Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Wednesday, July 02, 2008

Xbox 360 Live Dashboard Getting Motion-Controlled 3D Interface [Rumor]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/324560965/xbox-360-live-dashboard-getting-motion+controlled-3d-interface

Kotaku's pirate ear to the ground is picking up from sources that the Live dashboard will be updated with a spanky new interface option: what Crecente says is a Minority Report-like 3D interface that'll make use of that long-rumored motion controller. (In addition to those 80 functions that didn't materialize in a Spring Update.) The "motion controls will allow users to sort of slide through the different levels of this floating menu system." Sounds slick, it was taking me too long to flip through all those blades. [Kotaku]

Everex Going Bigger With Tiny Cloudbooks and Adding Next-Gen Wireless Joy [Mini-notebooks]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/324482617/everex-going-bigger-with-tiny-cloudbooks-and-adding-next+gen-wireless-joy

The mini-notebook market is heating up, with today bringing stats and shots of the Asus's latest Eee PC with its tiny screen and keys that might work with normal hands. Then later, we get news of a leak about Everex, Asus's competitor in this market, about its next Cloudbooks, including one with a 10.2-inch screen and 3G connectivity, and another with an 8.9-inch screen and WiMax.

No definite word on if they'll be using Intel's Atom processors or competitors from Via, or if they'll be XP or Linux machines, but the makers of the reference design, FIC, would confirm a screen resolution on the 10.2-inch model at 1024x600. It will also feature a 1.3-Megapixel camera, 2GB RAM, card reader, dual USB 2.0 and an express card slot.

Less details are known of the 8.9-inch model, though the specs should be similar, including resolution. The devices might be subsidized by 3G carriers like AT&T or Sprint—if they ever hit the US shores, which there's no promise of.

We liked the Cloudbooks we've seen so far, and we can't wait to see if a slightly larger model will actually be usable for those of us with big, bear-like hands. [PC Advisor, via Slashgear]

OCZ reveals Core Series SATA II 2.5 SSDs: 128GB for $479

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/324053481/

Filed under: Storage

¡Aye carumba! OCZ Technology just made us do a double take this morning with the introduction of its all new Core Series SATA II 2.5 SSDs. Hailed as the "world's first truly affordable high-performance SSD for consumers," these drives check in at $169 (32GB), $259 (64GB) and $479 (128GB), which -- as you undoubtedly recognize -- are amazing price points. Each unit utilizes NAND flash technology, possesses a 1.5-million hour mean time before failure and delivers 120 - 143Mbps read / 80 - 93Mbps write speeds. The sub-0.35ms seek times are also worthy of a tip of the hat, and the low power consumption just makes things unnecessarily sweeter. OCZ doesn't mention a definitive ship date, but we're hoping that "available" mention means "right now."

[Via Electronista]

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Fujitsu unveils LifeBook P8010 Pink Gold Edition with WWAN

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/324107827/

Filed under: Laptops

Fujitsu's LifeBook P8010 was a star in its own right, but just months after its release, that original version is already looking stale. The newfangled LifeBook P8010 Limited Pink Gold Edition sports a sure-to-be-polarizing high-gloss finish, integrated 3.5G (HSDPA) WWAN, 12.1-inch WXGA SuperFine widescreen panel and Intel's Core 2 Duo SL7100 processor. You'll also find essentials like a 1.3-megapixel camera, dual-layer DVD writer, a battery good for six hours and a fingerprint reader. Looks like this one will go for $2,899 over in Australia (that's around $2,748 in Yankee dollars), but we've no word on whether it'll roll out globally.

[Via BoingBoing]

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"First" US WiMAX deployment goes live in Jackson Hole, Wyoming

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/324142608/

Filed under: Wireless

Bet you didn't see this one coming. With everyone's eyes fixed firmly on Sprint's supposedly forthcoming US WiMAX deployment in Baltimore, Chicago and Washington, DC, DigitalBridge Communications has snuck in to steal a little of the spotlight. As we speak, America's "first" (um, really?) mobile WiMAX deployment has gone live in Jackson Hole, Wyoming courtesy of Alvarion's BreezeMAX gear. The firms are hoping that high-brow tourists that come to tackle the black diamonds of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort will also bring their WiMAX-enabled device and / or WiMAX card to send enviable photos back home, but only time will tell if folks find value in the offering. DBC is expected to expand the network's reach in the area (which currently hits 3,000 homes and businesses), and then "add mobile capabilities throughout its 200,000-household footprint."

[Image courtesy of TerryDreams]

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