RIM slapped with $147.2 million in damages from Mformation patent lawsuit (update: RIM response)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/13/rim-slapped-with-147-million-in-damages-from-mformation-lawsuit/

RIM just keeps taking hard knocks in the patent arena. Just days after Nokia had its turn piling on extra infringement claims, device management developer Mformation Technologies has won a hefty $147.2 million verdict against RIM for allegedly violating a remote management patent. The damages amount to $8 for every BlackBerry linked up to a BlackBerry Enterprise Server up to a certain point -- no small impact for a company whose lifeblood is business. About the only reprieve is an escape from future penalties, which would most certainly have soured the recovery efforts for a company already on the ropes. The crew from Waterloo hasn't yet responded to the verdict, but it's hard to picture the company leaving those kinds of damages to sit without an appeal.

Update: RIM has issued a statement in response to the verdict, and it's unsurprisingly putting forward motions that it hopes would overturn the verdict. It's also keen to point out that issues like the obviousness of the patent haven't been settled, which it hopes would deflate Mformation's case.

Filed under: Cellphones

RIM slapped with $147.2 million in damages from Mformation patent lawsuit (update: RIM response) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Jul 2012 21:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Utah researchers create 'Spintronic' LED, claim it's 'brighter, cheaper' and eco-friendly

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/14/utah-researchers-create-spintronic-led-oled-display/

Spintronics? Not exactly a new term 'round these parts, but University of Utah physicists are applying it in a unique way that may eventually make TVs look even sharper than they do today. The entity is trumpeting a new "spintronic" organic light-emitting diode (that's OLED, for short) that's said to be "cheaper and more environmentally friendly than the kinds of LEDs now used in television and computer displays, lighting, traffic lights and numerous electronic devices." Z. Valy Vardeny is even going so far as to call it a "completely different technology," and better still, a prototype has already been made. The professor expects that the newfangled tech -- which produces an orange glow today -- will be able to product red, blue and white spin OLEDs within a few years. It's a lot to wade through, but here's our question: will these things make the Galaxy S XI impeccably visible in outdoor sunlight? (Please say "yes.")

Filed under: Displays, Science

Utah researchers create 'Spintronic' LED, claim it's 'brighter, cheaper' and eco-friendly originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 14 Jul 2012 18:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Who Wants a Quad-Core Computer for $130? [Guts]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5925898/who-wants-a-quad+core-computer-for-130

When Raspberry Pi released their diminutive, ARM-based PC for $35, people were rightfully chomping at the bit to get their hands on something so cheap and small and hackable. But the 700 MHz, single-core ARM 11 processor it wasn't exactly a powerhouse. Enter Hardkernel's ODROID-X, which packs a quad-core Samsung Exynos chipset on a 3.5 inch motherboard.

With each Cortex-A9 core clocked at 1.4 GHz, the ODROID-X also has 1 gigabyte of RAM, a Mali 400 GPU, six USB ports, ethernet, audio in/out, Micro HDMI and an SDHC reader. Plus it's capable of running Android or Ubuntu, giving you computing flexibility. Sure, it's no Ivy Bridge, but the Exynos processor is pretty amazing for its size. And for $130, this little chipset could become the heart of your next DIY project. [Hardkernel via Ars Technica]

Lenovo IdeaPad U310 review: a reasonably priced Ultrabook for the masses

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/13/lenovo-ideapad-u310-review/

More Info

• Lenovo IdeaPad U300s review
• Lenovo's IdeaPad U310 and U410 Ultrabooks start at an inexpensive $699, weigh a little more than the competition
• Lenovo U310 and U410 Ultrabooks now available worldwide starting at $749

For a while there, the march of Ultrabooks was comprised almost entirely of halo products: skinny, relatively expensive things designed to help Intel and its OEM partners make a good impression on the general laptop-buying public. But with 110-plus models in the pipeline, they can't all be expensive, right? By now, you may have noticed that Ultrabooks are starting to look a little less uniform: there have been larger ones, heavier ones, some with optical drives, some with discrete graphics.

Next up: cheaper ones. Just in time for back-to-school shopping season, we're seeing a wave of more reasonably priced Ultrabooks, many of them with traditional spinning hard drives and slightly heavier frames. One of these is the Lenovo IdeaPad U310, a machine that brings Core i5, 4GB of RAM and hybrid storage for $799. Oh, and its design is pleasantly reminiscent of the IdeaPad U300s, a higher-end Ultrabook we reviewed late last year. No doubt, t! hen, it' ll be a tempting option for people who can't afford to spend $1,000-plus on a laptop. But is it worth it? Let's find out.

Gallery: Lenovo IdeaPad U310 review

Continue reading Lenovo IdeaPad U310 review: a reasonably priced Ultrabook for the masses

Filed under: Laptops

Lenovo IdeaPad U310 review: a reasonably priced Ultrabook for the masses originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Jul 2012 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CasaTunes Air bridges traditional whole-home audio with AirPlay

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/13/casatunes-air-bridges-traditional-whole-home-audio-with-airplay/

So you've made it big time, you've got it all. The car, the toys and a big house with a whole-home audio system. The thing is, as great as your CasaTunes Music Server is with its in-wall and in-ceiling speakers, the ability to integrate with the latest and greatest AirPlay devices is still missing. Well it was anyways, as the new CasaTunes Air you can stream any content from your CasaTunes Music Server to all your speakers, AirPlay or any other. Even better, the music can be on your iOS device or stored on your server -- but you can still control the whole thing from your phone or tablet. CasaTunes Air is a feature of the new CasaTunes version 4, which we can only assume is a free upgrades for existing CasaTunes Music Servers.

Continue reading CasaTunes Air bridges traditional whole-home audio with AirPlay

Filed under: Home Entertainment

CasaTunes Air bridges traditional whole-home audio with AirPlay originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Jul 2012 13:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HP Envy Sleekbook 6z review: an inexpensive thin-and-light with AMD innards

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/13/hp-envy-sleekbook-6z-review/

More Info

• HP unveils Envy Spectre XT Ultrabook, other thin-and-lights in various sizes
• HP takes EliteBook W-series on a trip to Ivy Bridge, throws in Z220 Xeon for good measure
• HP refreshes EliteBook line with five new models, Ivy Bridge and optional LTE

HP has been fleshing out its Ultrabook lineup as of late, most recently adding the metal-clad Envy Spectre XT to the mix, but the company is also addressing the lower end of the market with its Sleekbook line, announced back in May. Confusingly, these thin-and-light systems look exactly the same as the new Envy-branded Ultrabooks, except that the Sleekbooks are less expensive -- namely because for one reason or another they don't meet Intel's Ultrabook guidelines. One such notebook, the Envy Sleekbook 6z, stands apart from the Ultrabook fold with an AMD Trinity APU -- a spec that helps keep the starting price nice and low at $600.

That's not to say that all of HP's Sleekbooks ditch Intel processors, but given the choice between and AMD- and Intel-based model we quickly chose the former. After all, the 6z is the first Trinity-powered system we've had the chance to test, so we were naturally curious to see how it stacks up against recent Ivy Bridge machines -- and we imagine you are, too. So without any! further ado, let's get to it.

Gallery: HP Envy Sleekbook 6z review

Continue reading HP Envy Sleekbook 6z review: an inexpensive thin-and-light with AMD innards

HP Envy Sleekbook 6z review: an inexpensive thin-and-light with AMD innards originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Jul 2012 16:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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'Smart Headlights' Will Make Raindrops And Snowflakes Disappear

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/smart-headlights-make-raindrops-vanish-2012-7

Your car's old headlights may be getting a makeover. A new "smart headlight" invented by the brainiacs at Carnegie Mellon University's Robotics Institute purportedly has the ability to make even the thickest rainstorm or snowfall look like a light drizzle, drastically improving visibility. Here's what you should know about this innovative new technology:

How does it work?

When you're driving a car equipped with conventional headlights through the rain, their steady beams hit water droplets and reflect light back at you, making it harder to see. But this new headlight mounts an intelligent camera over a complicated array of tiny lights. The high-speed camera uses an algorithm to predict the path of individual rain drops (kind of like anticipating where blocks will fall in Tetris), and when a raindrop's path intersects with the precise beam of one of the individual mini-lights, the system briefly flicks that beam off. Result: A major reduction in glare. "A human eye will not be able to see that flicker of the headlights," says Srinivasa Narasimhan, associate professor of robotics. "And because the precipitation particles aren't being illuminated, the driver won't see the rain or snow either."

But what happens if the system fails? 

It "will not fail in a catastrophic way," says Narasimhan. Even if a smart headlight stops working for some reason, it just becomes a normal headlight.

How effective is it?

During lab tests at low speeds, the smart headlight was able to eliminate the appearance of 70 to 80 percent of visible rain during a heavy storm while losing only 5 or 6 percent of light from the headlamp.

When can I buy these headlights?

Not for a while. The project is still in its infancy, and the system will need to react faster to work at highway speeds, especially during snow or hail. But the team is "confident this is perfectly possible," says Kate Taylor at TG Daily, so stay tuned.

Sources: Daily Mail, R&D Magazine, TG Daily

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Web TV Service Aereo Plans To Be in Every Major US City By 2013 [Video]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5925709/aereo-plans-to-be-in-every-major-us-city-by-2013

Aereo, the website which acts as an internet-based DVR for any channel you can get for free over the airwaves, drew legal attention as soon as it was announced earlier this year. Yesterday, though, Aereo won a court case trying to block the service in New York—and now it plans to roll out to every major US city.

Speaking to Bloomberg, 70-year-old billionaire and backer of Aereo Barry Diller spoke out to say he was confident of the service's future. He explained:

"We're going to really start marketing. Within a year and a half, certainly by '13, we'll be in most major [US cities]."

The court case against Aereo sought to obtain an injunction against the service while television networks pursued litigation. Sadly for the big names, a US district judge allowed Aereo to continue operating.

The ruling points generally in favor of the service—and analysts suggest it could be the start of some major upheaval for the economics of broadcast television. Certainly, from our experiences, we're tempted to agree:

It was sued by major broadcasters even before it was available, and with good reason: We took the service for a spin and it's good enough to make that cable contract feel even more useless.

For $12 per month, Aereo will serve as your web-based DVR for any channel you can get for free over the airwaves. There's no need for a special box or a cable contract-everything is controlled over Aereo's easy web interface.

The future of online TV, then, still looks strong—for now at least. [Bloomberg]

BBC releases Olympics app, streams the glorious Games straight to your iOS or Android device

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/13/bbc-olympics-app/

The 2012 London Olympics Games are nearly upon us and the BBC just can't hold back its excitement any longer. The Queen's favorite broadcaster has released its Olympics app for both iOS (5.0 and above) and Android (2.2 and newer) devices, apps that for the most part look like wrappers for the company's mobile Olympics pages. But, that's not to say they don't offer some excellent features, like guides to every competition, the ability to save stories to read offline later and, most importantly, up to 24 simultaneous live streams of video -- once the Games actually get started in two weeks.

Update: We got a note from the Beeb indicating that there's an international version as well -- because those two dozen streams mentioned above certainly won't work when you're outside of the United Kingdom.

Continue reading BBC releases Olympics app, streams the glorious Games straight to your iOS or Android device

Filed under: Software

BBC releases Olympics app, streams the glorious Games straight to your iOS or Android device originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Jul 2012 06:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 and 670 round-up: which overclocked card is the one for you?

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/13/nvidia-geforce-gtx-680-and-670-round-up/

Happy first-quarter birthday, Kepler. Your reference design is old enough for companies like EVGA, MSI, ASUS, Zotac to push your various clock speeds to the limit, while using custom coolers to avoid meltdown. Arguably the time to upgrade is now and that's why Hot Hardware has done a full-on round-up review, comparing some of the best GTX 680 and GTX 670 packages against each other and against the Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition. If you prefer your morning news fresh and unspoilered, jump straight to the source link below. Or, if you just want the gist of it, click Read More.

Continue reading NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 and 670 round-up: which overclocked card is the one for you?

Filed under: Desktops, Gaming

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 680 and 670 round-up: which overclocked card is the one for you? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 13 Jul 2012 07:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Amazon Game Connect links free-to-play, MMO games to store accounts, turns 1-Click into way too many

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/12/amazon-game-connect-links-free-to-play-and-mmo-games-to-shopping/

Amazon must have a lot of free time for gaming during its summer vacation: just a day after unveiling GameCircle as a cloud infrastructure, it's trotting out Game Connect to make buying game content that much easier. Once it's integrated into a title, the new platform will let customers buy content in free-to-play games, or subscribe to massively multiplayer online games, directly from their Amazon accounts -- no copy-and-paste juggling involved, even if the game account has to be made on the spot. A handful of game developers have already lined up, including Super Monday Night Combat creator Uber Entertainment and World of Tanks' Wargaming.net. If you're engrossed in gaming enough that you'll need 1-Click to buy virtual goods and MMO renewals that much faster, Amazon has you covered... although you may also want to slow down and relax.

Filed under: Gaming, Internet

Amazon Game Connect links free-to-play, MMO games to store accounts, turns 1-Click into way too many originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Jul 2012 10:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NBC's 2012 London Olympics second screen and streaming apps for Android and iOS launch today

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/12/nbc-2012-london-olympics-second-screen-streaming-apps/

NBC mentioned it would deliver two complementary mobile apps for its extensive London Olympics coverage and now they have arrived. Available for Android phones and tablets as well as the iPhone and iPad, they're built on Adobe technology to deliver the information and live streaming video, as well as handle the TV Everywhere authentication with the cable providers that's necessary to view all of the content. The NBC Olympics Live Companion is specifically designed to operate as a second screen for users to pull up stats and extra info on while they watch TV, and the NBC Olympics Live Extra app delivers video of every event streaming live to users wherever they are. It supports multiple camera angles, social features like the Facebook tie-ins NBC announced yesterday and users can even switch between the two apps at will.

Check after the break for a quick video preview of some of the technology at work, and if you're planning to tune into the games, hit NBC's Olympics site now to sign in and authenticate so once the Opening Ceremony kicks off, all you'll have to do is press play.

Gallery: NBC Olympics Apps

Continue reading NBC's 2012 London Olympics second screen and streaming apps for Android and iOS launch today

Filed under: Home Entertainment

NBC's 2012 London Olympics second screen and streaming apps for Android and iOS launch today originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Jul 2012 12:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Now Jennifer Lopez Has An Ecommerce Startup

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/jennifer-lopez-to-launch-teeology-2012-7

Brian Lee, the entrepreneur noted for bringing celebs into the ecommerce world, may have landed his biggest celeb yet with the announcement of Jennifer Lopez’s new site Teeology.

According to Tech Crunch, the site is rumored to be launching today, and it supposedly will be offering a basic t-shirt line starting at $20, while also bringing in limited edition styles starting at $29.

Teelogogy will also have Erica Zohar of American Groove, a fashion marketing company, and Jeff Marine of JEM Sportswear on the team.

Previously, Lee has worked with Robert Shapiro on LegalZoom,  Kim Kardashian on ShoeDazzle, and Jessica Alba on The Honest Company.

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These Rugged Headphones Should Brighten Up Your Workout [Headphones]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5925369/these-rugged-headphones-should-brighten-up-your-workout

We died a little on the inside when Klipsch launched a set of purple, Lou Reed-endorsed headphones last year. Now, the company is continuing its colorful theme, but fortunately this time it's ditched celebrity endorsement and gone rugged instead.

Essentially a toughened-up version of the excellent Klipsch S4i earbuds, these little fellas come in red, yellow, orange and blue, and are, happily, water-resistant. They pack the same 8.5mm dual magnet drivers as their non-rugged cousins and come with an Apple-compatible inline remote/mic to boot. What's more, they look really quite nice. Well, if you like primary colors.

They're due to hit the shelves next month for $99. If that's a little too rich for your tastes, though, then why not check out our sports headphones Battlemodo—because you might be shocked by the price of the winners. [Klipsch]

Japanese company releasing do-it-yourself Pius electric vehicle, name sounds vaguely familiar

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/12/japanese-company-releasing-do-it-yourself-pius-electric-vehicle/

That homemade bug-zapping lightsaber not quite floating your boat? Then how about building your own electric vehicle? That's the opportunity that MODI Corporation in Japan hopes to sell when its "Pius" kit car -- not to be confused with the Toyota Prius -- becomes available next spring. Specs from the official site for the "micro compact car" reveal a vehicle that's 885mm tall, 1,230mm wide and 2,500mm long. Range on a full charge is 25 kilometers or a little over 15 miles. Top speed is 35km/h, which sadly disqualifies it from the list of vehicles Doc Brown can use for time travel. The company expects to sell the one-seater to colleges and mechanic schools for use as a learning tool on how EVs work. MODI Corporation hasn't provided pricing for the vehicle but announced that it will be available in six colors, including white, red and blue. Yes, it isn't quite up to snuff with Drayson Racing's 850-horsepower B12/69EV. Then again, we don't think they have do-it-yourself kits for that one.

Filed under: Transportation

Japanese company releasing do-it-yourself Pius electric vehicle, name sounds vaguely familiar originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Jul 2012 09:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toshiba unites PC, tablet and TV design groups, aims for hub of digital harmony

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/12/toshiba-unites-pc-tablet-and-tv-design-groups/

Toshiba is one of the few Japanese tech giants to be riding high from a cash standpoint, but the company is still looking for ways to trim the fat -- not to mention get some fresh design in the process. The firm is merging the design team for its Regza TVs into the same western Tokyo facility that houses its PC and tablet groups. While there's a certain amount of cost-cutting involved, the shift will help "fusion products," Toshiba says, where TV influences PCs and tablets (or vice versa) like so much chocolate getting into peanut butter. The only amount of discord left might be in Toshiba's TV production, where quality and production controls are being outsourced and more of the production itself is leaving Japan. As much as we'd argue that the Excite 13 is almost too much like a TV to begin with, we'll only find out whether or not there's merit to Toshiba's design nirvana after the groups get cozy with each other later this year.

Continue reading Toshiba unites PC, tablet and TV design groups, aims for hub of digital harmony

Filed under: Desktops, Home Entertainment, Laptops, Tablet PCs

Toshiba unites PC, tablet and TV design groups, aims for hub of digital harmony originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Jul 2012 09:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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AT&T scores red Galaxy S III, pre-orders start July 15th

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/12/atandt-scores-red-galaxy-s-iii-pre-orders-start-july-15th/

Not a fan of the white or "Pebble Blue" shells the Galaxy S III is packed in, looking for something a little more sultry perhaps? Well, if you're an AT&T customer, you've got a new choice in fingerprint-highlighting plastic -- Garnet Red. The shade of maroon we were promised is exclusive to Ma Bell, and you can pre-order it starting July 15th at the usual price point ($199). If you want to get a glimpse of it in person first, you'll have to wait till July 29th when it officially hits shelves.

AT&T scores red Galaxy S III, pre-orders start July 15th originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 12 Jul 2012 10:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Insane Zoom Powers of the Legendary $75,000 Zoom-Nikkor 1200-1700mm Lens [Past Perfect]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5925223/the-insane-zoom-powers-of-the-legendary-75000-zoom+nikkor-1200+1700mm-lens

Look at the insane zoom that $75,000 worth of glass got you in the 1990. It's the work of the Zoom-Nikkor 1200-1700mm f/5.6-8P IF-ED lens, 18 elements assembled in a body that looked like a shoulder-mounted missile launcher.

This thing was almost 35 inches long (888mm) and had a 9.33-inch (237mm) maximum diameter. Its weight: 35.2 pounds (16 kilograms)!

When it was first used in 1990—at the Koshien Stadium—the Zoom-Nikkor 1200-1700mm had "the longest focal length of any zoom lens for 35mm-format cameras."

In the photo above you can see the same scene taken with 50mm (top left) and the 1200-1700mm lens, all placed 130 meters away from those two women.

Here's the story of its genesis, according to Nikon:

At Koshien Stadium the photographers' seats are situated next to the center-field back screen so as to enable news photographers to shoot the home plate, which is over 130 meters away. From this position it requires a focal length of 1200mm to capture the pitcher, the catcher, and the batter in frame, and a focal length of 1700mm to shoot a full-frame vertical photograph of the batter. In short, the 1200-1700mm was developed for shooting pictures from the photographers' seats at Koshien Stadium.

In 1980s, a rival company was making a 1200mm f/5.6 super telephoto lens. The newspapers were beginning to switch over to cameras made by this company in order to use the lens in their coverage of baseball at Koshien Stadium.

In May 1989, Nikon rushed to begin development of its own super telephoto lens for Koshien Stadium. The company resolved to complete the prototype by March 1990, in response to the fervent wishes of the newspapers.

Nikon says that this lens "restored the reputation of the Nikon brand in terms of news photography." What is even more interesting, however, is their claim that Digital SLRs killed these lenses because now "the images can be easily cropped and image quality is high, even with a high ISO setting." [Nikon via Photography Bay]

Chrome OS version 20 hits stable release channel, brings Google Drive and Aura UI for Cr-48s along

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/11/chrome-os-version-20-drive-docs-aura/

If you're a Chrome OS user who doesn't live on the bleeding edge, it's finally time to experience the latest version 20, which most notably adds support for its Drive cloud storage. Also mentioned as included in the upgrade is offline support of Google Docs, Pepper Flash upgrade, access to the new Aura UI on Cr-48 systems and other tweaks. Tighter integration with Drive and Docs may address a few of the issues noted in our review of v19, Chromebook and Chromebox owners can check it out as it arrives on their machines over the next several days and let us know if that's the case.

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

Chrome OS version 20 hits stable release channel, brings Google Drive and Aura UI for Cr-48s along originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 11 Jul 2012 21:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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