It would appear that Google may be attempting to buy the imaging startup Lytro. The company Lytro was founded back in 2006 and began work with a rather boxy-shaped camera for consumers. This camera, the Lytro camera, was meant to be able to capture images in a way that allowed the user to re-focus even after the photo was captured. Now Google might want some of that technology for their very own.
Apple didn't disappoint the tech world and has unveiled, among other things, the latest generation of its iPad tablet line. The iPad Mini 3 might have a harder time finding a warm cozy spot, but the iPad Air 2's substantial diet is sure to endear itself to many almost immediately. But while it's slim profile might be one of its most eye catching features, we mustn't forget the very thing that makes it tick. Apple's A8X processor is no weak beast, and there are two apps that are more than willing to prove it.
Momentage, a new multimedia sharing app and social network, officially launched last week. The app lets you snap photos, shoot videos, add sound clips, write descriptions, and arrange it all as "moments" which you can quickly share to the Momentage network, Twitter, and Facebook. Shared moments take the form of media collages which can be viewed in-app or on the Web.
ConnecTV, the second-screen app that syncs to whatever you're watching on TV for an information-rich, social sharing experience, is today rolling out a new feature that lets you select 6-second clips and share them via Twitter, Facebook, and email. The Vine- and Instagram-like clipping feature automatically loads the previous two minutes of the program and lets you swipe to cue to the moment you want to share. The update represents a major addition to the app and brings it more in line with the industry trend of TV- and device-pairing.
Mentioned almost as a footnote in today's release on their larger SteamOS headline, Valve has let it be known that they're entering into deals for multimedia delivery as well. Speaking on music, TV, and movies specifically, Valve has suggested that both SteamOS and Steam - the software client you use on your Windows, Mac, or Linux machine today - will be working with new media services soon. This set of services will likely converge on apps like Netflix and Hulu, while it's possible Valve will be bringing on their own media additions to their already successful Steam Store for games.
As the saga between Megaupload and the United States government continues, lawsuits are destined to come down strong from creators and copyright holders associated with the filesharing sites found distribution selection. The amount of cash that the group ValCom, Inc. is seeking is just part of the massive half-billion in copyright losses and $175 million in proceeds total the U.S. government has already calculated. ValCom's $42 million in suspected criminal proceeds have been seized in Megaupload.com and related entities raids thus far.
If you were sad that Borders closed this July, and with it all of the data on which books you purchased when, you may be in luck, because Barnes & Noble owns that data now. During the bankruptcy court which saw the sales of Borders assets across the board, personal data (preferences in reading material, DVDs, music, etc) of some 45 million Borders customers included, Barnes & Noble saw the opportunity and grabbed for it, and just this last week, that court approved such a sale. What does that mean, exactly? Will they now know everything about my LIFE? Not exactly.
We have talked about the consumer product that Monsoon offers in the past. The line of Vulkano placeshifting and streaming video gear is large and has some decent offerings. The last Vulkano product we talked about was the Blast early this year. Monsoon has announced that it will be offering the software behind its placeshifting technology to OEMs.
Acer has announced a pair of new notebook computers for the Ethos line. The new machines are the Aspire Ethos 8951G and the Aspire Ethos 5951G. Both of the new notebooks are aimed at home entertainment and multimedia use. Both of the machines have a cool detachable track pad that will work as a multimedia control. The Ethos 5951G is a 15.6-inch machine with a resolution of 1366 x 768 and it uses a frameless super slim design. Acer debuted other notebooks in the Ethos line previously.
Zoom has unveiled their latest digital multi-track recorder, the Zoom R24, which throws not only 24-track playback/8-track simultaneous recording into the mixture but sampler functionality, a USB audio interface for your laptop or desktop computer, a drum machine and a mixing desk. Capable of running for up to five hours on six AA batteries, complete with providing 48V/24V phantom power to up to six channels, media is stored on SD card (up to 32GB supported) and you can even daisy-chain two R24 units together for 16-track simultaneous recording.
Hercules has all sorts of products in its offerings from netbooks to accessories for the iPod and lots more. The company has now added new speakers to its mix for computers. The new speaker kits include the XPS 5.1 70 Slim and the XPS 2.0 35 USB.
We can't say we've ever felt the pressing need to save time and download energy by buying our external storage and digital movies at the same time, but Seagate's latest FreeAgent Go offers just that simplicity. The 500GB USB 2.0 portable hard-drive comes preloaded with twenty different feature-films, although you don't actually get them included in the purchase price; instead, Seagate - and Paramount Pictures, who they've partnered with for this - allow you to pick which titles to unlock, charging you between $9.99 and $14.99 for each one.