Jan 30

Dual Electronics’ iPod touch GPS cradle now shipping in late February

Posted in: ipod touch, IpodTouch, Today's Chili
Well, it’s quite a ways off the November 2009 launch date the company initially promised, but Dual Electronics is now saying that its XGPS300 navigation cradle for the iPod touch will really, honestly be available sometime in “late February.” The price presumably remains at the same $179.99 as before, which also includes a bundled NavAtlas navigation app and, of course, an adjustable windshield mount. Not exactly the easiest sell, to be sure, especially considering how much the GPS market has changed in just those few short months.

Dual Electronics’ iPod touch GPS cradle now shipping in late February originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 31 Jan 2010 00:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jan 30

Study finds people want more from their Kindles, less from their newspapers

Posted in: e reader, e-readers, reader, statistics, stats, study, Today's Chili

This may come as a surprise to you (although probably not, you smart devil), but it turns out that plenty of people are dissatisfied with their current e-reader options — according to a recent study conducted at the University of Georgia. The study was conducted over a six-month period where participants read the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on a Kindle, then provided feedback. The results were, well — not entirely shocking. Younger adults found the Kindle to be lacking because it had no touchscreen or other applications (though to be fair, neither does the print version of the paper), while older adults seemed more satisfied, but also reported missing the crossword puzzles and comics of a real, live newspaper. Pretty much everyone agreed that the screen was nice and comfortable to read on, but almost no one was a fan of the price. All in all, there’s not terribly much here that we think is overly telling — besides (of course) the fact that paper rules.

Study finds people want more from their Kindles, less from their newspapers originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 30 Jan 2010 22:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jan 30

Nokia, Nintendo, Netflix and E-Ink respond to the iPad

Posted in: Apple, apple ipad, AppleIpad, e ink, ipad, netflix, nintendo, nokia, Today's Chili

We’re sure just about every company on the map has an opinion on Apple’s new device, but a few big wigs have taken time out of their busy schedules to weigh in on the device. These are their stories.

  • Nokia’s Mark Squires, Head of Social Media, was mainly confused by Apple’s statement that it’s the biggest mobile device manufacturer, surpassing Nokia in combined revenue on media players, phones and laptops. Mark argues that the accepted definition for “mobile devices” excludes laptops, and goes on to mention the undisputed fact that Nokia’s still number one when it comes to number of devices sold.
  • Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, meanwhile, says that mobile devices aren’t a priority for his company yet. They’re fighting the good fight of the large screen, and once they feel comfortable in their various efforts there, then they’ll move on to small screens. Netflix hasn’t done or submitted an iPhone application, but Hastings did mention that he was optimistic that if Netflix did get into the game, the app would be approved for the App Store, and that it would run on both the iPhone and iPad.
  • Satura Iwata, president and CEO of Nintendo, took a much more directly critical approach to the device, calling it a “bigger iPod Touch,” and that Apple delivered “no surprises.” In the same interview he expressed skepticism as to the value of bringing a high definition Wii on the market, as well as expressing doubts about 3D glasses-based gaming. Iwata is clearly a tough man to please.
  • Perhaps most threatened by the iPad is Russ Wilcox, CEO of E-Ink. He says dedicated e-readers will outsell iPads due to “simple economics,” and that the iPad is “great entertainment device,” but it’s “not the world’s best reading device.” His criticisms, mostly in juxtaposition to Kindle-style devices, abound, including price, weight, backlight and so on. He’s right on the money about the shortfalls of a straightforward comparison, but we wonder if consumers will feel the same?

Nothing too salacious, unfortunately, and most of the points raised are pretty spot-on — though we do wish Reed Hastings would rethink his priorities just a smidgen and get Netflix onto mobile devices sooner than later. We’re needy like that.

Nokia, Nintendo, Netflix and E-Ink respond to the iPad originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 30 Jan 2010 20:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceATD (Netflix), Forbes (E-Ink), Nokia, AP (Nintendo)  | Email this | Comments

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Jan 30

Proto-2 humanoid robot auditions for Thunderbirds 2.0

Posted in: robot, Today's Chili
While there are some robots like ASIMO still keeping it real with their classic robot looks, it seems that humanoid bots these days are increasingly falling into one of two categories: creepy and more creepy. Making no attempt to alter that trend are the researchers from Advanced Robotic Systems Laboratories (or ARSL), who are now showing off their new Proto-2 robot — and apparently holding it against its will. Designed partly to aid in the study of human-robot interaction, Proto-2 packs an “expressive face” complete with moving, Peter Gallagher-esque eyebrows, and it apparently has a more natural walking gait than many other humanoid bots thanks to a new dynamic toe-joint that ARSL developed. Unfortunately, there’s no video of it in action available just yet, but you can check out plenty more pics, and even an interview with its creator by hitting up the links below.

Proto-2 humanoid robot auditions for Thunderbirds 2.0 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 30 Jan 2010 18:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceARSL, Plastic Pals interview  | Email this | Comments

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Jan 30

Archipod: Apple store inside, pinecone outside

Posted in: Today's Chili

Looking for a home office orb that wouldn’t look out of place in your back yard? Consider the Archipod, make in the U.K.

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Jan 30

Switched On: Tabula rasa

Posted in: Apple, apple ipad, AppleIpad, column, ipad, switched on, SwitchedOn, tablet, Today's Chili
Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology.

When Apple introduced the iPod in 2001 — some 250 million units ago, as Steve Jobs noted — it began with a laser-like focus on digital music. Swap out a hard drive and FireWire port for a cassette collection, and the product was clearly the reinvention of the Walkman. The first Switched On in 2004 pondered the iPod photo as a stepping stone to video. And by 2007, the iPhone and iPod touch had become capable of playing a broad array of content and would soon be able to extend their capabilities dramatically via apps.

Nonetheless, while the iPhone and iPod touch were nearly as close cousins as the 3G and non-3G flavors of the iPad, they were each rooted firmly in the existing categories of smartphones and MP3 players and positioned against products in that space. Despite its limited app support, nobody thinks of the Zune HD as a handheld tablet; it’s a digital media player that competes against the iPod touch.

Continue reading Switched On: Tabula rasa

Switched On: Tabula rasa originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 30 Jan 2010 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jan 30

Do you hate Apple news?

Posted in: Apple, Today's Chili

Do you hate Apple news? Are you so bothered by stories about the Cupertino-based company that you feel the need to comment on each and every story about how bothered by stories about the Cupertino-based company you are? Do you lay awake at night, cold sweat beading down your forehead, dreading the morning when you’ll potentially see your favorite tech site writing about a new Apple product? Do you believe that Apple is 100 percent evil in every way? Well we’re here to help.

Due to the overwhelming demand of 16 commenters, we present to you the Apple-free Engadget! Yes — read all the hot news happening in the tech world without the upsetting presence of Apple-related stories. Your dream is a reality… so now you’ll have to find something else to complain about!

Read – Engadget, sans Apple news
Subscribe – Engadget, minus the Apple

P.S. – You can change “apple” in the URL to whatever else you hate, too!

Do you hate Apple news? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 30 Jan 2010 17:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jan 30

Daily Downloads: CDBurnerXP, FileZilla, and More

Posted in: Daily Downloads, Today's Chili

This article was written on July 11, 2008 by CyberNet.

miranda filezilla wireshark logos icons.jpgWelcome to Daily Downloads brought to you by CyberNet! Each weekday we bring you software updates for widely used programs, and it’s safe to assume that all the software we list is freeware (we’ll try to note the paid-only programs).

As you browse the Internet during the day, feel free to post the software updates you come across in the comments below so that we can include them the following day!

–Stable Releases–

The software listed here have all been officially released by the developers.

  • CDBurnerXP 4.1.2.694 [Homepage] [Changelog] [Mirror] [Review]
    Operating System: Windows Windows only
    Type of Application: CD/DVD burning
    Changes: Bug fixes
  • MyColors 2.5 [Homepage] [Mirror] [Review]
    Operating System: Windows Windows only
    Type of Application: Windows theming/skinning utility
    Changes: Free version comes with a new theme
  • NeoOffice 2.2.4 Patch 2 [Homepage]
    Operating System: Mac Mac only
    Type of Application: Office Suite
    Changes: Bug fixes
  • Wireshark 1.02 [Homepage] [Changelog] [Mirror]
    Operating System: Windows Windows; Mac Mac
    Type of Application: Network analyzer
    Changes: Bug fixes

–Pre-Releases (Alpha, Beta, etc…)–

The software listed here are pre-releases that may not be ready for everyday usage.

  • FileZilla 3.1 [Homepage] [Changelog] [Review]
    Operating System: Windows Windows; Mac Mac; Linux Linux
    Release: Beta
    Type of Application: FTP client
    Changes: IPv6 support, and bug fixes
  • Miranda 0.8.0.18 [Homepage] [Changelog]
    Operating System: Windows Windows only
    Release: Beta
    Type of Application: Messenger
    Changes: Bug fixes

–Release Calendar–

  • July 14 – WordPress 2.6 [Review]
  • August – Internet Explorer 8 Beta 2 [Review]
  • September 2 – OpenOffice.org 3.0 [Review]
  • October 30 – Ubuntu 8.10
  • Late 2008 – Firefox 3.1 [Review]
  • 2009 – Windows Mobile 7 [Review]
  • 2009 – Paint.NET 4.00 [Review]
  • January 2010 – Windows 7 [Review]

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Jan 30

VisualBoyAdvance turns your Palm Pre into a Game Boy emulator

Posted in: gaming, hack, hacking, palm, palm pre, PalmPre, pre, Today's Chili, webos

A certain UK bank operates a delightfully dorky advertising campaign whose slogan is “we give you extra.” Well, in the case of mobile software communities, that’s exactly the case. From jailbroken iPhones to PS One-emulating HD2s to multitouch-enabled browsing on the Nexus One, the one group of people we know we can truly rely on are other geeks. So let’s salute those heroes once more, in recognition of the VisualBoyAdvance — a webOS-based emulator for Game Boy, Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance games. The former two categories are said to play smooth as you like, whereas the Advance stuff suffers from slight slowdown at present. We’ve only seen it playing on a Pre, but there should be no reason why your Pixi wouldn’t be allowed in on this party. A quick video demo awaits after the break, and the source link has all the installation details you’ll need.

Continue reading VisualBoyAdvance turns your Palm Pre into a Game Boy emulator

VisualBoyAdvance turns your Palm Pre into a Game Boy emulator originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 30 Jan 2010 16:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourcePre Central  | Email this | Comments

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Jan 30

Apple excises the false Flash in its iPad promo video

Posted in: Apple, apple ipad, AppleIpad, flash, ipad, tablet, Today's Chili

It’s not every day we get a nice, humble confession of fault from Apple, but it looks like the marketing department has seen the light on those overly optimistic web browsing mockups depicting Flash in “action” on the new Flash-free tablet device. Now the iPad promo video has been reworked to flaunt what we’re coming to know as the Blue Lego Block of Ambiguity[TM] in sections of sites that would traditionally be populated by highly stimulating Adobe Flash-based content. It’s not pretty, and it solves none of the other issues at hand with Apple’s continued avoidance of Flash on its iPhone OS, but at least it’s true.

Apple excises the false Flash in its iPad promo video originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 30 Jan 2010 15:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Mac Rumors  |  sourceApple  | Email this | Comments

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