Full instructions with a parts and supplier list can be found at the source link below. That link also contains listings of workshops using the Shrimp microcontroller. Since it appears just like an Arduino Uno you can do any of the hundreds of projects for that board.
Seems like just the thing for a local makerspace.
The Shrimp | Shrimping.it via Hack-A-Day
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/03/macronix-plans-to-heat-up-flash-memory-to-keep-it-from-burning-o/
Despite the looming threat of being replaced by phase-change memory, contemporary memory modules aren't quite ready to be shown the door -- engineers at Macronix have found a way to revive spent NAND flash cells. Most flash modules fail after being written to and erased about 10,000 times, but Macronix found that the tired memory could be restored by baking it for extended periods of time. The team funneled the time consuming and cumbersome solution into a more practical package: a redesigned memory chip that packs onboard heaters. The new modules are designed to periodically heat focused groups of memory cells to 800 °C (1,472 °F) for a few milliseconds, effectively "healing" worn cells.
Researchers found that heated chips could tolerate more than 100 million write/erase cycles and erased faster at higher temperatures. The team said the power drain of the heaters shouldn't effect battery life, either -- chips don't have to be heated often, and when they do, it can be done while prospective devices are recharging. Macronix will be presenting the technology at the IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting next week, but project deputy director Hans-Ting Lue wouldn't say when the company plans on taking the technology to market. Lue was willing to speculate on what might become of it, however. "T! his may evolve into a 'thermally assisted' mode of operation that gives both better performance -- such as the faster erasing -- and better endurance flash memory." Faster, more reliable, super-heated memory. Sounds fine by us.
[Image credit: Emily Cooper, IEEE]
Filed under: Misc
Via: PhysOrg
Source: IEEE
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/02/mitsubishi-rptv-rip/
It's time for someone over at IDC to pop the champagne, as its 2007 projection about the end of rear-projection TVs turned out to be only a year off, now that the last company still making them has announced it's getting out of the game. As first reported by CE Pro, Mitsubishi is finally ceding to competition from flat-panels which have grown to equally ridiculous size, and cut prices so sharply that it "can no longer sustain our business in its current form." The company's official statement is after the break, confirming that its DLP and LaserVue models are no more however "existing customer relations and parts and services departments will remain in place along with existing authorized service centers" which should be good news for current owners. There's an in-depth retrospective of the technology at the source link, looking back to Samsung's exit that left Mitsubishi alone in the segment three years ago, long after others like Sony and Hitachi fled for thinner-framed climates.
Mitsubishi also made a go of it in flat-panels, but ditched those efforts last year and will now focus on the professional market and home-theater projectors here in the US. In recent years the tech has improved with thinner models, integrated soundbars and even larger screens available. The slowing economy may have extended RPTV's lease on life wi! th a siz e bang for buck that's tough to beat, but ultimately customers opted for bright flashy flat-panel HDTVs that offer easier wall-mounting options while seeming to get bigger, lighter and cheaper every year. We're sure there are more than a few super-sized rear-projection TVs that will continue to bring the big game to basements and dens everywhere, feel free to celebrate an old friend in the comments below.
Continue reading Mitsubishi is ending rear-projection TVs, ceases production of DLP and laser models
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD
Source: CE Pro
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/03/acer-unveils-travelmate-b113-399-price/
Acer's TravelMate line of notebooks usually skews toward the business set, but its latest model is made for that other breed of on-the-go types: students. The new TravelMate B113 is an 11.6-incher weighing in at three pounds and measuring one inch thick. Processor options top out a Core i3 Ivy Bridge CPU with 4GB of RAM, and the hard drive offers a max capacity of 500GB. The 11.6-inch display sports a ho-hum resolution of 1,366 x 768 -- and isn't touch-enabled for Windows 8 -- but then again we're looking at a price of $399 and up. The B113 is available now at authorized resellers -- head past the break for the full presser.
Continue reading Acer unveils TravelMate B113 ultraportable with student-friendly $399 price
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/02/hardkernal-reveals-pair-of-quad-core-exynos-odroid-u-boards/
One area where Moore's law can be seen alive and well seems to be the developer and small project computer world. Whether it's the ubiquitous Raspberry Pi, Intel's NUC, or any number of similar products. There's one more name to add to this list, and that's the ODROID-U from Hardkernel. The boards are a little more expensive than Raspberry Pi's impressively cheap Model A and Model B, but you are getting some bang for that buck. The $69 ODROID-U comes with a 1.4GHz quad-core Exynos 4412 processor (as found in the Galaxy S III and Note II, 1GB of RAM, quad-core Mali 400 graphics, micro-HDMI, a brace of USB ports, a headphone jack and Ethernet. If you want a little more oomph, for an extra $20 you can have the RAM doubled, and a 1.7GHz core with the ODROID-U2 model. There's one stat you might notice missing which is flash memory. There's no onboard storage, so you'll have to bring your own memory for the built-in microSD slot. As the ODROID name suggests, the boards can run Android, as well as a variety of Linux flavours. Sound good? In a reverse of what you might expect, the ODROID-U2 will be available first, starting December 21st, with the cheaper board pencilled in to arrive on January 16th.
Filed under: Desktops
Via: Android Community
Source: Hardkernel
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