Hasta La Gadget!

Protip: $900,000 goes a long way, particularly when you’re dumping practically all of it into a single investment (Hello Kitty lap warmers notwithstanding). LaserMotive, the company lauded for bringing home nearly a million bucks in the 2009 NASA-sponsored Space Elevator Games, has just broken an endurance record for laser-powered hovering with its unnamed Pelican. This here quadrocopter is designed to get energized by converting beams into power via a set of photovoltaic panels on its underside, and in a recent test, lasers were able to keep it afloat for over 12 hours. It never hovered much higher than 30 feet, and it barely moved from left to right while in the air, but we’re guessing it was marginally more interesting than watching paint dry. All jesting aside, the milestone makes it a lot more feasible for the company to get this technology into UAVs used in the military — “for example, laser-powered copters could perform on-the-road reconnaissance missions when convoys travel through a combat zone.” And if you’re looking to take home something similar on a far smaller scale, there’s always the AR.Drone.

Continue reading LaserMotive’s unnamed quadrocopter hovers for 12 solid hours using lasers alone

LaserMotive’s unnamed quadrocopter hovers for 12 solid hours using lasers alone originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 01 Nov 2010 22:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Slashdot  |  LaserMotive  | Email this | Comments

When Logitech first introduced wireless peripherals, we’d be lucky if our alkaline cells lasted a week, but these days the firm’s low-power mice can go months on a charge. Now, the company’s taken the next logical step, and made a solar keyboard. With an ultra-slim 1/3-inch profile and a full slate of laptop-style chiclet keys, the Logitech Wireless Solar Keyboard K750 isn’t your average rack of buttons to begin with, but the ambient light solar panels installed on the top of either side should mean you’ll never need to plug it in to recharge. That’s not a claim we’ll be able to test easily, of course, as the company tells us its low-power integrated circuits can theoretically run for three months even if you leave it in a dark desk drawer. It uses the same 2.4GHz Nano Unifying receiver as several other Logitech wireless products, too, meaning you’ll only need a single one of your netbook or set-top-boxes’ precious USB ports. That’s often a concern on MacBooks as well, though you can see from the prominent Windows key this particular product doesn’t quite have a Mac-friendly setup.

Though we’re obviously far away from being able to tell you how the solar panels fare in normal use, we’re typing up this article on one of the boards right now. So far, we’re loving the flat, firm feel of the slab and rounded finger-friendly indents on each key, though the QWERTY layout’s actually a little cramped for our tastes. We’ll let you know how it holds up over the long haul. Find it next month for $80, though, if you’re already sold.

Continue reading Logitech unveils wireless solar keyboard K750, does away with batteries for good

Logitech unveils wireless solar keyboard K750, does away with batteries for good originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 31 Oct 2010 22:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Haven’t seen enough of KDDI’s fall 2010 product line? Good. The company has just outed a new e-reader, and shockingly enough, it actually manages to differentiate itself quite well in the sea of me-too alternatives. The biblio Leaf SP02 (a followup to last year’s model) is right around the size of Amazon’s newest Kindle, packing a 6-inch E Ink display (800 x 600 resolution), 2GB of internal storage, a microSD expansion slot, included stylus, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, inbuilt 3G and a battery good for around 7,500 page turns. Curiously, there’s also a small solar panel adorning the bottom right, and we’re guessing that you can (slowly) rejuvenate the internal cell while reading under the sun — just make sure you keep your right palm out of the way. Unfortunately, there’s no direct mention of an expected price, but those stationed in Japan should see it on sale this December for somewhere between free and Yenfinity.

KDDI tacks solar panel onto biblio Leaf SP02 e-reader originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 09:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Engadget Japanese  |  KDDI  | Email this | Comments

So it’s true, we’re living in an age where people would shamelessly line up for certain electronics and luxurious fashion items. Why? Just because they can, and for that reason, some swanky outlets — namely Christian Dior, Prada, Giorgio Armani, Dolce & Gabbana, and Versace — have attempted to exploit our gadget lust by offering self-branded phones at extortionate prices. In the eyes of every-day consumers, there’s really not much appeal in these soulless devices except for the logo and some extra bling, but apparently these two factors alone are enough to make some aficionados drool a river.

On the other hand, Puma — a less luxurious but naturally more accessible fashion brand — has decided to do more than just slapping an OS skin onto its aptly-named Puma Phone. Priced at a comparably affordable £300 ($469), this Sagem-made featurephone packs a few unusual features such as a solar panel, a sports tracker, and even a virtual cougar named Dylan. Read on to find out if we could sense the Puma spirit in this device.

Continue reading Puma Phone review

Puma Phone review originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 17 Oct 2010 15:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

A solar-powered cell site? In Pennsylvania? Say it ain’t so! Rather than heading to Death Valley or southern Nevada, T-Mobile USA has selected the bustling metropolis of Chalfont, Pennsylvania for its first US-based solar cell site. According to a report over at GigaOM, the carrier isn’t dishing any real details on the new development, only saying that it generates enough power to take the site “off-the-grid” and occasionally feed extra power back into said grid. It’s likely that the site is primarily being built for positive PR and as a test for future rollouts, as the actual cost for installing this versus a standard grid-powered site is “around two to three times more.” But hey, there’s nothing like looking forward to the karma that comes with giving Ma Earth a kiss this big, right?

T-Mobile USA fires up first solar-powered cell site in Pennsylvania originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 27 Sep 2010 10:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  GigaOM  | Email this | Comments