Inhabitat’s Week in Green: hybrid hydrogen hovercraft, amphibious ice cream, and the transparent solar touchscreen laptop of our dreams
June 5, 2011 No Comment
Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week’s most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us — it’s the Week in Green. Solar energy supercharged our power grid and gadgets this week as Inhabitat showcased a hot solar laptop set within a transparent case that allows sunlight to shine straight through it. We also saw a team of Japanese engineers’ shoot for the moon with plans for a lunar photovoltaic plant , while back on earth Seoul officially launched the world’s first solar-powered floating island . Scientists also used sunlight to create the perfect cup of joe with the Helios 4 solar coffee roaster, and now that the weather is finally heating up we couldn’t help but share this sexy solar bikini — which just hit the market! In other news, green transportation set sail this week as Volkswagen unveiled a hybrid hydrogen-electric hovercraft and the world’s first amphibious ice cream truck cast anchor in the Thames. Meanwhile, a new mini electric Humvee was spotted just a few streets away in London, students at the University of Adelaide unveiled a crazy electric di-wheel car , and a group of scientists unveiled plans to harvest Helium-3 from Uranus to help propel interstellar travel. Enerkam also took a big step towards transforming municipal waste into fuel by securing a $60 million investment , and we took you for a ride on 14 of the world’s most amazing subways . Last but not least, this week we officially unveiled 40 stunning finalists in our Bright Ideas Lighting Design Competition – from a gorgeous geometric chandelier made from cut and folded Tetra Paks to a living LED light that doubles as a terrarium and a brilliant lamp made from a broken blender . We were also shocked to hear the World Health Organization declare that cell phones may cause cancer , so we rounded up 5 ways to protect yourself from cellphone radiation. Finally, we showcased a steampunk R2-D2 made from recycled materials, and if you’re stepping up your exercise routine to hit the beach this summer you won’t want to miss the S770 Pinnacle Trainer — an energy-generating exercise machine that produces watts while you work out! Inhabitat’s Week in Green: hybrid hydrogen hovercraft, amphibious ice cream, and the transparent solar touchscreen laptop of our dreams originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 22:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Yes, of course we’ll be bringing you the full liveblog action from WWDC, and as ever you’ll be able to read along as the biggest Apple news of the summer is unveiled. But this year we’re bringing you more: two live broadcasts to give you some extra analysis. At around 10:30am ET (that’s 7:30am on the best coast), before Apple kicks off the show, Tim and Darren will go over the expected big announcements for the day, talking iCloud, iOS 5, and Mac OS X Lion. Then, once the dust settles, join us again for a second live broadcast to dive deep into the day’s announcements and any other surprises Mr. Jobs has in store for us. Hopefully we’ll all survive. Where can you watch them? Set your bookmarks right here . Engadget will be broadcasting live from WWDC! originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 17:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Kno brings textbooks to iPad, millions of children now dread getting Apple tablet for Christmas
June 5, 2011 No Comment
You know the old saying, right? If you can’t beat them, license your designs to third-party manufacturers and develop an app for your competitor’s hardware. Kno’s dual-screen tablet had a pretty tough road since its debut last summer. The educational device was plagued by shipping delays and low pre-order numbers, and by February of this year, the company effectively threw in the hardware towel. A few months later, Intel plunked down a bunch of money, so that Kno’s dreams might live on in the designs of other manufacturers. The company’s software plans are becoming a reality now, as well, with the release of Textbooks, which brings some 70,000 discounted educational titles to the iPad. The free app lets students read and organize texts, affix annotations, and communicate with study partners, offering creative new ways to pass notes in class. Press release after the break. Continue reading Kno brings textbooks to iPad, millions of children now dread getting Apple tablet for Christmas Kno brings textbooks to iPad, millions of children now dread getting Apple tablet for Christmas originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 20:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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We were making our way through Taipei’s sublime metro system this week and what did we see on the side of the stairway? Why, it was a collection of iPad images, but rather than an Apple-funded advert, this was an Acer-instigated bit of spec sheet trash talk. The captions beneath the images read, in order: “no open operating system, no high resolution display, no Dolby Surround Sound, no Flash, no microSD, no USB port. Why do you want to choose this type of tablet?” Gracing the opposite wall was the tablet that ticked the “yes” boxes to all those items, Acer’s own Iconia Tab A500 . Perhaps once Acer figures out the answer to its own question, it can stop overhauling itself and get back to the job of chopping the iPad’s market share down to size . Check out the full ad in the gallery below. Gallery: Visualized: Acer asks why do you want to pick the iPad Visualized: Acer’s Iconia Tab A500 is ‘a better choice’ than the iPad originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 18:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On , a column about consumer technology. You say you want a revolution? Well, you know… . you might get one if you’re a patient Windows user. With Windows’ eighth major release (at least according to Microsoft’s math), its name is becoming metaphorical. Taking on a default look that is rooted in Windows Phone 7 — the first “Windows” to eschew windows — with a smattering of Media Center, the next major version of Windows marks an overhaul of the initial user interface. Indeed, it is even a more radical departure than Apple made between Mac OS X and iOS, which preserved a scaled-down dock and icons, or between Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X. Apple’s and Microsoft’s approaches are similar in at least one way — each has one operating system for PCs and another for phones. Clearly, though, the longtime operating system rivals have taken different tacks with tablets. Continue reading Switched On: As Windows loses its windows Switched On: As Windows loses its windows originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 18:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …MasterImage touts 4.3-, 7- and 10-inch glasses-free 3D displays, interest from ‘first tier’ device makers
June 5, 2011 No Comment
MasterImage and its parallax barrier 3D technology have been around for a while . Though nothing major — excepting the Hitachi H001 in Japan — has ever come of this company’s efforts, it’s back at Computex this year with a trio of reference display, showing off glasses-free 3D at 4.3-inch, 7-inch and 10-inch form factors. Resolution on both the 7- and 4.3-inch panels is 800 x 480 at the moment, but there’s a 1280 x 800 7-incher in the works that could be ready for production by the end of this year. The parallax barrier allowing for the autostereoscopic effect to happen adds only 1mm to the screen’s thickness, though it does halve vertical resolution — meaning an 800 x 480 screen will only show a 400 x 480 image when flipped to 3D mode. MasterImage builds the LCDs and controllers in these 3D imagers and is currently in discussions with what we’re told are “first tier” manufacturers of both smartphones and tablets. You can see the 7-inch display on video after the break — we found it able to match the 3D effect produced by displays requiring glasses, which is a good thing in relative terms, but as you see above, the two frames can and do get split up if you’re not perfectly positioned to soak up the third dimension. Gallery: MasterImage 7-inch glasses-free 3D display eyes-on at Computex 2011 Continue reading MasterImage touts 4.3-, 7- and 10-inch glasses-free 3D displays, interest from ‘first tier’ device makers MasterImage touts 4.3-, 7- and 10-inch glasses-free 3D displays, interest from ‘first tier’ device makers originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 17:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …InfiniTV 4 CableCARD tuner prices are dropping, down to $256 shipped from $399 previously
June 5, 2011 No Comment
Whether it’s due to pressure from SiliconDust’s HDHomeRun Prime or as a result of simplified hardware is unclear, but Ceton’s InfiniTV 4 CableCARD tuner is now available for as little as $256 shipped. Forum posters at Missing Remote noticed a $282 fire sale for the HTPC cable TV adapters going on eBay Friday, before prices dropped precipitously at Buy.com ($264), and an Amazon third party ($265). Lesser known Erwin Computers currently claims the lowest price, while Ceton’s official Amazon listing and those of other resellers like Cannon PC and Fluid Digital remain at the $399 MSRP — for now. The choice is yours — wait for official word and to see if prices drop any lower or click the buy button now and get some ( network sharable ) cable TV reception for your computer in time for the second episode of Teen Wolf on MTV. InfiniTV 4 CableCARD tuner prices are dropping, down to $256 shipped from $399 previously originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 16:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Sony VAIO Z21 Series mentioned on various European sites, isn’t actually for sale yet
June 5, 2011 No Comment
Here in the states, Sony’s 13-inch VAIO Z series has been missing from the company’s online store for months, but in Europe, at least, it lives on — a quartet of Z21 series laptops have surfaced on various e-tailers as the possible successor to last year’s Z11. So far, we’re seeing a pair of configurations with a Core i5-2410M processor and a 128GB solid-state drive and two more with a Core i7-2620M CPU and 256GB SSD. Judging by this sample, at least, 1600 x 900 resolution is standard, as is a backlit keyboard, 3G SIM card slot, fingerprint reader, 3D output, and an HD webcam with Sony’s Exmor imaging technology. Alas, the available specs suggest Thunderbolt’s a no-show, though rumor has it Sony’s implementation of Intel’s Light Peak technology will use USB connectors, of which this has three. Here’s to wishful thinking, right? The peculiar thing is, you can’t actually buy it yet. F2F lists staggering prices ranging from €1,809 ($2,642) to €2,839 ($4,146), though it’s not, in fact, available. Meanwhile, search results turn up mentions on staticICE UK and Belgium’s Execute, but they’ve been scrubbed from the actual pages. So, it looks like it’s up to Sony to announce this thing already — and dish up some pictures while it’s at it. [Thanks, Ihor] Sony VAIO Z21 Series mentioned on various European sites, isn’t actually for sale yet originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 14:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Would a Droid X by any other name smell as sweet? When we reviewed that phone last year we found it to be a solid performer in a solid chassis. In short: a very good phone. Now it’s back with a new name, or a revised one at least, the Motorola Droid X2 offering the same basic design as its predecessor but packing a lot more heat on the inside — a dual-core dose of Tegra 2, to be specific. Will it tickle your olfactory sensors just like the first X? Gallery: Motorola Droid X2 Continue reading Droid X2 review Droid X2 review originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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We’re not normally all that stoked with motherboards, but Gigabyte’s awkwardly named Z68XP-UD3-iSSD just about got our attention at Computex . The highlight here is the Intel 20GB SLC SSD latched onto the board’s mSATA slot, which is right next to the LGA1155 CPU socket and the four DDR3 RAM slots (together supporting up to 32GB). Alas, Gigabyte says it won’t be offering upgrade options for the SSD, though there are certainly alternatives out there in the wild if you dare to venture. But if none of this interests you, then there’s always our multi-screen Angry Birds hands-on video after the break. Gallery: Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3-iSSD motherboard eyes-on Continue reading Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3-iSSD motherboard eyes-on Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3-iSSD motherboard eyes-on originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 05 Jun 2011 13:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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