Sunday, March 6, 2011

IT News HeadLines (Engadget) 05/03/2011




Archos planning to launch high-end tablets at IFA later this summer?
Archos planning to launch high-end tablets at IFA later this summer?
Over the years we've certainly seen that Archos can do some decent things on limited hardware, but of course the real money is to be found on the higher end, where your iPads and your Xooms play. According to tabletblog.de, Archos has stated intent to announce two new tablets at IFA later this year, fitting into the 7- and 10-inch domains like the older (and lower-rent) 70 and 101 Internet Tablets above. Supposedly the company doesn't know what hardware either will be running, only that they'll be top-shelf components integrated using posh design. Surely that'll mean a posh price, too.
Archos planning to launch high-end tablets at IFA later this summer? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 05 Mar 2011 05:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink newbooknews.com  |  sourcetabletblog.de  | Email this | Comments
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Kinect hacks, performance art edition: pin boards, puppets and RoboThespians
Tired of Kinect hacks yet? We hope not, as the frequency and ingenuity of them only seems to be increasing with each passing week. The three in this latest group all fall more or less under the banner of performance art, and include two hacks that let you control two very different avatars -- a virtual puppet in the "We Be Monsters" project and the very real "RoboThespian" -- as well one that creates a virtual pin board that's perfect for your next rave. If the RoboThespian looks a little familiar, it's because it's actually been in development since 2005, but it recently got a Kinect-enhanced upgrade for its appearance at CeBIT this month. Head on past the break for videos of all three hacks in action, and hit up the links below for some additional details.

[Thanks to everyone who sent these in]
Continue reading Kinect hacks, performance art edition: pin boards, puppets and RoboThespians
Kinect hacks, performance art edition: pin boards, puppets and RoboThespians originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 05 Mar 2011 03:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink Kinecthacks.nl  |  sourcePinboard @ Transmediale, We Be Monsters, RoboThespian  | Email this | Comments
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Lensbaby goes practical with aperture-adjustable Sweet 35 Optic
We love a Lensbaby lens as much as the next hipster, but if there's one thing the Optic Swap system isn't, it's fast. Switching out aperture plates is a royal pain, and for those looking to simply capture moments as they happen, it's a system that simply doesn't work. The company's apparently aiming to fix that with the introduction of its first 35mm optic with a 12-blade adjustable aperture. The Sweet 35 select focus optic requires but a twist to change the aperture, and in turn, the "sweet spot." 'Course, you'll still need to find yourself adequate light (or boost your ISO / slow your shutter) before stepping that aperture value up too high, but at least now it's easier than using a magnetic tool to fish one plate out and drop another in. The lens steps down to f/2.5 and goes all the way up through f/22, and it'll focus down to 7.5 inches from the front of the lens. The downside is that this particular optic isn't compatible with current 37mm Lensbaby accessories, nor will it function with the Composer with Tilt Transformer for Micro Four Thirds and Sony NEX cameras. Still, for $180 it's easily the most practical thing the company has ever delivered, and we definitely hope this is just the beginning of a trend it intends to push. Continue reading Lensbaby goes practical with aperture-adjustable Sweet 35 Optic
Lensbaby goes practical with aperture-adjustable Sweet 35 Optic originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 05 Mar 2011 02:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink   |  sourceLensbaby  | Email this | Comments
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Russia's major mobile operators join hands for unified LTE rollout
Ringo and co. said it best, and now Beeline, Megafon, MTS and Rostelekom are getting a little help from their friends. Er, friend. Or maybe it's the other way around? At any rate, the first four have just signed a deal with Yota to build out a nationwide LTE network that'll work across the board. Rather than forcing each operator to do their own thing, the four in question will now have the option to buy 25 percent stakes in Yota; according to Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, this unified effort will enable Russia's economy to reap the benefits of a widespread 4G network while other nations (ahem, America) fight to see whether it'll be WiMAX or LTE taking the lead. If you'll recall, Yota was actually one of the first carriers on the planet to serve up commercial 4G, but last year it decided to make the switch from WiMAX to the suddenly popular LTE. The goal here is to have LTE in 180 cities with a total population of more than 70 million citizens by 2014, and we're told that those situated on Little Diomede may actually be the first to get LTE in Alaska. Kidding. Maybe. Continue reading Russia's major mobile operators join hands for unified LTE rollout
Russia's major mobile operators join hands for unified LTE rollout originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 05 Mar 2011 01:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink   |  sourceYota, Reuters  | Email this | Comments
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AT&T to allow grandfathered unlimited iPad data plans on iPad 2, your weekend rave to continue
Good news, iPad 3G owners. If you were lucky enough to snag one of those coveted unlimited data plans with your original AT&T iPad, you won't have to toss it when upgrading next week. The carrier has confirmed to us that those who currently have the aforementioned plan will be able to keep it on their account when upgrading to the iPad 2, which in turns gives you no reason whatsoever to turn down the opportunity. Except for the lack of a USB port, SD card slot and a screen that touts the exact same resolution as the first model, of course.

[Thanks, David]
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Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 steps out with an FCC certification
Not much to look at, is it? Still, though, if you squint and use the most overactive parts of your imagination, you can kinda see how this is the Honeycomb-powered Galaxy Tab 10.1 that Samsung is starting to launch in some markets this month. Sure enough, the FCC has granted certification to model number P7100 (the original Galaxy Tab is P7000, by the bye), and the early stamp of approval by the feds plus the support for 850 / 1900MHz 3G gives us hope that there's a plan for an American launch in the near term -- likely on AT&T, we suppose, since this radio setup wouldn't be appropriate for any other of the US nationals. In the meantime, though, we encourage you to stare into this large, white, rectangular space and tell us your deepest thoughts.
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 steps out with an FCC certification originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 23:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink   |  sourceFCC  | Email this | Comments
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How would you change Jolicloud's Jolibook?
Jolicloud's Jolibook may not be the hottest selling netbook in the universe (or maybe it is, and we just don't know it), but regardless, it's certainly quite the eye-catcher. For those who diverted from the paths more beaten and picked one up, we're keenly interested in finding out how things are going for you. Are you content with the overall design? Would you have changed anything about the operating system? What about that bulging battery? Would you have rather it ran Windows after extended use? Tell all in comments below, and remember -- no matter how sour you get, you'll always have one bodacious looking lid.
How would you change Jolicloud's Jolibook? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 22:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Behold Corsair's Force GT SSD -- flaming red shell and 500 MB/s read and write speeds
Feast your eyes upon the latest and greatest SSD from Corsair, the Force GT. Aside from its flaming red façade, the Force GT also promises snappy 520 MB/sec read and 500 MB/sec write speeds thanks to its SandForce SF-2000 controller -- nearly twice as fast as the company's previous SandForce drives. The 240GB SSD will officially be unveiled at CeBIT 2011 (which ends tomorrow), but we thought you'd like to see this ruby-red speed demon a little early. Enjoy.

[Thanks, Bjorn]
Permalink   |  sourceHardware.no  | Email this | Comments
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N64oid brings Nintendo 64 emulation to Android devices
There's not exactly a shortage of video game emulators for Android devices, but there has been one notable, 64-bit exception. That's finally been rectified with the just-released N64oid application, however, which finally brings emulation of Nintendo 64 games to the platform -- and, like the other emulators from developer Yongzh, it's conveniently available right in the Android Market (for $5.99). As you might expect, there are a few glitches and hiccups to be found even on high-end phones like the Nexus S, but it does seem to run remarkably well for an initial release and, as Download Squad points out, you can also use a separate, freely-available app to add some Wiimote controls to the proceedings. Also, it means you can play Goldeneye on your phone. Video after the break.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Continue reading N64oid brings Nintendo 64 emulation to Android devices
N64oid brings Nintendo 64 emulation to Android devices originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 20:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink   |  sourceAndroid Market, Download Squad  | Email this | Comments
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Microsoft kicks off effort to rid the world of Internet Explorer 6
"Friends don't let friends use Internet Explorer 6." A quote from any random web developer over the past ten years? Nope, that's from Microsoft itself, and it's featured on the Internet Explorer 6 Countdown site that the company just launched today. As you can see above, the site also includes statistics on IE6 use around the world (China is apparently the biggest offender by a wide margin), as well as information about how you can "join the cause" and educate others about the perils of using such a horrible, outdated web browser.
Microsoft kicks off effort to rid the world of Internet Explorer 6 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 19:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink ZDNet  |  sourceIE6 Countdown  | Email this | Comments
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National Day of Unplugging 2011 starts now, but only after you tweet about it
Darren Murph was scheduled to write about the National Day of Unplugging 2011, which spans from sundown on March 4th to sundown on March 5th. Unfortunately, this post was delegated to him too late in the evening. He had already "unplugged." You could bother to search Facebook and Twitter to see his last snippet of digital communication for the day, but then you'd be laughing in the face of this marvelous idea. Your call. You know who you have to answer to in the end.
National Day of Unplugging 2011 starts now, but only after you tweet about it originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 19:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink   |  sourceSabbath Manifesto (1), (2)  | Email this | Comments
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Gizmo5 shutting down on April 3rd, credits can be transferred to Google Voice
Google may not have offered too many details when it acquired VoIP outfit Gizmo5 back in November of 2009, but it's not like any of that matters now. Gizmo5 customers around the globe are receiving an email today notifying them of the service's impending closure, with April 3rd pegged as the final day that calls can be made. After March 11th, you'll no longer be able to add credit to your account, but you can request a refund or have your remaining credits transferred to Google Voice (if you're in the US). Head on past the break for the full message, and feel free to pour one out. Or, you know, just wipe that FOF off of your face by watching this.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in] Continue reading Gizmo5 shutting down on April 3rd, credits can be transferred to Google Voice
Gizmo5 shutting down on April 3rd, credits can be transferred to Google Voice originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 18:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink   |  sourceGoogle  | Email this | Comments
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Sirius XM to debut Tiger Blood Radio: all Charlie Sheen, all day long
Charlie Sheen has a pretty impressive track record: in addition to a twenty-five-plus year movie career, he's brought tacky bowling shirts to the forefront of American consciousness, earned a Golden Globe Icon award, and shot his onetime fiance Kelly Preston. Is this enough to warrant an entire radio channel dedicated to the man who describes himself as having a "10,000-year-old brain and the boogers of a 7-year-old"? Apparently Sirius XM certainly thinks so. That's right: the company has announced that Tiger Blood Radio will air for twenty-four hours beginning tomorrow at 6:00 am ET on Sirius channel 108 and XM channel 139. "[C]reated in response to the national conversation sparked by the recent events surrounding actor Charlie Sheen," the company said in a statement, the station "will take listeners behind the headlines, exploring the media frenzy/media reaction, as well as the medical, psychological, psychiatric and pop culture and celebrity angles." This definitely sounds like award winning journalism, and not a cynical way to make a few bucks off someone who's clearly spinning out of control -- Adonis DNA or not. PR after the break.
Continue reading Sirius XM to debut Tiger Blood Radio: all Charlie Sheen, all day long
Sirius XM to debut Tiger Blood Radio: all Charlie Sheen, all day long originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 17:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink CrunchGear  |   | Email this | Comments
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NeuroSky shows off MyndPlay, we control movies with our brainwaves (video)
Would you pay $100 to control the outcome of a movie with the power of your mind? That's what NeuroSky and Triete Labs are banking on with MyndPlay. Simply put, it uses NeuroSky's $99 Mindwave headset with a custom video player that monitors your mental activity during critical points in specially designed films, and offers multiple outcomes depending on your focus and relaxation levels. For instance, in Paranormal Mynd (above), you play an exorcist who must drive a evil spirit away -- if you don't focus intently, this woman will choke to death. Another gangster film has you dodging bullets and sports multiple endings; depending on how relaxed and concentrated you are, you could come away clean, take a bullet to the head, or dodge poorly and have the projectile strike your friend dead instead. MyndPlay plans to produce a raft of such short-form content for $0.49 to $1.99 per episode, and also let you shoot and share your own, scripting sequences with a tool to be released next month called MyndPlay Pro.

We gave Paranormal Mynd a try at GDC 2011, and came away somewhat impressed -- you definitely can control the outcome of a scene, but it doesn't work quite like you'd expect. Since NeuroSky's technology is still limited to detecting the mental states of concentration and relaxation, you can't "will" the movie to go the way you'd like with your thoughts -- in fact, thinking about anything rather than what you're seeing on screen seemed to register as a form of distraction, and lowered our scores. Instead, the ticket to success seemed to be focusing intently on processing the images on screen and clearing our head of all thought or emotion, making us feel totally brain-dead even as we aced the scene. If that sort of zombification sounds like fun, watch a couple video teasers after the break! Continue reading NeuroSky shows off MyndPlay, we control movies with our brainwaves (video)
NeuroSky shows off MyndPlay, we control movies with our brainwaves (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 17:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Apple confirms $100 refund for those who recently purchased an original iPad
Much like the company did when it suddenly dropped the price of its original iPhone, Apple is giving $100 back to those who purchased an iPad up to a fortnight before the March 2nd unveiling of the iPad 2. If our math is correct, that makes February 16th the cutoff date, and it's being reported that those in the US will see $100 placed back on their credit card, while those overseas will get £100 / €100 back in their pocket. If you've suddenly found yourself in this pool, you'll need to head back to a brick-and-mortar location with your receipt to get the refund processed, or if you ordered online, you'll need to call Apple's 1-800 number and use your smoothest late-night voice when asking nicely for your Benjamin back. Godspeed.
Apple confirms $100 refund for those who recently purchased an original iPad originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 16:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink   |  sourceCNET, Electric Pig, Engadget Spanish  | Email this | Comments
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MacBook Pro review (early 2011)
Apple might say we're in the post-PC era, but hey -- turns out they still make Macs in Cupertino, and the new MacBook Pro is actually one of the more aggressive refreshes in the machine's history. Not only has it been less than a year since the last MacBook Pro spec bump, but our 15-inch review unit is actually the first Sandy Bridge system we've received from any manufacturer. And it's not just the CPU that's new: Apple's also launching the new Thunderbolt high-speed interconnect, and there's been a big switch to an AMD Radeon HD 6750M GPU paired with Intel's integrated HD Graphics 3000, an arrangement that should offer both solid graphics performance and great battery life. That's a lot of new parts in a familiar case -- but do they add up to something more than just a speed bump? Read on for our full review!
Gallery: MacBook Pro (early 2011) unboxing and hands-on
Continue reading MacBook Pro review (early 2011)
MacBook Pro review (early 2011) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 04 Mar 2011 16:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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CBS & Turner Sports are streaming all the March Madness games to PCs, iPhones & iPads for free
Every year CBS has enhanced its March Madness On Demand experience, from HD VOD on cable boxes to HD streaming on PCs before adding PiP and paid mobile access last year. For 2011, a new deal has brought in Turner Sports to not only provide enough channels to air all the games in high definition (we figure you'll find CBS, TNT and TBS on the channel guide with no problem, but with some of the games diverted to lesser known TruTV HD check the HDSportsGuide link below to see if it's in your area yet) but also expand the streaming experience by promising higher quality video, personalized channel lineup and social tie ins. If you're on the go, the mobile client for iOS devices (sorry, no Android or other mobile OSes) is free this year so you can keep that fiver in your pocket this time. There's another pic of the iPad client, a video trailer and all sorts of details waiting after the break, so click through to find out more or just wait for the free apps to hit iTunes March 10th. Continue reading CBS & Turner Sports are streaming all the March Madness games to PCs, iPhones & iPads for free
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