You’ve seen plenty about our Insert Coin competitors on this very site — and now it’s time to see them in action. We’ve got some stage time with the finalists, who will be arguing for why they think they deserve that $20,000 grand prize.
For a full list of Expand sessions, be sure to check out our event hub.
We had a chance to grill the head of Samsung’s North American design studio, Dennis Miloseski, during our panel discussion about the growing sophistication of mobile devices here at Expand. As it turns out, he had even more to talk about, so we wired him up and threw him in the hot seat backstage. He gave us a look into the story behind the Galaxy S 4, the changing face of TouchWiz UI and building Samsung’s design studio stateside. For the full interview, check out the video after the break.
Follow all of Engadget’s Expand coverage live from San Francisco right here!
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Samsung
Voice search has pervaded nearly every aspect of our gadget lives, from our smartphones to our TVs to our navigation programs. Today we’re talking with Tamar Yehoshua, director of product management at Google, about how speech-activated search is changing — and improving — the way we interact with technology. Meet us here at 4:15PM EDT to catch the action.
Filed under: Cellphones, Software, Google
Our own Tim Stevens (literally) rolled into Fort Mason this morning to kick off Expand and shortly after walked his way backstage to chat with Myriam Joire about — you guessed it — Expand. To find out more about where the event came from, where it is and where it’s going, check out the full interview after the break.
Follow all of Engadget’s Expand coverage live from San Francisco right here!
The Smart Knob promises a smarter, more secure deadbolt lock that lets us issue time-limited unlock codes or give trusted visitors a way in. Thanks to some hands-on time here at Engadget Expand, we’ve learned that it’s even more clever than we thought. The PIN-verified, phone-based code generation system cycles through a seemingly “infinite” range before it hands out a number; someone overstaying their welcome isn’t likely to stumble across the new code by accident. And while some might be disappointed that there’s no built-in Bluetooth or WiFi to get codes, that actually works to its advantage, according to the project’s Clark Li and Merrick Lackner. As Smart Knob doesn’t need an internet connection, it could be useful even out in the woods.
As for the lock itself? Having had a look first-hand, we’re more inclined to believe claims that it’s easy to install. At least from what we’ve seen in the prototype, it really is just a keypad resting on top of the existing deadbolt. There isn’t anything special that goes behind or through the door. To us, that makes it easier to justify the $99 price the Smart Knob team is targeting for the base hardware — it’s something you could put on your front door at home, not just at the office. The only added costs would be for ongoing notifications and similar services that would require a more extensive effort. We should know how well the Smart Knob works when it launches closer to the end of the year.
Zach Lutz contributed to this report.
Follow all of Engadget’s Expand coverage live from San Francisco right here!
Gallery: Insert Coin: Smart Knob hands-on
Filed under: Household
He’s just taken the title of inaugural speaker here at Expand, now Kickstarter co-founder Yancey Strickler is giving us even more face time in our first ever backstage interview. Since its launch in 2009, the crowdfunding powerhouse has become a household name, bringing us success stories like the Pebble smartwatch. Myriam Joire sat down with Yancey to talk about Pebble, OUYA and the future of Kickstarter. Check out the video after the break to watch our backstage interview in its entirety.
Follow all of Engadget’s Expand coverage live from San Francisco right here!
Filed under: Internet
Yep, the crazy looking guitar you see above from 3D Systems (being manhandled by our own Andy Bowen) was printed. Not created by machines or people, but pieced together by a 3D printer — at least the body, that is. The neck, strings, and various jacks / knobs are all fabricated via other methods, but the body is all printed. That includes the many America-centric icons seen throughout the body, from the Statute of Liberty to the Brooklyn Bridge — okay, okay, it’s rather New York-centric, but 3D Systems head Avi Reichental tells us that 3D Systems used iconic New York locations as a representation for the “Americana” the guitar is supposed to embody. He says — and we can’t help but agree, many of us being New Yorkers — that New York is an “emotional” symbol for the USA. Join us for a visual tour of the Americana, set to the backdrop of the San Francisco Bay, won’t you?
Gallery: 3D Systems’ Americana guitar
Filed under: Misc, Peripherals
If you’ve ever lived in a building that was heated by steam, there’s a good chance that you’ve experienced comfort levels that were less than ideal. Now, Insert Coin semifinalist Radiator Labs is working to bring a solution to market that’ll make your living space a lot more tolerable, and as an added bonus, it’ll save energy at the same time. We took a moment to catch up with Marshall Cox, co-founder of Radiator Labs, here at Expand, who explained the elegantly simple solution that the company has in store.
At its most fundamental level, what you have is an oven mitt for your radiator that’s augmented with a temperature sensor and an exhaust fan. Whenever the ambient heat reaches your set comfort level (which can be controlled from the web or a smartphone app), the fan will shut off and the insulating cover — described to us as ironing board material — will prevent additional heat from escaping. From here, steam is redistributed to other apartments that need it, rather than turning your unit into a sauna. Beyond this eco-friendly element, Radiator Labs is integrating a phase change material into its product that can store energy and heat an apartment for up to four hours without assistance from the boiler.
Going deeper down the rabbit hole, Radiator Labs is exploring some nifty technologies such as an Xbee mesh network, which it’s using to evaluate the energy-saving benefits at play. While this component won’t be integrated into the consumer version, we could see commercial installations that include wireless communications with the boiler itself. Combined with the phase change material, this would allow a boiler to fire much less often — seems like a great idea, if you ask us. We’re told that Radiator Labs will be seeking crowd-funding for its product this fall, which will be available in the $250 price range. For additional peeks at what’s to come, be sure to check the gallery.
Jon Fingas contributed to this report.
Gallery: Radiator Labs cover hands-on
From the breakout success of the Pebble smartwatch to the emergence of the OUYA gaming console, Kickstarter has certainly brought legitimacy to the hardware crowdfunding movement. Join us as editor-in-chief Tim Stevens speaks to Kickstarter co-founder and head of community Yancey Strickler about various Kickstarter successes and the potential struggles candidates have to face to get the crowd on their side. Our chat begins at 12:30PM ET.
Filed under: Misc
The guys at ZBoard made quite the splash at SXSW Interactive earlier this week — riding an electric skateboard around the streets and conference halls of Austin will get you all sorts of attention, after all. Still, for all the love they got at the event, the startup opted to hold its latest announce until the kickoff of Expand — for an important reason: this electric skateboard is a tribute to the hills and winding streets of the city by the bay. ZBoard’s San Francisco Special ups the game for the Kickstarted company, extending the board’s range to 20 highway or 14 city miles. The wheels also got an upgrade to high-traction 110mm models, while the braking system got a nice bump, as well.
Of course, with along all those improvements comes a bit more weight — the already hefty board now clocks in at 32 pounds. Those who were hoping for a lighter-weight solution akin to the Boosted Board will have to keep holding their breath — according to the ZBoard’s creators, its community said it wouldn’t mind adding a few pounds to increase range, and as such, there’s a four-pound jump from the ZBoard Pro. But, you know, if all goes according to plan, you shouldn’t be carry this thing around too much. For when you do, however, there’s that padded handle.
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
