Well, that sure was quick. Gary Coleman only passed away three days ago, but already there's a tribute app waiting in the Android Market, ready and waiting to provoke little tears in those red-rimmed eyes of yours to spring out. More »

Android - Gary Coleman - Handhelds - Android Market - United States

PC trackpads have tended to lag behind their MacBook counterparts, but the gap's narrowing today. Synaptics—the same folks who introduced the buttonless, clickable PC trackpad last year, are adding four-finger gestures and more goodies with their TouchPad-IS platform. More »

Synaptics - Hardware - multitouch - Touchpad - Windows

According to a report in the Financial Times, Google is making a full-throated move away from Windows PCs for the company's workforce. Apparently the big G is now giving staffers the option of a Mac or Linux rig as an alternative to a Windows computer. The FT article suggests that the move is spurred on by security concerns -- some specifically related to a flurry of attacks against the company which emanated from China, a country Google has recently been at odds with over censorship. Although security could be at issue, some of the employees interviewed for the article seem to suggest the changes -- which mean staffers require CIO approval for a Windows PC -- might actually be geared towards bringing Chrome OS into the Googleplex full-throttle. "A lot of it is an effort to run things on Google product," said one unnamed source, "They want to run things on Chrome." Another employee is quoted as saying that, "Before the security, there was a directive by the company to try to run things on Google products. It was a long time coming." Regardless of the reasoning behind the move, if Google is moving the company to Macs and Linux instead of the world's most popular computing platform, it's certainly notable. We've reached out to both Microsoft and Google for comment, and will update you if and when we have word.

Google said to be moving away from Windows internally, Mac and Linux systems on tap instead originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 May 2010 22:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There's no shortage of Motorola buzz going around lately -- thing is, nearly all of that buzz is focused on the Verizon side of the camp. What about the other six-odd national carriers in the States and Canada, five of which are using GSM? Well, for you guys, we submit this so-called XT502 -- a phone that may be codenamed "Greco" thanks to the naming of the image file found over in the Bluetooth SIG's certification directory. We can't gather much from the microscopic image the SIG is using, but they've kindly listed radio details, which indicates we can expect a triband HSPA setup working on the 850, 1900, and 2100MHz bands -- perfect for AT&T, Bell, Telus, and Rogers with a little dash of Europe thrown in for good measure. It'll also have WiFi, Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR, and AGPS; in other words, all the basics you expect on a modern Android device. No word on a release plan, but at least it'll be coming out with some totally legal Bluetooth, right?

Motorola XT502 another Android phone for North America? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 May 2010 22:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Is there nothing the iPad can't do? Err...don't answer that. YouTube user 'Salary Magician' is the younger, more talented, Japanese version of David Blaine, and made me gasp at my screen in surprise many times during his short video. More »

David Blaine - Magic - Performing Arts - Arts - magician

Second cousin twice-removed, Unpackman is a keyring which also doubles as a bottle opener. I'd like to see what those sharp teeth can do to some blinking blue ghosts. [Unpackman via Likecool via Nerd Approved] More »

Recreation - Collecting - Hardware - Shopping - Organizations

Computex 2010 started off with a bang as ASUS unveiled the two newest products in its Eee product line, the Eee Pad and Eee Tablet. Being two dissimilar devices with different markets in mind, let’s start off with the consumer-friendly Eee Pad which just so happens to come in two flavors. The first and no doubt most appealing will be the EP121. Featuring a 12″ touch screen display, webcam and USB port, the EP121 is powered by a CULV Intel Core 2 Duo processor, runs Windows 7 Home Premium, and said to have a battery that can withstand up to 10 hours of continual use. When it comes to market, EP121 owners will have the option of picking up what is billed as “innovative hybrid keyboard/docking station”. More portable than the EP121 is the EP101TC. Exactly what it brings to the table is unclear for now, but we do know it has a 10″ display, webcam, USB port and comes pre-loaded with Windows Embedded Compact 7. The two Eee Pads are said to range in price from around $399 to $499 and are tentatively due for release in Q1 2011. Moving on we have the Eee Tablet. It’s probably not as fancy of a device as you might have predicted, but it’s definitely a notetaker’s dream thanks to its stylus-dependant 2450 dpi resistive touchscreen display (which obviously makes no sense, but according to ASUS means the screen is really striking and “gives the user the feel of writing on paper”). The Tablet’s 2 megapixel camera is said to be useful for taking pictures of whiteboards and lecture notes, while the OS’s support for tagging allows for quick retrieval of information while super speedy 0.1 second page load times make navigation a dream. Wi-Fi, a USB port, support for microSD cards and a battery life rated at 10 hours round out the rest of the known specs. The Eee Tablet should be available come September in the neighborhood of $199 to $299. You know where to click for the press releases.

Stay Connected and Multitask with the Eee Pad

Engineering excellence meets stunning design in the ASUS Eee Pad, an ultra-slim and light yet high-performance slate device designed to provide users with a real time cloud computing experience. The Eee Pad will be available in two configurations.

The 12″ Eee Pad EP121 is a full-featured slate computer that serves as a multimedia player, e-reader, and compact computing device. Powered by a CULV Intel® Coreâ„¢ 2 Duo processor and the Windows® 7 Home Premium operating system, it effortlessly handles multitasking tasks whether enabling users to check their email and calendars, have video conferences, or process Microsoft Word and Excel documents simultaneously. The ASUS Eee Pad EP121 offers two convenient modes of character input-an embedded virtual keyboard or an innovative hybrid keyboard/docking station design. All of this power is available in a personal computing device that delivers up to 10 hours of usage.

For users seeking additional mobility, ASUS is proud to present the 10” Eee Pad EP101TC that runs Windows Embedded Compact 7, which provides an engaging user experience and delivers instant connectivity to the Windows world. It also provides a familiar full-featured user experience across various connected devices and cloud computing services.

* * *

ASUS Provides Tomorrow’s Technologies Today at Computex 2010

Innovative Eee Pad and Eee Tablet extend ASUS’ leadership in Cloud Computing

Fremont, California (May 31, 2010) – ASUS’ leadership in innovation and design will once again be the focus at Computex 2010 in Taipei, Taiwan. ASUS will proudly showcase a wide range of products across five major categories: cloud computing, gaming, enthusiast-level PC components, multimedia and green computing. As a technological leader in cloud computing, ASUS offers a broad lineup of cloud-connected devices featuring on-the-fly data and multimedia sharing capabilities that consumers crave in today’s market.

The Notepad Goes Digital with the Eee Tablet

Innovation meets cloud computing at Computex 2010 with the ASUS Eee Tablet. With a 2450 dpi touch resolution screen, the Eee Tablet is one of the world’s most accurate and sensitive digital note taking devices, and gives the user the feel of writing on paper. Users can select one of the built-in notepad templates and have the option to store, sort and tag, organize or browse through them. Real time text annotations can also be made on-the-fly. The Eee Tablet makes reading easy, with text file page turns taking just 0.1 seconds-nine times faster than the page turns of normal e-readers. Reading documents or books remains easy on the users’ eyes even after prolonged viewing periods.

The ASUS Eee Tablet features a built-in 2 megapixel camera that captures detailed images, letting the user grab screenshots of lecture slides and write notes on them instantly. It easily syncs up with a PC or notebook via USB or Micro SD to ensure that all notes, content, and calendars are constantly kept up-to-date. With up to 10-hours of battery life, the Eee Tablet has enough power for a variety of tasks. At the end of the day, users not only have an electronic notepad, but a media player and e-reader as well.

There’s not too much to say about this one. Apple fired off a press release a little earlier stating that since the iPad launch on April 3rd, they have sold over 2,000,000 devices. That’s in only 59 days — pretty amazing. The sales figures include both Wi-Fi and 3G models as well as the recent international launch of the “magical” unit. Full press release is after the break!

CUPERTINO, Calif., May 31 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Apple® today announced that iPad™ sales have topped two million in less than 60 days since its launch on April 3. Apple began shipping iPad in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Switzerland and the UK this past weekend. iPad will be available in nine more countries in July and additional countries later this year.

“Customers around the world are experiencing the magic of iPad, and seem to be loving it as much as we do,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We appreciate their patience, and are working hard to build enough iPads for everyone.”

iPad allows users to connect with their apps, content and the Internet in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before. Users can browse the web, read and send email, enjoy and share photos, watch HD videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more, all using iPad’s revolutionary Multi-Touchâ„¢ user interface. iPad is 0.5 inches thin and weighs just 1.5 pounds-thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook-and delivers up to 10 hours of battery life.*

Developers have created over 5,000 exciting new apps for iPad that take advantage of its Multi-Touch user interface, large screen and high-quality graphics. iPad will run almost all of the more than 200,000 apps on the App Store, including apps already purchased for your iPhone® or iPod touch®.

*Battery life depends on device settings, usage and other factors. Actual results vary.

Commodore USA unveiling Eee Keyboard rival? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 May 2010 16:10:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Want to show that electric cars can be practical in day-to-day living? Take one on an impossibly long trip and show the world. That's the plan for the Racing Green Endurance team, centered at Imperial College London, which will be taking its SRZero electric car along 26,000km (16,000 miles) of the Pan-American Highway, starting in northern Alaska and driving all the way down to Tierra del Fuego on the southern tip of South America. Their car is a repurposed Radical SR8, once a back-breakingly quick two-seat prototype with a curb weight of just 1,433lbs and a rollicking 363 V8 in the back. That lump has been displaced by a pair of Axial Flux electric motors, producing a combined peak of 386hp, though their batteries conspire to nearly double the car's initial weight to 2,600lbs. Still, a 248 mile range is predicted on the EPA cycle, and since you can eke out 300 in a Tesla Roadster (224 mile EPA-rated range), 350 might just be possible here. We'll find out in July, when the trip begins. Early video after the break, filmed by Claudio von Planta of Long Way Round fame, and we threw in footage of the SR8 setting the Nurburgring production car record just for kicks.

Continue reading Racing Green Endurance SRZero electric car to make 16,000 mile trip, 250 at a time

Racing Green Endurance SRZero electric car to make 16,000 mile trip, 250 at a time originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 May 2010 14:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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A rusty car squeals to a halt in the 7-Eleven car-park. Out steps a tracksuit-bedecked man, boombox on shoulder. Sauntering over to the rival gang-leader, he presses a button on the boombox. Out filters Ecco The Dolphin's ambient keyboard notes. More »

Games - Video Games - Sega - Console Platforms - Dreamcast

Somewhere, in a market brimming with plastic arc reactors and cologne bottles, there is a gap just waiting to be exploited. Custom-sneakers people Diversitile seized that opportunity and will be selling these Iron Man Nikes very, very soon. More »

Ironman - Business - Diversitile - United States - Shopping

Our second and final HTC Droid Incredible contest saw so many hopefuls send in pics of their horribly dilapidated hardware that we had to take a break to down a stiff drink or two during the evaluation process. But in the end, we regained our composure long enough to pick three winners. So let’s have a round of applause for Jody P., Mark V., and Nick M.! We’re pretty bummed out we couldn’t pick more people because there were so many great entries to choose from, but fear not: Your pals at BGR are already planning the next giveaway.

Hit up the jump to check out the winning entries!

Jody P.

“Participation in this giveaway assumes that one would have a secondary camera to take a photo of one’s own phone. While I have plenty of other cameras, I did not have one handy at the office, so I decided that I could either A) stand in front of the men’s room mirror to take a picture of my phone (with my phone) which might be confusing to any onlookers, or I could B) use my limited artistic abilities to provide a rendering of my scratched, bruised, and otherwise worn-out RIM Blackberry Storm 9530 (no, not the Storm 2 – the original Storm). [Here is] an admittedly embellished rendering of my Blackberry Storm 9530.”

Mark V.

“I dropped my droid by accident one night and the screen just cracked!!! I was too cheap to add the monthly insurance charge and I couldn’t afford the price for a new droid out of contract so I’m stuck with this!!! I need a new droid incredible because I’m cutting my fingers and face on the glass when I use this thing!! Please help!!”

Nick M.

“I recently got so frustrated by my Treo that I put a screwdriver through it. At first I thought the Treo 650 was a great phone because it was my first entry in to the arena of smartphones. It had many great features and I was loyal to it until I started seeing all of the new devices coming out and began to grow jealous of the speed of data connection. The data connection has always felt worse than the days of 14.4k modems. I’m using a backup phone right now that has no data features so that’s even worse. I’ve tried out WebOS devices, Blackberrys and Android Devices and I’m leaning towards Android. This contest came along and I thought I would hold out to see how it goes, maybe my suffering through the days of Treo makes me worthy of such an (excuse the pun, I had to do it) Incredible device.”

Thanks for playing, everyone!

Ah, a Tour owner’s dream. The BlackBerry Bold 9650 started life out as the BlackBerry Tour2. It then went through a late-stage metamorphosis and received a memory upgrade and name change for a couple of different reasons. One of the reasons is to utilize a positive product name RIM has built (the Bold line), and another would be to prevent hundreds of thousands of angry BlackBerry owners from practically taking over the entire city of Waterloo, Canada. You see, the BlackBerry Bold 9650 is what the Tour should have originally been, and by releasing a Tour2 under a year from the original device’s debut would be straight up insulting. RIM killed two birds with one stone by renaming the device to be a Bold, continuing a successful device brand, and also trying to not completely obliterate an existing handset (even though the Tour 9630 will certainly be end-of-life’d very, very quickly). So is the BlackBerry Bold 9650 the best in the biz? You’ll see soon enough, after the jump of course.

We have been playing with the BlackBerry 9650 on and off for a couple months, and now that we have an official unit from RIM and Sprint, we’re able to effectively judge the handset. Instead of doing a traditional review, we figured since the device really hasn’t changed so dramatically from the original BlackBerry Tour, we’d put our likes and dislikes into different sections.

Likes:

• Durable, solid construction and hardware.
• Great keyboard as always.
• Sounds great as a phone, great reception, perfect voice performance with calls.
• Much faster than the original Tour 9630, no real slowdowns or hangups in the OS, and a much speedier overall experience thanks to a newer and faster processor.
• Wi-Fi — obviously.

We love the solid hardware that RIM has been known for. It definitely shows in the BlackBerry Bold 9650 and it’s a real work powerhouse.

Dislikes:

• The raised trackpad, menu, send, BlackBerry, back keys (they are raised up beyond the keyboard and are a little too high).
• The terrible music speaker on the phone. It’s on the left side, and is a single speaker with a single opening in the case compared to 3 openings in the BlackBerry 9700 case. Sound sounds muffled, and the volume is pretty low. Overall, it’s kind of disappointing. Note: the speakerphone sounds great, we’re talking strictly about music/audio playback.
• The camera lens is still recessed so it can collect dust and isn’t cleaned easily. It would have been great for RIM to make the entire cover go over the camera lens so it would be flat and thus easily accessibly/wipeable.
• The phone is large in size and feels pretty outdated compared to sexier, even on carrier alternatives.

At the end of the day, this is what the BlackBerry Tour should have been. RIM’s hardware roadmap seems to be 1-2 years behind other mobile smartphone powerhouse manufacturers (that is being generous), and the BlackBerry Bold 9650 demonstrates this. The device is incredibly solid, but it’s overly large, especially when compared to a sleeker, sexier BlackBerry Bold 9700 sitting next to it. With phones that are pushing CPU speed barriers at 1GHz and beyond, RIM’s using an estimated 500MHz CPU here with 512MB of RAM and no internal storage. And that’s not exploring the truly ancient operating system that powers it.

The handset itself just straight up feels outdated. It’s a logical choice for a CDMA user, but we can’t help but feel like this device really doesn’t belong in a 2010 lineup. This is a great BlackBerry, and if email is your life, great. If not, there’s not too much we can say the BlackBerry 9650 offers over competitors on Sprint or Verizon. HTC’s EVO 4G and the HTC Droid Incredible (yes, they are two Android handsets) are miles ahead of this device, and unfortunately we’re not sure we’d recommend this handset over one of those except in extreme scenarios.

Think it's only Apple faithful who are adding an iPad to their gadget cache? According to Chitika Research, that's not true. The online advertising firm keeps a close eye on which platforms are downloading its ads the most, and it says that Mac computers accounted for 10.3 percent of wasted bandwidth in April. That's up from 7.4 percent in the January - March timeframe (you know, the pre-iPad era), and Chitika Research Director Daniel Ruby says "90% of that increase was due to the iPad halo effect." Meanwhile, NPD analyst Stephen Baker believes that the boost is instead thanks to the new MacBook Pro models that were released at the same time, and Technology Business Research analyst Ezra Gottheil says "early data on the iPad indicated that most buyers were already in the Apple club." Who is right? Survey says... your guess is as good as ours, and any of theirs, apparently.

Feuding analysts argue about whether the iPad is boosting Mac sales originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 May 2010 10:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PosiMotion certainly announced this one well enough in advance (all the way back in December), but it looks like its Helix gaming grip for the iPhone and iPod touch is now finally available, and at Best Buy no less. In case your memory needs to be jogged a bit, this $20 contraption promises to be ideal for "virtually any game," and let you use your iPhone or iPod touch in either portrait or landscape mode -- it'll also keep your headphones from getting tangled up for good measure. Still not convinced? Then perhaps the video after the break will change your mind -- chains not included.

Continue reading PosiMotion Helix iPhone / iPod touch gaming grip now available at Best Buy

PosiMotion Helix iPhone / iPod touch gaming grip now available at Best Buy originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 May 2010 10:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oddly MSI didn't officially talk about its Android-powered WindPad 110 during the press conference, but it definitely exists. The 10-inch slate runs Android 2.1 and is powered by an NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor. It's got a different design to the WindPad 100, but retains the same 10-inch capacitive touchscreen and will have a USB port and video-out capability. While the tablet runs just stock Android, we're definitely digging the curved form factor and the ability to swap out the back cover for a more "stylish" option. We heard very conflicting things about the availability of the tablet -- one product manager told us that the company hasn't decided if it will bring it to market, while another told us that they plan to sell it for $399 by the end of the year. Hopefully we'll clear that up soon, but we've got some hands-on pictures below, and the video is on the way.

MSI WindPad 110: a 10-inch Tegra 2-powered Android tablet originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 May 2010 01:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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