Mercedes-Benz thanks its 9 million Facebook fans

Mercedes-Benz has nine million Facebook fans. That's like every single member of genus Homo in Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia and Dallas clicking the friend button. To throw its kisses to the crowd, the Stuttgart brand put together a video led by Finnish director, Anssi Määttä, that combines light painting and the CLS Shooting Brake. Two isn't necessarily a trend but Ferrari also whipped up a video to thank its horde of virtual pals, of which it has an extra million on M-B. But this one from Mercedes it isn't just a "Danke," it's a "Danke schön." And then some.



Autoblog , Mercedes-Benz thanks its 9 million Facebook fans, Mercedes-Benz thanks its 9 million Facebook fans

Mouse Computer NEXTGEAR-NOTE i1000BA1 17.3-Inch Gaming Notebook

Mouse Computer offers you their latest gaming notebook, the NEXTGEAR-NOTE i1000BA1. Powered by a 2.40GHz Intel Core i7-3630QM processor, the system is packed with a 17.3-inch 1920 x 1080 Full HD LED-backlight display, an Intel HM77 Express Chipset, a GeForce GTX 680 4GB graphics card x2, an 8GB DDR3 RAM, a 500GB hard drive, a 2MP webcam, a DVD Super Multi Drive, a multi-card reader, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0 + LE, an HDMI port and runs Windows 8 64-bit OS. The NEXTGEAR-NOTE i1000BA1 sells for 199,500 Yen (about $2,418).

TechFresh , Mouse Computer NEXTGEAR-NOTE i1000BA1 17.3-Inch Gaming Notebook, Mouse Computer NEXTGEAR-NOTE i1000BA1 17.3-Inch Gaming Notebook

Spitballs flying between Nissan and Fiat

At the 2012 LA Auto Show, Fiat brand chief and recently crowned marketing genius, Olivier François, attempted to distance the Fiat 500e from other electric vehicles, asking rhetorically, "Isn't ugliness the worst kind of pollution?" Nissan has apparently taken issue with these comments, feeling slighted for what it considers digs at the Leaf's styling. In a recent interview with Automotive News, Nissan's marketing chief Simon Sproule shot back, "Let's face it, Fiat has not shied away from controversial styling themselves," he continued, "many would describe many of their products as visual pollution." Ouch.

Autoblog , Spitballs flying between Nissan and Fiat, Spitballs flying between Nissan and Fiat

Consumer Reports calls out Ford for false Fusion, C-Max hybrid fuel economy claims

Consumer Reports is calling out Ford, saying the new C-Max and Fusion hybrids don't get anywhere near the 47 miles per gallon the automaker claims. Several automakers have faced backlash after consumers discovered their cars don't quite hit the lofty fuel economy figures promised by the companies, and Ford may be the newest casualty of all this pesky fact-checking by critics and watchdogs. The magazine drove the cars 2,000 miles and consistently got around 39 mpg for the Fusion and 37 mpg for the C-Max.



Autoblog , Consumer Reports calls out Ford for false Fusion, C-Max hybrid fuel economy claims, Consumer Reports calls out Ford for false Fusion, C-Max hybrid fuel economy claims

Kubi an affordable and ingenious telepresence solution

Telepresence is a powerful concept that Kubi intends to introduce to the masses. In short, The idea is that a physical object can “project” your presence to a different location. There are various implementation, including in science fiction movies like Surrogates where folks have full-blown cyborg bodies, but in the real world, there are products like Anybots, E-One, Justin and other rather expensive ($15,000 for Anybots) options. In fact, while most people love the idea, pricing has always been the main friction point in this category.Kubi does not try to move around, look human or act human.

Ubergizmo , Kubi an affordable and ingenious telepresence solution, Kubi an affordable and ingenious telepresence solution

Halo Series Sells 50 Million Units Since 2001. New Game In Early Development

Halo 4 may not have shared the success Call of Duty: Black Ops II has, especially when you consider the game is exclusive to the Xbox 360. But the series itself has had quite the run as Microsoft announced today 50m units of the entire Halo series have been sold. Halo debuted on the Xbox back in 2001 and since then has received regular updates all the way to this year's Halo 4, which earned $220 million in its first 24 hours.

Ubergizmo , Halo Series Sells 50 Million Units Since 2001. New Game In Early Development, Halo Series Sells 50 Million Units Since 2001. New Game In Early Development

Facebook for BlackBerry Updated with Increased BBM Integration

BlackBerry-totting Facebookers have long been able to post their status updates onto their BlackBerry Messenger profiles as well, but the latest Facebook for BlackBerry update makes BBM more integrated into the FB experience. The version 3.3 enables you to start BBM chats using your BBM PIN contacts, all within Facebook for BlackBerry app. You can also share your BlackBerry PIN with your friends in Facebook, as well as search for friends who also have BBM.

Gadget.com , Facebook for BlackBerry Updated with Increased BBM Integration, Facebook for BlackBerry Updated with Increased BBM Integration

Are battery-powered cars losing their charge?

Sales of plug-in hybrids tumbled to nearly half their level from September and October. The optimist would be likely to note that sales of the Chevrolet Volt were up 30 percent in November, at least when compared with year-ago numbers. But pessimists, of which there are many, would be more likely to point out that sales of the plug-in hybrid tumbled to nearly half their level from September and October.
The Volt was toppled from its throne as the nation's top-selling electric car by both the Nissan Leaf and Toyota Prius Plug-In.

Autoblog , Are battery-powered cars losing their charge?, Are battery-powered cars losing their charge?

Samsung Mobile Store Opens In Paris

In a move to boost its sales even more, Samsung is announcing the opening of its first Samsung Mobile Store in Paris. Samsung says that the store is a “unique place” that will showcase the latest technological innovations while offering hands-on experience and customized solutions to its customers. From the looks of its, it seems that Samsung is finally learning Apple's way of presenting its products. Interestingly, the Samsung employees are also wearing blue, similar to what the “Geniuses” are wearing.

Ubergizmo , Samsung Mobile Store Opens In Paris, Samsung Mobile Store Opens In Paris

Ogone Payment Services helps ekmPowershop and its merchants expand throughout Europe and beyond

London, 6 December 2012 – Ogone, leading specialist in online and mobile payment services, has entered a strategic partnership with ekmPowershop, the UK’s largest ecommerce provider.  The collaboration offers ekmPowershop and its merchants an easy, one-stop ecommerce solution with a pre-integrated payment system to connect to more than 200 banks and 80 local, international and alternative payment methods.The partnership between Ogone and ekmPowershop will make it easier for businesses to develop an online sales channel into the UK and Europe.

Press Release Distribution , Ogone Payment Services helps ekmPowershop and its merchants expand throughout Europe and beyond, Ogone Payment Services helps ekmPowershop and its merchants expand throughout Europe and beyond

Google Ex-CEO: Why Apple Hasn't Sued Us?

Eric Schmidt, former CEO and current executive chairman of Google, had a sit-down interview with Wall Street Journal on various topics within the Google's realm. The conversation picked up when reporter Jessica E. Lessin asked about the ongoing legal battles between Apple and companies that manufacture Android-powered smartphones. “It's extremely curious that Apple has chosen to sue Google's partners and not Google itself,” Schmidt said.

Gadget.com , Google Ex-CEO: Why Apple Hasn't Sued Us?, Google Ex-CEO: Why Apple Hasn't Sued Us?

HomeGrid Forum Announces First G.hn Silicon Certification

Beaverton, Ore, December 05, 2012News highlights:HomeGrid Forum announces the Marvell® 88LX3142 digital baseband processor and the Marvell 88LX2718 baseband analog front-end chipset as the first to achieve G.hn silicon Certification by passing rigorous testing at HomeGrid’s accredited test house, TRaC GlobalTwo other chip vendors are currently in the final stages of preparing their silicon for Certification.

Press Release Distribution , HomeGrid Forum Announces First G.hn Silicon Certification, HomeGrid Forum Announces First G.hn Silicon Certification

Adax Announces GTP-U Acceleration Cards for Demanding LTE, Mobile Offload and Legacy Telecoms Nodes

December 5th, 2012, Oakland CA – Adax (www.adax.com), an industry leader in high-performance packet-processing, security and network infrastructure, now offers a high-performance GTP-U acceleration card; the Adax GTP-AMC.GTP-U is the critical data plane protocol in today’s emerging LTE networks. User appetite and willingness to pay for mobile broadband data is driving network build out fuelled by usage-based data plans. User service level agreements based on Quality of Experience (QoE) and Quality of Service (QoS) rely heavily on both network intelligence and data plane throughput.

Press Release Distribution , Adax Announces GTP-U Acceleration Cards for Demanding LTE, Mobile Offload and Legacy Telecoms Nodes, Adax Announces GTP-U Acceleration Cards for Demanding LTE, Mobile Offload and Legacy Telecoms Nodes

Lexus bringing next-gen IS to Detroit

With ES, GS and LS models all now minty fresh at your local Lexus showroom, it was only a matter of time before we had official word that the company's IS had a replacement in the wings. That word has come down today in an ultra brief press release that names the date and venue that the sheet will be pulled on the new car: January 15th in Detroit at the North American International Auto Show. Don't pay too much attention to the test mule in these dusty spy shots, we're told that the small Lexus has been "completely redesigned" from the inside out and that it has drawn inspiration from the sultry LF-CC concept car.

Autoblog , Lexus bringing next-gen IS to Detroit, Lexus bringing next-gen IS to Detroit

Stelle Audio's Pillar speaker features wireless streaming capabilities in a minimalist design

If you're in the market for a set of speakers that are stylish looking and that might play nice with the interior design of your bedroom or living room, Stelle Audio has recently unveiled the Pillar speaker, which as you can see in the image above, is a speaker designed in a rather minimalist sort of way and has been shaped in the form of a cylinder. One of its key features is the fact that users will be able to stream music via the speakers using their mobile device, and even better is the fact that it will be powered by a battery. This means you will be able to take it with you on the go or move it around the house.

Ubergizmo , Stelle Audio's Pillar speaker features wireless streaming capabilities in a minimalist design, Stelle Audio's Pillar speaker features wireless streaming capabilities in a minimalist design

Deal of the Day – Lenovo IdeaCentre Q190 Dual-core small form-factor desktop

Tuesday's LogicBUY Deal is the Lenovo IdeaCentre Q190 1.5GHz Dual-core small form-factor Desktop for $359.  Features:. Intel Celeron 887 1.5GHz Dual-core CPU4GB RAMIntel HD graphics1TB Hard Drive, 8-in-1 card readerWireless-NWindows 8 64-bit OSKeyboard and mouse.
$449.99 – $90 coupon code = $359 with free shipping.

This deal expires December 5, 2012 or sooner.

The Gadgeteer , Deal of the Day â€" Lenovo IdeaCentre Q190 Dual-core small form-factor desktop, Deal of the Day â€" Lenovo IdeaCentre Q190 Dual-core small form-factor desktop

Searchmetrics expands search analytics software to take in an additional 47 countries

Search and social analyses in a total of 123 countries with 261 search engine/country combinations now possibleLondon, 4 December 2012 - Searchmetrics, the leader in search and social analytics software, has expanded the international capability of its Searchmetrics Suite™ software to enable users to analyse their search performance on all the major search engines in a total of 123 countries – with 261 different search engine/country combinations.

Press Release Distribution , Searchmetrics expands search analytics software to take in an additional 47 countries, Searchmetrics expands search analytics software to take in an additional 47 countries

Pope Gets On Twitter With @pontifex

Pope Benedict XVI has finally managed to jump aboard the Twitter bandwagon from December 12th of this year onwards, at least this is what the Vatican has confirmed. The Pope's username is pretty cool, considering how the faithful billions should start to keep a lookout for the username, “@pontifex”. No idea on whether this particular username will be retained for all the other Popes that come after Pope Benedict XVI, but that is not what we are here to talk about today. Greg Burke, senior media advisor to the Vatican, claims that "pontifex" means “pope,” in addition to being a synonym for “bridge builder”.

Ubergizmo , Pope Gets On Twitter With @pontifex, Pope Gets On Twitter With @pontifex

Chrysler's got a Grand Brand Genius on its hands

Adweek recently held its Brand Genius awards dinner at the Edison Ballroom in New York. At the event, the "10 most memorable and innovative branding efforts" were celebrated, as well as the minds behind them. Taking top honors was Chrysler Chief Marketing Officer, Olivier François, regarded by Adweek as the "branding engine" for the American automaker. François is the brain behind the "Imported from Detroit" marketing campaign, as well as the "Halftime in America," ad featuring Clint Eastwood.

Autoblog , Chrysler's got a Grand Brand Genius on its hands, Chrysler's got a Grand Brand Genius on its hands

BioShock Infinite Box Art Revealed

Check out the box art for Irrational Games' upcoming BioShock Infinite title. For your info, the game will hit PS3, Xbox 360 and PC on February 26th.

TechFresh , BioShock Infinite Box Art Revealed, BioShock Infinite Box Art Revealed

Ural Yamal Limited Edition is a two-wheel-drive motorcycle with an oar

As far as we're aware, there isn't another motorcycle in the world – especially one with a sidecar and two-wheel drive – that comes straight from the factory with a wooden oar. As in, for paddling. Which is why the flat-orange-painted Ural Yamal Limited Edition is so great. As printed on the handy-dandy oar:

In case of emergency:

If you are reading this then you have wandered out too far, and the ice didn't hold – we're very sorry.

Autoblog , Ural Yamal Limited Edition is a two-wheel-drive motorcycle with an oar, Ural Yamal Limited Edition is a two-wheel-drive motorcycle with an oar