Inter-Tech Overload

Qualcomm’s fifth gen Gobi unveiled, supports a Lollapalooza of LTE, 2G / 3G bands

admin — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:41:00 +0000

Qualcomm this morning took the wraps off the fifth generation of its Gobi reference platform, which offers up LTE via FDD and TDD networks. It also plays nicely with past favorites, including the likes of HSPA+ and EV-DO, keeping your globe trotting self connected on that skinny laptop, tablet or convertible. The reference platform is designed to work with Windows 8 and Android devices and a number of processors, including, naturally, the San Diego-based company’s own dual- and quad-core Snapdragons and good old x86. More information and lots of quotes from big name companies who think the bouncing new baby Gobi is just swell after the break. Continue reading Qualcomm’s fifth gen Gobi unveiled, supports a Lollapalooza of LTE, 2G / 3G bands Qualcomm’s fifth gen Gobi unveiled, supports a Lollapalooza of LTE, 2G / 3G bands originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Feb 2012 10:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds .

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Qualcomm’s fifth gen Gobi unveiled, supports a Lollapalooza of LTE, 2G / 3G bands

Samsung Galaxy S II announced for US Cellular: ‘coming soon’ for $230

publisher — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:10:00 +0000

We already had a strong hunch that it was coming to US Cellular, thanks to the FCC , but now it’s official: Samsung’s iconic Galaxy S II is finally making its way to the regional carrier in the coming weeks for $230 on a two-year contract and after a $100 mail-in rebate. This version of the GSII offers the same 1.2GHz dual-core Exynos CPU found in the original version, as well as a 4.5-inch Super AMOLED Plus display. Android 2.3 (Gingerbread), an eight megapixel rear camera and 16GB internal storage are also confirmed, though we think it’s highly likely this unit will feature the same specs as the rest of the series. Check out the full press release below for all the details released so far, and we’ll keep you posted as soon as we hear an official release date or any other deep dark secrets. Continue reading Samsung Galaxy S II announced for US Cellular: ‘coming soon’ for $230 Samsung Galaxy S II announced for US Cellular: ‘coming soon’ for $230 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Feb 2012 10:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink

Inhabitat’s Week in Green: ‘Plantscraper’ vertical farm, new wave energy and a battery-powered iPhone case

publisher — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 00:30:00 +0000

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. Groundbreaking green architecture burst into life in Sweden this week as Inhabitat reported that Plantagon began construction on the world’s first ‘Plantscraper’ vertical farm . We also marveled at artist Yayoi Kusama’s dazzling Infinity Mirror Room , which shines with the reflections of thousands of LEDs, and we shared the bubbly modular AMPS living wall system . Meanwhile, the MoMA PS1 Young Architects Program announced that HWKN’s bright blue spiky sea-urchin shaped pavilion will be popping up this summer, PinkCloud.DK unveiled plans to transform oil refineries into giant energy positive communities and the UK granted planning commission for its first amphibious house . We also showcased several amazing applications for LEGO bricks this week: a NYC apartment renovated with 20,000 plastic bricks , a gigantic LEGO-inspired church in the Netherlands and a remarkable fully articulated prosthetic LEGO arm . Speaking of next-gen prosthetics, this week Israeli scientists demoed a real-life “Star Trek” VISOR that enables the blind to see, and Nike took the wraps off a prosthetic running sole for amputee triathlete Sarah Reinertsen. This also marked a heated week for energy news as solar power heavyweight Sunpower sued Solarcity over stolen data, and Aquamarine Power geared up to connect its new wave energy generator to the UK’s national grid. We also got ready for rough days ahead with the waterproof, armageddon-ready, solar-charged, battery-powered iPhone case , and we got things cooking with Biolite’s brilliant new camping stove , which converts waste heat into electricity for USB gadgets.

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Inhabitat’s Week in Green: ‘Plantscraper’ vertical farm, new wave energy and a battery-powered iPhone case

Refresh Roundup: week of February 13th, 2012

admin — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 23:50:00 +0000

Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it’s easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don’t escape without notice, we’ve gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup . If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy! Continue reading Refresh Roundup: week of February 13th, 2012 Refresh Roundup: week of February 13th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Feb 2012 19:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink

Windows Phone gets Gooroovster: streams Google Music whether it’s official or not

publisher — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 08:51:00 +0000

Not a Spotify fan? Then perhaps a Google Music client will suit your tastes a little better. Gooroovster has just shed its beta cocoon to reveal its new Windows Phone wings. Available on trial, the full app will set you back $3.99 and offers streaming access to your whole library, the usual collection of music player controls and the ability to refresh the 500 most recent additions to your library. Unfortunately, there doesn’t appear to be any caching options — so it’s largely a Windows Phone-skinned copy of the web-based player, although it doesn’t look all that official and you’ll also need a Windows Phone device running the Mango upgrade. The typical Google Music provisos apply: check your data allowances and if you’re out of US, you’re (still) out of luck.

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Windows Phone gets Gooroovster: streams Google Music whether it’s official or not

Ford sends out OpenXC beta, vehicle-aware apps should be just around the corner

publisher — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 06:41:00 +0000

It’s six months since Ford partnered with Bug Labs to build OpenXC and now the system is ready for third-party developers to get involved. Rather than following Renault and others down the Android route , OpenXC is a dedicated platform designed to bring together third-party apps and hardware. It comes with an Arduino -based interface module that hooks up to the car’s own systems, allowing the software to work with sensors, audio interfaces, safety devices and whatever other add-ons an owner might want to rig up. One app, developed by India’s HCL Technologies, is already complete: it sends location updates to selected contacts to warn them if a driver is running late for a meeting. (Finally, Arduino gets to do something useful .) Ford sends out OpenXC beta, vehicle-aware apps should be just around the corner originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 18 Feb 2012 02:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink

Sony promo lets PS Vita, PS3 hold hands for cross-platform play, because sharing is caring

admin — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 20:11:00 +0000

Need another reason to cough up for that PS Vita ? Well, Sony’s attempting to sweeten the pot for existing PS3 owners with the launch of a promotional lure that’ll make a trio of titles available for cross-platform play . Yes, that portable-to-console bridge has been attempted before and though it’s always reeked more of gimmick than true killer feature, that’s not stopping the electronics juggernaut from giving it the ol’ college try. Gamers that download either Hustle Kings , WipEout 2048 or Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3 on the PlayStation Store will be able to transfer and play that content on both devices for the price of one. If you currently claim any of the above as your own, not to worry, you’ll still be able to take part in the company’s pan-PS content share . So, are you red E?

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Sony promo lets PS Vita, PS3 hold hands for cross-platform play, because sharing is caring

Boxee and the NCTA debate if ClearQAM is good for us

admin — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 19:52:00 +0000

The National Cable & Telecommunications Association and Boxee don’t see eye to eye on whether or not ClearQAM is good or bad for us. Boxee argues that encrypting even those channels free and clear via an antenna, as a few cable companies have requested permission from the FCC to do, will increase your bill and limit competition. The NCTA alternatively claims that eliminating ClearQAM will enable self installs, thus reducing costs and truck rolls, because the coax outside your house will no longer need to be disconnected when you cancel service, and that Boxee should just adopt CableCARD if it wants the Boxee Box to access live cable TV — of course most anyone who has had a CableCARD setup knows that a simple truck roll to connect a cable outside is child’s play. While this struggle has played out in public with FCC filings, social media and blog posts, we all just fondly remember a day when setting up a TV was as simple as connecting a single coax cable and running a channel scan. Of course, it would be nice if the FCC would actually force more QAM to be sent in the clear and require accurate PSIP data while it’s at it, but we gave up on that dream years ago . Boxee and the NCTA debate if ClearQAM is good for us originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 16 Feb 2012 15:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds

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Boxee and the NCTA debate if ClearQAM is good for us

GE turns butterfly-inspired tech into cheap, accurate thermal sensors (video)

publisher — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 06:52:00 +0000

When last we heard from GE and its Morpho-butterfly inspired sensors , all the talk was about detecting chemicals. And, with $6.3 million in funding coming from DARPA , we’re not surprised. In the latest issue of Nature Photonics, however, the company’s researchers show that the wing-like structures are just as good at detecting heat as they are ricin attacks. By coating them with carbon nanotubes the team was able to create a sensor sensitive to temperature changes as small as 0.02 degrees Celsius with a response rate of 1/40 of a second. The sensors could eventually find their way into imaging devices and medical equipment, and are expected to cost just a fraction of similar technologies currently on the market. Of course, since DARPA is still involved with the project, there are some potential security uses as well — such as screening devices and fire detection. Head after the break for a video and some PR. Continue reading GE turns butterfly-inspired tech into cheap, accurate thermal sensors (video) GE turns butterfly-inspired tech into cheap, accurate thermal sensors (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Feb 2012 02:52:00 EDT

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GE turns butterfly-inspired tech into cheap, accurate thermal sensors (video)

Kinect for Media Center released, why not wave and shout at your HTPC?

admin — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 05:34:00 +0000

Kinect hacks previously brought gesture and voice control to Boxee and XBMC , and now that the Kinect for Windows hardware has been released we’ve got a solution for Windows Media Center . The aptly named Kinect for Media Center brings all the normal playback controls (for WMC and add-ins like Netflix) to your fingertips and lips, at the cost of $6.99. While its control scheme seems to be fully featured there are unfortunately some limitations — it doesn’t work with the Xbox 360 Kinect due to Microsoft’s restrictions, and it also doesn’t work with WMC extenders. What is included are filters to keep your content from accidentally triggering the voice controls (something some of us have had problems with on the Xbox 360), and configurable settings for right or left hand dominance or sensitivity. You can check out a video demo of the beta version (compare to a demo we saw last year from the makers of the Amulet voice control remotes) embedded after the break, or head directly to the site to try it out yourself if you’re sure that finding the remote has simply become to much of a hassle. Continue reading Kinect for Media Center released, why not wave and shout at your HTPC? Kinect for Media Center released, why not wave and shout at your HTPC? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:34:00 EDT.

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Kinect for Media Center released, why not wave and shout at your HTPC?