Hasta La Gadget!

This article was written on February 24, 2009 by CyberNet.

Windows; Mac;
Today Apple kind of took everyone by surprise when they released a big milestone for the Safari browser. The new Safari 4 Beta from Apple borrows some ideas from their competition, and they spiced it up a bit with some fancy graphics. This is most notably seen in the “Top Sites” screen as seen in the image above. It’s a combination of Opera’s Speed Dial and Google Chrome’s most frequently visited pages. Then they added a little glamor to really make it pop.

The Windows version also received a major visual overhaul so that it actually fits in well with the operating system, and for the most part feels a lot like Google Chrome. Especially since the tabs are located along the top on the titlebar… again, like Chrome.

When it comes down to speed Apple has actually managed to squeeze out a bit more. I ran the Mac version of the browser on the SunSpider test against Firefox 3.1 Beta 2 (also Mac), and Safari 4 Beta squeaked out on top. It took Firefox 3.1 a total of 1409.6ms to run all the tests, and Safari 4 was 1276.8ms (lower number is better). It’s not much of a difference, but Firefox 3.1 beat out Safari 3 proving that Apple didn’t focus solely on appearance this time around.

Aside from that here are some of the features Apple pointed out for Safari 4:

• Top Sites – See your favorite websites at a glance.
• Cover Flow – Flip through your site history or bookmarks like you flip through albums in iTunes
• Full History Search – Easily retrieve sites you’ve seen before.
• Tabs on Top – Manage your tabs elegantly and open a wide window for exploring the web.
• Nitro Engine – Surf the web with the world’s fastest browser.
• Windows Native Look and Feel – Vista and XP users will feel right at home.
• Developer Tools – Access the best suite of development tools ever included in a browser.

I’m diggin’ Safari 4 on my Mac, and despite being a rather dedicated Firefox user I plan on giving Safari a fair shot. I think Google might be able to grab an edge on Safari once they add support for extensions, but until then I think Windows users will, at the very least, be giving the browser a shot.

So what do you think? The number of web browsers and what they’re capable of doing is getting pretty amazing when you think about where this market was just a few years ago. I can’t wait to see what comes next, and what company it will come from.

Haven’t read enough? Here are some more articles worth checking out regarding this release:

• This is one fast browser – by Hardware 2.0
• Safari 4 Hidden Preferences – by Random Genius
• Safari 4 a big step up, but not as far as rivals – by Webware
• Safari 4 First Impressions – by Gizmodo

Get Safari 4 Beta for Windows or Mac

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The iWatch is as fanciful a design as you could wish for. The concept timepiece is a wrist-sized iPhony, a tiny iPod Touch on a strap. It’s also gorgeous.

The design is from the Italian ADR Studio, and exists only in the world of Photoshop. The main screen, seen above, shows the time, date and weather (Rome’s looking very inviting this month). The gallery goes on to show the Bluetooth syncing options (to iPad and iPhone but not a computer, oddly) and a picture of the iWatch throwing a projected movie onto a wall (hell, it’s a concept design: why not dream a little?) Read the specs and you learn that there will also be an RSS reader, Wi-Fi and 16GB memory.

I would buy one in a second, like Cult of Mac’s resident deviant John Brownlee (who also – curiously – claims the iWatch makes his “heart flutter”, despite the fact that he demonstrably has no heart in his dry, rattling cage of a chest). Sadly, it will never be so, and instead I shall be forced to strap an iPod Touch to my forearm like some giant, lottery-winner’s Rolex.

iWatch [ADR Studio via John “Dee” Brownlee]

Panasonic has done something with a simple firmware update that Adobe can’t seem to manage with a team of engineers and a few years of work: Improving the performance of flash (rimshot). Joking aside, those who use the GF1, the GH1 or the G1 cameras to shoot video will be pleased with the new firmware update, issued today.

For all three of the Four Thirds (and Micro Four Thirds) bodies, the updates improve autofocus performance with third-party lenses. The G1 and GH1 both receive “improved modulation accuracy of flash,” and the GH1 alone gets the ability to use AF while shooting HD video with compatible lenses, and better AF performance when using the 45mm ƒ2.8 Leica Four Thirds lens while recording movies.

In the interests of safety, I downloaded and installed the new firmware on my GF1. It went smoothly, and nothing has broken (yet). For me, without any third-party lenses, it isn’t nearly as awesome the feature-adding v1.1 update from November last year, but at least I know I’m up to date. Available now, links below.

Firmware v1.2 for Lumix DMC-GF1 [Panasonic Japan via DP Review]

Firmware v1.2 for Lumix DMC-GH1 [Panasonic Japan]

Firmware v1.4 for Lumix DMC-G1 [Panasonic Japan]

Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com

See Also:

• Panasonic and Canon Issue Firmware Updates
• A Month With the Lumix GF1, And Why I No Longer Use The Nikon D700 …
• Panasonic's New Micro Four Thirds Camera Shoots Video
• Panasonic Launches First 'Micro Four Thirds' Camera

Hey, who’s this charming young rogue giving Ma Earth a peck on the cheek? While opinions may differ on the utility of regenerative braking, we can’t envision anyone outside of Chevron or BP’s head offices complaining about suspensions that generate electricity out of the bumps you encounter on the road. GenShock is just such an invention, and its creator Levant Power claims it can improve fuel efficiency by up to six percent when implemented in hybrid or all-electric vehicles, while being affordable enough to pay for itself within 18 months of installation. The company is presently targeting heavy trucks, consumer hybrids, military vehicles, and mass transit systems for implementation of its tech, which is also claimed to result in a smoother ride. Should you doubt its actual efficacy, you’ll also want to know that GenShock has so far garnered awards from the US Department of Energy, MIT, and Popular Science magazine. See it on video after the break.

Continue reading Levant Power’s GenShock absorbs energy as well as bumps (video)

Levant Power’s GenShock absorbs energy as well as bumps (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 10 May 2010 08:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Well, we did have some strong evidence to suggest that Sony was planning a design update to its VAIO P Series, but there happens to be a lot more than fresh aesthetics going on with the new 8-inch lappie. Sure, it gets a new matte lid that’s available in five different shades, but Sony has also updated the 1.3-pound P Series with an optical touchpad and accelerometer. The former is built into the LCD bezel and, as the picture above shows, is all about navigating the desktop by just holding the screen – the pad is on the right bezel while the right / left mouse buttons are on the left. The accelerometer is probably the most interesting addition – you can flip the device vertically to read documents, but also tilt it to the left or right to move forward or backward while surfing the web. Pretty cool stuff, and there’s even more: it’s been given a faster Intel Atom Z560 processor option, though the entry-level unit has a slightly-slower Z530 CPU. Still waiting for US pricing to see if Sony can tempt us with its notoriously expensive VAIO P when it begins shipping in June. We’ll have a piping hot review of the new VAIO P coming up later this morning. So, will you hit the break for the official PR, or just wait for the review? Decisions, decisions.

Update: The U.S. has finally released its PR. The VAIO P will start at $799 stateside, though that includes the 1.6GHz Atom Z530 processor, and not the newer Z560 upgrade. That’s an $100 price drop, but still too much if you ask us.

Continue reading Sony VAIO P Series gets an accelerometer, touchpad (Updated: starts at $799)

Sony VAIO P Series gets an accelerometer, touchpad (Updated: starts at $799) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 10 May 2010 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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