Sponsored
Engadget News |
- Hello Kitty pays a visit to CES 2012: If you want it, we got it in pink
- Must See HDTV (January 16th - 22nd)
- Verizon to stop allowing legacy Alltel devices to be activated on its network, starting today
- Notion Ink releases ICS Alpha update for Adam tablet, teases new device (video)
- Surprise! People like free stuff, Amazon's lending library a success
- Some Transformer Prime users unable to upgrade to ICS, serial number 'Unknown'
- CES 2012: HDTV and connected devices round-up
- Google outs new tilt and roll Maps game, promotes Google+
- Samsung Galaxy S II and Galaxy Tab get security nod, certified for government agencies
- Surface 2.0 now shipping, packing PixelSense and Gorilla Glass
- ASUS Eee Pad Transformer's ICS update currently awaiting Google's approval
- Skype exec confirms that Windows Phone product is 'coming soon'
- Refresh Roundup: week of January 9, 2012
- Leaving Las Vegas: Team Engadget departs CES 2012
- CES 2012: headphone and speaker roundup
- Coby unveils its family of Ice Cream Sandwich slates, we go hands-on (video)
- CES 2012: interview roundup (video)
- Intel-powered Windows 8 tablets to struggle for sub-$600 pricing?
- Samsung Galaxy S II for US Cellular clears FCC, lacks LTE
- Face and 'effort' controlled iPad game helps you outrun the competition (video)
- Sprint remains tepid on Windows Phone at CES, confirms no new WiMAX phones are planned
- GoBandit WiFi helmet cam hands-on
- Turtle Beach XP400 wireless gaming headset hands-on
- How would you change the HTC Sensation XL?
- Hands-on with Gracenote's automotive-grade MoodGrid
- Inhabitat's Week in Green: Detroit Auto Show, solar plants and hydrophobic nanocoating
- Android integration for car stereos and rear-view mirrors, hands-on (video)
- JVC's GY-HMQ10 4K Camcorder hands-on (video)
- Audi combines HUD with gesture controls, leaves us wanting
- Engadget Podcast 276: CES Finale - 01.14.2012
| Hello Kitty pays a visit to CES 2012: If you want it, we got it in pink Posted: 16 Jan 2012 03:11 PM PST  |
| Must See HDTV (January 16th - 22nd) Posted: 16 Jan 2012 02:37 PM PST  Alcatraz The latest show from J.J. Abrams (Lost, Fringe) finds a San Francisco where some of the most dangerous inmates of the infamous prison are suddenly reappearing on the streets. We'd explain the plot further, but given its creator there's probably no point. Given his track record, it's certainly worth given a look, even if only because Jorge Garcia (Hurley from Lost) is in it. The series premiere airs tonight, check out a quick preview trailer embedded after the break. (January 16th, Fox, 8PM) Archer In case you somehow haven't caught on by now, we love Archer. While he's a terribly incompetent spy, Sterling Archer still somehow always completes his mission and in entertaining fashion. Season three is finally getting under way this week, if you've followed our advice you already have the S1 & S2 Blu-ray discs filed away and are ready to go. (January 19th, FX, 10PM) Justified US Marshal Raylan Givens returns this week in season three of Justified, and with the return of his old friend Boyd Crowder to a criminal lifestyle, we're sure it will be an explosive one in Harlan County. After the events of last season, an all new lineup of interesting figures is set to try and take control of criminal enterprises in this tiny corner of the mountains, which will inevitably lead to two things: intricate, flowery dialogue, and people getting shot. (January 17th, FX, 10PM) Blu-ray & Games
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
|
| Verizon to stop allowing legacy Alltel devices to be activated on its network, starting today Posted: 16 Jan 2012 02:21 PM PST  It's been three years and two days since Verizon officially closed its acquisition of Alltel, and it looks like Big Red's finally putting the sledgehammer down on activating legacy devices from the purchased network. We just received official word from a Verizon spokesperson that effective today, the carrier will no longer allow you to bring over an Alltel device to a retail outlet and get it activated on their network. If you're currently using an Alltel-branded phone on Verizon, don't panic: this new policy change only applies to handsets that haven't already been activated. We can't imagine this will affect too many users at this point, but we imagine Chad's still feeling a little bummed out today regardless. Continue on below for Verizon's statement. Here is Verizon's exact statement:
|
| Notion Ink releases ICS Alpha update for Adam tablet, teases new device (video) Posted: 16 Jan 2012 01:47 PM PST  |
| Surprise! People like free stuff, Amazon's lending library a success Posted: 16 Jan 2012 12:51 PM PST  Customers Love Kindle Owners' Lending Library - KDP Authors and Publishers Benefit Kindle Owners' Lending Library now over 75,000 books KDP Select books were borrowed 295,000 times in December Due to strong customer adoption, Amazon adds $200,000 bonus to January fund - an increase from $500,000 to $700,000 SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 12, 2012-- (NASDAQ: AMZN)-The Kindle Owners' Lending Library is off to a strong start: customers borrowed 295,000 KDP Select titles in December alone, and KDP Select has helped grow total library selection to over 75,000 books. With the $500,000 December fund, KDP authors have earned $1.70 per borrow. In response to strong customer adoption of the Kindle Owners' Lending Library (as well as seasonal, post-holiday use of new Kindles), Amazon.com, Inc. has added a $200,000 bonus to the January KDP Select fund, raising the total pool from $500,000 to $700,000. Paid KDP sales grew rapidly in December - and results show that paid sales of titles participating in KDP Select are growing even faster than other KDP titles. On top of this growth in paid sales, KDP Select authors and publishers on average are receiving an incremental 26% in December as a result of their participation in the Kindle Owners' Lending Library. "KDP Select appears to be earning authors more money in two ways. We knew customers would love having KDP Select titles in the Kindle Owners' Lending Library. But we've been surprised by how much paid sales of those same titles increased, even relative to the rest of KDP," said Russ Grandinetti, Vice President of Kindle Content. "Due to this early success and a seasonally strong January, we're adding a $200,000 bonus to January's KDP Select fund, growing this month's total pool to $700,000." The top ten KDP Select authors earned over $70,000 in the month of December from their participation in the Kindle Owners' Lending Library, a 30% increase on top of the royalties they earned from their paid sales on the same titles in the same period. In total (paid sales plus their share of the loan fund), these authors saw their royalties grow an astonishing 449% month-over-month from November to December. The list of top 10 KDP Select authors includes Carolyn McCray, Rachel Yu, the Grabarchuk family and Amber Scott. Carolyn McCray, a writer of paranormal romance novels, historical thrillers and mysteries, earned $8,250 from the KDP Select fund in December. "KDP Select truly is a career altering program," said McCray. "I couldn't be happier with the tools, support and exposure it has given me. To say the trade-off of exclusivity on Amazon for the Kindle Owners' Lending Library has been a profitable one would be a gross understatement. Participating in KDP Select has quadrupled my royalties." Rachel Yu is a 16-year-old author of children's books, and she earned $6,200 from the KDP Select fund in the month of December. "It's so cool to be part of the success of KDP Select," said Yu. "It's just like a library but with easier access. There's truly no other opportunity like Amazon for self-publishing." The Grabarchuk family earned $6,300 from the KDP Select fund in December from their puzzle books. "After only a month KDP Select has dramatically changed things - finally indie publishers are playing as equals with the big publishing houses in the world's biggest eBook marketplace," said Serhiy Grabarchuk, Co-Founder of the Grabarchuk Puzzles company. Amber Scott is a romance writer and earned $7,650 from the KDP Select fund in December. "Enrolling in KDP Select utterly transformed my career," said Scott. "I've experienced not only a surge in royalties but a surge in readership thanks to the increased exposure. I love the chance to earn new readers through the innovation of the Kindle Owners' Lending Library. What an exciting time to be an author!" Since launching Kindle Owners' Lending Library on November 2, Prime members with Kindles can now choose from over 75,000 books to borrow for free-including over 100 current and former New York Times Bestsellers-as frequently as a book a month, with no due dates. For more information about the Kindle Owners' Lending Library, please visit http://www.amazon.com/kindleownerslendinglibrary. Independent authors and publishers can enroll their books in KDP Select at http://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/KDPSelect. To learn about all of the additional benefits included with Amazon Prime, or to start an Amazon Prime free trial visit www.amazon.com/prime. About Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth's Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth's most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books; Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home & Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel, Shoes & Jewelry; Health & Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web Services provides Amazon's developer customers with access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon's own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any type of business. The new latest generation Kindle is the lightest, most compact Kindle ever and features the same 6-inch, most advanced electronic ink display that reads like real paper even in bright sunlight. Kindle Touch is a new addition to the Kindle family with an easy-to-use touch screen that makes it easier than ever to turn pages, search, shop, and take notes – still with all the benefits of the most advanced electronic ink display. Kindle Touch 3G is the top of the line e-reader and offers the same new design and features of Kindle Touch, with the unparalleled added convenience of free 3G. Kindle Fire is the Kindle for movies, TV shows, music, books, magazines, apps, games and web browsing with all the content, free storage in the Amazon Cloud, Whispersync, Amazon Silk (Amazon's new revolutionary cloud-accelerated web browser), vibrant color touch screen, and powerful dual-core processor. Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de, www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, www.amazon.cn, www.amazon.it, and www.amazon.es. As used herein, "Amazon.com," "we," "our" and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise. Forward-Looking Statements This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management's expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, new products, services and technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's financial results is included in Amazon.com's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings. |
| Some Transformer Prime users unable to upgrade to ICS, serial number 'Unknown' Posted: 16 Jan 2012 11:59 AM PST  [Thanks, Ben] |
| CES 2012: HDTV and connected devices round-up Posted: 16 Jan 2012 11:46 AM PST  |
| Google outs new tilt and roll Maps game, promotes Google+ Posted: 16 Jan 2012 11:14 AM PST If you weren't in the know on Google Earth's flight simulator easter egg, rest assured that Google's next map-centric game will be entirely public. A new promotional video pimping Google+ Games invites you to "play your world" by cubing a mapped area of the Earth, and dropping a ball into it. Tilt and roll -- not the most complex game ever, but novel to say the least. The game is based off another recent video showing Google Maps as an actual, physical cube. Zany enough for you? Hit the break, and let your tactile cube map dreams come true. |
| Samsung Galaxy S II and Galaxy Tab get security nod, certified for government agencies Posted: 16 Jan 2012 10:47 AM PST
We didn't have much to complain about when it came to Samsung's flagship phone and tablet, so we're glad to see that both the Galaxy S II and Tab 10.1 have managed to jump through the requisite hoops for FIPS certification. The business-centric feature means that both Samsung devices have been given the thumbs up for use in governmental agencies and other similarly stickler-for-the-rule industries. While the Tab 10.1 certainly isn't the first tablet to receive the certification, it's perhaps the most pervasive. Does this lay the ghost of underwhelming business phones to rest? We hope so. |
| Surface 2.0 now shipping, packing PixelSense and Gorilla Glass Posted: 16 Jan 2012 10:28 AM PST  Now Shipping, Samsung SUR40 For Microsoft Surface Dazzles Retailers at National Retail Federation (NRF) Conference 2012 New PixelSenseTM Technology Enables SUR40 to See and Respond to Touch and Objects, Creating New Possibilities for Interactive Displays in a Variety of Settings NRF 101st Annual Convention & Expo RIDGEFIELD PARK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Samsung Electronics America Inc., a subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Corporation and the number one worldwide brand of professional commercial display LCD products, is demonstrating its digital solutions leadership at a showcase event featuring the Samsung SUR40 for Microsoft Surface and a variety of applications from development partners at the National Retail Federation (NRF) conference, being held Jan. 16 and 17 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York in Room 1A17 (on Level One of the convention center). "Both retailers and consumers are adapting to ever-evolving ways of interacting with information and merchandise and have expressed a desire for technology that delivers information in an engaging and visually dynamic way" Available now through Samsung channel and reseller partners, a CES Best of Innovations 2012 award-winner, the Samsung-Microsoft collaboration incorporates Microsoft Surface 2.0 software and touch technology into an interactive and engaging 40-inch Full HD LCD that can be used horizontally as a table, mounted vertically on a wall or embedded in other fixtures and furniture. "Both retailers and consumers are adapting to ever-evolving ways of interacting with information and merchandise and have expressed a desire for technology that delivers information in an engaging and visually dynamic way," said Todd Bouman, vice president of product marketing for Samsung Electronics America, Enterprise Business Division. "With the availability of the Samsung SUR40 for Microsoft Surface, Samsung is energizing the retail space and anticipates an all-new approach to customer engagement." Superior Screen, Smart Device The Samsung SUR40 is an interactive, collaborative multi-touch device, offering a thin, 4-inch profile and a large screen size. It integrates Samsung's LCD panel capability with touch technology, combining Microsoft's massive multi-touch and object recognition software to maximize the performance of a brand new type of touch screen technology – PixelSense. Microsoft's PixelSense technology – which gives LCD panels the power to see without the use of cameras – and the Microsoft Surface 2.0 software, the premier touch-first experience for end users, have been combined with Samsung's display leadership to create an industry-changing information display device. The new SUR40 makes it possible for people to share, collaborate and explore together using a large, thin display. Not only can the SUR40 recognize fingers and hands, but it can also detect other objects placed on the screen supporting up to 50 points of contact at one time. The SUR40 features a 40-inch Full HD 1080p (1920x1080) LCD LED panel combined with one of the world's largest piece of Gorilla protection glass for optimized screen durability and to protect from external shock and liquid ingress. It provides highly accurate touch interaction from multiple people at the same time and superior object recognition as each pixel has a camera element. Its natural interaction enables users to 'grab' digital information with their hands and interact with content through touch and gesture. The SUR40 also provides developers with the opportunity to build apps that are specialized to vertical user-case scenarios as diverse as hospitality, retail, public sector, professional services, healthcare and finance to name a few. It offers a rich sound experience and can connect to a wide range of peripherals such as bar code scanners, cameras and printers through WiFi (802.11.n), Bluetooth or Ethernet connections to create a seamless digital entertainment environment. Surface 2.0 developers will showcase several never-before-seen solutions for the new device at NRF this week, with an emphasis on innovative retail experiences. Major consumer brands and other technology partners such as FUJIFILM, Industrial Color, Le Métier de Beauté and Pepsico Beverages Canada have near-term plans to use the Samsung SUR40 to support immersive retail scenarios, professional tools and/or marketing efforts. "The Samsung SUR40 for Microsoft Surface is an intelligent, specialized device, that can deliver highly-customized, engaging experiences for retailers and their customers," said Somanna Palacanda, director, Microsoft Surface. "We're eager to see the impact this innovative technology will have on a variety of industries and to continue to learn about and address customer needs." Availability and Pricing Shipments to customers will begin in January 2012. Estimated Street Pricing for the SUR40 for Microsoft Surface for U.S. customers will start at $8,400 (display only) and $9,049 (tabletop unit with matching stand). Pricing for other countries and/or regions may differ. For more information or to find out how to order, call 1-866-SAM-4BIZ or visit samsung.com/business. Key Specs: Samsung SUR40 for Microsoft Surface Audio Out HDMI / stereo RCA / SPDIF / (2) 3.5mm audio out jacks Brightness 300 CD/m2 Communications 1GB Ethernet/802.11/BT Contrast Ratio 2000:1 CPU AMD Athlon X2 245e 2.9GHz Dual Core Display Resolution Full HD 1080p 1920x1080 / 16:9 ratio GPU AMD Radeon HD 6750 1GB GDDRS HDD 320GB HDMI In / HDMI Out Yes I/O Ports 4 USB, SD Card Reader Operating System Windows 7 Professional for Embedded Systems 64-bit Operating Temp. Max ambient 30C Panel Size 40" Diagonal Protection Glass Gorilla Glass RAM 4 GB DDR3 RAM System Management Tools DMFT DASH Support Weight – with std. legs 50.4 kg / 111.1 lbs Weight – standalone 36.8 kg / 81.1 lbs About Samsung Electronics America Enterprise Business Division Samsung Electronics America, Inc. (SEA), based in Ridgefield Park, NJ, is a subsidiary of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. The company markets a broad range of award-winning consumer electronics, information systems, and home appliance products, as well as oversees all of Samsung's North American operations including Samsung Telecommunications America, LP, Samsung Semiconductor Inc., Samsung Electronics Canada, Inc. and Samsung Electronics Mexico, Inc. Samsung is committed to serving the needs of consumers ranging from the home user to the Fortune 500 elite while supporting the valued channel partners who serve our customers. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com/business or call 1-866-SAM-4BIZ. About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2010 consolidated sales of US$135.8 billion. Employing approximately 190,500 people in 206 offices across 68 countries, the company operates two separate organizations to coordinate its nine independent business units: Digital Media & Communications, comprising Visual Display, Mobile Communications, Telecommunication Systems, Digital Appliances, IT Solutions, and Digital Imaging; and Device Solutions, consisting of Memory, System LSI and LCD. Recognized for its industry-leading performance across a range of economic, environmental and social criteria, Samsung Electronics was named the world's most sustainable technology company in the 2011 Dow Jones Sustainability Index. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com. |
| ASUS Eee Pad Transformer's ICS update currently awaiting Google's approval Posted: 16 Jan 2012 10:05 AM PST  |
| Skype exec confirms that Windows Phone product is 'coming soon' Posted: 16 Jan 2012 09:39 AM PST  |
| Refresh Roundup: week of January 9, 2012 Posted: 16 Jan 2012 09:00 AM PST  Official Android updates
|
| Leaving Las Vegas: Team Engadget departs CES 2012 Posted: 16 Jan 2012 08:00 AM PST  On a personal note, I had an absolute blast with the team. From our trailer to our stage within the LVCC, from the raucous Unveiled show floor to the background dings and bloops in McCarran International Airport, the past week (and change) has been truly amazing, and getting this many people who are passionate about technology into a single place is a downright magical experience. We're fortunate and humbled to be able to do this, and despite a near-total lack of sleep and some questionable food choices, we're still as jazzed as ever to fight through crowds in order to get the first shots of [insert gizmo here]. From us to you, thanks for sticking through the madness once more, and here's to another amazing year in consumer technology. We couldn't do it without you, and frankly, we wouldn't want to. So, what's next for us? Well, planning for CES 2013 has already begun, and we'll probably find ourselves at a few Apple events in the near future. Oh, and we'll be bringing you the blow-by-blow from Mobile World Congress in a matter of weeks. We'll sleep, as they say, when we're dead. Vital stats Number of posts: approximately 810 (January 6th to 14th) Number of photo galleries: 404 Number of videos: approximately 208 Number of podcasts: 14 (8 Classic, 4 HD, 2 Mobile) Time spent sleeping, per editor per 24-hour cycle: 5 hours 3G cards: 22 WiMAX cards: 5 LTE cards: 40 Hypermacs: 2 DSLRs: 25 This year's song: Gym Class Heroes: Stereo Hearts (Screwed and Chopped) Most orders of In-N-Out fries at once: 38 Total "Best Day of My Life!" phrases yelled: 3, all after meeting Justin Bieber Past year wrap-ups See how we rolled out in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011. |
| CES 2012: headphone and speaker roundup Posted: 16 Jan 2012 07:15 AM PST  |
| Coby unveils its family of Ice Cream Sandwich slates, we go hands-on (video) Posted: 16 Jan 2012 05:57 AM PST  We first went for the MID9742 -- the 9.7-inch offering -- packed a pretty respectable screen. The software remained pretty laggy -- thus the prototype proviso -- but it seemed the least temperamental of the bunch, with pricing likely to be around $275. All of Coby's Android 4.0 tablets pack the same ARM A8 1GHz processor, which makes it difficult to explain why the MID8042, Coby's eight-incher, likely to be priced at just over $200, seemed to struggle during simple navigation and crashed several times during our hands-on time. However, it was refreshing to see ICS arrive on these smaller form factors. The seven-inch MID7042 was more like an e-reader, which has decided to hold onto a physical home button despite its defunct status on Android's convergence OS. The screen here was pretty underwhelming, but with pricing likely to be around $150, it's not a massive surprise. Finally, Coby had another petite tablet (MID7014) that packed a similar seven-inch display, Android Gingerbread, an unusual mini-USB (yes, we got that right) port, a micro-SD slot and no HDMI-out found on the other tablets. A spokesperson told us that this lower-specced model was likely to hit stores at around $100. Release dates for the the whole Coby bunch haven't been decided just yet, but you can check our lukewarm impressions in the hands-on video below. Sean Cooper and Sean Buckley contributed to this report. This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| CES 2012: interview roundup (video) Posted: 16 Jan 2012 05:00 AM PST  Arguably the biggest name to grace our coffee tables this week was none other than Nokia CEO Stephen Elop. Nokia, of course, unveiled the AT&T-exclusive Lumia 900 at CES this year, which is one of just a few things Elop discussed during his sitdown with our very own Myriam Joire. Other topics included the Lumia 710, fragmentation and Windows Phone. Could Nokia bring a new slate of operating systems to the US this year? Watch above to hear Elop's take on it. On Tuesday, Sprint VP of product Dan Owens stopped by our stage to look back on the year that was, and forward to his company's plans for 2012. Sprint made a splash in Vegas when it added the Samsung Galaxy Nexus to its lineup. That's one of the things Owens talked about (and displayed) during his time with us, as was Sprint's ongoing 4G rollout. When Nintendo's Cindy Gordon strolled up to the stage, she had only one thing on her mind: the forthcoming Wii U, and its accompanying touchscreen controller. Originally announced back in June, this console, according to Gordon, will "reinvent the way games are played." Gordon, who serves as Nintendo America's VP VP of corporate affairs, took some time to walk us through the device, emphasizing its HD graphics, dual-screen ingenuity, and its "more personal" user experience. She also mentioned that grown men were crying during this week's demonstration of Zelda. You know who else had a busy CES? Texas Instruments. TI's OMAP family of chips were seemingly everywhere this year, popping up in various smartphones, tablets and even the Parrot AR.Drone 2.0. A new member also made its way to our stage -- the OMAP 5 platform. The new design made its debut, in fact, on our own stage, courtesy of Remi El-Ouazzane, TI's VP of OMAP. Is there an OMAP 5-based laptop in our near future? Brian Heater is now accepting wagers. This interview involved a full three guests and no less than three demo gadgets, but the real star of the segment was Toshiba's TransferJet wireless LSI -- an open standard technology that allows users to cordlessly transfer files at a maximum data rate of 560Mbps. Toshiba's Deepak Mithani demonstrated the technology with a variety of devices before our very eyes. Watch it. It's wild. What better way to wrap up the week than with a little fireside chat with Gary Shapiro? As president of the Consumer Electronics Association, Shapiro certainly has a unique perspective on the madness that is CES, and was probably the perfect guest to wrap up our week. Wanna know how crazy this year's event was? According to Shapiro, more than 153,000 people attended. That's a record not only for CES, but for all of mankind, apparently. Click above to hear more statistics and broadly-brushstroked musings. And that's only a small slice of our CES 2012 interview archive. Browse through our full collection below.
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Intel-powered Windows 8 tablets to struggle for sub-$600 pricing? Posted: 16 Jan 2012 04:18 AM PST  |
| Samsung Galaxy S II for US Cellular clears FCC, lacks LTE Posted: 16 Jan 2012 03:01 AM PST  |
| Face and 'effort' controlled iPad game helps you outrun the competition (video) Posted: 16 Jan 2012 02:07 AM PST  BitGym launches innovative exercise-motion based game for iOS (San Francisco CA, January 9th) Today, BitGym launched Fit Freeway, the first entry in BitGym's exergaming portfolio. Fit Freeway re-invents the boring cardiovascular workout by turning it into an arcade racing game. This is made possible by BitGym's ground breaking technology which turns any user's iPad or iPhone, when placed on a cardio machine, into an exercise gaming console. Fit Freeway is easy to play. The exerciser simply places an iPad or iPhone on the fitness equipment, (e.g. an exercise bike or elliptical trainer) and begins their workout. No special hardware or cables required - just the iOS device and the exercise equipment. Using BitGym's patent-pending algorithms and motion sensing technology, Fit Freeway senses the rate of the exercise on the equipment, as well as the head position of the user. Exercise faster the accelerate your car and simply tilt your head left or right to steer. "We think that FitFreeway is just the start for BitGym. We have ambitious plans to change the way people think about cardio. For too long people have been told to worry about minutes, miles or calories - but really what is important is that people are engaged, have tangible goals, and keep coming back. Cardio machines are awful at all these things, but with videogames we can change that. Research out of the Behavioral Medicine Laboratory at the University of Virginia sees cardio machine exergames increasing workout adherence by 83%," says Alex Gourley, BitGym's CEO. To kickstart this trend BitGym has made a beta SDK available which gives developers access to their motion tracking and exercise tracking technology. Fit Freeway is the first release utilizing this SDK - the game was originally a traditional racing game called Final Freeway developed by Oyatsukai for iOS and Android. Fit Freeway Facts: Fit Freeway has eight stages, three different difficulty levels, three different play modes and iPod music support. The objective of the game is complete each timed stage before time runs out. But with other cars, buses and trucks in the road, it won't be easy! Fit Freeway is available now for $4.99, and Fit Freeway Lite is available for free. |
| Sprint remains tepid on Windows Phone at CES, confirms no new WiMAX phones are planned Posted: 15 Jan 2012 11:36 PM PST  |
| GoBandit WiFi helmet cam hands-on Posted: 15 Jan 2012 09:20 PM PST  Joseph Volpe contributed to this post. |
| Turtle Beach XP400 wireless gaming headset hands-on Posted: 15 Jan 2012 07:37 PM PST  Turtle Beach announced a duo of new XBOX 360 and PS3 gaming headsets on day one of CES, and we were able to spend a bit of time with one of them, the XP400, on the show floor. It's Turtle Beach's flagship gaming headset, featuring adjustable Dolby 5.1 virtual surround sound, a non-A2DP dual-pairing Bluetooth radio for picking up phone calls during gaming sessions, a 15 hour rechargeable battery and dual-band 2.4/5GHZ built-in WiFi. The actual over-the-ear pieces have a much better layout from previous models, though there are almost as many buttons as there are on the controller you'd be wielding -- with volume up / down, chat volume up / down, mute, Bluetooth pairing, limiter button and tone buttons. The included dual-band WiFi adapter that connects to your gaming console of choice is small and pretty minimalistic in design. The adjustable surround angles feature seems useful but we can't help but to feel it's a bit gimmicky -- we have a hard time figuring out which setting is better. One feature that we really like is the new Limiter function, which allows you to keep the volume relatively high to listen for those footsteps (lower in volume) but won't blow your ear drums out when a RPG rocket (explosion-like volume levels) hits you in the face. The sound was also crisp and loud as we completed our spec-op mission at the Turtle Beach gaming booth, where the headset's noise-blocking abilities proved to be particularly handy. Hit up the gallery below for a close look at the $220 gaming headset set to be available this quarter. Joe Pollicino contributed to this report. |
| How would you change the HTC Sensation XL? Posted: 15 Jan 2012 06:37 PM PST  |
| Hands-on with Gracenote's automotive-grade MoodGrid Posted: 15 Jan 2012 05:53 PM PST  Garmin has a new head unit (internally dubbed Everest) that's due to arrive in a few OEM vehicles later this year, and aside from an attractive interface, a revamped navigation system and one-shot voice commands, a new audio app from Gracenote could be included in the package. The app is called MoodGrid and it's a scaled down version of the Android-based version that Gracenote has been testing for the last year. Like the tablet app, the automotive-spec MoodGrid has a graph with Positive, Calm, Energetic and Dark on each axis. Place your finger anywhere between those points and the system scours your iPhone, iPod or Android device for tracks to match your mood. The automotive version uses a five-by-five grid and a new tablet version has the potential to tap into subscription music services to serve up the tunes. Check out the hands-on video after the break and expect to see MoodGrid in dealerships sometime this year. |
| Inhabitat's Week in Green: Detroit Auto Show, solar plants and hydrophobic nanocoating Posted: 15 Jan 2012 04:00 PM PST Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green.  It was also a bright week for alternative energy as MIT scientists discovered a way to make more efficient solar plants modeled after sunflowers and Sweden announced plans for a massive 700 megawatt wind farm in the Baltic Sea. Meanwhile, we learned that Rwanda's poo-powered prisons are able to produce 75% of their power from human waste, we showcased plans for an energy-generating rolling suitcase that charges your gadgets, and we saw the launch of several shining solar-powered devices - OLPC's XO3 tablet computer and the sun-powered Solarkindle e-reader cover. In other news, this week we rounded up our favorite eco gadgets from CES 2012 - including a hydrophobic nanocoating that makes any gadget completely waterproof. We also saw 200 Chinese works construct a 30 story prefab building in just 15 days, and we watched superman fly across a cute animated LEGO TV. Finally, we brought you the latest and greatest developments in wearable technology - including a set of smart sunglasses that merge virtual information with the real world, a set of bone-conducting earphones, and a set of motorized skates that can be attached to any boring old pair of shoes. |
| Android integration for car stereos and rear-view mirrors, hands-on (video) Posted: 15 Jan 2012 03:14 PM PST  |
| JVC's GY-HMQ10 4K Camcorder hands-on (video) Posted: 15 Jan 2012 02:23 PM PST  We felt compelled to get our hands onto JVC's 4K-resolution-shooting camcorder. Unfortunately (but not surprisingly) the company wasn't letting us take footage with the kit, but we were allowed plenty of unsupervised time with the device. You'll notice how retro this whole thing looks -- the hefty unit is placed in a housing that wouldn't be out of place with a VHS-C camcorder from the early '90s. There's no mount for additional lenses (the $10,000 Red Scarlet uses interchangeable Canon lenses), which means that you won't have any flexibility if you need to set up a complex shot on the fly. The test unit came with a hot-shoe adapter that included dual XLR inputs and a shotgun mic, but we expect this to be an added extra at retail. The zooming is smooth (we couldn't hear any motor noise) and when we screwed with the manual focus, it was able to snap back to clarity within three seconds. We're a little concerned about who the camera is aimed at: it lacks the flexibility that the Red would offer but it seems a little hefty (it's $5,000) for consumers -- so it looks like it's limited toward roaming broadcast professionals who need their recordings in HD. That said, the ability to decode 4K recordings without additional rendering might come in very handy for those who are prepared to pay a premium for that flexibility. Still, if you fancy watching us take a tour of the hardware and seeing it up close, head on past the break for the video. Edgar Alvarez contributed to this report. |
| Audi combines HUD with gesture controls, leaves us wanting Posted: 15 Jan 2012 12:09 PM PST  The setup uses one HUD in front of the driver, another in front of the passenger and yet another display in the middle that's viewable by both people in the front seats. While that's not particularly revolutionary, the transfer of information from one display to the next is. If the passenger looks up a restaurant using their own display, she can swipe it over to the center HUD, providing the driver with navigation instructions. The display tech is still a few years away from production, but don't expect the gesture controls to come along for the ride. |
| Engadget Podcast 276: CES Finale - 01.14.2012 Posted: 15 Jan 2012 11:15 AM PST
This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| You are subscribed to email updates from Engadget News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
No comments:
Post a Comment