Huawei's alleged 10-inch slate shows up at photoshoot ahead of MWC

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/21/huawei-alleged-10-inch-android-tablet-leaks/

Shortly after Huawei's Ascend D1 made a trip to the studio for some glamour shots, an incognito slate is following suit. A set of photos from Russian site hi-tech@mail reveals what could be in store from the Chinese outfit at MWC 2012 (you know we'll be there), though the lack of full-body pics makes us question whether it's in fact the 10-inch tab it claims to be. Aside from the questionable size, we do see a tour around its purported metal casing, which is very reminiscent of that T-Mobile-bound MediaPad we showed you last year. Allegedly, the tablet will come sporting an 8-megapixel rear shooter, Ice Cream Sandwich and will be priced at about 20,000 Russian Rubles (or around $670). Those of you feeling intrigued can hit up the source link below to catch the rest of the sneaky shots.

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Huawei's alleged 10-inch slate shows up at photoshoot ahead of MWC originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Feb 2012 11:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ubuntu's full desktop OS coming to multi-core Android devices

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/21/ubuntus-full-desktop-os-coming-to-multi-core-android-devices/

What the Atrix 4G first promised, it looks like the folks at Canonical may deliver. Think back to CES 2011, when Motorola showed us a future where our phone was the only computing device we would need -- only to leave us wanting when its webtop app didn't deliver the requisite functionality for such a future. Well, it turns out Ubuntu now runs on multi-core Android devices and your handset can grant a full desktop experience when docked with a display and a keyboard. It's a customized version of Ubuntu that plays nice with Android, the two OS's sharing data and services while running simultaneously. So, you can still access telephony and texts from the Ubuntu environment while enjoying all the computing capabilities it has to offer, including: Ubuntu TV, virtualization tools for running Windows applications, desktop web browsers, and Ubuntu apps built for ARM. It isn't clear exactly what hardware you'll need to run Ubuntu on a handset, but Canonical has said it works on multi-core devices with HDMI and USB connections. We'll get more info next week when it's shown off at MWC, but until then you'll have to settle for the source below and PR after the break.

Continue reading Ubuntu's full desktop OS coming to multi-core Android devices

Ubuntu's full desktop OS comi! ng to mu lti-core Android devices originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pulse Surface Controller System: bangs the drum, desk, window

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/21/pulse-surface-controller-system-bangs-the-drum-desk-window/

The Pulse Surface Controller is a vibration-based musical instrument that finally puts those years of air drumming to use. It's a small, piezo-based MIDI controller that lets you turn pretty much any surface into a musical instrument. The device has a built-in suction cup, comes with velcro straps and plugs into your computer's microphone port. The fun really starts with the dedicated controller software, that converts your percussive punches to your virtual instrument of choice. You're not limited to drums either, as you can map your taps to a velocity sensitive melodic generator to create musical tones and scales. Luckily you won't have to sit on your hands to get one of these either, as the Pulse Surface Controller System is available now for $59, or you can tap-tap-tap the video after the break for a demo.

Continue reading Pulse Surface Controller System: bangs the drum, desk, window

Pulse Surface Controller System: bangs the drum, desk, window originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of! feeds.

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Inhabitat's Week in Green: 'Plantscraper' vertical farm, new wave energy and a battery-powered iPhone case

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/19/inhabitats-week-in-green-plantscraper-vertical-farm-new-wav/

Each week our friends at Inhabitat recap the week's most interesting green developments and clean tech news for us -- it's the Week in Green.

Groundbreaking green architecture burst into life in Sweden this week as Inhabitat reported that Plantagon began construction on the world's first 'Plantscraper' vertical farm. We also marveled at artist Yayoi Kusama's dazzling Infinity Mirror Room, which shines with the reflections of thousands of LEDs, and we shared the bubbly modular AMPS living wall system. Meanwhile, the MoMA PS1 Young Architects Program announced that HWKN's bright blue spiky sea-urchin shaped pavilion will be popping up this summer, PinkCloud.DK unveiled plans to transform oil refineries into giant energy positive communities and the UK granted planning commission for its first amphibious house.

We also showcased several amazing applications for LEGO bricks this week: a NYC apartment renovated with 20,000 plastic bricks, a gigantic LEGO-inspired church in the Netherlands and a remarkable fully articulated prosthetic LEGO arm. Speaking of next-gen prosthetics, this week Israeli scientists demoed a real-life "Star Trek" VISOR that enables the blind to see, and Nike took the wraps off a prosthetic running sole for amputee triathlete Sarah Reinertsen.

This also marked a heated week for energy news as solar power heavyweight Sunpower sued Solarcity over stolen data, and Aquamarine Power geared up to connect its new wave energy generator to the UK's national grid. We also got ready for rough days ahead with the waterproof, armageddon-ready, solar-charged, battery-powered iPhone case, and we got things cooking with Biolite's brilliant new camping stove, which converts waste heat into electricity for USB gadgets. Last but not least, we were wowed by several amazing new applications for discarded tech: Sean Avery's astounding animal sculptures made from shattered CDs and Paola Mirai's elegant jewelry fashioned out of discarded computer circuits.

Filed under: Science

Inhabitat's Week in Green: 'Plantscraper' vertical farm, new wave energy and a battery-powered iPhone case originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 19 Feb 2012 20:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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MinION USB stick decodes DNA in a matter of seconds

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/20/minion-usb-stick-decodes-dna/

If you happen to be "special," then this $900 USB device is just about the worst thing ever. The aptly named MINion serves its masters by interrogating the cells of living organisms and rooting out their genetic secrets. We won't pretend to know exactly how it works, but it starts by pulling a strand of DNA through a razor-like nanotube that unzips the double helix. The nucleotide bases are then electrocuted one by one until they give up their code. The resulting sequence is stored like a ticker-tape readout, for the whole world to see. The MinION can complete its task in seconds and, unlike most other DNA sequencers, it's portable and simply plugs into a laptop. Luckily, it has so far only been shown to work on very short genomes, like those belonging viruses and bacteria, so for now you're probably safe.

MinION USB stick decodes DNA in a matter of seconds originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 20 Feb 2012 00:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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