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How artificial intelligence can be corrupted to repress free speech
The internet was supposed to become an overwhelming democratizing force against illiberal administrations. It didn't. It was supposed to open repressed citizens' eyes, expose them to new democratic ideals and help them rise up against their authoritarian governments in declaring their basic human rights. It hasn't. It was supposed to be inherently resistant to centralized control. It isn't.
Nigerian telecoms to face jail time over shoddy cell service
Nigeria's Consumer Protection Council (CPC), with the backing of the country's government, is threatening to throw telecom executives in jail unless they improve their call quality. The African nation has seen mobile phone adoption rates soar over the past four years thanks to a price war that has dramatically lowered prices. That may seem like a win for consumers but, in fact, the increased user base (combined with the telecoms' general unwillingness to invest in their infrastructure and capacity) has rendered many cell services nearly unusable. The CPC argues that network congestion and dropped calls are so common that it's starting to cost consumers money. What's more, regulators recently performed Quality Assurance tests (QAT) for operators throughout the region and failed to find a single one that actually achieved the connection promised in their consumer service agreements.
Raspberry Pi camera module comes to the UK May 14th, lands early for some (updated)
Remember that Raspberry Pi camera module we wrote about a few months ago? It looks like UK-based electronics retailer CPC / Farnell will start taking orders for the shooter on May 14th. Users on the Raspberry Pi forums who signed up for info about the camera module have received an email from the retailer inviting them to order. As a reminder, the five megapixel fixed-focus shooter -- which only measures 25 x 20 x 9mm -- can snap 2,592 x 1,944-pixel images and capture video at 1,080p (30fps), 720p (60fps) and VGA (60 or 90fps). While the accessory is expected to cost about $25, there's no actual pricing details on CPC / Farnell's website. Wanna see the camera module in action? One lucky Raspberry Pi user's received the device early and shared a video -- check it out after the break. Update: As promised, the boards are now officially available to order per a blog post on the Raspberry Pi website. And the price is indeed $25. Hit the source link for a list of commands needed to activate the add-on, or check after the break for another video demonstrating the setup process and some PR explaining Element 14's competition to promote the Pi and its camera. [Thanks, HaloBlu]
HiPAD II: Korea's 10.4-inch answer to the cPC
After practicing incessantly on 4.3-inch and 7-inch form factors, a 10.4-incher is a piece of cake for those Koreans, and they're really just showing off with the new dual-OS HiPAD II. The 1-inch thick tablet weighs in at 2.9 pounds, but manages to run Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, Windows CE 5.0, WiFi, DMB, HSDPA and a navigation app that's possibly GPS based. There's an AMD Geode LX-800 processor under the hood, along with a minimal 256MB of RAM and a 20GB HDD -- pretty weak for regular PC tasks, but plenty of juice for a bit of browsing and the PMP-esque feature set. To round things out there's a webcam mounted at the top of the screen, and you can expand the storage or functionality with the CF and PCMCIA slots. The Win CE mode seems mainly aimed at quick access to media and navigation functions, unlike the cPC's full-fledged Windows Mobile OS, and seems similar to that of most Korean PMP/DMB/GPS units, but XP is always waiting in the wings if you need to do something silly like be productive. No word on price or availability, but we're hoping for the best.[Via Akihabara]
DualCore cPC gets a hands-on look
Yeah, we've already exhausted this one in the specs and pics departments, but just in case you wanted an idea of this DualCore cPC in action, Judie over at The Gadgeteer can hook you up. She's only got an engineering sample, so not everything is up and running (such as syncing), but she's already flipping back and forth between the dual operating systems, loading up software and playing a bit of Microsoft Sodoku in her free time, so peep a read link and have a look.[Via UMPC Buzz]
DualCor cPC in the wild
We're not nearly as into DualCor's cPC Windows convergence device now that we found out it doesn't come with any built-in wireless radios, but we've still been looking forward to catching it in the wild just the same, because any pocket-sized machine that sports both XP and WM5 is more than a little bit noteworthy in our book. And luckily for us, our partners-in-crime over at Engadget Chinese have just captured some nice photos of this two-processor machine as part of their extensive Computex 2006 coverage, although our contribution of copying and pasting the pics for you to peep should not be overlooked. More cPC snaps are available after the break, and more VIA-powered products from the CPU manufacturer's booth tour can be found by following the Read link...
DualCor cPC gets specs, launch date -- but no radios
DualCor Technologies has just released the final specs for their cPC "ultimate convergence device," and those who were looking forward to this model are bound to be horribly disappointed: not only will the production version lack cellphone capabilities out of the box as first promised, but the device contains no radios whatsover. That's right, if you want to get your WiFi, Bluetooth, or 3G on with the cPC, you'll need to bring your your own CF cards or USB dongles to get connected, which takes an awful lot of convenience out of a product designed to lighten your load. Besides the crushing lack of wireless, the rest of the specs seem decent enough, with the XP side of the device powered by a 1.5GHz Via processor that's backed by a full gig of DDR2 RAM. Both OSes can store data on the 30GB hard drive (and not 40GB as we previously reported) or the 1GB of NAND flash memory, with the Windows Mobile 5.0 side is supported by a 400MHz Intel PXA263 chip and 128MB of DRAM. GottaBeMobile is reporting that the cPC will be shipping within the next 90 days, though now that the product is devoid of any wireless capabilities, we're curious to see what type of customer actually picks one up. [Warning: PDF link][Via jkOnTheRun]
