VIA makes its first ARM-based Pico-ITX board, adds dual graphics for your in-car pleasure

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/25/via-makes-its-first-arm-based-pico-itx-board/

VIA has only ever really had a dalliance with ARM; the VAB-800 might be a sign that it's willing to go steady for awhile. As the company's first Pico-ITX board with an ARM chip, the 800 stuffs up to a 1GHz, Freescale-made ARM Cortex-A8 and 1GB of RAM into a tiny, 3.9 x 2.8-inch board. Somehow, it still fits up to four USB 2.0 ports, mini HDMI, VGA and as much as 64GB of storage. The board's real tricks are its dual integrated graphics processors: the VAB-800 can independently steer two displays, just in case your in-car infotainment system can't be contained by merely one screen. You'll likely have to be a car designer or an industrial device maker to make an order, although the 5W power draw and support for Android, Ubuntu Linux and Windows Embedded Compact 7 should soon see the VAB-800 crammed into logic-defying spaces everywhere.

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Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Transportation

VIA makes its first ARM-based Pico-ITX board, adds dual graphics for your in-car pleasure originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Jul 2012 05:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bots edit Wikipedia, clean up your nonsense

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/25/wikipedia-bots/

Wikipedia, a triumph of human effort, knowledge and collaboration... or so we thought. Turns out that along with the tens of thousands of brains regularly editing the online encyclopedia, hundreds of bots also patrol the virtual aisles keeping us in check. Some of the bots take care of the boring stuff -- organizing, formatting and other admin. Others correct the wrongdoings of wiki-villains, such as removing off-topic vandalism and naughty language. In the beginning, pages were even created by select bots, pulling data from various sources to create bare bones records for our keystrokes to flesh out. They do a pretty good job, but there are fears that a rogue bot will one day ruin a lot of hard work, although due to the privileges needed it would have to be an inside job. So now you know -- the machines not only have access to the largest single collection of human knowledge, but they edit it for us too. Don't say we didn't warn you.

Filed under: Internet, Software

Bots edit Wikipedia, clean up your nonsense originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Jul 2012 07:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms ! for use of feeds.

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Broadcom promises triple-speed 5G WiFi for mobiles in early 2013

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/25/broadcom-5g-wifi-for-mobiles/

5G WiFi, aka 802.11ac, aka muy rapido. We don't just want it in routers and laptops, we want it everywhere -- which is why Broadcom's firm date of Q1 2013 for its BCM4335 mobile chip is good news. The add-on belongs to a mainstream line of 40nm combo radios that handle WiFi (including regular 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands), Bluetooth 4.0 and FM, which means there's every likelihood it'll appear in numerous smartphones and tablets soon after production starts. Broadcom promises tripled transfer speeds, "dramatically" improved range and "six times greater" power efficiency compared to Wireless N, but then again, so does the competition -- and a company like Qualcomm may be able to deliver it in even fewer nanometers.

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablet PCs, Wireless

Broadcom promises triple-speed 5G WiFi for mobiles in early 2013 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 Jul 2012 07:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IBM cluster powers Murchison Widefield Array's radio telescope, answers mysteries of the universe faster than ever (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/24/ibm-cluster-powers-murchison-widefield-array-radio-telescope/

Radio telescope operators have as much of a problem coping with the avalanche of data as getting that information in the first place. The Victoria University of Wellington is all too aware and is leaning on IBM for a powerful (if very tongue-tying) iDataPlex dx360 M3 compute cluster to sift through the deluge at the upcoming Murchison Widefield Array. Combined, the 4,096 array antennas probing deep space and solar atmospherics will have the Xeon-based cluster tackling signal data to the tune of 8GB per second, and about 50TB per day -- that's a Nexus 7's worth of astronomy faster than you can sneeze, folks. A 10Gbps network connection will feed the results to Perth to save scientists a roughly 435-mile trek. Construction is still in mid-stride, but the $51 million Australian ($52.2 million US) being spent on the Murchison array may be worthwhile if it helps solve the riddles of star formation and solar flares.

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IBM cluster powers Murchison Widefield Array's radio telescope, answers mysteries of the universe faster than ever (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Jul 2012 20:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lytro finally rolls out Windows desktop software, celebrates with free shipping

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/07/24/lytro-finally-rolls-out-windows-desktop-software-celebrates-wit/

As cool as the Lytro camera's post-picture taking focusing technology is, it's hard to overlook some of the product's shortcomings -- not the least of which is the fact that the company only offered a Mac solution when the device launched earlier this year. Lytro has finally addressed that oversight, with the release of a desktop application for Windows. To use it, your system will need to be running Windows 7 with 2GB of RAM and at least an Intel Core 2 Duo CPU (you can find the full list of minimum specs in the source link below). To celebrate the launch, Lytro's offering up free shipping on camera orders this week. Also new are the Lytro tripod mount and USB wall charger accessories.

Filed under: Digital Cameras

Lytro finally rolls out Windows desktop software, celebrates with free shipping originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Jul 2012 13:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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