Hasta La Gadget!

Skype has made itself present in many different areas around the globe, but the Microsoft-owned service is now looking to enter (and hopefully be a part of) a more business-oriented field. With the launch of its newfangled, adequately-named In the Workspace platform, Skype says it’s hoping to keep small businesses connected and help them grow by giving them a free platform where they can easily communicate with potential customers, partners and even suppliers. According to Skype, this novel service has been tested in beta form for nearly six months now, and today it’s officially opening its virtual doors to all business owners that are interested in giving it a go — the link to sign up can be found down below.

Continue reading Skype announces new ‘In the Workspace’ platform for small businesses

Filed under: Internet, Software, Microsoft

Skype announces new ‘In the Workspace’ platform for small businesses originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Nov 2012 15:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You wouldn’t immediately think of the ear’s cochlea as an energy source, but MIT knows that every mammal effectively has a pair of very small power plants because of the ionized environment. School researchers are trying to harness that energy through a new sensor that exploits the whole ear canal system. As eardrum vibrations naturally create a usable voltage from brain signals, the prototype can build enough charge in a capacitor to drive a very low-power wireless transmitter that relays the electrochemical properties of the ear and potentially diagnoses balance or hearing problems. The beauty of the system is its true self-sustainability: once the transmitter has been been jumpstarted with radio waves, it powers itself through the resulting transmissions. Energy use is also sufficiently miserly that the sensor doesn’t interrupt hearing. Work is still early enough that there’s a long way to go before such implants are part of any treatments, but there’s hope that future chip iterations could help fix inner ear maladies, not just report on them. Something tells us, however, that the doctor won’t ask us to take two dubstep tracks and call back in the morning.

Filed under: Wearables, Science, Alt

MIT ear-powered wireless sensor sustains its charge through sound originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Nov 2012 11:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Live in Germany, own a Galaxy Note 10.1 and need a Jelly Bean-based sugar fix? You’re in luck, as the Android 4.1.1 update Samsung promised back in September has touched-down in Deutschland. The 300MB OTA update brings with it several improvements, including greater multitasking and S-Pen functionality, new Quick Commands and the Paper Artist app from the Galaxy Note II. It might be an isolated release, but for all those still waiting, take it as a good indication your update isn’t far off.

Filed under: Tablets, Software, Samsung

OTA Jelly Bean 4.1.1 update arrives on Galaxy Note 10.1 in Germany originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Nov 2012 09:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Meridian’s indoor GPS technology has been the sole preserve of companies prepared to build their apps from inside Meridian’s custom editor. Now, however, it’s opened up the platform, introducing a pair of SDKs that let use anyone use its coveted Nav Kit and Blue Dot know-how to help people get around cavernous public spaces. Tested in locations like Miami Children’s Hospital, Sydney Airport and Macy’s, users will be able to get turn-by-turn directions to help them find their gate, offspring or this season’s must-have look — with the latter the first to launch a mobile app built with the technology.

Continue reading Meridian launches indoor GPS SDK, Macy’s first to launch with it embedded

Filed under: Cellphones, GPS, Software, Mobile

Meridian launches indoor GPS SDK, Macy’s first to launch with it embedded originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Nov 2012 08:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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When we last checked in on one of Sandvine’s traffic studies, Netflix had just edged past BitTorrent as the largest source of internet traffic in North America while YouTube was still a small-timer. A year has made quite the difference. Netflix is up to 28.8 percent in a new study, while YouTube has moved up to second place with 13.1 percent and demands even more than ordinary web requests. Rivals like Hulu don’t register in the top 10, and YouTube is by far the ruler of mobile with nearly 31 percent of smartphone traffic headed its way. Overall usage is moving up rapidly, no matter what kind of network the continent uses — the typical North American chews up 659MB per month when mobile and a hefty 51GB through a landline. There’s little reason to dispute worries of the impact on bandwidth-strained internet providers, although we suspect most would disagree with Sandvine on what’s to be done. The company naturally sees the study as a chance for business with carriers wanting to curb usage or charge extra through its tools; a generation that grew up with internet access, however, would likely see it as a better excuse to roll out more capacity for all those streaming videos.

Filed under: Networking, Internet, HD

Sandvine: Netflix up to 29 percent of North American internet traffic, YouTube is fast on the rise originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Nov 2012 04:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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