Google, Samsung, Madame Tussauds Singapore join in April Fools' fun

SINGAPORE – April Fools’ has always been a day when organisations show off their playful side, and this year is no exception. 

Early this morning (April 1) Google turned its popular navigation service, Google Maps, into Pac-Man’s chomping grounds. Flaunting a new feature box with neon 16-bit Pac-Man figures from the bottom left of the Google Maps page, this year’s package comes in an all-too-familiar chiptune and a high score to beat. This comes after last year's catch-em-all Pokemon mission.

Its iOS and Android versions come in a more unassuming package, with playful functions like “Insert coin” and “High scores” seeded in its phone applications.

In addition, Google also had some fun with the selfie craze. Users accessing the Google Chrome on Android today were greeted by a bright orange bar asking if they would like to “Share your Chrome Selfie” - which is apparently the look they had when they visited a webpage.

Joining in the fun, Samsung today announced another “Edge” to its Galaxy repertoire of smartphones: The “Blade Edge”. It comes with a foldable handle, and doubles up as a chopper with a diamond edge blade in-built with a technology that can sense human blood and detect fingers. It makes for the “ultimate cooking companion, made with the modern chef in mind”, Samsung said on its official blog. It even supports food photography and comes with a thermometer stylus. It is also fully integrated with the Samsung Kitchen App, which allows the chef to connect with cooking devices nearby. Not convincing at all, but we must admit it is well thought out.

In Singapore, a larger-than-life prank played out at the commercial square of Raffles Place today, with four human-sized wax figures of The Beatles’ “Fab Four” planted there by Madame Tussands Singapore this morning. They hold a “striding” stance highly reminiscent of the band’s famous Abbey Road album cover, poetically blending in with the CBD rush hour scene.

Photo: Madame Tussauds Singapore 

Still, the best joke might just be BMW New Zealand's double bluff in its front page ad on the New Zealand Herald.

The ad offered a ridiculous-sounding one-for-one car trade-in promotion at the BMW Newmarket dealership. While many dismissed it as an April Fools' joke, Ms Tianna Marsh cut out the coupon from the front page of the newspaper and headed to Newmarket car dealership. She managed to walk away with a new BMW 1 Series worth almost NZ$50,000 (S$50,661) in exchange for her old station wagon. Readers are punked.

Sources: AP, The New Zealand Herald