House of Lords wants UK TV to go fully online and leave airwaves clear for cellphones

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/01/house-of-lords-internet-tv-spectrum-plan/

The UK House of Lords' Communications Committee has suggested that all broadcast TV should be moved to the internet to free up wireless spectrum for cellphones. In its report, the panel found that whilst such a network would be cheaper and more efficient in the long run, it would also require extensive re-building of the country's archaic communications infrastructure. Given that the analog-to-digital switchover is currently in progress, it seems unlikely that a further transition will be timetabled -- especially since there are still concerns over the cost of bringing fiber-optic broadband to rural areas. Any change in the plan will need to be rubber-stamped by Government, but perhaps it'd be more amenable if they saw how good 8K video looks on one of those connections.

Filed under: Cellphones, Home Entertainment, Internet

House of Lords wants UK TV to go fully online and leave airwaves clear for cellphones originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Aug 2012 02:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink The Guardian  |  HM Communications Committee  | Email this | Comments

Read More...

Summary only...

Kinect Toolbox update turns hand gestures into mouse input, physical contact into distant memory

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/01/kinect-toolbox-update-turns-hand-gestures-into-mouse-input/

Using Microsoft's Kinect to replace a mouse is often considered the Holy Grail of developers; there have been hacks and other tricks to get it working well before Kinect for Windows was even an option. A lead Technical Evangelist for Microsoft in France, David Catuhe, has just provided a less makeshift approach. The 1.2 update to his Kinect Toolbox side project introduces hooks to control the mouse outright, including 'magnetic' control to draw the mouse from its original position. To help keep the newly fashioned input (among other gestures) under control, Catuhe has also taken advantage of the SDK 1.5 release to check that the would-be hand-waver is sitting and staring at the Kinect before accepting any input. The open-source Windows software is available to grab for experimentation today, so if you think hands-free belongs as much on the PC desktop as in a car, you now have a ready-made way to make the dream a reality... at least, until you have to type.

Filed under: Peripherals, Software

Kinect Toolbox update turns hand gestures into mouse input, physical contact into distant memory originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Aug 2012 03:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Eternal Coding  |  CodePlex  | Email this | Comments

Read More...

Summary only...

New TI power chips save energy, move towards universal charging

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/08/01/new-ti-power-chips-save-energy-move-towards-universal-charging/

TI isn't just in the business of making ARM-based processors. The company makes all manner of components and chips. Amongst the things in its vast repertoire of silicon are charging controllers. Texas Instruments' latest offering, the UCC28700, not only draws an impressively low sub-30mW when idle (meeting new five-star rating requirements from the European Commission), but does so in a tiny package that eliminates the need for an opto-feedback circuit or other external components. A second new controller, the TPS2511, tackles the problem of multiple chargers by moving to a 5V universal system for tablets and smartphones using the USB Battery Charging 1.2 specification. This could mean not only lower electricity bills (if only nominally so), but smaller wall warts that can be used across numerous devices. For more, check out the PR after the break.

Continue reading New TI power chips save energy, move towards universal charging

Filed under: T! ablet PC s

New TI power chips save energy, move towards universal charging originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 01 Aug 2012 03:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Read More...

Summary only...

CHART OF THE DAY: Smartphones Are Still For The Young And Rich

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/chart-of-the-day-smartphone-demographics-still-skew-young-and-moneyed-2012-7

This chart comes from Business Insider Intelligence, a new research and and analysis service focused on the mobile and Internet industries. Sign up for a free trial here.

Smartphone adoption is highest among young consumers with more disposable income.

According to Nielsen, Americans aged 25 to 34 earning more than $100,000 a year have the highest smartphone usage, with penetration at an astounding 81 percent. At the other end of the spectrum, even the highest income Americans over the age of 65 "only" have 42 percent adoption, well below national penetration (which Nielsen measured at 55 percent in June).

Most interesting though is that Americans aged 18 to 24 making less than $50,000 a year still have 59 percent penetration, indicating that they view smartphones as a necessity.

Follow the Chart Of The Day on Twitter: @chartoftheday

Please follow SAI on Twitter and Facebook.

Join the conversation about this story »

Read More...

Summary only...

This Wireless Home Theater System Always Makes Sure You Have the Best Sound [Video]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5930661/this-wireless-home-theater-system--always-makes-sure-you-have-the-best-sound

Wireless audio is supposed to make our lives easier. Between the little Airplay and Bluetooth speakers out there it does—Sort of. There are drawbacks. This home theater system is wireless audio the way it should be, but it'll cost you.

The Aperion Intimus 4T Summit Wireless Home Theater Speaker System is the most seamless and intelligent concept of its kind we've seen. The 5.1 channel surround sound system uses no speaker wire and configures itself automatically for the best sound. Rather than run cables from a central A/V receiver, the signal from you DVD player, CD player, etc feeds into a wireless transmitter from which it's beamed to the powered speakers. (Each speaker needs to plug into your house's power.)

That's already more than what anything else offers, but what's really exciting is the system's brain. It detects where you've placed each of the speakers a room, and automatically beams the correct sound channel to each of them. No configuration necessary. And it gets better because using the system's included remote, it can detect where you are sitting, too, and it adjusts the levels of each channel so that it's perfectly balanced for your location.

Oh, and Aperion Audio promises banging sound. The system supposedly transfers uncompressed 24-Bit, 96 KHz audio wirelessly. That could be incredible, but we'll believe it when we hear it.

This Aperion system is so sophisticated it's practically self-aware, but of course, we have no idea how well it works or sounds. Maybe it'll flop, but it's nice to see wireless design pushing the boundaries. There are plenty of AirPlay speakers out there for your smartphone, thank you very much. But be warned, the innovation will cost you: The Intimus 4T Summit Wireless Home Theater System costs three grand and it's available for order now. [Aperion Audio]

Read More...

Summary only...