Friday, March 18, 2011

IT News HeadLines (Engadget) 17/03/2011




Tesla Model S will support third-party apps and text-to-voice, red lights will never be the same
Now that pretty much every gizmo from your smartphone to TV has apps available for it, what's the next logical frontier? Of course, your car! Yesterday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk told Cleantech Forum attendees in San Francisco that the upcoming Model S would indeed come with support for third-party applications to run on that monster 17-inch infotainment console. We're happy to see the company encouraging developers to put that Tegra chip to good use, though we can't help but worry about the myriad distractions that could come along with it. Of course, we're still in the dark about what OS is powering the whole shebang, but we're sure there will be a port of Angry Birds before you can come to a complete stop.
Permalink SlashGear | sourceVentureBeat | Email this | Comments
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Nokia talking homegrown 'Harmattan' release of MeeGo at May conference, but it's nothing new
Some noise has been made today over the news that Nokia is going to be chatting up its Harmattan platform at May's MeeGo conference in San Francisco, suggesting that Nokia will be releasing Harmattan devices as a precursor to its MeeGo offerings -- some sort of postmortem Maemo 6 sendoff before Espoo starts to take MeeGo seriously. In reality, there's nothing new here: it's been known for the past year that Harmattan was happening -- and it's looking more than ever like it's Nokia's full-on MeeGo play, having pulled the code over from the work it had already done on Maemo 6. The abstract for the Harmattan session at the conference says that Nokia will "clarify" the relationship between the project and MeeGo proper, but at no point has Nokia skirted around the fact that Harmattan was still in the works -- and with the company's commitment to MeeGo beyond its 2011 product line a big question mark right now, we wouldn't be surprised if Harmattan was as far into the MeeGo ecosystem as Nokia ever got.
Permalink SlashGear | sourceMy Nokia Blog, MeeGo | Email this | Comments
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Samsung shows off 55-inch glasses-free 3D TV prototype
Samsung hasn't exactly been as big on glasses-free 3D TVs as some other manufacturers in recent years, but it's now showing one off at the FPD China trade show -- or a prototype of one, anyway. According to Tech-On!, the 55-inch display is able to accomodate nine different viewpoints for glass-free 3D viewing, and it can be switched into a 2D mode at any time, which works by changing the optical refraction index of an LCD panel that sits on top of the main LCD that's actually used to display images. Right now, the prototype is also relying on a direct-lit CCFL backlight, although Samsung notes that would likely be replaced with an LED backlight before it actually hits the market -- something that's still a good three years away.
Samsung shows off 55-inch glasses-free 3D TV prototype originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 12:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceTech-On! | Email this | Comments
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BMW's all-electric i3 city car gets captured on video
Been wondering when BMW's all-electric i3 city car would turn up on video ever since its bigger, sportier counterpart did its thing last week? Well, here's your answer. The folks from GMotors recently managed to catch the pint-sized car doing a bit of drifting at the same cold weather test location in Sweden that the i8 was spotted at, and it certainly looks like the 150 horsepower vehicle could be a fun little car to drive. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like you'll be able to take one for a spin yourself anytime soon, as it's not expected to go on sale until 2013 (at a cost of around $40,000). Head on past the break for the video.
Continue reading BMW's all-electric i3 city car gets captured on video
BMW's all-electric i3 city car gets captured on video originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 11:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink Autoblog | sourceGMotors.co.uk | Email this | Comments
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Western Digital's new My Book Studio Edition II has 6TB on offer, but no Thunderbolt or USB 3.0
Western Digital's new My Book Studio Edition II has 6TB on offer, but no Thunderbolt or USB 3.0
If you want a lot of the GBs in not a lot of space, 3TB per disk is about as good as you're going to get. Western Digital has slapped two of its triple-terabyte monsters into a dual-disk enclosure and paired it with eSATA and FireWire 800 interfaces to create the My Book Studio Edition II. There's a good 'ol USB 2.0 hole in there as well, but no USB 3.0 or Thunderbolt for those getting hip with the new connections. Time Machine support is baked in as well as your choice of RAID configurations, all at a cost of $549.99. That's a good bit more than you'd spend if you bought a pair of disks and an empty enclosure, but such is the price of convenience.
Gallery: WD My Book Studio Edition II
Continue reading Western Digital's new My Book Studio Edition II has 6TB on offer, but no Thunderbolt or USB 3.0
Permalink | sourceWestern Digital | Email this | Comments
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Want to write for Engadget? We're hiring mobile, classic, European and reviews editors!
Oh sure, you love gadgets -- but do you have the chops to write about them? We'd love to know if you think you do, because we're looking to actually pay humans to do this stuff. Professional writing experience isn't necessary (though it doesn't hurt), but what we really care about is that you can write skillfully about gadgets with wit, concision, and authority. And being obsessed with Engadget is good, too. So here's what we're after:
  • Senior mobile editor - Full-time (salary or freelance), must be based in New York City (or nearby).
  • HD / classic editor - Part or full-time (freelance), must be based in New York City (or nearby).
  • Reviews editor (laptops, mobiles, etc.) - Full-time (freelance), must be based in New York City or the San Francisco area.
  • European editor - Full-time (freelance), preferably based in London (or nearby).
Want to apply? Read on. Continue reading Want to write for Engadget? We're hiring mobile, classic, European and reviews editors!
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Dell Vostro 3000 updated with Sandy Bridge processors, affordable prices go untouched
Not another business laptop updated with Sandy Bridge processors! We know, it's getting a bit repetitive at this point, but what if we told you this group blends together some awesome features and won't cost you more than $600? You'd be willing to hear more, right? Well, Dell's indeed refreshing its 13-, 14-, 15-, and 17.3-inch Vostro 3000 series laptops with those fresh Core i3, i5 and i7 processors, but it's leaving intact everything we loved about the series the first time around -- including, its aluminum build, backlit keyboard, and matte displays. On top of that it's also adding SRS Pro sound, HD webcams, and a new chiclet keyboard, which is a lot like the one we like so much on the Inspiron 14R and M101z. See we told you the features were worth hearing about. Internally, all four systems will be available with a selection of Sandy Bridge processors (with the 17.3-inch version getting some quad-core options), a variety of hard drive and SSD options, six- and nine cell batteries, and up to 8GB of RAM. We don't have the exact configuration pricing, but according to the press release below the 13-inch 3350 will start at $599, 14-inch 3450 and 15-inch 3550 at $499, and lastly the 17-inch 3750 at $549. See, mighty tempting prices -- especially after you take a look at the hands-on pictures below.
Gallery: Dell Vostro 3000 hands-on
Continue reading Dell Vostro 3000 updated with Sandy Bridge processors, affordable prices go untouched
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Caribou Android app opens doors over the internet, needs neither permission nor keys (video)
Opening doors with wireless RFID cardkeys is old hat at this point, but opening those doors with a smartphone is rather more intriguing. Doing so without permission of the people who put the locks on the doors, well, that brings things up to a whole new level of awesomeness. That's what Caribou does, a little Android app that remotely connects to a server managing the locks at a supposedly secure location. The app then diddles the ports and security settings of that server until it finds the magic phrase and, in a couple of seconds, it's open sesame time. Doors are unlocked remotely and then, 30 seconds later, automatically locked again. How thoughtful.

We first saw this demonstrated a few days ago but weren't entirely convinced of its legitimacy. But now, after exchanging a few e-mails with Michael Gough, who discovered the exploit, and Ian Robertson, who wrote the app, we're convinced. They're actually working with US-CERT on this issue so that appropriate measures will be taken but, in the short-term, if you have a system like this and it's sitting out there, IP open to the internet and being caressed by every passing breeze, you might want to think about pulling that in behind your firewall. Lots more info at both source links below, though you can see it working for yourself right here in a video after the break, running on an HTC Incredible. Continue reading Caribou Android app opens doors over the internet, needs neither permission nor keys (video)
Permalink | sourceCyberSecurityGuy, Hacker Hurricane | Email this | Comments
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LCD technology torn down and explained in the most lucid and accessible terms yet (video)
Look, we know you know all about LED backlights, light diffusion, subpixels, and the things that turn them on, but not everybody does. The humble LCD you're most likely reading this on still retains a level of mystery about the nitty gritty details of how it works for the vast majority of its users, so here's a terrific video breakdown of both its component parts and method of operation. Bill Hammack, a self-appointed Engineer Guy, takes us from the LED arrays that provide the light for most current LCDs, through all the filters and diffusers designed to make that light uniform, and into the ways thin film transistors make it possible for us to show moving color images of cats diving into boxes on such displays. It's exciting, deeply nerdy stuff, and it awaits your audience after the break. Continue reading LCD technology torn down and explained in the most lucid and accessible terms yet (video)
Permalink | sourceengineerguyvideo (YouTube) | Email this | Comments
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Sir Tim Berners-Lee signs up to verily protect UK net neutrality
Sir Tim Berners-Lee signs up to protect net neutrality in UK, huzzah
Here in the US we're still looking for a knight in shining armor to protect our free and open internet, but in the UK they've found their guy. Now they just need some plate mail. It's Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee, the man who first proposed the World Wide Web to the World Wide World in 1989. He'll be working with the UK's Broadband Stakeholder Group to ensure that any traffic management policies that go into effect are done with transparency and within a set of defined best practices. That is to say: corporations will still have an opportunity to address threats to the overall health of their networks, but they'll need to do so in an open way. Communications Minister Ed Vaizey summarized it thusly:
That agreement should be guided by three simple principles. The first is users should be able to access all legal content. Second, there should be no discrimination against content providers on the basis of commercial rivalry and finally traffic management policies should be clear and transparent.
So, that's good news for those across the pond. Here in the US, well, we'll just keep braiding our hair and singing out the tower window as loudly as possible. Or maybe it's time to give Tim Wu a sword.

[Photo credit: Paul Clarke]
Sir Tim Berners-Lee signs up to verily protect UK net neutrality originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 09:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceThe Telegraph | Email this | Comments
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Nokia C7 rumored for T-Mobile launch under Astound moniker, to cost $80 on April 6th
If you've been listening to the Engadget Mobile podcast lately, you'll know that we don't much like this trend of using verbs as phone names, but T-Mobile clearly hasn't gotten the message, as one of its upcoming handsets is rumored to be called the Astound. What exactly this rebadged Nokia C7 is supposed to astound us with, we're not really sure. We've seen its Clear Black Display already, which is very nice, but we've also seen the dead OS walking that is its Symbian installation. Still, for $80 on contract, it doesn't necessarily have to compete with the crème de la Gingerbread to be an appealing option. Look out for it early next month, waving the Magenta flag with pride.
Permalink | sourceTmoNews | Email this | Comments
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Dell Inspiron R refreshed with removable lids and Intel's latest processors
We'll be honest, we've never been the biggest fans of Dell's colorful, patterned lids -- not because some of them are pretty ugly, but because once you choose one hue, you're stuck with it forever (or at least until you need a new laptop). Well, Dell's finally solved that piece of the puzzle with its new Inspiron R series -- the 14-, 15.6- and 17.3-inch laptops all have swappable lids. Yep, it's sort of like those interchangeable Swatch watch faces from the 90s -- you can snap off the standard black cover, buy a new one for $19 ($29 for the Design Studio patterns), and latch it right on. But that's not all Dell's changed with its mainstream laptops -- the rigs now have new chiclet keyboards, HD webcams, and a design that's similar to the new XPS line.

For a budget system -- the 15R starts at $529.99 -- they actually feel pretty solid and the internal organs fit the same description. All three of the machines can be configured with brand new Sandy Bridge Core i3, i5, and i7 processors, Blu-ray drives, up to 8GB of RAM, six or nine-cell batteries, and USB 3.0 ports. Dell didn't forget about the graphics either -- the 14 will be available with AMD Radeon HD 6000M options, while the 15 and 17 grab a hold of NVIDIA's GeForce GT525. All three models should be up for order today on Dell's website with them heading to retailers later this spring. Hit the break for the full PR / specs and don't forget to check out the hands-on shots on your way.
Update: We now have the correct spec sheet after the break!
Gallery: Dell Inspiron R hands-on
Continue reading Dell Inspiron R refreshed with removable lids and Intel's latest processors
Dell Inspiron R refreshed with removable lids and Intel's latest processors originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceDell | Email this | Comments
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Car Connectivity Consortium forms to bring more smartphones to more interiors
Car Connectivity Consortium forms to bring Terminal Mode to more cars, more devices
Though Terminal Mode has always been an open standard we've never really seen any tech companies outside of Espoo show much interest in the stuff, which lets a car mirror a phone's display. When Nokia sort of shifted gears and signed on with Microsoft that left us wondering what would be next for the company's infotainment efforts. Good things, as it turns out. The Car Connectivity Consortium has been founded to drive "global innovation for in-vehicle connectivity," and both Terminal Mode and Nokia will play a big part -- though a bigger part will be played by Daimler, GM, Honda, Hyundai, Toyota, and VW. They're joined by electronics companies Alpine, LG, Panasonic, and Samsung, making us think that maybe Terminal Mode's time has properly come. Also on the docket for the CCC is study of NFC, which will hopefully standardize the sort of awesome key interactivity BMW recently showed off. Continue reading Car Connectivity Consortium forms to bring more smartphones to more interiors
Car Connectivity Consortium forms to bring more smartphones to more interiors originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 08:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Firefox 4 to be released on March 22nd, download statisticians ready their calculators
Having kicked out a release candidate on March 9th, Mozilla now feels confident enough in version 4 of its well loved Firefox browser and has set a date for its final release: March 22nd. That's next Tuesday, if you're calendar-shy, and a download is penciled in for availability at around 7AM Pacific Time. Mind you, Mozilla believes its RC1 build, already available on Windows, Mac and Linux, will likely be the final version put up in a few days' time -- the team is just monitoring the code and performing last-minute checks to ensure there are no massive, world-ending bugs that haven't been spotted yet. So that basically means you can risk it now and get your GPU-accelerated web future started early, or you can wait until it's official on Tuesday and be part of Mozilla's next attempt at breaking the downloads record.

[Thanks, Ro]
Permalink | sourceMozilla (Google Groups) | Email this | Comments
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Dutch researchers dust off X-ray machine from 1896 to compare it to modern equipment
This one is a bit shocking to us. X-rays were discovered in 1896, and recently, a team of researchers at Maastricht University Medical Center in the Netherlands pulled a machine from 1896 off the shelf for the purpose of comparing its results to modern equipment. The researchers say that this original equipment pumped out around 1,500 times more radiation than new equipment in order to produce its results. Speaking of those results, they are unsurprisingly less sharp and detailed than modern X-rays, but they still look pretty impressive if you ask us. The X-rays were conducted on a cadaver this time around rather than a living person because of the high levels of radiation. Full results will be published in the Journal Radiology this month.
Permalink | sourceBBC | Email this | Comments
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Nokia Software Updater for Mac available in beta, lets you update your N97 under OS X
Nokia Software Updater for Mac available in beta, lets you update your N79 under OS X
There hasn't always been a lot of love between Symbian devices and Macs, and while Nokia just got awful friendly with Microsoft the company is also extending something of an olive branch to the Apple community. The Nokia Software Updater for Mac just went live, more than a year after the Windows 7 version, and, while it's still in beta form, it'll allow you to push the latest revisions of core software and apps to your device. At this point there aren't any particular issues being reported, but the app does warn that you can brick your device if you unplug it while updating. Nothing new there, really.
Permalink | sourceNokia Beta Labs | Email this | Comments
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BYD Motors sneaks on to American market, could make US debut official by year's end
We've heard rumblings of BYD coming to America before, but it seems it won't be making a big deal of its Stateside entrée -- at least not yet. According to the Los Angeles Times, China's sixth-largest car maker is quietly making its presence known in the US, occupying the offices of Cars 911 -- a dealership in Glendale, CA -- and solidifying plans to open 10 American dealerships by the end of 2011. BYD is also in the process of building its US headquarters in downtown LA, and has been servicing a fleet of its F3DM hybrids, leased to the city's housing authority, from the Cars 911 lot. BYD's e6, which is slated as a Leaf competitor, is suspected to appear on the American market, alongside the F3DM, by year's end. Considering the Leaf's recent woes, this might be just the right time for BYD to strike.
Permalink Autoblog | sourceLA Times | Email this | Comments
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Android 2.2 is now the dominant version of Google's OS with 61.3 percent of all active devices
Considering that we're about nine months removed from Google's release of Froyo, you'd expect that version of its mobile OS to have been distributed quite widely by now and indeed it has. 61.3 percent of (the many) active Android devices -- handsets and tablets, anything with access to the Market is eligible -- worldwide are now running version 2.2, making it the most prevalent iteration of the software at the moment. Even more encouraging news is that, when taken together with Android 2.1, that group swells to account for more than 90 percent of active Google devices. If you want to look at the reverse, rather moldy, side of the coin, however, you'll note that the latest mobile version of the OS, Gingerbread (2.3), is only on 1 percent of devices, while the absolute finest Android, Honeycomb (3.0), barely scrapes a couple tenths of a percent together. So yes, things are moving inexorably forward, just not as rapidly as some might have hoped.
Permalink | sourceAndroid Developers | Email this | Comments
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US Army to deploy Individual Gunshot Detector, essentially a radar for bullets
Latest in our series of "when video games turn real," here's the US Army's newest addition to the wargadget arsenal. The Individual Gunshot Detector, produced by QinetiQ, is an acoustic monitor attuned to tracking down the source of gunshots just by their sound. It has four sensors to pick up the noise of incoming fire, and its analysis of those sound waves produces a readout on a small display that lets the soldier know where the deadly projectiles originated from. The entire system weighs just under two pounds, and while it may not be much help in an actual firefight -- there's no way to distinguish between friendly and hostile fire -- we imagine it'll be a pretty handy tool to have if assaulted by well hidden enemies. 13,000 IGD units are being shipped out to Afghanistan later this month, with a view to deploying 1,500 each month going forward and an ultimate ambition of networking their data so that when one soldier's detector picks up a gunfire source, his nearby colleagues can be informed as well. Continue reading US Army to deploy Individual Gunshot Detector, essentially a radar for bullets
US Army to deploy Individual Gunshot Detector, essentially a radar for bullets originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 05:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink Gizmag | sourceUS Army | Email this | Comments
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HTC Thunderbolt now available to buy: $250 from Verizon, $180 at Amazon
Another saga put to rest. The question of just when Verizon will release its first 4G LTE handset was answered yesterday with the word "tomorrow," which makes today that day! Verizon Wireless is now taking online orders for HTC's 4.3-inch Thunderbolt, pricing the LTE lubber at $250 on a two-year contract. It comes with Android 2.2 as the OS underlying the HTC Sense 2.0 UI, an 8 megapixel camera with HD video recording, 768MB of RAM, and a 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8655 chip that will have to do its best to keep up with those crazy 4G download speeds. If Verizon's own pricing feels a bit rich to you, shop around -- we've found the Thunderbolt as low as $180 at Amazon, although the online retailer has it on back order for the moment.

[Thanks, Justin] Continue reading HTC Thunderbolt now available to buy: $250 from Verizon, $180 at Amazon
HTC Thunderbolt now available to buy: $250 from Verizon, $180 at Amazon originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 04:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceVerizon Wireless, Amazon | Email this | Comments
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Will a $200 ASUS Eee PC finally ship with Google's help?
As hard as it tried, ASUS never could get its Eee PC prices down to $200 MSRP as promised way back in 2007 -- a time when Intel-based netbooks still shipped with Linux distros and "tablet PCs" ran a Microsoft OS. Fast forward to today and netbooks are being kicked to the curb for ARM-based tablets running smartphone operating systems. To compete, ASUS, a company that's become synonymous with netbooks, is planning to ship an unsubsidized $200 to $250 netbook running Android 3.0 or Chrome OS in June. According to DigiTimes sources, anyway, who tend to be pretty accurate with regard to Taiwanese companies. If true then expect to see it announced at Computex which kicks off in Taiwan on May 31st.
Will a $200 ASUS Eee PC finally ship with Google's help? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 03:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceDigiTimes | Email this | Comments
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Apple and Android get drafted, soldier-centric Army apps coming soon
If we referred to an Apple or Android army, you might assume we're talking about a legion of brand-loyal fanboys, with which most Engadget commenters are intimately familiar. Defense contractors, however, are trying to turn the US Army into a lethal Apple / Android force with soldier-centric apps. Harris Corp. has a tablet app in the works that allows soldiers to control IP cameras on UAVs for more pertinent intel on the ground while simultaneously sending that information to command centers anywhere in the world. Meanwhile, Intelligent Software Solutions aims to bring mapping mashups to the battlefield (no purpose-built device needed) with an app that combines smartphones' geolocation with historical data to show troops what's been going down in the area -- from IED explosions to insurgent arrests. Best of all, these apps lower training costs since most warriors are already fluent in Android or iOS and the consumer handhelds can be cheaply ruggedized to replace the more robust $10,000 units in the field today. Should protective measures fail, the devices' (relatively) low replacement cost makes them "almost disposable."
Apple and Android get drafted, soldier-centric Army apps coming soon originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 02:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceComputer World | Email this | Comments
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iPad 2 online orders start arriving on doorsteps
The old saying goes "the early bird catches the worm," and it certainly appears to be holding true for the insomniacs who stayed up for iPad 2 pre-orders to go live online. We've received our own orders that were placed as soon as the switch was flipped, as have several MacRumors forum contributors (as pictured above). With shipping estimates slipping longer and longer, maybe waiting on a real line isn't the most unattractive option any more.
iPad 2 online orders start arriving on doorsteps originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 01:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceMacRumors | Email this | Comments
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Visualized: classic biplane gets a glass cockpit
Waco's YMF-5D biplane may look like an authentically vintage aircraft from the outside, but it's an entirely different story once you strap yourself into the pilot's seat. The plane is available with a number of different "glass cockpit" options, including the top of the line model pictured above that's outfitted with a whole slew of Garmin aviation gear and other 21st century niceties. Of course, that doesn't exactly come cheap - all told, the full glass configuration runs just over $99,000, or over $500,000 including the plane itself (you can see what it looks like after the break).
Continue reading Visualized: classic biplane gets a glass cockpit
Visualized: classic biplane gets a glass cockpit originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 23:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceWaco Classic Aircraft | Email this | Comments
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Internet Explorer 9 hits 2.35 million downloads in first 24 hours, we're mildly impressed
Okay, so 2.35 million downloads in a single day is nothing to scoff at, but it's also not a monumental achievement in terms of browser downloads in the first 24. A post to Internet Explorer's official blog used the word "wow" to describe the IE9 numbers, but considering Firefox 3 got the Guinness world record for most software downloads in a day, with 8 million way back in 2008, we're reluctant to call this news wow-worthy. Given, Firefox 3 was available for both Mac and PC, but it still beat Windows' new browser three times over. Don't get us wrong, we like IE9, but we still think a little bit of modesty goes a long way.
Permalink | sourceWindows | Email this | Comments
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Zediva mashes up Netflix and Redbox for $1.99, four hour-window DVD streaming rentals
Netflix and Redbox have been the new hotness in rentals for the last few years but both have significant drawbacks. With Redbox, it's the box and the morons who are constantly standing in front of it paging through every single movie in the thing and for Netflix's Watch Instantly it's a lack of new releases available for instant viewing. Now there's a new startup, Zediva, that takes on both of those issues by sticking with DVDs, but instead of shipping them to customers or placing them in kiosks, just streams them on demand from one player, to one viewer (unlike Netflix, sometimes movies are "rented out" if there are no copies available at the moment -- renting a flick gives you control of the DVD player, with fast forward and reverse, for four hours) for $1.99 a rental or 10 for $10.

Apparently it's been in beta for a year but is now available to all and is currently offering new release DVDs the same day they go on sale by simply purchasing them at retail. There's no HD content yet but it claims Blu-ray titles will be offered soon. The Associated Press talked to a copyright lawyer who points out the case of a hotel that implemented a similar system but was sued into oblivion before calling Zediva "cute, but illegal" so if you decide to check it out, we'd recommend getting through that 10-pack of rentals with haste.

Update: We did recommend haste, didn't we? Zediva's registration is now listed as "temporarily full" and prospective users are being asked to join a waiting list. Thanks, Ialo!
Permalink Multichannel News, THR | sourceAssociated Press (NPR), Wall Street Journal, Zediva | Email this | Comments
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iPhone Personal Hotspot transmitting GPS information to tethered iPads?
You may not have known this, but besides missing a 3G radio, the WiFi-only iPad also lacks the A-GPS chip that enables exact GPS positioning versus less-accurate WiFi triangulation. Well, according to Tablet Monsters, if you've got an iPhone with iOS 4.3 and are subscribed to Personal Hotspot, your shiny slate should be able to tap into the GPS chip of it's smaller-screened family member. Reports in the MacRumors forums confirm that people are indeed seeing this added functionality on both iPad 2 and the original. Though the native Maps app is reportedly working perfectly there's talk of unfriendliness in turn-by-turn GPS apps -- though this could have to do with the refresh rate of the transmission. If you're already shelling out for the Personal Hotspot plan this is a nice added bonus, and makes the choice between the 3G iPad and the WiFi one just a little bit easier -- assuming you've got an iPhone of course. Still skeptical? Check out a video of it in action after the break. Continue reading iPhone Personal Hotspot transmitting GPS information to tethered iPads?
iPhone Personal Hotspot transmitting GPS information to tethered iPads? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 20:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceTablet Monsters | Email this | Comments
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BMW promises 5 Series 'New Energy Vehicle' for China
There's an unfortunate lack of details on this one at the moment, but it looks like BMW has something a little special in store for China at the Shanghai Motor Show next month. It will be showing off its new 5 Series "New Energy Vehicle," a plug-in hybrid that, as previously suggested, will be exclusive to the Chinese market. That will presumably be somewhat similar to the company's ActiveHybrid 5 concept pictured above, which it first showed off last year but still hasn't put into production. As Motor Authority notes, however, the New York Auto Show actually coincides with the Shanghai show, so there's a chance that BMW could be set to provide an update on the ActiveHybrid 5, or possibly introduce a North American counterpart to the New Energy Vehicle.
BMW promises 5 Series 'New Energy Vehicle' for China originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 19:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink Autoblog | sourceMotor Authority | Email this | Comments
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RIM issues PSA following Pwn2Own exploit: turn off JavaScript on your BlackBerry
It's not just desktop web browsers getting hacked at this year's Pwn2Own challenge -- mobile browsers have also been targeted for vulnerabilities, and a fairly big one has now been found in RIM's browser for BlackBerry OS 6. Apparently, there's a JavaScript-related bug that could let a "maliciously designed" website gain access to data stored on both the phone's media card and built-in storage, but not data stored in the storage portion for applications (such as email or contact information). For its part, RIM says that it hasn't actually seen any evidence of anyone exploiting the vulnerability, but it's nonetheless urging folks to disable JavaScript on affected devices, and it's now busy providing IT departments everywhere with guidelines on how to do so. If that proves to be complicated, it's suggesting that you simply disable the BlackBerry Browser altogether until it can be patched.
RIM issues PSA following Pwn2Own exploit: turn off JavaScript on your BlackBerry originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 18:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourcePC World | Email this | Comments
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HTC Shooter appears for Sprint with Android 2.3.2, qHD screen and dual-core CPU?
We still haven't heard what happened to the HTC Glacier, but the GLBenchmark database brings word of another mysterious high-end phone from Taiwan -- the HTC Shooter, which is very likely equipped with a dual-core Qualcomm processor. The "PG86100" certainly identifies itself as carrying a speedy new Adreno 220 GPU, which is typically paired with twin processing units, and should help push plenty of pixels to the 960 x 540 screen that's presently displaying Android Gingerbread 2.3.2. All in all, it sounds a lot like the rumored HTC Pyramid for T-Mobile -- except this one's apparently destined for Sprint. Could it be the EVO 3D, or something wholly different? We'll likely find out next week at CTIA 2011.

Update: The HTC Glacier actually reappeared as the T-Mobile myTouch 4G -- that second-gen 1GHz Snapdragon CPU (at a time when other handsets ran the same Scorpion core at 800MHz) was responsible for the high scores we saw. [Thanks, Mitch]
HTC Shooter appears for Sprint with Android 2.3.2, qHD screen and dual-core CPU? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 18:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink Blog of Mobile!!, PocketNow, Android Community | sourceGLBenchmark | Email this | Comments
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The Engadget Podcast, live at 6:00PM ET!
Your eyes don't deceive you. The Engadget Podcast is back -- and for this next, greatest episode, Josh, Paul, and Nilay will be sitting down to weigh in on all issues technology related. That's right, we're getting the band back together and jamming through the news the only way we know how: haphazardly, and with lots of screaming. Won't you join us at 6:00PM ET for all the fun? Trust us, you won't want to miss this! Continue reading The Engadget Podcast, live at 6:00PM ET!
The Engadget Podcast, live at 6:00PM ET! originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 18:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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GE's new phase-change based thermal conductor could mean cooler laptops -- literally

It's no secret: if your laptop sits atop your lap for an extended period of time, you're going to get burned -- okay, so maybe not burned, but you're definitely going to feel the heat. Luckily GE has been working (under contract for DARPA) on a new phase-change based thermal conductor that promises to cool electronics twice as well as copper, at one-fourth the weight. The breakthrough means big things for those of us who'd like to make babies one day, but we doubt that's why DARPA's shelling out the big bucks -- the new material functions at 10 times normal gravity, making it a shoo-in for on-board computing systems in jetliners. Using "unique surface engineered coatings" that simultaneously attract and repel water, the new nanotechnology could mean not only lighter, cooler electronics, but also an increase in computing speeds. Goodbye scrotal hyperthermia, hello cool computing! Full PR after the break. Continue reading GE's new phase-change based thermal conductor could mean cooler laptops -- literally
Permalink | sourceGE (1), (2) | Email this | Comments
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Web apps found to be lacking Safari's speed bump in iOS 4.3
Well, it looks like you weren't imagining things if you thought in-app browsers or web apps saved to your iPhone's home screen seemed slower than Safari itself. Ars Technica has now confirmed that pages or web apps loaded using those methods aren't receiving the JavaScript boost added to Safari in iOS 4.3, which the site found to be about 2.5 times faster than Safari in iOS 4.2. The problem is that those apps don't have the necessary permissions to execute dynamically generated native code stored in writeable memory (as Safari does), which basically leaves them running at the same speed they did in iOS 4.2. Not surprisingly, that has prompted some to speculate that it's all part of a grand plan on Apple's part to force developers to use full-fledged apps instead of mobile apps, but Ars Technica points out that it could just as easily be due to some technical problems. Hit up the source link below for all the technical details.
Web apps found to be lacking Safari's speed bump in iOS 4.3 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 17:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceArs Technica | Email this | Comments
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TWCable TV iPad app struggling with high demand, angry cable channels
Time Warner's TWCable TV iPad app could only serve 15 of the originally announced 32 channels (which curiously did not include BBC America, despite its appearance in these screens from iTunes) due to higher than anticipated demand that crashed the servers last night (Broadcasting & Cable reports the channels have since been restored.) According to the official blog it was the most downloaded app in the iTunes store yesterday and while its engineers work on a more permanent fix, cutting the channel count was the only way to make sure people can actually open the app and log in. However, there may be more than technical difficulties that take channels offline in the future, as Adweek reports several cable networks are upset with the app, quoting one unnamed affiliate head as saying "our position is that [this sort of distribution] is not authorized by our affiliate agreements." Networks like Discovery have already made public their dissatisfaction with Dish's Sling-powered app, with everyone from Comcast to DirecTV to TiVo potentially getting in on the act we'll probably see a slew of carriage disputes and lawsuits before every channel goes the way of ESPNNetworks.
TWCable TV iPad app struggling with high demand, angry cable channels originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 17:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceAdWeek, TWCableUntangled, (2) | Email this | Comments
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Sprint 'Project Leapfrog' rumors claim LTE network upgrade is underway
If we had a dime for every time Sprint CEO Dan Hesse (or spectrum partner Clearwire) has talked about a possible migration to LTE, we'd have... well, at least several dimes. A new rumor that's popped up from a couple sources today -- consulting firm Gerson Lehrman Group and GizmoFusion -- claims that the LTE move is now a done deal, with Sprint signing contracts with infrastructure supplies Ericsson, Alcatel-Lucent, and Samsung to roll out service over the course of the next two to three years as it decommissions iDEN on its 800MHz spectrum. That said, CDMA isn't about to go away: the company has already committed to upgrading its CDMA footprint with 1X Advanced over the next several years, too. GLG claims that Sprint's going Lone Ranger on this -- it'll be looking to partner up with other companies like Clearwire or T-Mobile where it makes sense, but the decision to move to LTE so far has been purely internal.

On a related note, GizmoFusion is claiming that Sprint will start shipping the WiFi-only BlackBerry PlayBook between late March and mid-April ahead of the WiMAX version later this year, along with touchscreen / QWERTY hybrid and full-touch BlackBerry handsets -- both of which we've seen rumored recently. LTE-compatible hardware, assuming this is all legitimate, is probably a ways off yet.

[Thanks, Stoopered]
Sprint 'Project Leapfrog' rumors claim LTE network upgrade is underway originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 16:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourceGLG News, GizmoFusion | Email this | Comments
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University of Central Florida's miniature laser diode aims to speed up networking
The use of laser as a means of data transmission is hardly anything new, but the current crop of laser diodes can only handle so much stress, provided that they don't fail in the first place. Luckily, the geniuses over at the University of Central Florida are about to deliver a smaller yet more intense and more reliable diode, which will lead to many more potential applications even beyond the scope of networking -- think cheaper, more effective hair removal. Little is said about how Professor Dennis Deppe's team made this possible, but once they work out how to optimize the operating voltage for better efficiency, Deppe reckons we'll see diode-embedded high speed, high bandwidth cables in the shops in four or five years' time. Seriously, we'd do anything to keep our latency low for some HD gaming action. Continue reading University of Central Florida's miniature laser diode aims to speed up networking
University of Central Florida's miniature laser diode aims to speed up networking originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 16:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | sourcePhysOrg | Email this | Comments
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Motorola Droid 3 for Verizon breaks cover once again
Want some more Droid 3 eye candy? If you just recently bought a Droid 2, the answer is probably "no, please, no" -- but nonetheless, we've got some for you. A couple more shots of the rumored refresh have popped up on HowardForums once again, showing off a QWERTY keyboard that looks largely similar to the one it's replacing with one very, very notable exception: it's a 5-row deal this time around with what appear to be half-height keys for the numeric row. People love 5-row keyboards, so if this is legit -- and we really have no reason to doubt that it is -- that feature alone could move a lot of phones. More on this soon, we hope.
Motorola Droid 3 for Verizon breaks cover once again originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 15:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink BGR, Droid Life | sourceHowardForums | Email this | Comments
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O2 Germany says HP Veer is coming in May
The tweet above just about says it all for this one -- well, in German, anyway. According to O2 Germany, the HP Veer will be launching on the carrier sometime in May, which presumably means it will also be available elsewhere in Europe around the same time, and likely in the US as well -- we've previously only heard "this spring" for a launch date. Unfortunately, there's still no word on any US carriers for the Pixi successor, though surely someone will be able to pick it up. It is rather light, after all.

[Thanks, Mario]
O2 Germany says HP Veer is coming in May originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 15:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | source@o2inside (Twitter) | Email this | Comments
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Ubisoft's Rocksmith aims to prove anyone can play guitar
Well, it looks like Ubisoft still thinks there some room left in the rhythm game genre. It's just announced that it will be releasing Rocksmith for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 sometime this fall, which is actually a revamped version of the Guitar Rising game that has been in development at GameTank for some time now. The hook with this one is that it'll actually let you use any real guitar to play the game, and it even promises to teach you how to play if you don't know already. Ubisoft also says that you won't need an amplifier to play -- you just plug your guitar right into your console, apparently with a standard USB instrument cable. Details on the game itself are otherwise fairly light, although it does seem like you'll have a pretty solid lineup of music to play along with, including tracks from David Bowie, The Black Keys, Interpol, Nirvana and The Rolling Stones. Head on past the break for a teaser video.
Continue reading Ubisoft's Rocksmith aims to prove anyone can play guitar
Ubisoft's Rocksmith aims to prove anyone can play guitar originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 15:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink Joystiq | sourceRocksmith | Email this | Comments
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LunchCommunicator films your every single bite, saves relationships
Ever wanted to tell your loved ones how grateful (or ungrateful) you are for your packed lunch, but not keen on having an awkward face-to-face dialog about it? Well, now you can! A research group at Ochanomizu University, Japan hacked up a nerdy lunch box -- consisting of a Creative webcam and a Viliv S5 MID -- just for this purpose. The idea is that when opened, the webcam will start recording the box being prepared at home; and when it's opened again at work, it automatically starts playing back the preparation footage while simultaneously recording the diner munching away. Obviously, you can throw in the occasional "oishii" and "arigatإچ" while you're at it. Sounds like the perfect gift for newlyweds, if you ask us. Video after the break. Continue reading LunchCommunicator films your every single bite, saves relationships
LunchCommunicator films your every single bite, saves relationships originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Mar 2011 14:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink Gizmodo, DigInfo | sourceLunchCommunicator | Email this | Comments
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