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Akai Force is for DJs and producers that want to ditch the laptop
Akai made its name around the early 90s thanks to its line of relatively affordable S-series samplers and the (now legendary) MPC. Since then, the company has continued to release new spins on those mainstays, the latest of which is the all-in-one Force workstation.
Making your own functioning R2-D2 is a labor of love
Last year at CES, I remember seeing a life-size, fully functioning R2-D2 unit (minus the Leia hologram, sadly). I assumed it was hired out from a professional movie props unit or something similar; now I'm not so sure. Walking around SX Create -- the maker faire section at SXSW -- I bumped into not one, but two equally well-made replicas only to find they were handmade. In fact, there's an entire club -- funnily enough, called R2-D2 Builders -- dedicated to making them. What's more, the models I saw were built using a veritable menagerie of weird and wonderful items, including a good old lazy susan. But that doesn't mean building your own R2 comes cheap, or is a project for the faint-hearted.
Star Wars: Episode VII will be called 'The Force Awakens'
Lucasfilm has revealed that Star Wars: Episode VII will be released with the subtitle The Force Awakens when it premieres next December. The long-awaited name was revealed on Twitter alongside the news that principal photography has all been wrapped up. The film is still more than a year away, but the title artwork maintains the classic Star Wars aesthetic and suggests director J.J Abrams is trying to capture the original trilogy's spirit and tone. The name itself has, almost inevitably, been polarising for fans of the force and sparked the hilarious hashtag #BetterStarWarsTitles on Twitter. Go check it out.
Fitbit: skin irritations were allergies, new wristbands have a warning
Fitbit recalled its Force wearable back in February after owners reported skin irritation, but after an investigation, says it will not do the same for the Fitbit Flex. The New York Times reports that the company and the Consumer Product Safety Commission decided a recall was not necessary, as long as the company makes a few changes. New wristbands will ship with a warning that it contains nickel, a common allergy, as well as a sizing guide to keep users from making it too tight. In a just-posted (at such a convenient time) letter to customers, CEO & co-founder James Park said "we are now confident that our users who experienced allergic contact dermatitis likely reacted either to very small levels of methacrylates...or, to a lesser degree, nickel in the stainless steel casing." He goes on to say that Fitbit is taking this experience into account in the design for its next-generation trackers, which should include the new Charge and ChargeHR devices that recently surfaced.
Fitbit has received nearly 10,000 reports of skin irritation from Force owners
Fitbit kicked off a refund program last month after learning its Force activity tracker caused skin irritation in a "small percentage" of users, and now we're finally getting a better sense of the situation. According to the official recall notice from the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, the company received around 9,900 reports of skin irritation and around 250 reports of blistering. The notice also points out that the recall affects about 1 million of the wearables in the United States and about 28,000 more in Canada. So what happens next? Well, the CPSC's stance is clear: contact the company and take the money.
Government working with Fitbit to recall rash-inducing sportsbands
Fitbit quickly issued a voluntary recall for its Force sportsbands, even though it has yet to pinpoint the exact component that can trigger contact dermatitis. We may soon find out, though, since the firm is working with the Consumer Products Safety Commission to shed more light on the situation. To be fair, Fitbit's execs haven't been sitting on their hands -- they've been running tests and have results showing no problem with the device's battery or electrical system. As Consumerist notes, the government agency usually accompanies recalls with detailed reports, so this development could help us find out what actually went down. We might finally know not only what the rogue component(s) is -- if it's the nickel in the stainless steel, a material/adhesive used in the device's band or something else altogether -- but also how many users were affected. Fitbit hasn't notified all Force users of the issue yet, but promises to email everyone after finalizing its recall plan with the CPSC.
Daily Roundup: the future of the smartwatch, MWC 2014 and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Fitbit halts sales of the Force fitness tracker due to skin-irritation issues, recalls existing units
Get a rash from the Fitbit Force? You're not alone. Turns out, the fitness band has been causing lots of people skin irritation. So many, in fact, that the company is halting sales of the product, and has issued a voluntary recall for units already sold. In a statement (embedded after the break), the company said that a small number of users have been affected, and that it decided to stop sales after consulting with "independent labs and medical experts." All told, Fitbit will refund users the full retail value if they decide to turn their band in -- just like Jawbone did when it turned out the original Up band was defective. For now, if you're in the market for a fitness tracker, we suggest you instead look into the Jawbone Up24 or the Nike+ FuelBand SE. As for Fitbit, you can still buy the Flex, which has a similar wristband form factor. In addition, a company rep said Fitbit is already working on a next-gen device, but we've no word on when that will come out -- or if it will fix the skin-irritation problem.
Weekly Roundup: Nexus 5 review, Peripheral Vision with Ayah Bdeir, Steam Controller hands-on and more!
You might say the week is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workweek, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Weekly Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past seven days -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Daily Roundup: Fitbit Force and ATIV Book 9 Lite reviews, Pebble iOS enhancements and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Fitbit Force review: a wrist-worn pedometer with smartwatch aspirations
When you're Fitbit, a fitness gadget maker at the top of its game, there's always the difficult question of what comes next. The answer, at least for this company, was to take its successful Flex band, and push it into smartwatch territory (if only barely). The Force keeps the same basic design and feature set, but adds a few new flourishes, like a proper screen and an altimeter. In doing so, it also nudged the price up to $130. On paper, it sounds like a recipe for success. But if you've ever bought a high-end gadget, only to have the experience ruined by a single shortcoming (say a tiny, non-removable battery), you know that what works on paper doesn't necessarily work in real life. So, the question isn't whether Fitbit can succeed (we know it can); it's whether it inadvertently screwed up its new fitness tracker. The answer is a bit complicated.
Daily Roundup: Fitbit Force fitness watch, Twitter's Event Parrot, Pantech Vega Secret Note and more!
You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.
Fitbit Force fitness and sleep tracking watch officially announced, launching soon for $130
Well, Fitbit had a little trouble keeping the wraps on its Force activity tracking watch. But the company is ready to officially unveil its latest wearable and plans to launch it in the coming weeks for $129.95. The Force borrows heavily from the aesthetic successes of the Flex, with its clean rubberized design and small dark display. That display, though, is where it sets itself apart from its more affordable predecessor. The Force is able to deliver detailed tracking information -- not just represent your steps as dots -- like the time and even (pending a firmware update) caller ID information when paired with an iPhone 4s or newer running iOS 7. Despite including an OLED screen and adding an altimeter to the mix to track how many steps you've climbed, like the One, Fitbit still claims the Force can last up to ten days on a single charge. Of course, we'll put that claim to the test when we get our hands on a review unit. Otherwise, you're looking at all the same features you've come to know and possibly love from Fitbit products: it counts steps, tracks the quality of your sleep, has a silent alarm and syncs wirelessly via Bluetooth 4.0. The only question that remains is when exactly you'll be able to buy your own. The press release (embedded after the break) simply says you'll be able to buy it through Fitbit's online shop in "two-three weeks."
Maingear launches liquid-cooled Epic series with 4th-gen Intel Core-i7 CPUs
Liquid-cooled PCs are de rigueur for serious gamers, but Maingear knows there are plenty who'd rather crowbar headcrabs than fiddle with plumbing. To that end, the company's just buttressed its water-chilled desktop lineup with the Epic Series, consisting of the full-tower Force and mid-sized Rush models. Each pack a "BiTurbo" pump design that keeps things cool in the event of a single pump failure, along with the latest Intel 4th-generation Core i7 or AMD FX processors. As for graphics, you'll get four-way SLI NVIDIA GeForce GTX Titan or Radeon HD 7970 GPUs if you opt for the Force model, while the Rush offers two-way GeForce GTX Titan SLI or dual Radeon HD 7990 graphics. There are also numerous memory, storage and static pressure fans using Corsair parts, and custom touches like lighting and Glasurit paint with an "automotive finish." Prices start at $3,259 for the Force and $3,059 for the Rush and go way up from there -- if that doesn't phase you, check the source for more.
Mobile Miscellany: week of February 25th, 2013
If you didn't get enough mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we've opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This week brought news of a new direction for Muve Music, the arrival of a budget smartphone at Sprint and a whole lotta LTE expansion. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of February 25th, 2013.
Sprint Force LTE handset leaks, due March 1st from ZTE
Sometimes tips come out of the blue: while one of our editors was out and about earlier today, someone sent him the Sprint product page above. Turns out it's for a 4-inch Sprint-branded Android phone, the Force, which looks like a version of ZTE's rumored Force that will conveniently work with the carrier's sparkling new LTE installations. Specs are middling, with Android 4.0, an unnamed 1.5GHz dual-core processor, 4-inch Gorilla Glass adorned display, 5-megapixel rear camera, 1-megapixel front camera, 1GB of RAM, 4GB of ROM and a 1,730mAh battery. Still, that'll give you quick connection speeds for $50 when it launches March 1st -- presumably on a 2-year contract -- joining its more upmarket 4G ZTE stablemate, the 4.5-inch Flash, at Sprint.
Corsair's Force GS SSD series offer its best speeds in its biggest capacities
If you liked the look of Corsair's Force GT family of SSDs, but were after a little more space, the Force GS models might fit the bill -- with some Sandforce-beating performance improvements along for the ride. The SSD sizes start from 180GB, reaching the capacious heights of 480GB, and each offers SATA 6 Gb/s connectivity. The SSDs tote a sequential read speed of up to 555 MB/s, while it tops out at 530 MB/s during writing. The 2.5-inch drives will all arrive with an adapter for 3.5-inch cubbies in tow, while you can expect to pay between $190 to $490 -- depending on your storage needs.
Researchers use virus's rogue traits to create electricity from motion
Viruses are the swarming bullies of biology, but it turns out their alarming self-replication could one day power your iPod. We've seen them in batteries before, but researchers at Berkeley Labs have now coated electrodes with modified M13 bacteriophage, a harmless bacteria-eating virus, to create the first ever organic piezoelectric material -- which can convert force to electricity. The team explained that such a substance would be non-toxic, organize naturally into thin layers and self-regenerate, giving it a possible advantage over chemical options. In theory, by attaching a thin film of it to your shoes, power could be generated when walking, lending volts to the myriad electronics we pack around nowadays. To see a finger-powered video demo of our frequent-enemies making themselves useful for a change, stroll on past the break.
BioWare: 'Gray Jedi' playstyle in SWTOR will reap rewards
Do you have aspirations in Star Wars: The Old Republic of becoming a neutral Jedi like Jolee Bindo -- but the light side/dark side alignment system is getting you down? Good news: The BioWare team is hard at work creating rewards for those who toe the line between naughty and nice. Speaking with PC Gamer, Game Director James Ohlen spilled a few more details about what he calls the "Gray Jedi" playstyle, which will be supported in an unspecified upcoming patch. Gray Jedis (or Gray Smugglers, Gray Inquisitors, etc.) happen when a player creates a balanced mix of light and dark side choices over his or her career and ends up staying in the "neutral" zone on the alignment meter. Because the game currently incentivizes strong light or dark side playstyles with specific rewards, neutral players are left out in the cold. Fortunately, the system that's coming will cater to these dirty, filthy neutrals. "We don't want to force people," Ohlen said. "Once we get to the next stage of our light side/dark side system, you'll see the rewards. Light side, dark side and the gray items will all get more powerful."
Hyperspace Beacon: Find the Force
With E3 last week, I really considered devoting this article to opinions regarding the latest news for Star Wars: The Old Republic. Then I realized that Massively already published a ton of SWTOR related articles about E3 this week. During the show itself, Dan gave his impressions of playing the game, and all four of our attendees delivered impressions yesterday. It's good to read impressions from people who love MMOs but aren't necessarily die-hard fans of BioWare or Star Wars -- you'll get a different perspective than you would reading this column. So instead, this week I'll examine the announced abilities for the Jedi Consular class. The majority of this information stems from the advanced class page, but there is a little bit that comes from MMORPG's interview with Georg Zoeller. Hop past the break as we explore the abilities of this powerful Force-user.
