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India announces plans to develop robot army
In an announcement that you can probably expect to be repeated by rival Pakistan in the next few days, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has claimed that his South Asian nation will be the latest country to pursue technologies for developing a robotic army. Singh's remarks came during the inauguration of a new building for the Defence Research and Development Organization, and were part of a larger speech outlining the country's future plans for military research, where he also mentioned interest in developing next-gen propulsion, camouflage, and precision guided munitions systems. Unlike South Korea's planned army of killbots (pictured), the Indian program is pretty light on specifics so far, although we do know that the impetus for the project comes from the realization that "trans-national actors and unconventional forces" pose a growing threat when compared to the risk of a traditional inter-state conflict.[Via Robot Gossip]
Indian politicians are texting for votes
Although we doubt the practice would go over well here in the pay-by-the-message US, Indian politicians have apparently embraced texting in a big way, using SMS as a new way to reach voters in response to a crackdown on campaigning methods. The Hindu is reporting that recent restrictions on traditional campaign signage such as wall posters and graffiti have prompted candidates for the May 8 Assembly elections to find new avenues of reaching the electorate, with many taking advantage of free SMS and MMS services to send brief slogans, issue positions, and even pictures of themselves and their party's symbol. This new tactic by politicos follows a more general Indian trend of information distribution via text message, with political parties already notifying journalists of their officials' schedules and impending press conferences by SMS.[Via textually]
HP provides deets on gesture keyboard
HP just let loose with some more info on that gesture keyboard the company showed off in India a couple of weeks ago. According to HP, the keypad, which was developed by the company's Bangalore-based research team, can reproduce the script used in Hindi and other Indic languages, a process that would require up to 1,000 keys using a traditional keyboard (though most keyboards designed for such languages rely on keystroke combinations, rather than actual 1,000-key layouts). HP has begun selling the keypad in India for about $45, including software. The device is being manufactured in India by a company HP declined to name. HP sees the potential market for the keyboard as comprising up to 1.5 billion non-English speakers in India, Nepal and other South Asian countries. At $45 a pop, that could make the keyboard a pretty lucrative product for HP.
Engadget Podcast 074 - 04.04.06
We pumped out a quick podcast for you while we're out at CTIA -- so if you're trying to steer clear of all the cellphone news that's about to hit, you'll be cool with what we've got going on in the show this week. We're taking on Movielink's and CinemaNow's big online distribution announcement from Monday, initial UMPC pricing, Intel's community PC, the South Korean robot invasion, and, of course, Naomi Campbell -- back on Engadget for once again bludgeoning an assistant with a cellphone. We'll also do our usual call-ins and occasional on-air gadget review; up this week is the Moto Q. Care to see how Verizon's long delayed QWERTY handheld stands up to the Engadget test? Better listen up. Get the podcast [iTunes] Subscribe to the Podcast directly in iTunes (MP3). [RSS] Add the Engadget Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator and have the show delivered automatically (MP3). [MP3] Download the show (MP3). [AAC] Download the show (enhanced AAC). [OGG] Download the show (OGG). [Vote] Vote for us on Podcast Alley! Hosts Peter Rojas and Ryan Block Producer Randall Bennett Music J J J - 'Suits' in Japan Format 52:41, 24.1 MB, MP3 Program 00:19 - Seven major studios line up to sell movies online 06:11 - TabletKiosk And Samsung reveal UMPC pricing 11:54 - Intel proposes "Community PC" for rural India 18:44 - South Korea wants 100% robot market penetration by 2020 22:01 - Naomi Campbell back in court for throwing another phone at assistant 24:01 - Hands on with Motorola Q 29:34 - Listener Voicemail 47:15 - CTIA and the week ahead LISTEN (MP3) LISTEN (AAC) LISTEN (OGG) Contact the podcast: 1-888-ENGADGET, Engadget (Gizmo Project) or podcast at engadget dawt com
Apple to outsource tech support to India
The India Times reported today that Apple is planning to set up a massive tech support center in Bangalore, India its first tech support center outside of Cupertino. The article says that Apple will hire 3,000 tech support workers in India by 2007, with up to half of those to be hired this year. Property developer RMZ Corp is allegedly creating a 1.5 lakh sq ft facility for Apple in the first phase, and 1.5 lakh sq ft in the second phase. (Anybody know how big a lakh square foot is?) The buzz generated by this announcement includes concerns about tech support quality. Even the most politically correct among us would admit that deep down we don't relish the thought of stumbling through another tech support call to an overseas center, negotiating barriers of language and accent while trying to unravel computer problems. The effect of overseas outsourcing on local tech support workers is another concern. What will happen to Apple's support center in Cupertino?Apple declined to comment, telling the Times that it was premature to talk about it. However, an Indian government official told the paper that it had cleared Apple's investment proposal, and that operations should begin within two months.Update: It seems that a lakh is a traditional way to say 100,000, so Scott, our resident units and measures dude, thinks that Apple is building a 150,000 square foot facility which is also known as freakin' huge.
