Lenovo hoping to launch 23-inch tablet this year, your lap may never be the same
April 13, 2011 No Comment
Dual 14-inch touchscreens not big enough? 21-inches of touch sensitivity still failing to sate your fingers’ need to roam wild and free? Maybe the 23-inch behemoth of a tablet that Lenovo is planning on unleashing this year will make those digits dance with delight. The plan is, apparently, to take one of the company’s Windows-powered all-in-one machines , delete the stand, put it on a crash diet, slap a big ‘ol battery on there, and then watch the eyes of pixel junkies around the world light up with glee. William Cai from Lenovo said “It’s obviously not for full mobility use, but it could be moved from room to room in the house… you could lay it on a table top and use it for family games.” Never mind that — with the addition of just a few legs this 23-inch slab could be a table. Lenovo hoping to launch 23-inch tablet this year, your lap may never be the same originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 08:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Beta 1 for webOS 3.0 leaks, lets you touch the TouchPad a little early (video)
April 13, 2011 No Comment
You don’t have to be a coder to appreciate the wonders that a software development kit can contain, especially when there’s a nice emulator tucked in there to give an early taste of things to come. That’s exactly what can be found within the webOS 3.0 SDK, and that SDK is exactly what’s been leaked to the world, giving anyone who wants it the ability to play with the OS that’ll make the HP TouchPad tick. PreCentral.net took the emulator within for a heck of a test drive, providing a lengthy textual overview of everything from keyboards to calendars, along with the video that’s embedded below. Sure, clicking and dragging in an early emulator isn’t nearly as much fun as tapping and swiping on some beautiful hardware, but it sure does cut down on the smudgy fingerprints. It’s cheaper, too. Continue reading Beta 1 for webOS 3.0 leaks, lets you touch the TouchPad a little early (video) Beta 1 for webOS 3.0 leaks, lets you touch the TouchPad a little early (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 07:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Motorola Xoom sees MicroSD card support enabled in latest version of Tiamat kernel
April 13, 2011 No Comment
Aside from shipping without Adobe Flash Player preloaded, the Motorola Xoom also has the ignoble distinction of having a non-functioning MicroSD card slot. We’re assured by the company’s reps that the update to make storage expansion work is imminent, but if you have to have it right this very minute , there’s now a kernel for you. It goes by the name of Tiamat, originating on xda-developers (as most good things do), and has recently stepped up to support MicroSD card storage. You’ll find download links and instructions for it at the source link, plus a few happy reports of it working as advertised. Motorola Xoom sees MicroSD card support enabled in latest version of Tiamat kernel originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 06:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Fujitsu to build 1Gbps fiber optic broadband network in the UK, but needs BT to play fair first
April 13, 2011 No Comment
Good news for anyone feeling left behind by the broadband revolution just because of their post code: Fujitsu has just announced a joint venture to deliver fiber optic connectivity to neglected rural homes in the UK. Built on hardware provided by Cisco and supported by Virgin Media and TalkTalk, this network will focus on channeling fiber directly to the home, which is said to provide symmetrical 1Gbps bandwidth with up to 10Gbps speeds considered possible down the line. Best news of all, perhaps, is that the cabling will be available on a wholesale basis to all ISPs, not just the ones involved in the project, so the UK may finally get a decent taste of what competition in the internet service space feels like. Alas, there’s a key line in the press release that notes the new venture is dependent on BT providing “access to its underground ducts and telegraph poles on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms,” which it apparently isn’t doing at the moment. Ah well, we’re sure they’ll sort things out like the mature professionals that they are. Full PR after the break. Continue reading Fujitsu to build 1Gbps fiber optic broadband network in the UK, but needs BT to play fair first Fujitsu to build 1Gbps fiber optic broadband network in the UK, but needs BT to play fair first originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 05:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Four Grammy Awards renamed to include ‘video games music,’ underline its growing importance
April 13, 2011 No Comment
Video games have never had a problem sitting alongside movie DVDs and music CDs (back when such things were distributed physically) in stores, so it’s frankly overdue to see them pop up in a mainstream awards show like the Grammys . The US Recording Academy has finally deigned to address video games and their aural landscapes as a separate class of entertainment, and has now amended four of its awards to spell that out. What was formerly known as “Motion, Television, or Other Visual Media” is now reclassified as “Motion, Television, Video Games Music, or Other Visual Media,” leading to there now being four awards that explicitly recognize excellence in video game music scores. Guess that was inevitable after Christopher Tin’s Baba Yetu won a Grammy this February, ostensibly because of its inclusion as one of the marquee songs on Civilization 4 , but in a category entirely unrelated to gaming. Skip past the break to hear it for yourself, along with a couple of other favorites of ours. Continue reading Four Grammy Awards renamed to include ‘video games music,’ underline its growing importance Four Grammy Awards renamed to include ‘video games music,’ underline its growing importance originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 03:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …DARPA’s next-gen wearable display: augmented-reality, holographic sunglasses
April 13, 2011 No Comment
The US military seems to adore the idea of wearable displays, hence its continued efforts to make them a reality. We know it seems like just yesterday that DARPA tapped Lockheed Martin to build low-power, lightweight augmented-reality eyewear, and it was actually four full years ago when the wild and wonderous dream was to craft HMDs as small and light as ” high-fashion sunglasses .” Well, that dream lives on, this time with holograms: the lenscrafters at Vuzix just received a cool million to develop goggles that holographically overlay battlefield data on the wearer’s vision. It all sounds very Dead Space (or, you know, like a Top Secret version of Recon-Zeal’s Transcend goggles ), promising realtime analysis of anything within sight. The company believes the finished product will be no more than 3mm thick and completely transparent when turned off. If all goes well, expect this to trickle down to consumers in short order; soon you’ll have full “situational awareness” — including relationship status — of that mysterious stranger you’ve been eyeballing from across the room. DARPA’s next-gen wearable display: augmented-reality, holographic sunglasses originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Apr 2011 23:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …PCTV’s Broadway 2T streams TV to your iPad when you’re outside the Old Country
April 12, 2011 No Comment
We’ve seen apps that ensure you don’t miss the next episode of Jersey Shore , but with the exception of Sling ‘s, there aren’t many that stream TV to a mobile device. PCTV’s new Broadway 2T does that — but with a boatload of caveats. The box’s built-in Freeview tuner will let you watch your shows over WiFi or 3G from anywhere in the world, but it’ll only pick up over-the-air broadcasts from regions using the DVB-T standard (read: not in the US ). It also comes with composite cables, which are perfect for setting up a security camera rig, but a deal-breaker for the majority of geeks who own a high-def set. The 2T streams video through the browser, so it works over Wi-Fi and 3G with Mac, PC, and Apple’s mobile Safari browser, with Android support coming sometime in the second quarter. No word yet on availability, though it’s up for preorder on PCTV’s site for €199 ($287.14) if you can’t live without your EPL matches while traveling away from your European villa. Continue reading PCTV’s Broadway 2T streams TV to your iPad when you’re outside the Old Country PCTV’s Broadway 2T streams TV to your iPad when you’re outside the Old Country originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 01:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Visualized: the National Ignition Facility in a pannable, spherical panorama
April 12, 2011 No Comment
Hopefully your brain has recouped from the explosion it endured when you first laid eyes on some glorious shots of the NIF out in Nor-Cal. Now, xRez Studio’s imaging gurus have provided the common folk the ability to virtually stand in front of a 500-trillion watt laser experiment at ultra high resolution. Better yet, the interactive, detailed look at an attempt at nuclear fusion allows for zooming and a full, 360-degree pan-around experience. Since this might be closest in proximity you’ll get to the NIF, hit the source link to truly get a feel for what we’re yapping about, and — if you’re feeling audacious — be sure to check out the BBC video tour after the break. Continue reading Visualized: the National Ignition Facility in a pannable, spherical panorama Visualized: the National Ignition Facility in a pannable, spherical panorama originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 01:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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It’s not exactly difficult to put into words what the Kyocera Echo is — it’s a dual-screened Android phone , after all — but it’s a wee bit more challenging to wrap your head around who exactly it’s for. The hardcore gaming contingent already has Sony Ericsson’s Xperia Play , and those obsessed with screen real estate have options spanning the gamut — everything from Dell’s 5-inch Streak to a veritable cornucopia of choices in the 4- to 4.3-inch range. So, where exactly does this oddball fit in? Quite frankly, we get the impression that it’s doing its darnedest to carve out a market of its own, a thought that’s reinforced by Kyocera’s dedicated app development space and two-faced Simul-Task mode. Early critics (read: us) railed on the fact that double the screens meant double the trouble in terms of battery life, and there’s no question that a second cell was included with our test unit. But are the advantages of having a second 3.5-inch WVGA touchpanel enough to overshadow the obvious pitfalls? Join us as we do a little soul-searching in our full review, hosted up just past the break. Gallery: Kyocera Echo review hands-on Continue reading Kyocera Echo review Kyocera Echo review originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Apr 2011 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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IBM’s latest announcement probably won’t get us any closer to securing our very own in-house version of Watson , but the firm is boasting a new line of Power7 products that includes an upgraded version of the supercomputer’s server. First up are the BladeCenter PS703 and PS704, sporting 16 cores and 32 cores, respectively — the PS704 touts a 60 percent increase in speed over its predecessors. The Power 750, the same system that gave Watson the stuff to slaughter those humans on Jeopardy! , is getting an upgrade that supports as many as 32 cores and can run up to 128 simultaneous threads, while the Power 755 offers up high-performance computing with 32 cores of its own. The cheapest version of the Power 750 Express rings in at about $30,000. So, no, we won’t be battling Watson in a Jeopardy! Home Edition showdown anytime soon, but we’re happy to see that our favorite supercomputer could be even smarter — or at the very least, faster — the next time it shows up on the boob tube. Full PR after the break. Continue reading IBM touts new Power7 systems, still no mass market Watson IBM touts new Power7 systems, still no mass market Watson originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Apr 2011 22:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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