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Tuesday, March 03, 2009

MSI debuts three new limited edition laptops for Japan

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/03/msi-debuts-three-new-limited-edition-laptops-for-japan/

MSI's more budget-minded offerings may be attracting most of the attention as of late, but the company has also been known to produce the odd premium laptop, and it's just let loose its latest batch in Japan. Leading the way is the leather-wrapped 15.4-inch PX600 Prestige Collection model, which is limited to a mere 30 units and packs a 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo P8600 processor, GeForce 9300M GS graphics, 4GB of RAM, and an equally stylish 4GB USB drive. A bit less limited is the 12.1-inch MSI PR201 YA! One, which is available in your choice of pink, green, or blue, and boasts some decent if unspectacular specs, including a 2GHz Core 2 Duo T4200 processor, 4GB of RAM, and a 320GB hard drive. Rounding things out is the 16-inch MSI EX620, which mixes things up with some ATI Radeon HD 3470 graphics and a Blu-ray burner, among other fairly standard specs. No word on a price for the PX600, it seems, but the PR201 and EX620 will apparently run ¥88,000 and ¥130,000, respectively, (or $900 and $1,340), so you can pretty safely bet that it'll be well above that.

Read - Akihabara News, "PX600 Prestige Collection"
Read - Akihabara News, "MSI PR201 YA! Limited Edition"
Read - Akihabara News, "MSI EX620 100 Limited Edition"

Filed under: Laptops

MSI debuts three new limited edition laptops for Japan originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 03 Mar 2009 04:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Monday, March 02, 2009

One-Terabyte Apple Time Capsule Available for $387, May Signal New Models [Dealzmodo]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/RXO5Tw7WoM8/one+terabyte-apple-time-capsule-available-for-387-may-signal-new-models

If Apple's Time Capsule excites you, you will be happy to learn that the 1TB model is now available for $387 down from $500. This may signal the introduction of new models soon.

That discount is huge. The Apple refurb store is also selling them for the cheap, but the ones at Amazon are completely new. Does this mean we will have new Time Capsules soon, with more storage space and Mac OS X Server-derived Software Update caching, like 9to5mac speculates?

Who knows. For those of you who find this as exciting as me, here's a video about how do to make perfect pancakes.

[Amazon ia 9to5mac—Pancakes from the Daily Telegraph]

Asus Dual Panel Laptop Resembles Two iPhones Mating [Laptops]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/IhOu6VdkP3Y/asus-dual-panel-laptop-resembles-two-iphones-mating

Much like the next gen OLPC design, Asus' dual panel laptop ditches its keyboard for a second screen.

Spotted at CeBIT, the device features double multi-touch touchscreens that are coupled with software allowing for virtual interface devices—like a resizable keyboard and trackpad—or the laptop can simply be rotated for eBooks that read more like real books.

Apparently this dual panel laptop is just a corporate-sponsored entrant into a design competition, so we may or may not see the device ever hit the market.

Wait, let me rephrase that: Pleeeease make this, Asus, pleeeeassseee. [Electricpig]

Analysts: PC Sales to Drop 12%, Desktop Demand To Fall 32%, Laptop Demand To Rise 9% [PCs]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/I2CUdcxCEvk/analysts-pc-sales-to-drop-12-desktop-demand-to-fall-32-laptop-demand-to-rise-9

Analysts at Gartner are expecting PC shipments to drop 12%, to 257m computers. I'm surprised that number doesn't go to half that considering, generally speaking, PCs are fast enough these days that we can all wait a year to buy a new one. Gartner also believes that desktop sales will drop 32% and laptop demand will rise 9%, on account of those spiffy netbooks everyone is carrying around in their giant custom attached pants pockets. [NYT]

Misty Stealth Satellite Hides Perfectly While Watching You [Retromodo]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/qm0dXxEVVIc/misty-stealth-satellite-hides-perfectly-while-watching-you

Misty. That's the codename for one of the most advanced spy satellites up there. Launched in a 1990 military mission of space shuttle Atlantis, Misty is hidden by something really weird: A balloon.

As you can see in the image, Misty uses a conical reflective balloon. Little is known about how it works but in theory this design—which is patented by Teledyne Industries, who did the design for the US government—can both deflect ground lasers, radar waves, and hide it from the plain eye. [GWU via This Is Rocket Science]

Asus Marine Cool Motherboard Fights Heat with Ceramic Plates [Motherboards]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/3aXxmBdcopI/asus-marine-cool-motherboard-fights-heat-with-ceramic-plates

Ceramic isn't just for pottery. It's used in military armor to stop bullets and the Space Shuttle to thwart heat. Now, Asus is reintroducing the material in its sci-fi-tastic Marine Cool motherboard.

If our best guess is correct, not only is the board built on a ceramic underplate, but all of those off-white structures on the board are "micro-porous ceramic" heat sinks as well. But not only do they dissipate heat from board components while looking ever so evil—the ceramic also improves the structure integrity of the board itself.

The only catch to performance clockers may be the inclusion of SO-DIMM slots—small form memory slots generally reserved for notebooks.

As of right now, the Marine Cool is a concept. But like their dual-screen laptop, if Asus actually brings this model to market, we'd all remember that the company is capable of creating a lot more than just netbooks. [Softpedia via Engadget]

Leica's S2 Is What You Get When You Crossbreed a Tank With a 37-Megapixel Pro Camera [Tomorrow's Cameras]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/3e7-e6KqwAM/leicas-s2-is-what-you-get-when-you-crossbreed-a-tank-with-a-37+megapixel-pro-camera

Sorry to already shatter your expectations. An exception to the mostly mainstream camera gear we're scoping today is this working prototype of Leica's super-high-end S2 DSLR, a spartan tank of a 37-megapixel camera.

It's heavy, like a piece of war equipment, and feels like its built to withstand aerial bombardment—though it's supposedly a bit lighter than Canon's pro camera 1Ds Mark III. Its sensor size is not quite medium format, but it falls in that range—way bigger than the 35mm-size full-frame pro cameras like the 1Ds or Nikon's D3. It's for studio pros who need massive sensors and megapixels, and will have an accordingly ridiculous pro price.

What I love about it is the interface and design—the back is absolutely barren compared to most cameras, with just a dial, a switch and four buttons for its quadrant-style menu system. Each button dives into a single section, where you adjust the relevant settings. Another neat touch is the focusing setup. Hold the shutter down halfway as usual to auto-focus, but if you want to switch manual, you don't have to slide a toggle—just turn the focus ring.

It's coming out later this summer for a pro photographer or super-rich guy near you. But it's always nice to window shop, yeah?

PMA is an annual show where we get to see tomorrow's digital cameras—the ones that'll be populating pockets and purses for the rest of the year. We'll be he! re for t he next couple of days.

Gauging Samsung's TL320 OLED Display Point-and-Shoot [Tomorrow's Cameras]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/RV0PPy3p8TA/gauging-samsungs-tl320-oled-display-point+and+shoot

See what I did there? Cause Samsung's TL320 HD video capable camera has an ooooOLED screen and cool retro analog gauges? So, just how great are they in person?

What I really wanted to do was play back 720p video on the TL320's screen to better divine the OLED difference, but it's pretty early in the dev cycle (it's not coming out till way later in the year) and was so buggy all it would playback is blue static, which wasn't very helpful at all. Looking at stills on the screen side by side with an LCD display on a different Samsung camera, the OLED screen was a little brighter and sharper, but it didn't make my eyes pop out get goo all over the display in the ensuing explosion or anything.

I wish the dials were a little bigger—or there were MORE of them 'cause there's totally room—but they're still super neat. When you turn the camera on, they reset by spinning wildly, like a Ghostbusters' ~~EKG~~ PKE meter if Satan was in the room. In a world where vaguely similar specs on almost every point-and-shoot makes eyes glaze over, it's little touches like this that grab attention and make your camera better than your friend's. Besides, I think every gadget should have retro gauges.

The interface on it is simple to navigate as well, which is good since cameras really need better UIs to accommodate the dizzying list of features they're being bloated with every year—it's sort of like a vertical version of Sony's XMB cross media bar. As you you move up and down to highlight items, the settings it adjusts pops up to the right of the main list, and then you press right to move over to the settings. It's probably my favorit! e Samsun g point-and-shoot so far based on look and feel, though we'll have to wait a bit to see what kind of pictures it delivers for a final verdict.

PMA is an annual show where we get to see tomorrow's digital cameras—the ones that'll be populating pockets and purses for the rest of the year. We'll be here for the next couple of days.

DVR/BitTorrent Combo BlobBox Appears, Pirates and Studio Execs Shudder [The Dream Is Alive]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/hp6aJQC0NLY/dvrbittorrent-combo-blobbox-appears-pirates-and-studio-execs-shudder

One of Chen's deepest, darkest fantasies is a set-top box that records shows and pulls in torrents at the same time. Italian hardware firm Telsey and software maker TVBlob just made it—the BlobBox—a reality.

It's not exactly a TiVo, and it's only capable of storing over-the-air TV (and in its current form, just European digital broadcasting protocols), but the BlobBox from Telsey and TVBlob has an impressive list of talents stashed in a single plastic case:

• BitTorrent searching and downloading (plus downloading via HTTP and FTP)
• YouTube playback and uploading
• Miro for podcast management
• DVB-T over-the-air dual tuner, for watching and recording at same time
• Support for DivX, Xvid, WMV, MP4, MOV, ASF and (soon) MKV
• Web browsing
• Access to Flickr and other photo sites for viewing
• UPnP and USB connectivity for accessing content on other devices
• HDMI output for true 1080p viewing

It's only got a 160GB hard drive, and not only does it just work on European DVB-T broadcasts, but it doesn't have anything like a CableCard either, and given the fact that the company is based in Italy with few or no US distribution, there's probably no plan for that either.

Bummers aside, the fact is, Telsey and TVBlob are taking us one step closer to Chen's dream, and we certainly admire anyone with the guts (and the stomach) to help Chen realize his fantasies. [PRWeb, TVBlob and Telsey via Engadget]

Microsoft shows a glimpse at the future of computing and the people who can afford it

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/02/microsoft-shows-a-glimpse-at-the-future-of-computing-and-the-peo/

Microsoft shows a glimpse at the future of computing and the people who can afford it

Hey, want to know what the future looks like? Okay, how about what Microsoft thinks the future will look like? If you're still reading, Stephen Elop, Microsoft's Business Division President, recently presented that vision as part of this year's TechFest. In an embedded video below you can get a glimpse, which includes plenty of augmented reality, a personal identification device that could (finally) replace your wallet, and naturally lots and lots of Surface action -- extending from tables to walls and beyond. Some of these conceptual clips are old, but overall it looks like something of a computing utopia to us, and according to Elop these are all representative of currently active projects. But, with the company shedding employees and surely focusing on tangible revenue right now, we're wondering how long they'll stay that way.

Continue reading Microsoft shows a glimpse at the future of computing and the people who can afford it

Filed under: Desktops, Handhelds, Home Entertainment, Household, Portable Video

Microsoft shows a glimpse at the future of computing and the people who can afford it originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Mar 2009 0! 9:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Touch Book from Always Innovating harbors removable tablet, netbook pricepoint

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/02/touch-book-from-always-innovating-harbors-removable-tablet-netb/

It's not every day we see an all-new angle on the laptop form factor, much less a netbook with aims at innovation. Perhaps it should come as no surprise that a company dubbed "Always Innovating" is trying to spice things up a bit. The Touch Book is an ARM-powered netbook that weighs less than two pounds and claims battery life of 10 to 15 hours, but the real magic happens with the removable screen -- it slides right out of its keyboard dock and acts as a fully functional touchscreen tablet. When docked, the screen can lay out flat, and the keyboard can even be folded all the way under into an "inverted V" shape. There are other oddities like internal USB plugs to cut down on dongle mess, and the whole screen is magnetic for mounting on a fridge. The machine is running a Linux OS with a touchable 3D UI. The only press shots right now are these sketchy-looking renders, but Always Innovating is currently previewing the Touch Book at DEMO 09 in California, and plans to ship in Spring of this year with a starting pricetag of $299.

Gallery: Touch Book from Always Innovating harbors removable tablet, netbook pricepoint

Filed under: Laptops, Tablet PCs

Touch Book from Always Innovating harbors removable tablet, netbook pricepoint originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Mar 2009 10:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vue mesh network video system hands-on

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/02/vue-mesh-network-video-system-hands-on/

We had a chance to play around with Avaak's new multi-camera wireless video system, the Vue, and we've got to say -- it's kind of neat. The technology -- originally funded by DARPA and developed by the company for the military -- uses a mesh network (dubbed FrameMesh) to allow up to 50 cameras to communicate with a single base station. The premise is simple, you connect the included base to your router, then switch on as many of the cameras as you like; each one feeds its signal back home, then straight to your account on the company's servers where you can monitor the videos remotely. Once the video hits the page (the cameras stay off until you're actually watching something), you can record, or share them via Facebook, Flickr, etc. The cameras themselves are tiny things, and each one perches on a magnetized base where they can be adjusted to almost any position. The basic kit will run you $299, which includes the base station and two cameras, and each additional camera is $99. Not the lowest point of entry, but if you're into seriously monitoring some things, this is an insanely simple way to do it -- and we can't wait to see what installation artists get up to with these guys. Check out some hands-on pics in the gallery, then enjoy a brief video demo after the break.

Gallery: Vue mesh network video system hands-on

Continue reading Vue mesh network video system hands-on

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Vue mesh network video system hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Mar 2009 10:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung BD-P1600 Netflix streaming Blu-ray player pops up at retail

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/02/samsung-bd-p1600-netflix-streaming-blu-ray-player-pops-up-at-ret/

Samsung's new value priced Blu-ray player managed to fly under our radar at CES in favor of its better equipped brethren but that hasn't stopped Dave Zatz and others from stumbling into them at retail lately, like this one sitting on a Best Buy shelf. By making BD-Live required 1GB storage and WiFi dongle aftermarket accessories, you can grab a slim, Netflix streaming, fast Blu-ray loading box for $299. Right now we'll probably wait until the whole product line appears and prices slide down a bit more before considering picking one up, but depending on your needs this could be a good option, more pics of this bird in its unnatural habitat beyond the read link.

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

Samsung BD-P1600 Netflix streaming Blu-ray player pops up at retail originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Mar 2009 14:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Acer K10 pocket projector finally lands in the UK

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/02/acer-k10-pocket-projector-finally-lands-in-the-uk/

Acer announced its K10 pocket projector way back in December, but it looks like it's just now finally landed in the UK, and unfortunately received a bit of a price hike in the process. Now retailing for just over £400 (or $560, roughly a $100 increase), the SVGA projector otherwise seems to have remained unchanged since its debut, with it still promising an impressive 20,000 hour lamp life, and offering up 100 ANSI lumens of brightness, a 1,000:1 contrast ratio, and a projected image size up to 60 inches. As you can see, it's also not quite able to join the ranks of pico projectors, though its specs certainly beat out most of its smaller cousins.

Filed under: Displays

Acer K10 pocket projector finally lands in the UK originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Mar 2009 15:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Psion countersues Intel over netbook trademark, asks for $1.2b in damages

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/02/psion-countersues-intel-over-netbook-trademark-asks-for-1-2b-i/

Well, this was sadly predictable. Following filings by Dell and Intel with the USPTO requesting that Psion's "netbook" trademark be canceled, Psion has filed a $1.2b countersuit against Intel, claiming that the chipmaker knew Psion owned the netbook mark but used it anyway. That's interesting because Intel's efforts to push "netbook" on the industry went basically nowhere from March until June of 2008 -- when Atom-powered laptops ran amok at Computex -- but we're guessing Psion doesn't care. As it has in the past, Psion claims that it's been selling Netbook-branded machines continously since 1999, along with some interesting sales figures to back it up -- as Ars Technica notes, the numbers seem to add up oddly at all the wrong times, with $2m of Netbook accessories sold in 2006, three years after the product went off the market, and just 4100 total Netbooks sold over 10 years. We'll see how the court decides to pull all this apart -- it's certainly starting to look like a showdown's brewing, but we're still convinced that Intel and Dell have money, time and momentum on their side here.

Filed under: Laptops

Psion countersues Intel over netbook trademark, asks for $1.2b in damages originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Mar 2009 15:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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