Treo 650: First Impressions

by Josh Rubin

Too many hours of my day yesterday were lost to making acquaintance with my new Treo 650 (GSM Unlocked). The most obvious new features are certainly a huge improvement-- Bluetooth, high resolution display and a better button layout. Even more exciting than that, however, are the small yet potent improvements to the user interface.

The basic phone applications are finally up to par with phone-centric devices. Messaging is now integrated into one application which means your SMS and MMS messages are all in one place. Chat dialogs even show text and picture messages in-line. The Contacts application can display entries from your contact list and SIM card in one view. After you finish a call, the Treo will ask you if you want to add the caller to your contact list if the number isn't already there-- a feature which is useful, though potentially annoying. But you can turn it off for good. And camera functions are nicely woven into both of these communication apps.

The Poseidon Undersea Hotel

by Josh Spear

Poseidon. Rooms will be submerged 50 feet under the sea off Eleuthera Island in the Bahamas. $1500 a night gets you a room at the bottom of the ocean, each room will be equipped with spotlights and control to release fish food to keep things entertaining. The Poseidon will be accessible by long escalators to the ocean floor--Jacques Cousteau would be proud.

via ABC News

BeatPort

by Ari Bendersky

Beatport is Napster or iTunes exclusively for the electronic music world. As its tagline says: Log on. Get Down. That's exactly what you do on Beatport. It is the digital download network.

Electronic music enthusiasts will find thousands of tracks from hundreds of labels and DJs in a dozen umbrella categories including House, Trance, Drum & Bass, Chill Out and more. It doesn't have the breadth of the bigger download sites, but give it time.

The interface isn't as intuitive as iTunes, but it mirrors the dance community-- it's technologically savvy, has an eclectic design and a funky look and feel. You can sample tracks – and you aren't limited to 30-second streams either.

This is the definitive download site for aspiring DJs and those they hit the decks for-- and it’s global, so you can find music from the U.S., England, Netherlands and Berlin. And while only signed DJ music can reside on Beatport, not everyone is known, like Armin van Buuren, Mark Farina or Joi Cardwell, so you can find undiscovered gems.

Mobile Game: Getting Up

by Carol T Chung

Setup: Mark Ecko, founder of Ecko Unlimited, worked with Atari and The Collective to produce the urban culture game, Getting Up, where the central theme is graffiti art. The console game is for PS2, set for release later this year in the fall.

Gamespot has just reported that Ecko, Atari, and Sorrent will be producing a mobile version of the game. Although I have no doubt that some entertainment value will be derived, I'm a bit concerned when it goes mobile. Simply because graffiti is a bit like call and response. The artist is responding to the environment around him or her. And the viewer, be it another artist or not, responds as well. So wouldn't it make sense, especially with a theme like graffiti art, that if they're going to move to another level of interaction between the player and the game by going mobile, that they should go all the way and reach an audience? (I'm making the assumption that the mobile version does not, since there was no indication of it in the news article.) I'm not trying to condone it because I'm sure it'll be fun. However, I simply bring up the question of "Where's the next step?" I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

Sisters Shock Rock the House!

by Carol T Chung

Saturday night was the opening reception for the Sisters Shock Rock the House! gallery show. It was an all female artists display of urban expression through a multitude of mixed media such as paint, film, and sculpture. The artist shown here is CC McGurr. And yes, those are octopi, which she catches herself while scuba diving, photographs them, and then eats them. Yum. The show is at Supreme Trading, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Destructed Magazine T's

by Josh Spear

Destructed has some very limited edition and top notch looking screen printed t-shirts for sale. Each issue of the magazine is downloadable, and a dozen or more artists collaborate to show their work together in each issue. It's a place of interaction for artists of all genres and capacities to get their work seen by the public. These shirts were just a small production of the magazine, and look great.

Cool Japan: Otaku Strikes!

by Carol T Chung

This past weekend, the Japan Society in New York City launched a series of events entitled Cool Japan: Otaku Strikes!, which run through the Spring. In the U.S., an Otaku is someone who is considered to be somewhat of a die-hard fan of manga or anime. However in Japan, an Otaku can also be related to music, cooking, video games—-- you get the picture. When the term refers to anime or manga, sometimes fans will engage in cosplay, which is short for costume play (shown on the left are cosplayers of the Naruto anime series). This program offers events that explore how the Japanese otaku subculture has impacted film, art and design in Japan. Along with film and dance events, there will also be lectures on Japanese design and Takashi Murakami.

Photo from MasaMania