PrimeDTV Unveils PHD-HM5 Networked Media Player

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PrimeDTV has announced its latest product called the PHD-HM5. The device is a networked home media player. Amazon named the device one of the ten hottest electronic products for 2009. The player can support almost all video formats in up to 1080p resolution.

The player supports digital music and high-resolution slideshows with digital pictures. The device can also be directly connected to a camcorder or camera to allow users to watch video or view pictures directly on the big screen. Read more

Posted on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 11:00:00 CST | by Shane McGlaun

Hitachi Experiments With Laser Micro Projectors For 3D Displays

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Hitachi has shown at the CEATEC an interesting 3D display prototype.
The 10-inch VGA resolution 3D display does not require glasses and uses 16 projectors to create the 3D effect.
TechOn (via 3d-display-info) calls this technology "Full Parallax 3D TV" and it uses the method of Integral Photography with Overlaid Projection to achieve a 3D image that differs depending on the viewers position. Read more

Posted on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 04:00:00 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

Metroid Prime Trilogy Ships for Wii

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Nintendo has announced that the new Metroid Prime Trilogy for Wii has now shipped. The single game disc includes Metroid Prime, Metroid Prime 2 Echoes, and Metroid Prime 3: corruption. The first two games were originally released on the GameCube.

All of the games have been updated for play on the Wii with Wii motion based controls and are rendered in 16:9 widescreen format. Players can choose which game to play using a unified main menu. Read more

Posted on Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:00:00 CDT | by Shane McGlaun

RIM Buys Torch Mobile

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One of the big problems RIM has had lately is due to the outdated, clunky web browser that comes stock with all BlackBerry phones. Compared to the smooth interface offered by the iPhone, RIM's offerings haven't looked so hot. Fortunately, the world's #2 smartphone manufacturer is hard at work fixing what ails its mobile line. Last week they announced upcoming full Flash and Silverlight support for their browsers.

Posted on Mon, 24 Aug 2009 10:15:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

RIM Bringing Full Flash Support to BlackBerries

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Huge news, BlackBerry addicts! According to Boy Genius RIM is in the process of integrating full Flash and Microsoft Silverlight support to the BlackBerry web browser. This is HUGE news for the world's #2 smartphone manufacturer, and bad news to Apple's h.264 codec. Smartphones have gotten away with ignoring Flash for a long time, but it looks like Adobe finally won this particular tug-of-war.

Now, be forewarned that just because Flash support is in development doesn't mean we'll see it anytime soon. RIM is notoriously slow with this sort of thing, and the current scuttlebutt doesn't have this integration going live before next Summer. If that's true, Flash integration will likely be introduced alongside the next big upgrade to the BlackBerry line.

Posted on Wed, 19 Aug 2009 12:35:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

Apple Catching Up To RIM

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A report today from Gartner Research shows that Apple is rapidly catching up to BlackBerry manufacturer RIM for share of the world smartphone market. The Cupertino, California-based company is currently in third place with 13.3% of the market. RIM is not very far ahead, with 18.7% of the market. Their lead over Apple has been disintegrating over the last year thanks to increased 3GS sales, and a lack of recent innovation from RIM.

The smartphone market as a whole has seen a growth of 27% over the second quarter of 2009, while worldwide mobile phone sales have actually declined by 6%. The reasons for this aren't difficult to puzzle out. The cell phone market is reaching total saturation; everyone already has a mobile phone. While that market has little-to-no room for growth, the smartphone market is booming. People who were early cell phone adopters already own smartphones, and now the devices have caught on with the general public.

Posted on Wed, 12 Aug 2009 13:10:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

RIM Stomps the Competition in Q2.

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Today is iPhone day. Thousands of Apple fans have queued up in eight countries across the world with hundreds of dollars in cash clenched in their hands, waiting for their turn at the register. Over 500,000 iPhones are expected to sell today. With all the iPhone hype, you might expect Apple's competitors to be quivering in their boots.

While other manufacturers might be worried by Apple's success, RIM isn't the slightest bit concerned. Their device shipments and activations are 20-30% ahead for June and July, and they continue to see rising profits as they capture an increasingly large segment of the mobile market.

Posted on Fri, 19 Jun 2009 09:45:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

THQ Announces CrimeCraft for PC

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THQ and Vogster Entertainment have announced what they are calling a persistent world next-gen shooter called CrimeCraft for the PC. I guess adding craft to the end of an online MMO game makes them feel more successful. The game is set to ship in August and will be sold exclusively at Best Buy.

The game merges elements of a shooter game with an MMORPG title to bring something that sounds a little like the epic fail that was PlanetSide. The game is said to mix fantasy and sci-fi themes into the mix. Read more

Posted on Fri, 29 May 2009 10:00:00 CDT | by Shane McGlaun

Metroid Prime Trilogy Comes to Wii

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Metroid was one of those old Nintendo games that I played a lot of when I was a kid. The game was lots of fun back in the day and Nintendo Wii owners will be able to get their hands on the entire Metroid Prime three game series starting this August.

All three of the Metroid Prime games will be offered on a single disc and the first two games are being revamped with controls to take advantage of the Nintendo Wii Remote. The game will have a unified main menu that allows players to choose which game they want to play. Read more

Posted on Tue, 26 May 2009 07:00:00 CDT | by Shane McGlaun

Beyond Good & Evil 2, Grim Fandango, and Monkey Island: E3 Rumors!

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We've got a heaping plate of rumors for all of you gamers eagerly waiting to see what E3 has in store for your favorite hobby.

We'll start it of with some bad news: Beyond Good & Evil 2 is not, I repeat, not going to be shown at E3 2009. Ubisoft will be bringing Assassin's Creed 2, the new Avatar game, and the latest Splinter Cell, but that's it. Ubi's given no reason for BG&E 2's absence, but I'm hopeful that it's because they're going all out and don't want to release a demo before everything is close to perfect.

Posted on Thu, 14 May 2009 12:30:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

HP and RIM Offer Business mobility on Blackberry Smartphones

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Blackberry and HP announced today that new business mobility solutions are being offered for Blackberry phones. The new solutions include support for Blackberry Enterprise Server 5.0 and help enterprise users increase service leads, reduce operating costs, and improve productivity for customers.

Among the services are HP CloudPrint that lets users print emails and other things using the Blackberry from wherever they are. HP Operations Manager for Blackberry Enterprise Server allows for centrally monitored and managed Blackberry solutions. Read more

Posted on Mon, 4 May 2009 06:26:34 CDT | by Shane McGlaun

Jawbone PRIME In Stores Now!

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We reported last week that AT&T had a new Jawbone bluetooth headset coming out soon. Today the Jawbone PRIME is out on time and lined up in AT&T stores across the country.

The PRIME features some interesting features, like its NoiseAssassin 2.0 noise-canceling technology. NoiseAssassin is primarily designed to stop loud sudden bursts of sound or gusts of wind from disrupting calls or making it difficult to use your Jawbone on a windy day. The Jawbone can also be connected to two phones at a time, with the intent of allowing customers to hook up to both a business and a personal phone.

Posted on Fri, 1 May 2009 13:50:00 CDT | by Robert Evans

RIM CEO on Storm Glitches: Nobody Gets It Perfect Out the Door

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RIM CEO Mike Lazaridis defended his company against accusations that the BlackBerry Storm was rushed to store shelves unfinished, despite poor critical reception (The New York Times’ David Pogue in a review asked, “How did this thing ever reach the market?”) and user complaints of bugs. In a sit-down interview with Laptopmag.com, he claimed, “…of course we do a lot of testing every time before releasing these devices. And I think that it’s unfair. That’s our first touch product, and you know nobody gets it perfect out the door.”

He also reiterated RIM’s commitment to Storm users, claiming RIM “didn’t stop” and “never stopped” responding to complaints.

Lazaridis did not comment of any future products, including Storm 2 rumors. Though, he did claim they were working to improve the BlackBerry browser to offer a complete Web experience, and carrier billing for BlackBerry App World. App purchases previously ran through PayPal.

Posted on Wed, 15 Apr 2009 21:15:00 CDT | by James Douglas

Robot Scientist makes its own Experiments and Discoveries

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Robot Adam does not have a body and a face like the humanoid Japanese robots, but he can plan his own experiments.
At Aberystwyth (it is really spelled this way; proof) University in Wales, Ross King and colleagues have created a robot called Adam that can not only carry out experiments on yeast metabolism but also reason about the results and plan the next experiment. Read more

Posted on Fri, 3 Apr 2009 01:50:21 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

Trimble Yuma Rugged Computer Announced

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Say the name Trimble and GPS devices are what jumps to mind for many people. I didn’t even know the company made rugged computers, yet it does. The latest rugged computer in the Trimble line is the Yuma.

The system uses an Atom CPU at 1.6 GHz and sports integrated Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, and a pair of digital cameras. Expansion slots include SDIO and ExpressCard slots. The rugged system has an ingress protection rating of 67 breaking down to 6 for dust, 7 protection and can be immersed in water up to 1 meter. Read more

Posted on Mon, 23 Feb 2009 12:00:00 CST | by Shane McGlaun

Windows 7 User Interface Primer

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The new user interface of Windows 7 has some nifty improvements over Vista. Gizmodo put together a primer on the most interesting new Windows 7 UI features.
Quote: "Under the hood, Windows 7 is a lot like Vista. Indeed, most of what gets us hot and not-so-bothered about is what's on top: When it comes to look and feel, the new UI is the biggest step forward since Windows 95. Read more

Posted on Tue, 10 Feb 2009 16:00:00 CST | by Luigi Lugmayr

RIM to update BlackBerry Storm Firmware soon?

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The bulk of the BlackBerry Storm reviews published today complain about UI lag and some bugs. Gearlog reports that RIM told them that the BlackBerry Storm would get an over-the-air software update "within weeks".

These bad reviews take a bit of the momentum away from the BlackBerry Storm. I recommend RIM and Verizon to actually officially announce a fix now, so customers can be assured their new touchscreen BlackBerry will be a fun experience to use. Read more

Posted on Thu, 20 Nov 2008 09:33:29 CST | by Luigi Lugmayr

NEC Prime N-01A Touchscreen Phone changes Shapes

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Japanese mobile phone users can get a new mobile phone marvel in their hands this month with the NEC Prime N01A from DoCoMo.
The NEC Prime N01A features a stunning 3.2 inch touchscreen with wide-VGA resolution that can be shifted and rotated. In shifted state the keypad can be used to make calls or type SMS. In the rotated mode the screen is set for some nice wide-screen video and TV watching. Read more

Posted on Tue, 18 Nov 2008 02:16:20 CST | by Luigi Lugmayr

Oracle buys Primavera Software

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Oracle announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire Primavera Software, Inc., a leading provider of Project Portfolio Management (PPM) solutions for project-intensive industries. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the second half of 2008. Until the deal closes, each company will continue to operate independently. Read more

Posted on Wed, 8 Oct 2008 07:50:22 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

Leaked BlackBerry Document details RIM Thunder Positioning and much more

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We just reported about leaked slides for the upcoming touchscreen BlackBerry Thunder. The BoyGeniusReport has even more leaked information from RIM that details the BlackBerry product positioning and upcoming future BlackBerry phones. Looks like RIM needs some urgent consulting from Apple on how to keep their people from leaking stuff.
The density of the leaked BlackBerry material should be even a very revealing read for Apple and other RIM competitors.
There is just everything in there from market segmentation to competitive positioning. Read more

Posted on Sun, 5 Oct 2008 04:21:19 CDT | by Luigi Lugmayr

US Olympic Swimmers Use Technology to Trim Times

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A professor of fluid mechanics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute used experimental measuring techniques to help the US swim team gain precious milliseconds on their swim times. Professor Timothy Wei developed top-secret equipment and techniques that USA Swimming coaches used to train the Olympians.

The professor used a flaw measurement technique called Digital Particle Image Velocimetry to create a training tool that monitors the swimmers in real-time. The technique allowed the team to look at how swimmers move in the water, identify key vortices, and compute how much energy the swimmer exerts. Read more

Posted on Mon, 11 Aug 2008 12:31:44 CDT | by Shane McGlaun