Hey, don’t knock the naming engineers — “Clear Modem with WiFi” just works . Indeed, that’s the official title of Clear’s new at-home WiMAX modem (the same one that flew through the FCC back in September), designed to bring the 4G superhighway into one’s home for as little as $35 per month. According to the operator, it’s an all-in-one solution that’s “around the size of a book,” offering 4G reception as well as an internal 802.11b/g/n router to distribute those waves across your home without the need for a separate WLAN router. It’s available today from your local Clear store, with a $120 outright price or a $7 per month lease rate. Furthermore, Clear home service customers can add home voice service, with unlimited local and long distance calling in the US, Canada and Puerto Rico, for an extra 15 clams per month. Oh, and if your math skills are a tad fuzzy, we’d recommend buying it if you’re planning to keep the service for greater than 17 months. You’re welcome. Continue reading Clear launches new at-home WiMAX router with integrated WiFi Clear launches new at-home WiMAX router with integrated WiFi originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Dec 2010 11:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Approved and waiting for your download, Chrome to Windows Phone 7 is now available in the mobile OS’ operating system. True to its name, once you download both this app and the applicable Chrome extension, a quick click on the Windows logo in your otherwise Google browser will send links or selected text to your Microsoft mobile. Join your Android friends in embracing the Continuous Client lifestyle. Chrome to Windows Phone 7 now available originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Dec 2010 09:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Google acquires speech synthesis outfit Phonetic Arts, plans to use Jack Donaghy’s voice for everything
December 4, 2010 No Comment
Don’t ever knock Google for not reinvesting a little of that cheddar it’s stacking in Mountain View. Barely two months after pulling the trigger on BlindType, El Goog has now sunk an undisclosed amount of money into Phonetic Arts, described as a speech synthesis company based in Cambridge, England. Naturally, Google’s been toiling around the clock in an effort to better its speech technologies, and it looks as if it could be cutting out quite a few months (or years) of work with this one purchase. Phonetic Arts was known for being on the “cutting edge of speech synthesis, delivering technology that generates natural computer speech from small samples of recorded voice,” and we get the impression that the team will be given clearance badges to enter Google’s London-based engineering facility shortly. The company’s own Mike Cohen is hoping that this will help us “move a little faster towards that Star Trek future” — frankly, we’re hoping to have Jack Donaghy’s voice become the de facto standard in under a year. We hear some dudes at 30 Rock are already toying with a prototype… Google acquires speech synthesis outfit Phonetic Arts, plans to use Jack Donaghy’s voice for everything originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Dec 2010 08:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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If you haven’t noticed already, Disney (and the rest of the world, seemingly) is going all-out for this year’s rendition of Tron . What’s potentially better than a cinematical remake? You’re looking at it. The Tron Armchair was dreamed up and designed by New York’s own Dror Benshetrit, with the seating apparatus officially debuting this week at Design Miami / Art Basel. There’s a whole slew of motifs to peek down there in the source link, all of which make “impregnated fiberglass and polyester resin” look about as good as they can. It’s a crying shame that no price tag accompanies them, but hopefully that’ll change soon. Really soon. Visualized: Tron Armchair redefines furniture art originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Dec 2010 06:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Mad Catz ships Rock Band 3 MIDI Pro adapter, gives your keyboard and drum set new life
December 4, 2010 No Comment
Talk about just in time. With merely weeks to go before Mr. Claus makes his wintry journey ’round the globe, Mad Catz has decided to finally ship a peripheral that was introduced way back in June. Without a doubt, the MIDI Pro adapter is one of the more intriguing music game accessories to hit the open market, enabling Rock Band 3 owners to use most MIDI keyboards and drum sets with the title. The box is shipping as we speak for Sony’s PS3 and Nintendo’s Wii, and the Xbox 360 variant should be headed to Best Buy in the coming hours. If you’ll recall, this guy’s also designed to work with the forthcoming Rock Band 3 Squier guitar / controller , and it even features a velocity sensitive adjustment for MIDI drums designed to reduce cross-talk during play. At $39.99, it’s a no-brainer for those who already own a MIDI instrument or two, but we just might be more excited about the hacking possibilities than anything else. DIYers, get at it! Gallery: Mad Catz Rock Band 3 MIDI Pro adapter Continue reading Mad Catz ships Rock Band 3 MIDI Pro adapter, gives your keyboard and drum set new life Mad Catz ships Rock Band 3 MIDI Pro adapter, gives your keyboard and drum set new life originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Dec 2010 03:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Corsair Force series gets 90GB and 180GB brothers, middle child syndrome inevitable
December 4, 2010 No Comment
Corsair has added new 90GB and 180GB sizes to its blazin’ fast Force Series of SSDs, growing the happy family which already included 60, 120, and 240GB versions in addition to the original 100GB and 200GB options released back in the spring. Unlike its previous siblings, both the F90 and F180 are also available immediately from Corsair dealers for suggested MSRPs of $255 and $430, respectively. Built around the lauded SandForce SF-1200 controller and capable of beastly 285MB/sec read speeds and 275MB/sec write rates, these latest releases are not too small and not too big, making them the perfect Goldie Locks drives of the SSD world. To hear the news straight from Corsair’s mouth, check out the press release after the break. Continue reading Corsair Force series gets 90GB and 180GB brothers, middle child syndrome inevitable Corsair Force series gets 90GB and 180GB brothers, middle child syndrome inevitable originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 04 Dec 2010 01:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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2010 may arguably be the year of the tablet, but darn if media streamers aren’t breathing down their neck. This year, we’ve seen an explosion in the quantity and quality of media streamer options, with even the mighty Google buying in via its Google TV solution. One of the earlier birds, Roku , decided to dole out an updated box just a few months ago, and now it’s competing against the Apple TV, a few WD TV Live units, D-Link’s Boxee Box and scores of integrated options within HDTVs. At $99, there’s an awful lot of choices on the market, but we’re curious to know how XDS early adopters would tweak and / or overhaul things if given the golden opportunity. Would you change the exterior at all? How about the user interface? Add any content partners? How’s the remote control situation treating you? Think of comments below ike you would an AA meeting — speak your heart and wait for nods. We’re all one in this brainstorming bubble. How would you change Roku’s XDS media streamer? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Dec 2010 23:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Having a baby Jesus or other items taken from a nativity scene or holiday display at your home or house of worship can be painful during what should be a joyous time. But dozens of churches and residents are turning to some high-tech help. (Dec. 3)
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Remember how W said Americans were addicted to fossil fuels? Well, Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger (better known by his crew as ’265-Cal’) is addicted to renewable energy . First he had photovoltaic arrays installed on the roof of an auditorium in the Vatican. Then he had a solar cooling system built into the Vatican cafeteria. Now, the Pope wants his mobile bulletproof shell to be solar-powered. While we’d love to see some PV cells rocking out on the roof of the custom Benz, they probably wouldn’t power a whole lot more than his DC Papal reading lights — to that end, we’re hoping he goes the practical route and installs a PV array on top of the Popegarage and simply juices the batteries between sessions of humbly waving to the teeming masses. Whatever he and his crack team of energy specialists figure out, we’re sure you’ll be able to read all about it in the next volume of The Energy of the Sun in the Vatican , a book that actually exists. [Photo remixed from Catholic Westminster's flickr ] The Pope desires a solar-powered Popemobile, might just get one originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Dec 2010 22:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Sony Ericsson’s Zeus Z1 PlayStation phone contributes sample shots to Picasa
December 4, 2010 No Comment
At this point, does it really surprise anyone that a new phone is leaking by way of a photo sharing site ? We totally understand the conundrum: when you’re logged into a phone that you’re testing and you’re taking pictures, it’s so easy to upload ‘em. And hey, you need to test the sharing functionality at some point anyway, right? At any rate, we love it, so we’re not going to complain that a few photos with Sony Ericsson Zeus clearly called out in the EXIF data have started showing up on Picasa. The four appropriately-labeled pictures all clock in at 5 megapixels, so we hope you weren’t expecting an N8 -beating resolution here… but then again, when you’re heads-down in PlayStation-branded games for hours on end, do you really have time to be taking decent pictures anyway? Sony Ericsson’s Zeus Z1 PlayStation phone contributes sample shots to Picasa originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Dec 2010 21:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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