Hasta La Gadget!

It’s hard to believe, but Sifteo’s interactive gaming Cubes first went on sale just over a year ago. Fast forward to the present, and the company has unveiled version two of the MIT-born blocks. If you’ll recall, the 1.7-inch squares let you play interactive table-top games, each featuring a 1.5-inch LCD screen, motion sensing and wireless connectivity. With this next-gen variant, Sifteo’s improved the graphics, added capacitive touch to the screen (the original acted like a physical button) and doubled the amount of Cubes that can interact at once to 12. The V2 Cubes also come packed with a dedicated, AAA-powered, wireless base station / speaker that stores your titles, sparing the need for a computer to play as was the case with the originals — an onboard USB allows downloaded files to be transferred from your computers. Developers looking to create content for the device will also pleased to know that Sifteo’s releasing its next SDK on October 1st.

Ready for some tangibly-cute Cube gameplay? Pre-orders begin today at Sifteo’s website, priced at $130 for 3 Cubes with a base station and five games, and $30 for each additional cube. They’re set to ship in November, so in the meantime you’ll find details in the video demo and press release after the break.

Update: For those curious, we’ve learned that the original Cubes are not compatible with the new ones, but Sifteo has emailed owners with a $50 voucher that they can use toward upgrading.

Continue reading Sifteo Cubes go next-generation, square gaming gets more portable (update)

Filed under: Misc, Gaming

Sifteo Cubes go next-generation, square gaming gets more portable (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Aug 2012 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ergo Electronics, the company behind the GoTab, is looking to help bring Android to UK classrooms in the form of the GoNote, a combo tablet / netbook running Ice Cream Sandwich. The device has a 10-inch 1024 x 600 display, a 1.2GHz ARM Rockchip RK2918, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage, expandable via a MicroSD slot. Aimed at students, the GoNote also has four USB 2.0 ports and a VGA camera on-board. It’ll be hitting in the UK in September for £150 ($236) in black and white options. More info in the press release after the break.

Continue reading GoNote 10-inch hybrid netbook / tablet bringing Ice Cream Sandwich to UK classrooms next month

GoNote 10-inch hybrid netbook / tablet bringing Ice Cream Sandwich to UK classrooms next month originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 22 Aug 2012 02:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Education-minded minds at Samsung have come forth with a deal made perfect for the upcoming school season: the Galaxy Tab 2 Student Edition bundle. This bundle includes the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 (7-inch tablet) in a limited edition white color included in a package with a keyboard dock and a USB adapter as well. This package will be sold by Samsung for a competitive $249.99 to keep up with recent releases of rather inexpensively priced competitors such as the Nexus 7 by Google.

This package takes on the already neat Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 (see our full review) and adds on a keyboard dock and a USB adapter so you can use a variety of accessories right along with it. This USB adapter will allow students to use USB thumb drives, USB mice, and more. Also right out of the box the tablet will be including the app Polaris Office so students working in a variety of document formats can make their learning experience swift and easy.

This tablet has a 7-inch TFT (PLS) display at 1024 x 600 pixel resolution, works with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, and has a 8GB of built-in memory. You’ll be working with Bluetooth 3.0 as well as wi-fi for connectivity, theres a microSD card slot so you can add up to 32GB of additional storage, and you’ve got an integrated IR-blaster so you can control your television like you would a standard remote control.

The tablet measures in at .41 x 4.8 x 7.6 inches and weighs in at 0.76 pounds in all. This device also has GPS, stereo speakers, and two cameras – a VGA camera on the front for video chat and a 3 megapixel camera on the back for photos and video.

The deal only lasts from 8/19 until 9/1 and will be popping up at Best Buy, Amazon, Tiger Direct, Costco and Fry’s. Each of the devices on their own would be a total of $350 USD, and again, the limited time only price for the package in the end is $249.99. Samsung also has the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 on the market now for just about twice that amount, but there’s certainly some perks to consider – check out our full review of the Galaxy Note 10.1 right this minute as well!

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 Student Edition bundle brings on bonuses is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

The co-founders of the late Flip Video portable shooters have created an internet-based platform for both students and teachers alike, in which they hope to help by offering over 7,000 online lessons — with said number expected to grow over time, naturally. For starters, the crowdsourced project, dubbed Knowmia, has video tidbits from all kinds of subjects, such as history, algebra, and, of course, grammar and writing skills. Meanwhile, teachers can register themselves on the site at no cost, after which they can easily create their own lessons and put up for the world to see and learn from them. All in all, there’s no doubt Knowmia’s looking like a promising hub for scholars, lecturers and even the curios folk, so here’s to hoping it becomes a go-to place for those looking to soak up some additional wisdom.

Filed under: Internet, Software

From the folks who brought you Flip Video: Knowmia, an online vid platform for students and teachers originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Aug 2012 04:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Amazon has announced that it is kicking off a new program that allows students to rent textbooks rather than purchasing new or used at their local college bookstore. Amazon is promising some significant discounts on the textbooks with up to 70% off on rentals, up to 90% off on used textbooks, and 30% off on all new books. Anyone who’s been the college knows that textbooks are very expensive.

Textbooks offered in the new rental program are rented for the entire semester. Amazon has a search function that students use to find a book they need, and then you click a “rent now” option and choose the shipping and payment terms. All the rental textbooks are fulfilled by Amazon and are eligible for free super saver shipping on orders over $25 and Prime members get free two-day shipping.

Once the semester is over Amazon covers the return shipping with a prepaid shipping label. The search functionality for textbooks allows students to easily find what they need with a search by title, by author, or by ISBN number. Available categories cover just about any class a student may be taking from Apple to foreign language and mathematics.

The semester rental period according to Amazon spans 130 days. Students who find they need the book longer than the rental period can extend the rental by 15 days or for an additional semester at an additional cost. Textbooks can also be converted from rental to purchase at any time. Amazon says that students who rent books may receive a new or used book depending on availability. One thing worth noting is that Amazon wants people to limit writing in the book and highlighting to a “minimal amount.” If you return a book, and Amazon deems highlighting excessive you will be charged full price minus any rental fees paid.

Amazon kicks off textbook rental program for students is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.