The Gadget Geek

Zune HD video hands-on: chock-full of media edition

We’ve witnessed a very interesting development cycle with the Zune HD, getting to witness the software at various early stages of development, instead of a completed device all at once. Our latest glimpse of the player is along the lines of what’s been cropping up the last week or so: wild transitions, fun motion graphics and plenty of beautiful media to show it all off with. We did get to touch the new keyboard briefly, and while there’s no telling what sort of predictive text Microsoft has worked in, since we only had a URL bar to work with, it’s a passable (and certainly beautiful) attempt to cram a full QWERTY touchscreen keyboard into such a small device. Reports are conflicting as to whether there will be a landscape keyboard in the final build of the device, but it’s been spotted in some iterations of the device — it didn’t show up when we tried to rotate the player, however.

Unfortunately, while the browser is up and running, the hotel we were at wasn’t able to offer us a working internet connection — hopefully we’ll be able to rectify that soon. For now hold tight, check out the gallery below and the peep the video after the break for a magical exploration of the Zune HD’s truly impressive interface.

Continue reading Zune HD video hands-on: chock-full of media edition

Filed under: Portable Audio, Portable Video

Zune HD video hands-on: chock-full of media edition originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 11 Aug 2009 16:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments
Toshiba Qosmio G45-AV690
Toshiba Qosmio G45-AV690
Zune HD Priced Cheaper Than the iPod Touch
Zune HD, Microsoft’s answer to Apple iPod Touch, is likely to launch in less than a month and it promises to be much cheaper than its rival. Amazon, which has started taking pre-orders for the device, has listed the 16 GB Zune HD player for $220 and the 32 GB version for $290. Compare that to [...]
Snail-Mail House, Do They Still Exist?
Oh yea they do, coz no matter how hooked we get to technology, emails, chats etc. Snail Mail WILL NOT go out of fashion. So presenting to you here is a very tangible Lettreman XXL letter box, to receive those Christmas Checks from grandmas. Besides the striking peephole , what I …

Webcycle provides pedal-powered internet, reason to dodge browser-enlarging Flash sites

Need an excuse to get some cardio into your life? Can’t live without ye old internet? Thanks to Matt Grey and Tom Scott, the answer to your weight loss woes is pictured above. The aptly-titled Webcycle is essentially a sensor-laden fitness bike that requires users to pedal faster in order to snag more throughput. An Ubuntu-based laptop is wired up to an Arduino and an array of sensors that allow more bits and bytes to seep through based on how hard the rider is working. A simple slow pedal is all it takes to load mobile pages and text-heavy sites, but if you’re hoping to actually watch the video after the break, you’ll certainly need to kick things up a notch. Pure brilliance, we say.

[Thanks, Yoda]

Continue reading Webcycle provides pedal-powered internet, reason to dodge browser-enlarging Flash sites

Filed under: Laptops, Internet

Webcycle provides pedal-powered internet, reason to dodge browser-enlarging Flash sites originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 10 Aug 2009 05:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Astak’s $199 EZ Reader Pocket PRO wants to give Kindle ‘a run for its money’

Last we heard from Astak, it was quietly peddling some off-the-wall Mentor e-book reader based on a drab OEM model that every other no-name reader manufacturer uses. Now, however, it seems the company has a bit more pep in its step (though it’s still copying others, this time the BeBook), as it has proudly proclaimed that the new 5-inch EZ Reader Pocket PRO is primed to “give Amazon’s Kindle a run for its money.” With Adobe’s blessing, the device is able to support over 20 open file formats along with DRM-laced PDF files; also of note, a sure-to-be-controversial text-to-speech feature can read back documents aloud. The six-ounce device will be available in a half dozen hues, and within you’ll find a 400MHz processor, 512MB of memory, an SD expansion slot, 8-level grayscale E-ink screen, a replaceable battery good for 8,000 page turns per charge and an MP3 player that can operate in the background. Sadly, no wireless connectivity is baked in, but the $199 price point is definitely tantalizing. Anyone looking to get in on a pre-order before it ships later this month?

Filed under: Handhelds

Astak’s $199 EZ Reader Pocket PRO wants to give Kindle ‘a run for its money’ originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 07 Aug 2009 05:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
E3 2009: Modern Warfare 2
E3 2009: Modern Warfare 2
3D Printing, Now in Stainless Steel
Shapaeways, the 3D printing shop, has added stainless steel to its lineup of materials, meaning you can now design spare parts for machines and have them made up and sent to you in the mail. Here s how it works: Stainless Steel printing is a completely new technology stainless steel powder is deposited in thin layers, [...]

The Daily Roundup: here’s what you might’ve missed

	Apple’s new low: censoring a dictionary In essence, you would have to already know the word in order to be able to look it up in the app — your mind would have had to be already poisoned with the sinful idea.		Leaked back-of-box chart shows Xbox line winnowing down to Arcade and Elite SKUs Hopefully this means the Elite is also going to shuffle on down to the middle SKU’s $300 pricepoint, but we’ll have to wait and see
	Upcoming Xbox 360 Netflix update is still gimped, Microsoft thinks you want it that way It restricts users to perusing the Top 50 films in any of a handful of categories, meaning no searching by title and no browsing alphabetically. Wow.	Other news of import Zune HD dock and remote hands-on Sprint’s new mobile broadband routers pack WiMAX and 3G, MiFi looks on in jealousy Zune HD’s browser previewed, sounds just as sexy as the hardware
	Patent Office rejects some of TiVo’s patent claims, battle vs. DISH to rage on It’ll still be a while before anyone involved (except the lawyers) are cashing any large checks, or get their DVR taken away.		T-Mobile myTouch 3G storming retail stores today for $199.99 on contract You’ll be doing everyone at the store a favor if you’ve already settled on black, merlot or white beforehand.
Onkyo mixes HT-series receivers into lineup, confusion ensues NXG Technologies is first with HDMI 1.4 cables for the 3D HDTV you don’t own yet		Apple phasing out iPhone 3G in favor of 8GB 3GS? RIM patent filing reveals hybrid capacitive / resistive touchscreens

The Daily Roundup: here’s what you might’ve missed originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 Aug 2009 23:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

HTC Hero and Click coming to China under Dopod brand

HTC has been on a global Android-pimping mission with its Hero device, and it looks like Chinese subsidiary Dopod gets the honor of announcing three new handsets for the Middle Kingdom. Unlike others, the Hero retains its WiFi capabilities by playing nice with China’s custom WLAN security protocol and is expected in late August on China Unicom for 5,600 Yuan ($820) along with the few-frills Click for 3,400 Yuan ($500). The carrier has opted to strip Google Maps from the Hero (though it’s still downloadable), and to soften the blow it will likely offer a snazzy red version of the phone. China Mobile will have to settle for an as-yet unspecified TD-SCDMA handset and the already announced Magic, both of which will likely be sporting the OMS flavor of Android. We’re not sure we’d classify the Hero’s price tag as reasonable — but really, can you put a dollar figure on being the first big-name Android release in the world’s largest wireless market?

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

HTC Hero and Click coming to China under Dopod brand originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 03 Aug 2009 13:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
XtremeMac Tango X2 iPod Dock Speakers
XtremeMac Tango X2 iPod Dock Speakers
Personal Supercomputers Promise Teraflops on Your Desk
About a year ago John Stone, a senior research programmer at the University of Illinois, and his colleagues found a way to bypass the long waits for computer time at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications. Stone’s team got “personal supercomputers,” compact machines with a stack of graphics processors that together pack quite a punch and [...]

PS3 manufacturing costs down 70 percent? Strange, it doesn’t feel that way

We understand that Sony has a long way to go in making up the losses it’s incurred by selling the PS3 at a loss — even if it was commanding the highest price in the industry the whole while — but if this latest word on manufacturing costs is correct, we’d say Sony has some room to get the console under that dastardly $400 mark. During an overseas call with investors over Sony’s Q1 financials, Nobuyuki Oneda, Sony’s CFO and Executive VP, apparently stated that manufacturing costs for the PS3 are down 70 percent, which is right “on schedule.” While there’s no official cost published by Sony, those in the know estimate the console originally cost around $800 to produce, and should be down to roughly $240 at this point. Maybe a holiday price cut is in the cards? Boy, we sure hope so. Either that, or he’s already spouting off the PS3 Slim‘s production cost, which is a win for everybody.

[Via Joystiq]

Filed under: Gaming

PS3 manufacturing costs down 70 percent? Strange, it doesn’t feel that way originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 31 Jul 2009 18:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Nextar I4-BC GPS
Nextar I4-BC GPS
Video: Vortex Cannon Smashes Walls With Thin Air
I ll huff, and I ll puff, and I ll blow your house in! So said the rather nasty wolf to the Three Little Pigs, right before eating two of the poor little porkers. These foolish creatures chose to build their houses from sticks and from straw. The idiots. But could a puff of air really topple a [...]
Sightstick for the Blind
This is no mere cane, all ye adventurers, this is a stick to make the blind see! Utilizing GPS technology, the “Visionplus” interacts with the user through audio and tactile means through the stick. Working with RFID Tag technology, the stick bookmarks specific locations and provides the user critical information. …