2009 January - SlashGear

Archive for January, 2009

Star Wars kites: peaceful distraction while the world goes to ruin

Chris Davies, Jan 29th 2009 Discuss [0]

With the economy in ruins, cyborg bugs threatening to invade every nook and cranny, and no holding off the terrifying DTV switchover, now would be a great time to step outside and fly a nice, relaxing kite. Since we're geeks, however, it can't just be any old kite, and until they create a Steve Jobs model we'll have to make do with these 3D Star Wars kites. Read The Full Story

Ion netbooks from $399; AMD Neo could ‘crush’ Atom says NVIDIA CEO

Chris Davies, Jan 29th 2009 Discuss [0]

Netbooks using NVIDIA's Ion platform - that couples an Intel Atom CPU with a NVIDIA GPU - have a target price of just $399, and will give customers the "full PC experience" rather than the "inferior" performance of current devices. That's the opinion of NVIDIA's plain-talking cofounder, president, and CEO, Jen-Hsun Huang, who has been talking with LaptopMag about the proliferation of mobile devices and ultra-low voltage chipsets. According to Huang, today's netbook is "a low-cost PC that doesn't work that well" and that is in fact hurting the PC software industry due to its poor support for common applications. After the cut, Huang on Ion, AMD, MIDs and more Read The Full Story

10-inch Acer Aspire live gallery suggests handsome, sturdy update

Chris Davies, Jan 29th 2009 Discuss [0]

Acer are hoping for another home-run with the 10-inch version of their Aspire One netbook, and so far neither the specs nor the estimated pricing has let them down. Going by Akihabara's brief hands-on, it sounds like the devices themselves aren't a disappointment either; details are scarce (so make the most of the photos) but they do say they "LOVE the new larger screen". More images after the cut Read The Full Story

Sony last quarter profits dive 95%; Electronics make $176m loss

Chris Davies, Jan 29th 2009 Discuss [0]

Sony have announced a 95-percent drop in profits in the last three months of 2008, compared to the company's performance in the same period one year ago. That's the headline figure in a set of financial reports that make even Canon's look good: a combination of the strong yen and low holiday demand contributed to the Sony electronics division posting their first ever operating loss, with overall net profit for the company of just 10.4 billion yen ($115.6 million) compared to 200.2 billion yen in 2007. Read The Full Story

Next-gen iPhone mentioned in 2.2.1 firmware; prototypes already in wild?

Chris Davies, Jan 29th 2009 Discuss [0]

The latest iPhone firmware update, version 2.2.1, contains references to a hitherto unknown iPhone model number, which has led many to suspect that Apple is planning a significant hardware revision. The new code - "iPhone2,1" - differs from the first and second generation handsets, which were known respectively as "iPhone1,1" and "iPhone1,2"; it can be found in the USBDeviceConfiguration.plist in an unencrypted firmware. Read The Full Story

Nokia 2700 classic, 6700 classic and 6303 classic announced

Chris Davies, Jan 29th 2009 Discuss [7]

Nokia has announced a trio of new straightforward handsets, the Nokia 2700 classic, Nokia 6700 classic and Nokia 6303 classic. Top of the bill is the Nokia 6700 classic, which builds on the success of the 6300 with a 5 megapixel camera, assisted GPS navigation with Nokia Maps, and 3G internet access, together with a full-metal keypad and slim form-factor. Read The Full Story

Digital TV delay bill rejected by House: Switchover still on for Feb 17th

Chris Davies, Jan 29th 2009 Discuss [0]

Despite an assumption by many that the DTV switchover bill recently passed by the US Senate was a done-deal, Republican opposition in the House of Representatives has blocked its passing. The bill, which sought to postpone the switching off of analog TV in the US from February 17th to June 12th, failed to secure the two-thirds support in the House necessary for its approval. Current estimates suggest that around 6.5m households are unprepared for the switchover, which will see older TVs requiring digital convertor boxes in order to continue receiving broadcasts. Read The Full Story

Sidekick LX 2009 details emerge?

Chris Davies, Jan 29th 2009 Discuss [0]

A leaked document purporting to detail the Sidekick LX 2009 has appeared in an online survey. According to the image, the Sidekick LX 2009 will add 3G for high-speed internet access, a 3.2-megapixel camera with autofocus, flash and video recording, and YouTube mobile access via the handset's browser. It will of course keep the traditional Sidekick full QWERTY keyboard, together with a slide-up 3.2-inch WVGA display running at 854 x 480 resolution. Full-sized image and some cleaned-up shots of the Sidekick LX 2009 itself after the cut Read The Full Story

Hitachi 3LCD SVGA+ projector CP-SC635 offers 4000 ANSI lumen

Daniel Lim, Jan 28th 2009 Discuss [0]

The Hitachi Business groups has let loose of an industry-grade projector with ANSI lumen rating of 4000. The 3LCD CP-SC635 sports a 4:3, natively SVGA+ (1400x1050) resolution screen panel with durable inorganic, and is able to resolve resolutions of up to 1600x1200. Also, Its HDMI connectivity allows HD video formats feed of up to 1080p at 60hz. Read The Full Story

Scosche intros showTIME, basic AV cable for your iPod or Iphone

Daniel Lim, Jan 28th 2009 Discuss [0]

Some of your Apple multimedia handhelds may have lower native resolution display than your DVD video, but its supported video outputs reach 480 displayed horizontal lines of resolution, and that’s plenty to display yours shared photos or family videos on the big screen with decent quality. If you don’t have the multimedia dock with video connectivity, Scosche’s showTIME got what your need to get them media files feed on your TV. Read The Full Story

Hacked Nikon D700 captures video

Daniel Lim, Jan 28th 2009 Discuss [1]

We know the Nikon D90 shoots HD format video at 720P but the rest of the DSLR members don’t, but there’s a hack enabling Nikon DSLR Live View motion images to be captured in PC. With little twist and work in manufacturer's supplied SDK, programmer has found way to record live feed via USB, and the good news is, it could work for other Nikon DSLR with live view such as D3 and D300. [samples of video capture after the cut] Read The Full Story

Samsung NC20 previewed: HD capable, over 6hrs runtime

Chris Davies, Jan 28th 2009 Discuss [2]

Samsung made a great first-impression with its debut to the netbook sector: the NC10 won praise both for its excellent keyboard and lengthy battery life. So there's plenty for its sequel, the Samsung NC20, to live up to. Ukrainian site gagadget have managed to acquire an NC20 of their own, and have been testing out how the switch to VIA's Nano U225 processor and Chrome9 HC3 integrated graphics impact on performance. Read The Full Story