Hasta La Gadget!

Sadly, Pebble won’t be making its way to backers by its original September estimate, but the design team wants you to know that it’s hard at work, traveling the world to source components, running shipping tests and spending time refining the user interface in order to provide a top-notch experience once you do receive your device in the mail. To that end, Martijn, the UI designer, has dropped by Vimeo to provide us with a “sneak peek” at the device’s operation, including some demos on iOS and a connected prototyping board, using a custom tool that sends designs to the Pebble screen from any graphics program in real-time (a feature that will reportedly also be available in the SDK). From what we’ve seen, there appears to be plenty of space on the screen to show incoming calls, read emails with eight lines of text at a time, view appointment details, select songs and control volume, and, of course, see the current time. Commenters seem to be quite pleased with the design so far, and we have to agree — it’s a pretty slick UI. Jump past the break to see it in action.

Continue reading Pebble team posts UI preview, provides an early look at how you’ll interact with the E-Paper Watch

Filed under: Displays, Wireless

Pebble team posts UI preview, provides an early look at how you’ll interact with the E-Paper Watch originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Aug 2012 12:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Today the folks at Groupon have let it be known that compared to last year, they’re doing fabulously, with this financial second quarter for them bringing a net income of $28.4 million USD. Compared to last year at this time, that number is fabulous, with last year’s result for this quarter being a net loss of $107.4 million. Revenue also went up 45 percent up $568.3 million, this falling slightly short of a survey by Thomson Reuters which had analysts aiming for $573 million.

These numbers are headed upward if what Groupon projects ends up being true, with a revenue for the current quarter being $580 to $620 million. That’s just a 2 to 9 percent increase between quarters, but a massive 35 to 44 percent increase compared tot he same quarter a year ago. Aside from sales, there were some concerns shared by investors over recent controversy surrounding Groupon Goods.

With the merchandise sales known as Groupon Goods, Groupon records the total amount of cash payed for the transaction no matter what the transaction may be. When one investor expressed concern over Groupon’s way of recording its revenue here, Groupon’s chief financial officer let it be known that there’s really no other way they can do it. Child noted that if the company only reported its share of sales, competitors would learn too much about its business costs.

Child also said that if just Groupon’s share were counted here, revenue growth in the second quarter would have been just 30 percent, not 45. Not one whole heck of a lot was said on the barrage of competition Groupon now faces with Google, Amazon, and Apple’s oncoming selection of deals that are made to compete directly with their company’s model. Stay tuned as Groupon continues to make strides for growth.

[via NYTimes]

Groupon Q2 earnings bring mixed bag of news is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

After 22 years of existence, iRobot has come a long way and is still releasing new models of its home cleaning robots. The Looj 330 has been completely redesigned to improve your gutter cleaning experience.

In the vacuuming robot line, the Roomba 600 series has been updated as well with redesigned brushes and a better air system.

Two years ago, iRobot released the Looj for those who do not like heights and cleaning out gutters. The new version has the same strengths as its predecessor. It is an effective way to push out dust and branches with a remote control and a flippy-flappy front sweeper.

A nice side effect is that it’s fun to use. But, as we said in our review, using the last-gen Looj with tighter gutters could be a problem.

With the Looj 330, iRobot addressed that flaw. The robot has a lower profile design and comes with interchangeable auger flaps to fit all kinds of gutters. Moreover, there is a new automatic “clean” mode that adapts to debris. But don’t worry, the manual mode is still here for your inner child.

The battery is now a lithium-ion battery that is supposed to work well after many months spent in your garage. The robot comes with a belt clip to carry it while climbing a ladder.

Finally, a new accessory kit is now available with other auger flap sizes and a bag to put away all this stuff. It looks like a toolbox dedicated to the Looj, and you can hang it on the wall next to your other tools. The accessory kit is available for $99.99.

While the first version of the Looj cost $169, the updated version now costs $299.99 due to the new features.

iRobot has released today a new version of the entry model of its vacuuming robots as well. It is a minor revision. In addition to redesigning the look of the robot, the two main new features are a new brush design and a better air system. The entry price is $329.

With those new products, iRobot still seems dedicated to automate home maintenance.

Click to view slideshow.

Haro was made more than a few appearances on Gundam’s anime episodes and video games, but now it has landed on earth – as a vacuum cleaner. So that’s probably not the most extravagant of appliances that it can be manifested in, but it’s better than nothing, right? Plus, vacuums are actually pretty useful, anyway.

The Haro robot vacuum is actually the product of a collaboration between Sharp and Gundam Front Tokyo. The vacuums will be based on the Sharp Cocorobo and will be available in two refreshing colors: green and pink – though it wasn’t practical to make a spherical-shaped vacuum, since that wouldn’t fit under your furniture.

These snazzy-looking robotic vacuums are equipped with Cocoro Engine artificial intelligence and come with speech recognition features. Just say the word, and the Haro robotic vacuum will do your bidding.

It’s also fitted with a camera and LED lights, and comes with remote-controlled maneuverability that allows you to control it using your smartphone.

The Haro robot vacuum will be on display at the Gundam Front Tokyo in Odaiba Tokyo, so if you’re in the area, drop by and check it out.

[via New Launches]

This is half fascinating, half scary, and 100 percent freaky: Disney has invented a process to clone real humans into silicone-skinned robots. Their method analyzes the face of a target using 3D motion capture cameras. Then it calculates the precise shape, density and composition of a synthetic skin that accurately mimics that specific human’s expressions: More »