Latest Gadgets, Tablets and Smartphones
Google [GOOG] has made a version of Video and Voice Chat available for those running Linux. Up until till now, the service has only been available for Windows and Mac OS X users.
The service works along side Gmail and lets users have video calls or voice calls with users on their Gmail contact list.
Google also mentioned that RPM support is coming soon although no specific dates have been mentioned. [Read more…]
If you think using an Apple Magic Trackpad with batteries is a waste of energy and time (as in charging time) then this USB power hack could work for you.
The hack uses a battery sized adapter that feeds the trackpad with the juice it needs to run. A cable runs out of the side of the battery compartment and on to a USB port to get 5V of power.
There’s a couple of problems with it though. First is that it seems a shame to hack up a Magic Trackpad like that. If you can get over that little design issue then the other problem is that a USB port provides 5 volts and the Magic Trackpad needs about 3. [Read more…]
Sony is working on a new technology that will allow facilitate both power and data transmissions through a single cable. The current method to connect up to an LCD screen for example is to use a series of cables in a ribbon format.
This technology enables the internal wiring of a mobile device to be streamlined through a single cable (copper wire). Conventionally, the video, audio and control signals as well as the power transmission were spread out over several dozen cables within the movable mechanisms of mobile devices, such as hinges or rotating parts. Sony aims to promptly implement this technology to improve design flexibility, reliability and durability for mobile devices with movable mechanisms.
In an interview with the WSJ, the LG VP of Marketing said that the LG Tablet will be better than the iPad. The reason for this is that it’s going to be surprisingly productive to use.
It’s an interesting and bold statement and one we wish them luck with. Often when declaring words such as those mentioned above, the products don’t cut it and end up not selling. [Read more…]
Vodafone has announced that the HTC Desire Android 2.2 update will be made available this coming Monday August 23rd.
The update will follow along the path of other updates in that HTC Desire users will receive a notification on their smartphone telling them that an update is available. Vodafone will be pushing out the update in phases over about a 2 week period. [Read more…]
Engadget managed to get hold of a couple of prototypes of the Dell Thunder smartphone.
It appears that the Dell Thunder could work on both CDMA and GSM networks as some code inside had references to both networks. An interesting feature on the phone is the screen looks to be slightly curved. When we say feature, it’s not exactly ground breaking, but certainly different to the flat glass screens we see these days.
This particular phone (or set of phones) were labled EVT1 which indicates it is perhaps the first engineering verification test. With this, a number of problems were spotted such as a few screen issues, no hole for the microphone as well as a few small quirks, all of which should be ironed out before launch we assume. [Read more…]
Stumbleupon is a service that lets you give a thumbs up or thumbs down to webpages. The process usually involves installing a toolbar and then browsing around websites you come across each day, or have a suggested web page pop up for you to rate. If you like it, you give it a review and if not you thumb it down. It might sound quite boring, but you certainly come across a lot of interesting content whilst stumbling and it’s easy to spend time each day just voting on pages.
A new version has launched for mobile devices. Stumbleupon has released apps for the Apple iPhone and Google Android based smartphones allowing you to rate web pages whilst on the move. [Read more…]
Yesterday, Facebook introduced Facebook Places. The service is a location based service that lets you tag where you currently are and post the update on to Facebook.
One of the other major challengers in the on-line check in game is Foursquare. Some expected that Foursquare would be worse off after a service the size of Facebook essentially knocked it over. However, the opposite has happened in that yesterday the company had the most amount of signups they have ever had.
‘Just heard from The @HarryH that today was @foursquare’s biggest day ever in terms of new user signups, Foursquare co-founder Dennis Crowley just tweeted out a few minutes ago (@HarryH is the Twitter name of Harry Heymann, Foursquare’s engineering lead).
Research in Motion [RIMM] is rumoured to be looking at buying a mobile ad network to generate more revenue for the company. The networks are believed to be similar to that of Google [GOOG], Apple [AAPL] in that the ads will target mobile pages.
This move appears to have arrived because of the success of the Apple iPhone as well as the rise of Google Android based smartphones which are eating in to sales of the BlackBerry range of phone.
Mobile ads offer a new window to make money, big money, especially when you consider the number of mobile devices that have an Internet connection. To try and get a piece of this pie, RIM tried to purchase Millennial Media, but at $500 million, the asking price was just to high for the struggling company.
Apple [AAPL] looks to be currently testing iOS 4.1 on a number of devices which includes the unannounced iPod touch 4, iPad and an unknown product (perhaps iTV).
The latest Beta of iOS 4.1 has a few indications that Apple is testing these devices. It is expected that the iOS 4.1 release date is sometime within the next month.
The information is part of the latest iOS 4.1 beta in a section called “Configuration Descriptors”. The first device on the list (image below) shows a device code as iPod 4,1 which indicated it is the first iteration of the 4th gen iPod touch. [Read more…]
Details of the Canon Powershot G12 were briefly uploaded by Cnet Asia. The Canon G12 is the next in line and is expected to be unveiled officially soon.
Details in the Cnet post (which has now been edited), reveal that the G12 has a 10 megapixel sensor, 5x optical zoom and a 2.8 inch tilt and swivel screen. Other features include the ability to capture video in HD at 720p.
A quick phone call to Canon in the UK and our spokesman was playing “dumb” as to the leak, saying that Canon had launched the Ixus 1000 HS, the PowerShot S95 and the PowerShot SX130 IS in the UK on Thursday and nothing else.
A couple of new Sony Reader eBook devices are launching soon. We first heard about them a couple of weeks back where we expected them to be thinner than the current versions.
From what the poster above (larger below) shows, the two new Readers are called the Sony Reader Pocket Edition and the Sony Reader Touch Edition.
Each appears to have a new user interface. The pocket edition will have a 5 inch display while the touch edition will be a little larger at 6 inches. Other details include a couple of thousand extra page turns per charge taking it up to 10,000 page turns per battery. [Read more…]
