Finally, E-book Reader enthusiasts finally get color screens!
E-Ink and LG Display showed off their color electronic paper screens today in Japan. Until now, user's who preferred colored screens over traditional e-book readers with monochrome screens have had to go the route of the iPad . Some retailers (namely Best Buy and Kmart) have been carrying color Android-based ebook readers as well. However, after some hands on time with the Pandigital ebook readers in Best Buy. I'd have to say that the touch screen capabilities aren't quite what they could be. Of course, this could also cause cost to go up as well. One of the biggest deterrents in displaying color with e-paper displays is the lack of a light source behind the display panel. The screens rely on 'ambient' light for display.
With the color screens this hasn't changed. Of course, this feature is also a huge contributor to the battery life of the device. So, common sense tells me that if you like your e-book reader, and would like to see shades of colors. Go ahead and look forward to this. However, if you are looking for something more on par with a display experience of say a laptop or netbook. You may be better suited for the time being with an iPad or one of the Android e-reader options.
Source: http://bit.ly/bfu4ew
3G iPod Touches coming soon to the Sprint 3G Network...
I am a proud owner of an iPod Touch. I have had mine for a couple of years now, and truly don't remember how I ever got along without one. I use it for everything from listening to music, to checking my email, and in some cases my Netflix viewing; depending on where I'm at. Earlier this year, you may have heard about the guy who developed a case for the iPod Touch that would basically turn it into an iPhone. Now, Sprint in cahoots with Chinese based company ZTE are bringing a case-like accessory that will allow 2nd and 3rd generation iPod Touchs to have access to Sprint's 3G data services.
This eliminates the need to have to seek out a wi-fi hotspot whenever you need to go online with your device. This connectivity however, does come with a price. As they say 'you have to pay to play'; it still holds true. This device will sale for $79.99and will run $29.99 a month for service. On the bright side, there is no annual contract for using the device. On top of adding the 3G connectivity, the device will also allow up to 2 other devices access online. So consider it a cross offering comparable to the iPad 3G plan AT&T offers (monthly pay-as-you-go usage) with a device like a 3G Mi-Fi for internet connection. Look for the ZTE Peel in your Sprint Store on November 14th.
Source: http://bit.ly/b3iOhO
Ask.com Got Spanked....By Google?
Remember back in the day there was this cool little Search Engine called AskJeeves.com. To do a web search a user could surf over to their site, and punch in their query phrased as a question. Like "Do monkey's really eat bananas?" and it would kick back you search results. The Jeeves apparently got kidnapped or feel of the face of the planet because they eventually turned into Ask.com.
Here's the scoop, Barry Diller bought Ask.com for $1.85 billion dollars. Not a bad turnover for the seller. Mr. Diller's main goal was to give Google a run for their money. That was in 2005. As we all know Google has basically exploded to 'super-search-engine-service-offerer status' since then. With the inclusion of services like:
- Gmail
- Google Voice
- Wave/Buzz/Orkut
- Google Maps/Google Earth
- The now dead Goog411 project
- Blogger
- and to mention just about everybody on the planet now uses Google
It was sure to be a hard race. According to the article at Bloomberg.com, Google holds around 65% of all search traffic. While Ask.com holds around 2%. Granted, not many have attempted to go up against the search giant that Google has become. Now that Ask.com has had to unfortunately downsize their staff. They are going to concentrate on their Q&A services that they were known for back in the day. Does this mean that they cartoony Jeeves character will make a come back? Don't know. But one thing is for sure, they need to get the ball rolling. Because by admitting defeat in predominately Google territory and going back to doing what they were good at before the whole 'let's challenge the big dog' mentality came about, they have to essentially make up for lost time and efforts.
Source: http://bit.ly/9WCiuC
Kinect on Linux!
Lastly today, I will hit on a topic that caught some attention from the opensource community last week. With the launch of Microsoft's Kinect for the Xbox 360, the company Adafruit offered a $2,000 'bounty' for anyone in the opensource communities who could crack the Kinect and make an opensource driver. Hector Martin has done so. Checkout his video linked on OMGUbuntu for more info.
For those not in the know, the Kinect is a motion detecting camera that grants gameplay similar to what you experience with Nintendo's Wii. Yet, you hold no controllers. It works by sensing depth perception and motion tracking. Once this device gets some real world implementation with Linux I may definitely check into one.
Source: http://bit.ly/bpBIZq
Until next time, Happy Surfing!
Techie on Facebook
Techie on Google+
0 comments:
Post a Comment