Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Guerilla Photography, Gorillapod Review

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/yankodesign/~3/CV-TuhWxqII/

I saw some generic knock off at my local electronics retailer and decided it was high time to try the real deal first before giving the knock off a chance. Joby was kind enough to answer my request and sent me their wildly popular Gorillapod SLR-ZOOM, the flexi-bendy tripod that gets your camera into more nooks and crannies you thought possible. Hit the jump for my review.

This isn’t a replacement for your traditional tripod. Tho the Gorillapod SLR-ZOOM is plenty strong to hold up an SLR camera, you’ll still want a traditional tripod for those glorious pro shots. The Gorillapod is about portability with the added advantage of getting you those unique shots that will have people wondering how you got it - say those two squirrels hanging out in the tree, or that beetle busily working away in the morning dew.

Each leg is made up of 10 ball joints that have 360ยบ of rotational freedom standing 10 inches tall when fully extended. They’re a bit stiff to manipulate and didn’t get any looser after constant use, which is a good thing since the last thing I want happening is for the entire contraption to fail, sending my expensive camera smashing into the ground. There’s a universal screw set to fit any camera that’ll take a traditional mount. The Gorillapod SLR-ZOOM doesn’t come with the quick release mount found on the original Gorillapod which frees you from screwing it on/off. This was intentional since most SLR owners will want to invest in their own professional mount head.

Once you get the hang of manipulating all those ball joints, setting up your camera for that perfect shot is a snap. You’d be amazed at the angles you can get your camera in. Tho it’s entirely made of plastic and rubber, the Gorillapod is strong and very grippy. Never once did I feel like it would give out, even when I had the camera upside down. This would make an awesome gift for someone just stepping up to the digital SLR world. With 3 models to choose from (compact camera, SLR cameras, and big video cameras), they’re priced just right.

What we liked:

  • Affordable, 3 models to choose from $24-$54
  • Flexible joints provide an innovative way to set up shots in almost any angle
  • Extremely strong and durable
  • Joints don’t seem to wear out with constant use
  • Very lightweight and compact
  • Stands about 10 inches tall when legs are fully extended

What could be improved:

  • Joints are a bit stiff, tough to manipulate
  • Joby should develop their own mount head and include it with the SLR-ZOOM

Designer: Joby [ Buy it Here ]

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Samsung Pixon May Be First 8MP US Camera Phone [Smartphones]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/YvSXA1STVg0/samsung-pixon-may-be-first-8mp-us-camera-phone

Compliments of the FCC, we have some confirmation of rumors that Samsung will be releasing the 8MP Pixon M8800L smartphone to the US market.

While initial reports suggested that the Pixon camera/phone would be arriving to T-Mobile, new hardware specs reveal it uses AT&T-compatible 850 and 1900 MHz WCDMA. Sorry T-Mobile fans.

As the similar M8800 is already out overseas, we can get a taste of what are probably the M8800L's full specs:

• 107.9x54.6x14.9mm, 110 g
• 3.2-inch touch screen display (240 x 400 pixels)
• 8 megapixel camera, auto focus, face recognition with smile detection and blink detection, WDR (wide dynamic range), ASR (advanced shake reduction), GPS geotagging, ISO 1600, WVGA (720x480 pixels) and VGA (640 x 480 pixels) @30fps video recording
• Built-in GPS receiver
• Accelerometer
• DivX playback
• FM radio with RDS
• microSD card slot
• Bluetooth
• Landscape virtual QWERTY keyboard
• Handwriting recognition
• Office document

It should be noted, Sony is not out of the 8MP cameraphone race just yet.

So would you rather your smartphone be a bit large with a nice camera? Or would you rather your large camera just have 3G uploading options? [FCC via BGR]



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Gmail Gets a Built-in PDF Reader, Lets You Avoid Acrobat Reader [Gmail]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/kH3ko3Gskzc/gmail-gets-a-built+in-pdf-reader-lets-you-avoid-acrobat-reader

I've always found PDFs to be supremely annoying thanks to Acrobat Reader's slow, crashy behavior. Now, Gmail is allowing users to skip the Reader altogether.

Now, when you click "View" on an attached PDF, you'll get to view it inside your browser with no mess. All the pages show up thumbnailed on the right, and you can view the current page in the main pane. It's quick and easy, as it should be.

Unfortunately, it only works in Gmail. How about a browser plugin so we can avoid Acrobat Reader all the time? [Gmail Blog via Boy Genius]



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Consumers Choose Products With More Tech Specs [Study]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/smj8AHWT-fI/consumers-choose-products-with-more-tech-specs

A recent study in the Journal of Consumer Research reveals that we are heavily influenced into choosing products with heavy technical specs—even when those specs mean nothing.

Five related studies were performed in which participants had to choose between two items in various categories, including digital cameras, towels, sesame oil, cell phones, and potato chips. And in every study, the participants preferred the items with the most specifications.

The study's author concludes that there is indeed a practical lesson for marketers here, though I'm pretty sure that digital cameras alone have pretty much proven that point already. [Lab Spaces Thanks Elizabeth!]



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I Love Katamari for iPhone/iPod Touch Lightning Review [Lightning Review]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/Z0oOZgZ7VBw/i-love-katamari-for-iphoneipod-touch-lightning-review

The App: Under the cover of night this weekend, the Katamari series landed in the App Store with I Love Katamari—bringing the venerable roll-up-a-bunch-of-shit-in-a-ball gameplay many love so dearly to Apple's mobile platform.

The Cost: $8


The Verdict:
A thrill, but slooooow. With releases for the Wii and PS3 still in the deep rumor stages, this is the first installment to add any type of accelerometer-based motion control to a Katamari game—something that feels totally natural.

For those not familiar, the object of Katamari is to push a sticky ball around various worlds, picking up various delicious-looking Japanese foods, household items, houses themselves, countries, etc—the more objects you pick up, the fatter your katamari gets, and the bigger the objects you can then pick up in turn (Katamari Damacy, the original's title, means "clump spirit" in Japanese—love that). It sounds simple, but log a few hours on any othe other editions (two for PS2, one for PSP and Xbox 360) and you will not be able to stop. This time, there are four stages, each with modes for unlimited-time rolling, time attack, specific size targets and specific item scavenger hunts.

You will also realize that the series was born for motion-control. I Love Katamari has among the best tilt-based controls I personally have played with, using a hybrid touch/tilt system: tilt forward and to the sides to roll in those directions, while at the same time tap your Katamari repeatedly to dash, tap the sides of the screens to move laterally, etc. It's pretty easy to roll around and pick things up with some modicum of precision, although obviously not as much as a dual analog stick would provide. And it blows Monkey Ball out of the water.

But things would be a lot better if the game wasn't constantly, constantly glitching up. Whenever you graduate to a new size level of Katamari, the framerate drops heavily to the point where you can barely tell what's going on. That, there, will very likely be a dealbreaker for a lot of folks on an $8 game. But, for lovers of the series, that same, unique satisfaction of rolling up the cat's food and then the cat itself is still in there. Let's hope they iron out the performance in an update. [I Love Katamari - iTunes]

Here's a video via the folks at Venturebeat:



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Hourglass Lantern Drains LED Light Instead of Sand [Lamps]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/rP0KVOKrNXs/hourglass-lantern-drains-led-light-instead-of-sand

This interesting lantern concept from designer Young Bok Kim puts a modern twist on the ancient hourglass by draining the light from LEDs instead of sand.

By adjusting the dial in the center, you can control how fast the light "flows" from top to bottom. However, I can't see it as being all that practical because it would be hard to tell precisely how "full" the bottom is getting. Still, it would definitely be cool as a conversation piece. [Yanko]



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Nokia's N85 and N79 ship Stateside at long last

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/15/nokias-n85-and-n79-ship-stateside-at-long-last/


It feels like a good couple millennia since we first spotted these phones sporting US-friendly 3G, and now Nokia has done the unthinkable and actually released them in the States. As has become custom for Nokia around these parts, the phones aren't carrier branded or subsidized in the least, so you're looking at $550-ish for the N85 and $400-ish for the N79, depending upon the retailer. For some reason the N79 is listed as in-stock at Nokia's own store, while the N85 says "backordered," but over on Amazon.com you can nab the N85 -- with the N79 "temporarily out of stock" for whatever reason. It's a crazy, mixed-up world we live in.

[Via Daily Mobile; thanks Daniel]

Read - Nokia PR
Read - N85 at Amazon
Read - N79 at Nokia

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Nokia's N85 and N79 ship Stateside at long last originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Dec 2008 11:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Journal finds that consumers prefer vague product specs to utter ignorance

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/15/journal-finds-that-consumers-prefer-vague-product-specs-to-utter/


A new study in the Journal of Consumer Research has confirmed something we suspected all along: consumers love specs, even vague ones, and when deciding between two products people will gravitate towards the one for which more specifications were given. According to the journal, the research sheds light on both how preferences are formed in theory, and on how marketers can sell you more crapgadgets and KIRFs. Of course, if you've begun your holiday shopping only to find yourself frightened and confused by all of the meaningless data floating around, you might want to take a peek at our Holiday Gift Guide. One hundred percent of Engadget editors agree that it's the best Holiday Gift Guide on the site, this year.

[Via Physorg]

Read - The Blissful Ignorance Effect: Pre- versus Post-action Effects on Outcome Expectancies Arising from Precise and Vague Information (Warning: subscription required)

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Journal finds that consumers prefer vague product specs to utter ignorance originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Dec 2008 13:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Viewsonic introduces 24-inch, 1080p VT2430 LCD TV

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/15/viewsonic-introduces-24-inch-1080p-vt2430-lcd-tv/


It may be leaving things a little late, but Viewsonic is apparently hoping that its new 24-inch VT2430 LCD TV will attract the eyes of a few holiday shoppers and, judging from the specs, it seems to stand a pretty good chance of doing just that. Leading that list is full 1080p resolution, which is certainly a nice bonus on a set this size, as is the promised 10,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, assuming the results actually live up to that number. Otherwise, you can expect a built-in ATSC / NTSC / QAM TV tuner, HDMI 1.3 connectivity, 250 nits brightness, and the usual VGA, component, s-video, and composite inputs to accommodate your non-HDMI devices. Best of all, it packs an MSRP or just $399, which likely means you'll find it even cheaper if you do a bit of shopping around.

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Viewsonic introduces 24-inch, 1080p VT2430 LCD TV originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Dec 2008 15:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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LightDrops umbrella classes up your act, generates electricity

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/15/lightdrops-umbrella-classes-up-your-act-generates-electricity/


The brainchild of designer Sang-Kyun Park, LightDrops is an umbrella that uses the piezoelectric effect of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) to transform falling rain into electricity, which is then used to light LEDs installed on the umbrella's underside. The heavier the rain falls (and the harder it hits the umbrella), the brighter the light shines. Combine it with the solar tie, and who knows? This might someday become de rigueur for the stylish tech professional. Ella, ella, ella...

[Via StyleCrave]

Continue reading LightDrops umbrella classes up your act, generates electricity

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LightDrops umbrella classes up your act, generates electricity originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Dec 2008 21:43:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mac mini update rumors flare as Apple sales dip

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/15/mac-mini-update-rumors-flare-as-apple-sales-dip/

Although Apple just posted some ridiculous quarterly numbers, it doesn't seem like it's going to escape the current economic conditions in the US unscathed -- like pretty much everyone else, monthly sales are down in Cupertino, according to the NPD Group. The drop is only one percent total, but it's against a two percent rise in overall PC sales, which could indicate that Apple's premium pricing is hurting it as shoppers turn to netbooks and other bargain machines. That dovetails nicely with chatter we're hearing today about updated Mac minis making a debut at Macworld -- although Steve famously proclaimed that Apple doesn't "know how to make a $500 machine that's not a piece of junk" during the last earnings call, it sure sounds like he's going to try, with a $499 2.0GHz mini in a new MacBook-esque unibody enclosure rumored to arrive onstage in January. If you believe Wired, it'll be accompanied by a $700 2.3GHz version with NVIDIA graphics, and both models will feature mini DisplayPorts -- nothing shocking there. We'll see when we see -- we've been waiting for the mini to be updated forever, and while Apple did just uncharacteristically slam rumors of a new model, times like these could lead to drastic measures.

Read - Mac mini rumors
Read - Apple monthly sales drop

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Mac mini update rumors flare as Apple sales dip originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Dec 2008 23:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PowerGenix reveals potent NiZn rechargeable AA batteries

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/16/powergenix-reveals-potent-nizn-rechargeable-aa-batteries/


Move over Li-ion, Zinc is about to get all up in your area. Energizer has already announced the Zinc Air Prismatic, and now PowerGenix is gearing up to debut its variation at Ritz Camera locales across the nation. The Nickel-Zinc (NiZn) AA cells, difficultly coined Quantaray Super Z, pack up to 30% more voltage than other rechargeables (right in line with one-time use batteries) and are entirely nontoxic. Oddly enough, no price is mentioned, but you should probably go in expecting the worst in order to not be totally taken aback upon finding out. Full release is after the break.

Continue reading PowerGenix reveals potent NiZn rechargeable AA batteries

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PowerGenix reveals potent NiZn rechargeable AA batteries originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Dec 2008 00:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mvix quietly reveals media playing / recording MvixPVR

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/16/mvix-quietly-reveals-media-playing-recording-mvixpvr/


Mvix has a history of pumping out reliable, multi-faceted media streamers, but it has evidently decided to branch out a touch with its latest piece. Taking a note from the HD PVR from Hauppauge, the box packs component video inputs that will likely capture high-def video from set-top-boxes and the like. It's also an HDD-based media player (bring your own hard drive, of course), which outputs content up to 1080p via HDMI. You'll also find integrated WiFi, a USB port for streaming files on external drives and UPnP / BitTorrent functionality. Mvix hasn't stated when this puppy will go on sale nor how expensive it will be, but those looking for a multi-purpose media streamer / recorder should probably keep a check on this one.

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Mvix quietly reveals media playing / recording MvixPVR originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Dec 2008 01:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Intel delivering Classmate PC netvertible tablet at CES 2009

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/16/intel-delivering-classmate-pc-netvertible-tablet-at-ces-2009/


The FCC totally blew the cover of Intel's 8.9-inch convertible Classmate PC, but apparently the outfit doesn't even care. In fact, it's so anxious to get the word out that it's already showing off a pre-production rig. Reportedly, the outfit will be teaming up with longtime partner CTL in order to ship its first batch of education-minded netvertibles in January, and no, the traditional Classmate PC won't be going anywhere. The newcomer is said to have an impressively sturdy chassis, and the blue on white motif is much less sickening than the previous greenish / yellow abomination. Additionally, we're told that it'll come packing a 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270 CPU, a 60GB HDD and Windows XP. Tap the read link for a nice gallery of shots.

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Intel delivering Classmate PC netvertible tablet at CES 2009 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Dec 2008 02:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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