[Engadget] 12 New Entries: CNN's holographic freakout begins, seems totally bizarre and unnecessary

CNN's holographic freakout begins, seems totally bizarre and unnecessary

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

If you've been keeping your eyes fixed on CNN as this election unfolds, then by now you've seen Wolf Blitzer doing a "hologram" interview with Jessica Yellin. Not only does this technology seem completely creepy, but it's without a doubt one of the most useless and unnecessary pieces of phantasmagoric TV ever enacted. Enjoy some video and two more pics of the weirdness after the break.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading CNN's holographic freakout begins, seems totally bizarre and unnecessary

CNN's holographic freakout begins, seems totally bizarre and unnecessary originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 19:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Spaceship "force field" could protect astronauts on trip to Mars

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Transportation

While there's certainly no shortage of folks working on sending robots to Mars, there's also thankfully a few researchers focusing on making the trip a bit more bearable (and survivable) for us humans, and a group from a consortium of different institutions now say they've made some real progress on that front. Their idea is to use a portable "mini-magnetosphere," which would protect a spacecraft from harmful solar storms and cosmic rays in much the same way the Earth's magnetosphere naturally protects the planet. That is actually an idea that has been around for decades, and was shown last year to be at least theoretically possible, but it has only now been taken beyond the realm of computer simulations. That was apparently possible thanks to the use of an unspecified "apparatus originally built to work on fusion," which allowed researchers to recreate "a tiny piece of the Solar Wind" and confirm that a small "hole" in the wind would indeed be all that would d be necessary to keep astronauts safe. Of course, the leap from the lab to an actual spacecraft is another matter entirely, but the researchers seem to think that there's quite a bit of promise in the idea.

[Via PhysOrg, image courtesy of NASA]

Spaceship "force field" could protect astronauts on trip to Mars originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 19:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Blackberry Bold shows up for free on contract at Walmart

Filed under: Cellphones

Well hell, that Blackberry Bold decision just got a lot easier if you're, uh, bold enough to sign a two-year contract with AT&T -- it's now free after rebate at Walmart. Yep, it's only been out for two days and Wally's already handing 'em for free -- somehow we don't think that's gonna happen with the Storm. Still, this is the one you want if you double-heart keyboards with itty-bitty keys -- just make sure you actually mail in the forms, okay?

Update: The deal is through LetsTalk, so if you and Sam aren't getting along you can order direct from them.

[Thanks, Barry and Jedidiah]

Blackberry Bold shows up for free on contract at Walmart originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 18:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SlingLink Wireless adapter appears then disappears from the company's UK site

Filed under: Networking

So, you've been desperately searching and hoping for a way to connect your SlingCatcher into your wireless network router, right? Well back at CES in January, the company showed off a little accessory called the SlingLink Wireless -- a device that would do just that. Unfortunately, details were scarce. Things may be changing, however, as the adapter just appeared on Sling's UK site looking all fancy and official. There doesn't seem to be any indication of a price (last we heard it was $49.99), release date, or regional availability, and when we contacted Sling, they didn't seem to know much more than what the page conveys... and then pulled the info from the site. Oh well -- thank goodness for Google's cache.

[Thanks, Brian]

SlingLink Wireless adapter appears then disappears from the company's UK site originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 17:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Optoma Pico Projector gets pictured, specced and priced

Filed under: Displays, Home Entertainment, Portable Video

We've been hearing about Optoma's Pico Projector for what feels like ages now, but at long last we've some concrete data on the minuscule beamer. Boasting Texas Instruments' DLP technology, the 2- x 4.1- x 0.7-inch device weighs in at just 4.2-ounces and features a native resolution of 480 x 320 pixels, 9 (yes, nine) lumens of brightness and a minimum projection distance of eight inches (with a maximum of 8.5-feet). We're also told that it can be recharged via an AC adapter or USB, but the 20,000-hour bulb is not replaceable. David Pogue was able to spend a little time with the unit, and overall, he was emphatically stoked. He stated that visuals were more than satisfactory when shot up on an airline seat back, and the general crispness of the picture was smashing, too. Contrary to previous reports, we've now learned that this critter will be shipping in a fortnight (or two weeks, for those who take issue with such a term) for $430, which means this can now skyrocket to the top of your holiday wish list.

Optoma Pico Projector gets pictured, specced and priced originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 17:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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FCC approves Verizon's Alltel buy, deal all but done

Filed under: Cellphones

Following the DOJ's approval last week, the FCC has voted unanimously today to approve Verizon's acquisition of Alltel, promising to create a CDMA network of insane proportions that'll eclipse AT&T to become the US' largest wireless carrier. Like their fellow feds over at the DOJ, the FCC guys attached some conditions to the approval, including a requirement that Verizon continue to honor Alltel's existing roaming agreements for four years -- presumably in an effort to protect and appease rural carriers who've been solidly against the merger all along. This'll almost certainly lead to some job losses in the Alltel camp, but look on the bright side, guys: you just might have a crack at that wild LG VX9600 now.

[Via Phone Scoop]

FCC approves Verizon's Alltel buy, deal all but done originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 16:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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VIA and NVIDIA axe netbook platform, questions abound

Filed under: Desktops, Laptops

Something is definitely going awry with VIA's Nano platform: the company just lost HP's Mini 1000 to Intel, and now Digitimes says that VIA and NVIDIA are backing out of their plan to develop a netbook platform. Remember, Nano was announced back in May, so it's a little odd that we haven't seen a single shipping machine with the chip, even as VIA has hyped its performance advantages over the ubiquitous Atom 230 -- the closest we've come is the imini S1 in June, which has since disappeared. Now, we're always a little suspicious of Digitimes' anonymous reports, so nothing's written in stone, but things just seem pretty bleak 'round VIA way right now -- especially since it just dropped out of the mobo biz entirely to focus on processors. Hopefully we'll see some good news in the form of shipping products soon.

[Via Electronista]

VIA and NVIDIA axe netbook platform, questions abound originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 16:51:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CNN's Wolf Blitzer to interview hologram strategists on election night

Filed under: Displays, Misc. Gadgets

As the news networks spend oodles of cash in order to one-up the other with whiz-bang visuals and mind-melting charts, CNN is looking to blow just about everyone else away. As election night officially kicks off in just a few hours, the network's Wolf Blitzer will be conducting interviews with faraway strategists not via the traditional two-pane window, but by hologram. Believe it or not, professionals in Chicago and Phoenix will be beamed live to CNN's New York studios in order to give viewers a look at Wolf and a ghostly counterpart. Granted, this is far from the first holographic / 3D interview we've seen, but it is rather impressive given the scenario. In related news, we're also told that FOX News will be touting a "giant wall with touch-screen technology [that] will provide electoral map results," which hopefully translates in geek speak to "Surface."

[Via Hack-A-Day]

CNN's Wolf Blitzer to interview hologram strategists on election night originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 16:24:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Panasonic's H1 Mobile Clinical Assistant gets release date, price, music video

Filed under: Tablet PCs

Remember that medical tablet Panasonic revealed at IDF earlier this year? No? Well, it happened. Details were pretty hard to come by then, but the company's officially announced the product as the H1 tablet. The fully ruggedized slate is built on familiar netbook internals with a 1.86 GHz Intel Atom CPU, 1GB of RAM, an 80GB SSD, a 10.4-inch 1024 x 768 resolution LCD display with an InPlay Technologies digitizer, and 802.11a/b/g/n. It's going to be available in January of 2009 for a somewhat staggering $2,799, though the figure is less painful when you consider that awesome custom handle on the back. If you can't get enough tedious details about devices such as this, you're in luck: hit the read link for a serious plethora of information in the press releases, and check out the awesome educational video they've released after the break. We think you'll find it has a lot to offer in terms of production values and soundtrack.

[Via Gotta Be Mobile]

Continue reading Panasonic's H1 Mobile Clinical Assistant gets release date, price, music video

Panasonic's H1 Mobile Clinical Assistant gets release date, price, music video originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 16:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Self-stabilizing bike stabilizes bikers who can't stabilize themselves

Filed under: Transportation

The bicycle -- whether electric, rocket-powered or simply sporting Bluetooth -- is certainly looking a lot better these days, and now researchers at Yokohama's Keio University have devised a way to keep the vehicle upright without the help of a human operator. The otherwise typical bicycle sits on a set of rollers and is equipped with two motors: one moves the rear wheel an average of 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) per second while the other controls the handlebars. A linux controller keeps an eye things via webcam and gyro sensor, steering the vehicle and adjusting its speed as necessary. Currently the bike is only able to stay upright when moving in a straight line, but soon enough we should see a system that can take corners and work in real world situations. Because why should people with an adequate sense of balance have all the fun?

Self-stabilizing bike stabilizes bikers who can't stabilize themselves originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 15:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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First T-Mobile G1 tethering "solution" comes to light

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless

Are you excited? Giddy? You should be. The inevitable has occurred, and even though it's far from elegant (and far from guaranteed-to-work), tethering on the T-Mobile G1 is a go. According to a few users over at TmoNews, this particular solution enables owners to share the G1's data connection via USB, which -- for all intents and purposes -- is tethering. You're going to have to put in some serious days minutes to get everything up and running properly, but trust us, it'll be worth it. Navigate down to the links below for all the instructions you could ever need... hopefully.

[Via AndroidGuys]

Read - G1 tethering instructions
Read - TmoNews discussion

First T-Mobile G1 tethering "solution" comes to light originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 14:42:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hanvon taps E Ink for Vizplex tech in N510 e-book reader

Filed under: Displays, Handhelds

If you've been disinterested in the current wave of e-book readers due to their size, have a gander at Hanvon's N510. Yeah, you'll have to look a little harder than usual given its diminutive size, but it's there (we promise). Hailed as the world's first five-inch e-book to use electrophoretic technology, this power-sipping device relies on an E Ink Vizplex display and offers up 180-degrees viewing, an 11-millimeter thick frame and support for TXT, HTML, PNG, JPG, PDF, XEB, CEB, MP3 and MTXT formats. The daylight-viewable screen boasts an SVGA (800 x 600) resolution, and it comes loaded with a 1GB SD card and a mini USB port. There's no direct mention of availability, but it should start floating around soon (somewhere in the world, at least) for $295.

[Via Slashgear]

Hanvon taps E Ink for Vizplex tech in N510 e-book reader originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 04 Nov 2008 14:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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