Oct 31

iPad 2 gets an $8 million Cretaceous makeover with dino bones, diamonds and gold

Posted in: Apple, expensive, ios, ipad, ipad 2, Ipad2, slate, tablet, tablets, Today's Chili

In case you weren’t aware, Apple’s sold a whole lot of iPad 2s, so aside from the couple of bezel color choices or adding a Smart Cover, there’s not much you can do to make your tablet stand out from the crowd. Well, now there’s another option for the well-heeled gadget lover. Stuart Hughes is back with another custom gadget for the economic elites called the iPad 2 Gold History Edition. It’s got a solid gold backside, an Apple logo and home button crafted from a total of 65 flawless diamonds, plus a bezel crafted from Ammolite rock and slivers of thigh bone from a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Between all that ice and prehistoric bling, there won’t be a problem picking this iPad out of a lineup. What is a problem (for most of us, anyway) is the price: eight million dollars. We dig the dino look and all, but that’s an awfully hefty entrance fee — we’d rather buy a stock slate and take a few dozen trips to the final frontier instead.

iPad 2 gets an $8 million Cretaceous makeover with dino bones, diamonds and gold originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Oct 2011 23:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oct 20

The Leica D-Lux 5 Titanium: for people who prefer it pointed at them

Posted in: expensive, Today's Chili

Oh Leica, what do you take us for? First, you re-branded a Panasonic LX5 and sold it as the “D-Lux 5” with an inflated price tag. Now, you’re releasing the aging ten megapixel, 1/1.63-inch (read: small) CCD shooter yet again, but this time with an anodized titanium coating and an apparently unmentionable rrp. The $26,500 M9 Titanium at least had a full frame sensor, but this latest release proves that your corrosion-resistant dimorphic allotropes are only skin-deep.

The Leica D-Lux 5 Titanium: for people who prefer it pointed at them originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 10:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sep 19

Christie offers 4K upgrade kit for 2K projector that you couldn’t afford to begin with

Posted in: expensive, hdpostmini, luxury, projector, texas instruments, ti, Today's Chili, upgrade

For the eight millionaires who’ve been watching the pre-release of Killer Elite on their in-home Christie CP2230, we’ve got exemplary news for you: your already-amazing image quality is about to get even better. The same projector that was chosen to reside in the Academy Theater at Lighthouse International in New York City — and the same one that remains mysteriously devoid of an MSRP across the world wide web — now has a similarly sticker-less upgrade kit to consider. The Christie 4K upgrade package includes an entire 4K light engine assembly (replete with a trio of 1.38-inch TI 4K DMDs), an integrator rod assembly and an upgrade label. Yeah, a label. It’s like that. Hit the source links for the requisite phone numbers, or better yet, just forward the whole thing to your butler.

Continue reading Christie offers 4K upgrade kit for 2K projector that you couldn’t afford to begin with

Christie offers 4K upgrade kit for 2K projector that you couldn’t afford to begin with originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 19 Sep 2011 14:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sep 18

Sony releases XBA balanced armature headphones, eleven times over

Posted in: earphones, expensive, headphones, sony, Today's Chili

This dizzying array might seem like overkill, but Sony’s premium “Experience Balanced Armature” (XBA) ‘phones are carefully targeted at different price points and types of listener. You’ve got the entry-level XBA-1 containing a single full-range driver. Add a woofer for bigger bass and you get the XBA-2. The XBA-3 also squeezes in a tweeter for high-freq perkiness, while the XBA-4 rounds it all off with a super woofer. Each pair also has a smartphone twin with inline controls, denoted by the iP suffix. Finally, there’s a trio of single-driver specialists: the noise-cancelling XBA-NC85D, the sporty XBA-S65 with basic waterproofing for sweat and rain, plus the Bluetooth XBA-BT75. It’s unclear when these will hit our hemisphere, but we’re looking at a November release in Hong Kong and Taiwan with prices ranging from 3,000 to 14,000TWD ($100 to $475) depending on the model. Need more detail? We have product pics and info slides below courtesy of our bros at Engadget Chinese.

Gallery: Sony XBA headphones

Gallery: Sony XBA headphones info slides

Sony releases XBA balanced armature headphones, eleven times over originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 18 Sep 2011 15:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sep 01

Dyson unleashes DC41 Animal vacuum cleaner for pigpen apartments

Posted in: expensive, household, minipost, money, power, price, Today's Chili
We normally wouldn’t leave our housework in the hands of an animal, but Dyson‘s new DC41 Animal vacuum cleaner may force us to reconsider. The company’s latest Ball-based sweeper uses Dyson’s proprietary (and complicated-sounding) Radial Root Cyclone technology to maximize its 235 air watts of suction power — most of which is concentrated at the cleaner’s head. It also ships with a mini turbine head, which you can use to clean up the hair that real animals leave on your car seat. In true Dysonian fashion, however, this Ball-bearing beast won’t come for cheap. You can scoop one up at the source link below, for a cool $600.

Dyson unleashes DC41 Animal vacuum cleaner for pigpen apartments originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Sep 2011 19:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Aug 29

Photographer goes digital, blows half a million dollars on a 10MP sensor

Posted in: expensive, film, photography, Today's Chili

Ever spent way too much on a luxury watch or handbag? We hear ya — the Engadget closet is bulging with Balenciaga clutches we hardly ever take out any more. But do you know who we blame for these inexplicable lapses of consumer judgment? A professional photographer by the name of Mitchell Feinberg, who happens to own the world’s largest digital sensor. He uses the $500,000 custom-built 8×10-inch camera back to help capture mouthwatering advertising stills for couture clients like Bulgari and Vogue. What’s really loco, though, is that the sensor is only 10MP, which isn’t remotely sufficient for printable art. Instead, Feinberg puts it to work as a replacement for Polaroid; grabbing full-size test snaps during a shoot before reverting to an old-fashioned sheet of 8×10 film for the final money-shot. Whereas he previously spent $50k per year on Polaroid stock, now he spends nothing. So, unlike those silly blue-tinted Ray-Bans we bought for our vacation, this block of light-receptive love should eventually pay for itself. (Oh, and speaking of summer breaks, Feinberg says he’s currently away on his, but he promises to post some sample pics on his site when he returns.)

Photographer goes digital, blows half a million dollars on a 10MP sensor originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 21:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 29

Sony VAIO Z review (2011)

Posted in: AMD, CoreI7, expensive, laptop, Laptops, luxury, review, sony, Today's Chili, ultraportable, vaio, video

We see countless laptops come and go through the seasons, but a rare few have built up something of a following. Make no mistake: the Sony VAIO Z, a skinny ultraportable brimming with cutting-edge technology and powerful innards, is that kind of gem. So when it disappeared from Sony’s online store earlier this year, more than a few techies took note. After all, the Z is part of a small fraternity of notebooks that combine an impossibly lightweight design with performance worthy of a larger system. People who missed out on the last-gen Z wondered when they’d next get the chance to buy, while some lucky folks out there with thousands to burn started itching for something thinner, something lighter, something… better.

Well, it’s here. The 2011 VAIO Z is, indeed, thinner, lighter, and more powerful. It also might not be the Z you were expecting. Whereas the last generation combined it all, cramming in an optical drive and switchable graphics, this year’s model leaves much of that at the door — or, at least, in an external dock that ships with the laptop. This time around, the Z has no optical drive, and packs just an integrated Intel graphics card on board. (Don’t worry, it does squeeze in lots of other goodies, including standard-voltage Sandy Bridge processors and expanded solid-state storage.) If you want that Blu-ray burner or the stock AMD Radeon HD 6650M graphics card, you’ll have to plug into the Power Media Dock, an external peripheral that uses Intel’s Light Peak technology.

That’s quite the gamble Sony is taking — after all, the company is essentially betting that you won’t need to do anything too intensive while you’re on the go. On the one hand, this inventive design is sure to intrigue the Z’s usual early adopter fanbase. But will it satisfy those who always liked the Z because of its no-compromise design? And then there’s the issue of that $1,969 starting price, a likely stumbling block for people trying to decide between this and an equally thin, less expensive ultraportable. What’s a well-heeled geek to do? Let’s find out.

Gallery: Sony VAIO Z review (2011)

Continue reading Sony VAIO Z review (2011)

Sony VAIO Z review (2011) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 29 Jul 2011 16:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jul 13

Sony’s VAIO Z finally arrives in the US, goes up for pre-order starting at $2,000

Posted in: CoreI5, CoreI7, expensive, laptop, Laptops, pre-order, PreOrder, sony, Today's Chili, ultraportable, vaio, video
Well, it’s about time! It’s been months since Sony pulled the 13-inch VAIO Z from its website, and since then we’ve had to sift through vague leaks and watch mournfully as other parts of the world scored the next-gen version of this premium ultraportable. Finally, Sony has announced that it’s available for pre-order in the US, starting at a princely $2,000. As you’ll recall when we got hands-on at an event in Taiwan last month, this year’s model weighs in at 2.5 pounds (down from three last year), giving the 2.8-pound Samsung Series 9 a run for its money. As the cream of Sony’s crop, it’s fashioned out of better-than-average materials — namely, aluminum and carbon fiber — and you’ll find it in two colors besides basic black.

The big story, of course, is that rather than build a laptop with switchable graphics as it has in the past, Sony is instead relying on the Power Media Dock, an external, Lightpeak-enabled peripheral that houses an AMD Radeon HD 6650M graphics card and 1GB of video memory (not to mention, HDMI- and VGA-out, three USB ports, and a slot-loading optical drive). The laptop itself only packs Intel integrated graphics, which means Sony is assuming you’ll wait until you’re plugged in to start gaming, editing photos, and whatever else you power users fancy. On its own, the battery promises to last eight hours, but, as with Sony’s S series, you can pair it with an external sheet battery, which claims to extend the battery life to a max of 16 hours. Rounding out the spec list are standard-voltage Core i5 and i7 processor options, up to 256GB 512GB in solid-state storage, up to 8GB of RAM, and a 13.1-inch panel with either 1080p or 1600 x 900 resolution. In case this thin beauty slipped under your radar the first time around, we’ve re-posted our hands-on photos below, along with a walk-through video past the break.

Gallery: Sony VAIO Z Series

Gallery: Sony Vaio Z detailed hands-on

Gallery: Sony VAIO Z hands-on

Gallery: Sony VAIO Z components

Continue reading Sony’s VAIO Z finally arrives in the US, goes up for pre-order starting at $2,000

Sony’s VAIO Z finally arrives in the US, goes up for pre-order starting at $2,000 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 13 Jul 2011 16:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jun 29

Cases way more expensive than the gadgets they cover

Posted in: Apple, case, expensive, Gadgets, ipad, iPhone, ipod, laptop, mobile, Today's Chili

  Not too long ago wrote about the Hermes iPad 2 cases (above), and it got us thinking–at $820 it’s rather expensive. From there we went on to  round up all sort of gadgets cases–for devices like the iPad, iPhone, laptops, and a camera–that cost more (often much more) than the products they protect. Whether […]

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Jun 28

Tag Heuer outs $6,700 Link Phone for those who like alligator skin with their Froyo (video)

Posted in: Android, expensive, luxury, Today's Chili, video

As far as most of us are concerned, if we’re going to pay a lot for a phone — you know, like, $350 on contract — it had better come with the works. We’re talking a qHD display, dual-core processor, 8 megapixel camera with 1080p recording, NFC, 1GB of RAM, 16GB of storage, and a 4G radio, to boot. If you’re someone who buys things made by Tag Heuer, you’ve got different priorities. The company just introduced the Link Phone, a darling clunker of a handset festooned with steel, 18K rose gold, or titanium, topped off with leather, alligator- and lizard-skin, rubber, and diamond accents — a medley that’ll set you back no less than €4,700 ($6,712). What’s that you say? You want specs? The Link, named after the Swiss outfit’s storied watch line, runs Android 2.2 — a clear step up from its feature phone predecessor. Other ho-hum features include the 3.5-inch (800 x 480) display, 5 megapixel autofocus camera, 256MB internal memory, an 8GB memory card, 1400 mAh battery, and EDGE / HSUPA connectivity. Tag Heuer also says it’ll be particularly durable, though it’s coming up short on specifics. Somehow, though, we don’t think it will survive when we accidentally drop it in our gold-plated toilet.

Update: Tag Heuer might not have the chops to build a highly spec’d phone, but it sure knows how to root one. As a tipster pointed out, if you pause the video at 1:18 you’ll see Superuser in the app menu — a telltale sign of hacking if ever there was one. Freeze frame after the break. [Thanks, Sasika!]

Gallery: Tag Heuer Link Phone

Continue reading Tag Heuer outs $6,700 Link Phone for those who like alligator skin with their Froyo (video)

Tag Heuer outs $6,700 Link Phone for those who like alligator skin with their Froyo (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Jun 2011 10:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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