What's new on SlashGear.com |
- Checking Out the Samsung MD23 Three Screen LCD Monitor
- Gorilla Glass Demo [PLUS: How Gorilla Glass Works - Chemically!]
- NOOKcolor Demo
- Bungie is Looking for Beta Testers, You Could be One
- RIM Close to Bypassing Ban in India
- Rod Whitby of webOS Internals Details Roadmap for Preware 2.0
- Daniel HeiBe Creates a PC Case Mod from Concrete
- Red Dead Redemption Soundtrack Available on Vinyl, Costs $15
- White iPhone 4 on Sale in China
- Kyocera Solar Cycle Station Charges Your E-Bike
- Taiwan Tower in Taichung Features Helium Balloons Instead of Elevators
- Palm Mansion to Feature 5-Inch Display, webOS 2.0 Coming to All Devices Soon [UPDATE: Palm's Josh Marinacci Video Speech Added]
- id Software Co-Founder Says iPad is More Powerful Than Wii
- Cut, Copy and Hate
- iPad 2 Up, Samsung Galaxy Tab Down & Tablets Out for the Count
- SlashGear Morning Wrap-up: November 19 2010
- Synology DiskStation DS211 Review
- iPhone business alone worth more than all but 10 firms tip number-crunchers
- NOOKcolor Unboxing and Hands-on
- POV’s Mobii TEGRA Froyo tablet looks surprisingly familiar
- Cox “Unbelievably Fair” wireless launches: pays cash for unused minutes
- Google to wipe accidental UK Street View data to escape further inquiry
- Urban Ears TANTO Multicolor headphones are thankfully limited edition
- Amazon launches Kindle ebook gifting
- Sony Ericsson dismisses Windows Phone 7 and tablet rumors
- Verizon Samsung Continuum gets reviewed
- Apple Mac App Store reminder pushes for dev submissions
- World iPad with multi-mode GSM/CDMA modem tipped for 2011
- DIY Lego Santa sleigh for geeky festiveness
- Lens Bracelets are perfect for photo geeks
| Checking Out the Samsung MD23 Three Screen LCD Monitor Posted: 19 Nov 2010 02:46 PM PST Behold the Samsung MD23 Three Screen LCD Monitor, aka MD230X3. You’re about to see this beast showcased tethered with an ATI video card and in the three monitor configuration showcasing EyeFinity (not sure which version) format. What Eyefinity format is is a driver format through ATI Catalyst that allows your computer to work with a three-screen monitor setup. Wait, how big is that, you ask? 5760 x 1080 resolution. As Vince says – “monstrous.”
You can do a three-screen configuration OR a SIX-screen configuration if you wish, the six screen configuration giving you 5760 x 2160 resolution. That’s one big gigantic freaking monitor setup. And you can buy it in either three or six screen configurations. That’s absolute madness. What kind of person would be able to use such a gigantic setup? You? What would you do with it? Take a look at the video of Vince checking the situation out at PEPCOM.
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| Gorilla Glass Demo [PLUS: How Gorilla Glass Works - Chemically!] Posted: 19 Nov 2010 01:58 PM PST As you might already know, our man in the field Vincent was at PEPCOM last night checkin out all the fun electronics – but what was also there? Some sweet, undefeatable Gorilla Glass! This is the sort of glass the toughest devices with screens are apt to use – definitely not a low-grade situation. Gorilla Glass is made to last. Not to scratch, and definitely not to break. Over to the Gorilla Glass table last night and we were treated to a lovely demo by a nice man who let Vincent demo the glass by doing no less than attempting his hardest to break it. Fun!
First, we get to see a prototype hand-sized piece of Gorilla Glass where a there’s a bend in the glass.
Next, another piece with more of a dish shape (meaning there’s a dip in the middle) sizing in at around 4-inches.
Finally, another dish shaped piece with a hole cut in it I’d assume for a speaker.
Then the fun began. Vince gets to use sort of a metal stylus (looks like the handle of an Exacto Knife to me) to press down on several pieces of lower-grade glass, of course breaking them each in turn.
Finally, they reach the Gorilla Glass, a 1.1-mm thickness just like each of the pieces of glass before it. The man presenting the Glass does admit that some people at PEPCOM had been able to break the glass upon HEAVY pushing, so Vince does attempt to do so as well “for our readers” – like a boss. But alas, the glass does not give way. But I guess that’s also good news!
The representative for Gorilla Glass then goes into the technology behind the glass in a bit of detail. What Gorilla Glass is is an Alkalide Lumina Silicone glass – which essentially means it has sodium in it. The way the glass is made strong is that they put in a hot salt bath, which leaches out the sodium, which they then replace with Potassium. Potassium, being a bigger molecule than sodium, sets up a compressive layer on the surface when the glass cools. That compressive layer is what makes the glass damage resistant.
The Gorilla Glass rep then displays a very thin layer of Gorilla Glass employed on a giant television, noting how awesome it looks and how it’ll differentiate it from any other television with how thin and strong it is.
Finally, he shows off a panel of Gorilla Glass with a design behind it which he notes would be optimal for a laptop cover (either custom or straight out of the box) that could, again, differentiate whichever brand plans on using it.
Take a look at the video below and see the awesome strength of the gorilla.          
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| Posted: 19 Nov 2010 12:49 PM PST Our man in the field Vincent was at PEPCOM last night and got his hands on a NOOKcolor, checking it out a bit and even having a lovely demo done in front of the camera. It was here that we got to see firsthand a working model of the NOOKcolor device and all of the lovely features available on it at the launch. This is Barnes & Noble’s 7-inch “ultimate reading device” of which there is “no more iconic, thin, [or] comfortable [an] ereader.” Sound pretty snappy. Our presenter went through all of the clicks, pinches, and drags in turn.
The device has a 7-inch LCD backlit color display – what B&N found to be the optimal construction for reading and portability. Active desktop (dock below main desktop) has most recent 50 items read, all of these items able to be dragged and dropped onto the main desktop (of which there are three screens, similar to how you’d have multiple screens to place icons for apps in an Android smartphone.) On the desktop, each of these items can then be sized and placed anywhere, on top of, behind, next to, all around eachother like a real desk.
Once inside, say, a novel, you have a customizable reading experience: the font size can be changed, night mode can be turned on (turning the background to black and the text to white). Social Interaction includes the ability to highlight a passage from any bit of text, then sharing to places like Facebook, then tagging friends as one does so. Also inside the text one can bookmark, highlight, and during reading take notes as well. When reading magazines there’s a navigational function which includes a sort of dock that you can scroll through, showing you thumbnails of all the pages, allowing you to get to any page at any time. Magazines can be viewed both in portrait mode or landscape, navigating the same way for both. One can also pinch to zoom into pages as well.
Article View (pictured above) is something that works inside magazines for when there’s an article that would normally go 2 pages, then have several other pages of ads or other content and finish up later – this way you can read all of the text at once instead of flipping back and forth getting lost like you might in a real world magazine. Bookmarking here works too. All children’s books (example below) are displayed in landscape mode (as they should be, as most children’s books are designed to be viewed both pages at once). Many of the children’s books have narration (sometimes by famous people!) so the reader (a kid) can read along or have the book read to them. *I should note here that in a talk I had this morning with representatives from B&N (I’ll be reviewing the NOOKcolor soon) I found out that the interactive aspect (that is, seeing items on pages move, being able to pick illustrations up and move them, etc, fun stuff, will not be available at launch, but will instead start rolling out in Quarter 1 of next year.
There’s a Library feature (pictured below) where you can customize your shelves of your entire collection of books, magazines, newspapers, all customizable by you in whichever order you’d like them in (this is in addition to your desktop which is outside of the library, but these are the same books).
There’s a Lendable feature (pictured below, but you’ll be able to see a green ribbon on each book that’s lendable once you see the device up close) which allows you to give (or get) a book to (or from) a friend for 14 days – a time during which the book is effectively transferred, appearing in the person who borrowed the book’s library and inaccessible in the person’s who lent it.
Inside the Shop there’s several ways you can access books including lots of different ways to be recommended a book, categories to browse through, and of course a simple search function. Take a look at the video here, then the gallery below (in which you can see the microSD memory card slot under the loop,) then view the unboxing and hands-on post by yours truly, then just wait for the weekend where I’ll be posting a full review your your pleasure!         
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| Bungie is Looking for Beta Testers, You Could be One Posted: 19 Nov 2010 12:26 PM PST If you’re someone who wants to be involved in something slightly secret, and be one of the first to know about an upcoming projects from one of the most high-profile video game developers in the world, then here’s your shot to make it happen. Bungie has formally announced that the developer is opening up a casting-call of sorts. What they’re looking for? Someone to fill in the Beta Tester shoes. And, surprisingly enough, the process is a pretty straight forward one.
To get started, you’ll need to do some editing to your profile. Just head into the settings, and edit the profile. You’ll find a small box you can select that will opt you in for a chance to become a Bungie Beta Tester. You have to make sure that your Bungie Profile is active, which it should be if you’re editing it. But, most importantly, you’ll need to make sure that your email is Valid/Active. If it isn’t, it won’t even be possible for you to get the email confirmation that you’ve been selected. Obviously, there’s no word on what, exactly, you’ll be doing. But, Bungie does say that you’ll be on the ground floor, for new playlist tests, as well as Alpha and Beta tests of an upcoming, unannounced game. But, as you can imagine, the developer can’t choose everyone that signs up. So, go through the process, and then cross your fingers. You could be the next Bungie Beta Tester. [via Bungie]
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| RIM Close to Bypassing Ban in India Posted: 19 Nov 2010 11:59 AM PST The security issues between Research in Motion and some countries around the world seem to be coming to a close, if a new report from the company is to be believed. In a report from Reuters, the Canadian-based company that built BlackBerry is working on a global standard for security, and not one in particular for each country. The result, RIM hopes, is that all countries can agree on what the company is working on, and therefore calm any security fears that they may have.
In the report, it is said that RIM is focusing on the global standard, instead of just trying to make one country happy at a time. While we know that RIM figured out a way to stay functional in the UAE, the fate of BlackBerry devices in India is still up in the air. While now devices have been banned yet, it seems like India could, if they really wanted to, ultimately turn the switch off, and shut off BlackBerry services at any time. However, that hasn’t happened yet, and it looks like RIM is confident in the fact that it won’t. Though, they do still have until January 21st to make something happen. They said that they have had several constructive conversations with the Indian government over the last couple of months, and a resolution may be right around the corner. As long as RIM can figure out this global standard, that is. [via Reuters]
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| Rod Whitby of webOS Internals Details Roadmap for Preware 2.0 Posted: 19 Nov 2010 11:57 AM PST Today WebOS Internals’ Rod Whitby sent a few words out in a speech at webOS Developer Day in NYC about webOS Homebrew development. All the way back to a million years ago, 2009, when the Palm Pre was released, to now, and looking ahead. Preware 2.0 Plans include the following: Instant On. Need I say more? Everyone loves that. Currently loading Preware requires a scan and parse of all needed files – in the future, loading packages from db8 will make the whole process more dynamic and quick. Then, the db8 feature will more more easily sync an app to the cloud, allowing it to update in the background.
Thirdly, Palm Schema – more supporting features for reading app reviews and ratings, make it much easier to work with and control and see what’s going on before working with apps, plus more geographic controls so people in many different countries can decide in Preware which apps will appear. Custom kernels are being created by webOS Internals to get more apps ready to work with webOS 2.0, and they hope to get wIRC and more into the App Catalog very soon. Fun! Looks like Preware’s getting really ramped up and ready to blast through some walls, yes? Have a little talk about it at http://webosforums.com/ with me whydon’cha? [Via PreCentral]
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| Daniel HeiBe Creates a PC Case Mod from Concrete Posted: 19 Nov 2010 11:34 AM PST For some, having a case mod that looks both artistically amazing and absolutely ridiculous at the same time is a life-long dream. For most of them, they get the tools and create their dream project, making it a reality. That’s exactly what Daniel HeiBe did, who is actually no stranger to making remarkably unique case mods. His latest one, which will probably take the cake for outright uniqueness, is made completely out of concrete.
The concrete PC case mod was made as part of a case mod contest. Just by looking at it, we can tell that the construction time on this had to be huge, but the overall payout is probably more than worth it. It’s certainly unique, but we can’t help but wonder how heavy it is. Just looking at it hurts our backs. While the concrete case mod is impressive in of itself, HeiBe’s previous works include a treek trunk case mod, and one that looks like a small sail, which featured 24-carat leaf gliding. Obviously, HeiBe loves his case mods. [via TechnaBob]
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| Red Dead Redemption Soundtrack Available on Vinyl, Costs $15 Posted: 19 Nov 2010 11:21 AM PST If you’ve spent any time with Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption, then you know that the soundtrack is exceptional. The music manages to capture the mood of the game through its entirety. And if you’re someone who’s a fan of videogame soundtracks, and feel like the Red Dead Redemption needs to be yours, then you’ll be happy to know it’s available right now. One catch, though: you’ll have to dig out that old record player, because this is a vinyl release.
We know that most of you have ditched the record player for bigger, smaller things, but sometimes it’s a good thing to remember the old days. And, while this vinyl may not have the same look as most vinyl releases of yesteryear, we can certainly say it’s eye-catching. Rockstar calls it “blazing red,” and we’d say that’s a pretty safe name for the color. The vinyl record is available right now, courtesy of the Rockstar Warehouse. And if you can’t wait to get your hands on it, you’ll have to drop $15 to make it yours. Of course, the album features all of the songs from the title, so there won’t be one track you’re missing. Hopefully. [via Joystiq]
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| White iPhone 4 on Sale in China Posted: 19 Nov 2010 11:08 AM PST While those in the United States, and pretty much everywhere else, still try and deal with the fact that they still can’t have their very own iPhone 4 in white, it looks like a few digital retailers in China have been stockpiling white iPhone 4s. Reportedly, these devices were originally on their way to the United States, but obviously Apple put the ka-bosh on that, and now they’re just sitting in China, waiting. At least, they were until they decided to start selling them.
While we know there’s a few white iPhone 4s slinking around the globe right now, it’s currently not possible for someone to actually buy one. Not in an official, Apple-approved fashion, anyway. But, if you don’t mind any of that, then you can possibly find one in China, ready to go. As reported by Gizchina originally, retailers are now offering the white iPhone 4 on their site. And, before we start calling out fakes, it looks like these people have the real deal, as seen by the box, and the serial numbers. The kicker comes in the fact that these retailers are able to pretty much sell these devices for whatever price they want. As of right now, it looks like if you want a standard 16GB white iPhone 4, it can run you anywhere between $800 and $1,200. Not a cheap purchase to be sure, but if you do decide to pull the trigger on this, at least you know you’d be one of the few people in the world to actually have a white version of the device. And you didn’t even have to put it together yourself. [via FastCompany]   
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| Kyocera Solar Cycle Station Charges Your E-Bike Posted: 19 Nov 2010 10:55 AM PST While electric cars may get the most attention, there’s other eco-friendly options out there, too. And, frankly, electric bikes are far more friendly to the environment than most electric vehicles. Unfortunately though, the charging stations that juice up the bikes tend to not be. But Kyocera is looking to change all that, thanks to their brand new Solar Cycle Stations, which the company officially announced late yesterday.
Considering the pretty straight forward design, it’s surprising that no one has thought of this before. But, Kyocera is the first to jump on it, bringing to the world a regular looking bike stand that actually features solar cells on it. Once an electric bike is plugged into the rack, the bike will charge. There will be different variations of the stand that Kyocera puts out into the market. The main version will be one that features three solar modules, which will be able to put out a total output of 79.8V. Electric bikes are taking off, especially in Japan, so it makes sense that Kyocera would want to develop a new way for them to be charged. Especially ones that focus on the environment, much like the bikes themselves. However, with helping the environment usually does, it doesn’t come cheap. For $23,000, someone can install the new Solar Cycle Station right now. [via CrunchGear]
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| Taiwan Tower in Taichung Features Helium Balloons Instead of Elevators Posted: 19 Nov 2010 10:32 AM PST The Taiwan Tower may look like a concept right now, but it won’t for long. This is one concept that, just as it was being drawn up and planned, had already been given the green light to be built into the real world. The Taiwan Tower, which will be built in Taichung in the near future, will not only be the tallest building in that particular city, but it will also substitute elevators for something completely unorthodox: balloons.
The tower will stand 984 feet, which will officially make it the tallest building in the city. The designers must have decided at some point that getting to one of the restaurants in this tower wouldn’t be awesome enough if patrons had to do it on an elevator, so instead helium-filled balloons, that will be powered by propellers have been decided upon instead. And, just like any modern tower, there’s not going to just be apartments and condos in there. The designers have included spaces for museums, restaurants, and conference centers. And while this is just a concept image, above, the final design is said to be close to this. Construction is set to kick off in 2012. [via DVICE]   
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| Posted: 19 Nov 2010 10:12 AM PST When Palm and HP officially announced the webOS 2.0-equipped Palm Pre 2, we hear that the device would be launching on Verizon in the United States “in the coming months.” For HP and Palm, that seems to be the slogan of choice, when it comes to webOS. Today, Josh Marinacci confirmed that webOS 2.0 would indeed be coming to all of the available devices “in the coming months.” However, perhaps more interesting, is a new rumor floating around that the Palm Mansion, a name that we’ve heard floating around before, will feature a 5-inch display.
The rumor states that the Palm Mansion, a codename for a device that’s been floating around for awhile now, will have that five-inch display, with a rumored resolution of 480 x 800. Unfortunately, that’s all of the information about the display that we have so far. However, the rumor also suggests that the device, this Mansion, will be available in the first half of 2011, which aligns pretty well with what we’ve heard in the past, as far as upcoming device release dates go. As for webOS 2.0, it’s good to see that Palm and HP are committed to getting the latest software build on all of their devices. However, it will be interesting to see what aspects of webOS 2.0 don’t translate well for devices like the Palm Pixi, and Pixi Plus. We already know that Flash won’t be supported, but we’ll have to wait and see if other features fall through the cracks too. UPDATE: Palm’s Josh Marinacci’s speech at the HP webOS Developer Day in NYC today has just been added to YouTube, take a look: [via PreCentral; via PhoneArena]
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| id Software Co-Founder Says iPad is More Powerful Than Wii Posted: 19 Nov 2010 09:48 AM PST There are a few people within the video game development world that when they speak about a particular console, no matter who manufactures it, you listen. One of those people happens to be John Carmack, co-founder of id Software. That particular company just released a new title for the iPhone and iPad, called Rage HD. The title is a First Person Shooter (FPS) title that’s meant to show off the power of the iPad, but according to Carmack, they haven’t even begun to touch on the power of the device.
Carmack, in a recent interview, said that the iPad easily has enough power to overthrow the Nintendo Wii. Not only that, but he also pointed out that the iPad also shows off its power, better than about a quarter of Xbox 360 titles. He admits that Sony’s PlayStation 3 and Microsoft’s Xbox 360 have significantly more power than Apple’s tablet device, but that most of that power is wasted, while the iPad’s potential hasn’t nearly been realized. Of course, with comments like this from Carmack, it just shows even more proof that the iPad, even if it is a tablet without any kind of physical controls, is a strong contender in the mobile video game market. Unfortunately, Carmack did say that he doesn’t believe id Software will begin focus on mobile gaming, as he believes that the tablet device is more of a social device, and that just isn’t a focus for the company at this time. [via Kotaku]
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| Posted: 19 Nov 2010 09:45 AM PST Digital culture ran smack into politics this week when celebrity gossip site TMZ published what it claimed (uncontested by those involved) were screen shots of a Facebook conversation had by Willow Palin, the daughter of the controversial political figure Sarah Palin. I remember the days when a politician was stabbed in the back by a gruff, anonymous source who used a fake name and passed dossiers in a dark parking garage. Reporters would work for days to verify the claims just to make sure they were true. Now, all you have to do is press shift-cmd-4, and you can make a perfect copy that you can distribute to the entire world in an instant. It’s still easy to fake information, but it’s even easier to pass along the raw data.
[Image credit: The Life of Brian] It’s so easy to make copies of anything these days that we barely have time to think of the legality, let alone the moral responsibility, involved. I can copy a CD in 4 minutes and pass it along to everyone I know in even less time. I can download a movie in a fraction of the time it would take to actually watch the film. Now, politicians have to be careful that the same mindset won’t come to haunt them. But here, an American politician has run smack into the vertex of some very important concepts for our digital lifestyles. Foremost, watch what you say on Facebook. Even though you think your network is limited to your friends, sometimes it’s just too easy for friends to act without thinking things through. Let me get this out of the way first. I am not a fan of Sarah Palin. I try to stay apolitical in this column, and I would certainly consider a reasonable candidate from either side of the political spectrum who has solid, proven ideas for making this country a better place. It’s not a Republican or Democrat thing. It’s an intellectual thing. I think Sarah Palin is intelligent, but she has consistently proven herself anti-intellectual, anti-science, and unwilling to bend or change her views, even when they fly in the face of basic facts. I respect that there are people who like her, and who don’t much mind this side of her public personality, or who value other strengths that she brings to the political table much more than her intellectual views. But it’s something I just can’t get past. Sarah Palin also puts her children and her family in the spotlight. They show up on campaign stops. They appear in her new reality television show. Her oldest daughter, who got pregnant in High School with a boyfriend she has since dismissed, now promotes abstinence and safe sex in TV commercials. Oh, and she might win Dancing With The Stars, a show that long ago proved its own title to be ironic. I think that media scrutiny of Sarah Palin is not just fair game, it’s a necessary check to the power she’s been given by Fox News as a commentator for the far right. I hesitate even to identify her with the right wing, because she runs contrary to all of my views that might be seen as rightist, and nobody I know personally who identifies as a conservative finds themselves in agreement with her. But I felt sad this week for Willow Palin, Sarah Palin’s 16-year old daughter. While her mother’s reality show was premiering on TLC, and it was one of TLC’s highest rated premieres ever, Willow was being harassed on Facebook by people who were making fun of her show and her family. So, Willow lashed out. According to TMZ, Willow Palin struck back using foul language and homophobic slurs. I’m not going to link to their story, I’m sure my readers can find it if they so desire. She used homophobic curses, repeatedly, to strike at one of her critics. Of course, the left wing media (and I don’t mean all media is left wing, I’m singling out a specific subset, like Slate.com) attacked her and her sister for their diatribe, but I think that was out of line. I definitely think there’s a lesson to be learned here, but heaping so much blame and scorn upon a 16-year old is not the right answer. First of all, this is a great opportunity to talk to our kids about Facebook, the Internet, and the permanence of what we say, especially in digital speech. There was a time when we could make outlandish statements and they would flutter away into the ether. Now they fly through the Ethernet. They are taken down, stored in digital vaults, and they come back to haunt us. We’re living in an age where it is so easy to transcribe, perfectly and accurately, words that might have been spontaneous and emotional. Words that should never be kept are now impossible to delete. I’ve been known to spout some foul language in my time, especially when I was that age, and always around my peers. But there’s a difference between shockingly foul language and words that are completely hateful and bigoted. I called my friends and enemies numerous foul terms, like many kids in my class, but we never resorted to racism, hate speech or the like. I might have used language similar to what Willow Palin said. I had close friends in High School who were openly gay, at least open with a small, trusted group. But I admit, with shame, that I probably threw around homophobic taunts at my friends as synonyms for calling them an idiot or a moron. It was not something I’d ever heard from my parents, but it also wasn’t something my parents specifically taught me to avoid. I was taught, rather forcefully, to never use the F-word around civilized people. All of the seven words from George Carlin’s famous bit were explained as off-limits, at least while I was young. I was taught why racism was hateful and hurtful, and it has never occurred to me to throw out a racist term in a moment of anger. I was taught those lessons about language, and I valued them. But those specific homophobic slurs were never considered, because it wasn’t something my parents threw around so casually in their time. I had to learn that lesson on my own. That happened in college, when I was seriously questioning myself and my values, and learning about the power of language. It was also when I had a much more diverse group of friends. I don’t think Sarah Palin condones this sort of hateful speech. I don’t think she has a great record for standing up for the equal rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual people, but I don’t believe she wants to hurt anyone. But has she communicated her feelings to her children? If so, it’s clear from what I’ve read that Willow Palin didn’t value this lesson. But here’s the good news. Willow is 16 years old. If she’s a part of the homophobic culture that makes it so difficult for young LGBT people to live comfortably, then of course her language should be roundly condemned and she needs to be taught the lesson in a way that she’ll value and take to heart. She’s been taught by her peer group that this language is acceptable, but that doesn’t make her a bad kid. The reason we hold teenagers and young people accountable for so little is that they have not finished growing, either physically or emotionally. They can still change their behaviors, change their relationships and the way they see the world. There might be fundamental patterns that they follow forever, but hatred and bigotry are definitely traits that can be shaken off. This usually happens with personal experience, and contact with the unfamiliar world that is so hard to imagine from a teenage perspective. But when that mistake happens, remember that these are just kids. For the most part, there are no bad kids, there are just kids who have learned some very bad behaviors. From that perspective, it’s all about how you teach your children to value what’s important in interpersonal relationships, and how to help them learn from the mistakes they’ve made. It’s going to be hard to teach children about the permanence of their online actions. Children have little concept of the long road ahead, and by nature are living in the moment. If people are willing to make permanent changes when they are so young, like getting a tattoo, piercings, or a bad hairstyle in a yearbook photo, how can we stop them from having a simple, heated conversation that will haunt them forever? Maybe the answer is that we can’t stop them, and we have to change the way we judge people for the online actions that date back to their adolescence. As a postscript, I have to admit that I’m worried about how people will take this column. Not the political fans of Sarah Palin, they can all jump off a glacier – oh wait, there are no glaciers any more. Plus, they’d probably float away, because gravity is only a theory, and they don’t believe in silly, scientific theories. I have friends and colleagues, people I value and admire, who were probably personally offended by the things Willow Palin said. I’ve approached this topic from my perspective as a student of digital culture, and also as a teacher. I hope these influences are apparent. But I could be wrong. I’m still learning about other people, and still growing. I don’t place any value in stagnancy, and if I’m wrong, I hope to learn from others so I can change my own perspective.
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| iPad 2 Up, Samsung Galaxy Tab Down & Tablets Out for the Count Posted: 19 Nov 2010 09:36 AM PST Tablets are the new rage. There’s no denying that the tablet market has exploded since the release of Apple’s iPad. Their tablet device managed to stir the entire market up, and now everyone is racing to get the best of the best into the customer’s hands. Or, perhaps the point is just to sell as many as possible. Whatever the case may be, it seems to be working. The iPad is still selling like hot cakes, and it’s already targeted as one of the most wanted devices for this holiday season. But, there are competitors, some of them pretty strong in their own right. And yet, as tablet sales are surely going to continue forward with strong figures, it seems that some analysts see some of the strongest competitors out there holding back on production, due to low sales. While there are other tablets being sold out within just a few hours. So, what’s the deal?
There’s no telling what, exactly, drives a person’s desire for a product. Some want functionality. Some want a clean User Interface. And some want all of it, all bundled up in a nice package. Some would argue that Apple has that, while others would say that the Galaxy Tab does all of that and more. In the case of the second generation iPad, which is starting to hit the limelight more and more as we reach the first quarter of 2011, there are so many rumors about what that device will feature, it’s getting ridiculous. From a front-facing camera for FaceTime calling, to being reinforced with Carbon Fiber for better protection, the rumors are painting quite the interesting, and high-end device. Of course, the software will play a major role in the device, which is still not officially announced, so it will be interesting to see what Apple does indeed have in store for the next iteration of their tablet device. And now, with rumors that the second generation iPad will be a world-based device, featuring both GSM and CDMA, the tables would certainly get more interesting. If the iPad can launch with that sort of technology, with more hardware features (like a USB port), and other features that people are clamoring for, it would be hard to suggest that the second generation iPad wouldn’t see the same, if not better, adoption rate as the first one. And, with the suppliers of the device supposedly made official now, we know there’s only a matter of months before we get to see what, exactly, Apple has in store for the tablet market. What about the Galaxy Tab from Samsung? Samsung hopes to sell millions of the tablet device by the end of the year, but one analyst believes that Samsung has been forced to pull back on manufacturing of the device. Why? Because of low sales. While Samsung still hasn’t commented on the analyst’s claims, it would be tough to believe that, considering the adoption rate of the Samsung Galaxy S smartphones, that the tablet version isn’t seeing anywhere near the same pick-up rate. Of course, with its larger display, but many of the same functions and features as its smartphone counterpart, perhaps it’s just too similar to what people already have. (But, couldn’t the same argument be made for the iOS-based iPad?) In the end, if the analyst’s report is accurate, and Samsung is indeed pulling back manufacturing of the Tablet, the globally-available device may be a hard thing to come by this holiday season, which would ultimately affect the sales numbers for Samsung in a huge way. And then there’s the brand new, also Android-based Advent Vega tablet. The new device officially went on sale today, and in a matter of hours, was already sold out. There’s no word on how many tablet devices were originally manufactured, but we can safely assume that it was more than 10. There’s also no word, as of the time of this writing anyway, as to when people can expect to get their hands on the tablet device. Does this, working in perfect counter-point to the analyst’s claims regarding Samsung, show that tablet devices are still a hot market property, and that if there is indeed a slump in purchases, that it’s quickly fading away? Will this holiday season show that tablets are the device to have, or will consumers focus on another part of the market? In the coming weeks, we should have our answer, and either way, the results should be interesting.
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| SlashGear Morning Wrap-up: November 19 2010 Posted: 19 Nov 2010 09:29 AM PST Hooray! Mail came early today and we were given our Nook Color to grab and to open and to hold (aka unboxing and hands-on). Then we find out that the iPhone alone is worth more than almost every firm in the WORLD. Cox gives you money back for the minutes you don’t use, and Google wipes away that StreetView data they were never supposed to have in the first place. Advent Vega offers up their budget Android tablet for sale and basically instantly sells out, and MySpace opens their doors to Facebook and signs the oncoming apocalypse.
R3 Media Network Android Community SlashGear To see more wrap-up posts, follow the following tags: [The Daily Slash] or [SlashGear Morning Wrap-up]
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| Synology DiskStation DS211 Review Posted: 19 Nov 2010 09:09 AM PST The Synology DiskStation DS211 isn’t the company’s first NAS to cross the SlashGear test bench, but it’s perhaps the most home-user focused model so far. A two-bay network-attached backup box, the DS211 also throws in DLNA media streaming duties and cross-platform compatibility. With a diskless retail price of around $320, is this the box you should be entrusting your data security to? Check out the full SlashGear review after the cut.
HardwareUnlike its more sober – and expensive – siblings from the Synology line-up, the DS211 comes with a crisp white chassis and a bright LED panel on the fascia. At 161 x 218 x 88 mm it’s not too large to sit in the corner on your desk, and Synology include the necessary AC adapter, installation kit and a 2m ethernet cable to get you wired up. You’ll also need at least one hard-drive: the DS211 will take either 2.5- or 3.5-inch drives, each up to 2TB, for a total of 4TB altogether.
Ports include a single gigabit ethernet, two USB 2.0 on the back and a single USB 2.0 on the front. There are indicator lights for overall status, network status, each drive and power. Like the DS411+ NAS we reviewed back in July, fitting the drives requires opening up the chassis rather than simply slotting in a couple of caddies at the back; a pair of screws hold the casing in place. A single 70mm fan keeps everything cool, including the 1.6GHz processor paired with 256MB of memory.
SoftwareThe DS211 runs Synology’s DiskStation Manager 3.0 (DSM 3.0) OS, and it’s a comprehensive platform that covers more than just multi-PC backup. As with most network-attached devices, setup and control is managed via your browser; however, DSM 3.0 gets a new, multitasking UI with various independently draggable windows that can be viewed in a single browser tab. The whole thing looks like a blend of Windows 7 and OS X, complete with drop-down task menus and desktop icons, and it’s even possible to reskin it with different color themes.
While having a more aesthetically-pleasing NAS UI might not seem the best use of Synology’s resources, it does make using the DS211′s media functionality more pleasant. Load your multimedia, and the NAS has its own audio player that also supports internet radio; meanwhile there’s also DLNA/UPnP streaming to funnel that content around your home to compatible computers, HDTVs and STBs. By default, with two drives the DS211 will set up a mirrored array that provides redundancy for your data: should one drive die, the other will still keep the data safe. Alternatively you can choose to bypass redundancy and set the two up as a single volume. With only two bays – unlike Synology’s larger NAS units – there’s no more complex arrays possible; however, you can add external drives via USB, or use the DS211 as a print server with a USB printer.
For backups, Synology provide their Data Replicator for PC users and Time Machine compatibility for Mac OS X. The front panel USB port has a Copy button which automatically pulls backs-up the contents of any camera, USB drive or memory stick you plug in. An app on the NAS itself makes for straightforward secondary backups, copying all the data on the array over to a local USB drive or a remote DiskStation or rsync station. Unlike with Data Robotics’ DroboProFS, you can remotely back-up to any server, not just an identical NAS. There are many more apps on offer, including standalone BitTorrent downloads, photo and video slideshows – with companion apps for iPhone and Android – and SqueezeCenter compatibility for those using Logitech’s streaming audio system. Small office users, meanwhile, get the same security camera monitoring, virtual web host, PHP/MySQL, mail server and other business-friendly options as in Synology’s more expensive models. We were able to easily set up media streaming, simply by loading some audio files into a folder and ticking a few boxes, and even creating a web server was surprisingly straightforward. PerformanceDespite the relatively low amount of RAM Synology has outfitted the DiskStation DS211 with, we had no issues with performance. Set up as a RAID 1 array, the DS211 managed 101.37 MB/sec read rates and 56.12 MB/sec write rates, when tested with a 1.5GB file. That makes it roughly on a par with the DS411+ when it comes to read speeds, though around half as fast when writing data. Wrap-UpThere’s a huge amount to like about the Synology DiskStation DS211. Not only is the NAS well made and compact, the DiskStation Manager 3.0 software stands head and shoulders above rivals for not only ease of initial setup but for ongoing use. We’d like to have seen integrated wireless, too, though Synology do provide a list of compatible third-party USB WiFi adapters that can be used. Still, having it fitted as standard – even with the ensuing throughput limitations – would make for more flexible placement for home users willing to sacrifice some speed. The data transfer speeds may not match Synology’s faster models, but then the DS211 is also half the price of the DS411+. Small businesses may want to look to models with more drive bays for greater future-proofing – and still get DSM 3.0 – but home users wanting not only data security but stable media access and more should definitely have the DiskStation DS211 on their shortlist.
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| iPhone business alone worth more than all but 10 firms tip number-crunchers Posted: 19 Nov 2010 08:55 AM PST The number manglers over at Trefis have crunched the stats and decided that Apple’s iPhone – were it to be spun off as a separate business – would be worth more than all but ten companies on the planet. Basing their figures on Apple’s current $391 billion worth and the fact that the iPhone represents 53.5-percent of that, they estimate the standalone value at $209 billion – only just behind AT&T and IBM.
In fact, they could only find ten firms worth more, including Microsoft ($262bn), Exxon Mobil ($349bn) and mining company BHP ($236bn). Now, this is only meant to be a relatively playful alternative look at the stats, and nobody is saying that if Apple actually did split off the iPhone it would work as a standalone business. Part of the value is, of course, the iTunes/iOS/Mac ecosystem, without which the iPhone is just hardware. Still, it’s an interesting perspective and shows just how important to Apple’s overall worth the smartphone is. [via Fortune]
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| NOOKcolor Unboxing and Hands-on Posted: 19 Nov 2010 08:50 AM PST Welcome to the official SlashGear NOOKcolor Unboxing and Hands-on. I received this lovely treat in the mail at about 9AM through FedEx – joyous day! You know the NOOKcolor from its first official coming out ceremony back on October 26th (2010). This is Barnes and Noble’s first fully color Nook: it’s a 7-inch portable tablet aimed directly at those wishing to have a full reading experience. It costs right around $250 and is host to over 2 million titles (books, enhanced books, newspapers, magazines, and children’s books.) Inside you’ll see the slick box it comes in plus the accessories and feel of the device itself.
The folks at Barnes&Noble really know what they’re doing as far as graphic design and packaging. This box makes the Nook seem amazing (we’ll see how amazing it really is (or isnt?!) in the review.) They’ve got that part down. The box is thick and brilliantly printed. Once you figure out (it took me a minute) that you’ve got to break the circle sticker seals on the side, you realize that it’s an excellent fold-back design, complete with magnets(!) to hold it open or closed.
Once inside you’ll find what appears to be a free-floating NOOKcolor, but in fact it is being held in place by two sturdy pieces of board padding. Alongside the NOOKcolor you’ll find a beautifully laid out pamphlet roughly the same size as the device telling you how to get everything going. The reason this pamphlet seems so short and limited is because it is: the extended User Guide, it says, can be found inside your library on the NOOKcolor device itself.
Next you’ll be searching for the USB cord and wall plug, both can be found in a cute little box in the smaller end of the folded back package. I’m foolish so I wrecked the side panel with the Nook “n”, of course, but you’ll know right away that this box opens just like any reasonable box, right on the top or bottom. When the cord is plugged into the device, you’ll see a cute little light up “n” again, in green or orange letting you know if the charge is complete.
Next, you’ll take a look at the NOOKcolor and think “oh let’s try it out” but you cant! Take a look at the plastic protective sheet on the front of the device (I tore it off without even reading it) and you’ll find that it says you’ll have to plug the device in before attempting to explore it. The instant you do plug it in, however, you’re able to turn it right on and start your reading adventure.
The device is medium weight – you’re not holding a telephone here, this device weighs at least as much as one of those soft-cover Harry Potter books you’ve heard so much about. The back is rubbery and will never slip out of your hands, the touchscreen is extremely responsive (more on this in the review), and the lights are bright. I can just barely wrap my hand around the device to hold it – I expect most people to be using two hands to keep a grip whilst reading.
Over the next few days (I mention the possibility of just one, but I’ve got to dive deeper than that) we’ll be taking a look at NOOKcolor and all of its neato aspects, seeing how it lives up to itself. You’ll have your full review then. UNTIL then, take a peek at this sweet shaky-cam unboxing and see me struggle like a fool attempting to decipher this easy-to-understand package.                       
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| POV’s Mobii TEGRA Froyo tablet looks surprisingly familiar Posted: 19 Nov 2010 08:25 AM PST Advent’s Vega tablet made a few headlines today after the 10-inch Android 2.2 slate went on sale and promptly sold out in two hours; now there’s another Tegra 2 based slate we’re curious about. Expansys is taking pre-orders for the POV Mobii TEGRA, a £285 tablet with WiFi b/g, HDMI and a 1.3-megapixel webcam, also running Froyo.
In fact, the Mobii TEGRA is surprisingly similar to the Advent Vega: both have 512MB of RAM, a microSD card slot and a USB Host port, along with a webcam. Looking at the few photos available on the POV (aka “Point Of View”) site, the ports and speakers look pretty similar to the Vega too, leading us to wonder whether this is the same ODM tablet with different brands slapped on. Until the first Vega and first Mobii TEGRA units start arriving, however, there’s no way to know. Expansys doesn’t have an expected delivery date for the POV slate, and PC World doesn’t expect to get any more Vega models in until the end of next week at the earliest.    [via Android Community]
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| Cox “Unbelievably Fair” wireless launches: pays cash for unused minutes Posted: 19 Nov 2010 08:00 AM PST Cox Communications has outed its own wireless service offering, “Unbelievably Fair“, initially catering to Hampton Roads, VA, Omaha, NE, and Orange County, CA. Cox’s gimmick is the promise of MoneyBack Minutes: rather than, like most carriers, trying to encourage you to use your phone more, Cox will actually give users cash back every month in return for their unused minutes.
Admittedly it’s only up to $20 per month, and Cox is likely hoping that subscribers will see that as a good excuse to pick a bigger plan in the first place. Users will also get a text message to warn them when they’re close to their monthly minute and message allowance, and $0.05 per unused cash back.minute Initial devices include the HTC Desire, Motorola Milestone, LG Axis, HTC Hero, HTC Wildfire, Samsung Messager Touch and the Samsung Profile, as well as the Cox 3G U210 On-the-Go Modem. Full plan details are below. Cox is also offering perks for its TV or home internet users who sign up, such as a premium subscription HBO, Showtime, Starz or Cinemax or Cox Movie Pak, which includes Encore, Epix, Sundance and Vutopia; broadband users can upgrade from Preferred to Premier; or home telephone customers can add unlimited domestic long distance calling on their Cox Digital Telephone service.
Press Release:
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| Google to wipe accidental UK Street View data to escape further inquiry Posted: 19 Nov 2010 07:43 AM PST Google has agreed to wipe the WiFi data it captured in the UK while shooting photography for its Street View service, with the UK deputy information commissioner agreeing that in doing so the search giant will escape fines or further inquiry. Although Google admitted to accidentally gathering information from unsecured wireless hotspots, the commissioner said that there was no indication that any of the data “had fallen into the wrong hands.”
“We’d have had to find that there was substantial damage or distress to individuals from the collection of snippets of e-mails, URLs and passwords” Deputy information commissioner David Smith told the BBC, “we’d have to meet that criteria for a penalty to be imposed.” Smith’s department faced criticism after its initial investigation concluded that “no significant breach” of data protection had been made, only to change that ruling after Canadian counterparts deemed privacy laws had been seriously violated. “We spent less time searching than others did” Smith admitted, “if we had searched for days and days we would have found more.” However he also said that the intention all along had been to use data collected by other countries to shape the UK judgement. Meanwhile, Google has agreed to offer privacy training to all of its staff.
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| Urban Ears TANTO Multicolor headphones are thankfully limited edition Posted: 19 Nov 2010 06:47 AM PST Following in the limited-edition footsteps of the short-lived VW Polo Harlequin, Urban Ears has a new set of multi-colored headphones designed for those who don’t mind getting noticed. The Urban Ears TANTO Multicolor cans are assembled out of a random selection of different colored parts at the factory, and the excitement – or, for the control freaks among us, bowel-clenching fear – is not knowing what you might get when you open the box.
As for functionality, there’s an in-line remote control with a microphone and multi-function button for answering calls and controlling track-skipping. You also get a couple of adapter cables, to use with stereo sources and Nokia phones. The earphones themselves have 40mm handmade drivers, and the whole thing is decidedly retro (and we’re not just talking about the fact that the Polo Harlequin came out in 1995; get with the times, hipsters!) On sale now, in limited amounts, for $47.    
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| Amazon launches Kindle ebook gifting Posted: 19 Nov 2010 06:31 AM PST Amazon has seemingly grown bored of waiting for people to actively adopt its Kindle ereading platform, and instead wants it to be foisted on unwitting gift recipients this holiday season. As of today it’s possible to gift a Kindle ebook with nothing more than the recipient’s email address.
The lucky recipient doesn’t need to have a Kindle or one of Amazon’s Kindle apps in order to receive the gift; however, they will need to either download an app or buy the ereader if they want to redeem it and actually read the book. Admittedly that’s a free download if you have an iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, Mac, PC, or BlackBerry or Android device. We can understand why Amazon is doing this, and if you know someone who already uses the Kindle platform then it would probably even be preferable to a physical book, but pushing (at least) a download on someone in order to enjoy a present seems a bit unnecessary come Christmas day. A bit like not including the batteries, in fact. Press Release:
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| Sony Ericsson dismisses Windows Phone 7 and tablet rumors Posted: 19 Nov 2010 06:19 AM PST Sony Ericsson France CEO Pierre Perron has confirmed that the cellphone company is in talks with Microsoft regarding the possibility of using Windows Phone 7 for future smartphones, but has suggested that the strict specification and software limits imposed mean the likelihood of adoption is low. “[With] Windows [Phone] 7 we run the risk of standardising our smartphones” he told French newspaper Les Echos, “we would be obliged to fight only on design and price, which we want to avoid.”
Perron said that Sony Ericsson and Microsoft continue to “discuss” the possibility, but it seems unlikely that a handset can be expected any time soon. Meanwhile the executive was also dismissive of tablets, suggesting that Sony Ericsson had no intention of following Samsung, LG and others and being “the 24th” company to wade into the market. Rumors surfaced earlier this week that Sony Ericsson were developing the XPERIA X7 and X7 mini, 8.1-megapixel smartphones running the Microsoft OS and set for release in Q1 2011. [via WMPowerUser and via TelecomPaper]
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| Verizon Samsung Continuum gets reviewed Posted: 19 Nov 2010 06:15 AM PST Verizon’s Samsung Continuum is a curious little Android smartphone, targeted it seems at those so addicted to checking their phone for new email, calendar or other updates, they’re draining the battery too quickly and need a second, smaller panel to cater to their obsession. Over at Android Community they’ve been putting the segmented smartphone through its paces, finding its Ticker display is useful but that it still comes with some compromises.
For instance, the Continuum is running Android 2.1 Eclair, rather than Froyo, and while battery life could get through a couple of days of only sporadic use, under more regular conditions it still needs an overnight charge. The camera is underwhelming, despite its 5-megapixels. However, you do get Samsung’s usual spec-sheet busting hardware list, including WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0 and a 1GHz Hummingbird CPU, and if more people pick up on the Ticker concept then hopefully a greater number of apps will end up supporting it. Full details over at the Android Community review, and a preview of the Ticker functionality in the video below.
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| Apple Mac App Store reminder pushes for dev submissions Posted: 19 Nov 2010 05:37 AM PST Apple is sending developers reminder emails about the upcoming Mac App Store, 9to5Mac reports, encouraging them to submit titles now for review and potential inclusion in the upcoming OS X software download system. Announced at Apple’s Back To The Mac event in mid-October, the Mac App Store will push iOS titles to Apple’s desktop range of computers, bridging the divide between the mobile OS and OS X.
At announcement, Apple CEO Steve Jobs confirmed that the Mac App Store would launch “within the next 90 days.” It’s unclear whether this reminder is an indication that the download service is about to launch more imminently than perhaps expected, that developer take-up has been less than predicted and Apple is needing to encourage coders to take part, or is a normal part of the process.
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| World iPad with multi-mode GSM/CDMA modem tipped for 2011 Posted: 19 Nov 2010 05:25 AM PST Having heard earlier this morning that Apple suppliers are allegedly preparing for mass-production of iPad 2 PCBs in February 2011, now there’s speculation on what components might be fixed to them. AllThingsD quotes Wedge Partners analyst Brian Blair, who reckons Apple has picked Qualcomm’s multi-mode GSM/CDMA modem for a so-called “World iPad” that could use AT&T and Verizon data networks.
Apple is currently selling iPad slates through Verizon stores, but not with integrated 3G connectivity for the carrier’s EVDO Rev.A network. Instead, those looking to get online via Verizon’s cellular networks have to use a MiFi mobile hotspot and tether the iPad using WiFi. The new Qualcomm modems would mean a single World iPad 3G SKU could use both GSM and CDMA networks natively.
Blair also goes on to speculate about the hardware of the second-generation iPad, suggesting it will be thinner than the current model and use similar manufacturing processes to the updated MacBook Air. Previous rumors have suggested Apple will outfit the 2nd-gen tablet with a Retina Display, as found on the iPhone 4.
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| DIY Lego Santa sleigh for geeky festiveness Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:38 AM PST Lego is so much more than just a kid’s toy today. We have seen some geeks build some great creations from the Lego boxes that are so much cooler than what you might build with a kit from Walmart. We have seen a few holiday kits lately and the latest is a Santa sleigh kit.
The kit can be ordered directly from Lego.com via the digital Designer section. You will need the Lego Digital Designer 4.0 software and then you can get the design files from the source. The design has some options for a traditional sleigh or a rocket power sleigh. You can get your Santa minifig at Toys “R” Us. Apparently, they are giving the Santa figures away with Lego purchases right now. This is pretty cool and perfect for your geeky Christmas tree. The kit will cost you about $35.
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| Lens Bracelets are perfect for photo geeks Posted: 19 Nov 2010 04:29 AM PST My daughter and just about every other kid in her elementary school are really into the bracelets that are rubber bands in shapes of animals and those thicker silicone bracelets that look like the Livestrong ones from a few years back. If you like that sort of wrist wear too, but you are a photography geek, we have just the thing for you.
A couple new bracelets for the camera geeks out there have turned up on the Photojojo Store. The things look like the rims around lenses on DSLR cameras. They come in two styles with one marked 50mm and the other 24-70mm. This would be the perfect jewelry to wear while sipping coffee out of that mug that looks like a lens. You can get either of the individual bracelets for $10 each or the pair will set you back $15. Shipping starts at $2.50 via USPS.  
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