Symetri Blog

Yes, you read correctly.



From ThinkGeek:

Here at ThinkGeek we're pretty lazy when it comes to technology. We expect our gadgets to do all the busywork while we focus on the high level important tasks like reading blogs. That's why we hate to have to crack open our laptops just to see if there is any wi-fi internet access about... and keychain wi-fi detectors, we would have to actually remove them from our pockets to look at them. But now thanks to the ingenious ThinkGeek robot monkeys you can display the current wi-fi signal strength to yourself and everyone around you with this stylish Wi-Fi Detector Shirt. The glowing bars on the front of the shirt dynamically change as the surrounding wi-fi signal strength fluctuates. Finally you can get the attention you deserve as others bow to you as their reverential wi-fi god, while geeky chicks swoon at your presence. You can thank us later.

Freedom costs $1.05; Geek Heaven is around $30.

Labels: gadgets, tech geeky

As you return to work after the holidays and your co-workers settle back into the day-to-day office rigmarole, why not spice up your 2008 with a little generated insanity?

Meet the ThinkGeek Annoy-a-tron:

The Annoy-a-tron generates a short (but very annoying, hence the name) beep every few minutes. Your unsuspecting target will have a hard time 'timing' the location of the sound because the beeps will vary in intervals ranging from 2 to 8 minutes. The 2kHz sound is generically annoying enough, but if you really really want to aggravate somebody, select the 12 kHz sound. Trust us. The higher frequency and slight 'electronic noise' built into that soundbyte will make a full-grown Admin wonder where his packets are.

It's only $10. Get it. Get it now. Before They do.

Labels: gadgets, internets

It's the 411 on ...well, the 411. Really. GOOG-411; It's just like calling information. Only way cooler because it's Google. The Google Labs Page.

Here's the deal: you dial 1-800-GOOG-411 (1-800-4664-411). You say the City and State you are looking for. You say the business name (or category). It will connect you. For free. Yay!

But how does it really work?

I love Indian food, so I thought I'd give it a little challenge looking for "The Ceramic Grill" in High Point, NC, near where I work. I dialed the number (Google is bold, I'm in italics).

"Calls recorded for quality. GOOG 411. Experimental. What city and state?"
"High Point, North Carolina."
"High Point, North Carolina."
"What Business or Category?"
"Ceramic Grill"
"Ceramics Grill. If this is not right, say 'go back.'"
I wasn't sure it got me, so I said "Go back."
"High Point, North Carolina."
"What Business or Category?"
"Ceramic Grill"
"No Match. Try Again. What Business or Category?"
"Ceramic Grill"
Ceramic. If-
"Go back."
"High Point, North Carolina."
"What Business or Category?"
"Ceramic Grill"
"Ceramics Grill. If this is not right, say 'go back.'"
Okay, let's see what they got.
"I'll connect you or you can say 'details' or 'go back.'"
"Details."

And they proceeded with the correct details of the Ceramic Grill. I guess Google had it right the first time.

Saying something that doesn't have a direct match will still produce results, just like a Google search will. Saying a category will produce a top 9 so you can punch a number and get those details or connect. Shouting "Can't we have anything nice?" or "You don't know me!" produces no results.

And the bestest? Prank calls, of course. Making this phone call brings up 1-800-4664-411 on the caller ID of the recipient. Okay, so it's too cool to use for that purpose. Maybe.

Give it a try! And when you're done, if you're in the neighborhood, drop me a line and we'll hit the Ceramic Grill (soooo good).

Labels: gadgets, google