Tech News and Reviews
Archive for November, 2009
Nokia shows off SNES on N900, quickly thinks better of it
0901 days
by Arlene.L
in Cellphones
A little bit of emulation is a basic rite of passage for a modern day device that allows open software development, and the N900 is no different. We first saw the device rocking some SNES way back in September, but apparently Nokia couldn’t pass up an opportunity to demonstrate the phone’s prowess and put up its own video of a few emulators in action. Unfortunately, while emulators are completely legal, the ROMs that run on them are rarely legit, and despite Nokia’s odd assertion in the video that “most publishers allow individual title usage provided that the user is in possession of the original title,” the phone giant has since pulled the video from the internets, and Nintendo is reportedly looking into the matter. Of course, N900 emulatin’ is still easy to come by from third parties
Nova DSLR concept reminds us that cameras need not be boring
0901 days
by Arlene.L
in Digital Cameras
Despite the distant memory that is film for most people, most DSLRs have plenty in common with their film-based ancestors, at least when it comes to form factor. Not this Nova DSLR concept. Conceived by Erin Fong, the idea is to allow for all sorts of hand holds thanks to the dual movable arms, and the controls at the fingertips seems surprisingly convenient. We’re sure there are all sorts of technical limitations holding something like this back, but after suffering severe kitted-out DSLR fatigue on multiple occasions, we could really get into something that makes a bit better use of how we regularly hold our non-imaging devices. Now if someone would just clean that lens already!
Sony PSPs enlisted as study aids by the Royal Navy
0
Whoever it was at Sony HQ that decided to pursue “military contracts” as a revenue source, kudos! Mere days after the US Air Force expressed interest in expanding its PS3 supercomputer, we’re hearing glorious Britannia’s Royal Navy has conscripted 230 PSPs into duty as revision aids for its trainee sailors. Loaded with maths and physics materials, the PSPs can be used in a bunk, have familiar controls for the young and mostly male recruits, and are considered pretty tough to break. The underlying reason for this move though is cost cutting: by making the training course more intensive, the Navy is saving on teaching time. Given that the UMD drive won’t come disabled — which is hoped to encourage the sailors to take better care of the device — the future this paints is of marines who’ve spent more time with a freebie handheld console than with a pro instructor. At least they’ll have a great stable of captured monsters to show for it.
RAmos T9HD PMP, Cheaper Than We Expected
0
Yesterday, we came across the best PMP in its range. The RAmos T9HD is a 4.3-inch touchscreen player with 720p video support. Nothing fancy except the excellent 800 x 480 screen resolution and the fact that it’s a capacitive touchscreen. The demo video of the UI leaves little doubt it’s going to be worth a try. Ownta has the 8GB version of the RAmos T9HD (we’re not sure it comes in other built-in capacities) at $145. The dropshipper says they have worldwide free shipping. (more…)
Newsmy A18HD PMP Almost Featherlike From the Side
0
You cannot take press photos from China literally. They almost always look impossibly good-looking. It’s not unusual to feel like they gave you the wrong model when you open the box. Newman’s new A18HD, a 720p player, is just such a device. Some press photos that came with the model’s announcement are nothing short of a breakthrough. Unfortunately, we do not believe it. One store’s soec sheet lists the dimension of the A18HD as 143.04 × 86.13 × 10.09mm. The photo below doesn’t look anything like a 10mm device. (more…)
Sony Walkman X Series Software Update v1.10 Comes W/ Browser Improvement
0903 days
by Arlene.L
in Cellphones
The v1.10 software update is meant for Sony Walkmans NWZ-X1050/X1060. Sony says it will improve the NetFront browser. For those who haven’t tried browsing the net in this WiFi enabled Walkman PMP, this “improvement” is crucial if the user wants to do some Internet in their Walkman. Take note native Thai users. If you think you need Thai to enjoy your Walkman, this update may not be for you as it removes the Thai language support.
More Acer Android smartphones in 2010
0903 days
by Arlene.L
in Cellphones
Acer, unlike HTC, is not so well known for their Android handsets. They may have one in the form of the Acer Liquid, but this has yet to become available in the market. However, the rookie handset maker is planning to change that come 2010 where they plan to introduce around 8-10 new smartphones with a more level distribution between Windows Mobile and the Android platform. We’re not sure who will actually be getting the bigger piece of the pie or if it will be a tie at the end of the day, but one thing is for certain though, more Acer Android handset will be available in 2010. Of course, Acer is still a newbie in the mobile phone industry, but hey, we’re still glad to see them go full out with Android as this will definitely help intensify the rivalry in this growing segment of the market。
Kohjinsha’s dual-screen DZ Series laptop now for sale
0
Remember IBM’s ThinkPad 701 with the butterfly keyboard? This isn’t it, it’s better… conceptually anyway. Instead of two halves of a keyboard magically jigsawing themselves together, Kohjinsha achieves a similar result with its DZ-series using a pair of 10.1-inch TFT displays with 1,024 x 600 pixel resolution (each) packed into an otherwise svelte 1.02 x 8.26 x 0.74~1.65 inches / 4.09 pounds (1.84 kg) portable. Best of all it’s on sale now for ¥95,800 (about $1,110) with a Linux pre-load — add another ¥5,000 (about $58) for 32-bit Windows 7 Home Premium. For that you get a 1.6GHz AMD Athlon Neo with RS780MN chipset and ATI Radeon HD 3200 graphics, 802.11b/g/n WiFi, 3x USB, a 3-in-1 card reader, 1.3 megapixel webcam, 1GB memory (expandable to 4GB), and 160GB 5,4000 hard disk with claimed 4.5-hours “max” of battery power (1.1V, 5200mAh) — likely far less in real-world usage. Ships worldwide ($60ish for US or €50ish for European delivery) in 3 weeks if you order today. Video of the sliding action after the break from our hands-on session back at the CEATEC show in Japan.
Cignias NAO Symphony iPod speaker enables WiFi control with iPhone and BlackBerry
0903 days
by Arlene.L
in Peripherals
You know what’s annoying? Having to get up and walk all the way to your iPod dock to pick a song. Sure, there’s the good old remote control these days, but you’d still need to squint at the tiny screen from afar if you want any modicum of song control. The couch potatoes at Cignias probably felt the same pain and thus came up with the free MusicNAO app for the iPhone, iPod Touch and BlackBerry, allowing you to control and browse content over WiFi on the iPod docked on NAO Symphony speakers. It doesn’t end there: you can also stream music from the latest iPhone OS devices over Bluetooth, and the same goes for BlackBerry phones but with the addition of WiFi streaming. There’s no word on the sound quality yet, but the adventurous among you can pre-order a NAO Symphony for $249 ahead of its December 1st launch.
iPhone 3GS Supreme is diamond encrusted, spectacularly expensive
0903 days
by Arlene.L
in Cellphones
Seeing as how the iPhone’s exclusivity status has been slipping, it was inevitable that the bourgeoisie would invent a new way to distinguish themselves from the lowly masses. Enter a designer by the name of Stuart Hughes, already expertly familiar with slapping precious metals onto slightly less precious mobile phones. He classes up a 3GS handset with a 22 carat solid gold body, which he then sprinkles with no less than 190 diamonds. And just to make sure none of the riff raff can get their hands on it, this creation is priced at £1.92 million ($3.2 million), which places it precisely £1.92 million outside our budget. Completing the, erm, value proposition is a storage chest cut from a single block of granite, which you may peep after the break.