Jetpack

Verizon adds twin 'global-ready' jetpacks to its 4G LTE hot-spot portfolio

LAS VEGAS--I wish I had one of these while covering this show.

Verizon announced today at CES 2012 not one, but two, new 4G mobile hot spots: the Jetpack EuFi890 and the Jetpack MiFi 4620L. The carrier said both offer 4G cellular speed up to 12Mbps down and 5Mbps up, and are global-ready, which allows customers to use wireless data services in more than 205 countries (more than 125 with 3G speeds).

Other than that, the common features of the two also include:

Supports up to 10 Wi-Fi-enabled devices Supports virtually all Wi-Fi clients regardless of their platform.Backward-compatible with … Read more

Man with jetpack races actual jets (video)

Anyone glancing up at the skies over the Swiss Alps recently might have caught a glimpse of something quite odd: a bloke with a jet-powered rucksack flying alongside some fighter jets. No, seriously.

Yves Rossy, the Swiss inventor and pilot known affectionately as the Jetman, has donned his strap-on wing suit once again, and this time he's flown in formation alongside two L-39C Albatros jets from the Breitling Jet Team, the world's largest professional civilian aerobatics squad.

Don't fret if you weren't there -- the entire event was caught on camera. The resulting video, which can … Read more

Fly for distance with a jet pack machine gun

Jetpack Joyride is a new distance game from the makers of Monster Dash and Fruit Ninja, but in this game you use a machine-gun jet pack to maneuver past obstacles and use discovered vehicles to try to survive as long as possible. The control system is incredibly simple: touch the screen to propel your jet pack.

As in Monster Dash, you play hero Barry Steakfries, but in this game you'll break into a secret laboratory to steal and use experimental jet packs. As you propel yourself through this side-scroller, you'll need to gather coins you can use between … Read more

Hot new iOS games for the long weekend

Several great new games were released this week for iOS that are perfect for keeping you busy during downtime over the long Labor Day weekend.

A couple of days ago, I wrote about Spy Mouse, Firemint's latest game that has you play as Agent Squeak, the mouse who stealthily steals cheese across tons of cleverly made levels. I highly recommend that you grab that game in addition to this collection, but I found three more that will satisfy just about every gamer's personal taste.

This week's collection of iOS apps are all hot new games from different genres. The first lets you draw your path around a racetrack; the second lets you use a jetpack to go for distance; and the third is a beautifully made hack-and-slash RPG.… Read more

Why you might soon have a $100,000 jetpack

The idea of human beings flying around in the sky like Michael Jackson used to fly into concerts--via jetpack--might seem a trifle outlandish.

However, those crafty souls at the Martin Aircraft Company have flapped one more wing toward the idea of your own personal, $100,000 jetpack, on which you can avoid traffic and soar into (or at least onto) your well-deserved corner office.

One of the potential drawbacks of jetpacks revolves around the idea that if the engine fails, you might just fall out of the sky.

This would not be terribly good for business. So Martin decided to … Read more

Get ready to jet-pack to work!

Links from Friday's episode of Loaded

Facebook launches the Open Compute Project, a collaboration with hardware manufacturers, aimed at making more energy-efficient Web-centric computers

The FCC adopts new rules on roaming rates and cell phone signal boosters

T-Mobile confirms that the Sidekick 4G will cost $99 when it launches April 20

Atari Greatest Hits brings vintage Atari titles to the iPad and iPhone

The personal jet pack takes a 7-minute flight in New Zealand, a new record.

Personal jetpack one step closer to launch?

The three-year wait for a recreational jetpack may be almost over--assuming regulators give their approval.

New Zealand's Martin Aircraft said that its Martin Jetpack--which has a 200-horsepower piston gasoline engine that powers a couple of ducted fans--remained aloft for more than seven minutes in its latest test. That may not be enough time to get you to the store and back, but it represents a record.

A man on the ground flew the Martin Jetpack by radio control; a weighted dummy, "Jetson," served as the pilot. No mention yet on an updated timetable for putting a human through a rigorous series of test runs, though the company has previously said that it's on track to do just that sometime in the current quarter.

The jetpack itself is 5 feet tall and 5.5 feet wide and made of a carbon fiber composite with a pinch of Kevlar for the rotor. It uses regular gasoline and will travel a grand distance of 31.5 miles at a maximum speed of 63 mph, which should comfortably take you from home to office (and back) in a jiffy, and with a lot of noise. … Read more

Multiplayer jetpack space game

Globetrotters Free is a free, simple iPad arcade game with same-screen multiplayer for up to four people. The product of a 48-hour indie "game jam," this space-themed, diamond-collecting game is a "free gift" from the developers behind the inventive desktop arcade-puzzler And Yet It Moves.

You can play Globetrotters solo, but it's most fun with multiplayer: up to four people can join in, one on each corner of the device. Each player controls an astronaut (red, yellow, blue, or green) using just one thrust button. The trick is timing your thrusts while your astronaut slowly … Read more

Crave 24: Camaro bacon probe (podcast)

This week, we take a look at a concept that's movie-worthy, but perhaps not entirely realistic for actual life use. Also on the menu: a crazy stunt involving a personal flying machine, a freaky-looking flying robot probe that inspires countless minutes of Star Wars prattling (much to Jasmine's chagrin), and a super sweet-looking speaker with a jaw-dropping price tag. Plus, the Nano gets turned into a watch, and a computer gets turned into a bitchin' Camaro. Finally, we satisfy some fattening cravings with bacon soda, cupcake burgers, and adult chocolate milk (or, "This is why you're drunk").

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