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Barsys Smart Coaster tells you how to pour the perfect cocktail
Mixing a cocktail requires skill and precision -- or the Barsys Smart Coaster. The new device is a small disc that connects to the Barsys app. To mix a drink, you simply place a glass or pitcher on the smart coaster and select the drink you'd like to make. The app will tell you which ingredients to add and the coaster will change colors indicating when to start and stop pouring each ingredient.
Smartphone Coaster keeps your eyes on the prize, even while you eat
From the parallel universe known as "you've got to be kidding me" comes yet another trinket from New PC Gadgets that'll undoubtedly sell well despite being about as mindless as a product comes. In a bid to solve a simple problem that every internet addict faces when dining out or simply joining other Earthlings around a dinner table, the aforesaid company has just issued the Smartphone Coaster. That's a fanciful name for a bent piece of stainless steel. In practice, it holds just about any smartphone (or dumb / featurephone, for that matter) at a 75 degree angle, enabling you to keep a close eye on your display while stuffing your face. We're surmising that these will be aimed as restaurants more than in-home dinner tables, but hey, if you'd rather enable your tweens to ignore vital family conversations while gathered for supper, more power to you. It's available now for $3.95 (or less if buying in bulk), and no, we won't tell anyone that you're seriously considering a dozen.
Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit now rockin' in Orlando
Heads-up, thrill seekers: the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit is finally open and making laps at Universal Studios Orlando. If you'll recall, this coaster was actually announced way back in March of 2008, and after its opening was delayed a few times while kinks were worked out, we're happy to say that it's now capturing the most intimate emotions of those who willfully strap themselves in. We recently had an opportunity to catch a ride in between rainstorms and spats of Tiger Woods drama down in Central Florida, and being the roller coaster freaks that we are, we had a tough time pulling ourselves away from the adrenaline rush to focus on the technology making it all happen. Without question, this ride is the now the main draw at Universal Studios; the bulk of the wild coasters are at the neighboring Islands of Adventure, but this one's definitely worth a visit if you find yourself in the area. You'll notice that each car actually uses platform seating, so the rear rows can see slightly above those in front. Once strapped in, a bright touchscreen panel awaits your attention on the top of the front lap bar; you can navigate through a half dozen or so genres in order to select one of 30 tracks, and while it's not publicized, those in the know will realize that a few Easter Egg tracks are hidden if you mash the right buttons. Once you select your ride soundtrack, the music begins to blast from the headrest-mounted speakers and you're towed straight up in the air as you await the first big drop. After you unload, you're funneled into a media area where employees are waiting to assist you in the purchase of your ride photo or video. We found out that each individual video is recorded in 720 x 480 resolution, and amazingly enough, each one is ready the moment you step down off the ride. Guests can choose to purchase their ride DVD (complete with their song of choice) for $29.95 or as part of a few bundle packs that include photos, frames, etc. Photos can be purchased as actual prints, or they can be emailed directly from the kiosk; in our experience, a confirmation email was sent immediately, and our ride photo (it's actually an e-card that shows the photo at the end of the animation) arrived around an hour later. For an idea of what a first-hand video from the ride would look like, pop on past the break. %Gallery-80023%
Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit gets its own specifications breakdown
Generally speaking, we don't much care about the nuts and bolts behind a thrill ride. If it thrills, it's a winner; if not, it's a failure. But the Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit is a horse of a different color, and being that it's described as the planet's most technologically advanced coaster, we figured it prudent to pass along the details that only true nerds could appreciate. For starters, each rider will have access to a touchpad in order to select their own ride soundtrack from a 30 song library. There's also a half dozen cameras in the ride vehicle alongside eight others along the track, all of which combine to assemble a take-home video of the experience if you'd like. Speaking of, check out the demo vid just past the break, and look for this to open to the public later this summer.
World of WarCrafts: WoW coasters
Every Thursday, Shelbi Roach of The Bronze Kettle guides you in creating WoW-inspired crafts using real world mats with World of WarCrafts.Need a place to park your frosty beverage? What these coasters lack in functionality, they make up for in style. In my step-by-step instructions, I've included a guide to help you create the coasters that will surely be the talk of the table at your next dinner party.Here is what you will need: Perler Beads Peg Board Ironing Paper Iron Click on the images below to view a gallery of step-by-step instructions. %Gallery-20639% DISCLAIMER: If you are under 18, please make sure that you are supervised by your parents or an adult.
Rockit coaster tapes your ride, produces best YouTube vid ever
While many thrill rides we yearn to strap ourselves into aren't even in the US, a new ride headed to Universal Studios Orlando is apt to thrill the YouTube generation -- on purpose. Reportedly, designers are crafting the so-called Hollywood Rip, Ride, Rockit to cater to those obsessed with technology (that's us) by enabling patrons to personalize their ride by choosing their own tunes and creating a music video that can be uploaded for all your envious friends to see as soon as you can whip out that 3G card and mash "upload." 'Course, there's a few loops, drops and a 167-foot-tall peak, but it's the "digital audio and video effects" during the ride that you're really anxious to experience, yeah? Clear the calendar now -- this one is set to open next Spring.[Thanks, Jonathan]
Intelligent coasters create new wave of drinking games
Believe it or not, engineering minds have figured out a way to gadgetize even coasters, but Sentilla's Smart Drink Coasters hope to be the zaniest yet. Designed using vanilla glass coasters from Michael's (an arts and crafts store), one of Sentilla's diminutive pervasive computers, a handful of LEDs and a few other ingredients, these units can not only blink in different ways depending on how full / empty one's beverage is, but they can be used to create a whole new world of drinking games. Reportedly, the gizmos can be programmed to understand when a drink is on it and when a refill is needed, theoretically enabling a bartender or server to be alerted of one's drink status without even going over to check. Additionally, a set of coasters can be used to replicate a memory game much like "Simon," which could undoubtedly create a room full of laughs in the right circumstances. Granted, this all works under the assumption that you'll actually slam your container down on (i.e. not just nearby) the intelligent coaster, but if you think you're that coordinated, hit the read link for a full description and a video demonstration.
Spare Photomasks used to create coaster set
There's nothing like replacing a mundane trip to the store with a DIY endeavor, and creating a simple conversation piece that still serves a purpose just makes it all worthwhile. The latest geekish creation to come our way is the photomask coaster, which essentially utilizes "clear templates used in semiconductor manufacturing" to keep condensation from ruining your furniture. Better still, you can apparently locate unwanted versions of these things at certain electronics surplus stores, and considering that most feature different patterns within, you can create a whole set of coasters that each sport their own unique identity. We know, we just got way too Home & Garden for some of you to handle, but you'll survive.[Thanks, Chris]
Theme Park DS interview
One of those wonderful joys that humans can't quite classify is building a really, really sweet roller coaster. Many games have provided for this need in the past, but now EA's promising Theme Park DS might allow us that satisfaction anywhere we so choose.This in-depth interview reveals plans for country-themed parks, Wi-Fi visitation of other people's creations, a new negoiations feature, and more. Also included are some new screens and even a short little trailer.Is anyone else oddly excited by this game? We plan to build an incomplete roller coaster, and make our friends repeatedly and wildly careen to their deaths at every opportunity. As any true gamer should.
Make your own sprite coasters
Crafty gamers -- or gamey crafters -- take note of these homemade NES coasters. The Wiicast used iron-on Perler beads and a pegboard to build these sprightly squares. The simple process yields strong results, scoring high -- eight rings -- on our just-made-up phone-it-in scale. Of course, the project works best on retro sprites that end up being about the same size as a typical glass. Go too old-school, and the coasters will be suited only for shot glasses. Or adapt the technique to a modern screenshot to craft the coolest doormat in your apartment building.
KUKA Robotics and Primal Rides to release interactive amusement ride
There's nothing like wolfing down a delectable funnel cake, only to then strap yourself into a steel-framed contraption that lays down 2 Gs on your already-queasy stomach. Germany's KUKA Robotics is teaming up with Canada's own Primal Rides to unveil a new "fully interactive amusement ride" using the KUKA KR 500 robot as the "building block" of it all. The machine boasts a six-axis (not that SIXAXIS) robot with a 131-inch reach and capable of handling just over half a ton, all while throwing 2 Gs worth of force and countless smiles (or frowns, depending on the situation) on its riders. Apparently, the ride will hoist riders into a gunfight, where the intensity, speed, and variety of targets will increase as their scores skyrocket; additionally, KUKA claims that parks can "quickly and cost effectively change the theme and severity of the ride" by swapping out peripheral effects and robot programming sans the need for costly new nuts and bolts. While it's still unclear which theme parks have signed on for this robot-based thrill ride, we're sure EMMA, HOSPI, RI-MAN, and Quasi will be first in line to give it a whirl.[Via Robbit Gossip]
