Hasta La Gadget!

Streaming and subscription music services are a dime a dozen on iPhone, and they seem to get past Apple’s app store approval hurdles with relative ease. But Spotify was one whose fate wasn’t so clear cut, given its offline playlist function — which as the name suggests downloads songs ahead of time for you to listen to when there’s no WiFi or phone service to stream from — could very easily fall into the category of “duplication of core iPhone functionality” and get deep-sixed at the drop of a hat. Turns out that’s not the case here, as an Apple spokesperson has told paidContent UK that the app’s been given the metaphorical stamp of approval and would be hitting the store “very soon.” A premium subscription will run about £9.99 ($16.20) per month, with an option to pay annually coming at a later date. Of course, there’s a catch, as Spotify’s service is only available in Sweden, Norway, Finland, the UK, France and Spain for now. The company expects to invade America sometime later this year, but that means another round of app store approvals — and with Apple’s track record on consistency, there’s no telling how that’ll turn out.

Filed under: Cellphones, Portable Audio

Spotify for iPhone gets thumbs up from Apple, subscription music with offline playlists is a go originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Aug 2009 17:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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UK electronics retailer Dixons just got the memo that slim is in, and its taken it to heart. The store is on the verge of launching two new PCs as part of its Advent brand — and the 13.3-inch CULV Altro line is pretty sexy looking. Already drawing the obvious comparisons to the MacBook Air in the looks department, the Altro boasts an Intel Celeron CPU, 3GB of RAM, and a 120GB hard drive, WiFi, Bluetooth, plus USB and HDMI ports, and one multifunction connector for hooking up an external port replicator. If the specs of the Altro aren’t beefy enough for you, there will be a second version — the Elite — which will have an Intel Core 2 Solo processor, and a “premium” flush glass finish. Both of the Advent Altros will be available at Dixons (that’s UK-only) starting August 24th, with prices at £600 (around $987) for the standard model and £800 (about $1,316) for the Elite. Both come with Windows Vista pre-installed, but a free upgrade to Windows 7 is also included. One more shot after the break.

[Via SlashGear]

Continue reading Dixons launches slim little Advent Altro CULV PCs

Filed under: Laptops

Dixons launches slim little Advent Altro CULV PCs originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Aug 2009 09:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Remember Leica’s S-system flagship DSLR camera? We’d wager a nickel you probably stuck this in the deep in the back of your brain after its September 2008 debut, figuring something that boasts 37.5 megapixels and Leica branding was gonna be just out of your budget range. Well, you were right. The company announced that it’ll be out in the UK as of October this year, and the starting price is £15,996, or about $26,165 in US dollars. Since you’re going on the wild side anyhow, why not consider the S2-P, which features a sapphire glass monitor screen and “Platinum Service” support package? That’ll set you back £19,092 ($31,229). Bear in mind both those prices are for body only, and with lenses range anywhere from £3,096 to £5,160, you might as well forget about that year of salary.

Leica S2 DSLR hitting UK scene in October for eye-opening $26,165 without lens originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 29 Jul 2009 23:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Not wanting to let Betty the gosling goose meet an untimely fate, a UK vet outfitted the anatidae with a bionic leg, allegedly the first operation of its kind in the world (not counting Robot Chicken, of course). She’s currently learning to walk again at nearby Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital at Buckinghamshire. Does she now possess super speed, the ability to make large vaults without using her wings, or a super powerful kick? All signs point to no, but a new lease on life has gotta count for something, right?

Filed under: Wearables

“Bionic” goose happy to have new leg, disappointed by lack of retractable laser cannon originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 11 Jul 2009 21:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Designed for search and rescue missions – which, let’s face it, are only ever one loose word away from “search and destroy” – the SCRATCHbot uses its whiskers to detect disaster survivors in inhospitable or dangerous areas. The Bristol Robotics Laboratory developed the rat-inspired people searcher over the past 6 years and now hopes to find interest for it in underground and underwater projects where vision may be impaired. Far less heroic uses are also being contemplated, such as textile inspection and implementation inside intelligent vacuum cleaners that would be able to adjust their cleaning to the particular surface they sense. Video of the new bot coming to life is after the break.

Continue reading Video: SCRATCHbot hunts like a rat for those trapped like one

Filed under: Robots

Video: SCRATCHbot hunts like a rat for those trapped like one originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Jul 2009 08:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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