Europe v Facebook Privacy Campaign Group Is Preparing To Sue Facebook In Ireland, Sets Up Crowdfunding Platform To Fund Court Costs

As Facebook take a poll poll that looks very likely to result in Facebook  – the European activists behind the Europe v Facebook campaign group, which accuses Facebook of violating Europe’s Data Protection Laws, have stepped up their long running battle against the social network. The group has indicated it is preparing to sue Facebook in Ireland — the location of Facebook’s international headquarters — and has set up a crowdfunding to raise the €100,000 to €300,000 needed to fund legal action.

“We now hope for a soon settlement of our complaints. Simultaneously we have to assume that the authority in many cases won’t decide in the favor of users but in the favor of Facebook. Such a decision can be contested by us at court,” the group notes.

The group is unhappy with the Irish Data Protection Authority’s report into privacy and data protection on Facebook — and wants legally binding decisions to resolve all its 22 complaints against Facebook (listed in full in Europe v Facebook's counter report, with current status of the complaints shown at the end of this article). Back in September the Irish DPA Report said Facebook had implemented to its satisfaction “the great majority” of its recommendations — including turning off a facial recognition feature in Europe. However Europe v Facebook believe the audit was not rigorous enough — noting that

The Irish authority has taken many important steps which moved privacy on Facebook forward, but when looked at it in more detail, has not always delivered solid and fact based results. Facebook’s statements were simply adopted, even though many of them can be disproven with a few screenshots. It seems like Facebook has also fooled the authority in some cases or did at least not stick to their promises.
None of our complaints are currently resolved, since many were just worked on superficially. We also had to find out that the Irish authority is not in line with the common legal understanding within the EU, expressed in the Article 29 Working Party’s opinions.

The group has now published a ‘counter report‘, responding to the DPA’s report. The counter report summarises the group’s position that while the DPA’s audit of Facebook has led to “many achievements” — such as Facebook having to disclose more data it holds per user, limit data retention periods for certain data and switching off facial recognition in the EU — it has not satisfactorily resolved all complaints. “After a detailed analysis of the ‘audit’ documents it became clear that the authority has taken very important first steps, but that it has not always delivered accurate and correct results,” the group notes.

“A non-binding audit might not need such accuracy, but we expect that the authority goes into every detail when deciding about our complaints. In some cases we also had to wonder if the authority has really checked Facebook’s claims, or if they have blindly trusted Facebook,” said Max Schrems, spokesman for europe-v-facebook.org, in a statement. “We have strictly followed the opinions of the comity of the EU data protection authorities (“Article 29 Working Party”). The Irish authority’s interpretation is often contrary to the rest of the EU.”

“We have to understand the position of the Irish authority: They had to deal with a whole armada of lawyers from Facebook,” Schrems added. ”On the other hand we have a fundamental right to privacy and data protection in the EU. When it comes to basic freedoms and fundamental rights our understanding for the situation of the authority comes to an end.”

Europe v Facebook claims that more than 40,000 Facebook users who have requested a copy of their data from Facebook have yet to receive it — its counter report notes: “The legal deadline of 40 days to deliver all data has passed 13 times.” The group also wants answers on why Facebook has only deactivated facial recognition in Europe, noting: “it is unclear why this was only deactivated for EU citizens, because Ireland is responsible for all users outside of the US and Canada. In addition, the technical implementation of this ban is unclear”.

Europe v Facebook says its next steps will be to again ask the DPA to “deliver all necessary files and evidence” — noting that: “So far we were not allowed to even see the counterarguments by Facebook”, adding: “After this we will ask for a formal, legally binding decision on all 22 complaints.”

We’ve reached out to Facebook for a comment on Europe v Facebook’s latest steps and will update this story with any response.

Below is a screengrab of the current status of Europe v Facebook’s complaints against the site — as noted in its counter report

Chrome OS: Google’s Most Underrated Project That You’ve Already Been Testing And Just Didn’t Know It

There are hundreds of devices to choose from when you’re considering a new desktop computer, laptop or mobile device. We’re overwhelmed by all of the choices we have, but choice is good. When it comes to computing, as far as operating systems, there are three huge players: Microsoft, Apple and Google. Yes, Google.

A curious thing happened during Chrome - an operating system was born. Perhaps that was the plan all along, one can never truly know with Google. What I do know is that when you’re on the go, especially with a laptop, the primary piece of software that everyone uses is the web browser, so why not build an operating system on top of it?

That’s exactly what Chrome OS is and it’s starting to make its way to consumers. Google has announced strong partnerships with hardware manufacturers like Samsung and Acer to build affordable (not cheap) laptops built for a world that accesses information in the cloud. When I say the cloud, I mean, email, files, web surfing, chatting and social networking. These things are all done very well through the browser and not through an installed desktop application.

You’d be hard-pressed to find something that you can’t do through the browser, and need actual installed software for. For me, it was using Spotify to listen to music, but that's being sorted out as we speak I sat down with the Chrome OS team to discuss its evolution and current iteration and came away quite impressed.

THE OS

Chrome OS is an open-source operating system built on many of the things that you might be using already with the Chrome browser. Everything is quite familiar, with the full integration of all of Google’s core products: Drive, Chrome, Gmail, Play, Plus, and of course Search. If you use Google products, then using Chrome OS will be an extremely natural experience for you.

Everything runs pretty quickly on the device that I’m using right now, the latest Samsung Chromebook. I find that I’m not looking to drag and drop things onto a desktop, because it gets messy. Instead, everything is held in an internal filesystem that can be dragged and dropped anywhere, including Google Drive. This makes for moving files between systems super simple. Since all of the things you would probably want to do are available via Chrome extensions, you’ll be able to evolve your environment as new things become available.

Speaking of super simple, I was able to open this laptop, log in with my Google credentials, and start using it as if it were my tablet or phone within three minutes. Since everything is synced, it doesn’t matter what device you’re using in a Google world. It just works. And more importantly, it’s easy to iterate on, on the fly.

Caesar Sengupta, Product Management Director on Chrome OS at Google, told me:

The story for Chrome OS starts way back. It starts with the browser, Chrome. Google’s a web company: We push the boundaries of the web; everything we do is largely on the web. One of the things we realized early on was the web wasn’t keeping up with the potential of what the web could be. We were building apps like Gmail and Google News – rich and vibrant. Browsers weren’t able to handle it. And the web is a platform that allows you to deploy globally without installation. You could pick up any machine login and work. In order to build fun and sexy stuff, you have to build on it.

THE HARDWARE

The hardware itself, like I mentioned, the Samsung Coockbook, looks strikingly similar to the MacBook Air. Yes, start your complaining about copycatting now, that’s not the point. It’s light, runs quickly, and does exactly what you’d want to do. Especially if you rely on a web browser a lot.

Here are full details about what's inside:

• 11.6’’ (1366×768) display

• 0.7 inches thin – 2.42 lbs / 1.1 kg
• Over 6.5 hours of battery 1
• Samsung Exynos 5 Dual Processor
• 100 GB Google Drive Cloud Storage2 with 16GB Solid State Drive
• Built-in dual band Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n
• VGA Camera
• 1x USB 3.0, 1x USB 2.0
• HDMI Port

• Bluetooth 3.0™ Compatible

It’s pretty impressive, but who cares about all of that. It just works, and it works quite well.

Regarding its strategy in rolling out Chromebook hardware over the past year, Group Product Manager Ryan Tabone told me:

The point of the prototype was to develop the software. Samsung and Acer shipped devices last year – same form factor but based on Atom. We basically just offered these devices online. The people who were ready for it, came to it. We realized at Google this journey is going to take us some time. The world is moving into these ecosystems. For a web company to have hardware, it was an area we needed to have a strong offering in.

THE PRICE

Price is one of those things that trips everyone up. We know what an iPhone costs, kind of. We know what an iPad and a Surface costs. Prices are expensive to some and cheap to others. This particular Samsung Chromebook is $249. You can call it cheap, or you can call it inexpensive. I’ll go with the latter.

The nice part about machines at that pricepoint is that you can get them into the hands of kids. In fact, Google is seeing pretty good traction in schools that are picking up Chromebooks for entire classrooms. They’re easy to administer from a high level and low-priced enough if they were to get broken, stolen or lost.

Also, I tend to break things or drop them in toilets. Don’t ask. In that case, running out and picking up another laptop that I can be up and running on in a matter of minutes in my exact previous state is pretty priceless. So let’s call this thing inexpensive, shall we?

Sengupta had this to say on the price:

There was a core group of people who were using these as additional computers, for other people in the family, like my wife. She does a lot but does it all online.

Tabone had a good point:

When have you ever thought of giving someone a computer as a gift?

Never.

THE POINT

Computing doesn’t have to be difficult, it should be fun and efficient at the same time. You can do both, and Google does a wonderful job of facilitating that with its current suite of products and services. Even if you’re not an Android phone user, which I’m not, you can still find value in Chrome OS.

From a usability, price, and compatibility perspective, it’s difficult to find another operating system on hardware that runs this well, and without so little effort to actually make it work. Basically, you won’t be getting tons of calls from mom and dad on how to use it. That’s good for us, but for them too. It’s empowering. You should use technology, it shouldn’t use you. And the best technology finds itself completely getting out of itself.

If you use the Chrome browser, you’ve already been testing it, you just didn’t know it. Chrome OS won’t change the way that you compute, it’ll just make it easier.

China Unicom Receives Orders for More Than 100,000 iPhone 5 Units

Chaina Unicom announced that it received orders for more than 100,000 iPhone 5s on its first day of pre-sales, according to a report on Sean Tech. A subsidiary of rival wireless operator China Telecom said that it has received more than 50000 units

The lag between the iPhone 5′s U.S. and China release dates was thanks to the wait for final regularatory from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

Apple announced last week that the iPhone 5 will be available in China (and 50 other countries, including Brazil, Russia and Taiwan) on December 14. The iPhone 5 has been available in 47 countries, including the U.S., UK, Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore, since September 21.

While this is the quickest rollout of an iPhone to date, the long wait for Apple products has turned off many Chinese consumers. China received the iPhone 4S on January 13, three months after the U.S. In August, research group IDC estimated that Apple’s share of China’s smartphone market was cut in half during the second quarter to 10 percent, as customers turned to devices made by competitors like Chinese company Lenovo, which some analysts believe will take the No. 1 smartphone slot in China next year. Lenovo’s products, including the Android-powered LePhone, benefits from strong brand recognition, nationwide availability, and affordable pricing aimed at the mid-to-lower end of the market.

But the company remains upbeat about its opportunities in the Chinese market. During Apple's Q4 earning calls, Tim Cook said revenue for the full fiscal year was $23.8 billion for China, an increase of $10 billion year-on-year, and that sales of the iPhone in Greater China (i.e. China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan) had climbed 38 percent.

Zynga Loosens Its Deal With Facebook:

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Zynga Loosens Its Deal With Facebook: No Longer Tied To Facebook Ad Units, Credits, Or Exclusivity:

Zynga just filed a document with the SEC outlining new terms in its agreement with Facebook. Overall, it seems that Zynga and Facebook establishing a little more distance and flexibility in their relationship, with Zynga being treated more like any other Facebook developer.

According to the filing, any “standard Zynga game page” that uses Facebook data will now be governed Facebook’s standard terms of service. That means games on Zynga’s new-ish Zynga.com platform are no longer obligated to use Facebook ad units and Facebook credits. In exchange, Zynga’s right to cross-promote its non-Facebook games using Facebook data and email addresses is now limited by the standard terms.

The filing also states that Facebook no longer has the exclusive rights to Zynga’s social game launches. Of course, Zynga still plans to have a big presence on Facebook, saying its games “will generally be available through the Facebook web site concurrent with, or shortly following, the time such game is made available on another social platform or a Zynga property.”

As Mike Issac, the amendment also states that as of March 31 of next year, “Facebook will no longer be prohibited from developing its own games,” although Facebook denies that it has any intention to actually build its own games. Sources close to Facebook-Zynga negotiations tell us Facebook didn’t even want the clause in the filing.

Here’s a statement from Zynga Chief Revenue Officer Barry Cottle:

Zynga’s mission is to connect the world through games. In order to do this, Zynga is focused on building enduring relationships with consumers across all platforms from Facebook and Zynga.com on the web to tablets and mobile. Our amended agreement with Facebook continues our long and successful partnership while also allowing us the flexibility to ensure the universal availability of our products and services.

Opera Maps Global Mobile Social Network Usage:

Opera Maps Global Mobile Social Network Usage: Facebook Most Frequently Visited On Phones In Macau, Twitter In Paraguay:

Want to see an atlas of Facebook mobile usage across the world? Browser maker Opera has released its 2012 State of Mobile Web report which measures social networking popularity by looking at the number of Opera Mini users who visit them. Data is aggregated from the servers powering the browser’s data compression — enabling the company to build up an (anonymous) picture of the mobile social web across more than 190 countries.

Here’s how Facebook mobile usage looks when mapped — with darker coloured regions denoting a higher percentage of Opera Mini visitors

From a glance at the graphic it appears that North America should claim the Facebook usage crown but the top-ranking Facebook territory, in terms of percentage of Opera Mini users who visit per month, is actually Macau — where more than 90 percent of all Opera Mini users visit Facebook at least once per month, according to Opera’s data. In the US, the figure is a more modest 49.54 percent.

Unsurprisingly, Facebook tops the list of most popular social networks globally — with 50.6 percent of Opera Mini’s 194 million users visiting it on their phone at least once during the month of October. In terms of total user numbers — not only percentage of users — Opera says Asian countries are on top of the list for Facebook: namely Indonesia and India, followed by Nigeria, Mexico, Vietnam, South Africa, Brazil, Bangladesh, Russia and Turkey.

Here’s the corresponding map for Twitter mobile usage

The top countries for total usage for Twitter are remarkably similar to Facebook, according to Opera’s data: with Indonesia on top, followed by India, Nigeria, Brazil, Russia, Mexico, South Africa, Turkey, Kenya and the Philippines. When it comes to highest number of visits to Twitter on mobile per month, Paraguay takes the lead ahead of Japan.

Opera notes that most countries have “one extremely dominant social network” but its data also shows certain countries have a more diverse spread of social-networking activity. It singles out European high-tech hub Estonia as having “remarkable” diversity compared to most other nations — as well as high Facebook and Twitter usage, regional networks such as Odnoklassniki and VKontakte also do well there, it says.

Other countries who avoid a social networking mono-diet include Israel and Latvia, according to the data.

Microsoft Reportedly Planning OS X-Style Cheap, Annual Windows Updates

Microsoft might be figuring out that the best way to get users to use its product isn’t by charging an arm and a leg for updates and releasing them only once every few years. Redmond is reportedly switching to an approach like that taken by rival Apple, delivering inexpensive, annual updates that are less dramatic but which are designed to get all users on board a unified platform.

Apple follows a similar pattern with OS X, one which began taking shape with Snow Leopard, with lower upgrade costs for it and subsequent versions, and culminating with the release of Mountain Lion this year, just one year after the introduction of Lion in 2011. For Apple, it’s a model that makes sense; the company has never been very stringent about anti-piracy measures for its desktop OS, even when it used to cost considerably more money. That’s because Apple makes money on hardware, and that’s its primary focus. Software is a tool it can use to drive more hardware sales, not its central focus.

For Microsoft, shifting to a model where, if The Verge’s sources are correct, updates to future versions of Windows after it institutes this strategy will be cheap or even free, the ramifications are very different. The program begins with a version called Windows Blue, according to the report, which echoes an earlier one by ZDNet. Windows Blue will arrive in the middle of next year some time, and will bring modifications to the user interface, along with deeper platform changes and the aforementioned drastic shift in pricing.

What’s changed? Well, Microsoft has been changing its business in a number of ways recently. First, Windows 8 actually ships with ads included. Second, there’s much more focus on the Windows marketplace as a distribution method. And finally, Redmond is making its own computer hardware again, and selling that hardware directly to consumers, which is a marked departure from its sole dependence on OEM PC-maker partners. A changed Microsoft means that it can pursue a different plan for building and shipping software.

And while it’s easy to see this as Microsoft following a trick that has worked for Apple in the past, it’s more about evolving desktop software to mimic mobile platform iteration cycles. Consumers are doing more and more of their computing on mobile devices, and a mobile OS updates more frequently than we’ve traditionally seen on the desktop, with punctuated bursts of feature additions and plenty of maintenance updates.

If Microsoft is serious about unifying its platform experiences across various types of devices, including the Xbox, Windows PCs, tablets and smartphones, than this type of upgrade path and aggressive pricing makes plenty of sense.

Giant 'Transformer' robot worth $1.34 million:

Giant 'Transformer' robot worth $1.34 million unveiled:

Like many Japanese, Kogoro Kurata grew up watching futuristic robots in movies and animation, wishing that he could bring them to life and pilot one himself. Unlike most other Japanese, he has actually done it.His 4-tonne, 4-metre (13 feet) tall Kuratas robot is a grey behemoth with a built-in pilot's seat and hand-held controller that allows an operator to flex its massive arms, move it up and down and drive it at a speed of up to 10 kph (6 mph).
"The robots we saw in our generation were always big and always had people riding them, and I don't think they have much meaning in the real world," said Kurata, a 39-year-old artist.
"But it really was my dream to ride in one of them, and I also think it's one kind of Japanese culture. I kept thinking that it's something that Japanese had to do."
His prototype robot comes equipped with an operating system that also allows remote control from an iPhone as well as optional "guns" that shoot plastic bottles or BB pellets and are powered by a lock-and-load system fired by the pilot's smile.
The robot, which took two years to pull together from concept to construction, also comes with a range of customised options from paint scheme to cup holders.
It isn't cheap. The sticker price for the most basic model alone is around 110 million yen (approximately $1.34 million)
Kurata said while he has received thousands of inquiries about buying a robot, he's also received a large number of cancellations and declined to specify how many people have actually bought one.
But that's not so important.
"By my building this, I hope that it'll sort of be the trailblazer for people who can do more than myself to make different things," he said.
"They might be able to make a society that uses robots in a way I can't even imagine. I expect more from the implications of building it than from the robot itself." 

NEW DELL 1TB HD

Specifications
Brand	Dell
Color	Black
Capacity	1 TB
Connectivity	USB 3.0
Dimensions	124.46 x 83.82 x 15.24 mm
Features	1 x USB 3.0 - 10 Pin Micro-USB Type B, Plug and Play, Sleek and Simple
Form Factor	Portable
Model	401-13426
RPM	5400
Size	2.5 inch
Warranty	2 Year Dell India Warranty
Weight	195 g

SOME NEW APPLE LAPTOP

Select your MacBook Pro

13-inch: 2.5GHz

• 2.5GHz dual-core Intel Core i5
• Turbo Boost up to 3.1GHz
• 4GB 1600MHz memory
• 500GB 5400-rpm hard drive¹
• Intel HD Graphics 4000
• Built-in battery (7 hours)²

• In Stock
• Free Shipping
• $1,199.00

13-inch: 2.9GHz

• 2.9GHz dual-core Intel Core i7
• Turbo Boost up to 3.6GHz
• 8GB 1600MHz memory
• 750GB 5400-rpm hard drive¹
• Intel HD Graphics 4000
• Built-in battery (7 hours)²

• In Stock
• Free Shipping
• $1,499.00

Select your MacBook Pro with Retina display

13-inch: 2.5GHz
with Retina display

• 2.5GHz dual-core Intel Core i5
• Turbo Boost up to 3.1GHz
• 8GB 1600MHz memory
• 128GB flash storage¹
• Intel HD Graphics 4000
• Built-in battery (7 hours)²

• In Stock
• Free Shipping
• $1,699.00

13-inch: 2.5GHz
with Retina display

• 2.5GHz dual-core Intel Core i5
• Turbo Boost up to 3.1GHz
• 8GB 1600MHz memory
• 256GB flash storage¹
• Intel HD Graphics 4000
• Built-in battery (7 hours)²

• In Stock
• Free Shipping
• $1,999.00

15-inch: 2.3GHz

• 2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7
• Turbo Boost up to 3.3GHz
• 4GB 1600MHz memory
• 500GB 5400-rpm hard drive¹
• Intel HD Graphics 4000
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 512MB of GDDR5 memory
• Built-in battery (7 hours)²

• In Stock
• Free Shipping
• $1,799.00

15-inch: 2.6GHz

• 2.6GHz quad-core Intel Core i7
• Turbo Boost up to 3.6GHz
• 8GB 1600MHz memory
• 750GB 5400-rpm hard drive¹
• Intel HD Graphics 4000
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 1GB of GDDR5 memory
• Built-in battery (7 hours)²

• In Stock
• Free Shipping
• $2,199.00

15-inch: 2.3GHz
with Retina display

• 2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7
• Turbo Boost up to 3.3GHz
• 8GB 1600MHz memory
• 256GB flash storage¹
• Intel HD Graphics 4000
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 1GB of GDDR5 memory
• Built-in battery (7 hours)²

• In Stock
• Free Shipping
• $2,199.00

15-inch: 2.6GHz
with Retina display

• 2.6GHz quad-core Intel Core i7
• Turbo Boost up to 3.6GHz
• 8GB 1600MHz memory
• 512GB flash storage¹
• Intel HD Graphics 4000
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 1GB of GDDR5 memory
• Built-in battery (7 hours)²

• In Stock
• Free Shipping
• $2,799.00

NEW DELL TABLET:....

 Intel Atom Z2760 Processor (1.8 GHz), 2GB DDR2, 64GB SSD, 10.1" Display, Intel Graphics Media Accelerator, 802.11 b/g/n, Windows 8 Pro, HD Webcam, Bluetooth 

Finger Friend for Your Tablet:

Just when we all got used to this darn mouse thing these darn tablets have to come along. And face it, they can do many of the daily tasks of a computer. I know many of you have migrated away from laptop where possible. Touchscreens are easy and intuitive. Yet there are still some minor actions and motions where touching still remains a challenge.

Welcome to better touchscreen control. Ringbow proves to make navigation on a touchscreen as smooth as possible.  There are two ways to use Ringbow. First, At-Distance control where you interact with the screen without touching, whether sitting near or far from the screen. This obviously leaves your fingers free. The other option, Touch Flavor as Ringbow calls it, is a combination of control via the device and the users touch, essentially doubling your capabilities. Swipe while using Ringbow to fire on a game. Or imagine editing a document on your pad. You need to back up and make a correction. Fat fingers sometimes make it challenging to pinpoint where you want to be. With Ringbow simply click back/forth. To use, just pair the gadget via Bluetooth – so any Bluetooth enabled device is compatible. Slip the unit on your index finger for ultimate mastery of the 9-directional controller. Just click or move in various directions to accomplish your goal. Check the video below to see Ringbow in action. First shipments deliver in December, so get your order in. Slate black runs $55, colors are $65 and the Multi-Player pack gives you two colored units for $118. Learn more or place your orders now at Ringbow.com. And learn a new way to navigate that tablet.

Blood pressure gadget

I am quite sure that most of us would have had our blood pressure readings taken at least once in our lives, and more often than not, all of those instances were probably marked by you rolling up the sleeve of the shirt you are wearing, in addition to having slip your entire arm through the cuff that is connected to the blood pressure meter. Someone will then start to press this balloon-like ball and the cuff will tighten itself around your arm like a boa constrictor – holding it in that position for a few seconds, before pressure is released and the cuff loosens like a dead snake. You feel blood rush back to the rest of your arm, as you peer over the doctor’s table, hoping to see some favorable readings. Well, this blood pressure meter blows all common convention and wisdom out of the water – as there is no cuff on it to begin with.
The Nihon University recently exhibited a blood pressure meter which allows someone’s blood pressure to be read simply by touching it with a finger. This is something new and unheard of, and if you were at Medica 2012 which happened in Dusseldorf, Germany, from November 14th to 17th, 2012, you would have seen it in action. The lack of a cuff means it is a whole lot easier to measure the blood pressures of babies as well as elderly folk without making them feel uncomfortable.
Just how is this achieved? Well, blood pressure is measured in the first place through the simple touch of a button-shaped area (which is rather small) on the meter itself. There will be LEDs as well as photo transistors which are embedded in the area, and the light that is emitted from the LEDs will be reflected on a finger, where the photo transistors will get to work, detecting it. Further details of the measurement method was not disclosed by the university, but it was based off a technology called “Phase Shift Method”, the brainchild of Sadao Omata, professor at the College of Engineering, Nihon University.

Wireless game controller

Do you have a penchant for all things retro, especially when it comes to video games? Those who are younger might think that 16-bit video games are retro, but if they were to really look back into the past, they would have realized that 8-bit gaming were the original glory days, of course this is if we were to discount other titles like Galaga and Pac-Man. Here we are with the £29.99 8-Bitty Wireless Game Controller
 that will be compatible with your smartphone or tablet device, and since the 8-Bitty Wireless Game Controller relies on an open interface system, it will also be compatible with hundreds of arcade games and emulators. Not only that, it is easily adaptable for future releases.
The 8-Bitty Wireless Game Controller is a fully wireless device, and it boasts of a full 8-button control including 4 face-buttons, select, start, and a couple of shoulder-buttons and a D-Pad for directional movement. Perhaps this will bring back memories of the special Konami Code, no? It will connect to modern day devices over Bluetooth, and is powered by a couple of AAA batteries.

Lifebook

Trade in all that tech cluttering
your desk, filling your pockets,
spilling out of your bag in an
unseemly scramble of silicon,
because Fujitsu's new concept
gives your gadgetry a group hug
in the form of a four-in-one
mega-laptop-tablet-camera-
phone-zord.
This latest Fujitsu Lifebook design
slots all four devices together
into one powerful planet-
defending piece of mega-tech, a
bit like Voltron. The idea is that
together they become greater
than the sum of their parts, by
integrating the technology. And of
course, all four devices would be
able to function separately.
The Yanko Design website, where
the concept features, airs the
principle of 'shared hardware',
which is behind the design. The
thinking is that too much of your
kit's potential is wasted. Because
we use separate devices, we
double-up on data -- such as our
music libraries on our phone,
tablet or laptop -- processor
power, memory or functions like
webcams.
"If I have a processor sitting in
my tablet, why can it not also
run/assist my laptop?" the site
asks. "If I have a fully functional
camera with its own memory and
image-processing power, why do I
need to have it repeated in my
laptop?"
Judging by the pics, the tablet
would slide into a 16-pin
connector in the base of the
laptop to act as a touch-screen
keyboard. There's a space for the
digital camera in the laptop lid.
And the phone integrates neatly
by slipping into the base. One
benefit is that it offers unified
charging, and another is you can
get rid of that tangle of wires you
carry around everywhere.
The Crazy Engineers website says
it's due for launch in 2013.
Fujitsu has yet to confirm
whether this incarnation of the
Lifebook will walk the Earth or if
it's an apparition dreamt up by
an eager designer , so check the
bottom of this story for updates.
In the meantime, the Asus
Padfone is another split
personality device expected to be
officially launched in February at
Mobile World Congress in
Barcelona. The Padfone is a sweet
4.3-inch slab of Ice Cream
Sandwich-fuelled smart phone
that slots into a tablet dock.
All this follows in the footsteps of
last year's likeable Motorola Atrix
-- a mobile that can be slid into
its own netbook dock, powering it
from the handset's processor.
That in turn may have taken its
inspiration from the Modu phone ,
a tiny handset that slid into
various 'jackets', all with different
features.

Nokia N10

 

 

Nokia N10 Specifications

Display

• Display Size
  3.2-inch

Memory

• External Memory
  32
• RAM
  256 MB
• Card Type
  T-Flash Card

Data

• USB
  Yes
• Infrared port

Camera

• flash
  Xenon Flash with quad-LED-flash
• Mega Pixel
  12

Features

• CPU
  CPU ARM Cortex AB @ 600 Mhz.
• OS
  Meego

Battery

• Battery type
  Lithium-ion

Additional Features

• HDMI port
  Yes