Black Eyed Peas will rock the Super Bowl halftime show into the future

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BEP’s frontman will.i.am confirmed to Rolling Stone that rock-and-roll/future-flow group will perform live at Super Bowl XLV during the halftime show.  “They could have picked anybody…but it says something that they picked us,” will told the magazine.  Not only is this good promotion for the group (The Beginning releases November 30 and a worldwide tour is planned), but it also means I’ll have a reason to tune into the halftime show this year!  Super Bowl XLV will be played in Dallas, Texas on February 6, 2011.

[Via RollingStone]

Peter Jackson will shoot ‘The Hobbit’ using 30 RED EPIC cameras

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Now that Peter Jackson is the official helmer of The Hobbit, production is ready to begin.  Jackson and the creative team have decided to opt for the RED EPIC digital camera to shoot the Lord of the Rings prequel in 3D.  The EPIC is the successor to the RED ONE camera, and it boasts 5K resolution, the highest dynamic range of any digital cinema camera ever made, and can shoot up to 120 frames per second.  According to RED founder Jim Jannard, Jackson will have “at least” 30 EPIC cameras on hand during production.  Jannard says, “The EPIC’s small size and relatively low weight makes it perfect for 3-D – where two cameras have to be mounted on each 3D rig.”  Jackson happens to be a big fan of RED cameras, and you can bet he’s stoked to have 30 EPICs when production on The Hobbit starts in New Zealand early next year.

Have an itch to shoot your own footage using the EPIC?  A whopping $58,000 will get you an EPIC rig consisting of an EPIC-M body, titanium PL mount, Bomb EVF and 5-inch touchscreen LCD, a REDmote, a four-pack of batteries, a charger, and a solid state storage module with a four-pack of 128GB SSDs.  A limited run of EPICs will be made available in December or January for the early adopter filmmakers.  Everyone else who’s interested (and miraculously not affected by the economy) will have to wait until at least April to nab a rig.

[Via Engadget]

RIP Leslie Nielsen

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Comedy legend Leslie Nielsen passed away on Sunday due to complications from pneumonia.  At the time of death in a hospital near his home in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida he was surrounded by family and friends.  He was 84.

Nielsen is a television and film icon who will always be remembered for his deadpan perfection as Lt. Frank Drebin in The Naked Gun and Dr. Alan Rumack in Airplane!.

And don’t call me Shirley.

[Via THR]

Music video: The Black Eyed Peas – “The Time (Dirty Bit)”

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The official music video for the first single off The Black Eyed Peas’ next album is now available for our viewing pleasure.  The video for “The Time (Dirty Bit)” continues the 8-bit theme streak by featuring will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo, and Fergie morphing in and out of pixelated form.  If you’re a fellow technologically savvy nerd like me (admit it and be proud!), I’m sure you will catch the BlackBerry Playbook make a number of brief appearences in the video.  Each member of the Peas holds up the unreleased tablet and focuses it on their respective pixelated doppelgangers to reveal animated versions of themselves roaming in the real world–much like a QR code-assisted augmented reality app would accomplish.  Anyway, enjoy the music video to this thumping single.  The Beginning drops November 30.

[Via Dipdive]

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]

Adult Swim picks up Paul Scheer’s action parody ‘NTSF:SD:SUV’

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NTSF:SD:SUV.  That stands for National Terrorism Strikeforce: San Diego: Sport Utility Vehicle, and it’s an action parody series coming to Adult Swim.  If you happen to a fan of Rob Corddry’s Childrens Hospital there’s no way you can forget the totally insane mock commercial for NTSF:SD:SUV that aired during a season 2 episode a few months back.  The commercial, directed by Eric Appel, was strong enough by itself to sway the network past the pilot stage and directly to a 12 episode season order.  The show’s mastermind is Paul Sheer (Human Giant) and it follows in the footsteps of Childrens Hospital.  While the Corddry web series turned TV show is an over-the-top self-referential parody of medical dramas like Grey’s Anatomy and many others, Sheer’s NTSF:SD:SUV promises to play the same game spoofing all the crime procedurals.  Sheer will serve as creator, writer, and star and will executive produce with Jon Stern (Childrens Hospital).  The trailer embedded above features actors Rob Riggle, Brandon Johnson, and June Raphael but they are not confirmed as series regulars.  Expect NTSF:SD:SUV to air on Adult Swim sometime in 2011.  NTSF:SD:SUV.  Sorry, it’s so much fun to say.

[Via Deadline]

Free Tron LiveCycle app looks like fun!

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Today Coca-Cola launched a Tron: Legacy app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch owners.  But nevermind the Coke Zero sponsership; this game appears to look awesome in theory.  It’s being touted as the “first location-based video game” and the objective is simple: Build a Light Wall as you move about the real world and earn points by forcing other players to crash into it.  The app uses the iPhone’s GPS to track your location and show you on a Grid-themed map where other players are located.  Coke promises to push out updates to the app surrounding the release of the film it’s based on, and you can expect new single and multi-player modes to come with them.  Also, an Android version is on the way.  But enough blabbing; get a better idea of how the game works in the video above and download the *free* app right here.

[Via Gizmodo; TechRadar]

Dell Inspiron Duo available to purchase now, ships December 17

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Dell’s Inspiron duo convertible tablet is finally available to order.  And a final spec sheet reveals its guts: 10.1-inch HD (1366×768) capacitive multitouch display; Broadcom Crystal HD accelerator; Intel Atom N550 dual core processor (clocked at 1.5GHz); 2GB of RAM; 320GB (7200RPM) HDD; 1.3 megapixel camera with digital microphone; two USB ports and one headphone jack; and it comes preinstalled with Windows 7 Home Premium and Dell’s custom “duo Stage” software.  The Stage software comes into view when the laptop is transformed into a tablet form factor.  Dell is pimping its ability to “provide quick and easy access to your music, movies and photos” using touch input.  The Inspiron duo is on sale now for $549.99 with a preliminary ship date set for December 17.  Right now it’s available in “Foggy Night” (black), but Dell promises “Fastback Red” and “Marlin Blue” will be available at additional cost at an unspecified date.  For $100 extra Dell is offering the attractive hybrid netbook/tablet with an Audio Dock that features an integrated speaker and subwoofer, two USB ports, a 10/100 Ethernet adapter, and a 7-in-1 card reader.  So if you’re planning on hooking this bad boy up to the Internet and want it to double (erm, triple) as a digital photo frame, the splurge is worth it.  Full PR after the break.

[Via Dell; Engadget] Continue reading Dell Inspiron Duo available to purchase now, ships December 17 →

SlingPlayer comes to iPad

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Just one week after previewing SlingPlayer for iPad the developers at Sling Media pushed out the app into Apple’s App Store.  So if you own a SlingBox go and get it!

But not so fast!  There are two stipulations that must be discussed.  First, SlingPlayer for iPad is only compatible with Sling SOLO and Sling PRO-HD boxes; all the rest are left in the dust, unfortunately.  According to Engadget Sling will soon offer a $50 voucher for those who are itching to upgrade to a newer box.  What’s interesting is that SlingPlayer for iPhone has a wider compatibility range; it works with the aforementioned boxes and the SlingBox PRO.  And that brings me to point number two and more bad news.  If you already purchased the $29.99 app for iPhone, you’ll have to shell out another thirty bucks to use the iPad version of the same app.  Well, it’s not exactly the same app since the iPad version is tailored for a larger screen, but still.  Sling assures that users can use the iPhone app to stream content on the iPad in a “Compatibility Mode”, but these users will not experience the “higher quality resolutions” provided in the iPad version.  If I may quote Jigsaw from Saw, the choice is yours.  Full PR after the break.

[Via Engadget] Continue reading SlingPlayer comes to iPad →

Apple-1 computer auctions off for $211,000

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Earlier this month it was reported that a rare Apple-1 computer was going to be auctioned off at Christie’s in London.  Italian private collector Marco Boglione offered the highest and took away the ancient Apple-1 for a whopping  £133,250, or about $$211,535.  Back when Steves Jobs and Wozniak manufactured and distributed the Apple-1 it cost exactly $666.66, mind you.  But Boglione is a collector and certainly realizes how awesome it is to own the original Apple computer boxed up by current Apple CEO Steve Jobs back in 1976.  And this is a collector’s item–only 200 of these were made.  Wozniak was on hand at the auction event and signed a letter for the top bidder.  Now he has signatures from both Apple collaborators.  In addition to the computer parts, a letter to the original owner concluded with warm regards from a “Steven Jobs” was included with the auction item.  I still think this item belongs in a museum; oh well.

[Via Engadget; BBC]

Kanye West’s ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’ out today

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At long last, Kanye West’s latest and greatest album has released.  My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy has been lauded as Ye’s best album to date; in fact, prestigious music review site Pitchfork awarded it a perfect 10 score. Ryan Dombal’s review in which he makes intelligible comparisons between Michael Jackson and Mr. West makes for a great read after you’ve listened to the album in full.  Snag a copy of the album at the links provided below:

iTunes: standard / deluxe // Amazon: standard / deluxe (“See Me Now” is an iTunes bonus track available on both versions.  The deluxe version comes with the Runaway film.  And I recommend the physical copy; the packaging is aesthetically superb.  If you want to learn more about the five interchangeable album covers read this insightful NYMag interview with artist George Condo.)

Upon listening to Twisted Fantasy all the way through without interruption I experienced a natural high; it’s hard to explain but you’ll see for yourself.  It’s easy to be a Kanye West hater since the rapper producer often provides a basis from which things like this will grow.  But in the end, it all comes down to the music.  And I am happy to say with Twisted Fantasy Kanye West delivers on an unbelievably high level.  The man is a perfectionist, and this album reflects that statement.  From top to bottom, it’s a perfect record.