Toys

The 404 1269: Where rad goes viral (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Follow Spotify's Shanon Cook!

- More on the Deadpool videogame.

- The story goes deeper on The Bureau: XCOM Declassified.

- Nvidia's Project Shield comes closer to reality.

This week's Viral Top 10 list from Spotify:

1. "Royals" by Lorde 2. "#Beautiful" by Mariah Carey 3. "Alone" by Falling In Reverse 4. "The One" by Tamar Braxton 5. "Rattle (Sexy Lady)" by Bingo Players 6. "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke 7. "Young And Beautiful" by Lana Del Rey 8. "Spring Break Anthem" by The Lonely Island 9. "Get Lucky - Radio Edit" by Daft Punk 10. "Dear Mama" by 2Pac… Read more

Beam your face onto a 3D-printed 'Star Trek' figurine

Being a fan of the Original Series, "Star Trek Into Darkness" doesn't really get my dilithium crystals humming. I'd prefer to watch "Spock's Brain," as laughable as it is.

But what I'd much rather do is slap my mug on my own "Star Trek" figurine. 3D print shop Cubify has a new "Star Trek" service that lets you upload your photos and print your own likeness on a 3-inch Enterprise crew member.

It's similar to putting your face on Star Wars Stormtrooper figurines at Walt Disney World in Florida, but smaller and cheaper. … Read more

The 404 1,268: Where we buy beats behind bars (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- The future of television lies in the greasy, gaming hands of the "lost boy generation."

- "Pinterest stress" is a real problem for moms who worry they're not crafty or creative enough.

- The source of Pinterest stress is probably sites like Lunchbox Awesome, a year-long project from an overachieving mom.

- The digital music business in America's prisons.

- NSA's secret Google tricks revealed in declassified guidebook.… Read more

Techno-circus brings robots, lasers to the big tent

Step right up, kiddies, the carnival is coming to town! And this time, it's bringing robots and lasers.

Well, it will be if the STEAM Carnival successfully reaches its Kickstarter goal and hits the highway with all manner of amusing geeky hijinks under its big tent. Think Maker Faire meets Burning Man, with a decidedly less naked, more kid-friendly slant. The goal is to not only get youngsters pumped about STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math), but to warm them up to STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math).

"Our culture isn't doing enough to get kids interested in STEAM," say the creatives behind Two Bit Circus, a collective of builders, inventors, developers, and makers behind STEAM Circus. (They also helped create the wacky Rube Goldberg machine in OK Go's "This Too Shall Pass" video.) The carnival's advisory board also brings some serious geek cred to the proceedings in the form of MythBuster Grant Imahara; Brian Fargo, creator of the video game Bard's Tale; and Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari and father of Brent Bushnell, one of STEAM Carnival's masterminds.

… Read more

In Montreal, vintage cigarette machines sell indie art

MONTREAL--For the first time in maybe 20 years, I got a new cassette tape.

It's a bitchin' mix of 1970s funk tunes and it sounds delicious on my car stereo, which fortunately is old enough to be able to play it. But the best thing about this tape is that it came out of a vending machine.

Distroboto is a nonprofit network of machines in Montreal that have been retrofitted to sell works by independent artists. They spit out music, literature, and accessories, all for $2 a pop. … Read more

The 404 1,267: Where we fang with briends (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- The Worst Room makes everyone in New York feel terrible.

- San Francisco hotels pricey? Van on Airbnb is only $92 a night.

- A bold new font lets dyslexia sufferers read.

- Bang With Friends goes mobile, because some people want to get it on the run.

- A Wi-Fi enabled Microsoft ad printed in Forbes magazine offers free Internet to readers.… Read more

Lego hand mixer: You bet it blends

Sooner or later, every object in existence, including you and me, will be re-created out of Legos.

Fans of the bricks have limitless passion. But beyond creating cool dioramas, Lego modelers truly impress when they make functional tools.

Case in point: the Hippmikser 2000 by Flickr user Hippotam, whose real name is Marcin Danielak.… Read more

The 404 1,266: Where our boss fights are anticlimactic (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Wolfenstein: The New Order set for current, next-gen consoles.

- How a 17-year-old girl hacked her way to a spoiler-free "Game of Thrones."

- Downloadify lets Chrome users copy MP3s of Spotify songs for 24 hours.

- Nintendo's big problem, according to CNN.… Read more

Working robot mecha suit is built for kids

What do you get the kid who has it all? A robot mecha suit wouldn't hurt.

Japan's Sakakibara Kikai has a new crushworthy robot exoskeleton that would turn a few heads at school.

The bright green Kid's Walker Cyclops is an 800-pound, 7-foot-tall drivable mecha suit with a cockpit and moving arms.

The front of the machine opens to become a ladder to the cockpit. As seen in the vid below, one hand has a hook to grapple foes and the other has a power drill to smite obstacles. … Read more