Infotainment

Logitech has just revealed its latest universal remote, the Harmony Touch. It marks the first big shift in the company's Harmony remotes in quite some time, and is designed to simplify some of the complicated controls that came with previous models. Most controls are contained on the 2.4-inch touchscreen, but there are still some physical buttons on the device for certain functions. Logitech opted to remove number buttons from the remote, which looks quite odd at first glance. Removing these allows Logitech to trim a substantial amount of girth from the device. You can still get access to a number pad via the touchscreen, if you need to enter a channel's number. The touchscreen has an option to store 50 of your favorite channels as icons that look similar to those on iOS devices. These feature the logo of the channel, which should make it easier to find the channel you're looking for. The screen will also accommodate any other functions that the physi

After forty years of venturing no farther than low Earth orbit, NASA may have decided to establish a manned outpost at a greater distance than humanity has ever traveled before. According to documents seen by the  Orlando Sentinel , NASA has chosen a  proposal  to build a space station beyond the Moon that will act as a “gateway spacecraft” to explore the Moon, the asteroids  and eventually as a staging post to launch a manned mission to Mars. The documents refer to a project that NASA Chief Charlie Bolden briefed  the White House  on earlier this month. They describe a deep space habitat that would be built at Earth-Moon Lagrange 2 (EML-2) – a point in space 38,000 miles (61,000 km) on the far side of the Moon and 277,000 miles (446,000 km) from Earth. The outpost wouldn’t orbit the Moon. Instead, at EML-2 the gravitational and centrifugal forces of the  Earth and Moon  balance out and an object placed there will remain suspended like one of those desktop novelty  floating glo

This is a story of one 10-year-old boy who decided to study judo despite the fact that he had lost his left arm in a devastating car accident .     The boy began lessons with an old Japanese judo master . The boy was doing well, so he couldn't understand why, after three months of training , the master had taught him only one move. "Sensei," the boy finally said, "Shouldn't I be learning more moves?"     "This is the only move you know, but this is the only move you'll ever need to know," the Sensei replied. Not quite understanding , but believing in his teacher , the boy kept training.     Several months later, the Sensei took the boy to his first tournament . Surprising himself, the boy easily won his first two matches. The third match proved to be more difficult, but after some time, his opponent became impatient and charged; the boy deftly used his one move to win the match . Still amazed

Taking a number of cues from the LF-LC Hybrid Sports Coupe Concept unveiled in Detroit in January – which isn’t a bad place to take some cues from in our opinion – the Lexus LF-CC Concept Car is a mid-sized coupe concept featuring a new 2.5-liter full hybrid powertrain that will soon be introduced on the Lexus model range. The vehicle will be unveiled at the 2012 Paris Motor Show that kicks off at the end of the month. Like the LF-LC Concept Car, the LF-CC is a front-engine, rear-wheel drive vehicle but is a little more compact. Designed around the same L-finesse design language that will be used in future Lexus D-segment vehicles, the LF-LC and LF-CC are obviously stablemates. There’s the same mesh patterned spindle grille flanked by functional air intakes and LED headlights that lack the conventional, one-piece cover. The LF-CC's headlights also feature a new three LED-projector design, while independent Daytime Running Lights (DRLs) are integrated into the

What once seemed science fiction may be becoming a reality. The futuristic SeaOrbiter ocean explorer, a concept conceived by French architect Jacques Rougerie, has been trying to reach fruition for the past twelve years. However recent developments suggest that the vessel is set to start construction this October, with possible completion in 2013. The SeaOrbiter, if it goes ahead, will be the world’s first vertical ship to measure 51 meters (170 ft) in height. To realize this achievement more than 50 percent of the vessel will remain underwater. The project is expected to cost around US$52.7 million, with ambitions to observe and explore vast cross sections of oceanic life. Furthermore the SeaOrbiter hopes to implement a new standard of scientific communication that allows researchers to track and monitor marine life in real time. In doing so, a team of 18 marine scientists will live on board of the vessel. “This vertical vessel drifts in the currents hosting 18

The iPad has been the top selling tablet in the world since its launch, and on the heels of Apple's success, thousands of accessory makers snapped into action, releasing an endless flow of extras for the iPad. Among the most popular accessories are cases and keyboards, and we've seen several companies combine these two needs, such as the Logitech iPad keyboard, or the Brydge keyboard case. In such a crowded market, standing out is important, and the recently launched Touchtype case does so by making use of a full size physical keyboard. Yes, the Touchtype is only the latest in a long line of iPad keyboard cases, but it does manage to innovate where others have fallen short. Obviously, and most importantly, the Touchtype is designed around the Apple Wireless Keyboard, making it the first iPad case designed to hold a keyboard that is of desktop dimensions, making typing much more comfortable. While the keyboard isn't incorporated into the case, it slots into a pocket in s

It seems the construction boom in bustling Dubai is far from over – already home to several world record-holding projects, including the tallest building (for just a little while longer), the largest shopping mall and biggest man-made island, plans are now afoot to construct what will likely be the world's largest underwater luxury hotel, the Water Discus. Several years ago, we reported on another such ambitious project, Hydropolis, which sadly never got past the blueprint stage. If Polish company Deep Ocean Technology's (DOT) plans come to fruition, however, guests could one day find themselves asleep beneath the waters of the Persian Gulf. To bring this fantasy complex into being, DOT, with the help of Swiss firm BIG InvestConsult AG, turned to local shipyard Drydocks World, which will be tasked with constructing the futuristic disc-shaped hotel. The underwater portion, with about 11,000 square feet (1,000 square meters) of usable area, will house 21 two-guest rooms, an

Life is a sincere teacher. It is always ready to teach us lessons, even if we are not interested and do not want to learn them. The relationships we entered, stayed in, or even ended teach us a lot. The irony is that most of the time, the writing is on the wall, but we prefer to look away finding it too harsh to accept. Too late in life I learnt many lessons which I would like to share with my readers.Looking back at my life as I have reached the threshold of old age, there are times when I wonder….. There are so many ifs and buts concerned! What would life have been if I had learnt my lessons on time? Maybe the face of my life would have been totally different (though I can not say better) today. Too late in life I learnt to take a stand. Often when I found myself in a confronting situation, I preferred to retreat instead of holding my grounds and fighting for what was right in my opinion. The coward inside me, feared the disapproval of the people I

An economist had finished his day at work and was leaving for home, when he noticed a small boy call out to him from the footpath where he was sitting with a dog. The boy said, "Sir, would you like to buy a dog." The economist was surprised by the approach, but asked nevertheless, "How much are you selling the dog for?" The boy replied "Twenty thousand dollars." "Twenty thousand dollars for this dog!" the economist exclaimed. "Does he know any special tricks to make him worth so much money?" The boy replied, "Sir, this dog never made a dime in his life. If you take into consideration the expenses on his food, I think you will lose money on him every year." The economist did not want to let go the opportunity to lecture the boy about the principles of economics and explained to him the fact that a commodity needed to yield more returns than it consumed to equal a purchase price. He finished by

Ruggedizing your portable electronics makes sense and Lifedge has a new option for the 40 million-odd iPad owners in the world. Lifedge's case has an IP (Ingress Protection) rating of IP67 for keeping water and dust out. It will protect an iPad for 30 minutes in one meter (3 feet) of water, or if it is dropped onto a concrete floor from a height of one meter. Lifedge is a new brand launched by Scanstrut, an international manufacturer of products designed to protect equipment used in demanding marine environments. Though Scanstrut has been in the marine market for 25 years, Lifedge is Scanstrut's initial foray outside its core market and it intends to build its name in new areas with an entirely new range of products aimed at enabling digital activities under any conditions. The iPad, with its built-in GPS and big screen, is a natural for use in outdoor environments, except it's a little too delicate for all that salt-water, sun, heat, cold, spray ad infinitum

Both a few decades ago, at the time when phones looked more like portable radio transmitters, and now, when all they have is a glossy black screen, there have always been the cell phones which definitely had style. Motorola DynaTAC 8000X Motorola MicroTAC 9800X Motorola International 3200 Nokia 1011 BellSouth/IBM Simon Motorola StarTAC Nokia 8110 Nokia 9000 Nokia 9110i Nokia 5110 Siemens C25 Nokia 8210 Nokia 7110 Nokia 5210 Benefon Esc Samsung SPH-M100 Uproar Nokia 3210 Ericsson R380 Nokia 3310 Ericsson R320 Siemens ME45 Nokia 5510 Nokia 8310 Ericsson T39 Ericsson T66 Ericsson T68 Siemens S45 Nokia 6800 Nokia 3510(i) Nokia 7650 Sony Ericsson P800 Nokia 6100 Nokia 6310i Sanyo SCP-5300 Nokia 1100 Nokia N-Gage PalmOne Treo 600 Nokia 2100 Nokia 6600 BlackBerry Quark 6210 BlackBerry 7210 Nokia 7600 Nokia 6230 Motorola Razor V3 Sony Ericsson P910