Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Friday, November 13, 2009

Boxee inks deal with first hardware partner: a 'Boxee Box' is coming

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/12/boxee-inks-deal-with-first-hardware-partner-a-boxee-box-is-co/

Color us shocked and elated. Boxee, the white-hot startup that has risen from nothing to everywhere thanks to its internet TV software portal, has just announced that a deal has been inked between it and an undisclosed "hardware partner." If you'll recall, we actually heard that the outfit was mulling the production of its own set-top-box back in January, and now it looks like Roku, Apple TV and a host of other mini PCs will have yet another formidable rival vying for space underneath the tele. The firm isn't spilling any details whatsoever on the so-called "Boxee Box," but we are told that mockups and the like will be presented at the Boxee Beta Unveiling on December 7th. Oh, and as if you aren't excited enough already, chew on this -- the company has informed us that they believe "this will be the first of several living room devices you'll see running Boxee in 2010," so don't be shocked if your favorite game console or Blu-ray player gains an embedded Boxee app in the near future.

Boxee inks deal with first hardware partner: a 'Boxee Box' is coming originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Qualcomm chips promises 1GHz speeds in 'mainstream smartphones,' simultaneous HSPA+ / LTE support

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/12/qualcomm-chip-promises-1ghz-speeds-in-mainstream-smartphones/

Qualcomm's Snapdragon has brought about a new wave of possibilities for smartphones, but evidently those chips are just too exclusive to slip into so-called "mainstream smartphones." In order to remedy such a tragedy, the outfit has today introduced the MSM7x30 family of solutions, which uses an 800 MHz to 1GHz custom superscalar CPU based on the ARM v7 instruction set. The chips support 720p video encoding / decoding at 30fps, integrated 2D and 3D graphics (with support for OpenGL ES 2.0 and OpenVG 1.1), 5.1-channel surround sound, a 12 megapixel camera sensor and built-in GPS. In related news, the outfit also announced that it is sampling the industry's first chipsets for dual-carrier HSPA+ and multi-mode 3G / LTE, which ought to make those champing at the bit for a speedier WWAN highway exceedingly giddy. Hit the links below for all the technobabble.

Read - MSM7x30 solutions
Read - Dual-carrier HSPA+ and Multi-Mode 3G/LTE chipsets

Filed under: Cellphones

Qualcomm chips promises 1GHz speeds in 'mainstream smartphones,' simultaneous HSPA+ / LTE support originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BlackBerry Storm2 hands-on and impressions

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/12/blackberry-storm2-hands-on-and-impressions/

For a company with the most starched, buttoned-up roots of any major wireless manufacturer, RIM's venture out of its enterprise comfort zone to the consumer space went amazingly smoothly thanks to the introduction of the original Pearl, a phone that's still sold in a variety of colors, configurations, and carriers to this day. At some point, though, it became clear that the industry was moving toward touch -- a space RIM had never dabbled in -- and the trend gave birth to the Storm, a product that had obviously been rushed to market with countless software bugs and a dodgy SurePress concept that caused more problems than it solved. With prototypes floating around in the wild mere months after its predecessor's release, RIM's message was loud and clear earlier this year: "we need to fix the Storm, and we need to do it quickly." Ultimately, it's ended up taking the company just about a year to get the Storm2 to market, a product that attempts to tweak Waterloo's touchscreen strategy just enough to undo a few mistakes and send it down the right path. Mission accomplished? Read on.

Gallery: BlackBerry Storm2 hands-on and impressions

Continue reading BlackBerry Storm2 hands-on and impressions

Filed under: Cellphones

BlackBerry Storm2 hands-on and impressions originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Comcast TV Everywhere launch details: December, free for existing subs, really goes anywhere

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/12/comcast-tv-everywhere-launch-details-december-free-for-existin/

Comcast's Amy Banse just hit the stage at NewTeeVee Live and announced key details about the company's new On Demand Online launch. If you can't check out the video (embedded after the break) here's the important stuff: It will be available at no additional cost to existing subscribers and allow the authorization of up to 3 devices per household. Log in once from home to Comcast.net or Fancast.com, download the Move Networks powered player to authorize your PC and proceed to stream from the very healthy library of VOD, whether at home or anywhere else, despite previous rumors to the contrary. The bad news? Yes, this does still count against the 250GB monthly cap if used at home and still no word on HD streaming, but within the concept of making content available to subscribers wherever they want to view it, this seems like a good first step.

[Via Media Experiences 2 Go]

Continue reading Comcast TV Everywhere launch details: December, free for existing subs, really goes anywhere

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Internet

Comcast TV Everywhere launch details: December, free for existing subs, really goes anywhere originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Qualcomm shows off Snapdragon-powered Lenovo smartbook for AT&T

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/12/qualcomm-shows-off-snapdragon-powered-lenovo-smartbook-for-atandt/

It may still have a few lingering problems with the "smartbook" name, but it looks like Qualcomm is pushing ahead with the still-nascent product category nonetheless, with CEO Paul Jacobs taking advantage of a recent investor get-together in New York to show off a new Lenovo-built smartbook that will apparently be offered by AT&T. Unfortunately, neither Lenovo nor AT&T is saying anything about the device just yet, and Jacobs doesn't seem to have offered much more than what was already known from the standard smartbook specs. There is the requisite low-res photo captured from the webcast, however, and all parties involved should be doing plenty more talking when this one makes its official debut at CES in January.

Filed under: Laptops

Qualcomm shows off Snapdragon-powered Lenovo smartbook for AT&T originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 17:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Trust in Casio's Japanese Exilim EX-FS10S, it'll turn your bogeys into birdies

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/13/trust-in-casios-japanese-exilim-ex-fs10s-itll-turn-your-bogey/

Sure, we could rattle off a list of specs -- and if you're curiuos, it's a 9.1 megapixel sensor with 3x optical zoom and 720p video -- but you know what's really gonna have Casio's Exilim EX-FS10S flying off shelves? The ability to stand it behind your tee and show you exactly how you screw up your swing, with special help of the company's trademark 1000 frames per second burst mode. The catch is, while the EX-FS10 is already available in US, only the Japanese model seems to have your golf buddy. Bummer.

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Trust in Casio's Japanese Exilim EX-FS10S, it'll turn your bogeys into birdies originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 01:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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YouTube begins streaming 1080p insecurities next week

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/13/youtube-begins-streaming-1080p-insecurities-next-week/

Ready to have your imperfect complexions scrutinized by every anonymous coward on the Internet? You'd better 'cause YouTube has announced the move from 720p to 1080p video streaming to make use of those cheap, Full HD camcorders flooding the market. Now puff up that keyboard courage -- the ruthless bashing of your peers is set to begin next week.

Filed under: Portable Video

YouTube begins streaming 1080p insecurities next week originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 05:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Dell Mini 3i officially set for imminent launch in Brazil and China

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/13/dell-mini-3i-officially-set-for-imminent-launch-in-brazil-and-ch/

It would appear those leaked and unintentional early peeks at Dell's first foray into smartphones did not happen in Brazil and China by accident. Hans Erickson of Dell Latin America has announced the decision to "give priority" to those two countries, who will be first to experience the Mini 3i's Android glory, with China receiving devices "in the coming days" and Brazil getting 'em later this year. Interestingly, China Mobile will be making do without 3G, while Brazil's Claro will be offering a 3G-enabled handset. Dell remains mum on pricing and the rest of the spec, though all the information so far indicates that Brazilians will be able to buy the same WiFi-packing FCC-certified 3iX handset that's heading to the US. Either way, we've got another heavyweight's presence in the smartphone market, and we'll be even happier once we know what Dell's value-add will be.

[Via Yahoo! Brazil, thanks Marcos R.]

Filed under: Cellphones

Dell Mini 3i officially set for imminent launch in Brazil and China originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 06:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Thursday, November 12, 2009

Norbt Sends Top Secret, Encrypted Messages [Security]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/cJ2i08jt0cw/norbt-sends-top-secret-encrypted-messages

Web application Norbt (short for "no robot") creates web pages with encrypted text; only people who can answer your challenge question can access the text. Got anything secret you want to share?

Norbt uses browser-based cryptography to secure your information and keep it safe until someone with the correct answer to your challenge question comes along. As a bonus, you can create whatever challenge question and answer you want. There's no sign of the typical "High School Your Maternal Grandparents Went To" type stuff, which is always frustrating to remember. You'll need a separate password to re-access the information yourself to make changes, so making one you can keep track of is a good thing.

Once your Norbt is created, you can share the link freely with anyone. Even if you don't have anything pressing to send to a friend or family member across the web, it could be fun to send your friends locked messages or love letters. Just don't get the two confused. If you're not sure you want to trust any secret missives to Norbt without a better idea of how they secure your text, check out their security page. And while we wouldn't put any of our most sensitive data in Norbt, it is, at the very least, a fun tool for sharing information.

Norbt [via Download Squad ]

Remainders - Stuff We Didn't Post (and Why) [Remainders]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/lBlnU8Dle8g/

Google Cuts Price of Online Storage by 800%...Apple Updates Genius Bar Reservation System...Gold-Dipped PS3 Slim: The Hot Holiday Gift (in Donald Trump's House)...Sanyo's "Stick Booster" Looks and Sounds Far Dirtier Than It Is...

Google Cuts Price of Online Storage by 800%

You know how sometimes the new version of a product will offer 50% more, for the same price? And how you think that's such a great deal? Well, Google just stomped all over your puny 50% upgrade by bumping their online storage to a ridiculous extent. Now you get twice the amount of storage for a quarter of the old price. That's right, that's eight times more for the same amount of money. For those that are having trouble with math, that means the storage now costs $5 a year for 20GB of space, and you can buy up to 16TB at that rate. If you're looking to store stuff in the cloud, this is a pretty killer deal. [Google]

Apple Updates Genius Bar Reservation System

Apple's Genius Bar is a pretty good system, although the first time I went they told me to arrive 15 minutes before my appointment, like the fact that their 6-week-old, $1500 product spontaneously broke was somehow my fault and not something for which they should accommodate my schedule. They're tech support guys, not doctors, right? ANYWAY, they've redesigned their online reservatio! n system , and while I have screenshots of the new version, I never cared enough about the system to be able to notice what's different. It's in Remainders for pretty obvious reasons, I think. [Thanks, Grant!]

Gold-Dipped PS3 Slim: The Hot Holiday Gift (in Donald Trump's House)

The dudes at Computer Choppers have dipped a PS3 Slim in 24kt gold (along with two controllers) and will be selling them for an undisclosed price in a limited run of 5. To the only person reading this: Hey, Mr. Trump! More photos and price will be coming soon, so if you just toss me your email I'll be sure to let you know when you can finally get the current-gen gaming console to match your skyscraper. [Geeky Gadgets]

Sanyo's "Stick Booster" Looks and Sounds Far Dirtier Than It Is

Sanyo's "Stick Booster" name sounds like the kind of product you hear about in spam emails, and it looks mostly like a vibrator. But it's actually a pretty nice-looking gadget charger, once you realize what it's for, taking two AA batteries (rechargeables, of course; it's in Sanyo's green initiative line) and offering a USB port to charge your phone, camera, or whatever for about 90 minutes. It's available now for about $35. It winds up here in Remainders because it's definitely not the first AA-USB charger we've seen, although it might be the prettiest. [CrunchGear]

Lucid's GPU-mixing HYDRA Engine gets previewed, shows real promise

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/11/lucids-gpu-mixing-hydra-engine-gets-previewed-shows-real-promi/

After a bit of a delay Lucid is back on our radar -- and we're pleased to say that the company's technology for combining multiple GPUs seems to be well on course. Indeed, a few HYDRA 200 units appear to be out and about, with preliminary tests showering love on the device. When the kids at Hot Hardware put theirs through its paces they encountered drivers issues (not surprising for something still in development) but still reported running a mixed ATI / NVIDIA combo for "impressive scaling" most of the time, peaking at 85% in dual-GPU mode. And PC Perspective also had positive things to say, with the HYDRA pushing performance "up by 83% -- definitely a competitive solution to SLI!" But that ain't all -- for the real nitty gritty you'll have to check out the links below.

Read - PC Perspective's Lucid HYDRA 200 Multi-GPU Technology Performance Preview
Read - Hot Hardware: Lucid Hydra 200 Multi-GPU Performance Revealed

Filed under: Desktops, Gaming

Lucid's GPU-mixing HYDRA Engine gets previewed, shows real promise originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola Droid torn down despite desperate cries of 'no disassemble'

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/11/motorola-droid-torn-down-despite-desperate-cries-of-no-disassem/

If you were thinking of tearing apart your own Droid, let us direct you first to this quote straight from the folks at phoneWreck: "no easy task." It seems that even finding some of the screws involved in holding the mess together was a problem, but at the end of the day, good old-fashioned human ingenuity prevailed over... well, other human ingenuity, and the phone fell asunder into the 16 pieces you see here. As you might imagine, there's a bit of industrial magic involved in fitting a full QWERTY slide into a package this tight -- but just as Moto was up to the challenge of putting it together, some dude with a little time on his hands was up to the challenge of asploding it. Needless to say, we won't be doing this to ours.

Filed under: Cellphones

Motorola Droid torn down despite desperate cries of 'no disassemble' originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Eneloop Stick Booster supplies emergency power to your portable devices

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/12/eneloop-stick-booster-supplies-emergency-power-to-your-portable/

Any time a company both enables our gadget addiction and discourages wanton battery consumption we have to consider it a good thing -- and, indeed, Sanyo's wicked-rechargeable Eneloop batteries already have quite a few fans here at Engadget HQ. But what's a busy gadget hound to do on the go, you ask? Try this one on for size: the Eneloop Stick Booster ships with two AAs and can be used to charge them, via any USB source. From that point the device can be used to power your PMP for roughly 90 minutes. How great is that? To be released in Japan on December 1 for an unspecified price, and worldwide whenever the company sees fit. PR after the break.

Gallery: Eneloop Stick Booster

[Via Akihabara]

Continue reading Eneloop Stick Booster supplies emergency power to your portable devices

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

Eneloop Stick Booster supplies emergency power to your portable devices originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 01:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wistron: Readius-like ereader with pull-out flexible display launching in 2010

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/12/wistron-readius-like-ereader-with-pull-out-flexible-display-lau/

We've had a soft spot for Polymer Vision in the fetid hollows of that place you call a heart ever since we pressed flesh to its Readius back in February 2008. Unfortunately, we had to let go of any hope for the bendy e-reader to ever hit the market after delays turned into bankruptcy turned into cries of noooo! the world over. Now coddled in the corporate arms of Wistron we hear from Brian Chong, head of Wistron's product planning, that a 5-to-6 inch device with a pull-out flexible e-paper display of similar design to the Readius will launch in 2010. By similar design we hope they've included Bluetooth, dual-band HSDPA, tri-band GSM / EDGE, microSD expansion and SMS capabilities of the original.

Filed under: Displays, Handhelds

Wistron: Readius-like ereader with pull-out flexible display launching in 2010 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Nov 2009 01:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wednesday, November 11, 2009

New Manhattan Apple Store in Full View [Apple]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/y2-f65MWxrk/new-manhattan-apple-store-in-full-view

Workers removed the tarps this morning, as opening day draws closer. Pic courtesy of reader, David, who quips: "It's taken something like 14 months to create this place out of a Victoria's Secret. The Empire State building went up quicker."

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