Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Thursday, September 22, 2011

drag2share: Gmail's New Mobile Features Are Perfect for Vacations [Google]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5842652/gmails-new-mobile-features-are-perfect-for-vacations

You're on your way to out of the office, free as a bird for the next two weeks. Except that you forgot to set your Gmail auto-response and your phone keeps blowing up with messages. The Google webapp adds features that will help keep you sane.

The much-needed additions are multiple-user sign in, mobile signature, and, of course, auto-respond, and all three are vital for that mad dash to the Bahamas. It's easy. The app will let you log into whatever Google-powered email you have via the Accounts menu, so set up your auto-responder message for work. Do make it clear that you don't have time for work nonsense while you're away. After that, log back into your personal emai, click Settings, and make a signature that expresses just how much liquor you'll be drinking while you're away.

By the time you're done, you'll be on your way with a little peace of mind. [Gmail Blog]

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: YouTube Adds 3D Video Conversion and New Editing Tools [Video]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5842720/youtube-adds-3d-video-conversion-and-new-editing-tools

YouTube added several new features to its video streaming service including the ability to convert your 2D video to 3D format. I'm not sure why you would want to, but now you can.

YouTube users will also be able to mix it up with two new video editing tools, vlix and Magisto. Vlix lets you add effects and text to the beginning and the end of your videos, while Magisto takes a longer video and breaks it up into smaller, fun clips.

YouTube also opened up the floodgates for long-form video by allowing all verified users to upload videos longer than 15 minutes long. [YouTube via TechCrunch]

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: Whaddya Mean Ford's Not Actually Gonna Sell This Wicked E-Bike?! [Bikes]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5842661/whaddya-mean-fords-not-actually-gonna-sell-this-wicked-e+bike

Ford recently unveiled the world's first front-wheel-drive electric bicycle at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Huzzah! Then they promptly explained that this concept will never make it to the showroom floor. Oh Ford, you're such a tease.

The E-bike concept uses a trapezoidal frame profile made from a carbon-aluminum alloy that weighs just 2.5 kg. It's propelled either by a Carbon Belt Drive System connected to the pedals or from an electric motor in the front hub and powered by a Li-Ion battery housed in the frame. Magnetorestrictive sensors—typically found in Formula One racecars—in the inner hub measure the wheel's revolutions and transmit that data to an on-bard controller that instantly activates and deactivates the electric motor to actively assist the rider while his cadence and power output. The E-bike concept has a top speed of 25km/h and an estimated range of 85km. Or at least it would if Ford hadn't already put the kibosh on ever producing them. [Ford]

You can keep up with Andrew Tarantola, the author of this post, on Twitter, Facebook, or Google+.

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: LG Enlighten to achieve retail zen September 22nd on Verizon

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/lg-enlighten-to-achieve-retail-zen-september-22nd-on-verizon/

There are a number of ways to achieve inner-peace, like years of meditation, for example -- or you could just pick up an $80 Android handset. LG finally made official the release of its Enlighten handset today. The Gingerbread phone features a 3.2-inch display, a QWERTY slide out keyboard, a 3.2 megapixel camera and an 800MHz processor. The largely unexceptional bit of hardware will be hitting Verizon's site on September 22nd, followed by a September 29th debut in Verizon retail stores. It'll run you $79.99 with a two-year contract after a $50 mail in rebate. Enlighten yourself with the press release after the break.

Continue reading LG Enlighten to achieve retail zen September 22nd on Verizon

LG Enlighten to achieve retail zen September 22nd on Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 10:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: Pandora rolls out HTML5 redesign to everyone, drops 40 hour listening cap

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/pandora-rolls-out-html5-redesign-to-everyone-drops-40-hour-list/

Remember that Pandora redesign that we told you about, way back in July? Well, it's finally done testing, and is ready to bring its HTML5-based goodness to the Internet radio-loving masses. The revamp offers up a number of new features like improved socialization, easier station creation and additional information about artists, including lyrics, bios and larger album art. Coolest of all is the ditching of the 40 hour music listening limit for non-premium users -- a welcome change in light of similar announcements from MOG and Rdio.

Pandora rolls out HTML5 redesign to everyone, drops 40 hour listening cap originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 11:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

source

Pandora | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: T-Mobile's BlackBerry Curve 9360 available for $79 on September 28th, swanks it up with merlot variant

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/t-mobiles-blackberry-curve-9360-available-for-79-on-september/

Attention power users and devotees of physical portrait QWERTYs, RIM's outing yet another member of its Curve family this month. Running the Waterloo-based company's latest BB 7 OS, Magenta's BlackBerry Curve 9360 actually goes up for pre-sale today, but you'll have to count yourself amongst the enterprise set for the early access perks. For the rest of us, the carrier's set a September 28th launch for the standard black version of this 2.4-inch, touchscreen-less handset. But that's not all -- perhaps following up on the latest fashion-centric trend, the company's also releasing this mid-range entry in a wine-soaked hue of merlot on October 12th. Regardless of your style preferences, the phone'll be available for a wallet-pleasing $79.99 on a two-year contract (after a $50 rebate). So, were not sure if this was worthy of the 'Apollo' moniker, but at least our in-house Ms. Cleo was right on the money.

Continue reading T-Mobile's BlackBerry Curve 9360 available for $79 on September 28th, swanks it up with merlot variant

T-Mobile's BlackBerry Curve 9360 available for $79 on September 28th, swanks it up with merlot variant originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 12:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: New RED Scarlet to be announced November 3rd

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/new-red-scarlet-to-be-announced-november-3rd/

Well, it looks like Canon won't be the only company making a big camera announcement on November 3rd. RED CEO Jim Jannard has now confirmed that it will also be officially announcing its "new" RED Scarlet camera on the very same day (no coincidence, it seems), at which point it will detail "all the changes" the company has made to it. Unfortunately, that's about all the company is saying right now, although Jannard promises that "when we announce the changes, we will be ready to ship."

[Thanks, Lucario]

New RED Scarlet to be announced November 3rd originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 14:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

source

Red User | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: Froyo-based ViewSonic V430 smartphone appears in Russia, anonymity almost guaranteed

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/froyo-based-viewsonic-v430-smartphone-appears-in-russia-anonymi/

ViewSonic has revealed its latest Android phone, the V430 -- though you'd be hard pressed to tell who made it from looks alone. Putting the incognito design aside, vital statistics include a meaty WVGA 4.3-inch screen, and a 5 megapixel primary camera paired with a VGA front-facing camera, all chugging along on a 1GHz Snapdragon processor. ViewSonic has cut down to only three buttons below the screen, a change from the four-button setup we've seen on its previous Android tablets and phones. Sadly, the Android version number has been similarly reduced -- the V430 is apparently running Android 2.2, not the Android 2.3 Gingerbread deliciousness we've come to expect from Google-powered smartphones in 2011. The V430 looks set on launching first in Russia, but no word yet on whether it'll board the Trans-Siberian across to Europe and beyond. Price is also Russian secret.

Froyo-based ViewSonic V430 smartphone appears in Russia, anonymity almost guaranteed originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 15:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Unwired View | | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: Roku announces Disney partnership, YouTube channel in the works

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/roku-announces-disney-partnership-youtube-channel-in-the-works/

Roku has been charming the pants off Google and the suspenders off Mickey. The media streaming company has shed light on both the development of a YouTube channel and a partnership with Disney. After an unofficial attempt at viral video stardom was quickly squashed by Google, Roku has confirmed via Facebook plans for a new YouTube channel. In another win for Roku addicts, the company launched a Disney channel where fans of the cartoon crew can ingest short form content from Disney.com, including animated shorts, movie trailers and music videos. As the first connected device to offer content from the Magic Kingdom, the friendship gives Roku some serious leverage over its competitors, just in time for the holiday spending spree.

Continue reading Roku announces Disney partnership, YouTube channel in the works

Roku announces Disney partnership, YouTube channel in the works originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 16:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Gigaom, Zatz Not Funny! | source

source

Facebook | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: Squid extract bridges human / machine divide, cyborgs to become very real

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/squid-extract-bridges-human-machine-divide-cyborgs-to-become/

If we ever manage to capture a live giant squid, researchers at the University of Washington are going to have a field day. Enterprising minds at the institution's materials science and engineering department have discovered a use for chitosan -- an extract made from squid pen or crab shells that could lead us down a cybernetic road to human / machine interfaces. The team incorporated the organic compound into their field-effect transistor prototype, and effectively created the first protonic circuitry "that's completely analogous to [the way] an electronic current" can be manipulated. Naturally, the silicon-based tech isn't ready (or safe) for implantation into humans just yet, but could one day be used to control biological functions, sending on / off commands to our bodies. So, maybe we won't have to fear that robot apocalypse, after all. You never know, give scientists ample time to fully flesh this advancement out and Spielberg's next great cinematic, sci-fi opus could wind up becoming a cyborg rom-com. Stranger things have happened folks.

Squid extract bridges human / machine divide, cyborgs to become very real originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 17:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

TG Daily | source

source

University of Washington | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: Samsung releases AT&T Galaxy S II kernel source far in advance of the phone's release

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/samsung-releases-atandt-galaxy-s-ii-kernel-source-far-in-advance-o/

Whoever's cranking out the kernel source in Samsung's headquarters has some serious aspirations. Cooking it up for the Galaxy S II Epic 4G Touch the day it was released was a rather snappy process, but the manufacturer's managed to one-up even itself by pushing out AT&T's version a full week and a half early. Talk about an exciting deal for developers, who now have a sizable head start ahead of the Galaxy S II's October 2nd launch. Not too shabby, right? Let's see exactly what those with the know-how can build in the meantime -- we predict customization options aplenty by the time the phone's officially stocked on store shelves. How early can we expect to see the kernel for T-Mobile's Galaxy S II? Hard to say, but for now you can grab the kernel source at... well, the source below.

Samsung releases AT&T Galaxy S II kernel source far in advance of the phone's release originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 18:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

AndroidCentral | source

source

Samsung | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: 'Monster Cat' 30,472-core supercomputer can be yours for $1,279 an hour

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/monster-cat-30-472-core-supercomputer-can-be-yours-for-1-279/

Nicknamed after the magical "Nekomata" cat of Japanese nightmares, Cycle Computing's monstrous new supercomputer can now be yours to rent for the low price of $1,279 an hour. By fusing together the face-melting power of 3,809 eight-core Amazon AWS Elastic Computer 2s, the company was able to create the world's 30th fastest computer with 30,472 processor cores and 27TB of memory -- primarily used for complex modeling rather than Facebooking. Components of the beast hide out in three of Amazon's EC2 data center lairs located in California, Virginia and Ireland, and communicate using HTTPS and SSH encrypted with AES-256 to keep its secrets safe and secure. Compared to the company's previous 10,000-core offering ($1,060 / hour), the new version is far more powerful and minimally more expensive, mostly because it uses spot instances (where customers bid on unused EC2 capacity) rather than pricier reserved instances. Good on you Cycle Computing, not everyone has access to a Jeopardy champ.

'Monster Cat' 30,472-core supercomputer can be yours for $1,279 an hour originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 19:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

! Extreme Tech | source

source

Cycle Computing | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: Samsung SHV-E120L comes out of the development dark, is the Xtina to LG's Britney

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/samsung-shv-e120l-comes-out-of-the-development-dark-is-the-xtin/

Brothers from another mobile mother, or just a case of copycat syndrome? We'll let you be the judge, but from the looks of this latest leak, Samsung's SHV-E120L could be sharing some of the LG LU6200's special spec sauce. Outed over on Cetizen and iNews24, the full breakdown of the device's innards point to a dual-core 1.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 4.7-inch 1280 x 720 HD display, 2 megapixel front-facing / 8 megapixel rear camera, 1GB RAM, 16GB of onboard storage, WiFi, Bluetooth and NFC. We've seen conflicting reports as to the exact version of Gingerbread that'll ship on the phone, with Android 2.3.5 in the running. As for the handset's radios, its purported MDM9600 Gobi chipset indicates tri-mode LTE, HSPA and CDMA compatibility. Sammy's super-sized smartphone could hit South Korea later this month, or in early October -- if the passable English in that Google translation can be believed.

Samsung SHV-E120L comes out of the development dark, is the Xtina to LG's Britney originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 20:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

PocketNow | source

source

Cetizen (Translated), iNews24 (Translated) | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: LG Optimus EX bound for South Korea, still won't pay alimony

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/21/lg-optimus-ex-bound-for-south-korea-still-wont-pay-alimony/

Despite its rather curious name, the LG Optimus EX (aka the LG SU-880) just might be your soulmate -- provided you live in South Korea. The 9.5mm device appears ready to take SK Telecom by storm with a 1.2GHz dual-core CPU (with no indication of make or model), Android 2.3, 4-inch WVGA TFT-LCD display and five megapixel camera; it's also said to be coming in black and white varieties. We admit, it's not the type of spec sheet that induces a large amount of salivation, but we imagine many will be seduced by the new device -- if the price is right, that is. No word on pricing or availability yet, but we'll hopefully know more once we get officially introduced to the new handset.

LG Optimus EX bound for South Korea, still won't pay alimony originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 21 Sep 2011 22:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

PocketNow, MovePlayer (translated) | source

source

Popboy (translated) | Email this | Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: OCZ debuts Synapse Cache Series SSDs to compensate for your HDD's shortcomings

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/22/ocz-debuts-synapse-cache-series-ssds-to-compensate-for-your-hdd/

This really shouldn't come as much of a surprise, given some of OCZ's other offerings, but the company has outed its Synapse Cache SSDs so you don't have to suffer the speed limitations inherent in spinning disk storage. These 2.5-inch, 6 GB/s SATA drives come in 64 and 128GB flavors, and do the dual drive dance with your HDD of choice using the firms' Dataplex caching software. That nifty bit of code hastens data retrieval by dynamically managing your data, placing frequently used info on the speedy SSD, and shoving the rest on your capacious, cheap-as-chips HDD. When can you up your storage speed limit and how much will it cost? OCZ's not telling, but the drive's full performance specs can be found in the PR and source below.

Continue reading OCZ debuts Synapse Cache Series SSDs to compensate for your HDD's shortcomings

OCZ debuts Synapse Cache Series SSDs to compensate for your HDD's shortcomings originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 22 Sep 2011 00:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | source

source

OCZ | Email this! |& nbsp;Comments

---
drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)