Engadget http://www.engadget.com Engadget http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif Engadget http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Mini E field trial ends, for the 40 testers a search for a new car begins]]>http://www.engadget.com/2011/03/20/mini-e-field-trial-ends-for-the-40-testers-a-search-for-a-new-c/http://www.engadget.com/2011/03/20/mini-e-field-trial-ends-for-the-40-testers-a-search-for-a-new-c/http://www.engadget.com/2011/03/20/mini-e-field-trial-ends-for-the-40-testers-a-search-for-a-new-c/#comments Mini E field trial ends, for the 40 testers a search for a new car begins People who love a given car tend to keep that car for awhile, longer than they should sometimes, but that isn't always an option. Sometimes you have to give it back, and such is the case for the 40 "pioneers" who were among the first to get their mitts on and bums in the electric prototype Mini E in the UK. That fleet of test vehicles has been summoned back home, but thankfully not to suffer the same fate of the recalled GM EV1 -- most of which were crushed in the '90s. Instead, most of these Minis will find new homes among corporate vehicle fleets, though the testing program itself is largely over. From that program BMW learned that most drivers got along just fine, despite a complete lack of public charging stations, though some said cold temps put a crimp on the driving habits -- a possible counterpoint to one EV Mini tester on this side of the pond found. All that data is being used to tailor the upcoming BMW i3, which we've already seen hooning around in some rather frigid weather but won't be seen hooning on public streets until 2013 or so.

Mini E field trial ends, for the 40 testers a search for a new car begins originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 Mar 2011 12:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>bmwbmw groupbmw project iBmwGroupBmwProjectIelectric carelectric vehicleElectricCarElectricVehicleevi3megacityminimini 3MINI EMini3MiniEproject iProjectItestukSun, 20 Mar 2011 12:36:00 EST<![CDATA[NJ EV owner with 50,000 miles logged dispels myth of cold weather battery woes]]>http://www.engadget.com/2011/02/02/nj-ev-owner-with-50-000-miles-logged-dispels-myth-of-cold-weathe/http://www.engadget.com/2011/02/02/nj-ev-owner-with-50-000-miles-logged-dispels-myth-of-cold-weathe/http://www.engadget.com/2011/02/02/nj-ev-owner-with-50-000-miles-logged-dispels-myth-of-cold-weathe/#comments NJ Mini E owner with 50,000 miles logged dispels myth of cold weather battery woes We see you in comments, chiming in on every EV post about how worthless they are in the cold. Charles Lane from The Washington Post recently did the same, saying things like "A change of ten degrees can sap 50% of a battery's output" and speculating that the EV industry is "just one well-publicized malfunction away from disaster." Not so, says Tom Moloughney, and he should know. He's spent the last 49,500 miles of his commuting life in an all-electric Mini E, an average of 2,500 miles per month. Now, this car is a prototype and a fairly early example of the modern electric vehicle, meaning it has no preconditioning tech to let you warm up the battery packs before you go. Despite that, Tom has logged every trip he's made in the car and indicates he rarely sees more than a loss of about five percent from the vehicle's usual range. More importantly, he's made his way through many a cold commute without getting stranded -- or freezing to death.

NJ EV owner with 50,000 miles logged dispels myth of cold weather battery woes originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Feb 2011 09:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>battery lifeBatteryLifebmwbmw groupbmw project iBmwGroupBmwProjectIcoldelectric vehicleElectricVehicleevminimini eMiniEproject iProjectITom MoloughneyTomMoloughneywinterWed, 02 Feb 2011 09:58:00 EST<![CDATA[New York gets its first solar EV charging station, you can't use it]]>http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/16/new-york-gets-its-first-solar-ev-charging-station-you-cant-use/http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/16/new-york-gets-its-first-solar-ev-charging-station-you-cant-use/http://www.engadget.com/2009/12/16/new-york-gets-its-first-solar-ev-charging-station-you-cant-use/#commentsNew York gets its first solar EV charging station, you can't use it What do you do when you've got two disused shipping crates, some photovoltaics, and a couple buckets of toxic green paint? Why, you make a solar electric vehicle charging station, the first in New York as it happens. It was created by Beautiful Earth Group, which whipped up this self-contained charging station to juice the company's car, a similarly painted BMW Mini E that just so happens to fit nicely inside -- so long as you don't want to open the doors too wide. About three hours charges the little sucker up for its maximum range of 100 miles, which ought to be just enough to get you out to the Hamptons. Not that you'd want to go there this time of year.

Update: We searched for an earlier solar station and came up empty, but vyper0 commented to let us know that this is indeed not the first for NY state, just the first for NYC. There was one installed out on Long Island earlier this year, which would mean you could not only get out to the Hamptons, but get back!

New York gets its first solar EV charging station, you can't use it originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 16 Dec 2009 08:48:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>alternative energyAlternativeEnergybeautiful earthBeautifulEarthbeuatiful earth groupBeuatifulEarthGroupbmwbmw mini eBmwMiniEcharging stationChargingStationelectric vehicleElectricVehicleminimini eMiniEsolarsolar powersolar powered charging stationSolarPowerSolarPoweredChargingStationWed, 16 Dec 2009 08:48:00 EST<![CDATA[Viako's Ion-equipped HTPC is more like an HD-capable nettop]]>http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/12/viakos-ion-equipped-htpc-is-more-like-an-hd-capable-nettop/http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/12/viakos-ion-equipped-htpc-is-more-like-an-hd-capable-nettop/http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/12/viakos-ion-equipped-htpc-is-more-like-an-hd-capable-nettop/#comments
You can tussle over semantics all day long (particularly machine translated semantics), but there's little doubt that Viako's Ion-equipped machine is more than eager to handle whatever high-def material you throw its way. The Mini E series of HTPCs (or nettops, if you will) looks to be available in a variety of configurations, with the higher-end model snagging an Atom N330 processor, NVIDIA's GeForce 9400M GPU, 2GB of RAM, a 320GB hard drive, integrated WiFi, VGA / DVI / HDMI outputs, Ethernet, plenty of USB sockets and audio / in ports. There's no mention of price nor a stateside release date, but those in Seoul ought to find it in their local shops pretty soon.

[Via AVING]

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Viako's Ion-equipped HTPC is more like an HD-capable nettop originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Aug 2009 06:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>atom n330AtomN330geforcegeforce 9400Geforce9400hdhtpcionkoreamedia pcMediaPcmini eMiniEn230n330nettopnvidianvidia ionNvidiaIonotherssouth koreaSouthKoreaviakoWed, 12 Aug 2009 06:19:00 EST<![CDATA[Viako's Ion-equipped HTPC is more like an HD-capable nettop]]>http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/12/viakos-ion-equipped-htpc-is-more-like-an-hd-capable-nettop/http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/12/viakos-ion-equipped-htpc-is-more-like-an-hd-capable-nettop/http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/12/viakos-ion-equipped-htpc-is-more-like-an-hd-capable-nettop/#comments
You can tussle over semantics all day long (particularly machine translated semantics), but there's little doubt that Viako's Ion-equipped machine is more than eager to handle whatever high-def material you throw its way. The Mini E series of HTPCs (or nettops, if you will) looks to be available in a variety of configurations, with the higher-end model snagging an Atom N330 processor, NVIDIA's GeForce 9400M GPU, 2GB of RAM, a 320GB hard drive, integrated WiFi, VGA / DVI / HDMI outputs, Ethernet, plenty of USB sockets and audio / in ports. There's no mention of price nor a stateside release date, but those in Seoul ought to find it in their local shops pretty soon.

[Via AVING]

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Viako's Ion-equipped HTPC is more like an HD-capable nettop originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 Aug 2009 06:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>atom n330AtomN330geforcegeforce 9400Geforce9400htpcionkoreamedia pcmedia pcsMediaPcmediapcsmini eMiniEn230n330nettopnvidianvidia ionNvidiaIonsouth koreaSouthKoreaviakoWed, 12 Aug 2009 06:19:00 EST<![CDATA[MINI E 'unboxed' in LA to the delight of car nerds, your mom]]>http://www.engadget.com/2008/11/19/mini-e-unboxed-in-la-to-the-delight-of-car-nerds-your-mom/http://www.engadget.com/2008/11/19/mini-e-unboxed-in-la-to-the-delight-of-car-nerds-your-mom/http://www.engadget.com/2008/11/19/mini-e-unboxed-in-la-to-the-delight-of-car-nerds-your-mom/#comments That's not really a "your mom" joke, more of a statement that your mom is pretty neat and has good taste in electric cars -- like this here MINI E. BMW just unveiled the first production MINI E to roll out of its magical electricity-imbuing factory, the first in a limited series of 500 for lease in California and metro New York to people way better looking than you. The bad news is that the all-electric MINI is part of what BMW is calling "Project I," a test of sorts to see how well electrics hold up to real world abuse and to figure out usage patterns of real-life photogenic people -- there's little indication that the car in its current incarnation will be distributed any more widely than this 500 car run. Check out a plethora of sexy unveiling pictures at the read link to help offset the pain.

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MINI E 'unboxed' in LA to the delight of car nerds, your mom originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Nov 2008 03:22:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>all electricAllElectricbmwbmw groupbmw project iBmwGroupBmwProjectIelectric carElectricCarminimini eMiniEproject iProjectIunboxingunveiledWed, 19 Nov 2008 03:22:00 EST<![CDATA[MINI E finally official, 500 available soon for US test drivers]]>http://www.engadget.com/2008/10/18/mini-e-finally-official-500-available-soon-for-us-test-drivers/http://www.engadget.com/2008/10/18/mini-e-finally-official-500-available-soon-for-us-test-drivers/http://www.engadget.com/2008/10/18/mini-e-finally-official-500-available-soon-for-us-test-drivers/#comments The much-anticipated, well-expected MINI E -- the first all-electric MINI -- is headed our way before you know it. BMW's built itself a decent performer, offering 204 hp of electric motor in a setup quite similar to the Tesla. The car boasts a 150 mile range off its 35 kWh lithium-ion battery pack, can hit 62 mph in 8.5 seconds, and does a full charge off of an included high current charging station in a mere 2.5 hours. There's naturally a regenerative braking system on board to help beef up the battery in city driving. BMW plans on leasing 500 of these to commercial and private customers in California, New York and New Jersey sometime early 2009, and Europe might get a crack at the car soon after that. No word yet on when we'll see this car ready for the masses, but perhaps we'll get more info when the MINI E makes its "debut" at the LA Auto Show next month.

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MINI E finally official, 500 available soon for US test drivers originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 18 Oct 2008 18:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>bmwbmw groupbmw project iBmwGroupBmwProjectIelectric vehicleElectricVehicleevmini eMiniEproject iProjectISat, 18 Oct 2008 18:01:00 EST<![CDATA[Electric MINI spotted in Munich, expected at 2008 LA Auto Show]]>http://www.engadget.com/2008/09/22/electric-mini-spotted-in-munich-expected-at-2008-la-auto-show/http://www.engadget.com/2008/09/22/electric-mini-spotted-in-munich-expected-at-2008-la-auto-show/http://www.engadget.com/2008/09/22/electric-mini-spotted-in-munich-expected-at-2008-la-auto-show/#comments Check it, Cooper fans -- that electric MINI we've been sporadically hearing about is for real, and we've seen the spy shots that prove it. Car has hosted up a slew of non-blurry (gasp!) snaps of the eco-friendly whip cruising around Munich, and just in case the complete absence of an exhaust pipe wasn't evidence enough, maybe the "Hybrid Test Vehicle" decals will make you a believer. Also of note, we're now hearing that the car is on track for a 2008 Los Angeles motor show appearance, which jibes quite well with the purported summer 2009 US launch.

[Via RegHardware]

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Electric MINI spotted in Munich, expected at 2008 LA Auto Show originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 22 Sep 2008 10:37:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>BMWbmw groupbmw project iBmwGroupBmwProjectIcoopereco-friendlyelectricelectric carelectric minielectric vehicleElectricCarElectricMiniElectricVehicleemissionsEVgreenminimini coopermini EMiniCooperMiniEproject iProjectIspy shotSpyShotMon, 22 Sep 2008 10:37:00 EST<![CDATA[Electric MINI hitting US streets in summer 2009]]>http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/22/electric-mini-hitting-us-streets-in-summer-2009/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/22/electric-mini-hitting-us-streets-in-summer-2009/http://www.engadget.com/2008/07/22/electric-mini-hitting-us-streets-in-summer-2009/#comments Not that electric MINIs are anything new, but unless you were willing to pay for all the mods yourself, procuring one wasn't exactly simple. Now, however, we're hearing that MINI itself will be bringing scads of these buggers to American streets in the summer of 2009. Yeah, like, one year from right now. MINI USA VP Jim McDowell was the source of said statement (so it's pretty much official, yeah?), though he didn't mention whether all of them would be reserved for California or if they would be available sold out nationwide. Hey MINI, we'd say you've got a hit on your hands.

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Electric MINI hitting US streets in summer 2009 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Jul 2008 11:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>2009bmwbmw groupbmw project iBmwGroupBmwProjectIcareco-friendlyelectric carelectric miniElectricCarElectricMinigreenminimini cooperMINI EMiniCooperMiniEproject iProjectIvehicleTue, 22 Jul 2008 11:29:00 EST