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Dynaudio releases active Focus 110 A speakers
Anyone who's ever heard good self-powered speakers next to an equivalent passive setup will attest to the advantages of the active approach. Sadly, market forces overwhelmingly favor the passive approach, except on the desktop, where "multimedia" speakers thrive. Dynaudio's new active Focus 110 A speaker is attempting to take the company's success with the MC 15 model off of the desktop and into the rest of the house. With dual 50-Watt amplifiers in each speaker (one for the tweeter and another for the mid/bass), these beasties certainly have the potential to sound a lot bigger than their size; and at $2,450 for a pair, they had better. Expensive, for sure (you didn't expect Dynaudio to come in cheap, did you?), but you will save some money by not having to get an amplifier or receiver. Press release after the break.
Nokia N79 Active to come with heart rate monitor, guilt
We knew something was up with these Bluetooth heart rate straps from Polar, and sure enough, Nokia has announced a partnership to get serious fitness monitoring integrated with its products. The first to take advantage will be a special version of the N79, creatively dubbed the N79 Active, which will include 4GB of onboard memory the requisite strap right in the box and sell for about €375 ($494) when it ships "soon" in "select territories." Of course, the new hardware isn't any good without new software, and it just so happens that the N79 Active will include a new version of Nokia's Sports Tracker app for keeping tabs on workouts. We'd heard that other Polar accessories like cadence sensors for biking fanatics were in the works, so this could end up developing into a whole franchise.[Via All About Symbian]
EA SPORTS Active is hardly the Wii Fit slayer we were hoping for
Our exercise-averse bones were certainly shaking at rumors of EA's supposed onslaught on the Wii Fit-dominated "video games don't have to be fun, they can also make you sore and grumpy" market, but we must admit we're a little disappointed in the end product. EA SPORTS Active for the Wii eschews Nintendo's Wii Fit peripheral entirely, instead opting for a leg strap to hold a nunchuck controller and track the movements of your rippling thigh, while an electronics-free resistance band is there to make everything harder. The good news is that Bob Greene, Oprah's personal trainer, was involved in Active's creation and the wide assortment exercises it will subject you to, so you know it's going to turn you into an eternally beautiful and endlessly influential TV talk show host in a few short weeks. Speaking of, did everybody see that 30 Rock episode with Oprah in it? Can we just give Tina Fey all the Emmys right now, or do we have to wait until next year? Video of EA's Active is after the break.
Mac 101: Active Screen Corners
New to the Mac? Welcome back to our Mac 101 series, which explores the basics of Mac OS X, provides tips and tricks, and dives into key features of Apple's bundled tools. If you've ever had a panicked moment at work when you need to clear your screen quickly (because you're working on a colleague's birthday card, of course!), Active Screen Corners are for you. They can also activate your screen saver, and help you manage Spaces and Exposé. To use Active Screen Corners, first open System Preferences (by selecting it from the Apple Menu). Then, click the "Exposé & Spaces" icon. In the Exposé tab, you'll see there are four corners that you can activate. To use an Active Screen Corner, just move your mouse all the way into that corner. To reverse the action, just move your mouse out of, and then back into, the same corner. For each corner, there are several handy options. Read on to see what you can do with your Active Screen Corners.
MartinLogan goes fully powered with its Feature loudspeaker
We're longtime fans of active fully powered loudspeakers primarily because they allow the manufacturer to get the best sonics by optimizing the speaker-amplifier integration and also they make cabling the system up a little nicer, too (interconnects are thinner and more flexible than speaker cables in our system). So MartinLogan's move to putting a 150-Watt amp in its Feature LCR (wall-mountable, too) speaker to power up the electrostatic membrane, dome tweeter and dual 5.25-inch woofers should be good for the target high-end audience -- great sound, a tidy install and we imagine at $1695 each, a nice margin for MartinLogan. You didn't think you were going to get into electrostats on the cheap, did you?EDIT: MartinLogan is keeping us honest -- "active" would imply an adjustable crossover, which these speakers do not have; so "fully powered" it is!
WotLK Beta test begins to ramp up
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/pc_games/World_of_Warcraft_Wrath_of_the_Lich_King_Beta_Is_Starting'; The beta test is beginning to ramp up. Tonight we have word that the beta downloader is in action and delivering data to those that have access to it (via WotLK Wiki). This is an obvious indicator that Blizzard has switched over to the beta testing phase, and that they are getting ready to send out invites.Additionally the beta page at beta.worldofwarcraft.com now shows beta information and activity. If you do get a beta key, you can use this page to sign up and gain access to the client files. It would be a good time to start keeping and eye out for a real beta invite, and let us know if you get one if you're one of the first lucky few. However at the same time, please be very careful not to fall for any beta scams.WoW Insider will keep you posted throughout the evening on this breaking news.%Gallery-5525% Hungry for more Wrath of the Lich King Beta news? WoW Insider has a slew of articles for you including a walkthrough of the new Achievement system, the new Death Knight Runeforging skill and maps of Northrend. Keep checking the site for more class analysis and insights to the changes.
Nintendo's Wii a hit with the geriatric set?
No, we don't expect the vast majority of elderly folks kickin' it in a retirement home to honestly show any interest in video games (right?), but apparently, the Wii's at least making some minor strides in getting the geriatric set up and active with virtual sports. While we assume those suffering from lingering hip injuries are apt to join the (admittedly quiet) cheerleading section, a group of athletic 70-somethings from Sedgebrook retirement community are "hooked on Wii Sports," with bowling being the unanimous favorite. The response has been so positive that the locale is actually cranking up a 20-person tournament for an undisclosed reward, and while the residents have often commented about how "realistic" the Wiimote was in tossing the ball, the community actually has a fan for folks to dry their hands off before rolling a strike -- which is probably a smart move considering the potentially fatal injuries that could occur from slippage. Still, an isolated incident of fun-lovin' grandparents getting their game on isn't apt to convince us that the next big gaming market is in retirees, and honestly, how many elderly folks rushed out to snag a Wii for the grandchild, and ended up keeping it for themselves?[Via DailyTech, thanks Randall B]
Shocking study reveals that activity in gaming fights obesity
Providing a mighty blow to both "research studies" and the value of Ph.D degrees everywhere, the latest rubbish information to come flowing from the Mayo Clinic's research lab is as close to an insult to intelligence as you can get. While it may have been somewhat understood that television can act as a painkiller for children, and that wireless headsets actually don't improve driving safety, this obviousness of this one takes the literal cake. The study, which is proclaimed as the "first to scientifically measure the energy spent playing video games," proved that sitting around while gaming burned the same amount of energy as kicking back and watching the tube, but when engaged in a "camera-based activity" (Eye Toy?), the "energy expenditure tripled." It was also shown that walking on a treadmill while gaming it up also tripled the energy burned, but it showed a "fivefold increase for the mildly obese group" of participants. While these results may be miles away from shocking, the most depressing aspect of the entire study was the conclusion that the results were so awe-inspiring that "they warrant further studies in randomized trials." Now, who's paying for this hoopla again?[Thanks, Mike]
Astrologer predicts the future of the Wii
And then Elvis came and denounced the horoscopes, and then Sony made a good PR move. No, folks, astrology is total crap, but that didn't stop some hotshot from making an entertaining article using lots of silly-sounding terms like "synastry" and "radix". Who's destined to come out on top?As it turns out, Sony has its celestial bodies in order for the coming year. The 360 is decent, but the worst? My goodness, it's the Nintendo Wii. Apparently, the Wii's residence within Scorpio denotes permanence. This clashes with their "active" gaming philosophy, thus creating an unfavorable situation for the company in the future.The PS3, looking hotter than the Wii? Now we know astrology is fake.[via Joystiq]
Fujitsu unveils GPS receiver with integrated RFID tag
While we've got both GPS receivers and RFID tags handling very important duties around the world, Fujitsu has gone and unveiled a GPS unit with built-in RFID capabilities to provide the best of both worlds. The Tag Locator V2 sports the locating abilities we've come to know and love, promising accurate longitude / latitude measurements between "three and five meters, and bundles in an active RFID tag that operates on the 429MHz frequency band. Once the GPS receiver beams out the location data, the device then communicates the RFID information via "a unique ID," and can purportedly channel its data to any reader within 200 meters. Designed primarily to provide constant streams of precise data in airports, garages, and other locales that manage a plethora of equipment / vehicles (or lucrative PS3 boxes), the units should hit shipyards soon at ¥20,000 ($169) a pop.[Via RFID in Japan]
Darken apps in the background with Doodim
For those times when you need complete, uninterrupted concentration on a particular app you're working in, there is Doodim: a simple menubar utility that creates an Exposé-like dimming effect on the desktop and all background app windows. Doodim's product site offers a simple animated screenshot demo to help you see what really goes on, and users can even take the dimming effect all the way to black, so no nothing else is visible, save for the app you're working in. It's a slick idea and is done well, and toggling the dimming effect is simply handled from the menubar (the menubar, if you're wondering, is not dimmed). The site lists one known catch so far, which I personally haven't run into while playing with this: apparently, the dim effect can fail sometimes while switching between apps. Bouncing from Firefox to Mail, Adium, NetNewsWire, Safari and iTunes hasn't produced any issues for me yet though.Doodim is provided free from La Chose Interactive, and I'm not sure if it's 10.4-only or not.
The M81: BenQ-Siemens gets in touch with its sporty side
Apparently, the folks at BenQ are looking to make a run on Nokia's "active lifestyle" category of phones, unleashing the shock / splash / dust-resistant M81 today in Munich. Besides the navigation (GPS module sold seperately) and weather clients, built-in flashlight, and relatively tough exterior clad in "high-quality synthetics and rubber," not much differentiates the device from your typical midrange candybar: 900 / 1800 / 1900 GSM with EDGE data, 176 x 132 display, 1.3 megapixel camera, music player, and MicroSD slot in your choice of Graphite Black or Steel Blue. The M81 starts shipping to joggers and snowboarders in August.[Via Slashphone]
