NorthGeek

Nike writes the future – in time for FIFA World Cup 2010

This is a bold statement, but I’m going to go on record and say this is the single greatest ad I have ever seen – and just in time for FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa. Special thanks to my friend Ariel for the heads-up. Wow.

Some cool announcements at Google IO – Android 2.2 and Google TV

Here are two videos that Google put together to officially introduce a couple of their announcements to the world. The first is for Google TV, and the second is for their mobile operating systems’s latest iteration, Android 2.2 (Froyo). My thoughts follow the videos. Enjoy!

This, while very cool and exciting at first glance, isn’t exactly anything BRAND NEW. Maybe this will be the first web-connected TV initiative to be adopted buy the masses, as it’s being backed by some little company called Google – but it certainly isn’t the first and only device (or service) of its kind. Have a quick Google search session (ironic? What other search engine do you use) for Popcorn Hour, Western Digital HDTV, MythTV, TViX, Apple TV, and… dare I say, Playstation 3. Oh, and there’s Windows Media Center PC’s – I know, you’re all yelling at me. But, if you want a TRUE home theater experience, then you’re going to need to support the real players in the game – and they all support Microsoft’s MCPC OS.

This is very exciting – although I’d be much happier if 2.2 was released yesterday, as opposed to just announced. We all sort of knew all the specs Froyo was going to be boasting. 2-5 times faster overall performance, WiFi hotspot-in-a-box, etc – and some things we assume but they didn’t mention, like Flash support. What about my battery? Will it make my Nexus One battery last longer than 4 hours? Pretty please?

Sony Ericsson calls on EU to help save our planet

NorthGeek’s good friends at Sony Ericsson have informed us of an announcement made today by an alliance of global companies, including Sony Ericsson, demanding that the EU further restrict hazardous substances in consumer electronics. Joining forces with Sony Ericsson are Acer, Dell, Hewlett-Packard and the public interest organizations ChemSec, Clean Production Action and the European Environmental Bureau.

Sony Ericsson has made products that showcase more sustainable materials available through their GreenHeart™ strategy which takes a holistic approach to reducing negative environmental impacts and positively affecting those who use its products. Sony Ericsson’s Naite™ handset is the first GreenHeart™ product available in Canada. Some of its environmental benefits include:

The official press release follows:

Sony Ericsson calls on EU to further restrict hazardous substances in consumer electronics

Sony Ericsson joins forces with an alliance of public interest organizations and global technology brands to persuade the European Parliament to ban the use of hazardous substances in consumer electronics from 2015 onwards.

Brussels 19 May 2010 – In a partnership announced today Sony Ericsson joined Acer, Dell, Hewlett-Packard and public interest organizations ChemSec, Clean Production Action and the European Environmental Bureau, to call for a strengthening of the EU Restrictions on Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive.

Currently the RoHS directive restricts some heavy metals and two types of BFR. However, Sony Ericsson along with other members of the alliance is calling for restrictions on all brominated flame retardants (BFR) as well as PVC. When BFR and PVC are incinerated under substandard recycling conditions, they form halogenated dioxins that are potent toxic chemicals. Sony Ericsson believes these brominated flame retardants and PVC should be phased out from electrical and electronic products as soon as possible. Over the past 18 months Sony Ericsson has been developing products without these unwanted substances and believes that substitute materials are available and could be rolled out across the industry with little disruption.

“Sony Ericsson is committed to a complete phase-out of halogenated organic substances from its products, and at the current time has phased out almost all brominated flame retardants (BFR),” said Daniel Paska, Environmental Expert at Sony Ericsson. “We believe the electronics industry has a responsibility to move proactively to find substitutes to replace BFR and PVC and are therefore calling on EU legislators to show leadership on this issue by voting to tighten the RoHS directive.”

Sony Ericsson along with the other members of the alliance will lobby EU legislators who are currently in the process of debating whether to tighten the existing RoHS directive and invites other members of the industry to join them.

“Sony Ericsson is committed to delivering products with the best possible environmental performance in the industry”, said Mats Pellbäck Scharp, Head of Corporate Sustainability at Sony Ericsson. “That is why we support strong environmental legislations. We have also introduced a range of GreenHeart™ pioneer phones that showcase more sustainable materials like recycled plastics, waterbourne paints and energy efficient chargers. We have also committed to making the majority of our 2011 portfolio compliant with GreenHeart™ requirements.
Sony Ericsson has to date phased out all PVC in its products and nearly all halogenated flame retardants.

For more information on GreenHeart™ and our environmental work, please visit the Sony Ericsson GreenHeart™ web page at http://www.sonyericsson.com/greenheart or the Sony Ericsson Greenheart™ blog at http://blogs.sonyericsson.com/greenheart/

Google’s IO can be viewed LIVE on YouTube (go figure)

You can watch the live stream right here on NorthGeek, or you can head over to the Google Developer’s channel on YouTube, to catch all of this week’s IO action LIVE, in beautiful HD (if you want). Enjoy!

[Note: If nothing is live right now, prerecorded content will be posted here.]

Beer can chicken – yummm!

Our good friends over at Broil King, the BBQ experts, have provided us with a delicious recipe for making beer can chicken. We hope to get some video footage of us making this recipe on a sweet new 2010 Broil King (I’m personally hoping for the Porta-Chef Pro – click on the image below for full-size).

The steaming beer keeps the meat moist while the high heat crisps the skin, delivering a perfect bird each time, every time. Genius Tip: Make sure that the bird is well balanced before closing lid. Otherwise your bird may tip, spilling the beer. When removing cooked chicken from grill, use oven mitts and be careful not to spill contents of beer can as it will be very hot. Let the bird rest 10 minutes before removing can.

1 whole chicken about 4 lbs. 1 can beer (16 oz – tall boy) 2 tablespoons salt 1 teaspoon black pepper 3 tablespoons of your favourite dry spice rub 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Remove neck and giblets. Discard. Rinse chicken inside and out; pat dry with paper towels. Rub chicken lightly with oil then rub inside and out with salt, pepper and dry rub. Set aside.

Preheat barbecue on HIGH.

Open beer can and pour off half of the beer. Place beer can on a solid surface. Grabbing a chicken leg in each hand, plunk the bird cavity over the beer can.

Turn one side of the burner completely off and the other side to MEDIUM. Place the bird-on-a-can on the side that is turned off to use the indirect cooking method. Balance the bird on it`s two legs and the can like a tripod. Make sure it is well balanced before closing the lid.

Cook the bird over MEDIUM indirect heat for aproximately 1 1/4 hours or until the internal temperature reads 170 degrees F (77 degrees C) in the breast area and 180 degrees F (83 degrees C) in the thickest part of the thigh.

Carefully remove from grill using oven mits. Let rest for 10 minutes before removing can. Becareful not to spill, contents will be hot. Carve chicken and serve immediately.

For more great BBQ recipes visit Broil King’s On the Grill website.

NorthGeek tour of R&B Brewing Co. in Vancouver

This week, NorthGeek went to the R&B Brewing Co. headquarters and master brewery for a free tour of the facility. As part of Vancouver Craft Beer Week, Rick (the “R” from R&B) gave us a great (and FREE) tour. Afterwards, we caught up with Aly, Rick, and Barry from R&B and discussed what’s next for the small Vancouver brewery, what VCBW means to them, and what advice they have for beer enthusiasts looking to start brewing their own masterpieces. Here’s the video:

Motorola Droid can solve a Rubik’s Cube

Create your own view – anywhere!

Now, this is pretty cool stuff. According to uncrate.com, the Winscape is “based on two 46-inch Panasonic TC-P46G10 plasma screens, a Mac running specialized software, a Wii remote, a custom-built IR-emitting necklace, and an iPhone app, Winscape creates two virtual windows, which can display static images up to 4096×4096 resolution, or 1080p video — with sound — and tracks the necklace wearer’s movements around the room, realistically changing the view out of the ‘windows’ accordingly.”

Vancouver Schools to rally community to recycle E-waste this Earth Day

NorthGeek has been made aware of an excellent initiative involving a few Vancouver-based high schools – we wanted to help spread the word. BEST OF LUCK to the students involved, and be sure to help out, NorthGeeks!

Students aiming to recycle more than 30,000 kilograms of E-waste through Best Buy’s Tech It Away program.

To help divert some of the 270,000 tonnes of electronic waste that end up in Canadian landfills each year, Best Buy Canada has teamed up with three Vancouver high schools to lead a city-wide E-waste recycling drive through its Tech It Away program on Earth Day, Thursday, April 22. On that day, Vancouverites can drop off their used, broken or unwanted personal electronics for free and safe recycling at one of the three schools and do their part to help keep Canada green.

The official event site can be found here: http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/techitaway.aspx

The participating schools – Eric Hamber Secondary, Killarney Secondary and Sir Charles Tupper Secondary – will each receive $10,000 in grants in honour of their environmental effort. Plus, as added incentive, the school that collects the most electronics for recycling will receive $2,000 to fund a student-led environmental initiative. Last year participating schools recycled 30 tonnes of E-waste and this year the students are aiming to beat that benchmark.

What: Students from three Vancouver secondary schools will host E-recycling events for their communities at large
A variety of electronics will be accepted including: TVs, Computers, Laptops, Printers, Cell Phones, Batteries, DVD players and more. A full list is available at http://www.bestbuy.ca/techitaway

When: Thursday, April 22, from 8:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Where: Best Buy Tech it Away events will take place at:

NorthGeek Unboxing: Sony Ericsson Xperia X10

Thanks to Sony Ericsson Canada, we have our paws on this slick little device. Stay tuned for some hands-on impressions in the coming days. In the meantime, here’s a quick unboxing video to whet your appetites:

Please be patient, the video may still be processing so its FULL HD delight might not be there yet…