Hasta La Gadget!

Livescribe is a been around for a while and can take your handwritten notes and allow you to transfer them to computer as digital files. One limitation up until now is that you had to connect the pen to your computer using a cable to upload stored notes. Livescribe has a new product called the Sky that has integrated Wi-Fi.

The new device said to be the first digital pen to integrate Wi-Fi technology and cloud services. Using the Sky and, users can take handwritten notes and then have those notes automatically uploaded to a Evernote account. The notes can be searched based on keywords and other parameters and can be shared with others.

The Sky pen is available to purchase online and in stores right now. The 2 GB version supporting about 200 hours of audio sells for $169.95. A 4 GB version is available for $199.95 and an 8 GB version sells for $249.95.

If you live in Los Angeles and didn’t get a chance to see the space shuttle Endeavour as it was towed down the streets of Los Angeles to the California Science Center, you have another chance starting today. This chance doesn’t involve the space shuttle being towed down city streets, but you will be able see the space shuttle in its new Pavilion. This Pavilion is a temporary spot for the space shuttle until the air and space wing opens in about five years.

Sadly, the inside of the space shuttle isn’t open for exploration. However, the California Science Center does have a virtual display that lets you check out what the inside of the space shuttle looks like. The space shuttle galley and the space toilet were both removed and are being displayed separately.

I wonder how exactly they cleaned that space toilet before putting it on display. Many an astronaut rear end has occupied the throne over the years. The exhibit does place the shuttle far enough off the ground that visitors can walk underneath to see the tiles, including some that were damaged during the shuttle’s final 25th mission.

When the official exhibit is completed in approximately five years, the space shuttle will be displayed in a vertical position as if it’s ready to launch. It will also be displayed with its external tank and twin solid rocket boosters. I like the idea of the space shuttle in a horizontal position making it easy for visitors to check out.

[via LA Times]

Space shuttle Endeavour exhibit to open today is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Verizon Wireless will be playing nice with the Windows Phone 8 mobile operating system, and the first handset to roll out with Verizon livery would come in the form of the Nokia Lumia 822 – which is a variant of the stock Lumia 820. The change in model number makes it easier for folks to quickly identify with just which mobile carrier the device is on, and Verizon claims that the Nokia Lumia 822 was designed specifically for Verizon’s fast and ubiquitous 4G LTE network – which incidentally, they are also the US’ largest mobile carrier at the moment.

Specially designed for simplicity and ease-of-use, the Lumia 822 will be accompanied by exclusive Nokia features such as Nokia Maps, Nokia Drive, and Nokia City Lens, helping you get around in a jiffy with a technological slant. The bright 4.3-inch display with ClearBlack technology, coupled with a fast yet efficient 1.5GHz dual-core processor, ought to pack enough processing power for the average smartphone user. Oh yeah, just in case the 16GB of internal memory is not enough for your portable storage needs, there is also a microSD memory card slot that allows you to expand that further by another 32GB.

Charging its 1800mAh battery can be done the traditional way – through plugging in a standard issue charging to get it going, but if you want to be a wee bit more future forward, there is always the wireless charging route made possible thanks to an accessory (purchased separately, of course) known as the Nokia Wireless Charging Shell. The Lumia 822 will also play nice with other accessories such as the Nokia DT-900 Wireless Charging Plate and the JBL PowerUp Wireless Charging Speaker.

In terms of imaging, the Nokia Lumia 822 will boast of an 8-megapixel shooter that has advanced Carl Zeiss optics and dual LED flash at the back, while the front-facing camera sports 720p HD resolution recording capability, and there are also a pair of integrated microphones for superior audio recording.

Verizon will make available the Nokia Lumia 822 in white, black and grey colors before Thanksgiving for $99.99 on a new two-year contract if you are interested.

Press Release
[ Nokia Lumia 822 announced for Verizon Wireless copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

Never count Microsoft out of the game, especially if it has to do with operating systems – it is their bread and butter after all, and even on the mobile platform, they do have a considerable amount of firepower never mind that right now, they are tussling it out with RIM for a tiny slice of the mobile operating system pie which is dominated by iOS and Android at the moment. The latest announcement of the Windows Phone 8 smartphone operating system happened yesterday, and it does look like the masses will be spoilt for choice if you have yet to jump aboard the smartphone bandwagon, or want to make a switch from either iOS, Android or BlackBerry OS.

We will take a look at some of the more notable features found on Windows Phone 8, starting with Live Tiles that function as the heart and soul of Windows Phone – and no other device has them at the moment. You are able to arrange the iconic Start screen just they way you want with Live Tiles, pinning your favorite people, apps, music, games, and photos amongst others. Not only that, there are three sizes of Live Tiles as well as 20 bright color options including cobalt, crimson and lime to choose from, truly personalizing your handset.

It is also the only smartphone to come with Live Apps that delivers information right to the Start screen, including the Groupon deal of the day, flight information and news headlines. This also means Facebook is capable of delivering real-time information to your lock screen with an updated wallpaper, now how about that? Windows Phone Store will also not fall short on the apps department, boasting 120,000 apps to choose from, ranging from “Angry Birds Star Wars” to “Cut the Rope Experiments,” “Disney’s Where’s My Water,” “LivingSocial,” “Temple Run,” and “Urbanspoon” amongst others. Pandora will also arrive on Windows Phone in early 2013 with one year of ad-free music, now how about that?

Kid’s Corner might be a winner for parents whose kids want to use their smartphones – it lets you share your device without having them fool around with the other settings. Sort of like a user account on your smartphone, that’s what Kid’s Corner is all about. As for being selective in your communications with certain friends, the Rooms feature lets you share and chat with one particular group instead of the entire social network, thanks to the creation of private groups of folks who also use Windows Phone 8.

Are you all stoked up for a Windows Phone 8 experience, and which device would you settle for?

Press Release
[ Windows Phone 8 debuts copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

Although Microsoft’s Windows 8 launch will very likely go down in history as a positive turning point for the company, it wasn’t without it glitches. Specifically, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that Microsoft reps in Taipei found it difficult to navigate their own OS due to hardware issues with their demo devices — namely, new all-in-one PCs from Acer and ASUS. There were said to be issues with opening and closing apps, possibly due to the implementation of touch on such large screen sizes of 23-inches and over.

Well, we’ve just been fingers-on with both the 23-inch Acer Aspire 5600U and the 27-inch 7600U in London, and we can report that the touch interface was totally fluid. Moreover, the LCD displays maintained their natural colors very well when switching from an almost vertical 80-degree orientation to an almost-flat 30 degrees. These models come with Ultrabook innards starting with low-voltage versions of the Core i5 and the NVIDIA 630M, and they also come with HDMI-in and optional TV tuners so they can be used in a living room or kitchen situation. Pricing in Europe begins at 1,000 Euros for the 23-inch model, rising to 2,000 Euros for the full-spec 27-incher. Check out the video after the break and you’ll see that we asked our Acer rep for his view on what happened in Taiwan and, although he didn’t have first-hand knowledge of the event in question, he insisted that it was a storm in a teacup. Given our experience of the devices so far, we’re inclined to believe him.

Continue reading Acer’s Windows 8 all-in-ones cause big fuss in Taiwan, we go hands-on to find out why (video)

Filed under: Desktops, Acer

Acer’s Windows 8 all-in-ones cause big fuss in Taiwan, we go hands-on to find out why (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 30 Oct 2012 07:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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