Hasta La Gadget!

The SheevaPlug next to a pocket-size USB external hard drive.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET)

I blogged about Marvell’s SheevaPlug computer awhile ago, and Monday I got to do some exclusive hands-on testing with the first prototype of the machine.

This is a very simple and ultracompact computer that has 1.2GHz CPU, 512MB of flash memory storage, and 512MB DRAM under the hood. The only peripheral connections it supports are a USB 2.0 port and a Gigabit Ethernet port. The prototype comes with a 8GB ScanDisk thumb drive as its external storage, which makes it a very unique network-attached storage (NAS) solution.

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No, it’s not the most terrifically exciting accessory we’ve ever come across — but Dexim’s Shu-Lip, which plugs into the end of your new iPod shuffle — conveniently converting it into a thumb drive, is no longer just a render. We’ll admit that something about the little guy kind of screams “super cute.” It’s a bit pricier than we’d first heard — but $16 is still a really sweet deal, right? Right?

Filed under: Peripherals, Portable Audio, Storage

Dexim’s Shu-Lip for your third-gen iPod shuffle spotted in the wilds of the internet originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Apr 2009 15:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If a child ever had skin as ashen as this kid, it would end up in the emergency room. Fortunately, this is not a real tyke, but a “Child Robot With Biomimetic Body” (CB2 for short) that’s meant to mimic its living counterparts and teach lessons about child development.

The kid-bot, which comes to us from a team at Japan’s Osaka University, is equipped with 51 air-powered motors and 197 tactile sensors under the soft, light gray silicone skin covering its body.

CB2 measures about 4 feet, 3 inches tall and weighs 73 pounds, which size-wise would put it in the third or fourth grade. However, it was designed to function as a 1- to 2-year-old.

Since the eerie-looking bot first terrified the blogosphere in 2007, it has resurfaced as a more advanced creature.

Its creators report that CB2 is slowly developing social skills by recording human’s facial expressions via eye cameras, matching them with physical sensations, and then clustering them into basic categories (sad, happy, etc.) on its circuit boards. …

We’re not sure what LG expected when it invited Micheal Bay to speak about the company’s promotional support of Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen at CTIA, but let’s be honest — they probably should have known dude was going to blow something up. Unfortunately for the gathered LG employees, this time Mike-Mike delivered a figurative explosion, telling the crowd “I don’t know anything about mobile phones. In fact, look at my phone — it’s a thirty-nine dollar Samsung.” Ouch — that’s roughly the equivalent of throwing a Ford in with the rest of the Autobots. Making matters worse, LG president of mobile products Juno Cho tried to salvage the moment by offering Bay his personal phone, but was rebuffed because “all my contacts are in the other one.” Yeah, that’s probably not the best way to play it — although we’re guessing Samsung’s already angling for TouchWiz to feature prominently in Transformers 3.

[Via Gartenblog]

Filed under: Cellphones

Michael Bay strikes again, pulls out Samsung cellphone at LG promo event originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Apr 2009 14:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Much is happening recently with vertical gardens and other urban architecture, including some high-end, self-contained models we’ve seen recently.

Hokkaido Sanyu Corp. has developed a system for green walls called River Re Wall that looks like a miniaturized riverbed or garden turned on its side. Behind the moss-covered wall panel is an irrigation system that ensures all-around healthy greenery and generates a faint, trickling sound of water. The sound is designed to create a sense of real, living nature, as well as encourage relaxation.

As part of their campaign to demonstrate the applications of such a system, Hokkaido Sanyu has established the Miino Brand of indoor fine art green walls. A number of these were on display at the recent Art Fair Tokyo. Priced at ¥700,000 to ¥2,600,000 ($7,000 to $26,000) these painting-sized “living” wall panels draw inspiration from traditional temple-style meditation gardens.

Meanwhile up the road at Tokyo 101, another art fair part of the loosely organized Tokyo Art Week, Sony Digital Entertainment had a booth to display the Charart project. Under the slogan “digital comic to real art” Charart takes popular characters from Sony Digital Entertainment comic series and turns them into the subject of fine art collectibles by the original artists. Sony Digital Entertainment was a main sponsor of Tokyo Art 101.