Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Raspberry Pi's new turbo mode boosts performance by roughly 50 percent, doesn't void warranties

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/20/raspberry-pi-turbo-mode-overclock-overvolt/

Giving a Raspberry Pi extra voltage is a quick way to squeeze out additional processing power and void its warranty, but the folks behind the tinker-friendly board have devised a turbo mode that boosts performance by roughly 50 percent while keeping warranties intact. After studying the effects of temperature and voltage on the hardware's lifespan, the team found that dynamic overclocking and overvolting doesn't affect the Pi's health appreciably. As a result, speeds can be pushed from 700MHz to 1GHz only when additional horsepower is needed, and things are reined back in when the CPU grazes 185 degrees Fahrenheit (85 degrees Celsius). Benchmarks show the extra computing oomph makes the Pi 52 percent faster on integer, 64 percent speedier on floating point and 55 percent snappier on memory tasks. The new mode is available in the latest firmware update, which also includes temperature and frequency widgets, better analog audio, improved USB performance and support for WiFi dongles out of the box. For the technical nitty-gritty and more details on the upgrade, hit the source link below.

Filed under: Misc

Raspberry Pi's new turbo mode boosts performance by roughly 50 percent, doesn't void warranties originally appeared on E! ngadget< /a> on Thu, 20 Sep 2012 05:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wednesday, September 19, 2012

When Did Handheld Vacuums Get So Beautiful? [Vacuums]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/vip/~3/rsBKyaJXDQo/when-did-handheld-vacuums-get-so-beautiful

If you haven't shopped for a handheld vacuum since the Dustbuster owned the market, you're apparently in for a real treat. Vorwerk's new Kobold VC100 looks like a piece of contemporary art you'll want to frame and hang on your wall, instead of the old lowly workhorses you kept hidden behind a dresser.

It sucks (in the best way possible) for up to 20 minutes on a single charge, but with two suction settings you can probably expect even less cleaning time if you use it full throttle. You will have to fork over almost $170 for this functional masterpiece, but think how much better your life will be with this on display in your living room, and your shirt free of Doritos crumbs.

[Vorwerk via Appliancist]

Toshiba intros Camileo BW20 waterproof camcorder, available now for $130

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/toshiba-camileo-bw20-waterproof-camcorder/

Toshiba might have missed the summer vacationers by just a bit, but with the beautiful fall season just around the corner in the US, it's that period to introduce a new Camileo to the group. This time out it's the the follow-up to the company's rather colorful BW10 from last year. Enter the adequately named BW20. Aside from nabbing a numerical bump on its moniker, the BW20 brings the same 1080p video recording found on its predecessor, plus improved waterproof capabilities that now allow the camcorder to handle up to 16 feet below water. Perhaps, the most interesting fact here is the BW20's new price tag, which is now $130 -- 20 bucks less than the BW10. You can snag one for yourself now at the source link below; in the meantime, there's an appealing press shot gallery for your viewing pleasure down below.

Gallery: Toshiba Camileo BW20 press shots

Continue reading Toshiba intros Camileo BW20 waterproof camcorder, available now for $130

Filed under: Cameras

Toshiba intros Camileo BW20 waterproof camcorder, available now for $130 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 15:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CompactFlash Association announces 600MB/sec CFast2.0 spec, SanDisk developing cards

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/compactflash-association-announces-600mb-sec-cfast2-0-spec-sand/

SD cards and their many variants may be the memory card format of choice in most cameras these days, but there's still plenty of instances where nothing but a larger CompactFlash card will suffice. Now the organization behind the format has announced its latest revision, the CFast2.0 specification, which it hopes will find its way into future digital cameras and other professional video devices. The big news with it is a promised "theoretical" performance of up to 600MB/sec, which is about four times faster than today's CompactFlash cards, as well as a new sleep mode that promises to help conserve battery life when the card is not in use. What's more, while the cards themselves are still a ways off, SanDisk has announced today that it has begun development of them, and medium format camera manufacturer Phase One has also confirmed that it intends to support the new specification.

Continue reading CompactFlash Association announces 600MB/sec CFast2.0 spec, SanDisk developing cards

Filed under: Cameras, Storage

CompactFlash Association announces 600MB/sec CFast2.0 spec, SanDisk developing cards originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 15:42:00 EDT. Please see o! ur terms for use of feeds.

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What Is Miracast? [Miracast]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5944578/what-is-miracast

What Is Miracast? Everyone really likes AirPlay, Apple's Wi-Fi streaming standard that lets you send movies and music from, say, your iPhone to your speakers or Apple TV. Now there's a new standard out to do pretty much the same thing for everyone else. But how is it different from previous attempts?

Miracast is a lot like AirPlay...

AirPlay is a wireless standard that allows two devices to connect to each other to share movies, music, or other media. Miracast is the same thing, just not owned by Apple. Miracast is built on Wi-Fi Direct, which is basically just an ad hoc Wi-Fi standard. It lets two devices that have Wi-Fi in them talk to each other without having to go through your internet network. And unlike AirPlay, it will work with disparate brands and platforms. So ideally, your Samsung phone would be able to talk to your LG TV. Pretty great.

...but technologically better than previous attempts...

Unlike some of the older implementations of Wi-Fi streaming, like Intel's first stab at WiDi, Miracast will allow you to stream in full 1080p. You'll also be able to use media like DVDs and other stuff that has DRM on it, which had been a non-starter in the past. Miracast also does a bunch of nerdy grunt work behind the scenes; you should never have to worry about format or codec or anything else when streaming something—just click a button and play.

...that's got support from major chipmakers...

Qualcomm, Nvidia, and TI are all planning to support the standard, meaning your Tegra 3 phone will actually work with it. Hopefully, that means you won't have to pick and choose which phone or tablet to upgrade to if you want to keep using your Miracast stuff.

...and will be (or is) in a bunch of popular gadgets...

Samsung has been using a form of Miracast called AllShare Cast for a while now. It's built on Miracast, but it being on board with the certification means that stuff like the Galaxy S III or Samsung's beautiful Echo P TVs will fold into the rest of the tech world, instead of being sequestered in a sad little Samsung corner.

hopefully pretty soon.

The Wi-Fi Alliance announced the certification process for Miracast today, and announced that the Galaxy S III, the new LG Optimus G, and Samsung's Echo P TVs are all already certified. Others are being tested to ensure certification as soon as the holidays, and by early next year, hopefully we'll have a real AirPlay alternative for everyone not wrapped up in Apple's ecosystem.

LG Optimus G hands-on redux (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/lg-optimus-g-hands-on-redux-video/

LG Optimus G hands-on redux

By now, you should be well acquainted with LG's glass-clad Optimus G -- the Android device so nice the company introduced it twice. And while today's stateside splash narrows the focus on its US availability and Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro SoC, there are still some software nuggets worth exploring. To help illustrate the powers of this quad-core Krait beast, we dug through the company's take on ICS with its colorful icons and heaping helpings of convenient shortcuts. Users can take advantage of a multi-tasking feature called QSlide which displays two full-sized apps on the same screen, enjoy up to five levels of zoom during streaming video playback or even wirelessly mirror their smartphone's content with Dual Screen Dual Play.

Like other members of the LG mobile family (such as the Vu and Intuition) you'll also be able to take advantage of QuickMemo, which places a shortcut in the notification shade for quickly capturing a screenshot and marking it up with various drawing tools. For the self portrait-obsessed there's also Cheese Shutter, which lets you trigger the image capture simply by saying "cheese" instead of fumbling blindly for the virtual shutter button on screen. While the UI can be a little bit busy, even by Android skin standards, everything hums a long pretty smoothly thanks to the almost excessive power of the quad-core 1.5GHz chip and 2GB of RAM. But don't just take our word for it. Skip on past the break for a surface-level peek of the G in action.

Continue reading LG Optimus G hands-on redux (video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Mobile

LG Optimus G hands-on redux (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 09:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pentax's Q10 mirrorless shows its tiny sensor to the world, we give it the hands-on treatment (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/pentaxs-q10-mirrorless-shows-its-tiny-sensor-to-the-world-we-g/

It's tough to express just how much Pentax's new Q10 mirrorless looks like a toy camera until you see it in-person, so unless you're in Cologne this week, you're going to have to take our word for it. It's probably mostly its tiny size -- and the fire engine red probably doesn't help its case much in that respect, either. Still, in spite of its diminutive stature and weight, it does feel like a solid camera. All of these body image issues are thanks to its tiny 12.4 effective megapixel CMOS image sensor. Like its brethren, the Q, this interchangeable lens camera's got a retractable flash, which works whether it's extended or not.

On the front, next to the lens, you'll find a knob which lefts you dial through four different effects. The Q10 also does full HD recording, five-fps shooting and, like the K-5 II, boasts improved autofocus over its predecessor. On the back, is a surprisingly large three-inch LCD. When it launches here in Europe next month, it'll run you €499 for a single lens kit and around €300 for the body alone -- compare that to $600 for the kit here in the States.

Gallery: Pentax Q10 Mirrorless camera

Pentax Q10 Mirrorless camera

Continue reading Pentax's Q10 mirrorless shows its tiny sensor to the world, we give it the hands-on treatment (video)

Filed under: Cameras

Pentax's Q10 mirrorless shows its tiny sensor to the world, we give it the hands-on treatment (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 09:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vizio Co-Star review: how good a deal is this $99 Google TV box?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/vizio-co-star-review/

More Info

And then there were two. We're talking about standalone Google TV boxes, folks, with the Vizio Co-Star recently joining Sony's NSZ-GS7. Both feature the same version of Google's software and come with a remote offering a full QWERTY keyboard and touchpad. But with Vizio's model selling for just $99, it's half the price of Sony's entry, so you might be wondering how extensive the differences are. Now that we've had a chance to test both, we're ready to weigh in. Read on to find out if that 50 percent price difference makes the Co-Star worth it.

Continue reading Vizio Co-Star review: how good a deal is this $99 Google TV box?

Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD

Vizio Co-Star review: how good a deal is this $99 Google T! V box? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 11:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Square competitor Groupon Payments launches today, promises lowest cost for retailers

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/groupon-payments-launch/

Popular deal website Groupon is venturing into the world of smart phone-based credit card payments today, launching the Groupon Payments initiative nationwide after a successful pilot program is the San Francisco Bay Area earlier this year. Groupon's boasting a guaranteed lowest cost pricing to merchants using Groupon Payments for credit card transactions -- MasterCard, Visa, and Discover will cost retailers 1.8 percent of credit card sales, plus a $0.15 per transaction fee, while American Express will cost three percent of credit card sales, plus a $0.15 per transaction fee. The biggest competition in the space comes from Square, headed by former Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, which charges a flat 2.75 percent rate on all transactions against all cards, though PayPal, Intuit, and Verifone all offer similar services.

Today's news matches up directly with leaks we saw back in May, adding on that merchants will see the day's credit card purchases credited to their bank accounts overnight, rather than waiting two to three business days (per standard practice). Beyond credit card services, Groupon's Merchants app also accepts Groupon daily deals, which helps elucidate why Groupon would be interested in entering the mobile credit card payments market in the first place (beyond it being a lucrative market unto itself, of course). Interested parties can sign up over on Gro! upon's w ebsite, and snag the free payments app right here. Finally -- finally -- you'll be able to sell all those $10 gift certificates to Chili's you've been hoarding. Perhaps charge $5 a pop for their $10 value and ... is this a paradox? This might be a paradox.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Wireless, Internet, Mobile

Square competitor Groupon Payments launches today, promises lowest cost for retailers originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 11:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Windows Phone 8X and 8S family portraits

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/htc-windows-phone-8x-and-8s-family-portraits/

HTC introduced us to not one, but two Windows Phone 8 devices today. Sure, we've poked and prodded them but, before you get your chance to grope the 8S and 8X, we figured a proper introduction is order. So, meet the whole family in all their brightly colored glory!

Gallery: Windows Phone 8S family portrait

Gallery: Windows Phone 8X family portrait

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

HTC Windows Phone 8X and 8S family portraits originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 11:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kindle Fire HD 7-inch rooted in spite of Amazon, unstoppable force meets the unhackable object (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/kindle-fire-hd-7-inch-rooted-in-spite-of-amazon/

We were worried there, for a minute. After code explorers found that Amazon's Kindle Fire HD 7-inch had both a locked bootloader and extra security measures, there was a brief concern that the pseudo-Android tablet might be very tough to hack. As it turns out, there was no reason to lose faith. Hashcode, Justin Case, Reverend Kyle and Sparklym3 from the XDA and RootzWiki forums have successfully rooted the smaller Kindle Fire HD in a repeatable form, giving anyone courageous enough to load ADB the control they want over the tablet they bought. Just remember the usual caveats if you choose to dive in: while the root isn't a lengthy process, as you'll see in the video after the break, there's still the ever-present risk of bricking the device should something go wrong. Having seen what can be done with the original Kindle Fire after a little tinkering, we're intrigued as to what happens with its more capable sequel.

Continue reading Kindle Fire HD 7-inch rooted in spite of Amazon, unstoppable force meets the unhackable object (video)

Filed under: Tablets

Kindle Fire HD 7-inch rooted in spite of Amazon, unstoppable force meets the unhackable object (video) originally! appeare d on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 07:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Android Police, DroidDog | source

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LG Optimus G and its quad-core 1.5GHz S4 Pro coming to US shores in Q4

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/lg-optimus-g-bringing-its-quad-core-1-5ghz-s4-pro-to-us-shores-i/

When it comes to LG's latest flagship, it appears there can be no shortage of official announcements. So, while the news from overseas may not be quite so fresh, there's certainly nothing stale about the Optimus G. Today the company held a second celebration in honor of its powerhouse -- the first to pack Qualcomm's Snapdragon S4 Pro: a quad-core SoC clocked at 1.5GHz. Buffered by a heaping 2GB RAM and an Adreno 320 GPU this absolutely beastly device is officially coming to American shores in the fourth quarter of this year. The 4.7-inch phone may ship with some slightly different specs, depending on carrier, but they'll still find a home for the 1280 x 768 True HD, in-cell, IPS display. There's no specifics about carriers or pricing as yet, but we'll let you know when we do.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

LG Optimus G and its quad-core 1.5GHz S4 Pro coming to US shores in Q4 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 08:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung Galaxy Note II to land 'by mid-November' on all major US carriers

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/samsung-galaxy-note-ii-us-launch/

We'd say the wait is nearly over, but that wouldn't be telling the whole truth. Inching ever closer to a hard launch date, Samsung's Galaxy Note II is now poised to hit stateside on Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and US Cellular "by mid-November." If you're seeking anything more specific than that, you'll have to hold out for individual carrier announcements. What we do know for sure, however, is that the US variant of this 5.5-incher will be packing HSPA+42 / LTE radios and sporting a nigh unchanged build -- much like the company's other flagship, the GS III. To recap, this S-Pen equipped phablet, recently unveiled at IFA 2012, features a 1280 x 720 HD Super AMOLED display, quad-core 1.6GHz Exynos processor, 2GB RAM and ships with a skinned version of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. Sure, this release is shaping up to be a slow tease, but that anticipation just makes the final bow of this second act even sweeter. Official PR after the break.

Continue reading Samsung Galaxy Note II to land 'by mid-November' on all major US carriers

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

Samsung Galaxy Note II to land 'by mid-November' on all major US carriers originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The World's First Firefox Phone Will Launch In A Few Months

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/zte-mozilla-phone-2012-9

firefox os 16

Mozilla, the company that makes the popular Firefox browser, is working on a mobile operating system that will launch on a smartphone built by ZTE, Reuters reports.

The phone will launch either at the end of this year or early next year.

We got a first look at Mozilla's mobile operating system a few months ago when a bunch of screenshots leaked out. Based on that, it looks like Mozilla is borrowing heavily from Google's Android design.

It seems like an odd move by ZTE as iOS and Android now dominate smartphones and tablets. Microsoft plans to release a big update to its mobile operating system, Windows Phone, later this fall with the launch of Nokia's Lumia 920.

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Intel hosts Windows 8 tablet event next week: Dell, HP, Samsung and more in attendance

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/19/intel-windows-8-tablet-event/

Ahead of Microsoft's big reveal next month, Intel's hosting an event on September 27th, bringing together Windows 8 tablets from ASUS, Acer, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Samsung and even ZTE -- a manufacturer that hasn't yet officially revealed any plans for Windows 8. The chipmaker also promises to offer up more details on its next-generation Atom processors. We'll be there, reporting live from the event next week.

Filed under: Tablets, Software

Intel hosts Windows 8 tablet event next week: Dell, HP, Samsung and more in attendance originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 03:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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