swiss

Quality Swiss-made timepieces don't come cheap. Just ask Apple.

The company shelled out a $21 million "lump sum" to license a clock-face design from the Swiss Federal Railway service, French news agency AFP reported, citing a Swiss paper.

In September, the railway service, also known as SBB, objected to the clock-face design in iOS 6, saying it too closely resembled a trademarked design created in 1944 by SBB employee Hans Hilfiker and used in train stations throughout Switzerland.

Hilfiker's design has been honored by both the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the London … Read more

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- Where are we? Apple Maps makes a mess.

- Apple can replace broken iPhone 5 screens in the store, says report.

- iPhone 5 gets the teardown treatment.

- Apple accused of ripping off famous Swiss clock design.

- Apple about to make owner of Earpods.com very rich.

- ATTN New Yorkers: Register your gadgets with the NYPD.

- Neil Young says piracy is the new radio and the best way to get your music heard.

Bathroom break video: 1989 Radio Shack Cell Phone Commercial… Read more

The new look of Apple's clock app on the iPad that came alongside iOS 6 yesterday is ruffling some feathers abroad.

In a report in Swiss newspaper Tages-Anzeiger (by way of Macrumors), the Swiss Federal Railway service, or SBB, has taken offense to the app's design, to which it says it owns the trademark.

The 1944 design by then-SBB employee Hans Hilfiker (which you can see here) is used in station clocks throughout the railway system, which is well-known for its timeliness. It's also licensed to Mondaine, a Swiss watch manufacturer. 

An SBB spokesman … Read more

Swiss scientists believe they have a solution to help tidy up the junkyard of satellites over our heads.

It's called CleanSpace One and it's designed to tackle the 17,000-mph mess we've made around our planet.

The $11 million "janitor satellite" is under development at the Swiss Space Center in the Swiss Federal Institute for Technology (EPFL). Its target: derelict satellites 430 miles up that threaten our communications and information networks.

There are some 16,000 bits of debris in the near heavens that are larger than 4 inches across. They're mostly satellite and rocket components hurtling around like hornets in a bag, and they can also endanger the lives of astronauts. The International Space Station has to adjust its orbit to get out of the traffic. … Read more

LAS VEGAS--If you've won at the casinos here and wonder how to spend your jackpot, I have a suggestion.

It's the Swiss Army solid-state drive (SSD) that Victorinox, the maker of Swiss Army branded products, unveiled today at CES 2012.

This is a tiny portable storage device about the size of the small-size popular Swiss Army tool set. In fact, the storage part can be pulled out and collapsed into its case just like you can do with a Swiss Army knife.

Victorinox claims that the Swiss Army SSD has a few unique attributes, including being the word'… Read more

Per the video, couples can use the SwissRoomBox to shower and have pillow fights.

The Swiss took a simple pocket knife and made it open bottles, burn ants with a magnifying glass, and saw down trees. So we are not terribly surprised to see the SwissRoomBox. Its red-painted sides conceal a stove, sink, shower, table, and bed, and it can be fit into different types of cars.

This promotional video shows a couple on a splendid car camping adventure somewhere in the European countryside, taking advantage of the many uses of the SwissRoomBox, and proving that the Swiss do, in fact, wear leather underwear. … Read more

You thought this would never be possible.

But, because I am more idealistic and optimistic than you are, I merely waited for the day. It has duly come.

Please, then, watch the video I have embedded and bathe in the notion that everything is possible. For this video depicts iPhones and Androids making love.

It is thoroughly PG. It is thoroughly engrossing. And it gives us hope that our world can come together as one.

It was made by the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation. You might remember that this corporation got itself into a troubling bind when it planted a little green Android … Read more

IBACH, Switzerland--If you thought it might be cool to see how Swiss Army knives are made, I'm here to tell you, it's even cooler than you imagined.

Picture, for example, dozens and dozens and dozens of bins full nearly to overflowing with some of the little tools that anyone who has ever had one of the famous knives knows so well: the tweezers, the corkscrew, the toothpick, and even the key ring. Or boxes stacked up with long spindles of Swiss Army knife scissors. Or even better, long rows of the blades that make up half of the … Read more

When I was in my twenties, the idea of a summer in Europe meant a big backpack, a Eurail Pass, a small budget, and a lot of freedom.

I'm not in my twenties anymore, but I've just flown across the pond to begin Road Trip 2011, my sixth annual tour of a specific area of the global map in search of stories, photos, and videos about some of the best geek-oriented destinations I can find.

And this summer, after previous journeys around five regions of the United States, my travels have taken me to Europe. But despite countless … Read more