Driving a convertible with the top down may seem like a lot of fun, but people who go 55 miles per hour or faster may be increasing the risk of developing hearing loss over time, new research indicates.
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We’ve been dying to play with a third-party AirPlay speaker system ever since Apple opened the tech up, and iHome was happy to oblige here at CES with the new iW1 . The wireless speaker system features two three-inch woofers and two one-inch tweeters with Bongiovi audio processing, a built-in lithium-ion battery with a grab-and-go charging base, and capacitive touch controls — and, just as we suspected, AirPlay compatibility courtesy of BridgeCo . iHome’s also developed a new iOS configuration app called iHome Connect that’ll help you get the iW1 on your WiFi network quickly, although regular WPS setup is also supported. You can also charge your iPhone or iPod by plugging into the USB port in the back — iHome is packing a cable in the box. Streaming from iOS was just as simple as with the Apple TV or Airport Express, and we only saw minimal lag between control inputs like volume and track changes, just as with an all-Apple setup. Interestingly, iOS only supports point-to-point AirPlay streaming right now, so you can only use a single speaker at a time, but if you’re streaming from iTunes you can hit multiple speakers at once, regardless of vendor. iHome is still tuning the audio performance, so we’ll reserve judgment on that until we get a review unit — which should happen when this guy ships for $300 in March. Video after the break. Gallery: iHome iW1 AirPlay speaker dock hands-on Continue reading iHome iW1 AirPlay wireless speaker hands-on iHome iW1 AirPlay wireless speaker hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Jan 2011 18:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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So, Microsoft doesn’t have a press-ready demo of its new Avatar Kinect , but we at least got to see it in action today. To keep the unwashed masses lining up to try Kinect at the booth entertained, Microsoft has a comedian (dubbed “Mr. Kinect”) controlling an Avatar with Kinect, heckling the queued-up folks with his digital puppetry. The good news is that he’s working it from a seated position, the great dream of folks tired of standing up to get their motion gaming on. The bad news is that you only get control of your arms, face, and head — you won’t be walking around and punching your friends in the face, sadly. We saw a couple of settings — sadly, not the AA-style setup we witnessed during the keynote — which are pleasant but a little generic (like most of Microsoft’s Kinect titles right now). The actual facial tracking and body tracking worked, but the motions seemed a little minimal. Kinect is obviously completely capable of great skeletal tracking, so we’re hoping for a bit more expressiveness, but we’re still early on, so things could always be tweaked a bit before launch. We did confirm that S teve Ballmer’s Avatar appearance last night was a canned recording, so we are looking at software that isn’t ready for prime time. Overall we think Avatar Kinect is a great idea, and an excellent way to show off Kinect’s exclusive motion control prowess, we just look forward to a future where we have even more control over our Avatars — isn’t that the whole point of Kinect, after all? Let us free, Microsoft. We just want to be free. Check out some video of the setup after the break. Gallery: Avatar Kinect in action Continue reading Avatar Kinect in action: prepare to be mildly diverted Avatar Kinect in action: prepare to be mildly diverted originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Jan 2011 18:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Two explosive devices embedded in pieces of mail detonated within minutes of each other in two government buildings in Maryland on Thursday, injuring two employees and leading local officials to believe that the incidents were related.
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Gulet Mohamed is an 18-year old American citizen who was effectively exiled while traveling abroad for the apparent crime of exploring his Muslim heritage. While in Kuwait, Mohamed was added to the no-fly list, arrested, beaten and threatened with torture. Glenn Greenwald has posted a 50-minute conversation with Mohamed. Glenn Greenwald on Salon: Approximately two weeks ago
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Molecules developed in the lab to seek out antibodies associated with disease could lead to simple blood tests for Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis, and a host of other diseases, researchers say.
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The internationally recognised winner of Ivory Coast’s presidential election, Alassane Ouattara, on Thursday called for West African special forces to remove Ivory Coast’s incumbent president Laurent Gbagbo in a commando operation. (Jan. 6)
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Now look what we have here, the long awaited HDHomeRun Prime triple CableCARD tuner for Windows 7 Media Center . Originally announced at CES last year , the little black perforated box is already in production and will soon be selling for $250 after it makes it ways through the final stages of CableLabs certification. The sad fact is there is no way to know when that cert will be sealed, but when it is you’ll be able to pre-order and then you can expect to receive it 30 days later. The other little tidbits we picked up from the booth is that SiliconDust is working on a six tuner rack mountable version that should ship later this year and that the ATSC and QAM version we’ve loved for years has a new case a new price of $129 and will be shipping in February. Gallery: Hands-on with the HDHomeRun Prime Gallery: Hands-on with the new HDHomeRun Hands-on with the HDHomeRun Prime CableCARD tuner originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Jan 2011 18:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Dell refreshes Alienware M17x, Dell XPS 17 with 120Hz 3D HD screens, Sandy Bridge CPUs
January 6, 2011 No Comment
Got a hankering for some NVIDIA 3D Vision in a new laptop PC? Dell’s making it happen with some component upgrades on its high-end Alienware M17x and XPS 17 laptops. It seems Round Rock came across a few shipments of a 17-inch, 1080p panel with a 120Hz refresh rate, perfect for interfacing with NVIDIA’s shutter glasses , and is including it (along with a new NVIDIA GeForce GT 555M for the XPS 17) as premium options. They’ll also both sport Intel’s new Sandy Bridge processors. Dell’s press release doesn’t specify if a set of 3D glasses will come with the new laptops, nor how much the upgrade will cost, but a 3D-capable M17x will start at $1,499 starting January 10th, and a stereoscopic XPS 17 will run $1,449 on February 1st. You do the math. Continue reading Dell refreshes Alienware M17x, Dell XPS 17 with 120Hz 3D HD screens, Sandy Bridge CPUs Dell refreshes Alienware M17x, Dell XPS 17 with 120Hz 3D HD screens, Sandy Bridge CPUs originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Jan 2011 18:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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We just finished up a meeting with the folks from Snapstick and we came away surprisingly impressed with their foray into the increasingly cramped space of the connected living room. Snapstick’s concept isn’t the most novel we’ve seen, but it’s implementation definitely is unlike most other solutions currently available or announced. Read on past the break for a quick rundown of the tech that makes the Snapstick system work, as well as a video of the system in action. Gallery: Snapstick preview at CES 2011 Continue reading DNP Snapstick preview and hands-on DNP Snapstick preview and hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Jan 2011 18:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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