The Companies Where Everyone Wants to Work

For the fourth year in a row, business students from around the world rated Google as the company they would most like to work for. The World’s Most Attractive Employers 2012 report, produced by employer branding firm Universum, asked tens of thousands of business students from the 12 largest economies in the world to identify where they would like most to be hired out of school from a list companies based around the world.

Included on the final list of the most attractive companies are major tech giants like Google, bank holding companies like Goldman Sachs and accounting firms like KPMG. 24/7 Wall St. analyzed company financials, brand valuations, and ratings of these companies by current employees to identify how they manage to be so attractive to potential employees. Based on Universum’s 2012 list, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 13 companies everyone wants to work for.

One factor many of these companies have in common is the fact that they have been able to market themselves as very innovative. In an interview with 24/7 Wall St., Camille Kelly, Vice President of Employer Branding at Universum, explains that this generation of students in particular prioritizes being on the cutting edge of technology.

Is the 2013 Range Rover the world’s best SUV?

The 2012 Range Rover was swell — beautiful interior, powerful engines and styling that earned icon status about five years ago. Designed and introduced back when BMW owned Rover, the Range Rover was the rare design that survived a full decade without seeming dated. But ten years equals an eternity in the car business, and 2013 heralds a new Range Rover era. The new SUV looks much like the old one, embracing the Porsche 911 strategy of not messing with a good thing, but making it just different enough to tip off the neighbors. The real action lies under the skin, where Land Rover tackled the old machine's biggest problem: its weight.

World's Fastest Supercomputer' Crowned in US

In the clash of the world's supercomputing titans, a new U.S. supercomputer named "Titan" is king.

The $100-million Titan seized the No. 1 supercomputer ranking on the Top500 List with a performance record of 17.59 petaflops per second (quadrillions of calculations per second). The supercomputer, a Cray XK7 system based at Tennessee's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, leaped past the former champion, the Sequoia supercomputer at California's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

The top five supercomputers in the world are:

Toyota FT-Bh Concept – the hybrid car of tomorrow

This is the Toyota FT-Bh, a hybrid concept that gets 134.5 mpg, that is approximately 57 kilometre per litre. The Concept was conceived to show how to build a Toyota Yaris-sized hybrid for maximum efficiency without using exotic materials that would drive up prices. Weighing a scant 1,700 lbs., and sculpted for aerodynamics, the FT-Bh's power comes from a 1-liter, two-cylinder engine -- a smaller mill than what you find in large motorcycles.

Toyota’s new FT-Bh concept is a vehicle designed to take the efficiency of full hybrid vehicles to new heights. Making its debut at the Geneva motor show, it is an ultra-light concept, weighing less than 800kg, which demonstrates what can be achieved in terms of fuel consumption and CO2 emissions in an affordable family supermini.

Jaguar F-TYPE Unveiled in Paris

 

A front-engined, rear-wheel drive convertible, the F-TYPE is engineered to deliver pure dynamic driving reward and stunning performance. Three models will be available - F-TYPE, F-TYPE S and the F-TYPE V8 S. They are powered respectively by Jaguar's new 3.0-litre V6 supercharged petrol engine in 340PS and 380PS outputs and its 5.0-litre V8 supercharged petrol producing 495PS. The range-topping F-TYPE V8S will reach 60mph in 4.2 seconds and has a top speed of 186mph. The 380PS V6 F-TYPE S will reach 60mph in 4.8 seconds and 171mph, the equivalent figures for the F-TYPE are 5.1 seconds and 161mph. All engines drive through an eight-speed 'Quickshift' transmission, a centrally mounted SportShift selector offering full manual sequential control, as do the steering wheel-mounted paddles.  Torsional and lateral stiffness have been prioritised to maximise handling agility. Around that rigid aluminium structure, every system - steering, brakes, powertrain - has been optimised for immediacy of response to driver inputs.

Top 10 cars from 2013 under $100,000

There is a parlor game popular among the inebriated wherein an individual conjures a trio of people—actors, athletes, random men in the bar—and participants have to chose, absolutely, which one they would sleep with, which they would wed, and which they would murder. When automotive writers congregate, and get drunk enough, a similar game ensues, though it goes along the lines of: borrow, buy, dream.

This week we’re going to play a version of that latter game, in which we focus solely on the buy part. To celebrate the official start of the 2013 car-shopping season and the release of the 2013 models, we posed to ten of the top car writers the question of what new car they would purchase for under $100,000. The only rule was that it had to act as their day-to-day vehicle, and thus fit their real-life needs—messy kids, demanding friends, and potholed streets included. They were also required to provide some brief explanation for their choice. Click through the slide show to view their utterly fabulous array. (Prices, and images, reflect how the writers optioned “their” cars.)

Farthest Galaxy Yet Revealed by Cosmic Lens

The earliest known confirmed galaxy has been discovered with the help of cosmic lenses formed out of the warped fabric of space and time, researchers say.

This distant, ancient galaxy may have once helped clear out the murky fog that once filled the early universe, scientists added.

Astronomers estimate that the universe began about 13.7 billion years ago during the Big Bang. Recent findings suggest the first galaxies formed less than 500 million years after the universe's birth.

Little is known about the earliest galaxies since their light is very faint, given how far away they are. One tool researchers can use to peer at these galaxies are so-called gravitational lenses, magnifying glasses resulting from the warped fabric of reality.

Gravity curves space-time; the greater the mass of an object in space, the stronger its gravitational pull. This, in turn, bends light around it, affecting how telescopes on Earth view it. 

Astronomers can gauge the age of an object by estimating its distance. Since the speed of light appears the same throughout the universe, knowing how far away an object is reveals how long it took for its light to get here. Scientists can work out the distance of an object by looking at how much the light from it is distorted.

Using gravitational lensing caused by one of the most massive known galaxy clusters, scientists glimpsed a galaxy that existed when the universe was about 500 million years old using two NASA space observatories: the Hubble Space Telescope and the Spitzer Space Telescope.

Based on its level of development, the researchers estimate this galaxy is about 150 million times the mass of the sun and formed less than 200 million years after the Big Bang. This is currently the earliest known and most distant galaxy that scientists have confidently identified.

"We feel like archaeologists with a pre-Neanderthal fossil in hand," lead study author Wei Zheng, an astronomer at Johns Hopkins University, told SPACE.com.

Astronomers have detected potentially older galaxies, but their faintness makes it difficult to make out key details regarding their age.

"Such a discovery would not have been possible if the object was un-lensed," Zheng said.

The age of this galaxy reveals it formed during the so-called "epoch of reionization" that occurred about 150 million to 800 million years after the Big Bang. This critical but still largely mysterious event occurred when intense ultraviolet radiation cleared the fog of atomic hydrogen that once pervaded the cosmos by ionizing it into its constituent protons and electrons.

"This provides us with a unique glimpse of star formation and galaxy growth in the period spanning 300 [million] to 500 million years after the Big Bang," astronomer Daniel Stark at the University of Arizona at Tucson. "While caution should be exercised in the interpretation of a single object, the results presented in the Zheng paper point to significant star formation activity throughout this period."

Much remains uncertain as to what sources of radiation caused the epoch of reionization. Since the researchers found this ancient galaxy after only monitoring a small patch of sky, Zheng said the early universe may have overall been rich with galaxies that drove reionization.

The scientists detailed their findings in the Sept. 20 issue of the journal Nature.

McLaren P1 supercar

Welcome the McLaren P1 -- the British maker's first supercar since the all-dominating F1 of the 1990s, and from the first trio of photos McLaren released today, the P1 will be one of the most striking vehicles on the road just sitting still. We don't know yet how much power it packs or how well it will perform, but McLaren promises the P1 will be nothing less than the best, ever.
Known as McLaren designer Frank Stephenson's first clean-sheet design for McLaren after the MP4-12C, the P1 is expected to combine the 3.8-liter V8 from the MP4-12C with some kind of hybrid system that could approach 1,000 hp total. In a statement, McLaren managing director Antony Sherriff says the P1 will be "the most exciting, most capable, most technologically advanced and most dynamically accomplished supercar ever made -- not necessarily to be the fastest in absolute top speed but to be the quickest and most rewarding series production road car on a circuit."

The rest of the details will be unveiled in Paris next Thursday, with the production model expected about a year from now.

Forbes: The most beautiful cars of 2012

Vintage cars like a Ferrari 250, the E-Type Jaguar and the original Porsche 911 have always been prototypes of automotive beauty. But there are some new models on the market today that can stand up to the handsome rides of old. Such specimens as the brand-new Jaguar F-Type, the sultry Ferrari 458 Spider, and the obscure Zenvo ST1 Supercar made our list of the most beautiful cars of 2012. 

Ferrari 458 Spider
Feast your eyes on the world's first hardtop convertible mid-engine supercar. This $257,000 stunner has a V8, rear-wheel drive engine and goes 0-60mph in 3.3 seconds. With the roof up, the car looks just like the stunning Italia. With the ultra-light hardtop down, it is the hottest convertible on the market today.

Electronic supercar unveiled

Croatian concept car manufacturer Rimac Automobili is preparing to unveil a prototype of their Concept One electric supercar at the upcoming Salon Prive luxury car show in London in early September.

Gorgeous Cosmic 'Superbubble' Observed by X-Ray Space Telescope

This superbubble in the N44 nebula inside the Large Magellanic Cloud was carved out by exploding stars. The photo, released in August 2012, comes from the Chandra X-ray Space Telescope, combined with data collected by observatories

Exploding stars carve out gas cavities called superbubbles in a nearby dwarf galaxy, as shown in a new photo from the Chandra space telescope.

This photo reveals a superbubble in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a small satellite galaxy of our own Milky Way, that lies roughly 160,000 light-years away from Earth.

Chandra's X-ray observations are shown here in blue light, which represents hot regions. The red light in the photo is from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which sees infrared light from areas containing dust and cooler gas. Meanwhile, optical light is shown here in yellow in observations from the 2.2-meter Max-Planck-ESO telescope in Chile, which sees ultraviolet radiation from hot, young stars.

Combining all these wavelengths, this composite picture helps give astronomers a fuller understanding of this dynamic region. Many of the bright stars belong to the star cluster NGC 1929, which is embedded in the nebula N44, inside the Large Magellanic Cloud.

R-SPACE CONCEPT CAR

R-Space, unveiled at the 2011 Geneva Motor show, is the third concept car to be completed under the direction of Laurens van den Acker. It represents the "Family" stage in the company’s new life-cycle Design strategy. With a silhouette that is both sporty and sculptural and a playful interior, R-Space proves that a MPV can be cunning and innovative. It is also environment-friendly, as it is powered by a petrol concept engine that previews the new range of modular TCe engines, Energy TCe, that will be launched by Renault in 2012.

Supersonic Flying Wing Nabs $100,000 from NASA

A flying wing aircraft design resembling a ninja star can turn 90 degrees in midair to go into supersonic mode.

An aircraft that resembles a four-point ninja star could go into supersonic mode by simply turning 90 degrees in midair. The unusual "flying wing" concept has won $100,000 in NASA funding to trying becoming a reality for future passenger jet travel.

The supersonic, bidirectional flying wing idea comes from a team headed by Ge-Cheng Zha, an aerospace engineer at the University of Miami. He said the fuel-efficient aircraft could reach supersonic speeds without the thunderclap sound produced by a sonic boom — a major factor that previously limited where the supersonic Concorde passenger jet could fly over populated land masses.

"I am hoping to develop an environmentally friendly and economically viable airplane for supersonic civil transport in the next 20 to 30 years," Zha said. "Imagine flying from New York to Tokyo in four hours instead of 15 hours."

Space Sugar Discovered Around Sun-Like Star

This image shows the Rho Ophiuchi star-forming region in infrared light, as seen by NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Explorer (WISE). IRAS 16293-2422 is the red object in the center of the small square.

glycolaldehyde

What a sweet cosmic find! Sugar molecules have been found in the gas surrounding a young sun-like star, suggesting that some of the building blocks of life may actually be present even as alien planets are still forming in the system.

The young star, called IRAS 16293-2422, is part of a binary (or two-star) system. It has a similar mass to the sun and is located about 400 light-years away in the constellation of Ophiuchus. The sugar molecules, known as glycolaldehyde, have previously been detected in interstellar space, but according to the researchers, this is the first time they have been spotted so close to a sun-like star.

In fact, the molecules are about the same distance away from the star as the planet Uranus is from our sun.

Two Alien Planets Found with Twin Suns Like "Star Wars''

A twin star system that is home to two planets. The planets have two suns like the fictional planet Tatooine in the "Star Wars" universe.

Astronomers have for the first time discovered two alien planets whirling around a pair of stars: a complete solar system with twin suns just like Luke Skywalker's fictional home world Tatooine.

Most stars like our sun are not singletons, but rather come in pairs that orbit each other. Scientists had found planets in these binary systems, so-called circumbinary planets with two suns like Tatooine in the "Star Wars" universe.

To find more circumbinary planets, astronomers analyzed data from NASA's prolific Kepler space telescope, which has detected more than 2,300 potential alien worlds since its March 2009 launch. Kepler had to date detected four systems with circumbinary planets — Kepler-16, 34, 35 and 38.

The scientists have now announced the detection of Kepler-47, the first system seen with multiple worlds encircling a pair of stars. The star and its planets, called Kepler-47b and Kepler-47c, dwell about 5,000 light-years away, in the constellation Cygnus, the Swan. 

"Kepler-47 shows us that binary stars can have close-in planetary systems, just like the ones we see in single stars," study lead author Jerome Orosz at San Diego State University told SPACE.com. "Most of the stars in the galaxy are in binary or higher-order multiple systems, so the fact that planetary systems can exist in these types of systems is important. If we were restricted to looking for planets around single stars, we would be missing most of the stars in the galaxy."

Brown : The red-hot color for new cars and trucks

Silver was the most popular exterior car color in America for nearly a decade. But while it remains beloved by automotive designers for best showing off a car's styling, its unstinting argent reign was finally overthrown this year. By white. According to Sandy McGill, BMW Designworks' lead designer in color, materials, and finish, this is Steve Jobs' doing. "Prior to Apple, white was associated with things like refrigerators or the tiles in your bathroom. Apple made white valuable."

Valuable, yet boring. So while the rise in white's snowy stock may be good news for the luxury market — white is high maintenance, thus luxurious — it's a pale palliative for those of us with a bit more pigment in their palette. Fortunately, our expert interviews and analysis reveal that more enticing colors are emerging.

Light blue's ascension is connected to environmental wellbeing: clear skies, clean water. Crisp oranges are migrating from the world of high-end outdoor equipment. New paint technology may finally allow fashion's passion for fluorescents to flow from the runways onto the highways. And, as always, the smart money's on gold: as its price and profile have skyrocketed, so has its demand as a coating.

The hidden winner from the Apple vs Samsung decision

Apple walks away with a ruling that Samsung copied the iPhone. Samsung will appeal and look to have the decision mitigated as much as possible. And over in the corner, Microsoft and Nokia look at each other, nod their heads, and smile. This was a good court verdict for Windows Phone.
Round one of the Apple/Samsung patent dispute is over, with Apple in the ascendancy. The public perception is not going to be over certain models of older Samsung handsets, the exact patents and software methods used, or the differences between Samsung’s UI layer TouchWiz and Google’s default Android UI layer.
It’s going to be ‘Android copied the iPhone’.

Apple triumphs over Samsung in landmark patent case

Apple Inc scored a sweeping legal victory over Samsung on Friday as a U.S. jury found the Korean company had copied critical features of the hugely popular iPhone and iPad and awarded the U.S. company $1.05 billion in damages.

The verdict -- which came after less than three days of jury deliberations -- could lead to an outright ban on sales of key Samsung products and will likely solidify Apple's dominance of the exploding mobile computing market.

Apple's victory is a big blow to Google, whose Android software powers the Samsung products that were found to infringe on Apple patents. Google and its hardware partners, including the company's own Motorola unit, could now face further legal hurdles in their effort to compete with the Apple juggernaut.

Samsung lawyers were grimfaced in the quiet but crowded San Jose courtroom as the verdict was read, and the company later put out a statement calling the outcome "a loss for the American consumer."

How to Block Useless Websites from your Google Search Results

Block Websites from appearing in your Google Search Results

Google has been getting better at identifying and removing spam websites from their search results pages but sometimes not-so-useful sites do manage to slip through the Google filters. What can you do to prevent such sites from appearing in your Google results?

Approach #1: Block Sites at the Browser Level 

Google offers an easy-to-use Chrome add-on called Personal Blocklist that lets you block entire web domains from showing up in your Google search results. If you spot any irrelevant website in search results pages, just click the block link (screenshot below) and all pages from that website will be hidden from your Google results forever.

The Chrome add-on implements client-side filtering – the blocked websites

are still getting served in Google search results as before and the add-on

simply hides them on your screen using CSS.

A limitation with this approach is that it works only inside Google Chrome. That is, if you are searching Google inside Firefox or maybe on your mobile phone, the site filters that you have created in Chrome won’t be available to you.

Animation firm brings C7 Chevrolet Corvette conjectures to life

There have been some exciting versions of the current C6 Corvette, including the Z06, ZR1, and for us regular workin’ Joes, the Grand Sport. But anticipation for the next-generation C7 Corvette has been running high, as evidenced by the off-the-charts pageviews we got from some spy shots of a mule testing a few months ago. Well, Trinity Animation, a graphical animation firm based in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, did one better by combining all the publicly-available knowledge, photos and renderings of the upcoming C7 and synthesizing all the information into a two and a half minute video giving us an idea of what it might look like in the flesh.

Ferrari F12 Berlinetta

 

Ferrari has unveiled the F12 Berlinetta declaring it to be its “fastest road car ever".

 

 

New blogs

Dear friends, to know more about the adgets review and automobiles, you can now read my posts on a new blog named Time4TechNews. My all new posts are available on this new blogs.
http://time4technews.blogspot.com

Top 5 action games on Android

With devices getting smarter and processors getting faster, gaming has turned out to be a bigger, more prominent avenue of interest for smartphone owners. And not just simple gaming like in the olden days - today smartphones offer detailed graphics, immersive sound and realistic controls, aided by devices like Sony Ericsson Xperia Play, and Sony Tablet that have cutting edge technology.

Brothers in Arms 2
Brothers in Arms 2 is a war game where your role is of a solider on his way to becoming a war hero. Set in World War 2, the game puts users in the middle of the battle field where they have to strategise and outsmart the enemy to be victorious. The story is simple, yet intriguing. Users not only fight on foot, but get to play on different vehicles, which have their own limitations. They can shoot with rifles, flamethrowers, or can also use heavy machine guns found in the bunkers.

BSNL launches Aakash tablet's rival

BSNL has launched three tablets including two 7 inch resistive screen based tabs with Android 2.3 operating system while the third tablet comes with an 8 inch capacitive touchscreen.

Made by Noida based company - Pantel, the tablets will be sold with discounted data plans from BSNL. The three tablets are priced at Rs 3,250, Rs 10,999 and Rs 13,500.

The cheapest model is Panta Tpad IS 701r which is priced at Rs 3,250. Notably, Aakash is priced at just Rs 2500. However, Tpad has better specification than the Datawind's low cost tablet.

2012 Fisker Karma

This is the Fisker Karma, a $100,000 electric sedan with a backup gasoline engine and the claim on a $529 million government loan meant to build the future of eco-friendly transportation. It may need some spiritual balance to get there.

The brainchild of designer Henrik Fisker, the Karma arrives after years of delays — and a maelstrom of politics and publicity, especially over the U.S. Department of Energy loan meant to fund the next car from Fisker. The company hosted several dozen journalists in Beverly Hills this week, days after laying off a few dozen workers when the Energy department halted the loan over Fisker's missed sales targets.
At least in front of reporters, Henrik Fisker is nothing but determined about the Karma and the future of the company with his name on it. Admitting the company missed the milestones for the rest of the Energy loan, Fisker says the company has 1,500 Karmas built, and delivering 50-some a day to waiting customers. Despite early defects that forced Fisker to issue a recall, along with a personal apology, Fisker still boasts that no other company that took the federal loans — Ford, Nissan and Tesla — has produced an all-new model as Fisker has.

10 tips to improve your cellphone battery life

We all want high-performing phones that we can use to make tons of phone calls as well as run lots of apps, stream music, and surf the web, and have the battery last for a few days. But unless you want to go back to Zach Morris-style headsets (which could house super-large batteries), we'll have to settle for recharging at least once a day.
But there are things you can  do to increase the battery life of your phone. Here are our 10 top tips:

1. Be more aware. Make sure you close out of all apps when you're not using them. For the iPhone, you double tap on the Home button, hold down the icon of the program you want to close until a red sign comes up, and then tap on that. It's also smart to install a basic app on your phone to monitor what applications you're using that are draining the battery the most.
On an iPhone, for the most basic information, go to your Home Screen, Settings, General, Usage, time since last full charge and see just how much you use your phone and how much standby time you have. Other phone brands have similar settings for monitoring usage.

Wipro unveils slimmest ultrabook

Wipro Infotech unveiled what it claimed to be India's first and slimmest ultrabook for the domestic market spanning enterprise and retail segments.

Google Android 5.0 coming soon in Q2

Even as Google's Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) operating system is yet to fully take off, the news of its successor is already doing rounds. 

According to a report in Taiwan's DigiTimes,Google is readying the launch of Android 5.0 dubbed Jelly Bean in the second quarter of this year.

The report, quoting Taiwan-based supply chain makers, reveals that Google is reportedly asking users to adopt Android 5.0 and Windows 8 in the same tablet PC. Software giant Microsoft is scheduled to unveil a test version of its Windows 8 operating software later this month.

While Android 4.0 brings a bunch of new features for tablets as well as smartphones, Android 5.0 is likely to be further optimized for tablet PCs. The report states that Google plans to integrate its Chrome system functions to push dual-operating system designs.

Apple working on 8 inch iPad

Apple, the California based computer and mobile equipment manufacturer, reportedly is working on a smaller version of its iPad tablet. The smaller tablet apparently will not be similar to any other tablets in the market and will feature an 8 inch display.

Wall Street Journal got the information from several of the hardware suppliers who supply components to Apple. According to the suppliers, the resolution of the new iPad will be similar to the one featured on the iPad 2 that comes with a 9.7 inch display.

Apple tops world's most innovative cos list

India-based Narayana Hrudayalaya (No.36) and RedBus (No.48) have been ranked among 'The world's 50 most innovative companies' list compiled by US business magazine, Fast Company. "Narayana Hrudayalaya is Walmart meets Mother Teresa," Fast Company said.

10 car innovations in widespread use today

Our cars are faster, smarter and most importantly, safer, thanks to these 10 innovations.

ABS Brakes

1. Anti-lock Braking System (ABS)Found in almost all but the cheapest cars, ABS is a simple “anti-lock” system that gives drivers the capability to steer around danger under hard braking by preventing the wheels from locking up. The modern evolution of the ABS sees it being paired up with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), a system which can vary the amount of braking force applied to each wheel.

Goliath new Samsung Note phone causes rift amongst gadget junkies

When Apple introduced the iPhone way back in 2007, many consumers with tiny-screened feature phones wondered why they would ever need a huge 3.5" screen on a mobile device. Fast forward to 2012, and almost every new Android handset to hit the market pushes display size past the 4" barrier, and smartphone users have seemingly grown accustomed to lugging widescreen hardware with them wherever they go.
Samsung — the company behind the 4.65" Galaxy Nexus — has no problem pushing the envelope, and that's exactly what it did with the Galaxy Note. Sporting an almost laughable 5.3" screen, the gigantic 4G LTE phone could easily be mistaken for a tablet, and even Samsung's own marketing suggests it's meant to occupy both spaces. Its display is 51% bigger than the iPhone's, making it a challenge to hold for those with modestly-sized mitts.

Cheapest Indian Android ICS tablet iBerry Auxus coming soon

Chennai based iBerry India, a brand associated with the manufacture of low cost Android tablets in the country, will launch its first Google Ice Cream Sandwich tablet for the Indian audience in the coming month.

While talking to The Mobile Indian, iBerry India spokesperson Musthafa Kamal informed us that "iBerry India is getting ready for the launch of its first Google Ice Cream Sandwich based tablet, which will take place in the month of March. This will also be the cheapest ICS based tablet with a price tag of about Rs 10,000."

Initially, iBerry entered the Indian market with two Android models, the BT07 7 inch version and the BT10 10 inch tablet, which were launched last year during September. Following the launch of the ICS based tablet, iBerry has plans to launch a slew of new products in the Indian market in the times to come.

Review: PlayStation Vita puts big-time gaming in the palm of your hand

When Sony entered the portable gaming market with the PlayStation Portable way back in 2005, its sexy screen and sleek design made it an instantly desirable product. But over time, a lack of consistent, quality features and somewhat patchwork control scheme lent the device more of a novelty status, as opposed to being a platform for hot new titles. With the PlayStation Vita, Sony clearly set out to correct the issues with the aging PSP — but did it hit a bullseye, or is this just a shot in the dark?

Tesla Model X reveal

LOS ANGELES— On February 10,2012 design and engineering studio for Tesla Motors (TSLA), CEO Elon Musk revealed his company's next space-age creation. Dubbed the Model X, it's an all-electric crossover/sport-utility/category-defying vehicle that features dual-motor all-wheel-drive, three rows of seating for up to seven passengers, and roof-hinged rear "falcon wing" doors (named after the Falcon rocket from sister company SpaceX).

Apple to reveal latest iPad in March

Apple Inc plans to introduce its latest iPad tablet at an event in the first week in March, the website AllThingsD reported, citing unnamed sources.
The event will be held in San Francisco, likely at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, which is Apple's preferred site for product launches, the website said.
An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment.
Apple has typically introduced the latest versions of its iPad in the first few months of the year. The current iPad 2 was introduced on March 2, 2011. The original iPad was introduced at the end of January 2010.
Apple's iPad dominates the nascent market for tablets even though deep-pocketed rivals are taking aim at the lucrative segment. Amazon.com Inc's Kindle Fire, which sells at half the cost of an iPad, has chipped away at the lower end of the tablet market.
Apple iPad tablet sales doubled in the December quarter to 15.43 million units from a year earlier.

Best cars for commuters 2012

The Tesla and SpaceX founder released his $109,000 electric Roadster last year, but a new project, the Model S sedan, could be the perfect thing for eco-minded commuters:  its 85 kWh motor has a range of 300 miles on one charge and will go 0-60mph in 4.4 seconds.

2013 Ford Fusion Hybrid

Add in a plush Nappa leather interior, seven-speaker sound system and 17-inch center console (it looks like an iPad), and you might even start to look forward to those mornings spent enduring exhaust fumes on the 405.
Musk, for his part, says the car itself will be much more than just endurable.
"You want people to buy the car because it is the best car," he says. "You don't want them saying, I'm going to accept something else just because it's electric."
The best part about it? After tax rebates, the base version Model S will cost less than $50,000, with the performance version costing $79,900.
Unfortunately, it won't be available until later this year—and there's a considerable waiting list. Until then, consider the Toyota Prius, Chevrolet Volt, or Ford Fusion for weekday jaunts. Along with six others, they made our list of the year's best cars for commuting.

Microsoft removes start button in Windows 8

Say goodbye to the Windows start button. Microsoft has gotten rid of it from the latest build of Windows 8.

Hitting the Web over the weekend, screenshots of the new Windows 8 build display the "super bar," but without the start button orb on the left, according to The Verge. Build 8220 will be the final version released before the beta, now known as the Consumer Preview, debuts before the end of the month.

Until its untimely (or timely) death, the Windows 8 start button located in the Metro UI offered access to the search, share, devices, and settings panels. The Windows start button in the desktop simply returned you to the Metro UI.

NASA's superb futuristic aircraft designs

Our ability to fly at supersonic speeds over land in civil aircraft depends on our ability to reduce the level of sonic booms. NASA has been exploring a variety of options for quieting the boom, starting with design concepts and moving through wind tunnel tests to flight tests of new technologies. This rendering of a possible future civil supersonic transport shows a vehicle that is shaped to reduce the sonic shockwave signature and also to reduce drag. 

Top 5 feature phones below Rs 5,000

In the under-Rs 5,000 segment you will find hundreds of mobile phones. However, most of them turn out to be paper tigers with impressive specifications but poor performance.
So we chose phones that have a useful list of features but also boast top notch quality.

Nokia C2-03 Touch and Type (Rs 4,425)

This is the most searched phone on The Mobile Indian (ranks 15th,) and that speaks volumes about its popularity. The phone is a touch and type slider device based on Nokia S40 operating system.
It offers dual SIM functionality, but unlike other dual SIM phones, this one does not require you to switch off the phone to change SIM cards. In fact, the second SIM card slot is located on the left edge of the device. The phone can remember the settings for up to five separate SIM cards. It has a 2 megapixel camera, which takes decent pictures, and the device supports a 32 GB micro SD card as well. It is powered by a 1020 mAh battery that can easily give you two days of backup with average use.
C2-03 has a 2.6 inch display which hides a multi-tap keypad under it. You can use a stylus to navigate the menu on the phone's resistive touchscreen.
There are GPRS and Edge internet connectivity on the Nokia C2-03; while for file transfers you can use Bluetooth or USB. 

Everything Apple Must Change Before I Buy An iPhone 5

Many of us were really close to upgrading our iPhone 4 when the 4S launched last year.
Not because we were dying for the upgrade, but because most were getting sick of AT&T's horrible service in New York. They wanted an excuse to make the move to Verizon.
But for me, the upgrade didn't make sense. I, like many other current iPhone 4 owners, was hoping for a bit more from Apple.
Luckily, it looks like the next iPhone could arrive as early as this summer, according to some new rumors. I might not have to wait as long as I thought.
Before I do upgrade though, I have a few demands for the next iPhone. Keep reading to see what I want.

$1.7 million Aston Martin One-77

Just because you're behind the wheel of a $1.7 million supercar doesn't mean you know how to drive it. Watch as the driver of this Aston Martin One-77 repeatedly stalls on the streets of Paris.

We don't understand how this driver and this other One-77 owner can stall a car that doesn't even have a clutch pedal for its automated manual gearbox. 

Maybe Aston should have invested in a double clutch transmission -- or engine controls that wouldn't bog its 750-hp V-12 on a city street.

Someday, you'll wish you owned these cars

1. Chevrolet Camaro ZL1

Sticker price: $54,095
Of all the new cars that sell for under $100,000 today, these 10 are most likely to become highly collectible in the future, according to the expects at Hagerty Insurance, a collector car insurance company.
Most of the cars on this list are high-performance special editions. While relatively affordable, these cars are still rare and exciting.
Take the Camaro ZL1 for example. For some performance coupe buyers, only the most powerful version will do. For them, General Motors is providing the ZL1 with its 580-horsepower V-8.

2. Buick Regal GS

Sticker price: $32,535
Not too long ago, Buicks were strictly targeted at retirees. Not this one. The Regal GS provides surprising performance and is available with a six-speed manual transmission. It's been a while since Buick's offered cars with clutch pedals.

Top 5 upcoming tablets

Eyeing the increasing competition, we may also expect manufacturers to keep the prices of expected tablets reasonable.
Despite lower than expected sales, Android tablets remain hot favourites of the handsets vendors - this further gains ground if we look at the number of tablets lined up for launch this year.

Moreover, these new tablets are likely to come with better design and features. Eyeing the increasing competition, we may also expect manufacturers to keep the prices very reasonable.

Sony Tablet P

 This one has already been announced and will be available within next 10-15 days in India. The biggest USP of this tablet is its form factor. It has two screens measuring 5 inch each; together they give you 10 inch space and when folded gives you a form factor of a large smartphone. How it performs in the market is something that needs to seen but this PSP (Playstation) certified certainly has a lot going for it.

Under the skin, this tablet houses a dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2 mobile processor and runs on Android Honeycomb OS. Sony P has a 5 megapixel camera at the back and a 0.3 megapixel camera in the front. It has quite a unique design and the interface is programmed to use both the screens combined and individually.

The device, with both 3G and WiFi connectivity, will cost Rs 36,990 but might not be liked by many users because in a time when high end feature phones come with around 4 GB of internal memory they would expect a tablet to have minimum 16 GB of internal storage capacity.

Bus-Size Asteroid to Gave Earth Close Shave on Jan. 27

Newly discovered asteroid 2012 BX34 (whose orbit is represented by blue line) came within 0.17 lunar distances of Earth on Jan 27, 2012

A small asteroid will make an extremely close pass by Earth Friday (Jan. 27), coming much nearer than the moon, but the space rock poses no danger of impacting our planet, NASA scientists say.

The newfound asteroid 2012 BX34, which is about the size of a city bus, will pass within 36,750 miles (59,044 kilometers) of Earth at about 10:30 a.m. EST (1530 GMT) Friday, astronomers with NASA's Asteroid Watch program announced via Twitter.

The space rock is about 36 feet (11 meters) wide, making it much too small to pose a threat to Earth.

"It wouldn't get through our atmosphere intact even if it dared to try," Asteroid Watch scientists tweeted today (Jan. 26). Asteroid Watch is based at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

Asteroid 2012 BX34 will zip by at a distance about 0.17 times that separating Earth and the moon. The moon orbits Earth at an average distance of about 240,000 miles (386,000 km).