Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Friday, February 10, 2012

Samsung's NP700 gaming laptop goes up for pre-order with Ivy Bridge pride

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/10/samsungs-np700-gaming-laptop-goes-up-for-pre-order-with-ivy-bri/

Jonesing for some more of Samsung's 17-inchers? Jones no more, because the Korean manufacturer has just put its NP700G7C gaming laptop up for pre-order. Packing 16GB of memory, this new Series 7 lappy made a brief appearance on Best Buy's website last month, but was quickly pulled. This time, though, it looks like it's for real, with Samsung touting its new "Gaming PC" on its very own website, alongside a $1,700 price tag. For that money, you'll get a 17.3-inch display with 1920 x 1080 resolution and, most compelling, a taste of Ivy Bridge, courtesy of the laptop's third-generation Intel Core i7-3610QM quad-core processor, which clocks in at 2.3GHz. It's available now, at the source link below.

Samsung's NP700 gaming laptop goes up for pre-order with Ivy Bridge pride originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink

Electronista | Samsung | Email this | Comments

These Twins Built Their Own Lab To Test A Revolutionary Battery Design

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/these-twins-built-their-own-lab-to-test-a-revolutionary-battery-design-2012-2

Vi Energy

Sonali Chopra and Meghali Chopra are twins who not only share the same face, but also share a room trying to get their battery technology off the ground.

The two went to Stanford University and studied chemical engineering. But during their senior year in December 2010, they were inspired to build a better battery technology -- so they developed their own lab outside of Stanford and founded Vi Energy.

The twins then entered the StartX accelerator program, which is reserved for Stanford students and recent grads.

StartX helped them see the business side of things, Meghali said. But it's not easy starting your own company.

"We are stretched to the nickel. I'm living with Sonali in one room. We are like 12 years old again, when we shared a room. So we talk to each other at night," Meghali. "We are chemical engineers, so we could be pulling $80,000 if we worked anywhere else. This is the time to be in a startup. It's so exciting."

Last night, the Chopra twins pitched their startup at the latest StartX demo day. They claim the batteries they are designing can be made 3 times cheaper and 1.5 times more energy-dense than today's batteries.

Please follow SAI on Twitter and Facebook.

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

Best Movie Recommendation Service? [Hive Five Call For Contenders]

Source: http://lifehacker.com/5883858/best-movie-recommendation-service

Best Movie Recommendation Service? Valentine's Day is next week, and whether you're forever alone or you're looking for the perfect film to take someone special to see, this week we want to know where you turn for movie suggestions and reviews to help you decide what's worth seeing on the big screen, where you can find indie theaters playing documentaries and special releases, and what you may as well wait for to appear on Netflix and save your money.

You don't have to be planning a night out to look for movie reviews, although movie recommendation services are particularly useful if you're not a movie buff and you're looking for something that everyone will find interesting to watch. So which site or service do you turn to when you want to know what's worth checking out in the theaters? Let us know in the comments below.

Hive Five nominations take place in the comments, where you post your favorite tool for the job. We get hundreds of comments, so to make your nomination clear, please include it at the top of your comment like so: VOTE: BEST LIVE TV STREAMING METHOD. Please don't include your vote in a reply to another commenter. Instead, make your vote and reply separate comments. If you don't follow this format, we may not count your vote. To prevent tampering with the results, votes from first-time commenters may not be counted. After you've made your nomination, let us know what makes it stand out from the competition.

About the Hive Five: The Hive Five feature series asks readers to answer the most frequently asked question we get: "Which tool is the best?" Once a week we'll put out a call for contenders looking for the best solution to a certain problem, then YOU tell us your favorite tools to get the job done. Every weekend, we'll report back with the top five recommendations and give you a chance to vote on which is best. For an example, check out last week's five best ways to stream live TV.

Photo by gailf548.

Will New Apple Displays Optimize Themselves According to Surroundings? [Rumors]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5883974/will-new-apple-displays-optimize-themselves-according-to-surroundings

Will New Apple Displays Optimize Themselves According to Surroundings? Apple's most recent screen successes have centered around the Retina display. But a new patent suggests that Apple has been working on displays that can react to their surroundings to dynamically improve the viewing experience.

According to Patently Apple, the company has filed a patent for a mobile display that uses the sensors aboard devices like the iPhone and iPad to understand the world around it. The patent suggests that the "physical and lighting properties of the user's environment" could be used to provide "a more interesting and visually appealing" display.

The patent goes on to suggest that devices could monitor factors like ambient light, as well as the position of the user's eyes, to generate dynamic shadows on their screens. Those shadows could be used to either make the entire display more clear, or even to spotlight what the users is looking at or add perspective to images. The patent also makes it clear that this could be implemented on desktop and laptop displays, too.

It sounds like the kind of thing that anyone who has ever used a laptop or iPad outside would jump at. Anti-glare covers exist, sure, but in my experience they don't really work. This, on the other hand, could mean I spend a lot more time working from my garden. [FPO via Patently Apple; Image: Ed Yourdon]

Hacker spites Symantec, puts pcAnywhere's source code out in the open

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/09/hacker-spites-symantec-puts-pcanywheres-source-code-out-in-the/

Hacker releases Symantec pcAnywhere's source code out in the open

Symantec said that folks running its pcAnywhere utility were at an "increased risk" when it revealed that the company had been hacked and its source codes pilfered, and advised customers to stop using pcAnywhere for the time being. Sage advice, as a hacker with the handle YamaTough -- who's affiliated with Anonymous -- helped do the deed and has now published the code for all the world to see. Apparently, the hacker and hackee had attempted to broker a deal for $50,000 to keep the code private, but neither side negotiated in good faith -- YamaTough always intended to release the code, and law enforcement was doing the talking for Symantec to catch him and his hacking cohorts. The good news is, Symantec has released several patches to protect pcAnywhere users going forward. As for the stolen code for Norton Antivirus, Internet Security and other Symantec software? Well, the company's expecting it to be disclosed, too, but because the code is from 2006, customers with current versions can rest easy.

Hacker spites Symantec, puts pcAnywhere's source code out in the open originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Feb 2012 09:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink

CNET |