Hasta La Gadget!

You don’t have to wait for an FAA rethink to use your iPad on an airliner below 10,000 feet — if you’re part of an American Airlines crew, that is. As of this month, the air carrier is the first cleared by the FAA to use iPads in the cockpit at every point during a flight. The program starts just with Boeing 777 pilots at first, but it should eventually grow to save $1.2 million in weight-related fuel costs per year across the airline, not to mention a few trees and the strain of 35-pound flight bags. American is confident enough in the tablet switchover that it plans to stop handing out any paper updates to its charts and manuals as of January, just days after its entire fleet gets the regulatory nod for iPads at the end of this year. We just wouldn’t anticipate Android or Windows tablet rollouts anytime soon. American isn’t opposed to the concept, but it’s only promising that slates beyond the iPad will be “evaluated for use” if and when the FAA applies its rubber stamp.

Continue reading American Airlines becomes first FAA-friendly carrier to use iPads through whole flights

Filed under: Tablets

American Airlines becomes first FAA-friendly carrier to use iPads through whole flights originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 11 Sep 2012 19:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  The Next Web  | Email this | Comments

It’ll cost you $1.35 million to own one, but putting together a Kuratas isn’t any easier. The latest video of the monstrous mech shows it being transported and assembled. That means flatbeds, cranes and a whole lot of socket wrenches. Of course, at the end of the day, you’ve got a 13-foot tall robot you can climb inside. Certainly puts that Ikea bookshelf project into perspective, huh?

Filed under: Robots

The mighty Kuratas gets assembled on video originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Jul 2012 08:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Suidobashi (YouTube)  | Email this | Comments

Hasty, no? Merely hours after being announced to the world, Garmin’s GLO Portable GPS and GLONASS receiver have touched down in the FCC’s database. Per usual, that’s a fairly solid indicator that the devices will be available for sale on US shores within a few weeks, and if you’re curious, there’s even a draft user guide tucked in the source link below. Truth be told, there’s not a ton here that wasn’t already made public — it’s obviously “Made for iPod / iPhone / iPad,” and Garmin asserts that the included battery will take three hours to charge but 12 hours to deplete. The manual also asserts that Android users “may need to use an application to allow the sensor to properly communication over Bluetooth,” and just in case you’re thinking of getting wet and wild, the outer casing is said to be “rugged, but not water-resistant.” For shame — we were totally looking forward to geotagging our next romp down the Gauley.

Filed under: GPS

Garmin GLO Portable GPS and GLONASS receiver hit the FCC, get torn down for good measure originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 14 Jul 2012 07:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  FCC  | Email this | Comments

Maps. Everyone loves ’em. But while plenty of companies are showing off some very fancy map updates, we’re still being left somewhere, staring at tall buildings, waiting for our location to update and lead the way. Garmin reckons it’s solved the problem with its first GPS and GLONASS-compatible receiver, which can connect to both iOS and Android devices. Initial lock-on times are apparently 20 percent faster than typical GPS, while GLONASS’ additional 24 satellites will make faring through canyons and urban sprawls less of a struggle for signal pick-up. Garmin has also upped its position refresh rate to 10 times per second: typical GPS receivers will update just once every second. It connects to devices through Bluetooth and will offer a 12-hour navigation boost on a single charge.

If you’re a pilot, there’s even a GLO for Aviation package, which throws in a mount, power cable and six-month trial for its Pilot navi app. The standard receiver will launch in August, priced at $99, while those with wings can skip the queue and nab their version now for $139.

Continue reading Garmin GLO Portable GPS and GLONASS receiver: location refresh rate 10 times faster than typical GPS

Filed under: GPS

Garmin GLO Portable GPS and GLONASS receiver: location refresh rate 10 times faster than typical GPS originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Jul 2012 01:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments