Think for a second, what major consumer electronics company doesn’t have a tablet to show? Right, Sony. In fact, the rumor womb has been conspicuously barren of salacious Sony tablet tattle ever since Apple’s iPad was announced back in 2010. Oh sure, Sony’s owned-up to the development of prototypes that fill a ” very important position ” somewhere in between its own Vaio PC lineup and the Xperia Play byproduct of its Ericsson commingling. But beyond that: zilch, nada… until today. We have a couple of tablets we’d like to tell you about, starting with a 9.4-inch honeypot of an Android 3.0 tablet. Details of which have been confirmed by two highly trusted and independent sources. Known by its “S1″ codename internally, Sony is busy customizing Matias Duarte’s Honeycomb interface to its own specification. Although, we’re skeptical of Sony’s software capabilities, we’ve been assured that Sony’s work is cutting edge stuff created by a talented engineering team spanning Sony’s VAIO, Reader , PlayStation, and Sony Ericsson product groups. The team is lead by the VAIO organization but will probably launch as a Sony product without VAIO branding, according to one source. Sony’s custom-built transitions and UI elements have created a user experience that rivals and at times improves upon the iPad’s renowned experience. The tablet itself, we’re told, is 100 percent focused on Qriocity , Sony’s music, games, ebooks, and videos on demand service that’s just been launched in Europe. It comes preloaded with Sony PS One games, a Bravia Media Remote , and yes, PlayStation integration — though it’s unclear if that’ll be limited to Remote Play or if the Android tablet will be PlayStation Suite certified . One source speculates that it could very well get the PlayStation gaming seal of approval by the time it ships — but that’s just an educated guess. So what about that curvaceous mockup above? A design described to us as “beautiful, the best thing” one source has ever seen from Sony. Click through the break and we’ll explain. Continue reading Exclusive: Sony ‘S1′ brings Qriocity to 9.4-inch Honeycomb tablet Exclusive: Sony ‘S1′ brings Qriocity to 9.4-inch Honeycomb tablet originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 08:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …It’s not exactly the most surprising news of the day: Borders is filing for bankruptcy protection and will shutter about 30% of its stores—or about 200 locations—over the next few weeks. The 40-year-old company, which has struggled in the face of competition from Amazon, the Kindle, and deep-discounters…
Continue reading …The stylus isn’t dead: more pen-based tablets and apps coming this year
February 16, 2011 No Comment
HTC may have unleashed a completely unique Android tablet with an active digitizer and stylus yesterday, but more are on the way. At least that’s the word from N-Trig , the company responsible for the screen and pen technology in HTC’s Flyer as well as other convertible tablet PCs. According to the company’s VP of Business Development Lenny Englehardt, 7-, 9.7-, and 10-inch pen-equipped Android slates are coming in the next year from major manufacturers (sadly, he couldn’t share which ones). We went over a bit of the hardware technology yesterday and dug a bit into HTC’s pen-optimized Scribe software , but the big question on our mind has been third party Android applications that take advantage of the stylus. Well, it turns out there are quite a few of them in the works from the likes of Adobe and others. And yes, one of them includes handwriting conversion! We got a look at three of those forthcoming apps on N-Trig’s Tegra 2 development kit, which has the same screen / pen hardware as the Flyer — hit the break for our impressions and a video demo. Gallery: Android pen-based apps Continue reading The stylus isn’t dead: more pen-based tablets and apps coming this year The stylus isn’t dead: more pen-based tablets and apps coming this year originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 08:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
A government official says Japan has temporarily suspended its Antarctic whaling operations after repeated disruptions by a conservation group. The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has been chasing the Japanese whaling fleet for weeks in the icy seas off Antarctica, trying to block Japan’s annual hunts, planned for up to 945 whales. Fisheries agency official Tatsuya Nakaoku said Tokyo halted the…
Continue reading …NEC uses active noise cancellation for quieter zooming into your future memories
February 16, 2011 No Comment
NEC just injected a little Bose up in some digital cameras, adding what it calls “noise suppression technologies” to Casio’s new EX-ZR10 and promising that it will be deployed “throughout the digital camera and video camera markets” soon. The tech is designed to combat the evil intrusion of noise from optical zoom motors, working with a recording of what the zoom motor sounds like inside the camera. The shooter’s internal circuitry then subtracts that noise from what’s being recorded and, hey presto, silent zoomin’! NEC indicates a camera’s microphone still captures other, desirable ambient noise without issue and that this tech allows the use of faster, more powerful motors for faster, more powerful zooming. Continue reading NEC uses active noise cancellation for quieter zooming into your future memories NEC uses active noise cancellation for quieter zooming into your future memories originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 08:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
Continue reading the main story Related Stories Sarkozy ban on foreign holidays Mubarak ‘lent French PM a plane’ French minister in Tunisia gaffe French Foreign Minister Michele Alliot-Marie has defended a property deal between her parents and an associate of the ousted Tunisian president. “Their private life is their own affair,” she said, after news weekly Le Canard Enchaine broke the story….
Continue reading …Mahmood Karzai, brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, has risen from running a few modest restaurants in the US to being one of Afghanistan’s most prosperous businessman. Federal authorities, believing there was more than just a little shady dealing along the way, are seeking his indictment on racketeering, extortion, and…
Continue reading …
North Koreans marked the 69th birthday of leader Kim Jong Il with flowers, music and dancing. But South Koreans protested, as activists used giant balloons to send propaganda leaflets across the Korean border. (Feb. 16)
Continue reading …Finalists in European Amateur Photo Competition: Leaping Capra Ibex, Close-Up Frogs, and More (Slideshow)
February 16, 2011 No Comment
Photo: Wild Wonders of Europe From a leaping capra ibex to a close-up of a frog swimming, shot from below, it’s hard to believe that the photos in the Wild Wonders of Europe amateur photo competition are not shot by professionals. Each month, the competition puts the spotlight on Europe’s animals, from endangered Iberian lynxes — of which fewer than 100 remain in the wild — to common toads, and draws entries from all over the continent, giving adult and youth photographers the… Read the full story on TreeHugger
Continue reading …
We’re seeing some rather unattainable prices for many of the sexiest Android tablets to be unveiled at MWC and CES this year, but thankfully HTC’s Flyer looks to be coming in a little lower than most. It’s just popped up on Amazon.de at €669. Subtract the VAT and run that figure through a currency converter and you’re looking at a price of around $730. A bargain? Hardly, but better than some others we’ve seen . Sadly it’s still nicht verf
Continue reading …