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Sunday, January 09, 2011

Intel Oasis: firetrucks, dragons, and trains hands-on

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/08/intel-oasis-firetrucks-dragons-and-trains-hands-on/

We'd seen Intel Lab's Oasis (Object-Aware Situated Interactive System) project a while back, and sure, while what it's showing off is the same, we love to get up close and personal. Using a Kinect-style camera, the system is able to recognize 3D objects on a surface and then project some nifty graphics to add interactivity. Placing the dragon near the house or train station sees them light on fire, drop a firetruck in and it puts out the fire, add a train then draw a track in front of it by dragging your finger, you get the idea. Intel Labs isn't bringing any of this to market -- at least not yet -- but we're enthused with what we see and look forward to what the folks with the crayons can dream up. Have a peek at the vid and gallery if trains, burning Lego people, fire breathing dragons, and firetrucks are your thing.

Gallery: Intel Oasis: firetrucks, dragons, and trains hands-on

Myriam Joire contributed to this article.

Continue reading Intel Oasis: firetrucks, dragons, and trains hands-on

Intel Oasis: firetrucks, dragons, and trains hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 08 Jan 2011 21:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Marvell-powered OLPC XO 1.75 only draws two watts of power, finally charges via hand crank

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/09/marvell-powered-olpc-xo-1-75-only-draws-2-watts-of-power-finall/

Here's something you may not know -- OLPC's XO hand crank has never really worked to recharge the kiddie laptop. Why? Well, the previous versions were powered by x86 AMD and VIA processors that pulled too much power. However, things are different now with the XO 1.75 since OLPC has baked in Marvell's 1GHz Armada chip. As a result, the entire system now only pulls two watts of power, and thus the battery can be given some more juice with a few turns of that neon green crank. It's not meant to recharge the laptop completely -- actually, according to OLPC's CTO Edward McNierney, it would take about two hours of cranking to top off the system. Other than the fresh ARM CPU, the new model is identical to the previous versions -- it has an outdoor readable PixelQi display, Flash storage, a rubber keyboard, and runs Sugar OS. On a different note, OLPC is hard at work on the tablet version of the XO and, according to McNierney, the only hold up is finding a more durable, plastic display -- converting the current system into a tablet should be fairly easy since all the guts are in the display part already. The tablet is still on track for 2012, while the XO 1.75 should be with the hand-cranking children by the end of the summer.

Gallery: OLPC XO 1.75 hands-on

Marvell-powered OLPC XO 1.75 only draws two watts of power, finally charges via hand crank originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 09 Jan 2011 00:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung enters new Galaxy with BabyView range of infant video monitors

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/09/samsung-enters-new-galaxy-with-babyview-range-of-infant-video-mo/

Talk about broadening one's horizon. Samsung took a break from pushing its connected HDTVs and Galaxy S line here at CES to introduce something just a wee bit different: a baby video monitor line. Yeah, seriously. The BabyView range is said to be engineered to fit into the wild and crazy lifestyles of "tech-savvy parents," enabling proud mamas and papas to share audio and video of their youngster with friends and family via Twitter and Facebook. How so? It'll log video onto a built-in SD card, which can then be offloaded and transferred -- not exactly the most seamless process in the world, but hey, there it is. The whole line will offer night vision, two-way talking, sound / vibration alerts, a remote nightlight, SD card slot and networked support for up to four cameras. Hop on past the break if you need specifics, and look for the whole lot to land this spring for between $199 and $299.

Continue reading Samsung enters new Galaxy with BabyView range of infant video monitors

Samsung enters new Galaxy with BabyView range of infant video monitors originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 09 Jan 2011 06:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Acer Iconia Windows 7 tablet hands-on

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/09/acer-iconia-windows-7-tablet-hands-on/

Acer has made something very clear here at CES -- it's going to enter the tablet market much like it entered the netbook one, with lots of options. In addition to the Android tablets (it's got 4.8-, 7-, and 10-inch versions) and the dual-screen Iconia, the company will be bringing its 10.1-inch Windows 7 tablet to the US market for about $550 in the coming months. Just as we had heard, the tablet will use AMD's Fusion platform and will come with a keyboard dock. We got a chance to check out the whole package and the dock / tablet fit together in a unique fashion -- the tablet and keyboard are surrounded by magnetic borders that latch onto each other. When you pull 'em apart you can attach the tablet via USB to the keyboard or just use it on its own. The whole attachment mechanism felt very flimsy on the two units we saw at the show and the entire thing felt very top heavy when docked. The chiclet keyboard is different from Acer's typical variety, but we really like the addition of the pointing stick in the center for navigating Windows 7.

We didn't get to spend too much with the working unit but we were able to fire up Engadget in Internet Explorer 9 and scroll down the page rather smoothly. It's unclear whether Acer will be using a skin on top of Windows 7 since we saw it on display in Microsoft's booth and all of those tablets were running stock Windows. It should be rather interesting to see how AMD's Fusion platform performs in a tablet and how it impacts the battery life, but until we can bring you a full review we leave you with the gallery below.

Gallery: Acer Iconia Windows 7 tablet

Acer Iconia Windows 7 tablet hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 09 Jan 2011 12:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Obama administration moves forward with unique internet ID for all Americans, Commerce Department to head system up

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/01/09/obama-administration-moves-forward-with-unique-internet-id-for-a/

President Obama has signaled that he will give the United States Commerce Department the authority over a proposed national cybersecurity measure that would involve giving each American a unique online identity. Other candidates mentioned previously to head up the new system have included the NSA and the Department of Homeland Security, but the announcement that the Commerce Department will take the job should please groups that have raised concerns over security agencies doing double duty in police and intelligence work. So anyway, what about this unique ID we'll all be getting? Well, though details are still pretty scant, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, speaking at an event at the Stanford Institute, stressed that the new system would not be akin to a national ID card, or a government controlled system, but that it would enhance security and reduce the need for people to memorize dozens of passwords online. Sorry, Locke, sounds like a national ID system to us. Anyway, the Obama administration is currently drafting what it's dubbed the National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace, which is expected at the Department of Commerce in a few months. We'll keep you posted if anything terrifying or cool happens.

Obama administration moves forward with unique internet ID for all Americans, Commerce Department to head system up originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 09 Jan 2011 13:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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