Hasta La Gadget!

Another automaker getting on the bus with 4G? Yes, it’s Audi, who doesn’t actually make busses but is the latest to announce its LTE intentions, though not exactly what it intends to do with it. Mobile SkypeHD video calling? They wouldn’t be the first. Audi has also indicated that its 2009 partnership with Elektrobit, dubbed e.solutions, is coming to fruition. The result is a way to build a layer of abstraction between the car and the hardware running the infotainment system. Currently Audi is down with NVIDIA’s Tegra 2 but obviously that’s not going to be the new hotness forever, the idea being that users could swap out units at their dealers whenever they want a taste of what’s new and good. You know how you pulled the factory head unit and its big, scratched up knobs out of your ride in ’96 and threw in that Clarion unit with all the blinkenlights? Like that — but probably a lot more expensive.

Audi gets on the LTE bus, wants to make infotainment more modular originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Jan 2011 21:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Calibur11 Vault eyes-on, protecting your Xbox from tactical nukes and stuff originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Jan 2011 20:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Originally shown at CES last year, the Sling Receiver promises to bring HD content from your Sling enabled Dish Network box to another TV in your home, as well as the rest of the DVR’s UI. What we hope is the big difference this year is that the device actually ships to Dish Network customers and brings the dream of multi-room viewing — like the other satellite TV provider has. No word on exactly when it will be available or how much it’ll cost, but for all those that are delaying upgrading to the ViP 922 because of the lack of TV2, you will finally be able to stop waiting.

Dish Network’s Sling Receiver lives originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Jan 2011 20:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Our trailer was just visited by an iriver rep bearing his company’s Kindle killer in waiting, the Story HD. This 6-inch e-reader touts a bodacious 1024 x 768 resolution, which contributes to an even better contrast ratio than on Amazon’s E Ink slate, while software optimizations between now and release are expected to make the Story HD the fastest-refreshing device of its kind. The display itself is built by LG Display and is accompanied by a Freescale Cortex A8 CPU, 2GB of onboard storage, and an SDHC card-reading slot. Sun rays are, as expected, absolutely no problem and we have to admit that on first sight we thought the device had a sticker affixed to its front — its that good at reproducing printed materials. Physically, it seems to have been constructed with the third-gen Kindle as its dimensional blueprint, albeit with quite a different control scheme. The hand-built proto unit we played with wasn’t really ready to have its ergonomics judged properly, but iriver has plenty of time until the expected May launch to iron out any kinks. Content distribution partnerships have already been sewn up for the US, so now it’s just a matter of patience until we get our e-reading on in gorgeous XGA resolution. Video hands-on after the break.

Continue reading iriver Story HD e-reader preview (video)

iriver Story HD e-reader preview (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Jan 2011 19:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Too broke to spring for an SSD? Fret not, as you’re most definitely not alone. Thankfully for you, Western Digital’s still cranking out lust-worthy hard drives, with its latest Scorpio Black being particularly so. Offering 750GB of capacity, 16MB of cache and a 7200RPM spindle speed, the WD7500BPKT relies on Advanced Format technology to make the magic happen. It’s on sale starting right about now for $149, giving you little reason to continue to conserve space on that 128GB drive you’ve been living with for the past three years.

Continue reading WD throws out 2.5-inch 750GB Scorpio Black hard drive, makes your laptop beg for an upgrade

WD throws out 2.5-inch 750GB Scorpio Black hard drive, makes your laptop beg for an upgrade originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Jan 2011 19:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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