Wow, so our theory and mockup turned out to be pretty much spot on: indeed, the oddly named ASUS PadFone does tuck itself into a shielded docking bay on the back of its companion tablet, and the latter’s hinged cover appears to pop up upon releasing the latch. You can also just about make out the two ports inside which are likely to be HDMI and micro-USB — one for driving the larger display, and the other for taking care of touch input while possibly sipping juice from an extra battery somewhere. Now, what we really like to know is which version of Android will be shipped (if ever) with this split-personality phone — our money’s on Ice Cream Sandwich , given that this flavor will happily cater both phone and tablet form factors later this year. That said, given the uniqueness of this product, ASUS could probably still get away with taking a step back and launch this as a Gingerbread tablet. Well, we shall dig up more answers for y’all tomorrow, and stay tuned for some sweet hands-on time. Continue reading This is the ASUS PadFone This is the ASUS PadFone originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 14:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
While it’s only right that people be protected from bad poetry, this could be taking things a tad too far. Intelligence officials at the Office of Incisive Analysis (no, really) have determined that metaphors could be of vital significance to national security. By, well, incisively analyzing the way people use metaphors in everyday conversations, they believe they can reveal “underlying beliefs and world views” — such as negative feelings towards a particular country. Now they’re calling on civilian scientists and academics to help them do this automatically using pattern recognition and supercomputers . Of course there’s always the risk that smart terrorists will switch to using similes instead. Metaphor recognition software aims to distinguish friend from foe originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 13:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
If you’re an Android gamer, chances are you’ve heard of Nesoid, Snesoid, Gensoid, N64oid , Ataroid, Gearoid and Gameboid: they’re all video game console emulators developed by yongzh, and many ranked among the most popular paid apps on the Android Market. This week, they’ve got something else in common, too — they’ve all been abruptly removed. Following a complaint from Sega, two emulators were nixed late last month, but we’re hearing that Google has since revoked yongzh’s developer privileges, just like PSX4Droid comrade-in-arms ZodTTD. We’re currently reaching out to both yongzh and Google for comment, and hope to hear back soon, but it’s looking like a bleak week for the emulation community. Update: We got in touch with yongzh (or Yong Zhang, as he’s known in real life) to discuss the matter, and he confirms that his developer account has been removed and his apps pulled without warning — cutting off his primary source of income and leaving him with an inbox stuffed with angry email. He has, however, already migrated a number of emulators to third-party app store SlideME, where they’ll be free for a while, allowing existing customers to get updates without paying a second time, and likely helping a number of new individuals to mooch off his troubles. He’s not too optimistic about his prospects at SlideME, though. Android Market’s most popular emulators disappear without a trace (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 12:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …RSA SecureID hackers may have accessed Lockheed Martin trade secrets, cafeteria menus
May 29, 2011 No Comment
RSA SecureID dongles add a layer of protection to everything from office pilates class schedules to corporate email accounts, with banks, tech companies, and even U.S. defense contractors using hardware security tokens to protect their networks. Following a breach at RSA in March, however, the company urged clients to boost other security methods, such as passwords and PIN codes, theoretically protecting networks from hackers that may have gained the ability to duplicate those critical SecureIDs. Now, Lockheed Martin is claiming that its network has come under attack, prompting RSA to issue 90,000 replacement tokens to Lockheed employees. The DoD contractor isn’t detailing what data hackers may have accessed, but a SecureID bypass should clearly be taken very seriously, especially when that little keychain dongle is helping to protect our national security. If last month’s Sony breach didn’t already convince you to beef up your own computer security, now might be a good time to swap in ‘Pa55werD1′ for the rather pathetic ‘password’ you’ve been using to protect your own company’s trade secrets for the last decade. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] RSA SecureID hackers may have accessed Lockheed Martin trade secrets, cafeteria menus originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 11:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
Remember when you didn’t consider climbing trees a chore? Treebot doesn’t — but then, it wasn’t programmed to know boredom. The robot was designed by a team at The Chinese University of Hong Kong for the express purpose of shimmying up trees autonomously, figuring out the best route up a trunk using built-in touch sensors. The ‘bot’s body is designed like an inchworm, expanding and contracting as it works it way up — unlike other climbers we’ve seen . Treebot can carry up to 3.7 pounds as it inches along, opening up the possibility of using the machine to prune hard to reach leaves. It can also shuffle up a variety of different plants, including bamboo stems, as evidenced by the sped-up video after the break. Unwieldy foliage, you’ve been put on notice. Continue reading Treebot climbs trees, is a robot (video) Treebot climbs trees, is a robot (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 08:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
We’ve already seen a glimpse of ASUS’ “pad or phone” duo — likely to be named PadFone — hanging out in their latest teaser pic, and now thanks to the folks over at Notebook Italia , we can finally gaze at their much brighter, non-silhouette form. Despite the awkward cropping, the leaked product shot above echoes the same shape and set of Android soft keys as seen previously. Upon closer inspection, though, we believe that the newly-shown silver bar is just the phone’s volume rocker, rather than a potential docking port. So how do the two physically bond together, if at all ? Until tomorrow’s launch event, your guess is just as good as ours. ASUS PadFone shown off in proper brightness ahead of launch? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 08:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
A very strange thing popped up on mobile graphic benchmarking site NenaMark the other day — an entry for the Droid Bionic. Now, it would be very easy to fake this test, and you’d be right to be skeptical given the incomplete score and the fact that it’s reporting PowerVR’s SGX 540 GPU, instead of the Tegra 2 we saw at CES . But, let’s not be too hasty — we heard back in April that NVIDIA’s mobile chip wasn’t playing nice with Verizon’s LTE. Perhaps when Motorola said it was delaying the Bionic to incorporate “several enhancements” it really meant “rebuilding the phone with a more LTE friendly CPU.” Both Samsung and Texas Instruments use the SGX 540, and Moto has previously turned to TI’s OMAP for the Droid, Droid 2, and Droid X. Then again, a single, suspiciously low benchmark score isn’t the most convincing basis for a rumor. Droid Bionic benchmark reports PowerVR GPU, new SOC inside? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 05:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
Who found ten million dollars to drop on the first commercially available quantum computer ? Lockheed Martin, it seems, as the aerospace defense contractor has just begun a “multi-year contract” with the quantum annealing experts at D-Wave to develop… nothing that they’re ready or willing to publicly discuss at this time. This “strategic relationship” marks the second major vote of confidence in D-Wave’s technology, after Google built image detection algorithms for the company’s processors a couple years back. Or, perhaps Lockheed Martin just wants a new shiny black toy for the Skunk Works labs. PR after the break. Continue reading D-Wave sells first commercial quantum computer to Lockheed Martin D-Wave sells first commercial quantum computer to Lockheed Martin originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 02:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
We know we’re opening a can of worms that can never be resealed here, but it’s true: we’re desperate to know how you’d change HTC’s Thunderbolt if given the chance. Verizon’s LTE wunderchild has had all sorts of issues from the beginning, some of which are still ongoing . Tough battery life, random reboots, you name it. That said, it’s still an imposing, beautiful device, and if those quirks ever get ironed out, it’s easily one of the best 4G phones on the market. You know the deal — toss your suggestions for reworking the Thunderbolt down in comments below, particularly if you’re one of those early adopter types who’ve been saddled with said bugs from the start. How would you change HTC’s Thunderbolt? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 May 2011 23:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …
Sounds like Notbooks are making a dent: AMD says it’s shipped five million Fusion processors since the architecture’s debut, according to a report at CNET . In January, the company said the hybrid CPU / GPU chips had momentum , and as of last month it was quoting 3.9 million APUs out in the wild, but this week AMD says that demand has overtaken supply and it’s completely sold out of the Atom alternative . Sounds like Intel’s more than justified in seeking out hybrid solutions of its own , no matter where it might have to look to get a leg up in the integrated graphics market. Here’s hoping AMD’s other Fusion chips show just as much pep per penny (and milliampere-hour) as the original processor. AMD ships five million Fusion chips, says it’s sold out originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 May 2011 20:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …