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Sunday, February 24, 2013

Build Your Own Power-Efficient DIY Remote Storage System

Source: http://lifehacker.com/5986177/build-your-own-power+efficient-diy-remote-storage-system

Build Your Own Power-Efficient DIY Remote Storage System Cloud storage is everywhere, but if you don't want to mess around with keeping your data on someone else's computer, or you simply don't want to pay for it, DIYer Dominic came up with a solution to use his own computer as a DIY remote storage system over Wi-Fi.

Wake-on-LAN has existed for a while to make it easy to access your computer from anywhere, but it doesn't always work that well unless you have the right hardware, and waking on Wi-Fi is still a little iffy. Dominic needed a system to remotely back up his photos on vacation to safe space on his phone, so he installed Open WRT on a cheap router, and then wired the router to power up the PC when it's pinged. It's an interesting way to roll your own power-efficient storage system, but it's certainly not the only solution. Head over to Dominic's site for a full guide.

Dropping Dropbox + Hardware Hacking | Dom's blog via Hack a Day

Samsung's HomeSync Android Box Brings a Whopping 1TB of Storage to Your TV

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5986544/samsungs-homesync-brings-1tb-of-android-to-your-tv

Samsung's HomeSync Android Box Brings a Whopping 1TB of Storage to Your TV Set top boxes aren't exactly mobile tech, but Samsung has unveiled its new one at this year's Mobile World Congress. The HomeSync aims to work with your mobile devices and serve has a hefty little Android-powered box for all your media. A 1TB box.

Running Android Jelly Bean (version unspecified) the HomeSync will let users push apps, games, and other media to the an HDTV. No one's actually saying "Google TV" here, but the box will have access to the Google Play store, and can push all that goodness through to your TV at 1080p through its HDMI 1.4 connection.

Inside, the HomeSync has an 8GB SSD for OS and basic storage and a gig of RAM, but behind that sits a massive 1TB hard drive that should be enough to satisfy even the most ardent digital pack-rats. Samsung has no illuisions that one person would endeavor to fill that space (or should endeavor), so the HomeSync can support up to 8 different accounts, each of which gets its own little slice, separate from the others, complete with encryption if you want.

The HomeSync will be available in the US sometime April 2013, but there's no world on how much it'll cost, or whether or not it can handle streaming protocols like Miricast, so don't lay down all your judgement quite yet. But if nothing else, it's bound to be the spiffiest 1TB hard drive out there. [CNET]

Benchmarks Are In: Nvidia's Tegra 4 Really Cooks

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5986554/benchmarks-are-in-nvidias-tegra-4-really-cooks

When Nvida announced the Tegra 4 back at CES, they laid down the claim it was the world's fastest mobile processor. Now Nvidia's got some prototype devices at Mobile World Congress, the benchmarks are coming in and there's no questioning it. The Tegra 4 is a total speed-demon.

A generation better than the Tegra 3 and Qualcomm S4 processors common now, it shouldn't be a surprise that the Tegra 4 can demolish the processor in just about every other phone on the market, but now the proof is in. And Apple's peppy A6 is no exclusion. Then again, the Tegra 4's got a bit of a head start.

Benchmarks Are In: Nvidia's Tegra 4 Really Cooks

Samsung and Qualcomm have competition in the works though, with the Exynos 5 Octa and Snapdragon 800 respectively. And like Nvidia boasted with the Tegra 4, Qualcomm is behind its Spadragon 800 as "the fastest." But until we see some benchmarks, the Tegra 4 is taking the cake, and handily. You can expect to see that puppy in Nvidia's Project Shield when it launches in this spring, and you'll find its cousin, the T4i, folded into mobile phones late this year. Get ready for a rocket ride. [PC Mag]

Alcatel Idol X hands-on (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/24/alcatel-idol-x-hands-on-video/

Alcatel converted its One Touch Idol line from a duo to a trio with today's launch of yet another set at Mobile World Congress: the Idol X. While not quite as thin as its 6.45mm-thin Idol Ultra sibling, at 7mm thick with a tiny 2.4mm bezel it is definitely is about as small as a 5" set can get. The Idol X's giant 1080p IPS display is fantastic to look at and Jelly Bean is snappy driven by a quad core MediaTek MT6589 1.2GHz CPU. Like many of Alcatel's other sets the range of config option varies by market and the same is true here as we'll see both 13 and 8-megapixel variants -- both with 1080p front facing cameras -- and dual or single-SIM, with the single variety getting a bonus microSD slot. While the Idol X is not equipped with LTE it does have 42Mbps HSPA+ connectivity, quad-band GSM and offers dual-band UMTS in both 900MHz / 2100MHz or 850MHz / 2100MHz frequencies.

Alcatel's all about mass market, it isn't chasing the likes of Apple or Samsung but rather is quite happy to simply make "devices for people." So while 2012 marked its first foray into smartphones, judging by what we've seen so far in 2013 from them it seems they've nailed affordability while maintaining a surprising amount of quality, a great combination. Join Myriam just after the break for a quick video tour.

Gallery: Alcatel OneTouch Idol X hands-on

PowerbyProxi debuts wireless charging solution, aims to fully integrate it into future smartphones (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/24/powerbyproxi-wireless-charging-solution-demo-mwc-2013-video/

The pathway to innovation is paved with failed attempts to produce wireless charging solutions that a) actually work and b) people genuinely want to use, but we've got yet another upstart here at Mobile World Congress willing to give it a go. PowerbyProxi's solution looks pretty similar to renditions we've seen from Fulton Innovation, but it's quick to point out the differences. The loosely-coupled method uses a bantam receiver that's "efficient enough to be integrated into the processor board of a smartphone without causing over-heating."

While previous industry designs have resulted in longer charging times than if the device were plugged into a wall socket, PowerbyProxi's solution reportedly "provides charging at the same speed as wired charging." In fact, it claims to offer the only system that can rejuvenate up to three devices at the same time at full power. If you're wondering what working group these guys are going to side with, that much is still up in the air -- it's remaining "agnostic towards the selection of an ultimate standard" for now.

We spoke with the company here at Mobile World Congress, and it confirmed to us that it's working with the top five major battery manufacturers, and we should see wireless AA and AAA cells "within 12 months." It wouldn't confirm how soon we'd see it in phones, tablets or laptops (yeah, it'll work in all of 'em), but it's clearly working with some of the ! top OEMs and hoping for the best. In the demo we witnessed, specially equipped Galaxy S III handsets charged alongside one another, even when barely clinging to the charging pad. Despite a bunch of metallic objects being heaped on the pad, it was intelligent enough to only send power to the phones, keeping gum boxes and coins cool, calm and collected. Head on past the break for quick video tour as well as a press release.

Dana Murph contributed to this report.

Gallery: PowerbyProxi debuts wireless charging solution at MWC 2013 (hands-on)

Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals, Mobile

Source: PowerbyProxi

NVIDIA Tegra 4 benchmarked, breaks all sorts of speed records (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/24/nvidia-tegra-4-benchmarked/

When NVIDIA unveiled Tegra 4 back at CES, we scrambled to get hands-on with a reference device. And though our initial performance impressions were positive -- it runs 1080p video and games smoothly -- there was only so much we could say to illustrate how fast the performance is. After all, Tegra 3 already does a fine job handling games and full HD movies. What we really needed were benchmarks, some quantitative data to help show the difference between Tegra 4 devices and whatever's currently on the market. Fortunately for all of you, we just got our chance: here at Mobile World Congress, the company has reference tablets set up expressly for the purpose of running tests. So, we did just that... over and over and over until we had a long list of scores. Meet us after the break to see how it fared.

Filed under: Tablets, Mobile, NVIDIA

Switched On: Moving forward with leaning back

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/24/moving-forward-with-leaning-back/

Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology.

Just a few months have passed between the introduction of the Droid DNA and the new HTC One, but it seems that HTC has been turned upside down in that time. While the Droid DNA was introduced in conjunction with Verizon and can't be a wholly representative picture of how HTC might have introduced the device otherwise, it was a spec- and design-driven product -- a 5-inch, 1080p display with a 440-ppi density that appeared to spill over onto sides that included a microperforation.

In contrast, little was said about the HTC One hardware itself until later in the device's introduction, surprising because the HTC One is not only the most attractive handset the company has ever built, but also certainly one of the most attractive on the market. While it is an Android device, the casing builds upon the tapered, Windows Phone-inspired 8X, substituting aluminum for polycarbonate. That said, there is also the spillover glass effect found on the Droid DNA. The HTC One retains the 1080p display found in the Droid DNA. However, since the screen is smaller, the pixel density is even higher (468 ppi) than in that record-breaking device.

Filed under: Cellphones, HTC, Blackberry

Samsung's comically large Galaxy Note 8.0 smartphone: purely a brand play, if nothing else

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/24/samsung-galaxy-note-8-is-a-brand-play/

More Info

The doors to this year's Mobile World Congress have just barely been opened, but you might say the show is already won. And, perhaps unsurprisingly, it's Samsung doing the winning. For those who were far too busy enjoying their Saturday evenings to notice, I should point out that Samsung has just taken the wraps off of the world's largest smartphone. The global version of Galaxy Note 8.0's fantastically (hilariously?) large display is indeed embedded onto a device that will not only surf the soothing waters of the world wide web, but also make phone calls for those brazen enough to toss it upside their noggin'.

The question, obviously, is "Why? But as I let the announcement wash over me, the answer became all too clear: "Because it can."

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Mobile, Samsung

Friday, February 22, 2013

Finally, an LTE Chip That Will Work Anywhere in the World

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5986141/finally-an-lte-chip-which-will-work-anywhere-in-the-world

Finally, an LTE Chip That Will Work Anywhere in the World Qualcomm has announced something that will make travellers everywhere very happy: a new radio chipset that can support every LTE network in the world.

More accurately, the RF360 chips provides connectiviry for LTE-FDD, LTE-TDD, WCDMA, EV-DO, CDMA 1x, TD-SCDMA and GSM/EDGE networks. That should be enough, though, as it currently covers every LTE network in use across the globe.

That'll be of interest to manufacturers and consumers alike. Not only will it make travelling easier, it will allow companies to make a single phone to ship around the world, instead of having to make different phones for different markets. Qualcomm also claims that the RF360 (which isn't the chip pictured above) wll provide improved antenna performance, battery life and connection reliability, too—but those improvements are likley marginal. [Engadget]

Insert Coin semifinalist: Moedls brings 3D scanning to your phone

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/22/insert-coin-semifinalist-moedls/

Insert Coin semifinalist: Moedls

3D scanners are kinda old hat at this point. But, while we've seen more than our fair share of Kinect hacks, we haven't come across too many phone-based systems. Moedls actually puts the power to create models like the one above in the palm of your hand... sort of. The heart of the system is either an iOS or Android app (sorry MeeGo fans), but there are actual lasers with a custom enclosure as part of the platform. Clearly, that does somewhat restrict portability, but it should all fit into a 10-inch x 10-inch x 4-inch box for storage or transportation.

Creator John Fehr started the project as a way to save some of his daughter's sculptures in digital form. After trying many different component options, Fehr settled on a combination of parts that totaled around $300. That included a custom enclosure and variable speed rotating platform have been sourced. Right now the iOS app is awaiting approval from Apple and the Google-fied equivalent is currently in development. Combine this with a 3D printer (we hear you've got quite a few choices at this point) and the world becomes your playground. You can see an example of what Moedls is capable of, even at this early stage, at the source.

Check out the full list of Insert Coin: New Challengers semifinalists here -- and don't forget to pick a winner!

Filed under: Misc

Source: Moedls

Thursday, February 21, 2013

MIT's Developing a Chip That Makes You a Better Smartphone Photographer

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5985898/mits-developing-a-chip-that-makes-you-a-better-smartphone-photographer

Most of the post-processing done by a camera is handled by software that MIT researchers believe could be a lot smarter, faster, and user-friendly. So they're developing a single chip that can handle these operations with remarkable efficiency.

High Dynamic Range imagery, where the camera snaps multiple images to generate a final photo with perfect exposure, usually takes a while for a smartphone to process. But MIT's new chip can generate a ten-megapixel HDR image in just a few hundred milliseconds—almost instantly as far as the photographer's concerned.

It's also got another neat trick up its sleeve for improving photos in low-light conditions. Images snapped with a flash are usually blown-out and ugly, but the chip would actually snap two versions—with and without a flash—and combine them into a single perfect image that ensures everything is properly lit. The chip could even instantly deal with issues like noise in a high-ISO image, and is almost like having Photoshop built right into your camera—minus the years of practice needed to figure out how to use it. [MIT via Engadget]

Canon MREAL Mixed Reality headset hands-on (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/21/canon-mreal-hands-on/

Thought Google Glass cost a pretty penny? Well, try this head-mounted display on for size. It's that Mixed Reality wearable from Canon that we've been hearing so much about. As previously noted, it's set to hit the States the first of next month, carrying a decidedly gigantic $125,000 price tag (plus an estimated $25,000 in annual maintenance). But before you go writing a brashly worded letter to the bigwigs at Canon, remember: this isn't really for you. That is, unless you're an automotive manufacturer, research university or museum display curator. This is a heavy-duty, industry-facing device.

That said, the camera maker did give a few of us non-industry folks the chance to play around with the display at an event in Manhattan last night, while the rest of the tech world was fawning over that fancy new PlayStation thingamabob. Having spent some time with Sony's HMZ-T1, we've got to say that the experience of wearing this far, far more high-end product wasn't all that different from a hardware perspective: slip it over your head, place it on the bridge of your nose and tighten. It's possible to get it snug without being too uncomfortable -- and when it's time to take it off, a flip of the lever will remove it in one go.

Gallery: Canon MREAL Mixed Reality headset hands-on

Filed under: Cameras, Displays, Wearables, Canon

Sony preps extra-low power mobile GPS chips, draws on motion sensors for help

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/21/sony-preps-extra-low-power-mobile-positioning-chips/

Many of us can vouch for smartphone navigation being something of a battery hog. Sony would like us to navigate relatively guilt-free: its D5600 and flash-equipped D5601 chips chew no more than 10mW of power for everything they do. Most of their peers demand more than that just for the RF side of the equation, Sony says. They also won't lean on outside help for their location fix. Both chips talk to GPS, GLONASS and similar systems, but they further share the increasingly common ability to use an accelerometer, gyroscope and magnetometer to get a more reliable position lock. Don't expect thrifty GPS just yet, when Sony ships the basic D5600 in June and D5601 in September; that doesn't even include the time spent to build a phone or tablet around either of the new parts. We'll be patient if they reduce that anxiety over battery life whenever we're getting directions.

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS, Tablets, Sony

Source: Sony

LG flaunts Panorama VR feature on Optimus G Pro (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/21/lg-flaunts-panorama-vr-feature-on-optimus-g-pro-video/

LG flaunts Panorama VR feature on Optimus G Pro video

Since creating regular panorama shots is so last year, LG's come up with a new option for its Optimus G Pro. We first heard about the feature during the launch of the 5.5-inch handset, and now the Korean company's just outed a YouTube video showing how it works. It looks very similar, but not identical to Google's latest Photo Sphere update, letting you pan in different directions while photos of the scene are captured and stitched automatically. The software compiles it into a large panorama file that lets you pan and zoom into the scene, exactly like the recent Android 4.2 option. We've reached out to LG to see if there's any relation between the two apps, but more choice is always better anyway, no?

Filed under: Cellphones, Cameras, LG

Source: LG (YouTube)

NXP's silicon fingerprinting promises to annoy the heck out of ID hackers

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/02/21/nxp-chip-fingerprinting/

It's 2013 and white hat hackers like Adam Laurie are still breaking into ID chips that are supposed to be secure. How come? Partly it's the way of the world, because no man-made NFC or RFID security barrier can ever be truly impervious. But in practical terms, a chip's vulnerability often stems from the fact that it can be taken apart and probed at a hacker's leisure. The secure element doesn't necessarily need to have power running through it or to be in the midst of near-field communication in order to yield up its cryptographic key to a clever intruder who has sufficient time and sufficient desire to breach the security of a smartphone, bank card or national border.

Which brings us to the latest device in NXP's SmartMX2 range -- a piece of technology that is claimed to work very differently and that is expected to hit the market next year. Instead of a traditional key stored in the secure element's memory, every single copy of this chip carries a unique fingerprint within the physical structure of its transistors. This fingerprint (aka Physically Unclonable Function, or PUF) is a byproduct of tiny errors in the fabrication process -- something chip makers usually try ! to minim ize. But NXP has found a way to amplify these flaws in a controlled way and use them for identification, and it'd take a mightily well-equipped criminal (or fare dodger, or Scrabble cheater) to reverse engineer that.

Filed under: Misc, Science, Mobile

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