Leopard O.S.

Filed under: Robots

Sorry, but squats are so 20th Century. Instead, strap on the HULC — Human Universal Load Carrier — exoskeleton and effortlessly carry an extra 200lbs. HULC not only increases your human payload, but it also “decreases [your] metabolic cost”. In other words, it seems Berkeley Bionics developed this thing for extremely lazy people, those who lose their breath easily, or for those on what they call “long duration missions”. This is no joke, though — the company is taking orders for the suit already.

[Via Switched]

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Filed under: Peripherals

It only makes sense to go all expensive on the things you look at most often, like your TV, car, or — in this case — your keyboard. For only (!!) $155, you too can get a handmade Nishi-Ki USB keyboard. Yours is sure to be the object of typist envy cube farm-wide. Nishi-ki keyboards pack 86 keys and work via USB or PS/2 interfaces. Sorry, Mac users, no Command keys.

[Via BoingBoing]

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It’s starting to sound like that DigiTimes report, which holds that ASUS is ceasing production of the Eee PC 900 in favor of the upcoming Atom-based 901, might just be false. Notebook Italia has it from an ASUS rep that the account is totally untrue, and that both 900 and 901 models will be produced and sold alongside one another (for now, anyway). And given that it’s DigiTimes, we might just be able to put this one to bed.

[Thanks, Sergio]

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Filed under: Cellphones

It’s being reported that Hutchison (aka 3) snagged the iPhone for distribution in Hong Kong and Macau, which could come as early as next quarter according to the South China Morning Post. Like the rest, this was supposedly another one liner un-announcement with no real info, but you probably wouldn’t want to anger Steve before WWDC. Besides, in Hong Kong 3 doesn’t sell anything but 3G phones — so put that in your iPipe and smoke it.

[Thanks, Chris]

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Filed under: Digital Cameras

We’ve got your summer crapcamcorders right ‘ere — three new RCA Small Wonder cams to make your Flips flop. Check ‘em out:

• Small Wonder MyLife, EZ200 (black) - 1.5-inch flip-out display, microSDHC with with 1GB microSD that does up to 30 / 60 minutes in high quality and web quality modes, $89 and due this summer
• Small Wonder Pocket, EZ205 (white) - 1.5-inch flip-out display, microSDHC slot with 1GB microSD that does up to 30 / 120 minutes in high quality and web quality modes, $100 and due this summer
• Small Wonder Traveler, EZ210 (green) - 2.4-inch QVGA display, SDHC with 2GB SD card that does up to 60 / 240 minutes in high quality and web quality modes, $150 and due this summer

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Filed under: Transportation

Audi has already manged to work some LEDs into a few of its cars (concepts and otherwise), but the automaker has gone all out with its latest Audi R8, which employs LEDs for seemingly every lighting function. That includes the 24-LED running lamps the R8 had before, along with some brand LED high and low beam headlights, and LED turn signals, which add up to some 54 LEDs in all. Of course, given the prices that single LED bulbs demandthese days, it should come as no surprise that this is quite the pricey option, with it adding a full €3,590 (or about $5,560) to the R8’s already lofty sticker price.

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Filed under: Robots

Sweet isn’t it? You can almost hear the pitter-pattering of Keepon’s tiny servo heart as he gazes into HOAP-3’s hungry, yet soulless eyes. Robots, it’s what’s for breakfast.

Thomas: “With your nose and my mouth, well, damnit.. you complete me.”
Chris: “Don’t let them call you a chicken… you fought like a champion out there. I didn’t get to be Don King-bot by promoting losers.”
Don: “Coming soon to theaters: Ratatouille 2: Electric Boogaloo”
Josh T: “I’m going to eat you… with some fava beans and a nice chianti. Ththththththththththp!”
Paul: “No way, Britt Daniel said that to you? What a jerk. Him and Portland deserve each other.”
Josh F: “Sweep the leg. No mercy.”
Ryan: “The secret ingredient of this week’s Really Iron Chef is…”

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Filed under: Laptops

It struck us the other day as we were going over some back posts that since the launch of the ASUS Eee PC (and the numerous products that have followed, from the MSI Wind to the HP Mini-Note), to the best of our knowledge we’ve all yet to have any normalized, agreed-upon name for these kinds of devices. Yes, they’re technically “ultraportables” (which we usually define as being any relatively small laptop and under four pounds), but to say an Eee PC is in the same class as, say, the Lenovo X300, the VAIO TZ, or the MacBook Air would be kind of misleading.

We’ve heard “low-cost ultraportable” and “laptop-lite” used to describe these kinds of machines, but it seems best to let you decide: leave your best suggestion for what we all should all call this emerging product category, and we’ll put it up to vote next week. We’ll officially be throwing “netbook” into the ring. (Intel may have initially coined the term, but that we don’t think it should necessarily have to refer only to Intel-based products.)

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Filed under: Gaming

The folks at Konami have been trolling the forums again, kids, and this time they’re fighting back. Reps from the game-maker have issued a statement on the company forum addressing the furor over the inflated cost of the forthcoming, limited edition Metal Gear Solid 4 bundle. According to Konami, the bumped up price ($600 for a 40GB version of the PS3, plus Dual Shock controller and MGS4 game) is due to the special material used to create the gunmetal gray system and controller casing. The company seems to take issue with the fact that some are calling it simply a “paint job,” and points out that the run of units is only 10,000, and the package also includes a version of the game with an extra disc of additional content. To put it another way: this is the deal of a lifetime!

[Via Wired]

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Filed under: Displays, Home Entertainment

We’ve already seen Sanyo dish out this duo in Japan under slightly different model names, but Americans who were bawling at the thought of having to fly to Tokyo in order to grab one can put away those tears. The outfit has just unleashed the PLC-XC55 (3,100 lumens) and the PLC-XC50 (2,600 lumens) here in the States, both of which feature a 1,024 x 768 resolution and Sanyo’s own Active Maintenance Filter (AMF) system. These two mark the first “portable PJs” to be equipped with such a system, and if you’re interested in knowing — we know, you’re on the edge of your Aeron — it also boasts a built-in 7-watt speaker, DVI / VGA / component / S-Video / composite sockets and audio in / out jacks. Both units are landing in July, with the XC55 demanding $1,995 and the XC50 stickered at $1,495.

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