HP launches DataPass to sell prepaid 3G data plans, service piggybacks on Sprint’s network
May 8, 2011 No Comment
It looks like HP is getting into the prepaid data game. The company just announced DataPass, a solution that lets you purchase 3G service from your laptop. The service is HP-branded, and that isn’t just marketing hype — the company bought excess spectrum from Sprint and is setting its own prices, effectively turning the PC maker into an MVNO . The no-contract plans start at $5 for a modest 75MB, which HP says is enough for about five hours of use, and stretch up to $30 for 1GB. Look for it as an option across the company’s lineup of business notebooks with the Qualcomm Gobi un2400 radio module. HP launches DataPass to sell prepaid 3G data plans, service piggybacks on Sprint’s network originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 May 2011 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Windows Phone 7 updates Bing to find music and barcodes, provide turn-by-turn directions and send speech-to-text SMS?
May 8, 2011 No Comment
Developers are getting plenty of toys alongside Windows Phone 7′s “Mango” release, but there may be extra baubles for regular users, too — Microsoft will reportedly add a few features to Bing in the near future which could prove particularly useful. According to the latest episode of the Windows Phone Dev Podcast — which hosted Microsoft’s Brandon Watson as a guest — a new function called Bing Audio will act like a Shazam for recognizing music (and will sell you Zune tracks) while Bing Vision will use your smartphone’s camera to read barcodes and do optical character recognition, plus potentially provide support for augmented reality apps. There’s also allegedly turn-by-turn voice directions for Bing Maps and a native podcast player, and one more potentially exciting thing — voice-to-text for sending SMS messages without lifting a finger. Hear all about the rumor at our source link, at just about the 40-minute mark. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Windows Phone 7 updates Bing to find music and barcodes, provide turn-by-turn directions and send speech-to-text SMS? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 May 2011 22:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Inhabitat’s Week in Green: Cities of the future, the Aqua Star, and 0-60 in 3.4 seconds… with a go-kart
May 8, 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. What will the high-tech city of the future look like? This week Inhabitat brought you a sneak peek as we took an exclusive look inside Abu Dhabi’s carbon-neutral Masdar City , which just opened for business. We also brought you brand new photos of the world’s largest wooden structure , and we spotted several innovative solar-powered buildings – Sweden’s rotating photovoltaic cog building and a self-sustaining pod home that can be perched on any roof. Green transportation also took off with a blast this week as the Linde E1 Electric Go-Kart set a Guinness World Record by traveling from 0-60 in 3.4 seconds and Synergy’s folded-wing glider plane announced plans to compete in the CAFE Green Flight Challenge. We also saw greener vehicles gear up around the world as France announced plans to deploy a fleet of all-electric garbage trucks next week and Nissan unveiled the NV200 — New York City’s taxi of tomorrow. And for those looking for an underwater escape this summer, don’t miss out on the Aqua Star – a submersible electric scooter capable of charting the ocean depths. In other news, this week we showcased several high-tech concept gadgets made from paper – an origami cell phone that folds into a flat piece of cardboard and the world’s first interactive paper computer . We also brought you a sensor glove that could help stroke patients recover through gaming, and we covered a clutch of wired home furnishings that bring new meaning to the term geek chic — from an interweb chaise made from 1,100 feet of coaxial cable to an analog cassette tape chair , to a modern computer mouse made from fine wool felt. Inhabitat’s Week in Green: Cities of the future, the Aqua Star, and 0-60 in 3.4 seconds… with a go-kart originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 May 2011 21:45:00 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. Much like their home countries, Apple and RIM share much in common, but contrast in important ways. Both companies are among the few that produce their own software for their cellular handsets. Apple, a personal computing pioneer, sees market expansion in smartphones. RIM, a smartphone pioneer, sees market expansion in mobile computing. Looking at the tablets on offer, Apple has been just as adamant in decrying a 7-inch display as RIM has been defending it, the latter saying that it sought to create an ultramobile device with the PlayBook. Apple designs products for consumers that have relevance for enterprises. RIM designs products for enterprises that have relevance for consumers. This has also been evident with the PlayBook, which has taken heat for its lack of native e-mail and calendaring options. RIM consciously put these on the back burner because it wanted to appease CIOs concerned about data theft, even though it meant a less appealing launch product for consumers. Another parallel: RIM has suffered as AT&T delays in supporting Bridge , just as Apple struggled with AT&T supporting tethering on the iPhone. Continue reading Switched On: RIM’s shot Switched On: RIM’s shot originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 May 2011 20:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Poker chip-sized device non-invasively measures brain temperature, intrigues Le Chiffre
May 8, 2011 No Comment
Do you ever feel like Portal 2 is making your brain overheat? You should get that checked, and thanks to researchers in Norfolk, Virginia, there’s an easier way to do so. The Children’s Hospital of The King’s Daughters has developed a device the diameter of a poker chip that sits atop a patient’s head; by detecting the microwaves that all human tissues produce, it calculates brain temperature without the need for messy skull-popping. The waves pass through the bone to give doctors precise, up-to-the-minute results, which can help prevent brain damage due to overheating. One possible use for the technology is helping hypoxic (oxygen lacking) infants, who can be treated with cooling therapies. Of course, you can probably make do with that old home remedy: just put a bag of frozen carrots on your head next time GlaDOS has you stumped. Poker chip-sized device non-invasively measures brain temperature, intrigues Le Chiffre originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 May 2011 19:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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It looks the same, it works the same, and though it’s three-tenths of a millimeter thicker than the original, Sprint’s Nexus S 4G has one major difference: it sports a WiMAX radio. Today, the freshest Gingerbread smartphone goes on sale, just as planned , bringing the same 4-inch curved Super AMOLED screen, 1GHz Hummingbird chip and NFC capabilities your T-Mobile counterparts have enjoyed for months plus the promise of Google Talk video chat . Find it for $200 on-contract directly at Sprint, or shave $50 off the sticker price if you’re a brand-new customer by trying Best Buy instead. [Thanks, Robert and Nick] Nexus S 4G on sale today: $200 at Sprint, $150 at Best Buy originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 May 2011 16:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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HP isn’t really trying to keep its 12.1-inch EliteBook 2760p convertible tablet a secret these days, but honestly it might not matter even if the company tried — the ever-reliable FCC made plenty of pictures and documentation available in a filing by Sierra Wireless. That’s the company that supplies the Qualcomm Gobi3000 dual-mode GSM / CDMA cellular radio in this tablet, you see, which should be an attractive option for business travelers — though we don’t see any mention of it in the first three Elitebook 2760p models confirmed on HP’s website. What’s that, you say? Confirmation? Yes, indeed, as HP is already listing three versions starting at $1,499, with the base model nabbing you a 2.3Ghz Core i5-2410M, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, dual-band 802.11 a/b/g/n WiFi and a 320GB hard drive. FCC pics below, and lots more details at our source links. Gallery: HP EliteBook 2760p convertible tablet tours the FCC HP EliteBook 2760p tours the FCC, shows up online starting at $1,499 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 May 2011 15:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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While strolling around Shenzhen earlier today, we decided to stop by at the China Optoelectronics Display Expo to feast our eyes on AUO’s “world’s largest” 71-inch 21:9 3D LCD panel. Phew, what a mouthful, but this 240Hz ultrawidescreen is indeed larger than the sub-60-inch offerings from Vizio, JVC, and Philips. But is it any good? We put on our passive 3D glasses and found the experience to be surprisingly comfortable and effective (even at about 40 degrees from the center before we hit the wall), though the glossy screen’s reflection of the neighboring booth was slightly off-putting. This would probably be less of a problem at your humble abode, anyhow. In terms of availability, AUO told us that China-based TCL will be the first to pick up this beast of a panel, and the final product should be out in August. Apart from that, we couldn’t squeeze out further info about other brands, so you best be writing to your nearest dealership to import this exotic cinema TV. More eyes-on pics in the gallery below. Gallery: AUO’s 71-inch Cinema Scope 3D LCD panel eyes-on AUO’s 71-inch ultra-wide 3D LCD panel eyes-on originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 May 2011 13:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …DoubleTwist upgrade features AirPlay support for more Apple / Android miscegenation
May 8, 2011 No Comment
Add another notch to DoubleTwist’s Apple ecosystem integration belt, now that its Android app has added AirPlay streaming to the list of features. As of version 1.4 it will stream music, videos or pictures to the Apple TV or other compatible devices while also claiming beta support for Sonos hardware. The DoubleTwist player is free, but using AirPlay means purchasing the $4.99 AirSync add-on that also enables wireless sync with your media library (iTunes) and streaming to DLNA or uPnP compatible devices . Twonky Mobile is a free alternative that’s also AirPlay-compatible but without the tight iTunes integration; you can check them both out in the market. DoubleTwist upgrade features AirPlay support for more Apple / Android miscegenation originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 May 2011 12:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Not even promises of a new Sidekick can keep T-Mobile from hemorrhaging customers, it seems, as the company reported significant losses in its Q1 statement for 2011. According to reports, 471,000 contract customers either failed to re-up, or outright canceled their contracts. Stacked against a shortcoming growth of just 372,000 prepaid customers (including MVNO customers for sub-carriers), T-Mobile suffered a net loss of 99,000 users, a 29% increase in losses over the same period for the previous year. Ouch. The firm chalked its loss to increased “competitive pressures,” which lends credence to AT&T’s insistence that Sprint and Verizon are such fierce opponents that it has to acquire T-Mobile for the magenta-tinted carrier to stay in the game. You can judge the profits and pitfalls for yourself — just hit the source link for the full financials. Nearly half a million customers left T-Mobile in Q1 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 08 May 2011 10:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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