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Friday, February 03, 2012

Creative pumps out $99 HN-900 noise-canceling headphones

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/03/creative-hn-900-noise-canceling-headphones/

Fact: not everyone's willing to pay a premium to enhance their personal listening experience. Fortunately for those of you who like noise cancellation and a flush bank account, Creative's just taken the wraps off its $99 headset that'll do the trick. The HN-900 offers great features -- aside from the low price tag -- such as 40-hours of active noise canceling powered by some AAA juice (for the times when you feel like ignoring the world), 40mm Neodymium drivers, and a built-in microphone to help with making and answering calls, just to highlight a few. Naturally, with such a stout feature set and low price, the headphones are selling like hotcakes and are currently out of stock. That said, you can still head over to the source to check out the rest of the deets and be one of the first in line once the second batch hits Creative's virtual shelves.

Creative pumps out $99 HN-900 noise-canceling headphones originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Feb 2012 13:12:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Thursday, February 02, 2012

Blurry Cellphone Shots Could Be Eliminated With This Flash Boosting Chip [Photography]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5881693/blurry-cellphone-shots-could-be-eliminated-with-this-flash-boosting-chip

STMicroelectronics hopes to make the wimpy LED flash on your smartphone as bright as the xenon flash in your camera with a new chip that packs a supercapacitor for quick bursts of power.

On average the always-on LED flashes used in smartphones only produce about 2W of power, barely enough to illuminate someone standing right in front of the lens. So to compensate for a lack of light, your phone uses a longer exposure, which can lead to blurry photos if you or your subject is even slightly moving. But STMicro's new STCF04 chip includes a built-in supercapacitor and an array of high-intensity LEDs to produce about 40W of light in quick bursts. Which, according to the company's press release, is the equivalent brightness of an outdoor security floodlight.

At just 3mm per side the chip shouldn't add much bulk to a device's form factor, and for $2 it adds a new feature point that smartphone manufacturers can easily charge a lot more for. [STMicroelectronics via Computerworld]

Qualcomm chips complete first successful VoIP-over-LTE to WCDMA handoff

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/02/qualcomm-chips-complete-first-successful-voip-over-lte-to-wcdma/

For now, voice over LTE is but an idea -- one with unrealized potential, as Verizon, AT&T and Metro PCS all still rely on their 3G networks for voice duty. Qualcomm has edged us one step closer to a completely 4G future, though, with the first successful test of a mid-call LTE to WCDMA transfer. Using one of its own chipsets, specifically an MSM8960 Snapdragon S4, the company successfully utilized Single Radio Voice Call Continuity to switch from a VoIP-over-LTE connection to a traditional voice channel over WCDMA. It might seem like a small victory, but it's one that's an essential step towards and entirely LTE-dependent network. Check out the complete PR after the break.

Continue reading Qualcomm chips complete first successful VoIP-over-LTE to WCDMA handoff

Qualcomm chips complete first successful VoIP-over-LTE to WCDMA handoff originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Feb 2012 10:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ASUS 'TF300T' slate makes an appearance, could be the next Transformer?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/02/asus-tf300t-tablet-shows-up-in-leaked-pictures/

While ASUS is still trying to get a firm grip on its latest Transformer, a purported next-gen member of its Eee Pad family is now happily circulating the web. Taiwanese site NCCC claims to have come across what could be a followup to the Transformer Prime. The 10.1-inch slate raised the leak alarms when a QuieTek certification document revealed its "TF300T" codename, which is numerically higher than its Transformer brethren, the OG (TF101) and Prime (TF201). Furthermore, there are no rumored specs, and aside from the blood-like color on the tablet's back -- there isn't much to tell it apart from its quad-core sibling. We'll keep you in the loop if more juicy info fills our glass, in the meantime you can head over to the source for some additional eye-candy.

ASUS 'TF300T' slate makes an appearance, could be the next Transformer? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AMD's new plan: focus on tablets, cloud computing and developing markets

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/02/amds-new-plan-focus-on-tablets-cloud-computing-and-developing/

Chipzilla has long been atop the PC chip manufacturing mountain, with AMD running a rather distant second. That's why AMD's new top man, Rory Read, plans to move the company in a more mobile direction. Speaking at the company's analyst day, Read stated that the chipmaker will focus on outflanking Intel in the tablet space and by growing its business in cloud computing and emerging markets like China (read: entry-level PCs and devices). As to whether AMD would venture into the smartphone space, Read was quite clear in stating that there were no plans to do so. But, he did make mention of being flexible when it came to chip architecture, including using 3rd party IP in developing new silicon -- so a switch to ARM may not be out of the question. How will AMD accomplish its new goals? By focusing on execution of its technology rather than trying to be on the bleeding edge -- sound familiar?

Continue reading AMD's new plan: focus on tablets, cloud computing and developing markets

AMD's new plan: focus on tablets, cloud computing and developing markets originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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