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Play Super Mario 64 in your browser now

Take the edge off of a full work week with a bit of Super Mario 64 , available for download or playable right in your browser thanks to ingenious Unity developer Roystan Ross. He calls it Super Mario 64 HD , and it features the original game’s first level, “Bob-Omb Battlefield.” Ross promises that everything is just as players of the 1996 game will remember, with a few exceptions, including no red coins and no Big Bob-Omb. But, it’s still Super Mario 64 in your browser (not your Bowser). Happy Friday, indeed! Filed under: Gaming , HD , Alt Comments Via: Kotaku UK Source: Roystan Ross

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Play Super Mario 64 in your browser now

Sony Pictures is planning a ‘Robotech’ live-action film franchise

We’ve got good news for you… though it may actually be bad news, depending on how you feel about Hollywood anime adaptations. That live-action Robotech movie might actually happen now that Sony Pictures has officially fished it out of limbo and snapped up its rights from Warner Bros. In fact, the studio’s looking at it as a potential film franchise à la Transformers instead of just as a single movie. A handful of new people have also joined the project, including producers Gianni Nunnari and Mark Canton ( 300, The Immortals ), as well as scriptwriter Michael Gordon ( 300, GI Joe ). However, that also means Tobey Maguire, who was slated to produce years ago, is out. Sorry to break it to old-school anime fans who wanted to see him and best bro Leo DiCaprio play Rick Hunter, Breetai or any other character. Robotech , by the way, is the collective name of three different sci-fi/mecha anime series spliced together to be shown on American TV in the 1980s. It features a lot of robots, alien invaders, good-looking heroes, an intergalactic pop star and even an epic love triangle. Since Sony Pictures hasn’t revealed any solid details about the project yet, we’d love to hear who you think should star in the movie(s). Filed under: Misc , Sony Comments Source: Variety

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Sony Pictures is planning a ‘Robotech’ live-action film franchise

Microsoft’s next Surface could signal the death of RT

Microsoft hasn’t given up on the idea of a mini-me version of its successful Surface Pro 3 convertible, according to a rumor from WinBeta . But a Surface 3 model won’t follow in the Surface 2’s wobbly footsteps by packing the RT version of Windows. Instead, it will reportedly take a page from the latest Macbook and come with an Intel Atom or Core M fanless CPU and a full version of Windows 8.1, upgradeable to Windows 10 . That means it could hit a lower price point than the Surface Pro while maintaining standard Windows compatibility — the lack of which effectively sunk the Surface 2. As we recently learned , Microsoft appears to be phasing out Windows RT, saying future versions will have, at best, just “some” Windows 10 functionality. It also reportedly killed a Qualcomm-based “mini” RT version of the Surface just days before it was set to launch. So if it pans out, what will this Surface-lite look like, how much will it cost and when will it arrive? We’re not sure about the first two parts, but it’s rumored to be coming in time for Microsoft’s Build conference starting April 29th. Filed under: Laptops , Microsoft Comments Source: Winbeta

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Microsoft’s next Surface could signal the death of RT

PayPal’s failure to spot sanctioned accounts just cost it $7.7 millon

PayPal has has agreed to pay the US Department of the Treasury $7.7-million, after the financial giant processed transactions for a number of companies and individuals on the US sanctions list. A total of 486 violations of US regulations had apparently been committed by PayPal “for several years” after repeated failures in the firm’s screening process, a reports explains. While the severity of each instance will vary, the Treasury highlighted a number that relate to Turkish national Kursud Zafer Cire — an individual on the list after suspected involvement in the movement of weapons of mass destruction. The Treasury’s report states that Risk Operations Agents at PayPal manually overrode at least four alerts flagging Cire as blacklisted — resulting in transactions totalling over $7, 000. Since 2013, PayPal has introduced a “long term solution” that checks for violations in real time. An investment we imagine that’s a little more cost effective, than predicting future malware . Filed under: Internet Comments Via: Reuters Source: US Dept. Treasury , (2)

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PayPal’s failure to spot sanctioned accounts just cost it $7.7 millon

Google Fiber is launching in Salt Lake City

You no longer have to head to Provo if you want Google Fiber in Utah — Google has revealed that it’s bringing its gigabit internet access to the state’s capital, Salt Lake City. The company is short on details, but it won’t have a ready-made fiber network to use this time around. SLC’s fiber network is still in the design phase, much like those in Atlanta, Nashville and North Carolina , so you could be waiting a while before you have a chance to sign up. Nonetheless, this is a good sign. Even if you don’t live in the area, it suggests that Google is picking up the pace on its once-cautious Fiber rollouts and is more likely to bring extra-fast data to your city. Filed under: Home Entertainment , Networking , Internet , HD , Google Comments Source: Google Fiber Blog

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Google Fiber is launching in Salt Lake City

This $300 cybernetic arm gets its smarts from your cellphone

Iron Man isn’t the only one 3D-printing artificial limbs these days. But unlike the mechanical hand delivered by Robert Downey Jr, this recently unveiled prosthetic from Japanese manufacturer Exiii costs just $300 and leverages your mobile device’s computing power to act just like the real thing. The Ghost in the Shell future we’ve between waiting for came took a step closer to reality. The Handiii bionic limb’s exterior is completely 3D-printed. This not only keeps each unit’s initial production costs low (it’s already dropped $50 since we last saw it at Maker Faire Tokyo ), the technique also makes fabricating replacement parts faster and easier as well. But despite its bargain-basement price, the Handiii is packed with electronics. An EMG sensor detects electrical impulses emanating from the user’s remaining limb stump and converts those impulses into physical movement through a series of servos. What’s more, it connects wirelessly to your cell phone or tablet using the mobile device’s CPU to interpret these signals and initiate movement. Unfortunately, there’s already a waiting list for these handy devices, partly due to a backlog of existing orders. Its creators are also focusing on getting these arms into the hands of academic and industrial researchers — potentially as an open-source platform — before beginning deliveries to the general public. Filed under: Wearables , Science Comments Via: TechCrunch Source: Exiii.jp

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This $300 cybernetic arm gets its smarts from your cellphone

Light-emitting fabrics could reinvent your ’90s wardrobe

Researchers who are obviously Saved by the Bell fans have developed clothing fibers that could turn you into a walking neon sign. Rather than OLED or LCD tech, the team exploited polymer light-emitting electrochemical cells (PLECs) that are rugged enough to be used in fabrics. They created a millimeter-sized fiber that’s decidedly high-tech — it consists of a thin steel wire coated with nanoparticles and an electroluminescent polymer, topped by a transparent carbon nanotube outer layer. A prototype fabric glowed for several hours, but so far, the light colors are limited to blue and yellow. However, PLEC tech has a theoretical life span of thousands of hours, and more colors are technically possible. The fibers could feasibly “be woven into light-emitting clothes for the creation of smart fabrics” or used for biomedical applications, according to lead scientist Zhitao Zhang from Shanghai’s Fudan University. However, there are a few hurdles to clear. The fibers are too short to be woven into clothing and, like your old Christmas tree lights, are still too unstable. On the other hand, they require less power than LEDs and are transparent and conductive — meaning they have potential to be used for human- or solar-powered wearables. We could also see them in future invisibility cloaks if combined with tiny cameras. For now, it’s just a rough prototype, but display tech often goes from concept to reality a lot faster than other scientific pipe dreams . Filed under: Wearables , Science , Alt Comments Via: Spectrum IEEE Source: Nature

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Light-emitting fabrics could reinvent your ’90s wardrobe

There’s now a super-speed PCIe SSD you can actually buy

Samsung has taken a commanding lead in next-gen SSDs that blow away old-school models , but it finally has some competition. Kingston’s HyperX Predator PCIe SSD is now available with read speeds touching 1.4GB/s. That’s still a far cry from Samsung’s latest SM951 SSD , which reads at a ridiculous 2.2GB/s. But unlike Samsung’s OEM-only model, you can actually purchase the Predator PCIe and jam it into your own PC build or laptop. You’ll need an M.2 SSD slot to do so (preferably with four PCIe lanes), but if that’s missing, Kingston will supply a PCIe slot adapter for an extra ten bucks or so. Write speeds run at 1GB/s, and random read/write IOPS are a scorching 130, 000/118, 000 random. For that, your wallet will also get scorched: it’s around $460 for the 480GB model ($230 for 240GB), or nearly double a regular HyperX 480GB SATA III drive. But that matches the price of Samsung’s similar XP941 model , and prices will likely fall quickly now that there’s some competition. Anyway, the performance is also more than double, and you can’t put a price on bragging rights . Filed under: Storage Comments Via: Tom’s Hardware Source: Kingston

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There’s now a super-speed PCIe SSD you can actually buy

Packing peanuts are the key to fast-charging batteries

Hate buying some new gadget, only to wind up with a sea of packing peanuts that do little more than spill on to the floor? Don’t be too quick to toss them out — they may be the key to a new generation of lithium-ion batteries. Purdue University researchers have developed a heating process that converts these shipping leftovers into anodes (where lithium ions are stored during charging) made from carbon. On top of eliminating waste, this technique should lead to batteries that recharge much faster. The carbon anodes are only a tenth as thick as their commercially available counterparts, so they don’t produce nearly as much electrical resistance. There’s still some refinement necessary before you’re buying peanut-powered devices, mostly in terms of capacity. Lab samples last for a respectable 300 charging cycles without losing capacity, but you’d need more for hardware that’s going to be used for years. However, the approach is already practical: it’s cheap, simple and easy to implement on a large scale. It won’t be at all shocking if you can one day buy a quick-charging phone and send the packing foam back to help make more phones, rather than throwing it in the trash. [Image credit: Joey Yee, Flickr ] Filed under: Science Comments Source: Purdue University (Phys.org)

Pakistan orders cellphone users to provide their fingerprints

Pakistan is determined to prevent terrorists from using untraceable cellphone accounts to coordinate attacks like that in Peshawar , even if it means eroding civil liberties in the process. The country has ordered cellphone users to have their SIM cards verified through fingerprints, theoretically discouraging extremists from relying on local carriers to communicate or trigger bombs. People have until April 13th (carriers have to comply by April 15th) to get their digits on the record if they want to keep their cell service intact. It’s questionable as to whether or not the sacrifices will be worthwhile. Terrorists may simply turn to SIM cards from other countries and roam on Pakistani networks when necessary; in fact, people living near the Afghanistan border are already more likely to have foreign service. Also, the sheer scale of the fingerprint program could leave many upstanding people in the lurch. There are roughly 50 million SIM cards that haven’t been registered so far, many of them in rural areas where participation is difficult. And even if Pakistan makes the deadline, that’s not exactly a resounding victory — it still means that tens of millions of residents are losing some of the freedom that comes with anonymity. [Image credit: AP Photo/B.K. Bangash] Filed under: Cellphones , Mobile Comments Source: Washington Post , BBC

Ken May

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