Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Sunday, August 31, 2008

HTC wars: Touch Pro, Touch Diamond and S740 go head to head

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/378794855/

Now that the cat's out of the bag it was no trouble tracking down HTC's S740 this morning, and just for kicks we rammed the phone up against the Touch Pro, which we subsequently rammed against the Touch Diamond and an iPhone for a generally violent display of smartphone force. It is worth noting that while the S740's keys are similar to the Touch Pro's, they're not quite as deep or clicky, which leads to a rather sub-par typing experience by HTC's standards. That glossy mirror finish on the phone screens isn't doing them any favors either -- even when wiped smudge free it seems to impede viewing -- and we must say the Touch Pro's matte finish makes the Diamond and iPhone 3G look cheap in comparison. Oh, and when asked about the Dream, the HTC rep quickly replied "we don't know anything." It was worth a shot, right?

Gallery: HTC wars: Touch Pro, Touch Diamond and S740 go head to head

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Texas Instruments' new LED-based DLP projection shines in person, due Q4

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/378862103/

Filed under: Displays, HDTV, Home Entertainment

Delta Electronics might've jumped the gun a bit with its claim of firsties on Texas Instruments' new "PhlatLight" HD LED DLP projector tech. Delta hasn't brought even a prototype to IFA, but over at Texas Instruments there's a Vivitek version of the lamp-free projector tech, which TI claims will be the first to market sometime in Q4 of 2008. The specs they rattled off are undoubtedly impressive: 50% better color range, 500,000:1 contrast ratio, 30% less power draw, and of course 1080p to put a feather in the cap. In TI's darkened viewing room the image was certainly impressive, but we're guessing specs like these could carry over nicely into our less-than-ideal bedsheet setup back home.

[Via Engadget Spanish]

Gallery: Texas Instruments' new LED-based DLP projection shines in person, due Q4

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MSI's Wind U90 to boast 8.9-inch display

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/378963152/

Filed under: Laptops

Well, that took long enough, now didn't it? We've been hearing about an 8.9-inch MSI Wind for months now, but it has just now popped up on the outfit's website. The Wind U90 will pack an Atom N270 processor, built-in 1.3-megapixel webcam, stereo speakers, microphone, 802.11b/g WiFi, Bluetooth, 512MB or 1GB of DDR2 RAM, a 1,024 x 600 resolution panel, 80GB hard drive and a 4-in-1 card reader. Additionally, you'll find an Ethernet port, three USB 2.0 sockets, VGA out, a 3-cell battery (optional 6-cell available upon request) and a weight of 2.2-pounds. Your guess is as good as ours when it pricing / availability, but hey, we're just thrilled to know this thing is destined to be more than a trade show crasher.

[Thanks, Peter]

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HTC's Android-driven Dream revealed in glorious spy photos

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/379018408/

Filed under: Cellphones

Sure, we've seen some blurry videos and managed a few stolen glimpses when Andy Rubin demonstrated this beast, but now we've gotten our hands on a slew of pictures showing off a very real T-Mobile-branded Dream in all its Android-running glory. Not only does this confirm the design spied in those FCC docs as well as show off that nearly-done version of Android, but it seems to confirm the fact that this will be headed to T-Mobile, and sooner rather than later judging from the looks of the above device. Needless to say, our inner-geeks are completely geeking out right now. Hit the gallery below for a handful of other views of the phone. [Warning: read link is a forum, requires registration, and is in Chinese]

[Thanks, Michael]

Gallery: HTC's Android-driven Dream revealed in glorious spy photos

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Demand for HP's Mini-Note growing fast?

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/379177282/

Filed under: Laptops

HP has always been confident that the 2133 Mini-Note would sell quickly, to the point where the company planned to build some two million units this year, and it sounds like that bet's paying off -- China's Apply Daily is citing sources at HP Taiwan quoting worldwide sales growing 50 percent monthly. That's pretty good for one of the more expensive small laptops on the market -- we'll see if that rumored cheaper edition moves even more.

[Via Brighthand]

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Saturday, August 30, 2008

BlackBerry Bold Hitting Sept. 12 for $299, Say AT&T Employees [Blackberry Bold]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/377557849/blackberry-bold-hitting-sept-12-for-299-say-att-employees

You read the review, you're stoked that you suit-and-tie guys have a sweet new phone to wave at Apple fanboys. Well, now you got a date: September 12. And a price: $299. At least, so say the dudes down at the AT&T store who were a little overexcited when they saw our review model from Wireless Imports. The leak's in line with expectations, so we're gonna say it's 95% solid. [BlackBerry Bold on Giz]

Volkswagen Caddy Van Features a Wooden Boat Deck For Sunbathing [Cars]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/377590989/volkswagen-caddy-van-features-a-wooden-boat-deck-for-sunbathing

The designers at Volkswagen brought out the big guns for an upcoming recreational vehicle show in Düsseldorf, Germany by crossing one of their small commercial Caddy vans with a sailboat. While the Caddy Topos Sail design is not capable of traveling on water, it does feature a sailboat style deck on the roof that can be modified for relaxation and sunbathing. It even features a wooden ladder built into the glass to grant easy access to the roof. I suppose that it is clever in a stupid sort of way, but no matter how you feel about the quirky design, it is only a concept.

[Jalopnik]

(Presumably) Very Cheap Tablet PCs by NEC [Laptops]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/377581422/presumably-very-cheap-tablet-pcs-by-nec

See this tablet? It's new from NEC and features the same monotonous specs (1.6GHz Atom, 512MB-1GB RAM and 80GB HD) that we see in those cheapie mini-notebooks like the Asus Eee. Running XP or Vista and loaded with a 12 or 15-inch touchscreen, it's by no means beautiful, but this NEC could be the forebear of a new netbook-tablet market. We don't have pricing or release details at this time, but we'll keep a lookout, just for you. [Akihabara News]

Graff Luna: The Samurai Sword of Faucets [Sinks]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/377615608/graff-luna-the-samurai-sword-of-faucets

We are in the midst of a sink design Renaissance folks—crazy new designs seem to pop up all the time. The latest comes to us via Graff in a form that bears more than a passing resemblance to a samurai sword. Plus, the faucet itself is 3 feet tall, so I wouldn't be surprised if visitors to your bathroom linger a bit admiring this masterpiece of plumbing. You even have the option of wall mounting the handles depending on which style you prefer. [Graff via HDF]

Jesus Tries to Save Your Soul But Windows Stops Him [Windows]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/377622675/jesus-tries-to-save-your-soul-but-windows-stops-him

And I heard, as it were, the noise of thunder: One of the four beasts saying: "Come and see." And I saw. And behold, there was the other Jesus, the Bible character, calling me from a big screen saying "Jesus is the Reason for The—V-Sign this program-and will be shu-whaaa?" Clearly, Jesus is good with all this saving Humanity and making water into wine tricks, but I'm afraid he's no match for Windows errors. [Fail]