Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On , a column about consumer technology. Spring proved cruel for the sparse population of products that combine e-paper and LCD displays. Startup Entourage announced that it was discontinuing its Edge dual-screen e-reader / tablet combo. And then Barnes & Noble closed the book on the original Nook to introduce a successor that had only one screen and one button. In doing so, it leaped over (or is that under?) even the Kindle’s minimalism. E-readers have followed an unusual demographic adoption curve for a consumer electronics product. The first buyers were, like those of many other tech products, more affluent, but the majority of them were also older and female in keeping with the book-buying habits of physical books. They were attracted to the crisp display and high contrast of e-paper displays. And many were (and continue to be) attracted by a focused product that allowed them to concentrate on the text without distraction of other media type, the Web or thousands of apps. Continue reading Switched On: e-readers drive to digital distraction Switched On: e-readers drive to digital distraction originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Jun 2011 18:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Westinghouse announces its first 3D HDTV, coming to a discount department store near you
June 19, 2011 No Comment
Just 18 short months after 3D made its big HDTV debut at CES 2010, Westinghouse is finally ready to make its own entry into the third dimension, with the 47-inch W47S2TCD. Like most Westinghouse sets, there’s really nothing special to make this rather generic TV pop (until you toss on one of the four included pairs of 3D glasses), but you will be getting a passive 1080p 3D display, 3:2 pulldown, three-way selectable color temperature, and a backlight enhancement tool called DayBright. The company is also unveiling five other TVs, including its first connected TV — the 46-inch WC-4625T — which includes access to Netflix and Vudu . The 47-inch 3D TV will be sold at Best Buy, Costco, and Target with a suggested retail price of $1199, but we imagine in-store pricing will be significant lower — with the recent announcement of Vizio’s 42-inch passive offering for $699, shelling out an extra $100 per inch for the new Westinghouse set is not likely to sit well with bargain hunters. Continue reading Westinghouse announces its first 3D HDTV, coming to a discount department store near you Westinghouse announces its first 3D HDTV, coming to a discount department store near you originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Jun 2011 17:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …New York Post blocks iPad access through Safari browser, hopes you’ll pay for a subscription instead
June 19, 2011 No Comment
Well, that’s one way to make people pay for puns. The New York Post , that bastion of fair, balanced, and not-at-all sensationalistic reporting, has blocked iPad owners from reading its stories through the tablet’s Safari browser. If folks want the full spill on Hugh Hefner getting ditched at the altar, they’ll be prompted to download the iOS app, which requires signing up for a subscription starting at $6.99 on a month-to-month basis. Setting aside News Corp.’s hubris for a moment, what’s odd about this is the number of workarounds Rupert Murdoch & Co. left us cheapskates. You can still read the site on a desktop browser or a phone, including an Android one. Basically, then, News Corp. is strangling web access, but only for a select group of readers. That’s a stark contrast from other content providers (even the News Corp-owned Wall Street Journal ), which have been more platform-agnostic. Then again, there’s the dim possibility that News Corp. targeted the iPad in an effort to re-brand the Post as a glossier sort of tabloid,
Continue reading …New York Post blocks iPad access through Safari browser, hopes you’ll pay for a subscription instead
June 19, 2011 No CommentWell, that’s one way to make people pay for puns. The New York Post , that bastion of fair, balanced, and not-at-all sensationalistic reporting, has blocked iPad owners from reading its stories through the tablet’s Safari browser. If folks want the full spill on Hugh Hefner getting ditched at the altar, they’ll be prompted to download the iOS app, which requires signing up for a subscription starting at $6.99 on a month-to-month basis. Setting aside News Corp.’s hubris for a moment, what’s odd about this is the number of workarounds Rupert Murdoch & Co. left us cheapskates. You can still read the site on a desktop browser or a phone, including an Android one. Basically, then, News Corp. is strangling web access, but only for a select group of readers. That’s a stark contrast from other content providers (even the News Corp-owned Wall Street Journal ), which have been more platform-agnostic. Then again, there’s the dim possibility that News Corp. targeted the iPad in an effort to re-brand the Post as a glossier sort of tabloid,
Continue reading …Device Analyzer Android study wants to track your every move, if you’ll let it
June 19, 2011 No Comment
And here we thought folks were concerned about protecting their personal data . As it turns out, however, a sizable chunk of Android users have volunteered to give a group of University of Cambridge researchers a look at exactly how they use their cellphones. By downloading the Device Analyzer app from the Android market, more than 1,000 participants have allowed the data collection program to harvest statistics in the background while they use their phones. Those statistics — varying from when the power is switched on, to which apps are in use — are then made available to users via the Device Analyzer website. Of course, this is Cambridge, a rather well respected institution of higher learning, and the researchers involved say the data collected is stripped of personal information “as best as possible,” but we’re not keen on anyone peeping our cell stats. If you’re an Android exhibitionist, however, you can sign up for the study at the source link below. Device Analyzer Android study wants to track your every move, if you’ll let it originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Jun 2011 14:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
We’ve already seen it turn up in a few blurry shots , and seen it pictured a bit more clearly inside a case , but we now finally have our first good, unobstructed look at T-Mobile’s still unannounced myTouch 4G Slide . What’s more, the tipster that provided the shots to TmoNews also offered up a few quick impressions, saying that the keyboard was “amazing” and roughly comparable to the T-Mobile G2 , and that the phone itself is “surprisingly fast” but a bit heavier than the G2. Hit up the source link below for a closer look. T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide spotted in the clear, sans case originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Jun 2011 14:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
We’ve already seen it turn up in a few blurry shots , and seen it pictured a bit more clearly inside a case , but we now finally have our first good, unobstructed look at T-Mobile’s still unannounced myTouch 4G Slide . What’s more, the tipster that provided the shots to TmoNews also offered up a few quick impressions, saying that the keyboard was “amazing” and roughly comparable to the T-Mobile G2 , and that the phone itself is “surprisingly fast” but a bit heavier than the G2. Hit up the source link below for a closer look. T-Mobile myTouch 4G Slide spotted in the clear, sans case originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Jun 2011 14:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Gordon Murray reveals new Batmobile, Dark Knight gets serious about reducing carbon footprint
June 19, 2011 No Comment
So you’ve finished building your Batman Forever -style Batmobile , your Tumbler ‘s up on blocks in the front yard, and you’re itching for a new project. It’s not too early to start planning a DIY version of Gordon Murray’s newly unveiled Bat-ride (part of the Batman Live World Arena Tour). The designer drew on his experience with the McLaren F1 for his new concept car, which includes a healthy dose of imagineering: there’s a carbon-fiber body that “breathes,” as well as LED-lit “virtual wheels.” We’re not sure how carbon fiber breathes or what virtual wheels are, but as Murray explains in the video below, they’re based on Formula One materials as he imagines them 15-20 years from now. He also envisions a greener Dark Knight, whose ride runs on hydrogen fuel cells and lithium-ion batteries — no longer will the caped crusader suffer a guilty conscience due to his excessive carbon dioxide emissions. Continue reading Gordon Murray reveals new Batmobile, Dark Knight gets serious about reducing carbon footprint Gordon Murray reveals new Batmobile, Dark Knight gets serious about reducing carbon footprint originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Jun 2011 12:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Senate denies Navy’s missile-destroying laser funding, puts the kibosh on annoying Dr. Evil impressions
June 19, 2011 No Comment
Leave it to the Senate to crush the military’s fragile dreams. All the Navy ever really wanted was a giant ship-based laser that could be used to shoot down missiles. Despite some record breaking stats , however, the latest defense authorization bill handed down from the Senate Armed Services Committee throws a giant congressional wet blanket on the free-electron laser . The project, it seems, has simply proven too expensive — among other things, the laser’s researchers haven’t found the ideal method for powering the weapon from a ship. According to the current timeline, the project was not likely to have been completed before 2020, and as such the Navy’s request for further funding was, somewhat ironically, ultimately shot down. Senate denies Navy’s missile-destroying laser funding, puts the kibosh on annoying Dr. Evil impressions originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Jun 2011 13:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Senate denies Navy’s missile-destroying laser funding, puts the kibosh on annoying Dr. Evil impressions
June 19, 2011 No CommentLeave it to the Senate to crush the military’s fragile dreams. All the Navy ever really wanted was a giant ship-based laser that could be used to shoot down missiles. Despite some record breaking stats , however, the latest defense authorization bill handed down from the Senate Armed Services Committee throws a giant congressional wet blanket on the free-electron laser . The project, it seems, has simply proven too expensive — among other things, the laser’s researchers haven’t found the ideal method for powering the weapon from a ship. According to the current timeline, the project was not likely to have been completed before 2020, and as such the Navy’s request for further funding was, somewhat ironically, ultimately shot down. Senate denies Navy’s missile-destroying laser funding, puts the kibosh on annoying Dr. Evil impressions originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Jun 2011 13:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …