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Personalize your Kindle cover or skin with vacation photos at no additional cost
If a regular ol' Kindle accessory doesn't express your personality as well as you'd like, Amazon has announced a new service that looks to oblige. Customers can now personalize an Amazon Origami cover along with a smattering of other covers and skins with a library of images, logos and patterns or by uploading their own photo masterpieces. That collection also includes comic, movie and TV artwork from the likes of Breaking Bad and Peanuts -- just to name a couple. The best part? There's no additional charge. Covers and skins are available for Kindle, Kindle Paperwhite, Kindle Fire HD, Kindle Fire HDX and a few older models. Can't wait to get started? Hit that source link to begin crafting your very own.
Deezer unveils personalized music discovery features and native Mac app
It's hard to talk of music streaming service Deezer and not mention the behemoth in the room: Spotify. A launch in the US is certainly needed for Deezer to become a true rival, but in the meantime, it's adding new features for current users, which hail from basically everywhere else. Today sees the reveal of "Hear This," a custom feed which recommends music based on what you've listened to before, what your friends are into, and what Deezer's global editors think is hot. Also coming is "Explore," a browsing tool that lets you filter beats by genre and region. Other minor updates include new search/filter functions and a track history within your Library, as well as a preview mode that allows you to catch 30 seconds of a song before deciding whether to hear more. Deezer also teased that it's concocting a Mac app that'll integrate with Finder, although wouldn't give any timeline for release. Hear This and Explore, however, will arrive shortly: November 12th for Premium subscribers, and November 19th for everybody else.
Twitter's Event Parrot claims to be an experiment in breaking news alerts (update: confirmed)
Wondering what's next for Twitter? TechCrunch points out a mysterious account called @EventParrot that may hold an answer, with its profile promising "direct messages that help you keep up with what's happening in the world." The setup is similar to Twitter's @MagicRecs account which eventually spawned the feature that automatically suggests tweets users might like. Despite a lack of official verification, @EventParrot has snagged a list of followers -- nearly 3,000 strong at the moment -- that includes a large number of Twitter employees and associates. Just this evening it sent out a direct message alerting followers to the kidnapping of Libya's prime minister, although how it will develop remains to be seen. Twitter's looming IPO is turning up the pressure on it to reach even more people, and offering more passively available, personally customized information may be one way to do that. Update: As noted by The Next Web, Twitter designer Paul Stamatiou has confirmed that the company is indeed behind the account, which he also described as an experiment.
NC State develops personalized web search without the usual server strain
The notion of personalized, contextually aware search is nothing new, but it can put a tremendous strain on servers by asking for a lot of data at once. NC State has developed a search technique that could ease that burden. Its code prioritizes results based solely on the "ambient query context," or the concepts related to a person's recent search history. Look for politicians, for example, and a search for Ford is more likely to bring up Gerald Ford than the car company. By focusing on just a fraction of a user's search habits, the university can customize results using far fewer processor cycles: while a test server could only handle 17 active searchers with an old approach, it can manage 2,900 with the new method. The query engine won't be confined to the lab, either. NC State tells us that a community-driven search beta is due within several months, and there are plans to commercialize the technology in the long run.
Dijit's NextGuide finally gets personalized TV and streaming video guides right
Part of the difficulty Apple is going to have with any next-generation, disruptive Apple TV product is corralling all the stakeholders, rights owners and interested parties. Luckily there are already other solutions for finding, watching and saving video on TV or via streaming services. Enter NextGuide, the new iPad app from Dijit (makers of the remote software used in Griffin's IR remote product, which we reviewed here). The app is on the App Store here. NextGuide is pretty much the ultimate answer to the age-old question, "What should I watch?" But it's not just a recommendation engine, or a simple listing guide. It's a powerful discovery tool and a launcher, with an array of filters and search options for finding what you want, plus deep integration with services like Netflix and DIRECTV satellite service. With Netflix movies, it will take you directly to what you want to watch. For DIRECTV customers, it can initiate recordings. The app is free, so I'll let you try it out for yourself. It's iPad-only, because the experience wouldn't be the same on an iPhone. The demo I saw was quite impressive, however. If you're looking for something, you can do a basic search, which will extend across online and TV content, and you can look at what your friends on Facebook might be watching or would recommend (this is smartly done, and I'm very picky about social integration), plus there are Rotten Tomatoes film ratings built right in. The interface is quite lovely as well, eschewing the standard grid for a more dynamic tiled grouping of shows (seen above). Plus, you can create your own categories from anything -- an actor, a place, your favorite sports team, etc. Later you can also hide the stuff you don't want to see, so if you hate Westerns, you'll rarely see them and you can focus on discovering even more shows. There's an alert system in NextGuide, to help remind you of that show you wanted to watch, but it also reminds you if a particular artist will be on. Say Tavis Smiley is interviewing Sheryl Crow and you have her as an alert -- you'll be notified when she is on the show. Of course there's also the usual lineup of features, like show info, trailers, etc. but the social integration is clever and subtle. As seen below, a show with fans on Facebook is seen with the show's info, and some of the fans you might know. That's really clever and doesn't get in your face or require a lot of work like most social tools that are grafted into apps like a Frankenthumb. Until Apple comes up with whatever groundbreaking interface for TV discovery it's hiding in the labs, NextGuide is likely the next best thing. Check it out and let us know what you find.
Google Voice Search update helps you personalize your results, helps Google build another database to take over the world
Google Voice Actions was the first step towards our Star Trek dreams of lassoing the world with naught but vocal cords, and today Google's taken a second hop towards that inevitable future by letting Android devices record our every utterance. Yes, if you've got a handset running Froyo or better, you can download an update for Google Voice Search right now, which will let your phone dynamically personalize its speech-to-text engine to better recognize your voice most every time you use it. Of course, by so doing you're giving Google permission to record your sentences -- anonymously, of course -- to use in future products, but whether that's a problem or just a happy coincidence depends on whether you take Google at its word. We hit the "yes" button, in case you're curious. Find it on Android Market, or just use the handy-dandy QR code below.
Apple now offering iPad engraving
If you've ever wished you could put a personalized message on the back of an iPad like you can with an iPod, you're in luck: Apple has unveiled free engraving for the iPad just in time for the holiday season. Free, as in $0: for no additional cost, you can add a laser-engraved message onto a new iPad's aluminum backside. Engraving increases the shipping time by a small amount, but there's an even bigger potential pitfall. If Apple follows the same policy for iPads as it has for iPods, you may not be able to return an engraved iPad. Apple's sales and refund policy specifically states, "Personalized iPods (e.g., engraved or customized in any way) may not be returned for refund or exchange under any circumstances unless such product is Dead on Arrival." The policy hasn't yet been updated for the iPad, but it won't surprise us at all if the same policy holds true for Apple's far more expensive tablet. Having a personalized engraving on your iPad could also reduce its value if you want to sell it later; having something like "Merry Christmas honeybuns" printed on the back of a secondhand iPad doesn't go over well with most potential buyers. In other words: iPad engraving is a great idea, but the buyer should definitely beware. [via Mac Rumors]
Put yourself in the picture with PixyMe
Do you remember the personalized movies that had been showing up in your email a while back? The one that sticks in my mind was a 'get out the vote' video the Obama campaign sent out a month before the presidential election. The story told by the video was that Obama lost by just one vote and it was you, whoever you are. You name was smoothly integrated into about a dozen places in the narrative. It was a real attention getter. PixyMe (US $1.99) brings a static version of this technology to your iPhone or iPod touch. This beautifully designed and rendered app lets you incorporate any name or short phrase seamlessly into an eCard or postcard, appearing as though it were part of the photograph. The resulting personalized photo can be either emailed, sent to Facebook, saved in your photo album, or sent as a high-quality physical postcard to any address in the world. It works remarkably well, as you can see from the picture on the right and the gallery below. It's unfortunate that this app has the all too common problem of dropping you into the fray with scant instructions. That would be okay for a simple one-trick-pony, but this app is fairly complex and has functions that need explanation. There is an info screen at the end of all the options, but all it gives you are the raw basics and a link to get to the PixyMe site. What you probably don't know is that on the site is a great introduction and all the information you need to get started quickly in a video tour. You can view it at the end of this post. I feel that this video should be incorporated into the app or directly linked to rather than dropping you at the site. That's my only complaint. The rest of the app is a delight.
Customize your Flip Mino for free, regret it when eBay time comes
For whatever reason, Pure Digital's Flip Mino has been a runaway hit. The video quality ain't that great, and it's downright bad in low-light scenarios, but there's something about the convenience factor that keeps folks coming. Now, there's one more reason to give this one a look over rivals: personalization. Thanks to a new partnership with CafePress, prospective buyers can customize their Flip Mino with a design of their own or choose one from thousands of professional designs, and contrary to what you're expecting, the service is completely free. In other words, you can finally get that pocket camcorder you've been wanting with your 2-week old girlfriend (or you skateboarding) plastered on there for not a dime more -- but who'll be laughing when it comes time to sell and upgrade?[Via Switched]
GamerTrainer offers tutoring for WoW gamers
Having trouble making your way through Stranglethorn Vale? Can't quite figure out how to farm all that gold for your epic mount? Maybe what you need is a tutor! GamerTrainer is a site that claims to provide tutors for gamers who need a little extra personalized help with their games, and right there on their list, among Halo, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and Call of Duty is our very own World of Warcraft. It'll cost ya, though -- $130 for five hours is as cheap as it comes per hour, going all the way up to $30 for one hour of personalized training. And just because you pay, it doesn't mean you'll actually get help -- "Mister_Llanowar" is apparently standing by to give you some helpful tips, and for all you know, he's just another 13-year-old who's really good at ganking with a 70.As you might have noticed, we're a little skeptical -- there's nothing you couldn't learn from these trainers that you couldn't pick up on, say, sites like the one you're reading right now (we've got you covered on STV and raising all that mount money). Not to mention that the whole point of a game (any game) is to sit down, mess around with it, experiment and explore, and pick it up on your own -- having someone tell you personally what to do and where to go is the exact opposite of fun.And if you still disagree, hey, call me up. I'll be happy to sit down and play with you on Skype for a measley $30 an hour. I call all disenchants, though, so if you don't need those greens, they're mine!
The DS Life: Nintendobama
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo/The_DS_Life_Nintendobama'; The DS Life is a weekly feature in which we scour the known world for narrative images of Nintendo's handheld and handheld gamers. If you have a photo and a story to match it with, send both to thedslife at dsfanboy dot com.As a rule, we don't trust any politicians, especially the ones we want to trust, so it's rare that you'll ever see us championing the merits of any particular presidential candidate. Besides, the electioneering scene just isn't something we want to be a part of, like the straight-edge scene or the liking-music-that-no-sensible-person-should-ever-enjoy scene. We're too laid back and cynical to involve ourselves in the passionate debates these conversations often require.Still, when one gamer goes to the extreme to express his devotion towards his favored statesman by decorating a Nintendo DS Lite with the politician's face, we take notice ...
Nokia announces user-generated mini-games for new N-Gage
Personalization is all the rage in games these days, what with Miis, face-mapping and, er, laser-etched portables showing up all over the place. Now Nokia's jumping into the personalized gaming, uh, game with the Yamake initiative for the new N-Gage platform.According to the announcement, Yamake mini-games (because "ya make" 'em ... get it?) will lets users add "personal content such as text, pictures, sound clips and movies from the mobile device or PC" to create picture puzzles, trivia quizzes and more. Sure, it doesn't sound like anything you can't already do online, but the ability to create and share these little personalized games easily on your phone might be cool. Trust us ... even if you don't get it, your little sister will love it.[Via Engadget]
YourPND gets your voice on your navigation system
Sure, those Mr. T / Dennis Hopper navtones were pretty humorous for a trip around the block or two, but seriously, how many times can you stand to hear "fool!" on a trip from Tuscaloosa to Fargo? That being said, we're not confident we'd want to listen to ourselves for that long, but for the folks who feel otherwise, YourPND is out to make your dreams a reality. Though the website wasn't created in our native tongue, it appears that TomTom owners (Garmin, Mio, etc. coming soon) simply record a select number of phrases to the site, after which they can cough up €7 ($10) and download the results on to their navigator. Sounds like the perfect gift for someone who just loathes hearing you talk, don'tcha think?[Via NaviGadget]
iPod: personalizing isolation
Many pundits (read 'luddites') fear that the proliferation of iPod toting folks is isolating people from group experiences that define our culture as a whole. Katherine Mangu-Ward, writing for Reason Magazine, argues that this fear has been around since the dawn of the Walkman, and we seem to be doing ok. The iPod's ability to isolate people isn't a drawback, but rather a feature. People crave to have their own little musical universe in which to retreat from the increasingly noisy work a day world.I thank the Jobs every time my iPod saves me from being forced to listen to some random cellphone conversation. So, what do you think? Is the isolation offered by an iPod worrying? Or should we all just pop in some ear buds and rock out?[via Informationally Overloaded]
Google expanding mobile offerings
In a move sure to steal a few folks away from their carriers' WAP home pages, Google has added a system for customizing users' mobile screens independently of their desktop counterparts -- a good move, especially for those 99.9% of us without VGA screens on our phones. Separately, they've also announced a new version of their Java-based Google Maps Mobile app that adds support for live traffic and saving favorite locations. We've tried the new release, and yeah, it's gorgeous -- Moto bundling or not, Yahoo's got some catch-up to play.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
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Medion offers personalized laptop on the cheap
If there were ever a jack of all trades in the electronics biz, Medion would be it. The company seems to make everything (or else their logo sure gets around), and this time the label appears by way of a new budget laptop. The MIM 2220 is a predictably average machine that sports a 15.4-inch WXGA display, a dual-layer DVD burner, WiFi, 256MB of RAM, 40GB HD, and a trio of USB 2.0 ports along with a FireWire connector. Surprisingly, the notebook is powered by a 1.7GHz Intel Pentium M processor, which is a notch above the Celeron we anticipated. But the run-of-the-mill specs are overshadowed by the bargain basement pricetag (just £400) and the option to have Medion (or whoever really makes this thing) emboss any picture onto the lid of the machine for another £45. While the uniqueness of the offering -- and the delightfully low price point -- may draw in a few customers, you may want to think twice about about completely ruining its (small) resale value by plastering your face on it. Might we suggest something a little more cheeky, perhaps? [Via Mobilemag]
