John Sisler

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While a majority of those people playing Gran Turismo will never race a Civic, let alone the supercars featured therein, you can bet 100% of the people “playing” Ferrari’s new racing rig will end up on the track some day.

This is because Ferrari’s 200-ton racing simulator is designed to throw as realistic a simulation as possible at the drivers, who will eventually sit behind the wheel of a real, live Formula 1 race car.

The rig is comprised of 10 computers, sporting 60GB of RAM. The hydraulics it uses to simulate motion generate force equal to 174 horsepower—a whopping 34 more than the current Civic I just mentioned in my lame lead-in joke above.

A 180-degree track view is displayed to the driver using five 3D video monitors. Real engine and track sounds are pumped into the cockpit via a 3,500 watt Dolby surround sound system. This thing is unsurprisingly not available to the public and that geeky image at the top of the page is all Ferrari is giving up for now. [Gizmag via DVICE]

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Consumerist is investigating a reader’s complaint regarding the inability to purchase an iPhone through AT&T’s website when using an NY zip code. So far they’ve discovered that, according to a CS rep: “New York is not ready for the iPhone.”

This is the conversation Consumerist’s Laura Northrup had with an AT&T customer service representative after confirming that iPhones were not available when using any New York zip code:

Daphne: Welcome to AT&T online Sales support. How may I assist you with placing your order today?

Laura: Hi, I was looking at the iPhone 3Gs and the system tells me that I cannot order one in my ZIP code. My zip code is 11231. (Brooklyn, NY) Is this true? Are iPhones no longer available in New York City?

Daphne: I am happy to be helping you today . Yes, this is correct the phone is not offered to you because New York is not ready for the iPhone.

Daphne: You don’t have enough towers to handle the phone.

Laura: Thank you for your help. So the phone is not available to people anywhere in the city?

Daphne: Yes this is correct Laura.

Yikes. So the solution to the localized strain heavy data usage is putting on a network is to stop online sales of a particular phone? Doesn’t exactly seem like a sensible idea, especially since there are plenty of phones in AT&T’s brick-and-mortar stores in New York. I’m definitely curious to hear if AT&T makes an official statement on this issue and what the explanation for this odd issue is. [Consumerist]

Photo by 1Happysnapper(is trying to catch up )

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Cycling apps are nothing new to the Apple App Store, but this hardware/software combo called Pedal Brain is the first to provide convenient ANT+ wireless device support.

As a quick primer, ANT+ is a wireless standard used by cyclists to measure and analyze their ride performance using a variety of wireless devices. It’s been around for a while, but until Pedal Brain, there was no way to sync it up to an iPhone of iPod touch. Now there is!

Once you plug the Pedal Brain Synapse hardware device into your phone or touch, you’ll start to get updates in real-time via the app on screen. When you’re all done pedaling for the day, you can sync up with Pedal Brain on the Internet for a more in-depth analysis. There’s team support too, which could make the software a boon for coaches.

The device/app will be available this spring, possibly in March, for $130 to $190. Unfortunately, the steep price does not include the additional charge for a subscription. A limited free version will be available at launch, but will crap out on you after a few weeks. [Pedal Brain via TechCrunch]

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So I happen to like Audis. I drive one, and I like her fine, but nevertheless if I received this razor in my stocking, she would have developed an inferiority complex at the sight of my incessant shaving.

You see, it’s that mirror sheen. And those four red rings signifying the four marques of Auto Union…it’s enough to get a guy to park it in front of a mirror for hours on end.

Good thing this is just an artist’s concept, as you can see above. That said, if artist Poling Huang ever gets it done, I’d love to give it a quick review. Send it over in an R8 or something. [Coroflot via Born Rich]

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I guess this was hinted at back in November, but now it’s an all but certain reality: the Roku player will soon stream porn to your television set.

The streaming, no pun intended, comes from EroticVision.TV. The company will deliver a number of channels to your Roku player, but for now all we know of is “Wasteland.com.” For the unfamiliar, that’s a BDSM website.

Parental controls will bar yougins from seeing any BDSM tomfoolery, and to access the content you’ll have to register your box with EroticVision.TV. Uh, enjoy? Update: NSFW porn is obviously redundant. “Changed.” [CrunchGear]

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How about a nice Android rumor and a nifty video to kick start your afternoon? Well we have both: Exhibit A is a rumor regarding T-Mobile, while B is a video of Espresso in action:

To be quirky, here’s B first:

It’s a down and dirty little walk-through, featuring a slightly more polished menu and a new launcher bar in the corner.

The second bit is a rumor regarding Android 2.0. It might be headed to T-Mobile, you see, on the T-Mobile G1. Further unconfirmed reports state it might actually be version 2.1 (Google Nexus One type stuff!). CES is coming soon. We expect more then, but possibly sooner. This is the Internet after all. Total sieve. [Mobile Tech World via Engadget and AndroidSPIN]

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There can be only one Universe Ring. Unless you believe in the Multiverse. Then you can have as many as you want!

The Universe portion of this concept ring lies in the tiny dot. Within the dust particle-sized imperfection lies a tiny model. A model of what theorists like Stephen Hawking say our Universe looks like. You’ll need some magnification to see it clearly, but it’s there, inspired by scientists like Stephen Hawking and the anthropic theory.

Artist/creator To22 says the ring “puts our daily pursuits into perspective and reminds us that we are always a part of something bigger.”

That’s well and good and all, but I can seriously see this being used instead as a geek’s dream wedding band. “I gave you the Universe, baby.” Or something. Let me know if she/he says yes. [The Universe Ring via MAKE]

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Another year, another Star Trek “Synthehol” story. This time, however, there’s some promise. Could hangover-free late night binges be the feel good story of 2010?

For now, the answer is maybe, as is often the case with wild new scientific discoveries—especially those that pertain to the mythical substance first consumed by the crews seen in the Star Trek universe.

This latest substance is being developed in a way that mimics Valium by a man named, I shit you not, Professor Nutt. He’s totally sane though, and claims this substance delivers all the inebriating effects of alcohol, but without the mood-altering and addiction side effects. Better still, he claims that drinkers will be able to flush their system almost immediately with an antidote. Need to drive home after a rager of a holiday party? No problem! Pop a pill and you’ll soon be good to go.

That said, it’s time for the cold water dose of reality that accompanies seemingly every science-related story seen in a mainstream news publication these days. You see, Prof. Nutt is without funding or a test country that’s willing to change regulations and allow such a substance onto the open market. The liquor industry has also shown little interest, which I find unfortunate. Wouldn’t they sell more drinks this way? [The Telegraph via Slashdot]

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Another flight from Amsterdam to Detroit, bearing the same flight number as the flight that featured the Christmas Day Firecracker pants guy from Nigeria, has been the target of some kind of “bathroom disruption.”

The man in this case, also from Nigeria, allegedly locked himself in the bathroom. Our tipster, Mike, asked, what’s next, “new bathroom restrictions?” Whatever the case, we can be all but certain there will be no electronics allowed in the bathroom from here on out.

Thankfully, the plane landed safely in Detroit with no injuries, although we imagine that bathroom door is pretty banged up. This developing story will no doubt cast new uncertainties over the debate surrounding our on board electronics. [Huffington Post]

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The sound quality could be dubious, but the design is clever: By squishing the sub and speakers down to a few inches in width, Q Acoustics has managed to hide a complete speaker system behind your flat panel TV.

The rig works with TVs that range between 30- and 42-inches, attaches to an existing frame or can even just chill with your TV on a stand. Available in Europe only for now, it costs a somewhat lofty $500.

My only question is one related to vibration. By placing the subwoofer directly behind the TV and against the wall/frame that supports it, will there be any visible vibration on the screen as you watch Kirk and company blast Nero into subspace? I ask because a similar thing happens to my rearview mirror when I blast my pop music at high decibels in the coche. [Q Acoustic via Red Ferret via DVICE]