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Legendary Yule Log broadcast pits SD against HD
Anyone remotely familiar with history in New York or the holiday season in general can remember the ole Yule Log broadcast that showed a burning fireplace with soft, classic seasonal hits cycling through in the background. While it's not likely to be the most invigorating thing on television come Christmas morning, the folks at WPIX, who are restoring the classic log show for a three-hour broadcast, say that it allows families to reminisce and think back on the gatherings of yesteryear. However, Jason Patton -- vice president for business development on INHD -- feels that the new widescreen version of the heartwarming fireplace is the superior rendition. Shot by Ron Roy in high definition, the picture will clearly outshine the "30 year old" version looping on standard cable, but apparently some folks actually prefer the classic look to the new. Nevertheless, we HD freaks should be sure to catch the fiery new version on INHD starting at 7:00AM on Christmas morning and continuing on for 24 hours.
Xbox, Xbox 360 taken to console heaven by water jet cutter
While there's no shortage of interesting ways to dissect (or completely obliterate) your favorite gizmo, this one came straight out of left field but still manages to impress. If you've never been around a pressure washer and had vivid thoughts of cutting up your precious Microsoft console with it, you're probably in the (vast) majority, but the zany folks over at Waterjets fulfilled their own fantasies. Offered a bunch of malfunctioning Xbox and Xbox 360 consoles, they put their laser water cutting skills to the test by making an "X" out of an original Xbox, carving out Xbox logos from the circuit boards, and creating a hole in the middle of an Xbox 360. Sure, the utility here is questionable, and the methods are most certainly unorthodox, but we can't deny the wow-factor. So if you're interested in seeing just what else happens when that oh-so-powerful jet gets fired up, be sure to hit the read link for the full rundown of slicing and dicing.[Via MAKE]
Will it blend? If it's an iPod, you betcha
Considering the recent console launches, we've seen plenty of bizarre episodes of folks demolishing their precious goods just to get a few laughs, a bit of hate mail, and their 15 minutes of fame. But ole Tom Dickson over at WillItBlend.com added a touch of kitchen know-how to his rendition by squaring up various items with the oh-so-sharp blades of a Blendtec blender. Needless to say, the iPod didn't stand much of a chance, as it was thoroughly devoured in a matter of seconds, turning a once useful DAP into nothing more than shrapnel and dust. While we're fairly certain this isn't what Apple had in mind when it patented a blended display / interface, maybe all those metallic chunks wouldn't be too bad mixed in with your choice of fruity goodness -- click on for the delectable vid.[Via digg]
Mom-of-the-year calls cops on son who opened "PlayStation GameBoy" pre-Xmas
As the PS3 crime spree chronicles continue to unfold, a zany mother in South Carolina apparently got a few wires crossed (and an incensed son, to boot) according to a recent police report. After claiming to purchase a "PlayStation GameBoy" for her mischievous 12-year old son to open at Christmas, the woman filed a petty larceny incident report to have the youngster arrested for opening it this past Sunday. Reportedly, the woman came home to a haphazardly opened box, and found the unit after the child claimed he "didn't know where it was," sending the mum into a fit which led to her son's arrest. While the boy was known to be a troublemaker in school, purportedly "attempted to assault a police officer" in the past, and has a thing for "stealing," the mother's soft heart still found it possible to purchase the coal-deserving brat an object that hasn't even been released (nor created). Whatever it really is, we hope it ends up on eBay so some deserving kiddo can give it a whirl.[Via Digg]
Crooks tie up victims with power cord whilst stealing PlayStation
While this one came oh-so-close to being filed under the ongoing PS3 crime spree chronicles, the inability to pinpoint the PlayStation unit crooks nabbed as one of the highly-coveted "3" models forced us to clump this in with the smorgasbord of other (general) utterly dumb criminal acts. While it wouldn't surprise us to find that the armed burglars who ransacked a Cincinnati home were indeed after the mighty lucrative PS3, their bafflingly high level of stupidity leaves us to wonder if it wasn't a PlayStation 2 (or worse, a PSOne). The robbers reportedly bum rushed the house with their eyes on the prize, tied up the victims with a "PlayStation power cord," bolted out while laughing evilly, and then realized they needed the very cable they left behind. Similar to the crook who jacked a TV but returned for the remote, these guys apparently forgot the keys to pulling off an even marginally successful heist, but thankfully didn't harm the poor family they intruded upon. The wonders of humanity will never cease.[Thanks, Matt M.]
Watch out, SmashMyStuff: mountain men completely obliterate a PS3
We'll be the first to admit that the whole "smash this object" craze is getting a tad out of hand, but the latest rendition of demolishing a perfectly functional PlayStation 3 is just revolting. While we've witnessed Nintendo's Wii being cautiously dissected and publicly mangled, a couple of mountain men (and their canine companions) decided to take their newly purchased 60GB PS3 to the woodshed. After rambling about and capturing their mountaineer lifestyle in perfect fashion, they decide to crush the box with a large chunk of timber, only to make matters worse by busting out the ole hacksaw. Further abuse was bestowed care of a gas-powered chainsaw, and for the finale, it was set ablaze to cheers of evil laughter. While the motive here is certainly clear, and the tools used to inflict punishment are indeed respectable, you'd think someone willing to trash $600 (not to mention to probable near-death experience trying to acquire one) would actually show the PS3 within the box. But alas, no "real" proof is ever shown, so be sure to peep the YouTube vid after the break and chuckle at this glaring oversight.
World's heaviest USB flash drive
Here's one record that's not likely to be shattered anytime soon (or at least we hope not). While it's no secret that USB drives have been gradually getting smaller and smaller (that's what we all wanted, right?), this trend has apparently led to an increasing amount of lost flash drives from folks who can't keep up with minuscule property. In meretricious fashion, Chris Spurgeon actually went so far as to "embed his flash drive" into a regulation sixteen-pound Galaxie 300 bowling ball in order to keep it from vanishing while out on the town. While attaching this device to laptops and PCs within cramped confines probably isn't desirable, it should definitely keep that precious data out of the washing machine, but we doubt this bad boy lands a strike anytime soon with such an extrusion.[Via The Raw Feed]
Thanko's heating action continues with USB-powered Eye / Seat Warmers
Ah Thanko, how we adore your USB-powered oddities. From Japan's king of off off-the-wall gimmicks that are just too cute to pass over comes two new warming products just in time for the holidays. While we're sure the ladies are already rocking the G-Gloves, and the fellas are mousing it up within the toasty confines of their blue whale, here's two more reasons to leave the central heating unit off this winter. The USB-powered Eye and Seat Warmers (the winterized USBHCU01, pictured after the jump) both feature on / off switches and varying temperature controls, and receive all the power they need to keep you fired up from one of your sure-to-be-unoccupied USB ports. While the company is leaving us out in the cold regarding pricing or availability, we're sure these will be stuffing stockings everywhere in just a few weeks.[Via Uber-Review]
GamerBUS provides mobile Xbox 360 LAN parties
If you're incensed about wasting your weekend (and part of last week) cruising around in futility trying to locate a Playstation 3 or Nintendo Wii, the GamerBUS can provide the ultimate painkiller -- provided you live around the Virginia Beach area, that is. If you've got 63 friends or so, and you're not claustrophobic, you can pack your posse into the 37-foot customized RV and get your game(s) on. Sporting a bevy of comfortable seating options, sixteen Xbox 360 "gamer stations" (pictured after the jump) with their own 23-inch Philips HDTV, and all the CAT5 cable / electricity you could ever need, this redefines the party on wheels. Essentially offering a mobile gaming LAN, the bus operators will gladly wire up a 16-person system-linked round of Halo 2 (or a variety of other titles) while you provide the Cheetos and air fresheners. Although weekday hours boast an understandable discount, weekend rates range from $125 to $150 per hour, depending on how long you occupy the vehicle. Notably, no connection has been drawn between this newfangled gaming service and the Va Beach entrepreneur trickster hitting it big on vulnerable ATMs.[Via Digg]
Thanko's hand-warming mousepad is Shamu-approved
Just in case you're too manly to rock the oh-so-toasty G-Gloves, and the hand-warming mouse wasn't functional enough, Thanko's busting out yet another zany offering to get your fingers (and hand, and wrist) nice and warm during the sub-zero winters some of us must endure. The USB / AC-powered, um, blue whale sports an insulated compartment to stuff your plain ole mouse as well as your mousing hand. There's also a "high / low" switch to control the fiery depths within, and just in case you'd rather not use your insulating mammal while on the PC, you can optionally connect it to any AC power source and attempt to shove both hands in simultaneously. The warm whale mousepad is available now to heat up those long, freezing evenings spent perusing through Engadget archives for just ¥2,480 ($21).[Via Akihabara News]
Xbox 360 crazy lady, please explain
myFlash = new FlashObject('http://www.gametrailers.com/umremote310.swf', 'swffile', 425, 363, 8); myFlash.altTxt = ''; myFlash.addVariable('umid', 13069); myFlash.write(); First person to explain why this has a 360 logo at the end gets a cookie. Seriously, what the hell, man? Was she auditioning for the "banned" commercial? Or perhaps this is merely improv gone horribly wrong. Whatever the hell it is, it has a disturbing allure that cannot be denied.
