dv-depot.com » Toys

IRL: Thule Crossover backpack, Technocel Battery Boost and upgrading from Firefox 3.6

shaun — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 19:14:25 +0000

Welcome to IRL, an ongoing feature where we talk about the gadgets, apps and toys we’re using in real life and take a second look at products that already got the formal review treatment.

It’s funny how eerily quiet things get after Thanksgiving weekend. Except for some tablet going on sale next week, lots of companies are saving their finest wares for CES, which kicks off just after the New Year. Until then, we’ll keep on keeping with the stuff we already own. Mat finally realized a backpack that won’t send your gadgets crashing to the floor is a worthy investment, Andy’s settled on a cheapie portable charger and Darren’s at last upgraded to Firefox 7.0 (he’s so crazy!). Which backpack is slowly sweeping the staff? And what was Engadget’s managing editor doing using FF 3.6? Find the answers to that and more just past the break.

Continue reading IRL: Thule Crossover backpack, Technocel Battery Boost and upgrading from Firefox 3.6

IRL: Thule Crossover backpack, Technocel Battery Boost and upgrading from Firefox 3.6 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Nov 2011 14:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Engadget

Yaskawa Electric’s SmartPal VII lets you clean up grandma’s house using Kinect (video)

shaun — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 03:14:24 +0000

The world’s largest industrial robot manufacturer, Yaskawa Electric, wants to invade your grandmother’s home. Alright, maybe invade isn’t the word we’re looking for, but if your Grams is anything like ours she probably wouldn’t be happy about you dropping off a robot helper (she can take care of herself, don’t you know). The SmartPal VII is a telepresence bot that can be controlled remotely using a Kinect. (Seriously, what can’t Microsoft’s gaming controller do?) The head-mounted stereoscopic cameras and infrared sensor enable it to navigate a room autonomously, while the light-weight arms equipped with touch sensors make it safer for human interaction. The demo of the bot picking up toys and putting them in a bin isn’t the most exciting in the world, but it does show just how much control an operator has using simple hand gestures. Check out the video after the break.

Continue reading Yaskawa Electric’s SmartPal VII lets you clean up grandma’s house using Kinect (video)

Yaskawa Electric’s SmartPal VII lets you clean up grandma’s house using Kinect (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Nov 2011 22:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | DigInfo | Email this | Comments
Engadget

What Batman Would Ride, Were He a Skater—and Desperate [Toys]

shaun — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 07:14:20 +0000

| Email this | Comments
Engadget

DJ Starpause Mixes Dance Tunes From PSPs, Game Boys

shaun — Tue, 24 May 2011 07:14:20 +0000

Jordan Gray makes music from the plinking tones of hacked handheld videogames. A former punk rocker who turned damaged toys into instruments during his high school years, he went on to make music with synthesizers and MIDI sequencers before settling on his current instruments of choice — a vintage Nintendo Game Boy and a PlayStation Portable.

Wired Top Stories