It’s been a long time coming, but it’s finally here — or at least its pre-order page is. Sony’s hotly anticipated PlayStation Vita has been on our minds since January , and now it’s making its Canadian North American pre-order debut via Best Buy Canada. The product pages for both the WiFi-only and 3G editions list a release date of March 30th — which lines up with previous reports that the console won’t be gracing your stocking this Christmas — but we’d take that estimate with a heaping fistful of salt. If you’re itching to throw down some Canadian dollars, however, feel free to hop on over to the source to secure yours now. [Thanks, Silverfox] Sony’s PlayStation Vita goes up for pre-order at Best Buy Canada originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Aug 2011 15:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Spyro has seen a lot of action in his day, but few, if any, of his adventures have been quite so trying as his recent trip to the FCC. The commission took a close look at the Portal of Power peripheral for the upcoming Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure title. The circular device lets users store game information across platforms using plastic figures, so progress made on, say, the 3DS version of the game will transfer over when they boot up the PS3 version. The plucky dragon and his pie-like Portal of Power are due to arrive in October. Gallery: Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure on the FCC Spyro peripheral goes on FCC adventure originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Aug 2011 08:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Have anything sitting in your voicemail that you’d prefer the rest of the world didn’t hear? When’s the last time you went about checking it, anyway? AT&T is now on a mission to save its carefree customers from themselves, and beginning today, all new subscribers will be required to set a voicemail password or affirmatively disable the security measure. Ma Bell’s new policy is a reaction to the current unauthorized intrusion hubbub in the media, combined with the very real threat of caller ID spoofing . Shockingly, its current customers won’t receive similar treatment until early next year, and only when they upgrade their handsets. Of course, you can easily secure your voicemail within the settings, and if you prefer the convenience of retrieving your messages without hassle, you’ll still have that option — much to Rupert Murdoch’s pleasure, that is. AT&T ramps up voicemail security, say hello to your new pin code originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Rice University chemists bake graphene out of Girl Scout cookies, redefine low-carb diets (video)
August 6, 2011 No Comment
Would you like some cookies? Well, you’re gonna have to buy them, and then get thee to a Rice University chem lab, stat ! The Texas institution of higher learning recently played host to Girl Scouts Troop Beverly Hills 25080, turning their om nom carbohydrated delights into billion dollar graphene . Resident scientist James Tour gathered his gaggle of grad students for a hands-on demo, walking the future Phyllis Neflers through the transformative steps that convert carbon-based material (see: a box of Samoas), into $15 billion worth of scientific loot — or as one astute troopster put it, “… a lot of cash.” Indeed it is young lady, but something tells us your well-earned Science in Action badge won’t go too well with those cookie-bought Louboutins. Skip past the break for the full video and a little “Cookie Time” nostalgia. Continue reading Rice University chemists bake graphene out of Girl Scout cookies, redefine low-carb diets (video) Rice University chemists bake graphene out of Girl Scout cookies, redefine low-carb diets (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Aug 2011 10:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Happy birthday, World Wide Web ! Hard to believe you’re turning 20 already . It seems like just yesterday we were hearing the pitter patter of little dial-up , delighting at the words “you got mail,” and getting frustrated when calling our friends and receiving that dreaded busy signal. You’re all grown up now, helping people learn how to farm and become overnight pop sensations . What, we wonder, will the next 20 years bring? At the very least, you’ll eventually have to move out of your parents’ basement, get a real job, and settle down. It’s hard to pay attention to that kind of stuff, though, when you’ve got another year of sneaking beers ahead of you. So go ahead, World Wide Web, enjoy yourself tonight — just make sure to be home by midnight. World Wide Web turns 20, finally shakes that acne problem originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Aug 2011 11:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Dell’s Latitude XT3 tablet PC gets a product page, spins around for your amusement
August 6, 2011 No Comment
Well lookee here — it’s the snazzy new Dell tablet PC that we first spotted way back in February . The Latitude XT3 finally has a product page to call its own, yet another hint that it will be swiveling its way into the hands and hearts of buyers in the near future — a notion further driven home by the convertible’s recent cameo on the FCC . The 13.3-inch laptop sports an Intel Core i3, i5, or i7 processor, Windows 7, and works with a finger or stylus — remember those? Gallery: Dell’s Latitude XT3 tablet PC gets a product page Dell’s Latitude XT3 tablet PC gets a product page, spins around for your amusement originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Aug 2011 10:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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We’ve known about the Conquer 4G for a while now, in spite attempts to keep it under wraps . Sprint finally came clean on the existence of the handset today, announcing the milestone 25th 4G capable device for the its network — the first in that category to hit the market at under $100. The Samsung-manufactured smartphone will hit the market on August 21st for $99.99 (plus a two-year year contract and after mail-in rebate, naturally). The Gingerbread handset packs a 1GHz processor, a 3.5-inch display, and front- and rear-facing cameras. Press after the break. Gallery: Sprint Conquer 4G press photos Continue reading Samsung Conquer 4G set to raid Sprint on August 21st for $100 on contract Samsung Conquer 4G set to raid Sprint on August 21st for $100 on contract originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 05 Aug 2011 10:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Cambrige researchers tout new location-based method to predict friends on social networks
August 6, 2011 No Comment
Friend suggestions on social networks may already be a little too eerily accurate for some, but a team of researchers from Cambridge University now say they can do one better. They’ve devised a method that doesn’t simply rely the usual friends-of-friends approach, but on where those people tend to hang out. According to researcher Salvatore Scellato, “it turns out that the properties of the places we interact can determine how likely we are to develop social ties,” and that places like offices and gyms are better indications of potential friends than football stadiums or airports. That notion was borne out in their research (conducted over a period of four months using Gowalla), which found that “about 30 percent of all new social links appear among users that check-in to the same places.” With the two prediction methods combined, the researchers say they’re able to account for 66 percent of all new social ties. No word if they’ve moved onto predicting crimes next. [Image credit: Gowalla ] Cambrige researchers tout new location-based method to predict friends on social networks originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Aug 2011 07:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Welcome to Engadget’s Back to School guide! We know that this time of year can be pretty annoying and stressful for everyone, so we’re here to help out with the heartbreaking process of gadget buying for the school-aged crowd. Today, we have printers on our minds and on our desks — and you can head to the Back to School hub to see the rest of the product guides as they’re added throughout the month. Sadly, most of your professors probably still expect assignments to be turned in on dried-up wood pulp. And, while that doesn’t mean you’ll have to remaster the fine art of writing in cursive, you will need a printer to put your (carefully proofread and thoroughly researched, of course) prose on paper. Jump past the break for our recommendations, and another opportunity to enter our back to school giveaway. Simply leave a comment below to be entered to win , and head over to our giveaway page for more details. Continue reading Engadget’s back to school guide 2011: printers Engadget’s back to school guide 2011: printers originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 05 Aug 2011 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Google Dictionary slams shut forever, world unsurprisingly at a loss for words
August 6, 2011 No Comment
close /v. kloʊz; adj., adv. kloʊs or, for 51, kloʊz; n. kloʊz for 59, 60, 63-65, 67, 68, kloʊs for 61, 62, 66/ Show Spelled [v. klohz; adj., adv. klohs or, for 51, klohz; n. klohz for 59, 60, 63-65, 67, 68, klohs for 61, 62, 66] Show IPA verb, closed, clos
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