on 3G (14 hours on 2G), Standby time up to 17.8 days on 3G (29.7 days on 2G).  Interestingly the phone only supports tri-band HSPA, so there’s no 4G support here.  Of all the tech specs listed, you may be pondering about NFC.  Essentially NFC works like QR codes but better; companies can place NFC chips into objects like movie posters and the user can hold up their phone to the tagged object to extract information from it (there’s no need to open an app or bring up the camera).

So the spec sheet isn’t all that impressive, but there are two things that save this phone from being just another Android device: it’s sexy Galaxy S looks (good job Samsung) and it’s the very first device to run Android 2.3, aka Gingerbread (more on that in a bit).  Let’s talk release date and pricing.  The Nexus S ships December 17 for $199 with a new 2-year contract with T-Mobile (or $529 unlocked) and it’ll be available for purchase online and in-store from all Best Buy and Best Buy Mobile stores in the U.S.  It lands in the UK on December 20 at Carphone Warehouse and Best Buy retailers.

Continue reading Google news: Nexus S, Android 2.3, Maps for Mobile, eBooks →

Tron Armchair composed of ‘digital’ rock

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In collaboration with Disney and seating manufacturer Cappellini, New York-based designer Dror Benshetrit has focused all his Tron: Legacy excitment and created this awesome Tron-inspired armchair.

Dror’s mission on this project was to articulate the complex meaning of objects in the simplest of ways; their uses becoming a part of their narratives, expressed in transformations that are both metaphorical and literal. Raw data forms a jag and angular landscape for the chair, which is comprised of intersecting layers and textures of ‘digital’ rock. The armchairs will be constructed from composite materials that consist of impregnated fiberglass with polyester resin, processed with manual layering.

Each armchair produced will be individually hand-finished by the designer and they’ll be presented at the Milan Furniture Fair in April 2011.  There’s no word on price or release date, but mass production is being promised.  Um, I want one of these now!  Look in the gallery below to browse through the multiple funky color options.

[Via DesignBoom; Core77]

Meet Mercedes-Benz BIOME

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The Mercedes-Benz BIOME symbiosis vehicle is made from an ultralight material called BioFibre and tips the scales at just 875.5 lbs (around 394 kg). This material is significantly lighter than metal or plastic, yet more robust than steel. BioFibre is grown from proprietary DNA in the Mercedes-Benz nursery, where it collects energy from the sun and stores it in a liquid chemical bond called BioNectar4534. As part of this process, the vehicle is created from two seeds: The interior of the BIOME grows from the DNA in the Mercedes star on the front of the vehicle, while the exterior grows from the star on the rear. To accommodate specific customer requirements, the Mercedes star is genetically engineered in each case, and the vehicle “grows” when the genetic code is combined with the seed capsule. The wheels are grown from four separate seeds.

If you haven’t deduced this by now, the BIOME is an eco-friendly hybrid “vehicle of the future” that can be grown in a lab.  While it’s in use it produces oxygen, like plants, thereby contributing to improving air quality.  And when the car has reached the end of its lifecycle, it can be fully composted or used as building material.  But don’t hold your breath; a concept car like the BIOME won’t become a reality for quite some time simply because its fantastical feature set is downright impossible to implent today.  But one can dream, no?  Read more about Mercedes’ crazy ideas for the future after the break, and look in the gallery below to view the BIOME from various angles.

[Via Engadget; Gizmag]

Continue reading Meet Mercedes-Benz BIOME →

Get hyped for tonight’s epic ‘Fringe’ episode “Entrada” with this movie-style trailer plus stills

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Normally I do not post trailers for specific show episodes, but this one is a unique exception.  The entire third season of Fringe has led up to this moment.  Ever since “over there” Olivia swapped places with our Olivia in last season’s grand finale we’ve been patiently waiting for our Olivia to realize the switch actually occurred.  And now that she knows who she really is, it’s time for her to come home. While our Olivia tries to figure out a way to do just that, “over there” Olivia has been compromised; thanks to a terse yet all-important message from our trapped Olivia, Peter knows that he’s been sleeping with the enemy and it’s time for answers and ultimately payback. Expect “Entrada” to be one of those pivotal, emotionally-charged epic episodes that cannot be missed. Watch the movie-style trailer edited together by FOX, check out the episode stills in the gallery, and get hyped!  It’s gonna be a wild, exciting journey home.

Fringe airs Thursdays at 9PM on FOX.  Starting January 28 it will air on Fridays.

[Via EW; IGN]

Sand Glass traffic light uses LEDs to intuitively prompt stop, ready & go states

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The fact that this concept took this long to come up with is a bit sad.  And the other fact that it hasn’t been installed in busy roads is even worse.  Try to wrap your head around the Sand Glass traffic light designed by Thanva Tivawong.  Its design is inspired by the hour glass, the physical object and the famous Windows “wait” mouse icon.  Implementing the hour glass concept into the traffic light is genius, really.  Brightly lit LED pixels change color (red, yellow, green) to designate wait, ready, and go, respectively–we’re used to that already.  When it acts like an hour glass, drivers can get a more precise sense of almost exactly when the traffic light will change states.  The designer also included a countdown timer; the yellow state will read “3, 2, 1” when its about to change color to green and prompt the driver to “go” or change to red and prompt “stop”.  This is a concept that needs to become a reality!  We like having a sense of progress status, don’t we?  Look in the gallery below for more conceptual visuals.

[Via YankoDesign; Engadget]

Social Network Sneakers

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Check out these “social network sneakers” designed by Gerry Mckay for Adidas.  These are purely conceptual sneaker designs for now.  If people start demanding these be produced for consumption, Adidas can give the go ahead to make it happen.  Though various blogs are hatin’ on the very idea of a sneaker based on a social networking website, I happen to find the designs extremely attractive.

Mckay’s idea is to merge the classic Adidas Superstar sneaker (which celebrated 35 years in 2006) with Twitter and Facebook branding.  The Twitter Superstar features the recognizable light blue color scheme and Twitter ‘bird’ logo as a “visual element.”  The Facebook Superstar is inspired by Facebook’s dark blue on white color scheme and it features the Facebook type logo at the heel of the shoe and on the tongue beneath the Adidas logo.  On the inside wall of the shoe two Facebook slogans read: Facebook is a social utility that connects you with the people around you” & “Making the world open and connected”.

Take a closer look at the Superstar sneaker designs in the gallery below.  Sure, socially-inclined sneakers sound lame but these designs are simple, smart, and definitely appealing.

[Via Behance, here & here; BuzzFeed; Gizmodo]

Fluorescent chandelier makes a cylindrical beauty

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Take a gander at this beautifully designed chandelier at Usher Hall, an art house located in Edinburgh, Scotland.  The chandelier was designed and developed by Speirs + Major, and their aim was “to design an integrated
approach to light, carefully concealing equipment and retaining the architectural integrity of the building.”  They succeeded in that goal with flying colors.  The contemporary chandelier is comprised of fluorescent tubes encased in 45 feet of acrylic cylinders and its core structure makes cable routing and maintenance a simple task.  A single shaft of light that forms the central axis of a spiral staircase; flip through the images in the gallery below and be amazed by its architectural ingenious.

[Via DesignBoom; Gizmodo]

Preview Community’s upcoming stop motion animated Christmas episode

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Community series creator Dan Harmon spilled the beans that this season’s Christmas episode is going to be “wall-to-wall stop motion animat[ed]” back in late September.  And here’s proof that the man was not lying!  In the episode preview above you can clearly see that the entire Greendale gang has received the Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer treatment just in time for the Christmas special.  According to Harmon the episode will deal with “Abed’s search for the meaning of Christmas.”  The episode “looks into what makes him different from other people.”  He says, “Everything that happens on this episode is part of the actual show and will change the characters, and yet there are wonderful, fantastic holiday things happening in it.”  Can’t wait!  Thus far Community‘s holiday episodes have been the most memorable; there’s no denying that “Epidemiology” (the Halloween zombie episode) kicked major ass.  The stop motion Christmas ep will surely impress.  Speaking of which… be sure to look in the gallery below to get a closer look at Shirley, Jeff, Britta, Abed, and the rest of the gang in animated form.  Senior student Chang is an Asian snowman!

Community airs Thursday nights at 8PM on NBC.  “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas” is penned in for a 12/9 air date.

Update: Head over to EW if you want to see some more Community stop motion goodness.  In addition to some sneak peeks you’ll also find a couple behind-the-scenes videos that show how much effort goes into making a claymation special.  It’s intensive work!

[Via EW; Facebook]

Kanye West covers Complex, offers a peek inside Hawaii studio

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Today Kanye West’s fifth studio album released.  My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy has been a long time in the making.  After being shunned by controversy (read: the Swift incident), Kanye left the public spotlight and eventually made his back into the studio to create new content.  Complex editor-in-chief Noah Callahan-Bever gained access into Avex Honolulu Studios in Oahu, Hawaii during Kanye’s peak of creativty as the master rapper and producer worked day and night on Twisted Fantasy.  ‘Ye covers the December 2010/January 2011 cover of Complex, and in it Callahan-Bever takes the reader through the life and times of Kanye working on the album.  The article has been posted and it’s an intriguing look into the way Kanye handles his business when he means business.  The first half of the article follows Kanye in the studio and sheds light on his extremely high level of dedication towards his music.  The second half features block quotes from Twisted Fantasy collaborators and guest artists such as Justin Vernon (of Bon Iver), Pusha T, Kid Cudi, Nicki Minaj, and Q-Tip.  Read the article here.  Also, be sure to look in the gallery below to browse through some stills from the story; click here to view the full Complex gallery.

[Via Complex]

A ball of water in the palm of your hand

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UK-based photographer Edward Horsford specializes in high speed photography and one day decided to work with water balloons.  His motivation?  He is interested in “capturing a moment rarely seen and almost never captured.”  He admits that “[his] camera is really the least important part of the shots.”  So he uses a custom, Arduino-based flash trigger to produce specific lighting arrangements required to capture the water balloon at the precise point of explosion.  The timing of the flash is key; the aforementioned trigger picks up the sound of the balloon popping and flashes at what it thinks to be the most opportune moment.  Horsford must be a patient man.  And what might be considered the most impressive feat here?  He manages to do it all without any assistance; from setting up the trigger, to holding and popping the balloon, to taking the picture.  Impressive stuff, huh?  Look in the gallery below to find a few more of these high speed water balloon shots, and head over to Horsford’s Flickr page to view the entire collection.

[Via Gizmodo; NPR; DYIPhotography; Flickr]

Halloween costume of the year goes to ‘I am 8-Bit’

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One Dan Liuzzi from Cleveland, Ohio “thought it would be funny to create a huge version of [his] own head and wear it” for Halloween this year.  So he decided to make an 8-bit version of his head and show it off on Halloween night.  This awesome piece of headgear likely provoked senses of awe instead of screams, however.  It’s made from insulation foam, joint compound, a cardboard box, glue, some gesso spray, and acrylic paint; that snazzy tie was purchased at ThinkGeek.  It took around 2-3 weeks to complete and Liuzzi calls it “pretty amatuer stuff.”  Can’t wait to see what he thinks up next!  Perhaps one day he may fully realize the 8-Bitinator 2000.  Look in the gallery below for more angles.

[Via DanLiuzzi; Likecool]