Dyson’s Air Multiplier is the overpriced bladeless fan you never asked for

We can’t fault Dyson for chutzpah. After putting the company’s spin on vacuum cleaners and then hand dryers, we probably should’ve guessed that a revolution in table fan engineering was next up. When we first saw an image of the Dyson Air Multiplier “bladeless fan” a few spurious theories popped into our heads as to how it works, but it didn’t take long to figure it out: it has blades in it. It’s just that these blades are inside the lower canister, rather similar to, dare we say it, how a vacuum cleaner is set up, with the air then routed through the ring up top. The benefits of this tech are that there are no nasty blades to get fingers caught up in, but also that there’s no “buffeting” — that on-off gush of air caused by fan blades unceremoniously chopping up the air into inelegant segments. Unfortunately, the downside of the Dyson method is that you can’t make Darth Vader voices through the backside of the fan, and the whole assembly is closer in noise pollution to that of an actual vacuum cleaner than a regular table fan. And then there’s the matter of price: $300 for the 10-inch model, $330 for the 12-inch, and neither of them offer nearly as much wind as a regular fan this size — quite a steep entry fee for the gentle breezes that emanate out of this plastic wind tunnel. Full PR is after the break.

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Dyson’s Air Multiplier is the overpriced bladeless fan you never asked for originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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5-inch BeBook Mini now shipping in the US for $199 (hands-on)

We’d heard back in May that Endless Ideas’ smallest e-reader yet would begin shipping (presumably in Europe) during the summertime, but it just recently started to make its way onto US doorsteps. Thankfully, our doorstep was among those greeted by the 5-inch reader, which boasts the same specifications as the original BeBook save for the smaller display. Priced at $199, it seemed a lot more competitive before Amazon hacked the price of its Kindle to $259, and given the dearth of WiFi / 3G WWAN, it’ll only appeal to those content with hitting up their PC via USB to get new content loaded on. Upon unboxing this cutie, we were struck at just how light and compact the whole unit is, though even with the font at its default size, we had no issues reading the crystal clear e-ink display. Screen refreshes were satisfactorily quick, and menu navigation was a breeze. As an e-reader (and MP3 player, if you wish), it’s hard to bang on the pocket-friendly BeBook Mini, but with the Kindle’s recent price drop and Sony’s $199 Reader Pocket Edition, competition is fierce.

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5-inch BeBook Mini now shipping in the US for $199 (hands-on) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Canon PowerShot SD980 IS unboxing and impressions

Canon held off about as long as it could, but it finally caved to the pressures of adding a pressure-sensitive screen to one of its Digital ELPHs. The SD980 IS goes down as the first-ever touchscreen PowerShot, offering a better-than-average set of specifications, a few color options, an attractive size and a 720p movie mode that helps to set it apart from some of its VGA-quality contemporaries. We took the cam for a quick spin just to see how Canon’s adaptation of the touchscreen felt in real-world use, and we’ve posted up our impressions — along with a few sample galleries and a raw 720p video clip — just beyond the break.

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Canon PowerShot SD980 IS unboxing and impressions originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 14:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Achtung, T-Mobile: if Project Dark is $50 unlimited, you’re in trouble

Put yourself in T-Mobile USA’s shoes for a moment: rumor has it that the guys who pay the bills aren’t happy. History, happenstance, and the realities of electromagnetics have left you with an oddball 3G frequency that literally no other carrier in the world uses (at least, not for HSPA). Larger competitors don’t take you as seriously as you’d like, and you don’t have smaller ones — they’re all regionals who don’t play in the same space you do. So what’s your next move?

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Achtung, T-Mobile: if Project Dark is $50 unlimited, you’re in trouble originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Oct 2009 02:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hitachi’s face-recognizing display turns off, saves power when you look away (video)

CEATEC is a breeding ground for new innovations, and Hitachi made sure to get its name on the A-list with a simple face-recognizing television that seeks to save power whenever you glance away. Essentially, the prototype plasma on display packs an inbuilt camera that notices when your face is peering at it, and whenever you glance away, a power-saving mode goes into action. Unfortunately, that means that the panel goes black, and while we understand the point here, we can envision such a feature causing all sorts of rage around the house, particularly if you’ve got a handful of viewers trying to keep watch from a few feet further away than yourself. Hit the read link to have a look at how things work in practice — here’s hoping you can opt for the sound to stay on throughout the blackout, at least.

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Hitachi’s face-recognizing display turns off, saves power when you look away (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 10 Oct 2009 00:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How would you change Microsoft’s Zune HD?

For the anti-iPod crowd out there (you know who you are), Microsoft’s Zune HD has been a long time comin’. As of September 17th, your excuses for not owning one vanished completely, and for those diehards willing to splurge on Redmond’s swankest PMP yet, we know you’ve been toying with it ever since. Still, the Zune HD hasn’t thrived without its fair share of hangups, and we get the impression that at least a smattering of users are still frustrated by this or that. If we just rang your bell, you’re in the right place. We’re curious to hear what actual, honest-to-goodness Zune HD users have to say about their new toy, and better still, how you would’ve done things differently if you had any power whatsoever over Sir Ballmer. Drop your rant off in comments below, would you?

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How would you change Microsoft’s Zune HD? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 23:38:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mitsubishi’s modular, scalable OLED display goes 155-inches at CEATEC, could go way bigger (video)

Something tells us that whenever we do round two of our Time Square signage Engadget Show, Mitsubishi’s modular OLED display will be amongst the highlights. Aimed at outdoor applications (but obviously ready for your living room), the scalable prototype shown here at CEATEC was 155-inches in size. The wild part, however, is that it could grow infinitely larger — at least in theory. The whole panel that you notice from afar is crafted from smaller OLED blocks that snap together like a puzzle; the more you add, the larger your screen can be. Unfortunately, resolution is still relatively low and longevity is a definite concern, but if you can manage to stand a few feet back, the result is simply stunning. Hop on past the break for a new take on “immersive.”

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Mitsubishi’s modular, scalable OLED display goes 155-inches at CEATEC, could go way bigger (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 22:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Elektrobit and Wistron MIDs pop up under lock and key at CEATEC: hands-on

Remember that new and improved reference MID that Elektrobit (better known as EB) announced back at IDF? Yeah, that very device was on hand at Intel’s booth at CEATEC, though not a soul was allowed to touch it. The unit was neatly planted beneath freshly Windexed glass alongside three others, two of which certainly put an impressive label on Wistron. We did learn that the EB slate would boast a 3.97-inch capacitive touchscreen with an 800 x 480 resolution, though further details on the lot were scant. Have a peek below to see if EB’s take on the niche MID might actually cause you to take notice.

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Elektrobit and Wistron MIDs pop up under lock and key at CEATEC: hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 21:13:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yamaha’s 1mm-thick prototype speaker is made from cloth, highly directional (video)

We’ve already heard first-hand how Yamaha can make surround sound emerge from a single soundbar, and now the outfit’s wowing again here at CEATEC. It’s latest aural innovation was tucked quietly away within its booth, disguised as an advertorial for the show itself. Essentially, the banner you’re peering at above is a one millimeter thick speaker that’s made from cloth, and it definitely has the potential to revolution billboards and possibly even portable media devices. As you can clearly hear in the video just past the break, the flat sound waves emitted from the cloth cannot be heard unless you’re standing directly in front of it; even separate audio files playing back just a few feet away didn’t overlap with what we heard coming directly at us. There’s no telling if Yamaha will ever take this public, but if it does, there are about forty billion ad agencies in the greater New York area that would like to speak to it.

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Yamaha’s 1mm-thick prototype speaker is made from cloth, highly directional (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 20:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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T-Mobile Pulse review over on Engadget Mobile!

This review has disappointingly little direct, I’m-going-to-go-buy-this-right-now relevance to North American Android fans — but if you want to keep tabs on the sweet gear our friends over in Europe are now able to buy, head on over to Engadget Mobile where we’ve got an in-depth review of the Huawei-sourced Pulse for T-Mobile UK. With a 3.5-inch HVGA display, 3.5mm jack, and every spec this side of US 3G, it’s a contender — so if you’re in the Old World, go have a look at what you’re now able to buy, and if you’re on the other side of the Atlantic, go check out another reason to be insanely jealous.

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T-Mobile Pulse review over on Engadget Mobile! originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 16:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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