Nelson Wong Life Blog

Staples 15% off B&M, excludes computers exp 1/30/10

Staples coupon via email – It’s a 5 digit, so should work for all.
15% off your INSTORE purchase, excluding computers until 1/30/10
CODE: 84807

Amazon.com gets copied with its Kindle in tow

Guys, seriously: you’re going to love this one. Indian site Infibeam — which looks at least somewhat “legit” — has completely ripped off Amazon.com… as in pretty much copied it exactly. Now, we’re no strangers ourselves to a bit of ‘fan fictionizing’ of our name and likeness (for retail locations), but this is possibly the most blatant (and blatantly hilarious) thing we’ve ever seen. Oh, and while you’re visiting Infibeam.com, don’t forget to pick up an Infibeam Pi — AKA Kindle ripoff. Infibeam’s CEO, Geoff Pezos will thank you.

HTC Supersonic

we’re not saying it’s unpossible for someone with some incredible Illustrator skill to have thrown this together after seeing the supposed leak last night — there are definitely plenty of talented people out there with far too much time on their hands. That being said, this matches up perfectly with everything we know and everything we’ve been told so far, so even if it is fake, it probably gives us some good insight into what Sprint’s terrifying beast of a phone is going to look like up close. The Supersonic is said to have a 4.3-inch display and WiMAX alongside Sense — so if it’s all true, we strongly suggest other carriers be ready to step up their Android game. Any other leaks care to step forward today?

Pillow man

fakeMacBook Air , part CCXXXIII: loses two inches, adds a Windows key

If we’ve learned one thing ’round here, it’s that the KIRFsters love taking on Apple. And you know, at first glance this KIRFacious take on the MacBook Air doesn’t seem half bad. Of course, check it out in profile and it looks a lot more like your average netbook than it does Cupertino’s ultraportable — but at least the shanzai manufacturer in question as thrown in a few things that were neglected in the original, including: two USB ports, a removable battery, and a PCIe slot for a 3G module. That said, they also went with an 11.1-inch display (as opposed to the Air’s 13-incher), which could be a good thing or not, depending on your POV. Of course, with a 1.6GH Atom processor and 1GB RAM, this thing isn’t exactly a workhorse, though it’s safe to assume that the price point will fall far below that of the “real deal.” But don’t take our word for it — check out a couple more views of the thing after the break.

› Continue reading

Steve Ballmer’s shocking autograph of MacBook Pro

It’s likely that if you were told to describe what you think would happen if someone asked Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to autograph a MacBook Pro, it would go something like this:

Steve would fly into a blind fury, grabbing the laptop and smashing it against a far wall with the force of ten men, laughing as the computer shattered and sparked out of existence. He would then leap towards the young man who’d made the request and pin him to the floor, pulling out a Bowie knife while whispering that he would like to “Gut [him] like the pathetic animal he is.” Next Ballmer would dash out of the room only to return with a canister of gasoline, some hairspray, and one of those long lighters, all while shouting that he would “Show the world what [he's] really made of.” Ballmer would escape from this scene of utter destruction in a helicopter, but not before circling the college campus (or wherever this took place) and dumping toxic waste on hundreds of students.

ASUS DR-950 touchscreen e-reader spotted in the ‘wilds’ of ASUS UK’s office

Sure, we’d love to be hanging out with this device in person, but we suppose this is second best. ASUS UK has some shots of the upcoming DR-950 e-reader, sporting 9-inches of grayscale SiPix e-paper. It admittedly looks pretty great under these idealized lighting conditions, and the homescreen interface looks simple and oh-so-touchable. Hopefully we get to put the device through its text-to-speech, 3G and ePub paces soon enough.

BookBook Case Puts Your macbook In Hardcover

Twelve South, makers of Mac accessories that are sometimes prettier than they are practical, have a new way for you to protect your MacBook or MacBook Pro: hardbound leather.

Twelve South’s products always look nice, but sometimes they don’t make a whole lot of sense. BookArc? Sure. BassJump and BackPack? I’m not as convinced. But their new BookBook case considers both form and function.

The BookBook has a hard shell and a rigid spine to keep your MacBook from being crushed, and is lined with soft fabric to keep it from being scratched. Twelve South also plays up the fact that by disguising your laptop as a beat up old book, you make it less likely to be stolen. Because who wants to steal an old book? Besides these guys.
› Continue reading

BumpTop hits the Mac, covers your OS X desktop with piles just like your real desktop

PC users have been making a 3D mess of their virtual Windows 7 desktops with BumpTop now for nearly a year, and have been doing it two-fingered since October saw the 1.2 multitouch release. Now you Apple fans can get a feel too, with BumpTop Mac newly available. There’s a free version for you to try, or a $29 Pro edition that adds support for multitouch trackpads, enabling you to quickly form piles of docs and filter through them. Yes, piles of documents, much like that leaning tower of expense reports your co-workers have been giving a wide berth whenever they walk by. After the break you’ll find a video of it all in action, and you can get your free trial at the read link — assuming you’re running OS 10.5 or higher.
› Continue reading

HP shows off ‘wall of touch’ concept, touching optional

We’re not quite sure why HP didn’t bother setting one of these up at CES, but the company’s so-called “wall of touch” is apparently already in use by a handful of companies in prototype form, and HP has now shown it off to The Wall Street Journal. Interestingly, while you’re welcome to touch the wall all you want, you don’t actually have to, as it makes use of a camera-based system and a magnetic strip to detect where you’re pointing and when you near the wall. Of course, HP is mostly pitching this one towards companies intending to use these in public spaces (Continental Airlines has one of the first at the Houston Airport), but HP does say that if there’s enough interest it will turn it into a “mainstream product” — albeit a mainstream product that costs anywhere from “a couple thousand dollars” to $100,000 for something with more advanced features like HD video conferencing. Head on past the break for a quick video overview.