Archive for September 11th, 2009

A super special Engadget podcast today, kids — the gang’s all together in NYC and we’re coming at you live from our swank studio digs. It’s been a pretty wild week of news, so settle into the chatroom below — we’ll be starting at 4:30PM EST!

Update: Well, that was a wild one — thanks to all the commenters for hanging with us. Sadly we lost the recording due to a machine error, so we won’t be able to share the chaos with you, but hey — all the more reason to check out The Engadget Show, right?

Filed under: Podcasts

The Engadget Podcast live… now! originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 16:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sharp stepped up at the 70th Autumn Meeting of the Japan Society of Applied Physics to promote its new 500mW Blu-ray laser that is reportedly production ready and waiting to churn out triple and quad layer (100GB) discs at 8x speed. The only thing holding it back from release now is the lack of an official spec from the BDA. Geeking out over details of the aluminum oxynitride film that enabled this breakthrough (pictured above) continues beyond the read link.

[Via Blu-ray.com]

Filed under: HDTV, Home Entertainment

New Blu-ray laser from Sharp burns triple, quad layer discs but can’t cut red tape (yet) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 16:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Finally a product that integrates an MP3 player with a Flip-style digital video camera! Of course, we’re talking about Medion’s S47000 Digital HD Sports Camera, which counts among its many charms: h.264 video recording, 2x digital zoom, a whopping 1MP still camera, HDMI out, and 90MB storage (though there is an SD card slot, for what it’s worth). Tempted? Didn’t think so. As for us, we’re not shelling out £100 ($165) on anything without a pedometer.

[Via Oh Gizmo]

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Portable Audio

Medion’s S47000 sports camera shoots HD video, ain’t too pretty originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 15:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Back in June it was revealed that the iPhone 3GS’ newfound support of OpenGL ES 2.0 graphics put one of the first meaningful, material boundaries in software capability between iPhone generations (magnetic compass and video would be two other biggies), meaning that 3D-accelerated games targeted specifically for the 3GS platform could look a good deal fancier than their 2G / 3G counterparts — and furthermore, they could be built to only work on the 3GS if the developer chose not to build in support for both. French software shop Eurocenter is touting that its newly-released Adrenaline Golf is the first game to take advantage of the 3GS’ added graphics capabilities — and while we can’t verify that no other application submitted to the App Store in the past three months hasn’t utilized OpenGL ES 2.0 in some regard, we can definitely verify that it looks way cooler on the 3GS. The good news is that Eurocenter has set up the game so that it chooses the correct graphics engine at runtime, regardless of the iPhone you’re using, but after you see it on the 3GS it might seem a little inadequate on the older gear. Follow the break for our side-by-side demo of the sweet 3GS-exclusive water reflections, which are considerably better than real life since you don’t risk getting wet.

Update: Sure enough, Eurocenter got a little overzealous with their claim — Rocking Pocket’s Blue Skies has had 3GS-specific enhancements for a while now. Thanks, everyone!

Continue reading First iPhone game with 3GS-specific graphics released?

Filed under: Cellphones, Gaming, Handhelds

First iPhone game with 3GS-specific graphics released? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 15:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Atmel may still be hedging its bets by offering some resistive touchscreen devices of its own, but it looks like it isn’t making any secrets about its belief that capacitive touch is where the real action is, as fully evidenced by the firm’s wonderfully dramatic video announcing its new maXTouch technology. In addition to kick-starting “a whole new era” (period), the new platform promises to support the development of capacitive touchscreens larger 10 inches, complete with full support for zooming, rotating, handwriting, shape recognition and other advanced functionality. What’s more, the first device in the line (the mXT224) promises to blow a few minds by supporting not just finger touch, but input from a stylus, fingernails, or even gloves. The entire line of devices also fully support unlimited, simultaneous touches, and supposedly boast a refresh rate and signal-to-noise ratio that’s 66% better than its nearest competitor. Of course, there’s no indication as to when we can expect to see the first products using the new touchscreens just yet, but the mXT224 model is available right now for any companies interested, and Atmel says additional models will be rolling out in the fourth quarter of this year and throughout 2010.

Read – Atmel maXTouch press release
Read- maXTouch video and product site

Filed under: Displays

Atmel maXTouch technology promises bigger, better capacitive touchscreens originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Noticing a “Policy Requirement” error when trying to use your Microsoft Exchange account after upgrading to OS 3.1? Then there’s a good chance you’re not using an iPhone 3GS, as Apple has just confirmed via a support page that the upgrade can now enforce the Exchange ActiveSync mailbox policy requiring encryption on the device, which just so happens to only be supported by the 3GS (guess that “S” stands for more than just speed). Not surprisingly, the only solution for non-3GS users is to contact their Exchange Server administrator and hope that they’re willing to change the policy to no longer require device encryption.

Filed under: Cellphones

iPhone OS 3.1 enforcing Exchange device encryption, only supported by iPhone 3GS originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We aren’t too sure where a number of outlets overheard that Nokia was planning to pass on customizing its Maemo-based devices, but one of two things has happened: either Nokia is lying to our faces and has secretly had a change of heart, or everyone was just misinformed from the get-go. Regardless of the hows and whys, Nokia has now come clean and stated that those very reports — you know, the ones that “erroneously suggested that Nokia will not support operator customization for Maemo devices” — are “simply incorrect.” A long winded explanation follows, but the long and short of it is that the suits in Espoo are (at least now) very open to letting operators “tailor future Maemo devices to suit their needs,” which may or may not be a positive in your eyes depending on the carrier you’re chained to. Now, aren’t you glad we had this little talk?

[Thanks, Dallas]

Filed under: Cellphones, Software

Nokia grabs the Windex, clears up ‘erroneous’ Maemo carrier customization claims originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Engadget Show gets underway this coming Sunday, September 13th, in New York City, and we’re super excited to announce that the first person we’ll be sitting down with for a one-on-one conversation is Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein! Between the recent launch of the Pixi, the introduction Pre and webOS, and all the other hubbub surrounding the company, we think it will be quite an interesting chat.

The show — which will be a mix of one-on-one interviews, roundtable discussions, short video segments, and live music — will take place at the Tishman Auditorium at Parsons The New School for Design. The Show will be filmed live once a month — but if you can’t make it, don’t worry. We’ll be bringing the full video back home to Engadget (and as a free download in the iTunes Store, Zune Marketplace, etc.) for your viewing pleasure. The full show should be online just a few days after we tape!

The beautiful venue (which you can see in a photo after the break) is located at 66 W. 12th Street between 5th and 6th Aves. Seating is limited and tickets will be handed out on a first-come, first-served basis — which means if you want to join us in the audience for the show, you’ll have to arrive early and be prepared for a little wait.

Here are the facts you need to know about the show:

• The show is graciously sponsored by Nokia, and hosted by Parsons The New School for Design
• Bit Shifter (one of our favorite chiptune artists) will be playing live at the first show!
• The total show length will be around an hour

Here is what you need to know if you want to be part of the audience:

• There is no admission fee — tickets are completely free
• The event is all ages
• The venue seats just over 450 people
• Parsons students are welcomed, and we encourage them to come!
• Tickets will be available for pickup at the Tishman Auditorium at 2PM on the 13th, and we’re strongly encouraging people to get their tickets and not stand in line — if you have a ticket, you’ll have a seat!
• You cannot pick up tickets for other people — if you want your friend to get a ticket, bring your friend!
• The show begins at 5PM, and doors will open at 4:30PM

If you’re a member of the media who wishes to attend, please contact us at: engadgetshowmedia@engadget.com, and we’ll try to accommodate you. All other non-media questions can be sent to: engadgetshow@engadget.com.

Sponsored by:

Continue reading The Engadget Show tapes Sunday, September 13th — our first guest is Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein

Filed under: Announcements

The Engadget Show tapes Sunday, September 13th — our first guest is Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/gadgets/EeePC_modded_into_a_WalleeePC’;
We know how it is — you were an early adopter of the netbook craze sweeping every nation from Austria to Australia, but now that 11-inches is looking like the new de facto standard, your old 7-incher just isn’t cutting the mustard anymore. So what do you do? You mod that sucker into a kitchen cabinet door, of course. You’ll need a 7-inch USB touchscreen to layer atop an EeePC 701, along with a few other bits and bobs, but the most important thing to remember is a spectacularly loony soundtrack. Or so the video after the break seems to instruct us.

[Via JKK Mobile]

Continue reading Video: EeePC modded into a WalleeePC

Filed under: Household

Video: EeePC modded into a WalleeePC originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Vision rebranding wasn’t AMD’s only big unveil yesterday, as the company had on display a number of different stations for its ATI Radeon Eyefinity technology. Sure, there’s three-monitor Google Earth and airbrushing, but the real kicker, in case you doubted earlier claims that playing Left 4 Dead on three 30-inch screens “absolutely changes the experience for the better,” is footage of the game being playing on a 175-inch display, comprised of six HD projectors and boasting 5,500 x 2,000 pixel resolution. Sure, it’s not the greatest gaming screen we’ve seen, but short of having access to your own football stadium, it’s mighty impressive. See for yourself after the break.

Continue reading Video: ATI Radeon Eyefinity eyes-on, featuring Left 4 Dead on a 175-inch display

Filed under: Desktops, Displays

Video: ATI Radeon Eyefinity eyes-on, featuring Left 4 Dead on a 175-inch display originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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