Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Monday, January 04, 2010

MSI Prepping Dual Screen, Nvidia-Powered eReader and a 3D Laptop [EReaders]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/A8ivBOdWRTQ/msi-prepping-dual-screen-nvidia+powered-ereader-and-a-3d-laptop

Rumor has it that the eReader MSI plans to unveil at this year's CES will not only have Nvidia Tegra graphics, but dual screens as well. A 3D laptop may also be in the works.

Of course, as you can see from the Asus dual screen eReader pictured here, the concept of a dual screen eReader is nothing new. But I have to wonder how devices like this will compete or blend with more functional tablet computers. As for the 3D laptop, there isn't any further detail. Hopefully we will learn more when CES kicks off. [Digitimes]

Can Microwave Technology be Used to Make Food Cold? [Microwaves]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/oD-6ijhJoa8/can-microwave-technology-be-used-to-make-food-cold

Microwaves can transform a frozen pizza into hot, melted goodness in four minutes flat, but they can't rescue your melted ice-cream sundae. Or can they?

To cook food, a microwave oven converts voltage into high-frequency electromagnetic microwaves. The molecules in food-especially water and fat-absorb this energy and wiggle at high speeds, causing them to heat rapidly and warm the surrounding food. Although quickly turning leftovers cold would be handy, this is a one-way operation, explains David Pozar, a professor and microwave expert at the University of Massachusetts. Microwaves can only speed up atoms, not slow them down.

Scientists do have a high-tech method for slowing atoms, however: lasers. Shoot a moving atom with a laser, and it will absorb the laser's photons and re-emit them every which way, causing the atom to hold nearly still. Placing an atom at the junction of multiple beams can slow its momentum in all directions, decreasing its energy and cooling it.

This drops an atom's temperature a couple hundred degrees Fahrenheit-much colder than anything you'd want to put in your mouth-in less than a second. But because it works most efficiently on low-density gases of atoms of a single element, physicist Mark Raizen of the University of Texas doesn't think it will be useful for cooling food anytime soon: "Not unless you can subsist on a thousand sodium atoms."

Popular Science is your wormhole to the future. Reporting on what's new and what's next in science and technology, we deliver the future now.

WebOS Getting Doom, Quake, OpenGL, and Native SDK [Palm]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/4AlTZVkvGuA/webos-getting-doom-quake-opengl-and-native-sdk

With some elbow grease, we've been able to play Doom on our WebOS devices for a while, but now we can do so without any messy terminal commands. Oh, and there's a playable version of Quake, too.

The folks of the webOS Internals global team have been throwing new things at us each day lately. At first Quake was only an unplayable demo, but now it plays just as well as the previously released version of Doom. These won't be the last games we'll see on the Pre though, because the same team has discovered demoed an OpenGL application and a "method for installing and running native Linux applications without the need for add-on services like webOSInternals' own Upstart Manager Service."

All of this is great news for homebrewers, Pre owners, and smartphone gamers, but tell me, what are you most eager to see next? [PreCentral]

Freescale reveals 7-inch smartbook reference design, hopes to see it ship for $200

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/04/freescale-reveals-7-inch-smartbook-reference-design-hopes-to-se/

Freescale Semiconductor is helping to kick this year's CES off with a bang, as its latest reference smartbook design actually has somewhat of a sexy flair to it. Currently, the model is little more than a great idea, but the company is hoping to have it available for partner evaluation starting next month. In theory, at least, this "smartbook tablet" would boast an ultrathin form factor, weigh around 0.8 pounds and get powered by a 1GHz i.MX515 processor. Other specs would include 512MB of DDR2 RAM, a 1,024 x 600 touch panel, 4GB to 64GB of internal storage, a microSD expansion slot, optional 3G WWAN module, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, GPS, a USB 2.0 socket, audio in / out, 3 megapixel camera, inbuilt 3-axis accelerometer, an ambient light sensor and a 1,900mAh battery. We aren't quite sure what kind of bulk discounts Freescale is counting on, but it's hoping that this design will "enable a second generation of smartbook products with prices less than $200." We dig the ambition and all, but we're guessing OEMs will actually want to turn a profit should they sign on to sell something like this.

Gallery: Freescale reveals 7-inch smartbook reference design, hopes to see it ship for $200

Continue reading Freescale reveals 7-inch smartbook reference design, hopes to see it ship for $200

Freescale reveals 7-inch smartbook reference design, hopes to see it ship for $200 originally appeared on E ngadget on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 00:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Intel's Arrandale and Clarkdale CPUs get benchmarked for your enjoyment

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/04/intels-arrandale-and-clarkdale-cpus-get-benchmarked-for-your-en/

Whoa, Nelly! Just weeks after Intel came clean with its new Pine Trial nettop and netbook platform, the company is today cutting loose with a few more. This go 'round, we've got the 32nm Arrandale (which consists of the Core i5 Mobile and Core i3 Mobile) heading for the laptops and the 32nm Clarkdale chips over on the desktop front. Starting with the former, most reviews found the CPU + GPU solution to be faster than rivaling Core 2 Duo + integrated GPU options, with the Core i5 being particularly potent in highly threaded applications. Better still, battery life didn't seem to take a hit even with the extra performance, though high-end, high-res gaming was still a lesson in futility when working without a discrete graphics card. Overall, the chip was a welcome addition to the fold, but we got the feeling that the first wave was priced too high and offered too little of a performance increase on the gaming side to really warrant a wholehearted recommendation. As for the Clarkdale? The Core i5 661 that everyone seemed to snag was found to be blisteringly fast, with most folks deeming it the outright champion in the dual-core realm. Unfortunately, the integrated GPU was -- again -- not awesome for hardcore gaming, and the questionable pricing didn't exactly thrill some critics. Do yourself a favor and dig into the benchmarks below -- we get the feeling we'll be seeing oodles of machines hit the wires this week with these chips within.

Arrandale reviews
Read - HotHardware
Read - AnandTech
Read - Tom's Hardware
Read - PCPerspective
Read - Legit Reviews

Clarkdale reviews
Read - NeoSeeker
Read - HotHardware
Read - HardOCP
Read - TechSpot
Read - AnandTech
Read - PCPerspective
Read - Legion Hardware
Read - Overclockers Club
Read - Bit-tech

Intel's Arrandale and Clarkdale CPUs get benchmarked for your enjoyment originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 01:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ASUS UL30Vt-A1 pops up on Amazon for pre-order: silver, 5600mAh battery, $849

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/04/asus-ul30vt-a1-pops-up-on-amazon-for-pre-order-silver-5600mah/

ASUS' UL30Vt-X1 was largely hailed as the CULV machine to get when it finally went on sale just a few weeks back, and it has a Core 2 Duo CPU alongside a switchable graphics solution to thank. Still, the main two gripes on it were the inability to choose a color and the (comparatively) lackluster battery. Thankfully for those who managed to hold off, ASUS has quietly pushed its UL30Vt-A1 onto Amazon's pages, complete with a silver paint job, a capacious 5,600mAh battery (good for "up to 12 hours" of usage) and an asking price that's $50 higher than the X1. All other specs have seemingly remained constant, from the 1.3GHz Intel SU7300 CPU to the 4GB of DDR3 RAM to the 500GB hard drive. You'll also get a 64-bit copy of Windows 7 Home Premium and an NVIDIA G210M (512MB) + GMA 4500MHD GPU setup, but there's no telling when your order will actually ship. Here's hoping for sooner rather than later, yeah?

[Thanks, Paul]

ASUS UL30Vt-A1 pops up on Amazon for pre-order: silver, 5600mAh battery, $849 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 06:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HSTi Wireless Media Stick nixes the need for dedicated storage drives

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/04/hsti-wireless-media-stick-nixes-the-need-for-dedicated-storage-d/

The banners aren't even officially up in Vegas yet, and already we're catching a drift of what all will be unveiled in the days to come. Take this Wireless Media Stick for example, which is HSTi's way of telling you that a dedicated storage drive beside your Blu-ray player or media player is completely unnecessary. Put simply, this device (and the accompanying software, we presume) plugs directly into any USB-enabled disc player or media streamer that's connected to your television; from there, you can easily stream media that's already shacked up within your main PC to your TV-connected device(s), which cures the problem of having your media fragmented between varying drives. We're still waiting to hear exactly what kind of technology this thing relies on (we're guessing 2.4GHz), but hopefully we'll find out more (along with a price and ship date) real soon.

HSTi Wireless Media Stick nixes the need for dedicated storage drives originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 06:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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QNAP gets serious with Turbo NAS line, packing Pineview, iSCSI, and VMWare certification

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/04/qnap-gets-serious-with-turbo-nas-line-packing-pineview-iscsi/

QNAP is generally known around these parts for its ever shrinking line of NAS devices that pack plenty of goods in a small space. The company's latest series sets a new bar for functionality, but does so in a device you probably won't be wedging in on a bookshelf between your well-worn (but never finished) copy of Ulysses and your leaning tower of software boxes. The latest Turbo NAS series is intended for small businesses, available in sizes ranging from one to the eight bay monster you see above, each packing an Intel D510 processor with enough oomph to fuel virtualized environments, so VMware vSphere4 certification and Windows Server 2008's Hyper-V are on-tap. iSCSI is also supported, as is IPv6 and, in one small nod toward consumers, Apple Time Machine backups have been enabled. We're expecting to see the full suite of devices at CES just a few days hence, while they're all slated for retail release in the coming weeks at prices ranging from $599 for the two-bay TS-259 Pro all the way up to $1,499 for that eight-bay TS-859 Pro flavor. You didn't think all this professionalism would come cheap, did you?

QNAP gets serious with Turbo NAS line, packing Pineview, iSCSI, and VMWare certification originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 07:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Casio Exilim G EX-G1 hands-on

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/04/casio-exilim-g-ex-g1-hands-on/

Casio's Exlim G EX-G1 certainly managed to turn a few heads when it was announced back in November, with it introducing a new angular design to complement its status as the "world's thinnest shock-resistant camera." Add to that the promise of being freezeproof, waterproof and dustproof, and you just know this is one we had to check out first hand. As we're happy to report, the $299 Exlim G definitely feels solid and substantial from the moment you pull it from its packaging, although all that shock-proofing and weather-proofing does come with a few minor inconveniences compared to a standard point-and-shoot. The first of those is that the battery compartment requires a special tool and some pretty nimble fingers to open and, secondly, the two extra side protectors that provide even more ruggedness require that you first remove some very tiny screws from the camera and then attach the protector with some slightly longer screws (Casio thankfully provides a few spares). Once you've got things set, however, the camera should easily survive life in a pocket or backpack during even your most arduous travels -- and take some decent pictures and YouTube-ready video, to boot.

Be sure to check out the gallery below for our extensive hands-on look at the camera, and check back later for some sample shots and additional impressions once we've had a chance to really put the Exilim G through its paces.

Gallery: Casio Exilim G EX-G1 hands-on

Casio Exilim G EX-G1 hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toshiba mini NB305 adds Atom N450 to a successful formula (hands-on)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/04/toshiba-mini-nb305-adds-atom-n450-to-a-successful-formula/

Toshiba hasn't strayed far from its NB205 series of 10-inch netbooks with the all-new mini NB305, but the few tweaks made are welcome. Obviously the Atom N450 processor is the central attraction, but tweaks like a 250GB hard drive, less protrusive 6-cell battery (which clocks in a purported 11 hours of battery life), and a slightly lighter finished product (2.6 pounds) all add up to a compelling offering. The regular version of the laptop with "true" chiclet keys goes for $400, while a black version with a less impressive keyboard takes the entry spot at $350.

We got a few moments to play with the netbooks, and came away pretty impressed. It might not be quite the bang-for-buck on offer from other manufacturers, and the lack of a higher-end graphics option is a little off-putting, but as for simple build quality and usability (we're particular fans of the oversized trackpad), the NB305 might be hard to beat. Toshiba's also pursuing the software angle here with a Media Controller app to expose some of Windows 7's media streaming abilities, along with a visual search app called RealTime and a fridge-style Bulletin Board.

Gallery: Toshiba mini NB305 press shots

Gallery: Toshiba mini NB305 hands-on

Toshiba mini NB305 adds Atom N450 to a successful formula (hands-on) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 12:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CinemaNow 2.0: 3D, 1080p, Android & WinMo get a taste of online movie distribution

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/04/cinemanow-2-0-3d-1080p-android-and-winmo-get-a-taste-of-online/

Thought digital delivery would get left behind in the jump to 3D? Roxio's CinemaNow 2.0 platform is ready to build on the success of its predecessor -- already embedded in many devices and powering the online stores for Blockbuster, Best Buy and Zip.ca -- and flip the switch bringing streamed or downloaded 1080p or 3D, plus the ability to add additional background info on each movie or previously disc-exclusive extras like multiple audio tracks, subtitles and more. Also new for 2.0 are plans for access on Android and Windows Mobile devices. We're still thinking a combo of lower prices, all you can eat subscriptions or a disc tie-in is the logical next step, but we'll wait for a CES demo to ask about that, and whether the new features will be backwards compatible on old hardware.

CinemaNow 2.0: 3D, 1080p, Android & WinMo get a taste of online movie distribution originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Jan 2010 12:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Skiff Reader is largest yet, will be hitting a Sprint Store near you

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/04/skiff-reader-is-largest-reader-yet-will-be-hitting-a-sprint-sto/

Skiff Reader is largest, thinnest reader yet, hitting a Sprint Store near you

Amazon's Kindle DX may be big, but it's not the biggest any more. The Skiff Reader is here to take that crown -- despite being a mere quarter inch thick. It packs a 1600 x 1200 11.5-inch touchscreen (finger and stylus) that, as you can see from the above screenshot, should do much better justice to magazine and newspaper layouts than we've yet seen from an e-ink-based reader. That's exactly the sort of advance Hearst was promising when it first mentioned the device last month. Skiff includes 4GB of on-board storage (just over 3GB is available for content) with SD card expansion, and there's a 3.5mm headphone jack for tunes and, hopefully, text-to-speech. Content can be side-loaded over a mini USB jack or delivered via WiFi but, more importantly, 3G is also on offer thanks to Sprint, who will also dedicate some space in its retail stores to sell the thing when it launches sometime this year. Price? That we don't know.

Gallery: Skiff Reader press shots