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Engadget Live's final stop this year is in New York City tonight!
After stops in Boston, LA and Austin the Engadget Live tour is coming to a close for 2015. Before we park the party bus for the year, we're making one last stop tonight: New York City. Join us at the Liberty Warehouse in Brooklyn starting at 7PM to hang with your fellow tech junkies and some of the companies you know and love. Ford will be showing off its SYNC 3 system and the new 2016 Ford Escape. And if you're 21 or over, Drizly will mix you up a cocktail -- so long as you're one of the first 250 folks to arrive. Tickets are still available (and they're free), so if you're in NYC stop by and join us!
Engadget Live comes to Boston on July 17th!
Because we love Beantown, we're kicking off this year's Engadget Live series in Boston on July 17th at Royale from 7pm-10pm. This night will be all about bringing our esteemed editors and readers closer together in the best way possible: over booze and gadgets. Or booze sent to you by gadgets, thanks to our friends at Drizly who will be hosting the bar. After you order your tickets to Engadget Live (they're free), you're more than welcome to download the Drizly app and start the party early.
Watch these adorable robots dance better than you
We're used to seeing robots like MIT's Cheetah that are absolutely terrifying, so starting day two of Expand New York with an android dance party was a welcome change of pace. It came, of course, by way of the folks at Aldebaran Robotics who brought a trio of their fifth-generation Nao bi-peds to bust a groove. The outfit's James Dietrich said that while there are over 10,000 of the friendly little 'bots in use in some 70 countries, there are a more than a few things holding us back from having Rosie from The Jetsons in our homes. Namely, the price needs to come down: Developers can get one for $6,000 and a consumer model is a whopping $8,000.
A colony on Mars will be the 'next giant leap for mankind'
Bas Lansdorp, CEO and co-founder of Mars One, is nothing if not ambitious. His dream is the stuff of science fiction -- not only does he want to put humans on Mars in 2025, but he wants to leave them there to establish a self-sufficient settlement. And he plans to fund the enterprise, in part, by televising everything from pre-mission training to daily life on the Red Planet. Or as much as the colonists want us to see, anyway, as they'll ultimately be in control. As you can imagine, he's a pretty interesting guy to talk to, which is why we were psyched to have him on the Engadget Expand stage to articulate his vision, and what he hopes it'll mean for humanity.
3D printing is venturing beyond plastic and into your home
When you think of what 3D printing can do, you probably imagine simple plastic models and parts -- clever, but not exactly revolutionary. If you ask Dovetailed's Vaiva Kalnikaite and Make's Anna Kaziunas France, however, they'll tell you that 3D printers can accomplish much, much more. Dovetailed's 3D-printed fruit is just the start of what you can do with food, for example. Kalnikaite told Engadget Expand guests that 3D printing offers not just extra creativity with how you present meals, but a way to change the meals themselves. Do you like the taste of bananas, but not their texture? You could print food that offers everything you like, and nothing you don't. This could be particularly helpful if you have a food allergy, since you could enjoy food that was previously off-limits.
Even you can build your own social wearable
It's easier than you think to create your own wearable gadget -- assuming you're handy with a needle and thread. At Engadget Expand this weekend, Kate Hartman, an associate professor at OCAD (Ontario College of Art and Design) University led workshops focused on building social wearables. Unfortunately, I quickly learned that my inability to sew well would hinder my wearable dreams. But, as you can see in the gallery below, others were far more successful.
60 seconds with the world's first Bluetooth padlock
In just a matter of three months, the Noke smart padlock managed to make its way from Kickstarter to our Expand event as an Insert Coin contender, so of course it's rather special. First of all, it's a Bluetooth 4.0-enabled steel bolt that can be unlocked with a click on the shackle when your iPhone or Android phone is nearby. Secondly, the companion app lets you share your Noke locks with family and friends, thus saving you the hassle of passing on a physical key. You can even set the repetition and security level for the authorization, as well as tracking history by users or by locks.
60 seconds with a simple but smart home monitoring device
There are already plenty of ways to keep an eye on your abode from afar, so any new home monitoring product better have a fresh approach if it wants to stand out from the competition. For start-up Form Devices, the goal wasn't to create an elaborate, connected home security system that did more than existing products, but to make something simple, affordable and user-friendly. And, it must've done something right with its Point home monitoring device, which cruised past its $50,000 Kickstarter goal just two days after the campaign went live, and is now participating in our Insert Coin competition at Engadget Expand. The plain white, palm-sized puck hosts sound, humidity, temperature, air quality and particle sensors, but no camera. This was a very intentional omission, not just because Point is supposed to be small and inconspicuous, but so users have peace of mind that nobody will ever be watching them.
Taking apart Google's modular smartphone
What do you want to know about Project Ara? Does a modular smartphone actually work? Yes. Is it very different from Android phones? In a basic how-a-phone-all-works, yes indeed. Paul Eremenko, Technical Project Lead on Google's modular phone project just called in at Expand NY, and he brought along the latest working prototype. Modular phones do indeed work: you can take out a component without bricking the device, it can already run Angry Birds and we just got to play with one.
Adafruit's Becky Stern knows why we don't have stylish wearables yet
Becky Stern is probably the world's foremost expert in do-it-yourself wearable technology, which is why we felt compelled to pick her brain at Expand. Adafruit's director of wearables believes that the different languages that technology and fashion companies explains why we've yet to see a truly stylish wearable. She didn't have many kind things to say about the Moto 360, either, since she carries the disassembled hardware in a Ziploc bag around with her. It's not all doom and gloom, however, since the smartphone revolution has made high-end technology cheap enough for everyone to use. That's part of Stern's mission to teach everyone how to build their own GPS trackers, light-up hats and, most famously of all, TV-deactivating jackets. On that subject, it's the infamous TV-B-Gone hardware that she'd most like to see appear in a next-generation smartwatch so she's got a way to discreetly turn off barroom TVs without attracting attention. If you'd like to be inspired to build yourself some cool technology, you can watch the full video, and keep your eyes pointed toward Engadget for even more cool interviews over the next few days.
60 seconds with the team that wants to make every car smart
Wouldn't it be great if you could change your car's head unit as frequently as you do your smartphone? Enter Onics, a startup that's crafted a dashboard-mounted module that lets you turn your phone into your car's nerve center. Essentially, the hardware's just a double-din unit with a locking clip up front, that'll accept any Android or iOS smartphone that's up to six inches in size. Rather than trailing a power wire from the 12V socket, there's a built-in microUSB or Lightning port, and if your vehicle supports it, you'll even be able to start the car with your mobile.
60 seconds with the wearable that might save your back
This Insert Coin contender could well cure what we call "Engadget back": the slightly unappealing hunch that some editors (read: this editor) descend into after typing away at one too many articles or trade shows. The Upright sticks (through a hypoallergenic adhesive strip) to the small of your back, where it uses multiple sensors -- an accelerometer and a strain gauge -- to monitor the line of your spine -- and tell you through gentle vibrations when you're doing it wrong. We just tested it briefly here at Expand, and the reminder vibrations are far more gentle than, say, your smartphone. It kinda feels like soda water on your skin: enough to remind you that you're slouching but not enough to grate. The team behind it reckons that 15 minutes a day will be enough to reeducate your back muscles and a Bluetooth connection links the device to your smartphone to keep everything recorded for future posterity.
60 seconds with a giant, rollable display for your mobile devices
At some point, you've probably wished that your smartphone had a much larger screen to watch a movie or get work done... but you can't always lug a desktop display or tablet around, can you? If Insert Coin finalist RollRR has its way, you won't have to. It's developing rollable displays that would give your mobile devices a lot more visual real estate without consuming much space in your bag. The prototype on the Engadget Expand show floor is a 10.7-inch roll of e-paper attached to a giant tube, but the ultimate goal is to fit a 21-inch or larger screen (ideally, full color plastic OLED) into a gadget the size of a small umbrella. It's also considering touch technology like 3M's silver nanowires, so RollRR could expand your input area, too -- you could edit a large image on your phone just by unrolling the sheet on a table.
60 seconds with a modular drone that packs a pro camera
We're entering a golden age of UAVs, with models ranging from hobbyist drones like the Parrot AR Drone 2.0 all the way up to DJI's DSLR-packing Spreading Wings S900 Hexacopter. So what could our Insert Coin semi-finalist drone possibly bring to the party? Ivan Stamatovski said he created the EasyDrone for one simple reason: portability. Unlike most commercial drones, the EasyDrone can be broken down into a relatively compact case and easily assembled without having to connect any wires. At the same time, it comes with all the capability of a high-end drone: video streaming, a built-in gimbal, the ability to carry heavier cameras like Sony's NEX models and a high-end navigation system from 3D Robotics.
We're taking over Los Angeles on October 3rd!
Austin, Seattle and Boston welcomed our Engadget Live tour this year with open arms and before we gear up for Engadget Expand, we're heading to one more city: Los Angeles. Grab your free tickets and join us at the Belasco Theater on October 3rd at 7PM.
Here's what happened at Engadget Live Seattle
Engadget made another appearance in Seattle last Friday, again taking over the Showbox SoDo. This year's stop in the Emerald City was the second in our series of Engadget Live events, where readers can meet, mingle and try out all sorts of new tech. More than 1,000 folks did just that on a sunny day in the Pacific Northwest. Friends were made; photos were taken; and alcohol was... inhaled. Check out the gallery below for a few highlights.
Engadget Live Seattle is this Friday!
To all our wonderful friends in Seattle, let's make it clear: there's no better place to be this Friday (July 18th) at 7PM than the Showbox SODO for our second Engadget Live event of the year! Why is this a cant-miss event? Flip through the gallery below to find out.
Engadget Live heads to Seattle on July 18th!
Seattle, the always caffeinated, drone-building, Super Bowl-winning, beautiful city that coddles the Puget Sound. We had such a great time hanging with the locals last year that we're making a comeback. Join us at Showbox SODO on Friday, July 18th, 7PM sharp for our second Engadget Live event of the year. (If you happen to be in Austin, Texas, this coming Friday, join us at our first "Live" event there!) What's Engadget Live? Unlike trade shows and press-only events, we bring together gadget lovers with tech brands in an interactive environment. A bunch of great companies (mostly local ones!) will show off their newest products and get feedback directly from fans like you.
