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Continue reading Oscium’s iMSO-104 turns iPad, iPhone into mixed signal oscilloscopes

Oscium’s iMSO-104 turns iPad, iPhone into mixed signal oscilloscopes originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 17:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Continuing the trend of tying streaming content to the ol’ ball and chain that is your pricy cable subscription, ESPN announced the launch of the WatchESPN App for the iPhone and the iPod Touch, with an iPad optimized version slated for release in May. Said App can be downloaded now and will allow you to “stay connected to live sports and shows from ESPN, wherever and whenever you want them” — assuming you’re a Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks or Verizon FiOS TV customer that is. The ability to watch three of the most popular cable networks while on the go, or anywhere in your house, is certainly nothing to scoff at, but many sports fans’ excitement will indeed be diminished until ESPN fulfills its promise to release apps for “other smartphones and tablets,” and of course the other big service providers like Comcast, DirecTV and Dish Network get with the program. For now you can live vicariously through us by clicking through to the gallery or watching the western style WatchESPN App commercial available via the source link.

Continue reading WatchESPN iOS app lets some people watch live sports wherever they want

WatchESPN iOS app lets some people watch live sports wherever they want originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 07 Apr 2011 09:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ah, would you look at that. Earlier this year there were rumors about Apple ditching the physical home button on upcoming iOS devices, and now we have what appears to be a new iPod touch prototype matching such description, courtesy of CrunchGear via Mr. Blurrycam. According to its About screen, this “DVT-1” (a late milestone) device packs 128GB of memory — twice as much as the largest available capacity option right now (remember that 64GB iPhone 4 prototype in Hong Kong?) — as well as a model number “MC550LL” which isn’t far off from those of the fourth-gen iPod touches (“MC54xLL”), though this similarity doesn’t help prove its authenticity nor indicate whether it’ll make it to the market. Still, if Apple does go ahead with this grubby device or at least its capacitive home button, we might see new touch or gesture controls for the bezel area below the screen à la webOS, as suggested by an earlier patent. But hey, let’s not take this too seriously for now — all this could turn out to be just a much belated April Fools’ prank, right?

iPod touch prototype with capacitive home button leaked? originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 05 Apr 2011 10:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s about time the ViewMaster got an upgrade. What’s that? It’s not a ViewMaster? Well, you could have fooled us, but either way, the thing’s finally going on sale exclusively at Target April 3rd, and everywhere else starting in June. As you might have already heard, Hasbro’s intro into the crowded 3D arena, simply titled My3D, does take a card from the old ViewMaster deck, but instead of enlisting cardboard discs, this thing uses your iPhone or iPod touch to bring you 3D entertainment. If your kid’s not already hooked on 3D, the $35 viewer could be a decent starter — then again, for $35 you could take yourself out to a nice lunch, give the rug rat a cardboard box, and call it a day. Full PR after the break.

Continue reading Hasbro’s My3D to turn iPhones into glorified ViewMasters starting Sunday

Hasbro’s My3D to turn iPhones into glorified ViewMasters starting Sunday originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 02 Apr 2011 04:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Voice-recognition capabilities on the iPhone enable a user to play music and call contacts using speech commands. Photo: Jon Snyder/Wired.com

Apple’s next-generation mobile operating system may include a more powerful voice recognition system, putting to use the company’s recent acquisition of an artificial-intelligence startup.

Apple on Monday said it would announce details on the future of iOS, the software powering the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch, at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June. Expanded voice recognition features will be a highlight of the new operating system, claims TechCrunch’s MG Siegler.

The new voice system would take advantage of technologies developed by Siri, an artificial-intelligence company that Apple acquired April 2010, Siegler claims. Before Siri was acquired by Apple, it released an iPhone app that acted as a personal assistant. Dictating a command such as “I’d like a table for four at Nopa restaurant” would prompt Siri to reserve a table through the OpenTable online-booking service.

Deeper voice recognition in iOS would be a plausible next step for Apple. The touchscreen interface was already a giant leap forward for making user interface more approachable, and an expanded voice recognition system that controls core aspects of the iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch would make Apple’s mobile products even more user friendly for customers.

I can imagine less tech-savvy customers picking up an iPad and saying something like “Download Angry Birds,” which would initiate the download after you verify the purchase. Some other casual use examples would be “Search World War II on Wikipedia,” or “What’s the weather like next week in San Francisco?”

An improved voice-recognition system would also be extremely useful for an often-neglected audience: customers with visual impairments. The National Federation of the Blind previously applauded Apple for its VoiceOver system in iOS, a computer voice that reads back any text that you touch with your finger.

See Also:

• Blind Photographers Use Gadgets to Realize Artistic Vision …
• The Value of iPhone Technology for Young Blind People