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Peter Falk Died Last Night. R.I.P. Columbo

oh yeah, and one more thing...

Thai handicraft... Carved from a single piece of wood

All wood, all by hand. and if you go now, you can walk around the carvers and artists as they are still building this insanity.

HTC's Evo 3D, the Country's First Glasses-Free 3-D Smartphone

HTC Evo 3D: Cameras Here you can see the Evo 3D's dual-lensed 3-D camera on the back of the phone, as well as that excellent shutter button Dan Nosowitz

HTC's Evo line of Android smartphones is big on firsts: The Evo 4G was the first 4G phone in America (by current definitions, at least), and its sequel, the Evo 3D, is the nation's first to pack a glasses-free stereoscopic 3-D display, like the Nintendo 3DS. It's actually a very nice phone, but it doesn't do much to convince us that stereoscopic 3-D is good for anything but gaming.

What's New

The Evo 3D is changed in some subtle ways from its predecessor, the Evo 4G. It has a dual-core processor, rather than the Evo 4G's single-core, along with more memory. The software has been upgraded as well; the Evo 3D has the newest version of HTC's Android skin, Sense 3.0, laying on top of the newest version of Android, Gingerbread. But the big addition is the 3-D: its screen can display glasses-free stereoscopic 3-D, and its dual-lensed camera (on the rear; it also has a regular 2-D front-facing camera) can take both video and still photography in the third dimension.

HTC Evo 3D: Gallery App: The phone's face, showing its gallery app. The brick pattern is a reflection, rather than a background image--the phone is pretty reflective in natural sunlight, though actually quite nice--in 2-D--indoors  Dan Nosowitz

What's Good

The phone itself is pretty good! HTC changed the aspect ratio to 16:9, making the phone taller and skinnier than the Evo 4G. I'm not a huge fan of that decision, as it can be tough to reach the upper parts of the giant 4.3-inch screen, especially for those with smaller hands. Aside from that, the design is really nice--much thinner than, say, the HTC Thunderbolt, and with a more interesting look. The textured back and Evo-trademark circle-enclosed buttons are a nice touch. The added horsepower and upgraded version of Android make the phone very snappy to use. Sense 3.0 is kind of overly complicated and showy--expect lots of completely unnecessary animations and a bajillion very-similar widgets--but it does offer some nice features and a sense of cohesiveness that Android sometimes lacks. The lockscreen, which shows the weather and gives you a shortcut into the camera, phone, email, and messaging app, is a good example: It's pretty, and useful on paper, but it's not actually any more efficient to use than a simple unlocker.

The included 3-D game, Ultimate Spider-Man: Totaly Mayhem, is pretty fun--about as good as a mid-tier Nintendo 3DS game, which means it's worth playing. Not to brag, but this further proves our theory that 3-D is at its best in gaming, rather than movies or TV.

Oh, and the camera button is perfect. Other phone makers: Steal this button en masse. It actually feels like a camera's shutter button, two-stage picture-taking and all. I want it on every phone I buy from now on.

What's Bad

The 3-D is bad. It's not implemented nearly as much as I expected--the homescreens and all of HTC's custom apps are in regular 2-D, including HTC's replacement Twitter, email, calendar, and messaging apps. It's jarring to turn on a phone with "3-D" in the name and have to dig around in the app list to find something that's actually in 3-D.

But once you do find the 3-D stuff--there are a few games in 3-D, the Gallery app displays 3-D images, and you can watch movies in 3-D--you might wonder why you even bothered. The effect is noticeably worse than the Nintendo 3DS: images are very shimmery, shifting around if you change your perspective even a tiny amount. The proper viewing angle is far too specific--if you move to the side, up and down, or back and forth, you'll lose the effect.

HTC Evo 3D: 3-D Photos: You can't get too good of a sense of the 3-D feature without using the phone, but you can see how quickly the 3-D photos lose their focus when the phone isn't at the perfect angle to your eyes  Dan Nosowitz

The included 3-D sample photos actually gave me a headache; the effect is the opposite of immersive, since you feel like you're having to manually adjust your eyeballs to cope with the blurry perspective pranks the phone is playing on you. There's this moment of switching from 2-D to 3-D while browsing through photos that is legitimately painful, as your eyes struggle to switch their perspective. There's no way to dial down the effect, like on the Nintendo 3DS--it's either on or off. Some of the photos we took ended up looking okay, but overall we opted to ignore the 3-D gallery altogether.

The Price

$200 with a two-year contract from Sprint

The Verdict

The Evo 3D itself is actually very desirable--if there was an HTC Evo 2D, this phone with the 3-D elements lobotomized, it'd be a worthy followup to its groundbreaking predecessor. And we're not judging it for using 3-D, which many call a gimmicky technology. We don't mind gimmicks; actually, we love gimmicks. But we love them when they're fun, even if the fun is superficial or short-lived. The Evo 3D's gimmick is bizarre: it feels like you don't use it often enough, but when you do use it, it's actively unpleasant. The final verdict? If you're on Sprint, grab a Nexus S 4G, unless you're a very specific type of masochist who wants to watch Avatar on a 4.3-inch screen and get a headache while you do it.

Reggie Bush's new girlfriend Melissa Molinaro is a Kim Kardashian double from head-to-toe

NFL star Reggie Bush definitely has a 'type.'

As Kim Kardashian gets ready to walk down the aisle with fiancé Kris Humphries, her American football star ex-boyfriend is dating her doppelgänger.

Bush's new girlfriend, Melissa Molinaro, is a lookalike for socialite Kardashian, from her chiselled features and long dark hair right down to her curvaceous figure.

Lookalike: Reggie Bush's new girlfriend Melissa Molinaro is a Kim Kardashian double from head-to-toe

Bush, 26, who split up from Kardashian in March 2010 following a high profile on-again, off-again relationship, was spotted out with Molinaro at trendy Beverly Hills steakhouse, Boa, a couple of weeks ago but friends say they've been a couple since Christmas.

U.S. website TMZ reports that the New Orleans Saints star flew to England  earlier this month to show his devotion to his new girl when she performed in a London nightclub.

Bush and Molinaro met two years ago but were always seeing other people so stayed platonic friends until they reconnected last summer.

  

Double vision: The hair, the face, the figure...Melissa Molinaro is the spitting image of Keeping Up With The Kardashians star Kim 

The aspiring actress, model and singer became a web sensation in February with her eye-catching 'Super C-U-T-E' Old Navy ad, which was played over 1.7 million times on YouTube in its first few weeks.

When the advertisement launched, Molinaro immediately got calls from her friends and family about her striking resemblance to the reality star.

'They're saying, "Oh my god, [people are] saying you look like Kim Kardashian!"' she told U.S. website E! Online.

Ex-Lovers: Bush and Kardashian (pictured here in February 2010 in Las Vegas) dated on and off from 2007 but split for good in March 2010

The Ontario, Canada born-beauty didn't mind the comparisons to the reality star, sending a message to her double. 'Kim, I think you're beautiful woman, an amazing business woman, and it would be nice to meet you someday! I hope you don't think all this is weird.'

After appearing in Making The Band 3 and The Pussycat Dolls Presents: Search For The New Doll,  she's  is up next in Honey 2, a straight-to-DVD sequel to the Jessica Alba's 2003 film.

Bush and Kardashian's tumultuous relationship spanned from 2007 to 2010. 

Since then Kim moved on to another NFL player, Miles Austin, before getting engaged to basketball star Humphries in May, who she is set to wed later this summer.

On the other hand, Bush doesn't seem to have veered far from his ex. His previous girlfriend before Molinaro, Latin singer Mayra Veronica, bore a striking resemblance to Kim too.

The "O.J. Simpson Just Confessed To Oprah" Story Is Bogus

Rumors are flying all over the internet that the O.J. Simpson wants to confess to the murders of his ex-wife, Nicole, and Ronald Goldman.

Confess to Oprah Winfrey, of course.

The reports are all based on a National Enquirer story that says O.J. gave a jailhouse interview with an Oprah producer, and told the producer that he murdered his ex-wife in self-defense after she pulled a knife on him. (The story is not on their website.)

However, Oprah people's are denying that such a conversation ever happened.

So what's really going on? Well, Oprah did give an interview last week saying she wants an interview with Simpson ... but only the condition that he comes clean. She wants the confession to jump start the ratings on her new network and she still thinks she can get.

But it just hasn't happened yet.Looks like the Enquirer just took the idea and ran with it. Just wishful thinking by everyone involved. Until Oprah herself confirms that its happening, we're not going to believe it.

It's unlikely that O.J. will ever confess no matter how much money it makes him. There's no statute of limitations on murder and even though he was was already acquitted of the crime, the government would surely find some way to reopen the case and nail him.

Tribe meets white man for the first time - Liveleak!

Pottermore: J.K. Rowling Announces New Reading Material And Online Destination, Harry Potter

The speculation is over, muggles: Pottermore has arrived, and as we guessed, it's an online experience featuring brand new "Harry Potter" material.

That's right — brand new. They aren't calling this Pottermore without a reason!

J.K. Rowling finally unveiled the full extent of her newest project in a press announcement today, revealing Pottermore as a free-to-use website that will feature "extensive new material about the characters, places and objects in the much-loved stories," all written by Rowling. It sounds like the vast majority, if not all of this material, is intended to supplement the "Potter" stories as they already exist, rather than create brand new stories all unto themselves. In other words, this appears to be Rowling's long awaited "Potter" encyclopedia, but in an online and interactive form.

But there are other features on Pottermore besides new reading material, including an online shop (where registered users can purchase exclusively the "Harry Potter" eBooks), new illustrations, and interactive "Moments," which allow users to "move through the chapters" and experience places like Hogwarts and Diagon Alley firsthand. Exactly how those "moments" are experienced remains unclear just now.

“I wanted to give something back to the fans that have followed Harry so devotedly over the years, and to bring the stories to a new digital generation," Rowling said of Pottermore in a statement. "I hope fans and those new to Harry will have as much fun helping to shape Pottermore as I have. Just as I have contributed to the website, everyone else will be able to join in by submitting their own comments, drawings and other content in a safe and friendly environment – Pottermore has been designed as a place to share the stories with your friends as you journey through the site.”

Pottermore fully launches in October 2011, with registration opening on July 31, Harry's birthday. That day will also feature an online challenge rewarding the first million people to register with early beta-testing access to Pottermore. So wands at the ready, aspiring wizards and witches — there's plenty more "Potter" coming your way, long after both "Deathly Hallows" and (shameless self-promotion alert) the Harry Potter World Cup have ended.

Japan has been rattled by a 6.7 magnitude earthquake

JAPAN has been rattled by a magnitude-6.7 earthquake that hit the northeast of the country, the meteorological agency said.

The quake effected the areas hardest hit by the March 11 quake and tsunami disasters.

Japan's meteorological agency said the latest jolt hit about 50 kilometres off the east coast of Miyako, Iwate prefecture, at a depth of 20 kilometres in the Pacific.

The agency initially released a tsunami warning of a 20cm wave, but this was later revised.

Local authorities had issued evacuation orders to some 8,000 households in Iwate, news agency NHK said.

Shinkansen bullet train services were temporarily suspended, while there was no new damge to the Onagawa nuclear power plant in Miyagi, south of Iwate, which has been out of operation since the March 11 disaster, NHK added.

The northeast coast of Japan's main Honshu island was ravaged by a 9.0 magnitude quake and monster tsunami on March 11, which left more 23,000 people dead or missing.

The disasters also crippled the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, triggering the world's worst atomic accident since Chernobyl in 1986 and forcing hundreds of thousands of residents to leave their homes.

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology reported no immediate tsunami threat to Australian mainland, islands or territories from the earthquake.

The US Pacific Tsunami warning centre said that it did not expect a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami.

There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries in the quake.

iPhone 5 'to launch in September'

Apple's iPhone 5 will have the same form factor as the iPhone 4, according to reports. Photograph: Eric Thayer/Reuters

Apple is on track to release an "iPhone 5" in September, according to reports from component suppliers in Asia who are gearing up to build the next generation of the company's smartphone.

Although reports vary on the naming – with some sources suggesting that it will be called the iPhone 4G or 4S – the Guardian has been told that the form of the device is very similar to the existing iPhone 4, which was released in summer 2010.

The suppliers are also understood to be preparing for another iPhone release during 2012, though the timing on that is less certain. Some are suggesting that the next model could come out in March.

The Guardian understands that while the new version will look very like the iPhone 4, it may dispense with some of the visible buttons on the side of the device for volume control.

Other reports on Bloomberg suggest that the new phone will use an A5 processor like that included in the iPad 2 released in March and feature an 8MP camera (compared with 5MP in the iPhone 4). Some reports suggest that it is testing a higher-resolution or larger version of the screen than that in the present model.

The new devices will include Apple's new iOS 5 software, which includes its iCloud capability to synchronise data between devices, and to activate and update phones without requiring connection to a computer, as well as offering photo sharing and Twitter messaging across many apps.

Richard Windsor, global technology marketing analyst at Nomura Securities, said he expected the version sold in September to have the same price as the existing one, which Apple sells for about $600. "We think there will be an iPhone 5 in September – the suppliers have been ramping up for it," he said.

The key question, said Windsor, will be whether Apple introduces a mid-range phone at about $300 in order to capture a larger share of the market. If that happens, he suggests, Apple's share of the smartphone market – currently about 19% of the 100m devices sold per quarter – could explode as the market itself grows in this year and 2012.

But Windsor said he has not seen any sign that Apple is preparing a "mid-range" phone so far for launch early next year, which would be needed to capture a significant slice of the market.

Phones running Google's Android operating system have taken a dominant share of the smartphone market in the past six months, with a 31% share in the first quarter. Android pushed ahead of Nokia, whose Symbian operating system had been the leading smartphone platform for years, in the first quarter of this year. Apple is in third place, though analysts expect Apple to pass Nokia in the current quarter which ends in just over a week.

The smartphone market is expected to grow 55% this year to 472m and to hit 1bn units by 2015, according to the research company IDC. With Android devices and, from October, Nokia devices running Microsoft's Windows Phone software competing for that market, it may become imperative for Apple to produce a mid-range device to capture more revenue, as it did in the music player market when it launched the iPod Mini, iPod Nano and iPod Shuffle.

IDC expects that Android will grow to more than 40% of the market by the end of 2011, while Windsor at Nomura expects Apple to pass Nokia to take second place in smartphone sales to Samsung.

The new iPhone would be hotly anticipated but Apple will want to play down the reports ahead of the summer season in case it affects sales.

 Country music star Glen Campbell has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. According to the 75-year-old singer's wife Kim, he is "still an awesome guitar player and singer," and will make the most of his time while his memory is largely intact by recording a final album and heading out on a farewell tour.

Campbell's last album, titled Ghost on the Canvas, is in the works now with producer Julian Raymond, who worked with the singer on his 2008 collection Meet Glen Campbell, which included covers of songs byGreen Day, Tom Petty, the Velvet Underground and the Replacements.Ghost in the Canvas will include another song penned by the Replacements' Paul Westerberg, as well as original material and tunes by Guided By Voices mastermind Robert Pollard and the Wallflowers' Jakob Dylan. Billy Corgan, Chris Isaak, Dick Dale, Brian Setzer, the Dandy Warhols and Cheap Trick's Rick Nielsen will all contribute guest performances to the album. 

Chelsea hail 'outstanding' Villas-Boas after new boss signs three-year deal

Chelsea are celebrating the arrival of Andre Villas-Boas as the club's new manager on a three-year deal. 

The Porto boss follows in the footsteps of his old boss Jose Mourinho after the Blues paid his £13.2million release fee. 

A Chelsea statement issued on Wednesday morning hailed his appointment - and its wording appeared to deliver a snub to the initial favourite for the post, Guus Hiddink.

Green light for the Blues: Andre Villas-Boas will take charge of Chelsea

It read: 'Andre was the outstanding candidate for the job. He is one of the most talented young managers in football today and has already achieved much in a relatively short space of time. 

'His ambition, drive and determination matches that of Chelsea and we are confident Andre's leadership of the team will result in greater successes in major domestic and European competitions. 

'Andre will bring his coaching experience back to a club he is already very familiar with, having previously worked here for three years. 

'He has always been highly regarded at Chelsea and everyone here looks forward to welcoming him back and working with him.' 

Villas-Boas, who previously served Chelsea as an assistant to Mourinho, is expected now to set his sights on bringing with him to Stamford Bridge some of his most prized possessions at Porto. 

London calling: Porto's Colombia international Radamel Falcao is also keen on a switch to west London

He'll cost you: Joao Moutinho is a target for Villas-Boas, but Porto want £35.5m for the midfielder

It is understood he wants striker Falcao and midfielder Joao Moutinho, two key members of the side he guided to a European and domestic treble this season. Porto president Jorge Nuno Pinto da Costa immediately put a price on their heads last night, valuing Falcao at £26.5m and Moutinho at £35.5m. 

Villas-Boas could also move for two members of his coaching staff - fitness coach Jose Maria Rocha and opposition scout Daniel Sousa.

Chelsea secured the 33-year-old after payment of his £13.2million release clause was completed - while he continued to relax on holiday.

Shown the door: Carlo Ancelotti was axed by Chelsea after they finished second to Manchester United

The Portuguese will not travel to London but remain on his summer break, although he may be joined today by a Chelsea delegation sent out to complete formalities. The plan is to introduce him officially next month, once he has spent a few days working with the players in training. 

Rapid progress in securing Villas-Boas was made on Tuesday, with Porto promoting their assistant coach, Vitor Pereira, to the role of manager and informing the Portuguese stock exchange that the release clause had been paid and that their contract with Villas-Boas had been terminated. 

No return: Hiddink won't take charge of Chelsea for a second time

Pinto da Costa suggested Chelsea first made their move when Villas-Boas made a trip to England last month.

'When he went to spend a weekend in London a month or so ago, I spoke to Vitor Pereira and asked him if he would be ready to take over,' he said.

He added that it was not until last week that a deal was finalised, once Chelsea had ruled out a second spell in charge for Guus Hiddink. 

Moutinho is a central midfielder, but Chelsea remain determined to pursue Tottenham's Luka Modric, with an improvement on their original £22m offer still expected. 

Recently Villas-Boas said London was a city he felt he 'could live in perfectly' and, judging by some of the reports emerging from Portugal yesterday, he might fancy a wing of Buckingham Palace. 

Portugal's King Carlos I made Jose Gerardo de Villas Boas the first Viscount of Guilhomil in 1890. Andre's great-uncle Jose Rui inherited the title when his father, a local political leader and judge, died just before the start of the First World War. 

It became extinct only because the sole child from Jose Rui's marriage was a girl. Andre is also said to be related to a count and two 

'Marley & Me' House for Sale

If you've ever wanted to own a piece of Hollywood movie history, here's your chance.

The Birmingham, Pa. house featured in the movie “Marley & Me” is up for sale, according to the Daily Local News.

The Daily Local News reports that the 175-year-old stone structure, which is located at 1175 Meetinghouse Road, is listed at $1.25 million.

The owners tell the newspaper that they are looking to downsize from the 16-acre property with a five-bedroom and three-and-a-half bath farmhouse, and four outbuildings because their three daughters have left home.

The movie is based on John Grogan’s memoir, “Marley & Me,” and tells the story of a fun-loving yellow Labrador retriever.

Scouts for the movie’s production company decided on the Chester County home after looking through Pennsylvania and Connecticut, the Daily Local News reports.

But if you are looking to buy the home, be prepared for gawkers.

“A whole load of kids and parents will jump out of the car and snap photos in front of Marley’s house,” John Ennis, the homeowner, told the Daily Local News.

Actor Doug Hutchinson, 51, marries 16-year-old girl in Las Vegas

Actor Doug Hutchison, best known for roles on "Lost" and "The Green Mile," married last month to his aspiring country singer bride Courtney Alexis Stodden in Vegas last month.

Seems like happy news, right? Well, that depends on how you feel about the fact that he's 51 and she's 16.

Stodden was in the running for Miss Teen Washington USA just last year and has featured some of her music on YouTube and MySpace, including a music video titled "Don't Put It On Me" which looks like a bad Elle Woods impersonation.

But most importantly, she also has her mother Krista Stodden's legal consent, who says that Hutchison is a "wonderful man." He's also only four years younger than Courtney's dad.

"They are very much in love and we are so supportive of this," Krista Stodden told Radar Online.

"We're aware that our vast age difference is extremely controversial," the couple said in a statement. "But we're very much in love and want to get the message out there that true love can be ageless."