Daily Bits

Guinness World Records

Sonim XP3300 Force is the Toughest Phone in the Planet

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Sonim XP3300 Force Guinness
Sonim XP3300 Force Guinness
Are you the kind of klutz who is bound to drop his phone at least once within the first few weeks – not to mention the other times after that? Do you miss the sturdiness of the old Nokia and Motorola “brick” phones that used to be the cool mobile devices?

I do know I miss the sturdiness of those phones, but I cannot say that I miss the rest of the user experience. One thing is for sure – I have learned long ago to be very careful with the phones they roll out these days. It’s not like I can afford to replace a phone every few months!

If your lifestyle or job involves a lot of physical activity and high risk of losing grip of that mobile phone, though, you might want to consider the world’s toughest phone. I know we hear all about tough phones every day, but the Sonim XP3300 Force is officially the best one in its category. Ask the guys over at the Guinness World Records – they have tested the Sonim XP3300 Force themselves and deem it worthy to be called the toughest phone in the planet. [Read more…] about Sonim XP3300 Force is the Toughest Phone in the Planet

Guinness World Records 2011 Gamer’s Edition

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So you think you’re the best Guitar Hero player ever born? Think again! You’ve seen all those YouTube videos about little kids kicking the butt of everyone else – never mind that we are twice or three times his age. If you want some “light reading” that is all about gaming, then Guinness has the perfect thing for you – the 2011 Gamer’s Edition. Just to give you an idea, here is an interview with the record holder for the highest scoring female Guitar Hero player. Hats off to you, Annie Leung.

It’s not all about “serious” records, though. In case you have ever wondered about all that swearing in video games, you can read up on that in this edition. Other pieces of trivia that you can start memorizing (to use as pick up lines, conversation starters, or whatever):

  • The oldest gamer included in the book is John Bates of Onalaska, Wisconsin.  He is 85 years old, a former high school principal, and is a certified Wii Bowling addict.  His feat?  He has the highest number of perfect games on Wii Sports Bowling: 2,850.
  • Mitsugu Kikai from Tokyo is only 25 years old and has 5,400 items of Super Mario-related memorabilia.  Does anyone out there have more? Let Guinness know!
  • Angry Birds is the Top Paid-For Apple App Store Game.  But then again, we already know that, don’t we?

Find out how to get your hands on the book from the Guinness web site.  If anything, it will be a good way to pass the time when you don’t have anything else to do.

World’s Largest QR Code

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Corn Field QR code
World’s Largest QR Code

I dare say QR codes have not gone totally mainstream, although their popularity continues to be on the rise. Only recently, I found out that some people I know personally have created QR codes containing information that is usually transmitted via vCard. Obviously, I am not there yet, but it is certainly a convenient way of sharing your contact details with others, especially with how prevalent smartphones are these days. Additionally, we’ve heard of QR code tattoos – even QR code tombstones!

There is nothing quite like the world’s largest QR code, though, and not only because of its size. [Read more…] about World’s Largest QR Code

Pi Calculated to the 10 Trillionth Digit

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Pi digits
Pi 36 Digits

So you’re a pi lover, and you do not want to have anything to do with Tau Day, the proponents of which say that pi is wrong. The tau guys have gotten quite some attention, and I am pretty sure they have had new converts in the past year, but if you are not one of them, you will be impressed at the feat of two guys: Alexander Yee and Shigeru Kondo.

Alexander is computer scientist in the United States and Shigeru is a systems engineer in Japan. The two have put their heads – and resources – together to break the record in calculating the digits of pi. My initial reaction was akin to saying “What a waste of time!” After all, it is a task that will never end. On second thought, though, the idea of seeing just how far you can go is something to toy around with. Except this guys actually did it. To the 10 trillionth digit. [Read more…] about Pi Calculated to the 10 Trillionth Digit

New World Record Set For Largest Daleks Collection

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Largest Daleks Collection
571 Daleks

I have only recently really gotten into Doctor Who, in spite of the fact that I have been reading and writing about the show for a while. One of my resolutions for this year, in fact, is to finally start watching the TV series which has got everyone (at least in my circle) hooked. Unsurprisingly, a single episode was enough to get me. I can now say that I am into the Doctor. So much so that I can go on a Doctor Who marathon without succumbing to sleep or other activities, but not so much that I have Doctor Who collectibles. (I have to admit that his current companion, Amy Pond also makes the show a lot more interesting.) [Read more…] about New World Record Set For Largest Daleks Collection