Unofficial Wii Opera SDK let loose

from Engadget by Donald Melanson

It looks like web browsing on the Wii is about to get a whole lot more interesting, as an entirely unofficial Wii Opera SDK has now been released to the general public, opening up the possibility for all sorts of browser-based games, among other things. What's more, the SDK allows developers with the necessary know-how to take full advantage of the Wiimote, including the ability to detect the remote's distance from the sensor bar, along with any button presses, and movement along the Z-axis. That makes things like the familiar-looking "2 Play Ship Demo" pictured above fully playable using the Wiimote, as well as more basic things like drawing and 3D rotation. Those looking to get started on a homebrew game of their own can hit up the read link below for the necessary files, while the rest of us can try out a handful of ready made demos at the same link. [Via Joystiq]

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NYC taxis simply running mapping app over unsecured Windows

from Engadget by Nilay Patel

It's always interesting when electronic billboards, kiosks, and other installations go haywire and show you the dark heart of Windows lurking underneath, but it's even more fun when you can actually start poking around -- and it looks like there's a fair bit of poking to do in all those NYC taxis with backseat screens . According to Billy Chasen, dismissing the error message will allow you to get to the Start menu, from which it's trivial to run the Windows Connection Wizard, set up the Sprint broadband card, and start surfing away. Billy could also browse the filesystem -- which may or may not contain credit card data -- and it looks like he even had enough access to install any software he could find online. Hmmm, looks like there's 1000 experience points waiting here for the first person to send in a photo of Engadget on one of these screens -- with a 5000 point bonus if it's in Firefox.

 

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Asus announces U2 hotness

from Engadget by Ryan Block

We're not sure why Asus damned its hot new laptop by announcing it prior to CES (unlike its predecessor, the U1) -- and on a Saturday, no less -- but you can't question the quality: Core Duo ULV or Centrino, 802.11a/b/g, Vista (from Basic to Ultimate), 11.1-inch 1366 x 768 LED-backlit display, 32GB SSD option, up to 4GB RAM in a 2.75 pound 1.1-inch thick footprint. We'll spare you the Bono ref or jokes about the lack of Edge data.

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Homegrown speaker created with foam plate

from Engadget by Darren Murph

We know what you're thinking, and trust us, we're right there with you. We've no idea how a speaker constructed from a foam plate could sound anything close to decent, but judging by the comments from folks that have made their own, it may actually be worth your while to do the same over your holiday break. Reportedly, all you'll need is a standard foam plate, a couple of paper strips, two business cards, some wire, a bit of glue / tape, a neodymium magnet and an audio plug; once you've gathered your materials, you can hit the read link for the how-to guide of putting together the relatively simple device. Of course, we aren't responsible for any strange looks you get should you choose to pimp your new sound system to members of your extended family.

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ATP's GPS Photo Finder geotags your pix OTG

from Engadget by Joshua Topolsky

Filed under: Digital Cameras, GPS

If you're heavy into geotagging -- and we think you are -- you may want to look into an interesting new product from ATP (no relation to the multifunctional nucleotide of the same name) called the GPS Photo Finder, a unique device which automatically tags your digital pictures with latitude and longitude, without the need for a PC nearby. The little rectangular box works by reading SD, MMC or Memory Stick data and then tagging pictures on the media with location coordinates (as long as your camera is synced to the clock of the Photo Finder). The internal 128MB of memory allows for roughly 550 hours of tracking, and the pictures / GPS data can be read by any application capable of handling geotagged images (such as Picasa). The device is scheduled for mass release in the first quarter of 2008, no word on price right now.

[Via Coolest Gadgets]

 

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