Spoiler alert! Instead of waiting to surprise people at IFA this week, LG has released details of its new 3D Game Converter for the Optimus 3D early. The software arrives as part of the October maintenance release, promising to take any OpenGL game that runs in landscape and convert it to 3D. Around 50 games will come with pre-optimized settings — the rest you tweak yourself. Open any game up in the app and it will try to split the foreground and background and recombine both in 3D. Feel your eyes crossing and a headache setting in just by thinking about playing this way? No worries, they’re all still playable in 2D as well. Mouse on past the break to find the press release, which LG rather thoughtlessly only released in 2D. [Thanks, Eddie] Continue reading LG 3D Game Converter adds depth to regular 2D games LG 3D Game Converter adds depth to regular 2D games originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 09:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Toshiba rumored to be announcing ultra-thin tablet at IFA after chunky Thrive did anything but
August 29, 2011 No Comment
With a tablet market dominated by the svelte iPad 2 , a device with a “chunky design” isn’t bound to Thrive . According to Notebook Italia , Toshiba’s expected to announce a new ultra-thin tablet at IFA this week, swapping full-size USB and HDMI ports for micro-USB, micro HDMI, and microSD slots in order to shave off a few millimeters from last year’s model, leaving the new device with a sleeker, much more appealing design. The rumored slate is expected to ship with a TI OMAP4460 dual-core 1.5GHz processor, an edge-to-edge screen, and a brushed-metal housing. Other specs, including Android version and screen size are a bit thin at this point, but we should have only a few more days to wait before Toshiba’s new tab makes its glorious IFA debut in Berlin. Toshiba rumored to be announcing ultra-thin tablet at IFA after chunky Thrive did anything but originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 08:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Supposedly there are some magical Touchpads out there with Android pre-installed on them, but that won’t help you load it up your new collectors item. Thankfully the Cyanogen Mod team is hard at work on a port of Google’s mobile OS for your HP slate and aiming to claim the bounty on its head. It’s still in the extremely early stages. At the moment it does little more than boot up and unlock with the aide of ADB — even the touchscreen isn’t working just yet — but it shouldn’t be too long before you can swap out webOS with CM7. Check out the brief demo video below. Continue reading Touchpad port of CM7 in the works, can barely be called an alpha (video) Touchpad port of CM7 in the works, can barely be called an alpha (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 08:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Looking for more stuff to plug into that Thunderbolt port? If you’ve got a smattering of ExpressCard/34 doodads laying around, Sonnet’s upcoming Echo adapter might just fit the bill. Scheduled for an October release, the $149 gizmo can now be pre-ordered from the company’s online store, but be forewarned that it’ll ship sans cable. So if you haven’t already picked up one of these guys , be prepared to part with a half Benjamin before you join in on all the fun. All in all, a pricey affair, but that’s what you get for living on the bleeding edge, you futuristic maverick, you. [Thanks, Mmm] Continue reading Sonnet’s Echo brings ExpressCard to Thunderbolt machines Sonnet’s Echo brings ExpressCard to Thunderbolt machines originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 03:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Just a few days after its renders first leaked , the HTC Omega has apparently been spotted in the wild, on an Algerian auction site, of all places. French blog Mon Windows Phone claims that the rumored Mango device may sport a Snapdragon MSM8255 1.5Ghz processor, 512MB of RAM and a 3.8-inch LCD, though it’s hard to glean too many specifics from the blurry images featured on the auction site. The blog also spotted an eight megapixel camera around back, along with that front-facing shooter that Microsoft’s been touting , while the listing claims that the phone boasts up to 8GB of storage capacity. The white-and-gray Omega is rumored to debut at this week’s HTC event in London , though details on price and availability remain unclear (the highest online bid, for what it’s worth, is currently at around $540). Hit up the links below to see the full array of images. [Thanks, Gilles] HTC Omega spotted in the wild on Algerian auction site? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 05:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Samsung delays Galaxy Tab 10.1 launch in Australia amid patent battle with Apple
August 29, 2011 No Comment
Just a few days after suffering a legal setback in Dutch court, Samsung has now decided to delay the launch of its Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia, amid its heightening patent infringement battle with Apple. In a hearing today, the Korean manufacturer announced that it would refrain from selling or marketing its new tablet within Australia, before September 30th. Samsung made a similar concession earlier this month, agreeing to halt sales of its slates until today’s hearing and to provide Apple with product samples at least seven days prior to its Australian launch. The company says it presented the samples on Thursday, but Cupertino’s lawyers insisted that the Australian version of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 still infringes upon its patents. Samsung, meanwhile, said in a statement that it’s preparing to launch a counter-attack down under, telling reporters that it “intends to file a cross claim against Apple Australia and Apple Inc regarding the invalidity of the patents previously asserted by Apple and also a cross claim against Apple regarding violation of patents held by Samsung by selling its iPhones and iPads.” The next formal court hearings are scheduled for September 26th and 29th. Stay tuned. [Thanks, Geoff] Samsung delays Galaxy Tab 10.1 launch in Australia amid patent battle with Apple originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 04:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …New developments in atomic clock technology beat accuracy records, may inspire Ke$ha’s next hit
August 28, 2011 No Comment
According to a recent Penn State study that uses a new way to calculate time-telling precision, the CsF2 cesium-based atomic clock at the UK’s National Physical Laboratory is almost twice as accurate as originally thought — meaning it will only gain or lose one single second over the course of 138 million years. This atomic clock isn’t the only competitor for best-in-show, as researchers at the University of Tokyo have also announced a new record, claiming their optical lattice atomic clock observes atoms a million times faster than a traditional atomic clock — achieving accuracy up to 18 digits in a one second measurement. Although researchers say the technology would gain or lose a second significantly faster than the cesium-based variety (31.7 million years), it could change the way scientists perceive time and space, giving us new insights into fundamental constants of physics. “Until now, clocks have been thought of as tools for sharing common time. But with clocks like this, conversely, we can understand that time passes at different speeds, depending on the time and place a clock is at,” said Hidetoshi Katori of the University of Tokyo. Of course, both atomic clocks can help us stay timely, but they also have practical applications for everything from deep-space networking, to predicting earthquakes and GPS navigation. With this type of accuracy, looks like none of us will be getting away with showing up late to work anymore. Check out a video about the optical lattice clock after the break. Continue reading New developments in atomic clock technology beat accuracy records, may inspire Ke$ha’s next hit New developments in atomic clock technology beat accuracy records, may inspire Ke$ha’s next hit originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 01:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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The Xiaomi Phone managed to pique our interest by packing a 1.5Ghz dual-core processor into a fairly sleek, inexpensive package — and, like all interesting new devices, it’s now been torn completely apart. You can thank the folks at LeiPhone for doing the hard work in this case, the results of which can be found at the source link below. We’ll soon also have some more impressions of the (intact) phone ourselves, and it looks like Xiaomi will be giving its own forum members the first crack at pre-orders for the device. Those start at 10PM Eastern tonight for those with the requisite number of points, and we’re told that the first 600 orders (200 each day from the 29th to the 31st) will receive an “engineering special edition” version of the phone — not to mention a slight discount off the list price. [Thanks, Adam] Xiaomi Phone gets dissected, phone status confirmed originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 00:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Skipped over the Thunderbolt , did you? If you were waiting for that other LTE phone to come your way, Samsung’s Droid Charge may have been the one that caught your eye. For those who settled on it, we’re interested in knowing how things have been going. How’s that Super AMOLED Plus panel treating you… outdoors? Is the LTE radio smashing your battery life? Are the Android tweaks to your liking? Still feel it was worth the price premium at launch? There’s no doubt that the Charge is one of favorites on Big Red right now, but that’s not to say it doesn’t have its quirks. Speaking of which — it’s about high time you tossed in a few opinions of your own in comments below. How would you change Samsung’s Droid Charge? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 28 Aug 2011 22:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Inhabitat’s Week in Green: Lighting superbike, kinetic energy generator and vibrating gloves
August 28, 2011 No Comment
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week’s most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us — it’s the Week in Green. It’s been an epic week for environmental news as Inhabitat reported that the East Coast battened its hatches against the force of Hurricane Irene , which has arrived in the wake of a 5.6 earthquake that shook the Eastern Seaboard from Virgina to New York. We compiled a series of tips to help our readers weather the storm, and we took a closer look at the six nuclear power plants that were shaken by the East Coast’s unusual quake. We also showcased several incredible examples of high-tech architecture — the recently crowned world’s tallest LEED platinum building and the world’s longest tunnel , which Russia recently announced would span the Bering Straight. Speaking of remarkable advancements in sustainable transportation, this week we took at look at what could be most powerful electric car on earth , and we brought you footage of the 200 mph Lighting superbike breaking a world land speed record. We also saw eco vehicles take off for greener horizons as Oliver VTOL unveiled an ultra-efficient airplane with 6 engines , a team of engineers in Africa constructed a DIY space shuttle in a local garden, and the flying ParaMoto Trike soared through the skies. On the topic of air travel, you may also want to check out our six tips for flying with small children (without Benadryl). It was a big week for wearable technology as well as researchers unveiled a powerful kinetic energy generator that can fit in your sneakers. We also saw a vibrating glove that improves motor performance, a haptic glove that allows the blind to see with sonar, and a range of antenna-embedded clothing that offers a discreet form of hands-free communication. Finally, we heard Ashton Kutcher’s predict that wearable technology will be the next big wave , and we shared a glow-in-the-dark sequin gown that would make a choice piece of evening wear this weekend’s storm knock the lights out. Inhabitat’s Week in Green: Lighting superbike, kinetic energy generator and vibrating gloves originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 28 Aug 2011 20:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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