The NFL has set up a new rule saying that players, coaches, as well as league officials are forbidden from posting tweets or Facebook updates 90 minutes before the game. They can all resume transmission after the post-game interviews are completed.

Of course, this “tweet ban” has always been in effect, but I suppose its like that NBA regulation of not hanging off of the rim. I mean, it says in the books not to do it, but all the cool B-Ball players do it, and no one seems to penalize them.

Some people attribute this tougher twitter policy with Donte Stalworth, a player who was arrested for DUI and manslaughter. Stalworth felt a need to tweet all about his arrest, suspension, and his incarceration, and sort of made the NFL look bad.

Personally, I think that NFL just doesn’t want a team’s playbook to be posted online. Do you really want to see a coach tweet: “Gonna try an Inside Charge play. Should be a good one.”

By the way, the NFL says that members of the media will be banned from posting game updates on Twitter or Facebook. Good luck with that.

Source

The E-Ink Coaches Playboard could give coaches a high tech edge.

From our friends at Yanko comes designer Gordon Yeh’s game clipboard that utilizes the newly developed technology known as “E-Ink” to create a digital clipboard for hi-tech coaching on the sidelines.

If you’ve ever seen sports caster John Madden draw on the video replay to show what he thinks a play can be, then you rather get the idea what could be in the future for coaches.

Called the E-ink Electronic Coaching Playboard, this clipboard can be used for drawing plays, sketching out strategies, even examining images and criticizing them with electronic writing straight on top.

The design would come with a choice of different pre-loaded sports templates including baseball, basketball, football, soccer, et al. And with the animation feature, directions can be replayed and rehearsed to perfection.

No word on when this will be available. E-Ink is still a conceptual technology. But should it catch on (it may be Newspaper’s saving grace), then ancillary technologies like this one could become reality.

The old saying goes that “everything is bigger in Texas.” Well, that couldn’t be more true for the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium which promises to be the largest stadium ever built, with the largest support arches ever constructed, and doors that open on each end that could fit a DC-10 lengthwise and still have room for a forward pass over the middle.

At a glance, the specs of this new stadium shows that team owner Jerry Jones is “sparing no expense.” The arch foundations will have 25-foot-high abutments and be anchored up to 70 feet underground. The Empire State Building could fit underneath them with plenty of room to spare. In addition, there will be an amazing 86-foot-high glass exterior where the clear glass paneling will be pelted with ceramic dots that will create a blue and gray translucence as the sun moves through the sky. The Stadium will sport the largest high definition LED displays in the world which will span from in between the 20 yard lines – that’s 60 yards, folks. There will also be over 3,000 smaller HD LED screens all around the stadium, including personal televisions in every locker for the athletes. There will also be independent power outlets, broadband data ports, and ceiling recessed projectors for team meetings during half time.

But the big ticket items will be the field level suite boxes and VIP areas right on the 50 yard line. The major selling point being that players will pass through the club VIP area as they make their way both on and off the playing field. Yeah, we’ll see how long that lasts. In addition, there will be over 300 private luxury suites – 50 of which that will circle the field at ground level (which is baffling considering ground level is the second worse seat in the house). Guests will be able to walk right onto the field during the game and stand right behind the teams.

There will also be a retractable roof which will open and shut within 12 minutes, nearly 1,000 concession stands, and end zone party sections that will seat up to 10,000 for concerts and other special events. Cost to build? $1.1 BILLION DOLLARS making it the most expensive stadium in history. It’ll open in time for the 2009 NFL season and will seat over 80,000.

Hat Tip – WIRED

Well, with the SportsCast Wireless Football Scoreboard you are able to check all that information, and much more. The Scoreboard works wirelessly (connects to a satellite) to get game stats about a specific game, which are updated every 15 minutes. This solution means that you don’t need a TV, a computer, or a radio, in order to know how your football team is performing.

Besides the game-by-game stats details, the SportsCast is also able to display information about schedules, standings, scores and so on. There are even special features related to regular, playoff season, pre-season, and off season.

This digital scoreboard needs 4 AA batteries to work, and it might take up to 30 minutes to get a signal from the satellite, so you got more chances if you place the device close to a window.

One strange detail is that there is no need to pay for a subscription, it is all for free, that is, after paying $100.

If you are really interested in the SportsCast Wireless Football Scoreboard, the review made by a customer at Brookstone might make it all clearer to you:

This neat little gadget has only two flaws, it uses the Patriots in its advertising, and the graphics are uninspiring. They look just like the newspaper.

But, that familiarity makes the information clear and concise. It’s a fun and valuable resource and would make a great gift for anyone who is locked in the office all day and wants to take a glance at the scores or standings from the weekend.

Product Page

Guest post by Tiago of Gadgetizer

Taking Halo or Call to Duty to a whole new level, Hackers have created an Wii IR Remote sensor and driver to port the trademarked remote setup to the Xbox 360. This latest hack turns the epic video game and console into a full fledged killing simulator.

Course, that’s not all the Xbox is good for. There’s sports games like Madden NFL, MLB Baseball or Tiger Woods Golf, there’s even hack and slash games like The Elder Scrolls. Imagine firing a phaser for the latest Star Trek Legacy game, or Battling for Middle Earth in The Lord of the Rings (can we virtually put “my precious on?”), the possibilities are endless (especially when you have this hero game pack which let’s you strap on the sword and shield).

And all of these games can benefit from this latest mod that marries the two best and affordable gaming systems. I always knew those two crazy kids would get together.

How’d they do it? Well, it actually requires a THIRD game platform to merely cannibalize for parts – an old Playstation 2. Connect the xBox 360 to an XFPS PS2 through it’s 360 adapter, then connect that to a black box custom microcontroller that has firmware that emulates a PS2 controller, which is daisy chained to a Samsung Q1 PC with custom Wii remote firmware which is finally hooked via blue tooth to Wii remote.

Wow, that’s kinda like going to L.A. from San Francisco via Cleveland. But hey, if it works, it works. And the video shows that it does.

Here’s hoping that Nintendo doesn’t do the knee jerk thing and shut the concept down before it matures.

(source: OH GIZMO)

The HIT system comes with a sensor/encoder which comprises of impact sensors, a processor and transmitter, turning any helmet or headgear into an instant head impact monitor. The data collector within receive impact data in a continuous flow from encoders which are located several hundred meters away and is capable of monitoring dozens of players simultaneously without blinking an eye. A pager warning will be sent if any impact has a potentially injurious profile, enabling coaches to prevent players from playing through the pain barrier – a move that could save lives.

All key signatures of impacts ranging from peak linear acceleration, rotational acceleration, duration, location, and time stamp are stored by the data collector for further analysis. Hopefully the study of such data will be able to shed new information on the biochemical causes of mild traumatic brain injuries, leading to better protective equipment and a less dangerous game on the field.

Source: Medgadget

I think Knee-boards are cool.

Yes, I’m still not quite sure why either. Maybe it is because you can use them to carry important little notes like,

“If flying upside-down, do not release bombs.”

or

“Pay attention to the radar when flying, those other dots you see at your altitude can hit you and it’ll be bad.”

So you know, important notes that pilots use. While I’m not a pilot, I always am writing notes to myself, as well as cruising all over the office. So, you guessed it, I’ve always wanted one. Maybe this falls into the same category as the wrist coach for why I think it’s cool to be doing something and be able to read important information, (just ask any NFL quarterback).

Maybe this’ll be the year I finally buckle down and get one for myself.

I found the knee-boards over at flyboys.com. There are a bunch of different pilot supply sites that carry different versions, each cooler than the next. As you’ve guessed, these pilot supply sites like Flyboys have just a bunch of cool stuff, so go check it out, and let your eyes bug out just a little bit, (you know you want an Air-Force pilot logbook, just for your very own logs!) or their remove before flight keychains, (so cool).

This is a cool idea, a football (American) that can measure and display how far it has been thrown, so next time you throw a great touch down pass you can brag about the distance accurately (rather than saying it went really really far).

Known as the Virtual Distance Football, the distance thrown is calculated by using sensors to detect when the ball is thrown and then the impact of a catch or fumble (though how it knows the distance between the two is beyond me).

The virtual distance football is available from Discovery for $19.95.

Lovie Smith, the Head coach of the Chicago Bears (they’re playing in the Super Bowl this Sunday,, American Football,,, never mind).

Anyway, he has been wearing a sideline jacket that everyone has been asking about and no one had a clue about. Well I finally sorted it. Thanks to Paul Lukas the proprietor of Uniwatch, a great blog (oh yeah, he writes for ESPN too) that’s all about what athletes are wearing (though I think he could write a bit more about the ridiculous new Mclaren race suits, but we aren’t talking about that now,, poor Fernando & Lewis).

This jacket he’s wearing is really cool, or better than that, it’s warm. As some of you know, Chicago Illinois is known for having cold winters,, very cold (it’s the freaking Windy City!) This jacket from Reebok has air pockets inside and pumps for inflating them in the pockets for inflating them.

The inflatable aspect to insulation is a great little innovation in a number of ways.

First of all, it’s likely that the air bladder/pockets are ultrasonically welded sheets of a lightweight airtight material. Thats cool because you can add stationary insulating air without adding weight to the garment.

Second, the Dune Heart-plug release valve is just plain cool (I hope Dungy doesn’t pull it off his chest mid game! (go Colts)). Also I love the detail where the material follows up and around the heart plug, it’s just a cool accent (why isn’t it over the heart?)

I can’t wait till their available. My bigger question of course is whether or not they’re really that much warmer. They likely do well in cold weather, he never looked cold while beating the snot out of the Saints a week ago.

When inflated the costume puffs out to look like a really large referee. It’s great because the arms and legs also puff out so you don’t just look like you have a bunch of pillows stuffed under your shirt.

The suit inflates in just minutes and comes with a belt clip and fan. To power it you’ll need 4 AA batteries which aren’t included.

The suit is 100% polyester and can be hand-washed in cold water. This is good because chances are if you’re trying to eat anything while wearing this suit you’ll end up spilling it all over yourself.

I think that this costume would be a fun way to celebrate a win for your team or just make fun of the referee because it must have been his fault that they lost! It would also be a fun and easy Halloween costume too!

Since the suit just inflates it fits all sizes of people. You can get one for just £34.95 from Boys Stuff.

We’ve held for as long as we can stand it without posting yet another football World Cup gadget, until we came across this curious Beer Butler from the Gadget Store. 

The Beer Butler gadget features a sliding base shaped like a football. When someone needs a fresh drink, you simply load it up and give it a shove in your drinking partner’s direction. The remarkable thing about this gadget is that as it approaches the edge of the table, it stops without going over the edge – but how?

Perhaps you can imagine the situation. Your friend on the other side of the table needs a beer, and you give a bottle a shove in his or her general direction. The problem is you’ve one eye on the football, and in any case after a few beers, your hand to eye co-ordination isn’t perhaps as good as it needs to be, and the beer can too easily overshoot and end up on the floor. The manufacturers of the Beer Butler claim that with this gadget this can’t happen and that “…it will ingeniously stop when it reaches the edge without spilling a drop!” But I’m really wondering how that can work.

Perhaps you can program it to travel a fixed distance, (say the width of the table), before stopping – but what happens if you need to pass the beer diagonally?

Anyway, what happens if it does overshoot and lands on the carpet? Do you get a refund on your £14?

If anyone has bought one of these or has seen one working, we’d really appreciate it if you could let us know how it works.

If you’re like me and enjoy watching football but don’t quite have the required level of skill to play it (only just not quite mind) then robot football could be a good closed season alternative.

As another World Cup celebration our friends at Firebox are currently selling the cool Mr Soccer Robot Football for half price. I’ve played with these before and they’re great fun and at half price are a bit of a bargain. Thanks Firebox.

The World Cup remote control is shaped and colored like a football pitch. The buttons are colored and positioned as opposing players but must admit it’s a formation I’ve never seen before.

The only reason I’d need this remote when watching a game would by for it’s ingenious other purpose, an inbuilt bottle opener. Sensibly it doesn’t include a counter like that other bottle opener we wrote about.

You can get the football remote from Phillips, found via Ideal Gadget.

The first gadget on the left’s sweet. The Anthem Ball plays the national anthem of 25 different teams taking part in the World Cup. I don’t know what the Saudi Arabian national anthem sounds like for example (I’m not even sure if they qualified) but when you press on the Saudi flag it launches into their national anthem – the problem is I don’t know what their flag looks either!

I’m not sure about the next gadget. It’s a bottle opener with a twist! It’s called the BottleSpy, from the Gadget Store. Every time you open a beer bottle the LCD display increments, so you can keep a running score of the number of bottles you’ve drunk.

I’ve filed it under football gadgets, of course, but for those of you who don’t follow football and don’t understand why I should explain that the forthcoming football fest starts early with a barbeque and a few beers before the first game of the afternoon. There are three games a day and it’s quite easy to lose track of the number of bottles consumed during the course of the day, but with the BottleSpy you can faithfully track each bottle opened! Next morning when you’re perhaps feeling a little “under the weather”, you can check the number of bottles opened and act accordingly!!

Found via gizmodo.de who I’ve no doubt be opening a few bottle themselves over the next few weeks.

As our regular readers will already know, the World Cup festival of football is just a few days away and the coolest gadgets team are hot on football gizmos at them moment.

Here’s a fun idea for men’s public toilets – a urinal sieve with a set of goalposts.

 Imagine; over the next few weeks, millions of football fans will be frequenting bars and clubs across the globe; availing themselves in their loos and other public rest rooms.

In football, as well as on the loo, it’s vital to be on target every time. After a few beers though, aiming true gets a little difficult, especially when you’ve been waiting 30 minutes for the half-time whistle to blow are in a bit of a hurry! If you can aim between the goalposts, you’ll be doing well; but if you’re precise enough in your aim to hit the little red ball, it will change colour.

With the goalposts to inspire and guide you, your aim will be true every time and the environment will be a little fresher too. T

The football urinal sieve, found vie Gizmo.de available from Klo Kicker (in English)

So if you want a free St. Georges flag (3ft x 5ft or a car flag) leave a comment to this post saying what you like about gadgets and football. Make sure your leave a real email address (which we will never ever share) so that we can get a physical address to send the flag to. All flags will be given out on a first come first served basis.

Thanks again to The Gadget Store for this cool freebie.

We’ve filed these bizarre contact lenses under “Football Gadgets”. They’re certainly striking – if you’ll pardon the football pun!

These cool-looking contact lenses were manufactured by a German optician, Stephanie Berndt, to celebrate the forthcoming football World Cup.

Our sports coach always used to shout; “Keep your eye on the ball!” but with these lenses it’s more a case of “Keep the ball on your eye”.

The contact lenses, modelled here by Stefanie herself, are available for just $54 (including another pair with an image of the German flag). The only problem for me is that my eyes tested OK at the last appointment, so I guess I can’t wear them for this World Cup. Another thing’s at the back of my mind: can you actually see properly when you’re wearing them?

Unfortunately, Stefanie doesn’t have a website at this time, so you’ll have to pop over to Munich in person to get hold of the set. I’m sure there’ll be a big queue this summer.

 Found via Dvorak.

World Cup fever also seems to be spreading to the various gadget sites and shops. Firebox being no exception have just released the Magnetic Car Flag.

The Magnetic Car Flag is a heart shaped England cross which can be easily affixed to any metal surface (white vans spring to mind). So in the unlikely event that the England team play like a bunch of girls and don’t get past the group stages you can pull it off and stamp on it without damaging your precious motor.

As previously mentioned, available from Firebox.

We wrote about the original Powerdesk earlier in the year. It looks like this is another company that wants to show their support for England in the upcoming World Cup by releasing a special addition Powerdesk suitably decorated with a big red cross.

The World Cup Model will set you back a hefty £8,000, I think you can probably go and watch it in person for less than that.

Further info on the Powerdesk in our earlier post, we found the World Cup Edition via Stuff.

Okay this may be for the kids but it’s football related, inflatable and looks kind of cool. The Inflatable Football Pitch is like a football jail for your kids. I can imagine it now:

• Inflate pitch
• Add kids
• Add ball
• Go inside and watch real football on TV

You can get the perfect pitch from Woolworths (not a store renown for gadgets or quality products to that matter).