Archives for July 2010

Worlds Most Powerful Non-Nuclear Battery Created

July 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

The image above shows a small metallic cube that was created by applying 1,000,000 atmospheres worth of pressure to the chemical xenon difluoride. This particular chemical is normally a white powder. With the extra atmospheric pressure squashing it, it manages to be capable of storing an amazing amount of energy inside.

DVICE mention that it becomes a very powerful battery although it is unknown at the moment what kind of life span could be expected from the small cube.

Of course, it’s not going to be easy to apply 1,000,000 atmospheres worth of pressure to this caustic and stinky powder that’s normally used to etch circuits on silicon. To withstand that kind of pressure, you need a tiny 2-by-3-inch compartment lined with a couple of diamond anvils.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Crazy Gadgets

Pencil iPad Stand

July 7, 2010 by 1 Comment

The team over at Geeky Gadgets have created another home-made stand. Previous versions included the iPhone Pencil Stand that as the name suggests, holds an iPhone.

The new stand is called the Pencil iPad Stand and was designed to hold an iPad in place on your desk so you can watch a movie. The design used for this stand follows the same style before in that you get a few elastic bands and pencils and tie them together to create a place for the iPhone to sit on. However, the iPad is larger and due to the larger size and extra weight, the stand had to be put together slightly differently to compensate for the size and weight change. [Read more…]

Filed Under: iPad

ezGear SurfBoard 700 Revealed

July 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

ezGear is launching a new tablet computer called the SurfBoard. The SurfBoard 700 runs Google Android. It comes with a 7 inch screen as well as WiFi for connectivity.

The SurfBoard is designed to browse the internet, correspond via email and watch movies in high resolution. As the device is Android OS based, it allows you to download apps from the Market to further enhance the device.

Technical features of the SurfBoard 700 show that it has a two megapixel camera that can capture still pictures and digital video. The front of the device is home to controls to help you navigate through the device which also include a built in mouse. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tablets

Bluetooth 4.0 Official Spec Revealed

July 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Bluetooth 4.0 is nearly here. The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) has announced formal adoption of the 4.0 specifications.

New features included on the new specification include a low energy feature that allows Bluetooth devices to run for several years on a coin cell battery.

“The finalization of Bluetooth low energy wireless technology within the Core Specification is a monumental achievement,” said Michael Foley, Ph.D., executive director, Bluetooth SIG. “Bluetooth wireless technology can now, with the hard work of our members and our world-class qualification program, really do it all.”

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Computer Gadgets

Mozilla Firefox 4 Beta 1 Download Now Available

July 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Mozilla has finally made the Firefox 4 beta download available which can be found here.

The new web browser has been in development for a while now. The version being released is Firefox 4 Beta 1 and is the first version that’s stable enough to be used by regular users although some bugs could still be present and you might have some compatibility issues with any plugins you have been using on version 3.X.

Several things have changed in the new version of the browser. The first is the user interface. Mozilla have worked to make Firefox 4 more streamlined and modern. Tabs have been moved above the regular menu (similar to where Google Chrome has the tabs). The menu bar has actually gone and has been replaced by a single button called the Firefox Button”. Clicking on the button opens up the menu system. The buttons have had a tidy up too with the stop and reload buttons now being combined in to one button. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tech News

iPhone 4 Signal Problems Wont be Fixed by Official Update

July 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Last week, Apple [AAPL] responded to the iPhone 4 signal/antenna problems. Their response kind of skirted around the real issue in that a problem was identified, but not the problem we were thinking of.

Apple basically said that the 5 signal bars that represent signal strength were being shown incorrectly. When signal was low the meter was still showing a good signal or maybe 3 or 4 bars when in fact, it should be just 1 bar showing. This error in calculation was due to the formula being used where the signal strength had smaller gaps on the higher bars (ie, a slight drop in signal could lose all bars).

What the fix will do is correctly represent the actual signal in bars with linear spacing between each bar. If your signal is low it will show 1 bar rather than the 3 or 4 bars you see now in low signal areas. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Android 2.2 Begins to Show up on Google Charts

July 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Every 14 days, Google [GOOG] runs a report showing what percentage of people run the various Android operating systems. Now that Android 2.2 (FroYo) is being pushed out to Nexus One devices, we are starting to see the new build of the OS show up on the charts.

Android 2.1 continues to take the lions share by being on 53.1% of Android smartphones. This is followed by 1.6 and 1.5 that command 23.5% and 21.3% respectively. Android 2.2 is next with just 1.8% although we need to take in to consideration that only in the last week or so that OS has been made available publicly.

It’s interesting to see the number of devices still running Android 1.5 or 1.6. The 1.5 update has been available a long time now which indicates there are still a lot of older devices around that are unable to update. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Three MiFi Review

July 7, 2010 by Leave a Comment

A few weeks back I mentioned that 3MobileBuzz had sent over a Three MiFi for testing. My initial Three MiFi Review was overall positive although I needed to test further to get a better impression of how it worked whilst travelling. Well, I’m back and I’m glad to say it performed well.

The Three MiFi we tested is the Huawei E5830 version (now replaced with the 2nd gen model). The device is simple to set up and has just 3 buttons on the casing. One powers the device on and off, the second enables and disables the WiFi network and the third button enables and disables the mobile broadband connection (see image below). From powering up to being online takes around 30 seconds to 1 minute although it does require 3 button presses which could be just made to 1 press with firmware I believe. Not a major issue though.

The display on the device is very basic showing just 5 icons. The top right icon is the battery indicator. The top left shows signal. The bottom left shows if WiFi is enabled. The bottom right shows the mobile broadband connection and the middle light shows if you are roaming. Previously I had said I wanted more details to be displayed on the screen although when actually using the device I rarely looked at the screen unless it dropped my connection which happened maybe 2 or 3 times a day for whatever reason. Again, it wasn’t a major issue and mobile devices do lose signal occasionally. It’s just a 2 second hold of the data button and I was up and running again. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Gadget Reviews

Google Voice Desktop Petition Started – Users Want it!

July 6, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Last week, TechCrunch managed to get hold of a Google Voice Desktop client that allows users to log-in and make calls direct from their desktop in a similar way to how Skype and other services work. The downside of this is that Google [GOOG] apparently want to keep the software web-based rather than offering a downloadable software package.

Someone has created a petition over at GiveusGVDesktop.com that aims to collect half a million virtual signatures in an attempt to prove to Google that users want it. We are not sure if it will make any difference or not, but the software is certainly handy to have for those who use Google Voice and often work from a desk with a computer. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Computer Gadgets

Magnetic Thinking Putty Swallows Magnets

July 6, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Check out the Magnetic Thinking Putty. The putty is made of a viscous material that allows you to work with it, but also responds slowly to magnets nearby.

When putting the supplied metal cube near it, the putty will simply work towards the cube and swallow it whole.

The Magnetic Thinking Putty is available from an online store called Vat19 and costs $13.50. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Crazy Gadgets

Babylonian Twins iPhone Game Free Today

July 6, 2010 by Leave a Comment

If you have an iPhone then it would be worth you checking out the Babylonian Twins game. The game is free today to download and features a number of levels and challenges for you to work through.

Think The Prince of Persia meets The Lost Vikings with a twist: You control two characters, the twin princes of Babylonian, one at a time and each with different skills, to solve challenging puzzles in a fast-paced action and smooth scrolling in a unique historic atmosphere derived from history texts.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Cell Phones

Huawei S7 Preview

July 6, 2010 by 1 Comment

The Huawei S7 is an Android based tablet that has a 7 inch screen and sits in-between the likes of the Apple iPad and the Dell Streak.

One of the main problems with the Huawei S7 is that it appears the nice capacitive touchscreen that we expected to see has been replaced with a resistive screen which just doesn’t work that well on Android based devices. Hopefully the review unit is just a one off and that the S7 will have capacitive screens.

Battery life is also a downer with tests showing that just over 1.5 hours of active use can be achieved which is way below the 10 hours that other devices set. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Tablets