For all those techies out there feeling like it’s about time a little luck came your way, head on over to Luxurylaunches.com and check out the new HP Envy 13 laptop contest. With features like a 1.86GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Processor SL9400, A 3GB DDR3 system memory and a 250GB SATA drive amongst many many more, you can’t afford to miss out on the opportunity. To win this notebook, that’s incidentally worth $1,700 and comes preloaded with Windows 7, our American readers have to but leave a simple post on the site telling us about - “The first thing that makes you envious about a lappie”. So all you have to do is jot down just ONE thing that tops the list of features that you look for in a perfect notebook. It’s a pretty simple deal really. The contest is open only to US residents and readers will need to submit their answer by leaving a comment on this blog post itself. There’s not much time as the contest ends on 27th November, 2009. The results will be announced on 29th November, 2009 so be sure to enter a valid email address so that we can send you an email to notify your victory.

Click here to go to get there. Good luck guys!

First we hear about IBM working on a system that will reduce the size of micro chip and provide cognitive thinking to ‘computer’ brains which could be just the start of the A.I. revolution. Today it’s Intel’s turn to showcase some more ideas for the future with microchips that put our human brains in charge of computers and other technology. The company estimates that by the year 2020, 10 years from now, consumers will be able to connect directly with their computers and other systems to access information and get work done simply be using their gray matter or brain waves to be more precise. The keyboard and mouse could become obsolete. They also estimate that with these implanted chips we’d even be able to change channels on our TVs and even control our mobile handsets with just mental commands.

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Take a look at some of the recent images revealed of the new upcoming Google Chrome OS. I’d love to see this on a tablet styled touchscreen netbook.

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Google’s full of announcements these days and the latest was at an event at which they finally previewed their Chrome OS operating system. Of course this new Linux based OS that’s also based on the Chrome browser is quite far from being a finished product and there isn’t even too much information provided as to all of its features or functionality. A few stories have popped up about the OS actually taking just seven (7) seconds to start up. WOW! But from day one of its announcement we’ve know that this is a web-based system that will be using the Chrome browser as a base of sorts. All features associated with the OS would also be web-based apps so we can of course expect this to be quite the social networker’s dream. It’s designed primarily for the user who’s always ‘logged on’ and connected i.e. a hardcore web user. I’m sure that during the course of the next couple of months prior to its launch next year, we’ll be seeing and hearing a lot more about the system and what it will have to offer.

[Engadget]

You know this is the 21st century now when you‘ve got robot actors. And I don’t mean the ones that can’t act because they’re too stiff, but real live (in a matter of speaking of course) robots. At a recent event, The Bard’s classic comedy, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, was performed featuring, for the first time on stage, an AirRobot who played a woodland fairy. The production was a collaboration between Texas A&M University’s computer science, electrical engineering and performance studies departments. The robot that was designed for surveillance by authorities, was equipped with and about the size of a large pizza, according to a report. In this its debut performance, AirRobot was joined by its smaller buddies a squadron of E-Flight micro helicopters.

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It seems like Motorola is seriously getting their act together with launches of mobiles left right and center. Another new handset after the announcement of the DROID and its GSM counterpart the MILESTONE is the Crush. Rather an odd name for a phone but then again there are handsets that have names like Magic and Hero. The Crush, an EV-DO Rev.0 device, comes with a 2.8” touchscreen (240 x 400 pixels), 2 megapixel camera, virtual on-screen QWERTY keypad, Stereo Bluetooth for connectivity and even a 3.5mm handsfree port. The images of the handset do seem a little strange though as it appears controls are located at the top of the screen which, in my opinion seems a bit weird and upside-down. Won’t it be a bit of a stretch accessing information from the top when you’re holding it from the bottom?

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Make way for Troopzilla!!! Ever seen that Pixar movie, Toy Story? Sorry stupid question, but it does beg a rather improbable answer to the question - What do your toys do when you’re not around? Well someone, a genius in my book, managed to offer a few notions. Out of the large collection here are my favorites with a few tag’s I thought went well with the pics –

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We may be thrilled by those so called, personality tests that we have given in the past. But hey, how correct and affective are these, really? Just a few combinations of conditional code can get you some pre-defined results. However, what separates the newly developed Psychological Profiler application from Apple is that it uses some smart methods, prescribe by Dr. Eric Berne (PHD Psychiatrist), to determine the psychological makeup of the person in question. This can be an employee, loved one, anyone. The application called MyPsy compiles questions that cover all the psychological details of his or her being.

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If you are a fan of Alien movies that show them as monstrous beings with multiple mouths then you will totally did this one. It's a USB Alien that's meant to nest on your workdesk. This one can get you smacked in the face with its flying inner mouth that rockets out between its jaws, followed by a spray of red LED. You can totally shock your boss when you know he's coming over to ask for an unfinished report.

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We cannot afford a butler these days, since they need to be well fed, well housed and above all, well paid. So how about a gizmo to do the trick. The Virtual Butler mirror is something that comes in as a great substitute to the bow-tied man. Like a real mirror, it can be mounted on a wall, has a good frame and all, and also connects to your alarms, doors, cameras, etc. It is heavily inspired by the early gizmos that we saw in Snow White's stepmom's room. Anyway, this one has a scary face that pops up to alert you about the goings-around in your abode.

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Ever heard of photonic tattoos? Now you have. A joint effort by Brian Litt from the University of Pennsylvania and researchers from the Beckment Institute at the University of Illinois and Tufts has resulted in the development of special silk-silicon LEDs that show blood sugar level readings. There are some electrodes that also work in tandem in order to synchronize with your neural system. If you feel that this is not enough then how about this: companies of the likes of Royal Philips Electronics in Netherlands are also exploring the world of electronic tattoos.

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Multitouch is spreading far and wide into the branches of commercial electronics, Dell, being one of the beneficiaries. Their new Studio 17 laptop has a multi-touch display (1600x900). The various features packed into the laptop include an Intel Pentium Dual Core/Core 2 Duo processor option, 8 GB of RAM, 1 TB storage space, Blu-ray option and an option of either ATI or Intel graphics. The Dell Studio 17 laptops will be available for $899 onwards from December 4th onwards. Touch away...

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Sony Ericsson's Kurara is the next best thing, or is it the best thing from Sony Ericsson. It packs a hell lot of performance-enhancing specs that make up a whole lot more to draw this one as the quickest yet by the company. Firstly, it has a powerful ARM Cortex A8 CPU that has graphical branches of the likes of PowerVR GPU. It also has 256 MB of RAM and video recording at HD 720p. The Sony Ericsson Kurara's really taken a huge step forward from the earlier conception of it being a run-down version of the Satio. It can be expected by February next year for around $750. Speculations!

[Slashgear]

You cannot be the combination of both and now lust deeply for this one. By both i mean, a guitar-freak-cum-Ferrari-collectible guy. This one may be one of those highly-priced, limited edition guitar that costs a hell lot, but then it has those same strings that your good old box did, and the same fret board that was marked and stained the sweat of your chaffed fingers, only this one' a bit too new and exquisite for your immortal impressions. Being a carbon fiber guitar it is bound to have a different feel and weight as compared to ordinary guitars.

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The tiny colorful bricks from Denmark can surely make your imagination run wild. Here is a stunning recreation of Disneyland made using Lego, all from the rides, stands, souvenir stands, cars and even streets. All made using thousands of Lego bricks.

[Many more images after the jump]

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