We’ve seen plenty of building-sized televisions — like the 80,000-square-foot ceiling screen in Beijing, or that record-breaking monstrosity that the Cowboys installed in Dallas — but those single-dimension LCD’s have nothing on this “5D” cube opening on Friday. Constructed from 156 Sharp 60-inch HD displays, the 5D Miracle Tour can only be found at Huis Ten Bosch, a “residential-style resort built after a medieval 17th-century Dutch town” located in Sasebo City, Japan. The unique attraction accommodates 32 guests at a time, and consists of one main front screen, surrounded by additional panels on the top, bottom, left and right. Lasting eight minutes, the tour presents the story of a mermaid named Sirena, though content will occasionally change — given the transient nature of mermaids, of course. We’ve only been able to dream of the modern-day curiosities we’d encounter while visiting 17th-century Holland, but we certainly hope this magical place won’t elude us the next time we’re near Nagasaki.

Continue reading Sharp walk-in display over-stimulates 32 guests at a time in Japanese them park

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By Chris Scott Barr

Stuffed animals are for little children, right? Wrong. This awesome ChumBuddy is awesome, regardless of your age. After all, who wouldn’t want a 7-foot stuffed shark? Okay, so maybe some of you aren’t quite sold on the idea. I understand where you’re coming from, as a giant stuffed animal is still just a big toy. The real selling point here is that the opening for its mouth actually extends the entire way down through the body.

That’s right, this gigantic plush can eat you! It can be used to reenact scenes from Jaws, or as a sleeping bag if needed. It’s not your average lightweight plush either, this monstrosity weighs in at over 30lbs and is hand-swen. The only thing that’s not awesome about this item is the price. You can pre-order it now for $200. I still think it would be completely worth every penny.

[ PatchTogether ] VIA [ UberReview ]

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KFC's new Double Down sandwich.

(Credit:

Sweet Tater)

This is an image of a new KFC sandwich called the Double Down. If you can’t tell, it puts a twist on the classic sandwich and replaces the bread bun with two boneless white-meat chicken fillets (your choice of Original Recipe or grilled) hugging two slices of bacon, Monterey Jack AND pepper jack cheese, topped off with the Colonel’s own “secret recipe sauce.” Coronary artery bypass graft on the side, please.

Rather than try this monstrosity ourselves, we’ll refer you to NPR’s nutritional rundown–not surprisingly, the taste testers tell us that the sandwich contains 1,380 milligrams of salt, nearly the maximum daily amount recommended by the American Heart Association. Anyone else think they should have kept the meat on the inside and used two hash brown buns? Maybe for Double Down 2.0!

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Conan returns to late night this November on TBS.

(Credit:

Babble)

There’s a lot to talk about on today’s episode of The 404 Podcast that won’t give you a heart attack–news like Conan O’Brien announcing a new late-night talk show to debut this November.

Fans of Team Coco who didn’t get tickets to see him live on the “Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on Television Tour” will be able to watch the comedian every night on the basic cable network TBS. George Lopez’s “Lopez Tonight” will follow the show at midnight.

We also continue our conversation about the dangers of multitasking with an older story about a woman in Florida who crashed her car into the back of truck while landscaping her lady parts. Ex-con Megan Jones told the cops she was meeting her boyfriend and wanted to be ready for the visit, which we certainly respect, but some things are just better left at home or in a truck stop bathroom stall.

We’re down to crunch time for tax season and we’ve got CBS MoneyWatch.com’s Jill Schlesinger, aka The Financial Decoder, on the show tomorrow to help you cram and answer your pressing questions, so send all your financial Qs to the404(at)cnet(dot)com!

EPISODE 558

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Originally posted at The 404 Podcast

So you’re hopping on a flight and you sit next to a sexy member of the opposite sex. You’ve got to get some work done so you whip out your nasty laptop, a fat and ugly IT department-supplied monstrosity (probably from Dell or HP). Your seatmate looks over, idly contemplating your potential as a lifemate, and sees your junk laptop and starts reading the Skymall catalog. After all, laptop makers for years have been saying that a persons value as a genetic donor is wrapped up in the look and feel of their hardware.

That’s right: if you don’t buy something from the Dell Vostro 3000-series, you will die alone.

These laptops come in two sizes, 13- and 14-inch, and run up to a Core i7 processor (in the 3700). They start at $649 and are available now on Dell’s website. How great will your life be when you buy these laptops? Dell SVP Alex Gruzen has the answer:

“These entrepreneurs want technology that makes them more productive and helps them compete, and the Vostro 3000 delivers in a package they will be proud to show off in the airport or the boardroom.”

Proud, Alex? Not pride. Satisfaction. Satisfaction in knowing that 80% of Dockers-wearing businessman progeny will be spawned, it seems, from the loins of Mother Dell herself. It’s Vostro’s world. We just live in it.

Dell Celebrates Entrepreneurial Spirit with New Vostro Laptops

Vostro 3000 Series Offers World-Class Security, Services and Reliability to Help Small Businesses Succeed

Date : 3/9/2010
Round Rock, Texas
Following the successful launch of the ultrathin and light Vostro™ V13, Dell is offering business customers even more choice with the stylish Vostro 3000 series – a range of new thin, lightweight and durable laptop computers. Featuring powerful processors, high-end graphics and built-in security, the Vostro 3000 series is designed for small businesses that require robust mobile computing solutions.

Today’s SMBs and entrepreneurs want notebooks that are powerful and attractive, and the new Vostro 3000 series was designed to meet and exceed both those needs. For the most demanding tasks, the Vostro 3000 series sports the latest powerful Intel® Core™ processor technology, including, the optional, Core i7 Quad Core processor available on the Vostro 3700. For those that demand portability and productivity, the Vostro 3300 is one of the industry’s thinnest commercial 13” laptop with an integrated optical drive. For those that can’t afford to be chained to their desks, the 14” Vostro 3400 offers a full day of mobile productivity with up to 8 hours of battery life with an optional 9-cell battery.

“To succeed, small businesses need simple, reliable and affordable technology solutions,” said Alex Gruzen, SVP, Consumer, Small and Medium Business, Dell, Inc. “These entrepreneurs want technology that makes them more productive and helps them compete, and the Vostro 3000 delivers in a package they will be proud to show off in the airport or the boardroom.”

“Dell continues to sharpen its focus on SMB customers with the new Vostro 3000 series,” said Ray Boggs, VP of SMB Research at IDC. “Small and mid-sized firms are returning to the PC market after a year in the recessionary wilderness, and they are ready for the kinds of capabilities, including Microsoft Windows 7, that will get them to the next level of productivity.”

“As the first PC brand designed exclusively for small businesses, over the last year, Dell has introduced several new Vostro laptops and desktops to serve their distinctive needs. Ranging from our recently announced, super dependable Vostro 230 or future-proof and powerful Vostro 430 desktops, or the ultra-thin Vostro V13 laptop, Vostro products are designed for small businesses helping them stretch their budget and protect their data, and come with dedicated small business services and support to keep a small businesses moving,” added Gruzen.

Worry-Free Business IT
All of the Vostro 3000 laptops have embedded webcam and microphone for collaboration through videoconferencing, while the Vostro 3500 and 3700 offer the option of high definition WLED screens and the 3700 offers the option of up to 1GB of NVIDIA® GeForce® discrete graphics to help ensure one of the best visual experiences. With the built-in HDMI port, users can even make high definition presentations to clients when required.

These new Vostro notebooks are also backed by a dedicated and specially trained small-business sales and support team of experts, which is a key pain point for small businesses that typically have little or no IT support. Inclusion in Dell’s FastTrack program enables select configurations of the Vostro 3000 series to ship within 48 hours of ordering , further removing worry from buying a new laptop.

Durability is another feature more customers are demanding from their laptops. The Vostro 3000 series laptops sport durable hinges and are encased in aluminum for extra protection while away from the office. Shipped with a 30-day return policy , the Vostro 3000 notebooks also feature a suite of customizable service and support solutions to keep business data protected and business moving at an affordable price.

Vostro 3000 Series: At a Glance
Stay in Touch: With the integrated webcam and microphone , users can make Internet calls, conduct video conferences and remotely exchange files to help increase productivity.
Always Be Connected: Users can go wireless with a full range of connectivity options: 802.11g/n wireless LAN, Bluetooth, and WWAN mobile broadband.
Memory to Spare: Run Windows® 7 effortlessly while performing everyday tasks quickly with support for up to 6GB of DDR3 SDRAM memory.
Protect Your Work: Keep your critical data under lock and key with optional finger print reader and full-data-encrypted hard drives.
“Set & Forget” Online Data Protection: Easy, secure and automated Dell DataSafe online backup protects and helps recover business-critical data.
Coverage Now and Later: Users can extend their basic Limited Hardware Warranty from 1-3 years to stay covered into the future.
Remote On-Call Support: Small businesses can get help when they need it with DellConnect, which allows tech-support agents to troubleshoot and help resolve system issues remotely.
ProSupport to Simplify IT: Businesses can choose their own level of 24×7 IT support with optional Dell ProSupport™ services.

Available in the US and parts of Asia starting from today and available in Europe and Latin America and other geographies from March 16. Visit www.dell.com/vostro for additional information.

The Short Version: You’ll be hard pressed to find a higher fidelity desktop audio rig than this. But the wireless capability is rather limited in its application, and the price runs a little high for a 2.1 system.

Features:

• 2 satellite speakers and 1 subwoofer
• THX certified
• 2.4 GHz wireless transmitter
• Aux in / headphone out ports
• MSRP of $199.00

Pros:

• Excellent sound quality
• Wireless is plug-and-play
• Independent volume and subwoofer control

Cons:

• Wireless is a bit useless
• Subwoofer only goes down to 31 Hz
• Wall mounting doesn’t come stock

Review: Klipsch released these speakers back in 2000. This particular model however, is new this year. The only difference being the addition of wireless capability. The sound quality out of this rig is fantastic. The frequency response on the subwoofer only drops down to 31 Hz, so you won’t get that extreme rumble on the low end of the spectrum. But you’re not running a dance club on your desk are you?

Now “wireless” is a bit of a misnomer with speaker systems. There are still wires running from the satellites to the amplifier, which is in the subwoofer enclosure. So if you were hoping to reduce the wire clutter on your desk, you’re out of luck. This rig only eliminates one line from the monstrosity of cables you probably have to deal with. That being said, the wireless system is a breeze to set up. I just plugged in the wireless USB dongle, set my audio output to the new speakers, and I was bothering my roommates in no time. The dongle is slightly oversized though, so if your USB ports are horizontally configured, prepare to lose one. Good news though, is that it’ll work when connected to an unpowered hub.

If the wireless transmission inherently compresses your audio to stream it, it wasn’t immediately apparent to me. And if you’re playing MP3s, it wont make a difference anyway.

But do you really need wireless desk speakers? If you’re keeping your computer at your desk, absolutely not. The range on the transmitter is only 30 feet, and isn’t designed to go through walls. The only other place in my room I sit with my computer is on my bed, and having a USB dongle in is a bit annoying. Plus, moving anywhere away from your desk will put out of the sweet spot of the speakers. And if you want to wall mount these, be prepared to shell out another $22.

One thing I don’t like about this system is the preamp connector Klipsch decided to use. It’s an 8-pin jack that I’m not familiar with, and doesn’t have the sturdiest feel to it. It doesn’t seem to want to sit in the connector. This is what connects the controls on the satellite to the amplifier, so if you bend a pin or something, you’re out of luck.

If you’re a serious gamer, you probably have a surround sound system of some sort, be it speakers or headphones. So this system isn’t for you. If you just want great sounding desktop speakers, go find the non-wireless version of these. They’re exactly the same and go for something like 50 bucks since they’ve been around since the original Half-Life.

Product Page: ProMedia 2.1 Wireless Speaker System