Shot Shot Pirate is very satisfying, because each level is short and to the point. You know what you have to do and you just do it.
As you may have gathered from the name, you're cast in the role of a pirate. Your goal is to shoot at a diamond and make it fall off a tower of bricks. The height of the tower changes as you progress through the levels. It's not enough to just make the diamond fall off the tower of bricks - it has to fall below a certain line (drawn on the screen) for the level to be completed.
There are also different kinds of bricks, with some heavier than others, and different kinds of ammo. You only get a certain amount of ammo for each level, and when it's gone, you lose. But don't worry! If you don't make it on the first try, it's very easy to restart the level and just give it another shot (or three).
All in all it's a cute game. I've seen similar games with better graphics and music, but the game delivers on its main promise - a few minutes of pure time wasting!Shot Shot Pirate is a fun, simple physics game originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Monday, February 28, 2011
Honk! Anyone Home? ?Door Claxon? Combines Horn and Handle
Dieter Volkers’ Door Claxon is a beautifully clever combination of a doorknob and a doorbell. Or rather, a doorhorn.
At first the Netherlands-based designer’s handle looks like little more than whimsy, but look again. First, it’s plain fun to have the horn honk through the handle, but then we see that the inside handle is also [...]
At first the Netherlands-based designer’s handle looks like little more than whimsy, but look again. First, it’s plain fun to have the horn honk through the handle, but then we see that the inside handle is also [...]
ASUS Eee Pad MeMO and MeMic hands-on (video)
Though we played with ASUS' Android-powered Eee Pad MeMO back at CES, the company spilled a couple new secrets here at CeBIT today: first, it'll be running Honeycomb by the time it launches in June -- current prototypes are running Gingerbread -- and second, certain MeMO bundles will include the MeMic, a separate Bluetooth handset that lets you take calls without holding a giant tablet to your face (it's pronounced "me-mike," by the way). Interestingly, the MeMic features a translucent LCD that we're told will make it to the production units; unfortunately, the units on display were running very early alpha software that had "given out" by the time we arrived at the booth, so we couldn't get a sense of viewability. In addition to making calls, the MeMic will let you stream music, control media, and perform a few other basic tasks that make sense for a tablet remote.
On the Honeycomb side, ASUS tells us the delay is simple -- as it stands, a commercial-grade Honeycomb port doesn't exist for Qualcomm hardware, which is what the Eee Pad MeMO is running (the Xoom -- the only released Honeycomb tablet so far -- is running Tegra 2). The company's confident that it'll be ready by the time the MeMO's slated for release in June, however. Follow the break for video!
Gallery: ASUS Eee Pad MeMO and MeMic hands-onContinue reading ASUS Eee Pad MeMO and MeMic hands-on (video)ASUS Eee Pad MeMO and MeMic hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 08:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
On the Honeycomb side, ASUS tells us the delay is simple -- as it stands, a commercial-grade Honeycomb port doesn't exist for Qualcomm hardware, which is what the Eee Pad MeMO is running (the Xoom -- the only released Honeycomb tablet so far -- is running Tegra 2). The company's confident that it'll be ready by the time the MeMO's slated for release in June, however. Follow the break for video!
Gallery: ASUS Eee Pad MeMO and MeMic hands-onContinue reading ASUS Eee Pad MeMO and MeMic hands-on (video)ASUS Eee Pad MeMO and MeMic hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 08:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Fake College Copies a Real College's Website to Steal Money from Students [Scam]
University of Redwood's school website had beautiful pictures of their campus and even a faculty directory. Too bad the college wasn't real. Turns out the website stole all of its content from Reed College and scammed prospective students out of application fees. More »
Oscar Losers Get Free Trip to Space [Blips]
Jesse Eisenberg—not an Oscar winner. However! As part of his Hey sorry, no hard feelings goody bag from the Academy, he's getting a $200,000 free trip on Virgin Galactic—along with all the other losers. [NYP via Hairpin] More »
Dell Venue Pro arrives in the UK at long last: �459 off contract, shipping in 10 days (update: Germany also)
Time for a quick memory check: remember the WP7 slider that Dell announced some months ago? That's right, it's the Venue Pro -- the one that's been struggling to meet demand in the US due to some mysterious reworking. Well, here's some good news for the folks on the other side of the pond: starting today, Dell's UK store is taking orders for this unlocked slider for a hefty £459 ($745), and the first deliveries are expected to arrive in 10 days. Man, these wicked people from Round Rock sure love making us wait, but better late than never, right?
Update: We've been informed by our friends over at BestBoyZ that Germany's also getting the Venue Pro today for around €534.Continue reading Dell Venue Pro arrives in the UK at long last: �459 off contract, shipping in 10 days (update: Germany also)Dell Venue Pro arrives in the UK at long last: �459 off contract, shipping in 10 days (update: Germany also) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 11:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Dell | Email this | Comments
Update: We've been informed by our friends over at BestBoyZ that Germany's also getting the Venue Pro today for around €534.Continue reading Dell Venue Pro arrives in the UK at long last: �459 off contract, shipping in 10 days (update: Germany also)Dell Venue Pro arrives in the UK at long last: �459 off contract, shipping in 10 days (update: Germany also) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Feb 2011 11:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Dell | Email this | Comments
Why Didn't the New 13-inch MacBook Pro Get a Higher Resolution Screen? [Question]
There's no question that the new MacBook Pros are blazingly awesome. The whole line has been rejuvenated with Sandy Bridge processors, better graphics and a lightning fast Thunderbolt I/O port. But one thing has been bothering us about the update, or rather, lack of update: The 13-inch MacBook Pro still has a lower resolution screen. There's not even an option for a higher-res screen, like the 15-inch Pro. More »
Opera 11.10 Barracuda incoming
With nothing more than the most tantalizing of teasers, the Opera team has just announced that an early build of Opera 11.10, codenamed Barracuda, will emerge "in the near future."
As far as Barracuda's feature set is concerned, all we know is that "another popular Opera feature will be taken to the next level."
If any of Download Squad's seven Opera users are out there: shall we take some bets on which feature the Opera team is hinting at? Our money's on hardware acceleration, though that doesn't really fit with Opera's hint...Opera 11.10 Barracuda incoming originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 07:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
As far as Barracuda's feature set is concerned, all we know is that "another popular Opera feature will be taken to the next level."
If any of Download Squad's seven Opera users are out there: shall we take some bets on which feature the Opera team is hinting at? Our money's on hardware acceleration, though that doesn't really fit with Opera's hint...Opera 11.10 Barracuda incoming originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 07:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Twitter overhauls its Translation Center, adds Turkish, Indonesian and Russian
First launched in 2009, Twitter has just overhauled its 'gameified' Translation Center. It now has a very shiny UI, and voting on suggested translations or adding your own is easier than ever.
Translating phrases earns you experience points, and ultimately yields level-ups. You don't actually get anything by leveling up -- you just end up at the top of a feel-good leader board. If you're an active translator, though, you do get a badge on your profile page -- and as we all know, except for having wheelbarrows of cash, badges are the single most important metric of social status.
To get started, head on over to the Twitter Translation Center and connect it to your Twitter account. You can choose from a bunch of languages, and your translation services aren't limited to just the Twitter.com website: you can translate the mobile website and iPhone and Android apps, too.Twitter overhauls its Translation Center, adds Turkish, Indonesian and Russian originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Translating phrases earns you experience points, and ultimately yields level-ups. You don't actually get anything by leveling up -- you just end up at the top of a feel-good leader board. If you're an active translator, though, you do get a badge on your profile page -- and as we all know, except for having wheelbarrows of cash, badges are the single most important metric of social status.
To get started, head on over to the Twitter Translation Center and connect it to your Twitter account. You can choose from a bunch of languages, and your translation services aren't limited to just the Twitter.com website: you can translate the mobile website and iPhone and Android apps, too.Twitter overhauls its Translation Center, adds Turkish, Indonesian and Russian originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
SpellBook Google Chrome extension adds right-click access to bookmarklets
We're big users of right-click context menus, especially in our Web browsers. We also love bookmarklets -- those handy little JavaScript snippets that sit next to our normal bookmarks and provide extension-like functionality. Combine these two things, and you've got SpellBook, a new Google Chrome extension that provides right-click access to all your bookmarklets.
Just install SpellBook and use Chrome's bookmark manager to drop your bookmarklets into the folder the extension creates. Now when you want to fire up you favorite marklet, you can simply click your right mouse button, hover over SpellBook, and then click the one you want to execute. The extension also adds two-click access to the Chrome bookmark manager.
Looking for some handy bookmarklets to install, too? Check out our list of favorites -- and remember, they'll work in practically any Web browser!SpellBook Google Chrome extension adds right-click access to bookmarklets originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Just install SpellBook and use Chrome's bookmark manager to drop your bookmarklets into the folder the extension creates. Now when you want to fire up you favorite marklet, you can simply click your right mouse button, hover over SpellBook, and then click the one you want to execute. The extension also adds two-click access to the Chrome bookmark manager.
Looking for some handy bookmarklets to install, too? Check out our list of favorites -- and remember, they'll work in practically any Web browser!SpellBook Google Chrome extension adds right-click access to bookmarklets originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 09:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Google updates search to massively bias original content
Google has just made a change to its search engine that noticeably impacts 12% of all queries. Yet again, it is aimed at reducing the prevalence of non-original content farm content in search results. It also heavily biases sites with "original content and information such as research, in-depth reports, thoughtful analysis," increasing their chance of being at the top. This only affects google.com at the moment, but it will be rolled out to other domains in due course.
Last month Google publicised its first anti-content farm maneuver -- and while that only affected 2% of queries, we still noticed a significant increase of traffic here on Download Squad. Then, just a couple of weeks ago, Google launched the Personal Blocklist, an extension that lets you filter out content farms from your search results.
With today's massive alteration of Google's search algorithm, it really could mean the difference between life and death for ad-supported sites that produce original content. A quick look at our logs from last night suggest that it could be a very big boost indeed.
It should be noted that the results from the Personal Blocklist haven't been used yet -- but apparently, Google's search changes filter out 84% of the sites that users have been blocking with the extension; a sure sign that Google has hit the nail on the head.Google updates search to massively bias original content originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 25 Feb 2011 06:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Last month Google publicised its first anti-content farm maneuver -- and while that only affected 2% of queries, we still noticed a significant increase of traffic here on Download Squad. Then, just a couple of weeks ago, Google launched the Personal Blocklist, an extension that lets you filter out content farms from your search results.
With today's massive alteration of Google's search algorithm, it really could mean the difference between life and death for ad-supported sites that produce original content. A quick look at our logs from last night suggest that it could be a very big boost indeed.
It should be noted that the results from the Personal Blocklist haven't been used yet -- but apparently, Google's search changes filter out 84% of the sites that users have been blocking with the extension; a sure sign that Google has hit the nail on the head.Google updates search to massively bias original content originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 25 Feb 2011 06:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Your Bones Will Feel the Rumbler Siren Coming [Sirens]
Sirens! Nothing new. Ubiquitous on city streets. Even small towns have, to some degree, grown accustomed to their shrill warnings. That's kind of a problem! Enter the Rumbler. You literally feel it coming. Updated. More »
Samsung Galaxy S II gets price and release date
Samsung's dual-core, Gingerbread-powered Galaxy S II has appeared on Play.co.uk alongside a tentative SIM-free price and release date. According to Play, which is currently taking pre-orders for the phone, it'll ship Mar. 31 for £599.99 (~$960). Pre-release prices are never guaranteed to be accurate and are always subject to change, but £599 seems like a realistic price point for the Galaxy S II, as it's slightly higher than current single-core offerings from other manufacturers.Can't wait another month for your Galaxy S II fix? Check out our hands-on coverage from MWC 2011. [Play.co.uk]Samsung Galaxy S II gets price and release date posted originally by Android CentralSponsored by Android Cases and Accessories
New MacBooks Get Faster Chips, Thunderbolt Port
Apple on Thursday refreshed the MacBook family with faster processors, more-powerful graphic cards and, most notably, a new connection port called Thunderbolt.
Ranging from 13 to 17 inches in screen size, the notebooks ship with the brand-new Thunderbolt connectivity standard that Apple co-developed with Intel.
Thunderbolt can transfer up to 10 Gbps, which is theoretically 12 times [...]
Ranging from 13 to 17 inches in screen size, the notebooks ship with the brand-new Thunderbolt connectivity standard that Apple co-developed with Intel.
Thunderbolt can transfer up to 10 Gbps, which is theoretically 12 times [...]
Roku XD|S Media Player Review
In my never ending quest to divorce myself from Comcast and their overpriced cable service, I have been searching for alternate methods for the family to watch our shows. The Mvix Ultio media device was an effort in frustration, that fell well short of my needs and expectations. Fortunately, there are many other options in [...]
Your Bones Will Feel the Rumbler Siren Coming [Sirens]
Sirens! Nothing new. Ubiquitous on city streets. Even small towns have, to some degree, grown accustomed to their shrill warnings. That's kind of a problem! Enter the Rumbler. You literally feel it coming. Updated. More »
Aiaiai TMA-1 Headphones Review
Looking at the box containing the Aiaiai TMA-1 headphones, one would expect flashy, ?Look-at-me? headphones to be packed inside. After all, they were developed by and for DJs, and DJs like to be noticed, right? What you may not know is that Aiaiai is a Danish company? Scandinavian. Lets face it, Scandinavians are design minimalists [...]
Firefox 5 UI mock-ups from Mozilla: pinned sites, slicker search bar, and more
Over the last few days, Mozilla's lovely Are We Pretty Yet? has been steadily accumulating Firefox 5 interface mock-ups. If you haven't visited AWPY before, its primary purpose is for listing and fixing bugs in the Firefox 4 UI -- but it seems it will now also be used to showcase potential interfaces for Firefox 5.
The mock-ups include concepts for 'desktop apps', which are Firefox's answer to IE9's pinned sites, and hopefully they'll re-use the same meta tags so that website developers won't have to accommodate both browsers. Presumably a similar interface will be used for Open Web Apps when they finally emerge, too.
There are some suggested changes to the search bar, mostly to make it more streamlined -- and no sign of it being merged with the location bar, like Chrome or IE9.
Firefox Sync looks like it will be more prominently advertised, both on the about:home default start page, and in Remember Password and Edit Bookmark dialogs.
Finally, it looks like enabling/disabling and updating add-ons could be significantly streamlined in Firefox 5. It seems a little odd to break out into a separate window after moving to a tabbed add-on manager in Firefox 4, though.
It's unlikely that any of these are more than design concepts at the moment, so don't get too scared or excited. We shouldn't have long to wait before real builds of Firefox 5 begin to emerge, anyway -- probably by the end of March.
There are a couple of full-size screenshots of the mock-ups after the break.Continue reading Firefox 5 UI mock-ups from Mozilla: pinned sites, slicker search bar, and moreFirefox 5 UI mock-ups from Mozilla: pinned sites, slicker search bar, and more originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 17 Feb 2011 06:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
The mock-ups include concepts for 'desktop apps', which are Firefox's answer to IE9's pinned sites, and hopefully they'll re-use the same meta tags so that website developers won't have to accommodate both browsers. Presumably a similar interface will be used for Open Web Apps when they finally emerge, too.
There are some suggested changes to the search bar, mostly to make it more streamlined -- and no sign of it being merged with the location bar, like Chrome or IE9.
Firefox Sync looks like it will be more prominently advertised, both on the about:home default start page, and in Remember Password and Edit Bookmark dialogs.
Finally, it looks like enabling/disabling and updating add-ons could be significantly streamlined in Firefox 5. It seems a little odd to break out into a separate window after moving to a tabbed add-on manager in Firefox 4, though.
It's unlikely that any of these are more than design concepts at the moment, so don't get too scared or excited. We shouldn't have long to wait before real builds of Firefox 5 begin to emerge, anyway -- probably by the end of March.
There are a couple of full-size screenshots of the mock-ups after the break.Continue reading Firefox 5 UI mock-ups from Mozilla: pinned sites, slicker search bar, and moreFirefox 5 UI mock-ups from Mozilla: pinned sites, slicker search bar, and more originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 17 Feb 2011 06:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Live from the Engadget reader meetup in San Francisco (live video!)
Have you heard? We're having a party tonight and you are invited! If you happen to be in San Francisco, we'll be here at The Metreon playing with the latest gadgets from loads of companies, including Sony, Motorola, HTC, HP, and Jawbone. It all starts at 6:30PM and goes until 10:30PM. Oh, and did we mention there's awesome music and a taco truck parked outside? As you can see, the line is already around the corner, but there's plenty of room. If you can't make it, we'll be liveblogging and uploading tons of pictures in this very post. All the details on how to get here and what to expect can be found right here.Continue reading Live from the Engadget reader meetup in San Francisco (live video!)Live from the Engadget reader meetup in San Francisco (live video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 25 Feb 2011 21:06:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Daily Crunch: Knife Fight Edition
Pro Tip: Fruit Roll-Ups Make Solid Flash Gels World?s First Flexible Microprocessor Made With Organic Semiconductors Clock Clock Is A Clock Of Clocks The Creditor Carbon Fiber Money Clip Knife Keeps Your Money Safe Gadg-Art: Love It, But Don?t Really Use It.
Insidia is a dark-yet-forgiving platformer -- Time Waster
So you're an alien, tooling around in free space in your little spaceship... when suddenly, disaster strikes! Your craft is hit by a meteor, and you're forced to crash-land on an unfamiliar, dark planet.
That's where Insidia starts off. Now that you're on the planet, you have to navigate its complex maze of rooms and corridors in search of repair kits for your craft. Once you find all ten repair kits, you'd be able to leave the planet (and win the game).
Unlike many other platformers, Insidia is not linear. As you progress through the game, you reveal more and more passages and rooms, but you also go through some places more than once. When you hit M you get a nice map that shows everywhere you've been so far and gives you a sense of how much is still to be explored.
As you walk around, you find items that improve your abilities (a double-jump power-up, for example). And when something kills you, you just respawn at the last "save point", with all of your items and abilities intact. I love that, because it means dying is not a big deal - it's just a part of the game, and it doesn't make you feel like you're failing.
All in all, this is a platformer I could certainly spend some time with.Insidia is a dark-yet-forgiving platformer -- Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
That's where Insidia starts off. Now that you're on the planet, you have to navigate its complex maze of rooms and corridors in search of repair kits for your craft. Once you find all ten repair kits, you'd be able to leave the planet (and win the game).
Unlike many other platformers, Insidia is not linear. As you progress through the game, you reveal more and more passages and rooms, but you also go through some places more than once. When you hit M you get a nice map that shows everywhere you've been so far and gives you a sense of how much is still to be explored.
As you walk around, you find items that improve your abilities (a double-jump power-up, for example). And when something kills you, you just respawn at the last "save point", with all of your items and abilities intact. I love that, because it means dying is not a big deal - it's just a part of the game, and it doesn't make you feel like you're failing.
All in all, this is a platformer I could certainly spend some time with.Insidia is a dark-yet-forgiving platformer -- Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Nintendo 3DS launches in Japan, populace tears through initial 400,000 unit shipment
You won't be able to snap one up at your local GameStop for a full month, but the Nintendo 3DS had a solid launch in Japan today, reportedly liquidating nearly its entire initial shipment of 400,000 spiffy stereoscopic gaming handhelds by the end of the day. Some of those sales were to customers waiting in a few lines up to 2,000 persons long, but those lines were exceptions to the norm -- several publications note that very few stores actually had any lines to speak of, as most Japanese electronics retailers sold out when the 3DS went on pre-order over a month ago. Get a refresher on what to expect from the system here (and here) or read all about the surprisingly orderly Japanese launch at our source links.
Update: Our friends at Engadget Japanese were on hand for the 3DS launch, and picked up a pair of systems themselves -- get a closer look at one of the first retail 3DS units in the gallery below!
Gallery: Nintendo 3DS -- Japanese retail version
Nintendo 3DS launches in Japan, populace tears through initial 400,000 unit shipment originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 26 Feb 2011 21:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink NeoGAF, PC World | Nikkei Shimbun, Andriasang | Email this | Comments
Update: Our friends at Engadget Japanese were on hand for the 3DS launch, and picked up a pair of systems themselves -- get a closer look at one of the first retail 3DS units in the gallery below!
Gallery: Nintendo 3DS -- Japanese retail version
Nintendo 3DS launches in Japan, populace tears through initial 400,000 unit shipment originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 26 Feb 2011 21:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink NeoGAF, PC World | Nikkei Shimbun, Andriasang | Email this | Comments
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Samsung's Google TV delayed by Intel exclusivity agreement?
Samsung's been waffling on Google TV for quite some time -- prototypes aside -- and now Bloomberg thinks it might know the reason why. According to an anonymous source, Mountain View's been requiring that OEMs use Intel's CE4100 chip in their television products, and as any self-respecting chipmaker might be expected to do, Samsung declined. Now, with Google TV's efforts to break into the living room floundering, the search giant has allegedly lifted the restriction and allowed Samsung to use its own silicon, meaning we'll likely see Google TV running on a certain dual-core ARM in the months to come. Anything to save us from Smart TV, right?Samsung's Google TV delayed by Intel exclusivity agreement? originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 25 Feb 2011 17:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Bloomberg | Email this | Comments
Verizon CEO claims Apple LTE products are coming, doesn't specify when
Dan Mead, Lowell McAdam's successor at the helm of Verizon Wireless, has told the Wall Street Journal that we'll "see more coming from Apple on LTE. They understand the value proposition of LTE and I feel very confident that they are going to be a part of it." No further details were forthcoming from the chief exec, such as timing and the particular shape of Apple's participation in Verizon's LTE plans, but at least we now have an indication that Cupertino is actively working toward 4G connectivity. Mead's comments came as part of an interview discussing the iPhone 4's launch on his network, which has already seen the device bust through Verizon's opening sales record. Notably, at the actual launch of that phone, Tim Cook said an LTE version of the iPhone would have required too many compromises, so we suspect those compromises are exactly what Apple's working on right now.Verizon CEO claims Apple LTE products are coming, doesn't specify when originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 25 Feb 2011 17:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink Phone Scoop | Wall Street Journal | Email this | Comments
Free iPad a Day Giveaway From Zagg
Everyone loves a great contest, especially when it’s free to enter and involves giveaways! How would you like the opportunity to win a free iPad? For all of February Zagg will be giving away a free iPad to one lucky winner each day of the month! You can enter the contest once a day simply [...]
Consumer Reports Finds Antenna Issue on Verizon iPhone
Consumer Reports claims the Verizon iPhone 4 exhibits signal loss when held in a specific way, similar to the problems seen in the AT&T iPhone 4 last year.
More�Verizon iPhone coverage on Wired.com:
Review: Verizon iPhone
Hands-On With the Verizon iPhone Hotspot
Price Chart: Verizon iPhone vs. AT&T iPhone
Switching to Verizon iPhone? 3 Ways to Shave the Termination Fee
Verizon [...]
More�Verizon iPhone coverage on Wired.com:
Review: Verizon iPhone
Hands-On With the Verizon iPhone Hotspot
Price Chart: Verizon iPhone vs. AT&T iPhone
Switching to Verizon iPhone? 3 Ways to Shave the Termination Fee
Verizon [...]
Epic Makes Unreal Engine More Realistic for Small Devs
Epic Games has created award-winning series like "Gears of War" and "Unreal Tournament," as well as a popular proprietary development platform. That platform, Unreal Engine, doesn't only appear in Epic titles, though. The company has allowed other developers to license it -- for a fee. Now, it's opening up that platform to independent developers with no upfront cost.
Ask Engadget: best (non-ugly) noise-cancelling Bluetooth headset for drowning out office noise?
We know you've got questions, and if you're brave enough to ask the world for answers, here's the outlet to do so. This week's Ask Engadget question is coming to us from Simon, who seems to be not-so-secretly hoping to drown out his entire office. If you're looking to send in an inquiry of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.
"I need a headset which can block out the background from a busy office. I'm talking repetitive noises such as drilling, background chatter, keyboard clattering, computer fan whirring and the endless static from our building's air conditioner. I would love if this headset had a fair to good quality of sound for MP3s, and it would of course have to have a good microphone for IP phone telephony and Skype. If it didn't look like something from Radio Shack that would be a bonus, and if the microphone was a bit discreet for street and airplane use that would be an added benefit. Lastly the connection to a workstation could be both USB and Bluetooth, with a preference for wireless. Thanks!"
Bluetooth headsets have evolved quite a bit since the last time we had this discussion, so we're curious what you're currently using to make work a wee bit more bearable? No need in keeping secrets, right? Speak out in comments below!Ask Engadget: best (non-ugly) noise-cancelling Bluetooth headset for drowning out office noise? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 23:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
"I need a headset which can block out the background from a busy office. I'm talking repetitive noises such as drilling, background chatter, keyboard clattering, computer fan whirring and the endless static from our building's air conditioner. I would love if this headset had a fair to good quality of sound for MP3s, and it would of course have to have a good microphone for IP phone telephony and Skype. If it didn't look like something from Radio Shack that would be a bonus, and if the microphone was a bit discreet for street and airplane use that would be an added benefit. Lastly the connection to a workstation could be both USB and Bluetooth, with a preference for wireless. Thanks!"
Bluetooth headsets have evolved quite a bit since the last time we had this discussion, so we're curious what you're currently using to make work a wee bit more bearable? No need in keeping secrets, right? Speak out in comments below!Ask Engadget: best (non-ugly) noise-cancelling Bluetooth headset for drowning out office noise? originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 23:59:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Firefox 4 for Android and Maemo coming 'in a few weeks'
Jay Sullivan, Mozilla's vice president of products, has told the IDG News Service at the Mobile World Congress that Firefox 4 for Android will ship in a few weeks. We should expect to see one more beta version this week, and then the final build soon after.
Sullivan also tells IDG about Firefox for Mobile's extensive feature set -- 150 add-ons will be available! -- and Mozilla's overall move to a faster, quarterly release cycle.
Android already has a lot of competent browsers, but an HTML5-rendering, hardware-accelerated and sync-enabled offering would blow the rest of the competition out of the water.Firefox 4 for Android and Maemo coming 'in a few weeks' originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Sullivan also tells IDG about Firefox for Mobile's extensive feature set -- 150 add-ons will be available! -- and Mozilla's overall move to a faster, quarterly release cycle.
Android already has a lot of competent browsers, but an HTML5-rendering, hardware-accelerated and sync-enabled offering would blow the rest of the competition out of the water.Firefox 4 for Android and Maemo coming 'in a few weeks' originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
First Windows Phone 7 update updates update mechanism, no copy paste
If you've been waiting patiently for your Windows Phone 7 device to get copy and paste support, bad news: you're still going to be waiting after you install the update Microsoft is pushing today. The first Windows Phone 7 update brings changes which will pave the way for future updates -- by improving the way the operating system handles updates.
And don't forget, for now you need the Zune desktop app for Windows or the Windows Phone 7 connector app for Mac to install updates on your WP7 phone. Perhaps one of the improvements being shipped is support for OTA updates...First Windows Phone 7 update updates update mechanism, no copy paste originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
And don't forget, for now you need the Zune desktop app for Windows or the Windows Phone 7 connector app for Mac to install updates on your WP7 phone. Perhaps one of the improvements being shipped is support for OTA updates...First Windows Phone 7 update updates update mechanism, no copy paste originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
People Upgrade Cellphones Every 18 Months On Average [Datapoint]
An interesting consumer spending stat: People upgrade their phones once every 18 months now, up from 16. That's a curious number, possibly averaging out people who upgrade yearly with people who only upgrade when their cellphone contract runs out. Otherwise, I can't see that the majority of folks feel like they need to pay early upgrade fees to get the latest stuff—especially when you're talking about the mainstream, non-tech folks. [NYT] More »
What Do You Get When You Cross a Clown Horn With a Doorknob? [Design]
You get this odd looking piece, created by the Netherlands-based Dieter Volkers. It will ensure that nobody visiting your home/room takes you very seriously. [Dieter Volkers via Core77 via FastCo] More »
Crocodoc launches plug-in free, embeddable document viewer
Looking for a slick way to share documents and allow collaborators to add annotations? Check out Crocodoc, which has launched a plug-in free document viewer powered by the standard Web code we both love and hate to refer to as HTML5.
Just like competitor Scribd, files you upload to Crocodoc can be easily embedded on any site (check out a demo after the break). Readers can also post comments and annotations and download documents as a PDF with or without markup applied.
Crocodoc offers a full API and the company's Ryan Damico says it is more focused on attracting developers, whereas Scribd is aimed at publishers. Even so, Crocodoc is an excellent option for users who want to share and embed documents on the Web.Continue reading Crocodoc launches plug-in free, embeddable document viewerCrocodoc launches plug-in free, embeddable document viewer originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Just like competitor Scribd, files you upload to Crocodoc can be easily embedded on any site (check out a demo after the break). Readers can also post comments and annotations and download documents as a PDF with or without markup applied.
Crocodoc offers a full API and the company's Ryan Damico says it is more focused on attracting developers, whereas Scribd is aimed at publishers. Even so, Crocodoc is an excellent option for users who want to share and embed documents on the Web.Continue reading Crocodoc launches plug-in free, embeddable document viewerCrocodoc launches plug-in free, embeddable document viewer originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Friday, February 25, 2011
Go to Lunch with Timbuk2?s Minnie Rae
Do you tend to carry all your daily “stuff” inside your laptop bag, then you find yourself carrying your phone and wallet in your hands when you want to run a quick errand?� Timbuk2 has a small bag that may free up your hands without loading you down with another heavy bag; it may be [...]
Google Bookmarks gets Delicious import, via staffer's undead script
When Yahoo announced it was ready to wash its hands of Delicious, panicked users began looking for alternative places to send their cloud bookmarks. Delicious, however, responded quickly and said there was nothing to worry about -- the service was still being maintained and your bookmarks didn't need to be rescued from a burning building.
Never ones to miss an opportunity, Google has finally decided to trumpet the availability of a Delicious to Google Bookmarks importer. You can now visit the page, pop in your credentials, and move everything quickly and painlessly.
Interestingly, Google probably could have been doing this since 2006 -- when one of its engineers posted an identical script on a personal site. Mihai Parparita resurrected his importer's code back in December, and it's his reanimated script that Google is now using -- just check out the side-by-side image after the break and see.
Mashable's Jolie O'Dell figures the move might be a way to grab more Google Bookmark users. We can't help thinking the whole process would make a whole lot more sense if there was a way to access Google Bookmarks natively in Chrome -- you know, the way we can access our synced ones.Continue reading Google Bookmarks gets Delicious import, via staffer's undead scriptGoogle Bookmarks gets Delicious import, via staffer's undead script originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Never ones to miss an opportunity, Google has finally decided to trumpet the availability of a Delicious to Google Bookmarks importer. You can now visit the page, pop in your credentials, and move everything quickly and painlessly.
Interestingly, Google probably could have been doing this since 2006 -- when one of its engineers posted an identical script on a personal site. Mihai Parparita resurrected his importer's code back in December, and it's his reanimated script that Google is now using -- just check out the side-by-side image after the break and see.
Mashable's Jolie O'Dell figures the move might be a way to grab more Google Bookmark users. We can't help thinking the whole process would make a whole lot more sense if there was a way to access Google Bookmarks natively in Chrome -- you know, the way we can access our synced ones.Continue reading Google Bookmarks gets Delicious import, via staffer's undead scriptGoogle Bookmarks gets Delicious import, via staffer's undead script originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Tiny, Stick-On Joysticks for Touch Screen Gaming
Check ‘em out: nipples for the iPhone. Or, more accurately, “removable gaming buttons for touch screens”.
We have seen a lot of clever products which add physical, moveable joysticks to touch-screen devices and make many games easier to play, but the Joystickers, as they are called, are about the simplest around. The nubbins stick straight onto [...]
We have seen a lot of clever products which add physical, moveable joysticks to touch-screen devices and make many games easier to play, but the Joystickers, as they are called, are about the simplest around. The nubbins stick straight onto [...]
How to change a default application on Android
This week's tips series is all about Android, highlighting some the operating system's built-in utilities, and better ways of getting stuff done. For other technology tips, check our Tips index.
When you first try an alternative launcher or Web browser, Android asks if you'd like that application to be the default from now on. You may say yes and then come to regret it later on - perhaps you've decided you like another launcher better, or wish to go back to using the stock Android browser.
While you could always uninstall the application you no longer wish to be the default, that's a bit of a brute-force solution. Perhaps you still want it on your system, but only wish to use it every now and then.
To make an app stop being a "default application" for a certain type of action, do this:
1) Go to Settings > Applications > Manage applications.
2) Locate your application in the list. If the list is too long, you can hit the Running tab, because your app most likely is still running somewhere in the background.
3) Once you've located it, tap its name.
4) You will now find yourself in the Application info screen. Scroll down until you see the heading which says Launch by default.
5) Press the Clear defaults button, shown in the screenshot.
When you next try to perform the operation previously associated with this app (launch a browser, go to the home screen, etc.), you will be presented with a dialog letting you choose what app should be used. Presto!How to change a default application on Android originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 26 Jan 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
When you first try an alternative launcher or Web browser, Android asks if you'd like that application to be the default from now on. You may say yes and then come to regret it later on - perhaps you've decided you like another launcher better, or wish to go back to using the stock Android browser.
While you could always uninstall the application you no longer wish to be the default, that's a bit of a brute-force solution. Perhaps you still want it on your system, but only wish to use it every now and then.
To make an app stop being a "default application" for a certain type of action, do this:
1) Go to Settings > Applications > Manage applications.
2) Locate your application in the list. If the list is too long, you can hit the Running tab, because your app most likely is still running somewhere in the background.
3) Once you've located it, tap its name.
4) You will now find yourself in the Application info screen. Scroll down until you see the heading which says Launch by default.
5) Press the Clear defaults button, shown in the screenshot.
When you next try to perform the operation previously associated with this app (launch a browser, go to the home screen, etc.), you will be presented with a dialog letting you choose what app should be used. Presto!How to change a default application on Android originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 26 Jan 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Space Shuttle Discovery launches at 4:50PM ET today with Robonaut 2 on board
We doubt many of you need a reminder but, just in case, we're here to let you know that Space Shuttle Discovery is set for lift off today, at 4:50PM ET. While all shuttle launches are certainly worth watching, this one's particularly notable for a number of reasons -- it's the last mission for Discovery and the third-to-last mission for the entire Space Shuttle program, and it's the first mission to carry a humanoid robot into space: our friend Robonaut 2. Head on past the break to watch Spaceflight Now's live coverage of the launch.
[Image: NASA / Flickr]
Update: Liftoff! Humanoid robots in spaaaaaace.Continue reading Space Shuttle Discovery launches at 4:50PM ET today with Robonaut 2 on boardSpace Shuttle Discovery launches at 4:50PM ET today with Robonaut 2 on board originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 15:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Spaceflight Now | Email this | Comments
[Image: NASA / Flickr]
Update: Liftoff! Humanoid robots in spaaaaaace.Continue reading Space Shuttle Discovery launches at 4:50PM ET today with Robonaut 2 on boardSpace Shuttle Discovery launches at 4:50PM ET today with Robonaut 2 on board originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 15:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Spaceflight Now | Email this | Comments
Apple will take 30% of subscription fees from content-based apps like Hulu, Netflix
Apple has just announced that its recurring subscription plans will not only be available to magazine-type apps. Any content-based app, such as Hulu, Netflix or Spotify will be able to take advantage of Apple's App Store billing system.
The plot thickens, though: Apple has mandated that all content-based subscription services must enable in-app sign-up. In other words, if Hulu Plus is available for $7.99 from the Hulu website, users must also be able to sign up via the Hulu iOS app.
Apple, of course, will take its usual 30% cut of all subscriptions that originate from within iOS apps.Apple will take 30% of subscription fees from content-based apps like Hulu, Netflix originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 09:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
The plot thickens, though: Apple has mandated that all content-based subscription services must enable in-app sign-up. In other words, if Hulu Plus is available for $7.99 from the Hulu website, users must also be able to sign up via the Hulu iOS app.
Apple, of course, will take its usual 30% cut of all subscriptions that originate from within iOS apps.Apple will take 30% of subscription fees from content-based apps like Hulu, Netflix originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 15 Feb 2011 09:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Why the Hell is Inception Being Converted to 3D? [Movies]
Christopher Nolan, you made a great movie and all, but converting it to 3D post-production is not a good idea. Sure, it'll squeeze a few more dollars out of everyone, but as we know, 3D conversion does not make for a good experience. [Blu-ray.com via TechRadar] More »
Nintendo Fails Dismally With Scabbiest Press Launch Event in History [Haha]
Sometimes, just sometimes, tech and gaming journalists are made to feel like rockstars by companies desperate to get in their pocket. This was not one of those events. As Electricpig puns, Nintendo's Kirby's Epic Yarn launch was more like Kirby's Epic Yawn. [Electricpig] More »
Go On a Safari with Animalia for iPad
You can keep your kid – or yourself – occupied for hours with the Animalia app for iPad.� Every beautiful, highly-detailed illustration in the book is in the app, and they are zoomable to make it easier to find the boy hidden in every picture.� There are also three interactive games.� Explore Animala – find [...]
Tools of Tradecraft: The CIA?s Historic Spy Kit [Republished]
Whenever James Bond needed a nifty device to snap a surreptitious surveillance picture or escape the gilded clutches of Auric Goldfinger, he could count on the ingenious minds in the Secret Service's Q Division to devise a solution. Real-world Bonds working for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, and its precursor the Office of Strategic Services, could turn to the Office of Research and Development for similar tradecraft tools. More »
Social Fundraising Site Fundly Raises $2 Million of its Own
Today, social fundraising platform Fundly announced that it had closed a $2 million seed funding round led by a group of Silicon Valley investors. Using AngelList, a marketplace that makes it easy for startups to connect with angels, Fundly assembled a laundry list of reputable investors, including Mitch Kapor and Stephen DeBerry of Kapor Capital, Trevor Kienzle of Correlation Ventures, George Zachary of Charles River Ventures, and Jeff Fluhr of AngelHub.
Fundly, formerly known as BlueSwarm, adds to the $800,000 it raised back in July from a group of individual investors, including Harvard Business professor Clayton Christensen. You can read our coverage of the initiation of the first round (and watch TC's interview with CEO Dave Boyce) here.
Fundly, formerly known as BlueSwarm, adds to the $800,000 it raised back in July from a group of individual investors, including Harvard Business professor Clayton Christensen. You can read our coverage of the initiation of the first round (and watch TC's interview with CEO Dave Boyce) here.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
How to Control Multiple Computers with a Single Keyboard and Mouse [How To]
If you have two or more computers at one desk, you don't want two or more sets of keyboards and mice cluttering up your workspace, too. You can buy a hardware gadget that lets you share a single keyboard and mouse with several computers (which involves a mess of tangled wires), or you could use a free software solution called Synergy. The Synergy application runs on all the computers you're using—the one that has the keyboard and mouse connected and the one(s) that do not—and lets you control all of them from that keyboard and mouse. That means you can move your mouse off one computer's screen and it will appear on the other, where you can type and work as well. Synergy also lets you share Clipboard contents between computers. If you copy information to the Clipboard on one computer and move your mouse to the other, you can paste it there, even though they're two different systems. More »
First Windows Phone 7 update updates update mechanism, no copy paste
If you've been waiting patiently for your Windows Phone 7 device to get copy and paste support, bad news: you're still going to be waiting after you install the update Microsoft is pushing today. The first Windows Phone 7 update brings changes which will pave the way for future updates -- by improving the way the operating system handles updates.
And don't forget, for now you need the Zune desktop app for Windows or the Windows Phone 7 connector app for Mac to install updates on your WP7 phone. Perhaps one of the improvements being shipped is support for OTA updates...First Windows Phone 7 update updates update mechanism, no copy paste originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
And don't forget, for now you need the Zune desktop app for Windows or the Windows Phone 7 connector app for Mac to install updates on your WP7 phone. Perhaps one of the improvements being shipped is support for OTA updates...First Windows Phone 7 update updates update mechanism, no copy paste originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
HTC Arrive is Sprint's first Windows Phone 7 device, launches March 20th for $200
Teased since Microsoft's launch event for Windows Phone 7 back in October of last year and recently launched in Europe as the 7 Pro, HTC's Arrive today becomes the very first CDMA device for the platform to be announced with a date and a price. Sprint picks up the QWERTY tilt-o-matic this coming March 20th for $199.99 on a two-year contract after $100 mail-in rebate, featuring a 3.6-inch WVGA display, 1GHz Snapdragon processor, 5 megapixel camera with flash and 720p video capture, 16GB of internal storage, and 802.11b/g/n WiFi -- oh, and Sprint is quick to remind us that the phone will be launching with Microsoft's anticipated copy and paste update, too. In-store pre-orders begin today with the purchase of a $50 Sprint gift card; follow the break for the full press release.
Gallery: HTC Arrive for Sprint (press shots)Continue reading HTC Arrive is Sprint's first Windows Phone 7 device, launches March 20th for $200HTC Arrive is Sprint's first Windows Phone 7 device, launches March 20th for $200 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Gallery: HTC Arrive for Sprint (press shots)Continue reading HTC Arrive is Sprint's first Windows Phone 7 device, launches March 20th for $200HTC Arrive is Sprint's first Windows Phone 7 device, launches March 20th for $200 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 09:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Lavasoft Rogue Gallery puts fake antivirus and rogue applications on display
It's hard for less-savvy computer users to stay out of trouble on the Internet, and part of the problem is that they just don't know how to identify potential threats. Fortunately, there are plenty of great online resources you can use, or point your friends and family to. We've already covered the excellent Facecrooks, which helps users avoid trouble on Facebook, and today we're taking a look at the Lavasoft Rogue Gallery.
Lavasoft is the company behind Ad-Aware, the granddaddy of adware removal apps. Though its malware cleanup crown has been snatched away by Malwarebytes in recent years, Ad-Aware remains enormously popular -- and Lavasoft provides a nice public service by displaying the fake antivirus (fakeAV) and rogue applications it discovers for all to see.
Rogue applications are those nasty programs which appear to be useful utilities like antivirus or Windows tune-up tools. In reality, of course, they're some of the nastiest threats around. They're easy enough to spot if you know what to look for, so spending a few minutes going through the Lavasoft Rogue Gallery is highly recommend to anyone who needs a bit of help avoiding Internet dangers.Lavasoft Rogue Gallery puts fake antivirus and rogue applications on display originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Lavasoft is the company behind Ad-Aware, the granddaddy of adware removal apps. Though its malware cleanup crown has been snatched away by Malwarebytes in recent years, Ad-Aware remains enormously popular -- and Lavasoft provides a nice public service by displaying the fake antivirus (fakeAV) and rogue applications it discovers for all to see.
Rogue applications are those nasty programs which appear to be useful utilities like antivirus or Windows tune-up tools. In reality, of course, they're some of the nastiest threats around. They're easy enough to spot if you know what to look for, so spending a few minutes going through the Lavasoft Rogue Gallery is highly recommend to anyone who needs a bit of help avoiding Internet dangers.Lavasoft Rogue Gallery puts fake antivirus and rogue applications on display originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Roku XD|S Media Player Review
In my never ending quest to divorce myself from Comcast and their overpriced cable service, I have been searching for alternate methods for the family to watch our shows. The Mvix Ultio media device was an effort in frustration, that fell well short of my needs and expectations. Fortunately, there are many other options in [...]
MacBook Pro (early 2011) with Thunderbolt hands-on
We just got our new 15-inch MacBook Pro review unit, and although it looks almost exactly the same as the previous MBP, it has that fancy new Thunderbolt icon on the side, which ought to make I/O nerd hearts flutter the world over. Unfortunately, there aren't any Thunderbolt peripherals on the market yet, so we can't really test the new connection yet, but we can report that backwards compatibility with Mini DisplayPort performs as advertised and that all of our display adapters worked without issue -- the first time we can ever remember Apple switching a standard and not requiring all new dongles.
As for performance, we were given the $2,199 configuration with a 2.2GHz quad-core Sandy Bridge Core i7, discrete AMD Radeon HD 6750M graphics, 4GB of RAM and a 750GB HD, which clocked a preliminary GeekBench score of 9647. We'll have tons more testing in our full review, including detailed comparisons of the discrete chip with Intel's new integrated HD Graphics 3000.
Apple did give us a quick demo on the new system with a prototype Promise RAID unit and a stock Cinema Display connected over Thunderbolt -- remember, Thunderbolt just uses a Mini DisplayPort connector, so displays can be daisy-chained right in. Apple's demo was a variation of the same thing Intel's been doing for a while -- they played four uncompressed HD video streams off the RAID simultaneously, which pegged the Thunderbolt throughput meter at 600-700MBps. We also watched a 5GB file transfer in just a few seconds -- all very impressive, but we're definitely anxious to try some of this stuff ourselves once Thunderbolt devices start shipping sometime in the spring.
Apple also told us that Thunderbolt is running on copper and not optical cables (like the Light Peak protoypes) so that it can support bus-powered devices -- there's 10 watts of power available on the bus, up slightly from FireWire's 8 watts. Up to six devices can be daisy-chained from one port, and since Thunderbolt is based on PCI Express, it can even support FireWire and USB adapters. That's great news for the future of the interface, but the MacBook Pro still has two USB 2.0 and one FireWire 800 port, so it's not of critical importance right this second.
We'll have much, much more in our full review -- check back in a few days!
Gallery: MacBook Pro (early 2011) unboxing and hands-onMacBook Pro (early 2011) with Thunderbolt hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 11:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
As for performance, we were given the $2,199 configuration with a 2.2GHz quad-core Sandy Bridge Core i7, discrete AMD Radeon HD 6750M graphics, 4GB of RAM and a 750GB HD, which clocked a preliminary GeekBench score of 9647. We'll have tons more testing in our full review, including detailed comparisons of the discrete chip with Intel's new integrated HD Graphics 3000.
Apple did give us a quick demo on the new system with a prototype Promise RAID unit and a stock Cinema Display connected over Thunderbolt -- remember, Thunderbolt just uses a Mini DisplayPort connector, so displays can be daisy-chained right in. Apple's demo was a variation of the same thing Intel's been doing for a while -- they played four uncompressed HD video streams off the RAID simultaneously, which pegged the Thunderbolt throughput meter at 600-700MBps. We also watched a 5GB file transfer in just a few seconds -- all very impressive, but we're definitely anxious to try some of this stuff ourselves once Thunderbolt devices start shipping sometime in the spring.
Apple also told us that Thunderbolt is running on copper and not optical cables (like the Light Peak protoypes) so that it can support bus-powered devices -- there's 10 watts of power available on the bus, up slightly from FireWire's 8 watts. Up to six devices can be daisy-chained from one port, and since Thunderbolt is based on PCI Express, it can even support FireWire and USB adapters. That's great news for the future of the interface, but the MacBook Pro still has two USB 2.0 and one FireWire 800 port, so it's not of critical importance right this second.
We'll have much, much more in our full review -- check back in a few days!
Gallery: MacBook Pro (early 2011) unboxing and hands-onMacBook Pro (early 2011) with Thunderbolt hands-on originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 24 Feb 2011 11:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Chrome 10 Now Lets Extensions Run in the Background [Updates]
Certain extensions—like Gmail notifiers, for example—are great when your browser is running, but can't run when it's closed. Chrome's added a new feature that will let extensions stay open, even if you don't have any open browser windows. More »
BufferZone Pro sandboxing software now a totally free download
Trustware's BufferZone was an early entrant into the desktop sandboxing arena. Sandboxing, of course, is the security-by-isolation system which has since been built into apps like Google Chrome and Adobe Reader X. Recently, Trustware launched a promotion and gave away BufferZone Pro for free -- and now the company is making the discount permanent. From now on, BufferZone Pro will be freeware.
But, wait -- BufferZone still doesn't support x64, and maybe you're thinking that there will be a paid version once a 64-bit Windows version arrives. Not so, Trustware's Efrat Schneider told me in an email: "The product will continue to be free," he replied.
If you're looking for a free way to tighten up security on your Windows system, BufferZone is an excellent app for the job. We'll let you know when the 64-bit version becomes available.BufferZone Pro sandboxing software now a totally free download originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
But, wait -- BufferZone still doesn't support x64, and maybe you're thinking that there will be a paid version once a 64-bit Windows version arrives. Not so, Trustware's Efrat Schneider told me in an email: "The product will continue to be free," he replied.
If you're looking for a free way to tighten up security on your Windows system, BufferZone is an excellent app for the job. We'll let you know when the 64-bit version becomes available.BufferZone Pro sandboxing software now a totally free download originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Daily Crunch: Mega Launch Edition
eStar From Navistar Is Another Electric Delivery Van Obama?s Plan For 1 Million EVs By 2015 Might Be Impossible Apple Patents More Stuff It Will Never Implement U.S. Military Looking To Bring M4 Carbine, M16 Rile Into The Modern Era 8-Bit Mega Man Straps Serve No Purpose; Buy Them Anyway
Apple holding iPad 2 event on March 2
As rumored, Apple will indeed be holding an iPad 2 event on March 2 with the tag line:
Come see what 2011 will be the year of.
Start your predictions in the comments!
[Engadget]
Apple holding iPad 2 event on March 2 is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store. [...]Apple holding iPad 2 event on March 2 is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store. TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
Come see what 2011 will be the year of.
Start your predictions in the comments!
[Engadget]
Apple holding iPad 2 event on March 2 is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store. [...]Apple holding iPad 2 event on March 2 is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store. TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
INTERNATIONAL GAME TECHNOLOGY INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES (IBM)
What do you get when you cross a helmet, lasers and earphones?
You get the iGrow hair restoration helmet. No, I’m not kidding. The iGrow features 21 laser diodes and 30 LED lights that are built into this hands-free device.� The picture above might look like�the helmet is�melting your brain, but it’s really designed to stimulate hair follicle growth while allowing you to listen to the soundtrack [...]
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Apple tells shareholders North Carolina data center is for iTunes and MobileMe, set to open this spring
Well, it looks like Apple's just put an end to some of the speculation surrounding its massive data center in North Carolina. According to Apple Insider and Electronista, Apple told shareholders at its annual meeting today that the center is for iTunes and MobileMe (along with Apple's "corporate systems"), and that it is set to open sometime this spring. As you might expect, it doesn't seem like things got much more detailed than that, but the news does certainly lend some credence to earlier rumors of a cloud-based, Lala-infused iTunes service and a significantly expanded (and possibly free) MobileMe offering. Here's hoping we'll hear a bit more from Apple itself next week.Apple tells shareholders North Carolina data center is for iTunes and MobileMe, set to open this spring originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 15:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Apple Insider, Electronista | Email this | Comments
4G Network 'Will Create GPS Dead Zones Across the US' [Interference]
What would you rather have—a superfast data connection on your cellphone, or a reliable GPS signal to pinpoint your location? If a plan to install a network of base stations for the new 4G mobile wireless protocol goes ahead, it may mean you can have one but not the other. More »
Apple set to introduce FaceTime HD, ThunderBolt I/O?
Specs for the upcoming MacBook Pro update seem to have been leaked online and among them are FaceTime HD and what just might be Apple’s name for the 10Gbps LightPeak port — ThunderBolt I/O.
Apple used to call MacBook cameras iSight, but since FaceTime launched on iPhone and iPod touch they’ve taken that name back to [...]Apple set to introduce FaceTime HD, ThunderBolt I/O? is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store. TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
Apple used to call MacBook cameras iSight, but since FaceTime launched on iPhone and iPod touch they’ve taken that name back to [...]Apple set to introduce FaceTime HD, ThunderBolt I/O? is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store. TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
Arcade Table's Stealth brings high design, crazy price tag to tabletop arcade
The tabletop arcade market isn't exactly a crowded one these days, and for the most part we'd say that's for good reason -- remember those Pac-Man-induced neck spasms? Then again, most arcade tables don't look like this. The Stealth console system from the aptly-named Arcade Tables offers 60 classic games, including Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, and Galaga, in a high gloss cocktail table, sporting an HD LCD screen with an 89-degree viewing angle, built-in speaker system, and two-player controls. Okay, so the thing costs $3,300, which is more than a touch too rich for our blood, but wouldn't it be nice if more throwback consoles looked a little more, well, Stealth-y.Arcade Table's Stealth brings high design, crazy price tag to tabletop arcade originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 07:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink Gizmodo | Arcade Tables | Email this | Comments
Microsoft pulls Windows Phone 7 update from Samsung phones until it can resolve issues
Such a big load of trouble for such a small update. Microsoft's first WP7 firmware refresh has been causing some unfortunate brick-like behavior in Samsung Omnia 7s and the company has wisely decided to pull the new software back until it can correct whatever's going wrong. An official communiqué to WinRumors says Microsoft has identified the issue at hand and is working to correct it and redistribute the update as soon as possible. For any Samsung WP7 phone owners who haven't been able to resuscitate their device yet, the advised course of action is to go back to the store and swap it for a livelier one.
Update: Timo wrote in to let us know that some people are still seeing the update. If that's you, you'd be advised to hold off.Microsoft pulls Windows Phone 7 update from Samsung phones until it can resolve issues originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 07:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | WinRumors | Email this | Comments
Update: Timo wrote in to let us know that some people are still seeing the update. If that's you, you'd be advised to hold off.Microsoft pulls Windows Phone 7 update from Samsung phones until it can resolve issues originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Feb 2011 07:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | WinRumors | Email this | Comments
First Windows Phone 7 update updates update mechanism, no copy paste
If you've been waiting patiently for your Windows Phone 7 device to get copy and paste support, bad news: you're still going to be waiting after you install the update Microsoft is pushing today. The first Windows Phone 7 update brings changes which will pave the way for future updates -- by improving the way the operating system handles updates.
And don't forget, for now you need the Zune desktop app for Windows or the Windows Phone 7 connector app for Mac to install updates on your WP7 phone. Perhaps one of the improvements being shipped is support for OTA updates...First Windows Phone 7 update updates update mechanism, no copy paste originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
And don't forget, for now you need the Zune desktop app for Windows or the Windows Phone 7 connector app for Mac to install updates on your WP7 phone. Perhaps one of the improvements being shipped is support for OTA updates...First Windows Phone 7 update updates update mechanism, no copy paste originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
National Geographic Ultimate Dinopedia App for iPad
The iPad’s big display is a beautiful canvas for displaying full-color, detailed images.� It seems lately that many publishers are bypassing the standard book reader apps for iPad and creating their own applications that display their books to their best advantage on the iPad’s beautiful display.� Many of these book apps also incorporate interactive elements [...]
Everything Apple (Might) Have Up Its Sleeve [News]
Apple fans! Apple detractors too! Exciting new stuff is almost here. Keyboards around the world are clacking with anticipation over new MacBooks and iPads—but rather than scouring the internet wastes, check out everything you need to know below. More »
CorelDraw video tutorial: Pulling in photos and clip art from the Web
This is the fourth (and final) of our CorelDRAW video tutorials. You can watch the others by browsing the CorelDRAW tag.
When creating a vector image or a composition, you don't always have to re-invent the wheel. After all, it is more than likely that whatever it is you're trying to do has been done before, at least in part. Using existing images or clip art ("media assets" in business parlance) can greatly speed up your work, and even improve the overall look of the image you produce.
To this end, I've chosen to create a video showing Corel Connect. It's a media search engine that comes with CorelDRAW, and helps you pull in images from Flickr, Fotolia, iStockphoto, and of course, your local hard drive and CorelDRAW's own clip art repositories.
Corel Connect ties in very tightly with CorelDRAW itself, and also does a nice job of protecting the original creator's rights so you don't "forget" to license whatever content you're using. See for yourself after the jump!Continue reading CorelDraw video tutorial: Pulling in photos and clip art from the WebCorelDraw video tutorial: Pulling in photos and clip art from the Web originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 07 Feb 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
When creating a vector image or a composition, you don't always have to re-invent the wheel. After all, it is more than likely that whatever it is you're trying to do has been done before, at least in part. Using existing images or clip art ("media assets" in business parlance) can greatly speed up your work, and even improve the overall look of the image you produce.
To this end, I've chosen to create a video showing Corel Connect. It's a media search engine that comes with CorelDRAW, and helps you pull in images from Flickr, Fotolia, iStockphoto, and of course, your local hard drive and CorelDRAW's own clip art repositories.
Corel Connect ties in very tightly with CorelDRAW itself, and also does a nice job of protecting the original creator's rights so you don't "forget" to license whatever content you're using. See for yourself after the jump!Continue reading CorelDraw video tutorial: Pulling in photos and clip art from the WebCorelDraw video tutorial: Pulling in photos and clip art from the Web originally appeared on Download Squad on Mon, 07 Feb 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Seagate TV Remote App for iPhone Review
I reviewed the Seagate FreeAgent� GoFlex? TV HD Media Player a few months ago, and I?ve enjoyed having it as part of my TV setup. Of course, having the Seagate meant I had to add another remote to my collection. The IR remote that came with the Seagate GoFlex TV works well, but it does [...]
Firefox 4's best restartless add-ons
Unless you've been sleeping under a rock, or in a tent outside the Googleplex with an "I LOVE SCHMIDT" banner, you hopefully know that Firefox 4 supports restartless add-ons, or in developerese: bootstrapped extensions.
Unfortunately, however, the process of converting an existing add-on into a restartless wonder is far from simple. A few months ago, back when the Firefox 4 beta machine really got into the swing of things, the developer of the world's most popular add-on, Adblock Plus, described his laborious and infuriating attempt at making his add-on restartless -- and today, just a few days away from the final Firefox beta, there still isn't a single big-name restartless add-on to be found.
On the flip side, writing new restartless add-ons is a little easier. Uptake amongst developers still seems to be very slow, though. Add-ons for Firefox (AMO) only has about 80 add-ons tagged with 'restartless', and even less with the restartless add-on's SDK, 'jetpack'.
Then, of course, only a few of those add-ons are actually worth using! Read on for our pick of the best Firefox 4 restartless add-ons.Continue reading Firefox 4's best restartless add-onsFirefox 4's best restartless add-ons originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Unfortunately, however, the process of converting an existing add-on into a restartless wonder is far from simple. A few months ago, back when the Firefox 4 beta machine really got into the swing of things, the developer of the world's most popular add-on, Adblock Plus, described his laborious and infuriating attempt at making his add-on restartless -- and today, just a few days away from the final Firefox beta, there still isn't a single big-name restartless add-on to be found.
On the flip side, writing new restartless add-ons is a little easier. Uptake amongst developers still seems to be very slow, though. Add-ons for Firefox (AMO) only has about 80 add-ons tagged with 'restartless', and even less with the restartless add-on's SDK, 'jetpack'.
Then, of course, only a few of those add-ons are actually worth using! Read on for our pick of the best Firefox 4 restartless add-ons.Continue reading Firefox 4's best restartless add-onsFirefox 4's best restartless add-ons originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Flash Player 10.2 with Stage Video hardware acceleration out of beta
Flash Player 10.2 is finally out of beta!
We've covered this upgrade before, and after three months of beta testing, Adobe feels ready to roll this one out as an official update.
The key features that make Flash 10.2 a worthwhile upgrade are:
Proper full-screen support for multi-monitor systems: At long last, users with more than one monitor would be able to play a full-screen video on one monitor while working with another monitor! Hurrah! This long-overdue feature alone is worth the upgrade.
Stage Video: Adobe's new API for high-performance video playback across multiple platforms. In simple terms, it makes HD video fast and easy on your computer. The only snag is that developers will have to build in support for it - it's not just a client-side change. Adobe says YouTube, Vimeo, and Brightcove are already hard at work adding support.
Font smoothing: Flash player isn't all about video, after all. This improvement adds ClearType-like font smoothing.
Hardware acceleration: Last but not least, Flash 10.2 supports IE 9's hardware acceleration capabilities ("GPU rendering").
All in all, Flash 10.2 sounds like a worthy upgrade. Click here for the download page, and if you're using Chrome, be sure to disable the built-in Flash plug-in to reap the benefits unless you're on the updated Dev channel.Flash Player 10.2 with Stage Video hardware acceleration out of beta originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 09 Feb 2011 04:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
We've covered this upgrade before, and after three months of beta testing, Adobe feels ready to roll this one out as an official update.
The key features that make Flash 10.2 a worthwhile upgrade are:
Proper full-screen support for multi-monitor systems: At long last, users with more than one monitor would be able to play a full-screen video on one monitor while working with another monitor! Hurrah! This long-overdue feature alone is worth the upgrade.
Stage Video: Adobe's new API for high-performance video playback across multiple platforms. In simple terms, it makes HD video fast and easy on your computer. The only snag is that developers will have to build in support for it - it's not just a client-side change. Adobe says YouTube, Vimeo, and Brightcove are already hard at work adding support.
Font smoothing: Flash player isn't all about video, after all. This improvement adds ClearType-like font smoothing.
Hardware acceleration: Last but not least, Flash 10.2 supports IE 9's hardware acceleration capabilities ("GPU rendering").
All in all, Flash 10.2 sounds like a worthy upgrade. Click here for the download page, and if you're using Chrome, be sure to disable the built-in Flash plug-in to reap the benefits unless you're on the updated Dev channel.Flash Player 10.2 with Stage Video hardware acceleration out of beta originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 09 Feb 2011 04:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Motorola Atrix root found to be signed, hacking might not be so easy
That the Atrix got itself rooted before it was even available made us wonder just how... receptive it would be to the caresses of the hacker community at large. Sadly we're finding it's perhaps a bit more frigid than its friendly demeanor might have lead us to believe. User adlx.xda over at the xda-developers forums has found that the phone's system files are not encrypted, but they are signed. This will make the process of replacing them and loading custom builds and the like rather more complicated -- but surely not impossible.
[Thanks, chaoslimits]Motorola Atrix root found to be signed, hacking might not be so easy originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Feb 2011 11:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink xda-developers | xda-developers forum | Email this | Comments
[Thanks, chaoslimits]Motorola Atrix root found to be signed, hacking might not be so easy originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Feb 2011 11:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink xda-developers | xda-developers forum | Email this | Comments
Chrome Web Store opens to international devs
The Chrome Web Store has had somewhat limited developer access since its launch back in December of 2010. Soon, however, international developers will be able to submit Web apps for sale in Google's open-but-closed Web marketplace. Fifteen additional countries have been added to the developer dashboard, including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and the UK.
While international developer access is great, Chrome users in those countries aren't going to benefit from the expansion for some time. Google says the consumer launch isn't going to happen until later this year. Developers will also be able to price apps they want to sell via Chrome Web Store Payments (powered by Google Checkout), but won't actually be able to register for a merchant account yet.
Oh, what a tangled Web... Store!Chrome Web Store opens to international devs originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
While international developer access is great, Chrome users in those countries aren't going to benefit from the expansion for some time. Google says the consumer launch isn't going to happen until later this year. Developers will also be able to price apps they want to sell via Chrome Web Store Payments (powered by Google Checkout), but won't actually be able to register for a merchant account yet.
Oh, what a tangled Web... Store!Chrome Web Store opens to international devs originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Chrome Web Store opens to international devs
The Chrome Web Store has had somewhat limited developer access since its launch back in December of 2010. Soon, however, international developers will be able to submit Web apps for sale in Google's open-but-closed Web marketplace. Fifteen additional countries have been added to the developer dashboard, including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and the UK.
While international developer access is great, Chrome users in those countries aren't going to benefit from the expansion for some time. Google says the consumer launch isn't going to happen until later this year. Developers will also be able to price apps they want to sell via Chrome Web Store Payments (powered by Google Checkout), but won't actually be able to register for a merchant account yet.
Oh, what a tangled Web... Store!Chrome Web Store opens to international devs originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
While international developer access is great, Chrome users in those countries aren't going to benefit from the expansion for some time. Google says the consumer launch isn't going to happen until later this year. Developers will also be able to price apps they want to sell via Chrome Web Store Payments (powered by Google Checkout), but won't actually be able to register for a merchant account yet.
Oh, what a tangled Web... Store!Chrome Web Store opens to international devs originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Graphicly releases digital comics application for Android
With Android device screens getting larger and brighter, reading on them becomes easier and easier. While plenty of eReader applications exist those are mainly focused on books and books alone. Graphicly is a new to the market application that allows for collecting and reading comic books from more than 150 publishers. They can also lay claim to being the first to offer Marvel comics on the Android platform as well as many up and coming indie publishers. If you're looking to take your comic book collection into the digital age you can hit the break for the download and full press release.
Graphicly releases digital comics application for Android posted originally by Android CentralSponsored by Android Cases and Accessories
Graphicly releases digital comics application for Android posted originally by Android CentralSponsored by Android Cases and Accessories
Daily Crunch: The Batman Cometh Edition
DOTKLOK: A Clock Made Of Dots This Phineas And Ferb CD Boombox Is For Kids And/Or Dads Interview With Halfbot Over Their App Store IP Theft Of ?The Blocks Cometh? Mimoco?s Latest Puts Your Data On DC Comic Classics Light Strikers: Like Laser Tag But Much Better
500mm iPhone Lens for Grungy Close-Ups
Given that a cellphone case can easily run to $35, the iPhone Telephoto Lens is something of a bargain, combining as it does both a long, long lens, a case to hang it on, a mini-tripod to keep things steady, and a micro-fiber cloth to polish everything up.
It works like this: You slip the iPhone [...]
It works like this: You slip the iPhone [...]
Uzi Tactical Pen with Handy DNA Harvester
Do any of you remember the Johnson Smith Company ads that appeared comic books back in the 70′s? They had tons of cool novelty items that I would drool over, wishing I had money to buy them. I think ThinkGeek is the Johnson Smith Company of the 21st century. These guys always have the most [...]
What Cocktail? for iPhone [Video]
There are plenty of apps that tell you how to mix drinks, but none that do it quite as stylishly as What Cocktail? More »
What Cocktail? for iPhone [Video]
There are plenty of apps that tell you how to mix drinks, but none that do it quite as stylishly as What Cocktail? More »
TiPb Asks: How do you use your iPad?
What do you use your iPad for?customer surveys
With all the iPad 2 (and iPad 3!) rumors it’s easy to lose sight of all the current iPads out there and what we, as users, are doing with them. So we’re asking! What things do you do with it the most? Anything you [...]TiPb Asks: How do you use your iPad? is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store. TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
With all the iPad 2 (and iPad 3!) rumors it’s easy to lose sight of all the current iPads out there and what we, as users, are doing with them. So we’re asking! What things do you do with it the most? Anything you [...]TiPb Asks: How do you use your iPad? is a story by TiPb. This feed is sponsored by The iPhone Blog Store. TiPb - The #1 iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch Blog
Monday, February 21, 2011
New Apple Peel Case Makes iPod Look Like iPhone 4
Remember the Peel? It’s a case for the iPod Touch which adds a vibrator, mic, speaker and cell-radio, turning the iPod into a phone. No? Don’t worry. You may have blanked it from your memory, your eyes and brain scarred by its utilitarian ugliness. The Peel looked like it was carved an old truck tire [...]
New Apple Peel Case Makes iPod Look Like iPhone 4
Remember the Peel? It’s a case for the iPod Touch which adds a vibrator, mic, speaker and cell-radio, turning the iPod into a phone. No? Don’t worry. You may have blanked it from your memory, your eyes and brain scarred by its utilitarian ugliness. The Peel looked like it was carved an old truck tire [...]
Low-Tech Geekery Makes Beautiful High-Speed Photography
Vincent Riemersma’s beautiful time-freezing photographs are a mixture of skill and old fashioned geekery. The pictures show splashes of colored water frozen in time as they jump simultaneously from a row of wine glasses. The results are clearly impressive. But how were the photos taken?
First, the splashes. To ensure repeatability, time after time, Vincent built [...]
First, the splashes. To ensure repeatability, time after time, Vincent built [...]
The Best Deal of the Day [Dealzmodo]
Today is Presidents Day. Let us reflect on the great leaders of our country—the things they must have seen! The drafting of the Declaration of Independence! Various wars! Signing treaties with great world leaders! But none of these moments were captured—lost to history forever. If only they had owned digital cameras? we might have known Andrew Jackson's favorite vacation spot, Taft's moody MySpace self-portraits, and maybe some shots of Mrs. Garfield in a bathing suit. Instead, all we have is a bunch of old oil paintings. Phooey! Well let's not suffer the same fate as the presidents of yesteryear—snap up this $99 Kodak Slice 14-megapixel camera and document every facet of your existence. You know, just in case you have a presidential library someday. More »
Angry Birds for Windows Phone 7 (and a 3D version!) confirmed
A mobile platform just isn't a mobile platform without Angry Birds nowadays. While its absence from the Marketplace might not be your biggest gripe about Windows Phone 7, we're fairly certain users are nevertheless peering enviously at their friends' iOS, Android, and webOS devices.
Your wait may be coming to an end soon, however. Pocket Lint has confirmed that Rovio is indeed bringing Angry Birds to Windows Phone 7. If you recall, Microsoft jumped the gun and showed off the game's icon on the Windows Phone 7 site back in October of 2010.
Rovio also said that a 3D version of the game is coming -- as in one which is built for a 3D displays, not just 3D graphics on a 2D screen. Unfortunately, Pocket Lint wasn't able to confirm release dates for either the Windows Phone 7 or 3D version of Angry Birds.Angry Birds for Windows Phone 7 (and a 3D version!) confirmed originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Your wait may be coming to an end soon, however. Pocket Lint has confirmed that Rovio is indeed bringing Angry Birds to Windows Phone 7. If you recall, Microsoft jumped the gun and showed off the game's icon on the Windows Phone 7 site back in October of 2010.
Rovio also said that a 3D version of the game is coming -- as in one which is built for a 3D displays, not just 3D graphics on a 2D screen. Unfortunately, Pocket Lint wasn't able to confirm release dates for either the Windows Phone 7 or 3D version of Angry Birds.Angry Birds for Windows Phone 7 (and a 3D version!) confirmed originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
BMW launches new 'i' brand focused on electrification, lower-case letters
BMW already has one of the shortest names on the auto front, but it's about to get shorter. The company has just launched "i," a sub-marque much like the company's M cars but, rather than focusing on performance, highlighting new technology to create cars that are "good for us" while also being "good for our planet." It's what the company calls "premium mobility," cars for daily commuting that will let you "enjoy the finer things in life" without killing the planet in the process. The first two cars are the i3 (formerly known as the Megacity) and the i8 (the auto formerly known as Vision EfficientDynamics), both of which are said to be as fun to drive as a current car but much more efficient thanks to composite construction and electrified powertrains.
Additionally, the company is also working with the My City Way apps, which cover 40 cities in the US and that many abroad, offering traffic cameras, POIs, and even public transit info -- a little odd for a car company. The company is pledging that we'll see these "born electric" cars in production by 2013 and coyly specifies that three is not the smallest number nor eight the largest, meaning we should expect other models to fill that gap -- just like the company's current alphanumeric lineup. We'll surely be learning more about these cars at Geneva in a few weeks, and if you think BMW is just being trendy using the lower-case i moniker, it did launch its iDrive controller back in September of 2001 -- a month before the iPod really made "i" super trendy.
Gallery: BMW's i brandBMW launches new 'i' brand focused on electrification, lower-case letters originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 09:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Additionally, the company is also working with the My City Way apps, which cover 40 cities in the US and that many abroad, offering traffic cameras, POIs, and even public transit info -- a little odd for a car company. The company is pledging that we'll see these "born electric" cars in production by 2013 and coyly specifies that three is not the smallest number nor eight the largest, meaning we should expect other models to fill that gap -- just like the company's current alphanumeric lineup. We'll surely be learning more about these cars at Geneva in a few weeks, and if you think BMW is just being trendy using the lower-case i moniker, it did launch its iDrive controller back in September of 2001 -- a month before the iPod really made "i" super trendy.
Gallery: BMW's i brandBMW launches new 'i' brand focused on electrification, lower-case letters originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Feb 2011 09:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Microsoft removes Autorun from Windows Vista, XP, 2000
Last night, on Patch Tuesday, Microsoft distributed a security fix that disables Autorun with USB drives and other forms of removable storage on Windows Vista, XP and 2000, and Server 2008 and 2003. Windows 7 by default has Autorun disabled for removable storage, so this is just bringing the older OSes into line.
This marks the end of an era, at least as far as worms like Conficker are concerned. Historically, all a virus had to do was place a a very basic Autorun.inf file in the root of a removable drive, and it would be automatically executed upon its insertion. As you can imagine, this was a very, very easy attack vector, and incredibly effective too.
Incidentally, because Microsoft says it hasn't seen an in-the-wild malware attack that uses CDs or DVDs, AutoPlay will still work with "shiny media."Microsoft removes Autorun from Windows Vista, XP, 2000 originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 09 Feb 2011 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
This marks the end of an era, at least as far as worms like Conficker are concerned. Historically, all a virus had to do was place a a very basic Autorun.inf file in the root of a removable drive, and it would be automatically executed upon its insertion. As you can imagine, this was a very, very easy attack vector, and incredibly effective too.
Incidentally, because Microsoft says it hasn't seen an in-the-wild malware attack that uses CDs or DVDs, AutoPlay will still work with "shiny media."Microsoft removes Autorun from Windows Vista, XP, 2000 originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 09 Feb 2011 06:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
A Small Car is a frustrating 3D Flash Time-Waster
It's not often that I see 3D attempted in Flash, and to be honest, after playing A Small Car I can see why.
It's not that it's not a fun game - otherwise I wouldn't mention it as a potential Time Waster. It's just very frustrating. Your job is to steer a car over a complex course, hanging in mid-air, to the checkered "landing zone" at the end of each level. You sometimes need to jump, too - so that means you can't always drive super-slow. The tracks are quite short, and it's all keyboard driven -- you don't need to use the mouse for anything.
As an experiment in 3D Flash content, it is quite impressive. The graphics are very blocky, but the motion is smooth. You can even change cameras by pressing C if you want to see what the track looks like from the driver's seat.
It's a fun game, but only if you've got plenty of patience.A Small Car is a frustrating 3D Flash Time-Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 28 Jan 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
It's not that it's not a fun game - otherwise I wouldn't mention it as a potential Time Waster. It's just very frustrating. Your job is to steer a car over a complex course, hanging in mid-air, to the checkered "landing zone" at the end of each level. You sometimes need to jump, too - so that means you can't always drive super-slow. The tracks are quite short, and it's all keyboard driven -- you don't need to use the mouse for anything.
As an experiment in 3D Flash content, it is quite impressive. The graphics are very blocky, but the motion is smooth. You can even change cameras by pressing C if you want to see what the track looks like from the driver's seat.
It's a fun game, but only if you've got plenty of patience.A Small Car is a frustrating 3D Flash Time-Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Fri, 28 Jan 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Choose Your Own Adventure Series Reborn In Books and Apps [Books]
Slate's been reminiscing about the venerable Choose Your Own Adventure book series and it's quite the read! Unfortunately, there's only a single ending to this post, but that doesn't mean it's not an interesting one. Turn the page. More »
Here's a Better Looking, Less Awkward Segway [Video]
Segways are nerdy and awkward, there's no way around it. This solowheel, a "self balancing electric unicycle" is just as nerdy as a Segway but slightly less awkward. The Solowheel only weighs 20 pounds and comes in a relatively small package and is definitely no where near as unwieldy as a Segway. Plus, it doesn't come with the reputation of mall cops and weirdos. It's supposed to come out in March for $1,500. More »
What I Want in My New Google
I sent my first e-mail message in 1995, to a member of my development team. That was the only person I knew who had an e-mail address in those days.� I also did my first web search around that time. I think I used Lycos for this. I entered some keywords into a text box, separated by Boolean operators, and received a list of web pages that I could click on that referenced these words.
Sixteen years has passed. I receive about 400 e-mails a day now from people all over the world. E-mail has become part of my life and has changed the way I communicate and the way I work. I don?t know anyone anywhere who doesn?t have an e-mail address. When I went to Sikkim, India, last year, a Buddhist monk in a remote Himalayan monastery even gave me his e-mail address. The web has also evolved in a similar fashion?it seems to be everywhere and connects everyone, for everything. Internet technologies are now toppling dictatorships in the Middle East.
Sixteen years has passed. I receive about 400 e-mails a day now from people all over the world. E-mail has become part of my life and has changed the way I communicate and the way I work. I don?t know anyone anywhere who doesn?t have an e-mail address. When I went to Sikkim, India, last year, a Buddhist monk in a remote Himalayan monastery even gave me his e-mail address. The web has also evolved in a similar fashion?it seems to be everywhere and connects everyone, for everything. Internet technologies are now toppling dictatorships in the Middle East.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Quora vs. StackExchange: Why, Joel, Why?
The Q&A land rush is on. Quora, of course, has been hyped to the moon, and not without reason. Fortune magazine recently profiled five more Q&A sites, and three new ones just launched: Cloudy, where your friends answer your questions via SMS; Setlr1, which is like Twitter for yes/no questions; and InboxQ, Q&A on Twitter. Is this a bubble full of copycats doomed to wither into Yahoo Answers Redux? Maybe - but I don't think so. I think there's something important going on here, and it's more than just questions and answers. I think these are the first skirmishes in the reputation wars.
The identity wars are already over. Facebook won, Twitter snagged the silver medal, and OpenID lost. Log In With Facebook and their associated Open Graph have succeeded so thoroughly that Facebook increasingly defines users' online identities across a whole panoply of sites. But who will define and codify our online reputations? That's a question whose answer will matter - a lot.
The identity wars are already over. Facebook won, Twitter snagged the silver medal, and OpenID lost. Log In With Facebook and their associated Open Graph have succeeded so thoroughly that Facebook increasingly defines users' online identities across a whole panoply of sites. But who will define and codify our online reputations? That's a question whose answer will matter - a lot.
Google Music to launch with Android Honeycomb?
Google Music -- the big G's alternative to iTunes -- could very well launch alongside Android 3.0 Honeycomb. Today at MWC 2011 in Barcelona, Motorola Mobility CEO Sanjay Jha spoke about the soon-to-be-launched $800 Motorola Xoom, which will be one of the first devices to run Honeycomb. More importantly, Jha may have confirmed that the Android upgrade will be accompanied by a music service.
"If you look at Google Mobile services, there's a video service, there's a music service -- that is, there will be a music service," he said. We presume he's referring to YouTube when he says video service -- unless Google has something else up its sleeve -- and the music service might be the backend for the non-working streaming function we saw in the leaked Android Music app back in December 2010. Jha went on to say that the value of the Honeycomb update is the addition of these video and music services, so it'll be interesting to see if he really did let Google's cat out of the bag in Spain.Google Music to launch with Android Honeycomb? originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
"If you look at Google Mobile services, there's a video service, there's a music service -- that is, there will be a music service," he said. We presume he's referring to YouTube when he says video service -- unless Google has something else up its sleeve -- and the music service might be the backend for the non-working streaming function we saw in the leaked Android Music app back in December 2010. Jha went on to say that the value of the Honeycomb update is the addition of these video and music services, so it'll be interesting to see if he really did let Google's cat out of the bag in Spain.Google Music to launch with Android Honeycomb? originally appeared on Download Squad on Wed, 16 Feb 2011 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Google Docs Plays Nice With 12 New File Formats [Google]
If you use Google Docs more than you use Microsoft Office, you'll be happy to know that they added support for 12 new file formats, including Excel, Powerpoint and Photoshop files. Here's the full list: More »
Fantastic Plastic, Part 4: Petro Pollution
Nurdles. Aglets. Bakelite. Cellophane. There's poetry in the myriad names of plastic, which seems fitting for a man-made substance that barely existed prior to World War II but will most likely outlast human civilization itself. And that's just the 100 billion tons of the stuff we've created so far.
US House of Representatives Are Trying to Block Net Neutrality [Politics]
On a rampage against anything that remotely smells like regulation, the House of Representatives have voted to block funding for the FCC's Net Neutrality plan, which would ensure that ISPs couldn't restrict certain users from accessing select content. Of course, this would have to pass through senate and survive President Obama's desk, so the chance of this becoming a bill is unlikely. But the anti-tech sentiment coming from one half of our congress makes me all sadface. [Reuters] More »
New York Times: Apple Is Not Making a Smaller iPhone
The New York Times has poured cold water on a rumor that Apple is preparing to sell a smaller version of the iPhone.
The report conflicts with stories published earlier this week by Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal, who both claim that Apple is making a smaller iPhone that relies heavily on cloud-based storage and [...]
The report conflicts with stories published earlier this week by Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal, who both claim that Apple is making a smaller iPhone that relies heavily on cloud-based storage and [...]
GAEMS Xbox 360 traveling case gets sleek redesign, still won't help you spell correctly
The last rendition we saw of the GAEMS console-carrying case looked more like a giant lunch box than a solution to your portable gaming needs. If you're still interested in bringing your Xbox 360 on the road, the company has redesigned the case and it now supports the fat and slim versions of the 360 and even the PS3-skinny. What's new in this compact carrying case is the fact there's actually room to store the console, controllers and power brick. It comes bundled with a remote, HDMI cable and power supply to power the speakers and LED screen. If you're road trippin' any time soon and want this beast, you can save yourself 20 bones by pre-ordering before April 20th and you'll receive the $300 case come June.
GAEMS Xbox 360 traveling case gets sleek redesign, still won't help you spell correctly originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 Feb 2011 12:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink Gadget Review | GAEMS | Email this | Comments
GAEMS Xbox 360 traveling case gets sleek redesign, still won't help you spell correctly originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 Feb 2011 12:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink Gadget Review | GAEMS | Email this | Comments
They Won't Know That Tiny Toy Cam On Their Desk is Actually Recording Them [Cameras]
Slide a microSD card into the $95 Mame-Cam from Japanese purveyors-of-USB-craziness Thanko, and be on your way taking sneaky pics and vid on the sly. Video is shot in VGA res at 30fps, and the battery is good for 36 minutes' shooting. [Thanko via CrunchGear] More »
Apple Rumor Mill Spits Out Super Size iPod Touch, iPad 3 Retina Display [Rumors]
iPad 3 Retina Display speculation, "tween" sized iPod touch, shifting sizes and shifting sands—Apple rumors, ho! More »
Puzzle-Cutlery to Solve While You Starve
JOIN is a concept plastic cutlery set which is both awesome and annoying, in equal measure. A knife, fork and spoon are joined at the waist, intersecting each other as if they were in a teleportation experiment gone wrong. This is clearly a win from an aesthetic point-of-view, and keeps the business end of the [...]
Archos Arnova is ready to exterminate your clock radio, your Squeezebox too
The consumer electronics company with the phlegmatic name has just dropped its latest device on us, and for once it isn't a tablet or some form of PMP. It's the Archos Arnova, a fancy clock radio, with a 3.5-inch touchscreen in the middle plus the ability to connect to 12,000 streaming radio stations and 1,500 "web TV" channels too. If that's not enough you can play media directly from an SD card or pull it over your local network via uPNP. Why, you can even view pictures on there, if you don't mind squinting. What you can't do is know how much money to save or when you'll need to save it by if you're looking to buy one, as Archos hasn't seen fit to tell us that just yet.
Gallery: Archos Arnova
[Thanks, Joshua]Archos Arnova is ready to exterminate your clock radio, your Squeezebox too originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 Feb 2011 23:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Archos | Email this | Comments
Gallery: Archos Arnova
[Thanks, Joshua]Archos Arnova is ready to exterminate your clock radio, your Squeezebox too originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 Feb 2011 23:34:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Archos | Email this | Comments
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Waterfield Laptop SleeveCase for the 13? MacBook Air Review
There are certain manufactures where I truly love their products; Apple, Vaja, Surefire and Waterfield bags, to name a few.� Yep, definite fanboy and I am not ashamed to admit it. Quality is what matters. With the purchase of my 13? MacBook Air, I have been doing my best to take it with me as [...]
Android '2.4' Gingerbread will arrive in April, will support dual-core Honeycomb apps
No, that's not a typo: an update to Android 2.3 will arrive in April to allow single-core smartphones to run Honeycomb's dual-core apps. The news comes from hardware manufacturer Viewsonic, which insists the new version will be numbered 2.4 -- and it won't be called Ice Cream as expected; it will just be an updated version of Gingerbread.
Apparently the only change between 2.3 and 2.4 is the support for Honeycomb apps, which are designed to run with a dual-core processor -- and Android 2.3, as it stands, only supports single-core processors. Viewsonic is releasing a 'jumbo' smartphone with a 4.1" screen, which is why it understandably wants access to the Honeycomb library of tablet-oriented apps.
We're not sure why Google would break away from its now-famous versioning system. It's also odd that this news comes from a third party, and not Google itself. We wouldn't be surprised if this actually turns out to be version 2.3.3 or 2.3.4, rather than 2.4. The same source at Viewsonic also says that Ice Cream will be 3.1, and thus another tablet-oriented OS -- which would mean that the next smartphone version of Android could begin with 'J.'
Our money's on Jello.Android '2.4' Gingerbread will arrive in April, will support dual-core Honeycomb apps originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 08 Feb 2011 06:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Apparently the only change between 2.3 and 2.4 is the support for Honeycomb apps, which are designed to run with a dual-core processor -- and Android 2.3, as it stands, only supports single-core processors. Viewsonic is releasing a 'jumbo' smartphone with a 4.1" screen, which is why it understandably wants access to the Honeycomb library of tablet-oriented apps.
We're not sure why Google would break away from its now-famous versioning system. It's also odd that this news comes from a third party, and not Google itself. We wouldn't be surprised if this actually turns out to be version 2.3.3 or 2.3.4, rather than 2.4. The same source at Viewsonic also says that Ice Cream will be 3.1, and thus another tablet-oriented OS -- which would mean that the next smartphone version of Android could begin with 'J.'
Our money's on Jello.Android '2.4' Gingerbread will arrive in April, will support dual-core Honeycomb apps originally appeared on Download Squad on Tue, 08 Feb 2011 06:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
Fixing The Thinker With 3D Printing [3D Printing]
In 2007, some goons looted a casting of Rodin's The Thinker (one of many castings that exist of the iconic piece) from the Singer Laren Museum in the Netherlands, intending to sell it as scrap metal. I'm not sure why you'd want to sell a multi-million dollar work of art as scrap metal, but hey, that's on them. Though six other works from the museum were destroyed in the looting, The Thinker was recovered, though badly damaged. The museum asked the Belgian 3D printing company Materialise to help them fix it up. More »
Insidia is a dark-yet-forgiving platformer -- Time Waster
So you're an alien, tooling around in free space in your little spaceship... when suddenly, disaster strikes! Your craft is hit by a meteor, and you're forced to crash-land on an unfamiliar, dark planet.
That's where Insidia starts off. Now that you're on the planet, you have to navigate its complex maze of rooms and corridors in search of repair kits for your craft. Once you find all ten repair kits, you'd be able to leave the planet (and win the game).
Unlike many other platformers, Insidia is not linear. As you progress through the game, you reveal more and more passages and rooms, but you also go through some places more than once. When you hit M you get a nice map that shows everywhere you've been so far and gives you a sense of how much is still to be explored.
As you walk around, you find items that improve your abilities (a double-jump power-up, for example). And when something kills you, you just respawn at the last "save point", with all of your items and abilities intact. I love that, because it means dying is not a big deal - it's just a part of the game, and it doesn't make you feel like you're failing.
All in all, this is a platformer I could certainly spend some time with.Insidia is a dark-yet-forgiving platformer -- Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
That's where Insidia starts off. Now that you're on the planet, you have to navigate its complex maze of rooms and corridors in search of repair kits for your craft. Once you find all ten repair kits, you'd be able to leave the planet (and win the game).
Unlike many other platformers, Insidia is not linear. As you progress through the game, you reveal more and more passages and rooms, but you also go through some places more than once. When you hit M you get a nice map that shows everywhere you've been so far and gives you a sense of how much is still to be explored.
As you walk around, you find items that improve your abilities (a double-jump power-up, for example). And when something kills you, you just respawn at the last "save point", with all of your items and abilities intact. I love that, because it means dying is not a big deal - it's just a part of the game, and it doesn't make you feel like you're failing.
All in all, this is a platformer I could certainly spend some time with.Insidia is a dark-yet-forgiving platformer -- Time Waster originally appeared on Download Squad on Thu, 27 Jan 2011 17:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
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