Charge Anywhere update turns Nexus S into full-on mobile payment terminal

By Darren Murph posted Mar 25th 2011 9:24PM Processing mobile payments via an external dongle? That's so early 2011. Charge Anywhere has a less troublesome idea, and if you're the lucky owner of a Google Nexus S, you could soon be accepting cold, hard virtual cash via NFC. For those already familiar with the space, you'll know that this very company already has applications out for the iPhone, BlackBerry and Android devices, but all of those obviously require a credit card swiping mechanism to be connected. According to CNET, the latest version will include support for the NFC module embedded within the Nexus S, enabling it to be a full-on mobile payment terminal with no additional hardware required. Both MasterCard PayPass and Visa Blink payments could be ingested, but don't go searching for the update in the Android Market; the company's done with the new build, but it won't be let loose to the public until it's ran past larger customers first. We don't get the impression that the NFC-compatible version will run any more than the $9.99 per month, but it's obviously a wait-and-see affair for now.

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iBike Dash turns your iPhone or iPod touch into a cycling computer

IBIKE DASH CC WIRELESS CYCLING COMPUTER LAUNCHED FOR IPHONE & IPOD TOUCH

Works as Your Own Personal Fitness Trainer -- Low-Cost Intelligent Biking System
Calculates Heart Rate, Intensity, Speed, Calories, & Time to Safely Get You into Shape

Boca Raton, FL, February 22, 2011 -- Velocomp LLP, www.iBikeDash.com, a leading sports technology company and creator of the iBike® line of power meters, announced today the iBike Dash CC (Cycling Computer), a light-weight wireless bicycle computer system that turns any iPhone or iPod touch into your own personal fitness trainer. Priced starting at $199, the iBike Dash CC creates an entirely new category of interactive cycling devices, enhancing the cycling experience in a much more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before to help you finally keep that New Year's resolution to get in shape!

Includes Free iPhone/iPod touch Bike App with Easy-to-Read High-Res Color Graphics & Animation

Easy to install, the compact (3.2 oz) iBike Dash CC takes your biking from leisure to fitness, helping you quickly reach your goals by measuring your speed, power, heart rate, wind speed, time, trip, elevation, and calories to become healthier and fitter. The iBike Dash CC includes a free iBike app available from the iTunes App Store at: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ibike/id369550718?mt=8, which features customizable tools, from simple speedometers to work-out programs. The app is displayed on the iPhone or iPod touch screen with easy to read high-resolution color graphics and animation.

Dispels "No Pain, No Gain" Myth – "HR Pacing Meter" Tells Boundaries – Critical for Safe Training

Intelligent biking is all about sustaining your energy, so that you have more than enough left for the last few miles. Forget the "no pain, no gain" myth, the iBike Dash CC tells you how hard is too hard. Riding within your boundaries is critical for safe training, and with the iBike Dash CC's "HR Pacing Meter," you can see at a glance whether your heart rate in the right zone. The HR Pacing Meter determines your fitness level with 5 Heart Rate Color Zones from 50% to 100%. These zones indicate the degree of difficulty you will experience when cycling in each zone at your fitness level: from Blue (very light) to Red (very hard). Each of the zones address different goals, from losing weight in the bottom zones to improving fitness in the middle zones, to maximizing performance in the top zones. After regular exercise, you'll find you're able to exercise more comfortably in the upper zones and for longer times in the lower zones.

Use Optimal Cycling Effort to Burn Fat

iBike Dash CC also tells you when your cycling effort is optimal for burning fat; how many calories you're using during the ride, on all rides this week or all rides this month; what speed and distance you're traveling; and even where you are on your bike route. Also, iBike Dash CC can help you set some personal goals, measure your progress and allow you to adjust your performance as you enjoy your ride.

Virtual Co-pilot, Navigator, & Trainer -- All in One

"We'd all like to be fitter, healthier and lose some weight, but the truth is just riding your bike for
half an hour or so a day won't necessarily do it," said John Hamann, CEO, Velocomp. "With the revolutionary iBike Dash CC on your iPhone or iPod touch, you can take the next step, knowing how to manage your biking effort to the best effect to help you become fitter with an amazing cycling dashboard at your fingertips -- a virtual co-pilot, navigator, and trainer -- all in one."

iBike Dash CC Features:
50 power-based and Heart Rate (HR) zone workouts.
Includes ANT+ speed sensor with optional sensors for cadence and HR.
User customizable touch screens display cycling information in color with unique graphics and animation.
Features easy-to-read large fonts with back-light display for night-time viewing.
· iPhone's GPS, map, and weather capabilities operate seamlessly with the iDash, greatly enhancing the rider's experience.
· Power-based indoor trainer feature.
· Bike odometer.
Calendar feature keeps track of weekly cycling stats, including calories, miles and speed.
· HR Zone dial presents cycling exertion in an extremely intuitive manner.
· Easy-to-follow, on-screen instructions and instructional videos.
"Phone BoothTM" dashboard/case houses circuitry, keeps out water and absorbs shock.
Easy to install, use, and move from bike to bike.
No need for calibration.
Allows seamless hands-free calls using your iPhone and Bluetooth headset with no interruption to ride data collection.
Allows full use of touch screen, even while wearing cycling gloves.
A rechargeable/replaceable spare battery can be housed inside the "Phone Booth" to extend the
operating time of your iPhone/iPod touch.
· Compatible with all ANT+ speed, cadence and HR sensors.

Pricing & Availability

The iBike Dash CC is available immediately for iPhone and iPod touch, priced at $199 MSRP for the basic version and $329 MSRP for the advanced version with additional features (including cadence, HR, calorie measurement, battery and charger) through the Apple Store at: http://store.apple.com/us/product/H3828LL/A or Velocomp at: http://www.ibikesports.com/ibikestore.html. iBike Dash CC includes the holder, mount, wireless speed sensor, iBike app for iPhone or iPod touch, and iBike software for Mac and Windows desktop computers. For more information, see www.ibikedash.com.

About Velocomp - First to Deliver Advanced Power Measurement at a Consumer-Friendly Price

Velocomp, LLP is a leading sports technology company based in Boca Raton, Florida. The first in the bicycle industry to deliver advanced power measurement at a mainstream price, Velocomp is dedicated to
product breakthroughs in the areas of performance, measurement, design, and value. Launched in June
2006, thousands of iBike® power meters are being enjoyed worldwide. For more information, see www.iBikeSports.com.

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Interactive Music Video Turns Song Into Coloring Book

Here’s something to keep you occupied this pre-holiday Monday morning: a new video from Brooklyn-based indie band Au Revoir Simone that functions as an interactive coloring book.

The video for “Knight of Wands” — off of the band’s third album, Still Night, Still Light — premiered today on a dedicated Flash website. The in-browser experience is quite similar to Arcade Fire’s “The Wilderness Downtown,” but doesn’t utilize HTML5 as that project did.

Once you click “Play,” you are taken to a coloring book page featuring band members Heather D’Angelo, Erika Forster and Annie Hart standing in what appears to be a haunted house. A palette of colors to the left allow you to fill in the world they inhabit, and, as you paint, a phantom flits through the frame, adding to the eerie atmosphere created by a song drenched in keyboards, dreamy vocals and periodic handclaps.

The video, directed by Eli Stonberg (who has worked with bands like Passion Pit and Nada Surf) and illustrated by Chris Sanchez is a creative effort that asks audience members to directly interact with the music and the world the band has spun via melody.

Videos like this — and those created by musicians like Arcade Fire and Andy Grammer — demonstrate how the oeuvre of the music video is changing as the web continues to become a destination for music and entertainment.

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The Xbox 360 turns five years old... in a purely theoretical sense

Show of hands: how many of you bought an Xbox 360 in its first month or so of release, five long years ago? Alright, now how many of you still use that same Xbox regularly, with zero RRoDs getting in your way? Yeah, we thought so. The Xbox 360 has been an astounding success for Microsoft and for gamers, a particularly strong feat when you consider that it was Sony's race to lose going into this console generation. Still, when you talk Xbox history, it's hard not to see that huge red smudge on an otherwise stellar record. In hindsight, perhaps it was wise for Microsoft to do such a stellar job of taking the console online, beyond all the obvious reasons: the overheating hunk of plastic and silicon in our entertainment center didn't really mean much anymore, sentiments-wise. Instead it was our Gamertags and Gamerscores and cutesy Avatars that really mattered, the true "heart" of our console.

We can't even count how many Xboxes we churned through in the past five years, with only Microsoft's most recent attempt finally solving some of the machine's egregious noise issues, but most of us stuck with the Xbox all the way through because that's where our friends were. Cute trick, Microsoft, but let's pick a slightly less expensive way to fail for the next generation, alright? Oh, and happy birthday Xbox; we'll meet you at 8pm with the pizza and the wine and the Black Ops... you just bring the sexy.

Want to re-live a bit of the launch day insanity? Check out this little trip down Engadget memory lane:

Boy, didn't we look young and naive back then? The world was our oyster. There were so many Halos yet to come.

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