Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

If you didn’t already know, the Mars Phoenix mission came to a close yesterday.  You may remember the Mars Phoenix as the robot that found water on Mars over the summer.  When the Phoenix outlived the original estimates, those in charge pushed it a little further until it finally stopped communicating with Earth yesterday.  Normally this might make an interesting story about the fact that it died, but would really only depress those that were involved.

This time was a bit different, though.  The Mars Phoenix was giving updates through its time through Twitter.  Through Twitter the Phoenix told us how its mission was going, when he went into safe mode, instances when its solar panels were blocked by a sandstorm, and even answered questions that other users posed.  Continued after the break.

MORE »

Sections: Gaming, Miscellaneous, Web

Christmas is for the kids, right?  Better get them crossed off the shopping list first.  I checked out a few of the wish lists floating around and thought I would share them with you.  Wouldn’t you know, they are filled with electronics.  We have plenty of shopping days til the holidays.  That is, unless your kids want Elmo Live, which is already selling out.

What are your kids asking Santa for? Keep reading to see.

MORE »

She’s not one of the fembots from the Austin Powers movies, but she’s the next best thing.  Her name is EMA, which stands for Eternal Maiden Actualization.  The maker is Sega Toys, and the target demographic is lonely dudes.  That’s right, according to Reuters she’s being marketed in Japan as a female companion.  She can sing, dance, hand out business cards (?), and of course give kisses.  EMA would make a great girlfriend because not only is she very affectionate, she’s also really low maintenance.  All she needs is some battery power, as that’s what she runs on.

She’ll be available in September for about $175, and Sega hopes for first-year sales of 10,000.  Maybe this could be like a Lars and the Real Girl situation, where not just the Lars character but everyone else could come to see EMA as real!  Except EMA is only 15 inches tall.  But her other measurements would make any girl jealous!

Speaking of robot women, check out this video for comments made about Madonna by singer Dan Gillespie-Sells of The Feeling.  Hilarious!  Unfortunately, unlike EMA, Her Majesty has been unavailable for some time.  But she can still sing and dance though.

Read [MSNBC]

• Japanese Import: Hori Classic Controller for Wii
• DosPara intro’s the limited edition, not so special Prime Note Cartina netbook
• Dell rolls out 32GB SSD equipped pink, red Inspiron Mini 9’s in Japan

Surely the holy grail for the engineering world is the ability to make a robot that is lifelike, and although the robots in question are not particularly lifelike in bodily form or in thought, they have some of the crucial things that will move us into the future. Festo, normally known for their heavy machinery, recognized this and moved into making life like ‘beings.‘

The Jellyfish (plural) are designed for air and water, and they are incredibly sophisticated and built using automating techniques that create robots that not only use peristaltic motion but can communicate with each other to provide equal space for each other and take turns at the recharging station.

But it is not just this sophistication that is what makes these so remarkable, it is their beauty and symmetrical-ity that makes them so incredibly (attractive?) beautiful, and although they are undoubtedly useless, they are a step forwards into the future.

Via [kk.org]

• Fun with robot women
• Mars Pheonix’s journey comes to a depressing end
• Get hopping and start shopping

For the technologies that fall into the catapult category, enter Robopult, the newest and most terrifying metallic sight since Godzilla crushed a city that got in the way of his last good will tour fifty some odd celluloid years ago. Robopult is unlike the others of its ilk; namely, the ballista and the catapult, as Robopult is perfectly capable of flinging fireballs and just about anything else you can imagine in the air! This industrial robotic arm that is transformed into a computerized demon hurler is not for everybody in more ways than one.

MORE »

If you have money to burn, you might be interested in purchasing this project, which is sure to excite and whelm all who behold it size and/or shadow (as Mel Brooks used to say). The larger-than-life Gundam robot is expected to stand 60 feet tall and the unbelievable price tag doesn’t even include the cost of labor or the necessary infrastructure!

You can forget about flying this technological wonder or even taking it for a ride. The most you can hope for is a simple promenade with your new 43-ton robot.  And even that could present problems, as a simple walk is sure to result in the destruction of

MORE »

Reuters had this great story and image I just had to share.  Japanese scientists from Waseda University in Tokyo demonstrated their biped robot WL-16RIII on Wednesday.  They are currently developing the two legged robot robotic chair to aid elderly and handicapped individuals climb dubious stairways.  While it may take 5 years to develop, since the current prototype is still slow, somewhat cumbersome with heavy loads, and requires the occupant to “hop up” on the nearly 4 foot high seat, the duo’s ultimate goal is to create greater mobility for those with physical limitations.

Think we can get one of this to get up the stairs at the Gadgetell headquarters?

• Mars Pheonix’s journey comes to a depressing end
• Get hopping and start shopping
• Ubisoft and Handicap International release Handigo

The Vex Robotics Design System (designed by Ignition, Inc.) is one of the CES “Best of Innovations” in the Robot category for 2006.

It’s time for all of us to be able to build our own robot for under $300.  This kit is sold by RadioShack and includes 500 pieces, three motors, lots of gears and a lot of fun.  You can make it lift, throw and race.  All of this is controlled by a remote that allows you set the frequency so you and a friend can control your own robots.  What’s next?  Even though it doesn’t say it in the product’s information, why not tie the remote control functions into a computer for even more fun. 

Read [RadioShack]

• Fun with robot women
• Mars Pheonix’s journey comes to a depressing end
• Get hopping and start shopping