Friday, January 16, 2009

What Apple could learn from Palm's webOS

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/15/what-apple-could-learn-from-palms-webos/

In case you missed the keynote, Palm took some special moments to let everyone know that they're not trying to compete with Apple -- which is of course exactly what they're doing with the Pre and webOS. Sure, there's plenty of room in the market for multiple operating systems and manufacturers, as both companies have pointed out, but we can't help but think that Palm took a long hard look at where Apple was at with its ultra-successful mobile OS and what they could improve upon, and we would like to assume that Apple is looking very carefully at webOS right now (and hopefully the Pre's physical keyboard, but we're dreamers) and comparing it with its current iPhone OS. So, if you'll indulge us, let's look at a few of the iPhone's existing shortcomings that Apple might try and shore up -- or perhaps already has fixes in the works for -- now that there's some very serious competition on the scene. Plus, with Steve on the sidelines, we can imagine there's some extra pressure on the company to prove that innovation at Apple is not just about one man.

These are by no means the only two phones that matter right now, but there are enough parallels and common ancestry (a certain John Rubinstein) to make this a natural first round of comparison. All the magic happens after the break.

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What Apple could learn from Palm's webOS originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Jan 2009 14:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OCZ introduces Apex series of 2.5-inch SATA II SSDs

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/15/ocz-introduces-apex-series-of-2-5-inch-sata-ii-ssds/


Another month, another new line of SSDs. This go 'round, we're having a glance at OCZ Technology's Apex Series, a midrange line of solid state drives of the 2.5-inch SATA II variety. The drives will be made available in 60GB, 120GB and 250GB flavors, and all three will offer 230MB/sec read and 160MB/sec write speeds. As with most every other SSD, these were also designed with low power consumption and reliability in mind, and the lightweight alloy housing keeps things secure during those unsettling installation procedures. There's no mention of price, but the trifecta should be available to upgraders everywhere soon.

[Via Electronista]

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OCZ introduces Apex series of 2.5-inch SATA II SSDs originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Jan 2009 15:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Eizo debuts pair of new color-accurate FlexScan LCDs

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/15/eizo-debuts-pair-of-new-color-accurate-flexscan-lcds/


Apart from the occasional foray into unconventional remote controls, Eizo is best known for its often-specialized monitors, and the company has returned to its stomping grounds with its latest announcement: a pair of new FlexScan LCDs that promise to cover 95% of the Adobe RGB color space (and 92% of the NTSC color gamut). Those include the FlexScan S2242W-H and FlexScan S2232W-E, both of which are 22-inchers, with the former boasting a full 1920x1200 resolution and the latter dialing things back slightly to 1680x1050. Otherwise, the two seem to be mostly identical, with each sporting a 1,200:1 contrast ratio, a 12ms black-to-white response time, VGA and HDCP-capable DVI ports (but no HDMI), a pair of USB ports, and pair of built-in 0.5W speakers. No indication of a release over here, as usual, but folks in Japan will be able to pick 'em up next month for ¥69,800 yen and ¥62,800 (or roughly $780 and $700).

[Via Electronista]

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Eizo debuts pair of new color-accurate FlexScan LCDs originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 15 Jan 2009 16:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 / 295 review roundup

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/15/nvidia-geforce-gtx-285-295-review-roundup/

NVIDIA's GeForce GTX 295 is only a week old at retail, but that hasn't stopped the company from turning around and releasing yet another card -- the GTX 285 -- today. The reviews for both are in and from what we've read, the GTX 295 seems to match or outshine its AMD Radeon HD 4870 X2 counterpart in most performance tests. As for the GTX 285, the general consensus is that it's the fastest single-GPU graphics card on the market right now. It's only slightly better-performing than the GTX 280, however, so if you've already got that, it's probably not worth the upgrade. We're not gonna pretend to understand every benchmark result, but we'll gladly point you in the right direction.

GTX 285
Read - TweakTown
Read - PC Perspective
Read - HotHardware

GTX 295
Read - TweakTown
Read - PC Perspective
Read - HotHardware

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NVIDIA GeForce GTX 285 / 295 review roundup originally appeared on Engadget on! Thu, 15 Jan 2009 18:23:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Panasonic kicks 29mm wide-angle LUMIX DMC-FS15 and DMC-FS7 out the door

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/01/16/panasonic-kicks-29mm-wide-angle-lumix-dmc-fs15-and-dmc-fs7-out-t/


Panasonic is beefing up its Lumix FS-series today with the introduction of two new shooters. The 12.1 megapixel DMC-FS15 with 29mm wide-angle 5x zoom lens with Mega OIS (optical image stabilization), intelligent ISO and exposure, face detection, and AF tracking to lock onto moving subjects. A dedicated iA button on the top of the camera allows for quick access to the Intelligent Auto Mode (iA) without getting lost in the menu. The 10.1 megapixel DMC-FS7 dials the zoom back to 4x and loses the auto exposure and AF tracking. Both cameras feature the Venus Engine IV image processor, auto-adjusting LCD, and the ability to record WVGA (848 x 480) video at 30fps in a 16:9 aspect ratio. Expect both models to land in March -- the $200 FS15 in silver, black and blue or the $160 FS7 in the additional colors of pink and green.

Update: While Panny doesn't include them on its site, dpreview lists a new DMC-FS6 (like the FS7 only with 8.1 megapixel sensor) and budget-minded 8.1 megapixel DMC-LS85 with Mega OIS and AA battery power source.

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Panasonic kicks 29mm wide-angle LUMIX DMC-FS15 and DMC-FS7 out the door originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 16 Jan 2009 03:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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