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iPhone-ready Canary home security breaks $1.25M in funding
A few weeks ago, we highlighted a home-monitoring security system called Canary. The system helps you keep track of your home by monitoring a number of variables, including air quality, vibration, temperature, sound and movement. When something is awry, it will send a detailed alert to your smartphone. The system also comes with an HD camera with night-vision functionality that allows users to monitor live feeds of their home if they so choose. Now comes word via MacRumors that Canary has eclipsed the US$100,000 mark it initially sought to generate via Indiegogo. Impressively, Canary recently surpassed the $1.25 million threshold, with MacRumors noting that "the project is on track to become the most successful crowdfunded home product ever." If all goes according to plan, Canary will begin shipping in May 2014 and will retail for $199. Below, check out a video of Canary in action.
Google adds touch controls to experimental version of Chrome
The latest build of Canary, the bleeding-edge test-bed for Google Chrome, reveals that the company is working on touch-centric features for its desktop browser. By swiping left and right, for instance, users will be able to avoid the chore of hitting the back and forward page buttons -- while pinch-to-zoom and on-screen keyboards are also available to try out. Now, of course, you just need some hardware to take advantage of the new features.
Indiegogo project Canary monitors your home
If you're in the market for a home-monitoring system, Canary may be just the device you've been looking for. Funded via Indiegogo, Canary is a smart security device that monitors activity in your home and relays alerts to your iPhone whenever it encounters any unexpected behavior or conditions. It comes with a long list of sensors, including an HD Camera with night-vision capability, a wide-angle lens for maximum viewing area, a high-quality microphone, motion detection, a temperature sensor and even an air quality sensor. Canary contains an HD video camera and sensors that track everything from temperature and air quality to vibration, sound, and movement. Controlled entirely from your smartphone, Canary alerts you when it senses anything out of the ordinary -- from sudden temperature spikes that can indicate a fire, to sound and vibration that could mean an intrusion. Over time, Canary learns your home's rhythms to send even smarter alerts. When Canary senses something is awry, it sends you an alert in real time along with a number of options for how to respond. If, for example, unexpected movement is detected in your home while you're away, you'll receive an alert with the option to make a phone call, send a message (to a neighbor, for example) or trigger a siren. Canary also offers the ability to check in on the latest happenings in your home from anywhere in the world and even includes live streaming. It's worth noting that many of Canary's sensors can be turned on and off from afar. A video promo of Canary can be viewed below. Even better, Canary is a sleek and, more importantly, rather small device. It measures in at just six inches tall and just three inches wide. Here's what it looks like. Canary will retail for just US$199, and according to its page on Indiegogo, the estimated shipping date is May 2014.
Insert Coin: Canary, a one-stop shop for securing your home
In Insert Coin, we look at an exciting new tech project that requires funding before it can hit production. If you'd like to pitch a project, please send us a tip with "Insert Coin" as the subject line. If recent trends are any indication, there's a strong possibility that a cylindrical computing device will be in your future. Canary is the latest curved component to make its debut this year -- this one's focused on security. The vertical computer includes a high-def camera and mic, along with infrared motion, temperature, humidity and air quality sensors. It's an all-in-one solution for securing your home (or perhaps just a room in your home), providing video feeds and sensor readouts to your Android or iOS device in real time. You can automatically arm or disarm it when your device comes within range of a pre-selected location, and there's even a siren that can be triggered remotely, should you need to wake up a roommate or terrorize a pet. Canary is currently up for grabs on Indiegogo. The $149 and $169 early bird specials have already reached their 200-unit caps, so pre-ordering the device will now set you back a cool $199. That offer includes a white finish and shipping within the US -- expect it to reach your doorstep by May. If you're willing to jump up to $249, you can snag a Canary in matte black or silver, or, if you're really feeling generous, you can pledge $1,000 and walk away with a beta unit, which should arrive in February. Hit up the source link for a video demo.
Google tests new notification center in latest version of Chrome, bringing Google Now reminders... soon
Google's web browser might be creeping even closer to its mobile OS, with François Beaufort noting that the latest build of open-source Chromium for Windows has folded in some new "rich notifications". These are easily enabled by dabbling with the chrome://flags component, and you'll even get a look at the decidedly Chrome-ish pop-up box, seen above. The code elaborates on how devs can work their own notifications into the service, with the Clear All button presumably signposting that several notes can be stacked. We're still dealing with the test iteration at the moment, but after those Google Now cards made their appearance, it makes sense to see more functions permeate Chrome -- especially if you own one of their Books.
Google shows off high-res Chrome browser for Retina MacBooks, hitting Canary channel first
As we noted in our review, the downside of the super high DPI displays Apple is shipping in its latest MacBook Pro is that non-retina display friendly apps don't look so good, but Google's already working on changing that for its Chrome browser. In a blog post the team showed off the image above with a comparison on what the high res edition will look like compared to its current counterpart based on "early results." Users on the bleeding-edge Canary channel should see the upgrades first, with more rolling out over the next few weeks and eventually reaching wider audiences as they go along. Of course, if you couldn't wait to pre-order the absolute latest Mac hardware after it hit the stage at WWDC (and aren't diving headlong into the refreshed world of Safari), we're figuring jumping on a somewhat untested version of this popular browser is hardly out of the question.
Google rolls out Chrome Canary to Mac
Good news for Google Chrome enthusiasts: Chrome Canary is now available for Mac. Windows users have had the option to download the pre-developer, experimental builds of the Chrome browser, dubbed Canary, for some time now. But now Mac Chrome enthusiasts can also throw caution to the wind and grab a version of Chrome that almost keeps up with its open-source brother, Chromium. But why not just use Chromium I hear you say? Because Chrome comes packing a few extras built in, like the internal Flash plug-in and other bits and pieces. You also get a nice bright, beautiful yellow icon in your dock. Just be warned that features will come and go as they're tested, and being experimental, it may not be as secure as some of the more refined builds of Chrome. To get Chrome Canary for Mac, head to the download page or check out some of the other more stable releases on the Chromium Early Access Release Channels page. [via Browser Scene]
Pics of Moto's KRZR for Verizon on Engadget Mobile
Just in case the last set of pics of Motorola's sleek new Canary KRZR flip phone weren't enough for you, Engadget Mobile's got a few more hands-on shots of Verizon's version of this highly-anticipated handset. So if you're one of the millions of people who will end up buying this followup to the RAZR -- or if you just want to see what all the fuss is about -- head on over to our sister site and check out the full gallery...
Pics of Motorola's KRZR for Verizon
Somebody out there really loves us. An anonymous tipster just sent in a handful of pics of Motorola's impending followup to the RAZR -- formerly dubbed the Canary, and now known by the nearly-unpronounceable series of letters KRZR -- running on Verizon's CDMA network. Nothing here that we haven't seen before, but if you wanted a sneak preview of what this phone will look like in your hand as you watch all that wonderful V Cast swag, now you have a pretty good idea. Click on for a few more shots of the handset that Moto is hoping another 50 million people will decide they just gotta have...
FCC comes clean on Motorola KRZR (Canary)
If you've had any lingering questions about Motorola's RAZR successor, the KRZR -- aka Canary, aka RAZR 2, aka RAZR K1 -- you might shuffle on over to the FCC's site and have a look-see. All the good stuff on the GSM variant has gone live, with unfettered access to external and internal pics plus a draft user's manual. The KRZR does get honest-to-goodness EDGE which'll be a fun experience for original V3 owners making the switch -- but as Pete pointed out, it's basically a glossy, slimmed down RAZR, so don't expect any juicy specs buried in the documents. If by chance you still find yourself mesmerized by all that blue, glossy goodness, look for the KRZR at your friendly local Cingular outlet come this fall.[Thanks, Handset Freak]
Boy Genius strikes at Engadget Mobile: Canary (KRZR), BlackBerry Stealth, StarTrek, Hermes, etc. coming to US
It was a long day for the Boy Genius, but dude hooked Engadget Mobile up with a veritable cornucopia of launch plans for Cingular, including releases for the Motorola KRZR (aka Canary), V3i, HTC Hermes and StarTrek, the new BlackBerry Stealth, the Treo Nitro and Treo Lennon, HP iPAQ hw6920/25, and Nokia E62. Go check 'em out over at Engadget Mobile, you won't be sorry.Treo Nitro and Treo Lennon coming to Cingular in OctoberThe Boy Genius Report: BlackBerry StealthThe Boy Genius Report: Canary is KRZR, getting launched SeptemberThe Boy Genius Report: Cingular snags Motorola V3i, Sony Ericsson w810 The Boy Genius Report: HTC Hermes & StarTrek, and iPAQ hw6920 coming to USNokia E62 to drop for $599/$399 in September/October
The Boy Genius Report: Canary is KRZR, getting launched September
Field report tidbits from Engadget's mobile insider, the Boy Genius.Well, well, well, Moto had to name the Canary something, didn't they? Looks like it's gonna go by the KRZR (what, now they don't even do vowels?), and we should see it launched in the September / October timeframe -- with A2DP support no less (not unlike the Capri). Stay tuned for more Cingular leakage by way of the Boy Genius!
Motorola Capri, a.k.a. the RAZR slider, previewed
The guys over at PhoneScoop have sure made the site live up to its name today: not only did they get some serious hands-on time with Motorola's upcoming RAZR slider -- codenamed Capri -- they also got to preview the next version of Moto's much-maligned Synergy UI that will show up in such models as the Canary and the SCPL. At least on paper, the Capri seems to offer a very compelling feature set that will probably attract anyone into the RAZR lifestyle- you're getting a model only slightly thicker and heavier than its clamshell counterpart, but which sports a 2.0 megapixel camera, A2DP-capable Bluetooth, and what sounds like a greatly improved user interface. Especially noteworthy in the overhauled Synergy is an address book that seems to work much more intuitively than past iterations (remember the one on the StarTAC?), allowing you to organize entries by name and search for contacts using multiple letters. Although Phone Scoop was only testing a pre-production model, they have identified some potential problems to watch out for on the final version, such as the unusually crappy quality of what should be a decent camera, and most importantly, a spring-assisted slider that's difficult to activate due to the raised antenna bulge so familiar to RAZR owners. Click on if you want to peep a few more snaps, but you're really doing yourself a disservice if you don't head over to PhoneScoop for the full gallery and a very thorough write-up...
The Boy Genius report: Capris for the Oscars
Field report tidbits from Engadget's resident mobile insider, the Boy Genius.Word has it Motorola will be annoucing the Canary on July 17th, and will be giving out 500 Limited Edition Capris in for next year's Oscar gift bags. Who knew!
Engadget Mobile gets hands-on with Motorola Canary!
We've seen Motorola's RAZR sequel, the Canary, pop up here and there, but it took our boys at Engadget Mobile, with a little help from Boy Genius, to do it up right and get some serious shots of all that shiny blueness. Head on over for a whole slew of pics, but try not to get too jealous -- they too put their shiny-blue-pants on one leg at a time.
Motorola Canary (RAZR 2) hands-on!
That's right, suckas: we got our hands on a Canary (aka the RAZR 2), Motorola's still-unannounced follow-up to the RAZR. We only got to spend a few precious hours with the Canary, but we can confirm that this phone's glossy surface is indeed a magnet for fingerprints (and is a pain to photograph). Otherwise the design doesn't pull any punches -- it's essentially a narrower version of the now-ubiquitous RAZR. Click on for a bunch more pics. Thanks, Boy Genius, for the hook up.
Motorola's "Canary" sings us a little song
This thing just gets prettier and prettier every time we see it. We don't have any solid deets on specs for Canary, the RAZR's heir apparent, but the rampant speculation mill currently has her getting a 2 megapixel shooter, 17 measly megabytes of internal storage, a MicroSD slot, and the all-important Bluetooth 2.0. We're seeing conflicting reports on whether we'll get UMTS, but we gotta be honest, quad-band EDGE alone just isn't going to cut it for a high-end phone by the time Canary likely drops in 2007. More shots of Canary doing its thing after the break.[Thanks, dk]
Motorola exec reveals next-gen slimphone: the SCPL
Talk about a tease: Motorola's head honcho for cellphones, Ron Garriques, revealed the existence of an upcoming handset called the SCPL (that's scalpel, in case the lack of vowels made it unclear) during a recent company investment conference -- but kept all the important details to himself. All that's known about the SCPL (which we hope no one will mistake for the surgical tool pictured here), other than the obvious fact that it will be quite slim, is that it will sport five features that promise to set it apart from the pack -- which we'll take to mean WiMax, GPS, 3CCD HD camcorder, 30GB hard drive, and probably a DirecTV dish as well. At this point, we can't even say for sure that the SCPL is not the same as the supposed RAZR 2, or "Canary," that's been fluttering around recently, but whatever they're working on, we'll have to wait until next year to get our hands on one.[Thanks, Shamste]
Engadget Podcast 076 - 04.25.06
Just because we had to take a week off to perform certain civic duties doesn't mean the news stops,. So we're back this week with the latest on Motorolas new Canary phone (which could well be the followup to the RAZR), the Sidekick III showing up on the FCC, Apple's new spensivo 17-inch MacBook Pro, whatever it is AT&T is doing to fight their own battle for the digital living room, and the Venzero One portable audio player. Enjoy! Get the podcast [iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (MP3). [RSS] Add the Engadget Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically (MP3). [MP3] Download the show (MP3). [AAC] Download the show (enhanced AAC). [OGG] Download the show (OGG). [Vote] Vote for us on Podcast Alley! Hosts Peter Rojas and Ryan Block Producer Randall Bennett Music J J J - 'Suits' in Japan Format 43:24, 19.8 MB, MP3 Program 01:54 - Motorola RAZR 2 / Canary? 04:40 - Sidekick III hits the FCC 08:11 - Apple unveils the 17-inch MacBook Pro 11:30 - Venzero announces the Venzero One 18:14 - AT&T to launch Homezone TV service 22:47 - Listener voicemail / e-mail LISTEN (MP3) LISTEN (AAC) LISTEN (OGG) Contact the podcast: 1-888-ENGADGET, Engadget (Gizmo Project) or podcast at engadget dawt com
Motorola "Capri": the real RAZR slider?
The Motorola rumor mill is in full grind mode lately, with word of an impending slider version of the RAZR, called the "Capri," coming hot on the heels of the "Canary" photos that have been fluttering around lately. According to Cnet's Alpha blog, the quad-band GSM Capri will be no thicker than the SLVR, sport a "high-resolution" CCD (what that means for cameraphones is unclear -- 1.3 megapixels? 2.0? 3.2?), and also a TransFlash slot, probably for storing tunes. Although no pics of this rumored model are available yet, Cnet speculates that it will be quite similar to the Korea-only MS600 (pictured, also referred to as the "RAZR slider), which is a bit thicker than the SLVR but takes many of its design cues from the trusty RAZR.[Thanks, Hitechy and Corey]
