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GenevaSound S stuffs 'hifi' and 'pretentious' into smaller $299 box
We loved the original Geneva Sound System XL, if for nothing other than the sheer audacity of it, though we hear it made some pretty good noise to boot. But if you don't have $1,999 to drop on an iPod dock, the new GenevaSound S brings things into the realm of possibility with a street-style $299 pricetag. Of course, with only two speakers under the hood and not as much room (or power) to stretch those bass-ey legs, we'll have to see just if the dock can measure up to its hyperbole when we get a chance to take a listen. At least that sexy, hidden touch-sensitive control panel certainly isn't hurting anything. %Gallery-80467%
Large Hadron Collider grinds to a halt... again
In an increasingly unsurprising turn of events, the Large Hadron Collider suffered a major power failure this morning, knocking the machine and its website out of service. The failure occurred in an 18,000-volt power line in Meyrin, Geneva where the LHC is housed beneath the ground, causing pretty much everything to shut down. The LHC's magnets maintained a temperature of 1.9 degrees above absolute zero (having to re-cool them would have been a pretty sizeable setback), however, and no long-term damage seems to have occurred. The trouble-prone Large Hadron Collider is expected to resume full operations sometime later today, and is currently operating on limited power from a backup supply. Regardless, the unfortunate event is sure to resurrect that zany Higgs boson time-travelling theory.
PlayStation-induced palm lesions identified by Swiss scientists
It's no Wiiitis, but Swiss scientists have ID'd a new skin disorder they believe came from prolonged gaming sessions. Dubbed "PlayStation palmar hidradentitis," the condition is marked by painful lumps that appear on the palms. This Dr. House diagnosis came from a 12-year old girl who visited Geneva hospital with hand lesions allegedly from hours-long gaming marathon, and that she fully recovered after a ten-day PlayStation hiatus. While being careful not to discredit the findings, Sony spokesman David Wilson chimed in to say they had never heard of a case like this, despite hundreds of millions consoles sold, and as with any leisure activity, "there are possible consequences of not following common sense, health advice and guidelines." Hey, at least she didn't break her arm.
Naxoo intros new HD package for Swiss customers
Switzerland-based cable company Naxoo is giving its customers a few new high-def channels to feast on, but they won't be arriving for free. The new package includes National Geographic HD, BBC HD, HD3 Culture, iConcerts HD, Arte HD and Melody Zen TV for a monthly fee of around $8.40 per month, but considering that AT&T is charging $5 for an extra three high-def channels, we guess this is just about par for the course.
Geneva Apple Store opening photos
As promised, the Apple Store on Rue de Rive in Geneva, Switzerland opened this morning, and TUAW reader Sylvain is on the spot and sending in some great pictures. From the looks of it, the place is packed, the weather is great and everyone is having a good time.Meanwhile, we're still waiting for two Zurich stores to open; one in the Glattzentrum shopping mall and one on Bahnhofstrasse.If you happen to visit this store today or over the weekend, please let us know! We'd love to hear your stories and see your own shots. Have fun, Geneva!%Gallery-32715%
Switzerland Apple Stores near completion
The Apple retail machine continues to move, this time across Switzerland, as three stores are nearly ready. ifoAppleStore reports that the store in Zurich's Glattzentrum shopping mall should be in business any time now, and they've posted some tantalizing spy shots. A second store is scheduled to open in Zurich on Bahnhofstrasse by year's end. Job postings for these locations began to appear on Apple's job board as early as last February.Finally, a third store on Rue de Rive (Geneva) is scheduled to open later this month.
Quantum cryptography to keep Swiss votes private
In what's being hailed as "one of the first public uses of quantum cryptography," Genevian voters who take part in the upcoming national elections can rest assured that their votes will remain a secret. Reportedly, the "city-state will use quantum technology to encrypt election results as they are sent to the capital on October 21st." A computer, provided by id Quantique, will be set up in Geneva to "fire photons down a fiber-optic link to a receiver 62-miles away," which should be sufficient to keep any potential eavesdroppers at bay. 'Course, where there's a will, there's typically a way.
BMW shows off WiFi / cellular-based in-car multimedia system
Among all the new cars unveiled at the recent Geneva motor show, BMW also took the opportunity to show off a little in-car action, letting show-goers take its still-in-development dashboard console for a spin. According to Wired blog Autopia, the system can be loaded up with audio and video content off your PC via WiFi while you're parked in the driveway, or via a cellular link when you're on the road. Unfortunately, they didn't provide many details on the console itself, other than that it boasts 20GB of storage and will apparently be able to record radio content as well. It's also not clear when we might see such a system installed in a future BMW, with the company only saying that it "could" be commercially available within three years, adding that licensing and copyright issues are (not surprisingly) the main things holding it back.[Thanks, Christian]
Haptics research underway so you can virtually feel fabrics
We're not really sure that there's going to be any consumer haptics devices outside the context of a video game anytime soon, but that hasn't stopped the European Union from funding the HAPTEX (HAPtic sensing of virtual TEXtiles) project. Haptics, of course, is the study of touch sensory feedback, and scientists at the University of Geneva are currently working on a project that will incorporate touch into your online shopping. So let's say that you're looking online to buy pants, but you're not sure if you want corduroys or jeans -- in case you didn't know what those materials felt like, you'd touch a device that would allow you to feel the various textures. The project is due to end exactly one year from now, so that's when we'll find out if the €1.66 million ($2.11 million) that EU taxpayers shelled out was really worth it -- and what devices, if any, will come to fruition.
Seitz Roundshot D3: take a 360-degree panorama in two seconds flat
Remember that ridiculously-sized but utterly awesome Seitz 6x17 Digital that we showed you yesterday? Well, Seitz has another one to wave around at this year's Photokina. This time, though, it's a 360-degree cam that'll capture 470 million pixels worth of color and light, and furthermore, will complete that task in two seconds -- less than the amount of time it's taken you to read half of this paragraph. Like the 6x17, the Roundshot D3 has a ISO range from 500 to 10,000, accepts lenses from 24mm to 250mm and comes with a maxed out Mac mini to act as its oversized flash card. The D3 is more expensive than the 6x17, however, with the mobile version taking a sizeable 46,900 francs ($37,463) from that numbered Swiss bank account of yours, while the studio version comes in at 43,700 Swiss francs ($34,906). In either case, you'll probably want to head over to the Seitz site to get in line to pre-order this bad boy, which is due to hit the streets of Geneva by early 2007. Oh yeah, and make sure to catch a big pic of the D3 on the next page.Read
Geneva Model L
Do you have an iPod, $600, and love black? The Geneva Model L black is just the iPod speaker system for you. It is compatible with all dock connector iPods, has a built in CD player, FM radio, and an included remote.If you don't like black it also comes in red and white.[via Uncrate]
