Author: Kat Hannaford

Not entirely dissimilar to the 2008 patent which showed an iPhone being controlled by camera-based input, is this German student’s app, which controls the Maps app being controlled by the camera tracking hand movements through the app. More »

Considering the fact that Windows XP is still the most-used OS worldwide, anyone considering swapping out their old hard drives for a new one should heed this advice: be careful. You may want to even consider not doing it. More »

This Australian production/advertising agency, Umeric, has created two of the best commercials I’ve seen. The first, for MTVNHD (MTV Nickelodeon High Definition) is my favorite—anyone else reminded of War of the Worlds when watching it? More »

ZDNet is receiving tips claiming Apple will upgrade its Mac Pro line with an Intel Core i7-980x chipset, which certainly isn’t the first time we’ve heard Core i7-shaped gossip. Supposedly it’ll all be unraveled next Tuesday, the 16th of March. [ZDNet via BGR] More »

Cynics will likely say China’s forcing Motorola to include Bing search instead of Google in Chinese Android phones, due to the ongoing war o’ censorship with Google. Me? Well, Bing is the better search engine. Kidding! More »

The latest beta version of Opera Mini for Androids is now out as of today, with a new interface and multi-tabs support thrown in. It’s not entirely dissimilar to Opera Mobile 10 on Symbian and WinMo, though. More »

If they ever make a 21st century Mary Poppins sequel—and say, Tim Burton directs it—I would like to see her umbrella replaced with this dimmer lamp. Mary could get swept away, up the electrical fuse. Forever. [Yanko Design] More »

This isn’t just any old rusty antique of a car. It’s the oldest-dated flying car, and comes with the blueprints, 1921 patent and documents charting inventor Frank Skroback‘s creation. Here’s the catch though: it doesn’t fly. More »

Apart from the name—which I personally approve of very much—Zenitum’s iKat app has another cool edge to it. It’s (we think) the first augmented reality phone app to work without a marker, or real-world prompt. More »

When planning your next Japan visit, better put aside a night for a “factory night jungle cruise” if you want to be right up there with the latest Japanese otaku craze. They literally visit factories, at night. More »

South Korea has overhauled its public transport network with recharging roads, where the vehicles use power from buried electric strips in the road. It was invented at the University of California, before South Korea adopted it for an amusement park. More »

It’s not a micro four thirds, but Pentax has lifted the lid on the 645D medium format camera, which will be available this May for close to $10,000. Why so expensive, you ask? There’s that 40MP Kodak sensor for starters. More »

We often speak of material being used to conduct electricity, but what if underwear makers AussieBum—who’ve created underpants made from banana fiber—used carbon nanotubes as well? Think of the possibilities banana-derived electricity-conducting pants could bring you. [KoreaHerald] More »

Buried in a site devoted to early robots is my dream man, Electron. Russian, born in 1967, he has 4ft-wide shoulders, waltzes, plays chess, and while he only understands 112 commands, his steely gaze is reassuringly paternal. [CyberneticZoo via BotJunkie]

Water-scraper is a concept piece entered into the eVoIo Skyscraper Competition which shows a future where people live and work underwater. Harnessing wave, wind and solar power to generate electricity, it’s a future world I’d be thrilled to live in.

We’d also be able to grow food using aquaculture and hydroponic ways—though if it just tastes like algae I might stick with city-living for a while longer. [Water-scraper via Inhabitat]

The EyeTV Hybrid TV recording stick is now both Mac and Windows 7 compatible, with the EyeTV software bundled for Mac users, whereas Windows users can watch TV through Windows Media Center. It’s apparently the world’s smallest hybrid TV tuner.

It’s available now in the US and Canada for $150. [Elgato]

Thank christ Interscope said “3D DVD” and not “Full HD 3D”—I don’t think I could cope with protruding manladybits in full HD. Not that I’m planning on buying the DVD obviously—though there is a danger that the Interscope rep who told MTV News of Gaga’s 3D desires just doesn’t know the difference between Blu-rays and DVDs. [MTV News via NME]

Here I was, thinking having a color résumé made me stand out from the crowd. Ed Hamilton, an unemployed copywriter from London, put his CV on Google Maps. It makes more sense if you click here. [Google Maps via LitmanLive]

Japan may be famous for its bullet trains, but if China’s plans for a high-speed railway go forward, people could be zipping over from London to Beijing in under two days.

The train would go on from Beijing to Singapore, and also connect to India and Pakistan, opening up the East to non-fliers.

One of the senior consultants on the railway project, and also a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Wang Mengshu, said that they are “aiming for the trains to run almost as fast as aeroplanes,” and that with any luck, the railway should be “completed in a decade.”

In addition to the London to Beijing plan, they’re also hoping to build railways from Beijing to Russia and Germany, connected with the European railway system. A third project that goes south from China, to Vietnam, Thailand, Burma and Malaysia has already started, with a deal struck between Burma and China that will see the Chinese paying for the Burmese line, with the Chinese able to tap into their lithium reserves—which they can then use in production of batteries. [Telegraph]

Image credit: Occam