Google Maps

To celebrate the launch of its new frameless TVs, the electronics manufacturer has created a cool Google Maps treasure hunt mash up called Philips Hideouts.  Ten Framless televisions have been hidden around the world and its your job to figure out exactly where they are.  Start with the Philips frameless picture, Look for clues, zoom in on Google maps, switch to Street View when you think you are close and ‘phone a friend’ on Facebook or Twitter for extra help.  When you’ve  nailed it, drop your pin and then pray that no one gets any closer!

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I’ve been meaning to post this for a while but just kept forgetting.  It’s a cool little campaign out for Belgium that highlights a small problem with the awesome Google Street View, if the street is too small for the Google car then it doesn’t get photographed.  The solution, the itsy bitsy Toyota IQ which by the looks of it can for down any street on the planet.  So IQ Street View was born and the tiny Tim of cars, the IQ, was fitted with its own multi-sensory camera and has been off photographing all the streets that Google was just too important to bother with!

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To coincide with CES and highlight some of the new features that Google Maps has recently added, Google released this uniquely analogue film from new ad agency Venables Bell & Partners.  The spot revolves around a huge wooden gyroscope that follows a blue marble around model streets stopping off at a restaurant and barber shop along the way.  Its an interesting concept and one that feels very ‘Google’!  If you are interested in finding out more about what Google Maps now has to offer then start here.

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Mobile again featured heavily this week, does that make this the year of mobile?  Personally I hope that ship has long sailed but when the media news rooms are a little light on genuine stories the mobile debate is always worth dusting off!  So here’s our round-up of the best of the week incase you missed anything;

• Domino’s blows the lid on professional food photography showing everyone what real pizza looks like.
• Pirate radio was used in Germany to persecute innocent people, slightly freaky!
• Creative ego’s from around the world have been further fueled with the release of the Award Shelf app.
• UNICEF make it easy to ask for that inconsequential amount of money your friend owes you.
• Smokers are the target of positive peer pressure to help them kick the habit.
• Red Bull creates the world largest urban art gallery using Google maps.
• Twitter makes the bold statement that its quicker than earthquakes!

In other news, AdZag_ launched its Facebook page, its still currently in that pinkish new born baby phase, so please like it, it will help it sleep through the night!

Earlier this year Red Bull teamed up with Google to create the worlds first urban art gallery.  Essentially a publicly created and curated art project, graffiti fans are able to find, tag and share any piece of art they find, from the infamous Banksy all the way down to yet undiscovered local examples.  Since its launch over 6000 artworks have been added to the gallery spanning 6 continents!  Explore here.

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In a blink of an eye the week of August 15th has past.  The last 7 days have been led by mobile and gaming innovations, some light hearted and fun and others that tell a much sombre story.  So here’s our round-up of the best of the week incase you missed anything;

• A novel way of raising awareness of drink driving through a drunk valet.
• An augmented reality application that surfaces the hidden dangers on our roads called The Death Revealer.
• Another AR application, this time making Cadbury chocolate bars interactive and playful.
• The WWF delivers another innovative solution to save our planet, the file format that can’t be printed.
• Volkswagen Bluemotion gets a little Casino Royale turning a motorway into a giant roulette wheel.

To promote the new Bluemotion Golf, Volkswagen came up with the novel idea of turning Norway’s Route E6 into a giant roulette wheel!  The purpose was the demonstrate just how fuel efficient the car was.  Anyone that wanted to take part could place a bet on one of the 80,000 roulette slots identified along the Google mapped route and if the Golf ran out of fuel on that square then hey presto, you won the car!

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