Hasta La Gadget!

How do you spice up a standalone GPS in a market that just isn’t pining for ’em any longer? If you’re Magellan, that’s easy — you take a smartphone, gimp voice and app capabilities and, voila!, you have the RoadMate 5175T-LM. Eerily similar to its Garmin rival, this slab boasts a full WVGA display, WiFi (you know, for that inbuilt web browser) and AAA travel planning. Purportedly, those fine, fine amenities will enable you to “go from the car to the boardroom to the hotel,” and maybe even on that cross-country trip, too. Judging by its built-in tour guide functionality and heavy emphasis on the suit-and-tie demo, we’d say Magellan’s aiming this one at the fifty and over set. This shortlist of features doesn’t come cheap, either — with a $299.99 price tag, we’d understand if your wallet was eyeing greener pastures. Full PR gush after the break — you’re welcome, GPS enthusiasts.

Continue reading Magellan RoadMate 5175T-LM connects to WiFi, plans your Great American vacation

Magellan RoadMate 5175T-LM connects to WiFi, plans your Great American vacation originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 23 Jun 2011 22:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Voltaic makes tons of solar-charging gear, from laptop bags to backpacks, but what are those living in a post-PC world to do? Well, the company just unveiled its Spark Tablet Case — a thin, padded tote designed for your iPad or other slate that can generate 8-watts of power in sunlight. In addition to directly charging your iPad in about 10 hours, it can also bank the Sun’s rays in a universal battery pack, for use when those fluffy things in the sky don’t cooperate with your outdoor computing schedule. Optionally, the included V39 USB Battery can be charged (as you may have guessed) via USB, for extra insurance. The Spark is available now for $299 and extra battery packs can be had for $99. Check out the gallery below and the PR after the break.

Continue reading Voltaic Spark Tablet Case powers your pad with the Sun’s rays

Voltaic Spark Tablet Case powers your pad with the Sun’s rays originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 23 Jun 2011 21:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The 500-Year History of Contact Lenses | We’ve come a long way since DaVinci’s “animal jelly” experiments

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Leaked documents show that the carrier is indeed getting rid of the unlimited data plan.

Originally posted at Dialed In

Every other year, aviation fanatics gather in the city of baguettes and burlesque to order airplanes, gawk at concept vehicles, and dream about a better future. The D-Dalus, one of the more bizarre concepts at this year’s Paris Air Show, from Austrian research company IAT21, stays aloft using quad contra-rotating cylindrical turbines — and perhaps a touch of magic. Theoretically creating a completely new category of aircraft, the carbon fiber D-Dalus maneuvers by altering the angle of its blades, giving it virtually limitless abilities to launch, hover, and turn in any direction. An aircraft with this level of flexibility is more suited for military use than consumer applications (you won’t be flying home from Paris in a freakish black tube), but could become a key asset for everything from freight transport to search and rescue operations — on land, at sea, or even in a burning building. We haven’t come across any proof that the Dalus can actually fly, but hit up the source link to see the craft suspended from the show floor ceiling in Paris.

D-Dalus aircraft lacks fixed-wing or rotor, looks like flying steamroller originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 23 Jun 2011 19:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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