Archive for December, 2009

Stanley Torch Watch lights your path, highlights your odd aesthetic sensibilities

December 31, 2009
It takes a rather unique — or hilarious! — flashlight to make the pages of this august publication. We’ve seen torches that record video and torches that induce nausea, but never before have we seen a flashlight that’s been haphazardly shoved into a digital clock and called a “watch.” The Stanley LED Torch Watch features a backlit alarm clock, timer, and mini LED torch which may or may not be detachable. Available at the low, low price of $58. Action photo after the break.

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Stanley Torch Watch lights your path, highlights your odd aesthetic sensibilities originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 06:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mophie iPhone credit card reader coming to a CES near you

December 31, 2009

iPhone accessory maker and recession antidote regular Mophie is about to make the most buzzworthy move of its short history by offering a credit card reader and accompanying transaction app for the Apple handset. Positioned as a direct competitor to Jack Dorsey’s Square iPhone Payment System, Mophie’s solution looks to be integrated into an iPhone case — making it possible to keep the reader on permanently, albeit at a slight cost to your device’s aesthetics. The decidedly cube-shaped Square system has a less ergonomic design, but we suspect that the winner (if either of these two succeeds) will be primarily determined by the usability of the app and affordability of the service. Look out for more info to emerge at some point during the maelstrom that will be CES 2010.

Mophie iPhone credit card reader coming to a CES near you originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 04:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AT&T asks FCC to phase out landline regulations

December 31, 2009

A day without landline phones? Some may say that’s inevitable, but it looks like AT&T is now starting to try to speed things up a bit, with it recently responding to an FCC request for comments with a 32-page filing that details its position on the matter. That more or less boils down to two major requests: that the FCC eliminate the regulatory requirements that it support a landline network, and that it provide a firm deadline for phasing it out. To back up that request, AT&T has provided the FCC with a whole host of statistics that paint a bleak picture for landlines, including the fact that less than 20% of Americans rely exclusively on switched-access lines for voice service (though plenty more still use them as their primary voice service), that at least 18 million homes now use a VoIP service, and that those two numbers are fast growing in opposite directions. Needless to say, such a change would have a broad range of regulatory implications, and AT&T isn’t providing answers for everything — like exactly how it expects that last mile of users to transition away from landlines, or how to deal with issues of public safety or those with disabilities.

AT&T asks FCC to phase out landline regulations originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 03:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Physics arXiv Blog’s Highlights of 2009: August

December 31, 2009

One of the most extraordinary events of the year was the successful prediction of the collapse of the Shanghai Composite Index

21 August 2009

Econophysicist Predicts Date of Chinese Stock Market Collapse–Part II

The
Shanghai Composite Index was supposed to burst before July 27 but
didn’t. A few days after that deadline, however, it dropped by 20
percent. Coincidence?

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Paradigm Shift intros 5- and 7-inch readers with color (LCD) displays

December 31, 2009

It looks as if we’re still waiting patiently for color e-ink to become a reality (at least in a mass produced shipping product), but if you’re kosher with low-energy consumption LCDs, Paradigm Shift has the ticket. Similar to Sungale’s Cyberus ID700WTA, the outfit’s 5-inch EER-051 and 7-inch EER-071WF are both e-readers with color, but neither boast e-ink displays. The former includes 1GB of built-in memory, an SD expansion slot, an integrated MP3 player and support for just about any kind of ebook file (non-encrypted EPUB included). The latter steps up to 2GB of memory, and thanks to the Windows CE operating system, it’ll also handle Office files and the like when it’s not flipping text. Both devices are expected to ship in February through Delstar here in the States, with the 5-incher available in a rainbow’s worth of hues for $149.95 and the big boy in black or white for $50 more. The full release is after the break.

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Paradigm Shift intros 5- and 7-inch readers with color (LCD) displays originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 00:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A-DATA’s USB 3.0 / SATA II flash drive announced for January

December 31, 2009
We’re a few precious breaths from 2010, and if there’s anything we’re looking forward to, it’s some wicked fast USB 3.0 storage — Intel be damned. Set to hit shelves sometime in January, A-DATA’s N002 Combo Flash Drive sports both SATA II and a USB 3.0 connection. Using the latter, the drive boasts up to 200MB/sec read and 170 MB/sec write speeds. Or if you’re feeling retro, you can take advantage of that backwards-compatibility and connect via USB 2.0. Now, we don’t know how much this bad boy will cost, but it will be bundled with A-DATA UFD to GO software. Of course, this thing is not nearly as cute as the Kissing Octopus USB drive, but we’re sure it’s not without its charms.

A-DATA’s USB 3.0 / SATA II flash drive announced for January originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Dec 2009 23:17:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nexus One trounces 3D benchmark, gets caught in high-res photoshoot

December 31, 2009

Just when you thought you’d seen it all with Nexus One, along comes an old friend with some higher resolution shots of the handset (hooray!) and a pretty impressive 3D benchmark test using Qualcomm’s Neocore. Video’s after the break –that Snapdragon chip outputs a mean framerate, no?

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Nexus One trounces 3D benchmark, gets caught in high-res photoshoot originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Dec 2009 21:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Trade show shocker: Sling to out some new gear at CES

December 31, 2009

Okay, you’re not surprised that some companies are going to have new gear at CES, are you? Well, we”re hearing that Sling — a company that’s not had much news this year beyond the release of its iPhone app — will definitely unleash some new stuff in Las Vegas, including “WiFi television, ultra-slim Slingboxes, and a next-generation touch screen device.” Now, we don’t want to get everyone overly excited this early in the day, but those all definitely sound like upgrades to us. We really don’t know if Sling will let slip any more specific info between now and CES, but as you know, we’ll be In Vegas when it all goes down, so sit back and be patient. It won’t be long, now.

Trade show shocker: Sling to out some new gear at CES originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Dec 2009 21:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple tablet rumor party: Fox News, former Google China president, and the ‘iGuide’

December 31, 2009

No words can stress how much we’re sick of Apple ‘iSlate‘ rumors right now, but when someone with powerful links speaks up, we gotta take note. Kai-fu Lee — former Google China president — has joined the Apple rumor mill by leaking what he claims to be insider knowledge of the device. Now, we’ve heard a lot of this same noise before: sub-$1000 price, an iPhone-like appearance, 10.1-inch multitouch screen, video conferencing, cellular connectivity, 3D graphics and virtual keyboard. What really got our attention is Lee’s link with Foxconn — the Apple OEM is one of the main contributors to Lee’s post-Google investment venture, Innovation Works, so there’s a good chance that Lee’s spoken to someone overlooking the manufacturing of a certain Apple device. Of course, we can’t abide Lee’s final proclamation that “Apple expects to produce near ten million units in the first year!” This is pretty bold considering Apple’s only sold five million portable computers so far this year (and ten million was the number of iPods sold in Q3 2009 alone), but hey, who knows if Steve Jobs has already worked out a subsidizing plan with some carriers to lure us all?

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Apple tablet rumor party: Fox News, former Google China president, and the ‘iGuide’ originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Dec 2009 20:53:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HTC HD2 plays Tekken 3 using FPSECE emulator

December 31, 2009

Not much to say here other than there’s a PlayStation emulator for the HD2 and it bloody well works! The original gangster of consoles, already emulated on other WinMo devices such as Toshiba’s TG01, has made its way to HTC’s finest thanks to version 0.10 of the First PlayStation Emulator for Windows CE. You can hit the read link to find out how to get it up and running on your own handset, and then we’ll naturally expect you to come back and tell us how good it felt to play Final Fantasy VII in a whole new way. The more impatient among you will already be watching video of the HD2 running Tekken 3 effortlessly after the break, so go join ‘em already.

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HTC HD2 plays Tekken 3 using FPSECE emulator originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:47:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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