Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Monday, June 03, 2013

Gigabyte shows four prototype BRIX mini PCs, including models with projectors and wireless charging

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/03/gigabyte-shows-four-prototype-brix-mini-pcs/

Gigabyte said that we'd have at least a few BRIX mini PCs to choose from. At Computex, however, it's showing four new prototypes that could lead to a much larger catalog. Two of them are run-of-the-mill designs with AMD Kabini and Intel Haswell processors -- nice enough, but more evolution than revolution. The other two are decidedly more exotic, though. One includes a wireless charging pad to charge a smartphone in a pinch, while the other carries a pico projector for on-the-spot presentations. Although Gigabyte hasn't mentioned whether or not these BRIX models will reach production, we'd wager that the conservative systems are more likely to reach our desks.

Filed under: Desktops, AMD, Intel

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Source: Engadget Chinese (translated)

Cameras in the Future Might Not Need Lenses

Source: http://gizmodo.com/cameras-in-the-future-might-not-need-lenses-511037818

Cameras in the Future Might Not Need Lenses

Every camera you've ever used in your life has a lens that focuses incoming photons on to a light-sensitive surface. But in the future, cameras might not need lenses at all, and this Bell Labs prototype illustrates how this could be done for cheap.

Technology Review reports the Bell Labs concept, which relies on a method for assembling images called comprehensive sensing (or comprehensive imaging). The basic principle states that any data set with lots of similar measurements will contain a lot of overlapping—and therefore redundant—information. In theory, then, if you take better measurements, you can get substantively similar results more efficiently.

The prototype design consists of two different parts: An aperture assembly and an image sensor. The aperture assembly is an LCD, which allows light to pass through at points of variable size and position. The sensor, in this case, is a single-pixel, three-color chip.

To take a photo, the camera records the light that passes through a random sampling of points on the aperture assembly, and uses processing to find the correlation between the different data, after which, it can reassemble the image.

While this whole process takes a bit longer than we're used to by today's photographic standards—it needs to do the equivalent of thousands of shutter movements instead of a single shutter—it's unbelievably efficient when it comes to materials and components. Indeed, the Bell Labs prototype was assembled using off-the-shelf materials.

Imagine a camera without optics and hardly any pixels on the sensor. It could be incredibly cheap. The main problem will be getting the image quality and performance of such a camera up to snuff, which is all too far off. [arxiv.org via Technology Review]

E Ink launches Mobius flexible display for your next smartwatch

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/03/e-ink-launches-mobius-flexible-display-for-your-next-smartwatch/

Although smartwatch makers have had access to e-paper for a while, there have been few such displays tailor-made for our wrists. E Ink is more than willing to fill that void with a new, watch-oriented version of its Mobius screen. The flexible, 1.73-inch panel won't floor anyone with its 320 x 240 grayscale picture, but it can be cut into timepiece-friendly shapes that take more abuse than a typical e-reader. More importantly for us end users, E Ink already has at least one hardware partner lined up: Sonostar is using the tiny Mobius for a smartwatch this summer, and the odds are that the company won't be alone.

Filed under: Peripherals, Wearables

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Source: Sonostar, E Ink

Toshiba intros three Android tablets, two with Tegra 4 and a 2,560 x 1,600 screen

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/03/toshiba-excite-pure-excite-pro-excite-write/

Could three times be a charm for Toshiba? After striking out with its "Thrive" Android tablets and then coming up a bit short with the "Excite" line, the company is completely scrapping its tablet lineup and replacing it with three new models. These include the Excite Pure, Excite Pro and Excite Write, and while they share the same plastic design, 10-inch form factor, ports and Android 4.2 OS, they each offer something a little different on the inside. Starting with the Pure, it's a $300 tablet running with last year's specs -- namely, a Tegra 3 SoC, a 1,280 x 800 screen with Gorilla Glass 1 and no rear camera whatsoever. Storage is capped at 16GB, but since all of these have a microSD slot, 16GB or 32GB isn't really a hard limit. Moving up the line, the Excite Pro steps up to a Tegra 4 chip, 32GB of storage, an 8MP rear camera, Harman Kardon sound and a 2,560 x 1,600, 300-ppi Gorilla Glass 2 screen to match the Nexus 10.

As you can see in the shot above, it was meant to be used with an optional keyboard case, though you can technically use that dock with any of these tablets, since they all share the same hardware. That will arrive in early July for $500, putting it in line with the iPad and other premium tablets like the ASUS Transformer Pad Infinity. Finally, the Excite Write is exactly what it sounds like: a tablet with pen support. Specifically, it has a Wacom digitizer with support for 1,024 levels of pressure sensitivity. Accordingly, Toshiba is also pre-loading its own TruNote and TruCapture apps to assist with note-taking. That digitizer aside, the Write shares all the same specs as the Excite Pro: Tegra 4, 32GB of storage, an 8-megapixel camera and a 10.1-inch, 2,560 x 1,600 display. This, too, will be available next month, with an MSRP of $600. In the meantime, check out our hands-on photos after the break.

Filed under: Tablets

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Toshiba outs the PX35t all-in-one with a mouse little enough for women to use

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/06/03/toshiba-px35t-all-in-one/

In addition to announcing some new laptops for back-to-school season, Toshiba took the opportunity to refresh its lone all-in-one desktop. This new model, the PX35t, comes with a new look, borrowing some design cues from the televisions Toshiba introduced back at CES. Really, it's that aluminum, U-shaped chin that keeps it looking sort of TV-like, though the new pedestal stand helps too. Inside, it will be offered with Haswell Core i3, Core i5 and i7 CPUs. At the high end (somewhere in the $1,300 range) you can trick it out with up to 1TB of HDD storage, 16GB of RAM and a Blu-ray drive. A Toshiba rep also told us it will also be available with optional discrete graphics -- specifically, the NVIDIA GeForce 740M.

Either way, you get a 23-inch 1080p touchscreen (no IPS), four Harman Kardon speakers and a mix of Sleep-and-Charge and Sleep-and-Music ports. Interestingly, Toshiba says the target market for its all-in-ones skews more female, so it deliberately tailored the mouse for smaller hands (Ed. note: fits like a glove.) The keyboard, however, is cushy enough that even men should be able to use it comfortably. Look for the whole package to ship this month, starting at $1,030.

Gallery: Toshiba PX35t all-in-one