Amazon’s latest attempt to lock down root access on its Kindle Fire has been, well, routed. It took the tinkerers mere days to catch up and the new root file is now up for grabs, courtesy of Android Police and a few good devs. The method is app-based and looks to be disarmingly simple, but the usual warnings apply; mess up those software internals and bam, you’ve voided your warranty. Those still willing to dabble can find the full details at the source link below.

SOURCE via Android Police

Nokia’s MeeGo’d pillowcase smartphone has been given a 90-degree twist. This new landscape mode works across the three main navigation screens and can be accessed through N9Tweak, an unofficial mod that can be downloaded through the phone’s web browser. Any compatible apps will also launch lengthways, all of which should help alleviate those N900 pangs. Read more…

BioWare CEO and co-founder Dr. Ray Muzyka told Wired on Tuesday that the next Dragon Age title will likely draw inspiration from Bethesda’s current RPG monster, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, in addition to both of its predecessors. He also admitted that the company is listening to its fans with open ears while also learning from the strengths and weaknesses of other RPG titles on the market.

“[The next Dragon Age] is gonna have the best of features from the prior Dragon Age games, but it’s also gonna have a lot of things I think players are gonna find compelling from some of the games that are out now that are doing really well with more of an open world feel,” Muzyka said. “We’re checking [Skyrim] out aggressively. We like it. We’re big admirers of [Bethesda] and the product. We think we can do some wonderful things.”

Bethesda launched Skyrim on November 11 which has thus far sold around 10 million units across the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Windows PC platforms, representing approximately $650 million in retail sales. The PC version of Skyrim has even outsold all other PC games by over three to one in the first month of its release. For that reason alone, it’s no wonder BioWare is eying Bethesda’s blockbuster RPG with “aggressive,” inquiring eyes.

“Skyrim is the fastest selling title in Steam’s history,” said Jason Holtman, Director of Business Development at Valve Corporation. “Bethesda’s commitment to and understanding of the PC as a gaming platform shows in the great review scores, spectacular launch, and continued high player numbers that Skyrim has received. We are delighted that Bethesda chose to use Steamworks to support Skyrim both at retail and digitally.”

One of the complaints that will likely be addressed with the next Dragon Age title is the ability to equip party members, a feature that Dragon Age II severely lacked. There’s also talk that the next game will have a possible multiplayer mode featuring playable dragons. Muzyka confirmed the former report, but wouldn’t acknowledge the multiplayer aspect.

“Our goal is to surprise and delight our fans,” Muzyka said. “I’ve seen something in the last couple of weeks that is really the future of that franchise that is so compelling, I am so looking forward to being able to announce it.”

Tease. To read the full interview, head here.

Who needs Google to look for a company website address when you have 30-year-old Pat Vaillancourt from Quebec, Canada that can provide the information with his bare skin? Ok, perhaps that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but what’s not exaggerated is the number of URLs tattooed across the length of his back and shoulders: more than 10,000!

According to Oddity Central, Vaillancourt currently holds the world’s record for the most web addresses tattooed on his body, and we believe it. He got the notion to set the world’s record back in 2010 because he wasn’t an athlete and he couldn’t do extreme stunts. What better way to leave his mark in the world by actually marking URLs all over his skin?

“I want to break a Guinness World Record, but more importantly, I want to help others. And this is my way of doing so,” he said back then. He’s helping others by requiring interested businesses to fork over $35 if they want their URL inked between the freckles, moles and numerous tattooed logos. As specified on his website, half the proceeds are being donated to help the people of Haiti and Somalia while the other half pays for the tattoos and promoting his efforts.

As for the number of tattooed URLs, Vaillancourt is hoping to reach a grand total of 100,000. He wants the first 50,000 web addresses to be inked in black, and the next layer of 50,000 in blue. Presently he’s nearing the 15,000 tattooed URL mark, and an additional 16,000 or more companies have already reserved a space on his body. Tom’s Hardware is not among them.

Vaillancourt says that his friend actually does the tattooing, and takes between sixty and ninety minutes to ink 100 URLs. He says that he’s also accepting Facebook and Twitter profile URLs for the same amount he’s charging businesses: $35 USD.

Next we’ll see someone with QR codes tattooed all over his/her body…

Mitsubishi’s conceptual Emirai system is a futuristic dashboard and user interface that the company hopes to introduce to vehicles within the next ten years. Although it appears to be more suitable for the cockpit of a spaceship, we probably won’t have too many of those ten years from now. Modern dashboards and interfaces are already becoming futuristic and intuitive, but Mitsubishi is definitely taking a big leap forward with this concept.

Rather than using a traditional LCD panel to display driving information, the Emirai concept uses a curved rear-projected display with capacitive touch sensors. The steering wheel, though it may be more appropriate to call it a joystick, is equipped with a whopping 18 buttons located on two separate keypads. To make all of those buttons a bit more manageable, the steering wheel is capable of retracting buttons which aren’t needed at the time.

In addition to its army of buttons, the steering wheel features multiple sensors, such as a personal health monitor that will surely be used to immediately notify officials in the case of an emergency. Other sensors allow for automatic mirror and seat adjustments based on the user’s preferences.

To top things off, each Emirai seat is equipped with a glasses-free 3D touchscreen located on its backside. As great as all of the Emirai features sound, we can’t help but imagine how much money such an interface would tack onto the price tag of a vehicle. But since ten years provides plenty of time for improvements and optimizations, we’ll just have to wait and see what Mitsubishi has in store for us.

We only have a few more days left until the festivities truly kick off at CES 2012 in Las Vegas, but LG has already tipped its hand with a press release promising the “world’s largest” OLED panel for the show. We’ve seen smaller screens from LG before and it had already promised a 55-inch OLED HDTV for mid-2012, so this news is just another sign the company is ready to take its technology mainstream. LG’s tech uses white OLEDs overlaid with colors, which it claims makes for a lower error rate and clearer “ultra-definition” screen, with more colors than standard LCDs. Check after the break for one more promo pic of LG’s super skinny 5mm prototype, we’ll get a better look at it (and the inevitable competition from Korean rival Samsung) at the company’s booth January 9th.

Following the footsteps of Samsung and Sony, LG has come forth with details on which devices will be getting Android 4.0 — also known as Ice Cream Sandwich — and when we can begin expecting those upgrades to roll out. The phone manufacturer made its official announcement via its Facebook page, stating that several of its 2011 models will be on the receiving end of ICS starting in the second and third quarters of next year, with a full-scale rollout occurring sometime afterward.

In the second quarter we should expect to see updates for the LG Optimus LTE, Prada 3.0, Optimus 2X, Optimus Sol, myTouch Q and the Eclipse. Fast forwarding to the third quarter, the Optimus 3D, Optimus Black, Optimus Big, Optimus Q2 and the Optimus EX will all be lucky recipients. As can be expected, LG was careful not to lump carrier-branded devices into the mix here, as a large portion of the timing depends on the carrier’s testing procedures.

SOURCE via LG (Facebook)