Hasta La Gadget!

Ready for a return to the moon? NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) will collect information about the moon’s poles, measure radiation, and check out potential sites for an eventual human return to the moon’s surface in 2020–and it’s on track for a June 17th launch aboard an Atlas V rocket, according to Space.com.

NASA is launching the orbiter in tandem with the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS), which will plunge into the surface of the moon in an attempt to find water ice. LRO’s seven instruments will help scientists compose high resolution,
three-dimensional maps of the lunar surface as well as complete a survey of the far ultraviolet spectrum, the report said. (Image credit: NASA)

Ah, a childhood favorite revisited. Years back, our hearts were taken by the one and only Robo Catcher, and now it seems the famed toy snatching game has seen a revamping that features JR Robotics’ RB2000 as the main grabber. The entire unit has also been freshened up in the design department, and the addition of a joystick control system brings it up to speed with all of its “just a claw game” rivals. Hop on past the break for a look at what you’re missing out on here in the states.

Continue reading Video: RB2000 featured in new, improved Robo Catcher

Filed under: Robots

Video: RB2000 featured in new, improved Robo Catcher originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 22 May 2009 08:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cute Sharp, real cute. Brag about releasing the world’s first 20-inch LCD HDTV with a built-in Blu-ray player, but don’t even mention to consumers that they won’t have the luxury of seeing their flicks in full resolution. For reasons unknown, the latest set in the AQUOS DX range does indeed pack a remarkably convenient integrated BD player, but the 1,366 x 768 resolution makes the whole thing sort of pointless. As Liz Lemon would say: “That’s a deal-breaker, ladies.” At any rate, folks who snap one up in Japan will also find a digital TV tuner, DVD support, a 1,500:1 contrast ratio and 450 nits of brightness. It’ll be available in black (LC-20DX1-B) and white (LC-20DX1-W) for ¥150,000 ($1,593) at the tail end of next month in the Land of the Rising Sun.

[Via Engadget German]

Filed under: Displays, HDTV, Home Entertainment

Sharp’s 20-inch AQUOS DX LCD HDTV has a built-in Blu-ray player, no 1080p panel originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 22 May 2009 07:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While it won’t be the first handset to capture 720p video (hello, OmniaHD!), Hitachi‘s Mobile Hi-Vision Cam Woo is still apt to garner quite a bit of attention. As the leaked images hosted down below show, this clever flip phone packs 1,280 x 720 video recording, a 5 megapixel sensor, HDMI interface and a microSDHC slot for good measure. A generous tipster has informed us that said phone is slated to launch this coming Monday on KDDI, though we fully expect that envious North Americans won’t ever get to toy with one on their home turf. For shame.

[Thanks, Anonymous]

Filed under: Cellphones

Hitachi’s Mobile Hi-Vision Cam Wooo cellphone does 720p video recording originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 22 May 2009 06:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve always heard that most things come in packs of three, so just as soon as some other dodgy source affirms that Hulk Hogan will actually be replacing Steve Jobs in August, we’ll be set. Shortly after seeing a 32GB iPhone placeholder over at T-Mobile Austria, we’re now staring at a comically brief report from Digitimes that pegs Wintek as the “panel module supplier for Apple’s upcoming e-book form factor netbook product.” If you’ll recall, Wintek was already independently confirmed as said panel supplier for said product back in March, but obviously Apple has remained tight-lipped on the whole netbook / tablet / e-reader thing. That said, we do find it interesting that this report clarifies that whatever’s purportedly cooking in some dark, highly guarded lab in Cupertino looks more like a tablet with a netbook-sized display rather than a conventional netbook. Whatever the case, we wouldn’t expect it at WWDC, but any Tuesday morning after that is fair game.

Filed under: Handhelds, Tablet PCs

Wintek pegged as panel supplier for rumored Apple tablet originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 22 May 2009 06:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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