Today, we pay our respects to an old, departed, obsolete, redundant friend. Here lie the remains of Flip, a product nobody needed anymore or cared about. So, its creator decided to destroy it. Now let us bow our heads. Phew! More »
You saw the specs confirmed a little earlier today and you even got to glimpse HTC’s new Sensation in the flesh. Now it’s time to watch this 4.3-inch Android device strut its stuff on video. We’ve gotten our mitts on the Euro model and you can check out all the delicious visuals after the break.
As we mentioned in our preview of this handset, the new lock screen is perhaps the biggest (it’s certainly the most immediately apparent) change in the Sense UI that comes with the Sensation. HTC describes now describes it as “smart,” because it can both serve you with live information, like weather and those all-important stock prices, and also lets you unlock straight into an app by dragging its link into an unlocking circle. Frankly, we used the functionality so much that we almost forgot how to unlock the phone “normally.” It’s something the Inq Cloud Touch and other lower-end Android devices have previously exhibited, and a feature we really, truly appreciate.
Performance was, as you’d expect from a 1.2GHz dual-core machine, snappy all around, though we still caught some slight lag and insufficient frame rates when the Sensation was dealing with some of those yummy new 3D animations. The higher resolution (960 x 540) screen is a definite upgrade over the 800 x 480 standard that Android devices have been coalescing around and the 4.3-inch size seems like a perfect fit for it. Both the camera app and video playback in the HTC Watch app showed great speed and responsiveness to our input. Those are the things that will really harness the processing power of the Sensation.
Physically, the Sensation somehow manages to feel more compact than its predecessor atop the European jumbo phone throne, the Desire HD. The two phones both have 4.3-inch screens, but the 16:9 screen ratio of the Sensation makes it narrower, while HTC’s ingenuity has managed to make the new device marginally thinner too. All in all, a definite upgrade in ergonomics. Aluminum construction is present here as well, however the entire aluminum chunk — which spans the middle portion of the back, separating two plastic parts (each of which has its own color, giving you a tri-color rear) — is in the removable cover. This is unlike most of HTC’s aluminum “unibody” phones, which make the aluminum piece part of the phone’s framework. Hey, at least you get much easier access to what’s under the back cover. Delve into the gallery below for more!
Gallery: HTC Sensation hands-on
Continue reading HTC Sensation first video hands-on!
HTC Sensation first video hands-on! originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Apr 2011 09:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Eye-Fi's new Mobile X2 will beam photos direct to your iPad
Eye-Fi has launched yet another Wi-Fi SD card to coincide with the debut of Direct Mode, which is probably the most exciting thing to happen to SD cards since Eye-Fi first started putting tiny radios in them in the first place.
(Head over to our products site to see our exclusive review of the new Mobile X2 card.)
Direct Mode, first seen in a demo at CES in Las Vegas this January, turns the card into a peer-to-peer Wi-Fi access point. Thus, your iPad, iPhone or any other device can connect to it directly. This lets you beam your photos direct from the camera to the iDevice using Eye-Fi’s iApps.
Previously, doing this required a jailbreak and some third party software, and even then it didn’t work reliably.
Direct Mode will be available as a free firmware upgrade to existing X2 cards sometime in the next week. The new Mobile X2 comes pre-installed with Direct Mode and 8GB memory for $80, and you can pre-order it now.
You may want to think twice before hitting the “order” button, though, as the Eye-Fi Pro has just dropped in price to $100, and for the extra $20 you get RAW support, geo-tagging and hot-spot access. I don’t use my Eye-Fi Pro often as it drains the camera’s battery and the geo-tagging function is horribly clunky. I might just dust it off with this update, though.
Eye-Fi Mobile X2 [Eye-Fi]
See Also:
This article was written on July 30, 2007 by CyberNet.
Microsoft is taking a new approach to Microsoft Works 9 by offering it for free (was $49.95), but with advertisements. The suite of applications that come with the Works are an address book, calendar, database (like Excel), dictionary, PowerPoint Viewer, Word (basic functionality), and templates. Doesn’t sound too bad, huh?
Mary Jo Foley was the first to announce that an ad-supported version of Microsoft Works is coming, and she heard it straight from Satya Nadella who is the Corporate Vice President of Microsoft’s Search & Advertising Platform Group. Although Microsoft Works 9 hasn’t been released yet, it looks like it will be pretty soon. File sharing networks, such as The Pirate Bay, have had Works 9 posted since yesterday, and by this time there are plenty of people sharing it.
I didn’t download Works 9 (which at this point would be considered illegal since Microsoft hasn’t released it), but I quickly began thinking whether Microsoft was going to make it look more like Office 2007. I did some searching and came across this support site which provided some insight as to what you can expect. Here are the things that I noticed:
I have never been a die-hard fan for Microsoft Works, and I’ve hated it for more reasons than I’ve loved it. If people ever told me that they were using Microsoft Works I frequently pointed them in the direction of OpenOffice, where you can do much more at no cost (and no ads). Unless Microsoft really did some great things with the Works Suite I don’t think that my opinion will be changing, but I won’t make my judgment until it is officially released in final form.
I’m really curious as to how they plan on implementing the ads into Microsoft Works. I’m guessing it will be something placed in a toolbar towards the top of the screen, or a big banner ad along the side. What happens when a user isn’t connected to the Internet? Will the ads still be served? Your computer will more than likely be reporting back to Microsoft quite frequently when connected to the Internet, and if you don’t like the idea of that you probably shouldn’t use the software when it is released.
Is Microsoft doing this to compete with the free online suites, such as Zoho and Google Docs? Do you think it is going to be successful, or will Works continue to be a flop?
Microsoft Works Homepage (not yet updated to version 9)
Copyright © 2011 CyberNetNews.com
Related Posts:
Mobee’s Magic Bar charges Apple’s keyboard and trackpad, wirelessly
The biggest failing of Apple’s Bluetooth trackpad and keyboards is that they aren’t rechargeable. Instead, you have to keep them fed with a constant diet of AA cells. Low-discharge rechargeables do the trick, but if you have any regular NiMH cells around, they tend not to last so well for such low drainage purposes.
I also use a Magic Trackpad on either side of an aluminum Bluetooth keyboard, which means I get through the alkalines at a fair clip.
Enter the Magic Bar (of course) from Mobee. It’s a wireless charger for your Apple keyboard or Magic Trackpad. The Magic Bar comes in two parts. First is a double-AA sized battery pack, and second is the dock cradle. The cradle connects to the computer or other power source via USB, and has a channel into which the cylindrical rear section of your chosen input device snugly fits for charging.
It sounds ideal.
Then we take a closer look at the specs. A pair of regular AAs will last you for months. The battery pack that comes with the Magic Bar gives just ten days of life on a six-hour charge, thanks — presumably — to a reduction in battery size to accommodate the charging circuitry. This is the same problem as befalls Mobee’s other product, a charger for the Magic Mouse.
The Magic Bar will be available to order on May 15th. The price is still unannounced, but as a guide the Magic Mouse version — which is a lot smaller — costs €50, or $72.
The Magic Bar [Mobee]
Oh Flip, how far you’ve come. And, of course, how far you’ve fallen. Once a spunky upstart with oddly shaped camcorders, you got snapped up by Cisco in Spring of 2009 for a hefty $590 million in stock. Now, according to Pocket-lint, you (and your moustaches) are done for. Cisco CEO John Chambers says the brand is being dispatched as the company refocuses, done in by the proliferation of high-definition sensors into smartphones and PMPs and the like. We had been waiting for the company’s next products (if you’ll recall, a WiFi-enabled Mino HD hit the FCC just a few months back), but at this point, it looks like those hopes and dreams will remain unfulfilled. We’re awaiting comment from the company, and will update as it flies in.
Update: Looks like the “exit of some consumer operations” will lead to 550 employees being left out of work. If you’ll recall, the outfit reported in February that sales of consumer products sank 15 percent, while profits slipped 18 percent as margins slid for a fourth consecutive quarter. Meanwhile, Umi will be integrated into the company’s TelePresence product line and operate through an enterprise and service provider go-to-market model. In other words, Skype just ate Umi’s lunch.
Continue reading Cisco killing Flip line of camcorders, axing 550 employees in restructuring effort
Cisco killing Flip line of camcorders, axing 550 employees in restructuring effort originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Apr 2011 09:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
The gadgets will be running Symbian Anna, which Nokia says will be the standard on a number of upcoming phones, even as Windows Phone 7 looms on the horizon.
Originally posted at The Digital Home
The new StripeSpotter system reads the markings on wild animals. Naturalists and game keepers can use it to identify zebras, giraffes, tigers, and other striped beasts.
The Picker’s Wallet is like a leather holster for a guitarist
The Picker’s Wallet is a full grain leather wallet with a little pocket at the front for a guitar pick. It’s very simple, and could easily have become a tacky novelty. As it is, the handsome implementation makes for a very nice wallet indeed.
Apart from the pick-pocket (oh-ho!), there are three credit card slots and a cash pocket at the back, along with a compartment for your driver’s license, and the wallet can be had in black or brown colorways.
I’d bet than any pick-using guitarist already keeps a plectrum in his wallet. I do, and I’m not a very good player. It’s practical, as it’s pretty much the only place you can keep a pick and be sure of always having one with you.
The Picker’s Wallet costs $30.
Picker’s Wallet [Whipping Post Leather via Uncrate]
See Also:
The much-rumored HTC Pyramid is now a reality. Launching this summer with T-Mobile as the HTC Sensation 4G, the new hardware improvements are only part of the story. Read on to find out more.
Originally posted at Android Atlas
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
