Tech news, analysis, culture, business, security, and more
News junkies rejoice! Google has begun scanning microfilm from various newspapers’ historic archives to make them searchable online, further pushing libraries towards obsolescence (just kidding, i think). The searches can be had first through Google News, and will eventually be available on every papers’ own website. Much like its book project, Google will shoulder the…
In an attempt to one-up Verizon’s FiOS, AT&T has finally rolled out a new software update for its U-verse service that’ll let subscribers watch recorded shows on up to eight different TV sets. FiOS only offers multiroom DVR for seven different televisions currently. The feature is already available in San Francisco and nearby subscriber cities,…
Here’s a challenge to hackers everywhere if I’ve ever heard one-a company named Verayo claims to have created an RFID chip that’s completely unclonable thanks to a type of electronic DNA technology called Physical Unclonable Functions (PUF). Unlike basic passive RFID chips, where data can be easily copied from one chip to another, Verayo’s PUF-fy…
Click to viewThe official Zune 3.0 details we saw earlier today are now visible in video form, showing off purchasing from FM, Wi-Fi music store and channels, which recommends music to you based on what you already listen to. Three more clips where this one came from. [MSN Video]
Sick and tired of never getting even close to the 10 to 12 hours of battery life advertised by PC companies on your laptop? Sony hears you, and is taking pains to improve at least one thing about their power packs. No, not the overheating factor, though they say they’ve got that somewhat under control…
In case Asus’ $100 price drop in July just wasn’t enough to make up your mind on whether to spring for a new Eee PC 1000H, the mini-marvel’s gotten even cheaper now. Amazon is selling an 80GB, XP-equipped 1000H for just $450. Mwave also has several in stock for either $450 (while supplies last) or,…
Who in the hell do Google think they are? The goddamn Dharma Initiative? Slashdot readers dug up this 2007 patent for a server farm system, which uses wave power buoys to run a bunch of machines on the boat they’re attached to. Though somewhat similar to one of the stations on LOST, this patent’s purpose…
Though it’s no huge shock to find out what’s behind Esquire’s recent E-Ink cover, it’s always fun to look at the postmortem pics. Phil over at MAKE took the magazine cover apart, and in addition to the E-Ink display, found lithium cells, printed circuit boards, and flash-programmable microcontrollers, which could be partially hacked or reprogrammed.…
We took a trip down to Uniqlo to see how the American invasion of their Wakamaru shopping robot was faring. Not so well. Bewildered by the bustling crowd scurrying around against booming techno music, it had to be led around by hand and had trouble understanding our bizarre alien language. When our intern asked, “Where…
I don’t know what’s going on over the pond, but it appears that September is robot spider month in the UK. First we saw the 50 foot robot spider that terrorized Liverpool, and now researchers from Queen Mary, University of London have developed a spider attack simulator that helps determine how bees avoid camouflaged predators.…
If you don’t care about having the absolute newest, schmanciest iPod—and really, there’s nothing wrong with the current lineup even after new ones probably come out tomorrow—and just want a solid deal on one, the Apple Store’s clearing out its stock of refurbished iPod touches and nanos at “special prices.” Which is $50 off of…
Ideas like this have been tossed around for some time now, but Alcatel-Lucent’s “tikitag” unveiled at the DemoFall conference may finally make the idea of everyday RFID tagging possible. For example, you could put tikitags on business cards and connect that card to online personal or social networking info. After that, the data could be…
We showed you our hands-on of Spore Origins for iPhone last week, and despite some release-date wavering, it did in fact make it to the App Store today on schedule. It’s $10. [App Store]
MSNBC had an impromptu demonstration of its new Microsoft Surface table this morning, and gave political analyst Chuck Todd a chance to play with his dollies. At first, the goateed Todd moved states around, zooming, coloring and highlighting with his finger. Though he didn’t really have a full handle on all the features himself, the…
Even though Vodafone is gleefully selling Dell’s Inspiron Mini 9 with built-in 3G, it turns out that Mini 9s sold in the US actually don’t possess latent 3G powers like that annoying kid on Heroes. A solid source close to the matter told us that while every Mini 9 uses the same motherboard with a…
I was lucky enough to attend Red Bull’s Flugtag event in Chicago last Saturday, but like most other attendees, I wasn’t lucky enough to actually watch the event as these flying machines (not really intended for flight) launched off a 30-foot pad that was perpendicular to the shoreline, facing into the water. Regardless, had I…
The problem with my iPhone is that I can barely hear the ringtone when I receive a call. Maybe I’m going deaf, but I have vibrate set at all times as a backup just in case. It helps me catch any crucial calls when the ringtone may be drowned out by ambient noise—plus I like…
Click to view In Tokyo, a lot of people ride bikes. And when I say a lot, I mean a lot, as in more people commute by bike in Tokyo than do in all of the United States. All those bikes need somewhere to go while people are at work, if they use them to…
From the world’s tallest skyscraper to the world’s highest popping toaster, it seems like a day rarely goes by without news of some sort of record being broken. As far as consumer gadgets are concerned, everyone claims to have the biggest, smallest or the fastest product on the market—but just because it’s in the press…
The HP EliteBook 6930p is a nice enough laptop when configured with an LED 14.1-inch screen and SSD. But it’s got one big claim to fame if you’re willing to fork over the cash for these extras. When bundled with an optional high capacity battery, the runtime reaches 24 hours, or one complete day of…