Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Saturday, November 07, 2009

PSA: Sears charging $50 less for new DROID activations than Verizon

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/06/psa-sears-charging-50-less-for-new-droid-activations-than-veri/

If you walk into a Verizon store today and pick up a DROID, you'll be out $300 (before tax) out of pocket, then you'll twiddle your thumbs for a few weeks while you wait for some mysterious PO box in Texas to send you your $100 rebate on a debit card. Wouldn't you rather just pay $200 upfront? Or better yet, $150? Sears -- which, we have to admit, we didn't know sold phones -- is charging just $150 without a rebate for the DROID today, a full $50 less than Big Red proper with rebate. We don't know how good these guys are with customer service (Simplexity is running the store on Sears' behalf, it seems), but truth be told, we can deal with a little incompetency for $50.

[Via I4U]

Filed under: Cellphones

PSA: Sears charging $50 less for new DROID activations than Verizon originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony and Atracsys develop 3D interface for ORs, sci-fi franchises (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/06/sony-and-atracsys-develop-3d-interface-for-ors-sci-fi-franchise/

You know what the world needs? Another company peddling their take on the touch interface as being "just like Minority Report!" Sun, Raytheon, Oblong -- it's a pretty obvious press hook (as well as a pretty awesome area of research), but every once in a while some such technology does come around that begs for a closer look. A collaboration between Sony Europe and Atracsys (a Swiss company specializing in optical tracking) ICU is a dual camera-based system that tracks and analyzes body movements in three dimensions, in real-time. Initially designed for use with a computer in a sterile operating theater, the interface not only notices subtle changes in the position of your body, arm, hand, or finger position, but it's also determine rough age, sex, or facial expression of the user. We're guessing that this bad boy has some novel gaming potential as well (count on the folks at Engadget to bring everything down to their level)! PR / videos after the break.

Continue reading Sony and Atracsys develop 3D interface for ORs, sci-fi franchises (video)

Filed under: Desktops

Sony and Atracsys develop 3D interface for ORs, sci-fi franchises (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:37:00 EST. Ple! ase see our terms for use of feeds.

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LG to announce Snapdragon-boasting Android phone, Korea-bound in 2010

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/06/lg-to-announce-snapdragon-boasting-android-phone-korea-bound-in-2/

It's looking like LG will be offering an Android phone boasting Qualcomm's hot Snapdragon chip -- which has recently squeezed its way into handsets such as the Xperia X10 and Acer's Liquid. The new LG mobile phone is expected for the Korean market in the second quarter of 2010. While the device is still unnamed and specs are still a mystery, LG is promising that the device will be "more mature" than the GW620 Eve, an Android device announced earlier this week for Rogers in Canada. There's no solid word on what availability of the device will be like, though LG says its considering possibilities outside of Korea.

[Via Slashgear]

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

LG to announce Snapdragon-boasting Android phone, Korea-bound in 2010 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Unused Adamo XPS prototypes reveal touchscreen trackpads, key-less keyboard

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/06/unused-adamo-xps-prototypes-reveal-touchscreen-trackpads-key-le/

Dell certainly managed to cram plenty of inventive, even far-fetched touches into its Adamo XPS laptop, but it looks like it went even further out on a limb during the prototype stage, as PC World was able to discover during a brief hands-on time with a few cast off concepts. As you might expect, one of the ideas Dell toyed around with was a full-fledged touchscreen trackpad, which was apparently rejected because Dell couldn't justify the cost of the panel based how much people would actually use it. Another, possibly even more ambitious concept is one that would have completely replaced the traditional keyboard with a series of capacitive-touch buttons (pictured after the break), which would have allowed for a true zero-profile design, albeit at some potential expense to usability. Hit up the link below for a look at a few more prototypes.

[Via SlashGear]

Continue reading Unused Adamo XPS prototypes reveal touchscreen trackpads, key-less keyboard

Filed under: Laptops

Unused Adamo XPS prototypes reveal touchscreen trackpads, key-less keyboard originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 15:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Netflix instant streaming demoed on PlayStation 3 (updated with more video!)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/06/netflix-instant-streaming-demoed-on-playstation-3-video/

Aw, suki suki now! Those Netflix instant streaming discs that started floating out to anxious PS3 owners yesterday are obviously splashing down, with YouTube user (and avid Engadget reader) otimus posting up a stellar walkthrough showing everything in action. We've got to admit -- the whole thing looks exceptionally sleek, but given the PS3's multimedia prowess, we didn't really expect anything less. He stated that he didn't notice any stuttering as he sifted through films and mashed play, and that any jitters you see in the video (after the break) can be blamed on the janky TV capture device. So, any others receive their disc today? How's the experience?

[Thanks, Otis]

Update: Our best buds over at Joystiq got some quality hands-on time with this (video is now after the break), so be sure and check it out!

Continue reading Netflix instant streaming demoed on PlayStation 3 (updated with more video!)

Filed under: Home Entertainment

Netflix instant streaming demoed on PlayStation 3 (updated with more video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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