Hasta La Gadget!

It’s kind of hard to accept, Pluto has always been our favorite underdog, but the truth is that the Solar System‘s ninth planet was never really significant enough to earn that designation. Such is the coldly logical reason given for its removal from the planetary annals by a man who had a lot to do with its demise. Caltech astronomer Mike Brown discovered Eris, what he’d hoped was the tenth planet, back in 2005, but its extreme distance from the Sun and diminutive (by planetary standards) dimensions disqualified it from consideration. Unfortunately, its discovery is what doomed Pluto to be downgraded to a “dwarf planet,” though Mike’s not shedding too many tears over it. In fact, he’s gone and written a book about the whole thing, the smug planet destroyer that he is. You don’t have to buy it to learn more, however, as the source link has an interview with Mike all ready and waiting.

Why did Pluto lose its planet status? Because it never mattered enough originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 30 Dec 2010 08:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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So we were lucky enough to sit down with Sir Richard Branson at this morning’s launch of his iPad-only Project magazine, and just like the last time we hung out, our conversation was both entertaining and illuminating. The highlight? In addition to telling us that Project would eventually hit both Android tablets and other devices “in time,” Sir Richard was totally candid in saying that he had “no f**king idea why” Project was only on the iPad and not on the web — although he did say Project was a “proper magazine” and not “just thrown together for the web.” (Ouch.) Sir Richard was also excited about the possibilities for advertising, saying that the new medium can “bring advertising alive.” We’ve definitely got our doubts about limiting content to one platform without any robust sharing options — and we obviously think it’s possible to do high-quality content on the web — but there’s no doubt that Sir Richard is an extremely charming pitchman, so make sure to check out the whole interview.

The Engadget Interview: Sir Richard Branson on Project and the iPad originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 30 Nov 2010 18:35:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Everybody’s favorite instant streaming video game service just came into its own: OnLive is launching the MicroConsole right now, a tiny box that turns your Speedy Gonzales internet connection into a virtual game console. Sure, the company’s cloud computing service already lets you do the same from any old netbook — that’s kind of the point — but the $99 OnLive Game System gives you the leanback HDTV experience complete with a custom wireless gamepad, and (assuming you use HDMI) it’ll come with all the wires too when it ships December 2nd. We sat down with OnLive VP of Engineering Joe Bentley to get a handle on the hardware within, and learn about the budding ecosystem you’ll be dealing with if you buy in. See what the long-awaited system looks like below, and get the full scoop after the break!

Continue reading OnLive MicroConsole official at $99, we go hands-on and bombard you with details

OnLive MicroConsole official at $99, we go hands-on and bombard you with details originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Nov 2010 00:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jo Harlow, Nokia’s Senior VP of Symbian Smartphones was in Amsterdam for the kickoff of the Symbian Exchange and Exposition, giving us the chance for a sit down with the seven year Nokia veteran. How could we resist given the recent launch of Symbian^3, Nokia’s new iterative approach to Symbian updates, and then Monday’s (expected) bombshell that the Symbian Foundation would hand over operation responsibility for the OS to Nokia. While the full transcript is available after the break, we wanted to highlight the following:

• Symbian user interface improvements are Nokia’s top priority. According to Jo, “We are planning a few user interface improvements in early 2011 including split screen text input, portrait QWERTY — there will be other improvements coming shortly after particularly in the visual appeal of the graphics of the device.”
• While Jo stopped short of saying that changes in the Symbian Foundation will accelerate Symbian updates, she did concede that it eliminates a step making things “simpler” — and that’s a positive thing.
• Jo also reminded us that Nokia’s plans for MeeGo stretch beyond traditional handset formats. And just like Symbian handsets will form a “fat center” in Nokia’s device portfolio, she expects Nokia’s more diverse MeeGo offerings to be “pretty big and fat as well.”

Read on for the full interview in addition to Jo’s thoughts on Symbian’s “infinite possibility to surprise people,” Stephen Elop’s performance in his first two months on the job, and her frustration at not being able to move faster amidst all of the “Symbian bashing.”

Continue reading Nokia SVP of Symbian Smartphones talks portrait QWERTY, Symbian ‘bashing,’ and MeeGo devices

Nokia SVP of Symbian Smartphones talks portrait QWERTY, Symbian ‘bashing,’ and MeeGo devices originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 10 Nov 2010 05:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Raytheon’s XOS 2 has a right hook that can rip straight through a wall, but Dr. Fraser Smith assures us that death-dealing variants are still a good ways off. We caught up with the good doctor earlier today, who’s been working on the military-grade exoskeleton for eight years, and quizzed him on the hows and whys of building a would-be Iron Man. Find out what we learned after the break, and see the mean machine in our gallery below!

Continue reading Raytheon’s Sarcos XOS 2 military exoskeleton just does the heavy lifting — for now

Raytheon’s Sarcos XOS 2 military exoskeleton just does the heavy lifting — for now originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 28 Sep 2010 21:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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