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Puma is recruiting beta testers for its self-lacing sneakers
When Engadget took an exclusive look at the Puma Fi self-lacing shoes earlier this year, the company teased an upcoming beta program for those who want to try their luck. Well, the time has come. Between now and April 28th, you can apply for the Puma Fi beta testing program via the PUMATRAC app (available on iOS and Android) or Puma's online form. The catch is you need to be residing in one of the following 11 regions: US, UK, Germany, Japan, Hong Kong, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Spain, India and Turkey.
Adidas uses robots to bring shoe production back to Germany
Years ago, clothing manufacturers started moving production to developing nations where the labor costs were cheap and employees were plentiful. Proponents of globalization said that jobs going to poorer regions was a great thing, but sportswear firms paying workers pennies to make $100 shirts certainly isn't. But now, the robot revolution is likely to cause a retreat from the days of fashion houses opening sweatshops in far-flung lands. And Adidas, which has often come under fire for its use of unethical labor practices, is leading the charge.
Gibson's Trainer headphones look to keep runners safe after dark
It might sound odd that a guitar maker is getting into fitness headphones, however Gibson falls under the same corporate umbrella as Philips, Onkyo and other personal audio brands. That being said, it's still a bit strange to see the iconic guitar brand stamped on a pair of on-ears. I was curious enough to give them a shot, and in the process, discovered there was much more to the Usain Bolt-endorsed Trainer headphones than the initial announcement let on. Those are indeed onboard controls on the right earpad, and they sort not only play/pause and skip functions, but also toggle on/off a feature that dampens the sound so you can hear what's going on around you. You can use it to converse with a workout pal, and it's also sure to come in handy when you're coming up on a busy intersection.
Blood Pact: Leveling is much better in Mists of Pandaria
Every week, WoW Insider brings you Blood Pact for affliction, demonology, and destruction warlocks. This week, Megan O'Neill delayed downloading the new beta build in favor of getting her witch doctor to 60. Priorities! With the overhaul to the warlock class coming in Mists of Pandaria, guildmates and friends have been wondering whether to revive old warlocks or not. Those without warlocks on their character screens have been asking the age-old question: Should I level one now or wait until the expansion hits? Unless you're particularly masochistic about your leveling, my advice is to wait. Here's why.
Dark Age of Camelot takes players to school
Dark Age of Camelot's new website is already paying off in spades for players, as the developers are able to pass along a host of new information, concept art and previews for the populace. DAOC will be 10 years old as of next month and isn't slowing down. Exhibit A: The team is already hard at work on the 1.110 patch. John Thronhill penned a dev diary about the patch this week; he focuses on the new Lesson Quests that will go hand-in-hand with the beginner experience. Lesson Quests are designed to help newbies get their footing in this complex setting, especially since the game continues to see a "large amount of returning and brand-new players" each month. As players progress through Lesson Quests, they'll not only get a better understanding of how DAOC works but be rewarded with buff tokens, potions, and other nice goodies. As part of the quest chain, NPCs will demonstrate crowd control techniques and other RvR survival skills in the hopes that new players will be able to make a better contribution to the war. These tutorial quests can also be skipped if players already know the ropes. Lesson Quests aren't the only new additions coming with 1.110, although Thornhill says we'll have to wait until another day to hear about the rest.
The Xsens ForceShoe watches your step, helps you walk better
The technology-laden Xsens ForceShoe might better be described as a sandal. However, if you're the type of bipedal perfectionist who wants to analyze your gait using an array of 6DoF force sensors and magnetic trackers (not to mention that cunningly-disguised wireless data transmitter), then the chances are your toenails can also stand a bit of scrutiny. In fact, although the ForceShoe is primarily designed for physio patients, we think its inventors at the University of Twente might just have stumbled upon the next-gen Nike+ accessory we've all been waiting for. Unfortunately they're not on sale, but if you're a researcher looking to measure the orientation, acceleration, angular velocity, force and torque of your feet in three dimensions, you're welcome to hop past the break for the full press release.
Enter at Your Own Rift: 'Role' play
In retrospect, it was all my fault. I had gotten too used to just throwing RIFT dungeon groups together and assuming that with the flexible soul system we'd be able to provide everything necessary no matter what archetype mixup we had. I suppose it's a testament to Trion Worlds' design that an exact group composition wasn't a top concern -- the goal is just getting five willing players together for a fun run. We were running Darkening Deeps, and I decided to start a group so that I could show off the dungeon to Rubi. We had two Rogues, two Mages and a Warrior, and I felt pretty confident going in that we would prevail. And while the Warrior stepped up and said he would tank -- taking the burden off of my Riftstalker build -- everyone else was curiously quiet when I asked if there was another healer who could back up my Bard heals for boss fights. Nothing. Not a peep. The other Rogue didn't have a Bard spec, and the Mages were whistling innocently when I asked if they happened to have a Chloromancer role tucked in their back pocket. Oh crud. This was going to hurt. Six trash pulls into the dungeon later, I called it and said that we simply didn't have enough healing power to make it through the bosses. My bad, I said, thanks for playing!
The Perfect Ten: The secret lives of NPCs
It is fun, I've decided, to overthink things in life. This is especially relevant in MMOs, where we've long since taken absolutely bizarre staples as the accepted status quo. Sure, it's all polite fiction that allows developers to merge necessary game mechanics with a veneer of credibility, but many elements of MMOs simply fall apart when put under the microscope. Case in point, the NPC. Is there a figure in online games that more symbolizes the thin barrier between the server database and user playerbase than the non-player character? NPCs exist to fill the world with warm bodies so that places don't feel empty, yet they also exhibit no more life than a mannequin with a tape recorder strapped to its back. These cardboard cutouts of the MMO scene are either reanimated corpses struggling to remember basic quest-giving instructions, or else they're prisoners of a foul witch who has struck the entire land with a paralyzing spell. So even though it's 2011 and you'd think that NPCs would be showing us more signs of life than swiveling slightly when we approach, I'm happy to jump in and offer my opinion as to the secret life of these figures. What makes them tick? What do they get out of helping -- and prodding -- us into action? Why don't they ever sleep or use the bathroom? Just who are these people we encounter and dismiss every day?
Ripxx ski app out now for Android, still has no idea what the street value of this mountain is
The closest we have ever come to a ski race is the worn out VHS copy of Better Off Dead we still have in the back of our closets somewhere, but if you're an Android-lovin' ski bunny jealous of all the attention Ripxx has been giving the iPhone, you're in luck. That's right, your fave open source smartphone OS has its very own version of the Ripxx Ski and Snowboard app. Version 1.1 features over 200 mapped out resorts, GPS tracking, stats recording (including speed, distance, and vertical drop) and more. Not bad for $5, eh?
Ripxx ski app for iPhone great for athletes, useless for Epyx Winter Games
We received an interesting email from Ripxx this morning, stating that due to an unprecedented outpouring of comments on our previous post for its sports GPS, the company's gone and developed its very own iPhone app. That's right, instead of planning your ski trips around a piece of dedicated hardware, you can now do it on the same device you use to read Texts From Last Night while sitting on the loo. The Ripxx iPhone Ski App, as it's called, features trail maps from over 200 North American ski resorts, Google Maps integration, the ability to track time, speed, distance, and vertical drop for your various trips down the mountain. Whatever that means. But hey -- it's only five bucks! And it's available now. Video after the break.
Preview: Rock Band 3 keyboard, Pro Keys and Keys trainer
At a Harmonix event a few weeks ago, I finally got some solid fingers-on time with Rock Band 3's keyboard, and as a guy who took nearly 10 years of Friday afternoon piano lessons as a kid, I can say that it's a nice set of keys. The quality of the plastic ivories is not quite as good as your Grandma's classic Steinway, but better than a cheap Casio, and Harmonix has put just as much thought and design into the keytar* as it did into the previous Rock Band instruments. I also got to play with the game's trainer modes for the first time. Training is available for each of the three instruments, and rather than just a simple tutorial, the trainer is a fully interactive game that teaches you, step-by-step, the finer points of playing both the real and plastic gear. When teamed up with the instruments and a little bit of time and practice, Rock Band 3's trainer really seems like it can teach you the same things that Mrs. Crane taught me all those years ago.%Gallery-99242%
New Exilim golf-friendly digicam hitting Japan; the Pro from Dazaifu never had it so good
Golf fanatics will stop at nothing in pursuit of upping their game, and as you know, all sorts of gadgets have been modified to suit their purposes, from PNDs to digicams. Apparently Casio's Exilim line has been a favorite, and now its golf-centric camera is getting something of a spec bump. The Exilim EX-FC160S sports a 10 megapixel backside illuminated sensor, 5x optical zoom at 37mm, and support for 240fps video with an optional 30fps slow-motion playback. Available in Japan come August 27, in a limited production run of 5,000 units.
Ripxx exercise GPS adds Mac OS support to its other EXTREME! qualities
We're all basically huge jocks here at Engadget </sarcasm>, so anytime we can combine our love of cross training with our love of consumer electronics it's a pretty good day. Only a thousand times less interesting than Dancepants, the Ripxx Personal Measurement Device (as you may recall) integrates a GPS, accelerometers, and gyroscopes for tracking your performance and movement in all three dimensions. And now Apple users can get in on the game (or least train and then sit on the bench), with an upgraded Ripxx Suite Version 2.1 that includes not only full Mac support but Improved activity reports and graphs and lap time measurements. If this is your bag, hit up the PR after the break. As for us, we're going to get back to this quart of Chunky Monkey and VHS copy of BASEketball.
WoW Rookie: Training up
New around here? WoW Rookie points WoW's newest players to the basics of a good start in the World of Warcraft. Visit WoW.com's WoW Rookie Guide for links to all our tips, tricks and how-to's. Training up your spells and abilities used to be fairly complex -- not the process itself, mind you, but figuring out where to go. Trainers were tucked into obscure nooks and crannies all over the world, a real incentive to go exploring. Several infamous profession trainers were even located inside instances; you had to fight your way in, bags stuffed with all the mats for the next batch of recipes you hoped to train, and skill up like mad so you could buy the next available recipe while your group kept the area clear. Training is much simpler in today's World of Warcraft, but it's hardly intuitive. We've pulled together a few notes on training for class spells and abilities, professions, riding skill for mounts and weapon skills, to help steer you to the right place at the right time.
Trust in Casio's Japanese Exilim EX-FS10S, it'll turn your bogeys into birdies
Sure, we could rattle off a list of specs -- and if you're curiuos, it's a 9.1 megapixel sensor with 3x optical zoom and 720p video -- but you know what's really gonna have Casio's Exilim EX-FS10S flying off shelves? The ability to stand it behind your tee and show you exactly how you screw up your swing, with special help of the company's trademark 1000 frames per second burst mode. The catch is, while the EX-FS10 is already available in US, only the Japanese model seems to have your golf buddy. Bummer.
Ripxx debuts Personal Measurement Device for exercise nerds and Olympic athletes
If we're being candid, the Ripxx Personal Measurement Device (or PMD, as the hip kids call it) looks a lot like the original SPOT with the addition of a display. But aside from the physical likeness, there aren't too many similarities between the two gizmos. Launched this month, the handheld fitness tool is apt to be a surefire winner for any competitive athlete, not to mention competitive individuals in general who just need a statistical way to track their dominance. Essentially, an integrated GPS tracker pumps out ten tracking signals every second during, let's say, a ski run. That information, coupled with data gathered from a trio of accelerometers and gyroscopes, is used to record your location, orientation, speed, vertical drop, rolls, spins, turns and just about any other movement you make. Once you're done, those points can be plotted on a map for review. We're told that the U.S. Olympic team is already using a prototype to train for the 2010 winter games, though mere lay people won't be able to buy one until mid-December for $329.
Nintendo: Kids don't like math. We checked
Nintendo recently employed the services of Wakefield Research and had a survey conducted. The results of said survey show that 1 in 5 kids are more inclined to believe they'll be rich and famous than good at math. Who would've thought today's youth lacked so much self-confidence? Some other key items of interest include: More than 1/3 of kids surveyed say math is their most difficult subject Nearly 1/3 of the kids view math in a negative light; 18% called it "boring," while 13% called it "torture" 86% of parents surveyed say math is important to their careers, even though they thought they'd never need math back in school This, of course, segues brilliantly into Nintendo's newest game for the DS: Personal Trainer: Math. Oh, and will you look at this? Why, look what game released this week. What a coincidence!
DS Daily: Fluent yet?
A few months have passed since the last language trainer, My Japanese Coach, debuted on the DS, so now seems like an apt time to ask: if you bought one of the DS's numerous language titles, are you still returning each day to learn new lessons? Has the DS made you feel confident enough to converse with real people on the streets of Paris/Tokyo/Madrid?Oh, and as this is sort of related, did anybody ever pick up the hilariously inappropriate Spanish for Everyone?%Gallery-28607%
DS Daily: I think I'm learning Japanese, I really think so
My Japanese Coach is probably one of the most anticipated games hitting the DS. After our week with My French Coach, we can say that piece of software was effective. So, how many of you are looking to pick this up to learn Japanese?Any of you learn another language through the aid of software before? Did you pick up any of the other language coach games? Or are you not excited by My Japanese Coach at all?%Gallery-28607%
DS Daily: In desperate need of a coach
For many people, My Japanese Coach is like the best thing ever. It seems like such an awesome idea to help gamers learn the language of the land that has all of the best games (well, maybe that's up for debate, but that discussion is for another time and place). We know many of you can't wait to check it out. Heck, neither can we!But, brushing the My Japanese Coach aside, what other languages do you wish they'd make helpful software for? My Klingon Coach? How about My Simlish Coach? Do you want something a little more grounded in reality, like My Greek Coach or something?
