Hasta La Gadget!

While Google’s offered free WiFi access in NYC subways from time to time, it’s apparently now set to help get a permanent solution live in a Manhattan neighborhood. There are no details regarding a time-frame, but the company’s linked up with the Chelsea Improvement Company to provide the access in Southwest Chelsea. Aside from the perks of pro bono interwebs for all, the initiative will serve to provide internet to likes of low-income and student housing in the locale — though, it seems a natural undertaking given Google’s office in the area. At the very least, it’s another nice chip toward municipal WiFi in the Big Apple. Full presser after the break.

Continue reading Google to help set up free WiFi blanket in NYC’s Southwest Chelsea neighborhood

Filed under: Internet, Google

Comments

Via: Yahoo! News, BGR

If you’re not keen on giving your little tyke the latest and greatest in terms of smartphones, but still want them to be a call away, the VivoPlay could fit the bill. Evado Filip US, the company behind the device, is packing GPS, WiFi and a GSM connection into a wristwatch form factor, which it claims is the world’s smallest communications and location device for helping families stay in touch. Parents can call the device and chat with kids and even give their rug rats the option to call up five pre-selected phone numbers. If a child were to wander away with the VivoPlay on their wrist, parents are alerted if they leave or enter a geofenced area and can pinpoint them on a map via a smartphone app. Were a youngster to find themselves in an emergency, they can hit a button that will ring up to five predefined numbers and report their location. The idea sure is a noble one, and the devices we saw looked more than child-friendly. Evado Filip reps told us that the device is being crafted with just that in mind, and the chunky rubber enclosing the communicator sure bears that out. The charger is enclosed for that reason as well, offering a decent bit of protection from the elements (and from childhood).

There’s no word on pricing or availability, but we’re told the outfit is working with carriers and that pre-orders will begin in Q2. Check out the neighboring gallery or hit the jump for the full press release.

Continue reading VivoPlay packs WiFi, GPS and a GSM connection for tracking, calling your kids (video)

Filed under: Misc

Comments

The Samsung DV150F is one of several cameras revealed this week carrying the ability to work with the company’s SMART CAMERA 2.0 software. Here we’re finding that even more enticing than the promise of next-generation sharing abilities is the display sitting on the front of the machine, giving us the ability to take full-on self-shots without the need of a mirror or a rather sizable flip screen. This machine was available for our perusal this week at the Digital Experience show put on by the folks at Pepcom during CES 2013 – have a peek!

The Samsung DV150F is a rather tiny device, certainly small enough to fit in your front pocket on any average ol’ day. It’s got a 16.2 megapixel CCD image sensor with the ability to capture 720p HD video, and it brings on wi-fi connectivity like the rest of the new wave of Samsung SMART CAMERA devices. The button on the back quick-toggles your connection to a local wireless network and you’re able to share like a maniac at will.

The term Live View is used here to brand the ability to see yourself while you’re taking a photo of your own face with the front-facing camera. This camera’s shots are certainly going to be fine and high quality enough for you to upload and use on your favorite social networks and even print should you feel the need to capture a series of photos at a party that you don’t just want to post to Facebook. You’ve also got a microSD/SDHC/SDXC card slot and several color casings to choose from.

This is but one of several Samsung SMART CAMERA machines we’ve seen this week – have a peek at our Samsung tag portal to see the full set and jump on in to the next generation of Samsung’s glorious connection to the share-friendly web. Also make sure you’re glued to our giant CES Hub for more CES 2013 than your eyeballs can possibly need!

Samsung DV150F point-and-shoot with front-facing display hands-on is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

If you’ve been planning on re-tooling your home network after the new year, Belkin has just outed a line of gadgets that could help do just that. The company has announced a pair of dual-band routers — the AC1800 and AC750 — that sport 802.11ac muscle, IntelliStream tech to prioritize video and gaming streams, and a MediaPlay app for pushing content to your TV that’s powered by Twonky. Both devices also feature Smart Start which allows for quick setup with a mobile device and USB ports for added connections. The main difference? Speed. The AC1800 advertises speeds of 300Mbps on 2.4GHz and 1.3Gbps on 5GHz while the entry-level AC750 boats 300Mbps on 2.4GHz and 433Mbps on 5GHz. The AC1800 and AC750 are available now for $179.99 and $89.99 respectively.

In addition to the pair routers, Belkin also announced the AC WiFi Dual-Band USB Adapter. Compatible with 802.11g/n/ac routers, the wireless accessory touts speeds of up to 867Mbps when leveraging 802.11ac alongside USB 3.0 connectivity. The adapter is set to arrive sometime this spring carrying with it a price tag of $69.99.

Continue reading Belkin outs AC1800 and AC750 dual-band routers, USB WiFi adapter at CES 2013

Filed under: Wireless, Networking

Comments

What’s in a remote? If you’re Sony, it’s an opportunity to pack in some extra connectivity: select models (read: the more expensive sets, from the W800 range and above) from the company’s 2013 line-up will come with a new, NFC-capable clicker, perfect for hooking up your Xperia device for straightforward video and audio streaming.

Sony already showed us its easy-pairing approach using NFC on the Xperia Z, but the system has more uses than just streaming audio over Bluetooth to a speaker or headset. The TV controller – which Sony is calling the One-touch Remote – when tapped briefly against your compatible Xperia phone automatically pairs up a WiFi Direct connection, and begins screen mirroring.

That means photos, videos, music, and apps on the big screen, and in a way that’s probably so straightforward that we can even envisage the mass-market adopting it. Tapping the phone against the remote a second time cuts the connection, with a little haptic-feedback buzz from the Xperia to let you know it’s worked.

In fact, the limiting factor is likely to be the fact that it’s Sony-only right now. Just as with other customized NFC-based systems we’ve seen – Samsung’s S Beam comes to mind, on the Galaxy S III and Galaxy Note II – there’s no playing nicely between the technologies. Being able to hand your friends and family the remote and have their content almost instantly appear on the big-screen is great; having to frisk them to make sure they have a Sony Xperia first is less impressive.

Sony One-touch Remote adds NFC for easy Xperia screen-sharing is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.