FocuSoft Tech Blog |
| Posted: 15 May 2009 07:08 AM PDT
We’d heard rumblings that Tony Hawk was working on something with motion controls — which seems only natural after EA’s Skate hit the scene with its intuitive Flickit control scheme, and Shaun White’s game put the Wii’s Balance Board to good use, both making the Tony Hawk method of arcade-style button mashing feel a little dated. Well, Tony’s new Ride is looking to change all that, with a skateboard peripheral that looks like… a skateboard. It’s hard to tell from just looking at it how precisely interactive the controller will be — it seems basic balancing and leaning would be in, while Christ Air-ing your little sister in the face wouldn’t go over so well. According to the man himself, Hawk is quite good at the game, and skateboarders should find the transition easy. A promo video is after the break, and apparently on June 2nd we’ll be seeing this thing in action. [Via Joystiq] Original post:
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| Crazy man in peroxide jetpack makes Guinness World Record attempt Posted: 15 May 2009 06:42 AM PDT  Scotland’s Knockhill Racing Circuit is a little too small for setting land-based speed records, but there’s apparently plenty of room above it for some airborne attempts. It was the site of a new Guinness World Record attempt for the fastest man in a jetpack, with pilot Eric Scott scoring a maximum speed of 68mph, verified by a police radar gun. His propulsion is basically the same hydrogen peroxide-based tech that enabled Bond to make a daring escape in Thunderball in the ’60s, which sadly still means 30 - 40 seconds maximum flying time — faster, but a little less impressive than the 30+ miles offered by the competition. It’s now up to the officials at Guinness to decide whether the record is worthy of inclusion, but you can watch the video below and decide for yourself. [Via OhGizmo!]
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| Yuuguu Adds Skype Calling To Its Screen Sharing Service Posted: 15 May 2009 06:35 AM PDT
That obviously means that as well as chatting via IM during screen sharing you can now make free and low cost VOIP calls to your interlocutor. However, there is a drawback as Skype-based screen sharing (as opposed to using IM from another platform) is only Mac-based and one to one at the moment. But unlike most screen sharing applications, Yuuguu does not require participants to download any software - only the host needs access to Yuuguu. Participants get sent a standard web link that will allow them to view the host's screen. Crunch Network: CrunchBase the free database of technology companies, people, and investors Read more from the original source:
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| Blacksocks.com: An Infinite Supply of Black Socks Posted: 15 May 2009 06:32 AM PDT
Today, friends, I’m pleased to let you know that the magic of Internet shopping and the convenience of subscription services have merged together for the benefit of your sock drawer! Blacksocks.com makes sure that you’re regularly stocked with fresh, black socks! Click through for a gripping video review! More:
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| CrunchDeals: Magellan Maestro 4350 for $180 Posted: 15 May 2009 06:20 AM PDT
Here's a nice deal on a decked out GPS system from Magellan. You can get the Maestro 4350, a 4.3-inch touchscreen unit that doubles as a Bluetooth speakerphone and features integrated traffic data, for $180 with free shipping. The deal is from Amazon, good today only — the regular price is up over $200. Other features include a built-in music player and FM transmitter, 2GB of memory, maps of the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico, integrated AAA Tourbook Guide, SD card reader, and 2D or 3D street navigation. The 3D view includes renderings of buildings, bridges, stadiums and whatnot and the integrated traffic data comes with a free three-month subscription. After that, a one-year subscription costs $60. Magellan Maestro 4350 [Amazon.com] Go here to see the original:
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| ASUS Eee PC 1005HA-M and 1005HA-H steal Seashell’s sublimity Posted: 15 May 2009 06:18 AM PDT
Sheesh ASUS, are you being serious here? Not a day after your Eee PC Seashell really emerged on the scene in official fashion, here you go trying to rob it of its 15 minutes. Yes, friends — rather than letting the 1008HA be a diamond in the rough in the Eee arena, it seems as if the company has a whole mess of thin-and-light netbooks planned. Both the 1005HA-M and 1005HA-H have been revealed overseas, with the former taking a lower-end approach with a 1.6GHz Atom N270, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB hard drive, no Bluetooth, WiFi, a 6-cell battery (supposedly good for 8 hours of use), a 1.3 megapixel webcam and a €299 ($405) price tag. The 1005HA-H — not to be confused with the already detailed 1005HA-M, naturally) — includes most of the same internal gear as the Seashell, though it does step things up with two extra USB 2.0 ports, a 6-cell battery (versus a 5-cell in the Seashell) and 0.3kg of extra heft for €349 ($473). Both machines should launch in France by July, and we’d say the real kicker is that both purportedly boast removable batteries, very much unlike the Seashell. See there, we knew they’d set themselves apart somehow! The full specs list is after the break.
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| Olympus to launch a Micro Four Thirds cam soon, no mention of the retro concept Posted: 15 May 2009 06:10 AM PDT
Panasonic has already jumped into the Micro Four Thirds market with the Lumix DMC-GH1. That camera got most in the digicam community excited about the standard that promises interchangeable lens on a smaller camera that's equipped with an DLSR sensor. Now, a report suggests that Olympus is finally prepping a camera based on that standard. Too bad that we don't know if the model will be based on the breathtaking retro concept seen previously. All we know comes from an AVING.com post that claims an Olympus Micro Four Thirds camera will be released in July, which is what we heard previously. Of course there isn't any mention of the price or model details. If Olympus knows what's good for 'em, the model will follow the same styling cues set forth by the throwback concept. *fingers crossed* Here is the original:
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| Billing Revolution’s ‘Single-Click’ Mobile Payment Service Now Accessible Via SMS Ads Posted: 15 May 2009 06:00 AM PDT
Billing Revolution, a startup that offers a single-click billing and payment service for commerce transactions on mobile phones, is partnering with MoVoxx, a mobile advertising network that leverages SMS messaging, to place commerce ads on mobile phones. MoVoxx advertisers can implement Billing Revolution's one-click billing and payment service in SMS advertisements so that consumers can purchase products directly from the ads received on their phones. MoVoxx serves short, interactive ads under opt-in SMS messages for retailers such as Kraft, Sears and 1-800-Flowers. Founded in 2008, Billing Revolution is trying to streamline mobile purchases by offering an easy- one click solution (similar to Amazon's feature). Once consumers are ready to buy something from the Web from a vendor that employs Billing Revolution's service for payment, they are taken to Billing Revolution's purchase page where they input credit card information from their phone. Once complete, Billing Revolution automatically sends an SMS receipt to their phone, which contains a link. After clicking that link, authentication is complete and with all future purchases, consumers will need only to click 'buy' for a transaction to be completed. It sounds pretty simple and easy but there are some drawbacks to Billing Revolution's service. Billing Revolution charges a 3.5% transaction fee plus 50 cents per transaction. With those fees it's tough to take a cut from micropayments, which are already small to begin with. This is a particular problem with mobile applications, a business that Billing Revolution hoped to capitalize on, because an app developer wouldn't want to take a 50% cut on a song or app that was sold for $1 or $2 on the iTunes app store. But for larger purchases, Billing Revolution's service could turn out to be profitable for e-commerce businesses who have mobile transactions. Mobile carriers generally take a revenue share in e-commerce transactions taking place on mobile devices. In some cases this can be as high as 60%. With commerce powered by Billing Revolution, retailers can bypass large carrier fees (but still have to pay the 3.5% percent and 50 cents transaction fee).
Crunch Network: CrunchGear drool over the sexiest new gadgets and hardware. Here is the original post:
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| Is Microsoft getting ready to launch a portable gaming device? Posted: 15 May 2009 06:00 AM PDT
There's a very interesting article over at TeamXbox.com detailing some information about a supposed portable gaming device that Microsoft's been working on. This device will apparently fall somewhere in between the Xbox 360 and the Zune. The following information supposedly comes from anonymous sources within Microsoft:
Keep in mind that all this information supposedly comes from anonymous sources within Microsoft. Everything seems pretty credible and E3 is coming up in a couple weeks, which would be a perfect venue to announce such a device. However, as always, take this type of news with a grain of salt until more information is released. Microsoft Working on Digital Entertainment Handheld [TeamXbox.com] Go here to see the original:
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| Posted: 15 May 2009 06:00 AM PDT The Toshiba Mini B comes with a cased that comes in two tone metallic silver and brown design, the third generation mini laptop "Mini B" is being promoted as being a premium mini laptop, but then again aren't they all!
Toshiba MiniB netbook features: Source [Aving]
Go here to see the original:
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Thank the maker that we live in an age when we can order anything online and have it delivered right to our door. Even better, subscription services free us form the tedium of having to remember to actually go buy stuff.
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