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There was a lot of pee on the CES 2023 show floor
Is urine analysis the next frontier in consumer health tech?
The Olive Max 2-in-1 hearing aids come with adaptive hearing tech
Olive Union has started taking pre-orders for the Olive Max, its new pair of hearing aids that doubles as a pair of ordinary wireless earbuds.
Olive One $400 high-fidelity streaming music player, hands-on
Many's the streamer that can assault your ears with audio of all sorts, but how many can do it simply, with irreproachable fidelity, and at a reasonable price? Few that we can think of, so that's exactly the tack being taken by Olive with its Olive One, a $400 dollar streaming player and amp currently on Indiegogo. It's a disk-shaped audio player with a built-in HD amplifier, single volume dial and 7-inch touchscreen to choose your music. It includes an iOS, Android and Windows 8 app so that your handset can work as a remote control, while letting you stream music from your slate or phone, too. So how did our (admittedly non-audiophile) ears take to the device when we saw it at CES? Read on past the break to find out.
Olive: the first feature film 'intentionally' shot on a smartphone (video)
Sure, your smartphone might shoot HD, you might even have a dolly, but most of us know that 30 seconds of accidental filming inside a pocket and a blurry clip from the office party are about the best we can hope for. Not director Hooman Khalili. He made a feature length film using his trusty Nokia N8 and a custom lens, and now plans to show it in movie theaters. The film, called Olive, tells the story of a mute little girl, and the impact she has on the lives of those who meet her. Partly financed by the former Facebook CPO Chris Kelly, this Kickstarter story has the making of a movie itself. Should it raise the required $300k in funding, Khalili hopes it might even get a sniff by the Academy. That's assuming, of course, they've had a recent change of policy. For a sneak peak and a look at the making of, check the video after the break.
Olive Telecom rolls out HSPA+ / EV-DO Rev. B dual-mode modem in Russia
Qualcomm's MDM6600 RF chipset might not ring a bell for you, but the ultra-flexible silicon -- introduced earlier this year -- has launched in a product you may have heard of: Motorola's Droid Pro for Verizon. What makes it so special? Basically, it supports just about every 3G+ standard you could possibly want, up to and including HSPA+ at 14.4Mbps and EV-DO Rev. B (with backwards compatibility to A, naturally) up to 14.7Mbps, and India's Olive Telecom is apparently the first to deploy it in a modem. It's not going to India, though -- instead, they've teamed up with Russian carrier Sky Link, which means you should theoretically be rocking among the best wireless speeds in Moscow regardless of the network technology in your local area. Follow the break for the full press release. [Thanks, Bhuvaneshwari]
Olive's 2TB O6HD music server makes audiophiles (and designers) swoon
How exactly does a boutique outfit like Olive match its lowest-end offering yet? Why, by announcing it's highest-end offering yet merely two months later, of course! Sure enough, Olive has just issued its newest music server (the O6HD) with an eye on affluent audiophiles -- ones willing to pay a meager $4,999 for a 2TB unit. Aside from buying what's likely the most guapo piece of AV equipment we've ever seen, that tally also nets you a pair of TI 192khz / 24-bit Burr-Brown PCM1792 modules, "flawless" encoding and decoding of lossless audio, simultaneous stream support, an ultra-quiet 2T AV hard drive, eight layers of noise canceling padding, a TEAC CD-RW drive, gobs of analog and digital outputs, a gigabit Ethernet jack, inbuilt 802.11n WiFi, HDMI out, a USB 2.0 port and a 10.1-inch 800 x 480 color touchpanel. It's all encased in a fine-grade aluminum shell (passively cooled), leaving you with only one simple decision: silver or black, Sir Godfrey? %Gallery-107496%
Olive Media finally goes 'affordable' with sexy $999 O3HD music server
We'll hand it to 'em -- Olive Media sure knows how to design a music server. For the niche crowd out there wishing to blow big bucks on a not-at-all-multifaceted jukebox, the company has just introduced its first "affordable" HD music server, the O3HD. It's designed after the OH4D, which retailed for a buck under two large when it debuted last November. This guy, on the other hand, is listed for the low, low price of $999, and it's pretty obvious to see which corner was cut the most. The aforesaid 4HD packed a 2TB HDD, and while Olive isn't saying how large (or small, as it were) the hard drive is in the O3HD, it's built to hold just 1500 CDs versus 6000 in the 4HD. Ideally, you'd rip all of your discs directly to the system, where it would store them as FLAC (lossless) files and then pump them out over the 24-bit DAC. There's also a color touchpanel on the front, support for internet radio and a gratis iPhone / iPad controller app, just so you know. She's on sale starting today should you find yourself with copious amounts of disposable income.
Olive Telecom's OlivePad reviewed, we wish we spoke Hindi (video)
Another contender has entered the fray in the great tablet wars of 2010. It's the $500 Olive Telecom OlivePad, a seven-inch, 800 x 480 capacitive touchscreened device. Announced back in July, Indian television show TechGuru snagged one for review a few weeks back where they, predictably, squared it off against an iPad. The Android 2.1 device looks nice enough, but, according to the translation recently provided by Netbooknews, doesn't compare to Apple's device in terms of visual appeal. It is, at least, a licensed version of Android, with access to the Market and the standard Google apps, all of which look to run very well on its 600MHz ARM CPU. 512MB of internal memory is paired with 512MB of ROM, naturally with microSD expansion. There is also a three megapixel camera on the back and a SIM slot not only providing wireless data but also enabling phone calls -- though we'd advise taking advantage of the device's Bluetooth capabilities to avoid holding this chubby slate to your head. The full video is available for you after the break, but don't blame us if you only understand every third or fourth word. Update: We're a little overwhelmed by the responses we've received from this post, lots of readers offering to provide a full translation. Savvy was kind enough to provide a closed-caption subtitled version of the video, which we've placed below (click through to YouTube to turn on the subtitles). And Sasha Chhabra e-mailed us a full transcription of the entire segment, which we're also including below. You guys rock!
Olive Pad VT100 brings a voice-capable, 7-inch Android tablet to India's airwaves
Ha, and you thought Dell's Streak was pushing the boundaries of what's acceptable to hold to one's ear. In a bid to make even the xpPhone look diminutive, Olive Telecom has just announced India's first 3.5G Android (2.1 for now) tablet in the Olive Pad VT100. This 7-inch slate is said to boast an 800 x 480 resolution on a capacitive touchpanel, not to mention Bluetooth, WiFi, an SD card slot, 512MB of internal memory (plus 512MB ROM), a 3.5mm audio jack, 3 megapixel camera, mini USB socket and a 3,240mAh battery. There's also a mysterious front facing camera for video calls, and sure enough, this thing actually supports voice, which may very well make it the largest smartphone to launch in 2010. If all goes well, it'll seep out in India next month, with a price of around Rs.20000 to Rs.25000, or $425 to $530 in terms of Greenbacks. We wouldn't get our hopes up for an immediate launch in North America, but word on the street has it that Russia and Europe could see this bad boy in the not-too-distant future. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Olive Telecom India announces AAA-powered handset
Looks like someone else out there thinks that non-removable batteries are seriously uncool. Olive Telecommunications' FrvrOn V-G2300 is a GSM phone with a 1.5-inch color display and an FM radio -- small potatoes, right? That is, until you take into account the fact that it's dual-powered: not only does it pack a rechargeable Li-ion battery, but should that run out you can get an additional hour's worth of talk time from any standard AAA battery. Indeed, this is a pretty sweet deal if you're living / traveling in an area without consistent power. Throw in a decent price point ($37) and we're guessing this would do pretty well in Madhya Pradesh. Get a closer look for yourself after the break.
Olive and Thiel team up for a high end, high priced audio server
Call us crazy, but we think this is an idea that just might work. Olive, known for high-end music servers, and Thiel, who we've seen in this space purveying high-end speakers and IP-based audio solutions, have joined forces to rock your condo, trendy loft space, or dentist's office. Built around the Olive 4HD (with its 2TB storage, 24-bit / 192kHz sound, gigabit Ethernet, 802.11n WiFi, and an iPhone / iPod touch remote control app), the Olive+Thiel can rock up to four pairs of Thiel's SCS4D IP-based self-powered speakers with 6.5 Inch Coaxial/Coincident driver and 200W Class D Power Amp. In addition to the server functionality, this bad boy can rock you out via its analog and USB digital audio inputs -- trust us, Butterfly by Crazy Town has never sounded this sweet! (OK, maybe its never sounded that sweet to begin with.) Available this month for $7,900. PR after the break.
Olive 4HD makes the audiophile's music server more audiophilic
Yeah, so we made that word up -- what of it? Olive's decidedly pricey Opus No. 4 is receiving an update today, and while you'll easily recognize the looks, this new slab will be called by its new name: 4HD. According to the company, this 2TB music server now features 24-bit sound and a 192kHz sample rate courtesy of the Burr-Brown PCM1792A DAC, which should provide right around 250 times the resolution of a typical CD. As expected, a gigabit Ethernet port and 802.11n WiFi module are both included in order to get your machine on the home network, and a free iPhone / iPod touch application is available to give you full control via your handheld. The pain? $1,999, or $200 more than the aforesaid Opus No. 4. But hey, at least a dozen of Chesky Records' best HD tracks are included gratis! Riveting, no?
NATO seeks Second Life tenders
The NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty Organization) Supreme Headquarters Allied Command Transformation is presently seeking tenders for the construction of a proof-of-concept site in a virtual environment. "The first scenario is to replicate a generic headquarters compound for a NATO operation. ... The second scenario will involve replicating the Headquarters Supreme Allied Command Transformation in Norfolk, USA. The only acceptable worlds that may provide a solution to this statement of work are Second Life by Linden Labs[sic], OLIVE by Forterra, or NEXUS by ECS." Actually, this part's a little confusing, because of the three virtual environments specified as 'acceptable', only one (Forterra's OLIVE) actually meets the minimum criteria given in the solicitation. NATO SHQACT acknowledges this in a subsequent clarification document, but is still seeking Second Life submissions anyway. As it stands, it doesn't seem like any existing Second Life developer can actually meet the stringent Defense Contract requirements in any case, and submissions close on the 8th of this month.
Olive blesses Opus No. 4 music server with 2TB of space, charges $1,799 for it
We haven't heard from Olive in a white hot minute, but hey, given the price of its wares, maybe it just decided to take the whole recession off. At any rate, the boutique outfit is sashaying back onto the scene with the Opus No. 4, the newest member of its long-standing Opus Hi-Fi Digital Stereo family. As with the models that have come before, this ultra high-end music server packs loads of internal storage (2TB if you're counting), giving you enough room for around 6,000 CDs stored in the lossless FLAC format. There's also a handy, full-color display on the front that probably won't get much use, and 'round back, you'll find a WiFi adapter (for wireless music streaming, you dig?), optical / coaxial digital audio outputs, a left / right analog output, a USB socket and an Ethernet port (for more of that streaming stuff). Look good? You bet. Does it look $1,799 good? That's debatable.
Increase ROI by training in virtual worlds
Forterra, makers of OLIVE virtual worlds, along with ACS Learning Services recently conducted a proof of concept in employee training using their customized systems. It's a new approach to corporate dilemmas of training large groups for as little money as possible. The experiment began with training the users on how to move their avatars to interact, thus pushing past potential problems with people being uncomfortable in the virtual space. They were then brought into the training environment where, rather than merely watching slides go by, they must move around and interact to find the answers to questions. How do they know the info got through? Tremendous feedback.
Olive intros MELODY No2, OPUS No4 home audio solutions
Being that music lovers everywhere are scrambling to find bona fide replacements to their suddenly antiquated compact disc players, it follows logic for Olive Media to give us one more option besides the OPUS Nº5. The OPUS Nº4 is a high-end digital music server which features between 320GB and 1TB of internal storage space, an integrated CD burner, 4.3-inch 480 x 272 touchscreen, gigabit Ethernet / 802.11g WiFi, a USB 2.0 port, a slew of audio outputs and native support for WAV, FLAC and MP3 files. As for the iPod-friendly MELODY Nº2 companion, it enables various rooms of the home to access tunes stored on the OPUS Nº4 as well as songs on any networked Mac, PC or NAS drive. If you couldn't guess, both units are aimed squarely at the affluent sect, which probably explains the $1,499 to $1,799 (OPUS Nº4) / $599 (MELODY Nº2) price tags. Check the gallery on Engadget HD.[Via Macworld]
Olive intros flamboyant Opus No5 Karim Rashid Editions
Considering that Olive's Opus Nº5 already buried the compact disc (or so we're told), it makes sense to jazz up the unit and dance all over the CD's grave. Consequently, the outfit has sought out Karim Rashid to design four new motifs for the digital audio player, but internally, all the hardware remains the same. As for color choices, you'll find the darkened Digitalia, the rainbow-themed Fusion, Spectra and Morphologic waiting to be had, all of which will run you a dollar short of four grand and arrive with 750GB of storage space. Bargain hunters, you're better off elsewhere.[Via CNET]
Olive announces the 'end of the music CD,' intros OPUS No5
We realize the compact disc just turned 25 and all, but calling it dead already seems, shall we say, utterly ludicrous. Nevertheless, Olive has made that very claim as it announced "the end of the music CD" and the launch of its Opus Nº5 networked audio system. The firm's CEO even stated that its new unit was "the answer" to "replace the CD player," and it's being marketed towards audio enthusiasts who might appreciate the 123dB signal / noise ratio, minimalist design, WiFi, Ethernet port, integrated backlit display / optical drive (for ripping those antiquated discs, right?) and the 400GB to 750GB hard drive built right in. So for those ready to "move on" with their lives and dive right in to the digital music transition (ahem), you can grab Olive's latest starting at $2,999. More pics after the jump.
