Mar 09

Apple posts iPad 2 guided tour videos

Posted in: airplay, app, Apple, demo, ios, ipad, ipad 2, Ipad2, Today's Chili, video

Although the iPad 2 is launching in two days, Apple wants to make sure that you’re filled with knowledge for March 11th. Sure, we showed you pretty much everything you wanted to know about the company’s second slate, but if you want more, they’ve got you covered. You can feast your eyes on demos of Garageband, FaceTime, iMovie, as well as other first party apps for the new iPad — these 14 videos should keep you occupied for a while. If you want to properly prepare yourself for Friday, hit the source link to watch them all.

Apple posts iPad 2 guided tour videos originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 09 Mar 2011 20:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 08

Gadget Lab Notes: Nokia’s X1-00 Is Designed for Developing Communities

Posted in: airplay, audio, keyboard, Miscellaneous, mobile phone, nokia, privacy, Today's Chili

The Nokia X1-00 has a large back speaker for sharing audio with friends and family

Gadget Lab Notes is an eclectic roundup of gadget news briefs and intriguing products that catch our eye.

Nokia’s Bright Orange X1-00 Is Designed For Developing Markets
Retailing for a mere $48, the Nokia X1-00 is built for music fans and communities in entry level growth markets. It’s got a large, powerful speaker on the back that can play audio over the noisy sounds of traffic and other loud ambient noise, and a 3.5mm jack allows it to be plugged in to headphones or speakers. It features five phone books, so the phone could be shared among folks with differing contacts, and also has a built-in flashlight and an impressive 61-day battery life.

Nokia X1-00 Is Here [Nokia Conversations via Slashgear]

Private Conversation in a Public Place? Use the Yamaha VSP-1
For the James Bonds and Jason Bournes of the world, privacy is key when engaging in phone conversations (or just about any conversation). Yamaha has developed the VSP-1, a speaker-like Sound Wall device that can make your dialogue up to 89% less audible to passersby. The VSP-1 works by playing different sounds to cover your voice, such as beach, forest or river.

Yamaha Releases VSP-1 System [Akihabara News]

Pioneer Adds A/V Receivers to VSX Line, Including an AirPlay Compatible Model
Pioneer added four new A/V receivers to their VSX line today. With an optional Bluetooth adapter, they become smartphone compatible and can stream audio. The highest end model, the VSX-1021, also features AirPlay compatibility. The receivers range in price from $249 to $549 and include internet radio and DLNA. For controlling the system and your music playlists, custom Pioneer iOS apps such as Air Jam can be downloaded.

Pioneer Announces New Receivers [Crunchgear]



Wheel Around On The Barebones EX Trike
If you’re looking for a little more adventure than your traditional two or three-wheeled vehicle provides, perhaps The EX is right for you. The EX is nothing but a metal frame, modified bike parts, 3 wheels, and some custom CNC milled joints. Oh, and dual 18-volt screwdrivers as an engine (bringing along some spare batteries on your ride would probably be prudent). Speeds top out at about 18mph.

The EX [Nils Ferber via Oh Gizmo]

Easy, Endless Poking With the SNAK Social Keyboard’s Facebook Hotkeys
If you need this keyboard, you really, really have a Facebook problem. It’s got 19 Facebook-specific hotkeys that let you quickly jump to your photos, events, inbox, and more. What if someone else uses your computer and keyboard? No worries: When you sign out, they keys become disabled. The Windows-compatible Social Network Access Keyboard (SNAK) can be yours for $30.
SNAK [Social Keyboards via Engadget]


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Mar 08

Apple’s iOS Update Speeds Web Browsing, Expands AirPlay

Posted in: airplay, Apple, ios, ipad, iPhone, ipod touch, operating system, Phones, Today's Chili

The iPhone's multitasking drawer contains a playback widget for controlling audio apps. Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com

The next operating system upgrade for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad is landing sometime this week, and customers can look forward to major improvements in Safari performance and AirPlay media streaming.

Wired.com reported on most of the changes in iOS 4.3 when the beta released January. The newest additions that Apple announced last week included a significant speed boost to the Safari web browser, using the new Nitro JavaScript engine, which should make JavaScript run twice as fast.

Additionally, the AirPlay streaming feature has been expanded so that you can stream video played inside Safari or a third-party app to an Apple TV. Previously, AirPlay video streaming was limited to the Videos app on the iPad.

Wired.com got an early look at the iOS 4.3 gold master (usually the official version that ships), and it’s pretty slick.

Benchmark tests Wired.com ran using SunSpider showed a significant speed boost in Safari’s JavaScript performance between iOS 4.2 and iOS 4.3.

An iPhone 4 running iOS 4.3 completed the test in 4,340 milliseconds, and an iPhone 4 running iOS 4.2 completed the same test in 10,626.4 milliseconds (fewer milliseconds is better). That makes iOS 4.3 about 59 percent faster than iOS 4.2 with JavaScript rendering. (See below the jump for the full benchmark results.)

So when iOS 4.3 ships this week, iPad 2 owners won’t be the only people getting a big speed boost. A significant increase in JavaScript performance means web browsing on JavaScript-heavy sites such as Google’s mobile apps (Voice, Docs and Reader), Facebook and others should be zippier.

As for AirPlay, I used an iPhone 4 to play a YouTube video and was able to hit the AirPlay button to send it to straight to the Apple TV 2. Being able to AirPlay YouTube is pretty nifty, because using the Apple TV’s remote control to browse YouTube is a huge pain in the rear; it’s much easier to search for YouTube clips using the iPhone. iOS 4.3’s expanded AirPlay support will be a nice addition for anyone with the new Apple TV.

The iOS 4.3 is due out sometime this week, possibly as soon as Wednesday, according to well-sourced Apple blogger Jim Dalrymple.

SunSpider results on iOS 4.2
============================================
RESULTS (means and 95% confidence intervals)
——————————————–
Total: 10626.4ms +/- 6.8%
——————————————–

3d: 1437.6ms +/- 6.8%
cube: 443.0ms +/- 14.8%
morph: 534.6ms +/- 5.3%
raytrace: 460.0ms +/- 2.0%

access: 1635.8ms +/- 33.6%
binary-trees: 146.2ms +/- 5.8%
fannkuch: 671.2ms +/- 0.6%
nbody: 429.6ms +/- 32.4%
nsieve: 388.8ms +/- 106.4%

bitops: 877.0ms +/- 0.5%
3bit-bits-in-byte: 180.8ms +/- 0.8%
bits-in-byte: 185.2ms +/- 2.7%
bitwise-and: 163.2ms +/- 0.6%
nsieve-bits: 347.8ms +/- 0.5%

controlflow: 143.0ms +/- 1.1%
recursive: 143.0ms +/- 1.1%

crypto: 643.6ms +/- 2.9%
aes: 295.0ms +/- 2.8%
md5: 163.6ms +/- 1.2%
sha1: 185.0ms +/- 11.1%

date: 744.8ms +/- 3.3%
format-tofte: 377.2ms +/- 3.5%
format-xparb: 367.6ms +/- 3.1%

math: 1134.6ms +/- 0.9%
cordic: 425.6ms +/- 1.7%
partial-sums: 372.0ms +/- 0.6%
spectral-norm: 337.0ms +/- 2.6%

regexp: 1444.8ms +/- 1.1%
dna: 1444.8ms +/- 1.1%

string: 2565.2ms +/- 21.6%
base64: 355.8ms +/- 4.3%
fasta: 422.0ms +/- 15.0%
tagcloud: 458.6ms +/- 18.8%
unpack-code: 744.8ms +/- 5.6%
validate-input: 584.0ms +/- 70.2%

====

SunSpider results on iOS 4.3

============================================
RESULTS (means and 95% confidence intervals)
——————————————–
Total: 4340.1ms +/- 0.7%
——————————————–

3d: 557.6ms +/- 1.6%
cube: 213.5ms +/- 3.4%
morph: 136.0ms +/- 0.9%
raytrace: 208.1ms +/- 0.7%

access: 497.2ms +/- 2.4%
binary-trees: 122.2ms +/- 3.3%
fannkuch: 138.7ms +/- 3.0%
nbody: 164.2ms +/- 4.7%
nsieve: 72.1ms +/- 2.1%

bitops: 219.2ms +/- 2.2%
3bit-bits-in-byte: 28.9ms +/- 10.4%
bits-in-byte: 53.6ms +/- 2.3%
bitwise-and: 64.5ms +/- 3.3%
nsieve-bits: 72.2ms +/- 2.3%

controlflow: 25.7ms +/- 4.4%
recursive: 25.7ms +/- 4.4%

crypto: 246.7ms +/- 0.5%
aes: 147.1ms +/- 0.4%
md5: 58.5ms +/- 1.7%
sha1: 41.1ms +/- 2.2%

date: 588.8ms +/- 4.2%
format-tofte: 277.3ms +/- 0.9%
format-xparb: 311.5ms +/- 7.2%

math: 462.2ms +/- 1.1%
cordic: 167.2ms +/- 0.8%
partial-sums: 206.6ms +/- 2.8%
spectral-norm: 88.4ms +/- 1.2%

regexp: 115.4ms +/- 3.5%
dna: 115.4ms +/- 3.5%

string: 1627.3ms +/- 0.9%
base64: 226.3ms +/- 3.2%
fasta: 227.8ms +/- 0.8%
tagcloud: 310.8ms +/- 0.8%
unpack-code: 554.2ms +/- 0.3%
validate-input: 308.2ms +/- 1.9%


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Mar 08

Apple finds another AirPlay partner in Pioneer’s VSX-1021 AV receiver

Posted in: airplay, Apple, Today's Chili, video

You may have laughed off the assertion made by BridgeCo‘s VP of Sales and Marketing back at CES, but the man’s looking downright prophetic now. Apple has just nailed down yet another major player in its efforts to take over the streaming media world with AirPlay, as Pioneer’s VSX-1021 launched today as the first of eight AirPlay receivers the company has planned for 2011. It’s a 7.1 channel affair that supports wireless playback of iTunes libraries so long as you fork over a few extra dollars for the AS-WL300 wireless LAN adapter. You’ll also need an iPhone, iPad, iPod touch or a Mac / PC with iTunes 10.1+, and the new AVR should show up immediately as an available AirPlay device. This particular one will sell for $549, and if you’re looking to spring, you should also know about Air Jam and iControlAV2 — two new (free) apps that turn iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch running iOS 4.2 into sources for the aforesaid AVR. The latter actually enables full-on control of the receiver from an iOS device, while the former should do a fine job of handling the song selection during your next part. Hit up the source links for the nitty-gritty, and if you venture down beyond the break, you’ll find overview videos for the device shown above as well as the Air Jam app.

Continue reading Apple finds another AirPlay partner in Pioneer’s VSX-1021 AV receiver

Apple finds another AirPlay partner in Pioneer’s VSX-1021 AV receiver originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 08 Mar 2011 09:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 08

JBL’s On Air Wireless AirPlay speaker dock gets official, unavailable to purchase

Posted in: airplay, Apple, charger, iPhone, ipod touch, IpodTouch, LCD, radio, speaker, speakers, Today's Chili

When we first peeked this AirPlay-enabled speaker dock, we were admittedly excited to see how things would turn out after it made rounds through the FCC. JBL just tossed up the splash page for the On Air Wireless speaker and we’ve gotta say — it looks to be a promising means of streaming your jams. The system connects wirelessly to your AirPlay-enabled Mac and iOS device on 4.2 or later and packs a screen that’ll display the track info of the song you’re rocking out to. What’s more, the rounded grill sports a dual alarm clock, FM radio, and a USB port for future firmware updates. As you might have surmised by now, the dock is not yet available for purchase and there’s no word on price. If you’re interested, though, be sure to hit the source link, sign up for more info and get ready to headbang this spring.

JBL’s On Air Wireless AirPlay speaker dock gets official, unavailable to purchase originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 08 Mar 2011 07:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 08

Philips Fidelio SoundSphere WiFi speakers get AirPlayed

Posted in: airplay, Apple, philips, Today's Chili, wifi

Add one more to the list of manufacturers supporting Apple’s AirPlay. Philips just announced its Fidelio SoundSphere speakers that support WiFi music streaming over Apple’s new media sharing “standard” from your PC or Mac iTunes library or from any iOS device. Unfortunately, Philips isn’t providing any useful detail about these speakers with free-floating tweeters and 360-degree sound. But hey, if you’re the kind who buys speakers based on appearance alone, then the €799 (about $1,100 — nearly twice as much as the Zeppelin Air) price tag for the speaker pair + dock should be no problem when they hit Europe sometime in May. Press release and bonus pic after the break.

Continue reading Philips Fidelio SoundSphere WiFi speakers get AirPlayed

Philips Fidelio SoundSphere WiFi speakers get AirPlayed originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 08 Mar 2011 05:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 02

Apple iOS 4.3 coming March 11 with iPad 2, includes new AirPlay features and FaceTime

Posted in: airplay, Apple, breaking news, ios, ipad, ipad 2, Ipad2, iPhone, ipod touch, IpodTouch, Today's Chili
https://i0.wp.com/www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com/media/2011/03/20110302-10322071--img4602.jpg

Along with the iPad 2, Apple’s releasing the final version of iOS 4.3, which features the Nitro Javscript engine from Safari on OS X, new iTunes Home Sharing features that let you play content from desktop iTunes over WiFi, and the updated suite of AirPlay features from the betas — including the ability for App Store apps to share audio and video. Apple’s also finalizing the new option that lets you assign the side switch to either rotation lock or mute, and it’s adding Personal Hotspot support. There’s also those rumored iOS versions of Photo Booth and FaceTime for the new cameras. It’ll be a free download for all iPads, the GSM iPhone 4, the iPhone 3GS and the third- and fourth-gen iPod touch when it’s released on March 11. When will it hit the Verizon iPhone 4? We don’t know yet.

Gallery: iOS 4.3 revealed

Apple iOS 4.3 coming March 11 with iPad 2, includes new AirPlay features and FaceTime originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Mar 2011 13:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Feb 24

Xtreamer Prodigy features AirPlay support, USB 3, and a GUI that will delight fans of Flash (and fans of GUIs)

Posted in: adobe, airplay, Apple, flash, media streamer, MediaStreamer, Today's Chili
Looks like the folks at Xtreamer have a few tricks up their sleeves! Following hot on the heels of the company’s Ultra HTPC comes Xtreamer Prodigy, a Realtek 1185-based media player and streamer that sports USB 3.0 connectivity, 256MB RAM, 512MB NAND flash, HDMI, an integral IR remote control, a multi-card reader and a 3.5-inch HDD bay. But the real fun here (or so we’ve heard) is the Adobe Flash GUI, as well as support for such services as Apple AirPlay, Mediafly, Google Talk, Last FM, Pandora, Facebook, and more. The rumored price is €119, which will have to suffice until we find something more concrete (which should be about five days from now). Get a closer look below.

Gallery: Xtreamer Prodigy

Xtreamer Prodigy features AirPlay support, USB 3, and a GUI that will delight fans of Flash (and fans of GUIs) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 20:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jan 25

iOS 4.3-ready apps begin turning up in the App Store

Posted in: airplay, app, Apple, ios, ipad, iPhone, IphoneApp, ipod touch, IpodTouch, Today's Chili
Apple still isn’t offering much of a hint about an iOS 4.3 release date — other than a busier than usual beta schedule — but it looks like we could now be one step closer to a general roll out. What appears to be the first app that takes advantage of some iOS 4.3-specific features has now garnered Apple’s approval and turned up in the App Store, which would seem to suggest that there’s no more major changes or bugs that need to be ironed out (though that can certainly always change). The app itself is Matthew Gallagher’s StreamToMe, which runs $2.99 and now incorporates the AirPlay video support that has come to apps in the a latest revision of the OS — hit up the source link below to check it out for yourself.

iOS 4.3-ready apps begin turning up in the App Store originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Jan 2011 14:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jan 22

AirPlay video support comes to Linux courtesy of Totem media player plug-in

Posted in: airplay, Apple, Linux, streaming, streaming video, StreamingVideo, Today's Chili, video

This one’s about as unofficial as it gets, but Linux users do now have a relatively easy way to receive and play video streamed to their PC via Apple’s AirPlay. To get things going, all you have to do is download a plug-in for the Totem media player (which ships with most popular Linux distributions), install it in the usual Linux fashion, and then start streaming video to your Linux PC with AirPlay just as if it were an Apple TV. That’s it. Hit up the link below to find the plug-in, along with some more detailed installation instructions if you need them.

AirPlay video support comes to Linux courtesy of Totem media player plug-in originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 22 Jan 2011 09:38:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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