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Items by Paul Miller

Toys 'R' Us makes room for iPods, Eee PCs and cash money

Posted: October 27th, 2008, 8:03pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops, Portable Audio

Toys 'R' Us, the primary provisioner of joy and happiness to children in the world, is branching out into iPods and Eee PCs. Though never a stranger to consumer electronics, Toys 'R' Us has traditionally shied away from strict gadgetry -- with a notable exception being Zune sales starting last year. Now the retailer will be offering iPods in a little "iPod boutique," with various shuffles, nanos, touches and related accessories to help you fill those stockings and bolster Geoffrey's bottom line. The Eee PC will be offered in black and white, with low-end 7-inch Linux and XP versions available for $269 and $299, respectively.

Toys 'R' Us makes room for iPods, Eee PCs and cash money originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 27 Oct 2008 19:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Electric Motorsport's GPR-S e-motorcycle available now for $8,000

Posted: October 24th, 2008, 10:52am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Transportation

When we spotted Electric Motorsport last year the company was pushing a high-ish performance electric motorcycle prototype, with a top speed of 100 MPH, 100 mile range, a $15,000 pricetag, and a whole bunch ugly battery strapped underneath. Lucky for us, they've taken a very mass-market approach to their next bike, the GPR-S. Boasting a 60-70 MPH top speed and 35-60 mile range, the sleek little bike just might be the perfect commuter ride, and the $8,000 pricetag is much more palatable. The bike can charge in about four hours, or 1.5 hours with an optional speed charger. Even better, the bike is modular in nature, which means you'll be able to swap in a better power system once one comes along with a minimum of hassle. Electric Motorsport has sold 25 of these so far, but they're up and running and ready for sales at volume -- which is surprisingly still an incredibly rare feat in the electric transportation industry, even in 2008.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Microsoft waves dismissive, bloated hand at iPhone sales figures

Posted: October 24th, 2008, 10:08am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones

Microsoft's Robbie Bach feigned an uninterested yawn at Apple's 6.9 million iPhones figure in an interview with BusinessWeek the other day. He wasn't particularly insulting of the product, but didn't think the number means too much in the long run. "Apple had a big launch of a new product, and they launched at scale in a lot of new countries with a lot of new [wireless] operators. This quarter, RIM is having its big launch, and at some point we'll have our big launch. We'll have to see where things normalize." While that statement is encouraging for the fact that it semi-implies that Windows Mobile 7 is supposed to be released at "some point," we're not sure we're picking up what Robbie is putting down -- 6.9 million of a single device seems to imply a bit more than "launch buzz." Things devolved quickly when Bach started spouting about how carriers want a balanced ecosystem. That may be true, but consumers are the ones that buy the phones, and if their RAZR buying habits are any indication, "ecosystem" isn't their top priority.

[Via Electronista]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Access debuts ALP 3.0 and ALP mini, a scant 20 years too late

Posted: October 23rd, 2008, 9:55am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Leave it to Access to completely underplay the debut of one of the most anticipated mobile operating systems of the decade -- anticipation that's certainly waned, but we're sure somebody's at least a little excited. ALP 3.0 and ALP mini are about ready for mass consumption, with ALP mini available to licensees immediately, though no word yet on when ALP 3.0 will hit. From the sound of it, ALP 3.0 concentrates on a fancy, transition-filled smartphone OS, while ALP mini is more stripped-down and ready for featurephone use. Both operating systems are Linux-based, with some strange amalgam of Palm OS-ness, though ALP mini drops Garnet compatibility and can't run native Linux apps like big brother 3.0, which is LiMo compatible. NTT DoCoMo is planning ALP phones in the second half of 2009, that Edelweiss ALP phone for Russia has been outed, and we're still struggling to care.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Scitec's VLP-100 mini projector: QVGA never looked so bad

Posted: October 22nd, 2008, 10:22am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Displays

At first glance Scitec's VLP-100 seems to present a fairly below-average stab at the almost-mini projector scene, offering up 350 lumens, a 150:1 contrast ratio and a paltry 320 x 240 resolution. The 34,800 yen pricetag (about $352 US) does seem palatable, and the 2-inch thickness and 6-inch length are kind of nice, but Scitec absurdly expects you to spread that paltry image over 40-, 50- and even 60-inch screens, which is frankly ridiculous. The projector hits Japan later this month, so start saving up on suspension of disbelief.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

ASUS Eee PC S101 hands-on

Posted: October 21st, 2008, 5:37pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

Confession: we love, love slim laptops. Air, Envy, X300, slips of copier paper with "laptop" written on them... anything decently under that magical 1-inch thick mark has a special place in our hearts. And then there's the Eee PC S101. Don't get us wrong, we really like this little netbook. It's slim, light, solidly built, not entirely gaudy and comes with quite the pedigree, but we're having trouble choking down that $699 pricetag for what's still ostensibly a "second" computer. Here's the way we see it: this new, wonderful 0.75-inch thick form factor can't just be a random noodling by ASUS, we're expecting all sorts of trickle down to other models in the future -- except there's really no place to trickle down on the specs. Perhaps they could drop the Bluetooth, or the "n" spec from the WiFi, but at the end of the day 1GB of RAM and an Atom processor are pretty baseline for netbooks, and we expect something exactly delicious as this netbook from ASUS or elsewhere before the glossy paint is dry on the S101 -- or at least a built-in 3G option in a few weeks to make this thing obsolete. Our other big gripe is with the keyboard. The keys are good-sized and rather tactile for a netbook, but they could certainly be better, and the right shift key is inexplicably on the far side of the up arrow key -- basically unreachable by our mortal pinkie. It makes zero sense from a typing standpoint, and since we tend to over-rely on the right shift key out of bad Mavis Beacon-induced typing habits, we're not stoked about ASUS's choice here. Otherwise there's a nice collection of ports, a great (multi-touch) touchpad, a wonderful matte screen and that pesky hole in our wallet where all our cash used to be.

Gallery: ASUS Eee PC S101 hands-on

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Casio EX-FH20 hands-on -- in super slow-mo!

Posted: October 21st, 2008, 5:04pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Digital Cameras

No, literalists, we won't be providing impressions of Casio's latest high-speed shooter, the EX-FH20, in the English-language equivalent of bullet time -- though feel free to sound out each word veerrryy slooowwwly if you'd like -- but we did get to see how the camera performed shooting 1000 fps video and high-speed bursts of stills under very ideal circumstances, and came away quite impressed. Casio had members of the press lined up across the ice from some hockey players engaged in hockey activities, with lights the power of many suns at our backs to make the slow-motion video come out as more than a grainy mess. And it did. We found the interface very intuitive -- more so than Casio's first stab at slow-mo, the EX-F1 -- and were shooting 1000 fps videos of the action within seconds. That top speed crops the top and the bottom of the shot, which turned out fine for the linear progression of a hockey shot, but 1000 fps is really overkill for anything more glacial than a flash of lightning, and we found 210 fps (which also provides more resolution and a better aspect ratio) to be a real sweet spot for sports action. The immediate effect of slow motion is the dimming of the scene, but it's easy to adjust the f-stop and film speed to brighten things up a bit. Bursts of stills -- up to 40, at 30 fps -- are similarly easy to execute, and you can even set the camera to capture snaps for about a second before you fully click the shutter, in case you're a little slow on the response time. Overall we're very impressed with the build quality, size, image quality, manual controls and ease of use of this camera, especially in light of its $600 pricepoint, when big brother EX-F1 is retailing for a grand with very few differentiating perks.

Gallery: Casio EX-FH20 hands-on

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ASUS Eee PC S101 hits US November 1st for a steep $699

Posted: October 21st, 2008, 3:55pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

We went back and forth on price specifics for the States, and now it looks like ASUS has landed firmly in the "forth" category. ASUS's new "fashion-on-the-go" Eee PC S101 hits the States November 1st, and brings with it a hefty $699 pricetag. What you get for that price is a new super-slim enclosure (a mere 0.75-inches thick) and some stylish accents, but the specs are pretty standard for the higher-end of netbooks. There's an Atom N270 processor doing the heavy lifting, 1GB of RAM, a matte 10.2-inch 1024 x 600 LED-backlit display, 802.11n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0, multi-card reader, multi-touch touchpad, VGA webcam, 5.4 hours of quoted battery life (unlikely) and Windows XP. There won't be a Linux option offered in the States. All of this weighs in at 2.3 pounds, and there's still room for "hybrid storage" of a 16GB SSD and 30GB HDD -- but despite the laptop's slimness, it seems a bit of a reach at this price. The laptop comes in "copper brown" and "graphite" versions. Stand by for our impression later today.

Gallery: ASUS Eee PC S101 hits US November 1st for a steep $699

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BlackBerry Storm rumbles through the FCC

Posted: October 21st, 2008, 10:25am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

We're still sitting around waiting for an official release date from RIM, but perhaps this will help things along: the BlackBerry Storm has been OK'd by the FCC and is ready to send harmful radiation straight into your head. That's about all the info we've got from this fairy secretive approval report -- which doesn't even specify the name of the device -- but the label placement diagram shows off the back of the phone, with appropriate lines, button placement and world-roaming SIM slot that all point to Storm. "November-ish" can't come soon enough!Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Hacha's $15 PF02 player

Posted: October 21st, 2008, 6:46am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Portable Audio

Sorry slotMusic, you've already lost this month's low-price crown. Hacha just busted out a $15 DAP, the PF02. Specced with futuristic accouterments like... buttons, the 2GB player can handle MP3, WMA and OGG files with ease, and plugs in over the exciting new USB 2.0 standard. The future looks bright, folks.

[Via PMP Today]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Keyboard "eavesdropping" just got way easier, thanks to electromagnetic emanations

Posted: October 20th, 2008, 2:14pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Peripherals

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/security/Hackers_spy_on_your_keyboard_by_reading_electromagnetic_data'; We always knew those electromagnetic emanations would amount to no good, and now here they go ruining any shred of privacy we once thought to possess. Some folks from the Security and Cryptography Lab at Switzerland's EPFL have managed to eavesdrop on the electromagnetic radiation shot off by shoddy wired keyboards with every keystroke. They've found four different ways to listen in, including one previously-published general vulnerability, on eleven keyboard models ranging from 2001 to 2008, with PS/2, USB and laptop keyboards all falling to at least one of the four attacks. The attack works through walls, as far as 65 feet away, and analyzes a wide swath of electromagnetic spectrum to get its results. With wireless keyboards already feeling the sting of hackers, it's probably fair to say that no one is safe, and that cave bunkers far, far away from civilization are pretty much our only hope now. Videos of the attacks are after the break.

[Thanks, Dave]

Continue reading Keyboard "eavesdropping" just got way easier, thanks to electromagnetic emanations

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BlackBerry Storm in action, ad nauseam

Posted: October 20th, 2008, 12:30pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Just can't get enough BlackBerry Storm minutiae? Well, Verizon's popped out a few reels of B-roll that should just about do it. Check them all out after the break, with enough screen clicking, device rotating and battery installing to crack even the most hardened of RIM fanboys.

Continue reading BlackBerry Storm in action, ad nauseam

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Fujitsu's LifeBook P8020 12.1-inch ultraportable wars against the dreaded screen bezel

Posted: October 20th, 2008, 9:46am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

From what we can tell, Fujitsu's spent the industrial design budget for the LifeBook P8020 on one thing and one thing only: trimming those sides. We really do love to see a laptop with a keyboard and screen flush with the edges, seemingly wasting zero space. The resulting product is a tad chubby (1.1- to 1.5-inches) and lacks a certain charm, but there's all sorts of goodies under the hood, and the 2.9 pound weight is certainly passable. The 12.1-inch ultraportable packs a Centrino 2 processor, 320GB HDD (or a 64GB or 128GB SSD), 802.11a/b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth, gigabit Ethernet, a fingerprint reader, DVD burner, gesture-friendly trackpad and a 1.3 megapixel webcam. There's also a 6-cell battery and no 3G to drain it, so you should be able to expect some decent battery life when this hits in November, with a starting price of $1,799.

[Via SlashGear]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Noriko-san subway sleeping mask lets other passengers know to where to wake you, looks really cool

Posted: October 19th, 2008, 5:55am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Wearables

We've accomplished many an hour of restful, mugger-prone napping on the subway, but there's always the danger of missing your stop -- a problem we're usually too drowsy to consider at 2am in the morning. Not clever hacker Pyocotan, however. This resourceful fellow has built the Noriko-san sleeping mask for fashion-forward commuters, which broadcasts your destination to fellow passengers on a garish LED display, while you're busy getting some shut-eye underneath the mask -- in the hope that they'll be kind enough to wake you up at the right stop after they've rid you of your iPod and wallet. With a cost of $200 in parts, and considerable impracticality to boot, this device isn't quite ready for the commercial sphere, but that's of little concern to Pyocotan -- he's just busy being awesome. Video is after the break.

[Via Make]

Continue reading Noriko-san subway sleeping mask lets other passengers know to where to wake you, looks really cool

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Focus Design's SBU self-balancing unicycle: because you didn't look dumb enough on a Segway

Posted: October 19th, 2008, 12:21am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Transportation

The world of personal transportation, with few exceptions, has littered the earth with embarrassing paraphernalia. In-line skates, pogo sticks, the recumbent bike -- all disasters to personal style. Mix in electricity and you get the Segway, or alternatively, Focus Design's SBU electric self-balancing unicycle. The SBU can be steered by leaning left to right (like a regular unicycle) and uses Segway-style gyroscopes to power your lazy ass forwards and backwards. Not a new idea by any stretch, but Focus Design is actually crazy enough to be working on bringing this thing to market. Focus hopes to do a limited run of ten SBUs next month, at $1,500 a month. Peep the video after break to see if you can handle the shame.

[Via Hack a Day]

Continue reading Focus Design's SBU self-balancing unicycle: because you didn't look dumb enough on a Segway

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MINI E finally official, 500 available soon for US test drivers

Posted: October 18th, 2008, 7:01pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Transportation

The much-anticipated, well-expected MINI E -- the first all-electric MINI -- is headed our way before you know it. BMW's built itself a decent performer, offering 204 hp of electric motor in a setup quite similar to the Tesla. The car boasts a 150 mile range off its 35 kWh lithium-ion battery pack, can hit 62 mph in 8.5 seconds, and does a full charge off of an included high current charging station in a mere 2.5 hours. There's naturally a regenerative braking system on board to help beef up the battery in city driving. BMW plans on leasing 500 of these to commercial and private customers in California, New York and New Jersey sometime early 2009, and Europe might get a crack at the car soon after that. No word yet on when we'll see this car ready for the masses, but perhaps we'll get more info when the MINI E makes its "debut" at the LA Auto Show next month.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Permalink for 'Engadget/2008/10/18/AT_amp_T_s_Watson_wants_you_to_talk_your_TV_into_changing_the_channel'

AT&T's Watson wants you to talk your TV into changing the channel

Posted: October 18th, 2008, 4:01pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Home Entertainment

AT&T's been cobbling together a voice recognition system for decades, affectionally known as Watson. The good news is that unlike most every other voice recognition system out there, AT&T's might be useful for, you know, stuff. AT&T's working on making your plain-language utterances into real-life gadget actions, and has built a voice-operated TV remote to make the idea a reality. Built to operate the U-verse service, AT&T's new mythical remote lets you ask for whatever comedies might be on, or -- in the inexplicable example cited by our source article -- search for movies starring Bruce Willis, all using your voice in regular person sentences. AT&T's also working with other developers to build applications like a yellow pages app for the iPhone. There's no word on when (or if) AT&T will actually offer up the remote for consumer use, or when other applications are due to hit the mainstream, but we must say we're ready for the tide to shift in human-computer interaction, where the computer does the heavy lifting. Because we have some Bruce Willis movies to watch.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

CTL's 2go Classmate PC netvertible due in January for under $500

Posted: October 17th, 2008, 2:50pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Tablet PCs

CTL's sticking with the "2go" branding for its next-gen Classmate PC, but it's not hard to spot the difference: it's a convertible tablet. We've seen hands-on shots of the Intel concept a couple times before, but now CTL's starting firm up some details for its own OEM version, and even sent along a few new live shots of the device for our enjoyment. The specs are unsurprising for a netbook-style device (we suppose the proper term is "netvertible" now, yes?) with a 1.6GHz Atom 270 processor, 1GB of RAM, 60GB HDD and 802.11b/g/n WiFi, but the departure is in the tablet functionality. The 8.9-inch, 1024 x 600 screen handles stylus and finger input, swivels flat for slate usage, and has an accelerometer for orienting the screen and potentially other (read: games) usage. The webcam swivels from back to front as well. CTL's hoping to have an XP Pro version of the laptop available, but if Microsoft has its way we'll probably be looking at a Vista Home SKU at retail (CTL's existing Classmate PC sells at Costco and Amazon.com), in addition to a Linux version for more direct sales.

Gallery: CTL's 2go Classmate PC netvertible due in January for under $500

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iGPS360 add-on module for the iPhone and iPod touch is now available for order

Posted: October 17th, 2008, 12:52pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: GPS

We've had our doubts about this Orange Gadgets outfit -- the same folks promising that entirely-too-wonderful iControlPad -- but it looks like the company is making good on its first promised product, the iGPS360. The little add-on module brings GPS to your jailbroken iPhone or iPod touch, and is now available for order. Only 1,000 will be available out of the gate, at $75 (plus shipping) a pop. Since we haven't seen one in the wild, it's hard to know how well these modules will work, but Orange Gadgets has a pretty open development model, so feel free to page through the blog and see this thing through from concept to execution. Now, about that iControlPad...Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

The Minoru 3D Webcam reveals new dimensions to awkward conversations

Posted: October 17th, 2008, 11:05am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Digital Cameras

We've never really gotten the knack for video chat. Either we're bothered by the lack of eye contact, freaked by the uneasy silences or just way too ugly, but whatever it is we're sure the Minoru 3D Webcam is going to make it all much more immersive and difficult. Featuring dual cameras spaced about a face-width apart, Minoru creates a stereoscopic effect for viewing with old-school red and blue 3D glasses. The camera supports all sorts of video chat services, or you can shoot 3D video and shuffle it up to YouTube, and 2D is also available for all the squares out there. Minoru's currently competing in the CES Innovations competition, and should be hitting shelves in December at a sub-$100 pricepoint.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

iriver SPINN review

Posted: October 16th, 2008, 7:44pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

We've had iriver's SPINN laying around the Engadget HQ for a little while, and figure we've finally fiddled with the player enough to write down some impressions. If you're looking for the one liner, here it is: we're blown away by the beauty of the hardware, but the barebones player software, lack of an "ecosystem," and hefty price really hurt its chances with the mainstream. Full thoughts after the break.

Gallery: iriver SPINN review

Continue reading iriver SPINN review

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Panasonic firms up pricing for Lumix DMC-G1 mini-DSLR for mid-November launch

Posted: October 16th, 2008, 1:38pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Digital Cameras

We had it on good authority that Panasonic's Micro Four Thirds debut, the Lumix DMC-G1, was tracking for a November release at $799, and Panasonic USA just dropped some PR to exactly that effect. We'd prefer an exact calendar date to Panny's vague "mid-November" timeframe, but we're sure we'll live. Alongside the camera Panasonic will be launching the Lumix G Vario 45-200mm / F4.0-5.6 / MEGA O.I.S. telephoto Micro Four Thirds lens for $350. Panasonic's also still chatting up a G1 followup for 2009 that will include HD video capabilities, which probably should've made it into round one if you ask us.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

PSP-3000 ripped to shreds for your enjoyment

Posted: October 16th, 2008, 11:29am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds

Now that the PSP-3000 (or PSP Brite, as our Joystiq friends like to call it) has hit the streets, it was only natural for its innards to be splayed for all the world to see -- it's all part of the circle of life, or some similarly cliche lyric. We wouldn't really know where to begin running through these parts and figuring out what's new, but Impress Watch says it's pretty much the LCD getting all the love here, and that otherwise they're seeing way fewer internal changes than they saw when Sony released the PSP-2000. Sounds about right to us, but we're really just in it for the senseless violence of it all.

[Via PSP Fanboy]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

NEC LaVie Light hits netbook scene with a whimper

Posted: October 16th, 2008, 10:46am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

We're so very over this spec sheet: 8.9-inch 1024 x 600 LCD, 1.6GHz Atom N270 processor, 160GB HDD, 1GB of RAM, 802.11b/g WiFi, SD slot, 1.3 megapixel webcam, XP Home. We could recite that song of the netbook in our sleep, and the Japan-bound LaVie Light doesn't stray a note. NEC even did us the special honor of placing the mouse buttons on either side of the trackpad, placing it in the upper echelon of lazybooks, and seems to have fended off any industrial designers that might be lurking around the company with great success. Akihabara News says the price is "really similar to all Netbook already put on the market," which is probably the least surprising statement we've heard all week.

[Via Akihabara]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Apple's "spotlight turns to notebooks" event roundup

Posted: October 15th, 2008, 6:26pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

There were few surprises from Apple yesterday -- MacBooks were in the cards, and MacBooks are what we got -- and the jury's still out on whether these new laptops are exactly what the market needs right now, but there's no denying that Apple's pretty proud of its new all-aluminum lineup. We'll have a full review of the laptops shortly, but in case you missed anything, here's a look back at the mayhem.

The liveblog

Live from Apple's "spotlight turns to notebooks" event

First impressions

New MacBook / MacBook Pro unboxing and first impressions

Hands-on coverage

MacBook Pro first hands-on!
Apple MacBook aluminum and glass super-shiny hands-on
Apple 24-inch Cinema Display hands-on

Product announcements

Apple finally refreshes Cinema Display: 24-inch, LED backlit, $899
MacBook Air gets NVIDIA graphics, storage bump
Apple's MacBook gets a fresh face, NVIDIA graphics, original drops to $999
Apple's all-new MacBook Pro packs new NVIDIA GPUs, glass trackpad

In-depth / details

NVIDIA GeForce 9400 M, 9600M GT get official in new MacBooks
Apple's Steve Jobs calls Blu-ray "a bag of hurt"
MacBook Pro requires logout to switch graphics modes
Intel: MacBook Air sheds custom CPU for 45-nm Penryn "S"
Multi-finger MacBook trackpad gestures demonstrated on video
New MacBook Pro running HybridSLI?Permalink | Email this | Comments

PS3 2.50 firmware update hits North America

Posted: October 15th, 2008, 12:48am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming

Good news, friends, you won't have to wait until tomorrow to get at that new Flash 9 support offered up by the PS3 2.50 update: the firmware is available now. Sony tossed in a few other assorted updates like power-saving options and voice chat enhancements, but we're sure you'll be too busy watching Doogie Howser, M.D. on Hulu to notice. Happy downloading!Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Bandai's Net Tansor Web bot steals blogger jobs from filthy humans

Posted: October 14th, 2008, 5:23pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Robots

We always figured this day would come, but so soon? We're obsolete, ladies and gentlemen. It's been a great ride, and we're glad we got to do just one more Stevenote with y'all before we fade into the night, but the robots have arrived, and they're going to blog harder, better, faster and stronger. We cannot compete. Bandai just announced the Net Tansor Web, a WiFi-equipped robot with a built-in camera for snapping his soon-to-be-award-winning exposés and posting them to the web at regular intervals alongside witty commentary. The bot can react to reader comments like "a little to the right," or "you suck, why don't you just call it Applegadget?" and adjust accordingly. Net Tansor also can handle live video, reads RSS feeds out loud and knows no fatigue. Bandai's going to be selling this for 50,000 Yen (about $490 US) whenever it's ready.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Apple's all-new MacBook Pro packs new NVIDIA GPUs, glass trackpad

Posted: October 14th, 2008, 12:57pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/apple/Apple_introduces_new_MacBook_Pro'; Oh, don't act so surprised. A refresh of Apple's long-in-the-tooth MacBook Pro line was pretty much the only sure thing slated for today's event, and Apple certainly delivered. As for looks, you probably know the score by now: chiclet keyboard, Air-inspired aluminum stylings, and a glossy screen that's flush with a new iMac-like black bezel (there's no non-gloss option for the purists out there). What's new is confirmation of a multi-touch glass trackpad, which suspiciously rids the computer of a single mouse button and adds some new gestures like app switching. Apple's also put in some effort on slimming down the computer, bringing it down to a mere 0.95-inches thick (though at 5.5 pounds it's a hair heavier than the original), but much of the real excitement happens under the hood. There's a new internal structure, that rumored "brick" of aluminum that helps Apple make the new Pro thin, strong and leaves room for the real goodies: the specs. Apple's using NVIDIA's new 9400M GPU + chipset 1-2 punch for integrated graphics, supplemented by 9600M GT switchable discreet graphics chip for heavy lifting, and pumping out those graphics over a Mini DisplayPort connector, if you'd like to supplement the LED backlit screen. As expected there's an SSD option, with drive accessible underneath the battery. The 15.4-inch base model retails for $1999, with a 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor, 2GB of DDR3 RAM and both GPUs. Step up to $2499 and you get a faster CPU, 4GB of RAM and a 320GB HDD. The 17-inch MacBook Pro comes in a similar configuration with a 2.6GHz processor, starting at $2799, but sans the redesign and GPU love. Hit the jump for a breakdown of the configurations.

Gallery: Apple's new MacBook Pro

Gallery: New MacBook Pro Official Pictures

Continue reading Apple's all-new MacBook Pro packs new NVIDIA GPUs, glass trackpad

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Apple's MacBook gets a fresh face, NVIDIA graphics, original drops to $999

Posted: October 14th, 2008, 12:31pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gadgets/Apple_s_MacBook_gets_a_fresh_face_NVIDIA_graphics_3'; Apple's taking all that new MacBook Pro love and shrinking it down to size for the all-new MacBook. The laptop includes those same NVIDIA 9400M graphics, Mini DisplayPort plug, new manufacturing method, backlit keyboard and fancy glass trackpad of its big sibling, but does it with a 13.3-inch LED-backlit screen and typically friendly MacBook pricepoints. The laptop is 0.5 pounds lighter than its plastic predecessor, 0.95-inches thick, and Apple's also claiming 5 hours of battery life here, but we'll have to wait and see how realistic that number is. The base model weighs in at $1299 with a 2GHz Core 2 Duo processor, while $1599 gets you 4GB of RAM and a 320GB HDD. There's also an SSD option if you're really looking to splurge. If none of the new speed or style appeals to you, Apple's also slashing its existing low-end MacBook to $999, which is still a bit steep if you ask us. Hit the jump for a breakdown of the configurations.

Gallery: Apple's new LED-backlit MacBook

Gallery: LED MacBook Official Pictures

Continue reading Apple's MacBook gets a fresh face, NVIDIA graphics, original drops to $999

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ASUS at it again, calling out Gigabyte's excessive copper usage

Posted: October 12th, 2008, 11:50am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Desktops

Oh ASUS, you bring us such joy. When this company isn't busy diluting its Eee brand, it loves to pick fights with noted rivals, and this latest spat with Gigabyte (who isn't at all innocent in this war) is wonderfully trivial. Apparently ASRock, ASUS's budget motherboard wing, has taken it upon itself to inform hardware review websites like HEXUS of Gigabyte's wasteful implementation of copper. The email ponders: "While the demand for copper keeps increasing and with that the price of this natural resource, why would manufacturers choose to use more copper without any valid reason?" And it gets better: "I [unidentified] am not talking about unnecessary heatpipes that most people do not need, but about Gigabyte's '2 oz Copper PCB'. Gigabyte is adding more copper to the PCB to reduce the heat that is produced by their motherboard, and to spread it across the motherboard so that the heat will dissipate more quickly." Naturally ASRock's own P45 motherboard falls into none such pitfalls, offering better cooling with less copper, and they even provided a handy chart up above in case you don't believe them, you idiot. Say no to waste!

[Thanks, Jordan]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

PSP-3000 sneaks out a bit early, suffers an unboxing

Posted: October 11th, 2008, 1:09pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds

Due to be launched next Tuesday, the PSP-3000 Ratchet & Clank Entertainment Pack has managed to slip into at least one Best Buy a few days early, where it was quickly snatched up by friendly tipster Aaron G. He sent us a few unboxing shots out of the kindness of his heart, and now he's undoubtedly too engrossed in National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets and that ultra-bright screen to pay us much heed. Oh Nicolas Cage, what a charmer you are.

Gallery: PSP-3000 sneaks out a bit early, suffers an unboxing

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3's INQ to hit the mobile scene with Facebook-friendly INQ1

Posted: October 10th, 2008, 6:05pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones

Overseas mega-corp Hutchison, which owns the 3 network, has a new handset subsidiary called INQ, which is going after the social-hungry youth market in a big way. INQ's first handset, the INQ1, doesn't look like anything special -- just a frumpy-looking slider with a decent screen -- but start poking around and you'll find a massive amount of software for such a dorky phone from a handset upstart. The big angle here is Facebook integration -- INQ has a Facebook app to rival Facebook's own work on the iPhone, and ties Facebook contacts, chat and messages into all parts of the phone. The phone enjoys similar integration with Skype (including making Skype calls free over the network, like 3's Skypephone) and Windows Live Messenger. Other apps include an eBay tracker and a full-on WebKit browser. None of this is revolutionary, or even particularly polished, but the work INQ has done at integration, like a unified contact list, could do to be copied by even the major smartphone players. What is revolutionary is the price: INQ plans to sell primarily through pre-paid carriers, who are expected to retail the featurephone for under £99 without contract. The HSDPA phone, to be "officially announced" on October 13th, will hit the UK in November, and can apparently be flashed to work with US carriers -- with a launch planned for here next year. Oh, and the killer app? The phone doubles as a plug-and-play 3G modem. Yeah, US carriers are going to take real kindly to this one.

Gallery: 3's INQ to hit the mobile scene with Facebook-friendly INQ1

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SteelSeries WoW MMO Gaming Mouse makes wasting your life that much easier

Posted: October 10th, 2008, 4:41pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

With Wrath of the Lich King just around the corner, it's time to up your game and finally make it out of the low double digits with that Blood Elf mage you keep telling us about. Maybe SteelSeries can help. The high-end gaming peripherals builder recently snapped up Ideazon, and together they've built the official World of Warcraft MMO Gaming Mouse in close cooperation with Ideazon's BFF Blizzard. There are 15 programmable buttons scattered across the mouse, and a new in-game configuration utility to graphically assign the buttons just where they're needed. You can save different profiles for different purposes, and choose one of 16 million colors for those LEDs down the back. Just don't expect any fancy auto-levelling macros or even a recommended control scheme -- Blizzard still expects you to do the hard work of lining up your favorite actions and buying your gold on eBay. The laser mouse hits on November 13th to coincide with the Lich King launch, and should retail "under $100."Permalink | Email this | Comments

iriver SPINN hits the streets at last

Posted: October 8th, 2008, 1:05pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

It's been a long wait since we first saw iriver hint at the SPINN way back at CES in January, but the flash player is finally shipping -- just a few days late. Our full hands-on impressions are on the way, but there's no denying that iriver has caught our eye with this distinctive player. 3.3-inch OLED touchscreen, unique spin controls and that traditional iriver eye for design make this thing potentially worth the hefty $250 (4GB) and $290 (8GB) asking prices -- though we have a few issues with long-term usability we'll need to hash out. It'll be available at iriverinc.com, Amazon.com, J&R and B&H online stores, though iriver's seems to be the only one with it live just yet.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

BlackBerry Storm 9500 hands-on

Posted: October 8th, 2008, 1:02am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gadgets/First_hands_on_with_RIM_s_iPhone_killing_BlackBerry_Storm'; RIM's a little late to the touchscreen party, but comes bearing goodies. The BlackBerry Storm is a beast of a phone in more ways than one. Fronted by a meaty, high-resolution touchscreen with an innovative clicking mechanism, the phone is easily the prettiest by RIM to date. There's a brushed metal back, a beautiful new OS interface, and enough radios to give your grandkids cancer (EV-DO Rev. A, quad-band GSM, Europe-friendly HSPA, GPS, Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP, though sadly no WiFi). But the real test of a phone is usability, not flash. Check out our impressions after the break.

Gallery: BlackBerry Storm hands-on

Continue reading BlackBerry Storm 9500 hands-on

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Vodafone debuts BlackBerry Storm 9500

Posted: October 7th, 2008, 7:35pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gadgets/Vodafone_debuts_BlackBerry_Storm'; We're still waiting on Verizon to stop teasing us about this thing, but Vodafone (who's been hinting at the phone since last month) just announced the BlackBerry Storm, RIM's touchscreen flagship. As if you didn't know already, Vodafone is confirming a 3.25-inch 480 x 360 touchscreen, 3.2 megapixel camera, automatic orientation flipping, 1GB of built-in storage and a host of multimedia capabilities, including iTunes sync.

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Voodoo Envy 133 unboxing and impressions

Posted: October 3rd, 2008, 8:31pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gadgets/Voodoo_Envy_133_unboxing_and_impressions'; HP's Voodoo Envy 133, first announced in June, has struggled a bit off the blocks, with manufacturing problems keeping it out of buyers hands until last month. Of course, HP has a good excuse: carbon fiber. The notoriously difficult material wasn't used sparingly on the Envy 133, and if you've been looking for a laptop dripping with the synthetic material, HP's got your number. We mention this to remind ourselves that, like the MacBook Air before it, this laptop is about looks first, function second, and the Envy 133 succeeds in that regard wildly. There's always room for taste in these things, but HP makes quite a statement here no matter what your persuasion. We're not going to run through a full review here, but we'll let you know our first impressions after the break.

Gallery: Voodoo Envy 133 unboxing and impressions

Continue reading Voodoo Envy 133 unboxing and impressions

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Nintendo unveils Wii Speak channel for four-way voice chats

Posted: October 3rd, 2008, 10:26am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

Remember that Wii Speak microphone that Nintendo announced at E3 for Animal Crossing socialization, and then everyone promptly forgot about? Well, shuffled in with its other announcements yesterday, Nintendo announced the Wii Speak channel, that will allow for up to four people to voice chat directly without all that pesky fishing and digging and tea sipping and cute getting in the way. Unfortunately, literally nothing else is known about the feature -- we're curious if we can use that USB mic we got for karaoke, and we're sure you have burning questions of your own, but Nintendo's clearly going to debut this feature and the related hardware in its own sweet time.

[Via Joystiq]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Nintendo DSi hitting US 'well into' 2009

Posted: October 2nd, 2008, 1:57pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds

We heard last night that we wouldn't be seeing the DSi in the States until next year, and now Reggie has confirmed the damage: no DSi until "well into calendar year 2009," which sounds disturbingly like the holidays to us, but hopefully he's just implying a few months in. We would hope Nintendo would be following the pattern of the DS Lite, which hit Japan in March of 2006, and made it Stateside in June, but Reggie says DS Lite sales are still strong in the US -- which means it's basically our fault that we don't get a shiny new toy for Christmas.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Nokia 5800 XpressMusic hands-on

Posted: October 2nd, 2008, 1:31pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gadgets/First_hands_on_with_Nokia_s_touchscreen_iPhone_challenger'; She's arrived at last, the 5800 XpressMusic, Nokia's tardy entry into the (modern) touchscreen phone space, and we've gotten some quality face time with the device. Appropriately nicknamed the Tube, the device has a number of Nokia peculiarities that could appeal to certain sensibilities, but probably won't be taking a big bite out of existing touchphone market share -- at least in the S60-phobic United States. Let's dig in, shall we?

Gallery: Nokia 5800 XpressMusic hands-on

Continue reading Nokia 5800 XpressMusic hands-on

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Joystiq's live from Nintendo's fall media summit

Posted: October 2nd, 2008, 1:29pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming

Yeah, we got all the sordid details from Japan last night, but in case you have a partiality to getting your news in English and US-centric, Joystiq is liveblogging the Nintendo fall media summit from San Francisco. Head on over to get your fix.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

More purported MacBook Pro shots surface, we're still unconvinced

Posted: October 2nd, 2008, 10:40am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

While that touchscreen trackpad MBP might've been a bit too much to swallow, the rumorists certainly won't be giving up that easily, and have returned with more intriguing shots of what may be (but probably isn't) the next MacBook Pro. Submitted by "Techno Minds" to modmyi.com, the pictures were purportedly gotten off an Apple employee on an Apple design team. The dock-in-the-touchpad has been done away with, but the trackpad is still black, as is the keyboard and the display bezel. What's new here is the black back to the display and a lack of those Air-inspired curves that looked so janky on that other picture. The thing that amazingly makes this all even less plausible is the done-up promo shot (after the break) with rendering and photoshop artifacts unobscured by cameraphone fuzziness. Oh, and there's no power button to be found on any of these shots. Still, we want.

[Via Nowhere Else]

Continue reading More purported MacBook Pro shots surface, we're still unconvinced

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Nintendo announces Wii storage solution: SD cards

Posted: October 2nd, 2008, 2:46am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming, Storage

Yeah, the solution seemed pretty obvious to us, and now it looks like Nintendo's willing to admit it. Nintendo will be solving its little Wii Shop game storage overflow problem by opening up the SD card slot for storing and playing games from (with DRM galore, we're sure). The update will hit in the Spring of next year, and don't forget that 2GB maximum when stocking up on the little buggers. It's not exactly as exciting as a new DS, but we're really glad Nintendo's going to do the right thing here, instead of building yet another peripheral to clutter our lives with.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Nintendo prepping "Wii HD" for 2011?

Posted: October 1st, 2008, 10:59am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming, HDTV

Look, we're talking three years from now, anything could happen by then. Singularity, jetpacks, you name it. So a teensy bit of HD graphics from Nintendo doesn't seem like too much to ask, does it? The filthy-rich company is purportedly showing off just such a Wii-followup to developers and publishers in the industry, who are nicknaming it "Wii HD" for the time being. A true sequel to the Wii, the followup will apparently stick with the core competencies (motion controls), while beefing up visuals (yes, please!), digital distribution, local storage and including backwards compatibility. The only hard evidence cited by What They Play, which originated the rumor, is that Nintendo's R&D spending has grown dramatically since the launch of the Wii. We're sure that cash is also being poured into the new DS and a number of other projects, but it's really not much of a stretch to figure Nintendo's working on a Wii successor two years into the Wii's highly-successful life cycle. All we've got to say is that a few of these improvements really shouldn't wait until 2011, and still others are long overdue.

[Thanks, JC]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Gears of War 2 canvasses special-edition Zune

Posted: October 1st, 2008, 12:01am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming, Portable Audio, Portable Video

Microsoft couldn't let the gory, highly-anticipated launch of Gears of War 2 (chainsaw duels! Rhhhahaararggg!) pass without bloodying a Zune or three in the process, Halo 3-style. Specifically, Microsoft has laser-etched that pesky little "Crimson Omen" onto a glossy black Zune 120, pre-loaded the device with 244 pieces of "Gears of War" media -- the soundtrack, concept art, behind-the-scenes vids and so forth, nothing you won't be able to find elsewhere -- and squeezed it all into some "collectible" Gears packaging, featuring our testosterone-addled protagonist pondering the meaning of life. The whole kit will run you $280, with pre-orders at Walmart.com and Amazon.com (and a whole mess of Canadian shops) starting at 3AM PT / 6AM ET. It'll start shipping on November 7th. And still can't sync to your Xbox. Close-ups after the break.

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Nintendo getting into the pedometer game? This will all end in tears

Posted: September 30th, 2008, 10:58am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Wearables

Bad / good news, folks: Nintendo is / isn't working on a pedometer peripheral that will / won't integrate with its Wii / DS console. The company has famously stated that it doesn't plan to release "a whole lot more" accessories for the Wii, which means we've got at least one or two to look forward to, and this could be one of 'em. The images surfaced on a European trademark registry site with very little supplemental info, but we do know it's a pedometer of sorts. If we're lucky, this is something that'll integrate into the existing Wii Fit setup, perhaps alongside a software update to manage more info about our unhealthiness than just how far we can jump on a pair of imaginary skis, but it's probably just as likely that we're looking at a Wii Fit sequel, or perhaps a DS version (a handy companion to that new DS?) designed to lure us out of the house. No telling, really, but the peripheral does appear to be wireless... and wholly evil.

[Via Joystiq]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

OLPC's Give One, Get One returns to Amazon on November 17

Posted: September 30th, 2008, 10:32am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

We knew we'd be seeing a comeback of the Give One, Get One program this year, and now OLPC has confirmed a November 17 date -- just in time for the holidays, how convenient for everyone! We're still not certain on a price, but $399 is quite likely. It's not like they're doing the volume right now to drive those costs down, and the component-reduced XO 1.5, which is supposed to actually get close to hitting OLPC's $100 laptop goals, won't be landing until next spring. Dual-booting to XP is still unconfirmed.

[Thanks, Charbax]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Oppo's Muse G11 gets real

Posted: September 27th, 2008, 12:52am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds, Portable Audio, Portable Video

In our perpetual search for the perfect "miniature PMP that just so happens to play SNES games with a reasonable control scheme," the Oppo Muse G11 is certainly a forerunner. We swooned when we saw those swivel-display technical drawings, and now Oppo has the first prototype of the device out and about. We're still a little short on tech specs, but as long as that mystery processor is prepared to draw Chrono Trigger with pixel-perfect precision, we couldn't care less.

[Via PMP Today]Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Supposed MacBook Pro redesign, meet Mr. BlurryiPhonecam

Posted: September 25th, 2008, 4:49pm EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Laptops

Look, there are a hundred reasons to think this might be fake. That janky right corner, the inexplicable "dock in the trackpad" conundrum, the odd lighting and the entirely-too-convenient iSight self portrait. Still, whoever made this has their finger on the pulse of the Apple faithful -- or pretty much anyone else that thinks Apple is long overdue for a MacBook Pro refresh. We've got Air-inspired curves, a touchscreen trackpad, aluminum and glass in the style of Apple's latest iMacs, and what appear to be separated keys, which have been slow in coming to the MacBook Pro holdout. Naturally there's zero info on who the source is, and we're expecting a "hah, I totally fooled you guys" to spring up at any moment, but there's clearly some pent up demand for this thing if the rumor mill is any indication.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Art Lebedev's Scartel WiMax handset concept: we're moving to Russia

Posted: September 25th, 2008, 11:59am EDT by Paul Miller

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

Never one to settle, Art Lebedev's design shop is trying its hand at handset design, and we like the looks of it. Art is teaming up with Scartel, a Russian carrier which just launched a WiMax network in Moscow and St. Petersburg, for a flagship handset of sorts, and has left no spec unturned -- at least in the wishful-thinking conceptual stage. In addition to a WiMax radio, the device has WiFi, tri-band GSM, microSD, dual cameras, 3.5mm audio, an A/V plug and a gargantuan 850 x 480 screen. There are minimal buttons at the base: a five-way joystick and call / end, and no keypad, so we're going to assume that we're looking at a touchscreen device. Now all that's left is to pick an OS -- would Android be too much to ask? Another shot is after the fold.

[Via Pocket-lint]

Continue reading Art Lebedev's Scartel WiMax handset concept: we're moving to Russia

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