Ces2010
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Viliv N5 MID hands-on, HD5 PMP makes a cameo
For those of you hoping that Viliv's aesthetic excellence will somehow make magic out of the 4.8-inch flip MID form factor, you might want to look away right about now. We too were hoping that Viliv could somehow sprinkle fairy dust on the errors of something like the UMID mBook BZ, but sadly the N5 is no such MID. It's good looking, to be sure, and might even be better constructed than UMID's entry, but it has the same squint-inducing 1024 x 600 display and aggravating optical mouse pad holding it back. In reality, both of these little computers are more akin to "observing" what it's like to have a full computer running on an impossible form factor, instead of anything appropriate for actually using that computer. Perhaps the CE-based Viliv HD5 PMP will find a truer calling. We saw the slate unit pumping out some HD video at a steady clip, and its hardware is certainly refined -- if only just a little chubby. Unfortunately, none of the buttons were working, so we couldn't hop out of the video and see what the rest of the player has to offer. At least it's not Windows XP under there, daring us to use it. Videos of both devices are after the break. %Gallery-83019%
Hivision's $149 Android-based netbook reminds us we're not really shopping for a netbook right now
We know, we know, it's only $149! What could possibly be stopping us from entering the marvelous world of Android-powered netbooking? Well, maybe it's the fact that it's been tried before, and just didn't make any sense. Maybe for someone who doesn't have $50 more to get a "real" netbook, or $150 more to get a "great" netbook, it could make sense to be subjected to a 7-inch screen, 500MHz ARM Cortex A9 processor in the name of "lightweight" web surfing, but we'd like to imagine we have a little more self esteem than that. Oh shoot, we just accidentally bought four. Check out the Charbax-infused hands-on after the break.
LEGO Universe gameplay footage full of 'imagination'
It's been a long time coming, but we've finally got a good look at early alpha footage of LEGO Universe thanks to CES10. Gametrailers has a four part video of a developer walkthrough given by NetDevil's Scott Brown, and boy is it ever full of multicolored brick-y goodness. digg_url = 'http://digg.com/playable_web_games/Great_New_LEGO_Universe_Developer_Walkthrough_footage_Vids'; We're impressed by how much this game looks similar to its console brethren, especially where action and platforming elements are concerned. Of course, it wouldn't be an MMO without social elements, some of which we get to see here. More importantly, we get a look at how the developers are handling building with LEGOs in-game. The game simulates a kind of personal bubble around the player's avatar, which is strikingly similar to the metaphorical one all kids experience when sitting on the floor with a big pile of the toys. Hm, we're pretty sure NetDevil is on the right course with this one. Check out the video walkthrough after the break.
Wireless power takes another baby step at CES 2010 with Qi standard
It's our third year visiting with Fulton Innovation and the eCoupled wireless power booth at CES, and once again there's significant progress to be seen -- this time in the form of actual shipping products like the Case-mate Hug and the Dell Latitude Z. Fulton's really pushing the industry standard angle with eCoupled -- it's a founding member of the Wireless Power Consortium, which is just a few months away from finalizing a standard based on eCoupled called Qi. Qi's going to be backed by some pretty big names: Motorola, Nokia, RIM, Energizer, Duracell, Samsung, and Philips are all members of the WPC, along with several others, and the goal is for all this stuff to seamlessly play together. Fulton had some pretty hot demos to show off of the standard in action, including a Toyota Avalon interior with functional spots for two phones, a GPS, a Bluetooth headset, and a netbook, a slick first-class airline seat with a charging table, and a hotel room with several power points -- including a slick motorized dock built into the desk for the Dell. Our favorite demo, however, was a wall sconce: an eCoupled point in the wall was used to power a light fixture, which was then swapped for a digital photo frame. Nifty stuff, indeed. Still, the big challenge for Fulton and the WPC is going to be actually shipping a bunch of these products this year -- standards are nice, but without gear in hand they're meaningless, and the rival PowerMat crew has been making a pretty big push of its own. We'll see what happens in the next few months -- and how much has changed at CES 2011. Check a couple videos after the break! %Gallery-82951%
Parts of Darkness: The other side of CES
Every January, the consumer electronics industry (and those of us who write about it for a living) descend on Las Vegas for the undisputed Champion of American trade shows. CES has come to mean many things to many people, and let's be honest here -- most of us are a little conflicted. After all, this event is our raison d'etre, and while there is plenty of geeky fun to be had, Las Vegas and the milieu of consumer electronics in general can be creepy and unsettling -- at least as creepy and unsettling as a city that feels the need to simulate the New York City skyline within spitting distance of the Sphinx. What's this have to do with gadgets and gadgetry, you ask? Well, you may think you know all there is to know about CES -- you've pored over the keynotes and the hands-ons, and you've guffawed at the KIRFs and Crapgadgets. But there is more to this tale, dear readers. So sit back, relax, and click past the break for our thoughts and impressions on the other side of CES. %Gallery-82802%
Engadget's gear of CES 2010
CES is Engadget's biggest event of the year, but for the most part we don't have any requirements on what editors should bring other than "a laptop" and "a camera." That means there's usually quite an array of devices and tools on hand -- and every year we try some new things that make an immediate impression. We threw out some basic gear statistics in our annual CES wrap-up post, but we also wanted to highlight some super-useful new tools we brought to Vegas with us this year. Some of it is state-of-the-art expensive, some of it is brain-dead simple, but all of it helped us rock out our biggest CES ever. Read on!
Casio EX-10HG 'hybrid GPS' prototype taps into accelerometers for pinpoint accuracy
It's not a completely new idea, accelerometers have been enhancing GPS devices for a while now with additional velocity and directional information when the GPS signal is weak, but now Casio is giving it a shot in its new Exilim EX-H10 prototype camera. The "hybrid GPS" shooter does the regular geotagging thing with its onboard GPS, but when signal is weak (like when indoors, for instance), the camera augments the location data with guesstimates gleaned from its onboard accelerometers. The camera also has pretty detailed maps, so you could almost use the device for navigation, though the "pushpin" view is a good start. Hit up the source link for some more shots.
Liquavista's monochrome and color e-paper displays get demonstrated (video)
Philips' 2006 spin-off Liquavista hasn't exactly had a lot to show for itself since it earned its independence, but things seem to finally be coming together for the company, which had a suite of e-paper displays to demonstrate at CES last week, a show that was absolutely chock-full of e-readers. Our very own spin-off, Engadget Spanish, got a chance to peruse the company's suite of offerings, including a prototype device called Pebble. It's a lovely, thin reader that's unfortunately not intended for production -- at least not yet. The video after the break shows displays that not only redraw far more quickly than existing production screens, but also mix in RGB effects and even multi-color backlighting. It's good stuff; you'll want to check it out.
Nanosys offers better saturation of LED-backlit displays with nanoscale coating
While we all wait around for larger-sized OLED displays to become feasible for the consumer market, Nanosys has stolen in and demonstrated a new LED coating technique that proposes to radically improve color saturation in LED-backlit screens. Based on standard blue LEDs -- the most efficient kind -- this works by applying nanoparticles to the light and thereby endowing it with the desired hue. While the nano-coating can make standalone LED lights far richer in color, the real potential is in its deployment in LED-backlit displays, such as those becoming dominant on laptops today. By employing a coated array of blue LEDs instead of the standard white stuff, this can deliver greater color saturation while fitting within the same energy profile of current LED tech. Products boasting Nanosys' new hotness are said to be coming out later this year, with some appropriate premium slapped on the price for the fancier output.
Branex iTamTam iPod docking stool ensures your backside breaks it on day one
Hey, can you feel the vibe? That was actually your iPhone being snapped off by your reclining-inclined back. Anyhow, some genius at Branex Design of France decided that people would totally buy this $570, 11.5-pound speaker stool. Underneath the hood are four 1.5-inch 10W tweeters and a 5.25-inch 80W subwoofer to shudder your pelvis, all of which contribute to an overall power rating of 70W. There are over ten colors to choose from, too. Let's just hope that Philippe Starck doesn't see this and cry.
ASUS UL80JT spotted with automatic switchable graphics, brags 12 hour battery life
How we missed this at the ASUS booth is beyond us, but leave it to the eagle-eyes at Ars to hone in on the ASUS UL80JT with an overclockable Core i7 processor and NVIDIA GeForce 310 graphics. So it's just a run-of-the-mill gaming rig, right? Wrong. The 14-inch laptop has switchable graphics like we have never seen before; the laptop automatically switches, "second-by-second" between the NVIDIA card and the integrated Intel one, instead of the "standard" switchable graphics we've seen on laptops like the MacBook Pro 15 or ASUS UL80Vt which require users to switch manually. The major foreseeable benefit of this is longer battery life even when the system is using the discrete card, and ASUS touts 12 hours with the automatic solution turned on. No word on price or availability, but we're guessing ASUS will have more details soon and that we'll start seeing this this in more and more laptops as NVIDIA spreads the love around to the rest of the industry. Update: We jumped the gun here, we've actually seen this new automatic switching technology in the recently announced Sony Vaio Z.
CES 2010: all the stuff (and more)
While certainly less "depressed" than last year's recession-tainted affair, CES 2010 was a busy show without a stand-out, knock-em-down, blockbuster release. Last year the Pre stole the spotlight, while this year we were more focused on technologies and concepts like 3D, tablets and e-books. That said, there sure was plenty of it, and we've sifted through some of our favorites to present you with a highlight reel -- just in case your carpal tunnel or general lack of motivation prevents you from clicking through all 631+ posts we did last week.
Monsters vs. Aliens to be among the first 3D Blu-ray titles
Not sure how we missed this one in all the excitement at CES -- well, yeah we can -- but right up there with Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Disney's A Christmas Carol, Dreamworks will offer Monsters vs. Aliens as its first 3D Blu-ray title (fuzzy picture of the back and full pr after the break). Now we said it before and we'll say it again, you're not going to sell 3D to the masses with animated features, but we have to wonder why Fox and Panasonic have yet to announce Avatar in 3D. Cameron came out and told MTV that the first Blu-ray release wouldn't be 3D, but we don't understand why. If you are releasing a new format like 3D wouldn't you want the hottest titles available as soon as possible? Of course we could be worrying for nothing and could learn that Fox is just waiting for the right moment to announce a 3D version of Avatar, but what about the rest of the studios? Then again, HD DVD and Blu-ray did launch with only a few titles and none were exactly recent blockbusters.
HD DVD rides again: TCL brings China Blue HD & Blu-ray together for a CES face-off
Ah, HD DVD, our old friend - we thought we'd never see you again. But there was no mistaking it, here's the logo tucked away in Chinese manufacturer TCL's booth on a China Blue HD deck next to a similar Blu-ray player. The Blu-ray demo appeared to be down when we stopped by making this not much of a fight -- although with recent gains by CBHD like adding studio support from Paramount, it may want to take this challenger more seriously. We'll move the threat level on this conflict to yellow. %Gallery-82741%
Sherwood's internet-enabled receivers, tabletop radio hands-on
Sherwood has been running with the network connectivity ball ever since it adopted Verismo's VuNow hardware into its receivers. We dropped by their booth before departing CES to get a quick look at the functionality in action (video embedded after the break), plus put our hands and eyes on the company's R-904 NetBoxx, RD-7505 receiver and iNet 2.0 tabletop radio & internet streamer. %Gallery-82720%
Panasonic's 2010 plasma line has much better black levels
While most HDTV manufactures are focused on being thin and 3D, Panasonic still recognizes the importance of having great contrast and deep blacks. Hidden away in the Panasonic booth we pulled back the curtain on a contrast demo and walked away impressed. Now obviously black levels are very hard to compare without being either being very familiar with the content or by having the two TVs next to each other, but one thing is for sure, the 2010 Panasonic plasmas (on the left in the picture above) have better black levels than the previous models (pictured on the right). We snapped a few pictures (second one with a slower shutter after the break) where you can see the difference, and judging by how close the V10 series was to the ultra deep blacks of the Kuro, we wouldn't be one bit surprised if the new Panny sets make us forget about the discontinued Kuro line once and for all -- it might just be wishful thinking.
Gambridge Z line MIDI guitars compatible with Rock Band, sort of sound like guitars
There's always someone that will tell you that you can make the Rock Band experience more "realistic," as if there was something more realistic than pressing buttons on a piece of plastic that vaguely resembles a guitar. And believe us, there was no shortage of companies with Guitar Hero / Rock Band controllers at CES -- including Gambridge, whose Z line of dual game / MIDI guitars are full-sized instruments with built in sound modules that also function as game controllers, compatible with all major music video game titles. And, judging by what we saw at the company's booth, their industrial design assures that no one will ever dream of stealing one from you. Pricing and availability to be announced.
Hands-on with Panasonic's tru2way set-back box
We searched high and low on the show floor for signs of tru2way and in the back of the Panasonic booth we found the new set-back box we told you about. The box uses the VESA mounting holes so it might make it tough to use with some wall mounts. It wasn't a working demo so we didn't get to see how well the integration was with the TV, but the representative from the company seemed to believe that the box would be designed to only work with Panasonic TVs -- we assume it verifies via HDMI-CEC what type of TV it is connected to. With most cable companies still not ready for retail tru2way devices, and almost no manufactures showing tru2way HDTVs at CES, it seems that 2010 will not be the year for adoption, which leaves next year and by then so much can change who knows if anyone will still care. %Gallery-82747%
Sonim's 'unbreakable' handset shattered on the BBC
What happens when you let all comers batter, submerge, and otherwise abuse your so-called "unbreakable" handsets on the show floor at CES? Well, sometimes they break -- as a certain BBC News video makes abundantly clear. Are you ready for the truth? Hit the source link. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Hands-on with XStreamHD, and a video
XStreamHD is going to be launching in a few months so of course we stopped by the booth to get a quick look. The user interface is modern and sleek with a focus on cover art -- it seemed snappy from our brief time with it. One thing we missed when we let you know about the ability to pre-order is that the $399 price tag doesn't include the satellite dish or installation. A self install kit will run you $99 and is easier to install than other satellite services since it is only aimed at a signal bird -- professional install costs will vary by area. After it's setup you'll need to pay $9 a month for the service and we're not exactly sure what's included, but phone support isn't. There will be a self help website setup which hopefully addresses any issues. The system is a 3 tuner ATSC DVR and of course a high quality pay per view movie service. The movies will run you between $3 and $6 each but we're told you'll have exclusive access to some titles, which could include movies that are still at the theater and those that aren't even available on Disc. The problem of course is that there aren't any TV shows offered yet, which means you're still going to need to get your Burn Notice fix another way -- no word if it'll play other content. And even worse for sports fans, there's no broadcast satellite content so even if TV content gets added down the road, you can still forget about watching the big game on ESPN HD -- of course any games available over the air aren't a problem. Overall we like the offerings but don't think it's worth the upfront costs and fees since it doesn't really let you cancel your cable. And at up-to $6 a movie, even though it is supposed to be the same quality as Blu-ray, it's still not very price competitive with Blu-rays via Netflix. Now of course we want to try it for ourselves, and if we happen to receive a unit for review we'll be able to make a final determination. %Gallery-82746%
