It’s amazing what an electric motor and some lithium-ion junk in the trunk can do. For the SWIGZ team, which earlier bested some internally-combused competition on the track, the results are 190MPH from a standing start, completed at the Mojave Mile event. As you can see in the video below the 241HP bike wasted no time in getting up to that speed — also wasting no time getting into an unsettling head shake and speed weave. Thankfully it was all over in less than 30 seconds and the new (unofficial) record was recorded: 190.6MPH. Fastest for an electric bike in a standing mile — and pretty darned quick for any bike. Continue reading Chip Yates goes 190MPH on an electric motorcycle, takes you along (video) Chip Yates goes 190MPH on an electric motorcycle, takes you along (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 08:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …IDC’s latest PC shipment stats show why Acer needed to make a strategic change
April 14, 2011 No Comment
Gianfranco Lanci’s departure from Acer last month came as a bit of a surprise, but looking at some fresh PC shipment data from the IDC , we can now understand why it had to happen . In Q1 of 2011, Acer suffered a precipitous 42.1 percent drop in PC shipments to the United States, falling from 2.3 million units in the first quarter of 2010 to 1.3 million in the first three months of this year. That’s matched by a global downturn of 15.8 percent for the company’s computer business, taking its market share from 12.9 percent down to 11.2. A percentage point and a half might not seem like much, but in the high stakes business of selling high volumes of devices with low profit margins, that can clearly make the difference between winning and losing, between living and dying (as a CEO). On a happier note, Lenovo surged upwards by 16.3 percent globally amid a market that shrunk a little overall. The IDC — whose numbers are considered preliminary until companies confirm them in their quarterly financial reports — identifies Acer’s exposure to the shrinking interest in netbooks as the chief reason why it’s now having to reorganize itself. That overhaul is already underway with a new logo and some attractively priced tablets , but it’s likely to be a while before Acer gets back to challenging HP for world domination. IDC’s latest PC shipment stats show why Acer needed to make a strategic change originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 06:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …LG Optimus 2X to be upgraded to Gingerbread in June or July, says Danish support site
April 14, 2011 No Comment
Other than saying Gingerbread will be forthcoming for its dual-core Optimus 2X Android handset, LG has been pretty mum on the subject of software updates. It’s good, therefore, to finally extract a timeframe out of the company, albeit from a somewhat obscure source. LG’s Danish support site tells us that the P990 (the internal code number for the 2X) will be updated to Android 2.3 “in June-July 2011.” That’s a fair bit later than we might have expected or hoped for the upgrade to happen, particularly given the various software foibles that the device we reviewed suffered from, but the summer of 2011 will always be preferable to the summer of never . A final warning is perhaps merited here to say that LG has a history of inconsistency when it comes to software roadmaps, so consider this one scribbled down in pencil until we hear more concrete confirmation from the company. [Thanks, Michael] LG Optimus 2X to be upgraded to Gingerbread in June or July, says Danish support site originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 06:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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If you can accept what we’re about to tell you as rumor, and nothing more, then we’d like to let you in on the latest scuttlebutt surrounding Nokia’s first dip into the shallow Windows Phone waters. Eldar Murtazin , the eternal Nokia antagonist, claims to have the inside scoop on Nokia’s current Windows Phone device plans while getting an early hands-on with a prototype. Besides demonstrating a natural extension of the Nokia naming strategy to accommodate the new Windows Phone devices, Eldar tells us that model W7 is built around an X7 hardware base while the new W8 handset is a variant of Nokia’s N8 cameraphone (conceptualized in the above pic). According to Eldar, all of Nokia’s WP prototypes are built upon Qualcomm chipsets per Microsoft’s requirement (and Nokia’s dismay ). The W7 model is currently being used in-house for development purposes and will likely be the first to market, according to Eldar, with an 8 megapixel autofocus camera and flash. Murtazin claims that the W7 reminded him of the HTC Mozart without any noticeable customizations to the OS . If neither of these models appeal to you, hold tight — Eldar says that Nokia has a dozen Windows Phone devices planed for 2012. Of course, it’s early days so any, or all of this might change before Nokia ships its first device later this year or early twenty-twelve. Imagine it: Nokia hardware slathered in Mango — mmm mmm good. Nokia W7 and W8 tipped as first Windows Phone models originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 03:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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If you can accept what we’re about to tell you as rumor, and nothing more, then we’d like to let you in on the latest scuttlebutt surrounding Nokia’s first dip into the shallow Windows Phone waters. Eldar Murtazin , the eternal Nokia antagonist, claims to have the inside scoop on Nokia’s current Windows Phone device plans while getting an early hands-on with a prototype. Besides demonstrating a natural extension of the Nokia naming strategy to accommodate the new Windows Phone devices, Eldar tells us that model W7 is built around an X7 hardware base while the new W8 handset is a variant of Nokia’s N8 cameraphone (conceptualized in the above pic). According to Eldar, all of Nokia’s WP prototypes are built upon Qualcomm chipsets per Microsoft’s requirement (and Nokia’s dismay ). The W7 model is currently being used in-house for development purposes and will likely be the first to market, according to Eldar, with an 8 megapixel autofocus camera and flash. Murtazin claims that the W7 reminded him of the HTC Mozart without any noticeable customizations to the OS . If neither of these models appeal to you, hold tight — Eldar says that Nokia has a dozen Windows Phone devices planed for 2012. Of course, it’s early days so any, or all of this might change before Nokia ships its first device later this year or early twenty-twelve. Imagine it: Nokia hardware slathered in Mango — mmm mmm good. Nokia W7 and W8 tipped as first Windows Phone models originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 03:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …If you can accept what we’re about to tell you as rumor, and nothing more, then we’d like to let you in on the latest scuttlebutt surrounding Nokia’s first dip into the shallow Windows Phone waters. Eldar Murtazin , the eternal Nokia antagonist, claims to have the inside scoop on Nokia’s current Windows Phone device plans while getting an early hands-on with a prototype. Besides demonstrating a natural extension of the Nokia naming strategy to accommodate the new Windows Phone devices, Eldar tells us that model W7 is built around an X7 hardware base while the new W8 handset is a variant of Nokia’s N8 cameraphone (conceptualized in the above pic). According to Eldar, all of Nokia’s WP prototypes are built upon Qualcomm chipsets per Microsoft’s requirement (and Nokia’s dismay ). The W7 model is currently being used in-house for development purposes and will likely be the first to market, according to Eldar, with an 8 megapixel autofocus camera and flash. Murtazin claims that the W7 reminded him of the HTC Mozart without any noticeable customizations to the OS . If neither of these models appeal to you, hold tight — Eldar says that Nokia has a dozen Windows Phone devices planed for 2012. Of course, it’s early days so any, or all of this might change before Nokia ships its first device later this year or early twenty-twelve. Imagine it: Nokia hardware slathered in Mango — mmm mmm good. Nokia W7 and W8 tipped as first Windows Phone models originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 03:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …New silver-packing transparent conductive film could mean more durable touchscreens
April 14, 2011 No Comment
We first heard of the wonders of silver ink back in 2009, but it wasn’t until earlier this year, with talk of 3M’s new capacitive touchscreens , that we experienced its real-world potential for display technology. Well, it looks like 3M’s not the only name in the Ag game, in fact Tokyo-based Toray Industries recently announced the development of a transparent conductive film that ditches the traditional ITO (indium tin oxide) for silver wire. In order to produce this new material, a layer of Ag wires, measuring several hundred nanometers, is applied to a polyester (PET) film by way of a wet method. The result, the company said, is a more flexible, durable, and transparent film that is well suited to touchscreens of just about any size — what’s more, it decreases dependence on rare earth metals. There’s no word yet on when the film will appear on real-deal devices, but we’ll definitely keep an eye out for the silver screens. Full PR after the break. Continue reading New silver-packing transparent conductive film could mean more durable touchscreens New silver-packing transparent conductive film could mean more durable touchscreens originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 04:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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The FBI will supply high-tech aircraft to authorities investigating a possible serial killer on New York’s Long Island later this week, a police official said Wednesday, after the discovery of 10 sets of human remains in recent months. (Apirl 13)
Continue reading …Intel to support USB 3.0 alongside Thunderbolt, coming with Ivy Bridge in 2012
April 14, 2011 No Comment
We were just pondering this very thing yesterday — would Intel dedicate itself to Thunderbolt and give USB 3.0 the cold shoulder — and now we have our answer from the Santa Clara crew, albeit delivered from Beijing. The Chinese capital is the site of Intel’s currently ongoing developer conference, which is where Kirk Skaugen, VP of the company’s Architecture Group, assured the world that the promise for native USB 3.0 support in Intel chipsets will be fulfilled. Not this year, mind you, but it’ll be with us in 2012 as part of the Ivy Bridge CPU refresh. That matches AMD’s plans to support USB 3.0 in Fusion APUs, and was augmented with a strong word of endorsement from Skaugen about the connector’s future. He urged developers to embrace USB 3.0 on an equal footing with Intel’s proprietary Thunderbolt interconnect, describing the two technologies as “complementary.” If you say so, captain. Intel to support USB 3.0 alongside Thunderbolt, coming with Ivy Bridge in 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 04:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Motorola and Huawei drop pending lawsuits, enter into new info-sharing agreement
April 14, 2011 No Comment
After months of fighting on the playground, Motorola and Huawei have finally come to an agreement to settle their differences once and for all. Both parties have now dropped their pending lawsuits, with Motorola originally accusing Huawei of stealing trade secrets from its former employees, and later on Huawei getting all worried about Motorola leaking confidential information over their partnership to the rivaling Nokia Siemens Networks. The new agreement will now allow Motorola “transfer its commercial agreements with Huawei to NSN for a fee,” which would then permit NSN use this info to service Motorola’s networks that utilise Huawei’s equipment. Aww, isn’t it nice when money solves everything? Press release after the break. Continue reading Motorola and Huawei drop pending lawsuits, enter into new info-sharing agreement Motorola and Huawei drop pending lawsuits, enter into new info-sharing agreement originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Apr 2011 01:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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