The Night’s Watch Official Game Of Thrones Timepiece Coming

The Night’s Watch

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Game of Thrones fans will have something to cheer about with the upcoming release of a limited edition official “Game of Thrones” timepiece, The Night’s Watch.

HBO and Ulysse Nardin, a high-end Swiss watch manufacturer, will produce the device, which is based on the durable Black Sea diving chronograph.  The timepiece may not appear to come from the show itself since black is the dominant color and it features an aquatic pattern dial reminiscent of the Black Sea chronograph. The numerical markers, power reserve, hands, and sub-dials have a red-colored design.

The Night’s Watch is described by Ulysse Nardin as a perfect combination of elegance and athleticism. Its black and red elements provide the somber mood of the sacred order. This is quiet ironic for fans of the show due to the removal of a character form the so-called sacred order for a particular color choice.

The elements of the show on the timepiece are rather understated particularly with the placement of the logo of the show at the back. It also features a pair of ceramic links at the rubber strap of the watch that shows the phrase “The Night’s Watch” engrave on it. The phrase “I am the sword in darkness” can also be found above it.

The vulcanized rubber coating is also featured on the timepiece that comes with a sapphire crystal. It is also water resistant up to around 655 feet. Since it is a limited edition timepiece, only twenty-five timepieces will be manufactured witch each one costing around $10,500 each. “The Night’s Watch” timepiece will be available through the HBO store and the Cellini Jewelers in New York.

New Canon Super-Telephoto Lens Available For Pre-Orders

New Canon Super-Telephoto Lens

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Sports and wildlife photographers will have mixed feelings with the upcoming release of a new Canon super-telephoto lens from Canon that has an integrated 1.4x telephoto extender.

Photographers will likely shout for joy once the upcoming 200-400 mm lens enters the market. That is, until they see the price tag. The new super-telephoto lens will set back photographers by $11,799.

The integrated extender of the lens can be activated through a simple flip of a lever, which makes the lens easier to use. It is also designed for the optics of the lens since it is already integrated into the new Canon super-telephoto lens itself. This is not quite true for ordinary extenders that are attached into a camera.

Despite the prohibitive price, it appears that the demand for the new Canon super-telephoto lens is high. The pre-order page of Amazon revealed that the supply of the product is limited. The online retail company is expecting that it may not be able to comply with all of the orders of their clients in the initial allocation of the product.

The lens was initially announced over two years ago, and Canon wanted to release it last year.

The lens weighs around 8.3 pounds and is 14.4 inches long, without the lens hood.

It has twenty-five lens elements, which include some composed of fluorite as well as ultra-low dispersion glass. When the extender is engaged, it will increase the lens elements to thirty-three. Glare and reflection are also reduced due to the SubWavelength Structure Coating and the Super Spectra Coating technology of Canon.

The product is also weather-sealed and features an image stabilization feature that allows photographers to shoot four stops slower compared to their typical shooting situations. For stationary subjects, photographers can shoot at 1/60 sec instead of 1/1000 sec without any camera shake. However, it should be noted that the shake reduction statement is an optimistic view of the manufacturer of the new Canon super-telephoto lens.

Firefox OS-Powered Smartphones Offered To Programmers

Firefox OS-Powered Smartphone

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It seems Mozilla is getting serious with the Firefox OS-powered smartphones as it is reportedly offering a developer phone to programmers who will make apps for the Firefox Marketplace.

Havi Hoffman of Mozilla posted recently that the company are willing to make the apps that on the Marketplace if the programmers have a great idea for an app and can create it. The company will also provide a Firefox OS Developer Preview device to the programmers, which they can use to develop the app. The Firefox OS is expected to be formally launched by summer.

Hoffman added that once the Firefox OS-powered smartphones become available in the market, the programmers will have the chance of being the first ones to post their apps on the Firefox Marketplace. A number of users in selected markets will be looking for apps that they can use on their smartphones. These apps may include games, utilities, tools, entertainment, sports and other apps.

Since the apps for the Firefox OS are browser-based, they are expected to load websites that are specially designed for mobile devices. This will allow the OS of Mozilla to start strong since it can already load a number of popular websites.

The challenge that programmers will face is how to create an app that is suitable for devices that have limited hardware capabilities. The company is also aiming to ensure that these apps will work on these devices. The first FirefoxOS-powered smartphones were intended to be promoted in developing markets, where the price tag is an important consideration when consumers acquire a smartphone.

The first-generation phones using the Firefox OS were unveiled by Mozilla during the Mobile World Congress last February. They became available in the recently through Geeksphone. Sony, LG, ZTE, and Alcatel are expected to released their own models of a Firefox OS-powered smartphone, although the launch schedule for these devices remains uncertain for the moment.

Files Of 3D-Printed Gun Available On The Pirate Bay

3D-Printed Gun

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The files of the 3D-printed gun, the Liberator, were removed from Defcad, the file-sharing site of Defense Distributed, following an order by the State Department. Defense Distributed is the group established by Coy Wilson, who was able to successfully test-fire the weapon.

Wilson was not surprised by the move of the State Department although he thought that the site was allowed to post the files under exemptions of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations for dissemination in a public domain. But it appears that another site is more than willing to host the blueprints for the weapon, The Pirate Bay.

Although the files were removed from Defcad, they were posted within one day on the network of The Pirate Bay. The peer-to-peer network has a number of versions of the files for the first 3D-printed gun. Some files were already uploaded before the demand of the State Department came out.

In addition to the action by the State Department, Democratic Senator Leland Yee introduced a bill in the state of California that effectively prohibited similar weapons. Last year, US Representative Steve Israel introduced a bill that increased restrictions on these weapons.

Despite the increasing need to limit gun ownership across the different branches of the government, some sectors think that apprehensions on 3D-printed guns are exaggerated. Although these weapons are not easy to detect and basically anyone can make it, it still requires a specialized, high-end printer before any 3D-printed gun can be made.

High-End Firefox OS-Powered Smartphones In The Pipeline

Firefox OS-Powered Smartphone

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Not too long ago a report revealed the availability of Firefox OS-powered smartphones. These smartphones are budget models and were mainly marketed in developing markets such as Brazil. However, a Mozilla executive revealed that a high-end device may be released by Sony using the OS.

Mozilla mobile devices senior vice president Li Gong revealed that the company is discussing with Sony on the type of device that the company may release into the market. The Firefox OS is aiming to enter a market that is currently being dominated by the Android of Google and iOS of Apple. The company initially released budget smartphones with the Keon and the Peak, which were available through Geeksphone.

Despite using low-end devices as its entry into the smartphone market, Mozilla is reportedly working with other companies in the hope of offering high-end Firefox OS-powered smartphones. Gong revealed that the company aims to enter the high-end market although it may take time to put up an ecosystem.

He also revealed that a number of manufacturers are already developing their own Firefox OS-powered smartphones. These manufacturers include Alcatel, Huawei, LG, Sony and ZTE.  There are also eighteen telecom operators that have indicated their interest in using the OS.

Gong also indicated that the company is taking a pure approach for its OS. It is not limited to being an open source program but it also goes through an open process.

The Android is being promoted by Google as open-source software. However, it does not allow manufacturers and mobile service providers any inside information on its development and its unreleased versions. The Android can be modified by the partners of the company after the OS is released into the market.

Despite these pronouncements, industry watchers are skeptical on the impact of Firefox OS-powered smartphones in the mobile market. Its late entry into the market and the presence of similar open-source OS are some of the obstacles that Mozilla will have to deal with in the market.

However, Gong is optimistic about the entry of the operating system of Mozilla in the market. He indicated that some people thought it was a foolish decision to start the project. The company believes that need for a third OS is strong among business. This is the reason why the company continued with the project with the end-goal of release more Firefox OS-powered smartphones into the market.

Next iPhone May Be Released By September

iPhone

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The next iPhone will reportedly be released into the market before the end of the year, and with the appearance of the iOS 7 in a number of web logs, it seems that it will only be a matter of time before the next model of the smartphone offering of Apple will enter the market.

However, a note from Morgan Stanley has upped the ante recently. According to the research note written by Katy Huberty, the production of several iPhone SKUs will start by June or July, and it will be launched by the company by September. This may give indications that there may be more than one new iPhone in the pipeline. The research note was dubbed as “Systems and PC Hardware Asia Trip Takeaways Part 1.”

Although reports about the next iPhone started to emerge some time ago, most of these reports were mainly focused on a single iPhone model or the iPhone 5S. It should also be noted that Huberty was in touch with suppliers in Asia, which will give the research note more weight over previous speculations about the upcoming device. The research note also gave the schedule on the upcoming launch of the device.

It can be recalled that an earlier report from a Japan-based industrial newspaper revealed that production of the display panels for the next iPhone will start by June at the Kameyama plant of Sharp.  Putting these earlier reports together may also add credence to the note released by Morgan Stanley in connection to the upcoming device.

The launch of the new models of the iPhone is also expected to correspond to the release of the iOS 7. The next iPhone is expected to feature a new processor and other internal components that may be an upgrade to the current model of the device.

Laser Weapon System Of Lockheed Tested

Laser Weapon

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An earlier report revealed the plan of the US Navy in deploying a ship-based solid-state laser weapon at the Persian Gulf. Recently a series of tests were conducted by Lockheed using a new directed-energy system that was dubbed as ADAM or Area Defense Anti-Munitions system.

The ADAM weapon system was tested against targets similar to the Qassam rockets used by in Palestine. The system destroyed the targets at a distance of around 1.5 kilometers or just under a mile.

The laser system produces 10kw of power, which limits its range and makes it more suitable for use against targets with light armor. Although the range of the laser weapon is limited around two kilometers, Lockheed indicated that the system can effectively track targets over five kilometers away, even in cluttered visual situations.

The weapons system heats up the side of a projectile for a few seconds using a high-energy beam whenever it is used against a missile or a rocket. For science fiction enthusiasts, the ADAM system does not appear to be their idea of a laser weapon system. In fact it has a similar design as a generator that is often used by Army battalions for field operations.

However, the design is not on top of the priority list since laser weapon advocates are focusing on the cost-effectiveness of the entire system. Since it only requires electricity, it basically has an unlimited supply of “ammunition,” unless the battery runs out. The cost of the system is minimal compared to the conventional anti-missile system.

Strategic and Missile Defense Systems president Tory Bruno of Lockheed Martin Space Systems said the results of the test show the cost-effectiveness of the ADAM weapons system. It also offers a convenient directed-energy system that can be used against close-in threats in real-world situations.

With the release of the video, it appears that weapons developers are gradually showing the value of a laser weapon system to deal with any given real-world situation.