Hasta La Gadget!

If your company doesn’t have a camera with WiFi sharing somewhere in your lineup, many will say you’re not even in the photography game. Fujifilm is definitely playing: welcome the FinePix F800EXR, its first camera with wireless sharing as part and parcel of the experience. Its centerpiece is a free Photo Receiver app for Android and iOS devices that will catch as many 30 images at a time from an ad hoc WiFi camera link. The matching (if unceremoniously named) Camera Application can return the gesture by geotagging shots as well as finding existing photos on the map. Fujifilm will even pre-Instagram the photos through six new on-camera filters for those who can’t stand posting images online without at least some Lomo or tilt-shift effects thrown in.

As for the actual camera part of the camera, Fujifilm is keeping afloat in the competitive waters with a 16-megapixel, CMOS-based EXR sensor that can widen the dynamic range or lower the noise if sheer resolution isn’t all that vital. An equally noteworthy 20x (25-500mm equivalent) lens out in front will zoom in a lot closer than any phone camera — well, most of them. We’re otherwise looking at the technology we’d expect in a point-and-shoot of this class, such as full-resolution burst shooting at up to eight frames per second, 1080p video and a RAW mode for image quality sticklers. Stores should have the F800EXR in August for about $350, or about as much as the Galaxy Nexus that just might serve as its companion.

Continue reading Fujifilm unwraps FinePix F800EXR camera with wireless sharing to Android, iOS

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Fujifilm unwraps FinePix F800EXR camera with wireless sharing to Android, iOS originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Jul 2012 01:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Qantas just upped the ante for its Australian counterparts Jetstar and Virgin in the airline tablet wars. Following an earlier trial, the transporter plans to hand out free iPads to all of its passengers — not just the high-flyers in business-class, like with Jetstar’s iPads or Virgin’s Galaxy Tabs — on every Boeing 767 aircraft in the fleet. The rollout, which starts in the last quarter of the year, will let those bored in the back seats watch an equally free 200 hours’ worth of QStreaming audio and video. Don’t confuse the gesture with a sudden bout of altruism on Qantas’ part, however. The pound-and-a-half weight of a current iPad sheds the tremendous amount of weight that would normally be needed for a conventional in-flight entertainment system built into the headrest, which on a typical 375-seat 767 could see the iPads pay for themselves within years, if not sooner. The option will give many Aussies something to look forward to for their domestic summer vacations. In the meantime, hop past the break for a Qantas video explaining how QStreaming worked during the original trial run.

Continue reading Qantas to hand out free iPads to all passengers on Boeing 767s, save fuel and our sanity (video)

Filed under: Tablet PCs, Transportation

Qantas to hand out free iPads to all passengers on Boeing 767s, save fuel and our sanity (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 Jul 2012 15:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember that partnership between OnStar and RelayRides we wrote about last March? Well it’s finally coming to fruition today, with the peer-to-peer car sharing service launching support for remote door unlocking via OnStar’s proprietary API. As a result, RelayRides members with OnStar-enabled vehicles no longer have to exchange keys in person if they so choose. Another benefit is that participants can list their automobile on RelayRides directly from their OnStar account — renters then benefit from the added safety and security that comes with OnStar.

We had the chance to test an early version of the functionality on a Chevy Volt at SXSW a few months ago and it worked pretty much as advertised. There was a bit of a delay between the time we sent the unlock command from RelayRides’ website on the demo iPad and the moment the doors actually unlocked on the car, but we’re told this has been significantly improved since our hands-on. Of course, RelayRides also supports remote unlocking via text message. Take a look at the galleries below then hit the break for our hands-on video, RelayRides’ video and OnStar’s PR.

Continue reading OnStar seals partnership with RelayRides, makes renting out your car even easier (hands-on video)

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablet PCs, Transportation, Software

OnStar seals partnership with RelayRides, makes renting out your car even easier (hands-on video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 Jul 2012 07:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple is about to complete an important part of the puzzle for the new iPad’s world rollout: it just confirmed that its Retina display-packing tablet will reach mainland China on July 20th. The company isn’t specific about local pricing, but it’s promising both WiFi and cellular versions at its own stores and through resellers. The company is keen to avoid some of the mobs and scalping it’s seen in the past and will open reservations for pickup starting on July 19th — although the company is unusually limiting the reservation window to just three hours each day, between 9AM and noon. No matter how it shakes out, the official Chinese expansion is likely to keep the number of slingshot-delivered imports to a minimum.

Update: As some commenters have noted, the Chinese launch is helped mostly by the truce with Proview. The current iPad design has been certified since March; Apple isn’t about to mention Proview by name in the release, but it likely wasn’t keen on risking another store ban when it could just avoid the battle altogether.

Continue reading Apple launches new iPad in China on July 20th (update: here’s why)

Filed under: Tablet PCs

Apple launches new iPad in China on July 20th (update: here’s why) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 10 Jul 2012 08:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple has already sought to patent some elaborate water damage detection methods, but it’s also a fan of the classics. That must be why it’s still attempting to patent a water detection method that it’s been seeking since December 2006, just a month before the iPhone went public. The concept is a simple one that you’ll find in many iPhones (and other iOS devices) so far: water-reactive, color-changing tape positioned in a device such that the Genius Bar staffer can see that your device took a dive in the swimming pool without having to tear the phone open. Mercifully, the patent factors in a membrane to prevent an overly humid day from triggering a false positive. There’s still no immediate clue as to whether or not Apple will receive the patent, which strikes us as odd for a technology that’s been used in the field for so long — not that the company has needed the USPTO’s blessing to void the warranty (or offer a rare free replacement) for more than a few waterlogged iPhones over the past five years.

Update: After a little fine-tooth comb inspection, we’ve found that this is the long-awaited granting itself, not just a continuation. Apple will be happy, although others trying to use a similar water detection system will be turning red… for reasons besides getting wet.

Apple still trying for water damage indicator patent, drop-prone device owners twitch (update: granted) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Jul 2012 09:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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