Hasta La Gadget!

The big CTIA Wireless show in Vegas continues to crank out mobility news with the launch of Ericsson’s F3607gw HSPA/GPRS/EDGE broadband module. The Windows 7 lovin’ module’s unique “wake-on wireless” feature allows your laptop to sleep until important messages or security updates are sent over the air. Combine that little trick with F3607gw’s embedded GPS and your laptop is ready for a host of location-based services like traffic alerts, public safety warnings, and geo-fencing. Of course as we’ve already seen, the module works with Intel’s Anti-Theft Technology so you can remotely disable (via SMS) the laptop you left behind at happy hour. The module can even send its location data to a central server for recovery. Once recovered, a second SMS will unlock your portable and make all your data accessible again — your dignity, however, will be lost forever. Expect to see the first portables and theft-recovery services featuring the new module sometime after the F3607gw is released in June. Full press release after the break.

Update: Dell, LG, Lenovo, and Toshiba have all signed on as customers with products expected by “mid-second-half” of 2009.

Continue reading Ericsson’s F3607gw wake-on wireless HSPA module offers remote kill switch and recovery for laptops

Filed under: Laptops, Tablet PCs, Wireless

Ericsson’s F3607gw wake-on wireless HSPA module offers remote kill switch and recovery for laptops originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 31 Mar 2009 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The last we heard from the gang at TORC their tech was being used to snag third place in the DARPA Urban Challenge, and now Engineering TV has a couple programs highlighting some of the company’s more portable technology. Compared to other control units, WaySight is relatively small (under three pounds), and can be used to sight the robot either by selecting GPS waypoints via laser range finder in real time, or — if the GPS is unavailable — by sighting the robot and then the waypoint in relation to it. If the operator doesn’t find any of that appealing, the unit can be used to steer the robot using the unit’s built in accelerometer. The unit has a range of up to 400 meters. The AutoNav-Mini, which is installed on the robot, features a GPS unit, low level obstacle avoidance and detection sensors, laser range finder, radar, and more. This technology has all sorts of practical and legitimate uses, for sure — but none so satisfying as the fun we’d have chasing our little sister around the living room with it. Hit the read links for all sorts of crazy videos.

Read: WaySight
Read: AutoNav-Mini

Filed under: Robots

TORC shows off WaySight and AutoNav-Mini for small, expensive robots originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 Mar 2009 10:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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For parents worried about where their children are going, there are several devices available out there to keep track of them from afar. Every mobile provider now carries kid-friendly phones that have alarms and GPS capabilities that allow parents to watch via satellite. Other techniques, such as sending email alerts to parents once children go through train station gates with their RFID train passes are also hands-off ways to track.

Recently, Princeton unveiled a tiny device that is designed for finding kids, but might be even more useful with your keys! The Kid Finder (shop link) is a remote that displays basic directional information to lead the holder to the corresponding receiver (front, right, left). It also gives basic distance information and has an alarm for the kid’s side in case of strangers bearing candy.

Since it works up top 90 meters, you won’t exactly be able to find your kids with satellite precision from far away, but the idea is that you keep good track on them in public places while you’re there. However, it’s a bit surprising that devices like this haven’t made more of a splash for basic things like bags, pets, and the ever-elusive house keys.

This is radio-based, but with the decreasing costs for RFID tags making the technology more affordable, and receiver integration into most phones in Japan, we could be looking at tagging just about everything we have! Just bring it up on the phone’s menu, and get instant feedback on location. For now, the Kid Finder is the best we have it seems, but combine it with a camera and we’ll need nothing else!

BMW is working on an intelligent navigation system that can build a driver profile based on his or her common destinations and routes, AutoblogGreen reports, in an effort to predict where the driver is going next without having to program the system manually.

The point is to warn the driver of upcoming congestion, construction, and other obstacles, even when the person already knows where they’re going and doesn’t activate the system—such as on a daily commute, a weekend trip where there may be less traffic, or a sports event where there could be a ton of traffic if there’s a game starting in a few hours. In addition, the system can tie into the car’s drivetrain and reprogram the computer so that the car uses less fuel, based on expected upcoming driving patterns, according to the report.

So far, BMW claims that it has improved the accuracy of the system from 30 percent to 70 percent, in terms of it figuring out what the driver is doing next. But it still has a ways to go, and there’s no word yet on when this technology could make it into production vehicles, the report said.

While the world waits for a tried-and-true navigation app from Apple, XRoad is taking advantage of the situation by offering up its G-Map app in the interim. Kicking Tires decided to take the new software for a spin, and while the map quality took a pretty harsh beating, the overall offering was highly praised. More specifically, not every street name was present during testing, meaning that you had to rely implicitly on the turn-by-turn instructions if you weren’t familiar with your surroundings. Outside of that, however, it seemed to nail all the important points. Accuracy, routing, ease of use and design were all smiled upon, and it seems critics gave the street name snafu a bit of a break with the hope of future updates solving the issues. If you’re still a touch hesitant to drop your hard-earned cash, give that read link a gentle tap.

[Thanks, Ronald]

Filed under: Cellphones

XRoad G-Map iPhone navigation map gets reviewed, patted on the back originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 09 Mar 2009 23:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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