Nokia's N97 gets sized up, felt up, and photographed

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/15/nokias-n97-gets-sized-up-felt-up-and-photographed/

You know what they say -- another day, another hands-on look at the N97. Although the folks at Mobile Review insist that this is not a formal review, they have been kind enough to post their extensive thoughts on the phone -- as well as more UI and comparison shots than you can shake a stick at. Overall, they seem to really dig the handset's design: sure, it's big (a shade larger than the iPhone), but it's well-proportioned, and doesn't seem bulky. And even though it's a slider, it doesn't have that "wobbly" feeling that sliders tend to have. Other features of note include a secondary camera that can serve as webcam and the 3.5-inch, 640 x 360-pixel screen, boasting 16 million colors, which they call "a true marvel." But that's not all! Hit the read link for thoughts on the new, improved music player, all those widgets that you crave, and comparison shots with the HTC Touch Pro, Sony Ericsson XPERIA X1, Nokia 5800 XpressMusic, and the Apple iPhone. Video after the break.

[Thanks, Imran]

Continue reading Nokia's N97 gets sized up, felt up, and photographed

Filed under: Cellphones

Nokia's N97 gets sized up, felt up, and photographed originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Dec 2008 10:05:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read More...

Summary only...

Samsung announces new 65nm ARM9 processor -- for digital photo frames

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/15/samsung-announces-new-65nm-arm9-processor-for-digital-photo-f/

Think digital photo frames are just an annoying passing fad? Samsung begs to differ, taking this market segment so seriously that it has developed a custom processor exclusively for use in the things: the 65nm S5L2010. It's capable of rendering a 57 megapixel JPEG in one second flat -- useful for the RED DSMC crowd but perhaps a bit overkill for the rest of us. However, everyone should be able to appreciate integrated decoding of most audio and video formats, support for nearly every shape of memory card under the sun, and out of the box handling for LED backlit LCDs, all integrated into the processor to save production costs. To all the digi-frame moguls out there: if you're looking to get started on the next generation, this is your ticket, leaving Q1 of 2009.

[Via Engadget Spanish]

Filed under: Digital Cameras, Displays

Samsung announces new 65nm ARM9 processor -- for digital photo frames originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Dec 2008 10:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read More...

Summary only...

Intel Survey: Internet Almost as Important as Sex [Sex]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/YNf0U_U2G9M/intel-survey-internet-almost-as-important-as-sex

Intel released survey results that attempt to measure the place of Internet access in both men's and women's lists of priorities, and found that it's more important than any other nonessential purchase.

This is one of those reasonably meaningless polls that ends up saying what we already knew: people like their Internet access. In this survey of 2,119 adults polled by Harris Interactive, Internet access polled higher than any other source of discretionary spending (things like eating out, shopping, and television subscriptions).

But the real buzz around the survey comes from these numbers: 46% of women and 30% of men would rather give up sex for two weeks than give up Internet access over the same period. Frankly, that's lower than I'd expect: I'm not sure what kind of Casanovas they polled, but I go without sex for two weeks sometimes totally by accident. On the other hand, every time I've gone two weeks without the Internet, it was as some kind of forced vacation and I really felt the pain.

Intel also said that 65% of those polled "cannot live without Internet access," which is kind of an extreme reaction. Does that mean that they'd kill themselves rather than live without it? Or just wish they'd never been born?

What do you guys think? Two weeks without sex, or two weeks without your precious Internet? [New York Times]

Read More...

Summary only...

Gym Car Concept Sounds Both Healthy and Extremely Dangerous [Concepts]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/EMgOXB-Z0uo/gym-car-concept-sounds-both-healthy-and-extremely-dangerous

Designer Da Feng created the Gym Car mockup that includes a near-complete home gym as well as a Batmobile-esque carbon fiber exterior. No word on the safety of doing bench-presses while driving.

The car's interior features a step machine, rowing machine, bench press, pull-up simulator and weights, and the energy outputted during a workout would go to powering its batteries. The exterior design of the car is supposedly inspired by World War II fighter planes, which sounds a lot more professional than "inspired by Batman."

Given the many laws prohibiting something as easy as talking on a phone while driving, we've got to believe the transit authority would frown upon any combination of exercise and driving, but I could see the benefit of a little stationary bike or something to help pass the time during a long commute. [Jalopnik, Wired]

Read More...

Summary only...

Self-Healing Paint Is Full of Magical Tiny Caulk Crystals [The Future Is Here]

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/omL9_nNU6xY/self+healing-paint-is-full-of-magical-tiny-caulk-crystals

Autonomic Materials plans to bring self-healing paint to market in less than four months. The paint is designed to protect cars, bridges, and boats from corrosion, but don't get too excited just yet:

The paint is unfortunately too rough to be used to stop those darn kids from keying your car because you won't give them their frisbee back. It contains tons of tiny microcapsules of two types: one with polymer building blocks and the other with a catalyst. The capsules themselves are made of polyurethane to keep the chemicals isolated, and can be used in all kinds of paints, but each microcapsule is about 10 to 100 micrometers in diameter, which leaves the paint containing them rough to the touch and not suitable for locations where aesthetics are important.

When the paint is scratched, the microcapsules burst and spill out their chemical guts, which combine to form a material called siloxane, which the inventor describes as similar to bathroom caulk. This siloxane fills in the crack that created it, and thus we have self-healing paint. Its potential uses are widespread, from airplane wings (to stop fractures) to buildings and bridges. The paint is apparently ready to go commercial right now, and the inventors are just ironing out the financial details. They expect it to come to market in under four months. [Technology Review, photo credit: Paul Braun]

Read More...

Summary only...