SATA / CF / IDE to USB 2.0 Bridge Adapter is way handy

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/314272804/

Filed under: Peripherals, Storage

Though there are plenty of whatever-to-USB adapters out there, this critter just tickles our fancy with its extraordinary utility. The SATA / CF / IDE to USB 2.0 Bridge Adapter enables owners to connect CompactFlash cards, SATA drives and even IDE drives to any computer with a spare USB 2.0 port. Which is like, every computer made since forever ago. Usually, we'd suggest that practically every travel pack should possess one of these, but the cheapskate in us still feels the $22 price tag is a few notches too high.

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Sanyo's 4LCD XP200L projector is 1 LCD better

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/314529418/

Filed under: Displays

It's not pretty (what Sanyo projector is?), but it is the world's first 4LCD projector. The 25-pound "portable" PLC-XP200L pumps 7,000 lumens across 1,024 x 768 pixels at a 2,200:1 contrast ratio in exchange for your $9,995. The new 4LCD optical engine adds what Sanyo calls a "color control device" to control the amount of yellow light in the projected image. The results are supposedly images which are "clearer, richer, and more beautiful" than those of 3LCD projectors. Sanyo also dropped in some new silicon allowing for 20% more color space. Ships in September -- full press release after the break.

Continue reading Sanyo's 4LCD XP200L projector is 1 LCD better

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Optical Illusions

http://www.opticaliillusions.com/

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How the @&%# Is Crysis Running on the Eee?? [Video Games]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/313773414/how-the--is-crysis-running-on-the-eee

The Asus Eee is a fine computer and everything, but we never expected it to run the game-rig-melting Crysis at a high frame rate. So how is it possible? Forgery? Magic? Deal with the devil? No, just a new version of StreamMyGame that now supports UMPCs, mini-notebooks and all those tiny little wimp computers—over 100 models in all. Still don't believe it actually works? Here's a clip:

The new version of StreamMyGame can stream 1024x600 from your big PC to your little PC over your home network. So if you've been waiting to recreate some of the most graphically-intensive games of the current era on a squintastic 7" screen, your day has come.

StreamMyGame : Play Crysis and the latest games on the Eee PC. Now compatible with over 100 UMPC models.

www.StreamMyGame.com, which enables games to be played remotely, has released today a new version of its software targeted at the highly popular Eee PC and Ebox from ASUS and over 100 UMPCs from other manufacturers.

StreamMyGame's new software runs at full screen resolution on both Windows and Linux versions of the Eee PC and many other Netbooks and UMPCs.

"The Linux player has been requested by our Eee PC members and has been optimised to run on both the original and new ranges of the Eee PC. The Window's player has also been optimised." said Richard Faria, StreamMyGame's CEO.

"You can have your games installed on your home PC and play them on your Netbook around the home and remotely, providing a portable gaming experience on screens that have resolutions of 1024x600," he said, "There are over 100 Netbooks and UMPCs that are now compatible with our technology and we will guarantee similar compatibility with the MID market."

Utilising StreamMyGame's technology, high-end games including Crysis, Call of D! uty 4, B ioShock and HalfLife2 can be played smoothly and without lag on the Eee PC and other UMPCs providing a responsive gaming experience. The gaming power is delivered from your main PC and networked to your Netbook. The new range of Eee PCs using 802.11n and WiMAX will further improve game play by substantially reducing any network lag.

[StreamMyGame]

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Speed Racing Motorcycle Inspired By Aliens [Motorcycles]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/314188876/speed-racing-motorcycle-inspired-by-aliens

After one look at the Indian-branded "Speed Racer" motorcycle concept bike by Dan Bailey, it is easy to see how he incorporated the main characters in the Aliens movie franchise into the aesthetics. Using the specs on the Kawasaki Ninja as his framework, Bailey sought to design a bike that was rugged but maintained a sleek look—a mission he has certainly accomplished. I don't know if the Speed Racer will ever go into production, but for a design with the balls to take elements from three iconic franchises (maybe four if you count TRON), the bike holds up well. But how do you sit on it? [Daniel Bailey via Tuvie]

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Toshiba intros 12.1-inch Portege R500-S5007V with 128GB SSD

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/313752560/

Filed under: Laptops, Storage

Ah yes, we've been expecting you. That Portégé R500-12Q that popped up on a few foreign sites earlier this year seems to be making the trip Stateside, albeit with a slightly different model name. The R500-S5007V claims to be the "world's first laptop with a 128GB SSD" packed within, which is patently untrue, but we digress. The 2.4-pound machine also includes an integrated DVD SuperMulti drive, 12.1-inch transreflective LED-backlit WXGA display, a battery good for 8-hours of use, 1.33GHz Core 2 Duo U7700 CPU, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, GMA950 graphics set, WiFi, Ethernet, Bluetooth 2.0+EDR and a three-year warranty. You better believe that 0.77-inch frame is appealing, but the $2,999 starting price is still mighty tough to swallow.

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Sony Ericsson pops out MD400 / MD400g HSPA USB modems

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/313790091/

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless

In case you couldn't tell, Sony's getting down at CommunicAsia. Next up from Singapore is a fresh pair of HSPA USB modems, the MD400 and GPS-packin' MD400g. Both sticks pull double duty as a M2 / microSD card reader, but it's not like we haven't seen that functionality tossed into similar units already. Nevertheless, these buggers support 7.2Mb/s download and 2.0M/bs upload speeds and feature a swiveling antenna to complement the built-in one, a retractable USB connector and compatibility with Windows and OS X-based machines. SE tells us that the currently unpriced duo will be available worldwide in Q4, with the biggest decision to come when choosing between Exquisite Ebony and Lustrous White.

Gallery: Sony Ericsson pops out MD400 / MD400g HSPA USB modems

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Leaked slide shows AMD's BGA CPU could take on Intel's Atom processor

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/313820832/

Filed under: Laptops

While AMD has been making headway with some impressive high-end processors, Intel's Atom has been all the rage in netbooks and ultra-portables. You didn't think they were going to just sit around and let that happen, did you? This supposedly leaked slide (for which we couldn't verify a source) details a single-core 64-bit processor dubbed "BGA CPU" that runs at 1GHz, utilizes DDR2-400 memory, and sports on-chip L1 & L2 caches. As for size, you're looking at 27 x 27 mm (1.06-inches square). All said, the chip's 8-watt thermal footprint isn't going to win any super-portable or MID manufacturer converts. We'll keep an eye on this.

[Thanks, kris120890]

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Sony Ericsson's C905 shutterbug (and friends) in the wild

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/314110274/

Filed under: Cellphones

Press shots are often beautiful, but the problem with 'em is that they're usually about as real as Joan Rivers' face -- not the best way to get a real impression of what a device looks and acts like in the flesh. GSM Helpdesk scored some hands-on time today with the full range of Sony Ericsson's new wares, and the headliner of the bunch, the mighty 8.1 megapixel C905, is looking ready for battle. Not literal battle, of course, but battle in the marketplace with a whole host of feature phones being released this year from its top rivals -- particularly important at a time when market share is falling. The 2.4-inch display is apparently "clear" and plenty impressive for managing your extensive photo library, and we're digging the curvy styling; UIQ would've been nice, but we suppose the dumbphone set deserves killer cameras too. Also pictured are the low-end J132 and K330, the S302 (which with a 2 megapixel camera, may not be worthy of the name "Snapshot"), and the F305 gaming phone. We'd had high hopes for the F305 -- as we do for pretty much anything that can be shaken to control games -- but the live shots here are leaving us a little underwhelmed. Maybe the white version will do it justice?

Read - C905, S302
Read - F305
Read - J132, K330

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Comcast Compressing HDTV Signals to Fit Three Shows into Two Shows' Bandwidth

Comcast has begun compressing HDTV shows in order to deliver more HD channels to you while using the same amount of bandwidth. They didn't use to do this before, but now, when compared to Verizon FiOS, the channels are grainy and blocky and full of artifacts—a result of shoving three channels into a space where only two previously occupied. A guy at AVSForum measured how the new bitrate stacks up against Verizon.

DVice has a side-by-side of the FiOS vs. Comcast comparison as well, and things look pretty damn ugly.

The forum poster says that the compression isn't too horrible with still images, but gets really bad when stuff moves around.

The greatest differences are seen with movement. With slow movement on Comcast, the first thing you notice is added noise and a softer image, as fine detail is filtered from the picture signal. The greater the rate of movement, the more detail you lose and the more noise you see. With intense movement, you see more blocking and skipped frames. In VideoRedo, I noticed that a number of frames in the FiOS signal simply did not exist in the Comcast signal during motion intensive scenes. This may be responsible for the stutter and excessive motion blur seen with some video sequences on Comcast.

To Comcast's credit, I saw little to no difference on movie channels such as HBO, Cinemax, and Starz. I did see some blurring and reduced detail during fast movement on Starz, but the recordings from Cinemax and HBO were virtually identical, even on action movies such as 300 and Gladiator. When there was blocking on the Comcast feed of Cinemax, that blocking was also on the FiOS feed.

[AVSforum via DVice]

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