Just a week or two ago, Kevin Rose left us with details concerning Apple’s huge renovation of its music branch. Last night pictures emerged on macnn of a real live 4th gen nano in its box. What we see in the pictures is akin to what we saw back the day, but is also in some pretty neat and new hard plastic packaging (as opposed to the classic many boxes-in-one design). Another photo emerged on Engadget too, except this one was a blatant fake – a poorly made Photo”chop”:
Firefox may have found a warm fuzzy spot in many web-savvy users’ hearts, but I’m completely blown away by the new browser Google Chrome. Google Chrome was pretty much unknown to the public until yesterday, when details emerged on Blogoscoped.
Google has apparently sent out comic books in the mail. The 38-page teaser illustrated by Scott McCloud demonstrates everything Chrome is about. The main concept is to be extremely simple, which is pretty much Google’s overall philosophy. The other concept is that web applications can be launched from desktop bookmarks in standalone windows. Google has coined this feature “Google Gears.”
Today the Chrome beta came out and you can download it yourself to try it out. I’m actually writing this post in Chrome.
So far only one word comes to my mind when I think of Google Chrome: amazing. The interface is beautifully simple. What are your thoughts, a potential Firefox killer?
Two weeks ago we saw a Youtube video of HTC’s “Dream” – the first phone to run on Google’s Android platform. As the presumed release date draws near (sometime in the next month or two), we’re bound to be seeing more leaked images before an official press release. Anyway, here are some pretty high quality (in comparison to the Youtube video) spy photos of it. At least for a little while anyway, this thing will only be a dream in my Google-loving head.
[Engadget]
Art Lebedev, the studio that brought the rich and famous the Optimus Maximus Keyboard, has introduced its latest computer peripheral. The Folderix uses sturdy aluminum construction for the casing – after all, what else can you expect from a company that made a $1900 keyboard? The Folderix comes in 3 colors, yellow, purple, and blue. Aside from a laser-etched logo and 4GB of storage, that’s pretty much it for this little device.
You can get your hands on the Folderix starting today, for $55. It is a bit pricey for what you can potentially get, but Art Lebedev has been known to make high quality products – this should last you quite a while.
After much speculation and leaked images of Palm’s Treo Pro, it’s finally been announced. The Treo Pro not only sports a unique (‘n sleek) design, but it also has a large array of desirable features:
The Pro also runs on Microsoft’s Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional Edition and has a 2 megapixel camera. The best part is the phone comes unlocked, so you can pop in your current SIM card and avoid setup hassles! Costs $549 without a contract, but should be much less with one. Looks like it will be a prime competitor to BlackBerry. More pictures on the offical Palm website.
Here’s a video of the Pro in action:
Compose is a great concept tablet device that allows budding composers to get their tunes out on paper ( or should we say digital paper? ). The device is essentially just that – a digital sheet of music paper, with an electronic pen that doubles as a microphone. Press the button on the “pen” to record as you sing a tune. The digital paper’s console will transcribe your melody into sheet music!
I think it would be great if this device supported the ability to export your music sheets into PDF format. Even better, how about some freeware for tablet PCs that does the same thing?
Today Lenovo launches its latest laptop – the X301. The X301 succeeds its lesser brother, the X300 with just a few minor tweaks here and there. The ultrathin laptop is Lenovo’s response to the MacBook Air and sports the following specs:
The ThinkPad X301 also adds the display interface DisplayPort – allowing the laptop to output in 2560×1600 resolution and up to 2 monitors, without any addons.
The ThinkPad X301 may not be as visually aesthetic as Apple’s MacBook Air, but it does have many more bells and whistles for the same price. The esitmated retail price for this notebook is $2,599, starting August 26th.
Augmented reality is essentially a mashup of the virtual and the real. A 3D image is overlayed over a certain artifact of a video clip or live feed to transform it into something new.
ARToolkit v 4.4 is the first to bring augmented reality to the iPhone, all in a standalone application. ARToolkit uses the iPhones accelerometer to gauge movements and keep the 3D object in the correct position.
ARToolkit also has the power to track and overlay multiple objects, courtesy of iPhones’ unique multitouch interface.
Unfortunately, we (and probably you, unless you work on this project or happen to be some Web 2.0 super genius) won’t be able to get our hands on this software for at least a little while – the software is still in its early stages. You can check out more on the toolkit by visiting the official website or watching the video below.
Kapsys, a French gadget maker, has plans to launch its mini screenless GPS device, the Kapten. You heard right, there’s no screen! Directions are fed via text-to-speech, and you can tell the device knows what to do via voice recognition technology. This little GPS is 50g light and has very tiny dimensions – 74×44×13 mm – ideal keyring material.
The Kapten ships with a map of France on the system, but other maps can be downloaded via the company website. Toting 4GB of memory, and MP3 player, FM radio, and Hands-free Bluetooth, this device has a solid array of features, but how practical is it?
Kapsys claims the device can be used in a car, but it might not be very forgiving if you happen to have a lead foot. I think I’ll stick with classic GPS for now…you know, the kind with a screen.
Available in mid-September for 150 €.