Insert Coin: Connectify Dispatch lets you put all your internets together into one big internet (video)

In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you’d like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with “Insert Coin” as the subject line.

Connectify lets you put all your internets together into one big internet

If you’ve ever thought “Hey, my internet is pretty slow, maybe I can get a second line and combine them into one big, zippy connection!” then you’re not alone — those of us who are broadband-deprived need all the help we can get. But a quick tour through Google will show you the difficulty of doing that process, called “bonding,” at home. So, Connectify has proposed Dispatch, software that lets you easily combine your WiFi, ethernet and 3G/4G into a single, fat pipe, at a reasonable cost. The company brings along wireless sharing know-how from its Hotspot product to the project, and promises that with every connection you combine, you’ll get a corresponding bump in throughput. Also, the system will automatically failover to a good connection if one goes on the fritz, and even switch automatically between WiFi and 3G/4G to maximize speed and save money.

To prove the tech, the company combined all the available open WiFi networks in a neighborhood along with a tethered Verizon mobile phone, and were able to create an impressive 85Mbs connection, as the video below the break shows. So far, Connectify has vacuumed up $30K for Dispatch toward the $50K objective, with about two weeks left. So, if you’re desperate for more speed, or just want to trump your neighbor’s bandwidth by stealing his WiFi and melding it with your ADSL, check the source to see how to pledge.

Continue reading Insert Coin: Connectify Dispatch lets you put all your internets together into one big internet (video)

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Insert Coin: Connectify Dispatch lets you put all your internets together into one big internet (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 23 Aug 2012 14:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Stompy the giant hexapod gets hexafunded, one step closer to hexacrushing your car

Stompy the giant hexapod gets hexafunded, one step closer to hexacrushing your car

So, just how many people want to see Stompy, the two-ton hexapod come to smashtastic life? Enough to fund the project in 11 days via its Kickstarter page. The folks at Artisan’s Asylum dropped us a line to let us know that Sir Stompsalot has hit its $65,000 goal as of 7:30 AM this morning, with 18 days left to pledge. That list includes two backers at the $5,000 adopt-a-leg level and nine backers for the $1,000 drive Stompy mark, so unless you’ve got a giant insect of your own, you might want to avoid driving the streets of Somerville, Massachusetts for a while…

Stompy the giant hexapod gets hexafunded, one step closer to hexacrushing your car originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 14 Aug 2012 15:21:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Paid Twitter wannabe App.net hits $500K target with time to spare

DNP Paid Twitter wannabe Appnet hits $500K target with time to spare

Paid Twitter-style service App.net has achieved its self-imposed $500,000 funding goal with almost two days still left on the clock. The social platform is the brainchild of Dalton Caldwell, who said he wanted to spawn a service dedicated to users instead of advertisers. It was originally pitched to Facebook, but the two companies came to loggerheads when it clashed with the social network’s own App Center — inspiring Caldwell’s Kickstarter-style campaign. Though the software is still in alpha, over 10,000 backers have paid $50 for an annual membership or put down $1,000 for support, developer tools and a meeting with the founder. The company will now start working on its terms of service, letting users offer feedback and discover new features — and if you wanna be @John instead of @JohnFDoe99427 on the new service, you may want to pony up, quick.

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Paid Twitter wannabe App.net hits $500K target with time to spare originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 13 Aug 2012 09:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OUYA console pre-order now available for non-backers starting at $109, slated to ship in April

OUYA console now up for preorder for nonbackers, slated to ship in April for $109

Miss out on your chance to snag the Android-based gaming console during OUYA’s Kickstarter tour-de-force? Worry not, friends. The outfit has opened up pre-orders it promised for those who didn’t take the plunge initially via on its website. While you will have to wait another month to get your mitts on a kit of your very own, the second round of advance purchasing will set you back $109 for US customers and $119 for those abroad. Included in the aforementioned price tag is the console, a single controller and the requisite shipping costs. Hit up the source link below to part with your funds and begin the waiting period.

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OUYA console pre-order now available for non-backers starting at $109, slated to ship in April originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Aug 2012 10:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OUYA’s Kickstarter funding is complete: over $8.59 million raised, starts shipping in March

It’s a wrap! Suffice it to say, it’s a been a relatively short, yet astoundingly fruitful — and initially record-breaking — funding run for OUYA, the hackable, Android-based gaming console. With just 29 days to work with since being announced, the Yves Behar-designed system has raked in over $8.58 million thanks to just under 63,300 backers on Kickstarter as of its official 1AM ET funding deadline today (You’ll find the final tally below).

Those who opted for developer editions will be able to start tinkering with their own units around December, while the majority of backers should receive the console as early as March 2013. Missed the Kickstarter bandwagon? Don’t fret, because OUYA plans to take pre-orders from the general public over the web soon, expecting those units to arrive at doorsteps near April.

The numbers are only part of the picture, of course. If you’ll recall, OUYA swiftly acquired a slew of partnerships from companies like OnLive, Square Enix, XBMC, Vevo, and Robotoki — and as if that wasn’t enough, just yesterday Namco Bandai and Plex officially joined the content-providing party as well. What’s more, we now know that each console will support up to four of those touchpad-equipped controllers for local multiplayer action. Even with all that, this story is far from over, as Joystiq points out that Julie Uhrman and company “promise” to have more updates before its official launch. Naturally, it still remains to be seen how OUYA’s (literally) tiny, Tegra 3-powered footprint will fare against the big three in gaming, but we’re cautiously optimistic.

So, while the final, mass-produced product is still months away, in the meantime you’ll find a recap of all the highlights from OUYA in the nifty saga module below. You can also hit up our friends at Joystiq here for extra insight from the company about its successes so far.

Update (1:15AM): Despite the timer hitting zero, it appears that pledges are still being accepted past the 1AM deadline — better be quick! We’ll be sure to update the numbers again as soon pledging is officially halted.

Update 2 (7:30AM): It took a bit of time, but OUYA’s Kickstarter is officially not accepting any more pledges. The final numbers? 63,416 backers helped to raise a final sum of $8,596,475.

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OUYA’s Kickstarter funding is complete: over $8.59 million raised, starts shipping in March originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Aug 2012 01:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bluetooth dock adapter Pear disappears from Kickstarter, founders promise return under new name

You might remember Pear, a recent Insert Coin debutant that connects your favorite iDevice dock to (almost) any Bluetooth-connected smartphone. However, you probably didn’t notice its swift disappearance from Kickstarter just before the weekend. The people behind the project have contacted us, explaining that the crowdfunding site was hit with a cease and desist order for the dock converter, centering around a “trademark infringement issue.” With its funding page down, Pear says it had no way to tell its supporters that product development would continue, albeit under a new name. Anyone that funded the project is advised to register at the source link below to keep up-to-date. The founders aim to return to Kickstarter in around 3-6 weeks, with several as-yet unannounced enhancements coming alongside a new logo and moniker — something that it’s going to task its backers with deciding.

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Bluetooth dock adapter Pear disappears from Kickstarter, founders promise return under new name originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Aug 2012 04:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OUYA wrapping up funding with limited brown metal console, Vevo deal

OUYA wrapping up funding with limited brown metal console, Vevo deal

To put it mildly, the OUYA console has had a better than expected funding run — the project is now past the $6 million mark, or six times what it originally needed. The team still wants a little something to end the last week of fundraising with a bang. It just unveiled a limited edition brown, brushed metal version of the console with a controller to match; all it takes is a $140 pledge during the final push to August 9th and you’ve got the Yves Behar-chosen color for yourself. The special run should arrive as part of the wider March 2013 launch. If the original silver hue will do just nicely, thank you very much, OUYA has struck another content deal and will launch Vevo’s music video hub side-by-side with the console. Click past the break for a peek at the controller, and consider a pledge on Kickstarter if you just can’t stand the thought of having the same console as everyone else.

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OUYA wrapping up funding with limited brown metal console, Vevo deal originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Aug 2012 13:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Insert Coin: Botiful telepresence robot for Android (video)

In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you’d like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with “Insert Coin” as the subject line.

Insert Coin Botiful telepresence robot for Android video

Remote-controlled cameras are nothing new — heck, some even ride atop robotic vacuums — but this Android smartphone-powered device delivers quite a bit of versatility in a petite package with a reasonable price tag to boot. Botiful, a “social telepresence robot,” serves as a roving platform for your Android smartphone. You can move the handset (and its front-facing camera) up and down as it speeds along any flat surface, responding to commands from someone on the other end of a Skype video chat. Once you connect the device to your Android phone through Bluetooth or USB, you can control its direction from a pop-up window within Skype, letting you position Botiful however you see fit. If your Android phone doesn’t have a front-facing camera, you can flip it around to use the rear shooter — of course, you won’t be able to see the display in this configuration, so it won’t be ideal for two-way chats. Naturally, this makes the duo a natural choice for surveillance and baby monitoring, but it can also be used to provide a more immersive experience during conference calls or for sending back video from locations that aren’t easily accessible, such as the undercarriage of a car.

Designed in a garage in California (no, really), Botiful is already functional, with working software as well. The current configuration requires Skype for control, though an SDK will allow developers to create other control apps for the device — and who knows, the seemingly capable inventor could release another tool of her own before it’s set to hit production later this year. With much of the design already completed, the project sponsor is turning to Kickstarter to raise the funds necessary to launch Botiful to production — the device could ship as soon as November if it reaches a $90,000 goal before August 22nd. Available in white, blue or red, the remote-controlled rig is currently only compatible with Android, though iOS support may come if funding exceeds a $100k threshold. There’s still more than three weeks to go to make your pledge, with a limited number of pre-order slots available for $199 (retail pricing is expected to come in at $299). Hit up the source link below to show your support.

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Insert Coin: Botiful telepresence robot for Android (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Jul 2012 14:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Insert Coin: POP portable battery comes with 25,000 mAh of power, charges multiple devices (video)

In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you’d like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with “Insert Coin” as the subject line.

DNP Insert Coin POP portable battery comes with 25,000 mAh of power, more curves video

If you’re a geeky pack rat who likes to travel with a mini Radio Shack store in your bag a la Steve Wozniak, then you’re likely always looking for ways to keep your precious devices powered up. One option that may be worth a peek is the POP rechargeable battery — a portable power pack that eschews the brick-like design of many of its brethren and comes with 25,000 mAh worth of juice to help bring your gadgets back to life. According to POP creator and Edison Jr. co-founder James Siminoff, the portable battery has enough capacity to charge either 10 standard smartphones or 1 1/2 third-generation iPad tablets.

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Insert Coin: POP portable battery comes with 25,000 mAh of power, charges multiple devices (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Jul 2012 09:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Insert Coin: Pear brings Bluetooth to your Apple-compatible speaker dock

In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you’d like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with “Insert Coin” as the subject line.

Insert Coin Pear brings Bluetooth to your Applecompatible speaker dock

What a lovely set of speakers. Let me just dock my smartphone right th…

Or perhaps you happen to own one of the thousands of devices not equipped with a proprietary Apple dock connector. Well, when it comes time to slide your Android or Windows Phone into place, the only sound you’re likely to hear is the screech of a 30-pin plug scratching up the case. If the speaker rig packs Bluetooth, you can use that instead, but if you own one of many that don’t, you’ll probably want Pear. Drawing some name and design inspiration from an arguably more popular fruit, Pear brings Bluetooth connectivity to any dock connector-equipped speaker set, drawing power from the port so it can pair with virtually any smartphone or tablet, letting you play your tunes while keeping your handset in hand. It offers a range of 30 feet indoors or up to 75-feet outside (there’s a video proving the feat at the source link below), and works with any apps and devices that offer Bluetooth output.

The wireless gadget’s designer is turning to Kickstarter to raise the funds necessary to launch Pear into production. The team has already developed a working prototype, so there’s proof that you’re not backing vaporware, and a $30 pledge can net you one of 250 early bird devices. After that initial run, you’ll need to hand over 40 bucks (which also happens to be the expected retail place) for an arctic white or jet black Pear. The developers are hoping to raise $40,000, to cover their prior investments and push the device to the manufacturing stage (no, it won’t be “made in the USA“), so if you want to see Pear pop up in a speaker dock near you, hit up our source link below to make your pledge. You can also jump past the break for a quick intro video, and an update on a previous Insert Coin project.

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Insert Coin: Pear brings Bluetooth to your Apple-compatible speaker dock originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Jul 2012 13:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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