Hasta La Gadget!

Remember the rumors of a new HTC flagship Android phone that started making the rounds last month? The ones bolstered by questionable leaked image after questionable leaked image? As it happens, the device that inspired all those rumors — now known as the HTC J Butterfly — was officially revealed at a recent press event in Tokyo, and it seems just as impressive as the rumors made it out to be.

Of course, one of the biggest draws in a device like the J Butterfly is its oft-rumored display (which has been revealed to be a Super LCD 3 panel). It’s just as real as those sketchy early reports claimed, and it manages reach a downright crazy pixel density of 440ppi — to put that in perspective, the iPhone 5’s Retina Display only manages to pack in a relatively scant 325 pixels per inch.

The display is sure to get most of the love here, but the rest of the device’s spec sheet is nothing to sneeze at either. The J Butterfly packs a 1.5GHz quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro chipset (the same seen in LG’s new Optimus G flagship), 2GB of RAM, while an ImageSense-enhanced 8-megapixel rear camera rounds out the package. HTC also notes that the device runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean under a heaping helping of Sense 4+, though it’s not exactly the custom UI you’re likely used to seeing — The Verge’s Sam Byford points out that the interface looks more like the one seen on the HTC Rhyme rather than on any One series device.

In case you just heard your wallet groan in anticipation (mine does that pretty often), know that you may be in for a wait when it comes to availability. On-site HTC representatives told The Verge that the J Butterfly itself isn’t slated to make a world tour, but its ridiculous 1080p display will. What remains to be seen is whether or not one of the devices to run with that superlative screen will fly under Google’s Nexus banner — it’s nearly impossible to deny the existence of the LG-sourced Nexus 4, but early rumors also claimed that what we now know as the J Butterfly would see the light of day as the so-called Nexus 5.

Ever fancied a look inside one of Google’s cavernous server farms? Given the security issues, the company isn’t likely to just let anyone mooch around — but understands if you’re curious. That’s why it’s adding a special collection to its Street View data that lets you wander inside without a big trek to Iowa, Belgium or Finland. If you’d like to sample some of the delights, you can check out our gallery or head down past the break to get a video tour of the facility in Lenoir, NC.

[Image Credit: Connie Zhou / Google]

Continue reading Google takes us inside their data centers, shows you where the internet lives (video)

Filed under: Storage, Internet, Google

Google takes us inside their data centers, shows you where the internet lives (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Oct 2012 09:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ah, modern day gadgets have one major shortfall – the battery life. Smartphones are one of the serial offenders when it comes to low battery life just when you need it the most, as not being able to watch a movie on your iPad or iPod touch is not too bad a situation to be in, but when you need to make or receive that crucial call and your battery dies out on you, that is when you start going around tearing your hair out. Here is a modular solution that you would definitely be interested in if you have had your phone die on you one too many times – the Exovolt Plus Stackable Battery Pack, which has been touted to be the first of its kind in the world. Pricing ranges from $49.99 to $89.99, where it delivers unlimited expandable battery capacity with a 5,200mAh lithium polymer battery in each layer.

If you know that you are going to be gone for an entire week where there is absolutely no way for you to juice up your smartphone simply because the place you are headed off to is so far removed from civilization, no one there has heard of McDonald’s before. Just snap on more and more sub batteries until you think that is enough, and you’re good to go. Just remember that the “sub” batteries require the “main” battery to operate.

[ Exovolt Plus Stackable Battery Pack copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

Google has thrown open the virtual doors to its data centers, adding behind-the-scenes views of the sprawling, server-filled warehouses in a new “Where the Internet lives” feature. “Our first priority is the privacy and security of your data, and we go to great lengths to protect it, keeping our sites under close guard” the search giant says, but still allowed photographer Connie Zhou to wander the aisles snapping the hardware and the people responsible for it.

The digital walkthrough is split into three sections – tech, people, and places – and while there isn’t a huge amount of technical detail, the photos are certainly eye-catching. Rack upon rack of caseless ‘boards, with eye-catching loops of colored cabling splashed across them.

Meanwhile, Wired‘s Steven Levy got to go one better than browsing an online gallery, and walked through the hallowed data halls himself. Along the way he picked up a few details, such as how a massive room full of interlinked machines might not necessarily be the best way to serve up information.

“It would be slow and burdensome to have millions of people grabbing videos from Google’s few data centers. So Google installs its own server racks in various outposts of its network—mini data centers, sometimes connected directly to ISPs like Comcast or AT&T—and stuffs them with popular videos. That means that if you stream, say, a Carly Rae Jepsen video, you probably aren’t getting it from Lenoir or the Dalles but from some colo just a few miles from where you are” Steven Levy, Wired

Google’s comments about the sanctity of user data come at a tricky time for the company. EU privacy regulators demanded yesterday that the company modify its privacy policies after the unified T&Cs came into effect earlier this year, arguing that the system was insufficiently clear to individual users as to how their data might be used or shared.

Convertible furniture is nothing new, but the Viera manages to make a distinct mark in an already well-explored territory. It’s basically a foldable chair that can be re-arranged into different positions to suit your preferences.

A group headed by designer Sergio Aleman did some research and discovered that the equilateral triangle was the best shape to use since it allowed for more folding opportunities and configurations. They set about to making a prototype by cutting soy base foam triangles supported by polycarbonate honeycomb which were then wrapped in felt foam.

The result is what you see above and in the photos in the gallery below.

Frankly, I’d love to see the Viera turned into a reality (as in, commercially) because it looks like it can replace a lot of the other, bulkier furniture that are currently available today. What do you think?

[via Coroflot]