Nao the robot thespian performs Star Wars

Nao the humanoid robot--who we first told you about in September--really, really wants us nerds to like him. Or, more accurately, Paris-based Aldebaran Robotics really wants us to like him. That's why the company has him pandering to us with a scene from Star Wars.

Still, I have to admit that the 23-inch-tall, 9.5-pound Nao delivers a powerful performance--especially when it comes to his R2-D2 impression. Of course, that's kind of like Gary Busey playing a lunatic, but still...kudos. Outside of his skills as a thespian, the fully programmable Nao is also quite capable of learning and performing useful tasks for his owners.
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Get a grip of this Darth Vader Robotic Arm

"I am your father." Now that's out of the way, here's something for Vader fans and collectors of all things Star Wars. We all know George Lucas' obsession with limb amputations. Consider Luke Skywalker's loss of his right hand by Daddy-O, Jango Fett's beheading by Mace Windu, Anakin Skywalker's parting of ways with his right arm after dueling Count Dooku, and much later losing all four appendages in the climatic battle with Obi-wan Kenobi. But that's not a problem as long as you get to keep your head. Prosthetics seem to be the answer, and the Darth Vader Robotic Arm is as close you get to owning one (without having to lose one of your own).
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R2-D2 console droid for all your retro gaming needs

Behold! The retro gaming force is strong with this one-of-a-kind R2-D2 replica by PopSci reader Brian De Vitis. The Star Wars droid was meticulously built from a cooler and houses no less than seven discontinued game consoles, a sound system and a projector. Based on the controllers as shown in the image, our resident gaming guru has identified most of the consoles. They include the original Microsoft Xbox, Sony PlayStation, various editions of the Nintendo Entertainment System a.k.a. NES, Sega Genesis and Dreamcast. Give us a heads up via Talkback below if you can recognize the joystick-like controllers and light guns on the extreme right.

Via Popular Science

Star Wars mind-controlled toys from Mattel now shipping

Back at CES in January, there was some hype surrounding some new mind-control products that were due to arrive before the holiday season. Well, two of the more prominent ones, the Star Wars The Force Trainer and Mattel's Mindflex are now shipping.
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Darth Vader succumbs to Hello Kitty power

Pink Gundams. Hello Kitty Imperial Stormtroopers. What next? How about Darth Vader in pinkish white with a Hello Kitty badge? One can almost hear the collective shrieks of outrage from hardcore fans condemning the blasphemous culprits to a special kind of hell. But hey, even Sith Lords get bored with the same old wardrobe year in, year out. And you gotta hand it to the power of Cute over the Dark Force. Will Kitty assimilate the Borgs next? It may very well be that resistance is futile.

Via Kitty Hell

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