Hasta La Gadget!

The past week was also surging with developments from the field of renewable energy – first we were excited to see the unveiling of the Oyster 2, an offshore wave-harvesting energy plant that improves upon its predecessor with a simpler design, fewer moving parts, and a 250% increase in energy generation. Google, HP, and Microsoft are also getting into the green energy game with plans to tap an unexpected energy source to run their data centers – cow dung! Google also led the charge towards cleaner energy this week by funding a new type of jet engine-inspired geothermal drill that uses superheated streams of water to bore through previously impenetrable surfaces.

Speaking of jets, MIT has just unveiled several ultra-efficient airplane designs that are capable of cutting fuel use by a whopping 70%. The auto industry also received a jolt of energy as Toyota announced a partnership with Tesla that will boost California’s flagging economy and likely lead to more affordable iconic electric vehicles.

The field of wearable technology saw several innovative advancements this week as well – safe cyclists rejoice, because a group of Indian students have designed a $22 Solar and Wind Powered Bike Helmet. Meanwhile, a group of Colorado State University seniors have designed a medical incubator backpack unit that they believe can reduce baby deaths in medical emergencies.

Finally, we shined light on several brilliant advancements from the field of solar technology, starting with China’s plans to build the “biggest solar energy production base” in the world. We also looked at the HYDRA, a solar-powered hydrogen fuel cell system that can reportedly generate 20,000 gallons of pure water a day, and green energy got literal with the unveiling of the first leaf-shaped crystalline silicon solar panels.

Inhabitat’s Week in Green: surfing renewable energy, hexagonal LEDs, and ultra-efficient aerodynamics originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 May 2010 20:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As of last month, there were still no solid plans to ever bring HP Compaq’s Airlife 100 smartbook to US soil, and judging by the first reviews surfacing across the pond, the company should probably consider keeping it that way. In a land already saturated with increasingly powerful netbooks, highly capable smartphones and a blossoming selection of tablets, the actual need for a so-called smartbook is questionable at best. For those still interested in paying near-netbook prices for this (on contract with a carrier, no less), you should probably first take a gander at the reviews linked below. Put simply, the Airlife 100 just wasn’t a contender, and it had issues handling basic tasks like playing back HD videos and loading the full Gmail experience. ‘Course, Android 1.6 is looking severely dated right about now, so we can’t say we’re shocked to hear so much negativity. The design itself was universally praised, but when you can snag a Crystal HD-equipped netbook (sans a data plan agreement, to boot) for just a few Euros more, it’s hard to justify locking yourself into something far less intelligent.

Continue reading HP Compaq Airlife 100 review roundup: a little too dumb for a smartbook

HP Compaq Airlife 100 review roundup: a little too dumb for a smartbook originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 21 May 2010 17:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HP developing wrist PC for military, finally putting that flexible display to good use originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 May 2010 16:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve seen data centers use excess heat for greener purposes, but how’s about injecting a little green into the other side of that equation? HP Labs is on that very wavelength, going so far as to publish details on how these centers could be partially powered by none other than cow manure. Yeah, cowpies. The essential thought process went a little something like this: “Data centers need a lot of energy. Dairy farms create a lot of methane. Let’s make it happen.” Purportedly, 10,000 dairy cows could “fulfill the power requirements of a 1-megawatt data center — the equivalent of a medium-sized data center — with power left over to support other needs on the farm,” and heat generated by the data center could “be used to increase the efficiency of the anaerobic digestion of animal waste.” The stomach-twisting details can be found beyond the break, but we can’t be held responsible for any images you conjure up. Remember — once your third eye sees it, you can’t un-see it.

[Thanks, Bob]

Continue reading HP data center fueled by hopes, dreams and… cow dung

HP data center fueled by hopes, dreams and… cow dung originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 May 2010 14:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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That sexy HP Envy 17 that became official a few weeks back? It’s up for grabs, starting at $1,399 in its base configuration with a Core i5 processor, but getting much higher if you start tickling those option boxes in the customization screens. No word on the Envy 14 yet, but the 13 is still available… for now. Also on offer is the refreshed Pavilion line, the dm4, dv5, dv6, and dv7, showing off their new metal casings and swirly paint jobs. The dv6 starts at $699 while the others predictably go on up from there.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

HP’s Envy 17 and refreshed Pavilion laptops now shipping to stylish, on the go sorts originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 May 2010 08:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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