Google’s Androidify app lets you create your very own bot avatar (video)
February 14, 2011 No Comment
While we’re probably still years or decades away from getting our very own animatronic clones , Google’s released the next best thing for the time being. Available on the Android Market is this Androidify app, which, as the name says for itself, lets us mere mortals craft our very own Android mascot lookalikes. Hell, you can even slap on some facial hair or a baby droid while you’re at it. We’ll say no more — see the app in action after the break, if you’re not already busy dishing out your new avatar across the web. Continue reading Google’s Androidify app lets you create your very own bot avatar (video) Google’s Androidify app lets you create your very own bot avatar (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Feb 2011 02:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Adobe says Flash 10.2 coming to handsets soon, offers roundabout confirmation of Honeycomb for smartphones
February 14, 2011 No Comment
Google’s been notoriously tight-lipped about when Honeycomb will come to cellular handsets, but we may have gotten our answer at a recent Adobe event, as the company’s Anup Murarka tells us Flash 10.2 will be coming to both tablets and smartphones “in the next few weeks.” Come again? You see, Adobe Flash 10.2 uses fewer CPU cycles to play back web video, likely providing better battery life in Android devices (and BlackBerry tablets), but Adobe told us it can’t support the function in earlier versions of the Android OS — Google had to specifically add new capabilities in Honeycomb to let Flash 10.2 take full advantage of hardware. In short , if Flash 10.2 requires Android 3.0 and Flash 10.2 is headed to phones soon, the transitive property of equality suggests that Android 3.0 will soon appear on smartphones as well. Our algebra teacher would be so proud. In related news, both Flash and Adobe AIR seem to be doing quite well in the mobile arena thus far, as Adobe reports that that AIR is presently in over 84 million smartphones and tablets — with over 200 million such devices ready for the cross-platform apps by the end of the year — and Flash has shipped on 20 million devices across 35 different models (twelve percent of all smartphones, says Adobe) with 50 new Flash-ready tablets scheduled to appear in 2011. PR after the break. Continue reading Adobe says Flash 10.2 coming to handsets soon, offers roundabout confirmation of Honeycomb for smartphones Adobe says Flash 10.2 coming to handsets soon, offers roundabout confirmation of Honeycomb for smartphones originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Feb 2011 01:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Leica M9 Titanium unboxed, handled with all the care a $32,000 camera deserves (video)
February 14, 2011 No Comment
Even in its “standard” magnesium alloy body , the Leica M9 is an exclusive piece of kit that prices out all but the most fervent and deep-pocketed rangefinder lovers. Nonetheless, Leica has a habit of putting together even more limited editions of its shooters, one of which has recently been subjected to a thorough unboxing and video overview. Only 500 special edition Titanium M9s cameras have been produced, each one individually numbered and costing nearly
Continue reading …Inhabitat’s Week in Green: the dangers of LED lighting, self-healing nanotech, and spray-on solar power
February 14, 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. This week Inhabitat shed light on the next generation of solar power as we showcased a spray-on film capable of generating 300% more energy than traditional photovoltaics and a new breed of nanotech cells that can heal themselves like plants. New biofuel projects also broke ground around the world as the US began construction on its first commercial biofuel plant and Canada upgraded a waste plant to be powered by soda and beer . And another farticle, er, article covers a project in Greenpoint, Brooklyn that takes the result of the results of those drinks (methane) and turns it into fuel. We also interviewed energy efficiency expert David Johnston, who shared 5 tips that could cut your electricity bill by up to 50 percent. And on a more sour energy efficiency note, we were appalled to see this new study that found that LEDs, like CFLs, also contain unsafe levels of carcinogenic toxins. The big (or should we say B.I.G) architecture news of the week was the unveiling of Bjarke Ingels Group’s sloping residential pyramid for midtown Manhattan. In transportation news, Nissan revealed plans to roll out its Tesla-trouncing ESFLOW electric supercar at the Geneva Auto Show, while Chevrolet announced that the Volt will receive a $5,000 tax rebate in California. We also applauded the US government’s $53 billion plan to jump start high speed rail, while republicans rallied against the movement towards more efficient infrastructure. We also showcased several stylish examples of wearable eco tech – a set of bio sensors that improve physical and emotional health, and a pair of GPS-enabled snow goggles that are perfect for shredding through uncharted territory. Finally, we shared 10 green iPad cases that are perfect for protecting your e-reader from blustery winter weather. Inhabitat’s Week in Green: the dangers of LED lighting, self-healing nanotech, and spray-on solar power originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 22:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Who’s ready for the special Grammys edition of the Engadget Podcast? When we said “Grammys,” we meant “consumer electronics,” and when we said “special,” we meant “just like every other week, but still pretty special.” Hosts: Joshua Topolsky, Nilay Patel, Paul Miller Guest: Chris Ziegler Producer: Trent Wolbe Music: March of the Pigs 00:02:45 – Nokia CEO Stephen Elop rallies troops in brutally honest ‘burning platform’ memo? (update: it’s real!) 00:05:15 – Nokia and Microsoft enter strategic alliance on Windows Phone, Bing, Xbox Live and more 00:09:13 – RIP: Symbian 00:11:15 – Nokia: Symbian and MeeGo not dead yet, still shipping this year (updated) 00:18:41 – Nokia tells investors that 2011 and 2012 will be ‘transition years’ 00:32:50 – Exclusive: Nokia’s Windows Phone 7 concept revealed! 00:39:34 – Live from HP / Palm’s ‘Think Beyond’ webOS event! 00:41:15 – RIP, Palm: 1992 – 2011 00:42:07 – The Engadget Interview: Jon Rubinstein and Steven McArthur talk webOS on PCs, ‘Music Synergy,’ competition, and more 00:43:20 – HP’s 9.7-inch TouchPad: webOS 3.0 tablet with 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon, coming this summer 00:45:07 – HP TouchPad first hands-on! (updated with video!) 00:48:00 – webOS Enyo framework free to developers today, brings pixel density agnostic apps to phones, tablets and PC (video) 00:48:22 – HP Pre 3: 1.4GHz Qualcomm CPU, 3.6-inch WVGA, coming this summer (video) 00:49:00 – HP Pre 3 first hands-on! (updated with video) 00:49:27 – HP Veer: smallest smartphone in the webOS stable, 2.6-inch display, coming this spring 00:50:45 – HP Veer, first hands-on! (updated with video!) 00:52:40 – HP’s Touch to Share eyes-on, starring the TouchPad and HP Pre 3 (video) 01:11:52 – Palm Pre 2 vs. HP Pre 3: what’s changed? 01:18:40 – Looking for our Motorola Atrix 4G review? 01:21:05 – We’re live at Mobile World Congress 2011! Hear the podcast Subscribe to the podcast [ iTunes ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (enhanced AAC). [ RSS MP3 ] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in MP3) to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically. [ RSS AAC ] Add the Engadget Podcast feed (in enhanced AAC) to your RSS aggregator. [ Zune ] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in the Zune Marketplace Download the podcast LISTEN (MP3) LISTEN (AAC) LISTEN (OGG) Contact the podcast 1-888-ENGADGET or podcast (at) engadget (dot) com. Twitter: @joshuatopolsky @futurepaul @engadget @reckless @zpower Filed under: Podcasts Engadget Podcast 232 – 02.13.2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 21:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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HP told us to watch for a special new campaign during the Grammys, so watch we did — only to find this commercial and occasional on-stage pimping of the HP TouchPad. The latter is standard business practice, to be sure, but the former? Well, words (nearly) escape us. You really have to watch it for yourself, but just imagine a butchering of Lou Reed’s classic (though far, far overused) “Walk On The Wild Side,” where tales of doping and cross dressing have been replaced with tales of… Tweeting. And Digging. And other really trite stuff. The cinematography and general message of the commercial is actually spot on, but it all gets crushed under the weight of this bad musical decision. HP played this same video at the event on Wednesday, but little did we know it would be the kick-off of the company’s marketing onslaught. We’re honestly taken aback by how off key (no pun intended) this ad is. You would think after all the bad press Palm got on its previous big ad campaign (and even after some not-so-gentle advice ) the folks in charge would think twice about something this potentially polarizing. We won’t lie — we’re disappointed. Both by HP / Palm, and Lou Reed. All of you guys… back to the drawing board. Look on the bright side, though — at least you’ve got about six months to wash this out of people’s brains. HP’s ‘Everybody On’ ad goes to the Grammys, causes nationwide cringing originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 21:03:00 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. This week saw significant and contrasting twists for the legacies of two operating systems that had their roots in the heyday of the PDA. HP revealed that it is killing off the Palm brand , and Nokia announced that — while it would continue to “harvest” less capable versions of the Symbian operating system on its basic handsets — it would shift away from the operating system in its smartphones in favor of Windows Phone 7 . In some ways, the demise of the Palm brand and the loss of Symbian’s last major supporter at Microsoft’s hands represent the end of an era. Continue reading Switched On: Iconic trends meet ironic ends Switched On: Iconic trends meet ironic ends originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 20:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Powertrekk charges gadgets over USB, using one fuel cell and one Li-ion battery (video)
February 13, 2011 No Comment
Portable fuel cell chargers have been around for years, but each seems to have lasered in on a single important quality thus far, such as a reasonable price , an easy refilling scheme , and a decent amount of power — but never all of the above. Well, it doesn’t look like MyFC’s Powertrekk is the full package either, but it does have a pretty sweet looking case, which holds not only a disposable sodium silicide container to generate the hydrogen gas (which then gets recombined with oxygen in a proton exchange membrane to produce 1000mAh of usable electricity) but also a 1600mAh lithium-ion battery which can provide up to one amp of juice. This way, you’ve got a backup battery if you misplace your cans of fairy dust, and a buffer for the fuel cell too, allowing you to keep those volts in powder or electrochemical form instead of carting around combustable hydrogen — which is always a nice bonus when you think about it. Shame there’s no word on price quite yet, but you can see how it all works in a video after the break. Continue reading Powertrekk charges gadgets over USB, using one fuel cell and one Li-ion battery (video) Powertrekk charges gadgets over USB, using one fuel cell and one Li-ion battery (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 18:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Sony Ericsson’s MWC presser today may have been all about its new Play , Pro and Neo members of the Xperia family, but the CES debutant we know and love as the Arc was out in force as well. So, we thought, why not throw together our thoughts on this phone and splice them with a gallery of delicious new images plus some video action to boot? The first thing to note is that the Xperia Arc will be shipping globally in March and Sony Ericsson is aiming for the broadest possible operator coverage. Focusing on the handset itself, we’ve been wildly impressed by its design since first laying eyes on it, there’s something fundamentally attractive about the Arc’s look, something less tangible than its ridiculously slim profile. Sony Ericsson has used a similar plasticky material on the back as it does in the Neo, which doesn’t overwhelm us with any sensations of reassurance or quality, but seems to do the job. Guess some corners had to inevitably be cut along with the fat on this phone’s body. The 4.2-inch screen is bright and lucid, though we’d warn against expecting too much from the Bravia Reality Display marketing. As we’ve mentioned before, the display enhancements only kick in when you’re consuming multimedia. Still, general performance looks more than satisfactory. Hard buttons around the body are well arranged and designed, a contrast from the fiddly keys we found on the Xperia Pro. What was consistent with the rest of Sony Ericsson’s Xperia crew, however, was the Arc’s inability to execute its pinch-to-zoom widget summary screen. It’s an ambitious function — gathering all your widgets from each screen into one cohesive overview — but, basically, it’s laggy as hell. Aside from that, general UI responsiveness could also stand some improvement, but we like where Sony Ericsson is going with the whole thing. If it keeps up its promise to repent from last year’s sins with relation to Android updates, the company has a very good chance of striking it rich with the Xperia Arc. It’s a phone that can truly get by on its looks alone. Video after the break! Gallery: Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc MWC hands-on Continue reading Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc preview (video) Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc preview (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 17:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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The New York Times has run an incredibly detailed piece about a feat of Google search engine gaming which seems to have been done by or for JC Penney. We won’t bore you with SEO basics — we’re pretty sure you’ve got those down already — but suffice to say that The Times noticed that the retailer was at the top of Google’s search results for many more terms than seemed possible or natural, so they started to do some digging. What they found was that thousands of links had been placed on what were essentially spam sites all over the web, resulting in the retailer ruling the Google juice for terms such as “little black dress,” and even super generic ones like “rugs” and “bedding.” This is one of the dreaded kinds of ‘black hat’ optimization that Google frowns upon, because it’s so obviously cheating, and it’s punishable by a massive sinking of the offending site’s ranking in results (which is, of course, not the desired effect). JC Penney unsurprisingly denies knowing anything about it, and no evidence exists to suggest it was directly involved, so on Wednesday, Google began ‘corrective action’ to bring Penney’s results back to planet earth. One example — before the action was taken, JC Penney held the number one spot for the search term ‘living room furniture,’ and after it stood at number 68 — is enough to show the awesome power Google holds over the results it delivers, but the story also serves to show how truly broken search is, as well as Google’s seeming nonchalance about the issue. Hit up the source link for the full story. NYT uncovers the tawdry, seedy tale of the SEO games of J.C. Penney originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 13 Feb 2011 15:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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