Robots and Innovation

One of my earliest posts was about robots. It dealt with the difference in technology and concept when it came to Japan and America. Recently there has been a little more innovation in Robot advancement. At this point in time we are aware that robots are being developed and do serve a purpose. Instead of having them dance or walk its time to start the next step in the evolution of Robotic design.

Quasi Robot Puppet:
Word on the street is, this little guy is coming to stores near you soon. A cheaper version of course. Watching to video below...REALLY made me want one. He is not only adorable but believable at the same time. When (or if) this toy releases, I see a lot of regretful parents buying it. Personally Im gonna use it to order fast food.


Swimming robot:
McGill University of Montreal has developed the Aqua 2. This little guy has the ability to swim and dive, as well as travel through dry terrain. You can see it all in the video below.


Beer Fetching Robot:
Every guy has at least thought of having this robot in their house. The robot does exactly what you think, fetches you Beer. Via your computer, you input what Beers you want. Then the Robot makes his way to the fridge and uses its cameras to determine what beers you have selected. The robot then travels to the location of the requester, and uses facial recognition to hand you your Beer. You can see it all demonstrated in the video below.


Other Worthy Mentions
Little Robots dance to Beyonce
Yes more dancing robots....theres not much to be said here. (except that when the robots laydown and get back up...it kinda freaks me out)



Robot Assistance...with a face
This seems like something out of a bad sci-fi. Its not as creative as the others I have seen. But its interesting to know some one actually made it.

The Pizza Vending Machine

Sometimes life just makes sense. With all the crime and poverty in the world, its good to see that something is right out there. And that thing is called "Lets Pizza"! Robot inventor and engineer Bob Bibleman (thats actually his name), has created a vending machine that makes you a Pizza from scratch in under 3 minutes.

The Machine has a glass window in the front that lets you watch your pizza being made in front of your eyes from scratch. It adds the dough, the cheese, and sauce right in front of you and then heats it up, and shoots it out the bottom. Each pizza will run under $5.00. Its do out on the streets this Summer. And I'll be waiting in line.

Cartoon Anatomy Museum!

I think of all the posts I have made on this site, this is by far the best one yet. We have all been to Museums filled with skeletons on display of Mammoths and Dinosaurs. Well Artist and Designer Hyung Koo Lee, has decided to make one for Cartoon characters. If you dont understand, the pictures below explain everything.

Below is the following: Tweety, Coyote and Road Runner, Huey, Duey, and Loue, Bugs Bunny, and last at the bottom Goofy.

The War of Videogames (if your even willing to read)

The big 3: Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft have been at war since early 2000. The original rival was between Nintendo and Sega back in the 90s but that battle was won by Nintendo. Today the market has changed. We no longer receive games in cartridges and in some cases, we dont even need to go to the store to buy a game. Its all about HD, Downloadable Content, Online play,....and motion control (barf).

Yeah see this, it doesnt work like this.

Before the Wii premiered Nintendo promised they would change video games forever. That they did, but not the way we wanted. After years of being loyal to their fan based customers, Nintendo decided to take a different approach to the market. When motion control was revealed fans young and old alike were blown away. Little did we know that this was not a way to improve our gaming experience, but a way simply for Nintendo to market to every one EXCEPT Gamers. And in the end, it was a pretty smart move.

After loosing the faith of all its followers, Nintendo's little crap machine practically "prints money" (as fanboys call it). It costs nothing to make, and they in return make a killing off it. And now other companies want a piece of the "Casual Gamer" pie. See Nintendo realized that there was a HUGE market of people that did NOT play video games. And thats who they now market towards. And it worked. Look at the success of Wii Fit. The console has been a huge success.


But that comes with a price, Nintendo shares and sales....have slowed down. Apparently casual gamers....only buy games casually. While real gamers....keep buying them. Nintendo taking notice of this has made a huge shift in its marketing. Finally realizing that they have burned their resources with the casual market, they are trying to win the hearts of Gamers back. And they are doing a good job. Sadly the competition is making the same mistake.

Sony now releasing the "PlayStaion Move" which is a black and more precise (and expensive) WII REMOTE for god sake, is hoping to take a stab at Nintendo's market. Microsoft is doing the same. Their approach is more innovative, they say "why use a controller when you can just use your body. Thats what the new "Kinnect" (formally known as Project Natal) can do. It lets you play games with.....well you body. And its creepy. Like the Wii I was excited for this too. But taking a look at the games for it, it seems to just be another ploy for....the casual market. And who could blame them.

Below is a pic of Wii, below that is Playstation Movie. Same freaking thing. Just more expensive.


The picture below is of someone playing kinect. If you didnt feel like a dork playing videogames before...you will now. "KICK!"


The Rundown: Basically here is what each company is up to

Nintendo- Introduces Motion Controls, made a KILLING off it, realized they lost their appeal to the "Gamer" crowd, and are trying to win their hearts back with games like "Zelda". Currently the Wii is dirt cheap, and comes with 2 GAMES. Something tells me they are trying to wash their hands of the Wii...so that next year wii (pun) can start buy something else.

Sony- The PS3 was at first A DISASTER. It started at $600 (big mistake). But in the past few years, PS3 had a nice price drop (to something that makes sense for us normal people) and has offered us some great games. Only now they want to sell us "Playstation Move" which is obviously a gimmick copy of Nintendo's gimmick. Sony is known for stealing ideas, and trying to market them as something original or better.

Microsoft- A power house in entertainment. The 360 not only has a HUGE online social network community that not only rivals Facebook, but also SYNCS with it. Xbox and Xbox Live know what gamers want (America ones that is). While it still doesnt sell well in Japan, here is sells like McDonalds Cheeseburgers. And after making tons of money and keeping fans happy, Microsoft might just stab us in the back with that "casual gamer" knife. With games like Kinnectamles and Kinnect Family fun. Its obvious what they are trying to do. It might just be....SELL OUT!

Things you should know:
-Nintendo is Cheap, everything they release is usually a remake of something already available.
-The name "Wii" is actually taken from the "i" in iPod. That way they can market things like Wii-motes, Wii-stands, Wii-care. Just like iDock, iTrip....get it.
-Sony is pushing 3D games with the PS3 now. Fun fact...you need a Sony 3DTV to play them. Suck it Sony!
-Microsoft charges monthly for its online service, its worth it. But its still overpriced.
-Microsoft and Sony do not plan on releasing PS4 or Xbox 720(name subject to change). The economy is bad right now, and it costs MILLIONS to even get a system started, so instead they made 10 year plans to keep their current systems selling.
-Nintendo made the mistake of only making a 5 year plan. This works out for them since development didnt cost much on the Wii, that way next year when they reveal Wii2 or WiiHD (and they will, mark my words) they can make you feel outdated.
-The videogame business is EVIL. It use to be about making games that were good and fun. Now its about making games that appeal to more people.
-GameStop is the freaking DEVIL!....that is all.

disturbing video of the month (July)

In honor of Tosh.0 I would like to continue, the disturbing video....of the month. Much like the Crab one I posted, this one is also sure to make your skin crawl. ENJOY!


(BTW I added the upcoming posts on the right side of the page)

Marina Sands Hotel

Its about time for me to add a new category to the blog (you can click on the ones already available on the right side of the page). This one will be labeled "Travel" and I am sure I'll be putting a few more up that are similar.
Below is a picture of the Marina Sands Hotel in Singapore. Its designed to be a giant cruise ship.....in the air (airship *cough*). Its built by a company called "Las Vegas Sands" and it cost around 8 Billion dollars to make. Apart from being a hotel, its also a Casino.
(click image to enlarge, you can zoom as well)

Its also home to the worlds Longest swimming pool with a "Vanishing Edge". You can see the edge effect in the picture below, and it looks scary. Below the pool are tons of Restaurant and Stores for shopping. And it wouldn't be a casino with out its own built in Art Museum and Garden.
It contains 963 hotel rooms and they BEGIN at a rate of $350 a night, and thats only the cost for 1 person.