Archive for September, 2010

Samsung i8700 leaked on video

Posted in Samsung by Conner Flynn on September 14th, 2010

Look at this. A very blurry leaked video of the Windows Phone 7-powered i8700 has surfaced, showing a brief demo of the phone’s user interface.

Details on the i8700 are still very scarce, but we can tell you that it offers 8GB of internal memory, Bluetooth 2.1, and a camera with LED flash. Hopefully we will learn more soon. Check out the video of this phone in action below.

Disney wants technology standards for web-connected toys

Posted in Disney by Conner Flynn on September 13th, 2010

We don’t have much in the way of details at the moment, but Disney wants to have some order in the web-connected toys market. Whether that means a goofy doll that surfs the web or a Mickey Mouse ebook that updates with bedtime stories, we have no idea. The company’s consumer products division is all set to detail a proposal to establish a set of technology standards at the Engage Conference and Expo this month.

Armen Mkrtchyan, the head of Disney’s “Toymorrow” team will be laying out the plan. He will talk about what kinds of standards Disney is looking at, and how those standards could lead to cost-savings and “increased playability.”

YouTube testing live video streaming

Posted in YouTube by Conner Flynn on September 13th, 2010

YouTube has now made its live streaming plans official and said that it would start trials. It works through a user’s existing YouTube channel and works the same as services like Justin.tv, Qik or Ustream. Users just need a FireWire or USB video camera and have access to live comments for any ongoing show. It’s implied that finished shows will be archived as regular YouTube clips, though they don’t say it outright.

The testing started at 11AM Eastern today with a live broadcast of Rocketboom and will run through late Tuesday. YouTube hasn’t said when this will be a regular feature.

Motorola Defy confirmed for T-Mobile US

Posted in Motorola by Conner Flynn on September 13th, 2010

Motorola has confirmed a North American version of the Defy for T-Mobile. The rugged Android phone will ship by the holidays and is also getting some show time on the Oprah Winfrey Show today apparently. It’s being called a US exclusive for the carrier.

The Defy is one of the first touch-only phones to be designed this rugged. It has resistance to dust, scratching and water, and is also the fastest with an 800MHz TI OMAP chip. It runs Android 2.1 with the full Motoblur social networking layer on top and currently only supports Flash Lite for a plugin. It also has a typical 3.7-inch display, a five-megapixel camera, GPS and Wi-Fi, but its outdoorsy design gives it a dual microphone that reduces wind noise and other background sounds.

Sanyo Innuendo hits Sprint with hidden OLED display

Posted in Mobile Phones by Conner Flynn on September 13th, 2010

Sprint is offering a unique Sanyo-branded handset built by Kyocera. The Innuendo is a horizontal flip-phone with a QWERTY keyboard and a 2.8-inch, 400×240 display. The exterior features a keypad that is hidden when not lit up and in use, along with a matching 1.3-inch OLED external display.

Other specs include a 3.2-megapixel camera, Bluetooth, MP3 playback and a microSD memory card slot. It comes with a 1GB microSD card. Users can access Sprint’s E-mail, TV, Music, GPS mapping and a browser, while Sanyo preloads Facebook, MySpace and Twitter apps.

Amazon Kindle ad makes fun of iPad’s daylight reading problems

Posted in kindle by Conner Flynn on September 13th, 2010


Amazon is laying the smack down in the e-reader wars, with this latest ad for the third-generation Kindle that directly attacks Apple’s iPad. The 30-second ad, already shown on ABC, points out that the iPad’s glossy LCD is hard to read in bright daylight. It shows that the Kindle doesn’t have that problem.

In fact, it is so easy to read, that this sexy Kindle owner can keep her sunglasses on. The ad also points out that a Kindle costs just $139 versus the iPad’s $499 starting price. Ouch!

Kensington PowerBack iPad Battery Pack

Posted in iPad accessories by Conner Flynn on September 13th, 2010

We’ve seen our share of battery packs for the iPhone, but this just might be the first for the Apple iPad. The Kensington PowerBack will add an extra five hours to your iPads battery life so you always have some extra juice.

It also features a built in micoUSB port for charging the battery pack and your iPad. There’s also a built in kickstand so you can use it to watch your favorite movies or surf the web comfortably.

T-Mobile G2 hitting Radio Shack for $149

Posted in T-Mobile by Conner Flynn on September 13th, 2010

We already knew that Best Buy would start selling the T-Mobile G2 for $199, with a two year contract with T-Mobile. And now another retailer will offer a better deal. Radio Shack will be selling the T-Mobile G2 for $149.99 after rebates with a two year mobile service agreement, although we don’t know yet when the deal will be available.

The T-Mobile G2 will come with Android 2.2 Froyo, and will feature an 800MHz Qualcomm Snapdragon processor. It will make use of T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network which will give you download speeds of up to 14.4 Mbps.

Speedo unveils waterproof Aquashot camera that floats on water

Posted in Cameras by Conner Flynn on September 13th, 2010

Speedo used to just make apparel, but these days Speedo is a swimwear and an accessories manufacturer. The company has unleashed another Waterproof gadget to join the ranks of its previous Aquabeat Waterproof MP3 player.

The Speedo Aquashot can be submerged up to 3 meters and is shock resistant to up to 1 meter. That isn’t new. The interesting thing about this gadget is that it has the ability to float on water, which is a trick that most waterproof cameras don’t do.

Pre-Order the Boxee Box today, now with Intel CE4100

Posted in Set Top Boxes by Conner Flynn on September 13th, 2010

If you have been waiting for the Boxee Box, your wait is almost over. Pre-orders start today. In other news, it no longer has an NVIDIA Tegra 2 under the hood. Boxee has switched to the Intel Atom CE4100. The company had said that it expected the Box to hit the streets at under $200, but now it is $229.

Intel’s CE4100 processor is the same one found inside Logitech’s Google TV box. So now your Boxee will be able to handle full 1080p playback at 60fps. The Boxee Box should ship in November in Canada, Australia, European Union and the U.S.

Smart Finger concept makes measuring a snap

Posted in Concepts by Shane McGlaun on September 13th, 2010

Design concepts are interesting most of the time with cool ideas for products that will never see the light of day. If you are one of the folks that are rather challenged when it comes to reading a tape measure of ruler, the Smart finger concept may be perfect for you.

The concept is a pair of little finger appliances that look sort of like sci-fi thimbles and can measure distance between the two sensors on the devices accurately. As you move the sensors apart, the measurement is shown on a display on the top of one of the sections of the gadget.

Nation-E Angel Car is roadside assistance for EV drivers

Posted in Automotive by Shane McGlaun on September 13th, 2010

I have never run a car I was driving out of gas before. I have had to drive to pick up my wife a few times over the years when she forgot to get gas and ended up stranded. At least with a normal car you can just put a few gallons in the tank to get you to the station.

If you forget to plug in an electric car and you get stranded on the side of the road today, you are out of luck. A company called Nation-E has unveiled a new charging system in Europe that has a mobile charger in the back of a van called Angel Car. The idea is that if an EV owner runs out of juice the van drives to them to give a charge.

Sadistic airlines eye even smaller seats for economy class

Posted in Aircraft by Shane McGlaun on September 13th, 2010

I am not a big fan of flying. Not because I am afraid the plane will crash or anything. I am afraid I will be stuck next to the 400-pound dude with a sweating problem. The last time I flew on a commercial flight that happened to me and it was a miserable three hours.

Apparently the airlines think we have too much room in those small seats. A company has unveiled new seats called SkyRider that look like a cross between a normal airline seat and a saddle. The seats give you only 23-inches of legroom.

Panasonic offers the world’s first micro four-thirds camcorder

Posted in Panasonic by Shane McGlaun on September 13th, 2010

Panasonic has unveiled a new camcorder that grabs the title of world’s first micro four-thirds camcorder. The camera is rather big and bulky looking and reminds me of the old camcorders from the 80′s with its square design.

The camcorder is called the AG-AF105 and it has interchangeable lenses using the micro four-thirds system. The camera apparently works with the same lenses the still cameras from Panasonic support. The large image sensor allows for wide-angle video.

1958 Arvin Radio converted into an iPod Dock

Posted in iPod Accessories by Conner Flynn on September 13th, 2010

Is this not the best looking iPod dock that you have ever seen? Sure, we’ve seen our share of iPod docks, but this one is a real beauty. It’s a 1958 Arvin Radio that has been converted into an iPod dock. So here you get the best of old and new.

The details on the dock are scarce, but we do know that it will cost you $750. At that price, some specs would be nice, but you are buying this more for the style anyway. This one of a kind iPod dock displays either a 1st generation iPhone or iPod touch being docked, so I guess no matter how you look at it, it’s a relic.