We would never enter a foreign land without packing a rented MiFi from XCom Global , but what if you’re not a data junkie and only require a sliver of internet access for your device? You’re undoubtedly thinking internet caf
Continue reading …Scosche BoomCan ups your mobile device’s sound for $25, annoys anyone near you
August 18, 2011 No Comment
Sure, you could use the built-in speaker on your tablet or cellphone to crank your tunes on the bus or at the office, but Scosche’s BoomCan may be the ticket for those looking to pump out a bit more volume. It’s not wireless like some other options , but twenty-five smackers gets you a 2 x 2.5-inch aluminum Can loaded with a 40mm driver, an audio / USB charging cable and a pouch for scratch-free traveling. You’ll have seven hours to rock on its internal battery, and although any chance of stereo separation looks pretty slim, you’ll be able to daisy chain a few of them together for a mini rig. The BoomCan is up for order now at Scosche’s website in red, blue, black or silver if you haven’t heard of the breakthrough in portable sound technology known as headphones . Full PR past the break. Continue reading Scosche BoomCan ups your mobile device’s sound for $25, annoys anyone near you Scosche BoomCan ups your mobile device’s sound for $25, annoys anyone near you originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Hitting a full hundred podcasts is certainly no small feat, and we have you — the listener — to thank for your continued support. And what better way to show gratitude than by giving out free stuff? Courtesy of HTC, we now have a Flyer — complete with Scribe pen — with one of your lucky names written on it (figuratively), and we’ll be drawing the winner live on the podcast. Want to be that fortunate dude or dudette that gets your name called? Besides the usual legaleze , there are a few rules you’ll need to follow in order to qualify. Here are the guidelines: Leave a comment below. Any comment will do. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you’ll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Just be careful and you’ll be fine. Contest is open to all residents of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and Canada (excluding Quebec), 18 or older! Sorry, we don’t make this rule (we hate excluding anyone), so be mad at our lawyers and contest laws if you have to be mad. The winner will be chosen randomly. One winner will be chosen to receive the HTC Flyer with HTC Scribe pen. We can’t honor requests — sorry! The winner will be chosen live on our podcast. While you don’t have to be listening to the podcast to win, you must respond within three days of being chosen. If you do not respond, another winner will be picked. Entries can be submitted until Friday, August 19, 2011, at 4:59PM ET. Good luck!] Full rules can be found here . The 100th Engadget Mobile Podcast Giveaway: win an HTC Flyer! originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Aug 2011 18:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Lenovo’s been playing coy with the A1-07, giving us little to go on since we first caught wind of it at the FCC last month. Well, it appears it’s time to ditch those Blurrycam photos for some real-deal promo stills, because this mysterious slate quietly made its debut in China earlier this week — and from the looks of things, it’s already got its mind set on a vacation. Along with a smattering of photographs that picture the slab kicking it seaside, the official LePad A1-07 page shows off some familiar looking specs. As we’d previously heard, this LePad sports a 7-inch, 1024 x 600 display and a microSD slot. Unfortunately, our instincts were also right about the A1-07 lacking Honeycomb; this one’s running Android 2.3. What’s more, it packs a 1GHz TI OMAP3622 processor — not the OMAP3621 previously reported — 512MB of RAM, 16GB of storage, front and back-facing cameras, and a micro-USB port. The LePad A1-07 will set our friends in China back
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With the Space Shuttle program now boldly going nowhere , it’s up to NASA partners like SpaceX to deliver on the interstellar milestones. Scheduled for a launch on November 30th of this year, the Elon Musk-funded Dragon spacecraft is set to dock for the first time with the International Space Station. The planned cargo delivery is expected to be a watershed moment for the space program, as it will cement the agency’s private-public commercial endeavors, heralding the “beginning of a new era in space travel.” NASA has already given the company conditional approval to merge its two planned test flights — COTS Demo 2 and COTS Demo 3 — into this singular mission, with formal authorization contingent upon the “resolution of any potential risks.” If all goes according to plan later this year, get set to embrace a brave new world of galactic travel — one where Musk ushers us into the stars . SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft to dock with the ISS later this fall originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Aug 2011 22:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Lenovo nearly doubles net profits in Q1 earnings report, not so certain about ‘mainstream’ Ultrabooks by end of year
August 18, 2011 No Comment
Lenovo ‘s enjoying a bright and sunny Thursday in Hong Kong today, where the company has just unveiled a Q1 2011 / 2012 earnings report that’s full of rosy news. According to the report, Lenovo’s revenues jumped to $5.92 billion during the fiscal quarter, representing a 15 percent increase over last year’s figures , while net profits nearly doubled to $108 million (compared to $54.9 million last year). Global PC sales, meanwhile, nudged upward 23 percent — even at a time when most other manufacturers are seeing relatively sluggish growth . During an earnings conference call this morning, COO Rory Read provided a little insight into his company’s approach to the growing Ultrabook sector, while hinting at future price reductions. Speaking to reporters, Reed assured that Lenovo would “invest in innovation to be a leader” in the Ultrabook market, adding that prices for its MacBook Air competitors may reach “mainstream” (sub-$1,000) levels by 2012: “I wouldn’t say by the end of the year necessarily but…that’s definitely going to happen.” Head past the break for Lenovo’s financial summary, along with the full PR. [Original photo by Cory Grenier ] Continue reading Lenovo nearly doubles net profits in Q1 earnings report, not so certain about ‘mainstream’ Ultrabooks by end of year Lenovo nearly doubles net profits in Q1 earnings report, not so certain about ‘mainstream’ Ultrabooks by end of year originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Aug 2011 05:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …ThinkFlood releases RedEye remote control app for Android, makes it even easier to sit around
August 18, 2011 No Comment
Nearly two years after releasing their Red Eye app for iOS users, the convenience enthusiasts over at ThinkFlood have now brought the universal remote control to the Android community, as well. The app, which was released in beta a few months ago, allows users to remotely control their non-networked home theater, lighting and air conditioning systems from the comfort of their tablets, laptops or smartphones. Version 2.7.0 also brings plenty of customizable graphics and layouts, for those looking to add a more personal touch to their lives of leisure. Compatible with any device running Android 1.6 or later (including tablets running Honeycomb), the app features a built-in TV program guide that can be used with any display, but in order to take advantage of its other home theater controls, you’ll have to purchase networked ThinkFlood hardware products like RedEye or RedEye Pro (it’s not compatible with RedEye mini ). If you’re interested in downloading the tool for free, check out the source links below, or click past the break for more details, in the full PR. Continue reading ThinkFlood releases RedEye remote control app for Android, makes it even easier to sit around ThinkFlood releases RedEye remote control app for Android, makes it even easier to sit around originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Pssssst… wanna buy some Kodak patents? The venerable photography firm has decided to unload a fair chunk of its IP — 1,100 patents, give or take — to boost its bottom line. You see, Kodak’s got cash flow problems, and it thinks selling a portion of its portfolio is part of the solution. The company must’ve seen dollar signs after Nortel made a mint selling its patents, as Kodak’s now marketing its IP merchandise using the same firm that helped Nortel do its record deal. Strong move Kodak, now if you can just settle up with Apple and RIM , you’ll really be in the money. Kodak shopping its IP wares, looks to cash in on the patent buying craze originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Aug 2011 08:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Razer’s latest Tiamat headset delivers 7.1 sound straight to your ear canals
August 18, 2011 No Comment
Is the new Razer Tiamat the first true 7.1 surround sound headset, as the company claims? Maybe, but more impressively, it’s the world’s first set of cans with 10 discrete drivers — that’s five in each ear. The left and right ears each have three drivers dedicated to that side, and both pack a “center” channel and a subwoofer to round out the required eight lanes of sound. Most surround sound sets call it a day with eight drivers but, surprisingly, the two extra speakers here don’t add much to the cost. And, for the control freaks, there’s an in-line volume remote that lets you adjust each channel individually. You’ll find PR after the break and the Tiamat 7.1 on shelves in Q4 for $180. Continue reading Razer’s latest Tiamat headset delivers 7.1 sound straight to your ear canals Razer’s latest Tiamat headset delivers 7.1 sound straight to your ear canals originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Aug 2011 09:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …IBM’s cognitive computing chip functions like a human brain, heralds our demise (video)
August 18, 2011 No Comment
After having created a supercomputer capable of hanging with Jeopardy’s finest , IBM has now taken another step toward human-like artificial intelligence, with an experimental chip designed to function like a real brain. Developed as part of a DARPA project called SyNAPSE (Systems of Neuromorphic Adaptive Plastic Scalable Electronics), IBM’s so-called “neurosynaptic computing chip” features a silicon core capable of digitally replicating the brain’s neurons, synapses and axons. To achieve this, researchers took a dramatic departure from the conventional von Neumann computer architecture, which links internal memory and a processor with a single data channel. This structure allows for data to be transmitted at high, but limited rates, and isn’t especially power efficient — especially for more sophisticated, scaled-up systems. Instead, IBM integrated memory directly within its processors, wedding hardware with software in a design that more closely resembles the brain’s cognitive structure. This severely limits data transfer speeds, but allows the system to execute multiple processes in parallel (much like humans do), while minimizing power usage. IBM’s two prototypes have already demonstrated the ability to navigate, recognize patterns and classify objects, though the long-term goal is to create a smaller, low-power chip that can analyze more complex data and, yes, learn . Scurry past the break for some videos from IBM’s researchers, along with the full press release. Continue reading IBM’s cognitive computing chip functions like a human brain, heralds our demise (video) IBM’s cognitive computing chip functions like a human brain, heralds our demise (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Aug 2011 10:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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