The Music Chamber: April 2011

Lorenzo and Simoncelli lock horns after QP

Slipknot promise to play 'biggest and most emotional'

Panasonic, Yahoo, more admit defeat, sign deal with Klausner

First Trailer for Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Hamilton wins the 2011 Chinese Grand Prix

Schumi vows to see out his Merc contract

Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden start well in Portugal

Jorge Lorenzo and Marco Simoncelli will line up alongside one another on the starting grid for the bwin Grande Prémio de Portugal on Sunday after taking the top two positions in Saturday’s qualifying session at Estoril, and following the hour-long session the pair were involved in a heated debate during the post-QP press conference.The disagreement stemmed from comments made by Lorenzo about Simoncelli’s riding style, and with the media fanning the flames the duo were drawn into an open discussion which can be viewed in the attached video. Below is a transcription of what was said between the two…

Marco Simoncelli: “Yes, I read something he said about my riding style but I don’t know, for me he said some wrong things because he said that last year in Valencia I touched him and he almost crashed, but it was not true because I was in front and he tried to pass me and made a mistake. He touched me and his tyre was on my leathers, from the leg to the shoulder, so for me it’s not a correct example. Another thing is that some years ago he was disqualified by Race Direction for his aggressive riding style, so for me he said a wrong thing.”Jorge Lorenzo: “For my part I think that yesterday I said the right words. For me it’s not a problem if it doesn’t happen, we’ll see what happens in the future.”MS: “Yes, but you gave a wrong example, for me, from Valencia.”JL: “I think you have touched with a lot of riders, no?”MS: “Yes, but your example was wrong, for me.”JL: “How many races have I not crashed in? I didn’t touch anybody.”MS: “I said that your example was wrong, sorry!”JL: “This is your opinion! But I think a lot of people here in the paddock, a lot of riders, have the same opinion as me.”MS: “Try to ask.”JL: “Ask (Andrea) Dovizioso, for example. Ask (Hiroshi) Aoyama, for example.”MS: “Ask Dovizioso in 2005!!”JL: “It doesn’t matter. If nothing happens in the future, it’s not a problem for me. But if something happens with you in the future, it will be a problem.”MS: “Okay. I will be arrested!”JL: “This question, everybody is laughing, but it’s not funny because we are playing with our lives. We are riding at 300km/h and we are on bikes which are very powerful and very heavy. It’s not minibikes. It’s a dangerous sport and you have to think about what you are doing. It’s okay, I am ready to fight with all the riders, but I don’t like to fight not clean. It’s the way. I injured myself a lot of times, I made De Angelis crash in Japan which was my fault, my mistake, so from that moment I’ve always tried to ride clean. I can make a mistake because I am human but normally when I am riding I think twice about things. I am not impulsive because it’s one thing to play with your health, and another thing to play with the other riders’ health.”

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Panasonic, Yahoo, more admit defeat, sign deal with Klausner

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Desk Phone Dock review

With every passing day, more people are ditching their landlines in favor of using their cellular phones as a combination device. Smartphones are no doubt excellent means of contacting other humans and managing our lives, but some of us miss the simpler days -- when a phone was just a phone. If you're a proud owner of an iPhone but looking to head down the retro road, Kee Utility would like to point you in the right direction. When we first saw the Desk Phone Dock, we were pretty intrigued by its looks but had questions about its practicality. What you see here is the $150 answer. Keep reading to see how well we got on with it.Design / overall look

When we first saw the Desk Phone Dock, we thought it looked like something out of Cupertino, in terms of its color and minimalist design. The upper half of the unit is finished in white matte, while the bottom half is an aluminum shell that acts as a stand and is angled to give you ergonomically friendly access to your phone when docked. The hollow shell of a landline has a candy-bar receiver that rests magnetically on the base, a dial for volume control with a flush mute button, and a recessed bay to rest your iPhone 3G, 3GS or 4. There's another dial, hidden under the phone's resting place, that lets you adjust your iPhone's tilting angle. We were really diggint the super-sleek look and design of the unit, but having to plug in a 3.5mm audio cable left us feeling a bit bummed out -- like most people, we prefer fewer cables whenever possible.Setup

Although setting up this unit doesn't require more than one human, we figured a quick walk-through would be worth your while. In the packaging you'll find a USB cable that connects the dock to your computer for syncing, a power cord that inserts into the wall, and of course, the phone dock itself. All that's left is plugging the 3.5mm audio jack into your Apple smartphone. Once your cables are in order, you'll be all set to relive the olden days.

Functionalit

If you recall, the desktop Phone Dock does more than just charge your device when it's cradled. Like we mentioned above, the device has a USB port for syncing your iPhone with your computer, and of course, using the dock will give you the feeling of using an old school home phone. There's also a speakerphone that can naturally double up as a music speaker, but more on that in a sec. With everything set up, you then have the ability to take calls with a handheld receiver while your iPhone is charging. There's a catch, though: you'd think that with the iPhone docked, lifting the receiver off the base would pick up the call. Sadly, you still have to answer calls by dragging the iPhone's virtual unlock bar like you normally would. Ending calls is a bit unwieldy, too. Put the receiver back on the base and you'll be routed to speakerphone rather than it disconnecting your calls, which makes slamming the phone down in anger rather less satisfying.As mentioned above, there's a big, friendly volume dial on the front with a mute button in the middle that, curiously, silences both ends of the conversation. And because this is a review of a phone (if you will), we should discuss call quality, right? Suffice to say talking on here sounds more or less like talking on an iPhone, with no noticeable increase or decrease in quality. Calls on speakerphone sounded loud and crisp, and neither end of the conversation experienced echo. As a music speaker, though, it disappoints -- music sounded totally washed out and got worse as we increased volume. For 150 bucks, you'd expect the loudspeaker to be of decent quality, but alas, we suggest sticking to using it just for concalls.If you'll notice in the top image, there's a 3.5mm audio jack in the middle of the speaker grill. We're told that we could use this to record calls, and we did just that. Problem is, this only captures the audio from the other end of the call. The recording port simply routes the incoming audio into your computer, and you're left with a recording of one end of the conversation which essentially renders this feature useless.

Wrap up

Sure, it's 2011 and landlines are becoming a thing of the past, but hey, if you've already set your phone up to rest in a dock on your desk, this device might just be for you. The Desk Phone Dock is a bit bulky and adds more than one extra line to your land, but we'll admit: talking into a receiver like the olden days feels rewarding -- in a nostalgic sort of manner -- and it can turn your iPhone into a first-class speakerphone. At $150 it's certainly not a cheap toy, but if you're looking for a way to make your calls feel a bit more luxurious, this could be it.

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Hamilton wins the 2011 Chinese Grand Prix

2008 world champion Lewis Hamilton has won his first Grand Prix in the 2011 season, the eighth edition of the Chinese Grand Prix, ahead of Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel in a race where tyre degradation proved once again to be a key factor this year.

Mark Webber drove an outstanding race to come from 18th on the grid to third in the second Red Bull, ahead of McLaren’s Jenson Button, Mercedes GP’S Nico Rosberg, Ferrari’s Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso, Mercedes GP’s Michael Schumacher, Lotus Renault GP’s Vitaly Petrov and Sauber’s Kamui Kobayashi.2011 Chinese Grand Prix, lap by lap highlights:The third race of the 2011 season is about to start in China’s Shanghai International circuit.Reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel starts from pole position for the third consecutive time in the season after beating by 0.700 seconds McLaren’s Jenson Button during the qualifying session. Lewis Hamilton starts from the third spot of the grid in the other McLaren ahead of Nico Rosberg, Fernando Alonso, Felipe Massa, Jaime Alguersuari, Paul Di Resta and Sebastien Buemi.Mark Webber faces a difficult race today as he starts from the 18th place after a disastrous qualifying on Saturday.Formation lap: the grid clears ahead of the formation lap.Race start: Race start at Shanghai! Into turn 1, Vettel down to third. Button P1, Hamilton P2. Massa P5, Alonso P6. Great start from Button.Lap 2/56: Di Resta P7, Sutil P8, Schumacher P9. Webber passes Perez for P16.Lap 3/56: DRS has been enabled. Kobayashi overtakes Alguersuari for P10.Lap 5/56: Fastest lap for Button: 1:44.013. Webber is now up to 15th.Lap 6/56: Di Resta reports over the team radio problems with the rear of his Force India.Lap 7/56: Button P1, Hamilton P2, Vettel P3, Rosberg P4, Massa P5, Alonso P6. Petrov up to 11th after passing Alguersuari.Lap 8/56: Drive through penalty for Liuzzi for jumping the start.Lap 9/56: Perez passes Webber for P15.Lap 10/56: Alguersuari pits. The Spaniard rejoins but his right rear wheel falls out at Turn 2. He’s out.Lap 11/56: Schumacher pits from 11th. Webber pits. Maldonado pits.Lap 12/56: Di Resta pits from P10. Massa P5 and Alonso P6 now pressuring Rosberg. Rosberg pits from P4. Perez overtakes Buemi for P11.Lap 13/56: Buemi has pitted.Lap 14/56: Vettel pressuring Hamilton for P2. Vettel overtakes Hamilton.Lap 15/56: Button and Vettel pit together. Vettel resumes ahead of Button, but replays show Button pitting in the wrong garage! Meanwhile Massa has passed Hamilton.Lap 16/56: Massa and Hamilton pit. Sutil pits.Lap 17/56: Alonso pits. Perez and Barrichello pit. Replays show Massa and Hamilton overtaking Heidfeld. Buemi pits again. Glock pits.Lap 18/56: Petrov pits.Lap 19/56: After the first pit stop, Rosberg is now leading the race ahead of Vettel, Button, Massa, Hamilton, Schumacher and Alonso. Pit stop for Heidfeld.Lap 20/56: Kovalainen pits from P16.Lap 21/56: Webber is up to 11th. Trulli pits.Lap 22/56: Kobayashi has a slightly damaged front nose. Liuzzi pits.Lap 23/56: Alonso is struggling to pass Schumacher for P6.Lap 24/56: Rosberg P1, Vettel P2, Button P3, Massa P4, Hamilton P5.Lap 25/56: Button pits from P3. He rejoins in P8.Lap 26/56: Rosberg pits from the lead. Hamilton pits. Alonso has finally passed Schumacher. Webber pits. Maldonado pits.Lap 27/56: Schumacher pits from P5.Lap 28/56: Fastest lap for Button: 1:41.536. Fastest lap for Webber: 1:41.200. Rosberg passes Alonso for P3.Lap 29/56: Button passes Alonso for P4. Glock pits.Lap 30/56: Hamilton overtakes Alonso for P5. The Spaniard is clearly struggling with the degradation on his tyres.Lap 31/56: Sutil, Kobayashi, Heidfeld pit. Massa closing in on Vettel.Lap 32/56: Vettel pits for the second time.Lap 33/56: Alonso finally pits for a new set of hard tyres. Di Resta pits. Alonso resumes in 10th. Schumacher made it past Petrov for P7.Lap 34/56: Massa pits from the lead. He resumes in P5. Replays show Massa crossing the pitlane exit line. Buemi has pitted.Lap 35/56: Rosberg P1, Button P2, Hamilton P3, Vettel P4, Massa P5, Schumacher P6, Webber P7, Petrov P8, Alonso P9.Lap 36/56: Hamilton overtakes Button for P2.Lap 37/56: Perez pits from 10th. Alonso makes it past Petrov for P8. Webber closing in on Schumacher for P6.Lap 38/56: Button makes his third pit stop and rejoins in fifth. Petrov pits. Webber overtakes Schumacher for P6.Lap 39/56: Hamilton pits for the third time and resumes in fourth.Lap 40/56: Third pit stop for Rosberg. Schumacher pits.Lap 41/56: Vettel P1, Massa P2, Rosberg P3. Webber pits from 6th. Hamilton P4, Button P5. Kovalainen and Glock pit.Lap 42/56: Hamilton passes Rosberg for P3.Lap 43/56: Fastest lap for Webber: 1:38.993. Trulli pits from P18.Lap 44/56: Hamilton closing in on Massa (P2).Lap 45/56: Hamilton passes Massa for P2. Rosberg and Button getting ready to pass Massa. Webber has passed Alonso for P6.Lap 47/56: Vettel P1, Hamilotn P2, Massa P3, Button P4, Rosberg P5, Webber P6, Alonso P7. Replays show Sutil and Perez making contact at Turn 2.Lap 48/56: Sutil pits. Hamilton is being told to lookout at his tyres.Lap 49/56: Race control: drive through penalty for Perez for causing a collision.Lap 50/56: Button passes Massa for P3.Lap 51/56: Hamilton pressuring race leader Vettel. Replays show Rosberg passing Massa for P4.Lap 52/56: Webber up to P5. Hamilton takes the lead of the Chinese Grand Prix.Lap 53/56: Webber pressuring Rosberg for P4. Hamilton P1, Vettel P2, Button P3, Rosberg P4, Webber P5, Massa, P6, Alonso P7. Webber overtakes Rosberg for P4.Lap 55/56: Webber now pressuring Button for P3. Webber overtakes Button for P3.Last lap: Lewis Hamilton takes for first the chequered flag and wins the 2011 Chinese Grand Prix. Championship leader Sebastian Vettel finishes second ahead of team-mate Mark Webber. Fourth place for Jenson Button, fifth for Nico Rosberg, sixth for Felipe Massa, seventh for Fernando Alonso, eighth for Michael Schumacher, ninth for Vitaly Petrov and tenth for Kamui Kobayashi.

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South Africa at the 2011 ICU International Cheer Union World Championships

Valentino Rossi and Nicky Hayden start well in Portugal

The rain that was forecast for the first day of practice at the Estoril Grand Prix arrived, but fortunately for the MotoGP riders, both sessions took place in dry conditions. After a nighttime shower, the weather granted a respite until shortly after the finish of the premier class’ 45 minute second free-practice session of the top class.The rain that was forecast for the first day of practice at the Estoril Grand Prix arrived, but fortunately for the MotoGP riders, both sessions took place in dry conditions. After a nighttime shower, the weather granted a respite until shortly after the finish of the premier class’ 45 minute second free-practice session of the top class.

It was a good day for both Ducati Team riders, with Valentino Rossi fourth and Nicky Hayden ninth, making progressive improvement from the morning to the afternoon. The Italian rider improved his time by approximately five tenths, while the American actually dropped a second and a half from his earlier time.Valentino Rossi:“I’m pretty satisfied with how the day went. Let’s start with my physical condition, which I’m very happy with: I was obviously aware of being a little better when I arrived here, but I wanted to wait until I tested my shoulder on the track, which confirmed that I’m able to ride well and have fun. It still hurts a little, and I’m missing a little strength, but the difference compared to my left shoulder is less. I can concentrate on riding the bike, and when watching myself on television, I can see that my style is starting to be a little more normal. Naturally, we’re also working on the bike. Today we used a different weight distribution and some changes to the electronics that worked well. For the first time, we went faster in the afternoon session than in the morning. We dropped almost half a second, getting us closer to the top. I still have some problems with rear grip, so tomorrow we have to do better, but I’m happy for now.”Nicky Hayden:“This morning was not a good session at all, but the afternoon was a lot better. We had a problem with one bike in FP1. I’m not sure what happened, but we’ll send the engine back to Bologna to check it out. I went back out at the end, but we used hard tyres because I didn’t want to waste another soft tyre, since it looks like it will be a soft-tyre race this weekend. Also, I had just gone out with a new setting, and since I only did about four corners, we got no information on that. We lost some valuable time, but this afternoon went better—not spectacular, but pretty steady. I was in the top ten for most of the session, and I had a decent feeling with the bike—I would say better than what the lap time shows. I’m sure everybody thinks they can do better tomorrow, but I feel like we can do a good job and try to get in a good lap in qualifying, which is going to be really important.”

The Music Chamber