Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Thursday, June 03, 2010

DoubleTwist adds some polish to Android with new media player app

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/03/android-upgrades-itself-with-doubletwist-media-player-app/

Peruse the Android Market this morrow and you might come across a hot new addition from the folks at DoubleTwist. That's right, the iTunes-aping desktop sync manager has gone native on the Android platform and early feedback on its media player implementation has been positive. The free music and video player app does that whole seamless thing quite well, apparently, interfacing directly with your Windows or Mac computerino and porting over relevant playlists, ratings and media. A widget and other features are coming soon, though you'll likely have to pay for them, given the "free for a limited time" note on the download page. Better get it while the gettin's good.

DoubleTwist adds some polish to Android with new media player app originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Jun 2010 05:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Zoom H1 Handy Recorder captures 24-bit, 96 kHz stereo for $99

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/03/zoom-h1-handy-recorder-captures-24-bit-96-khz-stereo-for-99/

Samson's attempt to break into the Flip-dominated portable video space didn't hit all the right notes, so the company's gone back to basics with a new handheld audio recorder -- as delightfully basic as it could go. The Zoom H1 doesn't have fancy 4-channel recording schemes or a triple-capsule mic; it's merely a twin X/Y stereo recorder that does 24-bit / 96-kHz audio at an unheard-of $99 price. With a reported 10 hours of battery life on a single AA cell, up to 32GB of removable microSDHC storage and loads of physical controls, it already feels like an obvious choice for students, journalists and the like, but of course all that's just on paper -- we'll be waiting till its July 30th debut to hear if the unit performs as positively in real life. PR after the break.

Continue reading Zoom H1 Handy Recorder captures 24-bit, 96 kHz stereo for $99

Zoom H1 Handy Recorder captures 24-bit, 96 kHz stereo for $99 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Jun 2010 06:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HomePipe streams your iTunes to Android, other files too

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/03/homepipe-streams-your-itunes-to-android-other-files-too/

Need another way to get your tunes (whether they be i-prefixed or not) onto your Android celly? HomePipe is the latest, a service offering easy access to files on your home computer via your cellphone. It's been available for Apple devices for some time now, but a recently added Android app extends the reach of its plumbing system. That mobile app works in conjunction with a desktop version acting as a server, pushing photos, documents, and lots of types of media -- including iTunes. HomePipe claims this makes it the "first to ever stream home iTunes music to Google's Android," but having played with Michael Robertson's MP3tunes service, which uploads your music library to the cloud and allows access from Android handsets, we're happy to assure the service that it is at least the second. Still, it sounds mighty handy, and for the bargain price of free it's definitely worth a shot. Video demo and full press release is just below.

Continue reading HomePipe streams your iTunes to Android, other files too

HomePipe streams your iTunes to Android, other files too originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Jun 2010 07:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wednesday, June 02, 2010

Motorola Droid Shadow / Xtreme pictured again, powered by Ninjablur?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/02/motorola-droid-shadow-xtreme-pictured-again-powered-by-ninjab/

Because we can't seem to get enough Motorola Droid Shadow / Xtreme teasers in our lives, here's a few more with which to tide you over. First on the docket is a pair of pics from Droid Life, with the screen-saving film intact (and a still-visible Verizon logo underneath) and a cleaner side shot of its bulbous derriere. If that wasn't enough, the clue-dropper wnrussell of HowardForums -- who gave us the vast majority of the previous leaks -- is back showing off a 1500mAh battery and claiming a name for that monochrome Motoblur-esque skin we saw earlier. In his words, "Ninja Blur is Blur running without the user knowing. For those who don't like Blur." Translation: it's an Android skin that does very little but make aesthetic differentiators and probably slows down the processing speed a bit. Any chance the ninja can go into hiding in lieu of a vanilla robot experience?

Motorola Droid Shadow / Xtreme pictured again, powered by Ninjablur? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 15:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Android Authority | source

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Kno dual-screen tablet appears at D8, we go hands-on

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/02/kno-dual-screen-tablet-appears-at-d8-we-go-hands-on/

Kno promised to launch a double-screened Linux-based e-reader designed for students at D8, and the undercover startup didn't disappoint -- believe us when we say it came out in a big way. That's big as in freaking big: the Kno reader features dual 14.1-inch capacitive IPS displays (1440 x 900 each), weighs 5.5 pounds, and offers six to eight hours of battery life, all in a package that's so comically large we thought it was a joke when we first saw the press shots. Kno says it'll offer both pen and touch support, and it'll come with a stylus out of the box. Under the hood, it's running a Tegra 2 chip with 16GB of storage, and the entire experience is essentially a WebKit instance. Yes, it's sort of like the Courier, but larger -- much, much larger.

We had a chance to go hands-on with the device as well as speak to some members of the team developing the Kno, and while it's clear that there are major bumps in the UI and user experience, it seems like the company is aware of them. What we saw today was clearly unfinished, with a lot of laggy, stuttery behavior in the interface, a crash or two, and some very inaccurate finger tracking, but Kno says its hard at work on eradicating those issues. Even with the UI fixes, it's a hard sell at "under $1000," but Kno is putting together partnerships with publishers to make that a little easier to swallow, as they say ultimately it will be less expensive than buying regular old text books. It's an audacious idea, for sure... and we're still completely confused by one of the company's press pics featuring a bunch of dudes running around in their underwear, but we digress. Check out some shots from the demo, PR pics, and our hands-on with the device below.

Gallery: Kno hands-on

Gallery: Kno eyes-on at D8

Gallery: Kno press pics

Continue reading Kno dual-screen tablet appears at D8, we go hands-on

Kno dual-screen tablet appears at D8, we go hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 16:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ASUS Xonar Xense Audio Bundle reviewed, deemed very good (and very pricey)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/02/asus-xonar-xense-audio-bundle-reviewed-deemed-very-good-and-ve/

ASUS has made quite a few admirers with its Xonar high-end sound card line over the years, and it looks like the new Xonar Xense Audio Bundle is another feather in its cap. Essentially a Xonar Xense card with a pair of Sennheiser PC 350 headphones thrown in for good measure, this bad boy features two 1/4-inch jacks (one for headphones, one for a mic), coax S/PDIF output, and 3.1 surround sound. TweakTown is in love with the thing, calling it "a best of both worlds realization that has been the culmination of many months and over a thousand different combinations of equipment" with "real world performance rivaling a thousand dollar hi-fi system." But not so fast! Bit-tech, was a little more reserved, saying that even if the specs and sound quality are "enough to satisfy the keenest hi-fi enthusiast," the heaphones aren't particularly impressive -- and certainly not enough to justify spending £275 (that's like $400!) while the Essence STX can be found for half that. But that's not the whole story, not by a long-shot: check out the source links for all the essential details.

ASUS Xonar Xense Audio Bundle reviewed, deemed very good (and very pricey) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 15:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sonic acquires DivX to expand online movie delivery options, share of Kazaa downloads

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/02/sonic-acquires-divx-to-expand-online-movie-delivery-options-sha/

Just because Sonic shifted its CinemaNow name into the care of Best Buy, don't think it's taking a break from working digital movie delivery options into every device it can. To that end it's purchased DivX, formerly a name you knew only as an illegal download enabling codec, but is now a legitimate enterprise that has agreements with major movie studios and more than 150 consumer electronics manufacturers. The cash and stock transaction should cause the two to get together and make the whole world believe them, with RoxioNow ending up in the millions of devices currently ready for DivX while increasing possibilities for DivX encoded movies going on sale in the United States. The DivX TV internet video frontend for set-top boxes and connected televisions should also get a boost from the deal, we'll see how it competes with widgets, TiVo and Google. There's a DivX TV trailer after the break for those interested plus the press release while related financial details, projections and promises can be found in the linked PDF.

Continue reading Sonic acquires DivX to expand online movie delivery options, share of Kazaa downloads

Sonic acquires DivX to expand online movie delivery options, share of Kazaa downloads originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 11:04:00 EDT. Please! see our terms for use of feeds.

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Microsoft Windows Embedded Compact 7 explained, trial download now available

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/02/microsoft-windows-embedded-compact-7-explained-trial-download-n/

Microsoft certainly made a bit of splash at Computex with the introduction of Windows Embedded Compact 7, but it's not necessarily the easiest thing to wrap your head around right off the bat (or say three times fast). Thankfully, Microsoft has now come through with a site that explains the new OS in detail (complete with videos), and a trial download that will let you get a sneak peek at it yourself. The short of it is that the OS is aimed at devices that don't need or aren't well suited to the full-fledged Windows 7 (or Windows Phone 7, for that matter) -- like the Eee Pad pictured above -- which, incidentally, seems to address one of the major concerns from folks like NVIDIA CEO Jen-Hsun Huang. That added simplicity also means that the OS won't run regular Windows applications -- it is a successor to Windows CE, after all -- but Microsoft does at least promise a "streamlined developer experience." That's not to say the OS isn't capable in its own right, though -- it boasts a full-range of media playback capabilities (including MPEG-4 and HD video), built-in support for Silverlight for Windows Embedded and Flash 10.1, a customized version of Internet Explorer with full multitouch, support for Open GL ES 2.0, support for the latest ARM v7 architectures and, of course, "seamless" integration with Windows 7, to name just a few highlights. Still hungry for more details? Then hit up the source link for the complete rundown and Microsoft's ! videos, and for all the information you need to download the preview release.

Microsoft Windows Embedded Compact 7 explained, trial download now available originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 11:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AMD Demos Hybrid CPU/GPU Fusion Chips For 2010 Release [Amd]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5553296/amd-demos-hybrid-cpugpu-fusion-chips-for-2010-release

AMD Demos Hybrid CPU/GPU Fusion Chips For 2010 Release AMD has been trying to crack their Fusion technology—combining a CPU and a powerful GPU in the same chip—for years now. Today, they showed off working Fusion chips in a demo that got Intel and Nvidia's attention:

If the Fusion APU (advanced processing unit) amounts to everything that was promised, it'll be an extremely appealing alternative for OEMs. And it seems as though they're at least on the right track:

Watching the demo above—if you've got a spare hour—you might not be totally blown away by the performance. But keep in mind that they're still a few months off from being finished with these babies, and that they're intended to go into ultraportables, at least initially.

AMD Demonstrates World's First Fusion APU at Computex 2010

AMD Fusion technology preview offers glimpse into a sleeker, cooler, more vivid future for the computing experience; CPU and GPU on a single chip

AMD extends leadership with new desktops and notebooks powered by VISION technology

TAIPEI, Taiwan -6/2/2010

At Computex 2010, AMD (NYSE: AMD) today delivered the first public demonstration of an AMD Fusion processor, initiating the accelerated processing era. The AMD Fusion™ Family of Accelerated Processing Units (APUs) represents a significant shift in processor architecture and capabilities, combining high-performance serial computing and parallel graphics processing cores onto a single die to improve visual and data-intensive tasks that are pervasive in today's computing environments. A video of today's demonstration can be found here.

Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, AMD Products Group, provided an APU technology demonstration during a press conference today. This demonstration provided a sneak peek into the upcoming seismic shift in the computing industry: power-efficient processors that combine CPU, GPU, video processing and other accelerator capabilities in a single-die design to efficiently power the most popular and demanding consumer experiences, from HD video applications to media-rich Internet experiences to DirectX® 11 games. The AMD Fusion Family of APUs represent a distinctly powerful processing approach to the evolving digital consumer landscape, where more than 28 billion videos are watched each month online and a thousand pictures are uploaded to social networking sites every second.

"Hundreds of millions of us now create, interact with, and share intensely visual digital content," said Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager, AMD Product Group. "This explosion in multimedia requires new applications and new ways to manage and manipulate data. Low resolution video needs to be up-scaled for larger screens, HD video must be shrunk for smart phones, and home movies need to be stabilized and cleaned up for more enjoyable viewing. When AMD formally launches the AMD Fusion family of APUs, scheduled for the first half of in 2011, we expect the PC experience to evolve dramatically."
Software Development

Consumers are hungry for applications that run faster and make digital media easier to enjoy, and a new wave of software innovation is taking place as AMD software partners take advantage of AMD APUs and GPUs to enable better experiences across an ever-widening set of content. Microsoft joined AMD on stage at Computex and discussed how AMD Fusion APUs can enable improvements to applications such as Microsoft® Windows® 7 and DirectX® 11, and how CPU and GPU collaborative computing can enable superior PC experiences.

"While visual computing has made incredible strides in recent years, we believe that the AMD Fusion family of APUs combined with Windows® 7 and DirectX® 11 will fundamentally change how applications are developed and used," said Steven Guggenheimer, corporate vice president, original equipment manufacturer division, Microsoft. "Applications such as Internet browsing, watching HD video, PowerPoint and more can enable more immersive, visually rich, and intuitive experiences for consumers worldwide."

In addition to Microsoft DirectX with DirectCompute, software developers can also build enhanced applications using OpenCL via the ATI Stream SDK, which further underscores AMD's commitment to industry standards.

[VentureBeat]

VIA reveals 1.6GHz Nano DC processor at Computex, shows it handling 720p (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/02/via-reveals-1-6ghz-nano-dc-processor-at-computex-shows-it-handl/

Guess who showed up at Computex with an all-new dual-core processor? Nah, we're not referring to AMD or Intel (though they certainly did) -- we're talking about VIA. The company quietly (re)introduced a dual-core desktop chip here in Taipei, with the codename Nano DC being used to describe it for the time being. The device utilized a VN1000 Digital Media Chipset and fully supported dual-channel DDR3 memory. A Chrome 520 GPU was helping to push out a 720p movie trailer on the demo system, and the innate compatibility with HDMI and DisplayPort should keep home cinema owners happy. The 65nm chip was clocked at 1.6GHz, and we were told that it wouldn't be venturing into mobile machines in its current form. 'Course, this device has been a bit of unicorn for the past couple of years, but company representatives seemed certain that it would finally be ready to ship (using a different process technology, mind you) in around six months. We shall see. Live action video is just past the break.

Gallery: VIA 1.6GHz Nano DC showcased at Computex 2010

Continue reading VIA reveals 1.6GHz Nano DC processor at Computex, shows it handling 720p (video)

VIA reveals 1.6GHz Nano DC processor at Computex, shows it handling 720p (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 09:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Drag images into messages

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/OfficialGmailBlog/~3/e54EpBeY-vU/drag-images-into-messages.html

Posted by Michael Davidson, Software Engineer

Recently, we launched a feature that allows you to drag an attachment from your computer right onto Gmail.

I've always been a fan of the inserting image lab, so I naturally wondered if it would be possible to combine the two.

Today we're launching a feature that allows you to drag images from your computer into a message. You don't have to have the insert image lab enabled for it to work. Just drag the image in, resize it if you want, and send.

Currently, this feature only works in Google Chrome, but will be coming soon to other browsers.

Brilliant counterfeit protection

Source: http://www.physorg.com/news194683523.html

(PhysOrg.com) -- Counterfeit products create losses in the billions each year. Beside the economic damages, all too often additional risks arise from the poor materials and shoddy workmanship of "knock-off artists". Yet with the aid of fluorescing dyes, materials can be individually tagged and identified with certainty.

Google: Chrome OS launching this fall

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/02/google-chrome-os-launching-this-fall/

Originally announced with a planned second half of 2010 launch, today Google has narrowed the launch of its Chrome OS to fall. This, according to Sundar Pichai, Google VP of product management speaking at Computex. By our calculation that is sometime between 22 September and 21 December in the northern hemisphere if you want to take the man literally... and you do, don't you. Wonder if we'll see a Chrome OS tablet launch at the same time?

Google: Chrome OS launching this fall originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 06:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NVIDIA shows 16 new Optimus laptops at Computex, teases 460M GPU

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/02/nvidia-shows-16-new-optimus-laptops-at-computex-teases-460m-gpu/

Just in case you were wondering where and when you might get a taste of the Optimus elixir, NVIDIA has handed us a detailed list of Computex debutants that will be taking the graphics switching technology with them to retail. A total of sixteen new Optimus machines are on show in Taipei, and although ASUS is still the biggest purveyor (with six SKUs, not counting previously announced products), Lenovo and Acer have also jumped on board, with the IdeaPad Y460 and a pair of Packard Bell EasyNotes, respectively. Notably, the FX700 above from MSI is marked as using an "unannounced" next-gen graphics chip, which we suspect might be the 460M, a mobile GPU that NVIDIA is showing, but not talking about yet. Guess that'll be slotting in just below the recently unveiled GTX 480M. We're working on grabbing a picture of that chip for you, but for now, check out the Optimus-ized machines in the gallery below and the full list after the break.

Gallery: NVIDIA Optimus at Computex 2010