FCC unanimously approves LTE standard for nationwide public safety network
January 26, 2011 No Comment
The FCC’s been looking to establish a nationwide public safety network since the early days of the infamous 700MHz spectrum auction , and while it never quite accomplished that task, the commission has made a small but important step — it’s unanimously decided that Long Term Evolution (LTE) will be the one ring that binds all future chunks of public safety radio band. Of course, this wasn’t a terribly hard decision for the FCC to make, as major commercial cellular carriers and a number of regional public safety agencies have already invested in LTE equipment for the 700MHz band… and the decision doesn’t yet specify a voice standard . All that’s been decided upon is how those countless packets of data will float over the air. How will disparate groups of first responders communicate with one another in the event of a national emergency? That’s what the organization is asking you right now — feel free to contact the FCC anytime within the next 45 days with your proposal. Continue reading FCC unanimously approves LTE standard for nationwide public safety network FCC unanimously approves LTE standard for nationwide public safety network originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 22:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Soundfreaq’s SFQ-01R Sound Platform goes red and black for Valentine’s Day
January 26, 2011 No Comment
Remember that SFQ-01 Bluetooth audio system you were swooning over late last year? If you twiddled your thumbs on buying one, here’s a shot at redemption: Soundfreaq has just pushed out a limited edition red and black version just in time for Valentine’s Day, and outside of the color change, everything else remains the same. It’s up for pre-order now at Amazon for a penny under $200, and trust us, your significant other will love it. Even if said SO is… you. Continue reading Soundfreaq’s SFQ-01R Sound Platform goes red and black for Valentine’s Day Soundfreaq’s SFQ-01R Sound Platform goes red and black for Valentine’s Day originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 20:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Sadists at the German Aerospace Center’s (DLR) Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics are showing off their latest development in anthropomorphic appendages : a robotic hand that can take a beating from a baseball bat and still give you the middle finger (or a thumbs-up, we suppose). Researchers apparently designed the limb to function like only a human hand can, and it seems they’ve done a decent job: it’s got five independently functioning fingers, sports 19 degrees of freedom (one less than the real deal), and can even snap them phalanges — oh no they didn’t! It’s also got the ability to exert a force of 30 newtons from its fingertips. So what makes it so resilient? The robo-hand has a built-in web of 38 tendons, which allow it to adapt its stiffness under different circumstances: a step away, its creators say, from rigid appendages of the past. There’s a video of the hand taking a beating after the jump, but honestly, we’d prefer to see what happens when the hand fights back. Continue reading German robot hand takes a licking, apparently keeps on ticking (video) German robot hand takes a licking, apparently keeps on ticking (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 19:58:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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After Google’s uncharacteristic (and swift) action against Flash game clearinghouse Kongregate when its Android app went live a few days ago, it wasn’t clear what was going to have to happen to get it back in the Market — but they’re giving it a shot today by making a few key tweaks and republishing. Most notably, version 1.1 no longer dumps Flash games that you download to SD storage; instead, the phone’s browser cache is used just as for any other website you visit, which would seem to be a definitive step toward giving the app less of an “app store” feel — precisely the thing that Google’s concerned about. We’ll have to wait and see whether this puppy stays deployed… but for now, you can grab it from the Market. Kongregate makes triumphant return to Android Market after a few tweaks originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 19:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Verizon’s LG VL600 LTE modem received a software update today, but there’s no need to wake your MacBook from its peaceful slumber — there still aren’t any drivers for Apple computers, over a month after we were promised a relatively imminent update . That said, Verizon told PhoneScoop today that the carrier’s LTE dongles will indeed support Apple at some point next month, which is itself only days away. Pantech UML290 owners can bide their time with a workaround , but we LG users will take what we can get, eh? Verizon’s 4G LTE dongles get Mac support in February originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 18:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Well, it’s not exactly the announcement we were hoping for following Razer’s impressive showing at CES earlier this month, but the company has just gotten official with another product that will soon be available: its new Ferox portable gaming speakers. Described as a “sophisticated, modern day boombox for gamers,” the speakers promise to deliver some “room-filling,” 360 degree omni-directional sound, 12 hours of battery life from the built-in rechargeable batteries and, of course, full compatibility with anything sporting a 3.5mm jack. Hit up the gallery below for a closer look, and look for the speakers to be available by the end of the month for $60. Gallery: Razer Ferox speakers Continue reading Razer debuts Ferox portable gaming speakers Razer debuts Ferox portable gaming speakers originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 18:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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Tonight, President Obama will deliver the annual State of the Union address, and while partisan politics (and some great shots of various people nodding off) will rule the night, the US government is getting into the Web 2.0 game in a big way tonight. The speech — scheduled for 9:00 pm ET — will be streamed live on the web, and immediately following said speech, the White House will host an ‘Open for Questions’ event on Twitter making use of the hashtag #sotu, while other government officials will answer questions submitted on Facebook , as well as the White House website’s webform. On Thursday night, the President will also answer questions on YouTube . We’ll let you know if and when the government hatches a plan to answer questions on Yahoo! Answers. [Image Credit: Pete Souza for the White House] Obama’s State of the Union address goes Web 2.0 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 17:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …There were tears of joy at the Notion Ink Adam launch, but also tears of shame, as owners of the long-awaited Pixel Qi tablet who downloaded the very first OTA update had their slate brutally bricked . Thankfully, the Notion Ink team appears to have issued a speedy fix, as you can download the ROM directly from the company’s website and flash it the comfort of your own home. Assuming you’ve got a Windows or Linux PC handy, it’s only an 80MB download away, and you’ll find file links and a detailed set of instructions right after the break. We’ll also note that this gives the hacker community an intriguing opportunity to peek through the Adam’s code — if you find anything interesting, be sure to let us know! Continue reading PSA: Notion Ink Adam can be unbricked, and here’s the 80MB fix PSA: Notion Ink Adam can be unbricked, and here’s the 80MB fix originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 16:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …T-Mobile releases: Streak 7 and Galaxy S 4G in February, G-Slate in late March?
January 25, 2011 No Comment
Odds are you’ll have your first chance at Honeycomb with Motorola’s Xoom next month , but LG’s G-Slate for T-Mobile — which might very well be 3D-enabled — shouldn’t be too far behind. New intel coming out of TmoNews today pegs the G-Slate for a March 23rd launch with an unknown price tag, preceded by the Dell Streak 7 on February 2nd (which is being billed as the carrier’s “first 4G tablet” thanks to its HSPA+ support) at $299.99 on contract after rebate. Turning to non-tablet news, the Galaxy S 4G — which you might recall is basically a Vibrant remixed with HSPA+ — looks line up for February 23rd. In other words, it’s going to be a busy, wallet-emptying couple months for you T-Mobile types… so save up while you can. T-Mobile releases: Streak 7 and Galaxy S 4G in February, G-Slate in late March? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 16:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …Verizon ramps up trade-in, upgrade programs in advance of iPhone 4 launch
January 25, 2011 No Comment
Not exactly a huge surprise here, but it looks like Verizon will be doing everything it can to pair folks with a new iPhone 4 when it launches on the carrier next month, even if they’ve just purchased a new phone on Verizon or another carrier. During an investor meeting this week, Verizon CFO Fran Shammo revealed that the carrier will be using its existing trade-in program (which launched in October) to lure would-be customers, with a Verizon rep further detailing that it will be “more actively” promoting the plan in the lead up to the iPhone 4 launch — under that program, a 16GB iPhone 4 from AT&T will net you a $212 credit. In addition to that, Verizon is also rolling out a new “Special Upgrade Offer” that will let existing customers trade in a phone they’ve recently purchased for a Visa debit card ($200 for a smartphone trade-in, or $75 for a feature phone). Only those that have purchased a phone between November 26th, 2010 and January 10th, 2011 will be eligible, though, and you won’t exactly get that cash right away — you’ll first have to first buy and activate your iPhone 4 at the full retail price, send in your trade-in phone within 30 days of activation, and then wait four to six weeks to receive the debit card. Verizon ramps up trade-in, upgrade programs in advance of iPhone 4 launch originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 16:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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