US Navy’s Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System launches first fighter jet (update: video!)

For more than 50 years, the on-ramp to the highway to the danger zone was a steam catapult that launched fighter jets from an aircraft carrier, but it looks like that could soon be set to change. The U.S. Navy just announced yesterday that its Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System, or EMALS, has passed a key test by launching a manned F/A-18E Super Hornet for the first time (several more successful launches then followed). Among other advantages, that system promises to allow the Navy to launch a wider range of aircraft from a carrier — including everything from lightweight unmanned aircraft to heavy strike fighters — and do so while also bringing “substantial improvements” to weight, maintenance, and efficiency. Head on past the break for the official announcement (sorry no video).

Update: We spoke too soon, video is now after the break! You’ll have to supply your own Kenny Loggins soundtrack, though.

[Thanks, Fionn]

Continue reading US Navy’s Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System launches first fighter jet (update: video!)

US Navy’s Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System launches first fighter jet (update: video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 15:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sprint releases two Moto iDEN phones

Even as it prepares to discontinue Nextel’s IDEN network in 2013, Sprint today announced two new Motorola phones with iDEN and Direct Connect.

Originally posted at Dialed In

ZigBee finalizes low-power, RF standard for input devices, could finally kill off IR for good

ZigBee finalizes low-power, RF standard for input devices, might finally kill off IR for goodOver the years of idle channel surfing and menu browsing you’ve surely developed some finely-honed IR shootin’ skills, knowing which surfaces will and will not reflect the signals from your under-powered universal remote control as you try to bounce that beam around a pile of magazines and soda cans on the coffee table. Those skills are on a fast-track to obsolescence thanks to the new ZigBee Input Device standard, which finally could bring all TV remote controls to the world of RF wholesale. Well, it could, if it finds more success than the already existing ZigBee Remote Control spec has managed. The new Input Device standard builds on that, said to require less juice than IR so those tired and mismatched AAs could last even longer. It’ll also work with mice and keyboards and the like, but naturally we’re most optimistic for remotes, even though this comes a little too late to let us turn off our PS3s with our Harmonys.

Continue reading ZigBee finalizes low-power, RF standard for input devices, could finally kill off IR for good

ZigBee finalizes low-power, RF standard for input devices, could finally kill off IR for good originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 15:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Is the PalmPad a recycled HP Slate?

Fox News says a leaked diagram shows the WebOS tablet HP is about to introduce at CES. Oddly enough, it’s the same diagram HP was using for the HP Slate 500, a Windows 7 device introduced in October.

Originally posted at Circuit Breaker

Kinect to recognize finger gestures, insiders say

Finer levels of detail could be integrated relatively simply via the standard Xbox online update system–you wouldn’t need to buy a new camera.

35 Phenomenal Photos….IN 3D!!!!! [Photography]

Put those silly glasses down and prepare to blow your mind (…and possibly get a slight headache). This week’s Shooting Challenge is 3 freaking D. To view the photos, just refocus your eyes to merge the white dots. More »

Three HP Slate-like webOS tablets coming at CES? We’re not so sure.

Well, this is certainly an interesting, if not bewildering rumor. Obviously, we’ve heard that HP is working on webOS tablets for 2011 — it’s planning to double down on Palm OS, remember? — but our friend Clayton Morris at Fox News has heard that some of these PalmPads could be coming as early as CES in just two weeks. So, what’s said to be coming? Apparently, HP will introduce three tablets based on webOS 2.5.1, but the very puzzling part is that they will be “spin-offs” of the HP Slate, and as you can see in the image above, are said to look almost identical to the current Slate. Yeah, it even seems like that Ctrl + Alt + Delete button and slide-out certification tab are still present, though we’re told there’s also a Pre-like “multi-switch.” We’re highly skeptical of that image being a true render of the hardware since it’s exactly the same as older HP Slate service manual line drawings (check one out below), but according to the report, the trio of PalmPads will be thinner than the iPad with rounded edges, pack Sprint 4G connectivity, weigh 1.25-pounds, have both mini-HDMI and USB 3.0 ports, and at least one will have a 9.7-inch display. Also, just like the HP Slate, there’ll be two cameras — a front-facing 1.3 megapixel lens and a 3 megapixel rear-facing unit. Lastly, there’s said to be a straggling fourth tablet aimed at university students, though it apparently won’t be on hand at CES.

We’re obviously very intrigued by the specs — USB 3.0, really?! — and the fact that HP may not change the look and feel of the Slate all that much, but we’d be very very surprised if this were all to happen at CES. Firstly, we’ve heard a number of times that HP wasn’t planning to release a tablet until later in 2011, and to wait this long to simply slap webOS into the HP Slate’s shell seems almost foolish. What’s more, repurposing the Slate means HP either ported webOS to Intel and threw battery life out the window, or completely swapped out the Slate’s Intel-based internals for an ARM chipset without changing the exterior design at all. Needless to say, both options seem like completely inefficient and muddled ways to get a tablet onto the market.

On top of all that we feel obligated to point out that we’ve yet to receive an invitation to any sort of HP / Palm event at CES — in past years, we’ve received invitations to both Palm and HP events long before the middle of December — and we’ve been reliably informed that HP’s floor presence at the show is smaller than in recent years. That just doesn’t seem like you’d blow out a huge four-device tablet launch, does it? Rest assured that we’ll clear our schedules for an HP / Palm event in a second, but something about an early January reveal just isn’t adding up right now.

Nilay Patel contributed to this post
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Continue reading Three HP Slate-like webOS tablets coming at CES? We’re not so sure.

Three HP Slate-like webOS tablets coming at CES? We’re not so sure. originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 15:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Acer Aspire 5742G laptop with NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M graphics reviewed, es ist schnell

Acer Aspire 5742G laptop with NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M graphics reviewed, proven wunderbar

When first announced, we had fears that the new NVIDIA GeForce GT 500M-series graphics would be little more than a tweak of a clock speed here and a new sticker there, as the specs of the 540M (96 CUDA cores, 128-bit memory interface) match the 435M series bit-for-bit. But, a Notebook Journal review of the first laptop to bear NVIDIA’s latest, the Acer Aspire 5742G, finds that the performance boost is tangible. “Much stronger,” even, scoring 8315 points in 3DMark 06 — a good bit higher than the 435M scores we’ve seen. The laptop otherwise is said to be quite a powerhouse, with a massive 8GB of DDR3 memory onboard, but it’s a gentle machine too, Optimus letting the thing run cool and long (up to five hours on a charge) when you’re not getting your frag on. Indeed it’s deemed the most powerful notebook you can buy for €700, and while that translates to roughly $920, we’ll have to see what Acer decides to charge when it comes Stateside.

[Thanks, Markus]

Acer Aspire 5742G laptop with NVIDIA GeForce GT 540M graphics reviewed, es ist schnell originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 14:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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“I Get Playboy for the Pictures … of the Car of the Year”

MB-SLS-AMG.jpg

Here’s one more Car of the Year list, from Playboy. We have no problems with the winners, since they all carry a goodly dose of technology, including the over-the-top gull-wing door Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, $183,000 list, with a 563-hp V8 engine that reaches 60 mph in 3. seconds, a space-frame chassis, navigation system (an older version, alas), Bang & Olufsen audio (plus the music from the engine), and adaptive cruise control. In exchange for snug space for your legs in the cockpit, you are guaranteed quick access from the parking valet, who’ll leave the SLS AMG out front and center. Other winners after the jump:

Digital Storm’s xm15 gaming laptop rolls with NVIDIA’s Optimus

Lookin’ to straddle the fence with your next laptop purchase? Or maybe you’re just lookin’ to conserve battery life when not picking off enemies in Counter-Strike. Either way, Digital Storm’s new xm15 (not to be confused with Alienware’s M15x) can satisfy the yearning, as the $999 base configuration comes equipped with a 2.4GHz Core i5-520M, 4GB of DDR3 RAM, a 320GB HDD and NVIDIA’s GT 425M (1GB). Naturally, Intel’s integrated graphics chipset is also included for less demanding times, and if you’re in need of a little more oomph, a $1,086 build jumps to a 2.53GHz Core i5-540M and a $1,367 model steps up to a 2.8GHz Core i7-640M. ‘Course, far nicer editions are available if you’re got the cash to customize, but we’ll leave all that between you and your wallet. And whoever fills your wallet.

Continue reading Digital Storm’s xm15 gaming laptop rolls with NVIDIA’s Optimus

Digital Storm’s xm15 gaming laptop rolls with NVIDIA’s Optimus originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Dec 2010 14:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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