Hasta La Gadget!

Hey, they don’t call this thing the International Consumer Electronics Show for nothing, so it shouldn’t come as any big surprise to see Nextar unveiling a trio of new navigators that are destined for routes in South America. PNDs for Argentina (M3-AR), Brazil (M3-BR), and Mexico (updated to the M3-MX1) are all scheduled to go on sale in early 2009, with each model packing its respective country maps as well as a multimedia player, 3.5-inch touchscreen, text-to-speech support, oodles of POIs, an integrated antenna, rechargeable Li-ion and a stylus for no good reason good measure. All three will sell for $249.99, and the full release is after the break.

Continue reading Nextar launching M3 navigator into South America

Filed under: CES, GPS

Nextar launching M3 navigator into South America originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Jan 2009 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Any audiophile — by which I mean "one who insists on extremely
high-end sound quality" as opposed to "anyone who likes music," an all too common misuse of the word — would only ever listen to portable music on their high-end, hardwired headphones, rather than wireless Bluetooth headphones like the Altec Lansing  Backbeat 906, introduced at MacWorld and to be displayed at CES. When sound quality is your only concern, that single wire is well worth being able to use headphones with powerful drivers that sometimes requiring a portable amplifier.

The vast majority of us have no business calling ourselves audiophiles (if you didn’t pay at least $5,000 for your speakers, you’re out of the running in most cases). And for us, Bluetooth headphones are not without their charms — chiefly among them the abolition of the headphone cord, that notorious tangler with bag straps and snagger of obstacles. Early models put too much weight on the listener’s ears; Altec Lansing hopes it got the design right with its new Backbeat series, featuring both in-ear buds that seal with the ear canal and loops that go around the outside of the ear.

Altec Lansing worked with Bluetooth earpiece manufacturer
Plantronics to increase call quality through the device’s dual
omnidirectional microphones, used to make calls while not listening to
music. Plantronics’ OpenMic adds external audio to your mix so you
don’t get run over while talking, while its AudioIQ raises call volume
to compete with background noise. Extra features include voice dial,
last-number redial and call transfers from phone to headset and vice
versa, so you can switch back and forth if necessary.

"The new Backbeat 906 wireless earphones are engineered for superior
acoustic accuracy, balance, and clarity… without getting tangled up
in wires and cords," stated Bernice Cramer, VP of Marketing for Altec
Lansing. "We think users are going to love the amazing new design and
fit, as well as automatically opening up the mic to their surroundings
with just the touch of a button."

Here are the Backbeat 906’s specs from Altec Lansing. The otherwise
identical 903 unit lacks the Bluetooth transmitter required by the
iPhone and other portables that lack the Bluetooth A2DP profile for
stereo audio (choose the 903 if your phone has A2DP):

• Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate)
• Supports A2DP, AVRCP, HSP v1.1 and HFPv1.5 profiles for stereo audio
•
Plantronics’ proprietary QuickPair technology automatically locates
and establishes connection between the headphones and Bluetooth-enabled
mobile phone/MP3 device
• Bluetooth adaptor features 3.5mm AUX jack connection for most non-Bluetooth enabled MP3 devices
• Battery life: up to 7 hours listen/talk and up to 10 days stand-by talk time
• Low-battery indicator included
• Bluetooth connection range up to 33 feet
• Weight: 33 grams

The
Altec Lansing  Backbeat 906 ($130 with transmitter) and Backbeat 903
($100 without transmitter) are scheduled to ship in February.

(It sucks
that iPhone users need to add the bulky transmitter in order to use
this. Hopefully, the next iPhone will feature the stereo audio
Bluetooth A2DP profile for streaming music to headphones, car stereos and home entertainment systems, or Apple will enable A2DP with a firmware upgrade to existing iPhones and iPod Touches.)

See Also:

• P
  hilips Follows Sony’s Lead, Adds Bluetooth, IPod Dock
• Hot Trend: Stereo Bluetooth Car Kits
• CES: Sitdown with Samsung’s Audio/Video Vice President

The biggest cell phone story of this week’s upcoming CES show, Palm’s new Nova operating system and phone have remained startlingly unleaked. There are no spy shots out on the Web, no product sheets, not even a carrier name. For something that Palm’s been working on for years, this is information control worthy of Apple.

(I’m assuming Palm will announce Nova and a phone at their press conference on Jan. 8, but so is everybody else. Palm hasn’t confirmed that they’re making the announcement, but if they don’t, they’re toast.)

We do know a bunch of things about Nova, though, and we can speculate on others. Here’s what we know so far.

• Nova is a Linux-based OS.
• Nova will launch with third-party software already available.
• Nova will focus on integrating different kinds of data stored in different locations.
• Nova will integrate into Web-based social networks.
• Nova will be driven around the Internet and Web-based applications.
• Nova will focus on the “prosumer” market, leaving consumers for Centro and business for Windows Mobile Treo products.
• The phone will hit shelves by June 2009.

I also think it’s pretty safe to guess what carrier will get the Nova phone first: Sprint. I have no inside information, but Sprint has been Palm’s best friend in hard times. Every single Palm phone that was first introduced with a US carrier since May 2006 has been launched with Sprint.

Since the Treo 650 in 2004, Palm has released ten smartphones: the 650, 700w, 700p, 700wx, 680, 750, 755p, Centro, 800w and Treo Pro. Seven were initially launched with US carriers; the 750 was first launched overseas, and the 680 and Treo Pro were launched without US carriers attached. Of the seven initially launched with US carriers, Sprint got six first.

But what will the phones look like? How about the OS? Am I even right about Sprint? Make sure to check back here on Gearlog on Jan. 8, when all will be revealed.

If you’re not about to sell off your current stable of external USB hard drives just to experience the wonders of Clickfree backups, you’re staring your solution right in the face. Clickfree has just introduced its new Transformer Cable, which is “the first and only USB cable that turns ordinary external hard drives into truly automatic Clickfree backup solutions.” Put simply, users just connect their USB HDD to their PC via this here cable, and without any software installations or black magic, the external drive automatically begins to search through, organize and backup your data. The painfully simple cord should be available right now for the mildly reasonable price of $59.99; full release is after the break.

Continue reading Clickfree Transformer Cable gives any USB hard drive auto backup functionality

Filed under: CES, Storage

Clickfree Transformer Cable gives any USB hard drive auto backup functionality originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Jan 2009 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Intel’s been talking up the CE 3100 (née Canmore) processor for quite some time now, and with Adobe as its newest partner — late again Yahoo? — pushing HD Flash streams to Internet connected TV’s and set-top boxes. Frankly, we’ve already gotten quite used to YouTube and other online video access in the living room, but with the first Flash Lite-enabled system-on-a-chip due by mid-2009 and everyone and their mom watching TV on Hulu this could be the push that takes online video to the TV mainstream. Still, Intel must know that only Flash support so 2008, we’ll be expecting more widgets to come.

Filed under: CES, HDTV, Home Entertainment

Intel, Adobe plan a chicken in every pot, Flash on every HDTV originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 05 Jan 2009 04:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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