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| HyperMac external battery powers MacBooks for 32 hours Posted: 04 May 2009 10:59 AM PDT
Yep, Sanho’s Hypermac is a big clunky external battery pack. Sure, we’re intrigued by the idea of running a MacBook Pro for 32 hours straight, but we’d really rather hunt around for a power outlet than drop $500 on the 222Wh unit required to make that happen. On the other hand, we could definitely see splurging for the $150 car charger or the $200 60Wh model, but we’re crazy like that. Shipping later this month, we’re told. Go here to read the rest:
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| Sketchy roadmap has T-Mobile G2 for summer, G1 v2 and Samsung Houdini for fall? Posted: 04 May 2009 10:38 AM PDT
Mysterious roadmaps chock-full of pretty pictures of fanciful handsets from the future have a tendency to appear every once in a while; on the surface, we have no particular reason to believe this one over any other, but we’d like to. According to TmoToday’s supposed leak, the HTC-sourced G2 / Magic is expected this summer — which seems like an incongruous statement considering that we’re now expecting it to launch as the myTouch 3G. That would have us believing that the doc is either fake or out of date, and if it’s the latter, that makes the other two scoops here still relevant and interesting: first up, a second version of the G1 is said to be launching in the fall (looking a heck of a lot like an Ocean 2, if you ask us). Next, we’re seeing a Samsung “Houdini” in the same time frame that could definitely represent the US launch of the AWS-enabled i7500 — especially since we’ve been expecting a Sammy Android set on T-Mobile anyhow. Whether this is all real or dead fake, it’s definitely plausible, and we’re figuring it probably comes pretty close to representing the carrier’s Android plans for ‘09. Bring it on, guys. See more here:
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| Recycle that old dumpster into a swimming pool Posted: 04 May 2009 10:20 AM PDT
Got a spare dumpster lying around? The economy's down, so maybe the average family of four isn't throwing as much trash away, filling only three American dumpsters per week instead of four. Whatever the case, you can turn that spare dumpster into a lot of gross/awesome stuff. The UK's Oliver Bishop Young has converted dumpsters into ping-pong tables, grass-covered stages, gardens, skateboard half-pipes, sitting rooms, toilets, and, of course, swimming pools. While you can rent a dumpster from a myriad of local outfits, you may want to purchase one outright if you're going to turn it into a pool. I found a 14-foot one near Boston for $1900 on Craigslist. For $1900, you could get a pretty sweet above-ground pool, though. You could get a big enough pool to invite the neighbor kids over and make whirlpools all day in the freezing cold water. Skip conversions [Oliver Bishop Young via Make] The rest is here:
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| Nintendo’s Wii MotionPlus accessory up for pre-order Posted: 04 May 2009 10:19 AM PDT
With June 8th barely a month away, we’re finally seeing Nintendo’s long (long!) awaited Wii MotionPlus dongle hit the pre-order stage. Right now at Amazon, eager Wiimote swingers can get in line for $19.99, or if you’re feeling frisky, you can also pre-order Wii Sports Resort and / or Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10. So, who’s down for making their controller the most expensive one on the market when fully equipped? Update: Good news, gamers. EA Sports just announced that Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 and Grand Slam Tennis will now be released on June 8th alongside the Wii MotionPlus dongle. View original here:
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| Supposed leaked T-Mobile roadmap shows G2 in Summer, G1 v.2 in Fall, black boxes year round Posted: 04 May 2009 10:15 AM PDT
We have absolutely no idea what's going on with all those shady black boxes in this leaked T-mobile Android roadmap, so the whole things a little iffy to us. CellPhoneSignal posted the image originally, though it only showed the Samsung Houdini and G2 launch dates you see up above. Just a few hours later, TmoToday posted the image with one more box uncovered, revealing the supposed G1 v.2 "Bigfoot". Read the rest of this entry >> Read the original post:
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| A Wheelchair Controlled By Man’s Mighty Will [The Brain] Posted: 04 May 2009 10:10 AM PDT
We’ve seen a few instances of mind-controlled wheel chairs, and now researchers from the University of Zaragoza, Spain, offer us yet another amazing prototype. The chair displays a realtime 3D HUD while the user concentrates on basic functions, such as rotating the chair left or right. That information is read by the chair via EEG waves (the electricity running along your scalp as a byproduct of your brain working). It’s the same idea we’ve seen in recent game controllers, but applied to a more practical use. The chair also features laser sensors, allowing it to override a circumstance in which a misreading could drive the user into a wall or an innocent bystander. As I said, we’re seeing this technology pop up in a few different places…which seems to imply that researchers, in general, are on to something. [University of Zaragoza via Times Online via medgadget via ubergizmo] The rest is here:
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| RunCore Pro IV SSDs launched, tested, seem pricey Posted: 04 May 2009 10:03 AM PDT
RunCore’s always offered fast SSDs, but we’re not so sure its new 2.5-inch ProCore IV drives offer the right mix of price, performance, and storage for the target market — sure, they’re fast, with up to 240MBps reads and 185MBps writes, but they’re also expensive, starting at $179 for 32GB and quickly ramping up to $599 for 128GB and a whopping $999 for 256GB. That’s a lot of scratch for the average laptop customer, and while the speed gains may be obvious, we’re not so sure the storage tradeoff seems worth it. That said, RunCore’s made it pretty easy to swap one of these puppies in: each drive includes a USB enclosure and cloning software that’ll have you up and running at high speed in a jiff. Yeah, we’re on the fence — check out a video demo after the break and tell us if you think it’s worth it. Read - RunCore Pro IV press release
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| Posted: 04 May 2009 10:00 AM PDT
If you're prone to fits of rage triggered by lackluster updates from Nintendo then steer clear of this post, friend. I can't be held responsible for you throwing your computer out the window or head-butting it. Today, Nintendo updated the DSiWare channel with Animal Crossing Calculator and Animal Crossing Clock. I don't speak Animalese nor do I wish to speak Animalese. Just give me Virtual Console for the DSi. However, both are available now for 200 DSi points each.
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| Engadget’s recession antidote: win a KORG KAOSSILATOR and a copy of Matt & Kim’s album “Grand” Posted: 04 May 2009 10:00 AM PDT
This whole global economic crisis, and its resulting massive loss of jobs got us thinking. We here at Engadget didn’t want to stand helplessly by, announcing every new round of misery without giving anything back — so we decided to take the opportunity to spread a little positivity. We’ll be handing out a new gadget every day (except for weekends) to lucky readers until we run out of stuff or companies stop sending things. Today we’ve got something really special for our musician-readers: a KORG Kaossilator Dynamic Phrase Synthesizer, and a copy of Matt and Kim’s album, Grand. Read the rules below (no skimming — we’re omniscient and can tell when you’ve skimmed) and get commenting! Hooray for free stuff! More information — and another photo — after the break. Huge thanks to Korg for providing the gear!
About the Kaossillator: The KAOSSILATOR is a new pocket-sized sketch pad that puts a world of sounds and effects in the palm of your hand. Instantly create and play phrases by simply tapping or sliding a finger across the touch pad. And infinitely stack phrases to create musical works as simple or complex as you desire! The portable, travel-friendly KAOSSILATOR runs on batteries or a 4.5v adapter. Use the KAOSSILATOR as a multi-instrumental musical instrument, sample source, live rig addition, or just a fun way to get your groove on. Matt (of Matt and Kim) on the Kaossillator: “When I was a kid, before i ever played keyboards, I once heard a poly 800 in a friend’s basement. Seven years later, when I started playing keyboard, I still remember how bad ass and thick it sounded, so I bought my first Korg. Since then we’ve used one on almost every song we recorded.” Good luck! See the rest here:
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| AT&T set to get BlackBerry Curve 8900 in the summer Posted: 04 May 2009 09:58 AM PDT
T-Mobile and Rogers already have the latest Curve, which features a 3.2-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, GPS and a 480 x 360 display. It also has the newest BlackBerry operating system. The AT&T version of the BlackBerry 8900 will be a tad different, however. Specifically, it won't feature Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) support for VoIP. However, it will have AT&T Navigator, XM Radio Mobile and Yellow Pages. We don't know how much the phone will cost on AT&T, but they are likely to keep it competitive with T-Mobile, which is currently priced at $149.99 with a two-year contract. The release date is also unknown, though expected to fall within the early summer months. Relevant Entries on SlashGear
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