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Electrify America installs California's first 350kW EV chargers
Californians now have access to some of the fastest electric vehicle chargers on the planet... even if people can't really use those chargers yet. VW's Electrify America has installed California's first publicly available 350kW EV chargers at Simon's San Francisco Premium Outlets in Livermore Valley, 40 miles from San Francisco proper. The shopping location now has two of the extra-fast stations in addition to eight new chargers that muster 'only' 150kW. If you plug in a compatible car, the 350kW units should deliver 200 miles of range in about 10 minutes -- enough to be sure you get home.
The Simon Optix headset gave me a headache
The classic game of Simon is a test of memory and reflexes. How long a sequence can you remember, and how fast can you repeat it? The new Optix headset turns it into a test of stamina as well: How long can you stand having flashing lights directly in front of your face?
New Simon memory game looks like a cheap VR headset
Last year, Hasbro revealed an updated version of its classic Simon game that didn't require you to press multi-color buttons. With Simon Air, you just put your hand close to the color and it device would detect your motion. For this year's New York Toy Fair, the company is taking hands-free play a step further with Simon Optix. This new model is a wearable headset that looks something like HoloLens or some other AR/VR headset but it doesn't do any of that.
Simon has evolved into a touch-free memory game
Hasbro reinvented Simon in 2014, using touchscreen displays to replace buttons and turn it into the Simon Swipe. Now, the famous American toymaker is gearing up to release a new version of the game, one that you don't even need to touch to play. Simon Air still throws color sequences at you to remember, but it removes the need for pressing buttons. It senses your hand motions to determine the colors you choose in the sequences you choose them.
Video game pioneer Ralph Baer dies aged 92
It's a sad day for gamers: Ralph Baer, one of the cornerstones of the early video game industry, has died at 92. Details of his passing aren't immediately available, but there's no question that gaming would be very different without him. He co-developed what would become the first home game console, the Magnavox Odyssey; he also helped make the memory game Simon, and came up with the gameplay concept that would ultimately lead to Nolan Bushnell's Pong. Importantly, he didn't stop inventing. He was still exploring electronics well past the usual retirement age, and had more than 150 patents under his belt. We'll miss you, Ralph. [Image credit: AP Photo]
Simon the robot learns to act like a human, can tell when you're not paying attention (video)
A robot performing a task tends to be something of an attention-grabber, but should you ignore it that 'bot will usually ignore you too, mindlessly continuing on with its job. If that job is building a car then being ignored is nothing to worry about, but if that task is teaching a human then inattention is obviously something of a problem. Researchers at the School of Interactive Computing at Georgia Tech have managed to teach Simon, who we've seen before learning to understand your voice and face, to act more human-like in an attempt to capture you're attention. If that doesn't work, he can use cameras to detect inattention, with an 80 percent accuracy rating in spotting day-dreamers. We're not sure what he does if inattention is detected, but hopefully he doesn't go all ED-209 on any poor students.
Fifth Ave. Apple Store recreated in Minecraft
The Minecraft Mac was cute and all, but if you think that was the pinnacle of Mac-related creations in Minecraft, you're underestimating our readership. Reader Simon sent along this set of Flickr pictures, which shows off an entire recreation of the Fifth Avenue Apple Store, complete with glass cube on top and a store full of products down below. Unfortunately, there's no way to model out iPads or iPhones in Minecraft, so there's just a whole bunch of what looks like Mac minis on sale. But then again, that sounds like a great store, too. Very nicely done, Simon. I'd like to know how long something like this takes -- I've built a few things in Minecraft myself, but nothing this, err, realistic, and definitely nothing of this magnitude. Awesome stuff, though -- what's next?
TUAW's Daily App: White Lines
This iPhone game borrows its title from Grandmaster Flash, but rather than a game about the perils of drug addiction, it's actually a memory game. Kyle Webster is an illustrator who made this Simon-like drawing challenge. The game offers up a series of white strokes on the screen, and its your job to replicate them exactly. Get them right to earn a higher score, but get three wrong and your game is over. The game's simplicity is outweighed by its speed. As with the traditional Simon game, things can get overwhelming very fast. There are quite a few difficulty levels for all kinds of gamers, and the experience of drawing with a purpose on the multitouch screen does keep it interesting. OpenFeint integration means you can challenge friends for high scores, too, which increases the replayability. The one drawback I found (and maybe it's just because I was playing the game on my 1G) was that, at times, registering the strokes was wonky. I would draw it correctly, but because the game was chugging along, it would miss one of my marks or think I lifted a finger when I didn't. The recent update to the game fixes some error strokes, though, so maybe the author will smooth that out in the future. Still, for US$0.99, White Lines is a fun touchscreen twist on the memory game, and the stark style is compelling. It's definitely worth a download, and it might even be good for keeping young ones busy while waiting in line or driving around town.
Simon the robot gets upgraded with voice and face recognition, still loves organizing blocks
The last time we checked in on Simon, he was moving pretty slowly, moving some blocks from one bin to another, and while he was creepily silent, we still had high hopes for his future. Well, Simon's seemingly come a long way -- if recent footage of him and his creator, Georgia Institute of Technology researcher, Andrea Thomaz -- are to be believed. Simon's host of new features now include voice recognition (he's got a Stephen Hawking-style voice of his own), facial recognition, sound localization, plus he's way speedier now. All of this helps Simon learn how to do things on his own without constantly being commanded. And in case you were wondering -- Simon the robot is no fanboy -- his various software programs run on Windows, Linux, and Mac machines. Hit the read more to view the video.
Cannondale's mind-blowing Simon electronic suspension system hands-on
If you're a bicyclist or just a tech-minded person with a hankerin' for cool suspension technology, you've got to check out the videos after the break. One is a short demonstration to whet your appetite, the other a rather longer explanation from Cannondale engineer Stanley Song of just how the thing works. What is this thing? It's Simon, a fully electronic and nearly-instantly adjustable suspension system that does away with all the complex mechanical internals of a traditional high-end suspension system (shims, springs, valves, needles, knobs...) and replaces it with an electro-mechanical device that can near infinitely vary not only suspension strength but also ride height instantly based on road conditions. It even has an LCD on the bars. Interest piqued? Click through to see it in action. %Gallery-82462%
Simon the robot wins award, is super cute, seems pretty boring to hang out with
Simon -- the creation of Georgia Tech labs and Dr. Andrea Thomaz -- is a robot with an articulated torso and anthropomorphic hands -- and a head that will stop you in your tracks. This handsome little fellow was designed to help study human - robot interactions, and he will be learning different social skills over the coming weeks and months. We don't have many details as to what Simon spends his time doing, other than hanging out looking insanely cute, but check the video of him in action after the break -- and by "in action," we definitely mean putting a blue block into a little blue bucket super, super slowly.
What a horrible summer not to be going to Comic-Con
NECA, the company responsible for the awesome Castlevania figure prototypes, has a new Simon Belmont figure on the way. It's a somewhat more faithful sculpture of Simon as he appeared in the first Castlevania on the NES. Unfortunately, only 1,000 units will be produced, and it will only be available at the San Diego Comic-Con.We totally want this, and we are all about pixel art, but we must say that this figure, with its rounded edges and inexact paint job, looks a little more like a cookie to us than an action figure. Which actually gives us an idea! [Via NeoGAF]
Virtually Overlooked: Castlevania (X68000)
Welcome to our weekly feature, Virtually Overlooked, wherein we talk about games that aren't on the Virtual Console yet, but should be. Call it a retro-speculative. Fans of Castlevania already have the option to play the first game on Virtual Console in either of two forms: the NES version or the Super NES remake. Both are excellent games and should be in your collection. But our lust for Castlevania cannot be satiated. The best-- and hardest-- version of Castlevania has yet to appear on the Virtual Console.
DS Daily: Whip it good
The morning light has vanquished the horrible night. What better time to talk about Castlevania? Well, if you're a frequent reader, you know that pretty much any time is a great time for us to talk about Castlevania, or Konami in general. No, it's no secret that we like our vampires whipped, and our piles of secrets miserable. It's also no secret that we've been more than pleased with the DS editions. But we have to wonder: after three GBA games in rapid succession and two DS games within a year of each other, is a steady diet of Castlevania a good thing? Is an annual release schedule too rushed? Is the franchise going to get stale, or, at least, is the current exploration-based Castlevania game type? Or is Castlevania ageless and immortal, like ... some kind of undead creature?
Castlevania action figures belong in this world
It was not by our hands that these action figures were given "flesh." They were brought here by NECA, who wished to pay Castlevania tribute. Simon Belmont, hero of Castlevanias I, II, and (Super) IV, and Alucard, of III, Symphony of the Night, and (spoiler alert, sort of!) Aria and Dawn of Sorrow, are shown here in unpainted, prototype glory. The link below has more views of Simon, but all we have of Alucard is this one shot-- for which we had to put our biohazard suits on and go into Myspace.They resemble the beefy character art of the first NES game more than Ayami Kojima's work, and Simon's stomach isn't something that should be looked at directly, but these are still awesome. We've been looking for some new decorative items, and these will do nicely. Our desks are as empty as our souls. Blogger-kind totally needs action figures such as these.
Kaz: 15 titles for launch
Sony's Kaz Hirai commented to news site Bloomberg that he expects the company's Playstation 3 to launch with 15 titles this November. This is in contrast to what some third-party higher-ups have been saying, including Sega's Simon Jeffrey and THQ's Brian Farrell. Jeffrey's argument stems from third parties apparently not receiving finalized dev kits yet, which is reportedly supposed to occur this month, where Farrell's recent comments towards choosing to not release a version of the upcoming Sopranos game on the system as it is "too risky" to attempt without final hardware specs form the basis for his disagreement.
