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The LED backlighting on Samsung’s 1080p 81-series makes it the best LCD I’ve ever seen. You’ve been hearing about such a screen’s advantages for months—that it can turn off individual LEDs section to section, moment to moment, keeping blacks blacker and brights brighter—but over the last few weeks with this pre-production but final spec TV…
After referring to the OLPC laptop as “pedagogically suspect” a year ago, and claiming that they could build a laptop for $10 this past May, India has come back down to Earth and decided to take part in the project by delivering 22 of the laptops to lucky children in a one-room school in Maharashtra.…
Danny at Gadget Lab got a hands on with the Burton Sleeper Hoodie, which they are calling the “Bestest Ever.” The hoodie has the usual snowboard related essentials, such as hidden MP3 player/ticket/passport pockets and extended cuffs with thumbholes. But what makes this hoodie really stand out are the built in earplugs, inflatable neck pillow,…
The fabled Helio Mysto could actually be a Samsung U600 if the rumors coming from a source at PhoneArena prove to be correct. The rumor also states that a Helio version of the phone would switch to a CDMA receiver and EVDO, but would otherwise remain its sexy-looking self —including its super trim .42-inch profile.…
Aaron Tang’s wall stairs are meant for living areas that are short on space, but they’re so awesome that I’d want them even if I had 1,000,000 sq. ft. house. They work by having the frame of the stairs slide out from the wall, powered by hydraulic pistons, and having the stair planks fold over…
Egypt’s apparently gotten more liberal with its current administration vs. past government leaders, as Ibrahim Essa, editor of Egypt’s biggest opposition newspaper, tells the Chicago Tribune that “I’ve found out that I’m allowed to take my iPod,” he said cheerfully. “This is progress in the Mubarak era. Yes, they do torture you in your cell,…
Did you hear? The Samsung BD-UP5000 is coming with full HD DVD and Blu-ray support, including the best in class profile 1.1 support for picture in picture, etc. for BD. At $1000, it isn’t cheap. But you’ll avoid the ugly situation of having to choose between a disc player that plays Casino Royale (BD) or…
D-link claims that their new line of DGS-2200 series multi-port desktop switches are the first in a line of “green” networking equipment designed to lower power consumption without affecting performance. Excuse me while I throw away all of my gear in anticipation. [PC Mag]
I’m not a big skier personally —but I can see why the Satski GPS system could easily become a hit amongst true skiing enthusiasts. Using the Satski, you can create an interactive piste map that can be used to guide, track , and record your movements on the slopes. You can even upload your routes…
Joel Johnson has a great piece up today on EpiSurveyor and its founder, Dr. Joel Selanikio. EpiSurveyor is open source software built for PDAs and cellphones designed to monitor health trends in developing nations. In these countries, internet access is often spotty or unavailable, and traveling to remote villages to collect data on thousands of…
“Babble” (Froslie, 2006) Interview/Article by Jonah Brucker-Cohen In the technologically advancing world of consumer electronics and toys, it seems that manufacturers are attempting to pack more features into devices without any regard for their emotional and nostalgic appeal. Playfully examining the toys and games from his childhood, artist Pete Froslie attempts to bring out the…
Don’t know which PS3 to pick up this holiday season, awash in a sea of different, confusing models? Chris Kohler’s whipped up a Venn diagram to help you separate the wheat from the chaff, the backward-compatible from the gimped. An Xbox 360 version is undoubtedly right around the corner. [Game Life via BB Gadgets] https://gizmodo.com/sony-planning-price-drop-for-80gb-ps3-new-399-40gb-mo-298067
During its mostly positive Q3 earnings call, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings dropped word that “in terms of enabling the viewing of online content on the television screen, we are exploring a variety of options, including Internet connected, high definition DVD players, internet connected game consoles, and dedicated internet set tops, with a variety of partners,…
Qualcomm’s new Gobi 3G chip can hook up to either EV-DO or HSDPA networks, making things a bit easier for both notebook/UMPC manufacturers and consumers, who won’t necessarily have to shop for devices around their cellphone company if they want internets from the sky. The chips are available as of today, so Qualcomm thinks they’ll…
Verizon’s decided to put away the lawsuit it filed against the FCC over the open access rules governing a chunk of the 700Mhz spectrum up for auction, which were recently re-affirmed—again, not for lack of trying on Verizon’s part. [Ars] https://gizmodo.com/verizons-in-a-pissy-mood-this-week-mad-at-fcc-and-bob-299823
Popular Mechanics took a prototype plug-in 2009 Prius for a short test drive, which might be the first PHEV to market. The Prius they ran around still uses the Prius’s current nickel-metal hydride battery packs—a pair, actually, with the charging system jimmied in between them—though Toyota hopes to switch to lithium ion, which are more…
Ever since the Wii dropped, movement-based navigation has been all the rage. But sometimes you just need to know when to say when. Take the new EyeMobile Engine designed by GestureTek, for example. With this new technology, cellphone users could do things like tilt a phone back and forth to zoom in on a map…
Always working to meet the needs of their bleary eyed, raw-thumbed customers, RIM’s making it easier for power traders and venture capitalists to poke each other right from their BlackBerries. The new Facebook app, available later today from Facebook or RIM only for T-Mobile customers for now [Update: People with other providers are saying it…
According to the folks at Crunchgear, a variant of the much hyped Samsung F700 will be making its way into the open arms of Verizon users sometime in the near future. Outside of that, no other details exist and an official announcement has yet to be made —so try and keep your excitement in check.…
Now, here is a great idea —a speaker that connects to your computer, iPod or any other MP3 player that can be controlled with a wave of the hand. Plus, it gives off a “soft ambient glow.” According to the product site, the motion detection system allows you to adjust the volume or tune into…