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Nokia Lumia 920 makes PureView appearance at Photokina with anti-shake video demo (video)
Sure, Nokia's recently announced Lumia 920 runs Windows Phone 8, but its banner feature is actually the PureView camera, which in some ways seems more capable than that of its 808 sibling. Company reps were on hand at the Carl Zeiss booth at Photokina demonstrating this latest handset's low-light abilities -- which are quite striking. Just as impressive, however, is the device's heralded stabilization feature, which captures an impressively smooth clip even with exaggerated hand shake. Considering the degree to which the Nokia rep was shaking, users with steadier hands shouldn't have any issue capturing excellent quality video. We were unable to view the clip on a computer, so our impressions are only based on what we saw on the LCD, but the feature was impressive nonetheless. We'll of course need to reserve formal judgement until we can conduct our own tests, but this PureView preview was certainly convincing, and quite encouraging -- especially the side-by-side clip comparing the 920 to a "US-based manufacturer's" smartphone. Catch it in full in the hands-on video after the break.
YouTube wants to make your crummy video slightly less crummy
Upload a lot of videos to YouTube, but still can't afford that tripod? No worries, the Google-owned video site today announced some welcome additions to its editor, which can detect problems with your video and offer up corrections, so you can brighten things up a bit or eliminate some of the shakiness. If you're the type who needs this information explained in animated form, check out the YouTube video after the break. The feature, meanwhile, will be rolling out to users over the next few days.
Tunebug now ready to Shake your cranium for $100
Announced just before CES, tested by us at CES, and launching... erm, right about now: the Tunebug Shake, everybody! This helmet-attachable speaker has certainly taken its time to reach a marketable state, but let's look on the bright side -- it's now priced at $99.99, $20 cheaper than it was in January, and it remains a pretty unique piece of kit for the active gadget maven. The Shake uses SurfaceSound technology to channel vibrations into whatever it's attached to, using it as a de facto enlarged speaker surface. We weren't exactly blown away by the sound quality when we tried it, but time heals a lot of wounds (and product flaws). If you're sufficiently intrigued, you'll find video of the retail box contents after the break and orders can be placed at the source link below.
TUAW's Daily App: Articles
We've talked about Articles here on the site before. Out of all of the apps that won Apple Design Awards this year, I would say it's probably the most underrated and most useful. It's a Wikipedia reader, which doesn't sound like much since the mobile version of Wikipedia is pretty good already. Having a dedicated app for the open source encyclopedia makes a surprising difference, though, and it allows you to consume all of that content in a really focused way. There are integrated maps and photos and lots of different ways to browse information, including shaking the iPhone to see a random page. The new update doesn't hurt either; version 1.3 adds a language picker, a new Table of Contents sheet, and an orientation lock that even works on the iPhone (a previous update already made the app all ready for iOS 4.0 and the Retina Display). Articles is US$2.99, which might seem pricey to browse content that you can already read for free. However, if you've participated in a few marathon Wikipedia sessions just by following a few random reference links, it's well worth the purchase.
flOw wireless speaker concept flips jams based on your handling
She's but a concept at the moment, but David Boyce's flOw mockup certainly has legs. The five-speaker set can be arranged in a fanciful iPod docking station for in-home use, and on a whim, any of the speaker balls can be grabbed and taken elsewhere, all while the music follows via a touch of wireless magic. But that's hardly the kicker -- each ball has integrated gesture sensors and accelerometers, enabling the user to quiet the volume by turning it over or switch from "Smooth Operator" to "Master of Puppets" by simply jostling the speaker with an intense level of force. Talk about revolutionizing a played market sector. [Thanks, Paul]
Urbanspoon shaking right along
Urbanspoon is one of the earliest "locator" apps that I put on my iPhone. It offered up a pretty unique (at the time -- this was, of course, before "shake to undo") "shake to find" feature that solved the problem of a big group asking, "Where should we eat tonight?" Apparently it's still doing pretty well -- the app has just reached the milestone of half a billion shakes. Additionally, the website that the app was based on has been acquired by Citysearch, and the app has been installed more than 9 million times. That's pretty impressive. It's also a great example of how the iPhone's unique interface can really drive attention to a bigger brand. Unfortunately, there's no information from Urbanspoon yet about what's coming in the future. This is exactly the kind of app (location-based information) that might not survive the jump onto the new iPad platform, so it'll be interesting to hear what they're planning to do going forward. However, as long as people are hungry, there will always be room for a food-finding app. It's good to see that Urbanspoon is still kicking.
Tunebug Shake and Vibe ears-on at CES 2010
One of the more interesting pieces of tech on display at Digital Experience was the Tunebug Shake. It's a small device that can be attached to a helmet (of mostly any kind) that turns it into a speaker. Coming with both a 3.5-mm jack and stereo Bluetooth support, the connection options should allow it to work with almost any audio-outputting device. Unfortunately, you can only control the volume from the Shake itself -- changing songs are a no go, or as the kind PR rep put it "it's always on shuffle." Tunebug also had the Vibe on display, which is similar, but instead turns regular surfaces into impromptu speakers. We'll be honest, the sound quality from both was a bit lackluster, but we were also testing it out in a huge ballroom full of people. We'll have to see how it really fares once these units start shipping to real live customers. Feel free to take a peek at the puck-like devices in our hands-on gallery. %Gallery-81899%
TuneBug announces Shake, Vibe SurfaceSound speakers
Speakers that use SurfaceSound technology to pump music through the surface they're sitting on aren't exactly anything new, but TuneBug has managed to put a slightly different spin on the idea with its new Shake speaker -- which, as TuneBug so eloquently puts it, will finally give you some "Music 4 UR Melon." While that may or may not also work directly on your skull, it will definitely work with a range of helmets, including bike helmets with the included TuneStrap, or skate helmets with the included Gecko Mount. Look for it to be available by the end of the month for $119.95, along with the more conventional Vibe SurfaceSound speaker, which will set you back $69.99.
Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 has the breast use of SIXAXIS ever
Ever since the fall of Lair, Sony has been reluctant to tout the SIXAXIS functionality of the PS3 wireless controller. It's no longer a marketing bullet point, and even if developers offer support for motion control, it's usually turn off as a default. (Most recently, Batman: Arkham Asylum let players use SIXAXIS to control Batman's glide.)While other developers ignore the SIXAXIS, Team Ninja isn't afraid to highlight its unique implementation of motion controls. In the first Ninja Gaiden Sigma game, players were able to cast magic by shaking the controller violently. This time around, the shaking has an entirely different (but equally important!) effect. You probably should have figured it out from the headline and IGN's cleverly constructed image. If not, there's a video after the break.[Thanks, Sean!]
Apple patents movement-based gestures for shaking, rattling, and rolling with your portable devices
We wouldn't recommend speculating too much here, but a patent Apple filed back in October 2007 has surfaced, describing a "movement-based interfaces for personal media device." If that's not enough of an explanation, in a nutshell it's for interacting with a device by tilting and shaking. Chances are this is just for accelerometer-based commands like switching to landscape, steering virtual go-carts, and undo -- but hey, if the gang at Cupertino devise a way to control an iPhone entirely by waggle, we'll be more than happy to witness a demonstration.[Via Unwired View]
Pro Applications Update improves performance and stability
Apple has released Pro Applications Update 2008-04, which includes updates to Final Cut Pro, Compressor, Color, DVD Studio Pro, Cinema Tools, Motion, Soundtrack Pro and Shake. The update, according to Apple, "addresses general performance issues and improves overall stability." No specific details were provided about what the update improved about each software component, other than to say each update "addresses specific customer issues and general performance issues." The updates are recommended for all users of the software. The update includes the following versions: Final Cut Pro 6.0.5 Compressor 3.0.5 Shake 4.1.1 DVD Studio Pro 4.2.1 Cinema Tools 4.0.1 Motion 3.0.2 Color 1.0.3 Soundtrack Pro 2.0.2 The update is available from Apple's website. Thanks, Clancy!
Pro Applications Update 2008-01
Today Apple released a Pro Applications Update 2008-01. This update is described as:This update improves reliability for Apple's professional applications and is recommended for all users of Final Cut Studio, Final Cut Server, Logic Studio, and Shake.Final Cut Server was, as you may know, released on Tuesday. You can download this update by opening the Software Update app (Apple Menu > Software Update) or by downloading the installer package from the Apple support downloads website. You can also find more about this update by visiting the Apple support note.
Japanese hardware sales, May 28 - Jun. 3: Explanatory Aqua Teen edition
We know, you were disappointed. Last night, as you happily refreshed DS Fanboy every nine seconds or so looking for this week's Japanese hardware sales, the vim slowly faded from your eyes as the hours ticked into oblivion. We would never willingly deprive our readers so; we were unavoidably delayed! You see ....Thousands of years ago, before the dawn of man as we knew him ... there were the moon men, reigning over the Earth. But this was not the Earth you knew! It was covered in jelly and high-density motor oil, making the planet very slippery. The moon men blamed the corporations, and there was a war and many were killed. The battle raged for millennia until 8000 A.D., when the moon men realized they were not actually from the moon, but from rural Pennsylvania. They then built a monument to the moon but then the Quakers stole it and filled it with oatmeal, and no one knew what flavor. Californians were highly displeased and turned all the Quakers invisible, which is why you never see them anymore. And that ... is where babies come from.- DS Lite: 123,140 4,321 (3.39%) - Wii: 69,748 11,104 (18.93%) - PSP: 26,358 261 (1.00%) - PS2: 11,814 503 (4.45%) - PS3: 8,998 629 (6.53%) - Xbox 360: 2,219 175 (8.56%) - Game Boy Micro: 310 97 (23.83%) - GBA SP: 247 41 (14.24%) - Gamecube: 226 30 (11.72%) - DS Phat: 71 10 (12.35%) - GBA: 16 1 (5.88%)[Source: Media Create]
Macs join the fight in '300'
With a shocking and awesome $70+ million in weekend box office, the film adaptation of Frank Miller's graphic novel 300 has shot (and hacked, and stabbed) its way to the 3rd best R-rated opening and the all-time best March opening in US film history. Way to go, Spartans.As noted on ballergoods.com and also at IMDB, the Mac played a big role in bringing 300 to the screen, with chunks of editing done in Final Cut and 2D graphics created in Shake. In fact, the IMDB article notes that while much of the production was on Avid systems (platform unspecified) and Linux workstations (presumably for Maya and other tools), "the filmmakers prefer Macintosh." Like we always say, there is no substitute.
No more Shake development
Remember that amazing price reduction that Apple announced along with the release of Shake 4.1 (well, only for the Mac version)? Seems that all that glitters isn't gold.Apple sent a message to their Shake users (via a listserv) and let them know that Apple will no longer be actively developing Shake, but they are working on a brand new composition product (maybe). They are offering to license the code to production shops (or users I imagine) for $50,000 (or they can get a refund for the remainder of their service contract). That might seem a little costly but you also get 5,000 licenses which is a great deal.
Apple updates Aperture and Pro Apps
Apple has updated Aperture to 1.1.2 though they haven't, at the moment, provided any details as to what the update does (at least not on their website).Also lurking in your Software Update panel is the Pro Application Update 2006-01, which ' addresses several issues with underlying frameworks and shared components for Apple's professional applications and is strongly recommended for all users of: Final Cut Studio Final Cut Pro 5.1 Motion 2.1 Soundtrack Pro 1.1 DVD Studio Pro 4.1 Shake 4.1 LiveType 2.1 Compressor 2.1 Apple Qmaster 2.1 Final Cut Express HD 3.5' So get to updating, people!
Shake 4.1
Today Apple has announced that Shake 4.1 is available. This .1 release marks Shake's entrance into Universal Binary status, and Apple says that it really flies on Intel Macs (how about an Intel Power Mac, Apple?). That's not all though, Apple also decided that the $3000 price tag for this program was a bit much, so they chopped it down to $499 which should make Indie film makers hearts beat a little faster.Existing Shake customers can get the upgrade for $49.Update: A few people have pointed out that according to the Shake FAQ you can still get Shake for Linux but it'll cost you $3000. That's right, the price drop is for the Mac version only, so I suggest all you Linux Shake users pay the Mac version and use the remaining $2500 to pick yourself up a Mac.
Pentax's K100D and K110D DSLRs
Pentax just announced their K100D and K110D Digital SLRs today which hopefully kick that ridiculous, google-hating *ist naming convention to the curb once and for all. The two DSLRs are in fact, the same 6.1 megapixel digital cams only the K100D packs in Pentax's CCD oscillating Shake Reduction technology to keep your pics clean while shooting with a telephoto lens or under low-light conditions. Each camera remains compatible with Pentax K-mount lenses, and features ISO 200 to 3200 sensitivity, a 2.5-inch LCD, and SMC Pentax DA lens with 12x zoom. Expect the K100D to ship for $699 in July with the K110D set to drop in August for an entry-level enthusiast's price of $599.
Is Aperture's future in question?
According to Think Secret, it just may be. It looks like the majority of engineers who had been working on Aperture have either left or been reassigned to different projects within the company. Think Secret goes on to claim that the applications development was "...a mess," according to a source, and that developers from Shake and Motion had to be brought in to do a little damage control.I haven't used Aperture, so I can't speak for it's supposed buggieness. It did experience quite a price drop with the 1.1 update, so maybe Apple is eager to move existing copies.
Universal Binary Shake 4.1 to be Released in May
Macworld UK is reporting today that a universal binary of Shake 4.1--Apple's professional compositing and rendering software--will be released in May. This is another sign that we'll likely see Intel-powered towers sooner rather than later, perhaps even as early as June.
