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Thursday, April 15, 2010

Apple looking to hire camera expert, iPad Camera Kit to support USB audio?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/15/apple-looking-to-hire-camera-expert-ipad-camera-kit-to-support/

We know it's been hard to deal with the comparative lack of iPad rumors now that the thing has actually be released (in some places, at least), but we've got a bit of a treat today: not one but two camera-related iPad rumors. The first comes courtesy of an Apple job posting for a Performance QA Engineer for iPad media who, among other things, must rely on their "knowledge of digital camera technology (still and video) to develop and maintain testing frameworks for both capture and playback pipelines." While anything to result from that may have to wait until iPad 2.0, Apple software engineering manager William Stewart has dropped another interesting detail on an Apple mailing list concerning the soon-to-be-available Camera Connection Kit. Apparently, in addition to accommodating your digital camera, the USB adapter will also support class-compliant USB audio devices -- although that is yet to be confirmed by Apple itself. Of course, you'll also need some apps to take advantage of that, but Stewart seems to also imply the necessary functionality is at least already built into the OS, which would seem to make apps only a matter of time. We'll let you take the speculation from there.

Apple looking to hire camera expert, iPad Camera Kit to support USB audio? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Apr 2010 13:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Winscape virtual window features Wiimote headtracking, absolutely made of win

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/15/winscape-virtual-window-features-wiimote-headtracking-absolutel/

We have not modified the above picture in any way -- Scout's Honor. That's a real baby, wearing a real IR necklace that interacts with a real Wiimote. What's not real, of course, is the view of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge. That is generated by Ryan Hoagland's DIY virtual window, a brilliant pastiche of interior design, RED ONE footage and Johnny Chung Lee-style headtracking, all directed to your eyes by a Mac Pro feeding a pair of plasma screens. As the viewer moves around, dual 1080p images move the opposite direction, providing the convincing illusion of looking out a real pane of glass at the incredibly detailed scenery beyond. Exciting? Then you'll be giggling like Jr. when you hear it's for sale. After spending a year figuring out how to mount, drive and cool the whole shebang, Hoagland would like you to have one too; he plans to have basic kits ready by July for under $3000. Watch baby-powered plasma in motion after the break, as well as a sweet time-lapse video of the build process.

[Thanks, Andy, ArjanD]

Continue reading Winscape virtual window features Wiimote headtracking, absolutely made of win

Winscape virtual window features Wiimote headtracking, absolutely made of win originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Apr 2010 15:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Leica V-Lux 20 gets leaked with (nearly) reasonable price tag

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/15/leica-v-lux-20-gets-leaked-with-almost-reasonable-price-tag/

An M9 it ain't, but Leica's latest still might tickle the fancy of those who see value in paying for that cute red logo. If the image above and details linked down there in the source are to be believed, the V-Lux 20 will be launching in five short days, bringing with it a 3-inch rear LCD, 25mm to 300mm zoom range, integrated GPS and price of nearly €549 ($744). The tough news is that this thing is based around Panasonic's ZS-7, which can be had right now for under $400, so it's hard to say how much value you'll get in paying more for Leica's variant. If all goes well, it's rumored to be in stores by May 9th, sitting right alongside the ultra affordable leather case (€99) and extra battery (€69).

Leica V-Lux 20 gets leaked with (nearly) reasonable price tag originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Apr 2010 16:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Intel's experimental sensor analyzes appliance power consumption from single outlet

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/15/intels-experimental-sensor-analyzes-appliance-power-consumption/

It's pretty much set in silicon -- in the future, you will monitor your home power consumption, and perhaps even enjoy doing so. Futuristic touchscreen panels and free monitoring software abound, each designed to reward you with a warm, fuzzy Captain Planet feeling and a reduced energy bill when you finally turn off that blasted light. Thing is, unless you've got a home automation system, you won't know which switch to flip. Intel wants to change that with a new wireless sensor that can identify each individual appliance in your house by their unique electrical signal, just by plugging into a single outlet in your house. The reportedly low-cost sensor works by simply recognizing voltage drop patterns when devices are turned on and off, and doesn't require special appliances to function; Intel demonstrated it on a standard toaster, microwave and fridge in Beijing this week. Demonstrate your supreme demand for this "why didn't I think of that" idea by directing traffic to our source link -- you can jump to 20:10 to see the sensor in action.

Intel's experimental sensor analyzes appliance power consumption from single outlet originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Apr 2010 08:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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RipCode Can Stream Flash Videos to the iPad, No Problem [Ipad]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5517240/ripcode-can-stream-flash-videos-to-the-ipad-no-problem

RipCode Can Stream Flash Videos to the iPad, No Problem A company named RipCode has an interesting solution to Apple's blocking of Flash on the iPad. Simply transcode Flash video to play right in Safari, much like you can stream various video codecs over your home network.

According to RipCode, their TransAct Transcoder V6 requires no special clients or modifications to host sites. Rather, RipCode will transcode simple Flash content like Hulu clips in the cloud to an iPad-friendly codec, providing a transparent fix to the Flash-less iPad.

(You could play YouTube clips straight from YouTube, for instance, without ever knowing the difference.)

Of course, two things need to happen for RipCode to be successful: Individual siites needs to adopt the technology (even if it requires no special site recoding), and Apple needs to turn a blind eye to the loophole (lest they seal it shut through a firmware update).

In other words, RipCode could spark a minor revolution, or it could just smoke itself out. [RipCode via Notebooks]

Google's Insane Number of Servers Visualized [Google]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5517041/googles-insane-number-of-servers-visualized

You already just sort of know, logically and instinctively, that Google's got a ridiculous number of servers working for them. That doesn't make it any less mind-boggling when visualized. Get ready for a lot of scrolling.

Of course, not all servers are created equal—so "more" is a problematic word here. And I'm betting this wouldn't look quite so lopsided if big hitters like Microsoft, Yahoo, and Amazon were represented. Regardless, though, such a massive difference of scale is incredibly impressive, even if not entirely surprising. [Intac via Reddit]

Freeplay ZipCharge Battery Promises Hours of Juice From 60 Second Charge [Batteries]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5517136/freeplay-zipcharge-battery-promises-hours-of-juice-from-60-second-charge

It's a familiar situation: you're halfway out the door when you realize the gadget you just pocketed is utterly out of juice. The FreePlay ZipCharge battery can give you precious extra hours of life with a mere 60 second charge.

It's not quite as sleek as some other batteries, like the HyperMac Nano, but the FreePlay ZipCharge is for when you need juice and you need it fast.

The company claims that charging the battery for 60 seconds will give you 2 hours of iPod playback and 8 hours of standby on your phone, or 15 minutes of talk time. A 10 minute charge, they say, will give you 10 hours of talk time or 20 hours of playback on your MP3 player. The kit comes with 8 different adapters for charging all manner of gadgets from big name brands.

The £49.95 super battery, which charges 4 times faster than a lithium-ion counterparts, gets its power from "clever nano physics stuff that you need a very big forehead to understand," though the 850mAh ZipCharge can only give your device of choice one full charge, as opposed to the 1800mAh HyperMac Nano which can do so almost twice over.

We'll be reviewing the ZipCharge soon to see if it lives up to its claims. It's only available in the UK for now, with a US-compatible version coming in the next few months, but if you're a UK resident sick of dead (device) weight pulling down your pockets, you can order a ZipCharge now at CuteBitz.

clever nano physics stuff that you need a very big forehead to understand.

GPNC Korea announces the first me-too Android HDTV

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/14/gpnc-korea-announces-the-first-me-too-android-hdtv/

Anyone opposed to another Android packing TV announced by a foreign manufacturer of questionable validity? We figured you weren't, so say hello to GPNC Korea's television running Android 1.5 on a 833 Mhz ARM Cortex A8 chip. While it's claiming NTSC and ATSC support among other broadcast standards, the USA doesn't appear to have made the cut for availability, with 10 different countries including Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Netherlands, Poland, Australia and Dubai. Practically identical to People of Lava's effort, it is slated for 42-, 47- and 55-inch LED-backlit versions with no real price or date, and even this promo pic looks very familiar. GPNC managed to keep the screen clear of error messages this time, but its website is flagged by Google as "dangerous" so we'd probably wait for something more official before making any attempts to preorder. At this rate, these TVs will be as ubiquitous as Android/ARM tablets before long -- let's hope Sony and Intel spill the details on those Google TV plans sooner rather than later.

GPNC Korea announces the first me-too Android HDTV originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Apr 2010 18:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony UK's 3DTV launch includes a few free games to get early adopters started

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/14/sony-uks-3dtv-launch-includes-a-few-free-games-to-get-early-ado/

As the GMT turns, Sony's divisions are revealing their 3D plans for the rest of the year and the latest is its UK branch. The HX803 3D-ready model is first out the door in June, with LX903 and HX903 models arriving shortly afterward packing specs identical to their US cousins, with the addition of Freeview HD tuners and PAL-friendly refresh rates. Since the HX803 doesn't come with any of those 100-hour battery rated glasses , viewers getting ready for the 2010 World Cup will likely opt for one of the 3D accessory packs with two pairs included plus the necessary IR emitter. No word on prices for any of these yet, but PS3 owners who buy a new TV within the launch "limited period" can expect to vouchers with download codes for 3D-upgraded versions of four PSN games: PAIN (3 episodes), WipEout HD (full game), Motorstorm Pacific Rift (single level demo) and Super Stardust HD (full game). Movie heads get Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Deep Sea Blu-ray 3D discs bundled with unspecified "selected products," with the former going on sale by itself June 14. Check out all the details in the press release below or just refresh the Sony UK store until that preorder button shows up and we find out just how many pounds are needed to bring one home.

Continue reading Sony UK's 3DTV launch includes a few free games to get early adopters started

Sony UK's 3DTV launch includes a few free games to get early adopters started originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Apr 2010 20:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung NB30 netbook gains touchscreen, inflated price tag

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/14/samsung-nb30-netbook-gains-touchscreen-inflated-price-tag/

A touchscreen on a netbook may not be everyone's idea of a good time, but it looks like Samsung thinks there's a sizable enough market for them, as it's now introduced a touchscreen-equipped counterpart to its NB30 netbook. Dubbed the NB30 Touch, this version packs a 10.1-inch 1,024 x 600 touchscreen (matte, no less) and remains otherwise identical to the standard NB30, including an Atom N450 processor, 1GB of RAM, a 160GB or 250GB hard drive, and Windows 7 Starter Edition for an OS. Of course, the one other big change is the price, which comes in at €399 (or about $545) for the NB30 Touch, compared to just €279 (or $380) for the non-touchscreen version.

Samsung NB30 netbook gains touchscreen, inflated price tag originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Apr 2010 22:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Intel says Light Peak coming next year, can and will coexist with USB 3.0

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/15/intel-says-light-peak-coming-next-year-can-and-will-coexist-wit/

How do you sell a generation of hardware manufacturers on yet another standard? If you're Intel, you tell them that it'll transfer files at 10Gbps and is compatible with every major protocol that came before... and if that doesn't work, you simply fail to give your competitor hardware support. But PC World reports that while Intel is still dragging its feet regarding USB 3.0, it's planning to have Light Peak fiber optic devices in the market next year. Intel insists Light Peak isn't meant to replace USB, in so much as it can use the same ports and protocols (photographic evidence above), but at the same time it's not shying away from the possibility of obliterating its copper competition with beams of light. "In some sense we'd... like to build the last cable you'll ever need," said Intel's Kevin Kahn. Now, we're not going to rag on Light Peak, because we honestly love the idea of consolidated fiber optic connectivity. We just want to know now whether we should bother locking ourselves into a USB 3.0 ecosystem if better things are just around the corner.

Intel says Light Peak coming next year, can and will coexist with USB 3.0 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Apr 2010 01:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wednesday, April 14, 2010

The Secret Behind Apple's New MacBook Graphics [Apple]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5516517/the-secret-behind-apples-new-macbook-graphics

The Secret Behind Apple's New MacBook Graphics The new Intel Core i5/i7 MacBooks come with "automatic graphics switching technology" to instantly toggle between Intel's onboard graphics and more powerful Nvidia hardware. Sound familiar? Well, weirdly, it's not Nvidia's Optimus switcher—it's something entirely new.

Nvidia's Optimus, which allowed for basically what Apple is talking about here, was—and apparently, is—a Windows-only solution. And even on Windows, it has some irritating limitations, particularly a requirement that apps be registered with Nvidia in order to initiate a switch from one graphics unit to another. (A game, for example, wouldn't kick over to the more powerful accelerator unless it contained explicit instructions to do so.) With Optimus off the table, Apple's remaining choice is to revert to a graphics switching system like the one currently in MacBooks with the Nvidia 9400m discrete graphics processor, which requires a manual switch, and a log out/long in routine. It's awkward! So they developed something new. Ars Technica's got the rundown:

Apple's approach in the new 15" and 17" MacBook Pros differs from Optimus in two key ways. The first is that the switching is all handled automatically by Mac OS X without any user intervention (though there is actually a System Preference to deactivate it, if you choose). Apps that use advanced graphics frameworks such as OpenGL, Core Graphics, Quartz Composer or others will cause the OS to trigger the discrete GPU. So, when you are reading or writing Mail, or editing an Excel spreadsheet, Mac OS X will simply use the integrated Intel HD graphics. If you fire up Aperture or Photoshop, Mac OS X kicks on the NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M.

So the hardware switching occurs automatically, based on reasonable parameters (Is the laptop running a game? Using Photoshop? Etc.) The second key difference is that New MacBooks' onboard graphics are powered down when the more powerful accelerator is in use, which saves a wee bit of power, as opposed to leaving both graphics cards running. Apple told us that the lower 8-hour figure they cite for battery life is with the discrete graphics on. What's curious is that while there's an option to force the 330M to stay on, there isn't one to keep it off to stick with the integrated Intel graphics, eking out those last few drops of battery life.

Also, unlike some other graphics switching stuff, which power up when the notebook's plugged in, Apple's is solely based on the programs that are running—so you can't tell it to kick on the more powerful card whenever it's plugged in. Instead, the 330M turns on any time you plug in an external display, since the assumption is that you're powered up.

It's a slight evolution of the graphics switching concept, and an inevitable one. The final evolution, of course, will be a single graphics accelerator that doesn't suck too much power when it's not working hard, negating the need for a laptop to have two sets of graphics hardware, but hey! One step at a time. [Ars Technica]

Toshiba Regza Z1 LED TVs Can Record Over LAN [TVs]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5516901/toshiba-regza-z1-led-tvs-can-record-over-lan

Toshiba introduced a whole mess of new Regza LED LCD TVs today over in Japan, but it's the Z1 series that grabbed our attention: 37- to 55-inch edge-lit LEDs with USB and LAN recording functionality. Gimme!

A TV that can record over LAN isn't something that we've seen before, and would be a neat little home entertainment feature. As part of today's announcement. Toshiba's also rolling out its first Regza-branded HDD (for said recording, and sold separately). The Z1 series also features video-on-demand support, 10Wx2 speakers, Regza Link, 4HDMI interfaces and an SD/SDHC slot. The pricing will range from $2700 to $5200 when they're released this summer in Japan. The rest of us will just have to be patient. [Toshiba (translated) via CrunchGear]

DXG's 3D View sacrifices HD, but makes 3D video recording pocketable

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/14/dxgs-3d-view-sacrifices-hd-but-makes-3d-video-recording-pocket/

It's not a trade that we'd ever willingly make -- dropping to standard definition for the sake of some 3D shenanigans, but DXG is offering you the choice anyway. The budget cam maker has just announced its 3D View stereoscopic shooter, which interestingly comes with a separate 7-inch LCD display (800 x 480 resolution) for playing back your recorded footage without requiring glasses -- thanks to some parallax barrier magic. We might be tempted to spend the $400 this package costs just to get a preview of what the Nintendo 3DS -- based on the same spectacle-free technique -- might look like, but retail availability isn't expected until June, which is just that tiny bit too far out for our limited attention span.

DXG's 3D View sacrifices HD, but makes 3D video recording pocketable originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Apr 2010 11:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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TVLogic introduces a pair of 15-inch OLED monitors, one does 3D

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/04/14/tvlogic-introduces-a-pair-of-15-inch-oled-monitors-one-does-eve/

TVLogic introduces a pair of 15-inch OLED monitors

Hot on the heels of Sony dazzling us with its 7.4-inch, $3,850 PVM-740 monitor comes TVLogic, introducing not one but two professional OLED sets that are each twice as large -- and probably at least twice as expensive. Both are 1,366 x 768 with a 100,000:1 contrast ratio, apparently based on LG's 15-inch panel, but only the TDM-150W is 3D-capable. This makes it seemingly the first 3D OLED display on the market, and so it's poised to intrigue those looking to shoot the next Avatar. Again, no mention of pricing, but they won't be cheap -- the company's 17-inch LCD monitors already clock in at $3,500, and adding that O on the front should result in a big premium.

TVLogic introduces a pair of 15-inch OLED monitors, one does 3D originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 14 Apr 2010 08:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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