Hot on the heels of their video that burned up the internet last month, the inventors of the seemingly magical flying machine called the Flyboard Air have released a new video of daredevil pilot Franky Zapata setting a new world record for the longest flight aboard a hoverboard. The old record stood at a tick over 900 feet. So, how much did the Flyboard beat it by? Literally… a mile.
Zapata flew his jet-powered Flyboard Air over 7,300 feet – over a mile and quarter – and he made it look easy. Zapata gently touched down in front of hundred of onlookers – and Guinness World Record book officials – after cruising along at height of about 100 feet and 44 miles an hour. The Flyboard Air uses a combination of small jet turbines and electric ducted fans, all responding to a small handheld controller.
Lots of people called Zapata’s first video a hoax, but we have to say that this time, we don’t see how anyone can doubt how awesome – and potentially revolutionary – the Flyboard Air really is. Certainly, there will be many more distance and altitude records in the near future.
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The battle between personal data privacy and the long arm of the law rages on. This time, a judge in Los Angeles has served the girlfriend of an alleged Armenian gang member with a warrant demanding she unlock her phone – with her fingerprint. The LA. Times says the FBI wants Paytsar Bkhchadzhyan to unlock her phone so they can see all the stuff inside.
Some legal eagles claim that’s a violation of the Fifth Amendment, but two years ago, the Supreme Court ruled that simply unlocking a phone isn’t against The Fifth and police could compel suspects to put finger to phone without a warrant. So, yes, this whole phone-password encryption-evidence thing is a total mess. Get more details on the whole story below and at this point, you just might want to reconsider what kind of data you keep on your phone.
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The trailer for Infinite Warfare, the latest version of the best-selling game Call of Duty, has hit the interwebs, and it looks like it’s received quite the sci-fi upgrade. The new setting: Spaaaaace. And, of course, also on planets. Yes, there’s still lots of urban warfare to revel in, but there’s also vast armadas of space cruisers, trans-atmospheric fighter planes to pilot, and lots and lots of explosions.
The game is expected to reach orbit on November 4 and for $80 and will include an HD remaster of the Modern Warfare edition. Twenty dollars more gets you a season pass, and for $120 it also comes with a soundtrack album and other goodies.
