%content%

Walking is apparently underrated. So University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill student Matt Tomasulo decided to engage in some “guerilla urbanism” in January with fellow fans of bipedal activity, posting 27 signs at three Raleigh, NC intersections as part of the “Walk Raleigh” project. The cardboard and vinyl signs contained snippets about how many minutes it would take to walk to must-see destinations like Raleigh City Cemetery, as well as QR codes for downloading directions. Like the activity it promotes, Tomasulo says the idea behind the project is simple: It’s OK to walk. Apparently, Tomasulo and his buddies did such a great job with the signs that it took the sharp folks at the city government a month to catch on and take the stuff down. The city has since walked back its opposition to the signs, however, and put them back up as part of a 90-day pilot project. In the meantime, Walk Raleigh has turned into a Walk [Your City] Kickstarter campaign to put your wallet where your feet are.

Tomorrow will be Friday the 13th, and for those who suffer from triskaidekaphobia (which is the fear of the number “13″), then chances are you would have made prior arrangements to coop yourself up, staying in bed and getting out of it only to go for toilet breaks. Well, the rest of the general populace will most probably go about their daily lives as any other normal day, and for folks who do plenty of traveling to far off places, you might be interested to hear about KDDI’s release of the Iridium Extreme satellite phone that will also carry GPS functionality – the first of its kind to do so. (more…) By Ubergizmo . Related articles : Iridium has iOS app now , Iridium delivers satellite connectivity to Android and iOS platforms ,

After the disappointing LiveView failed to make much of an impression when it launched in 2010, Sony surprised us when they revealed yet another wearable device — the SmartWatch — at this year’s CES. After taking a brief spin in the U.K., Sony has just announced that their newest diminutive wrist-mounted gadget is now available here in the States for $149. Like the LiveView before it, the SmartWatch is essentially just a small secondary display that can connect to any Bluetooth-enabled Android device running Android 2.1 or later once the corresponding app has been installed. Thankfully, Sony saw fit to include a full multi-touch display this time around instead of the awkward edge-only navigation scheme seen in the SmartWatch’s forebear. The question then is, well, what do you do with the thing? Aside from using it to tell time, users can read full length emails and text messages on the 1.3-inch OLED display, as well as control the music playing on the phone. That’s really just the tip of the iceberg…

After a recent decision to get rid of the penny altogether, the Royal Canadian Mint has introduced a new coin. Did we mention that it glows in the dark ? Yep, that’s right. In light, this odd collectible depicts a 26-foot, 4-ton Pachyrhinosaurus lakustai discovered in 1972 in northern Alberta. And when the lights are off, the dinosaur’s skeleton glows. You can get one on sale starting April 16 for $29.95.

%content%

Feeling overloaded by social recommendation apps? Get ready for another one hitting the market, although this one says it will come with a twist: LoveThis , the UK-based social recommendation service that launched last year with $2 million in funding, today has launched an iOS app to let friends recommend across 10 categories, from books and films to places to eat. But unlike apps like Amen or Foursquare that rely on people using the app to suggest or tag things, this one says it will also take into account recommendations made by contacts elsewhere, such as Facebook and email, who do not have to be signed up to LoveThis to put their two cents into the mex. And, unlike many other apps that focus first on scale before trying to work in the business model, Alex Dormandy, the CEO of the company, says LoveThis already has a plan here, too. LoveThis is free to use, but the idea will be that …

%content%

Freshly minted Sony CEO Kaz Hirai has revealed his plan to turn around Sony’s fortunes and as rumored, it includes significant cuts. Two days ago, the company revised its projections for the 2011 fiscal year to reflect a $6.4 billion loss. The One Sony plan includes reducing headcount by 10,000 in the 2012 financial year, a number that also reflects jobs leaving Sony as businesses are sold or otherwise reorganized, and will cost it 75 billion yen ($926 million) during 2012. Currently, the plan is to focus on digital imaging, gaming and mobile for growth, until those three make up 70 percent of its total sales in 2014. As far as its beleaguered HDTV business, it’s going forward with the plans announced during CES to streamline the product line, reduce its costs, and return to profitability by 2014. Looking forward, there’s slightly fuzzier promises to “develop and commercialize” OLED and Crystal LED technology. Beyond those the idea is to expand in emerging markets, as well as medical and 4K related technologies. There’s more details in the press release after the break and presentation slides…

Mr. Blurrycam strikes again – and this time around, we have the HTC Incredible 4G which is headed to Verizon Wireless. Granted, the device has already been approved by the FCC , and we also know that the drop in Droid Incredible 2 prices might also signal the ever closer release date of the Incredible 4G, but apart from that, details on the device have proved to be pretty scant. Android Police has received from their “trusted source”, blurry images of the HTC Incredible 4G captured on camera. (more…) By Ubergizmo . Related articles : Verizon’s HTC Rhyme Getting an OTA Update; Not Ice Cream Sandwich , Verizon Wireless charges $30 upgrade fee ,