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Monday, November 28, 2011

drag2share: Hack your monitor and 3D glasses, ensure ultimate privacy

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/26/hack-your-monitor-and-3d-glasses-ensure-ultimate-privacy/

You've always wanted a bit more privacy with your monitor (porn jokes notwithstanding) and if you're willing to tear apart a spare LCD monitor and a pair of 3D theater glasses (thanks, Dreamworks and Pixar!), you'll get it. In lieu of a thicker tinfoil hat, Instructables' dimovi suggests removing the LCD's frame, cutting out its polarized film with a utility knife before removing the screen's film adhesive with a combination of cleaner and paint thinner and reassembling the monitor. Once complete, grab the glasses, cut out the lenses and combine them with the plastic film removed from the monitor before inserting them back into their frames. The result is an LCD monitor that displays a white screen to anyone not wearing the customized glasses, your actions being confidential, no matter what they might happen to be. Check the how-to video embedded after the break, or hit the source link for full instructions

Continue reading Hack your monitor and 3D glasses, ensure ultimate privacy

Hack your monitor and 3D glasses, ensure ultimate privacy originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 26 Nov 2011 16:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Hack A Day | source

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drag2share: Panasonic plans to go forth with Android to all of Europe this spring, North America is a definite maybe

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/26/panasonic-plans-to-go-forth-with-android-to-all-of-europe-this-s/

Have you been hoping to experience a Panasonic boom up close and personal, but found yourself in the wrong locale? The Japanese electronics giant wants to change all of that by expanding its Android lineup to Europe and North America, according to Nikkei. The company's said to be in talks with a "major telecommunications firm" in Europe to bring several devices to the continent as early as this spring, and is aspiring to eventually make it to North America and other Asian countries. This lines up with last week's rumors that it was seeking out a PR agency to help spread the news when the time's right. Might we expect Panasonic to make a mobile splash at CES or MWC in a major way? It's going to be exhibiting at both, so we'd say there's a pretty good chance.

Panasonic plans to go forth with Android to all of Europe this spring, North America is a definite maybe originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 26 Nov 2011 19:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Reuters, Unwired View | source

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drag2share: Droid 4 official pics and RAZR-with-keyboard confirming specs leak out

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/27/droid-4-official-pics-and-razr-with-keyboard-confirming-specs-le/

QWERTY-loving fans of the Droid series probably won't have to feel left out of the LTE party for much longer, as Droid-Life has uncovered some official-looking pictures and even a comparison chart of the upcoming Droid 4 and the rest of the line. The specs reveal it shares almost everything with the Droid RAZR, with the exceptions being a slightly smaller 4-inch qHD screen, ditching the Kevlar backing, and tossing in the aforementioned 5-row "edge-lit" keyboard. Hit the source link to view a more pics and the chart, which explains how we've gone from the Droid 2 last year, to the Droid 3 just a few months ago, to the Droid 4 / RAZR combo attack Motorola and Verizon could be unleashing as soon as December 8th, assuming the rumors hold true.

Update: That keyboard too small for you? No worries, additional leaks reveal the Droid 4 will play nice with Motorola's Lapdock 100, Lapdock 500 Pro and a wireless keyboard packing a trackpad. Hit the second source link below for a peek at the slab's compatible accessories.

Droid 4 official pics and RAZR-with-keyboard confirming specs leak out originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 Nov 2011 11:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wednesday, November 23, 2011

drag2share: The Best Virtualization App for Windows [Windows App Directory]

Source: http://lifehacker.com/5861847/the-best-virtualization-app-for-windows

The Best Virtualization App for Windows Windows users have a few choices when it comes to virtualizing another OS, but our personal favorite is VirtualBox, for its solid feature set and $0 price tag.

The Best Virtualization App for Windows

VirtualBox

Platform: Windows, Mac, Linux
Price: Free
Download Page

The Best Virtualization App for Windows

Easy installation of popular operating systems like Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X
Run multiple virtualized environments simultaneously
Run a guest OS in "seamless mode", which puts the applications on your main Windows desktop
Fast performance all around
Take snapshots of your virtual machines, so you can start it up from any configuration or point in its life
Clipboad sharing
3D Virtualization
Open virtual disk images made in VirtualBox, VMWare, or Microsoft Virtual PC

The Best Virtualization App for Windows

VirtualBox makes running other operating systems—whether it be Linux, other versions of Windows, or even Mac OS X—super easy on your home computer. Just insert your install disc (or point it to an ISO on your computer), and you can install it in a virtual machine with as much or as little RAM, CPU, and hard drive space as you want. It integrates with your mouse pointer, so you don't even have to click on the window to start using it, and lets you create "snapshots" of your machines so, like restore points, you can just boot it up from any point in its history and use it from that point. You can even share your clipboard back and forth between your virtualized and host OS.

The Best Virtualization App for Windows

VirtualBox can seem a little intimidating to most beginners, but so can any virtualization program. In addition, its "seamless" mode, while cool, isn't done quite as well as VMWare's—it brings the entire toolbar of your guest OS with it, and moving the Windows around isn't the smoothest experience. But, overall, it's still very feature-filled, and with a great documentation and a ton of users, it isn't difficult to find answers to any of your questions.

The Best Virtualization App for Windows

VMWare Player is VirtualBox's main competition, providing a similar feature set from a well-known company in virtualization. The main differences are that VMWare's equivalent of seamless mode is a bit better integrated and it has drag-and-drop file sharing, though it doesn't have a snapshot feature—which is, arguably, a more useful feature, which is why VirtualBox ekes it out in this App Directory. VMWare is also feels a bit more sluggish, though like VirtualBox, it is free, so it's worth trying both. If you want the whole package, VMWare Workstation has everything VMWare Player has and more (like snapshots), but it'll set you back 200 clams, so it probably isn't worth it for most home users.

If you're only virtualizing Windows, you also have the choice of using Windows Virtual PC. For the most part, it isn't quite as good as the above options, but it does come with a free Windows XP license and good integration with Windows Explorer and XP mode, for running those old programs that Windows 7 doesn't play nicely with. It requires Windows 7 Professional or above to use, though, so while it's "free", you'll still be paying for it.

Do you have a favorite virtualization app other than the above, or just have another reason you love these programs? Let us know in the comments.

Lifehacker's App Directory is a new and growing directory of recommendations for the best applications and tools in a number of given categories.

You can contact Whitson Gordon, the author of this post, at whitson@lifehacker.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.

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drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: Blip.me Records Voice Notes on Any Phone for Easy Sharing and Playback Later [Downloads]

Source: http://lifehacker.com/5862154/blipme-records-voice-notes-on-any-phone-for-easy-sharing-and-playback-later

Blip.me Records Voice Notes on Any Phone for Easy Sharing and Playback Later iOS/Android: If you like recording audio messages for yourself to help you remember important details, or you just want to send your friends something more personal than a text message, Blip.me allows you to record short voice messages and send them to anyone in your contacts list instantly. Alternatively, just record notes for yourself as personal reminders.

Once installed, the Blip.me mobile app connects with your contacts list to make it easier to send messages as soon as you record them. Just select the person you want to send the message to, press the "hold and speak" button on your phone's screen, and speak your message. When you let up off of the button, the message is immediately sent to your contact. If your friend is also using the app, incoming voice messages can be played aloud via speaker or when you bring the phone up to your ear. The developers market the app like a push-to-talk walkie-talkie, but it's really just another fun way to record and send voice messages to your friends.

The app works just as well if you want to send yourself short voice messages or record voice notes for your own use, but it's fun to combine the ability to record personal notes with the ability to send voice notes. Blip.me is free, and available now in the Android App Market and the iTunes App Store.

You can reach Alan Henry, the author of this post, at alan@lifehacker.com, or better yet, follow him on Twitter or Google+.

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drag2share - drag and drop RSS news items on your email contacts to share (click SEE DEMO)

drag2share: Galaxy Nexus volume fix in the works, Google confirms

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/23/google-responds-to-galaxy-nexus-volume-complaints-says-fix-is-i/

Google has heard your Galaxy Nexus complaints loud and clear, and it's already working on a fix. That's just about all the company had to say today, in response to widespread gripes over a strange volume bug on Samsung's new flagship handset. "We are aware of the volume issue and have developed a fix," Google said in a statement. "We will update devices as soon as possible." It appears, then, that the problem lies not in the phone's hardware, but in its software, meaning that a simple OTA update may just do the trick. No word yet on when we can expect to see the fix, but we'll be sure to let you know as soon as we find out.

Galaxy Nexus volume fix in the works, Google confirms originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Nov 2011 08:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Android Police | Email this | Comments

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drag2share: LG holding 'exclusive launch event' on December 1st, Nitro HD the likely suspect

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/22/lg-holding-exclusive-launch-event-on-december-1st-nitro-hd-th/

In case you were wondering why LG hasn't been making huge waves in the US this holiday season yet, it appears we now know the reason. The company just sent us a nice invite in the form of electronic mail, detailing an exclusive launch event on the evening of December 1st (next Thursday). LG was trying to play coy by not leaving any clues in the image, but fortunately it left the name of the image file easily seen by our prying eyes: LG Nitro. The Nitro HD has long been rumored to be the Optimus LTE for AT&T and another name for the P930, which was referenced in an XML file as having a 1,280 x 720 HD display. Sounds great, but we never know for sure until it happens -- after all, we could be introduced to a $50 prepaid T-Mobile phone exclusive to 7-11. Anyone want to place bets?

LG holding 'exclusive launch event' on December 1st, Nitro HD the likely suspect originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Nov 2011 15:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Vivitar DVR 790HD puts 3D video recording in the palm of your hand for under $100

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/22/vivitar-dvr-790hd-puts-3d-video-recording-in-the-palm-of-your-ha/

Sure, you could get yourself a 3D-capable phone to handle your three-dimensional recording needs, though with all the new svelte superphones coming out, we can understand why you wouldn't want to. But, just because your phone can't satisfy your need for 3D, that doesn't mean you have to go without. Vivitar, favorite of cost-conscious cinematographers everywhere, has unleashed its DVR 790HD 3D camcorder with 16MB of built-in memory and a 5.1 megapixel fixed-focus shooter. It records video in three dee and 720p at 25fps, and stores all your gift-giving triumphs and gift-receiving disappointments on SD cards (not included) up to 32GB in size. The price? A mere $99, which leaves you plenty of leftover dough for your holiday shopping -- sure, it's the thought that counts, but we bet your significant other thinks diamonds are far more thoughtful than cubic zirconia.

Vivitar DVR 790HD puts 3D video recording in the palm of your hand for under $100 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Nov 2011 16:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Chip Chick, Gizmodo |

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drag2share: Microsoft announces Windows-specific Kinect for 2012 release

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/22/microsoft-announces-windows-specific-kinect-for-2012-release/

While hackers have been having their way with the Kinect on the PC for a long, long time, Microsoft itself has only recently embraced this sort of behavior. First it was with an official SDK and then, soon after, a follow-up letting things go commercial. We've been eagerly awaiting Office integration -- imagine lazily waving away every boring PPT that lands in your inbox -- but also struggling to figure out just how such a device would fit on our cluttered desks. Microsoft is now promising a PC-specific version to release sometime in 2012, able to focus on objects as close as 50cm from the lens -- quite an improvement given our current Kinect seems unhappy if we're standing anywhere within five feet. The hardware is also said to be "optimized" for desktop use and the USB cable shortened, but we're still in the dark about how exactly it will look. Might we suggest Keepon integration?

Microsoft announces Windows-specific Kinect for 2012 release originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Nov 2011 16:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Microsoft News | source

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drag2share: ASUS Transformer Prime goes up for pre-order in North America, banks on your lust for Tegra 3

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/22/asus-transformer-prime-goes-up-for-pre-order-in-north-america-b/

It's only been a few weeks since ASUS went official with it's Tegra 3-packing Eee Pad Transformer Prime tablet. We knew the keyboard-dockable hybrid would available sometime this December, but now the Android 3.2 Honeycomb-running slate (later upgradeable to Ice Cream Sandwich) has just popped up for pre-order at various North American retailers. If you'll recall, inside of its Zenbook-esque shell you'll find a 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, an 8 megapixel rear camera and a 1.2 megapixel front facer -- not to mention other goodies like a micro HDMI port and a SD card reader. Folks in the US can place their funds down for the 1.3-pound 10.1-incher with Amazon, B&H Photo, Tiger Direct and Best Buy, while those up in Canada can currently look to Future Shop for the privilege. Arriving in your choice amethyst gray or champagne gold with 32 or 64GB of storage, you'll find it priced at $500 and $600, respectively. So, if you want to ensure you're the first kid on the block with a quad-core slate, find your credit card, get Eee-xcited and hit the source link below.

ASUS Transformer Prime goes up for pre-order in North America, banks on your lust for Tegra 3 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Nov 2011 17:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: xBounds adds HDMI mirroring to Android phones, lets you 'kill the pigs' on the big screen (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/22/xbounds-adds-hdmi-mirroring-to-android-phones-lets-you-kill-th/

Forget DLNA, that pesky setup requires all of your electronic kit to match up with the same certification. If you want full HDMI-mirroring without the fuss, your go-to's going to be an innocuous little dongle from Dream Chip Technologies. The plain, white xBounds stick links up to your smartphone over WiFi using the outfit's xBeam encoder, transmitting mobile content via HDMI to an HDTV set or external monitor. Games and videos streamed to the big screen will also enjoy output in a higher resolution thanks to the company's xBounds ReMatch tech. But all of this ease of use comes at a price, as the RemoteGPU device is purported to cost €99 (about $134), with the full-on dev kit (which includes a Nexus S) ringing in at €998 (about $1,350). There's no word yet on an official release, so you'll just have to make due with the video after the break.

Continue reading xBounds adds HDMI mirroring to Android phones, lets you 'kill the pigs' on the big screen (video)

xBounds adds HDMI mirroring to Android phones, lets you 'kill the pigs' on the big screen (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Nov 2011 18:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Verge, Slashgear | source

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drag2share: Tascam unveils iM2 microphone add-on for iOS devices, makes live Foo Fighters bootlegs a breeze

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/22/tascam-unveils-im2-microphone-add-on-for-ios-devices-makes-live/

Sure, audio recording via the stock mic and iOS app is pretty serviceable for most tasks, but what about capturing that next Avett Brothers gig? You need look no further than Tascam's iM2 stereo microphone for your Apple handheld or slate. Equipped with a pair of condenser microphones -- the same kit as the outfit's DR-series recorders -- the iM2 plugs right in to the dock port of your iOS device. The duo is adjustable over 180-degrees for the perfect capture and it sports its own preamp and analog-to-digital converter to cut out unwanted coughs and increase those vicious banjo chops. Since the peripheral doesn't use the stock iPhone preamp, it is capable of capturing up to 125dB levels without distortion. And don't worry about that 4S dying mid-set, as the iM2 features a USB input that enables charging through the encore. If you're jonesin' for a closer look, hit the gallery below before grabbing yours for $80.

Gallery: Tascam iM2

Tascam unveils iM2 microphone add-on for iOS devices, makes live Foo Fighters bootlegs a breeze originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Nov 2011 20:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

iLounge | source

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drag2share: VIA's ARTiGO 1150: a $265 barebones nettop with big potential (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/23/vias-artigo-1150-a-265-barebones-nettop-with-big-potential-v/

That VE-900 mini-ITX kit still too big for you, eh? Then check out VIA's latest pico-ITX alternative: the ARTiGO 1150 DIY nettop. It improves on last year's 1100 model with a dual-core Eden X2 processor clocked at 1GHz and a VX900H media system processor for accelerated decoding of video up to 1080p. The palm-sized chassis houses the usual HDMI and VGA outputs, gigabit Ethernet and four USB 2.0 host ports, while also leaving just enough room for you to install up to 4GB of DDR3 RAM, one 2.5-inch SATA HDD or SSD, plus optional WiFi and SD card reader modules. We've found the 1150 selling for $265, which strikes us as appropriately diminutive, but there's a promo video and press release after the break to help you weigh it up for yourself.

Continue reading VIA's ARTiGO 1150: a $265 barebones nettop with big potential (video)

VIA's ARTiGO 1150: a $265 barebones nettop with big potential (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Nov 2011 01:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Kevin Bacon's closer than you think, Facebook finds folks separated by only 4.74 degrees

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/23/kevin-bacons-closer-than-you-think-facebook-finds-folks-separa/

Facebook's fertile ground for social experiments, and it wasn't all that long ago that Yahoo tested the six degrees of separation theory using the site. Not to be outdone, Mark Zuckerberg's crew, with an assist from the Laboratory for Web Algorithmics of the Universita degli Studi di Milano, has done a little digging of its own to find out just how intertwined its 721 million users really are. Turns out, instead of being six degrees away from your favorite dancing actor, you're likely only 4.74 -- which was the average distance between any two Facebook users globally. Considering that number shrinks to three when limited to relationships within your own country, and the worldwide number was at 5.28 in 2008 (and is shrinking all the time), you should be best friends with Kevin Bacon by 2020 or so. Don't believe us? There's plenty of statistical analysis to prove it at the source below.

Kevin Bacon's closer than you think, Facebook finds folks separated by only 4.74 degrees originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Nov 2011 02:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Verge | source

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drag2share: Terahertz wireless chip could deliver 30Gbps of bandwidth, stream uncompressed 4K video

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/23/terahertz-wireless-chip-could-deliver-30gbps-of-bandwidth-strea/

ROHM terahertz wireless

Usually, when we start talking terahertz, it means one thing: lasers! But not today, friends. Today, we're talking something with a little less flash and a little more potential for everyday use. ROHM, a Japanese electronics component manufacturer, has developed a chip measuring just 1.5mm by 3mm that can transmit data at up to 1.5Gbps using those precious terahertz radio waves. That's both significantly smaller and faster than existing terahertz wireless experiments and the research teams at ROHM and Osaka University (who are collaborating on the project) believe they can scale the tech up to 30Gbps -- enough bandwidth to stream HD video to every room in your home, provided you don't live in a 200 room mansion. Perhaps most exciting though, producing these chips costs only a few hundred Yen, while earlier versions saw prices hovering at around several thousand. For a few more technical details check out he machine translated PR at the source.

Terahertz wireless chip could deliver 30Gbps of bandwidth, stream uncompressed 4K video originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Nov 2011 03:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink TechCrunch | source

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