Technology Blog

Apparently the Department of Defense believes that PS3s are a better value when it comes to supercomputers than IBM products specifically designed for the purpose. Granted recent price drops probably didn’t hurt in justifying a 2,200 console order either.

This isn’t the first time that the DoD is using PS3 consoles for supercomputing. In fact, these 2,200 units are going to be added to an existing Linux cluster of 336 PS3s used by the United States Air Force. According to Justification Review Documents, the purchase is all about getting the best value out the DoD’s budget:

With respect to cell processors, a single 1U server configured with two 3.2GHz cell processors can cost up to $8K while two Sony PS3s cost approximately $600. Though a single 3.2 GHz cell processor can deliver over 200 GFLOPS, whereas the Sony PS3 configuration delivers approximately 150 GFLOPS, the approximately tenfold cost difference per GFLOP makes the Sony PS3 the only viable technology for HPC applications.

I’m all for balancing cost and features, but isn’t it just a bit curious that someone thought to save on upgrading the supercomputer just after Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was released? [Ars Technica via Boing Boing]

Far be it from me, a blogger with only the most perfunctory grasp of the English language to criticize a legitimate artist, but $30,000 for a tea pot? The Earl Grey within better literally send me to the stars.

Price aside, this thing really is sleek, sexy and functional. In addition to the long, flat tea pot, London-based designer Zaha Hadid also included a coffee pot (the tall bit), milk jug and sugar bowl. Everything fits together to make a tray that changes form depending on how the owner wants to use it. My way would be to recreate scenes from Flight of the Navigator, as if the headline didn’t give that away already. [20 Ltd. via Uncrate]

Dear anonymous buyer of the $3,164,000 iPhone 3GS Supreme, the most expensive and tacky cellphone in the world: You are a tasteless assclown. Sincerely, Me.

P.S. I don’t care that you are a rich Australian business man in the gold mining industry. I don’t care that you are so rich that paying $3,164,000 for this ridiculous piece of gold and diamond tackiness probably doesn’t even register in your bank account. And I don’t care that this garish brick is made with 271 grams of 22k gold, 136 flawless color F diamonds for the bezel, 53 diamonds for the logo, and one 7.1 carat diamond as the navigation button. This ostentatious piece of shiny crap that should have never happened. I’m not even taking into consideration that we are in the middle of a worldwide economic crisis, with millions suffering around the world. It’s just that it sucks golden donkey balls, no matter how you look at it.

And you are still a tasteless assclown. [Stuart Hughes via Like Cool]

We told you the deals, now tell us how it all went down. Find any sweet deals? Have any horror stories? Reevaluating your plan to flip copies of Paul Blart: Mall Cop on eBay? Let’s hear it.

I wasn’t really in the market for anything, and had no desire to go wait outside in the rain at the crack of dawn. But I did grab the DS version of Chrono Trigger for $10 ($9 after Bing cashback) on Wednesday at Newegg. Not on Black Firday, sure, but it was enough to satisfy my consumerist desires for the week. How about you? [Image via Tri-City Herald]

How did Black Friday go?(survey)

When I first heard the phrase “Lego sorter,” I expected some crazy production line robot with moving arms and a glowing red eye. Thankfully, the Box4Blox sorter works as simply as the Lego bricks it stores.

This thing got announced way back in March, and I’m amazed we missed it up until now. The device has four trays with square holes along the bottom. These openings get progressively smaller to sort out the bricks by size. And that’s really all there is to it. Genius.

Sounds good, and according to the Brothers Brick, it works well too. They found it does a great job sorting a kid’s collection, and even works well as pre-sorter for more complex adult collections.

Seems like cool beans, but we’ll have to let Jesus take a crack at it. Then, and only then, will we have the ultimate judgement. [Brothers Brick, Youtube via @chr1sa]