images
Latest
New Android Jelly Bean factory images now available for Nexus S models
It's been nearly two months since Google quietly posted that initial batch of Jelly Bean images for its ever-growing family of Nexus handsets. And while today a few members of the pack are being left out, those with a Nexus S (save for the Korean version) or its 4G flavor can now grab the refreshed Android 4.1.1 images (JRO03L, JRO03R) straight from Mountain View's developer site. You'll find all the necessary download links at the source below, and you can be sure we'll let you know as soon as the rest become available.
Splitmo releases Air Show, an on-the-fly editor for your photo slideshows
Ever want to change a photo in a slideshow once you've started it? If you answered with a resounding "yes," then you should check out AirShow. Developed by upstart mobile app company Splitmo, AirShow is a new iOS app that lets you edit a slideshow at the same time it is running on an HDTV screen. At its core, AirShow is a slideshow editor and has all the basic tools you need to create a photo slideshow. The app takes images from your camera roll and allows you to add captions, crop a photo and rotate images before you add them to your presentation. It also allows you to create slideshows in advance and load them as needed during a presentation. Like any good slideshow tool, AirShow uses AirPlay to send your slideshows to your HDTV via an AppleTV. AirShow's selling feature, though, is the app's ability to edit images on the fly while the slideshow is running. If you notice a mistake, you can delete a photo and insert a new one without anyone noticing. Users who want live content can even grab new images using their camera and add them into the slideshow on the fly. You can also control playback of the show by speeding it up, slowing it down or stopping it, if necessary. AirShow performs exactly as promised. The AirPlay feature works wonderfully to send a slideshow of your favorite pictures to your HDTV. Editing also works smoothly, though it is fast-paced. I found that AirShow works best when you queue up a long line of images in your slideshow and work on the end of the show while the beginning plays. If you try to edit and play at the same time with 20-30 images, you better be fast with your fingers. AirShow is available now in the iOS App Store for free.
Nokia Lumia 820 prototype breaks cover in photos, confirms little else
Renders, shmenders. According to Coolxap.com what you see above is a real-world prototype of the Nokia Lumia 820 -- aka Nokia Arrow. As well as some tantalizing hardware shots, we get a sneaky glimpse at that all important "About phone" page. All we can see, though, is that it's running Windows Phone 8 (shock) and has only 335MB of RAM? Though, being a prototype, that's likely to change. Sadly little else of note, but it's at least good to see that while the mock-ups were close, the real thing has a little more going for it.
Mars Curiosity leaves its landing area, heads to distant frontier a quarter-mile away
Now that Curiosity has survived its thrill-a-minute landing and passed an upgrade and physical with (nearly) flying colors, the rover is off to earn its $2 billion keep. The trip started well, with the buggy driving 52 feet towards its first science site "beautifully, just as our rover planners designed it," according to NASA. The destination, Glenelg, is 1,500 feet away from the now-familiar Bradbury Landing where it first set down, which is pretty far for a rover that treks along at about a tenth of a mile per hour. On top of that, its minders have some stops in mind to test instruments -- meaning it'll arrive there in about two weeks. Once at Glenelg, Curiosity will scope the unusual geology of the region, though its principal destination for science is Mount Sharp, a relatively vast six miles away. Don't worry about it running out of gas, though -- the nuclear power supply will last a full Martian year, or 687 earth days.
Voice signals sent to Mars and back, while telephoto images tease rich geology
The Martian hills are alive with the sound of music. Well, NASA Administrator Charles Bolden's voice at least, as the agency reveals that the first recorded human voice has traveled from Earth, to another planet, and back. The words might not have literally echoed in the surrounding hills, but by having been beamed to Curiosity and back again, have made a small step towards interplanetary communication. Along with the motivational words of Bolden, the rover returned some telephoto images from the onboard 100mm and 34mm lenses. The pictures show the hills toward which Curiosity is bound, and tease the scientists with their rich-looking -- and hopefully revealing -- layers of geology. Want to know what interplanetary voicemail sounds like? No need to go to Mars and back, just click on the more coverage link below.
ePic is a compact and attractive slideshow display app for OS X
ePic is a US $3.99 OS X app for displaying photos in attractive ways. It has some realistic physics, and unlike many similar apps, you can interact with the onscreen slideshow. To start, you point the app at an iPhoto or Aperture library, or to online sources like Picasa, Flickr, 500px or any local folder of images. Then you select a style and begin the show. ePic can run in a window, or full screen. It can also be activated as a screensaver after a set time. Some of the effects are old hat, like Ken Burns dissolves and slow zooms, but there are some interesting screens where framed photos float in and bounce slightly on a virtual desk. You can interact with slides, using gestures to zoom, rotate and change images. Of course, you can passively sit there and watch the images change and move on their own. Most of the effects are already in your Apple screensaver preferences, and iPhoto can do some nice slide shows too, plus integrate music if you like. Although ePic is simple to use, one control is called 'playing a round' which is not explained. The app has no help, but does provide a link to the developer site. I went there and still couldn't find an explanation of that option, although a note from the developer told me it lets a slideshow with a finite number of images repeat. ePic is a nice simple screensaver with a few unique effects. It's worth a look if this app offers an effect you crave, or if you just want a simple way to generate quick slide shows. %Gallery-163014%
New Sony Xperia T photos bare all, show its 'Mint' condition
If we didn't know better, we'd say that Sony was playing some sort of protracted game of hang-man with its Xperia line. S... P... U... and now possibly T? It's the phone bearing that latest letter in the cryptic message that we see before us today. In fact -- thanks to nixanbal.com -- we can see it from pretty much every conceivable angle. The S4-powered droid -- complete with foldout memory card slot and protruding camera -- is tipped to be announced pre-IFA, so we'll no doubt have the full skinny then. In the meantime head past the break -- and then tap the source -- to see the minty-phone in all its glory.
NASA's Curiosity Mars landing successful, first pictures trickling in (video)
After "seven minutes of terror" involving guided entry, parachute and powered descent, and even a sky crane, NASA's Curiosity rover has successfully touched down on the surface of Mars. Better yet, the 2,000lbs (900kg) science lab has established communications with Earth and is sending back telemetry along with the first pictures of Gale crater. These initial grayscale images are only 256 x 256 pixels in size but show Curiosity's shadow on the Martian soil. Peek at our galley below and stay tuned for updates. Update: Hit the break to check out a video of all the "seven minutes of terror" highlights. %Gallery-161818%
Alleged images of 7-inch iPad shell appear from the east
Hey, did you hear... Apple is making a 7-inch iPad. Well, the top brass at least thought about it, this much we know. What might it look like if it ever comes to be? Well, if you're willing to be a bit skeptical, it might look like the above. These images -- claiming to be legit iPad parts -- popped up on Chinese social media site Sina Weibo. There's little other activity on the account to back up the source, and the omission of a camera hole might irk some, but if these were early parts, then that could be something that is added later. For now, we're left to fill in the gaps with out imagination, which also includes hoping other recent teases might also make the leap into reality.
Google posts Android 4.1 Jelly Bean images for Nexus devices, modders rejoice
If you're the sort to get a little too adventurous with CyanogenMod 10 or other custom ROMs, Google just gave you a crutch. Android 4.1.1 factory images are now available for every Nexus device that can currently get a taste of Jelly Bean: the HSPA+ Galaxy Nexus, Nexus S and the expected Nexus 7. While it's not a complete safety net, the gesture will let dedicated modders flash their phones and tablets knowing that they can almost always jump back to the pure OS if someone's definition of "alpha build" is a little too rough. CDMA users are unfortunately left out of the loop; let's just hope they're brought up to speed before too long. [Thanks, Vince]
Mad Catz announces new Combat Pilot multiplayer flight sim
Flight sim enthusiasts who want to fly and train as military pilots while interacting with other enthusiasts from around the world will be able to do so in a new multiplayer flight simulator experience called Combat Pilot. Developed by Mad Catz Interactive's new internal studio ThunderHawk Studios, the game will launch summer 2012. "We believe that Combat Pilot will prove to be an important destination for the flight simulation community to gather, interact, and share experiences," states Mad Catz President and CEO Darren Richardson. "Combat Pilot will allow the flight simulation community to come together and interact as never before." However, just as real pilots can't just hop in the cockpit without a license, those entering the Combat Pilot world won't get to just hop into formation with others without earning their wings first. Interested folks should note that the game does not stand alone; it is built around Flight Simulator X from Microsoft, which must be purchased separately. For a look at the game, check out the gallery below and watch the video after the break. [Source: Mad Catz press release]%Gallery-161001%
Google image search results crammed into picture dictionary
Though not quite a replacement for Mountain View's ill-fated dictionary, this 1,240 page tome contains the first Google image search result for each word in a run-of-the-mill dictionary. With a PHP script, London-based artists Felix Heyes and Ben West scraped the image from each search and compiled an alphabetically ordered PDF brimming with 21,000 images -- safesearch-disabled warts and all. "It's really an unfiltered, uncritical record of the state of human culture in 2012," West told Creative Applications Network. Alas, the volume isn't destined for mass distribution -- presumably to avoid copyright issues -- but the pair is considering sending a small batch of soft cover copies to print.
Three more playable characters for new Double Fine game
Double Fine is building up an intriguing cast of characters for its mysterious, bone-themed game. First we had the monk, the hillbilly and the time traveler, and now we have three more random occupations to ponder: the adventurer, the scientist and the knight.Double Fine's Ron Gilbert posted images of each of these characters on his blog, Grumpy Gamer. The only other information gleaned from the reveals appears to be that the knight isn't exactly Sir Bravery, but we could have gotten that from the little shaking knees in his picture.
Earthlapse is a window on the Earth from space
Earthlapse is a beautiful US$0.99 app for iOS that gives you an International Space Station view of the earth moving below. There are 8 time lapse scenes of weather, docking spacecraft and aurora in high resolution that is almost lifelike. You can control the speed of the movie, superimpose current weather for your location, show the current time, and information about each scene. The app was developed by the folks who did the striking Magic Window app with compelling landscape scenes, and now we get to see our landscapes from space instead of on the ground. I think this app is best on an iPad, and when your iPad is not in use it makes it a pretty effective piece of art for your desk or a nightstand. The app supports a selection of ambient music, but I actually like the effect better when I am free to contemplate the scene in a quiet room. The app supports the full Retina display on the iPhone. For some knotty technical reasons, the developer says the GUI is full Retina resolution on the iPad, but the images are not. Nevertheless, the images are terrific. As was done with Magic Window, I'd love to see more scenes become available, but the app is quite nice as it is. It's just been released and is worth a look. I think you'll like it. The app is compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation) and iPad. Requires iOS 5.0 or later. %Gallery-155731%
Two new Halo 4 enemies give away their position on McFarlane toy box
Two new enemies for Halo 4 have been outed on the back of a Series 1 McFarlane toy package, dubbed the "Crawler" and "Watcher," a photo from All Games Beta shows. The box includes images of each new enemy: The Crawler looks like a hellhound stuck its head in a vat of boiling yellow glow-stick liquid, while the Watcher appears to be a moth-mounted, flying beetle creature.343 Industries better throw a leash on these Halo 4 image leaks before All Games Beta renames itself to "Official Halo 4 Pictures For Everyone Always, Enjoy."
GIMP 2.8 gets a major facelift
Popular Mac, Linux and Windows image editing app GIMP has been updated to version 2.8. This latest version overhauls the UI to offer a new single window mode that lets users edit images, choose tools and set up docks all within one window. Earlier versions of GIMP had multiple windows for tool sets and images, which was confusing for some users accustomed to a single window work environment. If you like the multiple window paradigm, don't worry as GIMP lets you choose between multiple or single window mode. Besides a new UI, GIMP 2.8 lets you setup multiple column dock windows, edit text on the canvas and group layers. It also streamlined the saving and exporting of images. You can read the full list of changes, which includes many smaller tweaks, in the release notes for version 2.8. The GIMP 2.8 source code is available for free from GIMP's website and requires you to compile the code before you can run the app on your machine. Binaries packaged for installing on the Mac will be available soon. While you wait, you can check out an excellent overview of GIMP 2.8 from Ars Technica.
Google updates Gmail's 'people widget,' now includes previous images
When it comes to an ideal conduit for minor announcements, Google's found a home on its very own social network. And this time, it's telling the world about a small update to the people widget -- that bar currently occupying real estate on the right-hand side of gmail.com. Along with showing the pertinent contact information from an email chain's participants, the peep widge will now reveal the last three images sent to you by the displayed contacts. As one might expect, clicking on the pics will whisk you to its associated email, and provide a little extra context to that candid, landscape or Lolcat you're staring at. Not the most exciting of additions, we'll admit, but a little extra functionality never hurts. Right?
NYT: New iPad screen could be too good for the web
The New York Times points out what we (and Gruber) first saw when we fired up our new iPad -- most web images look terrible its Retina display. Companies that do business on the web now have a difficult decision to make about their graphics. Do they spend the extra cost to create, store and serve up retina-compatible images on their website or do they spend that money on a retina iPad app instead? It's a decision that'll affect the company's finances as well as its website's performance as larger images will take longer to load. It will also impact iPad owners who browse over a cellular connection and must download these bigger files. If you're an iPad owner, what would you prefer?
See Ninja Gaiden 3's new DLC weapons in action
Ryu Hayabusa could probably kill demons with a toothbrush if he wanted. If any of the new weapons in this DLC pack are indeed toothbrushes, we worry about those teeth.
Apple's A5X processor is big and beautiful
Chipworks posted some polysilicon die photos that compare Apple's A4, A5 and A5X processor. What's most striking to the casual observer is the relative size of each die. As Chipworks notes, the A5X is "big and beautiful" when compared to the A4 and even its close predecessor the A5. You can see the detailed photos with block annotations on Chipworks's website. You can even grab a high-resolution version of the A5X that you can use as a desktop wallpaper.
