2012olympics
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Inhabitat's Week in Green: 30-foot 'Buckyball', Olympic stadium Lego replica and the 'Mantabot'
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. Building a robot that can stand and walk on two legs like a human is challenging enough -- but what about a robot that swims like a human? A team from Tokyo University of Technology has created the Swumanoid, a swimming robot that's based on the physique of a human swimmer and can swim a variety of strokes. But why should a swimming robot have to look like a person? Most fish swim much faster, more gracefully and more efficiently than humans. That's why scientists from the University of Virginia are developing the Mantabot, a robot that looks and swims like a ray.
Remote camera mounts replace AFP photographers at Olympic Games
Remember those robotic camera rigs Reuters cooked up for the Olympic games? They won't be alone -- the AFP have lined the games with their own remote mounts. Traditionally, aerial shots are captured by brave, well harnessed photographers -- but the AFP's acrobatic photojournalists have been grounded by the powers that be. "The Olympics Committee has warned us that, for security reasons, no photographer will be allowed on the stadium roof," stated the AFP's chief editor of technical issues, Francois-Xavier Marit. "We had to come up with a system of remote-controlled photography." Marit worked with Nikon and Mark Roberts Motion Control to build a dozen rigs to pepper throughout Olympic facilities. It's not Marit's first time kitting out the games either -- he's been using remote camera rigs to snap underwater Olympians since 2004. Each mount is equipped with a Nikon D4 and 16 to 400mm zooms, ten will be mounted in the main Olympic stadium with an additional two covering the swimming complex. Worried you won't be able to see the hardware from the bleachers? Mosey on past the break for a quick preview.
BMW opens i Store in sync with London Olympics, shows tourists their electric destiny
Technology companies have been lining up to milk the London Olympics spotlight for all it's worth. BMW isn't shy about taking its turn, but it's not looking to cash in -- directly, we mean. The automaker is instead using its just-opened i Store to showcase everything electric and hybrid for downtown visitors who aren't busy watching the cycling. Its centerpieces are unquestionably the i3 and i8, which won't even go on sale until many months after the summer games' closing ceremonies; the i3 on the floor is closer to the street model, though, and will tease EV drivers with BMW's option packs. Should that make your bank account cringe far too soon, the i Pedelec scooter and the i Wallbox charger will be hanging around as well. If you didn't book a ticket to Heathrow in time, don't panic: the i line is going on a world tour this year that starts in Rome, swings past the US and Japan, and comes full circle to London in 2013.
Daily Update for July 13, 2012
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Reuters cooks up remote camera rigs for 2012 Olympics, mounts them where humans can't tread
Sure, the 2012 Olympics may be gearing up for HD, 3D and even Super Hi-Vision broadcasts, but that doesn't mean still photography has lost its appeal. In fact, Reuters photographers Fabrizio Bensch and Pawel Kopczynski are taking Olympic photography to the next level, perching remote-controlled camera rigs in stadium rafters. The system, which the duo has been developing since 2009, can turn, adjust focus and receive commands wirelessly. Once stills are snapped, they're sent to an editing system and then off to distribution. The team is spending more than 12 hours a day installing the cams at different Olympic venues before the games kick off on July 27th. In the meantime, you can sprint to the source for photos of the setup.
Acer Iconia A510 Olympic Tab now on sale in the UK for £349, gold medal not included
Aligning perfectly with what we'd heard a few weeks ago, it looks like Acer's Londonized Iconia A510 will finally be hitting UK doorsteps, just in time for next month's Summer Olympics. To give you a quick refresh, this special edition Olympic Tab boasts a Tegra 3 CPU, 1GB of RAM and 32GB of built-in storage -- though, we can't leave out any mention of that fancy Olympic logo on the tablet's rear and those Eurosport channels to help you stay on top of the action coming from the renowned event. For all that, you'll have to shell out £349 (around $550) at Carphone Warehouse, where it's now up for grabs and being shipped gratis to folks who want to show off their Olympian support.
Inhabitat's Week in Green: Serpentine Gallery Pavilion, floating eco-resort and a G-POD
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green. Next month, all eyes will be on London when the English capital hosts the Summer Olympics. In preparation, this week London officials unveiled an impressive new LED light installation on the Tower Bridge. The new lights, which cut the landmark's energy consumption by 40 percent, will be turned white to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee (her 60th year as monarch). Speaking of London, we also took a look at the new 2012 Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in Hyde Park. The maze-like underground pavilion is the first collaboration between Chinese artist Ai Weiwei and architects Herzog & de Meuron since they teamed up to produce the Bird's Nest at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. The Serpentine Gallery Pavilion isn't the only subterranean architecture project we've been buzzing about this week. In fact, we were amazed to report that all of the apocalypse-proof condos in an underground converted nuclear missile silo in Kansas have been sold. The 1,820-square-foot units were purchased for an amazing $2 million apiece. If you prefer to spend your time (and money) above ground, may be suggest your very own solar-powered floating eco-resort? The aptly-named Solar Floating Resort sleeps six and it comes with an underwater observation room. And for the landlubber in search of a unique space to pass the time, feast your eyes on the spherical G-POD! The sleek, prefabricated structures are made of Norwegian spruce, and they'd be perfect for rooftops and gardens.
PSA: Samsung giving free Olympics tickets to early Galaxy S III buyers at London store, hopes you'll vault the queue
Are you a Londoner so taken with the Galaxy S III that you want to pre-order one before you've even held an in-store dummy unit? Samsung wants to give you a little something something for your eagerness: namely, Olympics tickets. The first 50 who pre-order the giant phone and pick it up at the Westfield Stratford City store on May 29th will get free passes to watch the home team run and leap its way towards a few medals. If you're hoping to claim the reward, though, be prepared to get into the kinds of lines that Samsung skewered in ads just a few months ago. Customers are being asked to show an hour ahead of the 6PM on-sale moment, and the limited slots for ticket winners could easily Samsung repeat its sale-driven Australian lineups in the northern hemisphere. There's no word yet on whether or not the promo will make the leap to Mobile Pin pop-up stores, but we wouldn't be surprised if Samsung spreads the perks around.
O2 UK offers Samsung Galaxy Note and Galaxy Y in Olympics versions, S Javelin sadly missing
Are you so enthused with the 2012 Olympics that special tablets and non-stop TV coverage won't fully scratch the itch? O2 UK is letting you flaunt your British competitive pride every time you check Twitter by selling Olympic editions of Samsung's Galaxy Note and Galaxy Y. Either comes with a choice to drape your Android gear in a Union Jack or the Team Great Britain logo. If cosmetic patriotism isn't enough, O2 is making it meaningful by contributing £1 from every sale to future athlete training along with giving a chance to win two tickets to attend the London games, a special event and even the training camp. The bundles are ready to go now, although we're slightly bummed that there isn't an extra-long S Pen to commemorate the javelin toss or pole vault.
Mobile Miscellany: week of May 7th, 2012
Not all mobile news is destined for the front page, but if you're like us and really want to know what's going on, then you've come to the right place. This past week, Sprint reassured us with optimism for Windows Phone 8, and T-Mobile's CEO found a new partner to continue the fight against Verizon's AWS acquisition. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of May 7th, 2012.
HTC chief Peter Chou to run Olympic torch relay, invade hostile territory
The Summer Olympics in London are quickly turning into mobile-themed games: along with Samsung's official role in handling mobile payments, HTC is now stepping up with its own, if modest, contribution to the athletic get-together. CEO Peter Chou will be one of the Olympic torchbearers and carry the flame on July 6th, three weeks before the opening ceremony in Stratford. Officials say the torch run is to honor Chou's contribution to the mobile industry and the benefit he represents to Taiwan, although we can imagine that Chou wouldn't mind crashing a Samsung party with a torch in one hand and a One X in the other. He may just want to steer clear of Samsung's Mobile Pin stores while he's at it.
BBC Olympic coverage to include 24 live HD channels available on TVs, phones, PCs and tablets
The BBC has home field advantage for the 2012 Olympics, and it's revealing more details about how it plans to broadcast over 2,500 hours of live sports on 24 channels that viewers can watch pretty much anywhere. Director Roger Mosey indicates it started out as a way to watch all 24 streams on the BBC Sport website via PCs or mobile devices, but has been expanded to offer the streams through television operators as well. So far Sky and Freesat are confirmed in, while Freeview users can punch up two extra channels via the program guide or red button. On this side of the Atlantic, the most recent news is that NBC Sports Network (formerly Versus) will be right alongside the broadcast NBC channel (which has its own streaming plans in combination with YouTube) with a "record" amount of Olympic coverage. It could air as many as 300 hours of content from London, as well as some of the Olympic Trials. Hit the source links below for more details, we'll probably be hearing much more before the Olympic Flame makes its way to the stadium July 27th.
Virgin Media wins London Underground WiFi contract, provides conduit for tube station tweets
Remember the ten dozen WiFi hotspots London's underground said it was prepping ahead of the 2012 Olympic games? Virgin Media says they'll be free -- at least to start. By the time July rolls around, 80 stations will be rocking that sweet, sweet internet, and an additional 40 tube stops will go live by the end of the year. The service will be gratis during the summer, Virgin's press release explains, but will eventually join the outfit's broadband and mobile subscription network -- doling out only basic travel information and a pay-as-you-go option to the unsubscribed. Just make sure you finish Facebooking before your train arrives -- the tubes themselves are as dark as ever. Read on for Virgin Media's official press release.
NBC, YouTube pair up for synchronized streaming at London 2012
If the news that the Olympics is but 141 days away fills you with excitement, then you'll be overjoyed to know that NBC has abandoned Silverlight for YouTube, which is the network's official on-demand partner for the games. All events will be streamed live on Google's backbone (presumably via NBC.com), with replays of web-exclusive events, all the TV broadcasts and "behind the scenes" footage all available at your whim. Good luck finding the 3,000 plus hours necessary to watch it all, unless this is the reason you've been looking for to quit your job over the summer.
BBC 3D London Olympics plans include one live sporting event, daily highlights
The Beeb has finally detailed its plans for 3D broadcasts during the London 2012 Olympic Games this summer, and unfortunately for fans of the technology, the content available for live viewing will be pretty limited. The BBC's site lists the Opening / Closing ceremonies and the men's 100m dash for its experimental coverage... and that's it. At the end of each day a "highlights package" will be available, but we're still not sure what other sports will be included yet. This approach harkens back to NBC's 24 hour tape delayed HD broadcasts of 2004, and according to director Roger Mosey, is mostly due to limited capacity. If the BBC is using one of its HD channels for the free-to-air 3D broadcast, then it takes away an HD channel for another event at the same time, so the ceremonies have the advantage of not blacking out any other coverage. In the US, it's possible things could be different if 3D broadcasts are made available on a dedicated events channel as Versus nee NBC SportsTalk has done before, but we'll wait to hear what NBC has planned and hope Usain Bolt doesn't false start again.
2012 London Olympics Super Hi-Vision broadcast coming to select US, Japan, UK locations
While Super Hi-Vision isn't expected to bring its 7,680 x 4,320 resolution (16x more detail than your 1080p display, for those keeping count) home for several years, the NHK and BBC have confirmed it will be available for public screenings next year during the 2012 London Olympics. Screening dates have been arranged for three countries (Japan, UK, and US), and it appears domestic viewers will want to plan on visiting the Washington D.C. area next July / August to get a taste of the 33 megapixel video and 22.2 channel surround sound for themselves. Next year's Games have already put extensive 3D coverage on the schedule and NBC has promised every event will be available for viewing live as it happens for the first time, so there's plenty for everyone to look forward to. The only question now? Whether or not that silly false start rule can be changed so we don't face the prospect of a men's 100m dash final without Usain Bolt in it.
Caption Contest: Samsung hires David Beckham as a global brand ambassador
David Beckham is a man that needs no introduction. Indeed, Samsung hopes he'll be the one making the introductions, as it's just signed up the English footballer to act as its global brand ambassador. Mr. Becks will be responsible for disseminating the news that Samsung is one of the major sponsors of the London 2012 Olympics, and we can see he's already received the first tranche of his remuneration in the form of a Galaxy S II. Lucky him. Thomas: "I'm sorry, I got the Spanish version, this one says 'Sii' on it." Vlad: "At 8.49mm, this phone's almost as thin as my wife!" Tim: "I don't know who you are or what this is, but I'm sure Victoria will love it." Amar: "Finally, a Galaxy that won't bench me!" Darren: "Man, this thing crushes my Aura." Richard Lai: "As part of the deal, Samsung will also be announcing the Galaxy S Beckham. OK, it's just a golden dual-core." Myriam: "So you want me to drop-kick this in front of the cameras, right?" Zach Honig: "Maybe in this Galaxy I can win a World Cup."
Samsung and Visa join forces to enable NFC mobile payment at 2012 Olympics
From a gadgeteer's point of view, one of the best things about the Olympics is its tendency to bring in new technologies to the hosting city. Take the 2012 games, for example: not only are the London Underground stations getting WiFi hotspots, but news has it that Samsung and Visa are holding hands to deliver NFC mobile payment solutions to the city. In fact, more than 60,000 locations in London are already geared up with contactless payment systems, and right now Visa is negotiating with banks to get its contactless cards and mobile phones approved. For the latter, one such device will be Samsung's Olympic and Paralympic Games mobile handset that comes with a Visa-enabled SIM card, and it'll be made available to sponsored athletes as well as various retailers. Furthermore, this alliance will continue after the Olympics, and Visa is rolling out its mobile payment system in many other countries as we speak, so it shouldn't be long before we hear more Visa handset announcements.
London Underground to get 120 WiFi hotspots in advance of the 2012 Olympics
A big announcement arrived today if you live in or around London: to prepare to the onslaught of data-hungry visitors for the 2012 Olympic games that the city is hosting, 120 WiFi hotspots are being added to various locations along the Underground subway system's stations and platforms, in addition to other measures being taken to beef up tech. No WiFi will be in the actual tunnels, mind you, but it should definitely come in handy for all those tourists trying to find their way around the city. British Telecom has already tolled out a trial run at the Charing Cross station, with further installations expected in the lead up to the games.
Huawei offers to build out London Underground cellular coverage for free
No such thing as a free lunch, is there? China's Huawei has generously offered to pick up the roughly £50 million ($81 million) tab for equipment to line London's sprawling subway system with mobile phone reception, a package it says it's extending as a gift from Olympic host nation to another (London will host the 2012 Summer Olympics, and it has said in the past that it'd like the Tube wired in time). The official line is that Huawei would make its money back over time through maintenance contracts, but some politicians are raising red flags over the Chinese firm's potential control over a critical piece of London's wireless infrastructure -- a sentiment that seemed to help kill a potential Huawei deal with Sprint in the States. Of course, the over-connected nerd in us is tempted to brush off espionage concerns if it means we can stay on email all the way from the West End to the Docklands.
