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Virgin Hyperloop lays off 111 staffers as it abandons plans for passenger transport
Virgin Hyperloop is abandoning plans to build a passenger-capable version of its vacuum tube system.
eBay uses AI to help you shop for similar-looking items
When you're shopping, you probably have a general look in mind. But how do you describe that to a shopping site? eBay might have an answer: have AI figure it out. It's implementing a feature that uses computer vision to find items that resemble what you're looking at. Tap the three-dot menu next to a product and it'll give you both simple category buttons (such as "athletic shoes") as well as a "looks like this" option to find visually similar items. Eye a green set of sneakers, for instance, and you should see comparable footwear without having to construct an elaborate search.
Dating app Lulu's controversial guy reviews are no more
When Lulu launched over two years ago, its approach to mobile dating raised more than a few eyebrows. Instead of connecting girls with eligible dudes nearby, the app let them share anonymous reviews of men they knew, complete with hashtags like "#LifeOfTheParty," "#TallDarkAndHandsome" and "#PlaysDigeridoo." Some loved it. Some were mortified. Still others wondered what the service could mean for the future of dating. The answer: apparently not much, because Lulu as we knew it is dead. A few days ago, the company quietly replaced its original app with a new version that cut out all of those juicy reviews in favor of a more generic -- and very familiar -- dating experience.
HP announces Pivot for TouchPad, the curated, magazine-like way to find some apps
Finding apps can be tough, especially when your Store or Marketplace is overwhelmed with a daily flood of debutantes. That's not exactly a problem for HP, whose App Catalog for the webOS 3.0 TouchPad officially launches on July 1st and will be, the company admits, a little spartan at first. But HP has a plan for a future flood of apps: Pivot. It's basically a curated digital magazine that will present a selection of apps someone at HP found interesting for whatever reason -- a way for users to discover new downloads and, more importantly, for niche developers to not get lost in the shuffle. HP hopes this will attract developers, taking a different approach from the competition, which often resorts to outright promises of cash to pique their interest -- but a few free TouchPads never hurts .
Pivot Power strip starts shipping, folks who ordered a year ago rejoice
Don't you hate it when you preorder something and it doesn't show up for, like, a year? We know of at least 960 early adopters who can feel your pain. The Pivot Power strip, which lets you rearrange six outlets to plug in adapters of any size, went on sale in June of last year for $23 a pop. But, because the community-driven website Quirky is selling it, the ordering process wasn't as simple as paying and waiting for it to show up on your doorstep: the company would only ship them when 960 people "committed" to buying them -- not unlike how a certain number of people are needed to activate a Groupon deal. Well, the company quickly met its goal, the strip is at last shipping, and Jake Zien, the inventor (that's that giddy fellow up there) couldn't be more pleased. When we first reported on the Pivot Power strip's availability, more than half of those pre-sale slots had already been filled so we're not sure just what took so long. Since then, Zien & Co. have been spending their time seeing the thing through the manufacturing process. In any case, if you missed the boat the first time, it looks like there might still be additional units up for sale. [Thanks, Dan L. and Zo] %Gallery-123507%
Sleeve360 spinning, wearable iPad case getting closer to reality
ThinkFast, LLC, a design firm in Louisville, Kentucky, has come up with a totally useful and unique iPad case that caught my attention. The Sleeve360 has a hand strap on the back with a 360° free-spinning pivot, so if you're using your iPad in such a way that you literally need it constantly at your fingertips, it's there. I can see where the Sleeve360 is probably going to be tremendously popular in the healthcare industry, where iPads seem to taking off like an F-22 fighter on full afterburner. For artists who might want to move their "canvas" around, the pivot makes it possible to spin the iPad to any orientation in seconds. The strap also acts as a stand for standing the iPad on a surface in either landscape or portrait mode, and there's even a set of little feet that pop out for when you just want have the iPad propped up a little. The Sleeve360 will have a suggested retail price of US$49.99. The entrepreneurs at ThinkFast are still working up their packaging, but you should be able to pre-order a Sleeve360 in the very near future. There's video on the next page where you can see the Sleeve360 in action. It's very ZZ Top! Thanks to Tim for the tip. [via iPadCreative]
PeeWee debuts Pivot 2.0 spillproof, drop resistant netvertible for the little ones
Kids these days use gadgets almost as much as their less disaster-inclined adult friends, and PeeWee's been making laptops with that in mind for a while now. Well, the company's just launched its newest laptop for kids, the Pivot 2.0 -- which is basically the CTL 2go Convertible. This rugged little netvertible boasts an Intel N450 CPU, a touch screen that rotates 180 degrees and a webcam, and it's packed with 15 educational games onboard. As far as ruggedeization goes, the laptop boasts a water-resistant keyboard, a plastic shell that should withstand minor drops, and rubber grips for easier carrying. The Pivot 2.0 is available now and it'll run you $599. The full press release is below.
Sony Ericsson concept phone is as clever as it is unreal
Looking for some innovation to go with your porridge this morning? How about this fan-made flip phone concept that pivots vertically and horizontally? You can use it as a standard old clamshell, with the lower of the two displays acting as your number pad, or you can rotate it down to pair the screens into one snazzy widescreen panel. That's all there really is to it, but it seems like such an ingenious idea to us -- maintaining the slimline dimensions that some think are crucial to phones, while offering the generous screen size that we all want. Hit the source link to see more of this "Sony Ericsson" FH concept.
Community-developed Pivot Power strip now available to order
The community-driven Quirky website has already managed to bring products like the Space Bar and DigiDude camera mount to market, and it's now offering what may well be its most useful product to date: the Pivot Power strip. That, as you can probably surmise, is a power strip that pivots, which lets you plug in up to six power adapters or chargers of any size (within reason). This being Quirky, however, things are done a bit differently that your usual retailer -- only 960 units are available for pre-sale right now, and you can "commit" to buying one for $23. If all those are sold, the Pivot Power will go into production, and its designers and top "influencers" will receive a small percentage of each sale. That goal should be easy enough to meet in this case, though -- more than half of the pre-sale slots have already been snapped up as of this writing. Hit up the gallery below for a closer look, and head on past the break for a video and the complete press release. %Gallery-96571%
Samsung Pivot, a possible Epix successor for AT&T?
The slide here clearly identifies the Pivot as a "successor of BlackJack series," yes -- but the same slide deck also refers to the Samsung Jackie (the Jack's codename) as a BlackJack successor, so we wouldn't put too much stock in that. The fact is that this Pivot is a touch-capable WinMo device with QWERTY, and we can't imagine AT&T bothering to stock both this and the similarly-spec'd Epix at the same time. By and large, this seems like an ever-so-slight upgrade to the Epix, featuring 4GB of onboard Flash, a 2.6-inch QVGA touchscreen, AGPS, WiFi, and a 3 megapixel camera (up from the older model's 2 megapixel unit). It also has triband HSDPA for international 3G roaming, but curiously, it seems that it's lined up to launch with WinMo 6.1 -- at least at the time of this slide's creation, which has the phone pegged for an October launch. That'd be precisely a year after the launch of the Epix -- perfect timing for a refresh, and we wouldn't be surprised if they slipped 6.5 into the mix by the time that happens. Follow the break for a closer shot of the phone.
Leak sauce: Expansys rides again, three Samsung sets outed?
Seems the good people at Expansys are up to their shenanigans again, but this time we're seeing a few Samsung sets dribbling out of the leaky tap -- mind you, we won't holler legitimate 'til we hear it from Samsung. The Samsung B2100 -- apparently a follow up to the M110 and B2700 -- which actually appeared back in October 2008, The Samsung Louve (perhaps a typo of Louvre? It'll make sense in a minute) and the Samsung Pivot. The Pivot is apparently set to be one of Samsung's first handsets with Windows Mobile 6.5 and will come loaded with a 5 megapixel camera, QWERTY keypad, LED flash, aGPS, Bluetooth, WiFi, and is touted as coming in a package similar to the Samsung i780. Samsung's Louve is said to be designed like the TyTN II and shares its sliding and tilting screen -- see where the Louvre name fits in? -- runs Windows Mobile 6.1, a 3.2 megapixel camera, and shares the i900 Omnia's tweak-ready interface. The Expansys "Insider" mentioned filling in the details and posting some pics soon, we'll get those up if we see them or fill you in when we hear more.[Via Cellpassion]
Nokia patent app suggests N97's form factor isn't complicated enough
Combining huge screens with usable keyboards in a pocketable package is the challenge phone manufacturers are eternally doomed to try to solve, leading to an endless stream of (mostly comical) patent applications for ridiculous form factors that will never see the light of day. That's where we think -- well, we hope -- Nokia's latest app comes into play, combining a portrait-oriented QWERTY keyboard with a wide display that somehow swivels behind the body of the phone when you only need a little bit of screen real estate. Looks cool on paper, but realistically, we think this thing would be the most unwieldy Frankenstein of a handset since the MPx were it ever to be produced. Tilt-slide on the N97 looks fine, guys. Seriously.[Via Cellpassion]
Cable companies drop Pivot, break up with Sprint Nextel
Wow, it looks like someone was listening when we said that Pivot wasn't going anywhere just an hour ago -- Comcast, Time Warner (Engadget's parent company) and Cox have all confirmed to the AP that they've backed out of the quad-play partnership, leaving Sprint alone to awkwardly hang out with Advance / Newhouse, which declined to comment. That must be a fun party. Of course, this also means both of the partnerships Sprint and Big Cable got into have now failed, but that doesn't mean the competition in the space is over: both Time Warner and Cox say wireless is still in the cards for their companies, but Pivot was just too complicated a venture. Comcast hasn't said anything yet, but promised a comment tomorrow sometime between 7AM and 11PM.
Comcast hires former O2 CTO, possibly starting wireless division
We're not exactly willing to sign up for even more punishment at the hands of Comcast, but all you masochists in the crowd should take note: GigaOm is reporting that the cable giant is "serious" about offering wireless services and has hired former Telefonica O2 Europe CTO Dave Williams to make it happen. It's not clear what type of wireless is being considered, but it's a good bet Sprint will be involved somehow: Comcast is still in that goofy partnership with Sprint called Pivot that hasn't gone anywhere, the two companies are rumored to be talking about a nationwide WiMAX network, and GigaOm thinks there's a chance it could up and buy the struggling carrier outright. That would be quite a move, but it's all just speculation for now -- we'll let you know if we hear anything solid.
HD VOD atop list of changes coming to TWC New York / New Jersey
Just days after we learned of a few channel transformations coming up in the TWC New York / New Jersey markets, along comes word that quite a few other alterations are in the pipeline. For starters, HD VOD is slated to launch on May 15th in Staten Island (which currently has an "all digital" system), and other markets (Brooklyn / Queens, Manhattan, Hudson Valley and New Jersey) should receive the service before the end of Q3 2008. Additionally, Start Over and Quick Clips will reportedly be coming to all of the aforementioned systems on July 1st, but a soft launch is apt to sneak in a month prior. Still not enough? No worries -- Time Warner will also be busting out a new service dubbed Virtual Video Store, which will supposedly offer up a library of older movies for rent at just $1.99 apiece. Now, let's see if TWC delivers, shall we? [Disclosure: Engadget is part of the Time Warner family]
Imation intros redesigned Pivot, new Pivot Plus flash drives
As if you didn't have enough options when scouting a totally locked down flash drive, Imation is cranking out a revamped Pivot and an all new Pivot Plus to quell your paranoia. As for the former, it provides "software encryption software," ReadyBoost compatibility and capacities up to 8GB, while the all new Pivot Plus ups the ante with 256-bit AES hardware encryption. And just in case you're still worried, the drive also features "one password-protected partition that only allows storage of encrypted data and a tamper-resistant housing." As for the refreshed Pivot, it's slated to land later this quarter in the US for $29.99 to $199.99, while the ultra-secure Pivot Plus is available as we speak in 1/2/4/8GB sizes for $69.99 to $249.99.
Samsung U470 for Verizon gets a name: "Juke"
We may not know when this thing's going to be at retail, but hey -- at least we'll know our way around the external controls by the time it does. A tipster has graciously hooked us up with overview documentation for the Samsung U740 for Verizon, an off-the-beaten-path, swiveling musicphone that has apparently been christened "Juke." The key legend doesn't reveal anything too terribly special, though we're happy to see a speakerphone made the cut despite the unit's diminutive outline. Our tipster tells us "it's your basic Verizon Wireless phone," so beyond a music player, stereo Bluetooth, and a trick mechanism that'll impress friends (for a few days, anyway), we're banking on a reasonably low price point. How's everyone feeling about the form factor?[Thanks, anonymous tipster]%Gallery-7802%
Sprint bows out of wireless spectrum joint venture
Sprint sure has been backing out of and sashaying into quite a few deals of late, and the schizophrenic trend is continuing as it opts out of SpectrumCo, one of two joint ventures with cable operators Comcast, Time Warner Cable (parent company of AOL, which owns Engadget), Cox Communications, and Brighthouse (Advance/Newhouse). Reportedly, the firm is still remaining a part of the Sprint/Cable venture (now known as Pivot) as it focuses on "integrating wireline and wireless services offered by the cable partners with itself." We're led to believe that Sprint simply had different plans for investing its capital, but it apparently sees value in hanging in there with the whole Pivot endeavor. Interestingly, when TWC's CEO was questioned over SpectrumCo's possible involvement in the forthcoming wireless auction, he casually proclaimed that "it would be inappropriate for him to make any comment on it one way or the other," but if you'll recall, it most certainly picked up a few licenses the last go 'round.
Samsung's SCH-B710 with picture-in-picture DMB
Picture-in-picture functionality on a phone is certainly not without precedent -- on Korean handsets, anyway -- but that doesn't mean we have to understand it. Watching even a single show on screen the size of a thumb remains a tough sell in many parts of the world, let alone two shows side by side. Alas, this game plan must be working out alright for LG and Samsung since they keep pumping out handsets that rock the feature. Latest is the SCH-B710 from Samsung, a rather portly-looking pivot phone with a pair of DMB tuners and the aforementioned picture-in-picture functionality for individuals afflicted with particularly brutal forms of ADD. Thanks to Anycall branding, we know this one'll stay well within Korean borders, but we wouldn't be surprised to see the form factor head elsewhere by a different model number.
Pivot: Sprint's quad-play package
Yeah, Sprint unveiled the UpStage today, but the other sorta big news is that they officially took the wraps off of Pivot, the new name for their new quad-play service bundling up wireless, voice, broadband, and cable TV as a single package (they've been offering service in a handful of markets for a while now, they're basically just rebranding everything). Sprint's partners in Pivot are a handful of different cable providers, including Comcast, Cox, and our arch-nemesis Time-Warner Cable (which is owned by our parent company's parent company -- not that it's done a damn thing for the totally awful cable TV and internet service we get at Engadget HQ). All the big telcos are pimping these triple-play and quad-play packages -- they see them as a way to lock-in subscribers by offering them lower prices than consumers would pay for each service separately -- but Sprint's big selling point is that they're also promising some intergration across services, like the ability to program your DVR box from your cellphone (which we've already seen from AT&T), check home email and voicemail from a single interface, and make unlimited calls between your home VoIP line and your mobile phone. Anyway, Pivot is currently available in eight cities now, with another 40 more set to launch this year. Pricing will vary by market. Click on for a few more shots of the cellphone/DVR interface.
