Thursday, March 18, 2010

Best Buy's 3D bundle pricing isn't as much of a deal as it appears

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/03/18/best-buys-3d-bundle-pricing-isnt-as-much-of-a-deal-as-it-appea/

It's no surprise that Best Buy is encouraging customers to pick up Samsung's 3DTV and Blu-ray player at the same time, but smart buyers should doublecheck to make sure they're actually saving money before they walk out of the store. Next week's advertisement does feature Best Buy's price on the UN55C7000 that's $300 lower than the MSRP, and grabbing the display and player all at once gets a free Starter Pack throw in with two pairs of glasses and the Monsters vs. Aliens flick, but the $3,419 package deal at the lower right and its "$780" savings?. That claimed price throws in a $150 Geek Squad install to set up the TV, connect WiFi and "sync your 3D glasses," while also including the TVs price and $349 estimated Starter Kit value. While there might be some customers who don't know their HDMI from their WEP key who can save that way, we're figuring most Engadget readers can keep a few bucks in their pocket and hook things up themselves, and if you're looking to grab another pair of glasses, it's probably important to save anywhere you can. The real insult here however, can be found to the right, encouraging buyers to pick up The Blind Side right away, instead of waiting to rent from Redbox or Netflix.

Best Buy's 3D bundle pricing isn't as much of a deal as it appears originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 02:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Read More...

Dell debuts wireless, 3D-capable S300w short-throw projector

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/03/18/dell-debuts-wireless-3d-capable-s300w-short-throw-projector/

Sure, we may one day all simply carry pico projector-equipped phones and ditch any other sort of display, but until then, there's still a place for projectors like Dell's new S300w model. Designed mostly with presentations in mind, the projector can produce a 90-inch, 720p image from a distance of three feet (or 60-inches from two feet), and it packs both built-in wireless capabilities and a so-called "Plug-and-Show via USB" feature for some added flexibility. You'll also get Crestron RoomView Express software bundled with the projector for remote operation and monitoring, and some decent enough all around specs, including 2200 ANSI lumens of brightness, a 2,400:1 contrast ratio and, of course, 3D capability (though not out of the box) -- all for $999.

Dell debuts wireless, 3D-capable S300w short-throw projector originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 02:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceDell  | Email this | Comments

Read More...

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

PayPal 2.0 "Bumps" Money Between iPhones [Downloads]

Source: http://lifehacker.com/5495378/paypal-20-bumps-money-between-iphones

iPhone/iPod touch: You're settling up a restaurant tab for three. One eater has no cash, the other only twenty-dollar bills, and you're left wondering. If at least two of you have iPhones, PayPal 2.0 lets you "bump" the balance between phones.

Of course, if all of you have PayPal accounts, you don't all need iPhones to "bump" your money—you can still send money the traditional way by loading up the app and entering an email address, or drawing from a recent contact. But with two iPhones running PayPal, it's easier to set a dollar amount, move them into proximity, then confirm that the "bump" means you're transferring that cash to the sucke—er, person who picked up the tab.

Beyond that proximity feature, PayPal 2.0 also adds a means of splitting up a restaurant check or other group purchases and "billing" other PayPal users for the amounts due. Bill reminders, money withdrawals, and other features you'd expect from the online payment system are still in place, too.

PayPal 2.0 is a free download for iPhones and iPod touch models running at least the 3.0 firmware. If you've got a killer use for PayPal on iPhones that we didn't cover, do tell us in the comments.

PayPal for iPhone [iTunes (web preview) via The Download Blog]

Read More...

This Is What Your Wikipedia Edits Look Like [Memory Forever]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5495353/this-is-what-your-wikipedia-edits-look-like

Normally I'd file this image under our "what is this" image cache, but as you've already clocked, it's somehow related to our Memory [Forever] theme. Those pretty colors are a visualization of the thousands of Wikipedia edits made by a bot.

It's not just a one-off visualization for adding to our Tumblrs either. It's the work of Many Eyes, a website set up by a pair of computer scientists at IBM, to catalog visual representations of data. Looking at the site now, two years after Wired brought it to light and interviewed founder Martin Wattenberg, recent artworks tackle the issue of migration in the US, and cremations.

When asked by Wired back then why he's so keen to visualize data, Watterberg responded that:

"Language is one of the best data-compression mechanisms we have. The information contained in literature, or even email, encodes our identity as human beings. The entire literary canon may be smaller than what comes out of particle accelerators or models of the human brain, but the meaning coded into words can't be measured in bytes. It's deeply compressed. Twelve words from Voltaire can hold a lifetime of experience."

Wikipedia data remains a favorite for them though, thanks to the "idea of completeness" Watterberg talks about, that even though all the data on Wikipedia equals a terabyte or so, "it's huge in terms of encompassing human knowledge." [Many Eyes via Wired]

Memory [Forever] is our week-long consideration of what it really means when our memories, encoded in bits, flow in a million directions, and might truly live forever.

Read More...

AT&T Zero Charger Sucks Absolutely No Vampire Power [Cellphones]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5495454/att-zero-charger-sucks-absolutely-no-vampire-power

AT&T Zero Charger Sucks Absolutely No Vampire PowerAvailable at AT&T stores starting in May (for an unknown price), the AT&T Zero Charger is the world's first wall-based USB charger that draws absolutely no power when it's not refilling a cellphone. Now follow suit, everyone else. [AT&T]

UPDATE: It looks like another company beat AT&T to it and did things better. From Volt-Star:

It is our understanding that the AT&T device automatically shut down when the device or cell phone is unplugged. The VoltStar Eco Charger goes one step farther and shuts down once the phone is charged.

[Volt-Star]

Read More...