Dockstar FreeAgent hacked into inexpensive emulation masterpiece (video)
November 29, 2010 No Comment
Hello, multipurpose! Seagate’s Pogoplug-based FreeAgent DockStar — at least at a glance — isn’t much good to those who aren’t buying up DockStar HDDs. But if you dig a little deeper, you’ll realize that this minuscule adapter packs a 1.2GHz Marvell processor, 128MB of RAM and 256MB of ROM. There’s also a smattering of USB ports and an Ethernet socket; add that all up, and you’ve got a hacker’s playground. One Hunter Davis decided to see just how much he could squeeze out of this here peripheral, which can be widely found for as little as $25 nowadays. Thanks to a copy of Debian Linux, a good bit of programming know-how, a DisplayLink USB-to-VGA adapter and a USB sound adapter, he was able to concoct a homegrown emulation console that could handle nearly everything he threw at it. ‘Course, you’ll have to spring for those other parts if you don’t have a house full of random doodads, but once he figures out how to install a battery and make the entire setup portable… look out! Head on past the break for an in-action video. Continue reading Dockstar FreeAgent hacked into inexpensive emulation masterpiece (video) Dockstar FreeAgent hacked into inexpensive emulation masterpiece (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 17:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Motorola Olympus hitting AT&T in ‘December or January,’ says now-deleted Facebook post
November 29, 2010 No Comment
Excited for Tegra 2 to finally take the Android smartphone world by storm? Recent leaks out of LG and Motorola certainly suggest that NVIDIA’s finally going to make some inroads with its silicon somewhere around the Gingerbread or Honeycomb time frame — and that might happen sooner rather than later if a posting on Facebook is to be believed. Remember that shiny black Olympus (pictured above) that leaked last week? Someone in the captain’s chair of one of AT&T’s official Facebook accounts responded to a question about availability of the phone earlier today, matter-of-factly reporting that “the Motorola Olympus should be available in December or January.” We would’ve been willing to chalk it up to confusion on an employee’s part, but the post was later removed without a trace, and a follow-up with AT&T elicited a standard “we don’t have any information to share about upcoming devices” response. The company claims the posting was made “erroneously,” and we’ll agree with them on at least one level: neither AT&T nor Motorola intended for that information to slip out today. Motorola Olympus hitting AT&T in ‘December or January,’ says now-deleted Facebook post originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 16:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Still holding tight to the “Sharing is Caring!” mantra? Not afraid in the least of handing out a few kilobytes to lost tourists down below? If so, you’re a prime candidate to own a Fon router; for those unaware, Fon’s goal is to equip the world with its 802.11n routers, and then distribute WiFi through them for all to enjoy. The device creates two WiFi signals (SSIDs), one private and one public, and for anyone who knows the pain of being desperate for just a single open hotspot, it’s a product (and mission) worth supporting. The Fonera SIMPL was introduced way back at Mobile World Congress, and while the company said it had an order for 400,000 then, that figure has risen rather significantly since. Today, it’s revealing that two million of these guys have been sold to telecommunication companies around the globe, with British Telecom, MTS-Comstar Russia, SFR France, SoftBank Japan and ZON Cable Portugal named in particular. The general idea is to provide these to customers in order to lighten the overall load for everyone else, but those looking to buy in sans help can finally do so — the SIMPL’s going for $49 / €39 right now directly through the outfit’s website and we’re confident that you’ll do the right thing. Continue reading Fonera SIMPL router now on sale for $49, moving quickly to telcos Fonera SIMPL router now on sale for $49, moving quickly to telcos originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 15:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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An iPad for zilch on contract? Yessir… but only if you pack up and move to the Land of the Rising Sun. Softbank Mobile has just announced a new pricing plan that makes Apple’s 16GB iPad WiFi + 3G model totally free with a two-year data agreement in Japan , and for those who recall it being “free” before, this situation is a bit different. You see, there’s no built-in monthly surcharge for this one; rather than paying off your iPad over 24 months, you’re actually getting it for nothing as long as you’re kosher with forking out
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Though not offering the sort of stark, terrible beauty (or the gore) of The Act of Seeing with One’s Own Eyes , Sectra’s Visual Imaging Table will let you perform a “virtual autopsy,” by using CT and MRI scans to place 3D recreations of a patient’s body on a large, multitouch table. What’s more, the body can then be examined — and even cut with a “virtual knife.” And it’s finally available “to the masses,” as one company rep put it in an email this morning (although we sort of figure that if you have an MRI machine you probably aren’t one of “the masses”). Check out the PR after the break, or hit up the source link to get one for yourself. Continue reading Sectra virtual autopsy table available now, Stan Brakhage nonplussed Sectra virtual autopsy table available now, Stan Brakhage nonplussed originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 15:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …The folks at UT Austin’s HCR Laboratory have been working on a Meka humanoid robot for some time now, but they’ve only just recently added one pretty significant component to it: a head. This so-called “Dreamer” isn’t just your ordinary robot head, though — described by the researchers as a “sociable humanoid head,” the head is modeled on anime and comic characters, and promises to establish an “organic link to its biological counterpart, creating feelings of quasi-affinity in response to gestures and synthetic emotions.” In other words, it’s impressive enough to hold your attention while you interact with it, and it may very well creep you out a little. Head on past the break to check it out in action. Continue reading Meka, UT Austin researchers show off ‘sociable’ Dreamer robot head Meka, UT Austin researchers show off ‘sociable’ Dreamer robot head originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 14:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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It’s been quite a few months since we’ve seen any major developments in Microsoft’s patent battle with Toronto-based i4i Inc over Microsoft Word , but it looks like things are now about to change in a big way. As The Wall Street Journal reports, the US Supreme Court has today agreed to hear Mircosoft’s appeal in the case that dealt it $290 million in damages and prevented it from selling versions of Word that contained the allegedly infringing technology. That could not only have some pretty big ramifications for Microsoft in this particular case, but for patent law in general, as it gets to the very heart of the legal standard for determining the validity of a patent. Needless to say, we’ll be watching this one very closely — the court is expected to hear the case sometime next year. US Supreme Court agrees to hear Microsoft appeal in Word patent case originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 14:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Welcome to the Engadget Holiday Gift Guide ! The team here is well aware of the heartbreaking difficulties of the seasonal shopping experience, and we want to help you sort through the trash and come up with the treasures this year. Below is today’s bevy of hand curated picks, and you can head back to the Gift Guide hub to see the rest of the product guides as they’re added throughout the holiday season. Sit back, relax, grab a controller, and enjoy some obsessive-compulsive button mashing while you work in that body-sized groove into the couch… that’s not the M.O. for the console makers this year. You don’t have to embrace the jumping, hand-waving, and other methods of physical exertion, but it’s definitely the “it” gaming hardware of this holiday season. Be sure to triple-check just what box your loved ones play on, and click on through for our gaming gift suggestions. Continue reading Engadget’s Holiday Gift Guide: Gaming Engadget’s Holiday Gift Guide: Gaming originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 13:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Two Kinects join forces to create better 3D video, blow our minds (video)
November 29, 2010 No Comment
Remember when Oliver Kreylos impressed and shocked us by showing that a single Microsoft Kinect could create some remarkably stout 3D video ? He’s back at it again, this time blowing minds and demonstrating that two Kinects can be paired and their output meshed — one basically filling in the gaps of the other. He found that the two do create some interference, the dotted IR pattern of one causing some holes and blotches in the other, but when the two are combined they basically help each other out and the results are quite impressive. As you can see in the video after the break, Oliver is able to rotate the camera perspective and basically film himself from a new camera angle that exists somewhere in between the position of the two Kinects, and do-so in real-time. Sure, the quality leaves a lot to be desired, but still. Wow. [Thanks, Mohammad] Continue reading Two Kinects join forces to create better 3D video, blow our minds (video) Two Kinects join forces to create better 3D video, blow our minds (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 13:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Bicycle lock climbs poles, encourages would-be thieves to look elsewhere (video)
November 29, 2010 No Comment
Had your morning cup of Haterade? Get ready to have it flushed out. A team of bicyclists / engineers have assembled what might be the best thing to happen to the bicycle since Lance Armstrong, with the (currently unnamed) pole-climbing bike lock created for Germany’s own Conrad. There’s no word on if (or when) this fancy contraption will go on sale, but we know at least one Dutch inhabitant that’ll be parting ways with as many Euros as necessary in order to take one home. In short, this device straps around a nearby light pole and then carries your bike high into the air (and thus, faraway from the hands of thieves) via a remote control. The only problems? For one, it’s huge, and should prove worrisome to carry around. Secondly, you’ll be in a whole heap of trouble should some other prankster decide to hike his / her bike up the same pole beneath yours. Anywho, the video after the break is definitely worth a watch. Continue reading Bicycle lock climbs poles, encourages would-be thieves to look elsewhere (video) Bicycle lock climbs poles, encourages would-be thieves to look elsewhere (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Nov 2010 12:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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