Hasta La Gadget!

So you saw that the first MOTO smartphone touchscreen comparison was done with a fleshy humanoid controlling the testing finger and discounted it as scientifically flawed? Well, MOTO’s back and this time the arm of judgment is operated by a coldly mechanical and ruthlessly precise robot — a machine in itself, we’ll assume the robot is intrinsically immune to developing fanboy tendencies. Joining the iPhone, Droid Eris, Droid, and Nexus One of the earlier test are Palm’s Pre and RIM’s BlackBerry Storm 2, whose results you can see at the source link below. The full test methodology is also explained there, including a list of the drawing apps used, which were selected with a view to minimizing smoothing algorithms that may prejudice the outcome. We’re not gonna tell you who won, you have eyes of your own after all, and will just direct you after the break for the full robot-on-smartphone video action.

Continue reading MOTO touchscreen comparison recruits robotic implements for heightened precision (video)

MOTO touchscreen comparison recruits robotic implements for heightened precision (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Mar 2010 07:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Touchscreens on smartphones are great for surfing the internet or browsing photos but they can be frustrating if you want to type more than a few words.

A new app called ThickButtons for Android phones hopes to fix that by claiming to improve the accuracy of onscreen keyboards. The app says it will make it easier to type on touchscreens by dynamically shrinking the letters that are not likely to be used and enlarging the buttons that are.

For instance, as you try to type the word ”Wired,” the software attempts to guess the word and the letters in it appear enlarged, while the surrounding keys shrink.

It’s an interesting spin on the predictive text input technology. Instead of trying to predict the full word during the typing process–as most predictive text systems do–ThickButtons highlights the next few letters that you are likely to use to create the word.

The advantage with ThickButtons, says the company, is that users don’t have to learn a new way to type and they can reduce the number of errors they make.

ThickButtons is easy enough to install, but you will have to choose it as your input method by making a change to the language and keyboard settings in your phone.

And promising as it sounds, ThickButtons can confuse some users as the letters on the keyboard change in size rapidly. When I used it, it didn’t seem to make a visible difference in the number of errors I made as I tried to type fast.

Since the app is free, if you have an Android phone give it a try but be warned: it’s not going to give you a significant edge in your texting skills.

Check out the demo video to see how ThickButtons works:

Photo: Screenshot of ThickButtons/ ThickButtons

When you’ve got an entire desktop PC inches from your eardrums, it helps if the machine is dead silent… or as close to that dream as possible. That’s why we’re pleased that Shuttle’s new XPC X50V2 — last spotted wearing a toga — is now on sale with a completely fanless design for silent cooling. Since CES, the all-in-one has also gained legacy parallel and serial ports (you know, for your Zip drive) and room for up to 4GB of memory, but hasn’t lost any of its dual-core Atom D510 1.66GHz goodness or its school lunchbox charm. Though we haven’t heard official word about US availability, Shuttle’s domestic website places the MSRP at $400, and online retailers including Newegg already show the tethered touchscreen tablet in stock.

Shuttle’s X50V2 all-in-one barebones PC gets passively cooled, passively hits online retail originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Mar 2010 08:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Yesterday we brought you pictures of the touchscreen-loving user interface on Sony’s genre-straddling camera concept, so what better way to improve on that than with video and a few specs? Beyond the break you shall find one of those excessively stylized promotional vids you know and love to hate, but tolerating the fluff with reward you with some nice hints about how the shooter is operated plus finally some word on what’s inside. An Exmor APS HD CMOS sensor is touted, along with the accompanying capability to shoot 1080p AVCHD video. While we still find the design of these interchangeable lens cameras ridiculously appealing, there is one thing we have to complain about and that’s the clunky naming scheme. Please Sony, give us something sexier to call it than an “ultra-compact camera concept” — how about the Sony Beta, it comes after Alpha and is typically used to denote an unfinished product. You can have that one for free.

Continue reading Sony’s ultra-compact concept shooter will come with an APS sensor, UI shows up on video

Sony’s ultra-compact concept shooter will come with an APS sensor, UI shows up on video originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Before the iPad and before the Slate, the most exciting touchy tablety thing in our lives was Toshiba’s JournE multimedia tablet. Now that the Japanese compu-maker has seen what the competition has on offer, it’s proudly proclaimed itself back in the running with an entire family of slate devices it’s planning to introduce near the end of 2010 or in early 2011. “It has proved to be a mistake to underestimate these new categories” is the word from Toshiba’s Jeff Barney, which indicates that not even he sees that much potential in the form factor, but his company is pushing ahead with its plans for fear of being left behind. Also quoted in the Fortune piece is ASUS’ inimitable Jonney Shih, who makes sure to remind us that without multitasking, Flash support, or a webcam for videoconferencing, the iPad leaves plenty of room for devices richer in features to grab market share. All we know for certain is that the major players are falling in line to make 2010 truly the year of tablet — whether or not consumers will place their stamp of approval on this vendor-driven craze, though, remains to be seen.

Toshiba will have its own family of slates by this time next year originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Mar 2010 06:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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