SD Card Association: flash card speeds to triple by 2012

The SD Card Association (truth be told, one of our favorite card-related associations) has a new spec in the works that will almost triple the speed of its SDHC and SDXC cards, according to CNET. The specification, which should be complete Q1 next year, will achieve 300MB per second by adding a second row of electrical contacts on the bottom face of the card, and will be backward compatible with older, slower devices. Although being referred to internally as SD 4.0, brand names for the technology are still being considered — with UHS-II (the successor to UHS-I ultra-high speed bus cards) as one possibility.

SD Card Association: flash card speeds to triple by 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 17:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Verizon starts teasing R2-D2 Droid 2 details

Reviving the DroidLanding twitter account, Verizon has begun another online campaign to promote its next Droid handset. pOriginally posted at a href=”http://www.cnet.com/8301-19736_1-20015606-251.html” class=”origPostedBlog”Android Atlas/a/p

Klipsch issues first on-ear headphones, Image S5i Rugged and bargain Image S3 earbuds

It’s been awhile since we sashayed through Klipsch‘s world headquarters back in December of last year, but the company certainly hasn’t let off of the pedal. Today at IFA, it managed to introduce no fewer than three new headphones, including the outfit’s very first on-ear set. The Image One was built to bring Klipsch’s signature sound to folks who’d prefer cans over ‘buds, and it’s also amongst the first to have an Apple-centric mic and three-button remote for controlling music playback on iPods, iPads and iPhones. Travelers will be pleased to hear that the ear cups fold flat for portability, but you’ll need $149.99 to call ’em yours when they ship this November. Moving on, there’s the Image S5i Rugged (shown above) — essentially, you’re looking at the same sound quality we lauded last year, but with a rugged slant. These feature the aforesaid three-button remote / mic as well as a “safety case” that touts a built-in flashlight. We’re expecting a demonstration of their toughness at IFA tomorrow, but in the meanwhile you can start sacking away $129.99 for their November debut. Finally, the October-bound Image S3 is the company’s new low-end set, priced at just $49.99 but still shipping with a trio of oval ear tips, a carrying case and a choice of gray, red, pink or green hues. The full presser is after the break, if you’re into that type of thing.

Continue reading Klipsch issues first on-ear headphones, Image S5i Rugged and bargain Image S3 earbuds

Klipsch issues first on-ear headphones, Image S5i Rugged and bargain Image S3 earbuds originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 17:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Logitech Unveils Three New PC Gamepads

Logitech Wireless Gamepad F710PC gamers rejoice; Logitech hasn’t forgotten about you. If you play platformers, shooters, fighting games, or just about any other type of game that’s often more fun with an actual game controller than it is with the keyboard and mouse (or you just like the flexibility,) Logitech’s new gamepads give you a range of choices from budget-friendly to feature-rich. All three controllers include Logitech’s profiler software, which allows you to emulate keyboard actions and mouse actions without taking your hands off the controller.

 The new Logitech Gamepad F310 is a simple USB gamepad with a standard PlayStation-like controller layout and elevated D-pad. It features a rubberized grip and is available to pre-order for $24.99 list. The Logitech Rumble Gamepad F510 is the next step up, featuring a similar button layout and the same elevated D-pad and rubberized grip, but a wider body for more comfortable use over long gaming sessions and it supports vibration and force feedback. It’s available to pre-order for $34.99.

Finally, the Logitech Wireless Gamepad F710 builds on the previous two models and takes the entire package wireless. The F710 supports Logitech’s wireless nano receiver, and still supports force feedback. It’s available to pre-order for $49.99 retail. 

Panasonic Announces Colorful New Portable Headphones

Panasonic HX40If you’re looking for some colorful, portable headphones, you definitely have your pick of make and model but Panasonic wants to draw your attention to their new foldable, fashionable Panasonic HX40 lightweight line of headphones, available in December. Pricing on the HX40 has not yet been announced.  

The new headphones feature a completely foldable design so they can be collapsed into a flat package for portability, but fold out into a comfortable pair of stereo headphones when you want to listen to music on the go or plug in to your laptop at the coffee shop. The HX40 will also be available in six different color combinations so you can pick a pair that matches your style.

[via Akihabara News]

App Review: Angry Birds (Android)

What does it take to make an addictive game? Not much — just throw in some super simple controls, cute graphics, and basic physics. Rovio Mobile’s Angry Birds is one such game that includes all these elements, and today the studio’s just released a public Android beta to cater those without an iOS, webOS or Maemo 5 device. In case you’re not already familiar with the popular title, the backstory is that a gang of hungry pigs snatched away some eggs from the birds, forcing the feathered creatures to embark on a rescue mission for the sake of their survival. The gameplay on the Android version is just as simple as before: in each level you use a fixed slingshot to fling the birds — one at a time — into the forts, in order to kill all the pigs inside. As a secondary challenge, you must also attempt to get a three-star rating depending on the amount of structural material you destroy, so the key is to perfect your shooting angle.

At the beginning you’re only given one type of bird that does nothing more than just headbutting, but throughout the game you’ll come across six more birds, each possessing one special power: multiply, explode, accelerate, dropping egg bombs, boomerang, and extra strength. Don’t worry, the instructions are pretty clear when you first meet these enhanced kamikaze birds — most involve just a single tap anywhere to trigger their special abilities mid-flight. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll soon be wanting to try out all sorts of trajectories to take vengeance on those cheeky green hogs. Seriously, the pigs really do laugh at you when your birds miss them.

While we’re not familiar with the Maemo 5 and webOS versions of Angry Birds, we’ve definitely spent a fair amount of time on the iOS flavor. Sadly, since the latter’s still running on a low 480 x 320 resolution, the blurred graphics on the notoriously sharp retina display does no justice to the game. On the other hand, the Android version looks a lot prettier on our Nexus One, Dell Streak and HTC Desire, as it runs on their native resolution of 800 x 480. That said, overall the Android beta didn’t feel as well-oiled as its iOS counterpart — we’ve noticed the occasional light hiccups while panning across the scene, so here’s hoping that this will be fixed in the final release. Regardless of this minor flaw, we’d still highly recommend Android users to check out this free Angry Birds beta in the market — go grab it while it’s hot!

Continue reading App Review: Angry Birds (Android)

App Review: Angry Birds (Android) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 16:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vodafone’s Microsoft Surface: like Go Fish for phones

Microsoft worked with Vodafone late last year to deploy Surfaces to a few dozen stores in several European countries (much as AT&T has done in the US), and one of those units happens to be set up at the carrier’s IFA booth this week. The basic idea here is that each available model appears as a card that can be twirled, resized, and flung around the screen. When the software first starts, the cards start in a deck from which you can “deal” onto the table — but when we first approached it, the Surface had obviously already been played with because the cards were in complete disarray. Not too helpful when you’re a befuddled buyer trying to browse models and make a choice from a dizzying selection of handsets, but that doesn’t mean it’s not cool — if nothing else, parents, it’s something to babysit the kiddies for a few minutes while you go about your business in the store. Follow the break for video of the Surface in action.

Continue reading Vodafone’s Microsoft Surface: like Go Fish for phones

Vodafone’s Microsoft Surface: like Go Fish for phones originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 03 Sep 2010 16:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How Can Bluetooth Save Lives When Most Drivers Dont Use It?

BluetoothLogo_200.jpgJust 45% of drivers ever pair their cellphones with their cars’ Bluetooth hands-free calling modules. Even fewer people use Bluetooth every time they get in the car. That’s the result of anonymous data collection done by General Motors and OnStar on Bluetooth-equipped Chevrolets, Buicks, Cadillacs, and GMC trucks. As a result, GM created a new website, Handsfree, with specifics on how to pair a phone with their vehicle.

Setting Fires With a Giant Electric Blower


This weekend, I’m going to be sparking up the grill with the Looftlighter, an electric firestarter that looks like an oversized curling iron, sounds like a hair dryer, and gets a good-sized pile of charcoal briquettes ready to grill in just a few minutes.

I’ll admit I was skeptical about the $80 Looftlighter, which comes from Sweden and whose name, I believe, must be pronounced with as much Nordic accent as you can muster. It’s basically an air blower tucked behind a heating element. The idea is that it delivers a focused blast of hot air out the front. It’s hardly the “flamethrower” I’d been led to believe it was, however, and an initial test in the Wired offices proved that it was incapable of doing much more than charring the edges of a business card.

Plus, it looks dorky and requires access to a three-prong 110v power outlet. Even with the built-in bottle opener on the bottom, this isn’t exactly a manly-man kind of gadget.

But I put my doubts aside and tested the Looftlighter on a couple of recent barbecuing occasions. To my surprise, it works.

The Looftlighter really does look like a curling iron. Photo courtesy Looft Industries

For the first twenty seconds, nothing seems to be happening. You have the ridiculous feeling that you’re blow-drying a pile of charcoal.

But then, the heating element inside turns cherry red, and in short order the edges of the briquettes start to glow.

Sixty seconds in, you start to see flames shooting out of the briquettes in all directions. Fan the Looftlighter back and forth, and it quickly heats up the entire pile.

Within two to three minutes, your pile of charcoal is hot and just about ready to cook: Each briquette is glowing red on the inside and coated with a fine layer of white ash. Perfect.

It may be dorky, and it’s not suited for camping or picnic use — but for starting charcoal grills at home, I have to reluctantly admit that the Looftlighter works pretty well.

And it would probably be just the thing for starting a one-briquette Altoids tin mini-grill.

Wired’s review: No More Gas-Tasting Burgers: Super-Heated Air Lights BBQ Fire

Top photo credit: Dylan F. Tweney / Wired.com

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Patriotic snake robot slithers up a tree

For its latest trick, Uncle Sam, a Snakebot from Carnegie Mellon University, slithers out of the lab and up a tree, where it looks around with its camera-enabled head.