Jun 29

Supersonic Green Machine sends greetings from the future

Posted in: concept, Environment, green, NASA, Today's Chili, Travel

While many of us are busy debating the relative merits of pocket-sized technology, NASA is mulling over ideas on a much grander scale. Submitted as part of the Administration’s research into advanced aeronautics, the above Lockheed Martin-designed aircraft is just one vision of how air travel might be conducted in the future. It’s a supersonic jet employing an inverted-V engine-under-wing configuration, which apparently helps to significantly reduce the resultant sonic boom. Other than that, we’re only told that “other revolutionary technologies” will provide for the achievement of range, payload and environmental goals. So that snazzy paintjob wasn’t just for show, after all — who’d have guessed?

Supersonic Green Machine sends greetings from the future originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 29 Jun 2010 03:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jun 22

Panasonic Introduces New Noise-Canceling Headphones

Posted in: headphones, MP3 Digital Audio, Panasonic, Today's Chili, Travel

Panasonic - RP-HC700-SPanasonic may not be one of the first brands that comes to mind when you think of noise-canceling headphones, but I can testify that my Panasonic RP-HC500 headphones serve me well when I’m in the air or at the office. Now, just in time for the summer travel season, Panasonic has unveiled the RP-HC700 noise-canceling headphones, available now for $199.99 list.

The RP-HC700 headphones are a supra-aural model where the earpads rest on your ear or just over, instead of being large enough to fit around the entire ear. They feature active noise cancellation, so you can wear them with the noise cancellation off or turn it on when you want to focus on your music, or you’re not listening to anything and just want a little silence. The noise cancellation works regardless of whether the headphones are plugged in. The pads are covered in a soft leather-like plastic, and fold into an included case for portability.  

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Jun 03

Microsoft and United Airlines Team Up to Provide Zune In-Flight Entertainment

Posted in: MP3 Digital Audio, Music, Today's Chili, Travel, zune

United Airlines - ZuneUnited Airlines and Microsoft announced in a joint press release today that Zune would be the exclusive provider of in-flight audio entertainment on all United Airlines flights, both international and domestic. If you’ve flown on United recently, you’ll note that the in-flight audio options are straightforward and standard across multiple airlines, including channels for classic rock, pop, and classical, and while those channels won’t go anywhere, the addition of music powered by Microsoft’s Zune Marketplace adds more variety and selection to your flight.

With the new Zune channels, United passengers will be able to enjoy music from movie soundtracks, a dedicated electronic dance channel, an opera channel, and a piano jazz channel that’s perfect for people anxious about flying. All of the playlists will be generated using music from the Zune Marketplace, and Microsoft is providing up to 21 different playlists of music with which to populate the new in-flight audio channels, and all of the playlists and channels will be listed in United’s on-board magazine, Hemispheres, for listeners to snag and take home with them if they hear something they absolutely have to download. 

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May 31

Asus Packs Computex with Eee Pads

Posted in: Apple, ASUS, ipad, Miscellaneous Tech, Today's Chili, Travel

ASUS Eee Pad EP121 12 inch.jpgWhen Chairman Jonney Shih unveiled the Asus Eee Pad on stage at Computex today, the crowd of journalists almost rushed the stage with excitement. Unlike the similarly named Asus Eee Tablet, which is designed to compete with e-Readers like the Nook and the Kindle, the Eee Pad is designed to go head-to-head with the Apple iPad.
 
The Eee Pad is a Windows 7-based device that uses an Intel CULV Core 2 Duo processor and a touch-sensitive capacitive screen. It can be used as a multimedia player, e-reader, Web-browser, or, with the help of a keyboard docking station, full-featured PC.  Asus will be releasing two versions of the Eee Pad. The EP101TC will come with a 10-inch screen and the EP121 will ship with a 12-inch screen. Asus claims both systems will deliver at least 10 hours of battery life.

Shih says that tablet devices like this will bridge the conventional divide between business and consumer products. “We envision a different kind of usage scenario,” Shih said. “You can be both a premier professional and a housewife.”

Question is, can Asus get an Eee Pad in her hands before she buys an iPad? No specific ship date was given.

Want to see more? Check out our Computex 2010 slideshow at PCMag.com.

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May 31

Asus Eee Tablet Launches at Computex

Posted in: ASUS, nook, Tech Toys, Today's Chili, touchscreen, Travel

ASUS Eee Tablet-1.jpg Asus announced the Eee Tablet today at Computex 2010, an electronic reader that will also serve as a digital note-taking device thanks to its touch-sensitive screen. The Eee Tablet uses a reflective LCD display, instead of the E Ink found on readers like the Kindle and the Nook. This means it can refresh the screen without the lag that is common to E Ink displays.  The touch-sensitive display is based on Wacom‘s pen-input technology, which can sense 2,450 dpi. The device also comes with a built-in camera, a USB port, and a microSD slot.

The product is designed for students and mobile professionals and will be available in the Fall of 2010. “We want to put it in the hands of every college student,” says Will Chuang, Product Manager with Asus.

Check out our ever-growing Computex 2010 slideshow at PCMag.com.

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May 29

OpenWays makes your smartphone a hotel room key, provides a different kind of ‘unlock’

Posted in: app, cellphone, Today's Chili, Travel

For years now, hotel chains have been toying with alternative ways to letting patrons check-in, access their room and run up their bill with all-too-convenient in-room services. Marriott began testing smartphone check-ins way back in 2006, and select boutique locations (like The Plaza Hotel in New York and Boston’s Nine Zero) have relied on RFID, iris scanners, biometric identifiers and all sorts of whiz-bang entry methods in order to make getting past a lock that much easier (or harder, depending on perspective). This month, InterContinental Hotels Group announced that they would soon be trialing OpenWays at Chicago’s Holiday Inn Express Houston Downtown Convention Center, enabling iPhone owners to fire up an app and watch their room door open in a magical sort of way. Other smartphone platforms will also be supported, and as we’ve seen with other implementations, users of the technology will also be able to turn to their phone to order additional services, extend their stay or fess up to that window they broke. There’s no word on when this stuff will depart the testing phase and go mainstream, but we’re guessing it’ll be sooner rather than later. Video after the break, if you’re interested.

Continue reading OpenWays makes your smartphone a hotel room key, provides a different kind of ‘unlock’

OpenWays makes your smartphone a hotel room key, provides a different kind of ‘unlock’ originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 30 May 2010 01:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Switched  |  sourceHospitality, USA Today  | Email this | Comments

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May 18

The iPad Is Such A Great Travel Computer That I’m Selling My Laptop [Ipad]

Posted in: Apple, apple ipad, ipad, Laptops, Today's Chili, top, Travel

Back from a week out of country, I confirmed a theory: the iPad makes a fantastic travel computer. So much so that I’m going to be selling my laptop. More »

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May 17

Giz Explains: Why Using Your Phone In Another Country Costs So Damn Much [Giz Explains]

Posted in: cdma, cellphones, feature, Phones, Today's Chili, top, Travel

The worst part of any vacation is coming home. Not just because your fleeting glimpse of freedom is finished, but because you’ve got to pay the absurd phone bill you racked up while you were gone. Ugh. Why? More »

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May 05

Clear security lanes storming back to airports, principled travelers high five one another

Posted in: security, Today's Chili, Transportation, Travel

Don’t call it a comeback. Or do, because that’s precisely what this is. After Clear shuffled its final incorruptible passenger through a speedy security lane in June of last year, the company closed up shop and forced even the nicest of travelers to re-join the herds. Thankfully for us all, Alclear has decided that life’s simply no good without a hasty security option at airports, and it has plopped down $6 million in order to acquire the assets of Verified Identity Pass out of bankruptcy protection. According to our hombres at Gadling, that purchase price doesn’t include individual airport contracts, so it’ll be an uphill battle getting these lanes back into the places in which they’re needed. If all goes well, we could see the first Clear avenues reopen this fall, with pricing set at $179 per year for unlimited individual use or $229 per year for unlimited family use. Head on past the break for more details on reactivating old subscriptions and the full presser.

Continue reading Clear security lanes storming back to airports, principled travelers high five one another

Clear security lanes storming back to airports, principled travelers high five one another originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 May 2010 10:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceFly Clear  | Email this | Comments

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Apr 16

The Engadget Show: Inside the gadget markets of China, part one – Hong Kong

Posted in: engadget show, EngadgetShow, kirf, market, the engadget show, TheEngadgetShow, Today's Chili, Travel, video

China may have its ups and downs, but there’s no denying that it’s a geeky wonderland for Engadget advocates. Oh, and we’re not just talking about KIRFs either — this country of 1.3 billion people has a lot more tech love to offer. In this first episode of a two-part series, we’ll be showing you around the two hottest gadget districts of Hong Kong — Mong Kok and Sham Shui Po. By the end of this you’ll probably be sick of cramped street markets and computer shopping malls, but hey, just be thankful that you weren’t the one who went through all that trouble and jet lag.

Host: Richard Lai
Produced and Directed by: Chad Mumm, Richard Lai
Executive Producer: Joshua Fruhlinger
Filmed by: Omar Rabbolini, Wai-Tai Li, Richard Lai
Edited by: Richard Lai
Music by: Pieces of Eight, Sabrepulse, Maxo 01
Opening titles by: Julien Nantiec

Download the Show: The Engadget Show – Segment 007 (HD) / The Engadget Show – Segment 007 (iPod / iPhone / Zune formatted)

Subscribe to the Show:

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See our other Engadget Show short features:

The Engadget Show: Inside the mind of Yves Behar
The Engadget Show: Inside chiptunes and 8-bit visuals
The Engadget Show: Kindle etching and DIY adventures with Adafruit Industries
The Engadget Show: Inside the mind of designer Philippe Starck
The Engadget Show: Philippe Starck Q&A bonus round
The Engadget Show: Inside Ben Heck’s magic kingdom
The Engadget Show: Hands-on with Times Square

Continue reading The Engadget Show: Inside the gadget markets of China, part one – Hong Kong

The Engadget Show: Inside the gadget markets of China, part one – Hong Kong originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 16 Apr 2010 17:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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