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Monday, June 08, 2009

iPhone 3G vs. iPhone 3G S: the tale of the tape

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/08/iphone-3g-vs-iphone-3g-s-the-tale-of-the-tape/

The very first thing we want to know about this newfangled iPhone 3G S is exactly what we're getting for our extra Benjamin (or two, depending on the model you spring for). We don't have all the answers just yet -- Apple's being coy about processor specs on the 3G S, for example -- but here's what we do know so far.

	iPhone 3G	iPhone 3G S
Basics
Price	$99 8GB ($299 for ineligible upgraders)	$199 16GB, $299 32GB ($399 and $499 for ineligible upgraders)
Processor	412MHz ARM 11	Unknown, "on average up to twice as fast"
Graphics capability	OpenGL ES 2.0	OpenGL ES 2.0
Camera	2.0 megapixel fixed focus	3.0 megapixel autofocus with macro mode and auto white balance
Video recording	None	30fps VGA with on-device editing capability
Voice control	None	Dialing, music control
Nike+ support	No	Yes
Wireless technologies	3.6Mbps HSDPA, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR	7.2Mbps HSDPA, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR
Water- and oil-resistant finish	No	Yes
Integrated magnetic compass	No	Yes
Included headphones	Standard	Inline remote for music control
Battery life	Up to 5 hours talk time / data on 3G, 10 hours on 2G Up to 6 hours data on WiFi Up to 24 hours audio Up to 7 hours video	Up to 5 hours talk time / data on 3G, 12 hours on 2G Up to 9 hours data on WiFi Up to 30 hours audio Up to 10 hours video
Dimensions	115.5 x 62.1 x 12.3mm	115.5 x 62.1 x 12.3mm
Weight	133 grams / 4.69 oz.	135 grams / 4.76 oz.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

iPhone 3G vs. iPhone 3G S: the tale of the tape originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Jun 2009 16:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AT&T: we'll offer tethering on the iPhone

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/08/atandt-well-offer-tethering-on-the-iphone/

It's been known since day one that iPhone OS 3.0 would support data tethering, and Apple took the opportunity at WWDC today to drive the point home by saying that it'd be launching the service with 22 carrier partners in 44 countries. Of course, it's easy to have assumed that AT&T wouldn't be one of those partners, but we've been told today by a company spokesman that it will be offering tethering on the device -- it just doesn't have any announcements to make at this time. Whether that means availability will be delayed (perhaps until the 7.2Mbps upgrade is built out) or they're just trying to hammer out pricing, we don't know, but it's a promising sign.

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds, Wireless

AT&T: we'll offer tethering on the iPhone originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Jun 2009 17:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Friday, June 05, 2009

RT @bmorrissey - Digg plans social ads -- http://ping.fm/tGV8X -- in-the-stream ads, will they provoke or please?

A search engine with an answer to "the meaning of life" and a personality too -- http://ping.fm/ZjeWT -- too awesome/funny

Inside the $485-Million Airbus A380 Flying Palace [Airplanes]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/71amvzI4BhA/inside-the-485+million-airbus-a380-flying-palace

What's 239 feet long, flies at 647mph, and has three floors that include a grand staircase, four giant full suites, boardroom with hologram projector, a full spa, concert hall, car garage, and a space-age lift that drops onto the runway?

Apparently, it may be Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud's new specially retro-fitted A380. As you may remember, the arabian Prince shone his genie lamp and bought an Airbus A380—the biggest passenger plane in the world—for his personal use.

British company Design Q is now making the plans for its interior, three floors with every luxurious detail you can imagine, including a lift that goes all the way down to the runway's tarmac and extends a red carpet so guests can get into the flying palace. I can already imagine a stunning hostess saying "Welcome, Mr Bond."

In addition to all of the above, the full marble Turkish bath in the spa, and twenty first class seats/beds for the extra guests, the plane will be full of high tech gadgets. The boardroom, for example, will have a hologram projector and a giant touchscreen perspex table, while each suite will include a virtual prayer mat proyector, always pointing in Mecca's direction.

Whoever bought it, I hope he invites us for a trip. And with "us" I mean "me." I can sleep on the couch, Mr Prince Sir you. [Daily Mail]

Thursday, June 04, 2009

Five new Moorestown-based MIDs announced at Computex

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/04/five-new-moorestown-based-mids-announced-at-computex/

Pardon us while we take this opportunity to snag a nap, but seriously, we just cannot muster any excitement whatsoever about Mobile Internet Devices. Stuck somewhere between capable smartphones and these newfangled smartbooks, MIDs seem to be carving out a niche that precisely no one cares about. Though, we can say we're stoked about the forthcoming introduction of Moorestown -- the Atom needs a successor in the worst way. At any rate, those still hanging on in hopes of a turnaround have introduced new MIDs today at Computex, with EB, Quanta, Inventec, Aava Mobile and Compal (despite its recent skepticism) showcasing their wares. If you honestly think you could see yourself purchasing one of these unwanted devices in the next year or so, we've got plenty of images down there in the read link.

[Via MIDMoves]

Filed under: Handhelds

Five new Moorestown-based MIDs announced at Computex originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Compal shows off Android-running, Snapdragon-powered smartbook

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/04/compal-shows-off-android-running-snapdragon-powered-smartbook/

As if it wasn't clear already, smartbooks are one of the big trends (if not the biggest) to emerge out of this year's Computex, be they Snapdragon or Tegra-powered. Just as interesting as the devices themselves, however, is the fact that a number of manufacturers are looking at using Android as an OS for 'em, including big players like ASUS, and now Compal. While's ASUS' Snapdragon-based offering was impressive enough, Compal looks to have slightly outdone it by adding a customized interface at start-up, which is apparently just a taste of further "optimizations" to come. Details are otherwise a bit hard to come by, but you can head on past the break for a hands-on video courtesy of techvideoblog.com.

Continue reading Compal shows off Android-running, Snapdragon-powered smartbook

Filed under: Laptops

Compal shows off Android-running, Snapdragon-powered smartbook originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Jun 2009 19:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: hands-on with ASUS' Eee Keyboard at Computex

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/04/video-hands-on-with-asus-eee-keyboard-at-computex/

We first caught sight of ASUS' totally weird Eee Keyboard -- a full PC with an Intel Atom N270 CPU built in -- way back at CES in January. Well, our friends at Engadget Chinese have laid hands on it at Computex, and it's looking a bit different than what we expected... and a whole lot more awesome. The 5-inch, 800 x 480 pixel touchscreen display/trackpad on the right side of the keyboard, is, as it turns out, running a standalone version of XP, and serves as the main display for the PC, with the external monitor functioning in a secondary capacity. The LCD boasts shortcuts to most of the included software -- including Skype, MSN, and music playback controls. Our friends found the touchscreen to work extremely well, and though we don't know anything rock solid about pricing or availability yet (we hear it will launch by the end of June, we do know that it will come in two flavors -- wired and and UWB wireless -- with the wireless version housing a battery which gets about two hours of use before needing a charge. There's a video (in Chinese) showing this badboy off after the break. Hit the read link for a full gallery of photos.

Continue reading Video: hands-on with ASUS' Eee Keyboard at Computex

Filed under: Desktops, Peripherals

Video: hands-on with ASUS' Eee Keyboard at Computex originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Jun 2009 19:54:00 EST. Please see ! our terms for use of feeds.

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Pharos Traveller 137 now available, can use both AT&T and T-Mobile 3G

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/04/pharos-traveller-137-now-available-can-use-both-atandt-and-t-mobi/

We're not sure what kind of wilded-out party people need a single phone that can use both AT&T and T-Mobile 3G in the States, but your dreams have finally come true: the Pharos Traveller 137 is finally available. Hope you like Windows Mobile 6.1, cause that's what you're getting for your $350 on two-year T-Mo contract or $600 unlocked. Expensive, yes, but you're basically getting every feature you can think of and Pharos says the 137 is WinMo 6.5-ready, so there's an upgrade path here -- too bad no firmware will ever make that resistive touchscreen feel good.

[Via PhoneScoop]

Filed under: Cellphones

Pharos Traveller 137 now available, can use both AT&T and T-Mobile 3G originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Jun 2009 16:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple Patent Describes Mid-Call Music, Video, Picture Sharing for iPhone [Apple]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/87VamwAWARg/apple-patent-describes-mid+call-music-video-picture-sharing-for-iphone

Apple Insider has scrounged up an Apple patent, filed in late 2007, that just, you know, immediately clicks. It's for instant media sharing during iPhone calls, and it makes plain old video calling look downright boring.

The application explains it thusly:

An individual may call his friend to discuss music, but in order for the friend to listen to the music, the individual either may have to send the music to the friend using a device other than his telephone, or he may have to end the phone call and use the telephone to send the friend an email with the music attached.

This capability extends to pretty much anything, from photos and videos to voicemail and "others", and implies that the data could be streamed in real time, not just transferred and downloaded.

Carrier reluctance and technical network limitations are the most obvious obstacles to something like this actually coming to pass in the near future, though the patent has a clever solution for the latter problem:

There may also be two audio data streams to transmit. In order to transmit all of the streams over the same communication path, the control circuitry may employ a multiplexer to combine together any video streams, and to combine together any audio streams, the multiplexer may then combine into one fixed stream the two combined streams.

In other words, this is more than an airy-fairy "wouldn't it be cool" concept—Apple seems to have given it some s! erious t hought, and a bit of real engineering attention. And the more the better: this is one of those concepts that, once you see it, just seems like it needs to happen. [AppleInsider]

Video: NVIDIA Tegra's GPU gets busy with HD video and full-screen Flash -- Intel 945GSE shrugs, kicks dirt

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/04/video-nvidia-tegras-gpu-gets-busy-with-hd-video-and-full-scree/

If you didn't believe the Tegra hype -- 25 days audio, 10 hours of 1080p video on single charge -- already then pull up a stool, son, NVIDIA wants to tell your a story. TechVideoBlog sat down with Gordon Grigor, NVIDIA's Director of Mobile Software to see Tegra's little Atom smasher in action. So sit back while Gordon smoothly streams a 720p MSN HD trailer off the web (over WiFi) then switches over to Firefox to take Flash for a spin at full-screen. Gordon also clarifies earlier confusion over Tegra's ability to handle HD video; see, the Tegra 600 can do H.264 video at 720p while the Tegra 650 can decode 1080p. Gordon also gives some more insight into memory configurations. It seems that the OS (either Android or Windows CE in single or dual-boot configurations) will be embedded with minimal on-board storage like those early Eee PCs. RAM will also be limited to about 512MB on base units going as low as 256MB and as high as 1GB in future (unannounced) devices. A 512MB model limits Firefox to about 3-4 opened tabs at a time. All of this is meant to keep prices down below $200 (or less when subsidized by carriers). Also of note is how the Tegra's GPU assists in rendering pixels anytime they appear on the display. In other words fonts, Firefox pages, scrolling, and of course video playback all benefit from an extra boost by the GPU. Check the video after the break to hear Gordon make some not so subtle jabs at Intel's relatively power-hungry Atom processor.

Continue reading Video: NVIDIA Tegra's GPU gets busy with HD video and full-screen Flash -- Intel 945GSE shrugs, kicks dirt

Filed under: Laptops

Video: NVIDIA Tegra's GPU gets busy with HD video and full-screen Flash -- Intel 945GSE shrugs, kicks dirt originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Jun 2009 09:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Intel snaps up Wind River, looks for that embedded systems edge

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/04/intel-snaps-up-wind-river-looks-for-that-embedded-systems-edge/

Wind River Systems has been doing Android up right for quite some time, and evidently Intel is sick and tired of sitting on the outside looking in. Disregarding that massive EU fine for a moment, the company somehow managed to find time to pen a check in the amount of $884 million in order to fully acquire the aforesaid embedded systems company. The reason? Intel knows the CPU business is morphing into something entirely more elaborate, and it reckons a solid presence in the embedded devices segment (MIDs, UMPCs, etc.) is necessary to keep those profits up in the future. Honestly, such a pickup isn't really a shock; Intel has shown great interest in being a serious player in the handheld computing market, and its fledgling CE 3100 media processor could also benefit from a respectable layer of software behind it. Meanwhile, something tells us those Wind River guys are gearing up for the weekend of their lives.

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

Intel snaps up Wind River, looks for that embedded systems edge originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Jun 2009 10:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC Hero / Lancaster running Android and "Rosie" UI launching on June 24th?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/06/04/htc-hero-lancaster-running-android-and-rosie-ui-launching-on/

While the Economic Daily News doesn't cite any sources, its claim that HTC will launch its Android-powered Hero handset on June 24th makes a lot of sense to us. Something's up on that day since we've already seen the press invite to a June 24th event in London, the same place that witnessed the launch of the HTC Touch Diamond last year. The EDN reports two variations of the Hero: one without the QWERTY and another, the HTC Memphis (better known as the HTC Lancaster around AT&T) with full keyboard in tow. What confuses us though is the EDN claim that the Memphis/Lancaster will be an AT&T exclusive for 6 months when it ships in Q3... so why the London launch then?

Filed under: Cellphones

HTC Hero / Lancaster running Android and "Rosie" UI launching on June 24th? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 04 Jun 2009 06:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wednesday, June 03, 2009

KillCopy Speeds Up Disk Transfers and Securely Deletes Files [Downloads]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/ivI5q5_I4HU/killcopy-speeds-up-disk-transfers-and-securely-deletes-files

Windows only: It's no secret that the default copy handler in Windows is miserably inadequate. KillCopy runs circles around the default handler with tons of customizable options including a secure over write of moved files.

Killcopy, like previously reviewed TeraCopy and FastCopy, handles local and network file transfer with radically more efficiency than the default Windows file copier. There are a host of features including the ability to toggle settings like copy verification for important files, parallel read/write to boost speed, and whether to prompt, overwrite, or skip if a file already exists. The feature that really sets KillCopy apart from other custom copy handlers is its ability to securely overwrite file locations. You can instruct KillCopy to scrub the previous location of a file with 1-3 passes of data, making secure deletion part of your basic file handling. KillCopy is freeware, Windows only.

KillCopy [via Freeware Home]

Google Squared Goes Live, Formats Your Searches Into a Spreadsheet [Search Engines]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/5HHodxkfQ1o/google-squared-goes-live-formats-your-searches-into-a-spreadsheet

Google Labs today released Google Squared, which, according to the search giant, "constructs a table of facts about any search category you specify"—though some searches produce distinctly better results than others.

The product is still pretty raw right now, but think of it sort of like Google's short-term answer to the very cool Wolfram Alpha's structured search—with results displayed in a spreadsheet format of sorts.

Google Squared is a search tool that helps you quickly build a collection of facts from the Web for any topic you specify.

Facts about your topic are organized as a table of items and attributes (we call them "Squares" for fun).

Customize these Squares to see just the items and attributes you're interested in.

See the websites that served as sources for the information in your Square.

Save and share Squares with others.

As I said, right now the strength of results varies. One search for digital cameras, for example, produced a list of many items—viewed seven rows at a time—while the above pictured "cheese" search came up with several empty fields.

The fields themselves vary according to your search. In the digital camera query, Google Squared automatically included a product name, along with an image, description, price, design, and author fields. In addition to name, image! , and de scription, the cheese search offered texture, milk, and country fields. Google Squared lets you delete an option, add columns or click on a link to see the next 10 results.

You can also start with an empty square and sign-in to save your selections. Running your mouse over a field will produce the source; Wikipedia is a recurring one.

Try out Squared for yourself and let us know what you think and how it stacks up against Wolfram Alpha—if at all. We'll update the post once Google provides an official announcement.

Google Squared [Google Labs]

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