We haven’t checked in with littleBits in quite some time and, honestly, it was a bit of a surprise to find the electronic tinker toys hiding in a quiet corner of the floor at Toy Fair this year. The property has grown quite a bit in the past few years. For one, it’s no longer a “project” but an actual shipping product. And in the last year founder Ayah Bdeir has turned it from a great concept into an actual company with serious investors. For those of you unfamiliar with littleBits, the goal is to do for electronics what LEGO did for structural engineering. The small color coded “blocks” snap together with magnets allowing even a novice to create a functioning circuit in seconds. The magnets will only connect in one orientation, preventing you from pushing current through a component in the wrong direction and ruining it. Ayah’s inspiration is not just LEGO, but object oriented programing languages that simplify building code, allowing developers to focus on the more creative aspects of software making. By doing some of the heavy logical lifting for you, littleBits hopes that potential electrical engineers and prototypers can focus on the goal rather than the minutia of laying out a breadboard or soldering resistors in place.
The latest version of the platform, v0.3, debuted just a couple of months ago and not only brings new pieces to the littleBits universe, but also adds legs to the blocks for improved stability when piecing together your projects. Currently there are four kits available: the three piece Teaser kit for $29, the seven piece Holiday kit for $49, the 10 piece Starter kit for $89 and the 14 piece Extended kit for $149. (You can also buy individual Bits for between $10 and $35.) If you’re in need of inspiration there are a number of projects for you peruse on the site and the company is even considering packaging them up as pre-planned kits. Though, unlike other electronics project bundles (such as the ubiquitous BrushBot), the magnetic pieces can easily be disassembled and re-purposed if you tire of your creation. While the concept has its roots in brands like Snap Circuits, littleBits definitely provides more freedom than those single purpose offerings. For more, check out the video after the break.
Cloudrobot is, potentially, the worst name we’ve ever heard for a product. Thankfully, if this robotic pugilist ever does come to market, we’re pretty confident it’ll be under a different brand. These fighters are not nearly as cute or pocketable as the Battroborgs that punched their way through the Engadget compound recently. In fact, these guys are down right intimidating. The product of six developers and engineers based out of Budapest, the 16-inch tall bots pack 21 motors, controlled by an AVR chip, that allow them a stunning range of motion and precision. The movements themselves are passed to the bot by a computer, which is currently running a crude simulation / video game. The punches, blocks and footwork are all triggered by a standard gamepad connected via Bluetooth.
Rather than risk serious damage to these expensive machines, their all metal bodies are protected from blows by Everlast-branded boxing gloves. And, in fact, they rarely come in contact with each other (at least in their current form). For now points are counted in the virtual environment, rather than in landed hooks and jabs. Which might not be bad since the bots gain quite a bit of mustard on their shots thanks to electromagnets in their feet that keep them anchored to the ring. Primarily those magnets are for stability, so that the occasional glancing blow doesn’t send them toppling over, but it also lets them “sit down” on their punches, just like a real boxer. The company is currently looking for an American partner to help them produce and market the robots. It also has a rather ambitious target price of $300 per combatant, which may have them making some tradeoffs in the final design. The best thing we can do, though, is let Cloudrobot speak for itself, so check out the video after the break.
Look, we loved what Hasbro did with Lazer Tag last year. But, let’s be honest, that thing was pure testosterone. We’re not saying the ladies couldn’t get down, but the alien-blasting AR solo games weren’t exactly designed with little girls in mind. Rebelle ditches the lasers for NERF arrows and slaps a supposedly female-friendly coat of purple and pink paint on the whole thing. While the blasters still operate without the optional Mission Central App cradle ($15), it’s once you get the whole kit together that things really start to fall into place. The attachment lets you drop in an iPhone (4, 4S or 5) and fire up the free companion app. (And don’t worry Google fans, an Android version of the app along with a universal mount are also in the works.) Rather than focus on solo games and individual competition, the Rebelle Mission Central app encourages kids to form squads and compete not just for supremacy over their friends but also for in-game perks, like accessories for their avatars. Those virtual personas can be completely customized, allowing girls to fully embrace their secret agent fantasies.Of course, you can also document your foam-arrow battles and share them.
The blasters themselves are pretty standard NERF fare and all some basic variation on a crossbow design. The rotating barrel Crossbow ($25) has a pump-action and a rail for installing the cradle, a feature that’s not on some of the smaller models like the pocketable, single-shot Sneak Attackers. The other model currently slated for cradle compatibility is the Heartbreaker Bow ($20), which sticks with a more traditional bow and arrow design and has a dash more wickedness to the design than some of the other blasters. The whole Rebelle line is expected to hit shelves in the fall — so little brothers beware.
HTC made quite an impression when it launched the Droid DNA with Verizon a couple of months ago, and we’re happy to say that its Butterfly variants on the other side of the world — namely Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Myanmar (Burma), India and China — have achieved similar success, with some areas struggling to keep up with the surprising demand. Still, if you’re in the market to pick up one of these 5-inch quad-core beauties, it’s worth noting the subtle physical and technical differences between them. At HTC’s Frequencies event this week, we had the rare chance to get all four (yes, four!) models side by side, so read on for our detailed comparison.
NERF Basketball is an America institution. Bedrooms, dorm rooms and offices across the country are adorned with the tiny hoops — over doors and garbage cans, even occasionally mounted on a wall. But, the open-cell foam rock is undeniably 20th century. In this age, for better or worse, analog just isn’t going to cut it anymore. So, Hasbro went back to that incredibly reliable well it used to modernize Lazer Tag last year, and whipped up an iOS app that talks to a digital playset. The NERF Cyberhoop is a re-imagining of the classic game with some serious electronic chops. Most prominently the ability to “connect” to an iOS device wirelessly using inaudible tones. Hasbro was nice enough to bring the set by our office for a quick sneak peek ahead of next week’s Toy Fair and after the break you’ll find our full impressions.
This week we’ve gotten our hands on the Microsoft Surface Pro for an extended review, and one of the first things to strike us was the idea that this device might be another competitor for the MacBook Air. With the Surface Pro running Windows 8 and the MacBook Air (the newest model, that is), running OS X, there’s some things that simply cannot be compared – some people simply prefer one over the other. When it comes down to the experience and one-on-one comparisons between these two devices, on the other hand, winning features shine through on both devices.
With the MacBook Air you’ve got an 11.6-inch display while the Surface Pro works with a 10.6-inch display – you could also get a 13-inch MacBook Air, mind you, but here we’ll compare the display that’s nearest the Surface Pro. The display on the Surface Pro works with 1920 x 1080 pixel resolution while the MacBook Air’s native resolution is 1366 x 768 pixels. It’s also worth making the distinction between these two displays in the fact that the MacBook Air does not work touch.
Windows 8 is an operating system that makes full use of the 10-finger touchscreen display on the Surface Pro while the MacBook Air is a machine that relies on its touchpad to mouse around, select items, and make gestures. The Surface Pro works with a cover that doubles as a keyboard, too. And in that point is the biggest differentiation point between these two machines – one is a tablet, the other a notebook.
While the Macbook Air is a notebook computer that made and continues to make a point of its ultra-thin nature and how it can work as a full-function notebook computer with as tiny an amount of bulk as possible. You’ll see from the images above and below as well as the hands-on video we’ve got prepared that the MacBook Pro is a significant amount thinner than the Surface Pro – or so it might seem at first.
MacBook Air (11-inch) Thickness: 0.11-0.68 inches Width: 11.8 inches Height (front to back, while closed) : 7.56 inches Weight: 2.38 pounds
Both devices have the ability to store a massive amount of data, with the Surface Pro having two iterations, 64GB and 128GB. Those are the amount of internal storage the Surface Pro has in its two different iterations, each of them with their own cash cost – that’s also one of the only things that differentiates the different versions of the Surface Pro at this very moment. The MacBook Air comes int two different iterations (with several different modifications available therein), one of them 64GB, the other 128GB.
The power you’ll be able to work with in a MacBook Air is either an Intel Core i5 or Core i7 processor. The Microsoft Surface Pro works with one configuration at the moment for processing power, that being an Intel Core i5 – and all of the processors here are 3rd gen Ivy Bridge, mind you, regardless of Apple or Microsoft surroundings.
The MacBook Pro has a lovely collection of ports and connections including: 720p “FaceTime” HD camera 2x USB 3 ports Thunderbolt port MagSafe 2 power port Microphone Headphone port Wifi Bluetooth Stereo Speakers
With the Surface Pro you’ll also be connecting with ports and wirelessly like mad: 2x 720p HD “LifeCam” cameras (front and rear-facing) USB 3 port microSDXC card slot power port Microphone Headphone port Wifi Bluetooth Stereo Speakers
You’ll notice that the 11-inch MacBook Pro doesn’t have an SD card slot – the 13-inch version of this device does, but the 11-inch version does not. The Surface Pro also benefits from its form factor in that it can make use of such sensors as an Accelerometer, a Gyroscope, and a Compass. With these you’ll be about to, for example, steer a car in a racing game, while the MacBook Air is meant to stay stationary while you’re using it.
The MacBook Air also benefits from the fact that it’s a notebook computer, able to stand up on its own with its keyboard attached, while the Surface Pro works in an entirely different way for stationary standing. The Surface Pro uses a kickstand on its back that’ll keep it upright while you tap away and also has a keyboard cover that, like a notebook computer, folds up and protects the device’s display or down for everyday typing use.
The Surface Pro also works with its own pen that sticks to the side of the tablet when not in use, utilizing an active digitizer in the display to make more than just standard capacitive moves galore. The pen creates a rather unique experience for you with the Surface Pro while the MacBook Air really isn’t the same universe – the only other place you’re going to get a digital pen experience in a mobile sense like this right now is in the Samsung Galaxy Note series – have a peek at our Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 review for more on that environment.
And this is only part of the story – for more information on both machines, you’ll want to check our full reviews of both devices. Have a peek at our MacBook Air (mid-2012) review as well as our Microsoft Surface Pro review for everything you could ever want to know!
Also be sure to let us know which of these two devices seem like they’d suit your needs given what you know today. Is there one that strikes your fancy more than the other?
It’s time for Instagram to bring the full square photo experience to the web, starting today, with one very important missing feature: photo uploads. While the public has been able to view browser-based profiles of Instagram users for a few months now, the ability of a user to view their own feed (including all of their Instagram friends) has only been made real today. To see your Instagram feed, simply head to Instagram.com and log in – it’s just that simple!
With this new user interface for Instagram you’ll be able to see all of your own uploaded photos alongside the photos taken by the people you’re connected with through the service. At the moment this means you’re seeing the same feed that you’d otherwise only be able to see on your mobile device inside the Instagram app. With this interface you’re able to “like” photos with the little heart icon below each photo, connect to “photo pages”, and leave comments.
Each user name inside this iteration of Instagram connects to that user’s profile page on the web. Each profile is exactly the same sort of page we saw with the release of web-based profile pages several months ago, and each “photo page” is also essentially the same as it was back when Instagram arrived on the scene, these pages otherwise able to be linked to via Twitter. If you decide you’d like to connect to someone’s Twitter profile, you’re in for a treat: the “@” symbol doesn’t connect to Twitter profiles, it connects to Instagram profiles instead.
Of course your Tweets via Instagram will still be connecting to “@” profiles if you include said text, so you’re once again getting an ever-so-slightly different experience with hot-linking depending on where your content is published. The fun never ends! From your Instagram feed in the web browser you’re also able to delete photos and comments – but that’s it!
For the real total full Instagram experience you’re still going to have to head to the Instagram app on your respective iOS or Android machine – or Windows Phone machine or BlackBerry machine if you’re reading this post in the future. Have at it!
Three years, three games. Skylanders Swap Force — the latest crossplatform entry in the mega-successful Skylanders game franchise — cements Activision’s annual approach to its “toys to life” series. The games merge toy figurines with RFID technology to allow in-game avatar representations of the toys to move from game console to game console, all the while storing unique information about that character. It’s essentially the equivalent of how fighting games work in Japanese arcades, albeit with children’s toys and a relatively simple action game: you level up your character, which is tied to your toy, and it can be used to continue earning experience on a variety of game consoles.
The second iteration brought Giants to the world of Skylanders. This year, Activision’s in-house studio Vicarious Visions (known for working on powerhouses like Guitar Hero and Tony Hawk Pro Skater previously) is taking the series in another direction, keeping original Skylanders, the second game’s Giants, and adding a new twist in swappable characters.
Yes, despite the image above of a half-octopus swashbuckler, this year’s innovation isn’t destructible characters. That sword in his right … hand and the water pistol in his left can be replaced on another swappable character’s bottom half — its motion component — creating an altogether new character. With 16 new characters, that means 256 combinations altogether; an enticing proposition to fans, and a potentially comforting thought to parents hounded by kids for new pieces every week. But it’s not just swappable characters that are new in Swap Force. Activision’s touting this entry as the first Skylanders entry to’ve been built from the ground up in HD. That’s a notable change for the franchise, marking Activision’s focus shifting from Nintendo’s Wii to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, as well as Nintendo’s Wii U. Oh, and there’s jumping. You can jump in this one.
There was much wailing and gnashing of teeth when Microsoft declared that fairly fresh (and costly) Windows Phone 7 devices like the Nokia Lumia 900 would never taste its latest WP8 wares. To assuage hurt feelings and keep legacy phone owners within throwing distance of the latest devices like the Nokia Lumia 920 or HTC’s 8X, Redmond introduced Windows Phone 7.8 (version 7.10.8858), which started arriving via Zune on January 31st. It was likely hoping that the upgrade would tide legacy owners over until their contracts expired or boredom set in, at which point they’d get a new device packing WP8 — including not-too-costly models like the $249 (contract-free) Lumia 620. So the question is, will the 7.8 bone thrown at WP7 handset owners prevent them from looking at the greener Android or iOS grass across the fence? We’ve got a Lumia 610 here that was otherwise collecting dust, so head after the break to find out our thoughts.
Ready to check out some more point-and-shoots? That’s great news! We’ve got a few more to share. The first two, the Coolpix S9500 and S9400, are nearly identical, save for a few key features. Appearance-wise, it’s difficult to distinguish between the two, especially when they’re powered off. Once you flip them on, however, you’ll probably notice the S9500’s whopping 22x zoom lens, compared to an 18x optic on the S9400. Both include 18.1-megapixel CMOS sensors and very crisp 3-inch OLED displays, while the higher-end S9500 ($350), which is likely to be the only US-bound model, adds built-in WiFi and GPS. Not to be overlooked, the S5200 includes a 16-megapixel CMOS sensor, a 3-inch VGA LCD, 6x optical zoom lens and WiFi for $180.
We caught up with all three compacts at Nikon’s CP+ booth this week, and we were quite impressed with the S9500 in particular. Despite the 22x zoom lens, the camera was very thin and light — it should be able to tuck into a pocket just fine. It included a premium finish, just like its slightly less capable sibling, the S9400, and performed very well during our hands-on. Both of these shooters have sharp OLED displays, which really looked fantastic, along with dedicated mode dials, though we were disappointed to see that Nikon omitted manual shooting options, in favor of some scene presets. The S5200, which was on display in red and blue, had a similar feel and finish, though it was quite a bit more compact, and lacked the OLED screen and mode dial. All of these models are set to ship later this month, but if you’re eager to learn more, you can check ’em out in our hands-on after the break.
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