Items tagged with device
Since 2007, smartphones have largely looked the same. Form factors have grown slimmer, and displays are denser, but the overall motif really hasn't evolved much. So, what's truly "next" for smartphones? Perhaps it's intelligence. With Siri, Google Now, and Cortana taking the stage as personal assistants, Microsoft is hoping to take that notion another direction with 3D Touch features. The rumored addition could ship in Lumia handsets "later this year." As of now, a codenamed "McLaren" product has integrated Kinect-like features that put focus on gestures and motion, and require less tapping and swiping. 3D Touch (or Real Motion) would be the feature that Microsoft touts as its version of Samsung's...
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"Wait just a moment, will you?" That's a question being posed by Barnes & Noble, which has come out swinging to address prior rumors that the Nook hardware business was being phased out completely. The bookseller has been mired in difficulties over the past few years, as the digital age weighs heavy on its traditional paper business. But the Nook has seemingly been a bright spot in the lineup, and despite competition from Amazon and tablet makers the world over, it appears that the Nook business has life left in it. The company's latest financial report makes clear that "new Nook products are planned," and it is "confirming" its commitment to Nook: both the device and content sides of the...
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Seagate Unveils Latest Storage Solution for Small Business - New Central Axis(TM) Business Edition Dual-Drive Network Storage Server Delivers 'Hassle Free' Network Storage with Secure Remote Access SCOTTS VALLEY, Calif., Nov. 12 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Seagate (NASDAQ:STX), the world leader in storage solutions, today introduced the Maxtor(R) Central Axis(TM) Business Edition dual-drive network storage server, a storage solution designed to satisfy the long-term business continuity needs and growing storage requirements of small businesses. The Central Axis Business Edition network storage server takes the guesswork out of network storage management by providing simple, automatic backup with...
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Soon, your GPS device might be useful for much more than just getting directions and finding the nearest coffee shop. NAVTEQ will become one of the first GPS services to provide flight status information to GPS users. The company is also adding fuel price information to its dynamic content portfolio. Both features are currently available in beta testing and are expected to be commercially available in the first quarter of next year. NAVTEQ already delivers camera alert data and real-time traffic to navigation systems. The new Air Travel Status feature will provide GPS users with flight arrival and departure information for thousands of U.S. flights. It will also include information about security...
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We recently reported on a teenager who is using GPS technology to try to get out of a speeding ticket. Website, Njection wants you to avoid getting speeding tickets in the first place by using your GPS navigation device. Njection features a tool it calls a "Speedtrap Mashup." The tool uses map data from Microsoft Virtual Earth and overlays onto that data with known speed traps and red light cameras. How are the trap and camera locations known? Because Njection users enter the information into the site, which then gets added into the site's growing database. Visitors to the site can search for speed traps and red light cameras in the U.S., Canada, and parts of Europe, and see where the traps and...
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Super Talent Ships Tiny Gold 8GB Storage Device24K Gold Plated 8GB Pico USB Drive is World’s Smallest San Jose, California – July 15, 2008 -- Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of Flash storage solutions and DRAM memory modules, today announced the PICO-C Gold, a 24-carat gold plated, water resistant USB drive that weighs less than a nickel (~4.7 grams), is smaller than an SD card, and can store over 2,000 MP3 songs.Super Talent uses chip-on-board (COB) technology to squeeze 8GB of Flash into an impressively small 31.3mm x 12.4mm x 3.4mm gold plated steel case. The Pico-C Gold is shock resistant, water resistant, and has up to 200X (30MB/sec) transfer speeds. The Pico-C Gold includes...
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Have you heard of DMP? Microsoft is applying for a patent to equip devices with a "Digital Manners Policy," a polite euphemism for a kill switch or jammer in your electronic equipment. It doesn't stop at stopping things like using a flash camera in a museum, either; OnStar is implementing the same sort of device to shut off your car remotely. If you've ever become peeved when someone sitting next to you starts yammering on their cellphone in the movie theater, you've probably wished there was some sort of method to make it impossible. Be careful what you wish for, says Bruce Schneier at Wired; who will decide who's allowed to do what, where, and with what is a very important question. Once we...
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Results from a study just released by global consulting company, Accenture, find that only about five percent of all consumer electronics product returns are due to actual failures or defects. The rest of the returns can be categorized as "no trouble found" (68 percent) or "buyer's remorse" (27 percent). The study also finds that "the average return rate for [consumer electronics] devices ranges from 11 to 20 percent." This amounts to approximately $13.8 billion being spent by "US consumer electronics manufacturers, communication carriers and electronics retailers" for "assessing, repairing, reboxing, restocking and reselling returned merchandise." This adds up to as much as six percent of manufacturers'...
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For months there has been wild speculation about Google getting into the mobile phone business or getting into the OS game, strangely enough both rumors are actually true. Even stranger is that they're actually the same rumor: Google and partners are developing a completely new mobile device platform: Android.So what have Google and their partners managed to come up with? A completely open OS with a lot of promise:“Android holds the promise of unprecedented benefits for consumers, developers and manufacturers of mobile services and devices. Handset manufacturers and wireless operators will be free to customize Android in order to bring to market innovative new products faster and...
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Finnish phone giant Nokia is shipping their eagerly anticipated N95 handheld computer. It got a 2.8" display, and a nifty two way slide to expose a keypad for entering text if you slide it out one way, or controls for the media functions if you slide it out the other direction. Nifty. Boasting up to eight gigabytes of built-in memory, the Nokia N95 8GB has all the key features of its predecessor, including a 5 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics, built-in A-GPS, WLAN, HSDPA and an innovative 2-way slide. The sleek black N95 8GB also boasts a luminous 2.8" (240 x 320) QVGA display, so watching videos, browsing the Internet or viewing maps is a real pleasure. With its expanded memory, the N95...
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A group of Australian researchers have reportedly developed a device that allows people to manipulate their TVs, DVD players, and other electronics with a simple wave of the hand. The controller box has a built-in camera that can identify seven simple hand gestures and can be used with up to 8 different devices. The development is led by Australian engineers Dr. Prashan Premaratne and Quang Nguyen, who expect the gadget to hit the market within three years. “Dr Premaratne, of the University of Wollongong, said the device is designed to sit on a shelf or table which has a clear line of sight to the television and the owner. Its software recognises simple, deliberate hand gestures and then sends...
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Perhaps some of us remember that at around the same time a year ago, we heard about Google’s scheme to use a computer’s built-in microphone to listen-in on the TV shows that we happen to be watching and to use such information to connect us to websites of interest. Although the details were unclear at the time, a recent patent application has clarified a few things. "Imagine that you are watching the latest episode of Friends on television and discover that the character Monica is pregnant. You want to chat, comment or read other viewers' responses to the scene in real-time.""By eavesdropping, Google says it could offer you relevant websites automatically, perhaps even generating them on the...
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ASUS Announces World's First Hardware Based Real-time Overclocking Device Unparalleled Overclocking with EN8600GT OC GEAR/HTDP/256M Taipei, Taiwan, July 3, 2007 – ASUS today introduced the new OC gear as the world´s first hardware based real-time overclocking device for graphics cards. The ASUS OC gear will be bundled with the ASUS EN8600GT OC GEAR/HTDP/256M which is upgraded with -1 memory modules. With such a configuration, users can expect up to 30% enhanced overclocking performance and gaming experiences. Full support for Microsoft DirectX 10 will also allow users to experience stunning and complex special effects for their applications...
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No it can't read minds in the literal sense, but it's probably still better than a polygraph machine. They say that only a small fraction of human communication comes from words; about 60% is body language and about 30% is tone. The irony is that most of us are probably not able to pick up on these subliminal messages very well. That might be why Rana El Kaliouby, an MIT grad student, decided to develop the special software used in the Emotional Social Intelligence Prosthetic, which is a device that helps people interpret body language and facial expressions. The device, upon detecting boredom/inattention in the listener, will vibrate to alert the user. "This software interprets emotions based...
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AMD to License Graphics Technology Optimized for Handheld Devices - New Initiative Aims to Enable the Ultimate Visual Experience for Hundreds of Millions of Handheld Devices- SUNNYVALE, CALIF. - February 13, 2007 - AMD (NYSE: AMD) today announced a new business focused on developing and licensing leading-edge graphics core technologies to semiconductor manufacturers throughout the handheld industry. This move is a part of the AMD commitment to enable The Ultimate Visual Experience(tm) across all devices from handhelds to PCs. As a result, new handheld devices developed with AMD graphics technology inside will reach a large audience of customers who want to enjoy stunning user interfaces, immersive...
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AMD to License Graphics Technology Optimized for Handheld Devices - New Initiative Aims to Enable the Ultimate Visual Experience for Hundreds of Millions of Handheld Devices- SUNNYVALE, CALIF. -- February 13, 2007 --AMD (NYSE: AMD) today announced a new business focused on developing and licensing leading-edge graphics core technologies to semiconductor manufacturers throughout the handheld industry. This move is a part of the AMD commitment to enable The Ultimate Visual Experience across all devices from handhelds to PCs. As a result, new handheld devices developed with AMD graphics technology inside will reach a large audience of customers who want to enjoy stunning user interfaces, immersive...
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AMD Ushers in Breathtaking Multimedia for Mobile Devices with Next-Generation AMD Imageon Media Processors - New AMD Technology Enables Handheld Manufacturers to Captivate Consumers with Remarkable Video, Audio and Imaging - SUNNYVALE, CALIF. - February 12, 2007 - AMD (NYSE: AMD) today introduced the AMD Imageon 2298, 2294 and 2192 media processors, offering ultra-fast, high-resolution image processing, DVD-quality video and high-definition audio for compelling mobile multimedia experiences. These new processors further enhance the industry-leading AMD Imageon family of discrete media processors, helping handheld manufacturers to quickly and cost-efficiently deliver the latest multimedia features...
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Intel and Micron Sample Industry's First 50 Nanometer NAND Flash Memory Devices BOISE, Idaho, and SANTA CLARA, Calif., July 25, 2006 - Demonstrating their commitment to move quickly up the technology leadership curve, Micron Technology, Inc., and Intel Corporation today announced they are sampling the industry's first NAND flash memory built on industry-leading 50 nanometer (nm) process technology. The samples were manufactured through IM Flash Technologies, a joint development and manufacturing venture from Micron and Intel. Both companies are sampling 4 gigabit (Gb) devices now, with plans to mass produce a range of densities on the 50nm node in 2007. This move to 50nm process technology...
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Sulu, where did that ship go damn it?! Get Spock on the bridge now. This can't be possible! PORTLAND, Ore. - John Pendry, a physicist at Imperial College in London, predicted in 2000 that metals could be engineered to reverse electrical fields. Since his prediction, metamaterials with a negative index of refraction have been created and demonstrated from gigahertz to optical frequencies. Now, Pendry and two engineering colleagues, David Schrig and David Smith, are predicting that both electrical and the magnetic properties can be varied in inhomogeneous composites with embedded nanoparticles. The result is a variable index-of-refraction material that is being touted for applications...
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PC Perspective has just posted their review of the Gigabyte iRAM storage device. Essentially a PCI card full of DIMM slots, the card uses memory modules to act as an incredibly fast hard drive. Should you like the idea of blistering fast load times and increased performance, you should certainly take a look at this ingenious new product. You can see how this product faired on the Hot Hardware workbench by reading our review here. The Gigabyte iRAM is a truly innovative device that opens up all kind of possibilities with its incredible, untouched storage performance. It brings the idea of solid state storage the consumer for a very low cost and...
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The world's largest electronics firms have decided to use Bluetooth wireless technology to send high quality video between devices in the home, two industry associations said on Tuesday. The decision is expected to determine how hundreds of millions of televisions, video recorders and personal computers will be connected without wires by the turn of the decade. Until now, the global electronics industry has been struggling to choose a single wireless connection that is fast enough to connect a new generation of digital devices....
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Although performance has been greatly enhanced over the last few years through the use of faster spindle speeds, larger caches, and newer interfaces, hard drives still tend to be a bottleneck in a typical PC. Mechanical devices, by their very nature, require time to seek the data requested, read it, and then transfer that information back to system memory. Also, while SATA technology has increased transfer rates from the paltry 33MB/s of the original ATA spec to a healthy 300MB/s on the latest SATA-II controllers, there's still room for improvement, although the drives themselves will still struggle to saturate the bandwidth on this interface. One idea, although hardly new, is to create a solid-state...
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