drag2share: HP Wireless Audio streams audio from your PC, arrives next month for $100 (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/16/hp-wireless-audio-streams-audio-from-your-pc-arrives-next-month/

Yep, HP's on a tear today. In addition to unleashing a trio of redesigned Envy laptops, a refreshed dm4 and one aggressively priced Ultrabook, it has some news to share on the accessories front. The outfit unveiled its Wireless Audio system, which lets you stream audio files from your PC to as many as four compatible speakers. In terms of setup, that photo up there says almost everything: you plug a thumb-sized dongle into your USB port and a larger receiver into the speaker. In the box, you'll also find a software CD to fill in the missing UI piece. The only caveat here (aside from the relative messiness of connecting two intermediary pieces of equipment) is that the system only works with speakers that are compatible with KleerNet's wireless audio technology, and it's likely yours are anyway. In all, the system uses three frequencies (2.4, 5.2 and 5.8GHz) to cut latency and interference, and also supports 5.1 audio. You can pair it with up to four speakers, as we said, so long as they're within 100 feet of your laptop. It'll go on sale next month for $100, with one receiver and transmitter per box. If you're curious, we've got the full PR after the break, along with a short promo video.

Continue reading HP Wireless Audio streams audio from your PC, arrives next month for $100 (video)

HP Wireless Audio streams audio from your PC, arrives next month for $100 (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: HP refreshes the Pavilion dm4 with a subwoofer, unveils requisite Beats Edition

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/16/hp-refreshes-the-pavilion-dm4-with-a-subwoofer-unveils-requisit/

It's shaping up to be a wild day for HP: in addition to revamping its Envy laptops and announcing its first Ultrabook, the outfit went and refreshed the mid-range Pavilion dm4. While it has the same metal-heavy design that bowled us over in our review, it trades Altec Lansing audio for Beats and gains a subwoofer. Otherwise, its entry-level specs -- a Core i3 CPU, 6GB of RAM and a 640GB 5,400RPM hard drive -- closely match the starting config available today.

And, while the company was at it, HP also announced a red-and-black-spangled Beats Edition. An inevitable move, if you ask us: HP has been pushing its partnership with Dr. Dre so heavily that it went so far as to redesign its Envy laptops with a prominent Beats dial. Then again, this is the first time HP's given the Beats special edition treatment to anything other than a top-shelf machine. In any case, you better be pretty sweet on that red backlit keyboard -- the gussied-up, Dre-approved version starts at $900 (headphones not included). Then again, at least you get beefier specs for the money: a Core i5 CPU, 8GB of RAM and a 750GB hard drive. If nine hundred bucks isn't what you had in mind, the classic dm4 starts at $630. Both will be available December 18th. If you're curious, find the full PR after the break, along with some rubbernecking hands-on shots below.

Gallery: HP Pavilion dm4 and dm4 Beats Edition

Gallery: HP Pavilion dm4 Beats Edition hands-on

Continue reading HP refreshes the Pavilion dm4 with a subwoofer, unveils requisite Beats Edition

HP refreshes the Pavilion dm4 with a subwoofer, unveils requisite Beats Edition originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: HP Folio 13 Ultrabook official: starts at $900 with a 128GB SSD and backlit keyboard (hands-on)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/16/hp-folio-13-ultrabook-official-starts-at-899-with-a-128gb-ssd/

And just like that, HP joined the Ultrabook party. After announcing the Folio in Australia yesterday, the company went and made it official here in the states too. And man, do we get the feeling the outfit's been watching the competition very closely: this guy starts at $900 and comes standard with a 128GB mSATA SSD and a backlit keyboard. Provided it comes close to matching its promise of nine hours of battery life, it could give the identically priced Toshiba Portege Z830 a run for its money. Not to mention, it undercuts the MacBook Air ($1,299 and up), along with the ASUS Zenbook UX31 and Lenovo IdeaPad U300s, both of which start at $1,100 with a 128GB SSD and no backlit keyboard. Good on ya, HP.

What's that, you say? You want more specs? Rounding out the list, the Folio has a 13.3-inch (1366 x 768) display, optional TPM circuitry and comes standard with a Core i5-2467M processor, 4GB of RAM, a six-cell battery and HP's CoolSense technology. Additionally, it offers a fairly robust selection of ports, including HDMI, Ethernet, USB 2.0 and 3.0, a memory card reader and a combined headphone / mic socket. The trade-off, though, is a slightly thicker chassis than what other Ultrabooks are offering: 3.3 pounds and 18mm (0.7 inches) thick. It'll be available in the US starting December 7th, but we've already managed to snag a few minutes with it, which means we've got photos, video and impressions for you to peek now. So what are you waiting for? Meet us after the break for our hands-on preview.

Gallery: HP Folio 13 Ultrabook

Gallery: HP Folio hands-on

Continue reading HP Folio 13 Ultrabook official: starts at $900 with a 128GB SSD and backlit keyboard (hands-on)

HP Folio 13 Ultrabook official: starts at $900 with a 128GB SSD and backlit keyboard (hands-on) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Nov 2011 00:03:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: WiFi Direct and DLNA get friendly, make streaming media a little bit easier

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/16/wifi-direct-and-dlna-get-friendly-make-streaming-media-a-little/

DLNA and WiFi Direct are both pretty sweet technologies on their own but, together, they offer the promise of simple, wireless media streaming without the need for that pesky router middleman. The Digital Living Network Alliance has officially incorporated WiFi Direct into its interoperability guidelines, which means you could soon be streaming movies and music between devices (like your laptop and smartphone) without connecting to a home (or public) network. And don't forget, only one part of the equation needs to be WiFi Direct certified -- so don't worry that your aging computer doesn't support it, as long as your smartphone does you're golden. Check out the PR after the break.

Continue reading WiFi Direct and DLNA get friendly, make streaming media a little bit easier

WiFi Direct and DLNA get friendly, make streaming media a little bit easier originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Nov 2011 02:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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drag2share: Researchers increase charging capacity, speed of lithium ion batteries by a factor of ten

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/16/researchers-increase-charging-capacity-speed-of-lithium-ion-bat/

It's not every day that we get to write about advancements in battery technology -- much less one as potentially groundbreaking as what a group of engineers at Northwestern University claim to have pulled off. In fact, Professor Harold Kung and his team say they've successfully managed to increase both the charging capacity and speed of lithium ion batteries by a factor of ten. The key, according to Kung, is the movement of the lithium ions nestled between layers of graphene. The speed at which these ions move across a battery's graphene sheets is directly related to how fast a device can recharge. To speed up this process, Kung decided to poke millions of tiny, 10-20nm-sized holes into a mobile battery's graphene layers, thereby providing the ions with a "shortcut" to the next level. As a result, Kung's perforated batteries were able to charge ten times faster than traditional cells, going from zero to hero in 15 minutes.

Not satisfied with that achievement alone, Kung and his squad then set about increasing their battery's charging capacity, as well. Here, they increased the density of lithium ions by inserting small clusters of silicon between each graphene slice. This approach allows more ions to gather at the electrode and, by taking advantage of graphene's malleable properties, avoids some of the silicon expansion problems that have plagued previous attempts at capacity enhancement. The result? A battery that can run on a single charge for more than a week. "Now we almost have the best of both worlds," Kung said. "We have much higher energy density because of the silicon, and the sandwiching reduces the capacity loss caused by the silicon expanding and contracting. Even if the silicon clusters break up, the silicon won't be lost." There is, however, a downside, as both charging capacity and speed sharply fell off after 150 charges. But as Kung points out, the increase in charge retention would more than make up for this shortcoming. "Even after 150 charges, which would be one year or more of operation, the battery is still five times more effective than lithium-ion batteries on the market today," he told the BBC. For more technical details, hit up the links below.

Researchers increase charging capacity, speed of lithium ion batteries by a factor of ten originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Nov 2011 05:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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