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Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Forget Kids, $100 Tablet Targets Amazon Kindle & Sony Book Reader

Source: http://www.labnol.org/gadgets/computers/oplc-xoxo-tablet-alternative-to-kindle-sony-book-reader/3362/

laptop-book-reader

You thought the $100 "Open Laptop Per Child" program was meant for providing low-cost computers to kids in developing nations but these images of XO version 2.0 may change that perception.

This fully-functional ~~laptop~~ tablet computer is the size of a book, sports a dual touch sensitive screen (no keyboard) and can also be folded like a book. The prototype uses the same 16:9 screen that are seen in DVD players.

The only problem - this desirable XOXO tablet computer won’t ship before 2010 and that’s a very long period.

For more on the XOXO laptop, check out PC World, Laptopmag and IHT.

xoxo-tablet

Forget Kids, $100 Tablet Targets Amazon Kindle & Sony Book Reader - Digital Inspiration | FAQ | RSS

Mile-High London Eco Tower by PopularArchitecture

Source: http://cubeme.com/blog/2008/05/13/mile-high-london-eco-tower-by-populararchitecture/

London's skyline would have a new addition in the form of the mile-high 'eco-friendly' tower, to be located in East London. The project is proposed by British firm Popularchitecture, in collaboration with Fluid Engineers and Pha Consul M&E specialists.

(more…)

Nokia "definitely" preparing Linux-based phones, flavor unknown

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/294512251/

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

With Nokia's dedication to Maemo and the recent Trolltech acquisition, it's no secret that Espoo has its eyes firmly locked on the Linux prize -- but outside the whole Internet Tablet phenomenon, there hasn't been a lot of product to show for it. Looks like that's all about to change, with CFO Rick Simonson commenting this week that the company will "definitely" be releasing some Linux-based cellphones in the future, marking a pretty big move for a company with strong tradition in its long-lived Series 40 dumbphone and S60 smartphone platforms. Simonson refused to get into the nitty gritty details about what flavor of mobile Linux would be used; borrowing from its tablets might make sense, but the Android and LiMo juggernauts seem like they're going to be pretty hard to ignore as well -- not to mention that Google is said to have chatted briefly about Android with Nokia in the not-too-distant past. So what does this all mean? Is S60 Touch in danger here?

[Via Thumb Report]

Update: A closer look-see at Reuters' report (ignoring the misleading headline) indicates that Nokia has not specifically committed to rolling out Linux on phones -- rather, it has simply said that it intends to expand its use of Linux across its product portfolio. We figure that handsets are bound to get swept into the mix at some point, but technically, we could just be looking at other kinds of devices. Always room for another Internet Tablet or three, we suppose. Thanks, Eric!

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Phlashing PDOS firmware attack could permanently disable hardware

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/294598511/

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Networking

You know all that network hardware that runs quietly 24 hours a day in server rooms around the world? What if black-hats could exploit remote firmware flashing utilities to take over -- or completely destroy -- vulnerable gear? Though still theoretical, PDOS -- permanent denial-of-service -- attacks will be demonstrated by researchers from HP Security Labs at the EUSecWest security conference in London this week. "Phlashing", as it's being referred to, focuses on exploiting network-enabled firmware updates, making use of a fuzzing tool that tricks hardware into flashing anything from back-door access to a corrupt image, causing complete and permanent hardware failure. There's no reason to panic just yet (especially not when it comes to consumer devices, which typically don't support remote firmware updates), but given the amount of unattended and relatively dormant enterprise network hardware out there, this could be something for admins to seriously think about.

[Via Slashdot]

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N-trig shows off pen input-capable DuoSense multi-touch display

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/294522162/

Filed under: Displays

It seems like there isn't a week that goes by these days that we don't see another multi-touch display (homebrew or otherwise), and you can now add one more contender to the growing ranks, with N-trig set to debut its new DuoSense system at the SID International Symposium in Los Angeles this week. This one adds pen input capabilities to the usual array of multi-touch features, as well as the somewhat unique ability for multiple people to use the display simultaneously, which N-trig says makes the system ideal for gaming applications. N-trig also boasts that the technology works on "large format displays," but that apparently maxes out at a not-exceptionally-large 22-inches at the moment. Head on past the break for a video of the rig in action.

Continue reading N-trig shows off pen input-capable DuoSense multi-touch display

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