2010 in Review: Google, YouTube, Mobile

Google searches in review through 2010 are excellent in the above video, but also see the official website with the mind blowing statistics displayed for easy reading.



A rewind of the year in video! The official channel/website for full top 10 viewing, plus the YouTube Blog post. The world and I share some different opinions here, but that sounds about right.

Mobile usage is massive and these statistics are really incredible! The mobile trend is nothing new, but do yourself a favour a watch this one. Wish I had the time to write these all down in bullet point for your folk, but here are some stats to note.

Added Bonus: An awesome Infographic of the year on twitter. Still waiting for a facebook review... I know these videos have been shared like crazy and are clogging up people streams of information, but I do think it will be nice to document some of them. Think they are a bit premature without the effect of a full and post December 2010, but with that said, Happy holidays, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you!

Prison Advert for the Drive Dry Campaign

FoxP2, a Cape Town based agency and Brandhouse bring a whole new approach to driving under the influence and its consequences. The "Drive Dry" campaign is aimed to discourage drinking and driving, something this advert seriously makes you think about. I support the notion of "dry driving" 100% and have stuck to it for some time. The guys in the video would 'love to meet you' if you get caught! Drive safe and sober during the holidays, don't risk everything.

Source: Adweek and AdsoftheWorld

RedBull Trials Bike "Way Back Home" Short Film

RedBull brings the story to life with an epic short film starring Scottish trials biking legend Danny Macaskill. The phenomenal settings along his journey from Edinburgh, north west to his home town in Dunvegan, Isle of Skye makes watching it a pleasure. The quality of the video is amazing and although it is a longer clip than I would normally post, this is worth every second (especially from 3.20 minutes). I visited the Edinburgh Castle in 2008 and gee wizz, but the front flip off the edge in the beginning is rewind and watch again material. I used to ride BMX in my school days and even though it's a completely different discipline the Tailwhip he pulls off his camper at 6.33 minutes is awesome. Also check out this interview with Danny which hosts some behind the scenes footage of the "way back home" project. Initially when I posted this, the video had over 800k views, four days later and the video has now totaled over 2 million views.

Cars 2 Animated Movie Trailer

Disney and Pixar are to release the Cars 2 movie in 2011 and this time they are out to save the world. A post on AutoBlog recently caught my eye and brilliantly explained the up comings as follows:
"It looks like Lightening McQueen and Tow Mater are jumping back on track to fight a bevy of international evil doers in the Cars 2: World Grand Prix. Along with going fender to fender with the best racers that the world has to offer, the dynamic duo will be joining forces with British Intelligence. Judging from the trailer, there will be auto kung-fu, car chases, missiles and plenty of destruction. Sounds like a good time to us, er, we mean the kids."

Source: Simon Spreckley and Hannes Oosthuizen on twitter and AutoBlog

Facebook Serving as the Ultimate Daily Diary

A really nice thought, that looking back at our Facebook profiles in 20 years time will be visually gratifying and a long trip down memory lane. Even looking through profile pictures back to the very first, I for one had a good laugh at how young I looked then (still am). An excellent video by Maxime Luere that has changed the way I will look at uploads and updates. Not just as current news, but a future investment of memories.

Source: FurlongPR

Toyota Auris Hybrid 3D Projection Mapping

The Toyota Hybrid Synergy Drive has the unique ability to recycle it's energy and the projection mapping is spot on in displaying this. For a car lover it just makes it even better, especially the Transformer type movements in the beginning/end and the way the car is brought to life by the visuals. A great piece of work by Glue Isobar in London and the tag line of the campaign being, "get your energy back". This was revealed in October this year, but I just wanted to remember it here as it's simply one of my favourites.

The Social Network Movie - Bloggers Preview

I was recently given the privilege of seeing The Social Network before it's official release in South Africa, thanks to 2oceansvibe and Ster Kinekor. After eventually making it to the cinema (another story) and collecting our wee free popcorn and coke, it started and we were happily seated. Directed by David Fincher and without giving too much away, I will say that I enjoyed the movie. I found it inspiring to see the determination Mark Zuckerburg has and the belief in something without hesitation. I think many entrepreneurs will find wisdom here. I enjoyed seeing his drive before he looses control. "The Facebook" gets bigger than expected and well you will have to go and see it for yourself! Walked away being well entertained, a few laughs and saw a couple of scenes that I never expected to be watching on a big screen any time soon.

Mark Zuckerburg is played by Jesse Eisenberg, his algorithm contributing friend Eduardo Saverin is cast by Andrew Garfield and the evil influence of Justin Timberlake as Napster's Sean Parker. Great job by all and nice to have further insight into what I thought was previously just a rumour. Whether you on Facebook or not, you could take something away from this movie.

Two reviews that I have seen thus far by: David Alves and Jason Adrian

"You don't get 500 million friends without making a few enemies"

View the video trailer here

Nissan Juke Action Game Adverts

If you can appreciate a modern day gaming environment and cars, then this advert will hit home! The Nissan Juke 1.6 turbo, all wheel drive was launched with a series of these dramatic game style adverts. The one above is set in a scene where the Juke has to conquer a giant metal car crunching machine. I was sold by this advert simply by the narrator mentioning the word, "turbo" 3 times throughout. The final advert in the series comes out on the 9th of November 2010. It is kind of like an intro tutorial to a new level in a game, but leaves the consumer with a clear image of the car/product and is entertaining enough to make one remember it. *side note* the car I would most want to own happens to be a Nissan.

Ambi Pur's Augmented Reality in a Retail Store

Total Immersion surprised Spanish shoppers by setting up a clever and interactive in-store-promotion with a difference. Customers held up their Ambi Pur product and experienced a unique shopping experience. They say that reaching customers whilst in the act of shopping is very effective on sales. This usage of Augmented Reality in a retail store is one that I feel added value to the consumer and the brand. It seems like customers used refill cartridges to spark off the experience. Refills mean that they were also encouraging people to get their old Ambi Pur's releasing goodness again, rather than switching and trying a competitor. Enforcing the brand in a very cool way and I am almost sure it resulted in people buying the extra "auto sprayers" too. A nice touch to the display is that it also released the fragrances as a "sample" to the audience whilst being entertained; mmm this store smells awesome :-)

Red Bull Interactive 3D Projection Art on Snow

Red Bull - Off The Planet 3D projection mapping was created by ENESS in Melbourne Australia. Red Bull snow board riders and skiers took to the ramp that came to life as they jumped over it and soared through the air. In the middle a 20-foot "sphere" was the object to clear. Not just any object though, they used infrared cameras that enabled the imagery to follow the riders as the jumped over the ramp. The arrangement of colours and visuals is excellent to watch and being a lover of technology and all adrenaline releasing sports, I really enjoyed this.

Source: Gizmodo and Das Modular's twitter feed