Hasta La Gadget!

It’s safe to say that most of our readers are accustomed to phone shops that are well lit, fairly spacious, and not peppered with KIRF products. But if you’re feeling adventurous and want to take a dip in the deep end of the pool, then Shenzhen’s Huaqiangbei district should satisfy your strange curiosity. As we’ve shown you in our previous trip, our gadget paradise covers an extensive range of products, including phones, computers, cameras, all the way down to circuitry components like LEDs, chips, and resistors. Our latest discovery, however, is an entire building dedicated to mostly mobile phone products. Read on to find out what this madness is all about — a video tour awaits after the break.

Continue reading Shenzhen mobile phone market: going deeper inside Huaqiangbei

Shenzhen mobile phone market: going deeper inside Huaqiangbei originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Jun 2011 14:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve all no doubt mocked an in-flight call to shut off all portable electronic devices at some point — heck, we’ve all probably had a saucy flight attendant who’s done the mocking for us. After all, the idea that our plane might plummet 30,000 feet because we’re fiddling with our iPhone seems a bit silly, given all we know about portable electronics. A newly discovered study conducted by the International Air Transport Association, however, calls into question the flippant nature with which most of us dismiss those warnings. Between 2003 and 2009, the study found 75 incidents in which electronic interference may have affected flight controls, navigation systems, or set off engine indications. It’s far from definitive proof — it’s more along the lines of anecdotal evidence from crew members, but hey, anything we can do help our plane keep flying is probably a good thing, right?

Portable electronic devices may / may not make your plane fall out of the sky originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 11 Jun 2011 11:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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First the ASUS Padfone, then the CMIT TransPhone, and now a third phone-docking tablet but with a little extra spice. Our latest contender comes from a Taiwan-based startup dubbed ICE Computer, who has just announced its partnership with ECS over its Trinity concept, a mobile display that lets you dock either a PC module or a smartphone (not necessarily an iPhone, let alone an iPhone 5 as reported by some sites; the dummy’s just for show and convenience). From our quick chat with ICE product manager Jaryson Wu, we learned that the company’s been working on this project for quite some time, though ike ASUS and CMIT, ICE also lacked a working prototype to show us.

So the idea is simple: slide in a PC module or phone of your choice, and you have yourself a fully functioning touchscreen tablet that has an upgradable core — that’s one tick for environmental friendliness, and another tick for potentially more powerful upgrades. But that’s not it, as ICE may also throw in USB 3.0 ports, additional internal storage, and even a fan inside the Trinity tablet, but that will depend on the clients’ needs. Jaryson indicated that there are no plans to launch products under the startup’s own brand, nor is it going to develop its own phone to go with the add-on any time soon — we’ll just have to wait and see what it’ll deliver in the first quarter of 2012. Video interview after the break.

[Thanks, @Stagueve]

Continue reading ICE Computer shows off Trinity modular tablet concept, aims for Q1 2012 release (video)

ICE Computer shows off Trinity modular tablet concept, aims for Q1 2012 release (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Jun 2011 05:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Wow, so our theory and mockup turned out to be pretty much spot on: indeed, the oddly named ASUS Padfone does tuck itself into a shielded docking bay on the back of its companion tablet, and the latter’s hinged cover appears to pop up upon releasing the latch. You can also just about make out the two ports inside which are likely to be HDMI and micro-USB — one for driving the larger display, and the other for taking care of touch input while possibly sipping juice from an extra battery somewhere. Now, what we really like to know is which version of Android will be shipped (if ever) with this split-personality phone — our money’s on Ice Cream Sandwich, given that this flavor will happily cater both phone and tablet form factors later this year. That said, given the uniqueness of this product, ASUS could probably still get away with taking a step back and launch this as a Gingerbread tablet. Well, we shall dig up more answers for y’all tomorrow, and stay tuned for some sweet hands-on time.

Continue reading This is the ASUS Padfone

This is the ASUS Padfone originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 14:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PadFone. Well, as silly as it sounds, the name sure speaks for itself. Unearthed by our friends over at Pocketnow, this USPTO trademark document was filed by ASUS merely four days ago. Such timing suggests that this could very well be the final name of the company’s eccentric “pad or phone” combo, which is to be unveiled at Computex next week. As expected, no specifics are detailed in this application, but it does mention “electronic pens for computer touch screens” — possibly hinting that the PadFone will be compatible with N-Trig’s DuoSense or similar stylus technology.

Alas, that’s all we have for now until ASUS lifts the curtain on Monday, but let us point you to Notebook Italia’s brilliant mock-up to quench your thirst for the time being — we, too, suspect that the phone would slide onto the back of its companion tablet, hence the bump. That said, do bear in mind that this phone is already proven to be not as tacky looking, but is likely closer to a full-fledged Android handset. Anyhow, check out the artist’s impressions after the break.

Update: Oh hey, remember Windows SideShow? Good times.

Continue reading ASUS ‘PadFone’ to be the final name of the phone-docking tablet?

ASUS ‘PadFone’ to be the final name of the phone-docking tablet? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 May 2011 13:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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