iPhone 5s fingerprint sensor called Touch ID, recognizes your thumb on the Home button: here's how it works and what it does

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/10/iphone-5s-fingerprint-sensor/

Apple's brand-new iPhone 5s isn't dramatically different from last year's model, but it has at least one major addition: a "Touch ID" sensor. Us human beings are calling it a fingerprint sensor, and it's built into the phone's main Home button below the screen. Apple's Phil Schiller says, "It reads your fingerprint at an entirely new level" -- it's 170 microns in thickness with 500 ppi resolution. According to Cupertino, it "scans sub-epidermal skin layers," and can read 360 degrees. As expected, the sensor is actually part of the Home button, making it less of a button and more of a...well, sensor. Using Touch ID, users can authorize purchases in iTunes, the App Store, or in iBooks by simply using their thumbprint (starting in iOS 7, of course). Pretty neat / scary!

As rumored, the sensor uses a laser cut sapphire crystal cover; it retains a tactile input for those wary of the sensor wearing down after lengthy use. The sapphire crystal, acting as a lens, takes a highly detailed image of your fingerprint, which Apple says is "never stored on Apple servers or backed up to iCloud." According to Apple's official PR on the new phone, Touch ID's fingerprint info is "encrypted and stored securely in the Secure Enclave inside the A7 chip" (the A7 chip is the new processor at the heart of the 5s). Apple hasn't made clear whether Touch ID allows for multiple users on a single iPhone or not, nor has the company said whether you could turn off fingerprint authentication (though we have to presume the answer is yes given previous authentication standards on the iPhone).

The fingerprint ID technology was long rumored as heading to 2013's iPhone following Apple's acquisition of Authentec last summer. A render of the iPhone 5s outed the new functionality's name just this week. We'll have more on Touch ID in our upcoming hands-on live from Cupertino, and you can find all our Apple event coverage from today right here.

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Check out all the coverage at our iPhone 'Special Event' 2013 event hub!

Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds, Software, Mobile, Apple

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HP launches ZBook mobile workstations with Ultrabook model, 3,200 x 1,800 screen option

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/10/hp-zbook-mobile-workstations/

HP's 2012 mobile workstation range was powerful, but would we have called it exciting? Not exactly. The company may just liven things up with its new ZBook line, however. The three-laptop series is based on a thinner and lighter design template that includes a 14-inch Ultrabook variant, the ZBook 14 (pictured above). Basically, Dell's Precision M3800 now has a big-name competitor. Those willing to trade some portability for power will also get a few welcome additions. The mid-size ZBook 15 (after the break) has a 3,200 x 1,800 display option, while both the ZBook 15 and the flagship ZBook 17 carry Thunderbolt ports.

All three PCs ship with Haswell-based Intel processors as well as the latest pro graphics from either AMD or NVIDIA. Mobile workers can order the 15- and 17-inch ZBooks today, or wait for the 14-inch system's arrival in late October. You'll find more details of HP's workstation updates after the break, including a more conservative refresh to the Z desktop line that brings Ivy Bridge-based Xeon processors and Thunderbolt 2.

Filed under: Laptops, AMD, HP, NVIDIA

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Source: HP (1), (2), (3)

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The NFL Is Freaking Out Over Chip Kelly, The Eagles Coach Who Could Change Pro Football Forever

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/chip-kelly-offense-could-change-nfl-forever-2013-9

If you watched the first half of Chip Kelly's first game as coach of the Philadelphia Eagles — a 33-27 win on the road against the Washington Redskins — you got a glimpse of what football will look like in the future.

The Eagles ran as many plays as possible, refusing to huddle-up and snapping the ball as fast as they could. They also used some zone read — which, for the uninitiated, is a type of play where the quarterback decides to either hand the ball off or run it himself based on what the defense is doing.

We've seen NFL teams (with Kelly's help) experiment with the no-huddle and zone read in recent years, largely as a "change of pace" supplement to their big, slow, normal offensive systems.

But Kelly's Eagles are the first pro team to use an entire offense that's built on those two experimental elements.

Kelly's system is all "change of pace," and the NFL might never be the same if he continues to be as successful as he was last night.

We already saw him do it in college.

Kelly gained the reputation as one of the sport's foremost innovators when he was a coordinator at New Hampshire and then Oregon in the 2000s.

Oregon finished top 10 in the country in points scored in each of Kelly's four years as head coach, and transformed into one of college football's biggest powerhouse programs in the process. Oregon opened a preposterous $68-million football facility this year, and the unprecedented success that Kelly brought the school is a huge reason why.

With goof y formations, relentless fourth-down conversions, and (most importantly) a frantic hurry-up, fast-tempo offense that no one could stop, Kelly created the buzziest team in college sports. The rest of the country took notice, and now you see threads of Oregon's philosophy woven into the fabric of big-time college football. 

In short, he helped turn college football into the points-fest you see today, and introduced a degree of creativity and innovation you rarely see in sports:

Now, he's going to try and do the same thing in the NFL.

In just the first half against the Redskins, the Eagles ran 53 offensive plays. That's as many as five other NFL teams ran in all four quarters of their Week One games.

Philly gained 322 yards in the first half, more than 11 NFL teams gained in all four quarters of their Week One games.

The days of the typical NFL sequence — run a play, mosey back to the huddle, gather around the QB, walk back to the line of scrimmage — are numbered.

If Kelly succeeds, pro football will become a much more free-flowing game. Like basketball.

Some old-school football people see this as a bad thing. Alabama coach Nick Saban even said the up-tempo style that Kelly spread throughout college football is dangerous.

But that Eagles-Redskins game was thrilling. Kelly's addition to the NFL is a great thing for anyone who likes innovation in sports.

SEE ALSO: NFL Power Rankings! Week Two

SEE ALSO: This Chip Kelly Speech About Simplicity Is Fantastic

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AMD's 2014 embedded roadmap includes dedicated graphics, gaming-friendly CPU

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/10/amd-2014-embedded-roadmap/

AMD has long signaled that embedded chips will play a major role in its future, and it's backing up that claim by providing a glance at its 2014 roadmap. The highlight is Bald Eagle, a 35-watt x86 processor designed for demanding tasks like gaming; it should include up to four Steamroller cores, and it will optionally sport on-chip Graphics Core Next video. Devices that need even more visual power will use Adelaar, a dedicated graphics chipset that includes both GCN and 2GB of built-in memory. It's reportedly fast enough to be useful for PC video cards, not just the usual set-top boxes and smart TVs.

Two system-on-chip designs are also joining AMD's lineup. Hierofalcon is built with data centers in mind, and carries up to eight ARM Cortex-A57 cores; Steppe Eagle, meanwhile, is a combination of upgraded Jaguar x86 cores and GCN that should speed up AMD's low-power G-series processors. With the exception of Hierofalcon, all of the new embedded chips should be available in the first half of next year. AMD hasn't named any early customers, but its embedded silicon tends to reach products that you'd recognize. Check out the roadmap after the break.

Filed under: Misc, Gaming, Home Entertainment, AMD

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Source: AMD

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Wacom's Bamboo Pad: a Magic Trackpad-esque peripheral with stylus input for $49 and $79

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/09/10/wacom-bamboo-pad/

Touch pads are nice for navigating with gestures, but what about when you need to scribble a signature or mark up a draft by hand? Well, Wacom has an option with its new stylus-friendly Bamboo Pad. The peripheral enables multitouch gestures alongside a pressure-sensitive Wacom stylus. Compatible with both Mac and Windows PCs, the add-ons can employ a wireless connection or be tethered via USB and come in one of four accent-hued options: grey, blue, green or purple (violet unit is wireless only). If you've already gotten cozy with a Bamboo Stylus feel, that input device will work alongside this new Bamboo Pad as well. Wired units will set you back $49 while the wireless model is priced at $70 with both arriving later this month. For now, you can snag a closer look at the goods in the gallery down below. %Gallery-slideshow83491%

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