caption contest

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  • Fox News reinvents tablet journalism with 55-inch slates

    We've got to hand it to Fox News. We've not seen anything quite like this since Will.i.am's short-lived career as a news-reporting hologram. And while the cable news station is sure that someone's bound to, erm, swipe the idea, it admits that things might be a little rocky at first with the new technology. Hopefully those 55-inch inch tablets are ruggedized. There's also a Twitter wall in Fox's new News Deck, turning the newsroom into a veritable real life Tweetdeck. Thankfully, however, all the new gizmos seem to have pretty decent viewing angles from what we can tell, so there's no need to worry about being glare and balanced.

    Brian Heater
    10.07.2013
  • Caption contest: Luigi puts the 'L' in Chicago's public transit system

    Has Nintendo of America fallen on hard times? Why else would the company make one of its most beloved characters (or, at the very least, the brother of one of its most beloved characters) take Windy City public transit? Oh, that's right, the gaming giant has decked out the "L" train with ads for its new Super Luigi U title. The mustachioed plumber is riding the Brown Line in this Twitter shot, so be sure to be on the lookout for suspicious looking dinosaurs in the area (if you see something, say something). No word on whether he'll be making house calls today.

    Brian Heater
    08.12.2013
  • Caption Contest: Eric Schmidt does 'Gangnam Style' with PSY

    Did you honestly think Eric Schmidt went all the way to Seoul just to launch the Nexus 7 for South Korea, hang out with Samsung's JK Shin and moan about the patent war with Apple? Of course not. The Google chairman also found some time to learn the legendary "invisible horse" dance with PSY, the charismatic oppa in the Korean chart-topper Gangnam Style. While Google Korea was happy to supply a few photos, the only video we could dig up was a surprisingly short one hosted by Daum -- it's embedded right after the break. Brian: "Man, not being the CEO of a multinational corporation sure is hard work." Terrence: "I see you are a fellow disciple of the Carlton Banks school of dance." Don: "Gangnam Style, 2012-2012." Billy: "This song is really about the time I set my socks on fire. I see you still have yours. One moment." Edgar: "Hm... I think we forgot the horse." Richard Lai: "OK Eric, now let's do the elevator scene." Dan: "Doenjang Girls, would you like to buy a Nexus 7? It's wayyy more expensive than a latté." Darren: "Soooo glad this guy put this video on YouTube and not Vimeo. $$$$$$$$" Jon Fingas: "Oppan Google sty-- no, even I can't go that far."

    Richard Lai
    09.27.2012
  • Caption Contest: GoPro gone wrong

    We've been known to strap on a few GoPro cameras in our day, but our efforts are merely amateur in comparison to this guy, who we can only presume is about to perform a stunt so extreme that no less than seven GoPro cams (and a DSLR) are required to capture it. Don: "GoPro Hero." Darren: "Amateurs gonna hate." Billy: "I see your 3D and raise you another 5D. 8D is where it's at." Jon: "I'm so liveblogging this. And Instagramming this. And..." Brian: "Someone take a picture of my weird helmet thing! What do you mean you don't have a camera?" Brad: "Hey bullies! I'm now twice the four-eyes you thought I was in high school. What have you done with your life?" Edgar: "From now on, you shall call me GoProusa." Tim: "Anybody have an SD card I can borrow?" Mat: *BATTERY LOW* Jamie: "Patent pending..." Christopher: "A&E Presents Helmet Hoarders: The GoPro Edition" Sharif: "HQ, are you seeing this?!" Myriam: "Go-Go-Gadget GoPro!"

    Donald Melanson
    08.15.2012
  • Caption Contest: Maker Faire's morning pick-me-up

    Some mornings you just don't want to get out of bed. We've all got our own methods for starting the day, but few are quite so...electric...as this this one spotted at Maker Faire over the weekend. No doubt even Tesla himself couldn't have concocted a better way to shake oneself loose from a bad case of the Mondays. Richard Lai: "Starbucks now brewing Electric Latte. Espresso with steamed milk and a dash of lightning, finished with a sprinkle of copper dust." Darren Murph: "Jump Start kind of undersells things, no?" Jon Fingas: "The best part of waking up is 10,000 volts in your cup." Billy Steele: "The folks at Jolt Cola are not going to be happy about this." Tim Stevens: "No, it's pronounced 'coffeen' not 'caffeine'!" Terrence O'Brien: "Bobby's decision to learn Conjure Refreshment really started to pay dividends when his mage reached level 64" Zach Honig: "Would you mind nuking this for me?" Brian Heater: "Just another McDonald's lawsuit waiting to happen." James Trew: "Electrici-Tea." Dan Cooper: "Van De-Caff Generator."

    Brian Heater
    05.25.2012
  • Caption Contest: HTC's down-to-earth photo shoot

    With the Android handset market as jam-packed as it is, it can be tough to distinguish your device from the maddening crowd. We've seen some bizarre and sublime attempts to do so over the years, but few have reached the terminal velocity of HTC's skydiving fashion photoshoot aimed at promoting its new One line of phones. Has the company hit the bullseye here, or is it and its accompanying light-headed skydivers destined to splatter all over the advertising landscape? It just might take a caption contest to find out for certain. Zach Honig: "If I make this reverse overhead shot do you promise to attach a parachute to my string?" Sean Buckley: "Drop test #3 will commence in 3.. 2.." Christopher Trout: "Who needs a facelift when you have wind effects like these?" Darren Murph: [Yelling, to combat the wind] "WHY DO WE HAVE FOUR PEOPLE TO PROMOTE THE ONE LINE?" Brian Heater: "Another dropped call from AT&T." Myriam: "Looks like we fixed that bug in the accelerometer! It's working just fine right now..." Tim: "Hang on, trying to decide which Instagram filter to apply... so many choices..." Michael: "Well, whaddya know, Face Unlock works while free-falling at 10,000 feet!" Zach Lutz: Despite the fabulous view, Guy couldn't resist his overwhelming urge to check for available software updates. Sharif Sakr: As if throwing Dr Dre and his Beats Audio out of a plane wasn't enough, they had to shoot him in the back with an arrow. Richard Lawler: What do you mean there aren't any FourSquare badges for this? Jose Andrade: "Don't move. I'm almost done with this DrawSomething drawing" Billy Steele: "You just hold the phone and I promise I'll pull the 'chute. Maybe."

    Brian Heater
    04.05.2012
  • Caption Contest: Mario stops by for a surprise visit

    What often gets lost amongst all the flying and painting and partying is that Mario, he's just a regular dude. He's a blue red collar plumber just looking to earn an honest days pay, hangout with his lady and occasionally deliver a racing kart to unsuspecting Tennesseans. When the artist formerly known as Jump Man rang the bell of Nathanial Stehley to drop off his West Coast Customs-built ride, we can only imagine what went through his mind -- probably something about not eating Toad's relatives.Tim: "Honey, there's a plumber on the porch again."Michael: "Wrong castle, buddy. All the 'word-up' posturing in the world won't get me to bring out Princess Peach."Brian: "You called for a plumber?"Jon: "Imma da new mailman. Yeah, M is for mailman."Joe: "So, uh, you brought the mushrooms, right?"Dan: "Yeah, the name's Cooper. King Cooper. You wanna see my girl? You'll have to go through me, pal."Brad: "I'm sorry Mario, but your princess is in another condo."Dante: "What do you mean you were expecting Xzibit?"Terrence: "Hey Pauline, this guy says he knows you."Zach Lutz: "In a desperate attempt to return to the Mushroom Kingdom, Mario swallows his pride and asks for directions."James: "I told you before Mario, Princess doesn't want to see you, you have to stop calling like this."Richard Lai: "Which part of 'stay 100 yards away from her' do you not understand?"Sean Buckley: "I'm a bit short on change, mind if I bang my head on your wall for a little while?"David: "No, I don't have any 'powerups' today, come back tomorrow."Darren: "All I do is win, win, win no matter what."

  • Caption Contest: Blue shells can't slow Miyamoto down

    Monumentally important game designer and producer Shigeru Miyamoto made waves this week by saying he was / wasn't retiring from duties at Nintendo. There's been plenty of confusion regarding what his new duties at the company will entail, but this image makes it pretty clear. All hail Nintendo's new shopping mall test driver. Tim: "I'm developing a new power-up. It's called Golden Parachute." Richard Lai: "I once gave Kaz's ex a ride on this." Myriam: "I guess the shrink ray finally works." James: "The new Hotel Lobby level proved a success" Billy: "What? At least it's a hybrid." Mat: Miyamoto looks forward to exhibiting at next year's Tokyo Motor Show. Brian: "Miyamoto had an important message to impart on the youth of today: do enough magic mushrooms, and you're going to end up driving your car through a mall food court." Sean: A clean shave and a suit jacket revealed far more than Mario had ever intended. "Well," he thought, "at least I can still keep the 'M' logo." Jon: "In movie news: Photos from the 'lost camera' sequence in the upcoming The Hangover III started surfacing today..." Darren: "You should see what happens when I get Star Power."

    Tim Stevens
    12.11.2011
  • Caption Contest: KIRF Facebook shop clicks 'like' on fashion

    Apple isn't the only one to get some shop-based imitation flattery -- now it looks like Facebook's got its first retail homage. Yep, this clothing store in Nablus, Palestine is unlikely to be a Zuckerberg-sanctioned outlet. A giant Facebook sign hangs over several mannequins, although we're not exactly sure what angle they're trying to work here. Most of them appear to be channeling the Facebook founder's mute, inoffensive fashion stylings. That is, aside from the guy in the hot pink tee and, well, he's lacking a head. [Thanks Liviu] Mat: "Facebook likes jeans, ignores footwear." Dan: "You don't get 500 million friends without making a few terrible fashion decisions." Brad: "Meanwhile, Tom from MySpace is realizing that he's completely neglected the oft-overlooked mannequin demographic." Richard Lai: "The Bebo store was way more fun." Darren: "Third person there from the left... it's complicated." Jose: "Yes, all my friends are 'real', why?" James: "Once again, the reaction to the new Facebook wall was ambivalent." Joe Pollicino: "Added to my 'Block' list." Amar: "The Winklevii really have fallen on hard times." Josh: "People You May Know" Sean Cooper: "Where's that darn 'unlike' button." Tim: "Remember when you had to be a mannequin in a college bookstore to get in? Those were the good 'ol days." Billy: "You would think this crowd would have popped up in my news feed, sheesh." Dante: "Surprisingly, North Face fleeces were nowhere to be found." Zach Honig: "How many Credits to change the name to Google+?" Brian: "Social networking for dummies."

    Mat Smith
    11.28.2011
  • Caption Contest: Real-life Super Mario party searches for Princess Peach

    Mamma Mia -- it's 'a me whole lot of Marios! If we were you, Bowser, we'd return Her Majesty to Mushroom Kingdom at once. Okay, okay... in actuality, the above was merely Nintendo hyping the upcoming US release of its psychedelic-consuming plumber's first 3DS title, Super Mario 3D Land. So there's no need to worry folks, Ms. Peach is safe -- at least until you get your grubby paws on the game come November 13th, that is. Darren: "Mario has sabotaged the Beastie Boys' redux of Sabotage." Terrence: "Occupy Mushroom Kingdom." Joe: "Will the real Super Mario please jump up?" Mat: "Someone got the infinite lives cheat massively, massively wrong." Sean: "The Mario family reunion took a turn for the awkward when Luigi realized he was the only attendee out of uniform." Tim: "It's 'a me... your worst nightmare." Richard Lai: "I ate the wrong mushroom." Jon: "After defeating multiple Agent Smiths, Neo finds that he advances to level 2 in the Matrix..." Brian: "Moments later, the mob located a pet store, went to town on the turtle tank and escaped safely through the toilet." Myriam: "Where's Waldo?" Zach Honig: "Darn it, Myriam... you took mine!" Billy: "The first rule of Project Mayhem is..." Brad: "This would've made that lousy Super Mario Bros. movie a whole lot better." Amar: "King Hippo + $2 Taco Night = this" Richard Lawler: "And not a single flying Cape Feather was given that day." Josh Fruhlinger: "Another Sunday in Williamsburg, Brooklyn."

    Joe Pollicino
    11.06.2011
  • Caption Contest: Mavis Beacon teaches biking

    Pee-wee's beloved bicycle has nothing on this bad boy. The two-wheeler's got a full-sized keyboard, some big red knobs and a miniature screen on its handlebars, for those who have to do some serious content creation whilst weaving through traffic. Sure it's not the safest solution on the road, but inspiration can strike when you least expect it -- then again, so can oncoming cars. Michael: "Pen > sword, but car > keyboard. Hope the owner's got life insurance." Brian: "Fortunately the victims just walked away with whiplash and a bad case of carpal tunnel." Tim: "Dang! You got shocks, pegs... lucky! You ever send off any sweet TXTs?" Don: "Here's that bike messenger you asked for, boss." Terrence: "When Billy told his friends he got a new bike they asked, 'but can it play Crysis?' Little did they know..." Richard Lawler: "Now potential thieves have to decide between using bolt cutters or rainbow tables." Zach Honig: "Hey Giant. Yeah you holding the grocery bag. You're not so big anymore, now are you?" Billy: "What? No one said anything about biking while typing." Jon: "Q, you've really outdone yourself this time." Mat: "Data from the Goonies may have grown up, but his choice in bikes hasn't." Dan: "At least they weren't lying when they called it 'an unprecedented mobile device.'"

    Brian Heater
    10.13.2011
  • Caption Contest: No doubt, these two are definitely made for each other

    Ah, yes. We all know that couple... the ones that don't speak to each other at dinner because they're too busy playing Cut the Rope or tweeting. You know 'em: the texting while walking or texting while driving sort of folks. What can we say? Sometimes you're locked in an epic battle you can't walk away from. Perhaps they're anti-social, or maybe they're addicted to tech love -- but what say you? Billy: "Did you forget our anniversary?" "Our what? Oh, no... of course not." Zach Honig: "Hug me." "LOL OK BRB." Darren: "Short-range communication protocols are the best." Terrence: "Little did he know that his sweetheart was texting her other boyfriend literally behind his back." Michael: "I thought sexting was only for long distance relationships..." Sean: "Love is letting your boyfriend save another princess. And helping over WiFi, of course." Christopher: "Who wears flip flops with a denim jacket?" Joe: "Ad hoc lovin'." Richard Lai: "Can't wait to try Dance Central tonight." Josh: "wePhone."

    Billy Steele
    08.20.2011
  • Caption Contest: Bakebot learns to actually bake things, feed the looming robot army

    Aww, look! Bakebot's soooo cute! He's actually cooking things these days, thanks to MIT grad student Mario Bollini, who recently upped the creature's skill level in an effort to grab more calories with less effort. Little did he know, however, that teaching a self-contained machine how to feed the future uprising wasn't exactly the best long-term move. No, that creeping feeling of fear isn't unwarranted. Darren: "01001111 01001101 01000111 00100000 01000011 01001111 01001111 01001011 01001001 01000101 01010011!" Terrence: "Bakebot's lessons with the master chef were going so well, until his Bork to binary translator failed" Brian: "Bakebot love kitten. Bakebot eat kitten." Brad: "Stephanie! Johnny no add vanilla!" Sean: "It's so unfair! I have eight other senses, but I'd trade them all -- even smision -- to be able to taste." Christopher: "Rachel Ray hit a wall with 15 minute meals, so we found a faster, more charismatic replacement. Meet Rachel Number 5." Michael: "Here I thought the robot apocalypse would be powered by nuclear fusion and laser beams, turns out it'll be running on profiteroles and delicious cakes." Jon: "I'm toasting bread in my head right now...seriously" Zach: "You want me to wear a what? Why don't you trying sticking a fan in your scalp. Then you can tell me to wear a hairnet." Joseph: "How do ya like my ganache now, Martha???" Daniel: "A robot may not injure a cupcake or, through inaction, allow a cupcake to come to harm." Richard Lai: "How do you like them cookies, Firefox?" Jose: "How am I supposed to add a teaspoon of sugar with this underperforming Kinect camera?" Kevin: "Enough with the cakes, what was Leia saying about our only hope?" Dana: "I. Love. A. Little. Bourbon. In. My. Cookies. Don't. You." Richard Lawler: "Death to all humans. Sweet, delicious, chocolatey... death." Don: "Just don't call him Iron Chef. He hates that." Billy: "Ace of Cakes was canceled because I annihilated the host.. now I must weaponize that Millennium Falcon cake." Zachary: "Jobless MIT grad narrowly avoids soup kitchen, emerges from basement with replacement mother."

    Darren Murph
    08.07.2011
  • Caption Contest: A heaping helping of wearable music

    Is this the new musical Power Glove? Imogen Heap thinks so. The Grammy winner rocked the stylish hand warmers at a TEDGlobal 2011 event in Edinburgh, Scotland, creating gesture-based music during a four-minute demonstration, with the gloves wirelessly connected to a nearby laptop. Could this be the death of the theremin as we know it, or just another good excuse to do a caption contest? Brian: "Imogen there's no heaven." Terrence: "Ms. Heap hard at work on a sequel to the NES "classic" Bad Street Brawler, tentatively titled Street Corner Complainer." Darren: "Seriously? Wires?" Brad: "Now if only I could find some oven mitts that would magically bake cookies for me, I'd be set!" Jon: "Force enhancing gloves allow Imogen to one up Luke, raise X-Wing." Tim: "Do I look intense enough now? Too pensive? What if I tilt my head up a bit further?" Amar: "And then they handed me the Grammy and I grabbed it like this and then -- oh, have I already told you this story?" Dante: "What do you mean they aren't cashmere?!?!" Joseph: "So I was holding Bjork's leg up like this, but she still couldn't get over Madonna's gate." Sean: "To sleep, perchance to dream – ay, there's the rub..." Christopher: "Please sir, I beg you -- don't take my Flowbee away." Richard Lai: "Ceiling cat, come to momma." [Image credit: University of the West of England]

    Brian Heater
    07.14.2011
  • Caption Contest: iPad hat is so last season

    Fashion genius or major faux pas? Obviously the latter. Really, who would be seen in public wearing last year's iPad on their head? This woman, apparently, who donned a particularly feathery contraption before heading to the Royal Ascot horse race, where one's social status is dictated largely by the caliber of their hat. We have it on good authority that the Galaxy Tab 8.9 will be the hot ticket next season. Terrence: "Hey, my eyes are down here, buddy." Brad: "You can look, but you can't multitouch." Zach H.: "I can't believe you gave me a frozen iPad. You think it'll thaw after an hour or two in the sun?" Brian: "I know I had it with me when I left for work this morning..." Michael: "I went to Cupertino and all I got was this lousy hat!" Zach L.: "This is sooo the last time I let Jonathan Ive design my wardrobe." Christopher: "iPad-toting parrots reportedly dive-bombed attendees of the 2011 Royal Ascot." Tim: "Oh don't get so excited, it's just a big iPhone hat." Richard Lai: "My husband insisted." Joe P.: "iPad 2 shipping delays made for something rather old-hat." Don: "I asked the stylist for something magical." Darren: "Believe it or not, I didn't even have to jailbreak!" Dana: "Sorry, dahling, but if you don't have an iPad hat, well, you don't have an iPad hat." [Image credit: Getty Images]

    Tim Stevens
    06.16.2011
  • Caption Contest: HTC Chairwoman Cher Wang drops by Apple's Palo Alto Store

    So what if Apple might be suing your company for millions and billions of dollars? You're Cher Wang and Cher Wang shops wherever she damn well pleases. HTC's co-founder and Chairwoman was recently photographed taking a leisurely gander at Apple's wares, with husband Wen-Chi Chen -- who just happens to be CEO of VIA Technologies -- tagging along as well. The Palo Alto Geniuses look to have been their usual friendly selves, though their failure to put an iPhone in Mrs. Wang's hands qualifies as a major missed opportunity in our eyes. Thomas: "In Taiwan, iPhone means horse." Josh F.: "Go ahead, cuff me if you can." Dana: "A stylus! You know. You hold it like this." Vlad: "Cher Wang thought impersonating a zombie would help her blend in with the Apple Store patrons. As we can tell from the unperturbed employees, she was right." Brad: "If you can guess which hand the candy's in, you win!" Terrence: "...and this is my trusty servant Patsy." Amar: "I'm sorry, Mrs. Wang, we're all out of dirtbikes."

    Vlad Savov
    05.23.2011
  • Caption Contest: you shall not interrupt Gandalf's 3D viewing session

    Nobody likes being bothered while they're really getting into a movie, and as we all know you can't really get into a movie unless it's in 3D. Right? Sir Ian McKellen took things a step further, not only watching a screening of The Hobbit in the third dimension but doing it in character, and looking ever so slightly perturbed at having his viewing session interrupted by a rogue photographer. The guy in the back doesn't seem to mind, though. Thomas: "Galadriel, is that new shampoo?" Tim: "These glasses may be passive but I you may find me getting very aggressive if you use that flash one more time." Brian: "I'll tell you what, you're making me Gandalf the Red right now." Joe: "Would 'one standard to rule them all' be asking too much?" Michael: "ZZ Top called, they want their roadie back" Terrence: "Even Gandalf the Grey is powerless against the magic of these glasses which make any man look like a 90-year-old blind woman." Richard Lai: "Ha, no 3D for that flaming cyclops in Mordor." Darren: "One ring. Two Towers. 3Ds." Christopher: "Sir Ian McKellen: the latest victim of Rick Rubin's Ambush Makeover." Sean Buckley: "Confound it all, Samwise Gamgee. What have I told you about interrupting me during my stories?" Josh Fruhlinger: "You know how they say 3D is bad for children? This dude is 14." Myriam: "Yes, wizards get hangovers too. Are you happy now?"

    Tim Stevens
    05.14.2011
  • 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."

    Vlad Savov
    05.04.2011
  • Caption contest: Spike Lee asks Obama to smile for the camera

    Just because it can doesn't mean you should... Joe Flatley: "Just a minute, Girl 6 is streaming on Netflix." Richard Lawler: "Give me 20 D Energizers." Terrence: "The only question is: kaleidescope or twirl?" Brian: "I'm not getting any bars. Am I holding this right?" Zach Honig: "Hey Richard Branson, I found your doppelganger!" Michael Gorman: "I'm not sure what's more awkward -- photography with a tablet or the beret / turtleneck fashion combo" Chris Trout: "I was hoping to get Rosie Perez, but I suppose you'll do." Don: "It's still your move in Words With Friends, Mr. President." Tim: "Okay Barack, you distract him while I sneak up and..." Myriam: "Sorry, Mr. President... I just can't stop playing Angry Birds!"

    Tim Stevens
    04.25.2011
  • Caption contest: Nokia stand at MIX 11

    We were wandering about here at MIX 11 -- Microsoft's annual web developer event -- when we stumbled upon these lovely people at this tiny Nokia stand peddling several Symbian phones. Judging from the smiles, we're pretty sure they're stoked about the recent Microsoft partnership announcement -- just don't bring up the lack of actual Windows Phone devices. Thomas: "When you squint, it looks just like Windows Mobile 6." Sean Hollister: "Ballmer told us developers were important, so we came to see what they looked like." Myriam: "We don't have any Windows Phone hardware, but we look pretty! Now, about that E7 review..." Vlad: "And here's our all-new, environmentally friendly roadmap. It's made of 100 percent recycled materials." Darren: "What, you didn't know? Elop's still on the payroll." Chris Trout: "Sure we'll pose for a picture, but then you have to tell us where the penny slots are." Richard Lawler: "Would this be more or less awkward if we were at Google I/O?" Josh F.: "Please talk to us!" Terrence: "Wait, you mean this isn't the Vintage Computing Festival?

    Myriam Joire
    04.13.2011