DrumPants 2.0 is open source, still turns your pants into drums

That crazy DrumPants wearable tech we first saw in '07 -- the same one that raised 75 grand on KickStarter and was featured on Shark Tank in 2014 -- is back. Its creators have now turned to Indiegogo to fund the mass production of DrumPants version 2.0, which they claim is faster and stronger than its predecessor. Plus, it's now open source. The wearable, for those who've only just heard of it, isn't actually a pair of pants with drums (sorry to disappoint). It's a set of accessories comprised of two elongated drum pads and two foot pedals you can use to play different kinds of instruments, along with a knob that lets you choose between samples and musical scales. You can wear them over your clothes, or under, like the jamming dude in the GIF above.

The system connects wirelessly to its accompanying app for iPhone, iPad and Mac through MIDI over Bluetooth if you want to make music. But the sensors can also function as controllers and actually have loads of other potential applications. In the video above, you can see them being used to control other apps, a VR game and a light show. They're even shown as a way for someone with brain injury to communicate. The whole set is Arduino-compatible, so you can use it with your own projects if the campaign reaches its $35,000 goal. Its developers promise to release all of DrumPants' designs, schematics and firmware if and when that happens, though you'll of course have to shell out at least $159 to get a kit of your own.

Filed under: Misc

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Via: The Creators Project

Source: Indiegogo

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Rockstar owner sues the BBC over upcoming GTA drama

When the BBC announced its plans to make a docudrama about Rockstar Games and the Grand Theft Auto franchise, we assumed it had the blessing of the games' creators. Not so. As IGN reports, Rockstar Games, via its parent company Take-Two Interactive, has filed a lawsuit against the broadcaster over trademark infringement. In a statement, the company says Rockstar Games "has had no involvement" with the project and that it's attempted "multiple times" to resolve the matter with the BBC. The show is being developed under the working title "Game Changer," and it's safe to assume Rockstar, its pivotal employees and the franchise itself will be named in the show. Daniel Radcliffe has already been cast as Rockstar Games co-founder Sam Houser, alongside Bill Paxton as Jack Thompson, a former attorney that famously campaigned against the franchise. If the one-off TV drama is to go ahead as planned, it's vital that the BBC settles this legal dispute quickly.

Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment

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Source: IGN

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'Vidity' 4K movies you can download are coming later this year

At CES the long-brewing alliance to push Hollywood movies you can legally download, store and play across different devices finally surfaced, and now its system has a brand name: Vidity. As we learned in January, this is the doing of the Secure Content Storage Association -- a team up behind movie studios (Fox, Warner Bros.) and storage manufacturers (Western Digital, Sandisk) to create a system where users can download movies in the highest possible quality like 4K Ultra HD and HDR. Samsung was the first to announce its Ultra HD TVs with the M-Go app will use the spec, but other big names like Vudu, Kaleidescape, LG, Universal, Comcast and Sprint are on board too. So far 4K movies have generally been all about streaming, but now between Ultra HD Blu-ray and Vidity there are a couple of new options coming.

With the spec and brand name locked down, Vidity GM David Huerta tells us compatible products and services should roll out later this year. Other than just top-quality audio and video, the main feature of Vidity is that it's intended to work across devices, from TVs to PCs to phones and tablets. The concept of it works a lot like the digital distribution schemes we've seen for videogames, with the ability to copy or move the files and still play them elsewhere. Of course, nothing designed by Hollywood will be quite as easy as piracy, and we're still waiting to see if all of the studios will get behind it. If we can get more control and convenience plus high quality playback, Vidity will be a major step forward and fit in nicely next to discs and streaming.

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

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Source: Vidity

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Google Maps gets even more detailed traffic features

Google has updated Maps with more specific traffic alerts just in time to help you dodge Memorial Day traffic nightmares. The app can already route you around closures and other problems using crowdsourced traffic data, but now it'll give you an explanation for why a detour is recommended with a dismiss-able card. For instance, it'll let you know whether it's recommending a route because it's the fastest option, or because it helps you avoid an incident. Moreover, it'll now give you a heads up on traffic conditions as soon as you enter your destination, telling you if its smooth sailing ahead or a cluster-you-know-what.

In the same blog post, Google also revealed trends from Memorial Day 2014. It noted that you were most likely to search for a beach or cemetery -- not a surprising development on a holiday that honors people who died serving their country. Popular destinations included Carmel, CA, Long Island, NY and Santa Barbara, CA. The new app still isn't available, but Mountain View said it would arrive before the weekend.

Filed under: Cellphones, Internet, Google

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Source: Google

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Lenovo sold 60 million PCs in a year, but probably won't again

Lenovo's basement full of accountants has released the company's financial report for the last 12 months, and it's all smiles and dollar signs. After all, it increased the cash coming in through the front door, spent big to buy buy Motorola and IBM's server business and still made a $100 million quarterly profit. Even better, the outfit has now been the world's largest PC maker for two straight years, selling 60 million computers in the last 12 months alone.

As TechCrunch reports, there are, however, some murky clouds that are gathering on the horizon. Lenovo itself attributes the diminished profits to merger costs and exchange-rate hiccups, but the company's profits also dipped in 2014. Part of this is because the PC market is beginning to shrink as users switch to smartphones and tablets and businesses stop upgrading their machines beyond Windows XP.

Lenovo's trying to make hay while the sun shines, using its cash reserves to boost its phone and server businesses and move beyond PCs. Instead, it's aiming to become a "hardware and software services" firm, ironically mirroring a similar move that IBM made when it sold its PC businesses to Lenovo in the first place. Although, we imagine, that with the tighter margins and fiercer competition between phone makers, we could see those profit figures fall a little further yet.

[Image Credit: AFP/Getty]

Filed under: Cellphones, Desktops, Laptops, Tablets, Lenovo

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Via: TechCrunch

Source: Lenovo (Businesswire)

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YouTube now supports 60 fps live streaming

YouTube blew more than a few minds last October when it rolled out 60 frame-per-second video playback on the site. Gamers especially flocked to the frame rate as it allowed for jutter-free playback of fast-paced titles like Call of Duty or Titanfall. Today, YouTube announced a new feature that is sure to make gamers even happier: 60 fps live streaming which will allow people to broadcast their online exploits in real-time. The new frame rate is still an early preview, mind you, and will only be available on HTML5-compatible browsers. However, YouTube will encode these streams in both 720p60 and 1080p60 formats as well as automatically knock it down to 30FPS for devices that can't handle full speed.

What's more, YouTube is also rolling out HTML5 playback which will enable viewers to not only rewind in the middle of a live stream but also play it back at up to double speed in order to catch back up to the broadcast. And for producers, the video-sharing site has collaborated with Elgato and XSplit to ensure that products like Elgato Game Capture, XSplit Broadcaster and XSplit Gamecaster will continue to work with the site.

Filed under: Displays, Google

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77mph is the speed record for poo-powered buses, apparently

Britain has several players in the fledgeling poop-bus industry, including one that literally shows people pooing, but a gauntlet has just been thrown by the town of Reading. Its very own cow manure-powered model, dubbed "Bus Hound," ran the track at nearly 77mph -- shattering the previous world mark of zero mph, because poo-bus records are not actually a thing. The UK Timing Association confirmed the attempt, such as it is, describing the bus' presence on the Millbrook Proving Ground as "quite a sight."

The model runs on biomethane natural gas made from animal waste broken down using anaerobic digestion. Reading's chief engineer said "we wanted to get the image of bus transport away from being dirty, smelly and slow." Nevertheless, he added that "it sounded like a Vulcan bomber -- the aerodynamics aren't designed for going 80mph." The mark stands as some kind of record for methane powered service buses, but it would have to top 150mph to get a Guinness World Record, according to the BBC.

Filed under: Transportation

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Source: BBC News

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