Normally I wouldn’t use words like cool and clever to describe a computer virus (a few *expletives* here and there would be more like it), but The Newton Virus definitely manages to pull these two words out of me. Instead of booting your precious files into oblivion, or sending your machine into a state of perpetual shock as most malicious codes do, Newton simply introduces the forces of gravity to your Mac computing experience. When transferred to a machine from its custom usb drive, the virus causes your desktop icons to crash to the bottom of the screen, and move freely in response to the earth’s gravitational pull. Peep the video demo.

The Newton Virus was create several years ago by London based design studio Troika to showcase ‘virtual gravity’, and not by some random group of computer hackers looking to exploit a weakness in Mac OS as most would think (then again…). Either way let’s just hope no ones gets any crazy ideas from this.

[Dezeen via Troika]

The other day it was hip hop producer Just Blaze, running down some of his most anticipated gadget releases during a recent interview with HipHopGame.com. Today’s hip hop producer engaging in gadget talk is none other than Pharrell Williams–1/2 of The Neptunes/N.E.R.D. frontman/’Hypester’ Icon. Recently he sat down with The Boy Genius and talked about everything from his cell phone of choice (peep his solid gold iPhone), to his current production setup, to the possibility of making a splash into the mobile phone market in the near future.

Jump to the link below if the embedded clip gives you trouble.

[via BGR]

Aside from being one of hip hop’s top producers, Just Blaze is also known around the industry as a serious gamer and all around gadget freak.

In the latest installment of Hip Hop Game’s 3-part interview series, Just talks about some of the gadgets that he’s looking forward to seeing this year–high capacity storage drives seem to be at the top of his list. Peep the full excerpt after the jump, along with a clip of Just and Pete Rock battling it out on the Xbox 360. Read the rest of this entry »

Remember when a cell phone was just a cell phone? When things like internet access, camera quality, and IM capabilities didn’t impact your final decision when buying one (since most of these features were limited or nonexistent at the time anyway)? As long as your phone made clear calls, clocked sufficient talk time, and looked fairly decent–LED screen, pull-out antenna and all–you were straight! And you probably held on to the same model for more than a year. That’s hardly the case these days. With features like text messages, mobile web, and IM (among others) now on the scene, the game, as well as consumer demands, have been changed forever.

This article in today’s New York Times takes a look at the steps that a few cell phone manufacturers are taking to appeal to the tastes of today’s design and environmentally conscious consumers.

Like fashion or entertainment, the cellphone industry is increasingly hit-driven, and new models that do not fly off the shelves within weeks of their debut are considered duds. The most gadget-conscious shoppers buy new phones every nine months, twice as fast as they did a few years ago. And teenagers, one of the fastest-growing markets, are especially quick to dump a brand if it loses popular appeal.

Read on.

Might we finally hear news about the delayed iPhone SDK’s and the future of 3rd party iPhone apps? It looks that way:

Apple distributed invitations Wednesday morning for “an iPhone software road map” event next week, which means we’re finally going to hear details on the plans for an iPhone software development kit.

As you might be aware, next week is March, not February, which means Apple will have missed its deadline for shipping the SDK this month. Still, on Thursday, March 6, at 10 a.m. PST the company will hold a “town hall” meeting at its headquarters in Cupertino to discuss the State of the iPhone, and probably answer several questions about how iPhone application development will unfold.

[via CNET]

Given the fact that music and MySpace go hand-in-hand these days, it should come as no surprise that the insanely popular social networking site is now looking to launch its very own online music service. As part of a joint venture that would include the record industry’s ‘big four’ (Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, EMI Group, and Sony BMG Music Entertainment ), the music service, currently dubbed ‘MySpace Music’, would not only allow users to purchase music through the site, but also listen to copyrighted music for free (a featured which will be suppported by ad revenue). Peep: Read the rest of this entry »

Peep today’s top gadget finds after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

The rumors have been swirling around the internet for the past few days now, but today Verizon Wireless officially unveiled its new series of unlimited calling plans. All three plans, which range from $99 to $139, include unlimited calls to anyone, anytime in the U.S., with the $139 plan including unlimited text messaging and data transfers. This is pretty major, given the fact that most major carriers offer no more than a few thousand minutes at very similar price points. Crappy phone selection aside, it’s good to see Verizon leading the way on this. With a growing number of people completely abandoning landlines and going strictly wireless (our generation especially), I’m sure that we’ll begin to see more carriers jump on the bandwagon with similar plans very soon.

UPDATE*:
Not to be out done by Verizon, the folks over at AT&T have announced plans to launch their very own unlimited calling plan beginning Thursday (2/22). Peep. Sprint, T-Mobile are you guys next???

UPDATE**
T-mobile joins in on the fun! Meanwhile, Sprint isn’t giving in to the peer pressure.

With several new formats to choose from, including Blu-ray and HDVD, buying dvd’s today isnt quite as simple as it used to be. However, if you’re thinking of going “Blu”, you may want to reconsider. Crave’s John P. Falcone gives us 5 reasons why we should hold off on the Blu-ray format…for right now atleast:

1. Nearly all current Blu-ray players are obsolete.
2. Blu-ray is best on a big-screen TV.
3. There are still very few movies available on Blu-ray.
4. Blu-ray still has growing pains.
5. Prices have nowhere to go but down.

Peep the full article here.

[via Unplggd]

Timbaland and Verizon Wireless are preparing to embark on the next phase of mobile music: full length mobile albums.

As Verizon’s mobile producer in residence, Timbaland will produce one song per month throughout 2008. Each month, he will work with a different artist on a track while touring the country on the Verizon Mobile Recording Studio Bus, which will also capture making-of footage for V Cast subscribers on a dedicated Timbaland channel.

Each mobile Timbaland track will be released days after it is produced. Songs will be released as a full-length download, ringtone and ringback, and will be available only through V Cast and Verizon. At the end of the year, some sort of compilation “album” will be released exclusively through Verizon, according to Ruth. Whether the music is worked to radio during the exclusive period or made available via broader distribution afterward is up to Interscope.

Over the past few years, the music and mobile phone industries have cashed in tremendously on the growing popularity of mobile music–ringtones in particular. In 2007 alone, more than 220 million ringtones were sold, raking in a whopping $567 million in sales. Add to that the growing number of hip hop artists that are practically molding their careers around the creation ringtone-friendly music, and you can easily see why the mobile market has become a goldmine for the music and mobile phone industries. Read the rest of this entry »