Hasta La Gadget!

Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology.

If you bet that Apple was going to turn the square, occasionally wrist-strapped iPod nano into a MOTOACTV-like watch that would provide a glanceable window into iPhone apps, you lost. Clearly, Apple could have gone that route. It teased in the last generation with an expanding selection of watch faces and used this generation to add Bluetooth and enable a thinner design via the new Lightning connector. Nevertheless, Apple decided to forgo the embryonic smartwatch market. Indeed, it returned to the larger, longer iPod nano school of yore, but with the single-button design of its iOS mobile devices complementing a multitouch interface.

The watch faces may be gone, but the new iPod nano regains the ability to play video while retaining photo display and Nike+ integration. It has become the equivalent of the lineup’s feature phone, albeit with a better user interface. Examined in context, the new clip-free iPod nano looks more at home as a midrange option between the tiny iPod shuffle and the now larger iPod touch.

Continue reading Switched On: The iPod’s modern family

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds, Tablets, Wireless

Switched On: The iPod’s modern family originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Sep 2012 17:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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News just came in that workers at Foxconn’s Taiyuan plant have started a riot in the wee hours in China, and that police forces are on site to control the crowd. While the motive isn’t clear, Sina Weibo user Li Tian reports that the riot isn’t related to the recent anti-Japan protests, though judging by his photos, much damage has been done in the process. The same site suffered from a strike back in March over salary dispute — the front-line workers failed to receive the promised pay rise. On a similar note, Foxconn’s Chengdu plant also had a riot in June, but that was apparently due to an argument between some workers and a local restaurant owner.

Update: We are seeing unofficial reports claiming the “2,000-people” riot was triggered by security guards hitting a worker at 10pm local time.

Update 2: According to a provincial website, Foxconn’s Taiyuan industrial park focuses on magnesium alloy components for consumer electronics, heat conduction products, LED lighting products, mobile phone products and magnesium alloy automotive components.

Update 3: An undercover report from August mentioned that the Taiyuan plant processed the back casing of the iPhone 5. It also highlighted the company’s harsh management as well as “practically compulsory” over-time work. We don’t doubt that this riot escalated due to dissatisfaction over working conditions.

Update 4: Unsurprisingly, the original Sina Weibo posts have since been deleted. At the time of publication, the author had already noticed that some of the photos were already being censored by Sina. However, the photos over at Baidu Tieba are still intact.

Update 5: Well this is interesting. Foxconn has told Reuters that there was “a fight among workers from different production lines,” but the company’s spokesperson said they’re “still investigating the cause of the fight and the number of people involved.” An official statement will be released on Monday.

Update 6: The Next Web has heard that there were no deaths in the incident. Here’s hoping those 40 injured people will recover quickly.

Continue reading Riot breaks out at Foxconn’s Taiyuan plant, reportedly over guards beating up a worker

Filed under: Misc, Apple

Riot breaks out at Foxconn’s Taiyuan plant, reportedly over guards beating up a worker originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Sep 2012 16:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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With its season premieres of Dexter and Homeland (trailers are embedded after the break) on deck for next Sunday evening, Showtime has refashioned its second screen iPad app in version 2.0 and even changed the name to reflect new features. Now dubbed Showtime Sync, it follows other network branded apps (AMC, MTV, NBC and Syfy come to mind) by focusing on pushing relevant content, viewer polls and the like to the tablet while the show plays. It syncs up automatically from the show’s audio, which should make things simple when watching via DVR, VOD and even DVD / Blu-ray or streaming (could you have Showtime Anytime streaming on one tablet synced to another one?), while promising lots of photos plus behind the scenes content when the episode ends. Hit the source link to grab the free app, how you come by the episodes you’ll have to figure out on your own.

Continue reading Showtime’s second screen iPad app hits 2.0, goes from Social to Sync

Filed under: Home Entertainment, Tablets, HD

Showtime’s second screen iPad app hits 2.0, goes from Social to Sync originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Sep 2012 15:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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While it’s not the DL-44 heavy blaster we’ve been holding out for, this Nintendo Zapper is almost as cool. Using the classic Duck Hunt light gun from the original NES, the team at North Street Labs created their own laser pistol. Using a 445nm diode, some batteries, wiring and imagination, the light gun was painstakingly put together, complete with physical safety lock and custom aim-assisting heat sink. The end result is a bona fide laser shootin’ gun, capable of not only setting alight matches from a distance, but setting the curtains on fire too (probably). See it in action in the video after the break, where it also tops out their laser meter, rating it — at least — at an eyeball popping 2W. Then tap up the source to see how — for educational purposes — you could make your own.

Continue reading NES light gun gets a laser upgrade, fulfils countless childhood dreams (video)

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

NES light gun gets a laser upgrade, fulfils countless childhood dreams (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Sep 2012 14:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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When someone asks to use my laptop for a minute, or borrow my phone to check something real quick, I’ll always say yes, but it drives me nuts. It probably dates back to my childhood, when watching my parents use the “kids’ computer” for one reason or another always terrified me because they might find something they weren’t supposed to. Like a bloody game I borrowed from a friend or…something else. More »