Jun 22
It took only 12 minutes for 30 punters to snap up the 30 limited-production 2011 BMW frozen gray M3 Coupes. pOriginally posted at a href=”http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13746_7-20008448-48.html” class=”origPostedBlog”The Car Tech blog/a/p
Jun 22
The science class from Evergreen Middle School in Cottonwood, Calif., found the opening while working on a research project with the Mars Space Flight Facility run out of Arizona State University.
Jun 22
If you’re running out of space on your DVR, Western Digital has a solution for you with the new My Book AV DVR Expander. The device offers an additional 1TB of storage for all of your favorite programs, equivalent to as many as 120 hours of HD television programming.
The My Book AV DVR Expander is compatible with TiVo Series 3 and TiVo HD DVRs as well as Dish Network and DirecTV DVRs. Western Digital is also testing it to ensure compatibility with the set-top boxes used by other major cable and satellite television providers.
Western Digital already provides many of the hard drives in those existing set-top boxes, and like those drives, the My Book AV Expander has been engineered for heavy duty 24/7 use. They also feature WD GreenPower technology to reduce heat emission and can be positioned horizontally or vertically to maximize airflow.
A direct transfer option compatible with select camcorders is included, which allows users to download home movies from their camcorder to the My Book AV DVR Expander without a computer. It also works with other select devices, such as Sony Blu-Ray players, as well as video game consoles like the Microsoft Xbox 360 and Sony PlayStation 3,
USB 2.0 and eSATA interfaces are included. The My Book AV DVR Expander is available now for $149.99 at the Western Digital online store.
Jun 22
Steve Jobs: Why iOS4 Wont let 3G Owners Set Backgrounds
Posted in: Apple, iPhone, iphone 3g, steve jobs, Today's Chili
There’s been a lot of fuss over the yesterday’s release of iOS 4 for the devices that support it. Also about the fact that when a number of iPhone 3G owners upgraded to the new operating system, they found that–unlike iPhone 3GS owners (and iPhone 4 owners, when they get their devices tomorrow)–they were unable to set a custom background for their home screens.
Over at GIzmodo, one intrepid reader took the question of why backgrounds on the iPhone 3GS were supported but not the iPhone 3G all the way to the top: She e-mailed Steve Jobs directly and put the question to him. Steve e-mailed back in short order with a one-sentence response: “The icon animation with backgrounds didn’t perform well enough.”
Apparently the bottom line is that Apple didn’t think that the backgrounds on the iPhone 3G were up to par with the 3GS and the iPhone 4, so they decided to pull them entirely. Alternatively, it could just be one more reason for iPhone 3G owners to go ahead and upgrade to an iPhone 4. If you’re debating an upgrade, check out our benchmarks of iOS4 on the iPhone 3G and 3GS at PCMag.com.
Jun 22
Panasonic Introduces New Noise-Canceling Headphones
Posted in: headphones, MP3 Digital Audio, Panasonic, Today's Chili, Travel
Panasonic may not be one of the first brands that comes to mind when you think of noise-canceling headphones, but I can testify that my Panasonic RP-HC500 headphones serve me well when I’m in the air or at the office. Now, just in time for the summer travel season, Panasonic has unveiled the RP-HC700 noise-canceling headphones, available now for $199.99 list.
The RP-HC700 headphones are a supra-aural model where the earpads rest on your ear or just over, instead of being large enough to fit around the entire ear. They feature active noise cancellation, so you can wear them with the noise cancellation off or turn it on when you want to focus on your music, or you’re not listening to anything and just want a little silence. The noise cancellation works regardless of whether the headphones are plugged in. The pads are covered in a soft leather-like plastic, and fold into an included case for portability.
Jun 22
Just when you thought a few lucky customers beat the rest of the world to getting an iPhone 4, some technology journalists with early access to the device just published their reviews.
Apple typically handpicks a select group of publications to get early review units, and the first round of reviews comes from The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Engadget and others.
The reviewers agreed that the iPhone 4’s hardware is state-of-the-art industrial design. However, they debated about whether the handset solves the iPhone’s biggest recurring problem: handling phone calls on the overloaded AT&T network.
Priced at $200 for the 16-GB model and $300 for the 32-GB model, the iPhone 4 hits stores Thursday (though a few lucky pre-order customers are getting theirs as early as today).
Excerpts from the early reviews are as follows:
Josh Topolsky, Engadget:
The big question is obviously whether or not this fixes or helps with the constant dropped calls iPhone users on AT&T’s network have gotten used to. Well in our testing, we had far, far fewer dropped calls than we experienced on our 3GS. Let’s just say that again: yes, the iPhone 4 does seem to alleviate the dropped call issue.
Walt Mossberg, The Wall Street Journal:
In both hardware and software, it is a major leap over its already-excellent predecessor, the iPhone 3GS.
It has some downsides and limitations– most important, the overwhelmed AT&T network in the U.S., which, in my tests, the new phone handled sometimes better and, unfortunately, sometimes worse than its predecessor.
Xeni Jardin, Boing Boing:
The fourth incarnation of Apple’s iPhone is an incrementally improved, familiar device — not a new kind of device, as was the case with the recent introduction of iPad…. Apple’s focus on improvement is as much key to the quality of its products as innovation. But there’s one flaw it doesn’t eliminate: the unreliable quality of calls placed over AT&T, which remains the iPhone’s only U.S. carrier.
David Pogue, The New York Times:
With the iPhone 4, Apple tried to relieve the wigginess [of phone calls]. Sound is much better on both ends of the call, thanks in part to a noise-canceling microphone and an improved audio chamber (which also helps speakerphone and music sound). The stainless-steel edge band is now part of the antenna. The new phone is also better at choosing the best channel for connecting with the cell tower, even if’s not technically the strongest one. (Ever had four bars, but a miserable connection? Then you get it.)
Edward Baig, USA Today:
Cutting through the hype, Apple has given longtime diehards, and first-time iPhone owners, plenty to cheer about.
Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com
Jun 22
Pew Develops Broadband Map of U.S.
Posted in: Today's Chili
A new study by the Pew Center attempts to map broadband penetration across the United States, part of the first step toward improving it.
“States increasingly are viewing broadband as a way to gain a
competitive advantage in a tough global economy,” said Susan Urahn,
managing director, Pew Center on the States, in a statement. “They face three key
challenges: expanding availability of broadband, encouraging people to
use it and ensuring high-quality service. Just about every policy area
that states manage could be affected by expanding this technology.
States’ efforts will play a pivotal role in whether the new national
broadband plan succeeds.”
The report attempts to describe how close states actually are to the minimum standards put in place by the Federal Communications Commission as part of the national broadband plan. One concern: bringing broadband to rural states.
The report, Bringing America Up to Speed: States’ Role in Expanding Broadband,
found that several states, including California, Maine, North Carolina
and Pennsylvania, have been focused for years on availability, adoption
and quality of broadband technology, but the majority are trying to catch
up.
After the jump, how far along each state is toward the plan’s goal. Unfortunately, however, the data was collected in 2008, the last time the FCC sampled the data.
Jun 22
An over-the-air update started rolling out to Behold II owners this week, finally moving beyond Android 1.5. Sadly, 1.6 is the highest version Samsung will support. pOriginally posted at a href=”http://www.cnet.com/8301-19736_1-20008498-251.html” class=”origPostedBlog”Android Atlas/a/p
Jun 22
6 Takes on Apple’s iPhone 4 [Apple]
Posted in: Apple, iPhone, Today's Chili, top
We’ve heard your first impressions, but now some of the official iPhone 4 reviews are in. And so far they sound good. Here are the highlights of what the early reviewers are saying. More »
Jun 22
The Lowepro Outback 300 AW beltpack camera bag ($100 street) holds all the camera gear most people would need for a vacation trip if you shoot with a digital SLR. Just don’t plan on using it as a fashion accessory unless your vacation color of choice is basic black. It has both an integrated belt and a removable shoulder strap, along with two removable padded lens pouch saddlebags, and cushioned interior dividers. It’s black nylon (one color choice only) and boxy looking, but it packs a lot into the 12 x 11 (without pouches) x 9 inch (HWD) main unit. With the pouches, it’s 22 inches wide.
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