Dante Cesa
Articles by Dante Cesa
Bionic lens to debut in the next half-decade
Professor James Wolffsohn from Aston University in the United Kingdom imagines that within the next decade, the cure to near- and farsightedness will not only exist, but will actually be within reach. While the underlying idea of replacing biological lenses with minty-fresh artificial ones isn't necessarily new (think cataract surgery), Wolffsohn's efforts will allow patients to focus both near and far, instead of just plain old, boring far. While the details on how the lenses work are a little scant (read non-existent), apparently eye muscles squeezing the "ultra-flexible" devices allow the actual focusing to occur. The professor has been working with opthology companies to commercialize the specs, and envisions the procedure costing less than £1,000 within the next five to ten years. Sounds good to us, because fancy new lenses or not, as people who stare at computer screens all day, the odds of us going under the laser at some point are a tad on the high side.
French public rail trials RFID / USB combo ticket system
In an effort to facilitate ticket purchasing, SNCF -- France's public rail system -- will commence a 1,000 user trial of its Weneo smart card system this Fall. Riders will be able to purchase tickets with the small USB dongles at turnstiles via RFID. Once the balance is depleted, users can refill their accounts by plugging the devices into a computer, whereby they're transported to the SNCF's online hub. Since only the rider's account number is stored in the RFID portion of the smart card, this system allows commuters hassle-free ticket purchasing, all while keeping important information privy from hackers - information that some RFID devices seem to have problems keeping secret. If all goes well, SNCF expects to expand the use of Weneo nationwide by 2010.[Via Wired]
We spy Ford's future Sync plans, nab a Sirius Travel Link hands-on
Ford invited us to its swanky Premier Auto Group headquarters in Irvine, California to talk about the future of Sync and demo the latest iteration of their infotainment platform coupled with Sirius Travel Link. According to the company, Sync v2.0 debuts in November, bringing tighter integration with Ford's syncmyride.com portal, providing owners with in-depth online vehicle health reports. Also in the cards is E911 support, which automatically places an emergency call as soon as the vehicle detects airbag deployment. Sync 3, scheduled to debut "sometime in 2009," will bring traffic, news, sports and weather to Ford vehicles without requiring navigation or a monthly subscription. On the infotainment front, however, 2009 Ford vehicles with the navigation option can subscribe to Sirius Travel Link for $7 a month, enabling real-time traffic info, coast to coast weather, local gas station listings sorted by price, movie show-times and sports scores. Peep the gallery below for a smorgasbord of screens.%Gallery-30685%
Hands-off with the Chevy Volt hydrogen concept powertrain
GM spliced and diced a Chevy Volt hydrogen prototype and put it up for the world to see at this year's 2008 CES. Rocking GM's fifth generation fuel cell stack en-lieu of a regular gasoline engine, we wouldn't hold our breath seeing this before the electric version drops in 2010. Peep the gallery below for the full run-down.%Gallery-13399%
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 37
Alright everybody, round thirty-seven of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - Coby MP-C951 (20 GB) Silver - Polaroid CGA-02540: Media Backup - Photo EditionBronze - Jansport livewire: kingpin (iPod backpack) The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck! Be sure to check back later today for our final grand prize round! We'll have a certain unlocked cellphone, a DSLR, and an HDTV -- one for each of the three Engadgets. See you shortly!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 36
Alright everybody, round thirty-six of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - SanDisk Sansa Connect (4GB) Silver - Dynasty Warriors: Gundam (PS3)Bronze - iTunes Store gift certificate ($15)The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 35
Alright everybody, round thirty-five of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - Sanyo M1 (Sprint) Silver - Samsung m510 (Sprint)Bronze - Samsung m510 (Sprint)The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 34
Alright everybody, round thirty-four of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - Samsung BlackJack Silver - Impatica ShowMate Bluetooth Powerpoint presenterBronze - Samsung m510 (Sprint)The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 33
Alright everybody, round thirty-three of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - LG LN735 GPS unit Silver - Timex i-Control iPod controlling watchBronze - Jansport livewire: audio pack (iPod backpack)The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 32
Alright everybody, round thirty-two of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - Wowwee creepy animatronic Elvis head Silver - Philips SPC 900NC/27 webcamBronze - Mophie shuffle caseThe rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 31
Alright everybody, round thirty-one of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - Singstar bundle - Singstar Pop (plus two mics, adapter), Singstar Amped, Singstar 80s (PS2) Silver - Eton Red Cross emergency radioBronze - Swag bag #7The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 30
Alright everybody, round thirty of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - Hava (original) Silver - Microsoft LifeCam VX-6000Bronze - Jansport Livewire: alt pack (iPod backpack)The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 29
Alright everybody, round twenty-nine of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - Nokia E62 (Cingular) Silver - Samsung Upstage (Sprint)Bronze - Samsung m500 (Sprint)The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 28
Alright everybody, round twenty-eight of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - MobiNote DVX-POD 7010 Silver - Monster iCarPlay Wireless 200Bronze - Swag bag #6The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 27
Alright everybody, round twenty-seven of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - T-mobile Wing Silver - Cingular 3125Bronze - Sprint 595U EV-DO cardThe rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 26
Alright everybody, round twenty-six of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - Samsung i320 Silver - Nokia 5300 (T-Mobile)Bronze - Swag bag #5The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 25
Alright everybody, round twenty-five of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - Logitech QuickCam Pro for notebooks Silver - Jabra A120s Bluetooth music adapterBronze - Desperate Housewives: The Game (Windows)The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 24
Alright everybody, round twenty-four of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - HAVA Gold Silver - Monster iCarPlay Wireless 200 FM transmitterBronze - Swag bag #4The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 23
Alright everybody, round twenty-three of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - BlackBerry Pearl (T-Mobile) Silver - Sprint 595U EV-DO cardBronze - Samsung WEP200 Bluetooth headsetThe rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!
The hundred gadget giveaway: round 22
Alright everybody, round twenty-two of Engadget's hundred gadget giveaway! Up for grabs for the next six hours: Gold - Logitech QuickCam Ultra Vision Silver - Philips SPC 900NC/37 webcamBronze - Pokemon Diamond Version (Nintendo DS)The rules (yeah, there are always rules): Leave a comment below. You can just say something nice about us, or you can tell us what you'd prefer to win -- but if you're picked you may not necessarily get it. You may only enter this specific giveaway once. If you enter this giveaway more than once you'll be automatically disqualified, etc. (Yes, we have robots that thoroughly check to ensure fairness.) In other words, be careful when commenting and if you submit more than once, only activate one comment, ok? If you enter more than once, only activate one comment. This is pretty self explanatory. Contest is open to anyone worldwide! Winner will be chosen randomly. Entries can be submitted for the next six hours. After that we'll move on to the next round of giveaways. Good luck!