Archive for September 20th, 2009

Hosts: Joshua Topolsky, Nilay Patel, Paul Miller
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Song: NOISEWAVES – As Days Go By (Family Matters Theme Song)

Hear the podcast

00:03:00 – Google says Phil Schiller himself rejected Google Voice from the App Store
00:13:35 – Zune HD review
00:37:50 – Archos 5 Internet Tablet makes an honest PMP out of Android
00:44:04 – HP’s new DreamScreens pack Pandora and Facebook into a wireless photo frame
00:50:00 – HP ENVY 13 and 15 bring luxury to the everyman, look like MacBooks
00:59:39 – HTC Hero for Sprint hands-on and impressions
01:04:05 – Motorola CLIQ

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Twitter: @joshuatopolsky @futurepaul @reckless @engadget

Filed under: Podcasts

Engadget Podcast 163 – 09.20.2009 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 16:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Itching to command your iPhone 3GS via voice control, yet aren’t willing to wrap one more cable around your precious dome? Your wildest dreams could possibly come true next month, when BudsGoBlue launches an iPhone-friendly set of Bluetooth earbuds that should act as headphones and a BT headset. We’re hearing that the loops on each earpiece are “completely flexible,” and judging by the teaser video hosted up just after the break, they look fairly seductive, too. Hop on down and have a peek for yourself, won’t you?

[Via mobilitysite, thanks Toni]

Continue reading Video: BudsGoBlue teaser hints at iPhone 3GS-controlling BT headphones

Filed under: Peripherals, Portable Audio

Video: BudsGoBlue teaser hints at iPhone 3GS-controlling BT headphones originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 15:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Griffin Technology’s MyPhones are far from being the first cans on the market with volume limiting tech built-in, but unlike some parent-friendly options, these can never, ever be cranked to levels appropriate for ear bashing. You see, rather than giving adults (you know, those Earthlings that are already hard of hearing) the chance to set the limit too high for their offspring, Griffin has implemented an “always-on sound-control circuit to cap peak volume levels at 85 decibels.” That’s the maximum level recommended by many auditory health organizations, and if you don’t like it, tough noogies. But we mean, just look at those two kiddos above — don’t they just look elated? Kidz Bop 14 at barely-audible levels tends to have that effect, or so we hear.

[Via Macworld]

Filed under: Portable Audio

Griffin’s volume-limiting MyPhones can’t crank to 11… or 8 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 13:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You had to see this coming. Or not. While Amazon has certainly shown an ability to do well in the consumer electronics space (ahem, Kindle anyone?), we never exactly envisioned the mammoth e-tailer to spark up its own private-label line of consumer electronics. Designed to go mano-a-mano with the likes of Monoprice and other cut-rate accessories providers, AmazonBasics will — at least initially — offer consumers AV cables, blank DVD media and other inexpensive doodads for not much cheddar. Everything the outfit sells through this initiative will ship in frustration-free packaging, and Bezos has already committed to expanding the line “in the coming months.” As expected, these products will be eligible for free (albeit slow) shipping if you break the $25-per-order mark, and while Americans can begin ordering today, it’ll be a tick before these wares trickle out to international portals. So, industry — are you scared yet?

Read – AmazonBasics
Read – Amazon’s press release

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Peripherals

AmazonBasics: Bezos and Co. starts private-label consumer electronics line originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 12:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If ASUS is hoping to stick with that “mid-October” launch date here in North America, we’d say it better get whatever units it has laying around loaded up with an English-speaking version of Windows and onto a large vessel destined for a US port. Still, it’s good to see some “proof” that the roadmapped Eee PC 1201n — a 12-inch netbook with NVIDIA’s Ion technology — is actually on schedule for an autumn release, even if said “proof” is a product listing on an Asian e-tailer’s website. Unfortunately, the machine is still humming along on Intel’s near-ancient Atom N270 processor, though the 2GB of RAM, high(er) resolution panel, real man’s GPU and Windows 7 operating system should help move things along. Per usual, we don’t expect ASUS to confirm or deny the legitimacy of this slip, but if you’re in the market for an Eee, this may be all you needed to hold off just a bit.

[Via NetbookItalia]

Filed under: Laptops

ASUS’ Ion-infused Eee PC 1201n netbook emerges overseas originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 11:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You know, we admire Palm’s patience. We knew a GSM Pre was in the works about 8.43 minutes after its CES presser ended in January, and we’ve been waiting all this time for some carrier in some part of the New World to grab hold of a GSM version of the world’s first webOS handset. If you’ll recall, we last heard that O2 Germany would be giving its loyal users the chance to get that very handset before the holiday season, but now an updated image on the site clearly indicates that it’s coming this fall. As in, before winter. As in, within the next few months. As in, not nearly soon enough.

[Via PreCentral]

Filed under: Cellphones

GSM Palm Pre now looking at ‘autumn’ launch in Germany originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 10:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NASA just took its fancy Lunar Electric Rover for a spin around the Black Point Lava Flow in Arizona for a bit of simulated moon exploration. The 14 day mission had a couple of crew members holed up inside the vehicle for the duration, proving the suitability of the vehicle for such a lengthy jaunt — and providing for a good amount of Odd Couple-esque hijinks inside, to be sure. The LER also managed to track down “lost” crew members in a trial to test out the navigation systems of the rover, and docked with a habitation module mounted on the ATHLETE vehicle. Sounds like a real party down there! Video is after the break.

[Via AutoblogGreen]

Continue reading NASA’s Desert RATS field tests the Lunar Electric Rover on simulated 14-day mission

Filed under: Transportation

NASA’s Desert RATS field tests the Lunar Electric Rover on simulated 14-day mission originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 08:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It might sound confusing at first, but it all makes sense, we promise. The folks at Nintendojo were apparently on a retailer conference call where Nintendo “confirmed” the new $199 Wii price, which will supposedly go into effect on Sunday September 27. Only problem is that we have to take Nintendojo’s word for it — not that we have any reason not to, but for now we’ll have to just call this an “unconfirmed confirmation” until Nintendo can summon the courage to fess up to the $50 price cut to a couple of corroborating sources. It’s not like those multiple flyer price leaks are knocking anybody off the trail, but we usually to hear these things from the horse’s mouth — or at least from a retailer’s shelf — before we go into all-out celebration mode.

[Via GoNintendo]

Filed under: Gaming

Nintendo confirms $199 Wii for September 27? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 06:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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This new Leo hotness from HTC sure is making the rounds, and we certainly can’t get enough of it. Its latest appearance shows the handset from some sexy angles, but also gives us a new tidbit to chew on: the Bluetooth menu identifies the phone as the HD2. So, is this the much-rumored successor to the Touch HD, or an absolutely gorgeous impostor? We’d venture a guess, but we’re too busy longing for that 4.3-inch capacitive LCD to care.

[Via MobileTechWorld]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

HTC Leo spotted once again, friends call it “HD2″ originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Sep 2009 02:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You know us, we’re the epitome of patience. Always waiting for things so patiently. But you know what we can’t wait another second for? An 802.11n adapter for our Xbox 360. The good news is that the thing looks positively imminent, after an FCC showing this week and now an appearance on a flyer inside a Gears of War 2 Game of the Year edition box in Italy. Can’t you just taste the 802.11n wafting over the Atlantic? The eternal optimists over at Joystiq also think that this flier might point to a co-existence of both types of WiFi adapter, and potentially a price cut for the overpriced original, but we suppose we’ll just have to wait and find out.

[Via Joystiq]

Filed under: Gaming, Networking

Xbox 360 802.11n adapter spotted in Gears of War 2 box, longs for the comfort of your living room originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 Sep 2009 23:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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