Posts in the "Hots Technology" Category

  • Refresh Roundup: week of May 14th, 2012

    Hots Technology
    Refresh Roundup: week of May 14th, 2012

    Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it’s easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don’t escape without notice, we’ve gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

    Continue reading Refresh Roundup: week of May 14th, 2012

    Refresh Roundup: week of May 14th, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 18:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • Samsung chief: we’re open to a cross-licensing deal with Apple, but 4G chip shortage might last until the fall

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    The at times very heated legal battle between Apple and Samsung might be softening just a bit ahead of truce talks on May 21st. Samsung’s mobile head JK Shin just left Seoul for the mediated discussions saying there were still “several negotiation options” on tap, including the possibility of cross-licensing patents. He warned that there was still a “big gap” between the two sides, and we’d tend to agree — neither Apple nor Samsung is exactly backing off just yet. However, it’s a definite shift in language from March, when Shin was vowing “no compromise,” and it parallels Apple CEO Tim Cook’s own disdain for lawsuits. We just wouldn’t bet money on the two singing “Kumbaya” this week.

    In same breath, Shin added that an ongoing 4G chipset shortage wasn’t letting up: he didn’t see things getting better until the start of the fourth quarter, or October for us common folk. That’s a problem for Samsung’s phones and tablets most of all, of course, and in a dire case could see LTE-packing American Galaxy S III variants rely on other vendors’ chips to stay on the 4G bandwagon. There’s also a chance of a ripple effect on other companies that want Samsung’s parts, but short of getting a peek at Samsung’s inner workings, we won’t know the full impact for awhile yet.

    Samsung chief: we’re open to a cross-licensing deal with Apple, but 4G chip shortage might last until the fall originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 13:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • Researchers develop silicon ReRAM chip, send warning shot to Flash memory

    Hots Technology
    Researchers develop silicon ReRAM chip, send warning shot to Flash memory

    Does the word ReRAM ring a bell? No? Well, the key point is that it’s much faster than NAND memory, and it’s making its way into chips from Elpida, Sharp and Panasonic. Further proof that ReRAM is on the up and up? Researchers at University College London have used this technology to make a chip that operates at 100 times the speed of standard Flash memory. The device is composed completely of silicon oxide, which improves the chip’s resistance, and it doesn’t require a vacuum to work (which makes it cheaper to produce). But this new chip is more than just a faster alternative to Flash; its ability to move between different states of conductivity means it can be configured as a memristor, or a device that handles both data-processing and storage tasks. In the long term, researchers hope this technology can pave the way for silicon oxide CPUs — and UCL is already using this design to help develop transparent memory chips for mobile devices. Need to know more? Feast your heart on the gritty details via the link below.

    Researchers develop silicon ReRAM chip, send warning shot to Flash memory originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 06:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • Neuroscientists develop game for stroke rehabilitation, give the Wii a run for its money

    Hots Technology
    Neuroscientists develop game for stroke rehabilitation, give Wii run for its money

    Think the Wii has the market cornered on gaming rehab? Think again — neuroscientists at New Castle University are developing a series of motion controlled video games to make stroke rehab more fun and accessible. The team’s first title, dubbed Circus Challenge, lets patients digitally throw pies, tame lions and juggle to help them build strength and regain motor skills. As players progress, the game ratchets up its difficulty, presumably to match pace with their recovery.

    Although Limbs Alive, the game’s publisher, has only described their motion controller as “next-generation,” it affirms that the game will be playable on PCs, laptops and tablets later this year. In an effort to lower costs and provide at-home therapy, the team hopes to leverage a £1.5 million award from the UK’s Health Innovation Challenge Fund to build a system that will allow therapists to monitor patient progress remotely. The whole enchilada still needs some time to bake, but you can hit the break for a video and the full press release.

    Continue reading Neuroscientists develop game for stroke rehabilitation, give the Wii a run for its money

    Neuroscientists develop game for stroke rehabilitation, give the Wii a run for its money originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 00:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink CNET  |  Newcastle University, Limbs Alive  | Email this | Comments

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  • Engadget Mobile Podcast 138 – 05.19.2012

    Hots Technology

    Borders. Here at the Engadget Mobile Podcast, we’re so over them. That’s why we let former Engadget Mobile CEO-in-chief Chris Ziegler come back and hang out on our side of the fence for a few hours, no matter where he comes from. You know who’s NOT over border? The United States Border Patrol, Division of Potential Patent Infringements on Apple Intellectual Property. Be a fence-sitter with us for a little while: it’s not so bad up here (and we get great reception).

    Hosts: Myriam Joire (tnkgrl), Brad Molen Guest: Chris Ziegler Producer: Trent Wolbe Music: Tycho – Coastal Brake (Ghostly International)

    00:01:06 – Best Buy expects EVO 4G LTE to land May 23rd, HTC remains cautious 00:03:00 – Apple, HTC ordered by judge to sit down, try and make nice on August 28th 00:07:00 – HTC One X and EVO 4G LTE delayed at customs due to ITC exclusion order (updated) 00:13:15 – HTC EVO 4G LTE for Sprint review (updated) 00:30:00 – T-Mobile CEO Philipp Humm issues memo discussing restructuring plans, more jobs affected 00:48:06 – HTC confirms One X multitasking tweaks in Sense 4 00:51:30 – NTT DoCoMo’s Galaxy S III to ship with 2GB RAM? 00:59:27 – LG shows off UI 3.0 for Ice Cream Sandwich devices, says it’s ‘unobtrusive and simple’ 01:06:22 – Google reportedly planning stable of Nexus devices with Android 5.0, will sell ‘em direct 01:15:48 – Verizon CFO says grandfathered unlimited plans on the way out 01:18:07 – WSJ: Apple moving towards larger iPhone screens 01:30:05 – Report: Apple dumping Google for own Maps app in iOS 6 (update)

    Hear the podcast

    Subscribe to the podcast [iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes [RSS MP3] Add the Engadget Mobile Podcast feed (in MP3) to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically [RSS AAC] Add the Engadget Mobile Podcast feed (in enhanced AAC) to your RSS aggregator [Zune] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in the Zune Marketplace

    Download the podcast LISTEN (MP3) LISTEN (AAC)

    Contact the podcast podcast (at) engadgetmobile (dot) com.

    Follow us on Twitter @tnkgrl @phonewisdom @zpower @engadgetmobile

    Engadget Mobile Podcast 138 – 05.19.2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 18:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • Insert Coin: CordLite illuminated iPhone cable (video)

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    In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you’d like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with “Insert Coin” as the subject line.

    On average, North American consumers will spend a lifetime total of five days on failed attempts to pair their dock connector cable with an iPad or iPhone. Yeah, that’s not true, but we can certainly sympathize with frustrated device owners — fitting a tiny connector to any gadget can be a chore, especially in the dark. Scrap Pile Labs’ CordLite sets out to point the way to a successful connection with its built-in LEDs. The illuminated cable is quite simple to use — with no buttons or switches to fuss with, the connector lights up when you touch the aluminum plates, and powers off the moment it’s secured to your device. There’s really not much else to it — CordLite functions identically to an Apple-manufactured cable, though the dock connector itself is significant larger than the OEM variety, at least in its current prototype form.

    The design team has turned to Kickstarter to get their project funded, with a $70,000 goal. If all goes to plan, they expect to ship black or white CordLites beginning in September at $35 a pop, but as always, getting in during the “pre-order” phase will net you a hefty discount. The first 200 backers can get an early-bird cord in the color of their choice with a $25 pledge, with the required amount jumping up to $30 from there. A $45 pledge gets you an exclusive laser-etched model, while $50 will be met with a pair of early-bird cords. As you may have gathered from the picture above, the first version will only function with Apple devices, though a microUSB cord is also said to be in the works. See it in action in the video demo just past the break.

    Continue reading Insert Coin: CordLite illuminated iPhone cable (video)

    Insert Coin: CordLite illuminated iPhone cable (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 12:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • Researchers tout efficiency breakthrough with new ‘inexact’ chip

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    Accuracy is generally an important consideration in computer chips, but a team of researchers led by Rice University are touting a new “inexact” chip (dubbed PCMOS) that they say could lead to as much as a fifteen-fold increase in efficiency. Their latest work, which won a best paper award at a recent ACM conference, builds on years of research in the field from the university, and is already moving far beyond the lab — some inexact hardware is being used in the “i-slate” educational tablet developed by the Rice-NTU Institute for Sustainable and Applied Infodynamics, 50,000 of which are expected to wind up in India’s Mahabubnagar school district over the next three years. As for the chips themselves, their inexactness comes not just from one process, but a variety of different measures that can be used on their own or together — including something the researchers describe as “pruning,” which eliminate rarely used portions of the chip. All of that naturally comes with some trade-offs (less defined video processing is one example given), but the researchers say those are often outweighed by the benefits — like cheaper, faster chips that require far less power.

    Researchers tout efficiency breakthrough with new ‘inexact’ chip originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 May 2012 06:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink TechEye  |  Rice University  | Email this | Comments

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  • FCC Fridays: May 18, 2012

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    We here at Engadget tend to spend a lot of way too much time poring over the latest FCC filings, be it on the net or directly on the ol’ Federal Communications Commission’s site. Since we couldn’t possibly (want to) cover all the stuff that goes down there individually, we’ve gathered up an exhaustive listing of every phone and / or tablet getting the stamp of approval over the last week. Enjoy!

    Continue reading FCC Fridays: May 18, 2012

    FCC Fridays: May 18, 2012 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 May 2012 23:52:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  • The Engadget Show is live, here at 6:00PM ET!

    Hots Technology

    Man, what a show we’ve got for you this month. For starters, we popped by the Smithsonian, to check out the museum’s Art of the Video Game exhibit. And while the awesome Fifth Avenue Frogger game didn’t actually make it into those hallowed halls, we did take a close up look at the hacked arcade cabinet for the show. Speaking of video games (which we seem to be doing a lot these days), we’ll also pay a visit to the newly reborn Chinatown Fair and speak to the directors of Indie Game: The Movie. All of that, plus a performance by musician Alex Winston and the month’s latest and greatest gadgets. Keep your browsers locked to this spot!

    Continue reading The Engadget Show is live, here at 6:00PM ET!

    The Engadget Show is live, here at 6:00PM ET! originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 18 May 2012 17:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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