Archive for September 24th, 2009

It can get a bit confusing at times amid all the announcements about announcements, but the folks at FON have now finally confirmed that their Fonera 2.0n “web applications” router is indeed available in the US, and for the bargain price of just $99. As its name suggests, in addition to functioning just fine as a regular 802.11n router, this one will also let you manage a whole host of web applications like Twitter, Facebook or Flickr even when your computer is turned off — finally giving you the ability to, for instance, tweet when an upload or download has completed (a surefire way to hang onto those followers you’ve amassed). Still not up to speed on all this Fonera business? Don’t worry, there’s a helpful video after the break.

[Via Wi-Fi Planet]

Continue reading Fonera 2.0n web applications router now available in the US

Filed under: Wireless, Networking

Fonera 2.0n web applications router now available in the US originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 16:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Alienware’s Aurora ALX, which was just unveiled this week alongside ATI’s blisteringly fast Radeon HD 5870 GPU, gets going at $2,299. If that doesn’t bother you, the late-October estimated ship date might. Somehow, the benchmarking fiends over at HotHardware were able to grab hold of one of these rigs, and the results are fairly stunning (if not expected). Granted, their test configuration was a fully loaded $4,074 model, complete with a 3.33GHz Core i7 Extreme Edition 975 CPU, twin ATI Radeon HD 5870′s in a CrossFire configuration and 6GB of DDR3 memory. Oh, and blue lights. Lots of blue lights. Put simply, the one-two CPU / GPU punch produced results that led to domination that made pretty much anything else out there look weak. Don’t believe us? Hit that link for the bar-charted proof.

Filed under: Desktops

$4,000 Alienware Aurora ALX benchmarked: domination this world has never seen originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 16:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Viliv has one of the best-looking convertible tablets we’ve ever seen here at IDF, the new S10 Blade. It’s actually quite striking in person — it’s thin and light, while still offering a convertible touchscreen and a decent keyboard. Sadly the version pictured here has a pretty slow single-touch resistive touchscreen and will be limited to Windows 7 Starter when it launches in November for around $570, but we’re told that a multitouch resistive model will hit early next year with Windows 7 Home Premium for around $700. We’ll see if that one has the functionality to back up these hot looks when it hits — but for now, check the rest of the pics in the gallery.

Filed under: Laptops

Viliv S10 Blade netvertible hands-on at IDF originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 15:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Do you know how old the current iMac is? Half a year. Or two years, if we’re talking form factors. In terms of major Apple design overhauls, six months isn’t a very long time, but considering that the all-important holiday shopping season is about to kick off, it follows logic to think that Apple would update its most consumer-facing Mac lineup in preparation. AppleInsider seems to have a pretty good read on a purported refresh, noting that a thinner chassis (predictable, but appreciated) and all-around lower prices are on tap. We’re told that the enclosures could closely mimic the firm’s new Cinema Displays in terms of industrial design, and while details on actual specification changes are next to nil, we are told that a few amenities “not previously available” would become so. Who’s down for throwing out wild suppositions? (And no, Blu-ray doesn’t count.)

Filed under: Desktops

Updated iMac lineup rumored for near-term release originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 15:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Intel just did a pretty impressive demo of its new Light Peak optical device interconnect, driving a greater-than-HD display while saturating an SSD RAID all over one cable, but we couldn’t help but notice the monster Frankenstein test rig on stage was running OS X — looks like someone’s violating their EULA! Video after the break.

Continue reading Video: Intel’s Light Peak running an HD display while transferring files… on a hackintosh

Filed under: Peripherals

Video: Intel’s Light Peak running an HD display while transferring files… on a hackintosh originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Handhelds

iriver Story e-reader hits pre-order status in Korea, gets priced originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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As impressive as that tooth-eye implant was, we’re guessing most folks had something more like this in mind when they considered the future of sight restoration. While it’s still a bit early in development, and has yet to actually be implanted in anyone, this new retinal implant certainly seems to have the researchers at MIT excited, who say that tests with blind patients could begin within the next three years. The basic idea behind it was apparently inspired by the cochlear implants that have proven successful in restoring people’s hearing, although in this case the implant works by electrically stimulating damaged nerve cells that would ordinarily send visual signals from the retina to the brain. According to the researchers, however, the system would only work on folks that have lost their sight due due retinitis pigmentosa or age-related macular degeneration, and it wouldn’t restore complete sight, but could let them see enough to find their way through a room or walk down a sidewalk (which is certainly no small feat). They’ll also have to wear a special set of glasses (or visor, if you prefer), which will not only wirelessly send images to the implant, but keep it powered wirelessly through a set of coils.

[Via The Register]

Filed under: Wearables, Science

MIT researchers tout progress with retinal implant – yes, it comes with a visor originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/microsoft/Microsoft_opens_cafe_in_Paris_to_build_excite_for_Windows_7′;

Filed under: Software

Microsoft opening café in Paris to build excitement for Windows 7 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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In addition to our full length Engadget Show, we’ll be doing short segments on a wide variety of topics which we’re hoping will delight, inform, or at least entertain for a few, precious moments.

digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/hardware/Ever_wondered_who_makes_the_displays_in_Times_Square’; Ever wondered who makes the outrageous displays in Times Square? Now you’ll know. Josh talks to Meric Adriansen from D3 LED, the man who designs and builds those massive structures, and goes behind the scenes to see the rigs from the other side. Want to get deep inside of the art and science behind the light pollution that is — literally — New York’s most visible spot? Watch the video… and subscribe to the RSS / iTunes feed below (we’re still waiting on Zune Marketplace approval).

Also, if you missed the premiere of the show with Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein, you can see it here.

Host: Joshua Topolsky
Produced and Directed by: Chad Mumm
Edited by: Michael Slavens
Music by: Bit Shifter

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The Engadget Show: Hands-on with Times Square originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Intel’s CE3100 media chip has been behind some of the cooler demos they’ve done here at IDF, and it’s just gotten a big brother, the Atom CE4100. As you’d expect, the big change is the replacement of the CE3100′s Pentium M core with an Atom core, but this thing is actually kind of a monster — it can decode two 1080p video streams with various high-end audio codecs, it adds MPEG-4 support and 3D graphics capability, and it can even capture uncompressed 1080p video. Of course, it’s up to manufacturers and cable companies to actually put all this power to use, but Intel’s promised us some hardware demos from partners — stay tuned.

Continue reading Intel announces Atom CE4100 for insanely powerful cable boxes and Blu-ray players

Filed under: Home Entertainment

Intel announces Atom CE4100 for insanely powerful cable boxes and Blu-ray players originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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